tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-78084987031730668872024-02-19T19:00:23.365-05:00Stories From A Life Gone CrazyAs a wife, a mother of 5 kids, 1 dog, and 1 cat I am constantly amazed that we are all still alive, somewhat thriving, and not just eating out of the garbage or chasing our tails, so these are the stories that make up my life gone crazy.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger318125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-55172761559625960052016-12-14T14:53:00.000-05:002016-12-14T14:53:11.902-05:00Cinnamon and Santa<div class="gmail-p1" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in;">
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<span class="gmail-s1">I took my kids shopping, and as soon as we entered the aroma of cinnamon filled the air. I paused, inhaled and was immediately content. Any stress or frustration was forgotten. Cinnamon pinecones are the first signal of the holiday season. They bring to mind hot cocoa, fires, scarves, Douglass Firs, and friends and family near and far. Every year I buy them, every year my children point them out, smell them, and smile knowing these are some of Mommy’s favorite things. It will stay with them years from now, when they are grown up with children of their own, they will walk into a room and the smell of cinnamon will give them pause. They will stop in their tracks, smile fondly at this memory of their mother, the holidays of their youth, and cinnamon. </span></div>
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<span class="gmail-s1">I know this all too well because growing up every year my mother unwrapped the Christmas decorations, when she got to the figurine of Santa kneeling over baby Jesus in the Manger she would say it was her favorite; it was the representation of Christmas. The joy of presents and innocence of youth all bowing before the true reason for the season - the birth of baby Jesus. My mother died when I was a teenager, but when I walk into a room with a similar figurine I stop, my heart skips a beat, and I feel wrapped in her arms once again, even though I have spent half of my life without her.</span></div>
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<span class="gmail-s1">This is one of the things I love about the holidays, they bring back our childhood, they evoke memories of loved ones, and help us connect with and form lasting bonds with our children. These are bonds that will last their whole life, so even when we aren’t there we are. </span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-9101803771384275152016-11-29T10:44:00.001-05:002016-11-29T10:44:32.574-05:00Turkeys and TattoosMy son was asked to share what he did over Thanksgiving and he said, "We drove 6 hours, I smashed my head against a wall, and my parents got tattoos." Gotta say that sounds like an interesting holiday, especially from a teacher's perspective with no other information.<br />
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We drove to Kentucky in a van with shaky brakes, a sliding door that broke yet again and refuses to open, which means all the kids have to pile in and out of one side of the van, and an AV output that is busted. Still, we arrived in one piece and got to enjoy turkey and all the sides. My son, the one who shared his Thanksgiving experience, was acting all a fool and after spinning around he fell into the corner of the wall. A nice huge goose egg appeared. Here just look that this. Crazy, right?<br />
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The day after Thanksgiving Pete and I did get matching tattoos because I figure 35 is a good age for a mid-life crisis and is just the right age for I don't give damn. Mostly, we got them because we don't wear wedding rings because he lost his and I am allergic to the nickel in both my engagement and wedding band. After about 5 years of not wearing anything we both wanted to have something to show the world we were husband and wife, I mean besides the 5 kids that are always hanging on us.<br />
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I guess my son summed up Thanksgiving pretty well. I wonder what Christmas will be like?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-27980613595566076622016-11-22T10:01:00.001-05:002016-11-22T10:01:22.428-05:00Love at 7 ElevenHi everyone. I haven't been great about blogging on this site, and I will try so hard to do a better job!!, but I did have another essay posted at HerViewFromHome.com and here is the link!<br />
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<a href="http://herviewfromhome.com/rediscovering-love-at-7-eleven-our-definition-of-romance/">Love at 7 Eleven</a><br />
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I am so excited to see where and hear about where you have rediscovered love- sometimes it happens in the most unexpected places and moments!<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-38476249333212750712016-11-01T17:26:00.002-04:002016-11-01T17:26:21.837-04:00Mom Jeans- the struggle is realI sometimes submit essays to <a href="http://herviewfromhome.com/">herviewfromhome.com</a> and this week I have one up that is funny and light-hearted. It is a fun quick read that I hope will make you smile or shake your head because you feel sorry for the 'traditional' mom I have become. Here is the link!<br />
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<a href="http://herviewfromhome.com/confession-mom-jeans-rock/">http://herviewfromhome.com/confession-mom-jeans-rock/</a><br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-38797150712893094872016-10-10T13:30:00.001-04:002016-10-10T13:30:10.360-04:00Mothers of Boys Need to be Concerned About These Sexist Comments<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Men at times may talk like that, but that doesn’t make it ok. It doesn’t mean I will in any way accept that as an excuse, I will not try to rationalize these type of comments, nor will I accept any rationalization of his comments, and I certainly will not vote or endorse a man who feels this type of talk is acceptable. The mere fact he spoke these words means he finds them to be suitable for conversation.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">I am a woman, yes, and I am also a mother. I do have a daughter, and I want her to feel like she is more than just a beautiful face or a nice piece of ass. I want her kindness, creativity, intelligence, and fierce determination to be noticed, credited, and listed first. I don’t want her to feel second-class, voiceless, weak, or intimidated by any man. While I want my daughter to stand tall, I happen to be a mother to sons as well.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">It is our job, my and my husband’s, to teach these boys how to be men. But it is <i>my</i> job to help shape and mold their opinion of women. They are the future, they are the ones who will help determine how the gender conversation is played out, if they see women only as breakable porcelain dolls, the future of women’s roles is society will be marginalized. I have to teach them women are more than objects to be used how you want, they are not just large breasts, beautiful legs, and a pretty face. They are humans, individuals, and Godly made. Women are more than their sexuality, and my sons need to see their strength, confidence, intelligence, and humor. I need to instill in them a respect for a woman’s opinions. I need to expose them to women in all fields and in all levels of leadership.They need to know at a basic human level if you disagree with someone the go to response should not be derogatory, this goes for males and females, there should be no distinction. It should not be said or felt that because a woman proves to be correct or in opposition to you that she is a screechy bitch. She is a person with a different view, that is it, proceed from there.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">I fear a man running for our highest office who thinks of women as little more than table dressing or arm candy, not only for my daughter but for my sons as well. I fear they will be begin to emulate the behavior they see played out on a national stage. How much harder it will be to teach them to be decent humans. It is already hard, there are constant ads, songs, and shows exposing them to the idea that women are there to be objectified, and not only that, but women want to be objectified. If they do not hear from a role model, like a mother, that this is not true, but they do hear from political figures, athletes, or actors on a daily repeat saying this is just how it is and women are fine with it, they are used to it, then our society remains stagnant. To move forward in these times I need to force my sons to question the norm, I need to speak up and say this is not ok, I need to make sure I do not sit quiet and idly by as they make rude jokes or rate girls in their class. I need to share my own experiences of fear and inappropriateness, and I need them to be willing to stand up not just for mom or sister, but any female. I need them to become good dads so they can teach their own children. Females can change the world, and I for one, plan on starting by raising my sons to treat females as human beings.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-76391131489918516892016-08-26T14:26:00.001-04:002016-08-26T18:00:02.223-04:00When Back to School Hurts<div style="font-family: helvetica; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;">I want to help you, make it easier, lift you up, heal the hurt, calm the anxieties, and see the positive. I know I can’t, and I am helpless. That feeling causes me great unease, I try to fix it or view it through my lens, but this isn’t about me, I can’t make it mine. Even as I write these words I imagine the impact they would have on you if you read them. Would you feel like you were causing more stress to our family, would you feel some of the burden, would it be one more thing that chips away at your self-worth, confidence, and esteem? </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">I ask to take first day of school pictures, I make you smile, and later look at the picture. You are so handsome, you are growing so big, fourth grade now-wow, but I made you smile and it feels wrong, off-kilter. You were overwhelmed just by the mere thought of going, there was dread in your heart, and probably a battle of emotions going on inside that I don’t know. I tried to give you a pep talk, tried to help you make a list of positives, and you just shut down. I just got frustrated because I was never the ‘bad’ kid, I was never the kid with ‘too much energy’, I was never the kid who on one level knew you weren’t supposed to walk around, talk, say crazy things randomly, but sometimes just couldn’t help it. Instead, I fear my talk left you feeling more isolated, more alone, and like I could never understand your world. The thing is I try, and sometimes I think I understand better, but I am not sure I will ever understand completely. It breaks my heart when you hear back to school the things that immediately go through your head are: I am going to be the worst kid in my class again, I am going to get in trouble everyday, even when I try to behave I get in trouble so I should just stop trying, what’s the point, no one notices when I am even a little bit better, some kids don’t want anything to do with me because I am too crazy, I talk too much, I am too different, they separate me from my friends because we are too loud when we are together, and they want me to have friends, so why do they put my friends in another class?</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">I know all too well this is true. I know soon I will start getting phone calls, emails, meetings will start, plans will be put into place, tricks, tactics, rewards, and the whole gamut will be deployed to help you make it through the year. In the end you will hate school a little more, you will feel a little more like people are just putting up with you, trying to handle you until they don’t have to, and even when they see the positive, the great, the wonderful kindness you possess, and they do tell you- you won’t hear it. You will be too used to hearing all the negative that it won’t balance out. It isn’t just at school because I am guilty of it here. I hope you see through it, I hope you can see past it, I hope in time you can learn to value the perks of your over-active brain. You are so brilliant, your reading level and mastery of language is above and beyond, you are so imaginative, you are not afraid to ask questions, you do not back down, you are excellent with your younger siblings, you are generous, you are funny, you are quick-witted, and you are brave because everyday you walk into school knowing that it will be hard, it will be like putting a square in a circle, and you do it, and that my dear is called courage.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica"; font-size: 11px;">Since it is the beginning of a new school year I want to share my failings because I am not perfect, I mess up, I get frustrated, overwhelmed, lost, confused, stressed, angry, and feel incapable of being your mother, but none of this is because you are a ‘bad’ kid. You are not a’bad’ kid. You are the most amazing kid. I won’t lie, it is hard, it can be tough, but nothing in life is always easy, sometimes you have to fight for the best things in life, and I promise to be there with you, I promise to be on your side.</span><br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-57532303935383108882016-06-21T13:03:00.003-04:002016-06-21T14:01:00.907-04:00Memorable Moments I feel like a big part of my life is helping other people not feel like total failures as a parent. I mean with 5 kids I am bound to screw up occasionally and well, so are my kids, here is a long list of ways I am making you feel like an awesome parent.<br />
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Let's start with last week. We had a baseball game and a soccer game to attend and being a one- car family that means a lot of planning and toting everyone along. We lucked out that the games were being played at the same park, but there is a bit of distance between them, which comes into play here real soon. Luke's game was first so all 7 of were in attendance, and Jack was talking about this and that when he suddenly remembered he was banned from electronics for 1 month, it had already been 2 weeks, so the fact that it just randomly dawned on him is not even something I can understand. In his anger he stormed off without a word. We watched him walk past the baseball field, past the playground, and near the pond. We let him go, if he wanted to be angry and let off some steam so be it. Then about 15 minutes later it was time for part of the crew to head on over to Jack's soccer game. Pete went down by the playground and pond to get Jack, but he wasn't there. Pete asked a guy who was fishing with his kids if he had seen a little boy, and the response was no. There is a big hill and some little trail type areas nearby so Thomas and I went and searched that area, screaming his name, but nothing. Around this time I had to grab Luke from his game, and Pete was going to drive around to the other side of the park to see if Jack just decided to walk to his soccer game without telling us. As Luke and I made our way we met Pete who had decided to walk to the soccer fields since, if something had happened to Jack he would be retracing Jack's path, turns out Jack was at his soccer game. Later when we told him we needed to discuss what happened he said, " What happened? What did I do?"<br />
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Jack stories are the best so here is another. We went to Henderson last week, and the first night there Jack was being a bit much. He has this tendency, so one way to help him and everyone around him, is to send him someplace alone to read. He didn't like that he was being pulled away, but I put him in a bedroom gave him a book and told him he needed to take a break for a little while. About 10 or 20 minutes later my sister went in to say goodbye to him and discovered the window open and the screen on the bed. My son had escaped. Mary and Daniel looked outside to discover that he didn't go far, just next to our van, we brought him inside and once he was walking away from me I noticed that his back had blood all over it. I called for him and it turns out that in his escape he managed to fall on this piece of plastic, breaking the plastic, and scratching up his back pretty badly. I will say I did not scream. I even repeatedly kept telling him that I wasn't screaming, probably in an effort to not scream. I guess I can say hopefully he learned climbing out windows is not ok, and if you do you might get hurt. Better to learn this lesson at 9 versus 16- I hope.<br />
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Once back home Meg had this dress up outfit that needed some sequins or something glued back on. I could only find super glue and she wanted it done right away and without thinking I started to do it while she was wearing the dress. Nope. Bad, horrible idea. She began screaming. I immediately yanked that dress away from her chest but it was done, it had burned her. Now she has a small burn on her chest. Oh she sobbed and sobbed for an hour. She fell asleep in my arms sobbing and kept waking up crying. It was the most horrible thing. It looks so much better now, and doesn't bother her at all, but I feel immense guilt every time I see it.<br />
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Meg decided she needed a haircut. She took the scissors and just started cutting. Nice. We haven't fixed it yet, so she has been wearing a ponytail. It isn't horrible and it can be fixed without looking ridiculous, so that is good news.<br />
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In Henderson we went to the Handy Fest and there were bounce houses and slides that I let the kids go on. Thomas slid down a slide with his arm under him and he got a little burn. I didn't think much of it because it looked like a rug burn and not a big deal. I gave him a band-aid, mostly just to appease him, and sent him on his way. This weekend I noticed that he had this huge scab that covered most of his elbow. What?! We went to the zoo and the very last thing we did was ride the carousel. When they got off I noticed a large-ish amount of blood coming from Thomas' elbow. I had tissues so we put those on it, and then a nice mom who was standing nearby gave us a band-aid. So we fixed it pretty quickly. It turns out that Thomas' arm snagged on this phone holster Pete decided to wear today (since it was Father's Day Pete decided to dress like a dorky dad-haha ), and it ripped that scab right off. Tonight we changed the bandage and it looks a lot worse than it did before. It is gross. Thomas did get a small ice cream out of it though.<br />
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Then there is Robert who is just a handful all of the time. He took off his diaper to poop on the floor, he found my make-up and put it everywhere, he takes all the pots and pans out of the drawers at least 10 times a day, he eats off the dirty spoons in the dishwasher, he throws all his food on the floor, he draws on the wall, he chases the cat, he moves the step stool to the sink in order to grab toothbrushes and put them in the toilet, and really just about anything he shouldn't do he does. He is the 5th kid he should be easy-just saying.<br />
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That's been my summer so far-- hope yours is memorable too.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">because this is what happens when you try to get them all to be in one picture</td></tr>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-57656411514782686952016-06-03T10:53:00.003-04:002016-06-03T10:53:50.453-04:00Did He?My darling Robert is a bit of a handful. He has the potential to rank up there with Jack, and well, that is saying something. He can climb on top of and in/out of most everything. He is naked all the time, pants are no match for this nudist. He refuses to wear shoes. If anyone closes a door or goes outside he will scream and cry and bang on the door until you open it or let him outside. If he is playing with toys and another kid comes over and seems interested, he will grab whatever he is playing with and just start screaming in the other kid's face. So far this has worked for him, and other kids don't mess with his stuff. He is on the go constantly, turn around and he is gone, when you say no he just ignores you, and boy he makes me tired.<br />
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This leads to sleep- you would think that due to all of this expenditure of energy he would sleep wonderfully, but this would be wrong. He sleeps in a pack-and-play in my room. He nurses to fall asleep and in the middle of the night he wakes up to nurse himself back to sleep. He is usually in my bed when 5:30am comes around, at which time he thinks the day has officially begun. He lets me know by climbing on my face and putting his knee in my throat. He doesn't know how calm himself down or fall to sleep on his own, and finally I/We/Pete decided it had to stop!! This was further reinforced when the same day the doctor said Robert really needs to learn how to fall asleep without nursing; I mean he is 15 months old!! I wasn't going to let him cry it out in our room so we moved Meg down here and put Robert upstairs. We have used some form or other of crying it out with all our children, but I hate hearing the crying. Something biological or evolutionary makes me more sensitive to it than other people in our house. Last night I put him to bed, nothing. I watch an hour or so of tv, nothing. I wake up this morning, slightly before 7, and nothing? So confused. Surely not. It can't have gone from horrible to wonderful in one night. This doesn't happen. I go upstairs to check on him, and he is stirring and waking up, so I get him. Then at breakfast once everyone is up I say, "So did he wake up at all last night? I never heard him." At this point the whole room starts laughing. They all tell me he cried ALL night long!! Pete had to get our big loud fan, turn it on high, and put it right by the stairs to try and drown out the noise. The boys, who sleep across the hall, said Robert's crying kept waking them up all night long. While little ol' me slept through the night for the first time in like 2 years. In the end Pete thought Robert maybe slept 2 hours total. I have had to leave the house before while sleep training because the crying and not being allowed to comfort has driven me crazy, but to sleep through it?! Never would I ever imagine. The thing is Pete was banking on my hearing loss to help me get through it, and he was right. I hate it when he is right. Never before have we lived in a place where I slept any real distance from the kids. Here I sleep downstairs and they sleep upstairs. Pete has told me before I wasn't hearing things upstairs, like once a night Meg usually wakes up screaming but falls back asleep after 20 minutes, I just didn't believe him or thought he was exaggerating. Nope. Not at all.<br />
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So here is to hearing loss and maybe my baby learning to sleep through the night-maybe. Hopefully, he sleeps more tonight, either way, I guess I will be sleeping better.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-4444360788643698272016-04-27T17:57:00.000-04:002016-04-27T17:57:32.431-04:00More than a handful<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; line-height: normal;">
<span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Sitting here with a messy bun drinking coffee that may or may not, but probably does, have some Baileys mixed in. I am tired. Exhausted. Can’t remember when I have slept through the whole night. I have 5 kids, so I should be used to the no sleep thing, but sleep is so very important to me, I have made it my mission to get my kids to bed early and have them sleep through the night. Sure they still wake up at 6am, but there is a very firm don’t wake up your mother until 7am rule.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">It has been one of those days. I let the 1-year-old him feed himself, stupid teaching self-sufficiency. He ended up covered head to toe in oatmeal. The floor and the table did not escape this debauchery. He seemed to be in rare form. Pulling out all the things under the sink, and if these things happened to be in boxes he pulled out whatever was in these boxes. He went to the game/puzzle cabinet and pulled out all the puzzles and each individual piece was piled high surrounding him. When he had enough of this he found our cat, and began to pull the cat’s tail. I would move him, say no, tell him to be soft, but then he just looked at me, grabbed the cat’s tail, and yanked hard, never breaking eye contact.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitdDbBzKTpiDkvjb60pphyphenhyphenPJS4KR6B7-faSagZnEHQ5M5Am9gPzwlSTOYtt3sJc9KbPL1IhytEAYR8G_FnOPFaFbL4CfH61ZZab-5w-1xxYV4CYjf6hVl5dSVeSSSXh9mMVVBgNAY4Wq-Q/s1600/IMG_9294.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitdDbBzKTpiDkvjb60pphyphenhyphenPJS4KR6B7-faSagZnEHQ5M5Am9gPzwlSTOYtt3sJc9KbPL1IhytEAYR8G_FnOPFaFbL4CfH61ZZab-5w-1xxYV4CYjf6hVl5dSVeSSSXh9mMVVBgNAY4Wq-Q/s320/IMG_9294.JPG" width="240" /></a><span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I picked my pre-schooler up from school, and seriously the fight we had in the car was the most ridiculous thing I have ever been a part of, I just imagined someone listening in laughing. He was showing me his folder when this stink just overwhelmed my senses. I asked him if he needed to go home and poop. Well, I somehow offended him to his core. He did not need to poop, he would not sit on the potty, he would never poop again, he would also never go to school again, and he hated pooping and school. I just sat in the car arguing with a 4-year-old about how he could just sit on the toilet and try, even if he ended up just tooting into the toilet a whole bunch and no poops came out. What is this life I am living?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When asking the eldest of the bunch how school went he said it went really well, but he did end up on red. He got red for no reason at all, the teacher just gave him red. Yes, sure, I believe that. Plus, it was bring a stuffed animal to school day and his got taken away, but it wasn’t his fault. Just like it probably wasn’t his fault when he hopped the fence to run around the pond with his friends without evening stopping for two seconds to ask permission. I was the lovely mother walking around the pond, holding her 2-year-old, and going to drag his butt back home. The kids saw me and said things like: ‘Oh, Jack is here. I didn’t know Jack was here.’ The school psychologist is one of the advisors for running club, and she was like, ‘Hi Mrs.Weigel,’ as she ran on by. That child of mine has no clue. I didn’t yell, and as a huge yeller, this must have thrown him off. The ever so silent-‘We will talk about this at home,’ was met with very little resistance. I dread to think about the teenage years.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I think that once upon a time I was a normal human. My arguments did not involve poop, homework, goldfish going in a bowl vs. the floor, or why you have to brush your teeth-seriously just brush your damn teeth twice a day every day. I really don’t remember these days, but surely they existed. I need a vacation. Who do I see about a few paid days off?</span></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-15325812410875501732016-02-25T13:37:00.001-05:002016-02-25T13:37:54.977-05:00Winter birthdays are a cause to celebrateThis is the time of the year when almost all of our family celebrates a birthday. Since I don't like winter I suppose God figured I should birth all my children in winter to remind me to celebrate during this cold cold drab time of year. Luckily, I was born in August, my favorite month, so I can sit out in the sun, with a margarita or some such drink, and be thrilled. Back to these winter birthdays.<br />
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Meg starts us off at the end of January with her birthday. Here is the low down on Meg. She likes to do the naked dance. The naked dance is done during diaper change, bath time, and sometimes being naked isn't required just shirt off will do it. She shakes her booty and says Nae Nae Nae. This leads to the next thing about Meg, her favorite song is Whip Nae Nae. She loves this song and we have to listen to it on repeat multiple times. She thinks she is as big as her brothers and tries to do everything they do, she is thrilled when she feels like she has. She is amassing a large army of stuffed animals in her bed, and they need to come with her everywhere, but she cannot carry them all in her arms so she has a small backpack they get stuffed in when we are on the go. She pretty much rules this house. She is loud, stubborn, and throws a huge fit when things aren't going her way. Pete says she gets this from me. I wish I could deny this, but I fear it is true.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Her backpack holds all her guys and she looks like her brothers too</td></tr>
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Next on the winter birthday train is Luke. He helps us say goodbye to February. Luke is learning to read. Something recently clicked for him and now when I am reading the Ramona books to him he will point out the words he knows. He is very excited because he really wanted to learn how to read but had been struggling. He likes to draw and color pictures. He draws pictures for his friends and family all the time. He likes sharks and all underwater sea creatures really, but sharks are his favorite. He likes to dress up and look nice. He even asked for real ties for his birthday, not clip-on ties. I am sad to say I didn't get him ties. Instead he got BB-8 shirts because he loved the new Star Wars movie. Luke picked out the morning music on his birthday and it was The Imperial March. In our house Luke is the quietest, the peace-maker, the one who will just walk up and give you a hug. He senses when you are sad and he will sit by you and ask how you are. He cares so much about everyone.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Luke discovered these books and reads them out loud to us- he loves them!!</td></tr>
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Jack and Robert are next. They are tied with ringing in March. Jack is the oldest so let's talk about Jack. Jack is a voracious reader. I am amazed by the number of books that child goes through. He reads all day. He asks for books for every holiday and birthday. In his backpack now there are 3 or 4 different books that he is reading. At night he still likes for me to read to him. He is a good big brother and looks out for and plays with the babies all the time. He and Thomas are currently in a constant and never ending fight, or so it seems, but when he heard how well Thomas did at the Run- A -Thon Jack stopped right then and gave Thomas a big hug and said he was proud of him. This is pretty much Jack in a nutshell. He will drive you crazy all day but then he shows you that he has this great big heart and love of family. Sometimes, and not often enough, when I feel like I am failing Jack I ask him to sit with me and pray the rosary, and he rolls his eyes, sighs, and at first says the prayers super fast or incorrectly, but by the end of it we have it down and when we have finished he always gives me a hug and says thanks mom I needed that. His favorite shows at the moment are Flash and Arrow. He likes that they are older shows, there is fighting, the good guy wins, and that he can hang out with daddy while watching them.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZYkitWN0_frq3puv7IRkGTdFE7hDsfHPNMZYvoiZxKjOHSxQbgUZehvurDt40pfsb22QKB2SBWndnoARw2lyNK2ppKEbXwqt0rek3a0uq4TZHbMNZV4_f6GhYJy_LLSDtbIj40bnyG1a8/s1600/IMG_8234.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZYkitWN0_frq3puv7IRkGTdFE7hDsfHPNMZYvoiZxKjOHSxQbgUZehvurDt40pfsb22QKB2SBWndnoARw2lyNK2ppKEbXwqt0rek3a0uq4TZHbMNZV4_f6GhYJy_LLSDtbIj40bnyG1a8/s320/IMG_8234.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Poor guy broke a bone in his foot. No more recess or basketball for awhile. </td></tr>
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Robert has just recently started to act like more than just a baby. I guess being the youngest I haven't been all that eager to let go of his baby stage, and he has acquiesced. He still nurses, and I am not so sure when he will stop because he uses it to fall asleep for naps and bedtime. He will nurse longer than his siblings I know that. They were all weaned around 11.5 -12.5 months. He still sleeps in our bed most of the time. Again, none of his siblings were in our bed this long. He wasn't talking or really even trying at all until recently. Now he hears you say something and he says it too. Words like- hi, boo, what, and cat. He is pulling up and not standing solo, though this week he started testing the waters and may have done it for a few seconds. Last night he took my phone, held it to his ear and said hi. Pete taught him how to play Where's Robert. Last night he played it with Jack. It was super cute. Robert laughed so hard that Jack started cracking up.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">still has crazy hair and is learning how to get into trouble</td></tr>
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Those are the winter birthdays. They keep us celebrating and force us to leave the house when we would much rather be hibernating. We went to the Shedd Aquarium in January, the Museum of Science and Industry in February, and if the weather is good we plan on going to the Brookfield Zoo in March.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-39096678481863175082016-02-01T15:41:00.001-05:002016-02-01T15:41:52.203-05:00Being A Parent Can Be Rough Have I mentioned that sometimes as a parent I feel totally unprepared to face the daily challenges put in front of me? After 5 kids I still get overwhelmed by the daily things like: baby not sleeping through the night, baby in my bed, teething baby, toddler throwing a fit, toddler learning to assert independence, pre-schooler whining, pre-schooler thinking he is same age as older siblings, school aged children doing homework, getting ready for school, brushing teeth or not brushing teeth or brushing teeth where almost half a tube of toothpaste ends up on the mirror???, and peeing on the toilet rather than in the toilet or anywhere really except where the pee is supposed to go. Yes, these things still frazzle me, and I go back and forth between taking them in stride and losing my mind, but there is one thing I constantly battle with that just weighs me down because I don't know how to deal and it concerns my dear 3rd grader.<br />
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Some weeks are good, some days are good, and some are not. Some are trying. Some are hard. Last week was rough. I got a call from his PE teacher who had reached that point all his teachers reach-- she was done with him, she didn't know what to do with him, she wanted me to know she just didn't know how to reach out to him and make him calm down, focus, listen, pay attention, and whatever else it is he does during the school day. Next came a note in his planner from his main classroom teacher saying it had been a hard day. She doesn't always write these notes, so I know it must have been rough on her. She tries very hard, she loves teaching and children, she so wants him to succeed, and she tries so many different ways to help. Finally, I received a phone call from his reading teacher who expressed similar concerns as the PE teacher, but didn't seem quite as overwhelmed. He is an excellent reader, way above grade level, and he loves to read, so this probably helps her out because she can see past the jokes, the silliness, and the talking.<br />
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It used to be I would say - <i>Why is it just so hard for you to listen to what the teachers say? Can't you see that you are being disruptive, disrespectful to the teacher, to the students, and that you aren't able to be the best learner you can be when you act this way? </i>I would say- <i>It isn't hard for your brother, he can do it.</i> I learned these were not the best things to say, and he did know what he was doing wasn't what the other kids in class were doing, but it didn't change things. Plus, he isn't his brother and he shouldn't be asked to be. Sometimes I would yell at him-<i>Not again!! Why? I mean can't you just try harder? Didn't we talk about this? Haven't we discussed this at length?</i> Of course, to him I may as well be asking him to climb a mountain and then yelling at him when he can't do it.<br />
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Long-term goals give him anxiety because he knows how hard and how much energy it takes to be good and follow the rules (or most of them) so being offered a reward for being good 30 times in a row just shuts him down. He thinks-<i>If I can't even be good one whole day how can I do it 30 times? What if I try my best, but after 5 days I just can't do it again? What if I mess up and then get back on track? Does it matter? No, because you said it had to be 30 days in a row and mine was 5 days in a row, then 3 bad days, but then 5 more good days. I will never make it. </i>It is at this point he decides screw it if I can't make it 30 days I will go ahead and make silly loud noises right now. It is hard, and part of him so wants to make people happy, but he just can't control himself.<br />
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We have tried many things and many things work for a brief amount of time, but then they don't. Right now his school has set up this whole support network for him, and there is special language we are all supposed to be using, we are trying to help him learn more self-awareness, mechanisms to control himself, teach him how to realize when he is about to get out of control, and have him ask for a break to read in order to calm down (right now he has unscheduled reading breaks that the teacher doles out), and so when there are a lot of people willing to help and I still get contacted by three teachers in one week- it makes me realize perhaps I wasn't really cut out to be a parent. At this point, I don't know what to say or do. When the teachers call I just say -<i> Yeah Yeah. Ok. I know</i>. They want more from me I can tell. They want tips, guidance, how do you fix this at home, what are the secret strategies, but the truth is that at home he is the same way. We try this or that, certain times certain things work and other times they don't. Sometimes we just tell him he has to get away from us and everyone for awhile, so he reads or he kicks a ball against the house, but there is no magic wisdom I can impart. I guess that is what makes me feel so bad. I am not able to fix it, I don't know how to reach him, and I can't make it better for him or anyone trying to deal with him.<br />
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Sometimes on tests he doesn't always read the directions, he doesn't always answer all the parts in a multi-part question, he never shows his work, and he doesn't check his answers because the goal is to be done as quickly as possible. Last week he brought home his math test, and it wasn't pretty. His teacher had written a note saying he finished first then drew on the back and wouldn't follow her suggestion of going over the test again while the other students were finishing. I asked him about his math test, asked what was going on, asked if there was anything he wanted to tell me, and he said-<i>Yeah, did you see the monster I drew on the back? It is really cool. I have been practicing drawing monsters, and I am getting a lot better. Did you see it? </i>I felt like that sort of summed up our whole week.<br />
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I don't want him to be someone he's not, I don't want him to see how frustrated I am and think I don't love him, I don't want to give up on him, and I don't want him to give up on himself. Raising a child with a lot of energy, as I call it, is hard. It wears you out, sometimes it makes you feel like a failure, it takes away attention from the other kids, and it means letting go of any notion that he would be 'well-behaved' if I were a better parent. Though I wish I were a better parent.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-59609346422922507992016-01-14T13:29:00.000-05:002016-01-14T14:11:58.873-05:00Goodbye Sweet FriendIt's early in the morning, I am sipping coffee and wrapped in a warm blanket. One thing is missing, one constant by my side is not this morning. Instead, he is another room unable to get up, unable to eat, and at the end of his life. Our poor sweet puppa- Tigran. All pets die and they die before us and that is what we know going into the relationship. One question you have to ask yourself is: <i>Are you willing to love something with all your heart only to lose it?</i> I guess that is the question you must always ask yourself before you love at all. <i>Is it worth it? </i><br />
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I naively went into dog ownership, but Pete and I were engaged and my in-laws just bred their dog, so why not? He is a beautiful dog, and as a puppy he was just so cute. Puppies are hard and there was a moment when Pete thought we should give him back, but like so many times in our marriage, when one of us can't do it or just can't manage the other seems to step in and hold the other up, and so I stepped up and said we could get through the trials of potty-training, dog-training, and furniture that was chewed through, and so we did.<br />
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I look back on the early years with Tigran and they are so fun: dog parks, walks, throwing balls, swimming in the pond, and then there is that side of dogs that know when they are needed to support you. Always right there when we were sick, when we were tired, when we just wanted to relax, when we lost Owen, and when the fights between husband or wife were more emotional than just irritating; Tigran was always right there.<br />
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When I was pregnant he always knew and he would become a guardian and would stay by my side, especially at night. With every new child brought into our house Tigran was there. He let those kids pull on him, crawl on him, take stuff away from him, and he never once did anything other than get up and move away. Once we had more than one or two kids having a dog seemed too much for me, and this time it was Pete's turn to step up and let me know we could do it. Maybe, I haven't been as available to my sweet dog over these last few years, but I guess this is because I took for granted he would always be there when I needed him, and he was.<br />
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Time has passed since I last wrote this. Now Tigran is gone. He is buried in Kentucky on the ancestral golden retriever hill, as Pete says. The kids have all responded differently. Jack is upset and has cried. Luke got a little teary eyed once but then seemed to move away from it. Thomas says he misses Tigran and thinks we should get a new dog right now. I miss him when there is food all around Robert's highchair. I am amazed at how much more I have to clean up. Last night I caught myself putting a pan on the ground for Tigran to finish off. I also miss him at night or when I am alone in the house and I miss him when I sit down on the couch and he doesn't sit next to me. He was a wonderful dog. I know Pete misses him more than any of us, and it has been the hardest on him for sure.<br />
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Goodbye my sweet friend.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-52494399618535268962015-12-23T16:21:00.001-05:002015-12-23T16:21:17.668-05:00From Our Family to Yours<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Wow, hey it has been awhile. I thought I was going to be on this kick where I tried really hard to write more often, and I did, like twice, but then nothing. Sorry. Sometimes I feel like I have everything and nothing to write about all at the same time, and that makes it hard to siphon off what I want to say. I am not sure that I have it figured out now even so you might have to just bear with the ramblings of a crazy stay-at-home mom.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Plus, there is now the expectation of some type of Christmas card letter thrown in here too-AGGGHHH!!!!! Ok, I think I can I think can…</span></div>
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<span class="s1">This time last year we were hoping and praying and begging on our hands and knees for a post-doc position for Pete, and that did not happen. We were left wounded in our faith and wondering just where we would end up because it could have been literally anywhere. Pete applied to jobs way out west, way up north, way down south, and out to the east. We ended up just a couple hours from Purdue in the suburbs of Chicago. <i>Do you like it?</i> This is obviously the question we get asked the most. Pete is definitely feeling at home here. He feels like he can relate to the energy and personality of Chicagoans. I like it- I do. I haven’t met anyone who wasn’t nice or helpful or kind. I had high hopes of one day getting closer to KY, not further away, so I am adjusting, but it hasn’t been a hard or depressing move, so that is great news all around. </span></div>
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<span class="s1"><i>How are the kids doing? </i>Second most asked question. They are doing well. I think. I hope. Knock on wood. Jack has always been Jack. He is a bit much and he continues to be. It has always been hard for him to make friends and this is still true. He plays with kids at recess, we have him involved in Tae Kwon Do and Boy Scouts, and so as much as we can help him find friends we have. My kids have never been huge let’s have people at our house kids, I think this is because there are so many of them that adding extra people is just too much. *Maybe it is too much for me. He has had some issues with discipline at school, but this school is nothing like I have experienced before. They have a social worker, an occupational therapist, a psychologist, differentiated learning specialists, speech therapists, and I feel like the list could go on. They have two recesses and PE every day. There is a standing desk in his classroom he can use, there are ball seats for kids who need those, there is so much ability and willingness to pull a kid out to help them- I can’t believe it. So Jack is getting help from a large support team who are willing to help him learn how to take care of himself and hopefully postpone any need to medicate him, plus give him tools he can use now and later in life.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Luke is in Kindergarten! He is being being pulled out as well for different things like— how to hold a pencil correctly?? (I guess there are studies connecting correctly holding a pencil to better reading), speech, and extra help with letters. He likes school and the kids. He is different from Jack in that he really wants to hang out with friends more often. I need to work on that. I haven’t been the best at making that happen. He doesn’t have much to share at the end of the day. He says he forgets. He gets frustrated when I try to push beyond that. I try to make him tell me at least 3 things that happened- sometimes it is as simple as telling me he ate all his lunch because most of the time he can’t finish it all! He hasn’t been signed up for any extra stuff yet, but in January he will start with basketball. I am interested to see how that goes. At the moment he is looking forward to it.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Thomas decided he would go to pre-school or bust this year. So pre-school it was. His birthday is just a few days shy of the cut off here in IL, so he will be 2 years behind Luke in school instead of 1. (They are 17 months apart). We have talked about petitioning to have him go earlier because if ever a kid was ready our Thomas is, but I don’t think we will. There is no harm in waiting, and he can just do pre-school again with the same teacher that he loves so much and already knows. He has made a couple friends and just beams every time he walks out of the school. He is in heaven.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">This leaves Meg and Robert. I guess this time last year Robert wasn’t born. It seems like he has been part of the family for so long now. Meg is starting to talk now, she definitely communicates her wants, needs, and dislikes. She is testing boundaries and can do everything herself. She loves cats, Daniel Tiger, and boots. She hates skirts and dresses and being told no. Robert is pulling up, cruising around, and is so close to standing without holding on to anything. Meg loves Robert and already you can tell they are gonna best best friends (maybe worst enemies too). For anyone keeping track they are 13 months apart.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">We added a cat to our family. I don’t mind Quantum near as much as I thought I would. If we had to get a cat, and I guess we did according to everyone else, this was the right cat for us. Tigran, our golden, turned 11 and suddenly got much older. He hurt himself in KY over Thanksgiving and didn’t really recover- he got much worse actually. It has been very depressing to watch. He stays on the floor in our bedroom almost all day, he can’t climb up stairs or get onto the couch without either help or a lot of effort (so much so that he normally doesn’t try), he stopped eating for awhile, not even to steal food from the table!!, so we took him to the vet. He is on pain meds right now but they want to do an X-Ray at the beginning of the year. He was born at my in-laws house to their dog so we’ve had him for his whole life, and I hope he has a few good years left.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">These are the basics of our year. There have been highs and lows. So it goes with life. We get by and manage, sometimes barely, but we do. We also laugh, tell stories, and love each other a lot, so I’d say overall we are doing well. I never have expectations about the New Year, I don’t do resolutions, and in keeping with that tradition I will just say- I hope 2016 goes well. I hope we are given all the tools and resources we need to manage and survive any difficulties or sorrows that come our way, and I hope we aren’t too busy focusing on the negative to miss out on all the positive.</span></div>
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This super cute sleeping baby is definitely a positive.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-71621612470859237832015-12-04T14:06:00.001-05:002015-12-04T15:02:45.483-05:00A plethora of adventure<div style="font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I woke up today with a cat licking my face. I threw that cat at my husband and told him, probably pretty grumpily, to remove the cat. Shortly after I woke up again because a small baby began to crawl on me, hit me, and make lots of noise. I should have known then that this would be an eventful morning. One thing I noticed was the lack of other children. Usually, Meg just sort of appears in my room because once she starts crying the brothers get her out of bed, but today Meg is still in her bed crying but no brothers. I go up to get Meg, and peek in the boys’ room where they are all asleep. What?!!! This is like an early Christmas miracle. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Jack is the first to come downstairs and he is complaining of these symptoms:</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">-headache</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">-sore eyes</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">-muscle weakness and aches</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">-he has a slight fever as well</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">-slight fever</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Nice. Great.Fabulous. We normally get flu shots, and we were still planning on getting flu shots, but we just hadn’t done it yet. Things have been busy. Now they are sick and it sounds like the flu to me. Only Robert has had a flu shot. I don’t think this is a good thing.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">On the bright side I received the new Adele cd last night, and it has been playing as the background to our day. Meg, Thomas, and I made cookies. They didn’t turn out too well, way flat. This may be because I left the butter out all night or just because my baking is totally hit or miss. Whatever. There were chocolate chips involved so everyone is happy.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">At some point there was a yell of Yuck! Gross! Thomas was staring at the rug under our table. Turns out that our lovely mouser had once again been successful in his nightly hunts, but this time instead of a mouse there were mouse bits. I won’t go into more detail, but Yuck! and Gross! were apt exclamations.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Toilet time was next on the list of events. Thomas had some issues with the upstairs toilet not flushing properly and the water coming to the brim, so I spent time with the plunger. My life is so glamorous ya’ll. In the downstairs bathroom I was met with Robert in the middle of dog food and shredded up toilet paper. Nice. Sure. Whatever- I always bring my dog food with me when I am about to rip up some toilet paper.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Time for a diversion so let’s watch Rudolph. I put on my Bumble jammies to help set the tone and for a bit it works, besides the normal bickering about blankets, where to sit, and Meg always wanting to sit one everyone or stand directly in front of the tv. I never realized how short that movie is compared to well-movies. It was over too soon. Inner dilemma going on here— do I let them watch another movie or try to let them play together before I demand naps. I went with play together, which was stupid. The game was fight with each other. The other game was sneak the iPad and then tattle on each other about it and steal turns. So fun.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Somewhere in here I thought, oh this is a good time to pray my rosary. Not sure what my logic was, perhaps it was something like - I can nurse Robert to sleep while I am doing it. Robert is teething, cranky, and at this point overly tired so he won’t just nurse. He is crying, bobbing his head all over the place, chewing on wires, falling backwards on the bed, and crying some more. Also, this is when all the iPad tattling began to happen. Do I keep praying or stop and maybe not get back to it? I decided to keep going-not sure I got a whole lot out of it.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Robert finally falls asleep, and I go check on Meg. She is playing with the Advent candles and wants juice. Ok. I pour her juice, but not out of the bottle since there was a glass in the fridge from last night that someone made but didn’t drink. She doesn’t know this and thinks I have pulled some sort of mean prank on her or something because she begins to scream and cry, and throw things. Oh yes, she is my daughter. She won’t even try the juice. This tantrum lasts about 5 minutes. Finally, she drinks the juice and is happy.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"> Wow. Now I have a headache. It is time to force naps on everyone. The boys don’t really complain because they are tired and sick. Meg is trapped in her crib so yay. I come into the bedroom, and lo Robert decides that even though it has only been like 15 minutes he is going to wake up and crawl on me and cry and bop all around. He is bopping a lot— what is going on with this? Anyway, this means I have a small child kicking me as I write this. He is not asleep. He wants to chew on the zipper of my pajamas. It is only noon people. Noon. I still have the whole afternoon.</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-9521251781246462182015-11-22T22:44:00.000-05:002015-11-22T22:44:03.876-05:00Brush your teeth son<div style="font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Mornings are a crazy time for every family. There are so many parts that must be put together so that everyone can get where they need to be. Some mornings it seems people wake up screaming, crying, yelling, rushing, and returning to the house more than once in an effort to start the day. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">My oldest son operates on his own time. I tell him he needs to brush his teeth and this results in eye rolling or being told that he brushed his teeth last night, so why does he really need to brush them again? When I remind him that the last time he went to the dentist he had 6 cavities because of this mentality and he says, “But I don’t have 6 cavities anymore.” Yes, because I spent a couple hundred dollars having them filled, so forgive me if I won’t let you skip out on brushing them this morning. He walks into the bathroom and closes the door, which worries me after the conversation we just had. I go and check on him - turns out he has just been staring at himself in the mirror. Again, I remind him to brush those teeth. About a minute later he walks out, which is too soon to be done brushing teeth, and I never heard the water turn on. Hmm… I ask him if he brushed his teeth and he looks at me and says, “Oh no, I forgot.” I mean WHAT?! REALLY?! How do you just forget that? We had this whole pre-toothbrushing conversation that involved him getting annoyed with me, there was that whole hey open the door and brush your teeth episode that literally just happened, and you forgot. He gets so irritated with my constantly reminding him to do everything, but obviously I need to. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">He likes to use the whole ‘but I did that yesterday’ excuse when it comes to getting ready in the mornings and not just with his teeth. He isn’t sure why he needs to change his clothes everyday. I admit that I am not a strong advocate of daily baths, so there are more than a few nights when he goes to bed with his clothes on( all that he ever wears are athletic pants and a t-shirt) and then wakes up thinking he is already dressed for the day. When I tell him he can’t wear that outfit to school again he just doesn’t understand why. He looks down and says, “There are no stains on it.” True, but you wore it yesterday. “What are you telling me, I have to change my clothes EVERY day?” Yes, that is exactly what I am telling you. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">These are basic things I am trying to teach my son before he leaves my house- you need to brush your teeth and change your clothes everyday. I won’t even get started on the fact that sometimes he won’t change socks until I lose it. I am not sure I will be successful, so to my future daughter-in- law, I am sorry. I did try.</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-31223281897858663152015-11-16T10:34:00.003-05:002015-11-16T10:34:42.888-05:00Pokemon Conversations<div style="font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">My 8-year-old son is into Pokemon. He has the cards, watches the show, has stuffed animals, and through osmosis I have a general idea of what this world is all about. I must say I have never understood the appeal of Japanese animation, even as child when these cartoons would come on tv I was baffled by the large Bambi eyes, the sweat drops which appeared on the forehead, the way the facial expressions were over-exaggerated, and I would quickly change the channel. I am now paying for this as a mother, now Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Dragon Ball-Z, and Digimon are almost always on multiple times a week. My son likes to draw the characters, read the guide books, and form battles in his head. It should be noted that my son is a talker and will talk and talk and talk even if you just walk away from him, he will continue to talk. So one day I am just minding my business in the kitchen when he comes in talking about Basic Pokemon like Gyarados, Bulbasaur, and Weedle, and I know this is important to him and a big part of his world so I look at him and listen, I nod my head while he is telling me about their energy types which in my head become Earth, Wind, and Fire. This leads me to start thinking about Earth, Wind, and Fire songs, and do I actually know any, are they good, maybe I should go and listen to one after this conversation is over. Oh crap, I am supposed to be listening to the conversation, I should ask a question so it seems like I am paying attention. <i>So who do these guys evolve into? </i>He needs to know I am interested in what he is interested in, plus I used a word from the lexicon- I am so awesome. Now he is talking about Venusaur and points and battles against Butterfree.I feel like this conversation has lasted long enough now because I don’t know if I can pretend to be this interested in Pokemon anymore. What if this means he thinks I want to play the game or watch the shows? Oh no, I don’t think I can keep this up. I am not that good of a liar. Hmm, how do I get out this without seeming like a totally horrible mother? What is he talking about now? He is talking about the top ten best basic Pokemon. *I should add that he likes lists and rankings so I should have known we would end up here. He is going to ask me what I think. I don’t know the names of ten basic Pokemon. Crap.He is looking at me now. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Son: <i>So mom who do you think the most powerful basic Pokemon is?</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Me: <i>So you want to know my favorite basic Pokemon? Um, well, uh, I really like (</i>looking around the room and seeing a Pokemon stuffed animal on the ground <i>) Squirtle.</i> </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Son:<i>Yeah that is a good one. Why did you pick him?</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>Me: (Looking at the stuffed animal to get clues about what Squirtle does) He has a shell for protection like a turtle and he can squirt water. He has a good offense and defense.</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>Son:Yeah, I think you are right</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">If I were a character in Japanese anime right now I would have sweat drops and an exaggerated smile. I know I can’t fake this anymore. That was too close, so since I am ahead right now in the being interested in what my kid is interested in game,I better call it quits. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Me:<i>This has been a great conversation but I have some stuff I need to finish up here. (</i>even though when you came in I was just flipping through a magazine) <i>Why don’t you watch an episode of Pokemon or look through your book and come up with more battles?</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Son: <i>Sure and I can tell you about it later ok?</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>Me: Yeah that sounds great.</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">That was close. I wonder how much longer he is going to be interested in Pokemon? Can I keep faking it? Well, I am at least going to count today a parenting victory.</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-7910403699355162022015-11-11T14:12:00.000-05:002015-11-11T14:12:15.329-05:00I have this hammer, now what?<div style="font-family: Helvetica; line-height: normal;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">This morning I felt like the walls were caving in. I felt all the emotions just flood me all at once. Our washing machine is broken, it has been broken for over a week now, and as a family of 7 this is no small thing. Currently it looks as though our house is sick and throwing up clothes. Everywhere you go, look, or walk- clothes. Some kind of dirty, some just plain filthy, and some kind of damp and ew, and sure maybe putting those in the dryer would be </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">a good idea, because the dryer still works, but they are also dirty so I feel like why? The house has become progressively dirtier in all areas because of this. The laundry hampers filled up days ago so the clothes are living in piles in every single room, and what is the point of straightening up rooms when they will still be dirty because there are dirty nasty clothes all over the place? </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">The pieces are easy enough to replace so we ordered them online and didn’t spend the extra $10 dollars or so for fast shipping because we don’t have an extra $10 for fast shipping, and they weren’t Amazon Prime eligible unless I wanted to put that $10 toward the base price, and I didn’t, so I didn’t. Then the pieces came and one piece I put in but the screws are stripped and I couldn’t make them tight enough. Fine, let’s move on to the other piece which would be even easier to replace, but I couldn’t even get the second screw out. I wanted to cry, to sob, to runaway and never come back because of laundry. Not having anymore clean underwear really does get to you. I used a rubber band over the screwdriver, I put a dab of superglue in it, I tried all of our screwdrivers, and in the end I just stripped them more. Seeing the pieces just sitting there and knowing if I could just get those screws out then I could wash clothes was heartbreaking. I could stop tripping on clothes, and I might have a clean dish towel. I got out the drill and nothing. So I grabbed the pliers and bent and broke the piece giving me trouble, the screw was still there but now I could get the pliers wedged underneath and just turn until it came out- and it did. Now, I still need to buy new screws because those aren’t going back in, but I won. In spite of all the hurdles, in spite of the anger, the overwhelming sensation of no control( as mirrored by the state of my house), and in spite of no clear vision on how to proceed, I did it.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">My kid pooped in the tub, I spilled a full beer all over the floor when trying to straighten up a little bit, another kid basically told me I was ruining his life because I pointed out that his pants were too small, were actually his little brother’s, and he should put on his own pants, I haven’t had my car for 3 days(my husband has been using it) so I couldn’t get to the store to buy new screws or ask handymen what to do, Google’s ideas failed me, I have had 3+ kids sick at the same time( probably because germ clothes are just everywhere), and I felt like I was drowning.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"> I wanted to have control of something-anything. Now I could just stop. Leave it there. But the last few months I have been struggling, an unsettling feeling swelling inside, a shift in my normal self, and I don’t know what it is exactly or what it means, but I feel it must mean something. I wonder if my outside is currently mirroring my inside. I have a lot happening inside and it is tearing me up and just like with my washing machine, I can’t seem to fix it, find the right parts, I don’t see how it will get fixed, and it seems if I just had the right tool it would be so easy to fix, I just need an adjustment maybe to move an inch higher or something but instead of something that would fix that, I have been given a hammer. That is it, just a hammer, no instructions, no clues, no tips, just a hammer. Now I have been holding this hammer, I have sort of swung it in the air for practice, but it doesn’t feel right, and I just want someone else to come in and make it better, but I suppose I am in need of seeing I can do it on my own, there must be some personal growth lesson hiding in there, and one day I hope to see it, but now I feel so lost and like I know this change is happening or about to, but it hasn’t yet and it just frustrates me, and is not great for my anxiety. Some of it has to do with faith, some a sense of purpose and direction, and some of it is the desire to financially help my family, and at the root of it I am beginning to feel that they are all three connected but I don’t see how, I can’t see it, and I just have this stupid hammer. Anyone who has ever seen me angry knows I shouldn't hold a hammer when I am angry- it wouldn’t turn out well for the walls and dishes.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">So in the meantime I will go to Ace and buy some screws, I will put my washing machine back together tonight, I will do the laundry, and maybe during the mind-numbingness that is folding clothes I will have some epiphany. I should probably pull out my rosary too because the last few mornings I keep seeing different statues of Momma Mary while going on walks, and perhaps she is trying to get my attention.</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-50150872022294708962015-10-26T15:11:00.001-04:002015-10-26T15:11:56.357-04:00Fall Frolicking<div style="text-align: right;">
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We have been busy doing fall around here. After a totally boring and blah summer we are working to make up for it with an awesome fall. We started out in September by picking apples. We love to pick apples and returned to our lovely Indiana to do so. It was an apple orchard just outside Chicago, and it wasn't as great as our old apple picking spot, but it got the job done. However, next fall we will look for a different place. Maybe go more north?</div>
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We had been postponing signing Jack up for TaeKwonDo for various reasons, but after some behavior issues in school and then an email asking if we were still interested in the classes, I took it as a sign, and signed him up. He has been a bit nervous getting back into it, and the emphasis on certain aspects are different than what he is used to, but he is starting to get back into the swing of things.</div>
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We went to Lombard Fall Fest one weekend and it was a nice and fun diversion. They had a pumpkin patch, a decoration stand, games, pony rides, and a small petting zoo area. Each kid left with a pumpkin that they decorated. We came home and lined them up in a row-- our five little pumpkins.</div>
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Jack wanted to sign up for Boy Scouts. He wanted to last year, and we didn't really want to mess with it, but since he wanted to do it again this year, we figured ok we will see how he does. We signed him up and before he even had any meetings he had to sell popcorn and meet fundraising goals, so off we went to Ace Hardware and asked all kinds of people to buy popcorn. Jack was so nervous at first, but then he really got into it and did a great job. By the end of the day he and his co-seller sold to more people than anyone else had so far. Way to go Mr. J!</div>
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I decided that it had been far too long since I had hung out with my siblings, plus my dad had not met Robert yet, so I figured it was time to go back to Kentucky. Pete had to work so I did it all solo! We spent most of the car ride to Henderson listening to Adventures in Odyssey. Honestly, they did an amazing job, and so did I really. We went to a pumpkin farm and it was a blast! They had ladder golf, corn hole, a corn maze, tractor ride, john deere kiddie cars, slides, water pump duck race, corn kernel pit, and of course a pumpkin patch.<br />
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Then we came back to enjoy Spooktacular here in downtown Lombard. It was fun. The kids wore costumes, got some candy, played a few games, we had some delicious pizza by the slice, chicago mix popcorn, and free cotton candy.<br />
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Thomas has been complaining that we don't get out enough to play while the boys are at school, so each week I have tried to do one thing outside with Thomas and kids. We went to the playground one afternoon and Robert enjoyed his first swing ride. I got to push all three kids at once. Lucky me.<br />
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The next week we walked to downtown, which is just shy of a mile from our house, and then walked back a different way taking pictures of all the houses decorated for Halloween along the way. A lot more houses here decorate for Halloween than any other place I have lived. It is pretty fun, and the kids love it! </div>
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Most recently we went downtown with cousin Tricia. We were able to ride the train with mixed feelings from the kids: Luke did not like it, Thomas thought it was awesome, Meg handled it well for awhile but then wanted to stand up and move around, and Jack thought it was interesting but liked it better once Pete showed him the map and how he could tell where we were based on it. We went to Maggie Daley Park and on the way we ran into people handing out Kefir smoothies so the boys loaded up and then even went back for more. Once at the park they were having a Halloween parade and giving out sour gummy worms so the kids loaded up on those too. They are gonna want to go back downtown every weekend if they think they will be handed free stuff every time. On our way back to the train we stopped by the bean and saw the giant head sculpture.<br />
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We have been having fun for sure, but it hasn't been all mother of the year over here. I have struggled with my ability to parent Jack. We don't always see eye to eye, we don't always agree on the best way to solve problems, and I become very frustrated when he ignores me and continues to act like a crazy man. He has been having issues in school and trying to find a way to help him is frustrating. It gets to the point where he and I both feel like I am only reprimanding him, which isn't very helpful to our relationship, and makes him ignore me more because if he can't make me happy why even try? Luke isn't a traditional learner and it takes a bit longer for him to process and retain the information, and he is the exact opposite of Jack in that he follows all the rules and doesn't make a scene at all, which makes it easy to overlook him and see that he needs more encouragement. During these moments I wish Luke had a little bit of that crazy Jack in him. Pete and I are discussing various ways to help Luke have a more successful school experience. Pete is going to take lead on it since he knows what he wants and won't back down or be easily swayed. Meg is now a big girl and a handful. She decided she doesn't need a booster seat at meal time, she doesn't want a sippy cup, and she has finally started talking or trying to talk. She has also decided to throw herself on the ground and cry, take off her pants in public, scream loudly in protest, refuse to move, or (when it comes to Pete) say please and smile real big to get her way. She knows how to manipulate each one of us in just the right way-- TROUBLE! Robert is still very good natured, he can crawl and pulls up all the time, but he can't get down so he is in that 'just fall down' stage so there are a lot of tears. He has also developed a bad habit of being unable to sleep at all at night unless nursed to sleep and sleeping right next to me the whole night. If he is asleep and I move him he screams and cries, if he manages to cry himself to sleep it is only a short lived sleep that results in more crying until he is in bed with me again. I can't be too mad though because it is the only time he ever gets upset-ever.<br />
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We are just trying our best here. Sometimes we have lots of fun, sometimes we are totally boring, and sometimes there is a lot of screaming and fighting. I guess that is what happens when you live in a house with 7 people and 2 pets.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-89293748863746441402015-09-08T12:20:00.002-04:002015-09-08T12:20:39.510-04:00That is not for kissesThomas turned 4!!! So now I get to tell people I have 5 kids ages:8,5,4,1,and 6 months. Haha-- imagine those faces-- imagine mine. Thomas has been so eager to go to preschool, and has talked of little else since we moved here. I didn't really want him to go this year because he won't be going to kindergarten next year and will have to do another year of pre-school, since I stay home with them it seems extravagant to send him to two years of pre-school. Plus, I thought he would really enjoy hanging out with me and being the oldest during the day. Nope. He wanted to be big like his brothers and go to school. So, we finally relented and Thomas started pre-school today. Twice a week/all day. Oh, the excitement when he was able to pack a lunch in his batman lunchbox, and he got to wear the backpack both Jack and Luke used in preschool. We were a bit rushed this morning because his school day starts an hour before his brothers, and the adjustment was hard for me to make. He was ready though, he slept in his clothes(a tank top because he is Thomas the Tank and tank tops are his favorite), he brushed his teeth no arguments, and he just waited for me to get it together. <div>
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Back home in crazyland, Pete decided this morning, about 20 minutes before time to walk Jack and Luke to school, that he would cut their hair. They were already dressed for the day- a massive feat. I was just finishing up their lunches. Luke's hair was done about 5 minutes before time to walk out the door. He calls Jack in now!!! I will say that he got it done, we ended up driving the kids to school instead of walking, and it was a very stressful way to start the day, probably because even though I woke up at 6:30am and it was 8:40am I still hadn't had my coffee. </div>
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Last night I was lamenting the fact that Thomas would be gone all day, which I found odd because with Jack and Luke I was eager and excited for them to go school, learn, and make friends. Pete reminded me that for the first time in a long time I would have consistent days when all the kids still at home would actually be asleep for more than 1 hour. While this may be true here are a few things that happened before nap time. Meg came over to me with her finger out cry/moaning so I kissed it. Nope. Parent advice- Don't ever just kiss a finger that your kid is holding out to you. NEVER DO IT!!! Poop finger. Yup, she gave me a poop finger, and I just blindly kissed it. No, Meg you don't kiss that. </div>
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I gave Meg a Gatorade bottle this morning, a little later I couldn't find it, but there wasn't gatorade down her shirt so I just let it be and forgot about it. I walk in my room 20 minutes later and guess what? I found the gatorade bottle.</div>
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I guess I don't realize how much I rely on the older kids to help me parent. If Thomas were here that would not have gone down. </div>
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I took some time this morning to empty the garbage, the recycling, pay bills, and fill out paperwork I received from Thomas' teacher this morning. Turns out that I put the paperwork in the recycling bin outside but kept a neat pile of all the stuff I meant to recycle. I had to go outside and dig through the recycling to find the forms. After I signed the forms I made a new pile so I would remember to put them in Thomas' folder. Nope. I was just a few second from throwing them in the garbage this time. What is wrong with me?? I realized it was now 10:30am and I hadn't had my coffee yet. I stopped right then and made my coffee. I think I will have two cups just to catch up.</div>
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So now I am sitting here realizing that the oldest kid in my house today is 19 months old. What in the world are we going to do all day? I have totally forgotten how to play with and entertain toddlers. Jack was the last child that I really entertained as a toddler, after that I sort of let the siblings take over that part. I worked on the feeding them, cleaning their messes, driving them to the store or library, and stuff of that nature. What am I going to do with her and Robert? I tried to watch Dora with her and she got excited and said backpack, but then she was done. She got up and left the couch. So I decided maybe I should just turn on Veep and check out that show because I have heard it is good and Meg obviously doesn't want to use the tv right now. Can I finish my book because it is really good? Letting them learn to use their imagination and play without adult supervision is actually really good for them, so I am doing her a favor by ignoring her, right?</div>
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The thing with Meg is that she is too clever for her own good. She went into Pete's bag, found a smaller bag, unzipped it, took out the markers, and drew all over her arms and legs. She also has decided that she is a big fan of Coke- just like her mom- and she goes around the house looking for Coke cans and every time she finds one she checks to see if there is any left.</div>
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I think I need Thomas back in the house to help me out and give me stuff to do. I feel like today I might be both overwhelmed and bored- a parenting paradox.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-36641520085657406792015-09-01T13:30:00.000-04:002015-09-01T13:34:48.922-04:00Some Weigels go to school and some stay homeBack to school time! I am so excited! We moved and that was lovely, but we didn't really do anything once we moved. We didn't have money saved up so we didn't have money to spend, and moving costs money, so we just kept close to the house. We went out (spent money to visit some attraction) once a month over the summer just to vary the routine but that was about all. This also meant no summer swim lessons, tennis lessons, or even taekwondo for Jack (other than trying out a few schools). I found that while over scheduling your kids is bad for them not scheduling them at all for 2 or 3 months is also bad-- take my word for it.<br />
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So a new school year has been much anticipated in our house. A chance to break up the monotony of the day, meet new friends, perhaps find things to get involved with, and a chance for dear old mom to once again become a lovely person; not the evil, yelling, overwhelmed, and edgy lady that my kids now think I have permanently become. It also gives me the chance to leave the house without all 5 kids, and perhaps I will stop hearing: <i>1, 2, 3, 4, 5, she has five kids, how many kids do you have?, how do you do it?, that's a lot of kids, are they all yours?, do you have any twins in there?, must have Irish twins, and you are blessed.</i> Every single time I went anywhere! I have never experienced so many people having so much to say about the number of kids I have. * I did go to the store this AM with just 3 and I still heard :<i> You have your hands full, no kids in school. That is when you look forward to nap time, huh? </i><br />
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Anyway, back to the first day of school. We live very close to the school so we walk. Actually a lot of people walk. The crossing guard knew right away we were new, asked where we lived (she knew the house because she lives just down the road), and introduced herself. Jack's teacher also knew where we lived because she walks the path by the pond and saw three boys playing outside and knew they would be attending the elementary. She also lives just down the road. So there is definitely that small town feel about it.<br />
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Luke is in kindergarten this year! The first 3 days were half days so hopefully he adjusts well to full days this week. He wasn't scared at all. When we asked him what his feelings about going to school were he simply said he couldn't wait to make friends. Here they keep all the kindergarteners together for the first two weeks, they test and observe them, and then they divide the kids into classrooms. I asked him about school and he liked making a handprint with paint, he liked the story the teacher read at story time, he liked the singing, but he didn't not like all the waiting that was involved. The first day Pete spiked Luke's hair and on the second day Luke wore a button up shirt and tie so this means Superman hair. I guess at recess a boy liked Luke's hair better spiked so he ran his fingers through it and messed it up. Luke was very upset and even took all of us to the exact spot on the playground where it happened. It didn't completely ruin recess though because he did end up playing Superhero tag with a few kids. He isn't super chatty. He gives a brief run down and then asks if we can stop talking about it.<br />
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Jack is in 3rd grade. I was worried for him the most because he was the one that had to switch schools, and that is always hard. So far though he really seems to like it. He said he likes it better than his old school. Everyone asked if it was his first day, but not in a mean way (so he says). Everyone was nice and even if you could tell you didn't have a lot in common no one was mean. He wore his St. Louis Cardinals jersey and the music teacher said: <i>Oh, I see you aren't a Cubs fan. Well, I don't think we are going to let you back in the building after today. </i>Jack liked that she was funny. He said a lot of people in the school are goofy and he likes that. His said at lunch there is a spot for gluten sensitive and nut allergy kids to sit and he liked that the school cared enough about the students to do that. He sits at a table with another boy that has become his friend, and on the first day they were talking about how other people can fill your basket and how do you do that? The teacher asked Jack about it and Jack said he wasn't a basket filler. So the teacher asked the class if Jack had filled anyone's basket that day. The boy he has befriended said- <i>Jack filled my basket today because he found things I liked and then asked me about them. </i>Jack was really excited about that.<br />
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Thomas has had a really hard time. Where are my brothers, why can't I play with my brothers, why can't I go to school, when can I go to school? We played a lot of board games, we've gone to a playground/playgroup, and just chilled at home watching tv, but I am not enough. He and Meg aren't at the same playing level right now so she is fun for like 10 minutes and then that is it. We are thinking about sending him to a 3-year-old preschool twice a week.<br />
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Meg entertains herself. She is definitely her own girl. She may also be a little bit crazy.<br />
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Robert is starting solids, scooting, and has begun waking up more often in the middle of the night. He is still chill most of the time.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-11754859357189342682015-08-03T16:11:00.001-04:002015-08-03T16:17:26.662-04:00How a non-cat person got a cat for their birthdayFor my birthday we got a cat. I do not like cats. Growing up we had cats. They peed on everything. EVERYTHING!!! If a shirt, coat, sock, towel, or anything was left out or on the ground it would smell like pee from there on out. As a whinny and loud teenager I would moan and groan, scream and cry that these stupid cats were peeing all over my stuff. Why did everything have to smell like pee!! I was always told-- <i>Just don't leave your stuff out or on the ground and the cats won't bother it. </i>I was angry that it was on me, why not just get rid of the cats, get better cats, teach the cats not to pee on my stuff?? I vowed to never ever ever get a cat.<br />
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I am also allergic to cats. When they do the allergy scratch test, the cat area becomes the size of a golf ball. When I am around cats for any amount of time my eyes get red, itchy, swollen, my nose is a mess, and I sneeze all the time. This, of course, adds to my dislike of cats.<br />
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Once we had a cat named Panther. This cat was demonic. You would go into the backyard and there would be dead birds on the ground. Yes, more than one. Yes, this happened more than once. Now, I was still quite young when we had Panther, and one afternoon I stood on our front porch and looked down to see a dead rabbit. I yelled: <i>Mom, Panther killed the Easter Bunny!</i><br />
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Another time, we had a different cat, and I forget if this cat was old or sick or what, but I went under my bed for some reason and there was a dead cat. Traumatic. Cats= traumatic memories for me.<br />
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So when on my birthday Jack started crying/freaking out because there was a mouse in the tv room, I said, with full confidence that no one would take me seriously, <i>we should get a cat to get rid of the mice.</i> All eyes turned to me and Pete said that we should because it would be the most humane way to get rid of mice, Jack said he always wanted more animals, Luke and Thomas also thought this was an awesome idea. Um, I didn't really want to be the jerk that said- <i>haha just joking!! </i>So I went along with it. It ended up that Jack and I (and Robert) went to the DuPage County Animal Shelter, on my birthday, and Jack picked out his top 2 kittens. One was already spoken for so that left the orange tabby. Jack got to play with him for like 20 minutes, and he fell in love. Jack loves all animals in a big way. Ever since he was, well basically ever since he could talk to us, he has indicated he wants to grow up and have a job involving animals. We were not allowed to bring him home that day because I didn't have any paperwork on me saying Tigran was up to date on his shots, which is a requirement, so we had to wait until they could get in touch with our West Lafayette vet.<br />
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It turns out that Pete has always wanted a cat. This was news to me. I have known Pete for many years, and his desire to have a cat was a secret. He told me it was his idea to get Kit, his parent's cat, and he was really excited that we finally got to have one too. WHAT?! He named it. Oh yes, he knew right away what this cat would be named---Quantum. Today we loaded up the car, bought litter boxes, cat food, a toy, and then set off to pick up our cat, Quantum. He is 12 weeks old. So far, he just sits in this box in the closet. Meg stands right in front of him and just screams over and over. Then she laughs and does it again. I think she is really excited. Tigran barks at him and then demands pets. The boys want to hold him and play with him, but Quantum just wants to chill in this box so they don't really understand. I wanted to get a picture of Jack holding him or something, but not yet. Quantum is a little overwhelmed by the loudness that comes with being a Weigel. So I will let you know how things go. Right now, we are family that just keeps getting bigger.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-15319448722428603802015-07-23T17:27:00.000-04:002015-07-23T17:27:07.837-04:00Really, one more month till school starts?!I don't know how I feel about school not starting for another month. Part of me is glad for lazy mornings and no need to get dressed until whenever, but part of me longs for the kids to get the hell out of here. Individually, they are all awesome! Combined into a unit-- maybe not so much. We have limited money, space, means, stuff, and etc., so we have always consistently stressed sharing. It is one thing we do all the time. You share food, toys, drinks, clothes, and whatever else there is to share. It turns out this has not taught our children that sharing is a lovely wonderful trait, it has taught our children to get what they can when they can, I believe it has made them selfish. Hmm....sharing = selfish. If there is a sharing soda in the car, the take a drink and pass it rule turns into take a drink for 2 minutes or until my brother complains or mom and dad notice my drink has taken longer than the normal amount of time. This is the case with everything these days!!!! I am going insane. Also, one-upping is at an all time high. Really, I don't care if you can eat your hot dog faster, if your car is 'more awesomer', if you slept longer, stayed up later, have a better shirt, like the better super hero, or anything. I really just don't care!!!!! Another thing that has started is the whole - you are not my buddy- conversation. This started out last year as super cute- the brothers would spend a Saturday or weekday afternoon hanging out and there would be hugs and a brother saying- you are my buddy. It was cute. No, not anymore. Now I say-- we are not doing buddies!!! No one is anyone's buddy, you got it?!! It is a threat, a way to say I am mad at you, you can't play, you aren't wanted, they say-- <i>You are NOT my buddy!</i> Followed by tears and tattling. Poor Thomas is 3, and this age is now my least favorite. He whines day and night. Really, he walks into my room at 6:30 am and in a very whiny voice says-<i> I am hungry, when are you going to make me cereal?! </i>It doesn't stop until he goes to bed, and Thomas, so far, is the one child who needs very little sleep so even though I put him down at 7ish, he is still awake at 10 and coming down the stairs whining that he can't sleep for any number of reasons, one being- <i>Mom, but I love you and just want to give you a hug and kiss because I need to. </i>So, of course, when I tell him-<i>No, No you have to go to sleep right now!!! - </i>I become some mean mom who doesn't want to kiss her kid.<br />
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Meg is a mess all by herself. If you tell her no she cries. Period. It has gotten to the point where I hear myself saying to the brothers--<i>Don't tell her no. Just don't say no to her. Let her do it.</i> Great parenting I know. The best way to raise your daughter is by never telling her no and letting her fits win. Man, she is just so loud, it is instant, and she throws herself on the floor. I don't have the energy to deal with her. If she wants that Hot Wheels Car then sorry brothers, you are giving it to her. She doesn't want to drink water or milk and when I say no and she sobs for 30 minutes, I say fine have your juice I don't care. She is stubborn, she may be more so than me, and that is saying something. I stuck to my guns two days in a row about the whole not just drinking juice stance, and she barely drank anything for two days, and barely peed too. What?!! Really?!! She is also a dare devil, wild, crazy, and has already hurt herself more than her brothers ever did. She has chipped both her front teeth, she has fallen off the patio chair and had her nose catch her, she climbs up and over everything. When she is tired she pulls her hair, slaps herself, and always manages to position herself in a place where she is tripped over and stepped on. If anyone has food she will cry until she gets it too. So, now I say - if you are getting food you either have to give some to Meg or get her some too. She is too much.<br />
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Rob is still good. Lovely baby. He just has crazy hair. We have decided the best way to dress him with his crazy hair is to put him in onesies with suspender or bow tie pictures. It seems to work.<br />
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That is life here, and what life here will be like for at least a month more.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-35608586347365790772015-07-10T14:56:00.000-04:002015-07-10T19:00:05.562-04:00SuburbsLiving in the suburbs is a new experience for me. I have heard of the suburbs and figured it couldn't be much different than living in a small town, which is what I have done most of my life. I will say that it is much like that and also different. I have posted on Facebook a lot of pictures of the pond that is basically part of our yard, the geese who come into our front yard to eat the leftovers from the mulberry tree, and the abundance of trees (and weeds) that are in our backyard. These glimpses make the city or anything associated with the city seem so far away. Yet, we are reminded of the city because every few minutes we see and hear airplanes (though you do get used to the sound, so you eventually tune it out, am I right UofL folks?) Often we will even see two overhead going in opposite directions. We live near O'Hare.<br />
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A new sound to me is that of a regular train whistle. I have lived in towns where there are railroad tracks and you get the occasional train, but here the Metra comes and goes on schedule all day. We hear the whistle while playing in our backyard, and to go most anywhere in town you drive by train. Thomas was very excited because one day there were a few John Deere cars being pulled. We also drive Pete to the train station and pick him up daily. He has stories about life on the train: conductors, tickets being punched, drinking being allowed, missing the train, taking the wrong train and ending up in places you never meant to be, Blackhawk fans, and enjoying not being stuck in traffic while being able to reliably get where you need to go. Right now, Jack's biggest wish is to ride the train.<br />
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Jack also has seen a new form of advertising floating above our backyard- the blimp. This was a blue DirectTv blimp that was right overhead but had already gone quite far by the time I could get a picture.<br />
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While driving in the suburbs you drive 10 minutes in any direction and you have driven into a new suburb but continue on or turn down a different road and you might find yourself back in your suburb. The names all jumble together Glen Ellyn, Wheaton, Elmhurst, Villa Park, Lombard, Downer's Grove, and Oak Brook. All the same and yet different. I have only been to a few of these, and currently my favorite is Glen Ellyn- it just looks so quaint and picturesque. In Downer's Grove and Villa Park we have eaten at <a href="http://www.portillos.com/">Portillos</a>, which is now Pete's favorite food place outdoing Skyline and Qdoba. In Glen Ellyn we tried malts and ice cream at <a href="http://www.oberweis.com/web/default.asp">Oberweis</a>- the best malt I have ever had. I heard they delivered milk still and they totally do- see Glen Ellyn is so Mayberry. We had pizza from a couple places, no deep dish pizza, but still delicious, but too expensive to be something that we do regularly. We went to the <a href="http://198.46.91.100/~willow34/">Willowbrook Wildlife Center</a> in Glen Ellyn, and Jack loves it there. He loves animals anyway, and wants to work in some capacity as a scientist with wildlife animals. There was a young man volunteering, and Jack has decided when he is old enough he will volunteer there as well.<br />
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Jack, Pete, and Uncle Danny went to a Cubs v Cardinals game at Wrigley Field.<br />
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Jack and company rooted for the Cardinals, and the Cubs fans jested and joked, but welcomed the new and young baseball fan. I heard it was an awesome experience for all 3, and I am glad they got to share it with one another.<br />
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When leaving the suburbs you get to drive into the city, and the city looks like this. We were very excited that we received our I-Pass and did not have to get all the way over and scrounge around for change.<br />
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Since we just moved and didn't want to overwhelm the kids with moving and lots of summer activities we have just been slowly driving around checking things out when we get the urge, and eating popsicles on the patio.<br />
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So far we like it here, and we haven't even made friends yet. I take that as a good sign. There are only a couple things we don't like: Mosquitos and allergies!!! The mosquitos are HORRIBLE!!! They are everywhere. Poor Luke and Pete - all over their face, neck, ears, arms, legs, and back!! Allergies are bad for all of us, but Jack tends to get bloody noses, and since we have been here he has had one bloody nose episode almost daily. Luke says, despite this, he loves this town and wants to raise his own kids here. Jack says, he loves it but doesn't want to raise his kids here because there are too many bloody noses involved. Thomas says, once we have all the adventures there are to have here it will be time to move someplace new with new adventures.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-91311232414080771162015-06-24T14:00:00.000-04:002015-06-24T14:00:27.134-04:00Imported to IllinoisI just finished the cycle of getting all the kids down for nap/rest time, and as it goes, Meg woke up just as I breathed a deep sigh of relief at having a few minutes of quiet. No fighting, no yelling, no one-upping, no crying- just silence. My stubborn, strong-willed, loud daughter whom I am sure I will enjoy the pleasures of sharing many a shouting match with one day just sat in the chair opposite me in silence. In the quiet I opened the refrigerator, pulled out leftover nachos and chips, put them on the table, and we sat there not making any noise other than that of eating. At one point she dropped her nachos on the floor and looked at me like I would yell or even speak, but I didn't, I just picked it up and smiled, and she smiled back. It was lovely.<div>
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I am ever so anxious. I have many worries, but Pete says there isn't a whole lot I can do about it, and in time it will all work itself out. Of course, being me, I say- <i>What if it doesn't? </i>So without focusing on the stresses, here is a bit of our life in Illinois.</div>
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Our living room doesn't have a couch. It is pretty empty as you can tell. It does have a lovely large window though.</div>
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Our couch is in the tv/kids room. This is totally fine because it is about the size of our whole downstairs at our last place, so we feel more comfortable sitting on top of each other.<br />
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One day we will have a couch in the living room, and we will be able to sit on it and enjoy this view, which is pretty awesome.</div>
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We decided, that in order to help the boys have a bit of fun in our new city, we would explore the Morton Arboretum, which is only like 10-15 minutes away. It turns out they were having a Cultural Festival that day so our time was accompanied by music, story-telling, and face painting. We spent the whole afternoon there and truly enjoyed it.</div>
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We have enjoyed our backyard. Having a backyard where the boys can run around without the police showing up to ask if I know that my boys are running around is a blessing. *Yes, the police showed up at our front door more than once in West Lafayette.</div>
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We found out that there is a really huge park area in town. It has the water park, basketball courts, tennis courts, frisbee golf, playground, baseball field, soccer field, dog park, and what Jack calls the cool rock with flags. While, I think we are all eager to make friends, none of us really wanted to just be surrounded by strangers, so we decided to go to the park quite early to avoid everyone. It was all ours and just as we were leaving the cars started pulling in. So perhaps, when we are ready to face the strangers we can go a bit later.</div>
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As I am writing this Meg is actually sitting in this location where she was sitting a few nights ago. I guess when there are no chairs, a toy box will do. </div>
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Oh and since I have no pictures of Robbie on here I figure I should just throw one in. Not a great one- Sorry Robbie. He is really interested in his hands, he stares at them for minutes. He is just now starting to get interested in toys in front of him. He will grab at them and stare at them. He is still a super good baby. So chill and laid back.</div>
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That is our life in Illinois so far. Just taking it one day at a time.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7808498703173066887.post-57554484358978819492015-06-17T17:59:00.001-04:002015-06-17T17:59:28.755-04:00A new state means new adventures<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeEqKEd-Ea5vodOdMBD4PoU9C_1_ck1N4mtj1AmBswmTw8mfQaeQAiT-vYr1l2pG9P-tXeQ5vPoJRuO98qa9ytAP48OnlbZJT1RZJeBBthk6AyB2L1nZbxvj5xy-pBdCn13ABhzYjj_92J/s1600/11401562_10153434021528086_6345287092297512762_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeEqKEd-Ea5vodOdMBD4PoU9C_1_ck1N4mtj1AmBswmTw8mfQaeQAiT-vYr1l2pG9P-tXeQ5vPoJRuO98qa9ytAP48OnlbZJT1RZJeBBthk6AyB2L1nZbxvj5xy-pBdCn13ABhzYjj_92J/s200/11401562_10153434021528086_6345287092297512762_n.jpg" width="200" /></a>Hello from a new state. A new state means new adventures. We have been mostly just unpacking boxes and realizing we need new furniture like a couch for instance. Um... really about the couch. Oh well, in time. Still, we have made time here and there to see a little bit more of town, besides our house and backyard. Oh, did I mention we have an actual backyard now?!<br />
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The moving crew came to Indiana and helped load up that big old Uhaul and then they even followed us to Illinois to help us unload. A big family means lots of love and muscle. Thanks guys and gals!!!<br />
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They moved stuff through thunderstorms, a flooded driveway, and no AC!!! Bravo!! We did see a rainbow on the way to Illinois, so does the mean good luck on our new stage of life? I hope so.<br />
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Let's see. Things about our new house. There is no central air. Something we didn't really realize until it was really hot in the house. There are a few window units in the basement we can install, but after two hot days it has been really cool actually. I am wearing jeans right now and a little cardigan. There are these awesome skylights in the, we will call it the kid's room or tv room or some such thing, but it has been raining and we noticed there is a little drip drip happening. Not a lot and we just stick a pan underneath and that is that. We had super bad flooding and it only dripped a little so not worried. One thing to be worried about or at least cautious of is the flooding that occurs in our driveway when it rains. I walked through it two days ago and it was past my ankles. It pools but then it does drain away to the storm sewer. Our landlords and their maintenance guy know about it, but it seems that it isn't an easy thing to fix so maybe best to avoid driveway when it rains heavily. So those are the uh-ohs we have come across while settling in. It isn't all bad news because we have an awesome view of this pond, which also has a walking path.<br />
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We have a nice big backyard with a nice big patio. It came with a little table and chairs for us to use immediately- awesome.<br />
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We went into town to get a library card and sign up for summer reading-a must for the kids. The library is located next to Lilacia Park. The town of Lombard is nicknamed the Lilac Village because of the lilacs, they do smell really great. So we were able to check both of those things off our list.<br />
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Then after the library/park visit we went to the old-timey Dairy Queen. It was great. Blizzards are always a win.<br />
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Then home again to hang a few things up and unpack clothes from suitcases. Unpacking and organizing when you have little kids making a mess isn't great. Meg has already found a marker and written on the door. Luke decided to lock the bathroom door and close it when no one was in there. I had to get a paper clip out and unlock it. The toilet downstairs was running, and that noise drives me bonkers, so I decided to fix it myself and I did. Thank you very much You Tube. The stupid whistling arrow came out again and once again Tigran went MIA. We checked the gates and they were all locked, we checked the doors and they were all closed, but still no dog. Finally, we found him. It is a tight squeeze, I don't even know how he got in there.<br />
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Pete has been having a few adjustment issues as well. I guess riding the Metra isn't as straightforward as he thought. He had one day where he actually went into downtown Chicago and ended up having to take the L to work from there. There have been other adjustment issues that come with just getting used to a new work environment, but here's hoping everything gets smoother from here on out.<br />
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Today we went to the public school to register Jack and Luke. It is within walking distance so public school it is. It is a lot bigger than their old school--so it might take some adjusting.<br />
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I suppose more getting used to the city is in order for the near future as well as getting an Illinois driver's license so I can stop carrying our lease around with me as proof of residency. Still, we are well on our way to calling this place home.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0