Thank you for calling the Mommy Help Me Line. We are experiencing an usually high level of stress at the moment. There may be some delay in assisting you. We apologize for the possible inconvenience. If you prefer not to hold, you could try some of these possible solutions to your problems on your own.
* If someone is hitting you, move farther away.
* If you are bored, go find something to do.
* If you are thirsty, get a cup and proceed to the easiest sink.
* If you are hungry, next time eat more lunch.
* If someone is looking at you, look back at them.
* If you have another superficial wound, wash it and waste another band-aid.
* If you feel like yelling at or striking your Mommy, be prepared for an unpleasant response.
* If you have a real emergency, hang on and you will be assisted within moments. The Mommy on duty is listening to determine if the crying is genuine.
We hope these suggestions are helpful. You will know when the Mommy Help Me Line is functioning normally again when we stop referring to ourselves as more than one person. Apparently, schizophrenia is a coping mechanism.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
Mormon Terminology
I told Rebekah to get ready to go because we were going to the zoo for Family Home Evening tonight.
Five minutes later, while I was brushing her hair, she asked where we were going Visiting Teaching at the zoo.
No offense to the sisters I visit. She's only 3 1/2 and all those phrases and responsibilities are hard to sort out. I'll really worry when she starts to think she's going to Primary at the zoo. ;)
Five minutes later, while I was brushing her hair, she asked where we were going Visiting Teaching at the zoo.
No offense to the sisters I visit. She's only 3 1/2 and all those phrases and responsibilities are hard to sort out. I'll really worry when she starts to think she's going to Primary at the zoo. ;)
How are you feeling?
I get that question a lot lately. I think (hope) it's because people really want to know and not because I LOOK like I'm feeling miserable.
Truthfully, I'm not miserable. Any misery I'm currently experiencing comes from the kids that are already born, not the one yet to come. (I think Daniel and Leah must have some kind of magical pull toward each other. Too bad it's such an explosion of feelings when they get too close!) But I am getting more and more tired. I've stopped being able to sleep really well at night. It's a combination of heat, stuffy nose, dry throat, bathroom trips, barking dogs and a sort of "beached whale" phenomenon. The baby doesn't move enough to keep me awake, yet. Last night was actually better, but I was so tired, I don't think I could have stayed awake if I'd tried.
The only discomfort during the pregnancy (beside the pregnancy itself and the morning sickness the first 1/2) is a ligament at the front of my belly, just to the side of my naval. When this little part of me gets over-used, it feels like it's on fire and hurts like a bugger. If I try to hold it or rub it, etc., it hurts worse. Only rest and inactivity helps. I first felt this pain when I was healing from having Joseph. So I guess it can be a "coming and going" sort of deal. I expect to feel it as I heal from the delivery this time, too. And then I hope it's gone forever!
I do look forward to the end of my dry, itchy scalp. I've been suffering with that for several months. It's a miracle I haven't made myself bald. I even switched to Head and Shoulders sensitive formula. It didn't help. That's not the only itchy spot, but it's one of the worst. And I'll be glad when I only pee once each time I go to the bathroom. Currently, it's once when I'm meaning to, and once more when I stand up. Sorry for too much info. Pregnancy is not pretty.
I finally cut the baby's blessing gown out this morning. I didn't get too far into my project before the kids found me. Leah looked at the length of the dress and wanted to know just how big this baby was going to be! I had to explain to her that blessing dresses are extra long and showed here where the baby's feet would probably be inside the dress. That made more sense to her, but I think the big dress thing was still kind of weird in her mind.
I had the TV on while I was working. At that point, the only thing I could stand to hear was an old episode of "Friends." Some of you may recall the episode where "Ross" gets too hot in his leather pants and pulls them down to cool off, but then can't get them back on. Then he tries a bunch of stuff to get them to slide back up and ends up quite messy. I looked up at Nathan's face during this part and saw an expression there that I've never seen before. It was something of a bewildered, shocked and unbelieving look. Right on Nathan, I've felt that way about this and many other TV shows...MANY times!
I did get Rebekah's quilt binding sewn on last week. I only have to trim the yarn ties and it's done. I still have to tie the baby's crib blanket. I got a few sets of clothes sorted (thanks for the distraction, Kelli!) and need to get those bins finished up and into the garage. I still have the task of turning the sewing room into a bedroom looming in my mind. But that's months away, so I should just relax and worry about something more imminent!
Our ward choir had a summer picnic this Saturday. We'd originally planned to hold it the 13th, but were rained out and after postponing it twice, we succeeded in having a really good time. The choir is full of AWESOME people. I think it's the best group I've ever experienced in a ward choir. We all get along, we laugh at our mistakes, we welcome new members (and wish we'd get more...are there ever too many tenors and bases?), and just have a really good time together. These are humble, hard working people. I know some of them have joined the choir because they like to sing, but no one has joined thinking they are just what their section needs. And then there are those who don't feel very secure in their ability to sing well, but keep coming anyway. (I think those are my favorites.)
As for our summer, things are pretty much par for the course. We are still reading and doing worksheets, but the furor has died down a bit (thankfully). We haven't had any serious illnesses, but a seemingly disproportionate amount of skinned knees, legs, tummies, arms, hands, heads...considering it's still June. Daniel has been complaining of a sore cheek/ear/jaw since Sat. morning. It's a flighty little pain and has reduced him to tears at least twice. Of course, that is only at bed time and so we've just given him pain killers and sent him to bed. He's getting a tooth pulled next Monday. Can we make him suffer that long? And what if it doesn't even have anything to do with dental issues? I'm pretty sure Joseph had Roseola the first week of June. It took another baby in the ward to clue me in. And here I thought it was all ear infection! Apparently, kids can be cranky about more than one thing at a time. Who knew?
I've got some pictures of the girls on horses for you. Some very nice (and now favorite) people in the ward let them ride them at the end of the picnic Saturday. Somehow, Leah has developed a LOVE for horses. You may be able to see the sheer joy on her face in the photo. She and Rebekah have not stopped talking about the event. It's only the best thing to happen to them this year!
Truthfully, I'm not miserable. Any misery I'm currently experiencing comes from the kids that are already born, not the one yet to come. (I think Daniel and Leah must have some kind of magical pull toward each other. Too bad it's such an explosion of feelings when they get too close!) But I am getting more and more tired. I've stopped being able to sleep really well at night. It's a combination of heat, stuffy nose, dry throat, bathroom trips, barking dogs and a sort of "beached whale" phenomenon. The baby doesn't move enough to keep me awake, yet. Last night was actually better, but I was so tired, I don't think I could have stayed awake if I'd tried.
The only discomfort during the pregnancy (beside the pregnancy itself and the morning sickness the first 1/2) is a ligament at the front of my belly, just to the side of my naval. When this little part of me gets over-used, it feels like it's on fire and hurts like a bugger. If I try to hold it or rub it, etc., it hurts worse. Only rest and inactivity helps. I first felt this pain when I was healing from having Joseph. So I guess it can be a "coming and going" sort of deal. I expect to feel it as I heal from the delivery this time, too. And then I hope it's gone forever!
I do look forward to the end of my dry, itchy scalp. I've been suffering with that for several months. It's a miracle I haven't made myself bald. I even switched to Head and Shoulders sensitive formula. It didn't help. That's not the only itchy spot, but it's one of the worst. And I'll be glad when I only pee once each time I go to the bathroom. Currently, it's once when I'm meaning to, and once more when I stand up. Sorry for too much info. Pregnancy is not pretty.
I finally cut the baby's blessing gown out this morning. I didn't get too far into my project before the kids found me. Leah looked at the length of the dress and wanted to know just how big this baby was going to be! I had to explain to her that blessing dresses are extra long and showed here where the baby's feet would probably be inside the dress. That made more sense to her, but I think the big dress thing was still kind of weird in her mind.
I had the TV on while I was working. At that point, the only thing I could stand to hear was an old episode of "Friends." Some of you may recall the episode where "Ross" gets too hot in his leather pants and pulls them down to cool off, but then can't get them back on. Then he tries a bunch of stuff to get them to slide back up and ends up quite messy. I looked up at Nathan's face during this part and saw an expression there that I've never seen before. It was something of a bewildered, shocked and unbelieving look. Right on Nathan, I've felt that way about this and many other TV shows...MANY times!
I did get Rebekah's quilt binding sewn on last week. I only have to trim the yarn ties and it's done. I still have to tie the baby's crib blanket. I got a few sets of clothes sorted (thanks for the distraction, Kelli!) and need to get those bins finished up and into the garage. I still have the task of turning the sewing room into a bedroom looming in my mind. But that's months away, so I should just relax and worry about something more imminent!
Our ward choir had a summer picnic this Saturday. We'd originally planned to hold it the 13th, but were rained out and after postponing it twice, we succeeded in having a really good time. The choir is full of AWESOME people. I think it's the best group I've ever experienced in a ward choir. We all get along, we laugh at our mistakes, we welcome new members (and wish we'd get more...are there ever too many tenors and bases?), and just have a really good time together. These are humble, hard working people. I know some of them have joined the choir because they like to sing, but no one has joined thinking they are just what their section needs. And then there are those who don't feel very secure in their ability to sing well, but keep coming anyway. (I think those are my favorites.)
As for our summer, things are pretty much par for the course. We are still reading and doing worksheets, but the furor has died down a bit (thankfully). We haven't had any serious illnesses, but a seemingly disproportionate amount of skinned knees, legs, tummies, arms, hands, heads...considering it's still June. Daniel has been complaining of a sore cheek/ear/jaw since Sat. morning. It's a flighty little pain and has reduced him to tears at least twice. Of course, that is only at bed time and so we've just given him pain killers and sent him to bed. He's getting a tooth pulled next Monday. Can we make him suffer that long? And what if it doesn't even have anything to do with dental issues? I'm pretty sure Joseph had Roseola the first week of June. It took another baby in the ward to clue me in. And here I thought it was all ear infection! Apparently, kids can be cranky about more than one thing at a time. Who knew?
I've got some pictures of the girls on horses for you. Some very nice (and now favorite) people in the ward let them ride them at the end of the picnic Saturday. Somehow, Leah has developed a LOVE for horses. You may be able to see the sheer joy on her face in the photo. She and Rebekah have not stopped talking about the event. It's only the best thing to happen to them this year!
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Shoes Optional
For the past two years, we've had a zoo membership. It's been a great $$ saver for us when we've traveled and given us something "free" to do here at home. The membership always expires at the end of May. We were late getting a new one this year but I finally decided to "bite the bullet" and pay the $75 today.
I told the kids we'd go on a picnic if they could get the downstairs cleaned. Things got really loud about then. Can they do anything without fighting? Sleeping you say? Nathan and Leah have both yelled at Daniel in their sleep. So that's a "no."
Anyway, we were FINALLY ready to go. I told everyone to go to the bathroom and get in the van. After we've been driving 10 minutes and I'm on the freeway, Leah says from the back seat, "Mommy, Nathan doesn't have any shoes on!"
!!!!
Now, I've accidentally gotten in the car with my slippers on, but never just socks. And I never actually drove away. But, I've never been a 7-year-old boy. I got off the freeway at the next exit and drove back a little ways to a store and bought him some croc-a-likes for $6. Better than wasting up to 30 minutes going back home.
The shoes are a bit too big as I didn't have much of a selection in boyish colors. Daniel was jealous. I told Nathan they weren't his. (Because I'm not rewarding him for forgetting to get dressed!) They can go in the laundry room for use when someone has to go outside for something.
We eventually made it to the zoo and had a late lunch...of which Joseph wouldn't eat once I wouldn't give him more cookie. Kids.
I told the kids we'd go on a picnic if they could get the downstairs cleaned. Things got really loud about then. Can they do anything without fighting? Sleeping you say? Nathan and Leah have both yelled at Daniel in their sleep. So that's a "no."
Anyway, we were FINALLY ready to go. I told everyone to go to the bathroom and get in the van. After we've been driving 10 minutes and I'm on the freeway, Leah says from the back seat, "Mommy, Nathan doesn't have any shoes on!"
!!!!
Now, I've accidentally gotten in the car with my slippers on, but never just socks. And I never actually drove away. But, I've never been a 7-year-old boy. I got off the freeway at the next exit and drove back a little ways to a store and bought him some croc-a-likes for $6. Better than wasting up to 30 minutes going back home.
The shoes are a bit too big as I didn't have much of a selection in boyish colors. Daniel was jealous. I told Nathan they weren't his. (Because I'm not rewarding him for forgetting to get dressed!) They can go in the laundry room for use when someone has to go outside for something.
We eventually made it to the zoo and had a late lunch...of which Joseph wouldn't eat once I wouldn't give him more cookie. Kids.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Current State of Random Affairs
So I walk into the living room this morning to find Daniel playing the piano with his big, fat rear end. No wonder that chord was so bad!
Joseph is walking around the house this morning saying, "rrraaahhhh!" Apparently, he doesn't want to learn English, just Tiger.
My doctor isn't the push-over I was hoping for. It looks like the earliest I'm going to be able to have this baby is the 28th or 29th of August (Fri. or Sat.). Unless I can figure out how to make labor start on my own terms. Never have figured that out so far. Any suggestions?
This little birdy has taken up a watchful post here on the fence. Do you think he's spying on us? He was there a long time yesterday, too.
My kids are fighting. Constantly. I don't know if I can be responsible for my actions if it goes on much longer. The two biggest offenders are Daniel and Leah. The two "first borns." They may be the two "first deads."
I have to sew on binding on a blanket for Rebekah's new twin bed she'll get when we shift the toddler bed and crib down to the next kids. I also have to make a blessing gown for the baby.
My house is in a serious state of disorganization. I am suffering a mental breakdown because of it (and because of all the fighting). I need to go through the clothes of at least 4 kids, shuffle through the music CD's the kids have wrecked (and then lock the cupboard), try to get the games to stay in the cupboard when we open it, and figure out HOW IN THE HECK I'm going to pack away most of my sewing room and turn it into a room for the girls.
My house is dirty, too.
The past 3 weeks I have enjoyed watching the kids work around dinner time. One sets the table, one clears, one sweeps. They aren't doing a perfect job, but they are doing something! We had to get a smaller broom and put a tiny handle on it to save the windows and glass doors to the china cupboard. I even made a wheel chart to help us keep track. I'm not sure I like them crawling all over the table to wipe it down. I guess I have to be blind to some things.
Daniel has read over 2600 pages. He needs harder books. Nathan is over 2000, too, but I don't know by how much.
I have never washed any of the windows in this house since we moved in...20 months ago. (A little confession thrown in there for you.)
I am starting to waddle and my belly button is gaining strength. The baby is starting to move in ways that are unpleasant to the mother. Leah is grateful for the baby in about every prayer she offers. Joseph will probably see the baby as an enemy that needs removal. He is a little too attached...and it was quite a literal experience this Sunday as I dropped him off in Nursery. (I'll say it again - those Nursery leaders are saints!)
Some scrapbook pages from the last week.
Joseph is walking around the house this morning saying, "rrraaahhhh!" Apparently, he doesn't want to learn English, just Tiger.
My doctor isn't the push-over I was hoping for. It looks like the earliest I'm going to be able to have this baby is the 28th or 29th of August (Fri. or Sat.). Unless I can figure out how to make labor start on my own terms. Never have figured that out so far. Any suggestions?
This little birdy has taken up a watchful post here on the fence. Do you think he's spying on us? He was there a long time yesterday, too.
My kids are fighting. Constantly. I don't know if I can be responsible for my actions if it goes on much longer. The two biggest offenders are Daniel and Leah. The two "first borns." They may be the two "first deads."
I have to sew on binding on a blanket for Rebekah's new twin bed she'll get when we shift the toddler bed and crib down to the next kids. I also have to make a blessing gown for the baby.
My house is in a serious state of disorganization. I am suffering a mental breakdown because of it (and because of all the fighting). I need to go through the clothes of at least 4 kids, shuffle through the music CD's the kids have wrecked (and then lock the cupboard), try to get the games to stay in the cupboard when we open it, and figure out HOW IN THE HECK I'm going to pack away most of my sewing room and turn it into a room for the girls.
My house is dirty, too.
The past 3 weeks I have enjoyed watching the kids work around dinner time. One sets the table, one clears, one sweeps. They aren't doing a perfect job, but they are doing something! We had to get a smaller broom and put a tiny handle on it to save the windows and glass doors to the china cupboard. I even made a wheel chart to help us keep track. I'm not sure I like them crawling all over the table to wipe it down. I guess I have to be blind to some things.
Daniel has read over 2600 pages. He needs harder books. Nathan is over 2000, too, but I don't know by how much.
I have never washed any of the windows in this house since we moved in...20 months ago. (A little confession thrown in there for you.)
I am starting to waddle and my belly button is gaining strength. The baby is starting to move in ways that are unpleasant to the mother. Leah is grateful for the baby in about every prayer she offers. Joseph will probably see the baby as an enemy that needs removal. He is a little too attached...and it was quite a literal experience this Sunday as I dropped him off in Nursery. (I'll say it again - those Nursery leaders are saints!)
Some scrapbook pages from the last week.
Monday, June 22, 2009
To My Local Readers
I have in surplus one (unused - of course) Western Family brand pregnancy test. It expires in March.
If my doctor is skilled, I won't be needing it anymore.
Do you, or "someone you know" have any need for this specialized item?
Your acceptance and pick-up will remain our little secret, until the secret become too big to hide. *wink, wink*
If my doctor is skilled, I won't be needing it anymore.
Do you, or "someone you know" have any need for this specialized item?
Your acceptance and pick-up will remain our little secret, until the secret become too big to hide. *wink, wink*
Friday, June 19, 2009
Accidental Cinnamon Rolls
Chad has to leave for work at 7 AM now. That is not a kind hour. We have to wake up the kids and bring them to the living room for prayer, then he leaves me sitting there in a stupor with 5 sleepy kids. From there we circle the table and wake up while eating breakfast. Ugh.
But since my day starts at 7 and there is no going back to bed until after lunch, I can get a few more things done. (I said I can, I didn't say I do.) Yesterday I decided to make bread. We were on our last loaf. At 7:30 I was dumping wheat into the grinder and gathering the ingredients I would need. I pulled out a couple of measuring cups and my measuring spoon that measures 2 Tablespoons at once. I love that! I planned to have the bread in the oven to raise by 8 and hop into the shower.
I get the 6 cups of hot water into the mixer and add some freshly ground and still warm wheat flour. Then I add the yeast, dough enhancer and gluten. The recipe calls for 2T of each. I am used to using my regular 1T spoon, although I have had this 2T measuring spoon since Christmas. So I scooped twice. Are you following along? I now have 4T of yeast, dough enhancer and gluten for 6 loaves of bread.
My brain finally catches up. GREAT! Now what to do? The lazy part of me said, throw it out and start over. The poor part of me said, that would be wasteful! So I kept going. Now it's still pretty early in the morning, you will recall. I'm not thinking clearly. But I do wish that the Bosch mixer would hold 12 cups of water and 30+ cups of flour. It would have been easier and cleaner. Alas, as the watery dough came slopping out of the bowl, I realized that I would have to do this in shifts.
I had to wash a mixing bowl to dump the excess into! GASP! I hadn't planned on doing dishes, especially by hand. But apparently, this isn't going to be a normal morning. As one half of the yeasty mixture sat and bubbled away in the extra bowl, I tried to continue as normal with the rest. By now, there is goop and white flour all over the counter. More work I hadn't planned on. I finished that batch and dumped it onto the table. Oops...forgot the salt in that batch.
The next batch seemed drier than the first. That figures. I'll be lucky if any of this mess even tastes good. I dumped the 2nd batch of dough (this one is salted) onto the first. Enough dough for 12 loaves of bread makes a really big mound! I have extra large bread pans, so I usually only get 5 loaves. This time, I was able to get 5 really big, extra large loaves! I slid them into my warmed oven to raise. I figured it would take all day with the trauma that was involved.
Now I'm out of bread pans. So the rest of the dough is going to be cinnamon rolls. Won't Chad be happy my morning fell so completely apart? I pulled out my ingredients for that. I was going to keep it simple...butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and coconut. Whoops! That's not the cinnamon! It's not a good thing that the cinnamon and taco seasoning containers are so similar. What if I hadn't caught it in time? Is there such a thing as Mexican "Cinnamon" Rolls? Thanks for the funny treat, Mommy. Please don't make any more, por favor.
I got 40+ large cinnamon rolls and a small pan of rolls out of the remaining dough. They were a big hit. Joseph kept saying, "mmmm" while he ate his. Everyone got at least 2 yesterday.
The bread rose a lot faster than I expected. I didn't give it much care as I rolled it up and threw it into the pans, so it didn't come out looking very pretty. Oh well, it's not going to last long enough to enter any contests anyway.
I was sweating by the time I got done. And then I had to clean up the disaster area. I may not make bread for the rest of this pregnancy. I'm just too lazy for such adventures! I did eventually get my shower...2 hours later than planned. Better late than never, right?
But since my day starts at 7 and there is no going back to bed until after lunch, I can get a few more things done. (I said I can, I didn't say I do.) Yesterday I decided to make bread. We were on our last loaf. At 7:30 I was dumping wheat into the grinder and gathering the ingredients I would need. I pulled out a couple of measuring cups and my measuring spoon that measures 2 Tablespoons at once. I love that! I planned to have the bread in the oven to raise by 8 and hop into the shower.
I get the 6 cups of hot water into the mixer and add some freshly ground and still warm wheat flour. Then I add the yeast, dough enhancer and gluten. The recipe calls for 2T of each. I am used to using my regular 1T spoon, although I have had this 2T measuring spoon since Christmas. So I scooped twice. Are you following along? I now have 4T of yeast, dough enhancer and gluten for 6 loaves of bread.
My brain finally catches up. GREAT! Now what to do? The lazy part of me said, throw it out and start over. The poor part of me said, that would be wasteful! So I kept going. Now it's still pretty early in the morning, you will recall. I'm not thinking clearly. But I do wish that the Bosch mixer would hold 12 cups of water and 30+ cups of flour. It would have been easier and cleaner. Alas, as the watery dough came slopping out of the bowl, I realized that I would have to do this in shifts.
I had to wash a mixing bowl to dump the excess into! GASP! I hadn't planned on doing dishes, especially by hand. But apparently, this isn't going to be a normal morning. As one half of the yeasty mixture sat and bubbled away in the extra bowl, I tried to continue as normal with the rest. By now, there is goop and white flour all over the counter. More work I hadn't planned on. I finished that batch and dumped it onto the table. Oops...forgot the salt in that batch.
The next batch seemed drier than the first. That figures. I'll be lucky if any of this mess even tastes good. I dumped the 2nd batch of dough (this one is salted) onto the first. Enough dough for 12 loaves of bread makes a really big mound! I have extra large bread pans, so I usually only get 5 loaves. This time, I was able to get 5 really big, extra large loaves! I slid them into my warmed oven to raise. I figured it would take all day with the trauma that was involved.
Now I'm out of bread pans. So the rest of the dough is going to be cinnamon rolls. Won't Chad be happy my morning fell so completely apart? I pulled out my ingredients for that. I was going to keep it simple...butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and coconut. Whoops! That's not the cinnamon! It's not a good thing that the cinnamon and taco seasoning containers are so similar. What if I hadn't caught it in time? Is there such a thing as Mexican "Cinnamon" Rolls? Thanks for the funny treat, Mommy. Please don't make any more, por favor.
I got 40+ large cinnamon rolls and a small pan of rolls out of the remaining dough. They were a big hit. Joseph kept saying, "mmmm" while he ate his. Everyone got at least 2 yesterday.
The bread rose a lot faster than I expected. I didn't give it much care as I rolled it up and threw it into the pans, so it didn't come out looking very pretty. Oh well, it's not going to last long enough to enter any contests anyway.
I was sweating by the time I got done. And then I had to clean up the disaster area. I may not make bread for the rest of this pregnancy. I'm just too lazy for such adventures! I did eventually get my shower...2 hours later than planned. Better late than never, right?
Acclimated
Summer begins on Sunday. We've had some cooler temps and lots of rain, so it hasn't really felt like summer yet. But it has been warm. I think our thermometer even hit a very low 90 several weeks ago. Yesterday, it stayed below 70.
I think it's great, considering I have my own internal heating system for the next 2+ months. I've stopped sleeping under the covers and only grab the sheet after the sun has started to rise. Yesterday, the kids and I were in the grocery store. Like little turtles, they had pulled their arms inside their shirts to conserve heat. I only shook my head as I was near a sweat.
The only things that feel cold to me lately are ice cubes and...well, only ice cubes.
So this morning at 8 AM, the kids were heading outside to play (timing themselves riding bikes or something). I told them to take Joseph and Leah said it was too cold. Rebekah came in and said she needed a jacket. I told her to try shoes first. She did and still needed a jacket. She couldn't find her jacket and wanted to wear her coat. For crying out loud! I checked the thermometer in the bedroom. It said the outside temp was 65 degrees. There are enough reasons to laugh at our family. Wearing a winter coat outside on a day like today won't be one of them.
I remember when there were still patches of slow-melting snow on the ground, the temp was all the way up to 55 and the wind was blowing. No one needed a coat then. They even took Joseph outside with them (when I didn't tell them to). That was only a couple of months ago. I think they've acclimated. Or maybe they need more work to get the blood pumping.
I think it's great, considering I have my own internal heating system for the next 2+ months. I've stopped sleeping under the covers and only grab the sheet after the sun has started to rise. Yesterday, the kids and I were in the grocery store. Like little turtles, they had pulled their arms inside their shirts to conserve heat. I only shook my head as I was near a sweat.
The only things that feel cold to me lately are ice cubes and...well, only ice cubes.
So this morning at 8 AM, the kids were heading outside to play (timing themselves riding bikes or something). I told them to take Joseph and Leah said it was too cold. Rebekah came in and said she needed a jacket. I told her to try shoes first. She did and still needed a jacket. She couldn't find her jacket and wanted to wear her coat. For crying out loud! I checked the thermometer in the bedroom. It said the outside temp was 65 degrees. There are enough reasons to laugh at our family. Wearing a winter coat outside on a day like today won't be one of them.
I remember when there were still patches of slow-melting snow on the ground, the temp was all the way up to 55 and the wind was blowing. No one needed a coat then. They even took Joseph outside with them (when I didn't tell them to). That was only a couple of months ago. I think they've acclimated. Or maybe they need more work to get the blood pumping.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Smart
That's me. The smartest one on the block. Let me prove it.
I wanted to make some rice krispie treats for the kids this afternoon. I'm not really sure why. Most of them have been fighting all day. They obviously need a reward for that!
So I tried to get into the Rice Krispie website to find the recipe. I know you are all shocked that any mother with more than 2 kids wouldn't have the recipe memorized already. Now you know just how often my kids get these things. My mom didn't make them much for us, either. It must have a genetic link.
Well, the website wouldn't load the recipe. I can only assume that there are hundreds of children getting rice krispie treats this afternoon and the site was crashing in the search for the recipe. I tried a few likely cookbooks for the recipe and was unlucky in my search. Now I have to think of some other snack...and quick. (If these kids don't end up killing each other, I'll be doing the deed myself.)
And then the brains turned on. Maybe they just flickered. Whatever happened, it was enough to think to look on the bag of marshmallows. Voila! Now I have my recipe. Let's get started. I hope my kids won't think any less of the treat just because I'm using REALLY old marshmallows. Of course, they won't even know the difference because they don't get this treat enough to know the quality is bad.
While the butter is melting, I have to rip the two partial bags of marshmallows (mini and regular) down the sides in order to get the mangled, sticky stuff out of the packages. I get it all into the pan and think that maybe that's too many marshmallows. But how was I to measure a big clump? So I add a little more butter. I'm hoping that will make up for the stale marshmallows, too. And then I add a little more cereal to the waiting bowl. (Good thing I spent 15 minutes trying to track down that recipe!)
Mini marshmallows melt a lot faster than the big ones. Eventually, I decided enough was enough and just dumped it all into the bowl of cereal and stir. I never could get all the cereal mixed in. Apparently, I added too much. And the marshmallows weren't really pliable, so that wasn't helping. I got it into the pan and mashed for all I was worth. I had 4 hungry kids looking on. Joseph dug in first - before I cut anything. He's not particular (remember, he eats off the floor).
Before too long, I give them each a generous square of treats and shoo them out the door. Then I eat two generous squares of my own. The baby is now doing somersaults as the sugar reaches her. I'm pretty sure she's saying thank you.
I wanted to make some rice krispie treats for the kids this afternoon. I'm not really sure why. Most of them have been fighting all day. They obviously need a reward for that!
So I tried to get into the Rice Krispie website to find the recipe. I know you are all shocked that any mother with more than 2 kids wouldn't have the recipe memorized already. Now you know just how often my kids get these things. My mom didn't make them much for us, either. It must have a genetic link.
Well, the website wouldn't load the recipe. I can only assume that there are hundreds of children getting rice krispie treats this afternoon and the site was crashing in the search for the recipe. I tried a few likely cookbooks for the recipe and was unlucky in my search. Now I have to think of some other snack...and quick. (If these kids don't end up killing each other, I'll be doing the deed myself.)
And then the brains turned on. Maybe they just flickered. Whatever happened, it was enough to think to look on the bag of marshmallows. Voila! Now I have my recipe. Let's get started. I hope my kids won't think any less of the treat just because I'm using REALLY old marshmallows. Of course, they won't even know the difference because they don't get this treat enough to know the quality is bad.
While the butter is melting, I have to rip the two partial bags of marshmallows (mini and regular) down the sides in order to get the mangled, sticky stuff out of the packages. I get it all into the pan and think that maybe that's too many marshmallows. But how was I to measure a big clump? So I add a little more butter. I'm hoping that will make up for the stale marshmallows, too. And then I add a little more cereal to the waiting bowl. (Good thing I spent 15 minutes trying to track down that recipe!)
Mini marshmallows melt a lot faster than the big ones. Eventually, I decided enough was enough and just dumped it all into the bowl of cereal and stir. I never could get all the cereal mixed in. Apparently, I added too much. And the marshmallows weren't really pliable, so that wasn't helping. I got it into the pan and mashed for all I was worth. I had 4 hungry kids looking on. Joseph dug in first - before I cut anything. He's not particular (remember, he eats off the floor).
Before too long, I give them each a generous square of treats and shoo them out the door. Then I eat two generous squares of my own. The baby is now doing somersaults as the sugar reaches her. I'm pretty sure she's saying thank you.
Cow advice
For any of you thinking of getting some cows in the near future (maybe you think they'd be good weed control or a nice pet or you're just not thinking clearly), I have one very important message.
Get them de-horned.
No, there haven't been any injuries around here. And for that, I'm very grateful. Of course, a lot of that may have something to do with the fact that I told the kids to stay away from the cows. (Three of four of them have horns.)
The problem is actually that cows are very curious creatures and they use those horns to explore and get into trouble. We used to have a rabbit hutch. We used to have some bales of straw which were actually behind a rigid wire fence panel, held in place by a 10 foot long post, 6-8 inches in diameter. We used to have an electrical plug on the trailer (although that has more to do with the cows' teeth than their horns). We used to have a sound corral.
This morning, I got to chase the two biggest trouble makers out of a cow-forbidden area. They had moved the 16 foot gate over and sauntered right in. I was just hoping I could send them back through the 2 1/2 foot space they had come in through, without getting rammed or stomped on. Mission: complete.
Darn those horns! They are quite the shovels, picks, crowbars, pitch forks, spears, battling rams, medieval torture tools!
Interestingly, you'd never think of cows as having individual personalities since you usually just see a whole herd of them. If you thought that, you'd be wrong.
Get them de-horned.
No, there haven't been any injuries around here. And for that, I'm very grateful. Of course, a lot of that may have something to do with the fact that I told the kids to stay away from the cows. (Three of four of them have horns.)
The problem is actually that cows are very curious creatures and they use those horns to explore and get into trouble. We used to have a rabbit hutch. We used to have some bales of straw which were actually behind a rigid wire fence panel, held in place by a 10 foot long post, 6-8 inches in diameter. We used to have an electrical plug on the trailer (although that has more to do with the cows' teeth than their horns). We used to have a sound corral.
This morning, I got to chase the two biggest trouble makers out of a cow-forbidden area. They had moved the 16 foot gate over and sauntered right in. I was just hoping I could send them back through the 2 1/2 foot space they had come in through, without getting rammed or stomped on. Mission: complete.
Darn those horns! They are quite the shovels, picks, crowbars, pitch forks, spears, battling rams, medieval torture tools!
Interestingly, you'd never think of cows as having individual personalities since you usually just see a whole herd of them. If you thought that, you'd be wrong.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Reading Contest - Update
Do you recall the reading program we started at the beginning of the summer? I'm sure many of you were dying to know how it's going. Well, suffer no more!
I was quite surprised at how quickly the kids got into the competition. Before two weeks were up, both boys had read over 1000 pages. I was thinking that it would be near Thanksgiving before they reached 5000 points and the end of the chart/rewards. I might have been a little off on my estimation.
As of today, all 4 kids have earned their donut (500 pages). Daniel is about 1600 pages and Nathan is around 1500. Of course, that was before we went to the library this afternoon. They read for a long while after we got back. Remember, I have to read books to Rebekah for her pages and Leah only has a few simple books she reads on her own. So, I'm glad Chad is willing to read and sometimes even Nathan steps in.
This is what the chart looks like right now. The stickers are way too big for the spaces, but the kids wanted to keep using them. It looks kind of silly.
I was quite surprised at how quickly the kids got into the competition. Before two weeks were up, both boys had read over 1000 pages. I was thinking that it would be near Thanksgiving before they reached 5000 points and the end of the chart/rewards. I might have been a little off on my estimation.
As of today, all 4 kids have earned their donut (500 pages). Daniel is about 1600 pages and Nathan is around 1500. Of course, that was before we went to the library this afternoon. They read for a long while after we got back. Remember, I have to read books to Rebekah for her pages and Leah only has a few simple books she reads on her own. So, I'm glad Chad is willing to read and sometimes even Nathan steps in.
This is what the chart looks like right now. The stickers are way too big for the spaces, but the kids wanted to keep using them. It looks kind of silly.
In addition to the chart/rewards, there is the most pages read each month trophy. Daniel earned it for May (all of 6 days that it was). He has a tag on the trophy with his name, the month and amount of pages (733). We are halfway through June and the boys are very close in pages for the month. They've both been leaders at some point, but I think Nathan may be ahead so far. I hope he is. He needs to be able to beat Daniel in some things.
The boys aren't as thrilled about the worksheets. I guess that's the difference between having been in school and not. The girls love them. Of course, the boys' pages are lots harder, too.
I've done a bit more scrapbooking. Here are two of them. 
The rain is letting up around here. Now it doesn't rain all day long...just here and there. We ended up postponing the Choir picnic until the 27th. I'm hoping that day will work out beautifully.
Our escape artist doggie is still getting out. She earns a spot on the end of the tie down when she gets out. She must really like that cable!
Chad started his new job yesterday. It's quite a change for him and he's still getting used to following someone else's rules. Hopefully, things will seem less foreign before the week is out.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Free Day....BLECH!
A little background:
Last year I took the kids to This Is The Place Heritage Park in Salt Lake City. They had a lot of fun and I decided to pay a little more to get the year membership so we could come back again with Daddy and have more fun. I fully expected to be in the area enough to get our money's worth.
I didn't think that most of the times we would be in the area were winter/spring holidays. The park isn't really open then. At least the buildings aren't. That's most of the park. We did get to take a freezing train tour of the park during our Thanksgiving visit.
So, with Chad starting a new job (and losing most of his freedom to take off when he wants) and me getting less likely to embark on any kind of adventure, we decided to challenge the weather and head down there yesterday. We were going just for the park. We left the house a bit after 8 AM. Joseph not only doesn't like Nursery! He's not a big fan of the road, either. We had to stop at the mall in Layton to let kids out and get some lunch. And I needed a break from those insane, death-defying Utah drivers.
What is it with these people? Are they all late for something? Do they think they are the most important vehicle on the road? Do they think those speed limit signs are only friendly suggestions? Utah could really get a boost to their revenue if they'd get more patrol cars out on the highway. I didn't see a single person pulled over the entire trip. I'm surprised I didn't see any accidents either. The rain was coming down pretty heavy in some parts.
ANYWAY...it took us 4 hours to get to the park. We were hoping the rain would have worn itself out by the time we got there. It actually looked like it was getting worse. And then we saw the cars. An entire parking lot FULL of cars. Apparently, it was "Huntsman Day". Admission was free. FREE??? We just drove down from Idaho to get our money's worth out of our membership and it's a FREE day? Someone please shoot me. Hello This Is The Place!...I was just on your website last night and it didn't say a word about being a free day.
I was counting on being able to duck into a building and getting a nice little story from someone in pioneer costume every time the rain got too bad. How the stinkin' heck am I supposed to duck into a building that's already got 75 people crammed into it? And with 5 kids? We parked the van and walked to the first building. I murmured and grumbled the whole way. There is no electricity in the building. It's cloudy outside. It's dark inside. There are 60 people just on the first floor. Oh, and they're giving out free ice cream. The end of the line is in the rain, which is coming down harder by the minute.
The only way to get to the rest of the park was by the little train...the line is long and standing in the rain. Never mind getting someone to shoot me. Give me the gun. I'll do it myself.
We stood in the gazebo and deliberated. This originally brilliant plan to do something fun with the kids has been destroyed. (Oh yeah...Chad hung my jacket up in the closet before we left the house, but loaded everyone else's up in the van. I only had my sweater on. No umbrella because the kids won't leave it alone and now we can't find it. Yes, we only have one. Well, maybe we have none.) Eventually, we came up with an alternative and told the kids we were headed back to the van. We lasted about 10 minutes.
Normally, I have lots of complaints about my kids' attitudes. This time, I have only praise. No one grumbled that we were leaving. Maybe they saw what millions of other people couldn't see...It was insane to be there! We decided to drive a little further to an aquarium in Sandy. This was one of our possible museums to visit during Spring Break. Luckily, we hadn't gone and thought this would be a good 2nd choice. (Except that the park would have been free and the aquarium cost us $40 to get in and $12 to get out...we had to get some toys to keep Joseph from screaming the whole way home.)
The kids did have fun, though. Here are some pictures from that. There was a rain crowd at the aquarium, too, but these were the more wealthy people.
The kids are looking at some cayman (think alligator) and turtles in here. Well, Leah is looking at me. I can be a little alligator-like sometimes. ;)
They were trying to touch the sting rays. I wonder how many kids fall into this pool. The fish are farther down than they look!
Daniel was so good to keep track of Joseph. He's got a firm hold of him here. It wasn't always so easy.
There were some really little fish down there. I got 5 kids in the shot, but that one up there in a white shirt isn't mine. Still a cute picture, though.
Joseph saw something in there he liked!
From there, we headed home. Originally, we planned on just driving straight back home. But the day had been rather irregular and we were starting from farther away, so we called my mom and told her we were in the area and would be crashing her house. She was kind enough to feed us dinner. I was grateful for that. My head was aching, my feet were sore, and I was really wanting a nap.
We stopped just north of Ogden for gas. I bought a huge package of licorice and a movie for the ride home. We don't usually buy movies. I was desperate for as quiet a ride home as possible. It mostly worked. Joseph wasn't especially captivated by Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium.
We got home just after 9 PM. Thirteen hours away from home. The kids fell asleep quickly and slept late (even so, they were all up by 8:15 AM...late is relative for some families). I couldn't believe our luck in hitting that free day. I'm glad they enjoyed the aquarium. We aren't going anywhere far for a LONG time!
Last year I took the kids to This Is The Place Heritage Park in Salt Lake City. They had a lot of fun and I decided to pay a little more to get the year membership so we could come back again with Daddy and have more fun. I fully expected to be in the area enough to get our money's worth.
I didn't think that most of the times we would be in the area were winter/spring holidays. The park isn't really open then. At least the buildings aren't. That's most of the park. We did get to take a freezing train tour of the park during our Thanksgiving visit.
So, with Chad starting a new job (and losing most of his freedom to take off when he wants) and me getting less likely to embark on any kind of adventure, we decided to challenge the weather and head down there yesterday. We were going just for the park. We left the house a bit after 8 AM. Joseph not only doesn't like Nursery! He's not a big fan of the road, either. We had to stop at the mall in Layton to let kids out and get some lunch. And I needed a break from those insane, death-defying Utah drivers.
What is it with these people? Are they all late for something? Do they think they are the most important vehicle on the road? Do they think those speed limit signs are only friendly suggestions? Utah could really get a boost to their revenue if they'd get more patrol cars out on the highway. I didn't see a single person pulled over the entire trip. I'm surprised I didn't see any accidents either. The rain was coming down pretty heavy in some parts.
ANYWAY...it took us 4 hours to get to the park. We were hoping the rain would have worn itself out by the time we got there. It actually looked like it was getting worse. And then we saw the cars. An entire parking lot FULL of cars. Apparently, it was "Huntsman Day". Admission was free. FREE??? We just drove down from Idaho to get our money's worth out of our membership and it's a FREE day? Someone please shoot me. Hello This Is The Place!...I was just on your website last night and it didn't say a word about being a free day.
I was counting on being able to duck into a building and getting a nice little story from someone in pioneer costume every time the rain got too bad. How the stinkin' heck am I supposed to duck into a building that's already got 75 people crammed into it? And with 5 kids? We parked the van and walked to the first building. I murmured and grumbled the whole way. There is no electricity in the building. It's cloudy outside. It's dark inside. There are 60 people just on the first floor. Oh, and they're giving out free ice cream. The end of the line is in the rain, which is coming down harder by the minute.
The only way to get to the rest of the park was by the little train...the line is long and standing in the rain. Never mind getting someone to shoot me. Give me the gun. I'll do it myself.
We stood in the gazebo and deliberated. This originally brilliant plan to do something fun with the kids has been destroyed. (Oh yeah...Chad hung my jacket up in the closet before we left the house, but loaded everyone else's up in the van. I only had my sweater on. No umbrella because the kids won't leave it alone and now we can't find it. Yes, we only have one. Well, maybe we have none.) Eventually, we came up with an alternative and told the kids we were headed back to the van. We lasted about 10 minutes.
Normally, I have lots of complaints about my kids' attitudes. This time, I have only praise. No one grumbled that we were leaving. Maybe they saw what millions of other people couldn't see...It was insane to be there! We decided to drive a little further to an aquarium in Sandy. This was one of our possible museums to visit during Spring Break. Luckily, we hadn't gone and thought this would be a good 2nd choice. (Except that the park would have been free and the aquarium cost us $40 to get in and $12 to get out...we had to get some toys to keep Joseph from screaming the whole way home.)
The kids did have fun, though. Here are some pictures from that. There was a rain crowd at the aquarium, too, but these were the more wealthy people.
The kids are looking at some cayman (think alligator) and turtles in here. Well, Leah is looking at me. I can be a little alligator-like sometimes. ;)
They were trying to touch the sting rays. I wonder how many kids fall into this pool. The fish are farther down than they look!
Daniel was so good to keep track of Joseph. He's got a firm hold of him here. It wasn't always so easy.
There were some really little fish down there. I got 5 kids in the shot, but that one up there in a white shirt isn't mine. Still a cute picture, though.
Chad did most of the work. Here he is holding Joseph. I did a lot of sitting. I traveled between a lot of benches!
Joseph saw something in there he liked!
From there, we headed home. Originally, we planned on just driving straight back home. But the day had been rather irregular and we were starting from farther away, so we called my mom and told her we were in the area and would be crashing her house. She was kind enough to feed us dinner. I was grateful for that. My head was aching, my feet were sore, and I was really wanting a nap.
We stopped just north of Ogden for gas. I bought a huge package of licorice and a movie for the ride home. We don't usually buy movies. I was desperate for as quiet a ride home as possible. It mostly worked. Joseph wasn't especially captivated by Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium.
We got home just after 9 PM. Thirteen hours away from home. The kids fell asleep quickly and slept late (even so, they were all up by 8:15 AM...late is relative for some families). I couldn't believe our luck in hitting that free day. I'm glad they enjoyed the aquarium. We aren't going anywhere far for a LONG time!
I think I might be losing my mind
I've heard of pregnant brain, but this is getting ridiculous.
Evidence #1: Last week I taught a sewing lesson and before I left the room, I was sure I turned off the iron and sewing machine. (The week before I forgot to turn the machine off and it was on all day until Chad turned it for me that night. I'm now waiting for the light bulb to burn out on me.) When I was up in the sewing room this Wednesday, I got up to turn the iron on. It was already hot! I was trying to think if I had turned it on when we walked in and not remembered.
(I always turn my curling iron on without thinking about it...it's a habit of the routine.)
I don't think I turned that iron that morning. But I was sure it was off when I left the week before. I even remember thinking about it and assuring myself that I had turned it off. Apparently, I left it on. And was on for an entire week. One more comforting thought...the smoke detector in that room is waiting for a new battery...I took it out sometime last year.
Evidence #2: We've been having lots of rain, so I've been turning the automatic sprinklers on or off depending on need. It didn't rain on Monday (or was it Tuesday?) and I got a chance to mow the lawn. I accidentally mowed it shorter than we usually do, so it was looking a little brown. (Don't try to explain to me that the moisture is still in the ground. My brain is not thinking logically at this point.) So I manually set the sprinklers to run the next morning. Then, when they started over again, I was momentarily confused. Oh yeah, now it's 9 AM and they're SUPPOSED to go off. So I went out to shut the computer off again.
So it's off, right? No sprinklers should be going. We left town yesterday (more about that later) and I was certain that the sprinklers would not run. At 9 this morning I heard the pump to the well turn on. Did someone flush the toilet? A glance out the window tells me the sprinklers are the reason.
I don't get it. I can't keep track of things I'm sure are off and turn out to be on. Maybe I left the car running last night. Maybe I forgot to turn off the shower this morning. Maybe I will get an even worse case of this mind loss thing and forget I have 5 children. Maybe the authorities will find me in some warm resort country, on a white beach, reading a book and letting the water lick my toes, while my kids end up wandering the country roads searching for a sandwich at lunchtime. I hope they have the presence of mind to shut the door when they leave. The flies are getting in.
Evidence #1: Last week I taught a sewing lesson and before I left the room, I was sure I turned off the iron and sewing machine. (The week before I forgot to turn the machine off and it was on all day until Chad turned it for me that night. I'm now waiting for the light bulb to burn out on me.) When I was up in the sewing room this Wednesday, I got up to turn the iron on. It was already hot! I was trying to think if I had turned it on when we walked in and not remembered.
(I always turn my curling iron on without thinking about it...it's a habit of the routine.)
I don't think I turned that iron that morning. But I was sure it was off when I left the week before. I even remember thinking about it and assuring myself that I had turned it off. Apparently, I left it on. And was on for an entire week. One more comforting thought...the smoke detector in that room is waiting for a new battery...I took it out sometime last year.
Evidence #2: We've been having lots of rain, so I've been turning the automatic sprinklers on or off depending on need. It didn't rain on Monday (or was it Tuesday?) and I got a chance to mow the lawn. I accidentally mowed it shorter than we usually do, so it was looking a little brown. (Don't try to explain to me that the moisture is still in the ground. My brain is not thinking logically at this point.) So I manually set the sprinklers to run the next morning. Then, when they started over again, I was momentarily confused. Oh yeah, now it's 9 AM and they're SUPPOSED to go off. So I went out to shut the computer off again.
So it's off, right? No sprinklers should be going. We left town yesterday (more about that later) and I was certain that the sprinklers would not run. At 9 this morning I heard the pump to the well turn on. Did someone flush the toilet? A glance out the window tells me the sprinklers are the reason.
I don't get it. I can't keep track of things I'm sure are off and turn out to be on. Maybe I left the car running last night. Maybe I forgot to turn off the shower this morning. Maybe I will get an even worse case of this mind loss thing and forget I have 5 children. Maybe the authorities will find me in some warm resort country, on a white beach, reading a book and letting the water lick my toes, while my kids end up wandering the country roads searching for a sandwich at lunchtime. I hope they have the presence of mind to shut the door when they leave. The flies are getting in.
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
Current Events
These are family current events...not the kind you clip out of the newspaper for your Social Studies class!
I had a doctor appointment yesterday. I'm 27 weeks. Everything sounded and looked good. I was then a little surprised when the doctor said to come back in two weeks. I guess I've been so comfortable in the pregnancy that I didn't realize it was already time for the two week appointments. That should help it seem to go a little faster.
What it's really going to do is make my summer hard because now I have to do something with 5 kids every two weeks. Normally, I would take them to Chad and let them play around him while he pretends to work. But Chad starts a different job on Monday. He's not going to be the boss anymore and can't get away with having so many crazy kids ruining the office.
What new job? I knew you'd ask. Chad is working for another company for 3 months on a project they've got. This way, we are sure there will be some $$. Chad's company has been hit by the recession that hit the construction market and they really haven't worked all year. All that stimulus money? It went to government projects. So the government paid themselves with our tax money. Maybe Chad should have been running an experimental sheep farm. He would have had more luck getting some assistance.
Anyway, now I am getting closer to delivering a baby. That means I got to do my glucose test yesterday. I wasn't looking forward to it, but I have to say...they have really improved that drink! I would have been willing to down a second one, but good manners prevented me from asking. I've got a nice bruise on my arm as a souvenir.
And I will soon be sitting the doctor down and explaining to him when I want to have this baby delivered. I hope he will be understanding and a push-over.
Then comes naming the thing. We have a name picked out (still hashing out the middle name), but Chad's side of the family has a baby due any day. We don't know if it's a girl or a boy. Selfishly, I'm hoping it's a boy so my name choice is safe. I've been robbed of girl name choices twice. I'm not looking for the "3rd time's a charm" thing here. Chad says it's no big deal to have the same name as a cousin. I would feel better if the ages were spaced a little better than 12 weeks! And if the last names were different, it would help. But I'm having a hard time thinking of two __________ Colletts during the same year. So I wait, anxiously.
It's been raining every day here for over a week. The grass is getting a lot of drinks and is therefore really growing. But it's really hard to cut wet grass, and gets even harder with every 1/2" it grows. I think today is a break in the weather and I'm hoping to get the chance to get out there after lunch. The weather guy says it doesn't really look like the rain is going to stop until sometime on or right after Father's Day weekend. But that's so far out, who really knows? We're trying to have an outdoor Choir picnic this Saturday. But the forecast last night really wasn't encouraging at all. We'll probably have to move it to the church.
We still have parts of our garden that aren't planted and the ground is too soft to get out there and weed. What has been planted is barely visible over the natural ground cover (thanks, Adam & Eve).
We adopted a new dog last week. Her name is Molly and she's a border collie/cocker spaniel mix. She's very cute, but only 8 months old and still very much a puppy. She's nearly 1/2 the size of Chocolate and therefore able to squeeze through places he can't. She's quite the little escape artist! We really need her to grow a bit. I should have paid more attention to the message the previous owner was giving me when he said he had one of those buried fence collars for her if we wanted it. Not that we could use that on 3 acres of pasture. But she's been good company for Chocolate. They've been very cute playing together out there.
(Joseph just threw his roll at me. I guess that isn't what he was hoping for when he asked for a snack.)
I cut my hair this morning. The front looks OK. The back isn't as great. It's hard to work behind yourself. But it had been 6 months since my last (self-induced) hair cut and I was feeling shaggy. Ironically, I still have that shaggy thing going on.
Nathan started piano lessons last week. He gets a 6 week beginner's crash course and then I get to take him from there. He's very sure of himself at the piano. It's funny to watch. Daniel has outgrown his novelty for the piano. It's now more of a punishment. I have reached a new milestone as a parent!
(Joseph now accepts the roll and has it half eaten.)
I got a couple more pages scrapped this week. I've enjoyed printing them and putting them into an album. They look so good off this printer! I'm trying to be frugal with the ink and have consequently been really picky about printing. I'm trying to be less stressed about it.
I guess that's all for now. You can now resume your day and get on with more important things.
I had a doctor appointment yesterday. I'm 27 weeks. Everything sounded and looked good. I was then a little surprised when the doctor said to come back in two weeks. I guess I've been so comfortable in the pregnancy that I didn't realize it was already time for the two week appointments. That should help it seem to go a little faster.
What it's really going to do is make my summer hard because now I have to do something with 5 kids every two weeks. Normally, I would take them to Chad and let them play around him while he pretends to work. But Chad starts a different job on Monday. He's not going to be the boss anymore and can't get away with having so many crazy kids ruining the office.
What new job? I knew you'd ask. Chad is working for another company for 3 months on a project they've got. This way, we are sure there will be some $$. Chad's company has been hit by the recession that hit the construction market and they really haven't worked all year. All that stimulus money? It went to government projects. So the government paid themselves with our tax money. Maybe Chad should have been running an experimental sheep farm. He would have had more luck getting some assistance.
Anyway, now I am getting closer to delivering a baby. That means I got to do my glucose test yesterday. I wasn't looking forward to it, but I have to say...they have really improved that drink! I would have been willing to down a second one, but good manners prevented me from asking. I've got a nice bruise on my arm as a souvenir.
And I will soon be sitting the doctor down and explaining to him when I want to have this baby delivered. I hope he will be understanding and a push-over.
Then comes naming the thing. We have a name picked out (still hashing out the middle name), but Chad's side of the family has a baby due any day. We don't know if it's a girl or a boy. Selfishly, I'm hoping it's a boy so my name choice is safe. I've been robbed of girl name choices twice. I'm not looking for the "3rd time's a charm" thing here. Chad says it's no big deal to have the same name as a cousin. I would feel better if the ages were spaced a little better than 12 weeks! And if the last names were different, it would help. But I'm having a hard time thinking of two __________ Colletts during the same year. So I wait, anxiously.
It's been raining every day here for over a week. The grass is getting a lot of drinks and is therefore really growing. But it's really hard to cut wet grass, and gets even harder with every 1/2" it grows. I think today is a break in the weather and I'm hoping to get the chance to get out there after lunch. The weather guy says it doesn't really look like the rain is going to stop until sometime on or right after Father's Day weekend. But that's so far out, who really knows? We're trying to have an outdoor Choir picnic this Saturday. But the forecast last night really wasn't encouraging at all. We'll probably have to move it to the church.
We still have parts of our garden that aren't planted and the ground is too soft to get out there and weed. What has been planted is barely visible over the natural ground cover (thanks, Adam & Eve).
We adopted a new dog last week. Her name is Molly and she's a border collie/cocker spaniel mix. She's very cute, but only 8 months old and still very much a puppy. She's nearly 1/2 the size of Chocolate and therefore able to squeeze through places he can't. She's quite the little escape artist! We really need her to grow a bit. I should have paid more attention to the message the previous owner was giving me when he said he had one of those buried fence collars for her if we wanted it. Not that we could use that on 3 acres of pasture. But she's been good company for Chocolate. They've been very cute playing together out there.
(Joseph just threw his roll at me. I guess that isn't what he was hoping for when he asked for a snack.)
I cut my hair this morning. The front looks OK. The back isn't as great. It's hard to work behind yourself. But it had been 6 months since my last (self-induced) hair cut and I was feeling shaggy. Ironically, I still have that shaggy thing going on.
Nathan started piano lessons last week. He gets a 6 week beginner's crash course and then I get to take him from there. He's very sure of himself at the piano. It's funny to watch. Daniel has outgrown his novelty for the piano. It's now more of a punishment. I have reached a new milestone as a parent!
(Joseph now accepts the roll and has it half eaten.)
I got a couple more pages scrapped this week. I've enjoyed printing them and putting them into an album. They look so good off this printer! I'm trying to be frugal with the ink and have consequently been really picky about printing. I'm trying to be less stressed about it.
I guess that's all for now. You can now resume your day and get on with more important things.
A shrug and a grunt and say "eh"
Joseph is now over 18 months old. The kid has yet to say his first word! I'm having flashbacks of Nathan's pantomimes. He didn't talk until he was 3. I really would rather not have to do that again. It's not much fun for the Mommy.
So since Joseph isn't talking, it's hard to remember that he's listening. There is no "snack time" without Joseph knowing right from the beginning and chasing down the person who's gone to get the goods. He knows when it's time to get shoes on and often beats the older kids in time it takes to find shoes. And as soon as he hears a song end or the prayer begin, he's got his arms folded.
When Joseph is done eating, he puts his cup into his bowl/plate and lifts it up to you. If you ask him if he's done, he puts both hand up in the air to show you that he is. And if he sees some food he really likes, his little tongue hangs out and he says, "haa, haa, haa."
Getting dressed or undressed is a game for Joseph. You must have quick reflexes and long arms to catch him before he runs away. Be very vigilant between steps or he may still find a way to run away while only partially dressed. This is very fun for him and he laughs all the way out the door. (A game we're currently playing while I type.)
Joseph has mastered the shake of the head to signify, No. We're working on nodding, to be more positive. Those must be trickier muscles to control. (I know it's easier for me to shake than nod...but maybe that just comes with parenthood.)
And, Joseph knows exactly what the camera is for. Here are some pictures I was taking for a gift for Chad's b-day. Notice the one person who is looking at the camera every time!
So since Joseph isn't talking, it's hard to remember that he's listening. There is no "snack time" without Joseph knowing right from the beginning and chasing down the person who's gone to get the goods. He knows when it's time to get shoes on and often beats the older kids in time it takes to find shoes. And as soon as he hears a song end or the prayer begin, he's got his arms folded.
When Joseph is done eating, he puts his cup into his bowl/plate and lifts it up to you. If you ask him if he's done, he puts both hand up in the air to show you that he is. And if he sees some food he really likes, his little tongue hangs out and he says, "haa, haa, haa."
Getting dressed or undressed is a game for Joseph. You must have quick reflexes and long arms to catch him before he runs away. Be very vigilant between steps or he may still find a way to run away while only partially dressed. This is very fun for him and he laughs all the way out the door. (A game we're currently playing while I type.)
Joseph has mastered the shake of the head to signify, No. We're working on nodding, to be more positive. Those must be trickier muscles to control. (I know it's easier for me to shake than nod...but maybe that just comes with parenthood.)
And, Joseph knows exactly what the camera is for. Here are some pictures I was taking for a gift for Chad's b-day. Notice the one person who is looking at the camera every time!
Sunday, June 07, 2009
Happy Birthday...POP!
It was Chad's b-day yesterday. He's all the way up to 36 years now. As I was singing and carrying the cake to the table, I was thinking...That's really not very old. But I can remember when that seemed old! Even so, 36 and 5 1/2 kids makes a body feel old...too old, sometimes.
Since the next day was Fast Sunday, we had the cake after lunch. I made German Chocolate. (Chad always makes appreciative sounds when we mention German Chocolate.) I think I was counting on his maturity to excuse me from being very creative with his cake.
But I think he got short-changed anyway. I couldn't even manage to make a "36" on his cake with the candles. There aren't 36 candles, either. I used what I had and was still 13 candles short. Luckily, he's unconcerned with the look of his cake over the TASTE! :)
Since the next day was Fast Sunday, we had the cake after lunch. I made German Chocolate. (Chad always makes appreciative sounds when we mention German Chocolate.) I think I was counting on his maturity to excuse me from being very creative with his cake.
But I think he got short-changed anyway. I couldn't even manage to make a "36" on his cake with the candles. There aren't 36 candles, either. I used what I had and was still 13 candles short. Luckily, he's unconcerned with the look of his cake over the TASTE! :)
Maybe it was a good thing we were short 13 candles. He barely got the fire out in one breath as it was.
And of course, there was no lack of help to remove the candles. I don't like to keep candles. Maybe when the kids are older, if they stop licking them when they take them out, I'll recycle them. For now, I just buy them at the dollar store.
We ate half the cake then and plan to finish it off this evening. Everyone is waiting in anticipation!
Onto another subject: we got a new popcorn popper recently. Our other popcorn popper is more a lethal weapon than a kitchen appliance. It is one of those vertical air poppers. It shoots the popcorn out at you and pops 1/3 of the kernels you put in. The rest of the kernels are hot torpedoes that must be avoided and then swept up.
Our new popper is a Stir Crazy (West Bend). You put in some oil, then kernels, cover it with a domed lid and plug it in. It stirs the kernels and keeps everything inside until you decide it's done. Then you unplug it and turn it over. The lid serves as a bowl. There is a reservoir on the bottom of the bowl that drips butter onto the corn as it pops, if you so desire. This new popper pops so much more popcorn and no one has to duck!
We had some this afternoon. It's a really big hit with Joseph (and everyone else). It also has some recipes in the manual. We've only made one, but it was very yummy. It kind of tastes like a drier caramel corn...a big plus when it comes to cleaning up the floor and lots of tiny hands.
Here is the recipe for you. You can use any plain popped popcorn.
Sugar ‘N Spice Treat
4 Qts. Plain popcorn
⅓ Cup Butter or margarine
¼ Cup Sugar
1 Tsp Cinnamon
¼ Tsp Salt
.....
1. Prepare 4 quarts of unbuttered popcorn according to instructions. Place in buttered 13x9x2 inch baking pan.
2. In a small saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Stir in sugar, cinnamon and salt. Mix well until sugar dissolves. Pour over popcorn, tossing to coat evenly.
3. Bake in a preheated 300°F oven for 10-minutes. Cool slightly before serving.
And one more scrapped LO for you. Stop here if you're not interested in such things. I know some people don't care. :)
Friday, June 05, 2009
What I really mean...apparently
In my illustrious 9 years as a parent, I've learned that one language can be very flexible. It amazes me that something I think is so clearly expressed one way actually enters the immature brain and translates into something entirely different (usually opposite).
I can still clearly remember the time Daniel thought I said to go play in the mud, when I'd really told him to stay out of it. And how do you punish a 7-year-old for supposedly being obedient? He must have thought he had the best mother in the world as he was out there making a big mess.
So I've been mentally compiling some examples of bad translation. Maybe these aren't so specific to our family. (I surely hope I'm not fighting this one alone. That would be really unfair.) If you have any you'd like to add, in the slim chance I've actually missed one, please add it in the comments.
In no particular order:
(My words in bold...their translation following)
NO...Not right now. Ask me again in a few minutes.
Don't play in my room...Only play in my room when I can't see you.
No drinks by the computer...Well, it's OK if you don't plan to spill it.
NO...NO way you thought of that all by yourself! Go ahead with your genius idea!
Finish your food...Finish only the food you want to eat. Dessert is still coming because you want it.
Is your room clean?...Can we see the ceiling?
NO...Not enough emotion for me. Ask again, but this time, jump up and down. And I want to see REAL tears.
Be quiet, please...You might have been quiet if you could have heard the request in the first place.
Stop fighting...Stop being so gentle. If you're going to start it, get it over with quickly and efficiently.
NO...It only applies to the person who asked. YOU are cleared to go ahead with the plan, as long as you weren't dumb enough to ask permission.
It's time for prayer...Now is the time to shout out a bunch of nonsense so we can all hear you and give you the spotlight.
Someone feed the cats...The cats need food. Just thought I'd share my 'to do' list out loud.
Please be reverent...Beat up your brother silently...duh!
STOP...Please continue.
Stay out of my sewing room...Don't do any sewing in my sewing room. Otherwise, go ahead and completely enjoy yourselves.
Come here...Come when it's convenient.
NO...I just want to be mean to you.
Is your homework done?...Do you feel like you should be done with your homework?
Please share...One for her, one for her, one for him, one for him, the rest for you.
Please sweep the floor...Please use this broom as a weapon on the closest unfortunate soul.
I'm really getting angry...But I'm not mad enough yet.
Yeah, I've probably left some out.
And I'm not a completely negative person.
Great Job!/Nice picture./You look nice./Thank you./I love you...I love you. Thanks for being part of our family.
But I hope we can all learn the same language soon. It would really ease some of the stress around here!
I can still clearly remember the time Daniel thought I said to go play in the mud, when I'd really told him to stay out of it. And how do you punish a 7-year-old for supposedly being obedient? He must have thought he had the best mother in the world as he was out there making a big mess.
So I've been mentally compiling some examples of bad translation. Maybe these aren't so specific to our family. (I surely hope I'm not fighting this one alone. That would be really unfair.) If you have any you'd like to add, in the slim chance I've actually missed one, please add it in the comments.
In no particular order:
(My words in bold...their translation following)
NO...Not right now. Ask me again in a few minutes.
Don't play in my room...Only play in my room when I can't see you.
No drinks by the computer...Well, it's OK if you don't plan to spill it.
NO...NO way you thought of that all by yourself! Go ahead with your genius idea!
Finish your food...Finish only the food you want to eat. Dessert is still coming because you want it.
Is your room clean?...Can we see the ceiling?
NO...Not enough emotion for me. Ask again, but this time, jump up and down. And I want to see REAL tears.
Be quiet, please...You might have been quiet if you could have heard the request in the first place.
Stop fighting...Stop being so gentle. If you're going to start it, get it over with quickly and efficiently.
NO...It only applies to the person who asked. YOU are cleared to go ahead with the plan, as long as you weren't dumb enough to ask permission.
It's time for prayer...Now is the time to shout out a bunch of nonsense so we can all hear you and give you the spotlight.
Someone feed the cats...The cats need food. Just thought I'd share my 'to do' list out loud.
Please be reverent...Beat up your brother silently...duh!
STOP...Please continue.
Stay out of my sewing room...Don't do any sewing in my sewing room. Otherwise, go ahead and completely enjoy yourselves.
Come here...Come when it's convenient.
NO...I just want to be mean to you.
Is your homework done?...Do you feel like you should be done with your homework?
Please share...One for her, one for her, one for him, one for him, the rest for you.
Please sweep the floor...Please use this broom as a weapon on the closest unfortunate soul.
I'm really getting angry...But I'm not mad enough yet.
Yeah, I've probably left some out.
And I'm not a completely negative person.
Great Job!/Nice picture./You look nice./Thank you./I love you...I love you. Thanks for being part of our family.
But I hope we can all learn the same language soon. It would really ease some of the stress around here!
Thursday, June 04, 2009
Scrap Roll
I must be on a roll. This is my 2nd scrapped layout in as many days. This is in response to a challenge at my favorite digital scrapbooking haunt (Sunshine Studio Scraps).
It's a little harsher than my usual style, but I thought I'd try something different.
It's a little harsher than my usual style, but I thought I'd try something different.
Wednesday, June 03, 2009
Scrapped
It's been a while since I scrapped anything. I scrapped this page in two nights. It took about 3 hours total and my rear is numb. I did this page to copy one of Joseph I did a long time ago. (It's below.)
I thought it would be nice to do all of the kids. I don't know how easy it will be to find photos for all of them for each month. It was hard enough to do with Rebekah.
I thought it would be nice to do all of the kids. I don't know how easy it will be to find photos for all of them for each month. It was hard enough to do with Rebekah.
P.S. I added photos of Daniel's b-day. Check out the original post to see them (if you want, that is).
A message for you
I've developed a new opinion on something. (I know, you're all rolling your eyes.) My new opinion is that getting collection calls is bad; getting collection calls for someone else is worse.
Lisa Yaeger REALLY wants you to call her. Her number is 888-710-6392.
I REALLY want my phone to ring for someone who lives here. I'd rather ignore my phone because I'm avoiding someone, not because someone else is!
Lisa Yaeger REALLY wants you to call her. Her number is 888-710-6392.
I REALLY want my phone to ring for someone who lives here. I'd rather ignore my phone because I'm avoiding someone, not because someone else is!
Tuesday, June 02, 2009
Happy Birthday, Daniel!
Daniel turns 9 today. Officially, it will be at 1:23 pm this afternoon. I'm sure he already feels older this morning.
Daniel's due date was 30 May and I was the doctor's only overdue patient. On Thursday, she set me up for a Saturday induction. That night, Daniel decided to come. (That was also the night a member of the bishopric stopped by and asked Chad and I to teach the Valiant 9 class.)
After some easy and not-so-easy labor, it was decided that Daniel was not really coming out on his own. (Maybe that should have been our first warning of the personality to come.) After 7-8 hours of labor, Daniel was born with relatively little effort on my part. The doctor un-looped the cord from his neck 3 times and handed the 8 lb 13 oz baby over to the nurses. I was always worried that my baby would be ugly and I'd have to love a face "only a mother could love." Fortunately, he was a very cute baby, as have been all his siblings.
And now he's celebrating his 9th birthday!!
He said he wanted a baseball cake (then he said he wanted a robot cake and I steered him back to the baseball one). Here is what I came up with, last night. I'm no professional, but I don't think Daniel will care.
Daniel's due date was 30 May and I was the doctor's only overdue patient. On Thursday, she set me up for a Saturday induction. That night, Daniel decided to come. (That was also the night a member of the bishopric stopped by and asked Chad and I to teach the Valiant 9 class.)
After some easy and not-so-easy labor, it was decided that Daniel was not really coming out on his own. (Maybe that should have been our first warning of the personality to come.) After 7-8 hours of labor, Daniel was born with relatively little effort on my part. The doctor un-looped the cord from his neck 3 times and handed the 8 lb 13 oz baby over to the nurses. I was always worried that my baby would be ugly and I'd have to love a face "only a mother could love." Fortunately, he was a very cute baby, as have been all his siblings.
And now he's celebrating his 9th birthday!!
He said he wanted a baseball cake (then he said he wanted a robot cake and I steered him back to the baseball one). Here is what I came up with, last night. I'm no professional, but I don't think Daniel will care.
I fashioned the ball and bat from rice krispie treats then covered them in frosting. I got the idea from my sister-in-law's blog...thanks, Andrea! The '9' candle is left over from the year Chad turned 29. That seems like forever ago (he's going to be 36 on Saturday)!
And here are the promised "after" shots.
Daniel blowing out the candles. He took a really long time making a wish. I think the candles were close to piles of wax by the time he put them out. I wonder what he wished for?
Leah posed for this one. I didn't even know she could cross her eyes.
Daniel posed for this one. What is it with my kids?
Daniel went out to fly his space shuttle. It had been raining all day. At least he got a chance to get out there and play for a little bit.
Happy Nine Years Old, Daniel!
Monday, June 01, 2009
I'm going to scream
Nathan is driving me insane. He keeps racing around the house, singing nonsense words in a pitch that would impress a first soprano.
The most frustrating thing is that he can't seem to stop himself. I may have to gag and bind him. The noise is more than I can take!
Maybe we can build a play shelter at the back of the pasture. I'll just ring the cow bell at meal times. If I feel like it.
The most frustrating thing is that he can't seem to stop himself. I may have to gag and bind him. The noise is more than I can take!
Maybe we can build a play shelter at the back of the pasture. I'll just ring the cow bell at meal times. If I feel like it.
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