ok, i am re-reading the 5 books i read on sunday and monday. let me tell you, charlaine harris is a fantastic writer. i can really get into her books. i started reading the "sookie stackhouse" series, and i can't wait to read the other 3 books that i haven't read yet. i really to love her style. i grew up reading stephen king and dean kontz, and of course anne rice...but i think i like this series much more. her books are anything but predictable. that is something i have found lacking lately. most of my normal "fave" authors are so, well, predictable. in the first chapter or two, you can pretty much figure out what is going on and who caused it...and how it will be resolved. not so with these stories. (at least not for me) i haven't watched the hbo series "trueblood" but i am looking forward to it...as long as it can compare to the books.


the kids are going to with my step-mom tomorrow night. my dad is leaving today for virginia beach, and so she volunteered to keep the kids for us. so very nice of her. so hubby and i are trying to figure out what to do.

haley is spending the night at the zoo with the girl scouts. she's so excited! i would be too if i was her. seriously, that's my idea of a fantastic night! lucky kid!
she got glasses over the weekend. they look really cute on her. so grown up. uh, too grown up if you ask me. i think i'd rather her be blind.


alex did well in the math competition. he tied for 3 with three of his friends out of the kids from our school. there were several other schools that were represented. he did great. we were so proud of him.

grace started indoor soccer. they lost their first game. they were surprised, but i'm glad. this team deserved to win.

sorry, i had to go outside. the new little girl was telling me about the new gray kitty sleeping in the garage. well, since smoke was where i could see him...and there are no other gray cats around...i had to check it out. hubby was just leaving when i was out there...and had to flag him down to help me because the cat wasn't a cat...


it was a possum. sleeping in an old towel in the trailer for josh's little ride-on tractor. i ended up pushing the trailer out with a shovel, and then tried to get it towards the woods. unfortunately, it woke up when i accidentally dumped it. whoops! and then it looked up at me, snuffled back to the towel, and tried to go back to sleep. i guess i don't cut a very imposing figure! when i pushed it with the shovel, it took off to the woods. i followed it halfway to make sure it made it. it wasn't very big, smaller than smoke.. poor baby. hope it finds a better place than my garage to sleep tonight!

rose!

i am so sorry that rose flack got eliminated last night! she spoke to my inner hippie. i really liked her, and i thought she would have made it farther. (stupid bikini b#$% had to screw it all up!)

on a lighter note, my alex has graduated from D.A.R.E. yesterday. his essay (along with 3 other kids) was picked to be read in front of the assembly. he did a great job on it. he has a way with the written word, let me tell you! he gets that from me. in school, i could b.s. my way through an essay like no-body's business! we (the parents) were all talking after assembly was over, and we were all saying how we hope it sticks with them. the pledges they take, the lessons they have learned. i was really impressed with all the kids essays that were read. they put a lot of thought into them. some of them were more facts (like alex's) and some were more funny ("i don't know why anyone would want to smoke. i don't know about you, but i like my teeth white and my breath not to stink!" was what one of the kids wrote.), but all were very well written and to the point. the deputy they had working with them was great. he will be sadly missed at our school! (he was transferred to another school district) he was funny and the kids all really seemed to like him.

i have 2 new kids now. my days start about an hour earlier now. it is an adjustment...for me more than anyone. the kids are nice enough...but the older one is a bit of a bossy tattletale, and we will need to work on that. the younger one doesn't talk. seriously, he's at the age he should be doing much more than "uh" and pointing. i think it's the pacifier. i don't like those things. josh was my only kid that needed something like that. he had his blanket and his first two fingers on his left hand. when his blanket "disappeared" so did the finger sucking. one of the little ones that i watch has figured out a way of getting out of the walker. you would think after having 5 kids, and watching quite a few, that would have happened to me before. um, no. it hasn't. not until today.

anyway, i am glad american idol is back. i have a few fave's, but i really was surprised rose forgot the words. to much drama i guess. poor girl. i really thought she would go far...hopefully she still does.
good luck kid (if you ever read this!) you have talent and you are likable. i think you could go far.

later taters! i got me some kidlets to round up for naps and lunch!

my oldest asked me the other day if he had to participate in a math competition. i guess it's something all the local catholic grade schools do. grades 6 through 8 get to answer questions and compete (if you are in 8th grade) for scholarships to the catholic high school. sure you can i said. let me know when it is and i'll be there.





i guess i missed the intention of his question. he doesn't want to do it. all he would tell us is he "just doesn't want to do it". so we kept pressing and finally he said he just doesn't like being the center of the attention.



i don't believe that for a second. if he issues with that, we would have seen that in other things like shooting free throws after a penalty in basketball, or batting in baseball...i think he is afraid of not being "smart", or maybe being too smart. i think he's scared of being considered dumb, so he just sits back and does the little that he has to to get by.



then haley chimed in with how she and alex were both in the spelling bee...and neither of them wants to do that well. well enough, but not so well that they have to compete on a larger level. i don't get it. they are so competitive against each other...and in sports...but when it comes to academics, they want to sit back and watch.



this is the exact OPPOSITE of what i've been trying to instill in them. i love that they enjoy playing sports and all, but learning is WAY WAY WAY more important. i have extremely intelligent children and i want them to be smart. i want them to know they are smart and be confident in it. what am i doing wrong?



hubby told alex if he wants to play baseball in the summer, he better compete at the math competition. not sure i agree with that. i want him to actually want to do well. not be forced into it. i tried to tell him if he wanted any chance of going to the local catholic high school that he has to do well with these things and try for scholarships. we don't have an extra 7 or 8 grand just lying around to spend on one year of school for him. i don't want to add lots of pressure either.



i understand that it's hard to get up in front of people like that and compete. been there done that. i didn't like it either. i still have a hard time in front of people. my face gets bright red and hot. i lose my train of thought. my hands shake. and on rare occasions i break into a rash. it's not a pretty picture. i don't want them to be like that. i want them to be comfortable in front of groups. that's why i am totally for the kids reading in front of church. which is basically the whole school. they get to see everyone makes mistakes during their readings...everyone messes up once and a while.



i just wish i knew what the right thing to do is.

hello? anyone there?

hello there! well, it's been a busy week or so here at the zoo!

friday was our "breakfast for dinner with santa". i know, the name isn't the greatest. i have no idea why they couldn't come up with anything a little...um...snappy-er. but it is accurate. we had pancakes and sausage for dinner...and the kids were able to get their picture with santa. of course alex didn't want to go...so i didn't make him. i figured he got his "just desserts" by me not making dinner and his friends were all there having a great ol' time...and i let him know it. haley didn't want to look like a baby..even though a bunch of her friends had a big group picture with santa. i don't know what her deal was. but she was super helpful and i was so happy she was there. i pretty much talked the whole time i was there. well, until the work had to be done for the craft fair. we set up tables and chairs...we cleaned up...we brought in waters...it took a couple of hours. it probably wouldn't have taken as long if there wouldn't have been 10 kids (and one dad) playing basketball while we were trying to work. poor paul, he had been working out of town all week and came home just in time for his wife to have him come up and work setting up tables and measuring and well, work.

the craft fair went well. it looked very busy. i don't think it was as busy as we had hoped (another craft fair was going on at the same time across town...with santa arriving by HELICOPTER in the morning) but it was better than the first one we did. my sil did well with the doll clothes. i think there were other people that also did well...and there were people that didn't sell a darn thing. i got a couple of things. not much. i'm not sure i spent more that $20 but well, i can't see spending a bunch o'money on stuff i have no need for or that i can make myself. i worked there from 12:30 until about 5:30.

sunday we made cookies at my mil's house. i totally screwed up some snicker-doodles (added twice the amount of butter needed) but my sil fixed them and all was well. they actually turned out really good and fluffy looking. we cooked up there until 9, then i went home with the little guys. (hubby had already taken the older ones home) i love to make cookies. i really really do.

now i am getting ready for tomorrow...josh is joseph in his pre-k play and he has 2 lines in it. he is a little nervous and doesn't like to talk about it. the other kids were disappointed because it's at 11, and they don't get to see it. the girls are in their program on thursday too. haley is a narrator. she has more lines than any one else in the program. grace gets to sing. that is at 2 and again at 7. poor hubby, he has to miss all of them. he works 11 to close (like 9:30) and so he doesn't get to see anything. i'm going to get the video camera going and tape it (hopefully ) for him.

this friday the kids are supposed to spend the night at my dad's house and make cookies with my step mom's parents. well, haley has a girl scout christmas meeting that night. they are exchanging gifts and going caroling. so now i have to let my dad and stepmom know that she's not going to be there right away. hubby is off and i was planning on going out with him, but i'm not sure i will be able to since we may have to take haley over to grandma and grandpa's.

this sunday is the annual cookie bake at my grandma's house. it's also the day my hubby is going to chicago for training with work. i have to drop him off at 10 am sunday morning. he doesn't get back until sometime thursday evening. so i will be a single mom for almost 5 days. i am not looking forward to it. at least i will have lots of cookies to drown my sorrows in!

winter is finally here!

haley and alex had their last soccer games of the season on saturday.
haley's was at 8 am. yeah, that's right...8 flippin' o clock in the morning. and it was about 35 degrees. i was freezing!
my little goalie girl. she didn't get in goal the entire game. they had her as a forward in the beginning...and she scored her first (and last) goal of the season! she was so excited. i was so excited. i love love love watching her play any sport...but especially soccer. she has this natural grace and athleticism that is just poetry in motion. not to mention the girl is beautiful. that's not just the proud mom in me saying this...she is really just, well, beautiful. i think the word may lose some of the meaning when we talk about anything and everything under the sun as being beautiful...but in the truest meaning of the word...well, that's my oldest* daughter. anyway, they ended up winning the game, and going undefeated in the season. they were so proud! they deserve to be proud, they worked hard...2 practices a week, 2 hours each practice, not to mention the games! they ran their little tushies off! laps around the field before and after practice, and wind-sprints...they really worked hard!

alex's team didn't play until 3 o'clock. it had warmed up quite a bit...it was like 37 degrees. hubby went to the game with me and the boys and grace. haley ended up going with my mom to help watch my nieces. they had no subs. none. which isn't a bad thing when it's that cold. if you are sitting on the bench, you are freezing and asking to go back in so you can run and warm up. poor alex. his team has won maybe 2 or 3 games. he's pretty competitive (with his sisters) so he hates that they have a losing record. but honestly? well, they've had maybe 4 practices all season. they have a couple of kids that just joined the team this year, and we lost a couple of pretty strong players. they haven't had time to work out the "kinks" of the new team dynamic. it's not their fault...and yet it is. they could be out in the yard working on ball skills, but they don't. they could ask their coaches to have more practices...but they don't. so instead they started tearing down their teammates. not cool. not cool at all. there are some kids that have some major talent on the team...and some that are not as strong as they could be ~my kid is in this group~...so the ones with the talent and the drive are getting frustrated. i can totally understand that. i get frustrated with them too. i think we will still have enough to play soccer next year...i sure hope we do. alex really isn't that into soccer. he does it to hang with his friends. that's fine with me. it keeps him active and that's fine with me. i told him if he doesn't want to play, that's fine, but he's only got 2 more years of playing with all these guys so he better make the most of it. after 8th grade, they'll all split up into different schools. some will go to the local public and some will go to the local catholic high school.
anyway, they lost their last game too. it didn't dampen their spirits though.

*i say my oldest girl is beautiful because she is. inside and out. i don't mean to take away from my youngest girl, but she's 6. she's cute, and in time will be just as beautiful as her sister is...but at 6...well, kids are cute not beautiful.

school confrences

well, the day of the great sickness (that's last friday folks), we also had school conferences. i had to send the hubby in my place. he doesn't usually do school stuff, but since i had been dealing with puke for about 6 hours at that time, not to mention all the other kids, well, he knew better than to just leave me and go to work. so he did the parent teacher stuff.

6th grade alex: his teacher said that he is amazingly smart. well, the standardized testing* said he was amazingly smart. he is in advanced math (basically a grade above his peers) and tested better than 98% of his peers nationally. now, as great as it is to have a smart kid, she also has some concerns. nothing terrible, just that things come easy to him. he doesn't have to work for good grades. so he hasn't learned how to study, or how to work. it is something she's been trained to look for (she's our former gifted teacher) and she's seeing some of that in alex. no surprise there, i've been a bit worried about that myself.

4th grade haley: her teacher is awesome. she said haley is a pleasure to have in class. haley also tested about the same as alex (actually 99%) and the only thing she really mentioned was that haley takes a long time with her work. at first she was a bit worried, but as she got to know haley, she realized that haley takes great pride in her work. her penmanship, the detail in her artwork, all of it she takes her time in doing. as a result, her work is something she (the teacher) really enjoys grading. haley is also in advanced math. her math teacher had no issues.

1st grade grace: grace's teacher is so happy with grace. she said she wants to have grace tested for the gifted program at the school, and also thinks she would benefit from the special gifted program at our local public school. it's a one day a week, all day program that runs through the school year. um, not so sure i would want to do that. i know she's smart. i'm not so sure the benefit would be enough to make it worth the extra school work, and missing time with her friends. i don't want to burn her out on school and learning. i would have to talk to some of the other parents that have kids in the program before i would make that decision. oh, grace is also a wiz at math. the teacher is actually worried that she's going to get bored with the work.

i'm glad hubby was the one that got to hear all these good things about the kids. i wonder sometimes if he thinks i make all the good things up. it was nice to get some really good and positive info on my kids...especially on a day that i really needed it!

*i don't necessarily think that testing is perfect. believe me, i've had my own issues with it and my kids.

boy i'm glad i'm me!

well, maybe.

today i only have 2 extra. well, until school lets out. yay me...


i was early starting out to the car, you know to take one of my b.s. (babysitting) kids to the bus stop.

unfortunately, the cat had been locked up in my van all night.

i don't keep a litter box in my van.

that's ok, he just used zack's car-seat.

yay me, again...

i didn't find the mess until i had almost put one of the babies in it...of course, i also realized, just then, she had made a mess of her own. yeah, it was all over her onesie, pants, and even her jacket.

yay me, three times over!

so far, i have spent my day cleaning poopy car seats, poopy kids, and well, it's not over yet.

alex comes home today. they are running late because their plane was waiting on a part. it's ok, the part was in chicago, they are in orlando. it should be in sometime today.


i can't complain too much, though. i made it in time to get kid to the bus stop. i got the car seat sprayed out in time, you know before the rain. and it is hopefully going to be dry enough for the kid pickup at 3. i made it in time to pick up josh from school. i made the kids their favorite sandwiches (cheese and mayo). and i've only had 3 poopy diapers to change.

it could always be worse. the cat was in the van all night. i only found that one mess...of course i didn't actually look any farther...oh, i hope there isn't any more! the kids will find it for me i'm sure.

IT'S ALMOST FINISHED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

my dad, my little brother, and my kids, are almost finished with the chicken coop. they had to work on it at my dad's house because, well, my brother is not allowed to leave the house. (long story, and not mine to tell) anyway, they started on it saturday, and for the most part, it's done. it just needs the nest boxes, and some stain, and i think i may put in some linolium (for cleaning). that's it! well, it needs a door, and it needs to be moved to my house.

my dad had the kids all help him. he was really impressed by zack though. he said zack was hammering like a champ. he was most impressed with the way he did it correctly (bending his wrist). how many 3 year olds do you know that can do that? shoot, i'm 30 and i can't!


alex leaves on friday for his "birthday present" trip with my stepmom. alex still doesn't know where he's going! i don't think he would ever check my blog...but i don't trust the kid so i won't say until friday where he's going.

this is bookfair week. i already have been there, and helped out. but i have to go back on thursday for the "family night" event. my sister in law and i run that. it's pretty easy. really really easy. all we do is make dinner for about 200. no sweat! we usually have about 6 helpers, and that's plenty. the money we raise goes to our library, and buying tests for the kids.

and apparently this is also the first day for the runners club at school. i thought it didn't start until next monday. i still have to send in all the sign up stuff to school. and bring clothes and snack and water up for my kids that are doing it.

that's about it for now!

twelve years ago today

today my oldest child turns twelve. i can't believe my boy is almost a teenager. here's a picture of him with bebe. isn't she beautiful? i still can't believe she's been gone. almost a month now. it still feels like a weight on my chest when i think about her. still feel the tears...anyway, back to my boy...twelve years...amazing.
i remember him as the most beautiful baby i had ever laid eyes on. i know what you're thinking, everyone thinks their baby is the most beautiful. they may think it, but i know it. he was a week and a half late. i was swollen and miserable. but i will never forget being surrounded by friends and family the entire day. i mean the whole day. my labor started around 7 am, and he was born around 10:30 that night. long time not to be able to eat or drink. i remember the hubby asking if it was ok if he watched him come out. if i was comfortable with it. i remember the tears in his eyes and how he told me how much he loved me and our baby. i remember my father in law, coming in to see his newest grandson, and crying like a baby. alex was number 8 for them, but i think he was special to them in a way the other kids (none of the other grandkids) will never be able to touch.
i remember how excited he was when he saw haley for the first time. how he just stared at her, laying there naked in the warmer...and then asking where her penis was...
i remember him playing outside at my in laws, and really never having to worry to much about him, because my brother in law's rottweiler loved him more than anything on earth. she watched over him and kept him from harm all the time she was alive. God help the poor dog or cow that came near my boy when seirra was around!
i have watched my boy welcome each new member of our household, each new brother and sister with loving and open arms. i have watched him take his little brothers to the pond, and i must say, i love to see the look of open admiration those little guys have for him.
my alex is not perfect. i do not expect it from him. and yet he is constantly surprising me with how well he does with school, how athletic he is, and how kind he can be.
i have been so blessed with him as my oldest child.
happy birthday!

double edged sword

that's what this week at the fair has seemed like. my heart has been bursting with pride because my kids have worked so hard, and have done so well.

this week has been a lot of early mornings and late nights. yesterday, the second time we got to the fair, the kids had to get their animals ready for the auction. we were anxiously awaiting the 5 o'clock meeting to find out how alex's pig did overall. haley was feeding the lambs and giving them more water, and alex was cleaning out the pig's pen and then going to start scrubbing her down and then feed her really quick. i saw some people looking at a bulletin board. i went up to look and it had all the kids with pigs listed, with all kinds of next to it. alex's name was at the top of the list. next to his name was GR. ok, being new to all of this, i had to ask someone to explain it to me...

ALEX WON GRAND CHAMPION OVERALL!!!!!!!!!!!

we were all really excited, i started making phone calls, and so my in-laws and my mom hurried up and drove to the fair just to see alex get his trophy and ribbon. poor hubby was stuck at work. i took lots of pictures though. apparently this was not enough to get the hubby to reconsider doing pigs again next year. he's still saying "no way, we are going out on top".

haley was so excited for alex. it was so cool to see. first thing she said was "that's so cool, maybe she won't get eaten then".

perhaps now you see why this fair is a double edged sword? that's right, the auction. while it's really cool that the kids get to make money off of their hard work, they also put a lot of time, money, and effort into these animals. some moms *ahem* have developed affections for these animals. so the thought of my, i mean alex's, pig going to a processing center, weighs pretty heavy on my heart. doesn't seem to bother him much. and really, it shouldn't. if all farmers and ranchers made their animals into loved pets...well, we'd all be vegetarians.

anyway, on to the auction. because alex's pig was the grand champion, his was the first pig to be auctioned. after the last of the steers, alex brought her out. they did great out there. she ended up selling for $4.25 a pound. most of the other pigs went for $2 to $3 a pound. he made a little more than $900. i'm hoping that if someone is paying that much for a little pig (she was one of the smallest up there), they are planning on something other than eating her. of course the fact it is josephville meat processing co that bought her, well i'm not sure what to think. i hope she is going to be a brood sow for them. she's such a great pig.

haley's lamb was the 12th lamb out. she brought her out, smiled, and kept her lamb in check. she did great. lambs they sell by the head, not by the pound like hogs and steers. she ended up making $280 off of her little lamb. the grand champion went for around $500, and i think the most paid was $600, but she was about average for what the rest went for. some were as low as $150...but that's still a good profit. haley's lamb was bought by wright city meat market. haley was more upset about the lamb possibly getting eaten. she was nearly in tears. i honestly forgot that people eat sheep/lambs. you don't usually see it in the meat section of the grocery store. at least not the stores i go to.

all in all, this has been a very positive experience. the kids are excited about next year. they are already deciding what animals they want to try to raise for the next fair. i think we may be sticking with poultry. i told them if they want, they can do lambs and poultry, but only one animal per child can get sold at the fair. we will see. chickens get sold for quite a bit of money, and usually they end up going home with the kid. not always, but it happens pretty often.

today's the day

the pig leaves for the fair today. i am actually fighting back tears right now. pathetic, i know. i've been pretty good so far today. we all had dentist appts. so that kept my mind off of the day. we are trying to get things together so they can leave around 3:30.
what's really funny is alex is totally fine with it. here's the conversation we had yesterday:

ME: well, you know that half the money you get will go into your savings account. at least half.

Alex: conrad said that pigs brought like $500 at the auction last year.

Me: don't count on it. you don't know for sure how much you will get, so don't get your hopes up.

A: well, she has really big hams, and they are really all muscle. just a little fat, so that should be a good thing right? not too much fat, but enough to make them taste good. grandma says fat makes the meat taste better.

Me: STOP TALKING LIKE THAT!!!! i think i'm going to be sick.

yeah, i think he's going to be fine. i'm going to be the one crying hysterically in the corner.

we are taking some pictures today, so hopefully i'll get some up soon!

pigs and sheep and kittens oh my

ok, first off, let me just say, we have a new kitten. he's a little gray tabby kitten. i'm not sure what his name is yet. i've heard "tiger", and "shady", and "take it back where you got it". (guess which one was the hubby's suggestion) so far so good. he hasn't been eaten by any dogs, hit by any cars, or eaten anything poisonous. of course we haven't had him a full week yet, so anything can happen.

last night i took alex to the lincoln county fair. their hog show was last night, so i figured "what better way to see what we need to be doing". well, most of those pigs were bigger than ours. 90% were white (the pigs, not the people...although i guess those stats would work for both). there was a huge age range in kids showing. there were kids as young as 8 or 9 or as old as 18. they all were terrific. we weren't able to stay for the whole show (which lasted several hours), but i think alex has a better understanding of what is expected of him. he's getting nervous now. the fair is only a couple of weeks away.

after we got back from the fair, we took the whole family to see haley's sheep. she has 3, but she has to pick 2 for the show and 1 to sell at the auction. she has to break them before the fair. basically, she has to get her sheep, (which is difficult) and hold them until they surrender, then let it go and catch it right away. she has to do this at least twice with each one. i helped her, so did alex and the hubby. i didn't realize how oily their wool is. (that's where lanolin comes from...breastfeeding moms should have some on hand) and boy howdy, they stink! it's hard to describe, but think wet dog+urine+feces+farm=one big stinky mess! the kids didn't even argue about taking showers...that's how smelly it was. i will be doing this again in a few minutes...and every day until fair. fun.

well, i have dinner to get on the table, kids to get out the door (to do some sheep work), and well, there's always cleaning to get done.

then there's the fact my littlest one is turning 3 this saturday...don't get me started, i can't believe my baby is so big!

rachel, let me know when it is you are coming into town. i'd love to get together!

water water everywhere

well, except for our house. it is pretty close. we live on the west side of 79. the water is on the east side. when the hubby leaves to go to work, he sees the flood. it's behind his workplace, it's around the roads he takes to get to work. we are really lucky to be able to not only get out and get around, but just to be able to live in our home. we know people that have to boat in and out of their homes. we know people that have been out rescuing fawns, and other wildlife. this has got to be the worst time for animals...spring is the time of babies, and now there are going to be so many that are going to be separated from them. north of us is where the levees broke. so many lost their homes.

haley is home from disneyland. (that's the one in florida, right?) she had a blast. she brought gifts home for us all, and i am so glad she's home safe and sound. she came home saturday morning, and so i had one whole day of having all five kids home...before alex left today for 4-H camp. he's going to be home on wednesday. haley starts basketball camp tomorrow. my SIL, dawn, is taking her. dawn is one of the coaches that is in charge, so it works out well for us.

i am having a tough time keeping up with everything. the house is not anywhere near as clean as it should be. i have been wanting to scrub the floor for a couple of weeks now. it still isn't done. i'm lucky to get it swept every other day. i am doing dishes constantly.

i must say, i have been cooking more now than i ever did before. i make lunch every day. i make brownies and cakes a couple of times a week. i could be a domestic diva...if someone felt like keeping my house clean and doing the dishes for me. anyone? anyone at all? i'll make you some of the best brownies you've ever tasted if you clean my house, or just scrub my floor.

my garden is doing well. i've already picked a couple of cucumbers and a green hot pepper. i am hoping to get some more straw down in the next day or two. i think i have room to plant some potatoes, and maybe some other stuff. right now i have 3 zucchini, 5 tomato , 4 broccoli, 4 sweet potatoes, 2 hot pepper, 2 watermelon, and 2 cucumber plants. i didn't plan to plant any cucumbers. i don't care for them, and no one in my house likes them...but they were mislabeled as zucchini plants, and i didn't realize what they were when i planted them. i know some of my neighbors like them, so they won't go to waste.

not much else to blog about. i guess i could talk about the show Swingtown. (love it!) but i have a very sleepy little guy on my lap right now, and it is getting increasingly more difficult to type with a tired head on one wrist and a flailing arm on the other.

so good night folks! hopefully i will get to post some more soon.

updates and a question

update on bacon bits (aka the pig).
she is gaining about 14 pounds a week. seriously, 14 pounds. she is growing so fast, i don't know if i will be able to pick her up much longer. yes i pick her up. i can't get her out of her cage if i don't. so try to imagine picking up a pig, roughly 60+ pounds, and squirming and throwing her feet and head. ok, if you are having a tough time visualizing that, try a toddler throwing a tantrum and trying to hold on to that toddler. not an easy feat my friends! good thing i have more than 11 years practicing for this period of my life.

a little more than 3 weeks and one of my families will be back. there are 4 kids, one of which is a brand new baby girl. i can't wait. she is so pretty! i miss the kids. my house is so quiet...i am so not used to quiet!

alex and haley start baseball/softball next week. haley finishes up basketball this weekend, and alex should be done with indoor soccer soon. grace starts t-ball next month. the hubby is her coach. he uses his day off for a day to have practice...unfortunately, the weather hasn't really cooperated the past 2 years. last year, and now this year, every tuesday is rain. rain rain rain! hopefully the kids will get atleast 2 practices in before they start their games. haley's team also has tuesday practices, but they also have practice on saturdays. alex's team has mondays...of course, they have had 2 practices and their first game is this monday. they decided to change the colors of alex's team shirts so we have to go buy new pants and socks for the kids. i haven't heard what color haley's team pants/shorts are supposed to be. (am i the only person who finds it crazy that girls wear shorts and not pants to play softball?)

ok, now down to my question. we live on a family street. this is great most of the time, and not so great some of the time. i have 2 nephews that are roughly the same age as alex. T lives next door to us and is 50 weeks younger than alex, J lives a couple of houses down and is about 4 months older than alex. T and alex are close friends...J and alex don't get along so well. i am not one of those moms that thinks her kids are perfect. they aren't. J's mom and dad think he is. (we have had some issues in the past i will not get into, but let's just say, if he comes over, i am watching him like a hawk.) anyway, alex has heard that J has been talking about him. i know he is hearing these things from his mom...i have people letting me know she has made the same comments. alex totally blew J off the other day when he came to our house and wanted to play. he said he doesn't want to have anything to do with someone who talks behind his back like that. i understand that, but...we are family.
i guess my question is (or are because i think this may be more than one question) what do i tell my boy? do i tell him to just ignore him? do i tell him to tell him how he feels? (like "i don't want to hang out with you because you talk about me behind my back") or do i just keep my mouth shut. i don't want my kid to feel like i'm not there for him, but i don't want to over-involve myself either.

please, any advice would be appreciated!

the expanding zoo

what house is a home without a pig!? not ours, at least not now. that's right everyone, we now have a little piglet. she's about 45 lbs of squealing fun! and in our basement no less! yes, your eyes are not deceiving you...this 45lb pig is in our basement. we thought the box we built for the dog and puppies would be perfect for her. we did not take into account the fact that pigs can jump. and they can jump pretty high. i have had to catch her 3 times in the hour i have been home. let me tell you, pigs don't really like to be picked up and put back in the box. she is now in the dog crate we brought her home in. she stands about 18 inches tall, this box is at least 24 to 30 inches tall, and she is jumping over the sides. i watched her. i was pretty amazed. i thought pigs were supposed to just eat, sleep, and poop. you know, like a newborn. oh no, i was misinformed! she is very active. she is also very curious. ok, let me describe her...she is small, she is black with white on her belly and feet, and she is adorable. she really is.
we are trying to come up with a name for her. i think i might put up a poll about what to name her. i won't promise we will use the one selected when talking directly to her, but i will use it when talking about our piggy adventures.

i had better get back to the kids and pig. i don't want any of them escaping!

I WON! I WON I WON I WON!

whoooo hoooo! i never win anything, and yet i won a $10 gift certificate to claudiasimagination's etsy shop. i won #149 from the ultimate blog party! i chose the midsummer's night dream earrings. they are little dragonfly earrings and adorable. http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5579967 i believe this should take you straight to her shop. she is one talented lady! thank you claudia!

ok, next in my line of updates is one of the families' that i watch just added to their family on saturday. baby natalie was born at 4:03 pm and was 7lb 8oz. i will hopefully get over there to see them this week. i love love love newborn babies. the size, the smell, the sounds. everything about them!

alex's team finally won an indoor soccer game. most of the teams they are playing are 12 year olds. now, the kids on alex's team are 10 and 11. so these teams they are playing are usually bigger. this past sunday, they played a team that was the same size as our boys, and they had a girl on the team. i would never say that girls can't play the same game as boys, but seriously! she wasn't really big, she was the same size as my boy. and the only thing i could think of, when i saw her out there was "please don't go by alex, he will lay you out!". and while he did pull back a little because she was a girl, he still plowed into her. it's not fair to the boys she plays against. they don't want to hurt a girl. it makes them think twice about what they are doing and they shouldn't do that in a game. they should be going for the ball and defending the goal. (i can't believe i'm saying that.) now, i wanted to play football when i was a highschooler. the boys i talked to thought it was a great idea...as long as i still had to shower and change with the team. yeah, like that would happen! but with football, you wear helmets and pads. you can't see the person you are tackling is a girl. therefore, you don't have to think "am i going to hurt her?"
ok, enough with the soapbox.

this week, my kids are on spring break. because of factors out of my contol, i will only be watching one family. these kids' don't start spring break until friday. then they are off the week after easter...when my kids are back at school. should be a fun filled 2 weeks.

happy st. patrick's day all!

how i named my blog

i saw someone else's post about how they named their blog, then a friend of mine renamed her blog (with the help of some bloggy friends) and it came to me...a post about how i came up with the name. the story may be long, and cover many years of my life, but i think it will be somewhat interesting. you may learn things you didn't know about me, and things you may have wished i kept a secret, but my history is part of me. it doesn't define me, but it shaped who i am and what i hold dear.

when i decided to start this blog, i tried to think of something witty to call it. being that i am not humorously inclined, i failed. we had just had a 10 year high school reunion, and i thought "hmmm, what did most people think when they saw me?". to understand where i am coming from, you must know how i was.
when i was 13, my parents went through a nasty divorce. my mom actually left my dad 3 weeks before my birthday. it was a pretty tough time for me. it left me a little unsure of myself. ok, who am i kidding, i was way unsure of myself. i was shy to begin with, but changing schools made it worse. i had a mom that thought school should teach her children to put condoms on bananas and that high school was for "experimenting". it didn't matter if that was drugs, or alcohol, or sex. i was always a good student. that never changed. even after i started smoking pot my sophmore year, or when i started doing some stronger drugs my junior year. i never tried meth, or coke or heroin. i did try pot, lsd, hash, well, and some pot laced with stronger stuff. i used them pretty regularly on weekends, and my junior year, when a friend had a car accident and died, i started using them more often. in fact, i smoked pot everyday from march through may. i couldn't handle not being stoned. it is pretty sad to think about how i felt so out of control. the summer between junior and senior year i met my hubby. we both had moderate drug issues. i decided, a month into senior year, i was going to get clean. no more drugs for me. well, i wasn't perfect, but i was doing better. it amazed me how blue the sky was and how green the grass was. i felt like a hazy mist had lifted from my eyes. i was totally clean by december.
now let me back up a little. when i met the hubby, we became "physical" within the first couple of weeks. i don't know how serious we were about our relationship. well, i know i wasn't all that serious. i was planning on going away to college. i didn't want some majorly serious relationship messing that up. he was a really nice guy, but he wasn't going anywhere. he was 19, he didn't go to college, and was working at a convenience store. so i was pretty guarded with my emotions. flash forward to december. in december, i missed my period. no big deal, i had friends who missed theirs pretty often. just because i was like clockwork all the time, didn't mean anything to me. then january came, and still no period. i decided to take a pregnancy test, just to show myself i wasn't pregnant. well, no such luck. i was. i was 17 years old, a senior in high school, and pregnant by a guy i had known for roughly 6 months. yeah, every parents' dream for their child. i had to tell my parents, my teachers, the school nurse, school administration, my friends, my boyfriend, his family, his friends...yeah, it still hurts to think about.
now, i still had several months left of school. i had decisions to make about the fate of my baby and myself. abortion was never a factor. i never believed in it, and getting pregnant at 17 didn't change that. adoption was a possibility, but i wasn't ready to look at that. i felt lost. not to mention the kids at school who said things like "you should give it up or have an abortion because you'd make a crappy mom". really positive and uplifting things like that. not all the kids, just a select few. a select few that i had been close to up until that moment...and then distanced myself from pretty quickly. i also had some shining angels that made it ok. my friends joe, molly, jeremy, and nike made me feel like i was the same person. they didn't treat me any differently.
now, here i am, 11+ years later, with 5 kids, a great husband, and a life i never would have thought possible. i went to college before and after alex was born, but it only lasted a semester. i wanted to focus on being a mom. my hubby asked me to marry him on my 18th birthday (30 days before the baby was born) and we were married the following may. life fell into place. i can honestly say, i haven't wanted to do any drugs since i gave them up. when i became a mom, all that was in my past. those wonderful friends fell away, but i still love each and every one of them for what they did for me. i don't think they even realized how much it meant to me.
and that is why i gave my blog this name...because "who'd of thought" my life would turn out like this!

i love my kids, but...

i have a tough time talking about how great my kids are. time after time, when people talk about their kids, i have a tough time talking about how smart my kids are, cute, talented, nice, whatever. i have never been one to brag (i don't think i have been) and i guess that's what it seems like when i say something about them. it's not like i sit in judgement about people who do. i have several people who talk about their kids all the time, how advanced they are, whatever. my sister in law talks about her 2 kids all the time. her daughter is beautiful (and she is) and they boys swarm her. her son is so smart (not so sure about this one) that she has asked for him to be tested for the gifted classes. not the teachers, mind you, she asked. several times. now, i know my kids are smart. i don't have to rub it in when i talk to her. and i don't. i just sit there and nod sympathetically. what else do you do? i know kids make mistakes all the time. i don't want to put unwanted pressure on my kids because they feel they need to live up to my standards. i remember trying to do that for my parents. so i am going to try today to brag about my kids.

alex- my oldest very smart. in 3rd grade he was reading at an 8th grade level. now, he's in 5th and can read anything he wants (except books below a 6th grade level) he remembers everything he reads (like he dad). he has the most beautiful blue/gray eyes. he is helpful and polite at his friends houses. he helps with his little brothers. he loves sports. he's great at baseball, basketball, and soccer.

haley- my oldest daughter is brilliant. she is in an advanced math group and an advanced reading group. she may come across as ditsy, but the child is so very smart. she is absolutely beautiful. i am seriously afraid of my girls becoming teenagers. she is athletic. she is a great softball player, soccer player, basketball player, and swimmer. she is so sweet natured and helpful. she loves to "mother" brothers.

grace- my youngest daughter is so friendly. she makes friends everywhere she goes. i won't say she doesn't know a stranger, but she is always quick to make friends. she loves attention. she is also very smart. she went into kindergarten not knowing her letters very well, and is already reading books. in fact she just started the reading counts program. she makes friends quickly, but she also keeps them. she and her "best friend" claudia have known each other for 3 years now, and are as close as can be! she is such a love. she loves to help me. anything i ask, she's there to do it for me. she is my other beautiful daughter. my girls may not look exactly alike, but they are still beautiful. haley is darker complected, with beautiful brown hair with golden highlights and eyes like mine. grace is blond, lighter complected, with blue/green eyes. they both have those awesome thick black eyelashes like their daddy.

josh- my middle boy is gentle giant. he was my smallest baby (8lbs 2oz), but is my biggest kid (4 years old and 50 lbs...not a bit of it fat either). he is into all things mechanical. i know this kids is just as smart as the rest of them. he loves cars, trucks, tractors, basically anything mechanical. he really listens to you when you talk to him. he loves girls too. it's only girls that are his age at my house. he plays with them just as good as gold. he loves his family. he has the same eyes as my oldest...beautiful blue framed by thick black lashes. to look at him, you would think he is much older than he is. he's the same size as most of the kids in grace's class, and speaks just as well. he is, by far, my biggest help in the house. you just ask him to do something, and it's done!

zack- my youngest is the only one that looks like my side of the family. he is a scrappy little thing. he doesn't take any s#%^ from anyone! he has the most beautiful and contagious smile. he also has the same blue eyes at the other two boys. to talk to him, you would never guess he's only 2. he's also the friendliest of my boys. he is definitely not shy! he and josh are the closest out of my 5 kids. not just in age either. zack loves his daddy. as soon as he sees him, he runs to get some pretzels so they can sit in daddy's chair together. he always wants to help out too.

ok, that ends my bragging session for today. you can see for yourself how beautiful my kids are in the picture of my family. just pay no attention to the fact they are wearing clothes that don't match. i am not the most organized mom, so i am just happy they are all wearing clothes!

i have been up to...

one week from tomorrow and we (meaning the hubby and i) are leaving for new orleans. then the following day, we leave on our cruise. let the countdown commence!

yesterday, (being friday) alex had a tournament basketball game at 9 pm against one of the other teams from his class. (there are actually 3 teams) tomorrow at 6pm, he plays against the other team from his class. this one for the championship. it's pretty cool seeing how competative these boys are on the court (and before the game), but after the game's over it's like all of the competativeness was left on the court. in fact 3 boys from our team went home with 3 boys from the other team. oh yeah, we had to play them again this morning. we lost that game.

grace played goalie in soccer today. atleast for the first half. well, playing goalie is what i like to call it...what she actually did was play in the net, twirled around, and danced a little. her team won. i think she may have touched the ball once as goalie. the second half she was out running the field.

haley has been a huge help with her younger sibs. she watched them for me most of the games. that way i can actually watch the games. she starts her games soon i think.

josh woke up this morning having one of his "it's not asthma" attacks. i had to give him a breathing treatment, and it cleared up pretty well. last time i took him into the dr's office, she told me it was croup. (not my dr, one of her partners) it's not. i know it's not. although, i'm not really wanting them to call it asthma either. he's fine now.

zack was running a low grade fever last night. it never went above 100.2. he never complained about anything. he just felt warm to me. i hope that's all it ends up being.

the hubby has sold 5 cars so far this month. for those who don't have husbands that sell cars, that is really good. really really good. especially when said hubby will be out of town for a week.

i have been keeping up with my cleaning. i seem to hit it every other day. i don't know why. i guess i just need to get into the swing of things first.

*rachel, with my kids, i always wiped for them. when they learn as young as 2 or young 3, it's hard for them to get themselves clean enough. atleast their behinds. that, and the fact my kids all have very chubby bottoms, and that makes it even harder for them to do a good job. usually around older 3 to 4 years is when they start doing for themselves all the time. atleast that's been my experience. i will let them try first, but usually they just make a bigger mess.

my personal goal is 20 items per room.
i have 9 (gulp) rooms.
my extra focus room is the little boys' room (yikes!)
i think the lbs' room will need extra attention all week. yes it is that bad.

what am i talking about? the cleaning challenge at martie's house at
www.martieshouse.blogspot.com. she had 9 kids and keeps a clean house. i only have 5 and my house looks like a tornado went thru it most of the time!

how 'bout that superbowl?! i was so excited to see the underdogs win. i don't know what it is, but tom brady really rubs me the wrong way. i don't know why. but peyton manning used to do the same thing to me. now i love the guy. i think it is all the commercials he does. he is so freakin' hilarious. congrats to the manning family! 2 superbowl champs!

both my girls have colds (please let it just be colds). they have the cough and runny noses, no fever and no stomache aches. we have been exposed to the flu. twice now actually. 2 different families that i watch have had it in the past month. (is it past or passed? i can never remember) i don't know why it would be only my girls that would get it though, it was the boys' friends that had it. we shall see.

2 weeks until we leave for our cruise! i'm getting excited, but nervous. my dad will be in florida. my step mom wants to take care of the kids for me. or at least the ones not in school. the only problem is that she is having foot surgery a week from this coming friday. she was stung by a sting ray the last time they were in florida. the venom didn't dissapate in her bloodstream, it formed a ball of infection in her foot. so now she has to have surgery to remove the infection. she said she can still watch the kids, and the only day she would need help is on wed when she goes back to work (hairstylist). i just hate doing that to her. my mother in law and sister in law also said they would help.

friday, my alex is doing the "stations of the cross" in church. he volunteered to do it. (huge)
he is playing barabas (i probably butchered the spelling). he is doing this in front of every one at church...and this is usually pretty packed. i am so proud of that kid. i don't think i would have been able to do it. i was a little more shy. that's one of the great things about our school. from kindergarten up, the kids are involved in speaking in front of church. it could be readings, or just saying a few petitions (prayer petitions), but they get up in front of everyone...and we have daily mass, so the kids get many opportunities.