Omaha-bound

We're off to Omaha for 3 days! The kids have been wound really tight ever since finding out we are going. Hoping all goes smooth! Other than one kid having viral bronchitis, we're healthy. Let's hope that doesn't transfer to the others.

the story of the frog

I have been asked to share this story on here. It was posted on facebook very briefly and has given many people laughs. This little big frog caused quite a ruckus. You see, my husband and my youngest, Jayden, found this frog by the swing set. They thought it would be nice to come show me.

Jayden brings it inside and I can hear him talking quietly to his dad. Since I was fiddling with my phone while standing in the living room, I didn't pay much attention to what they were doing or saying. The next thing I know is something really gross hit me in the foot and Jayden busts out laughing. Here's how the conversation went.

Jayden who is holding the frog says: "Can I throw it?"

Mike hears Jayden say: "Can I show it?" and replies "yes" to him.

Jayden throws the frog at me and it lands on my foot and I let out two very freakishly loud screams. Jayden busts out laughing, which soon followed by his dad.

The bad thing is, I almost stepped on the frog in the midst of my freak out session. Eek.

Stewie was not sure what to think of the frog hopping on the deck. He acted like he was going to try to catch it with his paw one time and then his mouth another time, but never did anything to it other than try to smell it.
Jayden and daddy let the frog go back in the yard where they found it. And I am left with another very funny memory of this creature.

dead bird

I had been told ever since being a child that birds can die on power lines.

But never, have I seen a dead bird hanging from a power line until today.

If you click on the picture, it will make it larger so you can see it better. So weird!

going to the zoo

I've been procrastinating and putting off reserving a hotel. But tonight I finally did it. All 8 of us are headed to Omaha next week for 3 days! We've never been to the zoo and I can't wait to tell them tomorrow! Woot woot!!

I have literally spent hours and hours searching, reading reviews, checking other sites, and just looking for a great deal. I guess it pays to wait til the last minute and have a husband who works for the government because a great deal we indeed got!

This will be our first family vacation!!

backyard birds

This morning I heard a chirping bird that didn't sound familiar. Mike thought it was coming from my computer because we have been following the Decorah Bald Eagles for over a month now. If you haven't heard of these eagles, it's a group that has attached cameras to trees so you can watch the nest. The babies are about 6 weeks old now and are over 2 feet tall. Anyhow, when we are watching the eaglecam we can hear the chirping and that's what we thought it was.

However, my computer had shut down, so the bird was outside. This is the little fellow that was in one of our apple trees.

You can see him chirping here. It was a neat sound. I have no idea what he is, maybe a finch of some type?
Then earlier in the week, our love birds came back. I have seen them on our playset in the backyard every summer.

auctions

I love auctions. On Saturday we spent 6 1/2 hours in the wind and rain to attend the SDSU surplus auction. Originally I didn't want to go, but thought about it and decided why not. My girls have been asking for a desk for their room. They currently have a piece of plywood over totes as a make shift desk. Well, after Saturday, they have a desk! I actually got 4 wooden shelves, 2 desks, a computer chair and a child size wooden chair for $17! Yep!

Then yesterday after being completely deflated by someone I love, I went to another auction all by myself. I hung around all day for a patio table I wanted, but it went too high, so I left with nothing.

With all the auctions coming up, I hope to find some decent furniture for our basement. The stuff we have now is old and it's time for something new!

our big tree

We have an enormous tree in our backyard that I think is an ash tree, but both Mike and I can't officially call it that because we aren't for sure. But it's huge. In fact, as you come into our town, look at the tops of the trees, just find the tallest tree and that's ours! Ever since we have owned our house there has been a very large branch that was broken way up high, but didn't fall down far enough for us to take care of it. At one point, Mike climbed the tree and almost got to it, but he finally respected my wishes and came down. Earlier this week, during a very calm day, we heard a snapping sound. When we looked out at the tree we noticed the branch had come down much lower.

Mike climbed up and started sawing down the branch because it was still stuck in the tree. Plus he took care of some other branches.
Like I said, it was a huge branch!

It was quite a site to be seen. The kids were thinking it was pretty cool. They volunteered to help pick up the branches and take them to the trailer so we could get rid of them.

Then Mike decided to cut the biggest part up for wood in our fire pit. Devin was so curious that she had to keep stopping to watch. I was nervous because I thought he was sawing awfully close to his thigh!

Joseph putting smaller branches into the trailer.

And Devin with her twigs as she continues to watch Mike saw.

finally can post

Blogger has been in "read-only" mode for several days and has been having issues getting back up. It's been frustrating because I've had pictures to share and a post to write and I couldn't. But looky here...it's up and running and I can finally post. Except I don't have time right now, so I'll be back later!

flu or food poisoning

I'm trying to decide if I'm sick with the flu or food poisoning. Started out just not feeling right, which then turned into a low grade fever that quickly shot up to 103, chills, no appetite, and then diarrhea and lots of it. I was just sick with similar symptoms a little over a week ago, so I'm not thrilled at all to have this again.

I stayed home from work today and have slept half of yesterday, all last night and until 2pm today. My stomach is gurgling and grumbling and being loud. For the whole day!

I'm ready to be healthy again...

Considering I haven't heard of anyone else getting sick after eating where we ate, I would assume it's not food poisoning, but many of these symptoms are classified under that too. Hmmmmmm....

stuttering

I have noticed lately that Jayden stutters at the beginning of nearly every sentence. They typically start out with, "I, I, I want" or whatever other word is in there. The first word is repeated three times though. It's gotten worse over the last week now and of course I forgot to bring it up at Jayden's IEP meeting.

Today I called his speech therapist to see if she has noticed it, which she has. She told me it's more common in boys between the ages of 2-6 and is considered developmental. It can last from a few weeks to a few months, but is also something we need to keep an eye on. She said we don't want it to become a habit for him, or go longer than a year.

When I asked if there was anything we could do about it she just said to watch it, but not to draw attention to it or correct as that can lead to self confidence problems. And I think he already has a bit of that going on too.

So as if there isn't enough going on with him, let's toss this on top too. When is this little boy going to be given a break?

IEP

This morning I attended Jayden's IEP addendum meeting. I had requested for him to be evaluated in articulation with speech and in occupational therapy. The short of it is he didn't qualify for OT, but did qualify for articulation. The longer of it follows below.

I have been noticing lately that Jayden has a very lose fisted grasp on any writing utensil and he cannot imitate anything I write, nor can he trace or cut things out. The OT came and did an initial screen on him and she was concerned, so I signed the consent forms to allow her to do a formal evaluation. Because he has such a good pincher grasp his score was boosted on the evaluation, which really stinks because he would certainly benefit from OT services. Although the are going to consult with the preschool next fall and make sure they make a few special arrangements for him with his writing.

Jayden also has low muscle tone in his arms, which is why his grip is so loose and he has difficulties with his fine motor skills. OT sent me home with a special grip to put on crayons and pencils and such to force him to hold his pencil the correct way. It's a really neat device! She also sent us home with activities we should do with him to help strengthen his arms. Jayden also has small hands, or so she says.

Since he already receives speech and early childhood not much will change. He will receive 2 sessions of speech instead of 1 and will continue to receive his weekly early childhood sessions. However, he won't receive services through the summer.

With that being said, I'm off to bed.

treadmill

I sat on my couching looking at my treadmill as it seemed to holler my name. For months I have been saying tomorrow, but when tomorrow comes, I don't. But today I did. I got on the treadmill and walked on the classic workout for 30 minutes. It raised my incline and increased my speed throughout the workout. Let me tell you that I about died at incline 7! Now, let's see what tomorrow brings.