From a CharlotteMommies Forum post....

**disclaimer** I am glad to have a husband who doesn't ever ask this question! :)

A man came home from work and found his three children outside,still in their pajamas, playing in the mud, with empty foodboxes and wrappers strewn all around the front yard. The door of his wife's car was open, as was the front door to the house and there was no sign of the dog.

Proceeding into the entry, he found an even bigger mess. A lamp had been knocked over, and the throw rug was wadded against one wall. In the front room the TV was loudly blaring a cartoon channel, and the family room was strewn with toys and various items of clothing.

In the kitchen, dishes filled the sink, breakfast food was spilled on the counter, the fridge door was open wide, dog food was spilled on the floor, a broken glass lay under the table, and a small pile of sand was spread by the back door.

He quickly headed up the stairs, stepping over toys and more piles of clothes, looking for his wife. He was worried she might be ill, or that something serious had happened. He was met with a small trickle of water as it made its way out the bathroom door.

Toys were strewn over the floor. Miles of toilet paper lay in aheap and toothpaste had been smeared over the mirror and walls.

As he rushed to the bedroom, he found his wife still curled up in the bed in her pajamas, reading a novel. She looked up at him, smiled, and asked how his day went.

He looked at her bewildered and asked, "What happened here today?"

She again smiled and answered, "You know every day when you come home from work and you ask me what in the world I do all day?

"Yes," was his incredulous reply.

She answered, "Well, today I didn't do it."

RFID Tags in New US Notes Explode When You Try to Microwave Them

RFID Tags in New US Notes Explode When You Try to Microwave Them
Hummmmm..... very interesting.

nesting collection:

new car seat, check
new baby gate that I won't trip over, check
cloth diapers, check
new mattress, check
baby boy clothes, check
electric breast pump, check
diaper bag, check
changing pad, check
baby book, check
baby linens, check


homebirth kit.... eeekkkk!!!! not done yet!
homebirth classes, scheduled
bradley method refresher, scheduled


after that, i guess i need to keep up with cleaning the house! we're getting there. :)

Where, oh where

is the time going?!?!?! I have so much nesting left to do! In 3 weeks, I am full term, in 6 I am due.... EEEEEKKKKKKKKK!!!!!!! I am NOT READY YET!

At least the car seat, new baby gate that opens and the cloth diapers will come in this week... and I have been busy figuring out the local food coop ordering process so it will be easy when Jack is still little and it means less trips to the store with 2 kiddos. Some things are being done... but there is still a long list that trails it.

Now, if the rest of my list would just magically disappear! (read, actually done and finished... not that the list vanishes and with my pregnancy brain I can't remember what was on it....)

*sniff* *sniff*

I was just putting Dory to bed, and she was not having any of it, clinging to my arm and not wanting me to go and all. I was getting exsasperated.... until....
Well, as I was rocking her and she was clinging to me, I remembered that it won't be much longer that she and I have together like this. The time is rapidly *choke* comming to an end. I know great new things are ahead for us all, but *tear* here very soon it won't be JUST us. *sob!*

I thought that when I was pregnant with her and I was mourning the loss of my own life while being excited about the new one that it would be the last time I felt that way. Boy, was I wrong. I rocked her a bit longer tonight. She must know it's coming to an end soon too.

Darn pregnancy emotions.

At Grandma Dorothy's

~Grandma Dorothy and I
 
~No, I will not come back, I'll stand on my head instead.
 
~Dory, Grandma Dorothy and Aunt Cindy.
  

4 generations and a George.

  

Mom and George's new camper highlights

~Sock puppets at Mom's with GreatGrandma Marcille
~Let's play sock ball catch!
~Grandma sure looks happy!
~Peek a Boo, you can't see me! 
 
 
 

New cousins

Take Wednesday after the funeral... Dory was able to play with my cousin's two older girls. They really all hit it off!  

Riding the sidewalks, waiting on the plane.

 
  

The Baby Shower Pics!

  

~Grandma knows just how much I love sheep
~Dory approves of the towel!
~Daddy will LOVE these, while Dory helps me unpack the bag
~A booster seat from Miss Sarah. :)
 
 
 
 

Introducing Hannah 
and Audrey's Wardrobe 
Hannah gets dressed 
Tons of clothes!  

I have a super crafty neighbor, thanks Anh!!! 
Jack's first sneakers, thanks to Ba!  

And Mom had sid that she couldn't find the right card.... 
Dory got a hat from Grandma Dorothy 
Posing with Hannah and the hat! 
Love this hat!!!  

Towels from Tricia (Auntie) 
Blankets from Miss Emily 
And Dory got a tiger suitcase from Grandma! 
  

Our good friend Jeremy, who moved away last week to Raleigh with his parents, crusin' with Dory a few weeks ago.
  

Two more drops of rain...

John broke his toe yesterday at work while attemping to rip off his toenail at the same time.... poor guy. Left foot, middle toe. Asprin is his best friend right now. :(

AND we all suffered a cold last week.

Seriously, is the rain gone yet?

Excuse me!?!?!?

Okay, so on with the travel stories...
We flew NorthWest Air and had a layover of 40 minutes in Detroit. No big deal you say? Plenty of time you think? That's what I thought. Never again.

The airport is laid out miserably. Two VERY long terminals run parallel to each other connected by an underground tunnel. What's even worse is that the tunnel connecting the concourses is COOL! Yep, let's make life even more difficult when toting a 2.5 yr old toddler.

I was VERY lucky to have Tricia traveling with us o the flight out. I thought between the two of us we would be just fine getting to the next gate with two carry ons, a car seat and the Dory. Whoa, was I WRONG!!!!!!

The gates could have barely been any further apart, and our flight was a few minutes late. We practically ran the whole way, using every moving sidewalk we could find to speed us up. I had the car seat, Tricia had the 2 carry ons and Dory. At 33 weeks pregnant, I was getting some righteous leg cramps from the strain, and Tricia was having a difficult time keeping Dory moving.

So, I round the corner at our gate, where every one else is already boarded, hand the tickets to the attendant and am told, (as I am huffing and puffing and very obviously pregnant) "You can not board with out your travel partner, and I close the door in one minute." (And no, there was nothing even remotely pleasant about her.) I just stared at her absolutely dumbfounded and told her my partners were around the corner... She said they better hurry she had to close the door. Tricia walks around the corner, hands the lady her ticket (and the last one, oops) and the lady THEN proceeded to grill us about who is traveling with whom. Well, I'm preggers, we're both stark blondes looking just alike and I am huffing a HUGE BRITAX CAR SEAT, WHO DO YOU THINK?!?!?! It takes her a minute to understand that Dory is with me and that Tricia had given her an extra ticket.

Stupid rude lady was about to get gone off on.
**Don't mess with an out of breath, having Braxton Hicks contractions and leg cramps nearly full term pregnant lady traveling with a toddler and carrying a heavy car seat backpack style unless you want a can of whoop-ass opened in your face. Seriously.**

Well, as all of that was taking place, the lady who was sitting across from us with her 1.5 yr old from our previous flight rounded the corner. She even had a stroller... and would have been refused boarding I bet if we had not been there already with our issues. I have NO idea how we beat her.

Lucky for the airline, we all got on just fine and the flight was good. And while I have your attention, let me just brag. My daughter is a saint in the air... She does not scream and does not kick the seat in front of her, even with next to NO leg room.

Jeramiah 31:13b

New American Standard Bible (NASB):
"For I will turn their mourning into joy
and will comfort them and give them joy for their sorrow."

On Wednesday we went for my Grandfather's funeral. After a day like that, one can truly understand how sorrow can be replaced with joy. It was a family reunion long in the making.
I finally met my long lost Aunt Bobbie, saw Aunt Sue again, met three of my cousins and three of their children as well as many spouses. Tricia had asked me on the way there what she should expect, and I simply told her that they do indeed look like Mom and Aunt Connie. The family resemblance is striking, on many levels.
It seemed to me that many bad years were erased, forgotten and forgiven from my Mom's past and a new road was forged. It might still be a bumpy road, but the journey has been started.
It was a day of tears, but many of them were of joy. Grandpa had apparently wanted his daughters reunited, and he did get his last wish. :)
And it was good.

Oscar and Slad

On Friday during our trip our friends Stephanie, Austin and Chad drove over to visit. We don't get to see one another very often; so when I am in Ohio, she graciously makes arrangements to visit with me.

Well, on with the story.... Dory has backslid into some baby talk with the emminent arrival of Jack and has not been annunciating words as well as usual.
Austin became Oscar and Chad was promptly Slad. We all thought it was rather funny and did absolutely nothing to discourage it.

'Oscar', who is 7 and VERY into football, decided to play hide-n-seek with Dory. It was her very firsttime - he was a bit frustrated when he would start counting and Dory would plop to the floor, right at his feet, and go into a 'tornado drill' type fetal position in order to hide. We had to move her and tell him when she was ready... :lol:

(Steph- it was great to see you, thanks for driving out!)

Car alarm?

So, it's Sunday morning and John and Dory are sleeping peacefully in the bed (since we are recovering from a cold we didn't go to Church) and I slip downstairs to get a cup of coffee that John had brewed earlier in the morning and toast a piece of bread that he had fresh baked for our homecoming on Saturday. I was listening to a week's worth of voice mail when the smoke alarm went off. It was only after it went off that I smelled the toast burning slightly. I popped it up and ran over to the alarm to quiet it knowing that the whole house was already wide awake.

John then reports to me that Dory sat up in the bed and sleepily said, "Car, I'm sorry Mommy!"

I mistook a hurricane for just a pouring rain...

So, the car is shot. 1000-2000$ of work is needed for a car worth 500$. We're a one car family now!

Hopefully the flight to Ohio tomorrow morning will go well. We'll be back on Saturday. (John is staying home though.)

When it rains, it pours.

John's car died over our AAA 100 mile limit on his way home tonight...
Every mile over 100 is 3$ a mile...
Tricia needs a lawyer and a bodygaurd...
And a new washing machine...
On a teachers megar salary...
Grandpa died...
Plane tickets last minute are expensive...
Dory has to have her own seat bought now...
Dory is cutting molars...

And.... I have had 4 hours of sleep.

My Baby Shower thrown by two of my best friends and neighbors was by FAR the onle lonely bright spot of my entire weekend.

Hopefully I'll be able to post about that tomorrow... but I don't know that I will be able to get to it.

Grandpa Kell and Dory

Grandpa Kell in his 80's and Dory who is right at 2 interacting in March of 2006.

Grandpa Kell Died Today.

Some of you knew that I met my Grandfather for the first time this spring. I had never had contact until after Dory was born and I just felt it wasn't right, so I mailed him a card and included pictures of her... It opened the flood gate and our family has, for the most part, reconciliation and is still in the process of it. We all believe (especially his 'side') that he made it as long as he did because of this.
Anyway, he was in okay health until a few days ago and passed today at 5pm. It was peaceful; and he was a very solid Christian, so there is no doubt that he is in Heaven with the Creator.
My Mom sounds like a wreck, but is at odd peace with it too... She never saw him after being about a teenager (that I am aware of). She has spoken to him several times on the phone over the past year though.
Well, that makes a very long story short.
We will be traveling this week, and I will meet family that I have never even heard of as well as those who I have but not met as of yet (a half-aunt for one), I'm sure.
Please pray for us as we decide rather to fly or drive to Ohio for the funeral, since I am 32 weeks pregnant and will be taking Dory who is 2.5 yrs. It could be a great trip or a really hard one.
Thank you.

(The March archive has several stories and pictures of the spring meeting.)

After the morning adventures...

I think we are going to skip a nap today as well... someone has been away in her room since 3... I wonder who that could be. *sigh*

What a trouble maker!

Well, finding Grandma Dorothy at the airport this morning was certainly an adventure!

Grand had looked at the arrival time, and reported it as 10:45.... So after our friend Lesli got sick and called off scrapbooking, we headed over there because the time was just about right. Well, she had read the time wrong. That was the departure time.

So, we picked her up and headed off to the farmer's market to spend an hour putzing. So, we get back in time for her flight to arrive..... And an hour later we are still waiting. Her flight has been dropped from all of the boards, and she is no where to be found.

By this time both Grand and I have walked Dory up and down the escalator 5 times each... And we looked for Miss Megan (TSA employed neighbor turned really good friend), but didn't see her. So, more up and down the escalator.... 1pm rolls around.... We finally head off for information. They are no help, we head off for US Air check-in where we are finally informed after waiting several minutes that she was not on the original flight but on the next one.... Hum... Grandma, did you try to sneak on some liquids??? So, back down the escalator we go, yet again.

The correct flight was supposed to be landing at 1:03, that was pushed to 1:11... About 1:35 or so we finally see her. And it takes another 10 minutes to get the luggage.

It turns out that Grandma had looked at her arrival time rather than departure... Grand and Grandma got their eyes mixed it seems. To top that off, Grandma also forgot her ID and had to get 'verified' somehow... It was a miracle that they let her on the next flight without any problems!

What a trouble maker... we were around the airport from 10:30 until nearly 2. At least she didn't try to sneak contraband on board!

Someone has been working hard...

at cracking new molars! We went to the Pediatrician's on Tuesday morning and her gums were white then.... this morning, she had both of her 2 yr old molars on the bottom half out. I wonder how long it will take for the top to appear?

She finally got another haircut last night, but she wasn't thrilled with me, and therefore it doesn't look as good as the 4th of July haircut did... Oh well, at least she's not as scraggly looking now.

Grandma Dorothy flies in this morning for the weekend, she is actually going to make it to my baby shower on Sunday! That is really exciting to me, and I haven't seen her since last summer in Colorado for our family reunion.

Ah, well, I'm being called.... the day has begun!

Save NPR and PBS (yes, again)

Everyone expected House Republicans to give up efforts to kill NPR and PBS after a massive public outcry stopped them last year. But they've just voted to eliminate funding for NPR and PBS—unbelievably, starting with programs like "Sesame Street."

Public broadcasting would lose nearly a quarter of its federal funding this year. Even worse, all funding would be eliminated in two years--threatening one of the last remaining sources of watchdog journalism.

Sign the petition telling Congress to save NPR and PBS again this year:

http://civic.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/

Last year, millions of us took action to save NPR and PBS, and Congress listened. We can do it again if enough of us sign the petition in time.

This would be the most severe cut in the history of public broadcasting. The Boston Globe reports the cuts "could force the elimination of some popular PBS and NPR programs." NPR's president expects rural public radio stations may be forced to shut down.

The House and Senate are deciding if public broadcasting will survive, and they need to hear from viewers like you. Sign the petition at:

http://civic.moveon.org/publicbroadcasting/

Thanks!

P.S. Read the Boston Globe story on the threat to NPR and PBS at:

http://www.moveon.org/r?r=1864

Great Weekend and other Developments

So, this weekend has been wonderful following the trauma of Friday. John has been at home for much of it and we have had another great family weekend! We went swimming for the very first time as a family on Saturday... But of course my swim suit doesn't quite fit very well so I just watched the two of them have a blast together.
Another little boy and his family showed up at the pool and the two of them chatted a bit and shared toys. :) I love that she is so good at sharing!

Also, pretty new development for her, when she was asked what her name is she replied Dorothy rather than Dory. This morning she even called herself Dorothy Grace, it is so cool to watch her grow up and learn.

After the pool we went out to eat, I wanted steak and then took Dory to ride the carousel at the mall. At dinner we were sat in what I can only describe as 'Toddler Row', three booths in a line with high chairs at the ends; it was really cute to see the three of them jabbering and flirting with each other throughout dinner... She can make friends anywhere. It was a wonderful time had by all! The carousel is a just a once in a while thing... This was only her 2nd time. She had a BLAST waving to her Daddy with every round, her smile was HUGE.

She has been learning quite a bit lately about names and it is driving John nuts. She has taken to calling us 'John' and 'Jenny', as she is learning that we have actual names other than 'Mommy' and 'Daddy'. John hates it when she does this, but it is just a phase and she is certainly testing limits, boundaries and new knowledge out. I am very confident she will loose interest in it and move to other new and at times annoying things. :) She has with everything else.

Grandma Marcille had a great idea for the Pottery Barn crib sheet that Dory minimally ripped on Friday... Sew an applique over the holes. I have some great soft white fuzzy fabric that will be perfect for a cut out sheep and blend in perfectly with her room, so I am off to do that this afternoon. It was a marvelous idea, and I am not sure why I didn't think of it myself. I'll post before and after pictures.

On the poopy front... We now have further adventures. She still is traumatized by the bathtub, and is now, as of this afternoon, afraid of pooping in her bed. :( I guess I have to go and buy the book Everybody Poops. I just hope it helps. She is currently playing with her baby dolls in her room and not sleeping, even though she seemed okay with the idea of sleeping in the chair. *sigh* she still does not seem ready for potty training; she won't tell me beforehand, just afterwards.

Yesterday was lazy for us all, even though John went to work for a short time... I worked on the scrapbooks (Dory's and one for the Monkey Man), Dory played and napped and we just generally had a relaxing day.

This morning EVERYONE slept in until 9:20 and then Daddy made blueberry pancakes for us. :) Yummy! Then he left for work. :( Not so yeah, but it should be a really short day for him... Being Labor Day and all. Okay... Well, that pretty much chronicles our past few days... :) I hope you enjoy reading about our boring lives! ;)

#@*%$(*#&$@!!!!!!!!!

Just shoot me now.

The lawn man for next door came 5 minutes after I got Dory to sleep, waking her up. I wonder how many pregnant mommy neighbors he gets confronted by who are extremely unhappy. At least me. She woke up, immediately, and here it is 5pm, and she has still not slept.

She has however managed to pull the bucket out of the hall way and into her room.
In it? My sewing shears.
What did she do? Cut through 2 bed sheets, one pink Carter's and one much nicer and not cheap yellow Pottery Barn, and the pillow case that actually matches the master bedrooms set b/c it was one of those and pillow.

*@^$&@$&%@$ **&#^$* &^$*&^ %*&#^% *&@#&^ #%*&^ $&&$^@ #&#*&%# *&#^%*#^!!!!!!!!!


(The upside: her duvet cover, chair blanket, wool mattress pad and new fabric mattress are completely intact. I think. It's a bloody miracle.)