Dear Lady in the Grocery Store, or the Mall, or the line at the Pharmacy,

I realize you are of an older generation and sometimes change is hard. Especially when it involves race relations, which we all know is a toughy. I am sure seeing a white lady with brown kids can be a little perplexing and sometimes some of  your silly questions can even be validated. Like are my kids adopted. That one I can give you I suppose. My youngest two pretty much look nothing like me and they are well, brown. But the questions that are really none of your business anyway like “Are you married?” and then the one that always follows when I say no, “Do they all have the same dad?”, um, that’s a little much. I apologize if you ask me these questions on a bad day when I may answer by saying “I dunno, the UPS man just dropped them off one day” or “Why yes they do, have you ever heard of Denzel Washington?”

I am not near as nice when the really silly questions come out like “Is that her natural hair color?” (my red head) or “Is her hair that curly naturally?” so try to avoid those. I once convinced a lady at the playland at the mall that I paid $200 every 6 weeks to have their hair permed and professionally colored. They were 2,3, and 4 at the time. She nodded along and then made a beeline for her Canasta meeting to tell everyone all about the crazy white lady at the mall.   

I can also cut some slack on the truly sympathetic questions like “How on earth do you keep it all together raisin’ those girls without a husband?” to which I can usually just say “Easy - I just don’t keep it all together” and then point to my mismatched socks and unbrushed hair.

My new favorite is the one I was asked when we were at the dentist last. I mentioned to the girls that we needed to get moving so we could get Emma to therapy on time; an appointment that was just 20 minutes away. After brazenly asking me what she went to therapy for, I answered “um, she sees a therapist for her ADHD.” “Oh you really believe in that ADHD stuff?”

Yeah, don’t ever think it is okay to ask these kinds of questions really. If you don’t believe in ADHD I would be delighted to invite you to my house at midnight when she is so worked up and fidgety she can’t close her eyes when it is clear she is exhausted. Those nights are always a blast.

So I see that some aspects of my life can seem a little curious and just sometimes you feel like you must ask the question that is burning in your mind. But do me a favor, don’t ask me.

But lady from the gas station this morning, if you are reading this, questions like “Aren’t they just the cutest things?” are fine. Because why yes, yes they are and thank you for noticing.

Love,

Mandy

One of my favorite things to do is turn the radio on loud and move to the music while I am cleaning. Just to be clear, cleaning will never be one of my favorite things to do, but if I have to do it, I might as well have fun doing it. I have always loved all kinds of music and my kids do too. Even when I put them through my Sinatra stage when they were toddlers.

I recently got the spring cleaning bug and opened all the doors and turned the radio on and got busy.  It didn’t take long for the music to call Corina in from outside. She loves to dance for me.

Earlier in the day I found an older CD my friend Sarah had put together for me of downloaded songs. She came in at the perfect time….

the “oohhh, I love this song” face

the washing machine

oh yeah, gettin in the groove…and finally….

uh huh… let’s kick these shoes off and get this party started!

My daughter dancing in the springtime air in my fresh lemon pinesol smelling kitchen to “Let’s Dance” by the Beatles….simply priceless.

Sometimes when you are feeling like you don’t know what your life is about, and you wonder what your purpose is, God will show you in the details. Sometimes when you take a second to stop and take a deep breath and look around at your life, you will see the small things that make it all worth it. The slices of your days that complete the puzzle of who you are.

At first you may see dust on the top of the refrigerator where you keep the cookie jar. But if you look closely you will see little fingerprints. Little fingerprints that will not be there forever searching for cookies.

At first you may see scraps of paper in the corner you wish someone would have put into the wastebasket. But if you look closely, you will see it is the scrawlings of an eight year old that started and erased and restarted and crumpled up and restarted a note to her nana until she got it just right.

At first you may see that someone has been in your fabric scraps and left quite a mess on the laundry room floor. But if you look closely, you may see all your five year olds Barbies having a wicked camping trip in the play tent and they each have their own little sleepingbag made from brightly colored and discarded scraps of different texture.

At first you may see that someone drug out your planner and scribbled on one of the pages where you much prefer to keep your grocery list. But if you look closely you will see that your seven year old used a highlighter pen to write #1 mom in the corner.

At first you may see just a man. Just a man you think will use you and leave you like all the rest. But if you look closely you see a man that looks at you with pure love in his eyes and kisses your kids on the forehead if he gets there after they have fallen asleep. You hear him whisper I love you to your sleeping daughters with no daddy and you know that your prayers have been answered.

I have always been anal retentive, bordering on OCD. I strive for organization, but too often find myself in the midst of utter chaos. I have tried every gimmicky organizational tool in the book and have recently found 2 that are working wonders in my household! The cute magazine holders I cleverly labeled “Coloring Books” with my never used scrapbook materials, not so much. I still find coloring books scattered all over the house. The two clear bins I also cleverly labeled “Barbie Dolls”, not so much. They prefer the plastic bag my mom’s new comforter came in. I mean, it has a zipper. Silly me!

So anyhoo, I ran across an intriguing idea on one of my favorite blogs Notes from the Trenches. She has seven children. I am so inspired by big families and the ways mothers find ways of keeping things organized. Owlhaven is another favorite. If she can do it with 10 kids, surely I can do it with 3. But anyway, Chris from Notes also blogs at Mommy Points, a blog for Handipoints. My life changed completely the day I found Handipoints. I love Handipoints. My children love Handipoints and all order is restored in my home. And *gasp* chores are getting done, get ready, willingly!

So Handipoints is this wonderful service that allows you to set up charts for your children. They get to check off tasks daily. They earn 1 point for each task and a different amount of bonus points for each task completed. The bonus points can be used to dress the cat each child is assigned when signing up. You can also set up a reward to be received for a set amount of points earned.

Being my kids have more than their fair share of chores, I rose the point values a little for us, or else I would be buying rewards all day long. I chose rewards that were considered pretty special in our home: DVDs, CDs, books, art supplies. I first thought of doing small things from the Dollar Store or something, but I want my kids to feel like all their hard work really is worth something, and I want to teach them the value of a dollar and to hopefully make them feel pride in the item they earned and therefore take better care of it. I forgoed the allowance component with the start of Handipoints. The girls were starting to blow their allowance on silly things that were either broken or lost the following day and I hated to see the waste of money that way. Now I keep putting their allowance in their savings account when I get paid and then use that account to buy their special reward. I am buying all rewards through Amazon so that they can also get mail! I know, I am a genius. I let them know what the reward is right up front so they know what they are working for. When all their points are earned there is the added suspense of waiting for their package to come to the house! Right now Olivia is working towards a new Hannah Montana game for her Nintendo DS, Cori is working for the Enchanted DVD and Emmalee is working towards The Bee Movie DVD. I printed out a picture of each product from Amazon to post on the fridge under their chart as a daily reminder of what they are working for.

Each day they get so excited to check off their chores and count up how many points they have so far. Each of their rewards are worth 125 points, which equals out to about 1 reward a month or so. I can change chores from week to week and they are notified right up front what chores were switched. This gives Cori a break on taking out the garbage which she hates and Olivia from standing outside on the porch waiting while Cooper does his business in the yard, which she hates. I have also found more responsible tasks for Emma to complete this way. In the past, it was always so much easier to just call for Olivia or Cori to do it because they are older. Now, Emma feels more included and helpful - which has also seemed to curb her ADHD considerably. Now she has constructive things to do instead of just run around and aggravate her sisters while they are trying to complete their chores!

This may sound like just something extra for a mom that is already too busy to do, but in my household, I take all the help I can get. My kids have really done a great job with Handipoints and their task charts and they feel proud of themselves. They also get to experience how if you really want something, sometimes you have to work really hard to get it. Olivia has already asked me if we can bump up her point limits in order to receive bigger rewards like a new outfit from “one of the cool stores in the Mall” or a new coat (she wants a dressier one to wear to church).

Handipoints is awesome. The end.

______________________________________________________________________________________________

Next gimmick making my life lovely:

The Grocery Store Scavenger Hunt. I came up with this myself. Thank you, thank you. The grocery store is one of my most hated places. I try to only venture to the grocery store once a month. That way I can go back for small things; milk, bread, etc., on my lunch break or before I stop to get the girls from school. I must admit going to the grocery these days is much easier than it was when I use to have to put two toddlers and a pumpkin seat in one cart and push it while putting my groceries in another cart and pulling it. Oh yeah. Those days were a barrel of laughs. But still I have issues at the grocery store. Now that everyone is too old and too big to sit in a cart, they must walk around with me. Read: Run in three different directions while I am trying to shop while yelling “Mama can we get this?” at least 136 times a piece. I use to use my outside voice at least once while in the grocery store. But then I came up with a genius idea to make the girls feel helpful while using their reading and math skills and to help them practice a little restraint.

We now have to grocery shop on a Saturday or Sunday only because this takes about twice as long as it use to. But it was very fun and the girls loved it and they learned something too! I also think this was the very first time they saw how mommy has to stick to a budget at the grocery store and we can’t just buy whatever we see!

I first made a master grocery list of all the things that I needed to get. Then I highlighted the items on the list; each with a different color; Cori, Pink; Liv, Green, ok you get it. Then I made each of the girls their own list complete with little check off boxes and lines to write the price of the item. I saved the more difficult or specific items for my own list and the easier and nonspecific items like milk I gave to Emma. At the bottom of each of their lists I left a space for them to write in what their “special” would be. What one item they wanted to make sure made it into the basket. For Emma it was Fruity Pebbles cereal and Liv and Cori put their heads together and one got chips, the other, dip. The catch was they had to find everything on their list first (with help from Mom). When we got to the grocery store, each of the girls got a basket and I a cart to unload into when the baskets got too heavy to carry.  Each aisle I would check my “master list” to see who would need help. Liv and her smarty pants hardly needed me at all. Cori got frustrated when trying to find some things but when I paired her with Emma she got more excited and empowered to help Emma read labels. When everyone had everything on their list, we added all the totals on my calculator to make sure we stayed within the budget. When we first walked in, I told the girls up front what we needed to stay at. They watched me with baited breath as I entered each number into the calculator like I was about to open their case on Deal or No Deal. When I hit total and come up a whole $4.26 under budget they all cheered and laughed. People looked at me like I had three heads, but who cares, even small victories are celebrated in our house!

Then the girls got to bag their own “special” and carry it to the car and hold it with them until we got home. A simple idea turned into making a trip to the store actually enjoyable and educational! And I had to keep their little lists with their little scribbled amounts next to their items and their cute little checkmarks. So fun!

And if anyone else has any organizational things for me to try, bring it on! I need all the help I can get!

Yesterday morning the girls and I woke up to this.

And yes I took that picture through the screen. I don’t do cold. Or snow. So after letting the door open only enough for my dog to squeeze his way out, did I quickly shut the screen door and snap a picture.

So what to do on a snow day? Mmmm. I love snow days.

With no dependable babysitter, I had to call in to work. Oh shucks. Because the work is never done, the girls got up and dressed themselves and we got crackin on our chores so we could spend the rest of the day playing together. So first we did a little of this.

And this.

And then came the fun part. I gave all the girls a bath and made them put on thier my favorite pajamas. They are warm and fuzzy and there is just something so adorable about having your kids in matching clothes. Ok, maybe that is just me. But - they. looked. adorable. and I loved it.

So anyway, Emma was done first as the other two are just too cool and too grown and too responsible to have their mommy give them a bath anymore. So while Cori and Liv were upstairs getting their showers, Emma took advantage of the time to do a little of this, which is Emma’s very favorite pasttime.

When the girls were done with their showers, we decided to engage in a little of my favorite pasttime. Only I don’t ever have time for my favorite pasttime so today we made time and did some of this.

Emma worked up such a sweat playin with that dollhouse she had to strip. What I wouldn’t give for some arms like that.

Anyway, when the painting was done we moved on to bigger and better things. Since painting is my/Olivia’s favorite pasttime, we let Cori pick next. She chose for us to do this.

After all that fun, the girls were getting a little tired and whiny so they went upstairs to lay on my bed and watch “Akeelah and the Bee” for the 952nd time, while I, unfortunately had to do a little of this.

Which I must admit is alot more fun since I got this.

Yeah baby!

I even did this.

That’s right folks that is a four couse meal on a weekday. Who has time to cook like this on a weekday? I do, I tell ya.

As long as it’s also a snow day.

I haven’t enjoyed a snow day like that in a long time. And I tell you what, I was glued to the news this morning as much as the girls were for that little banner to pop up to tell us the good news of another snow day today, but no such luck. 

Back to the daily grind *sigh*.

*Disclaimer: I noticed while previewing this post that Cori is in none of the pictures. I promise I love her just as much.

I am pleased to announce to all of my readers that I am feeling much less melancholy today. I had a refreshing weekend and I am well, refreshed. On Saturday, after taking Cori and Liv to Karate, we had plans with Nana to car shop. I could have put a substantial downpayment on a new car for what I have shelled out on the rental car I have been driving for the past 2 1/2 weeks, but oh well. Who needs money when you are a single mom with three kids and a big house with electric bills the size of the national deficit? Oh yeah, that’s me.

So we shopped and shopped and shopped for a car to no avail. Nothing in my price range with less than 2 million miles on it, so as of yet I am still the proud borrower of a Chrysler Sebring, courtesy of Thrifty Car Rental.

The girls and mom and I also stopped by Borders and had hot chocolate and browsed through the books and CDs. The girls were so superbly behaved the entire day - and oh, Emma learned to swallow her ADHD medication with a drink, but for some reason it only works with soda pop. Hmm. Clever little booger isn’t she? In any regard this was a major victory as now I don’t have to cut and crush which shaves an easy 12 seconds off my morning routine. Any little bit helps. I know  that my 5 year old becoming a proficient pill popper should not be so thrilling to me, but, well, it is. And she was quite proud of herself. Even earning herself a heartfelt “Good Job Emma” from her biggest sister whom she idolizes like there is no tomorrow.

We made it home in time for an impromptu visit from my best friend Jamie and her baby, Jalynn. And I tell ya, who would wanna miss this little bundle on their doorstep?

They stayed for a little while until Jalynn could barely keep her little eyes open and then they headed home. The girls and I watched TV for a while before it was time for bed and bath. And I know I mentioned before how my middle daughter is a little quirky, but really, does any one else’s kids watch TV like this?

Man that kid cracks me up!

After the kids were tucked quietly and warmly in their beds, I flopped on the couch and sighed a deep breath. What a great, relaxing, enjoyable day. Just as I settled on some chick flick that was just coming on TV, I decided to make some hot tea and just relax and ignore the laundry taking over the playroom and the grungy bathroom floor that was calling to me to please clean it. I walked back into the living room, settled on the couch under my favorite fuzzy blanket and turned off the lamp. Suddenly I heard my front door knob turn and the door flung open. After almost simultaneously going into cardiac arrest while peeing my pants, I heard these sweet words “What I tell you bout keeping this door unlocked?” Ok so maybe the words weren’t all that sweet but the protective way he said them was very endearing. “Well, Hi Big Daddy, what a great surprise!” Then a sweet kiss right on my lips.

Ahhh, what a great day. A great day that I really needed. And by darn, I deserved it too.  

Saturday came and went. Saturday was a success. Saturday was a BLAST! After taking Liv and Cori to Karate, Emma and I snuck off to the movie theatre to pre-buy our tickets for the Hannah Montana Concert movie for fear that by 5 they may be sold out. We picked up the other two girls and headed to mom’s for lunch.

This was a change in plans, but nana being nana made it just as fun as Dave and Busters and the lunch was much better. After packing their Hannah Montana purses with goodies and a can of pop for each of them, we headed off to the movies.

There were little girls everywhere in their HM attire and giggling and squealing just as I had predicted. The girls were about to burst with excitement as we pulled in the parking lot. I was most excited about the premium parking spot I somehow scored right up front. After forgetting the tickets, because I do things like that, and walking back to the car to retrieve them, we made our way into the show.

And imagine my surprise when we saw these.

Yes people, those are 3D glasses. Hannah Montana was in 3D. How stinkin cool is that? Very cool I tell ya. Very cool. The girls sat entranced for the entire show. Except when they were singing and clapping along. Which was every song. Because they knew every song.

So did every other little girl in the theatre.

Did I mention there were like thousands of them?

After the concert/movie we sat for a moment and let all the other people file out of the theatre. The girls started to spill out all their excitement and jubilation and tell me of their favorite part. I just soaked it all in. As we walked out of the theatre I started to think about the day and about how much fun we all had together as a family. How the girls actually acted like they loved eachother. All day.

I thought about how I enjoyed the concert too. How grateful I was that Miley Cyrus looked adorable the entire show. Not once were there too-short shorts or bellies showing or pre-pubescent cleavage. And her songs are about friendship and cute boys and missing grampas that have passed away and other things little girls should be thinking about.

And I thought about some of the memories I had as a little girl. I remembered how on my 12th birthday I came home from school to find NKOTB tickets on my bed. That’s New Kids On The Block, folks, and I am not ashamed. My best friend Traci Turley and I rocked our raddest NKOTB outfits with dayglo orange and yellow socks and had our hair in matching side ponytails. I remembered how my mom seemed like she had just as much fun at the concert as my friend and I. And now I know how much joy she felt as a mom seeing and experiencing my happiness. I will never forget that day.

 I hope my kids remember Saturday.

I hope they remember their coolest Hannah Montana attire.

I hope they remember how excited they were pulling into the parking lot and seeing the marquee at the exact same time their favorite Hannah Montana song came on Radio Disney.

I hope they remember seeing the posters out front for the first time and feeling butterflies of anticipation in their bellies.

But most importantly I hope they remember this.

Because I know I will.

Saturday is not a holiday. But it is the weekend. And I don’t have to work. I just get to have fun. And I have alot of fun planned my friends. Probably more than I handle. No, really. But here are 13 reasons why I can’t wait for it to get here:

1. I have had the week from h-e-double hockey sticks. Alot of craziness happened including but not limited to, my car braking down and needing a new engine, my mass purchase at HHGregg when the salesman made the mistake of telling me I could have 24 months same as cash on GE appliances. (I needed a washer. I bought a washer, a dryer, a refrigerator and stove. Oh and a vacuum.), my basement was slightly flooded and I had to call roto rooter, my daughter threw up all over the bathroom after her older sister threw up all over the car. twice.  

2. Did I mention my car broke down and I need an engine. An engine. The really big piece that is under the hood that makes the car run. It is also, evidently, the most expensive piece.

3. My daughter has Karate. I love Karate. Ok, not necessarily Karate, but watching my oldest daughter perform Karate. She is good. Really good. And she likes it. And let’s face it, this kid does not like much. (she is 8 going on 14)

4. I got my income tax return! Woo hoo. And after all my debts from 2007 are paid off, I may have about 63 dollars left to treat my girls to something fun. After all, they are the reason for the get-out-of-debt-free-card I get every year at this time. Just one of the perks of being a single parent. Head of household, baby! and I’ll take three dependents on the side thankyouverymuch!

5. Saturday is only one day before the Super Bowl. That’s all I have to say about that. Amen.

6. I have laundry to do, but I also now have the beautiful and shiny and wonderful and amazing front load washer and dryer that I have lay awake dreaming about for so long. And they are all mine. Well, in 24 months they will be.

7. I have a big day planned for “the girls” and my friend Shanil and her daughter De’Asya are signed up to go. We always have a great time together. And there is something to be said about having an even number of kids. Two groups of two running off in different directions is surprisingly easier than having three going in three different directions.

8. This day includes eating out. And I don’t mean McDonalds or Domino’s pizza cuz I have a coupon. There may even be forks.

9. I bought the girls a new little outfit to wear on our big day. Because they are girls and love all things girly. And new clothes are fun. And they are going to think I am the coolest mom ever! Yay me! ( yes I know this is shameless bribery. I don’t care )

10. This big day also includes Dave and Busters. This is the midwest equivalent to Chuck E Cheese or Gameworks. In other words, there are lots of games to play and you only have to spend 293 dollars on tokens for your kids to each get a tootsie roll and a slap bracelet before you leave. And if you are lucky it will only take them 45 minutes each to decide what they want. But the biggest perk. Skeeball. You can’t touch me on Skeeball people. I am the skeeball champ. And I am not afraid to elbow a kid or two to prove it.

11. These big plans on Saturday are a big surprise. The girls have no idea. Springing it on them is almost too much secret for me to handle. I am a bad secret-keeper. The worst. I feel like I could burst right now.

12. The best part of the day will be saved for last. I know you are dying of anticipation. Well I will give you a hint. My daughters and my friend’s daughter will not be the only little gorgeous girls there. Oh no. There will be lots of little girls there. And lots of screaming and giggling I am sure. Lots of pink and definitely lots of lipgloss. Adorable fuzzy boots and glittery purses and most probably talk of Zac Efron and the Jonas Brothers.

13. And only because I can’t think of a 13, I will give you a bigger hint. We will be at a movie theatre for a one-week only showing. And the title of the movie includes the words Hannah and Montana. (insert adolescent girly screams here) But shhh don’t tell. It’s a surprise.

This week the one in the middle lost not one, but two of her front teeth. The house is abuzz with Tooth Fairy talk and all are very excited. I also snuck in a warning about the thumb sucking — no more of that when you get big girl permanent teeth mommy has to put braces on if you still suck your thumb at 14.

     

Is it wrong of me to totally enjoy hearing her say things like : Mom are you lithening to me? Mom, do we have thchool today? Today Lethley at thchool called me a thnaggletooth, ithn’t that funny mama?Ahhh, the joy my lisping child is giving to me.

Originally published on MSN Spaces on December 27, 2007

This is my middle daughter. Her name is Corina Jane - Cori for short. She was born in February. On a saturday. She is quiet and a loner. She is the middle child. She doesn’t get special attention for being the oldest, or extra attention for being the youngest. And she never ever complains when her sisters get to open birthday presents just 2 weeks apart in November and she has to wait all the way until February. She just kind of is. And that stinks I think. I worry about her as the one in the middle. Do i give her enough attention? Does she get enough love. This is my favorite picture of her. It was taken recently in my kitchen. She was wearing a robe given to her by a friend of mine. With a scarf for a belt. She could not find the belt that goes to it so she improvised. That’s what she does. My youngest would have cried, my oldest would have pouted. But Cori? She just said, hmm this scarf will work just as well. She takes care of herself. Alot. And for that i hope she does not resent her mother. My new year’s resolution is to show each daughter more time, more love and individual attention. My start is with Cori. I dedicate today’s entry to her and the wonderful things that make her….her.                                           

My 20 Favorite things about Cori:

1. She wakes up every morning with a smile.

2. She still sucks her thumb when she cuddles with her mommy.

3. She loves to sing and dance like no one is watching.

4. She takes up for her big sister when the mean girls in second grade make her cry.

5. She loves animals.

6. She has a very cute laugh from deep in her belly.

7. She looks like my sister.

8. She acts like a 6 year old, not a 6 year old going on 16.

9. Her favorite Christmas present? A big rig full of matchbox cars. Ahh a girl after my own heart. (I did not own a single    doll as a child)

10. She is named after my very very favorite movie (Corrina, Corrina with Whoopi Goldberg)

11. She always takes out the garbage.

12. She is thoughtful.

13. She loves, loves, loves to spend time with her great grandparents - which makes them feel very special.

14. She gets very excited about the small things in life.

15. She would rather eat fresh fruit than candy any day.

16. She sneaks in my bed in the middle of the night.

17. She pushes her baby sister on the swing at the park - for as long as she wants her to.

18. She is quarky like her mother. If she’s tired? Why, she’ll just lay down. Even if it happens to be in the middle of the kitchen floor, or the sidewalk, or the landing at the top of the steps.

19. She always always plays with the blind boy at her school at recess because she says no one else will play with him and she does not want him to be sad - “after all mama, he is just like me, his eyes just don’t work” (I know, I got teary too)

20. She calls me mama.

Originally published on MSN Spaces on March 26, 2006

have to tell you the cutest story.  Today, the girls and I spent the day at my parents.  They are on vacation in the Bahamas this week and I promised I would come by and check on the cat and kittens.  I brought some laundry because they have those new fancy shmancy, wash 16 pairs of jeans and then it only takes like 40 minutes to dry them, washer and dryer that look like they should be in some high scale laundry mat somewhere ( if there is such a thing)  Anyway, so when it started to get late, i decided to put the girls in the tub and then if they got tired they could just go on and lay down.  So I start the assembly line, wash Emma up and then get Cori in while Emma is getting dressed and hair done, etc.  So Cori gets out of the tub and i start to dry her off so I call Olivia to come start her water so she can get in.  She comes in while I am brushing Cori’s hair and she starts to get undressed.  She has a large birthmark on her lower back.  Being that she is biracial, her skin is an olive color and the birthmark is white so it is pretty noticeable.  She is starting to get at that age where being “different” bothers her… you know, she hates having red hair, freckles… all that.  So she stands backwards to the mirror and kind of turns her head around to look at her birthmark.  She gets this disgusted look on her face and says “mama, why I have this mark on me? nobody else has a mark like this.” So i tell her that she is lucky to have a mark like that… that it is special.  I tell her that that is where God kissed her on the day she was born.  She wasnt convinced.  She said “well God probably kisses every baby on the day they are born and they dont have this mark”.  So Cori looks at her and says, in a tone that suggests that this is the only logical answer– like duh–”Well Liv, maybe its white on you cause God had a milk mustache when he kissed you there”.  Liv and I looked at eachother and burst into hysterical laughter.  Cori joined in, and before long the both of them were laughing that adorable, contagious, deep in your belly, laugh.  I knew that God had spoken through Cori just then – to make Liv feel better, to give Cori the satisfaction of saying something clever, and to remind me that hearing your children laugh a belly laugh is what it is all about. I would endure 10 horrible moments for each and every chance to have just one moment like we had tonight cramped in my parents spare bathroom — filled with laughter and the wonderful smell of clean babies.