Friday, October 29, 2010

The Pumpkin Patch

Our second annual trip to Didier Farms:

Waiting for the Hayride

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Picking Pumpkins:

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Driving Cars:
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Pony Ride:

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Thursday, October 28, 2010

Reason #851 that I am officially all grown up

Last night I went to a Tupperware party - and I had a really good time. Tupperware has so many fascinating products - Like these shot glasses with handy lids.

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I ended up buying a $20 spatula.

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And some cups and bowls for the kiddos.

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I could have easily spent about $500 on this stuff. I am still trying to explain to Scott why someone who considers Betty Crocker Brownie mix the creme de la creme of baking should own a $20 spatula, but it was great getting out and visiting with adults. Can't wait for the next one!

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Leah's New Hat

Our day care provider Patty bought Leah this adorable winter hat! I can not wait for it to get chilly enough for her to wear it. That's all, nothing more to see here...

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Monday, October 25, 2010

Elephant Hunting **No Elephants were harmed...

A couple weeks ago, I picked up Joey from daycare and asked him if he wanted to see an elephant. He responded "elephant?" Have I ever mentioned that every word that Joey said is pronounced as a question. With the emphasis on the last syllable. Yeah, he's cute. Anyway, I told him that tomorrow morning we would wake up and go find an elephant. He was psyched. So, the next morning, we got up and headed to the zoo.

It was a lot of fun.

Joey loved watching the train go by, but when it came to riding it, he was not so sure. He sat with his hands at his side holding the seat with this really serious look on his face. It was cute.

Tyler loved the animals too. But I think he was pretty content just to be running around and probably wouldn't have even noticed if the exhibits had been totally empty.

Leah was a trooper. Didn't cry the whole time, and loved the train.

Here are some pictures:

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This was a GREAT outing. I can't wait to go again.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

A Trip to the Farm

A Couple Pictures from our recent trip to Lambs Farm. This is a great place for kids and families and a great cause to support. Lambs farm provides assisted adult living for people with developmental disabilities. If you live in the Chicago area I urge you to check it out.


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Monday, October 18, 2010

The Lost Notion of Privacy

One of my greatest complaints about being married and having children is the total loss of all the privacy I once enjoyed. This morning I got on the scale and let out an audible curse, to which my husband shouts from bed "how much?" Is nothing sacred anymore? That is really just the beginning of it though. It is non-stop.

I open the refrigerator, "what are you eating?", I get up off the couch "where are you going?". I get off the phone, "who were you talking to?" I get on the internet, "what are you reading"…it never ends.

Then, there are the kids, I am sitting on the toilet and suddenly the door swings open and Joey is standing there saying "hi mama". Hi Joey…

I won't even get into the concept of taking care of personal maintenance. I mean, can I just get 5 minutes to do some hair removal on my upper lip with out someone barging in and asking what I am doing. A few seconds to pluck the stray hair that has sprouted on my chin since I had kids.

How do I get away? How do I make it stop? I just want to be able to grab a snack with out the inquisition, or for that matter the judgment. For instance, last night when I went to grab a mini candy bar out of the jar and Scott hollers out "how's the diet going?". I just want a candy bar, not a lecture on my diet, and certainly not a check in the next morning regarding my correlating weight gain.

I want to get up and go downstairs to change the laundry with out having to give a play by play of my actions. I want to talk on the phone without someone begging in the background, "who are you talking to?"

I want to find a tactful way of telling Scott to mind his own damn business and leave me the hell alone. Then I remember that I am married and those nuptials come with a promise that I will never be alone, ever again, and most of the time that is actually a good thing, even if it comes with some strings attached. And when you decide to have a child you forgo any rights to your personal space. And the sound of Joey's little voice singing out "hi mama" so innocently as I take care of my business is truly priceless and worth every sacrifice in the world.

So, there you have it, my privacy is a thing of the past and I guess I am learning to be okay with that.

Friday, October 15, 2010

Fall Photo Shoot

Fall is my absolute favorite time of year. I love the crinkle of the leaves under my feet. I love the crisp cool air. I love throwing a sweater on with some jeans and boots. I love decorating my house in a harvest décor and pouring through cookbooks looking for new Thanksgiving recipes. I love tiny candy bars that you eat guilt free, because they are small and "don't count". And I love squash, sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie. I love football and how the trees transform to bright red, orange and yellow…I love it all.

Now, I don't fancy myself a professional photographer or anything, but last time I tried to take the boys to a studio for professional pictures, it was a big fat fail. They came out horrible. One of them was always running out the door, so I was constantly chasing a kid. It was a complete debacle and I paid $50 bucks for a sitting and then didn't order a single print. So, I thought I would try taking them to the forest preserve and doing my own little shoot. Now, I took about 50 pictures and only got about 4 that I liked. But, hey at least I got 4, and the shoot was free.

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I like Ty's shot the least. But I have others of him that I love and might swap out. I'm just not liking the way his shirt is laying. Anyway, once again, it was free, so no complaints.

Leah's New Sweatshirt

I mentioned how Leah can only wear sleeveless tops...well Grandma was not about to let that fly, what with it being fall and the weather cool. So, grandma got crafty. She bought Leah a little hoodie, and then chopped off the arm.

Check it out!

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Thursday, October 14, 2010

Leah's Surgery - Part Two

So, the surgery was a success and Leah is doing great! She has a huge old cast on her arm, but she is handling it so well. She has conked herself in the noggin n a couple of times, but seems to be adjusting. She is kind of fascinated with it. We'll do a follow up appointment on Monday, and then hopefully the cast will come off in two weeks.

The surgeon did say that her tendons around the thumb that we retained were weak. He used some of the tendons from the amputated thumb to try to rebuild them, but there is a chance that we will need a second surgery down the road. If that were to do that,he would take tendons from her wrist to strengthen the thumb. Hopefully she will be fine though and that won't be required.

The only glitch is that she can only wear sleeveless tops and since she was in a different size over the summer, she doesn't really have many that fit. I managed to scrounge up a couple, but she is going to be a bit pressed for clothing. I have a box downstairs from my sister in law, so I'll sort through that and see if there is anything in there. We'll make do.

Here are some pics from Leah's big day! Can't wait to see how it came out.

The last photo of Leah's double thumb:

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Leah pre-surgery

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Leah post-surgery

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Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Leah's Surgery - Part One

I am sitting in the waiting room at Milwaukee Childrens Hospital eating a Cousins sub. Leah is back behind those double doors, somewhere, being put under, being operated on. It is so scary to think about, yet I am remarkably calm. I am confident that nothing will go wrong, and my little angel will pull through this like the little warrior she is.

We got up at 5:45. She was not allowed to have any formula today, only water with apple juice, and that only until 7:30. The procedure was scheduled for 11:30 and we arrived 10:30. This morning was rough, but not unbearable, there were moments when she was so hungry she was beyond comforting, but she would fall asleep and accept that her cries were going unanswered. This was the hardest part for me. You want to comfort your child when they are sad, and when you can't it is simply heartbreaking.

So, here I sit…and wait. I guess, I'll have more to report later but for now, that’s all there is.

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Results Orientated Nagging

Remember This…

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Yeah, my master bathroom project. I started writing about it back in oh, April. I try not to use my blog as an outlet to complain about my husband, because 95.5 percent of the time, he is awesome and I really couldn't live without him. However, this particular complaint, has lived the full husband – wife nagging life cycle and is now just comical.

Month One – Basic Nagging:
Sccoootttt………will you please work on the bathroom, honey, thanks, love you.

Month Two – Asking Assertively:
SCOTT – You need to start working on that bathroom again – please.

Month Three – Passive Aggressive Badgering:
Gee, I sure love taking a shower in a bathroom with no door or tiles. This is great. Nice work honey

Month Four – Turning on the Charm:
Sweetie, you know what would make me sooooo happy, if you could just grout the bathroom this weekend. I'd love you forever and ever.

Month Five – Irrational Rage:
::franticly throwing my clothes in a suitcase:: I AM MOVING OUT TODAY AND NOT COMING BACK UNTIL I HAVE A GOD DAMN BATHROOM WITH FUNCTIONING TOILET AND TWO, YES TWO, SHOWER DOORS. I'M NOT KIDDING.

Month Six – Scott is finally working on the bathroom again.

Hallelujah!

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Looking for an easy dinner idea...

Okay – this is about as easy as it gets and provides great leftovers. Always a family favorite – Mostaccoili!

Here is how I do it:

1.) Chop and Sautee: Green Pepper, Onion, Mushroom

2.) Brown 1 lb of Italian Sausage

3.) Boil 1 box of Mostaccoilli.

4.) Mix it all together in a bowl – add salt, pepper, oregano and about a ½ cup of Parmesan Cheese

5.) Dump it into a baking dish – cover with mozzarella cheese and bake until the cheese melts

Viola!

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Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Leah's Got a New Pair a Shoes

And yes, they deserve their very own post:

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And for good measure, my little angel:

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Monday, October 4, 2010

Saturday 10/2

Have I mentioned that we are trying to finish our basement? By finish, one may assume that I mean finish as in turn it into a livable space, and I do. But, I also mean it as in finish a project that was started a couple of years ago. Now, in all fairness, this is not really a situation where Scott started and just didn't finish. What happened was this. I was pregnant with Tyler and Scott and I realized that we really were going to need more space, what with another baby on the way and all. So, Scott set out to finish the basement.

First, he started dry-walling and he finished about half. Then he called an electrician, who came and finished about 75% of the wiring. Then we moved on to building a bar, which we finshed about 95% (priorities people!). Then, around 36.5 weeks into my pregnancy, I went in for my weekly appointment and ended up in Labor and Delivery. That night, I had to stay at the hospital and do some tests. The next morning, Scott came to see me and he had bad news.

The basement had flooded. I had bad news too, I didn't pass my tests and was going to have a c section later that day. Anyway, we spent the next, oh 18 months pondering what to do with this situation. We do a few things – clean the gutters, buy longer out spouts. See, we weren't positive where the leak was, so we didn't want to continue working on the basement if there was a chance this could happen again. So, we waited and watched, hoping for another flood that would indicate to us where the problem was. A full year went by with no water…So, I start nagging. Scccoottttt, when are we going to start working on the basement again. I think we are in the clear now!

Then this past spring, it finally happened, a huge storm came and finally our basement flooded. And finally, we were able to pinpoint the exact location of the leak. So now, we are finally able to go ahead and move forward with our plans.

I know what you are thinking….are these people total morons. Do they not know that you can just run a hose and try to figure out where the leak is that way? And, the answer is no, we are not stupid, we are lazy. And, we know it, so don't think you can go making us feel bad. We own our flaws.

So here we are 6 months later; because that is the approximate time it takes Scott mentally to prepare for any large project, and have resumed work on the basement.

Here's Proof:
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Anyway, as anyone who knows Scott would assume, there is just no way he can do a project this size on his own. So, our neighbor, who is a carpenter, is helping. However, Bryan has some rules when it comes to helping out. He will only do it when his wife is working. So, that means that I have to watch their 4 year old daughter.

So, all day Saturday the boys work on the basement and I watch the kids. We had fun. We decided to build a house in the living room. Although Ty didn't really understand the concept. He was more into demolition than construction.

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Who doesn't love chips and salsa?

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Yum!

Saturday, October 2, 2010

Last Weekend - Football Game

Weekend Update 8/25-8/26

Okay - I know this is a bit old, but my work has decided that blogging is not a productive use of my time and has blocked the site, so, I guess I'll hae to find something new to do with my lunch hour. Anyway, I am going to try to keep up anyway, but bear with me as I get used to updating at nights and weekends.

We had another action packed fun filled weekend. Friday night, Scott's cousin Mark came to town, so at around 7:30, I brought the kids over to my parents house and they had a sleep over. Scott, Mark and I went out for some pizza and a couple beers. I went home early – because apparently I can no longer hang. I was in bed by around 11. Up and at my parents house at about 8:15. Kids had pancakes and cantaloupe for breakfast.

Maybe I haven't shared this piece of cuteness with you before, but if you ask Joey what he wants for breakfast, he will 100% of the time respond with "pancake". Now that is cute and all, but the real kicker is that if you ask him what he wants for lunch or dinner he will also respond "pancake". And if you ask him what he had for breakfast, lunch or dinner on any given day, he will also respond "pancake". If you tell him that he did not in fact have a pancake, he tilts his head and says "hot dog?" It's pretty adorable.

Anyway, Saturday, Scott's cousin's son is a good high school football player. I think he is a senior, maybe a junior. Anyhow, we try to catch a few of his games each year. This past Saturday they were playing about 45 minutes away, so we packed the kids and made the voyage out to the football field. To be honest, I was dreading this, but it was actually a lot of fun. I took tons of pictures, here are a few.

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Joey and Ty's favorite part of the game were the Choo Choo's that kept coming by:

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The Ride Home:

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That night we were both exhausted so we order Thai food and went to bed really early.

Okay - I leave you with this Rolling Stone article. I really enjoyed it.

Rolling Stones Article Tea and Crackers