A New Word

Rebekah learned a new word this morning: SNOW. There was a light dusting of snow on rooftops and scattered around the yard this morning.

It let up for a while, but it's back and there are some pretty heavy flurries right now. I don't know that any of it will accumulate as it's already 11 am.

Chad and I were trying to remember the first day of snow last year. I would be surprised if it was earlier than 29 September!

We have the house mostly clean in case we get our first call for someone to look at the house. I'm doing laundry, so that's still undone, but otherwise, I'd only need to wipe down the kids' bathroom and empty garbages. With nothing to do, and yardwork a no-go today, we're wishing someone would call and give us an excuse to leave the house. We don't want to go for no reason and then get a call that sends us right back out shortly after returning home.

It's funny that I can find all sorts of things to keep me busy when I'm supposed to be cleaning. And now that there isn't any cleaning to do, I'm not sure what to do! It's a world of irony.

News on the stray cat round-up: I brought in one more cat to the shelter yesterday. I returned the trap as it seems that was the last. So in two weeks' time, I delivered 9 cats/kittens to shelters in the area. That seems like a lot for one little address in the city!

*SIGH*

We listed our house with the realtor today. We were still attacking final details when he arrived with his camera.

A ton of our very valuable but worldly possessions are in a storage unit. The rooms don't seem too small anymore. Even I've been fooled by this little trick!

My mom came for a couple of days to help us get some things done. We wouldn't have made it without her help. (The house and yard wouldn't have looked good, at least.) We appreciate her help. It was a little stressful for me, but it was a price worth paying.

I still have to go around parts of the house and eliminate fingerprints on walls. I haven't even touched the windows yet. I nearly acquired a dust allergy cleaning off the computer cabinet. I'm surprised I didn't surprise anything living.

We are tired and look forward to relaxing tonight. I look forward to no contractions in the middle of cleaning! I expect my back will stop aching in a couple of days.

Now I just have to keep it all under control. (Let's hope that it sells quickly.) I don't think I've been able to convey the seriousness of the clutter containment to the kids. Daniel looks at me like I'm crazy. I am, but that's beside the point.

In addition to cleaning and making a trip to DI (and why do I have another pile started already?), I've made two trips to the county animal shelter. I've now delivered 2 grown cats and a kitten. I'm shooting for one more kitten and one more cat, if they're dumb enough to be caught in the cat trap. My greatest triumph is that the ever-bearing mother cat is now in county custody and will be put down or spayed before being released. THANK YOU! Three litters (11 kittens) in a year is plenty of unwanted kitties.

Hopefully, I don't have any neighbors with outside cats roaming around. If it gets caught in the trap and doesn't have a collar, it's getting a free ride to the shelter! I may have felt sorry about it last year, but that humane feeling is all gone.

I still have several projects that need completing. I really have no hope that my quilt will be off the frame before we have to move it, but other things aren't so hopeless. In fact, there is an Enrichment mtg. tonight and I'll be bringing my baby afghan to work on. I think people expect it of me by now.

If anyone knows anyone looking for a decent-sized house, in a quiet neighborhood (if you don't count the barking dogs...one of which is our new neighbors. Can you believe he put up his dog kennel in the corner of his yard that is about 7 feet from the boys' bedroom window and 2 feet from where buyers would be passing? It's a little thoughtless. The kennel is closer to our house than to his!), and in a great ward - send them to our house!

OK. I'm sure that last paragraph broke a few English language/mechanics/grammar rules.

I get to have a nap tomorrow! (Watch - now someone will want to look at the house between 12 and 2 most days.)

Equally Yoked

I tried this little activity from a link on a friend's blog. According to this website, Chad and I are very good at sharing DNA equally when having children (of course, once they started entering this world, we noticed that they all looked about the same). As for the one with me and my parents, I'm not really convinced. Both Chad and I think I look more like my mom, but according to facial "scans," I'm more like my dad. Huh.

Some things are just unexpected

Kind of like listening to your friend describe a property one day then hearing her say the next that they've decided not to get it, so you go to look at it yourself on Wednesday (out of curiosity), get the realtor to show it to you at 5 pm on Friday, have people ask you at church on Sunday if you're really moving (and have it announced that your house is for sale - when it's not), look at the house again (and the 5 acres it's attached to) on Monday, make an offer on Wednesday, and accept a counter offer on Thursday. The closing date is "on or before 26 October 2007."

Yeah, that was all unexpected.

The house is a little smaller than the one we have now. (We'll be getting rid of some things we don't need.) BUT, the house is on one acre and there are 4 adjoining acres zoned agricultural. We won't have any immediate neighbors. There is a well, propane tank, and septic system...we're not in the city limits. The land is flood irrigated from the canal that is one of the natural borders of the property.

We're only moving 15 minutes away from where we are now, but it's a different city and different school district as well as a different stake. We've started gearing the boys up to start new schools and friends.

We're going to rent our current home to the same friends that told us about this property as they have just sold their house and will be homeless while they build a new house. This plan has changed. We all just felt like things weren't quite right and have decided to list the house for sale instead of renting. We didn't want to have anything happen to hurt a good friendship and there were too many "iffy" situations.

I moved into our first house when I was 8 months pregnant with Daniel and swore I'd never do that again! (I'll never trust another word out of my mouth.) I'll be even farther along this time! Hmmm...maybe this baby will come earlier than planned! ;)

I kind of feel like a traitor to our ward and friends here. I don't really know why I feel that way. Maybe it's because we're just springing this on everyone so suddenly.

So, anyway. That's what we're up to. What's new with you? ha ha



Here are the promised pictures of the Spud Day parade.

Nathan and Leah watching, but not listening to, the siren-blaring fire trucks go by. They're standing in the street because....









...people throw candy in small-town parades. (This would be deadly in Las Vegas. Plus, all the candy would be melted and sticky.)









Rebekah was a quick study and soon had handfuls of candy.









So she really got upset when she couldn't have a piece of candy whenever she wanted one.









That doesn't mean that she never got one!









Daniel was in the parade this year on the TaVaci trailer. I guess it's supposed to be a float, but I'm being shockingly honest.

It was perfect weather for Spud Day this year. Previous years have been cold or freezing. Last year they were selling hot chocolate. We enjoyed lemonades this year.


One parting shot. Leah and Rebekah before bed this evening. I've learned that Rebekah smiles with her tongue out when posing for a picture. We were at the school getting pictures (school picture day) today and she kept popping that thing out!

Sad, sad

I took 5 cats to the animal shelter today. We felt bad about taking in the two kittens we've had for over 4 months. They have been such sweet and well-behaved kitties. Now they'll be separated from each other and I feel so guilty about it.

I don't feel too bad about passing Jingle on. He's so cranky.

The two little wild kittens have been a lot of work. They're still not quite 2 months old, and very cute, so I'm sure they'll be adopted easily.

On the bright side, no more smelly litter box or meowing for food. Hopefully, Daniel will have a marked improvement with his allergies. Now that summer is ending, the outside irritants should soon be no trouble, also.

In a new topic, Rebekah has really started talking more lately. She's even trying! It's pretty cute. She's become VERY independent. Everything is , "ME!" She's getting too grown up for her high chair. She often refuses to sit in it. She gets very mad if someone else shuts a door (including cabinet doors). Somehow, she got it into her head that she's the only one who can do that job. She doesn't like me to help her get her clothes on or off. It would be so much easier for her to pull her pants up if she didn't have such a bulky diaper on. Unfortunately, potty training is the one thing that she doesn't feel the need to do (on her own or otherwise).

I have some pictures of the kids and the Spud Day parade. Too bad they're still on the camera which is upstairs in the kitchen. I'm too tired to go get it, so you'll have to wait until next time.

Yes, It's 3 AM

And, Yes, I'm sitting at the computer. No, I can't sleep. My family is going to love me tomorrow. I've been cranky enough. This isn't going to help. It's too late to take a unisom of any size (since I need 7-8 hours to sleep of half a pill). It's very frustrating.

Chad wants to look at a farm house on 5 acres (in about 14 hours). So that has my mind wandering in about 1,000 directions. The ups and DOWNS of moving and changing life routines (schools especially) for each of us. How much work it would take to get this house ready to sell (stripping wallpaper and painting in 3 rooms). Getting to know a new ward. Being 7 months pregnant. I'll admit, I'm LAZY and it's only gotten worse the past few months. Not to mention that the farm house is a couple hundred sq. ft smaller than this one. What are the chances that we'd actually be serious about this property? Probably only 50/50. I wish I could turn my mind off and get some sleep.

I still have two kittens shut up in a little animal carrier. The momma cat finally made her appearance this afternoon but doesn't seem too interested in her babies. I've got to let them out soon. It's not a very big carrier! Maybe the vet could find someone that wants them? If I could just catch the momma, I could call the county and they'd come pick her up. I don't want to have them come all the way out here for two of her kittens. I still have our 3 pet cats to find homes for. At one time I had 5 cats out on my back patio this afternoon. I'm not even a lonely, single lady!

We're going golfing with Chad's company tomorrow morning. It's the annual golf party. Yipee. I'm driving the golf cart. Maybe I'll take a few pictures to scrapbook later. I'll probably bring a book. I drove the golf cart two years ago when Rebekah was about 3 weeks old. I actually golfed last year. This is how I know I don't really care for golfing. This year, I'm not about to be swinging my torso all around just to be a good sport. Just imagine all the fodder for jokes that would be! There is a free lunch included though and how could anyone in my condition pass that up!??!

And speaking of scrapbooking, here are a few pages that I've done lately.

Wild Animals: behind bars and escaped.

Rebekah's 2nd birthday. This was a template. It helped me place the pictures and I did everything else.

Nathan is "show and telling" the rabbits tomorrow. He and Daniel took some pictures of them and I turned them into a page that isn't as boring as a few snapshots (hopefully).

I could be sleeping

But I'm not sure how. I was almost asleep once, but then Leah came into our room whimpering that she had to go to the bathroom. I was so close! Now I'm dueling being tired with being itchy (there's another one right now) and having an active mind. Oh yeah, and someone keeps kicking me around.

The fact that I'm married to a nighttime lumberjack shouldn't be an issue anymore, but it doesn't help the current situation. He's sawed enough logs to build us a lodge in Yellowstone. How does someone snore while lying on their stomach? I thought that was a back thing. (No offense, Chad.)

My next desperate act is to take 1/2 a unisom and hope to slip into unconsciousness. That will make it harder to get up in the morning, but so does staying awake until 3 AM (since I know that from past experience).

At least the weather has finally cooled. My sweat glands are getting a rest. So are my olfactories since I don't have to smell myself quite so much. Now I'm finally comfortable, but the rest of the family is cold. Yesterday morning, the kids were wearing jackets to breakfast. Crazy.

I've been trying to clean the house up (seems I'm always doing this), but have been thwarted by an unseen force of laziness. I just don't want to do anything. Of course, the knowledge that if I do clean the kids will hide it under a fresh coat of clutter has me completely unmotivated. I mostly try to stay caught up enough to make it look nice for visiting teachers or some other visitors with limited notice. If anyone comes by and wants to venture past the living room, we're all in for some heavy embarrassment.

We've decided that it's time to get rid of the kittens. It's been a hard decision because they are so sweet and well-behaved. But we just feel a little silly paying $80/month for Daniel's allergy medicine and not even get rid of the problem. Unfortunately, we live in the country and are not the only ones with kittens to adopt out. I know I could "drop them off" somewhere, but it just doesn't seem responsible. I can take them to the shelter for a $15/kitty fee. It may come down to that.

I have a "due date" for the delivery of this ever growing baby. I like to think of it as an eviction date: 13 November. That's on a Tuesday. I'm not superstitious, but I still don't love the 13th. I don't have much choice, unless nature finally decides to take a part in this process. So now I can count weeks. That's 9 weeks from today, one week "early" if counting gestationally. This baby will be over 8 lbs. Luckily, I've not gained as much this time. It must be all the tomatoes this summer. Or the fact that I'm too lazy to get up and forage for food.

And now it's 12:30 AM. I'm supposed to be helping out in Nathan's classroom less than 8 hours from now. I guess it's time for that unisom. That or a big swig of Benadryl and a wack on the head!

Epilogue (the next morning):
I thought I was going to bed, but heard tiny meowing out in the backyard. I found that DARN momma cat with MORE KITTENS!!!! So at 1 AM I was running through my backyard in my pj's hunting kittens. I caught one then and put it in a little carrrier in the garage. I caught the other one this morning. I think she only had two this time. I'm going to use them for bait to catch that stupid cat and get her out of my backyard. This is the 3rd time in less than 15 months that she's used us for a maternity ward. That is one desirable female feline! I'm calling the shelter later today. I refuse to pay any $$ to get rid of this one. I'd still like to give the neighbors that abandoned her a large piece of my mind. That and their kids have been back recently, causing additional menacing problems.

SO AMERICA: SPAY AND NEUTER YOUR PETS!!!

Anyway, I got about 4 hours of sleep last night. It wasn't solid and it wasn't restful = a nap for sure this afternoon. No one call me between noon and 3 PM.

To Post or Not to Post

That has been the question for the past week. I am finally sitting down and putting myself to work. Where has the week gone? I know that I have been keeping busy, but I'm not sure HOW.

A big event in our family was Rebekah's 2nd birthday. She wasn't exactly sure what was going on, but the rest of us were! I made her birthday cake the night before while I waited for Chad to return from a day trip to CA. I had a couple of ideas for her cake, but my ideas are always more spectacular in my head than in reality. So I scrapped those and ended up with a big pink ball. I edited and manipulated some bear parts on the computer and ended up with this.
Rebekah had an amused look on her face as I brought the cake over. I captured it the best I could.
The kids of course, were very excited about the presents and got involved right from the start.


I remember when the boys turned 2. Within the same week, they went from sweet little boys to tantrum-throwing terrors! I always thought that was so bizarre. Our girls are different. They are ahead of the learning curves and start the tantrums early. So now Rebekah's fits are at least legal. Let's hope that her tantrums don't last as long as Leah's (we're still dealing with them).









This weekend, we divided the family. Chad took the older three kids to his side of the family for some work and fun. I took Rebekah with me to visit my side of the family. The kids got to ride in Pamela's naked car (Leah call convertibles cars that are a little naked because they don't have tops on) and swing on the rope swing with their cousins in Grandma and Grandpa's back 40.








My mom watched Rebekah for over 5 hours so I could spend some time working in the library doing research on my dad's Swedish ancestors. I made quite a few discoveries, so the time was well spent. Thanks for the baby-sitting, Mom!

Chad met up with us on Saturday afternoon. We drove home on Monday, stopping to buy some peaches along the way. It took us about 5 hours to drive home. It usually only takes 3. We were driving 2 vehicles, so the fighting was lessened.

So yesterday morning, Chad and I put up some peaches. It was our first time doing peaches. We're learning each thing slowly. It's amazing that I did any canning. I only feel like resting lately. I still haven't completely cleaned up the kitchen from that activity.

Yesterday afternoon, we headed to the State Fair. The kids were all very excited about going. We saw lots of stuff, ate some very expensive food for dinner, visited a few (hundred) animals and wished that we could ride way more rides than was permitted. One woman made an effort to compliment our genes. She said our kids were so good looking that we should have a dozen of them. I replied that if they were as well behaved as they are good looking, there would be a better chance of that happening. It was a nice compliment, but I think she was just buttering us up so we'd buy some of her amazing lint rollers. (It didn't work.) Here's a video of some of our "fair fun" and some pictures.




















We've been moderately successful with our garden this year. We've brought in an armful of zucchini, bunches of carrots and multiple bowls of tomatoes. The cherry tomatoes have been SO yummy that I've been eating them by the handful. This baby will either really Love tomatoes, or be allergic to them! Nathan is our most excited gardener. He has been giving us progress reports on the zucchini. Just today he told Chad that there was one that wasn't quite ready, but probably would be in about an hour! He's also keeping track of our carrots. He found this one with "two legs" the other day and ate it this afternoon.