as i sit here finishing up my lunch (a ham, bacon, cheddar cheese and cream cheese wrap...affectionately known as heart attack on a flour tortilla), i was thinking about all the things i have done lately, and all the things that are coming up.

this weekend was spent traveling to a town about 45 minutes away. every. single. day. on friday, haley had a tournament game there at 7. her coach picked her up and drove her there because there was no way i would be there early enough for her to warm up. they won that game. the coach's daughter spent the night with us, and then haley spent the afternoon with them while i went to alex's game, then they met me there. then alex and haley both had regular season games in the same town. so saturday was spent there. alex's game was a mess. the boys weren't playing their best, but the officiating was horrendous. we had boys getting smacked and elbowed in the face, in front of refs and parents, and no calls made. even the parents from the other team were upset at it. no one wants to win that way because when you don't call a fair game, it makes your team look weak. so they lost. haley's team won by more than 10 points. they played a really tough team on sunday (second tournament game). this game, we knew, was going to be tough. they are a very talented bunch of girls. one girl in particular was a monster. she's fast and aggressive...but fouled out because she let her emotions get the best of her and didn't keep herself in check. we won that game by more than i thought. hubby's cousin's little girl was on the other team, so we sat with them during the game. talk about awkward! but we cheered for both kids, and had a good time talking about how the families are. this was the first game we were held to 3 pts in the first half...and they only had 2. i think it ended up being 16 to 4 (most of our points were scored after that girl fouled out or because of her fouls). haley had 4 points in that game, and 12 on saturday. she is at least 2 or 3 inches taller than most of the other kids. her games had different refs than alex's. i don't know why they would put adults out to ref 4th grade girls and kids to ref 6th grade boys, but oh well.

we celebrated my girls birthdays and my sister's 29th birthday. haley's birthday is this thursday. it's hard to believe she's going to be 10. it's even harder to believe that 10 is also her shoe size! YIKES! i sure hope that means she's going to be tall, and not some clown footed freak. oh, i kid! so i will have a post on her coming soon.


my boys spent all weekend at my dad's house. it was much easier than dragging them to games all weekend. and we were going there anyway on sunday. haley spent the night there on sat and sun nights. grace went to a birthday slumber party on saturday night, and then had 2 of my nieces spend the night sunday night.

i got rid of 4 roosters on monday. thank you craigslist! a guy sent his son to pick them up and we are now down to 11 chickens...and 2 too many roosters. though i can't convince josh or haley of it. i asked josh if he would take money for his rooster, and his eyes started welling up...and i was all "bud, i'm just asking, i'm not going to make you!" oh and we now have a cute little black and white girl kitty.


our 8th graders from school are in washington d.c. this week for the annual pro-life trip. what a bad week for that. it has got to be crazy up there right now...not to mention not exactly pro-life friendly. and 4 years from now, it will be my haley going to d.c. hubby and i already had a talk. neither of us has been there yet, so we are taking turns. i can't wait for alex's teacher to get back (she went with her daughter) so we can all hear about the trip. i guess that would be the deciding factor of whether or not i would want to go with haley...or send hubby instead.

well, i am off to take care of my waking babies!

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.

pillow talk

i have been dealing with puking kids since 4am yesterday.



zack woke me up by puking on my pillow.



he didn't get any on me, but not exactly the way i want to wake up.




he continued to puke all day, and by evening he was feeling better. but he wasn't able to go to grandma and grandpa's house. and he was ticked!


i picked the rest of the kids up right before the girls played. both my girls were playing at 9am. alex was complaining about his belly hurting. yeah, great.


except it wasn't him that threw up as soon as i parked the car.


it was haley. she did good though. for the most part, she hit the parking lot and not much got in the car.


so she didn't get to play. and she's missing her volleyball game too. and i'm not sure if i'll be sending her to the game tomorrow.



the weekend isn't all shot though...josh's team won! coach d is out of town (ha go figure) and i was the one coaching. i had 2 parents helping me, but we only had 9 kids today. we have 20 on the team. for not getting much of a break, they played awesome. the kid that scored the goal is one that hasn't scored yet. i was so proud of him. he was so proud of himself. he kept asking me if i saw his kick.


then i got the call that zack puked again at the soccer field.


what a fantastic weekend!

my josh...and my team

WE WON OUR FIRST GAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i was so proud of those kids! they played their positions. we have a new little guy on our team...i was really scared he might get hurt. he's not "clueless", but he's pretty uncoordinated and well, really small. i think he has some kind of "condition". i'm not going to ask about it. it's none of my business, but i do try to be a little more aware of where i position him...and who with. i try to put him with two stronger players, that way they take more of the attention away from him, and he doesn't get run over. i don't think he noticed. he played all the positions (except goalie...i don't think i would put him in there). and he did his job.
anyway, i had several kids score goals today! no one scored twice, but.....................


JOSH SCORED HIS FIRST GOAL TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

he almost scored at the first game, you know, the game i wasn't at. i am so glad he did it today! i would have felt horrible if i missed his first one! oh, today was pictures to. i don't know if they got his goal in their action shots, but how cool is that? tomorrow, we play again.. i sure hope they play as well as they did today.

you know, it's not that they won the game, or that they scored several goals, it's that they listened to what we've been saying. seeing them actually use some of the stuff we've been working on with them....man there is nothing better!


well, and seeing your son score his first goal is pretty cool too!

ballgame, ball practices, and a couple of sign ups

i love it when everything hits at once. alex plays baseball tonight at 6, haley and josh practice at 5:30 until around 7, and we have to sign the kids up for 4-H tonight.

i sure wish i had a money tree growing out back.

oh, well.

it looks like there will be 6 children raising chickens at my house.

funny, i'm pretty sure i only have 5 kids...and only 2 that can actually raise animals in 4-H...

i told the parents of the kids i watch, and those that i used to watch that it would be ok if they wanted to raise them at my house. these kids live in subdivisions, so it's not like they can raise chickens at their houses. plus, they spend quite a bit of time at my house. plus, by the time the chicks get here, they will be getting out for summer break. plus, these kids are great kids. they are always helpful. i know that they will be responsible.

so, i am really looking forward to my dad coming home. he's been stuck in detroit (apparently people up there don't like showing up for work*) and he's hoping to get the job site to a point where he can come home...with some stuff to help us build a chicken coop.
well, chicken and turkey coop. alex wants to do turkeys too. i told him to think about guineas. they eat ticks. that would be pretty darn useful!

so i guess i will be missing alex's game tonight. he's going to miss his soccer game this weekend (him and grace both) because they will be on a float trip. haley's going to miss her volleyball game (darn, 9pm game, and i'm going to miss it). they're going to be back for haley's soccer game on sunday.


*i've never been to detroit. i'm not "hating" on it. that's just the issues my dad's had with some of the contractors up there.

busy busy day

i have about 45 minutes before we start going...the two girls have games at the same time at two different places. after that, josh plays right away, then alex plays 90 minutes after that at a field that is about 30 to 45 minutes away. i should be done with soccer, and home around 5 tonight. then volleyball at 8.
these are the times i really miss having a husband that is home on the weekends.

soccer and a mayo sandwich

let's start with the mayo sandwich...i know you are all wondering "what is that?"
well, my boys like cheese sandwiches with mayo/miracle whip (same thing in my book). but i don't have any cheese today. hubby cleaned me out. so zack wanted just a "bandaise samich". he ate every bite. now haley used to eat pickle and mayo sandwiches.

no, i have no idea how my kids come up with such weird ideas.

on to soccer practice.

josh is having some breathing issues lately. i guess it's the asthma flaring up. i hope so anyway, as i was giving him breathing treatments. he did really good, considering he lost steam about 20 minutes into practice. we had enough kids to scrimmage. we worked on playing in our positions. i don't mean to sound like i know soooo much, but my half of the team played their positions...and even scored a couple of goals. coach d's team, uh, not so much. i made sure my side knew their jobs: offense-score goal, defense-stop the ball, goalie-catch the ball. coach d focused too much on just the offense, so his defense was playing in the grass. i think as long as you are making sure they are staying focused, it's an easy job. focus is the main thing they need to learn. they are little kids, so it's not easy. you have to make sure you praise them when they are doing the right thing. if they stay in position, that earns MAJOR praise. that's one of the hardest things for them to do. they have to focus on doing their job. it's really rewarding to see them do what you tell them to. and when it works, and they are scoring goals, it shows the kids they are doing it right.

hubby is taking haley to the doctor right now. she has poison ivy (i'm pretty sure) and in the week she's had it, none of the normal treatments have helped. in fact, it's spreading more. she has spots of it all over her lower leg. one is pretty big. we've tried caladryl, ivy dry, benadryl, and cortisone. all of that, and it spread. so off to the doctor. hopefully they don't put her on steroids. poor alex put on like 15 pounds the first time he was on steroids. well, i guess it doesn't matter as long as it clears it up. it's really nasty!

off to finish my lunch!

weekend in chicago

well, it's official. my weekend is over, and i had a good time. we didn't get in until 9pm friday night. i was pretty tired (so was my mom) so we had dinner on our way up, and just slept after we got there.
saturday we had to be at the spa at 8:45. we went to mario tricoci's. let me just say, those people working there are so nice. we had a great time there. we started our morning with massages (hot stone one for me) and it was the best massage i have ever had. sometimes, you feel more bruised after one (especially if they have to work hard on specific muscles) but i got up feeling absolutely wonderful. thank you louisa! then on to the facial. it was good. i've had better, but she did a good job. then it was off to have an olive oil scrub. you have to take off everything, and then put on a disposable thong. yeah, laugh away. i was basically scrubbed with olive oil, plus a few other types of oil, and sea salts. it was harsh, but in a good way. you come out glowing with radiant skin. i've never had anything like that before...it was pretty cool. my skin still feels soft and smooth. then they put makeup on me. my mom said it looked great (really heavy around the eyes) but i just think it was too much. i don't really wear makeup...not unless i'm going somewhere special. so maybe it was just the fact i don't wear any that made it seem like too much. anyway, then i had a manicure and pedicure. a pumpkin pedicure to be precise. very different. but my feet are so smooth (and pumpkin smelling) and pretty right now. i screwed up my manicure when i changed my clothes (my fault totally). just one nail. after that we were done (my mom got the same stuff done that i did) and we headed back to the hotel. i washed my hair (it was pretty nasty from the oil) and we went to pizzeria uno. really really good pizza. after that we went back to the hotel and took naps (i know, how exciting.) and then went out to dinner. we went to this place down the street from our hotel, flemings prime steakhouse. oh, my, gosh, it was some of the best food! of course i had a steak. it was perfect. we both had a wedge salad with blue cheese. i've never seen that much blue cheese on a single salad before. it was more like for a salad to feed 4+ people. really really good. then i had a baked potato that was one of the best i've had in a while. butter, sour cream, cheese and bacon...mmmmmm!
sunday we went to shedd's aquarium. it was ok. lots to see. but it made me miss my kids even more. we didn't stay there for long, just enough time to see a few exhibits and pick up some stuff for the kiddos. then we drove home. it was a pretty good time. very little talk of politics (thank God for that, we are total opposites) and we got along pretty well.
the kids were excited to see me. i was so happy to be home. jeff kept me updated on how all the games went. alex's team lost their game...pretty badly. haley's team won their soccer game. she played goalie and only let one get by. they won 6 or 7 to 1. they had a lot of shots on her, but she blocked all but one. josh's team lost 2 to 1. he almost had a goal, but my MIL walked up as he was getting ready to shoot, and he stopped to wave at her. priorities! grace's team won. she played goalie for half the game, and had an assist. her little friend claudia had 3 goals. she's the size of my 3 year old, and 6 months older than grace. small but mighty! haley's team lost 2 out of 3 of her volleyball matches. she did good, they just haven't had much practice.
that pretty much sums up the weekend. well, my poor hubby was so lonely. the kids stayed the night saturday at my dad's house. so he came home to an empty home. poor guy!

anyway, got to get back to the kiddos!

only a couple of days left...

until i go to chicago. actually i leave on friday. i am excited, but i'm also a little worried. it's just me and my mom. we are about as different as you can get. she is waaaaay more wild than i ever was.

no, seriously.


i'm not joking.

i'm not much of a drinker. i'm not much for being pushed to drink, or whatever. so, we will see. i really hope i have some great stuff to tell.


anyway, coaching is still, well, coaching. last nights practice was cancelled. well, coach d and i cancelled josh's, and grace's was cancelled (not that she was going to go, she came home from school with a headache ) but alex and haley still had theirs. and since i had to be there anyway, well, i had a very small practice. just josh and 3 or 4 other boys. and another dad helped. he was very nice. cracked me up too. he tried to tell me he'd never played soccer before. well, he had some pretty mean foot skills, so i find that hard to believe. anyway, he was there helping me for about an hour. his little guy is so adorable. all of the boys are adorable. i'm actually surprised at how fast i've learned most of their names. the only one i still mess up (in my head) is one little guy i want to call "paco" all the time. his dad is the one that was helping me last night. and yes, they are from mexico. but that's not why i want to call him that, he actually looks a lot like paco. (rachel, you remember him? he was a senior when we were freshmen) his dad doesn't, but the little guy sure does.

anyway, i need to be off to haley's volleyball practice. she's doing really well. she's one of the few girls that can serve the ball over the net and in the court. and she can hit the ball once it's served to her. that's pretty impressive...to me. i don't know about anyone else.

sorry, i got distracted. kids are watching the cheetah girls movie.

dance me, dance me if you can!

ummm, no, i can't dance.

change is on the horizon

i'm not sure why, but i know some big changes are coming for our little corner of the universe. not "the" change for me...at least i don't think that's it...more like something is coming. i'm not sure what, i'm not sure why, but i can feel it. i'm hoping it's just a weight and inches change...but it feels bigger than that. i can't say if it's good or bad...just that something is coming.

soccer is going well. we had our first practice tues, and another one tonight. the guy helping me is really nice (i'll just call him coach d). but, well, a tad on the boring side. i kind of let him take the lead, and i think that was a bit of a mistake on my part. not major, he coaches his older son's team, so he just has his way, and i have mine. i think kids learn by doing. he likes to make them listen to him explain...and explain...and explain some more. out of the hour, i think the kids got to use the ball for maybe half the time. maybe. i just don't work that way. 4 and 5 year olds want to do, not be told how do it. they don't know how do dribble the ball, or kick it in the goal. they have no clue how to pass it to their team mates. that's not something you can explain. they have to try it. he wants to test them on what a corner kick is, or a fullback kick. uh, hello? they are 4 and 5. i didn't even know what they were until 2 years ago. they just need to get the basics of a) kick the ball b) don't touch it with your hands. this is tough enough.
sorry, i kind of started ranting on you. it's my hubby's fault. if he just would have let me rant and rave about it tuesday night, i would have been over it by now. instead he told me it was all my fault, and to either change it or shut up about it. (well, a little nicer than that, but you get the idea)

alex has his first baseball game tonight. they actually started on tuesday, but he had been sick with a stomach bug, so he wasn't allowed to go. (no school, no sports is our motto) he's pretty excited. they won the first game, and they had just had a soccer practice right before the game. haley has practice today. i don't think grace has it tonight. i think she's just on tuesdays. they are all so excited about games starting the 6th.

our parish picnic is this sunday. i love the picnic. we always have so much fun, and see so many people. i help out with cutting the pies (home made pies) and jeff helps seat people at the dinner. kettle cooked beef that is the best stuff around. i don't know how they make it, but oh my gosh, it's heaven on a fork. yes, it really is that good. there is also fried chicken, hamburgers, liver and gizzards (blech!!) and so much more! and that's just the food. they have bands, and beer, and wine, and a kids' section with games and inflatable rides, and a "train". i must say, i love working there. you meet so many other people in the parish you may not normally come in contact with. the kids are excited about it too. alex gets to work it too. kids in 5th grade and up get assigned stuff to do. he's working by jeff. i got to start getting stuff from the garden, they always need tomatoes and anything else from the garden. they have a country store they sell fruit and veggies, and anything homemade. jellies/jams, breads, deserts, anything.

well, i'm off to pick up kids from school.

math? isn't that for geeks?

my kids started back at school today. *happy dance* i picked them up at 11 am. i know, why bother even starting the day if you are going to be out in just a few hours? this was the question my kids asked me. well, a school day is a school day. that's it. period.
alex asked me if i knew who his math teacher this year. well, duh...the same teacher you had last year, right? nope. guess who is in the accelerated math now. that's right. so i have 2 math whizzes. at least 2 so far. grace is no slouch. i have told my kids that math is pretty easy. well, maybe easy isn't the right word. math is constant. 2+2=4 that will not change. once you understand the principle, that's it. i wasn't a math genius, but i did alright.

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm i smell brownies.

oh yeah, that's right. i'm making brownies with chocolate chips in it. i'm celebrating my pounds dropped. a whole 3 pounds.
i'm going to pack them all back on!
hahahaha

i talked to the guy in charge of soccer. guess who volunteered to coach the prek/kindergarten boys soccer team. that's right. yours truly. haley's team is joining up with my niece's team. neither team had enough players. so it actually works out better for me. if i need to send haley with someone for her game...i just send her next door. perfect! hubby's boss is still alex's coach. i 'm not sure when they start practices, but i hope it's soon. he's going to be one tired little pup. with soccer and fall baseball, he's going to be tired.

josh is so happy. he gets to start school next week and he gets to start soccer too. i'm actually excited about coaching soccer this year. the first year or two are easy to coach. at least for me they are. i just cover the basics of the sport. i don't have to come up with plays. i have my whistle. i can yell pretty loud. i handle little guys all day long.

alex leaves for his fishing trip today. he's going with my mom. they both sound pretty excited about it. i need to talk to my brother though. i heard that my mom may have been saying unkind things about my dad and stepmom within earshot of my kids. or directly to my kids. if that's the case, well, we will be changing the amount and how my kids spend time with her without hubby or myself present. if it keeps happening, well, let's hope it's not happening at all. my kids come first. my kids love my dad and stepmom. i will not let her damage that. end of story.

and that, dear friends, is the end of my bloggy free time. until the next time!

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!

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!

last night

in case i haven't said this before, i am not a basketball fan. i've never played it. i never really enjoyed watching the pro's and i didn't really like watching my son play the first couple of years. now, that being said, i do actually find myself getting really involved and interested in the games now. my oldest daughter is going to start playing this year. basketball has been in my family for a long time. my uncle had a basketball scholarship to college (he is only 11 years older than me) and my aunt played when she was in high school. i remember going to watch them play. i was never really coordinated. i still can barely get from point a to point b without tripping. so i never played any sports.
ok, that being said, i went to a high school basketball game last night. my sister in law is the assistant coach for the local catholic high school girls' varsity basketball team. she is also the head coach of the jv team. the girls are playing in the districts. they went to state last year and took 4th. we are hoping that they make it that far again. a friend's daughter is one of their star players. she is a very sweet, very talented, very beautiful girl. her little sister is one of haley's friends. i got to say, i was really into the game. it was amazing. the people who turned out to watch these teams play. the gym was packed (and it's a big gym! troy's gym) and most of them were cheering for our team. it was a great time. we brought the 4 younger kids (alex had his own practice that night) and haley was the only one interested in the game. but even she was distracted from it. she had about 4 girls from her class at the game to hang out with. the gym was filled with alumni-most of which didn't have a kid on the team...they just wanted to support their school and team. it was a really cool experience.

*their was one girl on the other team that reminded me of you rachel. she was 6ft 2inches and a really cute girl. her team lost though. so since i don't think i ever saw you guys play, i'll stop the comparison there.

so to summarize, i will no longer talk about my dislike of basketball. i have been made a fan.

promises are made to be broken, right?

well, if you remember my previous post on monday, i had promised to start on the little boys' room. well, i didn't. in fact, i didn't do a gosh darn thing yesterday. well, except vote...and picked up kids, and did recess duty for about 2 hours, and make lunch, oh yeah, and almost finished a blanket. but, i totally slacked off on cleaning.
today is another day. i decided that before i can go anywhere (playdate) we have to get some cleaning done. in fact, before the kids could eat breakfast (believe me, they aren't starving. they've been snacking all morning), they had to pick up all the toys in the lower level. that's the living room, kitchen, dining area, and hallway. sounds like alot, but it's basically one big room. they did a great job. they weren't too keen on the idea of having to pick up in the boys' room after breakfast...but if they wanted to go anywhere or do anything, they had to help. i didn't get it done. i think we are about half way there (oh oh, living on a prayer...sorry, bon jovi took over my body for a second). i am going thru stuff as we pick it up, and i am getting rid of a lot of toys and clothes. their room looked horrible when we started...like a toy store ate a bunch of clothes and then threw up...now it just looks bad. that's an improvement, right?
we have 2 basketball games this weekend, and an indoor soccer game. the basketball games are against the same team...alex's friends. the other school team. it should be a fun time. i actually like playing against them. i can root for both teams, and cheer them by name. except for the win/lose aspect of the game, it's the most fun.
i am so excited that jericho starts in a few days. i love that show. i know it's kind of gloom and doom...but skeet ulrich is so so hot. i know, that's not a good reason to watch a show. but he is seriously, seriously broodingly handsome. (did i just make up some words to describe his hotness? i think i did) perhaps i will come up with a good "sexy men i see on tv" post someday.
ok, time to get ready for the playdate.
i will update about my challenge numbers later.

weekend recap

ok, quick nephew update. he is doing great. he is going to be moved to a rehab hospital this week i believe. he is mentally all there...a little whiny, but what man wouldn't be? physically he is doing great. thanks for all the prayers! they definitely worked!
friday
jeff and i got away from the kids for the night. we went and saw "i am legend" and went out to eat. the movie was ok. not a "wow" type of movie. not an original idea for a plot, that's for sure. i won't ruin it for anyone, so i won't tell you what movies it was like. it was good, but not great. had will smith not been in it, we wouldn't have gone to see it. i don't think anyone would have. my brother in law was having friends over, so we stopped by. his friend, alexa, was there. her parents took one of the puppies. she said he is like 35 pounds already, and her parents love him like a kid. they are going to take him to obedience classes starting this week. glad to hear they love him.
saturday
grace had her first indoor soccer game this past weekend. she scored a goal and her team won 6-3. their game started at 7:30 AM and the place is a good 30 minute drive from my dad's house. the kids stayed the night there and so my dad drove her to her game. on the way back, she threw up all over herself. my dad is a little hard of hearing, and she didn't speak up, so she was pretty gross when they got home. she slept most of the rest of the day. they brought all the kids home after they dropped alex off for his game at 12. alex's team played the other team from his school. alex's team won. he scored 5 points and fouled out in the 4th quarter.
i got to go out with a bunch of moms. i went to my friend jen's house (the nurse) and she had a "spa" party. a nice lady selling beauticontrol products gave us mini facials, foot stuff, all kinds of good stuff. me being the youngest there, i didn't get as much stuff done to my face. i have fairly clear skin, and not too many lines and/or wrinkles yet, but most of the other moms were atleast 7 to 10 years older than me. it was so much fun to sit around and talk, and just be a woman.
sunday
second sunday in a row that we actually all made it to church. jeff is not an early riser, so we made it to the 11 o'clock mass. the boys were so good in church i was amazed. we had several people make comments about how good the boys were. always nice to hear good things about your kids. we came home to grab jeff some food (he hadn't eaten breakfast yet) and the neighbor's friend (who took a puppy) was out with the puppy. they named him marley. he is a good 5 pounds bigger than sally. he seems happy and healthy. she loves him. i'm glad he has a home where he is loved like he is. from there, we went to the hospital. jacob is doing well. he is in a normal room, his roommate is a teenage boy too. i don't know what happened to him, i didn't ask, but i heard he's a wrestler. we stayed there for a couple of hours. we left there in time to get to alex's next basketball game. he's in a tournament. he played the same team again, the really tough team that totally creamed our boys the first game of the first tournament they were in. (did that make sense?) we didn't lose by as much. only like 13 points. we actually outscored them in the second half. had our team played the first half the way they did the second, we could have taken them. that's nice to see. our boys were so sure they were going to lose going in, i don't think they realized how close they came to winning it in the end.

did i ever say i don't really like watching basketball? i still don't like it much, but when it's my kid out there, i can get interested.

crazy???

now i know that's not the pc way to put it, but since i'm talking about myself, i figured it was ok. i have been trying to pay more attention to myself lately. i have noticed that during certain times of the month, i am a total horn dog. which my husband appreciates, but worries me some. you see i become way more visual. i start checking out men...any men. i have always appreciated the male body. you know strong broad shoulders, big (but not too big) biceps, nice butt. but that particular time of the month, i am like a moth to a flame. not that i would ever even consider acting on it...but i worry that it could be just a stepping stone? i don't know. then, of course, at other times of the month i get angry. not just crabby, but "want to make someone cry" angry. so i have decided it is time to get checked by a "female" doctor. i saw my family doctor last year, but he really wasn't helpful. all he could say was it wasn't my thyroid, and all my blood work came out fine. i know my mom (i love her dearly) had issues after 30 (ok she had them before then too), and family members that are bipolar or addicts of one kind or another, i am scared to death it could be me too. so hopefully i am going to head it off. this is so hard to talk about. i have talked a little to my friend jen (the nurse). she said it sounded more hormonal to her, and maybe it could be a case of that ppms (?) or whatever the really bad pms is. so i am hoping and praying that's what it is.

ok, enough of that stuff. here's what you really want to hear about. WE ARE DOWN TO 3 PUPPIES!!!! two boys and one little girl left. today, there might be one more person coming to take a puppy. YIPPEE, WHOO-HOO, YAHOO!!!! can you tell i am a little excited? this has been a great experience, the kids have loved it. the pups are so sweet and good with the kids. still, i am ready for them to go to homes other than mine.

4H was last night. i brought 4 kids because alex had basketball practice, and jeff had to work. grace actually does clover kids. that's for kids 5-8 years old. they learned about worms. they got to make a worm habitat and bring home worms. josh and zack were very interested too. they got to make habitats too. so did haley. so we have 4 containers of worms in my kitchen. am i not the luckiest woman on earth? crazy hormones and worms. what i life i live!
alex had his first basketball practice last night. it went well. he loves it. i am not a basketball person. i never really liked watching it as much as football... soccer... paint drying. but i must say, i love watching my kids. i don't care what it is, how boring i may think it is, i love to see them playing.

summary of today's post. i am hormonal. i still have puppies. i have worms.
yeah, that sounds right.

am i way behind or what?

so not much is going on. the big 4h meeting is tonight. i get to sign up the kids for the farm animals of their choosing (pig for alex and sheep for haley). thank goodness for the man in charge of the sheep...he keeps them at his farm, we just visit, and in july haley has to go and start working with her lamb to get it ready for showing. now the pig, on the other hand, gets to live at our house. yes, i know, i am the luckiest woman on earth.

soccer is almost over for grace. she only has 2 games left for this season. she LOVES soccer too. the other monsters have until the 2nd weekend in november for soccer, and then basketball starts. it is a never ending cycle of sports.

alex and zack had their yearly checkups. zack is 29lbs. whoo-hoo! (what is really sad is alex weighed 29lbs at a year). 2 years old and hasn't broken the 30 mark. that's ok, he's the runt (like his daddy) i can't expect major growth. he is in the 50-75% for his weight and the 75-90% for height. alex is 11. he weighs over 120lbs!!! now granted he is over 5 feet tall now, but i didn't weigh that much until i was pregnant with him! i am trying not to make a big deal about it. if it doesn't bother him, i won't let it bother me. i just am trying to implement some healthier choices for food in our house. what is really crazy is, he isn't a fat kid. he is a little chubbier than the other kids, but he's not what you would think a 120lb 5th grader would look like. jeff was like that too at his age. he went thru a really chubby stage...i mean unrecognizable chubby stage. he said in 7th grade, it was like someone threw a switch, and he grew and thinned out. of course he started lifting weights around that time too. (which is why he is the shortest of his brothers...he being only 6' and they are all well over) so only time will tell. he isn't getting teased in school, he is still active in sports, i know he is ok with it right now.

puppies are growing like crazy. they are averaging out to 4lbs each. they aren't even 3 weeks old yet. some of them are going to have the golden retriever type of fur (they are so soft and furry) and the others' fur look more like mastiff (more coarse). they are barking and growling now, and eating puppy food. they are getting personalities, and are just so freakin' cute. unfortunately 2 of the 5 homes we had fell thru. i think after the 3 people who definitely want one come and pick up theirs, then i will start actively trying to find homes for them. i want to make sure these others get first choice. after all, they have been waiting patiently for the past 3 weeks.

that's it for now.

weekend potpourri

well, since last posting, we had a birthday party (well a half birthday party), kids' had a day off of school, we closed up shop at the bookfair, had 4 soccer games, and met the girl that broke nathan's heart about a year ago. it sounds like alot, but it didn't seem like much.

the birthday party for haley went really really well. it was a sand volleyball party for haley and her friend katy. all the girls from the class showed up, and one boy. (apparently the boys had a soccer game at the same time) the kids had a blast, it was really inexpensive, and the girls got a lot of very nice stuff. and the parents who stayed had a great time too.

today the kids were off school for teacher's workshop. alex spent the night at a friend's house last night, so i still have yet to see him. the kids here had a pretty good day. it didn't rain so they played outside for a while. they painted their nails, and they went to grandma and grandpa's house for a while. fun had by all but me...got a mean belly ache today.

closing up the bookfair was more of a hassle this year than the past years. the teacher that normally oversees us is a regular teacher this year not resource/gifted so she had to go to the meeting friday and i ended up closing it down with debbie, and a bunch of kids. not so easy. we were constantly having to remind the kids where they were supposed to be putting stuff, and making sure the teachers had all that they were supposed to have. not the most fun 2 hours i have ever spent.

the kids had their soccer games. haley played goalie again and didn't let a single goal get by. and they played a tough team too. alex's team won their first game. they had moved up to division A and the competition is fierce, but there is no reason why this should be the first game they have won. grace had 2 games, she played goalie in the first one and let 3 goals by...she didn't play goalie in the second game. unfortunately they haven't won a game yet...but they don't know that.

we met this girl last night. she and nathan started talking again recently. apparently she had an epiphany about how she is self absorbed (shocker?) and realized (with her parents telling her constantly) that she never gave the relationship she had with nathan a chance. she seems like a nice girl. jeff works with her. i don't know if they will start dating again. i told him that he needs to take it easy. she hasn't exactly proved to be someone he can trust with his heart. so i am really hoping that i didn't totally overstep there. i couldn't say i didn't like her, because the whole time he dated her (like a year and a half) she never once met his friends or his family. not one single time. he met her family, friends, acquaintances, whatever. she had no interest in his family or friends. strange, huh? oh well, it will work out the way god wants it to.

oh yeah, we have 6 boy puppies and 4 girl puppies. i guess the kids had a harder time figuring out which was which. but i think we have homes for 5 or 6 so far. not bad considering they are just over a week old. i hope it works out.

shall i start something new?

i would like to start something completely new to me. i would love to not be completely boring. ok, i may not be "completely" boring. there are times when i insert my foot into my mouth, thus causing everyone around me to become uncomfortable. i feel like all i ever talk about is my kids. there really isn't anything i do. it is all about my kids, what they do, what my hubby does, what the freakin' dog does. i don't do anything. and when i do open my trap it's to say "hey cindy i heard you adopted a little girl." only to hear "no actually that fell thru last week". oh, this isn't the first time i've done this. i asked my aunt when her baby was due (this happened several years ago), she told me she had a miscarriage. yeah. i felt like total dog doo on the bottom of someone's shoe. people like me shouldn't be let out of the house.

rachel, thanks for turning me on to the Krunchy mom. i read her blog everyday now.

kids have soccer practice today. all 3 in one day. what will i do with the other 2 days we normally have to run around to and from practice? jeff is selling cars still. he really likes the new place. the dog still has 10 pups...5 boys, 5 girls. some are still black, some are gray, one is getting some brown in his coat. i haven't gotten much of anything done.

some very nice people keep leaving bags of clothes on my porch. seriously, i have had 5 trashbags full of clothes on my front porch in the passed 3 weeks. very nice, but i have like 25 loads of laundry everyday as it is, and now i have another 10 to work in. plus it reminds me i need to go thru my own kids clothes to pass around the the youngers. this is not a chore i relish. which may explain why it rarely gets done. thank you driveby-bag-leaver.