Wooly Thinking

I Thought Ridges Were Better?

2010-03-19T22:37:00.003-04:00

Well, we went to Grand Rapids again today. This time the Kidlet needed an upper GI. For those of you who want to know, her digestive system appears to be 95% normal. There is one part of the intestine (where the small intestine goes into the large, I think) where the surface is ridged instead of smooth. What does this mean, you ask? I have absolutely no clue. So now we are waiting to hear from the doctor's office. Her blood work came back earlier this week with not a single thing wrong, by the way. Once again we wait....

While we were in Grand Rapids we went to the Frederik Meijer Sculpture Gardens, as planned. The Kidlet said it was the most awesome place she had ever gone to! Even MP3 announced, "Fun!" as I put him in the car to go home (he was asleep 2 minutes later....I think hiking all over the gardens wore him out!). We saw all sorts of sculptures, including that gigantic horse she's been talking about so much!

The Kidlet and The American Horse

The Kidlet didn't want to leave!

Even MP3 found a sculpture to love. He called

this one, "Rock!" and proceded to pet it.

(The Grand Rapid's Arch)

After a while, MP3 became a wee bit tired and Daddy put him on his shoulders.

It didn't take long for the little guy to find a comfortable position....

The highlight of the trip was the Butterflies are Blooming exhibit! It was amazing! The Kidlet even had a butterfly land on her shirt! She had a grand time looking through the brochure we were handed, trying to figure out the species of each butterfly. The plants were wonderful too! Such interesting trees and flowers and vines: it was quite the experience.

We are going to have to go back someday. We didn't see even half of the gardens and we completely skipped the indoor sculptures. We were only there for an hour and a half, when you really need to spend a day there. I think that the Children's Garden would have been much more interesting in summer, or at least late spring, when there's actually some live plants to see. Oh, and the Kidlet really enjoyed the Carnivorous Plant House, too! All in all, it was a really good day!

Here is my favorite picture of the day.....

Wait a minute. I was wrong!

THIS is my favorite picture of the day...

Almost Two!

2010-03-11T14:56:00.000-05:00

Well, MP3 is almost two and yesterday we hit another developmental milestone! Hoo boy, what an important one it is, too....

Yesterday afternoon, MP3, for the very first time, had a TEMPER TANTRUM! Yep, I'm such an awful mom that I didn't put his drink in the cup that he wanted (mainly because I didn't want him spilling all over the living room) so he screamed, and stomped, and sprawled out on the floor while rolling back and forth and crying and crying and crying. The Kidlet left the room, the screaching hurt her ears so much. After a few minutes of being ignored he eventually stopped. When I handed him his sippy cup (which started the whole thing in the first place) he happily drained it and then watched some Spongebob (or as he calls it: BobBob BobPants).

Let the joy begin!

Tummy Time!

2010-03-05T22:30:00.006-05:00

After much waiting we finally got an appointment for the Kidlet to see a pediatric gastroenterologist. So we made the drive to Grand Rapids the other day since Traverse City, with it's "Top 100" hospital, does not have any pediatric specialists. Does that make any sense?

Anyway, we went down early enough so that we could have lunch at - brace yourself - Chucky Cheese. Now it just so happens that I have a very good friend who lives in Grand Rapids (she moved there when we were in our teens) and she was able to meet us there with her 2 cute kids! Everyone had a ton of fun and it was great seeing my friend for the first time is over 10 years.

At the doctor's, the poor Kidlet had 2 vials of blood drawn, during which she did very good. While waiting she jumped up and started for the door only a couple of times, and she held very still during the actual draw. They are testing her for celiac disease among other things, not that her symptoms seem (to me, at least) to have anything to do with celiac, and we have to go back in a few weeks for an upper GI to rule out malrotation. We have to be in the hospital by 8:45AM. Blech! He seemed quite adamant that we do the procedure down there and not here at Munson (maybe he has a good reason, maybe he doesn't...but I don't feel like pissing off the new doc), so another road trip is in our future.

The day before we went downstate, the Kidlet was telling me all about this horse sculpture by DaVinci that she learned about in art class (they're studying him in art this year) and how there's a copy of it in Grand Rapids. When I told her that we were going to GR the next day she got so excited and wanted to know if we might drive by it. So, for our next trip we are planning on going to the Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park (shhhhhhh! we haven't told her yet) to see the horse and - wait for it - the butterflies! We were thinking about the zoo, but mid-March seems a bit too cold for a Michigan zoo, so perhaps we'll go another time. Hopefully we'll have friends (even more friends) join us again!

MP3's favorite ride!

The Kidlet's favorite ride!

MP3 made a new friend!

My friend and her kids

Sharing the experience

The Kidlet recently bought (with her Christmas money from Bumpa) a DSi. Her brother thinks that it (or any game for that matter) is awesome and loves to watch his sister play!

Isn't this the cutest picture EVER?

2010-01-26T14:22:00.003-05:00

MP3 LOVES to play with bowls. He really loves to take them out of cupboards one by one and two by two and deliver them to some lucky person. At Jeana's (and my) Birthday Party he decided that that lucky person would be....drum roll please....BUMPA!! My Grandpa was delighted! Check it out!

Big and Bumpy

2010-01-24T23:43:00.002-05:00

The kidlet is currently learning about the human body in school and they just recently finished learning about the brain. The other day, while sitting at the dining room table eating breakfast, she says, completely out of the blue, "I bet my brother's brain is bumpy!" I told that yes, brains were bumpy, to which she replied, "We learned that when babies are born their brains are smooth and when they're 2 they start to get bumpy and all squiggly-looking like adult brains...but my brother is so super intelligent that I bet his brain is already bumpy!"

Is she the most awesome big sister ever, or what?

Chewin' the cud

2010-01-10T15:09:00.006-05:00

So. Here's a conversation the Kidlet and I had about a month ago:

Kidlet: Ugh. I keep burping up dinner.
Me: I'm sorry. It happens sometimes. Is it heartburn? Does it hurt?
K: No.
M: OK. Just let me know if it does.

a few minutes later I noticed her chewing on something.

Me: What are you eating?
Kidlet: (swallowing) Lettuce.
Me: Was it stuck in your teeth (dinner was well over an hour before)
K: No. I told you I keep burping up dinner.
M: Hun, that's not what burping up dinner means. You can't actually burp up food, just the taste of food.
K: Well, I burp up pieces of food.
M: Yeah. Well, next time it happens I want to see the food. (I mean, come on, no one can bring back up actual pieces of food just by burping...we're not cows for crying out loud....)

A few minutes later:

Kidlet: See.... (sticks out her tongue, showing a piece of food) I can burp up pieces of food. I told my teacher but she just told me to tell you.
Me: Ummmmmm......How long has this been going on?
K: For as long as I can remember.
M: I think we better bring this up at your doctor's appointment next week....

She also, sometimes, will wake up in the middle of the night, throw up, and then feel fine in the morning. For years she has had this problem, and other night-time bathroom problems but it took this to really open my eyes. Talk about strange. So I mentioned it to her doctor, who ordered a "gastric emptying" test. I guess we're going to try a few tests before seeing a gastroenterologist (the closest one being in Grand Rapids). But she agreed that being able to burp up pieces of food was not a normal thing. She is also now on Prevacid to hopefully help with the night-time vomiting. So far she hasn't had any diarrhea or vomiting during the night, but that often comes and goes so we won't know if it's the drug or not for a while yet.

On to the test: It's tomorrow morning. At 6:30. In the morning. We have to be there early for paperwork and whatnot. With a 21 month old in tow. In the morning. They're going to feed the Kidlet some scrambled eggs and then watch them move through her digestive system. For 2 hours. With a 21 month old. In a boring hospital. Thankfully Daddy is coming along or I might seriously lose my sanity. I really hope they can figure it out from this test! Please, please, please! And I hope it's nothing too serious or anything. GAH!

And as if that was enough for one day, here's the rest of what my day looks like:
Get up at 5AM, go to hospital, hopefully leave around 8:30, take Kidlet to school, take MP3 to my Mom's, go home and get ready for class, go to class, get out at 2:30, go back to my Mom's and get MP3, pick up multiple kids at school, go home, hurry to get the Kidlet to eat dinner, take her to Girl Scouts, go home and feed everyone else, go get Kidlet from GS, etc. Here we go again!
And since I can't leave you without some pictures...

A Very Merry Digital Christmas!

2009-12-18T21:46:00.004-05:00

What a year it's been! MP3 turned 1, the Kidlet 8! MP3 started the year crawling and is going to end it at a sprint (which will probably end with his head bouncing off a piece of furniture, but that's okay).

The Kidlet started 3rd grade this year! Where has the time gone? It seems like only yesterday she was starting Kindergarten. And MP3! It's amazing how fast he's gone from infant to toddler. His vocabulary expands daily...although it does seem to be mostly Spongebob related lately (his newest words include "patty" and he like to sing along with the "Best Day Ever" episode). I'm not sure how many toddlers have a Spongebob addiction. Ours may be the only one, I suppose.

I can't think of a single complaint this year (except money, and who among us isn't complaining about the lack of that?). Speaking of which....

Since my bank seems to not like it when my account balance begins with a "-" I thought that this year our Christmas card shall be digital. And free. The important part is that it is free. Being digital is just a side effect of the whole "being free" thing. I'd love to send all of you a nice card to hold in your hand and put on your shelf, but this is going to be it I'm afraid. Sorry.

However, if I sent an actaul card you would get just a few images, or maybe only one...this way you get a short "Year in Review" from us with a couple dozen pics! Bonus! And music! Are you lucky or what? So.....
Enjoy!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Standing in Sand

2009-11-18T14:27:00.002-05:00

So this morning, while the Kidlet was in the middle of putting on her shoes, I saw something in the shoe she was holding.
"What's that in your shoe?" I asked.
"Sand."
"Dump it out, please." I opened the sliding door for her.
"But it gets in there while I'm playing on the playground!" she said while sadly dumping the contents of her shoe out the door.
"That doesn't mean you have to keep it!"
"I suppose this means I have to take the other shoe off and dump that too..."
"YES!"
While dumping sand from her other shoe I hear her mutter, "I like having sand in my shoe...."
It was all I could do to keep from falling over laughing. There must have been over a tablespoon of sand in each shoe! It couldn't have been comfortable...
I love that kid!

New Neighbors?

2009-11-11T20:48:00.008-05:00

As some of you know there is a smallish pond across the street from my house. During the summer we really can't see it from the window (too many trees in the way), but once the leaves have fallen, there it is again!

So I'm driving home the other day, going past the pond (which is at the bottom of a near verticle 30 ft. embankment) when I noticed this strange mound out in the water. My first thought was that it couldn't possibly be a beaver, but maybe there was a great blue heron nesting out there. So to Google I turn, and to my surprise I learn that herons nest in trees. I do some more looking for birds that nest in the water but I didn't find to much information.

I drove by again and saw that there were a couple smaller mounds out there as well. Weird. Who ever heard of a bird that makes different sized nests? Could it be a beaver?.... Naw.

Today I climbed down the ditch to the pond (getting down is easy, getting back up can be tricky) to see what I could see.

Okay. So now I'm thinking that it is, indeed, a beaver lodge. Why a beaver has chosen to live in the pond across the street, surrounded by a neighborhood and next to a 55 mile an hour road, I will never understand. Of course this means that we can now add a beaver to our list of neighbors: a skunk that routinely digs up my yard, 2 or 3 raccoons that live in the vacinity (and sometimes our front yard), a opossum that occassionly likes our garage, and the muskrat that I've seen in the pond. Are we lucky or what?

In the next picture, if you look closely on the right hand side you can see one of the smaller mounds. My mother has informed me that beavers store food in smaller mounds.*

And while I was contemplating how to get back up to the road I spotted this....

The Kidlet carved her pumpkin all by herself this year. Why won't she stop growing up?

And she was a ninja!
MP3 had a super warm devil hat that my Mom made to keep his ears warm. I just happened to have red mittens for him, too. He was so happy to put them on: he laughed and laughed and clapped and clapped! We got a little cold, but had fun! At least it wasn't snowing and/or hailing like it has the last 2 years! The kidlet didn't have to cover up her costume with a winter jacket!! Hooray! Just a sweatsuit underneath and she survived the trip around the subdivision. Isn't Michigan wonderful?

* I honestly don't think that I'll ever outgrow the belief that my mother knows everything!

No Paternity Test Needed!

2009-10-09T14:32:00.004-04:00

The husband likes to joke around that there's no proof that MP3 is his. Thanks to his mom that proof now exists....

And yes, these are pictures of Daddy as a little boy, not doctored images of MP3. I can see why you might be confused...

A Day at the Farm

2009-09-23T12:22:00.011-04:00

Last weekend we went to Shetler Farm for their annual Open Barn. What a perfect day! It was sunny, low 70's with a cool breeze...who could ask for better?

The Kidlet was able to pet a cow

MP3 saw his first turkey and yelled, "Cluck!" Not bad, kid. Not bad at all.

But then he tried to touch the turkey. Luckily Daddy got his fingers out of there before they became turkey feed.

They had a nice hay maze (minus the boys running around on top of the hay. Where were their parents?).

MP3 loved chasing his sister through the maze!

He loved finding her even more!

The Kidlet and MP3 having fun together! Isn't it sweet?

For a small fee they had a pony ride. Even though the Kidlet has never been on a horse/pony/etc. she insisted on getting on and off by herself. She did a great job and (I believe) had a wonderful time!

Riding a pony

Waving at his sister while she rides a pony.

Don't worry, Buddy! You'll be able to get on a pony someday, too!

MOOoooOOOOooo!

There were name cards at each milking station. This cow is appearantly named "Carla." Interesting...

A quick rest stop before hiking back to the car!

Birthday! or no more booster seats

2009-09-23T12:16:00.006-04:00

As I'm sure most of you know, the Kidlet turned 8 the other day (where does the time go?). This is a big milestone for her since now she now longer has to use a booster seat under Michigan's seat belt laws. Oh happy day!

So far we've only had a family party for her. She had a great time with her cousins, ate some cake (well...she ate the frosting, anyway), and received some neat presents.

Riding her bike, waiting for the party-goers.

While her cousins skated.....

she hung on her swingset...

and MP3 mowed the yard.

Darin gave his cousin a piggyback ride.

Darin got his hair cut and Alex needs to.

The Kidlet and Jeana watched some skateboarding.

So did MP3

MP3 found his toes....again...

Paigey had fun pushing MP3 on his swing.

More swinging fun!

Got snacks?

And then it was time for PRESENTS!

A new Webkinz...

Darin and Alex's present came with a card made by their Dad (and if you would like to support him and other local native artists, his store can be found here).

MP3 found a comfy place to sit.

And then it was time for cake. This year I wimped out and made a bee cake (much easier than all those others I've decorated). The dark frosting is called Dark Chocolate Fudge and I highly recommend it.

Make a wish!

Perhaps her favorite present is the tennis teatherball set from Nana and Papa. She has become so good at it...it's frightening!

Well, it was a great day. The weather was perfect, the cake was easy to make and very yummy, she received some new board games, and she had a great time playing with all her cousins. I think that even MP3 had a good time! I only hope that her birthdays keep turning out so well.

Gender Differences

2009-09-08T11:46:00.003-04:00

It is strange, the things that MP3 does that the Kidlet never did as a toddler. The first time he got his hands on a ball he threw it, for instance. Or a few weeks ago after a particularly nasty belch he grinned and tried to give me kisses. Or when we're watching America's Fuinniest Videos and he laughs his head off every time someone falls down. Or when he does this while watching TV:

Oh yeah, you can wrap him up in pink ribbons but there's no mistaking that fact that he's a boy....

Since that's a strange image to leave you with, I give you bath time!!

Summer Part 2 - More Cherry Festival!

2009-08-04T16:26:00.007-04:00

We went back to the Cherry Festival with my friend and her kids for a day at the beach! As you can see here, the Twerp attempted to walk all over MP3...

The Kidlet and the Creep had tons of fun splashing in West Bay!

After some good beach time my friend had to go, so we went back downtown to (we thought) meet the authors of the Heroes A2Z* books (it was their publicist or something). While waiting for the book people the Kidlet had her face painted.

On our way back to the car we stopped at Hannah Lay Park on the Boardman River.

MP3 found out that pine cones make your hands sticky.

Perhaps it was the accumulated sap that unbalanced him and sent him tumbling down the hill? (he was fine, by the way. He came up laughing)

And the Kidlet got to feed the ducks. Or perhaps I should say that she got chased by the ducks?

At any rate, it was wonderful to spend time with friends and family!

*These books rock! They're about 3 kids from Traverse City with superhero powers that routinely save Traverse City and the rest of Michigan from Easter ghosts/attacking cherry trees/aliens serving ice cream/etc. I highly recommend them!

If a Tree Falls in Your Yard...Who Cleans it Up?

2009-08-02T23:06:00.008-04:00

About 15 minutes after hearing a loud CRACK outside, we heard another CRACK and (felt) a THUMP. We now have 1/2 a tree less than before....

It covered half the road...

I used the Kidlet as a size reference...

It even crushed the electrical box in the ditch in front of our house. It's hard to see in this pic, but trust me, it's rather smooshed

After the fire dept. sent some people down to free up with road with their chainsaw, the electric company had to send people out to move the gigantic trunk off the box and replace it.

Now we're waiting for the country road people to come and chop up what's left, AND evaluate what's left of the tree still standing to see if it should be removed before it falls too. They better remove it...when it goes it's going to cover the entire road and take out the phone/cable lines too.

It so so weird to look out our front window and seeing the field across the street instead of just more maple trees. I can't wait for the rest of that tree to be gone too!

Our Summer So Far...

2009-07-10T21:04:00.006-04:00

4th of July

For the 4th of July we had a little family get together at the Cottage. The water was... ummmm... tolerable, the brats (sausage type things, not the kids) were tasty, and the sun was shining! All in all, it was a great day.

MP3 really enjoys picking things up and handing them to people. This is much better than eating the things he finds.... Which to be fair, he only does when he thinks no one is looking.

The girls, as usual, spent most of their time on the paddle board and tube.

The Kidlet is trying to grow out her bangs. It seems that long bangs, water, sun, and sand work really well if you're trying out for the part of Medusa.

Even Grandpa came to the party!

Paigey just loved playing with her cousin!

YAY!

In case you are confused, this is his "MmHmm" face. In other words, someone just asked him a question and he is answering with a nod and "Mm-Hmm."

This is the cutest picture EVER!

National Cherry Festival

Normally I avoid downtown in the summer like the plague. Especially during Cherry Fest. The crowds, noise, lack of parking, slow moving traffic... *SCREAM* I detest it. However, since my dear friend keeps deciding to visit during Cherry Festival, and her mom lives within walking distance of downtown, I keep finding myself at the Open Space...

Our first day at the festivities happened to be "Heroes Day." There were firemen with ladder trucks, police, Coasties, all sorts of Heroes to meet. They were even letting the kids in/on their vehicles!

Wheeeeee!

She's been told that we better not see her here ever again. Driving my little delinquent to jail is my friend's son, known elsewhere as The Creep.

Okay, now this is better...

In the Army...making Daddy proud!

Helping out in the Red Cross Emergency Response Vehicle.

Sitting together at the music stage.

Hammering away at the Habitat for Humanity's Nail-Driving speed contest. She didn't break the record for her age group, but she was within 30 seconds of it!

I have no idea how MP3 managed to fall asleep while walking down a root-covered footpath along the Boardman River, but he did.

Coming soon: our second day of sun-shiny fun in downtown TC! More splish-splashing at the cottage! Yippee!

Slip Slidin' Away!

2009-06-27T21:24:00.005-04:00

We went to my parents' house last Sunday for a Father's Day/Meg's Birthday party. Since we've been enjoying temperatures in the high 80s/ low 90s my Mom set up the slip 'n slide. The girls really enjoyed it!

My brother-in-law and I had an interesting conversation. It went like this...

George: I'll go on the slip 'n slide if you promise not to take any pictures.

Me: What?

G: I'll go on the slip 'n slide if you promise not to take any pictures!

M: Who?

G: You!

M: What?

G: Promise not to take any pictures!

M: Are you speaking English?

MP3 is very food oriented (for those who haven't noticed). He found a toy spoon and cup and spent quite a long time pretending to eat yummy food. At least I assume it was yummy food. At any rate, he kept saying "NUM!"

He stepped on a toy plastic picnic tablecloth. It stuck to his foot and he had a horrible time getting it off. Of course, he kept bending over and yanking on it while still standing on it which, for some reason, didn't seem to work. He had so much fun spinning in circles trying to get it off that he kept coming back for more. It was like baby-flypaper! During one of his many sticky experiences, Daddy came to his rescue and stepped on it for him...

A few months ago MP3 hit the take-things-out/ put-things-in OCD phase. Sorting laundry has now become damn near impossible around here. He helped me sort some laundry this morning....I don't think it's his size....

Just for Laughs

Other funny things that have happened around here recently:

A few months ago, MP3 tripped over his own feet and went head first into the arm of the couch. Since this is heavily padded, he didn't get hurt. Actually, he leaned into it and used his head as a stopper so he wouldn't fall over. After he regained his balance he looked at me, grinned, patted his head, pointed to the arm of the couch and LAUGHED! Then he softly banged his head into the armrest again and laughed even harder! I swear, you could tell he was saying, "Did you just see that? I used my head to keep from falling over!" or perhaps, "Look Ma! No hands!"

Yesterday MP3 climbed up a few steps on our front porch and sat on the steps (this is his favorite thing to do outside...he is so proud of himself that he can sit, with no help, on the steps). He looked at me, smiled (this is my cue that he's about to do something and I should be ready) and stepped forward. Since he has attempted to walk off the steps in the past I jumped forward, ready to catch him. Instead he stepped back, sat back down and laughed. Then he kept standing up, stepping forward and laughing at me. He thought it was the neatest thing ever! Are 14-month-olds suppose to be doing this? Seriously? I am so doomed....

The Magical Pillow of Sleepiness +4

2009-06-09T14:14:00.003-04:00

Mystery is not happy unless she is sleeping on something. It could be a pile of laundry, a blanket that has fallen off the couch, or even a sock...she doesn't care what she's sleeping on, just as long as she's sleeping on something. So...for Christmas she received her very own doggie pillow (which means that she has somewhere to go now when we chase her off the pile of laundry). Tigger has tried to steal it from her, but has ended up sharing it with her. It's amazing how a pillow creates friends...

It also appears that others cannot resist the power of the pillow. After spending 2 hours trying to get MP3 to go to sleep (Deadliest Catch was on so I couldn't go into his room with him) he staggered over to the doggie pillow and collapsed. Ahhhhhh...it must be a magical pillow!

MP3 feeling particularly smug. At least, I assume so. Look at those cheeks!

Last weekend we had a garage sale. For some reason I get the feeling that the Kidlet was a little fed up with us...

She was very unhappy that no one actually took her home with them. She was having a very bad day... poor child... Nana took her home (she came to help keep track of MP3 during the sale) so that helped her mood somewhat. I think she's 7 going on 13...and we've already hit moody. Joy.

Fun With Song and Water

2009-05-25T22:52:00.006-04:00

We attended the Kidlet's Spring Sing last week. She sang some very cute songs about animals. They needed a bit more practice though...it seemed that none of the kids actually knew the last song. Still, they did a wonderful job and we had a great time!

The other day MP3 discovered.....THE SPRINKLER!! He had so much fun chasing it around and sticking his hands in the water!

What he really enjoyed doing was running up to the spray, turning his back to the sprinkler, and ducking his shoulder into the water. Then...he decided to stand in front of it as it spun past him...he didn't like that so much. Here's a view of his back. Notice the wet right shoulder and if you look you can see that the front of his pants are completely soaked.

MP3 recently (as in last month) figured out how to sit down on objects (i.e. the dog, the cat, Daddy while he's trying to do sit-ups or push-ups, his sister's ribcage while she's on the floor, etc.) and his new favorite spot to be when outside is the front steps. Granted, he often tries to sit down while facing the steps, but his sister does an excellent job of catching him and turning him around.

The Kidlet and MP3 spent a lot of time playing ball. Not with each other, though at the same time.

More Critters?

2009-05-19T14:11:00.003-04:00

We have an opossum that keeps reappearing in our garage, at least 2 raccoons (and 1 gigantic one) that wander about, a super-massive skunk that lives nearby, when we moved in there was a litter of kittens in the juniper in the backyard, and now....

We find ourselves unable to use our front door. Luckily, it looks like they're almost full grown!

A Wee Bit of Confusion

2009-05-15T10:57:00.004-04:00

There seems to be some confusion in this house. It all started about a year ago. MP3 use to take his baths in this extremely cool baby bath tub which fit in (or on) the kitchen sink and the Kidlet loved to help. Some days she would say, "Watch out, Mama! He has to pee!" on other days she'd say, "Good thing he doesn't have to pee tonight!" Now, I thought that this was odd, but no big deal. I will admit that it was funny that time that he peed and it landed in a cup. Then one day...she pointed at MP3's scrotum and practically yelled, "Be careful! He's really full! He's gonna pee soon!" and I just about died. I managed to keep the laughter contained and wondered how to explain testicles to a 6 year old. I quickly decided that her observation and reasoning was so interesting (where do kids come up with this stuff?) that it didn't need me ruining it (that and does a 6 year old need any other explanation?). The Kidlet isn't the only creative one around here...

MP3 keeps expanding his vocabulary. One of his favorite words is "dah-tah" or "button". Trust me, when you hear him say it you know exactly what he's saying. He loves buttons! Every button he finds causes him to beam and say loudly "Dah-tah?" (I have no idea why he sounds like it's a question, but that's the way he always says it). Funny thing though, when you ask him to find his belly button he inevitably finds something a bit further south. Granted, it is more button-ish than a belly button... Diaper changing time keeps becoming increasingly difficult around here.

Spring has Sprung!

She's trying to grow out her bangs. Really. We are not neglecting

our first born.

Won't You Be My Neighbor?

2009-05-06T19:52:00.003-04:00

Here's a glimpse of our new neighbor. I sure hope he's friendly!

Well, not too friendly...

Just to let you know: that's a full grown maple tree he's sitting in. Fun...

Attack of the Killer Swingset

2009-05-05T22:35:00.003-04:00

She's smiling because I told her that next time she wants to stop the swing she should try using her feet...

She actually had to brush her teeth to get the dirt out of her mouth (it was packed around her teeth). Luckily no lasting damage was done...she ended up with a small red "dirtburn" next to her eye for a day or so, and that was all.

If she finds out that I've posted this picture......well, let's not think about that.

There's Something Fishy Going On Here...

2009-04-17T13:17:00.013-04:00

Last weekend was MP3's 1st Birthday Party! We had cake. We had ice cream. We had presents. We had a nap-less toddler soaking up all the attention he could. I think he enjoyed it.

MP3 had lots of fun with his cousins. Paigey almost lost her headband.

One of his presents from Nana was a cup and plate. Thanks to the cup, we found out that he was thirsty...

Thanks to Bumpa he his now all set for summer. He better watch out though. Mowing the yard is my job, and I'm not about to give it up (yes, I'm serious. I love to mow the yard.).

The Kidlet was a big helper and had more fun opening his presents than he did. I remember at her first Birthday she helped open every present and got excited at every new present. It was wonderful! MP3 however just wanted to play with the paper....oh, and drink from an empty cup.

Mmmmmmm.....paper....

Since one of his first words was "fishy" (or fshzt) I made a "fishy" cake. I even got lucky and found decorative candies at the grocery store! After all those Tigger and Pooh cakes I decorated for the Kidlet's Birthdays, this one was easy*.

At first he happily ate the ice cream. Then he tasted FROSTING!

We got him this really neat rocking/ride on/ scoot on contraption. Once he figured out he could rock on it we couldn't get him off... (in case you're wondering, I changed his shirt 'cause the other one was covered in cake and ice-cream).

I feel the need. The need...for speed!

* I almost said that it was "a piece of cake" but I stopped myself. Lucky you!

Color Me Ouch!

2009-04-09T10:54:00.004-04:00

This morning MP3 awoke with some interesting bed-hair. It appears that he turned into a shark over night. Oh yeah, he has natural faux-hawk hair...

However, when I took that photo this morning I didn't realize that I was actually taking a "before" photo. I can only assume that since spring has yet to be srung around here, MP3 took it upon himself to add a little color to the world (or more color to his Birthday party this Saturday, perhaps). At least, I think that's what he was thinking of as he went headfirst into a stool. Of course, he could have been thinking, "Oh no, oh no, oh no!" *

* "Oh no" might not be strong enough, actually. But since my Mom will probably read this I decided that this might be the best choice of words.

LOOK WHO'S ONE!!

2009-04-08T19:40:00.003-04:00

Can you believe that it's been a year already? It's amazing how fast time flies when you don't sleep....

Check this out....

2009-03-29T23:01:00.003-04:00

I was cleaning at my Grandfather's house the other day and saw this picture of me hanging on a wall. Now, if I put it next to a picture of MP3....

Nope. He looks nothing like me. (Which picture is me again?) I'm thinking about finding that old bear of mine and trying to get a similar photo of the little one. I'm fairly certain that bear is still in my parent's basement.

Now I just have to locate a picture of the husband from when he was about a year old (I have a feeling that MP3 looks even more like his daddy than me, believe it or not).

Finally.....

2009-03-12T23:22:00.001-04:00

Since the Kidlet won't let us shave her head so that she has a mohawk, I've been waiting patiently for MP3's hair to get long enough.....

Oh yeah...almost there, baby.

A Walkin' Talkin' Fool

2009-02-24T20:37:00.012-05:00

So, I was checking out Mama Grouch's site and she had this link up for this nifty little photo competition website (next week's theme is messy...oh yeah, I got messy). Well, since I think that my kid is pretty darn cute too (though he doesn't have the Twerp's big soulful eyes) I figured that I just had to enter too.....

In other news:

Remember how MP3 let me know that he wasn't done with bathtime? Well, in case you thought that I was exaggerating or something check this out. Last night, when I said, "All done!" , he started chanting, "ah-doh, ah-doh, ah-doh", crawled to the drain and started banging on it. I swear that sometimes you can see the gears turning in his head. help me And he's now walking all over the place. He's not perfect yet, but he's almost there. He seems to really enjoy pulling U-turns in the middle of the living room, go figure. His favorite place to land when he falls is on the dog. When he starts to lose his balance he will actually change trajectory in order to aim for the dog. For what it's worth, Mystery seems to enjoy the attention. If the cats are around he chases them non-stop. Tigger also seems to enjoy the attention...Squishy, however, is really good at hiding.

Weird sounds (words) that my kid makes:

mbvvv= moooo (yes, as in cow)

zsht= fishy (he has fishies all over his bedroom walls, which we point at during diaper changing time so that he'll keep his hands away from other things....yes, that other thing)

awwww= the sound he makes when he fakes a yawn. Yeah, it's as cute as you think it is.

de-de= bye bye (complete with wave...and bye-bye kisses, too!)

Gng= BOOM! (whenever he lands on his butt I say "boom!" and he repeats "gng!" This noise is made in the back of the throat. Go ahead, try it.)

Story Time

2009-02-16T11:32:00.005-05:00

Let me tell you a story. Every night, after dinner, is bath time. MP3 loves his baths. He also loves to accidentally stick his face in the water and inhale. Since I do not like to spend too much time bent over the side of the tub in a futile attempt to keep him from trying to breathe water, bath time can sometimes be rather short.

The other night was like any other night. He crawled around the tub, stood up and banged on the faucet (I think he's trying to make the water work...), but then he did something new. He stretched his legs out behind him so he was laying on his tummy, and then he very slowly and deliberately stuck his face in the water. He slowly brought his head back up and started blinking. I'm fairly certain that he had his eyes open the whole time. Of course five minutes later he accidently stuck his face back under water and inhaled, but still...how odd was that?

Then another odd thing happened. I was pointing out all the different sea critters on his washcloth (shell, octopus, fishy, crab, starfish) when he grabbed ahold of my finger and made me point to every single starfish. But the strangest is yet to come.

Then when my back couldn't take anymore, I said, "All done," and he gave me this absolutely puzzled look, which is odd since whenever anyone says "all done" he normally starts saying it over and over. Anyway, he looked at me strangely and I went to unscrew the drain stopper. He began chanting, "Nononononono," crawled over to my hand and took it off the stopper. I am sooooooo doomed!

Oh yeah, and he loves to follow the dog around and make her tail wag....

Wag the dog!

He routinely takes 4 to 6 steps now before going to his knees. The other day he actually stayed upright for 11 steps! Yesterday he did: step, step, step balance wobble step, step, step balance wobble step, step, thump! And when he makes it to his destination he looks like this (see below).

He has discovered (some time ago) that the dog crate makes a great place to stand and hang on.

We also discovered that our blankets have a wee bit of static electricity....

SHOCKING!

Hey! I almost Forgot!

2009-02-09T13:58:00.004-05:00

Did you see that giganto post down there? Wow. And no pictures of MP3! How'd that happen? Lemme remedy that....

For Christmas his Aunt Kim bought him this nifty walk-behind thing. For a month he fully enjoyed sitting in front of it and playing with all the movable parts (including a shape sorter) on it...then one day, while pushing on it so he could stand up, it moved! He gave it a strange look. He looked up and saw that it had a handle. It was at this point that I could literally see the light-bulb turn on over his head (I believe I mentioned previously that he's a thinker? help me). His whole face just lit up! He stood, grabbed that handle, and he hasn't stopped moving since. Of course, he can't turn the thing. This means loads of fun for me (okay, it's actually a pain in the ass), but he sure loves it!

Oh yeah. I also had a birthday. If you think you can see other candles peeking out from behind the ones in front, your eyes are deceiving you. Or something.

Fun at School Or Look! A New Post!

2009-02-04T10:20:00.021-05:00

A few weeks ago we went to a Renaissance Faire at the Kidlet's school. It was a small event, but still lots of fun. Wings of Wonder was there with a Red Tail Hawk and a couple of kestrels, a group of guys were there with their foam covered swords and whatnot, banging on each other's heads (and letting the kids do the same), there was "Tea With the Queen", a knighting ceremony (the program actually said "open to all young men"...more on this later), a May Pole, beading, heraldry, archery... All in all, not bad for a school event. In the school's weekly newsletter they said that they'll be having a bigger and better one next year. Great. I now have a year to get costumes together (the Kidlet was very upset that she didn't have a costume on).

Have at you!

Not bad for the first time she ever held a bow!

About that knighting ceremony. When we arrived at the school we were given a program listing all the events and where they were located. When I saw that there was going to be a "Knighting Ceremony", and that it was open to all young men, I said to myself, "Like Hell!" So when it came time for the ceremony and the Queen came out and asked for all the brave boys to come and get knighted, I told the Kidlet that she could go too if she wanted. "But I'm not a boy," she said. The husband and I told her it didn't matter and that she could get knighted if she wanted to. Telling my little girl that a boy can do something that she can't, evil people *grumble grumble* As soon as she was standing in front of the queen, some friends of ours sent their daughter out, and then another little girl appeared. Huzzah! Take that, powers that be!

I think she was knighted "Sir Kidlet the Brave", or somesuch.

All in all, it was an enjoyable evening. I'm curious to see what they're planning for next year. I keep wondering if maybe I should see if I can get onto some kind of planning committee or something for this event. Hrmmmmm.......

In Other News

MP3 is a bit....ummmm.....odd. Okay, you could have probably guessed that given who his parents are, but let me explain. At 7 months old, his first word was "ah-doh", otherwise known as "all done." I guess I should have said first words. The first time he said it was after eating breakfast one morning and I thought that he was just making the sound that I make when he's done eating, he couldn't actually be saying it. Later that same day he was screaming "ah-doh, ah-doh, ah-doh" while getting his diaper changed. Then while reading a book to him he pronounced, "ah-doh", slammed the book shut and wriggled off my lap. A few days later Mike was holding him while watching football, when the game stopped for halftime he again said, "ah-doh." Yeah, I think he means it. After that came "dada" (or dadadadadada), when he's upset he'll say "mama."

One super-cute thing he says is "lala." Mike often rocks him to sleep while singing this little tune "lala lalala lala lala laaala" so now MP3 will sing "lala" whenever he gets tired or just wants to cuddle (he's a good cuddler). He will sometimes even try to sing himself to sleep. Awwwwww.

Other oddness: My family is filled with early walkers. The kidlet was pulling herself to stand by 6 months, cruising all over the place by 7 months, and starting to take her first steps in the early 9th month. MP3 however, didn't even try to stand until well into month 7, and even then he didn't really cruise until his late 8th month. Comparing his progress with his sister's I figured that wouldn't be walking until 11 months or so. I was fairly certain he'd be walking by his 1st birthday, but not by much. Well, I've been reassessing that idea. He stands, often, for increasingly longer periods, without touching anything, while doing squats. Yes, squats. He likes to lean his back against the loveseat and try to walk toward the center of the room. Forget trying to walk to the table, or walk to the couch, he just wants to walk. So far he's only managed to get one real step in before he goes down, but he keeps trying. Yesterday he finished the 2nd step before he went to his knees. I give him 3 weeks.

The other day he was cruising around with one hand on the coffee table staring at his feet and moving them very slowly. He'd twist each foot around while it was off the floor, wriggle his toes, flex his ankle...I swear he was trying to figure out how they work so he could control them better! I am not kidding. I am very, very serious. He is quite the thinker (help me), just ask my mom about how long he has to study each hallway before finally committing to crawling down one of them at her house ( help me).

In Still More News: I am insane. Okay, you probably already knew that. The reason for my insanity is this: I am taking college classes again. Yep, 2 kids (one of them teething constantly for 4 months...the tooth finally came in...now the next one is coming) and here I am trying to get homework done at night while chanting "please don't wake up, please don't wake up." It all started because I thought it'd be neat to learn HTML. Wouldn't it be neat if I could code my own little web page (you're reading it) without using the limited templates allowed by blogger.com? Well, it turns out that there's a pre-requisite for that class, and I'll need at least 6 credits for financial aid, which means I also need to take a history class, etc., etc. *sigh* Well, I managed to 4.0 last semester, and now I'm banging away in another semester. At least now I'm taking that HTML class that started the whole thing.

So. Perhaps at some point in the not too distant future you will be seeing some changes in this here blog. Of course, I'll only be able to muck about with coding after my homework is done, and MP3 isn't teething, and I'm not in the middle of a knitting project, and I'm not passed out from exhaustion. In other words, don't hold your breath. It will happen, just not anytime real soon.

I would like to send out a big CONGRATULATIONS to my cousin and her family! It seems that they are expecting a little girl this summer. I bet Miles is sooooo excited to be a big brother!

Eeep!

2009-01-05T14:13:00.008-05:00

I know, I know. I haven't posted anything in a while. Here's some pictures to hold you until I have time to actually write something. You know, when I have time (HA!). The the plan is to eventually erase this post and write something about each of these pictures. Not promising anything though. Maybe I'll even find more pictures to share. If you're lucky ;)

It's Just One Thing After Another! in a good way...

2008-12-10T09:36:00.011-05:00

It is amazing how fast babies grow! As you all know, MP3 recently figured out how to crawl. Well, he didn't stop there! A few days later he started to pull himself up while in the bathtub (yep, just the bathtub...go figure), now he's not happy if he's not kneeling, standing, or crawling over the pets. It is so much fun to watch! He also enjoys falling on his butt when he lets go of whatever it is that is currently keeping him standing. He will sometimes actually laugh when he lands.

Luckily for him, Mystery will put up with almost everything.....

In an effort to keep the crawling guy from the various animal food bowls (and cat box) I've barricaded the entrance to the living room with a hodgepodge of items. He figured out that if he knelt in front of an item and pushed with his stomach he could move the items out of the way, and then he could triumphantly make his way into the dining room. And when I say triumphantly, I mean it. Talk about smug! I realize I could simply get a baby gate, but not only do they cost money that I don't have, but the dog would spend all day doing one of two things (depending how how smart she is at the time): standing at the gate begging to come in/leave the room, or jumping back and forth with glee, smooshing cats and babies alike under her gigantic paws. Either way, life would not be fun.

He has also figured out how to move the stool I've put in front of the TV to keep him away from the PS2 and Xbox, and last night he was somehow able to move the carseat I've wedged between the couch and loveseat so he can't get to the computer and its rat's nest of cables. He's too smart for his (or my) own good.

The other day I was sitting in the middle of the living room floor while MP3 crawled around. I looked away for a few seconds and then heard, "Num, num, num, num." This, of course, is the noise we make when feeding MP3 a new food. Looking at him I see his chin and mouth are covered with dog fur and carpet fuzz. Guess who figured out how to feed himself? Joy! Now nothing is safe. We have a huge dog and 2 cats, do you have any idea how much fur is just lying around here? *shudder*

Anyway, I quickly bought some baby finger foods for him. He ate his first "biscuit" yesterday. Maybe I shouldn't use the word "ate"....

Yes. That is the biscuit on his head. And all over his face. And his shirt. You can't see his pants but they're covered too. Don't forget his hands. (No, I did not put that on his head. He did it all by himself. Lucky me.). So I was thinking...in these troubled financial times, if you're looking for a safe place to put your money, may I recommend Proctor & Gamble, distributors of Bounty paper-towels? My household alone should keep this company's profits looking great. I go through so many paper-towels, it's not even funny.

And it won't stop snowing. The following picture was taken a week ago. In case you're wondering, the amount of snow on the ground has doubled since then. Oh yeah, I think we'll be having a white Christmas.

I'm thinking that Christmas should be fun this year. I'm pretty sure I'll be playing goalkeeper all day in an attempt to keep MP3 from climbing the Christmas tree, eating the needles, and bathing in the tree stand. AnnaLaura has already called dibs on opening his presents for him since he can't yet. What a wonderful big sister she is. Seriously, she is the best big sister any kid (or parent) could hope for.

***********************************************************************

A realization I had the other day: While watching TV, I saw a commercial for Red Lobster and their new "wood fire grill" menu. My first thought was, "Wow. They can't afford their gas bill either!"

Try & Try Again

2008-12-04T14:28:00.006-05:00

Sometimes....

You have to take...

A lot of pictures...

Just to get...

That special...

One that...

You really...

Really...

Like!

We hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

September....At Last

2008-11-25T13:29:00.007-05:00

The Kidlet turned 7 this September. Once again we had 2 parties. First we had the family party. Pictures follow...

She gets her favorite things to play with! Puzzibits!

Her cousins gave her a card that played "Happy Birthday to You" sung by cats. I think she liked it....

She also got that scooter she's been begging for.

Her surprise Darth Vader cake!

Then we had some of her friends over for yet another party. We are insane, I do believe.

This time around I made a Beach Party cake.

She recieved Twister as a gift. It sure came in handy!

This is one of the Kidlet's friends. She absolutely cracks me up. She's welcome at our house any time she wants to come over. She rocks!

The poor boy in the back was the only boy who came. By the end of the party he was hiding from all the girls. Those girls sure were pestering the hell out of him!

And because I simply can't leave you without at least a few MP3 pictures....

Look! I knitted a Jayne hat! Only in miniature size this time! Maybe it's just me,

but I think he's much cuter than Adam Baldwin...

And It Has Begun

2008-11-24T14:15:00.007-05:00

Look what MP3 figured out over the weekend.

We are dooooooomed!

In other news....

It's s......sn.......*sigh* White fluffy stuff is still falling from the sky. Really big and puffy and wet and "packy" today. After much begging and pleading I finally got The Kidlet to go out and enjoy it (someone should after all). She's out of school for the whole week due to parent/teacher conferences and Turkey Day. Lucky little girl....lucky Mystery has someone to play with...Mommy going crazy....

August Part 2

2008-11-20T09:06:00.006-05:00

First of all I would like to mention that we celebrated our 10th Anniversary this August 22nd! So here's to a great 10 years and to many more!

I can't believe we ever looked this young!

The Flower Girl and Ring Bearer are both teenagers now....

This is still the happiest day of my life. My face actually hurt that evening after smiling so much! Thank you for a great 10 years, Husband O' Mine!

In August we also went over to a friend's house (Hi, Aimee and Bart!) for an End Of Summer party. There seemed to be alot of volleyball being played...

Even The Kidlet got in on the action...

And we re-painted and re-carpeted the living room. Gone are the powder blue walls and blue-purple-swirly-crappy-dirty carpet! Say hello to a brighter and nicer living room!

And then.....the Cottage! We swam, we soaked up sun, we ate s'mores! The Kidlet also realized she could "surf."

Luckily for us, she still thinks her brother is pretty neat.

Even my Mother-in-law had fun in the water!
(oh, and that bikini clad girl is the flower girl from the begining of this post...God, I feel old)

Coming soon, September! Maybe....

I Give You....Sock Houdini!

2008-11-19T10:39:00.007-05:00

Sure, Houdini could get himself out of all sorts of locks and chains, but could he do this? Without using his hands? That's right, my son can get himself out of his socks faster than you can blink while his hands are busily banging objects on the ground. He is the One! The Only! Sock Houdini! *insert applause here*

Once, I was changing his diaper and had both of his ankles in my hand...when I put his feet down 10 seconds later he was missing a sock! Somehow I never noticed a thing. How does he do it? Will we ever know?

Today I leave with a look at his eyes....I really really really hope the color doesn't change.

Insert Scream of Terror Here

2008-11-17T10:10:00.004-05:00

I just looked out my window and saw......

NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

I hate it when it s...(insert 4 letter "s" word here). Why oh why must it do this?

I took Mike an hour to drive to work today (normally 20 minutes) and it took the neighbors 30 minutes to drive The Kidlet and their son 5 miles to school. According to the radio, the road by our house is the worst in the county this morning and the rest of the area is just fine for driving through. Over half of Mike's drive time was spent covering the first 3 miles. I think I'll stay inside for as long as possible.....

Go Trick-or-Treating, I Must

2008-11-10T13:41:00.008-05:00

Look what I made! I knit a Yoda Hat (for ravelry.com users) for MP3! Then I felted it! I'm so proud of myself. And it looks so cute (I think). Although we did have one girl ask if he was suppose to be baby Shrek. Baby Shrek? What the hell is wrong with kids today, can't even recognize Yoda. *grumble grumble* Anyway, my Mom made a cute little Yoda robe for him out of some yummy fleece (gotta love Halloween in Michigan) to keep him warm. Luckily we had great weather for Halloween and no snow!

The Kidlet was Darth Vader this year (my kids are sooooo cool!), and a darn good Darth Vader she was. We were hoping to get in on the Star Wars action too, but ran out of time and money. Mike thought it'd be cool to be dressed like a Jedi in training and carry Yoda around on his back (I assumed he meant he wanted to dress up like Luke, but he was offened by the suggestion...I agree, Luke is a wuss), and I kicked around the idea of wearing a bun on each side of my head...but alas, these things didn't pan out. Darth Vader and baby brother Yoda were a hit anyway.

Darth Vader and Yoda sitting together? Who would of thought it possible? Although Yoda doesn't seem to happy about it....

As every year, Paige had a custume-Birthday party. Since we were going to be inside where it's nice and toasty warm we put an alternative costume under the Yoda outfit. Yep, Yoda turned into Charlie Brown!

I don't remember there being witches in Star Wars.....but Yoda/Charlie Brown takes them on anyway! We see him here removing Witch Meg's nose while tackling Witch Nana to the ground!

This is my cousin Bob's youngest daughter, Alea. I'm not quite sure what she's suppose to be....

George was suited up...

My Dad even turned into a witch...how odd...

And the birthday girl herself is seen here showing off an eyeball. Happy 4th Birthday Paigey!
(yes, we were overrun with witches....Yoda took them all on, though)

August Part 1

2008-11-07T12:29:00.007-05:00

Well....August....lemme try to remember. MP3 is currently teething something awful, I'm slightly sleep deprived and also suffering a terrible head cold (which wouldn't be that bad but the chickenpox scars in my throat are inflamed and it is very painful to swallow) so I'm having a bit of trouble not only remembering what the hell happened in August but how to construct a sentence as well. Here goes!

We continued to play at the cottage. We love the cottage (in case you were wondering). Here we see The Kidlet and her cousins playing in the water. Notice the strange looks on their faces? Guess what they found. A big dead fish. A catfish if I remember correctly. Jeana especially looks horrified.

My kid, not surprisingly, seems unperturbed about dead things floating in the water with her. And, as usual, is being photogenic. Notice those gaps in her mouth. The gap on the left is finally closing up. The one on the right, however, has yet to have a tooth begin moving in. I keep telling her it's not coming and that she'll have a permanent "straw hole" for drinking through. She refuses to believe me. Darnit!

We had a wonderful time over at "Aunt Brubber's" house and got to see some cousins that we haven't seen in quite a while. Here is my cousin Jamie, grinnin' like a fool. Man, I've missed him. He and his wife have moved somewhere far away and strange...like Utah or something. I don't recall offhand which state it is, but it's somewhere over there.

The kidlet and her cousins had lots o' fun playing with my cousin Beth's children. Well, two of her children anyway. The other ones couldn't make it. Sydney and Tristan were wonderful with the kids!

The were even wonderful with MP3. This made me laugh - I asked them what they were doing and found out that they couldn't wait to see what his cute little toes look like! TOES! It must run in the family...I love baby toes too!

I think Beth and her kids should move up here so that I have some babysitters. Tell me Sydney wouldn't be great as a baby sitter! *squeeee*

The power of the finger!!

We also spent some time over at the Grandma and Grandpa's! Here's Victoria and Olivia with MP3. Once again, more kids who should move up here so that I have some babysitters. Why do all these great kids live downstate?

The Kidlet had much fun riding Michelle's go-cart with her.

Guess who else had much fun riding the go-cart?

Okay. August Part 1 is complete. Part 2 coming soon...I promise. But first *drumroll please* HALLOWEEN!

Cannibalistic Jack-O-Lantern!

2008-10-30T16:41:00.003-04:00

I went and carved myself a Jack-O-Lantern eating a Jack-O-Lantern. Saw a picture of one in a book and just had to try it myownself. I'm feeling rather pleased with myself. I thought about having some pumpkin guts hanging from the little one's mouth...but then I thought that that might take things a step too far. Whaddya think?

He's even squinting on one side like he's chomping down on a jawbreaker. Wheeeeeeee!

JULY!!

2008-10-23T21:45:00.008-04:00

Okay. July in photos. Here we go!

For the 4th we went to Meg and George's house in Kalkaska. AnnaLaura had fun swimming in the pool with Jeana and Paige. The baby got passed around to everyone. Lots of sun and fun!

MP3 with Papa

Gettin' his toes wet!

With Nana

With Paige

The next day we went to see the other side of the family for Alex's birthday party. More pool time. More sun. More passing around the baby.

TheKidlet and Darin on the trampoline

With Kim

and with Frank

Later in the month we all went to the family cottage for a "Nearly 90" party for my Grandpa! More sun. More swimming. More passing around the baby. Lots of relatives we only see for a week or two in the summer when they come to visit us northern folk.

Look how big Miles is growing!

A Nearly 90 Birthday Cake!

The Kidlet as a surfer girl!

MP3 at the beach (he actually will wear a hat!)

Courtney gets attacked!

the kids are ready for cake

A nearly 90 Grandpa!

Yes....a picture of me...hope you're all happy.

Amanda and Miles

Coming up next... August! We stay at the cottage. We see long lost cousins at my Aunt's house. Lots of baby pics (go figure). The Kidlet swims! We attend an "End of Summer" party at a friend's house. Stay tuned!

I Laughed So Hard I Almost....

2008-10-22T22:00:00.003-04:00

Every time I go into a clothing store and attempt to find cute clothes for the baby, I lament (okay, I whine) the fact that the girl's section is 3 times larger than the boy's and while the girls get really cute clothes the boys seem to have nothing but sports and camouflage. Whenever I enter a clothing store and attempt to find clothes for the 7 year old, I lament (okay, I bitch) the fact that clothing designers want to make my daughter look like a hooker....and a poorly paid one at that. That being said, I was just bouncing around the internet, trying to find a baby custard recipe, and I found an article that said this:

You'll Win... One Way or Another
Girls clothes get more space in the store, and it's universally acknowledged that baby and toddler girls are more fun to dress. This is deeply unfair to mothers of boys. But they'll get their revenge in three years, when moms of girls have to deal with hoochie-mama clothing for preschoolers.

It's nice to know that I'm not the only one....

ACK!

2008-09-18T22:58:00.005-04:00

I am sooooo far behind in my blog posting (with photos, of course). I will attempt to at least pacify all of you with a month by month photo list.....

Here goes nothing!

June 2008

We went on a mini road trip to the Ren Faire at Castle Farms in Charlevoix. On the way there we stopped at a road-side park and took this picture.

While at the Faire we saw some raptors....

And some jousting...

And the kidlet had her face painted....

She also went to the "Robin Hood Swordfighting Class." After which she got to fight the Sheriff of Nottingham!

Later in June it hailed!

A super clean MP3!

For some reason, the Kidlet is still pretty happy to be a big sister.

Let the fighting begin!

Mmmmmmmm! Plastic bananas!

Coming up next....JULY!!

Please Go To Sleep!

2008-06-20T23:14:00.002-04:00

The other night, MP3 decided to stay up late. I took these pictures at 12:30AM....

Does anyone out there think that he went to sleep soon after these were taken? Anyone?

Yeah...didn't think so....

Hello again!

2008-05-21T23:18:00.013-04:00

Yes, I know it's been a while since I've posted anything. I am sorry. Somewhere between then and now our computer died (so we bought a new one, or rather we are still buying a new one...thanks Discover), our fridge/freezer died (thanks again, Discover), our kitchen sink required the services of a plumber (paycheck said ouch), both vehicles have gone in for problems (none of which we can afford to fix...new head gasket for me, new ABS sensors for Mike) and mine is back in for the brakes. However, the biggest event of all was the birth of kidlet #2, Michael III (from now on known as MP3). So, since it is late, and he might wake up at any time I leave you with a whole boat-load of photos.

Oh, and the birth announcements will go out this week....with thank-yous included...I promise. Really.... At least I mean to do it this week.... *sigh*

And because it's the coolest ultrasound I've ever had....

I Really Need To Get More Sleep

2008-02-25T10:08:00.002-05:00

This is what goes through my head when the kid in progress is flipping and spinning around in my tummy and I am unable to sleep at night......

Yes, I need mental help. Or perhaps just more sleep.

On a side note, it was thanks to this movie that my sister found out she needed glasses. Does anyone else remember what the last line was in the opening of this movie? It actually said, "If you can't read this, you probably need glasses". Guess who couldn't read it.....

Christmas Past

2008-01-21T12:38:00.000-05:00

I have returned! Bearing photos!

Grandpa (Bumpa) with the great-grandkids

Jeana, Paige and AnnaLaura

on Thanksgiving

The Family on Christmas morning

AnnaLaura and Michelle on a new sled

in Grandma and Grandpa's yard

on Christmas

Darin on his new snowskate

(a cross between a skateboard and a snowboard)

on Christams

Even Mike had to try it out!

An Uninvited Houseguest

2007-12-13T13:57:00.001-05:00

We find ourselves with a furry friend in our garage. He is enjoying munching on empty pop cans (which had been placed back inside their cases for delivery to the grocery store, but which are now scattered all over the floor), making all sorts of lovely noises during the night, and sleeping blissfully during the day in some cozy corner yet unfound. Mike wandered around the garage this morning and, since he couldn't find the little bugger, declared him gone. But...I know he's simply hiding somewhere having little fuzzy soda-filled dreams. I'd like to think our guest had vacated, but for now I will refrain from walking through the garage without a pair of boots and a broom. I shall even park outside and use the side door rather than subject my ankles and shins to the possibility of being savaged by it's wicked needle-teeth.

What could have me so flustered you ask?

Now, I am sure some of you are thinking, "What is that?" The rest are wondering, "You're scared of a opossum?" *sigh* Yes. Yes I am. You have obviously never seen their teeth. No sane and rational person would ever take a good look at all those long, needle-sharp, wicked looking teeth and not fear getting munched upon.

I had someone tell me that I had nothing to worry about since they move so slow. Trust me, just because they slowly amble across roads and get squished does not mean that they are always slow...it just means that your car doesn't scare them. I am begining to think nothing scares them. Make a loud noise, move toward them, throw pop cans at them, it doesn't matter. It will just sit there and stare at you. Then it will go back to doing whatever it was doing before. Like sleeping. However, when one decides to chase you while you're walking through the woods you quickly find out just how fast they can move. You also find out how hard it is to spot them when they're moving through (or should I say under) ferns. It is also hard to spot them when they are the same color as the floor and lower walls of your garage. And believe me, they can move when they want to.

Okay, you can stop laughing now. Yes, I really was chased by an opossum once. Yes, it scared me (since this seems to not be normal behavior for the opossum, I had things like "rabies" bouncing around in my head while I ran away...tell me it wouldn't have scared you, too). And yes, I've seen their evil teeth up close. My dog (anyone remember Coby?) cornered one and I, like an idiot, stood 10-15 feet away and took pictures while it hissed at my dog (who was happily wagging his tail, thinking he'd found a new friend). The teeth still make me shudder.

So, now I'm hoping my parent's neighbor will let me borrow their live trap. It's either that or I call pest control (I tried shooing it out with a broom but it crawled away somewhere and hid...probably fell asleep again). Hope your Holiday guests are more welcome than mine (and smell better)!

Drum Roll, Please.....

2007-11-17T12:32:00.000-05:00

The newest ultrasound pics....

And the work in progress is a.......

And like any male, seems to enjoy showing off that which is most important to him. Typical.... *grin*

The due date is still set at April 10th.

All I Want For Christmas...

2007-11-08T23:16:00.000-05:00

Okay. My kid brought her school photos home the other day, and I'm just wondering who this kid is. While all of you may think that she looks like mine....this is NOT what my child looks like.

You see, a few weeks after the school pictures were taken, the kidlet ran into the neighbor boy's elbow, resulting in....

Three days later, after eating dinner, she suddenly looked like....

Now, go back and look at that first picture again. Notice the gigantic gap on each side of her front teeth? Yeah. Okay, maybe this is my kid....she sure looks different now though. Seeing as how it's been weeks since the teeth fell out and she still looks like this, the thought keeps floating through my head.....all I want for Christmas is my 2 front teeth....

On a side note, she also got her first school ID card with her pictures. The first thing she asked me was, "Does this mean I can drive now?" *scream*

Guess What!

2007-10-08T12:12:00.000-04:00

For those of you that haven't yet heard the news....

I am pregnant!

Yep, that's right. I'm right about 13 - 14 weeks along (which means my appetite has returned and I'm not sleeping all day anymore). I just had an ultrasound this morning, and they are putting my due date at right about April 10th. Seeing as how my parents' birthdays are April 4th and 6th, I figure I've got their presents covered next year.

The other day Mike said something about how we'd get another baby shower. I told him that I thought you were only allowed one for your first kid, so I didn't think we could have another. My Mom came to the rescue and pointed out that because it's been over 6 years since AnnaLaura's shower, we could probably get away with having another. Seeing as how all our baby items are over 6 years old, have spent the last 5 years in a moldy basement, and since most the clothing items have gone through 2 (sometimes 3) kids, this is good news.

So, here's the work in progress....

In Other News...

AnnaLaura turned 6 last month! We had 2 Birthday parties (yes, we are insane), one for family and one for kids.

First came the family party. She had lots of fun with her cousins and the neighbor kids (okay, family plus next-door neighbors party). For some reason she seemed rather excited about a new blanket for her bed. I kinda wonder if she actually realized what it was....

The present that really excited her however, was a guitar. She is fascinated by Darin's guitar and plays with it whenever he lets her. Mike thought she'd love one of her own. She has since covered it in bug stickers and refers to it as her "bug guitar." I have a strange daughter....
The theme this year was butterflies. It is soooo much easier decorating a butterfly cake rather than Tigger (or any other cake she's had so far). I think I really got lucky when I was unable to find Star Wars themed party items (like any good parent we've happily addicted our child to Star Wars...she seems to really like Darth Vader...have I mentioned I have a strange daughter?). Just how does one decorate a Darth Vader cake? I'm glad I never had to find out.

please stay tuned....more later....must pick up small child (and neighbor's children) at school...

Pencil Problems

2007-09-11T09:25:00.003-04:00

As I've mentioned before, the school that AnnaLaura attends does not have busing. That being said I drop her off and pick her up every day. Last Friday when I picked her up, she jumped into the car and excitedly said, "I have real homework!"

When we got home I opened her bag to look at her homework. Not only did I find a worksheet for writing numbers poperly, I found a note that reads as follows:

AnnaLaura had a small incident today in math class. Her pencil broke, and she started to cry. I offered her spare pencil from our classroom, and instead of taking it, she continued to talk about how she wanted her own pencil. We have a classroom rule that we do not sharpen pencils after the pledge due to distractions, therefore she needed to take my pencil in order to finish her assignment. She finally took a pencil, but instead of working, she started to talk to her neighbors about her pencil. I then had her take a break in Mrs. Plant's room. When she came back, math class was over, and she was out of time to complete her work. Please help her finish this assignment at home.

Let me tell you about her pencil. At the school Open House, she (and every other kid in the school) received a pencil and an eraser from their teacher. The pencils had nifty designs on them rather than being the boring yellow ones. AnnaLaura refers to it as her "special pencil." Knowing that she had her special pencil plus one other (unsharpened) pencil in her pencil case, I figured she didn't need any others...who has ever heard of a elementary class were you are not allowed to sharpen pencils after saying the Pledge (which we all know happens at the begining of school)?!?! How many pencils does this teacher think I should send with my almost 6 year old child? I'm sure we've all had days, especially when we were just learning how to write) where we had to sharpen a pencil 5 or more times in a day because the lead kept breaking. And what kind of 6 year old isn't going to be upset when she finds out she can't use her "special pencil" for the rest of the day? Never mind the fact that this is the first time she's had her own pencil to use in class. Good grief! Something tells me that this policy causes more "distractions" than allowing children to sharpen their pencils as needed. In case you're wondering, this is the teacher's rule, not the school's. I've talked to some other parents (whose children are in different classrooms) and they had never heard of such a thing either.

Needless to say, she now has 7 sharpened pencils in her box at school. I can only hope she doesn't go through all of them in one day. I am also going to buy a hand sharpener she can take to school with her. I just hope the teacher allows that. Oh, it probably doesn't need mentioning, but she is a first time teacher. Whoever suggested this "rule" to her should, in my opinion, have to sharpen all my kid's pencils with their teeth. One can only hope that this rule doesn't survive her first year of teaching.

Does this rule bother anyone else, or am I overreacting?

Since I don't want to leave a post with at least one picture....here's the kidlet with the puppy last month. Keep in mind that this is a 6 month old puppy next to a almost 6 year old kid.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Update: Now that time has past and I've gotten to know AnnaLaura's teacher I just wanted everyone to know that I really like her. I still think that the whole no sharpening pencils thing is a bit off the wall, but she's great. Really. I mean it. AnnaLaura loves being in her class (and doesn't question the sharpening rule...at least, not that I know of) and I love knowing that she has such a kind and caring teacher. If she ever finds her way here I hope that she isn't offended or anything. I really really really like her. really.

Summer is Over Already?

2007-09-07T09:59:00.000-04:00

Oh my...it seems like last week we were at the cottage...and I swear it was only a month ago that school let out for the summer. As usual, it seems that someone has hit the fast-forward button and I've missed summer. AnnaLaura has started 1st grade, and Darin begins his first year of High School (and now he can ride the bus to and from our house so Mike no longer needs to drive him to school early in the morning)! However, no matter how fast summer seemed to fly by, we did get quite alot done this summer.

AnnaLaura playing in the sprinkler.

AnnaLaura talking on the phone to our friend in Australia.

We had a wonderful time seeing family at the cottage this summer. It's always nice to have them all make the trip Up North (and we got to meet Miles, the newest family member)!
Courtney attempting to hide from me....

Courtney showing off her surfing skills!

And here's Miles!

We also had a wonderful 4th of July BBQ at our house this year. I even managed to get a few photos of Mike's mom, Phyllis (HA!). Mike's parents brought an interesting game with them called Polish Horseshoes, which was played with constantly all day, the puppy loved all the attention that was lavished on her, the girls found a toad which they happily paraded around with for far longer than neccessary, and we somehow managed to eat all the food.

My Dad, Mike's parents, and Frank (our brother-in-law)

Darin. Michelle, Alex and Mike watch from the swings.

Phyllis plays Polish Horseshoes with Michelle.

Well, methinks that be it for today. I promise to post more soon.....well, sooner than normal...maybe...

Pup O' Mystery

2007-08-01T11:24:00.000-04:00

Well. We have ourselves a puppy. A rather large puppy. You see, we've always told AnnaLaura that we weren't home enough for a dog, and as she soon as figured out that "Mommy not working this summer" meant "Mommy home more often" we found ourselves puppy-hunting. I fell in love with quite a few husky-mix puppies at the Cherryland Humane Society that were all too hyper. Then I found some puppies at Benzie Country Animal Welfare League that not only were cheaper, but actually puppies...not half grown dogs. We spent days trying to come up with a name for her. AnnaLaura suggested "Mystery" since (as she said) "her name is a mystery." So here she is!

When we first got her in June. We guessed her weight to be around 15 lbs. and her age (acording to Animal Control) at 3 months.

3 months

After her first visit to the vet we found out that her age was off by a month. She's now almost 6 months old and weighs over 33 lbs.

More to follow shortly....

Long Time, No Post

2007-06-20T10:54:00.000-04:00

Well. I do hope there are still some people out there who feel inclined to pop in here once in a while. In the hope that there are....

It has been a busy couple of months! My 15 year old nephew has been "visiting" us for a while now (though that will change to "living" with us as soon as Mike has time to make it legal). AnnaLaura just finished up with swimming lessons. I have a new Subaru (in much better shape than the one I traded for a camera). We remodeled the kitchen. And last, but not least, I've quit my job!

Back to the beginging. As most of you know, Mike's older sister passed a year ago. She left behind two sons. The oldest of the two is now visiting us, Darin. He's a good kid, but as with many 15 year olds, he finds himself grounded rather frequently. Right now I'm just hoping he learns how to properly clean the bathroom (his mom was a clean freak and did all the cleaning herself so he has never learned). He seems to enjoy being tardy to class (at least I assume so...it happens often enough), playing music filled with screaming, skateboarding, and BMX racing (though he took his bike downtown, threw it into some bushes and then went swimming....and yes, his brand new bike that the whole family had to chip in to buy was stolen...and yes, he doesn't understand why he's grounded again).

We also had fun with our kitchen. We took down that awful fake brick (which took the drywall with it). Hung new drywall, tore out the 1970's cabinets that were falling apart, put new cabinets in, rearranged the fridge, installed a DISHWASHER (all hail the dishwasher, how we adore thee) and a garbage disposall. We still have the floors and trim to do, but we seem to have run out of energy.

I do believe that that's all for today! Time to go pick up Darin from Sylvan and go get his hair cut. Yes, I know that there are a few topics that I haven't touched on yet. Give me time (as if I haven't used enough already) and I'll get there.

Why Won't It Stop Snowing? and When Will My Kitchen Be Done?

2007-04-13T09:35:00.000-04:00

Yes, Yes...I know I haven't updated this in quite a while. I am sorry. Truly, deeply sorry. It has been a rather busy winter, and I meant to update this...really, I did, but life kept happening. *sigh*

Let me see. As you all know, I had knee surgery. Because of all the hideous things they had to do inside my knee I needed physical therapy...6 weeks of it...3 days a week. I normally try to find something to write about (on here) every other Friday while the kidlet is in school (she goes half days, every other Friday), but for 6 weeks I had therapy while she was at school. So much for that idea. "But," you're saying, "your therapy should have been over a while ago." Yes, you're right, it was. However, this has been our project lately.

This is my kitchen. See that window down there by my nephew? My sink is suppose to be under it. Right now I am washing dishes in the bathtub (not with me in it with them, silly! What kind of weirdo do you take me for? Ah...I see...ummmm, nevermind then). Remember that wall that ran from one end of my dining room to the far end of the kitchen? The one covered in fake brick? The frighteningly hideous wall? Yeah, it's gone now. Thank God! I shiver to recall those wanna-be bricks. I was going to add a picture here of the wall before it came down, but I don't seem to have one loaded onto the computer...perhaps later.

Here's the kitchen after all the drywall went up....notice that there's still no sink...and my stove is in the middle of the room...

And last night I finally managed to get the painting done (the brand-spankin' new cabinets should start to go up tomorrow. The color is a bit off (and I don't feel like messing with photoshop today, sorry) as it is actually a color called "Heatherbell" and has a slight lavender tint to it...looks white most of the time.

And this would be the pile of junk sitting in the garage. If you look, you will see that awful brick stuff at the bottom on the picture.
And these would be the new cabinets...

In final news, winter hath returned. A few weeks ago it was sunny, in the 70s (unusual for us, but very nice), the flowers were starting to come up, and the neighbor was talking about getting the hoses out. I did try to remind him that it was March, that we'd probably get more snow, and that it often snows in May around here. I really hoped he listened to me...

It literally snowed for 3 days, nonstop. Every single time I looked out the window, went outside to brush of the car again, went outside to snowblow the drive again, it was snowing. We got somewhere around 10 inches in 2 days. Now I realise that I live in Northern Michigan and it will sometimes snow well into May, but from April on, it usually snows then melts, snows then melts, etc. This ain't melting. And it keeps snowing. And it's getting really annoying. Why, oh why am I still here?

Well, I shall leave you today with a picture from warmer times (last month)...

Hopefully, now that therapy is over...and since the kitchen should be done soon...I will be able post more regularly for you. One can hope...

Going to the Dance, and Knitting Under the Influence

2007-02-09T18:58:00.000-05:00

Well, Mike and AnnaLaura have just left for the school's Father Daughter Dance. What a great idea!! The dance is held for all the girls in the school (K - 12) and their Father/Uncle/Gaurdian/etc. Not only did it give her a reason to wear her Christmas dress again, but she has a reason to wear the cape Grandma gave her for Christmas (I didn't think that would ever happen).

What I Have Learned About Knitting

As previously mentioned, my friend has taught me how to knit. I quite enjoy it (although for some reason it makes me dizzy...don't ask). As my very first project, I attempted a "Jayne" hat. Now if you've never seen Firefly (a very good, wrongly cancelled show) you are probably wondering why anyone would want to wear the thing, let alone make it (perhaps if I find a picture of Adam Baldwin wearing it, you'll understand). I learned that if I ever make another one I shall find thicker yarn. I also learned that hats are easy (HA! un-learned that soon enough!). Anyway....here is the Jayne Hat in all its glory (?). I picture it here for Amy so that she might wonder what I was thinking (psst, Amy, use thicker yarn if you plan on making one...oh yeah, and I had to cast on 90 something stitches...use thicker yarn) when I picked this for a first project. Oh, and Amy will be proud to know that I used Knitting Help to figure out how to pick up stitches for the earflaps. See Amy, I was listening! Oh, and when viewing this pic, please bear in mind that Mike's head (the intended wearer) is 5" bigger around than the kidlet's.

Now since I had successfully completed a rather odd hat with ease, I decided to make the kid a hat. I picked out some cute yarn that I could throw in the wash when I wanted and started knitting. Okay...since I began knitting while the kid was sleeping I used a very handy chart in this wonderful book that told me that a 2 - 5 year old has a 18" head and a 6 - 10 year old has a 19" head. Armed with this knowledge I began knitting. After a day or two, and 5" of hat completed, I attempt (notice my choice of word) to put it on my kid's head. Do you think it fit? Hell NO! So I measure her head and find that it's 20" around!!! I have become very good at ripping out stitches, let me tell you. So I try again. Once again I listen to this wonderful book about when to start decreasing the hat at the top...now I have a hat too short to fit on my kid's head (my kid has a big head, have you noticed?). So I rip out more stitches, and attempt (there's that word again!) to stop halfway and put the stitches back on my needle so I won't have to start at the begining again. And I did it! I got all the stiches back on my needle and just as a was sticking my needle through the very last stitch....the first 2 fell off the other end and slipped down 2 more rows. So once again I started the hat at the begining. *sigh* I did finally manage to complete it, AnnaLaura loves it, and (just because someone up there wants me to make more hats) she left it at school last week and it hasn't been seen since. But here is the hat in all it's glory!

After finishing her hat, I still had a bunch of yarn left... and since AnnaLaura was begging for a scarf, I made a scarf. In doing so I learned another valuable knitting lesson: DO NOT KNIT WHILE UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF COLD MEDICINE!! There are so many rows of knitting when I was suppose to be purling (and vice versa) due to that cold medicine....*sigh* At one point I mentioned that I was going to start over (I really didn't like how it looked anyway) and AnnaLaura got so sad. "But Mom, I really want my scarf!" So, realizing that my 5 year old could care less if I was knitting and purling in the proper order, I continued on (heck, when she told me she wanted a scarf I told her she had enough of them, and she said - bless her heart - "But I don't have one that you made, Mom!" Aaaaawwww....... Of course the scarf is also MIA with the hat, so...... Now I'm making a scarf for my Mom, bought a book that has all sorts of stitch patterns in it, and have now figured out how to do a "linen stitch" It really is a nice looking stitch. Now I just have to hope that my cold doesn't come back (or maybe my mom should hope that my cold doesn't come back).

All I want for Christmas...

2007-01-19T11:14:00.000-05:00

That'll Teach Her to Eat Celery...

Look Ma, No Tooth

AnnaLaura's tooth came out at Daycare the other day (Cheryl managed to get it on video too!). She was eating celery with lunch when it fell off. I guess she as pretty excited until the other kids started yelling at her that she was bleeding. She has 3 others loose already, so she'll be keeping the tooth fairy busy for a while. Everytime she brushes her teeth she has to look at her new tooth in the mirror...she's getting quite a kick out of it!

The Snow Has Returned!

Mike and AnnaLaura finally got to go sledding this past weekend. Santa brought Mike some snowpants for Christmas that he's been itching to try out. It was odd not having any snow on the ground for Christmas this year (or New Year's for that matter). Not that I'm complaining! Now we just have to hope they don't take out the cable in the neighborhood...though it is nice having such a deep ditch in front of the house.

Merry Belated Christmas!!

As usual, our Christmas started at home, but moved quickly to my parent's house. Paige and Jeana wore matching Santa dresses, how cute! I tried to get a good AnnaLaura, Jeana and Paige picture...but they weren't cooperating. Oh well...

Many presents were opened, my Mom's super-yummy breakfast was devoured, and the floor was covered in wrapping paper. AnnaLaura and Jeana did a great job trying to deliver packages to the proper person, but with so many moms and dads they got a bit confused at times. It was a very busy house.

Christmas at the Arnold's

After we'd stuffed ourselves at my parent's house, we were off again. A quick stop at home to off-load (and grab more presents) we headed for Mike's parent's. For the first time, we got there before dinner was ready. I think Phyllis tells me every year that the turkey will be done by 1:00, but when we get there at 1:00 they're all done eating (the same thing happens on Thanksgiving...we've learned to come early, but that doesn't always work either).

So, we opened more presents, gave out more presents, ate more food...you get the picture.

Christmas at the Petzler's, and some sledding.

A Visitor Comes Calling

My dear friend Amy* came to visit her family immediately follwoing Christmas with her son Oscar. I convinced her to teach me how to knit while she was here (yeah, convinced...it's not like she was jumping up and down with uncontrolable joy or anything...okay, maybe all I had to do was mention it). So...I'm now knitting. Make that attempting to knit. Okay, I'm knitting, I'm holding my own, it's more enjoyable than SuDoKu every night. Honestly, I'm having alot of fun, trying to learn how to do things (though I still can't figure out how to pick up dropped stiches). AND I'm getting good at unraveling and re-knitting...real good...lots o' practice, ya know?

Oscar had fun crawling around our house and sticking AnnaLaura's toys in his mouth. He also tried to help her play her video games on her V-Smile system. It was nice to have her here for a while, and sad to see her go (though after stopping by Mama Grouch, I see she had a simply miserable time going home).

He's Got the Whole World in His Mouth?

*it now occurs to me that she might rather that I refer to her as Mama Grouch, and her child as The Creep. I hope I'm not giving away any secret identities...oopsie...

Sorry Everyone!

2007-01-12T08:37:00.000-05:00

I will be putting up a new post soon, I promise. We've been a little busy around here lately, but since I have the next week off while I recover from knee surgery I'm hoping to write something nice and long for ya! So, as soon as I can sit in a chair without somehow making sure my knee is over my heart (joy...) I'll tell ya all about our Christmas, how the snow came back, and my adventures in knitting (thank you Mama Grouch!!).

Till then, take care! Cross your fingers that moving and reshaping my kneecap somehow stops the back of my knee from hurting...

Christmas is coming (and what's the exchange rate on teeth, anyway?)

2006-12-08T15:46:00.000-05:00

Well, it's that time of year again. Once again I have attempted to take a nice picture of AnnaLaura for Christmas cards, and once again I have to wonder what adult programming she's watching while we're out of the room. The first year it was funny, the second year I just had to roll my eyes, this year I'm becoming concerned. Where is she getting this?? The only thing I can think of are the commercials (primarily for Barbie and Bratz) all over children's programming. I honestly do not know where else she would get these ideas..... See for yourself...

HELP ME!!!

She did manage to let me take a few good ones, so hopefully my cards will be in the mail soon (I'm aiming for before Christmas this time, maybe it'll happen). This one seemed to be okay.

We have some big news: AnnaLaura has her first loose tooth! This sent me searching all over the internet looking for the going rate of teeth these days. After some searching I've learned that inflation effects Tooth Fairies as much as it does us mortals. Wow... I think I received a quarter per tooth (I think once I found 3 quarters and I about fainted). It seems that $1 to $2 dollars is the norm out in the world, though if any of you think (or know) differently please let me know!

Lots O Snow (and The Thanksgiving Photos)

2006-12-01T16:33:00.000-05:00

This morning we were snow free... We were aware that snow was on its way...
The whether reports started a few days ago telling us to expect 1 - 3 inches on Friday. Then the weather system tracked farther north than they were expecting, so yesterday they said to expect 2 - 5. This morning, while dropping off Mike and AnnaLaura (at work and school) they said 6 - 9 inches of snow (did I mention that the ground was free of snow this morning). Well...They were wrong. We did not get 1 inch, or 5 inches, or even 9 inches. In the picture below you will see 2 spiral light trees. The one of the left is 1.5 feet tall, and there's maybe 4 inches left showing above the snow.

Every time it snows around here, we always wonder, "Is this it? Is this the snow that stays on the ground till spring? Or, will it melt?" Well folks, I do believe that it's finally here to stay. I think that we won't see green again for quite a while. It is not suppose to stop snowing (though it is suppose to lessen) for over a week.

For Thankgiving we all gathered at Mom and Dad's (after our early afternoon feast at Mike's parent's house). Here are a few pictures from our evening!

What an adorable Paige!

Paige the Imp

Jeana and AnnaLaura

Jeana, AnnaLaura and Paige

Bunny Ears!!

Hello to the people that I don't know that keep stopping by!! Thanks for reading!! I hope I am able to be interesting enough to keep you coming back.

2006-11-20T00:03:00.000-05:00

A Week of Firsts

AnnaLaura had her first school pictures taken last month (okay, maybe a "week" of firsts was an inacurate title), and look: she's not acting like a complete goofball!! Who woulda guessed? It's actually a good school photo...I am simply amazed. In warning, the resolution on this pic is very low. I do, however, have many many copies here at home and will gladly send them out to those that want one. As long as you don't mind a wallet sized one, that is (I will order more larger sizes if enough people request them though).

Her Kindergarten class had a "Culminating Event" this past week, to which the parents were invited. Now I'm a bit confused here as I thought that a culmination was an ending or climax, but oh well. We got to see "A Day in the Life of a Kindergartener" condensed into 30 minutes. We even were treated to a rendition of Going on a Bear Hunt by our children (we were asked to join in...unfortunately I had my camera with me and so was duty-bound to photograph the event).

After the singing and dancing, her Spanish teacher, Sr. Cole, came in to give a short demonstration of his lesson. Okay, my kid tells me every day of school that she hasn't learned any new spanish words, yet she seems to know "sit", "stand", "fast", "slow", every color of the rainbow, and quite a few animals as well. Methinks someone is lying... I should mention that AnnaLaura also refuses to tell anyone, and I mean anyone, anything about school. Her counting is much better, she has learned a few "sight words" such as we, the, is, I, and can write her name better now as well (otherwise I'd think she was skipping class). She can also write her name backwards (completely backwards: right to left with all letters reversed) which I'm thinking is not a skill that they teach at school.

And now her most recent "first"! She has never, until today, been to a movie theater. Let's face it, movies are loud, crowded, and expensive. I was not about to take her into a cinema until she figured out what they were on her own. Well, someone finally told her about them. Get this. We now have an excuse to go see children's movies (as if we needed one before)! And what did we go see?

This movie is grrrreat! Go see it!! Now! With kids or without, you must go and see it! This is an order! What are you doing?? Why are you still reading this? Go watch this musical penguiny basket of joy (I kept waiting to hear the soundtrack from Grease...but in a good way...I really don't like Grease, but...oh, just trust me and see the movie). Who knew Hugh Jackman could sound like Elvis, anyway?

Skeleton Incognito

2006-11-03T17:04:00.000-05:00

A Girl Dressed As A Skeleton Dressed As A Girl

AnnaLaura decided to be a skeleton this year for Halloween. Unfortunately, due to the temperature being in the low 30's, she had to wear a coat over her costume - thus she looked like a skeleton in a little girl costume! It would have worked better if she'd worn the mask, but the mask had only eye-holes and she kept complaining that everytime she breathed out it (her breath) got into her eyes.

AnnaLaura really enjoyed carving pumkins this year, too. Okay, she enjoyed playing in pumpkin guts... She tried to carve her own pumpkin but was having problems controlling the direction of the little "saw" that comes in those pumpkin carving kits, so I carved it for her. However, she did draw the picture of what she wanted on her jack o' lantern, so I didn't have to think too hard. Should I mention that Mike also had problems controlling that little saw and I had to carve his pumpkin for him too (and he did not draw me a picture, either!), or will I get in trouble? Hrmmmm....too late now!

On the Sunday before Halloween we went to Paige's 2nd Birthday/Halloween Party!! Both Paige and Jeana were Scooby-Doos, while Meg and George were Daphne and Shaggy...can you tell what cartoon series/movies they like? AnnaLaura went as a skeleton (of course), while Mike and I were boring and went as ourselves (my Mom, however, was a purple witch!).

AnnaLaura had a lot of fun Trick or Treating, as usual, even though only half the houses in our neighborhood were doing candy this year. What the heck is wrong with people?? Last year over 80% of the houses gave out candy! Very rarely did we have to walk past more than 2 unlit houses in a row before getting to another participating house...not this year! We actually took the car so we could drive past the areas where there'd be a whole section of houses with their lights off (and so we could warm up - when we got back home it was 32* out). Oh well, it's not like she needs that much candy, we end up throwing Halloween candy away every Christmas anyway (and the Christmas stash gets thrown out come Easter).

I hope everyone else had an enjoyable Halloween this year!! And I hope you're not seeing the white fluffy stuff out your window what I'm seeing out of my window. Oh, and for the crazy people who are jealous of our snow: please feel free to come up here and take as much home with you as you'd like (we won't miss it, I promise). In fact, I insist...

* I would have used one of those little circle things that denotes "degrees" but I have no idea how to make my keyboard create one...so deal with it**

** okay, does someone know how to make those little circle "degree" thingies?

Is It The Great Pumpkin?

2006-10-25T15:42:00.000-04:00

AnnaLaura had her 1st school field trip!! Her Kindergarten class (and the other 3 Kindergarten classes at her school) piled onto a school bus and headed for Pahl's Pumpkin Patch. Should I mention that this was also her 1st bus ride (as I have posted earlier, her school does not have any bussing....so, her teacher actually had to "teach" her class about riding a bus)? With 4 classes (10-15 kids in each) and the teachers on the bus, there wasn't much room left. That meant that all us parents had to follow the bus on a 20 minute drive through the countryside (we were encouraged to carpool).

The kids each received a free pumpkin from the enormous "pick your own" pumpkin patch. Unfortunately it was a bit too close to Halloween and the pumpkin patch was rather over-picked. AnnaLaura absolutely refused to pick out a pumpkin with cries of, "I already have a pumpkin! I don't want another one!" So....I picked out a pumpkin (I paid $5 for this field trip, we're getting a &$#@ pumpkin!).

AnnaLaura and Abbey

As a chaperone I was responsible for watching 2 kids (the third didn't go to school that day), AnnaLaura and her friend Abbey. After they ate their snack we had some time to kill so they posed for me (see above). Afterward they ran around in circles like crazed chickens (I just hope they didn't scare the real chickens too much).

Feeding some cows

Up close with a horse

AnnaLaura has seen plenty of cows...No matter which direction we drive from our house, we pass a field filled with cows...But she's never been able to touch one before. She really enjoyed being able to feed and touch the calf, but she really liked petting the horse. Pahl's also had 2 goats, 2 pigs (small ones), a whole mess of chickens (some of which layed green eggs - which AnnaLaura is still laughing about), and some bunnies. While all of them were fenced in she was still able to touch most of them. She was even able to feed the chickens!

Hay-bale maze

Corn stalk maze

Pahl's had 3 mazes: a small corn maze (maize maze?), a large corn maze, and a hay-bale maze. First, we went through the small corn maze. Both AnnaLaura and Abbey were very excited to examine real ears of corn still on the stalk and touch the leaves. The next maze they ran through was the hay-bale maze (I didn't venture in, but took pictures instead). They ran and ran and ran...back and forth...over and over again...until they got bored. Then off to the big corn maze! The owners of the farm told us that there was an exit to the maze, but we never found it. We followed 2 other groups of parents and kids until we all became tired and lost and cold... and then we all cheated our way out. Something tells me that when people are on a time constraint of 15 minutes for 3 mazes they cheat..at least when trying to keep track of multiple 5 year olds.

We all had a lot of fun and everyone was accounted for when it was time to get on the bus. I made a quick run into town and put all my pictures on a CD for AnnaLaura's teacher. When I asked her later if the CD was satisfactory, she showed me the project she and another teacher were working on: they're putting together a coloring book for the kids where they can draw a picture of the corn maze (or seeing the animals, picking pumpkins, etc.) and up in the corner of the page will be one of my pictures. Wow! It feels great to be able to do things like that for AnnaLaura's class.

Mrs. Frusti's Kindergarten Class

A Few More Pictures

2006-10-22T23:00:00.000-04:00

I Always Wanted To Dig That Up Anyway...

2006-10-20T16:25:00.000-04:00

The snow that weighted down my lilac tree has melted...but my lilac tree stayed on the ground. Seems that the two largest trees (?) had snapped at ground level. Am I angry? Hurt? Slightly upset? Naw. I've wanted to dig that eyesore out since we moved in. So, after one hour of digging, pulling and swinging an axe, I no longer have a lilac tree on the east side of my shed (there is still a small on one the west side of the shed, and another large one on the east side of the house. Any takers?).

I had no idea I'd end up swinging an axe at lilac roots. There were a few times when I'd thought that I'd removed all I could, but then Mike would come out and chop at something, or dig a little, or pull a bit on something...and it'd work. You have no idea what my shoulders felt like for the next two days (nor do you want to).

As I'm sure you've all noticed in the lovely picture above, my yard is once again filled with leaves. Actually, it's not filled, most of the trees aren't even half bare yet. Now if it would stop raining, perhaps we could get some raking done. Of course, it doesn't seem that Mother Nature will oblige us any time soon. Rain is scheduled the next few days, and then the "S" word returns (by Sunday!!). I really hate that "S" word. I get grumpy enough when it snows in November, we won't get in to detail about my reaction in October.

Today I shall leave you with a cute picture Mike took the other night. Squishy (grey cat) was sleeping in her favorite spot when Tigger (orange tabby) decided that he wanted to sleep there. Since we got new furniture for the living room the cats won't stay off the back cushions..it's their new favorite place to sleep.

ACK!

2006-10-13T09:11:00.000-04:00

My lilac tree usually stands taller than the shed.....this morning, it's stretched out on the ground. There's nothing quite like 5 or 6 inches of wet snow.

Needless to say, I need to buy new winter gear for AnnaLaura. She's already begging to go outside to make snow-angels, and I know that last year's boots and jacket will not fit her anymore. What is it with kids growing all the time? There should be a law against it...

LEAVES!!! (and then a four letter "S" word...)

2006-10-12T21:17:00.000-04:00

Leaves

Last weekend AnnaLaura's cousins, Michelle and Alex, spent the night. Saturday afternoon they raked up a big pile of leaves for AnnaLaura to jump into. They jumped, rolled, threw leaves high into the air (and at each other), and every once in while they had to rake the leaves back into a pile. Yep, the whale-pulting crew was back! I am always amazed at how well her cousins treat her. I don't believe that it's that common for two 11 year olds to spend that much time making their 5 year old cousin happy.

Later that night, I woke up to hear rain. Oh dear... I was going to have to spend Sunday cooped up in my house with 3 hyper kids. I groaned... I swear I almost wept (okay, I swore...but quietly). Luckily, I managed to fall back asleep. When I awoke I found the ground to be dry with no signs of any rain. Confused? Look at the ground in the picture below. What I heard was leaves and maple seeds falling. Lots of seeds and leaves. I have never in my life seen that many maple seeds! However, I am very much use to seeing that many leaves...unfortunately.

The kids spent most of the morning running from one side of the house to the other trying to catch "helicopters" (i.e. maple seeds). Back and forth, up and down, they ran and ran and ran. Their heads tilted up, arms stretched out, running around in circles, and no one had to go to the hospital. You know, it's amazing how exhausting it is watching kids run (especially when some of them aren't yours).

Luckily for us, we lured the kids into raking the yard by offering them money. I've never seen someone grab a rake that fast!! After they raked the smaller front yard Mike told them that they could probably make more money by raking the back as well. In the span of 3 hours my entire yard was raked! Of course we were also a bit poorer, but it was worth it (trust me, it would have taken twice as long if we'd done it ourselves while trying to keep track of AnnaLaura*).

The 4 Letter "S" Word

I woke up this morning to see a most frightening sight....SNOW!!!! It's October 12th!!! It can't snow yet!! *whimper* Okay, I hate snow...really hate snow...ask my Mom, she'll tell you. Don't get me wrong, I love to sled, making snowmen are fun...perhaps it's not that I hate snow, but that I hate the cold. I think I'd love snow if I could play in it with 75 degree weather. *sigh* And it's still snowing...and it's going to keep snowing tomorrow. I've heard that it's going to get nice (and by nice I do not mean it will be a decent temperature of high 70s, but perhaps in the 50s instead), but I'll believe it when I see it.

So, tonight I leave you with a wonderful picture.... This is what greeted me this morning as I was getting ready for work. I hope that you've been spared this sight....

*I lie...it would have taken multiple days because we're old and broken and lazy...

A Little Bit of Color

2006-10-06T12:25:00.000-04:00

As I said before, fall is almost here. I drove (and walked) around a bit this morning after dropping off AnnaLaura and here's what I saw. Enjoy!!

Arbutus Lake

(near our house)

Sumac along Boardman Lake

Vine along Boardman Lake

Arbutus Lake (again)

View from my driveway

Tonight we're going to AnnaLaura's school carnival!! I took AnnaLaura to the school book fair this afternoon and left with many (some would say too many) books. I even managed to find a few for me. One of them, Dream Big with Olivia, I recommend to all. While it is a children's book, it is filled with the most wonderful quotes from such people as: Albert Einstein, Lewis Carroll and Harry S Truman. So check out the children's section in your local bookstore!! I'll leave you with my favorite quote (also found in the book, which is why I bought it)...

"Look for the ridiculous in everything and you will find it." Jules Renard

Summer is Over

2006-10-05T21:22:00.000-04:00

Well, that's it...summer is over. Dad and Mike got the boat hoist back on dry land last Sunday while Grandpa supervised. While fall really is beautiful around here, I can't help but think about what's just around the corner. And I hate thinking about what's coming soon! In fact, whenever I hear someone use a certain 4 letter "S" word, I have an urge to cover my ears with my hands and chant "lalalalala." Northern Michigan would be the perfect place to live if it wasn't for the 3....errrr 4.....okay 5 months of white. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for sledding (not much of a skier, although we do have our share of ski slopes), I just wish it was warmer while I'm rocketing down the hill. Say 70, perhaps.

I will have to admit that driving around right now is wonderful. We're almost at peak fall color (at least up by my house) and everywhere you look is another brightly colored tree. Perhaps I shall drive around taking pictures while AnnaLaura is in school (ack! still haven't located school pictures yet!) tomorrow.....hrmmmmm. Now if only the temperature would come back out of the 50s. I heard it's suppose to be in the high 20s tonight. Brrrrrr.

AnnaLaura is enjoying school, thankfully. She has made new friends, one of which actually lives in our subdivision! I couldn't believe it when she was invited to a Birthday party just up the road! Now I'm sure some of you are wondering why I'm so shocked that a schoolmate lives that near to us, so let me explain. AnnaLaura attends a (K - 12) charter school. While it is a public school, it is not part of the local school district and is actually a district all its own. This means that not only do I have to drive her to and from school, but the students are from the entire county (and some from other counties as well) not just a localized area. Yippee for neighbors!

It's getting late, folks. I will try to find time tomorrow to add a bit more. Maybe. Please let me know if you want any of the pics in any of my posts. I will do my best to get them out to you!

I leave you with this collection of images

End of Summer

Birthday, Bread & Books

2006-09-25T15:23:00.000-04:00

Birthday

My grandfather (or Bumpa, as AnnaLaura calls him) turned 88 this past week. In honor of this event, we* had a birthday party for him yesterday. AnnaLaura and her cousins, Jeana and Paige, had lots of fun tickling Bumpa and running rampant around my parent's house. Somehow, my mom managed to get everyone on the couch for an impromptu family picture. A thank-you goes out to my Aunt Barb for taking the picture for me.

It was a wonderful evening with great food, lots of hugs, and hyper-active kids running in circles around the place. Paige followed AnnaLaura around (as usual) while trying to say her name, which comes out as "Ann-lala", which is pretty close. The kids obviously had fun, and we (my sister, myself, and our husbands) kept trying to escape.

I had a chance to use my new camera some more in front of Dad, just so I could drive him crazy. I use to worry about him breaking into my house to steal my CDs (mainly Mike's G&R CDs), but now I worry about my camera disappearing, only to reappear in his car. Why is it that I see a camera purchase in my father's future?

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Bread

One of my favorite memories of childhood revolves around bread....fresh baked bread. Every week, Grandma baked 4 loaves of bread. We would often visit on bread-day, and the aroma...ooooh, the aroma! If you could package to smell of bread baking, you'd be rich. Because of this, I decided to try my hand at it. I figured that since I'm pretty good with Grandma's Cream Puff recipe I'd try Grandma's Bread recipe. Oh, you should smell my house right now.

Well, lets put it this way - I'm currently on piece #2

I told Mom that I'd bring a loaf to her tomorrow, and let me tell you, I am really kicking myself for offering. In all honesty I could sit down and eat a whole loaf by myself. After I take 2 loaves to my mom's tomorrow (so she can take 1 to Grandpa) I'll only have 1 1/2 loaves for myself and that's going to last how long? Two days, maybe? When am I going to have time to bake bread again? Who knows. I got lucky having today off while AnnaLaura is in school. ACK!

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Books

This week is Banned Book Week. Visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banned_books and see how many of your favorite books have been banned! You won't believe some of the titles, trust me. Spend some time checking out the web site on the link below. There is some very interesting information there that, I feel, should be read by everyone. I couldn't believe the number of books that I grew up with that are on the top 100 challenged books and/or authors. I mean, who would ban Roald Dahl? Or Judy Bloom? While I was aware of many wonderful books and authors on this list (Mark Twain, for one) I was absolutely astounded by some of the listings. So, please check it out and make sure to pick up your favorite banned book this week! Don't let me be the only one with my nose in a book... And please leave a comment on your favorite banned book, I'm interested to see them!

*okay, Mom and Dad....errrrr, Mom had a party.

Farewell, old friend

2006-09-22T13:09:00.000-04:00

Well, I've done it. My beloved rust-heap of a car is now gracing someone else's driveway. *sniff* Believe it or not, I will miss that car. And why have I done away with it? Well......I traded it for a camera. Yep, you heard right. I am now the proud owner of a Nikon D70.

I borrowed this same camera to shoot a wedding this past summer, and loved it. When we received the Nikon D80 at work a few weeks ago, I offered to buy my co-worker's camera (so he could buy the new one), and to my surprize he said yes (actually, he said yes after calling his wife for permission). The next day I jokingly offered to trade him my car for it. Next thing I knew he was calling his wife again. Seems that he had been looking for a junk heap to last him until next spring. Lucky me!! I had been planning on selling it, and hoping that I could get $500 for it.

Since I have now (finally) entered the digital age, perhaps I can figure out how to use all this photo-editing software that I've had on my computer for 5 years. Can anyone believe that I've worked in a camera store for 5 years and am just NOW getting a digital camera? And hey, look! I figured out how to "merge" two photos together. I'm cookin' now!

On a slightly similar note, a regular costomer of mine has decided to photograph weddings again (he runs a modeling agency and had stopping doing wedding photography about 3 years ago) and asked if I'd be interested in working with him!! Yippee!! I absolutely love shooting weddings! Come on, Paul....book those weddings!!

Summer Fun

2006-09-14T00:57:00.000-04:00

This summer we spent 10 days at the family cottage on East Bay, just outside Traverse City. For 4 of those days we had a full house...errrr, cottage. Both nephews and a niece joined us for swimming, s'mores, and "whale-pulting." And what is whale-pulting? Well, take one giant inflatable whale, add 2 or 3 kids, and let them do what comes naturally - jump up and down and try to launch your cousin in the air. Isn't it great that kids these days can so easily find entertainment with nothing more than a beach toy? Nevermind the fact that they were 30 feet from the bay and the water was warm. Oh well.

We had a thunderstorm blow through while we were there...and I got a picture!!! Yippee for me!! My first ever lightning shot on my first try! Luckily AnnaLaura slept through the whole thing. When the wind blew all the windows open she merely rolled over. I did manage to finally get my car windows rolled up after I re-shut the cottage windows (which was after the inside of my car got soaked).

Unfortunately, the sun kept setting...and I kept taking pictures, and more pictures, and more pictures (7 rolls of film, yes film, but don't worry - I'm trading my car for a digital camera next week). I have made so many copies of some of these sutsets for people, I'm thinking I need to sell some. And then I need to shoot some weddings so that I can buy accessories for my new camera. Which means that I need a website. Which means I need to learn how to make a website. Anyone out there with some free time to make a website for me? Anyone?

I will leave you with this picture I managed to take without AnnaLaura noticing. Of course once she realized that I was taking her picture she stopped cooperating. This meant that I had to settle for taking more sunset pictures.

Well folks, I still owe you some first day of school pics...still haven't gone looking for that CD. When I find it though, I will share...I promise.

Ahoy Matey!

2006-09-11T23:13:00.000-04:00

Some one turns 5 tomorrow!!

AnnaLaura's Birthday party was on Sunday. There's nothing like a house full of people to make you appreciate having some alone time. However, it actually was alot of fun, the multitude of children were rather well behaved, the menfolk seemed glued to the football game, and the rest of us stood outside (freezing) while pretending to watch the children. All in all, no one got hurt and much fun was had by all (or at least they all acted like they enjoyed themselves - thank you, everyone).

This year we had a Pirate Party. For the first time the theme was not Pooh related! Yippee! Also for the first time, I did not draw a picture on the cake. Instead, I stuck toys on the cake and called it good (thank you Playmobile)! I still had to frost the thing though...I hate frosting cakes. Really.

Since this was a Pirate Party, AnnaLaura received a Pirate Ship from Grandma (and a rowboat and raft - with a Pirate each - that I needed for the cake). It really is a fun ship with LOTS of little pieces that I'm sure will soon be in the vacuum bag. Let's not talk about all the Polly Pocket parts that will be in the vacuum too. Needless to say, my living room is an absolute disaster. I won't mention my kitchen if you don't.

School started last week and already AnnaLaura, who was soooo excited last week, wants to stay home because "cleaning up" is "too hard." Poor child. I wonder where she got that from.... I have pictures of the first day of school, but I'm not sure of the location of the CD since the house was cleaned pre-party. When it is located they will be posted.

Also coming soon, pic from our stay at the cottage. It's mainly sunsets, but there's some fun "whale-pulting" too. Stay tuned!

Wooly Thinking

I Thought Ridges Were Better?

Almost Two!

Tummy Time!

Big and Bumpy

Chewin' the cud

A Very Merry Digital Christmas!

Standing in Sand

New Neighbors?

No Paternity Test Needed!

A Day at the Farm

Birthday! or no more booster seats

Gender Differences

Summer Part 2 - More Cherry Festival!

If a Tree Falls in Your Yard...Who Cleans it Up?

Our Summer So Far...

Slip Slidin' Away!

The Magical Pillow of Sleepiness +4

Fun With Song and Water

More Critters?

A Wee Bit of Confusion

Won't You Be My Neighbor?

Attack of the Killer Swingset

There's Something Fishy Going On Here...

Color Me Ouch!

LOOK WHO'S ONE!!

Check this out....

Finally.....

A Walkin' Talkin' Fool

Story Time

Hey! I almost Forgot!

Fun at School Or Look! A New Post!

Eeep!

It's Just One Thing After Another! in a good way...

Try & Try Again

September....At Last

And It Has Begun

August Part 2

I Give You....Sock Houdini!

*Insert Scream of Terror Here*

Go Trick-or-Treating, I Must

August Part 1

Cannibalistic Jack-O-Lantern!

JULY!!

I Laughed So Hard I Almost....

ACK!

Please Go To Sleep!

Hello again!

I Really Need To Get More Sleep

Christmas Past

An Uninvited Houseguest

Drum Roll, Please.....

All I Want For Christmas...

Guess What!

Pencil Problems

Summer is Over Already?

Pup O' Mystery

Long Time, No Post

Why Won't It Stop Snowing? and When Will My Kitchen Be Done?

Going to the Dance, and Knitting Under the Influence

All I want for Christmas...

Sorry Everyone!

Christmas is coming (and what's the exchange rate on teeth, anyway?)

Lots O Snow (and The Thanksgiving Photos)

Skeleton Incognito

Is It The Great Pumpkin?

A Few More Pictures

I Always Wanted To Dig That Up Anyway...

ACK!

LEAVES!!! (and then a four letter "S" word...)

A Little Bit of Color

Summer is Over

Birthday, Bread & Books

Farewell, old friend

Summer Fun

Ahoy Matey!

Insert Scream of Terror Here