Meagan the medicine junky

My daughter is amazing. When she wants something, she can definitely do her best to find a way to get it. And medicine is no exception!

As I shared yesterday, Isaac is currently taking Benadryl for his bug bite/bee sting/whatever it is. Well, the Benadryl is bubble gum flavored, and it smells quite yummy. Meagan, being the general fan of medicine that she is (Motrin, Tylenol, antibiotics, whatever...she's not picky), has determined that, if logic prevails, she should be able to get the same kind of medicine her brother is getting as long as she has the same symptoms. So last night at bed time, in her sweetest, most pitiful voice, she came to me and said, "Momma, I have an itch" (insert dramatic face scratching here). "I think I need some medicine like my brother Isaac."

Nice try kid. Go to bed.

My Poor Baby Boy!

We went to a friend's house this weekend and hung out for the evening. The kids had a BLAST, since his back yard is a giant forest! However...I was not quick enough with the bug spray, and Isaac is now paying the price. He apparently reacts to whatever bit him the same way I react to bee stings.... LOTS of swelling, hotness, and itching. Poor boy.

I took pictures, but only the straight-on shot really showed up. Can you see along the right side of his face, from his brow down to his ear, and all the way across to his eye is swollen horribly. This morning he could hardly open his eye...he looked like he had been in a fight. And as the day wore on, a spot swelled up on the left side of his face close to his temple. Poor baby. I gave his some anti-histamine tonight, and I've been putting topical cream on for good measure. I hope it helps. It's breaking my heart!

It's About Time!

Woooo Hoooo! We FINALLY got a Wii Fit today! I was flipping through the Sunday ads in the paper today (which had 4 packs of coupons in it, by the way!), and I saw that Circuit City had it in their add. I tried to call to see if they had any left, but no one would answer. The automatic lady just kept telling me to try back later.

So I gave up, and continued my browse through the ads. That's when I found that it was also in Meijer's flyer. So, we loaded up the van and headed to our local Meijer to see if, by some chance, they still had one. Nope. They had sold out about 2 hours before we got there. BUT...the last she had seen, a Meijer about 25 minutes away still had some. She called that store to see if they still had any...they had FIVE!

Back in the van for a little road trip. We got lost, because I had never been there, but somehow still thought I knew where I was going. Not so much. But we got back on track, and eventually found it...about an hour after we had left our Meijer. Oops...at this point, we were thinking it would be a miracle if they still had any. But, we were there, so we figured we would give it a shot.

After being misdirected by the front door greeter, I finally found their game section. And there was one left on their shelf! I'll take it! Just out of curiosity, I asked if that was their last one...she said there were still 2 left. Thankfully we didn't stay lost any longer than we did, or we may have gone away empty handed. But, as it turned out, we finally got a Wii Fit!

We all played it this evening a little. Then after we put the kids in bed, I played it for a while. I did everything one time. OY! My legs are a bit tired. My abs are slightly burning. And I'm sweaty. But it was fun, and I managed to get in over 30 minutes of exercise tonight, while having fun! Sweet!

Back to Normal

Notice that since having our children back I have no time to blog! LOL! Life has definitely returned to normal around here. Gone is the quiet house. Returned is the MESS...and the daytime comedy and funny conversations at dinner.

Jane brought them home Monday. They got here around 4:30. She stayed for the evening and helped everyone get re-acclimated before she headed home on Tuesday afternoon. They seemed happy to be home - happy to see us at least. They clobbered us with hugs and kisses, and continually sought us out for more snuggles and loves as the day passed. I'm glad they had fun, but It's nice to be missed.

We really haven't had to do much in the way of getting them back on schedule. We've had to remind them a few times of our rules vs. Grandma's rules. And Tuesday's dinner was an outright stand-off - we had baked fish, long-grain wild rice and Mediterranean vegetables. They wanted Sonic burgers. Too bad. The only really notable behaviour issue we've seen is the reclaiming of territory - mostly by Isaac. He spent a large part of Tuesday and Wednesday reminding us all of what belongs specifically to him. I guess because all of Grandma & Grandpa's toys are community toys for everyone to play with (not that ours aren't...at least their supposed to be shared with everyone...but I guess it makes a difference which specific toy was given to which child for which birthday or holiday, etc. Kids are funny stuff). Other than this little oddity, we haven't really had much trouble.

We just put everyone in bed a few minutes ago...around 8:30. And all is quiet. I think they're still pretty worn out from all the vacation excitement. They've been crashing hard and sleeping late for the past few days. So, now I've officially informed you all that life is back to normal...back to crazy!

Thursday's Post

We're about 75% of the way through our childless vacation days. It's been VERY quiet. We have gotten to talk to them almost every day, except Meagan, who was asleep one time and too tired to talk the next. I am definitely missing their silliness around here. I've had no funny conversations to overhear and giggle at. No little people hanging on my legs while I'm making dinner. No fights to break up (althought that I have not missed). No 'nuggles,' which is what Meagan calls snuggles (that I definitely do miss).

Monday & Tuesday were my working days this week. Tuesday a good friend of mine came over and we went on a walk and had fun girl talk time. Then yesterday I returned to the bus route for Wednesday night church. We can definitely tell it's summer, because there were only six kids on the bus last night. Everyone's on vacations and out with friends. It's hard to believe that summer break is almost over. Time flies...in only a few more weeks Isaac will be starting kindergarten. Wow!

Today I am packing up and heading to Detroit for the rest of the week. I am going to meet my mom and a friend of mine (and a friend of hers, whom I've not met yet) there for the Joyce Meyer conference this Thursday, Friday and Saturday. I'm definitely looking forward to it, although I have not yet packed (and I have to leave in less than 4 hours). On that note, I suppose I should probably wrap it up here and get moving.

I finished one of the layouts I started the other night, so I figured I'll share. It's just Meagan eating birthday cake. Nothing spectacular. The second page is from the same time, just of all of the kids.

Friday & Saturday

Well, we're almost to the one-week mark for having no kids around. It's been QUIET around here to say the least. I told Sebastian that I would make sure to post layouts so he could see what I've been doing. So I have another layout to post for him.

Yesterday, I didn't have to work, so I hung around and cleaned up the house, went grocery shopping, and got ready for the weekend. Guy came up for the weekend. He & Lucas are doing some attic work. Last night I had a 6-hour outing (from 6:00 to midnight) to a friend's house for scrapbooking. I got 3 layouts done (although I think I'm going to do a little tweaking before I finalize one of them). Here's one of them I got done last night: Isaac & his Indian-Anna Jones pictures. He's so funny!

While I was scrapbooking, Lucas and Guy went and grabbed some grub, and then went and got attic supplies. When I got home at midnight last night, they were playing BoomBlox on wii. Funny boys!

Today we got up and spent most of the day working around the house. I did miscellaneous stuff, laundry, etc. while they worked in the garage. At about 4:00 we quit and got ready to leave. We went on a movie date tonight and saw the new Batman. It was an awesome movie. It was very well done, very entertaining, and quite surprising thought-provoking. I liked it.

The kids are having a good time. They've done LOTS of swimming. Yesterday they went to a Discovery Museum (they sent pictures, but I've been too lazy to get them ready for posting). We've talked to them every day, but they're so busy having fun, sometimes their conversations are a little distracted. Oh well. I'm glad they're having a good time!

Enjoy Life

I had some pictures of Meagan outside in the backyard this past Spring. Here's what I decided to do with them:

Journaling: I love that you enjoy every minute of every day life; that you can enjoy the beauty of simplicity; that just being outside is enough to make you happy.

Tuesday Wednesday Thursday

Oops! I've already fallen behind on documenting our kid-free week. Let me catch up.

Tuesday evening we went to some friends' house. They also have 3 kids, and they were also without children for the evening. So we played a marble game and just hung out.

Wednesday was my first night back at church since soccer and t-ball started back in spring. As it turned out, the guy who was supposed to head up the 5th & 6th graders ended up not being able to come. So last minute I found out that they needed me to teach. So I did. It went well. I didn't have a lot of time to prepare, but it worked out great anyway. And it was fun to be back on the bus again!

Today was a busy day at work, but I was able to get a lot done. Since I worked late (5:00, which for me is late), and Lucas was just getting out when I was, and since I have yet to go to the grocery since we got back from vacation, we decided to go out to eat for dinner. We headed up to Red Robin, and then we made a tour through Target. Still no wii fits, but we at least got some milk and cereal for breakfast tomorrow. Milk is not the same as a wii fit, but oh well. Tonight we are just going to hang out. I think I'm going to do some picture organizing, maybe a little scrapbooking. Maybe I'll just veg and do not much.

We talked to the kids tonight on the phone. They've had lots of swimming time at Grandma & Grandpa's. Today they went to a museum of some kind - a science museum. They got to see a cool dinosaur exhibit. They had quite a bit to talk to us about tonight. It sounds like they're having a lot of fun. I'm glad! At least I'm not missing them for nothing!

Home

This morning was our morning for good-bye's. Good-bye Cedar Point. Good-bye boat. Good-bye hotel room. But worse than that, we had to say good-bye to the kids...for 2 weeks! I tried my hardest, but I could not get through it without crying. I teared up, so I tried to stay back so they wouldn't see me. I almost pulled it off. But then Sebastian came back over to me to tell me he was going to miss me, and to give me one more hug. He saw me crying, and that pretty much made him cry. What a bad mother! I made my kid cry!! But we all wiped our eyes and left on a smiling note.

They made it back to Mom & Mike's safely. They spent the afternoon chillin' and swimming in the pond. It was definitely comforting to hear that they made it there okay.

Lucas and I stopped at Cabella's on the way home. We spent a few hours in Dundee...first eating Mexican food for lunch. Then shopping (making a real-time wish list more like it) at Cabella's for about an hour & a half. He did get a new target for shooting practice in the garage. And the only reason he broke down and spent the $$ on that was because I told him he had to, because I don't want holes in the back of my garage! LOL!

We got home, unloaded, and headed to the chiropractor. Then for dinner, we ordered Chinese, and watched tivo'd shows that have been stored up while we were gone. What is going on with this day?!! My husband ate Mexican AND Chinese in the same day! You have no idea what a miracle that is!

Tonight, we are just hangin' out and taking it easy. I think we're too tired to do anything else! Life without children should be interesting. I'll try to do my best to document it. I think it will be interesting to see how different it will be with such an empty house!

Good to the last drop!

Sunday was our last day at Cedar Point. We had an even later start than either of the previous 2 days...it's funny how exhaustion will do that to you! But we made it into the park around 11:00. We headed straight to the back of the park to Camp Snoopy, so Isaac could ride the Woodstock Express. He was practically bursting with excitement to ride it after going on and so thoroughly enjoying the Jr. Gemini the night before - he said it was fun because it tickled his tummy...he's an air-time boy! We spent the morning letting the kids jump from ride to ride.

Meagan went on the Woodstock Express too - twice actually, by the end of the day. I'm not so sure that she like it the first time she went, though, and I was really pretty surprised she wanted to go on it a second time. She said she didn't like going up the hill...going down didn't bother her, but going up was no good...??? Anyway, she loved pretty much everything she tried. The only thing I can think of that she didn't try was the Snoopy Jumping thing - you know, the big inflatable jumping huts or whatever. The boys went in, but she stopped dead in her tracks at the entrance. Not happening. So, I helped her get her shoes back on, and she was happy to watch her boys jump.

The only other thing she tried and didn't like was the Snoopy balloon race. She was having none of that a second time. I think it was too jerky for her liking.

Sebastian went on the Iron Dragon AGAIN. And AGAIN. He went with Grandpa the first time on Sunday, and they actually got stuck on the second hill. I asked what he thought about it, and he said it was 'awesome.' His only complaint was, 'They should let us go again since we had to wait.' He's a Hilleary! The unbelievable part...He went on it later in the evening with both Grandma and Grandpa, and they got stuck again, not once, but TWICE! On each hill. Still, he's not swayed from his complete fascination with the Iron Dragon. He's definitely a fan!

In the afternoon after lunch, Mom and Mike took the kids to the pool and then back to the boat for a bit of down time, and Lucas and I took a few hours to ride some rides. We rode 2 - the Raptor and the Maverick...my favorite and his.

A funny thing happened to me on the Maverick. We were waiting in line for the front car, and we were up next. Last year on that ride, the lap bar got pushed down WAY TOO FAR on me and hurt so bad it actually left marks on my legs. So while we were waiting, Lucas reminds me not to push my harness down too far. I said, "It wasn't me, it was a worker that did it" just as a Cedar Point worker walked up. He said, "What did a worker do?" So I told him my story. He started messing around with me then. He said, "What did you do to make him mad? The only time we do that to riders is when they make us mad." So we talked a few minutes while we were waiting. By the time Lucas and I got on the track, we were laughing pretty hard, having a good time with each other. As we were loading in, that employee looked to the guy in the control booth and said, "We have one who wants it snug." Nice. But we rode the ride...quite comfortably I might add.

Well, as we returned to the station, the train stopped, and everyone unloaded. Lucas got up, and started to get out, but I couldn't get my harness unbuckled. Lucas tried to help, and he couldn't get it at first. Well, he got it unfastened, but it WOULD NOT lift up. It was still locked into position. I was NOT getting out! Then I noticed the employee with a big grin on his face, and over his loud speaker he says (so obviously the whole crowd could hear), "Naw, you're stuck. You're not goin' anywhere...you just gotta keep riding and riding and riding...forEVER.' I cracked up! A few seconds later they released my harness from inside the control booth, and I was free. That was a FUNNY experience! Very fun memory!

It's 11:00, and we're just getting the kids in bed...

I can't even remember what all we did today, it seems like it started so long ago. We were a little later getting up and around this morning - a little more willing to sleep in a few minutes longer. We went into the park for about an hour, and then made a mad dash back to the boat, as it started to downpour and thunder and lightning. We were held captive in the boat for over an hour. When we finally ventured out, it was still raining, but not nearly as severely as it had been. So, we tried to head to a nearby restaurant for lunch, and to wait out the rest of the rain. Apparently, LOTS of other people had the same idea, because they were all actually waiting outside! No thanks! So we headed for Max & Erma's instead.

After lunch, Isaac and Meagan chilled with Grandma on the boat while Lucas and I took Sebastian into Cedar Point to ride rides. One ride in particular - the Iron Dragon. He's had his eye on it since he found out he is tall enough to ride it. Finally today he got to ride it. In the front seat. He grinned from ear to ear the whole time, and at the end all he said was, "Whoa, I so want to ride that again." He is definitely a coaster boy.

At 4:00, we all took a load off and watched the Snoopy ice show. It was a nice little break from kiddy rides. But, when the show was over, back to kiddy land we went. The kids had been begging to play a game, so we let them play a guaranteed-prize game in Snoopy World. It wasn't quite what they had in mind, but for $1 and a prize vs. $10 and no prize, it's what they got! (Yes, I'm a frugal mother.) Again, it started to rain. We just decided to get wet the second time, since there was no thunder or lightning.

Isaac, Sebastian and Meagan all rode the Jr. Gemini. They all put their hands up on the hills even. It was adorable! Isaac still was very hesitant to get on almost every ride we pointed out today, but loved every single one of them when it was all said and done. What do you do with that?

Well, after another cookout on the grill tonight for dinner, we hung around until the light show...which didn't start until 10:00. So we didn't leave until 10:35, and didn't get back to the hotel until almost 10:45. Gross as it is, we totally skipped baths for the kids...we'll give the dirt time to settle and we'll clean them off in the morning. They all basically hit the pillows and CRASHED HARD!

I took very few pictures today, so I don't anything to share with you right now. Besides, I'm definitely ready to get cleaned up myself and fall into bed. Tomorrow we have promises of a ride on Woodstock Express. Lucas and I might also see if we can catch one big-people ride before the end of the day. Wish us luck...we've been pretty busy!

Rundown of the first 2 days:

Thursday:

I finished packing with VERY minimal stress! (Definitely my most successful packing endeavour in quite some time!) We left home around noon...ahead of schedule by about a half hour! So far, an amazing day!

We stopped in Toledo around 2:00 for lunch at BW's. $.50 boneless wings & a basket of fries. Then back in the van for more traveling pleasure.

We got to the hotel just after 4:00. Got checked in. Bought our passes. Went and had dinner...East of Chicago buffet, where my children ate more than I did, really! After dinner, we headed to the park for a little evening outing. The first thing Meagan spotted as we were walking in was the old-school sports cars. So that was our first stop. She was M.A.D. for a second when she found out she wasn't allowed to drive because she wasn't tall enough. But she got over it soon enough. After cars, Sebastian wanted to try the Calypso - a spinning while you spin ride...on a full stomach...not the best combo for me. But we went on it. The first time, Sebastian and Meagan went on it with Lucas & Me. Isaac was too unsure. The second time around, though, Sebastian talked him into trying it. So Sebastian rode alone; Meagan rode with Lucas; Isaac rode with me, and he LOVED it! He had a huge smile on his face the whole time.

From there, we hit Snoopy Land. The first ride they got on was the kiddy version of the demon drop or whatever. Again, Isaac was timid about getting on, but he reluctantly agreed to try it once for me. Again, he LOVED it. That boy! Anyway, after a few more rides at Snoopy Land, our night was cut a little short by a looming rain / storm that was rolling in. We headed to the hotel, got the kids in bed, then my mom and I went grocery shopping so we can make meals for the weekend instead of eating out. That's about it for Thursday.

Friday:

Our morning started at about 7:00 this morning. We made it into Cedar Point around 10:00.

Today was a monumental day in Sebastian's life...he rode his first roller coaster - Disaster Transport. His first ride that has a real height requirement. He is also allowed to ride Iron Dragon now, so that's definitely high on the list for tomorrow.

After a few hours, we headed out for lunch. Then a boat ride around the lake. In the afternoon, we changed up and headed to Soak City. The kids had a BLAST! Lucas and I were also able to get away on our own a bit and went on a few of the big water slides. We left Soak City about 6:00 (although we waited for AN HOUR for the shuttle to come, so it was really a little after 7:00 before we left!). For dinner we grilled at a little pavilion near the docks. We left the boat a little after 9:00. Hotel. Bath. Bed.

On the Flip Side!

So far so good...packing has not yet stressed me out. I've got all the laundry washed, folded, hung up and otherwise put away. The beds are made. Rooms (except for the boys') are clean. Bathrooms are clean. Basically, the house is in fair condition...which is a definite prerequisite for stress-free packing! That and the fact that I took about a 30-minute break to finish a layout I started yesterday. :) Just a fun one of the kids playing on the hammock at Grandma & Grandpa's house.

Well, I should get back to packing. We're planning on leaving tomorrow after we eat lunch, so hopefully a good portion of our approximate 3 1/2 hour car ride will be filled with quiet napping! That's what we hope for anyway. Well, I'll check back in when we get back from our vacation! Have a great weekend!

Five

Here's Isaac's layout. Isn't he handsome? We sure do have cute kids!

Easy Sunday

Today was a hangin' out day. After church we (the kids and I) cleaned out the van. Lucas got a much-deserved day off after several days in a row of crazy crazy hours...he got to go sporting-goods shopping with a friend. For dinner we headed to Applebee's. Then we had a little family racing time - MarkoKart baby! I'm soooo not very good at that game...but at least I can beat Meagan! LOL!

Here's a layout I started last night and finished tonight after the kids went to bed...it's Sebastian's page of tree pictures. Now I just have to do Isaac's and put the rest on an extra page. Then I can call this group of pictures done!! I've got so much catching up to do, it's not even funny, so I get pretty excited when I finish a whole set of pics!

I just bought a 2 new kits this weekend. I used them both a little in this page, although a very little. I'm looking forward to putting them to use!! It may have to wait until after we get home from Cedar Point, though. We're leaving Thursday sometime. Tomorrow is bills & garbage night (possibly some scrapbooking time?). Tuesday my friend Karen and I are going to hang out. Wednesday is my first night back at church since soccer started. Then Thursday we leave! Yikes! I'm going to be on some serious computer withdrawal by the time next Monday rolls around and I get back to the big green machine! LOL! Ah, well, I'd say four days of vacation at Cedar Point is a pretty fair trade for going computerless!

Okay, it's late, so I should probably wrap this up. I've got an early start tomorrow. Later!

Meagan - 3

Here's a layout I did quickly tonight...I totally copied a layout I found online that I liked, so it went together really easily. I decided just to put one of my pictures of Meagan on the layout. I'll put the rest on a page of 4x6's. None of the others of her were spectacular, so I figured less is more. Right? Anyway, I am definitely using these tree pictures for my anual photos. I think they turned out great, considering I didn't have to pay anyone to take them! LOL! Free pictures are the best kind, I always say! So, this is officially Meagan's 3-year picture!

Hope you like it.

What a Week!

What a week! Wednesday evening, while we were eating dinner, a big storm blew through. At first it was just sheets of rain. Then we heard a plunk. Then another. Soon it was more of a pelting, as marble-sized hail covered everything. So, we hung out in the basement a while until it passed. After a break, another storm blew threw. Then it went back to a regular old storm for a while.

Around 9:00, the phone rang. It was the plant calling for Lucas because the elevator broke, or something. What I got from his end of the conversation was this: 1) it was bad, 2) it was plant threatening, 3) it was going to take a LONG time to fix, and 4) he was going to be working in the highest part of the plant, maybe outside, in the middle of all these strong winds, rain and lightening. When I got up the next morning, he still wasn't home. In fact, he called me at 2:00 in the afternoon and told me he was just heading home and he was going to crash. So that was from 5:30 Wed. morning until 2:00 Thursday afternoon being up and working. That's a long time. I tried to cheer him up by telling him now he was like a crab fisherman, working 24 hours + without stopping. His response...'Yeah, but I don't make $80,000 in a week.' Valid point. I stopped trying to cheer him up after that.

Anyway, I found out Thursday that the tornado sirens had actually gone off in the south part of town, and two or three tornadoes had gone over our city. Nice. Today, the kids and I made a trip to a zoo about a half hour from here. We had a great time. It's not like Toledo's zoo - there are fewer animals and lots more walking. But it was still very enjoyable. I was bummed, though, because my camera battery died half way through the day, so I didn't get many pictures at all. At least I got a few! Also a bummer that Lucas couldn't go with us because work wouldn't stop calling. He was afraid if he went he would have to turn around and leave. So I think he just took it easy today (whenever he wasn't on the phone with the plant).

No plans tonight for the 4th. I have no idea if there are even any fireworks going on anywhere, but I know Lucas and the kids are all pretty tired, and it's not worth the effort of finding fireworks if everyone is too tired to enjoy them. So we'll just hang out and be together. Hope you all have a happy 4th of July!

One for Slow-Motion Replay

I have to tell you, yesterday morning I pulled a classic move! I was ready to leave for work, so we headed out the door. As we were walking over to Nicole's to drop the kids off, I realized that I had forgotten something in the house, so I told the kids to go on ahead and I would be there in just a second. I went back inside, grabbed what I needed, and headed out again.

Well, to catch up with the kids, I decided to pick up the pace a bit. Instead of walking, I opted for a slow jog. So, I'm jogging through the side yard, down the little hill, doing just fine...UNTIL...I get to the edge of the driveway, where Nicole has her yard toys for daycare lined up. This would have been that point that a wiser, more patient person would have slowed the pace and STEPPED carefully over or around the toys. But not me. I maintained my little jog thing I had going on, and I picked my leg up to hop/step over a plastic lawn mower. However, the toe of my flip flop caught on the mower...and that was the end of my upbeat jog.

I totally wiped out! I took a face dive straight into the car that was parked there, planting my left cheek straight into the rear quarter panel. And apparently I also put my right arm out to try to catch myself, because I took the hardest blow to the funny bone a person could ever imagine. My cheek bone was throbbing, and my entire right arm was tingling and paralyzed. I sat there for a second, alternating thoughts between, "I wonder if my arm is broken" and "I hope none of the neighbors saw that." After sitting there a moment to fight off the feeling of nausea that I often get with large spikes in pain levels, I got up and went into the house.

It was several minutes before my arm moved at all, and probably a few hours before it was back to functioning properly. I had a welt on my elbow for probably half of the day, but by mid-afternoon, the swelling had gone down, and I was left with only a bruise and a scrape...and a much more comic perspective than I had had on the whole event when it first happened.

While at first I was praying that no one saw, now I sort of wish someone had actually caught it on video so I could go back and watch it all. I wonder if it actually looked as funny as I imagine it did? At any rate, I bet that would be good for a belly laugh to watch that in slow motion!

Puddle Jumping

Last weekend, after the birthday party, Meagan spent quite a bit of time splashing in the puddle left behind by the downpour of rain. Being the picture-crazy person that I am, I of course, took a ton of pictures. Here are a few of them put together in a layout. I am going to put the rest of the pictures together on a 12 x 24 layout of just the pictures (kind of like the ND pictures I posted).

3 in a Tree

I told you I scrapped in the garage Saturday night (LOL). Here's the layout I did:

Journaling: I got a glimpse today - a glimpse into a world collaboratively imagined; a world that is ever-changing, moment-to-moment, shaped and formed by every new idea; a world of adventure, where a branch is a sword and a tree is a fort. What a privilege to see this world come to life; to watch the three of you play off of each other and respond to each others' ideas and actions. This is the beauty of childhood, the beauty of growing up as siblings and friends.

Weekend review

Well well well. Finally I have a free minute to sit down and post. It's been a busy five days or so. We left Thursday afternoon for Ohio. We to Lucas' parents' house around 5:30 or so - just in time for dinner!

Friday the kids and I went with Lucas' dad over to Luc's grandma's house. She was thrilled to have time with the kids, and to have visitors in general, I think. She is such a fun lady - she was telling me stories about plays she was in when she was younger. She was singing me the songs! Either she still remembers them quite well, or she's awfully good at making up lyrics on the spot! LOL!

While we were there, I got some good pictures of the kids climbing in her big tree in the back yard. What a perfect climbing tree! I wish we had a tree like that in our yard - I might be tempted to climb it myself! The kids were playing a game, along the lines of the imaginary world in the movie Bridge to Terabithia (not sure I spelled that right). They were having a great time making up a story and acting it out. It was way too cool to watch them, although I was completely in awe of how big they're getting to be able to play games like that...all three of them. :o(

Saturday was Sebastian's party. It's always nice to have the parties closer to family because more people are able to make it, so we actually get to see everyone. I got to see people I hadn't talked to in a LONG time! For some, it had been at least 2 years, others a year or so. It was good to see everyone. Sebastian and Isaac and Meagan loved having so many kids around to play with! They all were able to get in the pool - only for about 10 minutes because then it started storming, but they were happy to be able to get wet!

Saturday night, Shane and Lucas set up a tv and the wii in Guy & Jane's garage, and we all played wii until nearly midnight. But since there were five of us and only four controllers, I only played a little, and then broke out the laptop as my form of entertainment. So I sat in the garage and worked on a layout while Shane, Tina, Lucas and Guy played Boom Blox. I guess that's one way to spend a Saturday evening! Gotta love family time!

Sunday, before we headed home, we made a stop at my parents' house. We had lunch and the kids played for a bit. We got to see my mom's pictures from Israel, which was very cool. It was a short visit, but at least we got to spend a little time with them. I'd say we got back home just a few minutes before 6:00 Sunday evening. It was a good weekend.

The only bummer to the weekend was that, somewhere along the way, I misplaced my wedding ring. So please pray that it shows up again. I believe it will...you all remember my story about the movies! It's just a matter of time, faith and patience. But I would still appreciate the extra prayers. Thanks!

Overheard

While I was getting breakfast wrapped up today - you know, getting all the cereal boxes and milk jugs put away - I overheard the following conversation:

Isaac: "Sebastian, why did you say there's no Santa?"
Sebastian: "Because...Mom and Dad get the presents."

I asked Sebastian who had told him that, and he replied, "Me."

That didn't take long. Although, I remember as a kid that I had figured it out fairly early, too, and I went along with the whole Santa thing for fun really. So I guess I shouldn't be surprised that he has put 2 & 2 together.

I haven't decided yet how to handle the issue, since it still affects Isaac and Meagan. Still thinking about that one.

Home

We're home. I'm tired. I'll post more tomorrow (hopefully, if I get time...I'll try!)

Happy Birthday Sebastian!

We had way too much going on yesterday for me to be able to post yesterday for Sebastian's birthday. We got up and went to breakfast at a little local restaurant that has yummy skillet breakfasts...Sebastian got a candle in his pancakes!

Present-opening was a highlight of the day! He got some Pokemon stuff from his brother and sister. He got Mariokart for wii from us. He immediately started putting his new cards in his card-holder book, and he carried the book everywhere with him for the rest of the day! After they got all of their things picked up, they were allowed to test out Mariokart while I did the packing (which, as I predicted, made me GRUMPY...I have quite an issue with packing that we won't go into right now).

At Grandma's he got to open up a few small things before his birthday party on Saturday. He got MORE Pokemon characters! He is just in heaven with all this Pokemon stuff! He's so funny!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BUDDY!

Going to Grandma's

Oh how I love that laptop! On our trip down to Ohio yesterday, I busted out the laptop and worked on a layout. The battery lasted for about 2 hours before I shut down. :0)

We got to Lucas' parents' house around 6:00, unpacked and headed out to dinner. Then we all hung out while the kids played and watched movies and got re-acclimated to Grandma & Grandpa's house. They talked Grandma into letting them put their feet in the pool for a while...their hoping for swimming today...we'll see. We also did haircuts last night - even Meagan. Grandma cut about an inch or so off of the end, and she looks so CUTE!

After haircuts, I got the laptop back up and running and started scrapping again. I finished the layout I had started in the van. I also did something a little different that I've never done before, although I've thought of it several times. There are lots of times that I take a TON of pictures and only use a few of those pictures on my layouts. Well, for the sake of not losing my pictures somewhere in the abyss of digital picture land, I decided to make a few layouts of just 4x6's of those 'other' pictures. I saw in Creating Keepsakes this month that several scrapbook album manufacturers are now making 12x12 sleeves that will hold six 4x6 pictures for this exact purpose. I figured, though, that rather than having to spend more money on special page inserts, I would just make a 12x12 layout that does the same thing and that will let me use the page covers I already have. Here's what I came up with:

8 Years Yesterday, 7 Years Tomorrow

As of yesterday, we've been married for 8 years! As of tomorrow morning, Sebastian will be 7.


For our anniversary, friends of ours offered to watch the kids for us yesterday evening so we could go out. Not just watch them for the evening, but keep them over night!!! Sweet! So, we dropped them off and headed out for a bit of a date night. We went and saw Indiana Jones (Indiananna Jones, lol!). Then this morning I got to sleep in a bit before I went to pick them up. What an awesome gift!

Tomorrow we are going to celebrate Sebastian's birthday. We're planning on going out for breakfast before I go to work (but I'm only working a little, so we can have the majority of the day open). Also, sometime tomorrow, we're going to pack and head to Ohio for the weekend (we're having his birthday party down there this year)...pray for me because I do NOT enjoy packing! It way stresses me out! LOL!

Altered Movie Titles

The latest blockbuster adventure, according to Isaac...Indian-anna Jones

And the childhood classic Christmas movie, according to Meagan...Rudolph Reindeer and the Red Nose

Funny stuff those kids come up with! LOL!

Worth the wait

Sebastian's ants came yesterday. He's happy now!

He ran to the mailbox as soon as the mailman came, sure that his ants would be there. Sure enough, he had a yellow envelope with his name on it. We waited for Lucas to get home (from power washing the Vaseline off of the screen from Tuesday's episode - he had to go to a car wash to clean it!) to put the ants in. I wasn't going to do it, because I didn't know if I needed to do anything besides dump them in...I couldn't find the instructions anywhere, and I thought, with as long as he waited for his ants, I surely wasn't going to be the one to kill them! LOL!

Yesterday they were a bit lethargic from their travels. This morning, however, they had started building their tunnels. Life is good.

Another layout. I've been on a girly streak lately, so I thought I should break it up and do a boy layout. These pictures are of Isaac playing in the stones at the playground at my Dad & Nancy's campground. They were taken in October 2005.

Encore Performance

Meagan strikes again with an encore presentation to follow her screen-painting performance on Tuesday. Again while I was attempting to fold laundry. Again with a nearly-impossible mess for me to clean. Again. AAAAHHH!

This morning, around 9:00 the kids wanted to watch a movie, and I needed to get some things done. My plan was that I would get all of the house work done before we had to leave at 11:00 for an appointment, and then we would have the afternoon to hang out and play and do whatever.

So, I put the movie in, and left the kids in the living room while I went upstairs to start folding clothes. In the amount of time it took me to put a load of clothes in the wash and fold a basket of towels and blankets, Meagan got into the refrigerator and took for herself a new quart of fresh strawberries. She brought them into the living room (because heaven forbid she miss any of the movie while she's snacking on the snack she didn't ask for). She went through all but five strawberries of the entire quart before I found her. One by one, she bit each strawberry in half, eating the bottom half and leaving a big chunk at the top where the stems were. What did she do with the uneaten portion? Put them on the light tan couch, of course. When I came down to check on the kids, there was a strawberry line-up all across one cushion, a few stragglers on the other, and a bit squished into the carpet on the floor in front of the couch.

I think I lost it for a second. I yelled at her. I yelled at Isaac (because instead of telling me, he decided to participate - which was evident by the strawberry juice all over the front of his shirt). I sent Meagan to her room to sit on the bed and Isaac to his room to start cleaning it. I then set to work on cleaning the couch. I went through all that was left of the 'special couch cleaning solution' that came with the couch, along with the apparently worthless stain guard that I paid an extra chunk of change for. The stain didn't budge. So I started phone calls. I called my queen-of-stain-removal mother-in-law, but couldn't get a hold of her. I then called my neighbor who brought a laundry treater over that she had luck with on her couch before. I think I went through at least half of the bottle of that, and two buckets of hot water (per instructions found on the Internet for removing strawberry & other assorted berry stains). Finally, I think it all came out. However, I only had time for couch scrubbing between 9:15 (when I found her) and 11:15 (when we had to leave). So nothing else got done - again. I guess I'll be doing my morning chores for the rest of the afternoon, while Meagan takes a mandatory nap!

I think I'm about to turn into Commando Mom. My kids don't know what they've gotten into.

Last Day

Sebastian left for his last day of first grade a few minutes ago.

Fine Art

WHY did I not learn my lesson a year or so ago?!!

Yesterday afternoon, after nap time, Meagan and I were in my room together while I folded laundry. I stopped what I was doing because it was time to make dinner. I sat her up with a movie in the boys' room, and I headed down to the kitchen to start dinner.

(Skipping some detail here...getting to the good stuff).

Just before Lucas came home, I had been slicing tomatoes for dinner. Meagan is the tomato queen, and she was eating one slice for every three that I cut. When I wiped her off, I noticed her arms were slimy, and I couldn't get her clean. So I took her upstairs and stuck her in the bath for a quick wash down. In her bathroom, there was slime on the sink and the wall - it looked like the nasty gelly hand soap that we have in there right now. I figured she had tried to wash her own hands and made a mess of things. Problem solved. Move on.

Until Lucas comes down a few minutes later and says, 'What did you let her do? Good luck getting that cleaned up!'

Huh?

So, back upstairs I go, to find what he's talking about. I went in our room. FOUND IT. A grand work of art, involving a jar of Vaseline (there's the part where I should have learned0, a jar of Vick's, a bottle of lotion and a makeup brush.

Odds & Ends

Nothing like staying up until 1:00 in the morning to watch a hockey game! To put it mildly, I did not want to get up this morning. But, at least I staid up for a good outcome...Pittsburgh won! Have I ever told you how much I LOVE HOCKEY?! I love hockey! I really do! If I could play, I'd be there!

Anyway, other than that, Cassie came over last night and colored my hair. So now I have fun hair again instead of boring plain brown.

This is Sebastian's last day of school...tomorrow is field day, so I'm hoping for no rain tomorrow (although rain tonight would be fine, so we would be without soccer and t-ball practices). Then Thursday & Friday he has half days, and then he's done. Summer break is just around the corner! :)

Meagan has been very into looking like a princess lately. The other night I tucked her in, in pajamas. Before bed I had laid out an outfit for her to wear the next day - a skirt & a white top. When I checked on her later that night, she had ditched the pj's, put the skirt & shirt on, and climbed back in bed and went to sleep. For church on Sunday, Lucas had to do some convincing to get her to wear her Dora crocks. Only after he insisted that they were pink princess Dora shoes, would she put them on. What a goofy girl!

Isaac has it all planned out what he's going to get his brother for his birthday. He is looking forward to going to the store to pick it out. FYI, we've decided to have the party in Ohio, for anyone who was wondering.

Okay, that's about it. Not much is really happening around here today. Just life as usual - little odds & ends.

Pout

A new layout to share with you...


These pictures were taken on Meagan's birthday. I'm not sure she really even knew what she was pouting about!

ants

Still no ants. Poor guy. But Isaac's ants are hard working little critters. Their whole tunnel system is quite impressive. I admit, I kinda like the ants. (Did I just say that?)

The Favorites List

For a few months now, I've known that Sebastian has had an interest in a little girl at school. She was in his kindergarten class, and is now in his 1st grade class (and, incidentally, will also be in his 2nd grade class as of now). She's also been on his t-ball team 2 years in a row. So he spends a lot of time around her. She is an adorable little girl, and a very sweet, well-behaved little girl. Not a bad girl to be interested in, I suppose.

Up until recently, they've each admired the other, but the other was unaware. However, lately, they've discovered that the feelings are mutual, which opened up a whole new world of possibilities. Now, Sebastian says she is his girlfriend. And I guess that sometimes during story time in class, they will sit by each other and 'hold hands.' The little girl's mom helps in the classroom, and has seen this in action a few times. LOL. She and I talk pretty regularly at every t-ball practice, so she keeps me informed (since Sebastian is his father's son, and isn't about to open up and talk about something voluntarily).

Well, yesterday, her mom told me that she had a talk with Abbie and told her that she needs to take relationships slowly...that there's no rush, and it's important to get to know someone before you really decide how you feel about them, etc. The next day, Abbie came home with a list she had made...a list of 'what's your favorite___' questions that she had thought of. She asked Sebastian these questions - in interview form, I can only imagine - and recorded his answers. She took it home and proudly showed her mom, "Look, Mom, I'm getting to know him!"

Apparently, Sebastian has also documented Abbie's favorites. Sheesh!

A Lesson in Patience

One child is happy. The other has used up all of his patience (in his words).

For Christmas, Sebastian got two ant farms. Because he did not need two, he chose one to keep, and gave the other to Isaac so that they could both have pet ants (lovely). When the weather started to show signs of warming, we filled out the ant order forms for each of them (on the same day), and mailed them off to order the long-anticipated ants. Each form stated that we should expect to wait 2-6 weeks for our ants to arrive.

Well, yesterday at lunch, Lucas went out to get the mail. In it, there was a yellow-orange package with Isaac's name on it. Lucas helped him open it up, where, lo and behold, they found a tube of ants. Isaac was elated! His face was beaming, and he was so excited he could hardly contain himself (if you've ever seen Isaac get truly excited, you will understand exactly what I mean). I thought he was going to burst a seam all the way down in his toes he was so happy.

That was at lunch. Sebastian was at school. He didn't know.

When Sebastian got home from school, Isaac could hardly wait to share his excitement with his big brother. He rushed Sebastian downstairs into the basement to show him and to check on the ants' progress at building tunnels (which they had made a surprising amount of already). Sebastian was happy for his brother, and thought the ants were pretty cool to watch. But they weren't his ants. Where were his ants? How much longer? Will they be here tomorrow? The next day?

So, Sebastian did what he does when he needs a bit of therapeutic time. He got out a composition notebook and a pen, and he began to write a story. He wrote a non-fiction story, with dates and facts as accurate as possible, about the day his brother got ants in the mail and he didn't. The story goes as follows (copied exactly from Sebastian's notebook):

"Hello my name is Sebastian." Me and my brother Isaac ordered ants a long time ago. On May 27 2008 Isaac got his ants. That was on Tusday. I lost all my patienc I think. Isaacs ants are busy little succers. Thanks for listening to my non-fiction book of ants.

(followed by an illustrated diagram of the two ant farms - 'My ant farm' with an arrow to an empty box with gel in it; 'Isaac's ant farm' with an arrow to a box with gel and dots (being the ants) and a tunnel started in the corner)

He was quite a sport about it. He was as content as he could be to check in regularly on his brother's ants to see what kind of progress was being made, etc. But he said to me, "Mom, I think I used up all my patience. I think today I ran out, and I used up the last bit of it I had. I've been waiting and waiting, and I don't think I can wait any more."

Poor guy. I can attest, lessons in patience are some of the hardest to learn.

New Sand, New Garden, and a Bike Ride

Just checking in to wish you all a Happy Memorial Day! We've been having quite a nice weekend. Yesterday was a beautiful day, which we were happy to spend mostly outside. After church, and after lunch, in lieu of nap time, we headed to Meijer for some new play sand, some garden veggies to plant, and a few other odds and ends.

With new sand in the sandbox, the kids were set for quite a while. I took the free time to spruce up my sad little garden. I planted 2 different kinds of tomatoes this year, plus a cherry tomato plant. I also planted 2 colors of peppers, and (lol) some cat grass for Lilly. Plus, on the day of Meg's party, she and Keylee planted a TON of sunflower seeds. So this year's garden should be interesting - or maybe crowded is a better word!



We also took our first bike ride of the year yesterday. We rode to a school nearby and played for a few minutes on the playground. The kids weren't really into the whole playground thing though, for some reason. Isaac actually left the playground to go get back on his bike to ride around the empty parking lot. So, we cut the playground visit short and took a longer bike ride instead. We explored the roads that go behind the school that seemed to lead to nowhere. I was so glad to have the exercise - it's been a long sedentary winter.

I did another layout last night. Meg decided to take Bunny Rabbit into the sandbox with her. They were building a princess castle, you see, and a girl needs help when building such an important structure as a princess castle. At one point, Bunny was pretty much buried, with only her little head and floppy ears hanging out. That is one loved bunny.

Journaling: poor bunny...soft, clean bunny. as I watched you play with bunny - in the sandbox! -I couldn't help but think of the velveteen rabbit. if bunny could talk - if she could tell of this day - how would she feel about being covered in sand? it made me wonder...does it really pay to be the favorite?

Well, enjoy your holiday! Pray for my mom, as she is leaving for Israel today. She will be there until June 7th (?), I think. Keep her in mind please. Happy Memorial Day everyone! Love ya!

Just for fun

I started this layout this afternoon - just for fun. I think I mentioned in my last post that I bought a big digital kit to finish the last layout that I did. I figured I'd use a few more of the goodies in that kit just to play around a bit. I had some pictures of Meagan exploring in the 'woods' at Isaac's t-ball game. I've always liked the layouts that combine a few pictures to show a progression, if you know what I mean. So I figured I'd try it out. I still may do another layout with these pictures and take a completely different approach, but this one was fun to do.

Gotta go...I've got a hockey game to watch! Pittsburgh is currently down 1-0 (at the second intermission). We increased our dish network package today just so we could get the Verses channel so we could watch games 1 & 2! LOL! The bonus for getting the bigger package...we now get National Geographic again, so I can once again watch the Dog Whisperer (LOL!).

Bedtime Observations

I had the funniest bedtime story time with Meagan the other night. For her bedtime story, she chose 'Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What do You Hear?' A story I've ready countless times over the last six years. Never has any of us had quite the reaction to the story that Meagan had a few nights ago.

It starts out, Polar Bear, Polar Bear What do you hear?

Polar Bear responds, I hear a lion (or some other animal...not sure of the exact order) roaring in my ear. Then, the next page moves on to the lion - 'Lion, lion what do you hear?' and so on.

When we got to the Flamingo page, I read, 'Flamingo, flamingo, what do you hear,' to which Meagan promptly replies, "He don't hab (have) any ears!" The same declaration was made when we got to the Boa Constrictor page. Observant little stinker (no, I didn't explain the difference in 'ears' that certain types of animals have...that would just open the door wide up for a silly argument with a stubborn 3-year-old).

The clock will strike midnight

My latest layout...This one took me a few days to complete. Finally last night I found a HUGE kit online called Enchanted Forest that had a bunch of elements I used to finish it up.

I am not usually one to use song lyrics for quotes, but this time I've broken away from my 'norm.' Since the first time I heard the song Cinderella by Steven Curtis Chapman, it has been one of my favorites. Truthfully, it's not even the type of music I generally gravitate towards, but the lyrics are beautiful and mean so much to me at this point in my life, especially considering that Meagan and I sometimes struggle with butting heads. This song seems to play over and over in my mind, at times when I feel myself getting frustrated, or when I feel 'too busy' to play with the kids.

One morning while I was getting ready for work, I was listening to satellite radio on tv, and this song came on. I happened to be in the process of doing my hair at that moment, and as I looked in the mirror, I saw Meagan behind me in the reflection. I turned around to look at her. She was playing in my room - making a mess, as usual - in a basket of not-yet-folded laundry. She had a few stuffed animals with her, and she was making castle mountains for each of them out of wadded up clothes. Then she tucked them in gently, covering them up with a shirt or a towel.

It was a pretty typical game for her to be playing, but as I watched her, I realized how quickly she would soon outgrow all of this - the make-believe, the babies and animals, the need for being close to her Momma. I stopped everything I was doing, and I just stood and watched her for what must have been two or three minutes. I was so glad to have had that moment to just be still and realize how amazing she is, and how special this time of her life is.

Journaling: I will dance with Cinderella while she is here in my arms, 'cause I know something the prince never knew. I will dance with Cinderella. I don't want to miss even one song. All too soon the clock will strike midnight, and she'll be gone.


Please keep Steven Curtis Chapman and his family in your prayers, as they are attending the funeral of their youngest daughter today. She was five years old.

Happy Birthday Baby Girl!

I can't believe my baby girl is THREE! Where does the time go? She's getting so big so quickly! But thankfully she's still so little!

When I woke up this morning my first thoughts were of the day she was born. Three years ago at this exact time, I was feeling anxious, getting ready to leave for the hospital for our 8:00 check-in time. I was a bit nervous, and so excited to meet her. It was a bit bitter-sweet for me, because I knew it was the last time I would go through pregnancy and delivery (although I was a-okay with the delivery part!).

I remember laying on the table in the OR, waiting with anticipation for Lucas to come in and be with me, waiting for the doctors to start, wondering if everything was going to go as it should, praying that everything would go as it should, praying for peace in a high-anxiety situation. Then Lucas came in, sat beside me, held my strapped-down hand (LOL).

Not long after, we heard the sound of a first itty bitty baby cry, followed by several solid minutes of baby screaming. One of the doctors jokingly said, 'Oh, it sounds like you two are going to have your hands full with this little one." We had no idea how accurate that statement would be! Our baby girl came out making herself heard and letting her opinions be known, and it hasn't stopped since. She is such an amazing, strong person.

This past year has been probably the toughest year of parenthood for me. It seems like she and I have gone round after round, battling for 'I'm the boss' position. She is continually pushing and challenging to see what she can and cannot do. It seems, though, that in the past month or so, we've seen signs of progress. She is a little quicker to obey, a little less likely to defy her punishments...a little. But we all change a little at a time. We learn a little at a time. We move forward step by step. She is learning that every time she challenges, Lucas and I will stand our ground, time after time after time (which is quite exhausting sometimes, but necessary nonetheless). While our relationship is, for now, challenging at times, I am thankful that overall our relationship is more of a blessing than a battle.

Icky Sicky's

Well, it seems that every time Lucas goes somewhere, at least one of our children gets sick. This time is no exception. Lucas left Sunday evening, and Monday morning, around 4:00, Isaac started getting sick. We were up at 4:00, 5:30-ish, and again at 8:00-ish. Poor guy! All day he had no appetite, drank very little, and slept a lot. I obviously had to alter my work schedule, even though Monday's are always jam packed for me. Around 9:30, he was doing okay, so we packed up a blanket, pillow, and our Peter Pan movie and headed over to church long enough for me to do the bare necessities. Poor guy fell asleep in my office floor...he was really NOT feeling well.

By mid-afternoon, he seemed to be coming out of it. He even went outside and played for a while. He ate a minimal dinner - chicken noodle soup and some toast - which stayed down just fine. He did great for the rest of the evening. I figured he was back to normal.

However, this morning, we had a birthday breakfast for Meagan's birthday - she wanted breakfast pizza. Isaac didn't eat much of it, but he did eat a little. It seemed to be okay...for about an hour...at which point that all came back to visit us again. Yuck! Poor guy is having a rough time. Hopefully he's almost done with it. I feel so bad for him!

Birthday Party

Saturday we had Meagan's birthday party. It was a busy day, but we had a ton of fun. First a soccer game at 9:00, which they WON 5-1! Then a t-ball game at 9:30, which was pretty short-lived because they stopped the game so they could take team pictures (odd?). Then we headed home long enough to take a breath before we turned around and headed back to the ball fields for t-ball game #2 (which went a half-hour longer than it was supposed to because they decided to pitch NINE times to each player before bringing out the tee!). FINALLY, it was party time around 1:00. We were all hungry by then, so we went straight for the food! LOL!


Meagan had a great time at her Bug party...yes, BUGS. She picked it, not me! So we focused on the girlier bugs - lady bugs, bumble bees, butterflies, etc. Mostly bees and lady bugs I guess...and lots of PINK and green!

As for highlights of the party, there are several. For starters, we cracked up watching her attempt to blow out candles. I thought her head was going to pop, she huffed and puffed so hard...yet somehow managed to accomplish nothing! It was pretty cute! She, Sebastian and Isaac chowed on the lady bug cake...the rest of us ate the bee hive!

Gifts are always a highpoint for the birthday girl! She got some adorable clothes (which she actually likes - most kids toss clothes, but Meagan enjoys them). She got some princess-ish things, including a Cinderella polly pockets set (of which several shoes are already missing). She got a whole house full of furniture for her doll house (the boys spent a few hours yesterday helping her set up the house and playing with her - she was in heaven!). She got two sets of gardening tools, but they had different tools in each, so she used them both. She also got a bike and a new princess helmet. And a mustang convertible (what! LOL). Poor girl was overwhelmed with new things to try!

First things first - after driving the car through the living room a time or two, the car headed outside where it could be properly test driven. Since she had her car, the boys wanted their gray truck out, so our front yard quickly turned into a 4-lane highway! LOL!



After driving, Meagan and Keylee headed straight over to the garden to dig in the dirt and plant the seeds that came in one of Meagan's garden packs. It was quite the site seeing Meagan in her princess (halloween) dress, and her Notre Dame shoes, digging in dirt. She's such a mesh of girly and tom-boy, it's not even funny!



There was also a bubble wand bubble blowing event in the back yard. Both grandmas had brought big bubble wands - great minds think alike, I suppose!


After bubbles, I figured she would just about drop from being so worn out, but not Meagan! She hopped on her bike and headed out for a bike ride with Daddy. Actually, she was still going strong long after everyone left the party. It was probably 8:30 before we got them all herded in and settled down for bed. By 9:00, they were all crashed hard! It was a long day, but it was a good day!

Handsome Boys

Finally I had a chance to scrapbook again! It came at the cost of not cleaning my bathrooms, but it was a price I was willing to pay (fyi, I did clean one bathroom yesterday, only 2 more to go). Tomorrow is another day - a day without motor development or library or swimming or any other pre-arranged outing. I think we are all looking forward to that kind of day! And I have a bit of straightening up to do, as well as a menu & a grocery list to make, and birthday gifts to buy. That should pretty much take care of the day.


So about the layout...it seems that lately I've liked a cleaner, simpler style of layouts. I think Simple Scrapooks magazine is wearing off on me. These pictures were taken last July at the park. I know you've probably seen them before (at least some of them), but I'm just now getting around to doing anything with them for my album.


I love looking at all of the different shots next to each other. All their different expressions and body languages...it's so cool to see all of their different sides coming out in each of them, as well as the contrast between the two boys. At the time that I took these pictures, I was just trying to get one good picture to put in a frame. I sort of discounted all of the shots I didn't deem frame-worthy. Lesson learned - there is definitely a great deal of value in taking (and not deleting) a series of pictures like this. 99.9% of them will never see a frame, and won't hang on a wall, but I can look back at them years from now and remember how very serious Sebastian could be, and just how ornery Isaac's grin was at times; how Sebastian fake smiled when he posed for pictures, and how Isaac was only a hair shorter than his brother...and gaining quickly.

Isaac's 1st T-Ball Game...

Anyone want to clean my bathrooms for me?! (Just thought I'd ask). I'm taking a break...I mean, letting the cleaner soak....for a minute. Thought I'd take a minute to blog a bit.

I put together 2 more picture slide shows from this past Saturday - Isaac's first t-ball game. He did great, had a good time, and staid pretty focused through the whole game. He swings the ever-livin' out of the bat every time he's up to bat. Very funny.

While the game was going on, Meagan decided to 'explore' in the 'woods' (which consisted of trees about 15 feet deep separating the ball fields from an access drive). She was lost in her own world of adventure, though, and had quite a good time. When she wasn't in the trees, she was kicking the fuzzy fluff off of dandelions. LOL.

More games this weekend - soccer and t-ball - along with a birthday party for Miss Meagan...hard to believe three is just around the corner!

Flips and fun!

Wow, what an interesting couple of days we have had! Some good moments, some not-so-good! Friday, I had tons of things to get done for a banquet we had coming up on Saturday, and I was hoping / planning to be able to use nap time on Friday to get it done. Instead, we left the house at 9:30 in the morning, and didn't get back until 4:30 in the afternoon. It was a crazy day full of go go go, and I will admit, I didn't exactly behave my best (maybe a slight loss of temper on occasion...or maybe every 20 minutes or so???), but we made it through.

The highlight of the day Friday was definitely motor development in the morning. It was our last day of MD for the year, so we took a field trip to a gymnastics center nearby. It was a directed open-gym structure. First, they had an obstacle course set up on the floor, and they led the kids through all kind of fundamentals, including somersaults, cartwheels, and even back walk-overs. The kids had a blast! They also did the parachute game, which is always a hit!

Then they moved on to the bars, where they had another obstacle course of sorts. They were working on fundamentals without even knowing it was happening. They used a rocking mat to practice hollow bodies. They worked on pull-overs (with help, of course) and pulling themselves up and supporting themselves on the bar. It was a great time. And of course, what visit to the gymnastics center would be complete without jumping in the pit! Very fun!

Don't let the bed bugs bite

Tonight at dinner, Isaac said, "Mom, the nights when I don't sleep very good, those nights are when I have a nightmare."

"Oh yeah?" I asked. Then Lucas said, "What is a nightmare, Buddy?"

With a puzzled look of contemplation, Isaac said, "I think its little bugs that come in your bed at night."

"What do they look like? Have you ever seen one of these bugs?"

"No," he said, "because I think they sneak into our beds when we're asleep."

Here comes Sebastian's 2 cents: "Well, I would guess that a nightmare is a bad dream."

LOL!! How funny! So Lucas went on to explain that nightmares are dreams that make us feel scared, and the boys proceeded to tell us dreams that they'd had (which, we could clearly tell they were making them up on the spot. Isaac's dream was about meteors falling and he was trying not to let one fall on his head. LOL).

After dinner, we turned on Alvin & the Chipmunks for a little down time (they've been cranked and crazy today...it is definitely an early bedtime night!), and it happened to be the part where Theodore has a nightmare and can't sleep, so he goes into Dave's room to sleep in his bed. Aaaah! So now I at least know what brought the subject up...but I just thought it was funny that Isaac thought nightmares are sneaky bed bugs.

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WOOOO HOOOOO! My Penguins made it to the next round of the playoffs!! I am super excited...especially since we actually got to watch the game on TV this weekend. I really miss the days when hockey was actually televised on normal stations at normal times. Anyway... So they have Philly next round. All Pennsylvania series. Very fun! Go Pens!

Besides that, I'm feeling really guilty because tomorrow is Lucas' birthday, and instead of being able to take it easy and celebrate it, we are going to be running around like crazy people trying to manage our silly ol' sports schedule. This whole week, actually is just a week of go go go for me. Still tonight I have to get the kids bathed and in bed, go to the grocery, then come home and make decorations for a banquet we're having on Saturday. LOVE IT!

Tomorrow we have story hour, then our second week of swim classes (for which I will be prepared with my bathing suit!). Then we have to run some errands, get naps in somewhere in the afternoon, and then soccer and t-ball in the evening (plus probably more decoration-making). I am definitely praying for God's hand in my day, so that I can keep my patience and positive attitude and not get frustrated...I don't generally do spectacularly when I have a lot going on...I'm kind of a simple girl when it comes to scheduling.

So anyway, just wanted to get in a quick post before I called the herd in from outdoors. Meagan is playing garden at the moment, which consists of digging a giant pit in our actual garden, generally throwing the dirt over her shoulder into the grass...which means at some point I am going to have to buy another bag of top soil to replace the dirt she has tossed out. But she's having fun digging out the weeds, and finding earthworms. She's filthy dirty from head to toe, but I don't mind. I remember digging for worms in Dad & Nancy's garden when I was little...that was the best! I loved getting my hands dirty, so I can't be upset with her for doing the exact same thing.

Okay, time to round up the troops for baths. Later.

Sports Update

I'm not cut out for this! I think I'm just too competitive to be a soccer coach! I thought this morning I was going to scream my voice right out of my head trying to get the kids to follow instructions, but it's like they have ear muffs on! AAAAAHHHH! Truthfully, they played much much better this weekend than they did last weekend. They are starting to understand (a little, at least) the concept of positioning on the field...which is hopeful. But how do you teach kids to be aggressive? I just don't know. It's like they're afraid to break up plays, or take the ball. They all just stand back and give the other team all the room they need to do whatever they want to do. ??? Hmmm...there's still plenty for us to work on, but they're doing well.

T-ball is going really well. I guess Isaac is doing great (although I still haven't been able to watch him play). Lucas says the 'cattle' are being trained well, and they're all starting to get the hang of it. Isaac is doing a great job hitting and playing certain positions. And he's been encouraging others on his team when they need a lift...how awesome is that! And this week, Sebastian had a moment part way through practice when it was as though, all of a sudden, his hand-eye coordination just clicked. He started catching balls, fielding grounders, and hitting pitches...just all of a sudden. He was so cute - the coach was pitching to him, and he had hit a few fouls, and a few that dropped between home and pitcher's mound. The coach said, 'Okay Sebastian, next hit, I want you to run the bases.' When the next pitch was thrown, Sebastian hit it, and it went flying in between 2nd & 3rd and into the outfield. His eyes lit up, he was so excited that he had hit it so far. He forgot to run! LOL! It was a great moment...so fun watching them develop a sense of their abilities, strengths and weaknesses. Very cool.