pics!

I love these pics! LOL



from sunday. daddy wanted a pic of her dressed up


thomas did this himself! when I left the room he'd climbed up on the bed under the sheet and his butt was sticking out. I came back in the room to find him like this!


this girl loves her noodles!


sarina! did you sneak a cookie??

been a good week. I keep meaning to update but then get caught up in other stuff and wait some more. then I forget all I was going to update on. its a cycle, what can I say?

so lets see...
I got to have lunch with dh on tuesday. he was working just south of us that day. we ate at our local flying J and will NEVER do that again! OMG! we should have gone to BK! for 2 burgers/fries and drinks it was $20!!!!!!  I about squeaked and turned purple when I seen that! geeezzzzzzzz!!! it was nice eating with him though, Sarina loves her daddy and was happy to see him mid day.

drop off yesterday was AWESOME for Garrett!! I was really in shock! when we pulled up to the drop off point, he says "I'm going to preschool mom." unbuckled himself, hopped out, put on his backpack, got a kiss and walked off to the bench! me and his helper teacher looked at each other and we both went "wow!"
of course today he had to show his tail a bit, but I think it was cause his usual teacher helper wasnt the one to help him get out of the car. cause he was fine until he seen her, then started in a VERY fake cry and a high pitched scream as she started to carry him up. then he just got down and walked to the bench with his lip stuck out. little terd LOL!

he got to go to the pumpkin patch on monday. its a cute little pumpkin he brought home. I still need to get a pic of him with it! :P

today after drop off, S and I went to the city to do some shopping! couldnt do a whole lot, but FIL gave me $50 he got as a refund so I was feeling the fun!  found some cool things at hobby lobby to use for Cmas gifts. and no I'm not saying what I found cause some of those people read this LOL!

my dad is sending me money so that Gav and Hunter can go to a kung fu lock-in this weekend! they'll be so excited!!

dh ended up having to go to michigan today. he's in Battlecreek til friday/saturday.

Garrett has his first parent / teacher meeting this coming week!

Hunter got his first report card in today. he had almost all S's except in "organizational skills", which I have to wonder what 2nd grade boy has?? LOL! so pretty proud of him!

Gavin earned $8 for his grades this time and C doesn't get any grades til before Turkey day.

hm.... I do have some great pics! still gotta get them off my camera first, but I've got some good ones!!

they've finally cut all the corn down from around our house today. so glad about that! of course Garrett missed seeing the tractors in action because of going to school, but he gets plenty of dirt area to play in now

OH, and Sarina is finally cutting those two bottom canine teeth! the top ones are still MIA, but we're getting there. ;)

 

Sarina's 18m stats

Sarina's 18m stats!
she's 29 lbs, 34", HC of 19.25" and wears sz 6 shoes and 2T clothes.

for comparison, the other kids:

Canaan 31 lbs, 35"
Katlyn 28.1 lbs, 35.5"
Gavin 30 lbs, 34.25"
Hunter 31 lbs, 35.5"
Garrett 27 lbs, 34", HC 19.5"


so she's right with Garrett on being the shortest, but up with Gavin on weight 

and I do have a few pics posted on FB from the weekend

 

weekend update

I've had a good last few days.
thursday I went to the city with my SIL to hit some goodwill shops. she was wanting some halloween clothes and I was looking for pants for C and K (both of whom totally outgrew their clothes from last year!) K is wearing a size 9jr or a ladies sz 7 now. (I wore a 7/8 through high school!) and C is in a 34x34! last year he was a 32x30 and 32x32! geez a mighty! I got lucky for K and found her about 5 pr total, so she can at least dress herself for a 5 day week. C I found nothing. nada. zip! he did end up getting a pair of 36x34 from papaw and we found 2 pair of camo pants from dh's army days, plus he has one pair I know he can wear that he had. guess its good guys dont mind wearing the same thing over and over
I did score a couple of tops for me and one pair of jeans. plus hit a stash for S at the last goodwill. someone had dropped off a whole load of new Gymbo and Old Navy items! I found one Gymbo white halter top that was a sz 4, but it can be worn as a dress next summer.  couldnt pass it up! found some summer dresses of ON, a pair of jeans, some tops and even scored her a dress for SIL's wedding!  love that!

the whole weekend was fast. gosh! K finally got to stay with a friend on friday night. she'd brought all her F's up on her report card so I let her go. (she still had 3 D's, but at least no F's). saturday was the kick-a-thon and Lily to the groomers, plus we hit the grocery (and spent way too much).

I fixed a big pot of chili to simmer that night so we could stay home and eat after church.  gooooooooooood stuff! sunday was a bum day after church. I put on my spongebob pj pants and vegged the rest of the day

today K is going to see Dracula at the theatre, Gavin has his school pics taken and G is going to the pumpkin patch with preschool. theres a moms GTG at the park at 9:30, but I'm skipping cause it's freaking COLD outside and S is still sleeping

today, like I said, is my cleaning house day. all the major stuff anyway. 2nd load of laundry is in, floors been swept/mopped, some clothes put up, cat boxes cleaned/filled so far.

OH, totally forgot to mention on Friday was the homecoming parade in town. my mom went with us. S ended up falling asleep in her van so Garrett and I stood out on the sidewalk to collect candy. we got to see C while waiting (they let all the HS kids walk around the square). we got SO much candy! it fills a gallon zip loc bag! but I tell you what, I must have done 10 million squats to get it cause my top thigh muscles were KILLING me!!! OMG! saturday and sunday I was in agony. today I'm feeling normal, just a slight twinge when I squat. who'd have thunk that going to a parade to collect candy would do me in??

 

the appt went well. it was looooooooooong though  over 2.5 hrs there! geez! the good news though is that the dr just recommended he try some +100 reading glasses ($1.00 at the $ tree!) for 6 weeks and then go back for a recheck. the dr is very pleased with how well he's doing since he seen him last in jan. 08 (different dr than who did his surgery). he agreed that the eye turning in is pronounced, but only when he's straining on something. he said we can do another surgery, but at this point it'd only be for cosmetic reasons. I cant see putting G through that for just looks.
so good news!  he'll just have to fend off those few who may pick on him for his eyes at times. *sigh*

we got back in town about 5:30 so met dh and my mom at captain ds for dinner. amazing how sitting and waiting so long makes one so tired 

K stayed with her friend dana tonight. tomorrow I'll go to the bank and such. I'll also need to drop by the car place to finish paying on Tori's car (had to do all the leg work for her trading in her vehicle for FIL).
C wants to go to the football game tomorrow night. not sure about that. hmmm... mostly cause it tends to run so late and I really dont like having to be in town about 11pm to pick him up. :P

 

Garretts first ride on the bus!

I had dreams this morning (as I laid back in bed to enjoy the quiet after the big kids left), that I didnt get G ready in time so he dressed himself. long sleeve shirt, shorts and it was snowing outside!  can we say I was thinking about him catching the bus today?
he caught the bus fine. I think she got there about 10:10. not sure cause i didnt have my phone on me. he jumped on the trampoline, picked rocks and played in the yard while we waited. S eventually wandered back up to the porch to play with Lily.
he was amazed at teh big ol bus there to pick HIM up! I thought it'd be a small bus, but nope, its a big one!
S is watching Fresh Beats while I do this. she's not asked for "gary" yet but I figure it'll be soon.

a few jumps while waiting for the bus!





being told to watch for the bus drivers signal to cross the street

Garretts first day of preschool

I consider today a success! I had plenty of grouchy "OMG" moments, but we got through most of it already with no bruises or other boo boos and my hair is in tact, so I call it a success
I got G to school about 11:30 since I thought they started at 12. nope. they started at 11:30 all was fine though and he went right on in, only a couple of times running back to me for a mommy moment, then off again to explore his new room. the other kids were already involved in book time (wow, they were SITTING and looking at books : ). tomorrow the bus will be picking him up, so he'll be picked up anywhere from 10 to 10:30! wow!! he wont get off the bus with K until about 4:15, so that's a lot of time with just S and I!
today I splurged and took she and I to McDs for lunch after dropping him off. took a bunch of stuff to cosign as I had to do a mad dash through all the tubs to find fall items for the boys! thankfully I found a lot of 4t stuff for G to wear .
S fell asleep on the way home so I let her stay there til we left to go get G. maybe she'll get regular naps now!
ok, bus driver just called and he has to be ready by 10 am!
macaroni for dinner tonight. thinking of fixign some of the kids lunches for school...

 

so G didnt go to school yesterday, not his fault, the school were out yesterday for an in-service day he goes today though! I'm excited and just hope I remember to take pics! he wont go in til noon, so that gives Sarina plenty of time to sleep and me to wake upthe temps have been crazy cool so far this week. yesterday highs were in the upper 60s/low 70s and today its supposed to be 67. the only bad thing is we have no heat.  we need to get a new computer board for the heat pump and til we do its only set to put out a/c. the lows have been in the mid 40s so by morning its chilly in here.
I hate cold weather and yes, I feel a cold coming on since yesterday.

in the morning I'm going to a moms GTG! I was called up and invited for the starting up of a new moms group in town, so figure I'll drag the kids out to see about it. :) hopefully we'll survive LOL

some funny things: I rented a new series from netflix this week. um, needless to say I wasnt prepared for it! I'd not seen it on tv, just have been seeing the ads for it, so got it. good thing I didnt pop it into the tvs dvd player so the kids could see!!! it's True Blood LOL! WOW, can we say I was going woah !!!!!!!! dh laughed at me when I told him LOL! warning to the masses: NOT TO BE VIEWED AROUND KIDS!!! omgosh! LOL!!!!

Sarina was a TOTAL pill today. uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh (is that long enough?) everything was something to cry at today. not just a cry, the head thrown back, squealing/screeching sobbing cries that eventually end up with a toddler flopped on the floor in a heap of wails. uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh (ok, that one looks better) and she wouldnt take a nap! even worse! she DID go to bed easily tonight though! HA!!
she's also woken up once during the night the past two nights. totally not like her at.all. I cant even remember the last time she woke during the night before this. I'm figuring its those darn canine teeth. all four of them are still MIA and her with an otherwise full set of choppers (we can call her gappy LOL) so I think they're trying to make an appearance and she's not taking it very well.
come on tooth fairy, throw me some teeth erupting dust!!

Garrett amazed me today! now this will seem awful to you all I'm sure, but truly i was amazed! that boy watched 3 (count them), three full length movies today! :huh: yeah! tell me about it, I was floored! he was watchign one of the early morning shows like Kai Lan or something when he seen a commercial for the new Scooby movie. "I wanna watch Scooby momma!" and he kept on and on, so I said fine adn got the first one I came to, which was the first live action movie. I popped it in thinking he'd sit for 5 minutes and then be off playing. NOPE! he sat and watched the whole thing (minus one quick pee break). laughing at it during the funny parts even! when the credits started rolling, he started hollering for more!
so I found Scooby Doo 2 and put it in. thinking surely he'd be up in 5 minutes! NOPE! he watched the whole dang thing! :huh: (he thought the farting was especially funny LOL)
when that was done he was yelling for more schooby, but I'd forgotten about the animated ones and talked him into Alladin instead. he agreed and watched about 90% of that one!
now this just floors me cause this kid normally is just in and out of things so fast! I've NEVER seen him dedicate that much attention to one thing (besides playdoh or trucks. and the 10% of Alladin was missed because of playdoh LOL).
so yeah, I let him sit through 3 movies today, but hey! maybe its showing he can sit still and pay attention now! that's a positive thing to me! LOL!!!

his next preschool eval is on friday!

c's bday party

so I'm resting finally! its been SUCH a long day. wow, bday party days always make me dog tired!
so it started out I still had to go to the store this morning. FIL got in last night late and I had to get up early thanks to hunter LOL.
I got done with food getting about 10. back to the house so we can get everything finished up and together to head to the park. I even still had to decorate the cake! (which thankfully was easy per C's wishes!)
so we're running late and about 1 we're heading to the park... only to find out its CLOSED today cause of a tractor pull!  yeah, if we wanted in the park at 1:00, we'd have to pay $5 per person for a pull that was at 7pm!! I gave them a few choice words to say the least! UGH! so we turned back around to come home for teh party.
my house was a wreck and all these people are here *sigh* how embarrassing! :P
throwing stuff around and making a quick clean up though I guess it was doable. we finally ate about 2:30 I think.
C had 6 friends over, my mom and Sdad, my dad, our family, my brother, my SIL and her fiance and my FIL. :) 21 people, not bad!
we set up some quick table space outside to give more room (my house is just way too small to accomodate all these people inside!!) and it worked out much better.
dh and FIL took C and his friends bowling around 5. still waiting on them to get home! I'm sure they're having a ball!
got pics, just need to resize to share.

gavin and hunter went home with my dad, we'll pick them up tomorrow after the reunion they were super excited to be going of course!

we'll be leaving about 9am and I have NO idea when we'll be back. I know i'll be tired cause it'll be a lot of driving. :P

I know C got a lot of $, I think $60 last he told me. that's what he wanted! we'll see how long he keeps it LOL!

braces are done!

today went really well. for those who have me on FB, I tried to post updates as we progressed, but the pics I sent didnt go through. I've tried posting tonight on there, but FB is being a PILL and its just not working. :P I do have pics from PB that I'll post in here though

our time at the ortho office was about 3 hours. he got blue bands put on front. he's learning quickly about what he can or cant eat. *snort* his first venture after the office was to get a jr burger. uh huh. I tried to talk him out of it, but do we know how hard headed a teen is? yep! he got about half of it down before giving up and eating 2 of my chic nuggets, then a few fries adn called it quits. he tried ramen tonight and that was not well. its not really the braces that are bothering him, its the expander in the roof of his mouth. it seems to catch all the food
he loves his new toothbrush (oral b pro sonic thing) courtesy of the orthodontists office (which it should be considering how much these braces cost!)
my sis came over and hung out with me for about half the visit, made it nice since C was kinda occupied LOL!
afterwards I took him to the mall to get the new Skillet CD for his bday and we went to wendys. (read above)

a few other stops to get errands done as well. gosh, Sams, best buy, guitar repair shop, gavin's school, $ store, picked up the two LO's from mom in town, then home for when sis got off the bus.

sarina has a fever tonight. she's not been as poopy, but tired and cranky would describe her very well. she's still awake right now tho and is in the "I'm not tired! really I'm not *yawn*" stage. LOL

tomorrow I have parent/teacher meetings. my earliest is at 8 am. dang it. :P

ok, I'll do pics next post.

oh, FIL didnt get in tonight, he had another load to carry, so will be in tomorrow, as will dh.



I love this pic. he's discovered that eating a burger will not be the same for the next 20 months!

so in the morning, C goes to get his braces and expanders put on! I'm taking me a book along since I have no idea how long this will take. i'm hoping to meet up with my sis as well. I told C I'd take him to FYE afterwards for a new CD he's wanting. it'll be his bday gift (which he's very excited to get it before his bday too )

FIL is supposed to be in tomorrow as well. it'll be a busy weekend! tomorrow is braces, kids are off on friday, plus FIL will be in and I have my usual running to do. saturday we're having C's 14th bday party! it'll be out at the park so there wont be a ton of clean up! then sunday we'll be going to Burkesville for a family reunion on dh's side as well as hoping to meet up with my dad that day since he'll be in the neighboring town.
friday is also parent/teacher meetings! gotta remember that!
monday the kids are off school of course.

sarina's not felt 100% today. she's had the poops and her bottom has been getting red cause of it. not sure what's causing it: teeth? bug? dont know. she had a low grade fever this morning, but otherwise is fine. no runny nose, etc, just the poops. we're still waiting on her canine teeth to come in, so those could be the culprits. guess we'll find out.

canaan's got spacers

today Canaan had his spacers put in in preperation for his braces. he's not feeling that great tonight. his mouth is sore adn said his tummy is upset as well. we'll see how he's doing in the morning for if he can go to school. I hope he does perk up cause these are nothing compared to how the actual braces will feel. :(

today Canaan and Hunter also graduated up to the next level belt in Kung Fu! Canaan is now a 2nd level green while Hunter is up his first belt to yellow. very proud of both of them! (in case anyone forgot, we pulled K and G cause of non-concentration in class. gavin really wants to get back in, but now its a matter of $ too. :P)

they're all earning an environmental badge this week though. the class gives out certain badges for doing certain projects and this semester was environment: recycling. since we do recycling here at the house all the time, it was a no brainer to get this badge

the kids were off school today too, so tomorrow its back to the grind. I think Garrett will miss everyone. :)

oh, his preschool eval is on friday! I'm excited about it for him, but also worried.

ugh, I'm so glad today is done. it was one of those dang days. not to mention I was CLUMBSY today! I hate days like that. I knocked over at least 3 food items today, not to mention dripping paint on the new floors (it cleaned up) and other stuff.

like I said above, I've gotten most things put back where they go. tossed some stuff too and making my stack for goodwill. the funny thing is that the bathroom feels bigger! its weird! it has an echo to it now without the carpet in there (no carpet! its so easy to clean!!!!!!!!!!) and it just feels bigger!
I do have pics, just need to unload the camera. I'll have gavin's bday party on there tomorrow too.

I'm doing a lego/batman cake for gav. hoping it turns out like I'm imagining it!

Garrett mashed hsi fingers in the car door tonight. he's gotten where he likes getting in the cars. I started locking them just cause of that, but daddy didnt and he was messing around in his and got his index/middle fingers of his left hand. its ok now, but we're hoping that'll teach him not to get in them. (I can hope, right??)

Sarina is telling people to "stop!" LOL! Canaan was loving on me tonight in front of her and she hollered it at him.  quite funny!

oh, forgot: took the boys to buy shoes nite before last. we had quite a foot growth spurt! hunter went from a youth 13 to a sz 2. gavin went from a 2.5 to a 4.
their little toes are much happier!

the remodel work on our floors is coming along well. today they got the top floor laid down and early tomorrow the men that will lay the new linoleum (SP?) will be here. hopefully my house will be back to rights by wednesday evening? would be nice! I'll be painting tomorrow as well, so still dont expect to see me much on here. :P
my house is chaos. we've not had the washer hooked up since friday evening so I'll be up to my armpits in laundry when its hooked back up! my whole bedroom is just.... ugh! that's where all the stuff from the utility room and bathroom AND master closet has gone (with exeption of cabinetry, washer/dryer. I'll get a pic of that mess tomorrow. i can get in on one side of the bed.

(I'll have to post this tomorrow since a storm is moving in and it knocked my net out :P )

I have to call about the kids computer. the power blinked the day before yeaterday and now it wont come on.  of course gavin and katlyn are going nuts at not being able to get on.

school is going great, seems they all like it so far. Hunter told me friday that he was being so good he'd not gotten his name on the board!
gavin brought home his math book today, they'll be using saxon math :)
and of course today started the *real* work since the 3 days last week were just intros basically.

hunter likes riding the bus. on Mon/Tues and Thurs they all get dropped off at the dojo and I meet them up there. lots easier than waiting in line at all the schools to pick them up!

hm.... oh, Hunter taught himself how to ride a 2 wheel bike last week!  he called me outside and said "momma! come watch me ride this cool new bike!" (2 guys at work had given dh 2 'new' bikes for the boys). and he trucked right around the driveway on it! I was so proud of him!

Garrett is doing really well, not that he's magically morphed into an angel, but he's doing really good during the days when the kids are gone. I hardly have any problems between him and sarina. the days are pretty darn nice IMO!

he's been TOTALLY entertained while the workers have been here. its all right up his alley, tools, dirt, man stuff LMBO! the first day he came and emptied the water heater, that was 50 gallons of water that garrett got to play in! LOL!!

guess I'll post this if it'll let me, then go read a bit before bed. I have been getting up when the kids are getting ready and will HAVE to tomorrow since the floorers will be here early. *yawn*

8-2-09 gavins baptism!

gavin was loving it cause the water was warm LOL!

first day of school pics

 

 

AWWWWWWW tender baby moment!! garrett was walking away and says "I love you mom!" (normal behavior for him) and sarina goes "I ya ma!"  that was cool! 

 

one year apart...

 last year 7-29-08


this year 7-29-09

The American Spectator
July 24, 2009
By Ben Stein

We've Figured Him Out

Why is President Barack Obama in such a hurry to get his socialized medicine bill passed?

Because he and his cunning circle realize some basic truths:

The American people in their unimaginable kindness and trust voted for a pig in a poke in 2008. They wanted so much to believe Barack Obama was somehow better and different from other ultra-leftists that they simply took him on faith.

They ignored his anti-white writings in his books. They ignored his quiet acceptance of hysterical anti-American diatribes by his minister, Jeremiah Wright.

They ignored his refusal to explain years at a time of his life as a student. They ignored his ultra-left record as a "community organizer," Illinois state legislator, and Senator.

The American people ignored his total zero of an academic record as a student and teacher, his complete lack of scholarship when he was being touted as a scholar.

Now, the American people are starting to wake up to the truth. Barack Obama is a super likeable super leftist, not a fan of this country, way, way too cozy with the terrorist leaders in the Middle East, way beyond naïveté, all the way into active destruction of our interests and our allies and our future.

The American people have already awakened to the truth that the stimulus bill -- a great idea in theory -- was really an immense bribe to Democrat interest groups, and in no way an effort to help all Americans.

Now, Americans are waking up to the truth that ObamaCare basically means that every time you are sick or injured, you will have a clerk from the Department of Motor Vehicles telling your doctor what he can and cannot do.

The American people already know that Mr. Obama's plan to lower health costs while expanding coverage and bureaucracy is a myth, a promise of something that never was and never will be -- a bureaucracy lowering costs in a free society. Either the costs go up or the free society goes away.

These are perilous times. Mrs. Hillary Clinton, our Secretary of State, has given Iran the go-ahead to have nuclear weapons, an unqualified betrayal of the nation. Now, we face a devastating loss of freedom at home in health care. It will be joined by controls on our lives to "protect us" from global warming, itself largely a fraud if believed to be caused by man.

Mr. Obama knows Americans are getting wise and will stop him if he delays at all in taking away our freedoms.

There is his urgency and our opportunity. Once freedom is lost, America is lost. Wake up, beloved America.

Ben Stein is a writer, actor, economist, and lawyer living in Beverly Hills and Malibu. He writes "Ben Stein's Diary" for every issue of The American Spectator.