The In-Laws Are Coming...

That means they're on the plane and Bob will shortly be picking them up. It also means that I can finally blog about our crazy adventures over the last couple of weeks. Pictures will come later as I couldn't bring myself to taken them right off since I knew it would be harder to not to blog about them... and we wanted it to be a surprise for Bud and Lynne!

Well, after many years of waiting... okay, three..... we now have a kitchen floor. The best part... I helped put it in! It's been so long since I've been that involved in those kinds of projects that it felt great - though I was truly sore for several days after. I loved that the kids played happily in the other room and in about a half a day we had almost the entire floor in (just a little cutting in and under appliances left). Bob finished up all of that (except under the dishwasher, he'll do that this week).

The other major change is that the kids' bedrooms are now actually closed off from each other - Bob put in closets for both the girls and the boys (now all four bedrooms have closets). The kids were able to help with that, and I did get pictures, but they're still on the camera!

Bob also spent a good deal of time repainting the house... a lighter color... at least all the trim is lighter now!

He also changed a bunch of lights... and this week will move the placement of bedroom lights (why would anyone put them up against the wall instead of in the middle when they're ceiling lights?)

He's worked some on the long cabinet for the upstairs hallway (though it's not in yet) as well as the doors for the kitchen. They will all go up this week too!

And while Dad is here, the stairs will be finished off!

Yes, we'll finally have a completed house (except for the outside, but that can wait).

It's been busy around here... we've also spent a good deal of time weeding out and getting things ready to pass on (By the way, anyone know of someone going to have a baby girl? I have newborn through 12 month to give away)

Pictures will come soon.. .maybe more stories too... but now you know why the house has been inside out, upside down and backwards for the last two weeks!

Storms

Well... there's been a lot of rain... but then, there have been many days that were suppose to be "all rain" that we've woken up and had sun... we did eventually get the rain and thunderstorms, but we've been enjoying the sunshine which seems to be (at least in our neck of the woods) a bit more prominent.

Last night was suppose to be a none-stop thunderstorm adventure. The first storm came in, loud, bright, and well... with screaming and crying kids... wait, no, just one kid!

It started with the coming of the storm, which makes the wind pick up. Jeremy just couldn't handle that and thought for sure that everything (even our house) would blow away. For a kid who has never had to worry about hurricanes or tornadoes, he's awfully concerned!

Anyway, it only got worse as the storm rumbled in... then got louder, wetter, and brighter... he was certain everything in the house would blow up! I assured him that I'd already shut down the computer, and that the TV (which Peter had a movie going on) was plugged into a "special strip". But that wasn't enough... so the TV was shut off, only to make Peter go into hysterics. Then Peter also noticed the storm, and things just went from there.

I decided to some how convince Jeremy that we could at least try a family movie (since all the pillows and blankets had now been moved to the playroom for the "night" and for the ever anticipated "loss of power" (which didn't happen)). So Jeremy put on "Daddy's Ears" (the ear protection he uses when working in the shop) and I put on The Sound of Music! Thank goodness Jeremy calmed down when he could hardly hear anything, and then fell asleep! The rest of us watched the movie... which the girls decided was too long... even if, as Gabi told me, the music was good.

Oh, but for me... it was nice to watch an old classic again! They just don't make musicals like they use to...

Down By The River

We finally had a sunny day! It was warm before we really got going, but with all we had to do, Gabi had to remind me that we needed to go to the river... I had promised her the first nice day when C. wasn't here we'd head over. So, after getting some work done.. though not much... and eating a little lunch, we headed over... everyone except Bob.

The kids had a lot of fun - Gabi and Beth enjoyed "floating with the current" though Gabi wasn't happy that I wouldn't let her go where it was "deep". Peter loved to play "Kapluie" (throwing rocks) as well as Diego. Jeremy was just here and there doing his own thing and occassionally helping Peter walk along the little "rock wall" which was started last year when the river was up so high. It was mostly gone, but we started putting it back together.

When Peter would get to the end of the wall, he could feel the current rushing over his feet. He'd turn around and say "It's swimming me away!" He also had several "slips" into the water either from walking on the little wall or trying to get a rock that was just a little further than his reach. He'd land face first in the water, get up with a gasp (the water was cold), then laugh and say "I went swimming, Mama! Do it again!"

It was a nice way to cool off.. till we heard the rumbles. Then we came home... no storm here, though, so we're still heated and trying to accomplish something.. that's getting harder every day.. kids are ready for normal again.

Animals In The House

We seem to have had a transformation around here. Peter is no longer....we now have Baby Jaguar.

Can you tell we've had a little too much Diego play?

YARD SALE - EVERYTHING LISTED MUST GO

As we're going through things, we're compiling stacks of things to sell....if you want anything, let us know - or come up and take a look any time. Also, if there is something specific that you might be looking for, let us know, we'll see if we have it!

Also, if you know of or hear of anyone looking for things, please send them by this link! Thanks!

There will be a link on the side bar to this post - check back as often as you'd like for updates and add ons!

We can be contacted through the side bar by clicking on Tara and then clicking on email. Please put YARD SALE in the subject heading.

LIST:

Huge stack of children's books (come take a look, if I find a huge chunk of time I'll list them out, but that's not very likely) Price varies from $0.25-$1.00 per book

4 fifty pound bags of King Arthur flour (never been opened) - $17 a bag

24 piece puzzles (Cinderella, Jasmine, Dora) - $0.50 each

Beginning Puzzles (the kind in the wooden trays with each piece cut separate): Alphabet, Numbers, Strawberry Shortcake Alphabet, Toys, Dinosaurs, Farm - $0.50 each

3-D Strategy Airplane Puzzle (front and back halves for several airplanes, you arrange until all planes have their own front and backs together) - $0.50

1 fifty pound bag of rolled oats (never been opened) - $8

Tons of Creative Memories stuff (I haven't gone through it all yet, so if it's of interest, make arrangements with me and come on over and go through and see what you want. Price determined on location)

Dora Candy Land - $2

We have several fridges, stoves, etc... If you're interested in something like that, call Bob. - $50 each

Play Kitchen Set (with food,dishes, toaster, and cash register) - $10

Matching (to the above kitchen set) Play Washer/Dryer Set - $5

Fisher Price Stride-to-Ride (walk-behind/bike) - $5

Portable Baby Gym - $5

Fisher Price Peek-A-Blocks: Sports (Set of 6, $5), Rock'n Ark (set of 4 blocks plus ark, $7)

Fisher Price Peek-A-Rounds: Animals (set of 6, $5), Vehicles (set of 6, $5)

Playskool Ball Popper - $8

Disney Princesses 9 Foam Pieces Hop Scotch - $1

Home Depot Neighborhood Playmat - $2 (Has road and railway, pictures of different places like airport, Home Depot, school, police station, etc Is sectional foam)

Lego Duplo Blocks (My First Starter Set plus one Bob the Builder Set) - $12

Mr. Potato Head (Silly Suit Case Set, case not included) - $6
Mr. Potato Head Spud Buds (case not included) - $3

Bookcases: 1 Dark, heavy and sturdy with one adjustable shelf - $10; 1 Light color, not as heavy, not as nice, one middle shelf - $5

3 Wooden Baby Gates (hard mounting, great for stairs) - $3 each

Bill Nye Paper Recycling Factory (used only once) - $10

Bella Dancerella Ballet Home Studio (plastic ballet bar, ballet feet positioning mat & DVD) - $5

Videos (VHS) - $0.10 each or the whole bunch for $2 (Big Sister Dora; Mickey Blue Eyes; Video Head Cleaner; For Richer or Poorer; Aladdin; Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles; Ghost Busters; Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken; Corrina, Corrina; Runaway Bride; Curly Sue; Antz; Tarzan; Free Willy; Free Willy 2; Rigoletto; Beaches; Air Bud World Pup; The Jungle Book (Non-animated); Pinocchio; Shiloh; The Amazing Panda Adventure; An American Tail Fievel Goes West; The Firm: Ab Sculpt, Cardio Sculpt, Body Sculpt Set; Miracle On 34th Street; Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs; 101 Dalmatians (animated); George of the Jungle; Strawberry Shortcake Adventures on Ice Cream Island; The Indian in the Cupboard; The Man From Snowy River; Return to Snowy River; The Yearling; An American Tail; Princess Bride)

And It All Begins... The Baby Really Is Growing Up

I thought I'd wait until after the in-laws came and went... you know, traveling with a potty training or newly potty trained child is just not as much fun... so much easier to rely on diapers. And, since I didn't have an infant of my own to worry about, I figured we were good to wait.

I've let Peter lead the way... but the initial attempt ended the second time the pee went down his leg - since he was reacting to foods (and we didn't know them all yet) it burned his leg. Anyway, two days ago he woke up dry - he peed on the potty - he wanted to wear "undy-pants"... so, here we are.

Day one... perfect morning. Then he was more tired, but refused a nap... but still only a couple accidents. Day two... a few more accidents, but he figured out when to tell us he needed to go. Again, by afternoon he was "tired" and was having less enthusiasm for the "breaks in the day". Day three (today) was perfect until after he'd fallen asleep and got half a nap. Then it was dinner time and he was so cranky I thought he'd fall asleep again, so I put him in a pull-up. Well, he peed in it at 7pm... hey, not bad though... 12 full hours of no accidents... even through the nap!

He won't wear diapers any more (I tried to get him to wear one last night) insisting that he needed to wear the "undy-pants" to bed. I had picked up pull-ups for "on the go" so I finally convinced him those were okay. I don't think it will be long.. but the in-laws don't come for another two weeks.... traveling will be an adventure.. even if he is fully trained!

Insentives are tricky... no candies... that's new... so, it's 15 minutes of computer time. Which then was traded for movie time too... let's just say we've had a lot of media on in our house lately! (As a memory, though, Beth would only use M&Ms, Jeremy couldn't stand having the same treat twice in a row.. so we resorted to the mini-mix of chocolates, and with Gabi, well, she was cute. She received stickers. 1 for trying, 2 for peeing, 3 for a poop. The cute part: she'd run over, get her stickers, run back and flush them down the toilet. I'm sure this is not good for the sewer, but they were tiny and for some reason that was what kept her going)

Jeremy's 4!

Oh where does the time go to? Sometimes I wish he were still the little man... the baby... because then he wouldn't be antagonizing everyone else! But, I suppose, we'd miss the stunts, the teasing, the picking, the glint in his eye... the smile and laughter.

Jeremy is amazing... bright, cheerful and full of it! He loves to build things - legos, train tracks, recently the Wedgits (he got them for his birthday), blocks and whatever else he can get his hands on. He also loves to create things... making dinner, treats, and if allowed, whatever the tools will accomplish!

He hates to be outdone, but rather than compete, he simply insists that he can do it too... and then he'll make sure he can. He's been slowly reading - though he has less confidence than ability. He loves to manipulate things, and has really got a great hold on math.

Hands on is always best! If someone else has a workbook, a set of tools, time on the computer, certain toys, etc, he insists that he must also. If his hands aren't busy, well, you can bet that his mind is... and someone else is yelling out of irritation and frustration!

His smile melts all hearts! His sincere love of the world, of life, of people, of ideas is something we admire. The twinkle in his eye often makes us laugh, even when we shouldn't! And no one could ask for a more adoring and loving brother - he's so willing to teach (even if he does tease along the way)!

Happy Birthday, Bug-A-Lug!

Baseball

Okay, so I'm late as usual. Baseball season is done.. Gabi had a wonderful time... don't think we got any pictures of Bob... I only managed to see three games....

Gabi hated the beginning of the season because it rained every game (or so it seemed) so that the first few were canceled. But then we seemed to luck out and when they called for rain it would manage to hold off or be so light that the game went as planned. She loves sports, so she really enjoyed herself.

This year, in addition to the normal outfield and batting, she was able to play catcher (one of her favorite positions) short stop and whatever the middle man is between first and second (I know, I'm a disgrace to baseball!).. .I'm sure she played other positions as well. I believe her very favorite was catcher this year! I never actually got to see her play this position, but Bob had the camera the day of team pictures and she played it then, so he got a few nice ones of that...

Last year was the wonderful number 6.... this year.... drum roll please.... number 7! Yes, she's a year older and so is her shirt (okay... the shirt is new, but the number is older). Hope you enjoy the pictures!

Shoulders, Knees & Toes

Peter keeps me smiling! Beth and Jeremy went to bed early tonight being overtired from many late nights. Gabi is away with Bob at her last baseball game.. so it's just Peter and me! He decided to entertain me... and when I asked if he would do it again so I could make a movie, he readily agreed (he is such a ham... loves the camera)!



When we were done, he watched it over and over and over and over. I finally told him I'd put it on the computer. He thought I needed to do it right away!

"My movie on a computer, Mama!"

I even tried to tell him it would take a while and that we could do it in the morning, so let's have ice cream....

"No, Mama! My movie on a computer!"

Then as we were putting it up, he kept asking if it was ready yet... he's very eager to have it up here! What a little "star"...