Holiday insanity strikes again

I decided - yesterday - that I want to make something for Andrew for Christmas. I have made blankets for the other three kids, but not Andrew - granted, Justin's blanket is kid sized, but it's still a something. So, I took myself off on a wild pattern hunt, found one I liked, and took off. Unfortunately, the pattern itself has flaws - some major ones, starting with the wrong amounts of yarn, an inaccurate starting chain, and a first row that has three stitches that don't belong. So, I frogged almost 45 minutes of my time, pieced together a schematic, and will start fresh today.

Cross your fingers I can do this in - umm - 16 days, as I can't work on it on weekends. A twin bed sized blanket. Oh, I have indeed lost my mind.

Here's a teaser - some of you may be able to figure out what the pattern is - note Frodo in the picture. He's a clue. :) I did change one thing - I added a light grey and the variegated white, grey and black yarn. The original calls for black, the heather-y grey, and white.



I am going to have to conquer my hatred of weaving in ends for this project. It's so cute though I couldn't resist. I dragged Betsy with me to get yarn yesterday and I think she's a little jealous that I'm making it for him instead of her.

Tuesday Ten: Things that get me up at night

As I find myself sitting at the computer at 2 AM on Wednesday morning, this seemed appropriate.


1. A sick child (this is what has me up tonight - Justin has croup)


2. A trip to the bathroom


3. A cramp in my leg or back (usually caused by a feline laying on that part)


4. Need for a drink


5. "Moooooooooooooommmmmmmmmyyyyyyyy!"


6. A loud noise


7. "Meee-oooooow" (Frodo asking to come in after galavanting outside all night - he loves to wake me up around 5 or 5:30, but will sometimes ask to come in earlier)


8. Overactive brain - this usually doesn't wake me up, but it will keep me up, and potentially get me out of bed.


9. Coughing. I'm prone to it, particularly once we hit autumn or winter, and will get out of bed rather than wake up Mike.

10. It bears repeating - a trip to the bathroom. Having children has destroyed my capacity to go more than 6 hours without said trip. Very annoying. This is the number one reason I find myself awake during the night - every night.

Bonsoir!

Tuesday Ten: Things I'm Thankful For

It's probably a little bit cliche given Thanksgiving is in two days, but that's okay. It's always a good thing to look over your life and count your blessings. And - the good news - ten things is really just a drop in the bucket.

1. My faith. Life would be nothing without it.

2. My family. From dh to the kids, my dad, my mil, extended family, "adopted" family - they all make up pieces of who I am, and I am thankful to have had them all play a vital role in my life.

3. My home. I'm so thankful for this home that my dh has worked his heart out to get and keep for us.

4. Four beds made every morning, without a word from me. This represents more than a made bed - it represents four children who are learning to be responsible for themselves. Likewise, the empty dishwasher means that one of them - without prompting from me - decided to empty it because they know having it empty and waiting is a bit help for me (with 6 people there is always something waiting to go in it!)

5. Mike's job. It represents a lot of things for me. It is stability, it is hard work, it is a gift, it is the financial backbone (and really, the entire skeletal system, lol) of our family, since we are a one income household. As an added bonus, the company itself is family oriented and a positive, healthy work environment. It's a good fit, not just for Mike, but for our family.

6. Food, and enough of it. I sometimes complain that I would like this ingredient or that ingredient (I've mentioned I love to cook?!) but when it comes down to it, we don't go hungry, we have plenty of food, and there are lots of opportunities for me to cook. I can't say that I have ever been in a situation where I have not had enough to eat - God has always provided for us, even when things were at their worst - and I can only be thankful for that.

7. Good friends. I am sometimes baffled, and overwhelmed, by the sheer volume of friends that I have amassed along the way. For a girl who had only a couple of friends and was often very lonely in high school and my brief venture into college, I can't help but be continually aware of it. They span a wide age range and geographical distance, different ways of thinking and contrasting life situations, both in my daily life and online. And they're people with whom I know I can trust anything, they are true, genuine, real friends. What a gift that is.

8. Books. I don't remember a time when I couldn't (didn't) read. I would rather have my books than all my yarn, my pots and pans, a tv. A well read book is a friend, and a good book can sometimes put a world that seems off kilter back into its proper perspective. At least for me.

9. My cats. All that adoration and disdain wrapped up in such a gorgeous, cuddlable little package. There is nothing like having a friendly cat (or three) on your lap, or waking up on a cold morning with a warm, purring weight curled up on the small of your back.

10. Changing seasons. I can't imagine living somewhere I couldn't enjoy the stark beauty of snow, the pale green budding beauty of spring, the vivid colors and scents of autumn, even the shimmering heat of summer (although I am thankful that summer is only a few short months here). They are all beautiful.

Locks of Love

I've been wanting to do it for several years now and finally managed it ... this time I stuck to my guns and didn't get a wretched haircut when I'd almost reached the 10 inch goal that sent me back to square one, lol. I went in yesterday to get a simple trim and ended up deciding - while I was there - to just go for it. The salon we went to isn't a participating salon, but they knew about it, were very nice, and followed the rules to cut the ponytail for me. All that's left now is to mail off the tail.

Check out Locks of Love to find out more about what they do.



I normally can't stand having short hair - I despise it, I don't like having "bits" of hair around my face - but being able to do something like this makes it worthwhile for me. Other than being a little shell shocked at the initial "chop" and getting too much shampoo in the shower this morning, much to my surprise, I've actually not been bothered by it and am enjoying the lightness. I am so glad to have finally fulfilled this goal! It's taken 4 years (5?) to get it done.

And now - I get the fun of doing it all over again. :)

Tuesday Ten: Movies we enjoy as a family

Yes, I know it's Friday. I started it on Tuesday, my computer crashed, and I never got back to it. Can I also say that I am SO THANKFUL that it is Friday??

1. Star Wars (any of them - this is more Mike and the kids than me, but they all really enjoy those)

2. Night at the Museum

3. Shrek (any of them)

4. Toy Story 2

5. Nanny McPhee

6. The Wizard of Oz

7. The Grinch That Stole Christmas (either the old class or the Jim Carrey version)

8. Polar Express - we watch this every year the day after Thanksgiving. Kind of a way of welcoming in the Christmas seasons.

9. The Incredibles

10. The Spongebob Squarepants movie - okay, okay, I know that's sad, but we love Spongebob here. LOL!

Happy 7th Birthday Andrew!!!

I can't believe my boy is seven!

Newborn ...


One ...


Two ...


Three ...


Four ...


Five ...


Six ...


SEVEN!!!


Happy Birthday Andrew!!! I love you!

Kid pictures

Since it's been so long, I figured I'd better get caught up on some pictures of the kids. They can grow quite a bit in a short time. I'll also try and do a little bit of an update for each, too.

Just for fun, here's a series of pictures of all four taken just about every two months.

From the last day of school in June (taken right after Andrew's kindergarten "graduation"):



Here's a picture from the first day of school (September):



And Halloween (we have three ninjas and a fairy princess):



Brendan ...



Let's see. He's in fifth grade now. It has been a bit of a challenge for him; they emphasize taking ownership (being responsible) for a lot more things than in years past. He prefers to let things just happen and hope they end up the way he wants them to, so he's been having to learn some tough lessons. He started band, and much to my surprise, he chose flute! This of course presents a whole new battle (practicing!) but time will tell whether he decides he wants to play enough to hold up his end of it. Extracurriculars - he played baseball in the spring, continued through All Stars over the summer, and then played fall baseball. He is in his final year of cub scouts and looking forward to crossing over to BSA in February.

Betsy ...



Betsy is still our household "sunshine." She is in fourth grade this year and continues to blossom. This is the first year (and teacher) to mention her gift with writing - I've seen it since she started writing stories before she knew all her letters, but this teacher is the first to comment on it. She started chorus this year and is really, really enjoying that. She is still in Girl Scouts - she's a junior this year - and has been having a blast. She also tried her first sport this fall - soccer. We were very impressed (and surprised) that she has a knack for it, she really gets in there and goes after the ball.

Andrew & Justin (super heroes, of course, note the "capes")



Andrew is in first grade now. That has been quite an adjustment from half days, but he's doing well. We've seen a sudden jump in his attention to details (his handwriting has improved dramatically). He continues to read on an advanced level for his age (he knows the Dolch words (sight words) through third grade) and appears to really enjoy reading. He gave soccer a shot this fall and while he enjoyed it, I don't think it's his "thing." He seems to enjoy throwing the ball in more than he does running around and kicking it. He started cub scouts this fall as a Tiger Scout. One funny side note there - the assistant scoutmaster for the BS Troop Brendan will be joining is also Andrew's den leader. It's a small world!

Justin started kindergarten. He loves writing and drawing pictures now (we refused to do so before we turned 5!). He is a bundle of energy and keeps us on our toes - he is constantly popping out with something funny (the first day of school he told me school was lots of fun, it was a party). He's still a monkey - he maybe small, but he's wiry and strong and pretty fearless. Justin also gave soccer a trial run this fall and he, like Betsy, really seemed to do well. Of course we did have a couple of "games" (U5 division doesn't play games - they have sessions) where he did cartwheels down the field instead of running.

That's it for today - it's incredibly rainy and windy here (apparently we're getting some weather from Noel) and I should fine something to do with the kids. Maybe play a game. We're trying to keep the tv and game platforms to a minimum recently - it's amazing how once we're used to having them on less, the kids seem more inclined towards finding their own amusements. That's been one definite plus to this summer's flea invasion (a whole other story - maybe nightmare - for a different day) - we were forced out of the basement and took a hiatus from the various idiot boxes - that has been a blessing. The tv and other things are on - for all four kids - a max of about 3 hours on the weekends, and 2 during the week (if that). It tells you something (or it does me, anyway) that today, on a rainy, yucky day where they can't go out to play, Andrew and Justin are being superheroes with balloons, Betsy is playing with legos, and Brendan is upstairs practicing (under protest! but practicing) - he will probably work on a puzzle with me when he's done. A few months ago, they would have buried themselves on the porch with the tv on. This is much better!

Tuesday Ten: Things About Halloween

With Halloween tomorrow, this seemed appropriate. I have to confess right off the bat that I am not a huge fan of Halloween, I have serious issues with the premise, but I have learned to enjoy certain aspects of it, mainly because the kids enjoy them and certain activities, in and of themselves, are harmless. So take my responses from that perspective.

1. A good memory My mother made many of my Halloween costumes. All of them maybe? I was Laura Ingalls a couple of years (complete with a historically appropriate brown gingham dress, braids, a bonnet, dark boot like shoes, and a small Black Susan that we picked up at one of the LIW homesites while travelling as a family) and another year I was a pumpkin made from an old - orange - beach cover-up of my mothers. I don't remember the other costumes but those stick out.

2. My head is still spinning Save me from the kids' parties. This year ... we went to four. And were invited to more than that, but that was all I could stand. One was a birthday/Halloween party for one of the little boys' best friends, another was Brendan's scout party, another was Betsy's scout party, and the last was Andrew's scout party, so it was all or none. Somehow Mike managed to avoid going to all four. I'm still not entirely sure how he managed that one.

3. The good ... Reese's Peanut Butter Cups ... the bad ... more Reese's Peanut Butter Cups ... the ugly ... yet more ... Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. Especially the special ones that are shaped like pumpkins. (The tree - at Christmas - and the egg - at Easter - also get me.)

4. My feet! The trick-or-treating. I never went as a child but we take the kids as part of a group (lots of kids from school) and all have a lot of fun. Do you have any idea how much candy 4 kids can manage to bring home after just an hour of trick-or-treating? You know those boxes that hold something like 10 reams of paper? Yep. No joke.

5. Purrrrr I'm stretching things here, but I'll say black cats, especially our Frodo. Yeah, yeah, he has a bunch of white on him. I love cats!

6. Something I don't like All the occult costumes, references, etc. I understand our society has become desensitized to witches, goblins, vampires, "death," and the like, but I have not, and I don't think it's "cute" when a 3 year old wants to dress up as the grim reaper. I'm not attempting to make any inflammatory comments ... but I'm not going to apologize for my beliefs, either.

7. What I do enjoy All the fun, obviously original costumes. Last night, at the last of the kids' parties (again, thank goodness those are all done!) there was one kid dressed up as an ice cream cone, complete with a cherry on top. On Sunday, one kid made his own "Mario" costume, and we saw a "Thing 1" and Thing 2" (Dr. Suess). How cool is that?? And who can forget all the little kids dressed up as pumpkins or head to toe as animals? Now that stuff ... is fun.

8. Eat up! We all know I love to cook ... and let's face it, there are a ton of really cool Halloween recipe out there. Kitty litter cake, eyeball punch, deviled eyes (deviled eggs with a sliced olive on top as the "eye") ... the list is endless. And fun.

9. & 10. Pumpkins! The carving of them, and the roasting of the seeds. Especially when the pumpkins rot because the kids don't want to throw out their artwork and Mom says, "Okay, but just one more day." (My poor mom.) Roasted pumpkin seeds ... some fantastic memories there, from the Gifted Program I went to one year ... we carved pumpkins, cleaned the seeds, and then the teacher roasted the seeds. I have yet to make any on my own that taste as good as that memory.

This one speaks for itself

I hope. :)

Little Blessings

I love fall. The cooler weather (I wilt over the hotter summer months), hot cider, being able to drink hot tea again, the smells ... I also love the beauty that comes when the leaves change color. When the leaves still on the trees grow sparse - I love the stark beauty of the tree itself peeking through those last, vividly colored leaves. It has been overcast and drizzly the last few days, and it makes the colors even more vibrant - if that's possible - than they are on a sunny day. I keep saying I'm going to take pictures but I never seem to capture what exactly it is that's catching my eye in the first place.

Today was the last day of soccer. Fall baseball ended last Saturday, too, so we are sport-less for a few months - scheduled sports, at any rate. The weather was icky, wet, windy - Justin flat out refused to go on the field to play - no big surprise there, he can't stand wet grass, often won't even walk through it going to school. Betsy, on the other hand, played her heart out, ran after the ball, despite the mud, and did better on offense than I've seen her do all season. Andrew did his typical stay-back-and-watch with the occasional kick-the-ball thing. They all lit up when given their trophies (instructional league) and got all excited over their pictures, so all in all - despite a wretched day for watching for the parents - we all had a good time. I'm sure the hot dogs, chips and drinks the kids got helped with the good cheer just a bit.

We had a big "first" this evening (I'm not sure who else in the house saw it as a big deal, but I do) - Brendan ran an errand for me. I went to the grocery store earlier, but thanks to a headache, forgot to pick up the carrots I need for supper tonight. I rarely have cash on hand (deliberately), and tend to be a bit overprotective (I can see my husband rolling his eyes at that one), so I have never sent him to pick up something for me, ever. Well, tonight I had cash, and as we've been looking for ways to help him build our trust levels (turning into a "tween" is proving very hard for him), I thought we'd give it a trial run. He's been going to a friend's house very near the store, so it really wasn't a crazy stretch, but I tell you, I was very happy to hear the squeak of the screen door when he got home. It does seem strange to have a child old enough to do that kind of thing.

Justin funny for the day ... he ran outside shortly after we got home ... literally just opened the door and ran outside. He went all the way around to the back shed, came back around to the front of the house, flew in the door, stopped short, and said, "MOMMY!!! The STORM is COMING!!!" I have no idea whatsoever where he got that from. It is indeed windy and overcast and foggy and maybe even a little bit rainy, but a storm? LOL!

Last thing from me tonight: GO SOX!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bits and Pieces

It should tell you something about my frame of mind that I did my Tuesday Ten a day early. For some reason ... I had myself convinced that yesterday was Tuesday. We have so many things going on that I apparently can't even keep of what day it is properly! Ah well ... at least most of the insanity is good. This is the last week of soccer, and baseball just ended last weekend, so hopefully this means things will settle down for a few months. Until baseball starts up again in the spring, at any rate.

I'm going to see if I can dig up my (pitifully few) projects. I have a half-knitted dishcloth (trying to remember what I learned many months ago), a not-quite-finished knitted scarf, and a baby blanket. Actually, a second baby blanket, but I need to finish that one. I also started a crocheted scrap ripple - all in sc - but that is going to be a long time in the making - that one is for me, which means it's anyone's guess how long it will take to complete.

Let's see, what other things do we have going on? B started band this fall. He chose flute (which I think is cool!). E, A & J all started soccer (B played fall baseball instead) and E and J both seem to have a knack for it. A is afraid of the ball and watched more than he played - but he did have fun. Hmmm ... what else ... B is in Webelos 2 and working towards his Arrow of Light and Boy Scouts. E is a first year Junior and loving that. A started Tiger Scouts and he and I have been having fun with that. Ummm ... hmmm. Not much else on the kid front.

I have been doing a lot of cooking and recipe trying. Since I don't have a fiber project to share, here's a recipe I tried on Sunday. Mike swears it's one of the best things I've ever made (high praise indeed), and I confess I even think it's good - and this isn't a kind of soup I usually like - I don't like the texture. This one, though, I can eat AND enjoy. The thing I especially like about this is while it does have a "long" list - I normally have everything in the house, so I could make it almost any time. Simple is usually best. :)

Parmesan Corn Chowder

Link takes you to the original recipe, what I have posted here is what I did.

2 1/2 cups cold water
2 cups diced peeled potatoes
1/2 cup thinly sliced carrots (I used one large carrot, sliced in half lengthwise, then cut it thin)
1/2 cup thinly sliced celery
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp butter or margarine
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried parsley
2 cups 1% milk
1 (14.75 ounce) can sweet corn, drained
3/4 cup parmesan & romano cheese blend (in the cannister)

In a large saucepan, combine the first six ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 25-30 minutes or until vegetables are tender (do not drain). Stir in drained corn, thyme and parsley and let stand while you do the next step.

In a small saucepan, melt butter. Stir in flour, salt and pepper until smooth; cook, stirring (it will bubble), over a medium low heat until it turns a light caramel color. Gradually stir in milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir into the vegetable mixture. Stir in cheese. Cook until heated through (I heated until it just started to bubble and turned it off).

Double if making for a larger group. We would definitely need to for our family - I made it as a test run, as written, but will double it for a meal for all six of us.

It was better after it cooled a bit so you could taste the flavors. The thing I liked about it was while there were chunks of potato, and it didn't get that weird gritty texture that potato soups and chowders tend to get (which is what makes me not like them). It's very smooth.

Tuesday Ten

So no, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth. No excuses this time. LOL

Ten things I'd like to get rid of ...

1. The old, tacky, smooshed up Christmas decorations - mainly pine type garlands - that we "inherited" from my mother-in-law (sorry Mom, love you! we do like and use a lot of them!)

2. The cans of kidney beans that I can't bring myself to eat but since they haven't yet expired, my frugal nature won't permit me to get rid of (these might be donated to Scouting for Food in a couple weeks, though, lol)

3. The remaining Mexicana yarn in my possession. (That one is just plain sad.)

4. My "old" pots and pans. We requested Circulon cookware when we got married. Received a bunch ... ended up hating it. I now have Calphalon stuff (thanks to dh, for my 30th) and I STILL can't get myself to let go a year later. (Anyone want a very well used bunch of pans? Pay shipping and they're yours!)

5. Our towels. They're old, ratty and look as if they've been used by 6 people with sharp implements instead of hands. Maybe Santa will bring us some in the appropriate colors for Christmas this year.

6. VCR tapes. We don't have a working VCR, but we have several hundred VCR tapes. Can I let go of them? Nooooo ... I keep waiting for a way to preserve what's on them, as opposed to purchasing the DVD.

7. 15 pounds. (Don't we all??)

8. My old college notebooks. You read that right, NOTEbooks, not TEXTbooks. I still have them. I keep thinking I'll need the notes for something.

9. Our old purple couch. It isn't as heinously bright as purple indicates, but we've had it for years and it looks like we've had it for years, and has faded to, of all things, a cross between brown, purple and black. Yuck.

10. Last but not least ... our leaky roof. Hopefully that one will be resolved in the near future with as little pain as possible!

Sleepless

Okay, so it's an established fact that I sleep poorly when dh is out of town. (He's in Las Vegas and spent the afternoon on Lake Mead jet skiing - the green eyed monster in me is coming out a bit.) I even did the right thing - turned everything off, laid there with my eyes closed, and nada, no sleep. It's now 1:30 AM and I am wide awake - tired, but not sleepy. It is aggravating. So here I sit attempting to make myself sleepy so I can actually get some sleep. Not working as of yet, even though I have skimmed some message boards and sent a couple of emails. I hope they're lucid, lol, I'm usually out by 10 or 11.

I really want to get back into crocheting. It seems as if I go in fits and spurts. I've recently finished a baby blanket and started a second but that has been sitting on the table in my bedroom for two weeks now (and the baby shower it was supposed to be going to on Saturday probably will not be seeing it). I wish I knew why I don't seem inspired to work on anything.

Well - I'm sitting here staring at the screen. I can't say I feel any sleepier, but I should try seeing if I can sleep again. Good night!

Tuesday Ten

Hmm. Blogging? What is that? I have no time, no inclination, no nothing, but I'll try. Again. So in an attempt to do this, here's a Tuesday 10.

Tuesday Ten-Ten things ALWAYS in my grocery cart.....

1. whole wheat bread

2. milk (either regular or soy)

3. juice boxes

4. lettuce

5. cereal

6. chips

7. baby carrots

8. bottled water (for games)

9. veggies (either frozen or canned)

10. canned tomatoes

Betsy's Blanket

Is finally done! Similar concept to Brendan's, I used colors that will go with her room but they are mainly "extra" yarns, in pinks and purples with a couple of random pastels tossed in. I may add tassels or fringe later but this is how she'll be getting it.



I'm so glad those are done!!

Christmas program!

I am a week late, but I can't forget to post about the kids' first school Christmas program last week! It was wonderful; Brendan was in the fourth grade chorus (kids are selected for this based on grades and behavior) and Betsy was in "Cool Yule" (kids in grades 1-5 - there ended up being 70-80 kids).

My camera was acting up so the stuff I got of Brendan's performance is not what I would have liked. Be that as it may, here's what I have. Bren is on top, second from the right.



And a short video clip (unfortunately very short :( ) Mike and I were both pretty impressed with diction, pitch and how well the kids behaved. (We weren't so impressed with the 5th grade chorus, but I digress.)



The whole Cool Yule group (really, it was quite impressive - lol)



And the part with Betsy's group - each "character" (Betsy was a Loretta Poinsettia, there were also Billy Holly, an elf character, a surfer character, I forget all the names) had a song and a dance. I thought it was neat that she was one of the few (two maybe) that sung w/out the whole group. She's the one with the circle of poinsettias on her sweatshirt, fourth from the right. LOL you will probably hear some giggling parents - seriously, the whole program was one of the cutest, funniest things I've ever seen.



And this is what happens when you get 80 excited kids who can't hear the music (and neither can the directors)! HAHAHAHAHA Complete with sqealing microphones. This was the "finale."



Our "stars" after the show, since I couldn't seem to get great pictures of them on stage



And of course, since I took one of the big kids, the little ones had to get their pictures taken too, so here's the whole lot of them in front of our tree before Frodo destroyed it (another story for another day, perhaps). They are getting SO BIG - Brendan is now up to my nose and has worn larger shoes then mine for at least 6 months. And he won't be ten for another 2 weeks.

Woooooohooooooo!

I finally finished a project I have been avoiding for months - I started a blanket for Brendan last fall, got about a quarter of the way through it, and stopped because it was so time consuming. It is - basically - a twin sized blanket; it's 81" long and 45-46" wide. All rows of hdc lengthwise, with a different color each row, then a thick fringe (which I pulled the ends into - there were 61 or 62 fringes on each end), for which I nabbed mostly navy yarn but also grabbed an extra strand of corresponding colors to the nearest two stripes. All told there are probably about 45 hours in this project, give or take.

The really cool thing about this project - okay, it's all acrylics (necessary, IMO, since this is for an almost 10 year old boy for whom tidiness and "special care" items are not a priority) - but the neat thing is that there are yarns from friends (of mine), and there quite a few from my mother's stash. In particular, there are some yarns my mom used to knit the only two things she had the opportunity to make for any of my children (a sweater and a round blanket) he received as a baby that I was able to incorporate. When I look at it, I don't just see that it's a project of love from me, I also see his Mormor, who he doesn't remember.

I'm very pleased with how it came out.



Now I just have to get Betsy's done, which shouldn't be too bad - I have less than half of hers left (a multicolored ripple in "girl" colors).

Time flies

When you're busy. LOL! I can't remember the last time I posted in here. I even managed, much to my shame, to miss my 6 year old's birthday. He turned 6 on November 11! So, belated as it is, Happy 6th Birthday Andrew!!!



This is the first year he was "really" aware of it - he was SO excited. I can't believe he's six!!

Happy 4th Birthday Justin!!!

My baby is FOUR!!! Doesn't seem possible.

Happy Birthday sweetie!!!

From this ...



To this (making a face at me - little ham)!



And this just cracks me up ... he loves the gamecube but doesn't get much time, so as part of his birthday gets to do whatever he wants (within reason, lol) I let him play for a bit longer than usual. He had a blast!

Cats, bars, and OOPS (in other words, an update)

It has been a very eventful summer! The kids go back to school in 3 weeks (September 6th) - Brendan will be in 4th grade, Betsy in 3rd, and Andrew in kindergarten. All three have been taking swimming lessons; they started in level one the end of June, but Brendan just passed ARC level three and Betsy passed level two. Andrew will be repeating level one next summer but he is finally putting his whole head underwater and not being afraid all the time - huge progress for him. There's hope for him. :) Justin - starts school next fall, and will start swimming lessons next summer, so he has another year of tagging along.

In house news - we purchased furniture for our sunporch and have been enjoying actually being able to use it (other than as a makeshift workshop for Mike and storage). We also (I say we; it was Mike) took out the bar this past weekend - it was a black hole for everything that didn't have a home, and we need the storage space, so out it came. We will be puting in a half wall with a pocket door (at least, that's the current plan) and shelving.

Here's the original:



And as it is now:



Also, we have a new furbaby. We rescued a mama cat and her kittens and while two of them went to our friends, we fell in love with one, and he stayed.

Here's our newest addition, Frodo



Me - there's no big news, although I will say this: if ever you get a cut, and it gets infected, and you see a red line following a tendon up whatever limb the cut is on, go to the ER. I cut myself making supper last Wednesday, dicovered it was infected on Sunday night, then didn't go to the ER on Monday (at the recommendation of the on call doctor - Monday was a holiday in RI), and got yelled at by a doctor on Tuesday (when I went to see a doctor finally). Apparently that's an indication of blood poisoning, and I'm very blessed that it was actually healing on its own (after I lanced it myself - apparently another no-no)! Anyway, should anything like this ever happen again, I'll go right away.