Happy Halloween!

This post at the jolly porter reminded me out all those times in Blythe when we would see bats flying at dusk (was it Christie that was afraid of them?). Remember when that one decided to nap on our screen door?

Just a moment

I was standing to the side with Gabe and Oliver, out of the way of the other customers. There was a rush-hour crowd at Walmart (oh, the horror!), and Chad and Colin were standing in line with our pumpkins. My shoulders hurt, the kids were hyper and whining, and I was wondering if this Halloween excursion had been a good idea.

As I glanced over at Chad and Colin in line, this thought popped into my head - "What would 16 year old Katie have thought of this little scene?"

And I looked down at my other two boys, and I teared up, because if I could have taken a video of this moment and sent it back to Katie in 1997, telling her that this would be her future, she would cherish every moment of that footage. I know exactly what she would think!

"My life is going to be exactly what I want it to be! Truly a dream come true! "

"(And Chad is still HOT!)"

If you haven't gone to Ashley's blog lately....

you really need to! Click here!

This one is for the Grandparents

Do you remember when Colin was a baby and he always had energy shooting through every limb? Oliver is the same way. Watch him try to talk.

Disappointment

When I was in first grade, our class planned a huge Thanksgiving meal. A feast for a six year old, with moms providing pie, stuffing, cranberry sauce, and our teacher bringing in the turkey. I can still remember making the butter in class - shaking it in a jar or some such method.

What excitement! What a break from the normal reading lessons and sack lunches!

So when that day approached, and I arrived at school with a little tummy-ache, I kept it to myself. No pain was going to stop me from partaking of rolls smothered with that butter.

The preparations ensued, and then quite suddenly, before I had a chance to touch those rolls, I had to use the restroom and quickly got permission. Before I could make it there, I had an experience very much like the one that Colin had in Bobby's car the other day.

And so I had to go home before that glorious meal.

This is the all-too-true story I repeated to Colin on Saturday. You see, our ward Trunk-or-Treat was that night, and Colin was still having his "accidents" every few hours and Gabe had spent the previous night with a bowl next to him. Candy, cake walks, and passing-of-the-germs were definitely out the question for the whole family.

As you can imagine, Colin was pretty devastated, so his daddy came up with a cheerful plan for our evening home.

We would build a fort in the living room, and then eat dinner and watch a movie in there.

And then we would put on costumes and do our trick or treating out of a bathroom instead of a trunk.

Daddy saved the day.

At the end, Colin said something about "maybe next Halloween," at which point we realized that the whole time we were partying in our living room, Colin had thought we were missing Halloween! The whole shebang! Oh, that poor poor boy. What surprise, relief, and delight raced across his face when we explained his mistake.

I gotta admit that for a boy who thought he was missing Halloween, he sure handled it well.

Daddy love?

What a roller coaster of a relationship those two have!

Wednesday was lovely, and then there was Thursday

My precious Gabriel, taking a nap on the couch on Thursday, with those gorgeous lashes lying on his rosy cheeks. Beautiful sight, but a little strange, for a boy who has pretty much given up naps. What is going on?

..........................................................................

Puke-city. That's what. Yes, I took the time to take a picture before cleaning him up. In situations like this, you have to get your kicks where you can.

I was driving to pick Colin up from school on Thursday, and just outside of our neighborhood Gabe starting throwing up. I pulled over and called my ever-gracious and caring sister-in-law, Sabina, explained what was wrong, and asked her to pick the boys up for me. I am so grateful that she picked the phone up after the first ring and dropped everything to help me out. This yucky situation could have been so much worse if I had had to continue on my way.

The next morning, Bobby was driving the boys to school when Colin announced, not the least bit embarrassed, "Um, I just tooted, and something came out."

And so Colin came home and I got to take care of two boys with stuff coming out of both ends, and a baby, who I was supremely afraid would catch the same bug.

When your kindergartener finally gets used to school, when they finally stop crying at night that they hate it and it's so boring and they don't want to ever go again, and decide that they love it, and then they get sick and have to stay home,

but they don't feel sick and have tons of energy,

and are used to doing things ALL day long,

and they can't go anywhere because they are sick,

and their little brother is sick and doesn't want to play,

and they can't touch their little brother,

and their mom is already a little grumpy because she has been up to her elbows in grossness,

chances are, your kindergartener is going to go crazy,

and in turn, drive you absolutely crazy.

Lovely day

On Wednesday, Gabe and I went to Colin's school and had lunch with him (at 10 am!). This was both of the boy's first time eating cafeteria food and they pretty much just ate the pear, broccoli, and chocolate milk. They barely touched the "cheese sticks." Wise choice boys. Wise choice.

It was fun to sit with Colin's classmates, who all got a kick out of mini-Colin and the baby in the sling. Colin barely said a word to me the whole time. He just sat there and smiled, basking in the attention, and offered to throw away my trash for me. I really enjoyed seeing him as a part of his class - just such a citizen of the world, that little boy of mine. His teacher and assistant both made a point of coming over and telling me, in great lengths, about what a wonderful and smart boy he is.
Which was good, because I had to keep reminding myself of that on Friday - which I will get to later.

After that I met Sabina at Freedom Park (after an hour of trying to find each other because we didn't know there were two different entrances and we had each chosen a different one!).

Evan and Gabe enjoyed each others' company, as Sabina and I did, and Liam and Oliver were content to just go along for the ride.


The park was beautiful and Gabe enjoyed it when the ducks followed him.

Evan, being the carefree boy that he is, just could not resist venturing down and across the rocks on a stream. And yes, he did end up with a soaked pant leg.

"Racing" each other. I love seeing Evan and Gabe hanging out. Gabe has always been the baby of the group, and Evan has always been the little brother of Santi. Both of them are growing out of those roles, and when they get together, Gabe loves to let Evan led, which Evan loves, and Gabe loves to be treated like his pal. It is very sweet.

By the way, you aren't crazy. I just posted this today (Saturday) but it is showing that it is from Thursday because I started it then.

You know what is it like, right?

It's 10:45 am. What I have gotten done today? Nothing really worth listing. Gabe is still in his PJ's, sitting on the floor fingering DVDs and demanding a story, which he will then act out, because that's his big thing these days. Oliver is sitting on my lap doing his jig one moment and then squawking for milk the next.

When Oliver went down for a nap in the morning, I thought to myself, Oh blessed baby-free time! What shall I do with it?

Put away the clean laundry that has been sitting on my floor since yesterday? Clear the toys out that have gathered in my bedroom?

Nope. Any veteran mom knows that the first time you get a chance to shower, you take it, 'cause who knows if there will be another chance, and then you might have to be the greasy, stinky mom picking her kindergartner up in the afternoon.

And sure enough, by the time I got dressed and picked up the first item of clothing from that pile to hang up, the baby was awake.

Don't get me wrong. I am not complaining. I am happy and content. Just don't be surprised if you come to my house and the upstairs is trashed or the toilets are dirty, but somehow I have found the time to finish three books in a week. What I can get accomplished depends entirely on whether or not I can do it with the baby in the sling or my arms

What I can do with the kid in my arms:
Watch TV
Talk on the phone
Yell at my other kids
Read
Surf the internet
Blog (thanks to my old job at Burrelles, where I learned to type with one hand!)
Post on craigslist

What I can do with the kid in the sling:
All of the above
Make dinner (yes, I like to live on the edge)
Do the dishes
Nothing that involves a lot of bending over (which knocks most cleaning off the list)
Walk around Target for an hour
Soccer practice
That's about it


Just don't expect a lot from me and we will all be happy.

This is what Oliver looks like these days

He is completely in love with the binkie.

The Wreath

I finally hung the wreath that I bought way back in August, pre-baby. Not the best picture, but I love it and how it looks in its new home.

Free Photo Cards and more from Kodak

Go here to read the slickdeals thread about it.

Go to Kodakgallery.com and sign up, or sign in, and then go to "My Account." If you are a new member you automatically get 20 free prints. From there click on "Credits and Discounts." Enter the following codes, one at a time: tryus1, tryus2, tryus3, tryus4, tryus5. This is what you will get for free:

Collage 5 x 7"(s) (expires December 31, 2008)
$1.98 credit good towards prints (expires December 31, 2008)
20 percent discount good for all inventory types except prints, shipping and custom-printed cards. Can be used 1 time (expires December 31, 2008)
10 percent discount good for all inventory types except prints, shipping and custom-printed cards. Can be used 1 time (expires December 31, 2008)
$10.00 credit good towards all inventory types 5 x 7" Photo Print Cards - Sold in Sets (expires December 31, 2008)

The $10 credit for 5 x 7 cards equals ten cards. They seem to have some pretty cards and a nice variety. When you get your Christmas card from me, now you will know where it came from!

There doesn't seem to be a free shipping code floating around, but you can pick these up at a variety of different stores. I even tried Blythe's zip code and it said you could pick them up at Albertsons or Kmart!!!!

My favorite pictures from Gabe's (day-before-)birthday

He got this Kung Fu Panda headband from Evan and Santi (along with a sweet sword/dagger) and wore it the rest of the day.

Air-hockey with Dad and and a ride on a monster truck at Chuck-E-Cheese.

Colin pouting over something and Chad making fun of him (yeah, we are like that).

Gabe refusing to even look when the servers at Red Robin came over to sing Happy Birthday to him. He sure did like the sundae they brought though!

Gabe thrilled with "Sir Handel", and Chad cooing over his baby.


"Cheese-take-a-picture-real-quick-so-I-can-get-back-to-playing!"

Audra's hidden talent

She's been holding out on us, folks! Did you know that Audra is secretly crafty? Don't ask her if she is, because she will deny it, but how else can you explain being able to create this in mere minutes with Play-Doh?

Gabe's 3rd birthday celebration

Gabe's birthday isn't technically until tomorrow, the 14th, but we had his big celebration with aunts, uncles, and cousins, yesterday. We are telling him that today is his birthday, because Chad has the day off for Columbus Day. Chuck-E-Cheese's and Red Robin are on the schedule.


I love this video because he is taking the whole thing so seriously. He has seen so many birthdays this year because of all his relatives here, so he has been just waiting and waiting for his big day to finally come. And you gotta love the spit on the cake with the second blow.

It always feels like Gabe's birthday begins the holiday season in our house. Halloween quickly follows, and then the fun doesn't stop until Colin's b-day in April. Woohoo! Party time!

One Word Only

1. Where is your cell? drawer
2. Significant other? Scrumptious
3. Your hair? limp
4. Your mother? strong
5. Your father? patient
6. Your favorite thing?beauty
7. Your dream last night? Apocalypse
8. Your favorite drink?milk
9. Your dream/goal?happiness
10. The room you're in? computer
11. Your fear? unresolved
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years?Charlotte
13. Where were you last night? Dwight
14. What you're not? organized
15. Muffins? carbs
16. One of your wish list items? SOLD
17. Where you grew up? desolate
18. The last thing you did? cereal
19. What are you wearing? comfy
20. Your TV? Chad's
21. Your pet?never
22. Your computer? home
23. Your life? changing
24. Your mood?content
25. Missing someone?always
26. Your car?perfect
27. Something you're not wearing?shoes
28. Favorite Store? Target
29. Your summer?waiting
30. Your favorite color? grass
31. When is the last time you laughed? today
32. Last time you cried? yesterday
33. Who will/would re-post this? Chad
34. The place I go over and over? cjane
35. The person who visits me (Regularly)? Mom
36. A favorite fruit? orange
37. A place I would rather be right now? Disneyland

Hate to tell you Gabe, but it's only the beginning

I pick Colin and Santi up from school every day. Yesterday Colin's class came out first, as usual, and we were sitting around waiting for Santi when one of Colin's classmates, Addy, spotted him. She ran up to us, stopped short, pointed at Gabe, and shouted with great enthusiasm,

"What?! You have a baby twin?!"

Gabe did not appreciate her remarks and scowled at the ground for the rest of her little visit.

Thank You Chad

For surprising me with these beautiful flowers just because they reminded you of me.

They remind you of me? WOW. You must be sweet on me.

Now James and Roy hate you even more ;)

See - Even Oliver loves Aldi

One more reason I love Aldi. Not only do they not provide bags for you (WAY less waste), now they are selling these HUGE and sturdy bags for two dollars each. Have you ever seen the ones that Walmart and Target sell? tiny!

Free Night of Theater

Even if you just somewhat enjoy theater, check this out.

For Chad

It's his first day back at work and I know he misses his baby so I took this video this morning.

Everytime I walk past this sweet little bouquet, I have to smile.

That kid

Last week we were in the midst of a usual, somewhat hectic bedtime. The tub was full, and Colin had already stripped down and jumped in. Gabe was waiting for parental assistance, when he suddenly left and resolutely made his way down the stairs. We called after him, telling it was time to get in the bath. Gabe responded "I'm getting a drink!"

I followed him downstairs and watched him get a clean cup out of the dishwasher, and then stretch to fill it up in the water dispenser at the front of the fridge. Expecting Gabe to take a drink, I was surprised to see him toddle unevenly with the too-full cup back up the stairs. I asked him what he was doing.

"I'm getting a drink for Colin!"

I laughed and offered to carry it for him. When we got in the bathroom, I asked Colin if he had asked Gabe to get him water. Colin's face turned sheepish and a little embarassed as he nodded his head. The nerve! Asking a toddler to fetch you a drink from downstairs because you are thirsty in the tub!

And little brother doing it cheerfully without a question.

Seriously So Spoiled

It is nine o'clock at night and the downstairs is in perfect order, with a couple of candles lit.

And where is the man responsible for all of this?

Upstairs cuddling the baby back to sleep.

Phsst - This is what the house looks like almost every night, thanks to him (ask Roy). How did I get so lucky?

A Season of Neglect

I wasn't going to start a flower garden at all this year. Then one of our friends had use of a rototiller for a week and asked if we would like to use it, so I figured I might as well take advantage of it, tear up the soil, and just throw some seeds in the ground to tide it over until next year.

Which, after working the soil QUITE a bit, is what I did. I didn't want to get into really mapping out my dream garden just yet, so I planted just a few perennials (flowers that come back every year), and then scattered the seeds of some of my favorite annuals (flowers that only live for one growing season).

This is what it all looked like on May 3rd of this year.

I put in minimal effort through probably the middle of June of so. Very minimal. I watered maybe twice a week. I didn't translate or thin my plants. I hardly ever weeded.

After June, I stopped doing anything altogether.

And this is what a completely neglected little flower patch looks like by September 28th. Not too pretty, but kind of a fun little experiment. I am shocked that my Cosmos grew to be about eight feet tall and are still growing. Most of the plants lasted all season without anything but rainfall, and there really aren't too many weeds in there (considering). Just a lot of really scraggly looking plants.

Next year I will put more effort and design in, but I don't regret my garden of free spirits.