WHATCHA DOIN' BABY?

I DUNNO. I have no idea what Carly is doing here but she does it a lot lately. I think she is trying to figure out how to stand on her head or become the next Gumby or something like that. She is a funny little girl. She is feeling much better on this new round of antibiotics. Thank Goodness!

THIS IS MY LITTLE CHARMER . . .

SQUIGGLY IS FOUND! WHAT A RELIEF! NOT!

Of course, Squiggly happens to be a garden snake--so for me at least that is all tongue in cheek! Rob, Julie, Uncle Steve and the cousins LOVED finding Squiggly. They practically threw a party. I wondered what all the commotion was and when I went to see realized Rob had invited Steve and the kids up because Squiggly, the long lost baby snake had grown up and come home! Weird, eh? I agree with you, but all of them are charmed by this little guy. He has two brothers we haven't seen since they were babies either. They can stay gone as far as I'm concerned but I'm sure the guys will kill the fatted calf if they show up! They love snakes. (What's wrong with them?)
Anyway, this little guy has gone from being about 6 inches long to 2.5 feet long. That's big enough for me--now go AWAY! Don't tell Rob I said that,O.K?

WHO KNEW THERE WAS A CLOWN-FACED MASK?

So, turns out the medical company that brought us the nebulizer was holding out on us! One of my friends has a young son with Asthma and she was telling me how much easier it is to use the nebulizer with a mask on it. She said her son had a mask that was an elephant with a trunk or something like that. Cute, huh?

I've had a couple of other people tell me that having a mask made all the difference with their little kids, too. We have just been holding it up to her nose and trying to get her to hold still enough to breath in the medicine. That's what they showed us and of course, she did it for them perfectly. Not so much for us! Anyway, I decided to call the company today to see if they had any masks for kids to go with this nebulizer we have and sure enough they did. The lady on the phone said they had a cute little clown face and I could come right over and get it for no charge! She said if she'd had a driver in she would have delivered it to me! Wow! It's been there the whole time and someone's been holding out on me! Oh well, now to see if Cute Clown face makes it all better. I sure hope so! What a week!

APPLAUSE TO JULIE!

Guess what? Julie was named by her peers as one of the top four musicians in the 9th grade! She also received a superior rating on the song she wrote for the Composers Festival. We are very, very proud of her!

IS THERE A DOCTOR IN THE HOUSE?

No, but we should keep one here because baby girl is still sick! We went to see the Doc again. The lungs were better. The ears were not. So, on to another medication. I just want something to work. My little girl's ears are causing her so much pain it is hard to watch--oh, yes and listen to!

YESTERDAY

Do you ever have the feeling you've done things when you haven't? That'z how I have been this past week or so. I could have sworn I did my blog last night but when I looked this morning there was nothing there for yesterday. How weird! I've done that a few times in the last couple of weeks. I'm going to blame it on the pollens in the air.

Carly's earache is no better and the tantrums are no better either. She hurts and she lets us know! She goes from happy baby to crying baby in nothing flat! Poor girl. I've already called the doctor this morning but he isn't in today so I don't know if I can get any help for her today or not.

We are both full of snot! That's such a pretty thought, isn't it. I think I'll leave you with that image in your head. Cool eh?

MY NEW FAVORITE PAINTING

This is the painting Rob gave me for Mother's Day. We have a small one for now but we are going to get a larger one. He wanted to make sure I liked it first. I LOVE IT!

Greg Olsen is the artist and he is one of my favorite religious artists. Carly loves it, too. Isn't it gorgeous!

DATE NIGHT

Rob and I had a date tonight. Okay, well, Rob, Carly and I had a date tonight--so we invited Uncle Steve along. We went out for fajitas. It was fun. Just getting out is the fun part. Julie had a Young Women's night out--so we were free to play.

Carly is still having a hard time with her asthma. Mommy is having a hard time with her own allergies and asthma, too. The pollens are really bad outside right now.
I just heard on the news that doctors have a ton of cases popping up in children.

Carly woke up just before 4:50 a.m. this morning and was WIDE awake--totally off schedule. She finally went back to sleep about 7:45 a.m. for a couple of hours.
She just wanted to play and run around. She doesn't even normally wake up until between 8-9 a.m. I think these meds are throwing her off. I am really hoping she sleeps through the night tonight.

I PLANTED FLOWERS TODAY

I planted Carson's Corner this evening. That's the corner on our property we put a small garden on and named after the son we lost a couple of years ago. Carly helped me. Well, help may not be the operative word. She was there and she kept pulling the tops off the flowers and then messing up the dirt. Then when I tried to water it when I was done planting she kept playing with the hose and the water and got mad when I tried to use the water for watering the plants.

Anyway, Carson's Corner looks really nice regardless of the help or non-help from little sis. I still have a couple of flower beds to plant--hopefully with not so much help.

We had a terrific barbecue with family today and then the kids (that includes the big kids like Rob and his brother) played Rock Band.

I KNEW IT! CHOCOLATE IS THE ANSWER TO EVERYTHING!

M & M's, the perfect solution to getting Carly to take her breathing treatment without fussing! She's happy, we're happy and she feels better after. It's perfect. Plus, they melt in your mouth not in your hands! Actually, that little sound bite is just plain false advertising. Have you ever looked at your hands after holding a handful of M & M's? Colorful, eh? Whomever came up with that slogan was just making it up as he went! Ha! Bet he got a nice bonus!

SO, TURNS OUT . . .

Carly has a pretty bad ear infection and bad congestion that is most likely the onset of Asthma. This knowing when and when not to take them to the doctor thing is not easy. She had a couple of ear aches before and she is always tugging at her ear or her ears are really sensitive to being touched but she wasn't doing any of that this time. I had no clue it was her ears. She was congested off and on but it would come and go. She had a bad cough Friday night but it was gone this morning when I took her in--just like her temperature. It was normal too. Although, her mood was still high cranky. That's how I knew something was still wrong. You have to watch Sponge Bob to get this but I've been calling her my little Crabby Patty for the last few days. Wow, can she get unhappy!

Anyway, he started her on a baby's version of a z-pak and we now have a nebulizer (sp) and albuterol. She let the nurse do the nebulizer with her and was a perfect angel. Do you think she has done that even once at home? OH NO! It's the old "I DO NOT LIKE THAT SAM I AM" routine with tantrum and tears. It's a lot of fun every four hours for about 15 minutes--but she does feel better immediately after so I guess it's worth it.

Rob got the sprinklers put on the garden today so we don't have to hand water that anymore. Yay!

Julie went swimming with a friend and got a bit of a sunburn. I always tell my kids to re-apply the sunscreen but they don't always listen. Then Megan rolled in later with a really bad burn on her arms and legs. She had helped set up 1,500 white crosses in a cemetary for Memorial Day and did it without ANY sunscreen. Now mind you, she is as pale as I am and needs sunscreen worse than any of the other girls--but didn't bother to wear it cuz she didn't think it would take too long--right! Do we moms just talk to hear ourselves? It sure feels like it sometimes, doesn't it?

I made homemade pizza tonight and watched an NCIS marathon with the girls. That was pretty much our day. Have a fun weekend everyone and most of all remember those who have given their lives for our freedom!

NOT MUCH GOING ON

It's been a slow day. The only thing going on is that Carly is feeling worse again. This evening she started coughing a lot and got warm again. I am going to take her to the doctor in the morning. I don't know if he can do anything for her but it's been going on for over a week now--up and down and back and forth and I just want her to feel better. So, it's time we go and see. Well, it's late. So Ny-Tol. Hee Hee.

JUST A LITTLE UPDATE

Julie had her final Choir performance last night and she had a solo. She had fun and did a great job. She's sad because she is down to ten days left of school. That's really foreign to me. I certainly never felt that way--not in any grade--at least that I remember. Summer vacation was my favorite subject--that is besides recess! All of my kids love school and they are good at it, too. Although, they do have to be prodded to keep their grades up even though they are smart enough to do it on their own. It's just the constant of turning in your assignments and getting them done on time that seems to be the problem.

Carly had a better day today. She didn't have a temperature and she seemed to be feeling a bit better. She still took a pretty long nap and the crankiness has not gone away but other than that she is doing better.

Someone served Megan some chicken salad yesterday which normally wouldn't be a problem except this chicken salad had nuts in it. Megan is deathly allergic to nuts--so she got to make a trip to the emergency room and have a little dance with anaphylactic shock and an EPI Pen! So Carly and I met her there and brought her home to babysit her for the rest of the day yesterday. Poor thing--it really wipes her out when something like that happens. Luckily, she figured it out before she got too much of it or it would have been much worse than it was.

Rob had to go out of state for a couple of days for some work and got back today so I am a HAPPY CAMPER! Other than that--not much else is going on.

"NO"

Carly is starting to master the word "NO." She is not certain what it can do for her yet but she has it down in the form of mimicry. I think I'm in trouble here!

More Coughs and Fevers

Carly woke up with a ton of congestion today and a fever just over a hundred. I've been able to get it down a couple of times with Tylenol but it seems to creep back up after a couple of hours. Poor thing. She has been really lethargic all day and has slept a lot. After she wakes up and has a dose of Tylenol she perks up for awhile but then she heads right back into her coughing and fever mode. I'm hoping it is just a 24-48 hour bug. She was doing great last night so it's strange that she's so sick today. I just hope it goes as quickly as it came. If not, we will be heading back to the doctor's office.

WE PLANTED THE GARDEN

So Jack may actually be able to climb the beanstalk after all this year! What did we plant? Oh, all kinds of things! We planted five kinds of tomatoes, greenbeans, two kinds of squash, beats, Swiss Chard, lettuce, zuchini, cucumbers and then we are still have buy some peppers and plant them. Otherwise we are finished. Tomorrow I will take some pictures and show you. The tomatoes are all plants and everything else are seeds. We can't wait to have veggies! It's almost time for salad!

IT'S ALWAYS SOMETHING!

Today has been a funny, er, ah, interesting day. Went to church, headed down to see Rob's mom since we didn't get there on Mother's Day. (Don't worry, we had a good reason for not getting there last week.) We have looked for a day and a half for the jewelry Rob bought for his Mother. He put it in a safe place. We searched one more time before we left. Cannot find them anywhere. Shhh. Don't tell her. The jewelry will now be a birthday or Christmas present when it turns up. Rob has another plan. I can't tell you the plan or I'd have to kill you. Actually I'd just be embarrassed. But don't worry we've got the Mother's Day gift covered.

So, Rob's on-call with work today and just as we are walking out the door he gets called out. Luckily, he was able to arrange to do the service call after our visit. But our visit with his parents got interupted by some friends of theirs so it gets cut short anyway.

We decided to stop and do the service call on the way home and save Rob two hours of driving. Instead of it taking the 30 minutes he thought it would take to do the call it takes 2.5 hours. When we get out to the van to go home, it has a really bad flat. There was a metal clip with a knive edge in the tire that looked like someone had just pounded it into the tire. It didn't look like we had driven on it at all. So it was not a happy thing at all! Rob spent the next twenty minutes putting the donut spare on the van so we could make it home. The donut was almost flat--so we had to go to a close-by gas station to fill it up.

We get back on the road--not the freeway--since we are on a donut spare and then, a bell goes off and we realize we are almost out of gas. Yep, we are in my vehicle--not Rob's work one and I forgot to mention at the gas station that we might need gas. I completely forgot I was low on it--so we quickly find a gas station again and fill up. Then as we are slowly meandering home I start getting a really bad migraine and get shaky and realize I need something to eat. Now, it's Sunday and we usually don't shop on Sunday but I realize I'm in trouble so hubby finds a place to get me a sandwich. All better. Back on our way again. This is a serious comedy of errors. We shouldn't have gotten out of bed today.

Anyway, finally we get home--unload the girls, drop the van off at a shop where they can fix the tire first thing in the morning. Rob and I are just about to crawl in bed and he says, "Oh No!" I said, "What?" He tells me he has to go back over to the shop where we left my van because he left his work computer in my van! Truly, "It's Always Something!" as Rosanne Rosannadanna would say!

We Are Sore and Tired . . .

Today we shoveled, lifted and moved dirt, pulled weeds, cut big deep weeds out of the lawn, bought plants, seeds, steer manure, flowers - all the things we need to garden with. I even sanded and painted a dresser--then went back to pulling weeds. Funny thing is there are still more weeds to pull. Hmmmm. That's really not so funny, is it?! We got a ton done today. It just seems there is always two ton to do.

REAL MOMS

You know you're a real mom when you don't have a Kleenex anywhere near you but your baby is all snotty-faced so you just wipe it away with your hand!

Our Parting Song

CARLY'S FIRST RECITAL

For lack of anything better to call it. Okay it wasn't actually a recital--it was just a group performance of what we do each week at Musik-Garten for the families tonight. Rob and the girls came and the girls actually participated with Carly and me. So without further ado I will post a video Rob took during the performance. I will post a couple more in the next few days. We had a fun time together tonight. Carly is so dang cute!

THE BIG FAT LOSER OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT!

Helen (I starved myself for the finale and I look like a skeleton) Who? Arggghhh! Gads! I can't even talk about it. I still like Tara best and she wins cuz she looks better than Helen hands down! Do I sound mean? It's cuz I'm still mad at her for treating her daughter so badly. My Mom would never have done that! Helen may have won but she will always be a loser in my book. "When someone tells you who they are--believe them." That's a great quote. Don't know who said it. But remember it. It's true.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY UNCLE STEVE!

This is Rob's brother Steve with his two cute kids. We had them all over for dinner tonight. It was Steve's birthday. Lots of fun!
Steve's our crazy fun uncle. Thus, the crazy, funny, birthday hat dance! Go Uncle Steve go!
Gotta have the kiddies help blow at this age!

Love ya Uncle Steve! Happy Birthday!

ONLY ONE MORE DAY---

And we get to see who wins THE BIGGEST LOSER! I have to admit that as much as I wanted to kick Ron off I spent most of my votes to keep him on the show. I know--sounds crazy right? But there is a method to my madness. You see Ron actually wants us to keep his son Mike on the show because he believes Mike can win, and he could. Ron knows he can't win. But since Ron and Mike were such jerks to Kristin and since Ron is such a jerk in general I just can't find it in my heart to give him his way. Maybe the rest of America will--but not me! I don't want either one of them to win. I don't want Helen to win, either. She sent her own daughter home twice so she could stay. What a selfish mother! Her daughter had a lot more weight to lose, too. I think she's just as big of a jerk as Ron, just in a different way.

I'm hoping Tara wins. I think she's really earned it.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Happy Mother's Day Mom! I love you! And Happy Mother's Day to all my friends who are mom's and all my friends who spend their lives mothering. Remember the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world!

THE GARDEN SPOT

We don't just plant gardens at our house. We have to build (Engineer) a garden spot first. We (I use the term "WE" very lightly)have been building for several days now. My job is the photographer--not the builder. We aren't to the planting stage yet--or even to the filling it with dirt stage--we are still building! It's definitely going to be sturdy, though! Come on over later in the summer and have some fresh tomatoes!

THE COMPOSERS FESTIVAL

This is Julie at the Composers Festival performing a number she wrote for the judge. She performed it beautifully even though she was very nervous and it was her first time to ever participate in anything like this.

The judge loved her piece and told her it was gorgeous and very moving. We are so proud of her! Yay Julie! We love you!

WEEDING, MY FAVORITE THING TO DO!

Carly and I weeded Carson's Corner tonight while Daddy worked on making a garden in the back and Julie finished her homework! Wow, there was a lot accomplished in that sentence wasn't there? We were busy! Anyway, Carson's Corner needed weeding really badly. It looks so much better now. Once we get it planted I will post a picture. Carly liked being outside. It's one of her new favorite things.

Julie did great in the Composers Festival. I will tell you about it tomorrow and post a picture. I love my girls!

WHAT EXACTLY IS A NERVE PILL?

AND CAN I HAVE ONE PLEASE--CUZ SOMEONE DONE GOT ON MY LAST NERVE TODAY! I remember back when I growing up once in while you would hear an elderly person who was having a bad day tell someone they needed a nerve pill! Well, by golly--someone had better pass the nerve pills--and for that matter you'd better keep them coming. My blood pressure is up and I am not happy and thank you, but NO, I do not want to discuss it--I just want to WHINE about it!

There, I feel better already! day

FINALLY--RON MAY GO HOME!

I admit it--I've been addicted to this latest Biggest Loser season and so frustrated that Ron and Helen have both been Teflon somehow. In my opinion they both should have been voted off a long time ago. Helen threw her own daughter under a bus twice. The poor daughter had more weight to lose than her mother and yet, her mother talked her into going home two different times by telling her she could do better at home than at the ranch.

Then, there's Ron who conned his way into staying with his strategy of "we've got to keep the people who need to be here most here." That is until it came to Kristin--whose mother he'd promised he'd take care of her daughter in her absence--and then he secretly arranged with his son Mike for Mike to vote her off so she wouldn't be a threat to him. Can't stand the guy!

Anyway, both Ron and his son fell below the yellow line tonight so one of them is going home. The audience gets to vote and I'm just hoping it's going to be Ron but I will be happy either way! It's about time! Ron and Helen are both losers in my book. Did I say that out loud? Oh yeah, I meant to!

For All The Awesome Moms--And Especially For Mine

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys
or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not
my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind
and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child
so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night
watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because
I didn't want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small
could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of
having my heart outside my body..
I didn't know how special it could feel
to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond
between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small
could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom ...

May you always be overwhelmed by the Grace of God rather than by the cares of life

PICASA MY HAIR OUT!

That's French for I'm going to tear my hair out if I have to make another collage on Picasa soon. I think I've made upwards of a dozen of them in the last 10 days with varying degrees of success. I finally finished a couple tonight (that means just now at 12:20 a.m.) I can actually use that aren't as pretty as the earlier ones but if you are not technically and graphically gifted (as I am not) then programs like this provide a challenge. You see while they are somewhat user friendly--they are also somewhat NOT! I can't wait until someone like Bill Gates gets ahold of it and works out the bugs. How ridiculous that you can't add text until after you have saved all the pictures in place and then once you've saved all the pictures and started to add text even more ridiculous that you can adjust any of the pictures or make any changes. That is why I have had to start over --again and again and again and again . . . well, you get the picture.
Pun definitely intended.

Unleash the bug catchers I say--I'm all for it! Head straight for Picasa and let me know when you are finished!

WHO CALLS AN EARLY MORNING MEETING ON A SUNDAY?!

I mean really! Oh, I'm just fake whining. We have a 7:30 a.m. meeting in the morning and it's actually one we've been wanting to get into for awhile--not the 7:30 a.m. part, mind you--just the audience/topic part. So, anyway we are actually glad to be going--as glad as you can be to see that time of day. I admit to not being a morning person.

Carly is actually doing a little better today but Julie woke up not feeling so great and Megan seems to be a little bit under the weather, too. So, I have a bunch of sickies on my hands. My poor girls!

It rained all day today. I'd normally say that would be good as the moisture is always needed--EXCEPT for the fact that we haven't had a dry enough couple of days to spray down the dandelions or weeds--and boy are they going to town. I'm really embarrassed by them. We mowed them down and even caught them in the grass catcher and the lawn looked better for, I don't know, one whole day. Now, it looks like we have gone to seed, again.
Yikes!

Well, better get my body in bed so I can get it up early. Have a great Sunday!

My Little Girl is Sick

Carly has been so miserable today. She is coughing, sneezing and snotty nosed and warm--not really feverish. She just doesn't feel good at all. She has been whining and crying all day. I feel so bad for her. She doesn't really feel like eating much. She threw up a whole bottle on me this morning but that was because of all the mucuous in her tummy from swallowing it through the night. I just hate it when she gets sick and there isn't anything I can do for her except hold her and give her tylenol. I sure hope she feels better tomorrow. It was worse today than yesterday--but I hope it will start improving. If not, we are going to the doctor!

What A Day! What A Little Girl!

It's late! I've been going over a resume for a friend and I'm very tired. I have no idea what will come out of my mouth on here. Guess it will be a surprise to all of us!

Carly said her own name for the first time yesterday and she said it several times so it wasn't just gas--or a fluke or something like that. She really said it! She is like a one woman destruction team these days. Seriously, those little legs run fast and far and she goes from one thing to another tearing things up as fast as she can. What's surprising to me is the things she chooses to get into--like she will take the lid off her diaper pail and carry it around. We catch her immediatley but she's already gotten several feet with it by the time we get her. So has the stench, mind you. But even though it's right in her face she doesn't seem to notice. Yes, we empty it often--but we empty her often too--and it's just not pretty! Whew! Somedays, she just takes off with the lid and plays keep away from us. On those days it's easier to set the diaper pail outside the kitchen door for a few seconds until you catch her. She thinks she's so darned funny, too!

I think I already told you about the TV didn't I? Off, On, OfF, On, Off, On. It's getting incessent. We just have to pick her up and hold onto her now that is if we can catch her. She does everything for a reaction and then when you react she laughs and runs from you! Yes, I've tried not reacting. She just keeps doing it until you do react.
(Well, I don't want her to break the On/Off button!)

She's been giving Julie a run for her money, too. She turns off the computer Julie uses right as Julie is about to save or print something. It has a button at the bottom she can reach and it just shuts it right down. She's done it to Megan and to me a couple of times, too when we've been on it. Very frustrating--but again for the reaction. Then the other day I was on another computer and the hard drive with the on/off button was behind a door on the desk and I didn't even know she knew where it was. Sure enough I am just starting to print something off and she comes in, opens the door on the desk, leans down and pushes the off button. I didn't even know she had come in the room. Her Daddy was watching her (supposedly). Luckily--for him--this computer had a protect mode and didn't shut off. This little girl has BIG plans in her brain all the time! Oh my goodness!

Well, that's enough stories for tonight. I'm exhausted. Gee, I wonder why?!

I HATE DUSTING!

I've been cleaning my room all day today. I mean the kind of cleaning where you get rid of things and really move and ClEAN under things-not just dust--but I did a TON of dusting today! That means I did a TON of sneezing also. That's not what I hate about dusting, though. It's having to move everything and put everything back. I have way too many trinkets. I need to get rid of all my trinkets and all the things I have to move. I guess that means I need to get rid of everything. I think I'm willing--well, most of it, anyway.

I really, really hate dusting--and I'm not planning on liking it ever. So, I am just going to start getting rid of a bunch of the stuff I keep having to move. I've decided it's just not worth it. Don't ya think?

THE YARD IS MOWED!

I know. You really wanted to know that, didn't you? Not so much, eh? Sorry. But it feels so good. Rob's been working on the garden spot, too. We are actually putting one in this year. I am so excited. Now we just have to do a bunch of other mumbo jumbo to the lawn to get it back in shape and get all the weeds to go away.

I went to visit my older sister today. I had a doctor appt. down her way and she watched Carly for me while I went. It was good to see her. Carly slept a little bit on the way home but didn't get her regular nap so she was a pill the rest of the day. She's sleeping soundly now, though. It's a good thing when a cranky little girl gets good sleep. Hopefully she will be in a good mood again tomorrow.

Not much else going on. Time to shut these dark brown eyes. Night.

WISH UPON A HERO

I found the neatest website! Actually I read about it in USA Today. This is a website where just about anyone can afford to be a bit of a philanthropist. Anyone can go to this website and post a wish/need and anyone else can go to the website, read the need and grant it. Some of the larger needs have to have documentation. One of the ones I read about in the newspaper article was about a man in his eighties or nineties (you do the math) who had been at Pearl Harbor as a soldier and survived it but really wanted to go back before he died but couldn't afford to. His daughter posted the wish and someone sent the daughter and her father to Pearl Harbor so the father could see the area again and make peace with what happened there in his youth.

There are requests for groceries and gasoline and both larger and smaller things. One woman who was interviewed who frequents the site said she tries to grant at least one wish a day but also said that as the economy has gotten worse it has become harder for her to do that. Many wishes are so tiny. Some times I want so much to help someone and don't know how to do it. A place like this definitely gives a way.

Some wishes on it are not for help but for the wisher to help others or to give something to others. It is a very interesting site. The overhead for the site doesn't come from any of the philanthropists but rather from site ads. I like that, too.

Go take a look and maybe help someone today you weren't planning on when your day began. It will do your heart good. Have fun! Here's the website: http://www.wishuponahero.com/

The Latest Family Photo

Ain't we cute?

O.K. I'M EMBARRASSED . . .

Rob just pointed out to me that Carly is walking around with her toy cell phone between her shoulder and ear like she is talking on it. You know--the way you would hold your phone to your ear with your shoulder and talk if you had something in your hands or were doing something with your hands. Only my family members and closest friends will get the humor or should I say sad irony in this. She's definitely picking up Mommy's bad habits! Dear me --I guess I need to put the phone down more often.

Honest guys--I never do this with my cell phone--it's too small and would hurt my neck--I may do it with the real phone--but never my cell phone!

The Lawn Doctor Showed

He gave us a multitude of prescriptions to try on our weed infested mess. We will see if any of them work. He said it will take time. Guess that is to be expected. I wish the weather would choose what it wants to do here. We go between hot and cold--no Spring at all. It's just plain cold right now.

Carly had a bad day today. I think it was a mixture of painful teething and gas. They say when Mama ain't happy ain't nobody happy--but the truth is "When Carly ain't happy--ain't nobody happy!" It was rather miserable around here because she was hurting so much. Poor thing. I just got her to sleep and I'm hoping she will sleep well and feel better tomorrow.

Here's to a painless tomorrow and a happy little girl!

The Next Time We Send A Shuttle into Space . . .

Can we load all of the pollen onto it and send it away? Puh--leeaassseee?? AHHH--AHH--AHHH---AHHH---AHHHHHHH CHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GROWING DANDELIONS

So, instead of a lawn this year Rob and I have decided to just grow dandelions and weeds. It seems much simpler. It's way low maintenance and it's really colorful! I mean, why purchase all kinds of garden flowers when those beautiful dandelions don't cost you a penny? (Well, they cost you a penny didn't they Dad? A pretty one! Hee hee! Sorry private joke!) Maybe someday I'll explain.

Actually, all this lawn talk is tongue in cheek. We are so frustrated with our lawn. Rob put a weed and feed on it two weeks ago and it did nothing--that is unless it is supposed to feed and increase the weeds!

We've scheduled someone to come look at it a couple of times now and he hasn't shown up. We have him scheduled again for later this week and if he doesn't show this time we will call someone else for sure. Anyway, we thought we had a fungus or something at first and now we think it may be the ph level in the water. Whatever it is the lawn is a mess and I'm sure our neighbors are going nuts.

So, just in case anyone says anything to me before we can get it fixed--I'm getting my comebacks ready. How's this one: Oh, I've loved dandelions ever since I was a little girl. Aren't they beautiful? It took me the whole month to plant this many plants in the yard--but aren't they gorgeous? I just love how colorful the yard is!So many blooms--I really got my money's worth!

Lovin' the Warm Weather!

Carly and I went on a walk today with a neighbor and her son. Well, I guess to be accurate the Mommies did the walking and the kiddies did the riding. They had fun, though and it was a really nice day out. It was hot but there was a nice breeze blowing from time to time. I'm really hoping we are done with snow until next year.

Carly has discovered that she really likes being outside. If I even open the door for a second she wants to go out. If I happen to close it without letting her go out, I really hear about it. And man, if I do something like take her out to get the mail with me and come right back in--she is really peeved! Of course, if I don't take her out with me--she's just as mad--so I really can't win unless I want to sit outside all day. And since the pollen count is so high right now and my allergies are bad--I can't so much wanna! Even though I can't be outside every minute I'm still loving the warm weather!

Upon Request

A friend asked me to post a few more of Lori's pictures--and the only recent ones I have are the ones from Carly's sealing so here are a few more of them. I still need to visit and pick up the ones she did of her in the pink tutu. I can't wait to see them!

I Like This Picture

I just got these pictures from Lori. She took them after Carly's sealing in December and I hadn;t been to her house in a long time. They are so much better than anything I took--um, DUH! But, for some reason I think this one is really cute.

We Got Home

We got home safely from our trip and we are all bushed! So no big blog tonight. The only news is "We've All Gone to Sleep." Night, Night! Love you all.

I Love Waterfalls

We went on a fun family outing this weekend. We visited family and on our way we stopped to see this really cool waterfall. I love waterfalls! That's a major understatement having grown up with one on family property spoils you just a little! Anyway, we had a great time and were blown away by the power of this water!

Eye Eye Mates!

Yep, I've got both eyes back and I'm so excited to see again I can't even tell you! My eye is feeling so much better today. The doctor took the bandage off permanently and even said I didn't need to continue on antibiotics or other meds! Yay! I still couldn't wear my contacts today but that was a small price to pay for sight without pain. I thought I would go nuts yesterday since one of my eyes is corrected for distance and one for close up and the one that was bandaged was the one corrected for close up things. So, of course everything I was trying to do yesterday was the close up stuff and I couldn't see anything well. I couldn't concentrate at all and it was truly crazy-making. So yay for seeing with both eyes again! I'm happy!

EYE MATEY!

Tonight I will be brief because I am writing with a patch over one eye and am having a hard time seeing the screen very well. I thought I had allergy eyes and that one eye was just a lot worse than the other but I apparently have a scratch on one eye. So, my opthamologist has me medicated and patched and I look a bit like a pirate--and have had to endure pirate jokes from family all evening. Hopefully, this will just be a day or two at most and I will have both of my eyes back! It!'s really hard to chase a toddler around when you can't see very well

SOMEONE TELL ME THE "TERRIBLE TWOS" COME EARLY SOMETIMES!

Oh my goodness, either my little one has the "terrible twos" or I have a "hellion" coming! Okay, I'm just venting at the end of one of those really hard days with your toddler. It will be better tomorrow, right? I'm pretty sure this is my Mom and Dad's fault anyway--they wished days like this on me a long, long time ago. (Yes, you did--you said, "I hope you have one just like you!")

I did not know that a 14 month old could be so opinionated. She wants what she wants when she wants it. Oh, and she seems to only want to do things I've told her she can't do which makes her throw a tantrum.

She doesn't understand why I don't want her grabbing my glass of water and running through the house with it as it sloshes all over the carpet. Why would that upset me, right? She also doesn't understand why she can't grab folders of paper and empty them all over the floor or unfold the laundry I just folded or why she can't turn her sippy cup upside down on the living room table or couch and press it down until it empties slowly all over the place. She doesn't like that I won't let her open the front door or throw her food off her high chair tray instead of eating it or put every single thing she picks up into her mouth.

Apparently, Mommy is just completely unreasonable! Whenever, I try to get her to stop one of these behaviors (or in english--just plain stop it)--she screams and cries and sometimes swats at me. Then she does it again anyway. This is definitely terrible two territory--right?!

When she's not doing this she's actually a very happy little girl but Oh My Goodness, the toddler stuff is a whole new experience. Wow!

OUR NEW BAND--SHATTERED MIRRORS

That's Rob's name for it anyway! Pretty rag-tag bunch, eh? Oh well, we had fun posing if nothing else.

OUR FAMILY EASTER EGG HUNT

This is Julie giving Carly the rules for the Easter Egg hunt. Julie is making sure she understands everything before she starts. (Right!)



This is Kaden our nephew who has just started and is already making decent progress!



Wow, our niece Keelie has quite the haul!



Gotta get our jacket on if we want to hunt for eggs outside.



What nice sisters to help me find Easter eggs on grass especially since I CAN'T STAND GRASS!!!


Oh wow, it's a real colored egg! Can I eat it?

CUTE COUSINS

Aren't these two cute? They really like each other, too. That makes it all the more fun!

HUBBY'S BACK!

Rob's been gone for two long weeks for training and he just got home tonight. I am so HAPPY! Yay for me!

FUN ADVENTURE

Tonight Uncle Steve came by with his mini four wheelers and his mini-kids. Those would be my neice and nephew and invited us out to do a little four wheelin'. Actually, they invited Julie to join their group. Megan, Carly and I went along to watch and take pictures. Megan actually rode for a few minutes, too. I even let Carly on for a minute and I walked around holding her hand--so snail's pace. Very slow. She liked it, though. I was surprised. I thought she'd cry the minute the engine went on--but then she was on Megan's lap. Here's some cute pictures.

MY LITTLE VIRTUOSO

THANKS AUNT LORI! WE LOVE YOU!

We spent the day with the Master Photographer, a.k.a., Aunt Lori. Now, mind you, these are pictures of Aunt Lori with Carly--not pictures TAKEN BY Aunt Lori. She would not want you get the two confused. Nor would I want you to. Nor should you. Lori is one of the best photographers I've ever seen and she has taken many portraits of my family and, of course, some absolutely gorgeous ones of Carly.

Today she put Carly in a TuTu and it was Way, Way cute on her. I snapped a few photos while Lori was doing some pre-work. I don't have Lori's finished products yet but I saw of few of them on screen and they were AMAZING! I will be sure to post a few when I get them. In the meantime, I present the famous--and Infamous, Aunt Lori, with her lovable little TUTU GIRL! Oh yah--and one picture of Carly in her TuTu that you'll know for sure I took--because I cut off her legs. Oops, hee hee! Yep, that's me!

AND THEY CALLED IT PUPPY LOVE . . .

Carly loves to hug these guys. I wish I could have gotten a better shot. She's too quick for me or I would have had a picture of her trying to ride one of the dogs for you. You wouldn't believe how patient they are with her. She really loves them.

SPRING WAS IN THE AIR TODAY

I love Spring! It's happy and colorful, warm but not hot, and there is always the chance of a cool breeze just when you need it! Today was such a day and I really, really liked it!

Julie, Carly and I went for a walk tonight and Carly liked it so much that when we got home and started to come in the house she threw a major tantrum. She loved being outside. Now don't confuse that with being in the grass! She still doesn't do grass--um you know what I mean! She was happy to ride in her chariot (a.k.a. stroller)and just enjoy the evening. She just didn't want to go inside!

Julie and I decided maybe she had the right idea so we went in just long enough to get some cash and went to get some shakes. Carly thought that was a great idea. So did Julie! I just go along to pay for things cuz that's my job. Ya know what I mean? Anyway, we had fun on what felt like the first day of Spring!

Carly with Her Balloon

Happy Birthday Megan - Yesterday!

Yah, so this is the only surviving picture of Megan's birthday party. I had Julie take the pictures and Megan would actually kill me if I posted them. Julie and I had a discussion this morning about taking unflattering pictures. The one I've posted is one Megan asked her to take. The rest are ones that have mouths full, eyes closed, people moving, not looking, etc. Grrr.

So much for pictures for posterity. Hopefully we will have better ones in the future. That's what learnin' is all about--right?!

MY NEW 'DO

Julie, Megan and I got brave today and took on Carly's hair. I guess I should say we took on Carly because when you take on her hair you definitely take on HER! Anyway, I learned this new fairly easy to do hairstyle by watching a utube video. It's called finger coils. It's time consuming but not too hard.

While Carly was eating dinner the three of us started working on her hair and she actually let us do it. She wasn't calm the whole time but was pretty good for about 45 minutes--that included getting a bunch of treats and toys to play with. We didn't finish her whole head but enough to look decent--at least for pictures.

I think it looks pretty cute. Of course, after all that trouble it won't last for more than a day or so. Ugh! Oh well, it was worth the picture!

WOW!

Tonight, completely out of the blue, my 15 year old said, "Thanks Mom." I said, "For what?" She said, "For making me perservere (and then she named three examples of things she hadn't wanted to continue doing because she either didn't like them enough once she started them or they were too hard. She told me she was really glad I'd made her keep doing them and finish because it had made her a better person. And yes, she did actually use the word "perservere." All I could think was "Wow, I thought you had to wait until you were nearly dead for your kids to tell you things like this--or at least until they had teenagers!

PLAYING OUTSIDE . . . NOT SO MUCH, MOM!

So the other day when it was nice and sunny, I thought, "I've never taken Carly outside to play in the yard." I mean, she's always been too little or it's been bad weather. So, I got her all ready and we went out into the front yard. Julie came with us and we sat down on the front lawn. I had Carly on my lap at first but then I started to put stand her on the lawn and she went nuts. She pulled her feet up and started moaning and crying and acting like she was going to have a K'niption fit. So, I held her for a few more minutes--then tried again. This time I actually got her tennis shoes on the lawn before she realized it--but up they came just as fast. She wasn't having any of it. It was like she was allergic to the grass--or worse yet, scared of it.

Then, I remembered the Christmas tree--almost four months earlier. She had the same reaction to the tree. She was fine to look at it. She loved the lights on it, but if you got her within 6 inches of it she came unglued. If you tried to make her touch it she'd freak! It wasn't even a real tree. So, she can't be scared of things that are growing. Maybe she doesn't like green things or pokey things. I haven't figured this one out yet. But, it for sure limits the time we will spend playing outside--at least for awhile. Oh well, I tried. I was all excited to see her run and play in the grass too. Darn.

O.K., I GIVE, WHAT'S THE SECRET?

How do you accomplish anything when you have a toddler? I can't figure it out. I'm serious. It seems like I can't get the smallest thing done--I mean outside of feeding, clothing, playing with her and managing to clean up a little here and there. Other than those things I simply can't make any headway at all on anything. I feel like I start in the same place every day with the same pile and never quite get to it.

I do realize the Mommying is the most important part but there comes a time when some of those other things have to get done. I just want to know how you WONDER WOMEN are doing it or how you did it? Tell, please tell! All I know is most days I am so exausted from the chasing that when I put her down for a nap I want one myself!
My little girl isn't just walking, she's running and getting faster every day! No joke! It's a good thing she's so darned adorable!

News of the Weird

Oops!
In December, Idaho State University sent certified-mail letters to its adjunct faculty to disclose (as required by law) that some of them would soon be laid off. However, only the first-class mail fee was billed to the university, leaving each professor to pay on receipt the certified-mail surcharge in order to find out what the university would send them that was so important. (The Idaho State Journal reported that it was the Postal Service's error.) [The Olympian, 12-25-08]

Jailers Not Paying Attention: Christian Colon, 21, had a plea deal worked out to testify against alleged murderer Joel Rivera in exchange for a lighter sentence, but suddenly decided in February that he would not take the stand. The change of heart came right after Colon was accidentally housed in the same Milwaukee County Jail holding cell with Rivera. (With no plea deal, Colon got 46 years.) [Journal Sentinel (Milwaukee), 2-26-09]

At least Colon is still alive. A 23-year-old inmate at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary was found beaten to death in March after being mistakenly assigned to the same cell as his ex-partner-in-crime, against whom he had testified in a 2002

A News of the Weird Classic (October 1999)
From a May 1999 police report in The Messenger (Madisonville, Ky.), concerning two trucks being driven curiously on a rural road:

A man would drive a truck 100 yards, stop, walk back to a second truck, drive it 100 yards beyond the first truck, stop, walk back to the first truck, drive it 100 yards beyond the second truck, and so on, into the evening. He did it, he told police, because his brother was passed out drunk in one of the trucks, and he was trying to drive both trucks home, at more or less the same time. (Not surprisingly, a blood-alcohol test showed the driver, also, to be impaired.)

IF YOU DON'T LIKE THE WEATHER, STICK AROUND FOR A FEW MINUTES . . .

Yesterday, it was nice and sunny--almost spring-like. Today, it was a little cool when we woke up but didn't seem too different. So, we got ready for church like normal. When we got ready to head out the door we realized we'd have to change a few clothes and shoes. It wasn't just a little cool anymore. It had started snowing hard and sticking! Off with the sandals, on with shoes, sweaters, coats, heaters and such! Before the day was over we even had hail. What a weird day! Seriously. We even turned the fireplace on and huddled by it--something we haven't done in a long time. Oh well, it was kind of fun. Hopefully, that was the last snow this year, though.

My Getaway Girl

This is Carly running away while I'm trying to catch her for a picture. She's pretty proud of herself.

PAMPERED PRINCESS

Wow, do I feel pampered. After a long day with a little girl who simply did not want to take a nap a handsome prince came to my door and swept me off my feet! He took me out to a lovely dinner and then off to a movie! It was a fun evening with my handsome hubby! My two youngest stayed home and entertained each other and I'm pretty sure they had fun. Well, at least one of them did. Hee hee.

BLANKY CRANKY

Talk about cranky! Wow! Carly has a favorite blanky. It is warm and fuzzy with cute ducks all over it and since she started seriously teething she loves to suck on the corners of it. She goes to sleep at night sucking on it and we find her laying awake happily sucking on it just waiting for us to come and get her in the morning. It really is her whoobie and she is darned serious about it.

Anyway, Rob put her to bed tonight, not realizing her ducky blanket was not in her crib. Serious faux paux. All of the sudden I hear her blood curtling screaming coming from her bedroom and Rob comes running out saying "Ducky blanket, ducky blanket" as fast as he can while he's looking all around. He located it quickly in the living room and ran back to the bedroom with it. Silence. That's all she wanted. Translation: DON'T PUT ME DOWN WITHOUT DUCKY! Trust me, we all got the message. We are blanky cranky at our house!

CARLY'S NEW HABIT!

Carly has taken up toothbrushing and she loves it so much once she starts it takes a lot of convincing to get her to put her toothbrush down. She carries it around and chews on it for hours if you let her. Usually, we can distract her after awhile. That's harder to do with her 21 year old sister who wanders around doing the same thing. If anyone has any ideas, let me know before she polishes off her enamel!