I was descending the stairs to check on the progress of a project that Patrick is working on, (new food storage shelves... FINALLY!! YIPEE!!! And his brother is painting the downstairs bathroom, simultaneously, containing my excitement... can't stand the smell of the freshly sawed lumber, or the poorly unventilated bathroom paint fumes, so I only check periodically!... but I digress)
I overheard an unusual conversation from the boys bedroom.
Miles- "I have to disagree with you."
Friend - "But bigger is better."
With intense passion in his voice, until the end when he almost bit his friends head off with the intensity,
Miles-"That's not always true. Didn't you ever see 'Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs'? BIGGER almost destroyed their whole world!"
I popped my head around the door way and mentioned that I thought he could argue his point without getting so worked up and to try to make it a friendly conversation and not ruin their friendship over this issue.
I continued on to the project area in my foreman capacity. I think Miles may have a valid argument, although citing fictional, cartoon movies as the basis for his debate may not lend a whole lot of credence.
(They were deciding on the strengths of skills in various dragons to begin with.... I think his argument may stand.)
Christmas Day 2010
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| Christmas in the living room before the arrival of the kidlets. |
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| The stinkers. I told them that this year they couldn't even look at their stockings until 6am. I wanted Whittaker to have a chance at a reasonable nights sleep. None of this 3 am stuff... So, they set their alarms for 6am. By 6:15, I had requests to come upstairs! |
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| I showed them! Instead, I came downstairs and made them show me their stockings. Then Caleb, Patrick and Forrest scratched their lottery tickets that were in their stockings. They won, $1050.00, $22,000.00 and $3000.00.... until they learned they were GAG tickets!! Hee Hee! After that, all nerf guns were pointed at me! Upstairs was inevitable! |
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| Waiting until the OK was given to enter the living room. No peeking. And then pandemonium!! Checking everything out took a while. Everyone was just as excited for their own gifts as they were for each others! |
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| He decided to delve a little further into his stocking finally. He discovered there was an orange inside. After devouring his orange and then eating our traditional 'treat cereal' breakfast, he discovered that opening his gifts could be fun. He adores his Glow worm from his Uncle Forrest, and contrary to what others thought, he did appreciate his bucket of birdseed!! It meant that his favourite birdies would return to the window! |
Patrick replaced all my missing hubcaps! Now I don't know if I want them on the van or not. How can I get some assurance they won't just fall off again?
Grandma received a glass chicken from Forrest, and via skype she accepted it excitedly!
Sarah had been my little sidekick through most of the Christmas preparations and I found it difficult to surprise her since she essential picked out her own presents! But surprise I did with some small items.
Miles and Duncan were thrilled with toys another year. Miles also was pleased to have his new interest knitting well supplied with needles and a box full of yarn! Watch for scarves!
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| There was a fair bit of assembly this year. Awesome that they were all old enough to do it themselves! Caleb's chin-up bar is getting a LOT of action. Perhaps we'll all be buff soon. HA HA HA.. |
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| After our Christmas morning was complete. We tidied up a little and prepared for the arrival of the Connolly's. We exchanged a few gifts and then prepared a few potluck items and headed over to some friends for Christmas evening festivities! There was a TONNE of food! Plenty of people and lots of fun! |
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| We took advantage of the lovely tree and took some group photos. Some turned out better than others. In order for me to be in the photo, I handed the camera to a willing photographer..... Cooper! oops... Forgot the flash was turned off and every shot he attempted was blurry. I love the group shot of the kids, where Cooper is lecturing Whitaker about how annoying it is to have his jacket yanked on. He listened intently... and then Derek held his hand. |
It was a busy Christmas season. The hustle and bustle was definitely felt. I think I'm going to start planning next year's Christmas next week. I'm going to have to come up with a way to not be referred to as the Grinch so frequently. I think it's ironic that I'm referred to as the Grinch, yet I'm also the only way they have any Christmas joy also... Perhaps if I truly was Grinchy, they'd appreciate things more. I do love how, as hectic as it feels in the preparations, it all seems to come together in the last stages and we feel spoiled all over again.
In Memory of a Dear Lady
It must be announced that we have suffered the loss of our lovely lady. One afternoon the kids noticed that she was making some choking sounds. After looking into the situation, she was indeed choking. We hurried inside to google what to do?
'Massage her neck and give her water to drink. Surgery could be an option.'
She is survived by her flock. She will be remembered for her elegant markings and her faithful egg service. And of course for her awkward, wobbly running skills. All donations of grain and table scraps will be accepted in her honour at the hen house out back.
Funeral Services were held by Patrick, alone in the rain at midnight.
An Early Christmas Gift
For Mummy,
Merry Christmas. I have now slept through the night for 11 hours straight, 3 nights in a row. I promise this is the new normal! I knew you wouldn't mind if I didn't wrap it, or if it arrived a little early for Christmas.
Merry Christmas. I have now slept through the night for 11 hours straight, 3 nights in a row. I promise this is the new normal! I knew you wouldn't mind if I didn't wrap it, or if it arrived a little early for Christmas.
Love Whittaker
Christmas baking
The queen of hearts she made some tarts,
All on a winter's day.
She set them out in the snow to cool,
And one was whisked clean away!
And one was whisked clean away!
Finding no one to take the blame,
She confessed to her snitching ways.
The tarts were brought back in to serve,
And lasted only a minute.
She learned that twelve were not enough,
The next day she made more.
Butter and mincemeat tarts are gone,
Now it's cookie baking galore!
Getting an early start is sooo over rated!
Twas three days until Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring...
except Whittaker, Miles, Mummy and three kitties, but that's normal!
The stockings were hung ...
haphazardly from the opening to the living room from their lovely snowman hangers, although there weren't enough since this year I decided to make all new stockings and then havent' started and will likely use a mismatched hodge podge, because I simply can not decide which type of stocking I want....
The list of to do things was being checked for things to cross off as no longer important enough to get to and is there possibly anything on there that could be delegated to someone else? (important things like blogging stayed... but less important ones like bake more goodies... gone!)
and then, at roughly 5:32 AM, after having a quick shower, the quietly stirring creatures decided to do something a little unusual and not so festive at all. We turned on the Signing Time DVD in the kitchen and gave Whittaker a MUCH needed and overdue haircut!! By 7:12 AM, the sweepings were gone, the pictures were taken and the household was waking and somehow between 5:32 and 7:12, the baby had vanished and a little boy took his place.
And just so you don't think my life idyllic and picturesque....
whilst I ran to my room to dress for the day while he was still strapped in his highchair, he pooped his pants...
except Whittaker, Miles, Mummy and three kitties, but that's normal!
The stockings were hung ...
haphazardly from the opening to the living room from their lovely snowman hangers, although there weren't enough since this year I decided to make all new stockings and then havent' started and will likely use a mismatched hodge podge, because I simply can not decide which type of stocking I want....
The list of to do things was being checked for things to cross off as no longer important enough to get to and is there possibly anything on there that could be delegated to someone else? (important things like blogging stayed... but less important ones like bake more goodies... gone!)
and then, at roughly 5:32 AM, after having a quick shower, the quietly stirring creatures decided to do something a little unusual and not so festive at all. We turned on the Signing Time DVD in the kitchen and gave Whittaker a MUCH needed and overdue haircut!! By 7:12 AM, the sweepings were gone, the pictures were taken and the household was waking and somehow between 5:32 and 7:12, the baby had vanished and a little boy took his place.
And just so you don't think my life idyllic and picturesque....
whilst I ran to my room to dress for the day while he was still strapped in his highchair, he pooped his pants...
.. and then he ate it by the fistful!
Excuse me while I go brush my little potty mouth's teeth AGAIN!!
Napoleon Noble...
You have to be familiar with the movie Napoleon Dynamite to understand the following.
There are many a phrase from the movie that became common usage at our home. Although Patrick was never a fan of the movie, he couldn't help but pick up on a few of the phrases.
The other morning as we were all hustling about doing things at home, I looked up from the kitchen counter and noticed that Patrick was sitting on the couch in the living room. He had only been folding blankets so it wasn't as though he was exhausted and everyone else was still bustling about. I asked him if he had forgotten what his tasks were for the day.
He replied, "I'm just sitting for a minute. My lips hurt real bad today!"
Well..that's what I was CERTAIN that I heard him say! I laughed thinking that Patrick had used a Napoleon phrase as a funny.
Obviously seconds later I knew I had misheard. He asked, "Why is that so funny? I really hurt."
I stopped what I was doing and stepped into the living room.."WHAT?"
He said, "I told you my RIBS hurt real bad, and now you're laughing hysterically!"
I'm an awful person... that simply made me laugh even more!
He did admit, once he understood what I had heard, that it was amusing... but of course... laughing just makes his RIBS hurt more!
There are many a phrase from the movie that became common usage at our home. Although Patrick was never a fan of the movie, he couldn't help but pick up on a few of the phrases.
The other morning as we were all hustling about doing things at home, I looked up from the kitchen counter and noticed that Patrick was sitting on the couch in the living room. He had only been folding blankets so it wasn't as though he was exhausted and everyone else was still bustling about. I asked him if he had forgotten what his tasks were for the day.
He replied, "I'm just sitting for a minute. My lips hurt real bad today!"
Well..that's what I was CERTAIN that I heard him say! I laughed thinking that Patrick had used a Napoleon phrase as a funny.
Obviously seconds later I knew I had misheard. He asked, "Why is that so funny? I really hurt."
I stopped what I was doing and stepped into the living room.."WHAT?"
He said, "I told you my RIBS hurt real bad, and now you're laughing hysterically!"
I'm an awful person... that simply made me laugh even more!
He did admit, once he understood what I had heard, that it was amusing... but of course... laughing just makes his RIBS hurt more!
I am a Super Evil Genius!!
I decided to surprise the kids and their Uncle Forrest with a visit for Christmas time. Obviously, Forrest had to be in on the surprise, but the secrecy only heightened his excitement!!
Originally I intended to book a flight from Mississippi on Christmas Eve so that the kids would wake Christmas morning to Uncle Forrest hiding in a large refrigerator box in the living room. I tracked down a box, but getting a Christmas Eve flight turned out to be the hang up in my plan.
Patrick learned of my shenanigans, but I never let on that the Christmas Eve plan had fallen through. Somehow Caleb got wind of someone arriving on Christmas Eve and guessed that it would be Forrest. They both kept the surprise hush, hush!...
I kept mine more hush, hushier!
So, one afternoon, with the guise of needing to run some Christmas errands, I took only Whittaker with me and left the kids a list of chores to do. I even promised to bring home a treat for dinner if they finished the to do list! I did run a couple Christmas errands and then... off to the airport to fetch a 'treat for dinner'!!
Forrest is the biggest kid of the bunch. I don't mean because he's so tall either! He couldn't sleep the night before his flight because he was sooo excited. Now I'm a bit concerned about Christmas morning... I have a tough time keeping the little kids from waking too early...
We arrived home and I had a few groceries in the van. I carried Whittaker in and told the kids they did a great job with the to do list, could they run out and help unload groceries from the van. I quickly grabbed the camera to get their reactions, but I wasn't really fast enough. They were flabbergasted, shocked, thrilled, wowed, knocked out of their socks!!
The best part! They still unloaded the groceries!! Duncan came in excitedly telling ME that there was a surprise in the van! Like I didn't know! hee hee..
The fun and games began immediately! They quickly hid his suitcases downstairs and tidied up any sign of a visitor and prepared to be 'in on the surprise', when Daddy came home. Patrick came in quietly though and we didn't know he was in the mudroom! He heard Forrest's voice and then we heard laughter and a loud, "No way!" from the mudroom.
A week still until Christmas and they've already started to be spoiled! It's a party every minute!
What do you do with a drunken baby?
Whittaker isn't drunk!
It just seems that way.
Today he had an MRI to rule out hydrocephalus and or tumorous growth. Results are in. He's normal. So now afterwards, with the results in hand, I wish he hadn't had to go through with the whole procedure. Well, I wish he hadn't had to go through with it all along. The IV was the most traumatizing 45 minutes. The MRI only lasted 30 minutes. The recovery part... well, 12 hours later he's still our loopy, discombobulated, uncoordinated, imbalanced.... drunken baby.
He couldn't be left unattended all day. Not that I leave him unattended normally! He is accustomed to a certain amount of freedom around here.. and today.. NONE! He couldn't even sit amongst his toys safely. He definitely couldn't crawl. As for any first steps... Today would NOT be the day! He was exhausting to care for until we decided to put him in the safe confines of his playpen with soft toys. This was much easier on us and more amusing for us also.
I tried to get some of his antics photographed, however when he's swaying and stumbling and falling over, the following is all I was able to capture.
I resorted to videoing him.... (watching it again, I kinda feel mean for filming him instead of helping him)
Fortunately, it also left him groggy and sleepy most of the time. He slept most of the day but we were to wake him after two hours of sleep and keep him awake for at least 30 minutes each time. Thankfully bedtime has rolled around and now he had permission to sleep all through the night... in fact I hope he will. I certainly intend to!
They tell us he'll be better tomorrow.
It just seems that way.
Today he had an MRI to rule out hydrocephalus and or tumorous growth. Results are in. He's normal. So now afterwards, with the results in hand, I wish he hadn't had to go through with the whole procedure. Well, I wish he hadn't had to go through with it all along. The IV was the most traumatizing 45 minutes. The MRI only lasted 30 minutes. The recovery part... well, 12 hours later he's still our loopy, discombobulated, uncoordinated, imbalanced.... drunken baby.
He couldn't be left unattended all day. Not that I leave him unattended normally! He is accustomed to a certain amount of freedom around here.. and today.. NONE! He couldn't even sit amongst his toys safely. He definitely couldn't crawl. As for any first steps... Today would NOT be the day! He was exhausting to care for until we decided to put him in the safe confines of his playpen with soft toys. This was much easier on us and more amusing for us also.
I tried to get some of his antics photographed, however when he's swaying and stumbling and falling over, the following is all I was able to capture.
I resorted to videoing him.... (watching it again, I kinda feel mean for filming him instead of helping him)
They tell us he'll be better tomorrow.
Eggstra, Eggstra!!
Eggs are big news around here again. We had been doing well for a while almost ten eggs a day and then suddenly without notice, the ladies must have gone on strike! Not an egg for days. Then one rubbery shelled egg every few days was all we were getting.
The mystery.
The strangeness.
The sadness.
The sheer LACK OF EGGS!
We went out and spoke kindly with the ladies but to no avail.
We added a heat lamp, a light, and changed their diet. We continued to give them the scraps from our table.
Meanwhile, a friend in the neighbourhood had also acquired some chickens and ducks and was having incredible Egg success. With only he and his wife, he simply couldn't keep up with all the eggs. We became the recipient of many duck eggs.
Cooper, long known as the egg connoisseur of the bunch is spending a few days here while his mother is out of town. He got up the first morning he was here and announced that the Emergency Egg Patrol was on the job! He was heading out to collect the eggs and visit with his feathered friends.
It didn't take long after he told the ladies in the back yard of our betrayal and enjoyment of the duck eggs for them to quit their strike and return to work! We're back to 5 eggs a day.
The mystery.
The strangeness.
The sadness.
The sheer LACK OF EGGS!
We went out and spoke kindly with the ladies but to no avail.
We added a heat lamp, a light, and changed their diet. We continued to give them the scraps from our table.
Meanwhile, a friend in the neighbourhood had also acquired some chickens and ducks and was having incredible Egg success. With only he and his wife, he simply couldn't keep up with all the eggs. We became the recipient of many duck eggs.
Cooper, long known as the egg connoisseur of the bunch is spending a few days here while his mother is out of town. He got up the first morning he was here and announced that the Emergency Egg Patrol was on the job! He was heading out to collect the eggs and visit with his feathered friends.
It didn't take long after he told the ladies in the back yard of our betrayal and enjoyment of the duck eggs for them to quit their strike and return to work! We're back to 5 eggs a day.
Christmas Caroling
The day started out well... then it turned ugly and then it was lovely...
I'll explain.
It was early Saturday morning, and I had 7 children to have ready to leave for a fun morning of Christmas caroling with the scout troop at the retirement centers in town.
Dilemma #1. They had to be in full scout uniform.
Dilemma #2. The only thing keeping us from being in full uniform was the lack of the appropriate numbers on one child's shirt.
Dilemma #3. The scout store was open at 9am. We had to meet for caroling by 9:45. There would be time to get to the store and procure the numbers and drive to the retirement center, but not time to sew on the four required numbers.
Dilemma #4. Sewing wouldn't be necessary since there were two other adhering options. Iron on adhesive or velcro. Couldn't do the iron on in the car on the way and my velcro seemed to have grown legs and wandered off.
Dilemma #5. If I take the time to find the velcro at 8:45, we might not meet all the deadlines. I searched for the velcro. Everyone helped. I finally found it. I handed the velcro and the one badge that we already had to a child and sent everyone to the car.
I was feeling confident that we would make it.
I hurried through the checkout at the store and by 9:15 I was in the car with 7 kids, new badges and we had enough time to velcro them on the shirt and meet the scouts on time. I asked for the velcro and the badge that I'd already had.
Somewhere between the kitchen and the car, the badge had gone missing. I lost my temper. After orchestrating everything so well, now I was driving back home to get a silly number and no longer had any time cushion to get us to the caroling on time.
Now rushing, I ran in and got the number that I had quite a hatred for now... quickly velcro'd them all onto the shirt and headed out once again.
I wasn't feeling the Christmas caroling spirit. Nor was I gaining an appreciation for scouting. They were all waiting for us.
My mood changed almost instantly as we walked into the center and saw the faces of the elderly eagerly waiting for us to come sing to them. They weren't excited about the paper candles that we had made for them, they were eager to have visitors. To have the children visit with them.
Never underestimate the power of a baby. I was kept extremely busy as everyone seemed to want a chance to hold, pat on the head, squeeze his cheeks or in some way be near to sweet accommodating little Whittaker. One lady in particular kept asking me to go over and let him walk to her, she always loved when a baby would walk to her. I had a difficult time convincing her that he couldn't walk yet. She just kept trying to reassure me that she was steady on her feet, she could hold him when he walked over. Never argue with the elderly! I walked Whittaker over while holding his hands. (Not his favourite thing to do, so he rewarded her with a scowl!)
The other kids all sang nicely and visited for well over an hour. We then repeated all of this at two other centers.
Five minutes into the first caroling, Mackenzie walked over to me and she looked positively green. We found a bathroom quickly and I called Patrick to arrange a quick pick up. She spent most of the day in bed with a bucket next to her.
The singers were all rewarded for their efforts with some hot cocoa and rice krispie treats in the parking lot! Whittaker was asleep within seconds of being buckled into his car seat! He'd done a lot of work being cute that morning!
I had gained a much better appreciation for the scouting outing.
As I tucked in the boys for bed that night, we chatted about our caroling experience a bit. I was taken aback by Cooper's comments.
"It was a delightful activity. I think the elderly really liked me. I do wish that the other kids hadn't been so rude during that Rudolph song though."
It had been a nice activity and I do think the elderly had enjoyed it, but I didn't recall any rudeness during Rudolph!
Apparently, Cooper hadn't heard this song before or at least not this way, and he claimed that everyone kept adding rude things that weren't on the lyrics pages. (you know, like chiming in with, 'like a light bulb', or 'like Pinocchio'!) I did my best not to laugh. I told him that the elderly expected them to sing it like that. It's a silly thing everyone does whenever they sing that song. We agreed that they should have written it on the lyrics page so people would all know. Then we had to sing it so he could learn them. He was laughing at how funny it was.
While Cooper said his prayers, he asked that the elderly not have to die too soon please. They were nice people you know.
So I guess it was all worthwhile. Rudeness and all!
I'll explain.
It was early Saturday morning, and I had 7 children to have ready to leave for a fun morning of Christmas caroling with the scout troop at the retirement centers in town.
Dilemma #1. They had to be in full scout uniform.
Dilemma #2. The only thing keeping us from being in full uniform was the lack of the appropriate numbers on one child's shirt.
Dilemma #3. The scout store was open at 9am. We had to meet for caroling by 9:45. There would be time to get to the store and procure the numbers and drive to the retirement center, but not time to sew on the four required numbers.
Dilemma #4. Sewing wouldn't be necessary since there were two other adhering options. Iron on adhesive or velcro. Couldn't do the iron on in the car on the way and my velcro seemed to have grown legs and wandered off.
Dilemma #5. If I take the time to find the velcro at 8:45, we might not meet all the deadlines. I searched for the velcro. Everyone helped. I finally found it. I handed the velcro and the one badge that we already had to a child and sent everyone to the car.
I was feeling confident that we would make it.
I hurried through the checkout at the store and by 9:15 I was in the car with 7 kids, new badges and we had enough time to velcro them on the shirt and meet the scouts on time. I asked for the velcro and the badge that I'd already had.
Somewhere between the kitchen and the car, the badge had gone missing. I lost my temper. After orchestrating everything so well, now I was driving back home to get a silly number and no longer had any time cushion to get us to the caroling on time.
Now rushing, I ran in and got the number that I had quite a hatred for now... quickly velcro'd them all onto the shirt and headed out once again.
I wasn't feeling the Christmas caroling spirit. Nor was I gaining an appreciation for scouting. They were all waiting for us.
My mood changed almost instantly as we walked into the center and saw the faces of the elderly eagerly waiting for us to come sing to them. They weren't excited about the paper candles that we had made for them, they were eager to have visitors. To have the children visit with them.
Never underestimate the power of a baby. I was kept extremely busy as everyone seemed to want a chance to hold, pat on the head, squeeze his cheeks or in some way be near to sweet accommodating little Whittaker. One lady in particular kept asking me to go over and let him walk to her, she always loved when a baby would walk to her. I had a difficult time convincing her that he couldn't walk yet. She just kept trying to reassure me that she was steady on her feet, she could hold him when he walked over. Never argue with the elderly! I walked Whittaker over while holding his hands. (Not his favourite thing to do, so he rewarded her with a scowl!)
I had gained a much better appreciation for the scouting outing.
As I tucked in the boys for bed that night, we chatted about our caroling experience a bit. I was taken aback by Cooper's comments.
"It was a delightful activity. I think the elderly really liked me. I do wish that the other kids hadn't been so rude during that Rudolph song though."
It had been a nice activity and I do think the elderly had enjoyed it, but I didn't recall any rudeness during Rudolph!
Apparently, Cooper hadn't heard this song before or at least not this way, and he claimed that everyone kept adding rude things that weren't on the lyrics pages. (you know, like chiming in with, 'like a light bulb', or 'like Pinocchio'!) I did my best not to laugh. I told him that the elderly expected them to sing it like that. It's a silly thing everyone does whenever they sing that song. We agreed that they should have written it on the lyrics page so people would all know. Then we had to sing it so he could learn them. He was laughing at how funny it was.
While Cooper said his prayers, he asked that the elderly not have to die too soon please. They were nice people you know.
So I guess it was all worthwhile. Rudeness and all!
Just another morning...
It's 6:30 am.
I've been up for 1 1/2 hours already.
A child is laying on the floor in the office with a bucket next to his head. At least he's stopped ringing the bell every time he thinks of something he might like to eat or drink.
A child is laying on the floor in my bedroom, finally back to sleep with a bucket next to her head.
A child is taking the puppy(just puppy sitting!) out to go potty in an effort to make it stop yapping. She tells me she is feeling better but still thinks a bucket carried around with her is a good idea.
A child is demanding my attention at every turn, has had a diaper change, a banana, some toast and a bottle and still won't just go play quietly.
A child is asking me for toast and telling me that he's been awake for forever but he tried to go back to bed. (I wish I could trade places... I know I would be successful in going back to bed!)
A child is whining at the bottom of the stairs because he wanted to go outside to take the puppy potty and the other child didn't wait for him. And, he's really hungry.. like starving!
A child is asking if they can play computer yet? Someone woke them up when they got up to be sick. And now said child has a headache. 'Oh, and how come I didn't get any toast?'
A child and his father, who are typically up betwen 5 and 6 am each day, are still in their warm beds sawing logs.
I think the day has officially begun and I should be allowed to blare Christmas music now! Right!??!
And then maybe, I'll sneak back off to bed..... fine, I know I that won't happen.... but I can dream.
I've been up for 1 1/2 hours already.
A child is laying on the floor in the office with a bucket next to his head. At least he's stopped ringing the bell every time he thinks of something he might like to eat or drink.
A child is laying on the floor in my bedroom, finally back to sleep with a bucket next to her head.
A child is taking the puppy(just puppy sitting!) out to go potty in an effort to make it stop yapping. She tells me she is feeling better but still thinks a bucket carried around with her is a good idea.
A child is demanding my attention at every turn, has had a diaper change, a banana, some toast and a bottle and still won't just go play quietly.
A child is asking me for toast and telling me that he's been awake for forever but he tried to go back to bed. (I wish I could trade places... I know I would be successful in going back to bed!)
A child is whining at the bottom of the stairs because he wanted to go outside to take the puppy potty and the other child didn't wait for him. And, he's really hungry.. like starving!
A child is asking if they can play computer yet? Someone woke them up when they got up to be sick. And now said child has a headache. 'Oh, and how come I didn't get any toast?'
A child and his father, who are typically up betwen 5 and 6 am each day, are still in their warm beds sawing logs.
I think the day has officially begun and I should be allowed to blare Christmas music now! Right!??!
And then maybe, I'll sneak back off to bed..... fine, I know I that won't happen.... but I can dream.
Oh, What do you do in the Winter time?
Once there was a snowman, snowman, snowman.
Once there was a snowman, tall, tall, tall.
In the sun he melted, melted, melted.
In the sun he melted, small, small, small.
The tall snowman building came about because of:
1. A large amount of white flakes accumulated in the yard.
2. Caleb was frustrated with his siblings and declared to me that he was going to go outside to 'cool' off.
3. Duncan, overhearing Caleb, asked if he could go outside and 'cool' off with Caleb.
They more than cooled off... Duncan returned 4 hours later with frigid extremities and a huge smile on his face.
Caleb returned almost 5 hours away, dripping with sweat and a much happier outlook on life!
P.S. The snowman measured a mere ten and a half feet without his hat on!
Fun in the sun snow... my little orange snow Angels
Popularity is overrated!
Being popular in your youth likely meant you didn't spend much time on your studies...
Being popular nowadays means everyone needs me and I get spread much too thin... only not in the body sense of thin. As I sit to type of have one needing a nose wiped, one telling me they're hungry, one asking for help with a craft, one wants me to take a picture of their snowman creations, one is emailing me for genealogy assistance, and one is wondering how much longer I'll be getting ready for Primary. He insists I told him I'd only be a minute and it's already been three hours.
How do I explain this....
I haven't started what I sat down to do yet....
Being popular nowadays means everyone needs me and I get spread much too thin... only not in the body sense of thin. As I sit to type of have one needing a nose wiped, one telling me they're hungry, one asking for help with a craft, one wants me to take a picture of their snowman creations, one is emailing me for genealogy assistance, and one is wondering how much longer I'll be getting ready for Primary. He insists I told him I'd only be a minute and it's already been three hours.
How do I explain this....
I haven't started what I sat down to do yet....
Be Careful....
Last Saturday night,
Jim and his girlfriend were stopped at a light after attending an evening movie.
Suddenly from behind them a careening vehicle rear ended them and destroyed the back end of their vehicle and set in motion aches and pains that are still concerning them almost a week since.
Jim has numbness in his hand that isn't going away and a terrible back ache. Lori (his girlfriend), has an extremely stiff neck and some bruises to the back and face. They've seen medical attention and are recuperating slowly.
The car... not so much.
Unknown was the chain of events that were started by this motor vehicle collision.
Don't bad things typically happen in threes?
(If you're superstitious.... which I'm not.... but maybe I'll start..)
Earlier this week....
amongst all the snow and ice...
I rushed out the door with a hot casserole in my hands. Took one step out the door, reached for the door knob behind me and before I managed to latch the door....
Out from under me my feet went up.
My backside went down hard and fast and my arm twisted from the door knob to the door stoop and my head hit the door.
Sarah had gone out ahead of me and when she noticed that I was no longer behind her to unlock the van, she looked and saw me on the ground. I managed to convey that I wanted her to take the hot casserole off of my belly where I had so carefully caught it...(not intentionally... just happened that way)
Then, I managed to gingerly get up and go back in to change my pants since they were soaked clear through and attempt to not rush out the door again to the scout meeting.
Needless to say... I ached a little the next few days, and we blocked off the door with the ice skating rink in front of it.
Four days later....
Patrick came home from work.
I was still in the kitchen making dinner and could hear him grunting in the mudroom as he removed his boots and coat.
I am a caring wife. I asked what was causing all the moaning and groaning.
"I fell off a ladder at work."
My initial reaction, "Why did you do that?"
He was unimpressed by my response.
He came into the kitchen and showed me the injury. While he had his shirt up to show me where he had landed on the rungs and scraped up his skin, Caleb joined us in the kitchen, took a look at Patrick's scrape, and asked,
"What'd you do that for?"
I stifled a laugh.
Patrick sighed and rolled his eyes.
Sarah wandered into the kitchen. She noticed that Daddy had his shirt held up and asked,
"Is that marker on you?"
Now thoroughly annoyed with the lot of us, he explained that he fell off a ladder and that he was now going to change out of his work clothes and head to the urgent care to get it checked out.
I convinced him to have a bite to eat before he left. Then I suggest that the little boys tag along to watch Daddy get x-rays. See, I'm a thoughtful, caring wife. I didn't make him go all alone. I then went to a scout meeting.
Shortly after I returned from my meeting the boys returned from their outing with Daddy. The little boys had little toys from a treat box at the urgent care and Daddy had some pain meds and the news that he had a fractured rib.
Now I really became a caring wife. I shared all my knowledge and experience with him.
"In Little House on the Prairie, Charles Ingalls broke his ribs all the time... and doing much more exciting things than falling off a ladder. And it was always plural ... as in , 'he broke his ribs', not 'rib'. They always wrapped a long white bandage around his torso and then told him to rest, which of course he never did, but he always got better before the next episode."
He simply shook his head.
He just doesn't appreciate me.
I offered to make BBQ ribs for dinner tomorrow. I suggested he eat a whole one.
He took his pain pill and went to bed.
I went to Walmart in the middle of the night.
I had to fight with many shelf stockers to find all the things on my list.
I went to bed worried about the large man in pain next to me who had taken medicines with a side effect listed saying, 'may cause thrashing while sleeping'.
Jim and his girlfriend were stopped at a light after attending an evening movie.
Suddenly from behind them a careening vehicle rear ended them and destroyed the back end of their vehicle and set in motion aches and pains that are still concerning them almost a week since.
Jim has numbness in his hand that isn't going away and a terrible back ache. Lori (his girlfriend), has an extremely stiff neck and some bruises to the back and face. They've seen medical attention and are recuperating slowly.
The car... not so much.
Unknown was the chain of events that were started by this motor vehicle collision.
Don't bad things typically happen in threes?
(If you're superstitious.... which I'm not.... but maybe I'll start..)
Earlier this week....
amongst all the snow and ice...
I rushed out the door with a hot casserole in my hands. Took one step out the door, reached for the door knob behind me and before I managed to latch the door....
Out from under me my feet went up.
My backside went down hard and fast and my arm twisted from the door knob to the door stoop and my head hit the door.
Sarah had gone out ahead of me and when she noticed that I was no longer behind her to unlock the van, she looked and saw me on the ground. I managed to convey that I wanted her to take the hot casserole off of my belly where I had so carefully caught it...(not intentionally... just happened that way)
Then, I managed to gingerly get up and go back in to change my pants since they were soaked clear through and attempt to not rush out the door again to the scout meeting.
Needless to say... I ached a little the next few days, and we blocked off the door with the ice skating rink in front of it.
Four days later....
Patrick came home from work.
I was still in the kitchen making dinner and could hear him grunting in the mudroom as he removed his boots and coat.
I am a caring wife. I asked what was causing all the moaning and groaning.
"I fell off a ladder at work."
My initial reaction, "Why did you do that?"
He was unimpressed by my response.
He came into the kitchen and showed me the injury. While he had his shirt up to show me where he had landed on the rungs and scraped up his skin, Caleb joined us in the kitchen, took a look at Patrick's scrape, and asked,
"What'd you do that for?"
I stifled a laugh.
Patrick sighed and rolled his eyes.
Sarah wandered into the kitchen. She noticed that Daddy had his shirt held up and asked,
"Is that marker on you?"
I convinced him to have a bite to eat before he left. Then I suggest that the little boys tag along to watch Daddy get x-rays. See, I'm a thoughtful, caring wife. I didn't make him go all alone. I then went to a scout meeting.
Shortly after I returned from my meeting the boys returned from their outing with Daddy. The little boys had little toys from a treat box at the urgent care and Daddy had some pain meds and the news that he had a fractured rib.
Now I really became a caring wife. I shared all my knowledge and experience with him.
"In Little House on the Prairie, Charles Ingalls broke his ribs all the time... and doing much more exciting things than falling off a ladder. And it was always plural ... as in , 'he broke his ribs', not 'rib'. They always wrapped a long white bandage around his torso and then told him to rest, which of course he never did, but he always got better before the next episode."
He simply shook his head.
He just doesn't appreciate me.
I offered to make BBQ ribs for dinner tomorrow. I suggested he eat a whole one.
He took his pain pill and went to bed.
I went to Walmart in the middle of the night.
I had to fight with many shelf stockers to find all the things on my list.
I went to bed worried about the large man in pain next to me who had taken medicines with a side effect listed saying, 'may cause thrashing while sleeping'.
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