Rained Out

Bummer! Tonight was supposed to be Sebastian's first T-Ball practice, but around 4:30 the rain rolled in, and by practice time it was thundering & lightening. We still had the informational meeting, with all the rules (which are adorable for the little guys, by the way), and practice times, and so on. But Sebastian was really disappointed that he didn't get to play. On the brighter side of things, though, the boys did get some new tennis shoes before we went to the practice/meeting, so they were at least excited about that. (While we were in the store, I believe Meagan found every POSSIBLE pair of Dora shoes, took them off the rack, out of boxes & brought them to me. I lost track of how many times she said, "Look Dora!" I hope I got them all put back okay!)

Anyway, he's supposed to have another practice on Wednesday, so hopefully they'll have good weather then. Their first game is 2 weeks from tonight!

My Wires Hurt

Another conversation worthy of documenting! This one happened yesterday evening on the way to church - more deep thoughts from Sebastian.

Let me first start by saying that about a month ago, we were in the chiropractor's office, and the boys were asking questions about the pictures of all of our body systems - skeletal, muscular, & nervous. Well, Sebastian understood skeletal & muscular, but he just didn't get the concept of nerves. So I told him it was like wiring - like when Daddy builds a computer, and there are lots of wires on the inside. The wires connect our brain to other parts of our bodies & let the brain tell our arms & legs, etc to move or to feel touch, and so on and so on. Ah ha! Now he gets it.

So yesterday in the van, he says, "Mom, I think my wires are hurting." Well, since I had ABSOLUTELY NO context for this conversation, I was lost! "What do you mean?" "You know! All the little blue things in us that are wires. The ones in the picture. That make us like computers." (Pause to think what this could POSSIBLY mean.......oh, yeah!) "What do you mean they're hurting?" "Well, they're hurting because they're telling my brain that my arm hurts." LOL! Too funny, kid! I can't believe that he remembered that much of our conversation. (Well, maybe I can, a little - that's just what Sebastian does I guess.)

Life is Good

What a beautiful day! We were slow getting started - I got a little distracted by the NFL draft (I won't get started on that right now, though!), so it was almost 1:30 before it dawned on me that the boys were still in PJ's and were playing inside on a sunny Saturday. So they got dressed, and I sent them outside to play. They started out playing Star Wars using baseball bats as light sabers & the swing set as their space ship. Later, Sebastian came in the kitchen with a plastic cup full of water. They were digging holes in the dirt at the side of the house & filling the holes with water to make drinking puddles for their dinosaurs. When that got old (after I cut them off of water 6 cups & 4 bottles later), they moved on to a new game, which they very appropriately named 'missions.' They sat on the side of the hill discussing what each of their missions would be. For example, Sebastian would decide that he would first run to the tree house in the back yard, and then climb across the swing set & slide down, and then he would go behind the shed, and then he would race back to the tree on the side of the house. Mission complete. Meanwhile, Isaac would climb up the slide and slide down, swing 3 times on the big swing, go up to the deck and touch the picnic table, and then run over and tag Mr. Clark's tree. Mission complete. Where they came up with this idea I do not know, but it kept them busy for quite some time. I realized as I was watching their game and listening to their conversations, that this was actually a pretty cool game. They were working together, encouraging each other, helping each other, and working on strategies and remembering a sequence of events in the right order. Not bad for a game made up by a 4- and 5-yr-old.


Where was Meagan for all this? Well, for a while she was napping. After that, she kind of did her own thing. First she did some landscaping. Then she ran around aimlessly, and finally she settled on playing with Nicole's yard toys - mostly the little tykes car. She tries so so hard to keep up with her boys and be included, but the missions game was just too much for her little attention span, and she quickly lost interest in copying them - I think she just couldn't figure out the point of what they were doing. LOL!


When Lucas finally made it home from work, we got cleaned up, went and got his rental car for his week in Toledo, and then went to Hooters for dinner. In Toledo we always used to go to Hooters on draft day, so we decided to bring back the good ol' days! The kids had fun - and Meagan was quick to point out that the girls' shorts were 'broken' - VERY BROKEN! LOL!

Call it what you want (I got nothin')

Hmmm...what to write about today? This morning was motor development. They only have 2 more left - next week their doing 'carnaval games' and the week after that we're taking a trip to a kids museum in a town nearby. Hard to believe we're closing in on summer - and the end of school! Sebastian's class has a musical next Friday - 'Down on the Farm.' He asked me today if I would come to watch him. I can't believe he thought he had to ask! He told me there's a pretty song that they do in sign language that will make me cry, so I better take some tissues to blow my nose with. LOL! He really does think about every detail in life! That's just so him!

Isaac and I have been having an 'interesting' day. He is just emotionally CHARGED these past few days. For those of you who really know him, you'll know exactly what I mean. He's just been having his little explosions - it's just like someone flips a switch, and he goes from perfectly calm to erupting in emotions at the snap of a finger. And adding Sebastian to the mix just gets Isaac more worked up. Uggh! Days like this I need an easy button. Wish those came standard.

Other than that, today has been a pretty quiet and typical day. Oh, except for McDonalds at lunch. Let's just say that I honked at my neighbor, who was about 3 cars ahead of me in line. Well, I guess people really are sheep, because people behind me started honking too - I guess they thought we were getting impatient, or something? Well, the next thing I know, cars started cutting out of the line behind me, and cutting in front of cars in line in front of me (our McDonalds has the 2 lanes for ordering that merge into one lane for paying, so they were going around the line and getting behind the car ordering in the right lane - if that makes any sense). So then people were honking for real. As I was getting ready to pull up to order (which just happened to be in the right lane), a guy comes flying around and cuts in front of me AGAIN. Since I almost hit the guy, I honked to get his attention. He looked at me and put his arms in the air, as if to say what's your problem. So, I said (window was down to order) 'People have been waiting. What are you doing?' So he got all huffy & puffy and drove away. Sheesh. All because I tried to say hi to my neighbor! LOL! Next time I'll be stuck up & keep to myself! ;)

If I could do it all over...

Well, I've officially blown this day doing almost nothing. The kids & I played a little. I ran to the pharmacy. And I made lunch & snack and cleaned it up. Other than that, most of my afternoon was spent in front of the computer (and I have far fewer steps for it!). Sweet Genevieve is on a roll this week, and she is releasing a set of layout templates Friday at the same time as her kit I used on last night's layout. So I thought, 'I can throw a layout together real quick - templates are easy enough!' Well, after my scrapbook reorganization yesterday, I realized that my 2000 scrapbook is all but non-existent. So I dug deep in the photo archives (LOL) and pulled out some pictures from our wedding rehearsal. WOW! We all look so different! It's amazing what 7 years will do to you! (Deidra, LOVE your bangs!) I was actually amazed at how far digital pictures have come in that time. The quality of the rehearsal pictures was AWEFUL compared to what I'm used to! But it's what I have to work with, so it's what I used!

Looking back at all those wedding pictures, my only regret about that day is how ridiculous I was then, and all the little bits of drama that went along with that day. I want to officially go on the record and say I'm sorry for being such a turd then! If I could go back and do it over, I would tell a certain someone to zip her lip & let everyone wear glitter lotion if they wanted to. LOL! These are not the big issues of life! So anyway, sorry... It's kind of sad, when I look at the pictures, I will always see the facial expressions of some of you and know exactly why they look that way. I guess that just makes me thankful that we've come through it & are so much better off for it all now! Love ya!

Bowl of Oranges

Here's a layout I did tonight using Sweet Genevieve's newest kit, Fruit Punch (released this coming Friday). 'Nothing beats a bowl of oranges.' Look how blond Meagan's hair is!! Is that my daughter???

MUTE button

One question...WHERE'S THE MUTE BUTTON? Meagan has not stopped making NOISE since she woke up from her nap. 'I want snack. I want drink. I want cracker. I see birdies. I go outside. I want eat. I want snack. I want ice cream. PLEEEEAASE' Or there's always 'NOOOOOOOOOOOO.' Right now she's on my lap saying over and over, 'I want ice cream. I want ice cream. Please.' And in between the requests for all of the things she wants, she has just made noise...screaming, crying, whining, babbling, NOISE. It is definitely bedtime!

I spent this afternoon reorganizing my scrapbooks...WHY I don't know. Well, I've been wanting to do this for a while, but I'm not sure what possessed me to do it today. I used to have them organized by kid by year, but I really didn't like them set up that way (I won't go in to all that). So I decided to combine them all and just separate them by year. So now I basically have two albums for each year (except for 2001 & 2002, when I didn't have many pages done...may have to go back & beef those up later). It took forever, and my back is sore from bending over the table for that long, but I'm glad it's done.

Since it's now 20 'til 8:00, I am off to get PJs on kids, get teeth brushed, and stick them all in bed. I am DONE for the day. I have run out of steam, and patience, and energy. It is time to turn off 'Mommy' mode and unwind. See ya tomorrow.

From Anchorage to Willow and beyond

My total steps for the day = 14,356. I can attribute this mostly to cleaning 3 bathrooms & mopping the kitchen floor. LOL! I hope tomorrow is a little less...this program takes the average of your first 3 days as the baseline, and then you're supposed to increase it by 2,000 steps after that. My legs will fall off if I have to walk 16,000 steps every day! LOL! Well, I'm mapping my progress against the Iditarod Trail, and today I walked from Anchorage to a little past Willow. I found another site that has a calculator for steps per mile. (I guessed on my stride, but made it pretty low). It calculated that I walked 5.4 miles today....in my house! That's insane! Well, I'm off to rest my legs...good night!

Who lit the fire?

Okay, I'm not sure who lit the fire under my butt, but I've been on a roll today! I woke up early for starters. Before lunch I managed to get all 3 bathrooms clean (even showers scrubbed), got the dishes done, kitchen counters cleared off, & the floor swept & vacuumed. And after lunch, I got everything cleaned up quickly & got the kitchen floor mopped. Now I'm ready for a nap! LOL!

I also have put our Chicken Little step counter (from a cereal box) to work today. Lucas has been doing a thing at work where he wears a step counter all day & tracks his progress. Well, I'm not paying $22 for a step counter, but I figure the Chicken Little one will work well enough. So I decided to play along, starting today. I signed up at America on the Move so that I can track my progress. And I started wearing my step counter sometime around 9:00 this morning (so I missed about 2 hours of the day, but oh well). So far, I'm up to over 6,000 steps. Who knew a li'l ol' house wife like me moved so much during the day. No wonder I feel like crashing by the end of the day. (Nothing compared to Lucas though...he had over 18,000 steps one day because they had a rough day at work. Still, not too shabby).

Well, off to take an afternoon rest! :o)

Who can think of turkey at a time like this?!

I know, it sounds strange, but I've had Thanksgiving on the brain the past few days. So, of course, what else is there to do but to do some turkey day layouts. Here are 2 I did of this past Thanksgiving.

This first one, Lucas says is the grossest layout he's ever seen. He said it looks like we ate brains & worms for dinner. LOL! Maybe he's right, but I still liked how it turned out. I just think in 20 years it will be fun to look back & see if we're still eating the same ol' stuff, or if something new has woven its way into our traditions.

I did this one (below) because I wanted to document our new table we were blessed with this year. We had been waiting and waiting until we could afford a new table, since we had long outgrown our old one. One day Guy called and asked if we would be interested in an oak table that would seat 8 people when it was expanded. Um....YES!! So our patient waiting was over! Guy & Jane delivered our new table to us just in time to try it out for Thanksgiving dinner!

Journaling: Top: 'A new table for Thanksgiving...pretty cool. Spending Thanksgiving with family...Priceless' Bottom corner: 'Guy & Jane brought our new table up, and while they were here, we celebrated Thanksgiving. A little early, but Jane had neck surgery scheduled for the days right before the actual holiday. It was great to be able to sit down at our new expandable table and have dinner together as a family.'

Layout overload

I haven't been doing lots of scrapping lately, but I did go through a period where I did a lot of layouts all at once, and I just realized I haven't posted them. Just trying to get caught up. Plus, I finished the grape snowman layout tonight, so I thought I'd share - I know you've already seen the pics & read the story, but it is now officially included in our scrapbooks, and not just my blog LOL!

Journaling: 'So I came downstairs this morning to find Sebastian at the counter making grape snowmen for us. He got the idea from a cheese cube man he made at church yesterday. Since we had used all of our cheese, he improvised. Instead of a grape head and cheese body, he used all grapes.'

Journaling: 'The first outside garden we visited was the Great Lakes Garden. How cool was this! The lakes were built to scale - size & depth - to the real lakes. And you could get little boats to sail through all the lakes. Not only were the lakes to scale, but on the ground they had the map of the states surrounding the lakes. You had so much fun finding Michigan and Ohio. The was a great start to the day. We had to pull you away so we could see the rest of the gardens with a promise to come back again.'

Journaling: 'Your first fair experience. We went with Grandma during the day, and went back again that evening with Grandpa too. During our daytime visit, we met up with Trace & Travis, and then later the 2 of you got ride bracelets. Oh! Heaven for 2 little boys! Free reign of all the rides! The bug house, the crazy house, the train the rocket ships...and even the strawberries (with Mommy). But, by far, you went the most rounds on the super slide! Again & again & again. The lady working there was probably tired of climbing all those stairs with you. But we had paid for those 2 bracelets, and you made sure you got your money's worth.'

As far as the day... I had a rough time getting up this morning, because both boys had accidents last night (which is very unusual), and Meagan was up all night coughing. I had a prescription called in for her, which I then forgot to pick up. So I'll have to go get it tomorrow morning (keeping my fingers crossed for tonight). This afternoon, Isaac, Meagan & I took a road trip to the bank. Then for dinner we all went out to Red Robbin. Tonight, I went grocery shopping, watched Pittsburgh get eliminated from NHL playoffs (insert sad face here), and then watched Survivor. Now I'm headed off to bed. See you tomorrow!

Is it this hard for everyone?

I just have to know! .... Is dinner this hard for everyone? It has been a never-ending battle lately to get my kids to eat ANYTHING. Tonight I made macaroni & cheese with ham & peas. These are all things that they all like, and no one ate it without a fight. AAAAAHHH! I have heard every excuse in the book:

• It's too hot
• It got cold
• I don't like these foods if they're touching each other
• This is the wrong kind of chicken - I only like other kinds of chicken
• My tummy is only hungry for desert

The list could go on forever. Or there are the moments when there's absolutely no reason to be offered, and so they just break down in either tears or hysterics or the silent treatment or a stare-down with the floor beneath their feet. So I just was hoping to hear that I'm not alone - that other people's kids are really as difficult as mine can be. Just a little bit of 'me too' would go a long way at a time like this! LOL!

Oh, and while I'm at it, I'll share something random that Sebastian said - which is totally unrelated to the eating issue. He and Isaac were 'discussing' something, and out of who-knows-where Sebastian says, "Isaac, attack the problem, not the person." I had to laugh just a little...wonder where he ever learned that? And I wonder even more why he thought it pertained to that particular moment with his brother. ??? Kids are just too funny.

It's all about her

I'll be the first to admit, I've kinda lost my touch lately - well, actually I've just lost track of time. It doesn't seem like it's been 3 days since my last post, but I realize it has. So I thought I'd sit down and get this done before yet another day gets away from me.

The first thing - I DO NOT want to forget this, so I better do this first. This was one of those moments in parenting that makes the tough parts worth it. Meagan had just gotten up from nap, and we were up in her room. I asked her if she was a happy girl, and she said, 'Yeah, happy!' And what did she do? She got up and started dancing with her happy feet. She had ALL the moves! I can't even describe them really, but she was doing all the shuffles and taps and hops and everything that Mumbles does on Happy Feet. It was PRECIOUS! I wish I had my camcorder, but I didn't - so I just took it all in - all three of four minutes of her cute little dance. I hope I never forget how cute she was, and the sweet look on her little face. She was having such a good time, and she was so proud of herself!

Well, I guess we'll just keep this all about Meagan for now. I have a few sets of pics to share with you. I'm noticing a trend with her - which is nothing new - that she seems to prefer 'boy' stuff over 'girl' stuff. And it has now carried over into her clothes! LOL! The other day (Saturday, I think), she comes running in the room carrying a pair of Isaac's Diego grundies, waving them over her head like some big great thing. Yup, she wanted to wear those Diego underwear. So, I put them on her over her diaper. She was mad that I made her wear a diaper under them - I guess that ruins some of the coolness effect or something. But I was not about to be cleaning up messes all day because she wasn't in the mood to 'de-cool-ify' Diego!

And while we were on spring break the other week, Grandma got Meagan some Thomas PJ's. Well, finally last night I gave in and let her wear them. I had been holding off because it has been so cold at night, but she just didn't want to wait anymore. So I put a long-sleeved shirt under them, and let her wear them. She was still googling over her choo choo pj's this morning at breakfast!

And finally, I know a few of you have been waiting patiently to see our new couches (while others of you could care less!). So I have finally put some pictures together for you to see. We took the blue couch and chair to Goodwill late last week. So now our living room is back to normal (except for the crib & changing table that are sitting there waiting to be picked up)!



So now I'm off to start the day. I don't feel like I've been accomplishing much in the past few days. I have been doing stuff, but I feel like I'm not seeing any results! So maybe today will be a different story (keeping my fingers crossed)!

Mismatched

So today was a first...Meagan picked out her outfit to wear. She picked a purple shirt with a butterfly on it, purple corduroy pants, and blue socks (which Grandma eventually changed to purple, with some persuasion). So other than the blue socks, I guess she did okay. For some reason, my kids seem to think that picking out clothes that match means picking out a shirt & pants that are the same color. Once Sebastian picked out a pear of orange pants to wear to school. The shirt he picked out to 'match' was an equally bright orange 'Cars' shirt. He looked like he was wearing a prison jumpsuit, but he was convinced that he matched perfectly. And that's exactly what he wore to school. Ahhh, well, these are not the important things in life. (Just the funny ones).

And speaking of not matching...

I did this layout today of Meagan playing choo choos. Only problem was which color to use since she is playing with red and green trains, and she is wearing pink & purple pj's. Well, I decided to go with....ALL OF THEM! LOL! I would have never actually thought to put pink & red papers together until today, but I kinda like the results. I'm still a little unhappy with the ribbon & the tag in the corner - they look a little more digital than I would like. I think I'm going to have to go back & play with the shadows a little more to get it right.

Journaling: You adore playing engines - 'too toos' as you call them. You could play (or watch) trains for hours and never get tired of it. Thomas, Percy, James, and even Sir Topamhatt have found a special place in your sweet little heart. This particular evening, you raided the boys' room dumped out their engines, and got lost in your own imagination. What a cute little face you make when you say 'too too'!

Scrap Galaxy Crop Layouts

Well, I think I mentioned that we are having an online crop at Scrap Galaxy. I posted 3 challenges (I think there will be 15 all together, or something like that). Anyway, here are 2 layouts I did for 2 of my challenges.

The first one is to make a title using masking or inking. I used masking (the concept would be taping something off, painting over it & then removing the tape...no paint where the tape was). These are a few pictures of Sebastian from his fifth birthday party. Journaling reads, 'I didn't know I would only have 5 years for you to be my 'baby.' That is one thing you definitely are not anymore. You've moved on. You're now a boy. You're active, intelligent, and more aggressive than you've ever been. You're independent. And while I know you will always love your momma, you have shifted your focus to your friends. I knew this day would come. I just didn't expect it to come so soon.'

The second one was create a layout with at least 2 pictures and use some combination of black & white and color in your pictures. That could be one pic all color, the other all black & white. Or it could be color and B&W in the same pic. I did a combo. One picture - the focal picture - has a combo of color & B&W. This is a simple and very cool technique. Then the smaller pictures are a combo of all B&W or all color. These pictures are from one of the areas at Meijer Garden (from our trip last summer). Journaling reads 'While the big kids went off exploring in the tree house and the log cabin, you wandered, and came across this miniature tea table, just right for a moment of make-believe. You played intently for quite awhile, pouring pretend tea and serving pretend guests. And I was beyond content to sit & watch you. The sweet expressions on your face, the shadows & highlights from the way the sun fell around us. You looked radiant. Moments like this are what truly make my life enchanted.'

The crop is going on through tomorrow, if anyone's interested, it's not too late to get started. Just finish as many of the challenges as you choose to do. There are prizes for each challenge you complete. And it's a great way to get some scrapping done!

Funny Stuff

The kids have been saying and doing some pretty funny things lately. I thought I better get them down before I forget.

We'll start with Meagan. A few days ago, the boys were playing football in the living room, using a stuffed animal as their football. Well, they threw it a little too hard & too high. It hit Lucas' Civil War collector plates and knocked on of them off the wall. Luckily for the boys, it didn't break. But they still got a 'talkin' too.' So Lucas has them sitting down on the floor in the living room, and he's going on in his sternest Daddy voice about how they need to listen and follow rules, blah blah blah. Well, Meagan, who had been in the basement playing, walks in right about then, walks over to her brothers, sits down in between them, and with one arm on each of their shoulders she says, "Hey boys. Wha' doin'?" That was the end of all punishment. Lucas tried (rather unsuccessfully) not to laugh. I couldn't help myself, I just lost it. And the boys thought it was pretty funny too. Leave it to Meagan to take one for the team! She is our constant source of comic relief.

Other funny things she's said lately - I was getting her dressed the other day, and I put a short sleeved shirt on her (to go under a hoodie sweatshirt - I'm not crazy enough to dress her in short sleeves in this weather!). Well, apparently she is unfamiliar with the concept of short sleeves - I guess she can only ever actually remember wearing long sleeves. I put the shirt over her head, and stuck her arms through. And she looks at the sleeves, starts pulling on them, and says 'Uh oh! Broke! It broke!'

And this morning, she ate all of her cereal and wanted more. I poured more cereal in, but she had no milk left. She looked at me and said, 'more water please.' LOL. She thinks we put water on cereal. Too cute!

Okay, on to Isaac...Beaner, this one's for you.
Last night I was scrapping in the basement, and the boys came upstairs to sit & watch Daddy play. He was on TeamSpeak talking to some of the guys on his team. Isaac came downstairs to update me. "Mom, do you know who Daddy is talking to? He's talking to a guy named Coque who is a nice guy. He's not even talking to Jose'n (yes, he put an 'n' on the end of your name). Only to Coque. And Coque is a nice guy. And Jose'n is a nice guy too, but he isn't talking tonight.' Thanks for the update Buddy.

And now for Sebastian - the most random of all. He came home from school yesterday. His brother and sister were still sleeping (I love long naps!). So I sat down on the couch with him, and we started reading his books for school. (He has a reading sheet to fill out and every time he reads a book he gets to put it on his sheet. A full sheet = a prize - last time he got an alligator foot. ??) Anyway, we were in the middle of a book called 'I can't sleep' when he looks at me and says, "Mom, butt cheeks make a sideways 8." What!!!??? Where on EARTH did that come from? Has he been giving this some thought? That is such a BOY thing to think about! He then continued in his train of deep thinking..."So do our eyes. And so do our nose holes." Yes, Bud, I guess you're right. Want to finish your book now?

Random Ramblings

So, I briefly mentioned in my 5-minute blog last night that we got our new couches yesterday. But I forgot to mention that it took my children less than 20 minutes to get purple crayon on one of the cushions. I thought I handled it rather well, as my only reaction was "You've got to be kidding me!" It could have been much worse (my reaction, that is...I guess the crayon too, for that matter). When I bought them, I had stain protector put on them, since we are planning to keep them in the same house as our 3 kids. I just wasn't expecting to test out the protector so soon. But, the crayon wiped right off (with the cleaner that they gave). And when it dried, I couldn't tell where it had been. So, I guess that was $100 well spent!

Other than that, I'm not sure what to really talk about tonight. I'm in one of those moods that I just would rather sit quietly and talk about / think about pretty much nothing. I think that mood is called 'tired.' I do have some fun news though. Creating Keepsakes magazine, which is probably the largest circulation of a scrapbooking magazine, requested on of my layouts the other day. I'm pretty excited about that! They want the layout of the kids' trip to the zoo with Grandma & Tina last summer. I think it will be in the July or August issue. Not certain. But anyway, that was a bit of fun news.

For anyone interested, Scrap Galaxy (www.scrapgalaxy.com) is holding an online crop this coming weekend. There will be challenges posted (both paper & digital) to give you a little jump start on layouts. There are some digital freebies available, and there will be a grand prize drawing for a kit by Designs by Krista. Just thought I'd pass it along for what it's worth.

Oh, and one last thing before I call it a night...I just have to thank my friend 'the concerned gamer' for his very thoughtful advice in his latest comment. But I must defend myself and say I WASN'T DOING ANYTHING! Okay, so maybe for a second, I was trying to send out an enormous email, but that wasn't what did him in. At the time he got booted, I really was just sitting down there, minding my own business. Our internet crashed at some point last night, for who-knows-what reason, but I really WASN'T DOING ANYTHING. I wasn't even streaming - I was listening to a CD so it didn't disturb him. He may tell you otherwise in your 'work-related' conversations that you have numerous times throughout the day, but I'm telling the truth. I'm innocent.

Sewers Cramp

It's official. I have diagnosed myself with a serious condition called Sewers Cramp. Today our new couch & love seat were delivered, which means we have to get the old ones OUT! But, no one will take them if they're not in 'good condition.' So, I spent all day today stitching the cushions on our old couch. The seams were split on every cushion in at least 2 places each. I have tiny little blisters on my fingertips, and my right hand is still cramped from all that sewing. Oh well. I really don't mind - I'm just trying to rouse a little sympathy from my husband *LOL*. It really was worth it if someone else will be able to get some good use out of them, and if we can reclaim our living room, which currently has 2 couches, a love seat, an overstuffed chair, and a recliner in it (and the 2 chairs at the chess table). I'll try to post some pictures tomorrow, if I get a chance.

One for the books

HAPPY EASTER! I hope you all have had a chance to reflect on the day, aside from the chocolate bunnies and colored eggs, and just take in how awesome Easter really is!

That being said, let me share with you my interesting morning. Meagan was the first one up, which rarely happens. She came into our room to announce her waking, and true to form, she made it clear that she was ready for breakfast. It went something like this: "Mommy! Daddy! I want breakfast! I want breakfast! I want breakfast! I want breakfast!" (Hmmm...I'm raising a bottomless pit!)

Well, since we knew we would be out of town for the week, we didn't go to the grocery last weekend. Therefore, our milk was 5 days expired. We had to be creative for breakfast! We used up the last of the frozen breakfast foods - waffles and toaster scrambles or something like that. But, we didn't have to go hungry, so no complaints. Time to get ready...

The boys did fine getting dressed. Thankfully. Because Meagan was a TREAT! She wanted absolutely nothing to do with her cute little pink and white polka-dotted dress. I put it over her head, and she threw it back off and shouted 'NO'. So I tried again to put it over her head. Again, she pushed it away and yelled 'NO DRESS'. 'Come on Meagan. We need to get dressed.' So she goes and hides in the corner of her room. I grab her arm and pull her out of the corner. Stick the dress back over her head and pull it down so her head pops through. So she puts her arms behind her and stiff-arms me so I can't get her arms into the arm holes. 'NO DRESS' (amid other general shrieks and screams)! Then she flips onto her back and starts the whole arched back kicking & screaming trick. (You've got to be kidding me!) But, I won't give in, so I try to push her arm into the arm whole. She flips onto her stomach, trying to resist - yelling the whole time, of course. This move, however, was her downfall! (insert evil laugh here) Because I had to button the back of the dress anyhow, so having her on her stomach was ideal for me. How to keep her there? Sit on her (just enough to hold her, of course)! Now, she's wriggling with all her might, but I manage to get both arms in the proper places and the dress buttoned and tied. Now for the stockings & shoes! Since she likes shoes, she cooperated quite nicely for those. But when it came to doing her hair (which looked just CRAZY by then from all of the struggling), the screaming started all over. Lucas had to come up & sing 'Little Bunny Foo Foo' wither her about 20 times while I pulled her hair back out of her eyes. Okay, we're now out of time. There will be no Easter pictures. Let's just get in the van and go.

But, all of that being said (which can basically be summed up as 'apparently my daughter doesn't like dresses'), church was pretty cool (although Luc says there's too much singing). They took an approach I had not seen before, and it was pretty awesome. So, all the struggles in the morning were forgotten, and Easter found its way into our day.

Which brings us to Easter 'dinner.' Again, no groceries. So we had Taco Bell. Not the traditional dinner, I know. We did the ham dinner yesterday with the whole family, so we didn't feel like we were missing out on anything with our tacos & mexican pizzas. And according to a prediction by my husband, we will more than likely be eating fast food for dinner too. He's probably right. It's Easter...I'm just not in the mood for the grocery.

So, for all of you who were looking forward to Easter pictures, I'm sorry to disappoint. Just know that they all looked cute (or handsome). When the snow melts I am going to get them dressed back up in their Easter clothes & do some outside pictures. So when I get around to those, I'll be sure to share.

Monday thru Friday

I joked because most of the people who regularly read my blog already know my stories because I've been with them all week. But they tell me they still want a blog to read, and I still have to post my stories for others. Well, let's see...where to start?

Monday was the 1st day of spring break. We spent much of the day getting packed & ready for our trip to Grandma & Grandpa's house. I won't bore you with the details of that!

Tuesday, we woke up to a beautiful sunny day - blue sky, warm weather - so we spent the morning playing outside (no coats!). I even got adventurous enough to clean out the van. I didn't get to the front seats, but it was not the adult section of the van that I was most concerned with. I'm glad to finally be able to say with decent certainty that the van is vomit-free. (I can now the looks on some of your faces - so for those of you who haven't had the pleasure of knowing this story, here's the low down: In December we went to Grandma & Grandpa's for Isaac's birthday party. Well, a few days before we left, Meagan got sick - I mean REALLY sick. So, on our trip to their house, she threw up in the van at least 3 times. When we got there, we cleaned out what we could find. We stripped the car seat out & disinfected, etc. Well, before we left, Sebastian & Isaac both got sick. We waited until later Sunday afternoon to leave. We thought since they had made it through the entire first part of the day without throwing up, we were safe. BUT...that was not the case. We had only been in the van for about 15 minutes, when Isaac lost it - mostly Sierra Mist, but still gross. So, when we got home, I did what I could to wipe up what I could see while trying to avoid frost bite from the freezing cold weather. So, this past Tuesday was the first time I had actually scrubbed with carpet cleaner under all the seats and stuff. Go ahead - think what you want of me! LOL! I just didn't care enough about what could be under the seats to stand out in the garage during winter to clean. I'm just being honest).
Anyway, after van cleaning, Tina & I took a trip to the mall (no kids!!!) and did some shopping. I learned a lot about myself that day. Mostly, that I have some serious issues that need to be addressed! I CAN'T SPEND MONEY! It's hard for me! I kept putting things in the cart, then taking them back out & questioning whether I really needed them, then putting them back in, then taking them back out & putting them back on the racks. AAAAHHH! I was driving myself crazy! Tina put up with me quite nicely, and never once hit me upside the head or anything. You gotta love a good friend who can put up with annoying shopping habits! But, I did end up getting the kids some clothes for spring (if we ever have one) and summer, and I got a few things for me too. Now, I can't wait for the weather to be nice so I can wear them!

Wednesday we went to Mom & Mike's for dinner...and for a continuation of the shopping adventure from Tuesday. I returned almost $160 worth of stuff on Wednesday - I told you I have issues!

Then yesterday morning, we got up and all went to Bob's for breakfast. I could tell at the restaurant that the kids were approaching melt-down. Too many days with not enough napping, I guess. They were all being crazy! So after we ate, Mom & Mike headed out to visit my grandma, and Lucas & I headed back to his parents'. When we got there, since it was near lunch time, and we all had full bellies from breakfast, I just pretended it was a little later than it was, and I stuck everyone (including myself) in bed for a nap. Apparently that was fine with everyone, because they all crashed hard!

So now we arrive at today - so far, not a lot is happening. The kids are watching a movie, I'm still in PJ's, and Luc's still in bed. Tomorrow we have plans for an Easter lunch all together as a family before we head home. It's amazing how quickly a week of visiting flies by! Maybe some day we won't have to make 3-hour car trips to spend the day with family. But, until then, we'll just keep on doing what we're doing, and enjoy the time we have together.

New Theories on Cleaning

There was something in the air today - something that sparked creativity in my children. And for today, the creativity was most effectively applied to the act of cleaning. In the past 12 hours, 2 new theories on cleaning have emerged from my 2 youngest children.

Theory 1: Divine Intervention
The conversation went something like this:
(In the van on the way home from church today) Isaac (I): Mom, do you know who is God's son?
Mom (M): Jesus?
I: Yup. And Jesus died.
Sebastian (S): Yeah, and then waited 3 days and then came back alive again.
I: Yeah. He can do that ya know.
M: Do you know how Jesus came back to life?
S: Of God.
M: That's right. Because God is so powerful, He was able to bring Jesus back to life.
I: Yeah, God can do whatever He wants, can't He Mom?
M: Yes, Buddy, He can.
I: He can even clean up our whole room for us!
(I just laugh hysterically, realizing that Isaac has BIG plans for God in his life.)

Theory 2: Sweep it Under the Rug
Now, I know this is not a new theory. We've all heard the phrase 'swept under the rug.' But, I have never heard of it being put into action, without guidance of any sort, by a one-year-old...until this evening. The kids were helping us clean up after dinner. The boys were clearing the table - putting the ketchup away, putting dishes in the dishwasher, etc. Well, Meagan decides the best way for her to help is to get out the dust pan & dust broom & sweep the floor. Apparently it wasn't working out like she was hoping (and she must have determined that, at least for tonight's dinner clean up, there would be no divine intervention), so she picked up the corner of the rug and started sweeping all of the food crumbs right underneath. Just like that, the floor looked clean as ever! (I think we're going to have to keep on eye on that girl. She looks like trouble!)