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Friday, October 30, 2009

Halloween Snack Time

These are some fun snack ideas to get the kids in the mood for Halloween!

Apple Teeth


Pretzel Witches


The kids had a blast making them.


And enjoyed eating them even more!!

Progress

Ahhh...the sweet sounds of hammers, nail guns and saws-alls! No worries that it's been raining in my kitchen for a week. All of my pots and pans being tied up as water catchers. Half of my electrical outlets don't work and there is no light over my kitchen table so my kids and I eat dinner in the dark. Not to mention all four of us are sleeping in one room, Dylan on the floor and Camryn in her pack and play. Which leaves zero space to maneuver and even less privacy. Most of the ceiling is exposed to the outside in my kids room which lends to pretty cold nights. The workers can see in every window all day so when the kids are at school or napping I feel like I have to look busy so they don't tell my husband I sit around all day. Although naptime has been cut short due to the excessive amount of noise.

But all of this only means one thing...PROGRESS!


My house is starting to look like the plans I was daydreaming about months ago! I'm excited with every new board that goes up. I just hope after the workers are done and it's my husband's turn to do all the work it doesn't come to a screeching halt!

Monday, October 12, 2009

Gray Hairs

is what my daughter is giving me already and we are more than a decade from her teenage years.

Sometimes she cries so hard that she doesn't breathe. Counting this morning, she has now passed out on three separate occasions. And let me tell you, it doesn't get any less scary. In fact, while it's happening my brain can't even process that it's ever happened before. I feel like I'm watching in slow motion as her eyes start to close and her body goes limp. I panic, jostling her and yelling at her to please take a breath. Waiting for some sort of response feels like an eternity, when in reality it's mere seconds.

My pediatrician tells me it's actually common among kids and not to worry as long as she wakes right back up. But none of this eases my mind. I still replay it in my head all day long and can't swallow the ball of fear that permanently resides in my throat. It's nothing I ever want to witness again.

Little episodes like this really remind me of how lucky I am to have healthy kids. Because my heart breaks for the mothers of sick children who have to endure such a nightmare. I can't even begin to imagine...

So I will welcome those gray hairs and pray that this is as bad as it gets.

Friday, October 9, 2009

Watch out Bon Jovi

When I went to pick Dylan up at school this afternoon, his teacher greeted me at the door. I could tell by her smirk that she had a story for me.

She told me that it had been karaoke Friday and all the kids took turns singing songs in front of the class. Most of them were songs like Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Bingo and even their ABC's. But not my son, no he stole the show with Devil Went Down to Georgia!

Not only were his teachers in stitches watching his performance but they were impressed at how many words he knew.

If only I could have been a fly on the wall to witness my little rockstar in action!

No trespassing

I've taken my dog hiking every morning for the past 5 years in the same trails near our house. Due to the windy storm last night there was a tree blocking the entrance to the trails so I couldn't get my car through. This minor obstacle wasn't going to deter me from our daily routine so I just parked the car on the road alongside the trail and headed in.

My car wasn't there for more than 30 minutes but it was long enough for a nosy neighbor to take notice. As I was approaching my car, I saw a lady writing down my license plate. So in my best cheery, yet not going to take anyone's crap voice, I greeted her. To which she replied:

"Do you know that this is a private road."

I explained that I did and then the tree situation.

"I see the tree, but did you know this is a private road?"

Now my tone was a tad sarcastic: "Did my car being parked there inhibited you in some way? Was it really a problem that I parked there while I took for dog for a run?"

"Yeah it is and it's also a liability for everyone who lives on this road."

All those people who live on that road, who's driveways are so far down it there isn't even one in sight and most of them are at work right now and not at all concerned about a random car parked on the side of their "private" road.

All I could say to her as I drove away was, "your ridiculous."

Too bad I didn't encounter her before my run because my adrenaline was pumping now!

Sunday, October 4, 2009

A different tune

That's what Dylan will be singing right around high school.

We've tried to explain things to Dylan along the way about the addition process. We showed him the plans and got him excited about his own room. But now that construction is underway he can visual grasp the concept that the house will be bigger.

So he took John and I by surprise when he said:

"Now there is room for all the kids."

Feeling a little guilty that we were depriving him of more siblings, we explained that he and Camryn were the only kids that were going to live here.

"No, all my kids. I'm going to live with you guys forever!"

The silence that followed confirmed that John and I were both watching our plans for a carefree, kid-free retirement flash before our eyes. Before panic could set it, I assured John that Dylan would be banging down the door to get out in only a few short years. So for the time being we played along.

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Rainy days are not figure friendly

I could hear the raindrops pounding on the window and I did not want to get out of bed. It was the kind of Saturday that only 4 short years ago I could curl up with a book, watch girlie movies and fall in and out of sleep all day long. Not anymore. When I heard the two rugrats stirring across the hall I pulled the covers over my head hoping to be invisible. That lasted all of two seconds.

My kids do much better outside where they can run off their energy, so I dread rainy days. By 11' o'clock they are stir crazy and I am out of ideas. So we bake! First we made cookies because everyone can help and well who doesn't like cookies. That only occupied 20 minutes so I figured we could make them into chipwiches so we made ice cream...from scratch. They really enjoyed watching the mixer churn...for about 2 minutes.

We moved on to other activities but due to boredom on my part I found myself visiting the refrigerator frequently. And the smell of the freshly baked cookies didn't help my craving for sweets. It seemed whenever I left the two of them alone one of them was crying within minutes. So another group activity...more baking!!!

By the end of day my kitchen looked like the Betty Crocker warehouse. So my new rainy day strategy is to hop the kids up on sugar all day long so they crash early at night! And then I can indulge in the treats we baked in peace and quiet!