New Year's Eve

Wow, it's hard to believe another year is almost over. To think we started the year as a family if 8 and are ending it as a family of nine. Alot can change in just one year. I'm thankful that this year has been a good one. We've had our ups and downs through out the year but the good has far outweighed the bad. Let's hope the same can be said of the upcoming year.

We are going to be heading to church for a New Year's Eve party here in a little bit. Be safe if you are out tonight and I hope everyone has a Happy New Year. .

Unconscious Mutterings - Week 204

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Resolution :: New Year's
   
2. Happy :: Sad
   
3. Bubbly :: Hot
   
4. Kiss :: Hug
   
5. Leather :: Lace
   
6. Fancy :: Plain
   
7. Pages :: Book
   
8. Stupid :: Smart
   
9. Apologize :: Sorry
   
10. Secrets :: Hide
    

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Saturday Photo Scavenger Hunt Theme: New

This is a picture of our very first baby chick. He was born October 1, 2006 and as you can tell, he's brand spanking new...he's less than a minute old in this picture.


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Friday Feast #124 - 12/29/06

Appetizer
How do you usually celebrate on New Year's Eve?
Up until a few years ago we never did anything. Then we started going to a New Year's Eve party at a friends house. This year we are going to a New Year's Eve party at the church where our oldest son attends youth group.

Soup
Name one thing unexpected that happened to you in 2006.
We started raising chickens...just a few so we'd be able to have some eggs. We hatched them from eggs which the kids thought was so cool.

Salad
Where was your favorite place that you visited in 2006?
I don't think I went anywhere exciting this year.

Main Course
What resolution is your top priority for 2007?
I don't generally make resolutions but I'd like to do a better job of staying in touch with family and friends. This was my 2006 resolution as well and I did okay with it but I'd like to do better this year.

Dessert
Using just three words, describe 2006.
Achey, Tired, Sleepless...hmm, does it sound like I was pregnant and had a baby in 2006? LOL

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It's Done

Christmas is over...the last of the decorations came down today. Everyone seemed very happy with what they got. Our big family gift was a chess table with chairs. The chairs were on backorder at the time we placed the order so the chances of us getting them by Christmas was slim. As it turns out, the table and chairs arrived the day after Christmas which worked out well since we'd gone to Andy's sisters for Christmas day. Here's a pic of what he new tableand chairs look like. My parents bought us really nice chess pieces to go with it.


Andy and the kids gave me a gorgeous Last Supper piece made out of olive wood from Bethlehem. I love it!



My parents gave us some cute decal people so now my car and our big van have little people on the back of them. I'm especially excited because Andy wouldn't let me put the fish on my car...he said if I can't fit all the people in my car, I can't show all the fish. You see I didn't let that deter me from putting all the little people on my car. =) The first picture is my car, the second and third pics are of the van.


I also got a digital camera from my parents which I'm very excited about because it now means I don't have to constantly try to get the other camera from Andy everytime I want to take a picture. The above pictures were taken with my new camera...I'm still trying to figure out how to get it to work the way I want...and it took me way to long to figure out how to get the pictures transferred from the camera to the computer but I finally figured it out. I'm also getting a swivel recliner glide rocker with money that my in laws gave me. My other gliders have bit the dust so they all getting tossed out once I receive the new one. I'm very excited about it.

Andy got a new coffee pot, a new George Foreman grill (we wore the other one out) from me and the kids. From my parents he got a big toaster oven. I'm not sure what he's going to use his money from his parents for but I'm sure he'll come up with something...I heard rumblings about a tiller. ;) His mom also got him the exact same George Foreman grill. What are the odds. LOL

The big things from us for the kids was... some PS2 games for the boys, Kenzie got a softball glove and ball, Bekah and Andy got T.M.X. Elmo, Kearsyn got some bottles...poor girl got something practical. LOL From Andy's parents...Alex got a guitar (now to work on getting lessons), Connor got a metal detector and binoculars, Kenzie got a keyboard, Taylor got a karaoke machine, Tyler got a boxing bag, Bekah got lots of clothes and Kearsyn got lots of diapers and some toys. From my parents, Connor got pool balls with the Eagles (he loves) and the Colts (he hates but my mom loves) emblem. Alex got pool balls with the Ravens (he loves) and the Redskins (he hates but my mom loves...see a pattern yet. LOL) emblem. Everyone got chess pieces for the new table and they got lots of different family type games.

My mom always makes something for us for Christmas and this year is was people made out of pieces of her porch railing when she redid it. Aren't they cute?

Merry Christmas!

May everyone remember the reason for the season. God Bless!

Gingerbread House

This is our first attempt at gingerbread houses. We had to cheat this year because I waited too long and had to get preassembled houses. The kids had a great time decorating them though and want to turn this into a tradition for Christmas Eve. Next year I might get daring and attempt to make my own gingerbread, that way we can attempt to build the houses ourselves.

Unconscious Mutterings - Week 203

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Terrify :: Scare
   
2. Month :: December
   
3. Throat :: Swallow
   
4. Invasion :: of the Body Snatchers
   
5. Nail :: Hammer
   
6. 12 :: Months
   
7. Bicker :: Fight
   
8. Thomas :: Edison
   
9. Sibling :: Rivalry
   
10. Delude :: Mislead
    

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Saturday Photo Scavenger Hunt Theme: Lines

Lots of lines in this picture of the suspension tower of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge.

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Homeschool Piano Recital

We had a piano recital today at our house with a couple of other homeschool familes. It was alot of fun and as Mary was leaving, she said this should be an annual event. I think that's a wonderful idea! They came bearing cookies and fudge and dutch ornaments to hang on the tree. You can click here if you'd like to hear some of the songs that our kids played.

Friday Feast #123 - 12/22/06

Appetizer
What is one of your Christmas traditions?
Setting up my Christmas village and nativity scene and getting together with family every year.

Soup
Who is the easiest person on your list to buy presents for?
My dad...he loves gadgets and tools so if you buy something along those lines, he'll be happy.

Salad
What is your favorite Christmas scent?
Pine...I love the smell of a fresh pine tree. Unfortunately we don't get a real tree anymore due to all the kiddos but I used to love it when we did.

Main Course
If you could give a fellow blogger a Christmas gift, who would it be and what would you give them?
I would give Tammy peace...she sure deserves it. (((Hugs))) sweetie!

Dessert
What's something on your Christmas wish list this year that you need (not just want)?
There isn't anything that I need...I'm already more than blessed with all my wonderful children and a loving DH...but I would love to have more sleep if there was a way to get it. ;)

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Financial Aid

We finally got around to filling out the Parent Financial Statement (PFS) that the Gunston school gave us when Andy and Alex went to the open house last month. The PFS is submitted to the School and Student Service for Financial Aid (SSS) which processes the information and will then send a report to the schools requested and to yourself detailing how much they think you can afford to pay for schooling. We received the results back today (about 2 days after filing the forms). Boy, filing electronically is great. I was pleasantly surprised to see that they calculated what we could afford to pay for school at pretty much what it costs us for the homeschooling supplies for Alex. Of course, this doesn't really mean anything because it's dependant on how much financial aid the actual school can give out but it's nice to know the school won't (or shouldn't) be expecting us to fork out an arm and a leg because we can't. So, since this report says things are still within our means we'll go ahead with the next steps for Gunston which would be submitting an application for the school. Then he has to take a standardized test...like the SAT but I can't think of the acronym for the one he has to take...so he'll do that either in February or March. Then, assuming he got accepted into the school, we'd have to see how much aid they could offer us to see whether it's really doable or not.

We got new insurance cards for all the kids showing their new pcp except for Kearsyn which is the one we really need. They only put 6 cards in an envelope so I'm assuming the one that has her card in it got separated from the other envelope. I wish it would show up as the others got here a few days ago. I figure I'll give it til after the holidays and if we haven't gotten it by then, I'll have them send another. I know her pcp got changed because I can view the info online so worst case scenario, if she gets sick before we get the new card I'll just print that page out. Updating to say that we received Kearsyn's new insurance card today, 12/22, so we are all set for the new doctor. =)

We finally got our refund check from the over payments to the specialist office for Alex & Kenzie's broken collarbones. I called the beginning of November to request it so it took about a month and a half for them to get it to us.

Today we did some house cleaning since we are having a small piano recital here tomorrow. Will be fun to listen to the kids playing.

I've made up all my days for work where I was short on leave so now I'm free until Jan 2. Yay! I was even able to help with a couple of programming modifications that they needed done so my timing was perfect for this make up work.

Bekah is doing so well with her sign language. She walked up to me today and did the sign for drink and then milk to let me know she was thirsty and wanted a glass of milk to drink. How cool!

I unpacked all my regular clothes and boxed up my maternity ones the other day. Anyone want to take bets on how long they'll stay boxed up? And Andy, you stay out of it! ;)

I was able to get most of the presents wrapped today while the kids were over at a friends house practicing for the recital tomorrow. Still have a few more to do but shouldn't take long...finding the time without the kids around will be the problem. And trying to do it at night it's that easy because that's when Kearsyn is at her grumpiest.

Evaluation Report

I forgot to update about the meeting we had last week to go over Bekah's evaluation. The report said what we already knew...that her developmental levels other than speech were where they should be or above level. She was 26 months when she was evaluated and all her scores came in 28 months - 33 months. This was for cognitive, social/emotional, adaptive/self help, gross motor and fine motor skills. Her speech evaluation showed her at a 20 month level (instead of 26) which just barely qualifies her for their program. They're going to come to house twice a month to work with her and also to show us things we can do with her during the times they aren't here. I'm still totally impressed with how quickly she can pick up sign language and she now has quite few that she uses regularly like more, please, thank you, mess, shoes, coat, milk and drink.

We went to my parents yesterday to celebrate my dad's and Kathy's birthday. It was a nice visit although the boys/guys spent most of time in front of the tv watching the Ravens game. LOL Afterwards, mom took Connor to go see Eragon. Alex had seen it with his youth group on Saturday and really enjoyed it. Kenzie was so upset that Connor got to go to the movies with mom. Never mind that Saturday afternoon, she'd gone to birthday sleepover party that also included going to Build a Bear workshop, getting smoothies and pizza and then going out to Fisherman's Restaurant for dinner.

I tried doing some work today but it didn't go very well as Kearsyn was a complete grump today. I'm not sure what was up with her but she sure wasn't happy. It was also a very late night last so that didn't help things any. It was beautiful outside today so we took outside for a little while. Andy swung with her on the swing while I jumped on on the trampoline. I'm going to be so sore tomorrow...as Andy so kindly said, I'm no spring chicken anymore. LOL Oh and speaking of the trampoline, the younger kids have been banned from it after Tyler tried to hang himself on the top of the enclosure net. He got two huge scrapes on the underside of his chin around his neck where he flew up and got his neck on the top of the netting that is supposed to keep him in the trampoline. Guess that only works if you aren't trying to jump higher than the netting which is what Kenzie and Tyler were trying to do.

Tonight we went to the Christmas party for Alex's youth group which was at the youth group leaders house. What a gorgeous house it was too. He made half the house from trees that he'd cut down from his own property. How cool is that? The walls, flooring and ceiling were left the natural wood that had been made into planks (no bark on it) and he had a loft area with a cool spiral staircase. I know Andy and Alex are hoping to get invited over when the weather gets warmer (that sounds funny since it was 68 degrees today) to shoot paintballs since the guy owns 15 acres of wooded land. How fun! The kids did a huge Yankee Trader game and it was such a hoot watching them pick a present and them steal presents from each other. The biggest kid there ended up with a girls bag with lotion in it. It was hilarious! The gift Alex unwrapped was a great hot chocolate set but someone eventually stole that from him. He ended up having to go back to the pile and unwrapped a big box of bubblegum which he was just as happy with and no one tried to steal. The hot gifts of the night were a lava lamp and the hot chocolate set. The kids got really into it. Bekah made a new friend and it was fun watching them "playing" cards and putting out poker chips. They sure start young. LOL

Unconscious Mutterings - Week 202

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Hardball :: Play
   
2. Sleepless :: in Seattle
   
3. Graduation :: Present
   
4. Presents :: Christmas
   
5. Toe :: Big
   
6. Lotion :: Baby
   
7. Snicker :: Jeer
   
8. Eve :: Adam
   
9. Investment :: Plan
   
10. Pain :: Hurt
    

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Saturday Photo Scavenger Hunt Theme: Annoying

This is a picture of my very annoying family screaming, which is what they seem to do best. And yes, even my hubby is included in being annoying...he's sometimes worse than the kids. ;) Luckily I love them to death so I'll keep them around. LOL


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On Our Way

I called our insurance company Wednesday and had the kids pcp changed to the new dr, so effective 12/13 they are now patients of Dr K. I figured since insurance thought they were his patients, I'd better drop off the registration paperwork at his office so I ran over after dinner to turn that in...plus it gave me a chance to get a look at the office. What a nice trip that was, 5 minutes and I was there. I got to say hello to Dr K. as he was passing through the office on his way to see a patient. I had a nice chat with the office manager while turning in the papers and filling out another form for her so now they are officially patients there. So far so good. Let's hope it stays that way when we actually have our first appt in February. I was talking to the office manager about the shots given during the 4 month visit and Kearsyn will be getting another 4 shots and an oral vaccine and then at 6 months, she gets another 4 shots and an oral vaccine. Good grief...doesn't that seem like an awful lot of shots for someone so young? So far she's had 9 shots and an oral, so by the time she's 6 months she'll have had 17 shots and 3 orals.

Alex is very excited about tomorrow as he gets to go see Eragon with his youth group. Connor, on the other hand, isn't quite as excited because he wants to go as well but he doesn't know that his mommom is planning on taking him to see it. She's not sure she can do it this weekend...but one day soon she will. Kenzie is going to a sleepover birthday party tomorrow so she's looking forward to that. She's going to be eating at a nice restaurant...I'm kind of jealous cause she'll be eating better tomorrow than we will. LOL Wednesday is my dad's birthday, so we are all going to my parents on Sunday to celebrate. My sister and her DH are coming over so it should be a nice time.

So far I've worked 5 out of my 8 makeup days for work. I was able to redo two of the reports so that my boss could review them over the weekend...he loves to work on the weekend. The rest of us hate it because we know come Monday that there will always be a list of things for us to do. I only have 3 more days to make up and I'll be glad when they are done. I'll work Monday, Wednesday and Thursday next week and then I'll be done working until the new year. Of course, that means I'll actually have to start going back into the office on 1/2/07...wow, hard to believe it almost the new year...which I'm so not looking forward to...but I know everyone there is. ;)

Friday Feast #122 - 12/15/06

Appetizer
What was your very first job with a paycheck?
I assisted a family friend in teaching computer programming at a day camp.

Soup
Did you ever lose something really important to you?
Not that I can remember so if I ever did, I've long since forgotten about it.

Salad
What is the best Christmas present you ever received?
As a child it would have to be the year I received the game Merlin. It was the only thing I really wanted that Christmas and my parents hid it a the very back of the tree to torture me. LOL

As an adult, it would be the year I received my mother/child necklace after having our second child. I wore that necklace everyday until the pendant finally broke a couple of years ago, at which point, my hubby bought me a new one...not the exact style...but one I love just as much...and I wear this one everyday just like the other one. =)

Main Course
Tell about a favorite "hang out" place for you and your friends when you were in high school.
Because my friends in high school lived from one end of our county to the other we did most of our hanging out in the band room at school, whether or not we actually had something band related going on.

Dessert
Name something that always brings a smile to your face.
My kids

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SBQ - Finishing

Today's SBQ was suggested by Carol and is:

Do you have any good internet links to tutorials for your favorite
finishing techniques that you would like to share?

Here are a few sites that I use...

• Tips and Tricks - has some good finishing techniques about 3/4 of the way down the page
• Cleaning, Mounting & Framing - a great site on how to clean, mount and frame cross stitch
• Fabric Finishing Techniques - has a number of different ways to finish fabric

New Doc

We're going to take the plunge and try a new pediatrician for the kids. We've been talking about it for awhile now but haven't been able to find someone close to us that wasn't part of a big practice. Plus it's a big step as we've been going to this dr for 8 yrs...ever since Kenzie was a baby. But we currently have to drive 40 minutes to get to their current pediatrician which is getting to be a bit much with all the kids, plus it requires us to drive across the bridge and in the summer that can get a bit tricky. This new dr is only 2.5 miles from our house so getting there will be a breeze. They have good hours...a couple of days they have late evening hours and they also have Saturday appts. I was a little nervous, though, because he has a name I can't pronounce so I was concerned that we wouldn't be able to understand him but he sounds like a very nice man. I got to talk to him for a minute when I called up to make an appt. And come to find out, I didn't need to worry about having to pronounce his name...everyone just calls him Dr. K. LOL The office manager was very pleasant and didn't even get mad at me when I called back 5 minutes after making the appt to change it. Sheeze, I just can not keep track of all the kids schedules. LOL I'm hoping we are doing the right thing cause we are having to make this switch with Kearsyn first and she's due to have shots at her next appt so that will be a pain with her current dr if we don't end up liking this new dr but from all indications so far, that shouldn't be a problem. Let's hope so at any rate. I'll let you know on 2/14...hmm, it just occurred to me that's Valentine's day...as that's when her appt with the new dr is.

CSC 12 Days of Christmas Exchange - Day 12

Today is the final day for the 12 Days of Christmas exchange and I received a really cute 3D Oklahoma magnet. Thank you so much for all the wonderful gifts, Santa! It's been an awesome exchange! I'll come back later to edit in your name but that will have to be after Miss V figures out who her Santa is. LOL

New Headboard

Bekah's new headboard arrived today. It should have been here a week ago but it ended up being back ordered. But it's here now and looks really nice in her room.

Not much else happening here today. I worked a full day, Andy & Kenzie went grocery shopping, Alex is at youth group and the rest of the kids are around the house somewhere probably getting into trouble. ;)


Alex got home from youth group a little while ago and made this cute Nativity ornament there. I love nativity scenes! =) He also made a candy cane reindeer but he ate that one before I could take a picture of it. LOL

CSC 12 Days of Christmas Exchange - Day 11

My wonderful Santa gave to me on this 11th day of the exchange a gift card to Joann's. I love this store so the card will be put to good use. Thanks so much Santa!!

Only one more day to go before I find out who my secret Santa is. I've had such a fun time and am looking forward to finding out who has given me all the wonderful gifts.

Done

Chorale is done til after the holidays. Connor and Kenzie had two concerts this weekend...one Saturday evening and one this evening. They were actually scheduled to do another one at a nursing home today but it got cancelled. The concerts went well...at least from what I heard. I didn't actually get to really hear either one of them. For Saturday's concert, Andy dropped the kids off because they had to be there an hour and a half before the concert. It was near where my parents live and the kids and him had spent the majority of the day at their house working on cutting down trees. They left me at home to get some sleep cause I'd had a rotten night with Kearsyn. She didn't go to sleep until after 3am and to say I lost my cool that night is an understatement. I'm surprised my hubby is still talking to me as I was not a nice person at that point. Anyway, Kearsyn and I went to pick Connor and Kenzie up from the concert while Andy took the rest of the kids to 5pm mass...Alex was alter server that night, having to do it by himself since his brother was off singing. ;) We came home, ate dinner and then went to 7pm mass while Andy and the rest came home to eat and to watch Kearsyn. I have to say, it was really nice being able to go to church without the little ones. I could actually hear what was going on...usually I'm having to keep track of Bekah climbing up and down the pew or having one of the kids arguing with another.










Today we ate a late lunch because there was a party for the Chorale after their concert today. We had a deep fryed ham which was delicious! The outside of the ham always burns to a crisp but the inside is so moist. If you've never tried one, you really should. =)

But because we ate a late lunch, that meant Bekah didn't get her nap which meant by the time the concert came around, she was way too cranky to go in to listen to it. So Alex, Bekah, Kearsyn and I wandered the hallways of the church trying to keep her quiet while they were singing. Alex found some legos in one of the classrooms so that kept her entertained until the end of the concert. Alex actually ended up having two other little kids join them...he's such a kid magnet. LOL I ended up sitting outside the doors of where they were singing so I could somewhat hear them but it just wasn't the same as being inside. And the acoustics in this church are just amazing! They sounded beautiful. It always amazes me how good a bunch of kids sound when singing together. The party afterwards was nice, lots of pizza, cake, cookies, pretzels, fruit and alot more people than last year as the choir has actually grown this year. That's so nice to see as we'd lost of lot of membership last year.

Alex has a bunch of activities coming up with the church where he attends the youth group...going to see the movie Eragon, an ice skating party, a Christmas party at the pastor's house and a New Year's Eve party at the church which is open to the whole family. He's really looking forward to these events and I think the New Year's Eve party will be really fun although we'll see how long Kearsyn and Bekah make it. ;)

CSC 12 Days of Christmas Exchange - Day 10

I received the most beautiful handspun glass angel ornament. She's holding a little gold star and she's gorgeous! She will hold a special place on my tree. Thanks so much Santa!

Unconscious Mutterings - Week 201

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Research :: Paper
   
2. Chuck :: Throw
   
3. Insert :: Tab
   
4. Bang :: Hammer
   
5. Lousy :: Awful
   
6. Rehearsal :: Choir
   
7. Critics :: Newspaper
   
8. Memory :: Game
   
9. Squid :: Water
   
10. Remove :: Take
    

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Saturday Photo Scavenger Hunt Theme: Red

I should have looked ahead at the themes because I would have used my photo last week for this weeks theme. Instead of getting a nice beautiful red sunrise for this theme, you get my boring red Christmas papered front door. LOL


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CSC 12 Days of Christmas Exchange - Day 9

Today I got the cutest embellishments...a package of Icy Snowflakes and a package of Bright Lights. I love these kinds of things. I know just the pattern to use the Brite Lights on. Thank you Santa!

First Bottle

Kearsyn had her first bottle today and she was not thrilled about it. After pushing the nipple out of her mouth for awhile, she finally sucked in and discovered that she could get some milk out of it. After drinking about an ounce, she made the mistake of opening her eyes, because instead of finding me looking at her, she found her daddy instead. She didn't like that either, poor thing, and started crying. LOL She only ate about 1.5 oz before giving up so she was starving by her next feeding and was much happier when mom gave it to her the way she was used to. Guess we'll have to practice that bottle thing some more. Good thing I still have 3 weeks before I go back into the office. ;) We'll probably give her a bottle a day or every other day so she'll be used to it by the time I go back.

Friday Feast #121 - 12/8/06

Appetizer
Which language would you like to learn and why?
Not a spoken language, but I'd like to learn sign language to help us better communicate with our daughter while she is learning to talk. I'm amazed at how quickly she can pick the signs up and if I'd known, I would have started this much earlier with her.

Soup
What's the funniest thing you've heard or read so far this week?
Hmm, can't think of anything right now.

Salad
Which movie was so bad you couldn't watch the whole thing?
I couldn't finish watching The Master of Disguise. Was just too stupid for me.

Main Course
If there were a holiday in your honor that didn't use your actual name, what would the day be called?
National Sleep Day because I'm very sleep deprived lately with a 2 month old in the house. ;)

Dessert
Name one movie which is coming out soon that you would like to see.
The Nativity Story...although I know it's already out.

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CSC 12 Days of Christmas Exchange - Day 8

My gift today was a delicious box of Nestle Hot Cocoa Mix. Just right for today since it's turned so cold here. Thanks Santa!

Tailgate Repair

The tailgate panel on my car has been falling off for I don't know how long because the clips at the top that are supposed to hold it to the metal frame had broken. It used to be one was broken which was okay because there were still three others to hold it in place. One by one they've all broken until the panel was hanging loosely from the top. I finally bought a repair kit the other week and decided to replace the clips today. Simple enough to pop out the broken clips and pop in the new ones, right? Of course not! The holes that the top clips go into had also broken so even with new clips, the panel still wouldn't stayattached to the frame. The repair kit I got had a way to repair these holes as well but it entailed taking the whole panel off, placing metal brackets over the old holes, screwing those brackets into place, replacing all the clips...top and bottom...and then finally attaching the panel to the frame again. I've included pics of the instructions that came with the repair kit (not the best pics since I was teying to take them one handed while holding the baby). They may look simple enough but it was a pita to actually do. And let me tell, those self drilling screws leave alot to be desired. But I'm happy to report that I was able to get it repaired and my tailgate panel is nice and snug on the frame again. Yay!

On the work front, I received a phone call phone from my boss's boss today (he thinks I actually work for him and not my boss and who's going to argue with him since he's the VP of the department. LOL) He was very excited to know that I was available for work again and had a list of things for me to do. I also had a coworker call me yesterday wanting me to help her redo a report so I'm not lacking for things to do while home. Now I just need to get my brain out of baby mode and back into work mode which isn't the easiest thing to do.

I had an ortho appt today which has resulted in me wearing my retainer full time again. I've been complaining about a couple of teeth still touching and my bite feeling off by the end of the day since my braces came off so he's thinking that my teeth are still trying to shift. So now instead of wearing my retainer just at night now I get to wear it full time for the next three at which point he'll reevaluate how things are going. I don't really have an issue with wearing it full time cause after all the money I spent getting my teeth straightened, I certainly want them to stay that way.

It sure has gotten windy here today. We have a huge front going through which is bringing in cold weather. Once this front gets past it' supposed to get somewhat nice again. I just looked at weatherbug and we currently have winds blowing at 20+ mph and we had a 41+ mph gust at some point today. I'm glad we don't have anything out there that can blow around although I hate to think about what this wind is doing to our poor Christmas lights.

Christmas Ornament December 2006

I received this gorgeous ornament from Sara in our CSC Ornament Exchange. I love all the beading on it...and it even has a beaded hanger and tassels. And the cording is awesome. I've never seen anything like it and I know that Sara made it herself because she talks about it here. Awesome job!



She also sent a beautiful handpainted ornament for Kearsyn. How wonderful!

Thanks again for both of the beautiful ornaments! They will be greatly treasured.

Oh and Sara, if the pics look familiar, it's because I snagged them off your site. You did such an awesome job photographing, I figured why redo them. LOL

CSC 12 Days of Christmas Exchange - Day 7

Today I received a yummy bag of peanut m&m's. Shh..don't tell Andy or the kids cause they'll want some and they're mine...all mine!! LOL Thanks Santa!

Accomplishments

Of which there was very little done today. LOL Kearsyn was cranky and hungry all day so it was hard to get anything done. I did manage to get out to the post office to pick up a book of stamps and to mail a few cards. Also made it to the store to buy everyone some new pillows which they were in desperate need of. We also remembered to take the vans in to get their oil changed. Andy and Kenzie were going to throw their bikes in the back of the big van, drop it off and then ride back home on their bikes. They were being nice and letting me sleep but since I was awake, couldn't fall back to sleep after being up to nurse Kearsyn, I went over with them so I could drive them back home. It would have been one chilly bike ride this morning, especially since it was still dark when they were planning on going over. I talked to my boss today and we worked out a schedule for me to work from home over the next 2 weeks. Basically I'll be working 3 full days each week plus half days tomorrow and Friday. Not too bad. I went to pick Connor and Kenzie up from their chorale practice today since they had a long practice due to their concerts this weekend. Andy has just been waiting for them but figured this one was a long enough practice that he might as well come home after dropping them off. I signed us up for their party after the last concert on Sunday so we'll see how much chaos we all cause there. LOL All in all, a pretty boring day. And now that I've bored you all to tears, I'm off to bed.

CSC 12 Days of Christmas Exchange - Day 6

For my 6th gift, I received two lovely packages of Mill Hill Antique Glass Beads. The colors are Platinum Rose and Purple Passion. Beautiful colors! Thank you Santa!

Pleasantly Surprised

Kearsyn didn't do as bad last night as I feared. She was only up once and went right back to sleep after eating. She's feeling much better today, thank goodness.

I received a phone call from work this morning and ended up spending the majority of the afternoon and evening logged into work trying to fix a programming problem. I finally figured out what was wrong with one of the files but I'll have to log back in tomorrow to fix the other file. I was too tired at that point to do more. This actually helps me because I was going to be short on leave and working some from home help me be able to stay off until after the new year without taking unpaid leave, which we can't afford for me to do.

The kids had their piano practice today and came home with a surprise. I mentioned in an earlier post that on Friday they played with their teacher a little at the store he was playing in. Well, the store gave each one of the kids $5 for playing there. How nice is that?

Nothing much else happening here...Taylor had Secret Garden today and we forgot to take the van in to get the oil changed. Oops! We'll try to remember to drop it off tomorrow.

CSC 12 Days of Christmas Exchange - Day 5

My 5th gift is a package of size 26 needles. I really needed some new needles. Thanks Santa!

Shots, Shots and More Shots

How many shots? 5, plus an oral vaccine. Poor Kearsyn didn't know what she was in for when she went in for her drs visit this morning. That seems like a ridiculous amount of shots to give a 2 month old at one visit. Both her legs are sore after getting 3 shots in one and 2 in the other. Poor thing has been miserable since we got home. She's been screaming at the top of her lungs which she never does during the day and rarely at night...she's cranky at night but rarely does she scream like she's been doing. I've given her a couple of doses of Tylenol and once that kicks she's seems to calm down for a little while but I have a feeling it's going to be a long night. On a good note, she's gained almost 3 lbs and now weighs 11 lbs 6 oz. She's also grown 2 inches and is now 21.75 inches long. It's almost time to go through her drawers to get the next size cause she's almost outgrown her newborn/3 months clothes....most only go to 12lbs. What a big girl she's getting to be. We'll have to start giving her a bottle soon so she can start getting used to it before I have to go back to work after the new year.

Wowwee, what happened to our nice weather?? It was downright cold today and very windy with gusts up to 30+ mph. I was disappointed this morning, though, cause they'd been calling for a chance of snow last night and early this morning and I didn't see one flake. Darn!

CSC 12 Days of Christmas Exchange - Day 4

Today I received a very soft skein of yarn in moss green color. The varigation in the color is beautiful! I'm really looking forward to working with this. Thanks Santa!

Busy, Chilly Weekend

Of all weekends for it to turn chilly, it would be this weekend. Andy and the kids had two soccer parties scheduled for this weekend and of course they are outdoor parties because they always do a parents/kids soccer game. The chilly weather didn't deter them and they had a great time at both parties. Connor & Kenzie's party was on Saturday and Alex's party was today.




Saturday was also pick up day for our family pictures and they turned out great, if I do say so myself. They always do such a good job both with the group shots and with the individual pictures. Getting 9 people to look at the camera at the same time and keep their eyes open is not small feat. Here is our Christmas picture for this year.





On Friday, Connor, Kenzie & Tyler got to play a little bit at one of the stores in the area. There piano teacher was providing background music for the evening and had invited his students to stop by and play a few songs. It was fun for the kids even though there are alot of distractions playing in that type of environment.



Today is the first day of Advent and Tyler got to do the honors of lighting the first candle.






And here's picture of Kearsyn smiling. =) She has her two month check up tomorrow and she's due to get lots of shots so I don't expect alot of smiling tomorrow. Poor baby.

Holiday Decorations Parade

Wystful1 at Thanks for the Memories is holding a virtual decorations parade. Click here to add your holiday decorations link and join in on the fun.

Click here to view my holiday decorations. =)

Unconscious Mutterings - Week 200

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Hello :: Goodbye
   
2. Flinstone :: Fred
   
3. Corn :: Husk
   
4. Interview :: Job
   
5. Deviant :: Bad
   
6. Concept :: Idea
   
7. Bridge :: Over Troubled Waters
   
8. Karen :: SIL
   
9. Encounter :: Meet
   
10. Biological :: Clock
    

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CSC 12 Days of Christmas Exchange - Day 3

Today my pal gave me two packages of plastic bobbins. They will be put to good use. Thanks Santa!

The letter A

I got this from Michelle's blog. She assigned me the letter A (because I asked her for an easy letter LOL). So here are ten things that begin with A and what they mean to me.

1) Alex - my oldest DS
2) Acorns - something my twins love to collect when we are at the park
3) Alligator - Bekah has a book about an alligator that's top is shaped like one and has jaws that she can snap open and closed. She loves it!
4) Apples - a fruit that we can not keep in this house because the kids love them and will eat them all as soon as we get them in the house
5) Airplanes - we live close to a small airport so there are usually always planes buzzing around overhead
6) Allegiance - my kids all say the Pledge of Allegiance every morning before starting school
7) Aggravate - my oldest DS has been doing this to his younger siblings alot lately
8) Action - my kiddos are always in some form of action so it's constant motion around here from the time they wake up to the time they go to bed
9) Automobiles - we have 3 of these although two of them no longer fit our entire family. We have a Volvo wagon, a Dodge mini van and a Ford 15 passenger van
10) Always - once you are a mom, you will always worry about your kids...no matter how old they get

That was fun although I did have to think about coming up with words alot more than I thought I might.

Anyone else want to play? Just comment here and I will assign you a letter of the alphabet. Then go to your blog and post a list of 10 words that begin with this letter and what they mean to you.

CSC 12 Days of Christmas Exchange - Day 2

For day 2, my gal gave me a gorgeous stoneware nativity scene. I love nativity scenes!

She also gave each if the kids a bag of Christmas chocolate. They love it! For Kearsyn, she gave a baby's first ornament which is wonderful because I hadn't gotten her a first ornament yet.

Thank you so much!!

Saturday Photo Scavenger Hunt Theme: Light

This is a beautiful picture that my DH took the other morning showing the sun"light" just starting to peak through at sunrise.


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CSC 12 Days of Christmas Exchange - Day 1

The 12 Days of Christmas Exchange is an annual exchange done on the CrossStitchCrazy Board this time each year. It is such a fun exchange! I always look forward to participating in it.

On the first day, my 12 Days Pal gave to me....

28ct Angel Blush Lugana fabric. It's beautiful! Thank you pal!!

Since hubby gave me a hard time about my original title I decided to change it a little. ;-)

Friday Feast #120 - 12/1/06

Appetizer
Have you ever flown in a helicopter?
No

Soup
What color is your warmest coat or jacket?
Cream and Grey

Salad
What is your favorite rainy day activity?
Curled up on the sofa cross stitching

Main Course
Describe your hands.
I have fairly small hands with long skinny fingers on which I wear just my wedding and engagement ring. Most of the time I have long fingernails.

Dessert
If you could eat only one nut for the rest of your life, what nut would you pick?
Peanut

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Christmas Ornament

I stitched this cute little ornament...little being the optimum word here...for an ornie exchange on the CrossStitchCrazy board. This is the over 1 ornament I talked about in one of my earlier posts. If I'd known it was going to end up this small I would have stitched it over two and saved myself alot of heartache. I'm not sure what's up with it but I followed the instructions and it clearly stated to stitch it over 1 on 32ct fabric which is what I did. This design, called Fa La La by Twisted Thread, is from the 2000 JCS Ornament Magazine and is stitched on 32ct Vintage Navy Bean by Lakeside Linens & Designs.

Busy Day

Andy took Alex to the Gunston Open House. Alex really liked it...they both said the place was beautiful. Too bad it costs $18,000 to go there for a year. Yikes! I don't see that happening but we are going to go ahead and fill out the financial aid form just to see what we might get. Can't hurt any.

Bekah had her speech evaluation appt today. I was very impressed with how the ladies did the evaluation. They even taught Bekah how to sign "more" which she still remembers. That's so amazing to me that she can be shown the sign a couple of times and she is still retaining it. Makes me want to learn more signs that can be taught to her. They were totally impressed with her motor skills...she's actually doing a number of things above age level. She is delayed in her speech area so she does qualify for the program. The next steps are for them to write up their report to figure out exactly where she falls, then we'll get together to discuss the findings. During that meeting, we'll decide on how best to proceed with getting her additional speech help. The good news is...actually there are two...1) it's free and 2) they'll come to the house to everything so that will make things easier on us.

Kenzie's softball practices have started back up again. They are only optional at this point but do you think my girl would miss any kind of practice?? No way! LOL So Andy and she made the trek to Trappe to the indoor facility for the practice tonight.

Connor is impatiently waiting for the Ravens game to start. This child loves football!

I've seen so many beautiful pictures of sunrises and sunsets lately...Velda's and Andy's...I thought I would post one that I took tonight as I went out to turn on our outside Christmas lights. I realize now after looking at the picture that I should have walked out farther on the deck so our rain spout and satellite wires weren't in it. Oops! LOL

Headache

Whew, I have had the worst headache for most of the day today. It hurt to think so needless to say I didn't accomplish anything today. I started feeling better around dinner time...just about the time that Andy started getting a headache. Hmm, wonder if I gave mine to him somehow. Now I'm waiting for Kearsyn to wake up to eat. She's been sleeping for a long time now and if I'd known she was going to be asleep for this long, I would have gone to bed hours ago. I know if I go to bed now she'll wake up 10 minutes after I lay down but if I stay up she'll probably sleep for another hour or see. I see it as a no win situation. LOL

SBQ - To Knot or Not

Today's SBQ is:

How do you secure your thread when you begin a new one? Specifically,
do you or have you ever used a waste knot?

When stitching with two threads, I almost always use the loop method. When not using hte loop method, I'll leave a tail long enough to weave under the stitches or I use a waste knot. When stitching with one strand, I always use a waste knot.

To perform the loop method you cut the strand twice as long as desired for stitching. Fold the strand in half, and insert the cut ends in the eye of your needle. The folded end is at the opposite end of the strand. Come up through the fabric, leaving the loop on the underside. Make your first stitch. Bring the needle down through the loop in the folded end of the strand, and pull until loop lies flat against the fabric.

To perform the waste knot method you tie a knot in the end of the floss. Thread the needle and draw the floss through the top of the fabric near the edge. Bring the floss up through the back of the fabric in the desired starting spot and begin stitching.

Too Good to be True

I knew it was too good to be true. Kearsyn was back to her normal nonsleeping pattern last night. At least I know she can sleep when she wants to. ;)

What beautiful weather we have been having here the past couple of days. You sure wouldn't know that it's the last week in November by being outside. Now if we could just get our yard to dry out after all that rain we had last week. It's still extremely soggy out there.

I did some Christmas shopping yesterday and actually went to a store to do it. That's a rarity for me. LOL I usually do most shopping online cause I hate having to hunt for things in the store and they rarely have want I want anyway. I was pleasantly surprised because I actually found most of what I wanted to get for my sister and her DH so they are pretty much done at this point. Yay! The kids presents have all been ordered and are starting to arrive. The only ones left to buy for now are our parents. I also still need to get a birthday present for my dad whose b'day is 12/20. We're going to try and get the family together on the 17th to celebrate. It's always hard with Dad's b'day being so close to Christmas especially now that my sister alternates the holidays with her inlaws.

Thusday is going to be a busy day. We're going to look at a private school that is having an open house in the morning. Not sure that we can actually avoid it, even though they do offer some financial aid to go there, but it can't hurt to check it out. In the afternoon, there is a Homeschoolers Open House at the college. Alex is going to be taking a Composition class there which will be good for him plus it will help lighted the load a little for Andy in the spring since he won't have to cover that subject. Also Thursday afternoon, Bekah has her speech evaluation appointment so we'll see how that goes. She's been in a terrible two's mood here lately. Hope she gets out of it soon cause she's driving me crazy. She thinks she can make up for it by flashing me her cute grin and giving me a kiss...which of course works. LOL

Haven't done any stitching lately although I really need to get a move on finishing up my Christmas ornament. I've had it stitched up for weeks...just can't figure out how to finish it. I wanted to do something different but I can't figure out what so I haven't done anything. :(

Recently Read Books

Beyond the Shadows by Robin Lee Hatcher: Deborah Haskin's world is shattered when her husband, Andy, dies in the Korean War. As much as she wants to fall to pieces, she knows that he would want her to try to keep the Idaho farm that had been his life's dream. When Andy's war buddy, Gideon Clermont, shows up on her doorstep after the funeral, Deborah doesn't know what to make of him, especially when she learns that he is an alcoholic. But God uses Gideon to help Deborah work through her grief to a new place of hope and faith.

Smoke and Mirrors by Barbara Michaels: The fast-paced world of politics was both exhilarating and daunting to young Erin Hartsock - she came to Washington, D.C., to join the campaign of a charismatic congresswoman. But Erin's enthusiasm turned to dread as the campaign took a dark turn. A chilling secret threatened Erin and her colleagues, causing a series of strange fires and a seemingly accidental death, and showing Erin the shocking truth behind the political game. The next candidate for death would soon be chosen....

Return by Karen Kingsbury and Gary Smalley: A Shattered Relationship - Luke, golden boy and the Baxter family's only son, has walked away from everything that mattered most to him: his faith, his family, and Reagan, his only love. Devastated by the events of September 11, 2001, Luke decides that life is random, faith a fraud, and God a fantasy.

A Secret - A baby is about to be born, but with Reagan a thousand miles away in New York City, Luke has no idea he's the father. Now, though, someone in his family learns the truth. The problem? She has a secret of her own, one that will change the Baxters' lives forever.

A Revelation - What will it take for Luke to return to the family who loves and aches for him? And what extremes will a certain young firefighter take to help bring the Baxters together again, and in the process, find his place in the family?

A story of tenacious love and longing for a lost son.

The Forgiving Hour by Robin Lee Hatcher: After years of bitterness and anger over her ex-husband’s betrayal, Claire Conway’s life finally seems to be on track. She has raised a fine son, Dakota. Her work is going well, and for the first time in years she finds herself attracted to a man once again! Then Dakota brings home his fiancée, Sara Jennings, and everything falls apart. For Sara turns out to be the same woman Claire’s husband had an affair with twelve years before. Forgiving Sara seems impossible. Yet only in that hour of forgiveness can the three of them be truly set free.

Book info from BarnesandNoble.com

Recital

Connor, Kenzie and Tyler did at great job when they played piano at the Festival of Trees on Saturday. Kenzie was a little concerned that she messed up slightly on one song but she didn't stop playing...just skipped to where she needed to be to get back on track and kept playing. What a big girl to not lose her composure. I'm so impressed with all three of their playing ability. I love sitting back and watching them play...watching their hands and fingers move across the keyboard, the look of concentration and joy on their faces as they play. They truly love playing the piano...even Tyler who will fight us tooth and nail sometimes to practice. On the way home from the festival, they had to stop for their traditional ice cream treat although they didn't stay to eat it because Terps football was on and that takes precedence over almost everything. LOL



Andy has more details of the night on his site but here's a pic of the huge poinsetta tree they do there every year. It's gorgeous!







I've actually been able to get some sleep the past couple of nights. Kearsyn slept from 1 - 5:45 last night and from 11:30 - 5:15 the night before. Of course Bekah was up sick that night about 4 but thankfully Kenzie got Andy up to help with her so I got to stay asleep. I'm not sure what to do with myself after getting that much uninterrupted sleep. LOL I'm not counting on it lasting though. Kearsyn is going through a growth spurt so that's making her sleeping. I can barely get her to stay awake long enough to eat before she's back out out again. She's such a sweetie. She's starting to coo and will smile at you now. How fun!

Unconscious Mutterings - Week 199

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Rhyme :: Nursery
   
2. Substantial :: Significant
   
3. Instant :: Gratification
   
4. Greed :: Gluttony
   
5. Brad :: Pitt
   
6. Season :: Fall
   
7. Accomplished :: Done
   
8. Invite :: Party
   
9. Sparkle :: Shine
   
10. Rainbow :: Colors
    

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Saturday Photo Scavenger Hunt Theme: Time

This is a clock that I cross stitched soon after my husband and I got married...over 17 yrs ago. And it actually still tells time. =)

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