Stress free!

We had a great Christmas this year. We relaxed and watched the kids play and unwrap gifts all morning. IT was fun to see them be happy and I also enjoyed playing with the new toys too.

On Christmas eve, we went to the church candle light service for the first time since having children. I have avoided it in the past because it is a family service and I knew my sweet ones would never make it. Our church has family communion where one at a time, each family goes to the alter for communion while different people sing. We decided to try it this year. David and Victoria did great for about 30 minutes and then we took them out to the foyer (with all the other preschool parents) and played until we lit candles. I tried to keep them entertained but they were distracting the others so we had to move. I did make one mistake. I gave David my large tube of chapstick. He loved pulling the lid off then putting it back on. It was only a matter of time before he dropped the lid and we heard it ping pong down the aisle and watched several rows of people look down at their feet one by one as it rolled to the front. We were in the back row too so, nice.

After church, Victoria and I made cookies for Santa and she wrote him a note with her Nanny. Will took her outside to leave the reindeer food out and we all went to bed. She was so excited to see the empty plate in the morning and a note from Santa. David liked rolling in the wrapping paper and playing with his new hammer and peg toy. I really enjoyed relaxing and cooking Christmas dinner. It was nice, relaxing, and totally stress free. It seems this year has been stressful but Christmas came together and we really had a great week. The Lord really blessed me!

I love this time of year...a few days before Christmas. I have a list of things to do and a short time to get everything done. I enjoy late nights finishing up that last scrapbook (as a gift) or wrapping gifts. I usually rent movies around this time and try to squeeze that in too.

I have our "scrap tree" finished! This year I needed a child friendly tree since it was in the play room. I decided to make all of our ornaments with the kids. I then got the scrappy idea to put photos on the tree. I scrap everything so why not our tree? I alter boxes, clocks, purses, why not the tree? Most of the photos were of Disney but my favorite picture is one of Rockapella Scott and Victoria. If it were up to me, it would probably would have been a "Rockapella scrap tree" but I don't want to push that with Willy. He has been a good sport about me going to shows and I don't want to over do it. Anywho, I love the tree!

My friend Wendy had a snake in her house this year which she caught and removed with the help of another mom friend! Her blog had a statement to the effect of "Amazing what two determined moms can do." That statement was my motto last night as I became DETERMINED to take a Christmas card photo of the kids. Willy has David's virus so he wasn't any shape to help. I got the kids bathed, dressed in Christmas best, and as usual, chaos ensued. I did get my photo, got them printed and less than 24 hours later, they were mailed today! I am proud of myself! Sorry the cards are late! If only I could clean the house and cook all the goodies I intend to make in the next 24 hours!

Sunday, December 17, 2006

Are you in your pj's?

David is at home and seems back to normal. He is happy and moving around fine. This virus was quick but his digestive track took a while to get in gear. The dr.'s are guessing this is why he kept throwing up for so long and not having a BM either. Poor David...his functions are the topic of my blog! This post should have something fun about him and Santa or something Christmasy. Still continue to pray for him. We go back to the ped tomorrow to check his tummy and lack of BM's over the last few days/week.

Victoria spent a few nights with Nanny and Pappa over this ordeal. Here is a conversation I had over the phone with her at about 9:00 am after a long night with David vomiting...
Me: Hi Victoria, I miss you.
Vic: Are you in your PJ's?
Me: Yes
Vic: Are you wearing your glasses so David won't throw up in your eyes?
Me: Laughing!!!

Another interchange on the way home from school. I'm driving and Vic in the back seat.
Vic: Oh mommmy, look!
Me: (looking back at her) Victoria! Is that a bugger
on your finger?
(huge bugger on vic's index finger?)
Here, let me give you a tissue.
(I hand back a tissue)
Vic: No! I don't want a tissue! I've got to give it
to Victoria Ann for Christmas!
(Victoria Ann is best friend)
Me: You can't give her that! That really isn't a nice
thing to give a friend!
The more I think about it the more I laugh!

My dad liked this story too.

David

David is doing so much better! He stayed at the hospital last night for fluids and will stay tonight just to make sure he is well hydrated. It is wonderful to see him smiling, laughing, and ready to play. Thanks for your prayers.

David is still sick

David slept great last night and woke up this morning asking for food and milk. He threw up after a few sips of water but kept cherios and formula down later in the morning. He woke up from nap vomiting everything we gave him until bed time. We have the first dr. appt tomorrow and we may be going back to the hospital for fluids after that. It just depends on how he improves over the night. He is still so weak. He doesn't lift his head up much and just wants to lay in my lap or on the floor. He walks only a few steps at a time. He is so hungry and cries for crackers, milk, soup, anything Victoria has or he sees in the kitchen. I keep giving him light food, hoping he will keep it down. Sometimes he will keep food down but most of the time, I see it again. I just keep trying. This afternoon, he kept refusing liquids. Say a prayer for him!

Another Crazy Week!

A few weeks ago we had a crazy week. Our cars needed repair and our plumbling went out. This week was similar. I came home from our Atlanta trip with a migraine that lasted all week. I didn't have a migraine all weekend (YAHOO) but I'm wondering when the next one is going to hit me. I am used to migraines but I have never had one that lasted for days! Victoria had pink eye and David has an inner ear infection and stomach virus that sent him to the hospital Sunday and Monday. David is home now and doing much better. He had to get fluids yesterday and spent eight hours in the ER without getting sick. The second Will and David walked out the front door of the hospital, David threw up! David slept well last night but threw up a few times today. He is so weak and sad please say a prayer for him. Hopefully, the kids will feel better in time for Christmas so we can see Santa and get our Christmas cards out.

Christmas is upon us!

So much has happened since my last blog. It is hard to remember everything. I completed a card order, made two Rockapella purses, cleaned, ebayed, cooked new things, decorated the playroom, decorated for Christmas, visited Tuscaloosa, and Atlanta. I also went to Rick and Bubba's turkey toss. I threw a frozen turkey but didn't do so hot. Lets just say the 76 year old woman from New Hapshire gave me a run for my money.

The kids are having fun with the tree in the playroom and Victoria loves wearing her Christmas dresses. The highlight of the season so far has to be our Rockapella Christmas concert. Mom and Dad took me and Victoria for my Christmas gift to Atlanta for the weekend. Rockapella had an awesome show. They sang every Christmas song you could imagine and a few of my favorite non-holiday songs. We sat on the front row and I took over 300 pictures before, during, and after the show. They remembered Victoria from the August show. I didn't think they would but Scott came right out and pointed to her and sang to her all through the show. She sat so still and smiled the sweetest smiles at the guys as they sang. Scott was singing "Christmas Without You" and a there is a line that says "All I want for Christmas is you." When he sang "You" he turned and pointed to Victoria. I heard of lot of "Awes" from behind me. That totally made her night and mine! We were on the front row and after the last song, the guys all came by to our side to shake Victoria's hand. Scott told Victoria he remembered her from August and said, "Thank you for being here for me tonight." It was their 5th straight show and I'm sure Scott and the other guys miss their little girls. I think Vic reminded them of that.

It was really just a perfect weekend. It does me so much good to get out of town every once and a while. I also love Atlanta and going to IKEA. My parents are fun too. We enjoyed dinner at the Varsity and lots of laughs. Willy has informed me that there will be no Rockapella shows for a while. It gets pricey! That is okay considering that they only come here once a year or every two years. Twice in three months is unheard of so I can just wait it out. Maybe by the next show, David will be old enough to go or maybe they will come here and we can all go!

Turd patrol and the SK-1

This week has been crazy with things breaking down. Will's truck needed a new fuel pump so Saturday night we (yes we) had to drop the tank out of the truck. This would not have been so bad but it still had about 15 gallons of gas still in it that Willy couldn't get out. After we got it out from under the truck, we lifted it to the tail gate and poured the gas out into buckets. Gas tanks are really big. At 1 am I had to go to bed. I prayed for Willy and he worked all night until it was fixed. The truck runs perfect now! Monday, the explorer needed work and my van had wires sticking out of the tires so that needed attention oh, did I mention our plumbing went out downstairs? I don't think Will knew what to tackle first. He needed the vehicles to get tools to fix the toilet. It was crazy but typical for us. I am happy to say that all of those things are fixed now. I still need to sanitize the basement but I will spare you that picture. Will had to spend Tuesday cleaning the shooting houses from bird poop in prep for hunting then came home to dig in the toilet and fix the blockage. He said, "I feel like I've been diggn' in shit all day!" I'm so glad he had humor about it. As I was writing this, Will walked up to my desk and I told him I was blogging about the work this week and he said, "Oh, your writing about the turd patrol?" Again, funny to me.

The highlight of the week was finding my Casio SK-1 from 1986. I cleaned it up last night and put new batteries in it. The great thing about the SK-1 was the sampling feature. You could talk or make noises and it would sample it on the keyboard. It's so '80's like the Farris Bueller movie where he sampled a cough to play back to fake out his parents. I took it into the bathroom where Willy was working and sampled "This Stinks" and played it for him. I would hit the keys so it sounded like: "This..This..This.. STINKS" Emphasis on "stinks" slow and in a low key. I'm sorry, it smelled so bad down here and it seemed like the perfect phrase for the old SK-1. Willy was so focused on the pipe camera he rented to check out the pipes that he never commented on my sampling skills. I was entertained at least.

I hope that this weekend is a lot less crazy. I'm looking forward to hunting season, visiting with our friends, and some good football games. Maybe I will have time to take some outdoor photos of the kids too.

Disney Daze

We had an awesome trip to Disney World. It really is a happy place. I don't know what it is about seeing the castle but that is my very favorite part. I love to walk up Main Street and walk right through the castle. I love the mosaics inside and I especially loved taking that walk with Victoria this last trip. She was just as excited about the castle as I was. Victoria loved the Pooh, Dumbo, and Small World rides. I rode Small World with her so many times I lost count. We ate great food and I laughed so hard my sides hurt. It was fun to watch Victoria and David (who was really clueless) have fun. Victoria liked "eggcot" and the "fily smaces" in the fireworks. I also loved the thrill rides. My parents went with us and were sweet to keep the kids here and there so Willy and I could ride the coasters. I did ride Tower of Terror once alone and really had a fun time with it. I went on the ride and sat between two others that got really surprised when we took the first drop. The two on either side of me both grabbed my arms! They were so embarassed and I just couldn't stop laughing about it. One was a lady about my age and the other was a mid-twenties guy that seemed "too cool" for Disney. Funny! One special moment was with Victoria. Disney is promoting the year of a million dreams. They pick people out of the park and allow them to do something special. Victoria and I were shopping on Main Street and a lady walked up to us and told Victoria that the fairy godmother was late and Cinderella needed help getting dressed for the ball. She asked Victoria if she would help be a fairy godmother. Victoria took the lady's hand and they walked to a Cinderella mannequin and the lady had Vic pick shoes, necklace, crown, and magic wand to decorate with. When Vic waved her wand and said, "Bippity Boppity Boo" to the dressed up Cinderella mannequin Micky Mouse glitter fell from above and the lady let Vic keep the wand and gave her a Million Dream certificate that stated Victoria was a fairy godmother in training. It was so sweet and I felt so blessed by it. We had several special moments like that this trip and I am thankful to God for it all.

I am looking forward to Christmas. I am ready to bust out the Christmas trees and get started on making our ornaments. This year is going to be a crafty Christmas. I want the kids to make the ornaments. I am keeping all the glass decorations in the attic this year. I want a kid-friendly Christmas. I got a pink tree for my office last year and I can't wait to decorate it! I have a feeling that the tree may end up in Victoria's room. We'll see. I have so many ideas. I hope I don't get ahead of myself this year.

I found it!

This week I have been in a panic because I had lost three important things. I lost a prescription, a check, and my Marmot jacket. I have been trying to be more organized so this has been a blow to my organized self esteem. I looked high and low for the three items. I was afraid to tell Willy that I lost three such important things. I prayed that God would help me remember what I did with everything. Hopefully, I would find them and he would never have to know. After much stress and looking, I found everything. Do you want to know where everything was? The jacket was in my closet, the check was in my wallet, and the prescription was in my car. Everything was right where it should be. It seems I AM organized! I am so used to being unorganized that I figured my things wouldn't be in the most obvious place! I feel pretty good!

It has been a crazy few weeks. I found out that I was pregnant Sept 14th. After the shock set in, my life went into a spin of organizing, cleaning, and planning. On Oct 6th I found out that I miscarried. I then went into a spin of unplanning the next 9 months. In my heart, something just wasn't right about the pregnancy. I really think God was preparing my heart and just holding me close. I didn't cry when the sono tech told me at the doctor's office the bad news. I didn't really cry for few days. It has been a very tough four months and I was afraid that if I cried, I wouldn't stop. Everything did catch up with me though. I think it was a combo of hormones and stress. I had a good cry with Will and then I was on the road to normal. I really do feel back to normal now. I thank my friends and family that have prayed for me, called, and sent emails. It really did make a huge difference! I feel like God carried me right through this using all of you! As much as I love my children and the one that miscarried, how much more God loves me..His child! Wow! What a great thought. As a Christian, I do believe life begins at conception and that I will see this child in Heaven...another great thought that really helps me.

David and Victoria are as funny as always. David likes to go outside all the time. he brings me his shoes and my shoes and then stands at the door. He loves to run around the yard, swing, and play in the sand. Victoria still wears her Ariel costume everyday. She is learning a few songs and likes to sing them to me. She can sing the chorus to "Big House" by Audio Adrenaline and "A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes" from Cinderella. She gets a few words wrong but that makes it really cute. She asked me a few fun questions this week. "Does chocolate milk make poo poo?" and "Does water make tee tee?" I thought those were good life observations and also kind of funny.

I am in the middle of organizing my scrap supplies. It was the last clutter from the office move three months ago. It is so much that I kept avoiding it. I just don't know where to put all this paper, ribbon, stickers, etc. I see a huge ebay sale in my future.

Hide And Seek

Victoria is doing great. She was finally line leader Wednesday and she was really proud of it. Last Friday was her birthday and Nanny and I went to her class and brought cookies. She got to pick a prize out of the teacher's "birthday bag" and got the "good apple" award that day. We went to the shoe store and to the bakery for a snack. She got an Ariel costume from her cousins and has worn it every day since. She also got a Dora sleeping bag that she now sleeps in on the floor of her room! She actually sleeps better on the floor that in her bed. She must have the camping trait from her daddy in her.

Her favorite new game is hide and seek. She loves it. I was working at my desk and she hid by my feet. She was there a while when she asked where daddy was. I realized then that she wanted to play hide and seek. Will was upstairs working around the house and I ran up to tell him that Victoria has been hiding for the last five minutes waiting for him to come and find her. He was just as surprised as I was. He ran down to find her and she was thrilled. Will and I played with her for about 8 rounds before bed. It was funny because she always gives up her hiding place by giggling. Will hid in the shower and poor Victoria had no idea where he was. She could hear him laughing but couldn't figure out where he was. It was so obvious and so funny.

David is learning how to point to his nose, eyes, ears when asked. Today he actually pointed to his nose when I asked! Usually I say, "David, where is your nose?" and he points to the ceiling fan. Either he has a great sense of humor already or he has not idea what I am talking about. He is still the happiest baby I have ever seen.

Turn around yourself

Victoria was excited all weekend that today she would be the line leader. She talked about it before bed and when she woke up this morning. There is not set calendar for line leader at her school. They go by abc order and according to Vic, the teacher said her turn was today. I was so happy for her and excited to see her at the end of the day and ask about all the places she got to "lead" everyone too. When I got her in carpool, she wasn't smiling and seemed kind of down. I asked about the line leader and she gave this sad face (holding back tears) and said, "I wasn't the line leader, Salita was." I felt so bad for her. Salita's name is out of oder so maybe he was abset and today they let him make it up. I don't know what happened but I knew what she was feeling. I have been there before. I think we all have. The great thing about Victoria is that she bounces back. After a snack of chips and a naptime story, she was fine. After nap, she was her normal playful self. She was beboping around the house singing, "You do the hokey pokey and you turn AROUND YOURSELF" She sang it over and over. I couldn't stop laughing at it and that made her sing it over and louder again. This is one of the things I love so much about her. She turns words around just enough to make it funny and I never have the heart to correct her.

We had outside play time tonight and it was fun. Willy got out the dollar store light up spinners that Wendy got for us and we chased those until it got dark. It was fun! David had fun too just stumbling around picking up rocks and investigating the yard.

10 things I love about my brother.....

We celebrated Chris' birthday last night and that was fun. We went out to eat *What a treat* and had cake. I made him a book called "Ten Things I love About My Brother" and he really enjoyed it. I had a top ten list of great things about him with illustrations. I included all the times he "saved the day" for me and made me laugh so hard my sides hurt. He really seemed to like it. I wasn't sure how he would react because with a guy, you never know how they will like scrapbook stuff. One of my favorite stories of Chris was in college. Since he is a musician, he has a lot of musician friends. We often went to see them play in the small clubs around town. On one rare occasion, we went to a Thursday night show even though we had class the next day. We don't drink and we never drank. After a show, we went to a local gas station for a 40 oz diet coke. The caffeine would then wind us up so we would sit up and talk. I didn't live in the same town so when we went to a show, I spent the night at Chris' apt. On this night we were up talking and I had to use the bathroom. I went in only to realize he was out of toilet paper (There was NO type of Kleenex, paper towel, TP, nothing to use!!!) and the toilet was stomped up. It was past 2:00 am. I asked for Chris to fix it and he then notified me that he didn't have a plunger. He asked me if I could "hold it" until I went to class the next morning. After 40oz of Diet Coke????? NO! I convinced him we HAD to go to the 24 hour Wal-Mart for a plunger and toilet paper. SO here we are 3:00 am in line at the Wal-Mart with a plunger, toilet paper, and a box of twinkies. Did I mention the bearded lady was in line in front of us? The lack of sleep, extra caffeine, and being the silly heart that I am, I started laughing hysterically. The bearded lady is really what sent me over the edge in laughter. Get this...She was looking at us like we were weird! I almost knew this would be a story that I would look back upon one day and laugh. Would you believe that I got a little sleep, took a shower and made it to my 8:00 am class!

Today was kind of fun. Vic went to school and Will kept David while I went to Bible study. David had a yucky nose and I hated to share it with the church so he didn't go. We got a sales pitch for a multi-level marketing company at church. I didn't like that at all. It kind of made my skin crawl to have Bible study cut short to hear someone (not in our Bible study) giddy about signing us up to sell this product.
It just came across so fake. ICK! What a waste of church time.

We played outside with the kids after dinner and it was really fun. It was cool and nice outside. David liked the slide and Vic was doing great on the climbing wall. We got the kids bathed and put David to bed. Will and I did something we have never done together....We played Candy Land with Victoria. One of us plays a game with her at a time, never the two of us. It was great even though Victoria got tired of it and told us to finish the game without her...so we did. Willy won. (As Usual)

I made another binder and I really like it. That is the photo above.

You just got to laugh

I have had a nagging pain in a tooth and today I went to the dentist to check it out. I had to have a root canal. I wasn't expecting that! I figured it was just a cavity and needed a filling. I don't have dental insurance and I have never had a root canal so I was kind of in shock over the cost. They told me it could be up to 1,400! I was about in tears! I got the procedure and then the dentist gave me good news...I didn't need a crown. He just did a filling which made the total cost only $740. That is a blessing! After the work was done, I ran to my car in the rain and decided to run some errands. Last week I got some large plastic tubs at Wal Mart. I got home and realized that the lids didn't fit the tubs so I went today to return them. Now picture this.... last week I had to put the tubs in the lower rack of the buggy because the basket was full. Every time I turned or stopped in a hurry, the tubs flew out. This happened about 6 times last week. Twice in the parking lot. With that said, today was along the same line of embarrassment. I had the four tubs and lids under one arm with a huge golf umbrella and purse in the other arm. I was a sight! I kept dropping the lids, tubs, and umbrella slinging water everywhere. I just had to laugh with my numb mouth! When I got inside the door, people were standing there watching me and laughing too. This is typical Tricia for you.

I just had to laugh at Victoria too. She and her inner diva had a rough day with wardrobe. She didn't like anything I picked out and wanted to wear winter clothes. When clothes don't fit to her liking, she says, "It's not working!" in a loud shrill way. I'm sorry.... today it was funny to me and no, I haven't taken any pain pills from the root canal either! First her pants "were not working" then her shorts "were not working" and then her shoes "were not working". I don't know what really wasn't working but I guess she wasn't happy with it. What a blessing that I could laugh! Some days as you can imagine it's not so funny. When I started laughing, Victoria turned it off and snapped out of her distress. I guess she knew her fussing "wasn't working" on me. Don't get me wrong. She is a delight. We just have our days like everyone else.

David is the complete opposite. He is happy about everything. He giggles when a gnat flies around his face. He giggles when gets splashed with water in the tub. He is happy to see Mr. Lamerkins at bedtime. He is the most easy going child I have ever met! I just wonder what he is thinking sometimes. It will be nice when he starts to express his thoughts. I would also like to know where he is stashing my things. He takes off with remotes, the computer mouse, phones, and flashlights. I bet he has a treasure trove of things I have yet to find.

I help Victoria play

One of my favorite things to do on school days is to look through Victoria's take-home folder. She is so proud of her work. Her teacher must be talking about helpers at school because Victoria had some artwork with the title "I'm a helping hand". The paper had Victoria's handprint and a place where Victoria must have dictated, "I help Mommy play!" and the teacher wrote it down. Play time is very important in this home and I do need her help! If it wasn't for Victoria, I may not get in the adequate play time that I need! I love it!

We had a treat last weekend. We had a doe and fawn come right up to the window of the house. I took some photos of them. Most were out of focus because they are quick but a few were nice. Victoria loved seeing the baby.

Krispy's shower was fun! They played some cute games and I got some great party ideas.

great day!

I had a great day today. I didn't do anything really special but just did simple things with my family here at the farm. I had an awesome night sleep! I fell asleep at 7:30! I usually don't go to bed until 1:00 am and I wake up several times a night. I think a good night sleep makes such a difference! Thank you Lord for sleep! I think the lack of sleep must have caught up with me. I just couldn't keep my eyes open after the kids went to bed. I had a cola with dinner tonight so I may not get to sleep right away but we will see.

Okay, so back to the day. I cleaned the upstairs bathroom! I know that sounds silly to be happy about but it felt good to get one more thing organized. David's room is right off my bedroom so I don't get to clean it when he naps. Will played with the kids while I got to clean! I threw away a garbage bag of old shampoo, soap, etc. and put together a bag of extra baby gear for a friend. Victoria and I painted sun catchers. She really enjoyed it. Her little face was so serious. Her work table is right in front of a window so we watched butterflies too. The kids took a good nap and I helped Will with the new gutters. Later today we were all outside watching/helping with the gutters. We had the hose out to test them and Victoria had fun with that! David had a ball too. They were wet, dirty, and happy. After a while of water play, we took a bath, and drove around to look for deer/turkey. Didn't see anything but had fun looking. It was a great day!

Tomorrow I'm off to a baby shower for an old friend. She is having a girl and I'm so happy for her! I'm excited to celebrate her! I love to make baby gifts too. I usually buy a gift and make at least one for my expecting friends. Christi (I call her Krispy, or Krispito) doesn't know my blog so I can tell what I made for her. She got my old standard...baby wreath for the hospital door white with pink ribbon and pink baby trinkets attached like rattles, a bottle, nail clippers, spoon, toothbrush, etc. I also made my first actual scrapbook. It is 8 x 5 1/2 and covered with pink and green paper, ribbons, matching fabric, and a ribbon. Her baby may be named "Elizabeth" so I added a hot pink "E" to the ribbon. I will try to add photos later. Kripito is also getting a diaper champ! Had to do something practical! I started thinking about a gift that she could really use for a while and that is when the diaper champ idea hit me. I mean really, it is used for years and I love mine.

Coachwhip

After some research, I think the snake I saw was a coachwhip. There are two variations. Some are brown some black. The snake I saw was black with white tail. It held its head up the entire time. I kept checking on him and he never put his head down. That fits the description of a coachwhip. It also looks like the picture on the internet. I just don't know if they are found in Alabama so much. They are not poisonous but they bite repeatedly if they feel cornered or are picked up. I'm still looking to make sure. I hope no one is scared to come out here now.

Snake!!!

Rick and Bubba were talking about snakes the other day and Bubba referred to them as the Devil's hand puppet. I always laugh when I hear it but now I believe it's true. I almost stepped on one today when I was holding David. Will drove by on the tractor and I thought it would be fun to take the kids in the stroller to watch him disk the fields. Victoria stayed in the house to put on her shoes and I took David to the garage to get the stroller. As I stepped out the door, I felt the leaves rustle around me. I figured it was the little lizard that lives around the door. He doesn't bother me. I just want to make sure he doesn't get in the house so I'm always looking for him when I open the door. The garage door happened to be locked so when I walked over to the door to go inside, there he was. His head was up and he was looking at me. I could hear Victoria calling me from inside. I yelled to her not to open the door that there was a snake in front of it. I asked her to unlock the side door but that was really worthless. She had no clue what to do. I think we need to show her how to unlock/lock, open/close all doors in matters of emergency. After a few minutes of me deciding what to do, Victoria opened the door. The screen was still closed so I told her to back away and that I was going to jump inside. There was no other choice. Most of the snake's body was hidden so I couldn't see exactly how long he was. I could tell he was at least 3 feet, maybe more. She now wanted to see the snake so I just popped open the screen and made a leap inside. I made it! I also made a big sign to hang up to warn Willy. I'm sure he wouldn't see the snake at first either. I am pretty lucky. I have lived here for 3 1/2 years and have only seen one other baby snake. Dustin found one just about 6 inches or so and showed it to us. I'm really surprised after all the walking I do, that I have never come across a snake. The only time I find one is inches from my door. I went for a walk this morning with the kids and thought I heard a rattle. Will was with me but he didn't hear it. I bet it was a snake. They are out here! Yes, I was scared. Yes, my heart was pounding, Yes, I didn't know what to do. Wouldn't you be scared? Well at least surprised? My fear only lasted seconds until I realized it was a black snake and I think those are "good" snakes. I don't want to kill it, I just want him relocated. Maybe he would like being "relocated" to snake Heaven....No No I won't do that. Willy will do it. No, NO, Willy will hopefully remove him or at least sling him out of the doorway. I would have done it but I had David in my arms. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it. I'm not a 100% farm girl yet but I'm working on it.

Oh, Willy just walked in, The snake is gone.

What's that smell?

It seems with children there is always an odor of some sort. Maybe it's food, dirty diaper, old milk sippy, etc. I walked into the playroom and the odor was there. I couldn't figure out what it was and suddenly I looked at my little tykes gym from the consignment sale. Apparently it came with a free odor.. Will washed it out before we brought it inside but it still had an odor. We started debating what to do.

1. We could leave it. Maybe it's water that soured from the wash outside.
2. We could put it outside and wash it again.
3. Give it to my parents..Okay that was a joke. I wouldn't do that to them.

Will brought up the possibility that a dog teed on it. That was all I had to hear. Even though it was a joke the thought was still there. GET THAT THING OUT OF MY HOUSE!!! We laughed at how now we know why the gym was only $15.00 I wondered why every one else had passed up this beauty of a deal. Now I know why. Have I lost my sense of smell. I have the best sniffer ever. I have an over sensitive sniffer if anything. I don't know where Will put it but it's not in the living room. We will see what happens.

I've been thinking. Yes, scary isn't it. If I could have one super mom accessory like inspector gadget, I would have a camera that would be on me at all times. I could pop it out and take pictures at any moment. I could capture a funny face on the kids, great accomplishment, or proud moment. This came to me when I was drying my hair and I looked over at Victoria sitting on my bed. She was looking at a picture of her and Scott from Rockapella. She had this sweet look on her face and all I had in my hand was a hairdryer not the camera.

Steph, our conversation inspired me to clean

Today was a typical day at our house. I played with the kids, cooked dinner, played outside, talked on the phone, and cleaned. I got to talking with Steph about cleaning and organizing and realized my sock drawer hadn't been organized since May 8, 2005. That was the night before David was born! So while I talked to Steph I organized it. How exciting!!! I cleaned my sock drawer. I must be pretty boring to blog about my sock drawer. Anyway, it motivated me to clean out the basement closet. It looks great! The best part was coming across some old photos. I found an old frame and a picture of a four small children (I didn't recognize) from Will's family. One looked just like David. Same teeth, nose, legs, oval face and turns out it was a picture of Willy at 14 months. It was incredible how much David looks like Will. I think it made Willy so proud to see it!

Victoria and David had fun playing on a little tykes house/slide that I got for $15 at a consignment sale. David is so brave. He walks up and down the slide sending me into a panic that he is going to fall and bust his teeth like Victoria did at this age. We placed the ball pit at the bottom of the slide so at least there is something to fall in.

Victoria pretended to be a cheerleader at dinner. I don't know where she got the idea. She kept cheering something about "outside yeah outside" and asking to put on her cheerleading costume. She doesn't have one so that was a bit of a handle. It was so annoying that it became funny. Now that I write this, I realize I do have an old Halloween cheerleading costume from last year that she refused to wear. I bet she remembers it. I guess this means I will be cleaning her closet tomorrow.

Rockapella

We went to the Rockapella concert and had a wonderful time. Victoria was a trooper considering the show didn't get started till way past her bed time. Towards the end, she kept telling me she was thirst, hungry, and ready to go. The guys do a great job of keeping the show upbeat. She would cheer, clap, and dance with the rest of the crowd when ever she got the cue. I haven't been to a show in over two years. It seemed like a totally different experience especially taking my daughter. The songs were different. Their look was different and there is even a new tenor in the group. It was fun to hear new songs and some of my favorites that I have never heard live before. I sing "Up A Lazy River" to Vic before bed every night. They sang it and she was so excited. She also loved "Carmen Sandiego" and "Papa Was a Rollin Stone" by George. I hope this was the first of many shows with Victoria. I hope we can enjoy the same things in life and that one day she will appreciate staying up late for a concert! We got to meet the group after the show and Victoria got to meet Scott. She tells me that he is her favorite and she asks to see his picture on the website almost daily. I told him that he was her favorite and he got up from the table to get a picture with her. It made her night! Such a small gesture really excited this little girl and her momma! It was the perfect day! What a blessing to sing, clap, laugh, and smile till my face hurt.

Bla Bla Bla

Deer! We were lucky enough to see two deer come right up to the house on Sunday and Monday mornings. Victoria was just tickled to see a deer standing still looking right at her. The first one must have been about 20 feet from the house. It is just so rare that a wild animal stands still for so long. It was a real treat. Victoria then had questions like was it a boy or girl, does it have a baby, and where was its mommy. She then put her little fingers on side of her head and jumped around like she was a deer. We tried to explain that boy deer have antlers and girls don't. It was so funny to hear her explain the difference to my mom the next day about how boy deer have "amplers".

David finally got that tooth on the bottom. He is sleeping better at night and waking up at a good time in the morning. David is attached to a little blue lamb we call "Lammy Lamerkins" I am convinced he said "Lammy" the other day when I put him to bed and he saw it in the crib. He loves Mr. Lamerkins. The only problem is that Lammy has a box that says a prayer when you squeeze it so it is not washing machine safe. I tried hand washing it but it still didn't get it really clean. David loves to bite Lammy's nose and walk around with Lammy dangling from his mouth. Needless to say, Lammy is always soggy! Will even suggested that I take pictures and do a "Lammy" page in the scrapbook. I've got him thinking like a scrapbooker!

imaginatory

Victoria is having a fun time this summer. She loves the piano in the play area and using the big foam mats from the basement floor for making forts and tents. Today she made a "capitol" William asked her if she meant "castle" but she said no it was a capitol. I guess that makes her the president of the playroom. I don't want to even ask what my role is. I'm sure it's custodian. To enter her capitol you had to tell the password which was "squeaky". It was funny to watch her go in and out of her capitol and casually telling David "squeaky" every time.

Victoria is going through a stage where she wants to take everything home that she likes in a store. We went to Hobby Lobby yesterday and she just HAD to have a bag of pom poms. I gave in and bought the 1.19 bag of 50+ red pom poms. I even broke down and got a green bag. (You will probably get a Christmas ornament from us this year with pom poms on it.) We used a lot of these last Christmas for ornaments so I figured it was a good deal. Anyway, there are pom poms every where! I keep finding them in the kitchen, bathroom, office, high chair, under the couch, etc. She is staying with my parents tonight so it is a sweet reminder of her every time I turn around.

Vic started Dance today. She LOVED it. She couldn't wait to wear her "ballet costune" She was the first one in the room and the last one out. After class, all the little girls came running out of the room to their parents. I turned to look for Victoria and she never came. I could see down the hall and into the room Victoria talking to the teacher. I wonder what they did and what Victoria said in class tonight. It is so hard to get that kind of info out of them at this age. I'm so glad we are doing this.

David is a free man! I decided not to send him to school this year. I signed him up but didn't feel right about it. Unfortunately the school only offers TTH or MWF and no drop ins. I would have to pay for three days just to send him one that matched with Victoria's schedule. His tuition is more that hers too! I just couldn't pay for three and only go one. I also didn't feel right about sending him yet. He is so little. If I can find an occasional "drop in" at another school that would be great. I feel so much better about officially taking him out.

The title of this blog is from Victoria. She loves the Charlie and Lola show and book series from Disney. One of the characters has and invisible friend. I was reading Victoria the Charlie and Lola book about going to school. It is a story about Lola going to school with her invisible friend. Victoria stopped me in the middle of the book to explain that the friend was "imaginatory". I got so tickled! I was also proud that she knew invisible and imaginary had similar meanings in the story. I'm so glad I'm writing this down!

Everyone Can Rest Easy

Just wanted you to know that the Rockapella purse is complete. I know you were getting worried with the concert right around the corner that I wouldn't have it ready. Well, it's ready.

Victoria Funnies and a David story

Victoria is always saying something that cracks me up. I think most of these fall under the "You had to be there" category but I will give it a shot. Will was making chili for lunch. He added a few circle slices of onion to the bowl and was adding slices of cheese when Victoria looked wide eyed into his bowl and said, "Are you putting cheese on your worms?" Every time I see an onion slice I will think of worms.

Victoria loves baby Einstien videos. She is amost 4 and all of a sudden loves the baby vidoes. She calls it "Baby Linesteim."

Brother Mike, our pastor, passes out candy to the children every church service. He stands by the door with a embroidered denim bag lets the children pick out a treat. Victoria is still down in the preschool dept after church so she misses getting a treat. A few Sundays ago, we decided to get her so she could visit with Miss Mary (pastor's wife) and Brother Mike. She was so excited to get a smartie from the "candy bag." Later that week I was using a similar denim bag for a purse. Victoria had a good day at school so I pulled out a smartie from my purse. She looked at me and said, "Is that the candy bag?" It took me a minute to figure out what she was talking about but I said, "Oh, no Victoria this isn't Brother Mike's bag. This is my purse." She looked at me like she didn't believe me then kept asking, "Did you go to church today?" I was then shocked. My child thought I took the candy bag! From church no less! I finally convinced her that I didn't.

Speaking of Brother Mike... I called their house last week wanting to talk to Miss Mary. Brother Mike answered and we chit-chatted a bit then he asked, "Well, how are the little animals?" I answered, "There taking a nap right now." He said, "No, not your children! I was talking about the animals at your farm! I would never call your children animals!" How embarrasing! My pastor asked about "little animals" and my first thought was the children! I hope some of you mothers out there feel my pain! It had just been one of those crazy days with kids.

David loves to dance like his sister. It took me a while to figure out what he was doing but every time music comes on, he spins in a circle. That is how he dances. Sometimes I just look over and see David slowing spinning then I realize he hears a commercial or a song come on the radio. It is almost like a sound activated toy. Music on-David spins....Music off- David goes back to activity. I need to take a video.

I guess that is all I can think of for now. The children are in bed now so I need to be close behind. loove

Back to School!

I'm not going back to school this year but I helped a friend decorate her classroom yesterday. I had so much fun talking bulletin boards and room organization. I also enjoyed the company. I said a prayer for all of my teacher friends today. Teachers are just as nervous as parents and studens. I could never sleep the night before I began a new year. I remember going to school and talking with the other teachers about how we tossed and turned night before. We all made excuses for it but we were just nervous.

I spent the morning playing with the children and cleaning up the house. Victoria went to stay with my parents and I miss her so much. She was a sweet girl today. While David napped, we danced to 'Pella. She likes "Keep on Smilin" , "Lazy River", and "Dance with Me." I can't wait to see how she does at the concert. Hopefully, she will last the whole show. It will be her first real concert. Wiggles don't count right?

I have stalled out on my organizing. It is not perfect like I imagined. I need a organizing fairy godmother to wave a wand and Poof! make my house organized! It is workable so I guess It is fine for now. I tried on a welding mask tonight. It really wasn't as exciting as it sounds.

DeeDee24: Here, there or in the air

Why am I up at night?

I have a difficult time going to sleep. Sometimes my little boy wakes up and I have to stay up with him. It seems I don't get enough sleep each night. I was rocking the little man at 3:00 am on Saturday morning and found myself praying. I was tired but I think I prayed for him, my daughter, family, etc. Then I questioned "Why am I up?" and it occurred to me that I would never have prayed that prayer if I was asleep. I started thinking about all the time I spend rocking my teething child at night and that is the only quiet time I have to pray. There is just something special about holding a baby snuggled up in your arms and rocking them. It just makes me so thankful I have to pray.

Speaking of children, I watched Super Nanny with my three year old. She gasped as the children in the show behaved so badly. I wasn't sure if I should let her watch (make it a learning experience) or if I should turn it off in a hurry (don't want to learn any bad tricks!) We didn't watch long but it was funny to hear her talk about the children jumping on beds, coloring walls, etc. It made an impression on her and she was an angel going to bed.

Here, there or in the air

"Here, there, or in the air, we will meet again my friend." For some reason I kept singing this song by Dana Degarmo. It was popular when I was in high school and I loved it. It is flowing through my heart now because I just said goodbye to one of my closest friends. She and her family are returning to the mission field in Africa. They are due to return to the states in four years. They may come for a visit but maybe not. Wendy is the closest thing to a sister I have ever had. I have known her 18 years this August. That is a long history to have with a person, especially when you are only 31. I am so excited for her family to return for this exciting work but I will also miss our time of fellowship face to face. Wendy and Jeff came over for dinner and fun and we ended up talking about the Lord and I could just sit and listen to them for hours. I wish I had a tape or a pen and paper in hand when they talked. God just spoke through them and really touched my heart. We shared what we meant to each other. It was so neat because rarely I tell someone how much they touch my life and how much I love them. I think about it all the time but I don't always share my thoughts. After our time of fellowship, we prayed for each other. Will and I prayed for their return trip, upcoming birth, ministry, and family. They prayed for our families, our ministry as Christians to reach others, and for our children. It was so anointed and I felt the Holy Spirit so strong as Jeff and Wendy prayed. After the prayer, we gave our hugs and said goodbye. I smiled and blew kisses out on the porch and as soon as we closed the door, I cried in Will's arms. I will miss my dear friend but I know God has a purpose for her in Africa and I would rather her be in God's will serving him that here with me everyday. I pray for her family because I know it's hard for them too.

DeeDee24

Today we went to a surprise party for a dear friend. My friend, Brooke, turned 30 today. It was a happy party and lots of fun. Her family had coloring books and crayons for the kids and a "Brooke trivia" game for the adults. It was very well thought out! I hope this year is full of blessings for sweet Brooke!

On a sad note, last night we went to a visitation for someone in our church that passed away Wednesday night. Troy had breast cancer and even though I didn't know him as well as most, I was still touched by his family. They are a wonderful example of God's love. Even though they were going through so much, they always reached out to me and my husband. My heart goes out to them. I pray God will hold them in his arms and they feel His love over their lives. I pray for comfort and peace and God will use people to reach out to them so they know they are loved. I hope I can use Troy's example to live for God and love others.

Blog Issues

The ants are gone for the most part. I found three in the shower.

I am totally loving the new room swap. I like my nook in downstairs. Hubby can overhear all my girl conversations on the phone. It must get old after a while. Vic is writing her name (with help). David will identify his nose when asked. He likes to be chased around the room. I'll say, "I'm going to get him." and he will laugh and run (stammer) like a new walker does. It's fun. The kids love the playroom upstairs. I love it to. I guess it is a sacrifice for the family to give up the living room for a play space. It makes so much sense. I protested the move for years but I wish I had moved it sooner. Why save a room for adults that I only use three or four times a year. Since moving the toys, I have been in there several times a day. I can honestly say that I'm using every room in the house. We really live here and use the space efficently. Oh, I'm starting to sound like Willy

Getting organized

My mess is getting better. I can see the closet floor. My friends know that when I clean out, they get a bag from my closet filled with goodies. I have maternity clothes for my pregnant friend, purses for another friend, and make-up samples for the first to call it. I really want to make my life simple. I want to have less clutter and collections. I want to see my closet floor and my office floor at all times. Everything needs to have a place. Lord, help me to be wise about what I bring into my home and let me be free to let go of my junk.

Wow! I've got a mess

This is my 4th blog because I keep forgetting passwords. I hope I remember this one..... It has been a slow day. I am just coming off a great weekend. I went to scrapbook inspiration workshop and I really am inspired. It was so touching and motivating. I want to write it down so that I don't forget. My sweet hubby worked all weekend keeping the kids and setting up my new computer. I need to follow through with cleaning up my office.

God is so good. I just have to say that!! In fact, I need to list my blessings
1. My awesome parents. They are so good to me. They listen and I know I can always depend on them. They are just fun too.
2. Hubby is so great. He is so giving to me and everyone. He has a heart of gold.
3. Children are so great. When I hear "mommy" my heart just melts.
4. I have the most awesome friends. They teach me so many new things.
5. Spring days are the best of the year (besides crisp October ones)
6. I love a great Rockapella song
7. I love it when my little girl asks me to sing.
8. A night out with girlfriends are so fun.
9. California rolls
10. a cola icee in the middle of summer
11. I can go to God with anything and my heart fills full.
12. Joy
13. A day with no headaches.
14. a great haircut.
15. Hearing my pastor speak
16. a warm hug from a friend
17. giggles

I feel great for posting my blessings. Even when I am down, if I look at my blessings, I feel better.