A short day

The kids HATE their bus ride and are always asking for me to pick them up. I don't blame them really, it's an hour long ride over hilly and curvy roads....carsick city. Usually I'm on my way to take Michelle to work when they get out. Today Michelle went into work at 8:30. So I told anyone who wanted to that I'd pick them up at 2. My mindset was that Michelle was getting out at 2:30, I'd get the kids, pick Michelle up and then run a few errands. Then I looked at her schedule and realized...she gets out at 4. I was really tempted to call the whole thing off and just go by myself to pick her up after the kids got off the bus. I couldn't really though....they were so excited to go, especially Danielle. She's been talking about going to the dollar store and buying socks for weeks now. No toys, just socks. Of course once we got there her whole demeanor changed....she got the gimmes pretty bad.

I picked up Luke (no need to sign him out) and then he waited with the Danielle and Sean while I ran into the elementary school to sign out the rest of the kids. When I went to sign the sign-out book I realized I was shaking pretty badly. I'd forgotten to eat before we left. None of the kids had any snacks or candy in their bags either. RATS! I kept debating on what to do. Stop for food first and eat on the way into the city or run an errand first and take the kids to McDonald's to play. I opted for the errand first. I LOVE our small city DMV! I walked in the DMV door, up to a window, did what I came to do and was back in the van before the parking meter even knew I'd dropped a quarter into it. I asked the kids if they'd done their homework while I was gone. For some reason no one did any.

I was still shaking so it was onto McD's. The kids hadn't had an after school snack so were on the hungry side also. Carrie...she just wanted fries. I got to indulge in a filet o fish (or two). thank you lent! I love McD's 2 for $3 fish and lg fries special every lent. Carrie ended up "stealing" my salad (she wanted to go buy one so I just gave her mine). Sean and Danielle split a McDouble and the three of us split a lg fries. The rest of the kids got a dollar sandwich and a lg fries each. They were SO good. Sean and Danielle just sat there chomping away, watching the tv. I had to tell them to stop eating and go play. lol We stayed for about an hour...until it was time to pick up Michelle from work. Then we hit the dollar store, stopped at Burger King so Michelle could grab something to eat, a quick (and expensive) trip through Walmart to get prepared for the weekend and snow. Michelle bought Tom a chicken teriyaki sub from subway for his dinner. Yay! No cooking for me! The kids fixed a snack before bed. We got home just in time to unload the van and take the kids to cleaning. Now they're in bed, hoping for a snow day or two. I told them not to hold their breaths for tomorrow since the storm isn't suppose to be bad until evening...right when I'm suppose to be driving Michelle to work and picking her up!!!

I remembered to bring my camera with us today. BUT I forgot the memory card in the printer so could only take a few pictures.

Luke lounging with his ice water


Jake feeling right at home with a video game


Carrie getting in on the action


And of course Sean has to be a part of it too


Danielle the two headed girl


Olivia


Carrie


Eileen finally gets a turn on the video game


Oops! Did I say they were SO good!?! Danielle started to protest because we had to pick up Michelle from work and not go to the dollar store which she could see...RIGHT! ACROSS! THE STREET!!!!


Michelle


The whole gang on the way home

Odds and Ends

Just some fun pictures I wanted to share (especially with Liz)

Danielle after her makeover. I'm not sure who did her makeup.



Seanie showing off his cup Aunt Della gave him.



The world through Sean's viewfinder...



I last but not least...I decided I didn't want to clog up the family blog with tons of craft/crochet posts. So I've started a blog dedicated to it called... It's off the Hook!

I'm pretty sure I've caught up on everything I wanted to share. If not, I'm sure I'll post again. lol

The rest of the week

The rest of the week was kind of low key. We tried to gear our meals toward the island theme but that was about it. I never did get pictures of the ceiling fan in the kitchen dressed up as the sun. Or Olivia's treasure map that runs across the back wall. She has us going around a palm tree, over a mountain, past a volcano and through a river before coming to the big red X of a treasure. I never finished the palm tree either.

On Sunday we were surprised when our friend from church, Delandie, pulled into the driveway.



He lives in Michigan but had a doctor's visit here on Tuesday. So he turned it into a week long visit. He stayed at our house Wednesday and Thursday. His original plans were to stay until Sunday morning but on Friday it ended up that he was here with just Tom, me and the little ones. He decided to head back home early. The ironic thing...one of the reasons he decided to go early was so he could hang out with the boys from here. On Friday Luke went with a few boys to Michigan to hang out for the weekend. lol Shhh don't say anything but there's been talk of him getting hired in our area in a few weeks. Seems he may be working at his old job soon so will be moving back here for the summer. (it's a seasonal job) We're all praying it happens. Also that he can find something more permanent while he's here.

On Tuesday night we dropped Michelle off at work and then headed to McDonald's. The little kids played in the playplace while Carrie, Delandie and I sat and talked. I let them all get a sandwich and fries. Then I splurged for sundaes for everyone (and another sandwich for Delandie lol).

Wednesday was right up there as one of the worst days of my life. Val and I ended up getting into an argument over something really stupid. In not one of my best motherhood moments, I allowed it to escalate into something really ugly. She ended up calling Pat to come pick her up, walking out the door without saying anything to anyone...even the little kids. We haven't heard from her since. (although I'm pretty sure she's talking to at least Michelle) I was a mess for days. It breaks my heart that we have this divide between us. She's the type of person to keep it there for quite a long time. I'm not sure if we'll ever be ok again. Whoever thinks having big kids makes life easier is INSANE!

Saturday we went to visit my parents. We hadn't seen them since they were out here for their Christmas visit. They just got back from 2 weeks in North Carolina last Sunday. It just so happened that my mom was cooking a pot roast and if I could bring potatoes, she'd have enough to feed us. So I grabbed Tom, our bag of potatoes and loaded Jake on down into the van. We had a good visit filled with lots of laughing as everyone got to play with their Wii and balance board. Someone had mentioned us getting one (I'm thinking it was Drew) but I nixed the thought since we already have the Xbox. Now seeing how physical the kids are while playing it, I'm rethinking it, but it's still pretty low on my list.

Sunday was finally the day that it happened! We finally got the kitchen together and enough chairs that allows us to all sit at our kitchen table. It's a really tight fit but no one's complaining since they've missed it so much. I can't remember the last time we all sat our kitchen table for dinner. We had a ball! Allison came over and visited us. We talked about what Olympic competition we each thought we'd be the most likely to metal in (being that we had lifelong training and such). I picked softball, Jake and Allison picked curling, Tom picked running. Then it was onto what competition would we most like to be able to compete in. I picked the platform high dive since it seems so scary to me and it would be awesome if I could do it. Tom picked weight lifting. Olivia and Allison picked the half pipe. Danielle said skateboarding. lol We then moved onto our favorite veggie and fruit. Then we played Doctor. Get your mind out of the gutter and stop giggling. It's a parlor game where someone is the doctor and leaves the room. The rest decide what the symptom will be (like everyone to say Ummmm before answering their question). The doctor then comes in and asks everyone questions. Everyone has answer his questions while incorporating the symptom into the answer. The doctor has to figure out what the symptom is. After a few rounds of that I had to be the wet blanket and end all the fun. But it was after 9:30 and there was school the next day.

Island Week 2010

Friday Michelle and I got to work trying to get things in order here and decorate, afterall it was ISLAND WEEK! We were hoping to kick it off in high gear on Saturday. It was decided the livingroom would be the ocean. The kitchen would be the land. This year we lived underwater with the fishes. We had crepe paper waves above our heads along with swimming fish.



Ocean bottom with some seaweed


Our dolphin friend


Coral reef


Flower garden in the kitchen


The kids made a mega hopscotch game in the hall. Sean loved it!


Drew and Allison came over on Saturday. They even brought their dog Sweetpea who was in her island finest.





Just for fun everyone decided to start cheering for Val



We had coconut shrimp, punch, rye bread and dip, and other snacks. There games of limbo, including one done backwards. We played Apple to Apple during which I feel asleep in my chair, leaving Tom to work for a win on his own (we were partners).

I have a lot to share

UGH! This computer is moving like molasses. And wouldn't you know it...I have a bunch of photos to upload and share.

Super bowl antics. It ended up that Tom and I where here with only the 4 little ones. Everyone else was either working or invited somewhere else. Eileen and Olivia got into the game spirit and got their game faces on.





Michelle and Carrie got home just after half time ended. They had their own little party in Michelle's room since she has the best tv in the house. Most here were happy that the Saints won. At Pat's house it was a very sad occasion.

The rest of the week went on fine. Carrie had her TODAY study appt. We picked up Carrie from school at 1:45, dropped Michelle off to work early at 2:20 and then headed to the city.

Getting ready





Hiding on Carrie. Carrie was out of the room getting her vitals taken. Danielle and Sean decided they'd hide behind the door and scare her when she got back. Here they are with Danielle peeking out of the crack, watching for her.


Danielle's hair was going crazy (moreso then normal) so Carrie tried to tame it with a pony.


Carrie getting down to the nitty gritty.


Her blood pressure was good for the first time in a long time! She's been good about taking that medicine since it's once a day...in the morning. It's trying to remember the 2nd dose of her diabetes medicine at night that's the problem (and weekends).

Carrie's been bugging me to get her ears pierced. I've always told the girls not until you're 18...old enough to give their own consent. As time has gone on my take on pierced ears has changed. I've found that after the excitement of getting them done is gone, most people tend to not care about it so much. You throw in a cute pair once in a while but for the most part...they're just there. Still it wasn't fair to the other girls if I gave in. Then it came to me....Carrie's been having such a hard time getting on track and taking ownership of her medication requirements. So I made a deal with her...If she can take her medicine twice a day everyday and test her sugar at least once a day and log it...she can get her ears pierced. Guess what...she's taken control and has only forgotten one night (we both swore she took it, she must have become distracted in the middle of doing it...I've given her a by on it)

Next up....Island Week!

Thanks Della

My SIL, Della over at 18 Under One Roof honored me with the next Honest Scrap Award. So now I have to think of 10 things to share with everyone here. Hopefully at least one of them will be good/positive. :o)

1. I hate shoes and socks give my feet the heebie jeebies. I'd be in hog heaven and might even move down south if bare feet were allowed in public places. I'd say I'd throw all my shoes away but I really don't have many to throw away. Right now I'm wearing my sneakers in lieu of boots. Quite the fashion statement especially paired with #2 below.

2. I don't own any pants. I only wear skirts. Well I do have an old pair of red sweat/active pants around here somewhere but it's been so long since I've worn them...I don't know where they are. They certainly aren't going out the door in quality, they're barely going to bed in ones. I wear them for modesty and comfort. I think I'd die of embarrassment if I had to wear pants out in public. I know the inseams would certainly drive me crazy...almost as much as socks.

3. I'm a slob. My sister hated rooming with me when we were kids because my side of the room was always a pig sty. I don't walk around here thinking I need more storage space but more flat surfaces to make piles. I don't mind cleaning, actually I like to do it. Problem is that I don't like to do it ALL the time. Or I think I have time to do it later, yet later never comes. I have gotten better as my family has grown. Unfortunately my family has grown faster them my skills have developed.

4. I'm a procrastinator although I've learned to a point that it's best not to and try to avoid it. Maybe it's because I work best under pressure and actually enjoy it. (although those working with me may not) I think that's why I like working concessions so much.

5. I'm the queen of fairness to a fault. Everyone has to get the same amount or nothing at all. It's driven Tom crazy for years...especially at Christmas and Easter time. I've gotten better about it over the years. Especially when you think about it...exactly how fair is it for a 2yo to get the same amount of candy as an 18yo?

6. I'm a terrible friend to communicate with. I'll do anything for you but ask me to call or email you and you're pushing your luck. I guess it kind of goes with the procrastinating and thinking I'll do it later. Next thing I know it's too late to call or what I needed to email you about is over with.

7. Food controls me...I love it! Often my state of wellness/depression can be attributed to the amount of food that's in the house. When my cupboards are full and there is a plethora of quick fix meals...I'm ecstatic. Bare cupboards with need to work to make meals only and I can become really depressed.

8. I have an addictive personality. Or more like a personality that makes addiction a real threat for me. With my mom it's reading. I wanted to avoid that trap so I rarely read anymore. (always had my nose in a book before kids came along) The few times I've been to a casino I always end up saying...I'm so glad I don't live closer to this place! I'd be in trouble. While I feel like garbage because I've lost my "play money" (money I'd intended to use there). I'm still thinking....oh if only I had $20 more dollars. Oh look at that machine! For a while the computer took over where reading would be. Now it's crochet. I've gotten better at tempering my time with them. With crocheting I can reason that it's functional too. But sometimes I really wonder.

9. I feel really guilty right now. I'm dreading Olivia's birthday which is 3.5 weeks away. I've been dreading it for months. Just writing about it makes my chest get tight and the tears threaten to surface. It's the anniversary of Billy's death. I'm still mad at him for doing this to her. (amongst other things) I know we'll get through the day but I really don't want to. Olivia tries to talk about what to do that day but I tend to put if off until later or say we'll see. I'd really like to make it special for her but not sure what. I'd also really like not to be physically here. Hmmmm, it might be a good time to go away for the weekend with everyone. Although I'm not sure if we can swing it $$wise.

10. I have the word SUCKER written on my forehead. I'm a pushover and people pleaser. I have a hard time saying no when asked to do something. While I've been known to say...I'm your mother, not your friend. Many times that line gets blurred more then it should. I'm terrible at giving ultimatums, deadlines, and whatnot. Take driving Michelle to college/work. I KNOW that should've been over a long time ago. I KNOW I'm not doing her any favors by continuing it. I've said she's going to learn to drive after the snow goes because I'm not driving anymore. We'll see how that goes. Or how about our new car that no one was going to drive but Tom and I....that Pat's still using.

So who do I pass this onto? Since I'm not much of meme person to begin with...I'm not passing it onto too many people.

Gretchen over at A House Full of Boys

And

Karen over at Our Deer Baby

You can thank me later ladies. lol Have fun.

4 days at home

Wednesday I took Michelle to work for 4 and never made it home before she had to be picked up. I hit the grocery stores and when it was obvious I needed to kill some time. I used the last of my gift card at AC Moore and bought a bamboo handled G hook, grabbed a package of mill end yarn I bought at Big Lots that day and sat at her work (they have a table near the entrance) and crocheted. We got home pretty close to 10.

It's a rarity but I had 4 straight days when I didn't leave the house this weekend. Drew took Michelle to work on Thursday, Tom picked her up. She had Friday and Saturday off and there were no activities planned. Most of us skipped church on Sunday after Sean woke up complaining his eyes hurt. I figured he had a headache. Danielle said she didn't feel good either but I'm not sure if she was just trying to jump on the sympathy train with Sean. They both have had yucky noses so I'm sure she wasn't feeling 100%. Then Tom took and picked up Michelle for me.

What's even more amazing is that I was in an organizing mood and my body cooperated. I cleaned out a cupboard or two, scrubbed down cupboard fronts, cleaned out the laundry room and did laundry non stop for days. I'm happy to say that I was down to a tiny bit in the hamper. Then Eileen and Olivia cleaned their room. No problem...I did that too. What the problem is...I slacked back off on keeping the machine going and it's quickly piling back up!!!!! Last night I declared that no one could wear clothes anymore. I don't think anyone was listening.

Usually when I'm in that type of mood I can be someone who you don't want to be around....especially if you get in my way. This weekend was different. I just puttered around and every once in a while decided...I'm taking a break. I'd grab a coffee, my crochet hook, some yarn and sit for about an hour. I'm lurking at a few crochet alongs over at Crochetville and have started a few of their projects. Problem is there are too many of them...I want to do almost all of them! lol

So my WIP's (works in progress) are....

Jackson Square Blanket that the Captain Hook and the Yarn Pirates are doing. I have 4 squares done so far. I'm not sure who or why I'm making it...just for practice I guess.

The Tree of Life Afghan that I found through the Tree of Life CAL (crochet along). I have a wedding in May and I figured this would make a good shower gift. I'm on row 21 of the first set of trees. It's a bit harder to do around here since I have to concentrate and count my stitches more. I'm a little bit disappointed in my yarn. I'm using aran Bernat worsted I had stashed. In natural light it looks ivory/cream colored. In artificial light it can take on a yellowish coloring. I'm afraid I'm going to put all this work into it and then not like it enough to give as a gift.

Working the Tree of Life as a shower gift also allows me to join along in the new Somebody is Getting Married CAL. And when that's done I have 2 other weddings I want to make gifts for, so it works for me. I've also thought to offer to make wedding favors for them. (hearts for Drew's, snowflake ornaments for Pat's maybe?) but we'll see.


I also have the Midnight Brites afghan. However I haven't done too much on it since the last time I mentioned it. Maybe I need a CAL for that! lol

My last WIP is MIA at the moment.



I seem to have misplaced the baby blanket I was working on (on row 44 of 73 rows). Last time I had it I was working on it in the bathroom while supervising Danielle and Sean in a bath. I stuck the bag into the closet before they got out of the tub so that they wouldn't get it wet. When I went to get it, it wasn't there. I haven't looked too hard for it. I'm hoping I took it into my room when I went in there to get their outfits. I'm dreading the thought that someone thought it was a bag of trash and collected it before Tom left for the dump on Saturday. Finding and working on this would make it possible to join in the Baby CAL. Then there's the things I want to make for Drew's baby. And the things I can donate to various charities. Baby things make for quick projects.

Then there's the...12 months of Crochet Christmas Caroling, the February Charity Blitz (might still join in that one) and the Lumberjack Flannelghan to name of few. But there's too few hours in the day.

I am happy to announce that I can share pictures now. While out shopping last Wednesday I bought a memory card! YIPPEE! And wouldn't you know it...first thing I walk in the door I find this...



And the next day Danielle and Sean were too cute sitting in the new chairs, reading.






John and Sean playing guitar together.



So now I need to get to work and keep up the momentum I started this weekend. Tomorrow I won't be able to do much as I have to go to beer pouring at the Syracuse Dome. Thursday is Carrie's appointment for the TODAY study. Then the last day of school Friday before midwinter break and ISLAND WEEK!!!!

I can hear them laughing from here

This morning has been a dandy already. Tom informed me when I got home from beer pouring last night that Oreo's lead had broke. He also informed me that he fixed it. Well he may have fixed it for normal everyday use. What Tom doesn't realize though is that Oreo goes absolutely berserk when the school bus pulls up to the house. I think you can guess what happened. As the kids were climbing into the bus Oreo managed to undo Tom's fix. Before I knew it he was standing in front of the bus barking his head off. The bus was gently and ever so slowly trying to persuade him that it wasn't the best place to be (with a car waiting behind it no less). Oreo wouldn't be persuaded. The bus continued to creep very slowly down the street with the maniac dog dancing and barking at it's front tires in front of it.

I didn't know what to do. Sean was up but no one else. I planted Sean in front of the computer, threw on my sneaks and ran out the door screaming. They were pretty far down the street. I definitely couldn't run down there, I'd drop dead from exhaustion before I made it to them. Plus I was sure my kids on the bus didn't want everyone else to experience their mom running in half on sneaks, no coat...oh it's just not a pretty sight. I tried my no fail method of getting Oreo back to the house...turning on the van like we're about to pull out of the driveway. No go...after all why would he bother coming home for a puny van when he had the mother of all catches under his control already! I was standing in the road screaming for Oreo, trying to decide my next step (grabbing Sean, throwing him in his carseat and driving down to where the bus was so I could snag the stupid dog). Then the bus put on it's blinking lights and a kid got off the bus, crossed in front of it and came out the other side with Oreo in his hands. The bus turned off it's lights and continued on it's way. I could barely make out who it was. I finally heard his faint yells and realized it was Jake. He dragged the dog home by his collar, no small feat. The bus driver is a sweetheart. She called our house before she left the school for her 2nd trip. She wanted to make sure Jake and Oreo got home safely.

So Jake went to school on 2nd trip (an hour late) and I had to write him an excuse for his tardiness. I had NO idea what to say. I couldn't say he overslept or that he missed the bus...everyone knew he didn't. So I wrote...

Please excuse Jacob's tardiness today. We had a major loose dog incident. Thank You.

Now the question is...will they accept it as a legal excuse....after they pick themselves up off the floor and wipe the tears from their eyes of course.

Maybe I WILL give Oreo that bath I was thinking of giving him today...he HATES it! Serves him right! :op~~~~~

Full weekend

I should know better then to set deadlines on here. I know I said I'd get my Honest Scrap post up last weekend but as usual, things happen. I have a post started if that means anything. I worked beer pouring last Saturday and then concessions for the Syracuse vs Georgetown game Monday night. By the end of the game I felt like I'd been run over with a truck and had a massive headache. It lasted well into Wednesday and was only subdued to a dull roar with ibuprofen. Carrie and Luke both ended up with one last week too. Thursday found me driving through a blizzard and starting to go off the road. When I left home it was blue skies with wind driven snow drifts here and there...nothing too bad if you drove carefully. By the time I'd dropped off Michelle and made it half way home we were into snow and eventually total white outs. Even though it was daytime I had a hard time seeing where the sides of the road were. Luckily things let up enough to make the trip not too treacherous on the way back to pick up Michelle. For a while I thought we'd have to get a motel room in the city. lol Much to our chagrin school wasn't even delayed the next day.

Michelle had Friday off. A day to stay home and get some things accomplished. First on the list was the taxes...we NEED our refund! Now I'm counting down the days until it gets here. Thankfully we don't have to wait for months for like in the old days. I managed to get some much needed things done here but was limited due to rationing propane since we're almost out. We managed to make it last through the weekend, allowing the kids to shower for school today. PHEW! Hopefully they'll come today. I'm dying to bake cookies and get caught up on the laundry.

Saturday was FREEZING out! When I got up it was -7 degrees Fahrenheit. At least it wasn't snowing. lol The kids were bouncing off the walls because WE WERE GOING TO A HOTEL!!! My niece won a free weekend for a local inn's bridal suite in a nearby town. She was only going to use it for Friday night so asked Della if she wanted to use it with her little kids. Della then lost her mind and invited me and my 4 youngest kids. I was equally insane and actually said yes. I thought Danielle was going to jump out of her skin waiting until it was time to go. When Della pulled up to the house to pick us up Danielle just kept yelling...IS SHE HERE? IS SHE REALLY HERE? REALLY? SHE'S HERE? REALLY REALLY? I had to hurry and get her out the door so she wouldn't explode.

The place was awesome and if I had a memory card (which I hope to get in the next few weeks!!) I could actually show you it. It was a loft bedroom over a sitting area/kitchenette. To get to the loft was a wood spiral staircase. The counters were all granite. The bathroom was tiled throughout with a huge shower room. The kids were thrown for a loop because there wasn't a door or curtain it. We had to explain that the shower was made so that the water wouldn't leave the stall area and didn't need one. There was a huge wood door with a stained glass window on one wall. When I opened it my eyes practically popped out of my head. It was an executive conference room. It was a beautiful dining and sitting area with an awesome view of the river. The walls were a light buttercream with dark wood moulding. The floors were red cherry maybe (at least they were stained a really dark red/brown). There was a massive table that fit 14 huge wood upholstered chairs. Along with a wetbar with a second fridge. The sitting area had a couch with 2 chairs overlooking a chest of drawers coffee table and a gas fireplace. (It took me a few hours but I finally found the switch to turn it on!) The furniture was all Stickley!! YIKES! It was mission style furniture so was sturdy but it's expensive!! Not something you want the kids climbing all over and eating on. They actually did pretty well until the very end when Danielle broke the rules. She went upstairs (which she wasn't suppose to do) with juice (no one was suppose to have up there). The juice ended up spilling on the bed cover.

Most of the kids settled down pretty well. I lucked out and Sean feel asleep nursing and didn't wake up when I put him down like he usually does. Danielle took a bit to convince but went without too much trouble. I'd say I barely slept but I'm not sure I was awake any more then I would be at home lately. As I knew he would be, Sean was up at the crack of dawn. I TRIED TRIED TRIED to keep him quiet. As long as he had a finger up to his lips he'd remember to whisper. As soon as it wasn't there...it was full volume mode. The first thing out of his mouth was...Della here? Della an aunt (we've been talking to him about him being an uncle when Drew's baby is born). Go bye bye to the bouncy house!!! I settled him down for a nursing session to keep him quiet. Mid nurse he stops and looks up at me and says... I lub you. Talk about heartmelting. I don't think anyone slept very well. Which made the day ahead a little bit harder.

We packed up and then ate a really nice continental breakfast in a library that barely fit us...luckily there wasn't anyone needing to eat in there at the time. When we got back to the room we realized it was still a bit early for us to get to church so we had some time to kill. The older kids settled upstairs for a movie while Della and I sat in the conference room with Disney on for the kids and more coffee for us. Finally it was time to leave. We all packed into Della's van, stopped by her house to pick up the lunch and dessert Marielle had made for everyone and then onto church. We then had a leisurely day hanging out with the ladies, eating a yummy lunch and watching the kids jump in the bouncy house, run around and fall apart due to exhaustion.

Sean had me laughing last night. He was tired and was climbing into my lap for a nighttime nursing. He suddenly looked at me and said...Where Della? When I explained that she was at her house he fell apart and started crying...DEELLLLLA! DEELLLLAAAAA! It took a bit of work but I finally calmed him down enough to nurse and fall asleep. The night ended with us watching Slumdog Millionaire with Tom (one of the few movies he's requested to see).

This morning has been interesting. Eileen was going to throw up, Olivia's throat is scratchy and red and Danielle has been crying about everything and anything since she got up. I still say the weekend was worth it.

We had a nice 3 day weekend.

Nothing pressing was on the agenda which is a rare thing. Drew and Allison came over, picked up Sean and Danielle and took them to Chuck E Cheese. Drew didn't want to take Sean because all he had to wear on his feet were princess lightup sneaks and it was just wrong. You hardly even noticed what design was on the side of the shoes! Well he took him but he brought him home with royal blue mud boots on instead. LOL Guess they stopped at Walmart before they went to CEC. Thanks Drew (or should I say Allison), Sean loves his new boots! And they're so easy to get on and off for him. I can see him getting a lot of use out of them this spring and summer. The kids had a blast at Chuck E Cheese. Sean is still talking about it and wants to go back. Olivia asked if maybe they could go for her birthday. It's the only time they kids have gone before...when Della and I took them there for "Olivia's Birthday" on Val's birthday (the 9th). I really want to do something special for Olivia's birthday but Chuck E Cheese wasn't on my idea list. Maybe if she really wants to go, we will.

My sister's youngest, Emily was here for the weekend. I managed to get her handwarmers done I owed her for Christmas. I also made up one of Amanda's. I was hoping to get those done and off my todo list too. Unfortunately they're black which is very hard to work with in poor lighting and the lighting stinks in this house once the sun goes down. Emily left early in the day so I didn't have time to get the second one done before she left. So what do I do? I put if off and started something else. *heavy sigh* I don't get why I just don't get them done so I can stop thinking about them! But no! That'd be too easy.

In my early morning awake time (mentioned my funky sleep thing in an earlier post) I started thinking about Liz....and feeling guilty. I haven't really talked to her since she left. We've chatted a few short times on facebook but nothing too much. I miss her yet it must seem like I don't care. :o( The last time I talked to her she mentioned going to England for the summer. That means she won't make it to Drew's wedding. I told her it was ok if she was ok with it. He'll get over it and we can really let her "be there" with Skype. I can just carry her around on a laptop. lol She didn't think that was really funny...but then again none of my kids think what I say or do is.

Drew's wedding.... I asked Allison the other night if they had anything done for it besides pick the date...June 6th, their anniversary. I asked her if we were waiting until the 4th to make the plans. Again, I wasn't funny. Oh well. I don't mind doing things on the spur of the moment but I'd at least like to have time to get things in order around here if this is where the wedding will be. Guess I should plan on having company over here anyways and just doing what needs to be done.

On the other end of the spectrum we have Alex and Pat's wedding. He called me a two weeks ago to let me know that Alex bought her wedding dress. Also they were figuring out the guest list and needed addresses from me. I asked if they even had a date picked yet and they do....Nov 13th.

Then at the end of this summer Val's best friend Janna is getting married. Danielle is her flower girl and I have to buy her this dress...



I like the dress and it's something she can wear again so that's always a plus. The problem is figuring out how much she's going to grow in the next 6+ months. Do I go up one size and hope she doesn't go through a major growth spurt? Or two sizes and have it altered closer to the date? I think right now her dimensions figure out to be a size 2! I'm hoping to get this checked off my todo list within the next few weeks...waiting for our income tax return check. (story of my life)

On the grandbaby front. I bought my first thing for it. It's a cream colored christmas dress, size 3-6mos. And to be on the safe side I bought a santa suit outfit although it's a 6-9mo size. It was that or 0-3mos. I know I have a smaller one around here if it's a boy and that suit is really really too big on him. I also started crocheting a baby afghan on Tuesday. It's out of the new book I bought with my gift card last week. It's all white with a mint green ruffle and ribbon accent. I'm not sure if I'll stick with the mint green or wait to see if Allison finds out the sex and then do the ruffle. I'll probably just do the mint and then do a gender specific one later. I figure it takes me 10mins a row, the body is 73 rows...so about 13 hours in the making. I'd like to work on it an hour a day but life isn't always that accommodating.

Take yesterday for example. While looking through a charity crochet project site, my computer got a virus. It took me ALL afternoon (and a bunch of hair pulling) to get rid of it! So if anyone gets an email from me...DON'T OPEN IT! I think I got it pretty quickly and my internet provider does a pretty good job of filtering outgoing mail, but still...just be warned. I have NOT sent mail in the last few days. Needless to say I updated my security a bit while I was at it. Unfotunately it's making this computer run as slow as molasses in February.

Sean announced he had to pee first thing this morning. So he did and I put his superman undies on him afterwards. He lasted lasted about 2hrs before he came to me and announced he peed. He was barely samp and I had him use the toilet quickly, which he did. He refused to put undies on again though...so he's in a diaper. (and as I typed that, it was announced that he was stinky....so a diaper change later....not ready yet). Now they are sitting on the couch with the electric babysitter (tv and netflix). As the morning goes on I'm finding out I'm losing the battle against a major headache. So much so that I think I'm going to have to end my computer time (couldn't even think of how to spell computer for a second...what did we do without spell check before?) So I'm off to grab some Ibuprofen. I see Della tagged me with the Honest Scrap award yesterday. I'll try to get something for that up before the weekend.

New day ahead

Ahhh Saturday morning. I was up at 4am (been doing some funky sleeping thing lately) and realized...I don't need to get up in the morning!! But I was up by 6:30 with Sean following right behind me. Oh well.

Sean didn't last too long with his undies on. The good thing is that he didn't soak himself, only a little dampness. Still he didn't balk at putting a diaper back on. Am I lazy? Probably. But I think they train easier and faster if they REALLY want to be out of diapers themselves. He's just not there yet. Doesn't mean we don't encourage him though.

I was busy all day yesterday but didn't get nearly as much done as I'd hoped. Of course I was expecting that but still it's a bummer. Mainly we got some laundry done and worked in the kitchen. I did do 5 rounds of the test hat (it's being done in blue/denim, not brown) and 7 rows of one of Emily's handwarmers. Amanda was here last night and decided she wants her's in black. I should probably work on those during the day since black is so hard to see in bad lighting.

My sister brought Emily over last night and the little ones have been having a ball ever since. They've darkened their room and have a strobe light going like crazy up there right now. They're planning on going out and enjoying the above freezing tempeatures today. Tomorrow it's suppose to hit 40 woohooo!

I forgot the kids and Tom have Monday off! The school nurse reminded me when she called to see why Luke and Jake were out yesterday. Thursday the girls were home, Friday it was the boys turn. I think everyone is on the upswing now. So next week should be a good attendance week.

What's on the agenda for today? I'm chomping at the bit to go out to the van and bring in my Salvation Army purchases. I want to photograph them in natural light and put them up in my ravelry stash section. Problem is, I know if I bring them in, I'll want to start tearing them apart. I HAVE to get the other things finished first! (hat and 3 sets of handwarmers) So I'll probably work on those instead. I guess on the top of the list I should have...TAKE DOWN THE CHRISTMAS TREE! Especially since I have lots of helpers here today. It would free up some badly needed room in here but then again it'll seem empty. And we can't forget...laundry, cooking, dishes and such. Maybe after breakfast (Eileen and Olivia are making bacon and eggs to order for everyone right now) we'll do a quick but major Saturday morning cleanup.

LOL Eileen just announced it smells like camping. Funny how certain smells can do that. Now that I think about it, we rarely do have bacon and it's usually when we're camping when we do. I WANT TO GO CAMPING!!!! But I'm off to go do something not as fun instead. Have a great day.

It's FRIDAY!

And the fun thing is...I don't have to go anywhere tomorrow! Yeah me! This week has been away games for the Orangemen so no beer pouring or concessions. Michelle has today and tomorrow off so no driving her. The kids have activity club tonight but that's just a quick 2 mile run down the street and then back to pick them up. My goal is to get as much done today so I can relax tomorrow and do some projects. I still have some Christmas presents that I owe to finish. If I get the chance I might even start my mom's cloche. She's picked this hat when she was out here last weekend. I have some Bernat Satin in a charcoal grey she approved. I'm going to make it up in a light brown Bernat Satin first to see if I need to modify the pattern. I figure I can always add it to my donation box if no one else wants it. There's always some organization that's looking for hats, blankets and such. So may as well put it to good use. My sister's youngest Emily is coming out tonight after Activity club and I'm assuming staying the whole weekend. I owe her and her older sister Amanda handwarmers since I already gave Jessica these...


You can find the pattern here

So I'll let Emily go through my stash and pick a color she likes and make her's. If time allows maybe she can pick a color she thinks Amanda will like and I'll get those done too. I can always hope.

Anyways, I'd feel a lot better about doing the above if I get a bunch of stuff done today. I've already thrown in laundry, loaded the dishwasher, pulled out and cleaned under the couches (still have 2 piles to deal with because of it). After my coffee is gone and I'm done here I'll go back into the basement to throw in more laundry, then the kitchen, more laundry, then the bathrooms and again more laundry. Who knows, I might even get the Christmas tree down! (yes it's still up and decorated) I will NOT go out to the van and sneak my bags from the Salvation Army in, nor will I pick up a crochet hook and start using it!

Sean decided this morning that he wanted to wear underwear! He's nursing in my lap right now with a cute pinchable hienie tempting me. Who knows...maybe I'll be right this time. Everytime I buy a huge box of diapers from BJs I always say...THIS will be the last box of diapers I need to buy. I've only been saying it since last summer. lol Hmmm I just had a thought....will I be sitting in the bathroom all day with Sean? That'll make my todo list easy...NOT!

Coffee's almost gone and Sean is heading to the bathroom so I should follow him. Have a good one!

A rare treat

Michelle got home from work Tuesday night and asked if I wanted to go to Pizza Hut for dinner the next day...her treat. I was confused because I couldn't figure out why she'd treat us to pizza when she was working. It took a few minutes for her to realize my confusion and set me straight...she was working 8:45am to 4pm....doh! Val wasn't home so that meant I had to take Danielle and Sean with me...brrrr. It didn't hit me until early the next morning that the timeframe also made it impossible for me to get Olivia to school on time. Luckily a quick call to Della and I had the solution...I dropped Olivia off at her house and she caught the bus with Della's kids. Sean was so excited to be going bye-bye. It's been so cold out and with the van not having any heat...I've kept my passengers to a minimum. Danielle and Sean haven't been in the van since the New's Year Feast.

Tom's not feeling so great now. He came home early, took some cold medicine and went to bed. He really wanted to go to Pizza Hut with us but decided it was best for everyone to stay home. So I took all 9 of the kids who live here and Val's friend Brittany to Pizza Hut. Sean was so excited....his feet were going a mile a minute and he was dancing in his carseat all the way there. I'm not sure what he thought it was going to be like but he seemed to have enough fun. Stupid me, I forgot my camera. There was some awesome photo ops too. (I'm consoling myself with the fact that even if I took pictures, they'd still be on the camera since I still can't find my usb cord and don't have a memory card)

The kids were angels! I knew when we walked in there were people who were rolling their eyes and holding their breath...including an older couple. By the time the couple left Sean had won over the husband. They were making googly eyes at each other. lol On the way out the door the wife said...."I just need to say that your children are SO well behaved! You've done a great job!"....made my night. Luckily they left when they did because it wasn't too long after that that Sean decided to yell out for no reason...BUTTCRACK! Of course most of the kids tried not to giggle at him but it was near impossible...he thought he was hilarious and had to keep doing it. We finally distracted him by getting him to start saying Candy Cane.

The pizza was delicious! We hardly ever have Pizza Hut pizza so it was extra special. The kids ordered everything themselves...I just sat there and enjoyed it. We had Hawaiian stuffed crust, Veggie stuffed crust, Buffalo chicken pan and pepperoni, bacon and ham pan pizza. Danielle was a little piggie and ate 3 half pieces. Sean finished off the half piece of meat pizza and dug into the Hawaiian. First bite was followed by a yummm, second bite got another yummm. He then held up the half eaten piece and proclaimed to everyone....Dis is wilwee good! No one argued with him about that. Danielle put a little damper on the night when she threw a fit going out the door and to the van. Seems she wanted to buy a necklace from a bubble gum machine but all she got was someone carrying her screaming self out to the parking lot.

Thia, don't be amazed at the time I find to crochet. I don't find it, I steal it...from cleaning, cooking, reading, computer and to a point my kids. I am a bit more accessible to the kids when I'm crocheting then when I'm doing other things. But still I can become distracted when I'm deep into a project. Usually there's something suffering...most likely it's the house. So to me it's a pretty selfish thing right now. One problem I'm finding is that I HAVE to do the unraveling during the day or I can't see the stitches I need to deconstruct the sweater properly. So that's my excuse ATM.

A really neat thing is that some of my kids are interested in learning. Olivia can already do a pretty mean chain. I think she's a little intimidated to go onto anything more. So she'll chain a houselong chain and then rips it out, just to start again later. Both her and Eileen have been helping hank up the unraveled yarn at times. Jake is usually right there, talking about what I'm doing. It'd be really neat if he decided to join in. And if Sean gets a ball of yarn and a hook...watchout!..His hands move lightning fast. lol

I worked on unraveling some more sweaters. I decided to pick up the magenta cotton again. Once I started it, it was done in no time. I was thinking it might make a cute dress for Danielle. I haven't crocheted any clothes yet but I'd like to start. If I don't do the dress I'll probably start with a baby sweater for the grandbaby-to-be. *smiles ear to ear* I have so many projects rattling around my head right now! I need to get some going so I can stop thinking about them. It doesn't help that I bought a new baby afghan book with my gift card and a 40% off coupon. (still have a $2.XX balance on it! lol) They're all so beautiful, I want to make everyone one of them! And I won't mention that I stopped by the Salvation Army last night and bought a bunch more sweaters to unravel. I left them in the van because I couldn't trust myself not to dig into them when I should be doing other things. :o) Ontop of that I've been reading about dying the natural animal based material (wool, cashmere, angora, alpaca, etc). You use of all things...Koolaid or food coloring! There are some awesome colorways created out there!!! ARGH! I need more hours in the day!

And on that note, Tom's home after picking up Michelle from work...so I'm outta here.

Let's try this again

It's 7:45am and I think I'm about ready for a do over for the day. I woke up late, getting the kids off to a rushed start. Made coffee and when I went to sit down caused my computer chair to knock over my huge cup...breaking the handle off the cup. Luckily it had been sitting for a bit as I ended up wearing some of it.

(well I would insert a picture of my poor pathetic coffee cup with no handle but I still don't have a memory card and as usual the usb cord for my camera isn't where it's suppose to be!)

At least the kids made it out the door with everything they needed and some toast. Well most of them, Eileen is still in bed for some reason. I'm sure she'll tell me she isn't feeling well..most of us aren't. Val is coughing really bad, Danielle and Sean are coughing a bit, most everyone else has some sort of cold, sore throat, and/or headache. Me, I'm stuffed up which makes for a sloooow go of things. I'd really rather be sitting on the couch, under a huge blanket with a book. Carrie is reading Lovely Bones for her book report this month. She really wants to see the movie so I suggested she read the book first. Tom picked up my mom's copy of it yesterday. Now I want to reread it. I also have a book my mom said I needed to read on my dresser...The Shack by William P Young. I'm not really sure what the story is exactly...probably why I haven't picked it up yet. Or is that my crochet hook has taken over instead?

OOps! Time to wake up Olivia for school. This should be fun since she knows Eileen is home.

She's up and going! I forgot that Eileen was complaining about being dizzy last night. It really doesn't have anything to do with them still being awake well after I was in bed last night, really. (although I did go to bed a lot earlier then normal, it was still past their bedtime)

Saturday night I got a surprise. The list came out for beer pouring and my name wasn't on it! Here I was thinking I'd have to be gone most of Sunday and suddenly it's free. Wooohoo! I debated on whether to go to church or not but with the little ones running fevers on and off and coughing...decided it was best I stayed home. Guess it was a good thing I wasn't scheduled because by the end of the day I was starting to feel the cold coming on. I still had to drive Michelle to work and pick her up since Tom was on call last week (ended Monday morning).

And then I got distracted and left this sitting there. Wouldn't you know it I ended up knocking over ANOTHER huge cup of coffee the same way I did this morning! So the floor around my computer is extra clean and I'm down one mug. The first mug didn't make the drop. I noticed huge cracks all the way through after I finished the coffee I remade in it. Luckily it didn't leak all over too. \

I took some me time on Sunday after dropping Michelle at work. I returned my electric yarn winder (didn't wind the yarn tight enough, had to babysit the yarn too much...would stop winding at the least little tension), looked through the fabric store and walked out without spending anything. Then it was onto AC Moore with my $25 gift card Pat gave me for Christmas. I was in there FOREVER!!! I could NOT figure out what yarn to buy. I wanted something to make a neutral gender baby blanket (with no pink or purple in it or Allison won't use it on a boy). I also want to make each couple a wedding afghan. I couldn't find what I wanted on sale (it's just too hard for me to buy things at full price). I saw some really nice painted/variegated yarn and some sock yarn that I'd love to have. At $5 or $6 per small skein I just couldn't bring myself to buy it without a specific project for it. I settled on white baby yarn for an "heirloom" blanket...I'll make something gender specific once I know what they're having. I walked out of the store having spent only half my card. I think I might take a 40% off coupon and buy an afghan book I was looking through with more of the card. I then headed to the thrift store. I had my fingers crossed that I'd run into a yarn winder, saving me tons of money...but no go. So I headed to the sweater racks. I've been wanting to try reclaiming yarn from thrift store sweaters and wanted to see if I could find something suitable for a first time project. I walked out of there with 5 of them...magenta cotton, green wool, green chenille (thin thin yarn), blue baby alpaca, and a striped cotton/nylon shirt. I spent more then I usually would on them but knew I wouldn't be back through there any time too soon. Hopefully I can do this and it'll be worth the money I spent.

Yesterday was spent taking apart the green chenille shirt. I have a pretty good size pile of yarn waiting to be rinsed and dekinked. I also started on the magenta cotton shirt but ran into some difficulty with unraveling it so put it aside. Today it was the striped one. I had some issues with it but I think I've worked it out. It's such a fine/thin material that it's taking a bit of time to do.

And now dinner, homework, picking Michelle up from work and bedtime has come and gone. So I'm ending this before it drags out into tomorrow.

Can I REALLY stay home?

Michelle has been having Fridays and Saturdays off for a while. Thing is, there's usually something that needs to be done or is going on those days. So for me to be able to say that I'm really staying home and not getting in the car is rare and it's happening today! Although (and there usually is one in there isn't there) my parents are coming here. They originally planned to visit last Saturday after I got home from beer pouring but the weather was too bad. And I told them to stay home again last Sunday because it was still bad out here (not so much at their house).

One of the good things about having visitors is that it gets the kids motivated to help without too much screaming on my part. My original plan was to tear apart my kitchen, cupboards and all, and put it back together again all spic and span. Instead I found a few tiny, no notice jobs that had been bugging me to tackle. I did get in the kitchen and did make a dent in things, I just didn't accomplish what I'd originally planned. We'll see if things get done this morning, but I doubt it. I told my mom I'd have my great aunt's present finished for her to take home. So I'll have to work on that sometime this morning. It's only a half an hour or so job, but still it's time I need to keep free before they get here.

I haven't crocheted much lately. I still have 3 hand/wrist warmers to finish that I owe my nieces for Christmas and I think it's putting a kibosh on me doing anything else. I'd really like to start an afghan for one of the boys wedding gifts or my new grandbaby coming. EEEEEE!!!!! In a perfect world, I'd etch out some time everyday to work on my crafts, but this isn't the perfect world and I know myself...not going to happen. My first inclination was to join a few crochet alongs at crochetville so I'd have a motivator or someplace to keep me accountable. But again, I know myself and decided not to put that pressure on me. I really do want to keep crocheting something I enjoy and not something I HAVE to do. I'm hoping to get pictures of some things up soon.

It must be the new year

I've been wanting to change things up here for a while. It must be the new year "traditions" clicking in...changes, starting fresh, etc. Now if things would only kick in for me housewise, things would be a lot better around here...but NOOOOO I have to sit here and redecorate my blog instead.

I didn't like the busyness of the 3 columns...so we're back down to 2. I also wanted my photos to be shown bigger then the previous template allowed. There are still some things I need to fix and may be adding, so don't be surprised if things are funky here on and off.

I also wanted to add more of what I'm working on craftwise here...including a photo gallery of finished things and WIP (works in progress).

I missed you!!!

The funny thing is that you probably didn't even realize I was gone. :o) Yep, the phone company doesn't like it when they have to wait for their money. Apparently I pushed the envelope of how long I can put them off. They got mad, threw a fit and turned off my outgoing calls on the phone, and I was ok about it. Then it away went my email...again ok, I could use my hotmail acct. I made a payment but because of the holiday, the earliest it would clear was Monday. The the internet was gone all together! NOOOOOOO! How did we live without it? I'm not even talking about usingit socially. I'm talking about having info at our fingertips immediately. I was amazed at how often someone said they'd look up something then remember they couldn't. Monday came and went and we still weren't connected. So this morning I called and they put an order in to turn things back on. The phone came on but the internet didn't. 55 minutes on the phone with the tech guy and taaadaaa! We're back in business.

So what happened since I was on here last? I have over 320 emails to look through and over 30 blog updates to catchup with. Around here...I had beer pouring on Saturday. I had my favorite pouring spot with the specialty beer. 2 of us pouring 4 different beers. Mine was Sam Adams Lager, Magic Hat #9, Syracuse Pale Ale and Doghead Fish 60 min IPA.

It's been snowing a lot. It literally hasn't stopped snowing since Friday afternoon (you can see flakes falling in the polar bear swim photos below). Even when the sun was out this morning the flakes were flying. And lucky me...Tom is on call so all the driving Michelle to work falls on me. At least the van is handling well. Here's some pictures....

Sunday...


Monday...


Tuesday...

Doesn't look to be a ton of difference from Monday but you can see the bike on the right of the swings is totally covered now.

Sunday...


Monday...


Tuesday...


My parents were going to visit us this weekend but I told them to stay home because of the weather. I told them they could come out for Luke's birthday (it's in March) lol. Hopefully they come out soon since they have Olivia's boots that they had to exchange. It would be nice if she could get some use out of them.

You'd think with having no internet I'd have gotten a lot of crocheting done or my house would be spic n span. NOPE! I totally shut down. I sat at the computer and played games. And now I realized it would've been a good time to read the book my mom lent me (forgot about it until just this second...drats!)

Tomorrow is another day at the Syracuse Dome. This time it's a concession stand for the Syracuse basketball game against Memphis. Unfortunately they lost their first game on Saturday against Pitt. Hopefully the crowd doesn't die down because of that one loss.

Well time to go back into the freezing cold van and pick up Michelle.

They are craaaaazy!

A few of my kids have done a New Year's day tradition....the polar bear swim. The idea is to go into the freezing cold water and at least quickly dunk under. The first year they did it they joined in with Syracuse's official group. Now they just do it themselves at a local swimming area on the river. Today's swimmers were...Drew, his friend Brian, Val's boyfriend John and Michelle. Allison and Val watched with Allison videotaping and Val taking pictures. BTW...it was a balmy 34 degrees Fahrenheit

Drew and Allison before starting


Michelle preswim


Where they went swimming...yes that's ice floating by


In the water middunk


After dunking under....I LOVE their expressions on this one


Michelle after all was done


Drew