Hot And Yucky Friday

Hannah had gymnastics this morning and I knew that everyone would sleep in. I hate waking everyone up because it just reminds me that I could be sleeping too! LOL! Anyway, the boys were really good since KGDC has a pretty big viewing area and they can spread out and play. I only had to say something to them a couple of times which made it a lot easier to watch Hannah go through her class. There was a new little girl in her class today and she didn't want to participate at all. The dad kept asking her if she wanted to go home and I heard the mom say that she doesn't get that option. I turned around to say that Jacob usually has a hard time on his first days too and she told me that she'd been doing this for two years. Oh. Okay. Wait a minute. I turned back around, looked at her and said, "you were at my MOPS table." She says, "I knew you looked familiar but I didn't want to admit that I couldn't place you!" LOL! I'm actually surprised that I recognized Lori Jo because she was only at 3 meetings. So, we talked for a while and I was smiling on the inside because I was happy that I finally ran into someone I know! Yay! It would happen all of the time in Winchester.

After gymnastics, we headed over to Sam's because my pantry and freezer (except for ice cream) were bare. It's so nice to have a freezer full of stuff. You know what would be even better, though? Buying a cow. LOL! The kids love the heck out of Sam's because they get so many samples. You really could make a meal out of it. It also gets them to try new things (chicken salad was the really new thing today). Now, we're going to hit the pool.

Ratatouille

We ended up having a really nice 4th of July. The kids were in the pool for a while and then we went to dinner. We decided on Backyard Burger (a fast food restaurant) before the movie. We ate and then headed over to the mall.

I was surprised to see that we got a good parking spot only 3 hours before fireworks. We headed in, got our popcorn and drinks and sat back to watch the movie. What a cute movie. Even animated, huge groups of rats are really gross (granted, they were supposed to look that way). Of course, it could be that at times the computer animation looks real. Anyway, we enjoyed Ratatouille and highly recommend it to everyone. Mike and I were wondering just how many of the jokes the kids got, because we seemed to be laughing a whole lot more than they were but they still enjoyed it. Jacob gave it a huge thumbs up.

After the movie, we walked out of the theater and mall wondering where they were going to shoot the fireworks from. Turns out, not far from where we parked. By this time, there wasn't a parking spot to be found. We pulled some blankets out of the van, spread them out in a no parking zone and looked in the direction everyone else was. After about 20 minutes of waiting, they began going off and the kids were so excited. They put on a really good show out here.

So, our little plan worked very very well. We decided that next year, we'd try to do the same thing again. The only hitch was trying to get out. The whole mall was packed and everyone was trying to use three exits at the same time. Amazingly, it only took us 45 minutes to get home (normally it would be about 10 minutes).

I hope everyone had a good 4th!

Happy 4th of July!

I tell you what...it's crazy hot outside today. The only shade while the kids are in the pool today is in the garage, so I've been sitting in there for a while. With that back door and the garage door open, you get a nice breeze. Doesn't make it easy to read the paper, though.

We're planning on taking the kids up to see Ratatouille this evening and then we're going to try to see some fireworks. They're doing the fireworks up at the mall and the movie's there too so we figure it'll be easy to walk out of the movie and see everything. That's the plan anyway. We'll see how it pans out.

Jacob got another chance to spar yesterday and was put up against Peter again. This time, he did a great job. He knew what to expect and actually backed Peter into a corner more than a few times. It helped that Steven (a parent, but also a black belt) was there coaching him along. "Round kick! Now spin kick!" Jacob took every piece of advice and found that it worked. It was really funny to see him up against Mia, a little girl who's about a year older than Hannah but is about 2 inches shorter. At first, I didn't think that match up seemed fair but then I realized that Mia's really scrappy and can really hold her own (helps that Peter's her brother!). Of course, Daniel had a great time "battling." LOL!

Just Thought I'd Post

Because I hadn't posted in a while and I felt that I should. It's just that there's not much going on here. The rain finally cleared up and after a day or so of really chilly pool water, the kids are back enjoying the pool. A couple of kids from the neighborhood have been coming over to swim, which has been good and bad. Right now, they are fighting with a girl behind us because she called them "stupid heads" when they told her that they had to go in to eat dinner last night. I have to admit that I'm not very fond of this girl since she repeatedly ignores what I've asked everyone to do and snatches pool toys from everyone she can. Ugh. Oh well. Kids will be kids.

I'm making some pulled pork but I'm doing it in the oven instead of on the grill. I just don't feel like doing it on the grill today. I'll let you know how it comes out.

So, I guess that's about it from here. The boys have Tae Kwon Do tonight and I'm curious to see if they spar. Now, I have to get a load in the washer.

Another Dreary Day

It has been raining here since Wednesday. It's been cold (by late June standards) since yesterday. We're talking upper 60's as highs. Okay, so we got to 71 yesterday, but right now, we're sitting at 63 degrees and it's a little after noon. Since Wednesday, we've gotten 5.5 inches of rain and it's still coming down. I have to admit that I've been having a lot of fun on the weather blog and have even had my name said on the 10 o'clock weather (again!)...which just makes me want to post more over there. It's interesting to see just how different the rain totals can be just down the street from me. Luckily, we're not getting the 10-12 inches that some are getting just south of us. Those people are literally floating away and are being rescued from their homes. I placed my order for mid 80's and sunshine and was told by our weatherman that my request was on backorder. LOL! I hope we dry out soon.

Jacob and I have decided to get our yard certified as a Monarch Waystation. We won't be able to do it this year but are confident that we'll be able to get it next year. There's a lot of planning and work that we need to do but I have no doubt that we'll get it done. Once we get certified, we'll be able to put a sign up in our yard showing our designation. We'll also be listed in the registry and will get a certificate. After we're up and running, we'll start raising monarchs and that's when our real work will begin. But, we're really excited and looking forward to it. Get more info on the program by clicking Monarch Watch. Once you're there, click on the Monarch Waystation Program to learn more. You can live anywhere in the country and participate...not just Kansas. This site also has a lot of great information and you can even get your monarchs from them!

My Summer Obsession

Is Maroon 5. I've been listening and listening to their albums (Songs About Jane and It Won't Be Soon Before Long) and I can't seem to stop. Last night, I heard the boys singing the chorus of Makes Me Wonder (see post HERE for a refresher) before they fell asleep. LOL! This has to be my favorite song off of their new album, It Won't Be Soon Before Long (at least this week! LOL). This video is cheesy but the song is so awesome! Enjoy!



Goodnight Goodnight by Maroon 5

You left me hanging from a thread we once swung from together
I’ve licked my wounds but I can’t ever see them getting better
Something’s gotta change
Things cannot stay the same

Her hair was pressed against her face, her eyes were red with anger
Enraged by things unsaid and empty beds and bad behavior
Something’s gotta change
It must be rearranged, oh

I’m sorry, I did not mean to hurt my little girl
It's beyond me, I cannot carry the weight of the heavy world
So goodnight, goodnight, goodnight, goodnight
Goodnight, goodnight, goodnight, goodnight
Goodnight, hope that things work out all right, yeah
Whoa

The room was silent as we all tried so hard to remember
The way it feels to be alive
The day that he first met her
Something’s gotta change
Things cannot stay the same

You make me think of someone wonderful, but I can’t place her
I wake up every morning wishing one more time to face her
Something’s gotta change
It must be rearranged, oh

I’m sorry, I did not mean to hurt my little girl
It's beyond me, I cannot carry the weight of a heavy world
So goodnight, goodnight, goodnight, goodnight
Goodnight, goodnight, goodnight, goodnight
Goodnight, hope that things work out all right

So much to love
So much to learn
But I won’t be there to teach you, oh
I know I can be close
But I try my best to reach you

I’m so sorry, I did not mean to hurt my little girl
It's beyond me, I cannot carry the weight of a heavy world
So goodnight, goodnight, goodnight, goodnight
Goodnight, goodnight, goodnight, goodnight
Goodnight, goodnight, goodnight, goodnight
Goodnight, hope that things work out all right, yeah
Whoa, oh…
Yeah

Hannah the Athlete

Hannah had ice skating evaluations yesterday and is now in the "advanced" portion of her "intermediate/advanced" class. Unfortunately, she still insists she's going to quit because of her arm. I really hope that she reconsiders because she's really good at it. She has gotten to the point where she glides on the ice and can push herself along pretty quickly. She's also really good about picking herself up when she falls down (which isn't very often). We've already paid for the summer and I told her that she has to finish it out but she says that after the summer, she's "done forever." *sigh* We've got five or six weeks to change her mind but I'm not going to make her do it.

I thought that yesterday was her last gymnastics class through the park district but it's actually next week. Ugh. She had her first lesson at KGDC (the new place that's only about 10 minutes from the house) and she loved it. First off, this place is huge. They have two full floor exercise mats, 5 uneven bars, about 8 balance beams (possibly more) and 2 vaults. They also have a huge foam block pit that the bigger girls were practicing uneven bar dismounts into. The instructors are also really good at what they do and set up meaningful ('meaningful' is the key word here) exercises for the kids to do. Hannah learned that she has to "present" (arms up) before she begins and when she ends something and that when you jump, your arms go up, too. She learned more in 50 minutes this morning than she's learned in 3 months at the park district. She was so excited when we left and said that she "loves this gymnastics!"

A Cute Tae Kwon Do Story

Since the boys are now yellow belts, they get to spar with the other members of the class (you can't spar until you have your first belt). They have all of their gear and everything. It's meant to be light contact, and nothing below the waist. So, tonight, the kids were thrilled when Master Johnson told them to go get their gear on for sparring. They all come out and look so adorable. Especially Daniel, in his over sized head gear. They get lined up and since there are an odd number of kids, Master J asks Daniel to sit out for a few minutes. He tells them to start and Jacob's gets his butt kicked. He doesn't understand that this isn't a "you kick, I kick" sort of exercise and took a foot in the stomach (his sparring partner, Peter, tends to get a little overzealous). He was done. Before this happened, though, Daniel sees us at the door trying to get Jacob to throw a punch or kick and looks at Mike and says (very sadly), "I don't get to battle!" About that time, he's called over to replace Jacob. Unlike his brother, Daniel got right in there and gave Peter a workout. Both Daniel and Peter were smiling the whole time as they're just going at each other. They did get warned with push ups for kicking below the waist. Hopefully, this is something Jacob will get better in. He just needs to get confidence.

Got Ragweed?

This Spring, I planted those rolly flower seed mats both in front and back of the house. The back didn't produce much but the front has really given me a lot of flowers. There were a lot of tall green plants that hadn't produced anything yet, but I thought that I'd just wait and see even though something told me that it wasn't a flower. Hmmmm. Out of the blue, I Googled weeds this morning and up popped my green stems under the heading "Common Ragweed." Knowing how much is out there, I grabbed some gloves, a big garden sack, popped a Claritin and put on some long sleeves. You know just how much was out there? Enough to actually fill one of those large paper garden bags almost to the top. There were several (6 to be exact) plants living close to the pool (I wonder if this is why Hannah's been having a lot of breathing issues). I think I heard each of my flowers say "thank you" with each of the plants I pulled (I probably pulled 30). Oh, just for future reference, you can see what it looks like here. My plants looked exactly like this, although not as wide and bushy.

Now, I only had the ragweed where I had planted the flower mats. My assumption is that there were ragweed seeds in the mats. So, if you have planted these mats, check for ragweed! Can you take Benadryl on top of Claritin? I think I need to go take another shower.

Can't Something Go Right On a Trip?

Because I usually leave my wallet at a gas station or have to take Hannah to the ER or the car is broken into.

So, the kids and I packed up and headed to Peoria on Saturday. It's been 3+ years (since we lived in Iowa) since the kids and I just packed up the car and went to Peoria for the weekend (usually leaving Mike at home to sleep, play hearts or watch Ultimate Fighter). We got on the road about a 1/2 hour earlier than I had hoped to and were having a nice, uneventful journey to Dad's. I pulled over in Columbia, MO to get lunch, snacks and gas...pull up to the pump, take out my wallet and there's an empty spot where my debit card usually sits. Are you kidding me? Luckily, I knew exactly where it was (in my pants pocket at home) so it's not like I had to cancel anything but all I had was $20. Okay. We had a box of juice boxes in the car, cheese crackers and some fudge stripe cookies too. That'll have to do for lunch. I got myself a drink and put the rest of the $20 in the gas tank. I knew that I'd be okay on gas because we were about halfway and I had a full tank (the van gets better than 300 miles per tank when it's full and we didn't have 300 miles to go) but I've never watched that tank so much.

Just south of Springfield, we hit rain. I decided to pull over at a rest stop...raiding the car for change (the kids got YooHoos) and whatnot. When I thought that it was safe to go, we pull out and run right into the rain I was trying to avoid. Everyone went from 70 mph to 10. Just after Springfield, it got better.

Then around Tremont, out of nowhere, a wall of water fell out of the sky. It didn't matter how slow I drove, I just could not see anything. I pulled over with about 20 other cars and waited. After 10-15 minutes, I called Dad and asked if it was raining by him. He said no. I thought that if I could just get past the rain, I'd be okay (because we weren't far from Dad's). It was crazy. I was just glad that it didn't take long to get past it.

So, we have a nice visit. Deb's kids and mine get along really well and had a blast. We cooked up some prime rib and had a great dinner Sunday night. I found a scrapbook that grandma had made for me with their Christmas card from 1975 that announced my birth and had some cool pictures in it. The funny part is that there's only 2 pictures of me in the whole thing. Otherwise, it's pictures of Sue and Deb with Mom and Dad and Grandma and Grandpa. There's also a few of Uncle John in there. LOL! Deb and I had a good laugh about the page of "Phil's Summer at Catalina" and of the photos of Dad in his...what did you call them? Bun huggers?

One of the two photos of me...here with my big sister Deb. I already had a version of this photo without my hand in my mouth.


This is self explanatory. That's my Dad! (and you can click to enlarge)

We left for home this morning.

I stopped to get gas and hit Krispy Kreme before we left Peoria (Dad lent me money for the ride home). We spent a lot of time there and didn't actually get on the road until about 8:45. I didn't feel like rushing the kids when they were having such a great time watching the donuts drop into the oil, flip and then go through the "wall of glaze." They really loved the time at Krispy Kreme. Around 11ish, the kids were starving (or so they said) so we decided to stop outside of St. Charles, MO for lunch. Another 45 minutes lost because I let them play in the playplace (I know I'd go nuts sitting in a car for an extended length of time). We get back in the car and stumble upon a nasty accident. 6 lanes of traffic diverted into 1. It took 35 minutes to get past it. We also had a couple of emergency potty breaks...the most frustrating one being 25 miles from home. Ugh. We pulled into the driveway at 4:45pm. So, what should have taken 6-6 1/2 hours took 8. My back hurts from all of the driving but I did have a good time singing to my Maroon 5 CD. LOL!

My Life Gets A Little Easier?

I haven't been very happy with the place Hannah takes gymnastics (okay, it's the park district). Even at the end of the last session, I couldn't tell exactly what Hannah had learned in the 9 weeks she was in the class. So, what do I do? I sign her right back up and it becomes part of Terrible Thursday. Anyhoo...I've been asking around and little Mia in the boys TKD class takes gymnastics. Where? BV Park District (we take through JC Park District). Don't want to get stuck in that again. So, I look through the phone book and online. There's a nice school just down the street that looks awesome and they start a new session next week! Yay! So, I call and Hannah will be moving to Friday gymnastics starting a week from today (because her session with jcpd is over next Thursday). I really hope she likes it because it's close, it's actually cheaper than with jcpd, and it's not on Thursday!

Exhausted

Is it bad when your daughter tells you that she wants to quit ice skating and you secretly cheer inside? Actually, I'm torn. She seems really good at it and I know that the only reason she doesn't want to do it anymore is becuase of the arm thing last week. After her class today, she informed me that she's quitting. It would seriously make my life so much easier but I don't know if she really wants to stop. She has to finish out the session but if she doesn't want to do it anymore, I'm not going to make her. She'd really like to do Tae Kwon Do, but I think she's a little young yet.

While at Tae kwon Do tonight, Daniel lost another tooth. It was funny because at the beginning of class, Master Johnson told him that it would come out on Saturday. LOL! He wasn't in the room when it came out (their other teacher, Lara - a 2nd degree black belt at 15...she kicks butt big time - was there when it happened) so when Daniel showed him at the end of class, Master Johnson was shocked and told him that I needed to take him next door to get some ice cream (I did).

I find myself gardening a lot lately. Weeding, planning for next year...that sort of thing. I think that it's really relaxing. You know what else is relaxing? Reading the bee-arrr like-eddd da hoo-neey. WHAT?!? LOL! (sorry...that's for Mike)

They've Got 'Em!

The boys got their yellow belts tonight. Jacob and Daniel were so excited to be able to wear them for class. We hung their white belts up in their rooms and they can't wait to add to thier belt walls!

Here, Master Johnson explains to the boys about their cards (they each get a card that's updated each testing period)

Jacob shows off his yellow belt before I put it on him

Daniel shows off his yellow belt

Grillin' and Chillin'

*10:30pm Update* So, a good deal of the brisket is now in the freezer for another time. Daniel and Hannah ate a bunch of it. I ate some of it and so did Mike. I don't know if it was worth the trouble. It smelled really good but it's so much easier to throw it in the oven and forget about it for a while. Mike did say that it left a really good taste in his mouth (I guess that's a good thing). The good news is that I'm feeling more and more confident in my grilling abilities and plan to do up some pulled pork next week, which Jacob is really looking forward to.

*3:30pm Update* Okay. So I've pulled the brisket off of the grill and have it patiently waiting in the oven with the drippings (I had a pan under the meat on the grill) until we get back from Tae Kwon Do tonight. I would have liked to have left it on the grill until about 6:00pm but I wanted to make sure the grill was cool when we left. I pulled a little piece off to try and it has a beautiful smoke ring. I think I should have used more salt but that's okay. It smells unbelieveable!

*2:30pm Update* We're almost there!

*12:15pm Update* How good does this look?

*Update 11:00am* The brisket is looking beautiful. I've just done the first charcoal and woodchip replenish and so far, so good. The sauce is simmering nicely on the stove (I'm planning on putting it in a pan on the grill for a little while after I take the brisket off) and I'm getting excited about yummy brisket for dinner tonight (and tomorrow and probably the day after that-it's a big brisket). If this works, I'm going to try doing some pulled pork (dang I love pulled pork) next week.

Oh, and those of you with a Weber Grill (yes, I know that I'm a Weber snob), I've put up a link on the side over there on the left side of the page to their site. They've got some great recipes and whatnot. *End Update*

So, I decided to take a huge leap today. I'm grilling a brisket. Not only that, but I'm taking a beloved family recipe and changing it. *GASP* I've got the grill going with wood chips (never done that before) and am ready for the brisket to go in for several hours. I'm not adding the BBQ sauce (the family recipe that I'm abusing...okay, so I'm abusing the whole recipe) until the very end (it usually cooks in the sauce). Cross your fingers for me...if it turns out, I'll post pictures! LOL!

It's Raining...It's Pouring...

It's been kind of a dreary day all day long. I woke up this morning to the sound of thunder and I don't think it's stopped yet. Thunderstorm after thunderstorm has rolled through. There was a break this morning and I was able to get out and mow (the yard desperately needed it) and the kids got to be in the pool for a little bit too. They have yet to miss a day in the pool since we've gotten it. For the most part, the kids and I spent the day sitting on the front porch watching the storms roll in. I'm quite sure that our neighbors think we're nuts because every time we'd get good lightning, we'd all cheer. It's cool that the kids have inherited my love of thunderstorms.

So far, I've read three books this summer: House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus III, Deception Point by Dan Brown and The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares. The best one of those was Deception Point. So far, I'm a little disappointed in my summer reading. Right now, I'm reading It Ain't All About the Cookin' by Paula Deen. I thought that I'd try a memoir this time. I seem to like those a lot. After I finish that, I've got Two for the Dough by Janet Evanovich all ready to go. I just want something good like Angela's Ashes or Memoirs of a Geisha. What are you reading?

Happy Father's Day!

Just wanted to wish all you Dads out there a Happy Father's Day! Have a good one!

It's Official!

Mike went to take a tae kwon do class at the parent school this morning and called with the testing results (they post it all there). He said that there are two levels of yellow belt: recommended (low) and decided (high). Daniel got a low yellow belt and Mike and Jacob both got high yellows. Daniel was upset that he got a low yellow but then began going through his new form (which he already knows half of! Shocking!)

Now that they are yellow belts, they get to spar. Mike got them all of their pads (and mouthguards) last Thursday so they will be all good to go. I told the boys that it was their responsiblity to remember their bags each Tuesday and Thursday and they agreed. I have no doubt that I'll be the one reminding them about it.

Now they can really begin to focus on testing in August!

I Hate Thursdays

I did it to myself. Scheduling Tae Kwon Do, Gymnastics and Ice Skating all in the same day. It makes me nuts. Today was actually going well, though.

We went to gymnastics and then the four of us went to get haircuts. Hannah got a bob that is much like last year's (we were hoping that she'd stop eating her hair if it were shorter) and the boys got their summer cuts. I got about 4 inches cut off and I love it.

We came home and the kids played in the pool for a few hours. We came in and got dressed to go to ice skating. Hannah was doing really well until close to the end when she fell. I only saw the aftermath...the tears were more than I had seen in a long time. She refused to move her left arm and it was very hard to get her into the car after class.

We came home and I called Mike to give him a heads up that I may have to take Hannah to the ER after dropping the boys off at tae kwon do. He said okay. So, the boys change and we head to their class. We go in and I talk to Dave (Master Johnson) and he convinces me to take Hannah in. So, when Mike got there, Hannah and I headed out.

While we're at the ER, she gets a little mobility in her arm and she's not screaming the way that she had been. The triage nurse checks her over and says that she thinks that Hannah may have done something to her shoulder. Ugh. Hannah's given a bracelet and we're escorted to the back.

A nurse comes in and turns on cartoons for Hannah. She also gives her an ice pack and says that the dr will be in shortly.

The doctor comes in and says that she'd like to do x-rays of Hannah's arm. Awesome. Where do we go? Just hang here...radiology will come to us. Sweet. About 10 minutes later, the radiologist shows up and sets up Hannah's arm. So far so good. Then, they need another view. The radiologist asks Hannah if she can turn her arm over. Hannah looks at her with pleading eyes. The radiologist begins to turn Hannah's arm and Hannah lets out a scream. The minute it took to get that x-ray seemed like 30.

10 minutes later, the doctor comes back in and says there are no breaks on the x-rays. Phew. I was really wondering how we'd get through the summer with Hannah's arm in a cast. She wants to take another look at her arm, though...would I mind holding Hannah's other hand so that Hannah doesn't try to take the doctor's hand away? No sweat. She picks up Hannah's arm and Hannah starts crying. Suddenly, there's a loud *POP* and Hannah stops crying. I look at the doctor and feel stupid. "Nursemaid's Elbow," she tells me. "It's unusual the way she got it, but she did," she continues. I had a feeling that's what it was but she wasn't acting the same way as last time and I didn't think she could possibly get it from a fall either. Huh. Like I told Mike, though, if I hadn't taken her in, she would have had a break or fracture. Of all of the possibilities, I'd take nursemaid's elbow any day.

I come home to find Jacob curled up in a ball on his bed complaining of a stomach ache. Mike says he couldn't find the Pepto to give him. I find it (on the counter) and give him a few. Within a few minutes, he's cured.

Ugh. I'm so tired.

Update

Here's a link for Dad since the story's no longer a national deal. This is just the latest in the case. Not really a whole lot at this point. Hall Makes First Appearance...

Oh, and this is interesting, too:
Grandmother Says Accused Followed Her

Jacob's Beans

Jacob's beans have finally begun producing. We didn't get a big harvest but it was enough for everyone to try some. Jacob's all about trying veggies if we grew them (otherwise forget it). There are more and more blossoms everyday on his plants and Daniel's so maybe we'll get a bunch more. Mike was highly impressed with Jacob. I just can't wait for the green peppers and tomatoes to get done!

Here's his first crop...