Not wanting his dance moves to be trumped by Codi’s Brandon asked me to document his moves on film, here is my favorite.  He is dancing to his new favorite song, "Makunkunga face" (translation, Poker Facy by Lady GaGa).

My husband used to tell me that being a vegetarian while I was pregnant ruined Brandon. He said this because for almost two and a half years Brandon hated meat. In fact for about two and a half years Brandon existed on macaroni, Cheeto’s and string cheese. Then one day it was as if he woke up a new person. Suddenly he loves food. More specific he loves meat. Brandon devours chicken. He loves my roasted chicken, grilled chicken, chicken tacos, CHICKEN covered chicken. He loves steak. He loves Spam (in his world it is meat). He thinks pork tacos are the greatest in the world. He loves brown rice and white rice. He would eat broccoli every day if I let him. Corn of course. He even loves edamame. Last week I even found him eating mushrooms. He likes gravy and bacon and potatoes. Grilled cheese, egg sandwiches, pancakes, yogurt and toast. Spaghetti makes the world go round ad cheese, is like the cherry on top. The point is, Brandon eats. In fact, right now he is eating a soy chocolate ice cream sandwich, yes, my boy eats soy ice cream. In fact here is a clip of the conversation that just took place.
Me: Brandon if you eat all of your dinner you can have a surprise

(Insert 15 minutes of WHATS THE SURPRISE MOMMY here)
At this point I pull his soy ice cream sandwich out and melt it in the microwave for 10 seconds. Then I hand it to him.

Brandon: Mommy is this chocolate for my surprise and ice cream?
Me: Yup sure is
Brandon: This is the best surprise ever
Me: I’m glad you like it
Brandon: Mommy you get a surprise too?
Me: Yeah I’ll have one later
Brandon: No mommy you get a surprise kiss MUAH!
(Insert him blowing me a kiss and me melting and swooning here)
Me: Awww thank you baby
Brandon: Mommy you made this just right for me, you get lots of surprise kisses
Me: (Pretending to catch kisses)
Brandon: Okay mommy this is the last one MUAH…Mommy! That one was a chocolate kiss
Swoon. Die. Melt. End Scene.

Something else strange in our household lately is my enjoyment of the mundane. I’ve always loved cooking which oddly a lot of people hate. But now….wait for it…I LOVE DOING LAUNDRY. Yes I really do. Something about folding it and smelling it and putting it away just makes me burst with fluffy fabric softened joy. I love cleaning Dylans blankets every few weeks so he has fresh ones to enjoy. I love folding tiny clothes. I get sheer joy out of pulling the boys clothes out of the dyer still hot and laying their pants flat and pretty. Something about seeing a closet full of clean clothes excites me. Knowing my boys go to school in fresh clothes each day makes me walk a little taller.

Did I just lose cool points for admitting I like laundry?

Along with the mundane I love giving the boys baths now. I might fuss about it in the beginning but when it is all said and done I am so happy. There is nothing like the smell of a clean baby head. Again, sending my boys to school clean and fresh makes me walk taller with my chest puffed out a little. They never go more then every other day with out a bath. I like them fresh and clean. Squeaky clean like a rubber ducky. My favorite part of bath time is that it is something Rob and I always do together. I love being a team. We each take a kid and wash and dry and lotion them. We each brush a set of teeth and we each put a kid to sleep. The routine and the team work just kills me.

I love sitting on the couch watching TV with Rob. We don’t even have to talk, just be. Something about spending time together with no itinerary or expectations is so nice…when he rubs lotion on my feet during TV time I also really enjoy that.

Finally, I love love love watching Codi dance. When Codi dances I stop everything to watch him. Something about his dancing fills my whole heart with laughter and joy. Codi will dance to anything. Commercials, toys, TV, the radio, even my singing. He has a few dances, rocking his arms and butt around, bouncing up and down, and finally Codi does a perfect PERFECT Axel Rose impression. Perfect! Codi is my clown. Try if you can to picture my sweet little Codi doing a perfect Axel Rose while rocking out to Lynard Skynard.

So you see. I am falling in love with the mundane. What about you? Do you enjoy any of the little silly things in life? If so what are they?
 

Ain’t that sexy?  My hubby in the kitchen making me a salad!

Brandon left us a little present on the mirror while he washed his hands

Playing chase before school this morning

Saying BYEEE BYEEE

The girls in his future don’t stand a chance!

My little supermen

And finally a superman with a supergirl.  My sweet Katie and her little Dylan (sorry for the blur it was a bad attempt at an action shot)

When my biological father died, I dreamt of him often.  The dreams were almost always the same, I would be taken to some big fancy house where my dad stood in a white suite with white patent leather shoes telling me, it was all a joke, he was really alive and surprise he was rich and life was okay.  Odd. 
The only other dream I had was once I was climbing the side of a cliff.  I kept climbing the ladder towards him and he always escaped me.  He kept saying “no you can’t follow me”, and I kept begging him to wait.  Those only lasted about a year.
Anyway the point of this is, I never really believed that dead people “visit” you in dreams.  Can you dream of them?  Sure, but do they come and talk to you?  No.  In the last few years people have said my grandma visits them.  At the beginning I thought it was their subconscious trying to comfort them.   Which of course made me say, “hey what the fuck subconscious why aren’t you comforting me?”  It has been nearly 8 years since she died.  In 8 years I have not had A SINGLE dream about her.  Nothing.  No dreams with her “visiting” me, and no dreams where she was even visible.  It was as though my mind knew the hurt I would feel missing her after.  I had people tell me, “you need to let her spirit know you are open to seeing her.”  
Okay fine.  As hogwash as it sounded, I’ve laid there many nights saying, “okay grandma I miss you I want to see you.”
(Stop laughing, I can hear your laughter over here, assholes…seriously stop laughing no need to piss your pants over there.)
Last night I dreamed of her.  The dream made no sense, I barely remember it all I know is she wasn’t even real in the dream, she was a memory.  Dream Shannon spent the entire dream crying about her imaginary grandma.  She didn’t speak, she didn’t offer any comforting words.  She didn’t imply that she has seen my boys or that she was present at my wedding.  She didn’t let me know she is there through this hard time.  
NOTHING.
Just a dream of silence and me crying.  Fuck that feels just like my real life.  I was right though.  The dream made me sad.  Very sad.  I miss her.  People ask me all the time, “are you sad your biological father wasn’t there on your wedding day, or when your kids were born?”  My answer is always, “my dad was there, I didn’t need that other man there.”
But I would be lying if I said I don’t miss my grandma (biological dad’s mom) every single day.  That it doesn’t tear apart my insides that my kids never got to meet her.  They never got to see me have a real loving grandma.  They never got to play solitaire with her, or eat her butterscotch candies and famous french toast.  She never got to hug them and exclaim how they ‘look just like me.”  There will never be any saving pennies to buy puzzles, or drinking raspberry soda, or change stashes for the ice cream truck.  No fishing off her balcony for toys.  None of it.  She will never meet my husband.  She will never see I married a guy who would run right over and help her do heavy lifting or hang stuff, or just sit and listen while she talks.  Because MY GRANDMA, she would have appreciated the way my husband just listens to old people, and doesn’t mind them at all.
I hate that my kids were born into this bullshit family.  They only have a handful of true people in their lives.  I often blame myself for this.  If I hadn’t been so trusting of those assholes to begin with my children would have never had to know they existed. 
Whatever.  The point is.  I miss my grandma.  And as crazy as it seems I just want to dream about her.  A good dream, a reassuring dream where she hugged me, or played cards with me, or just sat on the couch watching the Golden Girls with me.  
So tell me dear Internet. How does one convince their subconscious to let them dream about people?  To feel like they were visited by them?  I’m open to try most anything.  Shall we have a bloggy seance? Do I need to drink some special tea before bed?  Let me have it.  I’m open to anything.
 
(Note to real life friends and family: YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO MAKE FUN OF ME FOR THIS!!)

Today’s song is a new one by Beyonce.  I loved it the very second I heard it, because it reminds me exactly of my husband.  So, here are the lyrics you can read them, or turn up your speakers and listen to them.

 

Remember those walls I built
Well baby they’re tumbling down
And they didn’t even put up a fight
They didn’t even make a sound
I found a way to let you in
But I never really had a doubt
Standing in the light of your halo
I got my angel now

It’s like I’ve been awakened
Every rule I had you breakin’
It’s the risk that I’m takin’
I ain’t never gonna shut you out

Everywhere I’m looking now
I’m surrounded by your embrace
Baby I can see your halo
You know you’re my saving grace
You’re everything I need and more
It’s written all over your face
Baby I can feel your halo
Pray it won’t fade away

I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo
Woah…

Hit me like a ray of sun
Burning through my darkest night
You’re the only one that I want
Think I’m addicted to your light
I swore I’d never fall again
But this don’t even feel like falling
Gravity can’t forget
To pull me to the ground again

Feels like I’ve been awakened
Every rule I had you breakin’
The risk that I’m takin’
I’m never gonna shut you out

Everywhere I’m looking now
I’m surrounded by your embrace
Baby I can see your halo
You know you’re my saving grace
You’re everything I need and more
It’s written all over your face
Baby I can feel your halo
Pray it won’t fade away

I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo)

Halooooo ouuuu
Halooooo ouuuu
Halooooo ouuuu
Ouuuuu ouuuuu ouuuuu

Everywhere I’m looking now
I’m surrounded by your embrace
Baby I can see your halo
You know you’re my saving grace
You’re everything I need and more
It’s written all over your face
Baby I can feel your halo
Pray it won’t fade away

I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo
I can feel your halo (halo) halo
I can see your halo (halo) halo

LUCINDA!!!

 

YOU HAVE WON THE CLINIQUE SKIN CARE PRIZE. EMAIL ME YOUR ADDRESS SO I CAN SEND IT OFF!

Am  tired.  Please send coffee.  Preferably with caramel and lots and lots of sugar kthx!

I generally don’t like to play music on here that is really current.  Because who knows how I will feel about it in a week or two.  However this song by Apocalyptica is one of my favorites.  I love this song.  I realize it is a little more rock then most people like but fuck, does this totally speak to whats going on in my head in so many ways right now.  So, if you don’t like rock hit the mute button, but, if you like a good song, turn up your speakers and rock the fuck out!

So this is my first time participating in the ultimate blog party.  Am I doing it right?  Anyway it said to introduce myself. 

Hi.  I’m Shannon, the Misguided Mommy.

These are my kids. They like to pick on me. Also pictured is my dad, aka Papa, he is the instigator. So last week when my oldest called me a Butt Licker we knew who exactly to blame.

This is Murmaw (aka my mom) she i the one responsible for teaching my children to put stink bugs in their mouth.  Ahem, thanks for that…that doesn’t scare me at all.

I’m married to a great guy named Rob.  I would show you his picture however the most recent photo I have of him is a big blaring picture of him mooning the camera, and Five Minutes for Mom explicitly said no nudity so, I guess you guys don’t get to see my husband today.

Okay fine, you can see him with his clothes on.

He is handsome isn’t he!

I enjoy tall cups of coffee, large chocolate bars, frozen yogurt, dreaming about Edward from Twilight, reading books, cooking, eating, and being totally honest.  I often say bad words, I fully admit that my children are part pure evil.  I believe that any mom who says their kids are good all the time are full of crap!

 

Anyway that is me.  What you see is what you get.  Stop by, read for a while.  Bring an extra pair of undies…often you will find yourself laughing till you piss your pants. (Oh no, does piss count as a bad word?  Crap, see I already fail at this).

Hey guys, Crissy the last winner of my Pay it Forward contest is hosting her own pay it forward today, so go hurry up and enter….she gives good prizes too!

http://matherspartyof3.blogspot.com/2009/03/pay-it-forward.html