oh wait, that song is let's go fly a kite..... well today i have changed the lyrics to ride a bike! we have been taking family bike rides for a couple weeks now--up to three miles at a ride! today was our first ride with jack on TWO WHEELS! we made it 1.6 miles! way to go buddy! he is growing up before our very eyes :) luke does splendidly as well--i love to watch those little legs whip the peddles around!
can't wait until the next ride for the four of us--let's go ride, ride a bike! :)
Sunday, July 31, 2011
good things
i told josh i would wake up today without the cranky pants :) so far sooooo good. to help me facilitate this, i am going to blog some happy things :)
**date night last night was lovely--dinner at el rancho, a walk and harry potter 7 part 2
**our boys enjoyed taylin babysitting them
**i got to see owen twice this past week and get a baby snuggle--it is nice that they use our house as the half way spot to exchange him, means i get to see him more often
**max LOVES to play now--loves to fetch and wrestle
**my class was cancelled on saturday so i got to spend time at anderson and girls' orchard. we went over (10 min away) and caught up with my high school friend tiffany and her family--so nice!
**i have a meeting tomorrow at 1:00pm. after that, i am done with grad class thoughts for 21 days :) then i focus focus focus....write my thesis project and GRADUATE with my MASTERS in DECEMBER. i submitted my project proposal paper last night!
there that feels good. coffee is brewing, sunday paper is waiting, this mama is off to relax :)
**date night last night was lovely--dinner at el rancho, a walk and harry potter 7 part 2
**our boys enjoyed taylin babysitting them
**i got to see owen twice this past week and get a baby snuggle--it is nice that they use our house as the half way spot to exchange him, means i get to see him more often
**max LOVES to play now--loves to fetch and wrestle
**my class was cancelled on saturday so i got to spend time at anderson and girls' orchard. we went over (10 min away) and caught up with my high school friend tiffany and her family--so nice!
**i have a meeting tomorrow at 1:00pm. after that, i am done with grad class thoughts for 21 days :) then i focus focus focus....write my thesis project and GRADUATE with my MASTERS in DECEMBER. i submitted my project proposal paper last night!
there that feels good. coffee is brewing, sunday paper is waiting, this mama is off to relax :)
Saturday, July 30, 2011
in a ruffle
well i have got my panties in a ruffle....and for once i don't really want to go into all the details. this tells me that i am letting control issues get the best of me. i sit here in a funk. when this happens, i am rude...... and that does not make me feel very good.
i get jealous easily.
i get hurt easily.
i get upset easily.
these move into the funk and then the funk turns into brooding.
brooding leads to panties in a ruffle.
dang. i need to stop.
i get jealous easily.
i get hurt easily.
i get upset easily.
these move into the funk and then the funk turns into brooding.
brooding leads to panties in a ruffle.
dang. i need to stop.
Friday, July 29, 2011
menus--for real!
it has been forever since i planned an entire week....... so i am excited! :) here is what i got for the week.....
Thursday: Grilled Pork Tenderloins “Peach Salsa” White Rice—make double (coconut??) Fruit and Bread
Friday: Tacos, Rice, guacomole, Black Beans
Friday 7/29/11 Grad class—josh and boys on their own
Saturday 7/30/11 DATE NIGHT!
Sunday Roast, German Butterball smashed potatoes and gravy, Fresh Green Beans
Bread
Monday: Ribs,Roasted Tomatoes with Bread (see new recipe) Baked Potatoes
Tuesday:
SUPER Fast—Puppy Preschool and Softball
out or chicken nuggets
French fries
Wednesday: Garden Veggie Subs, Chips, Fruit
Tuesday
Thursday: Grilled Pork Tenderloins “Peach Salsa” White Rice—make double (coconut??) Fruit and Bread
Friday: Tacos, Rice, guacomole, Black Beans
Saturday: Grilled Kielbasa, Veggie Kabobs, Skwered Red Skins
Sunday: Mr. Foisies' Pasties, Marinated-tomatoes, Chips and Fruit
Monday: BLTs, Fruit Salad Chips? Fries?
Tuesday: Burgers, Roasted Potatoes
NEW recipes to follow!
Thursday, July 28, 2011
slumber party
the boys had their first slumber party last night! our neighbor kaden (almost 6) came over and stayed ALL night! the boys got to giggle for about 40 minutes before i let them know it was time to sleep :) kaden had trouble sleeping but an hour or so later and another bedroom, he was sound asleep! :)
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
part 2
relaxation part 2: bad poetry in motion
tueday i went to the shay
jack played legos while luke and grandpa
went this and that way
grandma walked max and
we got some time to play
a walk in the sunshine completed the day
burgers on the grill and corn on the cob
of course the boys ate none of that at
more time to play
more time to smile
what a nice vacay :)
tueday i went to the shay
jack played legos while luke and grandpa
went this and that way
grandma walked max and
we got some time to play
a walk in the sunshine completed the day
burgers on the grill and corn on the cob
of course the boys ate none of that at
more time to play
more time to smile
what a nice vacay :)
hypothesis
i have nerdy children. and i LOVE it. i love that they use words like "hypothesis" and "frustrated" and "appropriate" on a regular basis. for pete's sake, luke is 4 and jack is just about 6--those are big words used correctly for small kiddos.
our dinner time conversation tonight revolved around jack and a hypothesis he came up with--he thinks that you can inject a tomato with a chicken pox vaccine and it will get chicken pox :) i asked how he would go about proving that hypothesis....and there he got stuck. so our conversation evolved into data/information collection......and a new hypothesis was born so we could collect data.
experiment: pizza brands
the problem:
hypothesis: people will like bc pizza best
data collection: on facebook
so jack and i posted the question on facebook. it was awesome to see the results roll in!! he also called grandma/pa and grandma/pa to get their input. all in all he had just about 50 or so people give their opinion! :)
the results:
25 Pizza Hut
21 BC
1 Lunchable
5 Little Caesars!
5 G & D and 5 Jets (counted in results above when told they had to pick one of the four)
our dinner time conversation tonight revolved around jack and a hypothesis he came up with--he thinks that you can inject a tomato with a chicken pox vaccine and it will get chicken pox :) i asked how he would go about proving that hypothesis....and there he got stuck. so our conversation evolved into data/information collection......and a new hypothesis was born so we could collect data.
experiment: pizza brands
the problem:
hypothesis: people will like bc pizza best
data collection: on facebook
so jack and i posted the question on facebook. it was awesome to see the results roll in!! he also called grandma/pa and grandma/pa to get their input. all in all he had just about 50 or so people give their opinion! :)
the results:
25 Pizza Hut
21 BC
1 Lunchable
5 Little Caesars!
5 G & D and 5 Jets (counted in results above when told they had to pick one of the four)
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
relaxation
relaxation at its finest--northern michigan.
josh is gone for the week--north carolina for his orientation for red hat--so this mama loaded two boys, one puppy and entire house hold full of stuff (or so it seems) into the truck and headed north.
sunday we spend the afternoon canoeing on lake mitchell--the boys have never been :) we took turns staying on shore with max and letting jack or luke swim while the other one went out with two of us. dad and i spent most of the time in the canoe but mom also went out :) oh and it turns out that max is a SUPER water dog :) she was a happy pup in lake mitchell. that evening, we walked down and spent time with my aunt missy and uncle roger. it was a nice day.
monday, we took an adventure! we loaded the five of us into the truck, left max at home and took off to sleeping bear dunes! oh what fun! we drove the scenic drive, climbed dunes, got sand in our eyes, climbed more dunes, had a picnic, played in lake michigan, collected rocks, explored the boat museum in glen haven, watched a blacksmith make hooks using all turn of the century tools and methods, explore leland, at salt water taffy and then ended our day in traverse city....at the food court for supper before heading home! few! it was long for the boys but they had a great time. i am thankful for fabulous friends and family in cadillac who let max out for bathroom breaks but especially thankful for karie (who i used to baby sit....but now she is 22!) for taking max for a few hours to PLAY :) i capped my night off back at her parents' house for wine, a bon fire and relaxation!
so relaxed. nice isn't it? :)
josh is gone for the week--north carolina for his orientation for red hat--so this mama loaded two boys, one puppy and entire house hold full of stuff (or so it seems) into the truck and headed north.
sunday we spend the afternoon canoeing on lake mitchell--the boys have never been :) we took turns staying on shore with max and letting jack or luke swim while the other one went out with two of us. dad and i spent most of the time in the canoe but mom also went out :) oh and it turns out that max is a SUPER water dog :) she was a happy pup in lake mitchell. that evening, we walked down and spent time with my aunt missy and uncle roger. it was a nice day.
monday, we took an adventure! we loaded the five of us into the truck, left max at home and took off to sleeping bear dunes! oh what fun! we drove the scenic drive, climbed dunes, got sand in our eyes, climbed more dunes, had a picnic, played in lake michigan, collected rocks, explored the boat museum in glen haven, watched a blacksmith make hooks using all turn of the century tools and methods, explore leland, at salt water taffy and then ended our day in traverse city....at the food court for supper before heading home! few! it was long for the boys but they had a great time. i am thankful for fabulous friends and family in cadillac who let max out for bathroom breaks but especially thankful for karie (who i used to baby sit....but now she is 22!) for taking max for a few hours to PLAY :) i capped my night off back at her parents' house for wine, a bon fire and relaxation!
so relaxed. nice isn't it? :)
Saturday, July 23, 2011
took a while.... but here they are :)
it may have taken a while, but here are the pictures from my 31st birthday party ! i had a great night with great friends at the melting pot! :)
 |
| jackie! beautiful pregnant jackie! :) |
 |
| me, cindy g, jackie, chris |
 |
| sisters! i did not actually order two drinks....they said they ran out of a big glass so mine came in two! :) |
 |
| lori and ellen |
 |
| JANE! |
 | |
| lovely ladies! sarah, lynda, me, cindy, jackie chris, jane, amber, lori, ellen **amber came all the way from lansing to see me! |
*squeal*
sometimes a girl has just gotta squeal! today i booked my flight to new mexico to help fulfill matron of honor duties! i am SO darn excited to spend a long weekend with one of my best friends--looking at wedding dresses, bridesmaid dresses, the wedding venue, eating great food, staying up late, drinking lots of wine, going to the hot air balloon festival thingie. just being together :)
food coma
nothing tops off a steak better than blue cheese butter--and that is what we did tonight :) mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
t-bones with blue cheese butter (just blue cheese for josh)
grilled red skins (precooked in microwave)
veggie kabobs--mushrooms, sweet onion, grape tomatoes, red peppers
strawberries
rolls
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
t-bones with blue cheese butter (just blue cheese for josh)
grilled red skins (precooked in microwave)
veggie kabobs--mushrooms, sweet onion, grape tomatoes, red peppers
strawberries
rolls
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
look ma! no wheels!
our little fella is not so little any more! i got home from a bike ride to find jack eager to show me something--he rode his bike with NO TRAINING WHEELS and no daddy hanging on! last weekend, he was strutting his stuff but with a bit of dad assistance. today, all on his own! great job jack-o! you are almost 6 going on 16!
Monday, July 18, 2011
the old enemy
the enemy is back: anxiety. sigh. sigh. double sigh.
i am jumpy. agitated. on pins. so much so that last night, luke made a peep and i jumped (no make that bolted) up to see what was the matter, crawled into bed with him "just in case" and stayed there listening ALL night. why you ask? well my old phobia is back at it--puke.
friday night i got home from grad class feeling terrible. and within the hour, i was...well let's just say, being friendly with the toilet. i was sicker than sick. and also had chills, aches, etc. i finally fell asleep and woke up fairly decent. i was able to eat and not throw up any more. i still had a few bouts of tummy issues but nothing like the night before. by sunday, i was a-o-kay. but still....mentally i was not. saturday i probably asked josh via text, gmail and google talk about 8 times if the boys were feeling okay. sunday i continued and that does not make my anxiety go away. even tonight (monday), i heard a peep downstairs, raced down and asked jack if he was okay..... oh sigh.
i am not sure if i had a flu, or food poisoning. it was not fun. i tried to rationalize it away as food poisoning but that made me anxious because it felt like i was creating a "false safety measure"--like everything was fine since it was food poisoning....when really everything should be fine since it is JUST HUMAN GOO! if the kids get human goo coming out of them, that is OKAY. i will just clean them up, hold them tight and love them. it is temporary.
thanks for listening.
i am jumpy. agitated. on pins. so much so that last night, luke made a peep and i jumped (no make that bolted) up to see what was the matter, crawled into bed with him "just in case" and stayed there listening ALL night. why you ask? well my old phobia is back at it--puke.
friday night i got home from grad class feeling terrible. and within the hour, i was...well let's just say, being friendly with the toilet. i was sicker than sick. and also had chills, aches, etc. i finally fell asleep and woke up fairly decent. i was able to eat and not throw up any more. i still had a few bouts of tummy issues but nothing like the night before. by sunday, i was a-o-kay. but still....mentally i was not. saturday i probably asked josh via text, gmail and google talk about 8 times if the boys were feeling okay. sunday i continued and that does not make my anxiety go away. even tonight (monday), i heard a peep downstairs, raced down and asked jack if he was okay..... oh sigh.
i am not sure if i had a flu, or food poisoning. it was not fun. i tried to rationalize it away as food poisoning but that made me anxious because it felt like i was creating a "false safety measure"--like everything was fine since it was food poisoning....when really everything should be fine since it is JUST HUMAN GOO! if the kids get human goo coming out of them, that is OKAY. i will just clean them up, hold them tight and love them. it is temporary.
thanks for listening.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
a new adventure
we are about to embark on a new adventure! josh resigned from ibm--his last day being two days ago (friday) and starts his new job at red hat on sunday july 24th. it was quite a journey to get us to this point.
5+ years ago, when jack was 2-3 weeks old, josh flew out to boston (unbeknownst to most who knew us) to interview with red hat. he had been with ibm just over 4 years and was in need of a change. the interview went well but we felt it was just not the right timing for our small little family (we would have had to move to boston within a few years and the salary increase was small) so when the job was offered, we declined. josh gets random offers for work every so often and usually is flattered but thinks nothing of them. but, this time it was different. red hat had a position open that really got him thinking--fedora kernal maintainer...... for those of you who are not nerds like us, it means that he will be working on the "brain" of the fedora linux distribution (linux is an operating system..... windows is an operating system..... linux is usually used on big servers for large companies) and this is his PASSION. in fact, when we lived in MN, it was his hobby to be a part of the fedora open source community! so when this offer came about, and offered a nice increase in salary and we did not have to move, it felt like doors were opened and we had to go through :)
we have been going through this for about 8 weeks now. it has been so hard to not talk about it--which most of you get, i do not do well with secrets :) but this one was not really a secret--just a really important discussion between josh and i as we worked to figure out what would be best for our family.
we are excited that josh is starting a new journey. with this job comes more opportunities--for travel, for conferences, for speaking, for networking, for working on what he loves.
thanks for your prayers and thoughts as we start the next adventure. we pray that this is the best for us :)
5+ years ago, when jack was 2-3 weeks old, josh flew out to boston (unbeknownst to most who knew us) to interview with red hat. he had been with ibm just over 4 years and was in need of a change. the interview went well but we felt it was just not the right timing for our small little family (we would have had to move to boston within a few years and the salary increase was small) so when the job was offered, we declined. josh gets random offers for work every so often and usually is flattered but thinks nothing of them. but, this time it was different. red hat had a position open that really got him thinking--fedora kernal maintainer...... for those of you who are not nerds like us, it means that he will be working on the "brain" of the fedora linux distribution (linux is an operating system..... windows is an operating system..... linux is usually used on big servers for large companies) and this is his PASSION. in fact, when we lived in MN, it was his hobby to be a part of the fedora open source community! so when this offer came about, and offered a nice increase in salary and we did not have to move, it felt like doors were opened and we had to go through :)
we have been going through this for about 8 weeks now. it has been so hard to not talk about it--which most of you get, i do not do well with secrets :) but this one was not really a secret--just a really important discussion between josh and i as we worked to figure out what would be best for our family.
we are excited that josh is starting a new journey. with this job comes more opportunities--for travel, for conferences, for speaking, for networking, for working on what he loves.
thanks for your prayers and thoughts as we start the next adventure. we pray that this is the best for us :)
Saturday, July 16, 2011
the things they say
jack--we did a doozy on that one
jack--oh crap nuggets (got the corner for that one)
luke--mom, can i use a trophy cup for dinner? (wine glass)
jack--shake your booty now
jack--country girls shake it for me (part of a song)
luke--i'm going to be an ambulance [driver] and work for mcdonalds
jack--how much do you have to pay to work at the movies
jack--oh crap nuggets (got the corner for that one)
luke--mom, can i use a trophy cup for dinner? (wine glass)
jack--shake your booty now
jack--country girls shake it for me (part of a song)
luke--i'm going to be an ambulance [driver] and work for mcdonalds
jack--how much do you have to pay to work at the movies
Thursday, July 14, 2011
winner!
tonight luke asked to drink his water for supper in a trophy cup. i was confused until he grabbed a wine glass out of the dishwasher! both he and jack drank from trophy cups for supper! i too love a good drink from a trophy cup! here's to being a winner :)
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
time to play
we took time to play yesterday! we had the bartlett kiddos here and made the most of the day! we got in some tye-dying, lots of imagination time, lunch at charlies, a few hours at wabisis lake, ice cream at charlies and watched wall-e. it was a great day all around. i am glad that we take time to play :)
in love with the water
i am in love with the water. lake water. pool water. slip and slide water. a tiny kiddie pool water. a sprinkler water. all water. my sister has a nice 22 foot boat with a cuddy (sp?) in it and a slip on spring lake....so there is an open invite to hang out with her! sunday was hot (really hot) so we took her up on that offer! we had a marvelous day on the boat--some time on the big lake, some time on spring lake, some time playing on the playscape at the marina. it was fabulous! lake michigan was so darn warm that we even took a quick dip in it :) we spent quite a bit of time playing in the spring lake. luke was our brave one--jumping off the boat TONS and needed convincing only that it was time to go home. he even jumped into lake michigan! jack needed convincing, coaxing and urging to even dip his toes in spring lake (michigan was not even feasible for him) and finally he went in! both boys did great with his life jackets on!!!
it was a fun day to be in love with the water!
it was a fun day to be in love with the water!
Thursday, July 7, 2011
treasure hunt
my boys love treasure hunts. they will search to no end to find whatever they are supposed to find :) and tonight was no different....... except that the treasure we were hunting was max's poo.... :)
the boys hunted high and hunted low until all treasure was securely placed in our plastic bag! great work treasure hunters!!! :)
the boys hunted high and hunted low until all treasure was securely placed in our plastic bag! great work treasure hunters!!! :)
pink lemondade
max the dog LOVES pink lemonade....of any variety. we found this out by accident over the 4th of july weekend. kaden's cup was full of lemonade and "out of reach" until max got up on her back legs and drank! she was a beast not to be contained when she saw that cup. she then got her sniffer out and sought our my mike's hard strawberry lemonade bottle on the ground and went to town licking the opening. silly girl!
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
the vet
today we took max to her first vet visit. here is a bit of how it went.....
mass chaos as jack and luke swarmed about
max oblivious to the vet or the poke she got
lots of pee all over the floor
jack and luke urging to get out the door
this mama learned quite a bit
and next time she hopes there is a lack of fit(s)
misc details:
11.2 lbs
mass chaos as jack and luke swarmed about
max oblivious to the vet or the poke she got
lots of pee all over the floor
jack and luke urging to get out the door
this mama learned quite a bit
and next time she hopes there is a lack of fit(s)
misc details:
11.2 lbs
post op
today we rose at the early hour of 4:50 am to get luke up and ready for his tubes to be put back in. he is on his 2nd set. we arrived at devos children's hospital at just after 6 and by 7:35, he was in surgery. he did awesome the entire time--before he was not nervous, he talked to the doctors and nurses himself and was very brave. he loved the "special jammies", got to pick his own chapstick to make his anaesthesia mask smell better, and cars was put on the tv :) when josh walked him back to the o.r., he didn't even cry when the mask was placed on his face. 15 minutes later, the doctor was ready to talk to us. doctor said things went well and that luke had some fluid in both ears but they were not infected yet. 5 minutes after we were called back to his room. he barely cried as he was waking up. he did great! he went potty, had apple juice, got dressed and we were out the door. man he and jack sure wake up different from anaesthesia! on the way home, he asked for a mcdonald's potato cake and ate that, drank some sprite and rested. we were home by 9:15! he has been up and playing, eating well and in good spirits!
great job luke! now we are back on the road to being ear pain free! :)
great job luke! now we are back on the road to being ear pain free! :)
Monday, July 4, 2011
with friends like these
seriously. i have fabulous neighbors! we act like family :)
let me give you a great example. yesterday.....
**shan and i grocery shopped together
**the give kids played ALL day together--here or there. at one point we had two sprinklers going at our house, one hose going next door, squirt guns, etc. what a hoot!
**the dogs played together all day
**we grilled out together--part of it here and part of it there
**shared a meal
**had a bon fire, roasted marshmellows
**relaxed together
what a great day:)
let me give you a great example. yesterday.....
**shan and i grocery shopped together
**the give kids played ALL day together--here or there. at one point we had two sprinklers going at our house, one hose going next door, squirt guns, etc. what a hoot!
**the dogs played together all day
**we grilled out together--part of it here and part of it there
**shared a meal
**had a bon fire, roasted marshmellows
**relaxed together
what a great day:)
Sunday, July 3, 2011
over-floweth
wish i could be writing over-floweth with love, joy, happiness.... which we are :) but today i write about over-floweth of POO water. EW.
luke calls me to the bathroom bright and early this sunday morning to show me the toilet is plugged and water is way up at the brim. now, you have to understand that in college, my roommates and i had secret talents and one of mine is toilet plunging. so this mama got to work--there was no need to wake up my sleeping husband..... until the toilet did not unclog and started GUSHING nasty sewage water!!!! small bathroom, six HUGE towels.....and luke running in to get daddy up from his peaceful slumber! as he rushed downstairs to soak up the nasty water that SEEPED through the floor and was "DRIZZLING" all over the basement floor, this WONDER WOMAN unclogged that nasty toilet!
then the real work started....... three buckets of bleach later, raw hands, nasty clothes..... toys were cleaned, floors were bleached, a bathroom was sparkling and this lady was ready for a shower. so there nasty clogged toilet--i won! ha!
luke calls me to the bathroom bright and early this sunday morning to show me the toilet is plugged and water is way up at the brim. now, you have to understand that in college, my roommates and i had secret talents and one of mine is toilet plunging. so this mama got to work--there was no need to wake up my sleeping husband..... until the toilet did not unclog and started GUSHING nasty sewage water!!!! small bathroom, six HUGE towels.....and luke running in to get daddy up from his peaceful slumber! as he rushed downstairs to soak up the nasty water that SEEPED through the floor and was "DRIZZLING" all over the basement floor, this WONDER WOMAN unclogged that nasty toilet!
then the real work started....... three buckets of bleach later, raw hands, nasty clothes..... toys were cleaned, floors were bleached, a bathroom was sparkling and this lady was ready for a shower. so there nasty clogged toilet--i won! ha!
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