Author Archives: Heather

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About Heather

I adore my family, writing, books, cats, lazy mornings in bed, and chocolate. I'll never say no to breakfast for dinner, long talks with friends and lazy summer days at the pool with family. My life is often crazy, always awesome and one I'm so happy to be living! My side hustle is editing and proofing work. Find out more at https://heathercaryn.com/
Feb4

6, You’re Crazy

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So, Scorch has been 6 for roughly 3/4th of the year- and of 90% of that time, I’ve loved 6.  6 still wants to hold your hand and is funny as all get out. 6 is sweet and helpful and so eager to learn everything. 6 begs for chore charts so he can earn money to buy things. 6 doesn’t really throw fits anymore and is willing to go with the flow. 6 loves to tell a good joke and is more then obsessed with Star Wars.  6 frequently gets side tracked by books and legos and other shiny things when all you want him to do is get dressed, for crying out loud. But 6 is so funny about being redirected, you really don’t mind.

What 6 stinks at is taking responsibility for himself.

Take for instance, this afternoon. Scorch climbed up on the kitchen while I was doing laundry. When I came back upstairs I made him get down- and, in doing so, he pulled some papers off the counter. Not a big deal at all- but I told him to pick them up.  He told me the papers falling wasn’t his fault, it was my fault because I made him get down.

All right then.

Or how about the time he slipped and fell on a puzzle piece that he and the Bean were working on.  He slipped after I told him twice to watch out and pick that up before he got hurt. The fall- my fault because I didn’t yell at him and make him pick it up.

Perhaps that little personality trait comes at 7.

Please tell me it comes at age 7.

 

Jan29

Whirlwind

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The past 6 days have been a whirlwind- I have:

> Flown to VA and back again all within 48 hours. Was super psyched to be in warmer weather- and was very disappointed by Mother Nature:

Snow fall in VA

> Cursed VA driver, DOT and generally the whole state’s population for inability to deal with an inch of snow. This Yankee was not impressed.

> Sat in hours of highly productive meetings (no- really!) inside of the bowel of a huge building. Didn’t see natural lights for 9 hours straight on Thursday.
> Hosted my beloved mother-in-law for the weekend so we could attend a wedding. Having her here was wonderful, but I did a lot of scrambling between when I got home Friday afternoon and Saturday morning to make everything ready.  The scrambling was well worth it though so the Hubs and I could…

> …attended the aforementioned wedding. We took the kiddos to the ceremony (a traditional Catholic mass) so they could see a wedding first hand before they are in their first wedding next fall.  Neither kid was terribly impressed with anything outside the fashion because, as Bean said, it’s like every day boring church except with kissing (ewwww!). Left my kids with my mother-in-law and….

> ….had an amazing time at the reception- such an amazing time my calves still hurt 3 days later.  We danced, we ate, we drank and we used the photo booth. We did all those things a lot. Like, more then this 34 year old has done in a long time. Too. Much. Fun.

 

> Got to sleep it off until 9 am and then get up and be a functioning parent Sunday morning!  I actually felt much better then I had any right too- which was good, because the Hub woke up with a horrible sinus infection!  Had the pleasure of spending 2 hours a local bowling alley that afternoon for a 6 year old’s birthday party. Thank goodness 4,  5 and 6 year olds can’t hit the pins too hard, so the noise level was tolerable.

> Went to bed very early on Sunday only to be woken up at 2 am with Scorch telling me his throat hurt.  Was up and at the walk-in at 7 am Monday morning to find out he has strep. *sigh* Poor kid. Thankfully I had already planned on taking the day off (the kid’s didn’t have school), so the kids and I had one of the laziest days ever at home. It was a much needed end to a very, very long 6 days.

And that, ladies and gents, is why I’ll be in bed by 9 pm every night this week. I’m not made for all this excitement!

Jan22

Busy Life & a Joke

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Well hello blog. It’s been what, 6 days since I last posted? Wish I could tell you I was doing something awesome, but really- not so much. I mean, sure, we did spend one day at an indoor water park and that was great! And we built some shelves for storing more things (read: legos) around the house.  I made an awesome turkey in the crockpot and helped my parents clean out their freezer (before they moved south for the winter) by letting them feed my whole family one night. Got a hair cut. Took Scorch to his first allergy shot appointment.  Tried valiantly to fight off a cold before having to go out of town tomorrow for work (and lost).   Complained loudly, and with pictures, about the arctic temps in NY.

Gorgeous day. Too bad it’s only 8 degrees out!

So, basically just a normal week in the Heat household.  Who the heck wants to hear about that?   So to spare you the boredom, I’ll just share a joke that Scorch told me last night:

Obi-Wan and Luke went out to eat at a local Chinese restaurant.  While Obi-Wan was a master at using the chop sticks, Luke kept dropping his food and making a mess. Finally, exasperated with his padawan’s mess, Obi-Wan said “Use the fork, Luke.”

Seriously, I love 6 year olds!

Jan16

15 Years

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I’m terrible with dates. Birthday, anniversaries, appointments- I’m awful at remembering them. It usually takes me a good couple of seconds to remember my kids birth dates for goodness sake! But for some reason Jan 16th, the date of  my first date with the Hubs, stays stuck in my head.  It’s not like we celebrate this anniversary- I make a remark about it, the Hubs rolls his eyes, we kiss and the kid’s groan. No presents or cards- just a passing comment and we’re done.

I think this one is boggling my mind the most because I was 19 when we met- which means we’re fast approaching the point where I’ll have known the Hubs as long as I didn’t know him. And frankly, that astounds me.  And makes me feel old. And lucky. I knew I liked the Hubs on that first date, but I could have never have imagined the crazy, awesome life we would build together!

Jan14

A Well Laid Trap

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Scorch came home from school today just full of it today. No idea what was up with that kid, but he was a wild man. I had already spoken to him twice about the potty words he was using when I heard him in the other room start chanting “Boobies, boobies, boooooobies!” over and over.

Huh- that was a new one.

Now, I get that I’m raising a boy. At 6, he’s not a baby any more and he’s learning new words and concepts all the time. I can’t stop the march of time, but I can darn well do my damnedest to raise a gentleman. A gentleman who uses correct verbiage for body parts.  So, with a full head of steam, I walked purposely out to the living room, intent on having a conversation with my son about slang words, body parts and showing some respect. It wasn’t going to be fun, it wasn’t going to be pretty- but I was ready.

“Scorch- that word you were saying? We need to have a talk about it.”

“Boobie?”

“Yup- that’s the one.”

“Why? Are we going to build one?”

“Build one what, bud?” <I’m way confused now>

“A booby trap. Like on Indiana Jones- are we going to build one?”

“Ohhhhh….nope. Never mind- forget I said anything.”

And that is how I ended up spending a good part of my evening planning with Scorch how he could build a booby trap for his sister. Awesome.

 

 

Jan9

You Learn Quickly, Padawan

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There is nothing that Scorch loves right now more then Star Wars. Nothing.  It’s all he reads about, talks about and watches on TV- he’s obsessed.

And there is nothing Scorch hates more then people getting sick. Freaks him right out.

So when the kids were having a light saber duel earlier and Scorch was beating the Bean pretty badly, she made noises like she was going to puke. Scorch immediately stopped what he was doing and asked her if she was OK. That’s when she pretended to skewer him right through the heart- winning their match.

Scorch was ticked that she’s tricked him, but I was in awe. That little girl is going to rule the world one day.

Jan8

Some Days

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Some days I have the patience for this mommy thing. And some days I don’t.

Some days I’m fully in the moment and can enjoy the little side trips my kids take on the way to the car.  Some days I want to scream “Seriously!? Car- now!” only with more profanity.

Some days I find my kids rambling stories adorable and charming. Some days I want to tell them to Just Stop Talking for 10 minutes so I can finish my book.

Some days I beg for hugs and kisses and can’t get enough contact with my kids. Some days I just don’t want to be touched again. By anyone.

Some days I make fabulous meals and we eat dinner like a family and talk about the good and bad things that happened in our day. Some days I make breakfast for dinner and turn on Phineas and Ferb.

Some days I have a handle on our crazy schedules- activities 5 nights a week? No problem. Some days I feel like I’m going to lose my freaking mind.

Some days my house is completely picked up, my meals are made from scratch and the laundry is done.  Some days….oh forget it. There has never been a day like in my house- even before kids.

I love my life. I love my family. But today is just one of those days- you guess which kind!

 

 

Jan6

Walking Disasters

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That about sums us up today…

This morning we got up and out a little earlier then usual so we could attend a fundraiser breakfast for the kid’s school. The kids were excited and I was thrilled because there are few things I like better then breakfast out.  But, we didn’t even make it out of the driveway before the drama started. Scorch wanted to bring two lego figures with him to breakfast and asked me to get him a good guy and a bad guy.  All I could find were two bad guys and he was Not Pleased. At all. So he generally threw a fit the entire 10 minute drive over.

When we got to the restaurant, Scorch dropped the hat to one of his lego guys into a crevice of the car and he couldn’t reach it.  This normally wouldn’t be a huge deal, but the Hubs was dropping us off and there was a line of 4 cars behind us waiting to get out while Scorch tried (unsuccessfully) to reach the freaking hat. The Hubs and I finally ended up yelling at him to get him to move out of the car before the folks behind us started honking.  So that’s why I walked into breakfast this morning with a 4 year telling me in a sticky sweet voice how good she’s been and my 6 year old crying. Awesome.

The kids and I got a table, I got Scorch calmed down and we went up the buffet line.  The Hubs wasn’t there, but I decided that we’d be fine. I’d hold the Bean’s plate along with mine and Scorch could hold his.  So I’m ordering my food while constantly muttering “use two hands” under my breath to Scorch. I swear I only took a 2 second break in  my mantra, but that was enough. Scorch got distracted and that big china plate tumbled to the ground, breaking into a million pieces.  Now, if there is anything Scorch hates more then calling attention to himself in a negative way, I don’t know what it is. So suddenly I’m juggling two full plates with a 6 year old burrowing into my side all while trying to help clean up a mess and apologizing left and right.  That was fun.

But the mess got cleaned up and we made it back to the table with our food- just in time for the Hubs to arrive. Finally- man on man defense. So we all dig in and make it 5 whole minutes before disaster strikes again. Just as the Hubs got done warning the Bean to move her cup to the inside of the table, he knocks his OJ to the ground- and, in the process of cleaning that, he dumps the Bean’s water.  As this point, all I can do is laugh. I mean- come on. It’s not even 10:30 in the morning.  I bet the entire wait staff (all 6th graders and parent volunteers) let out a huge sigh of relief when we left.

I wish I could say the day got better, but it really didn’t. The Hubs got a migraine, I was that mom putting her kids in timeout in the aisles of Target and Scorch managed to spill half of my much-loved Starbucks hot chocolate.  But our evening was spent with friends, the Hubs is feeling better and both kids are sound asleep.  Here’s hoping tomorrow is much, much less eventful!

 

Jan2

The Making of an Awesome Day

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Surprisingly enough, the kids slid back into the routine of school without much of a fuss this morning.  As amazing as the vacation was, I think we were all ready for a bit of routine back in our lives.  That said, I missed the little buggers like crazy and couldn’t wait to get them from school today.  As the bound into the car, I asked them how their day was.

Scorched told me it was the best day ever because I’ll never guess in a million years why.  Because he and Logan had on the same underwear, that’s why! The same totally awesome Lego Star Wars underwear and that was awesome.

I was too charmed by his enthusiasm to ask him exactly how he knew this. Honestly, I don’t think I want to know.

Jan1

A Sore Subject

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Scorch has a canker sore.  You know- those annoying teeny, tiny little sores you get in your mouth along your gum line? I get them when I eat too much chocolate and for all I know, that’s how Scorch got his too.  I keep trying to tell my boy that it’s not a big deal, but to my budding hypochondriac (a delightful bonus that cropped up with his anxiety), it’s a Huge Deal.

Mom- why did I get this?

I don’t know, Bud- too much chocolate? Or maybe not enough sleep.

Is it from too much gum?

Probably not.

What about how I got bopped in the jaw 2 weeks ago at football? Could that have caused it?

I don’t think so.

How about maybe I’m losing a tooth and that is causing this.

Rather doubt it.

And on and on and ON. Finally the Bean turned around, glared at her brother and said “Enough! It doesn’t matter how you got it. Deal with it.”  It’s very handy having a kid around who can say exactly what you’re thinking so you don’t have to be the bad guy!