Weekly Update 4-21-08

Last week was a wee bit busy. I have tons of projects going on at my new job to get up to speed - lots and lots of meetings. I'm definitely being challenged here - not with anything I can't accomplish, but it's just a LOT to accomplish. But it's really wonderful being somewhere that my skills and abilities are recognized and appreciated.

I attended my first Cobb County Town Hall meeting to encourage the development of a sidewalk on Irwin Road between the sections of the Lakefield Manor subdivision. This is the road that runs by our subdivision and ends at Cheatham Hill Elementary School. Hopefully our presence and persistence will get this project done.

Nate & I finally met with our renters to ask them to consider moving early (end of June) so we can get back in our house. They are thinking about it. At the very least we're still on target for August.

We also had a parent-teacher conference to learn all about how Veronica is at school and see what she has learned. Mrs. Blackerby, her teacher says that she is 100% ready for Kindergarten and is moments away from learning to read. She did also mention that she has some issues with knowing left from right, which I am certain she gets from me - but overall Veronica is a pretty darn good kid. She also mentioned that she is starting to not take naps - which explains so much about her behavior late in the day. (GRUMPY.) We're doing a pretty good job of wearing her out though, she had a Birthday party this weekend at another jumping place (Monkey Joes) and she skipped a nap because we were so busy with errands leading up to the party. She voluntarily skipped having cake - some of our sugar lectures are really sinking in. But when we got home - she fell asleep on the sofa by 6:30 and didn't even wake up for dinner. We had to carry her to bed and wiggle her into her pajamas while she was sleeping - and she slept the WHOLE night.

Alex has a nasty cough - but no other symptoms, we think it might be allergies like us.

Miley the dog is still terrific company for the kids and is still chasing the cats. The cats like that she is crated during the day so they have free-range in the house. No kitty emergencies lately. (No cats stuck in trees or closets.)

Nathan is once again back in Montana this week, but he'll be in North Carolina for meetings on Friday. I'm home flying solo with the kids again. It will be nice when Nate is done with the long-term assignments so I have time to make something more than fish sticks for dinner.

Have a great week everyone!

Oh yes, that wine mentioned last week is literally Willamette Valley Vineyards, Whole Cluster Pinot Noir, 2006 Vintage. We bought it at Harry's/Whole Foods.

Weekly Update 4-14-08

I'm not sure how possible this will be - but I'm going to try and do a weekly update of our activities to keep everyone up-to-date with us. I doubt we'll post pictures every week, but this should help keep everyone notified of what we are up to . . . especially since we stink at keeping in touch!

This week Nathan is back in Montana, he left at 5 am this morning. Not the greatest Anniversary we'll have - but we know we've got plenty more to come and we celebrate our marriage every day - so we don't need one special day to remember how lucky we are to have each other.

(Happy Anniversary Sweetie! 8 Years . . . yes, hard to believe!)

Last week Nathan was in Missouri for part of the week. Did you know that you can't fly into Jefferson City? (The capital of Missouri for all you geographically challenged.) We find it odd that a capital city wouldn't have better access . . .

The kids are doing well. Alexander had another mystery fever over the weekend. Got as high as 103 degrees - but no other symptoms and was a crazy happy boy the rest of the time. Nate took the kids to Gorga Monkey's to jump around while I cleaned the house. It was the first time that as Veronica ate lunch, she announced that she was tired and went ON HER OWN to take a nap!! Worth every penny. Our landlord plans to put the house up for sale this week - so I want to have the house as clean as possible for people to walk through.

We had a date night Saturday to have a mini-celebration of our anniversary and we hired babysitter extraordinaire Megan. How did we get so lucky? The kids love her, she loves the dog and SHE CLEANS while she babysits. We discovered a great Thai & Sushi place here.

We got Veronica registered for Kindergarten a few weeks ago and her school year officially ends May 22 with a Pre-Kindergarten graduation ceremony. We'll feed and house anyone who want to come watch me get all teary-eyed.

Wine recommendation of the week: Discovered a GREAT Willamette Valley Pinot Noir (Oregon). YUM. Of course I can't remember the name, will look when I get home and amend this post later.

Job going well - very busy, want to be organized faster so I can do more - but have to reel myself in and remember that I am only human.

Have a great week!

Happy Easter 2008

It was a good Easter this year - not nearly the snow we had last year, though it did turn a bit chilly (flurries were saved for a couple days later if I recall . . . just wrong for Georgia). Really disappointed in ourselves - can you believe we ran out of time to color eggs with the kids? First year without colored eggs, let alone an egg hunt!

It's been a pretty busy period since the last post - pretty much as soon we finished the Easter festivities, we packed up and drove to Virginia to see Melody's play, visit the cousins (Hosanna, Natalia, and Nicholas) and old neighbors (Jordan and Aaron) - very good visit. And the kids were actually pretty super! We are still trying to get them back on schedule. We only wish we had more time to spend with everyone. It felt like a very rushed visit, but we really enjoyed getting to see everyone that we could squeeze in!

March Madness in Marietta

We have survived the storms that wracked Atlanta in good spirits and good health. Nathan finally got the lawn mowed, thanks to Unca Dave (after much trouble shooting, they determined Nathan was drowning the sucker in oil - problem easily solved). Jennifer started her new job earlier this week, and even at its worst, she gets home at a very decent hour - usually well before the kids go mad from hunger...well, the boy anyway.


Both mommy and daddy finally got to see the Primrose Pre-K arrangement of "Rock Candy Mountain" (you know, "where you can go to lunch in your underwear?" V will have to sing for you...).



One of our biggest bits of news is a new addition to the family - a temporary to permanent kind of thing. We visited a dog rescue center up in Floyd County - they had just rescued a border terrier mix and her litter of puppies a day before destruction. Jen sponsored her and the family has adopted her as a "foster dog" - we don't officially have her until she is fixed and other things are squared with the rescue outfit (http://www.dogpackrescue.com/ I think). We visited the rescue center the day before the first batch of storms rolled through and met her at a Petsmart in Acworth where we picked her up, along with a bunch of other stuff little dogs need (thus the cage if you roll through the trailing video slide show). Barring the possibility of Jen sneaking off to get one of her pups, this family is officially complete - mom & dad, son & daughter, the cats, and introducing: Miley. (Nathan argued for Mango, but unfortunately, Miley was mentioned first...Veronica is a budding Hannah Montana fan...).

Twisters, Driving Snow, and Tranquility

Friday about a week ago, we decided to hit the road to visit the grandparents on the farm in Oklahoma. We left the next day, driving to Olive Branch, MS, where the kids could unwind and play in an indoor pool before hitting the road again. Weather for the drive was beautiful - 60s and clear or partly sunny the whole way. We reached Oklahoma just ahead of some tornadic storms. Within minutes of unloading the van, the drenching rains started to fall. No tornados at the house, but the lightning was fantastic. We were just happy that Veronica and Alexander were worn out enough from the drive to sleep through the thunder. Of course, any chance of tornados was dampened by the follow-on cold front, that dropped our 60s to 20s and 30s. We woke up the next morning to driving snow flurries! It all worked out - gave us time to get grandma and grandpa reaquainted with their grandkids. Though to be sure, we should have been more worried about Grandpa's nap schedule than the kids' schedules. ;)

All in all, it was a long overdue and enjoyable visit. It reaffirmed that the kids REALLY need a dog, and not just to clean up after them. We are looking forward to a snuggle surrogate to give mommy and daddy an occasional break. Besides, Mommy and Daddy are a bit big to snuggle under tables.

I think we stayed just long enough that everyone wished we could have stayed just a few hours longer, but not so long that we won't be welcomed back with enthusiasm. Nathan insisted that next time he'd get pictures of ribs from Robb's Smokehouse - he still swears they're the best he's ever had. (Jennifer wouldn't let him get some to go on the way home, for shame!) Next time, we'll also get pictures of the new buffalo neighbors ... it was too cold this visit.

The drive back was just as pleasant as the drive to OK - stopping at Southaven, MS for another splash in a pool before rolling on back to Marietta. Very happy to be back. It's been interesting doing a roadtrip just before Daylight Savings Time...not sure if I'd recommend it for kids, but maybe so.

Moth to a Camera

Alexander tends to run for the camera just like his daddy seemed to in most of his old home movies. This is in the midst of some fun with balloons, Alex was kept home this day from a bit of fever. Turned out it was just teething, same as for the past few weeks (and counting, a few weeks later!).

Ms. Curly

Veronica wants curly hair. She's moderately obsessed with it. She is always asking for braids in her hair so it will be curly when I take them out. So I broke out the hot rollers to treat her to some special curls.

And here is Ms. Curly modeling her new locks.



Yes, she is gorgeous. But on the other hand, she inherited Dad's sense of style. Here's an outfit she hand-picked.

No other news. School is good, the weather is good, health is good and we're keeping busy. We're getting ready for the influx of sugar on Valentine's Day. (You know - padding the walls, removing all furniture with sharp corners, hiding anything that can be used as a weapon.) If we don't answer the phone on February 15, we're all in sugar crash comas. Oy.

Life is Good

The kids are happy and healthy. Alex just had his 15-month checkup and the Doc said "He's perfect!"

Couldn't have said it better myself.

Was planning to post pictures of the kids eating corn-on-the-cobb, but can't find the cord to connect the camera to the computer.

I'll get around to it. I'll also get around to catching up on correspondence, cleaning the house, sewing, running errands, doing laundry, clearning the car, exercise, making dinner, taking a shower . . .

Whew. We made it.

We made it through the day. The BIG day . . . Christmas Day. The kids had a great time, our house was destroyed and they had so much sugar they were vibrating when they were standing still. We missed being so far from family, but it was important to have a Christmas at our home for the kids. We didn't get many pictures - but we had the video camera running. After we do some editing, we may be able to get a quick video posted here. But until then, here are some pictures to entertain.

Veronica and Alex both got ponies to ride, complete with hats. They also got lots of other toys to distribute in pieces around the room.


Some day Veronica will be very angry with me for this photo. But it's hysterical now. She was sneaking pieces of pumpkin bread off the kitchen counter and I caught her . . . so she snarled at me and I caught it on camera. Very funny.

Oh the horror . . .

I cried last night.

Something happened to my baby boy. Nathan says that I can blame him, but it was me weilding the weapon of destruction.



Here is a picture of Alex, smiling, happy, sweet boy.

And here is a picture of him after the "he really needs a haircut and since you have the clippers out giving me a haircut" comment from Dad.

My baby is bald. Oh the shame - I did this to my son. My poor baby. Yes, he cried too . . . well, he cried only because he wanted milk. He enjoyed the haircut and Veronica loved playing with the hair.

Ho Ho Ho

We had an extra special visitor this past weekend while we were decorating our tree. I'll let the pictures do the talking.



Our smarty-pants Rudolf saw right through the ruse and recognized Santa's helper right away. What a little cynic. I guess it didn't help that we had just seen Aunt Ingeborg and Uncle Dave last weekend and UD had his full beard on. That and Aunt Ingeborg accompanied Santa on his visit. But I think she still does believe, although she's getting a good dose of nay-sayers in school already.

Nate is finally sick! I'm not celebrating, honest. I'm just glad that I don't have to hear about his god-like immune system any longer.

12-12-07 Update: Nathan just reminded me to include a comment about Veronica's enthrallment with Christmas music this year and her versions of it. Our current favorite is: "The leaves naughty-not" sung to the tune of "Feliz Navidad."

Good Grief

So much for my assumption that we were all healthy. Let me outline the past month:

Alexander:
Cold
Hand, Foot, Mouth Disease
Conjunctivitis
Upper Respiratory Infection
Roseola
Update! Fifth Disease
Update! Stomach Virus
Update! Two new teeth
Update! He's been taking tantrum lessons from the grumpy four-year old.

Veronica:
Cold
Strep
Fifth Disease
Update! Grumpy Four-Year Old Tantrum Disease*

Mom:
Cold
Strep
Conjunctivitis

Dad:
----------- (Picture Nathan beating his chest like Tarzan going on about how strong his immune system is.)

*Ok, so this is made up. But her tantrums are unbelievable.

Hello? What is up with THIS? Now I know why he's off to Montana every other week - he's escaping the germs. Veronica had a short run of Fifth Disease on Thanksgiving so we had the feast 2 days in a row so she could enjoy it too. We found out the day after Thanksgiving that Alex was getting over Roseola and we didn't even know it.

Here are some photos from our Turkey Day:
Alex not so sure of the funny-looking bird. He found it quite tasty.










Here's our sick little princess. She just laid her head on the table and didn't touch a bite. Poor thing.




And finally these are our munchkins dressed up for a very cold fall day.

Hurray!

We're all well! I think. No fevers, no rashes, no whooping cough, no oozing eyes. Here's hoping it can stay this way for the rest of the winter.

That even makes me chuckle.

We're still mired in unpacked boxes and furniture where it doesn't belong. We'll be ready for visitors by the 4th of July.

Happy Turkey Day everyone . . .

Veterans Day and a Little Chicken

It's been a crazy couple of weeks . . . Veronica had strep, Alex had hand, foot, mouth and Jen had conjunctivitis (aka PINK EYE.) Jen also had some mystery illness which laid her up all weekend with a fever of 103 . . . crazy. This is the week we all get well. Right? Give me some encouragement here.


Everyone has been asking to see pictures of our Halloween chicken, so here he is - discovering loot. I wish I had pictures from later in the evening, when Nathan decided that giving him a blue lollipop was a good idea. We now have a blue chicken suit.

And this is Veronica and Alexander's tribute to Veteran's Day. Thank you!

Happy Birthday Jen!

When I asked Veronica what today was, she excitedly responded:

"FRIDAY!"

And so I continued to prompt her, "And what else?"

"Pizza Day!"

And I asked again . . .

"Show and Share Day!"

So then I decided to tell her what else the day was . . . and I told her it was my Birthday! Her response:

"I don't care." And she walked away.

Ahh. To be loved and appreciated by your children.

Here's hoping I get my Birthday wish: A good night's rest and stair gates installed! Now I'm going to go bury my Birthday face in lemon meringue pie.

And to those patiently awaiting: Halloween pictures will be eventually posted. As will pics of the rental house and other such.