"While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about." Angela Schwindt

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Just A Day

Ugh!  I almost broke my blogging streak!   Here I was surfing the web not realizing that I had not blogged about our day. 

Today I was just kinda trying to get through the day.  Praying that we did not have a bad teething day like yesterday.  Plus it was a therapy day so that always messes up the rest of the days routine a little.  Today therapy was at a later time in the morning than usual.  We did not have to be there until 10:30 and it was land therapy today not pool.  Jadon does so much better in the pool.  Todays land therapy session went pretty much the same as they have been going for a couple months now.  He just wants to play with all the toys.  If Carri tries to stretch his arm or do anything he moves away from her or pulls his arm away.  He is so stubborn!  I must say he did better today than he had been.  Carri had a "Cars-The Movie" themed ride on toy there that he really liked.  After therapy he did what he usually does.....fall asleep.  Since it was so late in the morning it totally messed up his naptime schedule.  He was not ready to nap when everyone else was.  He played like  a wild maniac all through naptime.  Ugh! 

Once everyone else was up I finally got him down for a nap.  Whew!  He was getting pretty cranky. 


Tonight was the night I was to go to "taco night" with some friends of mine.  I think you could really just say Mexican night.  They asked me if I had any suggestions and I said that our family really likes the place called Herradura over on Hershey by Neal Tire and Auto.  It is sooooo good!  I think everyone that went tonight agreed.  No one else had ever been there before.  I am stuffed! 

Shelby drove to Brenda and Gary's last night in the car (stick shift) and Matt said he did really good.  She even drove home in the dark.  That is the first time night driving.  She is doing a pretty good job and is getting her driving hours in faster than we anticipated. 

Jake had a baseball game tonight.  He was actually supposed to play tonight according to the coach.  Unfortunately we did not get a full game in because we were down by too many runs and they called the game.  Baseball season is turning out to be a very frustrating experience for all of us.  Quite disappointing. 


Well....hope I did not put you to sleep with our boring day!  What was my gift today??  I would say a darn good plate of mexican food and a strawberry margurita!!  Until tomorrow....


"Each Day Comes Bearing It's Own Gift, Untie The Ribbons"

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Monday, August 30, 2010

Moody Monday

A moody Monday is what Jadon had today. He is getting a couple of his upper molars and they must be giving him a hard time. He was soooo cranky today! He did not even want to play outside! He kept running over to me wanting me to hold him. I kept wondering what was going on with him then I finally decided to see if he would let me rub his gums. Let me! He loved it! I found the pointy edges of two molars (one on each side of the top) while I was massaging his gums. I had to be quick though. The little stinker kept wanting to bit down! Ouch! Those teeth of his are sharp. When I stopped massaging he got cranky with me. When I asked him what he wanted he opened his mouth and took my hand. I thought "Oh No, I am not going to do that anymore". So I grabbed him a teething ring we had in the fridge and he knawed on that for awhile so I am pretty sure his teeth are the root (ha, ha) to his moodiness.

So here is the best part of my morning.....


Isn't it pretty!  I spotted it in the trees in the East side of our yard.  Just one lone yellow flower.  So pretty all by itself.  I think it was there just to make me happy.  Sometimes it is the simple things.  Actually....alot of times it is the simple things. 

I think Jadon would say this was his gift today.  
We just introduced Jadon to fruit snacks over the weekend.   He thinks they are pretty darn good.


Jadon continued to be crabby the rest of the day.  Did not nap well and just crabbed and crabbed.  Until dinner that is.  At the dinner table he kept looking at Matt and laughing hysterically.  None of us could figure out why.  No food on his face or anything...who knows!  Toddlers are crazy!

I wrapped up my evening at my BFF Chrissy's house with some good conversation and what she calls an "adult carpi sun". 

Until tomorrow....

"Everyday Comes Bearing It's Own Gift, Untie The Ribbons"

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Sunday, August 29, 2010

Slow Sunday

My Sunday started out with a wonderful little gift from Jadon.  He slept until 9 am!  That almost never happens.  He is usually up between 6 & 7.  When we woke up we quickly realized that is was going to shape up to be a very hot day!  Our house was already feeling pretty warm at 9 in the morning.  Having slept so late Jadon was ready to roll.  We were outside playing a little after 10.  Jadon was of course playing in the sandbox even though I filled up the water table and the baby pool with water.  He just loves his sandbox right now.  Me?  I was trying to keep cool in the shade, relax, and still keep an eye on what the J Man was up to.  Here is what I did this morning.......
Reading Eat, Pray, Love in the shade. 

My companions in the shade


Now don't get to envious.  As luck would have it within minutes of picking up this book and kicking back in my chair Jadon decided that the sandbox was boring and moved on.  He wandered all over the backyard and then moved on to the front of the house.  At that point I sadly had to get out of my chair and follow him.  He went and played with his new truck.  We found a truck with a handle on it at a garage sale Saturday morning.  I though for a $1 he could play with it outside.  He really likes to take it to the top of the hill on our sidewalk and watch it roll down then push it back up. 
I watched him play with his truck for quite a while.  When he started to wander off I asked him if he wanted to go see Daddy.  Of course he did!  Daddy was on the trails trimming branches.  On the way we came acrossed our cat Socks.  Jadon squeals everytime he sees Socks.  He just loves him. 


We found Daddy just as he was ready to be done with that job for the day.  It was super hot out!  When we went inside for lunch we realized we had been playing outside for almost two hours!  I made Jadon some lunch and then it was time for his nap.  Shelby and Matt had plans to go driving after lunch.  After they took off I spent some time scrapbooking.  It was the best way to keep cool.  Our air has been off since Monday and I could not bring myself to turn it on this morning.  By the afternoon I was really wishing I had!  

After Jadon got up we were back outside playing.  It was actually cooler this afternoon outside than in our house!  There was a really nice breeze outside.  

For dinner Matt grilled some chicken I had marinated in Teriyaki Sauce.  We also had some steamed asparagus.  Yum!  We decided we would get out for the evening since we were all feeling hot and grumpy.  Needed a change of scenery.  My sister is home from school on a break so we went up to Bloomington to see her.  Guess who drove......




I must say this was really weird.  Matt sat up front with Shelby because he is the designated driving coach for our house.  I sat in back with Jadon and Jacob.  Jadon kept looking at me like "Why are you back here?".  It was pretty funny.  Shelby did a great job driving.  She drove into my brother's house in Bloomington.  My parents, and my sister were there.  We visited with all of them for awhile and by the time we left it was dark.  This meant that Shelby would not be driving home.  Matt is not ready for her to drive at night yet.  On the way home we passed Carl's Ice Cream.  Somehow the truck ended up in the parking lot!  I have no idea how that happened!  LOL!  YUM!!!  This was a great way to end a great weekend! 

Jadon cup of ice cream complete with eyes!!
YUM!!

They look grumpy but they were really enjoying their ice cream! 
Wow!  I think everyone made it into today's post!  I hope you all had a great weekend!  Until tomorrow....


"Everyday Come Bearing It's Own Gift, Untie The Ribbons"

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Saturday, August 28, 2010

Supurb Saturday!

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Today was one of those days I just love.  We woke for the day with no real plans except to go watch Jacob's first soccer game.  He was really looking forward to the game.  He enjoys playing soccer alot.  I did manage to get some good shots of him and other during the game.  He is number 27.  Unfortunately their team did not win this morning but that is okay.  Everyone on both teams seemed to be having fun!!  Bear with me there are a lot of pictures in this post.

Pow Wow before the game.


Waiting for the ball to come his way.


Going after that ball!!


Kicking the ball!


Here it comes!!


After the game we came home and had left over Monical's pizza for lunch.  Took Jacob to his friend Gabe's house and then we went to Sam's Club to get some snacks and stuff.  Then we went to Menards to replace some of the swings on the swing set that broke this week.  It was weird.  Three swings have broke in the last month.  They are all going bad at once!!  After that we headed for home with a quick stop by the winery to grab a bottle of wine.  Once we got home I had planned on making chicken teriyaki and asparagus for dinner.  Matt called his Mom to invite her to dinner and she ended up inviting us to her house for pulled pork!  Woohoo!  I love not having to cook but still having a home cooked meal.  It was delicious!!  

During dinner Shelby begged Matt to let her drive the truck around Stanford.  He kept telling her that they would drive tomorrow and she kept begging.  Guess who won.......

While Shelby and Matt were gone on their driving lesson Jadon and I walked around Grandma Cindy's front yard.  The neighbors dogs Oreo and Sukha came outside.  Jadon ran over to the fence squealing so happy to see them.  It was so cute!  The dogs loved having some company too.  The neighbors were out grilling and came over to the fence to meet us.  It is nice to know Cindy has such nice neighbors. 



After the driving lesson was over we headed for home.  Jadon had a bath and his bedtime tippy of milk.  Then  I poured a glass of wine and now Matt, Shelby and I are watching a movie.  A great ending to a great day.  I love weekends!  We just get to do our own thing and spend time together!  

Until tomorrow.....

"Everyday come bearing it's own gift, Untie The Ribbons"

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Friday, August 27, 2010

The Teen Can Drive


 The world as we know it is about to change at our house.  Shelby came home toting her driver's permit today after school.  She also drove for the first time in Driver's Ed. today.  She said that she got really nervous and made a few mistakes. She said she needs to relax.  We will take her out some more before her next time at school so she should be a little better the next time she gets behind the wheel at school. 

Well, I am keeping this post short tonight.  Matt and I are watching a movie.  I must leave you with your daily dose of cuteness before I leave.

Remember.....
"Each Day Come Bearing It's Own Gift, Untie The Ribbons"




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Thursday, August 26, 2010

The Toddler is 1 1/2 Today!!!

The toddler is half way to his second birthday today!  I can't believe it has been six months since he turned one.  He is changing and growing so fast!  Lately it seems like he does or learns something new daily.  I swear he is the coolest kid on the block too.  I mean just look at that pick.  He is cool and he knows it!

Jadon woke up in the wee hours of the morning last night because he was wet and probably cold since we had our windows open.  After I changed him he was having a hard time falling back to sleep on his own so I decided to get up with him and rock him.  At first I was not thrilled.  I really wanted to be sleeping.  But then as we rocked and cuddled in the quiet of the dark living room I started thinking.  I was thinking about my older two kids and how they never really want hugs that often.  No more cuddling for sure.  Though I could still get Jacob to cuddle with me on the couch within the last year.  I thought how fast that time went for me.  Then suddenly I found myself saying  "Just enjoy this moment.  Before you know it things will change."  I repeated that in my head several times.  I know....I am such a sap.  We rocked for a half an hour or so.  Jadon snuggled into the crook of my arm, his toes rubbing against my leg.  Both of us snuggled under a blanket.  I knew when he toes stopped moving and his breathing got louder that he had fallen asleep.  I will be honest, there was a huge part of me that just wanted to stay there for the rest of the morning.  Then another voice in my head said..."A couple more hours of good sleep in bed would really be nice".  I really like my sleep....the second voice won.

I bet Jadon was regretting that early morning wake up when I had to get him back up at 7:00 am to get ready for pool therapy.  Our house was very chilly this morning since we had all the windows open all night.  I was getting Jadon dressed and I felt bad because I knew he was cold.  I asked him if he wanted to go see Carri and go swimming.  He shook his head no and for the first time actually said "No".   He probably thought I was crazy to suggest swimming in these temps!  Fortunately the pool area is very warm.  He was ready to go when he entered the pool room.  He had another really great session.  Just a fun, playful hour in the water with his BFF to him.

When we got back home it was time to head outside.  Jadon felt he needed his shades.  He is just too cool.


Jadon played in the sandbox a lot like usual but he has also been exploring the wooded area of our backyard a lot lately.  I am torn between letting him explore and not wanted him to get poison ivy.  He is so stubborn though!  The more I chase him out of that area the more he wants to play over there.  


The rest of the day was very boring.  This was a nice change from the hectic schedule we have been keeping.  Jacob did not have a game or practice tonight so he got to come home right after school and the only thing we had to do was Boy Scouts.  I like going to meetings since we are good friends with the scout leader and his wife.  His wife and I chat during the meetings.  Glad I went tonight!  I was invited to Girls Taco Night next Tuesday and we made plans to for our family to have dinner with their family in two weeks!  Woohoo!  

Until tomorrow.....
Each Day Comes Bearing It's Own Gift.....Untie The Ribbons.

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Good Gravy!!

If you read yesterday's post you will remember that I had attempted to make gravy.  Usually this was Matt's job but he was not available.  So I pulled my shirt sleeves up, had a brief phone conference with my husband, channeled my inner Matt and went for it.  Really all I did was strain the bit and pieces out of the juices from the roast, put those juices in a saucepan, and added milk mixed with cornstarch.  Then I stirred, boiled, and waited for it to thicken.

After that I just had to sit and wait for everyone to come home so we could eat.  Well, after everyone tried it (including me) and guess what??  It was yummy!  Hooray!!

This was a yummy dinnner!! 



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Wednesday, August 25, 2010

What a Beautiful Day!!!

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Today we played outside!  What amazing weather we are having!  In the 70's feels so nice!  It makes me just want to live outside.  The weather must have really lit a fire in the boys today.  They were in rare form today!

Someone left the Lucky Charms out of the cabinet when they were getting their breakfast earlier and Jadon found them.  I look over to find him digging in to the box.  I quickly told him we only eat at the table.  John thought Lucky Charms sound great also!

Helping himself to the Lucky Charms

How civilized human beings enjoy their Lucky Charms


After our breakfast we went outside to play.  Thanks to Grandma Cindy we had a beautiful, fresh, unopened pack of sidewalk chalk to try out.  It was so pretty in the package that I almost hated to open it.

Well, we just had to open them so we could paint the sidewalk like a rainbow.  Turned out they were only in the mood to paint on little square of the sidewalk.  Jadon also painted a few of the rocks in our yard.  Aww...so pretty!
That is it.....no more pretty new chalk.

Making the rocks pretty.

Awesome artwork!!

After that we moved on to the.....you guessed it!  The sandbox!!  We had some issues in the sandbox today.  Some people need to work on not throwing sand.  Not Jadon!  John and Jadon moved out of the sandbox to dig under the slide.  I thought that was pretty cute.  

Guess they would rather play with dirt...

The rest of the day progressed as usual.  Jacob had a game but it was away so I stayed home with the boys and we played, and we played outside.  I hated to come in to make dinner!  I am waiting for everyone to walk in the door as I type this so we can eat!  I made a yummy dinner tonight.  I cooked a roast in the crock-pot all day, I made mashed potatoes (real ones not the nastiness in a box), and steamed some broccoli!  AND for the first time EVER I have attempted to make gravy from the drippings in the crockpot.  Usually this is Matt's job, however he is at the game still and I am ready to eat so I rolled up my sleeves and channeled my inner Matt.  It thickened and it sitting waiting.  I am listening for the first sound of gravel crunching on the lane and I will be running to fill my plate!  


I will let you know later how it turned out!  

Until then....

Each day comes bearing it own gift, Untie the Ribbons!!!





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Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Barefoot Boy


Where is the boy these shoes belong to?  He is in the sandbox. He decided he did not need his shoes. This is becoming a very common occurance. Why? Because his Daddy took his shoes and socks of at a ballgame last week and let him run around barefoot. I guess he decided he liked it. Every chance he gets he looses the shoes. 

In the sandbox without shoes


Daddy started something that day. The toddler was feeling might brave today too. He went up the big ladder to the yellow slide. He has tried this a few other times but it has been awhile. That was fine with me.  It makes me so nervous!  

 He thinks he is big stuff.



And all this ended up being the least exciting stuff. I was watching them play in the sandbox and I noticed that Jadon was walking around the sandbox with a shovel and a bucket. Each in opposite hands!! That's right, he was carrying the bucket with his BPI arm/hand and bending down picking up shovels of sand to put in the bucket. Of course by the time I hussled over there and had the camera ready he no longer had the bucket off the ground but you can get the idea.

Making so much progress!
The rest of the day proceeded pretty normal. After nap we all loaded up to go see Jacob play baseball. We never got to see Jacob play baseball and they lost really bad. This coach is not getting on my good side and I am not the only one. Keeping quiet for now on that subject.  

After baseball Jacob had soccer practice. He was excited to go because he knew he would actually be doing something other than sitting on a bench. At 7:30 soccer was over and we all finally got to come home for the night. 
Jadon still has some energy left so we let him play while Shelby and Jacob did their homework at the table. I love watching him play. You just never know what he is going to do. I tried to get a picture of him with a toy bucket on his head. It turned out blurry because he would not stop moving around.  I though I would share it anyway.  He cracks all of us up.


Oh, I almost forgot!!  One more exciting thing happened.  Shelby got 100% on her written driving test that she had to take to get her permit.  Did you know they can miss 11 questions and STILL get their permit!  What the heck!  That does not seem right to me.  She should officially have her permit by the end of the week!  Don't worry...we will have a picture.  I promise!  
Until tomorrow....

"Each Day Comes Bearing It's Own Gift, Untie the Ribbons"

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