Lunch Fun!

We wanted to get to Artsplash early this morning to avoid both the heat and the crowds. Well, we really didn't succeed with either of those goals! It wasn't too bad - but Jack and Will had enough after sitting in their stroller for an hour and a half. The sun was bright, but there was a cool breeze, and very pleasant in the shade.

Ali decorated a cookie, painted a mini canvas (which Mommy didn't put far enough back on the table when we got home and Jack wanted to add his own artistic touch to it!), and she had her hair colored - purple and glitter. It washes out, though. That's what the volunteers said. But then as I was watching the young gal spray Ali's hair, I noticed a sign that said, "Color may not wash out of very light or very fine hair." Thanks for the heads up!

We walked over to Milwaukee Wiener and enjoyed a quiet lunch - well, it was quiet after we gave the boys their hot dogs). I took this picture of the kids together - not perfect, but I don't know the last time I got a good picture of the three of them together.

Happy Labor Day Weekend!

School Prep

Well, Wednesday is the big day. Ali will start preschool. She is SOOO ready to go! She'll be going three days a week, so we hope it starts to get her into the groove for kindergarten.

I signed up for the Back to Class online class at www.debbiehodge.com - it's an AWESOME class for completing a school album - and getting one ready for a child that's not in school yet. The teacher, Trish Turay, gives great inspirational hints, too. Definitely check it out if this is something you've always been wanting to do!

I've been thinking for weeks about the pictures I want to take on that first day. I know this isn't original, but I want to find a spot outside to take a picture of her - then take her picture there on the first and last day of school every year. I think that would be a great comparison to be able to make each year.

Ali keeps telling us she's going to learn to read when she goes to school. It's very sweet. We've been working with her on writing letters - we have a dry-erase book for tracing the letters, and she really gets a kick out of writing the letters then wiping them off and doing it all over again!

Be looking next week for a post of her first day of school pictures!

Ahh, adventures at work!

Last Tuesday started out as an ordinary day. The usual smattering of court appearances, office appointments, and phone calls.

All that changed approximately 2:45 p.m.

I was on the phone with a client in my upstairs office and Mary was doing some filing in another office. Suddenly, I hear Mary yell, "Baaaaatttttttt....."

Great. A bat.

After making sure Mary was okay (she was fine - just a little spooked) I realized I still had my client on hold! I got back on the phone, all the time watching the bat fly laps back and forth in the hallway. I hurried to wrap up the phone call.

The bat kept up with the laps. It seemed like a small bat - as far as bats go. I don't remember seeing a bat flying that much at the office - at least not during the day. Whenever I've discovered one during the day, it's usually been up against a wall.

Small, but still a bat. And a moving one at that.

I wanted to try to trap it in an upstairs office, but it didn't stay put for long enough.

But I did.

For a few minutes.

But then I had to leave for a hearing.

Before I left, I called Brian, who was returning from court. I yelled into the phone, "THERE'S A BAT IN THE OFFICE!!!" (I'm sure there was a colorful word in that sentence somewhere).
After I hung up the phone, I thought to myself, what the heck can Brian do right now?

When I left for court, Mary was back in her office downstairs. I made sure the bat was "trapped" upstairs when I left. I arrived at court out of breath from all the excitement.

When I returned from court, I stuck my head in the door - we wouldn't have to worry about the bat anymore.

Tiny Dancer

Ali had her first dance class today - she's taking pre-ballet and pre-tap. She took a workshop this summer, so she'd had a taste of both classes. Ali was thrilled when a couple of the girls from the summer workshop arrived for her class. When her teacher came out to lead her into the classroom, Ali gave me a hug (at my request, not because she was being clingy), took her teacher's hand, and eagerly followed her teacher, Jennifer, into the classroom.

After her lesson, Ali and I met my parents at Milwaukee Wiener for lunch - then Ali and I stopped at TCBY for some frozen yogurt. It was a very nice mother/daughter afternoon - I think this may become a Saturday post-dance ritual for the two of us.

Sick

Monday night I took Will to Urgent Care - the after hours "instead of going to the ER for illness or injury that doesn't require the ER but occurs after your doctor's office closes for the day" doctor's office. He had been running a fever that had been responding to ibuprofen, but kept returning. He also wasn't acting like himself. Since Urgent Care is a first come, first served business, we had a little bit of a wait, but not too bad. Will was so good during the wait.

NOW.....when the lab tech pricked his finger to check his white blood cell count and swabbed his throat for a strep test, he had the reaction that most anyone would have - or at least the reaction any almost two-year-old would have - he screamed. And cried. Understandably so. Turns out he has a mild case of pneumonia.

PNEUMONIA? It's August!

Yep, pneumonia. And an eye infection.

So, as we left Urgent Care at 9:00 PM, prescriptions in hand, with no cell phone to let Eric know the diagnosis or our destination, we took off for Walgreens to get his prescriptions filled. Let me back up. We stopped at Hy-Vee first because I mistakenly believed their pharmacy was open 24 hours. Nope.

We had to wait for just a little while at Walgreens - Will occupied himself by picking out plastic plates, bowls and cups for himself and Jack and Ali - Nemo, Disney's Cars, and princesses. Perfect choices, I might add! I couldn't believe how well he was taking everything - here he was, not feeling well, feverish, and up nearly TWO hours after his normal bedtime, and he was taking it all in stride. We picked up his antibiotics and eye drops and headed home.

Have you ever tried administering eye drops to a 2 year old? If you haven't, and you don't need to, I recommend you DON'T. Even with both Eric and me, I don't think we managed to get an entire dose into his eyes. Maybe that's why the instructions are for three drops in each eye - they figure you'll miss with two, and only get one where it's meant to go.

Since he was warm when he woke up in the morning, I stayed home with Will. It worked out that I was able to check into work periodically, and only had one appointment today. Eric took his lunch during that time and I ran out to my appointment. Other than that, it was Mommy and Will day. I have to imagine in his mind, it was glorious. He and Jack typically come as a "package deal": where you find one, you find the other. It was nice being able to spend time focusing completely on Will. I really need to do that more often - spend special time with both Jack and Will individually. Hopefully, next time it won't be when one is sick!

Number Eight

Yesterday, Eric and I celebrated our 8th Wedding Anniversary. My parents offered to keep the kiddos for dinner so Eric and I could have a quiet dinner to celebrate. We took advantage of a gift certificate to Bev's on the River and enjoyed dinner overlooking the Missouri River. It was a beautiful evening- warm, a little muggy, quite reminiscent of our wedding day. Here we are, eight years later, blessed by God with three beautiful, healthy children, as much in love today as we were eight years ago, and looking forward to whatever the future may bring!

Bedtime Battles

The FUNNIEST thing happened last night - one of those moments you know your child won't believe when you tell the story years after it happens.

Ali sleeps with lots of stuffed animals, dolls, etc. She has a few that she "can't go to sleep without" including "Baby" and Mommy's old Cabbage Patch Kid, Sherry Betsy. Well, the deal is, if Ali comes out of her bedroom (without a really good reason, like using the restroom), she doesn't get to sleep with Sherry Betsy - and this has been working - for about a week. Last night, she went to bed a little later (since we went to the fair, and it was Friday night), and right after we shut her door, she came out for a silly reason. SOOOO....Daddy took Sherry Betsy. Oh, my goodness. Blood curdling screams followed. Ali came out once and took Sherry Betsy back to her room, screaming she can't sleep without Sherry Betsy, and Daddy followed her, and took it back. More blood curdling screaming followed. Daddy then told Ali if she came out again, he would keep Baby, too.

OH, BOY. THAT DID IT.

SCREAMING, YELLING, CRYING.

But she stayed in her room.

IT WORKED.

As she started settling down, I quietly went to her door to see if I could hear what she was saying. This is what I heard.

ALI: "AND DADDY SAID IF I COME OUT AGAIN HE'LL TAKE BABY!"

ALI (in a slightly different voice): "That's not very nice!"

ALI (screaming and crying): "I KNOW!"

And that was all I heard. Maybe a little more whimpering, but no more screaming, and she didn't come out.

I think Daddy found the solution. At least for another week or so.

Hello, Mr. Lamb!

Thankfully, the humidity let up today and we had a very nice afternoon for the Fair. First, we checked out the poultry- the ducks and chickens. The roosters kept calling out to us! William especially enjoyed the ducks - he "quack, quacked" at them. Then, we headed over to some of the 4-H exhibits - we also found some 4-H'ers from Blessed Sacrament who helped Ali make "thumbprint art." We quickly walked past the "KidZone" section - lots of sand and legos. A great idea, but not what we wanted to do at the fair.

While we checked out the animals, Ali kept asking about the carnival. She wanted to go to the carnival. We walked past some food booths and picked up some yummy fair food - potato ribbons with cheese and fresh squeezed lemonade. The boys split a hamburger, but neither of them were very interested in it. Ali wanted ice cream - no surprise there!

After our adventure at the food booths, we ventured over to the carnival. We took all three kiddos on the merry-go-round. Ali LOVED it, Will tolerated it, and Jack HATED it. Ali kept running around asking us to buy more tickets! more tickets! She also went on the "Super Slide", a dragon roller coaster, "Spin the Apple" (like tilt-o-whirl - Mom went on this one, too - a little too much spinning for me!), and a rocket-ship-like ride. Of course, she wanted MORE but the boys were really starting to show signs of fatigue. Mom and Dad played a little skeeball, the kiddos each picked a rubber ducky out of the metal tub (for which they won those terrific carnival toys!) and then headed back toward more booths and animals.

Before we left, we also saw cows, sheep, pigs and horses - Jack and Will started a "call and respond" with the sheep - "Baaaaaa!!!"

All three kids were great - especially Jack and Will, considering they spent most of the outing in their stroller. We had some very tired, and somewhat dirty, kids when we got home!

Time for the County Fair!

Today after work, we plan to take the kids out to the Woodbury County Fair. It's been so hot this week, so I hope it's not too uncomfortable. I know Ali will enjoy it - and the boys, too, as long as they don't fight us with the stroller! I will try to take and post some pictures. In the least, it will be a good way to practice animal names and sounds with Jack and Will!

Hump Day!

Well, it's hard to believe it's already Wednesday! The kiddos have haircuts today - I just love the way Jody is cutting their hair these days! I just LOVE that I was able to take a picture of what I wanted to her, and she cut it EXACTLY like the picture. Will's hair is so thick and seems to take so much longer to cut - the poor little guy starts to get a little squirmy after awhile. Jack's hair seems to take about half the time to trim as Will's! Ali's getting her's trimmed, too - the shorter length looks so "grown up" on her - and makes for much more pleasant hair brushing in the morning!

I'm back!

Well, it's been quite a while since I've posted anything here. I'd like to say I'll post more often, but I can't promise that the next post will be in another 9 months!

We've had a fairly busy summer - occasional swimming at Uncle Brian's house, lots of reading inside on hot, humid days, and a big road trip to Connecticut to visit Eric's relatives. Ali was brave enough to try out water skiing with Pepere - doesn't she look like she's having fun? On our way back, we drove up to Lansing to meet up with Dan - he was thrilled to be able to spend time with the kids, especially Ali.

Pictures? Of Me?

I've been clothes shopping for myself lately - whoa! No way! I wore a skirt to work today with new high heels. By 8:30 a.m., my feet felt as though it was 5:00 p.m.! But I loved the shoes, so I stuck with them all day. I had Eric take my picture on the deck after work to remind myself how great I feel in my new clothes!!

Monday, October 8, 2007

Trying to work on the DT challenge right now for www.scrap-room.com. I'm having a little trouble concentrating, though.

J&W started chattering about 4:40 this morning. Yikes!! I let them talk a little bit and didn't get them out of bed until they started complaining around 5:15. Still quite early little guys! I felt exhausted by the time I got to work!

After work, I stopped at Caribou with the kiddies - only the drive-thru, of course! I'm still waiting for Caribou to come out with a stuffed caribou I can get for Jack for Christmas - when you ask him, "Jack, where's the Caribou?" his eyes light up and he laughs. If he sees the caribou icon on the side of the cup, he REALLY smiles and laughs. It's adorable!

William was very sensitive today - but what else is new? He's so emotional - just saying "no" to him in a stern voice throws him into a tizzy - like when he bit my shoulder (hard enough to leave teeth marks!) today when I was holding him - I put him down and told him "No bite!" I think it's just a phase he's going through - especially as I've cut back on and finally stopped nursing the twins. I've made sure to include extra snuggle time especially for Will - Jack doesn't seem to give two hoots that we're not nursing anymore. It's amazing how different their personalities are - William, my highly emotional, high strung, active little boy, and Jack, my laid back, easy to please, low maintenance, does everything at his own pace and walks to the beat of his own drummer little boy.

Alainna continues to amaze me every day - she's so mature that I think sometimes we forget she is only 3. So, when she ACTS like a three-year-old, we're at a loss - where did our little lady go? She's so smart - it's so beautiful to hear her talk about things and remember things from the not so distant past. She still talks about her Joly relatives she visited this summer in Connecticut. Of course, some of her memories are based on what we have reminded her about since we've been back, but I know some are based on her own experiences. I'm hoping that by scrapbooking I can too keep these memories alive for my children.

Over and out.

Sunday Afternoon

Well, today was pretty crazy. Will and Jack were up around 5 am; pretty early for both of them on a Sunday morning! Alainna followed at a little after 6. I had to cantor at 10:30 am, so I took a little nap after breakfast. I'm glad Eric was able to get the yardwork done yesterday because the weather today is pretty cold and bleak - more of a fall day than yesterday, which hit about 90 degrees!

Eric is watching the Red Sox right now - just about time to start dinner so I should call it a post for now.

Over and Out

Hiatus

Well, here I am, back from a long hiatus!

I look forward to posting more often - at least more than three times a year!

Iowa City retreat

Well, I just spent most of the past week in Iowa City, Iowa. The main purpose of the trip was to attend the State Public Defender's Office seminar. When I wasn't at the seminar, Ali, Mom, Dad, and me spent time together at the condo. Also, Mom and I were able to do some shopping for the twins - Carter's and Osh Kosh at the outlet mall need to restock their shelves this week! I also made a few trips to Reminisce, picking up quite a few scrapbooking supplies! Ali had fun exploring the library, the playground equipment on the ped mall, and chasing the ducks at Morison Park in Coralville! We could not have asked for better weather, either. It was a relaxing trip, for the most part - until Dad's mishap on Friday evening when he ended up at the ER with a broken ankle! But all is well and we are all home safe - quite a relaxing trip!

Father's Day

Had a very nice, relaxing Father's Day yesterday. After Ali and I took Eric out to breakfast at Horizon, we spent the rest of the day mostly at home (with Ali and me both taking about 3 hour naps!!) and then to my folks' house for dinner. Ali played around in her little coupe car, greeted her cement animal friends, and ran around the yard with Brian and Dan, playing football and tag. She really enjoyed it when Grandma brought out chips and dip - but mostly just wanted to lick the french onion dip off of her chips and then hand them to Mommy! Great-Grandma, Mickie and Bill were also at dinner - great steaks, Mom's homemade potato salad and coleslaw - who can ask for anything more? There was a little bit of rain but the storm held off until we left. Ali enjoyed playing outside and in the house with her new jump rope, and I don't think it will be too long before she has the needed coordination! Overall, a wonderful Father's Day - hard to imagine next year the "little guys" will be enjoying it with us!

How can we resist this face?

Tribute to my Father

I don't think I say it enough, Dad, but thanks for everything you do.

For knowing how to read me like a book, I thank you.

For integrating in me a strong work ethic, I thank you.

For giving me a love of reading, and now passing it along to my daughter, I thank you.

For your marriage advice (solicited or otherwise), I thank you.

For the e-mails you send me that brighten my day, I thank you.

For loving my Mother, I thank you.

For teaching me how to handle my emotions, and understanding those emotions yourself, I thank you.

For our fall trips to NYC while I was in college, I thank you.

For giving me roots, I thank you.

For giving me wings, I thank you.

For loving my daughter, and somehow knowing just when we need a break, I thank you.

For your unconditional love, I thank you.

Dad, on this Father's Day, I want you to know how much I appreciate everything you do for me, because I know I don't say it enough. Watching you with Ali makes my heart swell with love and pride - she is learning so much from you, and at such an early age. Thank you for being such an important part of all of our lives. I love you.

Love,
Moj
6/18/06

Welcome!

Well, I've decided to enter the world of blogging! I think this will be a great idea to keep family and friends up to date on our lives, as well as create somewhat of a journal for me to use for scrapbooking purposes!

Please e-mail me with any comments or suggestions!