Things I ......

Like......(not in any particular order)

* lists
* pedicures
* clean houses
* children that sleep thru the night *bonus if they belong to me*
* dr pepper
* reading mystery novels
* Jesus
* TV
* shopping
* laptops in the kitchen
* children that say "Please" and "Thank You"
* Mondays and Wednesdays


Dislike..... (again in no particular order)

* rudeness
* dieting
* husbands that wake you up from a deep sleep to tell you that a child is screaming and that you should go take care of said screaming child
* children that don't sleep thru the night
* friends that live far away (not the actual friends, just the far away living part)
* nuts
* pool people that don't deliver pools when they are supposed to
* liars
* bloggers with really funny blogs that make me waste much of my valuable time reading their funny blogs
* laptops in the kitchen

Misdemeanor or Felony?

Here is our dear, sweet, always law abiding Ellie's first go at forgery. We have to sign her homework every night and the other night, she decided to take care of it for me. I do have to give her credit....she came to show me how well she can write my name and tell me that I wouldn't have to do it anymore. She also didn't know that forgery is a crime. We had a little talk about writting mommy's name on things and she agreed that it would be best for me to do the signing from now on.

**Now, either Ellie is really good, or Kevin is really unobservant, because when he saw this worksheet, he asked me why I signed it twice. I vote for really unobservant.**

Run Bubba Run

Today my big sister, Gina, is running the San Francisco 1/2 Marathon. She is running as a part of the Team in Training for the Luekemia and Lymphoma Society. It is also her 36th birthday. We are so unbelievably proud of her and her dedication to this cause. She is running for a little boy named Will. He was diagnosed with leukemia earlier this year. She started her training with the goal of walking the 1/2, but decided that as much as she disliked running and making the time to train, Will didn't have a choice of whether or not to have his chemo treatments. If he could take the pain and discomfort, then so could she. She is running with a good friend, Jamie, and several other friends have decided to meet them in San Fran to cheer them on and to hang with them as the spa it up and do a little wine country trip. I am very jealous about that fun part of the trip. What a great birthday present!

Happiest of Birthday's Bubba! We love you and are sooo proud of you!!!!

Perfection....

Why? Why do I get a vision in my head and then truly believe that this perfect vision can be achieved? It's the Martha Stewart complex. I think that it really is a medically diagnosed complex. Now, I know that Martha has a boat load of lackies that do her bidding, but I honestly think that I should be able to do the same with, ummm, just me!

We took Christmas card pictures this weekend. They did not turn out as planned. Imagine that. 3 kids....2 of them beyond tired....1 of them old enough to know better.....1 snotty nose....zero great pictures. My vision was for the 3 beautiful childern to be walking hand in hand with glorious sun shining and wonderful trees in the back ground. This is what I got.....

No trees. No Nate.A very classy picture of snot.

I'll bet you can't wait to see what picture made it into our Christmas card. Coming in December to a mailbox near you!!!

To Bubba's house we bowl?

The kids and I decided to make a last minute trip to my sisters house in Des Moines this past weekend. I am so thankful that my mom was able to make the trip with us. I thought that I would do fine with them all by myself, but 4 1/2 hrs in the car is just a bit much for the boys....and Ellie.....and me. Once we were to our final destination, a fabulous time was had by all! We spent a lot of time outside, just relaxing and enjoying the weather and the company.

We found out that my children are very musical. Especially Nate. The boys played the piano (nicely!) and Nate loved it when Uncle Jeff played his guitar. He was a great help to Jeff as they strummed the chords together. Nate, Zak and Ella totally rocked out with the Guitar Hero guitars. They were a hoot! We sang karaoke on Friday night and Nate stole the spotlight with his wonderful singing. He was very mad when we had to take the microphone away so that he could go to bed.

On Saturday we decided to go bowling. I am pretty sure that we are crazy... It was a lot of fun and the boys lasted about 8 frames. Zak got second place with an 87! I can already see the Pro Bowler's Tour in our future. Here are a few (and I mean a zillion) pics from our outing....

Nate and Zak.....I didn't know that the Amish bowled.

Those shoes totally go with that outfit. It's all about the accessories....Ready. Set. Bowl!Ellie bowling left handed. My girl is talented.Nate needed some moral support.Zak cooling off like a pro.Nate was worn out after a hard fought bowling battle. He came in 4th.My niece Sophie has the best form of them all.

We came home on Sunday. I was sooooo glad to be home. The last leg of the trip (Omaha to Grandma's house to our house) was a long one with lots of DADEEEEE, DADEEEEE, DADEEEE screamed in my ear. The John Deere movies helped for about 73 seconds.....

All in all, it was a great trip and we had fun. That's what counts, isn't it?

They call him Daddy.

DaDEE, DaDEE, DaDEE.....That is all I hear from the moment Kevin walks in the door for lunch until long after he has gone back to work. Zak is just giddy over the fact that Daddy is home. Nathan is excited as well, but Zak is beyond happy that his favorite person is around. They follow Kevin everywhere he goes from the minute he walks in. They have to sit near or on Kevin as he eats his lunch. They watch him wash his hands. They watch the news with him. They go with him while he puts on his boots and they watch him walk out the door. That is when the fun really begins.....for at least a half hour after Kevin walks out the door, the boys scream and wail and act distraught. They honestly forget about the one who birthed them, gets up in the night with them, nurses their boo-boo's, feeds them, diapers them, clothes them........it's like I don't exist when Kevin is around. Some days I am perfectly fine with that. I need a break from all the feeding and the diapering and the mom-ing and such. I am so happy that they love him so very much. Ellie wasn't so into her father for a long time, so it is nice that they actually want him to participate in their lives. I never get jealous....I just think that there will probably be a day that they won't love us and that they will be embarassed to be seen with us and that we will have "totally ruined their lives!" Although Ellie recently told me that she never wanted to leave me. That she would probably go to college in Hastings, because she has to live near me and that she will never, EVER hate me. Ahhh the dreams of a 1st grader. It is such a gift to be loved unconditionally and I try to remind myself to cherish these moments, because they will not last forever.

This is what happens when Kevin leaves...Fun Times.

Seriously, where did my dad go?

Before I sign off, a cute little Ella story. Last night we sat down to eat supper and asked Ella to say the prayer for us. Okay mom.... "Now I lay me down to sleep. Heavenly angels watch over me. Amen." It's just how my girl rolls. She has even been known to say the Table Prayer before bed. That's why we love her so much.

K