7 Quick Takes (vol. 34)

--- 1 ---

All day yesterday I kept thinking "I need to grab my camera and get my Theme Thursday shot... in like, five minutes."  Finally after dinner I grabbed my camera and enlisted Alex's help to get the boys to pose (ha!) for my perfect barn shot.  Nope.

Castle > Barn

Rare moment of attention for the barn aaaaaaaaaand Liam photo bomb

They just kept moving too dang fast for me to get the shot I wanted (I don't even know exactly what I wanted, but it was going to look more like art and less like a snapshot of my kids playing on the floor).

Poor, neglected barn.

But I was determined.  I had been planning on this all day, and by golly I was going to get a Theme Thursday picture no matter what--even if I ended up with just some plain ol' shot with the barn in the background without any composition or whatnot.  Does that totally defeat the purpose, to take a picture just for the sake of taking a picture?

Who cares, linking up with Cari a day late anyway because I still can!  (Besides, cute kids=win regardless of composition or lack thereof).

--- 2 ---

What's that you say?  It's cheating to use a quick take to link up with another link up?  Too bad.  I also thought of designating five of the takes as my favorites and linking up with Hallie just to make myself feel even more accomplished and productive, but I resisted the temptation.  This time.

--- 3 ---

The castle which so obviously trumps the barn for current plaything of choice (for both boys) is a new addition to our household, thanks to Michael's recent 3rd birthday.  It's a Mike the Knight castle, and our little Michael the Knight-Superhero-Drummer-Boy has hardly stopped playing with it since he got (thank you Kari, Josh & Abby!)  

The only drawback is that it makes noises.  Lots of noises.  Lots of loud noises.  The box advertises 20 sound effects, and I'm not sorry to admit that we didn't leave it turned on long enough to experience the full range.  I was doing dishes in the kitchen (obviously, where else does one generally do dishes?) while Michael was playing with his castle two rooms away, and I felt like it was too loud for me.  After 20 minutes of hearing "Be a knight and do it right!" shouted at the top of Mike the Knight's mechanical lungs I decided that if Mike couldn't use his inside voice then he just needed to do it right by doing it silently.  

Michael took the no-fun-mommy decision very graciously, I'm thankful to say.

--- 4 ---

And yes, Liam does have a black eye in that last picture.  And no, no one punched him--just one of the hazards of being mobile.  Last Friday he fell and hit his eye right on the corner of one of the several boxes still decorating our den.  His brow was red and really swollen that first night (and he violently resisted all attempts to mitigate the damage with ice), and it has turned various shades of awful since then.  I think he looks like quite the hooligan with his little black eye.  And I'm also afraid to take him out in public and be judged until it fades even more... 

--- 5 ---

The previously unforeseen dangers of the handful of boxes still waiting to be unpacked may or may not have triggered some much-needed nesting this week.  Or at least some thoughts of nesting.  Honestly, the stupid nesting instinct just feels like a cruel joke right now.  There are things that need to get done.  I want to get them done.  But I have absolutely zero energy to get them done.  How totally unfair is it to have the desire but not the motivation?  Does that even make sense?

Today my half-baked nesting instinct manifested itself by inspiring me to start at least three desperately needed projects and then quit about five minutes into each one.  One of those projects was laundry... whoops.  Thankfully Alex had the day off and took charge of all three meals today, so at least we've been eating.

--- 6 ---

Speaking of lack of follow-through...something, something, segue... I had a really productive day Wednesday, including baking bread, folding laundry, play date with some friends (and therefore actually getting dressed and putting on makeup), cleaning the kitchen, doing some grading for class, and probably making dinner (although I don't remember what it was).  And then Thursday I felt absolutely and completely incapable of doing anything, and so I pretty much didn't.  Obviously I need to pace myself on the whole productivity thing.

--- 7 ---

We have our oldest niece for a sleepover tonight, and I feel a little guilty.  It's supposed to be some special godparent/goddaughter bonding time, but mostly I feel like I have a free babysitter.  I told Alex I think we need an eight year old, and his response was that that in five years we will have an eight year old... and a six year old, and a five year old, and probably a two year old and a one year old.  Not what I meant, and not helpful.  Not at all.

Go see Jen and the rest for more Quick Takes!  
Happy Friday :)