The day water stopped leaking all over the floor

Since when is my life so boring that I am beside myself with joy over the delivery of a new washing machine. Really. But I am. It's coming sometime today. And I just can't wait. Of course the fact that our old one died last week with only about half the laundry done, and we are all sitting around in our underwear for lack of anything to wear, could have have something to do with it. Maybe. It's cold here you know. And I have on my last pair of clean undies. So I am glad it's coming today. I'm sure you need to hear all of that.
In other news, you may have noticed a lack of me lately. You did notice right, right!! My first college course ended yesterday. My next one starts today. I am having a blast. It's so nice to have something that is all mine. If I pass, it's on me. If I fail, it's on me. I like that I have something to do that has nothing to do with anyone else.
The one and only downside to all of this me time is a lack of leisurely me time. All of the time that the kids are sleeping is spent doing school work. There isn't a lot of time for blogging lately. I will squeeze it in where I can. My posts may be a little shorter and include more pictures of my nutty crew. I will still be hanging around though.


THIS JUST IN.....It's here. It's here. And it already has laundry in it. No more sniff tests to see if I can get one more day out of that shirt. No more water leaking all over the floor. No more mountain of towels to mop up the pools of water under the washer.


When did I get so boring?


I don't care. This is awesome.

Back to school days

I feel like I am back in ninth grade. I'm having those first day of school jitters.

I hope I don't get lost on the way to homeroom.

Will the others kids laugh at my high water pants. I grew three inches since we bought them two weeks ago. It was a most inconvient growth spurt.

It would be the worst if I tripped over my shoes when I walk in the door.

I hope no one notices my grey hair.

Did anyone see me pull up in my "mom van."

I will tell you one thing, not a lot has changed since ninth grade. I still trip over my own feet. I still drive a "mom van." The big difference is now it's mine instead of my mothers. I have way more grey hair. I still go through growth spurts. But now, I go out instead of up. Yep. Online school will be good for me.

I may be a little absent until I get in my groove. I'll be back.

A love of Fall

After living down south for so many years I have really come to appreciate this time of year. They have some fall color down there, but nothing like this. It's one of the benefits of having a real winter. The leaves put on one last hu-ra before they die. And let me tell you, this year has been really something. The leaves are so bright it almost hurts your eyes.
But the leaves aren't the only ones putting on a show, in my yard, this year. This is a red twig dogwood bush I got back in June. All summer I have patiently waited for it to do its' thing. And now it has. Don't you just love that color. It makes that whole side of the yard just happy.
And I can't leave without telling about my other favorite thing regarding this time of year. Hats. I love hats. It's a sickness really. I have lots of wintry hats for myself. And I am constantly getting them for the kids. My aunt made these for the kids a few months ago. I couldn't wait for the weather to turn so they could wear them. I know, I'm just a tiny bit strange. But look! Don't they just look so cute.

I love this time of year.

I can't promise this is my last Fall post. We are supposed to go on a scenic drive tomorrow. We will go if it doesn't snow. Yes, snow. There is snow in our forecast for tomorrow. Which, if it happens, will be earlier than last year by a good two weeks.

You don't need a pool to make pool toys fun

So a weeks ago Jason came back from the store with a present for the kids. He does this a lot. He goes out in to the world and finds little treasures for them. They always delight in his findings. But honestly, this time, I thought it was a dud. He brings out these "wacky noodles." I did point out to him we don't have a pool. He assured me it doesn't matter.
The kids humored him for a few minutes. Then they put them down and went back to the sand box. Oh well, he said, they were on clearance.
The "noonles" (as Anna calls them) hung around a couple of days. No one really played with them. Then one day, someone (Jason) picked one up and whacked someone (me). Game on.

They have turned into the best toy we have. Score one for Daddy. They are some much fun, in fact, we went back and bought more. Still on clearance. Apparently, people don't buy many pool toys in September in NY. Go figure.
There are just all kinds of things you can do with a noodle. Sword fight. Yep. You can do that.
Pick on the swing people. Yep. Much to their delight.
Harass your mother. You can. But you shouldn't. Mommy fights back. Even when you are as cute as this one, Mommy takes no prisoners.
Leave it to Daddy to find a toy where you can beat the tar out of someone and no one gets hurt.

Took the leap

So last week I told you I was going to take the leap. This week I tell you I took the leap. I am a college student. Did you read that right? I AM a college student!! I start on Tuesday. It all happened very fast. I have been working like crazy to get everything done before the start of class. It's been a pretty hectic week. But it's all done now. I have my books. And am ready to go.
Now, let me tell you the rest of the story. Jason is starting school again too. In fact, he is the one who gave me that little push I needed. That's right he told me he was going to do it. That's when I decided to start myself. Not because I want to better myself, but because I don't want him to be smarter than me. He would walk around here with his giant smart head spewing forth knowledge. We can't have that, now can we. That's why I had to go too. I kid of course. He has been very supportive. He even took the kids and left for two whole hours so I could fill out the application in peace. That's love, baby. Have I mentioned, lately, I really like that guy.
Speaking of support, Mark asked me if Mrs. H. (his teacher) is going to be my teacher too. When I told him no, he said, But Mom, she is a reeeeally good teacher. I think you would like her. He's right. I would love to go to his school. I wonder if the GI Bill would cover that.

Taking the leap

When I graduated high school I knew I wasn't ready for college. I needed a break. So I joined the Air Force. It was one of the better decisions of my life. I got the break I needed. And I got an opportunity to see and do things I never would have been able to do otherwise. I also made some wonderful life long friends. Oh yeah, and I got a pretty great hubby out of the deal too. So all in all the military was a good choice for me.
The one thing the AF didn't set me up for is future employment. My job in the military isn't very marketable on the outside. I could go work for an airline. But they aren't hiring much right now. Besides there aren't many airlines in my tiny town.
The thing the military did do for my future was my GI Bill. I have a college education just waiting for me to take advantage of it. I've started school two times in the past. The first time I stopped because they called my reserve unit up. I deployed and was unable to continue my schooling. The second time I quit because I was two months from popping out a baby. Then came the sleepless night, feedings, and constant needs of a newborn. I just couldn't fit any college time in there.
I think, finally, at the tender age of 31 I am ready to go back to school. Now if I could just figure out what I want to do when I grow up. My employment search presents some unique challenges. It is important to our family a parent gets our kids off the bus. Since Jason works so many hours that parent is me. Another challenge is summers. I need to be home with them in the summer. Jason and I arranged our lives before we had kids so that I could stay home. I wouldn't want to mess that up now that they are starting school. We don't feel it would be fair to them or us. They will only be young this one time.
Now what can I do? I've always wanted to open my own business. I think it would be fun to take a newborn business and grow it into something more. But baby businesses suck even more of your time than actual newborns. They never sleep. What kind of business would I open. A restaurant? A boutique? Also something like 99.99% of small businesses fail in their first year. Am I really willing to risk our financial well being on one of my hair brained ventures. I don't know.
I've always said I want to work with kids. I think I still want to do that. The big problem is here in NY you need a masters to teach. Great for our kids. Not as great for someone staring down eight years of education before I can enter the work force. But when I really think about it that's what I want. I want to teach the little ones who are just starting their education. They are so full of fun and wonder. I want to be a part of that.
So I guess the end of the story is I am starting the admissions process for college. I may be a little absent around here for a bit. Just bear with me. I promise, I'm coming back.

A change in the air

The nights are getting longer and the days shorter. Everyone seems to be in a frantic rush to get those last few things done before winter. Work on the flower beds has gone into over drive.
The search for winter hats, coats, mittens, snow pants and boots has begun. The stores now stock ice scrapers instead of bikinis. My thoughts are turning to indoor cooking. From Mac and cheese to homemade breads and cookies. They make the house feel like home. The kids and I started our afternoon tea ritual again. I have missed it.
These two are getting in the last of the sandbox playing for the year. It is conceivable in a month they will be building snow castles instead of sand. Last year we got our first major snow fall three days before Halloween.
The season is changing here in my little piece of heaven. I look forward to the fun the next season brings.

Sickness

We are sick. Once again sickness descended upon our house. I should have known it was coming. After all, Mark did start school. That place is crawling with germs. Before you even open the door to that place you can see them ooze out through the cracks. It's disgusting. I should have known Mark would catch a cold before the end of the first stinking week. He would then take his filthy nasty gross germs and pass them on to the rest of us. He couldn't have passed it on any faster if he came home and licked us. Now we are all sick. And let me tell you these are the crankiest sick people you ever want to meet. The little one is down right mean.

So that's us this week. Sick.

But wait there's more. Anna had her hearing test on Friday. She has perfect hearing. It's like she hasn't ever been to any rock concerts or anything. Oh wait, she hasn't.

Now go wash your hands. You don't want what we have.

One of the many reasons I love this little section of upstate NY

You just can't beat the view.

Just laying around

Take a moment to yourself today. Sit quietly with a loved one for a few minutes. Call someone special and tell them you care. Maybe say a little prayer for our military members who are protecting those freedoms we hold so dear.
And most of all, have a great weekend!

Author's side note: I am not so bright. I know I told you all on Monday that Anna's audiology test is today. I really should have looked at my calender before I wrote that. It's next Friday. See...Dumb.

I'm having an affair

First of all, thank you all for your kind words yesterday. I will keep you posted on our progress. My SIL suggested Sign Language. I had thought about it when our kids we small but never followed through. It hadn't occurred to me as an option to help with our current situation. Thanks Gina. I appreciate your help very much.

Today we are talking lighter topics. Or rather heavier as the case may be. Have I ever told you about my love affair. No. Well, here goes. I love cheese. All cheese. It can be so many things from creamy and smooth to crumbly and sharp. I love it all. Well, except Swiss. I don't love Swiss. Ick. So imagine my surprise one day driving by this sign. A rather plain looking sign I'll admit. And if it didn't have the name of one of my favorite things on it I would probably just pass it by.
You look up from the sign and see this simple little building. Nothing special about it right. Look closer.

You just know I am going in here.
Right inside the door is one of my other favorite things. Samples!!
Then this man with these two very unruly, but gorgeous,children showed up. They were crowding the table so I couldn't get in there for my samples. It was the rudest thing I have ever....oh wait...never mind.
Just look at it all. My heart just sings in here. I asked the cashier on our first visit; the store is a co-op owned by the local farmers. They have a lab in house and develop new flavors of cheese all the time. That explains, in the the above picture, all of the milking supplies. Farmers don't like to waste space you know. I really appreciate their efforts.
And of course no trip to the cheese store is complete without visiting Lucinda the cow.
It's 7:15 in the morning and my mouth is watering. Good thing I bought provisions.

Aliens Attack

These tiger lilies always remind me of aliens. Their tentacles reaching down to suck the life from unsuspecting humanoids.
AAHHHHHH! Here comes one now! Run for your lives!

Sorry. I'll go now.



Got a minute? Go read this story about Anna Banana. Here Thanks Weezee. I enjoyed that one.

Revisting childhood.

Let me tell you about a little trip the kids and I took during our vacation. I took them to a place I spent a good portion of my own childhood. It was like stepping back in time a little. We visited my Great Grandmothers cottage on Cayuga Lake. It's in the heart of wine country in upstate NY. A fact that wasn't all the important to my as a child. But now...oh my. They make some really nice wine here. For our honeymoon Jason and I took a day and when wine tasting. What fun. We had no idea what we were doing. Did you know you are supposed to spit the wine back out? Puh. Not us. We took it like shots. Yeah. No idea. But we did buy some wine so I guess the wineries were probably happy.
Anyhoo. I guess it's off on a tangent day. Where were we? Right, Cayuga Lake. So the kids and I took a journey. First you drive and drive and drive. You go through Ithaca. Ever been to Ithaca? I swear the designers of that town were five and had crayons. There are so many one way streets you are bound to get lost. And I did. Good times. But then we pulled out of town on the far side and kept going until we saw this sign. Then we did what any good redneck would do. We pulled off the paved road.
We drove a little further and then we entered the woods. This was always really neat to me at a kid. The woods just close in around you. It doesn't matter how bright the day is, it is always dark in here. I'm sure those lights don't mean anything. They have been on for a long time.

Then everything opens up and we are there. This is one of those views that is forever stuck in my mind. It mean swimmings, hiking, fishing, and fun to me.
It also means seeing this lady. She celebrates her 100th Birthday this year. She is amazing. She still lives by herself and does all of her own cooking and cleaning. She is sharp as a tack and remembers every single person she has ever met.
She loves clowns and had them all over the cottage when we were kids. She has since given the cottage to her daughter and son. They still keep a few clowns around to keep them company while they are there. Mark and Anna got a huge kick out of the clowns.
You go through that gate in the above picture. Then you go down all of these stairs. And you are on the beach. Did I take a decent picture of the beach. *Searches frantically* No, I didn't. Sorry. However I can tell you about those stairs. I went up and down those stairs not less than 298,564 times as a child. They winded me then and they still wind me today. That is a lot of stairs.
They had fun I think.

I most certainly had fun.

Have a great weekend!

A swingset and how I almost lost my hand

So a whole 2 months after Mark's Birthday and a week after Anna's Birthday the kids finally got their big present. We don't like to rush after all. What a hit. The kids ask 20 bazillion times a day, Can we go play on the swing set? Puuuuleassssssee. And once we get out there they don't ever want to do anything else. It was definitely money well spent.

I had planned on giving you another tour of my workout room today. But due to my horrible injury and tetanus shot yesterday I'm a little sore. OK, fine. It's a relatively small injury. In fact, I felt pretty silly sitting in the ER with the tiny little rusty nail inflicted puncture wound in my hand. But never one to mess around with lockjaw, I got my shot. I do like to eat after all. So now I can walk through a bed of rusty nail barefoot right? Because I have always wanted to do that.

OK, done typing. Have a great weekend.

The day her marbles went rolling down the rainy street

Let me just tell you a little something about us. Something you may not know. We live outside in the warm months. We come in to sleep and eat. That's it. Even these are occasionally done outside. All of our play and most of our summer cooking are done out there. We have a big backyard. We make the fullest full use of it during this time of year. The kids thrive on the fresh air and sunshine. And so do we. We fall into bed at night in exhausted heaps for all the fun we have had during the day. We rarely hear a peep out of the kids once their heads hit the pillow.
Now let me tell you something else you may not know. Here in my section of upstate NY we are having a record rainy year. It rains. All. Day. Every. Day. For weeks and weeks it has rained. OK so it's been week and week. About two weeks. But still that is a lot of stinking rain. That is a long time to find indoor stuff to do. And let me tell you, we have completely exhausted our list of rainy day activities.

Color pictures-I have a stack of pictures 3 inches high.

Work on our catching skills-Mark can now catch a ball with about 85% accuracy. That says nothing of my catching skills. I am at about 55% accuracy.

Rock/feed/cuddle/change/put to bed baby dolls-Yes to all of the above. A. Lot. (As an aside, why, in the world, do they make baby dolls smell like cheap awful vanilla? I hate that. End aside)

Run around acting like maniacs-we do that all the time anyway. So no change there.

Yesterday we had a reprieve. The sun shined all day. We basked. We basked to the fullest. Baseball, frisbee, catch, swinging, running, walking, jumping. We did it all. Oh the fun we had.

This morning I woke up and guess what. IT'S RAINING. I'm crying.



Yes, we have enough Legos to go all the way to the ceiling. We wondered.

The day we went exploring

Jason and I used to go exploring. Back before children came into our lives, and we moved to a new place every year or so, we would go out and find the back road to everything. This was also back when gas wasn't $4 a gallon. Yeah, remember those days. Needless to say we haven't done it in quite a while. Until the other day that is. I have mentioned before that we live next door to the Adirondacks. The other day, after over a year residence, we finally went to check them out.
We had the fuzzy one,
the silly one,
my own personal driver man,
and yours truly.

We went to Star lake where there are no stars. We went to Cranberry Lake where there are no cranberries(I realize it's not cranberry season. They don't do cranberries here at all.) We went to Newtons Falls where there are no falls. We had an awful lunch. Sorry, but it was awful. Moldy hot dog roll. Broken cheese soup. Just awful.
I was starting to get disappointed. What was the big deal about these mountains anyway. They don't give you any of the things their names imply.
I was getting mad until we found this.
And this.
And this too.
The kids loved it. There is just something about kids and water. They could have watched the river flow all day.
Of course Mark had to do what Mark does when he gets near any water anywhere. Throw rocks into it.
Jason and Anna took a little more sedate approach and just enjoyed the scenery.

It was a fantastic day. And just the one I was looking for when we set out on our little adventure.

Just one more

OK so I wasn't going to draw out our trip all week. I lied. Shoot me. But technically this isn't a Wisconsin post. It's a Cleveland post. See, Cleveland.So our last night of vacation we spent in a really neat place. Because of Jason's job we get a deep discount. Otherwise it would be Roach Motel for us. They don't have this view at Roach Motel.
We got to watch the most spectacular sunset. Even the kids stood and watched it. The same kids who spent the last 7 hours strapped to car seats stood still for a little while to watch this scene.
At first it was nothing too special. But still I snapped a picture anyway. I knew it would get better.

It kept getting just a little better.

Then it got a lot better. The whole sky turned fire red.
Then it was over.
Then we went swimming.

It was a wonderful way to end a really fantastic vacation.

Mars Cheese Castle

OK, so I have decided to draw out the trip all week. We went to some cool places and I want to share it with you. One of the places we visited wasMars Cheese Castle. This is the sort of place where if you live there you never go. The only time Jason's family goes here is when we insist. The parking lot is an array of licence plates. Few of them, Wisconsin. We never miss it though. They have every single cow thing you can imagine here. Life size cow. Yep. Got one of those. 800 different kinds of plush cows. Yep. Those too.
Cow salt/pepper/creamer/sugar and whiskey flask. Yes to all.
Cow pens. Yes. Kind of reminds me of the one scene from The Godfather.
They had this...thing too. It kind of creeped me out a little. Every where I went the eyes followed me.
Sorry about the awful picture. They could really think about my needs when it comes to lighting in this place. But they don't.
And I just can't leave without showing you this shirt. Click to enlarge. That's all I will say about that.

And of course the cheese. Lots and lots of cheese. I didn't actually take any pictures of the cheese though. I was far too busy making my selections and wiping the drool from my chin.
Oh and the wine. They have wine too. Local wine. Wine from far off and distant places. Love the wine selection.
Do you see why we never miss out on a trip to Mars?
So if ever you find yourself in Wisconsin on Interstate 94, heading to perhaps the home of the great Packers in Green Bay, I encourage you to take a side trip and visit this neat place. Can't miss it. Look for the big sign.
Do I sound like an advertisment?