Full Disclosure

Ok, Renee brought up a good point. It takes a certain person to handle living in Alabama, and if you're not that certain person and are thinking of moving here and screwing it up like you did your own state that you can't wait to run from, well, don't.

So how do you know if you're "a certain person"? It's easy. If you're thinking of moving to Alabama, here are a few things we'd like you to know before you make your decision:

Only I-65 is paved. Every other road in the entire state is gravel and oppossum.

Shod children are verbotten. They took our shoes when we arrived.

The ground is infested with hook worms, and your now barefooted children will come down with them.

But you won't notice because you'll be too busy picking ticks off their little bodies.

There are gators in the Tennessee River. (Seriously.)

You will not be able to understand a single person at the drive-thru, and it's not the microphones. You can't understand 'em at the counter, either.

Taxes are atrocious. Simply atrocious. (And those of you from New Jersy, don't laugh. We just can't afford for them to get NJ-bad before we complain!)

After six months, you won't be able to understand a thing your youngest child says.

If you weren't born in the South, you will never attain Southern Hair. This will mark you forever as a fer'ner and you will be mocked at all public gatherings, eateries, and even in church.

OK, I lied. We have no eateries. Just lots of fried food places. This is cardiac central, here, folks. Run!

When we say folks are "friendly", it's a euphemism for "nosey". And the towns are small to facilitate the corporate knowledge of your. every. move.

The Air and Space Museum is a front, just like Old Tucson. It's not real.

The IMAX there is a bedsheet and a slide projector. (OK, it's probably time for me to just go to bed, isn't it?)

In all seriousness, it does take a special person to feel at home here. Not everyone would love it. I don't think we would have been so excited about it three years ago. But that's why we didn't come three years ago. We have friends we love dearly who would wither up and die if they tried to live here. Just as we nearly withered up and died living on the east coast.

But I jokingly told someone a while back that we just tell everybody that nobody here can read and they're all married to their cousins and you can't get indoor plumbing. She was aghast. I mean truly and wholly offended. To the core of her being. Once I realized she thought I was serious, I felt bad. Although you couldn't probably spot that right-off, what with my giggling and all... Gotta work on those social skills. Or find friends who get my sense of humor so I can quit subjecting these sweet old Southern Belles to it.

And that's just what we did today. (Sweet segue, huh?) The children and I went to the festival and had a lovely time with several other homeschool families. I was the dowdiest mother there (but I'm getting used to that - see #9 above - there is no hope). The kids had a wonderful time. The boys made friends and now desperately want to take Judo classes. Emily got lightly toasted. (Oops. Bad Mommy forgot the sunblock!) Just on her head, though. I don't know what they all thought of us, but we enjoyed the company and felt very comfortable with them. It's starting to feel like "home", and we're beginning to gather "our people".

Met Zorak for supper at the New Moon (cheap Chinese buffet - with a sushi sidebar that James loves), then he took Smidge home while the others and I headed to church. Pioneer Club went wonderfully well (I'm going to miss it when they break for the summer!) and nobody got injured. We've got some really wonderful people there, and it's always a nice time spent enjoying one another.

And now, to bed. Tomorrow's a busy, busy day, but it should be a good one!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

PSA - thought I'd share

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Coming Together

I know it all comes together. It does. It has to. And if it doesn't, well, I won't realize that until it's too late and then mere acceptance can replace the misguided hope I've been harboring, right? Right. In the meantime, y'all have shared some great ideas, and made me laugh a lot. Thank you so much.

Today should be sunny and windy. That's a perfect laundry day! Yippee! The boys won't be so thrilled, but that's okay. Slave labor isn't supposed to be fun.

Tomorrow we're going to an Asian arts festival in Decatur. One of the ladies from the WTM boards who'd contacted me about doctors has put together a small group to go and she invited us, also. I'm looking forward to meeting her and her little ones, and the boys are just thrilled. They were beginning to wonder if anybody in Alabama homeschools besides us and the midwives.

We're having a very difficult time showing some restraint in our preparations for the arrival of Gram and The Aunts. The only thing that's slowed us down is that a lot of the goodies we'd like to have on hand are fresh and perishable, and wouldn't be all that impressive if they'd been sitting here for three weeks by the time they arrived. *grin*

The master bedroom is coming along nicely. Not quickly, but nicely. It's going to feel sooooo good to get that room done (and get the queen bed out of the dinky little room it's in now - it's like Romper Room, with wall-to-wall bedding). I think Zorak will bring home a truckload of gravel on Friday, so we can fix the driveway and then we can have the construction dumpster hauled away. That, alone, will do wonders for the outside! (It was supposed to be hauled away a while ago, but they can't get over the driveway with a full load, and that's just been at the bottom of our priorities list until now.) Step-by-step, it's all coming together! And it's fun!

Thursday (yes, this is turning into a "to-do list", hush) we'll clean and get the house ready for company on Friday. Some of our over-an-hour-away friends from church have no school on Friday, so they're coming for a playdate. As long as James doesn't propose marriage, it should be a fun day!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

On Being Outnumbered - Our First Day Back At Church

Well, I can't say it was from lack of trying. We prepared the oatmeal pancake batter from the Hillbilly Housewife on Saturday night. Laid out clothes for everyone. Got to bed at a decent hour, and set the alarm. We were all up, dressed, fed, and out the door bright and early. So far, so good! Zorak stayed home to battle the wiring he'd had to lay aside on Saturday to do brickwork.

Smidge fell asleep on the drive to church. (It was nine in the morning! Noooo!) And Emily screamed the last half hour of the drive. We got there in time for Sunday School, and the older boys were off and running! Yay. Emily was just coming off the indignation that comes from having to wait to eat. Smidge wanted nothing to do with the nursery, so I sat in the adult class with both of the little ones on my lap. (In hindsight, this should have been my clue to leave as soon as class ended, but I'm not too bright sometimes.)

Class let out and we enjoyed visiting during the break. Emily got passed around. One of our wonderful Titus2 ladies helped me get everybody herded to one table and kept the boys' cups filled. Alrighty, not bad... not bad... we're doing okay. As long as nobody has to pee, I think we'll be okay.

We headed into the sanctuary, me and my little trail of ducklings. The boys shot straight to the front of the church. I did have sense enough to sit on the side by the wall aisle so I could slip out if need be. And boy, did need be! After two hours of being awake and chipper, Emily came slowly, yet vociferously, unhinged. I tried nursing, but that wasn't it - this was gas, baby, and there was no stopping it. She's still at the "yell the gas out" stage (I'm so glad this disappears - could you imagine how awkward life would be if everyone did that?) So I gave the boys instructions to sit. quietly. and for the love of God, do not squirrel around. Took Smidge and Em to the nursery to change diapers and see if I could settle her down a bit.

Well, it's dawned on Smidge lately that he's not getting the Lap Time he's accustomed to having. And while he doesn't blame Em for that, he is certainly determined to get it back. So there was nothing doing on the nursery for him. Emily seemed quieter (and I had visions of the boys swinging from the banners in the sanctuary) so we headed back in. No sooner did I sit down that she starts squawking again! And now Smidge is talking - to the chairs, to his brothers, to Emily, to the pastor. Oy! And I'm smiling as I try to get everyone settled, but it's one of those tense, thin-lipped smiles that just screams, "Kill me now!"

Finally, Emily lets out the gas, along with a Braveheart-type war whoop and Smidge starts yelling, "Fart! Fart! HA HA HA HA!! You fart, Mama!" (This is genetically coded in him, blaming others for passing gas, and laughing heartily about it. It should serve him well in college, but for now, not so funny.)

That was it. The end of my fortitude. I'd like to say we quietly grabbed our things and slipped out, but you know it didn't go like that. Oh no. Poor James picked up my Bible by the case, which was open, and out fell the Bible and three year's worth of notes and bulletins. You could see the, 'oh, man' look on his face. Smidge started yelling, "Mess! Mess! OH NO!" Emily's croaking like a frog by this point because I'm stooped down picking up papers, and she's slipped into a hold that vaguely resembles the way Penny from The Rescuers carried Mr. Rufus, the orphanage cat. And John, who had somehow migrated three seats away from us, was completely absorbed in whatever pastor was saying. We couldn't get his attention to tell him we're leaving. Thankfully James hopped over and tapped him on the shoulder before I had to start throwing small pencils at his head.

We did get out. In one piece. And I hugged each of the boys as I hoisted them into the Suburban. I let them know that they were awesome and sweet and wonderful and that I appreciated them tremendously. (Well, the big ones, anyway - Smidge, I just loved on and snuggled. He needed it.) It wasn't their fault. I'm just horribly outnumbered and not up to speed. But boy, did I feel like a total failure.

So. Next week, we'll try again. With a new plan of attack. We'll sit in the far back, which isn't great for the boys, but then I can get up and walk Emily if she gets fussy. It won't disturb the others, and will also allow me to be near the boys. (She was sound asleep not two miles down the road, by the way.) I've got to get a new printer so I can print out some things to distract Smidge, and do up the little activity booklets I used to do for the boys. Um... can you all think of anything else that might help? The lady who works in the nursery on Sunday mornings is awesome, and I'd feel comfortable leaving Smidge in her care, but right now he doesn't remember her (it's been about six months since we've been to a Sunday service) and he feels pretty abandoned. We'll have to work into that.

This has to be doable. It just has to. But I haven't the foggiest idea how to pull it off. Anybody out there keep several small children in church with them, on their own? Zorak may come with us once in a while, when the house is finished, but right now it's just lil' ol' me and the kids.

And in the meantime, we have a wonderful week spread out ahead of us!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Hi! :-)

Just a quick post since I MUST get to bed at a decent hour tonight!

The hallway has been textured. *whew* I'll prime it in the AM, before church, I hope.

The laundry room is both primed and painted. As soon as the paint dries (which may take a while - it's kinda humid today), the outlet covers go up and it is DONE. (It's so purdy!)

Zorak discovered a big, big surprise when he removed the back porch light to do the wiring, and he's now up to his elbows in mortar, new bricks, and miscellaneous other BIG repair jobs. We cannot wait to get rid of this horrible brick exterior - it's a poorly done job that's hung on far longer than the laws of physics would suggest possible.

The bathroom got paint touch-ups yesterday, and it looks much tidier now. All we lack for that room are the towels rods. Oh, and two neato mirrors for above the sinks. We were going to splurge at IKEA for the towel rods, but they're more money than we can honestly justify for something like that (as in, we would not get the enjoyment from them that we do from the curtain rod - now that was a good buy!) The mirrors we hope to find at a junk shop antique store.

We wanted to (finally) do the texture in the dining room today, but I used the rest of the joint compound texturing the hall, so it has to wait until tomorrow's Lowe's trip.

Zorak is so sweet. He's terribly excited about finishing the hallway. Do you know why? So we can hang the big family photo in the hall! Oh, I do love that man.

OK, he's back from the corner hardware store. I better get up and look active again! Thanks for taking a tea break with me (yes, it's hot in the south - time for suntea!)

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Three Day Weekends

Would you believe it took me three tries to type that title? Kept coming out "Three Dog Night". Weird.

Anyhow, these three-day weekends are nice. We get an extra half-day to work on the house, and an extra half-day to spend with the boys. Couldn't work out any nicer if we bribed someone!

Zorak got things lined up to rewire the master bedroom. I primed the laundry room and plotted the paint purchases for the rest of the things. Cleaned the texture pan (I know, it would be so much easier to just rinse it when I'm done, but I'm usually done when Emily suddenly decides she wanted to eat half an hour ago, so there's no time for tidiness.) Painted and tidied up the tidbits in the bathroom that need attention. Pretty laid-back day.

Oh, I did have to venture into town to get set up with a "Primary Care Physician". That was a nightmare. The doctor is nice enough. I'm sure she's competent. But I could just sense the polarization in the air with every question she asked. She is convinced I'm a lunatic, or severely delusional, at best. There's just no way, in her mind, I can be *this* happy, and *this* okay with my life when I have four children, homeschool, am remodeling a house and don't drink. Well, not heavily, anyway. And everytime she scrunched up her face in response to some answer I gave to her questions, all I could think was, "What?!?! What do you want me to say?"

She asked if I was losing weight since I'm nursing. I told her that I'd lost quite a bit, nearly to pre-pregnancy weight, but that according to her scale, it's levelled off now. She wanted to check my thyroid! What? Why!? I'm not tired. I'm not out of a normal, healthy weight range. I am experiencing absolutely no symptoms of an out-of-whack thyroid. Not one. I tried to explain that I'm a lot less active now that the baby has arrived than I was during my pregnancy. Now I just sit on my butt and cuddle children. We all know that's going to show up on the scale, eventually. She did that face scrunching thing again and said, "Oh, come ON! How could you possibly be LESS active? You have FOUR kids. *face scrunch* You're active." And then she scribbled something in my file. I have no idea what, but I don't think it was good. *sigh* We need a physician for the commune. Any takers?

That's about it. I'm going to see if the texture brush has let go of the dried on compound yet, and if so, I'm going to texture the hall. (It's never been pretty, so this is one part I've been anxious to see the final results on!)

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

General Blogging Entry

It's a little after ten and I'm going to post and pass out. Today was productive, busy, and active. Personally, I really hate days like this. They set the bar a little too high for my long-term comfort.

The boys awoke to a hot, fresh breakfast, a clean kitchen and Mom, ready to read.

The dog peed in the foyer again. He'd gotten really good about going outside and not having accidents (we've even been allowing him a bit more free roam time in the house) and then suddenly, he's begun this again. Whatever I've said about letting him live is now a bit tentative. He's back on probation and got to spend the day enjoying the out-of-doors, where I don't have to watch him like he's a nekkid two year old and he doesn't have to worry about bringing on the Wrath of Kahn.

The boys and I finally put up the ceiling fan blades, goobers and all, in their room. It does look cute, and the color combination is beginning to grow on me. Smidge and I did puzzles. James and I made robots. John and I made weapons. We had a great snack and more time spent reading together.

Around two, I began to exhibit symptoms of sudden-onset narcolepsy. It kicked in while I was reading aloud, which means I didn't realize I was asleep until the boys' raucous laughter awoke me. I fall asleep while reading quite a lot. LB calls it a "tip over". I don't actually tip over, though. I keep reading, but begin ad-libbing the storyline and making up words. The boys love it when that happens, but I fear being outed publicly, so I did what any nurturing mother would do: I laid on the couch to pass out and told the boys we should snuggle and watch a movie. They piled on with me and I slept through half of Polar Express. *streeeetch* Much better.

We all worked on the house, but didn't get the heavy moving done as I had Emily in the sling and couldn't contrive a way to haul the heavy stuff without mushing her little head. Zorak arrived home to the scent of supper cooking (red chile beef enchilada casserole with refried beans and a salad), and the boys helping out. John, up to his elbows in grated cheese, and smiling from ear to ear. Smidge, eating the cheese as fast as John could grate it, also smiling. James, singing down the hall, over the sound of the vacuum (when you try to vacuum the wall, the motor gets much noisier and you have to sing louder!) Thankfully, no love songs today.

The guys (including Zorak) worked on their snap circuits (semi-conductors, more fun than you thought!) while I finished supper, set the table, and then had the surreal experience of actually calling my crew to supper. It was lovely, but I doubt I can recreate that scene on a regular basis. I should have tried to channel Norman Rockwell to capture it for me. You know, for those days I can't clear the bar and get knocked on my tush.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

A Day Full of Surprises!

Tonight, as the puppies (aka, children) scampered about the church grounds, John tripped on the ramp out front. The forensics team pieced the accident together using skid marks, blood trails, and visual examination of the involved party. It was gruesome. The full report indicates that the victim was traveling downhill at Mach 3 when a stray molecule of unknown origin bolted into his lane from oncoming traffic. The small (yet rapidly moving) victim was thrown forward, out of his planned trajectory, landing on the palms of his hands. The momentum of his body then thrust him up and over, pole vaulter-style, onto his forehead and nose. The victim traveled in this position for a few feet, as indicated by the abrasions on the entire upper portion of his head, as well as the tissue and blood residue on the ramp. (To put it in laymen's terms, the best I can tell, John took a literal nose dive down the concrete ramp at church and came up with a goose egg that could have only come from one seriously large goose. Or possibly an ostrich. Pretty typical boy-type accident, and no, it won't give him an incentive not to run down the ramp next week. Funny, these kids.)

I couldn't make it better. It hurt, and that's all there was to it. I couldn't get within thirty feet of his forehead to kiss it. Trust me, I tried. The kid can duck and weave like a featherweight champ when he needs to. The days of being able to stem arterial blood flow and repel the fear of pain with the "all better kiss" are gone, now. I got out the ice and... and that was it. That was all I could do. Without the power of The Kiss That Makes It All Better, I might as well have not been there. But even amidst the initial terror and screaming, he remembered to say "thank you" to the child that retrieved and straightened out his party hat. He's so good about taking things in stride. Poor bruised, lumpy, loveable kid.

Other than the pretty graphic face-plant, however, today was a good day. The boys and I took more things down to the Little Basement That Could. We made two batches of Turkish Delight. Or, rather, without the aid of a candy thermometer, we made one batch of nutless praline-like goo and one batch of translucent concrete. It's okay - we had fun, and we needed a new cookie sheet, anyway. James made a play called The Magic Mop starring Balto and the kitchen mop. John narrated the last chapter of Prince Caspian so well that I have to admit that the kid can talk and listen at the same time (if he hadn't been born at home, I'd wonder if he was switched at birth). Smidge enjoyed being Two in all its Two-ness, and it was nice to have his smiley, giggly, contrary little self back to normal.

I took the kids to church so that Zorak could work a bit on the house without feeling torn between the bullnose beading and my semi-desperate need for help with the evening routine. We had fun in town, and he got quite a bit accomplished. Perhaps a bit too much, as he now has a list of "little things" that need doing. There's an awful lot of painting on that list, and that makes me twitchy.

The boys had a delightful time at Pioneer Club - John's teacher sought me out to say what a joy he is to have in class (it's always nice to know that others enjoy your children, too). James enjoyed his lesson on growth and erosion, and drew an awesome picture of his favorite plant (the stevia plant, in case you were wondering - I have no idea when that developed, but there you have it).

He then, on the way home, completely altered the drawing by adding two children eating of the forbidden fruit, erm, stevia leaf, and titled his final piece, "The Root of Romance". (Where does he get this stuff???) ARGH. I thought we'd settled all this during our last painful drive home. As I didn't have the manual transmission to help me this time, and he doesn't believe me when I point out the window and shout, "LOOK! A polar bear!", we talked. Again. And I doubt it took this time, either. But we'll keep talking until he realizes he is this close (picture my fingers very close together) to being sent to a monastary.

We've a lot to do tomorrow, and over the weekend. It looks to be a wonderful, productive few days. There's a storm a'brewin' and headin' our way, so we'll have plenty of time to get things done inside and be ready to frolic when the rain passes on. Rhythm, cadence, pace. Even in the chaos, it's there, and the sound is beautiful, isn't it?

Days Like Yesterday

We all have 'em. None of us wants 'em, but there you have it. They're going to come, anyway.

Let me begin by saying that Smidge is a puker. Not so much when he's sick, but when he's upset, he will cry hard enough that he pukes. Guaranteed. Our family rule has always been,

"You won't get what you want by throwing a fit, but if you feel you must throw a fit, you can do it in your room. When you're done, we'd love to have you join us again."

All of the children, at one time or another, have opted to go throw a good holy fit, and reemerge when it's out of their wee demonic systems. Smidge, however, seems to think it's a prerequisite for getting beyond the situation and moving into the acceptance stage. So he goes to his room and throws a fit. And pukes. Yeah, I'm lovin' carpet. The new family rule is going to be,

"You won't get what you want by throwing a fit, but if you feel you must throw a fit, you can do it in the bathroom. When you're done, we'd love to have you join us again."

The older boys, while wonderful and delightful in many, many ways are still, by a cruel twist of fate, brothers. And brothers will bicker. And the bickering will make mother's head spin. There's just nothing quite as exhilerating as trying to decipher the arguments that take place during the day.

For instance, the joy that is hearing the righteous indignation of a child screeching, "Don't you DARE stick your tongue out at me!" Only to find, moments later, that the offender was responding in kind to the tongue-sticking-out of the righteous one in the first place.

Or that the other brother began name calling (a serious no-no, even to the point that Zorak and I can no longer call one another our pet names for each other because the boys will jump in and remind us that it hurts feelings and causes dissention... admittedly, "buttloser" and "uberdork" may not be your typical pet names...) But I digress (that also happens a lot when you have children). The point being that the name calling began in earnest due to one child's deeply chilvarous desire to protect the feelings of - a door. Yes, a door. And by golly, I'll take my own brother down to defend this door! (Why...???)

By nine thirty yesterday morning, Smidge was out cold, having puked no less than twice in the throes of whatever psychic phenomena had gripped him. The boys had been informed that I will not read to them again until they decide to hold their own dialogue while I'm reading. Period. And I meant it (which, it's funny that they didn't believe me, because I do follow through. There was no story time last night at bedtime. Naturally, that's when they both pledged their fealty to the upright and noble tradition of "not being rude", but the time for blood oaths had passed and the mommy-gods could not be appeased. To bed! Now!)

And I'd planned to be out the door at ten to run errands! I'd planned a picnic! The day, in my head, was a much nicer day that it was turning out to be. The rest of the day, however, pretty much followed the starting pattern.

Lowe's took us almost two hours to pick up paint stirrers and six pieces of bullnose beading. Two hours! Why? Because you can't walk fast when you're crying and trying to puke. And mommy cannot at that point simply walk ahead of you and make you follow because she knows (just knows) that you will vomit and then slip in your own vomit and at least three employess - the ones you haven't been able to locate while you're looking for things - WILL arrive and wonder what horrible mother would leave her sick toddler all alone in a store like this, and call the police. (And if you think I'm going to put Linda Blair in the cart so I can be covered in pea soup while we walk, yeah right!) So mommy has to walk beside you with her hand outstretched while she attempts to thwart your evil plan and convince you that it's in your best interest (and best hope of making it to puberty) to stop. this. fit. now. (Who knew mommy could talk without opening her mouth? Cool. I think I'll puke now.)

My best creative attempt to salvage the day died at Cracker Barrel. Smidge didn't throw up in the restaurant. He sat and ate and chatted. The boys, seated apart from one another, behaved fabulously. There was much laughing and giggling and sharing of ideas. Everyone shared their food, and all of it was eaten. It was beautiful. The crying and fit throwing at Cracker Barrel was actually me. When it was time to go. I didn't want to get back in the car without backup.

But the day did end. I can't spin you a fairytale and say it ended well, but it did end. And nobody was exiled to the back yard. Nobody was disinherited. There was no blood, and consequently, no foul. In the grand scheme of things, that was a success. Not quite a good day, but a day from which we can rally and move on.

This morning has been banana nut granola, served warm. Hot chocolate and playtime. History is the white elephant in the living room, as it's normally a read-aloud. We'll see how this Mexican Standoff turns out. But I have hope, because the sun did come up, and the baby did sleep from nine thirty last night until four this morning, and so did I. There will be days like yesterday, but there's always the hope of today. It's good.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

WAHOOO!!!

Oh, I am SO excited! Just got off the phone with Aunt B and it looks like Gram, Aunt Linda and Aunt JoAnn will be coming to visit in April! This is terribly exciting. They are just a blast to be around - funny, sweet, smart ladies who enjoy life and the people in it. This is going to be such a nice visit. It'll be nice to have company here at the Forever Home, too. They'll "get it", and will be as proud of Zorak as I am. (He's worked hard for this.) We'll enjoy showing them the work and the land. The boys want to show them their fossil and their rock polishing system down at the creek. I'm hoping they'll help me figure out how to set up a garden!

Gram is the boys great-grandmother. She's MY grandma, too, in many ways - I just had to marry Zorak to get her (but that was worth it.) She is sweet and funny and such fun to spend time with.

We haven't seen Aunt Linda or Aunt JoAnn in ages, so it will be wonderful to enjoy coffee in the mornings and get caught up on all they've been doing.

I'd like to show them the Botannical Gardens in Huntsville - things should be blooming and lovely there in April (I think - I don't know anything about plants, really). What else do you think might be fun?

Oh, and the food we'll get to prepare! What fun!

So. Big news. Lit a fire under Zorak, too. *grin* I know Aunt B said they're coming to help, but there are a few little things I know we'd like to get done before they arrive. It's the good stuff, though, not stressful things. This will be a fun month of preparation and anticipation!

Yay!
Dy

Breathe in, breathe out...

Wow. So, closet organizers? Yeah, now I understand why some people pay others to install them. Oy! One down, four to go... *cringe*

BUT the boys' closet now holds all of their things, our beach gear, their shoes, Emily's blankets, and there's plenty of room for stowing other things, as well! Yay. (I'd say it was worth it, but what do I know? Zorak did all the work. hee hee)

Zorak installed another closet floor and tidied up the remaining taped joints in the hallway. He also worked a lot in the basement, trying to make it feel less like a warehouse and more like a workshop. I don't know if he succeeded, but he sounded happy with the results.

We spent three hours today moving things from the Tool Room to the basement. I only remarked maybe twice on Zorak's tidiness in the tool room, then caught myself and resorted to a general murmuring of discontent as I picked up around the room. He took it well, patting me on the head and reminding me that it looked fine until I quit cleaning it. Shyah, well, yeah, but there's a reason I quit clean -- oh, nevermind. I'll be in my corner, murmuring. (These are the things you have to brace yourself for in a home improvement project. You must learn to laugh about them so that you don't end up involved in a messy court case before your home is finished. The do-it-yourself books never mention things like this. They waste their time on budgeting and materials worksheets. What they need are some good humor-enhancing tips and a schedule on "how to fight fair and still laugh about it".) So. Anyway, three days behind schedule on that room, but there was a LOT more stuff in there than we thought!

I forgot to buy a straw broom while we were out Friday, so the dining room stood neglected this weekend.

But surely, I could have run to the market over the weekend and bought a broom? Oh, no. Miss Emily is experiencing her first "growth spurt". This is a medical euphemism for "the child will attempt to kill you by nursing". It's a subtle battle to the finish. An infant's Gladiator, if you will. Armed with the lung capacity of a blue whale and the tenacity of badger-wasps, the wee contender begins the battle. And entering the arena armed with mass quantities of water, and a stack of books, our returning champion ~ Mom! *The bloodthirsty crowd goes wild...*

Not only have I probably doubled our water bill over the weekend, I spent more time feeding her than I did the entire week of her illness (which was about every two hours that week), and I've read three (count 'em - 1, 2, 3) Rosemary Sutcliff books from beginning to end this weekend. Not to mention a few chapters in Story of the World and seven chapters from Prince Caspian aloud to the boys. There was a point on Saturday where I thought I was a goner, but while she may be focused, I'm just too stubborn to die yet. It looks like this battle was a draw. Mom: alive. Baby: fat. All's well. (But that's why I don't have a broom.)

Everyone is perky and healthy and being forced to stand outside in the 65 degree weather. It's wonderful. Or at least Zorak and I think so. The boys, not so much. John kept slipping in through the back door. Smidge hid under the legos, and finally James came in to tell me he got way too hot out today. Zorak stepped in and mentioned that they'd best get used to it because summer's a'comin' and they aren't spending the entire summer inside! Nope. (*I* might, but they don't get to. I'm old and unable to handle humidity over 10%. They're young and have way too much energy to spend all summer sitting and not tearing through the house. OUT they go!)

So, "growth spurt" aside, it was a relatively productive weekend. The boys' room received a bit more tweaking, everyone got fed semi-regularly, and the laundry is done. We aren't being nearly as productive as we'd like to be, but we aren't stagnating, either. The boys got more of our attention, as well. That's progress of a different, and very important kind. It felt good.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

I love Fridays!

Fridays mean we've made it one more week without misplacing anyone (a personal goal of mine through the years), without givng up on the team plan, without losing sight of whatever it is we're focused on. It's not the ensuing weekend that makes me so happy. It's the knowledge that we're making it - one step, one day, one week at a time. How awfully encouraging! I suppose that, yes, Friday would come even if I did leave poor Smidge at the Family Dollar, or if Zorak went Parrothead without me and lost himself in the Keys. But it wouldn't have the same feeling that it does when the head count and goal focus remain constant over the week. That's nice.

I finished the boys' closet and the texturing of the laundry closet over the week - one teeny tiny step at a time. Had grand plans of installing the organizer yesterday so that I could surprise Zorak with all the efficiency and wonder that is His Wife. Um. Yeah. Have ya seen the instructions to those things? It's designed for "up to" an 8' closet. The boys have Nowhere Near An 8' Closet, and so a hacksaw will have to come into play. We're talking actual linear footage, and yet the instructions say to hack it off "in one inch increments". Oh sure! I'd still be cutting bits apart when James kissed me goodbye on his way to college! And the sheer number of fasteners! Oy! I did surprise Zorak, but it was with a phone call wondering if he knew where the cordless screwdriver was (he didn't) and then begging him to install the stoopid thing when he got home. At least he was exposed to the, erm, Wonder that is... His Wife. (Poor guy.)

Today, our tasks are a bit more within our grasp: to Lowe's for a Mongo Tub O' Joint Compound (yes, the Irish kind) and to Wal-Mart for paint in varying hues with which to brighten our home. That, we can do. The organizer is still splayed about on the boys' bedroom floor, and there it shall remain for the day. I will gladly teach history, math and literature. I will happily pick up supplies. But with four children under foot, I don't use levels unless Zorak makes me.

Kiss those babies (and don't misplace them!)
~Dy

Ode to Hyland's and General Stuff

(Said in a drunken fratboy voice...)

I love you, Man!

A little simethicone at suppertime, an hour of Hyland's Colic tablets administered at regular intervals thereafter, and Miss Emily sleeps like that imaginary baby in the proverbs.

Of course, she's been out for an hour and a half, and I'm still up. Perhaps I should pop a few of those magic little tablets, myself? I don't know what's up with that. I don't care, either. She is asleep.

The boys enjoyed pioneer club tonight. Our first round of The Inquisition after we leave church always leaves me wondering if they take after their father and sleep through the lesson. However, with a little coaxing they produce these great descriptions about their evening.

John, tonight, after telling us about Elijah and the ravens:

"So that's what that bird thing was all about. You know, the paper with the moving bird on it. Makes more sense now, doesn't it?"

James, explaining to me why he doesn't have his memory verse:

"Well, Mom, it's like this. I left it with my teacher because I always lose it at home. Now, though, it's safe and sound with someone more responsible. That's how I handled that."

(He didn't have an answer for just how he's supposed to memorize said verses since he doesn't have the sheet with him anymore. But that's a trivial point, considering at least it's not LOST somewhere!)

We started reading back at the beginning of Story of the World Vol. 1 today. I'm going to read a chapter a day at lunch until we get to where we'd left off. Then we'll return to our regularly scheduled history lessons. This plan serves two purposes: they could use the review, and I don't have the energy to do anything in the activity guide for at least another three weeks. Sometimes it comes together so beautifully. *sniff*

We finished The Horse and His Boy. One drawback to having all seven books bound in one volume is that there is no sense of accomplishment when you reach the end of one book. There's no back cover to close gently while saying, "The..." and letting the boys say, with great pomp and celebration, "END!" Nope. The story just ends, and right there, facing you as if you should go on reading, is the title page of the next book. They're chomping at the bit to read Prince Caspian now. And I'm guessing this is only a problem for me, who is really ready to take a little break, isn't it?

Hey, while I'm rambling aimlessly, does anybody know what "patent flour" is? Our crunchy market isn't stocking the regular wheat-free brands as much anymore (have to request it and they bring it out of a freezer somewhere in the back), but they are stocking more locally made breads, which is neat. We picked up a loaf of Kamut bread tonight to see if John can handle that. We saw a loaf of oat bread that looked delicious, felt just perfect for sandwich bread, and listed "organic patent flour" as it's first ingredient. OK. So, what's that? Stock boy didn't know. He asked Bread Lady. She didn't know, so they asked Manager Lady. She was nice, but didn't know, either. They asked Owner Lady, who looked as lost as the rest of us. (Or that may have been the look of, "Why are all you people standing here, staring at me?" We were quite a little crowd by that point.) They said they'd track it down and let me know, but now the curiosity is killing me. Anybody out there heard of it? Tried it? Used it? Know what it is, even?

Ok, well, it looks like it's safe for me to go to bed! I'm going to make the rounds and kiss my babies once more before I turn in.

~Dy

The Big Colloidial Silver Post

OK, well, I know it's a touchy topic. The more research I did, the more I found that "the facts", as they are, stem from two different camps. They are as follows:

Camp 1: we-are-the-government-and-if-we-don't-approve-it-it's-of-no-use-to-anyone-and-will-kill-you-you-idiot-how-dare-you-question-us

Camp 2: colloidial-silver-will-cure-everything-from-ugliness-to-amputations-and-it-tastes-great-with-cereal

Hmmmm. Neither group really inspired much confidence in my ability to be an informed consumer. So, I kept looking. As you all know, we did decide to give the colloidial silver to the boys. I've received several inquiries as to why and how we came to that conclusion, so I wanted to respond.

I am not trying to convince anyone who is against colloidial silver. As with any treatment, supplement, or hair color, if you're not comfortable with it, don't do it. Don't do it on someone else's recommendation or anecdotal evidence. Don't do it out of laziness or a lack of motivation. Be comfortable. Be informed. Be responsible. I've read Rosemary Jacob's story, and found within her words about as much information as there is general all-purpose angst against all things alternative. I can appreciate the axe she has to grind, certainly. In this instance, I'm simply sharing the information I found that helped tip the scales for us in making the call.

I think no less than eight people sent me the quackwatch link. I read it. It made me uneasy (as it's intended to do.) So I looked around a bit. Some of the "documentation" I read on other topics at that site was downright fallacy, so I did more research on Barrett, and came to the realization that he's in the AMA's back pocket. (And has been for quite a while.) So there's no real credibility on that end, in my not so humble opinion. I kept looking.

The first item I found that was actually somewhat helpful was the Altman Study. (That link is to a .pdf.) I have a lot of respect for anyone who is willing to use himself as a guinea pig. His study focused on the elimination rate of colloidial silver from the body. Interesting study, and worth a read.

Now, my big, gigantic huge fear was causing my children to develop Argyria (Petty? Probably. I'm okay with that.) The amount of silver in a 10ppm solution is something like 3 micrograms, and the EPA suggests that you "may" be "at risk" for developing Argyria if you take 3.8 GRAMS, DAILY, for a prolonged period of time (as in, years). Still, that's an unheard of quantity to ingest daily, anyway. Jacobs and others on the FDA/AMA end of the spectrum claim that it's a residual build-up of silver in the body over a prolonged period of time. Altman's study, however, showed that the colloidial silver doesn't build up in the body the way aluminum or arsenic will. It seems nobody has done further research on the process, but everybody has an opinion.

I did speak with people we know in real life who have taken CS for various maladies, as well as those who are against its use in any form. Thank you, for taking the time and effort to speak with me and answer my questions. All of you. It helped quite a lot.

I can say that my lab rats, er, children are much healthier today than I had any hope of them being three days ago. Smidge's eyes cleared almost immediately, and he has not awoken to gunked eyes since. John's thick, green snot returned to normal colored, runny kid-snot by the following morning. These are not the responses of wishful thinking, nor of mind-over-matter. These are the tangible reactions from taking the CS for some fairly nasty infections that grapefruit seed extract, garlic and breastmilk didn't touch. It was, admittedly, a last resort, but I'm glad we took the leap and gave it to them. We still haven't found a doctor, and I know if we'd gone to urgent care, they'd have given us nebulizers and antibiotics up the wazoo (which I really didn't want). This has worked out well for us.

Here are a few of the links that were more helpful than the others - the first one is the Altman study results, linked above. The second is a rebuttal to an article someone wrote called "The Dark Side of Silver". The original article is somewhere in my archives, but I can't find it right now (I miss caffeine). The bold parts are from the original, the rest is this guy's response. He takes it line by line. And that last link is a GP site of different links on all ends of the spectrum. It includes detractors of CS (as well as a bazillion ads for cs distributors, lol!)

Rebuttal to The Dark Side of Silver

CS Facts, a general purpose informational site (has both pro and con links on it, but is mostly promotional cs links)

Anyhow, that's how we go here from there. Regardless of your choice, I hope you can find information that's useful.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

So here it is, Wednesday

I think it's gone. *shhhhh* Don't say that too loudly, though, okay? There might be something lurking under the deck, waiting for me to look just a little too complacent. But still, I think we're going to be okay.

This morning I thought to myself, "Slowly, slowly, I can feel momentum mounting again. The freeing sensation that we're going to accomplish something this week blows through me - like the wind before a storm. This is good." Then I think, "This is Lent. It's March already." We haven't even discussed Lent this year. (I spaced Ash Wednesday last year, and thought James would never forgive me!) And I realize someone's been slipping crack into my decaf: I'm not going to accomplish squat. This feeling is probably the giddiness of having showered yesterday. Ah, well, it feels good, so whatever works.

Zorak has a "meeting" after work today. It's one of those Beer Friday kind of things, but yeah, on a Wednesday. Gub'ment jobs are silly like that. I have a Suspicion he suggested Wednesdays so that he doesn't have to go to Pioneer Club, but considering all he does - both at work and here, for us - the rest of the week, I can't begrudge him that. I'd like to, but I can't. *grin*

The morning sun is shining, right in my eyes, as I type. I had no idea how distracting that would be. Makes it difficult to form coherent thoughts. And correct typos. It doesn't seem to be as bad when I'm driving. Or I ignore it. That's a little scary - the thought that hundreds of us cruise around, driving into the sun, and think it's not distracting us.

Well, here we are. Wednesday. The first day of Lent. The first day of March. Time to pay bills, go over the budget, buy more joint compound. Time to start awaiting the beginning of Spring. Time to buy the new Latin book for James. Time to dig out my clothes and look for sundresses so I don't melt this summer. Time to bathe the boys so they're clean and spiffy for church tonight. Lots of time today, lots to do. I am so rambling, and have to get off this computer before I burn my retinas from staring into the sun. Ugh. Will blog more later.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

How cute!

Our library calls to remind you when your books are overdue, and I have to say I've never had a sweeter "bring us our books" call in my life. The lady who called had that perfect Elderly Southern Belle voice - she was just too cute. Fortunately, we have the books in a pile by the front door and as soon as I finish loafing on the computer and hanging the next load of wash (it's still spinning, which is why I get some loafing time), we're heading out the door to return them and run a few other errands that've been mounting this month.

It's another gorgeous day here in Forever Land. Sunny, slightly breezy, and relatively arid. I'll take it! If it could be like this all the time, I'd be in heaven. There's a spot in the back yard area that is just begging for a bench swing for reading. I could hear it while I was out back this morning. "Bring me a swing and discover me! Come, little one! Bring a blanket. Coffee. And snacks." Either we are totally attuned to this place, or I've gotta get out more.

One of the errands on the agenda is to pick up a ball so we can play ball in the meadow. (I have no idea where all of our other balls went, unless Zorak and I threw them out in one of the moves - which is totally possible.) The boys are excited, mostly just looking forward to playing outside and enjoying a nice day. It just hit me that I'll need to get a ball that's Balto-proof. Maybe a soccer ball?

Zorak finished the chase for the gas vent last night. It's in one of the bedroom closets, and we set it so that we can build shelves along the little section that's left. It looks great. It's also a reminder that I have a TON of texturing to do! Yikes! I'd better get on it and do a little catching up! Maybe that will be this afternoon's project?

On the homeschooling front (this reportedly being a homeschooling blog and such), I finally signed us up for two local homeschool support group lists. It's time to get out and meet some people. Local people. Friendly people. Homeschooling people. We need Our People, and the only way to cultivate that is to actually get off our butts and find them. The first step is admitting you haven't done that, right? So, that feels good.

And there's the end of the spin cycle. Off to be productive!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

More Progress on the House

We rearranged the living room over the weekend - brought up the couch, put the futon and the stereo into the school room, moved a bookshelf. The living room looks much better - more along the lines of the cabin retreat look we were shooting for. The wood stove must go as soon as the weather warms up. Although we positioned it to take up as little space as possible, it's gargantuan and takes up a huge chunk smack in the middle of a wall. Next winter we'll put in a smaller, more efficient (and attractive) one that will fit nicely in the corner.

Balto spent a good portion of the day roaming free in the house. No accidents. Yay! He wanted to go out on the balcony, but it freaked him out. I don't know if the banister gave him the same sensation cattle guards give cows, or what, but that was one twitchy dog for about an hour and a half. He'd get the front paws on the balcony, then bolt back into the house. In his panicked retreat, he smacked his head on more than one door jamb. But, oh, how he wanted to come out there with us! So he'd try again, make it maybe five feet onto the deck and then scamper like a scalded cat (which, on an animal his size is an amazing feat) back into the house. We just loved on him and tried to encourage him without making him more hyper (it doesn't take much, he's a little spastic.) When we sat down for lunch, he disappeared. Zorak went looking for him (we both had images of the dog gleefully peeing all over the carpet in the boys' room) and found him splayed out on the balcony, soaking up the sun. I guess he conquered his fears in order to claim that tasty little spot of warmth and comfort. Sometimes it's worth is, no?

Emily was right when she called this the ick that has taken over the nation! It seems to have hit everyone we know, from California to Maryland. It's amazing what a rough winter this has been for sinus and respiratory illnesses. I'm glad we've got company, though, as it lets us know that this is normal and we haven't damned the boys to living with some kind of illness for having moved into this place. (Not glad y'all are sick, too, it's just, well, you know. *ahem* Get better soon, everyone!)

Now that the basement has been cleared a little, we can finish clearing out the Tool Room this week and get started rebuilding it come payday! I almost cannot believe we're that close. We could have the master bedroom functioning by the beginning of March! Holy Batcrap, Batman! That makes me giddy!

Oh! Oh! I made a frivilous purchase at Lowe's yesterday! For the first time since this project began, I got to go down the "yuppie homeowner fun stuff" aisle! I bought the boys a closet organizer! The cashier probably thought I'd OD'd on anti-depressants for post partum depression. Picture Laney, buying shoes - brand name, 75% off, and "just what she needed" - that was me, yesterday. What FUN! Of course, now I've gotta figure out how to install the stoopid thing, but still, we are getting so close to Normal that I can taste it!

And speaking of Normal, I've got youngin's to tend to and wash to bring in. Time to go be a grown up and enjoy all the blessings this life offers! Have a wonderful, fantastic Monday, everyone!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Three Days Later

Man. This winter has been rough! I am thankful today is going to be a relatively warm, dry day, because we have got to air out this house. Ick. John had a relapse. Smidge kept getting worse and worse. James hovered on sick all week, and I couldn't shake it, either. Florence Nightingale, I'm not, okay? This is just ridiculous!

After quite a bit of research, which I'll blog about later, I decided to use the colloidial silver. I still wouldn't give it to Miss Emily, but fortunately, she's the healthiest of the bunch. The rest of us, though, have been taking it. Smidge's mucous changed from nasty green to normal snot-color about ten hours after the first dose. He awoke the following morning smiling, with those bright brown eyes wide open for the first time in three days. I can't say I'm sorry I made that call. Everyone feels significantly better. What was nice was that it didn't wind down. It stopped. So, now that we are - hopefully - at the end of this bout of illness, we can get back to life.

We're trying to arrange things in the basement to make room for the tools and materials from the Tool Room. When that's been cleared out, we can begin transforming it back into the Master Bedroom. It's taking a bit more juggling than we expected, but that's okay. It's coming together, one load at a time. We brought the boys' toy shelf up last night. It was like Christmas for Smidge! We also moved one of the tall bookshelves into their room and began the process of liberating some of our favorite books from the basement. That was like Christmas for James.

And I'm trying to blog with James questioning me about light rays and eye development. This isn't working well, so I'm going to go and talk about light waves for a bit over coffee with my eldest child. He's still a little guy, and right now he needs some mama time. I can blog later. (After all, they have to sleep sometime, don't they?)

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

The Mama

We did nothing today other than stare at one another and pass the tissue box. It was a warped, prolonged game of Hot Potato. Only in our version, you wanted the hot potato (tissue box) when the timer buzzed (the timer being any random sinus cavity).

James fell asleep at seven - this, from the child who stays up until midnight reading - and he just barely made it through a chapter of The Horse and His Boy. Smidge didn't make it through supper, and I'm not sure when or how John got to bed because Emily and I were out cold beside James.

So why am I up at three in the morning? Because when you are two and you wake up but find you cannot open your eyes, you cry for Mama. And Mama responds the same way Mamas have always responded, by instinct: make it better. Mama responds by rushing to your room and scooping you into her arms, reassuring you that it's okay (not because she has any clue what's wrong yet, but simply because she is here, and you believe her). She responds by washing your face gently and coaxing your eyelashes apart one by one; by cuddling you tightly and kissing your hair, your forehead, your cheeks; by slathering you with things to clear your nose, and calming your Very Scared Little Self. Then you feel better, because Mama made it better. And you snuggle under your fleece blanket, kiss your soft toy goodnight and drift off to happy two year old's dreams.

Meanwhile, Mama stays awake several hours longer, checking in on you. Are you breathing? Are you okay? Are you spiking a fever? Are you dehydrated? Is she missing anything? Is the path to the hallway clear? Should she bring you to her bed? Should she sleep on the floor where she is near you and your siblings? Should we all live in a one-room house to eliminate these questions? Is the baby still safe? Are you okay now? Come to think of it, is Daddy alright? Mama has work to do, after the crisis has been averted. And so, Mama is blogging between rounds she must make before she is assurred that All Is Well and she can go back to sleep.

Well, this isn't leaving the house easily, and so I do believe it is time to call a doc and see if perhaps there's something bacterial that has invaded the house along with the viral ick. Thankfully, today wasn't Friday!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Comfy Floors and Strange Visitors

It felt indescribably good to put my feet on a finished floor when I awoke yesterday morning! Zorak keeps thinking he's stepped on something and it takes a second before he realizes it's not something that shouldn't have been on the floor. We're having a lot of fun with the whole carpet thing.

I've been smitten. Thankfully, it wasn't a full smack-down (yet), but I am sick. I was miserable yesterday. And today. Tomorrow's not lookin' so hot, either. Ick. However, I feel better than Smidge, who awoke crusted over and slimy like something from a Clive Barker flick, looks. Poor little guy. I had slathered him with items from the voo-doo bag the night before (a little eye of newt, a little dragon's liver, and a dab of chicken foot) and evidently it did the trick because the next morning everything that had been inside his body was now outside it. All over it. Amazing. He was feeling a tad bit better by bedtime last night, so I think he's reaching the end.

Yesterday nothing was accomplished other than two loads of bedding, which I then added to the mining camp ensemble to dry. That's one thing I miss about living in the desert: wash hung on the line dries in the same amount of time it takes the next load to wash. I really, really miss that.

Zorak wants to begin on the master bedroom this weekend. I think I'll let him.

Oh, and we had a bizarre visitor yesterday. While the kids and I were enjoying lunch, a white pickup pulled in and a young kid (I'm guessing mid-20's) got out and came to the door. When I answered, he said he noticed from the road that we're fixing the place up. Said his granddad had built this house and would we like to have the original plans to the house. Now, this, in itself, doesn't strike me as weird. If Zorak's Granny had sold her place and we saw that somebody was fixing it up, we'd stop and say hi, tell some stories about the old place, and just be friendly in general. What strikes me as weird is that (a) you can't SEE this place from the road, and (b) you can't tell we're doing anything other than trashing the place from the outside.

He went on to tell a few stories which may or may not jive with what we know about the place. He said it was built in the late sixties and that it burnt down a few years later and the structure that's on there now was rebuilt after the fire.(County records say it was built in '71. Something was on fire at some point in the Dean Koontz room, but I'm not sure if it's indicative of a whole house fire...) He identified a few of the fruit trees on the property, although one he got wrong (said it's a fig and it's a chokecherry - I have no idea how close those two are in appearance). He shared a lot of information I wouldn't share about my family in a town this small. In all, he was fairly believable, but the whole visit had a feel of "doesn't quite fit".

Anyhow, I didn't let him in. I couldn't shake the feeling that he is the son of the folks who lost this place and that he was running recon for them to see if they want to buy it back. He mentioned having come into an inheritance a while back, and that was the big flag-raiser for me. Both our realtor and the closing attorney said that usually the only way people come to claim a right of redemption is when they receive an inheritance that allows them to afford to buy the place back. He asked if my husband would be home that evening and said he'd bring the plans by. He never came back. I hope he doesn't. But I can't feel at ease about the encounter. I'll be so thankful when we get the all-clear in May. Until then, please pray that it stays quiet on that front.

Today we'll keep cleaning and resting. I'm going to work with John on his reading as soon as he finishes breakfast. The older two are still sound asleep and resting. I think I'm going to go climb back in bed and wait for John.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

One More Down

Wow. The War Room is now carpeted. Zorak pulled it off. I'm in awe. It looks downright swanky in here! Didn't hurt that we cleaned the computer and desk before we brought them back in, I'm sure. It is going to feel so good tomorrow to get up and put my feet down on a finished floor! WAHOO!

I got the boys' room mostly stenciled today. It looks really cute. Smidge saw the trains and yelled, "THOMAS!" Then he clasped his hands together and let out a beautiful little, "Ohhh, thank you!". (I should say this is an artistic rendering loosely inspired by Thomas. It's close enough to thrill a two year old, but not close enough to risk copyright infringement which was not intentional, actually, but one of the benefits of not being able to draw freehand.) James LOVED his beakers. John thinks the dragon tracks and eggs are just the best. I may stop right now. They're happy, and that's what I was shooting for. The ceiling fan blades didn't go up today because someone touched them and they had to be repainted. Grrr.

While the back half of the house is coming together, the living room looks like a miner's camp during the bad years of the gold rush: skivvies drying by the wood stove, beans cooking over in the kitchen, trails of mud leading from the door to various spots in the living room, a wood chip trail to the stove, and well, you get the picture - it's just a mess! When, or if, Miss Emily goes to bed tonight, we'll do a big clean before we hit the hay. If not, then that's on tomorrow's agenda.

Thanks so much for your encouragement and gentle reminders on the last post. I feel better today, which is great. (Getting those damned stencils over with helped a lot!) And now I've got this visual of God doing the Extreme Wrestling thing, which cracks me up. It's probably not wise to giggle at the Almighty, in particular not when I'm the one facing a potential smack-down from Him... but I can't help it. It's funny. I will, however, keep in mind the warning signs and I promise not to incur the wrath of the Almighty or force Him to smite me with something viral and ouchy.

Kiss those babies.
~Dy

Oh, yeah, that's nice. (More remodel news.)

The boys are in their room tonight. Their real room. Their Forever Room. It's carpeted and clean. The closet has wood flooring. It's roomy. It's not right off the kitchen. ;-) The boys all helped move their belongings into the room. "Excited" doesn't begin to describe the atmosphere. Smidge and I sat on the floor, playing ball. James staked out his places in his bed and oriented himself in his space. John ran around in circles, making unintelligible yet happy noises. Zorak can't stop smiling.

The stencils were drawn up and cut out today, but not painted on. It's just not possible to paint ANYTHING with four small children and construction work going on. If Emily didn't need something, Smidge did. If one of the older boys wanted to do something, so did the other two. The constant hum of someone in search of something from somebody else created a distracting air that really killed the focus. Nobody had enough focus to L-I-S-T-E-N. So. Hopefully Zorak will take them far, far away tomorrow and I can stencil up trains, beakers, dragon footprints and dragon eggs while they are gone. (Don't ask me how I'm going to make it look nice - that's beyond me at this point. I just want them UP.) The ceiling fan blades have been painted and are drying. They'll go up tomorrow.

As soon as I post this entry, the computer gets shut off and we'll empty this bedroom to carpet it tomorrow.

My mind is turning now to the school room. It needs French doors and a bigger window, but for the immediate needs, it looks like new wiring and walls. It's exciting!

I'm strung a little taut at the moment. Mentally. Emotionally. Physically, I'm fine. But the other two are feeling a bit wrung out. Not sure how best to deal with that. Getting away isn't an option. Taking a break won't make things better. Slowing down won't, either. This is one of those times that require us to just plough through what needs to be done and try not to be too hard on ourselves for not seeing immediate joy in it. I liken it to hiking the switchbacks out of a deep canyon. The hike down was enjoyable, with new sights and discoveries. The stay, while often grueling, was pleasant and rewarding. Now it's time to hike back up. That always kills me. One foot in front of the other. Step.

Step.

Step.

Don't look at the top of the switchbacks. They seem insurmountable. But they aren't. You get there one plodding step at a time. Stop for water. Catch your breath. But don't think about how much of the climb is left. Just plug on. There's a thick steak and cold iced tea waiting for you up there, but you won't get closer by trying to see it from the trail. You have to keep. Going.

And I'm done with my water now. Time to put one foot in front of the other and take another step. The end of the trail may not be visible, but it's attainable, and the view from the top will be astounding! We just have to get up there to enjoy it.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Darn Morning Blogging

The quality of my blogging is bound to take a serious dive pretty soon. First my caffeine has to go. THEN my night blogging gets yanked out from under me. What's next? Health food?

So, since Emily is now healthy and has the cry of a clear-lunged hyena, I thought I'd take the boys to see The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe yesterday. (Just LWW for the rest of this post - I'm conserving my typing energies.) But at two in the morning, a Very Stuffy Smidge crawled into bed to cuddle and shower me with snot. I realized two things: we'd spend Friday on the couch, and our bed is shrinking.

Really. It is. We used to be able to fit two adults and two wee children in the bed with only minor placement problems. But Smidge. Oy. The kid has the volume of an NFL rookie and he's as active as a tap dancer. Add to it Zorak's Elbow of Death, and Miss Emily's desire to suckle any body part she can find in the dark and... well, that's why I'm up! It was simply too dangerous to stay in there.

Today, Zorak will stay with Smidge (who has once again commandeered my pillow) while I take the boys to see the movie. They're so excited. We've finished The Magician's Nephew and LWW and are just a few chapters into The Horse and His Boy. James *clicked* near the end of LWW - Aslan, Edmund, salvation, the whole sh'bang! I don't know if I mentioned it here, but it was k-i-l-l-i-n-g me not to point it out to him as we read. I could see bits niggling at his brain, hints in his eyes that "there's something more going on here..." and then suddenly, KAPOW, it hit him. Now he wants to go back and re-read The Magician's Nephew with his newfound knowledge. He he. Yep, this is good stuff!

But it's also really great to see it through John's eyes. For John, this is the Ultimate Adventure Tale Ever. It's not any less thrilling to see the stories that way. Not at all. As a matter of fact, I'd read all seven books as a child, loved them passionately, cried when I finished, and never clued in. Not even a hint. (Yes, I actually read The Last Battle and STILL didn't suspect anything.) But I enjoyed it then just as much as John is now, and revisiting Narnia once in a while always reveals something new and exciting. So, in all, we're having a great deal of fun with this.

Zorak shared with me His Plan for this weekend. It sounds a bit ambitious for one who doesn't get started until after ten on the weekends, but who am I to put the kabosh on Grand Schemes and Things of That Sort? (Can you tell I'm abusing capital letters today? Certain things seem to take on a different feel when they're capitalized, and it cuts down on my abuse of italics.)

OK, well, the sun is now up and the day must begin!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

OK, it's done.

James looks like Lloyd Christmas. John's got the whole Big Brother Chet thing going on. Thankfully, Smidge has no say yet, so he has a Cute Little Boy haircut.

Zorak seems okay with James' haircut. I have no. idea. why. With the faces this kid makes anytime there's a camera nearby, we're going to have a lot of family photos where he looks like this.

Personally, I like John's haircut. Granted, he really does look like Big Brother Chet.* It looks pretty good, though, and is fun to run my hand over, too. It was very difficult for the barber to do it. Not technically difficult, the man has skills; he just didn't want to do that to John's head. I could tell that it was emotionally painful for the man to cut off THAT MUCH HAIR. John is ecstatic over it, and feels pretty manly. Zorak furrows his brow and mumbles, "it'll grow out..." every time he looks at it.

BUT, while they may now look a bit weird, at least they don't look abandoned. That's what I was shooting for, and hey, it worked.

Miss Emily seems to be clearing a bit more with each day. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. She's a tough little monkey. And very cute, but I have to tell you, we took pictures yesterday and... pink is not her color. Now, I'm not making this up just to avoid pink (although I'd contemplated doing so back in November sometime). The child has my complexion at the moment and pink makes her look very, um, spotted. She doesn't look terribly spotted in person. It definitely looks worse on the camera. Maybe she's just not photogenic? I don't know, but you're going to have to wait for a yellow gown day for pictures.

And darnit, it's raining! I awoke this morning around four to the sound of rain on the roof. I tried very, very diligently to convince myself it was the sound of the noise machine and not the sound of my laundry getting soaked again. It wasn't supposed to rain again until FRIDAY!! Wahhhhh. Oh. Wait. This IS Friday. Well, nuts. There go two more loads that'll have to wait it out. I'm really bad at this, you know.

And so, I've no idea what today, or this weekend will hold. Zorak is determined that we will be laying carpet. I'm guessing that means he's picked a carpet? I don't know. I don't ask questions. I'm just the hired help. Call me Cookie, I'll round up the chuckwagon and have the coffee hot when my Cowboy comes in from the range... But whatever it brings, it should be fun.

Have a great weekend!
Kiss those babies!
~Dy

(* I found the Big Brother chet photo at the Official Weird Science website - if you liked the movie, check this out, it's fun!)

Yet Another Thrilling Day

Zorak awoke, showered, and headed out before the sun even thought about making an appearance. I'm in awe of that man's ability to work so hard on the house each night and still go to work every morning. Thankfully he's not a workaholic, or I'd have to slip sedatives into his coffee to keep him from killing himself!

Me? Yeah, no threat of sedatives, here. I need real coffee each morning in order to get up and moving. Actually, I'd rather not get up and moving. Life would be perfect if I could mount feeders for the boys (think hamster feeders, those are handy!) along one wall by my bed and we could all just stay in bed reading most days. That would be pure bliss. But no. I got up with Zorak, changed Miss Em, made coffee, let Balto out before he vandalized the foyer, fed and again changed Miss Em (who is markedly improved, thanks to a little eucalyptus oil and nonstop nursing - I'm wiped out, but she's quite perky!) Let the dog in. Let him back out. Let him in. I'm getting daily walks via trips to the front door. When we finally put in a dog door, I suspect my weight will balloon significantly.

*poof* John's up. Holy cow, yes, it's seven thirty already! Two chapters in Dragonology, a few peanut butter cups (because I don't have to be the nutrition nazi when there's only one up, right?), and then it's time to get dressed. Clean clothes, please, as we're going to Costco today. "Muenster cheese?" Yes, sweetie, for muenster cheese. (Why don't our regular markets carry this? We have our pick of eight kinds of goat cheese, but can't get muenster! That's just weird.)

Today we get to finish the wash, oogle stackable sets, pay bills, hit Costco, go to the barber (I've been threatening this for, what, a month now? Yeah, well, our barber isn't open Sun-Wed. It's hard to catch him. Today we ARE going!). John wants spikes. James wants it long in front and short in back (in the Land of the Mullet, he marches to the beat of his own drummer - thank God!) Smidge is still blissfully clueless, and I've actually become one of those mothers - he has curls. They are darling. I hate to cut them off, but he's got such a large head that I'm thinking it's not going to go well for him once he loses the toddler fat. So he gets shorn, as well.

We're still making daily, inch-by-inch progress on the house. Laney asked for pictures the other day, and I'd love to have some to post. Sadly, we're not making progress that quickly just yet. However, let me take this moment to solemnly swear that this is not a hoax, nor an urban legend. The Forever House does exist and we are actually living here, fixing it up, and enjoying the reprieve from the Very Cold Weather! I'm still elated over having a washing machine and a clothes line. We're still very thankful for the wood burning stove. We think new insulation is one of the most beautiful things you can hang in your rooms, second only to the walls you hung, taped, textured and painted yourself. I still get schoolgirl-giddy when a room is far enough along that I can attach outlet covers. Yes, progress is being made. It's just not pretty. Not yet. But don't give up on us!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Are You Mocking Me?

Zorak and I joke with one another quite a bit. Sometimes I don't know if he's joking. If it's weird enough, he may just be serious. Many of our jokes, however, rotate around the imaginary Sancha/Sancho. Our standard excuse for missing items around the house is that they've been left at the Sancha's place. (And she'd better wash them before sending them back, too!) But I had an epiphany when the following took place the past week:

I had to go out in public. Since odds are good we'll run into someone who ought not see me in my feral state, I showered and put on clean clothes. Out I went, my small herd of kittens in tow.

Shop, shop, shop. Herd, herd, herd. Pay, do a quick head count, and head home. Yay. We survived.

When I walked in, Zorak hugged me, smiled, and asked if anyone hit on me while I was at the market.

*blink* *blink*

Is he mocking me? I thought to myself. "What?" I asked aloud. (OK, it may have had a bit more inflection, a hint of a mild shriek to it. Seriously, it's not fun to be in drag and get mocked.)
"No, seriously. You're hot!"
(My eyes narrowed with suspicion as I cocked my head to engage the BS-meter.) Perhaps he hired someone to hit on me as a morale booster. A bizarre, warped morale booster...

Then it hit me.

Oh. My. Word. He's SERIOUS. You know what this means? This means I cannot die first. I can't leave him alone to go out there and forage for another wife! I had hopes of getting him betrothed to Thomasina, you know, just in case. But now she's seeing someone and that might make the whole betrothal thing a little hairy. That means he'd be left to his own devices, and do you know what could happen?

Ok, picture this: A personals ad (I'll leave out the abbreviations in case nobody else reads those things just for weirdness sake and isn't familiar with them.)

Do you like moonlit strolls up and down the hall? Do you smell faintly of soured milk and wear stained shirts and men's pants? Do you have enough children to bog down every appendage while out in public? If so, this Widowed Male, father of many, has found his dream woman! I have a job, a home, and a stove that can turn out meals for small armies. Call me. We'll do playdates.

That has become his ideal woman!

What's scarier is that it's ME! Oh, the poor man. What has become of him?

Seriously, what would his options be? Perhaps he'll troll the market, looking for women with slings and white stuff crusted on the slippers they've taken to wearing in public. (Although, in my defense, they do have a rubber sole, and are so comfortable I forget they're slippers.) Stalk La Leche League meetings? Become a midwife in the hope his clients can hook him up? I don't know, but I just can't take chances like that. Better start sucking down the Osteoplex and MSM...

Dy

Hmmm, a lot to consider.

Well, I'm still digesting today's visit. We won't be going back to this doctor, that's for sure.

In the meantime, she prescribed colloidial silver for Emily. I've been doing legwork on it all afternoon, and am still not 100% certain how best to proceed. For any of you who *have* used colloidial silver, I would like to hear your experiences, input, and recommendations. This isn't something we've used before.

It might well be RSV that she has. That was, unfortunately, my thought yesterday. The doctor suspected as much, as well. A lady from church arrived at the baby shower on Wednesday after spending the day caring for her two grandsons who've been laid up with RSV, so it's quite possible that she contracted it then. Ah, okay. It's treatable. We'll take it step-by-step, day-by-day.

I've got to find my almond oil tonight and do a eucalyptus rub on Miss Em. That'll help her sinuses, at least. She's nursing happily, and I'm going to see if I can get her to increase her feedings - it can't hurt in the meantime.

There's some digesting to do, like I said. I'll blog more later, when I've thought out my words better.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

That went well...

Well, we got a lot done yesterday. Wash is freezing on the line. Dog is freezing outside. Big Brother's paperwork is sitting on the breakfast bar. Over two dozen doctors offices down, and I finally just called an NMD in Decatur yesterday about seeing Emily. YAY! We have an appointment at ten this morning!

Normally, I wouldn't take a child in for the creeping crud. John has it, and he's fending it off just fine (it'd go better if he would BLOW instead of just trying to breathe around that stuff, but hey, he's five...) So is Smidge (he will actually blow his nose, which could be why he's doing better than John). But Miss Em does the whole infant's suck/swallow/puke regimen and it's not only making her puke a lot more than my comfort level can sustain (seeing as the milk comes with it every time), but the crud has also moved to her lungs, in spite of regular pounding treatments. (Not that we beat her -- it's a technique LB reminded me of, used a lot in cystic fibrosis therapy and also COPD therapies. We used it on my Mom during her convalescence.) So now Miss Em rattles. And she turned magenta yesterday. Not blue, as that would've been an ER Trip of Astounding Speed, but magenta, from the strain of trying to get it out and still breathe. Yes, she needs to be seen. And I am thankful someone will see us.

Guess that means I ought to go wake the wee spawn and get them dressed and fed.

We made it to WallyWorld for KILZ-2 and all manner of good stuff. The boys were awesome, and although it was absolutely packed, we had no lost or maimed children. That always signals a successful outing, in my mind. We didn't get home 'til almost seven, so reading and stencil-making were pushed back to today. Kinda handy, as that relieves me of having to come up with something to do today! (Procrastination does have its good side.)

I'll tell ya, life is one crazy whirlwind. It's like viewing the world from inside a cyclone - a long, snuggly, giggly, mess-making cyclone. I'm not sure what I thought Life would be like, but this definitely isn't it. It's far better, and I wouldn't climb out of this cyclone for anything in the world, but wow-oh-wow, does it go fast. For someone who threw up on the Yo-Yo at the carnival, it's a pretty impressive ride!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

What a Day Today Will Be!

I'm hoping that's in a good way. We shall see.

First, we must find the Health Department and pick up one of their "homebirth packets", because that's where they keep the birth certificate forms. If I don't get it done within 30 days from the baby's birth, then we get (another) flag with Homeland Security and will have to go justify ourselves to the SSA in order to get her a Social Security number. Well, yeah, like this is a stinking priority with everything else going on. But then, I don't think it'll go well for us once they realize we've been down this road before... I'm not paranoid, I'm just a veteran! *he he* Should probably keep references to compounds, communes and firearms to a minimum until she's registered and legal, eh?

Then it's off to WallyWorld for more KILZ-2 (love that stuff, and it's only six bucks a gallon at WallyWorld!) And to the post office to buy measly two cent stamps because once again I've had stamps in my wallet long enough for them to be too little to use.

Miss Emily is still sick, so we have to find a pediatrician. On the upside (and yes, this sounds strange, but stick with me and I'll explain), John and Smidge are both sick now, too. This is good, because odds are high that they've all got the same thing. SO. Knowing what they have tells me what she has (probably) and makes it a lot easier to know whether to panic or just wait and see. Still need a ped, though.

The boys' room has been painted "Snowdrop" (which is a gallon of white with exactly two little drops of blue tint - who knew that could make a difference!) It looks great. We'll make stencils tonight (because it seems the only stencils we could find are Disney, floral, or those little faceless Dutch people). We found a great carpet that we really like (Zorak says it's "less grownup" than the one I'd originally picked - he's right). The room is coming together so nicely!

That's about all on this side of the world.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

James - All-Around Great Kid

I've just got to brag on James a bit tonight. He's seven, and he is really neat. We went to WallyWorld last night to get paint and a few miscellaneous things. We had such a fun time. He's silly. He cuts up and makes me laugh. Sometimes because he's trying to, and sometimes just because he's a goofy kid.

He is polite and respectful. He stops the cart to let ladies go ahead of him, says hello to children, smiles at babies, and brags about his siblings, his Gram, his family. We seldom ever have to remind him to say "thank you", or "please". Last night the man at the paint center showed him how the dispenser works, explained the color codes and the formula charts, let him put the clips on the cans and gave him the mallet to smack them on snug. As James ran to the cart to put another quart in the basket, I thanked the man for being so patient and attentive to James. He smiled and said, "Well, he's polite and interested, and that means a lot."

James loves medicine and naturopathy. He's just about mastered reflexology, just from reading my books on it. Actually, he reads anything he can get his hands on that pertains to these topics. This week he's been busily trying to formulate a cure for the flu, and he thinks he's found one for cancer (although he wants it noted that, "It is still untested, but I'm pretty sure it will work"). OH! If ONLY he had a lab! *he he* However, even without a lab, he's determined to find a way to make it work.

He loves to make up riddles, most of which I can never solve.

How are snowflakes, grains of sand, and people alike?

-or-

What's the only type of light your skin can see?

Those were today's riddles. I got one. The other one stumped me. The hint for the first question was, "It's what makes them so interesting!" That statement says a lot about James. He sees the world like that, everyday.

Doing thoughtful things just comes naturally to him; helping Smidge get toothpaste on his toothbrush, or pausing a movie when John heads down the hall. If he sees one of his brothers' hats on the floor, he'll take it to the brother. He helps unload the dishwasher, set the table, and keep the wood box full without having to be told. He holds Emily, kisses her, sings to her, and lets me know regularly when it's time for her to eat (which is always - he must think she starved in there!) The other day I overheard him teaching Emily her ABC's. He cheered her on and encouraged her, showered her with kisses. He never quibbles about bringing me a diaper or wipes - no matter how many times I sit down to do a diaper change and forget to gather those items beforehand. If one of his brothers is getting frustrated with a game or a project, he'll offer to help find solutions. He's forever building things for Smidge or gathering things for John. Just to be helpful.

He cherishes time alone with either Mom or Dad. He gets that we're different and that he needs us both. That is very cool. He loads up the pup and heads out with Dad to cut wood, or waits patiently for Zorak to take him hunting (during the season, of course). He doesn't whine and pounce up and down about going with me to the store, but if I ask if he'd like to go, he disappears in under a minute. I'm just now figuring out that he's in the Suburban, reading a book and waiting for me.

When we peek in on him at Pioneer Club, he is attentive and helpful. He loves to read Scriptures and stories for the class. He loves to help with the projects. He stays and helps tidy the room after class is over.

He handles disappointment far, far better than most adults I know. And he experiences joy to the depths of his toes. He's vulnerable and open, and truly, truly wonderful.

Of course, he still does things that make me remind myself, "They're little. They do that." He's just a little guy in many ways, and that's okay. He's only seven. But he's growing into such a fine, fine young man. I'm pretty sure he won't still be doing weird things when he's an adult "because it made John laugh" (then again, he might, have ya seen Zorak and his brothers together???) And we are relatively certain he won't always feel the need to pick tortillas into three thousand pieces and nibble them to death. But even so, he's well, well on his way to being the kind of man we need more of. And that's not only humbling, but encouraging, as well.

Yep, we love that JamesBear. And we're more in love with him each day. He's just an all-around Great Kid!

Kiss those babies!
Dy

Oh, joy, a morning blog!

I know, it's a "blog entry", not a blog. I've been up since two, cut me some slack.

The Great Paint Dilemma has been resolved! We'll paint the walls neutral (I'm making Zorak break the news to James - he'll be heartbroken) and will either sponge or stencil shapes/characters/religious icons of the boys' choosing along the top and bottom border, around the windows and the door frames. In the three aforementioned hideous color. There. That's settled. I don't know about you, but I feel much better.

The boys have power and lights in their room. Yay!

The carpet quote came back a bit higher than we'd anticipated, and putting it in ourselves would only save us about $200. Hmpf. So we're going to look at alternative plans. I have a sinking feeling that we'll be putting it in ourselves, regardless. I was warming up to the idea, but then, as Zorak was explaining it to me, he happened to use the least appealing example possible: "It's just like putting fitted sheets on a bed..." Um, honey, I've seen you make the bed. This isn't going to end well for us, you know that, don't you? Oh well, it's the experience. The journey. Whatever. He's excited (not as excited as he was over the hallway lights or the door in the bedroom, but still excited), and that's worth whatever we need to do.

James has enjoyed being back to doing lessons-lite this week. So have I. The Third Eclectic Reader has some wonderfully fanciful poems in it, and we've enjoyed those tremendously. Math has been all oral review - and will continue to be so until all possible escape routes for the math blocks have been sealed. Writing, reading, history and literature. Plenty of time to snuggle and play. More patience, more smiles, more of the life we like living. More intentional. It's good. He deserves that. They all do.

And why have I been up since two? But the white noise machine worked... what happened? Ah, Miss Emily has the snuffles. And it seems that even if you are calm and collected, lulled peacefully by the sound of ocean waves, it matters not if you can't breathe! Poor thing. The snot sucker has been employed, and I've got to say she's a lot more forgiving about that thing than the boys were. As soon as you stop assaulting her with it, she will stop yelling at you for it. Wow. We even tested that theory by doing snipe runs at her with it - snuggle, snuggle, *SCHLURRPPPP*, snuggle. Yep, no prolonged agonizing screams. How. Weird. (Nice, but still... weird.) Anyhow, she's resting semi-peacefully in her carseat at the moment, and since it's nearly six-thirty, I'm kinda UP.

I guess I'll go make coffee and get caught up on my favorite reading materials. :-) Have a lovely, wonderful Saturday!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

It Worked!

OK, back up a little bit. Miss Emily is not caffeine-tolerant. Figured that out the hard way today. And that was just throwing in a scoop of regular to round out a pot because we ran out of decaf. Egads. Never, never do that again!

On the upside, however, after the shower last night, one of the ladies at church disappeared into the nursery and emerged with a Homedics white noise machine. She handed it over with the suggestion that we give it a try and if it works, we can use it for as long as we need.

Very sweet. I accepted, but didn't really think it would work. I mean, come on, she has three older brothers and then there's the dog. It's not like we have a lack of background noise at our place.

But tonight. Oh, tonight... ugh. In desperation, I pulled out the machine and plugged it in.

The volume was up ALL. THE. WAY.

I turned it down.

And she stopped.

Instantly.

Jess was on the phone with me at the time - she can verify it. (She also immediately started turning the radio dial in her van, looking for static. It worked on Tristan, too. Screaming bloody murder to dead calm in 0.02 seconds!) We felt like we were getting away with something, what with having the rest of our conversation in silence.

Anyway, that was three hours ago. She hasn't let out a peep since then. (She's still breathing, yes, I checked.)

Of course, I have a passed-out thirty pound toddler on my lap... but at least it's quiet.

SWEET!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Progress, I think...

With kids, you never know if you're making headway or not. You can hope, you can pray, and you can even squint really hard to see if it looks any better, but the truth of the matter is that you just. never. know.

And on to other fronts...

The boys are making genuine friends at church. For this, we're glad. We hope to start getting out more and making friends who live a bit less than an hour away. That'd be nice, but it's just going to have to wait until the weather clears a bit. I'd like to think of myself as a dedicated mother who would do anything for her children's well being and happiness, but in reality, I'm a wimp, and it's simply too cold and soggy to be out trolling for children.

The carpet people came yesterday and measured. They're going to work up quotes with and without installation. (That would be Zorak's Grand Idea! My arms and wrists still haven't recovered from yanking two gazillion square feet of subfloor, so I'm going on record now as saying that if we install this carpet ourselves, it's his knees doing the work! I'm gimpy enough as it is - I can't afford to be partially paralyzed from head to toe!)

We're still struggling with *how* to paint the boys' room. Their only request is that we use their favorite colors: the shade of purple on the Aussie hair products (the dark purple), "daffodil yellow", and some random shade of blue they haven't quite been able to explain yet. Zorak is a "white is good" paint person. He's trying to convince them that the walls should be a neutral color and they can paint the trim with wild and wonderful color! Wee! (Knowing that, for James, the words "neutral color" are synonymous with visual death, you can imagine how well that was received.) I'm the kind that would rather pluck out my own eyelashes than have to do something crafty and creative. So now I look like E.T. and the boys' room isn't any closer to being painted. Eventually, though, I will run out of hair and will be forced to face the room and paint. I'll let ya know how that turns out.

Miss Emily slept from ten last night until five this morning. As I changed the largest newborn diaper I have ever seen in my life this morning, I showered her with the kind of praise generally reserved for the dog when he pees outside! Bless that child and whatever it was that knocked her out. (I tremble to think it was the lack of caffeine... short-term, it's not so bad, but two years of drinking this stuff may turn me into a raving lunatic!)

We had our baby shower last night. It was very sweet, and truly wonderful. I was humbled to the point of tears on several occasions. They began by reading Psalm 139, and that pretty much started the tears flowing for me. Among the Very Darling Outfits, and Wonderfully Practical Items we received, the cutest was a little handmade bunny. I thought it was just a cute way to give someone a washrag, but three ladies burst out, "OH! A 'boo-boo bunny'!" Um, okay, what in the world is a "boo-boo bunny"??? (Yeah, for having four children, I'm horribly out of the loop on cute kid stuff, okay? Admitting there's a problem is the first step...) Turns out, it's got a spot to stick an ice cube in it's butt and you can use that for, you guessed it, boo-boos. Oh. Cool. Glad someone said something before I got it home and undid it. I'd have felt rather foolish to have a washrag with a bunny face embroidered on it, anyway. So, now that I know what it is, that is probably my favorite thing from last night. Very cute and creative. (There goes another hair... I hope nobody expects me to make one of these things!)

And that's pretty much it. Today is a day to rejuvenate and spend on the boys. They're so neat, and I miss so much among the paint cans and extension cords. Balance is important, too.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Primer Tonight

OK, as exciting as this is, yes, I'd rather be saying "Prime Rib tonight", but alas, I'll take what I can get.

The boys' room is textured. I'm signing off here to finish the outlets and ceiling fan as soon as I blog this (because I'm really excited and the boys just. don't. care. anymore. - but I had to tell someone!)

Zorak can hang the ceiling fan and connect the wires in the attic tonight!

The Very Nice Carpet Lady comes tomorrow to give us a firm quote and arrange installation dates. (I'm tellin' ya - be nice to my kids, say kind things about them, and cough up the quarters for them to have a candy from your parent-trap machine by the door before we leave, and I'm buying something from you!)

And then I can get them OUT of the school room! And bring up *maniacal laughter* BOOKSHELVES, and BOOKS to put on them! And we can start eyeballing the walls in that room, deciding textures and paints for it! And did I mention they'll be OUT OF THERE?

Alright, those who know me know that it isn't about having a school room. And it's only partly about having the bookshelves up and out of the basement (although that's a pretty big Partly...) But my true joy is in knowing that one day soon I can make coffee in the morning IN PEACE! Zorak can stoke the fire without assistance at six in the morning! Why will this blessing be bestowed upon us?

Because they will no longer be camped in the adjacent space! They will no longer know that I am up. Oh, sure, they may still sense it, but they cannot prove it without getting up and out from under their warm covers, and plodding down the hallway (why did we show them the lights in the hallway are working now???) to verify that we are up. No more will they hear the world's noisiest faucet filling my coffee pot, and ascertain that The Breakfast Fixer is, indeed, up and about by merely opening one eye and peering from beneath the covers.

So. We may get a few mornings of quiet mumbling and grunting over coffee before Zorak leaves for work.

Don't get me wrong. I do love my children. I love their enthusiasm and energy. It's just that I can appreciate it a bit more when I've had a moment to compose myself, pee in private, and suck down a cup o' decaf whilst pretending it's triple espresso with white chocolate and whipped cream. Really.

Ok, I'm off to finish working!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy