Fresh Cut

Ryan desperately wants to have long, mussy-looking hair. It's the style that seems to be quite popular right now for boys. But that desire is just not sitting well with his well-groomed Daddy (kinda ironic, isn't it?). Every time he gets to the point where Kevin can't take it anymore, the struggle begins anew. Apparently while I was away this weekend Kevin tried to take him for a haircut and Ryan begged for him to wait and let Mommy take him. Hmmmm. Guess he knows that I'm a bit more sympathetic to his desire to express himself. Never said he wasn't bright! Anyway, after I got home today I took him to Pigtails & Crewcuts and found a very receptive stylist who listened to what was important to both of us--neat, but longish. I think she did a great job. Ryan & Kevin are happy too.

Spoiler Warnings

In case you like to read my blog in the order in which events occur, you will need to close your eyes and scroll down towards the bottom of the page. I can not figure out how to get the posts to display in reverse order, and because of my trip I haven't been able to post the past 6 days in order. Grrrr. Being a techno-dummy can be a pain sometimes!

It all Ends up Here

At approximately 4 a.m. I woke up with a really bad feeling in my stomach... I will not bore you with any graphic details, but suffice it to say that my dear friend Stephanie was subjected to seeing and hearing more than any person who's not your mother or your spouse should have to. The up side is that I was supposed to pick up the girls today, the Zirkle's were happy to keep them an extra day, and none of my children ended up exposed to whatever I had. Unfortunately I can not say the same for Steph's kids. I was careful to wipe all bathroom surfaces with Clorox wipes after each visit...













ETA: I've been looking at other blogs involved in this project and they all seem to have pictures of President Obama for this day. Given my feelings about his presidency, this one still seems to fit.

Getting Out of Dodge

After an enjoyable weekend in Maryland, it was time for me to head back down to North Cackalackey. The following day was Barack Obama's inauguration and I wanted to be out of the DC Metro area--traffic is bad enough around there without all the added hullaballoo! I had a short stop planned at Stephanie's, which turned out to be a blessing... And don't worry, Mom, I was quite safe while taking this photo--both hands on the steering wheel, camera balanced on steering wheel to prevent camera shake, a couple of quick clicks as the sign approached, eyes on the road at all times--I promise!

Assisting with Sleep

Beth and Rob were treated to immense sleep deprivation by Sunday morning thanks to two relatively sleepless nights. I got to take Ally to Columbia Mall for a few hours while Mandy napped so that Beth & Rob could catch some zzzzz's as well. After several hours spent wandering the mall, playing in the play area, riding the escalator, and best of all riding the merry-go-round, we headed home. We were met by cheerful faces who had managed to get a bit of a nap and a shower. After a quick lunch, the 3/4 of the Stewart clan headed upstairs for an afternoon nap, and I had the pleasure of holding and cuddling my new neice.

Big Sister Day

Beth and Rob brought Amanda home from the hospital today, much to Ally's delight. Almost as soon as she was in the door Ally was begging to hold her. Her huge grin melted a bit when Mandy soon began crying. Beth quickly explained that new babies have to eat a lot and it had been a while since Mandy had eaten anything. Imagine Ally's surprise at seeing Mandy nurse! By the next day she was feeding her own dolls from her tummy too. So cute.

Introducing Amanda Paige Stewart

Ryan is home with Kevin for the long 5-day weekend. The girls are at Nana & Pap's. And I am in Maryland with my family meeting my new neice. She is simply perfect. There is nothing quite like being so close to something so fresh from God.

Getting Ready

I spent today running around in my van. First I volunteered in Olivia's class, and then it was off to Staples to pick up some last minute items for tonight's GeneWize Information Session that we put together at the local library. When I returned I had time to practice my presentation with Barbara, and then it was off to the bus stop (did this on foot). Back home I ran around getting everything put together that we needed to take and worked on packing for tomorrow's trip to Maryland. All the while I was waiting to hear how my sister was doing--she had gone to the hospital that morning to have labor induced! Just as I was getting ready to leave for the presentation I got the call that I was an aunt again and that everyone was healthy. Can't wait to hit the road tomorrow!

My Little Reader

I can not imagine how rewarding it must be for kindergarten teachers to watch an entire class full of children learn to read, because I have found it utterly amazing as each of my three have unlocked the alphabet and discovered its secrets. Ryan is reading on a fifth-grade level and is currently devouring the Lemony Snicket books. Olivia is reading at the level of a first-grader in the middle of the year and really is enjoying a series of books about 2 little dogs named Bella & Rosie. Katelyn is reading at the level of a late first-grader/early second-grader and has been enjoying reading all our old Dr. Seuss books. As a lover of reading, it is unbelievably gratifying to watch my children develop an enjoyment of books too!

RDE

Olivia is very diligent about saving her money, and also loves doing chores around the house to earn money. Thanks to a visit from the tooth fairy a few nights ago, she had enough to buy a Lil Kinz that she has been wanting for a while. We had to stop at 3 different stores that carry Webkinz products around us, but finally found the Cardinal at Cracker Barrel. She now registers her Webkinz on her account by herself (can't believe how tech-savvy my kids are already). She decided to name this bird "Red" for obvious reasons, but had a slight bauble while typing, so he is officially "RDE" instead. Oh, and she's wondering when she'll lose another tooth so that the tooth fairy can come again...

Never-Melting Snowmen

This month the girls are learning about all kinds of winter-related things in school. Everything from penguins to Eskimos. Oh, and that white stuff. You know, snow? We don't get much snow around here in North Carolina, so our kids don't get much opportunity to build things like snowmen. As a homework assignment, each kindergartener got to build a "never-melting snowman" using different craft-type things. We took a fun trip to Michaels and decided to use styrofoam balls to construct our snowmen. Thanks to my scrapbooking supplies, we had an easy way to do the eyes, mouths and buttons with brads. They collected sticks from outside for the arms and we used felt to make the noses, scarves and hats. Katy's snowman has the larger nose & hat, Livvy's snowman has a more closely spaced mouth (their observations, not mine). The class will use the snowmen for all types of learning activities throughout the rest of the month.

Toothfairy Time!

Oh thank God. This tooth has been loose for several months, but it has been very loose, like hanging by a literal thread, for about 4 days. Flapping when she talks. Olivia has not been eating unless she can break her food into a tiny piece and place it in the back of her mouth. She would not let us touch it. She would not even wiggle it herself. She was terrified of loosing this tooth. I couldn't take it anymore this afternoon and so I was a bad mommy and forcibly made her let me feel how loose it was. I gave it the tiniest of little, itsy, bitsy pushes in the opposite direction and it fell onto her tongue. I'm not sure if her tears were from relief or shock, but the tooth is now safely tucked into her new toothfairy pillow. Hopefully the next wobbly tooth will be a bit less traumatic.

Coach K

Duke's Coach K has nothing on my Coach K. Sure, Duke may have won a lot of games and championships, but that was with kids who were recruited because they were already great basketball players. My Coach K is teaching kids the skills to become great basketball players. And he does it with patience, and humor, and helps them to learn the fundamentals of the game and good sportsmanship. And some of the kids on his team have a lot to learn. They just need to stick with my Coach K.

Introducing Harriet

Harriet is the class bear for Mrs. Wagner's kindergarten class. She spends her weeks hanging out in the classroom, but on the weekends she gets to vacation at the homes of the children in the class. She has her very own travel journal to record all the fun that was had on each of her trips. This weekend she has traveled to our home to visit Katelyn!

Lunch Lady

Every Thursday I volunteer in Olivia's classroom for 40 minutes at the art center, and then for about 30 minutes in the cafeteria for lunch. Livvy LOVES when I'm there, and I enjoy knowing that I'm doing something that she appreciates so much. As a "lunch mom" I get to help the kids open their milk cartons and other packaging, cut apples, peel bananas, give lots of hugs & kisses to Livvy and Katy (who is just a few tables away), and then wipe down the tables and sweep the floor under their table when they're done. It is amazing how much more independent they have all become just since the beginning of school.

Wiped Out

Getting back to the school routine has been hard on the kids. We weren't the most responsible parents over Christmas break and allowed them to stay up much later than usual on more than one (okay more than two or three) occasions. They really handled the late nights well, but after three early mornings and three long days of school, Katy in particular was showing the effects. I shot this picture about a half an hour before dinner.

Seasonal Water View

This time last year we were still in the middle of a drought. We hoped for a rainy winter to help mitigate the effects of the previous 6 months. Well, rain it did, and rain it has. And now when I look out my windows, I can see Lake Norman across the street. I love how the weather affects the way the water looks--can you tell it's been raining again? But I'll take rain any day over the ice our friends up north are getting! It's the middle of winter and in the mid 50s outside.

Back to the Grind

My original plan for a picture for today was the kids going off to the school bus. However getting 3 still sleepy kids dressed, fed and out the door with lunches this morning got to be a bit too much, so I captured them emptying their home folders this afternoon instead. It is amazing how much paper comes home every day with 3 elementary school aged children.

End of Break

The last day of a 2-week long Christmas vacation. Ryan & Brandon are heading out to play flag football and Nerf tag with Jake & Gavin. They'll be taking Mr. Chum Chum (the hand puppet that drives me crazy) with them...

Holiday Hangover

If I had my way, Christmas decorations would all be put away by December 31st. I love the idea of starting a new year with my home clean and clear of the holiday clutter. But since we didn't return from holiday traveling until January 1st, and the 2nd was spent unpacking and doing laundry, that means the decorations won't be put away until today. And then the new year can officially begin.

Laundry

After more than a week away from home, the laundry really piles up. I got everything unpacked last night and have 8 BIG loads to do today. So glad I was caught up on cleaning and laundry before we left on our trip!

Project 365

Okay, if I'm going to be honest, I have been really struggling with this blog thing. There are soooo many things that I mean to put up here, and then I don't get around to it, and then more things happen, and then I have this HUGE post that I feel some sense of obligation to put up to keep things up to date. And then the blog becomes a source of tension and stress.

Well, no more. This is supposed to be fun. It's supposed to be a way for our friends and family to keep up with what's going on with us. And mostly, it's supposed to be EASY. Where's my EASY button?!

So this year I am embarking upon a scrapbook challenge called "Project 365." It's fairly evident what that means--a picture a day, EVERY day, for an entire year. And a quick blurb about the picture. Emphasis upon quick. And easy. And the cool thing is that I'm getting this kit that is going to allow me to make a super quick and easy scrapbook of this endeavor.

I was thinking to myself, "self, this would be a great way to keep up with the blog! Each day when I load my single photo of the day to my computer, I can simply add it to the blog, along with my daily blurb." Cool.

Now that's not to say that I'll only be taking that single picture each day. I'm sure there will be plenty of days where I'll be taking WAAAAAAAAAY more than one. But I'm going to stick with just putting that one pic a day on the blog, and save all the other photos for the photobook at the end of the year. That way those pictures will all be a wonderful surprise for the photobook recipients!

And so, here we go. Project Zirkle 365.

January 1, 2009
Today is Orange Bowl day for Virginia Tech. And we are driving home from our DELMARVA Christmas tour showing our colors. By the way, VT WON!!!

Merry Christmas!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

I've Seen This Coming...

Have you?



























It was just a matter of time. We're not sure if there's a hairline fracture. Waiting to hear back from the radiologist. The on-call doctor at urgent care didn't see a fracture, but it's hard to tell because there are so many growth joints in the feet at Katy's age. She's in a splint for the next 10 days and can not put any weight on her foot. Keep her in your prayers!

Less is S'More

Kevin got a few gift cards for his birthday and decided to get a fire pit for the patio. He has always been quite the firebug! We had our first of what I'm sure will be many fires tonight and roasted marshmallows in honor of its maiden voyage.

The Huntleys came to join us, and we all agreed that eating s'mores is the best way to end a Monday.

I Love Landscaping

There are times that I dread yardwork. Like when it's in the upper 90s and the humidity is high. Or when it's going to involve removing trees and/or tree limbs. Or mowing (not usually my job, but I help out sometimes).

Honestly, it's a bit of a love/hate relationship. Generally, I hate getting started, but once I get started, I get into a zone of just completing physical labor, and I begin to enjoy it. And I love the way things look once I've completed a task.

The exception is when we're planting new stuff. I just plain love doing landscaping! And we planted a lot of new stuff this weekend. Take a look:

These gloves

I am so proud of these gloves. That sounds a little silly, perhaps, but they are symbols of my hard labor. Before we moved, I had to go out and buy my little ladies gardening gloves every couple of years. They were more than sufficient for protecting my hands while pulling weeds from mulch beds, or planting perennials & annuals, or the simple gardening tasks that I needed to do. And they were really cute!

I had to buy a new pair of gardening gloves after we moved because the old ones were a little ratty, so I figured "new house, new gloves." Let me tell you, those pretty ladies gardening gloves did not make the grade. The prickers that seemed to grow all over our wooded areas poked through the fabric, I would get blisters from pulling out the stubborn undergrowth that had taken hold over the years that our lot was a pine forest, and within several weeks they had holes in them. I tried a few other ladies gloves, but none of them fit the bill for the type of labor I was now doing.

So I bought these small men's leather work gloves. And after a year and a half of clearing undergrowth, hauling branches, cutting down small trees, pulling up kudzu and poison oak (and all the other vines that grow around here), removing all the stickers, planting shrubs and trees, raking leaves, and myriad other types of yardwork these gloves are still hanging in there.

They are dirty. Filthy, really. And the leather has molded to the contours of my hands. They are stiff each time when I first put them on, but are soon relaxed by my sweat and the moisture of the earth. And they symbolize my hard work.

Last weekend while doing some more clearing of undergrowth on the north side of the house, I noticed that one of the prickers poked through a part of the glove that has gotten thin with use, so I may be retiring these gloves in favor of a new pair next season. But I will always be proud of what I accomplished while wearing these gloves, because the amount of labor required these first few years will never compare.

I want to know

who the monstrous children are whose measurements are used by Rubie's Costume Company when they make children's Halloween costumes. Seriously. The sleeves on the girls' costumes are nearly 6 INCHES too long. 6 INCHES! If their arms were that long, their fingers would be below their knees. Yes, the costumes are size 4-6, and my girls are petite in the weight category, but sleeves on size 6 shirts and dresses generally fit them.

Oh, and the belt for Ryan's Clone Trooper costume is 32 inches. 32INCHES! My full grown husband who is nearly 6 feet tall has a 34 inch waist. The costume is for BOYS, size 8-10. And the smallest that the belt can be made without covering up some of the "gadgets" is 28 inches. The costume fits him quite nicely through the body, but the belt won't stay up even if I attach it around his shoulders. And this has been a problem EVERY SINGLE YEAR with these types of belts. Even on the smaller sizes.

So I would like to see these 42"-46" tall children whose arms dangle below their knees with waists the diameter of a grown man. Seriously. What were they thinking when they sized these?!

Time to get Spooky

I got a pretty good coupon from the company that we've bought the kids' Halloween costumes from the past few years, and it expires soon. So even though Halloween is a long ways a way (relatively speaking), we've ordered the costumes.

The kids are already starting to hound me about "when will they be here?!" Even though I have a STRICT policy that other than trying the costumes on for size (and to see what needs to be altered by me), they don't get to wear them for play until AFTER Halloween. I guess it's just exciting to have them here. I actually can remember that kind of excitement about my costumes as a child.

And I have discovered a down side to having a son before having daughters. Especially a son who is as revered by his sisters as Ryan is. I was excited by all the new fairy and princess and fairy princess costumes in the catalog this year, couldn't wait to see which ones they'd choose. But Ryan is going as a Clone Trooper from Star Wars:

















So the girls want to be Princess Leia. Both of them. Think they'll get it if I call them "Princess LeiA" and "Princess LeiB"? I think it's kind of funny...

Let's Go.... Hokies!

As someone who grew up in a home where football was not a big deal, who went to a high school where the football team was mediocre at best, who went to a college with NO football team at all, I never developed an appreciation for the support. Until I met Kevin. His enthusiasm about Virginia Tech football is contagious.

It started out small. I'd watch an occasional game or at least sit in the same room as Kevin while the game was on (that counts, right?). And then I would buy him his Hokie gear as gifts. But over the past 15 years, I have gradually become more interested in the game. I actually enjoy watching VT games with Kevin, which surprises me as much as it may surprise those who "knew me when."

And while it can be exciting to watch a game on TV, it does not even come close to being there. I LOVE going to the games. Really! We're even making plans to start getting season tickets for all 5 of us when the girls are just a bit older. The tailgating is right up my alley, and the cheering and excitement of the fans is infectious. It is such a fun way to spend a Saturday afternoon!

We got to go see VT play Eastern Carolina this past Saturday with some friends and neighbors (and former neighbors--long story, but Julie who used to live next door is from a VT family and they had tickets but weren't going to use them since the game was in Charlotte, so she and Stephanie came down to the game (sans kids!!!)).

We left the house at 7:15 AM (ugh), and had our tailgate set up by 8:15. Lots of yummy food, mimosas, Baggo, a little beer, and great friends all made for a fabulous time (even though the Hokies lost in the last few minutes). I can't wait to go to my next game, although I'm hoping the kickoff will be a little later...