Suggestions, please.....

Tongu Mama over at Our Little Tonginator blogged today about a 'date' she and her husband had. It got me to thinking. Kevin and I often use our date time for dinner and then something exciting like grocery shopping.

I am hoping that all 10 of you who read this blog, might have some suggestions for 'date nights.' We are looking for something relatively inexpensive. Just because that is where we are in life. And we don't even have a stock portfolio to have one crash!

I look forward to your thoughts!

In The Excitement That is My Life

I am going to the post office and the grocery today! Aren't you jealous??

Some days

it's just not much fun being the mom!

I Love Jesus

Need a laugh today? Check this out! http://www.green-grass-grows.com/2008/09/just-for-laughs.html

Thanks for sharing this, Kate!

Moments That Make It All Worth It....Grace

(Don't you love her self portrait?)

This year, we've been letting Gracie stay up later than her siblings. A whole half an hour. (To listen to Olivia you would think it was HOURS....) It has afforded us great time to just talk to her, by herself. No one else tells us what she meant to say, or interrupts or anything!

Last night we were watching a show together. A reality weight loss show that I generally think is pretty child safe. But a couple of the contestant were swearing. A lot. It lead to a discussion about not always needing to use language others use.

I mentioned that, as she is getting older, she is going to hear a lot more inappropriate language from her friends. But that doesn't mean she has to use it.

And my baby girl looked at me and said, "I know, Mom. I am never going to talk like that. It is not appropriate and God doesn't like it."

I love that girl!!

Not Fair!!

I don't mind being 41, most of the time. Actually I kind of like it. But there's one thing that really, on a daily basis, works my nerves!!



And I have to "face" it twice, every day! And that would be all of the things I have to do to take care of my face!!

Let's start with washing. I have to go through a three step regimen. Facial scrub, clarifier, repairing lotion. I use Pro@ctive. Yes, I am 41 and still fighting blemishes. Actually they are worse than they have ever been. For me, this is the only product that works. After I am done with that, I have to do a spot treatment right on my 'problem areas.'

THEN I apply a Banishing Cream. Why? Because in the unfairness that is middle age, along with my blemishes (I hate the word zits) I have age spots!!!! Where is the fairness in that??? Blemishes AND age spots!?!

THEN I have to apply sunscreen to prevent further age spots. I think, when I am done, I must have a quarter of an inch of products on my face! Probably clogging my pores and causing further issues........

Have I mentioned how unfair this is??? Have I mentioned that I am the only one who seems to notice the difference??

Oh, Charis

This afternoon, shortly before dinner, Charis and Josiah were wrestling, as usual. They do this regularly. Start on the couch, fall off the couch, someone yells because they fall off of the couch. The yeller then jumps onto the pusher and the whole thing starts again on the floor. At some point, the event might move back onto the couch. It's pretty interesting to watch because Charis is a tiny thing. She finally broke the 30 pound mark a couple of weeks ago. She's dark haired, dark eyed, dark completed, lean and strong. Her favorite wrestling partner is Josiah. He is thirteen weeks older than she is. He is at least ten pounds heavier, blond, blue eyed, fair skinned. A stout little man. It's really quite a picture. I guess I should take one sometime.

Right after they finished wrestling, I don't really remember who won or who was angry. But Charis started to gag as if she was going to be sick. Kevin rushed her to the bathroom. It only took me a couple of seconds to realize that she had....wait for it.....swallowed a LEGO!!!!! It was stuck in her throat, but she could still breathe.

I called the pediatrician who said we needed to take her into Urgent Care. But, as we were talking, Charis told Kevin that the Lego was in her tummy. It had shifted through her esophagus and into her stomach. That's the good news. My baby was no longer in pain. (Although she still wanted to go to Urgent Care because she had so much fun there two weeks ago when she had a double ear infection.)

The bad news? Now we have to watch her for the next few days for sign of an obstruction....

Oh, Charis......


And I wonder why my head hurts all of the time.

It's a Beautiful Day!!

I'll bet U2 is running through your head now, isn't it? Maybe I'll add one of those music thingamajigs to my blog.

Anyway, my kids are back in school, PBS is back. It was sunny and in the upper 70s today. I can't ask for much more.

Well, maybe for my headaches to clear up. They have been bad, but I think it is because I can no longer 'stress eat.' The lap band makes it impossible! Not such a bad thing.

Priceless

Okay, we are on day three with no school because of Hurricane Ike! Our schools still are without power. Thank God we have ours!

Last night, I was lying on the couch with a migraine. And it dawned on me that all five kids were sitting together on the floor working a puzzle together. They were soooo loud. But I didn't care. Even with my pounding head. It was one of the few times I've seen them all work together like that. No fighting, no tattling, not doing something they weren't supposed to be doing. Just working together. I think they must have done three different puzzles together......

two puzzles: $30

migraine meds. $55

kids not fighting AND working together....PRICELESS

Affects of a Hurricane

First of all, let me say, I NEVER EVER in my whole live long life, expected my children, in southern Ohio, to have 2 days off of school due to a hurricane!! And everything here still seems so normal! We never lost power, just internet and phone. The internet is back......my link to adults!!

My hubby, who is also off of school, is working at the church....which has no power....sure, he's working....I think he is just escaping the children. Sigh....wish I had a dark, cold, old church to hide out in!

Oh, but I haven't mentioned the worst thing. PBS is GONE!!!!!!!!!!! I can only imagine that the station has yet to regain power. My children are starting to go into withdraw. No Arthur, no Clifford, no Sid the Science Kid! (okay they are missing Caillou, but I am not. We refer to him as Cai-yuck around here!) No, in answer to Nanny's questions, no shakes....yet., but they are starting to perspire a bit.


Arthur, where are you???? I miss you!!!!

Guess what this is?

Okay, yes it's a bad picture of Livi. But it's the best I had to represent what's happening around here. Namely BLACK OUT!!!!!! We had a major windstorm here yesterday. Most of the city is without power. Thankfully, we never lost power. But almost 7 of every 8 people in the Cincinnati area did lose theirs. We've had a fridge full of a friend's food. We've also had a friend here to work on her dissertation that is due today.

For me the hardest part is that today and tomorrow the kids are out of school. And we really can't go anywhere. But I really cannot complain. We are safe and comfortable.

To all of my friends hanging out in the dark, I hope your power is on soon!!

Lapband update

Okay, I only lost 1/2 a pound this week. But that is something I was expecting. I was hungry starting about Tuesday!

I am at the point that they are trying to adjust my band so that it works best for me. Today, the nurse put in 2 more cc's. So there are 5 cc's in my 10 cc band. My weight loss total is 15 lbs. The equivalent to 60 sticks of butter. Not too bad.

This week I went to a support group meeting for people banded through my dr's office. Lots of great people and good information!

It's Friday!

Things I've learned this week:

* Olivia still hates mornings.
*Risi reacts better when you get on her level and don't yell
*It kind of breaks your heart when a boy comes to the door for your daughter for the first time (Grace.) Now, I admit, he wanted to challenge her to bike race, but still...she's only 9!!
*There is nothing quite as loud as a three year in the middle of a major fit.
*Preschool tires kids out!
*When a church is on the brink of revival, Satan gets busy.

Okay. Most of this I already knew, but lots of this was reinforced. Maybe I'll learn the lessons THIS time!

Words That Cut to a Mother's Heart

It was a rough morning. The kids were tired. I had to wake them all up, which NEVER happens. Have I ever mentioned that Olivia HATES, I mean really really HATES mornings? She's done well this school year, until today. First, she tells me she had no shirt to wear with her jeans. She almost smiled when I pointed out the TONS of shirts in her dresser, hanging up, lying around on the floor, etc.

The real trauma came when it was time to put on shoes. It was cooler today, so everyone, including me, had on tennis shoes and socks. So Olivia decided for the first time to forgo her High School Musical shoes and go for her tennis shoes. Big surprise, they are too small. So she came into the kitchen where I was fulfilling perceived needs for at least 2 other children. When I finally got to her shoes (which was difficult as I was wading through her whining) checked and discovered that her toes were at the ends of the shoes. So, calmly, I told her, "Livi, they are too small. You cannot wear these today." And, my precious little girl, the same one who wrote "I love my mom.' for a spelling sentence yesterday, said, very clearly "You're mean!"

And you know sometimes, I am. We all are. But this time, I was just trying to save her from wearing shoes that were too small to school. I was trying to help her to not have sore feet. Sigh.

Weight loss update

Minor miracle, my dr.'s scale weighs me lighter than my scale!! So, I am officially down 14 pounds!!!! The fill was not a big deal. Just a prick. I have 3cc of fluid in a band that holds up to 10cc. I go back next week. I'll try to keep the updates to once weekly so as not to bore you all!!

Lap Band, Fills, and Real People and Headaches

Several of you have asked about the whole lap band experience so far. Thus far, not much has happened except healing. I spent a week eating only liquids. Then 2 weeks on mushies. Food with the consistency of refried beans. For the past week and a half I have been on solid food. My band is empty right now. Which means my stomach is pretty much back to normal. I can eat what I could eat before the surgery. This afternoon I have my first "fill" where saline is put into the band through a port. A needle is inserted into port and saline is injected. It goes through a line into the band. It will probably take 2 or 3 fills to find the spot where I am consistently losing weight. Will keep you updated. So far I am down 10 pounds.

This week the kids have been out of the house a lot more because of the whole school thing. Yesterday, I caught myself, a couple of times, reminding my kids that there were "real people" around us. Just a general reminder that they were not the only people on the planet and to be aware of others around them. This is usually given when they are running through groups of people that we don't know.


Last night I was on the phone with a dear friend who lives in Maine. His kids have just entered middle school and high school this year. He and his wife are the same age as Kevin and I. As we were trying to talk, 4 of my kiddos were running around the table screaming while Grace sat at the table trying to do her homework. Her solution to this? To alternately yell at them to stop and at me to stop them. Never mind that she has a homework desk upstairs in the quiet with a lock on the door so she can do her work without distraction.

Have I mentioned how much I love these 'unreal people' or how much they make me yell and laugh at the same time??

In case you are wondering what "unreal people" look like, check out the following:

Oh, and yesterday's headache, named Headache Gustav by my sister, is still hanging in but is more a tropical storm that the level three hurricane it was yesterday

Check this out. all you moms out there!

http://www.wearethatfamily.com/2008/09/patented.html

First Day of Preschool

Okay, so I am a week late posting this, but these are from Josiah and Charis's first day of preschool. They attend four mornings a week. So far they are loving it! And so is Mommy! Ella's not so keen on being left behind.