Adoration. Absolute Necessities.

We took the boy's to McDonald's (yes, totally against how I ever though I'd feed my kids, but it happens) and of course they wanted to go outside and play. Silas removed his shoes and off he climbed to his own little plastic world of tunnels and slides. He was happy as could be and followed some little girl around wherever she went. Eli stood at the bottom, running back and forth from one entrance of the play area to the other. I looked at Dusty and asked how on earth he could be having fun, because he wasn't doing anything. You would have thought he was flying - his smile couldn't have been any bigger or his laugh any louder. In his little world, he was having a ball - even though he briefly entered the play structure only to come right back out again. We couldn't help but just smile at them. Again, there is nothing more precious than the pure joy and innocence of a child. Dusty looked at me and said, "They're at such a great age. Eli things Silas hung the moon." It is so true - he absolutely adores him in every way. It's as if Silas has a little clone that re-enacts everything he says and does. Its the sweetest.

So I'm kind of enjoying some randomness to my posts besides all my stories about my kids, because that's a lot of what I talk about. I can't help it - they're entertaining, at least to me anyway. In any case, here's 5 things I couldn't live without (excluding the obvious such as God, my family, etc.)

5. Gum - If you know me, you'll know I would never ever ever be stranded without gum. It's an addiction. I used to only chew peppermint Extra. And when I say only, I mean only. I never chewed any other kind for probably over 10 years. When I got pregnant with Silas, I just couldn't do it. For both of my pregnancies I switched to Cinnamon. Now I chew the new Five gum and love it. So, if you're ever in need of a stick of gum, you know where to find some. But I must warn you, if it's my last piece - you may not get it.

4. Lip Gloss - Again, always in my possession. Again, possibly another addiction. I don't really like chapstick because it seems too thick and I like the smooth feel of lip gloss. I must reapply after eating, drinking, or just when my lips feel dry. Come on, we all have some weird habits, right?

3. Hairspray. I'm from Texas, where it's HUMID, what do you expect? Moving to San Diego doesn't change a thing. I'll be a Southern girl until I die, armed with my hairspray and makeup. I'll never be the type of girl to go all natural, sorry. It's in my blood.

2. My phone - Now, I'm not claiming to always have the ringer turned up or for it to be in my pocket. But, it will always be within my grasp. Since having an iPhone, I feel lost and alone without it. Short story - while on my recent trip to Texas, I ended up in Dallas overnight without my charger. I accidentally left it at my parents house and was flying back home the following day. I had to turn my phone off to save what little battery I had left in case I needed it on my way home. I felt like a piece of me was missing. No e-mail, no facebook, no internet, no text. Seriously, we have created a world where we cannot function without technology. In any case, I actually turned it on a couple times just to check if there was anything important I had to know, only to turn it quickly off again. It was sad.

1. My camera - If I go more than a few days without taking pictures, I am itching to go out and shoot. It's become an obsession. I love creating something beautiful or creating memories of my boys. My kids pretty much have their whole life documented so far - it'll be an amazing thing to see how many pictures I have of them when they are grown. You really don't want to know how many photos are stored on our external hard drive in our Aperture library. It's borderline ridiculous.

And those are the 5 things I couldn't live without. I'm putting the kids to bed and off to watch Glee. I've spent several months patiently waiting. Beyond excited. Goodnight.