My in-laws closed on their old and new houses yesterday. When we went over to say goodbye to the old house and get a few things we had stored there, they brought down 2 quilts my f-i-l's mother had made. One was in fairly good condition, but the other was covered and seemed to have quite a bit of damage. Since my f-i-l wanted them to stay in the family, I, of course, took them both. So the other night I began the process of unwrapping the damaged quilt. It was quite fun, since I did not know what I was going to find.

It was tacked about every 2 inches. It took about an hour to snip all the knots.



It was probably a very brightly colored quilt when first made. This is the center portion of the quilt. There are 2 more panels that aren;t showing. The long strips are very badly damaged; the fabric has pretty much disintegrated. I am going to try to rescue the blocks that are in good shape. There was water damage done to it at some point, so I am going to try to take each block and clean it. Then I have plans I cannot share at this time. But it was really cool to unwrap this piece of my husband's family history.

First Day of School

Today is the first day of school. My baby girl got on the bus and headed off to kindergarten. I could tell she was nervous and excited. Two little boys from down the street are in her class. Her teacher seems nice, and one of the little boys' older sister had her, and liked her. I think the boy will be good, too. My only concern is that he is sitting next to the little boy who bullied him in kindergarten. So we'll see how it goes.

Babies are crying, must go. I'll update with photos later.

My dream shoes

Sometimes dreams do come true.

Some of you may remember my shoe post from my other blog long time ago. I mentioned that I really wanted the new Converse xx-hi tops. Well, with my birthday money I bought them. I thought they made a beautifully blank canvas and set out to embroider them by hand. It was a somewhat painful process. Then my mother shows me her newest machine embroidery cd, and the designs were exactly what I was looking for. So on Tuesday I went over to her house and we embroidered my shoes. We chose a phoenix and she altered the design to make it longer to fit more of the shoe. Then I added some small colored "jewels"(they were iron-ons) and it really gave the design some depth. I think I may have to be unfashionable and wear them even though it is still a little hot here. I looooooove them. I posted them at Craftster and have gotten a good response.

A few weeks ago I posted a Johnny Flynn video. I've been waiting for the album to come out, and lo and behold, when I went to Borders the other night it was somewhat prominently displayed(I thought I would have to order it through Amazon). What makes it even better is that it was on sale, and I had a gift card. I can't stop listening to it. So here's another video.






Not much else going on around here. One week of summer vacation left. I will be working again this year at a Mother's Morning Out program at a nearby church. My old boss is starting a new program. I will be the Infant room "teacher." Right now there is just one baby enrolled. I am really looking forward to taking care of babies again. My babies are about to turn two. I will just be working 2 days to start, but the boys are going to go three days. They need to be around people besides me. The girl is starting Kindergarten. I can't believe it. P. will be in 2nd grade. I am at that confusing point where I will miss everyone, but I can't wait for school to start. My sister's kids start tomorrow. Splitcat doesn't go back till the middle of next week. I am glad, so he can be here for the girl's first day of school. Now that I am getting normal amounts of sleep, I think I will be able to deal with school much better. The last two years were pretty hard, trying to keep up with very little sleep. Baby M has been sleeping well for the last couple of months. He still has random bad nights, but they are getting fewer and farther between. I almost feel sane.

A Perfect Day?

I think today has been a nearly perfect day. The kind of day I wish every day could be. I woke at 9:30(I know, I can't remember the last time I slept that late). Splitcat had already fed and watered the two big kids, so I just had to take care of the twins. Everyone played quietly all morning and thanks to last night's trip to the library, I read. Then lunch and the twins off to bed. I read some more. I go lay in bed to read, splitcat joins me with his book. So I was laying there reading, and suddenly I was overcome with, wait, what was that feeling? Could it be happiness? Even a moment of bliss? Sleeping babies, quietly playing children, and books. What more could I ask for? Then, just a few minutes ago, the twins playing quietly, splitcat playing some combination of Barbie and spiderman with the kids, rumbles of thunder and rain pouring outside my living room window, the feeling came again. Although the day is not yet through, and something could go wrong, it won't matter. It's been a lovely day.

Here are some pictures of the twins from this past weekend. My BIL and his wife got a new puppy and brought him with them to visit. Baby M( the one in my lap) has recently begun to be interested in dogs. He became quite possessive when some of the bigger kids tried to take the dog from him.

Below: W. found a ponytail holder on the floor and brought it to me. He knew it went in your hair, so I gave him a ponytail. He needs a haircut. people think he's a girl.

Prince Charming. My sister gave this costume to P. So when M. found it, he had to put it on. The boot covers go over his entire leg.

Nothing too exciting to blog about. But the other day as the kids were winding down for the night, someone decided to watch Blue's Clues. I was cross stitching and Baby M had cuddled up next to me with several stuffed animals and his blanket, when out of nowhere, he points to the tv and says, "goggie. blue." I had heard him say goggie a few times, but this was the first time he said Blue. We don't watch Blue much anymore, it used to be a staple around here. Looks Like we may be watching it again. The boys can also both say their older brother's name. They escape from the living room and run into splitcat's office where P is often playing video games or Lego and point at him and say his name. He gets a kick out of it. The girl's name is a bit more complex to say, so they don't call her anything. There is also a build-a-bear in the office that was given to splitcat by his student's a couple of years ago, so when no one is in there, and M escapes, he runs to the bookshelf the bear is on and points at it yelling, Mommy, mommy, beer. Beer. Then he giggles, then he cries when I tell him no and bring him back to where he belongs. He loves stuffed animals. W still mostly babbles. M is definitely leading the way when it comes to talking. When splitcat comes in the front door after being gone, M yells, Daddy, daddy. W. just giggles and tries to escape. I love it when they start talking. It is fun to know what goes on in those little minds.

Me and the girl have been sick this week, me with a cold, her with a random middle of the night throw up. SHe's feeling much better today. I feel a little better, I think my fever is gone. The babies have runny noses, but are mostly happy. the've taken to having screaming matches during their nap time. I usually give them a snack then put them to bed, and they will play for up to an hour or two. They get really loud, and I think about getting them up, but by the time I get up the gumption, they are asleep. My other children did not take naps at this age. I am so glad the twins do.

"Men at Work signs to disappear."

This story makes me so proud to be an Atlantan.

Random Randomness

I have not posted for a while so here are some random things for your entertainment

Fourth of July


My church is located very near the official fireworks display of the town. When the building was formerly a discount dept store, people would park in the lot to watch. So, now that it is a church, they want people to feel welcome to continue to do so. So what they do is open up the church building and have people available to give tours or directions to the bathroom. They also hand out bottled water(free) and have the coffee house open. They played videos in the lobby and in the sanctuary the whole night, and someone did music outside, too. We got there early because my bil was on parking duty, so we got a prime spot in the grass on the front sidewalk. We had an excellent time. Alas, splitcat volunteered for twin duty. They would have been miserable, so he let me go with the two older kids and spend the evening with my sister and her family.

This is from the bottom end of the sidewalk. At the very end is a sculpture of Jesus kneeling down with a smile and his arms held open. Scattered down the sidewalk are sculptures of various men, women, and kids. Every time we walked past Jesus on our way to the bathroom, the kids would give him a high five.

I would like to report that my kids absolutely loved the fireworks. They were both excited about seeing them. P promised he wouldn't cry. In the past, he has retreated indoors. He doesn't like loud noises. So I told him we'd try this year. He was sitting alone when it started. I quickly brought him to sit in my lap. He kept his ears covered and whimpered. I felt obligated to warn him that there would be a grand finale at the end. This caused him to burst into tears. I got him to calm down pretty quickly, though. I told him I was very proud of how brave he was. When it was over his first comment was...next year can we stay home and watch the fireworks on tv?

So what else is going on around here? Not much. We've had some very intense thunderstorms each evening. Last night we were hearing lots of sirens. But at least it has been raining.

I have some things I need to post on my blog of craftiness. I just haven't taken any pictures. I have lots of things brewing in my head that I want to make.

For a minute we'll pretend we're on Xanga and I let you in on what I am listening to.

I listen to this over and over and over. One day, perhaps, I'll buy the album. Until then, I just keep youtube up in a separate tab. Aside from this, I have also been listening to the soundtrack from the movie "Once." Good stuff. I've been trying to redefine my musical tastes, since I've pretty much had none for the past seven years. I seem to have emerged on this side of motherhood with a taste for various shades of folk music . Weird, huh. Here's another song for your viewing pleasure. Not sure if this album is out in the US yet. (Nope, not til the end of July)







I've been looking for that creative place I once inhabited. I sank briefly into that melancholic state that I once found productive, but that is no longer the place for me. When I am creating a garment I find inspiration in whimsy and absurdity. I have always been most comfortable with the absurd. I think at one point it may have been because I didn't think there was anything of me that was real. I suppose there is a fear somewhere deep inside that I am just a poseur. If I am afraid I am, does that mean I am? It's getting deep in here. Anywho. So anyway, I've fallen off this train of thought.



I finally saw some fireflies. They have been scarce these past few years. Or perhaps it is I who have been scarcely outdoors. Oh, for an hour in a swing on a spreading lawn while the fireflies frolic and we speak of other things than how we really feel. and love drifts between us on the wind until we breathe it in and words become mundane.


Can you tell I am writing mostly stream of consciousness? My sister got quite a kick out of it the last time. (and no, I am not pregnant, nor have I been drinking or taking sudafed). I think I am high on thunderstorms. I think I mentioned once a long time ago that I find them invigorating.


Yikes. It's after midnight. I'd better be off to bed. I am tired of having insomnia.

I'm back

from Florida. It was very very very hot. Thankfully the graveside service was in the morning and was family only, so it was brief. This was the first time in many years that the whole family was together. so we made sure to get pictures, because it is highly unlikely we will ever all be together again. Here is me with all my girl cousins(and my sister). We were standing on a hill so those on the left look shorter than they are. And if you don't know which one is me, I am not either of the blondes, those are my cousins Joy and Jena. When I was little, I was the only one who wasn't blonde. I didn't really know my older cousins, but we spent a lot of time with Joy and Jena. My sister used to be a blonde, too, but not anymore. It was good to see everyone.

Funerals, of course, are always a little sad, but I knew last summer that it was probably the last time I would see my grandmother. There were other things that made me sad.

I received an unexpected gift from my Uncle Jimmy. Jimmy never married or had kids(that we know of) and has lived with his mother for the last few years. He doesn't work, he fell off too many ladders when he was a house painter. He drinks alot. But after the grave side service he was still fairly coherent, and I was at his house with my parents while everyone changed clothes. He went back to his bedroom, then came back out to the living room and handed me a box. Don't say I never gave you anything, he said. I looked at it and it was an old box that said "Bible Promises." I looked at my dad, a little confused. That used to sit on our dining room table, and we read a verse every night at dinner, he said. I asked Jimmy if it was really for me. he said yes. It was his, he had brought it home from church when he was a kid. As far as I know, he has never given away anything. When we were kids he would tell us if we paid him a quarter we could sit in his lap. We never took him up on the offer. Then my sister stopped by to pick me up and he had a present for her. He said he had something for our cousin Dana, too. I told him thank you, and that I would sit it on my table for our family to read from at dinner. As we were leaving, I realized that he was giving away pretty much all his possessions. He doesn't have a use for any of these things in his life. But he didn't try to sell them or put them in the trash, he actually thought about who he could give them to. So I realized that my sister, cousin and I are his heirs. He gave us the things that once meant something to him. It may have been a long time ago when they meant something, but he remembered. I burst into tears as my mother, sister and I were walking out the door at this unexpected kindness from a man that has burned every one of his bridges. We don't know what is going to happen to Jimmy, now that his mom is gone. She took care of him until she couldn't even take care of herself. But I will say a prayer for him every time I see the small part of his life he gave to me.

Sad news

I will be out of town for the next few days. My grandmother passed away yesterday. It was my dad's mom, not the one who lives with my parents. She has been very ill for a very long time and was in her 80's. So it wasn't totally unexpected. I will be traveling to Pensacola, Florida with my sister and her family and my mom. Please pray for us to have a safe trip, and for everything to go well with splitcat who will be home with all my kids. The plan right now is to be back thursday night.

This is somewhat hard because tomorrow is my birthday(33). My grandfather, this grandmother's husband, passed away on my birthday 7 yrs ago. Today is my nephew's 13th birthday, and thursday is my parents 38th anniversary. (June is a busy month in my family. My sister's birthday was on the 14th and her anniv on the 20th. That is one reason I didn't get married in June). So it is hard when what should be a time of celebration becomes a time of mourning. Please keep my dad(his name is Eddie) in your prayers, too as he deals with his siblings in all the settling of the estate, etc. Thanks.

Another day, Another Blog

Well, because I don't already have enough blogs, I've added one more. This one is purely for my creative pursuits so that I don't clutter up my other blogs. You can find it here. I've been reposting some of my older projects as well as some new ones. Have fun!

Facebook

I joined. It took me forever to figure out. But it was worth it. Now I can see my cyberfriends lives, and most wonderful of all, found a long lost friend. She was my best friend in high school, but she moved to Australia when she got married. And we completely lost touch. I would hear about her from mutual friends, but that was all. We spent this morning chatting(well, it was late at night for her, even more mind boggling is that it is fall!). It was good to start catching up. I hope we get to communicate more now. I have really missed her. So if you know my real name, maybe I'll be your friend, too :).

We went to the park after dinner. It was really humid. The babies didn't like the swings like they used to. I thought M was going to have a heart atttack. His whole body tensed and turned red from holding his breath. Once he relaxed a little he almost liked it. I didn't know splitcat was filming this video, he was waiting for W to slide, but he got lost in thought at the top. That's me cackling in the background. He heard me laughing and that's what snapped him out of it. The longer we were there, the curlier W's hair got. I'm so glad I got one curly head out of 4. It's fascinating.

It's Ballet time! Tonight is rehearsal. I'm so glad they got to wear tutu's this year. Last year their main dance was tap, so they wore a jazzy red number with fringe and feathers. This year they are doing ballet as their main dance. It's hard to tell from the picture, but the top layer of her skirt is a pale lavender.

I always wanted to be a ballet dancer because the costumes were so beautiful.

Endings

School is out. The girl finished yesterday, the boy today, and Splitcat winds up post planning sometime next week. Our summer plans are currently non-existent. We are waiting to see if anyone signs up for summer school. If enough kids sign up, Splitcat will be teaching summer school. I'm torn between wanting him to teach and wanting him to stay home. Summer school is a fairly lucrative thing to do. But the thought of being alone with my kids most of the summer is a little daunting. The twins are very very very busy. The boy and girl are either having a great time together or screaming at each other like banshees. Taking everyone outside to play is nearly impossible when I am by myself. The girls next door left for Las Vegas as soon as they got home from school today, so I can't get them to help me. Is it sad to be scared to be left alone with your children? Actually, I'm not scared, it just makes me tired to even think about.





Anyhoo, P had a pretty successful year. He got his standardized test scores back--1=does not meet, 2=meets, 3= exceeds. He scored 3's on all 3 sections. The girl was really ready for school to be out. She did well this year, also. Next week is her ballet recital and then we are done with all our school year commitments.

We are all finally over our latest bout of gastroenteritis. Looking back on my blog, we all had one this same time last year. I had forgotten that P missed his last day of school last year because he was puking. I won't go into details, but twins with diarrhea is not pleasant.

Scoot Over

Baby M(below). He looks a lot like my dad. Maybe it's the hawaiian shirt.

Baby W. He looks like my Father-in-law's father. They both love to carry the bubble bottles around. I bought an automatic bubble blower so everyone can play in the bubbles.

My mother's day gift

My family has learned that I like to receive money for holidays. I tell them it is the gift of shopping. So my sister and I went to the mall on Monday to spend my Mother's day money. I had been thinking about buying myself a guitar with the money splitcat was giving me from our economic stimulus check, but I found this very cute little guitar at a new store in the mall called Banjo.com. It was very cheap, but had a sweet little sound, and so I decided to get it. Part of my thought process was that with four small children, I needed something that could take a beating. That morning I had been looking online at guitars and the girl spotted a pink one and said she wanted to learn to play the guitar when she was old enough. So I couldn't pass this one up. When I showed it to her that afternoon she was speechless. When I let her sit and strum on it she practically glowed. The babies were also very attracted to it, so I have been practicing while they are in bed. But yesterday I decided to let them touch it. Baby W. was mildly interested, but quickly wandered off. Baby M was totally fascinated. So I sat him on the couch and put it in his lap. He was exhausted(we've all been battling the most recent stomach bug since thursday), but that didn't deter him. He started out upright and slowly fell over. He cried when I took it away.

Hannah Montana: Cliff Notes for Parents

Rhett and Link are my favorite youtubers. Check them out.

The strange ways of 9 year olds

I think I mentioned in an earlier post about the girls that live next door. They are 9 and 11. The older girl is very much a thinker. The younger, well, the best analogy I can come up with is that she reminds me of Spongebob. Warning:if you are squeamish about dead rabbits, do not continue.

So anyway, On the way to the bus yesterday I spied a dead bunny in the road. Not sure of how traumatic this would be for the boy(totally not traumatic, but has ignited an interest in what we would do if there was a dead deer in the road), we took a wide berth around it. I saw the older girl stick her head out the front door, but before I had a chance to tell her to watch out, she went back inside. So we went on the bus stop. When I heard them coming, I walked out into the road a little, and I didn't see anything, including the rabbit. I stepped a little further into the road(there is a tree that obscures the view that I had to go around). Walking down the street were the 2 girls, the younger one carrying the rabbit by its feet. I instantly went into "mom" mode and yelled "Drop It!" She looked up, startled. "Drop the rabbit!" She lets go and the poor rabbit plummets to the ground and they both take off running to the bus stop. Her sister and I say at almost the same time--"Don't touch anything! Wash your hands when you get to school!"
Apparently this is not the first dead animal she has picked up and carried around. They both said that it looked like the rabbit was still breathing, but I think the wind was blowing its fur. The older girl said, "it's chest was moving up and down, but it had blood coming out of its mouth."
I tried to explain that if it was bleeding from its mouth, there wasn't anything we could do for it. I told them to ask their dad to bury it when they got home. I didn't think he would, he doesn't strike me as that kind of dad, but I figured it would make them feel better.
Fast forward to the next morning. I asked if their dad buried the rabbit, I had noticed it was gone. No, they said, he said he wouldn't do it. We did. They buried it under some flowers.

Gross.

Karenee had this on her blog, so I thought some of my readers might also enjoy.(click on the picture)

In other news, I took the boys for a very belated well check up yesterday. Baby M weighs 33 lbs while Baby W weighs 25. M is about 1 inch taller than W. The dr recommended that I take them for speech evaluation. Mainly because P was so speech delayed(he was 3.5 before he really began speaking). They each have a few words, but not as many as they should by this point. She also said I could have M evaluated at the same time to see if he has true food aversions or is just extremely picky.

Right now my main goal in life is simply to make it to the end of each day(meaning--all the kid's are in bed and asleep). However, Baby M likes to stay up late. But the good that has come from this is that I am learning to live in the now instead of either reminiscing about the past or daydreaming about the future.

Miscellaneous thoughts

As I was moving the wet laundry to the dryer today I had the thought that Splitcat and I have been together almost fifteen years. Then I realized that I am 32. That means I have been with him for almost half of my life. This is not a bad thing, but I was a little startled.

BabyM is now obessessed with touching the computer. A few minutes ago he discovered our external DVD-ROm drive and opened it. The look of glee on his face made it hard to tell him no, but I did anyway. he also loves to walk around talking and singing into his sister's microphones. I had to take him to the dr last week. he had a sinus infection.

I did something smart for once. I took the girl to her 5 yr well check up on Friday. I hadn't told her that she was getting shots. Turns out I had them all done last year, so she didn't have to have any. I told the dr I didn't remember much of last year and I was surprised I did something that smart. The girl is very healthy and was very well-behaved for the dr. I'm taking the babies tomorrow for their well check. I'm behind on their immunizations. Everyone was so sick all winter I held off.

So why haven't I been posting much? I was sick for a couple of weeks, but other than that, life is pretty boring(and that's not a bad thing).

The kids and I spent the afternoon and evening at my mom's on Friday. P had taken off his shirt because it was hot and I forgot to tell him to put it back on for dinner. So his little cousin was asking him why he wasn't wearing a shirt, and he explained to her that he could go without a shirt because he was a boy. Girls can't go without shirts because they grow those bumps on their chest. My mother said that my 12 yr old nephew was trying really hard not to laugh out loud when he heard this.

My mom and our friend Cathy drove down to the revival last night. She called me when they got in the building to tell me what happened while they were in line. They started talking to the man behind them and he told them how he was delivered of his cigarette addiction at Brownsville, so my mom shared how she had been delivered of cigarettes back in the seventies. Then a lady standing nearby said, God really set me up. Turns out she wanted to be delivered of her cigarette addiction. So my mom pulled out her anointing oil(she usually has one or two vials in her purse) and they all prayed over the lady and went with her to throw out her cigarettes. I thought that was pretty cool.

I was trying to think if I had any news about Baby W. he's been fussy lately. He's becoming quite the escape artist. At the grocery store last week I had the twins in one of the racecar carts. They were both buckled in. I stopped in the magazine aisle and tunred to look at the magazines for about 30 seconds. When I turned back around He was sitting in the front part of the cart. Then at my mom's he saw a bag of cheerios on the counter and climbed up the barstool and helped himself--this is scary because my mom has travartine floors. He's fast.

And Baby M is becoming quite the nature lover. He likes for me to open their blinds at naptime so he can see out and on our way upstairs he always stops to look out the sidelights at the front door. He gets mad when I put him in the car instead of letting him play outside.

It's time to get the girl ready for school. Hope everyone has a good day.

Revival

If anyone is interested....

A healing revival has begun in the last month in Lakeland, Florida. Todd Bentley of Fresh Fire Ministries came for a speaking event and is now planning to stay as long as he needs to. GodTv(DirectTv channel 365 or god.tv) is broadcasting Live every night from 7-11pm or you can watch the 10 am and 7pm services on ustream.tv. Look for the religion channel and Ignited Church.

Some recent pictures

Birthday

Hunting for Eggs at Grandmas

I've been postponing writing this post and feeling guilty about it. It was the girl's birthday on the 14th. But I haven't been much in the mood to say nice things about her. As her father just wrote on his blog, since she just turned five we are entering the third year of the terrible twos.

On a good day, she is a lovely, well-mannered, beautiful, sweet little girl.

The hardest part of learning to deal with her is the realization that she is very much like me.

This is our latest struggle. Despite the fact that I have told her she is beautiful just about every day of her life, she now equates her beauty with her clothes. We argue over her clothes most days. She told me the other day that if she doesn't wear pretty or fancy clothes, people don't tell her she is beautiful. So in her mind, if someone doesn't tell her she is, then she is not. And she's just five. I totally understand her need for affirmation, because I have it, too. Now I try to be careful about how I praise her looks. I tell her I think she has a beautiful face, and her dress is pretty, too. Or if she is wearing something plain and simple, I will still compliment her outfit as well as her self. The other morning Splitcat asked if I had seen what she was wearing. I said yes, I'd helped her put it on. Did it remind you of anyone he asked. She looked just like you. She apparently overheard this and later that day changed back into this outfit and asked me who she looked like. What I found surprising is that she wanted to look like me. It really makes you look at your self when someone wants to be like you.

I have a lot of compassion for her. I was sick and pregnant during a time when she needed me. She is the middle child. She is the only girl. In some ways I am proud of her because she will not allow herself to go unnoticed, in this she differs greatly from me. When she spends the night at her grandmas, the whole atmosphere of our house changes. It is very quiet. Even without her saying anything, the atmosphere revs back up when she comes home. I am not so proud of the way she usually chooses to make her presence known, but I hope she always fights for herself. I see the makings of a strong and compassionate woman in her, and I can only pray that the Lord gives me the grace to teach her and train her up.

To end on a happy note. She has finally entered the world of dolls. She got a new "grown-up" doll for her birthday, so now we are acquiring matching outfits for her and her dolls(the dress she is wearing above came with a doll dress). I made her a really cute one of black with white polka dots. She is a very good momma to her dolls, making sure they put their coats on when we go outside, and wrapping them in blankets at bedtime.

I love you, E. Happy fifth birthday.

At long last, I finally got some pictures of my room. The first 2 pictures are the before. And yes, that is a crying baby in the middle of my bed. I can't believe it's been a year since I took these.




Here are the after pictures.

I moved the dresser to where the entertainment center was and put this small nightstand where the dresser was. I got the vanity table last spring and I love it. One day I'd like to have all the furniture be ivory colored, and I have a brass bed, but it needs a serious polish, and I haven't had the time. I also have a different duvet cover, it is all ivory with embroidery. but it needs to be ironed. So I can go between the quilt and the duvet cover to change the look a little.

I still haven't totally decided on all my artwork. I tend to change things alot. Sorry I couldn't get wider pictures, my room room is fairly small.

So there it is.

What can you say but Wow.

It's been a while. I had a good time on my retreat. It was a little weird to have nothing to do but wander around and pray, but weird in a good way.

Since my last few posts have been about illness, I decided I should write about something frivolous.

But what?

There's American Idol. I have never really been a fan, but I would watch the final few episodes. For some reason I started watching this season. When the final 24 episode came around, I still didn't have a favorite picked, but I liked the guys better than the girls. Then, out of nowhere, this guy with long dreadlocks comes out and I have my favorite. Yes, I will admit it here. I am a Jason Castro fan. You can look him up on youtube if you care. He appeared practically nowhere in the early episodes, mostly because they couldn't get permission to air the songs he sang. So I had no idea what he was going to sound like. Vocally, David Archuleta is way better, but he lacks something. I always feel like I am watching a chorus concert soloist. You don't get a sense of style, but his voice is amazing. Jason has a style of his own. The videos of him singing before Idol on youtube cemented my decision. So. As embarrassing as it is. I'm a fan. But I don't vote.

Which leads me to a question I have been thinking of posting. What is something you have never done?

I've never voted on a reality show
I've never ridden a real train
I've never sent a text message


On another subject entirely, I have tentatively found a church. I've been going since Thanksgiving, but I've missed alot. I've had a hard time catching the vibe, so I decided to go on wed nights to get to meet people. There are about 1000 people in the congregation. My main concerns were that it was an offshoot of the non-movement known as the emerging church or that it was a seeker-friendly church. I asked the teacher tonight if they were affiliated with either of these things, and he told me no. I was relieved. What I really like about this church is that the teaching is very simple and straight forward, and out of the Bible instead of the latest Christian self-help book. I think this is where I am supposed to be for now, of course, that can change. I have two new friends to take with me. The little girls(they are 9 and 10) who live next door went with me this past Sunday. They live with their dad, grandad, and 16 yr old uncle. So since I was nice to them, they've kind of latched on. When I mentioned I was going to church, the younger girl immediately asked if she could go with me, then her sister wanted to go, too. They are very lonely.

I guess that is all. I should go to bed now.

A quick update for those who care. Splitcat and Baby M succumbed to the bug earlier this week. I have not gotten it, nor do I intend to. It's been a long month. But tomorrow I leave for my retreat. This is a retreat for teenagers(this is the girl's weekend). I attended when I was 18 and have worked on quite a few weekends in various positions. This weekend I am a prayer person. There are six of us whose sole job for the entire weekend is to pray. I am doing the 2-4am shift, as well as praying throughout the day. I figured I was used to being up at that time anyway. My first inclination was to ask for another position, but I realized that spending a weekend in prayer sounded fairly blissful. I can wander about as I wish and be alone! I know I'm going to miss my kids. I always do. But momma needs some rest and rejuvenation. And Debbie needs to spend some time with the Lord. But there is almost always opposition in the spiritual realm when you work on one of these weekends. So thanks for all your prayers this past month, I truly appreciate them.

Please keep praying for us. Baby W. is still having diarrhea and the girl was sick again yesterday. I don't know if they just didn't get better or if they got it again. Splitcat and I are just battling colds.

The babies have been up all night. It is 4:13 am. Do I just stay up or should I try to get less than 2 hrs of sleep. I think I'll try to get some sleep.

Please Say

A blessing for Splitcat who has come to the midnight(or 1am) rescue again. This time for the Girl. You may recall that P. had a stomach bug a couple of weeks ago. I had thought we were out of the woods, then on Sunday baby W. woke up listless and ashen looking. I was going to leave him at home while I took everyone else to church, when I put him in his pack-n-play he threw up everywhere. I stayed home to take care of him and he was fine by dinner time. As soon as we got the girl cleaned up she was back to herself and I put her back to bed with a garbage can.

Please also pray that no one else gets this bug. I seem to have gotten the cold bug that splitcat had last week. Who knows, it could be the same virus working itself out differently in each of us.

Conferences

Last week was conference week for the big kids. I am happy to report they are both doing very well in school. E has totally charmed her teachers. She still tends to write backwards, but that is mostly a developmental thing, plus she is left-handed. P. is now reading on a 5th grade level--both in vocabulary and comprehension. I was surprised that he was also comprehending at that level, though I shouldn't be, he's a smart kid. The other day they went outside to play with splitcat and P asked his sister if she was going to be a spectator or play football with them. Last night splitcat was playing a game on the computer(medieval Total War) and in talking to P, who was watching, he realized that P knew exactly how to play just from watching. His only problem is that his handwriting is absolutely horrible. He still mixes upper and lower case letters randomly and the size of his letters is totally random. I guess his handwriting shows his emotional immaturity while the content of his writing shows his scholarly maturity. His teacher said she always enjoys reading what Paul writes because it is usually very original.

Speaking of last week. Friday night all the kids were supposed to stay at my mom's so we could have a night out, and I had a meeting Saturday morning and splitcat had an open house to attend. So Friday morning, about 8:30 I get a call from P's school. I had taken a Benadryl(woke up with allergies/cold) and was asleep. Hi, this is the nurse at .... P just threw up everywhere, can you come get him. So I had to get everyone dressed and go pick up P. And cancel all my plans. It worked out, I guess. My mom called yesterday and said she woke up sick on saturday morning, so it was good the kids didn't come. I was sad that I missed my meeting. I am going to be working on a girls retreat in February. I am going to be one of the prayer people. My first reaction was to say no, but I realized it might be a good thing. But I already feel like the spiritual attacks are beginning. So I am already praying a lot more than usual(which is a good thing). I was blessed that the Lord answered my prayers and no one else threw up and my cold failed to progress and I was completely fine by Sunday afternoon. I am most excited about getting away for 2.5 days, especially since the place where the retreats are held is in Dahlonega, which is in the mountains. The mountains are my true home, I miss them. So even though I may have to stay up late, I have a feeling I will come home rested.

It's snowing again!!!!! We are supposed to get 1-3 inches. So here is Baby M and his first encounter with snow. He gets a little startled by the crows, that's why he stops smiling. The video of W has me in it, so I'm putting his picture instead. Now that there is some accumulation, I am going to take them out after their nap to play

It's a little later. I started a snowball fight with the big kids--but I didn't have any gloves on, so it didn't last long. It was that wonderful wet snow that is perfect for snowballs and snowmen. Unfortunately, about two seconds after the end of this clip, M took a nosedive on the sidewalk and I had to take the babies in. We had been outside less than 5 minutes. The big kids had fun and got to build a little snowman. I watched it snow from the living room. Once it stopped snowing it all started melting since the ground isn't terribly cold. However, the temperature is still dropping so it looks as though we may have ice tomorrow from the melting snow.

Cute Babies

you can see why people don't think they are twins.

In other twin news--they are starting to talk, especially W(he's the one with all the hair). He's at the "wassat, whosat" stage. And when he sees a puppy he says "urf urf." M is still mostly babbling.

And I think I have discovered the secret to M's reflux. He's still been keeping me up at night, but the other day I decided to try something different--goat's milk instead of soy milk. I am so very happy to say that he has been sleeping so much better and been generally a happier baby since then. The night before last he did wake up, but instead of screaming as soon as his eyes opened, I could hear him playing in his crib. He only cried when he got bored, so I just gave him a little something to drink and he went back to sleep. I cannot even begin to tell you how happy this makes me. But I originally gave him plain goat's milk and now I am trying to get him to drink the evaported kind(cause it's cheaper and easier to find) and he doesn't like it as well. But I suppose it's worth the money if it helps him(and me) sleep and have less reflux. It's a good thing I live relatively near a Whole Foods.

It Snowed!!!

It Snowed!! I know this isn't so exciting for my northern friends, but it hasn't snowed here in a couple of years. It was the girl's first real snow, and she had a wonderful time. I love the picture below because the snowflake reflected above her head looks like a heart.

We ended up with about an inch, but the it started sleeting, then it rained and melted a lot of the snow. Oh well. Everyone in my house still has school. My sister's kids have the day off since part of their county is in the mountains where they got more snow and ice.

It was really lovely to see snow again.

Happy Birthday to P

Christmas 2002

My boy is 7 today. His boy cousins are spending the night, they are brothers ages 10 and 12. I thought it was pretty cool of them to be willing to have a sleepover with a 7 yr old. We had pizza and chocolate cake. The girl has gone to spend the night with the girl cousins. They all recently acquired American Girl dolls, the oldest got Felicity and E. and her twin cousin, also E., got the Bitty Twin toddlers and each got one. They have opened an American Girl Store at one of our malls. Why didn't they have those when I was a little girl?

P has finally lost both his front teeth, but did not have to go through the awkward no teeth phase. He lost them pretty far apart. He's a cool kid. I'm glad he was born. He was worth the trouble :)

Cool things I found for Christmas

I did quite a few personalized gifts this year for Christmas. Thanks to Karenee I discovered Blurb.com. It is a POD(print on demand) publisher. Several years ago my father-in-law gave me a copy of his brother's testimony, which he gave about a year before he passsed away. He wanted me to clean it up a bit, so I have been working on it slowly over the years and my dream was to have it put into a book form, but I didn't even know where to begin. So one day last month I found the link to Blurb on one of Karen's blogs, and knew I had found what I was looking for. The nice thing is you can order just one copy. So I also made a book for splitcat of some of his photography and his old poetry. I never surprise him at Christmas, but I did this year. Both books turned out beautifully. You can choose between softcover and hardcover and you can put your book up for sale at the Blurb bookstore. If I had been thinking straight, I also would have done books for my mom and mil of photos of the kids from the past year, but I missed the deadline and instead ordered photobooks from CVS photo online. They also turned out well.

Another good thing I discovered is a musician named JJ Heller. I saw her in the Family bookstore catalog where it said something like if you like Over the Rhine...so I found some audio clips online and thought splitcat might enjoy it, so after some digging, the nice folks at FBS found the one copy they had for me. I don't know about splitcat, but I really like it.

Oh, and my sister-in-law got my name for our Christmas exchange. She got me this (look for the one called Pirates of the Caribbean 3). When I pulled it out, I started laughing. I just told everyone it was a skin for my phone, so splitcat, who can't see it, says, so who is it? Johnny Depp? She got me the grey one so splitcat wouldn't be too embarrassed to use my phone. It blends right in with my phone so it isn't too noticeable at first glance(I also have a small phone). I also got a USB cord and a mini-sd card(from splitcat) for my phone so I can finally load music on it. I have a Sony-Ericcson Walkman phone, I can listen to fm radio or load music on to it and use it as an mp3 player. My sil gave it to me when she got a new phone.

Overall, a good Christmas was had by all.

Now I am working on getting back into real life mode. I took the tree down the day after Christmas. I usually leave it till after New Years, but I was tired of trying to keep the twins away from it. Yesterday I finally got my room totally cleaned up. I am now going to implement my no folding laundry in my bedroom plan(unless it is the laundry that belongs in there). I end up with stacks of folded laundry all over the place because while I do derive a certain pleasure from folding laundry(especially towels) I absolutely loathe putting it all away. So my new rule is to try and do at least one load per day and it all has to be put away before another load comes out of the dryer. So as soon as my mom brings splitcats camera back(we left it there on Christmas) and I fix a couple of spots, I'll finally put up the pictures of my redone room.

A totally random post on Christmas Eve Morning

I've been up since 5:30, so you're getting a random post. As many of you know, I have very fine, limp hair. It's one redeeming quality is that it is thick. I have spent much of my life looking for that perfect hair product(aside from a perm, of which I have had many) that would allow my hair to hold a curl. So here lately I have been experimenting. I have done a modified pin-curl, which requires sleeping with a head full of bobby pins/clips. It worked pretty well. So I looked up home made setting lotions on the internet, wondering what people used a long time ago. I had heard of using sugar water, but with our ant problem, I didn't think that was a good idea. And I came across a site that suggested boiling some flaxseeds in water, then straining the liquid out and saving it and using it as a gel/setting lotion. I happened to have an unopened bag of flaxseeds, so I thought I'd give it a whirl. At first it wasn't very exciting, but then I noticed the water getting a frothy look that was different from a normal boil/simmer. So I scooped out some of the liquid, and sure enough, it was sticky. When it was done, it was almost gelatinous. Someone had likened it to mucilage glue, and yeah, I've seen similarly textured stuff running out of my kids nose. It was odorless and clear. It took some work to strain it through a mesh colander to separate the seeds out. I put half that was somewhat diluted into an old shampoo bottle I found. I diluted the other half by quite a bit and put it in a spray bottle. So after I showered I put some in my hair and began doing my pin curls. As my hair dried, I would use the spray bottle to wet it down. Well, When I unwrapped my hair and finger combed my curls out, I practically had an afro. I don't know that I've ever had such good curls. But I kinda looked like I stepped out of the 80's. So I used hot rollers to tame it a little. I went to a party that night and my hair was still curly. Everyone seemed to like it. I have never had curls last that long without a perm.
So yesterday, as I was getting ready to go to the Nutcracker at the Atlanta Ballet, I thought I'd put my homemade concotion to the ultimate test. It was raining, and I had freshly washed and conditioned hair. Usually if the humidity is over 10% I can forget curls. They are gone by the time I get from my front door to my car. So I put in the gel and blew my hair dry and put in hot rollers. I still have some curl left this morning. Even after a pony-tail, walking through the wind-tunnel that was yesterday in Atlanta, and high humidity. My mom said when she was little her mother would use beer in my mom's hair as a setting lotion. I just can't do it though. I have such a strong aversion to beer I think I would be embarrassed to buy any. So I'll stick to my flaxseed gel. I also like that it doesn't leave my hands at all sticky, but kind of soaks in and makes my fingers really soft. It also seems to leave my hair soft and shiny. Just don't eat it. Flaxseeds do not hold up in an edible form under high heat.

Another good hair trick I have learned recently is oiling your hair. I know, it seems a little counter-intuitive. But in my setting gel search I came across a forum for people with super long hair-or who are trying to grow their hair long, and they had all sorts of good advice. So I've been using a very mild shampoo and conditioner then using coconut oil(from the organic cooking section of the grocery store--there is also a type in the African American hair care section) on my length(but not near my scalp). I'm rather stunned at the difference in my hair in the 2 weeks I've been trying this. Even splitcat noticed and told me that my hair looked really shiny. It's also gotten really soft. I've also decided to stop coloring my hair. It's going to be a pain to get rid of the color I have, I'll be a little two-toned for a while. But I think that I will probably be almost completely grey by the time I am forty and I am tired of the bother and expense of hair coloring. And I decided that I should just accept that I will go grey at a young age, my mother did also. So I want to enjoy what's left of my natural mousy brown while I still have it.

Also, I had a very good time at the Nutcracker. It is always fun to go to the Fox Theatre. It is a beautiful building, but a little creepy, too. Since it was once used as a Shriner Mosque, there are lots and lots of masonic images all over--the carpet, the carvings, the furniture. For my out of state readers, it is built to have kind an Islamic and Egyptian feel. The coolest thing though, is the theatre ceiling is painted to look like a night sky, and the clouds move across the sky. All the girls from splitcats family and my family attended. So thanks Grandma--we had a great time.

And since I probably won't post for a few days--Merry Christmas.

If I May...

Brag for a moment.

P. has been accepted into the target program at school!!. He and the other first graders who passed all the tests will go to a separate classroom once a week to do more advanced work. They only test in first, third, and fifth grades, so I am glad he was able to get in now. He needs to be pushed academically so he doesn't start taking his intelligence for granted(like I did as a child). His teacher was very proud.

Well, they both had sinus infections, so hopefully we will ward off the ear infections with our antibiotics. My mom called as I was walking out the door because she was able to meet me at the dr. office to help out. Thanks mom. Miraculously, the office was practically empty so we didn't have to wait.

Hi Ho, Hi Ho, Back to the Dr. we go

Well, the twins are sick again with a cold. I given them a few days to get better, but they have only gotten worse, so I am going to try to get them to the dr. today. I also have to attend the girl's Christmas program at school. It was really cute last year, so it should be fun. My mom is going to take her lunch break early to come and watch and help me with the twins.

I am still trying to finish up my Christmas shopping. I went out Monday when the older kids were at their Grandmas, but the babies were in no mood for shopping, so I didn't get much done. I'm trying to be excited. Baby M. ended up having diarrhea for 2 weeks. I felt really bad for him. So I've been more concentrated on getting my family well than thinking about Christmas. I did take the time to redo my Christmas tree. I had rearranged and messed it up, plus I didn't put enough lights on it, so it looks much much better now. Last night splitcat asked me why I had been angry the past couple of weeks. I was completely surprised. I had been thinking how nice it was that I hadn't been angry for a couple of weeks. But I think I have been very quiet, which could easily be seen as anger. I have been thinking about Christmas presents and other stuff.

I have been able to get out a couple of times. My boss from my last job had a reunion dinner last week, even though I wasn't there at the end when the program was shut down, she still wanted me to come. So I was able to spend some time with my sister(without 8-10 children running amuck) and some old friends. I was somewhat startled to realize how much I have changed in the past 2 years. It was also very weird to be without the twins. It was the first time I had really been alone since October(except for a few late night trips to walmart). Then on Sunday we went to the 4Boydad's house for our semi-annual get together. I left the twins with my mom, I wanted to be able to talk to people without having to chase down a baby. A good time was had by all. A friend I hadn't seen in about 5 years also came, so it was nice to catch up with everyone. I still felt weird without the twins. It's like I don't know what to do with myself when they are not around. My life would be very very different without them around, but I am so glad they joined our family. I do enjoy them.

Speaking of the twins, splicat wanted me to post about all the things people say to me at the mall. Since they look totally different now, and M weighs a good five lbs more than W, I am no longer asked "Are they twins?" I am asked (usually in a little bit disapproving voice by older women) "How far apart are they?" I love to reply in a totally deapan and serious voice, "4 minutes." I've had some women be very visibly taken aback. I can hear them thinking things like, "doesn' t she know how that happens" and they have to rethink their thoughts when they find out they are twins. Some people do ask very tentatively if they are twins or just close together. It's pretty amusing sometimes. But I get stopped at least 3-5 times at the mall. At joann's the other day a lady said, "oh, that was me a few years ago."(as I negotiated the double stroller through the aisles). "You have twins?" I asked. She stared at me for a couple of seconds, "oh, they're twins?" was her reply(we chatted for a few minutes, she was really very nice). So life is never dull. If I need to talk to someone, I jsut have to go to the mall or Kroger on Wednesday(it's senior citizen day, and the grandmas can't resist talking to the babies) .

Well, it's time to get the girl dressed for school, so please pray for the twins if you have a moment to spare.

Taking a trip

Down Memory Lane.

I just went shopping for Christmas stuff. I Had a 20% coupon for Family Bookstore, and wanted to get P a new Bible, and I found.......THE MUSIC MACHINE!!!!!!! ON CD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They also had Bullfrogs and Butterflies. I got both for the Girl. She loves to sing and dance so I got her a cd player/karoake player that's portable. My sister and I sang songs from the Music Machine for years. I still sing some of them. So I opened her cd and am listening to it. I was kinda shocked at how much I remembered.

Now I just need to get Sir Oliver's Song. It was my most favorite ever. If anyone is looking for a Christmas present to give me, this would be nice, if you can find it.

I also loved the Psalty series. What great songs. This has been a pleasant trip. Thanks for sharing it with me.

FYI

The International House of Prayer is broadcasting for free this week as part of their Global Bridegroom Fast. Here is the Link if you are interested in checking it out. If you have DirecTV you can also watch the daily devotional from IHOP on GODtv(or at god.tv) or if you are up in the middle of the night they also broadcast live in the wee hours of the morning on GODtv. It saved my sanity many a time I was up in the middle of the night with the twins. Normally you have to subscribe to get the webcast of the prayer room, so I am taking full advantage of the free week. My favorite worship band--Merchant Band--leads one of the early morning sets, so I am watching/listening to them as I write. It's a lovely way to start the day, with praise and prayer.

Sorry I haven't been posting. Baby M came down with a stomach bug last week, and W. and I succumbed to it in the past few days. I spent as much of yesterday in bed as I possibly could. I feel much better today. W and I seemed to have gotten it to a lesser degree than M.

In other news: My FIL is now resting comfortably at home.

I finally was able to get a little Christmas shopping done. I still have lots to do, though. We did get our tree up and we've been doing our advent readings. P and E. have the Lego advent Calendars. One for boys, one for girls. Splitcat got a reusable advent calendar for me, it is wooden and has doors to open. I get chocolate. So far I've gotten kisses, peanut butter cups, and peppermint patties. I think P. has a better understanding of the religious aspect of Christmas this year. My MIL called today and she is taking all the girls to see the Atlanta Ballet's Nutcracker this year. She was hoping to get the group rate and needed at least three more people, so my mom, sister, and 2 nieces are going, too. I have never been and am looking forward to it. I love an excuse to dress up.

I've been doing a lot of studying of biblical womanhood this week. It is interesting, the wide range of beliefs out there. But now I finally understand why some denominations have such strict dress codes. I haven't drawn any particular conclusions at this point, but it has been interesting. I've read some helpful things and some disturbing things. I may eventually post more about it on my other blog.

Update: My FIL is doing well. They moved him into a regular room this morning, and my bil said he was walking around and in good spirits. Apparently he had some sort of robotic surgery. It was a miracle that his surgery was able to be performed by one of the few Doctors around who can do this surgery. So, Praise the Lord! Thanks for all your prayers.

My FIL is having his valve repair surgery this morning at 9:30. So any prayers are greatly appreciated. Fortunately, they are not going to have to do open heart surgery, but are going in through his veins/arteries. Hopefully this means a much quicker recovery time. Thanks for all your prayers this week.

I just wanted to ask for everyone to keep praying for my FIL. The surgery went well, but afterwards they found one of the valves in his heart isn't working properly, so he will have to undergo more surgery. He's doing well, but he has to stay in the hospital a while longer.

Prayer Request

My father-in-law is having gall-bladder surgery as I write, so if you feel so led, please lift him and my mil in prayer. He's been in the hospital since Monday night, but has been waiting for test results, etc. Splitcat has gone to the hospital to sit with his mom. Thanks!


I forgot to add to my last post that W weighs a little over 22 lbs, and M weighs 28.7 lbs. They are feeling better now since the antibiotics have kicked in.

We have our first official illnesses of the season. W. has a sinus infection and M has an ear infection. I am praying that this is the first and the last of the season.

The boy and the Girl are both well.

I put the babies in their pen for a few minutes before we left for the store this morning. Baby M fussed for a minute then it got really quiet. When I got up to look he was sound asleep. This is unusual for my children. They usually will only fall asleep in their bed or carseat.

I'm not sure what to post, but I am on a serious caffeine high, so I figured I could think of something. I haven't felt this hyper in some time.

Today was my last day of bible study. I really enjoyed the ladies at my table. We had a good time.

I really can't think of anything else to write about. My mind is whirling too fast.

The kids are good. Baby M. is having some reflux again, so any prayer is appreciated.

I feel so violated

My mother called me Monday morning. She said she had to tell me something, and she hoped I wouldn't be so mad I never talked to her again. She said I would probably be mad and then laugh. I said, okay, what did you do.

Well, she says. I was getting ready for bible study yesterday, and I felt like it was time to walk through some change again. As soon as she said that, I knew exactly what she had done.

Did you open Snoopy? I accused.

Yes, I did.

She was right, I was a little mad(I told her I felt violated), but it was really pretty funny. You see, Snoopy was an integral part of my childhood. Snoopy is a 2 ft high plastic bank. I don't know where it came from, it just always was. We dressed snoopy up, I am sure I often anointed him with my tinkerbell perfume, we hauled him around. And we put our spare change in him. We would peek down the slot to see how much money we had saved and try to guess how much was in it. We would plot and plan how we would spend the money when our mom finally cut open the little hole on the bottom and let the change out. I asked her how many hair clips were in it. She said she was surprised that there were only 2, so was I.

But here's the cool part. Walking though change requires, well, change. So she took the change from Snoopy, which was mostly pennies, and made a pile. Then she made another pile with mostly quarters and dimes that she had been saving from her spending money. Then people would choose which pile to start in. So what ended up happening is that the pile from Snoopy ended up representing all our childhood dreams and provision(which it was in fact my sister and I's childhood dreams to spend that change), and the other pile represented the changes and provisions of adulthood. So in walking from the Snoopy pile to the other pile, some were declaring the change from childhood to adulthood, or from believing for a little to believing for a lot. Yet some were compelled to go the other way, recapturing lost childhood dreams. She said she was stunned at how deeply the women in her group were impacted by this simple prophetic act. Then they all remembered the time they had to throw their shoes and begged to do that next week. Bible study with my mom is never dull.

So I had to forgive her for opening Snoopy. She never had a good reason for not opening him before. Even though we pleaded and begged. But Snoopy was opened at just the right time. Thankfully the damage is not irreparable. Because our children play with Snoopy the exact same way we did as children. And I would hate to deprive them of such a valuable childhood experience as dressing up a plastic Snoopy.

Fall Fun

Well, my children managed to have fun despite the fact that I refuse to let them trick or treat. Personally, I would prefer to pretend that Halloween is just another night. But if I stay home I have to deal with doorbell ringers, so we take our kids to a local "do" at a church. It'a free, so that's a plus. The kids came home with plenty of candy. I was going to stay home with all the lights off and the twins, but when I saw those costumes at the Disney Store, and they were a little less then $10 each I simply couldn't resist. So we all went. The twins had a good time looking at everyone, plus there are carnival rides, so they enjoyed watching those. Pooh was good at keeping his costume hat on, Tigger left his on for about half the time, which was longer than I expected. But Pooh kept trying to pull Tiggers head off(he sits behind him in the stroller) and was strangling his brother, so I thought it best to remove the temptation. I think Baby M liked being his own stuffed animal. The girl wore her Aurora Dress from last year, and I think I may get one more years wear out of it. I bought the boy a Captain Hook costume from the Disney store. He wasn't thrilled, he had told everyon he was going to be a ghost(which is against my rules) so he had no choice. Lots of people complimented him on his costume, but he still wasn't thrilled. It should fit at least one more year, also. I believe in getting my money's worth. I realized on Tuesday that P. still didn't have a costume, so I went first to party city. Do not go to party city the night before halloween. It was like a toy store on christmas eve. I left very quickly. I don't like their costumes much anyway, they are expensive and cheap looking. So I went to the disney store. They were having a sale. So I got a good deal for really nice costumes.