Chaotic Monotony

Organizing my life?

2010-08-01T21:27:00.003-05:00

Wow. I am so incredibly unable to get my act together lately. I've always had a problem drowning in paper. You know, all the flyers, newspapers, magazines, invitations, etc. I can't throw them away, so I stick them in a big pile. Well, lots of piles. And then when the pile can't go any higher (or we have company coming) I purge it all. By that point it's all outdated or overdue or expired. Why do I hang onto all that stuff anyway?

But now, in addition to drowning in paper. I'm drowning in electronic media too. Evites, blog subscriptions, yahoo group emails, facebook articles, etc etc. I can't keep it all straight. There's no way to read everything, and therefore I feel like I'm always missing something.

I just decided right now that I'm going to just delete all the extra stuff. I bet I'll feel a whole lot less overwhelmed. I'm going to do that right....NOW!

Ahh! I just deleted 35 different groups, websites, companies, etc off my facebook feed. That should help. 35! 35 random causes that I was trying to keep up with on a daily basis? Why? Why does stuff like this seem so important? I've been wasting so much time! Now off to the yahoo groups.....

5 groups deleted. I stopped the emails for three others. Woo hoo. This is fun! What's next?

I've been trying to set up a "household command center" or whatever would be a good word for it. Basically, a place I keep all MY crap....recipes, papers that need to go back to school, rebates to fill out (hey, that reminds me...), etc etc.... this is increasingly less paper related, and more and more electronic filing. It's driving me a little batty actually. I currently have 4 email addresses that I maintain, two separate calendars, a bazillion log in credentials for different websites. How do you keep it all straight?

So, I selected a corner of my living room, and put a drawer unit there. I can stick my laptop on top. My comfy nursing chair is near...so I have everything I need.

Today I also purged my recipe/cookbook shelf. I had two binders full of printed out recipes, or recipes torn out of magazines. 99% of these I had never tried. Straight to the recycling bin. The remaining half dozen or so, I put on a calendar to make in the next two week. I wrote them out in Jessica recipe style...what the ingredients are, but that's it. I very rarely actually USE a recipe anyway...so why I had two binders full of them sitting there makes no sense. I wrote down the ingredients, and then left it at that. It will make for some fun experiements to try. I'm stuck in a major food rut!

Back to coordinating electronic media...I have to come up with a system for keeping track of my online recipe websites. I found a website today called delicious. It's a way to keep your bookmarks organized. Because the bookmark bar in internet explorer is worthless to me. That will be the next thing to purge! I just started adding stuff into there today. A few recipes I want to try, a few places I had bookmarked (local parks, museums) that I want to take the kids to. Now I can make categories for them, and actually see what the heck they are, and write tags/descriptions.

Fabulous.

Now I have to figure out a system for household tasks. Last week I got the house cleaned, and Nate and I made a chore list for the kids. We've been talking about having Ella do chores for a long time, but neither of us has ever followed through on it. So, I need to finish up the chore charts, and start that this week. It boils down to cleaning up after themselves. Which they don't. At all. That could be a whole other blog post.

My goal for myself each day is to have the kitchen clean...dishwasher loaded and run, big dishes washed, sink cleared out, and counters relatively clear...each night before I got to bed. The nights that I don't do this, sets my whole day the next day up for disaster. I can't make breakfast because the entire kitchen is a mess. I have no dishes because they're all dirty. then I have nowhere to put the dishes we create. It's such a mess. So. No matter how tired I am, I am going to start doing that.

Wow. This post is so incredibly random. Can you tell I need some organization?

Better get to work!

Ella's Dance Recital

2010-05-24T00:09:00.001-05:00

Another scrapbook design by Smilebox

North Shore

2010-04-15T15:30:00.002-05:00

My mom won a weeks stay at the Lutsen Sea Villa's, and this week we are here enjoying the North Shore of Lake Superior. It's beautiful. A bit deserted in the off season though!

sheer craziness...

2010-04-15T15:24:00.004-05:00

Sometimes it's hard for me to believe, that between my oldest/longest friend and I, we have SIX CHILDREN between us (almost 7 actually - her, not me)! Isn't that amazing! Taking this picture was one of those "oh wow, I'm old!" moments....

Ella-5 (holding Gemma-4mo), Alea-5 (holding Ella-1), Nolan-4, Evan-almost 3

Giggles are contagious!

2010-03-25T21:20:00.000-05:00

Cars....

2010-03-08T21:48:00.002-06:00

We've been realizing, now that spring has kind of sprung, that we should probably start thinking about a new vehicle. Why? Because we now have a boat...and no way to get it anywhere. So, unless Nate wants to spend yet another summer with his boat sitting in our driveway, we need to figure something out. The logical answer would be to put a trailer hitch on the minivan. There are 2 main problems with that though. The first is that we have to go to the UHaul store to have it done, during business hours, and it takes about 2 hours. So, I have to go sit there with 3 kids for 2 hours to have it done. That's not fun, but relatively easy to work around.

The second problem is that if Nate wants to tow the boat to the cabin, but I don't want to go, how do I get around with the kids while he's gone? This is a pretty likely scenario. I'm not a huge fan of the cabin. Ok...that's kind of an understatement. So, chances are he'll be there with the boat way more than with the boat and family. Even if it were possible to fit all 3 carseats in the back of his fancy little BMW, it is impossible to actually get them installed in their safety. I'm pretty sure I've talked about this issue before...those stupid leather bucket sportscar seats. But, if we get another vehicle for him, we feel like it needs to be able to seat the whole family (just in case I ever DO get talked into going to the cabin), not just tow the boat, so something like a pickup or smaller crossover SUV are out.

Just for the heck of it, we went to the autoshow this weekend. The Twin Cities Autoshow at the Convention Center. So, they had every car under the sun there. What I realized right away is this....if you have more than 2 kids that need carseats, you are really really limited on the type of car you can drive. This is because all these SUV-type cars have those "third row" seats....but getting to that third row seat when you have carseats installed in the second row is almost impossible because accessing the third row requires flipping one of the second row seats up. Which you can't do when there is a carseat on it. So.....then what? Not to mention that when you put the third row seat up, you have approximately an inch and a half of storage space in the back. I don't think I could fit my purse back there...much less gear for a family of five to go to the cabin for a weekend. What the heck is a large family supposed to do? Get a conversion van? In the words of Paris Hilton...oh that's hot!

Seriously? Not that minivans have all that much storage in back...but you can fit a few suitcases and bags in there. The only vehicles I saw, out of the hundred or so we looked at, that actually had storage with the third row seat up were the Suburban, and the Yukon Denali XL. Now...do you have any idea how HUGE those two vehicles are? I most likely would have to compare it to driving a semi. However, I must say...they have a new hybrid Yukon Denali. At 21 miles to the gallon, it seems like a gas sipper compared to other vehicles in it's class....heck, it's way better than my minivan. The only problem is the $75,000 sticker price. Yikes! I don't even want to know what the payment would be on a vehicle like that. Crazy.

So....those of you who know me know I'm kind of a tree hugger at heart. So...what do we do? We need a vehicle that is big enough to hold our family, some suitcases, and tow a boat. Some of these vehicles said 13 miles per gallon on the sticker! That's just insane. But we also don't have $75K to buy the fancy hybrid.....oh decisions, decisions....any ideas?

oh wow it's been a long time...sorry!

2010-02-28T11:08:00.004-06:00

Oh man, I am so behind at keeping people up to date!

Ok I still really don't have time to write much, but I will put a picture of Gemma.

Life is really good around here. To answer the very common question...Yes, Gemma is a really good baby. (are there really BAD babies?) She's a good sleeper, good eater, smiles all the time, and is generally content. At the end of the week she will be 3 months old already. Isn't that crazy?

We've all been good. Ella is doing great at school. She came home with a list of 50 words to read and she plowed right through it. I know that anyday now this whole reading thing is going to "click" with her. She can sound out just about anything, she gets bored of having to sound out all the words...but I know soon she'll be reading independently.

Evan is such a good big brother. He like Ella's school days and having Gemma all to himself. He does get pretty bored by the end of the day though and can't wait until Ella gets home.

Nate is crazy busy at work, but busy is good right? He's been playing with poker group made up of big wigs in the community he works in, so it's a good networking opportunity in addition to fun.

I'm doing well. It's amazing how much time a baby adds. I spend my days washing dishes and clothes, nursing the baby, and cooking. That's about it for excitement but it's wonderful. If I were still working, I would be going back to to work tomorrow (gemma is 12 weeks old today), so I am so incredibly thankful to be home with the kids! I have the best husband in the world!

An ode to my new(er) found love of babywearing....

2009-12-30T15:17:00.004-06:00

found this here: http://marvelouskiddo.blogspot.com/2009/12/baby-mamas.html

Evan meeting Gemma

2009-12-26T21:17:00.002-06:00

I was a little worried about Evan meeting Gemma. He has always been quite the "momma's boy" and I was worried he would be jealous and get upset about me holding her. He wasn't able to meet Gemma at the hospital like Ella was, since H1N1 has hospital visitor restrictions tighter. When mom brought him home, I had been laying down with Gemma in our bed. I carried her out, and he saw us. He got a huge smile on his face and said "it comed out?!" Then he just immediately started loving up on her. Here is a little bit of video of their introduction:

Gemma's Birth Story

2009-12-10T19:32:00.003-06:00

My third pregnancy...was, quite honestly, so uneventful that it is memorable because of that fact. We decided to try to have another baby, and right before we were going to start really"trying," I was pregnant....

I felt awesome the entire time. Sure, early in pregnancy I had to deal with normal pregnancy exaustion, but I don't know if it was due to other reasons, or simply because I didn't have the "luxury" with a 2 and 5 year old, the exaustion was not a big deal.

At our 20 week ultrasound, we were hoping we would be able to find out the gender. The ultrasound tech put the wand on my stomach, and "voila!" a perfect, in between the legs, "It's a Girl" shot!

I had decided, before I got pregnant, that I wanted to have a natural birth this time around. So, I did a lot of research and found an awesome group of 4 midwives (Generations), who delivered at a hospital (HealthEast St. Joseph's) that is known in the area for their support of natural childbirth. Which, is really really hard to find these days...but that's another blog post (coming soon).

My biggest concern going into the pregnancy, was that I had heard that your babies get bigger each time. Hmmm...Evan was 10 pounds, 8 ounces. I was completely terrified of having a baby bigger than that. Especially because I wanted to have a waterbirth, and one of the things that can prevent you from having a waterbirth is having an baby that is thought to be "above normal size." In talking with the midwives, they said that although it's not 100%, you have a good chance of keeping your baby smaller if you keep your weight gain down during pregnancy.

Translation, don't eat like a pig like you did the last 2 times so you gain 65 or 45 pounds...and you should be ok. Their suggestion...gain 15 pounds.

So, I kept eating like I had been eating for the last year (mostly whole, unprocessed foods)...and managed to keep my weight gain to 30 pounds. None of the midwives were worried about it, and I was mostly ticked because it seemed like if I had just done a little better on the eating I could have gained less. My biggest downfall the entire pregnancy was Coke/Pepsi. What is in that stuff anyway? I mean, over the last 2 years I have stopped eating almost anything processed...I mean, the thought of eating at McDonalds most days makes me want to vomit. However, I did find myself in their drive thru quite often for a large Coke....

Anyway...back to the story.

So, I was due November 28. Everything was going very well. I was feeling awesome. I attribute the fact that I was feeling so good to two things...only gaining 30 pounds, and finding an phenomenal chiropractor. Anyone who knew me during my last 2 pregnancies probably remembers. I hobbled and complained my way through the last trimester. I had horrible hip and low back pain with Ella, and with Evan I had Pubis Symphsis Dysfunction...basically your pelvis feels like it is going to crack in half. Ouch. I had both of those issues this pregnancy, but with weekly, or every other weekly trips to the chiropractor, I rarely ever hobbled. Most of the time I felt..almost not even pregnant!

Novemember 28th came...and went. Well, it went with my good friend giving birth to her baby, who was due 2 two weeks later. My "due date" seemed particululary vague this time around. I think it was the fact that with Ella, I had nothing else going on, and everyone said "oh, it's your first baby, you'll be late." So I didn't expect anything before my due date..and the extra 4 days after that wasn't a big deal. With Evan I was induced at 39 weeks, so I always had that end date in mind. With your third baby, a lot of people tell you that you'll go early. And this time around, as soon as I got close to 37 weeks (which is the "safe" date to go into labor an no one will panic) I started thinking it could happen any day now. So, when 3 weeks later I was still pregnant and feeling good.....I started to panic that it was NEVER going to happen on it's own, I was going to get induced, and there went all my plans and hopes for a natural waterbirth. Not to mention the fact that every day, starting at about 38 weeks, someone would ask me how I was feeling (meaning, are you going into labor soon?). Almost every day I got a phone call or email from someone I hadn't talked to in a long time just wondering how I was doing.....

Well, when I hit my due date...the calls/emails flooded in even more. I totally snapped at poor Nate one day when I got up 3 times while he was getting ready for work to pee....and he asked me if I was ok. Um, yes, I'm &^$**&(& fine! I have a baby bouncing on my bladder!!!!

By the time the middle of that 40th week rolled around, I was so stressed. Then I convinced myself that if I stressed, I would never go into labor either. Lucky for me I have a few good friends and a great doula who conviced me that no matter what I did, the baby would come eventually. And when I had my 40 week prenantal they didn't even mention the word "induction," which made me feel a lot better. By the end of the week though, I was really starting to feel "pregnant." I was hobbling around. I was ready to be done. I started to try out some of the natural ways to induce labor. I drank 2 boxes of Raspberry Leaf tea in about 36 hours. And so on....

On Saturday, December 5, Nate and I got up and cleaned Ella's room. My hips hurt so bad that day, that should have been my first clue. We spent about 4 hours cleaning her room. Then that afternoon, Nate took the kids to a Monster Truck show down at the Metrodome. My mom and I had planned to get together and do dinner and a movie. I had been having lots of painless contractions all day (as I had for the last several weeks). I laid down to take a nap and then got ready to go to dinner. As I was getting ready I realized that I was having really sporadic, but crampy, contractions. I remembered from my labor with Ella...the contractions that felt like menstrual cramps, were the real deal. During dinner at the Green Mill they continued, but were still really sporadic and mild. During the movie (The Blind Side) I pulled out my neat-o little iPhone, where I had downloaded a contraction timer app months ago....and they were like 15 minutes apart. I took my mom home...and of course didn't mention a thing. I was still not conviced that this was going to turn into anything, and I didn't want her up all night worrying about me. Nate came home around midnight, I had tried to go to bed at 11, but was so anxious that I couldn't sleep. I told him that I thought I might be in early labor, to go to sleep and try to rest up.

I got into bed, and slept off and on until about 2:15. By then they seemed to be regular enough that I thought I should try timing them again, even though they still were very mild. As soon as I got out of bed, they came back to back to back. Like every 2-3 minutes. I had a snack and a bunch of water, and sat down to watch a movie. When I sat down they decreased to every 4-5 minutes for a while....but then they increased again. I tried to call the midwife. Twice. No luck. At around 3 I called the hospital, and they said I could come in whenever. By that point they were back to every 2-3 minutes. But still not strong. I had it in my head that they needed to be stronger to warrant going to the hospital. But, they were increasing in intensity, and I did have a 45 minute drive ahead of me....

So, at 3 or so I called my mom to come over. I called the doula to tell her we were heading in, and then I woke up Nate. By about 3:30 we were on our way. I was still doubting whether or not this was the real deal...because the first almost 8 minutes we were in the car I didn't have a contraction. But then, I had a very very strong contraction. Luckily, they didn't increase in pace...they stayed 7-9 minutes apart on the car ride, I don't think I could have handled more than the few I had...they were that strong.

We got to the hospital, and at 4:22 I called my mom to tell her we had arrived. It took a few minutes after that before the L&D nurse came down to get me and we walked up the Maternity Care unit. So, I would guess we got to our room sometime after 4:30. The contractions were pretty strong by then, and as soon as I got in the room they hooked me up to the fetal monitor and had me lay down to do the initial test strip of monitoring. It seemed like the longest 20 minutes of my life. It had to have been longer than that....being flat on your back like that when you are having intense contractions is no fun at all. Which is why with my first 2 I handled it for about 5 minutes and then requested the epidural. She also checked me and I was dialated to 5.

After the 20 minutes were up, the nurse still wasn't seeing what she wanted to see on the monitor...so she kept me hooked up. But she finally told me I could get up. I had never wanted to stand up so bad in my entire life. My entire body was screaming at me to stand up and lean over. Which made the contractions so much easier to tolerate. At some point during the first 20 minutes, our doula had arrived. She was helping by giving Nate cold washcloths for my neck and face, cold rocks to rub my back with, etc. Honestly by that point I don't really remember much other than leaning over that bed and feeling really nauseous.

It probably was another 15 minutes or so and the nurse finally took off the monitor. I went and got changed into the tank top I was planning to wear into the water. I had more contractions, all leaning over my bed. All of a sudden, I felt all this pressure and my body responded by pushing. I didn't realize I was pushing...but that's what the midwife said. And not a moment too soon, the birth tub was finally full! The midwife didn't think I should walk across the hall, she said if I was already pushing if I had another contraction I could have the baby. Yep, sure didn't want to have my baby in the hallway.

So, the loaded me up on the bed and wheeled me across the hall. When I got up on the bed the midwife checked me...yep, I was complete! So in about an hour I had gone from 5 cm to fully dialated. Those were some strong contractions!

I got in the tub, it must have been about 5:45 and it felt so wonderful. All I remember is the urge to push. That's all I could feel. I couldn't feel those horrible contractions anymore! They just told me to push whenever I felt the urge. What a different experience! With my other two, I was told when to push and for how long. This time I just did what my body was telling me. All of a sudden, I could feel the baby crowning, and then her head was out, and then she was out! It literally happened that fast. So fast in fact, that I remember the midwife saying something about "ok, push slowly" and then the baby was out. I guess she didn't have her gloves on? So she just plunged in and caught the baby with her bare hands. They also said that my water never broke. I don't remember all the details of this, I'll have to ask our doula Alissa and post more info, but she started to come out with her amniotic sac intact. I guess this is called being "born in the caul" (google that, it's really interesting). Nate said the midwife broke it as her head came out? I don't know....

And at 6:05 she was born! They placed her on my chest, and we stayed in the water for a while (it's all a little fuzzy). We waited until the umbilical cord stopped pulsating and then Nate cut the cord. Then I got out and onto the bed to deliver the placenta, which came out right away. Then we just bonded with the baby for a while, tried nursing and snuggled. I must say...with Ella and Evan, after I gave birth...they didn't cry. I just remember being in this post delivery haze, wondering what was wrong with my babies that they weren't crying. Nothing was wrong...they just were calm. Drugged? Well, the lack of any drugs kept this little baby howling. She showed up right away she had some good lungs on her! She was quite lively. Eventually she calmed down, latched on to nurse for a bit. We got back to our room, had a bit more time and then I was ready to have her weighed and checked out. That's when they told us she was 9 pounds, 8 ounces, and 21 inches long! Big baby...we had no idea!

Finally, sometime around 8, things had calmed down. The doula had gone home, the baby had been weighed and measured and checked...we had breakfast....then we all laid down to sleep. I'll write more in another post about how different this birth was than my other two, due to it being natural....but all I know is it was wonderful!

The baby is here!

2009-12-08T14:27:00.003-06:00

Hello! We are happy to announce that our baby is here! Gemma Caye Ovall was born at 6:05 am on Sunday December 6. She weighed in at 9 pounds, 6 ounces, 21 inches long. Gemma and I were both doing very well, so we came home yesterday (Monday) afternoon, and we are very happy to be here! Ella and Evan are loving their new baby sister. Nate is staying busing waiting on me hand and foot.....
I will post more stories and pictures later, but I wanted to at least get this out there!

(Also, for those who are wondering, Gemma is pronounced in a similar way to "Jenna.")

The Official Kindergarten Photo.....

2009-11-04T16:35:00.001-06:00

Complete with a goofy smile, one missing tooth, and everything! Isn't she cute?

Happy Halloween!

2009-11-03T22:05:00.001-06:00

One house had spooky music playing...Evan didn't like it. Even now, a few days later, when someone asks him about Halloween he says "I didn't like that spooky music." So cute....

Getting ready for baby!

2009-11-03T21:51:00.002-06:00

Nate and I have discovered a few things....

With every added helper....it takes about twice as long as the time prior to set the crib up.....

With each new child....their space gets smaller and smaller. Before Ella was born, we slaved over her room...re-drywalled, bought all new furniture, etc. Evan got some new bedding and a shelf with some boy toys in Ella's room...This poor baby is getting everything third hand, in the corner of our room.

The only problem with a heavily wooded 2 acre lot....

2009-11-03T21:40:00.002-06:00

Is LEAVES! Lots and lots and lots of leaves! Luckily we had a great day, and Nate got a new bagger for the mower....he did still make a couple of huge piles for the kids to jump in...but it was a full day job to get all those leaves up...even with the mower! I can't imagine if we had been relying on sole human power with rakes...we'd probably still be out there!

Baby Bump.....35 weeks!

2009-11-03T21:36:00.002-06:00

Family Photos

2009-11-03T21:24:00.002-06:00

We had our family photos taken about 2 weeks ago....This is the second time we have used the same photographer...and she did such a wonderful job! The weekend before we got 2-3 inches of snow and it was freezing, so we were lucky to have wonderful weather and the fall colors were awesome! We had the pics taken in our yard....

http://www.littleacornphotography.com/

Honey, I'm home!

2009-11-03T20:57:00.004-06:00

One friday night, not too long ago.....Nate came home from a long week at work. I was ready to completely crash, I was so exausted....

All of a sudden "Hey kids, lets go get a movie and make caramel corn!"

Huh? Caramel corn? Who's gonna make caramel corn? I sure don't have any idea how to make caramel corn....but it sure sounds like hard work....

So, I look online and find a few recipes....of course they all call for one ingredient I have never purchased in my entire life....corn syrup.

We load up the minivan, head to Coborn's....Nate and the kids go to find a movie and I look for our caramel corn ingredients. I try to take the easy way out...look in the microwave popcorn aisle and try to find microwave caramel corn....but then discover it has 4.5 grams of trans fat (TRANS FAT!) per serving. No thank you....I'll schlep over the stove to make my own.

We get home, and by then I've decided that making caramel corn is a heck of a lot better than watching Meet the Robinsons...have I ever mentioned how much I dislike children's movies?

I use this recipe for caramel corn...the only modificiations are that I followed some reader reviews and doubled the sauce recipe, and I used air popped versus pan cooked popcorn. Oh, and I baked it at 300 for only 20 minutes, rather than what the instructions said...to avoid burning it.
Here's the recipe:http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Caramel-Corn-IV/Detail.aspx

And here is the result:

Yumm!

The happy crowd.....

All in all, it took about 30 minutes from start to finish to make. It was WAY easier than I expected....the only thing I would do differently, is that if we are going to make this as a "snack" I wouldn't double the caramel sauce...it was way too sweet to just snack on.

Not that anyone complained.....

Wiggly teeth!!!!

2009-10-07T22:16:00.004-05:00

Working on wiggling it out with daddy....it didn't come out though, it started to bleed a bit and freaked her out....

There it is! That first toothless smile! It came out while she was eating a cookie!

Tooth fairy! Brought her an apple, a new toothbrush, and 8 quarters. And Ella said "Mom! I know why the tooth fairy brought me all that money! It's because I wished for a Barbie car! Now that I have money can we go to the store and buy my Barbie car?" She is referring to a Barbie powerwheels she recently spotted in a toy catalog. Hmm...not sure $2 is going to get her far on that one...

Our little cheerleader....

2009-10-07T21:29:00.003-05:00

I'm feeling really old today, hauling my preggo body into the mini van, leaving my toddler at home, in order to take my kindergartener to cheerleading class. I don't know why. It just doesn't seem like I should be old enough to be watching high school girls teach my daughter cheerleading....it doesn't seem all that long ago I was a high school cheerleader.... Don't get me wrong. I love my life. It's just that some days I realize that I really and truly am a "grown up." You think that would have fully sunk in two kids or two mortgages ago...

At any rate, about 2 weeks ago, the high school cheerleaders came to Ella's school to do a little pep rally or something. She came home with a flyer to do a 1 night cheer clinic and then cheer at the homecoming football game (this friday). She's been doing cartwheels all over the house and screaming "Give me an E, give me an L, give me another L, give me an A!" ever since.

So tonight was the cheer clinic. When I dropped her off, there were about 100 (yes one HUNDRED!) kindergarten through fifth grade kids...and 2 adults. They were trying get 100 5-11 year olds to form a big circle. It was insane. By the time I came back an hour later, there were about 10 high school cheerleaders in uniform leading the girls in relatively straight lines through these dances. I was pretty impressed.

At the end of the night they got a little bag filled with a "future Elks cheerleader" t-shirt, necklaces, a face tattoo, little pompoms, and the required cheerleader hairbow. We also purchased a little mini megaphone....I'll be sure to post pics of her all dolled up on Friday. I think it's supposed to be about 40 degrees....so, all dolled up over her 4 layers of warm clothes! Gotta love October in Minnesota!

So, Ella had a great time. I got video of the complete dance tonight, just in case I'm not able to get close enough at the game on Friday to get a decent shot....

Happy Fall!

2009-09-26T21:14:00.005-05:00

Our first stop was Riverside Farms in Elk River...they have a giant pumpkin bounce house, a field of pumpkins, wagons, and a corn pit....

Does that look like a fake backdrop? The sky was so blue! They're sitting on top of a giant pile of hay bales...

Ella making angels in the corn pit.

We stopped at another farm about a mile east on Highway 10, just to grab a bale of hay, and discovered they have a fun straw/corn maze! Who knew all this stuff was so close to our house!

We went to the Salvation Army and got clothes for the scarecrow. Jeans, flannel shirt, hat, a pillow case to make his head out of, and boots....all for $4! Evan looked a little leary at it, once we had the legs stuffed...he said "I don't want it talk to me?!" I told him it wouldn't talk it would just be like a statue, and then he was ok with it....

The work of the day. The giant 55 pound pumpkin....the scarecrow, and 2 happy kids!

Renaissance Festival

2009-09-26T21:02:00.002-05:00

Last weekend, Sharon, Zoe, and their friends (John, Susan, Alli, Nate) came up to go to the Renaissance Festival. After fighting terrible traffic there....we finally arrived! The first thing we did was the elephant ride.....yes, yes. I know. It's terrible. Those poor elephants. But, when else will Ella be able to say she gets to ride an elephant??? How can I say no to that?

The girls all got flowered headbands, Ella wore her princess dress....they all also got fancy face/body paints...

Evan got carried around part of the day by Poppa Matt...he even fell asleep during the jousting, and got carried around asleep for a good hour or so. We opted for this rather than the stroller, which worked very nicely....

Evan was not a huge fan of all the loud noises (whips, a pistol here or there...) this was a common look for him....

The pony rides were a big hit....

All in all it was a really fun day!

Ella can tie her shoes!

2009-09-26T20:58:00.001-05:00

Perfectly coinciding with starting Kindergarten...Ella learned how to tie her shoes! She is so proud of herself! Way to go Ella!

Fargo trip

2009-09-26T09:16:00.002-05:00

The second weekend in September, we went to Fargo for Nate's cousin Sarah's wedding. It was a nice chance to get away. We stayed at a great hotel with a nice pool, and had a fun time seeing the sights of Fargo!

Simply Amazing

2009-09-16T18:07:00.002-05:00

I was cleaning out a drawer today, and found 2 random wheels that belong to Evan's cars. I handed them to him. He went to his giant basket of cars, that must have at least 100 cars in it. He pulled out 2 cars...the proper cars for the wheels (all of his cars with removeable wheels are wheel-less). He knew out of all those cars EXACTLY which ones these wheels belonged to.

Now, if I asked him to find his shoes, he would give me a blank stare and not be able to do it.

Amazing.....

Ella's First Day of Kindergarten

2009-09-09T10:17:00.003-05:00

Ella started Kindergarten on September 9.

Our family tradition - breakfast in bed.

Look at my big girl!!!!

What is he going to do all day without her?

She was acting so excited, until it was time to leave. Then she got scared and sad. Nate had to take her himself, because I was getting upset too, then he had to leave her with her teachers crying. When I talked to her teacher after school, she said that about 2 minutes after Nate left, Ella was fine, and then within a half hour she was making friends and having fun.

After school, getting off the bus! She had a great day. The next day she told me "Mom, I decided that school is fun, not scary." And she's been doing great ever since!

Long weekend.....

2009-09-07T21:29:00.000-05:00

Labor Day at Grandma's

2009-09-07T21:27:00.003-05:00

Food preservation is in high gear!

2009-09-07T21:09:00.004-05:00

So, I've gotten a little hooked on canning food. Last year, I had grand plans of stocking up my freezer with fresh local food to get us through the winter. Which I did....and almost all the veggies I froze tasted terrible. So, with that having happened, and the fact that my freezer is full of yummy organic grass fed beef....I decided to stat canning. I had done a little bit of canning last year with a friend...but this year I've kicked it up a notch.

Last week when the kids went with mom to Iowa, I had a day free. So, I canned green beans, soup, and tomatoes. I had purchased the beans at the Elk River market the day before, probably a 1/4 bushel? $6 of beans led to 14 pints of beans. Yum! I had a 1/2 bushel tomatoes, for $10....that became a dozen quarts of stewed tomatoes. I also used some ingredients from our CSA and tried out making some chicken soup and beef stew. Also, I found a roadside stand near our house that has sweet corn, and ended up buying 3 dozen for $6, which became 7 quart sized bags of frozen corn....that will taste great this winter!

Early Saturday morning, I woke up bright and early and went to one of my favorite places...the Minneapolis Farmer's Market! I love it there....so many different cultures and cuisines recommended...it's amazing all the different types of produce I can't even identify, much less figure out how to use! At the market I got another 1/4 bushel of beans ($6) and a full bushel of tomatoes ($18). I canned the beans on Saturday afternoon, and then today Nate and I spent all day canning the tomatoes. I ended up with another dozen cans of beans, 5 1/2 pints ketchup, 8 pints tomato sauce, 4 quarts sauce, and 14 more quarts stewed tomatoes.

My food storage area is looking pretty full! I'll have to rearrange again to fit today's goodies in there!

I hope to do some more tomatoes, at least another 1/2 bushel. And then lots and lots and LOTS of applesauce in the next month!

I was really wanting some grapes...both to eat and try making jelly/jam with. I found an orchard "near" our house (25 miles or so) that had pick your own grapes. The kids and I went there and picked about 9 pounds of grapes...it was a lot of fun. They were concord, a little tart for eating in large quantities...and I decided that I do not like making jam. At least grape. What a pain. Don't know that I'll do this again in the future, unless someone has an easier way to do it!

Big Girl!

2009-09-07T21:03:00.003-05:00

Last week, Ella had her Kindergarten open house. She met her teacher, saw her classroom, got a school tour, got to ride a school bus, go to test out the hot lunch line....and play on the playground! She starts school on Wednesday September 9, and she's got some pretty mixed feelings about it. Up until her open house, she just seemed terrified, even breaking down into tears about it. Since then she doesn't seem as scared...although she still doesn't act excited. Today though she started to seem a little excited....granted, she wouldn't admit it, but I can tell she's starting to get excited. Also, we noticed today that she has 2 loose teeth! I can't believe it! She says she has "like five!" loose teeth, but I think it's one top and one bottom. They're just starting to wiggle a little bit, so who knows how long it will be until they fall out. She's really really excited about the tooth fairy coming.....

Nothin's better than dirt....

2009-09-07T20:57:00.002-05:00

Evan still loves his sandbox, and now since we're in the middle of landscaping he also has a giant dirt pile to play in too....most mornings he heads out there as soon as he wakes up. On this particular day he was dirty enough by about 8 a.m. to warrant a bath! Luckily it's been chilly in the mornings, so he has more skin covered...which usually equals a less dirty kid, if I'm lucky! On this day he went through 4 outfits he kept getting so dirty, and tracking huge trails of dirt into the house!

Baby Belly - 28 weeks

2009-09-07T20:56:00.000-05:00

The kid's trip to Iowa

2009-09-07T20:51:00.002-05:00

Last weekend, my mom took the kids to Iowa for the weekend. They had a great time....I sure missed them though! I was a lot harder to have the kids gone and me home....I've been gone for weekends before, but it made me miss them even more being home without them!

Mama's little helper

2009-09-07T20:47:00.004-05:00

Last week, I had a bag of scraps to go to the compost pile sitting on the deck. Evan went out, and grabbed the bag. As he headed away with it, I told him to put it down, assuming he was just going to make a mess with it. He said, "No, I take it!" I asked where....and he said "to the pile." And he did, he drug his bag down the stairs and all the way across the yard, where he dumped it into the compost pile. What a cutie! Big guy!

Testing out the new iPhone

2009-09-05T22:03:00.000-05:00

Sent from my iPhone

2009-08-28T13:10:00.002-05:00

The Secret War Against Breastfeeding
Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Your breasts are in the middle of a battle. An expert tells you why.

By Dr. Wendy Walsh:

There is probably no more powerful force than the love between a mother and her newborn. It is a close, symbiotic relationship where the very survival of a tiny bundle of flesh is entirely dependent on another person. And Mommy is hormonally wired to respond to her baby's needs in an intuitive way. Her child's survival is so crucial, she might even die for him or her. Indeed, mothers have sacrificed their own vital organs so their infant could live. If this relationship were left alone -- and Mommy's needs for food and shelter were met -- only the tiniest percentage of sane mothers would fail to breastfeed.

But the mother/infant dyad is far from alone. That precious couple is precariously perched in a sea of cultural messages and pressures telling a woman to be more than a mother. These messages and pressures unknowingly sway mothers to veer from nature's plan, by feeding convenient, manufactured formula to their child, something that pediatricians and countless studies have proven to be less beneficial. Perhaps most injurious, entwined in our subtle cultural programming is the message that women are independent and entirely responsible for their choices. There is a war against breastfeeding in America -- and mothers are being blamed for decisions they aren't actually making.

To understand how we got to this place, let's start at the beginning. From the dawn of human existence (and that point in human evolution is arguable), all babies were breastfed. A newborn without mother's milk -- or milk from an auntie or yes, even Grandma -- was sure to die. And babies received the nutrient-rich fluid for years. Long before electric blenders and Gerber baby food, infants got most of their protein from human breast milk until their 2-year-old molars allowed them to chomp on animal tissue. The village supported this phenomenon. Our hunter/gatherer ancestors knew how to create a comfortable nest for a postpartum mother. She was supported by a circle of women who fed and cared for her until she was ready to return to work. When she did return to gathering food, she wore her baby to the "office," and rarely worked more than 20 hours per week. And there were other breasts available when she was ill or absent. Historically, wet nurses continued to make breast milk long after menopause.

Breastfeeding also evolved as one component in human psychological development. Our complicated social organization is independent of an ability to trust others and form healthy attachments. Attachment behaviors such as skin-to-skin contact, eye contact, and caressing are all part of the breastfeeding experience that help shape an ability to love.

Today, our culture puts a lot of pressure on mothers. We are expected to pop out a baby, get a Victoria's Secret body back in record time, earn our half of the mortgage payment right away, and, oh yes, be in a good mood about it all. Is it surprising that postpartum depression is the darling diagnosis of psychologists these days?

When I wrote my psychological dissertation, I staged a research study that looked at a woman's own attachment organization and her ability to breastfeed. One of the fascinating results of the study was the reliability of a breastfeeding questionnaire that asked about a woman's barriers to nursing. When new mothers were asked to cite the reasons they quit nursing, many factors showed up. Those factors include pressure to return to work, a lack of breastfeeding support in the workplace, media pressure to look sexy quickly, influence by manufacturers of formula, a lack of support from the husband, lack of a breastfeeding community, lack of breastfeeding education, a lack of support from the family, and a mistrust of their body to provide enough milk. How can women who choose to feed formula ever believe that they are making an isolated decision when the deck is so stacked against them?

Kudos to those who manage to do it. It is the lucky American woman who has enough support today to create a breastfed family. I know I would not have succeeded had it not been for a synchronistic collision of factors that are unavailable to most women. A) I had my first child at the age of 36, and with a successful career behind me, I owned two pieces of real estate. I sold one so that I would not have to return to an office quickly; and B) My baby daddy was lactose intolerant and refused to allow one drop of cow product to enter his child's body. In a way, I had the opposite experience of most women. I was pressured to breastfeed. I remember one dramatic evening when I lay exhausted on the sofa with bleeding nipples and a breast infection, while my newborn went on a nursing "marathon" to increase my milk production. I cried and begged her father to go to the store and buy formula. Instead, that vegetarian man bought me a steak, fried it up, and fed it to me forkful by forkful to bring my strength back. I was nursed by him so I could nurse his child. Few women have that gift.

My advice to pregnant women: be aware of the silent war against your body's natural talents. The art of breastfeeding is under assault because of a capitalist society that ranks economic success above relationship success. Be aware of the factors and plan ahead. Talk to your company about their breastfeeding policies before you have your baby. States vary on breastfeeding laws -- but in California, all companies must provide a private room with a locked door that is not a toilet stall, and unpaid breaks to pump or nurse your baby. Find a doula (a woman who mothers the mother) before you give birth. Contact La Leche League International or other breastfeeding support groups and attend local meetings to make friends before the baby comes. Plan for resistance from the world. And above all, never judge a woman who "couldn't" breastfeed until you have walked in her shoes. May the force be with you.

Landscaping Update #2

2009-08-23T19:32:00.002-05:00

I had no idea how much work went into pouring concrete. I envisioned the truck coming, dumping it in the framed out area...and then they smooth it out. Didn't think about the fact that this giant cement truck couldn't drive on our yard, over our well, etc....so they had to do it with the wheelbarrow, and shovel it all into this giant stoop we built.....lots of tired guys.

Keeping the kids out of the concrete was a little tricky...oops. Evan ran through this time, luckily it was still wet enough to fix. Then he snuck out of the house later and ran through..after it was all finished. Luckily that time it was set enough that his little 35 pounds could walk on it without damage....ooh, that would have been bad!

We put in the required handprints....

The night the concrete got poured, it started to rain. It rained nonstop for the next 2 days. We were a little worried it wouldn't cure right, so we kept the kids off for as long as we could....but they were so excited to walk on the new sidewalk. This was about 36 hours after it was poured.....

Here is the progress as of today. Nate worked his tail off ALL DAY today...smoothing it all out, shoveling out all the big piles of dirt, cutting out the grass so we can landscape that area. He did this all pretty much single handed...I helped shovel for about an hour and my body was screaming at me to stop...and I guess Ella helped a bit with her little pink shovel! I'm so excited to see how this all shapes up over the next few weeks!

Landscaping Update

2009-08-23T19:22:00.002-05:00

This was before the concrete was scheduled to arrive at 11:00 on Saturday.

This was after we cancelled the concrete because there was a big storm coming through....which never did come!

On Tuesday, we got our helpers back together again and the concrete arrived....

Evan was so excited to have a "ment truck" at our house!

He was a little scared of it though, and so he didn't want to sit in it. Ella loved it and kept pulling the air horn....

For some reason I can't add any more pics, so I'll do another post....

First MAJOR house project.....

2009-08-14T21:29:00.003-05:00

One of the major things we knew we had to do to this house was fix the drainage in the front. Everything sloped toward the house, and at some point one of the genius previous homeowners put blacktop over the concrete driveway, which caused even more problems.... not to mention it was just plain ugly!

Here's the before:

Here's what it looked like last weekend in the major rainstorm we got:

Buh-bye ugly weedy rocks and broken cracked sidewalk....

Working on the framing for the new sidewalk....

And this project generated a giant pile of dirt for the kids...which as you all know, is a big hit around here!
I'll post more pics tomorrow of the progress....

what a scam.....

2009-08-08T22:34:00.002-05:00

I ran to Coborns quick tonight to grab dishwasher detergent (yay!) and while I was there I noticed a bottle of "green" cleanser that said "Glass cleaner, with vinegar" I took a look at the ingredients...and they were: Water, vinegar, plant based fragrance. Huh? $3.99 for a bottle of vinegar water????

So I thought I'd do a quick little rant on my love of vinegar. About 2 years ago, I started slowly "using up" or getting rid of all the toxic chemicals in my house, and switching over to "green" cleansers. What I noticed is that all this green stuff is really really expensive. So, I started doing some research on how to make my own cleansers. The most common ingredient. Vinegar. The second. Water. The third. Baking soda. You can buy a GALLON of store brand vinegar for $1.99. Put it in a spray bottle, 1 part vinegar, 1 part water....voila! You have a fantastic multi purpose cleaner! I've been using this for everything the last 2 years. Countertops, bathrooms, windows, mirrors.... If you want it to smell prettier, just add a few drops of any essential oil... For my floors I put hot water and vinegar in my sink and use a microfiber mop that traps the dirt.

Baking soda is a great gentle abrasive....so for tough burnt on stains on the glass top stove at our old house, I used baking soda. I pour a half cup or so of baking soda in my toilet...scrub it with a brush, pour about a cup of vinegar in and scrub again. Perfect! I buy baking soda at Costco, where a 10 lb bag is about $5 I think? I don't remember, 10 pounds of baking soda lasts a long long time. Even if you can't find the huge bags, a box of store brand baking soda is usually under $1. We also use real soap in the shower, rather than body wash which is actually a detergent (Kiss my Face Olive Oil Soap) and so it leaves soap scum. Some baking soda on a cloth gets the scum right off. Do you know how much that Method brand shower scrub is? $6!

The biggest question I get....doesn't your house stink? As I am cleaning? Sure, for a few minutes it does smell a bit like vinegar in here. But then the smell dissapates and you smell...nothing! Did you know that "clean" doesn't have a smell? Not lavender, not mint, not orange.....all that smell is added fragrance that the cleanser deposits on your stuff!

Another big question....what about germs? Vinegar is a natural mild disinfectant. But the bigger thing for me...germs are good! I'm a big believer that the reason everyone is so sick all the time is that they kill all the germs. Clorox wipes, antibacterial soap, hand sanitizer, antibacterial tissues. In the last 2 years, since I cut out all the harsh chemicals and quit going crazy with the antibacterial germ killing stuff...our family has hardly been sick at all. Germs build your immune system. If you are constantly using all these germ killers....it kills the weak germs and the strong ones survive. Then your body isn't used to the germs, but then you have the really strong ones left....bad thing. Research this. It's very interesting. The information you can find is pretty biased, one way or the other....so you have to believe what you want. Here's one interesting article: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124208945194709049.html

Anyway, I'm by no means an expert. But, I do know one thing....you don't need to buy a $3.99 bottle of fancy "green" cleanser....make your own!

The oversheduled child?

2009-08-06T21:47:00.002-05:00

Or the oversheduled mother? Who is this nonstop running harder on? At the start of summer, I was so excited to get Ella into a "few" activities. She was finally old enough, and after the high of preschool, and on the verge of starting kindergarten, I didn't want her to get too used to just sitting around playing all day...sleeping in, doing what she wanted..... (do you notice the sarcasm here?)

God forbid she go all "soft" and get out of routine. So, I signed her up for a few things. I try to do a pretty good job of not signing her up for more than one thing at a time. The great thing is that most summer activities run the course of the week and then they're done. So, no running to multiple places in the same day. The only "double up" we had was t-ball, that was once a week, so every few thursdays she had a morning activity, and then t-ball in the evening.

Here's how our "few" activities this summer turned out:
Tball started June 11, and has run every Thursday since. Tonight was the last night.
Y daycamp The week of June 22
Movin and Grovin at the library 2 mondays in a row
Swim Lessons for 2 weeks stated July 6
Afternoons in the park started July 27 and ran the whole week
Vacation bible school went this week, Mon through Thursday.

The bad thing is that all these activities run...a week. 4 or 5 consecutive days. Or, in the case of swimming, 2 weeks of 4 consecutive days. Phew, that's a lot of running back and forth.

That neans that just about every single day this summer we've had a scheduled activity. The above doesn't include her birthday and party, her friend's birthday parties, trips to the beach, and a random trip to Iowa thrown in there just for fun. Nor does it include my prenatal appointments that are all the way across the metro, random doctors/dentist appointments, our kid swap days, and our playgroup/La Leche days.....

I don't know about her...but I'm just exausted!

I have this friend...she lives here in the metro, but probably about 40 minutes away. We try to get together on a semi regular basis to see each other. We saw each other July 2. That was the FIRST available day for both of us once school got out (end of May). We've been trying ever since to schedule another day....we're hoping the week of August 17! How sad is that that 2 stay at home moms can't find more than one half day every six weeks to get together and chat?

At least I'm not the only one.

Why do we do this to ourselves? Because, not only is there the stress of getting from place to place, and back again....there's the stress of getting out the door. You need to get a good breakfast in the kids, and FAST! You need to make sure they're dressed right (which this summer has meant having to guess whether you'll need sweatshirts or tank tops). You have to pack (depending on the activity) the lunch, the snack, the water bottle, the sunscreen, the bug spray, the sun hat, the swimsuit, the towel......

And I only have ONE kid in activities. What am I going to do a year or two down the road when Evan wants to do this stuf. And then a year or two later when I have THREE kids to get to stuff???? I seriously thought I wasn't "overscheduling" but apparently I need to reevaluate. How much is too much, and what are the benefits to doing all this stuff anyway? Is it just fun? It signed her up for the fun of it. But, it didn't take very long in until it wasn't fun anymore.

Sigh.

Well, it's now August 6th already. That means we have exactly 1 month and 2 days before Kindergarten starts!!! One month for her to relax and be a kid. Play in the yard....play with her friends....eat at home rather than peanut butter sandwiches in the car as we run from one place to the next!

Where the heck did the summer go? Ah, there's always next year right?

Splurge? or not to splurge?

2009-08-04T22:31:00.002-05:00

I just saw a listing on one of my message boards for a lot of 13 EUC Kissaluv's diapers for $100. These are normally about $13 each. I've been thinking for months about getting some fitteds for the baby, but have been waiting for a great deal. I think this is about as good as it's going to get. So, now I'm trying to decide...do I really need them?

Right now I have 2 dozen infant prefold diapers...these are the only kind I've ever used with Evan (the regular size). However, they're not real great about containing leaks. So...the fitteds would be awesome for that. Especially this brand. And they're just a fitted, so I could still use whatever kind of soaker/cover I want. The website says these fit 10-25 pounds, and the seller says they do seem to run a bit small. So, they should fit this baby from either birth or a few weeks old, until at least 6 months, hopefully more if I'm lucky.

I could also probably get a good portion of what I pay for them back in resale value down the road.

When I compare this "splure" to disposables...I'd probably go through at least 12 a day. 12 x .20 each x 30 days a month is $72....so these are way cheaper than disposables.

But, when you compare it to the $19 a dozen prefolds, they are 5x the cost! I can return a dozen of the prefolds I have right now, and just do half and half. So, instead of $40 on diapers for the baby, I'd be spending $120. And after the baby gets out of these small sizes, I have enough diapers to get us through to potty training already.

So...is the leak-containing power of these diapers worth the added cost? Because if I kept having to deal with diaper blow outs every single time, what would I do? Probably switch to disposables...because I wouldn't have such a good deal.

Tough call.

You know you're the mom of a 2 year old boy when....

2009-08-04T09:20:00.004-05:00

You go out of your way to drive THROUGH road construction, accident scenes, bumpy gravel roads, and busy train crossings.

You can properly identify most heavy equipment such as graders, excavators, and bulldozers.

When you can't find his shoes, the first place you check is the sandbox.

When you can't find him, the first place you check is the driver's seat of the car.

When you have to swerve to avoid a bad driver, you hear from the backseat "Yay! Do dat 'gain mom!"

You've been in a crowded place where your son has yelled "F*CK!" and felt the need to clarify that he's simply very excited about a truck.

You know who Sally, Mater, Doc, Sheriff, and McQueen are, and they're your best allies when you really need to get something done.

You stop looking for a "clean " shirt and try to find the one with the least amount of stains. (this applies to both his shirts, and yours!)

This is what your bathtub looks like at the end of a very fun day....

This is what your daughter looks like, even if before her brother came along she was afraid of dirt....

And you think this is the cutest thing you've seen in a long time.....

So far today....

2009-07-28T20:12:00.003-05:00

This morning around 9, I took off Evan's overnight diaper. He likes to run around to air himself out a bit in the mornings, so I let him. Then he decided he wanted to go outside. I put a pair of shorts on him (no diaper). Then he came back in....and it slipped my mind that he didn't have a diaper on. A bit later, I hear "maaaamaaaaa, poopy on da ground"

Oh no! I run downstairs, and there he was...standing in a pile of poo. I'll leave out the graphic details, but lets just say that shorts don't contain things the way diapers do. I clean him up, clean IT up, clean the carpet up...and try to finish getting myself ready. I'm trying to get out the door to go to a meeting, and so since it was only going to be another 5 minutes or so...and he'd already done his business...I let him keep his diaper off. A few minutes later "mom! Evan pooped on the floor again! And now there's little poopy footprints all over!" This was of course Ella speaking....luckily, there were no poopy footprints...but there was, in fact, another mess. to clean up. and now a kid to bathe. Did I mention we needed to leave?

I get him cleaned up, get out the door, and get to where we needed to go. 20 minutes late.

After our meeting, we headed out to take Ella to her SPA day....I think that stands for "special park afternoons" or something like that. A drop off park playdate....then Evan and I went to drop off samples of our well water at a water lab for testing. We walk in the door and Evan bolts...right back into the lab. The lab lady yelling after him...."No NO No it's not safe, there's acid everywhere!!!!" She had a foreign accent of some sort, which made this sound even more threatening. I finally get in and out of there...and head home.

I'm doing dishes and laundry, and Evan is playing. Then I realize he's not in view anymore, and I go outside to check it out. He has somehow gotten the garage door open. Like the big one that goes up and down! How did he do that? I can barely reach the button? He's in the car "driving" like he likes to do. At least he's consistent...when he sneaks into the front yard he always goes to the same place. In the car. Good thing I don't lock it...

I bring him INSIDE...where I can keep an eye on him. Trying to finish up the dishes...all of a sudden "mommy, look!" Ah....there he is....with his arms all covered in black streaks from a permanent marker.

Then a few minutes later my FIL Glen comes by to do some business stuff. As we're chatting, Evan sneaks out the FRONT door....into the car again.

I finally decide to just buckle the kid in his carseat and leave. We head to the farmer's market....that was pretty uneventful.

Then we pick up Ella....again, pretty uneventful.

Then we come home. Back to where it's supposed to be safe and I don't have to try to watch him like a hawk. Now I'm making dinner. I hear him in the bathroom, so I go check it out.....There he is...the reeds to my air freshener diffuser all over the floor. His toothbrush in the container with the oil. Him standing there looking horrified, trying to brush the taste off his tounge....with my hairbrush. Sheesh. Is there anything this kid WON'T get into?

Dinner gets made, somehow. Nate finally comes home. We sit down to eat. "Nooooooooo I no want it!!!" and basically the same thing from Ella. Oh well...now I'll have a very rambunctious, very hungry, kid to deal with the rest of the night!

Then, just to put the icing on the cake.....I had left for 15 mintutes or so to run some movies back to RedBox. I get home and the kids are outside with Nate, who's getting ready to mow the lawn. I start helping Nate pick up all the zillions of sticks in the yard...and then realize the kids are standing in the middle of a dirt pile. Coating their sticky, bug spray covered selves with dirt. Head to toe, dirt.

Ok. That about did me in. They're now in the bath while I take a few minutes to cool off and write this. But now I need to go scrub dirt out of their hair....I wonder if I can get the permanent marker off?

Fresh Summer Produce!

2009-07-23T21:58:00.003-05:00

Oh my goodness....I am so excited that it's finally fresh produce season here in MN! I really couldn't take buying half rotten, pesticide ridden, fossil fuel covered, grocery store produce anymore! So, for the next 4 to 5 months we are eating nothing but fresh and local!

Our CSA shares through Culinary Delights (Big Lake) have been awesome so far this season. I think this was our 4th week. It's just been amazing. I've also been hitting up the local farmer's markets. And I'm starting to get a few things out of my garden! We got a banana pepper a few weeks ago, and yesterday I got a huge anaheim pepper...which prompted me to make the Corn Salsa...pictured above.

It's the easiest thing in the world to make, and I lucked out that yesterday was the first day our local sweet corn stand opened. Yay! So, I bought the corn from a place about 5 miles from me. Got the pepper and cilantro from the garden, the onions from my CSA. The only thing I had to go "non local" for were the limes. Can't exactly fine too many lime trees here in MN!

Corn Salsa:

Everything is really "to taste" this is just approximately what I used. You could use more or less of anything....

6 ears of fresh sweet corn (cut off the cob, don't cook)
3-4 green onions, finely chopped (last summer I used red onion, but forgot to buy it this time and the green onions were really good)
handful of cilantro
finely chopped medium to hot pepper
lime juice - I used 5 small to medium sized limes.

Mix...you can eat right away, but it tastes the best if it sits for a while and gets cold.

Another favorite thing we've been eating is beet greens. So good. I finally perfected the dressing I started making last summer (but I lost the recipe and had to start over).

Wilted beet greens with hot bacon dressing:

Dressing:
Cook 3 slices of bacon, until it's pretty crisp but not burnt. I started buying this super thick, local bacon from happy healthy pigs frm Chase Brook Naturals, that is sooooo good.
Take out the bacon, and add about 1/2 cup (or more or less) onion. Sautee until soft. Add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil to make more "dressing"

Rinse and tear into small pieces about 6 cups of beet greens
Toss the greens with about 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
Crumble up the bacon and toss it on the greens
Add the hot dressing and toss thoroughly. This will wilt the greens a little.

Eat right away. I actually forgot to take a picture we devoured it so fast!

And, for those who are wondering....no, my kids won't eat this. I wish.

Dancing Queens

2009-07-13T22:12:00.002-05:00

Ok, so no one is actually going to have time to watch ALL of these...but I couldn't pick favorites. Tonight was another fun night, where Ella AND Evan put on their tutus and danced! Evan wore out pretty early in, but Ella just kept going. She danced and danced and danced, for at least an hour. Don't worry, there's not an hours worth of videos here, but there's quite a few! I would say this happens about once a week at our house! Enjoy!

Gone Fishing!

2009-07-13T20:27:00.003-05:00

A few weeks ago, when Nate's parent's were up from Louisville, they brought up their boat for us to "use" while they're relocating....Nate's been itching to take it out, but since we haven't gotten around to getting a trailer hitch he's been stuck. This weekend he convinced his good friend, Uncle Lee, to tow the boat to the lake to take the kids fishing!

Ella loved it! The fishing was great, Nate said with almost every cast Ella caught something. She was determined to bring THIS fish home to have it for dinner. She watched Nate clean and filet it and everything, then watched me cook it!

Evan wasn't too fond of the fishing. He was scared of the fish and spent most of his time splashing in the water, poking his new Lighting McQueen pole in the water...and almost falling in. But, he sure loved to eat Ella's fish!

Ella even let Daddy have a bite!

YUMMM!

It's a girl!

2009-07-09T21:31:00.003-05:00

We had our 20 week ultrasound today! It's a girl! Ella was so excited to find out she's finally going to have that baby sister she's always wanted!

Strawberry Rhurbarb Crisp - on the grill!

2009-06-22T22:12:00.003-05:00

Last week I was complaining on facebook about wanting to make rhubarb crisp, but not wanting to turn the oven on. One of my friends mentioned she makes it on the grill....very curious, I decided to try. Here's what I did:

Filling:

About 6 cups mixed chopped strawberries and rhubarb

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup flour

mix the above filling ingredients

crisp:

2 cups oatmeal

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 stick butter

mix the above crisp ingredients

put half the crisp mixture in the bottom of an 8x8 disposable pan. Top with rhubarb/strawberry mix. Add rest of crisp to top. Top with foil.

We have a large 3 burner gas grill. I turned the outside burners on high, and kept the inside off. Then I set the pan on top of another pan that was inverted so that the bottom wouldn't burn. I kept checking the thermometer on my grill, when it got close to 400 degrees, I would turn the burners down. After they were on high for about 5 minutes I turned them all the way to low, but then the grill was only at about 300 degrees, so I turned it up to medium. It's stayed right around 350 degrees. I didn't check the time, but I would guess it took about 30-40 minutes to cook. It was perfect! Evenly cooked and everything. Sometimes I surprise myself! And No - it doesn't taste like the grill!

Dare I say it, Summer is Finally Here!

2009-06-22T21:34:00.009-05:00

Reason #1 - T-ball and the world's biggest popsicles!

Ella started t-ball on Thursday nights. She is doing SO much better than the last time. Last time was just after she turned 3...so it's no wonder. I've learned that 3 is too early for structured activities. Now she actually participates...runs for the ball, can hit it off the Tee, and actually remembers to run to the bases...most of the time! :o)

Evan has been doing well during t-ball. Since he's been phasing out of naptime, the last 2 weeks since t-ball started he fell asleep in the car and slept through the first quarter or so of t-ball. Both days he woke up super crabby (surprise surprise). The first week I bribed him with a sucker, last week with the worlds biggest popsicle. Can you believe he made a bigger mess with the sucker than with this thing?

Reason #2 - Rain and Heat!

We finally got rain, and heat....which is helping my garden out! I planted it about a month ago. Everything came as plants that were just about 3 or 4 inches high. The potatoes started as seed potatoes. The only thing not doing well is my melon...not sure why, maybe too many plants in a small area? I have 4 plants, 2 cantalope and 2 watermelon....the cantalope are dead, and the watermelon are looking like they're on their last leg....but I am getting some peppers already and my potatoes look awesome. I think. I've never actually seen what a potato plant looks like before! Actually, I had never even thought about the fact that a potato HAD a plant....they grow underground right?

potatoes!

Reason #3 - Campfires!

Since we finally got some rain, we've been able to have some campfires in our awesome fire pit. Ella loves it, she would love to have them every day. This weekend, Memaw and Papaw Carolina came up to visit us (Nate's Mom CJ and Stepdad James). We had a fun night around the fire.

Reason #4 - Daycamp!

Ella started daycamp today! She goes for 5 days, the program runs 9:00-3:30. She takes the bus from a nearby elementary school to the camp, which is the YMCA camp Guy Robinson, on Lake George. I dropped her off at the bus stop today, drove away and started to cry! She just got so big so fast. She could barely carry her backpack full of her towel, sunscreen, lunch, etc., and she's couldn't get it up the bus stairs! She had so much fun though. She's very excited to go back tomorrow. Today they did canoeing, games, swimming, and I'm sure a bunch of other fun stuff.

here's Ella all hot and sweaty after camp

Reason #4 - CSA time!

Today we got our first CSA box. If you don't know what a CSA (community supported agriculture) is, the short explanation is we buy a "share" in a small family farm, and every week during the growing season we get fresh, local, fruits and veggies. Here's a link to more information on CSA's http://www.localharvest.org/csa/

Today we got beet greens, spinach, rhubarb, strawberries, radishes, asparagus, shelling peas, and some sort of green I can't identify....I need to e-mail Nancy (our farmer) and ask! So, today for dinner we had wilted beet greens with hot bacon dressing, BLT's, and strawberry rhubarb crisp. We subbed the L in the BLT with spinach. We also had what shelling peas that Evan hadn't already devoured, and radishes. Evan absolutely loves the shelling peas. The pods are supposedly inedible...but everytime I turned around he was eating them. I sure hope it is just that they're not easily digestible....We also had all the strawberries at snacktime.

This year we are splitting our CSA share with a friend. Last year we had a full share just for our family, and it was way too much food. It's about a "bushel" every week. A bushel is a ton of food. This way we'll still be able to go to the farmer's markets and stuff. I'm so excited for the local farmer's markets to start...most of them start the first or second week of July. Right now I have to drive pretty far to get to a farmer's market.

It's supposed to be in the 90s all week. Hopefully we'll get some good thunderstorms mixed in there too, but at night, and not too severe of course! Tomorrow Evan and I are planning to head to the beach with our playgroup after we drop off Ella...yay summer!

cover up those bottles....

2009-06-19T17:18:00.003-05:00

A friend posted this link and I thought it was pretty funny. It's a mom's "retort" if you will to people who complain about women nursing in public. To set the record straight right away, I don't have a problem with bottle feeding, I have a problem with people who think it's inappropriate to nurse in public.

Hope you enjoy!
http://www.cafemom.com/journals/read/1136948/Cover_up_those_bottles

Can this really be called FINGER painting?

2009-06-17T20:50:00.008-05:00

Ella received some finger paints for her birthday, and she's been dying to try them out. I've been putting it off, because although she's always been neat playing with paint, we hadn't tried it with Evan yet, and I just knew that these were going to get more than on fingers and paper. Today was a perfect combo....time to kill, nice outside, a huge piece of cardboard to paint on, and they needed a bath anyway!

Started out pretty well...look at that face! I think he's enjoying it!

He loved the feeling of smooshing the paint, and covering himself in it!

There are feet and hands in this picture somewhere!

Evan didn't like the taste of the paint!

Nothing the hose, the kiddie pool, and then a bath couldn't fix!!!

Painted cardboard + painted feet = a fun new 'slip and slide'

Happy Birthday Big Girl!

2009-06-10T20:13:00.002-05:00

I was so caught up in the house cleaning, present wrapping, cake baking, and everything else yesterday that I never got around to telling the world it was my big girl's 5th birthday! You are such a wonderful, amazing, smart, funny, insightful, caring, beautiful little girl. I love you.

Before you were conceived I wanted you.

Before you were born I loved you.

Before you were here an hour I would die for you.

This is the miracle of love.

--Maureen Hawkins

Honey, I'm just going to run down to The WalMart. We're out of EZ cheese.

2009-06-08T22:11:00.002-05:00

Today I needed to get a bunch of random things....more mouse traps, groceries, cake, ice cream, and a printer ink cartridge. So, due to the ink cartridge, I decided to go to Wal Mart. I typically don't like going there...this store is a Super Walmart, and is so huge, it takes a zillion years to get in and out of there. But, against my better judgement, I decided to go there. As soon as I walked in, I realized they were doing construction inside the store. Which makes this already hard to get through store, even harder. This store is set up so strange, and I have never, ever, been able to get assistance from an employee in finding anything. The best thing is that not only do the employees walking the aisles NOT know where anything is...but the blank stare you get. By every single one of them. They look completely confused that you're even asking them....they're the one's with the namebadge and the blue shirt right?

I had a few things on my list I never buy. EZ cheese...you know, the cheese in a can? Can't say I've ever purchased that before... I went to the craker aisle and didn't see it. I asked an employee, and she said it is by the spaghetti. Because that's logical. So, I checked there....there's velveeta, but no EZ cheese...I ask another employee....I'm told it's in the chip aisle. Nope. I'm starting to get really irritated. Actually, I already was irritated because the entire reason I am buying this crap is for the stupid mice in my house. I haven't caught any mice in several days...but I have been finding mouse poop all over my kitchen. I'm using peanut butter. Well, what I call peanut butter. Which is organic, natural, no-sugar almond butter. I'm thinking maybe the mice in my house aren't health nuts? Who knew? So, finally, I locate another employee. Yes, it's in the cracker aisle, like I thought. In the very middle of the cracker aisle, amidst all the boxes of crackers...are like 3 cans. I walked right past them several times and never saw them.....apparently that's a big seller at wal-mart.

So then I set out to find mousetraps. I head for the hardware section. Don't see anything. Head to the garden section. Nope. Ask an employee....they suggest the pet section. Huh? Mousetraps in the pet section? Isn't the point of the pet section to keep animals alive? Of course, they're not there. Head back over to hardware....that guy says they're in the grocery section. Again, super logical. Sure enough, there they are, in the aisle with all the cleaners. Did I mention thats the complete opposite side of the store?

By this point, I've probably logged about 5 miles at Wal Mart. Now I need the ink cartridge. I go to the office section. Nope. It's in electronics. And the one single cartridge that I need is OUT OF STOCK!!!! The entire reason I came to this mess of a store is not even in stock. Sheesh.

So, I finally head to the checkouts. After I wait in line for 5 minutes, I start loading all my stuff. It's then I realize I forgot the darn ice cream. Ugh. Well, I'm not going back now....

Will I be having turkey or a having a baby this Thanksgiving?

2009-06-08T22:00:00.004-05:00

For those of you who don't know, we are expecting baby #3 the end of November! We should find out the 2nd week of July, at our 20 week ultrasound, whether the baby is a boy or a girl. Ella is very excited, Evan doesn't understand....it should be fun to see how they both adjust as my belly grows, and of course after the baby arrives!

thank god, I'm a country boy. Or not.

2009-06-05T19:56:00.002-05:00

I'm having a bit of trouble adjusting to life in "the country." Yes, it's true. I moved 6.5 miles, stayed in the same city even. But seriously, sometimes it feels like I moved straight out of the suburbs and into the wilderness. The second full week we were here, I found a tick on me. Which, was so gross. I hate ticks. But to make matters even better, a few days later this darn bite site swelled up and got all red around it. Looked like all the pictures I scoured online for lyme disease....I went to the doctor, he said to watch it and if it got worse, if I had muscle weakness, or it got white in the center to call back for an antibiotic. Ok. Good. Two weeks into the new house had my first lyme disease scare. So far, so good on that one. I also found a tick on Ella the day after I found mine. I think I was more freaked out about it than she was....what a little trooper. Then today I found another tick on me. And we also have an ant and a bee problem....which is always fun.

But the best part is this....

Earlier this week I was getting silverware out of the drawer and I found a mouse turd. Sick. I tried to convince myself it was a singular thing, stuck to the inside of the cabinet or something. The next day I pulled out a spoon that had some sort of nasty stuff on it, investigated deeper and realized my entire silverware drawer was full of mouse poop and pee. SO GROSS!!!!!!! I immediately emptied the drawer, washed all the silverware, and continued to freak out and complain about my mouse problem. It wasn't until a full 24 hours later we actually got a mouse trap, which we put into the drawer. The next morning, I opened the drawer, screamed, and slammed the drawer shut. We caught our first mouse. I was shaking, and luckily Glen was on his way over anyway, so he dealt with the dead mouse situation for me. Put the trap back....

Didn't catch anything in the same spot last night, which my mouse expert friend Michelle says is because I disturbed the spot they were in, so they found a new place to go. Which is now the cabinet where my pots and pans are kept. I pulled out a pan today to discover mouse poop and pee again, in the pan, and in the cabinet. How do you even clean that? I mean is simple soap and water enough? Because I don't currently have a functioning dishwasher. I'm about ready to douse everything with clorox, and not eat at home again until we have this situation under control. I moved the traps out of the old spot, and put them in the current cabinet, attempting to not disturb anything that's in there....6 or more hours later I still have no mouse.

Here's what I've learned so far from Michelle, who is a self proclaimed mouse expert, having grown up in South Dakota..... :o) She's personally responsible for claiming the lives of hundreds of mice. Or something like that.

Put at least 2 traps side by side in their trail. Don't move anything. Sit around until you hear the SNAP, and then immediately take them out and replace them with new traps. Don't mess around with fancy traps, use the cheap wooden "break their neck" style traps. Use cheese in a can or peanut butter to bait them.

Here are the problems I'm having with her fool proof plan. I did move the stuff right away, so my mice found a new place to roam. I didn't know the "put at least 2 side by side" rule, so I only got one mouse the first time around. His little mouse friend probably ran back to the fam telling them all to watch out. I don't have time to sit around and wait for mice to run into my traps, and the thought of pulling a dead little mouse out of my cabinet makes me want to puke. I bought the cheap traps today, and almost lost 3 fingers, an eye, and my hearing because they kept tripping before I could even put them where they belonged.

So...here's hoping that over the weekend we can catch these little suckers. If not, I'm hiring Michelle to come get them for me!

Wow....that's a lot of stuff

2009-05-27T12:00:00.001-05:00

You don't really realize just how much stuff you have until you start packing it into a moving truck....I mean, we knew we had a lot of stuff. We just didn't realize HOW much. When it take a half dozen adults 3 hours just to PACK the truck....then you also have several van loads, a trailer full, and uncounted carfulls days after the fact....that's a lot of stuff.

That's the view when the opened the trailer at the new house.

Evan helping move the precious cargo...Rosalina, the 5ft tall giraffe. Having toy animals bigger than your children doesn't help the "too much stuff" factor.

What our living room looked like immediately after. The rest of the house looked basically the same way. And we still have lots and lots of stuff in my Mom's garage, that we had stored there because we had no storage at the townhouse. Someday we'll move that stuff here too!

Ella's last day of preschool....

2009-05-26T21:17:00.002-05:00

Ella's last day of preschool was last Friday! I can't believe she's almost 5 and going to Kindergarten in the fall!!!

How's that Starbuck's habit going, honey?

2009-05-26T17:10:00.002-05:00

The day we closed on our new house, Nate and I stopped by the Starbucks by his office. This Starbucks is inside a Target. When we walked in, the barista said "Hi Nate, I'll have your drink ready in just a moment." His venticarmelmochafrappuccinonowhipbothdrizzles was already blending. She saw his car pull in (remember, it's inside a TARGET) and started his drink. He started talking to her like she was an old friend. Hilarious, since he's supposed to be "cutting back" on this particular habit...

I was reminded of this today, when the kids and I went to this Target. I decided to stop by Starbucks and grab a frappuccino myself. I ordered, and the barista says "You're Nate's wife right?" Remember....it was almost a month ago we had been in there together, and I hadn't been there since! She oohed and ahhed over the kids for a bit, talked about which of them looked more like Nate, and then we left....

This just begs me to ask, how's that Starbucks habit Nate?

Progress!

2009-05-10T22:23:00.005-05:00

Oh...I have so many pictures to post...someday. After I find my camera cables, and the chargers. I finally have the internet access...so things are coming together, piece by piece.

The kids love the house. They've been having so much fun. This weekend we bought Ella a bunk bed at Ikea.....she loves it. Uncle Stevie put it together for her today. Grandma Sheila, Poppa Matt and Uncle Stevie dug out Evan's sandbox, and got him fresh new sand yesterday....the kid has never had so much fun! Plus, a previous resident of our house left about 50 or more matchbox cars buried in the dirt...so it was jackpot for Evan.

I think Glen got the washing machine ready to use today, I guess I couldn't expect mom to take my dirty laundry and bring it back to me clean forever.... :o)

Also, thanks to Glen, we got new locks today...now we have more than 1 key! Yay! And we got a new garage door opener, and the code panel figured out. Now Nate and I can quit locking each other out of the house....accidentally of course!

My playgroup friends came last week, and helped me unpack, as well as gave me my first chance at adult conversation in a few weeks! I have the best friends in the world!

We had an electrician here last week, fixing all of the DIY handiwork by previous homeowners....homeowners who had NO idea what they were doing with the electrical. No more ungrounded, reverse polarity outlets here! And we no longer have our fridge plugged in by extension cord run across the whole house. Bonus!

The plumber was here...we had a tree root IN THE TOILET! Like, grown all the way through the plumbing into the toilet! I had no idea here are so many possible reasons as to why when your toilet won't flush. This was probably the "cheapest/easiest/best" reason. And luckily no damage done to the line under the floor....a possible scenario was the tree root could have cracked the plumbing, and we would have had to jackhammer out the cement basement floor to fix it. Or it could have been a significant problem with the septic system. Yikes!

It took Nate about 4-5 hours to mow the lawn yesterday, with just a regular push mower. And Matt did the weed whipping...so that would have been a few more hours there. We need a better plan! Anyone have a 48" commercial walk behind mower they want to donate?

We had our first bonfire yesterday...burned just a portion of all the brush we have to burn, but Ella is hooked. We put a plate of food in front of her tonight, and she got mad becase we didn't cook it over the fire, like her hotdog last night. Goofy girl!

Tonight we had dinner, amidst all the projects, with some of our helpers...Glen and Mary, Mom and Matt, and Stevie! Thanks everyone...we couldn't do all this without you!

Well....that's a short list of what we've been up to. This house will sure keep us busy! I'll try to post some pics soon. Where is that darn cable?

Operation Move - Complete. Almost.

2009-05-02T17:39:00.001-05:00

We are almost completely moved. A few odds and ends here at the townhouse, and then we'll be all done. Everything went really well! But, we have boxes up to our eyeballs at the new house, it will take a while for things to be "normal" there!

Comcast doesn't come until Wednesday, so I'll be offline until then, except for trips to the wi-fi coffee house as a break from the unpacking! I'll try to upload some pics soon.

we are closed!

2009-04-30T15:03:00.001-05:00

We closed today, and everything is signed, sealed, and delivered! We are going this afternoon and tomorrow to clean, and the big move is scheduled for Saturday!

a sweet dog who needs a new forever home

2009-04-30T15:00:00.002-05:00

Please click on the below link to find info about my friend's dog who needs a new home. He has not adjusted well to her baby, and needs a home where he can be the only "baby!"

http://michellewhitneychlan.blogspot.com/2009/04/booya-needs-new-forever-home.html

House Update

2009-04-28T22:10:00.002-05:00

It just dawned on me that I hadn't given an update after our inspection, etc., last week.

Everything looks ok, a few minor problems, but nothing we can't fix while we're living there. Last Thursday, we took the "contingent upon inspection" clause off our our offer, so we are set to close on Thursday.

We are closing on our current house, and that one, the early part of the day on Thursday. Then the plan is to spend most of the day Friday cleaning the new house...and the big move is scheduled for Saturday.

Started calling utility companies today...I was very happy to find out that we do still have the ability to have cable....I was really worried we were going to get stuck needing Direct TV or something similar, and not having access to high speed internet....which is way more of a concern to me than the cable. So, we can keep our $9 a month local channels, and great broadband connection....

I still haven 't set up mail forwarding, but at least we're selling to family, so we'll be able to get our mail still when the post office messes it up. I'm sure the fact that by selling to family, the last name is going to stay the same on the mail is REALLY going to throw off the post office. When we bought our first house from Nate's grandfather....6 years ago, we had the same problem. We STILL get mail addressed to his grandparents...here, at a differnt new address, 6 years later!

Ahh..the end is near! Keep your fingers crossed that nothing bad happens in the next 36-48 hours!

This is some serious laundry....

2009-04-28T21:24:00.003-05:00

It is clean, by the way....

So, I figured I complain enough about it, that I should finally officially blog about my laundry issues. I think actually, I have issues with my general housekeeping abilities...but we'll blame it on the laundry. When I first became a stay at home mom, the constant cycle of laundry, dishes, and constantly having a trail of toys throughout the house really, REALLY, got to me. When I was working, sure, I had laundry....but for some reason, it didn't seem nearly as bad. It could be due to the fact that some clothes were dry clean only. Or the fact that my work clothes stayed clean, since all I did was go to the office in them, and I came home and put grubby jammies on everyday. I don't know exactly what the cause was...but it seemed like all of a sudden, all I ever did was laundry, dishes, pick up toys, repeat.....

I actually thought of the term...Chaotic Monotony....long before I ever created this blog, and it stuck in my head as a good blog title....the monotony of being a stay at home mom, especially after you've been a working mom, is really really tough to adjust to. It's the same thing over and over and over again...with some chaos thrown in there just to keep you on your toes. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE being a stay at home mom....but, no one ever says how good of a job you're doing. There's no break...going out for a 2 hour lunch to b*tch when you've had a long day, running to Caribou, taking an afternoon break to go shoe shopping (of course, that wasn't MY job!). You're constantly dealing with the monotonous tasks, 24 hours a day!

It's so interesting. When I decided to quit my job to stay home, I thought I would have so much time. I was doing everything already... Keeping a home, raising a family, AND working...right?

I would have ALL this extra time, when I wasn't working 40+ hours a week and commuting 90 minutes a day...I would be able to work out, do lots of structured activities with the kids, have a super clean house....

Wow, was I so sorely mistaken. I had such a rude awakening the first few weeks. The thing I realized was....when I was out of the house for 10+ hours a day, and kids were sleeping in it for about 12 hours a day....that left, on average, about 2 hours a day for the kids to play and mess up the house. And, about an hour of that was spent having dinner and doing the bedtime routine. There were a lot less dishes...because we were only eating at most, 1 meal a day at home...and a lot of times, that was take out. I went from running my dishwasher and doing dishes once every few days, to at least 1x a day, if not twice. It takes a lot of dishes to prepare and serve meals to 3-4 people 3 times a day, plus snacks.... Oh, and the cleaning? When I was working, I hired a cleaning service to come deep clean my house once a month....the best $150 I've ever spent in my life...but that added a ton of hours to my cleaning every month after I quit working.

And all the free time? Well, that gets spent doing dishes, and trying to not have your house look like a toy factory exploded in it.....

And then there's the laundry....which got me started on this whole thing in the first place.....

It seems that we have A LOT of laundry. I don't know if we really do....but it seems like a crazy amount. I'm sure it doesn't help that I do it all within a day or two, rather than splitting it out over the course of the week. When I try to do that, I forget a load in the washer, then it gets all stinky and ends up wasting a lot more time....

True, I do cloth diaper, and I don't use paper towels or paper napkins. I figure the washcloths, rags, and napkins add about a load a week. Diapers, about 2 extra loads a week....but those two things I don't really figure into the laundry problem...because they don't really require time consuming folding and putting away.

about a 1/2 weeks worth of towels, napkins, washcloths....
about 4 days worth of diapers....

And the laundry....folded and sorted. I usually make it this far in about the first 2 days. But then, it gets loaded into laundry baskets, taken to the proper room...and there it sits, until I need the laundry baskets again. Argh! Plus, I should mention...a perfect example of that Chaotic Monotony...how many times have I gotten to this point in the laundry, while at the same time making dinner...and come back to find ALL the laundry unfolded....by my children....while they're having a laundry fight, or rolling in it like dogs.... this has happened more times that I want to admit....I just might cry if I think about it too long.

It's going to be a tough adjustment at the new house...because when I have "laundry day" I usually do 6-7 loads. We're switching from city sewer/water to well/septic. I've read one of the worst things you can do to your septic system is do a zillion loads of laundry in one day. Great! So, I'll be back to trying to figure out how to do a load of laundry a day.....

Customer service rant....

2009-04-27T17:35:00.002-05:00

A last week I received a letter from T-mobile regarding a rebate I had sent it for a phone upgrade. It said my rebate was denied. I looked at the letter, looked at my rebate form, and decided, "Oh, simple mistake, I'll call and they'll fix it." Yeah right. I forgot I am talking about a cell phone company.

I purchased this phone on December 1. I'm just receiving the letter now. Crazy...but makes sense, they don't do anything about the rebates until after the entire rebate closes, and then wait the 8 weeks before they send you your check (or in this case, don't). That way, the vision of how you'll spend that rebate money is long gone, and not worth bothering over to most people. I mean, what's $50 right? Well to me, it's a lot and I was really ticked off.

I called the processing center, and waited. and waited. and waited. until some cheery girl decided to answer my call.....I explained what the problem was. The letter they sent me said that I didn't qualify for the rebate because I didn't have a data plan. Fine. I know I don't have a data plan, didn't want one, didn't think I needed one.

The rebate form I have says I need to upgrade my phone and sign a 2 year contract...at the bottom it has a list of phones that require a data plan to qualify. My phone is not on that list.

I specifically asked this question when I purchased the phone, because the phone I am trying to get the rebate for is the 2nd phone I purchased...the first one was a fancy web phone that DID need that data plan...I didn't like the phone, decided it was a waste of money, and opted for the basic, cheap phone. They said, "NO" it doesn't need the data plan.

Well, the rebate lady doesn't care. When I explained to her this problem, that my rebate form doesn't say that, and I specifically asked and they said I didn't need it, her response is:

"At the time you purchased you phone, it was not a phone that needed the data plan to qualify. Now it is"

Excuse me? So, they changed it, and now I don't get my $50.....how does that work?

"On your rebate form, it clearly states that this offer is subject to change" Sure it does, way at the bottom of the paper, in the super small font, buried in the 20 line paragraph, it does say, "limited offer, subject to change."

I've heard the phrase "this offer is subject to change" about a zillion times, but I guess I never knew it meant that because they changed their rules AFTER you purchased something, and you didn't know anything about it, that you no longer can get the money you were expecting?

She wasn't willing to budge, kept telling me that since I don't have a data plan her computer won't let her process the rebate. Sure, blame the computer...because that's my problem.

I asked to talk to her supervisor, to which she responded (quite nastily) "sure, but we are extremely busy today and it's going to be a very very long wait" I said I didn't care.

About 2 minutes later, the supervisor got on the line....and said that if I added the $14.99 data plan today, she could process my rebate. GRRRRR! So, I already have a $4.99 data plan, but it had to be at least $14.99. If I spend the extra $10, I can get my $50...otherwise I'm out the $50 completely.

Of course I added the stupid plan. And I'm sure now it will be another 8 weeks before I see my $50...but come on! That's just ridiculous. I hate rebates, simply becuase this is the exact reason companies offer them, rather than just giving you the savings on the spot. I purchased that phone because it was $49.99. But I had to pay $99.99 in the store....Most people would have gotten that letter and said "oh well" either they didn't care enough to fight it, or they lost their original paperwork, or forgot about that $50 a long time ago.. Now they're getting the extra $10 a month out of me, just hoping I'll forget to cancel that ...which I won't.

It just really makes me mad that cell phone companies can apparetly do whatever they want. Cell phones have become so ingrained into our lives, that we can't live without them, so we just take it. And they get you with those stupid, impossible to get out of, contracts...so you can't go to their competitor. But, what can you do about it, live without a cell phone? Yeah right.

36 pages!

2009-04-27T11:46:00.004-05:00

This weekend, I completed 36 scrapbook pages...and have another 4 all complete except for titles and journaling! Yay! Someday, I might get caught up right?

I had a lot of fun experimenting with my Cricut....I made these strawberries by using the heart from the George cartridge and the palm tree top from the Doodlecharms cartridge. It wasn't my idea...did you know if you google "cricut" and then whatever shape you want to make there are zillions of ideas out there just like that of how to make it? I NEVER would have thought to put those two things together to make a strawberry!

House update

2009-04-22T15:06:00.003-05:00

Today we had the home inspector, appraiser, as well as the well and septic people come look at the house. Although we don't have the final reports yet, all indications are that everything looks ok....considering the house is foreclosed, within our small budget, and has been sitting vacant, unheated, for almost a year! So....our plan is to close on our townhome with Christina and Liz on Thurs, April 30...then immediately after close on the new place.

Here is a slideshow of the house. It's a bit rough, but compared to everything else we looked at, this is FANTASTIC!!! We love it and are hoping everything works out.....only about a week to go!

Sorry it takes so long to switch from pic to pic...I couldn't figure out how to make it go faster....

House update

2009-04-20T15:07:00.002-05:00

So, after my last rant regarding the home sale, things took a turn for the better. Thursday evening we met with the sisters regarding the purchase of our home, Nate ran a ton of numbers and found ou that whatever way they finance, all the payments are basically the same, and if they're not planning on staying here long term, it's not that big of a deal to not do the 30 yr fixed. We fully submitted our offer on Friday morning, and friday afternoon got word that it was accepted! Yay! We close on April 30. Now we just have to figure out the closing with the girls and we'll all be set!

Favorite thing I've said today...

2009-04-20T12:18:00.002-05:00

Evan: (sliding his noodle along his chair) SNAKE!!
Me: That's not a snake, it's a noodle, please eat it.
Evan: No! Snake!
Me: Evan, that's not a snake, it's a noodle. Just eat it.
Evan: No! Snake!
Me: Evan, it's not a snake, it's a noodle, and you don't play with noodles on the chair.
Evan: Why?
Me: Because it's a noodle, not a snake.
Evan: Oh.
Ella: Besides Evan, you're scared of snakes anyway.
Evan: (in his scared voice) ooooh, snaake. (CHOMP - eats it)

Are you freaking kidding me???

2009-04-16T16:24:00.002-05:00

So, this time yesterday, everything was on the upswing with the home sale....just waiting on a few paperwork bits and pieces here or there, but other than that we were planning to close within the next few weeks. Last night, we found an awesome home, and wrote up our offer this morning...

Then Nate got a few more disclosures from the bank selling the home we want. One was a statement of water damage, and one was a statement of a water test done on the house, saying the drinking water tested ok for lead, but the outside water is full of lead. Well, the thing about those 2 items is that we can still proceed with our offer, because if those things truly are accurate and big deals, we can pull our offer after the inspection and get all our money back.

But then, early this afternoon, the mortgage broker at Nate's bank called to say his sisters got denied financing in the Secondary Market. I don't even know what the "secondary market" is, but I really am starting to hate it. They're the ones that are making it really difficult to sell this damn house. Apparently they are considering the sale of our house a "family bailout purchase" so they don't want to enter into it.

Ummm, excuse me? Family bailout? I mean...we have a kick ass credit score, are current on our mortgage, never have paid a bill late. We are selling our home at "market value" and taking out a private loan for the difference (the big differene) between the sale price and what we owe on our mortgage, with every intent of paying it. We are simply trying to make the best of this shit ass economy and move into a home that fits our family. COME ON!!!! Why is this so difficult. If we try to find a buyer...that will take months, we'll have to pay a realtor, and so on and so on. If the girls try to buy a different house, that will take a while, they'll be fighting with all the other offers out there (like we are) and they'll end up in a house they know nothing about. Again...water damage, mold, crappy neighbors....who the heck knows? The only thing "family" about this whole transation is that siblings happen to be in a perfect spot....one wants to sell and move up, one wants to buy their first maintenace free home, and they like ours. Shouldn't that be a perfect scenario, rather than this?

ARGHHHH. I seriously feel like I am stuck in a nightmare that is never going to end. Why can't we get out of this house? WE NEED MORE SPACE!!!!

Here's the best thing. Since we were so interested in this property, and there were other offers on it, we made an earnest money offer of $7500. If we pull out our offer at this point, we are out that money. I mean, could this get any worse? Yesterday, everything was fine, just waiting to close...and now.....

Things can still work out. The girls can get financing elsewhere. The Bank of Elk River has said they will finance them, the problem is that's a 5yr ARM, the girls want a fixed rate. Who wouldn't with as low as they are right now..... I'll post more as things hopefully improve. Right now we're hanging on to those new disclosures we received AFTER we put in our offer, because our offer technically isn't complete without those....

Happy Birthday Evan!!!

2009-04-15T08:16:00.012-05:00

Yesterday was Evan's 2nd birthday! It's hard to believe that he's 2 already! All day he was so excited....we had breakfast in bed, which is our family tradition....

I had a really hard time making that race car pancake! It's a lot harder than it sounds.....

Then we took Ella to preschool, and went to our La Leche League meeting. He wore his new McQueen hat and shirt, his McQueen socks, and his McQueen shoes...all day, when someone would say happy birthday to him, he would say "MeNee Cake!!!" That's his way of saying he's going to have a McQueen cake....

When Ella got home from school, she couldn't wait any longer to give him her present....which, of course...staying with the theme...was McQueen dominoes!

That night for dinner we had Grandma Sheila, Poppa Matt, Stevie, Grandpa Glen and Grandma Mary over for dinner.... We gave Evan his new bike....I was SOOOO excited about this bike...it's called a Kinderbike, it's a pedal-less bike, supposed to teach kids balance so they can learn to ride a regular bike easier. Well, it says ages 2+, I figured since he's so tall for his age, and the little daredevil, it would be perfect for him...we discovered he's a bit too short in the legs for it, but I bet within a few months he'll be a pro at it!

The of course....the cake. I had made the cake, and wasn't planning on it being a McQueen cake, because I have a big cake planned for his big party on Saturday, and that's a McQueen cake...but I decided I better improvise when he was so excited about it!

he he he....we made it!

2009-04-15T08:13:00.004-05:00

here's the boy who really loves his "nee nees"

Oh...that's so gross!

2009-04-14T22:22:00.000-05:00

That is the response I get from most people, when they discover I use cloth diapers....the second most popular is "Wow, I could never do that!"

Which leads me to wonder...why? Why is it so gross? A diaper is a diaper. Diapers are gross in general, why do people think cloth diapers are so much worse?

Think about this....Do you know that you are supposed to empty solid waste out of a disposable diaper into the toilet? It says that on every diaper package...how many people do that? But if you don't....untreated solid waste (bacteria) seeps into the ground and water supply. When you flush poop, it goes through the sewage system where it is properly treated. Landfills are not equipped to handle human feces. So, with a cloth diaper, obviously you put the poop in the toilet, where it belongs. Do you put your poop in the garbage can and set it out for trash day?

How about that stinky diaper pail....have ever smelled a bag full of poop-filled disposables? Imagine a house with a kid in it...opening their trash can in the summer, filled with poop. Gross!!!!! Again...no poop in the diaper pail, equals not a stinky diaper pail like people think.

Then there is the environmental impact....no one knows how long it takes a disposable diaper to decompose in a landfill. They're not biodegradable....not that anything really "biodegrades" in a landfill anyway. And they're made of plastic...petroleum. Some people estimate the lifespan of a 'sposie in the landfill is 250-500 years. EWWW! Just think of the piles and piles of poop filled plastic sitting all around.

Sure, using cloth takes water. But, it takes a lot less water and energy to wash 2 extra loads of laundry a week than it does to make the materials, transport the materials, manufacture the diaper, transport the diaper to the warehouse, transport the diaper to the store, shelve the diaper, drive to the store and buy the diaper and take it home, then dispose of the diaper. PLUS!!! Many people wrap their plastic diaper in a plastic bag before throwing it away...that's double the impact!

With cloth, the diaper is manufactured and transported. A lot of times, you skip a lot of middle steps...buy from a mom who makes diapers...or from a store that buys direct from the manufacturer. You can use the same diaper hundreds of times....

And finally, there is the cost impact. I used disposables with Ella. If you figure that she used 8 diapers a day....a pack of 30 diapers costs 10.00. I would always find sales and use coupons, so I tried to spend less than 22 cents a diaper...which is SUPER cheap....usually they're about 30 cents each.

22 cents x 8 per day x 365 = $642.40. She potty trained at 2 1/2 so..... $1606!!!!!
$1600!!! I spent $1600 on diapers....then add the year before I started Evan on cloth....$2200!

That is a lot of money. Especially when you compare it to this....

Cloth diaper start up costs...2 dozen unbleached cotton prefolds @ $19 a dozen = $382 covers (Prowrap $10, Bummis $15) = $25I have purchased a few things since then, but my total cost for the last year is around $75. So far I have saved myself almost $500! Just think if I had purchased those things when Ella was a baby, how much money I could have saved.
And, for future children, I'll be able to use those same diapers, adding some baby sizes for around another $40, and never have to spend money on diapers again!

And finally, cloth diapers are natural fibers...have you ever smelled a disposable diaper....it smells funny. A diaper isn't supposed to smell like anything! I use 100% cotton diapers, and about 80% of the time use wool covers. Disposables are plastic.....who wants to wrap their baby in plastic, chemicals and artifical fragrance anyway?

Now, what is so gross about cloth diapers again?

Good times at the Home Depot

2009-04-09T13:20:00.005-05:00

I really can't belive the last several years have passed without me knowing that the first Saturday of every month, Home Depot offers a free kids clinic, where kids build a free project. The even get their own little Home Depot apron, and a pin to put on it for every project they complete! It was so fun! See those wheeled bins behind him, he grabbed one, and kept running up and down the aisle pushing it...going as fast as we can. Luckily we didn't have any unfortunate incidents involving another customers ankles or shins....

The one and only time Evan wore the safety goggles....
Our birdhouse turned out a little crooked....

Yes, that's Evan kicking his birdhouse. Evan didn't get as into this project as Ella did. He was more interested in running around, finding wheels (there are A LOT of wheels at Home Depot) and just causing a general ruckus. But, he did think the birdhouse was fun to kick, and watch it skid across the floor..... I see we missed making a racecar last month....darn, that would have been a perfect project for him!

For those who don't know, Lowes also does a similar thing, but there free projects seem to not have a set schedule (it is posted in the store) and it's only for Grades 2-5.

I can't take this kid anywhere!

2009-04-09T01:15:00.000-05:00

Long past are the days where Evan will either be carried nicely in a sling or sit nicely in the stroller. First of all, I've decided his 35 pounds is too heavy to carry around in my sling or Ergo. That leaves me with the stroller when I don't want to be chasing his little tail around. This last week, he has been raising holy hell no matter where we go. Yesterday, we had Ella's introductory Karate lesson....I strapped him in the stroller. Well, he was not having that...arching his back, flailing around, screaming...all he wanted to do was go run with the kids (and adults) doing karate....yeah right. Like that would fly. I think the most challenging part of this whole karate experience is going to be him!!! He won't just sit there nicely, which is going to result in me walking with him outside and missing my chance to watch her! Grr. Today, I took Ella to get her hair cut. At an actual salon, not a kids place or cost cutters. She wanted a pretty drastic cut, so I trust this place more....anyway, he again was not content in his stroller. He wanted to run around, climb in the chairs, stand on the chairs, throw the rocks in the little tabletop water fountain!!! Luckily he didn't figure out the chairs spun...Finally we bribed him with a sucker, which kept him quiet about 2 or 3 minutes....long enough to finish her haircut....I wouldn't have worried about it so much, except for the poor other salon patrons. This is probably their chance to get away from their kids and relax for a bit, and their salon sounds like a daycare center!

The funny thing is, when he has a chance to run like a crazy man, he doesn't want it. We went to the Maple Maze today, which is an indoor park (tunnels, slides, etc). He kept climbing up and then crying for me to come up and get him.....and then he would come sit with me on the bench. We've been to places like this a zillion times and he always does great...but not the last 2 weeks.

Do you think he's just trying to drive me crazy? What am I going to do with him?

Another home sale update....

2009-04-05T22:39:00.001-05:00

Today we went and looked at 4 more homes. 2 of them are very nice (for a foreclosed property within our small budget!), and we are planning to make an offer one one of them tomorrow. Nate's sisters came tonight to sign more paperwork, and we just need to get the closing date set! Tomorrow, we are planning to look at 4 more homes, and then make the offer on the #1 choice! We found out today there are already offers on the one we like the best, but they are still accepting.....wish us luck!

Three Bears Bread

2009-04-02T18:52:00.004-05:00

Ella found this recipe in her Highlights High Five magazine, and wanted to make it. I tore it out, and had it sitting around for weeks.....finally I remember to buy the frozen bread dough, AND thaw it! I probably could have just made some dough, but I haven't been feeling that ambitious lately....so, today we finally made the bread. It turned out great!

Here's Ella making the bears

Waiting patiently

Oh, the ooey gooey honey dripping goodness!

when you're stuck in a concrete world....

2009-04-02T17:19:00.005-05:00

How do you still have fun outside when you're short on yard like we are? Ah, you play in the street! Well, it's basically a cul-de-sac, without the turnaround.....at least there's no traffic!

Ella made up this game called "throw the hula hoop up in the air as high as you can and try to catch it." Pretty catchy name huh?

Object is, I throw the hula hoop up in the air:

And she runs to catch it!

The result is...one happy (and wiped out) kid!

Second Finished Project!!!!

2009-04-01T09:46:00.002-05:00

I finally finished my second knitting project! This is a wool soaker for Evan. It seems like it has taken me forever, since I started it in January, but really if you add up the hours..it hasn't been that long! Now I have another one about 1/2 done to finish, and he'll have 2 new soakers. This is actually a little big, thinking since I'm so new at knitting, my gauge is a little off....but I put it in the dryer (forgot about it!) and now it's felted down and fits great! The leg holes are too big, but I'll fix that for the one I'm working on now!

it boken---

2009-04-01T09:42:00.004-05:00

My funny boy has decided he doesn't like things that are "boken." As soon as he takes a bit out of something, he hands it back, saying "it boken, it boken." What a goofball. I keep telling him it's not broken, he ate it, but he still doesn't want it! This started a few weeks ago with him not eating the crust of things, but now has transformed to anything that has a bite take out of it. So, we've been wasting a lot of once-bitten food, since apparently at that point it's no longer edible!

Skin to Skin contact

2009-03-25T08:09:00.003-05:00

Last night, Ella woke up around 11:00, shaking and trembling so badly. I was alseep, and Nate brought her into me. He was freaked out and wondering if she was having a seizure. After I grabbed her, and could feel her body trembling and her teeth chattering, I was pretty confident she wasn't having a seizure (she has no medical conditions). She was pretty coherent, and just kept saying she was so cold. She didn't feel very warm, we took her temp and it was 100.9. For as much as she was shaking, I would have thought her fever would have needed to be a lot higher. We kept her snuggled up in a blanket, got her to take some ibuprofen, drink some water, and then we layed down. Instantly she started saying her tummy hurt, and we sat up and she vomited...the water she just drank. We gave her another half dose of ibuprofen, and then I kept snuggling her, but she just keep shivering. So, I decided to do what I did when both my kids were babies.....skin to skin contact. I took off her shirt and mine, and layed her on my chest, trying to get as much of our skin touching as I could. I covered us up with a big blanket, and layed back on some pillows. Within one minute, she stopped shivering and was sound asleep.....

As I was laying there, I was just amazed at what just happened. For at least 15 minutes, all the snuggling and blankets weren't helping. But as soon as we got some warm body heat in the mix, her body responded. I remembered the nurse at the hospital after I had Ella, teaching me how to do Kangaroo Care. Kangaroo Care is a common practice for preemies, in order to help regulate their body temperature and bond with their moms. Ella wasn't premature, but the nurse obviously believed in this technique. From within a few hours of birth, she was snuggled up next to my skin sleeping....for about the first 5 weeks of her life, this was really the only way she would sleep. I just remember laying there with her, this tiny little 7 pound baby curled up on my chest...with her knees all scrunched up underneath her...this little warm ball. I used this technique with Evan to an extent, but while I was giving birth to him I popped a rib in my back out of place, so laying on my back was really really uncomfortable...so I didn't do it as much. I really really missed it too....

Past infancy with my kids, I always have snuggled with them when they're sick or sad in the same position, but not with the skin to skin contact. It always felt like our bodies fit perfectly together. It's just amazing how a mother's body is made to take care of her child.

So, as I was laying there with her last night, her legs no longer curled up underneath her, but stretched out almost the full length of mine, it just amazed me how these instinctive mothering techniques still apply...even with an almost 5 year old!

She's now laying in bed, sleeping peacefully still 9 hours later...her fever doesn't seem to have come back. But if it does, I know what to do!

Piece of Cake.....

2009-03-24T10:03:00.004-05:00

Happiness is a car in one hand and chocolate in the other...notice the chocolate drool all over the tummy and everything!

Cute kiddos!

Sneaking a bit more....

The beater and spatula weren't quite enough....

The kids and I baked a cake this morning for Grandma Sheila and Poppa Matt's birthdays (this week and last week). Ella is getting really good at measuring, pouring, and cracking egg...hopefully there aren't too many shells in the cake! Evan was hesitant at first about tasting the batter, but as soon as he tried it, he loved it......what's not to love???

Home sale update....

2009-03-24T10:01:00.001-05:00

Well, after my rant a week or so ago, Nate talked to another CPA friend who believes she has found the exclusion to the "no family" rule that we need! So, we're checking with a few more people just to make sure, but at this point, things are looking up! :o)

Brain food for kids?

2009-03-20T18:37:00.003-05:00

My dad is in town, and since today is a Friday during Lent, we headed to the grocery store to get a required meat free lenten dinner.....they came home with Fish Sticks.....

The front of the box brags......
100% Flaky White Fish fillets
Good Source of Protein
Brain food for kids

On the back of the box, in a nice big highlighted circle (to make you not look at the nutrition box I'm sure) it says "Do something good for your family! Gorton's tenders are a natural source of DHA Omega-3s, which helps support brain development and is an important nutrient to include in your child's healthy diet. It's brain food for kids! OMEGA-3"

Really, brain food for kids? A chopped, formed, battered, deepfried, frozen and then re-baked fish stick is brain food for kids? 3 fish sticks give you 210 greasy calories and 11 grams of fat, with a measly 7 grams of protein!

I'm just curious how on earth this is "brain food for kids?" Anyone????

Sure, a fish stick every now and then isn't going to hurt anyone....but isn't the manufacturer implying these are a healthy food choice? The FDA says you should eat less than 3 grams of Omega - 3 per day....these offer 120 milligrams...
The FDA also says:
"FDA has determined that there is supportive, but not conclusive, scientific evidence that suggests a reduction in coronary heart disease as a result of eating foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids. This important health benefit will help consumers as they work to improve their diets by selecting foods that will benefit their health."

So, do fish sticks qualify as a "food that would benefit a person's health?"

Favorite Kid Quotes of the Day

2009-03-19T00:40:00.002-05:00

By Ella-

"I wonder if they call a Happy Meal without a toy a Sad Meal?"

By Evan-

"F------ck!" In reference to every "truck" he saw today.....on his shirt, the trucks he was carrying, the trucks we passed on the street.... Some day he'll start to pronounce that word correctly....or at least with a less inappopriate pronunciation!

Nice guys finish last....

2009-03-16T23:30:00.002-05:00

So, Nate and I have always been really honest and responsible when it comes to financial things. When we wanted to move to be closer to Nate's office (3 years ago), we decided to purchase this townhouse so that we would have a smaller mortgage payment and be able to afford for me to quit my full time job. Sure, we could have gone with all the crap they were selling then, "Own this 300,000 house for only $500 a month!" that kind of thing. But we didn't. We figured, we'll be here for 3-5 years, maybe walk away with a little equity and move into a bigger place. Ah, then the economy took a nose dive. We tried over the summer to list our house. We started at $20,000 under what we paid 2 1/2 years earlier. Nothing. We dropped our price a few times, down to $40,000 under what we paid, and had one single showing. We pulled the house off the market.....
The last several months, Nate's sisters have been interested in potentially purchasing our home, and we've been looking at foreclosed homes. We want something with 3+ bedrooms, at least 2 bathrooms, storage space, and at least 1 acre. There are soooooo many things out there, that if we didn't have this place to contend with, we'd be golden. So, what are our options? We could sell to a stranger...tried that. We could rent. But considering we can't afford to make two mortgage payments if something happened with our renter, that's just awfully risky. We're not OK with walking away from this house and having it go into foreclosure if we rent it out and purchase a different place....like so many people are doing these days. So, the best option seemed to be, if they were interested, for his sisters to purchase. Well, then as an added bonus, this $8000 first time home buyer tax credit came about....woo hoo! That kind of accelerated things, his sisters started to get really excited, well, we all did. Ahhhh.....then we find out the kicker. This credit is inapplicable if you purchase from a family member. What????? I mean, I completely understand needing to have limitations to avoid fraud...but this is an example of a rule to exclude the few criminals ends up hurting many honest people! I mean, we were planning to sell the home for market value (did I mention our house appraised for $50,000 less than we paid for it 3 years ago?). So, if his sisters choose this home, they'd be out the $8000 tax break. So, back to square one I guess.

So, nice guys finish last. We were honest, got into a home we could afford, and now can't afford to get out.....I need an accountant or lawyer who can work some magic.......

fishing anyone?

2009-03-15T19:16:00.002-05:00

So, tonight was a perfect example of the Chaotic Monotony of my life. Bathtime for Evan.....typically uneventful, monotonous, and well, quite boring. I despise bathtime. So, when Evan decided to throw me a curve-ball tonight by pooping while taking a bath.....ah, chaotic! Gross. I'll spare you any details, but it was seriously one of the grossest things I've dealt with in my almost 5 years of motherhood.......

Creamy Chicken and Rice

2009-03-12T20:21:00.002-05:00

I have been craving creamy chicken and rice, but the only type I've ever had used Minute Rice, and canned cream soup. Well, I don't use Minute Rice anymore (basically zero nutritional value) and I try to avoid canned goods (BPA). So, I decided to try to make my own, more whole, version of this yummy easy dish!

I had a chicken thawed in the fridge, so I cut off the breasts, and skinned them. Then I put rice on to cook, using chicken stock (homemade) instead of water. While the rice was cooking (45 minutes) I seasoned up the chicken (salt and pepper) and partially baked it (par cooked) with some chicken broth at 375. After the rice was mostly cooked, I put it in a 9x13 dish. Then I made a creamy chicken soup mix (recipe below) and poured that over the rice, and added the chicken. I put it back in the over, covered, for about a half hour. Wow, it was soooo good!

Wholesome Creamy Chicken and Rice
Prepared rice (I cooked 1 1/2 cups dry rice in 3 cups chicken stock)
Chicken breasts - par cooked

Creamy Chicken soup:
3 TB butter and 1/3 cup flour, made into a roux paste
Whisk in 3 cups chicken broth, and boil until thickened and bubbly (I ususally whisk in about another 1/8 cup flour to thicken it more)
After it's thick and bubbly, add 1/2 cup milk or cream

Place in a 9x13 pan, Pour this cream soup over the rice, then add in the chicken and cover with the mixture. Cover with foil, Bake at 375 for about 30 minutes.

With the rest of the chicken, I cut off the legs and thighs. I'm really sick of just plain baked chicken, so I cut those off the bone too and am going to make chicken nuggets.

With the carcass, wings, and neck. I put it in my 10qt stock pot, covered it with water (almost filled the pot) added a chopped onion, a chopped carrot, and 3 stalks chopped celery. Some seasoning - sage, salt, pepper, bay leaves. I bring it to a full boil, then turn it way down to a very very low simmer and let it cook all night. In the morning I'll strain it, and that's chicken broth. I freeze it in ice cube trays so I can use as little or much as needed.

Then, I pick all the meat off the carcass, which doesn't have a lot of flavor left at this point, and turn it into chicken salad!

I can create a ton of meals with one chicken! I love stretching my grocery budget!

Breakfast cuteness

2009-03-12T09:08:00.003-05:00

attack of the bed head! Ella is such a restless sleeper, she has some CRAZY hair when she wakes up in the morning!

Evan LOVES frozen berries! Look at that face!

Future professional bowlers?

2009-03-10T22:28:00.002-05:00

Good thing I dropped that Psych major...

2009-03-10T16:11:00.002-05:00

So, I started reading this book "Raising your Spirited Child" because it had been recommended to me by my LLL leader. I've been dealing with a TON of tantrums from Evan the last several months....and some days it just really gets to me that I have no idea how to deal with them. Ella had her fair share of tantrums, but I was almost always able to talk her down from them. These tantrums are like nothing I ever dealt with with her. The tiniest thing will set him off, and then he'll carry on for 30+ minutes.

Well, about 1 chapter in, I knew I really like this book. I haven't gotten too far into it, so I haven't learned about HOW to FIX the tantrums, but I have been learning about the WHY... but the first thing I learned really interested me, and it has nothing (really) to do with Evan.

If I would have ever need to classify myself as an introvert or an extravert, I most definitely would have said introvert. I have never been one to stand out in a crowd, speak out, and most of my life I've been really really timid. Practically afraid of my own shadow...too shy to talk to anyone or participate in much of anything, outside of my own small group of friends.

That's why this books author (Mary Shedy Kurcinka) interested me with her definitions of the two personality types:

Introverts get their energy by being alone or with one or two special people. They prefer to interact with the world on the inside by reflecting on their thoughts and ideas before sharing them with others on the outside. They refresh themselves by spending time alone. If they get it, they'll play well with other kids and be more cooperative. If they don't get it, they'll get surly and nasty.

Extraverts draw their energy from others. They prefer to engage in the world around them outside of their bodies by talking with people, sharing ideas and experiences. If they don't have the opportunity to talk, they get crabby and are more demanding because they are running out of steam. If they are allouwed to recharge by being with other people they are fine.

So, her definition of extravert defines me pefectly, however I didn't realize it until I read this. The interesting this is, the introvert...that is Nate! So, this parenting book has basically identified why my hubby and I tend to end up making each other crabby!

Her explanation of energy sources (how we recharge ourselves) made it clear.
Introverts need time alone, physical space, time for reflection, and uniterrupted work time. Extraverts need time with people, feedback, and people who will listen to them and help them think.

So....Nate, the introvert, has the job where he is forced to socialize with people ALL DAY LONG! He doesn't have single second during the day where he can take a time out, be along, reflect and recharge his brain. Then, the second he walks in the door, I say "here, do this, this, and this, here are the kids, I'm outta here!"

I, on the other hand, have many many days where I am stuck here at the house ALL DAY LONG! No one to talk to, no one to listen to me, no one to tell me how awesome of a job I did on that laundry or scrubbing poo out of the carpet!

I really can't belive it took me this long to figure this out. I was a psych major for a while, and then a psych minor.....I should have known this. Why have I been beating my head against a wall trying to figure out why we keep irritating each other, rather than being the team we're supposed to be?

So, the goal from here on out is, to give Nate some space to recharge, be along, and relax for a while when he comes home from work. I think if he has some time, even 15 minutes, he'll feel a thousand times better when it comes time for me to take some time to myself. And when he wants to sit and play videogames, rather than hang out with me....now I know why. That's his release...he needs that time to recharge from his crazy day or week.

And I now know (and Nate knows!) why I am addicted to Facebook. Those little mini chances to connect with people throughout the day are what keep me from going nuts. That's my extravert crying out for a people connection, when I am stuck here with only the kids...which isn't STUCK, it's exactly what I want, but they don't exactly talk to me about what's going on. Give em a few years....

So, now maybe this will lead to more quality time with Nate and I, rather than both of us being irritated about STUPID things that always build up until one of us explodes.....

THAT kid

2009-03-04T23:55:00.003-06:00

So, up until the last 48 hours or so, when I had seen another person's child push, hit, or in some other way make another kid cry, I always wondered, "why? why can't that mother make that kid not do that?" Hmm, then the last 2 day, Evan became that kid. Yesterday we had playgroup at our house, and it was the first time I had ever seen him truly flip out about sharing. Any time another kid tried to touch a toy (or anything for that matter) he would scream MINE!! at the top of his lungs. Of course, my playgroup is wonderful, so I didn't get any crazy insane looks....

But then today, we went to the children's museum. Evan just kept shoving kids, for no reason! If a kid was standing near him....shove! If he was walking past another kid...shove! Granted, not every single time, but enough to make at least two cry during the course of the day! Any time a kid would play with something that looked remotely interesting...he would scream MINE!!! sheesh. I got more than one evil-eyed look. Man, that's a crappy look to be on the other end of. Wow...the grass is always greener huh? I guess this is what I get for having the mild little girl first....

I think I am losing my mind....

2009-01-28T00:24:00.002-06:00

So, today started off with a bang, because Evan woke up about 6am hacking with a fever. Lovely. So, he came into bed with us and nursed and wanted to talk and keep drinking his water. After every sip of water he would say "here mommy" and hand it back to me. I would set it down and he would then cry "wateeee!!" So I'd give it back.....rinse and repeat.

Finally he and Ella (she got in with us at some point too) both fell back asleep around 7, and I finally fell asleep again a little later. I was jolted awake by my crazy loud cell phone at 8:30, Nate calling to remind me of things he forgot to leave me a note about....

I had offered to go get tires on Nate's new car today (an incredibly pretentious looking BMW I feel like a fool driving). I go to put the kids in the car, and as I plop Evan in his seat, I realize it's moving an awful lot. Car seats aren't supposed to budge when you pull on them, and this thing was moving at least an inch or more in each direction. I called Nate and he said it's the best he could do (stupid leather bucket sportcar seats!). I then walked around and buckled Ella in, got in and drive away.

I pull up to the tire center. The first thing that's wrong is that the tire center parking is completely around the side of the building from the entrace. Who the hell designed that??? Obviously not someone with 2 kids to deal with in sub zero windchills.....then I go to get Evan out of the carseat, and realize that I never buckled this poor kid in. I drove almost 10 miles on the freeway with my 1 year old propped up nicely in his forward facing carseat. It would have made the perfect launchpad to project him out of the car had I gotten in even the most minor of accidents. SCARY....

We finally get into Costco, manage to wrangle one of their monster carts out...and go to the tire center. The quote me an hour and a half wait....huh? I thought this was supposed to take 30 minutes. I figure I'm already there, why not just stay. So, I pay for the tires, and after I write out the check, realize it's my last check. Since Costco doesn't take credit cards, and their ATM machine is really hit and miss, I was really worried I was now stuck at Costco for 90 minutes with no money....

Evan absolutely loves loves loves the tire center at costco. I think it's his favorite place. We could probably stay there all day, except I would have a migrane from the rubber tire smell. He walked around for 10 minutes or so, saying "that's a wee, oooh, that's a wee" he loves wheels! funny kid. Then he went and hid behind a stack of tires.....I asked him if he was poopy, to which he replies...."nnnnnnoooooo" grunt.

We then head to the bathroom. I lay him on the changing table and open my purse. WTF? No diaper! Then I remember I took my spare diaper out last night in order to find my work keys. It was no sitting on the seat of my van. Which was in Elk River with my husband. So, I check the diaper. So gross. Did I mention Evan was sick? I put the diaper back on, and go ask 2 different mom's to bum a diaper. No one had any, or else they thought I was nuts. I go back into the bathroom, take off his nasty diaper, and then put his wool diaper soaker back on him, and try to buy a maxi pad out of the machine. Of course it didn't work....because that would have made my MacGyver diaper changing trick too perfect. So, I stuffed a bunch of the crispy non absorbent paper towels down his pants and hoped for the best! And then, just for fun, stuck the nasty diaper in my purse. That's one of the few things I dislike about cloth diapers....having to take the nastiness with you!

So, Evan and I walked around Costco, had lunch, etc...etc. During this time, my MIL had come and gotten Ella to take her to see her great grandparents. We finally got our car back about a half hour later than originally estimated.....but then we were done. I have to make a mental note to not ever try to do the tire thing at costco again with the kids. Or if I do, try to remember to bring a diaper!

Wow. I went home and was ready for a nap or a drink...since it was only 1:30 I did neither, and just made dinner. Comfort food therapy.....

if it ain't broke...don't fix it!

2009-01-23T08:10:00.002-06:00

I finally, after months and months of trying, had come up with a great routine for my cloth diapers, which was leaving me with diapers that smelled good, and didn't stink stink stink once peed in!

I was feeling a little guitly, because I use a little bleach with every wash....and I thought I would try to get away from the bleach. I have a friend who's cleaning her diapers with baking soda and vinegar ONLY (no detergent) so I thought I would try using vinegar instead of bleach. The first wasn't wasn't bad, but they were still stinkier than they had been. I had heard that tea tree oil can help disinfect, so I tried that the next time I washed. This morning, his diaper STUNK like it used to....so, I'm going back to bleach. Everywhere on cloth diaper websites it says that if you use bleach you will ruin your diapers. But I've been doing this a year and my diapers are fine. I use bleach on the same white towels for 5 years now and they're fine....

I'd rather risk having to replace my diapers (I have about $50 worth of prefolds) than be dealing with this stink all the time!

The house is now clean....relatively.

2009-01-19T23:44:00.002-06:00

So, today Nate was off work for MLK day, so we had a bonus "weekend day" to get the house clean. My #1 priority was to put away all the laundry which had accumulated in each bedroom. I never seem to get around to putting away the laundry, I can get it washed, sometimes even folded, and on a really good day it makes it to the room it belongs it, but it never makes it into the drawers or closests.....So, we spent hours today, putting away laundry, sorting clothes that were on the floor, since clean clothes had gotten mixed up with dirty, etc....

Now, there is another load of laundry sitting here, and another in the dryer...it never ends! My goal for tomorrow is to get it put away!

We also cleaned up the living room. Our toy chest, which we emptied out before christmas, is overflowing again to the point where we can't shut the lid. Even with all the christmas toys, we were still able to close the thing. I don't know where all the extra toys came from. Well, probably Goodwill I guess!? And I gues we've had a few extra christmas present trickle in....

Tomorrow is preschool day, and I think after playgroup I'm going to sort through toys again during Evan's nap....

Finding the solution in part of the problem.....

2009-01-17T23:11:00.002-06:00

So, my new favorite store is Goodwill. I have to go there at least once a week, or I feel lost. I think this is steming from my desire to shop, but not wanting to spend a lot of money. However, when I walk through the doors of Goodwill, I head straight for the book section. I fill up with a huge armload of books, then head to the kitchen supplies section...where I walk out with more stuff. Then I pay for it, usually like $20 or so. For things I didn't need in the first place. My first thing I know I need to do is to quick these random unnecessary shopping trips. The biggest reason is financial. Yes, I've managed to avoid the $80 cover charge at Target the last few months....but I've replaced it with weekly, semi weekly, daily, or multiple times a day $20 trips....2 Thursdays ago, we stopped at the Goodwill in Maple Grove after Ella's swimming lessons to buy her a "prize." After loading up on books, toys, and clothing (1/2 off kids clothes on Thurs) there was around $20. Then later that day, we went up to the Elk River Salvation Army....where I spent another $20 or so dollars. Then we went to the Elk River Goodwill (since we were in the area!) and I spent another $20....

The great thing about thrift stores is the amount of stuff you can get for $20.....the amount of REALLY GOOD STUFF. For example...I found a pair of great condition Robeeze boots, for 99 cents!!! Ok, so they're too small for Evan...but 99 cents! The bad thing about thrift stores is the amount of stuff you can get for $20. When you're already dealing with a clutter problem like I am, this is not a good habit to form.

Today, I stopped at Goodwill again. I had ran to run some errands, the kids were at my Mom's...she only lives about 1/2 mile away, so I had to stop. I head straight for the books, of course. 2 titles grab me.....How to Conquer Clutter, and Too Busy to Clean? These are really old books, but 99 cents each. I purchase these (along with another armful of books, and 2 stainless steel mixing bowls and pyrex bowl).

I know these books won't do anything, other than sit around and create clutter. But here are 2 things I pulled from them, my motto for the upcoming week as I start trying to get my crap together....

In and Out (if you bring something in, something else has to go out).
Don't put it down, put it away

When did I become that lady?

2009-01-17T22:59:00.003-06:00

Ugh. Last night, I had the night to myself. Mom had the kids, and Nate had his guys poker night. So, I decided to indulge myself by going to Target, alone! Pretty much all of Target is on sale right now for 75% off, and I had a bunch of stuff to return (since I've been driving around with it in my car since christmas). I knew I had the receipts in my purse. I get to the return counter, and set down my returns. Then I open my huge suitcase of a purse, and pulled out this huge handful of random receipts, notes, timecards, cash, cards, and who knows what else. It occurred to me. I had passed the point of slightly disorganized. I was now a wreck. When did I become "that lady?" If I had been in line behind "that lady" a year ago, I would have rolled my eyes and laughed. Ok, so I admit, I have never been a neatnick....but this has gotten to the point of ridiculous.

Blogging has been something I've been thinking about for a while now. Which is funny because last year before I quit my FT job to be a stay at home mom, I really don't think I knew what a blog was. Who know's if I'll keep it up, or even tell anyone it exisits....we'll see how it goes.