The Calm after the Storm

This afternoon when Katy got home from school, Kevin and I made a very unreasonable, difficult, and distasteful request of her before she had a snack. We asked her to wash her hands.

She proceeded to throw a huge fit that lasted nearly 30 minutes and became pretty intense. During which I washed her hands for her. And then took her upstairs to sit on the stool for time out. We used to send the kids to their rooms for punishment, but with all the toys in their rooms, it's just too fun. So now they sit on a stool. Today the stool was right outside my scrapbook room so that I could supervise her while still working on the kindergarten scrapbooks.

Apparently she was tired. Whether it was from the fit or the inherent cause of the fit is not clear. But this is what I saw about 10 minutes into her sitting:

Boat People

When we moved to the Lake Norman area, it was with the intention of purchasing a boat. Well, we've been here nearly 3 years now, but have yet to take the plunge. Until today.

Kevin has found a very good new job and will begin the end of May. He has a generous severance package which we will be putting into the kids' college funds. Our cars have been paid off and thanks to their relatively low mileage should not need to be replaced for at least 5 more years. Kevin has cancelled his golf club membership due to lack of use last year (it's hard to golf very regularly with children involved in sports). And we've got a cushion in the bank. Thanks to the economy, lots of people are selling their boats at excellent rates and slips are opening up all over the place. And my cautious, slow-to-decide, but quick to move once he has decided husband made the decision to get a boat.

I played devil's advocate and raised possible arguments against the decision, but he was able to address each of them in a reasonable, realistic, thoughtful way, so I'm on board too (pardon the pun). He went out on Tuesday and found a beautiful slip for a reasonable rate just 5 minutes from our house. And then went out later and found a very nice, new pontoon boat a very reasonable price. It's a 2008 model year, but hasn't been owned. And he made a nice, lowball offer which the dealer accepted because it was the end of the month.

So we picked it up today and surprised the kids. They were taken completely off guard and were quite excited to take it out on it's maiden family voyage.

Home Working

I'm one of those mean moms who makes their children do their homework as soon as they get home. I've tried it the other way, and the moaning and groaning that ensues as a result of my pulling them away from their fun to do the homework is just not worth it. At least the way we do it now, they are still in a "school" frame of mind when they get home. They put their backpacks and lunchboxes away, I get them a snack, we review anything that they've brought home and they finish their homework. And then they're done. And the rest of the day is theirs. Perhaps if they got home later in the afternoon I would make them go outside first, but even with this routine they're outside by 3:30 which generally includes a half hour to watch some TV and just unwind! I'm still not a big fan of the early mornings, but it really does make for a much better afternoon for them given their tendency to wake early regardless.

Hang Over

This is what I discovered when I came downstairs this morning. The morning after the big birthday party. I had left the balloons, and most of them were still up, but these two that had been attached to the girls' chairs in the kitchen had gotten droopy. Ironically, Olivia's favorite color is yellow, and Katy's favorite is purple. I thought it so odd that the balloons seemed to be mimicking the girls' moods about the birthday festivities being over! And certainly my mood about having to get everything cleaned up and put away...

What They Don't Tell You

When you hear that you're going to have twins, all kinds of thoughts run through your head: "How am I going to handle 2 babies? How am I going to pay for 2 kids in college at the same time?" And you are prepared for some types of issues, like how to deal with multiple feedings, the expense of lots of diapers, sibling rivalry, the joy of having two who are sharing their life development, etc.

What they don't tell you is how some day they're not going to want to have the same kind of birthday party. And that this can be a pretty big issue since they share the same birthday. This year, Olivia was fairly adamant about wanting an animal-themed party. And Katelyn was equally insistant that the party be more fancy, and girly, and maybe a tea party. So. We had a Fancy Animal Tea Party.

Things did not coordinate perfectly, and the event was a bit of a mish mosh, but the girls all had a great time. And let's face it, that's the really important part!

That Tongue

We've been pretty busy with baseball of late. On Thursday night we found out that Ryan was selected to be on the Challenge team for his age group in our district. He'll be playing shortstop and doing some pitching. This is the equivalent of an all-star team and they will be playing in several tournaments in the next few months and could even play for the state championship depending upon how they do!

Obviously we're proud, but it adds a whole new layer to our schedule. Now, in addition to the normal 2-3 games a week, he has 2 practices with the Challenge team. And the few weekends during the season that we had thought were baseball-free are now filled with multi-game tournaments. It makes for a busy couple of months! For example, this week we had opening night Monday, a game on Thursday, practice on Friday, two games on Saturday, and practice on Sunday. Whew.

And since my son is utterly incapable of throwing the ball without his tongue sticking out in concentration, I guess we'll need to be sure to bring along the aquaphor to keep the chapped lips at bay.

Daddy's Little Girls

We found out that our elementary school was having its first annual Father/Daughter Dance a little over a month ago. The girls were so excited, and I think Kevin shared their enthusiasm, but on a somewhat different plane. I helped out with decorating for the event all afternoon (inflating over 200 helium balloons with another mom and making various 'bouquets' with them for table tops and poles). The entire area was done in hot pink, black, white and a zebra print. There were punch bowl fountains for the pink lemonade and over 100 dozen (!) cookies were sent in by school families for refreshments. The guests got to walk in to the dance on the "pink carpet" and pose for professional pictures. Oliva and Katy agreed that their favorite dance was the YMCA, and Kevin impressed them with his Macarena and Electric Slide. I wish I could have been a fly on the wall!

Father & Son

Even though Kevin coaches Ryan in both basketball and baseball, there is something special to me about watching them on the baseball field. I'm not sure what it is that makes it feel different. Their shared intensity? Knowing that this is Kevin's favorite sport? Observing Kevin's pride in Ryan's accomplishment? Or maybe it's just that I enjoy baseball more than the other sports. Whatever it is, it adds a whole different dimension to watching them at play.

Stain Cocktail

Are you the mother of a stain-prone child? You know the type! Always manages to find the mud on an otherwise dry field. Never just falls down, but rather sli-i-i-des across the grass. Tends to drop food, and then sit upon what has been dropped. Enjoys painting and often forgets to keep the paint on the paper. Lives life with exuberance and is quick to remind you "that's what washing machines are for, mom!"

If this sounds like you, then perhaps you have also discovered the need to use a stain treating cocktail to get rid of those stubborn smears and spots. For those really stubborn stains, I use a 3-part combination of Zout Triple Enzyme Foam + Oxyclean + Zout Triple Enzyme Liquid. It gets just about everything out. Except watermelon.

Where Shopping Meets Fun

Grocery shopping used to be one of my most annoying chores. Between children whining and nagging for every sugar-laden item they laid eyes upon and multiple potty breaks, it was hard to get it done quickly, much less efficiently.

Now, thanks to having all three kids in school and our new grocery store that's less than 2 miles away, grocery shopping is actually not bad. In fact, thanks to the gadgetry at Bloom and my reusable shopping bags, it's even a little fun. And very efficient!

Old way:
* wander the aisles
* fill my cart
* empty the cart at the cashier
* reload the cart with bags
* unload the bags into my van

Bloom way:
* pick up scanner at front of store
* scan each item as I pick it up
* place each scanned item into a re-usable bag that I have set up in my cart (items go where I want them to go for easy unloading at home)
* hand over the scanner to the cashier and pay
* unload the bags into my van

I can finish the chore so much more quickly, and the little scanner keeps a running total so I know exactly how much I'm spending--makes it so much easier to stay within my budget! I actually almost enjoy grocery shopping now.

Opening Night

Lake Norman Sports league hosted an Opening Night celebration for all the baseball and softball teams in the area. Free hotdogs, chips and beverages, and cotton candy for everyone who attended. Plus a live band, moon bounce, and face painting. The teams all assembled on one of the fields for a brief ceremony which included singing of the national anthem and a ceremonial first pitch thrown by some NASCAR driver (no idea who!). And to wrap it up, the coaches formed four teams and played exhibition games to show off their skills. Kevin claims "I've still got it at short." Yup. He does. ;)

Kitten Love

Katy was very excited to come into her room this afternoon and discover this scene. Can you believe how big they're getting? Midnight is nearly 6 lbs. and is growing taller all the time. Bella is about 4 1/2 lbs and maintains her more petite bone structure. They are cute, and playful and hillarious to watch when they're awake, but growing takes lots of energy so we find them sprawled or curled up (almost always together) often. Best of all they are both "lap" cats so far--their favorite spots are with us.

Sometimes You Get it Right

There are lots of days that I go to bed thinking "man, I really blew it today." But not today. Today, I know I got it right. And I couldn't be more proud.

Last summer, the girls (mine plus their BFF Sydney), were desperate to raise money to purchase a snowcone machine. They wanted to go door-to-door in our neighborhood selling candy. Old candy. Leftover from the previous Halloween. And they wanted to set up lemonade stands. And various other schemes like selling their stuff. Whatever it took to get money to buy a snowcone machine. (Note: this fascination with a snowcone machine arose after our visit to Gram's where my girls got to experience homemade snowcones). We humored them. To a point. But I don't think any of us parents wanted them going door-to-door -- especially with their nasty candy! Eventually the schemes died down when they realized that their efforts just weren't going to get the desired results.

Fast forward to this afternoon. I came in the house for some water (yard work is thirsty business, you know). I discovered Olivia skulking around with something behind her back. I asked her (very calmly, mind you), what she had. She pulled out one of my old, large, glass mason jars with a sign taped to it reading "Money $2."

Me: "What's that Livvy?"
L: "Nuffin."
Me: "Well, it looks like something that is mine. What are you doing with it?"
L: "Ummmmmmmmm. Well. Ummmmmmmmmm. You see, we were learning about homeless people at school, and how you could raise money to help them out. So we decided to do that. To help them. And people can put money in the jar."
Me: *gulp* "Wow, that is a really nice idea, honey. But how are you going to raise money?"
L: "We're going to sing a song for people. And then they can put money in the jar."
Me: "Well, I like that idea, but I don't like you using my jar. It's breakable, and you could get hurt if it accidentally fell and broke. Why don't we get you something that won't break?"
L: (kind of surprised) "Okay!"

So I got them a plastic container. And moved the little paper sign from the jar to the new container. And sent her back to our curb with her friends. Then I said a silent prayer of thanks, and went to my purse to get $2 and my camera.

I went out to where they were gathered and told them that I'd like to hear them sing. And that I was very proud of what they were doing. And that once they collected $10, I would take them down to a local soup kitchen so they could give them the money.

They looked so excited! And they proceeded to raise $11 (okay a good portion of it was from us and Syd's parents, but still). I was so proud. I am so proud.

But it gets better. Before dinner I got to hand out two birthday cards that had arrived from their Aunt Jeannie. Each contained a crisp $5 bill. They were quite excited. And then Livvy said "I'm going to put mine in our jar so we can give $16 to the homeless people."

Wow. I will be matching her gift in honor of her generous heart. I am beyond proud of these girls.

Six Years. And Counting!

I am forever grateful for these two little girls who joined our lives six years ago today. What a trip it has been so far, and our journey has really only just begun.

Praise God!

Roger had his biopsy this morning. The surgical oncologist told Linda and Roger that they would have results back today, before leaving the hospital.

When the phone rang at 12:15 this afternoon, it was with dread that I answered it. Imagine my surprise to hear Linda's voice bubbling with excitement! God has heard our prayers, and answered them in the affirmative. The enlarged lymph nodes do not contain any sign of cancer. The enlargement shown on the PET scan is the result of an infection of some sort, but it should be completely treatable.
It is just a coincidence that the scan was done at a time when he had a non-symptomatic infection.

I feel such a sense of lightness today--almost giddy, really. Today is an even more special day for our family because of this news. The anxiousness of the past weeks has helped us all to remember the importance of all our family. I am also so grateful for all the support shown by every person in our circle of family and friends. We are all truly blessed.

The Last Good Picture?

Thursday we spent the afternoon and evening with Nana and Pappy in VA. Our original plans were to spend Friday as well, but Pappy had to have a biopsy early Friday morning to determine whether his melanoma had metastacized.

While the visit was good, the shadow of cancer was hanging over all of our heads. If the biopsy results came back positive, it meant that he had Stage IV melanoma, and with his MS, treatment options were very limited. We chose not to tell the kids anything until we got the results back so that they could enjoy their time with him that day. But with each picture I snapped, the thought kept running through my head: "Is this the last picture I'll get of him looking healthy with ______?"

Roger is a man of God, and is not afraid of dying, but like any normal human he does not want to leave his loved ones behind. So. The day had a heaviness about it, despite the beautiful weather.

Rain = Puzzling

The weather did not cooperate with us while we visited Grandma and Grandpa in DE -- it was cold, and wet the entire two days we were there. We stayed mostly inside both days and had a low-key, relaxing, and very enjoyable time working on puzzles together. We finished 3 (!) 500-piece puzzles and got started on a fourth (which turned out to be a real stumper that we had to re-box for a future visit). And today we ventured out for breakfast and dinner after a wonderful lasagna-dinner at home on Tuesday.

Oh, and tomorrow's forecast? Sunny. Oh well, there's always the summer!

"Easy Bake" Magic

As a child, I really wanted an Easy Bake Oven, but my parents were quite skeptical of an oven that baked using a light bulb. And who could blame them, honestly? But it actually does work! Katelyn received her Easy Bake Oven for her birthday from Grandma and they had fun trying it out and making sugar cookies. The cookies were delicious! I can't wait to try all the other different things we can bake the Easy way.

The Post-Easter Miracle

I have been trying (mostly unsuccesfully) for years to get a good picture of the kids with their grandparents. Today I succeeded in getting a great shot with my mom & dad. It was a spur of the moment shot taken after goodbyes had already been said as we were getting ready to leave MD for DE. Perhaps it was the fun of the day (golf for Grandad and Ryan, shopping for Gram and the girls) that led to the positive results. Or maybe it was because of a great visit. Or maybe it was just a miracle. :)

Keeping Things Interesting

First, let me say that Easter is about the celebration of our risen Christ. Not eggs, or bunnies, or chicks, or baskets, or any other such frivolity. However, I thoroughly enjoy the fun of those traditions in addition to keeping the true meaning of the day.

My children have become expert egg hunters over the years. Ryan, in particular, craves a challenge when it comes to our Easter morning fun. So this year, in addition to making sure the eggs were well-hidden, the Easter Bunny added some twists:

1. There were three sets of numbered eggs hidden. Each child had to find one of each of the numbers (thanks to our Kindergarten teachers for this idea!)
2. There were three sets of patterned eggs hidden (the girls' were marked with their initial). Ryan had to find all of the sports-themed eggs, and the girls had to find the ones shaped like animals and fairies. The Bunny hid Ryan's eggs in some really tough places!
3. Each child had a special egg hidden that contained a clue to help them find their basket.

They were up bright, and early at 6:15 a.m., and the fun began by 6:30. Thanks to the added challenges, the fun lasted nearly an hour this year instead of the typical 15 minutes. We had a leisurely breakfast and then went to church at Highland, where the kids behaved wonderfully. Dad picked up lunch for us from Geneva Farms and we spent the rest of the day relaxing a bit after all the activities of Saturday.

A Pre-Easter Miracle

We (my sister and I) have been trying to get a good picture of all our children together ever since her first child was born almost 3 years ago. There have been lots of attempts, a fair amount of bribery, and a few successes. Another potential challenge was added this time with the addition of my newest (and I've been assured, final) neice. I think we were all pleasantly surprised to get this shot after just 3 tries!

P.S. Ryan is still holding out hopes that another boy will join our family...

On the Road, Again.

One of the few down sides to our move to NC is the length of time it takes to get to a visit with family. I know the sentiment is shared by those taking the trip down here. But the kids are generally good travelers and we've gotten the packing down to a science (one suitcase per stop rather than one suitcase per family member). And Kevin and I are both very familiar with all the best spots to stop along I-81 thanks to our college days. Thanks to DVDs (and snacks!), the 8-hour drive really just melts away.

Buddies

Hooray! The girls finished cleaning the playroom, so we were able to have the playdate I had scheduled for Katelyn with her friend Rylee. Rylee is one of Katy's favorite friends from school, and she has been begging for a playdate. I don't know why I haven't scheduled one sooner (aside from personal laziness). They had a great time together with lots of giggling and imaginative play. They both love doing crafts, and Rylee was very impressed by my scrapbook room. I pulled out stamps and inks and papers and stickers and scissors and they had a good time creating. AND they cleaned up the playroom when they were done! Without whining. Time to schedule more playdates with Rylee--she's my kind of friend.

Tripping

I challenge you to walk into our playroom without tripping. Seriously. It is a mess (although it's been much worse!). And the room is a fairly regular source of aggravation for Kevin and me. On the one hand, we'd like to just clean it ourselves and avoid the whining. On the other hand, that doesn't teach our children anything about responsibility for their actions. So. Sometimes the playroom gets r.e.a.l.l.y messy. Like now. BUT. We are leaving for a week-long trip on Friday, and the girls have been instructed that they will not be playing with any friends until it's done. Fingers crossed...

Bedtime, Revisited.

Today marked a turning point in my life. I know that it is not one that is permanent. Yet. But it does mark a change for some nights. The girls asked to give themselves their own bath. Huh. Why not? I thought. Let's see how it goes. Well, it went remarkably well. They are clean, and other than checking to make sure they had rinsed their hair and handing out towels, that's all I did. Huh! When they got out I said: now, go put on your PJs, brush your teeth, get your icy cold water if you want it, and pick out your story. And they did. Double Huh! So all I did for bedtime tonight was some cursory supervision, a few directives, and then got to read stories get kisses and tuck them in. Now, there is the tiniest part of me that feels a little sad that they don't need me as much anymore. But mostly I'm just a little giddy with the taste of freedom!

Undecided

Our friends, the Huntleys, are on Spring Break this week. They go to a different school system because Allyson works in the Mooresville city schools. Last week Sydney and Brandon planned on greeting our kids when they got off the bus. They have been so excited about this! Usually they get home about an hour to an hour and a half after our kids do. My original plan for today's picture was a bus stop picture. And I have a fun "dog pile" picture from today's bus stop. That's Brandon in the blue T-shirt and Sydney on the scooter.

But then Kevin found a friend in our garage. So I'm torn and undecided about which picture to use. For now, I'm going with both!

Yard Work is Two Four-Letter Words...

Thanks to all of the rain over the previous week and a half, our yard was in need of even more attention than anticipated. Kevin has wanted to do some work on the playset for about a year now, and finally got the tool necessary to take it apart (some kind of hammer set for his air compressor). I thought that he was just going to get it level, but he ended up completely reorienting it on the mulch bed. This led to his decision to decrease the size of the mulch bed.

So. On Friday he fixed and reoriented the playset. On Saturday, after baseball practice, we moved a LOT of mulch from the previous bed and made the mulch layer much thicker under the playset. Then Kevin cut down and rebuilt the mulch enclosure, while I began working on clearing all the leaves, weeds and other debris that had accumulated over the fall and winter from our back mulch beds.

On Sunday, I mowed the yard while Kevin worked on spreading a layer of topsoil and then seed over the area that had been covered with mulch for the playset. I then worked on clearing leaves, weeds and other debris from the side and front mulch beds, while Kevin cut down several trees that had begun to lean thanks to the large amounts of rain followed by heavy winds.

Everything is looking pretty good, although we still need several truckloads of mulch delivered for the wooded areas. That project will have to wait until after Spring Break!

Once the playset project was finished we both found it amusing that the "new" grassy area is about the size of our entire back yard at our old townhouse.

Spring Training

It's that time of year again--baseball season. We had skills assessments two weeks ago, and practices were supposed to start last Wednesday. Unfortunately we've had rain outs for the past 3 scheduled practices! That means lots of make-up practices this week. Kevin is coaching again, and our team is the Orioles. :) Today was the first actual practice, and the fields were still pretty muddy. I generally can't make it to the weekday practices because someone needs to get the girls in bed, so I was excited to watch them today. There's a pretty wide range of skill sets on the field. Ryan is one of the best 3 players on the team (and I say that as an unbiased observer--if I was biased I'd say he was THE best!). Check out that follow-through during one of the batting drills.

Seasonal Water View

This is the phrase that dots real estate listings in our area. If one is not fortunate enough to be living on the water, having a view of the lake is a nice feature. My request for sunshine has been granted, and I have a feeling that my seasonal water view will be obstructed by foliage quite soon. I'm enjoying the sparkling diamonds out there while I can!

April Showers

Let's continue with the April-related euphemisms, shall we? Now, I know that April showers will bring May flowers, but I'm getting a bit tired of the rain! Everything is lush, and green and vibrant. Beautiful really. But I'd love to see how it looks with a touch of sunshine. Please? It was supposed to be pretty today, so the grayness and continued rainfall caught me a bit off guard. And it's making it very hard to get motivated to do much of what I need to do! Hopefully the weekend will be sunny and we'll be able to get out and do some yardwork. Not to mention get the kids outside to run off some of this energy that seems to be bursting out of them!

April Fools!

It has been an April Fools Day tradition at our house for the past few years to have dessert for dinner. It is utterly frivolous. Thoroughly silly. And completely delicious. Albeit, a bit unhealthy.

At least, you would think it is unhealthy. But to Kevin's and my surprise, this year was a bit different. We served doughnuts for dinner tonight, with a side of candy. And for good measure, some homemade Fibre One muffins and cantaloupe. Now, I expected that the doughnuts would be devoured in no time, and perhaps the healthier fare would be consumed if they were still hungry.

The kids were so excited when they walked in and saw the table! Ryan commented that he wished Brandon could see what we got to have for dinner. The girls were positively giddy.

But the first things they reached for were the muffins and cantaloupe. Huh. Ryan ate his doughnut, but had three of the muffins and almost 1/4 of an entire cantaloupe with a large glass of milk. Katy had 2 large wedges of cantaloupe, a muffin and a few bites of doughnut with a large cup of milk. Olivia had juice to drink, nibbled on her doughnut, ate a few pieces of candy and finished a muffin and 2 wedges of cantaloupe. Not what I expected at all!

So, the kids ended up eating a somewhat healthy meal without realizing it, and I scored MAJOR cool mommy points for serving doughnuts for dinner. I wonder who the April Fool really is?

Field Trips

Today's picture was taken by another mom who got to accompany Ryan on his 3rd grade field trip to a Science Museum and Planetarium in Winston-Salem. Only two moms got to go as chaperones and I lost the lottery. Ryan was so excited about this trip, and begged to take my camera with him. I was a little nervous about sending my current one, so he took my old Fuji FinePix. He came home with a card full of photos and a day full of memories.