"Grandma are you really old? (said by Emily to my mom during dinner)
"That's not my favorite" -the replacement phrase for "This is yucky dinner"
Conversation held immediately after dinner as she was scampering off to play upstairs at a friends house
"Emily did you wash your hands?"
"Yes Mommy"
"Did you wash them today?"
"Yes"
"Did you wash them after dinner?"
a pause, then...
"No Mommy, I'll do it right now" ...foot steps running to the bathroom
Monday, December 31, 2007
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Happy Holiday from the Pilz Family!
Many of you will be getting our newsletter in the next few days or so, or an emailed version, but I also wanted to post it on the blog today as a sneak peak, or maybe so I won't feel bad if it gets to you after Christmas. In which case, it was a happy new year newsletter :))And if you have been reading the blog regularily, you porbably knew most everything in here anyway!
It’s that time of year again. This has been another year of major changes again. Karl spent the first quarter of the year in Diego Garcia but came home in April. A week after he came home, we were packing up the house and preparing to move to Virginia. It was extremely hard to say goodbye to our home for the past 5 years, but we are so blessed with how well things have gone in Virginia. After an initial house hunting period we found a new project. The previous owners were animals lovers and also had a passion for bright color. After about 20 gallons of paint and some major changes to the kitchen we are mostly moved in. There are still some projects that need completing, but we really wanted to switch our pattern of fixing the problems right before we move!
This summer was spent getting to know our new ward & neighbors. The girls and I spent a lot of time enjoying the community pool and going to the YMCA. We were thrilled when neighbors moved in next door with children their ages. We love having a quiet street to learn to ride bikes and play in our wonderful backyard.
Their elementary school is only ¼ of a mile away and both girls have wonderful teachers. They love school, and I enjoy the free time each morning. Emily is doing very well in kindergarten-which here in Suffolk is more like a traditional first grade than any kindergarten program I have ever seen. She even got the kindergarten version of honor roll for the first quarter and the student of the month in October. Sydney is doing well in her integrated preschool. She loves her teacher and I have had fun helping out at school.
I am working in Primary in our new ward again and enjoying it. I have also been working on some of my favorite hobbies and developing new ones. I started going to the YMCA this summer and hope I have found a new karate school to train with. It is a different style than I am used to, but I might even get to help teach.
Coming back from the summer weather of DG was a shock for Karl. He loved biking to work, snorkeling on lunch breaks, hanging out with his friends, and eating raw tuna caught around the island. He really misses the island but is happy to be home with us. His new job involves a fair amount of travel, but he has been able to see family & friends on some trips as well as go temple hopping. He is working right now as an operational test director for Naval Acquisitions. Karl got his CISCO certification at a training school in the Pocono Mountains in October. We really aren’t sure of plans for the next few years yet, but the certification should open up more options for Karl.
One of our favorite adventures this year was going to visit family in Vegas and Utah. It was wonderful seeing everyone we have not seen in years and enjoying the west coast. We wish we could see more of you, especially for the holidays. We send our love to all of you and wish you a very Christmas and hope for a wonderful new year for you all.
With love,
The Pilz Family
Monday, December 17, 2007
recent adventures
Well, as is the case for everyone the last two weeks before Christmas are always the busiest of the year. I have crafts & projects to finish and all sorts of other fun things going on. I wish I could send everyone a present this year, but money is in short supply this year, especially since Emily seems to think she is getting a pet tiger!! (Can you imagine explaining that to my UPS man? Yes, that growling inside the box is real. Don't worry she won't hurt you, unless she is hungry.) So please know that we love you all and wish you the very best for Christmas this year and we are thinking of you!
Emily will be a bit disappointed this year. We didn't get her a pet fox either! Our cats are doing a good enough job bringing the wild inside, and I am getting very good at catching mice. Sadly the mice don't often appreciate my efforts on their behalf. The cats don't like it either, but I think that because I warned them not to bring their toys in the house, we are even.
Sydney is doing her best to act like a lion, including growling and rolling around on the floor at preschool. Very charming. So glad that is is far enough into the year that she can't get booted out! We went on another field trip on Friday with the other special ed classes. It was lots of fun at the Dollar Store. Sydney really liked picking presents out for her sister and Dad, but didn't want to pick anything out for me. When she did finally agree to get something, she headed down the cleaning supply aisle to look for something. So I steered her in a better direction in the end. I also got a few other odds and ends as we had an hour to kill in the store. I think the other patrons were annoyed at there were 20 children and their chaperones/teachers in there that day. It would have helped matters if they had more than just the two cashiers though.
I forgot to mention Santa. Emily has been very excited to give Santa her list. Saturday we went to a work Christmas party just for kiddos. It was lots of fun. The girls made ornaments and popsicle stick picture frames and had the chance to sit on his lap (he rode in on a fire engine since there is no snow down here yet, in fact just the other day we all got to toss of our jackets & dig out the flip flops for a rare dose of summer) and get a present and your picture taken. My girls have never wanted to sit on his lap. He looks a little funny in person I guess. They don't mind him as an abstract theory, but not so much a fan on the personal level, but Sydney watched several kids get a gift and decided to give it a whirl. She sat on his lap and gave her best sweet innocent little girl smile and got her gift. She was thrilled. Emily wrote up her list (a fox in a box and a pet tiger) and waited her turn. Well, we let child after child go in front of us since her feet had magically turned into cement blocks once it was her turn. She curled into my side and insisted I give him the list. So I dutifully handed over the list, explaining that she was shy and the elves told Emily she had to get a picture taken so her wish list could be granted. But she finally agreed to pose for the picture by walking all the way around him on the other side of my body and we posed all three of us. She was as far away as she could get. Another Emily Hallmark moment. But since that is the very first time in her life that she and Santa have been in the same picture at all, I will take what I can get!
Well, I am off to get a few more things done before I need to pick up Sydney from school. Have a great day everyone!
Emily will be a bit disappointed this year. We didn't get her a pet fox either! Our cats are doing a good enough job bringing the wild inside, and I am getting very good at catching mice. Sadly the mice don't often appreciate my efforts on their behalf. The cats don't like it either, but I think that because I warned them not to bring their toys in the house, we are even.
Sydney is doing her best to act like a lion, including growling and rolling around on the floor at preschool. Very charming. So glad that is is far enough into the year that she can't get booted out! We went on another field trip on Friday with the other special ed classes. It was lots of fun at the Dollar Store. Sydney really liked picking presents out for her sister and Dad, but didn't want to pick anything out for me. When she did finally agree to get something, she headed down the cleaning supply aisle to look for something. So I steered her in a better direction in the end. I also got a few other odds and ends as we had an hour to kill in the store. I think the other patrons were annoyed at there were 20 children and their chaperones/teachers in there that day. It would have helped matters if they had more than just the two cashiers though.
I forgot to mention Santa. Emily has been very excited to give Santa her list. Saturday we went to a work Christmas party just for kiddos. It was lots of fun. The girls made ornaments and popsicle stick picture frames and had the chance to sit on his lap (he rode in on a fire engine since there is no snow down here yet, in fact just the other day we all got to toss of our jackets & dig out the flip flops for a rare dose of summer) and get a present and your picture taken. My girls have never wanted to sit on his lap. He looks a little funny in person I guess. They don't mind him as an abstract theory, but not so much a fan on the personal level, but Sydney watched several kids get a gift and decided to give it a whirl. She sat on his lap and gave her best sweet innocent little girl smile and got her gift. She was thrilled. Emily wrote up her list (a fox in a box and a pet tiger) and waited her turn. Well, we let child after child go in front of us since her feet had magically turned into cement blocks once it was her turn. She curled into my side and insisted I give him the list. So I dutifully handed over the list, explaining that she was shy and the elves told Emily she had to get a picture taken so her wish list could be granted. But she finally agreed to pose for the picture by walking all the way around him on the other side of my body and we posed all three of us. She was as far away as she could get. Another Emily Hallmark moment. But since that is the very first time in her life that she and Santa have been in the same picture at all, I will take what I can get!
Well, I am off to get a few more things done before I need to pick up Sydney from school. Have a great day everyone!
Friday, December 7, 2007
Double Yeah
We cleaned up a little in the girls room last night and Emily put the tooth under her pillow so the Tooth Fairy came for a visit! Emily was thrilled.
I am mildly intrigued this morning because I got Emily to wear a air of jeans, but before anyone jumps for joy that she is over her issues, she was feeling extremely flexible this morning and agreed to wear a pair of tights first. I should never have bought the jeans, but in my defense-she asked for them. It is the 3rd pair of pants this last few months that she picked that has been refused for lack of careful inspection-seams down the front of one pair of pants, scratchy knit underside in another-never thought to look at that, and now what I thought was a shock, jeans. I kept the tags on and made her try them on again before clipping them. She promised to wear them. I washed them, then they never got worn. I forced the issue a bit today and suggested them and she agreed, but balked when they touched her skin.
I am beginning to think there is more to this then doctors have said since she has obviously not grown out of it! Lining her toys up in rows, well that has improved, but other things take its place!
I am mildly intrigued this morning because I got Emily to wear a air of jeans, but before anyone jumps for joy that she is over her issues, she was feeling extremely flexible this morning and agreed to wear a pair of tights first. I should never have bought the jeans, but in my defense-she asked for them. It is the 3rd pair of pants this last few months that she picked that has been refused for lack of careful inspection-seams down the front of one pair of pants, scratchy knit underside in another-never thought to look at that, and now what I thought was a shock, jeans. I kept the tags on and made her try them on again before clipping them. She promised to wear them. I washed them, then they never got worn. I forced the issue a bit today and suggested them and she agreed, but balked when they touched her skin.
I am beginning to think there is more to this then doctors have said since she has obviously not grown out of it! Lining her toys up in rows, well that has improved, but other things take its place!
Monday, December 3, 2007
Lost Tooth
The Tooth Fairy has not been able to visit the house as the tooth unfortunately was lost by my darling daughter yesterday at some point. I suggested a safe location for the tooth, and she choose another one. Sadly it is lost. Maybe the tooth fairy can leave a little note suggesting her sorrow about not being able to collect the tooth. Any ideas??
Sunday, December 2, 2007
The Tooth Fairy is coming!
Emily finally lost her first baby tooth. It has been lose for about 3 weeks. She was eating her breakfast this morning and it fell out. She was a little unnerved at first. But when we got excited and started taking pictures-soon to come I promise-she immediately cheered up and got over the fact that there was blood in her mouth! We told her to put it under her pillow tonight and the tooth fairy would come visit her. Then she wanted to know who that was and what she looked like. Well, shucks. How did my child grow up and not know who she is???? I will have to get creative and do some research on the internet. There is always my tooth fairy costume if all else fails :)
Well, the girls are crying so I should go-let me rephrase- Emily is crying about something Sydney has done to her yet again. What ever happened to the big sister as the torturer? How did she not get that memo? It goes against the rules of nature.
Well, the girls are crying so I should go-let me rephrase- Emily is crying about something Sydney has done to her yet again. What ever happened to the big sister as the torturer? How did she not get that memo? It goes against the rules of nature.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Cinnamon Applesauce & Glue
Yesterday I went and helped out in Sydney's preschool class for about an hour while they were making ornaments. The recipe was a little bit odd. 1 cup Cinnamon, 3 Tbs Applesauce, 2 Tbsp Elmers Glue. It made a delicious smelling paste that the kids could roll out and cut just like regular cookie dough.They made gingerbread cookies, nutcracker, stars, and such. They all had lots of fun and I am excited to get the final results. They have to dry first. Apparently they won't get moldy either. So bizarre. But the classroom smelled great when we were done.
So the other day Emily asked me if we had any Christmas movies, and I realized that other than Polar Express we really don't have any other ones-oh I forgot we also have A Christmas Story. Anyone have any good recommendations for the 3-5 crowd? I don;t think we have rented the Grinch yet, either versions, or the Santa Claus trio for them. Thanks!
So the other day Emily asked me if we had any Christmas movies, and I realized that other than Polar Express we really don't have any other ones-oh I forgot we also have A Christmas Story. Anyone have any good recommendations for the 3-5 crowd? I don;t think we have rented the Grinch yet, either versions, or the Santa Claus trio for them. Thanks!
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
The tree
Someone somewhere must have decided the quickest way to ruin holiday joy would be the invention of the christmas tree light. We have an artificial tree. We normally get it up about 2 weeks before Christmas, but this year I decided in my push to actually enjoy the holidays to do it earlier. Silly me. We got out the decorations & tree Sunday night, but it got late and we put the kids to bed promising to put up the decorations on Monday for Family Home Evening.
On Monday night we got the tree assembled but not lit. Last year I spent about 1 1/2 hours stringing the tree then unstringing it having not tested the lights before I started, so I was eager to not do that this year. I tested them separately and together and they worked mostly-a few bulbs here or there on most strands and one whole strand was dead. I like to work from the bottom of the tree and go up having the lights lit as you work. Karl wanted to go from the top down-not lit while working with his method. We ran out of lights. Always eager to conquer a challenge Karl spent about an hour fixing the other light strand, wrapped it round the tree and plugged it in. The tree was striped. Sections of it worked, others were dead.
Again the girls went to bed with the promise that tomorrow we would decorate with ornaments. I went to the store today to buy more lights. I brought them home and started trying to figure out the 3d light puzzle. Oddly enough while I was unstringing the sections I decided to plug them in again. I was able to get a whole unlit section back and running again. Yeah me! Now I had to wrap it back round the tree. I was able to do that with both the unlit sections so the whole thing is lit up nicely. Now I just have to get the kids to clean their room so we can do ornaments. But by now, I have lost a little of that magical feeling. Oh well. I will crank up some carols and start tossing on the glass bulbs!
On Monday night we got the tree assembled but not lit. Last year I spent about 1 1/2 hours stringing the tree then unstringing it having not tested the lights before I started, so I was eager to not do that this year. I tested them separately and together and they worked mostly-a few bulbs here or there on most strands and one whole strand was dead. I like to work from the bottom of the tree and go up having the lights lit as you work. Karl wanted to go from the top down-not lit while working with his method. We ran out of lights. Always eager to conquer a challenge Karl spent about an hour fixing the other light strand, wrapped it round the tree and plugged it in. The tree was striped. Sections of it worked, others were dead.
Again the girls went to bed with the promise that tomorrow we would decorate with ornaments. I went to the store today to buy more lights. I brought them home and started trying to figure out the 3d light puzzle. Oddly enough while I was unstringing the sections I decided to plug them in again. I was able to get a whole unlit section back and running again. Yeah me! Now I had to wrap it back round the tree. I was able to do that with both the unlit sections so the whole thing is lit up nicely. Now I just have to get the kids to clean their room so we can do ornaments. But by now, I have lost a little of that magical feeling. Oh well. I will crank up some carols and start tossing on the glass bulbs!
Sunday, November 25, 2007
We are Home!
Saturday was a long day in the car!! We made it safely home with a minimum of traffic thankfully! We definitely made good use for the laptop scouting out the traffic on the route. We had great cooperation from the girls and they were good sports about the 12 hours in the car. Emily got sick on the way home, but seems better tonight. (I'd like to know what made McDonald's Co. create the current toys for their happy meals that they have right now! Who wants a toy that shoots the head off and shoots 3 cards all over the room when you push a little lever? What happened to good old action figures with moveable arms? But why am I thinking a happy meal should be useful?
We were very happy that we could go on our trip. Thanksgiving dinner was wonderful (and there were no embarrassing comments from the kiddos this year! In fact they were delightfully well behaved! Yeah girls!) and it was fun staying in our hotel, swimming with April, Gary, & Caleb, and visiting the nearby Butterfly Museum and seeing all the beautiful butterflies literally flying around your head.I have never seen so many species of butterflies and so many colors! I'll post some pictures very soon!
The cats were quite happy to see us when we came home and showed their love today by offering us two dead mice. They were so proud. Yuck.
We are going to try and get our Family letter out on time this year, so if you think we might not have your address email or otherwise, feel free to email me and let me know what your info is so I can update our/my address book.
We were very happy that we could go on our trip. Thanksgiving dinner was wonderful (and there were no embarrassing comments from the kiddos this year! In fact they were delightfully well behaved! Yeah girls!) and it was fun staying in our hotel, swimming with April, Gary, & Caleb, and visiting the nearby Butterfly Museum and seeing all the beautiful butterflies literally flying around your head.I have never seen so many species of butterflies and so many colors! I'll post some pictures very soon!
The cats were quite happy to see us when we came home and showed their love today by offering us two dead mice. They were so proud. Yuck.
We are going to try and get our Family letter out on time this year, so if you think we might not have your address email or otherwise, feel free to email me and let me know what your info is so I can update our/my address book.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Road Tripping
Day 1
It took us 1 hour to make it farther than 3 miles from home. It wasn't just the bit of traffic we hit, but more the number of time we had to return home for different reasons. We got on anf off the same highway 3 times before finalling getting underway. traffic wasn't too bad getting to April's house, but it was late when we finally got there and it took the girls about an hour to actually settle down and go to sleep. That and Emily kept trying to fling her lungs outside her body.
Day 2
We left the house at 9am and it is almost 6pm and we are still an hour and a half away from the hotel. AHHHHHHHH. Maybe I should mention how much I dislike holiday traffic. On the other hand I did find gummy coca-cola bottles at a gas station. I used to love those as a child and had not seen them for years. Funny though, they didn't taste the same to me. But they were still pretty good.
Things that are not fun on roadtrips:
Kids can finally put in place the Don't watch too much TV rule.-Talk about timing
Kids can try playing 1 person I spy at the same time-results-two unhappy and loud kids and 1 unhappy mom
Every possible car can be on the road from the CT border onward causing it to take more than 3 times as long as usual to get through
Things that are fun:
Blogging on a laptop in a car
Singing songs as a family-granted it is the same favorite 3, but since it stopped a possible melt down, who cares
Using Google maps to plot traffic jams.
Shrek 2 in the back seat(such a great soundtrack) and it's better than hearing but not seeing Shrek 3
It took us 1 hour to make it farther than 3 miles from home. It wasn't just the bit of traffic we hit, but more the number of time we had to return home for different reasons. We got on anf off the same highway 3 times before finalling getting underway. traffic wasn't too bad getting to April's house, but it was late when we finally got there and it took the girls about an hour to actually settle down and go to sleep. That and Emily kept trying to fling her lungs outside her body.
Day 2
We left the house at 9am and it is almost 6pm and we are still an hour and a half away from the hotel. AHHHHHHHH. Maybe I should mention how much I dislike holiday traffic. On the other hand I did find gummy coca-cola bottles at a gas station. I used to love those as a child and had not seen them for years. Funny though, they didn't taste the same to me. But they were still pretty good.
Things that are not fun on roadtrips:
Kids can finally put in place the Don't watch too much TV rule.-Talk about timing
Kids can try playing 1 person I spy at the same time-results-two unhappy and loud kids and 1 unhappy mom
Every possible car can be on the road from the CT border onward causing it to take more than 3 times as long as usual to get through
Things that are fun:
Blogging on a laptop in a car
Singing songs as a family-granted it is the same favorite 3, but since it stopped a possible melt down, who cares
Using Google maps to plot traffic jams.
Shrek 2 in the back seat(such a great soundtrack) and it's better than hearing but not seeing Shrek 3
Monday, November 19, 2007
Family Fun
Today was a well publicized fundraising event for the girls' school. I had completely forgotten that there was a Chucky Cheese Fundraiser event tied into report cards, but thanks to very clever marketing my 5 year old daughter did not forget a thing! We went there this evening and had a really fun time-surprise surprise. If you brought in the child's' report card, you got a discount & free game tokens.
The pizza wasn't great, but the girls had a blast and we had fun playing with them. It was fun to play skee ball and whack frogs and shoot water guns to make the mouse win a race all together. Karl rocks at the dump truck game. We discovered that neither of us (parents) are naturals at the motorcycle game Emily picked. She was extremely disappointed that Mom & Dad ran into things on the course and kept admonishing us to be careful. (She also was excited to play the game, but did not want to play after the game actually started) All in all a fun night and a nice reward for our little student!
Oh, and Emily is feeling better, but no word on the wallet & phone!
The pizza wasn't great, but the girls had a blast and we had fun playing with them. It was fun to play skee ball and whack frogs and shoot water guns to make the mouse win a race all together. Karl rocks at the dump truck game. We discovered that neither of us (parents) are naturals at the motorcycle game Emily picked. She was extremely disappointed that Mom & Dad ran into things on the course and kept admonishing us to be careful. (She also was excited to play the game, but did not want to play after the game actually started) All in all a fun night and a nice reward for our little student!
Oh, and Emily is feeling better, but no word on the wallet & phone!
Not the best weekend
Sorry for the lack of posting. We had a bit of a rough weekend. Karl lost his wallet & phone at the Y on Saturday and we spent some time trying to call people like the phone & credit card companies, the police, and the phone insurance company. We are still hopeful it might be returned, but it is very disappointing to make that kind of a mistake. We encourage everyone to take a moment to copy front and back of everything in your wallet. It hopefully we never come in useful, but it is good to be prepared.
On Sunday Emily started running a fever and coughing so I took her home from church. We both ended up crashing in bed for a nap. Sydney joined us when she got home with Karl and we had a nap sandwich. When I woke up I was roasting. I was the middle of the sandwich! Emily is feeling better today thankfully, and I hope we will not have any ill health as we travel for Thanksgiving. I may not be posting too much as I will away from my computer, but maybe I can submit it remotely. Who knows!
On Sunday Emily started running a fever and coughing so I took her home from church. We both ended up crashing in bed for a nap. Sydney joined us when she got home with Karl and we had a nap sandwich. When I woke up I was roasting. I was the middle of the sandwich! Emily is feeling better today thankfully, and I hope we will not have any ill health as we travel for Thanksgiving. I may not be posting too much as I will away from my computer, but maybe I can submit it remotely. Who knows!
Friday, November 16, 2007
EWWWWWWW!
Our home was the scene of a murder today. Not of a human, but we found the feathers (lots of them) and the head of a bird when we came home from Emily's Parent Teacher Conference this afternoon! EWWWWWWW! What were those little fluff balls thinking! I know they are supposed to kill things, but not in the house! The death toll is really rising in out neck of the woods. Woodland critters beware!
Anyway, Emily got her first report card for the semester/quarter not sure of the official name, and she did wonderfully well. So well that she is getting an award on Tuesday at 9:30 am for Academic Excellence. Isn't that just adorable! Her Student of the month is also going up in the hallway at school so everyone can see her picture. We are just thrilled.
Anyway, Emily got her first report card for the semester/quarter not sure of the official name, and she did wonderfully well. So well that she is getting an award on Tuesday at 9:30 am for Academic Excellence. Isn't that just adorable! Her Student of the month is also going up in the hallway at school so everyone can see her picture. We are just thrilled.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Emily got Student of the Month
We want to know a little more about how a kid gets the award but we are very proud of her. Tomorrow is Parent Teacher Conference day. We will meet with Emily's teacher and talk about how she is doing. I am hoping to get any more details about the award.
Also today was Sydney's first school trip. She rode with her class and the other two special ed classes two Walmart where we split up and shopped according to lists we (the moms) had made earlier. Myy group did wonderfully well on our lists until we bumped into another group who had a really cool toy on their list. After about 10 more minutes of distress we went to the registers and each child paid for their things. Then we headed back out on the bus to go to lunch. Lunch also went well. All the kids enjoyed their luncha nd Sydney especially enjoyed her cupcake and frosting the most. We climbed back on the bus and returned to school where it was the end of the day for preschool. Sydney fell asleep on the bus on the way home but woke up when we got back to school.
All in all it was a good day, but a very cold wet one.
Also today was Sydney's first school trip. She rode with her class and the other two special ed classes two Walmart where we split up and shopped according to lists we (the moms) had made earlier. Myy group did wonderfully well on our lists until we bumped into another group who had a really cool toy on their list. After about 10 more minutes of distress we went to the registers and each child paid for their things. Then we headed back out on the bus to go to lunch. Lunch also went well. All the kids enjoyed their luncha nd Sydney especially enjoyed her cupcake and frosting the most. We climbed back on the bus and returned to school where it was the end of the day for preschool. Sydney fell asleep on the bus on the way home but woke up when we got back to school.
All in all it was a good day, but a very cold wet one.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Insomnia
When is insomnia insomnia and when is it just a hard time falling asleep. I never used to be a night person, but here I am just a minute before midnight trying to finish this post. I realized just a few minutes ago as I was about to get into bed that I had not written yet today. I had thought about a few different topics, but never actually written. So now I am going to write about why I have a hard time going to bed at a devent hour. I feel like I have preprogrammed myself to end the day around midnight despite intentions to go to bed early. Yesterday the plan was 10:30 but the reality was 12:00. Other night this week have been 2 and 1 am. Those nights were the worst becasue I lay in bed for about an hour thinking of different things to do. I just could not quiet my mind down to fall asleep.
So now I am going to give it a whirl. Sleeping that is. My body is really tired, but my mind still feels like it is on turbo.
So now I am going to give it a whirl. Sleeping that is. My body is really tired, but my mind still feels like it is on turbo.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Slugs and leaky pipes
Today was another day of taking kids to school, visiting the Y, picking up from school, and dinner and so forth, the only problem in our day was the gaping hole in the back of the house that we started yesterday working on yesterday. The leak in the faucet that we hoped was only a minor issue was actually a much bigger problem. Karl had to remove siding, insulation and rotten particle boards and slugs! Now we know how the slugs got in the house a few times. That was always a mystery. I just could not understand how they could climb the steps to get inside. I picked up black tar paper and new board on Monday and he is trying to get it dry so it will not mold after he reinstalls it.
He is outside right now trying to put it back together enough so that it won't get ruined tonight if it rains. He accidentally glued the pipe together in the wrong end so may have to start over with the pipe. Hopefully it will be finished for sure tomorrow.
He is outside right now trying to put it back together enough so that it won't get ruined tonight if it rains. He accidentally glued the pipe together in the wrong end so may have to start over with the pipe. Hopefully it will be finished for sure tomorrow.
Monday, November 12, 2007
Hunger Strike Complete
Well, I think it worked. I was really frustrated with her not eating the last few weeks. I had seperated her food, I gave tiny portions, I cooked things I knew she liked, but she would try and munch on snacks all afternoon then not want her dinner. With food she loves, she eats like a champ, with food she isn't in the mood for, holy cow! Slow poke city.
So we tried out experiment. I don;t want to do it again. My parents offered a no thank you portion which worked well for us. You took what you wanted of the food you didn't like but you had to eat what you served yourself, and if it was a not thank you serving, it had to be tiny but at least a little but went on the plate.
She had her dinner again at breakfast, lunch, and dinner and ate a little bit each time, but finally finished enough to graduate to a new plate of food. At dinner I presented it in a new bowl with a different kind of sauce. Hopefully she won't do this again. Emily seemed pretty horrified that it happened, but was thrilled to be a little tattletale about her not finishing it at each meal.
I have to say though except for the tears when it came back at dinner after she asked to throw it away, she did not complain at all.
So we tried out experiment. I don;t want to do it again. My parents offered a no thank you portion which worked well for us. You took what you wanted of the food you didn't like but you had to eat what you served yourself, and if it was a not thank you serving, it had to be tiny but at least a little but went on the plate.
She had her dinner again at breakfast, lunch, and dinner and ate a little bit each time, but finally finished enough to graduate to a new plate of food. At dinner I presented it in a new bowl with a different kind of sauce. Hopefully she won't do this again. Emily seemed pretty horrified that it happened, but was thrilled to be a little tattletale about her not finishing it at each meal.
I have to say though except for the tears when it came back at dinner after she asked to throw it away, she did not complain at all.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Hunger Strike
I am not sure what the best method is parenting wise, but I am really getting frustrated with Sydney not eating her dinners. She likes most food, but she does not like stirfry. She likes the parts of stirfry, just not the combining feature. So tonight she looked at her food and refused to eat it. I was already in a less than lovely mood, so that was the last straw for me. I wrapped up the food on her plate and told her she could have it for breakfast, lunch or dinner tomorrow but she wasn't going to eat anything else until the food was gone. I mean to follow through and serve it at breakfast, but I really hope she doens't push this much past breakfast. She is such a crab when she is hungry.
Tune in tomorrow to see who has the stronger will power! Vote for Mom-or send ideas on how to handle it!
Tune in tomorrow to see who has the stronger will power! Vote for Mom-or send ideas on how to handle it!
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Car Tunes
So we were driving in the car listening to a song on a kids music cd by Laurie Berkner called Bottle Caps. Emily loved the song and was singing along, but the only part she heard was the chorus, "collecting Bottle caps, Bottle caps, bottle caps, bottle caps, every one I see." She thought this was the best and sang Bobcats, Bobcats, bobcats, bobcaps every one I see. She kept asking to sing the bob cat song. We told her the words were bottle caps, but that didn't sink in. Maybe she doesn't know what they are! She also told us she was singing a song from school about bobcats. Funny how the tune she sang matched ours perfectly.
Oh and Sydney is in love with a song from my childhood my mom, the master internet sleuth, tracked down for me. Our Dinosaur Friends. She loves this song called Pterodactyl. She would like nothing better than to have it on repeat for hours on end. On a positive side, she was really upset about something that happened as we left the YMCA today and I was able to change her mood by pulling out the "big guns" Then she went around singing "I'd like to be the biggest dinosaur" all afternoon. The only song that can compeat for number of repeats in one sitting is Snuggle Puppy by Sandra Boynton. We can all sing all the words now. We got it also from my parents, but got the book version of the book years ago when Emily was little. Karl and I had made up our version of the song and dung it to Emily, but we like their tune much better!
Oh and Sydney is in love with a song from my childhood my mom, the master internet sleuth, tracked down for me. Our Dinosaur Friends. She loves this song called Pterodactyl. She would like nothing better than to have it on repeat for hours on end. On a positive side, she was really upset about something that happened as we left the YMCA today and I was able to change her mood by pulling out the "big guns" Then she went around singing "I'd like to be the biggest dinosaur" all afternoon. The only song that can compeat for number of repeats in one sitting is Snuggle Puppy by Sandra Boynton. We can all sing all the words now. We got it also from my parents, but got the book version of the book years ago when Emily was little. Karl and I had made up our version of the song and dung it to Emily, but we like their tune much better!
Sweet Tooth
Today is Saturday. I get to sleep in guilt free for a little bit this morning. The kids simply don't understand that concept and were up at the crack of dawn as usual. So I woke up to a little smiling face saying "Mom can I have candy?" I could not believe it.
I said no and sent her to go find some fruit instead. On Thursday we had the girls take their pumpkin bucket with Halloween candy to their rooms becasue guests were coming for dinner and I was tired of sucumbing to temptation when I saw those yummy buckets filled with Snickers and Milky Ways so the early morning temptation must have been strong. She usually just asks for some after school. The girls have been great and asking everytime they want candy instead of just eating. Emily is very disciplined and only eats 1-2 pieces a day at the most. Sydney has the massive sweet tooth though. But at least she listens when I say no.
I said no and sent her to go find some fruit instead. On Thursday we had the girls take their pumpkin bucket with Halloween candy to their rooms becasue guests were coming for dinner and I was tired of sucumbing to temptation when I saw those yummy buckets filled with Snickers and Milky Ways so the early morning temptation must have been strong. She usually just asks for some after school. The girls have been great and asking everytime they want candy instead of just eating. Emily is very disciplined and only eats 1-2 pieces a day at the most. Sydney has the massive sweet tooth though. But at least she listens when I say no.
Friday, November 9, 2007
oops
So all week I knew today was makeup School Picture day. All week that is, until today. I let Emily go off to school with some weird cowlick action and her favorite bright orange Halloween shirt. I ran down to her class after I realized (aka Sydney's teacher mentioned it) it was picture day to get her to swap shirt, but no dice. She thought her shirt was pretty. Sydney looked cute since she had a fairly well coordinated outfit (I picked it out this morning) and she had ponytail holders in her bag. Emily only had clips, and those stay all of 2 minutes in the same spot, so she will look sort of goofy. But it is her kindergarten picture so I had to let her do it anyway.
I know one day I will look back & laugh, but I am just not there yet.
I know one day I will look back & laugh, but I am just not there yet.
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Spinning class
I went to spinning class today for the second day in a row and wow I was sore. But it turns out I have been sitting to the saddle wrong. Ooops. So hopefully it will be better now. I used to ride bikes more when I had a teenager and had a pair of clipless shoes somewhere. I finally dug them out of the garage and put them in the car to take for my next class. Everyone says the pulling motion is easier when you have those and don't try to use the little toe baskets.
Did you know we have a fireplace in our house! It is fun to have a mantle place to hang stocking from this year, but until last night we never used the fireplace itself. It is gas. And it has been really hot up until just the last few weeks. The fireplace has a glass shield in front so I didn't feel a lot of heat kicking out of the thing. It was a little disappointing, but it looks pretty.
Did you know we have a fireplace in our house! It is fun to have a mantle place to hang stocking from this year, but until last night we never used the fireplace itself. It is gas. And it has been really hot up until just the last few weeks. The fireplace has a glass shield in front so I didn't feel a lot of heat kicking out of the thing. It was a little disappointing, but it looks pretty.
I just think this was odd
So we took Emily to the doctor on Monday-for stomach cramps and allergy tests, and both of these doctors routinely called me just Mom. Not Mrs. Pilz or Heather or anything like that. Is that normal? I have never experienced that before.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Cockroach Allergy
Today is also a long day. We started out headed to the allergist for Emily. We want to figure out how we can get rid of the perpetual sniffle for her. Turns out she is quite allergic to dust/Dust mites & cockroaches. One of the key things not to have on your kids bed, stuffed animals. Another thing to have frequently washed bedding. So we stripped both beds and dumped the whole mess in the washer. I am so glad we got that washer in the sale of the house. I really did love my old one-that we sold with the house, but this one is way better! I have the bedding on sanitize. We'll see how it turns out.
I have a whole handy sheet all about cockroaches if anyone would like to learn more. It turns out to be a fairly common allergy. Not so much the roach itself, but more the roach droppings. Scrumptious mental picture! The one good thing, as far as we know we have no roaches in or near the house and we hope to keep it that way. I hate those little biggers!
We are off to the store to get some dust mites covers for her pillow & mattress, lotion for her arms, a shower head sprayer for their bath-just because it's great to have when bathing kiddos & cats, and a little medicine which might help get things under control for now so she doesn't get so much fluid in her ears so she can hear. Coolest part of the visit-the doctor let both of us look up inside Emily's nose. It was very red and it isn't suppossed to be like that. Emily has been doing well with her nasal spray, but apparently we were not spraying it correctly. Ah well, now we know!
I have a whole handy sheet all about cockroaches if anyone would like to learn more. It turns out to be a fairly common allergy. Not so much the roach itself, but more the roach droppings. Scrumptious mental picture! The one good thing, as far as we know we have no roaches in or near the house and we hope to keep it that way. I hate those little biggers!
We are off to the store to get some dust mites covers for her pillow & mattress, lotion for her arms, a shower head sprayer for their bath-just because it's great to have when bathing kiddos & cats, and a little medicine which might help get things under control for now so she doesn't get so much fluid in her ears so she can hear. Coolest part of the visit-the doctor let both of us look up inside Emily's nose. It was very red and it isn't suppossed to be like that. Emily has been doing well with her nasal spray, but apparently we were not spraying it correctly. Ah well, now we know!
Monday, November 5, 2007
There were 3 in the bed and the little one said...
Sydney climbed in bed with us last night and for a little person, she takes up quite a bit of room. She snores, and she whacks you with her knees and feet. (My parents would say I deserve it though.)
She also has a bizarre habit of shoving the covers off her body, and throwing your part along with it. I like covers. Infact I just switched from my light summer wuilt to my heavier duvet and so I coped by curling up lower in the bed so I got the cover up to my neck just the way I like it.
Emily is not feeling well today so she stayed home. It looks like it will be a long day.
She also has a bizarre habit of shoving the covers off her body, and throwing your part along with it. I like covers. Infact I just switched from my light summer wuilt to my heavier duvet and so I coped by curling up lower in the bed so I got the cover up to my neck just the way I like it.
Emily is not feeling well today so she stayed home. It looks like it will be a long day.
Sunday, November 4, 2007
Budding Muralist
sorry it's sideways, but this is full size
So I woke up this morning when Sydney came to get me to show me a picture her sister had drawn. Normally, that might make me a little bit grumpy, but since they had let me sleep until 8:30 (Yippee Daylight Savings), I didn't really have a leg to stand on. On the other hand, the artwork was absolutely wonderful! We got a roll of newsprint from a Recycling company for a church kids activity and we took the rest of roll home after the activity. I think I will be wrapping this year's christmas presents in Emily's originals! Enjoy this first one.
Saturday, November 3, 2007
National Blog Posting Month
Did anyone know (besides Kristen) it is national blog posting month or National Novel writing month??? I just read the the link on Kristen's site and was intrigued by the idea. the idea either write a novel in 30 days-yikes-or write in your blog every day for 30 days. I will choose the blog obviously as my novel writing skills are a tad rusty never having been used even once! I love to read though. So I look forward to all those new books hitting the shelves next year from all the highly skilled novelist who wrote November novels. I will have to plead ignornace for the first 3 days of November though. This should be fun!
Happy Halloween
The girls have been so excited all month about Halloween, but they very sweetly saved me a lot of work by asking to wear last year costumes. I had not seen Sydney in her costume in about 2 months, but I assummed it still fit her. Silly me. The little thing finally grew a few inches. Her little costume was about 2 inches too short on her wrists, and 3 inches too short on her legs. But she was so happy to get dressed up and go out trick-or-treating and it didn't matter to her.
We went with several friends in their neighborhood which is right next to ours. There was a group of 12 kiddos and about 8 parents. It was crazy trying to get to each door and it was a little intimidating for the home owner. At first, no one was home and the kids were extremely disappointed, but things quickly picked up and they got lots of candy in the hour we were out. The dads stayed home and passed out candy while the moms took the kiddos around. It was the first year I did not have to bundle the kids up underneath their costumes. I actually got too hot in my costume and was very happy to take it off at the end of the night (I was Kanga). After trick-or-treating, we had cider & doughnuts then took our sugary sticky children home and put them to bed feeling somewhat guilty for their teachers in the morning.
When we got to the house I discovered I was nowhere near prepared for the hoards of kids who came to our door. I had completely run out of candy. Oops. Now I know!
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Baby it's cold outside
Emily wanted to wear shorts yesterday to school. I told her it was cold outside and to change into pants and she replied that it was sunny. I said sunny doesn't always mean warm so I sent her outside in her shorts for a few minutes :) Evil Mommy trick. It worked. She put on pants right away :) Today she was more than willing to listen to me when I suggested pants and a long sleeve shrit.
Monday, October 29, 2007
The girls passed swimming
So Saturday was the last day of swimming and there was a little water safety workshop in the big pool. The girls practiced getting into and out of a boat, then went for a little rife in the pool. Then the class jumped in and swam around for 20 minutes. Both girls passed their classes and are now Eels! Yeah. We signed up for a second set of lessons. They start in 2 weeks.
Another thing I never thought I'd say
"Eat your dessert first". We were getting ready to run out the door for Choir practice, and Emily had a roll to finish and we wanted her to eat that in the car and eat her dessert at the table. But she was insistent that the roll/dinner be finished first! So she stuffed the whole roll in her mouth and got her ice cream sandwich.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Thanks for the comments
I love reading them, but can't figure out how to reply immediately to them using the website. If you leave a comment, can you leave me your email too, or can a more knowledgable blogger tell me how to respond to them!
First ever report card for Emily
She did wonderfully well on all the little check markable areas, but the teacher said "Emily is a pleasure to have in class" That is such a lovely thing to read about your child !!!
Congratulations to Karl
Yeah for Karl!! He has spent the last week at a very intensive computer class in PA. He has been studying all week so he can get some special certification in computers. He has Design Associates Certification and Network Associates Certification. This type of thing normally takes 2 years to study for and pass the test, buts in the immerison program it is over that much faster. Although we missed him here at home, it is better this way as there were no distractions. He got the best score in the class on his first exam, and passed his other tests easily. The certification is good for 3 years, but if he takes other classes/tests he can extend his certification. Hopefully this certification will help us in his job search once we leave the navy, but for now it will also help him in his current job here in the area.
In other news, Emily and Sydney are continuing to improve in swimming classes, and loving school. Emily is learning sight words now, and Sydney is learning to write her name. They still had a bit of a hard time completely getting back into our routine after being gone for so long. Hopefully next week will go smoother.
On a funny note, Emily got a book out on Lions and tigers (and bears oh my!) in August, which she promptly lost in her room a few days alter. (apparently my idea of having a spot library books live seperate from the bedroom was not as much fun as say, mixing them in with the books we own, or stashing them under the bed! Yikes!) We have looked and looked, and gotten the slightly nasty note from the library with a lost book amount. I had not intention of paying that since I knew I could and would find it soon. Of course I forgot to renew the thing to stop fees.
Well after we got all our mail back from our trip, I got a note saying "we are going to take you to collections for the book if it is not fixed in 2 weeks". I thought yikes, well I hate to do this, but I'll pay for a lost book. So I did that. Then talking to my mom about it, I felt that little nudge about the playroom (I thought I'd looked there on a recent cleaning, but I tried again) I found it in about 1 minute in the playroom. Arrgh, but ultimately that is good news. So I went back to the library and gave them the book, and they will send me the fine in a check sometime soon. Very odd system here. They don't collect fines for late books, only lost books. I've never seen anything quite like that.
I signed up for a few sessions with a personal trainer, and I am very excited about that. I will have to keep you posted. She is going to give me some exercises I can work on without her over the next few months as I try to get back into good shape. In an extra effort to help avoid the Halloween Five, I got toys to pass out instead of candy. I did buy some candy, but really gross things like oozing eyeballs, and gummy bone shaped things. Nothing terribly appealing to a Snickers/Milky way lover like myself!
Also, a very happy birthday to Heidi, my dad, and Madeline!
In other news, Emily and Sydney are continuing to improve in swimming classes, and loving school. Emily is learning sight words now, and Sydney is learning to write her name. They still had a bit of a hard time completely getting back into our routine after being gone for so long. Hopefully next week will go smoother.
On a funny note, Emily got a book out on Lions and tigers (and bears oh my!) in August, which she promptly lost in her room a few days alter. (apparently my idea of having a spot library books live seperate from the bedroom was not as much fun as say, mixing them in with the books we own, or stashing them under the bed! Yikes!) We have looked and looked, and gotten the slightly nasty note from the library with a lost book amount. I had not intention of paying that since I knew I could and would find it soon. Of course I forgot to renew the thing to stop fees.
Well after we got all our mail back from our trip, I got a note saying "we are going to take you to collections for the book if it is not fixed in 2 weeks". I thought yikes, well I hate to do this, but I'll pay for a lost book. So I did that. Then talking to my mom about it, I felt that little nudge about the playroom (I thought I'd looked there on a recent cleaning, but I tried again) I found it in about 1 minute in the playroom. Arrgh, but ultimately that is good news. So I went back to the library and gave them the book, and they will send me the fine in a check sometime soon. Very odd system here. They don't collect fines for late books, only lost books. I've never seen anything quite like that.
I signed up for a few sessions with a personal trainer, and I am very excited about that. I will have to keep you posted. She is going to give me some exercises I can work on without her over the next few months as I try to get back into good shape. In an extra effort to help avoid the Halloween Five, I got toys to pass out instead of candy. I did buy some candy, but really gross things like oozing eyeballs, and gummy bone shaped things. Nothing terribly appealing to a Snickers/Milky way lover like myself!
Also, a very happy birthday to Heidi, my dad, and Madeline!
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Family Vacation
So we left for the west coast about 2 1/2 weeks ago. We had a wonderful time seeing some family members and cruising from Vegas to Salt Lake City. The girls didn't exactly enjoy the ride out there, infact we discovered Emily needs Dramine before flying, yikes! We arrived late at night, rented a a mini van, and headed to the Benfields. The next afternoon we hung out at the park with Katrina and the kiddos. Ethan had a hard time with the water fountain-he tried getting a drink by licking water off his finger.
From Vegas we headed to St. George to hang out with Glen, Tammy, Brittney, Tyia, Natasha, Ryan, Ellen, Zach and Becky. Driving through the mountains was amazing. I took lots of shots of the mountains and rocks. Never having spent much time out west before, I was really amazed by what I saw. So many rocks and dirt, and funny cacti! The girls absolutely loved the giant green slide at Glen's house-I was a little worried about going down it without flip flops, and Sydney would not go down without riding on a lap or climbing up just a few steps and going down from there! Zach and Emily had no fear. Karl even managed to take out one of the chairs while going down with sydney on his lap, but she was ok!
We also got to teach Emily how to ride a scooter-usually Tyia's. I was amazed at how quickly she gained her balance and was zipping around in the wonderful backyard. She even made a few baskets in the backyard hoop.
After enjoying the beautiful weather in St. George we headed into a few dust storms on our way to Provo/Salt Lake. I saw my very first tumbleweed too! It was crazy looking out over the flat roads and seeing clouds of dust off in the distance. It was almost anticlimactic when we got to them though, I expected to hear the dust hitting the car. Luckily they weren't too bad and we were able to drive straight through.
After a dinner at another "Church of Mamma" aka Tyia's word for Chuck-o-Rama. We handed off the kiddos and headed out to Karl's missionary reunion. What we didn't know was that Karl's mom would get a nasty hour in traffic with a sick Sydney. Too much chocolate milk at dinner :( We bought a booster seat that night! Grandmothers should not have to do that! And many thanks to her roomate and friendly neighbor who helped her get Sydney and the car seat out of her car.
We got to attend 2-3 sessions of conference while we were in town. It was both of our first times at Live Conference, so that was really special. SLC was a little colder and wetter than we expected but after a quick stop in Tyia's closet, and DI we were ready for cold & wet! Let's hear it for the weather channel. They were so wrong!!!
My cousin Greg was able to borrow a car and come down to go with Karl in the evening. Who knew BYU wasn't in Salt Lake?? Not me! That was a surprise!! We also got to play a few rounds of killer Phase 10. Another interesting highlight was learning that the you can actually chose to skip whomever you want not just the person sitting immediately next to you! Lizzie and I unfortunately missed the object of fewest points possible and headed for the high roller points club instead!!! On Sunday evening, we got to see some of Karl's cousins he had not seen in years for dinner. We'll have to make sure we don't go so long next time.
On Monday we went back to Provo, met up with Greg and Cami for lunch at the BYU Creamery, then headed up to Squaw Peak for a beautiful view of the valley. Tha't where we got some great shots of the mountains, and of all of us. We kep on going through to St. George. Karl got to hang out with Glen & Rynn at work and go on a few jobs with them.
Wednesday we headed back to Las Vegas, but in order to get there we took a small detour through some serious back roads trying to get to the highway, after driving for a few miles in the mountains on dirt roads, we finally ended up going under the highway. oops! Then we ended up in a construction site where a very kind construction worker lead us out of the dusty mess. I should have gotten a shot of the car. It was absolutely filthy!
We ended up in a different time zone at Katrina's house. The kids all had a fun time playing together, but we had lots of rocks on Astroturf with 4 kids in a backyard with bulldozers and dump trucks. Back to the Benfields for the night, then a wonderful outing to the Las Vegas Strip. Lions, and tigers and bears, oh my! The kids Loved the Lion exhibit. We got there right as it opened, and the lions came out. The trainers had some toys and giant rawhide bones for them. When we were on our way back to the car at the end of our voyage we got to see the trainer curled up with his favorite lion sleeping. The lion had her her head on his arm, legs were intertwined and everything! So crazy. The trainer woke up first and decided to wake the other 3 up. He tickled them, grabbed their faces blew on them. Then he licked one of them right on the mouth! Yum. Lion breath! I also can't imagine kissing something that could bite your face off is she was annoyed with you!
We also went to M&M world, and walked up out of around there. Then we tired to hit a show before lunch, but failed. The show was cancelled for the day. We had lunch at my favorite Western invenetion! In-N-Out Burger. Yummy yummy yummy I got food in my tummy! Chocolate milkshakes and fry sauce! Then we hit an Old Nevada Mining town which we could not decide-was it run down deliberately, or was it just a run down place! The petting zoo was fun. We saw some really unusual animals, and a lot of animals wondering free. Since Karl has such a great history with llamas, when we saw one out for a walk, we had to get at least one picture of Karl petting the llama. That was a huge dust cloud coming off of it! Sydney also kept finding little goat pies or whatever critter, and then wiping her hands on her shoes to get it off, so nasty! After that Emily caught some sort of bug, and ran a fever, we had a fun little get together with all the Las Vegas folks, ate cake for Karl's birthday and then hung out with whoever was still up. I learned Madeline can lift her legs in all kinds of ways that you just don't normally see people do. Her goal is to be able to get both legs behind her head at the same time. just thinking of that makes mine hurt! I also learned about the many wonderful uses for a scroll saw. Wendy, I finished painting the Halloween ones! So cute!
We prepped the kids for the flight with Dramine and snacks for the flight home. We got off to a good start, but still managed to be at the gate with one a few minutes to spare. How that works I just don't know. We have a gift. Emily was still running a fever, so waiting in line was a little rough. We got on the plane, then Emily fell asleep. Sydney had a much harder time getting used to the plane but conked out on me for at least 75% of the flight home. It was a much better ride than the way out, but I think I'd like to hold off on flying with kids for a little while.
We are thrilled to have made the trip, and we definitely want to make sure we get out there much sooner than before.
On another note, we killed off our fish, again! The pond almost dried up and I added more water, and poof, they were dead the next day. So do we get more? We can clean out the pond and start over from scratch or just fill it in and add more lawn to the area, or build a sandbox.
For pictures of the trip go to my flickr page and click on the Family vacation block. If anyone wants more, email me and I will send you full size pics.
Monday, October 1, 2007
I never thought I'd say this but...
When Emily started school, I never ever thought I would hear myself say," Don't do your homework, go play with your friends." I also never thought that she would burst into hysterica tears that she couldn't go out to play because she had a lot of work to do was was very busy. this is with the friend in the house at that time. Fortunately she didn't scare off her friend who went outside and began playing with Sydney.
We are planning a short trip and will be missing some school so I had her teacher send home her work for the week today, and the sight of it might just have overwhelmed the poor girl. She dove right in though and was crushed that we weren't taking her desire to finish it seriously enough.
She ultimately calmed down and went outside to play but it took a lot of convincing. I still can't believe I said that though!
We are planning a short trip and will be missing some school so I had her teacher send home her work for the week today, and the sight of it might just have overwhelmed the poor girl. She dove right in though and was crushed that we weren't taking her desire to finish it seriously enough.
She ultimately calmed down and went outside to play but it took a lot of convincing. I still can't believe I said that though!
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Stage Fright
Emily had a small line in our church's primary program today. We have been practicing in primary for the last 4 weeks on all the songs and parts for all the kids, but for the first 2 weeks Emily would not come within 2 feet of the microphone. I was almost willing to give up on her speaking as a lost cause when her teacher convinced me to get Emily to pray for courage. Well, I must admit I did not really think that would work, but was willing to try it since nothing I had done had worked either. So we included that in our prayers every night.
Last week in practise she got up there and mumbled her part very nicely into the mic, then fell on me(I was sitting net to the stand to prompt little kids) and gave me a big hug before galloping down the stand to jump on her 60 year old teacher and give her a giant hug. Emily is a good solid 55 pounds, but luckily her teacher said she saw the twinkle in Emily's eye as she charged and knew something major was headed her way so she did not get knocked over.
Today was the program and there was an audience watching her so I was worried about her freezing at the mic, but she did a wonderful job-minus the bear hugs though. She was justifiably very proud!
Last week in practise she got up there and mumbled her part very nicely into the mic, then fell on me(I was sitting net to the stand to prompt little kids) and gave me a big hug before galloping down the stand to jump on her 60 year old teacher and give her a giant hug. Emily is a good solid 55 pounds, but luckily her teacher said she saw the twinkle in Emily's eye as she charged and knew something major was headed her way so she did not get knocked over.
Today was the program and there was an audience watching her so I was worried about her freezing at the mic, but she did a wonderful job-minus the bear hugs though. She was justifiably very proud!
Super Swimmers
So the girls started swimming lessons at the begining of the month. They are in seperate classes but bith at the same time which is very nice for me! Emily is doing very well and has enjoyed her lessons since day one, although she did remark the other day, Mom why do we have lessons every day? "Every day" is of course a loosly used word usually meaning often. But in thsi case every week.
So anyway...Sydney was excited the frist day but as soon as she and Emily split up, it was a,ll over. There were tears, there was sobbing in a ball on the floor, and snuffling into my neck. You name it. Finally I sat on the floor and got her to put her feet in the pool, to kick a tiny bit, and to get sipped in the water. She ended the lesson with a jump into the arms of coach/lifegaurd and I thought we were problem free. The next week she went just with Karl since I could not make it and never even got her toes wet. It was a pretty frustrating thing for everyone which was a big shock to me since she loved going to the pool this summer.
So the following friday she mentioned to me she wanted us to go and buy some playdough. I jumped on that and ran with it! I offered her the chance to get playdough if she cooperated in class and did evrything the teacher asked in swim lessons.
The next day she walked into class, sat on the edge of the pool and beamed at the teacher. No fear there! The teacher looked at me a little puzzled and could not figure out what happened and I explained the playdough request. Sydney was a perfect angel in class! And of course she got her playdough. This week, after another fantastic performance in swim class, Emily hoped out of the pool and said"Ok Mom, let's go to walmart and buy some toys!" Poor thing was a little bummed when I did not immediately follow through on that suggestions. Luckily, a trip into the YMCA Child Watch seemed to go over just as well!
Emily is doing quite well, she can swim a little on her side now without a floaty, but does quite well with a floaty. She still has issues jumping into the pool and getting her head under water though, but hopefully we can work through those.
Sydney seems ok with wetting her head and blows bubbles beautifully. She also is doing a great job kicking and working her arms, but it will probably take a few more sets of lessons before she is a "swimmer"
So anyway...Sydney was excited the frist day but as soon as she and Emily split up, it was a,ll over. There were tears, there was sobbing in a ball on the floor, and snuffling into my neck. You name it. Finally I sat on the floor and got her to put her feet in the pool, to kick a tiny bit, and to get sipped in the water. She ended the lesson with a jump into the arms of coach/lifegaurd and I thought we were problem free. The next week she went just with Karl since I could not make it and never even got her toes wet. It was a pretty frustrating thing for everyone which was a big shock to me since she loved going to the pool this summer.
So the following friday she mentioned to me she wanted us to go and buy some playdough. I jumped on that and ran with it! I offered her the chance to get playdough if she cooperated in class and did evrything the teacher asked in swim lessons.
The next day she walked into class, sat on the edge of the pool and beamed at the teacher. No fear there! The teacher looked at me a little puzzled and could not figure out what happened and I explained the playdough request. Sydney was a perfect angel in class! And of course she got her playdough. This week, after another fantastic performance in swim class, Emily hoped out of the pool and said"Ok Mom, let's go to walmart and buy some toys!" Poor thing was a little bummed when I did not immediately follow through on that suggestions. Luckily, a trip into the YMCA Child Watch seemed to go over just as well!
Emily is doing quite well, she can swim a little on her side now without a floaty, but does quite well with a floaty. She still has issues jumping into the pool and getting her head under water though, but hopefully we can work through those.
Sydney seems ok with wetting her head and blows bubbles beautifully. She also is doing a great job kicking and working her arms, but it will probably take a few more sets of lessons before she is a "swimmer"
Saturday, September 22, 2007
AHHHHHH
Today in the car on the way home from the store & swimming lessons, Emily uttered the worst words possible! "I'm bored." Where did she learn that awful word? What are they teaching her in school? I asked her if she knew what it meant, and of course she didn't but she still said it. I told her that if she said that to me, I would tell her to go and find something to do.
Friday, September 21, 2007
Let's hear it for the neighbors
Can I just say how much I love having kids nearby to play with. Some days my kiddos disappear after school/before dinner-after homework of course, and then go for more after dinner right up until bedtime. We have a few houses on this street with kids Emily's & Sydney's ages. The biggest challenge is getting them home. We have been working with Emily to not get quite so dramatic at the anguish of leaving her friends.
I want to invent kid pager that can be worn on their shorts/legs/wrist so it is easier to get them to come home-maybe one with an alarm clock feature, or if I could page it and set it off that would be nice.
Thankfully we have very kind neighbors (with a trampolene no less) who don't mind the invasion. Even if Emily invites herself over for dinner (Yikes. Never thought to discuss that in the never ending Manners 101)
I want to invent kid pager that can be worn on their shorts/legs/wrist so it is easier to get them to come home-maybe one with an alarm clock feature, or if I could page it and set it off that would be nice.
Thankfully we have very kind neighbors (with a trampolene no less) who don't mind the invasion. Even if Emily invites herself over for dinner (Yikes. Never thought to discuss that in the never ending Manners 101)
Monday, September 17, 2007
5 year olds planning marriage
So at dinner the other day, Emily is lecturing Sydney about her behavior and stopped her saying she wasn't the mom, so she did not get to dool out punishment to her little sister. She asked me if she would be a mom when she had a baby. Then asked if she could have a baby when she is 16. Right now 16 is the magic number-maybe because I told her she can learn to drive then. So I suggested she wait until she is a little older, and after she is married before she had a baby. She immediately asked if she could marry Daddy. That lead to a whole different conversation about mommies and daddies and how there is only one of each, not two and her response was that it is nice to share. So, I had to explain that we don't share husbands! Then she asked is she could marry Mr. Chris, the neighbor's daddy. Nope, not him either. So then I told her she could marry someone her age, so she thought about that for a little while and chose one of her little friends. It was too funny!
The Breakfast Thief
So, school started two weeks ago, and after the first week of school, I got an automated phone calling informing me that my child's cafeteria balance was low. Now I was surprised when I got the call as I had been sending both girls with their lunches. I had seen the breakfast menu and was not excited to have the girls eating all that, so I feed them at home & sent lunches.
Now Sydney on the first day had misplaced her lunch box, so she had lunch then, but I could not figure out the call since that was usppossed to be "free". So I questioned Emily. (I had stolen chocolate milk in Kindergarten and wondered if that was genetic.) She assurred me she was not taking anything extra, so I decided to deal with the issue on Monday. I dropped off Emily, and questioned Sydney's teacher about her eating lunches there-had she gotten food at lunch-oh no. She brought her lunch, they knew that. But somehow, they mentioned breakfast. It turns out the preschool class all go together to breakfast, and my little monkey had been eating two breakfast every morning and run up a small bill. She assured me that she was hungry for more breakfast, and she was eating her lunch that I packed, so we compromised. I send in a yogurt and she eats with her class every morning and now we are all happy!
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
First Two days of School
So it is finally here, Emily goes to kindergarten. She seems to have a really great teacher, and is enjoying her classes. Yesterday was a little crazy, but by the end of the day she was still smiling! yesterday both girls were anxious about going in their rooms, but today, Emily barely even said goodbye as she trotted into her room.
Sydney also attends preschool in the same building which is extremely convenient for me! Today-her second day, she was all smiles as she met up with her class in the lobby and gave me a kiss goodbye, but not another backward glance.
I have been having fun running errands and going to the gym, but the girls miss YMCA time, so maybe I will try and toss in an afternoon class here and there.
I put up the pictures from yesterday & this morning! And just for the record they both asked for pig tails. Neither set survived the day
Monday, September 3, 2007
Office improvements
I forgot to mention my good friend Veronica helped me do a little office taming, and we have gotten the room better organzied. What made the world of difference was when Karl installed all the shelving in the office closet. We had eliminated some of the shelves from the girls room, and already had some shorter racks possibly from the last house, I don't remember now. So we ran 3 more shelves in the closet for storing my craft stuff, office supplies, fabric and such. It is so nice ot have everything easy to see, but I still need to go through each bin and cull the lot! I have a lot of hobbies, and seem to collect stuff that goes nicely with each one. I love the friendly local pickup vans though that siwng by crting off your donations. I think I got rid of 50 lbs of clothing the other weekend! It was very liberating.
Of course right after I took a picture of the closet, Sydney immediately wanted me to take her picture, so here she is in all her pigtailed glory.
Bathroom observation
So as most people can attest shower curtains usually have 12 holes for hooks to hang them. When you buy special decorative shower curtain hooks they come most often in packs of 12 as well. For some weird reason the girls shower curtain only has 11 holes. The decorative hook set the (same) company made for it comes with 12 hooks. I can't figure out why on earth they would want to do that.
Karl is currently installing a motion sensitive light switch in the girls bathroom. We are hoping that this will help keep the light on as they are notorious about leaving it on. We have been working with them on turning it off, but have not seen much progress so far, which is funny since Emily used to be such a good little light police.
Karl is currently installing a motion sensitive light switch in the girls bathroom. We are hoping that this will help keep the light on as they are notorious about leaving it on. We have been working with them on turning it off, but have not seen much progress so far, which is funny since Emily used to be such a good little light police.
Kitchen Updates
The before picture of cabinets. The white bookcase is in the background.
The before picture of the wall unit. Doors were not attached.
Emily dancing. Note the TV screen characters doing the same thing she is J
After picture of the large units
Wall Unit after picture
So here they are, finally with 90% of the work done in the kitchen, the exception of crown moulding & baseboards, we are looking pretty good now! We have not filled they up yet, but as soon as we get the chance, we will! The kids love the easy access to cereal and their plates & bowls and things. I finally got knobs on most of the doors, but not the drawers; those are much trickier! I put a few before & after shots of the large units and the wall units above the desk.
The old bookcase looks fantastic in the girl’s room and does a great job at holding all their books. The small bookcase got dragged into the playroom to try and organize their games and their workbooks.
School starts tomorrow and I am excited and nervous. The list for school supplies was really long and quite pricey, and I think I got all the things they need. I better sharpen Emily's pencils in her pencil box-school specified must be hard plastic-and make sure she is good to go. I have to go back & get erasers for her. I accidentally donated the pack I bought for her to the school. grr.
I also got a few shots of Emily dancing to her favorite kids dance show. She was embarrassed I was taking pictures, but it really was the cutest thing in the world! She has memorized most of the words & actions and dances along for most songs. I love it.
I have no idea why these images are coming in all on their side, but they are full size images. Maybe that is the problem.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Bathroom shots
The before shot
This is the shower curtain-cats of course!
This shows the new light fixture and the wall with the picture of the girls at the beach
Yeah! Karl easily fixed the towel bar, but was impressed. Emily apparently was really hanging on it as the screw in the wall was completely bent! Wow she is a sturdy little thing.
So here it is! Introducing a much tamer milder baby blue bathroom with cats & dogs. So much nicer than the alarming bright green before shot. I haven't painted the cabinet or put in the drawers in there, but that will happen soon. Maybe next week. But at least it doesn't blind you when you enter the room!
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Projects are getting finshed-and new ones begun
So I was about to take a really cute picture of the girls bathroom to show recent updates in there since I painted it a few weeks ago and had not posted anything yet. But right as I went to get my camera, Emily pulled on the towel bar climbing out of the tub, and crash, the bar broke out of the wall! Oh well! Hopefully we can get it fixed.
We got the cabinets on the all above the desk in the kitchen. We haven't put up the crown moulding, but we are getting there. Doors & shelves are the next step. We also bought more cabinets this weekend for the other wall. We had talked about just a base unit or 84" units. We got two tall units, so I have lots of painting to do!! Yikes. They will allow us to get all our stuff put away that is sitting in the bookcase in the kitchen (the bookcase goes upstairs for my little bookworms. They have outgrown the one they have), and get the food storage out of the garage so the humidity does not ruin it before we get to it. Karl has already lost a sealed package of Oreos due to extreme humidity :)
And the best news of all, the painting in the living room is finally finished. Karl & I painted the trim edges yesterday. I did as much as I could before I turned it over to Karl. It was just too high up for me! Even Karl was nervous about falling.
We are excited to finish the rest of our projects here and just enjoy the house and living here.
We got the cabinets on the all above the desk in the kitchen. We haven't put up the crown moulding, but we are getting there. Doors & shelves are the next step. We also bought more cabinets this weekend for the other wall. We had talked about just a base unit or 84" units. We got two tall units, so I have lots of painting to do!! Yikes. They will allow us to get all our stuff put away that is sitting in the bookcase in the kitchen (the bookcase goes upstairs for my little bookworms. They have outgrown the one they have), and get the food storage out of the garage so the humidity does not ruin it before we get to it. Karl has already lost a sealed package of Oreos due to extreme humidity :)
And the best news of all, the painting in the living room is finally finished. Karl & I painted the trim edges yesterday. I did as much as I could before I turned it over to Karl. It was just too high up for me! Even Karl was nervous about falling.
We are excited to finish the rest of our projects here and just enjoy the house and living here.
Thursday, August 16, 2007
More pictures
garden two weeks ago
Garden this week
So check out Flickr for even more, but as promised, garden, and princess shots.
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
August Update
Recent shot of Virgina Cousins
Hostile takeover by cucumbers
Garden shot from 1 month ago-it is totally different now.
I can't believe it has been over a month since I posted anything! Yikes.
Anyhow, here is the latest and greatest with us. I finally got rolling on a few more painting projects today. I did the front door, and primed the new kitchen wall cabinets. I also started working on painting the master bathroom cabinet too. I tried doing some creative spackling, so we will see how well that goes. Did I mention we got the desk installed in the other side of the kitchen? That is working great! The cabinets I am working on will go right above it, and I hope to get another standing unit for the other wall and then we should be done! Yahoo!
The garden is growing like gang busters. I have flowers galore which is so fun. My sunflowers are lovely, will post pictures soon. The veggies are doing well too. The cucumbers have attempted a slightly hostile takeover of the area, but the pruning job went fairly well there to stall its progress. The watermelons are also slowly growing. Oh and I actually have baby corn growing. I can't believe it worked and the things grew. The are adorable right now. We put some bird seed out in the hopes that the birds will take care of the undesirable bugs in the garden.
Emily & Sydney are doing well. They have discovered dress up and I got them each princess costumes which they love.(but Emily wears tights and a shirt so it doesn't touch her skin even though it was the softest dress I could find.
A friend gave them her old Barbies and they are enjoying playing with those too. I dusted off some patterns to make some clothes for the dolls as well, call me crazy but it sounds like fun:)
Emily seems to actually be mastering riding a bike. She got the thing rolling today, and didn't crash into anything or hit me whith faulty steering. She rode all the way down the street and came back. Sadly the camera was in the house at the time, but we will try and capture that again soon. Sydney can't reach the pedals on her bikes comfortably, and get really easily frustrated. I think I will have to break down and get a tricycle for her. Drat that lady who stole the one out from under her at the garage sale last month!
We are looking forward to school and have had fvun shopping for school supplies and meeting with the school to arrange things. Orientation (for kindergarten:) ) is the last day of the month. I think that is more for me, but I hope it helps get her acclimated to the new routine/environment.
And wonder of wonders, she actually tried on a pair of shoes that had been sent to her for her birthday and wore them without complaining and fussing. And on Sundays she wants me to put things in her hair and she leaves them there for 3 hours! Shocker. I even bought some ribbon and made some cute little hair things to match their dresses.
However, Mom, the dress you got for her birthday is not soft enough and she had to wear a shirt underneath it.
I will try and get more pics up on Flickr and the blog.
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
New Home Pics
Most of these are at my flickr account , but here are some of the finished kitchen cabinets. Sorry these are so blurry.
Car troubles
Did we mention that we were having car troubles with the Rodeo? I have only ever seen radiators boil over in the movies, but I can now say I now what an overheated engine looks like. One morning, after coming back from my daily YMCA visit, we got all the way home before I noticed the rather awful smell, the hissing and the boiling noises. I pulled into the driveway, ran in the house & called Karl. Oh no problem he said, just lift the lid, and add more water if you want to go anywhere. Needless to say we stayed home for the rest of that day. Did we also mention it is on the Consumer Reports Used Cars to Avoid list? We only recently found that out though.
Today, we hope the car will come back from the rather inexpensive (hopefully very talented) mechanics. Karl sweetly took my car and left the red car with me. We almost bought a minivan but held back at the last minute for the more practical fix it first option!
Today, we hope the car will come back from the rather inexpensive (hopefully very talented) mechanics. Karl sweetly took my car and left the red car with me. We almost bought a minivan but held back at the last minute for the more practical fix it first option!
Emily's Artwork
I personally believe my daughter is an incredible talent artist :) However, she is only 5, so not everyone believes that she is as incredible as I do, but this is one of my recent favorites. She made it just for me! You can tell because my name is in the corner. The big stripy cat in the center is my personal favorite, but you can pick your own favorite cat. I love that the cats are all wearing hair bows, amde even mroe ironic because she adamantly refuses bows herself.
Monday, July 2, 2007
Sydney's quip
So I came into the room crunching on the last little bit of a chip-yes I was making dinner, and I had turned down their request to eat chips.
She was snuggled on the couch with Karl and asked "What are you eating mom?" I quickly swallowed and said "Nothing" She responded with the sweetest smile possible, "Can I have some nothing!" I laughed and ended up giving her 2 chips.
She was snuggled on the couch with Karl and asked "What are you eating mom?" I quickly swallowed and said "Nothing" She responded with the sweetest smile possible, "Can I have some nothing!" I laughed and ended up giving her 2 chips.
Monday, June 25, 2007
Sydney Turns 3
We had a wonderful little family birthday party Sunday evening, and we will have a few friends over this Saturday. She is very excited to be "big and three" Karl and I get a kick out of the big part, but hey, what can you do. Emily was almost more excited about Sydney's upcoming birthday than Sydney herself, so it was sweet to see her helping her sister with presents, and trying to stay calm about the whole thing.
As always we are slowly making progress on the house. We have the most recent progress up on Flickr, along with some fun shots of April & Caleb from our recent trip to DC.
We hope to finish the kitchen project before the party, so Karl has taken 2 days off work to try and get all the work done. More pictures to follow!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/70208657@N00/
Monday, June 11, 2007
Bathroom & Closet are painted
This is the garden after we got a little help from a local landscaper who can and knocked on our door.
The playroom after is/was cleaned.
The bedroom not quite as tidy, but better than most days. We tried blackout shades, but I don't think it does anything useful.
See the new crown moulding Karl put in!-Notice the lovely green paint too!
This was a weed growning right next to the little plastic shed. In Karls' other hand is a baby weed of the same variety. Crazy huh!
Hip Hip Hoorray!
It only took 3 false starts in the bathroom to get the right color. Both false starts had perfectly edged in areas around the tub & closet door I should add. But now it is painted, and the orange & bright blue are going to be a distant memory.
They are green now-pictures are coming. The kitchen was going to be green, and after painting one wall, we decided the kitchen really wants to be a lovely yellow color. We hope to install the new cabinets this week-more painting. We need to demo some tile, and smooth the walls. We don't plan to replace the tile at this point, but feel free to cast a ballet in favor of tile if you think it is a selling point.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
More & More progress
Here is our first pass at organizing the office. We had to clear the floor before Katrina got here so she would have a place to sleep.
Well, it has been a fun few week here since I got back from my trip. I could not resist the lure of another kitchen project, so I had to start painting the cabinets to resurface them. I am happy to report it looks great but it will take a while to finish.
Katrina, Karl's sister, came with her 3 kids on Saturday night and spent the past few days with us. We had a blast, and so did the kids. Together Katrina and I were able to get a lot done on the kitchen, and she painted the half bath downstairs. We have curtains up now in the fishbowl downstairs. We also got a blackout shade in the misguided hope it would get the girls to sleep in a little longer. So far no real success, well who knows maybe it has been successful and we just don't know it.
We finally got the carpet in stairs replaced yesterday and it is so clean a fresh and lovely. Katrina and I were thrilled to stop cringing when the kids played on the carpet, and we don't have to wear shoes! And the eau de Dog is finally out of the house.
Katrina, Karl's sister, came with her 3 kids on Saturday night and spent the past few days with us. We had a blast, and so did the kids. Together Katrina and I were able to get a lot done on the kitchen, and she painted the half bath downstairs. We have curtains up now in the fishbowl downstairs. We also got a blackout shade in the misguided hope it would get the girls to sleep in a little longer. So far no real success, well who knows maybe it has been successful and we just don't know it.
We finally got the carpet in stairs replaced yesterday and it is so clean a fresh and lovely. Katrina and I were thrilled to stop cringing when the kids played on the carpet, and we don't have to wear shoes! And the eau de Dog is finally out of the house.
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