not too much...

Not a whole lot going on.  No hilarious stories.  Just life as usual.
Saturday I took the kiddos to Halo Burger (big play place) and met up with my sis and her kids.  Kids had fun.  Noah threw a giant fit inside the upper part of the play place.  He has a problem with heights--I have a problem with kids throwing fits....  I climbed up there like 3x to calm him down, and he didn't want to come down with me.  Uncle Ben was awesome and carried him around and showed him everything. he should always be on "Noah Duty."  :)  Despite Noah's drama, they had fun.

Sunday.  Went to church.  Noah is doing very good now.  Runs right into his class and starts playing.  YAY!!  David always does awesome.  Went to my parents' house for lunch.  All of the kids had many rides on the lawnmower, tractor, and go-cart.  they had tons of fun.

Cut Dave's hair last night.  I think i will resign for this position.  it's irritating to cut his hair cuz he critiques every move i make.  go the barber if you think i suck.  really, go ahead--i will not be offended.

Today was pajama day at David's school, so he's wearing his button-up rocket pajamas.

Noah lost his balance while he was going potty, and his arm went it the toilet.  he was HORRIFIED.  lots of crying.  so he got a bath.  he was very happy to be rewarded with bath time.

Dog ate some more stuff.  He's a jerk.  No way around it.

%@8# dog!

Stupid dog ate my bra.
Spiteful, savage beast.

(not actually my dog, but this is how i picture him when he does this crap.)

Halloween Party

Yesterday was David's school Halloween Party.  All of the kids were dressed up, including Noah, and they paraded around the parking lot and church "Trick or Treating."  I asked Noah if he wanted to walk with David and he said yes, so I went to see where my 'candy station' was (i was handing out candy).  I realized that i should ask Noah if he needed to go potty first before the 'parade'  started, so he wouldn't have an issue during it.  I walk down the hall towards David's class, and I see Noah standing at the front door, facing outside, bawling his little eyes out.  "Mommy!  Mommy!"   So sad.  Poor little thing.  Needless to say, Noah passed out candy with me.
Afterwards we went back to David's class, and the kids got to decorate a picture of a pumpkin and decorate (real) cookies.  Btw, hilarious watching this little (not so little...) girl smear some frosting on her cookie, then scoop up all the rest and eat with her spreader (popsicle stick).  And taking it one step further, scraping all of the frosting off her cookie and eating that too.  The kids were not allowed to eat the cookies yet, so her naked cookie made me laugh.  Just couldn't help herself.
David and Noah both made cookies.  David played games with his class, while Noah played with toys with a couple other siblings.  They had a lot of fun, got a bunch of candy, and didn't ruin their costumes.  Best of all--David did NOT tell me that he wanted me to stay home next time.  Success.

day 5!

On day 5!  not so sore anymore.  muscles are definitely getting use to it.  ate a little worse than i have all week, so that was bad....  but--i never stuck with the "shred" for this long.  I know 5 days is not that long, but that workout is hard!!!  Jillian is MEAN!  But it's a good thing.

Field Trip Pics

Yay!

Yay!  day 3, and it was actually a little easier even though I am SOOOO SORE!

Loved Songs

"When You Love Someone"

"Thinking About Tomorrow"

Pumpkins

Got the pumpkin carving done.  Yay!  But they are 2 and 4, so let's be honest--they didn't do anything to help.  I drew a few face options on a post-it, and each picked the one he wanted.  David said he would "rip the guts out!" but as soon as he saw the pumpkin's inward situation--i could tell it was gonna be all me.  After lots of hesitating, he finally stuck one finger in, promptly removed it, and said "Ew! I gotta go wash my hands."   

repeat

i did repeat the workout!  HA!  and i didnt have pizza rolls for lunch!  double HA!

Sore

Jillian kicked my butt yesterday.  LOVE that good, i-know-it's-working feeling.  aaahhhh....  Now, will I be able to repeat that today while my legs feel like this??

weight gain

so, i have noticed that I have been gaining weight.  way too much in such a short amount of time.  no, i am not pregnant--and i didn't gain weight till about month 3 with that anyway.  my idea was slim fast and V8 juice.  you know, live off of liquids during the day and eat a "sensible" dinner--and no snacking afterwards.  proposed this idea to dave, "no."  excuse me?  "no--we cannot afford to buy a case of slim fast because you THINK you are getting fat.  just run up and down the stairs."  that seems to be his answer for all of my proposals.  "i want a stair master."  "just run up and down the stairs."  that is not the same thing.

told my parents i need to lose weight.  my mom, of course, said "oh you do not!  u do not look fat at all."   dad said, "just stop eating."  thanks dad.  appreciate it.  im assuming he meant 'don't eat as much' or 'stop eating that candy bar in your hand.'

Regardless, i need to lose this extra weight im suddenly accumulating.  yes, i want new clothes, but "because i need a bigger size" is not an acceptable reason.  i TRIED to eat slightly better than normal today, but then i had pizza rolls for lunch at Leah's and a fun size Mounds bar....   when I got home and put the kids to bed, and I did Jillian Michael's 'Shred.'  it made me feel better about eating crap food, cuz it made me feel like crap afterward.  kinda wanted to die.  dont remember the workout being that awful 6 months ago!  but it sucked.  so i need to do it daily--by feeling like crap on a daily basis, it will make me not feel like crap in the long run.  weird logic, but true.

oh, so nauseous.

dresser

Our dresser has been posted on Craig's List for a few weeks now.  Well, someone called and they arranged to look at it today.  While I was picking up david's replacement glasses' lenses, Dave realized "ah crap--they're gonna be here in an hour and all of our stuff is still in it and the room is a mess!"  slight panic mode. --dude, not that serious.  so, he frantically begins pulling everything out and dumping it in a HEAP on the floor of our closet.  Well, the dresser is right next to the closet door, and the dresser itself has doors.  When the door on the left side of the dresser is completely open, it partially blocks the closet door.  Herein lies the problem.....   Dave, with arms loaded, tries to slide his way past the door and into the closet.  The clothes get caught on the corner of the dresser door, and dave did not realize it--and he continues to barrel into the closet.  CRRRACK!  dave's  momentum combined with caught clothes == BROKEN FREAKING DOOR!  he over extended the door to the point of pulling the hinges partway out, and split the wood of the door.  6" -- 8"  crack at the top and bottom of the about-to-be-viewed-for-sale dresser.

I received a very perturbed phone call demanding to know where my BROWN EYEBROW PENCIL was.  seriously.  I get home, we continue to empty the dresser (heap on floor) while the air compressor fills up.  Dave successfully air-nails the door back together.  If you didn't know what you were looking for, it honestly wasnt that noticeable.  and because the dresser was a dark finish, any scratch (or giant crack) will slow the light wood underneath.  you see where this is going....  yes, this is where the eyeliner comes into the story.  Dave smeared me eyeliner into the not-so-noticeable-now-fixed crack, slightly darkening the imperfection making it even less noticeable.

I left and went to the grocery story.  while i was gone---the dresser sold.  ho-ly-crap.

ready!

the boys got their Halloween costumes today.  They are sooo excited!  Noah is Captain America, and David finally decided on Batman.  He changed his mind 3 times just while we were shopping.  The down side for them is that they are not allowed to wear them until Halloween.  very bummed.

They looked so CUTE!!  They got the costumes with the padded muscles--oh, SO cute!
oh, and David wants me to be Batgirl, but I just dont think that's going to happen.  (unless I can find one with fake padded boobs...)

forgotten favorites

Sugarcult  "Pretty Girl"

Kill Hannah  "Lips Like Morphine"
not sure what it is about this song, but i-freaking-love-it. 

The Used  "Blue and Yellow"
Could listen to this song over and over--and usually do

Saliva  "Rest in Pieces"

doggy bath

post-bath----once I finally got him to calm down.

Left for about an hour and a half earlier today.  When i returned home, i let Sam out of his crate, and he smells awful.  I chalked it up to "dog sweat."  if a dog stays in a crate for too long they start to smell...  well, i while later I walk back into my bedroom (location of dog crate), and my room smells AWFUL.  Check his crate.....  Puddle o' piss.  He has not done this since he was still being house broken!  What the?!  And obviously he had been laying in it, and obviously--he's been laying all over my house.  I cleaned up his crate a bit, and stuck him back in.  I had to be at Ava's house in 1/2 hr., and i needed to get the kids ready.

And so, after we got back home, and I put the kids in bed...   It was time to bathe the offending varmint.  big surprise that Sam does not just hop in the tub, happy as can be.  nope i have to lift the 80 lb. beast into the tub.  he stands there terrified with his tail between his legs while I soap him up.  When he is fully soaped---He makes his getaway.  He leaps out of the tub (bathroom door is shut, so at least he cant go too far).  On his way he knocks the shower wand out of my hand, so it lands at the perfect angle to spray the entire bathroom and me, and proceeds to shake the soap off everywhere.  I then get to wrestle the soapy, wet 80 pounder back into the tub.

He did well the rest of the bath--shook a couple times, but it's better than a 2nd mad dash.  What's really funny to me is that he is just so darn happy afterwards.  He runs around like a brand new puppy, tail just a waggin.

The dog is clean now.  It only took flooding the bathroom, 4 towels, and soaking me to get him that way.  The upside to this--I don't have to wash my hair tomorrow morning because I had to take a shower myself when I was finished with the dog.

cleaning

I will be the first one to say that this is weird, but regardless...

Was babysitting little miss Ava tonight.  And since Dave is out of town on work, I had to take the boys with me. They kinda make everything more difficult, but they all enjoyed playing outside together--so that helped me out. Ok, back up--- I feel some background is needed....

I have pretty much been going since I woke up this morning.  Ran to the medical supply store at the hospital, dropped supplies off at Father-in-law's, ran to MOMs group, ran home, fed kids lunch, put them in bed for a nap, sat for a minute.  Father-in-law comes over and tells me that the "supplies" are not working (bummer!!  poor dad!) and asks me to go back and try to find something else while he stays with the kids while they're sleeping (he should be in bed b.t.w.--just so we're clear).  No problem.  Hop in the car, drive back up to hospital (5 min tops), talk to a different lady this time, and she suggests a different approach--supplies are free of charge (you. are. awesome!).  Bring new supplies home, tell Dad-in-law i will look around for some stuff I know I have in storage that may help as well, dig through all of the giant totes in the back garage-- 7 totes later i find what i am looking for.  Run the goods across the street to dad.  sit for a minute, and call leah (cuz that's what i do during free time).  Kids wake up, give them baths, get them dressed, run out the door to babysit little Ava (6 yr old).

And then...  it becomes a little weird.  I'm assuming it is because i have been running all day--you know, "body in motion, stays in motion."  I began cleaning...  This is not my house, and i am cleaning like i'm hosting a dinner party the next day.  We were outside, I notice that the sand box is growing pokey weeds, so i rip them all out.  Then as I'm walking to the door to start dinner, i notice that the dog has left gifts all over the yard.  I don't want Ava or my kids to step in anything, so...  I found the pooper scooper and cleaned the entire yard.  oh, i didn't stop there.  I cleaned the bathroom sink and mirror, swept the floor of almost the entire 1st level, cleaned the microwave, and cleaned yet another bathroom sink and mirror upstairs.  It was ridiculous.  Yes, the kids were fed, yes I played with them--they were well, taken care of.  Maybe, i embarked on this crazy cleaning spree cuz I felt like I would fall asleep if i sat for too long.  Maybe.  Either way, kids were fine, and their house is a little cleaner now.

Kinda worried the homeowners may be offended that I was cleaning everything...  I hope they don't take it as tho I think their home is a hole that needs to be disinfected if my little darlings are going to be there-- cuz that was not the case.  I just couldn't stop!!  Not sure why I don't feel the need to go on a cleaning spree in my own house tho....

Ooh, Dane

Weekend

Detroit

Sunday was a looong day.  Not bad, just long.
It was good to see my parents.  It sounds like they had a pretty rough time down there--especially my dad.  I hate to seem him sad and upset.  I am glad they are home now.   Of course, the kids had funny riding the go-cart (Kobe & David), and Noah loves riding on the "on-mower" and "big green tractor."

A while later we dropped the boys off at Leah's (THANK YOU!! BEST SISTER EVER!!), and we drove down to see Dave's dad in the hospital.  He had surgery recently, and has been there for a few days now.  Not really gonna go into, but he should be getting released today or tomorrow.  He is in a hospital in Detroit, so after we left there we drove around the corner to Popeye's for dinner.  They do have good food, but oh my word Detroit is hilarious.  We walk in and are standing in line next to table with a homeless man sitting at it.  he asked us for food.  Of course, we will get you food!  I was happy he did not ask for money--tho we probably wouldve given him whatever cash we had--which come to think of it we did, $1 (we dont carry cash).  Regardless, my good guy husband sat down with him and took his order.  He joked with him the whole time and even added on to the man's order.  It sometimes took the man a while to get his thoughts out, but dave got everything sorted out.

The entire time we are talking to the man and standing in line, there is a man across the restaurant with a big, blue duffle bag chuckling to himself about us and the homeless man.  G's duffle bag is full of blank DVDs, and laminated list of his movies, and i'm assuming a laptop or something.  Oh, yes.  G has set up shop in Popeye's.  He'll burn your movie of choice for you while you wait for your food.  Here's the kicker--that made me want to kick him-after we give the man his food, G sidles of to him and starts hassling the man for "a piece o' dat chicken."  F-you, G.  Leave that man alone.  He doesn't have a laminated list and DVD burner to profit his chicken fund.  Go back to your booth, G.

So...  Detroit is such a stereotype, it blows my mind.  It was like a movie set.  

long forgotten

Found this one today during the sort.  BTW---the only good song on the C.D.  Disappointing discovery when I bought it 6 yrs ago...

kid music

Opened my kitchen cupboard where ALL of my c.d.'s were stored--yes, in the kitchen cupboard, cuz the under-mount c.d. player is right there--and asked myself, "why am I keeping all of these?!"  The c.d. and case purge began.  I probably only threw away 10 - 15 c.d.'s, but all of the cases have met the garbage can (garbage bag full! ho-ly crap.).

While I am sorting through all of this great, long forgotten music (Agh!!  I love this one!), what are we listening to?  "BABY'S FIRST SING-A-LONG"  Are you kidding me?  I'm looking at Aerosmith, Muse, and Nirvana, and we are listening to an Australian guy singing "This old man, he had one, he played knick-knack on my thumb..."  All questions of this "old man's" relation to and reason why he is playing "knick-knack" (what is "knick-knack" anyway?) on any part of this child aside...  really, this is what I am listening to?

I LOVE music, and am a tad bit opinionated and picky about it.  I despise Country and Techno, R&B and 99% of Rap---but "Kid's First Sing-a-Long" made the cut.  Oh, what motherhood does to you....  

Puppet Master

Today David prayed before lunch, a very common occurrence.  Today's prayer was slightly different.
"And thank you for letting us go to Aunt Leah's after nap.  Amen"
ummmm....  there wasn't actually a plan to go to Aunt Leah's....
Leah said it best: "Master Manipulator"

oh, Noah

after countless times of being told "don't lean back in the chairs!" my boys just can't help themselves.
We tend to eat our meals at the counter sitting in bar stools. the kids just LOVE to rock back and forth in them.  There have been probably 4 or 5 falls because of their awful short term memory.  Remember last time?  Remember how bad it hurt when you fell?  Remember breaking the spindles out of mommy's chair?

Tonight, this little show made another appearance.  While my back was turned, Noah's chair fell backwards.  He has won the "Worst Fall Award."  Poor little man bit his cheek, choked on his food, and banged his chin on the edge of the counter (he tried throwing himself forward to counteract the tipping of the chair).  It was so sad.  He was such a mess.  He immediately started wailing as soon as he felt himself tipping, and he sucked his food into the back of his throat.  Thankfully, I was able to grab his food out--which I then saw was bloody.  That was kinda scary.  When he finally let me look in his mouth I saw that he had bit his cheek.  I gave him some water and, with out touching it ("don't touch it!") examined his chin.  It was not bleeding profusely, but it still looked kind of deep.  When the bleeding did not get any worse, I decided that stitches probably weren't necessary.

He calmed down, and i fed him some of the rice we were having.  I figured it wouldnt hurt his mouth like the chicken had potential to do.  After awhile he was fine and happy.  He ran (literally) around with David the rest of the evening.  No chin bleeding, no pain complaints.  They took a bath, and then---  he slipped on the wet bathroom floor, landing flat on his back and hitting his head.  Oh, this child.  Poor kid.  He had a rough night.  Luckily it didnt take too long for his smile to return after both mishaps.  

Poor No-no.

Right Round, Round Round....

Field Trip

David's class have been planning a field trip to Montrose Orchards for 'bout a month now.  Pumpkin picking, hayride, cider, donuts, etc.  I decided to go on the field trip as well, and bring Noah.  Noah was originally staying home with Dave, but my Father-in-law was having surgery today, so Dave went with him.  As he should.  So, Noah came too.  The boys have been talking about the "Appo Ochard" (Noah) for days.  I was honestly excited too--I love cider mills, and all things Fall.

I drove separately with Noah while David road the bus.  That was one of the big things he was excited about--the bus ride.  So, the rule stands as "if a parent is present, the child stays with the parent at all times, and the parent is responsible for them."  Ok, no problem.  Well, evidently--David becomes deaf when he is around friends and others in authority.  In his mind the teacher is the ultimate authority on everything, and mom is kinda in the way and just tagging along to ruin the fun.  He tends to gravitate toward his teacher most of the time, and I repeated call him back to stay with me.  It could be worse--he couldve been one of those kids that just wants to run away from everyone, but regardless--STAY WITH ME.

He wanders away a bit and stops about 6 feet away...  "David."  no reaction.  I'm about 4 feet from him now.  "David!"  starts looking around and even at the SKY to discover where that strange, unfamiliar voice (ahem, mine.) is coming from.  Dear, I guarantee that 99% of the time your name is called, it will not be coming from the sky.   So i hoist up Noah and move right next to him, so I can physically grab his shoulder to get his attention.  How many times should I really have to tell him to stay with me?

Noah is kinda whiny and wants to do everything on his own the entire time too.  Not awful, but enough to be frustrating.  Sure, drink your cider by yourself, and be horribly offended when you soak your shirt and pants.  He actually did not handle that too bad.  Normally he wouldve demanded new clothes immediately, so I was pretty proud of him.  Kinda annoyed when he continued to spill applesauce on himself, but hey--kid's gotta learn, and he didnt cry.

Well, regardless of the need for a hearing test and a Baby Bjorn that is made for a 2 yr. old, the trip went fine.  No one was hurt.  The boys liked choosing a pumpkin from the field, the hay ride, eating lunch on top of straw bales, and their cider and donuts.  And david loved the bus.

On our way home from the school...
David:  "Next time I just want to go by myself"
What a sweet, loving child.
We'll see, but it doesnt sound like an awful idea to me....

same ol' same ol'

the boys....  are kinda driving me insane tonight....

Jolly Holiday

Love This Song

Grandpa Woods

Still love it

I know that everyone has seen this, but I still love it.  (oh, and my dog is currently growling in his sleep.  dork)

"plan" update

so.....  the "plan" hasn't reeeeaaally happened.  So far the "plan" has consisted of staying up too late watching TV and one outing to Big Boy with my sis till like 11:30pm or something.  BUT I'm partyin like a rock star on the inside.  word.
disappointing to say the least.

sledding

 I'm using the term "sledding" very loosely.  the "sled" was a Twister mat.  the hill was our staircase.  David enjoyed this activity immensely and took part numerous times.  Oddly enough, David's glasses were broken this morning, but it was not "sledding" related.

staying

dave and i were looking at ticket prices last night so i could go to Florida for a couple days to be with family.  However, after talking to my mom and cousin, I guess it is better to stay put.  My grandma told all of her kids to tell the grand kids that there was no need to come down.  I'm sure she feels overwhelmed and very upset right now.  I wouldnt want her to feel like she needs to play host and make a bunch of meals for everyone.  There is not going to be a funeral--my grandpa did not want one.  And I am part of a huge family (10 kids, remember?), so there really isn't a whole lot of room.  Everyone's house is filled up with the out-of-towners--I dont want to add to the mayhem or stress.

I wish I could be there, but it's for the best that I am not.



 

At Peace

My Grandpa passed away this evening.

He was my Dad's dad.  He lived in Florida, so I did not see him as much as would've liked.  But when I did see him, I remember laughing a lot.  And I remember his pipe.  He was always cracking jokes--usually of the cynical or morbid variety.  At any family event my mom wanted to "sit next to Ross."  That way she knew she would have a good time.  He took his pipe with him everywhere.  Grandpa was known for his pipe smoking.  He referred to it as his "peace pipe."

Ross Woods was a WWII vet.  he went though a LOT and survived it all.  His plane was shot down, he broke his neck--he survived.  In fact I believe he may have been the only survivor of that crash.  He had a metal plate in his head, but did not become paralyzed, far from it.  He danced at everyone's wedding until his eye sight finally failed him.

He also survived raising 10 kids.  He deserved a medal for that alone.

He was not a perfect man, but any imperfections happened before my time.  He was lovely.  He was a good man.  I will miss him dearly, but I believe he is at peace now and without pain.  For that I am happy.

"annoying" and what i plan to do about it

So...  I am referring to myself in this one.  well, more like dave is referring to me.  twice in the past couple weeks I have been told that I need to leave and go do something cuz I'm in a weird mood and basically just annoying him.  Apparently, he likes the quiet, agreeable me instead of the goofy "i'm boooored!!!" me who spends her time pestering the "shhh! i'm trying to watch this" husband.

my conclusion--i need to adopt a rockin night life.  i'll go hang out with my friends 3 or 4 nights a week and stay out till 2 am, like I did when i was 18-19.  Inevitably, my new "less-annoying-cuz-i'm-gone" life style will backfire on him after the first week.  he will then complain that i am gone too much.

There are a few hitches to my sweet new plan:

1.  i don't drink.  never have.  and now i'm really not allowed to--doctor's orders (comes with a closed head injury).  And the only places that are open past 9pm are bars and clubs.  I dont bar or club.  so, it would basically be sitting in a 24 hr diner (^^^) for like 3 hrs.  maybe i shouldnt say "i dont bar," but i would be the girl drinking water at the bar.  the always reliable D.D.
2.  most of my friends that live in my general vicinity are moms as well.  so, we could probably "live it up" at a diner (ahem) about once a month.  (cuz let's face it--we're tired the rest of the month)

3.  i would die after 1 week of this happenin' new life.  my kids are up by 7:30 every morning.  3 mornings/ week I get up at 7 to shower and get the kids ready to take david to preschool.  i would be a truly awful parent and human being, snarling at anyone who dared speak to me or near me.

dave laughed when he heard my plan.  "go for it, hon."  His scoffing doubt does nothing but fuel the fire!  oh, i'll show him!  oh, i will!  i will grab my pregnant sister and we will partner in this endeavor.  Applebees, here we come!  dave will rue the day he referred to me as "annoying" and not so subtly suggested that i 'GO SOMEWHERE' or 'PLAY ON THE COMPUTER.'

we shall see, sir.  we shall see.  starting...  tomorrow.