Sunday, October 25, 2009

any given saturday...

one team wins and one team loses.
each and every game that is played.
rankings change.
players in a position change.
injuries occur.
most times, goliath continues to tromp the lil david teams.
but then there are other times...that under-dog david comes out victorious!
our's is a house divided.
i was born a husker. i am a cyclone by marriage.
my husband was born a cyclone. he is a husker by marriage.
and our girls? they are cheerleaders &/or marching bands for both teams.
so october 24th was an okay day at our home.
karl was at memorial stadium and watched the 11:30am game.
the girls and i watched in on tv.
for husker fans, the game was a debacle.
for cyclone fans, it was amazing.
showed what confidence in yourself and your teammates can lead you to do!
(remember: ISU started their back-up QB...and their leading tailback was out with an injury...)
my favorite part was after the game. the cyclone's head coach, paul rhoads, knelt on the field to compose himself after ISU defeated the huskers at home (the last time that occurred, none of the current players on his roster were even born yet!). he stood, spoke to reporters and said that they won precisely has he said they would have to: AS A TEAM. (and here's my favorite part!) then, after giving the obligatory quick interviews, he gets the biggest bearhug from another man...then stops and pumps his fist in the air yelling something to the ISU fans - his pride in his football players eeking out of every pore of who he is! i am proud to be a cyclone...even if it is not by birth.
ISU Head Coach: Paul Rhoads




Saturday, October 24, 2009

the cat

it's a tough life for the cat.
puddy mcfluffkins normally gets to enjoy the morning sunshine on the big ole ottoman. but today the dog is out-n-about. so puddy has retreated to "his room". the warmth of the dryer, in place of sunshine, seems to be okay with him.
it's a tough life for the cat.

Thursday, October 22, 2009

potty talk

today i had an everyday moment when i realized that my 4-yr-old changed the toilet paper roll. all. by. herself. seriously. i was amazed! not only because she had the manual dexterity to do it, but the thought to do it! i told her that i was very proud of her doing such a "biggest girl" thing.
and then i realized why.
her 3-yr-old sister has yet to grasp fully the amount of toity paper that is actually needed. and that when her stuffed buddies go potty, that they do not need to wipe.
luckily, i was able to plunge and fix the problem.
i love my little punks.

and that's short for "punkins".

most of the time, i think...

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

cutting

we had our very first parent/teach conference earlier this week.
all was good - not that we expected anything less. but it was nice to hear about how our wren does at her school (which she adores!).
she is creative. she enjoys writing station. she is curious (and luckily, she has not used one of her favorite phrases on either teacher...yet: "i'm not naughty, i am just curious"). she loves learning. she is a good listener. she is a friend. she is verbal. she is on the cusp of reading.
but, there had to be something not up to par. and there was. is. involving her motor skills. and her ability, errr, IN-ability to use scissors well. or at all. at first perhaps the "she is a lefty" could be a reason. well...wren's momma knew precisely why she struggles.
confession: my girls have never, ever, ever, EVER held or cut with a pair of scissors. not even the rounded, blunt ended, only-for-paper scissors.
why? or why not?
have you seen their beautiful hair?? they have never had their hair cut. no trip to a salon. no kitchen chair with a trashbag around them as i snip. N-E-V-E-R. i love their hair. wren loves her curls. linnea loves her long hair. oh, and i like puddy's fur as is.
we will probably get a pair of scissors. if for no other reason than to NOT have the same teacher realize next year that linnea cannot use scissors either.

Monday, October 19, 2009

i *heart* breakfast & coffee!

growing up my dad made a hot breakfast for us kids in the winter before school. it rotated between oatmeal, cream of wheat and coco wheat. i loved them all!

during my singleton days, i enjoyed getting up early on saturdays and going out for an "early bird" breakfast. i'd throw on some comfy clothes and a ballcap over my bedhead. then i'd grab the saturday paper and enjoy a delicious breakfast and tons of coffee while i read the paper. i loved those leisurely mornings!

when i became a mrs., i tried to get the mr. to enjoy going out for breakfast. he is not so much of a breakfast person. and, he is not so much of a "get-up-n-go" person. he is a shower first person. so, we would often compromise with a "brunch" place - he could have his lunch and me my breakfast.

after i quit commuting 100 mile mon-fri and got a job in the metro, my schedule was such that i did not work on fridays. and thus, friday became my "breakfast day"! i'd send the mr. off to his job and then i'd throw on some comfy clothes and a ballcap over my bedhead and head to a coffee shoppe. one that had these wonderfully soft and comfortable chairs. and a fireplace on chilly days! i could spend a couple hours enjoying my coffee, a bagel or scone and the paper. ahhhhhhhh, such contentment and bliss for me!

then we had a baby. then we had no sleep for a few months. and then we had another baby. and i quit my job and became just "momma". and the days of going out for coffee & breakfast ended. the extra $$ just weren't there to justify delicious coffee brewed by someone else...especially when we needed diapers!

it was then that i started to buy really good coffee to brew at home. and found some really delicious coffee-splinks (creamer)! and found a couple of great scone recipes. and i have found that my homebrew is so much better! i will occasionally take the girls out for a "girly coffee & scone" treat. and they love it! and enjoy those moments with my girls. but i really, really enjoy my coffee at home...in my jumbo green mug that states "i'm awake" (it sometimes lies!).
as for the coffee...i'll stick with brewing my own each morning. and some days, each afternoon.

Friday, October 16, 2009

out with the old & in with the new

dear rowe couch maker(s):
i have so loved my dear couch that i special ordered years ago. it took me months decide to become someone with a real couch...and that real couch cost me hundreds more than the special order futon that it replaced. i remember the beautiful the olive green velvet and how the idea of one seat cushion sent me over the moon! i remember how when i was "cat sitting" the elderly (crabby!) and nervous (shedder!) fat-sarah-cat i placed a babygate in the doorway to where my couch was so that she would not plop down and leave her mark. never mind that my brand-new, mere weeks old adorably fuzzy kitten, oliver, had carte blache. he was family. not just a guest. and oliver & i had many a nap on that rowe couch. many hours spent stitching on that couch. and since getting married and moving it to omaha, many hours have been logged by belle (aka "horkey the wonder dog"), my husband, and eventually the girls.
but...oh, you have caused a few headaches, too. and spurts of swearing, truth be told. such as when you arrived and the delivery guys had to remove your legs to get you into my apartment. and then, after an hour or more of trying to get you through the second doorway into what was my living room, resigning myself to changing my bedroom into the living room...since that was where the couch was. and then watching you be carried down the steep stairs of my apartment as we moved to omaha. and, of course, most recently, when i purchased a new sectional/ottoman/recliner set and we tried to move you to the garage. you did not go without a fight. you wouldn't go out the patio door. so we decided to take your legs off. after numerous attempts with a flathead and philips...and about 30 minutes later, an allen-wrench is what was needed. and even then...going out the front door was not an easy task. and i probably should apologize for my comment upon seeing you outdoors in the sunshine: "holy discoloration batman!", i blurted out. but, you have aged. you are discolored. and your arms are worn down from the numerous "loop-de-loos" you have endured. but be glad you are in the garage. and not at the curb. i couldn't do that to you. not after all we have been through together! eventually we will move and you will come along. and someday i will have you recovered. but that won't change my deep love for you. and the comfort you provide. we shall nap together again someday.

so...thank you rowe couch maker(s) for making such a wonderful friend!

and this is where i shall nap until further notice:
sincerely,
a very happy customer

Thursday, October 15, 2009

pregnancy & loss remembrance day

today, october 15th, is designated as "pregnancy & loss remembrance day". a good friend of mine, jenn, has is the person who brought this day to my attention. yesterday at my weekly bible study, there was information about this day. and on jenn's blog, she tells her story and she gives the statistics regarding miscarriages, stillborn babies, and sids. but statistics are just numbers. and numbers do not take away the hurt, the pain or the desire to hold the child that has died. but all of those feelings and wants are beyond each of us. it is God's plan. and as someone shared in my bible study small group: following and believing in God is like when you lived with your parents: you may not have liked the rules or their decisions, but it was their house and while living there, you followed their rules. boy does that put faith in perspective! and as a parent, there are times when i choose not to "explain" my decision to my children...just as God does with each of us who believes!
here is my story:
i have struggled with endometriosis for years. i have had 2 surgeries. i also tried to do injections that threw me into menopause over the course of 1 week (not fun!). and have been on birth control off and on for a long time. endometriosis itself can cause infertility. being on the birth control pill can hinder getting pregnant also. so, when i met my husband and we married 13 months later, we decided to try to get pregnant immediately (we were both 33 when we married...first marriages for each of us...). my doctor suggested trying for 6 months. as we were approaching that 6 months, i realized i was pregnant! we were overjoyed! but my husband wanted to wait to announce it until after the 1st trimester. but we did tell our families over christmas celebrations. one night in january, i realized that something was wrong. we went to the e.r. where they were unable to determine 100% that i was having a miscarriage. i had not even met my ob here and my first meeting with him was in the midst of a miscarriage. over the next 2 days it was determined that yes, i was miscarrying and my new ob scheduled a d&e. i was 11 weeks along. i was devastated.
luckily, we did get pregnant a second time and although it was a very high risk pregnancy, it ended with a beautiful girl we named wren! since we had struggled with initially getting pregnant and then the miscarriage, we chose to start trying to get pregnant when wren was 7 months. thinking that it could take a while. or not. sixteen months later, after another very high risk pregnancy, linnea joined our family! our daughters are healthy and happy little people...
and i always thought that we should have three kids. no, not to try to have a boy. that number just felt "right". however, i am now in another difficult decision-making time of my life. you see, the endometriosis is back. and so now we must decide on whether i will have one ovary and the endometriosis removed, or a hysterectomy (leaving one ovary). i don't want to make the decision. but i also don't want to continue in the pain and whatnot that the endo is causing. so i am praying. praying that God will help us to make the decision. and i know He will. just maybe not on my timetable.
please take a moment today and honor those who have miscarriage or who has had a child go with Jesus way too soon. pray for those moms. and those children. and just remember.
"For You created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother's womb."
Psalm 139:13-14

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

filtering it out

my girls are 3-yrs-old and 4.5-yrs-old.
they do not always hear precisely what is said.

either to them.
or around them.

here is an example:

"hoy-boy these are horse-pills!" i blurted out when i got home with an rx a few days ago.

later, as i opened the bottle, to take another one (every 6 hours folks), this is what i heard:

"momma, don't you porget to take your horse, okay?" linnea tells me loudly.

"horsepill, nea, not a horse. horse-pill," wren whispers her a correction.

"wight! horsePILL, momma. HORSE-PILL," she says again. in her loud voice.

now, every 6 hours she reminds me about the horse. i mean horse-pill.

Monday, October 12, 2009

dear target letter...

october 12, 2009

dear target worker:

i appreciate your attention to detail in keeping your checkout station clean. i really do. what i do not appreciate is when my 3-yr-old steps around the shopping cart and is at eye-level with the conveyor belt that you are spraying with some type of liquid cleaning and you do not stop spraying! you do not even acknowledge that the child was there. luckily, my child was able to move herself back before being pelted in the eye with some of the liquid in that spray bottle. in fact you did not even acknowledge there was an adult there when i, the parent of the 3-yr-old, said, "excuse me". you continued to spray, wipe, run the conveyor belt, spray, wipe, run the conveyor belt a bit more, spray, wipe, run the conveyor belt. even after i have place my items on the conveyor belt. and when the large storage tubs came towards you as you were cleaning, you continued to clean while you held up the storage bins. it was not until someone else got in line behind me, and asked you if your lane was still open, did you actually acknowledge something other than the conveyor belt. in fact your response was in such a tone that how dare she even ask that question. and then when she asked, "are you going to checkout this lady? or do i need to go get someone else?" and you replied with something mumbled...i realized that as much as i appreciate your wanting a clean work environment...i appreciated the more annoyed-than-me-lady behind me even more.

sincerely,

the momma

Sunday, October 11, 2009

gettin' creative, down on the farm






i took these photos awhile back. various stuff from around my in-laws' farm. probably means nothing to most. seems strange to others. and some may not even get "it" upon explanation. doesn't matter. creativity has no boundaries. neither does the love of it.

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

why, yes...YES HE IS!

fine. i will take the blame, okay?

were you a bit chilled these past few days? weren't quite ready for autumn? well, i wasn't either. but i am going on the record as being personally responsible for the cold weather.

you see, i had a service technician come over last week to checkout our furnace. i figured he'd evict the family of dust bunnies, shine it up, change the filter and wah-lah! it would all happy and ready to keep me and my fam warm and toasty. nobody here wants cold tooters (that is in reference to TOES). but, alas, not so much.

see, there is a minutia of a crack in an area that really, really, really, should NOT have a crack. not even a minutia. so, the very nice service tech tells me that i should not turn on our furnace under any conditions until that part can be replaced. and i gave him that nervous little laugh one gives when we do not really want to hear what will come next...and i asked the question:

"why not", i ask.

"well, are you familiar with carbon monoxide poisoning?" he says, very sternly.
"yeeeaaah", i reply.

"well you can choose carbon monoxide poisoning or being cold. i would suggest being cold," is his answer.

so there you have it. and, oh, did you hear about the possibilities of snow flurries this weekend? yep, i'll cop to that one, too. the furnace part has not arrived yet (was supposed to be here today) and may not by friday.

please direct you complaints about the temperature in the comment section.
** sigh**

the photo depicts what we shall be doing from here on out. the new sectional has been dubbed "the best snuggling couch in the world" by the 2 shortest people in our family. the furry ones like it, too. schew!




Monday, October 5, 2009

helpin' out a friend; or, breakin' the law??

one recent morning, i wanted to know what the weather people thought the weather was going to be doing. so i decided to switch on matt and meredith on nbc. instead of our usual fare of "handy manny" in the early mornings. and oh, what a delight that was! instead of the tools trying to mastermind a way to help manny get over to kelly's hardware store (because manny secretly loves kelly is my whole take on that show, but that is another post.)...i got to hear about a woman from michigan who is deep, deep trouble for letting her neighbors' kids wait for their schoolbus at her home. at first i was all "what the hamfat is that?!". and then after hearing about the michigan state childcare and wellfare (or whatever it's called...) regulations and the reasons "why" this lady is breakin' the law, i was still all "what the hamfat is that?!". so, let me get you up to speed:
a mom in Michigan who watches her friends' children before the bus comes each day received a letter from the state saying she's violating the law and could be fined or even go to jail. watch the video here. she is not being paid by the other 3 families. just helping them out...since she is a SAHM and they all work. seems logical to me. especially the ole saying of "it takes a village to raise a child". i know of moms who trade "childcare" all the time to help one another out. i also believe in some type of karma reaching the person who "ratted" on this mom and her supposed in-home daycare! in Michigan, they even go so far as to say if you host a playdate and the other parent isn't home (chooses to run an errand), then the host parent is now considered a "childcare provider." i decided to check out my state's regulations regarding this...and oh boy! here it is:
nebraska law requires that anyone providing child care to four or more children at any one time from families other than that of the provider must obtain a license.
so, she'd be breakin' the law here, too! ikes! for a mere 45 minutes, five days a week...interesting.
i think i should call my sister-in-law (who works for cps) and get her take on this...maybe i'll report my findings in another post. i'm all nancy drew like that, folks.