Another monkey?

I put Val in the floor, and when I turned around, this is where she was. She had loads of fun sitting and wiggling in the chair, until she apparently tried to stand up in it and fell over. Then she screamed and cried, but Peter set the chair back up and told her to do it again, and she did! Funny girl. Wonder if I'm going to have to watch her for climbing?

Fun, family & food

Last night, we went out for my nephew-in-law, Jon's, birthday. Here's a few fun shots of all the festivities.

Jon demonstrating his famous "deer in the headlights" look.

Princess Emma playing with wrapping paper, happy as can be! So nice to see Mommy so happy, too. :)

Sweet things come in small packages. All wrapped up with a big ol' bow...

Since we were in the back of the restaurant, they had Jon and this little girl stand on chairs so everyone in the rest of the place could help us yell "Yeee Hawww". Love the look on his face. :)

And finally, I learned that contrary to everything I've ever been taught or told, THIS is actually the correct way to wear flippies. Thanks for the lesson, Teacher!!

Little Artists, Funny Girls, and Hollywood Calling

The girls wanted to color today, and I remembered having this vinyl tablecloth that I use for painting. We moved everything from the center of the room and the girls helped spread it out. it was perfect - I didn't have to worry about them making a mess, and they had a blast.

Val's such a ham. All I had to do was blow her a raspberry and this is the look she gave me. :)

Hannah looks so glam in this photo - sorta like all those Hollywood starlets you see on the cover or a magazine. Just one more moment that takes your breath away and makes you really realize that she's growing up faster than any of us realize. Beautiful baby, isn't she?

A slithery situtation

One of the selling points for our house was the large back yard. I think we've got one of the larger back yards on our street. It's nice and shady, with a lovely patio and a swingset for us, as well as a swingset for the girls. Everything we wanted, right? Right, except for one issue.....

I haven't been in my back yard since early spring 2006. Why??? Because of snakes. Ugh. Peter killed several last year, and even the telephone dude caught one going through the ventilation grate under the back of the house. He killed it and took care of it. Let's just say I didn't get near the trash can for weeks afterward. I have this little issue with the slithery creatures - they absolutely terrify me. I did force myself to pet my nephew's snake a few years ago and it really wasn't that bad at the time, but my phobia has grown since then.

Peter cleared out all the excess bushes and weeds in the iris bed, then trimmed all the bushes around the house and mowed the yard over the weekend. He came inside and informed me that he had killed two snakes in the backyard, and he'd killed one earlier last week!! Eeeeeekkkkk!!!!

Now, I'm supposed to go out and help him clear out the garage, and there's a hole in the foundation behind our dryer out there that goes directly under the house. Can you say TERRIFIED to open a box and find an unwelcome surprise?? So I think I'll just sit in the back of the van with my feet pulled up off the ground and just supervise while he does the box opening. Yep, I'm a wimp, but then again, who among us truly likes creepy crawlies? (with the exception of Brooke and her oh so lovely Vanessa?)

Just sharing

It's been a little while since I updated, so here's a bunch of fun pics for you to look at.

It's been a long but rewarding week. I've managed to clear out a bunch more clutter (thankfully!!), and we made a head start on cleaning out the garage. We got the front half all sorted, and have loads of stuff for donation or sale. Of course, we had to put most of it back into the garage until tomorrow, when we want to pull it out again and sort through the back half. But at least it's getting done, and we can actually walk through there now! Looking forward to getting rid of loads of stuff that we've accumulated over the years and being able to build Peter a worktable so he can use the garage as his workshop.

Anyway, on to the photos....

Hannah cheesin' it up for the camera. We're letting her bangs grow out, and she's so beautiful without all that hair in her face. I think she likes it much better, as well. :)

Monkey having a rough hair day. Love the look on her face, though.

Val still hasn't started walking, although she clearly wants to. She's 13 months old, so it's just a matter of time before she takes off (hopefully). This is her signature pose - "Pick me up, please!".

Val was sitting beside me eating fries & chicken nuggets, and when I looked over, this is what I saw. Doesn't she look like a little pistol? Love my baby, though. :)

My sweet Honey Love really gets into his work. Lori, Mom and Florabeth came up for supper the other night, and he changed the brakes on Lori's car while we did "girlie" things. We howled when he came in and we saw how "lovely" he looked with grease all over him. I'm just so thankful for a wonderful husband who is so handy and willing to help others. He ROCKS!!

And last, but not least, THIS is what happens when you turn a Florabeth loose with your camera! Apparently she was bored silly, but I really like this picture anyway. Don't her eyes just POP out at you? Pretty girl.....

Rain, Crazy Drivers & Best Friends

Yesterday, I finally got to take the babies to meet my best friend in Birmingham. When we started out, it was gloomy, but we didn't actually get into rain until we got almost to our destination. We had a fabulous time visiting, and the girls fell in love with Shannon, and I think she fell for them too. While we were there, the Heavens opened and the rain came down. It abated for a while, and she walked out with us, and just as we got to the van, it really opened up again. She ran back into the house, I jumped into the van, and Peter closed the sliding door and went between the seats to come out on the other side, slammed it closed and got into the drivers seat. Boy, howdy! So glad we've got two front facing seats in the middle seat now, because he would never have been able to do that with the rear facing seat in place.

It took us 1.5 hours to go from Helena to the North side of Birmingham. At one point, traffic came to a crawl, and they were making both right lanes merge into the two left lanes. A scant mile up the road, they were merging both left lanes into the two right lanes!! And at 2:30-3:00pm, no less!! We found out why both lanes were closed - there was a pretty bad wreck, and an SUV was sitting on its hood and front windshield! Thank goodness we were able to make it back home (well, to the bank) at exactly 5:00pm, without any other incidents. We almost saw one one more wreck, but the drivers were able to avoid actually hitting each other. Seems like when it rains, people drive crazier than they normally do, which is saying a lot.

Overall, even with the rain, traffic woes and a few tummy issues, we had a fabulous time. I came home with loads of Stampin' Up, Pampered Chef and Tastefully Simple goodies. Yay!!! The time with Shannon was awesome, and much needed. Thanks for putting up with us, girlie!! Muahhhh! :)

Tastes like ewwww??

I'm feeling much better, but my tummy still has an issue with food. :( I've been living on peppermint tea, toast & eggs. Oh, and weirdly enough, I've found that chicken teriyaki from one particular restaurant also agrees. Go figure. Thanks to my friends for all the ideas and suggestions.

I got this tea for Christmas, in the "Calm" variety. All the ingredients made it sound like a very yummy tea, and I've been having a bit of trouble getting my days and nights straight again after the weekend, so I had a cup tonight. Well, it smells like this, and it leaves a taste in my mouth similar to the one I get after using that. So to get the taste out of my mouth, I had to nibble on lots and lots of these. Needless to say, I am NOT impressed. I think I'll stick with my chai and peppermint varieties from now on...

Sick of being sick

Ever get one of those "24 hour" bugs, and anxiously anticipate the end of those 24 hours when the end should be looming in sight? Yeah, me too. Invited family up for dinner and some computer time on Thursday night, and woke up sick on Friday morning. I was so sick I actually took Monkey to bed with me, called Meg and told her to just send Hannah inside, as I left the front door unlocked. That's pretty bad, huh?

Anyway, Peter and Mom took care of the girls for me on Friday, since I wasn't in any shape to be in charge, and Mom spent the night with me, just so I wouldn't have to be alone. (She's a sweetheart, IMHO! Thank you SO much for all you've done for me this weekend, dearie! I love you!)

So now it's Monday afternoon. I'm still sick. I'm drinking black tea, eating toast and eggs, nibbling on peppermints, and still that's all I can keep down. Peter went and got some medicine for me to help with the nausea, and that seems to help a little. Mom's coming by to bring me some peppermint tea in a bit, and hopefully that will help as well.

This is the LONGEST 24-hour bug I've ever had the misfortune to catch! Reckon the time change over the weekend got it messed up and it forgot to leave? I'm so tired of feeling ukky.

For those of you who read my blog and can pray, please do. I really need to be feeling better so I can be my best for my husband, my home and the little ones. :)

Pretty Darlin'

Hannah got to go to a wedding yesterday, and hung out with Mom, Peter and me for a while, until her Dad picked her up. Since Mom was here, I asked her to French braid Hannah's hair, simply because I thought she'd look absolutely adorable. Then Peter took her outside to take some photos of her in her pretty dress, which is also her Easter dress. Mom did a great job on her hair, and Peter got some really great shots.

Our little girl has grown up so very much, it's almost scary to realize that sometimes. She is so absolutely beautiful, and makes my heart smile, especially when she says "Nene, you're my best heart". Just had to share our little sweetheart with you all. :)

Chefs in the making?

I pulled out a toy baking set and toy food for the girls the other day. They all spent several hours "baking" and "cooking". I don't remember ever "tasting" so many different pretend dishes as I did that day. Every thirty seconds, one of them was at my side, wanting me to "taste". Even Val got into the act, although she's not walking yet, so she couldn't ask for a taste tester. What fun we all had, though. It's such a wonderful thing to watch the little ones finding such joy in simple things like this.

Twirling Divas

The girls wanted to "dress up" the other day, so they both were "Princesses". They were pretending to be ballerinas and Hannah had a blast trying to teach Monkey how to twirl.

Presidential Questions

I try not to bring politics to my blog, but when I got this in my inbox today, I just felt the need to share it. Hope it strikes you as it did me. :)

A mother asked President Bush, "Why did my son have to die in Iraq?"

Another mother asked President Kennedy, "Why did my son have to die in Viet Nam ?"

Another mother asked President Truman, "Why did my son have to die in Korea ?

Another mother asked President F.D. Roosevelt, "Why did my son have to die at Iwo Jima ?"

Another mother asked President W. Wilson, "Why did my son have to die on the battlefield of France?"

Yet another mother asked President Lincoln, "Why did my son have to die at Gettysburg ?"

And yet another mother asked President G. Washington, "Why did my son have to die near Valley Forge ?"

Then long, long ago, a mother asked...

"Heavenly Father, why did my Son have to die on a cross outside of Jerusalem ?"

The answers to all these are similar -- "So that others may have life and dwell in peace, happiness and freedom."

STAND BEHIND OUR TROOPS!!!

Sweet Babies

The girls found this maraca in the toybox and decided to put it to good use - as a microphone! They were looking out the window, singing to the birds. They were just too cute to pass up the photo opportunity.

Singing to the birdies...

Hannah really gets into her song!

Just waiting for Val to take off and start walking.... She's been standing in the same spot for almost 30 minutes, but won't let go of her fears. One of these days, she's bound to take off!

Val = Cute, Cute, Cute!

After the struggle we had with Monkey, trying to get her to leave her hairbows in, Tavy and I decided to start Val off early. I wanted to start fixing her hair last week, but it simply slipped my mind. So this morning, after her nap, I went ahead and put her hair up for the first time ever. Her hair's almost not long enough for anything, but I finally got this cute little ponytail to stay. She's just too stinkin' cute for words! So far, she hasn't even tried to mess with it, which is awesome. I just hope she leaves it alone and gets used to it so we don't have to fight with her. :)

Credit Card Offer Opt-Out Information

I got a letter yesterday from a pre-screened credit card, and on the back, I saw that they have information on how to opt out from all those junk mail credit card offers. Here's what the notice said.

Prescreen & Opt-Out Notice: This "prescreened" offer of credit is based on information in your credit report indicating that you meet certain criteria. Credit may not be extended to you in accordance with this offer if you do not meet our criteria, including, but not limited to, meeting our income, verification, and ability to pay requirements. You have the right to prohibit information contained in your credit file with any consumer reporting agency from being used in connection with any credit or insurance transaction that is not initiated by you and the right not to receive prescreened offers of credit from this and other companies. You may exercise this right by calling toll-free 1-888-567-8688 or writing to the following consumer credit reporting agencies: Experian Inc. P.O. Box 919, Allen, TX, 75013; Trans Union, P.O. Box 97328, Jackson, MS, 39288-7328; Equifax, P.O. Box 740123, Atlanta, GA 30374-0123.

I thought this was pretty cool, since we get offers for credit cards almost daily in the mail. I shred them as soon as they come into the house, because we don't use credit cards. Hopefully, you'll find this information as useful as we have.

I'm SO proud of you!

Peter came into the office this afternoon to ask me if I thought his sweater might be a bit on the big side. He bought it last winter, and it fit him great then. I couldn't help but laugh at the sight of it absolutely hanging on him. He's lost around 65 lbs in the past year, without even trying! I'm jealous of his success, but am very proud of him and try to be supportive in every way. Needless to say, this sweater will be making it into the sell box first thing in the morning. Gooooo, Peter!!! You look GOOD!! :)

(BTW, the bookcase he's standing in front of is his latest achievement in the household projects. I think he did a great job!)

Sisterly Love

The babies are getting so big! They were playing the other day and I managed to sneak a few shots of them. Too, too sweet. :)

Funny Girl

Can you say "Bad Hair Day"?? Monkey's such a funny girl!

Pictures!

Since Ryan's Mimi wanted to see some pics, I thought I'd share. :)

The birthday man opening his gifts and cards.

Ryan's Mimi showing Ryan's Papa some love and affection.

Taking him dooooown!!

Ryan and his loving Papa.

Sis. Kathryn and her husband David - it was so nice to see you two!



Poppi and his Queen, and Lil' Bit, too.

My sweet honey and I. Maybe I should have asked for a foot stool? He's so tall!

I missed getting pictures of Florabeth and Oma, although we did get one of little Miss Savannah...

But I can't figure out how on earth to do red-eye removal on my graphics program. :(

I also missed taking pics of Ryan's Mommy & Daddy and his Aunt Abigail and uncle Jay. Sorry, guys. Next time we get together, maybe we'll be able to take better photos. :)

Good times, good food, great company

This evening, we were invited to a mystery dinner to celebrate my brother's birthday. Five out of seven of us siblings were there, which was great. The food was awesome, but then again, the food is always awesome at Mimi's. :) She's a great cook!

I ate a baked potato with a steak knife, along with banana pudding. I ate my salad and a chicken breast with a toothpick. My options for eating my Jell-O was either try to use my toothpick, eat it with a knife or just slurp it from the cup. So I slurped, and almost choked. What fun we had! It's something that I'd love to do again. Thanks for the invite, Mimi!

I got lots of fun pics, and got Oma to take a couple of Peter and myself. I just don't have very many of us together, which is sad when I try to scrapbook a page on us. I'm usually the one behind the camera, so it was nice to have someone take a pic of us tonight. Just hope they turn out.

It was great seeing the babies - and it was funny to watch them. Little Miss Savannah was a hoot, and kept us laughing.

All in all, the evening was fantastic, and a nice change of pace for the adults to get together. I hope it was as much fun for my siblings as it was for Peter and me. :)

Nothing to say

Ever feel like you have absolutely nothing to say? Well, that's me. Nothing funny, witty, exciting or even newsy. So I'll just say nothing at all. :)

Spring in the air?

Wow, today's just so amazingly beautiful, it makes me think (and hope) that Spring is on its way. It's so lovely to have the windows open, feeling the cool breezes, getting that whiff of fresh air, listening to the birds searching for their lunches, and just getting the winter musties out of the house. Even if we have to go through more cold spells, today just seems so much sweeter.

Peter pulled the plastic off the window in the office that overlooks the iris bed beside the house. He opened the window, and we are all enjoying the fresh air and the birds outside. The birds are singing, and we can hear them out there in the bushes as they walk around looking for a tasty morsel. It's so lovely!

Only drawback? The sight of two sapling trees that will have to be removed soon. There's already one fully grown tree in the iris bed, so the saplings have to go. We also need to dig up all the irises, clean out all the grass and weeds, then replant the irises this fall. It's so beautiful when all the irises are in bloom. The majority of them are a creamy white color, with a few purple ones here and there, and there's literally no space between the plants. The former owners planted them, and we absolutely love it.

The past couple of years, I couldn't really see them because my desk was in front of that window and I couldn't open it. This year, though - the only thing in front of the window is the toy bucket. I'm thinking that we may need to put a foot stool there so the girls can look out and watch the birds.

Anyway, just wanted to share my enthusiasm and excitement for the coming of Spring!! Woo hoo!!

Getting there

For the past few months (close to a year, rather), I've been going through some mental gymnastics and dealing with a bit of lethargy and lack of inspiration for anything. The other day while Peter and I were talking, I came to some conclusions that I wish I'd realized years and years ago. So after talking out things and recognizing why I felt the way I do about some things in my life, suddenly my mojo has come flooding back.

I'm inspired to do all sorts of things that I haven't had the desire to do for a long time, and together, we've made some changes. Let me just say - it feels SO good! Releasing all that baggage that has been dragging me down, letting go of THINGS, getting rid of all the excuses has given me such freedom. While all this sounds a bit vague, it's made a major difference.

I have been eating on a more regular basis, making better choices, doing more, eliminating the CHAOS that has surrounded us and kept us feeling bound and depressed. It's just stuff and there's more where that came from. It's not making me happy, so why not give it to someone who can use it and hopefully enjoy it more than we can?

Hopefully this newfound happiness and lightness will find its way into my creative life. I have scrapbooked one page in 2007, and I miss it. I miss the joy it brings me, and I'm ready to go back to doing the things that relax me and make me feel content.

But for now, I'm excited with the things I've gotten done the past couple of days that I'd been procrastinating about for months now. :) Feels good!

A special treat

This evening, after spending a few hours at class, my sweet husband came home and pulled some chicken out of the freezer and proceeded to make his "famous" fried chicken for our dinner. It's been a while since he made any for just us, so it was a really special treat. Of course, we had to have homemade cornbread and some turnip greens to go with. Yummy! In case I haven't told you lately, I REALLY LOVE THAT MAN OF MINE!! He totally rocks! :)

Grrr

There are a few drawbacks to living within yards of your next door neighbors. We haven't really gotten to know our neighbors, other than the girl across the street, but she's a totally different story... The past few days have caused me to contemplate the relative seclusion of buying a house in the country.

Anyway, we've got young folks living across the street and a sorta youngish couple who lives next door. Both of these houses have frequent visitors who like to torture everyone within a mile with their "music", which basically boils down to a thumping bass line that rattles my windows and vibrates my lovely wooden floors. It gives me a headache and the constant drone of the bass makes me actually get nauseated. Weird, I know, but it makes me physically ill if I have to listen to it for very long.

Anyway, I would like to know how many people agree with me about this subject. Do you feel like your privacy is being invaded if you're inside your house trying to do your thing and you're forced to listen to the constant thumping and bumping coming from some inconsiderate person's car stereo?? Not to mention the fact that if it were up to you in the first place, it's not the kind of music you'd listen to in a million years?

Well, that's how I feel. I have my windows closed, storm windows shut, doors closed, and yet, when I'm in the back rooms of my house, I can hear the thump-thump-thump and can just imagine (and hope) that the result of their inconsideration is that every bold, screw and nut in their vehicle will be shaken loose and their entire car will simply fall apart so they can't pull up in the street and torture me any more.

Today, I took a step to stop the madness. Well, to hopefully slow it to an every-once-in-a-while occurrence instead of a several-times-daily one. I put the HPD non-emergency number in my cell phone so I don't have to look it up each time they won't cease and desist. And I saved it on my SIM card. :)

Now, if the cop who lives 4 doors down would just speak up and ask them to please stop....

A Pleasant Surprise

Someone who means a lot to me called this morning, and asked if we'd like to meet up for lunch. We went to Rosie's and had a great time. It was so nice to see them all again. Only bad thing - I bit into something plastic in my quesadilla. Got a replacement meal to go at no cost, so that was nice of them. Anyway, it just made my day to get that call this morning. :)

A funny story

I read this and got so tickled. Thought you might get a good chuckle from it as well...



Eek!: Men flee after seeing 'giant rat'

Fri Feb 16, 9:58 PM ET

VIRGINIA, Minn. - A furry, uninvited guest had manly men at an Iron Range tire shop shrieking and hopping on desks. "It was pretty humorous," said conservation officer Dan Starr, who filed a report on the critter's break-in. "Here were these big, burly outdoors guys running around screaming." Taconite Tire employees arrived at work on Monday to find what they thought was a giant rat inside the store.

"I was the first one into work that morning and the first one out," said Shannon Bergman, an off-road tire salesman. "I walked in, and in the waiting area I saw this big rat, and I took off."

Mayhem ensued.

After scampering out the front door, Bergman called a buddy and told him to bring a rifle to dispatch the critter.

On edge, employees stalked the "rat," entering the office where it was hold up.

"We're looking around in the office and a box falls, and I must have jumped a foot," said Bob Dethloff, a brawny alignment specialist and stock car racer. "I thought it was going to attack me from behind."

Dethloff's son, Ryan, a mechanic at the shop, was armed with a broomstick.

All of a sudden, he spotted the "rat."

"Ryan comes out of the office screaming, and he says, 'It's huge!'" Bergman said. "It was the size of a cat."

"I guess he jumped on top of a desk and screamed like a girl who had seen a mouse," Starr said of Ryan Dethloff.

In the end, an employee shot and killed what turned out to be a muskrat.

___

Information from: Duluth News Tribune, http://www.duluthsuperior.com

Turning the big O-N-E!

Wow, I can't believe a year has passed since she was born! The past ten months that we've been keeping her has flown by. There were rough moments, especially the first 4 months we had her. The many, many clothing changes both for her and us because her poor little tummy wouldn't behave. The crying jags, the teething, the fevers and colds.

But on the other hand, we got to be there for many of her "firsts" - first smile, first time rolling over, first time reaching out for a toy, first time sitting up, first time standing on her own, first tooth, first time puckering up and giving a kiss - they've all just happened in what seems like a blink of the eye.

We love our baby girl SO much, and are so thankful to be able to spend so much time with her, to teach her and share in all the fun stuff she's learning so quickly.

So from all of us - Hannah, Amber, MyPete & Nene, we just want to say....

Happy Birthday, Valerie!!

From me to you...

We did it!

We finally taught Mazie how to pucker up! This afternoon, I was holding her and I asked her for a kiss, and the little sweetheart puckered up her lips and kissed me!!! Normally, she puts her head against your lips or else comes at you with her mouth wide open and slobbers all over you, but somehow, during the day today, we got her to do it right. It's SO cute, and as much as I tried, I couldn't get a good pic of her giving Hannah a kiss. I'll keep trying, though. It's just too precious for words! She's such a joy to have with us. :)