Fall Y'all Giveaway

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED. I WILL PICK A WINNER LATER ON TODAY AND POST IT. THANKS FOR PLAYING.


Like I've mentioned the Fall Giveaway is in full swing. I've entered lots of them so far and have been thinking of what I can add to the list.

I have finally decided on a necklace and pierced earring set. This set has some pretty lavender stones in a silver setting and chain. So if you like it then let me know.


I will leave this giveaway open until Nov. 2 and will chose a winner after that. This giveaway is open to anyone. I feel bad that so many of the international people are being left out, so enter away. Just leave me a comment (one per person) and be sure to leave me a way to get in touch with you either through your blog or email.

Head on over here to see what other giveaways are going on.

Planting time

It's that time again. Time to get ready to plant the flowers for fall and winter. And while the Vinca is still full and pretty, it was starting to show some signs of yellowing around the leaves. They just don't do as well once the cooler weather starts. So yesterday I had my sweet husband do the dirty work of pulling them up. He was very opposed to this since he thinks along the lines of "leave them in until they die completely". But he did it anyway. So this afternoon I had the help of K. and Hoss and we just finished planting two flats of pansies. They were also way to much help with it came to watering them. This is their favorite part of helping mommy's flowers. They are now in the ground and will have plenty of time to get established before the first real frost comes to our area.

Now all I have to do is replant two flats of my pinks (or dianthus) that my husband so kindly killed with weed poison at the end of the summer. I'm still not sure how he confused these pretty flowers for weeds but that's another story I guess. These are in the back yard so it's easier to plant them. The kids tend to wander off and play in the back, instead of helping me plant. These too should have plenty of time to get established before they die off for the winter. They will come back in early spring and surprise me with their pretty colors once again.

I'm still considering planting some bulbs also but haven't decided on which ones. It will probably be the daffodils since they do really well in this area. I always love seeing them in other yards and think it's time I enjoyed them in my own.

Fall Y'all Giveaways

The Fall Y'all giveaway is in full swing. So head on over here to see all the free goodies people are giving away. It looks like a long week for the fingers.

Fall Into Reading- Code Talkers

I decided that I would go ahead participate in Katrina's Fall into Reading over at Callapidder Days. I don't have an actual list created of what books I'm working on yet but thought I'd at least review the ones I finish.

I just finished Code Talkers by Joseph Bruchac. It is a novel about the Navajo Indians during WWII and how they created an unbreakable code. Since I've always been interested in history, this topic caught my attention. I had heard about them before but didn't really know much about them. While it is a work of fiction, the historical facts in the book are completely true. The details were not so great that I actually got bogged down, which is quite possible when your talking about war battles.

The story begins with a man telling his grandchildren about what his war medal is and what it took to earn it. The main protagonist is sixteen year old Ned Begay who was forced to go to a boarding school as a young child in order to learn how to become more "Americanized". He and the other Navajo children are forced to speak English only and not speak their native Navajo language. They are constantly reminded about how worthless it is to just be an Indian during this time.

When the war breaks out Ned is able to lie about his age in order to join the Marines and thus become part of a select group of Navajos who are fluent in both English and their native language Navajo. These men create their own code to be used during the war out of common words that are assigned to military terms. They then go on to train new men and add to this unbreakable code every few months. These men had to commit to memory everything they were learning and were sworn to secrecy. They were never aloud to speak of this code existence until 1969, almost twenty five years after the war ended.

The Code Talkers were vital to the many battles that were fought in the South Pacific and saved countless lives in the process. They helped to take back the islands of Guam, Okinawa and of course Iwo Jima. They were highly valued because of their ability to pass on information so quickly. Their fellow Marines and soldiers held them in very high esteem because of this fact until the war ended.

This story ends as Ned returns back to reservation after the war only to realize that he is once again considered a second class citizen because he is an Indian. All the pride that these code talkers had at being able to use their native language to help serve their country was sworn to secrecy. No one had any idea of the service they had performed.

While there are alot of details in this novel about war, you are primarily drawn to Ned's character and his emotions he felt during his life. He is a very likable character and you can't help but share his pain and joy. This is truly a story about hope and tolerance and how we should learn to just accept people and their differences instead of trying to wipe them out.

Photo Hunters

This weeks theme is pink.

With two girls I have plenty of pink to chose from. Especially when my oldest loves to wear the color pink. So I decided to use a photo of my daughter dressed in pink. But why stop there, we have somehow been given three pink big wheels of varying sizes. In this picture you will see my oldest daughter playing eenie meanie miney mow to decide which pink big wheel she wants to ride on. Meanwhile her older brother is patiently (or maybe not) waiting for her to make up her "pinkin'" mind. Somedays it's just so hard to be a boy in this house.


So that's my choice for this week. For other photo hunters visit TNCHICK.com or click PhotoHunt

Happy Birthday to Me...

Happy Birthday to me. Happy Birthday to me, so bring on the well wishes...I'm a hundred and three.

No really, I am not a hundred and three..yet. But my brother seems to think so judging by the card with the grim reaper on it. Some people just need to be reminded that they are older than you. Sorry to toot my own birthday horn but if I don't then no one will ever even notice. And I certainly can't have that, that would be very depressing. So save me from the depression of getting older and realizing that I now have to bake my own cake, since mom isn't close enough to do it.

Maybe if I'm lucky, I'll get a night off from the kitchen. And in case your wondering (or if your my husband who can never seem to remember my exact age) I am thirty five again this year. I liked it so much last year I thought I'd do it again.

Wordless Wednesday

Her first taste of dried corn.

For other WW visit Five Minutes for Mom

Because Once is Never Enough

I took the girls to the Pumpkin Patch this morning with our playgroup from church. It traditionally is a very hot and sunny day when we go on this outing. Today broke with tradition and the girls actually needed to wear sweaters. So for once it felt like fall at the Pumpkin Patch. The only bad thing about the weather was the strong wind. But the girls didn't seem to notice it much until it was time for our picnic. They enjoyed playing with the pumpkins or as A. likes to call them the balls. I had a horrible time getting them to emerge from the bounce house and only succeeded when K. had to go to the bathroom and of course they enjoyed their hayride.


It really surprised me that they weren't a bit more bored with the whole pumpkin scene since we went as a family on Saturday to another Pumpkin Patch where they got to ride a train. But of course they just take it all in stride and assume that everyday will be a visit to the Pumpkin Patch from now on. In all honesty I think I now have enough pumpkins in my front yard to be officially declared a pumpkin patch. Since we always let the kids pick one small pumpkin I think we are now at about ten pumpkins. They are all of various sizes, shapes and condition. Some of the smallest of them have been used as a bowling ball a few times so they really are showing their wear and tear. But what else am I going to do with all these pumpkins? Anyway the children always have fun and by the time next year rolls around I will have forgotten all about the wind and will be ready to do it all again.

Halloween Treat

I received a Halloween treat from Hootin' Annie this week. For no other reason than I happened to visit her blog and leave her a comment. She is passing out treats at random to bloggers that she doesn't know until the end of the month. She is hoping to have her treat passed on to other bloggers that we don't normally comment on or really know. So in keeping with her idea that is what I am going to do. For more info on how this works just visit Hootin' Annie. You can join in the fun at any time if you like.

I am going to pass this on to A Marathon Leap. I have been reading her blog about training for the Chicago Marathon but never left any comments. Initially, I was just drawn to what kind of person actually decided to do this sort of training and how intense the training schedule would be. But then she started to post pictures of the most divine looking cupcakes along with her training and so I was hooked and I continued to read. I was really disappointed for her when the Chicago Marathon was cancelled due to the heat before she was able to finish. But she has now signed up for a new marathon later in the year in Las Vegas just so she can reach her goal of completely a 26 mile marathon. Such dedication and drive to reach her goal deserve a Halloween treat.

So thanks to Hootin' Annie for the treat and I hope that A Marathon Leap enjoys her Halloween treat.

Hitter of the Month

Z. loves to play baseball as I'm sure the few of you that know me in real life know. Well he is actually pretty good (in my opinion anyways). But now he has been awarded the Hitter of the Month at the Baseball Academy that he goes to. Just another way for me to brag on my boy, I know. So just bear with me and grin and bear it. The month will soon be over.

Photo Hunters

This weeks theme is practical. It took me a while to think of something that is practical to me in my everyday life. I finally decided on what to chose while I was brushing my daughters hair. She has long hair and for her and me it is very practical to keep it in braids or ponytails as long as it is pulled back. Here's a picture of her with her hair down and long (kind of like Rapunzel I think).




Now here is a much more practical hair style for a very busy little girl. Now I know I am totally biased here but I think she looks lovely either way.

But if your looking for something a bit more masculine than talks of practical hair styles then perhaps this next picture will interest you. It is a picture of the "Jaws of Life" tool that will cut you free from a crushed car if you should ever have the need. Very practical indeed. Although I really was expecting some much larger than this. I mean you hear so much about them I truly thought they would be bigger.
Regardless, there is nothing like a big macho tool like that to make the men feel better about having to look at my daughter's golden locks. Hope you like my take on this weeks practical theme.

For other Photo Hunters visit TNChick.com or click PhotoHunt

Eat More Beans!

I had this talk with K. this morning driving in the car.

K: Mom, your not strong enough to carry me upside down anymore like daddy.

Me: K. your getting so big that I can't carry you for that long upside down. Your right, daddy is much stronger.

K: Yep, daddy is stronger. He eats all his beans. You need to eat all your beans to if you want to be big and strong like daddy and carry me upside down.

What should you be for Halloween?

I found this cute quiz about what I should be for Halloween. Not quite sure how I ended up as this but I guess there could be worse things out there.

Your Halloween Costume Should Be

Elvis

What Should You Be For Halloween?

The New Math

My husband is ready to retire. No, I really mean it. My husband who isn't quite forty is ready to retire. The only problem of course is money. So we have been reviewing all the things we are going to have to do in order for my husband to retire at his dream age of 55. We really aren't doing to bad considering I have been out of the work force for about five of the last seven years and haven't really been able to contribute much financially to our retirement plans. But we are still way off from where we need to be in order for us to reach his goal. And while neither of us are big spenders and aren't the type that have to "have stuff" to be happy, we do spend money on the things we like to do.

But last night my husband took the cake with his latest ways in thinking about big purchases. He has been saving up for a mill for a while now and has finally reached his goal. He went online only to find out that the mill he really wants is now on sale so he can even save a couple hundred dollars. Now to me that would have just been the icing on the cake. But since my husband had just finished reviewing where we need to be in twenty years he wasn't as excited as I expected. He stopped for a minute and went to punch in some numbers on the computer. Then he came back and told me that if he invested his money into our investments instead of buying the mill then by the time he was ready to retire he would have about $50,000 more towards our retirement goals.

So now he's wondering if this mill he has been saving up for is worth the fifty thousand it could cost us in the long term. And while I can see his point I am a bit frustrated. So I had to remind him that he's been saving up for this for a long time and he'll need to have something to keep him happy and entertained while we sit home for the next fifteen years and save money for retirement. And that it's okay for him to buy something big like that every now and then. But as to whether he can now get past that new price tag he has in his head, I really don't know. I hope he does. He works way to hard now not to have a few things to enjoy in his life now.

Wordless Wednesday

Hoss and K. share the same ambition for when they grow up. Can you guess what it is?















For other Wordless Wednesdays click here.

A Pink Truck

K. has decided that she wants a pink truck. She is getting pretty darn adamant about it also. Not just any pink truck, she wants one of those big Power Wheels pink trucks that she can drive around outside with. She has been asking me for weeks now and I keep telling her no since they cost to much money and since Hoss has a truck that she can drive around. The only thing is that Hoss's truck isn't pink it's burgundy. So that means that it's not the right color.

She is now telling me that she will just have to ask Santa for one since it cost mommy and daddy to much money. (She is so considerate in thinking that way isn't she). So I have switched tactics telling her that we really don't have the space in the garage for another big truck like that to fit. She just smiles sweetly and says don't worry mommy, it will fit as long as you keep your van outside. She is now telling any one and everyone who will listen that she is going to get a pink truck from Santa...and it's only October. I have even stooped to showing her all the commercials for toys on TV as they gear up for the holidays. I'll try and convince her that this toy would be so much more fun for her than a truck but she just smiles sweetly and says she wants her very own pink truck to drive.

Truly, I knew we were going to have issues with who gets to drive what car and when but I really wasn't expecting it to happen while the kids were still in grade school. Instead now we are having issues of who gets to drive what Power Wheels and when and who gets to use the battery that is fully charged. These toys that give my kids so many hours of fun are truly starting to wear me out. As for whether or not she will get a new Pink Truck, I really don't know. I don't want to give up the extra space but once she starts to work on daddy, who knows what he will come home with. He is so easily swayed by his girls.

What a Weekend

I had a wonderful weekend. I was blessed enough to be able to go and spend three and half days with a wonderful bunch of women from my church community at an ACTS retreat. The time spent there refreshed me both mentally and spiritually. Once again I was reminded of the love that our Lord has for us.

I wish I could say that my husband had as blessed a weekend as I did. But poor thing, his weekend was much more difficult for him. My children did not really cooperate for him and proved extremely difficult for him. But by late last night he was looking a lot better than when I first saw him.


For I know the plans I have made for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you a future full of hope. Jer. 29:11

Wordless Wednesday

Another Crazy Week

It's another busy week. With my family in town we are busy running around. I am also going on a church retreat this weekend so will be gone later this week. So I am trying to prepare for that as well. Hopefully next week will be a bit more settled and I can get back to the business of blogging.

Photo Hunters

This weeks theme is curvy.

I immediately thought of all the curvy paths that are around our home. But instead I decided to go ahead and go with my second impulse. And that was the art of glass blowing. I received my favorite vase from a dear friend of mine while we were living in Finland and I treasure it more because of that. It is an Aalto free form wave vase. I find it's style very unusual but very appealing to me. For more on the history of this vase click here.



After looking at the delicate curve of the glass I was reminded of another curve made of much stronger material and one which I am so thankful to have available if the need ever arose. It's the spray hose nozzle from the top of a firetruck that my children and I climbed all over and explored last week. Not quite as delicate as the vase but still amazing at how they can curve metal/steel like that and still have it be functional under extreme use.

So that's my take on this week's theme. For other participants views click PhotoHunt


or visit TNCHICK.com

Happy Birthday Hoss!

Hoss celebrated his fifth birthday yesterday. It's hard to believe that he is five already. He's quite proud to be five since that now means he is an entire hand of fingers. We just had the small family celebration yesterday but he enjoyed all the cupcakes he had at school along with the birthday cake he had at home. Meanwhile all the rest of the kids are completely on board with anyone having a birthday since it usually means two pieces of cake instead of the normal one they are allowed. (Since most the time all they do is lick the icing off anyway, it's a great way to get the cake out of the house). I guess I should just serve a spoonful of icing and call it cake, I really don't know if they would notice the difference or even care.

A Day at the Vet

I have finally won the battle. The battle I am talking about is getting our dog Gigi spayed. My poor husband has been begging to breed her since the day we got her. I always pleaded off saying that there was no way that I can handle having puppies along with the four kids. And then to deal with the kids heartbreak when the puppies would go to new homes. It just wasn't something that I wanted to do. So I have finally convinced him to go ahead and get it done. So I wasted no time at all and scheduled her appointment for the first available one.

So Gigi is at the vets today and we will pick her up tomorrow. I now no longer have to worry about her getting out of the yard while she is in heat. I don't have to deal with doggie diapers on top of the baby diapers and the male dogs in our neighborhood will hopefully stop howling around the times she was in heat. My poor husband is still a little sad but I think he'll manage just fine. After all he is now a responsible pet owner.

A Week out of Whack

It's going to be an out of whack week around here. My dear hubs is off this week. So just by the fact that he is here and we can do things means that my normal schedule is off. Add to it, that Hoss celebrates his 5th birthday on Wed. and that just adds to the unusual schedule. So since we have been out and about today, none of my usual things have gotten done. So now I'm off to play catch up.

Photo Hunters- Original

This weeks theme is original.

Since I'm trying to be original this week it was a little harder to come up with something. What I finally decided on was my husband's beer can collection. His collection is on proud display in the back shelf of our very dark closet.

Here are two JR Ewing (from the TV show Dallas) beer cans. They are filled with the original beer and still have the original pull tabs on them.
Here are some more original beer cans from his collection but most of these no longer have the original beer or pull tabs on them.


For other participants in this weeks Photo Hunt visit TNCHICK.com

Or Click this link PhotoHunt

Middle Name Meme

Nicole tagged me with this one.

So. The rules:
1. You have to post these rules before you give the facts.
2. Players - You must list one fact that is somehow relevant to your life for each letter of your middle name. If you don't have a middle name, use the middle name you would have liked to have had.
3.At the end of your post, you need to choose one person for each letter of your middle name to tag.


A- I think that I am a bit adventurous. I'm always willing to try something new at least once.

N- Sometimes people think that I am a bit to Nosy. I just really like hearing about all the things going on.

N- I hope my children think that I am nurturing. At least that's what I'm trying for most days.

E- My kids wake up at the crack of dawn, which makes me an early bird. Completely against my choice by the way. I'd much rather sleep in.

I am going to tag Kim and anyone else who wants to do this meme. (I know, I know I broke rule #3). Just let me know if you do it so I can check out your answers.

The Newest Who in Who-ville

Poor Gigi

Poor Gigi, She just can't do anything right with me. I now have a new way my Boxer annoys me. It's not the fact that she is huge and not really anything like the kind of dog that I really wanted (i.e. she isn't a toy). It's not the fact that the dog for whatever reason insists on drinking gallons of water at one time only to turn around and throw it all up just five minutes later. Sometimes even on me. Or that she will just sit there and whine at you until you play with her. It's not even the fact that the dog wakes me up by licking my face in the morning. Although these things really do annoy me.

No, the new reason for me to not like my dog is that she has now brought fleas into my home. It really isn't her fault, I do know this. I haven't been consistent on keeping her Advantix on her this summer. But when my neighbor told me about five days ago that they had just found fleas I knew it would be only a matter of days until they would invade our yard and thus get on our dog and then make their nasty ways into my house. So I did put the Advantix on Gigi and I have been watching and waiting. And sure enough, she didn't disappoint me. She has been scratching just a bit to much.

So I gave her a pretend belly scratch while I was really looking for fleas. She however didn't know this and thought she had won the belly rub lottery or something.

Once I found the first little booger, her poor belly scratching lottery ended. And outside she went while I figured out how to get rid of them.

I called the vet first and found out I can spend five dollars on a 24 hour pill that will kill all the fleas on her. Then I called the exterminator and they will come out and blast the outside and inside of the home. Meanwhile, Hoss just thought he would try and sweep the pesky fleas off of Gigi. But sadly it didn't help to do anything except get Gigi all excited to play.

So now that just leaves me to vacuum the furniture and shampoo the area rugs like a mad woman. And hopefully in the process my poor Gigi will feel better to. Because let's face it, she is living with those nasty things on her.

Where are they now

My husband and I were talking the other day about our college years. Neither of us had talked to our roommates recently and we were wondering how they were doing and what was going on in their lives. Well it was only a few days later that I got a call from my roommate Jennifer telling me that she was getting married. Naturally I was super excited for her. But then she went on to tell me that they were having a bridal shower only 45 minutes away and would I want to come. Now since I hadn't seen her in about eight years I jumped at the chance.

So the evening of the shower when we finally got a chance to sit down and start to visit we naturally went down memory lane. Here's a picture of Jenn and me. (I'm in the white shirt)


There were three of us there catching up that night. Me, Jennifer and Lanie who was her sister, but with us alot of times. It was at this time that we were laughing so hard my sides hurt and Jenn's poor fiance was just sitting there listening to some of the stories being told in disbelief. Because what one of us had forgotten the others were there to remind us of. I have to admit to completely forgetting all about the shutting down of three dorms worth of study halls during finals because of a shadow strip tease. But once they reminded me of this it all came back in an instant.

We then got to talking about how different our paths have taken us from where we used to be. Now I am a stay at home mom to four children. No one knowing me then would ever believe this of me now. Lanie is now a principal at a Catholic School here in Texas. Even her family is confused at times of how she ended up there. And Jennifer is working in at law firm and finally getting married and ready to start her family. So now here is a picture of where we are now. Here's me, Lanie and Jennifer and if you look closely you will still see some empty beer bottles and glasses of wine around us. I guess we haven't changed all that much after all.


As for Mike, her fiance, I bet he is wondering what other things we got up to in our good ol' college days.

Passing the Torch

My sweet friend Kim recently awarded me with the Nice Matters award. I've known Kim for a while now and I think she is a great lady also. She is always so strong in her beliefs and always faces new challenges head on. So now it is time for me to pass it on to someone else. Now I am faced with the same dilemma that my friend Nan had. It seems like everyone has already received this award. So she made a few changes to her button to make it look different.

So I am hoping that even if you have received this award in the past that you may still be excited to be told that I think your nice and yes it does still matter. So I would like to pass this on to two great women.

First I'll start with Lauren over at Baseballs and Bows. She is always so positive in her posts and all the comments that she leaves for everyone. She just seems to me like a super nice gal and I really enjoy her blog. So I hope this will brighten her day just a bit.

Second is my friend in "real" life Nicole over at 4andcounting. I guess I am a little biased because I know she truly is nice in person as well as on her blog. I consider her a true friend and I also hope this will make her smile a bit today.

So even if both you ladies have received this before I hope you will still enjoy getting it again.

Just for the Record

My pain in my neck for all eternity big brother emailed me the other day. And while that isn't really all that surprising since I do hear from him on a pretty regular basis, this email was different. This was not because my pain my my neck for all eternity brother actually spelled everything correctly for a change. No this was because my pain in the neck for all eternity brother had read my blog for the very first time. And although he was very kind in his words about how cool he thought the blog was, he had a few other comments about some of the content on it.

In particular, he had issue about my post where I was contemplating getting a maid service twice a month. For whatever reason he seems to think that my house was never spotless at anytime when I had only one child. And now that I have four, well let's just say I could hear him laughing from 750 miles away. That dumb ol' pain in my neck for all eternity brother of mine. Naturally, I had to correct my brother's incorrect assumption that my house was ever spotless after I had one child. So I set about thinking of how I could prove it to him. Then I realized I couldn't. My pain in my neck for all eternity brother of mine was... gulp...right.

Now since I am his pesky little sister I can't have this. So I went ahead and emailed him back that yes he was right my house probably wasn't so spotless when he came to visit me when I only had my oldest child Z. But then I had to point out that he never came to visit our house between the time that I had Hoss and K. So what does this mean exactly, well it means that for all he knows (and let's face it what big brother ever really knows more than a little sister) my house was spotless. He was never there to prove it otherwise. So there! How's that my pain in my neck for all eternity big brother. I have admitted to my few readers that yes my house wasn't spotless when I had only one child. But since you were never in my home until after K. was born that gives me at least two years of a pretty clean house if I do say so myself.

Yeeeessss, the pesky little sister wins again!!!

Photo Hunters

This weeks theme is paper. After a week of looking for paper all around me, I am surprised by how it's everywhere. From the piles of school work to the phone book.

But to my children nothing reminds them more of their Pappy then reading the newspaper. This is because when he goes to get the paper he always stops and buys donuts for them. This past weekend poor Pappy had to put the paper away to read for another time since he had way to much help "reading the paper" and drinking coffee.


The kids always get excited when they see the next type of paper come out to be used. The paper baking cups always mean there is something good on the way and they can hardly wait for them to come out of the oven. These cinnamon muffins were a huge hit and didn't last long.


For other participants take on this weeks theme visit TNCHICK.com

Or Click this link PhotoHunt

And the Battle Rages on...and other random things

We are still fighting the battle of germs in our home right now. With half of us on medicine hopefully we will soon be healthy again. But Hoss is home from school again today so no telling how long it will last.

Last night at football practice the 4-5 year old flag football coach finally crossed the line. He is a habitual jerk toward other parents and even the kids on other teams that are practicing close to him. But last night he kept on throwing football passes that no 4 year old could catch and in process hit several different parents, this was because it was to much for him to ask them to please move. One mom who isn't exactly the forgiving type said hit me again and I'll call the police. Which she did the next time he threw a football at her. Truly what a waste. The police came out and eventually everyone moved around so no one would be hit by footballs anymore. Just makes me wonder why we have such fine examples of good sportsmanship teaching our youngest players. Yes, I'm very frustrated by such immature actions on everyone's part.

My poor children don't know why mom has turned so mean on them lately. I have finally stopped buying so much of the "junk" that they love to eat. You would think that I am torturing them or something. The thought of eating anything not processed is freaking them out. On my part, I think I have finally watched one to many programs on what all these processed foods is doing to us. Whether this will last, I can't tell you. But, it has been alot of fun trying to explain to them why the new peanut butter has all this oil floating on top of it. It's all fine and good until I try to drink a diet coke only to have them run up to me saying no mommy that's poison. Some "poisons" are harder for mom to give up I guess.

So that's it for my randomness of this post and thanks for staying awake this long if you have. Hope you have a happy weekend.

Our first taste of Fall

We are experiencing one of our first tastes of fall in our household. Only this isn't in regards to the weather. We have our first fall illness. After only a brief week and a half in school, Hoss has come down with Strep Throat. I am valiantly fighting the battle of it spreading to the other members of the family. So far it appears that I may be winning the battle. But since we are a family of six, I would not be surprised for at least one other person to come down with it. At least now Hoss is no longer contagious and is feeling much better. I never used to be such a germophobic (is that really a word) but the thought of having everyone sick at the same time will turn me into one in an instant. As for me and my home, we all smell like Lysol. But as long as no one else gets sick than I will tolerate this medicinal smell throughout the house for as long as it takes. As for Hoss, he is milking it for as many popsicles as he can get.

Photo Hunters

This weeks photo hunt theme is plastic.

I saw all sorts of plastic at the homecoming parade they had this week for one of the local schools. I saw some cool and colorful plastic masks on along with lots of plastic flowers on some floats.



I also saw some very big inflatable plastic looking pink flamingos.



But by far my favorite shot of something plastic was when my youngest found a plastic tub and began playing with it.


I really don't know why we bother buying toys when it's the everyday normal stuff that keeps them so entertained.

For other participants pictures just visit TNCHICK.com or click this link

PhotoHunt

Grandparents Day

It is Grandparents Day at my son's school today. And by some very fortunate timing my parents were actually planning to visit. As a result they were lucky enough to go buy my son a special lunch and go meet him in his classroom for lunch. Z. was very excited about this and understandably so. My dad had been very sick over the summer and no one was sure he would even pull through, including the doctors. But here we are two months later and he is well enough to travel here for a visit and attend Grandparents Day.

Once they arrived at the school they were directed to the right room. And every child in my son's class had at least one grandparent by them except for one. He was a new boy to the area since he just moved here from Albuquerque and so didn't have any real close friends to sit with so off he went and sat down by himself. Now with a room full of grandparents doting on their grandchildren I am sure he felt left out and was wishing he had his own grandparents with him. But since there was a room full of grandparents you can bet that little boy didn't sit there on his own for long. I heard he had offers from around five sets of grandparents to join them which he happily did. Only a few minutes later he ditched the new "adoptive" grandparents in favor of his very own grandmother who was just late. So everyone was very happy at how the situation turned out.

But this gets me to thinking of all the children who can't have grandparents there on these days. My son has only had grandparents there twice, so many times he is the one left alone only to be "adopted" by someone else's grandparents. Some of his previous teacher's have invited their own retired parents to act as "adoptive" grandparents and then no one is left out. While I love the fact that Grandparents Day is being celebrated I know it has to be hard for some of the children who have lost their grandparents or who live to far from them to be able to attend. I guess in the future I will have to take it a bit more seriously for my children instead of just thinking they'll get over it. It just gives them one more special memory to have with their grandparents.

It's Not Easy Being Green

Sometimes it's just not easy being green. Just ask Kermit the frog, he'll tell you all about it. But really I have encountered a lot of green creatures this week and it's because of their bright colors that I spotted them right away.

This green thing is... I don't know a green leaf bug I guess. It appeared in our garage the other night and showed up quite well against the white background. It really needs to work on it's camouflaging skills I think. He seemed pretty freaked out to see me and my camera getting so close but when your this pretty shade what can you expect.




The other green thing that's crossed my path this week is this huge Slider turtle. At least that is what I was told it was. He had a pretty green shell (not as pretty as the green leaf bug, but don't tell him that). Unfortunately it looked like he had been run over by a lawn mower, but his shell was beginning to heal. The kids and I packed him into a box and released him back in the pond at the park.



The ungrateful thing didn't even give us a simple thanks for freeing him from the neighborhood kids attention. Nope not for him he just hissed and snapped at us. Some turtles are all about attitude I guess. I mean I completely understand it not being easy being green and all but if you were a bit nicer than maybe you'd feel better.

I guess it's a good thing the mean green turtle, who was having a bad day, didn't see the pretty green leaf bug. If he had, he just may have eaten him for dinner.

Marshmellows?

Sometimes even I am confused by what it is my kids are telling me. Let's see if you can figure this one out.

Hoss: Mom, come quick and see all the marshmellows we have growing in our backyard.

Me: Marshmellows?

Hoss: Yes, marshmellows. Come quick and see them. I squished them all over.

So what do I find when I get out to the backyard? Instead of a bunch of squished marshmellows I find a bunch of squished mushrooms. Marshmellows, mushrooms it's all the same thing isn't it.

In Rememberance

Stopping to Pick the Flowers

Some days are just meant to pick flowers. For A. this is obviously one of those days. She was just fascinated by the flowers that she has seen a hundred times already and decided that today was the day to examine them a bit more closely. She stood screaming at the door until I let her out. She starts off innocently enough just looking but before long the desire to touch is to much. You can just hear her thinking " I really must learn more about this little flower."



Soon she is touching and feeling and learning all she can about this little yellow flower. Her intense observation of the flower is obvious, she won't be distracted. Even the silly dog jumping all around isn't distracting her from her study of this flower. Maybe these study habits will carry on into her high school years and she will be a straight A student. I can hope right.



When she is finally done with her little flower study, she seemed quite happy to finally agree to come on back inside. Almost as if she is saying "There now, I have learned all I can from this little flower and it's time to move on."

Photo Hunters

PhotoHunt

I found a new thing to do with all these photos I have been taking. I am going to start posting pictures to go along with that weeks theme. It should be fun.

This weeks theme is Music:

I love the sound of Fall, it is music to my ears. And to me nothing says fall like football. So here are some pictures of my oldest son playing football.



Just imagine the sounds of the pads smashing against each other along with the whistle blowing. This is music to my ears.

Sad but true..

It's truly a sad thing to admit, but I really don't clean as much as I used to. This is simply because it's to hard to keep up with the house as well as spending the time I want to with my children. When I only had two children I had a spotless house. When my third child was born, my house first began to suffer. Now that I have four children I am lucky if I can keep up with my goal of a deep weekly cleaning. Sometimes it is almost two weeks before I can truly clean it the way it needs to be done and not just a quick spot cleaning. I've struggled with this since I truly hate having a dirty home. But I have four busy kids and a husband who just doesn't notice the mud on his shoes, anymore than the dog notices it on her paws. So when I finally get the house clean, in invariable gets messy again within an hour.

So I have finally decided to bite the bullet and see about getting estimates on having someone come in at least twice a month to clean. How sad is that, I am a stay at home mom who is getting quotes for a house cleaner? I would just rather spend my time with my children doing something else and my husband agrees. To add to the fact that if it does get messy again right away, I won't take it as a personal affront, since most times it won't be me doing the actual cleaning. I must confess that I grew up with a house cleaner so I never really appreciated all the work that goes into keeping the house clean, but I do now. But since I still have no one but me to clean then, I guess I will have to tackle my most despised chore of all...dusting...all on my own. Or I could continue on the path that I have been on and pretend the dust isn't there and go play with my son. Guess which one I choose? Yes, you guessed right, my furniture shall remain dusty for another day.

Forms and Artwork

I am filling out lots of forms today. They are from Hoss's Pre-K teacher. She wants to know all about my Hoss and what I expect from her this year. So naturally I am trying to figure out how to write about how special my son is and how wonderful I think he is. I am trying to fit all this information into a small space of about an inch in length. Which makes me wonder if that is intentionally done. Because if she gave us mom's more space to write about what our children our like, we would fill it up. We'd fill it up with all that is good about our children and conveniently forget to put any of the their faults which drive us so crazy. Because if we did that, then we would be putting a preconceived idea into their heads and then that would probably affect the way they treat our sweet babies. Isn't it better to pretend that our angels are always perfect until we get that first note home from the teacher saying they need to work on staying in their seats and not talking so much. Because let's face it, we mom's are hopeful that all that teaching we have been doing at home for the last four plus years will show itself in how they behave at school. So instead of writing in small illegible letters, I am using self control and not going on about every sweet aspect of my son, instead I am hoping she will discover some of these small treasures on her own and that they will brighten her day the way they do mine.

Now during this struggle with words, Hoss has been completing his first homework assignment of the year. To decorate a plain boy using any means possible so that it can be hung on the wall in the classroom. So armed with markers and glitter, Hoss has completed his first assignment. And I must say I am impressed, I didn't think it was possible for a single piece of paper to hold so much glue and glitter without falling apart. As to whether Mrs. Robyn will be able to make out the true intentions of my son's artwork, I can't say. All I know is that he is extremely proud of his glob of gluey glitter and I won't have any problems identifying his artwork once it's hanging up.