What You Can Expect in Your Christmas Cards

IF we get any out.  And don't hold your breath for presents this year...all my extra pennies are sitting on my cabinets because as big as the kitchen looks in these pics, the people at Hard Rock Designs will tell you it's even bigger.

Wanna Know What Heaven Looks Like?

I'm pretty sure it's something like this, only more done and with less paint on the light bulbs.  Our painter is pretty unprofessional, and sloppy.  But Mike's married to her so she comes with the job.

I'm hoping our sink is big enough.

Oh good, it is.

Just a close up on the granite and what the seams look like.

Ya know, if you had told me when I was eighteen that I would be this excited about countertops, I would have laughed.  A lot.  Now, I'm weeping ecstatic tears of joy...

A Little Less Conversation...

We were trying to have a nice after dinner conversation the other night when my aunt Lynda was in town.  This is Jack screeching to get my attention.

Still screeching.  Oh, and wearing a towel because he just got out of the shower.  Unlike most little boys he wants his diaper on so if I'm going to air him out, I need to do it like this.

So, I finally pay attention to him and he does this.

He really is the snuggliest kid.  I love it.

You'll have to excuse my hair.  It's my "i've been working on my house all day" hair.  I also have realized that I really can't afford my hair upkeep.  I have these great blond panels, part on one side, lots of blond, part on the other, almost none at all.  I love it.  BUT, on top of my other color (which I will maintain in order to make sure that IF/when I start getting grey hairs I will be oblivious) and the blond, it's a little spendy.  

I really, really, hate budgeting.  Really.

Seriously, if it wasn't so cold out I'd live in a VW van, I could park next to my brother. Apparently his friend has a really flat driveway.  VW heaven.  In Oregon.  Where it's warmer.  And the gas is probably cheaper.  AND you totally don't have to pump it yourself.

Total blog ramble.  Sorry.  Have a good one everyone!

The Smelly Kid

So we have this constant problem with Emma wearing pants.  The first few weeks of school and all summer long she wore nothing but dresses.  I forced her into one of two pairs of pants she will wear only a few times over the summer but even on some pretty cold days she would wear knee socks and rubber boots.

Well, it is now winter.  She has to have snowpants on to go outside for recess.  Snowpants do not work with dresses.  I finally (after many pairs of purchased pants that didn't work) found some GAP foldover yoga pants that she will wear.

Okay, now that we've all gone through that, I'll tell you why my kid is the smelly kid.

When she has cuts, scrapes, bruises (this is often) she WILL NOT get in the tub.  She's sensory sensitive (technically sensory integration disorder) and we struggle with it at times.  So, she has two pretty good cuts, one on her arm, one on her leg.  She has not showered or taken a bath in a week?  Maybe a little more?

To make things worse, she's getting pickier about her pants.  So, she found a great little outfit on Thursday for herself with a pair of pink pants and a strawberry shortcake top (I have NO idea where it came from).  She put it on and happily wore it to school.  At the end of the day she took it off and I threw it in the general direction of the laundry bin.

Friday morning comes and I pull out her blue pants (for a while the ONLY ones she would wear).  She put on the strawberry shortcake top again but covered it with a sweater. 

Whatever. 

So then, when I was upstairs making her lunch with Jack's help she found the very dirty, sticky in places pink pants and put them on instead of the clean blue ones.

I didn't realize this until we got to school.  

After a week? of no bathing, her hair does not look brushed for longer than about 5 minutes.  She got into her lunch on the way to school while I was trying to appease the brother without driving off the road and she had some crumbs on her face.  She used her sweater to wipe it off and then HAD to remove the sweater before she went to school.  Because the sweater was dirty. Irony anyone?

So, today, friday, I sent my unbathed for a week? daughter to school in the same outfit she wore yesterday except today it's dirtier AND she didn't brush her teeth.

Yep, that's me.  Supermom.

I sometimes wonder what the teachers there think.

Some words of wisdom from a former elementary school teacher, "I will believe half of what I hear happens in your home if you believe half of what your child says happens here at school"

Random Pics From Halloween

Just because it's a holiday, it doesn't mean things will go your way.

The above isn't a great picture of any of us but you can see how enormous this barely two year old is.

Gramma with the kids just outside of her dad's new apartment.  That would be her dad, my granddad, and the kids' great-granddad.

Pretty fun.

Jack spent much of the evening trying to figure out why his banana wouldn't come out of his pocket.  He'd spin circles with his head looking that way and pulling as hard as he could.  Hysterical for the rest of us...

Here's Emma with one of her best friends Charlee.  Emma wore bits of her Halloween costume and bits of other "pretty" things she had.  You know, I really tried hard to foster independence and I have to say it totally worked.  My friend was smarter, she bought her daughter a warm costume and put her in it.  Emma froze.  It was about 10 degrees outside.

House Update

So, we're painting, and putting in cabinets and Mike is doing the finish electrical so things are moving along.  I could LIVE in my kitchen, I get giddy (does anyone even use that word anymore?) everytime I walk by my newly installed cabinets.  I'll be out of control when the countertops arrive...

Check out the pics at flickr!  I put explanations on everything, maybe.  I haven't done it yet and I'm watching my friends' son for our weekly kid swap so we can help in classrooms.  If Wubbzy continues to be fascinating, all the pics will have descriptions.  If not...

The Only Thing I Like About Daylight Savings

We can see in the mornings again.  Now, this will only last three weeks, maybe, so I tried to really take it all in.  In the spring, it's already so light that you really don't see a difference. Both of these were taken this morning.  Cute little yearling moose, they're on the street ALL THE TIME.  I never get tired of it.  And the view?  Who wouldn't want that as their backdrop everyday?

So, ya know, I complain about the cold (and sometimes the dark) but I really do love living up here.

There's A New Man in Town

He drives a hot car.

He wears custom tailored pants.
He's an adventurer, seen here in Hatcher's Pass

AND, most importantly, he puts down his book to read to his Great, Great Grandkids.

Welcome Home Granddad!  I can't tell you how ecstatic we are that you're here!

Only A True Alaskan

The "real" photographer

My mom took this a few weeks ago.  I love it.  She doesn't take as many photos as she normally does.  It may have something to do with her being so busy with my kids while I build my house.  My pics lately have been documentation only so this is a refreshing change.

How to Make a Great Pumpkin by Jack

Hey there, I'm Jack!  In the below post I will be telling you how to make The Great Pumpkin"

Pay attention.

I don't know exactly what that means, but my mom says it a lot.

The Great Pumpkin

"So, first you have to cut off the top and put it on the table like this."

"Then you take out a bunch of gooey stuff so you can scream into the top and hope for an echo, I tried this lots."

"It doesn't work great."

"But try it anyways."

"There now, isn't he cool?"

(this is Jack's favorite word, he says it about everything, if Jack were on his dad's favorite show Chuck he would be Captain Cool)

"Now you kiss the pumpkin over and over.  You have to do it quick, otherwise Gramma will get a picture of your lips ON the pumpkin and even though it's cute now, it may not be cute later."

"Now you put the lid back on."

"I said put the LID BACK ON!"

"SOMEBODYPUTTHELIDBACKON!!!  BACK ON!! THISISTERRIBLE!""

"HEEEEPPPPPPP!" ( Jack doesn't use L's for help)

"SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECH"

"Stop taking picture and HHHEEEEEEEEEEPP"