happy birthday to...

adeline & my grandpa fishing, august 2008

playing with the twins while taking a wii break

...my grandpa bill.
some of you may know of him, as the part (although no longer--retirement!) owner of the infamous (if you are from northern ashland county) gerwig's white barn grocery/market. some of you may look back into your memories & remember a near white haired farmer plowing fields off of state route 58...well, that's him. that's often what i remember when i think of him, getting off a tractor, showing my siblings & i around the freezing cooler that held oodles of potatoes.

& folks, he knows how to grow *PURPLE* potatoes & then how to grow very large large large normal colored potatoes. & how to get rid of pesky ground hogs & exterminate any type of weed there is to kill. he is also an amazing fisherman, bringing home enough fish in one week of canada fishing to feed nearly, at times, 100 people at the annual fish fries. he is a hardworking man & i am happy that he & my grandma take their winters off now in florida--they need a break after farming for as long as i can remember (plus some *wink*).

he is a gentle man with rough hands & i do believe it is he who passed down the blond hair & blue eyes that make me look like an outcast in my immediate family. grandpa bill also has so much understanding of growing produce that many in my generation are clamoring to discover & i hope he continues to share his insight & love for this with his grand kids.

& let me tell you how ecstatic wes was to discover my grandpa's raspberry bushes (that he is willing to give us a cut of!) & wes is also totally stoked about the fish fries. at any rate, i love my grandpa for what he is, plain & simple. i have much to learn from him still.

birthday post

happy birthday, my brother! i know...a day late.

holding amelia for the first time august 27th, 2008

this one is for my brother, scott, scotty, spike...whatever it is you have known his name to be over the past 27 (!!) years. somehow he put up with two older sisters who loved to torture him by putting him in doll strollers & in baby clothes while he was little & then held him down to practice tickle torture when a bit older. there came a time when scotty & i were best buds (when kristi left me for a neighborhood friend--scoff--) & i remember finding newborn puppies in the dog house together (my mom thought they were dead rats at first?!) & also playing in our dress up clothes 'house on the prairie' (a favorite tv show & book series of mine. i was of course, laura ingles wilder & he would be any sort of bad guy, specifically indians, which i now know to call native americans, *smile*).

anyway, that was long ago, several decades & much has changed since then. scotty learned how to skip school by hiding himself in the ditch by the bus stop & loved the three-legged beagle (guy dog) my mom brought home from the vet clinic (that we ended up keeping FOREVER & even had to put him on doggy prozac while scotty was deployed & sadly, that is also when he passed away) while everyone else in the family was like 'ewww, that dog smells & howls'.

through these past few decades my brother has grown into a man of honor; i would like to say that's b/c he has me for a sister! *smile* but i think it is rather a combination of life lessons, crazy adventures, & a soft, god-given heart. maybe he doesn't know this, but i admire him greatly; the hard choices he's made in his life are ones that most people would avoid.

another thing you may not know about my brother? he has quite a story to tell, btw. so he enlisted in the army, i believe it was 2000, when he was *still in high school* & went to boot camp before his senior year at which time *BOTH* of his feet were broken, still he went on the grueling 15 mile (i think that's the length) hike in full gear...then offered to carry the pack of a fellow soldier who was not able to finish with her pack--with broken feet (do you know how *heavy* those packs are?!). around that time, his lungs collapsed & he made sharp shooter. eventually scotty worked into the special forces-psychological operations--& during his first year in college was sent to iraq for 18 months, i believe. he was in fallujah & he was in iraq when sadam hussain was captured...& also had to miss my wedding b/c a commander (?) decided to change his home leave dates at the last minute (jerk). what i'm getting at here is he has lived through what most of us could not imagine. & then he got married a few years later...then twin girls came another few years later! talk about living through a second war *wink*.
***
i had a dream yesterday morning, on his official birthday (oct 11). it was at my house, in the back yard. my entire family was all there complete with the 4 little girls, who were playing outside with myself, wes, scotty, & cal. my mom, sister, leila, & dad were inside my house, just sitting there talking & joking around. a normal family hang out time. suddenly i look out to the right of the back yard & there was a HUGE grizzly bear, standing on the hind legs roaring at my brother. i yelled for scotty to run but instead he attacked the bear by hitting it in the nose & tearing for its eyes. the bear engulfed him in its huge arms & tried to bite his head & neck but somehow my brother kept ducking & swinging at the bear. did i mention there was a bear cub that the 4 little girls were playing with?

during this time of my brother fighting the bear, i was frantically trying to call 911 but kept hitting the wrong numbers calling random people. my dad was trying to distract the bear by throwing rocks at it & my mom & sister were huddling the girls in the house while cal & wes were trying also to distract the bear by beating on its back. so i finally call 911 & tell them there's a bear in my backyard attacking my brother & they didn't believe me...then i saw a male lion run by into my back yard (yea, craaa--zzzy westerville, lol) & the lion charged at my brother who was suddenly up in the tree with the bear on our swing set trying swinging at my brother with its arms. the lion climbed up the tree & scotty & the lion began to climb around, fighting, tree limbs breaking & him falling & then attacking again. by this time scotty was totally bloody & gashes everywhere...& no one knew what else to do.

all i kept thinking was that if i had taken his advice & bought a gun we could have killed the wild animals by now. we were all just like 'what do we do now?!' suddenly, two small kids ran up to us & asked if their lion & bear where here & we were like 'what?! are you stupid?!' & then the police in full gear game & killed the animals. my brother was in the tree, totally mangled but still alive & he had this look of accomplishment & whispered to everyone 'i wrestled a bear & lion & won'.

i don't know what the whole point or meaning is. maybe it's just a weird dream! maybe it means that while the rest of us are some sort of by-standers & try to go about life in a different way, scotty takes on the most fearful creatures, with his bare hands nonetheless. or that he has such large predators preying on him & we don't even know how to help... at any rate, he is a protector by nature & also a fighter...god help the boys who attempt to date his daughters *my goodness* remember he's a sharp shooter/sniper?! but every family should be blessed with someone like my brother, who will risk everything to do the right thing, who is loyal & loving but will taunt you (okay, me) endlessly about political things just to pick a good-humored fight. someone who can smoke pork better than restaurants & build furniture from planks of wood. who knows how to love on & take care of two-two year old girls & also how to kill a person with just your hands 11 (or was it 21?) different ways...how to find the right woman to marry & also bring home beautiful vases & rugs from iraq for his sisters & mom.

as i mentioned earlier, i admire my brother for all of the above things...& just b/c he's my brother who found newborn puppies in the dog house with me. i love you, scotty!

at fireworks on july 4th, 2008 (w/ either chloe or zoe)

p.s. i remember you mentioning that when in contact with a grizzly that one is to act dead, curled in a ball? hmm...

in case you didn't catch on to this: if there is a disaster of any type, you will find wes & i & the girls racing towards cinnamon lake towards scotty so we will have a plan of survival. get scotty & wes together & we *could* live through that disaster (plus cal would keep everyone sane?). anyway, that's just an end thought.

accomplished

some of you may know, other may not: i just had a (nearly) TWO DAY VACATION at home! meaning, just *me*. well, & griswold but he's so low maintenance at this point (except the dog hair on the floor & couch situation). wes took the girls to spend the weekend at his parents' house in avon lake. it was homecoming weekend, so you know, all the stops are pulled in that town: parades, etc. from what i've heard from wes, they've had a blast & have mostly managed to wreck the grandparents' home sufficiently. my time alone will come to an end today, but that will be after i do some grocery shopping, clean the upstairs, & take a walk (with dog or without? would he forgive me if i went without him when it's just the two of us?) & finish the laundry.

at first, i didn't know what to do that would take up an entire weekend. after kids arrived our life revolved around them & their schedule & needs...so when they're gone & even my husband is gone, well, what to do with myself?! at first i tried to just watch online tv--then the sound become all ghost-ish & distorted (does anyone else have this problem?) so i gave that up. then i decided to fold some laundry. THEN my sister arrived & being the non-parent, newly DINK'ed gal that she is, well she was like first you're NOT riding in that car with the toxic fumes (emiting from the interior of the car from mold or something gross like that...whitey, aka thelma aka my high school car that wes drives & won't get rid of until it dies...it still gets 36 miles per gallon in his defense) & we're going o-u-t & you *will* make me laugh & we'll have a good time! so we go out to grandview & have a great time. figlio's pizza--hello, what's not to love about that? after 5 hours of sister time & 1 near drink spitting incident (me) she dropped me off at home & i slept peacefully until...

she promptly called to wake me up at 8:48 a.m. saturday morning--twice-- & then she talked me into stealing money from my daughter's piggy bank so i could go shopping with her (okay, i suggested the heist, but she encouraged me, in my defense. this was not planned, the call, the shopping, the money taken from a piggy bank--what kind of parent am i?! *wink*). i found great deals at what has been determined to be my favorite store--the gap--but this was the highlight of the trip. picture this: we're at gap (at easton) & i'm gushing about this sweat-shirt-ish thing that i've been oogling over when i walk by gap at the mall (i can't go in & try it on or else i would just buy it impulsively. i have this sick sick sick love affair with gap jeans & sweatshirts...but check out the jeans i am *dying* for: the boyfriend cut. but they didn't have my size in the store. gasp, shock, horror, tears, etc). i was telling her all about this sweatshirt & looking all over the store for it & didn't see it & decided that it was fate telling me to lay off & i was sadly looking at other sweatshirts (that's my wardrobe, folks, sweatshirts, crew neck shirts, sweatpants & jeans) & then kristi said 'what about this one heids, it looks like something you'd like' & i said without looking 'man, i can't believe they don't have my shirt; this one here is okay' & she was like 'LOOK at this one, i think you'll like it' & i looked & heaven opened up & the heavenly choir sung hallelujah for just me & me only b/c kristi was holding up THE SWEATSHIRT picked from the *sale* rack. in black. in my size. could it get any better?

so we shopped the morning away & the pants i ended up deciding to buy were somehow magically marked down 60%!!!!!!!!! yes, that's 6-0-% the luck i was having proved it was meant to be, me & the gap, that morning. the sweatshirt. the sales. the free garlic pretzel sticks--with cheese--when i was so hungry i could eat an entire cow but didn't want to spend the moolah. glorious.

THEN...it gets better, folks, yes it does. THEN i invited some lady friends over, after a dinner out to a thai restaurant in the short north (yumminy yum yum), to have chocolate fondue & wine (& beer? & champagne that was never opened b/c we're all lightweights *smile*). we hung out talking without child interruptions for nearly 3 1/2 hours. we talked about real things & laughed & didn't scold anyone of our offspring during that time. i loved it.

but...i miss my girls. i miss my husband. last night i actually cuddled for about 1 minute with wes' pillow (then i was like--hey, i want my own pillow) & put the girls' baby lotion on my hands & stalked around in their rooms b/c i couldn't get to sleep (griswold making very loud noises sleeping in the bedroom; i had to kick him out). i want them back home...but am enjoying this time still. (by writing about them?!)

at this point this post is just rambling on about stuff that most of you aren't interested in reading. that's okay; it's not for you necessarily. i'm just refreshed after this weekend. every parent should get a chance to have a vacation in their own home & then have good friends to hang with to make it even better. plus our house will be *clean* by the time they return later today (it truly is amazing what can be accomplished without kids vying for my attention while cleaning & cooking). i may get a shower, take a walk, grocery store, dinner, & cleaning done--all in the same day! & still have energy left over to play with my girls & talk to my husband.

so thank you to my dear, wonderful, loving husband for giving me this weekend-not-away. it worked; i feel relaxed, my neck muscles don't ache from doing children lifting. i don't feel stressed about the screeching (that's for tomorrow). {now to get you, scotty, & cal off for a weekend in the woods...}... & thank you sue & bruce for enjoying my girls & giving wes sleep-in mornings. i'm sure you enjoyed this weekend with them--the girlies--as much as i've enjoyed the weekend without them. my break--without kids--in daily life is your break--with grandkids--in daily life. i *highly* recommend a vacation-not-away.

of parties & viruses

*birthday party pictures!*

jump! jump! jump! these girls had an amazing amount of fun in this jump house (thanks to some friends who lent it to us).

painting pumpkins. 'tis the season.

adeline with her look of ultimate concentration on the decoration of her 2nd pumpkin. she was *dying* all day just spotting these paints up on the counter for her party. & here she finally gets to use them.

blowing candles out. check out the party hats, eh?!

adeline had a wonderful birthday party. we could tell she felt very special & had joy written all over her *body* the entire time (except when she said her belly hurt...which started her round of illness). she had a splendid time with tyler & melaina & then later chloe & zoe arrived just in time for a dora-video-fest & smores.

the funny thing is that saturday morning adeline told me that she decided she didn't want a curious george party, she wanted a dora party. i had asked her nearly 20 times that week prior to buying all the plates & hats 'are you SURE you don't want a dora party?!' & she's like 'no not, ah ah' (which translated is a monkey noise which means curious george). anyway, that was just, well, just like a 3 year old, eh?

i think she loved her party so much that we *may* just convince her to poop in the potty by dangling a 'POOP PARTY' as bait. seriously, i told her that if she pooped in the potty for 5 days straight, we'd throw her a poop party & she talks about this party all the time now. still no poop in the toilet BUT the idea is planted. SO if you get a strange turd looking invite in the mail, well, it's a poop party invite. (all potty humor & jokes welcome)

***
the early season blues

we are blasted with the early season virus going around. nearly every family we hang out with (who have kids) has at least 1 person sick! seriously, that's a lot of illness. i'm have a very manageable case of it, adeline was the worst off (she has a killer cough right now), & amelia's cold is dragging on (but i spy a tooth poking through her gums, so i think part of her symptoms may be teething related). anyway, it just seems early into the cold temperatures for something this wide spread. i don't think we have h1n1 but it does make one think how quickly it goes around, or rather how quickly h1n1 could go around. our flu vaccines (just the normal year ones) are scheduled for mid november. it has been mentioned that i may be in need of the h1n1 due to the recent surgery; we'll see if there's any available for me at my doc's. at any rate... *enough already* virus! stop running the mama's & the papas ragged & making little ones cry & cough & not sleep.

here is amelia with her rash.

thankfully i've kept the rash from spreading any further than down her neck & a bit on her belly one day. (i'm smothering her with aquaphor in case you are wondering). but she is still a fairly happy baby, going around climbing into rocking chairs & figuring out how her stacking blocks & rings work. i do think she's a bit bored without adeline around to wrestle. i mean, adeline tickles amelia non stop or they are spatting a bit. either way, amelia is being entertained! so we are bound to be seen at the mall or westerville rec center circa 9 a.m. b/c amelia at home alone just means a big mess (i still maintain that new curious george stories are being written by a (literal) ghost writer following us around with monkey amelia). over all, her favorite thing to do is play with a kid-sized kitchen pot & wooden spoon. she will sit & stir random things for up to half an hour. then bring it over for me to taste test (the lotion cap was the worst tasting of all, btw). amelia also gives very wonderful kisses on my back: she lifts my shirt up a bit & then gently kisses my back, giggles & squeals & then puts my shirt back down. how can you not love that?

& here is adeline on monday, sick as a dog. she survived only on cereal & apple juice. after her fever was gone & she no longer said her belly hurt we introduced her to chocolate milk...which has been her nightly request since then. "choco-tate milt pease?!"

& it has been brought to our attention that adeline seems to excel in art at school & her teacher mentioned that we may want to give her more time to play with different artistic mediums at home. her teacher had also just given addy a *stellar* 2 week review so i didn't want to explain to her just how many times adeline had written all over the walls, floor, etc with marker & giving her free reign to scissors & glue is very dangerous. but, her teacher is right. when addy is playing with crayons/markers/pens/paints her eyes light up & she is uber-focused & joyful. i'm thinking of ways to entertain this love for art. any suggestions?

& does anyone else love this weather? autumn is my favorite season, so this early fall weather is blissful to me. fleece! who doesn't love fleece!?

& here i was planning a quiet morning at home

let me preface this story: our subdivision is getting new light posts--for no apparent reason b/c the current ones work, except that these new ones *look* much better (i think it a bit frivolous). i have been annoyed that we are paying (via taxes) for new *light posts* when the current ones work (did i say that already?! let me reiterate, the current ones work, they just aren't as aesthetically pleasing as the new ones; it just doesn't seem like a good enough reason to spend such a large amount of money on something unnecessary). so for the past week there has been construction going on in the street lawns on our street. kind of annoying, especially when they block the driveway (they did warn me about that, to their benefit). but it's also noisy & a big mess. & i just don't see the point--remember, the current ones work? however, as my friend kara pointed out--this whole mess of it is giving jobs to the construction workers, good point. i should just leave it at that! but i'm just wondering why this money isn't going to schools or police departments or fire departments or road construction or public services, etc. but to *aesthetically pleasing* street lights. hhmmm...
***
sadly, yesterday adeline had to miss school due to a fever & croup. over the night she amazingly recovered & was well enough to go to school today. *sigh of relief* from the mama. how have i gotten used to her being gone for the morning after just 1 week? i dunno, but i have. amelia still has a touch of a cold, as do i, so i was anticipating a lot of sitting on the floor with my coffee playing with amelia & watching the today show while amelia dances to the commercial music. it was a fuzzy, warm, & pleasing thought to just hang out at home with amelia who seemed very much in love with me already this morning. hugs, kisses on my back! then...

8:20 a.m: hear fire sirens, they seem very very close. interesting. see fire truck stop in front of house, don't think much of it (cat in tree? lol).
8:24: smell gas, everywhere, in every room--start to wonder what's going on.
8:28: start to load girls into the car to take addy to preschool & notice very strong gas smell in the garage. i take a peek out of the garage window & wowzers there was about a dozen firemen in full gear, all the construction workers grouped with them--& they were across the street, looking into a hole in the ground.

apparently, the diggers broke a gas line while putting in the new underground wires for the unnecessary (*smile*) light posts. & then the police & fire department closed down our street, evacuated the 4 surrounding houses (us included)...and i was still in full pajama gear. the firemen made it sound as if i could go back in very soon but once i returned from dropping off addy & was told that yes, i could go back into my house--the columbia gas guy flagged me down & told me that i was *not* to go back home at least for another hour or two. oh, wonderful. i was like do you see what i'm wearing?! & he was like what a cute baby you have {change subject quickly before i tell this lady that yes she looks very, uh, sleepy}.

so here's the gist of it, baby crying b/c she's been put in & out of the car seat 4 times in 20 minutes, me still in pj's, no baby wipes or stroller or snack or even water cup for amelia. did i mention i didn't even brush my hair yet & didn't have my handy white hat with me? still, off we go to the mall, hoping to score a cinnabun at least. an hour later i realized i didn't have my wallet with me (thankfully, cinnabun was closed so it's not like i ordered then was like CRAP! i don't have my wallet, do i have to do dishes?!). i do think i was the most disheveled looking parent there but oh well! we weren't sucking gas vapors. i've seen others there is pj's.

90 minutes later i attempt to go back to our house & the columbia gas guy walks through the house with his gas sniffing machine & says it's okay now. amelia & i hang out in our house for 20 minutes & open the garage door & i get hit with a gas smell. so out we go, telling the gas co dude that there's gas in our garage, pick up addy, & then off to a friend's house for the next few hours.

but we are back & wow is there a very large earth digger thing across the street now. wes is probably *so jealous* that i get to be here observing all of this machinery use. sorry, but dear you weren't at the mall in your pj's. & then you also didn't step in the rushing stream of water from the fire hose & fire hydrant, soaking your shoes & socks (pre-mall also). okay, i'll stop complaining.

this is 1 of the 3 fire trucks. i'm not exactly sure what the 3 loads of firemen were doing as most of them seemed to be sitting on their trucks...ensuring my safety? *wink*

hole 1. notice the working light post in this picture, soon to be taken down.

hole 2 (see the guy in the green vest standing & digging in a big hole?)

a bit of an odd start to the morning & day, eh? & as of 2:30 they are still digging out there. i am guessing that part of the problem is the neighbor who mows his lawn every freaking day (not even kidding) moved a flag showing where the gas line was buried. anyhoo, now he has a ginormous hole in his yard. so our street is *still* closed, even though the construction guy let me know residents can drive through (as i was walking by holding adeline's hand so she didn't stick her hand into a machine, carrying amelia, a diaper bag, 2nd cloth bag with lunch stuff & halloween costumes from judy, & addy's book bag. i was like gee, *now* you tell me i can drive through? didn't you see me unpacking & loading myself up like a mule for the past 5 minutes at my car?).
***
anyway, i hope to get some pictures & maybe even a video of addy's birthday party. folks, it was a blast! the kids had fun! the parents enjoyed each other! grandparents enjoyed seeing it all go down! but i'm glad we've decided not to do this again for another 2 or 3 years *smile*

a talent for

so this is for all grandparents, something to make you proud (& anyone else who is sweet on my girls): adeline knows how to write her name!!! well, at least her nickname. & to think she just started saying her name last spring! here is a picture to prove it. smarty pants, i know *wink*

when i picked adeline up from school thursday mrs. g said with a big, nearly winking, but really ecstatic smile: addy make sure you show your parents your papers tonight! so i went home & pulled the papers out to see if maybe i would learn the why of how addy's pants became covered in (hopefully washable) paint on wednesday, maybe a note of apology, hardy har har. that wasn't the case; instead, it was the addy written addy. i was so proud i nearly cried. i was like DID YOU WRITE THIS ADELINE?! & she just looked at me & said "yup, addy" like yea mom i do that every day now, i'm in *preschool*. what a kid.

& i believe here is the answer to why addy's pants were covered in paint. every day they get to paint, but this day she was especially covered (apparently they painted with the 5th graders?). that was the day that a kind friend offered to pick up addy from school, right after i was in that stupid car accident (even though i later checked my voicemail to hear this friend say she wasn't even going to be at this playgroup b/c of work & then wes called her b/c he couldn't get ahold of me & asked her to go there to see why i texted him saying in car accident, call asap b/c he couldn't find the phone #'s of the playgroup host & i was then talking to the cop & couldn't answer my phone...anyway, judy, thank you for helping wes not have a heart attack...note to self, put in text: in car accident, call asap, we are okay! & to all the other ladies there that day, thanks for calming my nerves; what would work better than coffee & apple cake?!).

*anyway* so here's some sample art work from addy.

& you guessed it: shapes. you'd think she'd be tired of learning by now.

last sunday we went to the new albany classic, a fundraiser for my sister's non profit (columbus coalition against family violence)...the founder is loaded (think former? owner of limited brands, wexner) & it was at their ritsy small town sized estate. anyway, my sister invited us via vip tickets...so we got to slum it with the richies in the columbus area, complete with catered food, free *everything*...& this is what we have to show for it, a caricature of the girls (free!). the artist was a sweet guy to do this for our wiggly duo. cute, eh?

& i just have to say, new albany sorta freaks me out. hellooo, stepford? i mean, nearly the whole town is surrounded by a white picket fence?! egads. every single time i drive through new albany i get this weird vibe. (it's not you, it's me?)

***

& today my mom drove here & arrived by 8:30 a.m. which is good b/c i was having a very rough morning with the pain situation. anyway, my mom came to watch the girlies so i could do some shopping & prep for addy's birthday party tomorrow night. somehow my mom kept them entertained, fed them, & also vacuumed the upstairs AND dusted! woah, slow down. THEN she took me up on my joke offer for her to take amelia with her for the night & pre-party tomorrow. it's amazing what can get done without a baby around. like, uh, going out to eat *smile* & watching a tivo'd show...& doing a bit of work around the house. a bit.

BUT we all miss dear amelia! addy walked around the house for a good 15 minutes seriously crying real tears saying 'baby come back'. what i should have done is recorded that & then will replay if for addy next week when she's angrily grabbing a toy out of amelia's arms screeching 'mine baby!' it was touching, though; they are friends!

so yes, tomorrow is our first attempt at a 'friend party' instead of only parent friends. (let me clarify, all the families coming tomorrow are our friends as well. it just so happens that you have a kid within a few months age of adeline also. good timing, folks.) so today i decorated (with adeline's help) 5 wee shirts that will be used for painting pumpkins...we are borrowing a friend's jump house (that we will pick up in the morning, crawfords, sorry!), & will be setting up like fiends in the morning. slow fiends, but fiends who will most likely have had a solid night's sleep (my parents will most likely arrive tired & hand over amelia with a sorrowful, tired, smile). the in laws are arriving early to help us...the rest is history. how will the first friend party go?

to cheer myself up

...let me think of good things, stuff that brings a smile to the frown or furrowed brow.

how adeline was so excited to go to school yesterday waving & shouting 'HI HI HI HI' to her classmates sitting on the inside steps that she didn't notice the crack in the sidewalk & fell smack on her front. instead of getting upset, she hopped up & started to laugh hysterically, then continued running to her teacher (who was coming down the steps quickly saying 'oh addy, are you okay?!'). she turned & waved 'buh bye mommy' with a huge grin.

amelia, who is now walking behind the toy walker...she walks a bit, does an odd imitation of galloping, then runs into something. she has gone from standing there stuck & frustrated, flailing her arms around with a very pissed off look on her face to learning the technique of moving the toy walker away from her stuckedness. the ornery & goofy grin she gives me as she walks by is both heart warming & a bit scary (per the ornery look).

oh adeline. she came out of her bedroom tuesday morning with 3 pairs of pajama shorts on & then FOUR pajama pants on her legs. she could barely walk, so she just plopped down in the hallway. when i asked her why she had on 7 pajama bottoms she just gave me the sign for cold. so apparently she woke up in the middle of the night & instead of pulling her blanket back on herself she went into her dresser & just kept layering on bottoms. i still wonder how she managed to climb back into her bed with all those clothes on, i mean, she could barely walk!

amelia loves to suck on her lips & tongue, especially when she's crawling around. so not only do we hear the pat-pat-plunk-pat of her crawling body, but we also get this high pitched slurp-suck-slurp as well.

last night adeline *asked to do her homework*. asked! as in, got wes' attention, said something resembling "addy home work please". her joy when we said 'you want to do your homework?!' & she was all YES YES YES HOMEWORK! she has a packet that's just enough to do a page a night of simple coloring, cutting, letters, size or object comparison. simple things. but she gets to cut with kid scissors & color & play with us all the while. wes & i are taking turns doing homework with her b/c *it's that fun* (well, most of the time, except when she jokes with us that a little c is a little s & then laughs when we're like 'no, that's a little c' & she's all yea i know stupid, it was a *joke*!

& i have two girls who love to wrestle. the pick ups & smack downs & tickles thrown in there for extra laughs. but they wrestle constantly throughout the day with each other. & if they happen to spy an adult laying on the floor--look out. you are about to be body slammed. by a cute little one, of course, but still, body slammed.

there are good things going on here, in this house of bad luck or whatever you may call this series of unfortunate events that has been the past year.