I'm On Strike!

On strike from the sun, that is. Call me irresponsible and whatever else, but I've never been overly concerned about getting too much sun. For as long as I can remember I've loved baking in it, and it all started when I was really young and my mom and I would go to the beach almost every Saturday. I've always had the attitude that it would never catch up with me...and I was wrong! That "simple procedure" (to remove a couple of pre-cancerous sun spots) I was supposed to have done the day before Cate's surgery got put off thanks to me showing up for my appointment and having a minor meltdown right in front of my dermatologist. I told her what little Cate was about to go through the next day and she assured me that taking care of my two suspicious spots wasn't anything that couldn't wait a couple of weeks. So I thanked her for understanding and for totally wasting her time, and rescheduled my appointment for last Monday. I was dreading it like the plague, but I went anyway. And I really and truly thought that having these things removed wouldn't be much worse than when they did the biopsy on them....laser it a little and put a Band-Aid on it. An hour or two after those numbing shots wore off I realized it was a tad bit more involved than that! I told J that I was in some major pain so he took a look under the massive bandages and said "you don't even want to know what I'm looking at here - this cut is so big, are you sure she didn't go ahead and remove your shoulder blade while she was at it?" Turns out that "simple procedure" left me with two 1 1/2 inch gashes in my back complete with internal and external heavy duty stitches. WHAT?! I was blindsided by that one! I suppose I've been so caught up in getting Cate all fixed up and on the mend that I completely neglected to find out what my (let's call it like it is) surgery was all about. So all of last week my existence here on Earth solely consisted of lying in bed (very uncomfortably), eating, and sleeping. I'm never one to willingly give in and let people help me...maybe because I don't like to admit I need help and would rather do everything myself. But if it weren't for my dear hubby and my sweet friend Amy (who showed up at my house with groceries and dinner, has had my children more in the last week than I have, has taught all of my dancing classes for me, taken my kids to school, picked them up, need I go on? Don't think I could ever do enough to repay her!) I wouldn't have survived!! I told J that I would give birth five more times before I'd have anything like this done again! Therefore, I'm on strike from the sun indefinitely. After this episode I don't know that I'll ever feel the same about it again! With every move I made all week it was accompanied by "God, if you just let me make it out of this alive I'll stay out of the sun for the rest of my life" (bargaining is against the rules, I know, but it's all that could come out of my mouth at that point)! Sunscreen is my new best friend. And it should be yours, too. Seriously. Anyhoo, it's beginning to be a little more normal around here. We've had a good time, despite everything else going on. And we've got a lot to look forward to in the next couple of weeks...Cate's turning ONE! Here are some shots from the last week or so...

Last Sunday Bethany made a chocolate chip cake from scratch all on her own...she set everything up so Rachael Ray-ish and we pretended like Towns was the audience and B did a cooking show!

We kept Bug entertained during the cooking show with Lucky Charms. Love how she'll only eat the marshmellows, and if you ask her to share with you she gives you the bunk cereal and keeps the marshmellows for herself! Right, B?! A lesson in sharing the right way is in our near future I do believe! This is the look I got after swiping a few of her beloved marshmellows...

Caught in the act! The cook licking the bowl!!

Who would have thought a kid could sleep this good after all the chocolate and marshmellows? Don't worry, the birthday fairy is bringing her some new pj's since she's about to bust the feet out of these...

My favorite outfit in the closet...she wore it to school last week and did a round of "2 bits, 4 bits, 6 bits a dollar" before we went inside...

On our way to Towns' friend Emma's Fancy Nancy b-day party...she'd been waiting for this all weekend long and asked me at least every other minute if it was time to go yet. Finally! It's time! And to celebrate she did a few twirls and dance moves on the sidewalk outside...

Towns getting her hair done at the party after picking the biggest, most fancy dress out of the dress closet...trust me, the finished product was va va va voom! :)

Having her toes painted....

Is that not the fanciest hair do ever?!

Playing a game with Fifi, the fancy dog...

All the girls...Emma is in the middle, Towns on the left, Emma's sister Olivia (hence the name of Towns' new imaginary friend) beside her, and the rest of the girls on the right are their cousins....

Towns and the birthday girl!

Drinking tea from her tiny little tea cup...

On the way to church Sunday morning...had to have baby Charlotte (don't know where the name came from) in her carseat, of course. Along with Cate's lesson in sharing, Towns needs a lesson in the safety of rear-facing infant seats for babies. A mother's job is never done.

(Like the other night when I realized no one ever told me that a strong background in early education was required to be a mom....we were at the tennis courts and I pointed out the half moon to Towns. Her reply? "Where's the other half?" To which I had no reply.)