A Very Full Gingerbread house.

I think perhaps I'm crazy. Today we have 3 extra kids over. The gingerbread house is NOT equip for this much "foolishness". WE. ARE. AT. MAXI UM. CAPACITY. I think outdoor fun is in store.

Merry 2 days after Christmas!

Notice the color coordinating wrapping paper (cause I'm OCD like that)
This one is for Lindsey (two words: Tonsils Picture) AND to demonstrate the general vibe of the morning.
This is proof that one of our children feels the same about mornings as her parents. Where'd the other 2 freaks early risers come from?
They don't really look as bright-eyed and bushy tailed as they actually were.

T'was the Night Before Christmas...

Remember when you were a kid and on Christmas eve you were so excited you couldn't contain yourself? That's exactly where all 3 of my kids are! They've just been running from one side of our house to the other since 3 this afternoon. (Back and forth... over and over, until you're ready to strangle someone!!!) :-) Taking a clear picture of them is nearly impossible without using the sport/action setting on the camera.

Gaius is determined that in a waist-high (to him) box is a pink bunny. And while bathing Leia we were having a conversation about whether or not Santa would be coming to our house. Here's how it went:

Mom is Santa coming to our house?

I don't know, what do you think?

I think he could just walk through the door, since we don't have a fire. But we do have a chimney.

So there you have it. Mystery solved! Santa can just use the door if you don't have a fireplace. So simple...and logical!

Also FYI, we don't usually believe is Santa. But things get a little fuzzy in the U.S. at Christmas time.

Mama Files: Don't tell anyone I said this, but...

...the big, fat, juicy snowflakes coming down outside my window look beautiful! :-)

*sigh* The one perk of lake effect!

Tis the Season.

At least this year's Christmas tree shot is a little better than last years!

All I Want for Christmas is My 2 Front Teeth

Here's my kids' wish lists:

Xavier's list is a full page of boring boy stuff (mostly transformers and video games).

Leia wants a wand and moon sand.

Gaius wants a rabbit. Real or fake, he'll take whatever (FAKE the answer is always, always FAKE).

Their lists pretty much reflect their ages and personalities to a T!

Peanut Butter and Jelly Christmas Part 1

Oh boy! Here we go!!!! Xavier's first solo (pictures to come)!

N.I.X.V. [New International Xavier Version]

"Mom, this is the shortest verse in the bible: God swept"

"Um Xav, I think you mean Jesus wept"

"Oooooh!"

Voices from the Art Room.

The Girls Table:
L- Do you want to get married someday?

A- I don't know, maybe...

L- How many kids do you want to have?

A- Four is definitely too many. Maybe 2, and HOPEFULLY they'll be boys. Because they aren't as expensive as girls. Although I might like having a girl so that we could do things like: going and getting our nails done and stuff.


The Boys Table:
JD- SW! Santa isn't real!!!! It's just a man dressed up who tells your parents what to buy for you!!!!

SW- Yes he is real!

JV- He really is real because I saw him once on a train and he wasn't dressed up. He was just a regular man!

This continued for 20 minutes (at various volume levels). Neither side ever persuading the other.

The Mama Files: The Gingerbread Man.

I wish I was a mushier person (I'm totally blaming it on growing up with only brothers).

I read these blogs where ladies are saying all these nice, heart felt things about their husbands. And all I can think is: Marc and I just work together.

Sure we have fun and truly enjoy each other's company. And see eye to eye on important things. But I feel silly talking about it.

We also hate each other's music and movie tastes, which turns into a game of trying to find some common ground...somewhere. And I love the fact that we've learned to love watching sports together. Not to mention that we have 3 adorable children with bits and pieces of each of us all mushed together in them. But who (other than me) cares about that?

Maybe I'd feel confident talking about how he's an amazing father and has a strong conviction to teach our children biblical truths. Or how he's willing to put in as much time as is required to make sure that his ideas are biblically founded.

Or maybe you'd care to know that I cannot wait for the said children to grow up, so I can have their dad all to myself. :-)

My husband is amazing! (He'd be completely embarrassed that I told you, which I also love!)

The Gingerbreads make some gingerbread: take 2!

The Gingerbread train courtesy Leia and Gaius
Xavier's Gingerbread House

Finished, Complete, Ik ben klaar, He terminado, J'ai fini, done!

My Christmas shopping that is!

(It sounds great in any language doesn't it?)

Oodles of Noodles, kit and kaboodle

Leia- "My fork is having a hard time keeping track of these, so I have to use my hands"

"Rocky"- Gaius style!

Leia: "The eye of the tigeeeerrrr"

Gaius: "The eye of the hippo-o-o-o"

The Story of the Geese

There was once a man who didn't believe in the incarnation of Christ or the spiritual meaning of Christmas, and was skeptical about God. He and his family lived in a farm community. His wife was a devout believer and diligently raised her children in her faith. He sometimes gave her a hard time about her faith and mocked her religious observance of Christmas.

"It's all nonsense - why would God lower himself and become a human like us? It's such a ridiculous story!" he said.

One snowy day, she and the children left for church while he stayed home. After they had left, the winds grew stronger and the snow turned into a blinding snowstorm. He sat down to relax before the fire for the evening.

Then he heard a loud thump, something hitting against the window. And another thump. He looked outside but couldn't see. So he ventured outside to see. In the field near his house he saw, of all the strangest things, a flock of geese! They were apparently flying to look for a warmer area down south, but had been caught in the snow storm. The storm had become too blinding and violent for the geese to fly or see their way. They were stranded on his farm, with no food or shelter, unable to do more than flutter their wings and fly in aimless circles.

He had compassion for them and wanted to help them. He thought to himself, "The barn would be a great place for them to stay! It's warm and safe; surely they could spend the night and wait out the storm." So he opened the barn doors for them. He waited, watching them, hoping they would notice the open barn and go inside. But they didn't notice the barn or realize what it could mean for them.

He moved closer toward them to get their attention, but they just moved away from him out of fear. He went into the house and came back out with some bread, broke it up, and made a bread trail to the barn. They still didn't catch on. Starting to get frustrated, he went over and tried to shoo them toward the barn. They panicked and scattered into every direction except toward the barn. Nothing he did could get them to go into the barn where there was warmth, safety and shelter.

Feeling totally frustrated, he exclaimed, "Why don't they follow me? Can't they see this is the only place where they can survive the storm? How can I possibly get them into the one place to save them?" He thought for a moment and realized that they just wouldn't follow a human. He said to himself, "How can I possibly save them? The only way would be for me to become like those geese. If only I could become like one of them! Then I could save them! They would follow me and I would lead them to safety."

At that moment, he stopped and considered what he had said. The words reverberated in his mind: "If only I could become like one of them- then I could save them." And then, at last, he understood God's heart towards mankind, and he fell on his knees in the snow and worshipped Him.

Submitted to all-creatures.org by: Deb Carpenter

Inquiring Minds Would Like to Know:

"Leia, is Santa Claus real?"

"No!"

"What's Christmas really about?"

"God being born. That's why it's a rejoicing!"


Couldn't have said it better myself!

(Well maybe I could have said it with better English, but I'm sure it wouldn't have been as cute!)

Mama Files: K's Last Day!

Today is my last day working as a daycare assistant! I'm not going to lie, I'm Thrilled!!!

Here's one aspect where I am NOT my mother's daughter.

It's heeeerrrreeee. Dun. Dun. Dun.

But will it stay?

WNL News Update!

"It's here! It's here! It's finally here!!!" The voices rang out early Monday morning. I'm still not sure who was yelling louder Xavier or Marc when the notorious DSi arrived via the good ol' US postal service.

The Christmas/Birthday season is in full swing around here! No tree yet, but lots of presents wrapped and ready (it's the only way of surprising a very nosey household)

We got together with some old HS friends last weekend! I love how with some people you can just pick right up where you left off. No matter how much time has past.

Our family is going through some separation anxiety lately. We're cutting some apron strings and my mom is feeling anxious about it. ***Which begins out segment titled "Really?!?"*** (ha! J/K there's NO WAY you want me to go there!!!)

We decorated gingerbread houses last night! Unfortunately *someone* broke our computer so I can't upload any pictures because it doesn't recognize my camera anymore. Just let me tell you that the house and train are super cute!


We had out first snow yesterday...it all melted by the afternoon (THANK YOU LORD!!!)


I believe my children have memorized ALL of their parts for various Christmas programs. One of them is taking after his dad and has a solo (ha! Marc's going to kill me for bringing that up! I just couldn't resist.)

And last but not least: Tomorrow is DATE NIGHT! GLORIOUS DATE NIGHT! It's going to be super romantic, watching the Jets beat the Bills with a bunch of people we don't know, oh and lots and lots of wings!

Xavier- "That Kendall came over yesterday"

Leia- "I'm thankful that it's mommy's birthday"

Gaius- due to the weird napping schedule needed so that we can all be at "our best" for turkey today, Gaius is asleep. So I'll answer for him and say I'm thankful for NAPS!!!!!

Korleen- "I'm thankful for youthful looks, and no wrinkles in sight!"

~~~~~~~The End~~~~~~~

Xavier- "I'm thankful for my new DSi"

Leia- "I'm thankful for Kendall coming over"

Gaius- "I'm thankful for pie"

Korleen- "I'm thankful for my church family. I love the fact that everyone has a little something different to bring to the table to help further God's kingdom! Whether it's personality or skill God can use anything! And when everyone comes together, imagine the impact that can have!"



I hate what the holidays do to my children. I think next year I won't let them make lists or ask for anything in particular (we'll see how that goes over). It seems like all they're doing is asking for more and more and MORE! Especially my soon to be 8 year old. I just realized how horrible it's getting when we pre-ordered his DSI (which he's been saving for a year to get) and not 5 minutes later he was shopping online for what he wanted next. Of course he got a lecture on thankful for what we have, but I'm not exactly sure how much of it sank in. How do you teach children to be content in this extremely materialistic world?

I'm thankful for...

Xavier- "Aunt Katie and Aunt Susannah"

Leia- "Going to PCS today."

Gaius- "My doggie [toy]"

Korleen- " That God provides all of our needs and a lot of our wants!"

Xavier- "I'm thankful for my aunt Lydia, and my cousin Tyler"

Leia- "Legos and my friend Aubrey"

Gaius- "Toys and Mommy"

Korleen- "I'm so thankful for my husband. I can't believed the amazing and Godly man he's turned into in the past 8 years. God has blessed me so much!"

Xavier- "I'm going to go with: I'm thankful for Daddy"

Leia- "My birthday!" Which BTW is not until July.

Gaius- "I'm thankful for treats....and Paulie....and Grandma"

Korleen- "I'm thankful for my kids who make me chuckle every single day, and are getting WAY too grown up"

Window(s) Shopping

My friend Shelly does this all the time, and I'm stealing the idea for a minute. So this is what I found for my kiddos for Christmas clothes this year (I'm actually totally in love with Leia's, and the idea of my boys matching!)

Thankfulness

Xavier- "That my birthday is finally coming up"

Leia- "I'm thankful for my Grandma"

Gaius- "Paulie"

Korleen- "for free massages!"

Obama rama!

X- "Leia turn the channel!"

L- "No. I want to watch Mr. President. Mr. Bo-gom-o."

X- "Haha! That's not it."

L- "Mr. O-bomb-o"

X- "Well that was close"

Xavier- "I'm thankful for friends"


Leia- "I'm thankful for something, but I don't know what"


Korleen- "is so SO very thankful, that I get a new license picture today!" My last one was taken 11 days before Xavier was born. It looks like i rolled out of bed and went to the DMV, which may or may not have actually happened. :-)

Thankful

Xavier- "for Patch Club"

Leia- "breakfast"

Gaius- "breakfast" I've really got to stop asking these kids in front of each other. They all pick the same answers.

Korleen- "Electricity...and running water"

I'm thankful...

Xavier- "that my flu shot didn't hurt"

Leia- "going to the volleyball game"

Gaius- "flu shot.... Mine hurt Mom."

Korleen- "crazy and wild art students that never cease to entertain me!"

Martha Leia Speaks

" Mom I can't make an S because I don't know how to swirl it"

Sunny day. Sweepin' the clouds away. On my way to where the air is sweet...

While listening to the radio on our way to church we found out about a quiz on THIS WEBSITE. So being the big Sesame Street fans that we are we came right home and each took it. Here's where we stack up.

Xavier- Elmo

Leia- Cookie Monster

Gaius- Oscar the Grouch (who BTW is not speaking to me now, because he didn't up being Elmo. It's not my fault kid that you chose Antisocial as how people see you!!!)

Marc- The Count (That's 1-ONE mistaken quiz result) :-)

Korleen- Bert (did NOT see that one coming)



And now back to thankfulness. I realize I missed a few days (it's a long story) so here's a few to catch up.

Xavier- "Daddy, Gaius, and Rooie"

Leia- "Rooie (our dog), Sarah, and my teddy"

Gaius- "elmo, my blue blankie, my white blankie"

Korleen- "my little family, my church family, and my extended family (both sides)"

I'm thankful for:

Xavier- "going to Grandma's house today for cousins sleepover"

Leia- "getting to go to the sleepover"

Gaius- "songs"

Korleen- "running shoes, iPods, sunny days, and under armor" (it's cold out there this morning.)

I keep forgetting to ask Marc what he's thankful for everyday. But I'm sure he's thankful for his lovely and HILARIOUS wife! ;-)

I'm thankful for...

Xavier- "my mom" (honestly he said this! I didn't put him up to it!)

Leia- "that we have enough money for gameboys and DS's" (Xav and she have been saving their money for a year to save up for a DS, they ALMOST have enough)

Gaius "my fingers" (while sucking his fingers)

Korleen- "little girls wearing fur-lined boots!" (I'm thinking of one little girl in particular!) :-)

Be thankful for all He has done. Be thankful from the bottom of your heart...

A bunch of my friends on facebook are posting 1 thing they are thankful for everyday until thanksgiving. I thought we could do that here.

Xavier- "stores"

Leia- "Grandma's"

Gaius- "Paulie"

Korleen- "that I didn't have to scrap a splattered dog off of our road this morning, and explain it to my children" (long story-short, the dog spent the night out running last night, man he's getting rebellious!!!) :-)

Marc- TBA

Boys are Weird!!!!! and a little gross.

Now I LOVE my boys! I love their antics and they're general craziness. But it was brought to my attention today that our 7 year old hasn't brushed his teeth in 3 days. Apparently he got his toothbrush out at his friend's house (on friday) but then put it back without actually using it. And hadn't unpacked or used it since then. Thank goodness he had a teeth cleaning today or else he may have gone another couple days without brushing. Ewww!P.S. The ironic thing is that he didn't have any cavities and his sister did (who brushes everyday).

It's the Most Wonderul Time of the Year!

The Growth Spurt!

In the past 4 months Leia has grown ½"! Now that doesn't really sound like all that much but suddenly this week all her pants are too short. Now considering she's normally "Miss Matched" (get it it mismatched?) I can't imagine throwing high-waters into the mix.

Goodness! I have humongous children!

Mama Files

Remember this post? Well my wish came true today! Thanks to big brothers who own furniture stores and super discounted prices! Whoohoo! I'm hoping my back loves it as much at my mind thinks it will!

All Hallow's Musings

Alright, I know it's technically not Halloween anymore, but I didn't have a chance to get on here last night. So this is the best I can do. So here's some thoughts from yesterday (in no particular order).

While driving I came upon a jersey cow VERY close to on the shoulder of the road and it scared the crap out of me. It turns out it was tethered in some one's front yard, but goodness it was scary for a minute there!

Since when does wearing some white face paint and grubby sweats constitute a Halloween costume? (if you're not even going to try then, NO NO I'm not going to give you any of my candy!!!)

At what point do you, think, "Self I've run out of house painting options. I know!, Let's just paint it argyle"? (seriously there's a house painted in argyle around the corner from me.)

And last but not least...

You might be a redneck if: you know which gas station to go to for the "best" beef jerky, and "I'm not afraid to tell ya!"

Mama Files:

Do I have amazing friends or what? Check out the hat and gloves my friend Trudy knit for me! Now I'm ready (sort of) for some cold weather so I can wear them!
WARNING: If you enlarge these pictures (I have no idea why you would want to) brace yourself for a gigantic zit under my eyebrow (the oddest place in the world to get a blemish!!!). That popped out of nowhere yesterday.

How's life going you ask?

Life at our house is as crazy as ever. Here's what's going on in a nutshell.

1. Potty training is going splendidly! We carry the frog potty with us EVERYWHERE we go, and people have pretty much stopped commenting on it.

2. Homeschooling is...going. The kindergartner is loving it, The 2nd grader-not so much.

3. We've started babysitting one of Gaius' friends from church 3 days a week, which is a lot of fun AND a nice distraction for Gaius.

4. I started my Christmas shopping a couple weeks ago. And officially started listening to Christmas music today.

5. The NY Jets started out the season strong BUT... (yes!!! that is major news to our family)

6. And I think that's about it for news around here. So far the fall has been one of those "a lot going on, but nothing to really report" kind of moments. There's a whirlwind to come though (another baby on Marc's side of the family and 2 weddings next summer). So we're just bracing ourselves for that.

Who would've Thunk!

That all it would take was this conversation to potty train Gaius.

"Gaius, I don't want to buy anymore diapers. Can't you just start going potty in the potty?"


"Okay mom!"

Wordless Wednesday.

Mama Files.

Helping to coach youth soccer this year has given me a greater appreciation for our conviction to name our children with unusual names. It got pretty tiresome referring to 2 players by they're full names the whole season.

The End.

We are...

...DETERMINED to get this child potty trained!!!

The Mama Files: Oh Summer!

Over this summer I have received:

a.) a free dishwasher! (which cuts my time in front of the sink down by at least half)

b.) a free riding lawn mower! (now it only takes me about a hour to mow our acre instead of the 2+ hours it took to push mow it)

c.) an all-in-one printer (not free, but probably one of our better investments "for homeschooling")

Now I can be "SUPER Efficient Mom", instead of just mom!

What's a girl to do with all her new found free time?!?!?!

T[B]OY STORY

So it would appear we are raising Sid from Toy Story. You know, he's the kid that rips apart, then rebuilds, toys to make them freaky. Now I'm not exactly sure which child is responsible for this, but I'd be willing to bet it is one with a Y chromosome.

Mama Files: My side of the family.

(click on picture to enlarge)

The Last Hurrah

September camping has such a different vibe than June camping. The campground was basically empty the whole week, so we pretty much had the run of the place. But we also were surrounded by retired cranky people that wanted everything to be perfectly peaceful and quiet (not exactly possible with 3 kids and a dog). We still had a lot of fun! And since the beach was closed we could swim anywhere we wanted, which just happened to be about 50 yards from our camper!

Xavier "walking on water"

Our nightly visitor (who was not afraid of anything)

Down time

Gaius was a crazy monkey the whole time. On the last day we were down playing at the beach and Leia and I were cuddling in the towels and he was so upset that the laid down in the shallow water and just sobbed. If it wasn't so stinking cute it would've been really heart breaking.

I HEART this picture of my adorable little kindergartner!

I dont' think Pharaoh Hounds know how to swim, but it sure was fun making him try! As soon as the water reached his belly he would jump straight up into the air. It still makes me laugh thinking about it.

We live in an amazing area (feel free to remind me of this in a few months when it's -10°, and snow is piled 6 feet high).

Percolating...

We're taking advantage of one of the perks of home schooling. By starting school a week late so that we can go camping next week. I'm not exactly sure how it's going to work since our schedule is starting to fill up again. But I'm really looking forward to spending some time with our little family by ourselves.

Youth soccer has officially started and I gotta tell ya, I LOVE that sport! Luckily our 2 oldest agree so hopefully we'll have years and years of games ahead of us!

Oh and...

P.S. How did my kids get so stinkin' huge this summer? I look around and I don't see any babies anymore...I can't lie, it makes me a little sad. Now if only the last one would potty train.

I can't even begin to retell all that's gone down in the past 2 weeks. It was fun and crazy and busy.

I'm still getting a grip on "normal" life. A couple things I wasn't expecting were.

1. Sibling Rivalry between my eldest, and my most easy-going child on the planet.

2. the complete unbridled love a complete stranger would have for us right from the start.

3. A glimpse at what life could look like if we don't teach our children what consequences are.
4. The realization that this could possibly be the only chance this child ever has to see what Jesus' love looks like.

All in all we loved the experience and we plan on taking part in the program again next year!

Leia's Motto:

When in doubt, wear Red Sparkly Shoes!!!

Our Family is...

"showing me [Jahmel] the love"....unfortunately Jahmel isn't showing that same sort of love to the gingerbread house.

We love Jahmel and he's very loving, adventurous, cute, but holy ENERGY batman!!! The kid literally never stops moving. So new plan: we're going to run this kid ragged (even if I have to literally make him run!), unfortunately I think our kids might drop before he does.

Here He Comes

Jahmel arrives today! And we're pretty excited about it!

They're Back! dun, dun, dun.

Our 2 eldest have returned to us all tan, excited, exhausted, and generally adorable! From what I hear Leia missed her little brother more than any of us. Upon seeing him when she drove up she said; "oh Grandma, i forgot Gaius had curly hair." And I'm quite certain that we probably wouldn't have even gotten a phone call yesterday except for the fact that Leia "couldn't remember what Gaius' voice sounded like". Xavier being much older and dignified :-) wasn't quite as verbally affectionate, but I'm pretty sure he's happy to be back too! So all is right in our world again! We're all back together safe and sound! And Gaius can stop torturing the dog.

On a semi-unrelated note. We ARE hosting a Fresh Air Fund child next week. His name is Jahmel and he is 6.

Who Knew...

that having only one child would:

a. be super and utterly boring (even if he is the cutest 2 year old around)

b. require the same amount of clean-up times about 10 (this kid is a tornado!)

c. very, VERY quiet

d. mean sleeping in until 9 every morning

e. be very hot and humid (okay so that isn't really Gaius' doing)

f. not the best cure for a little very small case of baby fever

Well the older 2 are at Bayouca this week with my parents. And I actually don't have any large projects planned (big mistake). My life is reduced to watching bad TV...I'm not sure how long I can take this.

Polar Extreme

I'm truly awed by our church's VBS program. It has to be one of the best in this area. I can't even believe the talents God has given our church body. In our midst we have:
a ventriloquist
a music team (guitar, keyboard, & bass fiddle)
some extremely hilarious actors (dry humor + slap stick= really funny)
a puppet team
and a whole slew of people who aren't afraid to roll up their sleeves and show at least 100 kids (and adults) each night that fun and God definitely do mix!
not even mentioning all of the artistry and imagination everyone used to transform a hot July week into something really "cool".

I really can't get over it! There isn't any other event our church puts on that our WHOLE church participates it, and that runs like such a well oiled machine (that has to be God). Now I haven't heard a number on how many people were saved. But I do know that in Leia's class there were over 30 kids most nights and I didn't recognize a lot of them. So I'm thinking even if they don't understand Jesus' sacrifice this year there is a foundation laid for possible future fruition. So anyway I'm amazed and excited. I hope we see a massive growth in our church and God's family in the very near future.

The End.


[more pics coming soon]

New Song

This song DOES have some significance!!!

"I'll buy you Rogaine when you start losing all your hair. Sew on patches to all you tear... "

I think I'm just going to let you try to figure it out.

This blog has been much too quiet lately anyway.

P.S. Oh! And Leia and my niece Sarah informed me that my last song was "weird and boring". I liked it, oh well.

Korleen's Comentary part duex

1. We've survived VBS fairly unscathed (the exception being Gauis falling and knocking one of his front teeth back up into his gum, nothing can be done so we just have to wait and see).

2. My van is now legal and safe to drive again! (it had some repairs it needed and an inspection to pass)

3. Marc's car is jealous again. So it decided that it needed a trip to the mechanic on the exact same day my van was scheduled for it's "make over". Turns out Marc's car has more expensive taste then the van does.

4. I saw 2 old friends this week! Lindsey who I haven't seen in a year or so. And Monica who I haven't seen in probably 5 years. Both super fun to chat and catch up with!!!

5. The weather has been in the mid-80's a few times this week!!!!

6. I beat my best time on my 2 mile run by 1 minute and 49 seconds!!!

7. Roo finally finished his prescription, and it only took a package of hot dogs to do it!

8. Did i mention that we're still all alive after 6 nights of VBS?

9. Marc and I are headed to the NY JETS training camp tomorrow! And to see our new niece!!

10. And last but not least. We had our home visit/interview for hosting a Fresh Air Fund Kid for 10 days at the end of August. For the age group we're willing to host it might not happen this summer. But if it's meant to be, God will work it out.

Progress!

Xavier has been trying to learn how to ride a 2 wheeler all summer. He still needs a little incline to get going. But at least we're past the tears and hyperventilating whenever someone even mentions practicing. AND he can cover almost an acre without stopping!

Now to get back to potty training...oy!

P.S. I am now accepting all comments and suggestions on how to get siblings to stop bickering ALL DAY LONG...

The Mama Files: Things I wish I didn't stink at.

1. landscaping- i have no vision for it and no idea where to find it.

2. arguing-(debating?) I hate it and I'm horrible at it and all that ends up happening is I get frustrated and start crying, even if I'm right.

3. Yelling-(commanding attention) I do it because I'm a mom to small children but I would seriously almost rather pull out my teeth one by one.

4. cleaning- I probably wouldn't be so bad at it if I actually had the ambition and drive to get it done-I'm working on it.

5. letting go of body fat- I've been dieting and working out for MONTHS and still can't get rid of all of it...my husband joins a gym and within 2 weeks he's firmed up the tiny bit of fat he has.

6. saying no to chocolate- which could explain #5

7. saving money

8. singing

9. training my dog- I'd really like to teach my dog to stay in the yard (see previous post) and to walk on a leash...but I'd also like to potty train my 2 year old.

10. spontaneity- when ever I try to be spontaneous things go terribly wrong

The Dog Days of Summer

Why is it that our dog breaks his chain/gets loose at the most inopportune times???? (Perhaps it's NEVER convenient for me?)

So anyhow our dog broke his chain (that was supposed to hold a Mastiff)again...right before the big sleepover. I chased him a 1/2 mile down the road before giving up and turning around. He eventually came back and the neighbor caught and returned him to me. But not before puncturing his lip who knows where. My original thought was "well serves him right, i hope it hurts". But then it continued to bleed and excrete pus (yummy!) so I decided a vet visit was probably the best idea. Now that wouldn't have been a big deal except that our dog doesn't walk on a leash the greatest OR like linoleum at all. So we drive the 20 minutes to our vets. Make it into the airlock without incident step onto the welcome matt in the vet's office and Roo decides that's about as close to the linoleum he's going to go and lays down paws sprawled out ready to retreat at the first opportunity. I eventually coax (a.k.a. drag) him into the waiting room while everyone there laughs at us. We sign in and find a seat and then Roo starts getting very excited to see all the other dogs, by whining, barking, blushing (yes he does really blush) like a fool. So as soon as possible can,they stick us into an examining room (repeat the scene of trying to get him into the waiting room). And we wait...for 20 minutes. Finally the vet comes in and tries to just wipe the wound and Roo (being the spaz that he is) wiggles away from her every time. Eventually the vet assistant comes and holds him in the corner until they examine the wound. Which i guess doesn't go all the way through. Gives him a booster shot and some amoxicillin and sends us on our way. So now we're home and expected to give him a giant capsule twice a day for 10 days...oh boy that's not going to be easy.

Ah life with a crazy hyper-active dog.

YO MLS!

if all your soccer players were this cute then maybe you could build a bigger american fan base.just sayin'...

Happy 5th Birthday Leia!

My heart aches when I think about how fast the past 5 years has flown by. Happy Birthday to the sweetest, cutest, bestest little girl in the whole world! We love you!

The Sleepover

The Cake:
The Guests:

From left to right: Alicia (5), Grandma Bonnie (ageless), Emma (3), Kendall (5), Leia (4.97), Maggie (7), Sara W. (6), Allie (5), Lauren (6). Absent from phone: Sarah V. (6)

The Gifts:

The Movie:
The Dad Attack:
The after party:


Well we survived! We had 9 girls (counting Leia) ages 3-7. We did have to run home one at 2:30am. But considering there were several that this was their first sleepover I don't think that's bad at all. We also did crafts and painted nails that wasn't photo documented...I needed both hands for those activities.

P.S. Marc whined and complained up and during the party, but I think he secretly enjoyed himself.

P.S.S. The cake has an edible transfer on the top so that's why it looks professional...I am NOT a cake decorator at all (well there i go giving away my secrets).