Monday, July 28, 2008
We're back.
We just got back from our little mini vacation. I don't have the time, nor the energy to post about it all right now, but watch out tomorrow!!!!
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
That would be JUST MY LUCK!!!
GRRRRRR! That about sums up how I feel right now!!! So today has been full of running around trying to get things read to head up north tomorrow after Todd gets off work. We had to run out to my moms, about 25 minutes from here to get some dog tie outs that she had, and since we were so close I had to go to my in laws to drop off a set of keys to the house. (I gave one to my parents, and since they only live 5 miles apart, I had to run one over to the in laws too!) Then we were on our way home, on the highway, and I hear this CRACK. It sounded WAY louder. So I started to scan my windshield, and sure enough, the truck that had just zipped in front of me kicked up a large rock, and created a CRATER in my windshield. Not only that, but it had nice little spider cracks coming off of it. AND WE ARE LEAVING TOMORROW ON A 4-5 hour drive!!! I can't have a cracked windshield for that! Cause what if we get hit by a tiny rock, in the same spot. . .and it shatters? Then we're screwed because we're 4 hours from home, in the middle of no where.
So, I came home, filed the insurance report, and all fingers crossed, they'll be fixing it tomorrow morning, and we're leaving tomorrow afternoon!! It'll be close, but should be do able!!!
Here's a cell phone picture of the crack. That's a standard drive through napkin behind it so that it could be seen. (I have a stack of them in the car because I refuse to be without something if we need something, so I always keep the napkins!) You can't really see the full size of it on there, but you can see how big the divot is, and then imagine the spider crack all the way to the right, as long as the napkin.
.
Have I mentioned lately that I'm done with being an adult???? Sigh.
So, I came home, filed the insurance report, and all fingers crossed, they'll be fixing it tomorrow morning, and we're leaving tomorrow afternoon!! It'll be close, but should be do able!!!
Here's a cell phone picture of the crack. That's a standard drive through napkin behind it so that it could be seen. (I have a stack of them in the car because I refuse to be without something if we need something, so I always keep the napkins!) You can't really see the full size of it on there, but you can see how big the divot is, and then imagine the spider crack all the way to the right, as long as the napkin.
.Have I mentioned lately that I'm done with being an adult???? Sigh.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Well checks all around.
Can I just start off by saying if I never have to take my kids to the doctor again it will be too soon?? A bit extreme yes, but after the last two trips that I've had I'm ready to be done for good. they last two trips were AWFUL. I would have sworn to you that someone switched all four of my kids out with that kid. You know the one I'm talking about. The one who's noisy, the one who's mom looks like she has no control over him, the one who runs around the office with reckless abandon, the one who throws a temper tantrum right there in the office. Yes folks, that was me, TWICE in the last week. And I'll pull my head out of the sand long enough to fill you in on what transpired, and then I'm sure I'll be replacing it to the deep dark hole in the sand, because I'm that embarrassed.
Last Thursday was Kaleb and Kendyls 3 year well check. Our appointment times were 4:00 and 4:30 pm. We arrived, and were checked in by 3:50 pm. I had questionnaires for the twins to fill out. You know the ones. Where they ask all kinds of stupid questions that apparently tell the doctor how on track your kids are. All the while trying to get the twins to answer these stupid questions the boys were getting louder and louder until they officially had EVERYONE'S attention. And of course, then all eyes are on ME to see how I'm going to handle it. Well what can you do? You certainly can't raise your voice, because everyone would then think that your "harsh" words were too mean to your children for a public place. So, I separated them, and made them sit. Then, back to the stupid questions. Those things just drag ON AND ON when you have two of the EXACT same ones to do at the same time. So we were finally called back to the room by 4:25. The nurse had to go through her barrage of 5,000 questions, and the whole while the kids are all loosing their patients. And with just cause I know. We'd just spent 30 minutes with all eyes on them, and here we were being shooed into this teeny room (seriously people, who ever designs these things need to take into account that SOME people come with more than ONE child. We don't fit in those little rooms very well!) where they were crawling all over each other, and fighting over the lone toy that's in the room, and telling me the books were boring cause they'd read them all already. The nurse finally finishes up her portion, and we;re left alone to wait. This was my time to take a deep breath, speak in hushed harsh tones to my children to let them know that I will NOT tolerate this behavior from them, and that I KNOW they can behave better than this. Obviously I'm met with "we wont' do it any more mommy" looks, nods, and murmurs. Finally, the doctor comes in. This is the same doctor that has seen my kids since the day they were born. She's REALLY hard to get into now because she now has two kids, and only works 2 days a week. So we now have a regular back up too. But anyway, that's neither here nor there. We got down to the nitty gritty of talking about what was up with the kids. Thankfully we were able to do this over her checking the kids out. Kaleb did AWESOME. Did everything she told him to do, and was done rather quickly. She was trying to engage him in conversation this entire time so that she could hear his speech, since we're kind of concerned about that. And with each question she asked, I darn near had to put my hand over Dallas's mouth. I kept reminding him that she was asking KALEB, not him, and that he needed to be quiet. Yet, each question brought him bursting in again. It gets REALLY old. Then it was Kendyl's turn. She started crying the SECOND she heard it was her turn. She cried all through listening to her heart, and then the doctor couldn't see in one of her ears because of some wax build up in there. Well, this is Kendyl's very least favorite thing. She SCREAMED. You would have thought someone had just shoved an entire fist full of needles in her leg with the way she cried. I'll get to the specifics of the not so well checks on their parts in just a second.
We're going to jump ahead to yesterday. Dallas and Gabe had their well checks scheduled for 1:00 and 1:30. This appointment was scheduled with our regular back up doctor. I got there right at 1 this time, anticipating we'd be waiting. Well, apparently when you want to be seen RIGHT now, and get TWO nurses to help do a kid at a time, and get things done the way you'd HOPE for, you should go right after lunch when no one is there!!!! Gabriel was given the answer this stupid question, draw a person, tell me your colors questionnaire too. We didn't even get two questions in before we were able to head back. But, one would think that would be GOOD news right??? Umm, yeah. NO!!!! Each nurse decided to take a boy, and get the stuff done that they needed to get done. So here I am in the hall way with the twins, trying to figure out which boy to follow. Dallas was first taken for a hearing screen. So, ok, we'll stay with Gabe in the hallway so that he can HEAR the test, rather than Kaleb and Kendyls stream of "whats that, what is this for, what are you doing" that never ends! We went to the point where Gabe was in the hall way doing his vision test. It was really simple. 4 VERY distinct letters to differentiate between, at different sizes. They were: O T V H And all he had to do was tell them to her. He KNOWS them. And did his first eye really well. But then it all hit the fan. Gabriel decided he needed a drink of water. And oh my gosh, you would have thought he was two with the fit he threw. HE refused to answer the questions, he cried, he stomped his feet, he rubbed his eyes, it was so embarrassing. Here he is, 6 years old, throwing a tantrum. I wanted to fall through the floor. She just asked him to tell her 4 more letters, and he could go get a drink. He wouldn't do it. Not at all.
Then it was Gabe's turn for the hearing, and Dallas's for the weight, height, and all that goes with that. Should have been easy right? Yeah, except for the two 3 year olds who are now throwing a fit because it isn't all about them. they wanted the weight, they wanted to be measured, and they wanted all the attention. We went in to the room once Gabe was out, and the noise level again bordered on rock concert loud. Its a nurse that knows us very well, so she didn't really mind too much, but still. And then the doctor came in, and the noise seemed to DOUBLE. As did their naughty behavior. We're talking climbing the little table toy in there to reach her equipment, pushing buttons, crying, temper tantrums, the whole works.
So, now the more gritty details specific to each kid. I'm amazed I was able to get any of this detail in while they were so loud.
Kendyl:
weight: 32 pounds
Height: 37 inches
Issues noted:
-Cross bite: Referred to a pediatric dentist to seek corrective measures for the cross bite. Not sure if they'll do anything about it just yet, but eventually it will require "buttons" cemented on the sides of her side teeth, and rubber bands to be worn to pull things back into alignment.
- Possible eye alignment issues: there is a chance that her eyes are not in line the way they should be. It right now is just slight, and she wouldn't cooperate enough to let the doctor get a good look, so we'll be following that.
- Speech issues: By the age of 3 an outsider should be able to understand 75% of your child's speech. You can't do that with Kendyl. You can only understand about 50% ( I understand everything, but others don't). So we are in need of contacting the schools to see about speech therapy intervention.
- Mild Foliculitus: Because she's had pull ups on there appears to be a mild case of foliculitus on her butt. Its very common in kids who wear diapers/pull ups. Its a very pimply rash. Its from the strep/staph infections that live on our skin naturally. If it gets too bad meds are needed. We were sent home with a "just in case" prescription for her. In case it got bad.
Kaleb:
weight: 34 pounds
Height: 38 1/4 inches
- Medium case of foliculitus: again, sent home with a "just in case" prescription. The cure is mostly getting them out of diapers. So, fun fun we've been trying to go 100% without diapers. Yeah, not much fun with Kaleb. He doesn't get it yet.
-Speech issues: He, just like Kendyl has speech issues that will be addressed through the school district.
Dallas:
Weight: 70 pounds
Height: 50 inches (I think... .they didn't tell me exactly, and I'm trying to read their chart!)
-Shot given: So, on top of mom being already shot from everything, I'm informed that Dallas needs a shot. Dallas is TERRIFIED of needles. We're talking major panic ensues. He and I talked about it, and he told me as long as I was there he'd be fine. Yeah, that was until the nurse walked in with the needle. He started to stiffen up, and wouldn't come over to the table. I had to LIFT Him. (and if you just finished reading his weight, that's not that easy when he's fighting it!) Then he started screaming, yelling, kicking, flailing, and anything else he could do to get away from the shots. It took everything I had to pin his legs to the table so he couldn't kick me, and keep him pinned to me so that the nurse could do the shot in the back of his right arm. When she poked him the hysteria stopped, and he got that look of "oh, that was it?" Like he does every time.
-ADD: we talked about his ADD meds, and how we're not doing them over the summer. They cost me 1.00 a pill, and over the summer there is just simply no need for him to be on them. He'll resume them in the fall, and have another check in September.
Gabriel:
Weight: 54 pounds
Height: 46 inches (again, guessing)
-Behavioral issues: The doctor is slightly concerned that Gabriel's behavior is a little off for his age. That meaning the fits, the extreme shy, the crying, etc. So we'll be watching closely through this next school year, and possibly be speaking with a child therapist about behavior modification sessions.
- BM issues: As I've talked about before, Gabriel still has problems having accidents in his pants. Not peeing them, just pooping in them. And not a full on poop, but enough to make a royal mess. The doctor and I talked about this, and she decided an x ray was needed. When the x ray came back she said that his colon is now stretched to the point that he has NO control over it. And that the accidents really aren't his fault. He has no control, and his colon isn't working right. There is a MASS of poop in there that is huge. She said if we're seeing any soft stools that chances are its just soft stuff pushing around the mass and coming out, but that that mass pretty much isn't moving. She also said that's probably why the miralax isn't doing much for us. Its just liquefying all the loose stuff, and giving him (as we've so affectionately dubbed it with the screaming he does) screaming shits. He HATES that. So, we have to do a few things. We had to go and buy two pediatric enemas. Yes. Doesn't that sound like a BOAT load of fun??? Ummm, no. I know he's going to fight it. But we're supposed to give the first one, and hope it produces results. If it doesn't, then we're supposed to give a second one 12 hours later. If that doesn't do anything, I have to call her back, and we'll go from there. If it DOES produce results, we need to start the miralax and keep it going for AT LEAST a month. And in that month we'll have to hope that his colon shrinks back down, and that it starts to work on its own again. i have a feeling though, by what the doctor hinted at, that if that doesn't happen, and he can't get it out, that we'll be heading for surgery to get the mass out of there and get him on the right track again. We go back in a month if everything is working ok, for a re check, and re x ray.
- Hearing: I didn't go in with Gabe on his hearing test, but apparently he didn't pass the right ear. I don't know if we were dealing with issues like the eye test where he just threw a fit after the first ear, or what, but he didn't do so hot. So we'll be going back in a month to re check this as well.
I'm just so drained. Its been crazy, its been busy, its been nuts. And, on top of it all, today was Dallas's eye doctors check. Thank GOD for Todd's aunt Karleen. She was here today to sit with the other three. Turns out that Dallas is ready now for the corrective lenses, vs just the protective ones. So we'll be heading to get that done, probably next week some time. And on top of all of that, the bills have started to roll in for his eye surgery. We're at almost 1,000 dollars out there right now. And I have NO clue how we'll swing that.
I'm off now to clean my house, and start to get things packed. We're leaving for a family party 4 hours up north on Thursday, and won't be back till Monday. I'm kinda looking forward to it, cause its where Todd and I got engaged, and it holds some special meaning for us. But on the other hand, its going to be crazy busy up there with tons of people and dogs, and kids, and I don't now that we'll really get to enjoy it.
(just for a side note. . .the house is being closed on as I speak, and will be ours as of today!!!)
Last Thursday was Kaleb and Kendyls 3 year well check. Our appointment times were 4:00 and 4:30 pm. We arrived, and were checked in by 3:50 pm. I had questionnaires for the twins to fill out. You know the ones. Where they ask all kinds of stupid questions that apparently tell the doctor how on track your kids are. All the while trying to get the twins to answer these stupid questions the boys were getting louder and louder until they officially had EVERYONE'S attention. And of course, then all eyes are on ME to see how I'm going to handle it. Well what can you do? You certainly can't raise your voice, because everyone would then think that your "harsh" words were too mean to your children for a public place. So, I separated them, and made them sit. Then, back to the stupid questions. Those things just drag ON AND ON when you have two of the EXACT same ones to do at the same time. So we were finally called back to the room by 4:25. The nurse had to go through her barrage of 5,000 questions, and the whole while the kids are all loosing their patients. And with just cause I know. We'd just spent 30 minutes with all eyes on them, and here we were being shooed into this teeny room (seriously people, who ever designs these things need to take into account that SOME people come with more than ONE child. We don't fit in those little rooms very well!) where they were crawling all over each other, and fighting over the lone toy that's in the room, and telling me the books were boring cause they'd read them all already. The nurse finally finishes up her portion, and we;re left alone to wait. This was my time to take a deep breath, speak in hushed harsh tones to my children to let them know that I will NOT tolerate this behavior from them, and that I KNOW they can behave better than this. Obviously I'm met with "we wont' do it any more mommy" looks, nods, and murmurs. Finally, the doctor comes in. This is the same doctor that has seen my kids since the day they were born. She's REALLY hard to get into now because she now has two kids, and only works 2 days a week. So we now have a regular back up too. But anyway, that's neither here nor there. We got down to the nitty gritty of talking about what was up with the kids. Thankfully we were able to do this over her checking the kids out. Kaleb did AWESOME. Did everything she told him to do, and was done rather quickly. She was trying to engage him in conversation this entire time so that she could hear his speech, since we're kind of concerned about that. And with each question she asked, I darn near had to put my hand over Dallas's mouth. I kept reminding him that she was asking KALEB, not him, and that he needed to be quiet. Yet, each question brought him bursting in again. It gets REALLY old. Then it was Kendyl's turn. She started crying the SECOND she heard it was her turn. She cried all through listening to her heart, and then the doctor couldn't see in one of her ears because of some wax build up in there. Well, this is Kendyl's very least favorite thing. She SCREAMED. You would have thought someone had just shoved an entire fist full of needles in her leg with the way she cried. I'll get to the specifics of the not so well checks on their parts in just a second.
We're going to jump ahead to yesterday. Dallas and Gabe had their well checks scheduled for 1:00 and 1:30. This appointment was scheduled with our regular back up doctor. I got there right at 1 this time, anticipating we'd be waiting. Well, apparently when you want to be seen RIGHT now, and get TWO nurses to help do a kid at a time, and get things done the way you'd HOPE for, you should go right after lunch when no one is there!!!! Gabriel was given the answer this stupid question, draw a person, tell me your colors questionnaire too. We didn't even get two questions in before we were able to head back. But, one would think that would be GOOD news right??? Umm, yeah. NO!!!! Each nurse decided to take a boy, and get the stuff done that they needed to get done. So here I am in the hall way with the twins, trying to figure out which boy to follow. Dallas was first taken for a hearing screen. So, ok, we'll stay with Gabe in the hallway so that he can HEAR the test, rather than Kaleb and Kendyls stream of "whats that, what is this for, what are you doing" that never ends! We went to the point where Gabe was in the hall way doing his vision test. It was really simple. 4 VERY distinct letters to differentiate between, at different sizes. They were: O T V H And all he had to do was tell them to her. He KNOWS them. And did his first eye really well. But then it all hit the fan. Gabriel decided he needed a drink of water. And oh my gosh, you would have thought he was two with the fit he threw. HE refused to answer the questions, he cried, he stomped his feet, he rubbed his eyes, it was so embarrassing. Here he is, 6 years old, throwing a tantrum. I wanted to fall through the floor. She just asked him to tell her 4 more letters, and he could go get a drink. He wouldn't do it. Not at all.
Then it was Gabe's turn for the hearing, and Dallas's for the weight, height, and all that goes with that. Should have been easy right? Yeah, except for the two 3 year olds who are now throwing a fit because it isn't all about them. they wanted the weight, they wanted to be measured, and they wanted all the attention. We went in to the room once Gabe was out, and the noise level again bordered on rock concert loud. Its a nurse that knows us very well, so she didn't really mind too much, but still. And then the doctor came in, and the noise seemed to DOUBLE. As did their naughty behavior. We're talking climbing the little table toy in there to reach her equipment, pushing buttons, crying, temper tantrums, the whole works.
So, now the more gritty details specific to each kid. I'm amazed I was able to get any of this detail in while they were so loud.
Kendyl:
weight: 32 pounds
Height: 37 inches
Issues noted:
-Cross bite: Referred to a pediatric dentist to seek corrective measures for the cross bite. Not sure if they'll do anything about it just yet, but eventually it will require "buttons" cemented on the sides of her side teeth, and rubber bands to be worn to pull things back into alignment.
- Possible eye alignment issues: there is a chance that her eyes are not in line the way they should be. It right now is just slight, and she wouldn't cooperate enough to let the doctor get a good look, so we'll be following that.
- Speech issues: By the age of 3 an outsider should be able to understand 75% of your child's speech. You can't do that with Kendyl. You can only understand about 50% ( I understand everything, but others don't). So we are in need of contacting the schools to see about speech therapy intervention.
- Mild Foliculitus: Because she's had pull ups on there appears to be a mild case of foliculitus on her butt. Its very common in kids who wear diapers/pull ups. Its a very pimply rash. Its from the strep/staph infections that live on our skin naturally. If it gets too bad meds are needed. We were sent home with a "just in case" prescription for her. In case it got bad.
Kaleb:
weight: 34 pounds
Height: 38 1/4 inches
- Medium case of foliculitus: again, sent home with a "just in case" prescription. The cure is mostly getting them out of diapers. So, fun fun we've been trying to go 100% without diapers. Yeah, not much fun with Kaleb. He doesn't get it yet.
-Speech issues: He, just like Kendyl has speech issues that will be addressed through the school district.
Dallas:
Weight: 70 pounds
Height: 50 inches (I think... .they didn't tell me exactly, and I'm trying to read their chart!)
-Shot given: So, on top of mom being already shot from everything, I'm informed that Dallas needs a shot. Dallas is TERRIFIED of needles. We're talking major panic ensues. He and I talked about it, and he told me as long as I was there he'd be fine. Yeah, that was until the nurse walked in with the needle. He started to stiffen up, and wouldn't come over to the table. I had to LIFT Him. (and if you just finished reading his weight, that's not that easy when he's fighting it!) Then he started screaming, yelling, kicking, flailing, and anything else he could do to get away from the shots. It took everything I had to pin his legs to the table so he couldn't kick me, and keep him pinned to me so that the nurse could do the shot in the back of his right arm. When she poked him the hysteria stopped, and he got that look of "oh, that was it?" Like he does every time.
-ADD: we talked about his ADD meds, and how we're not doing them over the summer. They cost me 1.00 a pill, and over the summer there is just simply no need for him to be on them. He'll resume them in the fall, and have another check in September.
Gabriel:
Weight: 54 pounds
Height: 46 inches (again, guessing)
-Behavioral issues: The doctor is slightly concerned that Gabriel's behavior is a little off for his age. That meaning the fits, the extreme shy, the crying, etc. So we'll be watching closely through this next school year, and possibly be speaking with a child therapist about behavior modification sessions.
- BM issues: As I've talked about before, Gabriel still has problems having accidents in his pants. Not peeing them, just pooping in them. And not a full on poop, but enough to make a royal mess. The doctor and I talked about this, and she decided an x ray was needed. When the x ray came back she said that his colon is now stretched to the point that he has NO control over it. And that the accidents really aren't his fault. He has no control, and his colon isn't working right. There is a MASS of poop in there that is huge. She said if we're seeing any soft stools that chances are its just soft stuff pushing around the mass and coming out, but that that mass pretty much isn't moving. She also said that's probably why the miralax isn't doing much for us. Its just liquefying all the loose stuff, and giving him (as we've so affectionately dubbed it with the screaming he does) screaming shits. He HATES that. So, we have to do a few things. We had to go and buy two pediatric enemas. Yes. Doesn't that sound like a BOAT load of fun??? Ummm, no. I know he's going to fight it. But we're supposed to give the first one, and hope it produces results. If it doesn't, then we're supposed to give a second one 12 hours later. If that doesn't do anything, I have to call her back, and we'll go from there. If it DOES produce results, we need to start the miralax and keep it going for AT LEAST a month. And in that month we'll have to hope that his colon shrinks back down, and that it starts to work on its own again. i have a feeling though, by what the doctor hinted at, that if that doesn't happen, and he can't get it out, that we'll be heading for surgery to get the mass out of there and get him on the right track again. We go back in a month if everything is working ok, for a re check, and re x ray.
- Hearing: I didn't go in with Gabe on his hearing test, but apparently he didn't pass the right ear. I don't know if we were dealing with issues like the eye test where he just threw a fit after the first ear, or what, but he didn't do so hot. So we'll be going back in a month to re check this as well.
I'm just so drained. Its been crazy, its been busy, its been nuts. And, on top of it all, today was Dallas's eye doctors check. Thank GOD for Todd's aunt Karleen. She was here today to sit with the other three. Turns out that Dallas is ready now for the corrective lenses, vs just the protective ones. So we'll be heading to get that done, probably next week some time. And on top of all of that, the bills have started to roll in for his eye surgery. We're at almost 1,000 dollars out there right now. And I have NO clue how we'll swing that.
I'm off now to clean my house, and start to get things packed. We're leaving for a family party 4 hours up north on Thursday, and won't be back till Monday. I'm kinda looking forward to it, cause its where Todd and I got engaged, and it holds some special meaning for us. But on the other hand, its going to be crazy busy up there with tons of people and dogs, and kids, and I don't now that we'll really get to enjoy it.
(just for a side note. . .the house is being closed on as I speak, and will be ours as of today!!!)
Friday, July 18, 2008
WOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!!!!
I just got some KILLER deals at super target!
I had to get Dallas a new comforter, long story, I'll explain why later, and got that on sale for 10 dollars off.
But then I rounded the isle, and looked on the end cap where all the clearance sales are, and I hit the MOTHER LOAD!!!!
WOOOO HOOOO!!!!
I'm so excited!
I got:
A pink on one side, purple on the other comforter/sham set for Kendyl's new room, normally 59.99, I got it for 12.62.
A twin size pink/purple/green striped sheet set for Kendyl that matches the comforter, normally 29.99, for 5.12.
A full bed in a bag for my niece Kristen that has pink/white stripes on one side, and flowers/butterflies on the other. NOrmally 69.99, for 14.98.
Hooded beach towels (Gabe had gotten a shark one for his birthday, they're a half towel, with a hood, and had holes so the kids can "wear" them when they're done.) One shark towel for Dallas, two monkey towels for Kaleb and Kendyl, and one hooded monkey towel for my nephew Kyle. . .normally 11.99, for 2.96.
I love hitting great deals!!!!!! The lady at the register was in SHOCK seeing what I found! They were AWESOME deals! I couldn't leave them there!!!
Just had to share!
I had to get Dallas a new comforter, long story, I'll explain why later, and got that on sale for 10 dollars off.
But then I rounded the isle, and looked on the end cap where all the clearance sales are, and I hit the MOTHER LOAD!!!!
WOOOO HOOOO!!!!
I'm so excited!
I got:
A pink on one side, purple on the other comforter/sham set for Kendyl's new room, normally 59.99, I got it for 12.62.
A twin size pink/purple/green striped sheet set for Kendyl that matches the comforter, normally 29.99, for 5.12.
A full bed in a bag for my niece Kristen that has pink/white stripes on one side, and flowers/butterflies on the other. NOrmally 69.99, for 14.98.
Hooded beach towels (Gabe had gotten a shark one for his birthday, they're a half towel, with a hood, and had holes so the kids can "wear" them when they're done.) One shark towel for Dallas, two monkey towels for Kaleb and Kendyl, and one hooded monkey towel for my nephew Kyle. . .normally 11.99, for 2.96.
I love hitting great deals!!!!!! The lady at the register was in SHOCK seeing what I found! They were AWESOME deals! I couldn't leave them there!!!
Just had to share!
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
I've been awarded again!!!!
I feel so loved!!!! Brandi over at The Best family diaries awarded me a new award!!! Its the mommy blogger award!!! Here are the rules, its really very simple!!!
When you get an award you have to send it on to 3 more Mommy Bloggers and say why you like reading that blog. Then you must leave a comment on their blog letting them know they were given the award!Easy enough!
Ok, my three . . .
1. Heather. . . I know I've given her the award before, but I love reading her blog! She's funny and down to earth!!! She makes reading about laundry, child care, husbands, and pets all too enjoyable!!!! That, plus she's a great friend!!!!!!!!
2. Brenda. . . What can I say? I love reading her blog and keeping up with her and her adorable little girls!!! The way she writes makes me feel like I'm right there experiencing it with her!!!!!
3. Brianne. . . I love reading along with her stories of her adorable boy girl twins! You can tell that her children are her world, and in reading her blog I find that I connect with many things she says!!!
To pass along the award just right click on the picture and save it to your comp. Then upload like normal!
Monday, July 14, 2008
What an AMAZING weekend!!!!
It was one crazy, busy, AMAZING weekend! This weekend was the big date for Todd and I, as well as the twins' birthday party! It seemed to fly by, but it was AWESOME!!!
Friday night we wound up taking the kids out to my mother in laws for the night. She was going to drive all the way out to our house, then back home in the morning so we agreed it would just be easier for her to have the kids for the night, and they'd be there and she wouldn't have to waste the gas!! We hung out, and put the kids to bed for her, so she didn't have to worry! And then at about 8:30 she told us to go ahead and head for home. So we said good bye, and hit the road. And then you know what we did???? We went to a movie! Our original plan was to see a movie on Saturday, but we figured what the heck and snuck one in that night! We saw Wanted with Angelina Jolie. It. was. so. WEIRD!!! It was a good movie, but as my eloquent husband would say it was a "total mind fuck". You went in about 6 different directions before you ended up 100 miles down the road in the opposite direction at the ending! SO worth seeing again just to catch everything!!! Then we headed home for a SOUND sleep. I can't tell you the last time I slept in a house with no kids in it. I always feel so weird about coming home with no kids, and even more strange to wake up without them. But we slept really well!
We woke up Saturday morning and headed for a place called Building materials outlet. It ROCKED. We were going there to check for supplies for our house that we'll be closing on this month. As you can see on the web site they offer some killer prices. And let me tell you, we weren't prepared for what we walked into. It was SO worth the trip! We're talking kitchen cabinet base units for 80 dollars, upper units for 60 dollars. Brand new Pella windows for 150.00. There were SEVEN warehouses FULL of stuff. We walked around as giddy as a couple of school kids!!! We realized very quickly that we'll most likely be able to do EVERYTHING we wanted to do to the house. We were sort of getting resigned to the fact that we'd have to do it in stages. But with the fix up money we have, and the prices I think we'll be doing everything. It was SO exciting!!!
Then, when we left there we decided to head to the Mall of America. They have a movie theater, and we decided we'd do some shopping, just the two of us!!! Its not that going to MOA was that special for either of us, we go several times a year since we don't live that far from it, but it was very different to walk around without pushing a stroller! Without prying someones fingers off of something that they simply must have, we were able to take the escalator vs. taking the elevator (that saves SOOOOOO much time, trust me!) and we didn't get one single dirty look for pushing out bus, I mean stroller where someone else felt they were walking first. My husband treated me to a trip to Lane Bryant since we walked past and there was a save 50% off select items sign out front. There were some KILLER deals. And while I was in a dressing room my hubby applied for a store charge card from them (knowing full well we'll never get one right now!) all because it would give an additional 20% off just for that. And then when we got up to the register to pay, and found out we got an additional 20% off just for applying that day. So yes, if you're keeping track, that's an additional 40% off. Todd asked me if I needed to go look for more things since it was that discounted! I didn't though. I didn't want to take advantage!! We walked out of the store with 250.00 worth of stuff for around 100.00! And the best part is now I have some bras, some new shirts, a pair of shorts, and a skirt! YAY!!!!
From there, we headed up to the 4th floor where the theater is and went to our SECOND movie for the weekend!!! We opted for Hancock with Will Smith! It was a good movie! NOT what I was expecting, but very good!!! We giggled like school kids the entire time because here we were, kid free, and at our second movie for the weekend! We haven't done that since HIGH SCHOOL!!!! After the movie we had dinner at Olive Garden. We were going to go to Texas Roadhouse, but the wait was 90 minutes for two people and we couldn't wait. I was SO disappointed with Olive Garden. They didn't have the stuff we'd hoped to get if we went there. They'd already changed their menu. But we made it through dinner, and got back to get our kiddos. They were so glad to see us. SOOOOOO glad! I guess grandma was a bit crabby while they were there and they were just glad to be going home with mommy!!!
Sunday was church, and the video that Todd was in (you can find the link below!). And then the twins' birthday party! We were there early so Todd took the kids swimming in the pool while I cooked, and set things up. The party went GREAT! We opted for Taco's this week since we'd just done the whole sandwich and salad thing last week. We were met with mixed reviews when we brought it up so we had some other stuff too. But wouldn't you know the tacos went over SO well? We went through almost FIVE pounds of meat, an entire pack of soft shell tacos (from Costco so its a big one!) and almost a full pack of hard shell tacos!!!! I was amazed!!!!!! I have most of the party in pictures, so I'll just tell you about it with those!!!
Dallas swimming with his goggles. He has to wear them because the chlorine would really do a number on his eye that just had surgery!!
Gabe swimming around! he does really well with the life jacket, but he still has the major fear of the water without it!
Kaleb coming to see mommy. He's not too sure about the water yet.
Dallas again!
Kaleb prefers the steps where he can touch.
The boys giggling over something!
And then there's Kendyl. Just last week at Gabe's party she was just like Kaleb, and only on the steps. After about 5 minutes working with mommy in the water she could do this. . ..
LOOK AT THAT! My baby girl is swimming all by herself!!!!
She just looks really little when she's in the water swimming all by herself!
Kaleb and Daddy swimming! He had a BLAST swimming with Daddy!
Uh OH! Squirting mommy!!!
Pretty Pretty Kendyl girl! She told me when she put that dress on that she was the birthday princess!
Opening presents!!
Kaleb with his fishing pole. He's been asking for this for a year. He was SO excited. We put his practice fishy thing on, and let him "fish" in the pool. He cried himself to sleep last night because he wanted to take it to bed with him!!
This is how Kendyl opened each present. It went flying up in the air so she could show it off!!
Kendyl with a new baby doll from my grandma.
Kaleb showing off his monster truck!
Here they are together
HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABIES!!!!
They LOVED everyone singing to them.
(oh, and they sang along!!)
All in all it was an AMAZING weekend! Definately something we needed to recharge our batteries before going again!!!
Friday night we wound up taking the kids out to my mother in laws for the night. She was going to drive all the way out to our house, then back home in the morning so we agreed it would just be easier for her to have the kids for the night, and they'd be there and she wouldn't have to waste the gas!! We hung out, and put the kids to bed for her, so she didn't have to worry! And then at about 8:30 she told us to go ahead and head for home. So we said good bye, and hit the road. And then you know what we did???? We went to a movie! Our original plan was to see a movie on Saturday, but we figured what the heck and snuck one in that night! We saw Wanted with Angelina Jolie. It. was. so. WEIRD!!! It was a good movie, but as my eloquent husband would say it was a "total mind fuck". You went in about 6 different directions before you ended up 100 miles down the road in the opposite direction at the ending! SO worth seeing again just to catch everything!!! Then we headed home for a SOUND sleep. I can't tell you the last time I slept in a house with no kids in it. I always feel so weird about coming home with no kids, and even more strange to wake up without them. But we slept really well!
We woke up Saturday morning and headed for a place called Building materials outlet. It ROCKED. We were going there to check for supplies for our house that we'll be closing on this month. As you can see on the web site they offer some killer prices. And let me tell you, we weren't prepared for what we walked into. It was SO worth the trip! We're talking kitchen cabinet base units for 80 dollars, upper units for 60 dollars. Brand new Pella windows for 150.00. There were SEVEN warehouses FULL of stuff. We walked around as giddy as a couple of school kids!!! We realized very quickly that we'll most likely be able to do EVERYTHING we wanted to do to the house. We were sort of getting resigned to the fact that we'd have to do it in stages. But with the fix up money we have, and the prices I think we'll be doing everything. It was SO exciting!!!
Then, when we left there we decided to head to the Mall of America. They have a movie theater, and we decided we'd do some shopping, just the two of us!!! Its not that going to MOA was that special for either of us, we go several times a year since we don't live that far from it, but it was very different to walk around without pushing a stroller! Without prying someones fingers off of something that they simply must have, we were able to take the escalator vs. taking the elevator (that saves SOOOOOO much time, trust me!) and we didn't get one single dirty look for pushing out bus, I mean stroller where someone else felt they were walking first. My husband treated me to a trip to Lane Bryant since we walked past and there was a save 50% off select items sign out front. There were some KILLER deals. And while I was in a dressing room my hubby applied for a store charge card from them (knowing full well we'll never get one right now!) all because it would give an additional 20% off just for that. And then when we got up to the register to pay, and found out we got an additional 20% off just for applying that day. So yes, if you're keeping track, that's an additional 40% off. Todd asked me if I needed to go look for more things since it was that discounted! I didn't though. I didn't want to take advantage!! We walked out of the store with 250.00 worth of stuff for around 100.00! And the best part is now I have some bras, some new shirts, a pair of shorts, and a skirt! YAY!!!!
From there, we headed up to the 4th floor where the theater is and went to our SECOND movie for the weekend!!! We opted for Hancock with Will Smith! It was a good movie! NOT what I was expecting, but very good!!! We giggled like school kids the entire time because here we were, kid free, and at our second movie for the weekend! We haven't done that since HIGH SCHOOL!!!! After the movie we had dinner at Olive Garden. We were going to go to Texas Roadhouse, but the wait was 90 minutes for two people and we couldn't wait. I was SO disappointed with Olive Garden. They didn't have the stuff we'd hoped to get if we went there. They'd already changed their menu. But we made it through dinner, and got back to get our kiddos. They were so glad to see us. SOOOOOO glad! I guess grandma was a bit crabby while they were there and they were just glad to be going home with mommy!!!
Sunday was church, and the video that Todd was in (you can find the link below!). And then the twins' birthday party! We were there early so Todd took the kids swimming in the pool while I cooked, and set things up. The party went GREAT! We opted for Taco's this week since we'd just done the whole sandwich and salad thing last week. We were met with mixed reviews when we brought it up so we had some other stuff too. But wouldn't you know the tacos went over SO well? We went through almost FIVE pounds of meat, an entire pack of soft shell tacos (from Costco so its a big one!) and almost a full pack of hard shell tacos!!!! I was amazed!!!!!! I have most of the party in pictures, so I'll just tell you about it with those!!!
This is the kids swimming! Dallas is swimming like a fish this year. He's amazing me so much. Seriously, I don't know where this came from, but he's doing AWESOME!
This is Dallas and Gabe. Gabe with the life Jacket, Dallas without!
This is Dallas and Gabe. Gabe with the life Jacket, Dallas without!
Dallas swimming with his goggles. He has to wear them because the chlorine would really do a number on his eye that just had surgery!!
Gabe swimming around! he does really well with the life jacket, but he still has the major fear of the water without it!
Kaleb coming to see mommy. He's not too sure about the water yet.
Dallas again!
Kaleb prefers the steps where he can touch.
The boys giggling over something!
And then there's Kendyl. Just last week at Gabe's party she was just like Kaleb, and only on the steps. After about 5 minutes working with mommy in the water she could do this. . ..
LOOK AT THAT! My baby girl is swimming all by herself!!!!
She just looks really little when she's in the water swimming all by herself!
Kaleb and Daddy swimming! He had a BLAST swimming with Daddy!
Uh OH! Squirting mommy!!!
The birthday duo!!!
THREE YEARS OLD ALREADY!!!
(and no, Kaleb isn't that much bigger than Kendyl, even though he looks it in this picture! Its all camera angle, I swear!)
THREE YEARS OLD ALREADY!!!
(and no, Kaleb isn't that much bigger than Kendyl, even though he looks it in this picture! Its all camera angle, I swear!)
Pretty Pretty Kendyl girl! She told me when she put that dress on that she was the birthday princess!
My super silly Kaleb boy!! This little guy is SUCH a clown!
Opening presents!!
Kaleb with his fishing pole. He's been asking for this for a year. He was SO excited. We put his practice fishy thing on, and let him "fish" in the pool. He cried himself to sleep last night because he wanted to take it to bed with him!!
This is how Kendyl opened each present. It went flying up in the air so she could show it off!!
Kendyl with a new baby doll from my grandma.
Kaleb showing off his monster truck!
Kendyl got a baby doll crib from my parents. This thing ROCKS! She loves it!!!
Birthday cakes.
I got them each 1/8 sheet cakes so that we still only had 1/4 of a sheet cake. They were SO cute, and so teeny!!!
Kaleb had Diego
I got them each 1/8 sheet cakes so that we still only had 1/4 of a sheet cake. They were SO cute, and so teeny!!!
Kaleb had Diego
And Kendyl had Strawberry short cake.
Here they are together
HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABIES!!!!
They LOVED everyone singing to them.
(oh, and they sang along!!)
All the fun is peeling the decorations off and licking the icing off of them!!!
All in all it was an AMAZING weekend! Definately something we needed to recharge our batteries before going again!!!
Wanna see my handsome hubby????
Todd has been helping out with some drama's at church, and they called him in to do one for this latest sermon series called "The road of no regrets". They figured since he already had a tattoo that they could use him as a thug!
Here's the video they used for the sermon yesterday. Oh, and if you're wondering, the only tattoo thats real is the big colorful one on his arm. The mohawk is now gone, and his gotee has grown back in right! He doesn't usually look like this! But wow, can he pull it off as believable to be that tough?
Oh, and the guy who's a thug with him? In the nice long wig? Yep, thats our Pastor!!!
He's cute, and he's mine though!!!
http://www.edinbrookchurch.org/MEDIA/WEBVIDEOS015.HTM
Here's the video they used for the sermon yesterday. Oh, and if you're wondering, the only tattoo thats real is the big colorful one on his arm. The mohawk is now gone, and his gotee has grown back in right! He doesn't usually look like this! But wow, can he pull it off as believable to be that tough?
Oh, and the guy who's a thug with him? In the nice long wig? Yep, thats our Pastor!!!
He's cute, and he's mine though!!!
http://www.edinbrookchurch.org/MEDIA/WEBVIDEOS015.HTM
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