4th of July / Baseball Camp / Mom Vacation

As promised, I'm delivering the much anticipated blog about our first two weeks of July (cue: *eye roll*)

**The Fourth of July**

My middle sister Ashley flew into B'ham on July 1st, and me and the boys headed to Bama to visit (and meet Piper!) on the 2nd.   Matt stayed home, cause you know, work.  "Boo!" to work! 

Our time spent in Bama was a lot of fun.  Lots of cousin time for the boys, and lots of sister time for me and Ashley.  She's been in Idaho for like 7 years, and she and her cute family are moving to Auburn AL for her husband's masters/professional program.  In short: there is going to be LOTS more sister time in the future.  We now only live 5 hours apart!  

Mom asked me and Ashley to finish up the July 4th menu.  I was mainly conceded with desserts, and Ashley just wanted starches.  

--So Ashley and I made only TWO desserts (when I wanted to make 4, haha): a homemade coconut cream pie and a homemade brownie Oreo truffle bar.  

--Ashley really needed some potato salad and delicious rolls in her life.  I really can't blame her for the rolls… I still question the relevance of potato salad ;) 

My mom had taken all the grandboys, all 4 of them, to Krispy Kream earlier in the day and then all of them to the pool.  (Oh man, these grandboys LOVE their Grammie!)  So me and Ash had the kitchen to ourselves.  

That evening as the sun was setting and the neighbors were starting to shoot off fireworks, all the boys played in the neighborhood.  Up and down the streets, running back and forth, pretending they were in a war zone.  The fireworks added lots of effects to their pretend world. 

We had hoped to see the large firework show from the hill my parents live on, but it was a no go.  But we enjoyed all the local neighbor fireworks.  Eli really loved them.  

The next day me and Isaac loaded up the vehicle, and headed back to coastal GA… 

… That's right, it was just me and Isaac.  We purposely left Eli and Titus behind!  WHAT. IN. THE. WORLD.  

Baseball Camp and "Mom Vacation"

The "summer of sports camps" continued into the week following the 4th.   I had signed Isaac up for a baseball camp, and this camp was 6 hours long.  

And my parents had kept the little boys. 

So that means… YUP!  I had HOURS and HOURS and HOURS to my self for one whole week.  Crazy, right?!  I thought so, too.  But after the first, oh, few seconds to myself on that first day I started to really enjoy the time.  

You know, I've never really had a "relaxing" vacation.  I tend to fill my time with as much as possible… and really, I've never had a true break from motherhood.  If I've ever left my kids I would worry and worry.  My children have been young, and hard, and require a lot of work.  But now they are all potty trained, talk well, and are pretty reasonable.  In short:  WE HAVE ARRIVED.  

(I used to think our stay at Ronald McDonald House was like a vacation.  One should NEVER think of stays at Ronald McDonald House as a "break", especially when one is there for her child's open heart surgeries.  Not. Right.  (The years between 2010 and 2013 were just a "bit" stressful, haha.)) 

So me and Isaac would get up and ready and out the door by 8:45, and I'd drop him off to his baseball camp, and then I'd go and run or walk or do whatever. 

Poor Isaac, though.  It was SO hot.  Just hours in the hot and humid sun.  A few days had overcast clouds, but mostly just sun.  I'd pick him up and he'd be a sweaty little boy.  We tried to have him wear lots of white and light colors… I think it sorta work.  He survived, at least.   And I think had a lot of fun. 

On the last day of camp it was really thunderstormy.  Lots of ominous looking clouds formed around lunch time, and when I arrived at the camp at 2:30 for the award ceremony it started to pour buckets and buckets of water.  Plus lots of lightening.  

We all crowded into the covered batting cages, and the award ceremony commenced.  However, none of the parents heard anything since the tin-roof was really loud under all the rain.  

When Isaac we released from the huddle, he came to me with a 3rd place ribbon.  He placed in batting for his age group.  Very cool!  

We then had to RUN through lots and lots of rain, with thunder strikes hitting all around.  We basically took a shower during the two minute run to the car, haha.  

The Pick-up

On Saturday, me, Matt, and Isaac met my mom in the middle of nowhere Georgia and picked up the two little boys.  I think they were happy to see us?  I'm not sure… Again, Grammie is pretty cool!  

We basically spent that whole day driving, and taking pictures of funny signs.  Love me some really conservative signs! 

But on Sunday we were really able to reconnect together.  Lots of family time, and exploring our new Minecraft game.  It's a pretty awesome game, guys.  

And that's us!  That's what we've been up to!  (PS, the boys desperately need hair cuts.) 

Epic-Mom-Freak-Out-Fail

I lost it today.  

I wake up to Titus screaming and screaming.  

"Isaac," I yell, "what is going on?!"

"He wants me to build his Bad Cop Lego car, but I don't know how!" 

I jumped up and stormed into the play room.  "TITUS!  DID. YOU. BREAK. UP. YOUR. LEGO BAD COP CAR?!?!?!" 

"Yes," he squeaked, "I didn't like it." 

I take him by the arm, marched him to his room, and slamed the door.

I sat in the middle of the playroom floor with the Lego box in front of me.  I didn't see any diseranable Lego Bad Cop car pieces.  Titus, it seemed, completely destroyed it. 

"Isaac, do you know why he did this?  Any clue?  Because he's following your footsteps.  Every Lego you've ever gotten, you've taken apart and lost...  If you do not want these Lego sets anymore, then we will just buy a box of Lego pieces... DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!"

I then turned the box of Legos upside down and dumped hundreds of the "Lego little devil bricks" onto the ground.  

And Eli and Isaac started to cry. 

"No crying," I insisted, "We are going to find ALL the Lego guy parts, then start trying to assemble the Bad Cop car.

But first, let's have breakfast."

We breakfasted.  Chocolate milk and Cheerios.  No tears. 

Back upstairs we started making piles of color bricks.  Eli took the white, me and Isaac the black, and Titus the red--all looked for Lego guys.  

After like 30 minutes of trying to find exact Legos that matched the Bad Cop car instructions, and basically coming up empty for each step, I began to have a sneaking suspicion:

"Titus, are you sure you broke up the Lego Bad Cop car?  Go look in your room."

All the boys went to the room.  Nothing under the bed.  But then Titus said he knew where it was at: "I think it's downstairs!"  

After two minutes of searching, they started to happily yell, "He found it!  It was under the couch!" 

UN. BEILIVEABLE.  He found his dang Lego Bad Cop car. 

I felt like CRAP.  A poop-head of a mother.

So I fed the boys homemade brownies and root beer, hoping the sugar would erase the last two hours of their "crazy mom" memories.  

Moral of the story?  There is no moral. 

Just remember that four year olds are crazy, and they can drive their mothers to insanity, too.  

And always have root beer on hand.  

Mother's Day

A big box was delivered a week before Mother's Day.  And the boys could barley hold in their excitement.  

So Matt said it was okay for me to open it early.  And what was inside the box was AWESOME!  

I…. got…. a…. Bosch Mixer!!  WOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW! 

(And then the boys decided to play with the boxes… )

On actual Mother's Day I was treated to a breakfast in bed.  (I made sure to buy some pancake mix the day before… my homemade mix is apparently for my skills only, haha)

Lots of cuddle time.  

Homemade cards and awesome homemade gifts.  

A good church services. 

It was a good day! (Love having Matt home on Mother's Day!)

It's Been Some Kind of Day

Lemme just tell you, I was ready for a nap at 10:30 and call it quits.
Traffic to get to Home Depot is crazy long (had to get a air-vent filter), Titus is whinny in Target, story time at the library is fun but long, and the soft play-area in the mall is filled with screaming children.  "Just let me and Titus get home and watch Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, please!!"

This, however, did NOT happen.

Instead I am able to schedule a same-day dentist appointment for Isaac who needs to get a sore looked at (the said sore has been bothering him for days… thought it would be better safe than sorry).
So Titus and I rushed home from the mall's soft play area, are able to get home and get something quick to eat, then go to the schools check out Isaac and Eli.  Isaac's appointment is at 2pm, and I am able to find a sitter for the two littles.

I haven't been too concerned with Isaac's sore, cause he really didn't complain about it much.  And when I look at it before going to the appointment I actually thought it had disappeared:  swelling gone, white areas gone, no longer any pain.   But the dentist takes one look, orders a simple x-ray, and pronounces an abscess.

Abscess:  basically infected tissue on the body.  

Isaac's abscess is in and around the gum line on a baby tooth which had had a filling a year ago.  This tooth apparently died, then got infected.  Pretty concerning since the enamel of adult tooth about to come in could be affected by the abscess.

The dentist's office calls a specialized pediatric dentist in Savannah and they say, "Yup, send him over… we have an appointment open at 3:30."  Okay… So Basically that means I have less than an hour to go get my boys, get snacks packed, and get us all back into Savannah and on time to the appointment.   **ALSO Isaac would probably have his tooth removed at this appointment, too.**

So I'm able to do what I need to do to get us all back into Savannah.  We survive the trip.  And Isaac is seen fairly quickly.  I'm told that the infection is pretty bad and he will be having his tooth removed.  Isaac at this time is pretty worried.  He's not talking, but there are tears in his eyes.  I keep reminding him of his previous dentist appointment--getting his fillings, getting his tooth cap, "Do you remember anything bad from those appointments?"  I ask.
"No," he says.
"Isaac, you're going to be okay.  You are not going to feel any pain, just like before."
Seems to help.

Isaac, sitting worried in the waiting room.
Yes, they're all wearing camo shirt… just can't fight it some days. 

He's called back, and I stay in the waiting area with the two littles.  (They are entertained by Despicable Me 2.)  30 minutes later Isaac is finished!  Happy and with a face half numb!

We start are journey back to home.  Of course we need to stop to get food, since I didn't have that much food on us.  So we do a drive-thru at Chick-Fil-A (the Beyonce of fast food).   Isaac doesn't eat much, just kind of munches on soft waffle fries.  Mainly the boys are thirsty, and down their drinks.

In the rush-hour traffic we slowly make it back home.  Stop and go traffic for a good 40 minutes before the flow goes to normal speeds.  I guess the one good thing about slow traffic is the ability of the boys to unbuckle, pull their pants down, and pee into empty cups.  Because that happens.  Often.

We make it home, even before Matt gets home.  I had a moment of almost complete freak out when a cup full of pee spills in the center console!  However it all caught in the removable cup holder, so it was a quick clean up.

Once Matt is home the next hour and half is filled with play and food and drinks and cleaning up and bedtime.


Can I just say, "Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh…..hhh..h…. h..."  So tired.  What a day.
I'm just gonna stay in my pjs tomorrow.

So September Happened :: Triple the Fun Saturday

This move without Matt has made September a complete blur.  I'm a little shocked that it's already the end of the month, and I'm a little shocked that the last time I blogged was 2 weeks ago.

To not make one huge blog post covering all of September, I'm going to break it up sections at a time, each post being labeled "So September Happened."  I hope, hope, hope, hope that once I'm caught up I'll be able to keep the blog updated at least 2 times a week--just like I was once able to do.

Here we go!

.................

The first full weekend in September, the one with the 7th, was a triple fun Saturday!  (Oh crap, am I THAT far behind in posts?  Dang.) 

We had friends come over in the morning to play, while their parents went out for a date.
In the afternoon the boys went over to a friends house for "just a bit," but ended up staying for like 3 hours!
Then in the evening we were part of a friend's surprise birthday!  The boys played hard, and had a ton of fun.

At 7:30pm, when we were heading home after an epic day of play, I asked the boys, "So what was your favorite part?"
They all came to the same conclusion: "When you [me, Mom] played with us and chased up around, throwing the balls at our heads."
Seriously?!  Wow, I guess love and fun are one in the same with these sons of mine.  I've made an extra effort to play more since this discussion.

"Calm in Role" Respons

I'm going to ramble a lot, so if you want to skip all that, just come away with three things:
1) I love my kids, I love my husband, I have a very good life.
2) Thank you for all the beautiful and heart felt responses.  I so appreciate the support and willingness to be open and talk.
3)  Look into Coursera for FREE on-line courses given by top universities.  They aren't credited classes, but knowledge is out there, so take it!

...............

How lame is it that I bare my heart then keep quite for 5 days?  Sorry guys, but I feel like I have a good excuse.

I gave blood on Saturday and it pretty much destroyed my sleep pattern and over all health and wellbeing (says Shannon-the-Melodramatic).  I'm so grateful to be able to give blood, but Saturday was the worst of the many times I've given.  Blood stopped flowing towards the end and the phlebotomists were working hard core to get it moving again.  Lots of twists of the needle, lots of pushing it up and down, and lots of pressure on my arm.  Phew!  Glad that's over.

I stayed up Saturday night till 12 am, for no reason.
I went to bed Sunday at 7pm and slept for 12 hours, for obvious reasons.
I stayed up Monday night till 1 am, for no reason.
I went to bed Tuesday at 10pm and slept for 9 hours, for obvious reasons.
Hoping tonight I will be able to just, you know, get back to being a normal human with a normal sleep pattern.  I think that will help my brain mucho mucho!

I just want to say, "Thank you."
I like talking honestly, and for a few hours after I post something personal I'm totally good with it.  However a day or two later I'm like, "Erm... why did I do that again?"  One of the hardest aspects of discussing through text medium is truly conveying how one feels.  That said, I'd like to point out that I LOVE MY KIDS (and) I LOVE MY HUSBAND (and) I HAVE A REALLY GOOD LIFE.  Kinda feel silly for not writing the obvious in the "Calm in my Role" post.

The responses to my "Calm in Role" post have been beautiful, and very uplifting.  I'd like to thank each and everyone of you guys for your candor, love, and support.  (Feel weird writing this>>) I think I truly did believe I was the only one out there who was having a hard time with the parenting mantel.  It's amazing how similar, but so very different, me and Matt are from each other.  Once he's in, he's in.  There are no "what ifs" about it.  I'm defiantly a "what if-er," exploring all possibilities in my mind, so being married to Matt has been a wonderful challenge and blessing (made me more self conscious, but more confident at the same time).   Here are his actual thoughts on the matter (written during a stressful day, so no judgement on my man's grammar, mmmkay?):  

Fatherhood hasn't always been so "easy" per say, but I just told myself I wanted to be a father. It seemed like a unique opportunity to raise and teach another person, get to know them, keep me humble... From late teenage years I mostly started seeing/noticing other people's lifestyles and realized that I didn't want glam, fame, and fortune. I wanted simplicity and to have a family. I wanted a situation that "the added stressors of life" wouldn't be so prevalent - that typically are associated with being "single, rich, and famous". I've never really wanted the crazy, "in-your-face" lifestyle. Basically it probably comes down to I was blessed with certain desires and life experience has helped me to be able to adjust and cope with certain things in the way(s) I have. Call it luck. Whatever it is, fatherhood has been relatively "simple" to work out in my head. Maybe it's competition. Maybe it's the "challenge". Who knows. It can be tough for sure, but I've just always had the "i'm not gonna quite/fail" mentality and I will survive and make it work. A blessing (some may call it a curse) from on High. I don't know if i'm making great sense, but hopefully you're picking up on what i'm saying.


All that was shared in email massages, comments, FB responses, FB messages, texts have helped me realize that I'm not alone...  It's a big world, but so small at the same time.  Truly amazed at the human experience--how we each one of us have totally different lives, but then our feelings are so similar.

To address some questions asked.
Resentment:
Yes, I came into motherhood with some resentment.  Matt had just gotten home from Iraq, had all these "self awareness of one's own mortality" issues, so super wanted a kid.  Kinda what happens to all soldiers, I believe.  So we "played with fire," really hoping I "wouldn't get burned" for at  least 6 months--but nope.  A month after Matt was home we found out we were going to have a baby.  Matt with his moderate PTSD and me with my pregnancy sickness and prolonged "baby-blues," I'm surprised how well Isaac has actually turned out!  Poor baby boy, though.  Such an awesome kid, to be with such screwed up first-time parents.  
With Eli everything was very opposite.  I wanted Eli, Matt wanted Eli.  We were both, as parents and partners, in a very good place.  Even with all the heart-surgery and scariness, there was an amazing peace and calm about our new journey with our new 4 person family.
Titus was truly our shocker.  How he "came to be" is still a bit of a mystery.  After his birth I was doing okay.  But then Matt started his 18 credit hour per semester MBA load, and I totally cracked under the pressure.  There was a "shell of Shannon," with a very broken core.   It wasn't until the last semester of MBA (Titus being 18 months old at the time) that I started to put myself back together.  I did love my time in Boise, though.  Made many lasting friendships... for if they liked me at my low, of course they'll love me at my high!  (Right, guys?)

Matt's always been a great dad, though.  Very involved with his kids, and super willing to take on lots of time and responsibility--and I think that's what's been hard.  I know, KNOW, Matt would be an amazing full-time parent;  however the circumstances around Matt's schooling and job have taken him... well, have taken him!   He hasn't been around much the last 3 years, but I'm finally okay with it.  It's just about normal now.
And why, if I feel Matt would be a great full-time parent, am I not the bread winner instead?  Well what I want to do, which I still haven't quite figured out, wouldn't make a lot of money.  Seeing that we have 3 kids to support and the life we want to live, we need more money than what I can provide.

(again)  I LOVE MY KIDS (and) I LOVE MY HUSBAND (and) I HAVE A VERY GOOD LIFE.

I am, in fact, very grateful that I am able to be with my children through out the day.  That I can be a stay at home mom, make cookies and play and hang out with friends.  What's hard is the lack of  "instant recognition."  I'll only know if I've done a good job till 20 years have passed.  Which seems like a really, really, really long time.  Though apparently they go in a blink of an eye?  That's what I hear?

Master program:
And one of the main reasons why I can't enroll in a masters program in Savannah is the lack of funds.  That's very much at the root of the problem.  I much rather us get OUT of debt, than put us in MORE debt--at this stage in our lives, of course.  We have "much" to pay off to lenders (that's how we survived the MBA years), and once those debts are gone we'll be able to map out a way for me to attend school.
And this specific program must be completed within 7 years of starting.  I have no idea how long we'll be here (not 7 years), and when I start something I want to be able to finish.  The idea of on-line learning is starting to seem pretty appealing... and I still need to figure out what I want to do.  Darn.

ARMY reserves:
Also the ARMY reserves will only take me as an officer till I'm 29 years old, then after that they'd only take me as an enlisted person.  I can't imagine being able to go to OCS (officer candidate school) in the next year or two, since who'd take care of the kids while Matt's at work?  A baby sitter, daycare?  That'd be about as much as a masters program, so that's off the table.   I would be making money during OSC and BLOC, but even the emotional stress on the kids of "another parent gone" is not worth it.  I'm hoping for successful, confident young men!  Not broken and resentment filled.  I'm not sure if I want to do the enlisted side, but I'm still open to it.   They may take me in at age 38... um, maybe?  One of the main reasons why I like the idea of joining the reserves is the very clear and set career path... but then I'd be part of the ARMY, and I'm not sure I really do want that.

(once again) I LOVE MY KIDS (and) I LOVE MY HUSBAND (and) I HAVE A VERY GOOD LIFE.

Advice from others:
I'm starting to get: that there are seasons in one's life.  This is my season to share and explore with my boys.  And I'm really starting to enjoy it.  I have to tune out a lot of the world, and just focus on the present.  It's hard, and it's a daily struggle.  But when I'm actually able to do it, focus on the here and now, it's amazing.  We have such a good day.

I know I need to find something that will give me my "me time."  I like a lot of things: crafts, cooking, reading, outdoor adventure, baking, decorating, shopping, listening to NPR, playing instruments.  But nothing really STANDS out as "SHANNON," except, attending classes.  I really learned to love school my last two years in college.  So that's what kills--my "me time" is something I really can't do right now...
... EXCEPT NOT!!   Guess what I've discovered?!  FREE on-line classes given by the top universities.  They aren't credited, but it's something that I can do for me "hobby."  Right now I'm enrolled in Childhood Nutrition from Stanford, and in the fall I'm taking a course from Duke about Discussion & Argument.  There's much, much more available, and I can't wait to explore the site.  Visit Coursera to learn more!  (financing, learning to play guitar, history of China, etc.  It's all there!)

Also listening to uplifting PodCasts during the is a great idea.  Including General Conference talks... though maybe skip the motherhood ones? ;)



Anyway, you guys are great.
Thanks for the love.

For those who are struggling, it'll get better if you just try a bit each day.
For those who are totally together, thank you for being such a wonderful example for me and others.  I really look up to you guys.

Till I "over share" again, au revoir!

Being Calm in My Role

I think I'm starting to be okay with being a mom...  and I've been a mom for 6.5 years, so it's bout time, right?

I can't quite describe my feelings towards motherhood.  It's so wonderful, it's a lot of fun, it's very trying, it's the hardest thing I've ever done.  Typical feelings of mothers, I assume.
But it's always felt like a weird mantle on my shoulders.   I've felt itchy and scratchy, always wanting to claw my way into another path.   There's been no peace or calm in my journey, like "this is TOTALLY what I'm supposed to be doing," and I've shed a lot of tears for my sons.  Poor guys, coming into this world with a mother who's super trying to do her best, but it's never enough--for her heart and mind are hardly ever in line.  In the words of Ducky from The Land Before Time, "Poor, poor, Petrie."
So what else would I want to be doing, then?  Going to school, dating my husband, acquiring a skill set, traveling to awesome places, becoming an educated professional... you know, all those things that "the world" tells you that's important.

All this time I've been like, "I'm so worldly, I'm not spiritual, I'm a failure, my heart is not in the right place."  And I've tried really, really, really hard to change.  And I've cried really, really, really hard to Matt.  There's been prayers, priesthood blessings, and scripture readings.  Those seemed to help.  What has not helped, surprisingly, are the talks from the pulpit.  I've hated--I mean, HATED--to hear men talk about the importance of motherhood.  General Conference has not been fun.  Love the all the leaders on other subjects, but when "motherhood" comes up, I pretty much shut down.  Not good, right?



So how I'm changing:

-I've given up the idea of me going to school in the next 2 or 3 years.  I'm actually half-way applied to a masters program at a school in Savannah.  Public History, being able to work in archives and libraries.
-I've given up the idea of joining the ARMY Reserves in the next year or two.  I've had talks with recruiters and such, and I know the path I need to take to join.
It's taken a lot out of me to "give it up."  But I know I need to.  And it's been the hardest thing I've done in a long, long time.  (Why give it up?  We have no money.  But really pursuing these paths would mean splitting the family apart in ways that Matt and I are not comfortable with.  Being a spouse to a military-man places a lot of the family responsibility on my shoulders, and I must carry the load.)

I'm sacrificing, to me, a lot.  I really feel like my heart is broken, and my spirit is contrite.  For the first time the Holy Ghost can actually lead and guide me, now that my pride and selfishness is not hindering mine and Matt's family.
I don't get super amazing, all the time, promptings.  I try to act with what seems right, but there are no visions, no spoken words--except for 2 months ago.  A few days after teaching Relief Society, I was really pondering the words of the prophet Lorenzo Snow.  The house was quite, and I was just sweeping the floor.  I came to conclude that the reason why I had such a hard time during the last 3 years was that I was not relying on Christ to help me through... and there was such an overwhelming confirmation, that I literally started to weep.  My God, my God, I had hardened my heart, turned my back, and left myself to mine own devices.   There was a big old, "Yup," in my mind and I broke down.
I've started watching this show, which streams through Amazon Prime (but may also be on other apps), called "How the Universe Works."  It's a Discovery Channel series, and it's amazing.  It covers the Big Bang, the galaxies of the universe, planets, moons, stars, all sorts!  And every time something is described, like how if the super massive Gas Planets on the outer part of our solar system were not there, then tons and tons and tons of astroids would hit our earth, and we may not exist.  "We may not exist, if" such and such were not in this manner, is said over and over again.  I was brought to tears during the first episode.  I'm not a romantic, I don't believe me and Matt were fated to be together, but that we have just worked really hard and that's why our marriage is still intact.  See, I'm more of a Deist--belief in the existence of a supreme being, specifically of a creator who does not intervene in the universe--than not.  But gosh, if all this effort is put into making simple 'ol us and our universe, then maybe Heavenly Father does care about my day to day life.  That has had a profound impact, one which I cannot properly put into type.



I'm still working at this, being "calm in my role as a mother," but I'm seeing a good difference in myself and how I handle the stressful situations with the boys.
I'd love to know how other people come into their roles with such strength and peace.  Please share--cause obviously I need it.  Comment or email me (shandud@gmail.com).



And here are a ton of pictures, cause that's what I do:

A note I found during Spring Cleaning, which I wrote 2 years ago:
Dear Shannon, Please continue to stay fit, read scriptures, say daily prayers.
Always know that people care about you and love you.
LOVE YOUR KIDS! 

Saw Eli getting a drink from the sink.  Too funny.

Mid day Skype with Matt. 

Titus tends to wear his undies on backwards.  I think it's to see the picture better. 

Titus totally had to go pee while we were in the middle of car-rider line.
I think he'll pee in the almond container!