Jenny's Rambles

Unfortunate Event

2009-01-09T13:21:00.000-08:00

Over Christmas break I bought new Bible curriculum. This morning we were working on stick-figuring the story of John the Baptist, when N vomited all over his book and the table. So, the workbook went to the garbage. I'll be ordering another workbook soon and maybe the company will give me an unfortunate incident discount. :). N has been fine ever since. To lighten the mood surrounding the situation, I drew him a stick-figure picture of the incident. Sometimes you just have to find a way to laugh about these types of things.

Catalog Poems

2008-11-20T14:42:00.000-08:00

We worked on catalog poems during language arts today. I thought both kids wrote a sweet poem, so I decided to share.

Nathan's poem:
My Mom
Who is always taking me somewhere fun
Who can make very good meals
Who loves to read books
Who always lets me sleep with her
Who always helps me with math
Who always is nice

Katelyn's poem:
My little brother, Pay
Who is always doing something goofy
Who can make you giggle any time
Who almost always has a smile on his face
Who is very sweet
Who always is playful
Who is always funny
My little Pay

Husband Meme

2008-11-14T08:07:00.000-08:00

I saw this husband meme over at Still His Girl, and decided to play along.

1. He's sitting in front of the TV, what is on the screen?
Seinfeld, Raymond, or 30 Rock, or football of course.

2. You're out to eat; what kind of dressing does he get on his salad?
Ranch

3. What's one food he doesn't like?
LIMA BEANS

4. You go out to the bar. What does he order?
Well, first of all, we really don't go out to the bar. But, at a restaurant, he'll order a craft beer.

5. Where did he go to high school?
Southeast. The rival of my high school.

6. What size shoe does he wear?
Size 12. He has BIG feet for a guy of average height (5'9"). I like his feet though. :)

7. If he was to collect anything, what would it be?
hmmm... maybe he'd like to collect the little tags that state which mountains he has summited?

8. What is his favorite type of sandwich?
Turkey on wheat with lettuce, mayo, tomato, pickles, lots of black olives and a few jalapenos. Preferably from Mr. Goodcents.

9. What would he eat every day if he could?
Hmm?? I'm not sure. I'm going to say cookies or brownies.

10. What is his favorite cereal?
Fruity Pebbles

11. What would he never wear?
A pink polo shirt.

12. What is his favorite sports team?
Steelers and Bears. Huskers too.

13. Who will he vote for?
He wasn't very excited about either of the candidates on the most recent ballot.

14. Who is his best friend?
ME, of course! His friend John would be 2nd in line.

15. What is something you do that he wishes you wouldn't do?
Oh, this is a long list. Put my cold feet on him at night. Leave his truck seat pulled clear forward after I drive it.

16. How many states has he lived in?
one. And until recently, he had only lived in one town.

18. You bake him a cake for his birthday; what would it be?
We're not really into cake at our house. So either a cheesecake or an ice cream cake from DQ.

19. Did he play sports in high school?
Football until he broke his collar bone.

20. What could he spend hours doing?
hiking, photography, keeping his website (rmnpforums.com)in top-notch form, listening to podcasts.

21. What's something cool about him?
This also is a long list! He's a great dad and husband. He's a hard worker. He's pretty darn smart about computer things and about fixing things around the house and fixing cars. And, he is really, really good at playing name that tune. He can tell you the band, lead singer's name and title of the song usually by the end of the intro. He said it's because he watched too much MTV as a child. :)

That was fun. Let me know if you do the husband meme.

I don't even know what to title this...

2008-10-31T12:31:00.000-07:00

In going through a box of stuff while moving, I discovered that I have a rather large collection of, ahem, BABY TEETH. For the most part, I think I know which teeth belong to which child. :D What do you do with their precious little teeth? I'm guessing most people might throw them away, but I'm so not good at tossing things that belonged to my babies. Getting rid of their baby clothes was PURE torture! Oh, how I love the baby days. They are SO fleeting!

Do you have any weird collections?

N makes me laugh!

2008-10-31T08:47:00.000-07:00

So, last night we were carving pumpkins.

N wants to know if he can carve his by himself since "he's nearly 10".

Aaron says, "I don't think that's a good idea. I don't want to make an emergency room trip just because you want to feel like a big kid."

N then says, "I hope this isn't how it's going to be when I move out... you guys coming over to help me carve pumpkins."

How funny. We're obviously really cramping his style!

Tribute

2008-10-10T07:16:00.001-07:00

My grandfather passed away on September 29th. He had just turned 72 years old on September 24th. He endured a 3 year battle with cancer. Praise be to God that during a large portion of that battle, my Grandpa didn't have a lot of pain. And, really, up until these last few months, you probably wouldn't have known he was sick by talking with him or looking at him. My grandparents dealt with this health situation in a way that showed their complete and total trust in a good and sovereign God. I remember when Grandpa first was diagnosed with cancer and his prognosis didn't sound good. I was really upset as I was telling him goodbye after a visit. And he told me that he would be healed one way or another... either here on earth, or up in Heaven. And as much as I wish that God would have chosen to give him complete healing here on earth, I am rejoicing for my Grandpa who has received complete healing in Heaven. I can only imagine his joy when he met his Savior face to face.

I would like to share with you the Tribute that my Grandma gave during the funeral service....

TRIBUTE
You were our “forever guy”, at least that is how we were tempted to think of you. Kind of like the Energizer Bunny, you just kept going and going.

You were forever fixing things. It was hard to get anything new around our house because you kept repairing the old. Our homes were well maintained, and we seldom had to call a professional to come make repairs. You kept our large and small appliances running, and coaxed the lawn equipment into working order through your patient, hard work. Especially was your family blessed with your mechanical skills to keep our vehicles drivable. Many were the trips you made to college campuses or distant cities to work on a disabled car. And when the kids were grown and out on their own, it seemed at every family gathering someone’s vehicle needed to be worked on. When the boys began caring for their own cars, they would call to ask for help in diagnosing problems and making repairs. Somehow, even over the phone, you were able to understand the problem and offer advice. We so depended on your mechanical skills and we thought you would be fixing things for us ------------forever.

Sports were your passionate hobby. From your own participation in high school sports to teaching your young, growing children the basics of various sports, you loved it all. Then came the years of following your children’s activities in their games of volleyball, football, basketball, track, baseball, and cross-country events. How proud you were of their accomplishments. When you didn’t have a child or grandchild to watch, there was always some relative, acquaintance, or perhaps kids from the congregations you pastored whom you felt would benefit from your cheering them on. You endeared yourself to many youth because of your interest in their sports activities. And there were the college and professional teams you watched on TV with interest. The KU Final Four basketball championship in 2008 was the sports event that captured your attention even in your weakened condition. We thought you would be boosting some sports event-------------forever.

Oh, how you loved to sing. No matter that you were slightly tone deaf, you thought “make a joyful noise unto the Lord” meant exactly that, and lustfully you sang away. In some of our small churches it fell your lot to be the song director. You were notorious for getting off on the wrong verse of a hymn. There would be some frowns, some smiles, some puzzled expressions from the congregation until you recognized the error and joined in at the appropriate place. At the farewell gathering at one of our churches, you decided to bless the people with one last special solo, and when you finished, one of the parishioners stood and said, “It’s just sad to see you leave on such a sour note.” And, we laughed. You see, it was the spirit with which you sang, often with your hand raised as a silent testimony to the Lord, that endeared you to our hearts. We thought you would be singing-----------------forever.

Many were your skills, but your calling was to be a pastor. Much of your pastoral ministry was in the small church setting. Often you needed to supplement the small church salary with another secular job. And this you did willingly in order to minister to and love the people of these congregations who could not afford to pay a full-time pastor. You always had an outline when you entered the pulpit, but you loved to tell stories and would sometimes become sidetracked. And it didn’t matter where the sanctuary clock was located, nor how large your wristwatch was, you would become oblivious to the time, and sometimes we thought you would preach……..forever.

There were the funny things you did that made us laugh. Like the time you were trying on boots in Wal-Mart…. while standing up, and you backed into the emergency bar on the exit door setting off the alarm. I hurriedly pushed the shopping cart to other parts of the store as I passed customers trying to figure out if they should run or take cover.

On one occasion you accompanied the church youth group on a camping trip to the state park. One evening you joined the teens in a game of “capture the flag”. In the darkness you ran squarely into a stationary BB grill. As you lay moaning and groaning on the ground, a park caretaker approached and asked where the director of the group was. With the teens standing all around you, they pointed…”that would be him.” It wasn’t funny at the time, but how the kids loved telling that story.

We were attending worship service at a church which followed a form of worship unfamiliar to us. Not having read the bulletin instructions thoroughly for receiving communion, you held out your hand to indicate you desired wine instead of juice. And, so, you, a tee-totaling alcohol abstaining pastor, imbibed on the real stuff that Sunday morning. That was a happy service!

You and I underwent major cancer surgeries at KU Med on the same day. However, having different care needs, we couldn’t share a room. In fact, you were on the 4th floor while I was on the 3rd. But one day I looked up to see you standing at my bedside. Surprised, but happy to see you, I asked if you had received permission. “No.” You had come without telling any of the nursing staff. After informing the staff of your whereabouts, we enjoyed a short visit. I said I would walk you to the elevators. What a pair we made! You had donned light gray summer style Dickey coveralls over your hospital gown. I put on a robe, and both of us, pushing our IV poles began shuffling our way down the hall. After going a ways you turned to me and said, “you can go back to your room now.” I replied, “no, I’ll walk you to the elevators.” We walked a little further when once again you said, “you can go back now.” Suddenly it dawned on me what had happened. You were lost. Standing nearby was a gentleman with KU Med identification. I asked if he could tell us where the elevators were. He looked us over, smiled, and said, “Why? Are you trying to escape?”

Or the time more recent when you had been asked to pray the morning prayer in the absence of the pastor at the church we attended in Smith Center. When the prayer was finished you walked up the aisle and sat down in the pew……..in front of me, beside another lady. I reached up and tapped you on the shoulder and said, “wrong wife”. The expression on your face when you looked up into the face of Jane Kirchner was priceless.

Humor helped us get through many a tough time. Laughter was an important, helpful part of our lives. You kept your wit to the very last days, and we thought you would keep us laughing ………..forever.

When several major health issues developed in recent years, you endured them with grace and an uncomplaining attitude. It seemed you “snapped back” after each new ordeal. We had come to think that you would keep snapping back ………………….forever.

But, life isn’t like that. There is a time for everything. As Solomon said in Ecc 3:1 & 2, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die…” So, for you, there came that time to die. We finally came to realize that you wouldn’t be with us……………forever. You wouldn’t be fixing things, wouldn’t be cheering us on, wouldn’t be singing, or preaching, or making us laugh, wouldn‘t be snapping back in health ………forever. The time had come for us to relinquish the notion that you were our “forever guy”. The time had come for us to tell you once again that we loved you and we were happy that you were going to be with the One who redeemed you, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

But wait! You taught us how to be resourceful, you modeled a life of faith, you showed us a spirit of tenacity. We remember your cheerful, happy nature, your boundless energy. We won’t forget how you loved and prayed for us, how you encouraged us. Those memories are etched deep in our hearts. We will miss your presence, but in a way, you are with us……………forever.

A New Look

2008-10-08T19:34:00.001-07:00

I've given the blog a new look. Now, all I need is to actually take the time to write here and it might be a "real blog". You can find plenty of cute backgrounds for free by clicking on the little box in the top left hand corner.

WFMW - Backwards Edition: Sibling Squabbles

2008-09-03T11:03:00.000-07:00

I am sooo glad that it's a WFMW backwards edition because I have a burning question!

I realize that all siblings fight. I have siblings and I fought with them. And, I've been a mother to more than one child for long enough to know about sibling rivalry. But, lately the sibling squabbles are frequent and enough to drive this mama right up the wall.

We started homeschooling this year. So far, I would have to say that it's been really good. After the first couple of weeks, both of my kids (4th & 2nd grade) have said that it's going better than they thought it would. They're enjoying our new adventure. And, I am too, with the exception of... you guessed it, the fighting!

All day long the battles go on. My son annoys my daughter and she squeals "STOP!". My daughter annoys my son, he hits her, she squeals. They just constantly seem to be picking on one another and annoying each other. When they decide to, they can be best of friends and great playmates.

So, please tell me your ideas on promoting peace, encouraging friendship, discipline, or whatever. Homeschool moms, I especially want to hear from you.

Thanks!

And, you can head over to Rocks In My Dryer to read other burning questions on this Works For Me Wednesday - Backwards Edition.

The Labor Meme

2008-08-31T19:40:00.000-07:00

Shannon over at Rocks In My Dryer had this labor meme up in honor of Labor Day. I thought it looked like fun, and obviously I've not had much else to say lately, so... here goes:

How long were your labors?

Kid #1, 27 hours!
Kid #2, what labor?
Kid #3, nada
Kid #4, zilch

How did you know you were in labor?

Kid #1, My water broke, at home, while folding towels. The towels came in very handy. I've always been super relieved that this happened at home instead of say, the grocery store.

All of the other babies were scheduled c-sections. With baby number 3, I was having contractions 3 minutes apart by the time I was being prepped for surgery. Good timing is what I call that. ;)

Where did you deliver?

All of them were delivered in the same hospital my husband was born in. I think that's kinda neat!

Drugs?

Of course. With the first baby I wanted to try it without drugs, but I wimped out when I had pitocin, a long labor, and was taking a long time to progress.

C-section?

Yep, with all 4 of them. After 27 hours of labor, 2 of that pushing, baby #1 wasn't budging. He had a fever, I had a fever, and the doctor said it was time to get that baby out. I didn't have any problems with that idea. I don't mind c-sections, I guess it's all I know.

Who delivered?

All of my babies were delivered by the same wonderful doctor.

If you want to play along, head on over to Shannon's. She has a Mr. Linky up.

Mid-Summer Slump

2008-07-25T10:23:00.000-07:00

I usually love lazy summer days. I'm not a keeper of the schedule type. I generally like to fly by the seat of my pants. Get up and see what we feel like doing. Go with the flow. Until about the 3rd week of July.

Now, I'm beginning to grow weary of lazy, summer days. My creativity is drying up. My desire to wrangle 4 kids and all their stuff to head to the pool is waning. The casual days are beginning to feel a little bit long. I'm beginning to feel the itch for a little routine.

I have enjoyed the summer break. We've spent many afternoons at the pool, played at the parks, and had a couple cartoon-marathons. We've stayed up late and slept in. And there are a couple of things I'd still like for us to do, like a camping trip, and a trip to the big zoo.

But, I'm starting to look forward to mid-August when we start school. It might take us a while to find our routine this year, since we are starting to homeschool. I think it will be nice to get settled in and have a little bit of a plan. You never know, I might even start to enjoy a schedule.

Before and After

2008-07-23T14:59:00.000-07:00

Before:

After:

My boy is growing up right before my very eyes! Isn't he a handsome kid?!

Strange Dreams

2008-07-22T06:13:00.000-07:00

When I am embarking on a new experience, I often have strange dreams about it. Whenever I've been in training for a new job, I would find myself dreaming about the processes I had learned that day during training. I don't really enjoy those dreams because it doesn't feel like I'm really getting good rest. It's a toss and turn kind of sleep.

This fall, I'm embarking on a huge new journey. The journey of homeschooling my 4th grade son and 2nd grade daughter. Up until now they have been going to a Christian school. This year we felt God's leading to bring them home.

So, guess what I dreamed about last night?? Yep! Homeschooling. My dream was that I couldn't find a book that my Instructor's Guide said that we needed. While I tossed and turned in my bed, my mind looked through lots of books from the homeschool bookshelf. I wonder if this dream means that I need to spend more time familiarizing myself with our stuff.

I do plan to spend some time each day looking through our curriculum. I want to ease into homeschooling and have a good feel for what we're going to be doing these first few weeks. We aren't planning on officially starting our homeschool adventure until August 18th. I sure hope that I don't spend the next few weeks having strange dreams about it!

Creative Discipline

2008-07-21T12:21:00.000-07:00

Situation: N is relentlessly tormenting K by mimicking and making fun of High School Musical 2 while she was trying to enjoy it. This eventually leads to shouting from K, which wakes up the baby. That's bad news.

Creative Discipline: N is granted his desire to imitate HSM2, but his tormented audience member must leave the room. All of a sudden, it's not so fun to sing along and mock HSM2. After some histrionics from N about how horrible his discipline was, he did complete the assigned discipline. I may have even seen him crack a smile.

The jury is still out on whether this was effective or not. I hope it will be helpful because I'm exhausted by the amount of sibling squabbles we're seeing at our house.

WFMW: The Five-Ingredients-Or-Less Edition

2008-07-01T22:19:00.000-07:00

This week for Works For Me Wednesday over at Rocks In My Dryer, the theme is recipes with 5 ingredients or less. This particular recipe is one of my all time favorites. It's about the only way that I will eat cottage cheese as well. This recipe makes me think of my grandma, probably because she has served it with family meals many times. I love it and I hope you will too!

Orange Jello Salad

1 small container of small curd cottage cheese
1 8oz container of Cool Whip, thawed
1 can of mandarin oranges, drained
1 box (4 serving size) of orange jello

Mix the cottage cheese, Cool Whip, and jello together until well blended. Fold in the mandarin oranges. Easy-peasy, and so yummy!

I won!! I won!!

2008-06-28T20:03:00.001-07:00

Earlier this week, I entered a giveaway over at FiddleDeeDee for a free ticket to this virtual homeschool conference. DeeDee emailed me today to let me know that my comment number was chosen as a winner. I am so excited!! First of all, I very rarely win anything. Secondly, this will be our first year of homeschooling, so I can use all of the information and encouragement I can get.

If you'd like to read more about the conference, go here.

Thanks, DeeDee, for hosting the giveaway! I'm thrilled to be a recipient of one of the free tickets!

Supper in the Summer

2008-06-26T09:53:00.000-07:00

Bigmama seems to have the same trouble I do. When it's hot outside, I don't feel like spending much time in the kitchen. And, some of our normal meals don't really sound that appetizing. So, when the Summertime cooking blues hit, here are a couple of things that I throw on the table.

My kids go crazy over this really simple pasta. Boil any type of pasta you desire and rinse it with cold water. Then pour Kraft Zesty Italian dressing over it. Sometimes we eat it just like this, other times we add parmesan cheese, croutons, tomatoes, or whatever suits our fancy. I usually pair this pasta with grilled chicken, steak or hamburgers.

The other thing I really enjoy in the summer is Frito Salad. Brown some hamburger and add a little taco seasoning to it. Toss together lettuce, cheese, drained kidney beans, and the seasoned hamburger. You can either add the Frito's to the mixture, or you can just put Frito's in the serving bowls. We like to serve the salad with Dorothy Lynch (which I think might be a midwest thing... it's like a french dressing) and Pace Picante Sauce. You can also add tomatoes, black olives, onions, or whatever else makes your mouth happy. Good stuff!

Bigmama has a Mr. Linky up over on her blog. You can head over there to read more Summer Supper ideas or share your own. I'm going to go over myself and look for some fresh summertime ideas.

Giveaway at Simple Mom

2008-06-20T08:36:00.000-07:00

Simple Mom has been talking about zero-based budgets on her blog. Today she is giving away a lifetime membership to Pear Budget. Pear Budget looks like a really great program. I plan to give it a try (free for 30 days and then only $3/month). It looks like it will be just what we are needing. Head over to Simple Mom for more details about Pear and to enter the giveaway.

Country Dreams

2008-06-19T21:38:00.000-07:00

I lived in a small town until I was 10. After my parents divorced, I moved to a city. I've always liked living in a city. I have so many things right out my front door. I can walk to a pharmacy, a convenience store and a department store, all within in blocks of my house. If I'm having a really bad day, I can go to the lounge right next door. I'm kidding. I could, but that's not my idea of bad-day relief. If I need bad-day relief, I'd probably go to the convenience store for chocolate. I love that I can drive a mile and be at the grocery store to pick up milk and $20 of things we didn't need while I'm there. I love that we have access to all sorts of entertainment, restaurants, parks, and paved bike trails. That's all good stuff. However, I'm finding myself yearning for something that I can't get in my city.

I want space. I want to walk out my front door and not see several other houses. I want to open the windows at night and not hear vehicles buzzing by or sirens wailing. I want to go outside to play with the kids and have space to run, ride bikes, and play baseball. I want to sit outside at night with my hubby and look at the millions of stars in the sky. I'm yearning for a little bit of country.

This dream has been in my heart for quite a while. I used to think that I wouldn't like being in the country because I liked to be close to the action. But, that's changing as I get older. My desires are different now. There is just something about wide open spaces that brings me such a peaceful feeling. I'm ready to break away from the noise and busyness of city life and find myself a quiet spot.

Aaron and I have talked about this for a while. He probably had this dream before I did. It's not going to happen right away, but it's definitely something we want to explore. Until then, it's kind of fun to dream of the possibilities. A cute little house with a nice big porch, a long gravel driveway, lots of trees and open space, and of course, 2 little dachshund puppies to play in the yard! Sweet, sweet dreams. They make me smile.

Changing

2008-06-18T10:56:00.000-07:00

C turned 3 on Sunday. He was sick the morning of his birthday. Poor guy. I had given him cow's milk the day before, and he generally drinks soy. He's never been diagnosed as having a milk allergy, but he sure does seem sensitive to it. I think we'll just avoid cow's milk from now on.

That's not really the point of this post though. :) Just lately, I'm seeing C change so much. He's definitely moving from the toddler stage to the preschooler stage. Listening to his talking, which has become so much more conversational lately, is so fun. I love to listen to him talk with his siblings. He really looks up to the older kids and he's enjoying that P is getting big enough to really interact and play with him. Last weekend we were at a family reunion. C wanted to go and pet these cute little dogs, and we were standing just a few feet from them. P was chattering excitedly, but was probably feeling a little nervous about approaching them. C kept gently nudging P forward, saying "P, go pet the doggies". I think he wanted P to check it out and then he'd join him if it all went well. I wonder how many other things P will be C's guinea pig for?? That's kind of a scary thought.

C is also looking older to me these days. We cut his hair last week and having shorter (but thankfully, still curly) hair always makes his face look more mature. I also notice him looking bigger when he's doing things like being brave at the playground, running around outside, helping to dress himself and things like that.

Oh, and then there's the whole independence issue. It brings along it's fair share of temper tantrums, which we're beginning to see. C has always been such a laid back child, so I was hoping we might avoid the tantrum stage that often comes with 3. But, I don't think we're going to be so lucky. Why do they call it the terrible twos?? Two is awesome. Sure they're little busy bodies at 2, but they're so fun. 3 though.... that can be terrible. Oh well, at least I know that 4 is waiting for us on the other side. :)

Funny Boys

2008-05-13T23:46:00.000-07:00

When I came home from work tonight, C & P were still up. They were happy and smiling, not at all looking tired. I came in and played with them for a little while. When it was time to put a diaper on C for bed time, he put the diaper on his head and said "diaperhead" in a silly voice. It tickled me. C then thought it would be good if mommy played diaperhead. So, I would place the *clean* diaper on my head and then he would swat it off. P was looking on and found this to be quite funny. He was belly laughing and each time it seemed to get funnier. And so I continued saying "diaperhead" while wearing a diaper on my head and letting C smack it off. Just to hear my boys laugh. I can't think of many things that brighten my day more than hearing giggles coming from my little people!!

Contest at The Gremlin Wrangler

2008-05-03T19:44:00.001-07:00

While I was blog-hopping tonight I happened upon The Gremlin Wrangler. She's having a contest to promote her business. Carrie is a talented artist and is giving away the likes of one of these...

I would love to have one of these awesome custom-portraits of each of my kiddos! Or, one of all of them together. If you want to enter Carrie's contest head on over to The Gremlin Wrangler.

AI results

2008-04-30T19:01:00.000-07:00

I just finished watching the American Idol results show. A couple of thoughts...

-Thanks to Ryan for telling the 9 year olds who may have been watching tonight, that 9 is TOO YOUNG to be kissing. My 9 year old didn't happen to be watching, but still, I was thankful that he said that!

-Aww, poor Brooke. She was heart broken. I don't usually cry watching AI, but she actually made me tear up. She's the type of person I could see myself being friends with. She's awesome! I wish her well.

-Syesha seems to be having Sanjaya type luck. This isn't the first time that I thought she would be the one to go home, and she's been in the bottom three a lot!!

That's all. Thank you. :)

American Idol Top 5

2008-04-29T20:26:00.000-07:00

Tonight during AI, I was watching my children sing in the Spring music concert at their school. The musical was called Amerikids. It was very well done and I really enjoyed it, except for the fact that the gym was about 85 degrees.

On the way home it dawned on me that I had forgotten to put a tape in the VCR. We're living in the dark ages and we don't have DVR. I've had DVR in the past so when I have to set up the VCR to record a show, it's pretty much torture! I was able to catch all of tonight's performances on youtube videos, so I thought I would post my thoughts.

Jason Castro - I really liked Forever in Blue Jeans. His voice and style really appeal to me. When he sang September Morn, I was a little bored. As much as I like Jason, I'm afraid he's going to have to step it up a little more in order to stay.

David Cook - For his first song he sang I'm Alive. I thought it was pretty good and a fun song, but not one of his best. His second song was All I Really Need Is You. I loved it. It had a current feel to it. The judges all gave him rave reviews. I'm pretty sure he'll be just fine tomorrow.

Brooke - When she sang I'm a Believer, it was just alright for me. That's not one of my favorite songs, so that could be part of the problem. But, I didn't think the song really fit her. However, I did NOT think it was a nightmare like Simon said. For her second song, she sang I am I said. I really loved it! Brooke and the piano belong together. That is her thing! I hope she'll be good for tomorrow.

David Archuletta - He was my favorite tonight by a long shot. Maybe because I was more familiar with the songs he chose (Sweet Caroline and Coming to America), or maybe just because, he was awesome! I thought that they were fun songs for him. I got goosebumps when he sang Coming to America. Yay, David! He'll be right next to David Cook on the couch tomorrow!

Syesha - I can't remember the names of the songs she sang, and quite honestly, I'm too lazy to go back to youtube and look it up. I think Syesha has a really pretty voice. She can definitely sing, but I just don't connect with her at all. On her second number, she looked like she was having fun, and that type of song really seems to be her element.

So, top 2 of the night?? The Davids!

Who goes home?? My guess is that Syesha will go home.

American Idol Top 6

2008-04-22T17:10:00.000-07:00

I've never done live-blogging, or blogging about AI before, but I always feel like sharing my opinions as I'm watching so here we go!

Syesha Mercado - Wow! This is the first week that I have really enjoyed Syesha. This must be her element! And the judges liked it too. Good for her! I think she looks fabulous tonight!

Jason Castro - Golly, he is just so cute. I love his smile and how his eyes just twinkle. I don't know. Hmm.. I like it, but it's not really exciting. I think this might not be the best song for him. What?! Randy said it was a train wreck? I didn't think it was that bad. Not real favorable comments from the judges. That's okay, Jason. I think you're worth keeping around!

Brooke White - I have really liked Brooke from day one. I think she has a really sweet personality. Oh, NO! I'm not sure that needing to start over is gonna work at this point in the game. Bummer! I think she sang that fairly well though and she showed emotion. It's not my favorite performance by her at all. Golly, to make Paula pause that much is something, huh? Simon must be in a good mood tonight, because I thought he was going to blast her! I'm a little worried for her this week.

David Archuleta - I think that this could be a very good week for David. Let's see what happens... The young girls just go crazy over him! Me too, actually. I really think he's pretty incredible. I love it when he sings big notes. I thought this was a great vocal!!! The bomb. The one to beat. Perfect. a risk. and then we come to Simon and he says "pleasant". Hmmm... maybe he's not in a good mood. My 7 year old wants to know if all British people are mean or if it's just Simon. Ha-ha-ha! I'm pretty sure David will be safe tomorrow.

Carly Smithson - She certainly looks like she's enjoying herself, and she looks nice tonight. She does have a great voice. I wasn't super crazy about it, but not because it wasn't good, just not my thing. The Simon loves me (this week) t-shirt was a nice touch. :)

David Cook - I'm loving this! He has such an awesome voice. I think this "softer" song is showcasing his vocals nicely. Much different than what David usually does, but I liked it!

Bottom 3?? Jason Castro (boo-hoo), Brooke White (boo-hoo), and Carly. I think Brooke will quite possibly be the one to leave us this week.

Best of the Night?? David A.

One

2008-04-12T22:04:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday, P! What a fun day we had today! You were definitely in to your cake. Handful after handful of ooey, gooey frosting and much smacking of the lips. It was fun to watch you dig in. Your favorite present is an activity block that has lights, music, shape sorting, and other activities.

This year has gone so fast! You are my sweet little man and I love you!

Decisions, Decisions

2008-04-10T22:49:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had a ~~big~~ huge decision to make and you get all excited about the possibilities, but then the doubt starts to creep in? And then at night, you toss and turn because you can't quite turn your brain off? And then, during the day you toss it around in your head endlessly while you mindlessly nibble on whatever ~~healthy snack~~ junk food you can find? Has that ever happened to you? That's kind of where I'm at right now. And to make matters worse, I'm a terribly indecisive person. Just ask Aaron. I can't even pick a restaurant without a 20 minute ho-hum-where-should-we-go session.

So, I'm praying that the Lord would use a megaphone and neon lights for me on this one. Or maybe a burning bush?? Or, maybe a real sense of peace that could only come from Him.

Recipe Slump

2008-03-07T11:12:00.000-08:00

Have you ever been in a recipe slump? You're fixing the same things over and over, you're feeling uninspired, or maybe, like me, you're eating out WAY to often. Well, Lisa TerKeurst is having a little Recipe Swap and Hop over at her blog for this exact thing. I'm glad to post a couple of recipes to hopefully help some people out. I've already been over at her blog collecting some recipes for myself. It's a very good thing!

Easy Tuna and Noodles

3 c. of elbow noodles
1 can tuna, drained
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 to 2 c. cheese
fried onions.

Cook and drain the noodles. Dump into a 9x13 pan (spray pan with cooking spray first). Stir in tuna, cream of chicken soup, and half of the cheese. Top with remainder of cheese and fried onions. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until warmed through. The actual recipe calls for only 1 cup of cheese for topping. I like to mix some cheese into the tuna/noodles though because it makes it creamier.

Taco Pie

tortillas
1 lb ground beef or chicken
1 can refried beans
cheddar or colby jack cheese (1-2 cups depending on how much you want)
taco seasoning

brown ground beef and drain (or cook and dice the chicken). Stir in about 1/2 packet of taco seasoning. Spray a 2 qt casserole dish with Pam. Spread a tortilla with beans, lay in dish, layer hamburger and cheese on top. Repeat until ingredients are gone (probably 4-5 times). Top with tortilla. Cover and bake for 30 minutes at 350. Cut into triangles. Serve with sour cream, salsa, lettuce, tomatoes, or whatever suits your family's tastes.

This has been a long time favorite at our house. When we were a family of 2 adults and 2 little kids it made the perfect amount. Now that we are 2 adults, 2 bigger kids, and 2 little ones, I almost need to double it and make 2. Enjoy!

If I Were a Shoe...

2008-02-04T08:43:00.000-08:00

I found the following post over at The Learning Never Stops.

I thought it looked like fun, and I didn't really have anything else to post about today, so I copied it and put in my own answers. Here we go...

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

If I were a shoe, I’d be loafers.

If I were a city, I’d be a city close to Rocky Mountain National Park.

If I were a season, I'd be Spring.

If I were a car, I’d be a Dodge Neon.

If I were a vegetable, I’d be corn on the cob.

If I were a fruit, I’d be a banana.

If I were a color, I’d be yellow.

If I were furniture, I’d be a comfy couch.

If I were a song, I’d be Manic Monday by The Bangles.

If I were a country, I’d be the United States.

If I were a beverage, I’d be a Starbucks Venti Frappuccino!

If I were clothing, I’d be jeans and a sweatshirt.

If I were weather, I’d be mostly sunny (but with a slight chance of severe weather).

If I were an animal, I’d be a dog. (sloth and monkey were also considerations).

If I were a dessert, I’d be chocolate chip cookies.

If I were a plant, I’d be a a Moonflower. (because my best time of day is late evening)

If I were a word, I’d be distracted.

That was fun, you should play too!

Sleeping Solo

2008-01-27T22:14:00.000-08:00

I have been happily co-sleeping with my baby since he was a newborn. I decided early on after bringing him, our 4th baby, home from the hospital, that if I were going to be able to function I was going to need sleep. By having P sleep with me, he could nurse as needed over night and I could get some much needed rest. Aaron and I have shared our bed with 3 of the 4 kids when they were babies. I have no regrets.

Lately P has been more difficult at night. He would rather crawl around than lay down next to me. He would rather jabber than nurse. He isn't settling in for sleep the easy way that he used to. I think this means that it is time for P to get used to sleeping in his own bed. Over the past few months, P has slept in his bed for several hours on occasion. But, he has always been sound asleep when I put him there.

Tonight, I am trying to let P put himself to sleep in his bed. If he would lay still and nurse, or let me rock him, I would gladly do it. But, he is Mr. Fidget, so I decided we would try the cry it out way. It's definitely not my style to let my babies cry it out. I hate it. I really hate it. I just want to grab them up and snuggle with them. So, I sit hear and listen to him cry. Somehow, blogging about it makes it easier. Maybe because I have something to do.

I remember when C reached the age, right around 6 months, that he was done with co-sleeping. I tried rocking him to sleep but he would fuss and arch his back. So, one night, I just laid him down in his bed, sang him a song and left the room. C laid his head down and I didn't hear another peep. He went right to sleep. Ever since that day, C has been my easiest sleeper. Even when we moved him from the crib to a toddler bed before P was born, C was so good about going to bed.

I also remember when K was right where P is tonight. She wouldn't lay still, she didn't want to nurse, she didn't want to rock. K wasn't easy like C. I had to let her cry it out. I still remember those first couple times of letting her cry herself to sleep. It was so hard. But, after a night or two of crying, she decided sleeping in her own space wasn't that bad after all.

I know that P will get the hang of sleeping solo too. I hope it's soon. Tonight he only cried for about half an hour. He's quiet in there now. But, you know something? It's not only the babies that have to adjust to this change. It's the mama too. I miss having them with me, snuggled up next to my side. They grow up so fast. So, so fast.

Before we had children, Aaron and I were never going to let our kids sleep with us. But when you actually have kids, there are a whole bunch of things that change. Both Aaron and I love to have the kids come and snuggle. We keep saying that we need to get a king size bed since several nights a week we have an extra person (or two) in bed with us. I'm glad that even though all the kids eventually go to their own beds, they still come back in and snuggle once in a while too! I know that someday they won't want to do that, but until then, we'll continue to snuggle 'em up!

Works For Me: Food Chopper

2008-01-23T08:27:00.000-08:00

The Pampered Chef Food Chopper is what's working for me. If you've been to a Pampered Chef party, you've surely seen them demonstrate the food chopper. You can chop almost anything with it from nuts to onions to chocolate. However, the way the Pampered Chef chopper works for me is in preparing food for my littlest people.

Here is an example: Turn the chopper upside down and put in spaghetti noodles and some sauce. Place the lid on the chopper, turn it right side up, and chop away. You might bang the noodles off of the edge a couple of times. And then, voila:

You have finely chopped spaghetti in a matter of seconds!

My youngest son, P, is 9 months old and just starting to eat some table foods. I've been using my chopper to get his food into itty, bitty bites, and it has worked great. I hope that this idea works for someone else who is tired of cutting spaghetti noodles with a fork!

Head on over to Rocks In My Dryer for more Works For Me fun!

Poems by my son

2008-01-20T22:26:00.001-08:00

N decided to join in on the poem writing action. N is almost 9 years old. He's my firstborn. There's just something special about that!! N is a very smart kid. He has a huge heart and makes me laugh a lot. N loves cars. When he was just 3 years old, we could walk through the parking lot at the mall and he would name the cars we were walking by (Honda, Ford, Chevy, Lexus, Mazda, etc.). He is also a pretty good artist. Guess what he likes to draw?? Cars, of course!!

He hopes you'll enjoy his poems about his little brothers.

My Lil' bros.

My Lil' brother C is cute.
He's sometimes a brute. But
usually actin' cute.
Wait, not cute, adorable!

My Lil' brother P is a can of sugar.
He's sometimes a booger, but usually cinamon and sugar.

I'm loving these poems the kids are writing!

N also drew a cool picture of the Nebraska State Capitol tonight.

Happy Monday!

Poems by my daughter

2008-01-20T21:39:00.000-08:00

My daughter, K, wrote a couple of poems tonight. They are so sweet, so I thought I would share them on my blog. K is 7 and a first grader. She is a petite little thing, but her zest for life is huge!! She smiles and laughs and loves big. K loves to read, especially Junie B. Jones books. She is quick to make new friends and is quite the conversationalist. She's my only girl and I'm so incredibly glad God gave her to us!

All About Me!
Im cute pracktickley adorable
Im incuriging I Love my Big Bro
hes cute deffintley adorable very
funny he Love cars sometimes hes
mean...But...the best part of
all my Life is I LOVE GOD
***********************************
My Little Brother P
hes sweet like candy. :)
I love him very much.
hes cute!
***********************************
My Brother
We offten play.
When we fight theres a big knot betewen us.
But...when we get along its all better.

I didn't edit these for spelling or grammar. (Ha, I'm terrible at grammar, so of course I didn't!)
On this poem she drew three pictures. The first one they are smiling and playing cars together. On the second one they are both frowning. K is saying "dont" and N is saying "why" and his face is red (from anger, of course). In the 3rd picture, they are smiling and holding hands.

***********************************
I Love my mom
My mom is nice she cares for me.
I Love her and she Loves me.
She speshil olways to me.
Shes the Best!

I think her poems are pretty awesome! I hope that she'll continue to write poems. She LOVES to write in journals. I wish that poetry and journaling were things that I did consistently. I journal from time to time, but not as often as I would like to.

**Doh! I have no idea why the second half of this post is small. It looks right when I edit it, but it ends up all smallish here. Oh well. I'm not too smart at all this computer stuff.**

Limerick Fun

2008-01-18T15:04:00.000-08:00

Shannon over at Rocks In My Dryer is having a limerick writing contest. At first, I couldn't remember quite how to write a limerick. However, Shannon had links to some sites that explained it. I decided to have a little fun with it. If I wouldn't have had so many things to do today, I would have written more, because honestly, I was having a ball! Here are some of mine...

My son won't get ready for school.
With his toys and his siblings he fools.
I plead and I yell,
It's not going well.
Does anyone have tricks or tools?

(For real, friends, we have serious ADHD morning routine issues. If y'all have ideas, leave me a comment!)

There once was a mom with four kids.
And too many bowls without lids.
Lots of laundry undone,
But she had much fun
In her crazy, busy life with four kids.

There once was a friend named Dee.
Who was sweet and caring as could be.
Though not good at art,
She had a big heart,
And could make me laugh 'til I peed.

I had so much fun with those. And, if not for running lunches to school, helping with a school party, making supper, taking care of the kiddos, and going to see this incredible woman in concert for FREE, I would have written more. I'm off to fix supper because the doors to the concert open at 6:30!

Have a great weekend!

Thanks for the Simple Things

2008-01-13T17:25:00.000-08:00

Tonight I'm thankful for...

*sweet baby laughs (especially when all I did was sing his name to him)
*the fun friendship I see developing between my little guys
*Cinnamon Dolce Latte from Starbucks (mmmmm...mmmm...mmmm!)
*some time alone to go to the library
*a sink without dishes
*a challenging message from my pastor this morning
*no sick kids this week!
*blogs that make me laugh
*blogs that inspire
*good music and good books
*a pleasant and relaxing weekend
*that the reason my laundry baskets are overflowing is because I have a houseful of kids and we have plenty of clothes (because I'm really not cheerful about the laundry, I'm trying to look at the bright side) :)

What are you thankful for today?

Apparently I'm a 50's Kind of Girl

2008-01-08T05:01:00.000-08:00

You Belong in 1952

You're fun loving, romantic, and more than a little innocent. See you at the drive in!

What Year Do You Belong In?

Couch to 5K

2008-01-07T20:29:00.000-08:00

I'm on a mission. I want to be a "runner". My original thought was to try and run the half marathon in my town, which is the first weekend in May. My husband has been trying to tell me that he doesn't think I should bite off that much when I'm just starting to run. I was like, "Oh, honey, everyone I talk to says that if I start training in January, I can surely run the half by May."

Well, yesterday was my first walk/jog experience in a really, really long time. I'm not sure I've actually run since I was in highschool. Yikes! I took my almost 9 year old with me. He loves to run and is a pretty energetic boy. I figured he'd be complaining that his old mom couldn't keep up with him. We walked about 10 blocks to the beginning of the bike path that we were going to run on. Then we began our run for 90 seconds, walk for 60 seconds intervals. We did that for 10 minutes and then we were to turn around. My intention was to do the same thing for another 10 minutes and then walk the rest of the way home. N was too tired to run anymore, so reluctantly I agreed to walk the rest of the way home. Ha-ha-ha. Actually, I was secretly relieved. I was also feeling pretty tired. We walked home and stopped along the way to watch a construction site for a few minutes. We also played a little game to see who could shout the make of the next coming car first and correctly. If you know N at all, you know that I didn't have a chance of winning that competition. It was a fun experience and I'm glad N was willing to go with me!

Now, here is the part where I have to admit that my hubby was right! I'm going to persevere with this running thing, but I'm not going to go crazy and kill myself trying to get ready for a half marathon in just 16 weeks. My new and much more reasonable goal is to run a 5K this spring. That is something that is attainable but still something that I will have to work towards. I should go running again tomorrow, but my legs are KILLIN' me today. I may have to wait until Wednesday. I mentioned the sore legs to hubby and he asked if I had stretched at all (like he told me before). Um, no, I didn't. Gee, why does he always have to know what he's talking about??!!

Stay tuned for further Couch to 5K updates. And someone please say a prayer that I'll be able to walk normally tomorrow. :)

Housekeeping Mission Statement

2008-01-05T22:04:00.000-08:00

I want my house to be clean enough to be healthy, but "dirty" enough to be happy. I want our front rooms to be warm and inviting, and clean enough to invite drop by company in without hesitation or embarrassment. In order to tame the laundry monster, I want to develop the habit of doing one load of laundry each day. Above all, I want my family to be able to relax and enjoy our home (and always have clean socks and unders).

A Birthday Party

2007-12-15T09:51:00.000-08:00

Daughter had a birthday party last night. She will be 7 on December 19th. I think she's been talking about her Birthday party since March. Who will come? What will we do? How many people can she invite? Finally, in June, I told her we would have to wait until November 1st to talk anymore about her Birthday. Frankly, I can't think that many months in advance!

About the middle of November, I told her I thought that we would have a smaller birthday party this year. I told her that she could have a few friends for a slumber party. When I said smaller, I was thinking maybe 3 friends. Or 6. Whatever works. :)

So yesterday evening about 6:00pm, her friends began arriving. I put the pizza in the oven and let them make foam door hangers with foam stickers on them. The girls sat on a large picnic blanket and devoured their pizza and pop. There was definitely a buzz of excitement in the air! We had birthday cookie and Daughter opened her gifts. They ran, laughed, screamed, and played. My husband chased them around the house and then let them put makeup and even kiddie fingernail polish all over his face. My best friend came over with her two children to help keep me and Hubby sane and she painted all the girls fingernails. Then, we had a limousine take us around to look at Christmas lights. Honestly, I'm not really sure how many Christmas lights the kids saw, but they had fun being silly in the limo! After the limo ride, the girls played some more and watched High School Musical 2. A little before midnight, the girls all got settled in their sleeping bags on the living room floor, said their prayers, and giggled a lot. I turned down all the lights and opened my laptop to read my daily blogs. By the time I finished my reading, the girls were all sleeping soundly. I took my tired body to bed.

About 8:00 this morning, I began to hear little girl voices. I got up and made a breakfast of chocolate chip muffin cake, bananas, and milk. The girls got dressed, gathered their things, and then watched more High School Musical while dancing and singing along. Moms began showing up around 10 to claim their little girls.

I was pretty nervous about how well a slumber party with 7 girls who were mostly 6 & 7-year-olds would go. Really, once I got past the loudness, it was great! The girls had such a great time, everyone got along very well, and they were very polite and respectful. I was very thankful for my husband who entertained the girls so well, and for my friend, D, who came to keep my sanity in place. All-in-all, it was a great party, and I'll do it again sometime.

Daughter, I hope you had a really, really wonderful time! You have some really precious friends.

Works For Me: Toddler Panties

2007-12-12T09:40:00.000-08:00

Little boy underwear are pretty self explanatory. The part where the "little door" is, goes in front. When my daughter started wearing panties and trying to put them on herself, she had trouble. She would have them on backwards, creating a "wedgie", or she'd have her waist through a leg hole. To help her get them on right (and therefore comfortably), I took my sharpie and drew a smiley face on the inside of the front of her panties, right along the waistband. Most of her panty problems were solved!! I feel a little strange blogging about underpants, but it worked for me!

Head on over to Shannon's for more great ideas!!

For Boomama's Soup-tacular

2007-12-07T22:34:00.000-08:00

Boomama is hosting a Soup-tacular. After today, I'm sure I'll have several awesome new soup recipes to get me through the cold winter days!

The soup that I'm going to share with you today is ridiculously easy, but I really think it's wonderfully delicious. And, at my house, simple is good.... really good! So with out further ado, here is the recipe for Easy (but delicious) ChickenTortilla Soup!

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1/2 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
1 cup frozen corn kernels (I usually add more)
1 cup chopped onion (optional)
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 cup chunky salsa
corn tortilla chips
shredded Monterey Jack cheese
you could also add black beans if you want

In a large pot, saute the chicken in the oil for 5 minutes over medium heat. Add the garlic and cumin and mix well. Then add the broth, corn, onion, chili powder, lemon juice and salsa. Reduce heat to low and simmer for at least 20 to 30 minutes. Pour soup into bowls and add chips, cheese and some sour cream. Enjoy!!

Works For Me: Chicken and Pasta

2007-12-04T21:36:00.000-08:00

I haven't written a post in forever, but I had something worth sharing for Shannon's WFMWTWDIFE, so I decided to go for it.

This is a super simple meal that gets rave reviews at my house!! Everyone eats it, no one complains, and we very seldom have any leftovers.

I cook up some bow tie pasta, drain it and rinse it in cold water. Then I toss it with either Kraft Zesty Italian dressing or Kraft Raspberry Vinaigrette. I serve it with grilled chicken breasts (outdoor, George Foreman, or even just in the skillet). My kids and I love Kraft Catalina dressing on our Chicken. I usually warm up some corn or green beans too. Easy and delicious!

And, here's another one my kids love that is pretty easy.

fettuccine
breaded chicken patties or nuggets
jar of spaghetti sauce
mozzarella & parmesan cheeses

Cook the pasta, heat up the chicken and the sauce, layer it all up on a plate, and there you have easy (but quite yummy) Chicken Parmesan.

Enjoy!!

Works For Me: Cold Coffee Recipe

2006-08-16T08:22:00.000-07:00

Caution: This recipe is NOT for the calorie conscious!!

I love, love, love fancy cold coffees! But, at $4 each, I have to make it an occasional splurge. I have discovered this recipe that is inexpensive to make and so delicious. It may not be quite as good as Starbucks, but when I have a mad craving for a cold coffee, I can whip this up at home. And that definitely works for me!!

2 T. instant coffee (I use a little less)
3/4 cup warm water
1 can Fat Free Sweetened Condensed milk
1 tsp. vanilla
4 cups ice.

Dissolve coffee granules into warm water. Pour into blender. Add sweetened condensed milk and vanilla. Blend. Gradually add ice until you reach desired consistency.

You could also add other things to fancy it up a bit more: chocolate chips, chocolate syrup, caramel syrup, etc... Make it your own!

Head on over to Rocks In My Dryer for lots more ideas!!

Need a Good Book to Read??

2006-08-15T20:38:00.000-07:00

I am a huge Karen Kingsbury fan!! My dear friend, Lisa, got me started reading Karen's books last summer. Lisa knew that I would be spending many hours on my couch while nursing my new baby, so she loaned me several of Karen's books. Little C. nursed to his heart's content while mama sat and read chapters at a time of Karen's books.

Last summer, I rediscovered my love of reading fiction books. I have to be careful, because when I get started, it's difficult to put the book down. I am tempted to neglect all of those really important things moms must do, like feed the children, and do the laundry. :-) When involved in a really great book, it's not unusual for me to stay up WAY too late. But, that is better than actually neglecting the above mentioned duties!!

What would I recommend?? Well, I've now read most of Karen's books, and honestly, I love them all! But, to get started, I would recommend her Redemption series. You will probably be able to find them at your local library. Or, since we are nearing the anniversary of the tragic events of September 11, 2001, I might suggest reading her September 11th series.

Post a comment and let me know if you pick up one of Karen's many great books! And, if you are already a Karen Kingsbury fan, let me know that too! I bet we'll both be reading her newest book, Found, very soon!

Happy Reading!!

Women...according to my 7 year old

2006-08-14T22:29:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we were getting ready to go to the park. I overheard N (7 yr old boy) and K (5 1/2 yr old girl) having the following conversation.

N: K, why do you want to wear those Nemo sandals? I thought they left marks on your feet.
K: I don't care if they leave marks, I still like them.
N (with a sigh): Women are so complicated!!

It just cracked me up!

2006-08-14T11:16:00.000-07:00

This is my first time to participate in Menu Plan Monday. I've not always been a menu planner, but am realizing that it really does make life a little simpler. I list a meal for each day, but if something comes up and I need or want to change it, I do. No more standing in front of the fridge at 5pm wondering what to eat for supper. Cheaper grocery bill too...it's a win-win situation!

Monday: Crescent Roll Taco Pie
Tuesday: Tuna and Noodles (I'll post a recipe for this sometime for 5 ingredient Friday).
Wednesday: Aztec Quiche (I grabbed this one from someone's blog, but I can't remember who. Sorry!!) :( It's a new recipe for us, I'm anxious to try it out!
Thursday: Spaghetti
Friday: Chicken Breasts and pasta
Saturday: Leftovers
Sunday: Stroganoff (of the Hamburger Helper variety. We don't do a lot of HH, but we LOVE this one!!)

Head on over to orgjunkie's place for more great menu ideas!

Baby is Getting Brave

2006-08-12T11:42:00.000-07:00

Yay!! Last night, Gitchy started taking a few steps. He is the 3rd child and is sooo laid back. He didn't crawl until he was nearly a year old. Now, he's almost 14 months old and last night he decided he could give walking a try. He walked back and forth between me and the couch several times. Big brother and big sister were sitting on the couch and would clap for him when he made it. He was so adorable. He would get to the couch, stop and then clap his hands while trying to still keep his balance. It won't be long now and he'll be readily walking. And then, I will really have to keep an eye out for him.

I had a great time playing hooky from my to do list yesterday. It was already miserably hot and humid by the time we got to the zoo, but we enjoyed it anyway. Gitchy was really watching all the animals and even petted the llama. I love babies excitement over the animals. We came home for lunch and put the pool trip on hold until after supper. Hubby stayed home with the baby and I took the big kids to the pool. I had so much fun swimming with them and going down the big water slides with them. I usually hang out in the shallow area and play with baby. I think N & K like it when they get mom to themselves for awhile! I even managed to do up the dishes and get a couple of work things done yesterday. So, I guess I didn't completely neglect my household duties!! :)

Have a happy Saturday!

I think I will rebel today!

2006-08-11T07:12:00.000-07:00

I have a long list of things that need to be done. I have plenty of laundry, some dishes, vacuuming, dusting, a couple of bathrooms that could use some help, and a stack of paperwork a foot high. I also work from home part time and need to put in a couple of hours at my desk. We're getting ready to list our house on the market and need to do some decluttering and organizing for that.

But, you know what I've decided?? School starts in 11 days. I only have 7 weekdays of all 3 children being at home with me. The things on my list? They aren't going away. They will still be there tomorrow and the next day if I don't get to them today. So, today, I'm going to go have fun with my kids. We're going to go to the children's zoo this morning (before the heat is unbearable). Then after we come home for some lunch and a short nap for baby, we're going to go to the pool! I'm going to forget about the things that need to be done (for now). I'm going to enjoy my kids and these last days of summer!! If I can figure it all out, maybe I'll post a couple of pictures later.

What are you doing today?

2006-08-10T07:32:00.000-07:00

Thirteen things on my August Calendar!

Today my daughter has an eye doctor appointment. Apparently it is now required to have an eye exam before entering kindergarten. Did you know that 1 in 5 children have an undiagnosed vision problem??
Later today I'm taking my baby in for his 1 year pictures. (Never mind that he is almost 14 months!!) I can't wait to get his cute little curly head pictures framed and hung up!!
Meetings, meetings!! It seems like at the beginning of the school year there are lots of wonderful meetings!
The annual back to school picnic. We're excited about this one! We get to go eat and hang out with friends from school that we haven't seen all summer!! Too bad it will probably be 100 degrees while we're trying to eat our potluck food outside!
The 2nd Annual Back to School Luau!! My friends Jen and Ryan are hosting this. We had a blast last year. They have lots of fun activities for the kids and lots of good food! And, of course, Hawaiian attire if you wish!
August 22nd is my son's first day of 2nd grade!! He's excited to see which friends will be in his class. We already know that one of his best buddies will be!
August 23rd is my daughter's first day of Kindergarten!! She is so excited!! She has the same teacher as my son had 2 years ago so she'll feel comfortable right away. Plus, the girl is NOT shy at all!
August 24th is so special!! My hubby and I are celebrating 10 years of marriage!!!
August 25th.... Something special is happening today but I can't say what just yet. I think hubby might be reading my blog!
Swimming! It's my goal to get the kids to the pool as many times as possible before school starts. This week the weather hasn't been very cooperative. But, I am soooo thankful for the great rain we have received!
A play date or two. How can it be the end of summer already? There are so many people we should have tried to have a play date with. We'll try to squeeze in a couple among all the swimming we'll be doing.
A little more back to school shopping. My oldest just informed me that his shoes are already too small. His little toe will be poking out of the front soon if we don't get to Payless! I'm pretty sure daughter will need tennies too. She'll probably want about 5 other pair to go along with that, but we'll stick with the necessary for now.
Days at home with only one child!!!! Poor little Gitchy will probably miss his big brother and sister. I am so excited to have some one on one time with him though. And, I get to take naps with the baby!!!

My First Blog

2006-08-09T21:40:00.000-07:00

So, here I am. I have been lurking on other blogs for a while now and decided to join them in blogland. I don't claim to be a great and witty writer, and I won't promise to post something everyday. I just want to try my hand at blogging and see if it sparks some creativity or something.

I hope to use my blog to do a little journaling, record some things I've learned along my journey in motherhood, and share the funny (or not so funny) things that my kids do to keep life interesting.
Blogging will also be a way to exercise my mind because I am not very computer savvy and so I'll be learning along the way.