Following Spence and Olive

Gatlinburg Trip

2008-10-13T11:07:00.013-04:00

We arrived home yesterday from a wonderful trip to Gatlinburg with Larry's family. We were there for 4 days and stayed in a beautiful cabin with beautiful views of the fall foliage. The entire trip was very relaxing and the kids had a great time.

We spent one day at a place called Ober Gatlinburg which had ski lifts that led to the top of a mountain and a spectacular view!! There was also an Alpine luge type ride that we rode down the mountain, which Spencer particularly enjoyed! There were a few kiddie rides and Olive loved riding the cars around in circles! The kids also played mini golf and enjoyed "the cyclone", an indoor boat/waterslide that was very fast

and fun!!

I spent quite a bit of time at the outlet mall and got some really good buys on things for myself (which I don't get to do very often). Larry got some quality time with the guys, drinking beer and watching football.

We also celebrated October birthdays and also surprised Jodie by having a celebration for her birthday, which isn't until Dec., but she will be in Australia for her nephew's wedding!

First Day of School !

2008-08-30T10:09:00.010-04:00

Spencer's first day of Kindergarten (1/2 day) started this past Thursday. He was very apprehensive despite my best efforts at talking it up. In the end, we ended up making a deal that if he didn't cry when I dropped him off, when I picked him up, I would take him to dairy queen for a hot dog and cherry slushy. And...voila! It worked. He did great, no tears. In fact, I didn't even have to sneak out of the room b/c he was so busy coloring and meeting new kids in his class. I decided to forgo the whole room mother thing this year, but I am going to help out with the Halloween Party and also accompany the kids on a field trip to Stage I to see a play in the Spring.

I had bought Spence a special shirt to wear for his first day, and I must say that he received several compliments on it. He also picked out the cutest messenger bag (he's too metro sexual for a backpack). I had his name embroidered on it...turned out adorable!! Things seem to be going well except for the fact that his little girlfriend Claire (whom he had a crush on last year) is in his class this year and won't play with him. She says it's because she is "too old" for him. She evidently turns 6 around Christmas. Spence is crushed and says he wishes he had his own personal Genie so that he could make a wish to be older than Claire. Another concern of his regarding school is that he prefers to play in the "big room" than to go outside. The big room is an alternate area for play when it's raining, too cold, muddy, etc. He said that he wishes he could go to heaven but not be dead so that he could control the weather and make it rain in order to play in the big room at school. Oh the woes of a 5 year old, but I admire his clever strategies/solutions. He does, however love his new teacher, Ms. Susan...as seen here posing with Spence!!

Other than school, Spencer is obsessed with the Wii. He kicks my butt on Mario Cart on a daily basis. He is so good at that game...plus, he knows all of the characters and is able to read the instructions, etc. I had to limit his playing time b/c it was becoming an obsession. For example, a few weeks ago he said "Mommy, when your laying in bed at night and can't fall asleep, do you think about Mario Cart?, cause I do.." Allrighty, how about we turn the Wii off for a while...

Happy Birthday Spencer!

2008-08-24T08:18:00.008-04:00

As hard as it is to believe, Spence tured 5 this month. My baby is no longer a baby. He wanted a Super Why party, and despite the fact that PBS has nothing commercially available for that particular show, I was able to use clip art from their website to create items. The theme of the party was to come and be transformed into your favorite super reader. I used pillow cases and printed out different characters that could be ironed onto the fabric to make different capes for the kids. Then I used green foam to cut out super why masks. I found little foam crowns for the girls who wanted to be princess pea! The kids decorated their capes and crowns and had a great time.

Before and After

2008-07-13T19:15:00.004-04:00

My Dad emailed me this picture about a year or so ago, and I was hoping to get a shot of Olive this year that was similar. I didn't get exactly what I wanted, but you get the gist.

Fripp Trip 08

2008-07-13T14:32:00.005-04:00

We left Friday morning with four kids in tow (Spence, Olive, Isabelle and Jenna)…and what could have been a completely disastrous expedition surprisingly turned out easier than I had ever dreamed. All the kids did great, even Olive. She slept a few hours and then was content watching a movie on the DVD player and then she looked at books. Once we arrived in Spartanburg, we met up with Mom, Dad and Chris and headed to Outback for dinner followed by some swimming in the hotel pool. The kids were worn out and went to bed early and slept well.

Saturday went well too, the final leg to Fripp was only 3 ½ hours long and we were all relieved to finally arrive. The house was nice, but not exactly what we expected. The bedrooms were all very small but they were livable. The most disappointing aspect of the house was its absence of wired/wireless internet access. So, the only way anyone could get online was to drive up to the beach club and log onto their wifi. So, I was only getting on about once a day.

The beach was beautiful, not an ounce of seaweed the first day and the water was warm and clear to the bottom. Tuesday, it rained for a better part of the day, but cleared up in time for us to spend a few hours playing in the sand. Spence played on the boogie board, riding waves in, and I even tried riding one of the skimming boards, but I’m not very good at staying on my feet. Olive loves the ocean and the waves don’t seem to bother her, even when she gets hit in the face. She is my adventurous girl, she also takes the pool head on and jumps in with no fear.

Wednesday we visited the Hunting Island State Park and climbed up a very tall lighthouse. It was really cool , but became very limited on space as we neared the top, and after climbing in circles for several stories, we were all very dizzy. I was miraculously able to get some good shots of the beach despite the tunnel vision that set in once I set foot out on the balcony. I also bought a very nice rendering of the lighthouse to hang in my bathroom, which is "beach themed".

The last two days were spent at the beach and pool and the kids couldn't get enough water. We did take a break on Friday and the girls went to Beaufort and did some shopping while Larry and Spencer went Kayaking. By late Friday afternoon, Spence was so tired he was floating around the pool in a daze. Olive became more and more confident in the water and was sticking her head under every chance she got, trying to swim like the bigger kids. I didn't apply enough sunscreen Thursday and therefore, I suffered with a sun rash that night and thereafter. Nevertheless, it was a great trip, one that we hated to see end.

The drive home, as always, was not fun, and the trip wouldn't have been complete without Spencer throwing up....which he did due to car-sickness about 30 miles south of Gatlinburg, TN. So, we called it a day and spent the night in Gatlinburg. The slugger recovered fast though and managed to swim in the hotel pool and eat a great dinner out....he just needed to get off of those winding mountainous roads. We finished the drive this morning and were home by lunch time. The rest of today has been spent putting things away, dong laundry and stocking up on groceries and getting ready for the work week. There should be a pill that specifically treats Post Vacation Depression.

The Unlikely Suspect...

2008-06-10T20:36:00.004-04:00

This is just a quick post. When I came home from work today, I spent a lot of time with the kids out on the deck since the weather wasn't so hot/humid. While I was out there, I would occasionally hear a noise that sounded like a parrot or some other strange exotic bird. With all of the cicadas flying around, it was hard to tell if there could be a bird mixed in all of that mess. Over and over, I'd hear the crazy squawking sound "whapah". It would even catch Olive's attention and she would look around to see what was causing such unpleasant auditory input.

Since I have recently been the recipient of some practical joking by some friends/family (you know who you are and you two will pay), I began to become paranoid..of what, I don't know...but at this point, I didn't know what the hell to expect. After a few hours of being truly baffled,it wasn't until I cleaned up around the deck this evening that I found this:

A Kung Fu Panda toy from a McDonalds happy meal. This isn't just any Kung Fu Panda...Nope, this one is possessed by pee pee, yep...you heard me...a urine intoxicated Panda lives on our deck. Evidently, Spencer couldn't hold it one day and decided to let loose in the back yard. He looked down and realized he had tinkle'd on Po, the Kung Fu Panda. Ever since then, Panda kinda yelps out at will...even with the power button turned off!!!!

The future's so bright...I gotta wear shades!!

2008-06-06T20:02:00.004-04:00

Today was one of my "at-home Fridays". I love these days!! I never really have a plan for them, but the kids and I always seem to have a great day. Today I took them to the Library and started them on the Summer Reading Program. Spence checked out 3 books and Olive checked out none. That is because Olive had a meltdown and we had to leave immediately. But, at least Spence managed to get his books, a few easy-readers. We are trying to get him prepared. A few weeks ago, I met with his Kindergarten teacher for next year and she mentioned that the class will begin having homework the first week of school and will start reading simple books the first week too...and have spelling tests every Friday. Gosh, I'm pretty sure in my Kindergarten class all we did was color and have recess.

We also went to Kohl's in search of some sandals for Olive as her toes are sticking out of the ones she is currently sporting. Shocked, I found out they don't even carry her size...for any of you Mom's out there with kids who wear toddler 4's, don't bother going to Kohl's. As we were walking out, Spence spotted the sunglasses rack and he picked a pair out for himself and for Olive. He did a great job, both kids look like movie stars!!! Then Spence had to try on everyone's glasses.

June Celebrations !!

2008-06-01T20:15:00.007-04:00

Another wild weekend here. It started off with Isabelle's birthday on Saturday and ended with the State Cup on Sunday!! Little Izzy turned 4 this weekend and we celebrated with a "Little Mermaid" party Saturday afternoon. The kids played in the pool and the inflatable water slide, while the adults ate the tons of food Bev had prepared. It was great to celebrate with the family, and unbelievable to think that the little Bee is already 4...where has the time gone?!!

Unfortunately Larry had to miss Izzy's party on Saturday b/c his team was playing in the state cup semi-finals in Bowling Green. He had mentioned staying the night in Bowling Green, but came home as a surprise at the very end of the party and let everyone know that they won and were headed to the State Cup Finals Sunday!!

Upon hearing this news, I really wanted to go and watch the final game, but knew that it would be a challenge to do it with both kids in tow. Most games, the players' parents help out with the kids and play with them, hold them, take them for walks to help out....Not during the State Cup Finals. I knew there would be no relief, and that the parents themselves would be on pins and needles the entire game. But, against my better judgement and all that I know about parenting and dealing with kids on trips, etc., I decided to go for it..

With my last minute decision to go to Bowling green, we left in such a rush this morning that we forgot to pack chairs/blankets to sit on during the game. Luckily, once we arrived at the fields, Spence saw some of his friends (little brothers of the players) and took off immediately and was pretty much entertained by them the entire day(one less kid to take care of).. Now, let me just say that, once you have a toddler, your own vanity is shot to hell...Let me explain...after Spence took off and it was just Olive and I, I decided we needed a place in the shade to set up shop. We found one lone tree and plopped right down in the mulch. As the game wore on, Olive and I had shared a cherry snow cone (my favorite) and cheesy nachos. I was covered from head to toe in pink and orange and my butt was covered in black mulch. When I say covered, I mean all over arms, legs and in my hair. My butt was completely black and merely "dusting" it off was only possible the first time I stood up...and I gave up after that. If I could have stayed under the tree and hidden the entire time, it wouldn't have been that bad...but I had to get up for various things and expose my pathetic self to the public.

With all of that said, thankfully Larry's team won 2-0 !! At the award ceremony, when Larry stood up to speak, both kids took off and bombarded him. He took it in stride and when it came time to hand out medals, Larry let Spencer put the medals around the players' necks. Spence did a fine job, and lastly, Larry placed one around the little guy's neck and then Olive's. It was a great moment!

May's Days

2008-05-18T20:19:00.006-04:00

It's been a busy May so far. Mother's Day weekend was filled with a Rehearsal Dinner on Friday, Wedding on Saturday, and Mother's Day Celebration on Sunday! It was great to see some out of town relatives again, especially Adrienne, Sarah & Tom !! We all had a great time visiting!! It never seems to be long enough!!

The following week, Spencer completed his second year of pre-school, and is officially a Kindergartner!! We took him out to lunch after his last day to Celebrate at Red Robin (his favorite restaurant).

Larry and Spence went out of town this weekend to Cincinnati for another Soccer Tournament. Spence is always excited b/c he loves staying in hotels and swimming in the indoor/outdoor pool. That means another girl's weekend with Olive!!! We had a great time, and spent most of the weekend with Meme'. We did some shopping and then much-needed Spring House Cleaning!!! I was able to organize the kids' summer clothes and store away the ones they have grown out of.....which will be passed down to Lucien and future cousins!! Here is a pic of Olive from the weekend....in her typical Olive pose..
Larry and Spence arrived home this afternoon. Poor Spence is sick with the croup and was up all night last night, having trouble breathing. Poor little guy still sounds terrible, coughing like a seal. I read on the internet that a cool air vaporizer helps. So, I ran out and picked one up this afternoon. Tonight, I gave him a warm bath and then put Vicks Vapo-rup on his chest and feet (tip I learned from Jodie). Hopefully he will sleep well. Here is a pic I snapped while he was watching TV in our bed.. Poor little guy is miserable....

And they're off..

2008-05-03T20:11:00.005-04:00

Today was the 134th running of the Kentucky Derby. We decided last minute to have a few friends over for dinner and the race. Thanks to on-line gaming, we were able to place some bets, which makes the races a little more interesting. Without knowing one fact about any of the horses running, I was able to pick my favorites based on names and numbers. This year was easy. I always bet the #8. So, I bet #8 "visionaire" and also the horse called "8 belles"...the only philly in the race. Sadly enough, if you watched the race, you know how it turned out, and it was truly heartbreaking..

But, aside from that, we still managed to have fun. The kids wore themselves out playing (as displayed by the picture of Olive eating a rice krispy treat), and the weather cooperated by staying warm throughout the afternoon. Larry made his famous Mexican Dinner and Doug & Michele brought yummy desserts. Nobody won a dime on any of our bets, we are all losers...except for Dad, who watched the derby in Alabama and put his money on "Big brown", whose name relates to UPS (go figure).

Girls weekend!!

2008-04-29T18:42:00.005-04:00

This weekend was great!! It was an all-girl's weekend. Larry and Spence spent the weekend in Indianapolis on a soccer trip while Olive and I spent some quality time together. It was so nice to spend the weekend with my girl!! I think she enjoyed it too. Saturday, we spent the whole day just playing outside together. We ran a few errands and took a nice long walk around the neighborhood. That afternoon, my friend Sarah came over with her girls Laura and Claire, and had a nice visit. Olive loved it. Laura is nearly 3 and little Claire (a fiery red-head) is 6 months younger than Olive. They played on the swingset for most of the visit.

Sunday was spent at Mom & Dad's. Adam and his family were also there and we grilled out for lunch and had a great afternoon. Little Miss Olive was a busy little bee, taking wagon rides, eating ice cream cones and running in the tall grass. It is great to see her experience new things!

She slept the entire way home......While I had a wonderful time with my sweet girl....I couldn't help but miss Spence...

Spring, and Why it's Super!!!

2008-04-24T18:02:00.006-04:00

Spring has finally arrived and I, for one am celebrating. One more day of freezing cold weather could've possibly finished me mentally. It's so nice to be able to go out and sit on the deck and watch the kids play in the evenings. They love it too. Spencer is back to playing with his buddies that live behind us, and Olive wakes up and brings me her shoes first thing in the morning, indicating she would like to go outside. I can wear short sleeves again and have the excuse to get frequent pedicures.

So many things happen and I think, OH..I need to post this on the blog, but I never get around to it. Like, Spencer's newest obsession....the PBS show "Superwhy"!! Yep, we are moving on from the Backyardigans finally. It's been fun Uniqua, but 2 1/2 years is enough. He hasn't quit them altogether, but he doesn't care to watch their shows that much anymore. I can't complain really, Superwhy facilitates reading, letter recognition and problem solving. The superheros have the powers to read, spell, write, etc. Olive enjoys it too, she dances to the intro music, then goes on about her business. In fact, if she's upset, I will start one of the episodes and the music calms her and she's happy again, dancing around. Here is Spencer in his homemade Superwhy costume....look for more superwhy at birthdays, Halloween, etc.....

Olive talks more and more everyday. She will walk into the kitchen, raise her shirt, rub her belly and say "hungy". She's a girl with no shame. Some new words are "Bob", "Cheese", "Moo", and "ow". She took a fall yesterday and smashed her fingers. This morning she woke up and pointed to them and said "ow". Poor thing. Here is Olive this morning...her typical response to my question of "where are you going sweet Olive?" See that look of defiance....we are in big trouble here, She is Little Miss Mean-ness.... On a more positive note, she has a new favorite book called "quack quack, who's that?". It's one of the lift the flap books and she loves it. I believe she received it for her birthday, don't remember who gave it to her, but THANK YOU!!! She loves it so much!!! She will hand you the book and hop in your lap and gesture for you to read it over and over. That's where she started saying "moo". Her favorite page is of the rooster, but she just can't quite form the phrase "cockadoodledoo". But I know it's coming!! She is so smart, and can follow just about any directive you give her, within reason of course.
Poor little neighbor girl down the street who is a few months older than her tried to get in her "cozy coupe" car outside a few weeks ago, and I thought Olive was going to hurt her. She gave her the "look" and then went for the kill (biting). What do you expect though, with a brother and 2 wild boys living behind us...the girl has to be tough....Oh, how I envy her sometimes...I was always so squeamish.... Oh, and this was also Olive this morning...she gets into my lingerie drawer and pulls out my bras and tries to wear them....clever girl even knows that it hooks together, but just can't quite figure it out....all in due time my dear, let's get past diapers first...

Olive's first haircut!

2008-04-02T19:06:00.005-04:00

Well, it finally happened. I didn't want to admit it, but the girl desperately needed some shaping up. She was sporting a mullet and I couldn't take it anymore. Her hair was long but stringy. I knew I didn't want to get bangs cut since I'd (she'd) worked so hard on letting them grow out. At this point, she can tuck them behind her ears..but of course, she doesn't understand or know how to do that, so we end up pulling it back in a bow or ponytail holder. But eventually, she will understand, and since I don't like bangs, she doesn't really have a choice. Just like her Meme', she has a short forehead and looks better without them.

Before:

During:

After:

She did great at the salon. I took her to my hairdresser, who also does Spencer's hair. She sat in my lap and did just fine. It's the first of many (hopefully) trips to the salon/spa together. Meme' came to help out which made it even more special. 3 generations of beauties!!!

Easter 2008

2008-03-30T16:06:00.003-04:00

We had a nice Easter! The weather wasn't the greatest, but the kids were able to have a few Easter egg hunts nonetheless. The Easter bunny delivered some yummy goodies and a few toys too. We had lunch with the Raibles at Larry's aunt Karen's house. Spencer and his cousins had Easter baskets waiting on them and had fun playing with new games and racing hot wheels cars. The afternoon/evening was spent at our house with Mom, Adam and family. Dad was in Mobile :( We tried to have an egg hunt and while hiding the eggs, it started snowing. The kids did the egg hunt anyway (very quickly). Crazy weather around here. Here is a collage of the kids throughout Easter weekend,

Updates after a Very busy month!

2008-03-24T16:30:00.007-04:00

The last 4 weeks have been very busy for us. It's been a hard month and some good things and some bad things have occurred. We took a weekend trip to Nashville the last part of February and Olive took a fall and knocked her front teeth loose, and eventually they both had to come out. It was a horrible experience, and although not life-threatening, still very upsetting for all of us...especially me, I still have a hard time dealing with it. Luckily, her permanent front teeth were not damaged and should come in fine....eventually. Until then, we have the option of just letting her go without or having some porcelain partials made. I have chosen to go with the partials, for both aesthetic purposes as well as to help with her speech. The last thing I want is for her to have a "tongue thrust" or a lazy tongue that just hangs there in the spot where the teeth are missing. I also want to help her with the correct pronunciation of the "th", "f", and "v" sounds. The dentist said when her 2-year molars are completely in, they can attach the partial to them. So, it won't be long. Here is a picture of her before the tooth fairy came..

Something good that has happened this month has been the start up of our newest business venture: Mariposa Place. It has been very hard work...much harder than I imagined, but hopefully it will pay off in the long run. We have had 2 successful open houses and have another one scheduled for this coming Friday evening. Our Grand Opening is still scheduled for next Monday!! I don't know the status of how many clients we have signed up and ready to start, but I should find out more from the marketing team tonight. If you are interested in checking us out, our website is http://www.princecaregroup.com/.

Mariposa Place has kept us all busy this past month, even the kids put their own sweat equity in on many occasions. Spencer really enjoyed going there and would play with the other owner's children. Olive enjoyed scribbling on the walls with chalk (before they were painted). We basically gave the place a complete makeover. It was a huge transformation, and I am glad I was a part of that process. I didn't realize all that goes into starting a business, and even with 10 people working simultaneously, it is still quite a task. We also did this on a shoestring budget in a very short time period. It has been quite a ride and hopefully it is just the beginning!!

During the process of creating Mariposa Place, we were hit with one of the largest snowstorms we have had in a few years. A foot of snow fell on Louisville and even though it made the restoration process tough on us, the kids absolutely loved it. Spence and his neighborhood buddies had a blast sledding down hills and I must say, it was beautiful. Here is a picture of Spence on our deck the morning of the snow..

Sunday Dinner

2008-02-17T20:02:00.006-05:00

Larry started a Pot Roast on the slow cooker this morning and I thought it would be nice to invite Adam and family over for dinner tonight. It was such a nice afternoon that the kids were able to play outside some. Olive was beyond tired and was running around like a little wild child, but she loves when Isabelle comes over and follows her everywhere. I think she knows she's a girl like herself. When she goes to the Raible's, she is surrounded by all boys, and only having a brother to hang out with, she enjoys being around girls. Somehow I don't count though,as she prefers Daddy over me any day.

I was able to get some cute shots of the kids. Lucien slept like an angel the entire time he was here. In fact, I had let him use Olive's old bouncy seat and Adam and Bev took it home with them. Evidently, he hasn't slept well in quite some time and the seat may be the cure. When your desperate, sleep deprived, you will try anything. I remember putting my kids in car seat carriers in the bed, in the crib, a bouncy in the bed. There comes a point when you are so tired, that you will do anything out of desperation in order to get the kid to sleep for just 2, maybe 3 hrs. straight. I remember with Spencer, I finally put him in another room, put earplugs in and said screw it.

Oh the good old days. I don't miss that part one bit, but I do miss having a sweet little baby to cudde with, but not enough to revisit those days again ;) I'm content with my 2 and thankful that they are good sleepers. And..Spence is my "best snuggler" after all, as he calls it. In fact, when he is upset about something, he uses it as leverage. He will say "well then I'll never be your best snuggler again...." It's his trump card....and it works. Normally he says it through tears, and it just breaks my heart. It breaks his heart too b/c he loves that more than anything. I will cry my eyes out the day he decides he's too big to snuggle with me anymore....unless he's like 15 obviously.

My Funny Valentines !!

2008-02-15T11:13:00.002-05:00

When I woke up on Thursday, I had the best intentions of getting the kids dressed in their Valentine's outfits and getting some pictures. But, as usual, I was rushing, and it didn't happen. By the time I arrived home from work, the kids were already eating dinner....and spaghetti at that. Olive, who had on an adorable red/purple dress was covered in tomato sauce despite being a double bibber...Spence was at least salvageable.

Determined to get pictures for albums/videos (that I never finish), I cleaned them up as best as I could and took some snapshots. The one at the bottom left is of Spencer after going to sleep with wet hair the night before...this is a usual look for him on mornings after bath night and requires much hair gel to look halfway decent/presentable for school. The one of Olive in the box shows her favorite place to be...she climbs in, then out, then in, then out, then in,......

Recently, Spencer and I had been reading the book Charlie Brown's Valentine. In the story, Pigpen makes a special Crunchy Munchy Valentine Snack for the Peanuts' Gang. Spencer decided that he wanted to make the snack on V-day, so I picked up the ingredients for the crunchy munchies and we made them as soon as I got home. The main ingredient was marshmallows, which were a big hit with Olive (as seen above). I was also showered with wonderful Valentine gifts and cards from Larry and the kids. I received a Diamond heart necklace, a flower windchime and a cool ceramic wall clock/thermometer for the deck area..oh, and a whole bag of Ghirardelli Dark Chocolates. I can't wait until Spring to put out the clock and windchime!

Let it Snow!!

2008-02-11T20:08:00.000-05:00

They are predicting anywhere from ...oh... 3 to 10 inches tonight. Who knows though....back in 1992, they predicted 1-2 inches of ice and we ended up with 22 inches of snow. The flakes began coming down around 4:30 this afternoon. Spencer was excited to go out and have a snowball fight. But...the snow was too icy and wouldn't cooperate. Olive made an appearance and liked walking on the slippery stuff too!! Hopefully there will be enough left tomorrow for the kids to ride the sled/saucer down the hill in the backyard...or at least build a snowman. I hope the Subaru comes through for me in the morning!!

Olive is walking!!

2008-02-04T18:38:00.000-05:00

I haven't posted in a week. So much has happened, that I don't know where to begin. First off, the biggest news of the week is Baby Lucien entered the world on Jan 30th!! Mother/Father and baby are doing well. I will post some pics soon. Every time I go over to visit the little guy, I forget my camera.

As far as my crew, we have made it through another week, sickness-free! Although, Spence and I went to a birthday party yesterday at Gattiland, so that could all be ending soon. Say some prayers!!

This past week, the little Olive finally grew tired of crawling around and began taking steps....Watch Out World!!! She is growing up so fast now. I'm realizing how different boys and girls are. For example: Olive loves babies. She walks around the house babbling "baby baby baby". She carries any stuffed animal and loves on it. She also loves books. She brings me books to read to her. I used to have to literally hog-tie Spencer down to read him a book. Not Olive....she just sits patiently and then points to the pictures. She is a jealous little thing though, and doesn't like to share me with her brother. If I'm reading her a book and Spencer joins us, she hits him. Luckily, he is very easy going and thinks it's funny!

Roller Skating is still Fun!!!

2008-01-27T17:57:00.000-05:00

Today was a great Day!! I got to be a kid again today, reliving my youth through my Son. This morning, Mom called with the bright idea to take the kids roller skating. It has been so cold, and the kids have been basically sick and stuck inside the past month, we all needed to get out and have some fun. Honestly, I didn’t know if Spence was old enough or would have enough balance to roller skate, but I thought..what the heck, and with that, we headed down to Champs Rollerdome. Larry and Olive came too and Adam and his kids met us there. I hadn’t been skating since I was in Elementary School…

Turns out, things are a little different now that I’m 35. For instance, I don’t have my own skates like I did when I was 8, so I had to use rentals. At 8, I hadn’t yet stretched my abdominal region out to a frightening diameter, leaving myself (to put it nicely) with a slight decrease in muscle tone. The music they play these days sucks! I didn’t recognize one song. Back in the day, they used to play classics like “Rappers Delight” by the Sugar Hill Gang, or various hits from the then ultra-popular movie, “Xanadu”. Also, the roller rink seems much smaller than it did when I was 8. But, other than that, everything (i.e.: disco ball, strobe lights, video games, snack bar) was exactly as I remembered it.

Larry doesn’t roller skate, or ice skate, or ski. He says he doesn’t like the sensation of having no control over his feet. So, he was of no help out on the rink today, but he did have the important job of watching Olive, who, but the way, was shaking her little booty the whole time, loving the music and the lights. Mom was there to help him/us too! Adam skated, so it was up to us to help guide Spence and Isabelle. Jenna, who is 8, has been skating for quite some time and did her own thing.

Going into this, and seeing other small children around Spence’s age skating fairly well, I figured Spence would be a natural like his Mom, but I was mortified when I saw that he could not even stand up. I mean, it was like his legs were made of Jello. One trip with him around the rink and it felt like my back/abdomen were ripping apart (I know, pathetic) because I was constantly pulling him up, getting on the floor, helping him balance, etc. There’s no way I can explain just how terrible the poor kid was. Isabelle looked like a pro compared to him. She would scoot along, and hardly ever fell. I couldn’t understand how he could be so bad….it had to be Larry’s genes. Finally, he gave up and wanted the skates off. I couldn’t blame him. His poor arms have to be at least 2 inches longer with all the pulling I did on them today. When I went to take off his skates, I realized the problem….Larry had tied them on so loosely that there’s no way the kid could balance himself. He had no support around his ankles. Larry argued that tying the skates tighter would not help the poor guy, and it didn’t matter anyway, because Spence was done…he wanted to play air hockey.

While they played, I went out and did some more skating with Adam and Isabelle and, not to brag or anything, but…. I’ve still got it!! It’s like riding a bike I guess. I am still able to skate as well as I did when I was a kid. I mean, since I hadn’t skated in so many years, I didn’t know what to expect.
Eventually I was able to talk Spence into putting the skates on one more time….and would you believe it…it was like a new kid. He was so much better. He had great balance and was able to skate around the rink with me, no problem. I would skate backwards and hold his hands while he was facing me. It helped with his balance. He was so proud of himself, and I was so proud of him..and relieved that he hadn’t inherited Larry’s genes after all, it was just poor shoe-tying.

It was getting late and we were talking about leaving, but then they announced that they were going to have races. Of course, Spence and Isabelle couldn’t race..you have to be able to skate on your own. Jenna decided she would race and she did great!! She didn’t win, but came close. Adam said he wanted to race and asked me if I would. Now…..let me tell you…..at age 8, there was no way in hell I would’ve gotten out on that rink in front of all of those people to race. But, at 35, I said “what the hell” and decided to do it….I’m breaking down walls here people !!!! When they announced that it was time for the parent’s race,I didn’t really mind going b/c I thought it was a co-ed race. Turns out, that’s just a rouse to get people out there. Once out on the rink, they divided us up. Of course I couldn’t leave at that point, I’d look like a coward. So, I had to be tough, and do it. I looked to Adam for support, he gave me the “kick some ass look”, but then we both looked to my right….. and there stood a woman in a muscle shirt, cut-off jeans and her own pair of speed skates. We both knew I was already defeated. I tried to stay strong, standing timidly in my cords, turtle neck and some cheap rentals. My only solace was that the other Mom’s in the race seemed normal like me, I thought I would have a good chance at beating them…they had rentals too. But, alas, I didn’t do so great…I came in 5th out of 6. Muscle shirt woman beat everyone by a landslide. The best excuse I have for my weak performance is that I didn’t have good pole position. I had a great start, but you had to skate around cones, and I was way on the outside. I was also kind of cautious taking my turns, because the one thing I didn’t want to do was fall. When Adam’s turn came, he got off to a bad start, but still finished in the top 3 and just like back in 1980, received a free Coke!! I was very proud of him and of both of us really for getting out there and trying. That’s something I never really had the chance to do as a kid since I didn’t play any sort of organized sports. After the races, we took a few more spins around the rink and then decided it was time to call it a day…and what a wonderful day it was!!

I know the pictures aren’t great…they were taken by my phone, but I thought I’d post them anyway.

Surprise!

2008-01-21T10:35:00.000-05:00

Yesterday we threw a Surprise 30th Birthday Party for Adam and a Surprise Baby shower for Bev! It's hard to say if they were really surprised...with so many people in the know, somebody was bound to slip up and say something. But, we had a great time nonetheless. The kids played Wii downstairs while adults enjoyed the playoff games upstairs. Olive had a great time, despite skipping her afternoon nap.

Long Time Gone

2008-01-21T07:09:00.000-05:00

It has been too long since I posted. My best excuse, and it's legit, is that I broke yet another camera. I had so many pictures I wanted to put on here, but couldn't. I bought a new camera this weekend, so now..problem solved. Olive's first birthday!! She had 2 actually. One on her actual birthday, which was held in Texas and another party we had for her here at home. Unfortunately, she was sick and running a fever at her party at home. But she still managed to eat some of her cake. In Texas though, she had a ball and made a huge mess with chocolate brownie cake !!

The rest of the month has been spent with our family fighting another flu-like virus. This weekend, we find ourselves healthy, and thankful for that. Olivia is still not completely walking, but is taking small steps unassisted. She also says the word "baby" now...she likes playing with her baby dolls...she has a love-hate relationship with them. One minute she loves on them, the next she chews on them and finally she beats the floor with them. Spencer's newest love is the Nintendo Wii, he's been spending some quality time at his Uncle Adam's playing Wii bowling.

Christmas 2007!!

2007-12-28T11:00:00.000-05:00

Christmas came and went in a flash it seems. We spent Christmas day at Adam and Bev’s and had a great time and great food! As seen above. It was a whirlwind of fun that came to a screeching halt when we entered the airport. Since adults don’t do well waiting in lines, it would be safe to say that children's lack of patience for it could be multiplied by at least 10, 20, maybe 30. And, really…kids are just doing and saying what we would like to, but are socially unable.

The truth of it is though, that the lines were the worst part. Spencer took his Dramamine and was successful in not tossing his Christmas Cookies. Olivia, we found out, is the happiest when she doesn’t sleep. She was having the time of her life on the plane, playing “peekaboo” with the passengers seated behind her. It helped that Tom and Sarah were on the plane too, they helped entertain the kids.

Once we arrived in Houston, we found out that our ride was held up by the ferry and was still over an hour away. We were starving, but had already left the secured area of the airport. Turns out, we flew into Houston Hobby, not Houston Intl. Big Difference…..
They don’t have any restaurants in the lobby of the hobby. By this time, it was 7:00 pm and the kids/adults were “done”. We had no transportation and no food. We asked if we could go back into the secured area, but told “no” because we didn’t have boarding cards.

Then, at our darkest moment of despair, we rallied around the baggage claim and arrived at the best idea I’d heard in years. We would call one of the nearby hotels and ask for a shuttle. We would get free transportation to the hotel and then eat at their restaurant. We would have Larry’s dad just pick us up there. I called the Mariott and the 6 of us, so proud of ourselves, hauled all 16 bags out to the underground CO2 hell they call the loading/unloading zone.

After about an hour of waiting, we realized they weren’t coming. So, I called the Hilton and they were there within 15 minutes. You might ask why we still followed through with the plan if an hour had already passed? Well, we spoke with Larry’s dad again and he still hadn’t caught the ferry and was at least 45 minutes away.

Sidebar: There are 2 ways to get from Galveston to Crystal Beach. One is the aforementioned Ferry and the other is a roundabout expressway that is about 50 miles long. The ferry itself, once you are on, only takes about 15 minutes. So, if you catch the ferry, it’s worth taking…but if not, you are stuck in the line waiting.

Now then….Next we were whisked away to the Hilton and as the shuttle driver was helping us unload all 16 of our bags he told us that the restaurant was closed because it was Christmas. Somehow we all overlooked that possibility. In fact, after everything that had happened, I had forgotten it was even Christmas. So, there we were, dropped off in front of the Hilton, with no reservation and no intentions of getting one. Poor Spence had been talking about how he wanted a cheeseburger and Tom mentioned how he really wanted a taco. I would’ve been happy with anything. Now, those dreams were dashed. The only person in luck was Olive who had food in the suitcase.

Then, I remembered that when we pulled in, I had seen a Jack in the Box next door to the hotel, we looked and it was open!!! It was a Christmas Miracle!! Everyone would have their wish. Spencer got his cheeseburger and Tom his Taco and I got an old-time favorite from when Mom&Dad lived in Dalls…the chicken fajita pita!!!

So, there we were, in the lobby of the Hilton, surrounded by our 16 bags, eating our Jack in the Box Christmas Dinner. Thankfully, the people working the front desk there had sympathy and didn’t ask us to leave. Right as we finished, Larry’s dad pulled up and we loaded our bags and headed for Crystal Beach. And, as expected, we waited over an hour for the ferry. It felt good to finally reach the “Escondido”, which turned out to be much nicer in person than in pictures.

So, that’s our Christmas adventure in a nutshell.

Computer Generated Fun!!

2007-12-10T19:57:00.000-05:00

This weekend, Spencer and I had some fun creating some computer-generated images of us as elves. Then Aunt Bev showed us another website, Jibjab, and we created a snowball fight (as seen below). The best part of the snowball fight is Olive's face. It wasn't hard finding a picture of her with her signature nose-wrinkling glare. Spence still had some difficulty understanding how she could walk...

Non-Crappy Starring You! eCards on JibJab

Both kids have colds again (ugh) and Spence is running a fever tonight. Hopefully he will feel better tomorrow morning and can go to school. This weekend was hectic with Larry in Memphis. We spent Saturday at Mom & Dads, and Sunday, Spencer was my date to my company Christmas Party, held at the Rivue (the old Flagship atop the Galt House). Let me just say, that place is awesome since it's recent renovation. The deco is gorgeous, very retro and I highly recommend it!! Spence had a great time, and was quite a little gentleman; He did his best to use good manners. They had a chocolate fountain, need I say more....

Visit with Santa Claus!

2007-12-03T19:51:00.000-05:00

Well, today was the annual Take the Kids to the Mall to See Santa Day! Spencer was very excited and Olive was.... less than enthusiastic about the whole thing. But, going on a Monday morning works out great because there are no lines. When we arrived, Spencer ran up to the decorated area where he saw another little boy who was clinging to his mom, crying. Spence then yelled.."I'm not scared" and ran right up to Santa. I followed with Olive, but didn't put her in his lap until Spence had his time with the big man in red. He told him he wanted a snowball maker...don't know where that came from....probably him just trying to make something up on the spot.., some art supplies and CD's.

Once I sat Olive down, I knew it wasn't going to be good. She didn't cry, but she didn't like being left either. Spence was all smiles, and Olive gave her basic "get me out of here" look. I'm just thankful she didn't cry...I'll expect that next year. We didn't get a pic of Spence at two, because he wouldn't go near Santa. Speaking of Spence...wow, he's giving us a time lately. His obsession with music and CD's is on the verge of mania. He knows every song and their track numbers on various CD's (i.e. Elvis Costello, Joan Osborne, Jimmy Buffet, Paul Simon, Fiona Apple, Beastie Boys, Ben Folds, etc.) You can probably tell Larry's music versus mine. Anyway, we had to put a stop to Beastie Boys when Spence asked me the other day if I wanted to "kick the habit".....

I am considering getting him a child-size piano that has "real" keys. I've been researching it online and have found a few that have 30 keys. We are planning on starting him with lessons....looking for a way to channel his love and energy for music. I asked him not too long ago to pick an instrument he would like to learn to play and he said "either the violin or the piano"....so I'm going with the piano since we have one (that is in dire need of tuning) and I know how to play (somewhat). That might be his big gift from Santa.

As for Olive for Christmas...I just don't know what to get her. She has all of Spencer's hand-me-downs, so it's hard to justify getting her much....but Spencer knows Santa comes, so I have to produce at least a few things. These are wonderful predicaments to have.....and I so enjoy the magic that surrounds Christmas with my little guys!!!

Thanksgiving Weekend!

2007-11-24T19:28:00.000-05:00

We had a great Thanksgiving Weekend!! The early part of the day was spent at our house. Mom, Dad Adam and his family came over as well as my Aunt and Uncle (Loreita & Randy) from Nashville. It was so nice to spend some time with them. They brought the kids their Christmas presents early....and they just loved them. Spencer received a talking parrot which he called a talking woodpecker...and named him Paul Simon... Olive fell in love with her Pooh Bear that shakes. She hugs it and bites it (her way of showing affection). So much is going on with her. She wants to learn to walk soooo bad!! She's like her brother, very OCD when she gets set on something. She can stand up all by herself, but is unable to take steps. She wants you to hold her hands and help her walk all the time (as seen below)..which is great, but it takes its toll on your back and shoulders. The second half of our Thanksgiving was spent at the Raible's. It was so nice to see Larry's Grandma Sarah, who was able to attend. We missed Sarah, Tom and Adrienne....but will see them soon.

On Saturday, Isabelle and Jenna came over to join Spencer for our First Annual Gingerbread House Making Party!! Mom and Dad came too and helped construct the houses. I think the adults had more fun than the kids. Adam and I had some good laughs over the whole thing. They all turned out great and it's a tradition I hope to continue. We also put up Christmas decorations this weekend. We have no luck with lights. Last year, we had to buy a new set of lights for the tree, and this year, we only had 1 working set. So, I refused to buy another set and decorated the tree with only one set (yes, it is dimly lit...adds ambiance). But, it came back to bite me b/c at some point yesterday, half of the lights on the tree went out. So the bottom half of the tree is light-less. I will have to go buy 2 new sets this week. In addition to this issue, Larry strung lights around one of our tall evergreens out front, only to be disappointed when he plugged it in (don't know why he didn't check them out first). One of our reindeer won't light up and the giant wreath that hangs over the garage only lights up half-way. We are a disgrace to the neighborhood. I turned all of the outside lights off until we can remedy this situation.

Spence and Olive had fun decorating the tree. We let Spence hang most of the decorations b/c he was biting at the chomp or wait...chomping at the bit to hang ornaments. Here's how it always goes.....kids get all hyped up for decorating the tree, then you pull the thing out of the box and have at least an hour of work, putting in the branches and then straightening them out to look decent, then stringing lights.....it's a long and drawn out process that should be fun, but ultimately results in frustration, then anger and then usually someone breaks something.

I'm looking forward for things to get "back to normal" and school to resume (Spence was out for the week of Thanksgiving) at least until the next holiday break.

Olive's First Word!!

2007-11-21T08:04:00.000-05:00

Olive has officially started talking. She only has one word so far, but it's a good one!!! Poor Spence didn't have his first word until he was about 18 months, and his word was "Bob". I thought she might say "Mommy or Daddy", but no...she chose...Pancake. One of her favorite things to eat...and eating is her favorite thing to do, so I guess it makes sense. It is very cute to hear her say it...she says "pa cay" or sometimes "pa pay" or "ca cay". But, it is usally with much enthusiasm to get some pancakes!! I'm just glad she's talking...wonder what she'll say next!!

My Weekend in Gatlinburg

2007-11-18T20:04:00.001-05:00

I spent this weekend in Gatlinburg attending a Regional Jewelry Expo. Marci and I left Friday afternoon, and I realized as we drove away..... that I have never left Spencer (or Olive for that matter). He usually leaves me and goes with Larry on some soccer trip, but I'm never the one who goes away. It was hard. But, he stayed strong long enough to help me put my bags in the car and then he broke down crying. It was a much needed break for me though.

The drive wasn't too bad and we made it there in about 4 hours. Our hotel wasn't the best. It was a Comfort Inn and was located right down the street from the convention center.....but it was one of those hotels where you enter your room from the outside. Does that mean its considered a motel? Anyway, it wasn't the most upscale place I've ever stayed.

Friday evening, Marci and I hit a few outlet stores and then had dinner. When we returned and were walking from the parking lot to the room, I heard Marci say "Oh My God". I looked up and noticed that our room door was cracked open. We both froze in horror. She, a braver woman than I, said she would go in and check it out. I stood in the parking lot, ready to run and call for help if I heard screams, or if she wasn't out in a few seconds to give me the thumbs up. She didn't find anyone and nothing was missing.....both of our laptops were in there. After checking every corner (I even checked the mini fridge), we decided that it must have been our fault. The doors there don't shut automatically (like normal HOtels) and I guess we didn't close it all the way when we left for dinner.

After a fair night's sleep at best (there was the lingering thought of "what if there is a psycho killer still hiding in here somewhere), we headed out to the convention center for the big show. We shopped for 8 hrs. straight. I was ready to give up many times, but Marci kept saying "you can do it, hang in there...one foot in front of the other", and I didn't want to let her down....but I was miserable... dying to get out of there. My left foot hurt and my back/neck/arms/legs/etc... were hurting and people kept running into me. I mean, it was crazy the amount of people who would bump into me. It was annoying the heck out of me and was really baffling.....then I realized that they were all dead tired too and were stumbling around aimlessly just like me. There weren't many "Marci's" out there who could keep on going and going..and going....I'm glad she is a tenacious shopper though...we found many good buys that hopefully can be resold for a decent profit. I also picked up some Christmas gifts too!! My biggest buy of the day was $15 smocked dresses for Olive!!!

It was nice to get home today. Spence ran out and welcomed me with a big hug....Olive acted like she didn't really know me and wouldn't let go of her Daddy to give me a hug. Of course, a few hrs. later and she's warmed up to me again. Now I have to mentally prepare for the week ahead..thankfully its only a 3 day work week!!

Hello, Fire Truck!

2007-11-12T19:40:00.000-05:00

I had to post this. I must warn you though, if you are easily offended, you may want to stop reading here.....Ok, now for the rest of you, this is such a funny story that I hope I do it justice:

On Sunday, Mom, Spencer and I spent the day running errands and on our way home, we decided to stop and get some ice cream. Mom called the guys and they ordered some milkshakes. Spence couldn't wait and ate his ice cream at the shop, but we packed the milkshakes to take back home. We were driving my new car and maxed out the cup holders so that I had to hold my own shake in my lap.

Before going into the ice cream shop, Mom had just given spencer a mini voice recorder to play with. So, the ride home, he was practicing recording his voice. We would pass by different things and he would say "Hello trees" or "Hello Cars" and then try to play it back. The problem was that he had trouble holding the record button down long enough for it to record his whole phrase. So, when he would hit play, it would just be a quick "he".

We passed by the fire station and he said "Hello fire truck", hit play and heard "he", "Hello Fire Truck",...."he"....Hello Fire Truck!!!.... "he"....HELLO FIRE TRUCK!!!.."he"......."HELLO FIRE TRUCK"...."he".... HELLO TIRE FUCK!!!!!" Mom and I lost it, we could not stop laughing. Then he said "This thing doesn't work" "It's not worth it!!" And he threw the voice recorder up to the front seat.

My laughing came to a shrieking halt when I spilled the milkshake on the floorboard in front of me....Oh..my new Car!!....but it came out, and thankfully today my car doesn't smell like sour milk.

King Spencer

2007-11-09T17:33:00.000-05:00

Today was the Royal Tea Party at Spencer's school. They sent home invitations a few days ago requesting royal attire ..which meant girls would all wear princess costumes, and boys would dress as usual. I thought Spence would like to dress up too though, and made him a King's outfit. Very easy and cheap. He loved it. When I picked him up this afternoon, he showed me that they had made cardboard shields at school too...so when we got home, we took part in our own Medieval sword fight...which was cut all too short because I had to go to work. Spence had soccer this afternoon and it must've worn everyone out....when I arrived home this evening, everyone was taking a nap..and still are. How nice, a few moments of quiet.

Field Trip to the Farm

2007-11-08T10:16:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I accompanied Spence on a school field trip to a local farm. I was not looking forward to the cold weather (low 40's) or the farm itself, honestly. I didn't think Spence would enjoy himself either since last year's field trip to Henry's Ark resulted in us cutting out early and hitting the nearest McDonalds. But, I thought, maybe this year would be different, Spencer might actually have fun........ He didn't. He's just like Mama when it comes to looking at caged animals. We both equally do not derive the enjoyment that others' get from farms, zoo's or other habitats. He said his favorite part of the trip was the bus ride (first time on a school bus). But, as soon as he stepped off of the bus, he started with his "I'm hungry" routine. That carried on nearly the entire time we were there. At one point, the teachers and "farmhands" encouraged the kids to pick a pumpkin out of a field. And while all of the other children were amused and searched for the "perfect" pumpkin, Spence walked over with little enthusiasm, picked up the first one he saw and handed it to me. I guess he figured he had already found the "Great Pumpkin" last month on our trip to the pumpkin patch.

One pleasant part of the trip was that I was able to get a picture of Spence's new girlfish, Claire. A while back he came home one day and said "I kissed Claire at school today". I was shocked, but relieved that he has a healthy interest in girls (other than pretending to be one, which he does occasionally). And, he said he kissed her on the elbow, so I figured there was no harm in that. They kind of palled around together for a short while and I gleaned that little Claire (smallest girl in her class) is actually quite the socialite and full of mischief. No wonder he likes her...I guess Katie has been replaced. They ran around so much, it was tough to get a shot of them, and then Spencer wouldn't even look at the camera for me....all eyes were on Claire...

Happy Halloween !!

2007-11-01T16:13:00.000-04:00

We had a wonderful Halloween, despite the fact that Olive spent the night before in the hospital. She is fine though, just a little croup. Spencer had a great party at his preschool and I was able to attend. The kids made crafts, played games and had a spooky snack (halloween oreos). There was also a parade of costumes and then all of the classes sang Halloween songs for the parents. It was so nice.
I had fun at work, and at the last minute decided to dress up like a witch. Some of my friends dressed up too, and Jim's costume was the best. It was an inflatable "chef-boyardee'ish" contraption. It had a built-in fan. I don't know where he found it, but it was impressive.

In the evening, we set up shop in the cul-de-sac with a fire pit, appetizers and desserts (yummy). I ate way too much. The kids were all running around, so excited and full of energy...you can just feel the magic. Bev came over with Isabelle and Jenna (Adam was indisposed with another kidney stone emergency).

It was a great night for trick-or-treating..low 70's. Olive made a short appearance early in the evening and then was off to bed by 6:30pm. She was still exhausted from the night before. They never let you rest in a hospital. Speaking of hospitals, would just like to state my disdain for the healthcare system in general, especially after Adam's dealings last night. But, good news though, after passing a 10mm stone (without any pain meds- thank you baptist east), he is out of excruciating pain and recovering nicely at home. It sucks that he missed Halloween with the kids, I guess there's always next year....

My Birthday Weekend

2007-10-28T20:35:00.000-04:00

I have had a great weekend! On Saturday, Mom and I went to Edinburgh, IN to the outlet mall for some shopping. We didn't get the best deals, but we had a great time together. I've decided that I'm finished with outlet mall shopping. Occasionally I find a decent buy, but for the most part, the sales are no better than what you would find in town. I think next time I get this itch, we will go to Erlanger to the Gap outlet...much shorter drive and better deals. Anyway, once we arrived home, I met Larry out for dinner at Bravo's (his Mom watched the kids). We went there when I was pregnant with Olive, and I wasn't able to eat any salad b/c of the soft cheeses or have any drinks, so I made up for it this time !!

Today was fun too. Mom, Adam and Isabelle came over for Dolphin Day (as Spencer calls it). Of course we lost again...I believe we are 0-7. It's pathetic really. But, we still manage to have fun. We had cheeseburgers from Beef O'Brady's for lunch and then we went to the Homemade Ice Cream & Pie Kitchen to get desserts this afternoon (sort of a family birthday celebration)...except Larry and Olive couldn't come b/c she was napping. Above is a pic of Adam, Bev and I today at the Pie Kitchen. I love this place. It's fairly new in the Springhurst area. It has a juke box and Spencer and Isabelle were dancing around eating their ice cream....so adorable.

I wish Dad could have spent the day with us too, but he was able to call from Korea to wish me a Happy Birthday....it was great to hear from him. So, I'm 35 now...I don't feel any different, but I've been told by some that I am now in my late 30's. No wonder people have mid-life crises. Mom said she would trade me any time....and at some point down the road, I will most likely try to make that deal with Spence or Olive....scary isn't it?

Olive takes a bottle !!

2007-10-22T19:06:00.000-04:00

Well, today marks a big day in the life of Olive Raible. She finally decided to put the kibosh on the whole nursing thing. She actually made the decision a week ago, but it took me that long to realize she was serious. But now what? I tried giving her some of my milk in a sippy cup...nothing, she wouldn't go near it. I tried formula in a cup and she would only take a few sips, then spit it out. The doc says she can't start whole milk until she is one. I started to panic last night since it had been a week.

Finally, out of desperation, I made her a bottle of formula before bed. Historically, the child has never taken a bottle. But, low and behold, she drank down 7 ounces like she'd been taking a bottle her whole life. She took another 7 ounces this morning. She loves the stuff.

So that's it, the kid gave it up cold turkey, and... It's a bittersweet ending for me.

The Great Pumpkin!

2007-10-12T17:15:00.000-04:00

On Wednesday, Fall finally arrived. We had already planned on heading out to Huber's to get our pumpkins that day, so it was nice to have the cool weather....or so we thought. Once we made it to the pumpkin patch, we realized that it was almost too cold for comfort. We all had on windbreakers, and we were still freezing. Poor Olive was bundled up so, you could hardly even see her face. We didn't stay very long, just enough to ride the tractor out to the patch and let Spencer search for "The Great Pumpkin". If you couldn't tell, he's watched the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown quite a few times this year. To everyone's relief, Spence was very decisive and picked one out immediately. We didn't even wait for the tractor to come back and pick us up, we just walked back.

Since we've had bad experiences the past 3 years we've eaten at the restaurant there, we decided to go to the Spaghetti Factory downtown instead. The food wasn't great, but the atmosphere was nice and we had a good time. Spencer and I especially enjoyed the spumoni. Olive loved the bread and kept trying to dip her pieces in the butter dish. Even Larry, who is currently "Atkin-izing" managed to find something he could eat.

Olive has learned 2 new skills this week: Waving and clapping!! If she hears music, she will start clapping and bouncing (her way of dancing). I will try to catch it on video. Spencer continues to use Olive as his magic show assistant. He puts blankets over her to make her disappear, scoots her around the floor, puts funny hats or his underwear on her head, and balances stuffed animals on her head. She doesn't seem to mind, in fact she loves the attention from him. She thinks he's the greatest. She laughs when he runs around acting silly, she watches and screams in delight when he throws things in the air and does his special jumps from the coffee table to the sofa. And as long as no one gets seriously hurt, I'm OK with it all!

Balancing Act

2007-10-05T17:32:00.000-04:00

No school for Spence today, which translates to: No free-time for me this morning. We actually met up with Spencer's friend Tyler and his little brother Ryan at a nearby park. The boys ran around for a while while Olive had a snack, her first nutrigrain bar and she loved it ! Then we had lunch at Chic-fil-A. Spence had fun and I was able to hang out with Tyler's mom, Amy. Here is a pic of my munchkins.

It's funny, the social conversations you have now versus before you had kids. Now, Everything somehow works its way back to the kids. Every topic manages to relate to them. It's true that having children changes your life, but you don't even realize the magnitude most of the time because you are so caught up in being a mom. A wise woman once told me that you lose much of yourself to your children, and it's so true. So how does one find themselves again, or is it a lost cause? I guess you can never find that old self, it doesn't exist anymore. Don't misunderstand me, I love my kids, I'm just wondering, seeking some sort of balance. I know my friends who are mothers reading this have to agree with me. Although, they may have other outlets where they "get away", maybe this is something I should consider. A trip to Tahiti would be nice...but not in the cards anytime soon unfortunately.

I'm attaching a video of Olive from this afternoon. She was feeding her cookies to Bob...her new best friend.

Music to My Ears

2007-09-30T20:37:00.000-04:00

Cleaning the house sucks!!! There's no other way to put it....but it has to be done. Since October is upon us, I realized that it is time to put out all of our fall decorations. But...in order to do that, I desperately needed to clean up my current situation. Spence's room was a disaster, as was the craft room and the living room stays in disarray. The task seemed almost too much to accomplish, but after rallying the troops (one, which can't even walk yet), we managed to get it done.

I pulled out all of the fall/Halloween/thanksgiving deco. It seems like just yesterday that I put it away. It's so hard to believe that Olive wasn't even here last fall. I can't remember life without her. Well, that's not true. I remember playing with Spence at the Pumpkin Patch last year and thinking that next year (now this year) we would have a little girl with us.

This weekend, Mom hung out with Spence and I and brought her Neil Diamond CD. Spence, of course, fell in love with some of the songs, but come Sunday, we had to give it back, and he was not happy!! My precious boy, he's such a music lover. So, tonight he and I downloaded some classic Neil Diamond songs to burn onto a CD. ( I highly recommend limewire.com). I can't listen to Neil Diamond and not think of my Dad. Neil, Barry and Engelbert were staples in my musical diet as a child. Especially Neil. The song "Heartlight" always reminds me of Dad. I downloaded it tonight and became teary eyed listening to it. Spence noticed, but didn't say anything. He's an old soul in that sense....he loves and understands music enough to recognize the emotion that it may accompany. There are times, riding in the car, where he refuses to talk to me, and just insists that I play a certain song for him. I respect it though, and will play whatever he wants.

Just a note, I never did allow "kids music" in the car. I wanted Spence to get an ear for music by listening to my music. He also listens to Larry's music (i.e.: guns&roses, Elvis Costello, Paul Simon, Beatles).

Spencer's Girlfish

2007-09-26T19:44:00.000-04:00

Last year when Spencer started school, he was so apprehensive. The first day when we picked him up, he said he made a friend named Katie. When we asked him who he played with each day, he would say "Katie". A few months later, I helped out at his Halloween Party and finally met the infamous Katie. She was, by far, the cutest girl in the class...very shy, blond, adorable. My kid has taste!!

Unfortunately, this year Katie is not in his class. He was not happy. But.....a few weeks ago we received an invitation to her birthday party (this Sat.). So, he is very excited. I told him to ask her what she wanted for her birthday and he came home today and said she wanted "something cool", "something fancy". I said "well, which is it, cool or fancy?" He said..."something girlfish". I didn't even correct him. We will have to go out one night this week and pick something out.

It's a Boy!!

2007-09-25T20:17:00.000-04:00

Not much to post really. Things are back to normal around here. I do have an announcement: We found out last week that "It's a BOY"!!! NO, not for me... Adam and Bev are finally going to have a son!! We are all so happy for them. Now, they just have to agree on a name. My suggestion was Tanner, but it got shot down. Bev said "Tanner Turgeon?" I was like "uh, I lived 26 years with "Tirzah Turgeon". (I love my name Mom, don' t take offense :) )

As far as my two go, Olive is learning how to wave "bye bye". She opens and closes her hand, it's so cute. And as for my genius of a son, he cracks me up. He's just like me when it comes to trying to beat the system. We told him that he couldn't use the word Stupid, so he's been going around telling us we are "stupendous". Very clever.

Other than that, the highlight of my days are driving in my new ride. That, and looking forward to the new fall shows coming on this week. It's sad really, that this is what my life has come to. I think it's the same for most people my age though, my friend Marci at work was very excited to watch Hero's last night. House is on tonight (one of my faves), and of course, The Office on Thursday. I am going to try to watch some new shows and hope that I find one that I like that everyone else likes too, so it stays. Last year's cancellation of Jericho was devastating (see, I told you I was pathetic). Luckily, there are thousands out there just as pitiful as me, even more so because they started a campaign to bring back Jericho!! They succeeded, and this winter there will be 8 new episodes. If the ratings are good, they may resign it for another season. So, if anyone out there has ever had even an inkling of a thought to watch the show, please tune in this winter and help boost the ratings!!

The Road to Tribeca

2007-09-22T20:02:00.000-04:00

For any loyal readers out there, sorry for the delay in posting. I have not found the time to post in the last few weeks. We actually just arrived home from Columbus, OH. We went there to buy a Car...the Subaru Tribeca!!! We had to travel all the way to Columbus in order to get a decent deal. Turns out, the Tribeca's aren't that easy to find, especially a gently used one.... and that's not surprising since, after much searching, it is the one car I had my heart set on. Larry would have gone up there himself, but since both of our names were on the title of my car (our trade), I had to be present, which meant Olive too (yep, still nursing). So, since we all had to go up together, we (well, Larry) decided it would be fun to make a weekend out of it. So, we found a hotel in Columbus that had an indoor water park.

We arrived last night around 10pm, and were up bright and early today to head out to the Subaru Dealership...... and after 3 hrs. of pure hell, the Tribeca was ours. I do not recommend buying a car with a 4 year old boy and an infant....it really complicates an already consternating experience.

We returned to the hotel after the big purchase ready for some hard core swimming/sliding. At least Spence was..I had already resigned myself to the wading area with Olive. All I can say is that we were all very disappointed. The pool/water park area was so nice, but it was just too cold in there to enjoy yourself. The water wasn't nearly as warm as it should have been and the area itself wasn't warm enough. We stayed for an hour, tops. Spence went down a few slides (the only ones he was tall enough to ride on) and I was able to go down a few with him (which I loved ). Olive was miserable...hated the water.

We went back to our room and realized that we had to get out of there....there was no way we were staying another night. Olive wasn't sleeping good there, and we all needed to get back to our own beds. So, we hit the road again, this time in Style. I am glad to be home. Olive is just too young for over-night trips. Now she is all snugly, fast asleep in her own bed..and I'm not far behind her.

Olive is a Dolphin!

2007-09-11T19:24:00.000-04:00

Sunday (well last Thursday technically) kicked off Football Season!! The Turgeons were in full force at our house to cheer on our beloved Dolphins. Olive was decked out and joined in the fun! As usual, we lost. We are kind of used to it though and still had a good time. It was a busy day b/c Larry had his dad and friend Doug and his two boys over to watch the US vs Brazil that afternoon! Luckily it was after the football (well American football) game and there wasn't a big fight over the big screen TV !! Here is a picture of Olive and her Meme'!!

Not much else is going on around here. Spencer's school is in full swing and he seems to be adjusting well. Larry took the kids to the zoo this afternoon. Spence talked about the Rhino and apparently, Olive loved the carousel.

Larry and I are trying to find time in our schedules to continue car shopping. Maybe this weekend we will get out again. I think I am the only parent that drives a car (not a van or SUV) in the school carpool line. I noticed it today when dropping/picking up Spencer. We need to get with the times and get a family vehicle.

Olive is Hooked on Baby Einstein

2007-09-05T18:37:00.000-04:00

The title says it all. When she is unhappy, inconsolable, pop in a Baby Einstein and she is content. She laughs at the little puppets and bounces (her way of dancing) when the music goes fast. She sits on the floor in front of the TV totally content. We used to strap her into her bouncy seat until we realized...she isn't going anywhere, she loves this show. As I write, she sits and watches in amazement, all of the colors and pictures of toys. I will ask her to come crawl to me and she quickly shifts her gaze back to the show. Even Mommy comes in second to her beloved B.E!!! She talks and laughs at the TV. She must think the little animals are her friends. Just like Spence did at her age, when she sees the caterpillar come across the screen, she gets a big smile on her face.

Spence is playing outside. He had his first 3 hr. day at school today and loved it. He got to bring Lambie Pie in for the "Teddy Bear Picnic". He doesn't have a teddy bear he loves, so he took "Lambs" (his new "cooler/more mature" name for Lambie Pie") instead. They ate a snack (teddy grahams) outside on a blanket with all of their favorite teddy bears/stuffed animals. What a cute idea!!! I really am happy with his preschool, they do very creative things!!

Back to School!

2007-09-04T20:09:00.000-04:00

Well, today was Spencer's official first day back to school. He only spent 1 hr. there today, meeting his new teacher and classmates, but he said he had a great time and liked Ms. Heidi! He took a good nap after school and then spent the rest of the afternoon playing with his friends outside. In fact, I just took a look out there and saw him swinging with his buddies. He already knows how to swing himself without being pushed. As much as I am happy that he is growing and becoming more independent, it also hurts to see one more thing he can do without needing Mommy's help.

Spence is growing up so fast, I feel like I can't catch him. Sometimes I look at him and can't believe that he is 4, yet I can't even remember what he was like as a baby now. Obviously, I want to see him mature and succeed, but I hate to let go of the little guy. I told someone today that his 3rd year (last year) was his transformation from a baby to a boy......and I know he is only going to get more and more independent. You would think that I would be OK with it, having a new baby to do all of this with, but it is not the same to me. I'm sure I will "mourn" Olive's "baby-ness" as she is outgrowing it all too. But, for now I miss my baby Spence and am trying to come to terms with Spencer the boy.

Attached is a picture of Spence this morning before returning to his second year of preschool!!

Sick of being Sick

2007-09-03T21:00:00.000-04:00

It has been forever since I have posted. Two reasons really: 1. Our laptop has been in the shop and I was unable to sign into the account on our computer downstairs (doesn't allow pop-ups and I don't know how to fix it). 2. The kids have both been very sick with a variety of illnesses. It has truly been a crappy 2 weeks. I am hoping we are on our way to a healthy household, minus the occasional cold. We had some rough stuff. Olive's UTI and Spence had a horrible virus/flu-like thing that took him out for a week.

I'm excited for Spence. He starts school tomorrow. His class this year is small, only 8 kids. He goes 4 days a week!! He is looking forward to it and shows no apprehension whatsoever. He is really just excited to carry his Backyardigans backpack! Turns out I have volunteered to be a room mother for the class. I know...very much unlike me, but there really was no one else to do it. Two new moms, another just had a baby, one doesn't speak English well, one is crazy (the cookie lady for those who know the story) and that pretty much left Amy (my friend who's son Tyler was in Spence's class last year) and myself. We will be in charge of coordinating all holiday parties and field trips. I think it's doable.

Not too much to update on Olive. She's still crawling around everywhere. She is able to pull up on furniture. The girl wants to walk. She's also recently shown some signs of jealousy toward anyone who has mama. I was holding Spence today b/c he wasn't feeling well and she saw me pick him up like a baby and started crying and reaching out for me. If I walk by her and don't pick her up or acknowledge her she will cry...even if Larry is sitting with her and playing with her. She's still mommy's girl. It's funny b/c I would've thought the jealousy would've been the other way around. But, Spencer is my Angel, he's never shown any signs of jealousy. He just says how much he loves her. What a precious boy I have.

Now that the laptop is back, I plan to finish the video ASAP. I promise to post when it is complete. On another note, Larry and I went car shopping today. We are looking for a crossover style vehicle with 3rd row seating. We don't want a minivan though. Right now, we are liking the Mitsubishi Outlander. We test-drove one today and were pleased. Thankfully Larry has me to keep him grounded or else he would buy immediately....he has no self-control. He was ready to take home the Outlander.

Flight of the Bumblebee

2007-08-21T09:23:00.001-04:00

I didn't get a chance to post this on Sunday, but I thought I would share this event. While visiting at my brothers house, the kids were playing outside and Mom and I noticed that there was a beehive in the ground. Numerous bees started flying out of it and we hurried the kids inside. We told Adam about this underground hive and he said he had never seen it before. He grabbed a can of insect spray and I took him outside and pointed him in the direction of the bees. Upon further assessment, he and I both realized that maybe he shouldn't start carelessly spraying away at the little guys, who knows how many bees are in there, and we've seen the shows where the guy is laid out on the ground, covered in bees. So, we went inside to regroup.

Let me preface this by saying that I searched the house for a camera to no avail, or else I would've posted a picture of this. After muttering something about Africanized bees, beekeepers, etc. , Adam went to get geared up to take the bees down. When he returned, he was wearing a long sleeved shirt, jeans and a mesh pop-up laundry basket on his head. He put his arms through the handles and it fit perfectly. There were a few small holes in the laundry basket, so we used duct tape to ensure no bee could enter. He also had us tape the basket around his neck area too. But what about his hands? He can't go out there without gloves. He had a golf glove, but it only covered his right hand. This would not work. The only feasible alternative was a giant pair of oven mitts. Yep, that did the trick and made the whole getup complete!!

Mom set up some chairs by the window that faces the backyard so that the kids could have a front row seat. Everyone was anxiously awaiting. Adam went out, prepared to hit 'em hard and fast. Unfortunately, the mitts did not allow for the functional use of his opposing thumb and he ended up spraying himself with the repellent. Once he got that under control, he took the bees head on. There were times where he was spinning in circles, spraying the repellent in the air when the bees would swarm him. It took about 30 minutes total, but the repellent, combined with using a water hose to completely destroy the hive, eradicated the bees, thus making the backyard a safe and enjoyable environment again!!

There is no way to put into words how hilarious Sunday's events were. I have tried to give a glimpse. For those of you that know Adam, you can only imagine how funny the whole thing was.

Not a good day

2007-08-16T13:30:00.000-04:00

I'm actually posting this after the fact, I was just too tired and mentally drained yesterday. It's not often that I have a bad day at work, in fact, most of you know that I love my job...however, today sucked.!!! I won't go into details, but I had some issues with the administrative staff at the hospital that had me very upset in the early part of the day. I managed to get them resolved by late afternoon and just when I thought my day was going to take a positive turn, I was attacked by one of the residents. It wasn't a bad attack, but it did scratch me up some and tore my shirt. It hurt my pride more than anything since I ended up flashing my chest to the entire unit for a good 2 minutes the scuttle was going on. Of course everyone said "we couldn't see anything". That's what people always say, it's with good intentions, but a lie nonetheless.

The only good thing that happened yesterday was that both kids were in bed by 7:45pm. At that point, I poured myself a few glasses of wine and got in the bed and watched some funny TV shows. It made me feel a lot better. I thought I would attach a funny picture of Olive taken about a week ago....the girl loves biter biscuits!!

My Busy Week

2007-08-13T08:45:00.000-04:00

Wow, it's been a while since my last post. I knew I wouldn't have time to do it last week b/c I was going to be so busy. Monday was our Anniversary and we had a lovely dinner at Stoney River while Larry's parents came over and watched the kids. Tuesday, I attended a meeting regarding a new school that will be built in fall 2009. We are considering holding a spot for Spencer, not totally sure yet. Wednesday, we celebrated Spencer's birthday at home and gave him the presents we bought for him. I think the best part for him was the small cake I bought from Kroger. Thursday I had a CT scan of my sinuses (don't ask). Friday, I had Spencer's hair cut and treated myself to a manicure. The rest of the day was spent cleaning in preparation for his big party on Saturday.

The party was great and it looked like everyone had fun. We had water activities for the kids(pool and waterslide). Spencer thoroughly enjoyed himself and was completely wiped out once it was over and went to bed very early. The next day was spent playing every board game he received (numerous times). Needless to say, he loved all of his gifts!!

I was disappointed that his annual video was not completed by the time the party was over. Adam and I did our typical marathon to get it done, but we fell short this year. Once it is finished I will try to upload it and put a link on here.

Today, back to a much calmer/less stressful week.

An Uneventful Week

2007-07-31T22:16:00.000-04:00

Gosh, it's been nearly a week since my last post. I'm not even sure what has kept me so busy, but I haven't had much time to sit down and write. This week has been pretty uneventful... a good thing around here.

This past Saturday we went swimming at Spencer's friend Tyler's neighborhood pool. Spence was showing off his swimming skills and then he told Larry that he wanted to jump off of the diving board. It was completely his idea and he had little if no apprehension/fear. I didn't think he would do it, but the little guy walked to the end of the board and took a leap of faith and jumped down to his daddy. He loved it and was so proud of himself. He did it over and over, which was fun for him but very tiring for Larry who had to tread water the entire time.

I have been spending some time researching a destination for next year's vacation. So far, I am leaning toward an island off the Florida panhandle called St. George. We are hoping to find something beachfront or at least oceanview with a pool. While I loved Fripp Island, the constant travel to the beach and/or pool took so much time to pack up, drive there, set up, etc. It would be nice to have those amenities within walking distance, preferably the backyard. The cost is greater, but I think it is worth it. There isn't much available along those lines in Fripp, and I'm sorta over Fripp. I would like to see someplace new.

Larry is upstairs with Spence. He has been reading Harry Potter to him, but I'm not sure how much of it Spence understands/enjoys. Someone recommended trying the Magic Treehouse series, so Spence and I ran up to Books-a-Million today and bought the first book. It's written for preschoolers, so I am hoping he will enjoy it. This one is about Dragons I think. Olive is off to sleep too, she fought it some tonight, but we finally got her down. I made her some homemade squash from Mom's garden, and she loves it. Next food: Green Beans!! Hopefully she will like these better than peas.

The long and whining road

2007-07-25T07:51:00.000-04:00

This week has been rough. One of the dispatchers where Larry works had a death in the family and has been out all week, which means Larry has had to work both of his off days. In short, he hasn't had much sleep at all. I had actually planned to increase my hrs. at work this week. I managed to do it yesterday b/c Spence was at the Raible's, but today will be impossible since Larry is resembling the walking dead.

Without camp, I am finding myself at a loss for ideas to keep Spencer busy, and when he is bored, he WHINES...A LOT! This is a huge issue right now and is seriously wearing on my patience. Not only is he whining, but he wants me to attend to him at all times, he won't play by himself or even in my vicinity. I am going to try the library today, but last time he had a major meltdown. We have 2 boys his age that live behind us, but they are still in camp each day until noon. They play together all afternoon/evening though, which is good. Olive is restless herself...she won't be held and is frustrated that she can't crawl yet. She gets mad and yells out when she can't do it. I have to keep a very close eye on her, the other day she pulled a bow out of her hair and stuck it in her mouth while I was holding her. Her hair has gotten so long that it hangs down in her eyes, so I usually keep a bow in it to hold it back, but now I don't know what to do. I hate to cut her hair, but I don't' want her choking to death on a bow either.

Last night I went to the Mom's group meeting at Church. I am trying to become more involved, eventhough now as an adult, it is not in my nature to sit through things like this. We had to play the game where everyone goes around the room and tells things about themselves. They passed a roll of toilet paper and everyone pulled off some and based on how many squares you pulled, that is how many facts you had to share about yourself. I can't stand this sort of contrived method of forced friendship. Knowing the game from countless sorority "getting to know you" events, I pulled off the fewest squares possible. Luckily, my friend Sarah was there and I didn't have to face it alone. She knew the game as well, pulled off 3 squares. The meeting wasn't all bad though and I plan on volunteering on a comittee that welcomes new babies and supports new moms and moms having trouble with pregnancy loss/special needs kids, etc. I figure that I am qualified for all of this based on my personal experience and work experience.

Must go get the little ones dressed, run to Target and then Library.

TGIF

2007-07-20T20:00:00.000-04:00

TGIF....Sounds like I've had a hard week, but it's actually been pretty easy. Larry's new 4-day work week has been a huge help! The downside to that is that he works wed, thurs, fri & Sun. So, the hard part of my week started yesterday. Spencer finished his last week of camp yesterday, so now he is off until school starts after labor day. This means many trips to the library, park and pool for the rest of the summer to keep him occupied.

I am in the planning stages for Spencer's upcoming birthday party, and the little guy is quite demanding regarding the things he wants for his birthday and the kind of party he wants to have. I am also compiling pictures, video footage for his upcoming video. I am trying to think of music to use. That is always the hardest part for me. I'm sure I will come up with something. I will be sure to post a link to the video once it's complete.

Here is a link to a slideshow I made of our vacation pictures:

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v78/wishbone72/Fripp%20Island%202007/?action=view&current=d2b081ad.pbr

Finally Home

2007-07-17T11:24:00.001-04:00

Well, we are finally home. We had a wonderful time, but I have to say that I'm glad to be back...a sign that I had a full vacation. The weather was wonderful the entire time, we ate good and played hard. And, most importantly (drum roll) Spencer learned to swim this vacation!! Thanks to Barb's swim school. It's not the easiest way to do it, but it is the most effective....Not recommended for the squeamish. Spence was ready to swim though, he wasn't scared and loved the challenge. Now, I'm proud to say that he can swim under water without assistance for short distances. He's still not totally independent, but I'd say he has the basics down. Mom taught him in one day what 6 months of swimming lessons at "All About Kids" couldn't do. We will just have to make sure we keep taking him to the pool this summer in order to make sure he doesn't forget.

Yesterday's plane ride was a little rough to say the least. The flights were so turbulent that Spence threw up on the second flight. Poor guy was done. I don't know if he will ever eat Cheetos again...I don't know if Larry or I will either for that matter. But, he's already back into the swing of things today, off to camp this morning. I've already hit the grocery and restocked for the week ahead. I'm looking forward to getting back into our routine too.

I will try to upload some pics from the trip to my photobucket acct. Until then, here is one from the front steps of the beach house.

Bathing Beauty

2007-07-09T21:18:00.000-04:00

We hit the beach and the pool today full force. Spence had a great time building sand castles, didn't care too much for the ocean. A wave knocked him over and turns out, he hates salt water. Olive, our little bathing beauty even made an appearance in her new bikini. We set up a little pop-up tent for her to block the wind and sand. She did OK for a little while. She stayed long enough to put her feet in the water.

This evening, it was Mom & Dad's time to cook and they made a great dinner. After, we all went for a ride in the surrey, which was hilarious. It's a bike/cart that has 2 rows of seats and requires 4 people to pedal. We laughed so hard that we could barely pedal. We had to stop/reverse fred flinstone style. It was so much fun.

Later, we had a big storm come through. We all sat on the front porch and enjoyed the rain. Even Olive who fell asleep to Meme' rocking her while it stormed. Then bath and bed for both little ones who are now fast asleep. I bought a book to read on vacation. It's Anita Shreve's new one: Body Surfing. I hope it's good, her last few have been kind of disappointing.

Vacation is finally here!!

2007-07-08T22:00:00.000-04:00

Well, we finally made it to Fripp Island !! Not without some minor snags unfortunately. Luckily the flying went great. Olive slept through both flights while Spence watched movies on the laptop. I was even able to read the skymall magazine on the plane. When we arrived in Savannah (the city stinks like sulphur by the way), we ended up driving 14 miles out of our way to the hotel thanks to poor directions from expedia.com. Once we finally made it there, we were informed that there were no porta-cribs available. So, we left and went through 5 different hotels before we found one with available rooms and a porta-crib. We settled in fine though.

Today was good. We spent the early part of the day driving around downtown Savannah. We at lunch at a place called "The Pirate House". Spence loved it. The kids menus turn into pirate hats...very cute. They also had a guy walking around impersonating Captain Jack Sparrow. He was really good and Spence thought he was the real thing. I took their picture together.

Once we arrived at the beach house, the kids were playing non-stop. The house is beautiful and our room is perfect. The walk-in closet is big enough for Olive's pack-n-play and so it's her own "mini nursery". Spence is on the sleeper sofa and Larry and I have the Queen Bed ,and we have a private bath.

We are looking forward to beach and pool time tomorrow. Spence can't wait to hit the water. We will have to take the little one out early or she will be a cooked Olive. It's supposed to be mid 90's all week.

The last few days

2007-07-06T07:02:00.001-04:00

It's been a few days since I've posted b/c things have been so busy around here. Planning and packing for vacation for a family of 4 seems impossible, especially when one of them is a baby. Luckily, Mom & Dad are driving and are taking some things for us. We had a wonderful 4th of July. We spent the first part of the day at Mom & Dad's. They had a cookout and the kids played baseball, it was a lot of fun. I tried my hand, with Bev's help, at making the blueberry-peach cobbler and it didn't turn out nearly as good as Judy's. I will have to call her to see exactly what she did. It may be that I accidentally picked up white flesh peaches, who knows. We spent the second half of our day at Erin & Greg's house for another cookout and while Spence had a great time, he was slowly winding/melting down. The highlight of his day was doing sparklers. I thought he would be scared to do them, but once he figured out they wouldn't burn him, he loved them. When we got home, there were tons of fireworks going on in the neighborhood and we watched some, but then the loud booms started to scare Spence, so we called it a night. Olive enjoyed her first 4th of July by mostly playing with toys at her Meme` and Pepe`'s and visiting with G-Jo and Grampy at Erin and Greg's. I attached a picture montage I made of us yesterday. I am proud to say that I made the dress she is wearing!!

Today will be hectic b/c I have to do the majority of the packing, work and I have a pedicure scheduled for this evening. We are going to try to make a showing at Larry's aunt Pam's surprise birthday party tonight if we can. I'm fortunate that both kids are sleeping in and I can have a few moments of peace before this crazy day begins. Luckily, Larry only has to work a few hrs. this morning and will be able to help out. I'm excited for vacation, but a little worried about how Olive will do on the plane. She's already fussy b/c of her teeth.

Erin's Birthday

2007-07-01T18:37:00.000-04:00

Today we celebrated Larry's sister Erin's birthday at the Raible's. It was a nice brunch and the weather cooperated and we were able to enjoy outside dining. Afterward we went to Blairwood and I dropped Larry and Spencer off to swim while Olive and I hit Kroger to get some groceries for the week and some items we will be taking on vacation.

Poor Spencer has been running around like crazy the last few days and I think it has finally caught up with him. He looked very tired today at Erin's party and is taking a late evening nap. Olivia is napping as well and I am taking this time to post. Before Olive took a nap, I captured some video of her jumping in her jumpster. Oh and big news for Olive...she cut her first tooth today!!! She isn't nearly as excited about it and is gnawing on anything she can get her little hands on. I've been giving her cold bagels and carrot sticks to chew on along with Tylenol to help with the discomfort. Anyway, here is the link to the jumping girl:

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v78/wishbone72/?action=view&current=P7020207.flv

Adventures in Babysitting

2007-06-30T22:06:00.000-04:00

Tonight's post will be very short because I am beat. Larry and I watched Jenna an Isabelle tonight and we are worn out. Four kids are a lot to manage when you are used to two. But the kids had a great time playing outside. We got them in and gave everyone a bath and now they are in pajamas watching Finding Nemo.

The little Olive is fast asleep, she had fun playing too and enjoyed getting so much attention from the kids and loves watching them play. I made her some homemade sweet potatoes and she ate those today without making a yucky face. Next week onto peas..

Memories of Strawberry Shortcake

2007-06-29T22:06:00.001-04:00

We went to the St. Matthews library today to return some books and enjoy the preschool story time hour. Spencer was already having a rough morning and then we walked in the door to the library and saw a boy carrying a Backyardigan’s Tower of Power book. (In case you didn’t know, that is Spencer’s very favorite Backyardigan’s episode and he wants to have a Tower of Power themed birthday party this year). At that point, Spence had a meltdown. I guess he figured that the boy had gotten the only copy of that book and, unfortunately, he was right. I managed to mend the situation by finding another Backyardigan’s book, and we put the Tower of Power on request to get the next copy available sent to our branch. Story time was filled with books about the ocean and the kids made a fish out of a paper plate.

Larry had to work all day today basically. He is at work tonight, which meant that I had to do dinner, baths and bed all by myself. Ugh. I managed to coordinate it all somehow. After Spence got out of the bath, I put his eczema lotion on and then put leave-in conditioner in his hair. I got him situated in front of the TV, and then went to rock Olive to sleep. Luckily, baths really relax the little Olive and she went right to sleep after her last feeding. But while I was rocking her, I noticed that my hands smelled just like my old Strawberry Shortcake doll. It must be the combination of the eczema lotion and the hair conditioner. They say that the olfactory sense triggers memories more than any other sense and because of this I was transported to my friend Carina’s bedroom floor, playing with our Strawberry Shortcake dolls. I remembered one night I was spending the night at her house and we put on a show for her parents, singing a duet between Strawberry Shortcake and Orange Marmalade…I can still remember most of the lyrics…gosh I must’ve only been 8 or 9 years old. Those were such fun and free days and I know Carina feels the same way (now a mother of two, herself)….I wonder if she remembers the lyrics.

Tonight when I got out of the shower Spencer was standing on my bed, dancing and singing songs, watching himself in the mirror. He is such a character. He used the word predicament today…ugh, he’s growing up way too fast.

Planning for Fripp

2007-06-28T21:25:00.000-04:00

Today was rather uneventful thankfully. I dropped Spence off to camp and spent the morning with Olive who slept most of the time while I worked on planning for our vacation. Only 9 more days to go!!! The anticipation for vacation is wonderful, like Christmas when your a kid. When I was little, I would go through a mild depression on the evening of Christmas once all of the presents were opened and the magic was over...but my Mom was very clever and would hold back a gift for me to open that night, one more last hurrah. I wish we had those last hurrah's for when vacation is over....but instead we have to come home, do laundry, go through unopened mail and then go to work the next day...hurrah! Oh well, no sense in focusing on the negative yet.

Bev and I went to Costco's today to get some things for the vacation. We came away with large boxes of cereal, bags of chex mix, juice boxes and bottled water. Looks like we will have to do some shopping at Kroger as well. The great part of staying in a beach house is that we don't ever go out to eat. Most people would look at that as kind of a bummer, but not me. I don't like eating out with small children...it is more of a chore than a treat. When I arrived home from Costco, I talked on the phone with Vera who will be joining us with her family. We will have a total of 8 adults and 6 children. I know Spencer will have so much fun with the other kids.

Not much else to say today. Kids are both asleep and I'm getting ready for bed myself. Oh, for those interested, I found the link to the peach-blueberry cobbler, but I didn't copy it and am too tired to search it again. I will post it on tomorrow's blog.

Temporary Hearing Loss

2007-06-27T21:09:00.000-04:00

What a day! I woke up this morning with a noticeable hearing loss in my left ear. Seems to be my karma though....my career choice continually coming back to bite me in the ..... I say this because I must get laryngitis 5-6 times a year easy, Spence needed speech therapy for speech-language delay, they recommended speech therapy for Olive's problem taking bottles, and now this, the hearing loss....thank God I didn't become a mortician. Luckily, they had an opening at my Dr.'s office for an afternoon appointment. I was pretty sure this was due to a recent sinus infection I had and most likely fluid in my ear.

Well, it wasn't fluid. As embarassing as it sounds, turns out I have a real ear wax problem....enough to impair my hearing. I had to undergo bilateral ear irrigation. The only way I can describe this (for those who haven't had the pleasure of this experience) is that it must be what it's like to get your ear flushed down the toilet. But, low and behold, I can hear again!

Spence had a fun day at camp, said he learned to do the chicken dance. Tomorrow they have pony rides. Olive is still refusing pears, makes a horrible grimace and then spits them out at you. I'm hoping to make her some homemade pureed carrots tomorrow...but I'm not expecting her to like them. Spencer loved baby food, ate it up, his favorite was sweet potatoes.

I talked briefly with Bev this afternoon and she thinks she is having another girl, we will see in a few months. From what I hear, they are easy in the beginning, not so easy during those teen years. At least that's what Jim says. By the way, Jim, if your reading, hope your feeling better and I hate to say I told you so about the antibiotic ;)

That's all for today, the kids are both asleep and I am grateful to be enjoying the sweet sound of silence in the house with optimal bilateral hearing acuity.

Sew much better

2007-06-26T20:49:00.000-04:00

Good News...I found my phone. It was in Olive's stroller. Had I not found it, I would've had to purchase 3 new phones within the last 6 months. The other phone casualties were due to drowning in a washing machine and geting run over by a car. I'm kind of the same way with sunglasses, which is why I never buy expensive shades.

I paid a visit to the fabric store again today in preparation for my second quest to sew Olive a dress. My first attempt wasn't too successful. The dress was actually nearly finished and then a mishap with the button-holer ruined the whole project. Out of frustration, I ripped the dress up with a seam ripper and threw it away. I come by this behavior honestly though, my mom said when I was a baby she tried to sew me a dress and when it didn't fit, she got mad and threw it away too. She never tried to sew again. But, I'm gonna break that vicious cycle and make it right. So, I purchased "sewing for dummies" and am looking forward to happy stitching from here on out.

We had dinner at the Raible's this evening. Their neighbors also dined with us and brought the most scrumptuous homemade blueberry-peach cobbler I think I've ever had. They said it was from this month's Cooking Light Magazine recipe. That is worth purchasing the magazine. Spencer fell asleep on the way home and is down for the night, as is the little Olive, who by the way, is moving all over the place commando style, just dying to crawl. I will have to look into how you can attach video links to this blog and record her little antics.

I'm a Superstar

2007-06-25T22:12:00.000-04:00

Somehow I have managed to misplace my cell phone again. This time I'm not sure where it could be. I took Spence to gymnastics this morning and that is where I believe the "losing" took place. I know I had it in the car, but when I went back to my car, it was no longer there. Not in my purse or on my person. Looks like I will be calling All About Kids in the morning to see if an honest person turned it in.

While at work today someone told me that I looked like Molly Shannon of Saturday Night Live, for those who can't remember, she played Mary Catherine Gallagher. That's all I needed to hear. Definitely not good for my mental self-image. I actually know someone who looks just like Molly Shannon, but she probably doesn't think she looks like her either.

Larry is on his way home tonight, decided to catch a ride with someone and I called and got his ticket refunded. Not much happening today. Spence and I made cupcakes which is always fun. He's good for the first half of the preparation, then he loses interest and I finish them. He perks up again once the icing is put on. Olive was way off on her sleeping schedule today and didn't get her naps in. So, she was asleep for the night at 6:30pm. She woke up for a quick snack around 9:00 and is now down again.

Christmas in June

2007-06-24T22:22:00.000-04:00

As I write this post, I'm over halfway through my 4 days of being Larry-less. After speaking with him today, it doesn't look like his team will be moving on in the regional tournament, so he will definitely be coming home on Tuesday.

This morning Spencer found his Christmas Santa hat that he manages to stretch out and fit into every year (quite a feat because the kid's got one giant melon of a head). He asked if Olive had a hat that she could wear too, and I managed to find the one he wore for his first Christmas. It was the cutest thing seeing her in the little elf-like hat (as depicted in above photo). Too bad it won't fit her once Christmas actually gets here.

We visited with Adam, Jenna and Isabelle today which was a nice break out of the house for myself and Spence. Olive enjoyed watching the kids run around and laugh. I wonder what she thinks about them. When we came home, the neighborhood kids were playing outside and we spent a good hour and a half out in the court. Spence rode his bike around while Olive fell asleep in her stroller. After a quick dinner and bath, Olive was off to sleep, and after just a few books, so was Spence. Being a full-time parent is absolutely exhausting. I can't wait to go back to work tomorrow.

Rain and Snow Cones

2007-06-23T21:33:00.000-04:00

Today started out kind of rainy. Mom came by this morning and we took Spencer to get his hair cut. Then we went to Target to pick up some much needed items to get me through the next few days. They had their Speedo swim vests on sale, so I picked one up for Spence for vacation. I think it will work better than the arm floaties. After our shopping we had a nice lunch at Olive Garden and our Olive was an angel through lunch, not one crying spell!! Anyone who has small children know the fear/dread/torture of going out to eat with those under the age of 3. Once home I did some cleaning and then we went to the St. Aloysius picnic. Spencer enjoyed himself, went down some slides, played some games, won some prizes, got his hand painted (a new option for those who don't want their face painted) and best of all, we had snow cones!!! Anyone that knows me well knows how much I love snow cones. I've often contemplated buying an ice shaver or some other "snow cone maker", but to me the snow cone is the whole experience. It's the paper cone that holds the ice. It's eating it in 90 degree weather at a fair or picnic or cookout. I once opted to skip going on a tour of the Alamo in San Antonio just so I could eat a snow cone.

Our Direct TV is on the blink due to a nasty storm outside, therefore Spencer has resorted to watching a Blues Clues video. Little Miss Olive is fast asleep. On a side note, I'm really worried that my dog's may have killed/eaten/seriously maimed our neighbor's pet turtle that lives in their back yard. The gate that connects our yards was left open when I let them out tonight and when I didn't hear them scratching after, oh.... about a half hr. or so, I took a peek and saw them in the yard. So, keep your fingers crossed that the little guy (it's a girl actually) is OK.

What a Headache!

2007-06-22T21:48:00.000-04:00

Today I woke up with the worst headache I can ever remember having. It only worsened as the morning went on, despite 3 extra strength tylenol. Unfortunately for me, Spence has little understanding or mercy for those who are feeling ill. Olive took a nice long nap this am, which gave some respite. Tonight I am better thankfully. Larry is in Des Moines for the next 4 days and it's just me and the kids. Mom stopped by after work to check on me since she knew I was feeling bad, and she brought me some OPI nail polish, which was such a nice treat!! Olive is working on eating little bites of bananas by herself, she is starting to like them, I think. Spencer is sitting next to me, singing funny lullabies that he makes up. He thinks they are hilarious and can hardly sing them without laughing. The look in his eyes when he laughs is priceless, like he is on a happy drug....one that evidently wears off as we grow older. Olive has been on this kick at night where she gets "wild" right before bedtime. It's really funny, she starts waving her arms and kicking and screaming/laughing. And she gets that same look in her eye that Spencer gets when he is laughing...pure joy. The little ones are asleep now, and soon I will be too....

My First Post

2007-06-21T15:24:00.000-04:00

I decided today that since I am on the computer several times daily, why not create a blog? My friend Angela recently created one for her son, and I thought it was such a good idea that I am starting one also. I'm hoping that creating this online journal will help capture the experiences that happen daily while raising my two beautiful children, whom I lovingly refer to as Spence and Olive. It will also serve as a live greeting card to update family/friends we don't get to see often!

So, if you would like to follow us on this journey, welcome aboard and please post in the comments section at any time !!! I will try to post pictures often, I'm always looking for excuses to show off the kids.