another random piece of information

I forgot to mention this in my last post, so I'll just make a new one. Yesterday I ran a few errands by myself. Dave loaded up the van with all the garbage from Christmas. I also had to run to the bank and the post office. I counted 11 huge black garbage bags that I tossed into the huge garbage bin at the transfer station, and the receipt slip the garbage man gave me said the weight loss (the van got weighed before and after dumping the garbage because they charge per ton) was 120 pounds. 120 pounds of garbage!!! Wow.

the rest of Christmas and Calvin's first birthday

I can't really remember what I left off with, but I think I wrote about Thurs and Fri. Saturday, we didn't have anything planned. The guys did, though. They decided to borrow a friend's truck and try shop for a refrigerator. So, Dave, Josh and Sean left and took care of some errands and went to Sears. They were gone all day, so the ladies were back at home with the kids. I don't really remember doing anything specific. The boys watched a couple of movies, the some of the kids got bundled up and went outside to play in the snow. I went outside with Violet for a little while. She and Alyssa had fun playing ring around the rosy multiple times and falling over. I don't have any snow pants for Violet, so she got pretty soaked. Alyssa and Emily and I spent awhile at the table working on stringing beads to make a little penguin keychain. That took a couple hours. All through the middle of doing this, we were breaking up little kid spats, cooking breakfast, lunch and dinner, and cleaning. That evening after the kids went to bed, we pulled out the kids' new Christmas presents - the white boards - and played pictionary (boys against girls, which turned out to be a bad idea. The girls pulled ahead at the beginning of the game and the guys got pouty) I pulled out of the game a little early so I could make Calvin a cake. We decided that we had so much leftover ingredients for breakfast burritos that we would serve those again Sunday morning because they were easy and fast, instead of the oven baked french toast. We made that Monday morning instead. Everybody got up on Sunday morning in time to leave for Bethany at 8:55. I was impressed. It was a crazy morning, but we pulled it off. Everyone seemed to enjoy being at the chapel that morning. Bobbie Smith talked about dreams, but I was serving in the nursery watching kids for the month of December, so I missed it. I watched Renee, Austin, Calvin, Evan, Adalynn, and Lynnea with Barb Anderson's help. Sunday evening was spent playing lots of rounds of Boggle. Sean was surprised at how many words Emily came up with that he didn't think about! Sunday was also Calvin's first birthday. We asked my mom, dad and sister to come celebrate with us on Sunday afternoon. He slept through the lasagna, garlic bread and salad lunch but woke up just in time to eat a piece of lasagna and his first bite of cake. I cut him a slice of the 2 layer yellow cake with chocolate frosting. He put his hands on the frosting and licked his fingers, and that was it. He got both hands on the cake and lifted it up to his mouth and started sucking on it like it was a sippy cup. It took him just a few minutes to demolish the whole piece. He kept finding smashed up pieces of cake between his fingers and in his bib pocket. I took him to his 1 yr check up on Monday right in the middle of the time when everybody was packing up and leaving. I said goodbye before I left knowing they'd be done before I got home. His appt was at 1:30. He only had to get one vaccination and a finger prick (to test for anemia and lead levels). He screamed only for a second after the shot and didn't even react when his finger got pricked. The little chunk weighs 23 lbs 6 oz, is 30 1/2 " tall and head is 18 3/4". He's between the 50-75 percentile on all 3 measurements. When I got home, the house was silent. Dave was a little sad. He was working on putting Violet down for a nap. After she went to sleep, we just stood there and were like "whoa! its over!" and "I can't believe how quiet it is in here!" We spent some time cleaning up, collecting laundry and starting that process. We have LOTS of leftover food. Too much bread. We went through all 10 gallons of milk, though. We just have a 1/2 a gallon of whole milk left. The verdict on the fridge was just to not buy one right now. Financially it wouldn't be smart - we have a working fridge in the garage, why not use it. So now we just have to move it into the spot in the kitchen so its more functional. Right now I'm waiting for the last load of laundry to finish in the washer. I have a load to fold right now, so while the kids are napping I'm going to go do that. Nicky and Dorothy Rowe (and their two kids, Darcy and Abigail), Shawn and Kim Thompson, and Rachel are coming to visit for New Year's. I think we'll make them help us finish leftovers, too!

Christmas

I don't have tons of time to write, but I'll try recap what has been going on at our house! My parents, Rachel, Jay and Molly came to our house on Tuesday evening and we all enjoyed Godfather's Pizza and opened presents. Jay and Molly returned to CR and every one else stayed. Violet slept in a pack and play in my closet, Calvin slept in a pack and play in Dave's closet. They both seem to be sleeping just fine in there. Violet doesn't seem to be able to climb in and out of it by herself well enough so she had a #2 accident. :( She said she would try again next time. Another thing to note: Our refrigerator picked a bad day to stop working. It died on Christmas Eve. We put a bunch of things outside on the porch since it was below freezing, and packed the rest of the food into the refrigerator/freezer in the garage. *sigh* Everything is working fine the way we have things set up now, but its still annoying. Dave wanted to go out and buy a fridge, but I said no, not this very moment, lets just make do with what we have right now and deal with it next week. The LaMarche crew all arrived Wednesday evening. Sean and April were the first to arrive around 9 pm (they came from the furthest distance and were the first to arrive - I was impressed!). All the kids were really excited to have a place to run around. Violet was extremely excited to see everybody, but she was a little shy and nervous at first. I had just given her a bath prior to everybody's arrival, so she was in her PJs and her hair was wet. Martha was following them on the road so she was next to come in, and Josh and Carrie were just a 1/2 hour behind everybody else. The kids all didn't get to bed until 10:30-ish. So needless to say, getting them all to bed was a struggle! Austin and Renee are in Calvin's room (Renee in his crib, Austin in a tent). Martha is sleeping in Violet's bed, Josh and Carrie have the guest bedroom, and Sean and April and their kids are all in the basement. I think the two older girls, Emily and Alyssa, and sharing the queen air mattress, and the boys are sleeping in sleeping bags on the floor in the basement area, Lynnea is in a pack and play underneath the basement stairs, and Adalynn is in a pack and play next to S&A's room. S&A are in the basement office bedroom sleeping on a big air mattress. Its nice that everybody seems to be very comfortable. The last 2 nights Violet did whine and cry to sleep in her own bed, but she seems happy to sleep in the crib once she gets all settled in there with her special yellow pillow and pink blankie. Calvin is sleeping A LOT. Last night he went to bed at 6 pm and woke up at 8:30 am. The first morning everybody woke up was Christmas morning. I had cinnamon rolls and an egg casserole to bake which we prepared the night before. All the kids opened their stockings after breakfast. The kids watched a couple movies, some kids took naps, etc...and the rest of the day was spent getting Christmas dinner ready. We were all bustling around the kitchen, making turkeys, a ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes, broccoli, fresh baked pies...there was wayyyyy too much food! We took the turkeys out too early and didn't realize they were undercooked until we went to cut them so we put them back in the oven, decided to forego the entire turkey idea and just eat ham. It was delicious, though!! So we cut the turkeys after dinner once they finished cooking and are saving all the meat for other things. Oh well. The next morning (Friday) we had breakfast burritos and banana bread. We headed off to Lee's gym by 11 am and it turned out to be a GREAT time!! The kids were well behaved, nobody got hurt, and everybody thorougly enjoyed themselves. I even got a chance to jump around and do a few tricks. Don't worry mom, I didn't do anything dangerous and I didn't hurt myself. A few front and back flips, a rudy, and some baranis. :) :) The kids got really worn out and most of the kids took good naps when we got home around 2pm after a hot dog lunch. This evening, we had spaghetti and played lots of games of boggle. Right now we're about to go start a game of scattergories. I'm tired, but its so fun hanging out with everyone! Will write more later. I will mention that Calvin is still my little barnacle (Carrie's term for a leg-clinging child) and Violet is being GREAT. She is sooo happy to have tons of kids to play with and enjoying every minute. She hasn't really been too much trouble other than when we tell her its time to go to bed. Usually its just way past her bedtime and she's overtired. Today after lunch (and after having a cookie), April found her in her bathroom brushing her teeth so she could get the cookie out of her teeth. haha!! She is playing well with everybody, but very sensitive to when someone else is pushing her stroller. There have been a few moments when she would walk up to me very slowly with sad face and say "Mom, I'm sad for my stroller." So, I had to deal with that a few times, but other than that, she's been great. She's learning great lessons in sharing!! I'm already dreading the moment when everybody leaves and she's alone here with nobody to play with. She is going to miss them!

He didn't wake up until 11 am.

I know! I had to check on him once to make sure he was still breathing. I couldn't believe Calvin slept that late. He broke all "sleeping in" records this morning! He went to bed at 8:30, normal time. I guess he's just a growing little boy. I wonder if his clothes will fit next week??? Its been a good day so far! I haven't showered yet, but that is OK. I didn't go to class again because Calvin slept in so late. I am going to try convince Rachel, my mom and Molly to come with me to step class on Wednesday morning at 9 am and let the guys watch the kiddos for an hour. Mom, if you're reading this, whatddya think? I'm getting really excited for Christmas!! The house seems in order, I feel ready for everyone to come (I still have one last shopping trip to make for milk, bread and salad). I don't really have an air mattress solution yet, but I have a spare so hopefully that will work. Dave is working today and tomorrow, but he said its hard to get focused and be productive cuz he said he's already stuck in holiday mode!

He slept so much last night!

My little boy must be growing like mad right now. He has an appetite the size of an adult, and he slept 15 hours last night. I put him down to bed at 6:15 pm, and he slept in until 9:15 this morning. And then he ate a huge breakfast, and then went back down for a nap at 10:15 and its almost NOON and he's still sleeping. This is crazy! BBC was cancelled this morning due to an across-the-state travel advisory.

It leaks..

..anybody know how to fix a leaky air mattress when you can't find the hole?? It lost a lot of air last night. I'm thinking I need to try my other air mattress. I peeled and cubed up 24 potatoes and stuck them in the freezer tonight. One less thing to do to prep Christmas dinner. Dave is working on installing the new vanity/mirror in the downstairs bathroom right now. Violet has woken up from sleeping all night with a dry pull up 4 out of the last 5 nights. She gets so excited to see her 3 little hearts still present at the bottom of her pull up (the hearts disappear if it gets wet). I'm not sure how this started, but she gets a prize every time she wakes up dry, and its a piece of candy. (dad, go ahead and cringe!) She gets a sucker if she wakes up dry. My disclaimer: I brush her teeth immediately afterwards! She probably needs a teeth cleaning soon. All 4 of her 2 year molars are finally all in. She still remembers trying to lay back in the dental chair and crying the last time we attempted getting her teeth cleaned. So I don't know how well it would go over. I think if I wasn't with her, she'd do fine, because she always acts the worst around mom. Of course! I caught on video a really funny moment today. Violet figured out that Calvin laughs every time she drops a toy. So, for about 5 minutes today, Calvin sat and intently watched Violet put a toy on her head and excitedly waited for her to lean her head forward and drop it on the ground, making a big thud noise. He belly-laughed every time one would hit the ground. She then would laugh in return...so it was a funny scene to watch! Another funny: Today while I was in the kitchen talking to Dave about I have no idea what, Violet comes up to me and tips her head to the side and folds her arms. She says "Mom, I was thinking. *long pause* Let's play...hide and seek!"

Its going to be a white Christmas!

We got so much snow last night! Dave opened the up the garage door and we just saw a solid block wall of snow about 2 feet up. No, the snow wasn't 2 feet deep, but the drift was. Cedar Falls schools were cancelled, so fitness class was a no go. I'm not sure I would have gone anyway, the kids woke up at 8:15. I spent an hour shoveling during the kids' naptime, but I only got 1/4 of the whole driveway done. It feels like a never-ending task. I ended up just shoveling little strips for the van's tires down the whole length of the driveway. Little did I realize until we got back outside later, that an anonymous neighbor used their snowblower on our driveway and helped us get about 3/4 of the rest of the snow left on it off for us. We were so thankful for whoever was generous enough to help us. After getting the kids to bed, we shoveled off the last remaining portion. What an effort! Dave tried starting the snow blower, but as soon as he got into the engine and drained the pipes, flood water and oil started pouring out of it. So...that's still a work in progress. We went to a little pre-holiday party at the Smith's house tonight. Everybody contributed to the meal who came. Dave and Dana brought pork loins which "the men" all grilled outside, Brook and Kris brought mashed potatoes, Trisha made a corn and mac and cheese dish, I brought a salad, and there was more food, I just can't remember what else. Pies and brownies galore for dessert. Good thing I did a lot of shoveling to burn off some of those calories, lol. Violet had a BLAST over there. She was running around happily playing the whole time, losing her pink blanket all over the place, then freaking out that she couldn't find it, then finding it, and then losing it again. Calvin was walking (well, aimlessly toddling) all over the place too but there was an open stair well so we all had to keep a close watch on him. Brook gave him his first bites of real dessert food: french silk pie. He was eating it with so much vigor! He would take a bite, and his eyes would light up and he would make repeating "Mmm!! Uhhh! Nahh!!" noises indicating he wanted more. After the rich bites of chocolate he had lots of milk to wash it down. I only nursed him 2 times today...getting down there. I'm not sure I'm ready to give it up yet, but he seems ready. We got the picture from Hobby Lobby back all framed and pretty. Dave hung it up above the fireplace last night. It looks great! We also replaced all the lighting (except for the big chandelier for the foyer, the one we picked out is too expensive for now!) above the kitchen island, dining room, and kitchen table area. They look sooo much better. The bathroom vanity/sink is also in place, but not installed. Everything seems to be coming together nicely! I can't believe everybody will be here on Wednesday!! I got the kids' pack and plays set up in our closets today, and I blew up the air mattress for Dave's brother and his wife and stuck it in the basement bedroom (Dave's office) and put sheets on it. I blew it up early so I would know if it leaked or not, so I could fix it. I don't have a lot of confidence it'll stay blown up.

A week later

And we still only have just lights on the Christmas tree, haha! We got the box of ornaments up near it, but for some reason, its just hard to open it up and start putting ornaments on it. I am sure we'll get around to making it all pretty before everybody arrives for Christmas. Violet and I played hide and seek today for a long time. She just loves that game! She is finally grasping the concept that she needs to cover her eyes when I hide and count to 10 to wait for me. She hid behind the couch, under the dining room table, behind the blue recliner chairs, and inside the coat closet. I went to work out this morning at step class. I went four times last week, and this week I think I'm going to try go at least 3 times. Violet really likes going to see "the two Kathys" there. She's getting more familiar with them and enjoys running into the gym when its all over to come find me and help me put my exercise ball and equipment away. The one time we were all done and had put everything away before the kids got to the room, she started bawling in the hallway because she never got the chance to "come get me" and help me put stuff away. It was pretty sad and sweet at the same time. She really likes it when she sees Katie there. She said today "Oooh! My friend Katie is here!" Calvin does pretty well with them too. He doesn't cry (yet) when I leave. But I just sort of disappear - he doesn't really get a big ol' goodbye because he doesn't get it yet. I think for his birthday, I'll order a birthday cake from Walmart and just let him eat it. Dave's family will all be here for Christmas, so they can help us sing happy birthday to him. Maybe I'll get him something fun, I don't know. He is going to be 1 in less than 2 weeks! Today he woke up from his nap, and he is always sooo excited to see me, he can hardly stand it to wait while I straighten out his messed up blankets over the edge of his crib. He was playing with the ball popper just a few moments ago, and noticed a yellow ball shoot out of the air shooter and fly off the toy landing a few feet away. He said "uh oh!" and walked over to get the ball and put it back in the toy. He's just getting too smart! He can babble "mama, baba, and uh oh". Everything is uh oh though. Just seeing something he wants, he grabs for it and misses, he says uh oh. We sold an old bag of dog food that we had for Abby just yesterday. That bag of dog food has been with us for a long time! It was still sealed, never opened, and not expired yet, so we listed it on craigslist and someone bought it for $10. Violet wondered where Abby was again when she saw the bag of dog food. Last night was the Christmas program at Bethany. It was so cute. Dave was with his Sunday School class, so I was by myself with Calvin and trying to video tape/take pictures at the same time. The moment Violet's class walked up there, he started crying, so Maggie took him out for me. I was so glad she grabbed him. I got most of the part she participated in on video. She was supposed to say "sea" as part of the Creation portion of the Seven C's of History program. She clutched Ivy's hand and her blankie at the same time, leaned into the mike, and said "I". She tried again, said "I" and then "Sea!" She didn't cry and freak out like she did at VBS a few months ago. I guess with that pink blankie, anything is possible to her. We almost forgot to bring it with us yesterday morning. We were pulling into the parking lot, and she started crying for her blankie, so we had to turn around and get it from the house so she could stand to make it at Sunday School. I know she won't drag that thing around with her forever. At least I hope. I still have my yellow baby blankie. Rachel forced me to wash it, and now its folded in my closet. At least I finally stopped sleeping with it! LOL OK, I should get off this website. Dave is up from his lunch break!

We got a Christmas tree

...and its up on its stand in the front room by the front door. It took us 3 days to find the time to string lights on it. I wonder when we'll get around to putting the ornaments and candy canes on it? We found the tree this past Saturday after walking around Kris Kringle's tree farm for about 30 minutes. Dave cut it down and we drove it back on top of our van. I've been rather sporatic about my blog lately...nothing really consistent. Its late, and I should go to bed!

I just need to document this

I'm home all by myself! Dave took the kids with him to the hardware store to get a few things. Today was one of those days that the time just couldn't go fast enough. There's just a lot to prepare for. I went to work out class this morning, then decided to run to Walmart and get some groceries. I heard the weather is going to get nasty, so I got basics, like milk and bread. It was a chore dealing with Violet at the store - she was such a pill. She was walking so incredibly slow that I felt like all I said to her was "Violet, c'mon, Violet, this way...." and on and on. I picked her up and put her in the cart, and this set off a major whine-fest. She cried and cried that I put her in the cart - she wanted to walk. No...that wasn't going to happen, I was moving too fast. I called Dave in the middle of all this so he could read me a recipe I wanted to make, and 1/2 way through the call, my phone battery died. I tried turning it back on for a second to finish the call, but it wouldn't even do that for me. I went back to the customer service area looking for a pay phone, so I spent $1.50 in three calls trying to get a hold of him. He didn't answer. I was sooo mad. So I got half a recipe worth of stuff to make. I guess I'll have to make another run to the store later. *sigh* I got the kids home and fed them lunch. They were just SO tired and hungry (NOT a good combination), it wasn't even worth dealing with behavior. After they fell asleep, I worked in the kitchen for awhile, I chopped 3 peppers and 3 onions for the spaghetti sauce I'm going to make ahead of time for when Dave's family is here. I got the chicken out for dinner and let that thaw (of course it was still frozen when dinner time rolled around), and just ran around the house all afternoon while they slept getting things cleaned up, put piles of papers away, etc. During dinner while Violet was eating, she was watching Calvin munch on some crackers. She said "Calvin has a lot of crappers in his mouth!" and after dinner when I was loading dishes into the dishwasher, she came over and started messing with the dirty dishes in the lower rack. Dave pulled her back and said, "What are you doing?" She said "I'm bothering mommy." Oh great! So what do I do when I have the house to myself? Vacuum the entire upstairs of the house! I feel like I never have an appropriate time to get it done, because it takes about a half hour to do it. While the kids are awake, I can't leave them unattended downstairs alone, and while they are sleeping I don't want to be zooming past their bedroom doors. I'm wanting to sit down, but I feel bad resting because there is just so much to get done. I started Calvin on whole milk today. His first few sips were a little unsure. He seemed to like it better tonight at dinner. So far no allergic reactions. He has eaten yogurt and cheese and done OK with that, so I think he'll be OK with milk. I'm really looking forward to Christmas, even though the preparation is going to be a little hard. I am excited that Violet "gets" Christmas a little more this year, and she knows she has to wait to open presents. She was drawing on a piece of paper today and putting stickers on it. She folded the paper and said to me "I made you a card, but you can't see it until Christmas. You just have to wait!" That made me laugh! "Ok my dear!" I said back to her. "I'll wait til Christmas!"

some goofy pictures

As I sit here and wait for my cinnamon roll dough to rise, I was browsing through my pics and found these too goofy not to share.

I'm making cinnamon rolls at 10 pm!

I know, I feel kind of crazy. But the house is so calm now that the kids are sleeping, and Dave is out in the garage working on something...there's always something to do out there. So, I decided to fire up my new kitchen aid and make a big batch of cinnamon roll dough. I'm halfway experimenting, though. I am going to try making the dough, letting it rise, rolling it out and putting on the sugar and cinnamon and everything else, forming the rolls, and then freezing them. I want to try make ahead tons of fluffy gooey cinnamon rolls for Christmas morning, so if I can pull this off and make them ahead of time, things will go much better. After I freeze them tonight, I'll pull one out and thaw it overnight so it does its second rise, and see how it bakes up. I've addressed about 45 of the 50 Christmas cards that we're planning on sending out. I got the address labels in the mail last week so those are stuck on the envelopes, and now I'm just waiting for us to finish the letter we plan to write in it and stick in the picture we took. I'm still waiting for that to come in the mail too. Dave told me something cute that Violet said this morning when she and the rest of her Sunday School class were up on stage at Bethany practicing for the kids' Christmas program this morning. Dave had to bribe her to stand up there with a piece of candy. She was so scared. He told her she could hold Ivy's hand, so she held on tight to her hand and then looked at Ivy, and said "You have stripes, and I have hearts!" with a big smile on her face. He said it was really sweet. She was wearing a black/pink dress with hearts, and Ivy was wearing a striped shirt, so what she said was right. ha!

I think we're going to attempt Christmas cards this year

And its going to be a feat! Dave and I are usually too lazy to send out Christmas cards and pictures and all that for the holidays. But I'm forcing myself to do it this year. Mainly because a lot of happened this year, I'm sure some people will be wondering what ever happened to us, and also to update people of our new address. I'm thinkin' we'll be in this house for a long, long time...so hopefully it is the last move for awhile, and we stop the track record of moving every year.

I made today the day to take our Christmas picture. I got everybody dressed in red and called up Dave from work to take his lunch break - and he set up the tripod and the camera in the front yard facing the house. As soon as he got the camera placed in the right spot, we dashed outside quick (its only 20 degrees out!), sat on the front steps, took 2 pictures, and ran back inside. BRRRRR!!!!! The pic turned out pretty cute. I uploaded the pic to Clarkcolor.com and ordered some copies to put inside the Christmas cards we got. So I'm commited. All you who are reading, you should get one!

We're getting things planned for the holidays. I found out I can rent a bunch of things from the chapel for the time that Dave's family is all here. An extra table, some chairs, a couple high chairs, and some kitchen items. I'd like to get a big stock pot because I plan to make a huge batch of creamy chicken and wild rice soup on Christmas Eve - that should take care of everybody as they come to our house at different times.

We've done some painting in the house. I think I like it. Not sure yet, though. Its hard to look at bare painted walls with nothing on them. The details will make it look much, much better.

Calvin's favorite word is "uh oh" - still. I can not believe he's gonna be one in one month!! Today for lunch he was a garbage disposal, eating everything else that Violet didn't want. She gave him pieces of banana from her plate and the crusts off her sandwich. He also finished nearly half a can of straight pumpkin. That should do it for his vitamin A intake. :)

Thanksgiving 2008

The last couple days were spent at my mom and dad's house in Mason City. We got there Thanksgiving day around noon and my mom had the meal ready by 1:30. She served a big ol' juicy and delicious turkey, a sweet potato dish, a rice stuffing, dinner rolls, and frozen slice of fruit salad, and a pecan pie with sweetened whipped topping. I'm hungry just thinking about it! That evening we spent just hanging around, sang a few songs on the piano with Rachel and I attempting horribly to sight read on the piano. Jay and Molly joined us late in the evening. We played a game of Apples to Apples and got to bed late. Violet really enjoyed seeing everybody. She was running all over the place like a crazy monkey with all the attention. She slept on a cot in the same room with Rachel. I guess she woke up really early. The next day mom had a yummy cheesy egg casserole with toasted bagels and clementine oranges. We walked around the mall to pass time while we waited for the museum at the Meredith Wilson Square to open up at 1 pm. The mall was crazy busy - and Violet was a tired mess. At one point, she was rubbing her eyes so hard. Dave picked her up and said "Aw, Violet, your eyes are so red!" She said through tears "No, my eyes are blue!" We got back home and were all really hungry - we had yummy pear and walnut salads and southwestern turkey soup for a late lunch. We left Mason City around 5 pm. Jay and Molly came over to our house to hang out a little longer, so we picked up a couple of Papa Murphy's pizzas. On our car ride home, Violet kept asking where we were going. When we pulled up to our house and opened the garage, she started crying because she realized we weren't at Grandma's house anymore. She cried and cried, asking for grandma and grandpa and then her pink blanket. She eventually got over that when she realized we were going to have pizza for supper. She really lights up and just loves having family around. I know she gets bored with "just mom" all the time. She conned Jay into playing hide and seek over and over and over - and asked him to help her stack blocks. They made a tower taller than she was! I am really tired just sitting here. Rachel just left for Lincoln, NE. She should have about a 6 hour drive. We had pumpkin muffins for breakfast and grilled cheese and apple slices for lunch. I could easily lay down and take a nap. The kids are supposed to be sleeping right now. I think Violet is sleeping, but Calvin keeps letting out occasional yells and coos. *sigh* He just said "nah nah!!" as I typed that last sentence. I wish he would sleep because I don't have the energy to deal with him right now. Dave has been outside all morning, sucking up leaves with the leaf destroyer, he sprayed off the front porch because the pumpkins that went bad leaked pumpkin juice everywhere (yuck), he put out the Christmas wreath that everybody else on Briarwood Drive puts out after Thanksgiving. The street is very pretty at night with each house's wreath lit up.

going to "see the rabbits"

We're taking a trip to Cedar Rapids and Iowa City today. The first stop we're meeting Molly at David's Bridal to get Violet's flower girl dress fitted for the wedding, and afterwards, we're turning in the Audi to the dealership where we leased it. I shouldn't be sitting here anyway, because I plan to leave in about 10-15 minutes. Dave is going to drive down later with the Audi and I'll meet him there after we get what we need to do at David's Bridal for Violet. We got some painting done last night and today. I put the first coat of red paint over the fireplace last night, and I got up early before the kids woke up to finish the 2nd coat. I prepped one wall to paint the tan color during Dave's lunchbreak, and we completed most of what I taped. There is lots more to do though! The good thing about the tan color is it is one-coat coverage and its excellent, so there is no need to do a 2nd coat. The colors are beautiful. It looks warmer, richer, and really nice. I can't wait to frame the painting we picked out and put it above the fireplace! Ok, I need to get stuff packed up for the trip....leaving soon.

house for sale!

We have decided to put the damaged house on the market for sale. The previous owner of that house is practically begging us to. He doesn't want to see it torn down if the city buys it out. So....we'll see what becomes of that. Whoever buys it won't be allowed to purchase flood insurance or be eligible for flood relief from FEMA or the SBA though. They have already washed their hands of the property.

Calvin and his blankie

Didn't I just do laundry the other day? Well, I did lots more today. 3 loads. Anyway, that is besides the point. I remembered laundry because I washed Calvin's special blankie today. I think he's forming an attachment to one. It has two sides, one super slippery like satin, one side is really soft with raised bumps. His name is even embroidered on it. I've discovered him in the morning when he wakes up clutching this special blanket. When I put him to bed for a nap or bedtime, he always looks for it, and lays on it and rubs it between his hands and his face as he sucks on his paci and falls asleep. Its just way too cute. I had to wash it because one of the first things he did this morning was throw up all over it. :( I guess his tummy was a little too full and when I hold him upright too quick, it all just comes right up. Blech. I'm just getting around to washing the sheets and making the guest bed up from when Carrie was here. I could have done it earlier, as with most things, but I was waiting for another load of laundry to wash with it so I didn't wash just one load of sheets. Time to vacuum, too. Violet hit a new low today with her almost-nightly vegetable battle. She walked over to the garbage and threw a handful in the garbage! I was so mad. I put her back in her chair, strapped her in, and went over to the garbage and fished out the veggies she threw away. I could only find a green bean and a couple peas, so I rinsed them off and put them back on her plate. The look on Violet's face was priceless. She was shocked I did that. But the girl needs to LEARN! She knows she's supposed to sit and finish those veggies. Its really up to her how long the torture continues. She finallllly finished them all. I hate food battles, I really do. But I can't just let her eat crap. Her reward was a brownie, but she only ate 1 bite of it. Guess she was full! Dave is over at the flooded house right now trying to get the tires off the old pick up truck that got completely submerged by the flood water. He is going to give the tires to his brother Sean who has a van on the same Ford chassis that will fit his van. The rubber tires on that pick up truck are brand spankin' new, so it would be a waste for them to go to the junkyard. I'm glad Sean can use them. We just need to ship them to him - which I think Sean is going to pay for. This is going to make the trip for Sean and April to come out to our house for Christmas!!! Dave is so excited to salvage something good from that thing. He just called me to tell me the tools he brought over there to get the bolts unscrewed are too small, so he is making a run to Farm and Fleet. He feels sick, tired, and dizzy...poor guy. There is so much to do between now and Christmas. So, it has been worked out for Dave's entire family to come to our house for Christmas. All his siblings are committed to coming! That means....*drumroll*....9 adults, and 14 children in my house for 5 days!!! AGH!!!! We're going to prepare meals ahead of time and freeze them, so the work will be done before they all get here. That is the work we need to do. Mostly food. Planning, organization, and delegation. This entertaining/hosting thing is fun and exciting, but its like a full time job!! Not to mention a little pricey. I need to get Violet off to bed!

ok, one thing made me laugh today

I was driving in the van today going to the post office and Violet noticed a guy running on the sidewalk. He was obviously exercising, in his running gear and holding a music player. She says "Mommy! What is that man doing?" I said "He's running." She says "What he forgot?" LOL!

hello, new readers!

Hi Rachel, mom and dad! I just opened up my blog so family can read too. Feel free to leave comments if you want. I'm kind of numb right now. I'm so tired of the whining and the screaming. Violet has been extra sensitive today, and Dave and I picked a BAD night to pick a food battle with her. She is strapped into her booster chair trying to finish her food. Its only one piece of broccoli and about 4 bites of chicken. But still. We told her we weren't going to talk to her until she was done eating her food, and she's been sitting in that booster chair crying for the last hour. And during that last hour, Calvin was sitting in his chair, crying because he didn't want any of the food we were serving. So he went to bed at 6:45 and she's still screaming. Dave just went over to the damaged house to look at the tires on the truck. He thinks the tires on the truck that was ruined in the flood will fit his brother Sean's van. Sean said he needs new tires on his vehicle which would be one more hurdle to jump over in order to make it here for Christmas. Dave is missing his family so much, and he really wants them to come. So this is his way of trying to make that happen. She just dropped her fork on the floor. *sigh* I think I'm going to lose it! Do I talk to her? Because I said I wasn't going to. I took both kids with me to the post office this afternoon. Before we got in there, I set her expectations and told her she was to stay right next to me and not run off. Well, the first thing she did once I got up to the counter to speak with the lady helping me was to run away from me. I said excuse me to the person helping me, and I walked over to her and calmly gave her a nice big pinch on the rear end. She gave me a very shocked expression. I told her "You disobeyed mommy. I told you to stay next to me." She immediately stuck to my leg and didn't move far from me the whole time I was speaking to the person at the post office. She even cheered up on the walk back to the van. I was holding Calvin the whole time so it was a tough trip. Tomorrow Jeanette (the designer helping us) is coming over to talk paint colors. We got the painting but still need to have it framed. I hope we can pick some colors tomorrow. Since the mirror fell off the wall in the bathroom, we need to redo all that too. Maybe tomorrow will be more cheerful! Gah!

I feel better!

It must have just been one of those famous 24 hour stomach bugs. I took some immodium, a probiotic, some vitamins, and got a lot of sleep last night. My head feels a little foggy, but my body is refreshed and I am not throwing up nor do I feel like it today. I've even eaten a little today...a bowl of cereal, and a carrot. Dave was a big helper last night. He got home, and put both kids to bed while I laid on the floor covered up with a big blanket next to the fire place. He was absolutely exhausted when he got home after driving a whole day, 10 or 11 hours in the car. Calvin went down around 7:30, and Violet finally got to bed by 9 pm. She was just a ball of energy, SO excited to see her dad. So she was harder to get to sleep. I should have set up the video camera for the moment he walked in the door, because it was so sweet. I was laying on the couch and I heard the garage door open so I knew he'd be walking in the door any minute. I said "Violet! I think daddy is home!" She got the most excited look on her face, and then the garage door shut and the door to the house opened. He walked in, and she just tore across the house yelling "Daddy is home!" and gave him a huge hug!! He was grinning so big. Calvin even got in on the excitement and toddled over there screeching. He picked them both up and enjoyed that moment. Aww. Its laundry day around here. I am working on my 3rd load. All of Dave's hunting stuff needed to be washed, including his sleeping bag, lots of warm clothes which are huge and bulky, and sheets and towels. Its one kid down, one kid up today. Calvin took a nap, then Violet went down for a nap, then he woke up, then he went down for another nap, then she woke up...I wonder when he's going to wake up? He's been very sensitive lately. Anything seems to set him off screaming, especially if I walk away from a room that he is in. That makes it hard to get anything done.