Gabriel turns 7

Gabriel celebrated his 7th birthday by watching "The Amazing Spiderman" and having cake and ice cream with all his cousins at the farm for Cousin's Camp. I hope he realizes how lucky he is to have his birthday at a time when the entire family is always together.

Here's a little about 7 year old Gabriel: (interview done today actually)

Favorite movie: NinjaGo and Lego Clutch Powers, the movie

Favorite color: fire red

Favorite book: Magic School Bus books

Favorite song: Tantrum from Dog Train CD

Favorite thing to do: Play Legos with Zech

Favorite Person: Emma Lee (and Mommy and Daddy and everybody else in my family)

Least favorite thing to do: school

Favorite thing that happened last year: going to Disney World

Favorite thing learned in school: Learning about the Romans and Galdiators

Biggest accomplishments: I scored my first goal in my last game of the soccer season. Someone kicked the ball to me and I kicked it into the goal. I was so excited and happy!

Mommy's thoughts: Gabriel is so mature for his age. He is still the sweet sensitive boy he has always been. He is learning to stand up to Zechariah when Zech is wrong. I am happy to see that. I let him know that it is ok and support him as much as I can. Gabriel is a big brother and finds that the role brings a lot of responsibilty. He is more than happy to take that on when it comes to Emma Lee, he is not so willing with Ammon and Elijah. Gabe and Zech have been friends for so long that they tend to not let the younger boys play and hang out with them. Gabe is getting better about playing with and including Ammon in their circle. Gabriel is thoughtful and picks up on people's thoughts and feelings. He asks questions and listens well. Gabriel is smart. He is a fabulous reader and is doing well in Math. His talents continue to develop. He is beginning to reallize his likes and dislikes and understand that it is OK if he likes something that someone else doesn't or vice versa. I love my Gabriel. He is and always will be "My Angel".

Our Move to Ohio: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

The Good: 

•  I have great friends who love me and support me.  I had some awesome people come in and help me pack, clean, and watch my kiddos so that I could get out of my house in Waldorf. Thank you guys! I couldn't have done it without you!
• The Griesmyer farm is BEAUTIFUL! It is quiet, serene, slow paced, and completely different from the hustle and bustle of the DC area.
• The boys have plenty of room to run and play.
• The weather is nice and warm
• We take trips to the creek and go on walks just to explore.
• Cousin's camp brings all the family together and is a load of fun (and noise, and confusion)

 The Bad:
 
 

• Moving a fully furnished house into a fully furnished house is really hard and..well, impossible. My stuff is stored in 3 different places on the farm and is driving me nuts. I slowly unpack boxes and am constantly searching for things. Actually, I've given up. I'll find it when I find it.
• I broke my truck door. It was SO stupid too. I decided to take the kids to the city pool one day. I sent Zech inside the house to get something and decided to back up the driveway to get him-with the door open. It caught the side of the hill and BAM!!! Broken door! I didn't think anything about it since I supposedly have the best car insurance ever-USAA. I call them to come get my car and fix it when they tell me they have no record of my policy. WHAT THE #$@!!!  2 weeks prior I had changed my policy over from MD coverage to Ohio. Well come to find out, they cancelled my MD and did not initiate my OH! I was out of a car for 2 weeks! Not a fun and easy thing for a family my size.
• A HUGE storm hits the farm as well as my house in Waldorf.  We lose power for 3 days. We have 15 children and 7 adults in the house. Tensions and tempers rise! Our camp's theme was "Survivor" this year! We seriously learned a lot!
• My neighbor's tree comes crashing down on my house in Waldorf causing $8,000+ in damage. Because we rented out our house, 2 weeks before the storm, I had JUST changed my insurance to fire and upped the premium to $2,500!!!
• Gary is still working in VA. I have no friends here. I am in the middle of nowhere. I have no leads for my Premier Jewelry business and I fall into a deep depression.

 

The Ugly:

• Ammon contracted impetigo from the baby pool at the community pool. It was nasty and gross and to make matters worse, we had no power or running water to keep him clean. Thank goodness for antibiotics and antibacterial lotion! Poor baby! :(

 

 



The power of calm

This past week I had the privilege of attending an LDS home school conference in Fredericksburg, VA. It wasn't too far from my home and since my DH has to practically travel all the way down there to work everyday, I just drove with him. My wonderful mother flew out to take care of my kiddos so I could go. And even though she doesn't read my blog: "Thanks Mom! We love you and miss you already!" 

About the conference:

Wednesday- I took a special seminar from Susan Wise Bauer, author of "The Well Trained Mind". It was cool. She was good. I learned a lot. I learned that my expectations for the children are often based on the public school model which, let's face it, is not a great model AT ALL! SO I decided to chill a little. That was good. (I'll blog the highlights of this seminar a little later Lia!) My DH came with me but basically just talked to his brother the whole time because they haven't seen each other in a while.

Thursday-Nicholeen Peck, an LDS woman who has a background working with troubled kids, has developed a parenting program titled "Teaching Self Government". She was a special guest speaker and gave multiple classes on different subjects. I had heard about her last year from this conference but never checked her out until a few months ago. That's where I watched her videos from the BBC show, World's Strictest Parents. I was really impressed by the way she dealt with those kids. I then saw she was going to be at our conference and was stoked! Check out her website here

I am sure you will be surprised to know that I even had an acting debut! I did! Nicholeen asked for a volunteer, I raised my hand along with a few others in the room. She then said to wait because the volunteer had to be able to act and stay in character. My hand shot up again-this time I was alone. (I was also really excited to try!) She wanted to show 3 different things we as parents might face with our kids, how to be calm, and how being calm helps every situation. She had me first rage at her, then be passive aggressive, and finally be the whiner/crier. It was awesome! I felt more alive than I have in a LONG time! Do you realize how much I love to act, direct, sing, perform? I love it! 
I LOVE it!!! I often wonder what I am supposed to do with my talent? (sorry, I digress)

I learned SO much from Nicholeen. I bought her book and came home with a few simple techniques to use and try on my little family. Yeah... Do you know how hard it is to stay calm, never raise your voice, and always have teaching moments instead of critical or correcting ones? YIKES!!! I got home late Friday night so my first real test was Saturday. I had told Gary a little bit about the program on our drive home Friday so he was on board. It took every ounce of energy I had to maintain a calm mind, body, face, and voice. I mean, it was so much work!!! Don't believe me, just try for one day. I'm still working on it. I'll keep you posted...

I believe in her ideology. We are trying to teach our children (and ourselves) how to govern ourselves. How to be in control of our thoughts, feelings, and actions. True self government is obedience to God's laws and commandments. Obedience to God is true happiness and power. When we are disobedient, we have no power or control. We must teach our children how to control themselves. This is tough to do in a world that teaches it is ok to do anything and everything that feels good! I know that I have been entrusted by with raising an Army of God and I could use all the help I can get.

Emma Lee Rose

A few pics of Emma in all her cuteness:

Checking out the trampoline for the 1st time (9mos) Emma desperately wants to play outside with her brothers but I don't want her crawling through mud. The day was nice so I let her check out the trampoline. She was fascinated!

 Passed out after church (9mos) Since church is at 1pm-it really gets in the way of nap time. Gary usually puts her to sleep but the noises tend to keep her up or wake her up prematurely. She always conks out on our way home from church.

 Frenchfries are yummy! (8mos) Emma loves to eat but refuses baby food. She wants to eat what we eat!

 Pretty in pink! (8mos) It is so fun to dress Emma. And it is so fun to see the boys cue at her, "Oh Emma, you look beautiful!" LOVE!

She loves to smile and is so quiet! (8mos)

 She adores her brothers. When she sees them or they talk to her, she kicks her legs and twists her wrists in excitement! (at Great Wolfe Lodge @ 7mos)

Being serenaded by her "favorite" Uncle, Ken! (7 mos)

Easter (finally)

Just some pics from Easter. Gary was out of town which ruined some of my plans for family pictures. My mom had sent me money to buy Emma this adorable dress and I even found matching ties for the boys! I bought myself a coordinating dress and Gary a tie to match! The pics aren't that great because I don't have a real camera-still using the phone. Oh well! Easter was fun and my little princess looked gorgeous!

Soccer Season

Soccer is in full swing. I am honestly read for it to be over. I have 3 in 3 different teams this year.

Ammon's PeeWee team is a joke. They have not had one real practice where the coaches taught them the rules of the game. Ammon just runs up and down the field after his teammates grabbing their shirts until I shout at him "Hands Off!". He is hilarious and he has a blast!

Gabriel has improved so much! He is running faster and has ball control. Being a leftie is really tough in a right dominated world though. He practically runs around the ball in order to kick it in the correct position. Poor guy! He has fun though and his team is winning-which he likes. Next year he wants to try baseball.

Zechariah. Holy Cow! The kid is good! He is fast, he is strong, he is fearless. Zech has gotten better at ball control and can keep it from getting taken away from him and can steal it away from other kids. He is still working on his shooting. He needs power behind his kicks. Other kids his age are lobbing the ball into the air and over the goalie's head. Zech isn't there yet. He hates going to practice but loves to play the games!

More pics to come...

Pee Pee Boys

My 4 and 2 year olds are crazy. C-R-A-Z-Y!  A few months ago after bath time with the 2 crazies, I went into the boys' room (all 4 share a room) to get Elijah dressed. Ammon was butt naked peeing on the floor! "WHAT ARE YOU DOING???", I yelled/gasped! He doesn't pee on the floor! He's 4-working on 5! He just looked up at me with his oh so gorgeous blue eyes and shrugged his shoulders. The expression was angelic. I asked him if he had an accident. He said yes! I made him get the cleaner out and a wash cloth and clean it up (then I cleaned it some more!) And then...every time I went into the room I smelled pee. I called my sweet friend who has a carpet cleaner to come over and attack that spot. She did. I STILL smelled pee! And then....I found out why.

Background: Elijah has decided he wants to be a big boy and wear underwear. He doesn't always make it to the bathroom though and with me packing, painting, and dealing with a fussy teething 10 month old, I am quite distracted and unmotivated to potty train. One day 2 weeks ago, I heard Eli and Ammon running into my room and giggling (also a bad sign) So, I walked into my bathroom to find my 2 year old peeing in the vent! PEEING IN THE VENT! Dawn, recognition, light bulbs, sirens, and a musical soundtrack exploded in my mind as I realized just why I could still smell pee in the boys' room and why Elijah thought it was cool and hilarious to pee in the vent! Ammon had peed down the vent in his bedroom! WHAT THE HECK??? Oh the joy of motherhood. I used to judge. I used to hear these crazy stories from my girlfriends and SIL's and I would wonder to myself, "Where were you?" "How did they get that permanent marker?" etc, etc. I formally apologize for my judgements. Karma is biting my butt with these 2, HARD! If they weren't so dang cute I'd pinch their heads off! :)

Pretty darn cool!

Last Sunday afforded my family and ward an unique opportunity:
Church Public Affairs came and filmed our meetings. The 1st hour, we had a regular sacrament meeting. There was no filming so as not to disrupt the Spirit. I am the choir director in my ward and we were scheduled to sing "Sweet Hour of Prayer". After receiving an email on Thursday informing us about the film crew coming, I asked a violinist from our ward to accompany us along with our pianist. I wanted to kick it up a notch. I am SO glad I did! The P.A. director asked us to do it again so they could film it! They then filmed portions of the sacrament meeting. I felt bad for a particular youth speaker who was asked to give his talk again. He was pretty nervous! I thought everything about the experience was cool. I've always wanted to be in a movie or on film. I just never thought it would be like this! Everyone was given a notice from the public affairs that talked about "Why" they were doing this.
Here's what I gathered:
Many news organizations have/are/do contact the church asking permission to film or take pictures of our "typical" Sunday meetings. Instead of disrupting many services to grant these, the church decided to film 2 wards in our stake for this purpose. The footage can be used in part or in its entirety. It may be released as print, ads, commercials, Mormon messages, etc.
  So look for me in upcoming releases from the church that show a sacrament meeting. You'll most likely only see my back as I conduct the choir-badly I'm sure! Anyhow, it was an amazing, fun, once in a lifetime experience and I am glad it happened to us!
It was also a bit frustrating keeping my little ones quiet and gorgeous and well behaved for 2.5 hours! YIKES! For the most part, they did really well. Until one of them knocked over a water bottle and it poured all over me and the pew. Oh well, I was wearing black and you really couldn't tell. Emma got VERY tired by the end though, was ready for bed, and got a little cranky. All in all, we all survived and I think it is a very cool thing the church is doing! AND I think it is sooo smart considering the political scene that is approaching. 
It was Pretty Darn Cool!

Faith, prayer, and the temple

My sweet husband and I had decided a while ago that we were not going to stay in the military. Once his time was up-we were getting out. We prayed about this and felt great about the decision. Then the "what do we do now?" began. Gary has ALWAYS wanted me to open my own performing arts studio. I say Gary because he has actually wanted it more than me. (TRUE story!) I mean, I thought it would be great but truly doubted my ability and resume to assume the position of "professional" on the matter. Anyways, we made plans, took them to the Lord and felt good about the plans that we were making. However, I always felt that we may not end up there. -In Florida with my own studio :( And then it happened. IT! My hubby woke up one night, couldn't sleep, and commenced to prayer. He felt an overwhelming impression to go to law school. This freaked me out and I honestly cried for a good 48 hours. On the 3rd day I was praying and had a thought: UGA!!! We could go back to UGA! I have friends there, I have work there, it's close to my family! YIPPEE! So we started going down that path...until Gary and my mother in law and the Lord said "what about Ohio?"

...Excuse me? It's cold there! It's NOT close to my family! I don't have ANY friends there! Did I mention it's cold?! WHAT?!? 

So after more crying,  sleepless nights, and many protestations of why it would NOT be a good idea to move in with my in laws as a grown woman with 5 children, I finally decided to pray for faith. (I couldn't pray for an answer because I didn't even have faith at this time!) Did you know faith is a gift? It is! And when asked for, it is received -or given, as the case may be. Did I mention I also made a list? Gasp! I know, I made a list of pros and cons to both law school in Ohio and Georgia. Ohio was winning in a big way! :( I needed to go to the one place on earth where my mind stops reeling at speeds so fast I can't keep up, a place where time stops, and a place where I am at such peace, I listen!  The temple.

I LOVE the temple! I love everything about it! I especially love that I feel so close to my Father in Heaven when I am there. Gary and I were able to go to the temple on Saturday. I was given faith and a peace in my heart that I desperately needed. The journey before me will be a new one with many challenges and great joys and I am excited for it! I have faith in my Savior and in my husband. I know we are on the right path and that everything will work out. I also received another interesting answer to a prayer but that will have to wait for a while...

Valentine's Day!

My sweetheart bought me the list book from BAM! What a surprise! We got the kids these cute M&M dispensers with Star Wars M&M guys on top (totally cute). I am lame because I did not take any pictures but since I don't have a decent camera-I can blame it on that. The only camera I have right now is my phone so facebook has WAY more pics than my blog does :( Anyways, I cut out hearts and taped them all over the walls and chairs and got a Valentine's table cloth from Target and the kids just thought that was super awesome. It's amazing how much fun things become just by changing the look of your environment. I mean, they got M&M's for V-day. That's it! But they felt like they were transported into Valentine's Day and they were happy! And so was I!

So here's today's list: (Idea taken from my new book)

List Bad Things You Did As A Kid

1. Egged my neighbor's mailboxes and front porches on my 9th (or 10th) birthday party. It was really stupid to do it to your own neighbors! I had to apologize and clean it up.
2. TPed houses ----A LOT!!! I used to TP houses every weekend. I would spend the night at my friend Anna's house and my brother would spend the night with her brother Mark and we would all sneak out at midnight and TP houses in their neighborhood. We never got caught!!!
3. Went to parties I shouldn't have and lied about it. Oh my gosh, I can't even count how many times!
4. Broke into houses under construction with my BF Morgan and played "house"
5. Drove her Mom's car to the grocery store when we were only 15. We got caught because we ran into a car! Oops!
6. Spray painted her closet with graffiti.
7. Hazed freshman when I was a Junior and Senior on dance team.
8. Went out on dates with boys before I was "allowed" to. 
9. Lied about where I was going and what I was going to do.
10. Stayed on the phone all night long. 

Yep, I lied a lot. But I never did drugs, smoked, drank, stole anything, or destroyed anyone's property. (toilet paper can be cleaned up) I wanted to write this list so I can remember that I did bad things as a kid and turned out OK. I need to remember that so I can relate to my kids as well as keep them from getting into trouble. :)

Things I am afraid of or fear

1. spiders ---seriously, don't go there.
2. Blood, yes blood! If it is not inside your body, there is something wrong! 
3. My teeth falling out. I have an implant with a crown on it right next to my 2 front teeth. When it was just a bridge, it broke several times and I was SO embarrassed!
4. Losing one (or more) of my kids. Not "losing" them as in I can't find them, obviously. I mean, they pass away before me. I am sooo afraid of that!
5. Losing my husband. Ugh! I know a wonderful lady my age with 4 kids my kids' ages and her hubby was killed in Iraq. I balled my eyes out! I was SO sad for her! I cannot even think about it!
6. Having no money. Scares the beegeezus out of me! That's a new word, feel free to use it! :)
7. Being on stage and forgetting my lines (I don't need to worry since it's been AGES since I've been on stage..)
8. Judgements (mine, yours, ours)
9. Not measuring up and being what I need to be.
10. Pride, jealousy, and anger

Top 10 favorite things to eat

1. Steak and potatoes. I LOVE steak!
2. Grilled salmon
3. croissants
4. chicken salad (without big chunks of celery and onions!)
5. milk chocolate caramels
6. French silk pie blizzards from DQ
7. burritos (Spanish rice, black beans, chicken, sour cream, lettuce, and cheese)
8. Hawaiian pizza
9. Dr Pepper (What? It's not a meal? GASP!)
10. anything I don't have to cook! 

I have interesting thoughts and feelings about food and actually don't like to eat but thought the list worthy of noting anyway. Food brings me no pleasure. I don't like to cook. I don't enjoy menu planning. I eat because I have to. Sad huh? 

Lists: 10 Places I want to go

1. Disney World. Seriously, this is #1 on my list b/c I want to take my kids while they are still young enough to enjoy the "magic". I first went when I was 14-totally not the same. I am hoping to make this happen for my family this year. (anyone want to donate to the fund?)
2. A Cruise To anywhere really. Gary and I were supposed to go for our 10th anniversary. It didn't happen. Now we are embarking on our 12th and still no cruise. Gary suggested we combine the cruise with the Disney thing but I emphatically refused. Disney is Disney. The cruise is for us! :)
3. Yellowstone Natl Park (also Zion Natl Park and the Tetons) As soon as sister is able to walk on her own. I want to take all the kids and hike through/visit Yellowstone. The time I spent there as a college student was priceless. Never before or since have I felt so close to God through nature. I was insignificant. My troubles, concerns, and weaknesses palled in comparison to God's majesty and glory.
4. General Conference at the Conference Center As soon as the kids can sit still long enough-we are SO there! I've always wanted to go. I will go with my entire family before Zechariah leaves on his mission.
5. Hill Cumorah/The Sacred Grove ----here's the thing: I don't just want to visit it. I mean I DO! But I also want to perform in the pageant. I will. This is on my bucket list. :) 
6. The Grand Canyon because I've never been and I want to go!  
7. Alaska-just to visit because I want to see all its beauties and wonders and I've had good friends live there and they loved it. I would NEVER want to live there though! I hate the cold!
8. England why not? There are castles there!
9. South or Central America-I will let Gary choose where as he is the one who speaks Spanish fluently and served his mission in Guatemala.
10. Heaven I desperately want to end up here. I hope I make it!

Lists

Gary and I got to go on a date Friday night. It had been a REALLY bad week and I desperately wanted to go to the temple but we were unable to get Gary a Stake President's interview for his renewal. I almost cancelled the babysitter (as we really did not have the money to pay for one-they work for free if we go to the temple!) However, I have been angry, depressed, stressed, and hurt over this past week and needed to be with the one person in this universe who loves me through thick and thin-my hubby! What did we do on our one evening out without kids? Errands. It's true! How pitiful are we? But hey! Those errands got done in 1/2 the time they would take with the kiddos. First, we went to Massage Envy to book Gary's massages he still had left on his contract and then we cancelled his contract. I booked a jewelry show in the process! :) After that I stopped at Subway for my fav sub, Chicken Bacon Ranch. NumNum... I am salivating! After that we went to Lowe's to pay off my amazingly awesome Dyson vaccuum that I bought for myself. Then we headed to Target for some Valentine goodies and mayo for my "famous" potatoe salad Gary offered I would bring to a CID get together on Saturday. Pulling out of Target we saw it was only 8pm!!! So we went to BAM. (Books a Million to those of us from the old school) I had not been there yet but Gary and the kids had several times. Gary LOVES book stores! I think it borders on obsession. It runs in his family actually. You should see his brother's house! They don't even read all these books! They are just there "in case I need the information someday". Ummm, yeah that's what the internet was created for! :) If I had $500 extra every paycheck and gave it to my love he would buy more computers and books. My little nerd. Wow, I am long winded today. This whole story is to get to this point: I saw a list book at BAM. Seriously, it was just a book where they had one phrase at the top of the page like "Places you want to visit". Every page had a new topic and a whole page dedicated for you to write down your thoughts. I thought it was a fabulous idea to put on my blog. Since I am so sporadic with updating it anyway, not many people follow it or read it. I originally intended it to be a means for which the Grandparents could see updates and pics of the kids but I don't think they have ever read it!
Since I was sad, depressed, fustrated, etc,etc last week (and in light of Feb-the love month), I thought I should start with this list:

10 Things I love about my life right now 

1. My children are happy, healthy, and friends with each other
2. I get to stay home with my children every day (I even homeschool them!)
3. My house is beautiful. I love my house. It is comfortable and calm (most times) and my sanctuary.
4. My husband loves and adores me. (He even thinks my belly isn't horrendously disgusting like I do!)
5. I love and adore my husband. He is SUCH a good man. I could go on and on about how good I have it but will save that for another blog post.
6. My truck. It is paid for, big enough, and a diesel beast. I love it and have decided NOT to sell it!
7. I have a girl! Emma Lee is practically perfect in everyway. She is such a joy and has made our family so different already. I am different because of her and that makes me happy.
8. My Premier Design Jewelry business is doing GREAT! I have a good team of girls and friends around me and my home shows are bringing in good, desperately needed money
9. I love my ward. The people are so strong in the gospel. They love each other, support each other, and genuinely care about each other. I am going to be SO terribly sad to leave them.
10. God is guiding us to get out of the Army and embark on a new advetnure/chapter in life. While this freaks me out like nothing I've ever done before-I know we are in His hands. He loves us and will guide us.

There you go. List #1 of a whole list of lists :)

The Unknown

I thought I had a plan. I thought that I knew what I was doing and where we were heading. Now, I don't. I am entering the unknown. I am trying and forcing myself to be of good cheer, to trust in the Lord, and to "ask and ye shall receive". All I am sure of right now is that the future is going to be full of challenges, trials, triumphs, and blessings. I guess we should get on with it!

Bring it 2012!

Today's thing to remember

Background:
Thursday Jan 4th, I flew to GA to train my Aunt Sis and bring her on as my newest Premier Designs Jeweler. Her training show was on Sat night. I came home Monday afternoon. Jennifer Geibel had watch my kids Friday and Mon and picked me up and dropped me off at the airport. She needed someone to watch her son Chance today so I offered. This morning, I was trying to get everyone ready for the day and fed and out the door for a 9am piano lesson. I got 4 of them out of the house and went in for the others and my purse and to cage the dog. I come out and there is a snowball fight going on. Did I mention it snowed yesterday? sniff, sniff, I want to go back to GA! Anyways, I tell the kids in a very stern voice to get inside the truck. Then I said something like this, "I am done! I am going to bring the hammer down on your butts when we get back from piano! You will do a full day of home school. You will clean the house. You will be obedient and say Yes M'am or you will suffer the consequences! Do you understand me?"
Then I drove to Tina Stevens house for piano and dropped Zech off for his lesson then drove to Sam's to fill up my truck's ever empty gas tank. I then drove back to piano and sent Gabe on his way. While I waited I did Zech's Grammar with him. When Gabe came out, we headed home. I pulled into the driveway and turned off the ignition. Gabriel was saying something to me under his breath. I asked him to speak up, he said it again barely above a whisper, I still couldn't hear him---there were 5 boys and a baby in the car! I asked him to please speak louder and he dissolved into tears. This was the conversation that ensued:

Me: "What's wrong???", I asked my sweet son.
Gabriel: (b/w chokes and sobs) "Remember, (choke) you said (sob) you were going to (sob louder) spank  us (FULL SOB) with a hammer (choke, sob) when we got home? (more crying)"
Me: "What? No Baby! I didn't say I was going to spank you with a hammer!"
Gabe: "Yes you did!" (yelling and sobbing uncontrollably now)  
Me: "No I most certainly did NOT!!!"
Zechariah: "Mom, you said you were going to bring a hammer down on our butts and spank us with it when we got home."
Me: (light bulb and recognition as to what I said and what this must have meant to my little boys) "Oh hunny, NO! It's just an expression used to mean that there is no more playing around! We are going to get to business and not mess around! I would NEVER hit you with a hammer or anything else in this world! I am SOOO sorry I said that and that you thought that!

Well, after hugs, kisses, and drying eyes we went inside and I brought the hammer down! :) just not on their bottoms :)
We did a full day of school, ate lunch, and kinda cleaned the house.

 Moral of this story: Watch what I say. My babies are listening even if I don't think they are and their hearts are softer than I think and they are sweeter than they let on!