"Skating"

My kids have discovered they can 'skate' on the tile using cardboard blocks. It's too funny to watch. I don't know how they discovered this, but whatever keeps them entertained, right?!

Baseboards

Yes! baseboards. I want new baseboards in the whole house. Well just the part that has that crappy, supposed to be door frame casing, dust collecting, horribly put in, cut too short in places baseboard. The baseboard don't touch the floor in some places so the dirt just gets stuck up under it. I feel like I can't get my house clean. It would cost probably about $300 plus a gallon of paint but after spending $7500 on our new room that's just not gonna happen.
I also need to take the front door off the hinges and give a good coat of paint and the door frame and outside casing. But it's just too hot to have the door wide open like that, so it'll have to wait till a cooler day probably sometime in November. I would like to paint the hallway with some kind of washable paint. Right now it looks like crap! Actually, compared to the new room, the rest of the house looks like crap!

Butterfly

While I was in the backyard cleaning up all the stuff from the remodel, I came across a caterpillar that was attached to the tar paper and getting ready to turn into a chrysalis. I cut the piece of tar paper off and brought it inside so we could watch it. I was hoping to actually see it come out. I didn't get to. Andrew noticed it first. He was like, "What the hell is THAT?" It had fallen to the ground and was inside a toy so it just looked like a BIG bug moving around. He forgot that I had the chrysalis hanging up on the wall. So I picked it up carefully and all the kids were in awe. It was really pretty. We all went outside to let it go and she flew away into the trees. I have always thought butterflies were neat and it's cool to show the kids the whole cycle of it.

So later I looked online to see if I could find out what kind it was and I did manage to find it. It was a Spicebush Swallowtail. I attached a link to another site with lots of pictures. Hopefully it works as this is the first link I've tried to attach.

Ummmm... I can't think of a good title...

So today is Friday and I just got back from grocery shopping. I had to plan for Lucas's 'party' (he's just having a sleep over) and he asked to have s'mores on the fire for dessert. His mother called this morning to find out what he wanted for his birthday!?! We are just going to give him $$$, which is what he wants so he can go buy his own stuff. Cheaper and easier for me.

I need to at least start thinking about the sprinkler/messy party that I am having next Friday. We want to make it messy, but how??? Slime? Is that a good idea? Jello? Hmmm..... No more spaghetti, it's a pain to get out of the grass and to cook all of it too.
With a bunch of people coming over I need to get the house all the way put back together. I don't know what to do with the old family room. I guess I'll just line the walls with all the toys like it was in the old playroom. I also need to clean out the garage so people can walk through there with out falling down and stuff.

Next Wednesday both kids have a dentist appt and Shannon is just going to drop off Luke so I can take him since it's her week with him next week. Then on Thursday both boys have their orientation at school. Luke's is in the morning and I'll meet Shannon there. Hunter's is in the afternoon so at least I won't be running around like crazy. I should have enough time in between to clean the house and mow the yard for the party on Friday!LOL

Then Monday is my baby boy's first day of school, sniff, sniff. I am looking forward to it actually. He NEEDS the structure that I can't give him. He behaves better when he's at school and getting that structure. I'm just not good at structure, I would stress out about it too much. Plus he will meet some new friends.

Post more later.....

Stuff

In general stuff is going on in my life. Just yesterday we finally got all the furniture and TV and new area rugs put in the remodeled playroom that is now the new family room. It looks fabulous if I do say so myself. It came out exactly as I saw it in my own head. I know that sounds weird but I knew what I wanted and just had to find the right things (flooring, wall color, rug, curtains) to make it match the picture in my head.




The colors in the photo aren't quite right, but you get the picture. Those of you who had seen it before can see the difference from the wood walls, vinyl ceiling and green carpet.





Next news is that Stella is doing great not nursing. She is (for the most part) sleeping through the night. Woo Hoo!! Now if I could get Hunter and Stella to both sleep through the night on the same night and to get Andrew to quit snoring I could get a good nights rest!! LOL





The next tidbit is that Shannon, Luke's mom, who is preggers with her 3rd kid, is no longer together with the baby daddy! Yea, you read that right. She apparently is mad that he isn't becoming the family oriented guy she wanted him to become. I guess no one told her that you can't change a guy just because YOU want to have a baby, and a baby won't change a guy. He's 30 something and still drinking and partying and she's surprised that he's still drinking and partying now that she's preggers. So now she's living back with her parents with Jillian (her 2nd kid with no daddy) and with no job and no good job prospect. Good luck to her though because she's gonna need it. Thankfully Luke is living with us and isn't getting moved around.

Weaning my Baby

I'm happy and sad all at the same time. It has been 2 complete days since Stella last nursed. Today at nap time she only asked about 5-6 times to nurse and then she just stopped asking and started to settle down and it only took her about 30 mins to fall asleep.
I'm so happy that I finally decided to just do it. It also helped that the first night I wasn't here. I was out for an all-nighter with some friends so that left Andrew on his own without the possibility of giving up.

I'm sad, too. My baby is no longer any hint of baby. She is a little girl now. Full of spice (and sometimes vinegar!!)


I'm glad to finally be getting my body back and to not have to share it with another person. I've been pregnant or nursing for almost 3 years. I'm glad I did it though. I don't think it's something I could ever look back on and say I wish I hadn't done it. I think if I hadn't done it I would have wished that I did. I'm also very proud of myself for pushing through the hard moments and continuing even when I wanted to quit nursing her and just give her a bottle of formula. I'm also so grateful for all my friends that lent their support without judgment or criticism. You know who you are!! Thank You!!

Tidy or Tricky

So the other morning I set up a Dora DVD in my room so Stella could watch it and I could play one on one with Hunter. She was very quiet and when the DVD was over she came out carrying her new Dora and Diego dolls and Hunter's play time with me was over.

I suspected nothing.

That night laid down with Stella as usual. I feel something weird on the sheet next to me, like it's all shredded. So I get up to turn on the light and this is what I find:


Stella just looks at me. Giving no hint that she has done it. So I ask her if she did that....... she just stands there looking at me. So I ask her where the scissors are? She hops down off the bed and opens one of my dresser drawers and pulls out a package that has been opened, cut, and sort half put back together.


These are my scrap booking scissors. (I've never used them because, well I've never scrapbooked, but I intend to one day). They have been stashed so long I forgot they were there.

So did she put them away so she wouldn't get caught OR did she put them away because she was being tidy and putting them away after use????

Hmmmm..........