Trio Tuesday

Linebacker had speech this morning... I then picked up Monkey to have the first two of four teeth pulled... He did very well... We were both very nervous... He has had a few negative dental experiences (dentist not procedure, we switched dentist)... It was wonderful that now he has a positive experience under his belt... Little Guy and Big Boy had their last physical therapy session today... They have come a long way from before they were rolling to rolling, crawling, sitting up, pulling to a stand and cruising furniture... The physical therapist will call in the fall to see if they need another consult and possibly restart therapy... We expect them to start walking soon... They will be up and running before we know it, I'm sure... If all goes well they won't need to restart therapy again...

Tricycle - Tuesday

For Linebacker 3rd birthday also recieved a 2nd hand tricycle... Here are a few pictures from this afternoon of him enjoying it... I also went to the Dentist and he had Speech... It was otherwise a very quiet day...

Teeth Thursday

Linebacker had speech this morning... We then headed out the door to Peanut's Show N' Tell... This is her last Show N' Tell of the year... She wanted to bring Little Guy and Big Boy... Teacher thought that was a good idea... We showed up and they returned from their trip to the Zoo and had Show N' Tell... Her class had a great time asking questions and playing with them...

We then went to a friends house who is near the school and visited... My friend S. made a DELICIOUS baked chicken lunch... She also taught me how to make a Lady Bug out of pretzels, apples, PB and raisins/craisins... I then went back to pick Peanut and Monkey for their dental appointments... Peanut is CAVITY FREE! Monkey is also CAVITY FREE! He however has adult teeth that need to come in... So, we are going to pull a couple of baby teeth to make room for these adult teeth... Peanut also had speech....

Teeth Tuesday

This morning I had a dental appointment... Just a routine cleaning... I also briefly attended the LLL meeting because of the time my dental appointment was scheduled... Linebacker had speech as well in the morning... Afternoon was pretty quiet... I caught what Linebacker had over the weekend... Monkey came off the bus and he had caught it as well... We layed around quite a bit... Thankfully the non sick children behaved for us who didn't feel well...

Traveling Thursday

Thursday was a day of traveling around town... We had our 'session' this morning after a couple weeks off due to ills and auto troubles... We discussed enabling issues... There was a small crack into fixing these things... So, there is hope of change.... I took Linebacker and Peanut to recycling soda cans for money... We had 19 lbs... It had been a while since I'd travel down south to the recycle station... Peanut was complaining of some pain in her mouth so I called the dentist... He's out of town but left the name and number of a back up dentist... I called them and they were able to fit us right in... I picked up Monkey early and we headed to the dentist... Despite them fitting us right in because of a cancellation... I wasn't sure how long it would take and didn't want Monkey sitting worrying when I was coming home... They looked around and couldn't find really much wrong... They did an x-ray and one of her teeth had a spot so they prescribed an antibiotic to clear everything up... I brought her home, gave her some pain meds and she laid down for resting time... We canceled ST for her... We took it easy and all ate soft foods with her that evening...

Time Off Tuesday

My husband had off from work today... Monkey had a dental appointment to fix something that was bothering him on the lower left side... We stopped for some ice cream (suggested by hygienist) afterwards... It was breakfast then phone calls... Due to my husbands bad private session we will no longer be going there together to that organization either... He called and made a new private appointment and I called to cancel our together one we had for that afternoon... I then did some calling around to find somewhere new we could go... We had our 'meeting'... It wasn't very long and was kind of intense... Not happy with our switch and Engineer whacked them in the back of the head... He reacts physically when he feels threatened and he does not like when they come visit the house... I'm sure he's picking up on all the tension... My husband called and talked with the car insurance people about that thing... He had bumped a car in the rain in June 09... It was an employee parked in the guest area of a hotel... They have an older 70s early 80s large sedan... The officer said oh no more then $100 of damage if that... The night it occurred... Now the guy is claiming it will be $1200 to fix the 'damage'... We are thinking gee his WHOLE car probably isn't even worth that much! Even if they don't pay that amount of the claim or any of the claim or the whole claim... Our insurance is automatically going up just because a claim is being made on top of what we already pay... An extra $25... Isn't that just peachy?!? These are the same people we have homeowners with... When our roof leaked in Feb 09 they said oh we will repair the interior damage but not the actual roof... ::eye roll:: Yes, lets repair the ceiling and not the roof so when it rains again, it can be damaged again... That makes so much sense... We hired someone ourselves to repair the roof and we are fixing the ceiling (first coat of primer is on, woo hoo) ourselves... We really need to switch companies... We had excellent service prior to our agent retiring... Now we have bounced around between 3-4 agents... Our dealings with them are becoming more unpleasant each time... They cancel the towing coverage on both autos because we had my husband's car towed twice (broke down) and the van once (broke down) in 2 years... Come on people... What's the point of having towing coverage if you never use it... They considered that 'excessive' use... Moving on... Engineer left with a friend... My husband took the two middle ones out to run errands while Linebacker and I had a 1/2 nap... He was asleep before they left... All the noise/commotion of them leaving and us relocating to a different room he didn't do much sleeping once it was quiet... By the time we settled in and fell asleep, Engineer and had come back with his friend... ::sigh:: Husband returned with the middle ones... He asked if I could run to the grocery and pick up a few things... I said sure... He was showing me the different things he had returned with including new library videos for the week... I inquired where Peanuts birthday present was... He says "we returned it with the library stuff... I didn't realize it was one of ours"... He had returned other videos that we don't own from the series... I head to the library and waited probably 30-45 minutes for them to find it... Nothing... Left my name, number, and title of the DVD... I will call them tomorrow if they haven't called me by a certain time... I saw a FMCHE friend, Caroline (she pronounces it Carolyn), who was headed to our Altar Society meeting... I didn't realize it was that night, my husband had some where he was going, and they don't have childcare... So, I'm in the group and make bars for parish events but never been to an actual meeting... I don't think... I was in my husband's car because when I left to go run these errands the van was doing what it did on Saturday and Monday... My husband stop by the mechanic (nothing but answering machine when we call) and he is out of the shop till some time next week... I went to the store and picked up milk, eggs, cheese, juice, cereal, PB, Wok Oil, and bobbi pins... After coupons it was $7 even I think... I made my way home... We had dinner and my husband went to a newly formed 'men's prayer group' that him and his friends made... The 'wives' are also forming a group... It's funny because we refer to our group as the 'mom's group' and the husband's call their group the 'men's group' not the 'dad's group'... Interesting how we are different... We hope to have our first meeting soon... The guys have been meeting since mid July... So almost a month... It has really been a great thing for my husband... They are a great group of guys... The children and I watched more Little House on the Prairie... Time to drop it in the mail and Netflix to send us a new one... I finished Peanut's hat... I think it might be good for two seasons... I gave her some 'growing' room... I'm working on one of the boys' hats (Monkey or Engineer)... They have the same circumference size but different lengths (brim to crown)... Linebackers should knit up in no time because his is the smallest... The boys' hats are all the same color, a variegated blue yarn... Peanut's is lavender and a variegated purple/pink yarn... I think the exact same color as last year... If I ever have a working computer that likes my camera I will share PICS... It's late and I need to head to bed...

Thankful Thursday

10 Things I'm Especially Thankful This Week

1. Warm Home
2. Functional Auto
3. Indoor Plumbing
4. Modern Medical Care
5. Plenty of Food
6. My Children
7. My Husband
8. Good Friends
9. Ability To Read
10. Religious Freedom

I dropped everyone off and headed to the dentist for visit... My second this week... It went very well... I stopped at Walmart to pick up Monkey's CARS Leapster game but they only had one and it the box was empty... ::frown:: So, I sat for 15 minutes and waited for TRU to open... It was cheaper there because I had coupon but I didn't really have time to wait for them to open... However I guess Walmart made the choice for me... I was about 10 minutes late coming home... I went and picked Peanut up and at a 'snacky' lunch... We had buffalo strips, mozzerella bites, pot stickers, creamed corn, pepperoni/sausage mini pizza and mini chicken egg rolls... We didn't want to fix a 'meal' because we knew we couldn't eat meat tomorrow... I picked up the house and vacuumed... The carpet man came and steamed cleaned the house... Monkey has ST in the kitchen because the carpet man was working where they usually work in the library... We took a quick drive around town while the carpets dried a bit... I didn't have respite because staff was attending a funeral out of town and wasn't unable to come back for their shift... I watched 1/2 a movie and did a ton of laundry... Almost ready for the weekend...

Tasty Tuesday

I'm going to write about the day then share a tasty Lenten friendly recipe... Today has been a busy day... I dropped the older three off... I made a stop at Kmart to pick up more pull ups for Princess... She is almost completely day drained... I also picked up Monkey a book for his birthday... I dropped a Netflix Disc in the Mailbox... I had a dental visit... Just a general cleaning... I have one tooth that is a bit rough and I have to floss that spot constantly... They are fixing that later this week... I called in my oldest prescriptions as to speed that up... I dropped off my form for mileage reimbursement... I went to the pharmacy and only had to wait a few minutes... I'm glad I remember to give them a call so I didn't have to wait too long... It gave me just the perfect amount of time to go across town and pick up peanut... I paid the electric/gas bill and the phone bill online... I also paid an eBay auction for my husband... He bought Monkey (who's birthday is around the corner) a coin bank... I went to the car insurance place and paid our bill... I also made a quick run to Sam's... I picked up a cooking magazine from Taste of Home and Love Dare the book from the movie Fireproof... I picked up the boys and did a 'recon' trip to the new doctors office... Linebacker has a check up next week and I wanted to make sure I had good directions and check to see how much time I needed to arrive on time... I also worked on the laundry... I am 'caught' up for the moment... I fixed the shower sliding door... I watched the rest of the Christy discs I have... I will drop them in the mail and excited to finish the series... I wish they had more then just a couple seasons... I'm really enjoying it...

Homemade Fried Fish w/ Homemade Tarter Sauce

2 eggs, beaten
2 C. crushed square crackers (saltines)
2 lbs of fish cut into 1-1/2" wide strips
Oil for frying

1. Beaten eggs in one bowl and crushed crackers in a ziplock. Dip fish in eggs and then shake in zip lock till lightly coated. Let stand for a few minutes before frying.
2. Heat oil to 375 degrees or when the water pops when flicked on the surface... Fry just enough for one layer of fish in your pan without touching. Fry 2 minutes or until golden brown on each side. Drain on paper towels.

1 C. Mayo
2 T. Sweet Pickle Relish
1 T. onion, finely chopped

Combine ingredients and chill well... Serve with fish...

Teeth Tuesday

I went to the Dentist this morning... I had an excellent periodontalreport... I had 8 sites of bleeding last time and zero today... I had 27 pockets and now only have 17 (smaller the number the better)... So, my mouth improved greatly... So, that was exciting... They did a periodontal treatment and cleaned/flossed my teeth... So, I'm good to go for a couple months... I ran to the PO to mail a package for my husband... I stopped at the bank to deposit an eBay money order... I also stopped at my favorite sub place for my favorite sub Pepperoni Melt... I called a friend of mine who advertised about needing a blender on Free Cycle... I have a blender which I use pretty much once a year... I use it to make a Strawberry Drink with Sparkling Cider on New Years and the rest of the year it sit above the dryer collecting dust... She will be on this side of town end of this week to pick it up... Today was Pay Day so my husband was off to work early... I stopped by a friends to give her a formula sample... I collect them and give them to the local pregnancy crisis center... I had found one when she was over but couldn't figure out what I had done with the other... I found it so I dropped it off... I then headed to the library... I didn't have enough time to do that before my husband had to go to work so I had to pick up the little ones... When I was in the library tossing stuff in the drop box I ran into another friend... I then headed way up north to drop off my signed proposal and down payment on the fence... So, we should have a fence going up in a just a few weeks... I can't wait... I started working on loosing the stakes so it's easy to take down before they arrive to install the new one... I headed back south to pick up my oldest... We hung out here for a bit and then headed to a meeting about a service for our oldest... As a reward for my oldest we recycled our phone books at the grocery store across the street...

Full of Activity Friday

Today was a busy day... We took my oldest for pre-operative blood work and a retest of a test that came back funny for the psych... The psych test came down and is now in normal range... We saw the psych and did a medicine adjustment... My oldest has been having big problems at school with behavior... So, we will see if the changes help... I will have 3-1/2 days to watch and see I can see some positive changes... We will see the psych every week for the next couple weeks to monitor and make any more adjustments... We should see great improvement... The psych seems very optimistic that we will figure this out rather quickly and have everything sailing smoothly again... I had my glasses adjusted... They were all bent out of shape... So, now when I bend over to pick up a child or tie a shoe they won't go flying off my face... ::smirk:: I stopped at the pharmacy to pick up a new med for my oldest... We went up to the 'baby' floor but none were in the nursery... My oldest was disappointed... I dropped him off and headed to his program to inform them of the change... Pick up the medicine he won't be using any more and fill out the form for them to fax to the doctor so he can sign and fill out the necessary information so they can start administering it there when they are back in session... He has Monday off... My husband's friend, Adrian (father to 6) came by to check out our heat loss issues... They then sat and played a couple rounds of PS2... We headed out to the grocery... We are having a 'turkey' dinner tonight... We also stopped at the gas station and dollar store... We are under a Wind Chill Warning until Midnight Saturday (and may be extended again) which quote directly from the Weather Service means: THE COMBINATION OF VERY COLD AIR AND STRONG WINDS WILL CREATE DANGEROUSLY LOW WIND CHILL VALUES. THIS WILL RESULT IN FROST BITE AND LEAD TO HYPOTHERMIA OR DEATH IF PRECAUTIONS ARE NOT TAKEN. Now doesn't that sound like buckets of FUN!!! Not... I also dropped off the paper at my children's new dentist... They are such an improvement... I only wished we had switched sooner before all these unpleasant visits that had left me and my children in tears... I felt pretty good today despite the frigged temps... Hopefully it is the beginning of a new trend of HEALTHY and FEELING GOOD!!!

9th Day of Christmas!

Today was a busy day... I was up early... Dropped my oldest off... Came home and readied the little ones and out the door we went... I'm 19 weeks today... Every thing is going great... The children enjoyed listening to the heartbeat... He was much easier to find today since he has grown quite a bit since my last visit... I go back at 24 weeks and have the delicious Glucose test then... Yummy Yum... NOT!!! LOL... I stopped at the PO drop box to mail bills... Next was a stop at the bank to deposit some money... I was off to State Farm to pay the Car Insurance... I made it home in time to drop the littles one off wake up my husband early and out the door to the dentist... Everything is looking good... I go back in April... I will have one more check up/cleaning before baby is born... My oldest was very disruptive in ST today... He did finally calm down but very little was accomplished... I found the appointments don't end when I thought... I was just given a paper today and it had 3 more appointments I didn't realize were so soon... So, I have a grand total of 3 dental, 2 Ultrasounds, 5 doctor appointments on 7 different days... 1 Dental and 1 Doctor's appointment down... 8 more to go on 6 different days! Let the fun begin!

Busy Fun Filled Day

The day didn't start out so well... We overslept and missed my oldest dental follow up to his dental sedation and check up/cleaning/repair... I called before I headed out with him... They said they could fit him in, in the afternoon... I said sounds great we will be there... I was very tired but did a bunch of homesteading instead of heading back to bed... Now I'm beyond tired and will probably head to bed after I finish this entry... I did try to lay down a bit after I finished all my many tasks but then the little ones had woken up... When my husband woke I headed out to run a few quick errands... I stopped at my friends to pick up a case of can Whipped Cream... I also picked up her sisters and dropped it off... While at the sisters the Pampered Chef order had come in so I gave her the Whipped Cream she wanted and took my Pampered Chef home... By the time I was back home we decided we didn't have enough time to go out plus the mail hadn't come yet... We waited and waited... Peanut had ST... I picked up my oldest for his dental recheck... He refused to sit in the chair and actually laid on the floor while the dentist took a look... ::sigh:: When I came back home we decided we couldn't wait for the mail man any longer... We headed out to the Mall for Peanut's first hair cut... I picked up the LAST gift for my husband... We headed home to see that the mail man had arrived while we were gone... My daddy's box had come and some junk mail... So, one grandparent down and 3 to go in the mail dept... We then headed out to do shopping... We spent hours in Walmart and picked up a ton of stuff we needed... Among the things bought were a new steel wok and printer paper... We were going to go to Sam's after Walmart but it was late... We were tired and money was disappearing quickly... We decided to go another day... We stopped at Barnes and Noble so my husband could pick up some books I wanted... We then head home very tired... I watched one of my favorite new shows called Moonlight on CBS... Now here I am talking to you... Next I'm off to bed... I keep yawning... Night...

Here are Peanut's Before and Afters...

Hair cuts are serious business... ;-)

Sooo long and curly...

I'm a little Diva now...

Full, thick and still curly...