wordless wednesday

lesson learned

I was getting out of Madison late tonight and had told my daycare provider I would be there by 5:15, which led me to driving slightly fast. I figured I had made up good time, but coming around the S-curves I came upon a big van with a hand written note in the back window "handicap person on board" going 20mph. Seriously. No passing either because on coming traffic was thick. Let's just say me and everyone else behind me were weaving in and out trying to find a way to pass, with no luck.

As if that wasn't bad enough, then I turn to go to the daycare's house and Mike calls and says he's there. So I traveled faster than normal, ended up losing time being stuck behind that slow car, and finally didn't even need to pick up the kids because he was there. Ugh.

Home I went, saying a few select words. Nothing like rushing for no good reason. Lesson learned.

Not Me! Monday

Happy Not Me Monday! Gulp. Now is the time to admit what you did not do this week. For many other funny posts, visit MckMama at her blog.

I did not attend a new church this week just to see what other churches were about. There's nothing wrong with that. But while at said church, I really didn't let my mind and eyes wander around just to see who else goes to this said church.

When my youngest son was waking up this weekend and hollering for his "daddy", I did not poke and prod him (daddy) proclaiming that his son wanted him because I would never ever use that word to my advantage on a chilly morning where I could sleep in. That would be silly.

While eating lunch with my mother, I was not patiently waiting for her to do some silly random act that would make us laugh hysterically because my mother would never do something like that. So when she cut into a small tomato and juices squirted her in the face and up and down her shirt, I really didn't bust into tears from laughter. And others in the cafe were not equally amused watching us laugh.

I would never hide tampons in a postal service bag to give to my friend when she needed them because I couldn't find something discreet to hide them in. That would be absurd, why not just hand them to her?

I did not get "bleacher butt" so bad from watching volleyball that I wanted to walk straight out of the gym bent over and go soak in a tub.

I did not under any circumstances think a dead, fat skunk on the side of the road was the cutest thing I'd ever seen simply because it was so fat. Nope, not me!!

i think we're healthy!

Knock on wood. Quick!

I think we're healthy! Flu healthy that is. No puking, no diarrhea. It's been happy eats for everyone! We even had Pizza Hut tonight.

Now we're just moving on to the runny noses, sore throats, and occasional coughs. Hopefully this leaves quickly as well.

I see I've been bad at posting pictures. I better be careful or Kathy is gonna get on my case about that one. Maybe I'll find a little something for tomorrow. :-)

date night

Just got home from a quick date night with my hubby. We went to a movie, which turned out to be quite lame, interesting, strange, creepy, gory, and unexplainable. Jennifer's Body. Not sure if I would recommend it to anyone. I would never recommend seeing a movie, any movie, with the jerks that sat behind us and thought it would be fun to talk out loud through half the movie. I think after we shot them many dirty looks, they got the idea, but man, was my blood boiling.

Then we cruised the big block, thought about going into the bar for a drink, but decided to go home. We're definitely not bar people. Next discussion...what church do we go to tomorrow? Hmmmmm.

exhausted

When mommy realizes she needs a time out, then you know it's bad. I'm not totally to that point yet, but I'm close. If you're looking for happy...turn back now, because my mind is about to run free. This is my blog and I will write how I want. And right now I want to vent. Read at your own risk.I found myself pondering several questions today when crabbiness snuck in faster than the flip of a coin. What could possibly trigger such a mood change, other than many different factors being stirred up like a pot of soup.

I find it very challenging and exhausting to be a parent to six children, four of whom are my step children. I am exhausted from having no days or weekends without kids, no offers to baby-sit from family, and maybe the empty promises from their mother. I'm tired of them being sick for the past week.

I am exhausted at the thought of buying groceries every week, filling up two carts full, spending over $300 and still not knowing what to cook for supper. I really hate grocery shopping and more than that, I really hate putting them away. Groceries are expensive and money is something we have not a lot of.

When supper time rolls around, it's not a simple, let's whip something together and call it good. There are six children here, which means, we cook for an entire herd. I'm talking 8 chicken breasts on the grill, or 8 steaks, or an entire box of pancake mix (which leaves no leftovers), or 3 dozen eggs on the griddle, or 16 grilled cheese sandwiches. It's exhausting! I remember not to long ago someone was over visiting at she wanted her camera along to take pictures of the process of supper at our house. Amusing to outsiders, exhausting for parents.

I find myself saying the same things over and over to my kids, to realize it goes right out the other ear, if it even went in the first ear. It's depressing, irritating and annoying to have six little children in this house and have to deal with zero listening skills for days on end. I have had the talk with them, we have had the talk with them. It's so frustrating.

I'm sick of driving to Madison to work. I'm sick of being treated like crap by somebody above me at work and watching that person get away with it, time and time again. I look in the classifieds every single night, hoping for a different job, that's closer to home. I'm tired of waiting for September to roll around to see if we got our grant, so we can decide if my job will move to Brookings...because September has been here for 25 days and we still haven't heard anything.

I really get annoyed by people who drive 45mph down a busy highway when I can't pass because there is too much oncoming traffic. Speed limit is 65, is it that hard to push down on the gas and quit causing a huge bottleneck behind them? I guess so.

It feels like my house is always a mess or that we're always cleaning, but since nobody can pick up after themselves, it's just a vicious cycle that never ends. I swear I should just throw out all the clutter, toys, puzzles, books, shoes, coats, backpacks, clothes, and blankets, and then, just maybe my house would be clean! We hung handy dandy little hooks at the low height for backpacks and coats. One for each child. But for some reason, it's easier to just throw them down on the floor, right in the doorway.

I'm tired of my step-children's mother, who is in prison and has been for the past year, making empty promises to the kids on a fairly regular basis. The fact that she says she'll call and doesn't. She says she'll start paying child support and doesn't. She says she gets out of prison on a certain date and won't, she tries to take us all on her roller-coaster ride by bringing up all the bad stuff from the past, or saying we don't try, when we do. Look at what we do! Look at what we do for your kids while you sit in prison. I'm tired of telling them they can't do all the extracurricular activities outside of school because we can't afford it.

I think I just need a break. I think we need a break. We used to get those breaks every other weekend before she went to prison and now we don't. And now it's finally taking a toll on me. I'm tired. I'm exhausted.

If you've made it this far, thanks for hearing me out. I think I'm just extra sensitive because of my sore throat, too. Now I'm going to put on a smile, open my very tired eyes, and put one foot in front of the other and begin the same routine I do every night.

prayers

Thoughts and prayers are going out to my cousin and the rest of the his family after a farm accident today where his thumb was cut off. Very thankful it wasn't any worse.

Our family is needing prayers tonight as many of us are battling the flu. Three of our kids have had it and now it seems I am getting it. It's been a week now and we are really wanting to get better.

sleeping near trains

Good morning! We slept with the windows open last night and I think I heard every cotton-picking, horn blaring, wheel rumbling train that went through town last night. And what's up with them blaring on their horn or whistle for almost an entire minute at a time. Seriously? Oh, how I love to sleep with the windows open, but living within a few blocks of the train tracks makes for some restless sleep. Oofta (yes, I'm Norwegian), I guess it's something I learn to live with.

Well, I better get ready for work. Have a great day.

Wordless Wednesday

flu

The flu is here. In our house. And it's not fun. We thought it was a fast moving bug, but now we're questioning it. Shaylee was puking Sunday night and missed school Monday. Then Shawndra puked Monday night missing school today. Now Shaylee started crying tonight and puked again. Jayden began with flu on Friday and Saturday. I still hope nobody else gets it and that the rest of our kids can stay healthy...us included.

And on a totally random side note, I still want to know why I don't have a FONT or SIZE option anymore. Any of my fellow bloggers having this same problem? Would love to hear if yours is missing as well.

D'OH! Never mind! I found it. Apparently I was in the Edit HTML section instead of composing. You know, this has caused me issues in the past with pictures too. I swear, some days I shake my head at myself. Seriously. And today is one of them.

Monday, not so fun day

Where is my box that lets me choose my font? And where is my box that lets me change the size? Really, of all things to bother me today, I do not want to deal with missing pieces of Blogger.

Anyhow, we are now on 3/6 kids who are puking and have diarrhea. Guess the flu is going full force in our house. I'm just hoping it doesn't hit me. I can't afford to miss work. My job is too hard to make up when I'm gone.

I typically do my Not Me! Monday post on Mondays, but today I didn't. I haven't taken the time to actually work on it this week to make it a good one and I didn't feel like scrambling tonight to do one. I figured cooking, cleaning, and laundry were a front runner instead.

I'm interested to see what tomorrow brings. This flu comes quick. Like...lightning quick. One minute they're fine and the next minute they puke. Well anyhow, I hope everyone had a good Monday and is not experiencing this flu that is hitting so fast.

Obama's Thoughts on Kanye West

Sorry I couldn't get the full screen to show Obama, but it just cracked me up to see him joke around and get a wee bit nervous.

what are you doing

You ask what I did today? Not a whole lot, unless you take into consideration that I cleaned up a puking baby at all hours of the night, missed my girls' volleyball match, missed Mike's cousins wedding/reception/dance, all so I can take care of my little man, which I wouldn't trade for anything. (Whew...that was a long sentence, I wonder if it's correct?)

In all seriousness, he is doing much better. The puking has finally ceased, but the nose is running like a faucet now and he's a bit weak and lethargic. He has been drinking Gatorade and ate some toast and a banana. So far so good.

I have got a lot of laundry done today? I mean, the washer and dryer were going all night trying to keep up the little man. Now today, I'm playing catch up with the clothes, while the rest of the family enjoys themselves at the wedding.

It sure is quiet around here though. Just Jayden and I. Kind of peaceful in a surreal world if you know what I mean.

What did you do today? Don't be shy, leave a comment.

wow what a day

Let's just say we've had quite the day today. It was a busy, somewhat, fun filled day if you consider having your hood up on the interstate, crabby kids, puking toddlers, and doctor appointments.

The day began with Jayden having speech therapy at home, for the first time, instead of at daycare. Jayden doesn't like to cooperate in his own home or anywhere usually, but that's beside the point. He didn't want to sit and cooperate. We got through that. Finally.

Next up, Devin had an appointment today. At her appointment, Jayden became extremely upset at her because she was sitting in the chair he wanted to sit in. Even though he already had a chair he had been sitting in. She wouldn't move, so he started throwing his shoes, chairs and books at Devin. That was the final straw, so we left. Mike stayed with Devin and I took Jayden to the car and buckled him in his seat.

Off to McDonalds for the kids and Subway for us. So far so good. We're cruising down the interstate and I'm feeling warm. I was wearing black shorts and the sun was shining, so warm wasn't unusual, except this time the air wouldn't keep up. Mike and I kept feeling the air coming out of the vents, which wasn't coming out fast or very cold. Then I noticed it sounded funny. Finally, I'm really warm and wondering what's wrong with the car, so we pull over at the next exit. Mike gets out and checks the car and this is what we see.

Might look normal to the naked eye, right? Except the white hose shouldn't be white. Mike's first words were, "oh my". So he starts tearing apart the dash or glove box, heck I don't know, I was too busy looking at the trash, corn, kids, road, traffic, and snapping pictures of course.

Then we go back out to the front and keep looking for something that could be blocking the vent or something. Well, he was looking to fix the problem, but remember I was busy doing other stuff, like snapping pictures!The warmth from the sun and not using the A/C caused our frozen condenser to unfreeze. Whew. We thought we were on the mend until it did it again, and then twice on the way home from Sioux Falls. Probably have to get it in to the shop or something soon.

We did some shopping before my doctor appointment. Jayden ran into a table and bit his upper lip. Blood was gushing everywhere. Well, not gushing, but coming out quickly for awhile. I used several wipes and kleenex to try to stop it, but he was pissed and poopy. Bad combination. He flipped over in my car where we happened to be changing him and now he's getting blood all over my seats. Ugh. I did manage to get it cleaned up fairly well.a

Our final stop of the day was Sam's Club, where the two kids showed some serious problems with each other. Jayden was ticked and pushing against Devin, then pinching her. I was so sick of trying to stop it I finally told her to do it back to him. I'm sure we looked great standing there in line with our kids pushing and pinching each other while in the cart. Jayden was screaming, Devin was whining. Oh it was a very fun trip.

On the way home, after a snack of sliced apples, this is what we found once we pulled into the garage.

Two very tired, very quiet, very sound asleep children in the backseat resting comfortably.
The fun of the evening starts during supper. Jayden doesn't want to eat, he's mad, he wants to throw his plate, he pitches his fork on the floor and whines and cries. So I put him in his room. Then he wants out. He wants to eat. But he won't eat. So back down he goes. Now he goes downstairs, looks at me, cries, and starts to do the vomit burps. I grab a tote and well...details aren't important at this point, but let's just say he has thrown up three times in one hour. He has had two diapers leak through. Right now he's trying to sleep. We're hoping he's ok, but we're actually questioning food poisoning from McDonalds. (Devin had a stomach ache most of the day and now he's sick.)

note to self

Note to Self: If you start a post on a day other than the day you actually post it, be sure to change the date in your post options so it actually appears as the newest post, not way down the list in the original date where it was started.

Corrections have been made. Posts should now be in the correct order, as they should be. Whew!

shaylee volleyball

Shaylee listening to her coach. She looks serious.

Watching a team mate serve.
This one was funny. It was the first time it came to her during the match. Well, she hit the ball a little too hard and it went all the way to the ceiling and ricocheted off the rafters! She giggled and laughed, along with the rest of the team.
Serving, where she scored around 12 points in a row.

She played a huge part in winning this match.

It looks pretty good considering!

This is the side that got really mangled in the hole. All the white stuff will eventually flake off.

The fingertip is nice and pink. The doctor was very happy to see that.

There is a stitch in the middle of the fingernail because when it happened the nail was completely ripped through the skin and facing upwards.

shawndra volleyball

Getting ready to bump the ball.

Going in low, great job Shawndra!

Serving
And away it goes!

Both girls are in volleyball. They are both loving it. Tomorrow I will put up pictures of Shaylee with volleyball. They play on two different teams because of the grade difference, but they still practice and play the same days and travel to the same towns. This Saturday is Baltic.

Not Me! Monday

Did you stay in your pajamas all day yesterday? Did your kids eat cereal for supper? If you did, or did other things you don't want to admit to, now is your chance. Join in for Not Me Monday. It's great therapy. Head over to MckMama's blog to see what other people have not done this week.

Yesterday surely was not a lazy day. I did not wait until 5pm to get into the shower and actually begin the day.

After spending several hundred dollars at the grocery store, I did not stand in front of the cupboards, fridge, and freezer, trying desperately to figure out what was for supper.

I did not gag in my throat when my son's hair fell onto my hand during a haircut. I mean that's down right silly, just because it wasn't attached to his head anymore.

I did not join Weight Watchers for the bajillionth time this past week. Except this time, even though I didn't join, will be the final time.

While at work, driving down the road in town, I most certainly, did not stop to investigate a turtle on the road and proceed to take my shoe off by it to show how big it is. And I never pushed on it with my foot while standing right beside it to later learn that it was a snapping turtle. Nope, not me!!

I never went to the furniture store and spontaneously buy an entire bedroom set right on the spot, with no hesitations or thoughts on. That would be done right absurd! Seriously!

I am not a hair stylist by any means, which is why I really really didn't cut my daughters hair because it needed it so badly.

Ok, so there you have it. Another Monday is here. Are you ready to join in the fun?

where's jayden

Do you see anything that looks remotely suspicious?

No? Look closely.

Here's a small hint. Do you see it now?

Whoa! Watch out, because here he comes!

Where'd he go? Where's Jayden?
There he is! I see you!

One more time, where's Jayden?
Duh, mom. I'm right here. Can't you see me?

And who knew curtains could be so fun?

yesterday

Yesterday was a strange day. As you see from my post or Tweets, I came across a turtle in the street right in town. I wandered over to it, took my shoe off beside it, put my shoe back on, pushed on it's shell a little bit with my foot, and then took some more pictures. I was so intrigued by the size of this turtle in town and the fact that it didn't look like any other turtle. Fast forward to some tweets from my husband and I realized or actually he told me it was a snapping turtle. He asked if it tried to get me and I laughed and said no. I'm seriously, it was a turtle crying out loud! He then tells me to search on youtube for a video, so I did.

Oh my gosh!!

Never, did I realize how fast a snapping turtle could move, jump, bite, or whatever it is they do. I was awestruck by the fact that I seriously could have gotten attacked by a turtle! Note to self...lesson learned...don't provoke a snapping turtle, for it might provoke me back.

Then, I am picking up Jayden and Devin from daycare. Jayden is being his cute self, saying bye, and pointing out things that he knows the words too. Jayden is deathly afraid of flies. He panics and cries and literally freaks out. Walking to the car, in his bright yellow tank top and shorts, he sees a bee buzzing around my bumper. I am deathly afraid of bees. So I'm politely trying to hurry him along, "come on Jayden", "come on, let's go", "let's get in your seat". But he's poking along at a leisurely pace watching that bee. And me, I'm about freaking out praying that it won't come in the car, and what if it does, then what will I do?! He finally came, and the bee left and it didn't come into the car. And I was soooo thankful!!

Yesterday must have been my day to deal with nature or something. I thought it was a crazy day, but maybe it was all the other "happenings" that were going on as well.

tanning turtle in town?

Leaving a home visit, I found this turtle in the road, right in town. It was very big. It was as long as my shoe and about 6-8 inches high. When I walked up to it, it put it's head inside it's shell.
I was amused by this turtle. I've seen them crossing the highway by water, but have never seen one in town, or as big as this. I thought it was pretty cool actually.

Was it tanning? What do you think it was doing?

bigger kittens

I've been staring at my blank screen, trying to come up with something to write, but I have a bad case of writers block tonight. I do have some upcoming ideas for posts, but they are more in depth than I want to get tonight. Instead, I'll leave you with our kittens who are now almost 7 months old. They used to fit comfortably in their climber, but now they scrunch up and snuggle in, just to stay on the top part.

spontaneous decision

I've got a habit of making spontaneous decisions, even though I try to take the advice my parents gave me, sometimes I just can't do that, and make the decision on the spur of the moment. The end result is not always bad, either! I mean, we've ended up with some very nice vehicles, random household items, tents, yard games, etc. So why would one more decision make a difference?

This weekend, at the state fair, I met a very lovable little puppy, a Basset Hound puppy, a puppy that loved me, slept on my chest, nuzzled my chin, and he was the breed of puppy I have always wanted. Innocent and sweet he was. He was soft, snugly, and he was light tan and white, which means he was beyond any type of cute I have ever seen.

I wanted him. I turned to my husband, who had no idea quite how badly I wanted him. The girls were also begging to get him. As I'm begging my husband for him, he kept saying the price to me. But really, what is the price of love?
No, I did not get the puppy. Had he been in our neighborhood, I might have snuck over there and got him. The point being, I could have easily made the spontaneous decision to buy him. But I didn't.

Today, Mike and I headed into Brookings for a date lunch, or a lunch date if you prefer it that way or if you follow me on twitter, you would understand the point of a lunch date or a date lunch. We haven't been on an actual date in forever. Seriously.

Ahem...anyhow....

We headed to town, ate lunch, and went to Slumberland. I really wanted to see what kind of Labor Day sales were going on and look at bedroom furniture, captains beds for Devin, and just see what other good buys were there.

We've been talking about getting a King size bed for quite some time now, especially since our bedroom is huge and could easily fit that size. So we looked at several different bedroom sets, tried laying on lots of mattresses and basically decided on a bed we liked. It was so comfortable. But if we were going to buy a king size bed, then we had to buy a new frame, and a new headboard, which lead us to buying, well, an entire bedroom set for our bedroom.

Gulp.

Those aren't cheap anymore. Not that they ever were. But we got an awesome deal. So in about 8 weeks, hopefully it will be here. I guess Christmas came early at our house!

So, this spontaneous decision has led me to feeling a bit unsure of it. We had intended on looking, not necessarily buying. However, it led to more than just looking. I think we will be entirely happy when it's here and when we can repaint the ugly walls. Ugh. (that's a whole 'nother post). Let's just say, my dream colors for my bedroom are NOT at all what I like now. Oh well, new paint, new bedroom set, new bed. Yay!

All in all, I said no to the adorable puppy, but could not say no the bedroom set. I guess the spontaneity in me will always be there and sometimes it may feel right, and sometimes it may not.

loving the animals

Jayden really loved the animals at the fair. He went from pen to pen and tried petting or pointing to any animal he found.

He climbed the fence to get a better view, or maybe just because he's a "big boy" now.
Watching them was purely exciting for him. Everything was a "cow"!

The animals sure were fun for the kids.

busy busy

Twas' another busy day in our household. What we normally do on a Sunday is basically nothing. We watch TV, eat, play games, do a few loads of laundry (oh wait that's daily). Except today was different. Upon waking and seeing the house was beyond messy after being gone all day yesterday to the fair, we started by cleaning. And for some reason, I cleaned like no other today.

I pulled out the art tote and organized all the junk into drawers for markers, crayons, pencils, glue, scissors, and colored pencils. Then I tackled our pantry and organized those drawers and shelves, which made room for more canned foods. The bad thing about my pantry is the garbage is on the other side of it, so I'm leery to use it for anything other than canned foods.

Then, I got the girls to help me organize Devin's closet, her dresser drawers, toy drawers, and the hallway closet. I even unpacked a box that had been closed since before we moved. LOL! I think Mike gained some motivation by this point as he tackled the boys' junk in their rooms. I think we collected 3 full bags of garbage and several boxes.

This evening, Mike started filling holes in the walls with spackling, while I put primer on all (yes, all) the marker, pen, crayon, pencil marks on the walls. Then it was out to the garage to start mixing the paint to paint over. I put 5 coats of pink paint on Devin's wall, but am still having a hard time getting it to cover up the primer/permanent marker. Tomorrow we'll try again.

I had to paint the entire staircase because the girls used Magic Erasers to try to clean off the markings and it faded/smeared/wrecked the paint. So that had to be fixed. By the time I was done covering up the smudges and primer, I had used 4 different colors. Whew!

Then Mike and I (I take very little credit) moved the coat hooks down closer to the door in the laundry room so we could hang the new double hooks down low for the kids to each have their own hook for their coat and backpack. It looks great. Now hopefully that will be more enticing for them to hang up their stuff instead of just dump it in the doorway. That's a daily battle trying to get shoes and coats where they belong. For some reason it's just easier to drop everything when you walk in the door. Once 6 kids have come in, there is NO room to drop anymore. Ha!

With all that being done, along with our typical cleaning, I have not had much time to do anything else. But, I'm certainly enjoying the long weekend (which is going way too fast).

want my number

So, you want my number, huh?

If you give me yours, then...

I'll give you mine.

We had an amazing time at the state fair today. 174 pictures to sort through, with some fun posts to come in the future, maybe even tomorrow if I find time, but for tonight, it's relaxation and a movie with my hubby.

girls just wanna have fun

Girls just wanna have fun...

standin in the sun...
with the wind in her face...

blowin all over the place...

girls just wanna have fun...
ohhhh, girls just wanna have fun.