Once everyone was up, and we parents declared it 'time,' the kids bolted right for the stack of presents in the office. 'Scuse the clutter behind them in the pics; it's an ongoing project (or twelve) in here at all times. Right, so let's, shall we?
We started with the presents from Aunt Stacey (my sister); the girls got a couple outfits for their Barbies. I don't mind the Barbies at all, because these once oft-feuding sisters have really bonded over their play with her (them). So bring it on!
Jack's first present was a box of Ninja Legos, and he was overjoyed. The kid is a Lego fanatic.
Another Lego set for Jack - Stacey really scored points with the boy-child this year!
Actually, Stace scored all the way around - Chloë has already dug into this American Girl Fashion Studio, which caused lots of squealing upon being opened!
Sophia was given a Ballerina Barbie, and she declared, "I always wanted one of those!"
This was a last-minute snag I got off Amazon when it was price-dropped way low, and I didn't pay anything because I had Amazon money from Swagbucks to pay for it. It's a game we'll use in homeschooling (which significantly upped the "oh" factor when I told them that), because I get to make up the questions and then they buzz in. The reviews were pretty good, so I jumped on it.
Both grandpas gave the kids cards this year, and they requested Rob's dad and stepmom's card next.
Jack's reaction to getting his "own credit card" from Grandpa was hilarious, and he's been plotting and planning how to use it ever since.
Well, and so have the girls. They're all pretty excited about the concept.
Similar excitement ensued when they found gift cards to Books-A-Million from my dad's cards, especially from the bookworm in the family, Chloë.
I had gotten this Japanese-inspired outfit when we were in Charleston over the summer, before Chloë had even gotten her American Girl doll. I saw it and, given my love for all things Asian, knew I had to snag it for the doll we were already planning for her birthday.
Skipping ahead just for a second, here's Faith decked out in the outfit. Lovely, isn't she?
At the same store in the open-air market of Charleston, I spotted this tea set for Sophia. She peeked and saw me buying it, and she's been reminding me about it ever since! And I still almost forgot about it! Ha. She was thrilled when she opened it, and we've all had our share of "tea and cookies" this afternoon, including Daddy. It inspired us to plan a real-life tea party one of these days, which I can't wait to do.
I grabbed this Nerf gun for Jack online a long time ago, probably at the end of summer, when I saw a killer deal over it. Jack's still playing with it, hours later. He loves it and wants to use his gift card (this moment, anyway) to buy more 'bullets' for it. The four cats have been providing him endless target practice, which both scares and amuses me. I'd make him stop, but for the most part, they seem nonplussed by the experience. Good ol' Nerf!
Not long after we finished opening gifts, Chloë insisted on taking a shower with her new Jafra "BTWIN" shower gel and body lotion. She smells pretty good, I must say! I could eat her up.
My metrosexual son was funny and just as quickly followed suit, bathing himself in his Jafra "Skid Rock" shower gel for boys, and spraying himself with so much of the cologne that the girls had to step outside for a few moments to get some fresh air!! I nearly joined them. *cough, cough*
Sophia was equally thrilled to get her Jafra goodies, a bag filled with perfume and sparkly lotion and lip gloss. She's probably used half the tube of gloss already and covered me in pink kisses. Silly cutie.
This was another last-minute snag, when the price dropped way down on Disney's website, and I knew Jack would love it. I was right. The only disappointment was there was no tree to hang it on, so he's looking forward to doing so next year.
We are big Webkinz collectors here, and this was Box One which contained a Mud Hippo for Curls, an Okapi for Soap, and a Yeti for Jacky-boy.
Out of Box Two, Jack chose the Prairie Dog, Sophia the Aardvark, and Chloë the Wombat. Aren't they great? I love all the different animals, I do.
I grabbed a great deal from Kiwi Crate for three months of crafts and projects for the two Littles, but I was a little disappointed they got the exact same things when I had to put in their ages and genders at sign-up time. Ah, well, we'll do the projects together - this month it's a rocket and space mobile, and I'm sure we'll have a good time. It's a little young for Jack, but he seemed excited about it, so whatev.
Rob caught me making this goofy face when modeling the earrings "he gave me," which were really another killer deal I snagged from Novica, which is a collaboration of National Geographic with artisans from around the world. I think these came from Thailand, but I forget. They're pearls, blue amazonite, and turquoise on silver findings, and they came in the most beautiful handmade paper box that will be great when I have to give a small gift to another. Two gifts in one!
I was glad when I found this deal for snow boots from Land's End, because even though we don't get a ton of snow and ice here, we do get some, and they've all outgrown last year's boots. It's hard to beat the boots from Land's End, so I'm well-pleased. I got a much-needed white oxford short for The Bob and a smaller, more well-fitting bathing suit for myself, from the same deal, but we opened those a few days ago and I didn't get pictures. Eh, well.
I paid practically nothing for this sapphire and diamond (although I think it's a CZ, but the saph is real) pendant from YaySave!, but we didn't get a photo of me actually wearing it because it arrived with a knot in the very fine chain. As you can see, I chopped my nails down to nothing, so I can't get the knot out at the moment, but I still love it. It's purty.
Sophie has been asking for a Barbie motorcycle for aaaaages, and I've been searching for one, but all I could find were either these Vespas on eBay, or $60+ collectible Harley ones. Obviously, she was going to get the Vespa. I showed it to her before I bid on it, to make sure it 'do,' but I told her I had to win it and that I might not if it went too high. She didn't quite get the concept of auctions, which I realized when she opened the packaged, exclaimed her shock that I won, and inquired as to whether anyone else got a prize. Hehe! Funny girl. But she's delighted with it, and I couldn't be happier to have finally made her small wish come true.
And last but not least, I grabbed another great deal on Rob's teapot and warmer from Cost Plus World Market, but I didn't realize we don't have any tea (that he'll deign to drink, anyway), so boo, me! The posing of this picture cracks me up, but it works, so hey.
Welp, after naps for Mom and Dad and lots of hours of playing with no signs of stopping by the kids, it's been a pretty good Christmas despite my being sick and falling short of the mark in many regards. They're all happy, so I'm happy.
I hope you and yours had a wonderful holiday, however and whatever you celebrate, and don't have to spend 100 hours in line at the returns counter tomorrow!
So I just gave Rob his Christmas present (well, one of them), a Webkinz Beaver. After much deliberation, having tossed out Snapper, Wynonna, and Frank (c'mon!), he finally decided to name my beaver "Genie". As in, when he rubs it, all his wishes will come true.
What?
I never claimed this blog was family-friendly.
Enjoy your week, y'all...
Fin.
P.S. He just informed me that one of the kittens was licking the beaver. I'm not touching that one...
Hiya, fellow fragmenting folks! Link up here if you're into bits 'n' pieces today! Thanks for hosting, Mrs. 4444. ♥
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So I haven't blogged much this week, not like more than a handful (a small handful, like a lemur's hand. Wait, a lemur's hand? Nevermind...) of people noticed, but I did change the blog header. Do ya like it? I didn't mean to include myself in there, but I couldn't figure out how to center the kids' picture, and I didn't want all that blank space, so... there I am! But the kids, so cute, right??
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Mrs. 4444 asked for a health update on my hubs. So here it is: We saw Neuro on Wednesday, and he was in and outta there in five minutes or less. Basically, his spinal MRI was all clear, and they ruled out the Von Hippel-Lindau disease, so that's good. He's still having headaches sometimes, but they're fewer and farther between, if not more mild. So the current treatment will just involve maintenance for that, and occasional monitoring of the benign tumor (cavernous angioma) in his cerebellum. Pretty good. Guess I can stop lining up potential future suitors and counting my life insurance money now, right? (I jest, I kid, I josh, I joke!!)
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So I've been hexipuffing these last coupla days. What's a hexipuff, you ask? Why, here are four I've done:
So if you can't tell from the pictures, they're little knitted hexigon-shaped pockets stuffed with a wee bit of fiberfill, and then when you've made enough, you sew them together to make a kind of hexipuff quilt, AKA the Beekeeper's Quilt, as seen here. Cool, huh? I like making them. It doesn't take long to make one, or use up a lot of yarn, so I'm addicted to doing it when I have a down moment (okay, and sometimes when I should be doing eleventy-billion other things, like, um, always...)
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Do you have pets? Love 'em? Take pictures of 'em sometimes? Go answer my Aloha Friday question here, pretty pretty please! If you have a post, link to it in your comment as well, and I'll answer yours. Thanky kindly!
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So I have had a major upset stomach (TMI but we're talking both ends, living in the bathroom) for three days now. It's NO fun, and I feel sooooo weak. It made me miss my Girl Scout meeting for the second meeting in a row, and I felt badly about that until I learned two things (a) everyone was glad I didn't bring my tummy bug to get them all sick and not mad at me, and (b) they ran the meeting with my Daisies anyway, so the girls didn't miss out. Still, I felt like a crappy Leader. Well, pardon the pun...
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Here's the (undoctored) photo that didn't make the cut into the blog header. I think I made the right choice. What do you think?
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Did you know you could shrink Crocs by putting them in the dryer? True story! Chloë accidentally washed the one on the right and, well, now we're out a pair of shoes, darn it! Funny, though. I guess we'll wash the other one and give them to someone with smaller feet, huh?
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So I took the kids to Sears for their portraits (free sitting fee & 8x10, so that's all I'm getting, because hello, we po') on Monday, and it was first thing when they opened, so no one else was there. So why did it take over an hour, and I STILL didn't get to pick my portrait? Because their computer system wasn't functioning properly. Ugh. That was annoying. That picture better be cute, if I ever get back there to choose it.... ;P
(Note that these are the girls' holiday dresses but not Jack's, which was supposed to be here by the 30th, and, uh, it's not. Grr. Grr, Old Navy, I say, grr!)
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So I've been lame and kind of giving the kids Christmas presents whenever I feel like it, instead of waiting until the actual Day o' Christmas this year. Anyway, I made this dress and shawl (color combo chosen by Chloë; don't blame me!) for Chlo's new American Girl doll that she got for her birthday. Don't you think Faith looks so cute in it? It was super fast to make, too. I'm going to make her a bunch of outfits so she has a whole wardrobe of hand knits. Hey, I like knitting (and crocheting) on a small scale, what can I say?
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Speaking of giving them early Christmas presents, they each got one of these cool nightlight lamp thingies from Discovery Kids. Did I show you these already? Well, I gave them to 'em. It was cool because I asked each one privately, separately, which one they really wanted most, and they each chose a different one! Serendipity, baby!!!
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One last pic and then I'll let you be. So I totally got these Webkinz (another Christmas present for the kids, I know, I know) for FREE! Can't beat that. I didn't pay one thin, uh, penny, not even for tax. Can you saw AWESOME? Because that was. And they were happy! Look at the boy! The one who "doesn't know how to smile" is doing a pretty good job of it there, eh?
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Okay. That's all I got. Lucky you!! Happy weekend.
This fell on 4 December, when we were due to go out of town again for one night, for a quickie hotel shop in a small town in northern North Carolina. So we did the Advent at home, but we brought the presents with us to the hotel. The kiddos liked that bit. (And I know you can see her ribs, but seriously, we feed her. Sophia never. stops. eating!)
These little Whitman's samplers didn't fit in the Advent box, so I had them stashed and taped creatively all over the place. It was a great plan - except when I started losing track of them and had to start subbing in whichever one I could find that day, and that threw things even further off track... oh, it was great confusion. But in the end, they still got their junk fix, so I'm still the "Best Mom Ever" in my kids' world. What else matters?
Sweets for my Sweet Babboo
That night in the hotel, Sophia got to go first again. (Usually, it was decided by a 'test' question on something we've studied at home so far this year.) She got this little game, a round pie-shaped box filled with discussion topics for family dinners. I thought it would be fun, and she was excited about it, as you can see. When we got home the next day, somehow the box fell out of the van, and I didn't realize it until I'd driven over it. The cards were fine, but the box was destroyed, and she was PISSED at me. Have you ever seen a five-year-old really angry at their parent? It's pretty funny.
I think this was the "please don't let it be toothpaste" look.
Definitely not toothpaste! He'd been admiring these slingshots in one of the restaurants we visited in Tennessee, so I snagged one (and the necessary ammo) when he wasn't looking. He was so surprised, since I'd seemingly put my foot down on that one! Knock on wood, no one's been pegged in the forehead with a little wooden ballie... yet.
I had a gift card (well, a bunch of gift cards) for a store I don't frequent, so I finally decided to pounce when I saw they had games and toys on sale. When I saw this pink and purple Webkinz kitty, I knew he had to belong to Chloë. She. Whatever. I was right. She was ECSTATIC. This child is a major drama queen, so everything is always the "best ever" to her, but this one really was. Score!
Taking a break to grab some caffeination, and then I'll be back with Day Six.
When Rob got off watch this morning, he came home and immediately went back out again in his truck to get it inspected. It took about three hours, but he finally got seen.
And guess what?
IT PASSED INSPECTION!
Cue the Hallelujah chorus! I have my Vanna back! She's mine, all mine, once again. Words cannot express how happy I am, so I won't even try. I'm sure you can imagine! After six months... whew. I'm elated.
When he got home, I know he would much rather have gone to bed, but I had mystery shops to do and needed his help. Two fast-food shops, at which I do the reports and he feeds the (messy) food to the kids in the back of the van. I neither wanted to sit in the back of the van on hot day nor touch that kind of food (mustard on a hamburger, bleck all around), so he went with us.
The first shop was on Laskin Road, and as soon as we got there, I remembered once again the new Trader Joe's had opened last month. We'd never gone in, not getting around to Laskin very often and hearing it was always packed with customers and empty on the shelves. This was grocery day, though, and I hadn't even gotten started on my list, so I thought we could just check it out.
And check it out we did! Oh, man. We got so much good stuff, I was momentarily regretting having gastric bypass surgery and not being able to go home and eat it all at once! The kids were so chatty, especially Sophia, who as usual stopped everyone in the aisles to greet them and give them her spiel. (Hi! What's your name? I'm Sophie and I'm four! etc.)
There was organic this and organic that, which doesn't really excite me as much as locally-grown stuff, but that's okay. We walked every aisle (there were only, like, five anyway; it was much smaller than we had anticipated) and found great deals on each one. Seriously, the prices weren't bad at all! I was very surprised, thinking it would be outrageous. But no, no it wasn't.
We all sampled some tomatoes (not me) and fresh mozzarella at one station, and Swiss with pita crackers at another, which was more than enough for my lunch. Rob got some free coffee, too, which he loved. Man's a caffeineaholic. We got lots and lots of goodies, I don't even know where to begin. Oh wait, yes, I do:
These frozen pizzas were only $3.99 apiece! So, I bought four, two of each kind. They had the margherita one for dinner tonight, and it was delicious.
Mmm, goat cheese - this three-pack only cost $4.49, which is a steal compared to the six bucks I pay at Farm Fresh for a third the amount. Hopefully these flavours will be much better than the cranberry cinnamon I bought last time at FF. Blech.
I am a sucker for any dip containing any combination of artichokes, spinach and crab meat, so of course I had to pick this up. Can't wait to try it! ($2.69)
Mmm, spanakopita. Have you had it? If not, you simply must. The first time I had it was in 1998, when I worked in catering at The Colony in Sarasota. Billy, the sous chef, always made the spanakopita, and he made me try it at the first party I worked. Oh, hell yeah. It was fall-on-your-knees-and-thank-the-heavens good. I've never found it as good again, even at the little Greek restaurant we used to have around the corner from here, but I will keep searching. And one day, maybe I'll just have to throw my own party at The Colony to get it again. ;) (Remind me to order the jumbo shrimp then, too, because it was equally tasty.)
I'm a hummus fanatic. I had some of this with some fresh mozzarella and a piece of TJ's whole wheat pita later in the day, and it was fabulous. So good, when I ran out of the pita, I just used my finger. :P
I'd heard about these and been told to try them if I ever got the chance. I had the chance. They're pretty good. Jack doesn't like them. Rob and Sophie love them. I say "eh."
Yummy, nutty snacks, good protein. I simply adore Macadamia nuts. Rob can't eat 'em; he says they give him a headache. Oh, well, more for me! Scratch that: I let the kids try them, and now they're hooked, too. Damn.
Some tasty juices for the kids... and yes, my husband just shook his head at me the whole time I was taking pictures of our groceries. Hee. Hey, I needed blog fodder.
So after TJs, we drove and did the other fast food mystery shop as fast as we could, because there was lots of frozen food in the van. It was amazingly still frozen when we got home; even the ice cream wasn't soupy. (I bought way more than what was in the pictures, but you don't need to see everything, I'm sure.) I salivated a second time, putting everything away. I can't wait to go back and yes, I am definitely a convert! (Not that I'll be making special trips, but I anxiously await the next stop on Laskin Road...)
Both kids' glasses have been missing all week. Rob finally found Jack's, but Chloë's are still MIA. So I told them we weren't going to go back to the pool until they found her specs. After an hour or so of them "searching" (aka playing) upstairs, and the two of sweating our arses off downstairs, I scrapped that plan. "KIDS! COME DOWNSTAIRS, WE'RE GOING TO THE POOL!"
They were eager to show off their new tricks from yesterday to Daddy. It didn't go as well, perhaps because there were more people and they were intimidated by the crowd, I don't know. Jack had a meltdown when I tried to get him to float on his back, and Chloë had one when I tried to get her to tread water for half a second. I seriously hate that. I have always been a chicken, but never, ever, in the water, and it frustrates me that they aren't waterbabies the same way. I keep saying I'm going to sign them up for swim lessons at the Y this summer, but I have yet to do it. Must put that on the top of my 'to-do' list...
So after an hour and a half or so, Sophie was bored because she'd gotten a bad, bad booboo on her toe and couldn't go in the pool. She bled through 3-4 bandages (Nicole, I said that for you) and has been limping ever since, poor thing. Don't know quite what she did other than trip and tear the skin off her toe and split her toenail in half... well, I guess I do know what she did, after all.
We went home, I had that pita and hummus and the rest of the fam-damily had the pizza, and then I got a bug up my arse to make them a special treat for dessert. First, I got out the melon baller and the remaining hunk of watermelon, and made a bunch of melon balls. The kids were wondering what the heck I was doing, since I'd promised them floats all night, but they'd never had melon balls before and were happy to partake. I snuck in a couple too, though I haven't been cleared for fruits yet. Oh, sooo good. (Sorry for the bright pic; Chloë took this picture, and I forgot to turn off the flash for her.)
Sophia took this picture of Chloë munching on a melon ball. Doesn't she look nice with some color on her face and sun-lightened hair? I think she's beautiful...
Then I scooped some TJ's vanilla ice cream ($3.99/quart) into their (Fiestaware) mugs and added some Italian blood orange soda we'd gotten today, too. (You'll probably be hearing about TJ's for the next week, sorry!) I garnished each with a melon ball and, for good measure, added the wee sunglasses I'd gotten on my piña colada at the bar we mystery shopped a week or two ago:
Cute, right?
Jack and Chloë were jealous, because the sunglasses went on Sophie's cup, but I told them you never know when they might pop up again on one of yours! That seemed to work.
Digging in!
Whenever she licks her lips like that, I know it's really good and she's enjoying it. Makes a mama glad, yes it does. The kids gave me lots of "Thank you, Mom"s for this dessert tonight, and I was so pleased that I didn't mind not being able to eat it myself. Score one for me!
In the evening, since it's the first of the month, I let each of the kids pick out a Webkinz to adopt. We've been doing that for at least all of 2009 if not longer. I love Sophie's names! Chloë picked "Amy" for her black panther, and Jack picked "Jack" for his skunk - both par for the course for them. But for her new lamb, Sophie chose the name "Gippy"! Other names she's chosen include Ulk Eek, Bella Ella Elga, and Bibble! She's such a riot, love her!
That's it. Sophie and Jack have finally settled down after many runs downstairs for a kiss, a potty, a snack, a drink, you name it. Rob is out at Wally-world getting some crap for his truck and hopefully a new chair for me because mine broke. And me? I'm about to get on the AT&T website and order up our new phones! T-mobile said since we only have 9 days left in our contract, we're free to go! Yahoo!! I'm gettin' me an iPhone!
All in all, it's been a great couple of days. Ahhhhh....
I had absolutely nothing on the calendar for today, and that's a rarity for us. No running, no rushing, no stress.
I spent entirely too much time with the kids playing Webkinz - we literally spent hours putting all 56 of them into their beds! Okay, maybe two hours. But it took a very long time, especially with all the interruptions that come with having three children at home. We didn't have enough beds and had to add two huge rooms of just beds for all the critters. Anyway, enough about that.
Chloë was also in a crafty mood. She wanted to paint rocks, but I was tired of her stealing from the neighbor's front yard to get good ones, so I vetoed that idea. So first she strung pretty beads on cord, from a kit her friend Claire gave her when she turned seven. I received a "necklace" that can't fit over my head (or theirs, for that matter), so it's a bracelet wrapped around twice. I may actually wear it out!
Then she got out the bag of pipe cleaners and started making the letters of the alphabet with them. That wasn't enough for her, so she painted them with glitter glue. Never mind that she got the glue all over the place... I'm glad she feels creative!
Jack played a little bit with the pipe cleaners too, but for the most part he stuck to his cars and trucks. I tried getting him reading so he would be able to do his sight words when he goes back to kindergarten on Tuesday, but he was having none of it!
As for Soapy, she did a lot of babying her various lovies today. She lays them down, covers them, and sings them sweet lullabies in her little falsetto voice. Her speaking voice is so deep that it makes us laugh, especially compared to Chloë and Mr. Squeaks (my dad's nickname for Jack), but her singing voice is high and pretty. She still struggles a bit with carrying a tune, unlike the older two who have a knack for it, but I think that's because the high pitch is unnatural for her. I do love to listen to the girls' made-up songs, though!
When I wasn't putting 'kinz to slumber, I worked on increasing my knitting skills a bit. I'm teaching myself Iris Schreier's multidirectional knitting method, which is knitting a flat piece in more than one direction without picking up stitches like entrelac and other hairier processes. It's very interesting, and will be useful to me in the future if I ever decide to design my own piece(s), I know. I just wish I could intuit such things on my own... but as with Elizabeth Zimmermann's clever patterns, I just don't see what I should do until I'm told to do it. I can follow a pattern with the best of 'em, but going off on my own way into the scary unknown? Not yet, for me.
Rob is all checked out from the ship and other than having to run into the new command here and there to meet the new crew, he is off for three weeks. Yay! Hopefully this time off will bring more news on the motorcycle-license-obtaining front!
We have Iron Man from another free DVD code (I couldn't give it out because I didn't know it; someone gave one to Rob at the Redbox last night!), so I guess I'll go watch that with Rupert and work on the roll-edge coat.
Well, the kids don't go back to school until the 20th, so we're not quite back to "normal" yet, if you want to call our lives that, but no more holidays, vacations, or days off for Rob.
Although, he is finally transferring out of his God-awful duty station on the 20th, so before starting all his checking-out process, he has been inundated with last-minute tasks. That's those a**holes for you, though.
Anyway, so I overslept waaay late today. Overslept for what, you may ask. Well, nothing in particular, but I should not have been sleeping as last as I did. I can't explain it, other than that I didn't get any kind of decent rest in OBX, and I really am in love with my CPAP lately and wanted to stay on it as long as I could? Whatever, I am well-rested now and shall not make that same mistake again tomorrow.
We didn't do a whole lot during the day, sadly. I've nothing fun to report about that. Unless you count the fact that I let Sophia adopt the Tiger Snake Webkinz, which she named "Bibble." She picks the best names! So now we have 55 adopted 'kinz, and 15 more in the closet waiting to be loved. A nice little collection, eh?
It was back to tap class for Chloë, so I showered, got everyone dressed (we lolled about in our PJs for most of the day) and out the door, and off we went. One good thing: I hadn't been able to fit in my seatbelt for a few days (Yes, I've gotten THAT fat!), and I could buckle it up today. So I shall keep up the Slim-Fast routine as long as necessary.
While she was dancing, I made numerous phone calls to doctors and insurance and what-not to straighten out the latest surgery mess. There is yet another annoying delay with getting the proper referral in the system, and if they don't get it soon, they're going to close me out and I'll have to start the process ALL OVER. I couldn't get an appointment until the end of the month and was freaking out! But I managed to coax them into squeezing me in for this Wednesday morning, thank God. Fingers crossed that this will be end of the nonsense and before long, I'll be under the knife having my organs rearranged.
After the phone mess, I spent the rest of the time reading the "January" chapter of Elizabeth Zimmermann's wonderful Knitter's Almanac, from which I just completed that February baby sweater. Oh, I have not shown you that, have I? It's all knitted up, but I have not yet sewn up the sleeves or added the buttons that Steph picked out. Perhaps tomorrow!
Back at home, I took the girls potty while we waited for Rob's imminent return from The Job. Jack broke the surfboard off his new VW Beetle that we gave him from NC and cried like I've never heard him cry before. Seriously, it was agonistic. But then we figured out that it was supposed to come on and off, and all was right with the world again. Whew.
When Rob drove up, we set off. First stop was to pick up these awesome stocking holders from a fellow Freecycler. Aren't they nice? Brand-spanking-new. They weigh about 5 lb each and will be for Rob's and mine next year. Now I just need to find 3-5 more (much smaller, simple) holders for the kids and pets, and we'll be all set. Sweet.
Then we went to the Redbox to get two free movies: Kitt Kettridge: An American Girl (ostensibly for the oldest child, but hopefully the other two will enjoy it as well), and Dark Knight. So far, we have watched neither. Have you seen them? What did you think?
We went into the grocery store together, as a family, so I could use four of those $5 in free groceries coupons. Unfortunately, the $@##$@%$ rules say you can only use one per order, which sucks my butt. So I put together five orders of just over $5 apiece, took two and gave two to Rob, and got in two separate lines. It was a bit of a hassle at the registers, but I don't care. I got my $20 in free food.
At home, after I scanned the groceries, Chloë and Sophie sat with me while I prepared our dinner. Rob doesn't like to have them in the kitchen when he cooks, but I prefer to have them near me and let them see what I'm doing. I'm certainly no wonderful cook, but the more they watch, the better off they'll be in the future, right? Especially if they help, too.
I bought the shrimp the other day, during our big shopping trip, and had the store steam them without seasoning at that time. They've been chilling ever since, so all we had to do was peel them and add the cocktail sauce for some nice shrimp cocktail! It was really good. The Littles didn't want any of it, so the rest of us dug in and enjoyed it. Recognize the dish? It's my, well, it's technically an ashtray, but I don't care, it'll never be used as such, from Pisa, Italy. Remember?
Then I cut up some cubes of Monterey Jack cheese and mixed up a nice Caesar salad. I spied and tried Briannas Asiago Caesar dressing at the grocery store, but I shouldn't have. It's okaaaay, but not anywhere near as good as my old standby, Cardini's. Now that's the stuff. My late friend Beth introduced me to it many years ago, and it's the best Caesar ever. Added in some Croutons, and voila! Salad. Oops, forgot the Parm cheese. Oh, well.
Lastly, I sliced up some fresh sunflower bread from the bakery. Someone was hungry and snagged that missing piece in the middle, and her name is me. Good stuff!
The Littles didn't get dessert, since they just ate bread and not much at that. But Chloë did, and she chose to have the Kozy Shack Cinnamon Raisin Rice Pudding that was on sale and for which I had a coupon. It was REALLY good. You must try it. She ate a bunch and filled her little belly.
Oh, I lied, Sophie did eat a bunch of Monterey Jack cheese during meal prep and declared it her FAVORITE, very histrionically. Of course, she's at that age where everything is her favorite. Please, Lord, don't let this child turn four in April. She's an amazing three!
Whew. I have been doing a ton and a half of scrapping in my new craft space. I'm loving it! I need new sources of inspiration, though. I wish all the points programs of which I'm a member offered subscriptions to craft magazines and not just the hoochie mags, 'cause I can't afford to buy a subscription on my own right now!
Oy.
But I'm enjoying myself. As I said, I finished the 2007 book, at long last, have breezed through January of this year, and am now working on February. It's so great to be able to come right to my lovely Kodak photo printer, choose which ones to scrap, edit them, crop them, pick my sizes, and print them right out seconds before actually doing the layout! I adore that. I'm quickly running out of the stash of photo paper I built up, though. Guess I'll have to make a run to the dreaded Best Buy soon.
Oh, but the point of my title, is that I am NOT clean when I scrap. There is a huge mess in the office right now. I'd show you a picture, but it's embarrassing. I have my garbage can on one side, my scrap papers thrown on the floor on the other, tools spread every which way, recycling papers thrown in an even further pile... I was supposed to stop scrapping today and clean up so Barbara could come, but I canceled her. Not so I could keep scrapping (though I will), but because I just can't pay her this week. I'll have to clean myself, boohoo! ;)
Yesterday, when we weren't waiting all day for updates from Rob's sister in Louisiana as Hurricane Gustav raged through, we decided to get in one last swim at the pool before it closed down for the year. Sad. Surprisingly, I'm not feeling the twinges of fear and doubt and anxiety about the summer ending and the cold weather coming that I have felt in recent years. I really think it's because I've been doing so well on my current med combo. Whatever the reason, I'm glad. It's a bad feeling. To the pool!
The girls were the first to brave the chilly water. It was warm out, but not exceedingly hot, and the water was cool.
Per his M.O., Jack pitched a fit about being carried into the water by Daddy. Oh, well. No good pictures of him swimming! He prefers to sit and kick from the edge. Next year, though, he's in for a rude awakening: I am instituting mandatory swimming lessons for all!
Ah, this is where he's happiest. If you come near him - or even start to turn in his direction - he jumps up and takes off running!
Sophie's not been much for the water lately, either, but she's more willing to be carried about the pool. She does like to get her kick on, though!
Rob gave Chloë a big hand with her swimming... then I put down the camera and joined in. We didn't stay very long, though! Only about an hour. It was shivery cold. Rob commented that it was the first time we left the pool because I was cold. First, though, the kids and I had a good splash in the baby pool.
It felt like a waste. Oh, well. There's always the beach, if we need to get our water fix.
Afterward, we headed to Michael's to use their and A.C. Moore's 50% off coupons. I got an eyelet setting tool and some eyelets! I've been having fun banging them out and finding new uses for them. Lots of fun, that. And I bought some more pretty papers and supplies that I needed.
It was in the check-out line that I noticed Sophia's rash had extended from her cheeks, which had been very ruddy for the previous two days or so, to her arms and legs and probably her torso. Hmm. I was just about to text Rob, who was elsewhere in the store, when he showed up beside me and commented on it himself. But we put it out of our heads and went to lunch next door at Panera.
They really need to pay me to eat there. Oh, wait, they do! ☻
So we sat down to eat, and I noticed Sophia spitting out a bite of food. Then another, and another. I started to get angry, but then it dawned on me. "Rob!" I said. "Check her throat! She can't swallow!" Sure enough, her little glands were swollen.
Somehow, my kid has found something to be allergic to, and I don't know what. We would guess the sunscreen, or the chlorine in the pool, only her cheeks were all red before that.
Rob jumped up and ran past Michael's, to the Kmart there. He brought back some baby Benadryl and a medicine dropper. The first dose, she just spit right back out at him, and all over herself, refusing to swallow. The second time, he did what we had to do to get them to swallow meds as babies: held her mouth shut and blew in her face. It worked. Medicine down.
And the rash and swelling went away. She didn't want to eat any more lunch there, but she sure chowed in the bananas when we arrived at home! So now I'm not sure what to do about this potentially life-threatening allergy. Do I take her to the doctor, even though there are no current symptoms, and let them do tests? Or wait until the next time, when the reaction could possibly be worse? or hope it was a one-time thing and be glad the Benadryl did its job?
Please, counsel a mother.
The rest of the day passed pretty quietly, as news came in that SIL and BIL were all right and didn't have too much in the way of terrible damage to their house and property. Thank God for that!
I finally made Rob's birthday cake, two days late! I couldn't make it on time because I didn't have enough eggs in the house... anyway, a couple pics:
That darn six would not stay lit, and I ended up just holding up the cake and a match for him to blow out. Only he didn't, and I burned my finger! Stupid is as stupid does.
This is a totally faked picture! The candles were already blown out, but I missed it because of the finger-burning episode. I took care of my finger and then made him re-stage the scene for my camera. Hee!
Oh, and Chloë found a small present I had meant to give her on her actual birthday, so I let her have it as well (too bad she couldn't find the darn caterpillars; they're still MIA!):
Not the Webkinz, just the sailor shirt for it. She got "Clarice" back at Christmastime. She took this picture, and it amuses me that she posed it in front of the litter box! Oh well, at least no cat poop is showing!
Today was relatively quiet. Back to school for the kids, although no sooner did Jack come home from kindy than I got a call from the subtitute nurse on duty, telling me Chloë had vomited up her lunch, had a slight fever, and needed to come home.
I shod the kids and myself, and we rushed right out. Of course, since she was the sub nurse and didn't know me, she asked to see my identification - and rightly so - but I had run out without grabbing my purse. She stared at me for a second, debating what to do, until I told her that everyone in the office knew me and could verify I was her mother. So she left for a few minutes, came back, and told me I was acceptable!
Back at home, it was a battle to get her to lie down and rest. She felt absolutely fine and probably could have handled staying at school the rest of the day. There was no evidence of sickness, no fever (I had felt her at school and she felt cool to me there, too; I should have asked for the method used to take her temperature), and certainly no bellyaching.
So I did what I always do when my kids seem to be okay: I took her word for it and let her play. She decided, later, that she was well enough to go to ballet class, which started today, and so we did. Of course, I forgot to take pictures of her, but for ballet, she still has to wear the same light blue leotard and pink tights that she's worn for the past four years. It kills me that she is starting her FIFTH year of dance lessons already!! How is she old enough for that?!
Tomorrow she'll start her first Jazz lessons, and Sophia will start Creative Movement, so there will be pictures then, for sure.
Anyway, I'd forgotten my purse, and Jack was hungry. I'd just roused him from his nap with enough time to run downstairs and get right in the car, so I didn't think about bringing along a snack for him and Sophia. We drove all the way home, got my purse, went back, and stopped for a couple chicken nuggets off the dollar menu. We're Dollar Menunaires right now! That staved off the hunger monsters in the backseat, and we arrived back at the dance studio just in time to pick up Curly Girl.
Nothing else newsworthy, so I guess I'll get back to my scrapbooking. Happy four-day wweek!
We woke up at 0800 today, because Chloë needed to be at the dance studio at 0915 for her ballet recital rehearsal. After I convinced Rob to drive her, and we got all the usual shenanigans out of the way about what to wear, they headed out, and I, well, I wasted time online. What else? There was email to check, blogs to read, Webkinz to play... etc. I can always find plenty of ways to waste time online.
I eventually ran out, though, and went back to crocheting that shirt thing I'm working on for myself. I only got another two rows done before I was ready to konk out again. I don't know what it is - yeah, I do, endless double crocheting - but I can't stay awake making it. I pushed through it and got back online so I wouldn't fall asleep and waste the day.
Then I went up to shower and fart around with Jack and Sophia while Rob was outside (finally!!! We were *those* neighbors) doing yardwork. The garden is still a mess, though. Shoot, I meant to take before/after pictures of our "yards," which I put in quotes because they are each, like, a square foot. I tried to get them to clean up their rooms, but it just wasn't happening today, so we played and fooled around and acted silly. Good stuff, makes them feel loved, and I got my warm fuzzies.
After Rob went back to pick up her-Chloness, I left to obtain my new glasses from For Eyes. Whoa! It's always amazing to go up a step in strength; everything looks so clear. Do you think we have enough pairs? That's not even all of them, but we didn't feel like going upstairs. We could open our own mall kiosk!
Afterward, I came home to get my family and my camera, and we headed back out. This time, to Red Wing Park for the Relay For Life event. Noo, no, I wasn't participating - not with my back! - but I had donated a raffle prize that I needed to bring out to Linda from Bunco, and Stephanie and Tim were there walking, too. Turns out their tables were right next to each other, out of a hundred or so!
Stephanie and Tim, sweltering after doing another lap in the 100+degree heat. Crazy freggin' hot!
Luckily, Stim had brought a cooler full of popsicles, and we quickly helped ourselves to five. Ahhhhh. That's relief.
Grayson, Steph's charge for the day, was desperate for some cooling down, too. Oh, man, we just wanted to skedaddle on out of there and go to the pool!
Poor Chris from Bunco, Linda's partner at the Relay, hurt her back! She looked much cuter than this IRL when not lying down!
Heeeeeere's Linda! She's good fun, very caring and full of laughs. She was disappointed we left so soon after we got there, but it really was too much for us. And I forgot to stop for cash for the raffles, anyway. Shucks!
After we left, we drove down to the Farmer's Market to visit with Uncle Chuck and score some of his fresh food of the sea. Actually, this was Rob's first time meeting UC, and he liked him right off the bat. I had him pick our selections this time, since I usually get to, and he chose crab cakes (good boy!), tuna, and frog legs?!! I actually have eaten them before, on a previous cruise, but (a) they are not seafood and (b) c'mon, I'd rather do a muscular dissection than consume them. Blech. So those are all Rob.
That's all I have for pictures today, but it's not the end.
When we got home, the Littles took a nap while Chloë and I worked on whipping her monologue into shape for her audition with some casting directors visiting her acting school from L.A. She studied and studied, and practiced numerous times for her dad and I, so all that was left was getting there and going through it!
We saw several people there from her January iPOP! trip, so I spent some time catching up with them while Chloë waited in line with the other auditioners. Auditionees? I don't know. Of course, since we are 16 days away from flying to Europe, I had to share about our upcoming Mediterranean cruise! Well, that got a lot of attention, and we sat down gabbing about all the places we're going to visit and promises to email all about it when we get home. I, of course, completely forgot that I have a blog for such purposes, duh! I'll just email her the link, I think. ;)
Anyway, eventually I went back to the line to keep my daughter company, and she was getting so much attention from the staff and other parents that she turned into her usual, most annoying hypercharged kitty cat self, and I had to take her aside to talk to her about behaving more grown-up in the audition room. I also had a plan for later, so I promised her if she did really well on her audition, we could pick out a new Webkinz. I'm such a sucker!
Well, I wasn't allowed in the audition, but she told me they said she did a good job, and she said she only had stage fright for a minute before she remembered her monologue and said the whole thing. They asked how old she was, and she answered, "six and a half," and they asked her favorite food, and she said, "fruit! apples!" and something else. I wonder how that will all play out. As always, we shall see...
I'd forgotten my purse, so we had to drive all the way home for it before going to Walgreens. I needed to fill a prescription there, and I wanted to check and see if they had the special Webkinz Cares animals that benefit their foundation for helping children. They did! But only one kind. She picked a certain (had to be that one) L'il Kinz Cocker Spaniel out of the lot, and then we grabbed what we needed, and my Rx, and headed home to adopt little miss Fluffy.
The Littles were up then, and we had our crab cakes, and some chips and dip, for dinner. Chloë developed a bad headache that had her in tears and nauseous (amazingly, our pukey girl didn't throw up), but Daddy gave her some elixir, and her mac & cheese seemed to help. She's passed out on our bed upstairs, though, not having made it all the way to her bed.
Well, I'm off like a prom dress. I'm going to try and work on that crochet some more while we watch August Rush. Have y'all seen it?
Friday did not go as I had planned at all. It started when Chloë and I were walking out the door to go to the bus stop. Usually, the door is locked, so I have to turn the switch to make it unlocked. Well, for some reason, it was unlocked, so as I was leaving, as usual, I turned the &*^*& switch and, yep, locked myself out of the house. Now, normally when Chlo lets the dog out in the morning, she forgets to lock the back door afterward. But nope, not yesterday morning! So I was completely SOL. And Jack and Sophia were locked inside the house, sleeping in their little beddie-byes.
Fortunately, this was the one day I happened to grab my cell phone on the way out the door.
I called Rob and told him the sitch. He's got a long drive to come home from work, but he was on his way to bail me out. I was glad to at least have that morning's paper still sitting in the driveway.
After a half-hour of reading that, I decided to call Rob and see if he was close to home. Oh, he was very close... but he had a flat tire. And no jack. Aughhhh! So he had to wait and wait and wait for motorist assistance to come and bail him out, before he could come bail me out.
But, aha! Barbara the cleaning lady has a key to my house! It was early, but I figured she was a normal person, unlike myself, and probably up at that hour. She was. She was in the middle of cleaning her house. If I could wait, oh, an hour, she could come after that? Argh. No, I'll wait for Rob, thanks anyway.
Shortly after that, I heard a commotion coming from inside the house. So I started ringing the bell and knocking on the door, and almost instantly, Sophia unlocked it and let me in. What was she doing up so early and out of her room? Jack had gotten her up. She still had the sleepy face. But I was in!
So finally Rob came home (I'd called him to let him know I'd gotten in), because he wanted to get the jack out of the shed and put in his, you know, actual vehicle where it was, you know, actually needed.
And then he said he needed my *^%^*& van to drive back to work, because his spare tire was not going to be making it all the way there and back. Fudge! I had plans, and lots of them! So in return for fouling up my day even more, I talked him into running to Panera first to get us some lunch, which he did. And it was yummeh.
But then he left, with my van, leaving Sophie and me stranded for the day instead of being able to do all the running we had planned. Sigh. We trudged upstairs, where I spent the better part of three hours hauling out all the kids' spring/summer clothes and putting away winter clothes, sorting through them to see what would still fit and what would need to be handed down/tossed/donated.
I'd forgotten that Chloë still wore a lot of 3Ts last summer! So literally half of her summer wardrobe went directly from her closet into her sister's; Sophie is wearing 3Ts and some 4Ts now! Good thing I just bought a bunch of clothes from Gymboree; it should be here next week. Jack will still mostly be able to wear his 2T clothes, of course; the boy just doesn't grow much, and short shorts don't matter as much as short pants. Sophie lost a lot of her wardrobe, too, so I put it in a bag to bring to consignment.
I wanted to dig in on the laundry some more - I must talk about laundry constantly, because literally, it never freaking stops around here! - but it was time for Jack's bus. I made my way down just as she was pulling up to the driveway. I peeked out the peekhole to see her looking pissed because she thought I wasn't home - after all, the van wasn't there. So I threw open the door with a big smile to catch her nodding to her aide and mouthing "yeah, she's here." Have I mentioned this bus driver and I hate each other?
We couldn't go to the Farmer's Market because, of course, no car. So we hung out in the living room, playing with toys, reading, knitting, and what-have-you, until Daddy finally came home from work, a little early, having gone to the Exchange for some shoes and a tie for the cruise, and to the Naval hospital for Jack's shot record so he can register for kindergarten. Holy run-on, batman. I don't care. It's my blog and I'll babble if I want to.
So the kids all needed naps, and they went right down when Daddy returned from work. We were going to watch movies and eat something while they slept, so Rob went to Moe's (Welcome to Moe's!) to pick up our usual order. Then Steph called to say she and Tim were around the corner and heading over. Cool. I decided to put on a bra, at the very least. I'd been sitting around in sweats with no underthangs.
They came right in while I was half-nekkid, putting on my brassiere, and I screeched at them to stay out! Hehe. There are always boob issues when Steph and I are around each other. There was another boob issue later, but she forbade me from posting about it!
They brought along their two puppies, one-year-old Wazowski and this new little cutie, Rosie May. She is the most beautiful puppy ever!!! (At least since Tiger Lily was a wee lass.) So soft and sweet and .... ahhh. I love puppies. Especially this one.
Rosie May falls asleep on Chloë's lap; she's in heaven
After a long while of shootin' the shit, we puppy-sat for them while they went out to get some dinner and leave us to ours. Chloë was awake by this point, so they took her along for dinner! This was a special treat for her, to go out with them, and she was very excited. The pups were good, although Miss Rosie had a couple of accidents during her visit. She's new, though, so she's excused. I sure don't miss the puppy stage with Lily, though. Man.
I showered and dressed fo' reals while they were gone, and by the time they returned, the Littles were awake, too. Steph wanted all 26 of our legs (7 people, 3 doggies) to get some exercise, so we took a walk around the smaller lake across the street from our house. I was really nervous about this, because of my back and the troubles walking I've had lately, but I do need to build up some stamina so I can enjoy our cruise to the fullest. We headed out.
Sophia sat right down at the beginning of our walk to watch the ducks!
Jack liked being up close to this guy and kept calling him a turkey, which made me laugh.
I got about halfway around the lake before I kept having to stop and sit to let my back stop it's painful spasming and seizing. It was annoying and embarrassing. I'm hoping the impact of this injury will diminish after the gastric bypass.
I'm awfully fond of this sight every spring, especially because I often think of my children as my little ducklings following along behind me, wherever I go. Duckies are the cutest babies!
Back home again, I let Stephanie cut my too-long bangs... and I won't be doing that again! LMAO! They look not so good. But they'll grow back; they always do.
Then I cut her hair, and there were many jokes made about the kinds of things girls do when they get together. We hung out some more before they headed home, and all of us were so glad to have such good 'couple' friends.
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Are you liking the music being back on the site? No? You'll have to thank or blame Daisy for that, depending on your opinion!
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I stayed up until 0400 on my monthly online charity crochet-a-thon thingy, chatting with crochet friends and trying to win a prize. I won nothing. I've won nothing all year. Suckage. Rob had long since fallen asleep upstairs, but I didn't have the energy to join him and crashed on the couch until 10 AM when Tiger Lily started banging on the back door to go out. I was just getting up when Rob and the kids came downstairs, on their way out to get new tires for my van. Yeah, both our cars were desperate for them. So I was all set to lie back down - hey! free time without the kids means sleep! - but then I remembered the crochet-a-thon. I was determined to win a prize.
I sat on that computer for the next three hours and still didn't win. Dammit. I kept playing Webkinz tournaments to pass the time, and I've won about 40 between last night and today during the chat. Rob just rolls his eyes and laughs at me. Hey, it's fun. And I had to pass the time while the chat was slow somehow!
At 1300, I jumped in the shower to get ready for my eye exam appointment. [I didn't really need an exam, but I needed new glasses (I burned mine!), and so I picked up a mystery shop to get free ones. Yeah, I know, I said I was done with that, but it keeps pulling me right back in. And hey, you can't beat a free exam and glasses. Plus I have pink-eye and needed a prescription.] The appointment was for 1440, but I had had enough of the computer. Still no sign of Rob and the kids. Another hour passed. Still no sign. Ten minutes before I had to be at the eye doctor, I called him, only to find out he was still at the flipping tire place! Five hours getting tires! With three small children! Ay ay ay.
The eye tech said I could be late, so we took off immediately when they finally came in, and I had my exam. The doctor was very nice, very thorough, very pleasant... I enjoyed him immensely. He's right up there with Dr. Michael Bidus in my little book of Medical Types To Love. He gave me a script for the strongest antibiotic eyedrops available, since the Rx drops I'm using from my last bout aren't helping and confirmed that my vision is still pretty crappish at 20/200.
He dilated my pupils, so I called Rob and the kids out of the van to come help me pick out frames while those drops were taking effect. We were at For Eyes (Rob's favorite name for an eyeglasses store), where they were having a sale: two complete pairs for $99! After much deliberation, we picked a regular pair and a pair for sunglasses. Blue ones. That's a switch. We'll see.
I headed back over and let the doc look in my eyeballs some more, and I whined a bunch about the brightness. He gave me the paper sunglasses to wear around looking snazzy, and we were off.
Well, I'd spent all that time looking at the Mi Hogar Mexican Restaurant right next door, and Rob is always, always, always down for some Mexican, so we headed there for lunch. The usual: Jack ate chips, the girls ate quesadillas, I ate a vegetarian combo... and Rob orders something different every time. He ordered something called the "big burrito" and they were not kidding. I have literally birthed a smaller baby than that thing! He ate half and called it a day.
On to the next fun thing: Motor World down by the beach! Rob and I had last been about three years ago and still had some valid ride tickets, so we brought those along and bought some ride bracelets for the kids.
Our first stop was the bumper boats. The Littles rode with Rob, and Chloë rode with me. Jack and Chlo were scared at first, but once they got in there, they had a lot of fun. I'm a big fan of bumper boats, but mine would hardly go! It was very frustrating. We basically just sat around in the water and waited for people to run into us. Chloë giggled every time she got a little wet.
Next, we headed to the kiddie race cars for the kids to have a go around the track. Did you watch the video? That was just the beginning of our amusement. We parents were doubled over laughing by the end of their ride, as the kids were just horrible at it! They crashed, went three feet, crashed, two feet, crashed... you get the idea. It was totally hilarious. I haven't laughed that hard in a long time.
Next up was some 'real' driving in the family cars. I don't know what these things are all called, so you'll have to bear with me. Cars is cars. Unfortunately, in the cars, two kids couldn't ride with one parent, so we had to take turns. First, Daddy and Jack rode together while the ladies patiently waited with their mama.
The girls waiting their turns for a drive
Next up, Chloë and Mommy. Yes, I know, an actual picture of me. I can't believe I really look like this. I mean, I know I do, but I just can't believe it has gotten to this point. Sigh... It's the "before," Melanie. It's the "before."
Sophia makes a new friend while she waits
Our car lover, transfixed by the action in front of him
I tried to get a decent picture of Sophie's ride, oh, how I tried, but her little head just didn't come over the edge of the car! So I'm just including this picture (a) to show she got her turn and (b) to show I managed some depth of field with this picture!
My pretty little baby in her pretty little dress
The girls wanted to go on the jumpy thing after that, while Rob took Jack on one of the other kiddy rides and to get a drink and funnel cake. Older kids were flipping over and over in their harnesses, but Chloë was too scared to try that. After a while, she was too scared at all and got down early.
Sophia loved her turn on the jumpy, and she was winging all over the place, her hair flying in the breeze. She was fun to watch, giggling away as she flew in the air. The ride operator got a kick out of her, too, and he was holding her down so she'd fly higher and higher. This one's going to be a daredevil.
Next up, because the kiddie rides were finally opening as the evening came upon us, the girls rode the dinosaurs that Jacky had just finished. He didn't want to go again. He was all about the cars by that point.
My beautiful girls taking a ride in the elephants
Jack and Chloë went back for another drive in the hilarious kiddie cars after that. Chloë was actually starting to get the hang of steering! Jack, not so much, but he didn't care a bit. He was in seventh heaven behind the wheel of that car, his pedal to the metal. When it's time to get his license, he will be a force to be reckoned with.
We found some more kiddie rides that had not been open earlier, so they each got in one of these dealies and "drove" around and around the track. We kept hollering out to them, teasingly, "They're getting you! Go faster! Faster!" Jack took it most to heart, and would hunch over the wheel and start steering madly, a determined look on his face. It was hysterical.
Next, the "kiddie" himalayan. Holy, crap, this thing was fast. Jack had decided against it from the get-go, and he was smart to do that. Sophia started freaking out when it began, and I was flailing and yelling like crazy to get the ride op's attention and stop the thing. Rob finally got through to him, and we pulled our baby off. She was so shaken, poor thing.
Chloë insisted on staying on the ride, but she really started freaking when it started going backward. This thing really went way too fast for kids who are only supposed to be 36" tall. After the ride, I asked her if it was scary. "Yes." Was it fun? "Yes." Which was it, more scary or more fun? "It was half-and-half!" But was it worth it? "Yes!" Good enough.
Lastly, we found the Family Speedway to use up our remaining tickets. Here's my sweet Sophia buckled next to me.
I held my camera over my head and managed to snap this one of Rob and Jack in the car behind us. What about Chloë? Again, we couldn't ride two kids with one parent, so one of the ride operators agreed to drive her around so we could all go at once! This was the funnest ride, the five of us chasing each other around the track. Chlo was speeding, while Rob and I were stuck in pokey little putters.
I had just a few dollars in my wallet, so I decided the kids could play one easy game before we left. Each of them could pick up a floating ducky and see what prize they could pick from the letter on the bottom. Easy peasy. I don't know why Chloë chose the Incredible Hulk, as she has no idea who he is!
A beach ball for the very sleepy-by-this-point Sophia
Jack, of course, chose this airplane. It's his new favorite toy.
It was definitely time to go after that. They'd been out all day and had no naps or rest of any kind.
Sophia was practically asleep before we left the parking lot. But we had one more stop before home: Chloë and Jack had both been clamoring for a hot dog at the park, but we had coupons each of them had received from their respective schools for a free kids' meal at Jason's Deli for various achievements.
After getting their hot dog meals there, we headed home. Normally our little piggy, Sophie had no interest in food, so Rob brought her right up to bed. She was out again before he shut the door. So sweet. I love that I still have a baby in the house. I gave the kids their meals, and they went to down, devouring dog, pickle, chips and chocolate milk. Not bad for free!
Oh, and in the mail, I got a package from MIL: BoxTops and soup labels for the kids' schools, a fun book for each of the kids, a Wind in the WIllows DVD, and - yay yay yay - my first pattern to try and sew! It's a dress I can make for both girls if I want. I can't wait to take Rob to the store to get my fabric and "notions"! Fun, fun!! Thanks, Mom!
Tomorrow will be another fun, busy day, but for now, I'm going to go see if I can talk Rob into watching a movie with me. I think it will be This Film is Not Yet Rated.
Welp, Christmas is over. It's good I told you that. Otherwise, you might not know.
My dad came in late last Sunday night - scared me half to death, even though I expected him any minute. We have café curtains in the bay window in the kitchen, where I was sitting doing my scrapbook. Next thing I know, 'tap, tap, tap' on the window, and I look up and see this big giant head. Ahhh! Thus it began.
The visit actually wasn't so bad this time. I had emailed him ahead of time that I didn't want any of that political, racist crap, and I wasn't going to wait on him hand and foot this time. Yay, me! Therapy's good for something. And he emailed me back without being all pissy and for the most part, he stuck with it.
So. Monday was Christmas Eve, and after we sat around (I watched Jade, who warmed to my dad instantly, and snuggled with him), we went to church for the singing and the candle-lighting that I so enjoy. Our attendance has been awful since we had Sophia - so, yeah, way too long ago to still be a good excuse - but the routine has just been all but shot since then. Oh, well. We try.
My dad, a steadfast Christian Scientist, seemed to really enjoy the service, although later he insulted my church as "harmless but useless." Shall I go there? Okay, at least I learn about what Jesus said there, intead of just what Mary Baker Eddy wrote. And after 65 years of going to the same church, he still hates every group who represents something he is not? I don't know if I'd call that harmless... so I guess we're even. BUDDOW!
But back to the Christmas spirit. ;)
We went home and had dinner - I'd stuck a frozen Smithfield marinated pork loin in a Pamper's Chef baker's stone before we left, turned on the oven, and bam! Savory smells greeted us when we arrived home. It was done! Of course, I didn't eat it, but the boys seemed to enjoy it, as did The Human Garbage Can a.k.a. Sophia.
Then we opened our stockings, our Christmas Eve tradition. But we forgot our other one: Rob reading 'Twas the Night Before Christmas to the kids! Just completely left it out. Whoops. The kids went crazy with their stockings, even though I had really nothing in there but different candies this year, having put all the stocking loot in the attic with the 'big' stuff. Even my dad had a stocking - albeit containing nothing but a lump of coal - but he seemed to enjoy that.
Bed for the kids, then hours and hours of wrapping presents, for me. I'm so freaking fat now, my feet go numb soon after I sit on the floor, so it was an arduous process. (I can't wait 'til January 31st!!) I bought one of those new zippy paper cutter things from Scotch, and it was a bust. I prefer my nice sharp scissors, TYVM. Maybe when I get thinner and regain some agility, but for a big blog with short limbs who's stuck mainly in one spot, it didn't really do the trick.
Tuesday, the big day! After getting to bed around 2:30 AM, the kids woke us up at 8-something. Aghhhh. I made some cinnamon buns for breakfast (love that pop-open can stuff when you're too tired to think!), and then we headed in for the big mêlée. It was overwhelming. To me. And my dad kept saying the same thing. He was pretty much in a state of overwhelm during the entire visit, with the kids constantly crawling all over him, calling his name, wanting to show him something, tell him something or do something with him, and Christmas was even more so. He's a complete neat freak. I am, to an extent - but nothing like my father. No one is. I promise. He just kept looking at the toys (which are still there, by the way. Haven't moved. Well, to be played with, yes, but put away? Nope. Where?!) and paper and shaking his head, whimpering. I rather enjoyed his distress until he started bitching about it and yelling at the kids to clean up. 'Scuse me? Because I think it's my house, and those are my kids, and that is my job. And it's Christmas, for crying out loud. Let them play with their new crap awhile! He caught me glaring at him over that.
The house shrinks a little bit every time someone comes to visit, y'know what I mean?
So Wednesday, Jade came back, and I felt like absolute crap. I had her in the bouncy seat for much of the day, so she wouldn't hurt herself with all the little toys spread everywhere, and I sat down on the couch for a breather. Rob and my dad were right there... next thing, I woke up to find Jade missing from her seat. Dad had picked her up and was napping with her on the couch. It warmed my heart. And not just a small bit because she's the brown baby. Who knew he liked little kids so much?? Between that Jade-snugging and the amount of time he spends playing with my kids, he really surprises me as a grandpa. He's definitely the fun one. He gets down. He gets into it. He only stops when he's really, genuinely tired. The man has some positive attributes, after all. (heh)
Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, I was supposed to have Jade, and all three days her mother called to say that her mother was going to keep her. Um, okay. (A) I really enjoyed the time I didn't have her, and (B) if I'm going to do this job, I'm going to want consistency and a constant paycheck. So that was the straw the broke the camel's back for me. I called her tonight and told her that it was no rush and I'd keep Jade until then, but she needed to find alternate childcare. It's a relief. I like Jade - love her, even - but organizing our schedule around hers has been a huge PITA.
So that's that. We did a ton of laundry, Chloë and I. I swear, I cannot climb that mountain. Who's the dude who kept having to push that rock up the hill? That's me, with the laundry. It used to be something I just did on Sundays. Now it's All. The. Time. UGH!! But Chloë negotiated a $2 pay with me for helping with the laundry, and that meant she had enough money to buy another Webkinz when I paid her that and her allowance today. Cha-ching! She got the bullfrog and named her Lilly; that makes 12 for us. Do you know they don't give you a new room for your 10th and up - and you also can't use the pet's name when you buy a room for it and rename it? That's so annoying!!! In other Webkinz newz, I gave her 9 charms and a bracelet for Christmas so we now have access - full, at that - to the Charm Forest! Fun stuff. (LOL!)
I took her to iPOP class today. She is so ready!! I will be aghast if she blows it in Los Angeles. Just beside myself. She is doing so well, I would be shocked. Sean was really proud of her, and his wife came in and listened to her monologue today, too. She loved it and gave her muchos kudos. Then she did her scene and her monologue again, for the ladies out front, and she did great. Good, good, good. We leave in four days!!! And last night, she was in the middle of saying grace when she switched gears and started saying the lines from her monologue. During grace!! It was pretty funny...
While we were at the mall today (for a lunch shop at Charley's Steakery or whatever), I looked in at both Gymboree and TCP for some cute clothes for her auditions - no dresses, or everyone will see her unnerpannies - and I was just so overwhelmed with the choices that we left. 'Sides, she's got lots of cute stuff. So we went to that boutique I love, the one that's going out of business, to see if there was anything, but they are practically empty. Bummer! I wanted to find a cute dress for Sophie too, but nothing. They have bitty baby girl clothes, and the only bitty baby girl I know is Lisa's Emilie, but she has no reason for a fancy party dress. Even a gorgeous little tangerine one. So I bought a bunch of hair doodles, a tiara, and a necklace-and-earring set, so we have lots of options for iPOP.
And that's my story, folks. Now to do those reports (oh yeah, we went to Bennigan's tonight for dinner. They sucked!!! as expected.)
(Warning: this is super long!) Well, it's been a whirlwind few days around here. Friday, I had Jade all day. I got a phone call that day to do a car wash mystery shop, so the little girls and I went to do that. Sophia freaked out a little inside the automated part. Guess she hasn't been to one in a while. After Jadey went home, we went to Red Robin for dinner, for another shop. That's about it.
Saturday was kinda crazy. Jade was supposed to be with us all day, but thankfully, her mom called and said she wasn't. Good thing. We got up early and went to Chloë's school for the big Breakfast with Santa event - our first Advent activity. The kids each had a ticket to see Santa, which got them a Polaroid picture, a candy cane, and a little present. Chloë told me she asked Santa for a guitar for Christmas. Keep dreaming, child! Then the five of us had a ticket for breakfast, which was basically a muffin, bagel or donut, and juice or milk. It was fun, though.
Sophia and Jack each got a stuffed ball, and Chloë got a snowman. After breakfast, the kids ran around the cafeteria, played with their new toys, and greeted friends. We're getting to know so many people now, thanks partly to our PTA involvement and partly to everyone knowing who Chloë is at that school! She has a way of making herself known.
On the way home, we stopped at a church that was putting on a live nativity display. The players were all kids with no supervision, and I wasn't terribly impressed with their behavior, but it gave us another opportunity to talk about Christmas, the birth of Jesus, and, well, the reason for the season!
The kids crowded around to pet the sheep and goat, and then we headed home for Jack to get a much-needed nap. I think Sophie did, too. Anyway.
Next, we went to Chloë's acting school for her final day of her TV Commercial Acting class. The kids demonstrated their warm-ups for us, and then they each did their commercials and took some direction to show their 'versatility.' I wouldn't say Chloë is any more or any less talented than any other six-year-old, based on that - so I guess she'll really have to work those curly curls and general adorableness! ;)
We drove to Moe's (Welcome to Moe's!) after that, in Norfolk, for a lunch mystery shop. Well, lunner. Dunch. Something like that. Now, we've never really had any reason to drive straight from downtown Chesapeake to downtown Norfolk, so I got us a little bit lost - twice - before finally getting on the right path. I don't like getting lost. I'm not the kind of person who just gets in the car to drive, without a plan. I don't enjoy it. (Nevermind the wastefulness and pollution, which are also on my mind...) So I was glad to figure things out for myself and get where we needed to go.
The shop wasn't that great, but as always, the food was. Seriously, you should go. Between Panera and Moe's, I don't know which "casual restaurant" we've learned about from mystery shopping I like more. See, that's how they get ya. You think you're getting paid to do these jobs, but really, they want to get you in the door to see how good their stuff is. Remember last year, I wanted to buy the $8G piano? And that diamond ring? And the massage chair? Yeah. But I digress.
So then we went home for Jack to take another nap (growth spurt, maybe?? His pants are fitting a little short lately), and for me and Sophie to take one, too. I crashed. Rob took Chloë to her iPOP! preparation class. We just have a month left before the trip to Los Angeles! I've been thinking so much about the Europe trip that this one has completely slipped from my consciousness. We've really got to start getting ready. I need to find a *gag* dress for the big gala thingy. Oy. Anyway, so they went to class while the rest of us slept, and I really have no recollection of what we did for dinner. I do know that Rob and I watched Georgia Rule(we both gave it a 5 out of 5), and then he fell asleep while I watched Perfect Stranger with Halle Berry & Bruce Willis (eh. I give it a 3) and did a whole bunch of knitting on that lacy baby sweater. Then I set up the new Christmas tree. I haven't even fixed the branches on it, so it's not decorated or anything. It's just there. For the cat to climb in. Which excites all the kids to no end. I kinda like it, too. Especially when she falls. That's funny.
Sunday. I was so tired from staying up knitting and watching mervies that I didn't get up and do the Dunkin Donuts shop I was supposed to do. Well, I can do it up until Wednesday, but I really didn't want to have to wake up the Tots to go with me. I woke up just long enough to, I don't know, check my email and drink some juice, before I fell asleep again. On the fainting couch in the office, which was supposed to be mine where I could crash out anytime I desired, but which I almost never actually use except for dumping mail and stuff.
But then I got up, showered, and got my scrapbooking stuff out for my big scrapping date with Stephanie (the babysitter). (I guess I probably don't need to say that anymore, since Stephanie who lives in Canada and I don't get to hang out very often. Ever.) (Speaking of which, are you still going to meet us in L.A., Steph?? :D) I set up my new Cricut, and my seven new Cricut cartridges, and I admired them and admired them until the shine wore off. Stephanie came, the kids sang a song to her for their second Advent avent, and we gabbed and exchanged ideas and worked very slowly on our actual projects and didn't get a whole lot done! It was fun, though. Being crafty is fun. Being crafty with a friend is even more.
And Rob called his dad for his birthday. Happy birthday, Al!
So after she left, I pretty much scrapped the night away - stopping only to do a quick shop at the Sonic around the corner with Rob and the kids - and got a bunch of pages done. I love my new toy! I definitely recommend it. The only thing is, I've put so much wear on it by now, I already need to replace the blade and cutting mat. Kind of a pain. At least it came with a couple replacements of each.
I took a break to type up Chloë's résumé, since we finally got her head shots back on Saturday, get our Christmas cards out since Rob picked up the Sears pictures while we scrapped, and make Chlo's "team" t-shirt. Oh, and I went grocery shopping, too. I only saved $22 in coupons this time, which is the lowest in a long time. But, I also spent less than usual too, so I guess it's all good.
Today, well, I forgot to bring my cell phone up to bed last night, which is my main alarm clock (in the form of both the program on the phone and Rob calling to wake me up!), so I way overslept. Way. I slept all the way until I had to get Jack up for school. Oops-a-daisy, that's not good. So I got all three kids ready (deja vu; we just did this last week), got Jack off to school, and then Soap and I drove Chloë in. But not before we opened our third Advent activity: ride the rides at the mall! The kids were looking forward to doing that all day long and never let me forget about it.
I had Baby Jade all day again today, after the kids went off to school, and it was good to see her again. She's definitely used to us by now and just jumped right in. The little girls sat in the kitchen with me while I scrapped until Jack returned from school. I have a ton of pages from the family reunion trip in June, and I'm not even halfway done. Oy. I shoulda done another book just for that!
Jack came home, and I put him and Sophie down in their rooms for naps, and Jade zonked out in our bed while I took a shower. She was so sound asleep, so it was not a minor annoyance when Chloë burst in the door and woke her up. And she didn't go back to sleep at all. Argh!
So I brought her down and went back to my scrapping. Rob came home, and we got ready to go to the mall. He had an eye exam - for, yes, a mystery shop - and I had to go along to "observe". Four kids. It was fun. Not so much, so while he was in with the doc, the kids and I wandered across the hall to The Children's Place, where I did a bunch of damage. Chloë needed a scarf, hat and gloves, and I don't feel like knitting them right now, so I got her a cute stripey pink and purple set. And Sophia wouldn't take off the matching mittens, so I got her some of those, and a proper winter coat since she's been wearing Chloë's Mickey zippy hoody from Epcot last year. Well, today she wore her raincoat because that's what Chlo fetched for her, but I could hardly button her belly up into it! And it's practically new. Oh, well. At least one kid is growing. I gave the raincoat (also from TCP) to Jadey's mom for her, when she picked her up. And I got the girls another matchy-matchy outfit, plus a second one for Sophie, on clearance. Cute stuff. Nothing for Jack. He needs clothes, but 3Ts are way too big, and I hate to buy him more 2Ts when he's almost five. It's just the principle of the thing.
Anyway, Rob called and said he was done with his exam, so we rushed back and sat there so I could watch what was what.
Afterward, we were on our way toward the promised Advent rides, when my back just totally seized up. That's not uncommon; I've had problems with it since the nerve damage I got from Sophia's delivery. But, we happened to be right in front of those massage chairs, you know the ones? I looked at Rob, and he told me to go for it. A buck for three minutes! I had two dollahs, so I gave one to Rob, and we sat down and got our backs rubbed. Thing was hard! It hurt! But oh, did it help. I definitely got my dollar's worth out of that. My back actually felt good afterward. He asked me if I wanted him to buy me that massage chair (not the mall one, the one from the Relax the Back mystery shop I did months ago), and heck yeah, I do! But not for three grand. Not right now.
We went and did the mall rides. Sophie picked the school bus. Jack picked the jeep, and Chloë picked the rocket. She looked up and shouted, "Webkinz!!" so I dropped all the quarters I had into Rob's hand and darted into the store. I spent another small fortune on three Webkinz (did you know they had a German Shepherd one? I didn't! Had to get that one), a Webkinz mousepad that Chloë asked for, two Webkinz pet carriers that I know she would love, and a few other Christmasy knick-knacks. I should've stayed out of there.
And that's about it. We rushed home to have a very late dinner and get Jade's belly fed before her mom came to get her, and to get Chloë's homework done and the kids off to bed. Now I'm going back to scrap before I pack it in until at least next weekend.
I make a good pie. Pumpkin (when I remember to add all the ingredients), apple, Dutch apple cream, whatever, it's good. Love the apple cream the best. I'm sitting here at 2:30 in the morning eating a piece. Relishing it. Savoring. And realizing I forgot to tell my SIL that when she makes it, it's much better chilled than warm.
Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving Day and meal with their loved ones! We enjoyed our day.
Rob didn't rouse me from my warm beddy-bye until the crack of noon, but I didn't slack after that, I promise. He made the turkey, I made the mashed potatoes. He made the gravy, I made the stuffing. He made the green bean casserole, I made the corn. He made cranberry sauce, I made the apple pies. (I'll make pumpkin this weekend. We ran out of oven time.) And I heated the rolls. I contributed. I swear.
Not that I didn't take some time out for some Webkinz. Yep, I haven't mentioned them lately, but Chloë and I are still infatuated with them. We have six now, y'know. Emily the white terrier; Horsey the, well, guess; Popocateptl is my chihuahua; Penelope Pickles the frog; Ella Keely the white cat; and Kaley Dora the Li'l Kinz poodle. I only named Popo and Penny Pickles. The rest are Chloë's creations. Plus each of the kids are going to get one for Christmas, and I'm giving Chlo the reindeer one on Christmas Eve. So we'll soon have ten. Maybe eleven if she buys another one with her allowance. And we'll get special access to stuff in the W shop that only people with 10 or more 'Kinz can get. And I'm giving her a Webkinz charm bracelet, and a bunch of charms for it, for her stocking, so we can unlock the Magical Charm Forest. And yes, I really really am rambling on about this so much because I love them just that much. I could go on and on. Ask Rob - I definitely could. But you're zoning out and drooling. Except for those of you who have also been drawn in by the allure of amassing KinzCash...
Phew. Got on a bit of a kick there. What the hell was I talking about? Oh yeah. Thanksgiving. Gratitude. Right.
So we sat down to dinner, just the five of us, and said what we were thankful for. Chloë said school. Rob said his kids. Jack said cars (no-brainer there). I said my family and my trip to Europe (bouncing up and down in my seat)! Soapy said food. Her squishy little heiny shows how appreciative she is of that!
Halfway through dinner, drunk on two sips of champagne, overheated from the overworked oven, and full from loading up on appetizer water crackers and goat cheese, I got up to go sit in the living room for a spell and cool off. Next thing I know, it's 45 minutes later and the phone is waking me up. Whoops! And Rob had cleared my food, thinking I didn't want any more. I could have cried. My food! All gone! Thankfully (there's that word again), there's enough for sixty-seven more such meals. I hope he at least fed the turkey to the dog instead of the disposal.
Then Stephanie-babysitter and her husband, Tim, came over with their dogs Blondie and Wazowski. I have no idea if I'm spelling that right, Steph, but I don't feel like googling Monsters, Inc! We sat around for a while, fed them some pie (they liked my pie!) and let the critters get to know each other. Then we went off to the Holiday Lights on the Beach down at the Oceanfront. It was another spectacular display of Christmas lights showing both beachy themes and holiday ones. I was amused that there were 13 different Santa ones, and a manger display, and then, oh yeah, let's stick in a menorah over here in the corner for the Jewish contingent. But it was nice, we all had fun, and I again had the immense pleasure of seeing my van full to capacity. Wazowski even joined us, and he was a good boy. Rob wasn't. He slept through the entire thing.
So that's about it. The kids went to bed and Rob and I watched Running With Scissors. Oh, and since I had put the girls in matching holiday dresses I bought on clearance at Gymboree, I took them outside for a photo shoot. Here are a few cute ones (remember to click on the picture to see the full frame):
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