Quadruple Lutz

Hi Ho, Hi Ho....to get a tree we go....

2011-12-05T08:14:00.001-08:00

After a rare stretch of balmy-for-December weather, we decided to go chop down a Christmas tree early. 'Go chop down', as opposed to 'go to the nursery, point to a good tree, then go pet the cat who lives there'.

We had a plan. *Tall and plump*. After some "suggestions" we did have to add:* green and pointed* to that list. Later we had to add: *still alive*.

After 47 days and nights tromping around the tree farm, tripping on stumps, falling in holes, we narrowed down the list bit by bit. Every hill we discarded another requirement until at last we were left with: GREEN. Even that was negotiable.

In spit of lowering our expectations we still could not decide on a tree. Weeping with hunger and fatigue, I finally conceded to Janey that she could pick whatever tree she wanted.

And this, my friends, is how the fattest Christmas tree *EVER* came to dwell in my living room!

Bake Pops; Part Deux

2011-10-25T12:43:00.002-07:00

A while back the girls and I decide to make cake pops. Once. We made them, and learned our lesson.

This year for Janey's birthday her friends Jessie and Katie got her the "As Seen on tv" Bake Pops.

Thankfully Jackie (Jessie and Katie's super mom) also got a set, and gave us a few pointers.

I was still skeptical, and kind of dreaded making them.

Directions seemed easy enough. Make cake as directed, and add a package of pudding mix.

Pour into bottom pan. That would be the pan without the holes. :)

Take a picture of the cute birthday girl

Put the top pan on, lock, and bake.

Instead of using melted chocolate to set the sticks and coat the cake, Jackie suggested heating up frosting. I can.not.even.BEGIN to tell you how much easier this made it!!

All we had to do was decorate, and voila!! Done and done.

So easy, and so yummy! AND a very important lesson that sometimes the "as seen on tv" gimmicks are well worth it!

King me!

2011-07-31T20:27:00.000-07:00

Every now and then an idea so simple smacks me in the side of the head. Usually the result of fighting kids, this one is no exception.

Last week I bought a chess/checkers set after the girls showed renewed interest.

Who knows where our old one(s) have gone to.

Needless to say, the boys want to play chess and the girls want to play checkers. At.the.same.time.

So..... with these few supplies, I made one of my best things EVER.

Acrylic paint in red and black

Yardstick

Sharpie

Brushes (foam worked really well)

Screwdriver

And most importantly:

A wooden picnic table

I measured the "board" and marked off the spaces with the sharpie.

Mine were 3 inches square.

Use the screwdriver to 'etch' the lines in. It will help with the painting.

Not something you *have to do, but it made it a bit easier.
I put 3 or 4 coats of paint on. It dried quickly, and I stopped once I had the coverage I wanted.

Add the black squares.

I wanted this (obviously) to be weatherproof.

It is our crab eating table also, so it has to take a bit of wear and tear.

I used this sealer. Why? Because I had it already.

Used newspaper and tape to cover the parts I didn't want sealed.

Had to use packing tape, since duct tape disappears faster than candy in this house.

Again, one of those things I have no answer to.

Couple of coats later...voila!! How awesome is this??

Now all they need is some checkers.

Sun In

2011-07-21T22:56:00.000-07:00

Finally was brave enough to let Janey swim in the deep end.

She perfected her underwater moves called "give mom a heart attack".

She can hold her breath for something close to 46 minutes. Or so it feels.

Summer: Blonde hair for the kid.

Gray hair for the mama.

Not for the timid

2011-07-06T21:48:00.000-07:00

Always looking for some fun (free) crafts to do at home. Preferably ones that we can get a lot of use out of. After discovering the rock hard, dried up finger paint I went in search of a recipe for make your own. I found a few recipes, and they all looked pretty simple.

Simple I can do.

3 ingredients simple I can really do.

You know, 3 ingredients. Can't be that bad.

Things you may not know:

Cornstarch is messy. Really messy.

It is not the same consistency as flour, and if you are dumb enough to make the mistake of trying to pour it into a measuring cup, well....you will be making a big mistake.

Cornstarch and water, brought to a boil to thicken WILL bubble.

If it gets on your skin, especially on the soft, unprotected flesh of your fingers, you WILL scream.

You might even scream "F*CK!!!"

You will not, however, feel too bad about it because you will be in stunning disbelief as to how much it burns, and how cornstarch+boiling water= molten hot GLUE.

The mixing of the colors was the best part in the opinion of the paint makers.

I would love to be able to tell you how it actually works, but apparetnly they only wanted to make the fingerpaint. Not use it.

Probably for the best right now. I am sure it would irritate my blistered, burned flesh.

Summer So Far

2011-07-04T20:47:00.000-07:00

swimming

and more swimming

janey's day spa

sparklers

picnic lunches

radishes from the garden. mysteriously planted, but enjoyed none the less.

crabs. I like them steamed. stella prefers live.

red, white, blue, and peace on earth

baby horses and the beach

so far so good!

Hindsight

2011-06-26T21:19:00.000-07:00

Better Late than Never

2011-05-19T13:38:00.000-07:00

It has been a full year since we remodeled out bathroom upstairs. It was old. Outdated. Bad, bad, bad. It didn't even have an electrical outlet. Not a single one! What kind of person puts in a bathroom without an electrical outlet?!?

It was well worth the hassle of 6 people sharing one bathroom.

Well...Teddy might disagree as it his his bathroom of choice ;)

It was also well worth every penny, although I could have bought a fairly nice brand new car with what it cost. Who the hell knew that plumbers were so damn expensive?? Who the hell knew faucets were so expensive??

This cabinet was ALOT bigger on the picture, and once I got it put together I was too lazy to return it. I could really use this to be about 5 times bigger.

Without meaning to, the bathroom evolved into a beach theme. All with things I had, and that mean something to me.

Stuff from trips to the beach, my garden, days fishing on the boat, and from my grandmother.

Shells from many beach visits. An intact sand dollar from Ocean City on the day Teddy and I visited what would be his new home away from home. A tiny baby horseshoe crab from the same day, and a sand dollar from my Nana.

A teeny tiny seagull painting my grandmother painted. I love seagulls, and know I am in the minority there! A conch Teddy found clamming, and a stained glass sailboat that was in my grandfather's office until he retired.

Julian picked out the tile in the shower. My head started spinning at all the choices, and I went into a decorating coma. Kudos to her for not only picking out something that looked great, but, believe it or not, this was the lowest priced tile and mosaic.

And now a year later, after buying, trying, and rejecting many curtains, I finally made some to finish the bathroom. My sewing skills are limited, but I can make a mean curtain! All I know I learned in middle school home ec class. In case you may think I'm a little too big for my britches, I will show you what I *really have to work with!

My fancy sewing machine (that I swipe from Julian) as well as my very helpful (NOT!) helpers!

So...finally it is done. Until i decide what I want to hang on the walls. Maybe by next year :)

Waiting on the corner

2011-04-26T06:09:00.000-07:00

You hear it all the time. "She is doing great. Really turned the corner." or "I felt horrible, but finally turned the corner".

Well. I am trying to find the damn corner. I think I am close, but so far all my 'corners' have really been side streets leading to the main road.

I continue to hobble along on my walker like a little old lady. Wilbur and Stella are two pain in the but speed bumps, and no longer have any fear of being run over.

I do my exercises at the kitchen sink, and have watched Dawn's amaryllis bloom in the past few weeks. Stalkerish I know, but helps keep me focused one something besides the ball of fire formerly known as my knee!

Until I get to that corner I will just keep on keeping on.

Greetings from my new digs

2011-04-17T14:46:00.000-07:00

Almost two weeks since I had my knee replaced. I thought to post sooner, but thinking about something and actually doing it are two different things these days!

I spend my days in my hospital cave, and have pretty much taken over the tv room. I have the tv (duh. It *is the tv room), laptop, a cooler for my ice packs and drinks, clothes, toiletries, and best of all, my new Nook. A birthday gift from Steve and the kids.
I also have the "help" of Wilbur and Stella. The like to take cat naps in my makeshift bed. Wilbur loves to lay on the ice packs, Kooky Kitty that he is. They think that all of the visitors are here to see them!
20 staples, a ton of swelling and bruising, and a shit ton of pain. Yet even with all of that my new knee feels more stable already. Stronger.
I have been taking it easy. Doing my exercises, being a good physical therapy patient. Napping and taking my medicine as prescribed.

There are some rewards to being couch bound and in pain. I am now sporting a pretty fancy pedicure!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2011-03-21T12:39:00.000-07:00

A holiday (well...not even a real holiday) that I have avoided for years.

Any day, holiday or not, with my *name AND a word pronounced *'bra' (braugh) is not even a bit welcome. Even after years of being a grown up, Erin-Go-Braugh, and Erin-Go-Braless are phrases I hate.

This year, however, thanks to numerous crafty blogs, the girls and I spit out years of repressed St. Patty's Day goodies.
Shamrock Rice Krispie treats, rainbow cupcakes and rainbow jello. My house looked a bit like Happy Gay Pride Day!
And...if St. Patrick can manage to drive all the snakes out of Ireland, well I guess I can manage to get my peas planted on time!

With the help of my own little Leprechaun!

The view from here.

2011-03-06T21:17:00.000-08:00

I made great time on the trip to pick Teddy up from school last week.

Such great time that I had enough to spare to visit one of my favorite places on earth; Assateague Island.

Driving up the Verzanno bridge is a little daunting.

You feel like you could be on a road just destined to plunge you into the great unknown.

Each time I crest the bridge it never fails to take my breath away.

The bay, the ocean the marshes,and untouched forever vegetation.

Furry winter coated ponies waited this time on the opposite side of the bridge.

Escaping the wind no doubt, but one can always imagine they were there as greeters.

For the past few days my view on everyday things has been altered.

Walking up to the beach was supposed to be the mind eraser that I needed, but only served to act as a reminder.

It was hard getting up to the beach. Hard walking in the sand (especially with shoes on!), and I would like to fool myself into thinking that a speedy retreat to the car was from cold, and chilly ocean wind.

It won't always be cold. it won't always be windy. It won't always be winter. But without a knee replacement, sooner rather than later, it *will always hurt to get there.

It should make me feel a bit better that the doc was just as surprised as I was to have the xrays show significant arthritic damage in both my knees. It should, but it doesn't.

Do not pass go, do not get a brace, put the ice away, and thank the genetic factors that not only gave me a fat ass, but a "bad set of knees" as well.

So I will start my 40's with a new "Lieutenant Dan" knee. And a morphine pump. Hoping that I will soon be back to running my ass of chasing after these kids of mine :)

I am thankful that what ails me *CAN be fixed. So thankful. I just need a few minutes to have a bit of a temper tantrum. Without any kicking, of course.

Back from saving the world....

2011-02-20T20:34:00.001-08:00

....and other slight exaggerations. I wish I could say I have been doing something noble and admirable. Perhaps bringing water to villages in africa, or building homes for those who have none. Alas, I am just a bad blogger.

We made it through Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's. Leaving time for the fun things, trying not to get bogged down by the mundane. Pared our gift list way back (a perk of unemployment), enjoyed the small things, and really, really, really looked forward to a new year!

Managed to find a home for one of our foster kittens, and accidently had to keep two of them. One planned, one not so much, but both well loved, and well spoiled. Very spoiled, actually.

Janey is working on setting a world record for how many teeth she can eject from her mouth. At not even six and a half she is -->thisclose<-- to catching up with Julian.

Teddy turned 19. Several times it seems, as his birthday parties seemed quite numerous this year. His gift is worthy of a whole 'nother blog post. But at least it is not a rattlesnake.

So. I guess I am back. :)

Xoxo

Girly Songs

2010-10-28T20:41:00.000-07:00

I made a huge crock pot full of chicken and dumpling today. A crazy night scheduled where, once again, everything falls in the same time frame in opposite ends of the world. The whole house smells like home. It is very strange that the weather is warm and muggy. Even stranger that I crave things like chicken and dumplings and beef stew on days like this!

Janey stomping through the house, sighing loudly like they poor martyred victim she is. There.Is.Nothing.To.Eat.In.This.House! ::stomp:: I.Am.Starving. ::sigh:: To.Death. ::stomp:: The next few sighs are mine. As I list the things available to alleviate her imminent starvation she rejects each one choosing instead to go up to bed and cry herself to sleep.

I have a new phrase for the girly-angst-drama. It is called "writing a song". 'Woe-is-me' lyrics, and 'my-life-sucks' rhymes. By the way, there is *plenty to eat in this house!

Silver

2010-10-23T22:03:00.001-07:00

it came as a surprise

that the silver lining was actually

red and green

Birthday Girl

2010-09-15T07:26:00.000-07:00

The birthday girl turned six this month. She acts more like 16, though. She is sassy, and smart. And too cute for her own damn good!

She has been anticipating her birthday since the day after her last one!

By some stroke of luck, the kids had off school on her actual birthday. Janey wanted a Nature Party, and planned it herself.

The kids painted birdhouses,

made their own trail mix,

and had a choice between 'dirt' or 'sand' cakes.

Forget luck, the planets must have been aligned, because with a bunch of kids, all ages, there was no fighting.
Everyone got along, and had a great time.

Janey is already planning next years' party!

2010-08-06T06:27:00.000-07:00

Holy crap. It is August. I'm not quite sure how it got here so fast. I feel like we have done nothing this summer, but in actuality we have. Thankfully I have photographic evidence for when my kids start complaining that they are "soooo bored, and we never do anything fun". Not that my sweet kids would ever whine or complain. Nope, never. They need to be thankful that we have done anything. The weather has been atrocious. Hot, hot, hot, and humid. My new found ability to sweat profusely (thank you middle age) has become quite the life of the party. A dishcloth is the latest fashion accessory for the girls as they play. All the better to wipe the sweat from your eyes!

The girls and I did enjoy an escape to the beach. It was really hard to come back! Actually, we stayed for 2 extra days (thank you MeMom).

Our cousins came in from Washington State, and the kids picked up like they had seen each other yesterday.

Janey, the non swimmer, proved how fearless she is when we all went to the lake.

We even corralled the big boys to come to the zoo with us.

A miracle in and of itself! Going to the zoo on one of the hottest days of the year is great! The crowds are way down. See my attempt at finding the silver lining?

You know it is hot, when even the African animals look like they are going to pass out.

A few more weeks of summer vacation left, and I am sure we can try to pack in some fun. Unless it stays this hot. In which case the girls and I will spend some bonding time in the a/c with our new guilty pleasure: Wife Swap.

From here to there

2010-07-09T07:35:00.000-07:00

It is crazy how fast we got from here:

to there:

Danielle and Teddy. Friends from the first day of school to the last.

Having a ball

2010-06-22T17:28:00.000-07:00

One step closer to being a teenager, my kid already has the rolling eyes and attitude perfected!

What could be better than having your birthday at the beach? Not much, I would have to say.

Well...maybe having a bowling party with (almost) all your bff's would be good too.

But best of all would be having a mom who totally rocks at making an awesome birthday cake!

Time for a little break

2010-06-05T20:07:00.000-07:00

With the crazy schedule of late the girls

and I are off to the beach for a little break.

I probably should have been a little more clear on what kind of break I meant.

Because THIS is not it!

Hostage

2010-06-01T06:17:00.000-07:00

I have been a bad blogger. Not so clever, and not so funny. As with most things, it is not my fault. I am being held hostage by my yard!

Who knew that having a graduation party in July meant that you needed to start yard prep in March??

I have had lots of help.

Lots of good luck as well, and our veggie garden is doing quite well already.

We have some new additions like swiss chard and broccoli, as well as tons of peas.

Shelling peas is when I am glad I have given birth to so many helper slaves!

I told my sister that I thought our strawberries were on their last legs. I would probably pull them up and start over. Well....I think they heard, and now I am overrun with berries!

Waiting in line at Ikea for hours to purchase rain barrels was well worth the money I will save on my water bill!!

Can't wait till the point when I can relax and just ENJOY the garden. Oh, who am I kidding?? I will always be able to find something to do in it!

Field Trip

2010-05-19T15:08:00.000-07:00

In my almost (but not quite) 40 years of life I have never been into the city of Philadelphia.

Into RFK Stadium to see Pink Floyd, yes. Into the convention center to see Finding Nemo on Ice, yes. But into the city? Not until this week. And never with over 100 5th graders!

The weather was as chilly, and rainy as it could be.

The puddles morphed into small lakes, and the many open parks available for lunching were drenched.

The Liberty Bell was great to see.

A few days after our trip it was evacuated because of a suspicious white powder. Wouldn't THAT have been a field trip to remember?!?

We got to see the actual chair George Washington sat in.

Benjamin Franklin's grave.

It was a field trip that inspired a lot of thought....

And was a lot of fun!!

Besties

2010-04-30T20:08:00.000-07:00

They bicker like old women.

Best friends one minute,

Mortal enemies the next.

The other day Janey 'fired' Julian as a sister.

At the end of the day they are still 'Best-ies'

the good and the bad

2010-04-17T07:20:00.000-07:00

Took my biggest boy to visit a University/College he is considering. The first time we ever visited, he was 3 months old, and we were visiting a friend. Still seems like yesterday as I drive him down once again. About campus life, all I have to say is WHY? Why can't I go? The food, the lounge, the beautiful campus.
The pergola dripping with wisteria older than me or my kid. The color AND black and white darkrooms. The digital photography editing rooms, the washing machines that automatically dispense detergent and text you when they are done. WHY can't I go?

The good? It is 2 hours away.

The bad? It is 2 hours away.

The good? A beautiful, small school that, if he chooses, Teddy will thrive at.

The bad? It is 2 hours away.

The good? It is 30 minutes away from the beach in Ocean City.

The bad? 30 minutes for the college kids. Not the Mom at home!

After our campus tour we headed right to the beach.

The empty parking lot at the inlet.

The deserted boardwalk. The absolute silence of no rides, laughing kids, blasting music, and summer life was both awesome and strange.

No one around but some hungry seagulls begging for some goodies.

A beach empty of anything except treasure to find and birds to chase.

Skies clear without the haze of humidity.

The Atlantic Ocean calmer than usual, waiting for someone to impress.

We spent some time at the Ocean City Fishing pier.

One of our favorite spots ever. A lucky find a few years ago.

An unpretentious shack. Best fishing ever.

Horseshoe crabs were abundant,

and some were, um....really, really enjoying each other.

A really nice day. A bit of a balm to ease the fact that the first baby is leaving the nest.

Haiti

2010-04-08T12:52:00.000-07:00

There are several sites that I have been following since the Haitian earthquake.

They are amazing people who have been, and continue to bring change to Haiti.

The Livesay Blog and Heartline Haiti have been inspirational eye openers.

Recently on the Heartline blog I can across the store run by the Haitian women.

The Women's Program they have established is amazing.

I ordered a purse, and it came today!

I am excited because it far exceeds my expectations.

I will definitely be visiting the HaitianCreations store again!

My favorite part? This inside is signed by the woman who made it!

Sprung

2010-04-03T03:52:00.000-07:00

Spring has Sprung. We are all full of spring fever.

The first nice weekend all our family

spent time cleaning up the yard.

All.Of.Us.

No whining, no complaining.

Helpful, considerate, hardworking kids.

A small miracle right there!

Nothing like the beginning of a new season.

Playing outside in your pjs.

Swinging all day long.

Watching new life bloom.

Watching as Janey re-discovers her

bug/bee/insect-of-any-kind phobia.

This week we will try thunderstorms.

Smile!

2010-03-31T15:51:00.001-07:00

How can you not??

Time

2010-03-18T18:35:00.000-07:00

This picture is a representation of my life this year.

My 'baby' lost her first tooth.

Years earlier than any of her siblings, and catching me by surprise.

She is five. A whole hand, and will be starting kindergarten this fall.

All day kindergarten.

My other 'baby' is a decade old.

She is in her last year of elementary school.

Off to middle school.

We shop out of the juniors section.

The next 'baby' will be sixteen this summer.

He will start drivers ed in the spring.

He plays 2 varsity sports. And shaves.

Drivers Ed? I just took the training wheels off.

My oldest 'baby' is an adult.

So says the law.

In two months he graduates High School.

He will go to college in the fall.

He can vote. He was just born.

I know this is my job, and I would like to think I have done it well.

I look around and am shocked to see no diapers, and pacifiers.

Shoes that are too big for my feet.

Big kids where yesterday there were babies.

Each day is a gift, and each night after teeth brushing, prayers and tucking in, we are one day closer to the day when they fly out of the nest.

I didn't think it would be this fast though.

Calgon take me away...

2010-02-22T17:17:00.000-08:00

This being the season of snow, we have been forced to be much craftier than usual.

Craftier than usual has seemed to morph into "what craft are we doing today??"

We have made stained glass, wind chimes, painted, baked cupcakes, cookies, bread, and sculpey creations.

We have made homemade goat cheese, for god's sake.

Enough is enough.

Camp blizzard is closing. The camp director was suddenly stricken with a bad, bad case of PMS.

Crafts are supposed to be fun. Not hissing, spitting cat fights over whose is better. Not outrageous crying jags of "I just can't do anything right".

Crafts are not supposed to bring out the craving for a nice stiff drink.

Our latest craft came out the best. probably because it was fraught with much angst and drama. I got the idea from my imaginary friend Erica.

You will need:

Soil
Activated Charcoal ( I had to go to the Pet Store for this. You can apparently get it at any other WalMart besides the piece of crap one that's near me)
Aquarium gravel
Smallish plants
Container(s)
Optional Sculpey to make little things to add.

If you find that crafting is not complete for you without whining, crying, and fighting, you're gonna have to do the Sculpey part.

Layer gravel, charcoal, soil, plant, more gravel.

Add your little figure thingys and...Ta Da! You are done. Pour yourself a drink.

This one might have to be a gift! That is, if she wants it!

When I was a kid...

2010-02-20T09:44:00.000-08:00

One day my girls will be able to say

When I was a kid

My mom was the meanest

We had to walk to school

All.the.way.across.the.street.

In a blizzard

In nothing but ~~our barefeet~~ fake Uggs

Snow Way!

2010-02-10T14:42:00.000-08:00

I love snow. I have always loved snow.

I will probably continue to love snow.

Right now?

Snow is pushing it's luck on my infatuation.

The first Blizzard of this week dumped 30 inches.

The second Blizzard, a whole 2 days later, is still dumping as I type.

21 inches so far.

Boredom abounds in spite of my best efforts.

The bird feeders are full.

Slash is enjoy the camouflage of the snow to stalk the birds.

And Roxy is as happy as a clam.

And so is Steve. Since he is in CALIFORNIA.

How?!?

2010-02-05T16:02:00.000-08:00

Please tell me how we got here so fast.

Happy 18th Birthday Teddy!

You may legally be an adult, but you are still my baby.

2010-01-31T15:12:00.000-08:00

The Meteorologist called for a cold dry weekend.

Maybe a light dusting of snow.

Little to no accumulations.

Our new Christmas saucers sitting unused in the garage.

You have to love when the forecast is wrong!

Sucker

2010-01-27T09:37:00.000-08:00

I have seen a lot of people making cake pops lately. My favorites are from bakerella. Lesser mortals have made them, and they have come out really cute. We have a big birthday coming up tomorrow, and I thought they would be fun.

You will need: (any flavors)
1. A boxed cake mix
2. A container of frosting
3. Melting chocolate for coating
4. Sprinkles (optional)

Bake cake according to directions on box. Combine crumbled cake and container of frosting.

Mix well. Chill for at least an hour.

Roll into quarter sized balls
Melt chocolate coating according to package directions. Place stick in coating, then into cake balls. Dip balls into chocolate, swirl to remove excess, than decorate with sprinkles.

They can also be made without the stick.

Enjoy!

Here is the review: These were a huge pain in the ass to make.

They were really messy and I had chocolate and sprinkles everywhere.

They are NOT a kid friendly cooking project. Well, unless you call yelling "PLEASE just get OUT of the kitchen!" kid friendly.

They tasted really, really good. And I don't even like cake so much. Or chocolate. So they would taste REALLY good to a normal person!

I think I will make these again. I will make the cake balls a little smaller (grape sized.)

I will melt the chocolate in smaller quantities.

I will use a better quality chocolate melts

I will put them in the freezer a bit to chill them more

I will do this when the kids are at school.

I will add any or all of the following (to my glass!):

Wordless Wednesday- Roxy Pup (and bonus laundry)

2010-01-20T11:14:00.000-08:00

Reservations Please.

2010-01-12T06:37:00.000-08:00

To the closest spa. Or mental hospital. Something tells me I may need it!

My girl got a camera from Santa. THANK GOD it was not a web cam.

In addition to Irish and German, I think there may be some exotic dancer mixed in as well.

Bucket List

2010-01-02T12:45:00.000-08:00

Last summer my husband and Julian watched 'The Bucket List' about a hundred times.

The girls and I decided to make our own bucket list for the summer. Days we were bored, we often went to the list to see what we could do. I wish we could have done it all, but we had some curves thrown our way last year.

Over the next couple of days we are going to work on a bucket list for this year. I am adding the things we didn't do to our new list as well. When I post our completed list in 2011, hopefully it will be more complete than not!

Last years List:

make a stepping stonego to Wheaton State Park

pick cherries

pick peaches*

pick apples

Spring Meadow Farm trip

go to Patapsaco State Park

go to Sandy Point Park

go to Assateague

camp at Assateague

ride bikes on the boardwalk

Ocean City fishing Pier

camp in the backyard

go to the zoo

go to the aquarium

go to Washington D.C

make fresh lemonade

sell lemonade

plant a garden

do crystal caves craft **

go to Cascade Lake

learn to knit

visit Carroll County Pond

go to the Fair

Bold and italic means we did them.

* means we WENT to pick peaches but they were gone. We DID pick raspberries instead

** means this was the most involved, hard to follow craft ever invented in the history of the world, and we just gave up.

Some things we did more than once. On Assateague in the spring we found a really cool whale carcass.

By summer is was so festeringly gross I almost barfed.

Also by summer the mosquitoes were worse that having your fingernails pulled off, which negated the "Camping at Assateague" goal.

During our trip to the aquarium we met up with an old friend Chris, his wife Margaret, and their daughter Abbey. I had not seen Chris in 14 years!

When we went to the zoo, we met up with my friend Kelly who I had not seen in 20 years!

Looking forward to working on our new list!

Baby Envy

2009-12-27T19:23:00.000-08:00

All my (kid) life I wanted a Baby Alive doll. So, so much. Each and every time I was told no. Actually I was told, "I don't need one more thing that eats or shits in this house." So since Baby Alive both eats AND shits, I was out of luck.

Call it mellowing, or call it payback, my mom bought Janey and my niece Eliza a Baby Alive this Christmas.

They we so EXCITED!!

The next day Janey poked me awake at the crack of dawn to see if we could feed her.

Both she and Julian were fascinated by the fact that she was REALLY eating.

Then they couldn't wait to see what happened next.

Oh, the horror!!

This is their favorite part of feeding her! Goofy, goofy girls!

Winner!

2009-12-24T07:19:00.000-08:00

The Christmas Elf has come to share some good news! WE HAVE A WINNER!

I had Elf Julian write down the entries. Two for everyone who guessed right.

And a lot of you did guess right! It was snow on my gutter.

With the snow storm we had lots of drifting snow that made for some cool photos.

We also have icicles everywhere.

All the entries ready to go. I could have used random.org, but this was much more fun!

Elf Janey got to pick the winner.

And the winner is....

The SILVA'S! Megan, send me an email and I will get it right out to you!

Yippee!! A CONTEST!

2009-12-21T09:10:00.000-08:00

Ok, my first contest. I know you just can't stand the excitement! I will be giving away ~~one child of your choice~~ a $25 Target gift card to one lucky winner! All you have to do is guess what this picture is.Anyone who guesses, gets an entry. Those who guess correctly get TWO. Contest will end midnight December 23 EST. Winner will be drawn sometime on Christmas Eve between cooking, wrapping, cleaning, and trying to buy Valium on the street corner. Good luck, and good guessing!

Snow, snow, and more SNOW!!!

2009-12-19T15:14:00.000-08:00

Oh, this is gonna be a good Winter!

Again, for me, not Steve the snow grinch.

Today the news dubbed this "The Blizzard of '09".

We have had a great day. Making Christmas cookies. Reading books.

Playing out in the snow until I had some little frozen snowkids.

Shoveling, shoveling, and more shoveling.

The new puppy, Roxy, loves the snow too!

She has had great fun playing outside with Algae, who was glad he did not have to go to work today.

Thankfully Steve DID go to work. And brought home the snowblower too!

And after it is all said and done, a nice nap.

And enjoying the snow from INSIDE the warm house.

PS- The first picture of my patio umbrella was taken about 6 hours earlier. Now the snow is up to the metal joint!!! Yay! I *heart* snow!

Let it Snow!

2009-12-12T21:18:00.000-08:00

We got out first real snowfall last week. I love, love, love snow.

My husband does NOT. Not even a little.

There is nothing like waking up and seeing everything icing covered and beautiful.

The snow motivated me to get moving on Christmas decorating and baking.

Pictures to come soon. Not only for your viewing pleasure, but to prove I am not lying!

Hoping for a white Christmas. We had one a few years ago, so I think we are due.

Also hoping for LOTS of lazy snow days this winter. Sorry, honey.

Dog Days

2009-12-10T15:14:00.000-08:00

Last weekend was a bad one. Steve's first border collie, Moss had a stroke on Sunday. Moss was 14 and not in the best health. He had worked hard up until last year when we retired him due to arthritis. We put him to sleep on Monday. He lived a good, long life.

Monday we all stayed up late to watch the Raven's lose. Tuesday morning came too soon and we were all tired and running late. When I went to let Lucille out of her cage it was apparent there was something drastically wrong. She was non-responsive, and her cage was covered in blood. This was a dog who was perfectly fine the night before.
Steve ran up to the school to get Tucker (she is his dog). Within 15 minutes of finding her we were at the vet. She died minutes later. We are not sure why. Probably complications from her stomach issues from a few years ago.

Moss was old. Circle of life, and all that crap. Lucy was not old, not sick, and this has kneecapped all of us.

My house is too quiet.
I walk the girls to school, and open the back door to feed Lucy.
I come in from shopping and hear her quickly jump off the chair; her nails click-clacking on the wood floors.
I see her waiting patiently to go outside.

She is under my feet as I cook, waiting for me to drop something.
On cold, gloomy days we sneak a nap in the morning. Me on the sofa. Lucille on the back of the sofa keeping watch out the window.
As I work on the computer she lays under the table and I scratch her with my feet.

When I make school lunches Lucy runs in as soon as she hears me get the bread out. She knows she always get the ends of the loaf.
When Steve comes home from work, she joyfully greets him. If he does not respond quickly enough, Lucy will grab his pants.
She sits on command and gives you one paw, then the other, and the other, back and forth as long as you will let her.

Lucy may only weigh 17 lbs, but she kick's Algae's butt! They run through the house like crazy kids. Lucille always wins. She cheats a little, because she stand on the sofa to get to Algae.
She is a big dog in a little body.
And she should still be here.

I have no answers for myself or my kids. One thing I do have is great family and friends. My mom sent flowers, goodies, balloons, and some cute stuff. The delivery man put on a good face, despite my puffed up face and snotty nose.
Lisa and Zach dropped off Pumpkin bread and a sweet note.
Sigrid made us dinner-mac and cheese, salad and brownies.
So many sent kind words and hugs via email and facebook.
It helped so much.

Tis the Season!

2009-12-04T10:02:00.000-08:00

So, I have all my shopping done. Just finished decorating the trees, and my presents are all wrapped underneath them. It is so pretty at night with all my outdoor lights lit, and the cookies and goodies make my house smell soooo yummy.

Ummmm...yeah. Okay. Back to the real world. Where VERY LITTLE of that is actually true. Well, none of it is, if you MUST know!

I did have time for an easy craft. I found it in a magazine the other day when I was lucky enough to spend all day in doctors waiting rooms for one thing and another.

Take your old bits of broken up crayons and take the paper off.

Put them in a silicone baking pan. You can use any shape. I happened to find this one in the dollar aisle at Target. Similar ones were $10, so trees it was.

Put in the oven at 400 degrees until liquefied (about 5 minutes). I've never used silicone baking pans before, and I DID put them on a baking sheet. The silicone was much too flimsy.

While I am sure it would be VERY amusing to watch me jumping around with hot wax all over, I opted out of that step!

Cool, and pop out of mold.

Magic- NEW CRAYONS! If you mix a bunch together, they will come out rainbow-y. Janey wanted to sort them into similar colors. So we did.

Thankful

2009-11-25T21:41:00.000-08:00

I am Thankful. Thankful for this family of mine.

Thankful for my husband who is most times,

the only thing that holds me together.

Thankful for Teddy, and his goofiness.

His ability to make me laugh.

Thankful for Tucker and his sense of humor.

His laugh is one of my favorite sounds.

Thankful for Julian and her inquisitive mind.

Her enthusiasm and ideas.

Thankful for Janey and her silly ways.

Her faces and expressions crack me up.

This is all I need, this family of mine.

I'm the luckiest girl in the world.

Tag!

2009-11-24T10:06:00.001-08:00

Jennifer tagged me for a 5 things MeMe. Since I am totally procrastinating working my way through my to do list, I thought it was a great idea!!

5 Things Meme

5 Things I was Doing 10 years Ago
1. Being a mom to my first daughter. Actually her two brothers wouldn't leave her alone, and the only time I got her to myself was to feed her! And when she woke up in the middle of the night.
2. Settling in to our new house STILL. Actually, I feel like I am, even NOW, still getting stuff done that was on my initial to do list!
3. Trying to get ready for the holidays on little to no sleep.
4. Getting to know my new, improved sister
5. Going to my 10 year reunion. Right after giving birth.

5 Things On My To-Do List Today
1. Empty cat boxes. It has actually been on my list for a week. I love it so much, that I keep moving it to the bottom. NOW it is mandatory. And for those who wonder, NO, I can't get the boys to do it. They do SUCH a horrible job, I have to not only redo them, but clean the entire bathroom. I know they planned it that way, and let me tell you...it worked.
2. Make my christmas list. Preferably without having a panic attack.
3. Laundry. Wash. Dry. Fold. Put away. Repeat. All day. Every day.
4. Find an outfit for my 20 year reunion. This will require alcholic fortification, so I should put it last.
5. Take a nap. I only added this once I woke up and saw what a crappy, rainy, cold day it was.

5 Snacks I Love
1. Rice crackers and cream cheese
2. Popcorn
3. Apples and peanut butter
4. Pistachios
5. Gushers

5 Things I Would Do If I Were A Millionaire:
1. Pay off our house
2. College funds for the kiddies
3. Buy a beach house (although, I might need more than a million!)
4. Secretly mail $ to people in need. Real need.
5. Make a donation to family members. With the SIGNED stipulation they NEVER ask for money again.

5 Jobs I’ve Had
1. Kennel worker at a vet/boarding kennel. Scooped shit, cleaned cages, bathed animals (alive and dead), helped at appointments, and more. Loved it.
2. Nanny. For years, and many different kids. Got to go to cool places, and do all the fun, creative stuff that comes when you actually have energy!
3. Worked in an insurance company. Doing the most boring stuff on earth. So boring you felt like you would die. So boring I fell asleep standing up. So boring I considered selling an organ for cash. Did I mention it was boring?!?
4. Cleaned houses
5. Stay at home mom. The job is great, but the pay sucks!

So now I get to tag 5 people. Fill out your MeMe, and have Fun!! I guess I also have to tackle my to do list now......

I tag:
Deb
Anemone Pie
Sandgroper
Kristin
Falk Family

Squirrely Boy

2009-11-18T19:45:00.000-08:00

Ever since forever Teddy has loved squirrels. Love, love, loved them. He has stuffed squirrels, Tshirts, figurines..you name it.

The first time Steve and I went to New York City, I was amazed at the tameness of the squirrels in Central Park. I called Teddy to tell him I had taken a picture of Daddy petting one.

He hung up on me.

Years later Teddy and I went to the Central Park Zoo where he spent much time trying, and finally succeeding in getting a squirrel to eat from his hand. Yes. We have pictures. And video.

Over the years we have trained various squirrels to come to the kitchen window for nuts. This is yet another thing that makes Steve crazy!!

Teddy and I were on the way to my mom's the other day. A very strange animal darted across the road. I had NO idea what it was.

I didn't know WHAT it was, but whatever it was....I had just run it over .

Ick and Ugh. I save animals. And find them. And help them. I don't run them over!!! So, guilt ridden, I turned the car around. When I got back to the scene of the crime, the poor (already) tail-less squirrel was laying in the road. Twitching. I did what anyone would do under those circumstances....(drove off) scooped him up and put him in my brand new car.

By some weird act of (irresponsibility) luck, I had my camera in the car. And a sleeping bag!!

See honey, my car is NOT a mess! This stuff comes in handy.

I wrapped Squirrely up and was sad to see the labored breathing, blood, and lack of response. After we were done at my mom's I checked on him again.

(And, yes, I DID have fleeting thoughts that he might escape into my car.

BUT...he's almost dead, remember??)

Except, he's not. Dead. And he's not so stunned anymore either. In fact, he is now a plain old everyday wild animal.

In. my. car.

Much to the FURIOUSITY of my oldest son, we decided to let him go. We drove back to the scene of the crime, with Teddy bitching the WHOLE way.

I was ruining his dream. A fox would eat Squirrely. He would jump in the stream and drown. Ummm...someone needs to tell Teddy he is 17.

When it came time for the release, Teddy refused. On the grounds it was aiding and abetting the ruination of his lifelong dream to be a squirrel owner.

We released our now lucid friend back onto the side of the street he was headed towards.

We watched his tail-less little self run off happily into the woods.

Where a hawk flew down and killed him. KIDDING on the hawk!

Wordless Wednesday

2009-11-18T19:17:00.001-08:00

* Story to follow!!!*

Super Snapshot Saturday

2009-11-14T08:45:00.000-08:00

Again it is Saturday and Angel at http://www.emilymakes3.blogspot.com/ is hosting Super Snapshot Saturday. This weeks theme is FUNNY.

Sometimes it is an advantage being older.

And sometimes you get what is coming to you!

Drat.

2009-11-10T18:12:00.000-08:00

This is Slash.

Slash has had a run in with the new bully cat in the neighborhood.

Slash is usually pretty tough.

Bully Cat has also gotten to AJ. Swelling his eyes shut and biting the heck out of his face.

Bully cat has cost me about $500.

At last sighting, Julian noticed that bully cat (great....now I am singing 'Smelly Cat' from FRIENDS, but adding bully instead) had a bad cut on his leg. My vet is the best. She has agreed to vaccinate and neuter bully cat out of the goodness of her heart. Then I can release him at Steve's work where he will be a shop cat, and live off the millions of mice who love to eat grass seed. Bully cat has NO IDEA how good he has it. My vet lent us a "have-a-heart-trap". Easy peasy. Put food in it, set it, gotcha a cat. Can I just say how disappointed I am in my animal catching skills? I can find animals abandoned on roadways, in fields, and in the woods. I will stop my car to move dead cats and dogs out of the road (drives my husband CRAZY). But I can't catch a cat living in my own damn yard?? The other night, he sat out there mocking me. NEXT to the trap. I have tried dry cat food, wet cat food, tuna and ham. So far I have caught AJ...

And two of these.

Sigh.

Super Snapshot Saturday

2009-11-06T21:09:00.000-08:00

Angel at http://emilymakes3.blogspot.com/ is hosting yet another SuperSnapshotSaturday.
I forgot the last two Saturdays, but in my defense, I have only 4 brain cells left, and they do not work well with each other! This weeks theme was "YOUR CHOICE". Ahhh. This is like asking me to choose my favorite KID. A near impossibility. I have so many pictures I love for many different reasons. Some are sentimental. Some are funny. Some tell a great story. This one I chose as kind of a joke to my OHIH friends.
This is my daughter Janey's first hamster. She begged and begged for one, and after finally relenting we went to pick one out. There is a mom-and-pop pet store near us, and we have been lucky enough to get all our small critters from there. The owner handles the babies as soon as possible, and all her hamsters are so sweet. Well........ with the exception of this one. He is a nasty bully. He likes to attack unprovoked and he has quite the temper. We have had him for about three years, and his disposition has improved NOT AT ALL.

His name is PRINCE CHARMING.

Trick-Or-Treat

2009-11-01T18:23:00.000-08:00

A Beautiful Flower Fairy

A Ghoulish Dead Bride

Happy Halloween 2009

Pouring down rain.

Still.....a good night!

Lemonade and Piggies

2009-10-29T19:44:00.000-07:00

Some days are good. And some days just suck. Today was a kinda suck day. Horrible time sleeping, nightmares, and feeling like a zombie all day. Trying to be productive. Looking like a crazy person being productive, walking around talking to myself trying to stay on task! And then an accidental dropping of my brand new not-even-one-week-old Ipod, and a subsequent breaking of the touch screen. Suck. But my dear friend Dawn (who had a heart ablation TWO DAYS AGO) called with some lemonade from my lemons.

She made this for me.

There are six little baby piglets too.

And I love, love, love them.

The mama piggy has little teats ( almost said boobies) ...

.....and the little piggies attach onto her.

I shall name them Teddy, Tucker, Julian, Janey, Chloe, and Lily.

After our sweet little lifesucking babies!!!

Thank you my friend. You are the BESTEST.

Little Cooker Girl

2009-10-27T17:15:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I co-chaired the bookfair at the girls school. In the days that have followed the germ filled kids, classes from hell, EARLY mornings,and shoplifting beasts have almost managed to leave my mind. Almost. The good (and bad. And EXPENSIVE) thing about working at the bookfair each day, was that I got to look at all the books. A lot. And buy the books that I wanted. A lot. I bought two great recipe books (to add to my collection of ten million). I SWEAR I am going to try to work my way through them. I am most optimistic about the children's cookbook. It is called 'Cooking for Kids: Winning Recipes'.

Both my girls LOVE to help us cook. Both Julian and Tucker eat almost anything. Teddy is the world's pickiest eater. And, Janey?? Well, she puts Teddy to shame. So while she does enjoy cooking, she will very rarely eat what she has made.

The cookbook has an easy recipe for chocolate chip pancakes, and since this is one of the very FEW things she WILL actually eat, we gave it a try.

My Janey is NOTHING if not totally independent. (Stubborn. Like her dad).

"I can do it by myself", is not so much a declaration as it is a mission statement!

While she was at school I measured everything out so she could "make it herself", with no help.

She loves to break the eggs, and has, after many failed attemps, become quite good at it.

Add milk...

Chocolate chips....

Put them on the griddle......

Enjoy!!!

Mini Morsel Pancakes

2 1/2 cups flour

1 Tbsp. baking powder

1 cup mini chocolate chips

1/2 tsp. salt

1 3/4 cup milk

2 large eggs

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

Powdered sugar

COMBINE flour, chocolate chips, baking powder and salt in large bowl

COMBINE milk, eggs, oil, and brown sugar in medium bowl

ADD to flour mixture. STIR until moistened (batter will be lumpy)

POUR 1/4 cup batter onto griddle/skillet, flip when bubbly, and cook 1 minute more. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. ENJOY!

Sports Center

2009-10-20T14:14:00.000-07:00

From the time Teddy was a baby, he made it perfectly clear he did not need much sleep. He made it abundantly clear that he had energy, and LOTS of it. He didn't sleep through the night until he was almost 18 months old. Climbed out of the crib at 15 months, and gave up napping well before he was two. The minute his eyes opened-he was wide awake. A trait he shares with his father. A trait that, as a non-morning person, I do not find amusing. Teddy would sneak downstairs in the early hours of the morning to watch tv. What two year old does this? Well, maybe a lot of them do, but how many of them sneak down to watch ESPN'S SPORTS CENTER??

He memorized facts, stats, players and anything else related to sports.

He was the kid happy to be out in the backyard with a ball-any type of ball. Keeping a running documentary to himself, including the cheering of the crowd!

One of his greatest injuries came while playing ball by himself. Toss and catch with a football, and falling onto the broken septic tank cover. An ambulance ride to the emergency room with his knee flayed open.

A broken jaw from baseball, and a broken ankle playing football his sophomore year.

And now he is a senior in high school. Playing football this season, and, of course, keeping track of his stats!!

Never a huge football fan my boys have certainly turned me into one! My sweet, blonde haired baby boy on the field. Wow...he's kinda scary!

Super Snapshot Saturday

2009-10-16T21:17:00.000-07:00

The Theme of this weeks Super Snapshot Saturday is black and white. This is my great niece, Bella. She was a preemie, and born with a cleft palate. She is ten months old and weighs 15 lbs. She may look tiny, but she is a powerhouse!! She crawls all over the place, and pulls up on everything! She will be walking in no time. She loves to growl at you, and is very, very insistent on getting her own way. These pictures were taken at her Christening earlier this month. She looked like an old fashioned baby doll.

Survey Says....

2009-10-16T09:46:00.000-07:00

Angel at http://emilymakes3.blogspot.com/ awarded me with an Over The Top award. Wasn't that sweet?

Here are the rules:

1. Answer the survey below using only one word answers.

2. Pass this along to six of your favorite bloggers.

3. Alert them that you have given them this award.

4. Have fun!

The Survey:

1. Where is your cell phone? Ringing

2. Your hair? Dirty

3. Your mother? Survivor

4. Your father? Missed

5. Your favorite food? Fattening

6. Your dream last night? Weird

7. You favorite drink? DietPepsi

8. Your dream/goal? Mom

9. What room are you in? Dining

10. Your hobby? Scrapbooking

11. Your fear? Heights

12. Where do you want to be in six years? Home

13. Where were you last night? Bed

14. Something that you aren't? Forgiving

15. Muffins? Tops

16. Wish list item? Time

17. Where did you grow up? Maryland

18. Last thing you did? Peed

19. What are you wearing? Glasses

20. Your TV? Loud

21. Your pets? Millions

22. Your friends? Best

23. Your life? Hectic

24. Your mood? Crabby

25. Missing someone? Absolutley

26. Vehicle? Messy

27. Something you're not wearing? Headband

28. Your favorite store? Target

29. Your favorite color? Blue

30. When was the last time you laughed? Thursday

31. Last time you cried? Wednesday

32. Your best friend? Kind

33. Favorite place to eat? Out

Thank you Angel for thinking of me!

Super Snapshot Saturday

2009-10-09T21:43:00.000-07:00

Angel at http://emilymakes3.blogspot.com/ has started a Super Snapshot Saturday. Hi, my name is Erin, and I am a photo junkie. No, really. I can take sooo many pictures of ANY given activity. This week, being the first we get to pick our favorites. Next week we start themes.

This is Janey and her friend Braden at soccer. So sweet.

potty mouth

2009-10-08T20:55:00.000-07:00

Poor Lucille. She is eating stuff she has NO business eating. NONE. And because she is eating the yuck, she now has 'Potty Mouth'. Specially formualted to keep dogs from eating their own poo. Ummm. Yummy.

Groundhog Day

2009-09-23T18:51:00.000-07:00

Otherwise known as BACK TO SCHOOL 2009. Julian, Teddy, and Tucker went back on the same day. The boys of course would rather wear a dress than let me take their 'back to school' pic. It would also mean me getting up at an hour that I am not really comfortable with. Not a morning person AT ALL.

After much deliberating on our first day outfit, Julian was happy. The shoes alone took several hours. The ones she had seen earlier in the summer, and just HAD to have were no longer at the store. Of course this was MY fault because I am soooo mean and wouldn't buy them for her in JUNE. Ha. I am not even going to show them in this picture. She is standing in our driveway. The building behind her is her school. She has to be there by 8:30. As the year progresses there will be days when she wakes up at 8:15, and is STILL on time!!!

Janey started Pre-K on a gradual entry schedule. This is known as a HUGE pain in the ass! The first day I had to go with her, and boy, she was hot!! "Mom's don't go to school with kids". Only after the teacher telling her it was ok, did she relent. The next day she went for a half hour.

(Janey and her teacher)

An hour the next.

Hour and a half the day after.

Get the picture??? Gradual entry = Pain in the ass. So we had pictures from ALL these days. THEN Miss Julian gets a bee in her bonnet about getting her hair cut. Thus, nullifying the previous back to school photo.

So....groundhog day...like the movie. Only with different outfits!!

Is it time for Christmas break yet??????

So there.

2009-09-21T20:35:00.000-07:00

To all the people who told me a trampoline was a bad idea.

A death trap.

Broken arms and legs for sure.

Perhaps even a broken neck.

Do not even THINK aboout getting one.

Someone "had a friend, who knew a friend, whose friends sisters' kid got REALLY hurt" on a trampoline.
It will be the WORST decision you will ever make.

Shout out to my peeps!

Note to Self.

2009-09-18T16:33:00.001-07:00

Hide camera.

These girls

2009-08-29T20:12:00.001-07:00

They may as well be sisters not cousins! If I didn't know for ABSOLUTELY sure where they came from, I would swear they came from the same womb. Eliza and Janey will definitely grow old together and be bickery old ladies. They are perfecting the act now. They love each other, they hate each other. They are best friends, and worst enemies. They are also an ENDLESS source of amusement for my sister and I!!!

All's Fair....

2009-08-20T08:40:00.000-07:00

Took the kids to the fair last week. The State Fair always fall during back to school and football practice (prison camp), so the Howard County Fair was the first time the boys had been in ages.

It was good to see them have FUN. They went on rides, won goldfish and a lizard at the ping pong ball game ( I LOVED this game when I was little!!).

Petted (tormented) the animals. Tucker was attacked by a chicken, and Teddy was furious I wouldn't buy him a pigeon, but all in all we had a good time.

Even with the fact that it was ten thousand million degrees. All too soon it was back to the real world. Football practice, field hockey practice, grocery shopping, orthodontist, and, of course school supply shopping. On one of these outings I noticed the car smelled really bad. As the days passed it went from "really bad" to "holy crap, I am going to barf" to "I have got to get rid of this car". Finally we went to the gas station, vacuumed it out and looked everywhere for the offending stink bomb. Under seats, in the trunk, in the beach buckets (that, yes, are still in my car full of sand, and shells 3 weeks after vacation). Couldn't find the damn source anywhere. I finally gave up, put the vacuum away and put all the seats back in the right position. And that's when I saw IT. A fish from the fair. Still in the bag. Still in my car. Folded down in a seat. In the MIDDLE OF SUMMER. Holy.Shit. Imagine it. Well...it was WORSE than that. Ugh. This is what I get for trying to be a "fun" Mom. I am going back to laying on the couch all day reading a book!

The Joys of Childhood

2009-08-14T18:36:00.001-07:00

OxyMORONs

2009-08-11T19:11:00.000-07:00

As described by Websters as: a figure of speech that combines two normally contradictory terms. Kind of like relaxing vacation. Because, really...it's not. Although, like childbirth, the sheer work of it all will fade with time, and the reality will begin to resemble the snapshots. Smooth sailing from the get-go. No traffic.

No "Why aren't we there yet?" No peeing on the side of the road.

The beach will come with no sunburn.

No having to POOP.

No sand in the butt or starvation.

The fishing trips will NOT be scratch and sniff.

No one will be screaming "WHY can't we just go home?!?"

You will never have to jump in the water with your kids to pull the boat off of a sandbar.

The view from the townhouse was spectacular on all three decks.

Never mind the summer kids across the water doing bong hits and drinking 24/7.

(Ha ha, kids...I DARE YOU to EVER ask me to let you live at the beach for the summer. I. DARE. YOU.)

The boardwalk was nostalgic of years past.

No one whined, asked to buy stupid crap, or FLIPPED out because we couldn't watch BEE MOVIE at midnight.

On Assateague we saw the most beautiful horses, and moonrise.

The scars from the 8000 million mosquito bites will fade. Malaria may take a little longer, but it too shall pass.

The smell of the whale carcass in AUGUST in a HEATWAVE won't be nearly as putrid as we remember. Actually, that is crap. NOTHING will EVER smell that bad. Ever. EVER.

I think this is why photos are so important to me. Because all you need is a little time for the annoying stuff to sift through like sand, and you'll end up with the good stuff.

Except the whale smell.

My Own Worst Enemy

2009-07-23T19:38:00.000-07:00

Recently on a Target field trip, Julian stopped to admire a quilt she saw. Of course this was followed by the inevitable "Can we paint our room?" I really don't know why she asked, but she must really enjoy the whole "I sponge painted this room by hand when I was 38 weeks pregnant with you and your father was at his Fantasy Football Draft" guilt trip.
This time, however, she caught me at a moment of weakness. Or perhaps I was having a small stroke. Either way, I said yes. And thus it began.....

Even though she had seen the quilt she loved at Target, we HAD to check all of the other stores near us on the off chance the even more perfect bedding was there. THEN we had to coordinate Janey's bedding without getting the SAME as Julian's. Because THAT would totally make the whole room suck.

They picked their bedding choices, and wouldn't you know it, they were the FIRST two we had seen. Lesson learned there. No options next time! They both decided on a teal color with no argument. I think they sensed the impending explosion of their mother's head. Julian and Janey then proceeded to stand under my paint ladder and berate me for not allowing them to paint. Janey did take a break from that to sing me some songs she made up. Over and over and over.

In the hopes of NEVER HAVING TO SHOP AGAIN I made some wall art with frames we had, scrapbook paper, and Ikea (yes....I had to have SOME fun doing this!) postcards.

and sewed the curtains, since matching was an issue. I conned Tucker into taking Janey to PetCo so Julian and I could QUICKLY pick out fabric. Now Janey is pissed she can't have a new kitten, but, oh well.

I know, I know...can't stand my craftiness. Steve came home to find dinner cooking, the ironing board out, and the sewing machine going full tilt. Just call me Martha. Well, Martha-that-a-bomb-dropped-on-the-rest-of-her-house actually. Their room may look good, but its gonna take me a while to deal with all the collateral damage.

We shuffled and donated a lot of stuff (junk). The girlies each now have a desk area from where they can send each other to detention while playing school. (TRUST ME...this is a school you never want to attend!!)

And though my knee is swollen beyond belief from my many trips up and down ladders and steps, it is well worth to see the happy faces. They must REALLY like it since they have been making their beds each day!

Sweet Dreams!

Visitor of all kinds

2009-07-17T19:08:00.000-07:00

We had my great niece, Bella over for a sleepover this week. The kids all fight over her, and Bella, being a true princess, eats it up. It is, however, a BIG adjustment having a 7 month old baby here rather than an 18 month old. The biggest difference by far is SLEEP!! If Kaylee wakes in the night, all I have to do is say, "Shhh, Go night-night" and she is out! Bella slept really well. From 11 pm - 3 am. Then 3 am- 4 am. Then 4 am - 5 am. You get the picture! By the morning my sad, lazy, sleeping late summer self was done! I managed to make it through the morning with about 700 caffeinated beverages, and half a bottle of Advil. After making Breakfast:Part Two ( Part One woefully unappreciated by the beasties) I realized the clamoring in my head was indeed not imagined, but coming from outside. Outside where my dogs were going bat-shit ballistic. After corralling Lucille, and dragging Algae's cone head inside, I saw just what was going on.....

You. Have. Got. To. Be. Kidding.

WHAT am I supposed to do with THIS???? Of course the girls were all excited for a new pet. A pet with huge teeth and perhaps RABIES.

How the hell did he get here???? HOW is he gonna get OUT???? I opened the door then poked him with a stick through the window, but all he did was arch his back, and move side to side enjoying the back rub. Come to think of it, I would probably enjoy having my back scratched too. Even with a stick. Still left us with one big, unwanted, uninvited groundhog. But, as I have found with most of our guests lately, leave them to their own devices, and they will eventually go away!!!!!

Adios!!

Recharged

2009-07-09T19:36:00.000-07:00

This time last month I was in the middle of a nervous breakdown. We had had wave after wave of unexpected things come our way. Usually able to handle things with humor (and grace, I would like to think!) after a while wave after wave and you are knocked down, and dragged out. Thanks to my guardian angel, who can always understand me even through my snotty blubbering, the girls and I were able to escape to the beach for the week. I did feel bad abandoning Steve and the boys in the mayhem, but they well understood. We had a glorious time just hanging out on the beach.

Eating enough junk food to rot our teeth.

Enjoying the peace and quiet.

Exploring Assateague, one of my favorite spots ever.

We saw horses and other wildlife...

Visited Janey's favorite place ever: Hop Frog Pond.

We even stumbled across the carcass of a beached baby (32 feet of baby!!) humpback whale carcass.

We climbed trees, and enjoyed ourselves immensely in ALL we did.

I came back recharged and IN charge. Thanks a million friend. I can NEVER repay you!!! xoxo

PS- This is the ONLY picture of me during our whole escape!! Look closely......

Cherry Pickin' Finger Lickin' Fun

2009-06-30T19:24:00.000-07:00

Working on being a little spontaneous these days. Turning away from the Type A/OCD pitfalls. Leaving the laundry unfolded. Dishes in the sink. Ack...beds unmade!! Not always..... but trying. My sister called and said she was taking the kids cherry picking. We turned the car around and went along. Even with NO CAMERA!!! It was a fun day, and there were loads of cherries. The kids all got along....a minor miracle between cousins! They climbed the ladders all the way to the tops of the trees with nary a "GET DOWN FROM THERE!" to be heard.

They ate themselves sick, and, with the first cherry thrown by Auntie, had an all out cherry war! We practiced our cherry pit spitting skills too! Cheese popcorn and ice cream for lunch.

Then home to pit a peck of cherries.

And wash the homeless children! No pics of Julian.....ten pounds of cherries caught up with her!!

Lucille ate her fair share too! There's something to be said for spontaneity!

Not so helpful....

2009-06-25T19:51:00.000-07:00

..... alternately titled "I'd rather roll over and die than weed the garden" or "HELP! I've fallen and I can't get up!!"

Either way...Slash is NOT a good gardening helper!

Just say 'NO'

2009-06-24T17:14:00.000-07:00

This is Teddy's Jaw.....

.....this is Teddy's jaw on crack; ummm, I mean CRACKED.

It's hard to see, but the long bone on the left is nice and straight...
From the chin straight up to around his ear.

The other pesky bone starts off nice and straight, but makes a hard left turn right by his ear. THIS is NOT optimal bone structure. This is a jaw fracture. This is 2 days, 1 doctor, 1 specialist, Xrays, CT scans and pins and needles in my ass, worth of broken jaw.
And here is my next expenditure.....a buncha' wisdom teeth. Where's the wisdom when you NEED it??? If it had been in place, Teddy would have MOVED OUT OF THE WAY of the curveball!!!

Brain Damage

2009-06-13T19:42:00.000-07:00

This is my boy's newest hobby. I think it is called "I-am-so-stupid-you-wouldn't-even- believe-it".

Because they are not stupid ENOUGH...they are going to spend the day beating the crap out of each other.

And because they are wearing head gear and gloves, it somehow does NOT count as beating the crap out of each other.

Nor does blood, or the shrewish voice of their mother threatening to ground them forever.

Really...there are no words. They are just stupid. And stupid is as stupid does.

And speaking of stupid (AND newest hobby) THIS is what happens when you are a STUPID DOG. A stupid dog who tries to take on a car.

Because, really, for the next AT LEAST SIX and maybe TEN weeks I would most definitely, certainly LOVE to nothing but babysit this crazy ass dog, as WELL AS clean these pins off each day.

BUT I do have the privilege of tripping over him 24 hours a day, as well as being constantly speared in the back of the leg by the big cone-head. Something is definitely in the water. And that something is called stupid. And as you know, there is NO cure for stupid. Valium, please.

A little magic

2009-05-23T21:23:00.000-07:00

Last weekend the girlies and I went to the Maryland Faerie Festival. Our fabulous friend Dawn was spinning her magic yarn in a booth.

You can see her goodies at www.knitting-gnome.com. I am not a knitter, but I AM a shameless "Ooooo...can you make me somethin' out of this"-er. And yes, that is a word. Dawn was there with her baby sis who makes glorious felted things that make me grit my teeth with wanting. You can find her at www.tinymatryoshka.wordpress.com. I have a little mouse and an acorn tea set she made that I guard with my life. Away, dirty children!!

The festival was filled with all sorts of magical coolness....

....and fun stuff to do.

It was compact enough that the "big" girls could run free. Gearing up for the day when they will cruise the Ocean City boardwalk with nary a parent in sight. We only caught sight of them when they returned for fueling.

The "little" girls and I (and the only reason I am even daring to call them little is the slim-to-none chance they will read this. Otherwise I would NOT DARE!!) took a trip to the faerie woods to make wishes.

They both wrote their wishes on a magic wishing strip.

My lefty

And Dawn's righty.

I have made a faerie promise not to tell the wishes, but I kinda had to know them, as spelling is an issue. After they made their wishes, they each found a faerie tree to hang them on. Taking some of the fun out of it was the shrewish mom/neighbor pointing them to trees ON the path, and NOT anywhere near the acres of poison ivy. A magic wish ruiner for sure.

THANKFULLY their wishes were MUCH more innocent this this one I found. AND thankfully the big girls never made it down here to make their wishes!!

But there really is some magic to be found. Even when you think you have seen it all.

And, in case you were wondering, at the first sign of Miss know-it-all-almost-ten-year old's explanation of why this couldn't POSSIBLY be real, she was silenced with the threat of tongue removal. I have waited my whole life to see a unicorn. She won't be a magic ruin-er!! Unless, of course, it involves poison ivy.

Butterflies

2009-05-17T19:02:00.000-07:00

Caterpillar in the tree, how you wonder who you'll be.

Can't go far, but you can always dream.

Wish you may, and wish you might

Don't you worry. Hold on tight.

I promise you there will come a day.

Butterfly, fly away

In my next life....

2009-05-15T20:38:00.000-07:00

.....I want to be a dog.

Yea!

2009-05-12T06:19:00.000-07:00

I religiously follow several blogs. My husband makes fun of me because he can always find me in on the computer checking out other peoples lives. Really, you would think with 5 kids living in my house I would not have time or desire to do anything except hang on by the skin of my teeth! I am also amazed at the huge following some of the blogs have. Millions of hits. Millions. Blogs about moms, families, kids and their day to day life. The REAL day to day life. Like how to splash water on your head to make it seem like you have taken a shower when in reality you have been on the computer! Anyway...I entered a photo caption contest at mycharmingkids.com (I am lame...I SHOULD know how to link things, but alas.....) and I WON!!! It really doesn't matter what I won (although it is good!) it could be an old shoelace for all I care. Well, really, a good prize is better if I am honest. What does thrill me is that my vote was chosen out of over a thousand entries. BUT what thrills me MORE is the eternal hope that my brain cells seem to still be functioning enough to come up with a clever caption winner! I really though those poor sad, Mommy brain cells had left the building!

Calgon take me away!

2009-04-29T19:40:00.000-07:00

Conversation between Janey and my niece Brianna after Janey's repeated pawing of Bri:

B- "Janey, get off my boobs"

J- "But I like them"

B- "Well they are mine. Someday you wil have your own."

J- "And then I can touch then as much as I want?"

Every now and then....

2009-04-17T20:05:00.000-07:00

...the planets align. Venus is in retrograde. The god's smile down on us. And luck is on your side. And even LESS frequently all four of your birth children are dressed nicely, and no one looks like they have been afflicted with a bad case of rabies.

And never, ever, EVER does this happen without a great deal of planning, begging, and threatening!

Who???

2009-04-07T07:30:00.000-07:00

Who you calling 'Cindy Lou Who'???

Poor Auntie

2009-04-03T06:50:00.000-07:00

The other night we were all watching a great movie/documentary on life in the Arctic circle. Animal documentaries are always hard for me to watch because, like it or not.....someone always bites the dust. And in the nature of documentary torture, it is usually the one that they have made you cheer for. This was about Polar bears, Walruses (not Walr-i, dear husband!) and Arctic foxes. Should have just turned it off at the first sight of baby polar bears! Anyway, the movie (narrated by Queen Latifah, one of my favs!) followed a family of polar bears, and a family of walruses. The baby walrus, Selah, was cared for by her mama and her Auntie. Wait just a minute.....WHY does the big, fat, blubery walrus have to be named Auntie??? That is MY name, and has been since January six years ago when my nephew came screaming into the world. Granted, Auntie (the walrus) is also a kind, generous loving soul, but she is kinda....big. And has a beard. Couldn't they have named her Mary Poppins or something?? So good, kind Auntie takes care of Selah, who is a bad, bad baby walrus. Selah just doesn't want to listen. Auntie does everything to keep her safe, including swimming over 200 miles barefoot through the snow and ice to give her a better life! Kidding on the barefoot, but not the snow and ice....duh. It is the Arctic, remember? Hardheaded Selah just won't quit. She climbs the cliff in search of who knows what even though a.) she refuses to listen to Queen Latifah say, "Walruses are NOT meant to climb", and b.) she is OBLIVIOUS to the scary Jaws music playing in the background. Dumb, dumb move Selah.....because guess who is at the top of the cliff she never should have climbed??? Did you say POLAR BEAR? AHHHH...the suspense is killing me! She does manage to escape and warn the others, but not before the bear sees exactly what he will be having for lunch. Mr. Bear still manages to find Selah later in the movie and proceeds to try and lure her onto a hamburger roll. And WOULDN'T YOU KNOW IT...Auntie saves the day, and sacrifices her own life to save Selah. Nice, huh? Ruined my whole night. Poor sad, blubbery, bearded Auntie.

Talent Galore

2009-03-28T09:52:00.000-07:00

Julian recently took her jewelry 'business' to a new level and displayed her work at the schools talent show.

The real talent portion of the evening was transporting the display in the rain into school with two hyped up, not-listening kids without dropping anything or having my head blow up from frustration!!!

Or arranging the board to certain (high maintenance) people's liking. Certain people who feel free to share their opinions, yet do not want to actually DO the work! Julian was also quite peeved that she would not be able to take this opportunity to SELL her stuff....she DID however make it perfectly clear to anyone who asked that they could take her business card and contact her at any time to purchase! A business woman in the making.

Last year she snuck her stash out to school, sold a bunch, and came home with 50 bucks in profit!

Things you would prefer your children NOT to do...

2009-03-17T19:38:00.001-07:00

Like cut their cousin's hair.

Even if it was because "it WAS in her eyes."

Good thing Kaylee is so cute in a hat!

Good thing Janey has no more access to the scissors. AGAIN.

Paybacks are hell

2009-03-16T12:58:00.000-07:00

The other day while I was cleaning up I found some LOVELY poems by Teddy from his younger days. One for Julian.
One for Tucker.
Later that night I parted with money well spent to get his coveted golden tresses cut short for baseball.

Tucker and Julian are avenged.

In like a lion......

2009-03-03T07:11:00.001-08:00

Out like a lamb???????

Sick of Sick

2009-02-23T20:15:00.000-08:00

Please stop taking my picture when I feel like crap!!!!

PLEASE.

Ugh. Keep your stock in Lysol, Mucinex, Cough Drops, Motrin and Kleenex.....I am single handedly fixing that economic crisis. Teddy has not been sick in YEARS. In that time he has not learned how to be a good patient. Not even a little bit.

Sorry Phil.

2009-02-19T15:28:00.000-08:00

It is chilly and windy again here. Yesterday we got snow. Big huge honking flakes that would actually blind you. And enough slush to have to shovel. I love snow, and am always up for piles of it. As I was out and about, I found people quite surprised by the snow. I found myself thinking, Well...the groundhog did predict 6 more weeks of winter." DOES ANYONE REALIZE HOW RIDICULOUS THAT IS?????? Forget about El Nino and global warming. Instead we are going to rely on whether or not a big, furry, rodent sees his shadow. All of my birds are going through tons of food. There are a million of them outside at the feeders.
All of my cats are mad they they can't make the birds FOOD.

Here Birdy, birdy, birdy....
And through it all there are definite signs of Mother Nature trying to get to warmer days.

AND they have nothing to do with Phil.

Happy Times-Away!

2009-02-15T19:37:00.000-08:00

When Teddy was little this is what he used to say instead of Happy Valentine's Day. Steve and I still say it, perhaps to remember those sweeter little kids who actually seemed to like us.

For Valentine's Day dessert the girls and I made delicious chocolate covered strawberries,

and chocolate covered pretzels.

Upon seeing the finished product Janey said, "These look so good I just have to say God is Grace."

Happy Times-Away. Four great kids. Chocolate covered stuff.

Amen.

Alive and kicking....

2009-02-06T06:21:00.000-08:00

...but tired!! A month between posts. Falling down on the job, obviously!! In my defense it has been crazy. My sister in law, Colleen died three weeks ago. After that we have been blessed with a new roommate, my great niece, Kaylee.

And re-navigating the world of chokeables, stair climbing, naps, non-existent showers, and sticky high chairs. As well as witnessing the fact that your four year old really has NOT quite grasped the concept of sharing. BUT she HAS grasped passive aggressive behavior quite well. She WILL share with that baby, but she puts things up WAY high so that unless Kaylee transforms into Super Stretch, she will NEVER reach things!! I am hoping that Kaylee's great appetite will inspire Janey to move away from plain noodles with butter and salt, but, alas, no such luck!

Strange things found in the bathroom at CHURCH

2009-01-08T15:41:00.000-08:00

The Early Bird

2008-12-31T12:55:00.000-08:00

I have heard through the grapevine that if you are planning a trip to Disney it is VERY IMPORTANT to book your Princess Breakfast well in advance. Luckily..this is one smart bird!

Hop on the Crazy Train

2008-12-30T07:25:00.000-08:00

Before Christmas Janey's pre-school class took a field trip to a local train garden. This is the first year the fire hall has offered it, and it was a pleasant surprise. It sure beats driving 35 minutes to the packed-like-sardines train garden we usually visit. It was so nice that I took both girls back to visit. Julian loved it also. They had a scavenger hunt set up for the kids, and that REALLY made you pay attention to the details. Some of which were very, very STRANGE!!
Like the alien abduction of this poor cow...

The peeing fire dog....

Cooking up some witches brew deep in the forrest.....

Removing the car crash victim. Complete with broken glass...

The mean Harley Truck guy who ran the Harley motorcycle guy right the heck off the road...

This could end badly......
I know it IS a fire house, but this is kind of scary.....Although the working water is cool.

Just when you think you can do your business in privacy......(look in the outhouse!)

Another fire on the other side of town. WITH smoke inhalation victims.......

Don't forget your haz-mat suit, boys and girls.....

These kids will NEVER go to a drive in movie, as this was the fate of a movie goer in the train garden...... (Look closely in Godzilla's mouth.....Yummy)

This one, however, is my favorite by far. Nothing will make you remember your beautiful wedding day more than the back hoe and the shirtless worker digging a GRAVE right beside you. I now pronounce you man and wife. Ashes to ashes...dust to dust.

Eye wish you a Merry Christmas

2008-12-19T08:44:00.000-08:00

Here are some glimpses into the Christmas fun and excitement that is in our house. Gingerbread house is done. Trees are up. One in the dining room,

And one in the family room.

Stockings hung.

Fudge is made..cookies soon to come. Card are mailed, and gifts are (getting) wrapped. Christmas dresses and pjs are all ready to be worn.Isn't it FESTIVE???

What you CAN'T see is the sulking children who didn't get the tree (bush)

they wanted. Or the gingerbread house that is now half eaten. Or the PILE of ornaments that are on the floor because the damn cat won't stay out of the tree. Or the pounds of mud that are EVERYWHERE since the ground refuses to stay frozen, and dogs refuse to not LIE DOWN in it. Perhaps you would like to see the Christmas lists. Most of them have refused to make one, and the others would require a government bailout plan (for the parents!!). As of the other day ALL Janey wants is Bendaroos, and parents. Nice. Had to look up Bendaroos, and low and behold...they are a SPECIAL TV OFFER. And they cost $19.99. But WAIT. If you order in the next 30 minutes you will get the bonus set of fluorescent Bendaroos as well. In case you have a burning desire to know...Bendaroos are strings. Covered in wax. That would eventually end up in the dog's poop. Think Janey might get her first taste of Christmas disappointment. In preparing for the arrival of Santa, Janey has taken to wrapping up things she already has, having me tie them with a bow, put them under the tree, and then she unwraps them. "Oh.....paint!! I always wanted this! Thank you!" Pretty easy to please if she is happy getting things she has had for months. Maybe she won't be disappointed after all! Or maybe she will. Who knows?

And poor baby Jesus. Each day I find him in a new state of being tormented. Once I removed him from the ledge on the lamp right under the light bulb where he was getting pretty hot. As I walked by one night I saw all three wise men piled on top of him. I believe it was said, "Come let us ADORE him" not smother him. Just a few minutes ago I removed the donkey from standing on him in his manger. Poor baby Jesus. I am a little concerned over my constant worry over the plastic figure, but as most of you know, I am well on my way to the loony bin!

In this hectic holiday time, I have also managed to find some "me" time. Why just last night Dawn and I spent a wonderful evening together. In the Emergency Room. Guess you gotta take what you can get, huh? My visit was quick, and proof that I don't get out much, this was kind of a bummer. In keeping with the festive colors of the season, I decided to burst a blood vessel, and make a beautiful round blood blister in my eye. Going to get me some green eyeshadow and Christmas here we come! It has unexpectedly given me some free time, as I have already been asked by 2 children not to show my face in public until I stop looking like I have rabies. Such ingrates. This picture does not do it justice....so they may have a point.

And to make the season merry and bright the other day I got a call from our hair salon. I WON A PRIZE!!! And boy, what a prize. Party's at my house!!!

When crazy isn't crazy ENOUGH

2008-12-14T08:44:00.000-08:00

You should add a PUPPY to the mix! And do it right before Christmas if you really want to maximize the insanity. So, yes.....we have a new puppy. A crazy, long legged border collie. In all fairness, we did NEED this dog. Our 2 working border collies, Moss and fern, are essential in keeping the geese off the golf course. Over the past several months, Moss has, for all intents and purposes, retired. This means he sits in the golf cart or the office all day with Steve rather than running the course. Fern, girly girl that she is, has taken advantage of this and has become quite...plump without Moss pushing her. Actually she isn't plump. She's just plain fat. If she stood still we could use her as the coffee table!
So we called our border collie connection, and she had the perfect pup for us. Bossy, motivated, and already a great herder. As can be attested by the nips on Janey's butt!
And with kids, dogs, cats and chaos...what more is a little crazy really?!? So, Welcome to our new pup, Algae. Yes, Algae. Moss, Fern, Algae. Aren't we clever? It beats the other suggestions of fungus and athletes foot!!!

Feeling pretty good about feeling pretty bad

2008-12-02T10:49:00.000-08:00

Ok. Here is a newly discovered confession: I am a bad blood donor. Teddy and I were honored to be part of Jeremy's Birthday Blood Drive, and I have given as many times as I can since the first drive, so this is old hat. Ahhh...pride SO cometh before the fall!!!! All was well, and I assured my great nurse, Jennifer I wouldn't need her for anything, except perhaps a heated blanket since it was about 45 degrees in the gym!!! I started confidently filling my bag o' blood when 20 seconds later I am totally flushed, nauseous, and seeing pinpricks. It is all sounding very foggy, and the room is closing in. Simultaneous thoughts : Can you faint if you are already sitting down? Oh my, I think I have to barf. Please don't let me PULL OUT MY I.V!!!! And please, whatever happens...do NOT let anyone SEE me!!!!! Luckily right then Angel Nurse asks me how I am. I mumbled something like "I am really not feelin' so great" and BAM she flipped a switch on the chair, and up went my legs. 2 second later she was wrapping a cold cloth around my neck and telling me to cough because my line had clotted. Uh....trying not to barf. Don't really want to COUGH. (And,btw, the cold cloth came from in a bucket full of ice water and cloths, leading me to believe that I am not the only ninny out there!!)

A few hours later I saw a lady scurrying to one of the donors with a coke, and thought, "HA. I am not the only one!" But it was Teddy, and that is kind of just as bad!! He felt fine later, which is good, because there was NO WAY I could drag my lightheaded self, a four year old, a huge bag of baked goods, and a 200 lb. kid to the car!! I am so proud of him for doing this, especially knowing he is not a fan of blood or needles. He has known Amy for over 10 years (I can't believe that!!) and we babysat her son ( and the kids buddy) for two years. I didn't even have to ask twice. I didn't even have to beg, or threaten, or bribe. And anyone who knows teenagers, knows THAT is quite a feat. He was wholeheartedly willing to give blood in Jeremy's honor again.

Speaking of baked good...I think I have diabetes just from looking at all the donated items to the bake sale!! Our purchases alone were enough to put the kids into sugar shock. A day later, not much of this is left.

The girls wanted to be a part of this too, so we made Rice Krispie treats to sell.

The Morse's are using the money raised to make additions to the Johns Hopkins PICU, and the Children's House, such as CD players, digital cameras, toiletries, and other necessities. In this tough economic time I have realized that I would rather my dollar go for good. For all those who have everything this holiday season, why not consider giving to a charity that honors them instead? How may sweaters do people really need anyway??

In all seriousness it was a little sad going back to the church for this blood drive. It was not only the site of the first one we organized, but this would be the first time I have seen Amy since the funeral (we are both masters of phone tag). In the end it was all good. I walked in and saw nothing more than my friend. A friend who would do everything in her power to support me in rough times. A friend surrounded by so many people who love and care about her and her family. And when you think about it the blood donated will truly give people life. A second chance after an accident. A life saving transfusion. Platelets to ward off killing diseases. I would much rather have NOT spent the day here. I would much rather have the Morse's home recovering from Jeremy's first birthday party. But I do believe we did him proud.

Godspeed, little man. Sweet Dreams.

Giving Thanks

2008-11-27T19:32:00.000-08:00

Dear Children,
It is late on Thanksgiving, and I just realized that I didn't tell you today how thankful I am for all of you. Thankful even for the masses of dirty laundry, endless meals, and the constant clean up. Thankful even when I am so mad at you I can't see straight. Thankful even when you don't appreciate me and hurt my feelings. Thankful even when you make mistakes and disappoint me. Thankful for your chatter when all I want is some peace and quiet. Because even though I may want some peace and quite, I need you. Even with the experience of loss, it is easy to take for granted all of the things in our lives. It can all change in an instant, and every mundane thing that came before will seem like an amazing miracle of a gift. So, I am truly thankful for you all. Each and every day.
Love, Mom

To anyone who reads this blog, please keep my friend Amy, her husband Scott, and their children Trevor, Meredith, and Nolan in your thoughts and prayers this holiday season. Five and a half months ago their baby Jeremy died after a brave fight. This Thanksgiving will be followed three days later by Jeremy's first birthday. I don't presume to know what they are going through, and I wish there was more I could do to ease their pain. On Monday, Teddy and I will be donating blood at a blood drive in Jeremy's honor. Holding my arm out and donating a unit of blood is all I can do to make any difference, but it will make a difference to someone in need. And Jeremy made a difference in my life, reminding me every day to never, ever, ever take anything for granted.

Leap Of Faith

2008-11-12T15:17:00.000-08:00

Sometimes life is really tough. Decisions to be made. Paths to be chosen. No one knows what is in store. You just have to have faith, and hope things turn out for the best. And when you find yourself on the edge of doing something new, no matter how terrifying, you just have to TAKE A DEEP BREATH.....

GATHER YOUR STRENGTH AND JUMP!!!

It may be scary, but you will never know TILL YOU TRY!!!!

And then there are the times when you think, "Holy crap. I need a Valium."

Guess I will just have to take that leap of Faith!!!

Wordless Wednesday.....Have a NUTTY day!

2008-11-05T18:19:00.000-08:00

Tricks and Treats (and lots of sweets)

2008-11-02T10:57:00.000-08:00

As usual, the act of trick-or-treating takes far less time than figuring out what to DRESS UP as!! This is an art, I do realize, so I should not rush it. This is precisely why we start talking about Halloween costumes a year in advance!!! This year after perusing several (million) stores, Julian FINALLY settled on being a vampire. Thank goodness for our dress up bin! All we needed was a cape! Janey is still a Princess girl to the core, and after being Aurora last year, she decided on Belle for this year. A special Halloween thanks goes out to her teacher for setting the rule 'NO high heels for Trick-or-Treating'!

Teddy had a football game Halloween afternoon (WHO is responsible for such horror?!?) . Not only a football game, but one that would put Franklin in the playoffs if they won. A hefty dose of Mom guilt for not being at this game!! This was actually the only time I saw him until after the Halloween fun was over. I STILL do not know if he dressed up or not. Let's just say he was a football player this year!

In spite of the frigid temps and arctic wind the week before, Halloween was warm. We enjoyed some football, and multi-tasked by getting Julian dressed and hair- sprayed at the game!! We got some crazy looks, but not as many as the people who brought their cat to football on a leash!! After Julian was made up to be a great vampire, Janey decide SHE too wanted vampire makeup and blood too! Very nice for Princess Belle! We bribed her with blush, eyeshadow, and lipstick and after she was...well.... colorful!

We met up with some dead folks and beasts and headed off for some treats. Tucker actually asked me "How come Chloe didn't get to go Trick-or-Treating with Lily and you guys ?" Uh, hillbilly boy, WHO do you think the dead gal in purple is?????

Along the way we met some crazy hillbillies! (Otherwise known as Tucker and Zach).A good day indeed! And enough candy to cause severe sugar shock.Slash is just mad he didn't get to go to the football game OR dress up!!!

Upside Down, Inside OUT

2008-10-26T18:29:00.000-07:00

After a Saturday of nothin' but rain, rain, and more rain, Sunday dawned beautiful and sunny. The 'boys' spent the glorious day at their playground (Ravens Stadium!) soaking up rays, and watching some football. The girls and I ventured into the backyard for some fun. Jumping like crazy....

...swinging like monkeys....

Sisterly love. Let me give you a little PUSH!!!

And what better way to eat yogurt than swinging through mid air. This definitely could be the talent portion of the show!!!!

Lucille kept watch for squirrels and strange air craft.

No luck on the squirrels, BUT.....

Strange air craft and Bob cats were found.
While cleaning up leaves we also found a new friend.
We let him go into a our beautiful still blooming garden...
Thanks to our new fire pit, we enjoyed a nice fire. Funny how this makes picking up all the sticks in the yard go a LOT quicker!!

We sat around and told scary stories. Like times before cable. And tv remote controls with WIRES! No cordless phones, and mean Mom's who made their kids wear 'dickies' to school under our scratchy sweaters. (Do you remember these things??) A great fall day!!