The lollipop

This morning Sara found a lollipop in an old purse of mine. (Yes, I carry them around for needed encouragement (read: bribery)). I told her that she could have it this afternoon on the walk to pick up Iain. She carried it around, not opening it, but also not letting it go. She refused lunch which I thought was strange and melted down when I mentioned nap. I was a bit confused until she said 'no nap get Iain'. That made it clear, she wanted to go get Iain and have the lollipop, not lunch or bed! I explained to her that we would pick Iain up after naptime but that was definitely not what she wanted to hear. She sat in her bed for over an hour repeating 'no nap get Iain'. It's amazing to me that she not only remembered that the lollipop was coming when we got Iain but also that she chose to forgo food and sleep while waiting for the candy.

When I went to get her from the scream fest, her first words to me were, 'Sara out too'. This is what I saw...

I knew exactly what she meant when I looked around her room. Everything was thrown out of her bed...blankets, clothes, socks, Mi-Mi, Elmo...the whole shabang! She wanted out of her bed just like all of her things were! This silly little girl has such a strong little spirit. She knows what she wants and knows how to go about getting it. (Don't worry she doesn't always get what she wants!!)

1:30pm - three hours after the original lollipop conversation.

Look at her right hand. Still holding the wrapped lollipop!

Monkey George

Sara has a new best friend and it's a monkey! Every night after bath her Daddy takes her to the computer to watch the music video to Upside Down by Jack Johnson. (It's one of the songs from the Curious George movie.) She sits on his lap and sings along with Jack and George. Her face just lights up when the monkey pops up on the screen. She says things like 'oh my there he is' and 'look Daddy, the monkey' with true excitement in her voice. I think it's true primate love! It has evolved into her asking for Monkey George before she is even out of the bath. Tonight as I was putting her jammies on, I told her it was about time to brush her teeth. She gently reminded me that Monkey George was before teeth brushing. Alright, it wasn't so gentle but it was a reminder!

To us the cutest part of the whole thing is how she says Monkey George. It's sounds like she has a french accent...

(This is my first attempt at video on the blog. Just click the play arrow to hear her cute little voice.)

Almost sprung

This mornings blue sky and warmer temps gave me a glimpse into spring. I know I have a few more weeks but I'm just itchin' for warmer weather, bbq-ing with the neighbors, baseball games after dinner...longer days. The rain drops and black clouds that came this afternoon brought me back to reality. Alright, alright a few more weeks. Looks like I'm not the only one a bit ahead of the game!

Bag Lady

Today was a nice, much needed day of catch up. We were in dire need of a house cleaning and a grocery store run. The kids lunches were getting pretty pathetic this week, as was dinner! While at the store, I finally picked up the rest of the bags I've been wanting. I love the re-usable grocery bags but have been lagging on getting them for one reason or another. I have a couple from Target but also wanted to get these insulated ones from Trader Joes. It's amazing how much they can hold too! I had a full cart and they were able to get it all in 4 bags. Speaking of my love for Trader's, has anyone tried these cookies? They are basically the store equivalant of Oreos. They are yummy and the guilt is much less since they are all natural (even though I'm well aware that doesn't mean they are any better for me)!

The kids new game of choice these days is Hide-n-Seek. Sara's a really good hider!!!

As Iain T. would say, just chitty chat

Tonight Iain T. had baseball practice. Since Iain had Open House at work, the kids and I all went to baseball. Normally this isn't a big deal but it was cold beyond cold. Then the rain came. The coach and boys kept playing. The moms finally stepped in about 10 minutes into the rain and called the practice. Moms have good sense!!!

Iain finished his big report/project today. He's been working on it for about 2 weeks. Tomorrow in class he'll take the written report and read it to the class then show off his project. The report is 7 pages, each page had a different requirement of what to write about a famous African American. Not a real shocker that he chose Emmitt Smith. He's worked very hard on it and we're quite proud! Way to go Iain!
A few other crazy pictures of the crew...

Amish Country Here We Come

Yesterday was a day when I was convinced someone was trying to tell me something. If I looked around I'm sure I would've seen a large, blinking neon sign above my head, "Time to join the Amish"!

One by one, my electronic devices all went ka-put! It started at about 6:45am with the computer not coming on. (Yes, that is the same computer that I just got back after several days at the Dr.) It continued with my cell phone breaking at 7:30am and the cable box shutting itself off and refusing to go back on. It topped off at 8:05am when the car wouldn't start! Amazing isn't it? Maybe a life of long dresses, big bonnets and outside port-a-potties (ick!) are for us! Did you know that "the Nebraska Amish do not use suspenders and are not permitted to have screens on their doors and windows."? I think I'll stear away from the Nebraskan communities, I like screens. I'd have to think the bugs are bothersome in the summer months...

Back to my story, after a quick dash to the neighbors to get Iain off to school and a call to the very nice, yet big and burly tow truck driver we were at least partially back in business. The computer is back up and running today, the cable box seems to be feeling a bit better and I'm working on replacing the cell phone. All in a days work I guess!

If you try to call us tomorrow and the message says we're out buying a horse-drawn buggy, don't be surprised. It may be our new calling!

What do you think of my little Amish girl?

How about our little buggy ride? Nothing like Photoshop!

Dunder Cheeks

Silly saying, antics and pictures from the kiddos.

This was heard from Seany last weekend in the mountains. Let me set up the mood for you. It was in the late afternoon, the kids were all laying around downstairs watching the fire (there was a foosball table upstairs). Sean stands up, looks around, speaks slowly and in almost soliloquy form says

"I was warming my booty. I took a look around. Something caught my eye. Foosball anyone?"

He has the best delivery! We were all in complete hysterics!

On the way home the next day we heard the song Dirty Deeds by AC/DC on the radio. The chorus is Dirty deeds and they're done dirt cheap. The boys started singing along. They were singing "Dirty deeds and the Dunder Cheeks". We're not quite sure what Dunder Cheeks are! A week later they are still walking around the house singing about Dunder Cheeks.

Sara's newest cute word is Octopus which she pronounces O-poo-poos.

For Valentine's Day I picked up cupcakes for the kids. I thought about making them but I really didn't want 2 dozen. We all know who eats the other 21 cupcakes...at night...after the kids go to bed...all by herself! Yes, three would be just fine. They were of course chocolate cupcakes, with chocolate fudge frosting and shaved chocolate on top! Did you think it would be any different coming from me? They were a bit messy but not sure how Sara ended up with chocolate on the bottom of her feet! She didn't even get out of her chair!
The kids love this game. Each time the butterflies fly out, they giggle hysterically trying to catch the flying bugs. Sara has figured out that if you put the butterflies in but don't put the top back on, they fly out even faster. Why wait when you can have instant gratification?

Bedhead anyone? I'm still baffled how such fine hair can knot up like this in a few hours. I'm learning about detangler!!

Operation Mi-Mi update

I just realized I left you all hanging with our Mi-Mi saga. I'm well aware you're not putting your lives on hold to read about my daughter's oral fixation but none the less an update is needed. We left off that Mi-Mi had a gaping hole and Sara wasn't very pleased about it. The silly little girl just adjusted to the hole. She would even open it with her fingers and make it talk, but still used it for sleeping! The she'll lose interest soon line of thought didn't know our Sara. She was not losing interest at all! With our trip to the mountains planned I didn't want to take the next step so we waited. Once we were back and settled in, I definitely took the next step. Mi-Mi got a hair cut! Snip snip! Here is the chunk I cut off! Like how it's posed next to Mr. M&M Man??

That night when I handed it to her she let out "Oh' no Mommy! Mi-Mi broken!" in a completely outraged tone! Now when she sucks on it, there is a continual squeak. She doesn't like the squeak at all but it hasn't detered her use. So here we are a few days after the hair cut and she still uses the darn pacifier! It cracks me up that it has a huge cavernous hole on the top and is about half it's original size yet she uses it with just as much gusto as before! Strong willed? Knows what she wants? Yep!! I wonder where she gets that?

Mommy's Little Helper

Sara loves to clean. She is always asking to help or even just goes and gets her broom and starts sweeping. She will sweep the crumbs into a "pile", then get the dustpan and attempt to get something into it. The vacuum on the other hand is a different story. SHE DOES NOT LIKE THE VACUUM! She will drop what she is doing and run to the couch or chair and the first rumble of the vacuum. Last night was more of the same but it had a little Sara flare to it. Here she is ready to go with her Sara sized broom (and runny nose). Like the fancy footwear? Don't we all clean with one Spiderman slipper and one camoflaged rainboot?

Yet another great Sara cleaning moment. Not only is she holding three brooms, but see the gray object between her legs? That is Iain T.'s baseball cup. (not the kind of cup you drink out of!!) How she knew to hold it like that is beyond me!!

When I turned on the vacuum, she flew up into the chair and into Sean's lap. He's saying 'ahhhh, it's okay' over and over. I love the way he put his arms around her for comfort.

Day o' Lovin

Happy Valentines Day

from our

Three Kid Circus!!

Tons of pictures from the snow

I started looking at the pictures from this past weekend and they are so cute I want to post some now. I'll leave the words at...fun, fun and more fun!

First thing out of the car, picking the icicles

Let's go guys!

Ready to sled

Scrumptious

Faster, faster

Cuties

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeee

Daredevil...snowboarding on a sledSara sized snowman

Time to rest

Back up and running

We finally have our computer back and working again. It's amazing how much I missed checking in with everyone and blogging. I have a lot of catching up to do but it'll have to wait. I'm still a bit sleep deprived from our weekend in the mountains. (Yes, I know it's Wednesday and the weekend is well past.) I will post about our trip soon but I'll leave you with a few pictures in the meantime.

A well deserved Super Bowl

(Still no spell check and can't post pics!)

Iain T. is a huge football fan. For the last several months, Sundays would revolve around the games on tv. Who was playing, when and on what channel. If it was on a channel we didn't have, he would literally make arrangements to go to a neighbor's house. Yes, I'm aware he is only 7 years old. We have fabulous neighbors!! His favorite Cowboys did not make it to the big game this year but he was still excited. A day of football, parties, junk food, what more could ya ask for? Well, what he didn't ask for was the Chicken Pox and the inability to attend any parties. We knew when he came down with the Chicken Pox, that he wasn't going to the parties. We broke it to him as gently as possible but there were still plenty of tears. As he put it "there are 365 days in the year, and this is the best one".

To try and make up for the parties he was missing, we had our own little shin-dig at home. We made the snacks that he felt he'd be missing and we camped out in front of the game all afternoon. Prior to our sugar-carb fest we had joined in two different football pools. Just threw in a little money to liven it up a bit. We always enter the pools with the kids names, not ours. At half time we got a call from Nanny saying that Iain T. won $10. He was thrilled! Then after the 3rd quarter we got another call, he won another $10! What luck!! It was well deserved! He's been quite a trooper with all he has missed these past few days! Funny enough, we received a third call after the game that Sara won $20 for the 4th quarter!


**Side note - Before the game Sean bet his Daddy 25 cents that the Giants would win. When the game was over, he proudly took possession of his quarter and then stated "now look, we all won"! I thought it was so sweet! It didn't matter that his two siblings each won $20, he was just happy they all won! I love that little boy!**

Visitors among us

New visitors have been hanging around our house the past few days. We first noticed them on Wednesday afternoon but dismissed their presence. Thursday morning they were undeniable. A quick consultation with a professional and it was confirmed...Iain has the Chicken Pox!

Yep, that is correct! I'm now understanding I was a bit naive in thinking that the vaccine would protect him from getting the actual virus. Turns out that the original vaccines are wearing off far sooner than the 10 years they had anticipated. Not sure who they are anyway. The dr. said they are seeing cases of Chicken Pox these days. Mostly in kids around Iain's age. At our Dr. office kids have well checks every year through age 6, then go even years after that. So when Iain was 6 they were still under the impression that the vaccine was working. Sometime between then and now, they started figuring out that the vaccines were wearing off and the kids needed booster shots. Since he wasn't scheduled for another checkup until he turns 8, he didn't receive the booster. Are you follwoing me so far? Let me add that I'm not angry or ready to boycott modern medicine. I'm just confused/intrigued in the whole process. Alright, maybe I'm a little bitter.

Now on to Iain. He started out on Wednesday afternoon with what I thought were a few red spots of unknown origin. By Wednesday evening I was growing suspicious as they were poping up in the normal places for Chicken Pox (under arms, groin, scalp and chest) and he was up to 19 total. Thursday morning he was at 34 and I knew what we were dealing with. A quick trip to the Dr and our diagnosis was confirmed. Luckily he hasn't had a fever and is feeling great! The problem is that he feels so fine that he's going stir crazy! We were told to plan on keeping him out of school for 7-10 days! Yikes! His case is so mild that I'm sure he'll be back to school sooner than that though. He only has 5 bumps that are actually raised, the others are red flat spots. He's not itchy at all either! We were told that his saliva can carry the virus for up to 7 days even if his skin isn't contagious so we will keep him out until Wednesday just to make sure we're not passing it to anyone else.

We have a big trip planned to the mountains next weekend and I would be sad to cancel but I wouldn't mind if Sean and Sara caught it now also. It would be nice to get it out of the way all at once and also know the kids had the natural immunity vs. a vaccine that wears off (see the bitterness peeking through?). Only time will tell if they are going to get it this time around. For now we're hanging out with oatmeal baths, Calamine lotion and enjoying lots of snuggly time with our big boy!

(Our computer is on the fritz and it's not allowing me to spell check or add photos to these posts. Please excuse my terrible spelling! I have a picture of Iain's cute dotted tummy that I'll add when I can!)