Not much going on...

Well, the other day I mentioned how tired I was and that I might blog about it - anyone actually curious?

No, it's not because I'm 37 weeks and 2 days pregnant. That, in and of itself, would be enough to cause a certain degree of fatigue, but that's not it.

On Monday, around noon, an email came in from the rental property manager's office saying that the landlord had requested a "property condition report" and that the prop. mgr. rep. would be out sometime between Tuesday 9 a.m. - 6 p.m. and the following Monday (the 12th!) 9 a.m. - 6 p.m. They could not give an exact day or time because of the number of these reports they would be doing.

Whah???????

The house has become more cluttered than usual lately what w/Christmas, a lot of travel, me being tired because I'm pregnant, baby shower stuff I haven't quite figured out where to put and me not enforcing as much "cleanup time" with the children...did I mention piles of laundry?

Anyway, I confess to having a slight breakdown when telling CKB about this fun new turn of events. He called back a little while later to check on me and to tell me he had a plan for when he got home and that he thought we could get things tidied up enough that evening. Whew.

Other matters:

Mind you, the A/C STILL isn't fixed. I reported it on 10/30 and it STILL isn't fixed.

According to the websites I've read on renter's rights, we basically don't have any when it all boils down to it. If we threaten to withhold rent, they'd probably evict us. If we have it fixed ourselves, they probably wouldn't reimburse us. Etc. Etc. Etc.

But, they want to come out and do a property condition checkup to see if we've trashed the place basically. Well, how nice for them. We pay our rent on time and have for the past year and a half, but they can't do one little thing like getting the a/c fixed for us? I guess they're too comfy cozy up there in their office WITH a/c to be concerned about a pregnant woman with small children sweltering on the oddball high temp days we still have even in Nov/Dec/ and now January...and I'm sure they're not losing any sleep over it (like we have when we've put the children to bed in their skimpiest clothes we could find, ie, shorts and short sleeve t-shirts and sweat on their brows) on the nights when the house has been over 85 at bedtime. Oh no. But, hear ye, hear ye, we'll be showing up to inspect the house SOMEtime between Tuesday and the next Monday and we just have to accept that. Makes me want to make the house about 100 degrees on the day they come out - but then, who knows when that's going to be...they haven't made it out here yet....tick tock, it'll be Monday soon and amazingly they don't do these inspections on Sundays so we won't have to worry about it for that one day at least.

So....the reason I was so exhausted was because I cleaned house all day and into the night after CKB got here (he was exhausted as well and did a lot more in the few hours after he got home than I'd managed to during the day) and could hardly get up and down off the floor by the time I crawled into bed that night. I thank God that I was able to get OUT of bed the next morning (when I got up in the night, I could barely walk) and that was w/o taking any pain meds (I avoid them at all costs if I can when I'm pregnant, even Tylenol).

So, if anyone's still reading, that's why I was SOOO tired the other night.

Believe it or not, I didn't end up in labor after all of that - it's a wonder.

Have I mentioned lately how much I detest renting? and how much I look forward to resuming our house search when baby girl arrives? and how I'd never rent from this particular company again unless it was the last choice I had? and....well, I think you get the picture :) Our lease is up in May....pray for us to find other accomodations quickly after little miss arrives.

The last few days I've been like a drill sergeant with the children and keeping stuff picked up - it's driving me crazy, but I do kind of like seeing the floor DURING the day for a change. Maybe some good has come from this ridiculous inspection thing? gasp....did I say that?

Overheard this morning

The children are playing in the den....

Mr. E - "Don't tell us what to do, Miss E! Mama tells us what to do!"


:)

Feeling crafty...and acting on it!

Lately I've run across some fun crafty blogs with really cute ideas for baby things and naturally these were of interest to me at this particular point in time. :)

I have picked up a few supplies and hope to finish a few projects before Miss Baby arrives, but if I don't, there'll always be someone having a baby somewhere that I can gift a few things to down the road.

Some of the supplies.....


Hmmm.....wondering what these are for?




...and some fat quarters I found at Hobby Lobby recently - I was visiting a different store and it was the first time I'd seen fat quarters at a Hobby Lobby - I think my favorite is the dark magenta/green tulip print on the right.




One finished project - we received some really cute outfits for Miss Baby at the baby shower one of the churches threw for us a few weekends ago. I ran across this cute idea for organizing baby's closet and thought it was worth a try - yes, I got a little carried away (2 years out!), but then sometimes you find a good deal on something that's too big and purchase it early, so now it'll have a place to go :)


I found the idea here:
http://armellejewelry.blogspot.com/2007/06/baby-closet-organizing-size-dividers.html

This "project" was quick and easy - all you need is a set of foam door hangers, number stickers and scissors to cut a slit in the side of the hanger area. Voila! I was able to do this in just a few moments even with all my little helpers gathering around to see what *I* was doing with stickers! ;)

I also made one with each of the girls' names on it to use in their closet to divide their "sides" of the closet up better and keep their dresses better separated. (Mr. E said he needed a blue one w/his name on it....) I still need to cut a slit in the side of the doorknob area so they can be put onto the clothes rod in the closet, but I'll do that soon and then get organized. Granted, a LOT of baby clothes get folded and put into a dresser, but this'll be great for dresses and things bought ahead of time that are still on a hanger.

The dress...

Well, I said I would, so I did, and in record time around here...

Here's the sweet little dress I found at Kohl's over the weekend.

1st weekend without Wal-mart - Success!

Well, this is our first weekend without Wal-mart and we got along swimmingly so far. CKB didn't get a chance to go look for that shirt replacement at Wal-mart last week (we did return the one that was the wrong size, but were at a different one than the one we originally bought it at and they didn't have the same color), so we went to Kohl's this afternoon and are very glad we did. The selection of dress shirts was phenomenally better and lots of things were on sale so we easily found just what we needed there. While he looked for a shirt, I took a look at baby clothes and found an extremely sweet little dress for Miss Baby and it was on clearance - come to think of it TONS of clothes were on clearance - I might've looked longer, but I need to really assess what we have that will work for this little one before purchasing anything else. When you see the dress you'll see why I couldn't resist it (I'll try to take a picture of it tomorrow or sometime soon!) :) It's hard to find "sweet" dresses for little girls and this one is just adorable.

We also visited Target for a new baby carseat for little miss and found a great deal on clearance - whoo hoo - all in all a great weekend!

Slowly, but surely, things are getting marked off my "to do before baby is born" list. I also picked up a set of 8 new bibs at Kohl's on clearance that will be great for wearing on the way to church services, etc. to keep those adorable little outfits clean from drool and spitup.

As for groceries - didn't need to get anything this weekend, but did stop at Brookshire's yesterday for some Dr. Smith's diaper rash ointment which has been recommended to me by 2 friends now and I figured it was worth a try. It's especially supposed to be good for sensitive skin and baby will definitely have that!

Well, that's about it for now. I didn't miss Wal-mart at all, nary a bit!

I hope y'all have a blessed Sunday in the Lord!

A Year Without Wal-mart - 2009

We're not ones to make "New Year's Resolutions" or anything around here, but the other day CKB said he had an interesting idea that he'd tell me about when he got home from work. I was intrigued, naturally.

At dinner that night, I remembered his phone call and asked what the idea was. He said, "A Year Without Wal-mart." I let that sink in for a moment or two and thought, why not, there are MANY reasons this would be a good idea.

A few:

Every time I go in Wal-mart, I feel like I need to walk through a decontamination booth on my way out - you know what I mean, just touching one of the carts is all it takes - placing a child (or two) in the cart...well, you might as well buy some cough medicine, decongestant and antihistamine before you leave because you'll no doubt need it within a few days.

Rude people. 'Nuff said. (I will say it was especially bad around Christmas - pushing, shoving, etc. and that was still a few weeks ahead of time - ugh!).

So much stuff. Every time I go in there for a few things, I come out with a cartful it seems. It's just a tad too easy to get "one more thing" - hopefully this will help us in thinking ahead more on purchases and hey, maybe we'll just save some money by staying out of there!

In the days following this decision, my mind now and then would start thinking about the different things I have bought at Wal-mart...groceries, shoes, clothes, electronics, craft stuff, fabric, towels, Mr. E's big boy bed, etc. etc. etc. and how would I manage without my "one stop shop" for a year?

I can get all of those things at other places, it will just require more thought out trips and no unnecessary trips since the children are with me all the time. I will probably visit actual grocery stores more often, actual craft stores (Michael's, Hobby Lobby), fabric stores (Jo-Ann, Hancock, little quilt shops, etc.), shoe stores (Payless, department stores), actual clothing stores (Kohl's, Bealls, etc.) and well, there's still Target (I'd stopped buying the girls' jeans at Wal-mart a year or two ago anyway because all I could find was low rise/waist versions and the ones at Target were still decent and just the basic style, so no big deal here).

So, we're off on a new adventure. CKB has just a few more days to swap out a shirt Miss A got for him for Christmas that wasn't the right size...at Wal-mart...and then the experiment begins, Jan. 1, 2009. It'll be a challenge in some respects - I'd planned to get Mr. A's big boy bed there to match Mr. E's in a few months when we have to boot him out of the crib for Miss Baby - other than that I can't think of anything that's going to be a big deal, just a little bit less of a convenience maybe. We'll see..... And, for what it's worth, this is not any kind of boycott, just a family experiment.

Anyone else care to join us? ;)

Christmas has come and gone

...in some respects :) Depending on what gift you give, it may be lingering still as it is in our house! More on that later.



We had a wonderful Christmas w/the children. We started off the morning with breakfast of giant muffins from Sam's (blueberry, banana nut and chocolate chip - yes, that's just like giving them cake, but hey, it was Christmas!). Bacon and eggs were added to the menu for the insulin production challenged to balance things out with a little protein this year (no one else seemed to mind - we really should be raising pigs given the bacon consumption levels in this house!).

After breakfast, we headed into the den for a few quick pictures before getting started with stockings.

(aren't they sweet and patient?)



The children each had fruit, candy and some other goodies in their stockings and after CKB and I watched them dig through theirs, we dug into ours. Fun!

(about to dig in!)


(hmmm, what's in here?)



(Yes, Miss A got her harmonica and I found some plastic (toy, but still sounded pretty good) ones at CVS for Mr. A and a whistle/flute for Mr. E) - here, Miss A and Mr. A are having an impromptu jam session!)

After the novelty of the new things in the stockings wore off a little, we started opening presents. We let Mr. A go first so he wouldn't be trying to open everyone else's presents. He was adorable this year as he opened different presents and exclaimed "Whoa!" or "Yes!!" when he was really excited about something. I could've just sat and watched him all day!



The "big" presents this year were doll houses for the girls, a Nintendo DS and Mario game for Mr. E and a new Buzz Lightyear for Mr. A.




(when he's really intent on something, his little tongue comes out - isn't that the sweetest thing?!)


Now, for the lingering part...these doll houses are not as "simple" as the box leads you to believe! There is a whole bag of shingles for the roofs - not a sheet of shingles, but IN-DI-VID-U-AL little shingles that EACH have to be STAINED, then let dry for a few days according to the directions, then glued on IN-DI-VID-U-AL-LY TIMES 2 DOLLHOUSES - eeeeeeek!

(here's CKB and the girls about to get started...and yes, the window is open behind them - why, you ask...well, let's see, it was over 85 in the house that day and it was STILL that hot when it got dark...why, you ask again? because our property mgr. STILL HASN'T GOTTEN ANYONE OUT HERE TO FIX THE A/C YET.....ack. Sorry. It was a miserable day - so uncomfortable...and in December, no less! But then, this is TX...I digress...back to the dollhouses....)


The directions that came with them started off with "Glue frame together." That was it. No, piece A goes next to piece B, etc. etc. Just "glue frame together" - uh huh - good thing I'm not in charge of construction on these! :) CKB has both dollhouses underway and a good part of the dining room table is taken up with the construction project. I believe the foundation is drying right now and the roof is next to go on. The instructions SHOULD have said "This might take a year to complete, buy THIS Christmas for NEXT Christmas gift giving." Seriously.

While the frame was drying, we went to Hobby Lobby to pick out paint colors for the girls to paint their respective houses, but even though they sell the house kits there, they don't sell the type of paint that is recommended for painting them...go figure...latex....guess where we had to go? Yep, Home Depot (or Lowe's, but we were closer to HD so we went there). The girls each chose 2 colors, a main color and an accent color...quart was the smallest size you could buy...so yes, we brought home 4 quarts of paint for 2 dollhouses - let the insanity continue! The girls each chose their colors and are happy with them in the buckets - let's hope they like them once they put the paint onto the houses!

So...the girls are being patient and the houses are slowly coming together. I'll continue to update the progress until they're complete. (No pressure CKB!) :)

The children all played with their new Christmas gifts most of the day while CKB and I played with the children and did other things that needed taking care of, like cleaning up the aftermath of paper and an insane number of those industrial twistie ties that a lot of toys are anchored into their boxes with. Later in the day we had a very unconventional Christmas dinner of fireplace roasted hot dogs and sweet potato casserole. We followed that up with pumpkin and pecan pies topped with whipped cream. Everyone ate (for the most part - Miss E decided awhile back that she doesn't like hot dogs....argh!!!) and there weren't any leftovers to speak of - I didn't have to spend all day cooking with no one there to eat the "traditional" fare and we were all happy. Yay, for doing whatever you feel like doing and not worrying about the Joneses. Anyway :) Those were some of the BEST hot dogs ever - cooking them over the fire is the BEST, I tell you, the BEST! (Great job, CKB!!!)

Oh yes, and CKB's mysterious ushering me out of the room the other night was so he could gather the children to wrap a present for me (a new bottle of perfume) and some presents from him to me and one from him to the whole family. One of my favorite things is a new phone! Our old one has had the battery replaced and still the charge wasn't lasting for more than about a 5-10 mn. phone call. Even though CKB hardly uses the phone since he's at work all day, he remembered me talking about how frustrating it can be when you're on an important call and the phone would start beeping to tell you the battery was dying...and soon. Yay for the new phone!

And, lest I forget, it was a GAME Christmas for us!
Mr. E got CKB "Connect Four" for them to play together.
CKB got "Trouble" for the whole family.
CKB and I got "Pixar Monopoly" for the children/family.
and
CKB got "Scrabble Upwords" for me (I've been wanting to get this for a LONG time and never could find it in the stores!)



We've tried them all out already and enjoyed them - CKB and Miss E played "Monopoly" while I played "Connect Four" with Mr. E, then Mr. E played it with Miss A and back and forth for awhile. Sadly, the "bubble" on "Trouble" already has a crack...Mr. A was playing...sigh...but it's still functional, just not a game Mr. A can play for awhile :) He was a little too rough on "Connect Four" also...and well, "Monopoly"...we didn't let him near that one! Instead, he got to play with some other things while we played the different games around the table.

All in all, a wonderful Christmas Day at our house....how about yours?

If you give a 2.5 year old a candy cane....

...this is what you get....



Isn't he adorable?


















Awhile back I told y'all about our trip to Hobby Lobby to look for ornaments - every year we let the children choose one new ornament to add to the tree and this year Mr. A was old enough to really show his preference and join in the fun.

Here are their selections:

Miss E chose......




















Miss A chose......


























Mr. E chose.....















Mr. A chose.....























Each year their ornaments represent their current interests or just something they like - it's going to be interesting to look back at them all through the years. I label them each year on the bottom with their name and the year so we can keep track. Sometime, perhaps I'll do a lineup of their choices thus far.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

It is 8:16 p.m. and I am done, I was done at 7:30 p.m., but I wasn't at the computer then. Done with what, you ask? Wrapping presents! What else would someone be done with on Christmas Eve?????

CKB and I decided to not go overboard this year w/the children's gifts and I'm happy to say we stuck to it - they have some things in their stockings and each have 3 gifts (you'll have to wait to hear about them...Miss E has the strangest knack of creeping up behind me when I'm at the computer and reading over my shoulder...granted, she's in bed already, but still, it wouldn't be fair for you to know what they're getting before they do, now would it???). :)

I remember many a Christmas when my Mom would be up LATE wrapping on Christmas Eve and I did not want that to happen this year - I'm just too tired late at night as it is w/o the responsibility of scissors and tape and putting the right label on each gift, ya know?

Well, CKB isn't done yet. He's being all mysterious and told me I couldn't come in the bedroom for awhile...hmmm. I told him I had the homefield advantage (ie, I can wrap any time of day while he's at work...he doesn't have that luxury)...erego, I'M DONE...I said that already, didn't I?

So, I'll leave you with this - we took this picture just the other night after Miss E's home piano recital and after about 10 with Mr. A squinting his eyes shut when I asked for everyone to look at the camera and smile, we finally got one w/his eyes open and I said "I'll take it!" :) I wasn't much up to sending out cards this year, forgive me everyone, please enjoy this glimpse at our growing family...nice of Mr. E to stand in front of me and hide my size this year...stay tuned, in a few weeks, Lord willing, we'll be posting baby pictures!!!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Conversations at Breakfast and later on

Talking about milk at the breakfast table....

Miss E - are some people allergic to milk?
Me - Yes.
Mr. E - that's because some of the cows are stinky.


Ha ha ha ha!!!!

After lunch at church and the children becoming reacquainted with a little 2 year old girl named Tristan.....

In the car:

Mr. E - after my baby sister is born, can we show her to the people at the church?
Me - of course
Mr. E - but Twisty might hurt her
Me - Who/what?
Mr. E - Twisty
Me - Twisty?
Mr. E - yes, Twisty
Me - who is Twisty? (racking my brain for who on earth he could be talking about as there is only one child regularly at the church he mentioned and his name isn't Twisty
Mr. E - you know, the little girl that was there today, her name was Twisty
Me - OHHHHHH, Tristan!
Mr. E - oh, I didn't KNOW her name had an "N" at the end
Me - Yes, her name is Tristan :)

Ha ha ha ha ha ha :) I don't think he really thought Tristan would hurt her, only that she was so little herself and might get too close/not know how to be around a baby/something to that effect. Too funny - Twisty!

A wonderful day

This past Sunday was just one of those days where you think about the day and can't help but smile. You know what I'm talking about, right? Well, for us, this was one of those days. CKB had his regular 3rd Sunday appointment at Farmersville and we arrived, got situated with the children and enjoyed preaching by CKB and introduction by one of the brothers there. Afterward, we sat down for lunch and enjoyed visiting with some of the members while taking care of what all the children needed. I was still eating, but distracted talking and keeping an eye on what Mr. A was up to when one of the sisters told me I better hurry up, they were getting ready for me. What does that mean, I think to myself and then I notice the other end of the row of tables...lots of pink gift bags are being put on the table...I look at this particular sister with a quizzical look and find out that apparently they decided to have a surprise baby shower for us today - I look back at CKB and he has a big grin on his face - he was in on it! The ladies said that after the last two children being boys, they figured we might need some pink in the house - there was a beautiful pink cake with little frosting booties that was so sweet and said "Welcome Baby!" and many wonderful gifts of love for us and our sweet baby girl. I can't possibly share how touched we were by this outpouring of love from the congregation to us today. We appreciate them so much and won't ever forget this special day.

One of the sisters took some pictures - I hope we get to see them when we're there next month and maybe get some copies so I can share them with y'all.

Christmas lights on house...a bust

Well, since CKB is a wonderful and kind husband and wouldn't tell on me, I guess it's up to me to tell the tale...or tail....hmm.

Friday evening, after a day of shopping/errands with the children in which we bought a string of those large bulb lights (in blue because we thought CKB would like them) to put around the front door, I decided upon our return home that I would put them around the door as a surprise for CKB when he got home that evening.

So...it began innocently enough. I gathered the tools I thought I'd need -

- box of lights, check
- hammer - check
- nails - check

...and headed to the front porch.

I left the door open since the children were inside (and quickly assembled to watch, of course).

I put Miss E in charge of holding the nails for me and handing me one when I needed it and began. After 2 or 3 nails bent...I don't know, but I think it's siding on the front and not wood - it wasn't natural how these nails were acting, I finally got one in...partway anyway. Then I put another one higher up. Yes, a few more bent ones too. Maybe that should've told me it was time to cease and desist, but no, I persevered....then I realized I was not going to be able to reach the top corner of the door frame. Hmm, that small step stool in the kitchen should be enough, it's just one step.

Do pregnant women belong on step stools?

no.

But, I sent one of the children to grab the step stool for me and finished putting a few more nails in...and bending a few more. Ugh. Why didn't I just quit while I was ahead...or before I even started for that matter????

So, the next few moments are kind of a blur...what I *think* happened is that I stepped down/back off the step stool and then my next step back I lost my balance. Imagine that when you're carrying a of extra weight....and somehow in my efforts to not just fall hard to the ground I managed to hit my right elbow and scrape it a tad and my left knee on the outside and scrape it before actually sitting down on the walkway and then gracefully, ha ha, rolling backward to lightly tap the back of my head.

Yes, I'm sure the scene in your imagination is quite amusing...laugh, if you must.

I rolled to my side and sat up and sat there for a few moments before trying to get up amidst screams from the children of "Mama!! Are you ok????" Ugh. After a mn. or two I got up after a quick look around - amazingly the neighbor across the street wasn't out in the driveway like he ALWAYS is and didn't see my graceful stupidity.

I came inside and sat down on the couch and waited to feel baby move. Thank the Lord I felt her moving almost immediately. What a relief. I stayed put on the couch for awhile resting and thinking and berating myself for doing such a dumb, unimportant thing.

CKB came home from work and I opened the door for him whereupon he commented on the blue lights with a grin...that is, until I told him rather sheepishly of my fall and he naturally was not happy about it either. We talked and decided I should go ahead and call the dr. (I already had, but the office was closed and I wasn't sure if I needed to bother the on call dr. since I hadn't hit very hard) back and see what she said. I got the return call from the on call dr. and she said firstly it was good I hadn't fallen forward, of course, and secondly that she'd like me to go to the hospital to labor and delivery and get put on the monitor for 4 hours to monitor baby and see how things looked. I agreed and after a few frantic phone calls and no babysitter to be found, I drove to the hospital and CKB stayed home w/the children. I was feeling fine at this point and had my cell in case something did happen and I needed to get 911 or call CKB to come after me in the van w/the children.

I had an uneventful drive to the hospital and found my way to L&D pretty easily. Got hooked up to the monitors and commenced waiting. The lab came and drew blood - it seemed like a LOT (I didn't watch) since it took a little longer than the usual quick blood draws for blood sugar testing recently. Anyway, that was done and the lab lady left. A little while later the sonogram lady showed up and took a look at baby - it was nice to see baby girl again, just wish it had been under different circumstances! Sono lady said everything looked good to her. Nurse had been telling me everything was looking good as well. Only abnormal thing thus far was my temp was up a little at 99.2, but who knows why that was. I know I was burning up at the store earlier that day - I think I might've been dehydrated because I tend to forget to drink much water when I'm running around shopping and getting errands done. Anyway. Into the 2nd/3rd hour apparently some contractions were showing up on the monitor...not a happy thing for me to hear...and I drank the equivalent of an IV bag of fluids (water) and laid on my left side for awhile and prayed some more. I thank God that the contractions stopped, all the bloodwork came back normal and I was discharged to come home around 1:30 a.m. with orders from the dr. to rest and take it easy over the weekend.

So...the moral of the story pregnant ladies (and anyone else who shouldn't be doing something or other for whatever reason) is STAY OFF STEP STOOLS and BE CAREFUL. You'd think I'd know this by now, eh? :) I think we just tend to forget temporarily that we shouldn't be doing something when we're feeling fine and that's when we do something we shouldn't and things happen. I'm so thankful that all is well with baby girl and Lord willing, she'll stay put until closer to her due date the end of January.

So...Christmas lights on the house were definitely a bust this year. :)

They are still up around the front door - I asked CKB if he ripped them down after I went to the hospital, but he didn't - I think he left them up to remind me every time I see them to be more careful and not to be doing anything I shouldn't for the next few weeks.

Y'all be careful!

Quilt...coming soon! Courtesy of my friends at Lone Star House of Quilts in Arlington, TX

Well, this morning the fog was gone and I was able to run my exciting errand without fear of plowing into someone in front of me (or being plowed into, for that matter)!

My errand was...to visit Lone Star House of Quilts in Arlington, TX where my dear friends, the Cookseys are the owners. About 6/7 years ago Alice made beautiful quilts for my girls for baby gifts and has graciously offered to quilt the top I made for our newest blessing due in January! I am thrilled because this will make the quilt so much more special! This morning I handed over my quilt top...now, to wait. :)

As soon as I have it back, I'll take a picture and share it with y'all - did I mention, I can't wait? :) No pressure Alice!

This was my first visit to the shop and it is wonderful - set in an older home in Arlington, it was a visit long overdue that I'm thankful I finally made. I couldn't leave empty handed so I picked up a pattern called "Hot for Chocolate" and the pink fabric and brown fabric necessary to get started and this project is for MEEEEEEEEE :D

Ok, maybe I'll share if/when I get it done, but mainly it's for me. :)

And, a big thanks to Mr. Dave who entertained my rowdy crew on the front porch and front yard of the quilt shop while Alice and I visited. I enjoyed the trip immensely and hope we weren't too much trouble. If you need some fabric, etc. visit them online any time or in person - it's just a hop, skip and a jump to get over there and very easy to find!

Foggy foggy nights and days

This past week has been so crazy weatherwise. It all began last Saturday with WINDY weather - gusts around 40 - felt like we were back down in Corpus again! Sunday we had more wind, but not quite as strong and then the cold moved in and iced over the streets for a day or so and our front walk for about 3 days - needless to say, I stayed in for fear of slipping and falling in my off balance very pregnant state! Last night we ventured out...in the fog...with CKB at the wheel. We had planned to get a Christmas tree after a quick trip into Hobby Lobby to pick up a few things, but there weren't many trees to be found at Wal-mart, Lowe's or Home Depot and by the time we discovered this, it was nearing 9 p.m. and the children REALLY needed to be home in bed. We discussed going to a tree lot that was about a 1/2 hr. or so drive south of home (we were about 20 mn. north at the time), but decided not to and that maybe we would tonight (Thursday). Instead, when we got home, CKB dragged in the artificial tree and set it up and lo and behold, it fit in the corner of the den we'd recently cleared of boxes (yes, I said boxes, we'll never be 100% unpacked I don't think!).

Anyway, the tree is up! Now, tonight, hopefully we'll get the ornaments on and feel like we're ready for Christmas after all.

When Mr. A walked into the den this morning and saw the tree (I'd turned the lights on as I headed to his room to get him out of the crib), he exclaimed "WHOA!" and it was about the cutest thing you've ever heard :) Later, I overheard him lecturing Miss A that she was not to touch the "red button" (a footswitch for turning the lights on and off) that went something like this "Never, ever, ever, EVER touch the red button Miss A, never EVER or it'll shock you!" :) I chuckled at this, I had told him earlier not to touch the button or the cord or I'd give him a big spank - apparently he considered that being "shocked" - ha ha ha. Guess who's had to have 2 spanks so far today? Uh huh.

So...today, we went out to try and finish up a few things shopping wise. Did you know it takes FOREVER when it's foggy, everyone else in the world is at the stores and 2 of the 3 stores you visited are apparently having a restocking day and have boxes lining BOTH sides of EVERY aisle you try to go down with the cart and 3 children walking alongside you? Ugh! Not to mention I have the never failing ability to ALWAYS choose the checkout line with someone ahead of me who will need a price check - I kid you not - if you ever go shopping with me, PICK YOU OWN LINE, it never fails.

About 4 p.m. we came out of Wal-mart - yes, I'm insane, but I needed a couple of things that I'd seen there before, so we went in - and the fog is THICK - and it's getting dark and I decided to make a beeline for home before it got truly dark and I had to navigate through the pea soup. We made it home safe and sound and do not plan to go out again tonight.

This has been the strangest weather week we've had in a long time! I'm hoping for clear weather in the morning as I have an exciting errand to run and want to make sure I'm out early to meet a friend. More on that later!

Where did I go wrong?

Well, Miss E is our promising young pianist, right?

Guess what Miss A told me she wants to learn to play?

The harmonica! Eeek!

What's a mom to do? I was envisioning another pianist or maybe a violinist, following in her mama's footsteps...but harmonica? I think Grandpa had something to do with this.....

Private Piano Recital = Less Stress and More Cookies for Us!

Last night, we made preparations for our own private piano recital for Miss E after deciding we'd better stay in due to the weather reports for icy roads (that doesn't mix well w/pregnant mama, 4 small children, fog and a minivan on overpasses).

CKB arrived home from work and after I asked him if he could think what crazy idea I was thinking of, he said he knew exactly what I was thinking and he was right. He set up my photography backdrop and stand so Miss E would have a nice backdrop for her recital (and for pictures) and then he moved the digital piano into the den (and it's not exactly light, not as heavy as an actual upright, mind you, but still, not light at all!) along w/the piano bench.

We all dressed as we had planned to for going to the actual recital and assembled in the den. Since we were at home, it was a little easier to set up the tripod for the video camera, have my digital camera in hand AND the mp3 player to record the performance as well. After making sure everything was ready to go, the recital began and Miss E did a wonderful job. She has been taking lessons for a few months now and is really enjoying it. She's never once complained about practicing and usually remembers to go practice each day before I remember to remind her! I think she might've been a little nervous even just playing for the family, but she did a good job and surprised me by singing along with her pieces. I don't know if she would've done that at the recital in front of all the "strangers" (other students), but it was a sweet treat for us to hear. She also added her own little ending to each piece (which had been approved by her piano teacher who said she "enjoyed Miss E's creativity").

As of right now, I can't share the video yet, but here're pictures from last night along w/the mp3 recording of her performance.

After the performance, we took some family pictures after CKB graciously moved the piano out of the way (hey, the backdrop was up, we were dressed up, it would've been criminal to let that opportunity pass!) and then we had a reception just like we would have if we'd gone to the actual recital. Hot chocolate and chocolate chip cookies (Christmas colored chips, mind you!) were on the menu complete with Christmas marshmallows - yum yum - and hey, more cookies for us!

Enjoy!

Oh, the weather outside is frightful.....

....but the fire (will be when CKB gets home and builds one) is so delightful...and since the roads are probably going to ice back over....we're going to have a home recital....

Ok, well, that wasn't the best improvisation of that song, but you get the gist....

Miss E's piano teacher is proceeding w/the recital and up until a little while ago I thought we'd still go...even made Christmas cookies to take for the reception afterward...but, the weather report for this evening is for "freezing fog" (which I've never heard of before) and apparently the visibility is expected to get down to 1/4 mile and ice forming and depositing onto the roads directly from the fog, especially on overpasses (of which there are 2 we'd have to cross to get to the church where the recital is to be held).

So...CKB and I will hold a private recital here at home tonight for Miss E and pray that all those who do get out, will return home safely.

Stay tuned for pictures tomorrow!

I love this guy....

I'm sitting at the pc sending a quick note to my sister when Mr. A walks up and sniffs loudly...

Mr. A: What's that smell? Is that pizza?

Me - No, it's not pizza, it's Shepherd's Pie.

Mr. A: Shepherd's Pie? No Way!!

He he he he. I'm not sure if that's good or bad, I better pull it out of the oven and find out. 2.5 year old boys are adorable, don't you think?

How long does it take to get a rental property mgr. to send out repair guys?

Well, apparently nigh on 2 months around these here parts.

I submitted our original request for maintenance on October 30...yes, OCTOBER 30.

Some folks showed up to look over the a/c unit WITHOUT CALLING AHEAD one morning and determined some part was needed, but they'd have to get approval before actually doing any repairs and would have to order the part if approved.

We are still waiting.

And waiting.

The last communication I received from the rental property manager said I should be receiving a phone call from the a/c company to arrange a time to come out...that was a few weeks ago...no calls. I forwarded our home phone to my cell phone while we were out of town...no calls. Today, ironically, it's about 28 degrees outside and this is on my mind...I mean, hey, spring will be here soon and it still might not be fixed at this rate. Ugh. Renting is such fun.
My favorite part of the last email I got was the end which said "How am I doing? Email my manager at...." Guess who I copied on my email today? Sigh.

Still waiting...................................................................at least the heat works!

Lights, camera, action?

Well, tomorrow night is Miss E's very first, bona fide, piano recital! How exciting! This is our first "big event" with one of the children - now, to do my part as Mama of the pianist...camera batteries charged...memory card IN the camera...video camera battery charged...tape in the video camera blank and ready to go...tripod...hmm...plan on how to juggle all of these things along w/managing a 2 year old and 2 other siblings...uh...still working on that one ;)

Hoping to get there early and get good seats - Miss E wants us on the front row :) She keeps telling me she's nervous. I hope she'll get over it quickly once it comes down to it. As of right now, we don't know when she'll play - I'm hoping they go youngest to oldest or something like that and she'll be able to play early on. Also, hoping for good behavior from Mr. A since the recital starts at 7 and we're usually beginning bedtime preparations about then...hmm, bring quiet snack and sippy cup!

Y'all pray for her to not be too nervous! I hope to bring tidings of a happy event day after tomorrow!

In case you missed it last year...

Sick and Tired

In the literal sense.

It's hard to believe it's been almost a month since I last posted on the blog after posting so often before, but I needed a break. We had a great trip over Thanksgiving and returned home this past Sunday night after dealing with a lot of illness on the tail end of the trip.

I am still "tired" and hoping to feel like I'm back on my feet by the weekend. If not, I'm to get in touch w/my OB (had an appt. today and told her how tired and weak I was still feeling).

I won't go into all the gory details right now...like I said, I'm tired, but soon I'll give a summary of our trip. For now, I hope y'all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We did. I have so much to be thankful for and I pray I always remember how blessed I am. God has given me an amazing husband, beautiful, healthy children, a baby to be born soon, a warm home, a car to get around in and above all, the precious gift of His love to me. I could go on and on listing many more things, but I need to give my eyes a break from the pc screen - 2 weeks away from it and my eyes aren't too keen on looking at the bright screen any more. Probably a good thing :)

If anyone out there is still checking our blog, know that we're on the road to recovery from this illness and thankful to God for my wonderful parents who had to endure the plague as we arrived at their house w/a sick 2 year old and then the rest of us succumbed to the illness one after another while we were there. My mother got sick after we left and thankfully Dad is still well and able to take care of her while she recovers. Pray for us and for them when you think to please.

The Lord has been so good to me....you know how the hymn goes :)

A funny story

On a recent Sunday, we were told a story that made us laugh -

Apparently, a husband and wife were talking and the conversation went something like this:

Wife - Hmm, I wonder what CKB and CAB will do with the children when it's time for them to go to the hospital to have the baby?

Husband - Well, I imagine they'll drop them at the McDonald's.

Wife - (look of confusion and incredulity as she exclaims...) What?! I think they'll be there at the hospital for awhile, DH. What are the children going to do at McDonald's?

Husband - (realizing the confusion his comment has caused explains) - No, THE McDonald's :)


Now, to fill you all in - my brother-in-law and sister-in-law's last name is McDonald!

Ha ha! I confess when he was telling us the story I immediately thought to myself "why on earth would we take the children to McDonald's?" because I never think of my brother-in-law and sister-in-law as "The McDonald's" but rather by their first names :) I guess he got me too!

Diabetes Self-Management Training

Oh, the joy of having to go sit through another diabetes self-management training class.

I have been penciled in for next Tuesday. For a 2 hour session. Lovely.

Yesterday, I hunted through quite a few boxes of papers looking for my old paperwork to no avail. I *knew* I'd seen it somewhere since we moved, but couldn't remember what box I'd seen it in. Sigh. I told CKB I'd never find it while I was actually *looking* for it. I wanted to go ahead and get started with checking my blood sugar and making sure I was keeping things balanced even if I couldn't get in for the class before Thanksgiving. (The scheduler had called a couple of times and had no openings at all this week or next and then had one open up yesterday afternoon - the one day of the week I'd told her I could *not* come b/c of Miss E's piano lesson - figures - so when I didn't hear anything else back yesterday afternoon I figured there still weren't any cancellations and I wasn't going to hold my breath that I'd be going before December at this rate.)

So...this morning I happened to notice a box near our dining room table (yes, we live w/boxes still just sitting about...will we ever get them all unpacked? Probably not.) and the top said "CAB's computer/papers/ink/etc." and I thought, maybe, just maybe, this had papers that I kept by my computer at the old house...maybe. I opened the box and just started to rifle through them when I felt I should stop and pray that God would show me the right box and where to find these papers I needed. I resumed my search and the papers were right there! Thank you Lord! Now, I can get on with things and not just rely completely on memories of what I did about 3 years ago. Now, to obtain the dreaded monitor. Apparently this isn't going to be as simple as in times past when the dr. ordered it and I picked it up. Maybe by the end of today I'll find out when/where I'm to get the monitor this time. I may just get one at Walgreens since they have one that's free after mail-in rebate. We'll see....

Update - I have my monitor, lancets (little jabbing devices), and test strips - whoo hoo - and managed to get it all home and read all the information to calibrate the new monitor in time to get my first reading at 1 hour after lunch. According to my paperwork from last time I was GD, my reading should be <140 1 hr. after lunch and <120 2 hrs. after. My reading at 1 hr. after was......102! Yay! Looks like I'm on the right track. Good to know!

Update 2 - After dinner reading was great and so was my fasting reading this morning (Friday). So tempted to cancel that class, especially since I don't have a babysitter so far....eek!

Quilt Decision

Well, I've decided on a layout and the winning layout is:

http://oldspillhouse.blogspot.com/2008/11/and-another-possible-quilt-layout.html

I've finished the blocks which will add a row to the left and bottom to finish out the pattern. Now to assemble the top....Stay tuned!

* Update 11/19 - All the rows are now constructed, now to put the rows together!

** Update 11/19 p.m. All rows are together! Now, to add border(s)...

Sugar Definitely High

Well, I got the official call and I am GD (gestational diabetic) this time around. I guess the 3 hour test wasn't in vain after all even if it was in MY vein 4 times that morning! The SAME vein OVER AND OVER - owww - the 3rd time really stung, but the 4th wasn't as bad as the 3rd. I asked the lady how long she had to go to school for her job - she said she didn't - uh....apparently she'd been jabbing people for 10 years and it must've been on the job training back when she started. In-ter-es-ting. 8-O

Anyway :)

Now, I wait....for the next call from the scheduler person who will tell me when I go to take a nutrition class and get my blood sugar monitor and so forth. I took a class 8/9 years ago when I was expecting Miss E - I guess they figured I might need a refresher course :)

Happy Holidays.....Happy Holidays...when I can't eat all the pecan pie I want....ah well...maybe I'll make one in February and eat the whole thing...or not....

Sugar High

No, the children haven't been eating too much candy. No worries there.

My blood sugar test was this past week and I just got the call that my numbers were high. Yay. I had gestational diabetes with our 1st and 4th children, so I half expected I might this time around and it seems I might. I'm scheduled for a 3 hour glucose tolerance test on Thursday. Maybe, just maybe, this time around I'll pass the 3 hour and not have to stab my fingers every day for the next few months.

And since we're already talking about sugar...we stopped off at the Russell Stover store this past Sunday after services for a bathroom break for the children and while there, CKB picked up two new tins - they're very seasonal and pretty and naturally full of chocolate - good thing being GD (gestational diabetic) doesn't mean you can't have ANY sugar, just that you have to balance everything you eat.

I'll post a picture of them sometime when I have the time.

Pepsi, Frito-Lay, Tropicana, Quaker Oats, Gatorade - use any of these?

If you do, read the information below from the AFA:

PepsiCo gives $500,000 to promote the gay agenda in workplace
Company ignores two requests from AFA to discuss Pepsi's support of gay groups.

Pepsi has given Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) a half-million dollars to help push the homosexual agenda in the workplace.

Pepsi has a long tradition of financial support for homosexual groups. According to Jacqueline Millan, director of PepsiCo Corporate Contributions, "We are delighted to continue our partnership with PFLAG...(in) promoting the necessary message of inclusion to untapped groups...and that is a crucial step toward building a healthy working environment."

Despite the fact that 30 states have passed constitutional amendments defining marriage as being between a man and a woman, Pepsi continues to support the efforts by same-sex groups pushing for homosexual marriage.

AFA wrote Pepsi on October 14 and again on October 29 asking the company to remain neutral in the culture war. Pepsi didn't care enough to respond to the AFA letters. Pepsi's lack of response indicates the company plans to continue support for the homosexual agenda.

Take Action

* E-mail Chrm. Indra K. Nooyi. Tell her that you expect Pepsi to stop supporting the gay agenda.
* After sending your e-mail, please call Pepsi (914-253-2000) and ask the company to remain neutral in the culture war.
* Forward this e-mail to your friends and family so they will know about Pepsi's support of the gay agenda.

Pepsi's products include Pepsi soft drinks, Frito-Lay chips (800-352-4477), Quaker Oats (800-367-6287), Tropicana (800-237-7799) and Gatorade (800-367-6287).

Click here to ---> Send Your Letter Now!

Prayer for new baby

Update: Avery and her mom were able to go home from the hospital and are doing well at last report! Thank you for your prayers on their behalf!

A friend from our homeschool enrichment classes group just had her 5th baby 3 weeks early - a baby girl - Avery Catherine (what a great name :) )

Avery's lungs weren't quite ready and she is still in the hospital. Would y'all please join me in prayer for this new little one? Also for her mom's recovery from her C-section.

Today, the children and I ran some errands and had fun perusing the baby girl aisles and picking out something for this new little gal. Shopping for baby clothes is always fun! I'm hoping the girls can help me in a week or two to make a meal for the family - for the first time in a long time, my littlest isn't so little and I hope to have time to do this for the family. It'll be a good opportunity for the children to learn to help others when we are able to do so.

Thank you all for your prayers for little Avery and her mom.

Veterans Day is today! Let's remember all those who have served our country!

November 11, Veterans Day, began as a celebration of the peace after World War I ended. This date was chosen because on November 11, 1918, an armistice (truce) was signed that ended World War 1.

Read more at http://enchantedlearning.com/crafts/veterans


For Veterans Day crafts and projects for preschool, kindergarten and elementary school children, visit Enchanted Learning.


Today, I'd like to thank my Dad (served in Vietnam) and my grandfather (WWII) as well as my father-in-law (Korea) and brother-in-law who have all served our country in war and peace times. Also, all others I could never know nor remember the names of, I thank you all for your service.