Busy, Busy, Busy

Today started at a little after 4 am. Fortunately I got to stay under the covers while the King headed out to face off with the crowds a W-Mart. He was back by 6 am with the goods, but a little rattled by the crowds. We were just excited and happy to have a few things crossed off of our list. Every little bit helps.

The girls slept in so we were able to go back to sleep. Once up we started lugging all of the Christmas decorations out of storage. The girls watched our collection of holiday movies while we busily arranged and rearranged until I was satisfied. This afternoon I headed back to a much less crowded W-Mart to do the grocery shopping. After dinner we decorated the tree, which turned out fabulous by the way.

All I really have left to do is clean up the mess now. Obviously not my favorite part, but it has to be done. I'm very pleased with the way things turned out. I will for sure post some pictures tomorrow when I have a little more energy. For now I just want to relax and enjoy!

Happy Thanksgiving

A Little Much

Last night we took the girls to see the movie A Christmas Carol. They've been watching previews and snippets since this summer and they were all very excited. The theatre wasn't crowded at all. It was the last night the show was on and I think most everybody who wanted to see it already had. We got great seats near the front and the girls loved picking out their snacks. Boo sat on my lap and the King sat by Midge to help her if she needed anything.



Right when the movie began I got worried. It was extremely intense and graphic. The animation was amazing, just a little much for small kids. Luckily the little girls were tired, it was after 7, and they fell asleep before the majority of the scary parts even happened. The older girls were freaked out though. We made it through the whole thing, but they said it was too scary when it was over. I guess A Muppet Christmas Carol it was not.

Church Dinner

3 years ago I blogged about our first Thanksgiving dinner at our Church. It was a little stressfull to say the least. As time has gone by we've come up with more effective methods. We've learned to only fill cups about 1/4 of the way and important stuff like that. We had a lot of fun this year and I can proudly say I didn't wear ANY food.

What a Day

I think I already mentioned this, but Chiggie is out of school on holiday this whole week. So when my Mom, in casual conversation mentioned she had a dentist appointment in a neighboring bigger town, I suggested we tag along and make a day of it. We got up early and headed out. Her appointment was at 11:30 so the girls and I, all 6 of them, just chilled in the car. The kids were great. They listened to music, looked at books, and played games together with no problems. At one point we unloaded and went in for a quick bathroom break, but other than that we just stayed in the car.



A little over an hour later I saw my Mom walking out. The girls cheered. We had bribed the good behaviour out of them with the promise of a buffet lunch and a trip to the mall. My Mom got in the car, her face swollen and numb from the appointment, but excited to move on with the rest of the day. The girls got back settled into their seats and I put the keys into the ignition. I turned the key and click, click, click. Click, click, click. The all to familiar sound of another dead battery. Crap. I checked the back of the car for my cables and they weren't there. It seems they were on the porch. Not much use to me there.



I went in to the dental office to plead for help and they were actually rude. The receptionist said she didn't have any cables either and maybe I should just call AAA. I asked everyone in the lobby and no one could help. So here we were a good hour from home, not personally knowing anyone in this town, just needed a battery charge. We sat there for a good 10 minutes just trying to think of what to do. I called the King, but he can't have his cell phone on at work and of course I didn't have any other contact numbers on so I just left a message. I think it said something like "the battery is dead, just need a jump, maybe I'll use my cables, oh yeah they're on the porch," click.



Finally my Mom, determined to continue on about our day, set off on foot for help. She walked until we couldn't see her anymore. We waited what seemed like forever, but was more like 20 minutes, and I could see her in the distance walking towards us. She was smiling and carrying jumper cables. Someone at a nearby medical facility had taken pity on us and let her borrow them. One more piece of the puzzle. Now we just had to find someone willing to give us the jump and we could be on our way.

I went back into the office to again plead for help. The receptionist, who had now heard my pleas on 3 separate occasions welcomed me and asked how I could be helped like she'd never seen me before. I again explained our situation and she said if anyone could help she would send them out. A few minutes later the Dentist came out himself and hooked up the cables. Not just any dentist either. He reminded me of Robin Williams' character in Nine Months if that helps. He was different we'll just leave it at that.

Long story, brought to a close, the jump worked. We let the car run a few minutes, drove to the medical center and returned the cables, and took the kids to the buffet. We didn't have any more problems the rest of the day. We even kept to our plan and hit the mall. The girls go Christmas earrings and we bought a few more outfits for the baby. It was fun seeing the mall all festively decorated and the girls saw Santa from a distance. We'll save the actual visit until after Thanksgiving when the King can be there.

What a day. The best part is my Mom and I spent most of it laughing. I didn't get nearly as stressed out as I would have in the past. I'm finally seeing that it is just not worth it. We made the best of a bad situation and persistance paid off.

Yay!

It looks like yesterdays positive outlook really did help. Today was a GOOD day. An all around good day. No one ran a fever or puked or anything like that. Sure we still had to dole out meds and neb treatments, but that I can live with. With everyone feeling better I actually cleaned the house. It feels so good to have everything back in order. I also did a whole bunch of laundry and put it away. I know, it's unbelievable. The King had to work so it didn't feel like a wasted Saturday at all. When he got home he went to the store and picked up some groceries so it really does feel like we're at square 1. Ahhhhh, I think we might be through this.

Feeling Positive

Midge and Boo are still sick, but I'm feeling better about everything today. I took Midge in and she doesn't have any secondary infections causing her high fevers, so really there is not much else we can do but let this nasty virus run its course. Boo is doing great with her treatments. Sadly she's getting used to them, but it does make it easier. She'll now sit there while the machine is running and quietly look at a book. It also helped that I got out of the house for a while last night. I went and watched my little sisters adorable choir concert at her school. I was impressed with how nicely all of the kids were dressed. The girls in dresses and the little boys in ties. Too cute!

Sorry the picture quality isn't great but the lighting was awful and it's a miracle I got the ones I did. I felt better just getting some fresh air. This week is going to be so fun I think . Chiggie is out of school for the entire week. Some of our days are planned and some we'll spend just hanging out together. I LOVE having her home though and that always cheers me up. She is such a joy to be around at this age. So smart and hilarious to. Her love for the girls is awesome too. They are excited to get to spend some extra time with her.