Emma the Softball Player.

Once there was a little girl named Emma. She decided that she was going to play softball. She was so excited about being on a team.. and her grandma was her coach!! She loved her stripey socks and she loved her pretty pink glove.

During Emma's first game, she went onto the field. She put her glove on her left hand....
And then she switched it to the right!


After standing on the field, she decided to go back to her dancing roots.
And she twirled and twirled.

And she got bored.. and decided to go back to the dance studio! But, she was locked in by the fence.. so she decided to climb over!

Not Really. Well, most of this is true. Just not the climbing over the fence part. That was actually in the beginning. And she did it so she could give me a kiss.

Emma the Tap Dancer.

There is a sweet little girl named Emma. She is five years old and she LOVES to dance. And, as much as she loves to dance, she loves to pose for pictures. She always has a variety of expressions to give her biggest fan - her mommy.

Sometimes she gives the one leg kicked out to the side pose.

Sometimes she sticks her chest out proudly as she poses.

Sometimes she just likes to look in the mirror to see how cute she is.

And, then she travels to the stage to perform and dance with her partner, Mallie.



After the performance is over, she calls her agent... AKA Daddy - and tell him she has finished her show.

Being a star is a hard job.

Big Weekend.

It is such a busy time of year... the kids are all playing a sport (or sports, should I say?) of some kind. It is pretty outside, so the days are long, and the feet are dirty at bedtime. Lots of stinky kids in the house.

My super sweet husband got the camera up and rolling this morning, so I should have some kid eye candy in the next couple of days.

Ballet and Tap are over.. the recital ended great.. because it ended! No, seriously, Emma and Mallie did a great job.

Emma sung at Ladies Day at our church - all by herself! It was so cute.

I have a final coming up this week and the bad one is next week. Then, I have a WHOLE MONTH before summer semester starts.

I will post some pictures later.

Sayings.

Tripp's Favorite Song - it goes just like this:

I love rock and roll.
Put another dime in the jukebox baby.
I love rock and roll.
Tater tot, dance with me.
Bam!

Another Tripp saying - one Friday, he ran around all day saying:

Suck along, sucka.

I couldn't figure out WHAT he was saying. What I did know was that he was Hilarious.
I called everyone. I made him say it for them. It turned out that he was saying, "So long, sucker."

Another song his is singing alot is Pink - So What.
If I can figure out how to post a video of all his cute things, I will show it on here. Everyone should get a kick out of what this kid does.

So many pictures.. no way to post.

The kids slammed the computer door on the cord that connects my camera to the outside world.

I can't put my new pictures on here..

I guess I will have to buy a new cord.

It is recital time! Instead of the usual joy I feel in watching my girls perform, I suffered with everyone else last night thru a 3 hour recital.. yes, you read right. The recital this year is 3 hours! We left at 2 hours and 15 minutes... what was once a group of cute kids showing off what they have learned over the past year turned into a wannabe Broadway theatre production. The same large adults were profiled in piece after piece.. I got tired of seeing the same hand gestures, flailing, and gyrating. It was really absurd.

Can you tell I am not happy with it? I complained all night - so much, in fact, that I made myself sick. I can only imagine how those around me felt.

The stages of death.

I dreamed a couple of nights ago that my mother died.


It was one of those traumatic dreams where you wake up crying, with actual tears flowing, and the feeling of doom or despair lasts the entire day.


In my dream, I was very angry at her for dying. Not only did she die, she hung out to tell us all she was dead. She told us all that she was in fact, going, and that she was not coming back. And that we were all going to miss her. It would be a lonely life without her.


But the fact is, I have already gone thru that. Even though she is not dead - in real life.


You see, almost four years ago, my mother cut off ties with me. She told me that I had outgrown her, and that I needed to go own with my life. I was absolutely devastated. "What do I tell my kids," I asked her. "Tell them I died," she replied. And that was that.



I did not tell them she died. I explained to them that "Granny" was making poor life choices and that her decisions were unhealthy. And we went on. Life was hard. Dave worked out of town, I had a five week old baby, a 22 month old baby, and a nine year old who loved his granny with an intensity that was indescribable. I went back and fourth from being angry, to sad, to angry again. I felt deserted. I missed her.

When Emma potty trained, I picked up the phone automatically to call her. When the baby started ooh-ing and aah-ing, I desperately wanted to call her. When Eli did something special, I wanted to share. Girls need their moms. And I needed mine. She wasn't really dead. Our relationship was, though.


Over the next couple of years, I called her a few times. I got desperate. She was going to talk to me. I would make her love me and she would be part of my children's lives. When I dialed her number, she answered - sometimes. I tried to share what was going on with me, the kids, my job as a mother. She didn't listen. She talked about herself and she never once said,"How are your kids?" I wanted validation that I was a good mom and a good wife - and I wanted my mother to tell me. But that never came. I had to accept the fact that even though I needed my mom, she did not need me.


As time went on, I started to care less. My desperation to have my mother be involved became less and less. My validation came in other ways. My mother in law was a huge help. So was Dave. I told myself that I could do this and that I did not need her to tell me that I was OK. I knew that I was. I grew, and I learned to depend on myself, and the others around me that had not left me.

Even though the four year mark is approaching, I sometimes find myself feeling the need to talk to her. Sometimes, I think back of our relationship and of the fun times we had. I sometimes find myself jealous of the women my age that have mothers that are involved in their daily lives. When I see her in public, I get angry that she looks so happy. I don't think she knows what she caused me to go thru. When this happens, I remind myself of all that I have. My Mother in law helps me alot. And, there are several ladies in the congregation that have really helped with the "mom advice" that I need from time to time.

God has provided what I needed.

I want you to understand why I am going to beat you.

After a hearty meal last Saturday night, we went back to the condo.

Eli was trying to convince us how he can superhumanly jump over the hood of the van. Dave let him out in the near - empty parking lot to try. While the van door was open, and Eli was revving his own engine trying to find the courage to hurl himself mid-air, Tripp snuck out the door.

Around about the same time as Eli finished flailing around, Tripp decided to take off running. By himself. In a dark parking lot. While a van was backing up.

I was absolutely petrified. Dave screamed. I screamed. Eli just stood there. Emma - well, I don't know what Emma did.

The van stopped. I ran and got Tripp. I then carried him back to the van, where I checked him out. I have to say that it was one of the scariest moments of my life. Not as scary as the concussion, but scary enough that I was crying.

After I checked him out, I told him that he should never, ever, ever do that and I told him that he could have gotten squished, that I would not have a little boy anymore if he got squished.

And then I blistered his hiney.

I told him I spanked him because I loved him, and I wanted him to understand that he should not run in parking lots. We all went in, recollected ourselves and hung out for the rest of the evening.

But, this episode really got me thinking of how many times I discipline the kids and I don't tell them why. I am pretty good about not spanking in anger. All the kids are different with their individual needs for discipline - to some degree. Emma, for example, will start to cry on her own when she knows she is in trouble, and sometimes that is before I have said anything. Tripp always gives me the routine "I am just so, so sorry" and Eli pretends that he has no idea that he has or ever will do anything wrong.

I think, as parents, that it is important to explain why, what and how. I am going to work on that.

A New School.

I am so conflicted. I am torn. What does a mother do?

I have been attending the local college for some time now. And, as my father in law has said, "There are no more classes for you to take, Mel. You have took every one they have."

How true that is. I am out of classes. So this morning, I ventured out to the "big school." I went to Tennessee Tech. I finally got all my paperwork in and got accepted. I had an appointment with my advisor this morning. She was super nice. But she scared the hell outta me.

Lots of words that I have heard - but never used, I might add - were used this morning. Phrases such as "student teaching" "Praxis 1 and 2" and upper division were spoken in a conversation pertaining to my situation. My advisor was sweet enough to register me for 13 (!) hours in the fall.

For an example, just imagine this -- on Thursday night, I will be in class from 4 p.m. to 8:50 p.m.
This is in addition to my 40 hour work week. And in addition to three kids. What's up with this?

I called my mother in law - who happens to be in Vegas - and I told her my story. I spent about 20 minutes of her vacation time trying to figure out how I am going to weave my way thru kids, work and a degree. She, of course, always offers her help. And, she is such a help to me. Sometimes, I think I use her as my private cheerleader. She really encourages me to go on.

So, boys and girls, if you need to see an example of someone who struggles with trying to receive an education while having a family, come to my house. This is sure to be an adventure. Dirty laundry and all.

Conversations.

This morning. I am driving all the kids to school. I have three different stops before I make it to work. The discussion goes something like this.

Emma: "Momma, please, please walk me in to class."
Me: "Emma, I still have Tripp in the van. You can walk in by your self. I will watch you."
Emma: "We can leave him in the van. It will just take a minute."
Me: "Emma, we cannot leave Tripp in the van. You can run in like a big girl."

So, Emma turns to Tripp and says:

"Tripp, would you like to be alone?"

A Weekend Getaway.

Right now, right this minute, I am on a mini getaway with Dave and the kids.

We travelled to Knoxville to watch the Orange and White game (GO VOLS!) and we just decided at the last minute to make a weekend of it.
We are having a great time!

In the words of Tripp,( when he gets in trouble) "I am just so, so sorry" for being behind on my posts this week. It is the end of the semester, Tripp has had some health issues (we saw a specialist yesterday - more tests follow) - Ladies Day at church is next Saturday.. the list goes on and on.

I hope to be back on track by next week. For the first time in my blogging history, I felt as though I did not have much to say.. but, I am filled up now.

As a note to myself, and to be accountable, this is what I want to write on in the coming episodes of The Sadler Family Chronicles.

1. Watching your kids personalities change and grow by spending extra time with them.
2. The fact that now, when I take a picture, my 3 year old screams, "Don't put that on the computer!"
3. The Five Love Languages for Children (Emma is finally old enough - but, I had her pegged anyways)
4. Explaining to your kids when/why they are being punished or spanked.
5. My brother Chris is turning 29 (!) ON Wednesday.

Conversations.

Me: Hey Tripp, your birthday is coming up soon. What kind of party do you think you would like?

Tripp: I want a Pirate Party.

Dave: Would that be a Somolian Pirate party or a regular pirate party?

Hump day.

I am starting to notice a trend.. my blog seems to be slower in the beginnings of the week... then it picks up on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. My guess (not really a guess, though) is that I am just super busy during the beginning of the week. I always breathe a sigh of relief after the church bulletin is printed. Then, I get some sense of order about me.

Interesting news - Tripp has been having some high school "girls" come over to his school in the mornings to work with his class. These girls color with the little kids, do projects, and just really play with them. Have I told you all that Tripp already tells that he loves "boobies" and "bras?"

I HAD A PICTURE OF TRIPP HERE IN A BRA. HE TOLD ME NO. I HAD TO REMOVE IT. THANK YOU.

Like, he loves women. Just like his daddy, I guess. In fact, he did not want to go to school yesterday until I told him that the girls were there. Then he decided to go.. and he told me that his friend Braden "blinks" at the girls. I am willing to bet that he "blinks" at them, too.

Emma has ballet recital coming up. Next week is crunch week. I will turn into super pageant mom. I will be angry when my fourth child Mallie blinks her mascara off, when Emma's lip liner doesn't look just right, and when the pomade is slicking the fake buns back smooth enough. I can't wait.

Easter. Part 3. (The pretty part)

Here you go... after a long, intense several days of blogging about many, many egg hunts, the visit from the easter bunny, thugdom, and enduring lots of angry drama that was NOT blogged about (but Facebooked/emailed), I give you my clean, sweet children. In all their glory. In their sunday best. Sweet and fresh. After morning baths. I can almost smell the ivory soap... aahhh.

Pissy look. I miss that sweet baby that let me take lots of pictures. Not this cranky-13 year old- don't want out of bed - face.
Someone, please. bring my good kid back!

This one looks like his daddy. Who is very yummy, I might add.

My sweet girl.

They love each other.

Thank God Easter is over.

Now, I can talk about something else.

Easter. Part 2.

On with the Easter story.. so maybe it will be finished this week.

So, the bunny came to visit... He brought pre-made Walmart baskets that were opened and had things added in them. I think this may be the first year ever for baskets. Usually, he just brings a gift such as a CD player, specific barbie doll, motorized car... you get the picture.

How about that backwards nightgown?

7 am on Sunday morning. What a happy face.

This kid was thrilled.

The bunny also brought puppets. Those were fun.

Daddy scoping out the eggs for snickers bars.

This was at the party that we should have

dressed for, but didn't. This was a thug picture.

Wait! I am missing a kid! Where is Eli, you ask?

Why, he is in bed, asleep! The "bunny" stopped at Walmart the night before and got Eli a video game. At first, he just asked for money. But then he changed his mind.

And, the bunny was happy to oblige. :)

Easter. Part 1.

Since Easter was celebrated many, many times thru the week, I will be blogging in parts. This is part one. This is the Sadler Family Hoedown... Since it was held on a Saturday, following a wet morning soccer game, my kids looked like thugs. So did both myself and Dave. The best part about being the camera operator is that there are no pictures of me. So you will never know how bad I looked when I showed up to a family function where bad looking'ness is not allowed. But, I feel like confessing. So there you go.

I will show pictures of Dave being a thug. I can do that if I want.

Kids in all their thug'dom. Notice the bad outfits? Ha ha! That is what you get for a Saturday egg hunt when it has been raining!

Tripp uses his usual agressiveness to get the eggs.

Emma loved getting all the eggs too.

Final count. Emma - 29 /Tripp 22

Easter. The Bunny Visits. To be continued....

late at night. I can't sleep.

The easter bunny *?* should be coming soon. Yet, here I sit. I am not tired. I have so many thoughts in my head.

We had a good day today. The kids hunted eggs at the Sadler Family Hoedown. Emma ended up with 29 and Tripp got 22. Lots of jellybeans were inside. And, they were funky jellybeans, I will tell you that. Spicy, or something. Eeewww!

I went with Eli, Matt (nephew), Emma, Mallie and Terri to watch the new Hannah Montana movie this afternoon. It was really cute. Eli was in the end. He was called back when he applied, and we took 8 boys to the filming last June. So, it was neat to see where we all were. Emma loved the movie. She sung all the way thru it.

Tripp's still having the hiney issues. I am so stressed out about it. Everyone tells me it will (and can) be taken care of. I know they mean well. It is just hard when it is your own baby. You just can't blow it off.

I have just a few more weeks of school left. I have some decisions to make. I need help making them. I will probably call my mother in law for help. She is so matter-of-fact about things. And she usually steers me in the right direction. *after she tells me to get over myself* :)

Everything else seems to be going good. This is a nice time of year. The weather should be great soon. Have I mentioned that I love my yard? I would love to have one extra day to stay at home and clean. I need to switch out summer and winter clothes. With 3 kids, that is a whole day job.
Boy, my kids have grown this year. Eli is about 5'8 and 120'ish pounds. Emma is about 40 inches and 42 pounds and Tripp is 37 inches and 32 pounds.

I guess I should go to bed. That bunny will be waking me up soon.

Giving Thanks.

I have lots of things that I have been thankful for recently. So, I am going to share some of them.

1. I am thankful that I have a husband that likes to be involved in our children's lives. He coaches, talks to them, takes them to school, goes and has lunch with them, cuddles them, plays with them and loves them so so much. And he is cute and has a great sense of humor.
2. I am thankful for my inlaws. My mother in law is my biggest supporter. She is the first person to tell me to stop whining and the first person to offer me support when I need it. My father in law is great.. he has done many wonderful things for my family. I love them so so much.
3. I am thankful for my children, their health, the doctors that take care of them.
4. I am thankful for my friends - the ones that I know I can depend on. I have several that I know I can call for prayer requests, to talk to, or just hang out with. A couple of them are ladies in the church that are grandmas. They are like surrogate moms to me - and help me lots.
5. I am thankful for my job. In this terrible economy, many people are looking for work. I am so happy that I found a job that I can still be a mommy, and my bosses understand that my kids are number 1.
6. I am thankful for the yard that we have at the new house. I love the yard. I love the house. I am in love with the yard and the house.

Lemme tell ya about my day....

6:10 am - Up. Shower. Get dressed.

6:55 am - Out the door. Take Eli to school. He missed the bus.

7:00 am - Arrive at work. Today I have a 7 page paper due from my interview with the immigrant, as well as usual work stuff. I also have 2 egg hunts - one from tripps school and one at emma's. Then, I have a party at emma's in the afternoon. I need to complete my stuff so I can get to my kids.

7:30 am - call and check on my dad. He is a little disoriented and says he feels like he has been on a drunk that he can't get off of.

8:00 am - call Tripps doctor. He had another episode. at church last night. Got to go see a specialist.

8:30 am - he comes by my work. He is red in the face and still discombobulated. I call his doctor. No one is in today. The nurse listens to him talk. Please take him to the ER.

9:15 am - leave to drive to the ER in cookeville. T's doctor calls me back on the way. Trying to keep straight all the jargon between tripps issues and my dads and the immigrant paper that is due and the church work that is due and did I pay the bank payment? You get the picture.

9:45 am - arrive at the hospital and get my dad in.

11 am - still there.

12 pm - still there

1 pm - still there

1:30 pm - medicinal malfunction. oops on a perscription. medicine change and then go home.

2:00 - home and try to catch the end of emma's school party. I missed it, the egg hunts for both her and tripp. Tripp has already been placed with grandma.

2:15 pm - back to work.

3:10 pm -oh no! emma has softball practice at 3:45. go home and get her ready. take her to practice. leave both boys at home. go back to work. Eli has a game tonight and has to be at the field at 5

4 pm - back to work. finish my work cause I am off tomorrow. finish my paper on the immigrant.
I have to be in class at 6.

5:50 pm - leave work

6:02 pm - get to class

7:05 pm - potty break

8:00 pm - home. my kids are spending the night with aunt terri.
Here I am. I miss my kids.

Once Upon a Time....

Once upon a time there was a little girl named Melody. She was the third child out of four. She had a brother named Steve, who was seven years older than her. Then, she had a sister named Melissa who was 5 years older. And last, but certainly not least, she had a wee baby brother named Chris. When Chris was born, Melody was almost 5 years old.

Melody's mommy was a crazy lady. She was not a happy stay-at-home mommy. See, her mommy never took advantage of all of the luxuries of the world, such as learning to drive. So, her mommy was stuck day.after.day with 4 children in her home and no way out. Year after year, her mommy got more and more angry and more and more fed up with being a wife and a mother.

One summer, when Steve was about 13, Melissa was 11, Melody was 6 and Baby Chris was 1, the mommy started locking them outside. After breakfast, the three bigger kids were hurried outside to play. And the mommy locked the door. The children were only allowed back in around lunchtime. And, then again, after bologna and crackers and a swig of Kool-aid, the kids were placed outside again. This time, the excuse was naptime for Baby Chris. What the mommy didn't know was that there were windows in the house... the kids could see in. And do you know what they saw? Why, the mommy was eating her own lunch of Chicken Noodle Soup and crackers and watching Guiding Light! She just really wanted to be alone!

Later on, the kids snuck in the back door. They had taken tomatoes out of the garden and cut them open, pouring the guts out of them. Then, the oldest brother Steve took mayonnaise and filled the gutless tomato full - just for the mommy. Why, it was a peace offering! Surely, she would love this and welcome them back into her home!

No. It didn't work. The kids spent all day... everyday.. locked outside. It was a long hot summer.

Years later, Melody was a mommy herself. She loved her kids and loved being their mommy.
She took advantage of all the things life had to offer, she drove, she flew on planes and she did lots of neat adult things.

Yet one day, she was cleaning house. And her kids were whining. So she pushed them out the door while she mopped.

Look what she saw.

She was glad they didn't give her mayo filled tomatoes.

Edited to Add: During this process, their father was outside mowing. So was big brother Eli. And it only took about 10 minutes. They just kept running thru... tracking dirt in and out. I just wanted a clean floor. And, for what it's worth.. it didn't last. :)

I cracked.

I made it thru the Fellowship meal at church with all that family reunion food... the desserts were plentiful, yet I held back. "No sugar for me," I boasted all afternoon.

"I am so powerful in my way of eating" I thought to myself.


UNTIL -

We had to take Tripp to the ER after church. We came home, he went to potty and Dave was going to wipe him. He had a rectal prolapse. Google it if you dare.

What 3 year old has this? My son.
After about 1 1/2 hours, it went back in. We came home.

And I ate Key Lime Pie.

Ball season is here! - part two..

Tripp's ball season started out with soccer... baseball doesn't start till the second week in May.

This kid is an athlete.. allbeit, a moody one. Aren't they all, though? I know that my true love Peyton Manning always has an intense look while he is playing the sacred game of football.. so I expect no less for my own son Tripp.

See his intense, blurry face?

Let's look and see how his morning went, shall we?

Oh, Coach Daddy - I don't want to do this. I need my Mommy.

And I don't want to leave your side. Please, Daddy, noooo!

Nevermind, Coach Daddy. I am off to score some goals!

(After Mommy walked him on the field)

Get outta my way, buddy!

He ended up playing a good game. I think he scored three or four.

Ball season is here!

Well, it is that time again! And this year, I am so blessed to have not one, not even two - but, ALL THREE kids playing some sort of ball. Emma's softball season started Thursday. We have a great coach - none other than our own Grandmama - and this is sure to be a treat for my super athletic 5 year old daughter who doesn't like to get dirty or sweaty.

For your viewing pleasure, I give you the following photos. See for yourself.

On the field throwing the ball. Check out the glove.

Dave is making her bat. Doesn't she look enthused?

She hit the ball!!! Yey, Emma.

Later, on - it was time to go back and pratice catching.

She is sleeping on the field.

Well, not really. But it makes for a good story, right?

She was super sweaty... and proceeded to tell me about it. And she said, "Will we practice like that everytime?"

This is just the beginning.

I am hungry. Oh. so hungry.

This is not the time of the year for me to decide that I need to watch what I eat.

I love peeps. I may have told you before.

I just decided a few days ago to eliminate sugar from my diet.

Oh. my. Ga.

My feelings are as follows -

Day 1- I am empowered. Who needs candy, anyways. Great feelings. I love coming down from this sugar high. Not a day goes by that I have not inhaled some form of chocolate... boy, I feel great letting all of these toxins out of my body. Look at me drink the water. I am really getting with it. I can do this.. AAAUUUGGGG!!

Day 2- I am starting to slow down some. I know I love chocolate. It is my personal crack. And I am A CRACK ADDICT. Do they have treatment for this? Would my health insurance cover it? Oh, I don't have insurance. Surely, somewhere, someone is out there who is sympathetic and they can help me. I am considering attending a meeting. I neeeeedddd mmmmy cccaannndddyyy.

Day 3- I am lying in the corner whimpering. I love the taste. If I just smell it, can I pretend the taste is in my mouth? How can I do this to my body? Isn't it worse to go thru the withdrawal of no sugar than the actual process of eating three pounds a day?

Yet, still, I have not cracked yet. I may end up breaking into Walgreen's at 2 am for some peeps.

Just imagine - my sweet kids are motherless and in DCS custody because I am serving a jail sentence over chocolate theft.

I need to be medicated.

Two Years ago.

This is Emma and Tripp 2 years ago. That would make Tripp 21 months old and Emma 3 1/2 years old. Where has the time went?



I L.O.V.E. looking at old pictures but I hate it at the same time.

Tripp has always liked frogs. See that frog in Emma's hand? His name is Tad. He is the LeapFrog. That frog is still Tripp's baby. He is carried around sometimes, and sometimes he is forgotten - yet, he always seems to resurface. He reminds me of the Velveteen Rabbit. I know that some day Tad is going to come to life and hop off and go live by the creek.

I just hope he doesn't get squished crossing the road.

Hump day.

Woo Hoo! It's Wednesday! Half way thru the week!

So close to the weekend - yet so far away. It has been a super busy week. Ladies Day is coming up. I have had *lots* to do. My bulletin looked really good this week - if I do say so myself. It is probably my favorite yet. (For all those who don't know, I am a new church secretary. After an almost 9 year hiatus, I returned to work in January. For what it is worth, don't take your church secretary for granted. There is tons of work involved.)

We have been having a rough time with Tripp's teacher at his school lately. It is hard to drop my baby off with this wicked woman. I want to move him - but, there is only about 6 weeks left. And, I can't afford to move him. So, I will be patient. I know she has a great assistant, one that really acts like the teacher. That makes me feel some better.

I raked leaves this afternoon. I am going to plant some flowers.

How boring am I????