Leisurely Lake Fun!

It's been a long week. The children are starting to get tired of being with each other all day, every day and they are bickering more. It hasn't helped that I've had to work more this week and they've been stuck at my office for longer periods of time. So today, I decided to take the kids to the lake to work off a little steam. Isn't it great when you have a big brother that will carry you around on his back when the water is too deep...

Of course, this picture does not portray the wrestling that began not two seconds after this picture was taken. They were like a couple of alligators.

One of the more exciting things was Leah made great progress with her water phobia. It started when Papa was teaching her how to float on her back.

You can tell that she is not perfectly comfortable in the water yet, but she is definitely making progress. Shortly after that, she decided that she wanted to jump in the water. Wow!

Go, Leah , go! Of course, she had a lot of inspiration from her half-fish brother Christian. Christian spends more time under the water than out of it. He really is part fish. It's unreal. Sometimes, I look around and I can't find him and I panic. Here he is... going, going...

Gone!

Overall, it was a fun, relaxing day. For me, anyway. I'm not sure it was as fun for my father who was constantly stalked and attacked by the boys. They love to try and sneak up on him and turn him over. And if they were distracted, then there was always Leah there to talk his ear off. Overall, it was a great day!

DeAnn

Seriously, Second Grade?

I wanted to blog about Christian. Is he seriously in second grade this year? This is unfathomable to me for a variety of reasons. First, I remember when he was a cherubic little angel. He was the BEST baby. He was always so happy and content and he had these cheeks that you could just eat up!

Christian was a pretty happy baby through toddlerhood. I know it's hard being "second boy" as my father constantly reminds me. Still though, I try really hard to avoid the middle child syndrome and give him lots of validation and attention. I know it's tough. Having an older brother is tough. There is always someone here who can do it better and faster right now. It won't be like this forever.
I'm not sure when the testosterone hit, but boy did it pack a punch. My sweet, little cherubic angel became a feisty, mischievous little boy. He delights in finding trouble. His days in preschool were fraught with notes and letters from the teacher. It's hard for me, because as a parent, I'm very consistent. I know what I'm doing. But he defies all logic and reason sometimes. I worried about him going to real school because that's serious business. I shouldn't have been concerned though. Mrs. Niedrach was perfect for him and he thrived in her class. I would actually smile at her tales of his defiance because she handled them so effortlessly. She helped me appreciate him for who he is and what his potential is. Where I saw frustration, she saw potential.
We left Kindergarten and went to 1st grade. I'd like to tell a wonderful story here, but I really can't. Which leads me to the second reason that him going back to school is unfathomable. I really, really want Christian to have a great year this year. i want this so bad that I can taste it (is that really an expression?). I want to go back to that time in Kindergarten when things were so effortless. I want him to truly realize his potential and thrive in school like he use to. The fact that school starts in 2 weeks for him makes my stomach hurt. I know that Christian is a smart, sweet child. He is also stubborn and willful.

Christian is getting so big. He is growing and maturing right before my eyes. I know that everyday he is becoming such a special person. I also know that when he's older, I am going to have some stories to tell! And is it really wrong that I sort of secretely hope when he has children, that he gets a little boy who will give him a run for his money like he did to me? If he does though, he will definitely have a great support system (after I finish laughing, of course).

To Christian: My sweet boo-bug. I hope your second grade year is great! You are such a bright and energetic person. You speak your opinions and stand your ground. That is something to be admired. I can't wait to watch you grow and share in your second grade experience with you! I love you!


Mommy

A Letter to My Husband.

Hi honey from the Windy City! Except it's not very windy. I miss you! It seems wrong to be here without you. I thought that I would write you and post some pictures of your old stomping ground...

Here is where I'm staying...

It's fun and edgy and you'd really like it. It's very modern with clean lines and there's lots of black, grey, and chrome. Here is a picture of some dude in my bathroom...

I'm sure I'm supposed to know who this is, but I've always been musically impaired. Any ideas? It must be someone important to rate a picture in the bathroom, right?

I have a view of Millenium Park from my room...

Tonight I went out to walk the "Miracle Mile". I saw all kinds of shops and was tempted to spend all of our money. Remember this? It's Victoria's Secret! They are not all pink anymore. I was disappointed. And what's up with the mannequin dressed in plastic? They are everywhere! But they are all dressed differently. One was dressed in all beer caps. Very odd. But don't worry though, I didn't spend our money in the Victoria's Secret. I spent it next door at the Borders bookstore. I know, I'm a dull dud. I sprinted to the bookstore to get the sequel of the book I just finished.

After I happily bought my book (and it's sequel!), I decided it was time for dinner. I tried really hard, but couldn't find the Eduardo's Pizza. So, I had to settle and eat here...

It supposed to be really good though. I was dismayed to discover that their deep dish pizza took 40 minutes to cook. But I had just bought the book and all, so I decided to wait. Then, as it was brought out, some couple offered to pay for half if I'd give them 2 pieces. So, I said okay! I couldn't eat it all anyway. Then when they were finished, they decided to pay for the entire thing! Wow! I know what you're thinking... yankee hospitality! But, alas, no.. they were from Florida. Very nice though. When I left there was a long line, so I guess it's a good place to eat. I enjoyed it!

I left there and did more window shopping. But I didn't buy anything. I went in a Disney store that was as big as the Macy's at Towncenter Mall. Then I went to Water Tower place. Then I decided to call it a night.

That's all for tonight! Talk to you soon. I miss you!

Middle School Madness!

Ok, there is no madness. Except maybe for my state of mind when I think about my oldest child being in middle school. At Berry, middle school is earlier. It starts in 5th grade. They start rotating classes, going on overnight fieldtrips and generally being more responsible human beings. When I attended the middle school meeting in the spring, I was overwhelmed. Of course, for anyone who knows me, me feeling anxious about something new comes as no surprise. Sigh. Remember when he looked like this?

And then he grew up some and started walking and looked like this...

Brady was a spitfire at the above age. He often challenged adults and he had quite the temper. After a few years in school, he began to be more focused and in control and then he looked like this...

And now, he's my big boy who is in Middle School! Brady is such a good student. He is thoughtful, helpful, and studious. All of his teachers praise him for his "perfect" handwriting. Brady says he is not looking forward to middle school. I think he'll like it. Even better, I think he will excell. The students get a great deal more responsibility and take on more of a mentoring role with the elementary students. This is right up his alley. Brady is kind and has compassion for other people. He is sensitive and always willing to help. As time goes on, I find myself truly enjoying the person that he is becoming. It's fun to talk to him and have conversations that really aren't parental in nature.

To Brady: my big middle school boy! I can't wait to watch you grow and change and maybe even share in your middle school experience a little bit (if you let me)! I am so proud of you! You are becoming such a special person. I know you are going to have a great year! I love you!

Only 3 Weeks to Go!

I had a shocking revelation last night in bed! Only 3 weeks until my baby starts Kindergarten. Now, for those of you that followed my other website, you know that around this time of the year, I start to look forward to the beginning of school Not this year! I'm not ready! My BABY is going to Kindergarten! I can't stand it! Remember when she looked liked this...

Ok, well don't look at all the shoes on the stairs, just look at the shirt she's wearing that says "I love Mommy". Remember when she was a baby and ran around with reckless abandon?

Look at the short, cute, chubby legs and the short hair! The incredibly short hair! Look how tiny! And now, this baby will soon be in real school. I can't stand it. Of course, I'm the only one here who is sad. Leah has spent her entire life at Berry Elementary. She has gone on field trips, visited her brothers, played on the playground...

She spent her early years attending programs and plays that the boys did and then trying on their costumes when we got home. I think the pacifier really adds to the authenticity of this costume. Is it wrong that I sometimes wish after a day of endless questions that she would still take a pacifier???

So, really, I'm the only sad one here. But I really, really, am sad! My baby is growing up so quickly. I'm trying so hard to savor these days, but they are just flying by.

Here's to my baby, who is not a baby anymore! May your Kindergarten year be (as Mrs. Niedrach says) "the best year of your life"! I can't wait to share it with you and watch you grow. But, for 3 more weeks, I'm going to reflect on you as my baby!

Dog Days

After my last downer post, I thought I would talk about the joys of being a pet owner. We have 2 dogs, Spirit and Piper. Spirit is 13 years old. What's that, like 90 in dog years? He's old and grumpy and basically he's my dog. He tolerates the children and Scot, but doesn't really like them. If I were to write a post about Spirit, it would consist of pictures of him sleeping at my feet.
So, we got a new dog about a year ago. One that the children could play with and help take care of. Brady went with me and picked her out. I wanted a different dog, but Brady really liked Piper so we got her instead. This is what she looked like when she first came home.Brady is very attached to her and gives her a lot of attention. He came with me to "Puppy Kindergarten" (which she did not do very well in) and helped train her. Leah came with me to each vet appointment and soothed her through all the shots. The owner said that she would be a "lap dog". I sort of hoped she would remain like this...
Oh well. I soon found myself chasing this incredibly smart and willful dog down the street in my pajamas yelling, "Piper STAY!" She loves to run. She has chased deer, squirrels, children, Spirit, and cats. I have run after her in slippers, bare feet, heals, flip flops, and sandals. I never seem to have my running shoes on when she darts away.
All in all though, she is an incredible dog. She doesn't shed, she doesn't smell, and she's very tolerant of the children's (and Scot's) annoying her. She opens doors and zippers. She follows me absolutely everywhere. She's part of our family. Santa even brings her presents.

She loves chocolate and gets really excited when the Easter Bunny comes. (And no, I don't feed her chocolate! She just tries desperately to get some). The little pink basket below is the one that the Easter Bunny brought for her full of rawhide.
She has taught the children how to love and treat an animal. She has taught them responsibility. They miss her terribly when we go on vacation. But the one thing that stands out about Piper is her insane ability to jump. Seriously, I think she's part rabbit. We can hold a treat up in the air and she will literally fly up and snatch it. And her legs are only like, what, 6 inches tall? It's amazing.

Pets can be a wonderful thing. The understanding and compassion of animals is simply not understood. We hope to have our dogs in our family for many more years to come!

A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself -Josh Turner

Sometimes People are Mean...

Did you ever watch that Murphy Brown episode where she interviews a muppet named Kelbo? It doesn't go well and then the show makes up this song that is titled, "Sometimes People are Mean". If you have 7 or 8 spare minutes, you can go here to watch the clip. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhhPgUhXLBc If you only have a couple of minutes then fast forward the clip about 6 minutes and just watch the end with the song. That's the song that has been running through my head this week. (And yes, I watch way too much TV Land!)

This past Saturday, Vicki called me on my cell phone. She was sitting in my driveway and looking in my backyard. She asked, "Um, did you get a new dog?" Hmmm, no I did not. As I pull in my driveway a few minutes later, I see that there is a dog in my fenced in back yard. And it's not mine. This poor dog is hot and dehydrated and Tim and Vicki are giving it water in a Chick Fil A cup. Okay, well first of all this dog could not get in our yard without help. So, why would someone just drop off a dog? Why??

This dog is not in the best of health. I think she's mostly deaf. She's sad and lonely and doesn't understand why she is here. It makes me very sad. Scot says, "I can't believe that you work with abused children whose parents abandon them and this is what upsets you". But it does! It really does! Why are people mean? Why do they not take care of their pets? If you had a dog, why would you not put a collar on it? Why would you not be more responsible than that? And why if you wanted to get rid of a dog, would you just drop it in someone else's yard? And most importantly, why, if it was a Pomeranian mix, would you shave it so hideously? Why? Why? Why? We have put flyers up and asked neighbors, but if something doesn't happen in the next few days, I will have to call animal control. This makes me really sad b/c I know it will be put to sleep.

I realize that this post is sort of a "Debbie Downer" post. But really, isn't life hard enough without people making it harder? And who would ever guess that Murphy Brown could help me teach life lessons to the children, but this song is so true! Sometimes people really are mean. That was the first thing I told Brady when his DS was stolen. It was what I said when the children asked why this dog was in our yard. It's the first thing I think about when some poor child comes into my office after a traumatic experience at someone else's hand. The song says "sometimes". Not all the time. And not all people. It's important to know the difference. Sometimes bad things happen and we don't know why. There's always someone out there who has it worse. I know that. But this week, I feel bad for this dog. I look at my two spoiled dogs and I wish that dog had someone to spoil her.

Sometimes people are mean.

Do you know this dog?

Happy 4th of July!

Happy Belated Independence Day! I woke up on the 4th and asked the children, "Hey, do you know what today is?" They stared at me blankly. "Uh, is it Friday?", they asked. I said, "yes it is, but since yesterday was July 3rd, then that makes today...." and they just looked at me. Wow. All that money to Berry right out the door. Just kidding! I held up Christian's shirt and said, "Here's a hint". He looked at it and said, "Flag Day?". At that point, I just gave up.

We decided to pack up and head to the lake to celebrate the 4th of July (at least we did that right after we had a brief history lesson). There was lots of fun to be had at the lake and new things to try. This was Leah's first official time on this contraption.

Let's just say that she was less than thrilled with the experience. She said it went too fast and it hurt her hands. Now Christian and Brady on the other hand, had a totally different experience.

They tried to think of ways to make it go faster. At least Brady did. After Christian got used to it, he was all for it going at the speed of light. That's not to say that Leah did not have any fun. She did get to "drive" the waverunner with Daddy and seemed to really like it.

On Saturday, we headed back to the lake and celebrated Tim's birthday. Happy Birthday Tim! It's actually not until Thursday. But he celebrated by playing on this contraption as well!

We ended the day with ice cream and birthday cake. Tim was a good sport about me putting the candles in order to say "83" instead of "38". Age is all in the mind, after all right Tim?

Overall, it was a good weekend. Next week it's back to work! Sigh.

Best friends!

I wanted to blog about friendship. Rarely in life, does a person find a good, true friend that sticks with you through lifes ups and downs. I have been fortunate to find such a friend.

I met Vicki in high school. I first saw her when I was a freshman and she was a sophmore. We were in the hallway and she was at her locker. She had this perfectly curled hair that was down to her butt. I told her, "you have the prettiest hair". She looked at me like I was nuts. It would be another year before we would meet again.

Fast forward one year later... my friend LeeAnne told me that Vicki had accused me of stealing her diamond ring. Umm, excuse me? I don't think so. Although I later learned that we have a diamond ring that is almost exactly alike. So one day after LeeAnne made this revelation, Vicki came and sat at our lunch table out of the blue. I thought, "why would she sit with us if she really thought I stole her ring?" And our friendship began. We still laugh about that ring comment to this day because of course, Vicki never accused me of anything. We went to Gatlinburg on a school trip. Then we went to Florida by ourselves. That trip is a whole other blog entry.

We have always had this sisterly connection. And being an only child, I believe Vicki is like my sister. The greatest thing about our friendship is that it has survived A LOT! Boyfriends, Chicago, children, jobs, you name it and we're there. I think the thing though that I love the most is that even though Vicki has chosen to not have children, she loves mine like they are her own. She is kind and patient and protective of them. She is always willing to take them on nausea-inducing rides so that I can be spared.

She makes special trips to come and see their first dance recital and brings them flowers.

She drives to our house just so she can help us hunt for a Christmas tree and be a part of our family. The children love her and call her "Aunt Vicki". And what I really think is cute is the other day, Leah said to me, "I think I'm going to be like Aunt Vicki because I really love animals". And it's true! That child loves all animals and is fascinated by them. I hope she does grow up to be like Aunt Vicki.

I can't imagine a better friend. I know no matter what life throws us, our friendship will continue to grow and evolve.

"True friendship is like sound health; the value of it is seldom known until it be lost." - Charles Caleb Colton

Um, excuse me?

Should I be worried?