All Ready

Here Buster is already to go to the pool today. I would say he is doing just fine :) A couple of things for sure, he is sleeping and eating better. Neither of these do I believe are a direct result of his surgery but instead a result of the fact that he we took away the bottle.

It's supposed to be very hot today so we're planning to stay cool by the pool. Hopefully the clouds will cooperate and there won't be any thunder and lightning. The girls also have a night off play rehearsal and homemade pizza and brownie sundaes are on the menu. It will be so nice to have a free evening during the week.

Buster Gets Tubes

This morning the big day finally came. After 13+ ear infections Buster got his ear tubes put in early this morning. He was all unsuspecting on the way to the hospital, eager for a day out with just Mom and Dad. That was short lived. Once we got to the hospital he was not a happy camper. He didn't like having the "band aid" on his toe at all. He fussed the entire time we waited. Lucky for us everyone was on schedule and he was taken back at 8am on the nose. Not much time went by at all when I was summonsed to the recovery room. Wow was he ticked. He was obviously a bit disoriented and took it out on my hair and face.

He continued to scream until he heard the words "go home." I'm pretty sure he was let go a little early for the sake of all the other little patients he was freaking out. Once we got home he ate some breakfast, drank some juice and was crazy as ever. I was shocked that he didn't even seem tired. He fell asleep for a nap at the normal time, especially considering he got up so early. Now I have given him some pain meds and hope the rest of the day and evening goes smoothly!

Back in Business

This week is starting off much better than last week ended. We had great Father's Day with the King and have kept very busy. The weather has been gorgeous so the pool has been our friend. Hope everyone else is enjoying June as much as we are!

Puke-a-Palooza

Peeking in from under the piles of laundry accumulating around here as I deal with what will forever be referred to as Puke-a-Palooza '11 which shall not be confused with Puke-a-Palooza '07 where hospitalization was indeed involved. Boo has been hit the worst and has not been able to keep ANYTHING down for 72 hours. She fell asleep around 7 tonight and is still sleeping. I pray that she has a restful night. I feel so sorry for her. I also pray that I do not catch this terrible bug as I need to be in top condition to care for the rest of these dear sickies!

Another Pool Day

Is anyone else absolutely astounded by the fact that we are halfway through June already? Sheesh, time needs to slow down already. I woke up hot this morning. I had to turn the AC untis on right away. The forecast looked good so I declared it another pool day. Buster hasn't been feeling himself (just a virus) so he didn't swim much. He's also getting his molars and that's made him cranky too.

The little girls hardly got out. They are such little fish. They love to show off their tricks and spend much of the time we are there shouting "watch this!." It was indeed very hot and I was so glad to be spending the day there! Tomorrow is library day so this afternoon we have a lot of reading to do. The big girls have rehearsal and I have a lot of cleaning to do. *sigh*

So Pretty

Someday I am sure Buster will not appreciate such records, but for now it is just plain adorable. He put it on all by himself after watching me get the girls fixed up. He came out of the bathroom all proud! What a sweetie.

Shifting

Things are always shifting around here. Kids getting older, jobs changing, seasonal changes. That being said, I am really enjoying things right now. My kids ages are great. We spent this afternoon at the indoor pool and it was so great to be able to take all 5 kids by myself. Last year this would have been really difficult/impossible. Now with 3 out 5 being independent swimmers and Buster being big enough to enjoy the water, we can all swim and enjoy it. I am able to keep an eye on everybody with the help of Chiggie. It gives me an independence that I haven't had in quite a while. I can only imagine what the future holds.

Buster has also gone a couple of weeks without being sick at all. That is really making a difference in my stress level. The King is also very close to testing for his license and that's a pretty big deal for us too. I guess after such a long gloomy spell it's nice to see the sun again.

Amazing

When I first began searching for a pre-school/learn to read curriculum for Midge, I had no idea where to start. I looked at all sorts of really expensive phonics programs, CD Roms, and videos. Finally after talking to several moms who have btdt I decided to give "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons" a try.

It cost us $12. I went ahead and started as soon as the book came. Midge is 5 which is definitely old enough to learn to read, but our expectations weren't super high. Both the book and Midge have exceeded our every expectation. We are just under halfway through and she is really reading. She knows almost all of her sounds and many sight words. She is very familiar with the concept of phonics and loves the cute little stories. She gets very excited when it's time to uncover the pictures. There is no doubt in my mind that when we reach the end of the book, which will be somewhere around the beginning of August, she will be reading far above her grade level.

I am so glad that I didn't spend a bunch of money on another curriculum. To supplement we check out several books per week at the library and she loves drawing, coloring, and crafting. It will make next year much easier on me and her and Tea will be able to do a lot together because they can both read!

The Party

This will forever be known as the night I took a gamble, all of the stars aligned, and it was perfect. I finally allowed Chiggie to have a slumber party for her 10th birthday. She was so excited and we put a lot into planning it out. She invited 6 girls ages 8-11. Add in my 5 and there were a total of 11 kids. The King was working out of town, so it was all me. The kids were awesome. They played so well together and were so kind to the little ones. What a fun night we had.

We played BINGO for prizes, a fun word games, and plenty of Just Dance on the Wii. I retreated with the little ones and the party continued well into the night. Trust me, I have plenty of pictures to prove it. They were quiet though, and respectful to those that began falling asleep.

Here is everyone but Midge. I have no idea where she was oddly, but I'm sorry I missed her in this one. Buster totally photo bombed this shot, but at least he has proof one day that he's been to a sleep over with 10 girls!

Karate Camp

Midge has spent her mornings the last week at Karate Camp. She really enjoyed the experience. She tie-dyed her own shirt, rode on a fire truck, and got to see some exotic animals. She earned a certificate of completion and a really cool souvenir red, white, and blue belt.

Today was the last day and she got a chance to show off some of her new skills. We are so very proud of her.

A Decade!

10 years ago today I became a mother. I couldn't have dreamed up a better daughter. The last 10 years have been absolutely amazing. I'm so thankful for everything that I have learned from being Chiggie's mother!
She finally got a cell phone and couldn't be happier. I love you so much Chiggie and I hope the next 10 years don't go by nearly as quickly!

Whew!

Summer is kicking my rear!! Not in an awful way, just an up early and down late time of thing. We're having a great time, but looking forward to next week, which so far seems a little more relaxed. Today we hit the pool and Buster was none too happy about the whole "sunscreen" thing. I mean I see his point, the boy could use a little color but I'm not sure lobster red is what we're going for here.

Once we got there he forgot all about the sunscreen and enjoyed the pool. Meanwhile I spent the next two hours carefully following behind him. He's at that very unbalanced in the water phase and tips over constantly. He doesn't seem to mind though.

Chiggie came to the baby pool to help me out for a bit. I can't believe it was just a few years ago that I was chasing her around!

Midge and Tea had a good time racing from one end of the pool to the next. Both are absolute fish and don't mind being under water at all.

Tea is still enjoying the freedom of being able to jump off of the diving board this year. She has all sorts of tricks good for scaring the daylights out of your mother.


Boo is a fish as well. I believe this will be our last year at the baby pool. Next summer she will turn 5. I will slap Buster in a life vest and bid the baby pool adieu. It's been great, but I mean come on, all good things must come to an end right? I've definitely paid my dues.


Here Midge and Boo are cooling off their feet after having a snack in the sun. Must be nice to have all these wonderful sisters to play with. Tomorrow promises to be busy as well with Chiggie turning 10!

Blur

This week has been a blur so far. A blur of karate camp, play rehearsal, summer physicals, late nights, and early mornings. Thankfully everyone is staying healthy and we're enjoying the busyness of it all. Midge will be attending karate camp every morning all week and she is having a blast. The older girls are enjoying their play and I can't believe performances start the first week in August!

Today was Chiggie's 10 year well child check and Buster's 15 month. Both checked out healthy, Buster still has his ear issues, but it was a relief. I love crossing things like that off of my to do list. After camp tomorrow we're hitting the pool and then the rest of the week will be spent planning Chiggie's 10th birthday party. She is having a slumber party. 7 girls. Plus my own. The King will be working out of town. I am insane!

Summer

Buster was inducted into manhood this weekend. His first BBQ. He was infatuated with that grill. The King had to hold him the whole time for fear that he would climb it. He is definitely all boy. I have also discovered that when all else fails give them a watermelon to play with. They entertained themselves for a solid hour. Buster was just sure it was a ball!

12 Years

Amazing how time really does fly. When I look at this picture I think of how excited I was to go on our Disney Cruise. I hope to go on another some day and take our beautiful children along. So much to praise God for over these years!

Summer Goals

Last year I was so determined to have the "best summer ever" that I lost focus of the small stuff. It ended up falling quite short of my goal and it was disappointing. This year is different. Instead of one huge goal, I've broken things down a bit. Here are some of the things I would like to achieve this summer:

• Go to the pool 1-2x per week. The kids love, love, love to swim. It's good exercise and it's seasonal.


• Go for morning/evening walks as often as possible. Once again, good exercise and in this climate very seasonal.


• Spend an hour a day on yard work. This is a HUGE goal for me. Our yard is hideous. We have poured so much money into it over the years and really have nothing to show for it. With as much as the King has been gone over the last several years it has suffered. I have to pick up the slack. I don't want to though. I will have to force myself here.


• Go to the drive in 3x. We've already gone once, so that's a start


• Go camping at least once. We sold our camper and the King is working out of town. That makes this a tough one, but again I'm determined.


• Read. This one applies to myself and the kids. I want all of us to read a lot. I haven't made nearly enough time for this lately.


• Take lots of pictures. I've already done better lately. There for a while I just stopped. Life was too crazy. It's slowing down and I'm back to stalking the kids.


• Plan one fun "event" for the kids a week. Such as a water balloon fight at the park or a picnic down by the river. Just something unique to the season.


• BBQ. I love food so this one is obvious.

So there's a start. Hopefully I've set more reasonable standards this year under the circumstances!

Last Day of School!

Well, it looks like we made it! School is out....finally. Today was Tea's games day. She enjoyed herself and then was dismissed at 11:15. I brought the kids home and we had lunch. Then we headed out for the traditional "last day of school ice cream." It was delicious! Afterwards we went by the library and got everybody signed up for the summer reading program. The kids got some books and should be set for a week. I want to go back sometime and get some books for myself too.

Just for fun, here's a video of what Buster normally does when I try to take his picture:

Happy June 1st

June, yay, how I have longed for thee. I am so glad to see the arrival of June. With it came gorgeous weather and we didn't let it go to waste. We spent the morning down by the river. Unfortunately the water levels are way too high for swimming, but the kids found a stream to wade in. Buster enjoyed the ducks for the first time. In the past he's never really payed much attention to them. Today is the last full day of school with a half day tomorrow!