It's Christmastime!

Woo hoo! It's finally December, so now I can be outwardly Christmas-y and not hide the fact that I've been listening to Christmas music for 2 weeks now! (much to the chagrin of my loving husband who is a staunch believer in no Christmas till after Thanksgiving!)

We are ALMOST done decorating. Somehow this year, it didn't happen all in one day. It took about a week. That's what happens when you work part-time, have 4 kids in the house, and go away for Thanksgiving. But we're getting there. The only thing left is to hang the ornaments on the back-room tree. I'm so frustrated too, because I cannot find the tree skirt that I hand-made before we were married. It's not quite my style anymore, but I'm so proud of my cross-stitching, sewing and quilting skills in it. It's truly amazing that the thing is still in one piece after 13 years... crafty as I am, sewing is NOT my forte. It may be that a red throw blanket becomes the tree skirt this year. Ugh.

I had heard that my too-much-like-me, decorative and crafty friend Christy (yes, same name) had 9 Christmas trees last year... so guess who went out and bought 6 more this year! :-) I figure if she can do it, than I'm perfectly allowed to do it too. Hee hee. I now have 11 trees in this house... ooops... I mean 13. Now, before you think I'm totally nuts, 5 of those trees are the 4' tall skinny kind that are tucked out of the way and are lighted only, and 6 of those are 18" tall and sit on tables/dressers. Those ones are decked out in plastic bulbs or other simple decorations (unbreakable). So, really, we only have two big trees. All fake, yes. Sorry. Enough allergies in this family to warrant avoiding real trees. Besides the fake ones shed enough... I couldn't imagine the mess I'd make with a real one!

As for the outdoors, however... we aren't as lavish. I refuse to climb a 20 foot ladder to install lights at the roof. Kudos to those that do. After Mike's broken arm last year and my adversity to cold weather, we're just not going to do it. Mike and I are also not crazy about the blow-up decorations (although we love to see them in others' yards so please keep blowing them up!). So, we have two spotlights, a couple of lighted trees, a garland over the door, and wreaths on the windows. That's enough for me. Easy enough to take down quickly with snow on the ground. LOL

Here is Gracelynn hanging her very first Christmas tree ornament! I'd love to be able to read her mind. She just seems to go with the flow. No questions, no puzzled expressions. She must be wondering what just happened to our house, which is now jam-packed with funny trees and lights. She must look at these pictures and books of Santa Claus, and think "Who is that funny-looking man and why should we be good for him?" She must wonder what all these packaged goodies are. We now have 5 secret pal/santas among the 4 kids and are secretly dropping off packages of toys at people's houses. She's probably wondering, "What is that for? Why can't I keep that toy?" Not to mention that the poor girl's birthday is this Sunday. She's already celebrated her birthday twice with gifts and cake... once with Gran/Granddad and once with Nana/PapPap/Aunt Tracy/Uncle Tim. Oh just wait till the Chuck E Cheese party on Saturday and her birthday dinner on Sunday. That little girl is going to think that these birthdays are supposed to last a month! She's going to go into gift-withdrawal come January. Yikes!

Fortunately she seems to be catching on about Jesus. She knows her special grace prayers and knows that Jesus is always with us. She loves carrying her new Bible (from Child dedication day) to church each Sunday, even if she never has to open it. She loves going to church and seems to recall the stories better than I'd expect. So, at least the Nativity and the real reason for the season isn't lost on her. Granted, she's just almost-four, so I'm sure she doesn't truly understand Jesus. But at least she'll understand why Christmas is so important to us.

We started the Advent Calendar and the Surprise-Christmas-Book opening last night. We have a string of mittens on our wall with the gifts for the advent calendar. I'm hoping the kids realize that now we won't be receiving quite as nice gifts in each mitten. 25 days x 4 kids... can't do the $1.00 toy per kid per day anymore! But I did throw in a few nice surprises... things I would've just bought anyway. Yesterday, on Day One, they got a note about getting Charlie Brown's Christmas DVD. So, after opening the mitten, they all settled in for a bowl of popcorn and a movie before bed. You would've thought that a DVD would be exciting. Tommy was in tears. He kept asking to open ANOTHER mitten. He wanted the candy. LOL Well, considering how cheap 4 candy canes are... he won't be disappointed often. What book did we read? The Legend of the Poinsettia. Oh, how I love Tomie dePaola. My kids probably weren't as excited, but I just ADORE his sweet little illustrations. (Witch or not... Strega Nona must be in the top 5 books I love.) I keep buying more and more Christmas books... I think if I were to wrap them all, we'd have a book-a-day for about two months. LOL At least there are surprises each year when it's time to open them!

So, do we like Christmas? I do believe so. And what a month this is going to be... our babysitter is going to LOVE us. LOL

Sore Throats and Rashes

This last week, we've had a few sickies here. Grace began on Monday complaining of a sore throat and of a mild tummyache. On Wednesday morning she began having a red rash over her bottom. I thought she was having an allergic reaction to something she ate or drank.

She had strep. The rash was a reaction to the strep. Since Tommy was in the office too, I went ahead and had them check him. Ever seen a child break a strep-culture-swab in half? I did! The doctor also checked him out. The first thing she did was listen to his heart. He looked at her like she was nuts and said, "My heart's not broken." LOL

Sure enough. That test was positive, too. He had NO symptoms at all. I'm glad mother's instinct kicked in to do a test "just in case". Besides, I was about to head over to drop Tommy off at preschool. So glad I did the test. He may have infected more kids.

So, Grace and Tommy and I were home from school on Thursday. I'm not sure if anyone out there has ever had a child with a terrible rash reaction to strep before. I looked it up on the web (a very reliable source, you know?) The articles I found referred to the rash as scarlatina (scarlet fever). The rash itself had me freaking out for a day or two. If you can imagine a bad sunburn with small blisters, this looked just like that... but in the area that your underwear would normally cover! After a day or two of the bright red, blistery rash, it began to peel and look all shriveled. Now, 5 days later, I can report that *most* of the peeling is done and *most* of the skin looks healthy and normal. Poor little girl. Fortunately the only time she really complained was when she was undressing or using the bathroom.

The things we learn each day, huh? I'd heard of fever, sore throat, headache, and even nausea with strep before... but never the blistery rash. So one day when your child is diagnosed with strep THROAT and breaks out in a blistery, peeling rash. They are (believe it or not) related.

Fortunately all looks well with both kids now. Also, (knock on wood) no other family member has caught it from Grace or Tommy yet. Maybe it's over. Here's hoping. I've missed too many days of work with Election Day and illnesses... it's time to get back and make some money. LOL

Oooooohhhhhhmmmmmmm.....

Reagan's soccer team would do this before a game. One night I found these kiddos practicing...

Here are some wintry shots... taken inside, of course.

Economic Woes?

Ok, we are feeling the pinch. As is most everyone I know. Grocery bills, high energy costs, etc. But we live in a "wealthy" county... or so the Census tells us. I personally don't know a lot of wealthy people here, but I know they exist. I've seen their homes and cars and airplanes and car stickers of their children's elite academies. To add to that, I just saw today a new sign. Posted to a telephone pole was a sign that read, "We hang Christmas lights" with a phone number. Now, really. In these times when everyone is trying to watch what they spend and stick-to-a-budget, are there people out there able to afford to hire someone to hang their Christmas lights? Mike and I refuse to step foot onto a 20' ladder in cold weather continuously along our house in order to hang lights. Why? Because you then have to do it all over again in January. LOL I applaud everyone else who does... I just know I'd end up with frostbite and a broken arm. However, we are definitely Christmas-decoration-loving people. So, I hang the wreaths on the windows, prop up a few lighted trees in our foyer, decorate the bannister, put out a spotlight, and hope they look festive. :0)

I'm not knocking the concept of doing this business, though. I think it's quite innovative, and I applaud those who found a niche that wasn't being addressed. In this county, I'm sure they'll find many a person to pay for someone else to hang Christmas lights. I know in our neighborhood alone, I think about 90% of the homes decorate with lights at Christmas (if not more). Someone will be willing to pay others to win that first-prize ribbon! LOL I think we'll just continue our tradition of "low lights" ... and set a timer to save on electricity to boot. :-)

Some Mommy Thoughts & Advice

1. Mammoth Crocs are awesome. (Bought myself a pair after admiring the kids'... can even fit my long orthotics UNDER the lining! Woo hoo!) However, they should NEVER be allowed on a mulched playground. That should be stated in bold print on the tag! The fleece lining attracts mulch like mad... it cannot be cleaned!!! Tommy now owns off-white-and-cedar-colored-fleece-lined Crocs that are a little scratchy.

2. A peanut-free preschool makes complete sense... I totally understand, especially as a teacher that wants to be ultra-safe. But man, it's tough on those of us whose kids' only source of protein is peanut butter. LOL

3. Shopping in the summer for Christmas is great... great deals, good things for cheap... but you may just end up with TOO much (and now darling little son is giving me lists and lists of items from catalogs he finally has the excitement to look through... none of which Santa bought.) Fortunately I was fairly smart and bought almost nothing for my picky older ones... they want the big expensive gifts that I just need to buy later... hopefully a great Black Friday deal?

4. Gottadeal.com is still my favorite source of deals. I haven't bought from Victoria's Secret in years... too expensive, didn't think they had my size. I just ordered FOUR bras and two free panties for $33 shipped! And, they had my size! Now, if only my body could possibly look good in those...

5. Another note on gottadeal... when you think you find a great deal, check what you own already. I bought a 2-DVD deal on Amazon for $16+. Turns out we own the one. Duh!

6. When you have a daughter that could eat 24/7, lock the pantry. We've found food and candy wrappers under cushions, behind shelving in hall closets, in pants pockets, under beds, in the rec room (a food-free zone), in toy baskets, under sofas, and more. Oh, and store Halloween candy baskets up HIGH! On November 1, we found so many empty wrappers around the house before 8am!!

7. Don't try to do the Lotus Focus on the Wii Fit with kids in the room (or dogs). I have successfully mastered that thing 3 times now (sitting absolutely still for 3 minutes while staring at a flame on the screen). However, just as I sit down, if I'm not alone, THAT is the moment the dog scratches my leg, Ben asks me questions, and Tommy and Grace drive their cars on me. Ugh. Can't they see I'm working. LOL

8. Another Wii Fit bit... if you don't normally box (... who does?) , don't do 12 consecutive minutes of rhythm boxing right off the bat while trying to punch really hard. Your back and arms will pay for it in the morning ... and the next morning.

9. Another Wii Fit piece of advice... don't get the body-test done while your kids are watching. They just laugh into hysterics when my Mii character explodes wide and looks at her big belly after the "measuring". Plus, they may learn a new O word. In my case, it was an awful 5 letter word that I refuse to utter. Meanwhile, the kids are struggling to be healthy, instead of underweight!

10. Don't post funny old photos on Facebook of college/high school years without expecting retaliation. There are now some old hairstyles of mine on the Internet for the world to see. And to think, in the 80's, we laughed at our choices of the 70's. In the 90's, we laughed at our choice of clothing in the 80's. What will people say about our butterfly-clipped hairdos, flare-leg jeans and hoodies in a few years? (... or at least mine) I know in a decade, my daughter will be telling me, "How could you make me wear that stuff?" when looking at her trendy Limited Too sweaters and Crocs. I know... I did it to my mom.

Broken Teeth and Halloween

I apologize for the big pause in blogging. It seems like my "everyday" is now "busy day". After the Farm experience, we had a minor dental issue with Tommy. Those who knew him 1.5 years ago know that he fell at 2.5 years old and banged up his teeth. They were displaced at the time. Lots of blood... scared the daylights out of Mommy! After a three-adults-to-hold-him-down struggle, a cast-like bandage was applied to his front teeth. It took several months to chip away, but eventually the bandage fell off and his teeth were back to being cemented in place. Yeah! He managed to keep them... but about 6 months ago, they turned brown. :-( At his checkup, we were told to watch for abcesses, but in general it was good to keep the teeth in place despite the color.

Here is a picture of my baby boy (almost 3 at the time) with his fat lip and dental-bandage (hard to see, but it puffed out his lips for months):

On the Saturday that we went to the farm a few weeks ago, I noticed that his left front tooth had a chip. The chip was brown (due to the discolored tooth). I figured I'd call the dentist on Monday, since it didn't bother him. On Sunday, I noticed him playing with his mouth. I looked inside... half of his tooth was gone! So after calling the dentist and going in on Monday morning, we learned that there wasn't much to do. I had filed it down a tad with a nail file. He has no feeling in it since the nerve is dead. The X-ray showed that the root is all but gone. Basically we're just awaiting it to fall out on its own. The dentist did say she could wiggle it out if it became painful to him or if it bothered him, but she wanted to keep it as long as possible to hold the place for the permanent tooth. Here is Tommy now... imagine that the left half of his tooth was gone. That's what it looks like up close. The root (or what's left of it) is still in the socket, but the visible tooth is down to just the right half. Kind of funky looking. In the photo, you may think he's missing a tooth... no that long skinny thing in the middle is the remainder of the tooth. (Yes, the boy needs a haircut! LOL) Oh, the bang-up on his face... a fall on the sidewalk... a few days after losing the tooth that started with a fall on the sidewalk 18 months ago. Oh, I love my sweet little Tommy, but he's all boy!

Halloween was nuts this year, but fun. Ben dressed as a mad scientist (looks a bit like Einstein, eh?) He went to a birthday party that night and trick-or-treated with them.
Reagan also went as a mad scientist, though she looked more like Frankenstein's bride. :-) Gracelynn was my little cowgirl, and Tommy was a pirate. Here they are, moments before the chaos of walking around the block. Three kids don't walk at the same pace, and Mommy was left going mad trying to keep eyes on all three in the dark! We survived though.

Gracelynn had a ball, once she got the hang of it. Tommy pooped out early (as always). We came home so that Mike could be relieved of handing out food so he could go get Ben. After 8:30, we just left the candy bowl outside (hoping the candy would be gone quickly... I totally expected the first kids along to take a bunch if not all... c'mon... what kid DOESN'T take a ton when there is no one looking?) About 10 minutes later, the doorbell rang. It was two teenagers asking for treats. (...in terrorist garb talking in middle-eastern accents... how sickening!) We looked around... the bowl was gone! OK, I can see dumping the candy in your bag... but taking the bowl, too? It was our Halloween Mickey Mouse bowl! C'mon! I gave the two kids some candy I still had, and we shut out the light. It took me awhile to get used to teenagers dressing up (we never trick-or-treated after middle school when we were young), but I got used to it... seems to be the norm around here. Then to see them dressing like terrorists or in other vile costumes is bad too. (The ones that don't even bother to dress up bug me too... at least put some effort into it.) But, then to STEAL my candy bowl on top of the dozens of candybars left in there... give me a break. Granted, I'm assuming it was an older teen, but most younger kids were with adults... I can't imagine an adult allowing that. OK... my fault... shouldn't have just left it out... but I'm irked.

Ok, time to move on. Here are our pumpkins this year. The face was designed by Reagan (carved by Mike). The other one took about 1 minute. Ar ar ar (ala Tim Taylor). I got out my drill and put holes all over. How cool!

Picking Pumpkins at the Farm

This Saturday we all went out to a local farm for the afternoon with our friends. The kids had a blast. This was Grace's first trip to the farm. It was obvious to us that this farm is doing well... they had a nice, new "admission" building and line (as opposed to walking into the general store to pay), and a few new playground additions. Not to mention, in four hours, I think we plopped down about $78 total. Yikes!

The kids got to pet some animals, bounce on the flat "moonbounce" pillow, climb on some old tractor tires, wander through a few mazes, slide down some shoots, swing on the rope swings, eat kettlecorn, and of course, ride on the tractor ride out to the pumpkin patch to pick our pumpkins! We only chose two this time (it's more expensive than the local grocery store!) but the experience was great.


For those of you that know Tommy, this is monumental... he's terrified of moonbounces!!

Ben and Grace on the slide.

Reagan, Ben, Richard, Tommy and Caroline

Gracelynn, Caroline, Maggie

Reagan bouncing on the blow-up pillow thingee.

Grace and Tommy descending the mountain of tractor tires.

The crew, with our gathered pumpkins, waiting for the tractor ride to return to take us back.

Happy Birthday Christy!

In case you don't know, Christy is another year young today.  (And what a year it has been!)

If you have a moment, wish her a happy birthday.

Fraternity Families

Last weekend, we all trekked up to PA to visit with Nana and PapPap and Tracy and Tim. The event that brought us up to PA though was to attend the "Sippy Cup Picnic" with the Nu Lambs. Mike (and all of us) met up with his old fraternity brothers and their families for a cook-out. It was so fun to watch everyone! Here is a group shot of *MOST* of the kids... there were always kids running around, so we never caught all of them. Looking at this photo, I know we're missing Thad's daughter, Steve's son, Todd's daughter, Craig's daughter, and a few of the older boys. Here are our four, Doug's two, Thad's one, Steve's three, and Mark's three... and someone lurking in the background.


Gracelynn, looking cute.

Gracelynn in the background; Todd's daughter in the front. The legs belong to one of Steve's triplets!

Reagan and Doug's daughter.

Tommy being swung by Mark.

We all had a great time. Thank you Craig and Todd for organizing it. It was wonderful to meet the spouses and kids. Amazing how we all became "grown-ups". Instead of talking about college and parties, we talked about kids' sports, preschools and family vacations. :-) We hope to see you all soon.

Dinner Group

Tonight was adult night out. We gather every other month with three other couples to have our "dinner group". Each couple brings a dish/course to the meal. The host usually makes the main entree. These are our crazy and fun friends: Rich/Becky, Pete/Kathleen, Mike/Christy, and Neil/Karen. I told them I was going to post them on the blog. Let's see if they believed me. :-)

Neil and Karen, our lovely hosts tonight (beef brisket... yummy!)

Rich/Becky, our friends for over 7 years now

Kathleen and Pete (who figured out how to use the timer on my camera!) Kathleen was the one to get this little group started... thank you!

And of course, Mike and I (ok, with all the photos taken tonight, I decided that I totally need bangs... do you? I'm never happy with my hair... ugh)

Tonight was our third anniversary! Three years of wining, dining, and just plain fun. What a great group of friends! Oh... and check this out... we didn't realize that our camera did a three-shot succession of photos when using the timer. Can you tell we weren't prepared for photo #2 or #3?"What... did it just flash again?"

This last one cracks me up... we all were waiting to see if it would happen again... it did! Nice close-up, Pete! Karen, where'd you go?

Another First Day of School!

Well, last week was the start of school for Ben and Reagan. This was the first week of school for Tommy, Grace and Mommy!! On Tuesday, Mommy had a good day. The kids in her class are so sweet. However...Gracelynn had a record three meltdowns (ugh)... and Tommy bit his teacher (on the behind, mind you! double ugh). So, although Mommy was a happy girl at 1:30pm, the other two didn't have the brightest of days.

Fortunately I waited two days to write this entry. As it turns out, day two at preschool proved to be great for Gracelynn! She used the potty (and asked to go), played with the other kids, and had NO TEARS for four whole hours!!! She did wonderfully, even finishing off the preschool day with a full-fledged, zonked-out nap. :-) Poor thing. She's so used to napping around noon-time, that by the time nap-time at school rolls around at 1:00, she's out like a light.

Tommy also had a good day at school yesterday (he goes 3 days/week) and today. YAY! I think the little bugger wears out his teachers, but at least there were no incidents and he "stayed on green" the entire week. Today his teacher made a silly comment regarding a Mountain Dew can (that we saw in the fire extinguisher box)... laughing at it, asking if I wanted to give it to Tommy. That sealed the deal... I know now that he is exactly what I expected. Full of energy in class.

Ben and Reagan were absolutely not ADD. Although at Tommy's age, Ben was full of energy and loved to talk (and still does), he can focus on any activity and do his best when he knows it's necessary. Reagan is a little social butterfly and loves her friends, but when it comes to schoolwork, she always aims to please and does her best. She's our little scholar. Tommy however... whew, Tommy... who knows. He's a wild child. He's not usually outwardly violent (although since Grace came home, he's shown a little more anger than before), but he cannot always focus on a task. He's much more interested in playing with toys, or talking about what he did at home, or seeing what others are doing than to concentrate on his work. This week, Mommy became a drill sergeant at home. We are doing "homework time" with all four kids for an hour each day. The older two do their homework and read while the younger two work on their handwriting and coloring skills. I expected disaster when I first did it with T&G. They shocked me. Gracelynn loves to please, so she was great. Tommy even wanted to work, when he realized I was serious and loved seeing his nice handwriting. So... we'll see. Maybe he'll just be that pain-in-the-butt active child in class and not truly ADD? I guess I'll wait to see what the teachers have to say.... perhaps being in the school all the time will open my eyes to what Tommy is really like in school. :-)

Tonight is the drop-off for the consignment sale I do. So, time to go clean the car and remove the seats. I have quite a load to haul over there!

First Day of School 2008!

Oh my... where does the time go? This morning, we took Ben and Reagan to school! Last Friday morning we went in to meet the new teachers. Both teachers seem wonderful! For the first time ever, they each only have one teacher. (Preschool had 2 in each class; Kindergarten had a teacher and helper; Ben has been in a multi-age switching-classrooms program for 3 years with 3 teachers; and Reagan's first grade class had an assistant in the room). So, instead of the 9 teachers I had to buy for last year, I just have 8. Tommy and Grace still have 2 apiece in preschool (and Tommy has 2 more on a separate preschool day).

Today, I heard Mike in the shower so got up and dressed at 6:15. At 6:30, I headed out the door to awaken the kids. What was I thinking? Reagan was already fully dressed, sitting at the bottom of the steps with her backpack! Ben was pulling on his shoes as I passed his room. The commotion with them eventually awakened the two little ones. We were all dressed and downstairs at 6:50! Woo hoo! Daddy got the kids set up with breakfast and we were all done at 7:15! YAY!

Here are some first day photos:

Ben and Daddy

Mommy and Reagan

All four kids

We all walked to school and I saw that they got in their rooms. My babies are now in second and fourth grade. Geez! Mike's comment was, "Well, now you only have two kids at home during the day." I looked at him. I said, "But the ones in school are the two easy ones!" LOL

One more week till preschool starts... tomorrow is Meet the Teacher night, or in my case, Meet your Students.

Labor Day Weekend Continued

I think we did a fairly decent job of having a fun last weekend of summer with the kids. Gran and Granddad visited; we had a big fondue dinner on Friday night at home (not something Mommy enjoys preparing for, but they are always fun!); we went to the Air and Space Museum; we went to Red Robin (a kid favorite); we had donuts at Fractured Prune; we had a lazy day Sunday after church and Subway lunch including a nice drive in the evening; we went to Silver Diner for a special lunch and milkshakes on Monday; and the kids all got to pick out movies at Blockbuster which we watched later in the day. Not to mention our daily family walks/bike rides, playing the Wii and Scrabble, and just hanging out.

As you can see in the photos above, Gracelynn had her first real milkshake. In the past, when we ordered milkshakes at other restaurants, she was still eating or too tired to want more. She loved it! In fact, both she and Tommy were drinking Mommy's chocolate malt! Aha! I have two companions in loving malts! (Mike greatly dislikes them.) Another new this weekend... Mommy found someone else to love shrimp! I only pulled out about 1/2 pound of shrimp for the fondue on Friday night, figuring I was the only one who would eat it. Wrong! Grace ate almost all of it!!! So, she has good (albeit expensive) tastes! I think I may hold off introducing her to lobster. She's three... she's supposed to enjoy hotdogs and chicken nuggets... y'know, the cheap stuff. I guess I forgot to mention in the previous post about our fondue meal. The kids just love fondue, but I'll admit that I don't make it much since the preparation and clean-up is usually long. It was Grace's first experience with fondue. It took her awhile to figure out that food doesn't come immediately onto the plate (and thus, dinner takes awhile), but once she learned that she loved the shrimp, she was a happy girl. We only had two minor burns when Reagan forgot that the skewer will be hot after removing it from the pot... but they were extremely minor. And of course, Mommy and Daddy did all of Tommy's and Grace's cooking (and eventually Reagan's!)

On Sunday, we had more of a laid back day. We attended church and saw a great trio of singers from Mercy's Well. We didn't stick around to buy the CD, but plan to look online soon. After church, we went to Subway. Ha. Our days of $12 bills at Subway are long gone. $35!!! When two kids eat full-size meals and the other two can pile away a mini-sub and chips, the cost adds up quick! Geesh. That afternoon, Ben and Reagan were quickly entertained by Gran, who loves to play boardgames and card games with the kids. (This is not one of Mommy's fortes!) Gran and Granddad went back to Fredericksburg to be with Mamaw, and later in the day we all took an hour long drive to see the pretty countryside. I love our town... close enough to a major city to go to events, airports, etc.... yet, a stone's throw away from beautiful farm land, horse country, and rolling hills. The kids were less than excited and asked a million questions. "Where are we going?" (nowhere) "Are we almost there?" (no) "How long are we going to be?" (just sit back and watch) "Why are you looking at that house... are we moving?" (no, not now) "Why not?" (just 'cuz) Mike and I have always enjoyed just driving around and seeing what's out there. We went down a few one-lane roads (having twice to squeeze to the side to let an ATV, or worse an SUV, through) and saw some gorgeous "dream homes". Yeah, won't be moving in this real estate market... and not on one main salary, that's for sure!

On Monday, we took a long walk in the morning and later went to lunch at Silver Diner. Mike and I agreed it was easily the most enjoyable and least stressful meal-out that we've enjoyed with four kids yet. No complaints, no whining... and only maybe 6 times did we have to ask Tommy and Grace to sit down (and not stand on the booth seat!) Oh... and we each only had to take Grace/Tommy to the potty once. That's a record. Both seem to be addicted to public restrooms (yuck) and want to go potty all the time when we are out...and it always seems as though one mentions it and BOTH have to then go. At Cheeburger Cheeburger last weekend, we had a total of FOUR visits to the bathroom with these two in the course of one hour... the manager actually felt bad for us. At Silver Diner, I had a crabcake melt on focaccia bread. Yummy!!! The scale did not like me this morning, but my tummy was happy.

All four kids at Silver Diner.

Labor Day Weekend

Well, it's been a little while since I've blogged, but we have been a bit busy. For one, I got a job! It's not some super-high-paying wonder job, but I'm more than thrilled. I'll be teaching 4-5 year olds at Tommy and Gracelynn's preschool. I'll be sharing the class with Ms. Chrisie, who just so happens to be Tommy's teacher from last year. Yes... Miss Chrisie and Miss Christy. We'll confuse these kids for sure! I went in for a teacher workday and met the other teachers (including Tommy's and Gracelynn's) and am really excited for this year! It helps tremendously seeing as though their tuition is now free. WHEW! Plus, that Master's degree will finally be used. LOL

Tuesday is the start of school for Ben and Reagan (we in the preschool-crowd begin one week later). We went in to meet their teachers on Friday, and the kids seemed to like their new teachers and classes. Each will have a few friends in there, so they are pleased.

On Saturday, we took the kids with us (and Mike's parents) to the Udvar-Hazy Air and Space Museum, a Smithsonian museum near Dulles airport. We all had a great time.

Reagan and Ben by a missile... a very tall missile.

Reagan under the rocket engines of the space shuttle Enterprise (a replica glider, I believe).

The front part of the Enterprise... man, it's huge!

Tommy and Gracelynn "flying" a Cessna airplane. They loved moving the rudders, ailerons, and elevators on their own.

We had to laugh at this... a Bud Light plane... Drink and fly?

A Blackbird Stealth bomber

An Air France Concorde

This was our third visit to the museum (how can you NOT go to a free museum close to home?), but the first time for Mike's parents and for Gracelynn. The kids seemed to enjoy it... especially any of the funny-looking things. We saw a collection of robot toys and astronaut Barbies. They were a hit. For me, it was the Enterprise. I mean... wow!

After the museum and a lunch at Red Robin, Daddy said he was taking us to a surprise location. I fell asleep in the car, but awoke to see in front of me... The Fractured Prune. Sounds yummy, eh? Well, lemme tell you... everyone needs one of these in their neighborhood! Terrible name, wonderful desserts! They sell make-your-own donuts! Daddy got a Reese's donut (peanut butter glaze and chocolate chips); the kids got glaze and sprinkles; and Mommy got a donut with maple glaze, cinnamon sugar and toasted coconut on top! Wow! I want another one now.

So, we've decided that our small town definitely needs two new restaurants: Cheeburger Cheeburger (who makes the most amazing milkshakes... burgers aren't bad either!) and Fractured Prune. Anyone entrepreneurs out there willing to start up a few new franchises? After eating at these two restaurants, how can anyone NOT want them in their backyards.

For those who live close... there is a Fractured Prune going into Leesburg near the Bloom on business route 15. The one we went to is off of Old Ox Road.

The diet went out the window yesterday. Today we had Subway subs. That cancels out the donut, right?

Favorite Websites

Ok, I'm a sad, sad person. I've spent way too much time online-shopping lately (and shopping deals in brick-and-mortar stores too). When you're at home all day with 4 kids... it's my release in the evening! But can I just show off some of my amazing scores?

1. A $100 Anolon saucier pan for $12.50 shipped (and it's WONDERFUL... I love it... I now want more Anolon!)
2. 8-9 gifts apiece for Tommy and Gracelynn at $90 apiece total! Mind you, $60 of that was for a Leapfrog TAG reader device and books. So, I'm nearly done with Christmas shopping for those two!
3. A cool Zathura shadowbook for $1.00... we recently watched the movie and although Mike and I thought it was a little lame, Ben loved it. It's a hardback book that you shine a flashlight at to show shadows of the film on the wall. (Also got Tomie dePaola books...my favorite children's author... and chapter books for $1 apiece too... even some with a Christian basis.)
4. Thrillville for the Wii for $10; Super Smash Bros. Brawl for the Wii for $25; Luxor for the Wii for $15... guess how busy the Wii will be after Christmas.
5. TONS of goodie-bag things for Gracelynn's birthday party. Granted she isn't having a party till December, but I bought so many things at Target, I'm set. Love Target's 75% off sales... especially in the dollar spot!
6. Hannah Montana and High School Musical dolls (barbie-style) for less than $5 each... future gift ideas.
7. Dinosaur documentary-style DVD's for $5 each.
8. Some church-shoes for me (I'm usually in flip-flops or sneakers) for $20 apiece at Marshalls.
9. TWELVE pairs of summery shoes for Reagan, Grace and Ben for $27 total at Target! I bought the next size up, so we're good for next year (hopefully). Most were for Reagan, so if she grows too quickly this year (not normal for her), I can pass along to Grace later. Again, love those 75% off sales!
10. In the spring, I bought Reagan 11 Limited Too sweaters for $77 shipped... and got some "Too Bucks" for later purchases. We later bought a dress, pajamas, 2 shirts, a High School Musical DVD, 2 HM stationary sets, a set of "bling" headphones for her iPod and some candy... we used the Too Bucks and a $25 giftcard leftover from her birthday and STILL had money left on the card. Woo-hoo! I would never shop at that ridiculously priced store if it weren't for the amazing clearance deals you can find in the back of the store and online.
    
11. An eBay lot of 39 "bottoms" for girls for $95 shipped. Only 2 pair fit Reagan now, but she is set once she grows to a size 8 and up... even brand-names, mostly jeans.
    
12. ... and that's not to mention the amazing things I've picked up along the way from Freecycle, when I am *chosen*.

How do I find these things? A few places. For one, I check out amazon.com from time to time in the toy section. I click on "Toy Outlet" and then on the left click on 70% off or more. The listing is not always accurate to be 70% off, but that's how I found a bunch of nice things (like from Learning Resources, my favorite catalog for preschoolers). You can also check out the 50-70% off. Like I said, not all listings seem to be accurate, but you never know. I became a prime member, so on Amazon-shipped items, I can usually get free 2-day shipping on any order.

Another site? I hate to squeal this one away in case people jump on the goodies listed before I get to it. LOL But, maybe you'll also POST some good deals too? It's http://forums.gottadeal.com . This link takes you to the online forums, but you can also check out the offline deals at B&M stores (Brick-and-mortar). This is where I found all of the Wii games, the Anolon pan, and much more. Be patient... something cool will come up.

I also joined Freecycle in my community. If you go to Yahoo Groups, you can search to find a local Freecycle community for you as well. It's a group where you can post WANTEDS or OFFERS on things you'd like or things you have to give away... ALWAYS for free. I usually do a yard sale a year, but it suffered greatly this year. I had given away TONS of stuff as I came across stuff in the house throughout the year. Much better than piling it up in a spare room for 12 months. It felt good. That way I won't feel guilty snagging something nice for us, too. We've gotten clothes, shoes, toys, food, candlesticks, and much more over the last 10 months or so since I joined. I've also found takers of our things: some cute unused things of the kids, our crib and changing table, shelves, toys... even unopened pantry items that I know I'd never use. I LOVE FREECYCLE! When I was in PA, my mom handed me bags of boys' clothes. Much of it was too big for Ben and Tommy now, but it'll be great for next year. She got them all from a lady on Freecycle. Do you know how hard it is to find nice clean boys' clothes used? These were all big-name shirts and in impeccable condition. I gave some to a friend to use with her son till mine grow into them. I sent the lady an amazingly gushy thank you note. People on Freecycle are usually so awesome. In the last 2 weeks though, I was chosen to get two things from two different ladies (shoes for the girls). Both had to write to apologize because someone else stole them off their porches. What? Who would do that? Granted, it's usually on the honor system with stuff being placed on porches with no one watching. Ugh... so not EVERYONE is awesome. But most are! If you are a fellow Freecycler, thanks so much for making our county Freecycle group awesome!!! I'm off this afternoon to pick up a hose reel from a sweet lady down the street. Two days ago, Gracelynn finally got a soccer/camping-style fold-up chair of her own from another lady down the street... great way to meet neighbors, eh? Freecycle rocks!

Pfaltzgraff.com has a neat clearance section to find little dishes or pots or such. They make great gifts for teachers and coaches to stuff with candy or cookies at Christmas. I've done this in the past. Right now, I'm not sure I need to do it... I may have enough gifts for teachers already from other deals I've found.

Good magazine/book sites:
www.lowpricesubs.com I got Rachael Ray, Shape, Parent and Child, and Family Fun magazines for $2/subscription! Granted, they haven't arrived yet (still in the middle of the 8-12 week wait period), but others on gottadeal said they were good.
www.sortfloorbooks.com Great cheap deals. A little annoying to navigate, but search for authors or titles.
www.bookcloseouts.com Found lots of $1 books here. Check out August Promotions to find the link to the $1.00 summer sale.

Good photo-product site, similar to Shutterfly or Snapfish:
www.artscow.com The location of this printer is in Hong Kong, so shipping is a little high and delayed, but if you sign in, you get lots of coupons for FREE products. We got a nice little hardbound book of the kids' summer photos for $11 shipped. Also got 200 free prints... just paid shipping. They were nice photos too. Guess who developed our China trip photos!?

www.disneyshopping.com If you come at the right time and shop in clearance and sale sections and have a coupon code at the ready, you can get great deals. I got a CARS floor coloring pad for $6, an R/C Cars car for $4, PJs for $3.99 each, and more.

www.childrensplace.com Again, if you come at the time of their big clearance sales, as I did, you can get unbelievable prices. I bought tons of sunglasses for $.99 each, matching clothes for Reagan and Grace, slip-on Vans-style shoes for $5, boys' khaki pants for $5, jeans for $5 and much more. They had similar deals in store, too. I just glanced online... they still have summer clearance with $.99 tanks and $3.99 tees if you are ready to stock up for next summer. With two boys and two girls, I love that I can match their clothes... occasionally!

www.silverjewelryclub.com Everything listed on this site is free. All sterling silver jewelry with semi-precious gems. The catch? Only 4 things are offered at any given time... and only for 15 minutes apiece. You cannot double up things in one shipping... everything is shipped separately. And shipping is $6.99. So basically every item is $6.99 shipped. If you are looking for some cute earrings or a nice gift pendant for Christmas, it's a good spot. I got one pair of dangling earrings. They are smoky quartz (brown) ovals on a silver chain with posts. Cute! But I won't be shopping here as much as I originally thought. I can get silver earrings at Kohls when it's 50-70% off for less. No gems, but I prefer simple anyway.

A new favorite store is Five Below. One went into the next town over. I found lots of Cranium books and games (normally $12-$20) for $4-$5 apiece! Cool!

Well, that's enough for now. If anyone knows of great forums pages to find great deals, please let me know. Can't beat $12 Anolon pans and $10 Wii games when they pop up, y'know?

How many more laps?

Ever since school was let out, I've been trying to figure out a way to get back to walking. I've finally gotten to a point where my foot doesn't kill me to walk on it, at least not in the same way, thanks to two cortisone shots and more physical therapy. But how does one go walking around the neighborhood with four kids in tow. And after Tommy caught got second-degree burns from the treadmill once while I was on it, I am terrified to use the treadmill in the presence of the kids. I've managed to get out a couple of times in the evening, but that's always a mess with taekwondo schedules and dinner and our family-time. Julia, a friend, suggested going to the track. Yes! It works! Thank you Julia! Our elementary school put in a new big playground last year and a 1/8 mile track the year before that. So, I gather up all four kids... two in a stroller, two on bikes, two scooters folded in the back of the stroller... and water bottles and head up to the school. I believe it's about 1/4-1/3 mile up to the school. Then I walk 16 laps (2 miles) while the kids do whatever. They can play on the playground, bike or scooter around the basketball courts, bike or scooter around the track, walk around the track with me, or just sit and relax. For half of the time I'm walking, I'm facing all four kids. I just keep one ear open for any tears or yells. So far, so good. No one is there when we are and things have been going great! I think maybe we'll take a basketball next time too. Anyway, in the course of one hour, I get in 2.5 miles of walking while the kids get their playground time. Reagan has become quite the pro on the bike, and Ben did really well today! We just have to be sure to leave before 8am or else the humidity and heat is too intense. Plus, a bonus with leaving so early? Half the track is shaded by trees! Not to mention I still am home and showered by 9:30 with the whole day ahead of us. :-) Yes!

Another bonus to our new plan? Not only do the four kids get in a lot of physical activity and play time in the mornings, but in the evenings these next two weeks we have swimming lessons for the older three. They should sleep well these next two weeks. YAY!

Movies, Trains, Video Games and Bouncy Balls

Now, with the above title, how many would've guessed I was referring to the Dentist office?

Last Friday, I took all four kids to the dentist. 8am in a town 45 minutes away (with traffic). Of course, in rush hour, heading toward DC, I hit traffic. So, we left at 7am. I expected an easy-breezy visit with Ben, Reagan and Tommy... not sure what to expect with Gracelynn. Before we left for China, I called to add her to the checkup visits. They could fit her in at 8:40, so I felt happy to have her first dentist appointment scheduled. Then, when we first got Gracelynn and realized she had NEVER brushed her teeth in her life, we panicked. Our first instinct was to immediately call and cancel her appointment. However, as weeks went by, we realized she was the one child in the family that LIKED to brush her teeth. So, I kept the appointment. I'm glad I did.

The reason I travel 45 minutes to get to the dentist is that it's the coolest pediatric dentist's office I've ever seen. In the LARGE waiting area, there is a tree (fake, but real sized) that houses a kitchen area, an air-hockey table, a video-game center with four stools and PS2's, a large-screen plasma TV with theater-style steps to watch movies under a ceiling of white starry lights, huge bean-bag chairs to pile up and jump on, and many books to boot... and that doesn't include the adult area with a TV and comfy chairs and magazines and a coffee station. The bathroom is completely automatic... toilet, paper towels, soap and trashcan. No touching anything but the toilet paper. :-) Then, before you head back to the huge office (with at least 12-14 seats), you pick your DVD that plays on the movable TV screen at your chair. If the DVD isn't enough to distract you, perhaps the big train track attached to the ceiling above will keep your attention while the hygenists put their bubble-gum flavored gloved hands into your mouth while you wear cool sunglasses under the light. To say the least, it's VERY VERY VERY child friendly. Plus they do the orthodontic work there, so no extra offices to worry about.

I watched Ben, Tommy, and Reagan all head back with their movies. My goal was to have Grace sit with me while I watched Tommy. He has had his teeth injuries (fell on them on the concrete driveway and shifted two front teeth out of position about 1.5 years ago and now has two brown teeth), but the last couple of dentist visits went smoothly. Friday, however, he decided to have a meltdown. The Thomas the Tank Engine movie wasn't good enough. He wanted nothing to do with the super-sweet hygenist who kept playing games with him. I was so worried that Grace was getting a bad impression of dentists, so I had her look over at Reagan and Ben who were doing well. Eventually I had to hold Tommy on my lap and hold down his arms so they could briefly clean the teeth. Grace watched the DVD instead.

Then, after Tommy was done, we sat... and sat... and sat... and sat. How the one dentist could get stalled with her first appointment of the day, I don't know (our hygenist for Grace was held up because of the dentist). So, eventually I found myself chasing both kids around the office... basically saying, "Don't touch that", "Close that drawer", "Put that down", "Don't touch the dentist's tools", etc. Fortunately Reagan and Ben could sit in the waiting area on their own. Tommy was done at 8:40. Grace wasn't seen until 9:15. Ugh. I felt for sure that we were in for a huge meltdown, since it was obvious she was impatient. So was I! I almost never complain in doctor's offices... but that day I did.

Ha! She sat down, said, "cheese" and did everything the hygenist asked!!! She even had her X-rays taken beautifully!! I was astounded. First dentist visit and she loved it. Well, all four kids earned their prizes that day (... Tommy, well... at least he didn't injure anyone during the fits.) Bouncy balls and tattoos around!

Ok... one bad incident. Just as the dentist was making her way over to check over Grace's teeth, Grace and Tommy were fighting over the TV and who it should be pointing towards. Grace hauled off and kicked Tommy in the mouth. Geesh... At least we were at the dentist in case another tooth came loose. (He was fine... actually, she barely brushed his cheek, but she was in "timeout" with no TV screen for a short bit.)

Diagnosis? Ben comes back in 4 weeks to get the front teeth all "braced" up, in addition to the lovely appliance already in his mouth. Hopefully he'll be able to stop the face-mask at that point. Reagan was told another year till she begins orthodontic work. Tommy was fine, but since the two teeth did discolor, we now need to pay close attention to make sure they don't abscess and get infected. Grace has one tooth that is dysplastic (is that right?) where the enamel is thin and thus the tooth is more translucent and susceptible to cavities. It's a front tooth, and I did notice it being more yellow... I just assumed it was because of plaque.

Anyway, everyone now has shiny white teeth. :-) And Mommy made the next appointment in January with all four being seen at 8:00am (first appointment of the day) in side-by-side chairs! Woo-hoo! I get to sit back and watch and not chase anyone. Of course, I did tell Mike on my way home that he gets to take them next. LOL

Keeping Busy

This was bound to be a long summer for all of us. Other than the scattered camping week, VBS, tennis lessons, a quick trip to PA, and a few weekends of company, we really didn't have anything BIG to look forward to. No vacations. I was worried what I'd be doing with four kids all summer long... one of whom was brand new to the family and didn't speak much English. :-)

At the end of the school year, I read online a bunch of people's idea for keeping kids busy all summer. I found several lists of dozens (even hundreds) of ideas. So, I created an index box full of cards with suggestions of things to do.... most of which do not require my involvement, especially with my two oldest. So, not always daily, but when I see the kids bored or fighting or getting on each other's nerves, I pull out the box. The rule is they can pick three random cards out and choose one. And yes, it's usually Ben and Reagan that do the picking out... Tommy and Grace just follow along.

So far, they've done several cards.

1. Some of the things they've chosen so far include making paper-bag puppets. Reagan made an astronaut and Ben made an alien. They began making a play for them too... but somehow that got sidetracked. Dang it... forgot to take a photo.

2. Another idea was to create a journal of the things they did this summer. Our Brownie troop was asked to do this too, so that jogged Reagan's memory and she rushed off to begin the journal. We even took a photo of her in the shirt she made at camp along with her hat full of SWAPS (her first entry was about Girl Scout camp).
3. Another recent card from the idea box had the kids draw their silhouettes on white kraft paper and decorate them to look like themselves. After I traced each kid in a silly pose, I then outlined the silhouette in black marker (washable marker doesn't bleed through like Sharpies) and added edges of clothing, bangs, etc. Then I taped each kids block of paper to the hardwood floors with painter's tape and let them at it with crayons. Grace colored her face green; Tommy colored his legs black; Ben made silly eyes and went fast; Reagan took her time and colored for well over an hour. Over the next couple of days, I cut out the designs and then hung them on the downstairs wall near their craft table and craft cupboard.
4. One day they spent hours creating their very own menu for their own restaurant. The idea was to decide what options they would include on a menu at a restaurant of their design. Not only did they make a menu, but Ben created a kids' menu complete with games and puzzles. Then the four kids spent awhile playing "restaurant". I threw this idea back in the box since they did so well with it. I think next time I'll challenge them to be very careful in the design of their menu and find foods for all sorts of people, not just kids. Maybe even a theme to their restaurant. Plus I forgot to take a photo!

5. This morning, Tommy and Reagan picked out the one to create a train track. The card said to make a big train track and use our wooden blocks to create buildings around the track. They raced off to the rec room to get started. It kept them busy for about an hour or two. The track looked great, but they must've run out of fuel by the time the construction of the buildings started. The huge box of wooden blocks was spilled everywhere, but no buildings. Oh well, they got half of it done, and Tommy (a Thomas train fanatic) was happy.

6. Another idea was to make puzzles. I allow the kids to then take photos of the completed puzzles. I started this idea last summer with them when it dawned on me that we had DOZENS of puzzles of all sorts of sizes, many boxes of which were never even opened. Taking the photos gives them a goal... try to collect as many photos of completed puzzles as possible. They did these three puzzles today after the train track. Reagan took these photos... she did a nice job of staging the photos with the puzzle boxes, too. Maybe a digital camera for Xmas is in her future... I may buy a $1.99 photo book for the photos at the end of summer too.


Hmmm.... what card will they pick out next? What does Mommy do while they work? Today I got 80% of the quilt book for Gracelynn completed. :-) What is the quilt book? Check out this.... 100 Good Wishes Quilt.

Daddy was also very busy. He installed a light between our closets in our bedroom (only took us 5 years to do that one... and the plate was there... just no light fixture.) He also fixed a lightswitch in our master bathroom that's been sparking! Yikes! At least Daddy fixed it! Now I get to go buy more lights to install in the halls to replace all the ugly brass cheapies in our house now. Right, Mike?!