GAME!

Staci King tagged me in one of these cool survey games.

Here are the rules:
1. The rules of the game get posted at the beginning.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they've been tagged and asking them to read the player's blog.
4. Let the person who tagged you know when you've posted your answer.

What were you doing 5 years ago?
1. Moving in to our new house on Brenda Street
2. Putting Jonah in a big boy bed after he took a flying leap out of his crib.
3. Hanging out with the Bluebirds (miss you guys!)
4. Looking forward to a summer of NO camps (Todd had just taken a full-time job with the County Clerk)
5. Celebrating 5 years of marriage

What are 5 things on your to-do list today (not in any particular order)?
1. Take Finley to get a haircut.
2. Open the boxes of new homeschool curriculum that arrived today.
3. Try a new crock pot chicken recipe (done...it was delicious, and dare I say, nutritious.)
4. Pick up a prescription at Sam's
5. Catch up on the laundy (let's not kid ourselves...this one probably won't get done)

What are 5 snacks you enjoy?
1. Fritos
2. Dr. Pepper
3. Cheese Nips
4. Popcorn w/M&Ms sprinkled in it
5. Fruit roll ups
I know, I know...I need to eat healthier snacks.

What 5 things would you do if you were a billionaire?
1. Pay off all our debts
2. Build Bluebird Farms
3. Give lots of money to lots of charities, missionaries, orphanages, etc.
4. Buy Todd an SUV so he would stop talking about "needing" one for gigs
5. Build a Rainforest Cafe in Lufkin, just because Finley loves it.

What are 5 of your bad habits?
1. Letting Jonah watch Sponge Bob
2. Thawing meat then never cooking it
3. letting the laundry and dishes pile up
4. Overplanning things that don't really matter, and under planning on things that do
5. Dr. Pepper

What are 5 places you have lived?
1. Lufkin, TX (mama's house)
2. Lufkin, TX (our first house)
3. Lufkin, TX (our second house)
4. Lufkin, TX (our third house)
5. Bryan/College Station, TX (one year)
Yes, I know, this part is boring. It's actually been kind of boring living it, too.

What are 5 jobs you've had?
1. Teacher
2. Grocery checker at Randall's
3. Filing clerk at insurance company
4. Sales girl at Brooks Fashion
5. Lufkin Mall Customer Service Manager

What 5 people do you want to tag?
1. Lance, Amy, Jason, Rachel, and Robert. All the Bluebirds in one fell swoop. (Shelly was already tagged by Staci.)
2. My husband.

Son, What Exactly Are You Planning?

I can't be absolutely sure, but I think I'm pretty safe in saying that I'm one of the only moms in America who was asked this by her six year old:

"Mom, can you get me some gold-titanium alloy?"

You Absolutely Must Try This

I think I've found one of the neatest things ever on the worldwide web (not counting my own blog.) I won't even go into how I found it, because 1) it's too stupid, and 2) it's really too stupid.

It's called the Face of the Future face transformer. And I'd never heard of it before...so I'm assuming you haven't either. If you already know all about it, then see you later.

You upload a photo (of yourself, your kids, whoever...) and then you can choose what you want it to be "transformed" into. You can see what you'd look like as a baby, a child, a teenager, young adult, old adult, Afro-Caribean, Caucasian, East Asian, and West Asian. You can also see what you'd look like as the opposite sex.

I uploaded my own picture and tried it out. I wasn't too impressed with the baby and child options, but the teenager one was really pretty accurate. The old one was disturbing, and probably also pretty accurate. I LOVED seeing what I'd look like if I were a different race. Turns out I'd still be gorgeous.

What really truly freaked me out was when I uploaded Jonah's picture. Seeing what he might look like as a teenager or an old man? Totally weird. But also neat. I showed it to my mom and she hated it.

Here are some pics of Jonah. The first one is him now, then as a teenager, then as an adult.

WEIRD, huh?! What's funny is to think of him wearing those football pajamas as a 30 year old man. I'll post some more of my family, "transformed," later this week. Here's the link if you want to check it out for yourself:

http://morph.cs.st-andrews.ac.uk/Transformer/index.html

Surprise!

Ya' know, if you know me at all, and even if you don't and just happen to glance in my direction, you'll know I'm not exactly the athletic type. I never have been.

I'm the girl who got hit smack in the face by the ball the very first time I stepped on a volleyball court. I'm the girl who kicked her own legs out from under her when I tried to play soccer with my cousins. I'm the girl who hit the ball twice, only twice, in two whole years of girls' softball. (Granted, I got two triples, being very large, and incidentally, quite busty, for an 11 year old.) I'm the girl who had to be physically picked up and thrown into the deep end of the pool by my swim instructor because I refused to jump in. The year was 1984, and the instuctor, named Drake, was a dead ringer for Magnum P.I. The moms, every mom, stayed right beside the pool to watch him teach their dear children to do the dead man's float. Don't you know that they were all dying for him to physically pick them up and throw them in the deep end? But no. I was the lucky girl he chose.

So it should come as no surpise that secretly, I've hoped, and maybe even prayed a little, that Jonah wouldn't like sports...wouldn't even want to try sports. I'm ashamed of it. I'm even more ashamed to say...it didn't work.

So here we are, in the middle of t-ball season. Jonah is a proud member of the Pirates. And guess who the proud Pirate dugout mom is? That's right...the girl who swore she would never enter a dugout again. Now, no one could keep me away! And guess who's out in the front yard playing catch with Jonah every evening? That's right..the girl who got hit squarely in the face, HARD, when she was playing catch in the front yard with her dad. And guess who got hit squarely in the face by that same man, in that same front yard, this past weekend. Wrong...not me this time. It was poor little Jonah.

And so it begins...

NEW STUFF!

I got a new template!

Kristen's Favorite Things

Oprah has hers, and so do I.

Here, in no particular order, are some things I've recently come to love, and I am wholeheartedly recommending them to you.

1. The CHI flat iron.


Never underestimate the power of the CHI. I am convinced that somehow, this product could rule the free world.


2. The PedEgg


I think I laughed at this product the first time I saw it advertised on TV. Hm. Who's laughing now? Still me, cause my feet look great. Get it at http://www.pedegg.com/



3. Cubeicals


This is a storage system I got for Finley's room, and I ended up getting one for my living room too. It has cubby holes with fabric drawers. They hold lots of toys. Lots. And they look cute. This is some of the best money I've ever spent.


4. Blue Bell Centennial Cupcake Ice Cream


Cake batter flavored ice cream with cake bits, chocolate icing and sprinkles. Yes...you read that right. Mama!


5. Sabatier Cook's Knife


My brother got me this for my birthday and I love it! I never knew what crappy knives I had been using all these years. When Jonah saw it he asked if it could slice a pineapple in mid-air.


6. Eve's Addiction


This is a website that specializes in sterling silver jewelry and their stuff is fabulous and...yeah, I'll say it...cheap! Check it out at http://www.evesaddiction.com/


7. The Sun Jar


I got this for Christmas from my mom. It's a frosted mason jar with a solar cell, rechargeable battery and LED light inside. It charges during the day and lights up at night. It's so cozy. Get one at http://www.elsewares.com/commerce/Sun-Jar_MPD841.html



8. All The Freed



It's good. Really good. I can't even explain how proud I am that that's my husband. Check it out at http://www.independentbands.com/cd/toddwright/allthefreed.html



9. Bare Escentuals Brow Kit



I LOVE this! It comes with an angled brush and a powder (dark blond/medium brown for me). It relieves my fears that I'll look like my great-aunt Ruby, whose eyebrows appear to be applied daily. Check it out at http://store.bareescentuals.com/brows/BE_SUB_BROWS,default,sc.html


10. Three Bin Laundry Sorter

I've always believed that my family has more dirty laundry than a small country. I can't tell you how much easier my day is since I bought this item. Go get it at http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?order_num=-1&SKU=12413602

There you have it. Go shopping!

I don't understand myself. I really don't. There are times (and I think we all have these times if we're honest) that I am just absolutely drawn to something that I don't want and don't need to be drawn to. There's chocolate, of course. And Dr. Pepper. And, sometimes, All My Children. If I were being really honest with you, I'd tell you that General Hospital is on my TV right now. (I can only watch it at night so the kids won't catch me. Jonah always says soaps are "violent.") I'm only tuning in right now to find out about that Text Message Killer.

But this time, I'm not talking about those things. This time, something much more sinister has trapped me in its web. This time, we're talking two things: the internet, and real life crime stories.

Years ago, I went to church with a lady who supposedly lived in "The Town that Dreaded Sundown" around the time that it...you know...dreaded sundown. See, it was all based on a true story. So I just had to look it up. And it was all about the Phantom Killer who killed a bunch of teenagers in Texarkana in the 40's. Very upsetting. I wanted to stop reading it, because it was really disturbing, but I READ THE WHOLE THING.

A couple of months ago, I remembered watching that made for TV movie, "Murder in a Small Town." It had Barbara Hershey in a bad wig and thick glasses. She played Candy Morrison, who murdered her friend from church with a hatchet. Turns out, this is a TRUE STORY. So, I start reading about it on the web. It happened in Dallas in the early 80's. The lady's real name was Candy Montgomery. I read graphic details of this story and also saw some gruesome type photos. (Nothing too bad, just some blood, but still...it was real blood.) And the whole time I'm reading this stuff I'm thinking, "I really need to stop this. This is really upsetting me." BUT I DID NOT STOP. I read the whole thing.

Then, just last week, I was flipping through channels on the TV and I saw that "The Amityville Horror" was on. Not the old one, the new one with that cute Ryan Reynolds. I stopped for a minute to check it out. Please note: I am a life long fraidy-cat and have a life long HORROR OF THIS MOVIE. I remember my dad watching it when I was little. Remember how creepy James Brolin looked? My gosh, I was scared of that movie! And I didn't even watch it! I mostly just heard kids talking about it at the lunch table. Plus, everyone has always said it's all true.

So anyway, it was on, and I thought, "I'm grown. Let me just see if I'm still scared of it." Well, guess what. I was.

Later on, I decided to check it out on the web. I don't know why! I think somewhere in the back of my mind, I think I'll find some sort of information or proof that will make me feel better about the whole thing. That almost never happens. And, I think maybe it won't be so scary to read it instead of watch it. Again, I'm usually wrong.

So I read the story of how these folks bought the house even though a horrible murder was committed there, and soon after, strange things start happening. And Todd saw me reading it, and said, "Kristen, you'd better not! You'll be sorry later!" I rolled my eyes and kept reading, of course. I even got to the part where it lists off every scary incident that happened in the house. Again, please note: I am a life long fraidy-cat and have a life long HORROR OF THIS MOVIE. I told myself to stop reading, but I couldn't stop. I READ IT ALL!

So, a lot of weirdo stuff went down at that house. But what bothered me the most was that their little girl got a new imaginary friend right after they moved in. And get this...the friend was an extra large pig with glowing red eyes...and it's name was Jodie. For some reason this really upset me. And they also found extra large hoof prints in the snow outside (courtesy of Jodie, I suppose) and the dad once saw red glowing eyes looking at him from the kid's bedroom window.

Well, after I read all that, I was kind of upset. But I went on with my day. Then, that night, I could not stop thinking about that darn JODIE. I just had a horrible night. And I couldn't even tell Todd how scared I was of Jodie because I had rolled my eyes and kept on reading when he told me to stop.

Y'all know what? I had to take a break from writing this post because I started getting scared of Jodie again. I'm not kidding. (I'm home by myself in this big old house tonight, and some cats were fighting outside, so it's creepier than usual here.) So I better quit now before I get scared again.

This is the coversation that took place between Jonah and me this afternoon, when we were sitting at a stoplight beside an iridescent purple Lincoln Towncar with a gigantic (and perhaps vulgar, I'm not sure) hood ornament.

Jonah: Look! That car looks like a Hot Wheels.
Me: Yeah, it does.
Jonah: That looks cool.
Me: Yeah.
Jonah: Did our car used to look cool?
Me: No, our car has pretty much always looked kind of plain.
Jonah: Before you had me, were you and Daddy cool?
Me: What do you mean?
Jonah: Well, were you cool and had a cool car, or were you lame and had a lame car?
Me: What do you think?
Jonah: I think you were cool.
Me: What do you think we are now?
Jonah: You're lame!
Me: Well, give me an example of someone you know or someone you've seen that you think is cool.
Jonah: I saw this guy, and he had a really cool hat, and cool clothes and glasses, and he had some of that needle ink all over him.
Me: You mean a tattoo?
Jonah: Yeah!

This child is 6 years old. Heaven help us.

I'm sick. I've got a cold. Maybe. I don't really know what it is. I'm keeping hope alive that it's not the flu. Most people have a comfort food they want when they're sick. So do I. I also have a comfort drink, a comfort nightgown, a comfort blanket and a comfort movie.

My comfort food is mashed potatoes. Right at this moment I'm sending telepathic messages to Todd in hopes that he'll come back from guitar lessons with some Cotton Patch mashed potatoes. Macaroni and cheese will also do if no mashed potatoes are available.

My comfort drink is a mixed strawberry and Coke Icee. My mom used to bring these to me when I was sick as a kid. They're the perfect (temporary) cure for a sore throat. When I'm sick, I prefer for Icees to be brought to me without me having to ask for them. This almost never happens.

My comfort nightgown is an old, faded red knit gown. It's long sleeved and comes down to my ankles. On the front, it has a little picture of a Scottie dog wearing a plaid vest. I've had it for at least 10 years. It's not a pretty sight, folks. But it's a dear friend.

My comfort blanket is a patchwork quilt we got at a wedding shower. Several of the patches are coming apart at the seams. But it's the perfect weight for a sick person. You know how when you're sick, you're cold, then you're hot, and a heavy blanket is just too much? This one is just right.

My comfort movie is "The First Wives Club." Not exactly a classic, I know. But it's funny every time I watch it, and it reminds me of my best friends. I have it on VHS, and our VCR isn't hooked up, so I guess this time I'll have to forego this comfort. Oh well. Guess that means I get a double batch of mashed potatoes instead.

So, am I the only one? Or does anyone else have a list like this?

My daughter is a complete animal lover. She's not the least bit afraid of cats or dogs and will usually try to hug or kiss any animal she gets close to. We have a cat who lives outside, but he sneaks in at least once a day. I can usually find the two of them somewhere in the house together, sometimes curled up on her bed. So, part of me would really love to have an animal in the house, just for Finley's sake. But I just don't understand how to have an animal in the house. We used to have cats in the house before we had kids and it was a big disaster. (Shelly can attest to this, because she once sat right in a puddle of cat pee at my house. Plus, after we put the cats out of the house, my mom told me my house smelled like cats when they were inside. That info would have been more useful earlier.) All I can think of is chewed up furniture, ruined carpet, and...you know...the smell. So, pet lovers, how do you do it? How is it possible to have an animal in the house without a huge mess?

Here he is, folks. Six years ago, I met this little guy. I knew when I saw his face, I was in for an adventure, but I really had no idea what that meant. To be honest, I was terrified at the idea of having a little boy. I had no idea what being a mother to a little boy would be like. Well, six years later, I can honestly say...

I have a more extensive knowledge of superheroes than any other woman I know.

I have a jar in my cabinet with holes punched in the lid in
case a four legged or six legged or eight legged critter wanders by.

I got more bloody noses and busted lips in the first 3 years of his life than in my whole life up to that point.

I know the life cycles of caterpillars, flies, spiders, beetles,

fleas, frogs and jellyfish.

I have learned to never, ever say the words, "You're bleeding."

I have been asked to sing the theme from "SpongeBob Square

Pants" as a bedtime song.

I've made enough capes and masks to last a lifetime.

I have memorized the words of the The Big Red Barn and

Where the Wild Things Are.

I've wondered how I ever lived without all the kisses and hugs

I get from him every day.

I've marveled at the way his eyes crinkle up when he laughs.

I've asked myself, "What did I do all day long before I had him?"

Here's the thing I've learned about little boys...they grow on you. So here's to you, Jonah, my love. Thank you for all you've taught me, and continue to teach me every day.

You are human boy, my young friend.

A human boy.

O glorious to be a human boy!...

O running stream of sparkling joy

To be a soaring human boy!

-Charles Dickens

Right now my baby girl is sitting in front of the TV drinking an IBC root beer from the bottle and watching "Cool Hand Luke."

Tonight is the last night I'll spend in this house. We're moving tomorrow! Actually, we're only moving out tomorrow. Our "new" house won't be ready for another week. So we'll be staying with my mom until then.

Moving has brought me low in some ways...tonight, while cleaning out my pantry, I found a Reese's Peanut Butter Egg (as in Easter egg) way back in the corner of the top shelf. I assume it was from last Easter, but it could have been from the Easter before that. I debated for about 5 seconds, then opened it. I looked it over and broke it open. (I did this because one of my best friends swears that her mother broke open a Butterfinger once and it was full of maggots.) It looked OK. I found out seconds later that it most definitely was not OK.

I also found in the back of my freezer a popsicle wrapper that had not been opened and yet contained no popsicle. Only some gummy stains on one side. Like the Shroud of Turin.

I wonder if I'll be homesick when we move. I wasn't homesick when we moved from our first home to this one. But it seems to me that a house is consecrated by the life you live in it.

To this house, we brought Jonah when he was 15 months old, and put him in a big boy bed because he had leaped from his crib right before we moved. In this house, he learned the alphabet, and "The Night Before Christmas," and all the words to "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie." In this house, he learned to pray, and on our front porch he would go alone if he needed some quiet time with God. In this house, every morning, every morning for 3 whole years he awoke and said, "I want to drink hot milk and lay on the couch with Mommy, " and we did. In this house, he loved Spiderman and Batman and Superman. In this house, he was Spiderman and Batman and Superman. In this house, he grew tall and thin, and went from being a baby to a boy.

In this house, I sat on the bathroom floor and wept when I found out I was pregnant with the baby who would be Finley. In this house, I prayed for her before she was ever born. And to this house we brought her after she arrived. And when she got sick at 7 days old, and she had to be put in the hospital, and we almost lost her, it was back to this house I longed to bring her. In this house, she crawled, and then walked, and then ran. In this house she lisped her first words. In this house, she fell in love with Ernie from Sesame Street. And in this house, she gave her first hugs and first kisses.

In this house, I fought with my husband and made up with him. In this house, I laughed with him, and I laughed at him. In this house, I cried with him and prayed with him, and burned his toast, and many times forgot to do his laundry. I stood with him in our living room and said goodbye to our best friends. In this house, I saw him do things that no one, not even Todd himself, ever would have guessed he could do, like hang a ceiling fan, or tile the floor, or fix the toilet. In this house, I've watched him become the best father I've ever known.

I've loved the life we've lived in this house. I'm about to spend my last night here. So, good night!

THINGS I LOVE ABOUT

FINLEY WHEN SHE IS 1

...the little rolls just above her knees.

...the way she jumps without her feet ever leaving the floor.

...the way her hair looks all puffy when she wakes up.

...the dimples in the backs of her hands.

...the way she wants to do everything herself.

...her profile. It's perfect.

...the was she says, "aahhh" and rubs

her feet when she takes off her shoes.

...that her love of clothes and shoes is matched only by her love of cookies and ice cream.

...that she belly laughs at peek-a-boo.

...the way she gives kisses with her bottom lip sticking out.

...that sometimes, when I put her in bed at night, she says, "Love you..." before I do.

Here are some things that have happened in the past few days:

I fell down in the kitchen. It was one of those falls where you're walking, then you think, "Hey! I'm on the floor!"

Finley has started stripping her diaper off at every opportunity. Yesterday I found "number 2" in various spots all over the living room. This set Jonah off, who repeatedly screamed, "I see poop!"

Finley refused to nap today (one of the only times ever) and during the whole brouhaha, pulled every toy off her shelf, to the point that could hardly walk in there. I went in to check on her to find her diaper leaking "number 2" which got all over my arm. Later, I went to check on her again and stepped on pee.

This evening I had to wake Todd up to go to guitar lessons, and he talked gibberish, and told me he had to put on his "belter."

Jonah has his first loose tooth.

We sold our house today. We'll close on Oct. 29.

We called my mother-in-law tonight, and could hear her shouting, "A.W., you need Febreeze, you need Febreeze!"

Today at Sonic, a girl named "NewNew" brought us our drinks.

Jonah asked me if people would have skin in Hell.

Well, I've been busy lately. Finley got sick last Thursday night. She ran low grade fever and threw up, then she was fine for the rest of the weekend. Then on Sunday night she started running fever again, (she still is today) and threw up Tuesday. You know, I don't know very many people who aren't shaken up by vomiting. Whether you are the victim or an innocent bystander, it's an unnerving experience. But Finley is an exception to this rule. She throws up and then just walks away like it never happened. When she threw up and then just walked right into the kitchen and got into her booster seat, apparently ready for a snack. Geez!



After much deliberation and prayer, we've decided to home-school Jonah. We explained to him what we'd be doing and he's been really excited. We ordered our curriculum on Monday. Then today, when we picked him up from school, and he'd said goodbye to all his classmates, he said, "Call the school and tell them it was all a BIG MISTAKE!"

Today, I was playing with Finley and was chomping my teeth. (Don't ask me why...if you have kids, you won't even ask why.) Anyway, without warning she stuck her finger in my mouth and I chomped it HARD! I mean, hard. And she cried hard! Can you imagine how I would explain that to a doctor if she had needed stitches or something?

I thought I'd be able to keep it together a little better than I have this week. You know, anytime it would come up in conversation that Jonah was starting Kindergarten this year, people would give me this knowing, pitying look. But I thought it would really be no big deal since he's been in Mother's Day Out for a couple of years. I couldn't have been more wrong.
Sunday night, I was a little weepy when we put him to bed. I just kept thinking, "Are we here already?" I kept thinking of him as a baby, or a toddler, or anything but a kindergartener. But I thought that would be it for the tears once we put him to bed. Wrong.
Todd was watching Saving Private Ryan and I just happened to be in the room during a particularly moving scene where a dying soldier calls out for his mama. That's all it took. I boo-hooed. I mean, sobbed, y'all. And pretty soon, Todd was sitting right beside me crying, too!
I was fine on Monday morning. After all, it was the "big event" we had been waiting on for weeks. Jonah was nervous, but shed no tears, so neither did I. We did drive past the school twice that day to try to see him, though.
Then, Tuesday morning, things weren't so great. I was really grouchy, got into a fight with Todd, and went and spied on Jonah at recess, only to see him sitting out because he was in some sort of trouble. More tears from Mommy.
Today is Friday, and I'm looking forward to having Jonah home for the weekend. I really don't think I was prepared for the emptiness of the day without Jonah around. If you know Jonah at all, you know he's a ball of energy, full of questions and plans and hugs and fun. It feels so weird for all that to be gone for 7 whole hours every day. I'm ready for Christmas holidays already.

I've been sick, y'all. I mean, really sick. First I thought it was a virus, then gall stones, but it turned out to be a severe urinary tract infection. (Sorry to say the word urinary on the blog.) You know, it's weird how incapacitating nausea and vomiting can be. It just completely takes away my powers of mobility. I was sitting there on my couch, throwing up right onto my living room floor, thinking, "I should probably try and walk to the bathroom" but knowing that there was absolutely no way I was going to move off that couch.



I remember the first time I got sick after I was married. All my life, my mom has brought me a cool washcloth and a cup of crushed ice when I was sick. I thought this was the universal treatment for nausea and vomiting. Imagine my surprise when I had to ASK my new husband for the washcloth and the ice. Imagine my even bigger surprise when he brought me a warm washcloth and 3 large cubes of ice (not even in a cup, he just put all three cubes right into my hand!)



So, my mom was at my house the other night, when I was sitting on the couch throwing up. And like magic, within mere seconds, she has the cool washcloth. It was almost like she already had it in her pocket, it was so fast. So, Mom, if you read this, thank you. Todd, if you read this, thank you too, for all the extra work you've done while I've been sick. Jesus, if you read this, thank you for answering my prayers that I wouldn't have to have gall bladder surgery.

Well, Jonah's debut as a ringbearer went off without a hitch (almost). I was a little worried..be-ing a ringbearer is a lot of pressure (for the mom.) I guess this really hit me when we went to try on and pick up his tux Thursday. I was really nervous he would get the tux dirty or wrinkled before the wedding. Then, right as we were about to take his tux off, he said, "I just peed a little bit." Great... I figured I'd have to have it dry cleaned before the wedding...but no damage was done.

On the way home from the tux store, Jonah told us his plan to "bow" once he got to the front of the church. I tried to talk him out of it as gently as possible. We went to the rehearsal the next night, and he did fine. The plan was that he and the flower girl would walk down the aisle and straight to their moms, who were sitting on the second row. He was cool with that, but he did express some concern that there weren't any rings on the little pillow he was carrying. I tried to explain why but he couldn't seem to understand.

The next day, we went an hour and a half early to the wedding, and he did really well (meaning he didn't destroy anything or sully his tux before the wedding.) They gave him his little pillow, and he was excited to see 2 silver ornamental rings tied onto the pillow. The wedding started, and he looked so cute walking down the aisle! He was so serious! I sat on the second row, relieved that the hard part was almost over. Then he stopped right in front of the groom and just stood there. The groomsmen tried to silently direct him to me, but he seemed confused. He looked around with this bewildered look on his face. He finally threw back his head and gave a little (but audible) exasperated sigh. I whispered his name 3 times before he finally headed to his seat beside me.

When he got there, he said, "How am I supposed to be the ringbearer if I don't give them the rings?!" He had stopped in front of the groom so he could give him the ornamental rings! I felt so bad I hadn't realized he thought those were the real rings... I tried to tell him those weren't the real rings and that the the best man had the real one...I told him he had done his job perfectly and he shouldn't be upset...he said, "Well, is this the wedding?" I said yes, it was. "Well, then I didn't do my job!!!," he said.

For a few tense seconds, I was afraid we were headed for a meltdown. I mean, he had that look. But he settled into his seat without much more grumbling. For the rest of the wedding, he wiggled and whispered, then made his exit beautifully with the flower girl (who had cried for most of the ceremony) at his side.

He posed for a few pics after the wedding, and he acted like a little grown up for all of that. Then we went to the reception where he promptly guzzled 3 cups of punch. All in all, I think the day was a success.