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I’m married and dating a younger man!

January 5, 2010 by Kelli

Did you ever fear when you got married that you would miss dating? That you might long for the excitement of going out with someone new and different – the butterflies, the joy of a shared moment, smiles exchanged, hands held?

I will confess – I did worry about it. It wasn’t a worry that kept me up at night or made me question whether or not I should marry Lee, but I did think about it some in the months leading up to our marriage. I was barely 22 when we got married. I was very young and I knew that by marrying so young I was giving up a bit of “life.” In fact, when Lee proposed to me I was only eighteen months out of my teens.

In short, I was a baby.

Of course, I didn’t think that at the time. I felt more than grown up and I was mature enough to step into marriage. But looking back at it now, 22 seems so very young.

So yes – a couple of times during our engagement, I wondered if I would miss dating. I worried that maybe the thrill of the chase would be over and I would never get to experience that excitement again.

Now that I’m so old (eyeroll), though, I have a little perspective. First of all, I’m happy to say that I still get excited to go out on a date with my husband. How naive I was to think that marriage would squeeze an ever tightening noose around the neck of excitement. If anything, I get more excited to be alone with my husband now than I did back in those early days when I took for granted the endless alone time we had. My husband can still make me giggle and he still gives me goosebumps when he comes out all dressed to the nines and dapper. That didn’t die when we said “I do.”

But, I also now have the opportunity to date someone else. And going out with this young man gives me a new and different kind of excitement. When he smiles at me, my stomach flutters and my heart skips a beat when he holds my hand in public. And he’s only six years old. I never imagined it could be so fun to date my child. Seeing his eyes light up at the prospect of having alone time with me is better than any new romance I ever experienced in college.

I also get to date my daughter. Tonight she and I went swimming at the gym. Just the two of us. We giggled and laughed. We talked directly to one another without interruption. We played and splashed and hugged and kissed. And I had the time of my life. And soon Landon will be old enough to date – although I have to say that the alone moments he and I get when the older two are at school are priceless and precious.

So gone are the feelings and fears that life will somehow be monotonous with the same person day in and day out. I experience a lot of feelings on a day to day basis and I can guarantee you, monotony is not one of them. I am dating more now than I ever did before and while Lee and I don’t do the best job of carving out alone time with one another, the fact is we don’t really have to. I’m perfectly content sitting right here with him as he plays LEGO Star Wars on the Wii and I type away on Lucy. I don’t need the fancy dates that I needed back when I was but a whipper snapper.

I just need my husband by my side and my children close by and all is well.

Although a glass of wine would be nice too…

Excuse me.

Filed Under: Family, Life, Marriage, Sloan, Tia Tagged With: Dating after marriage

What goes around comes around…or comes up in our case.

December 17, 2009 by Kelli

Take a trip with me will you. It’s a trip down memory lane. Pull up a chair, grab a cup of bubbling hot tea and head back to 1984.

I’m six years old and we are preparing to move from the LA area to Wisconsin. Before we leave, we (and by “we” I clearly mean my parents since they called the shots back then) decide to visit a few sites in LA that we missed in the couple years that we lived there.

One of those sites is a tour of the Queen Mary, a retired ocean liner that’s famous for something or other. I honestly have no idea what it’s famous for. I was six. I didn’t pay attention to the tour guide.

Before we boarded the Queen Mary, however, we got a big pancake breakfast. As we headed to the ship, I felt a distinct and uncomfortable rumbling in my stomach. When I mentioned it to my parents they gave me a highly unsympathetic, “Sorry babe. You’ll be alright.”

As we ascended an escalator somewhere inside the Queen Mary, my stomach began to flip upside down. Again I mentioned the issue to my parents. They were behind me and even though I couldn’t see them, I heard their eyes roll back in their heads.

“Kelli,” my mom said, “You always have a stomach ache. You’re going to be fine.”

Hmph. It wasn’t my fault that I was scrawny and gassy. I kept my mouth shut. And the tour commenced.

Just as we reached the main deck, the tour guide took us to a railed off section that looked down into the engine room. The famous engine upon the famous Queen Mary that’s famous for…something.

As I looked down at the massive engine and listened to the tour guide drone on and on about the inner workings of the old ship my stomach flipped again and as it did so, it propelled the food I had eaten earlier up and out of my mouth with vicious force.

What happened next is a bit of a blur. I remember running across the main deck of the ship spewing this way and that, my mom’s hand over my mouth trying to contain some of the wreckage.

I remember my dad running behind us, dragging my brother along and yelling, “Take your hand off her mouth, she’s gonna choke!”

I remember some strange man running next to my mom, yelling and pointing her to the nearest bathroom.

And that my friends is the story of the day I desecrated The Queen Mary. I think I was in college before I was able to eat pancakes again.

Now, fast forward 25 years to last night at a birthday party for a friend. Tia was complaining of a tummy ache. But given the fact that she ate massive amounts of candy and cookies at her class Christmas party yesterday, I held out hopes that it was simply an upset tummy.

She can’t help it that she’s scrawny and gassy.

When we arrived at the bounce house, she jumped all of two minutes and then came and sat down, still complaining of a tummy ache. An hour into the party, my fears were confirmed when Tia clamped her hand over her mouth and her eyes widened.

We were as far away from the bathroom as we could possibly be, we were surrounded by other children, and standing on a carpeted floor next to a giant blow up bounce house that I knew would not be easy to clean.

So I grabbed her hand, clamped my other hand over her mouth and we took off.

We almost made it. We made it at least to the hallway, which was mercifully tiled, before the dam broke.

And that was the day Tia desecrated BounceU. It’s not nearly as bad as puking all over a historical landmark, but the circumstances were similar nonetheless.

And as I cleaned up the poor girl in the bathroom, I wondered if perhaps this was one of those things that fell under the umbrella of my mom’s prayer that someday I have a child that was just like me.

Not cool, mom. Not cool.

Filed Under: Family, funny stuff that happens, Gross, Kids, Motherhood, Tia Tagged With: The Queen Mary

Wherein I leave you with more photographs

December 11, 2009 by Kelli

Today, as the temperatures are hovering in the teens, I am longing to be back in this lovely place. Yes, loooooonging…

This adorable little boy will be two in five days. Excuse me while I go sob in the corner for a bit.

Turns out Tia has a knack for gymnastics. After only a few weeks of lessons, she was bumped up to a more advanced class where she is the only three year old in a group of four and five year olds.

She’s perfected her cartwheel and now does it off our ottoman whilst pretending that it is a balance beam. She is freakishly strong and has no fear. But really, does this surprise anyone? Remember this picture, which I took when she was not yet two years old?

Then, of course, there was this post which described the catalyst for us actually signing her up for a gymnastics class.

Mmm-hmm…We’re not shocked that she’s got some talent in the gymnastics arena. Unfortunately, she’s going to be way too tall for the sport, but we’ll let her keep it up for as long as she enjoys it.

And speaking of Tia – wasn’t it just yesterday that she looked like this standing next to her not yet four year old brother? She is now less than two months away from being four herself.

If anyone has discovered a way to make time stand still, please pass on the secret. Pa-leeeeaaase.

And this one just because. Oh he’s yummy…

Happy weekend everyone!

Filed Under: Kids, Landon, Life, Motherhood, Random, Sloan, Tia

There are few things cuter…

December 9, 2009 by Kelli

There are few things cuter than a little girl in a leotard,

wearing leg warmers,

staring at you with big blue eyes,

waving around a baton,

laughing with her friends,

twirling around,

giggling,

and all around having the time of her life.

Yes, there are few things cuter than that…

Except, perhaps, a little boy

standing like a little man with his hands in his pockets.

Filed Under: Family, Kids, Landon, Tia, Wordless Wednesday

It’s Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas

December 2, 2009 by Kelli

We have Decked the Halls here in the Stuart home. The house smells of pine and there is a lovely glow as the lights from the tree, the mantle and the outside warm up the living area.

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care…although they have been carelessly pulled down more than once by a certain soon to be two year old.

We’ve laid beneath the tree and ooh’ed and aah’ed as we looked up between the branches at all the twinkling lights.

Everyone had a turn placing the angel at the top of the tree. And Lee came out with scratches on his nose from his face being shoved into the branches of the tree.

When I took the picture of the three of them in front of the completed tree, Tia insisted upon having her picture taken with her best friend, her doll Jadem. Yes, Jadem.

Incidentally, I received that very doll for Christmas 22 years ago. I called her Jessie. I told Tia that and she looked at me as though I’d sprouted a second head.

“No, mom. ‘Dis baby ith a boy baby and boy babies ith not named Jessie. Hith name ith Jadem.”

And that was that.

Hope you’re all having a Merry Christmas season. Fa la la la laaaaaa, la la la laaaaa!

Filed Under: Christmas, Family, Holidays, Kids, Tia

I blame it all on them

November 16, 2009 by Kelli

When I was a kid, I ruled at MEMORY. Seriously, I was untouchable. You picked up the shoe? Oh I’ll remember where it is. Ten minutes could pass and I’d still remember where that shoe sat, patiently waiting for me to find it’s match. Oh yes, my friends – I was hardcore.

I remember vividly sitting on the floor in my bedroom, my Walkman firmly placed over my ears, Leslie Gore’s greatest hits blaring (I was only allowed to listen to Christian songs or Oldies so I tended to rock out to Leslie Gore with all the fervor that my scrawny little body allowed). I was usually bundled up against the frigid Wisconsin chill that seemed to permeate the air 10 out of 12 months every year.

I was usually seated on the floor next to my black and white bed with the hot pink and torquoise accent pillows. They matched, of course, the black, white, turqouise and hot pink wallpaper border in the cream colored room. Ah, the eighties were grand weren’t they?

I would spread those memory cards out and play against myself, all the while belting out “It’s My Party and I’ll Cry if I Want To,” at the top of my lungs. Sometimes my parents or my brother would join me, perhaps in an effort to get me to stop singing…

Huh…

Whatever the case, I welcomed their company because it gave me a chance to show them who was MEMORY boss. Oh yes – I was an unstopable force.

Fast forward 25 years to today as I sat with my kids and played MEMORY. We also were fighting off a November chill, though it was decidedly less dramatic than the Wisconsin chill in my past. Michael Jackson’s Greatest Hits blared through the MP3 player (my musical standards are significantly lower than my parents were. Although I guess for my kids, Michal Jackson falls under the umbrella of Oldies. That’s depressing…)

And I got my butt kicked today. By Tia, then by Sloan.

Even though I cheated and peeked at some of the cards as we were setting the game up, I still lost by a rather significant margin.

I blame it on the kids. My mind was like a vault before I had kids. I nearly had a photographic memory, which came in handy in college. I never needed a calendar or a day planner because I could remember dates and events without a reminder. Studying? I was a master crammer. I could visualize words on a page and regurgitate them on a test (as long, of course, as that test was in written form. If numbers or equations were involved I was totally screwed.)

These days I’m happy if I remember to take off my slippers and put on real shoes before I leave the house.

I think pregnancy kills brain cells. Then there’s the pushing, in which whole sections of the brain simply die. And the parts of the brain that were still firing on full capacity? Those areas are severely handicapped by the lack of sleep. Thus leaving you with only half a brain that’s only half functioning. So clearly us moms are at a severe disadvantage!

And then there are the hours and hours of kids songs, cartoons, Veggie Tales, Elmo and a whole variety of images and sounds the seems to stimulate our children yet drive us deeper into a semi-comatose state where we can no longer remember if today is Tuesday or Wednesday and what time does the bus come and when is that pizza party that I volunteered to help with?

Yeah, I blame it on them. That’s why my memory is completely shot. But I won’t tell them that. Oh no. I’ll let them think that they won simply because mommy was being nice. There’s no need for them to think any different.

Right?

Filed Under: blast from the past, funny stuff that happens, Kids, Motherhood, Random, Sloan, Tia

My shy little goofball

October 28, 2009 by Kelli

Today Tia got to wear her costume to school. She’s Princess Leia.

She has been so excited about it all week.

This morning, she put on her costume an hour before we had to leave and asked that I take her picture:

She was most excited about her “for weal” Princess Leia hair.

“Thsee mom? I wook just wike Pintheth Yay-ya,” she said.

When we got in the car to go to school she asked me 100 times if I remembered her Princess Leia hair.

When we arrived, I secured it to her adorable little head and in we marched.

Then…

Someone laughed and told her she looked adorable…

And someone else told her she looked just like her older brother in that wig…

And someone else clutched her chest and grinned as she walked past…

And before we even made it to her room, Tia yanked the wig off her head and thrust it at me.

“I not want to wear it anymore,” she said.

And no amount of assurances that people were only smiling because they thought she looked cute would convince her to put it back on.

So I fashioned her hair into two pigtails and sent her on her way sans wig. Then I went to the lobby to wait for her class to return and show off their costumes and sing us a few songs.

Apparently she went to the bathroom before coming out to sing because her dress was tucked into her pants.

And instead of singing the songs that she’s been so boldly performing for us at home, she sucked on her finger.

And then she got tired and sat down.

The End.

Filed Under: funny stuff that happens, Halloween, Holidays, Kids, Kids do the darndest things, Tia

Weekend Update

October 19, 2009 by Kelli

This weekend’s Interactive Festival went off smashingly. We had a great turnout (I believe there were just under 100 people there) and had relatively no major glitches.

We got a ton of positive feedback and people seemed to really enjoy themselves and learn a lot.

As for my panel – it went great! I didn’t stumble or stutter over my words, I kept the conversation flowing (thanks to a fabulous panel of speakers and a very participatory audience) and I didn’t once have to imagine someone in their underwear. Whew. I had a blast doing it and can’t wait for next year’s event!

As for the rest of the weekend – honestly, Interactive took up most of my weekend. The kids had a great time playing with their grandparents, since Lee was out of town visiting friends. On Sunday afternoon, I decided to take the kids to Twin Oaks Park for our annual picture taking session. I sat in on a photography panel on Saturday and was excited to try out the new tricks I learned.

I think out of 82 pictures I managed to come out with about 9 really good shots. Sooooo…I clearly need a little more practice. It didn’t help that Landon was 100% not into having his picture made, and Tia wasn’t overly thrilled either.

Here are a few that I got:

I don't think I got a single good shot of the three of them *sigh*

I asked Tia to give me her best pose and this is what she came up with.

I’ll be back tomorrow with actual content for you to read. In the meantime, have a blessed Monday!

Filed Under: Family, Kids, Landon, Random, Sloan, Tia Tagged With: St. Louis Interactive Festival, Twin Oaks Park

A fun little conversation

October 14, 2009 by Kelli

I don’t have much for you today. I’m so busy working on this Saturday’s St. Louis Interactive Festival that I haven’t had much time for anything else. Oh, and my internet was down all morning.

I KNOW, RIGHT?!

Please, if you are interested in attending the Interactive Festival, I encourage you to do so. We have some A-HA-MAZING speakers lined up. Seriously – top notch folks. Don’t believe me? Check out the St. Louis Bloggers Guild site and read for yourself. Every day this week, I have been writing out descriptions of each panel and giving you the bios of all our speakers.

It’s FREE to attend AND your registration includes breakfast, lunch and beverages! What a deal! You should come!!!

M’kay – moving on…

I had an interesting little conversation with Tia this morning as I got dressed. It went something like this.

Tia: “Mommy, I wike your undawear.”

Me: “Thanks, Tia.”

“Tia: “Who buyed dat for you?”

Me: “Nobody – I bought it for myself.”

Tia: “You buyed your own undawear?”

Me: “Yep.”

Tia: “Well, who buyed you your pants?”

Me: “Nobody. I bought these pants for myself.”

Tia: “Why you buyin’ you own cwothes?”