Days Off

Nice to have days off from work but not so nice when you have 2 sick kids, a messy house and hopes to finish painting the kitchen floor. We took Harlan and Shelby in to express care last night because Harlan complained of an earache and Shelby was just miserable with coughing, wheezing and lots of sniffles. Turns out Harlan has his 2nd earache ever occuring only about a month from his last one and Shelby tested pos. for RSV (a virus) that start as a cold and doesn't get better fast. We just need to let it run its course.

So I had both kiddos at home while I still managed to paint the kitchen floor. We decided to pull up the very old vinyl tile floor that was crumbling apart and just temporarily paint the floor until we, someday, remodel the whole kitchen. It is turning out nice and a much better surface for Shelby to crawl on. By the way, she is getting around still by extending her arms and dragging her legs. Once in a while, she will get on all fours and crawl. Although she is not feeling good, she still seems to turn up a smile and giggle with evey tickle. Our kids our troopers and we are so grateful to have 2 wonderful kiddos.

Pics/video of Christmas coming soon.

Harlan & Vanna White

Another cute moment from Harlan.... Lately Harlan has been pointing out pretty girls and not shy about telling them. Last night, we were waiting for supper to be ready and the Wheel of Fortune was on TV. We caught the tail end of the show and Harlan said "she's pretty" referring to Vanna White. Little did he know that she is WAY too old for him. Anyway, at the end of the show, Vanna was talking to Pat Sajak (sp?) and Harlan looks at me with a puzzled look on his face and said... "she talks?" I guess he thought that Vanna was just a pretty girl that spun letters around and never said a word. My little observant boy.

December!! Already??

Wow! We made it past Thanksgiving doing just fine. It's already December and before you know it Santa will be sliding down the chimney! But I don't have everything done that I wanted to get done yet. And the forecast for tomorrow doesn't sound like much fun either. Mostly just yucky roads. Which is okay, if you don't have to drive on 'em.

Thought I would include this picture of Harlan. Amazing how much he has changed since May when it was taken. He is being such a great big brother. I know I am very proud of him.

Saturday Morning

Harlan and I were sitting down stairs, me at the computer and he was watching cartoons on TV. No, not the cartoons I grew up with. But this commercial for the Kung Foo Panda comes on. He says "Daddy, I want the Kung Foo Panda, but I want the DVD." So I ask him, "Harlan, what's a DVD?" and he replies "Hmm, I don't know." So, I can rest a little easier knowing that for the moment we are still fairly safe from being overrun by technology and a four year old. But it won't be long.

Need to get to work on the house. In the process of digging the holes for the spot footers to set the jacks in the crawlspace to start leveling the west side of this old house. I have been avoiding it like the plague, but it needs to be done. Until I get that done, no work can begin on that side of the house. I was able to get down about 18" while digging, but then had problems getting farther. Doesn't help that I have to lay on my belly while digging. I can't get much leverage to sink the blade of the shovel in the dirt any farther. The bottom of the spot footer has to be 30" down (frost line). One suggestion I had was to try to use an auger bit on a drill to loosen the dirt, then remove the dirt. I am going to try that.

Well, more later.

Sneaky mom

Shelby had her 6 month check up today. She is textbook perfect, 75% in everything, 16+ oz. and 25.75". She got 3 vaccine's today plus the flu vaccine. Her cry was so strong that she didn't even breathe during the 2nd set of shots in her little, michelin legs. I took Harlan with me and Shelby as he thought he was just along for the ride and avoiding going to daycare. He had NO idea that he was going to get a shot. Sneaky mom I am, you have to try any tactic to cause the least drama as possible. The nurse told Harlan to drop his drawers and we sat him on the table. I still don't think he had a clue what was going on. I think he thought they were just going to take a look at his "itchy stuff" (which is his ezcema). Then the nurse instructed me to hold his hands, she told him to look at me but at that point, he figured it out! The shot was coming and there was no escape. He screamed! After it was done, I scooped him up as he was crying while Shelby gave me the dirtiest look because I was holding him instead of her. I felt horrible that I had to be sneaky. He will never trust me again! I think from this point on, he will not complain about going to daycare.

She Made Me Do It!

Okay, so here I am....Sitting looking at our blog....And "she" says, 'You know you can post too!'. So I am going to do just that.

What we have here ladies and gentlemen is a fine piece of equipment. A brand spankin' new Ford F-550/Pierce Light Duty Rescue. I won't tell you what it cost Uncle Sam, but I'm glad that I didn't have to buy it. If that was the case, then we would be driving something that is a cross between the Beverly Hillbillies and Fred Sanford's truck.

Now, I realize many of you (read as everyone but me) could really give a rat's behind about this truck. That's okay. Many people have no taste for the finer things in life. I forgive those that fit that category. Maybe someday you can change that. But for now.....

Seriously....I just wanted to see if this would work. More fun later! :)

Inchworm

Here is one of Shelby's first attempts at trying to crawl on Sunday, Nov. 16, 2008. She is not much into rolling around from place to place but instead, she moves like an inchworm. Here is a short clip of her on her hands and knees rockin' and ready to take off anyday!

Proud of My Little Brother

I am now officially the proud sister of a Structural Engineer!  It is about time Markie!  My little brother has worked long and hard for his Master's degree and the day has finally arrived. He just called me a few hours ago to tell me the great news. I still brag about my brainy brother (and sister for that matter) all of the time. They are the smarter of the siblings. I just make pretty things while they make the big bucks.  Proud of you little bro!  I'll start on your announcement cards soon.

I Ain't Afraid of No Ghosts

This is Harlan and my nephew Mikey from this summer. Ya - the one on the right, I swear he used to live in another era - the 80's!  He LOVES Ghostbusters. Remember that moving with Slimer, Stay Puff Marshmellow Man and the 5 Ghostbusters? He is obsessed with Ghostbusters complete with the Halloween costumer and forwarding the movie to the Stay Puff Marshmellow man chapter and watching it over and over again. He wants the Ghostbuster car for Christmas. Anyone know where to find one? I hope he is thinking the toy car.  The things that our kids are obsessed with.   Mikey - a true 80's kid. That's Rad! I'm a proud Auntie!

Sissy's debut

Teeth haven't popped in yet but I'm sure they are coming. Shelby has been chomping on everything and puckering and sucking on her lips. I'm sure we'll see signs of a tooth in the next week or so. Something is making her more fussy than usual. I thought this was the age that babies don't cry so much. Well...let me tell you, the books are wrong! Shelby has demonstrated that cute baby girls can cry more at 5 months than when they were born!  

AND, she is a bit spoiled and I have no idea why. She likes to be held. I know that every mother says that but you can't even bend over holding her without her screaming thinking that you will put her on the dreaded carpet, blanket, stand-up play thing or anywhere other than your arms (particularly mommy's arms). I would rather hold her than hear her scream. I'm just not ready to deal with the drama of not holding her. Look at her - who wouldn't want to snuggle her!

Kid update

This is my little 4 year old. He wanted to be Joker this year. Gone are the days of cute little animal costumes. I guess I always have my little girl to dress up for a year or two. Her ear infection made it impossible to put her through the misery of dressing her up for Halloween. I am determined to make a chicken costume for one of my kids. I have already purchased the white boa for the feathers about 3 years ago. You just wait, Shelby will be a chicken next year before she starts having an opinion. Well...she already has one but she can't argue back for very long right now.

Both the kids are on antibiotics right now. Shelby for her first ear infection and Harlan for impetigo (contagious skin rash). Harlan had never had an ear infection so this was my first experience at it. What a horrible thing for a kiddo to go through. I pray that this isn't the start of more trouble with multiple ear infections. You hear so many horror stories.

On a lighter note.... Rich is now a Shriner. If you are not familiar with this organization, they are usually known in the community to help children's burn and orthopedic hospitals.  They are also know to wear those big red hats with tassels and ride the mini motorcycles in parades. Rich hasn't chosen which unit he wants to join but he will probably stick with something that is a little less flashy. Legion of Honor is more his style. He can quietly carry the flags in parades.   I am now a Shrine Lady and proud. The organization has many older members so they need younger blood to help out with the many things they do. I didn't realize how many until I attended the Fall ceremony with Rich a few weeks ago.

What have I started?

Okay. With my friend Megan's great blog for inspiration, I've decided to start one on my own. ALL, I mean ALL of our friends and family live out of state so this is a great way that I can express creativity and accomplishing updates on our lives. What have I started? I guess this is something that I'll have to keep up. I'm not witty nor am I a comic but I hope you will smile from time to time after reading about our lives in the land of Oz. I'll start adding my graphic design touch as soon as I take the time to figure out all that this has to offer. Enjoy and come back soon.