Halloween (again)

So this ends Halloween week. We went over to the Chance's for a Halloween party. We had a really nice time and ate lots of sausage balls. (I really like sausage. I think I buy more Slim jim's then anyone in my building.) I made some brains and bugs

It looked so gross that not even I ate it. Well, in actuality, it there was no way to eat it. I forgot to work out the part where we don't make stuff that needs a spoon and plate. Oh well. Better luck next time. It was good though. I made the gelatin from orange juice and ginger ale. It wasn't anything compared the jello shot I was offered when i walked in the door, but I tried.

Here is what we all looked like. Poor baby P ended up losing his shoes before the night even started. Peanut lost her wings, tiara, and wand. We also managed to loose her leggings. We are a disaster in this house. It is really remarkable that we made it to the party at all. (I won't mention how late we showed up)

Baby P was a trooper at the party. Peanut ran around and ate who knows how much candy. The three kids play really well together. I don't know of any fighting, and I think there was only minimal correcting. Peanut is getting to an age where I feel comfortable letting her be in another room with someone else's kid.

Notice the Rosemary in our rotting old pumpkin? Ever try to explain what rot is to a kid? That is something that makes you stop and gather your words.

TREATS!!

I tried to make treats this year that were mostly fruit with just a little candy added. I couldn't make the candy work with the mouths, but I like how these turned out. I tried candy corn as the teeth and I tried putting a caramel tongue. None of it really looked all that good and it was just making my job harder.

The eyeballs didn't turn out as planned. It looked best when i used black icing, but it also smeared.

I thought I might bring these treats to the party tomorrow, but I think I might be making a last minute batch of bug and dirt cookies. (oatmeal raisin for those that aren't into the lingo) These healthy treats didn't turn out as good as I would have liked them too. Oh well, there is always next year.

Boo at the Ka-zoo

I don't know why, but Peanut adds a K sound to a lot of things. She calls her pajamas, kajamas. She calls bananas, kananas. She calls the zoo, the kazoo. I don't know if she is experimenting or what. She used to use the correct term.

Anyway, we took our little fairy princess to the zoo. Meghan was kind enough to come by and watch Baby P. There was a lot of running to the tents to get candy. I am also proud to say there was a lot of saying "Thank you." I ended up giving a bunch of our candy tickets away. We have so much candy, I didn't really see what we were going to do with more.

We had a really nice time for the hour or so we were there. Peanut really enjoyed the "christmas lights" and looking at the pumpkins and things they have set up throughout the zoo. It didn't seem as crowded as it was when we were there last, but we also didn't look around as much.

Peanut and Baby P both did great on the rides to and from Dallas. We made an Ikea stop, but since we were on a budget, it didn't cost us too much. Peanut liked smal-land, and I enjoyed shopping in the quiet. My mother had never been to Ikea, so she enjoyed the whole experience.

Peanut did manage to fall and hurt her head again. She has a nasty raspberry and a bump on her head from falling out of the tree at the park and from tripping on the sidewalk in Dallas.

I think Baby P weighs 20 pounds now. He is getting too long for his 12 month pants but his 18 month pants are too big around the waist for him. My poor sweet bear is going to be a string bean. I hope he is at least ripped like his father.

This is what happens often in our house.

She loves to sit naked in front of the TV. She is her father's daughter.

Things I never thought I would say

"We don't lick ketchup off of rocks, dear"

Survived

I survived two night with just myself and the kids. Mr. T. came back late Saturday night. I was a little freaked out as usually it is me and kids that leave Mr. T. behind. There was recently a murder in my neighborhood, and although, I figured she was targeted at her because she was a TV personality, it still wigged me out a bit.

Tomorrow we leave for Dallas. Mom, the kids and I are going to pack up the minivan and drive it down there. I really love my van. Have I ever mentioned that? (I know, only a billion times.) We are going to go to Ikea to do a little shopping. Maybe more than a little if I find something that I am in love with. I really want some new rugs and maybe some curtains and dishes. PLUS, their kids toys are to die for.

I am wearing my new makeup that I bought today. I spent... enough. I only bought the boring stuff. No colors or exciting products.

AND about me

I have been feeling better since we got back from Colorado. The whole trip wasn't as relaxing as it could have been. Mr. T. has been really freaked out about money lately which lead to too many discussions. Also, I booked the minivan through the government so I had to drive it the whole time. We did a lot of driving.

I broke my metatarsal a day before I was to present my paper. I actually wasn't standing at all during the interview because it hurt to be in the shoes I was wearing. It isn't all that great to be in a great hiking place when you have a broken bone in your foot.

I survived though and am feeling much better. I ran last week for the first time. It was pretty awful. Today I ran, and although I can feel it, it doesn't hurt. It just feels like my sock is adjusted incorrectly in my shoe. I should be running 7 or 8 miles on the weekends now to train for my half marathon. I only ran 3 today. BUT, to give myself some credit it was with both kids in the stroller and groceries on the way back. I would not be surprised in that half took me 3 hours to complete.

Things are getting into some kind of order around here. I feel more in control of my life than I have since before I went back to work. We are staying pretty busy, but it isn't so bad that I just want to sleep all the time. Since my foot is feeling better, I am getting a little exercise, which is always good for the soul. I still grind my teeth, but it doesn't make my jaw ache. I think it will take some time for the stress to work its way out of my system.

I have about 10 more pounds to lose. I can fit into all of my clothes, but there are a couple of things I don't need to be wearing just yet. I have yet to backfill my closet with things that I have tossed or am tossing out. After 4 years of not shopping, it is time to eliminate all those things that are torn or stained. If it doesn't fit, I am tossing it out. I need to buy some nice suit separates to wear. I have two nice brown jackets that need another mate. I also realized it has been about 5 years since I have bought any real makeup. My powder crumbled on my last trip so I tossed it out. My mascara, at being fairly new, is only 2 years old. I thought about going to Target to buy some makeup, but I think I might do best to go to Dillard's and have someone do my make-up for me. Maybe I can get a facial out of the deal.

So I guess I would say I am good getting better. I expect by the end of the year we will have some things worked out around the house. We will have the NEW WINDOWS in and hopefully the kitchen will be done.

Mr T. has been gone all weekend. He went to Hallett to race his little white car. it has been quiet here without him. I hope he makes it back tonight because I really don't want to drive to go get him tomorrow. His drive shaft fell out of his car while he was leaving the track. He had to McGyver it back in.

Act One

Thank you Jill for reminding me to write this.

Act One says that unmarried persons cannot foster nor adopt a child in this state. Act One excludes people from adopting or fostering kids in this state.

Anyone who has ever met a foster child knows that being "in the system" isn't good, and those kids deserve a chance. There are many people in this world that are raised by parents that are not married or are gay and turn out fine. There are also many children looking to have someone who loves them.

I remember one particular child my mom and dad were close to. He said what he wanted for Christmas was a mom and dad. Can you imagine?

Please Vote No on Act One.

I think Jill said it best, if you aren't going to vote no, I hope you have a whole house full of foster kids. If not, you need to become a foster parent.

Here are some videos.

Short Version


Long Version

Hey Hey Hey

Try not to smile at this picture

You couldn't do it, could you?

Hey Hey Hey is what Peanut is starting EVERY SENTENCE with these days. I was being bad and saying hey hey after she said it, and it took the girl until I stopped saying 'hey hey' for her to actually finish a sentence. She had to start over every time.

Today she told me she was obsessed with teachers. Where does a two year old learn the word obsessed?

Baby P is working on sitting up. He is doing okay, going a couple of seconds before toppling, usually forward. He is looking a little unkempt this days with his hair sticking straight out and his top teeth barely in. He is trying to cut his i-teeth. I can see them in the gums, but they have yet to come out.

He digs his sister. He has a hard time doing anything without her "help". He doesn't seem to mind though. He is always laughing at her constant motion.

I started him on some different types of solids yesterday. We had squash. Last weekend, I tried to give him some carrots that I pured, but he gagged and threw them up. Unfortunately, I wasn't paying attention so I fed him some more. Only after I was cleaning up the second vomit did I notice the first one.

I am an awesome mom.

He seems to be doing well on solids. I might give him some bananas tomorrow. Tomorrow is a special day. Peanut and I are going to order pizza and watch a movie. We are going to "hey hey hey and eat it at this table" or the coffee table.

Peanut is starting to use her imagination. It is amazing to see her start to use this new skill. Tonight she knit me a hat but what she was actually doing was pulling a string to unwind a pony tail fastener.

We all woke up really early today. I think all of us are tired. I had a meeting in Diamond City this morning. Sometimes, I look around myself and think 'how did I get here?'. It is amazing to me that people trust me to do the things I do. I was at a meeting with a congressmen and two senate reps to discuss funding for a drinking water system for the area I used to live in. Before and after I schmoozing talking about growing up in Yellville and the two kids and minivan I now own.

It is crazy. More beer please.

Fair and Pumpkins

With all the goings on, the fair kept getting pushed back. I finally took peanut and baby p on Saturday. I was pretty hesitant to take them both by myself. I even called in for reinforcements. It was great though. Peanut was a champ at petting and seeing the animals. I love to walk through the barns. This year it was even more fun because the owners loved how enthusiastic my little girl was. We ate some yummy fair food and rode some rides. I think we were there for about 3 hours total. I think that is pretty good for a mommy and two kids who were up past their bedtime.

I wish I could have caught peanut's face on the rides. All the ones I took of her came out blurry. She LOVED the airplane. it started out running them backwards. She loved it. You can see her at the fourth window back.

Here is where I stuck my kid on a ride with some random stranger. I couldn't ride because I had Baby P and a stroller and, well, she was mom. I warned her that nothing she could do would scare my peanut.

When she saw this ride, she said, "I want to ride that". UH, not on your life little girl. It just isn't going to happen. 2 -year olds can be so insensitive. (I say all that poking fun at myself)


And the pumpkin patch...

Mom and dad went with us to the pumpkin patch. Like everyone else, the one we usually went to was closed so we went out to the one in Mayflower. I wish we had more time to stay and maybe do a pony ride or something. It was really neat. We took a hayride out to the pumpkin field. The owners had the road to the patch lined with all sorts of scary goblins. We would point them out and say "oooohhh scary".

Like she is ever scared of anything.

And the family...

Something is going on in the kitchen

Grandma took peanut to the zoo today while mom and dad did a little work in the kitchen. It turned out, I was more emotional support than anything.

Here is what Mr. T. did in the kitchen.

It was an ordeal trying to figure out what shape to put up. I think this is nice and looks most original and eye catching of the cuts we tried. At first we were a little "eh..." about it, but as the colors start to come through more, I like it.

And this is what I did.

I think my yeast might be a bit old. It is time to run out to Sam's to get some more. I haven't made bread in my new kitchen yet. Since the weather has changed, I have needed home made bread and soup. The wheat bread on Friday turned out okay, but my ciabatta didn't turn out very well at all. I think I need a bit more practice (and better yeast) to make it work. I forgot all my tricks.

I stayed home from work on Friday to do some errands and paint. I got almost everything done I wanted to do. There is, of course, still more to do, but I think with a better brush, I can get the rest of the painting done throughout the week. I am really not like the green doors with my pretty purple paint.

more boring video

This video was shot by peanut herself when she was playing with my camera.

Love Letter to a 5 month Old

Dear Baby P,

A couple of days ago you turned 5 months old. This last month, you said farewell to your grandmother and aunty and were dragged all the way to Colorado and back. You are becoming quit the little traveler.

You are desperately trying to sit up. When you are on the floor, I can see you doing your little baby sit-ups which makes me feel bad because I need to be right on the floor next to you doing them. Which I am not and won't be anytime soon. You are pretty good at using your legs and have even figured out why we keep sticking you in the jumparoo. You are a big strong boy.

We also recently started feeding you solids. By recently, I mean on your 5 month birthday. I think you have been ready for sometime because you like to stick your hand in my food. You also decide you want to eat just as I am sitting down to my meal. The problem is, that you can't sit up so well in one of those restaurant chairs and since you no longer fit in the infant car seat, we have a bit of problem knowing what to do with you when we are out to eat.

So there it is or there it was, your babyhood. From here on out I expect that you will start hitting more and more milestones. You will sit up, crawl and eventually walk. You will be eating food with your hands then eventually your fork. I will miss these days when you would wait for me to pick you up and move you from one place to another. I will miss you being so cooperative and quite. I look forward to seeing the person you will become, but I will always miss this sweet baby stage where all you want to do is nurse and sleep in my arms.

I love you,
your mum

Brian Kinder at Baker Park

Tomorrow Brian Kinder will play at Baker Park. the show starts at 5:30.

E is for Peanut

okay not really for peanut, but even when we use her real name, it doesn't start with an E. Don't tell someone who is short that though, she will argue with you about it. I guess it is time to work on the letters some more. I was hoping Sesame Street would do it for me so we could focus on other things like, say, running and getting rid of energy.

She is also really into matching. "our jeans match" "our jackets match" "our van matches that one". She is pretty good at it, even matching our model of van to another one in a different color, both the one at home and our renter van.

Today peanut was obviously really into other kids. She would try in vain to play with some of the older kids at the aquarium. They would just brush past her. She is so small and slow compared to them. It was heartbreaking to watch her face as they would zoom off to another activity or not take the time to listen to her when she talked. On the up side, she did find two little girls to run around with. She is so outgoing.

Peanut is at a weird age right now. She is not yet a kid, but she is definitely no longer a baby. Few of the toys at the children’s museum were really suited for her. Most seemed either too old or too young. She is furiously independent, but that independence is intertwined with periods of extreme dependence. The other day I sat her on the potty. She got herself of the potty and sat back down on it because she wanted to do it herself. That same day, she insisted that she no longer knew how to put her pants on by herself. (Something she has been doing since she was about 18 months old.)

She is a spitfire though. Baby P better watch out because I think he is going to be getting a lot of guidance from her in the coming years. Speaking of the smallest member of our clan, he cut his two top teeth bringing his total to 4, which is still how old he is in months. I think he has learned to start talking when he wants some attention. I am glad. I worry about my quite little bear at daycare getting any attention at all.

Back to The Rock today. we fly out on the 1145 flight. That means no rushing around this morning. Hurray!!

Truckin' (or Vanin')

We woke up, packed up, and moved on out to Steamboat Springs. We went to a couple of different visitor's centers and could you believe they were closed on a Saturday? A SATURDAY! They were only open 8-4:30 Monday through Friday. So, we walked the main strip downtown to look at the overpriced sweatshirts and turquoise jewelry. We packed a picnic lunch and walked to a waterfall. We found a trail that was handicap accessible, which is perfect for a two year old and a mommy with a hurt foot. (I think I broke one of the bones in my foot getting out of bed Thursday morning)

We took this picture on the road. It is a little disturbing to me because it is not on the top of a hill.

You can see from the rain clouds that the weather was turning ugly on the drive home. The land and the weather we encountered were varied during our ride yesterday.

This old fellow cracked me up. I guess the grass really is better on the other side of the fence. At least this is what this old fellow told us.

Peanut kept telling me she didn't want to go to sleep. After I handed her a paci, she was out in about 2 minutes. The little fellow slept the whole trip.

We stayed in Denver last night. We planned on stopping someplace along the way to stay the night, but it started raining. We also thought it would be nice to stay the night in the same hotel two nights in a row. Peanut was really good yesterday. I hope she is just as good today when we head off to the aquarium.

Done

When I finished my undergraduate degree, I went with my friend Jacques to eat sushi. He had to convince me to go because... well... it was raw fish. I was so tired and maybe even a little tipsy. Jacques yelled at the sushi chef because the fish was off. I didn't eat too much sushi then.

Now, I have that same feeling of being really tired, and surprisingly, I tried to meet up with my friend Jacques and his family. Today I am yelling at my two year old to quit kicking me in the back as I drive a mini van down the road. I have a husband and two kids, and I am sleeping above a bar in a little country Colorado town tonight. It is funny how things change but stay the same over a period of years.

I finished today. I still can't really believe it. The final was a breeze. The professors didn't ask me any questions I really couldn't answer. They were all really great and I have some good suggestions to bring back to work.

now it is time to put my two year old again. Thank you guys for thinking about me. I appreciate it.

Today and Friday

Today I leave to go to Colorado to give my final presentation for my Master's program. I think my presentation is pretty much where it needs to be. I will practice it a couple of times before I actually give it on Friday. I give the presentation at 10:00 central time, so all good vibes going my way are appreciated.

Right now I am home getting things packed and ready. It seems like we aren't taking as much as we took to Oregon early in the year. I was able to fit most of the kids stuff into my own duffle bag. I am not taking the pump and bottles because I don't want to carry it around. Peanut isn't in diapers anymore, and my snack and book packing is at a minimum. I still think we will be slogging too much stuff through the airport, but there is nothing we can do about it until the kids are out of car seats.

I feel anxious and excited. I feel nervous, but I also sense the end being so close. I can't imagine what it will be like to not be in school. I was also thinking about going back for my MBA, but I think I might wait a while. I would also like to get a Phd sometime. I would also like to finish my house.

so I am packing the old Toshiba up for the long haul to the big CO. My clothes still don't fit right, so I am not wearing the suit that I wanted to. What I have is comfortable though. It will be okay. I just have to remember to breath.

and pray that i quit clenching my teeth long enough to speak.

Clean your house

A good friend of mine in starting a house cleaning business. If you are interested in having someone clean your house every week or every other week, you can email me at tallgirl75@hotmail.com, and I will give you the contact information.

An Update

It is really quiet right now. I do love me some quiet. In fact, I crave it. I went so far as to leave a party early yesterday and offer to put the kids to bed on my own so I could get some quiet. You know what Mr. T did? that sucker came home not 10 minutes after peanut had her last "i have to go to the bathroom" episode. Can you believe that!

Baby P is sleeping. Peanut is with mom and dad. Mr. T. is traveling to Pocahontas to get an engine. Because I guess, we don't have enough engines at our house or even enough things to do for that matter. Hmph... anyway, I am tired of listening to myself speak about MCDA's so, I am going to fill you in on the sordid details of our life.

You ready?

Okay.

The yard sale was not a raging success. Had it not been for one Mexican family, it would have been almost a bust for Jen and I. Lisa, on the other hand, had most of her stuff sold before anyone showed up. As a side note, it is advantageous to have a yard sale with people whose kids are older than yours because I picked up a bunch of Christmas presents for Peanut for cheap!! Jen and I almost cleaned Lisa out. It rained starting at about 930, so not many moms and kids were out to see all our wonderful stuff. I did get a knock on the door around 1230 for someone wanting to buy somethings. I sold 2 rugs, some baby stuff, and a chair in about 15 minutes. They got a steal, but I got some more space in my house. The rest of my stuff is going to the church for our trash to treasure sale. Mark you Calenders, it is the first weekend in December.

Peanut's potty training is moving along. I don't really worry about her peeing in public anymore, but she does have an accident about once a week. I was going to move her into panties at night when we got back from Colorado, but I might wait a little while longer. I don't know. She had an accident while taking a nap the other day. i think i can easily change her bedding if i set it up right, but I don't know that I or really Mr. T. for that matter want to get up and change sheets at night right now. I will speak with the boss and see what he says as he is the one getting up with her these days.

Baby P is doing great. His big thing is waking up at night and blowing raspberries on my breasts. It isn't as exciting as it sounds. He is so sweet, that it makes me giggle a bit to think about it.

Back to the books. I leave on Wednesday and present on Friday. Wish me luck. I feel better about the presentation, but it is still only 40 minutes long. I need to relook at the email my professor sent me to see if I need to add some more stuff.

Not so unique

HowManyOfMe.com

There are 164 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

Yard Sale!!

This Saturday I am having a yard sale at my house. There will be 4 families involved in the sale. There will be lots of kids clothes and some baby stuff. Most of the clothes are little girl clothes, but we will also have some of Baby P's 3-6 and some 6-9 clothes.

I will also be selling some of my clothes and various other decorating items like vases and window treatments. I am not sure what the other ladies are selling, but I know it is all good stuff. I hope I don't spend all my hard earned money buying other people's stuff.

Makeup

Peanut walks over and grabs one of my prized makeup brushes while I am, uh, otherwise busy in the spare bathroom. She starts putting the powder brush all over her face.

She then looks at me and says "Do I look beautiful, momma?"

"Of course you do, sweet pea. You look beautiful even without makeup on. You are a beautiful girl."

Oh dear, it is already starting. What is funny is that I rarely wear makeup. On a wild week, I will wear it twice. Other than that, I am usually bare faced. I wonder if that makes it more intriguing that I only wear it on special occasions.

Raspberries

I have half a dozen posts in my head right now, but I am having a hard time getting them out. We go to Colorado in a week for my final presentation for my Masters. I have been trying to get my presentation together and then i need to start studying. Maybe after the trip, I will finally rip some of the video I have been saving up.

Meanwhile, we have learned to do this

and

which leads us to this



We have been playing with this all weekend. It never occurred to me to blow raspberries or play peek-a-boo with him until I read one of those babycenter bulletins. What a crappy mom! With peanut I read all the books and tracked her development. With Baby P, I am much more oblivious to what the next milestone is. Conversely, he rolled about 2 months faster than old Peanut. I hope he doesn't do everything 2 months faster. I will be in trouble if he walks at 8 months!

Peanut was back to being good today. Thank God. If she was going to keep acting out like that I was going to have to commit myself. She said some pretty cute stuff today, of course, I can't remember it.

One thing though, she fell on the floor and hit her head pretty hard. it was one of those things that you don't see coming and then it is over. So i picked her up, because she really was hurt. I was asking where she hit her head so I could kiss it better. She pointed to the floor and said "Right there". Then she told me "I don't feel really good."