Busy Days..

We are always so busy!  The running and the appointments, playdates, gymnastics. Always SO busy!

We are into spring! Finally! That means alot of outdoor activities and even MORE running than usual. Hopefully help Dad and Cali in the field or the yard at the farm.

May 1st and 2nd is a sort of Kite Flying festival in Beulah. I will be volunteering my time on Sunday for MOPS for a fundraiser.

May 1st is the gymnastics Harley Drawing Pre-Party. May 2nd, in the evening, is the actual Harley drawing.

May 8th is the MS walk, team Legs for Lorisa! The entire weekend is filled with fun but I fear the kids and I will only make it to the walk.

May 13th the MOPS picnic, I think thats what Lorisa said.

The second week of may is the last week for gymnastics, BUT that doesn't mean its the last week for us board members and coaches! Throughout the summer we will be planning and coordinating events as well as planning the next year.

Summertime brings lake trips and visits to Papa's house for some little girl... July 17th is the SCHWANS fundraiser for gymnastics, be on the lookout for my email about that in June!

We're. Just. Busy. Everyday something new is on the calendar!

In other news, ha ha... Kendlee has decided she wants to start using a scissors. Oh My! I did have a kid scissors here that she didn't know about. I let her start using it and shes learning how to hold it and cut with it. A good skill for her. A scary skill for mom. But I think we will do just fine by setting cutting boundaries.

Me with my Legs For Lorisa telethon giftcard! Big Winner!

Boys..

Little Boys...  Or Boy in this case. They never cease to amaze me.  You hear horror stories about them peeing in the toybox (Brandon!) or into a bucket on the bed (or not so INTO!!!) but I still wasn't aware of what was to come. Boys LIKE trouble. And water. Dog water. Tub water. Toilet water. Yes, toilet water. The new splash zone? I prefer not!!

Little boys grunt. Little boys yell. Little boys make alot of dents in your furniture.

But, little boys are fun. And I love my little boy!!

A little this, a little that..

The last week has been mass craziness! They poured the concrete for the kennel and the shed slab. Kendlee had a day trip with Daddy to Minot. Slade is trying to get his top teeth. I took part in a telethon for my friend Lorisa. So many things! So little time to blog about it!!!

She said "I EATED HIM!"

This cookie is so cute!!!

Handsome naked Man...

Leaving her mark...

Slade did not like leaving his mark!

The dog kennel pad..

I watched Reegan and Devyn for the day one day, it was so much fun. These 2 trouble makers kept kissing! He instigated it, she liked it!

I found this little plastic basket at the thrift store for 25 cents. I took off the old ripped stickers and replaced them with Care Bear stickers. Kendlee LOVES it!

Slade - 13 months

Reading stories...

She fell asleep during my telethon!

Really the nose is priceless!

the goodies I won at the telethon! I raised $565! I won a giftcard for Alien Space (haha!) for $15, and another giftcard for whereverfor $100! Along with the other great prizes! Picture of me at the telethon coming soon!

I think he is eating something, lol.

I just love this picture. Her eyes are turning brown!!

So THATS what he was eating! Stinker!

These two thought it was funny to walk around together.

Still can't find the replacement booklet for my lens. So I have been using my zoom lens. While it takes fantastic pictures, I have to stand REALLY FAR BACK! Thats really hard in the house!

No Pictures....

No pictures today.. I took some with my zoom lens, BUT I can't take any normal shots because my normal lens fell off the counter on Thursday and broke! I do have warranty, which I still have to find the booklet for. So it will be getting fixed or replaced. But until then I have to use my zoom lens and I just haven't taken nearly as many pictures since then.

Our backyard is tore up. Brandon, Dad, Chad and Cali poured the concrete on Thursday for the kennel and the shed pad! There are handprints and footprints on each slab. The sod has been stripped for the garden, now it just needs tilled.

Slade is doing great! Walking normal and babbling even more than before.

Kendlee might be starting pre-school in the fall. I will be going to registration this next week to see if she makes it in!

Misc.

First I would like to talk about Slade's ear tubes.

Before Surgery At Noah & Trisha's house

Some of you have asked about the procedure and the tubes themselves. They go in, surgically, and cut the ear drum, remove the pus and fluid from behind the ear drum and then they insert a VERY small tube. Almost like a small bead, Brandon says. (He got to see one).

The Dr said that when he cut Slade's ear drum the goop came shooting out (sorry for the graphic explanation) and he had a double ear infection (AGAIN!) at the time of surgery. I was SO sad to see him go into the room. I got all dressed up and carried him in there and held him while they put him under the gas mask. I felt him go limp in my arms. What a HORRIBLE feeling. After the surgery he was very agitated, thrashing about. He wasn't fully aware of where he was, maybe not aware at all. Anesthetic is such a weird thing. He slept it off in the car and was fine the rest of the day. Better than normal.

Just before he went in!

The tubes are doing their job, goop is constantly coming out of his ears. I have to clean them every few hours to keep the stuff from clogging in there. I clean them using a tissue or a q-tip. Since you all know my aversion to cotton balls. (EEW!)

So far we have seen quite a change in him. He is actually walking normal, not drunk-like. And he sleeps better and has a better demeanor throughout the day. Very nice change if you ask me!

We cannot get the ear-tubes completely wet but I can do some cleaning WITH water.

Overall I am very pleased! As is Slade!!

EASTER

Easter was nice. Enjoyable. Brandon had to work but the kids and I did go up to Minot for Easter. We spent Saturday afternoon-evening at Dean and Christy's place. Had a nice meal. Then we (the kids and I) stayed at Grandma and Grandpa's house (so, Mamaw Great Mamaw's according to Kendlee). That was fun! Kendlee and Slade just LOVE staying there!  Sunday morning we hung out around the house, hid eggs, and then everyone came over and we had another nice meal! The kids and I returned home so that we could be there when Daddy got off work. Kendlee said to me "I really miss my Daddy and CareBears..." Very cute.

So far today has been spent taking care of business for gymnastics, running errands and playing toys. Oh and fighting with the computer. I think Brandon and I will be in the market for a new computer here shortly, both of ours are acting like dinosaurs and I have been backing up all my files onto my external hard drive, just in case it should crash!  The kids and Brandon enjoyed a home-made macaroni and cheese supper, complete with hot dogs. While I ate diet- food. Ha. But I'm proud to say I've lost 15 lbs to date! :)

Here are the not-so-formal "Easter" pictures of the kids. They wouldn't really sit still, heck, Slade wouldn't even get dressed. But you'll enjoy them all the same. :)

One more quick announcement! Slade did get another tooth on Friday (4-2-10)! A teeny little white spot on the bottom, just to the left of his other teeth. How cute.

Alayna's Cake

4 layer cake- marble cake, buttercream frosting, strawberry cake, buttercream frosting, marble cake, buttercream frosting and strawberry cake completely covered in buttercream frosting. then covered with marshmallow fondant.

Its not as "perfect" as I planned but this was my first try at fondant. Hope people still think its cute!  I will be adding some fresh strawberries on it as well.

Mom with a Catchers Mitt.

Oh the funny faces you are all making, as you read this today. I'm sure you're wondering just what I am going to post about! 

It seems as though I should be the mom you see in the park with the catchers mitt. I knew that a little boy wouldn't be handing me dollies or playing dress up, but boy was I unaware of the need for cat-like reflexes when parenting a son!  I haven't dodged a bullet like in the Matrix but I have dodged; a sippy cup, a toy, a shoe, crackers, a pacifier, more toys, another sippy cup, an entire plate of food, my own cell phone, and much more. No, this is not a new sport that you haven't heard of yet. This is just something my favorite son likes to do... Throw things at mommy! I wouldn't say he means to hurt me... more like he wants to get my ATTENTION!  Dear Boy, if you are sitting right next to me, you have my attention.. you do not need to throw a toy at my head.. in fact, the words Mama work just fine!

I can hear you giggling (Mom!) because you too have witnessed this monkey-like behavior (though i'd rather have toys thrown at me than monkey-poo). So whats the cure? What do I do? Do I try to teach him that it is not nice to throw, when in fact he could already have a career lined up for him in the Major Leagues? Or do I get out the catchers mitt and say, "Alright Buddy! Lets go!"