365 Days of RANDOM TEAM ZYBKO
DAY #3

So it ain't "Rocket Surgery"

We eat a good amount of eggs around these parts

*hard boiled

*scrambled

*sunny side up

*for egg salad

*for pancakes
*salad toppings

*for brownies

and

*raw egg smoothies
(YO ADRIAN!)

For you healthier readers, humor yourself and pretend we only eat the whites

The raging pack rat in me loves egg containers

I mean, who wouldn't?

They are

stack able

some what durable

cute separated compartments

and

the lid is attached

GENIUS

I have a hard time throwing these bad boys out.

Try using them for painting projects

PERFECT

After painting, close the lid and store in a cool, dark place.

(or really,where ever the heck want)

The paint will stay dry for about a week.

Letting Drexel control the pouring + me not really monitoring the process=

him discovering on his own what colors make pink and orange and unfortunately a lot of

DO DO BROWN.

It was well worth the $7 in paint.

365 Days of Random Team Zybko

Day#2

Tricks of The Trade

"MOM, can we go buy new bath toys?"

The voice is clear, shouted over running tub water from a few rooms away. In the middle of my 'cooking dinner' rush, Delilah decides she really needs to be clean....right away. Buy new bathtoys? Is she crazy? No way Jose! Especially since she, the baby is over three. We are moving forward people, whether I like it or not. Past sippy cups, booster seats and plastic plugs in the outlets......into a new season I tell you.....slow but steady....the countdown to the last, very full, smelly pull-up I ever throw away again is ON! tic tic tic

I use my very best

FUN yet NO ROOM FOR COMPROMISE MOM VOICE

"We don't need any new toys honey, I have a cool idea! Just go pick something from the recycling bin. Plastic would be best, I'm sure"

Before I have a chance to warn her about slippery wet floors she flies past me naked in the kitchen. Her little booty cheeks just a fleshy colored blur whizzing past my old tired knees. She can't get to the garage fast enough. Oh my stars she fell for the GO GREEN spiel. Cool, now back to browning the taco meat and sneaking my hidden tortilla chips.

(Delilah encouraged me to include her cool little fairy Barbie Doll in the picture)

This plastic container stayed in the tub for over a week before I discovered its GREATNESS, yes......greatness.

It has a terrific spout, making it super accurate. It' insanely sturdy. Fill it up only once, pour over the wiggly slimy fussy toddler head and....viola. Five seconds...... full to empty. The wide top even doubles as a barbie boat. I know I don't get out much but this is BIG stuff. I have spent years trying to work with crying kids AND the wrong kind of shampoo rinsing cups. Boy will I sleep good tonight. Well then again, maybe not. It seems as if I have found this useful piece of trash a little late. I wonder how much longer the baby will need my help?

(This is what I look like dancing in Zumba)


(and my tortilla chip double chin for sure)

Blogging Challenge Finished
365 Random Days of Team Zybko Complete
April 26th, 2013
Apparently 805 is the new 365
I guess it was harder than I thought.
It took me double the days and then some to finish this project.
One blog a day didn't seem like a huge deal. 
Even though I completely blew the expected time budget I am still overcome with a sense of accomplishment. Sticking to it. From Day #1 to Day #365. I could have sold out, ya know. Only posting a picture or two and a quick sentence as a caption. For the most part I didn't. Some late nights, thats what was gonna work, it was all the energy or desire left in me. The intention of the 365 days was to simply document, a happy place to throw the family pictures and a goofy thought or two. 
Boy, I was wrong. Somewhere along the line it changed. What started off as a fun scrap booking hobby slowly turned into real life. Confessions of a Soccer Mom. What I have figured out works, what continually gives me struggles and what season of life my hormones and feelings were in at the time. Some posts bore more emotions of my heart that I would have imagined admitting to. Right here, typed out in black and white. In the end I'm glad. Glad to have recorded 2 years of Team Zybko's life. Perhaps even making some ones day with a good belly laugh or two. Maybe this 806 day span of time is something the kids show their kids one day down the rode. The fun adventures and kooky stories. At the very least my Grand kids can giggle at my non-grey hair and the fabulous fashion trends of this generation.  

Below is the post from DAY #1
Where did the time go?
Some things remain the same.
I still wear those shark PJ's, love that blankie and don't mess with my coffee time in the morning.   






January 26th, 2011

365 DAYS OF RANDOM TEAM ZYBKO:

People

Places

Pictures

Phrases

Phood

Projects

Phlashbacks

and Phun!

Ok people, don't hold your breath. I know I know let's be honest, that's a ton of days! Just humor me and have faith that I can keep this up for an entire year. I mean I am so on a roll with my NEW YEARS RESOLUTION list. I have already as of this morning done YOGA ........are you ready for this? Twice, yep two whole times in the year Twenty Eleven. Surely I can do this blogging challenge.

DAY #1

EXPERI "MENTAL" PROJECT:

"THE NO-WORRY WEEKEND"

KIDS RUN FOR FUN

BECAUSE THEY CAN,

GROWN-UPS ARE ON THE RUN

BUT IT'S NOT ALWAYS FUN

WARNING: The next 3 images could be difficult to look at. If you are at all organized or super picky about how you keep your house, brace yourselves.

Trash, dishes and laundry piled high and totally out of control. Yep, you guessed it, the experiment was a COMPLETE SUCCESS. While Papa Bear was away for the weekend on biznass I decided to turn the routine and structure of the house up-side down. Yes all you smarty pants, there is usually structure, at least a little bit. I am always working toward a healthy balance of enjoying the kids,playing and going on fun adventures without the Health Department knocking on my door to shut down the residency. I was not going to worry about the everyday cleaning, cooking, nagging or even stress out about bedtimes. How hard could that be? Harder that you might think.



I applaud and thank my parents (and siblings too! Holla) for what I consider to have been an A+ childhood. I rack my brain trying to blame some of my messed adult issues on them. BUT I gotta be honest. I can't think of one thing I would change. NOTHING.....not one thing people.........thinking thinking thinking......yep, all good.......nope ....wait....I think I got something. I know, for some reason my Mother never sat down with us to play board games. With seven kids and working the night shift what else did she have to do? I remember asking ALL the time. Please Mom, just one SHORT game of Monopoly and I won't ever ask you again. Yea, right. No mystery why I was the last kid they had. I was high maintenance before high maintenance was even a term.

My kids think my main purpose and function in life is to be Julie the Cruise Director. Although I spent countless hours in the mirror circa 1979 pretending to actually be her, the reality is
Parenting is not all Fun and Games.



BUT this weekend was.......ALL FUN and GAMES. When I sat down to play, I was whole hearted in the present, I put my brain in check. I really wanted the kids to get special time with me. The entire ME. Not the me that somehow hears the clothes dryer stop in the middle of a SORRY game. That ME may or may not then rig the cards as to shorten the quality time so I don't get backed up on laundry. Hey look over there Delaney is that Justin Beiber? Oh I guess not but look how close your pieces are to home now DREX.....oh my stars you are beating us all.


We went out and bought sugary cereal and ate it for dinner......in bed. Ok. I fibbed, we already had the sugary cereals, sorry ....they were non-existent in our house growing up. Oh, great, item #2 to tell my therapist about on Monday. We played an array of card games like war, speed and crazy eights. We made up wacky dances and manly muscle poses. I truly listened and learned as I helped Delaney with her Sunday school homework. We had wrestling matches and carelessly jumped on the bed.






Fashion shows galore. Photo shoots while lingering over more than a few cups of coffee. Completed puzzles we hadn't seen in years. Reading books, even those LONG Magic School Bus ones with out getting
STICK-A-PAGE-APOTOMAS SYNDROME.


































Captain Stubing would have given me a raise for sure. In the beginning I avoided my laundry room and passing by the sink at all costs. A total mental game, like walking through the Bakery isle, if I don't see it it's not there.... right? A friend of mine says "Put major on the major and minor on the minor stuff"


KIDS ARE MAJOR
DIRTY SOCKS ARE MINOR

















I didn't just play the part on TV. I lived it.
Cruise Director is way more fulfilling than Mommy maid. As it turns out, bedtime wasn't even as issue. We cuddled up and told non-believable stories and fell fast asleep. Good thing I got some extra rest, I have a lot of catching up to do.

NO WORRIES
A CRUMBY KITCHEN FLOOR will always be there.
DAYS LIKE THESE WITH THE KIDS won't.

MOM, MOM, MOM !

WAKE UP, WAKE UP, WAKE UP!

IT SNOWED, IT SNOWED, IT SNOWED!

NO SCHOOL , NO SCHOOL, NO SCHOOL!

DREXEL WAS OUT IN THE ELEMENTS, IN ABOUT 3 AND A HALF MINUTES. HE DIDN'T LIKE IT TOO MUCH WHEN I MADE HIM COME BACK IN AN ACTUALLY PUT CLOTHES ON.

CANT RESIST PICTURES OF SNOW ON PALM TREES

DELILAH'S MINI SNOW GIRL

DREX HEADED IN FOR YET ANOTHER CHANGE OF CLOTHES

DYLAN POSING FOR A FACEBOOK PROFILE PICTURE

BRYSON WITH THE PERFECT PITCH

GOLF CART SLEDDING IS THE BEST



GOTTA DO WHAT YA GOTTA DO WITH NO HILLS AROUND













DIANE ISN'T COLD AT ALL, BUNDLED UP IN HER YANKEE GEAR











DELILAH IN DADDY'S FAVORITE KID HAT EVER



LOOK MOM! NO HANDS!









































DELANEY SURFING THE BOOGIE BOARD



















TIME TO GO IN WHEN SNOT FREEZES ON YOUR FACE

















HILLARY.....SCARY















DREES UP
INBETWEEN
PLAYING OUTSIDE
LALA HAS WORN THESE SHOES MORE THAN I HAVE
















HOMEMADE PLAY-DOUGH

OUR NEW FAVORITE HANDS ON ACTIVITY

REALLY EASY

KEEPS THEM BUSY FOREVER

WE BAKED THESE SNOW PEOPLE TO SAVE









in a bowl mix together
*1 cup flour
*1/2 cup salt
*1 tablespoon cream of tartar (optional)

in sauce pan mix
*1 cup water
*1 tablespoon vegatable oil
* 20 drops food coloring
OR
* 1 Koolaid packet

mix wet and dry ingredients
stir, 'almost' non-stop over med heat
sprinkle flour on your work surface
knead ball of play-dough after it cools a minute

IT CAN GET A LITTLE MESSY
BUT
WORRY ABOUT THAT LATER :)










DYLAN DECIDES OUT OF THE BLUE
TO 'SHIMMY' UP A TREE






















GROUND TO TOP OF TREE IN 8 SECONDS






















DELILAH TICKLED THAT HIT SHE DYLAN IN THE REAR WITH A SNOWBALL


















MORE LAUNDRY

























SNUGGLETIME



























I COULD BE A MUCH BETTER COLD WEATHER MOM

THE NON-STOP WET/DIRTY/DRYING CLOTHES

DRIVES ME A TIDY TAD LOOPY






CUTE ALEX AND HER 'SMILY' EYES





























I'M LEARNING HOW TO KEEP THEM OUTDSIDE A FEW EXTRA MINUTES

IT'S AN OLD SCHOOL NO BOOTS TRICK















BROTHERHOOD OF THE TRAVELING SKI PANTS

THEY ARE HILARIOUSLY TIGHT

SOMEHOW THEY FIT ALL THE TEENAGERS















THE BRAINS BEHIND THE DRAGGIN'/SLEDDIN' FUN

LIL DAVID

BOYS ARE.........

( DON'T GET UPSET PEOPLE, OF COURSE I AM GENERALIZING)

*TROUBLE

*GROSS

*SLOPPY

*SIMPLE

*ROUGH

*ADVENTUROUS

*TOUGH

*UNPREDICTABLE

*DARING

*PHYSICAL

AND TOTALLY FUN!



Little to my knowledge, while I was out running errands one day 4 teenage boys were completely re-arranging my dinning room. Apparently it makes a great in-door hockey rink.

Hhhhhmmmm

Go figure, of ALL the many times vacuuming that room, never once have I thought of the potentially awesome gaming possibilities.


Geez, I must be getting old. I have to admit, at first I was totally irritated. I mean, really? Every part of my new table set, flipped like discarded trash on there sides. Every entrance, hallway and anyway to move at all....barricaded..... from any un-involved participant.

WHAT A BUZZ KILL I AM

Then a flash back shook my brain BACK to my happy place. These temporary annoying boy antics are a cake walk compared to girls.

It's not a newsflash to me or anyone who knows me I am a tomboy at heart. I'm laughing as I type this. Putting mascara on seems like a BIG DEAL to me most days. The only jewelry I wear are my wedding rings and pink heart rate monitor watch. Oh wait, sometimes earrings if they haven't turned green yet.

With 4 older brothers (and 2 sisters whom are equally tom boyish) I guess it's only natural that dealing with girl issues doesn't come naturally to me.

I mean, girls are so hard to understand.....aren't we?

The play date with 5 girls was going great. Until one of the girls looked at another one of the girls the wrong way. Girls are generally loyal, I will give us that. We also take sides against the others. 2 pairs of girls, both sides thinking they were right. Cause someone always has to be RIGHT and wrong. The last girl is odd girl out, left in middle, playing neutral "Switzerland" and the spokes person. Usually quite a bit of talking ensues after an issue like this.

"How did she look at her wrong?
I ask the spokes person of the group.

I listened for roughly 10 minutes, I heard both sides, I heard the reasoning. None of it made any sense to me. "JUST PLAY " oh, and "HAVE FUN" I add as I walk out of the room to finish the dishes.

While my hands were still soapy the face of the spokes person arrives at my sink. I again urge them to LET GO of the earlier argument and to enjoy the play date, as time was coming to an end.

2o minutes later another member of the girl posse finds me in my office, the laundry room. I stop folding long enough to explain in a dramatic somewhat serious MOM voice. Part of being friends is to listen to each other and work things out. I felt like it was an A+ speech I also felt like an actor in an "After School Special" remember those heart felt Brady Bunch stlye lessons wrapped up in a half an hour show?

This goes on and on which seems like forever....until the end of the play date.


Back to what I was saying about BOYS. They don't usually hold grudges. They don't usually LOOK at each other the wrong way. They fight, they make up...they move on to the next FUN adventure. After nagging them like a GIRL to put everything back just the way they found it. I took a bunch of pictures and sat down on my new $5 bar stool. Laughing to myself while deleting and clicking through the new hockey game frames on my camera. Smiling and shaking my head, truly appreciating how boys are made so different.

THANK GOD FOR THIS!