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The second half of our vacation was spent in Bremerton at my in-law's.

They have a boat.

So...

We saw sailboats,


a bridge,


and a beloved mountain.


Cinderella innertubed,


Sleeping Beauty floated,


the Little Prince looked cute,


and Prince Charming kneeboarded.


And I? I got sunburned.

Oh, yes. After thirty-*mumble, mumble* years, I still haven't learned my lesson.

My arms look like lobster claws, and my chest looks just as bad. My face and scalp were protected by my hat, and, for some reason, I had decided to wear pants on a scorching hot day.

Have you ever tried nursing a baby with flailing arms and dragon claws while sunburned? It's not pretty, my friends, not pretty at all.

And, of course, it was too hot and humid to wear long sleeves.

If I'd had any with me, that is.

I Don't Want to Blog!

I've (obviously) been ignoring this little corner of my life lately. I think I'm just going through a "phase" right now.

That, and I'm busy.

Always busy.

Though, who isn't?

Most of my day is spent entertaining my kids. And keeping all three of them alive, and in one piece, and un-squished, and fed, and happy, and polite, and...

and...and...and...

And there is no end in sight.

May 1st marks the beginning of another term at school for me. May 28th marks the end of preschool for Cinderella. After that comes summer break for Prince Charming, potty training for Sleeping Beauty, a trip to Texas, a visit to Bremerton, one to Seattle, shifting of bedrooms and belongings, and back-to-school shopping.

Always, always busy.

While I'm going through my "phase," I'll leave you with a little update:

Cinderella: officially registered for kindergarten.
Sleeping Beauty: officially sleeping in a big girl bed.
The Little Prince: sick with his first head cold.
Prince Charming: wondering where he's going to have a job next year (stupid funding cut!).
Me: 10 more pounds to go.

Thanks for sticking around! You guys are the best!

WW--Looking Forward To (and Back At) Summer

These were taken three summers ago, when Cinderella was only 2.











































The 70+ degrees we've been enjoying the last three days has really got me wishing this weather wasn't just a fluke.

Stick around, nice weather! We won't hurt you!

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For more WW, visit 5 Minutes for Mom or PMKU.

Partying Like It's 2009

Cinderella had her group birthday party this morning.

27 kids. 3 batches of cupcakes. 40+ balloons.

Silly songs. Crowns galore.

Princesses everywhere!

It was a blast!

Only one more day before my little girl "officially" grows up.

*sniff*

Cinderella as, well, Cinderella.

Sleeping Beauty as...only cuteness knows what.

(Like the boots? Yes, I made her take them off before we left the house; don't worry.)

Prince Charming and Sleeping Beauty after a cupcake; well, maybe just after the frosting.

Ultimate Blog Party, 2009

Welcome! Thank you for partying with me!

If you stick around long enough (just until the end of this post), I'll have a game for you to play. There will definitely be a winner, and a prize, but we'll talk about this more in just a minute. Let me introduce myself first.






Hi! I'm Hillary, aka H.K., aka Not the Queen.






I live in Washington State, have been a SAHM for 2 years now, and was a teacher (though I didn't have my certificate). I am currently working on getting my certification in math education. I am a math nerd and a grammar snob. I love to make cards, cook/bake, and camp. I went to an all-girls' school in high school, then on to WWU to major in Sociology and minor in French.

Was that random enough for you?

This is my family.



Prince Charming. Not the most dashing picture, but he's hunky, trust me.










Cinderella. She's a cheese. She turns 5 on Sunday.












Sleeping Beauty. She is the biggest goof, and not very photogenic at times. That's her brother's hat on her head. Sleeping Beauty will be 2 in May.









The Little Prince. He is my big chunk-of-love. He was 10 pounds 11 ounces when he was born. He'll be 4 months old at the end of the month.





Well, shall we play a game now?

This is an extended version of Two Truths and a Lie. Each section (in the block quotes) has two truths and one lie. If you've read my blog before, some of these are gimmes. But, since my blog is teeny tiny, I'm not too worried about that, and neither should you be.

If you want to play along, just leave your guesses in the comments section. Let me know which one of each group you think is the lie.

That's it!

For the prize, well, I mentioned above that I like to make cards. I will make the winner an entire year's worth of cards. Holidays, birthdays, anniversary, etc.

How does that sound?

Are you ready to play? Okay. Here we go!


Starting with dentistry and orthodonture:

I had braces twice.

I've never had a cavity.

I wore my retainer in college.

Moving on to travel:

I have never been to Mexico.

I won a trip to Disneyland.

I went to the Caribbean for my honeymoon.

Heading into haircare:

I have never colored my hair.

I have never permed my hair.

I have never plucked my eyebrows.

Detouring towards education:

I have taught English.

I have taught music.

I have taught science.

And ending with musicality:

I have taken singing lessons.

I have taken piano lessons.

I have taken guitar lessons.

Okay! That's it! If you want to know the answers, check back in at the end of the party. I'll get a hold of the winner when the blog party is over, so make sure I have a way to contact you if you don't have a blog.

I hope you've enjoyed your visit here! Come back again sometime; I love to entertain!

Party Hearty!

Oh! And the prizes! These are my faves: USC 58, 41, 28, 76, USC 11, USC 45, USC 16, 106, 71, USC 2, 75, 19, 21, 22, 75, 122, and 65.

Wordless Wednesday--Father and Son

(The burp cloth was made by the very talented Kailani.)

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For more Wordless Wednesday, visit 5 Minutes for Mom, or PMKU.

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Also, I'm pretty crafty. Go here if you're interested in something handmade by me.

Romance? Who Needs Romance?

Prince Charming and I have never been very romantic.

We started off as very good friends. We spent tons of time together, but we were never really interested in each other romantically. In fact, throughout most of our friendship, both of us were actually interested in other people. We really only started dating each other because we wanted to keep each other in our lives. Basically, in order to remain friends, we needed to up our relationship level. We knew that if we did start dating, that it would lead to marriage.

So, we both, quite literally, married our best friends. Getting married was the only way we saw that we could remain friends.

Oh, sure, once we started dating some things changed. There was definitely some kissing involved and some much deeper conversations.

Pretty soon into our dating relationship, we really, truly, began to love each other. But we always had our friendship to fall back on. It made things more comfortable, made the transition from "just friends" to dating, to engaged, to married that much easier.

Even now, when things get rough and we've disconnected for awhile, the friendship our marriage is based on always pulls us through.

We begin to reconnect by just talking to each other, like we did before the kissing started. Eventually, the friendship pulls us forward, back into connection. Back into spending time, just the two of us. Back into marveling at how we both got so lucky to find the other person. Back into realizing that God's plan for us is so much more than either of us ever thought it could be or even wanted it to be.

Because if it weren't for Him, we would never have gotten together at all. Really and truly.

Okay. Back to romance:

Obviously, as friends, Prince Charming and I weren't romantic. That would have been weird. Of course, once we started dating, being romantic was weird anyway.

We weren't used to it. It wasn't "us." Maybe it was just an excuse back then; I don't know. Although, it's hard to be romantic when most of your actual dates occur at the grocery store. Sure, we had some evenings of nice dinners, and we had the occasional movie night. But for the most part, it was grocery shopping, long drives, and serious discussions.

Part of our unromantic nature stems from Prince Charming's abhorrence of PDA. People, it's so bad, he barely kissed me at our wedding. (Seriously, our kiss was so short, the photographer couldn't even capture it. We just watched our wedding video again a few weeks ago, and it was embarrassing!) Even today, after 8 1/2 years of marriage, I doubt Prince Charming could pull off a decent wedding kiss in front of people. It's just not his thing. He sometimes won't even kiss me on New Year's if there are people around. He'll finally hold my hand in public, but that's about it.

I had always wanted someone more romantic. Someone who would often bring me flowers for no reason, or gifts. Someone who would touch me in public, hug me, kiss me. Someone who would always stand too close, letting the world know I was his.

At least, I thought that's what I wanted.

Instead, I wanted Prince Charming. And wanting Prince Charming meant giving up what I thought I had always wanted.

I have never regretted any of it.

We talk every once in awhile about how we can add some romance to our marriage. It would be nice, but I don't think it's necessary anymore. Not for us. As long as we connect, do things just the two of us, I'm content.

Romance? Who needs romance? Not me. I've found my Prince Charming, and that's all that matters.

Wordless Wednesday--Driven to Boredom

So, I didn't take this picture myself, but I think it's hilarious!

The Little Prince looks completely bored and flabbergasted that Daddy is playing Wii.
Again.

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For more photos visit 5 Minutes for Mom.

Wordless Wednesday--A 4 1/2 Year Old + Photo Booth

Question: What do you get when you let your 4 1/2 year old play around with Photo Booth?

Answer #1:

Answer #2:

Answer #3:

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For more photos, visit 5 Minutes for Mom.

International Babywearing Week

It's International Babywearing Week. There's a wonderful giveaway going on over at Adventures in Babywearing to celebrate. The prize? A brand new sling from Nonny and Boo! Who couldn't use a new sling? I could. I like variety.

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I'm ashamed to admit that I didn't wear Sleeping Beauty nearly as often as I did Cinderella. The Little Prince, however, will be worn all the time. It'll be a necessity with 3 kids in the house, the two youngest being only 18 months apart.















On Grandma and Grandpa's boat, snuggled up with momma.

Sadly, this is the only picture I can find of wearing Sleeping Beauty. I remember wearing her on many other occasions, but I tend to be the "photographer" in this family.















In Texas, snuggled up with daddy.

I do, however, have a picture of Prince Charming wearing Sleeping Beauty. He is wearing her, I swear! See! You can just see her little leg sticking out.

I do have some darling pictures of Cinderella in the sling, somewhere. I'm too pregnant to go find the CD's, though. My favorite one is of my mom and I walking on the beach together, and Cinderella is comfy cozy in the kangaroo hold. I'm not sure how she ever managed that hold; her feet inevitably ended up by her face. It was her favorite position, though. Sleeping Beauty? Not so much.

If you'd like to celebrate International Babywearing Week with me, head on over to Adventures in Babywearing. There are already quite a few links up filled with tips and pictures. Go check it out!

The Trial of the Century

Well, not really, but it sure feels that way to Prince Charming.

You see, he's on jury duty this week. And next week. And possibly a few days into the week after that, which also happens to be spring break out here.

Sucks!

So, Prince Charming has been in court all week, and I have been laughing my head all week about it. Every time I think about him sitting in that courtroom, I start to giggle.

Like right now!

I don't know why I find it so funny. It's a doozie of a case; nothing to laugh about.

It's a murder trial. (Did that just send shivers up your spine? It did mine.)

The hardest part is that we can't talk about it. He hears what's going on in the courtroom, I read about what goes on when the jury is dismissed, and we can't discuss anything.

It still makes me laugh, though.

I think I laugh because it seems like Prince Charming was so meant to serve on this jury. He showed up for jury selection on Monday, the potential jurors' numbers were shuffled around, and Prince Charming ends up being number 3.

Number 3. Out of 60+ people. *ha ha ha!*

There was an error somewhere in the numbering, so the numbers were shuffled around again. Prince Charming had just enough time to whisper to his neighbor, "What are the odds that we end up in the top 10 again?" when his number was called.

Number 5. *har har har!*

The person next to him? Number 60. *snicker!*

So, needless to say, with his charming good looks, innocent face, impeccable profession, and rational mind, Prince Charming made the jury. They barely even questioned him! *snort!*

This has totally made my week! I don't know why I think it's so funny, but I really just can't stop laughing about it. And everyone I tell starts laughing about it, too.

Not only is the trial of the century in our household, it's the joke of the year!

Prince Charming has jury duty! *giggle!*

Pepe le P.U.

Prince Charming (ha ha!) just got sprayed (tee hee!) by a skunk! (snort!)

He was closing the blinds in our bedroom this evening, when all of a sudden he smelled IT.

All he can figure is that some young punk of a skunk had the audacity to be nosing around our back patio and felt threatened when he saw Prince Charming. Through the glass. Double-paned, I might add.

I suppose this skunk may have caught wind of Prince Charming's own stench he had just left in the bathroom and felt threatened that his skunk funk wouldn't be on par. Maybe he felt he had to reassert his dominance in the animal kingdom as one of the smelliest (if not THE smelliest of) animals in existence.

I suppose it's possible. Prince Charming can be rather stinky at times...

Regardless, my house now positively reeks of skunk spray, not to mention the other nasty smell emanating from the bathroom.

Super Bowl Sunday

Prince Charming just got invited to a Super Bowl party. For men only.

Sooooo not fair!

A Sunday Post

I don't usually blog on Sundays. Lately, I've been too busy watching Prince Charming playing Zelda on the Wii, but most Sundays I spend reading, watching movies, or napping.

Napping is my favorite Sunday activity, by the way.

Today, for some reason, I feel like blogging.

I think it's because I've had a nasty day, and I feel like venting.

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My Sunday started at 4:30 this morning.

Yes, I meant to write 4:30.

It's not a typo.

Sleeping Beauty was having an awful night; she woke up every hours and had a very difficult time going back down each time. She was having a hard time getting comfortable while cuddling, and every time I put her down, she'd curl her little, fat legs up to her chest while on her tummy.

My mommy senses were tingling all over.

At 4:30, Sleeping Beauty desperately wanted to sleep, but she could not get comfortable. Everything I tried failed. She would settle down in my arms, her little eyes closed, her little snores resonating in the room, only to start squirming and squealing minutes later.

After finally getting her down at 4:52, I told myself, "She'll be up in 5 minutes."

I was wrong. She was up in 8 minutes.

Fortunately, Prince Charming awoke from his snoring and offered to rock her.

It didn't work.

At 5:30, I took another turn, nursing and rocking; nothing worked.

I eventually decided, "This kid is constipated."

She hadn't pooped the day before, strained her entire body the night before to no avail, and I figured she was feeling pretty miserable.

So, I woke up Prince Charming, got out the glycerin suppositories, and went to work.

Normally I would use prunes, but this problem needed to be taken care of instantly, not after the 12-24 hours prunes usually take.

Blessed relief!

By 6:30, Sleeping Beauty had done her business several times, and she was back in bed by 7:00.

The most amazing thing about this entire ordeal was that Cinderella never once woke up.

She slept through the crying, the squealing, and the screaming.

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After this ordeal, Prince Charming let me sleep in until 8:45.

Prince Charming had lovingly made sour dough waffles (my favorite). I eagerly grabbed my plate and hungrily took a bite of a plain waffle, not waiting to spread jam on it.

I have only one word to describe that waffle: BLECH!!!!

Prince Charming misread the recipe.

He added 2 tablespoons of salt instead of the 1/4 teaspoon it called for.

Whoops!

They were terrible! It took me all morning to get the taste of salt out of my mouth, and several glasses of juice and water just to replenish the liquid I had lost eating that one bite.

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I had a difficult time paying attention and staying awake during church.

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Now that I'm home?

Sleeping Beauty took a fantastic nap!

I'm watching Prince Charming play Zelda.

And blogging.

Crummy morning. Good afternoon.

And They Cried, "Whee! Whee! A Wii!" All the Way Home

My sister got a Wii for Christmas from my dad.

Prince Charming SAID he didn't want one (yeah, right), so he didn't get one.

Am I at all jealous? Not really.

Because I got a Wii for Christmas from my dad (he was lucky enough to buy 2 at one time).

Not Prince Charming. Not Cinderella.

Me.

Of course, I do share it willingly, but I also let it be known that it is my Wii.

So, yes, faithful readers, who are few and far between, I have we have joined the ranks of Wii owners.

We share the Wii Sports and the Wii Play; Cinderella has her own Disney Princess game; and I, being the lovely, tender-hearted, generous wife I am, asked my dad for Zelda, Twilight Princess for Prince Charming (it's my game, but I got it for him, just so you know).

Lord knows I'll never play it.

Seriously. I won't.

It's way too complicated for me.

I do like to watch it, though. I guess that makes all Prince Charming's playing time worth it.

Because he's got a problem. He admits it, too.

Although, I do egg it on, sometimes. As I said, I like to watch Zelda.

Does that make me an enabler?

The Hose

hose

noun (plural hos·es)
Definition:

flexible tube: a flexible tube or pipe, often made of rubber or plastic, through which fluids such as water or gasoline can flow
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Cinderella was playing with play-doh this morning while I put Sleeping down for a nap. I came out of the nursery, and, of course, Cinderella wanted me to play with her.

So, being the great mom that I am, I did.

I know. I know. Hold your applause, please.

I didn't play with her for very long, however; I played play-doh until Cinderella started making this really long chain out of small play-doh snakes.

Well, I had assumed is was just as innocent as a chain.

Oh no. She quickly informed me that, no, it wasn't a chain of snakes; it was a hose. A really long hose.

After that, I was done; I just couldn't play play-doh with her anymore.

I was trying too hard not to laugh.

You see, "hose" in our house has a slightly twisted meaning from the traditional sense of the word.

After Cinderella began walking, she loved to follow Prince Charming all over the house. ALL over the house.

Including into the bathroom.

One day, Cinderella decided to check out that fascinating, constant plunking noise that her daddy was making in the bathroom.

Oh! What a noise! To her little one-year-old mind, that noise was the most fascinating sound she had ever heard!

When she peeped her head around the door, she was rewarded by the most spectacular sight: water cascading into a huge, white bowl! Glinting in the light! Making that wonderful sound! And coming from Daddy!

Being the curious toddler that she was, Cinderella just had to go check out this wonderful streaming water for herself.

So she did.

She stuck her little head right between her daddy's legs to see where the water was coming from.

Prince Charming, of course, completely freaked out and tried to leap out of the way, all while stopping the water flow on a dime and yelled, "Cinderella! What are you doing?"

Ignoring his question, Cinderella pointed to Prince Charming's exposed midsection as he was hastily repacking and asked, "What's that, Daddy?"

Sputtering and faltering, Prince Charming finally spat out, "It's my hose!"

And thus a new definition of "hose" was born.

My Space Heater

I don't know about where you live, but here, the nights have been getting perilously close to freezing temperatures. The days are still sunny and warm (70's), but the nights are very cool (high 30's).

Fortunately, I have a space heater.

It's a model I carefully researched and selected before making my final decision.

True, I didn't do much shopping around, and I didn't bother to try it out prior to use, but overall, I'm pleased with my selection.

It's worked well for 7 years, and it's still going strong.

"The brand," you ask?

I'll tell you right now: I'm never giving it away, and I'm not going to share it.

I love it too much.

You might actually have your own that you love as much as I love mine.

My space heater is my Prince Charming.

On cold and frosty nights I discover a love for Prince Charming like I've never had before: because of him, my side of the bed is always warm, even if he's on his side.

Unfortunately, this is also true in warmer weather.

Like the kind we had last week.

Last week, Prince Charming's allergies were working overtime to disturb my sleep (i.e. he was snoring like a banshee).

To counteract this effect, he slept on two pillows to elevate his head and keep his sinuses free and clear of any offending allergens.

No big deal, right?

WRONG!

After nursing Sleeping Beauty in the middle of the night one night last week, I came back to bed hoping for some cool sheets to crawl into.

I was met with a muggy heat instead.

Do you know the feeling I'm talking about? The feeling of too much body heat contained in a small area for too long?

Yeah. Not pleasant, is it?

I was miserable!

My side of the bed should have been cool and welcoming; instead, it was stickily unbearable.

I figured I could endure one night of this; but it happened again...and again.

After a few nights of this I finally discovered the why behind the problem.

Remember Prince Charming's two pillows? The top one had started to slide off towards the middle of the bed.

Prince Charming went with it.

Yep. He was sleeping in the middle of the bed.

That doesn't sound like a big deal, but when you share a queen-sized bed with another person, the middle of the bed becomes a no-man's land; no one is allowed in the middle. It's the only way to preserve your precious space.

Basically, I had no personal space left in the bed.

Prince Charming had breached the barriers of my space and claimed them as his own, heating them to the unbearable temperatures he so enjoys.

Grr!

In defense of Prince Charming, he had no idea what he was doing.

Once I confronted him about this, he was kind enough to acknowledge the problem (with a few laughs) and has tried his hardest to comply.

We'll see.

Considering he doesn't even flinch when Sleeping Beauty wakes up, we'll see whether Prince Charming can remember to stay on his own side of the bed or not.

I love my space heater; I really do.

Sometimes, though, I wish it wouldn't work so hard.