And then the two were two...

Well the chickens are officially 2. We have all survived and we hope to survive the next 2 years as well. We had a quiet time around celebrating their birthday. They were still not 100% so we didn't plan much.  And truth be told the boys and I couldn't really figure out what to get the girls. So on Saturday the kids and I headed out to a local toy shop to see what we could find. I was hoping to get them some furniture for a dollhouse they got for Christmas. Long story short, the toy store was miserable and I for some reason decided that we had to go to Ikea. Of course I'd never advise anyone to take 4 kids on a Saturday to Ikea but we did it and we survived. Even better the girls got some great dollhouse furniture and a kick-ass castle to play in. They may be the only 2 year olds that spend a birthday at Ikea. I have some dollhouse photos that I will get up soon. Needless to say, I placed all the furniture but there has been a lot of rearranging and the baby keeps ending up in odd places like stuffed in a bench.

the end is near

It is a very special day today, January 4th. It marks one month until the most significant day in history, my birthday. This year is especially important because I will be in my final year of my 30s. Holy shit! I am going to enjoy the last 30 days of my 38s and I get ready for 39 to bring it on!

And then they were two...

The chickens rang in the New Year with some illness that included no sleeping, puking, and then a sleep marathon. So we are putting a day delay on formal birthday celebrations so we can ensure complete wellness and maximum birthday enjoyablity. It is really hard to believe that they are two already.

Here are some shots of sick babies on New Years Day. Hopefully we will get some better ones tomorrow when they are feeling better.

And yes apparently when the chickens are sick they prefer to be naked.

A Rare Moment

A photo of me with the chickens and JT. Not sure where Zach disappeared to.

Super Deep Thoughts for 2014

As I sit here watching the Rose Bowl with sick babies on either side of me I have the same thought as the rest of the world right now, “Wow! 2013 seemed to go by fast!” and probably the second most popular refrain “God, I am getting old.”

I am not sure if I will make a list of resolutions this  year. I haven’t done one in a few years as I went on my big “no more planning for more than a few weeks out” kick after a series of life events that seemed to throw us of track. That being said, I am constantly and perhaps even more so thinking about myself and things I want to do or change. I doubt I’ll provide that list here as I’d hate to bore everyone. I would be more than happy to provide the “house to do” list I have started developing for Rick if anyone is interested.

What I am providing today is a reflection of my deep thoughts for 2013.

·         Twins are hard. Really hard. Having 4 kids is hard but it isn’t the same as having twins. I have new respect for anyone who has triplets (or any version of multiple births beyond twins).

·         People say  silly, annoying, strange things to you in public when they see you have twins. Perhaps the best still being “Are they twins?” The one that is currently driving me a bit batty is “I always wished I had twins.” Really? I don’t wish twins on my worst enemy.

·         11 and 8 year old boys are stinky. And starting in 2014 and for the rest of my life, I will say an apology to their wives. I’ve tried so hard to instill in them that they must pick up their socks, that pee needs to stay in the toilet and if it lands outside it should be wiped up immediately, showers are important but more important is a shower that involves soap, clothes do not belong on the floor even if their socks are there.

·         I hate the Xbox and someday when I have free time I will write Bill Gates a letter detailing my hatred. Briefly it involves things like a ridiculous amount of menus to get my kids up and running on the stupid system, constantly locking us out of the console, a stupid requirement to pay 50 cents and prove that I have given my children permission to play on the Xbox, introducing my children to games that involve killing any number if things but mainly zombies and aliens, and a slew of other things. I will also someday write a letter to Nintendo and let them know how much I love them.

·         Even at age 38, friendship is hard and some days it makes you cry.

·         At age 38 having a few amazing and fabulous friends who love you regardless of what you do or say is the best comfort.

·         Always, always trust your gut especially when it comes to people.

·         Making a TV show is hard work but also lots of fun especially when you walk away from the experience with some fabulous friends.

·         Taking a spontaneous trip to NYC when A&E is paying for the hotel is an excellent choice.

·         I will continue to judge people by whether or not they read books and if they don’t it will help with above stated reflection to always trust my guy in regards to people.

·         Laughing is important and equally important is being with someone that makes you laugh. Life is shitty and sometimes the only way to get through it is laughter.

·         The wise words of your mother always hold true and you will find yourself repeating them more frequently to your children (and yourself) – such as “This too shall pass”  “A watched pot never boiled”

·         No one has a perfect life and there is no use in pretending that someone does. In fact it helps to actually talk to your friends about things and admit that none of us or our lives are perfect.

So there you have it. My super deep thoughts on life based on 2013. Happy 2014 to everyone! I am looking forward to see what this year brings.

Princess Elizabeth

Merry Christmas!

Merry Belated Christmas from our house to yours. We had a relaxing and quiet Christmas at the Lucas house. We kicked it off on Christmas Eve with Zach making us all brekkie. He made a fabulous breakfast pie with potatoes, sausage, and eggs. JT offered to make dinner and cooked us all a delicious meal that included pomengrante and serrano basted cornish game hens, potato cakes, and roasted vegetables all courtesy of Thomas Kellar's cookbook Ad Hoc. 

Christmas morning was nice. The girls had been up multiple times during the night as Lizzie had an ear infection and cold. The boys tried to sneak out around 5:30 but we squashed that and managed a later start. The chickens seemed to enjoy the entire event. Kat definitely was the one most interested perhaps because Liz was sick. Kat was extremely happy with each gift whether hers or not and was often clapping as we opened our gifts.

I tried hard to create a perfect Christmas morning shot but as you can tell we had a bit of a struggle.

We are starting off good but only one chicken. Everyone is dressed because for some reason the boys slept in clothes and the chickens wanted to get dressed as soon as they woke.

Lizzie photo bombs us.

While Zach tried to coax Lizzie in to the photo, JT and Lizzie get extra cute for the camera.

Lizzie not being helpful.

 Zach giving up.

Our final shot of all 4.