Smother, smiles, park, school, Cubs & Bible

I am a child smotherer.  That means, I smother children. When a child has cheeks like this, it compels me to smother them.  AHHHHHHHH. Wouldn't you?

Mr. Freak-out-cry-pants aka Andrew, has been a bit better lately! Although usually once a day he has some sort of meltdown where he cannot be soothed, it is for a much shorter period of time than it was. He's been sleeping like a champ, so I'm thrilled with the progress we've made.  He's three months by the way. (Say what!??!)  Someone asked me today, and I basically was scrambling to figure out how old he was.  I'm an awesome mom, and I'm sure they thought so too. 

Here he is! His smiles are the sweetest. 

And here's Kedzie.  I know, he's huge.  I think Grace loves him the most now of the kids.

Lately it seems like Ben is rarely home.  We were going a little stir crazy one day by ourselves, and I decided that after nap and a really quick supper, we would go to the park since it was WARM.  I invited my mom.  By the time we were ready to leave and all packed up in the car, it started raining.  We went anyway because you don't go through all that trouble of packing up the kids and rushing for nothing. And guess what?! We were the only moms there! Can you believe it? ...  We weren't the only people there though, there were some unruly pre-teens shouting like wild maniacs about how one of them "freaking lied" (at least that's the phrase I heard 3,000 times).  Caleb and Grace watched intently... of course.  We were laughing hysterically at the ridiculous situation.   

We decided to leave after not too long, and we told the kids we were going somewhere for a surprise.  (Mom offered to take us for ice cream).  After we told them about it, I had second thoughts.  Like, "Oh, we forgot the baby's car seat...." and... "Oh, it will take forever, and it's almost bed time" and.. "Oh, then we have to get them all out and back in while it's raining again."  Anyway, due to the trauma of canceling the surprise, I made a one-of-a-kind scavenger hunt.  Trust me, it was stellar.  Ok it wasn't, but Caleb was pleased and requested to do it again and again and "every day".  I highly recommend making scavenger hunts.  I'll do it again when we're going crazy in the Winter.  

This little kiddo becomes more of a stinker all the time: Like when I was busy making dinner, and she was stealing bread off the table.  She was so proud of herself. 

I LOVE having a child who can read! A big reason is, he can read to his little sisters! YES! How sweet is this?!

Speaking of reading reminds me of homeschooling. Although I will admit again that I had no part in Caleb's learning to read. If you ask him, he says "Preschool Prep" taught him to read. The dvds are awesome.  Here's my little boy working hard at Kappers' Academy though I'm still not set on the name.

The Cubs.  You know, the World Series Champs?  Well, we had some kids from the youth group over to watch.  The highs were high, an the lows were low.  See below... 

This was a very serious part. 

 There was pure joy.

I smile looking at these., and it's not just because Aaron is in the background wrapped in a blanket.  It was an insane game, and watching these hooligans was pretty funny.  After the game, someone set off fireworks in our back yard.  Thankfully it rained because when they were shooting them into my tree, and I remembered I have no hose, I was glad for the wet branches.  I was also glad for my enormous husband who shielded me from flying firework sparks and took one for the team on his arm.  Thanks Ben, my valiant protector. 

This bad boy is my favorite Bible story book I think.  We're not quite finished with it, but the kids and I both love it.  We read a story each morning after breakfast, and the kids are usually asking for it because they look forward to it. 

The bad news is that the picture is sideways.  The good news is that I bet you can still see it.  

The neighbor kids have been coming over to play in our mulch pile in the back lately.  Isn't that cute? For the most part I like it. BUT, the one girl is what some might refer to as a "toxic friend".  You know, the kind that ride their motorized scooters and run around in the middle of the road, are constantly screaming at you when you're playing, and tell everyone that you used to be monkeys..

I'm trying to figure out how to handle that situation because the ole' Proverb, "He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm" may be ringing true here.  The good news is that they played inside my house today, and I was able to make some rules since it's my house. For example: In my house, I don't allow people to yell at each other.

Unless of course it's me, and I'm screaming at my dog.... HAHHAHAHHA. Not funny.  But sometimes.. he makes me CRAZY.  

Anyway, I think I'll go plan out my day tomorrow.  I've recently found that's key to maintaining some order, staying productive, and having reasonable goals each day. But... maybe I'll just go to bed. ;) 

Over and out,

--Melanie 

Update :)

I'm having issues with titles again lately.

Can you believe it's October?! And my little peanut is TWO months old?! I'd say I want time to slow down, but I'd be lying.  The first couple months after a baby are the hardest for a number of reasons one of them being losing out on a full night of sleep. Which I'm not getting yet.  But that's ok, little man is only 9 weeks and is giving me some very nice stretches in the night lately.  Have I mentioned I love Babywise? Because I still do for the fourth time.

We have been SO incredibly busy lately.  This addition of #4 was a bigger deal than the addition of #3.  Why? Oh, because Anna was a PERFECT baby and Andrew isn't.  I mean, he's pretty stinking sweet, but he's also needy.  I thought #4 was supposed to be super chill? ;)  The good news is I prepared for another Grace baby.  It just felt like it was time AND you can't possibly get two perfect babies in a row (Side note, Anna isn't perfect anymore...)   Here they are....

Grace Elaine

Andrew William

Grace didn't have a spitting problem.  SO, Andrew runs away with the "worst baby I've had" award as he is a professional spitter. The spitting/fussing combo is killer.  Go Andrew! I WILL say that he has improved in his fussiness level.  I can now leave him in the bouncy seat without him screaming his head off!! WOO HOO!  I decided to give up dairy for the day a few days ago.  But I forgot my lunch had butter in it and then ate a cheeseburger for dinner.  I decided I already blew it, so I went ahead and had ice cream in the evening.  Dairy and I were made for each other.  I don't understand how you would go without, and I don't even drink milk. 

Let's move on to our new dishwasher.  We got one, and now when my dishes come out of it, they're CLEAN! It's amazing.  Also, the man who installed it was hilarious.  He talked to us through dinner with comments like ... "everyone is gladder when they have a flatter bladder" I might use that one as it's extremely catchy. 

I dusted my fans this week with my trusty dusty envirowand (which I love). You can tell it's been a while... and I didn't even do MY fan yet. Yikes!!!!  Fans are those things I forget about until I randomly look at the ceiling and become HORRIFIED at the state of the fan. Maybe one day I'll get better at that.

Mom and I went to True Woman for the 3rd time in a row, and we both loved it again!! I brought Drewbie do along, and he did great overall.  We really used his stroller as you can tell by the mounds of stuff on it. HA!.  Plan on going yourself in 2 years.  It's always a refreshing time! 

This morning I asked the big kids to watch Andrew while I got ready. They did a great job!!! How sweet is this?!  

The kids all have different ways they help me with the baby 

Anna-- she is ALWAYS pleased to throw away dirty diapers

Grace-- always eager to bring me the diapers and the wipes AND reinsert Andrew's pipe (see above picture)

Caleb-- my go getter. I say "go get ____" and he does

Having kids really does expose the sin in my heart.  It's pretty terrible to see, but I know it's good for me!  I always thought I would be this sweet, patient, loving mother who always loved(liked) her children and was kind and full of self control. Then I had children.  Well, really, then I had a NUMBER of children (the combo is killer).  The other day I told the kids they were NEVER allowed to go in the bathroom again *implication, not even to do their business* THAT is what a crazy person says.  I don't want to be a crazy person. ( I don't make a habit of empty, nonsense threats, but it was one of those days.... and seriously, STOP TOUCHING THE SOAP!!!)  Anyway, the point is not that they are so bad, but that I am so bad.  Praise the Lord he gives ME grace, because good grief do I need it, and it becomes clearer all the time!!!  (I needed it just as desperately as before, it's just that sometimes you see your sin more clearly than other times, know what I mean jelly bean?!) 

I'm in full blown purging mode again.  Basically I want to get rid of everything.  Does anyone else get a crazy feeling like that?! I'm really learning less is more.  For example, Andrew hardly has any clothes and we do just fine.  Well, most of the time. UNLESS I'm behind on laundry and then it's an emergency because of the whole spitting thing (yes, even with a bib).  I have to do laundry constantly even though I'm a BIG fan of wearing things again if they aren't dirty.  The PROBLEM is that our clothes often get dirty..... drat.

Did you know it's Saturday today? I had no idea what day it was.  Therefore, the kid's clothes are not laid out (which I ALWAYS do), and they aren't bathed.  The key for me in making Sunday morning smoother  (and being on time) is being prepared the night before.  Key to the preparation is knowing what day it is.... oops.

Over and out,

Melanie

#4, dog, neighbors, bike, & a great book

Go ahead, count them.

There's FOUR of them.  I was struck by this sight the other day as I fed the kids lunch. Yes, it was frozen pizza, don't judge me. And I know you're not supposed to put blankets by babies. Whatever, he likes the blanket by his face. So there.  I can't believe all four of them are mine. 

Then the other day my awesome (NOT!) dog got ahold of Andrew's pacifier and destroyed it.  I believe I texted Ben something like..... "I want to kill our dog"  I had TWO total pacifiers (which I refer to as pipes, anybody else?! Ben thinks I'm nuts), and I couldn't find the working one....  Soooo, we had an emergency situation on our hands.  It was almost nap time for EVERYONE, and I didn't want to have Drew freaking out.  I sentenced my dog to his crate rather angrily and told the kids we were going to the store together.

I was pretty crabby about having to run out with everybody (I mean, Drew was maybe 2 weeks at that point) and had to apologize to my kids once we got to the store about my stinky attitude.  They are quick forgivers, and we all promised to have a wonderful time in the store together (my attitude was rubbing off on them).  I wish I had a picture of us entering the store because I felt like a mother duck.  I held Drew's carseat in one hand and Caleb's hand in the other.  Caleb held Anna's hand who held Grace's hand, and somehow we ended up single file as we crossed the parking lot. HAHAHAHA.

Anyway, once the kids were all loaded up in the cart, I started laughing.  The circus came to Jewel!! That's what it felt like anyway.  They all did great, I must say, and we were able to get in and out fairly quickly with our much needed pacifiers.  Oh, and ice cream... (it was on sale of course).

I went garage saling last weekend because I'm still needing a few things for Andrew for this winter, and I find driving less overwhelming than being home with everyone ;) Anyway, I found this sweet tent.  Well, it was really fun for a while, but then everyone kept getting hurt and it seemed like all the kids turned into wild maniacs.  So, I threw it downstairs, and THAT'S where they can play with it.  I can't handle the chaos in my main living area. I just can't.

Remember how I wanted to kill our dog?  Well, when I feel that way, sometimes I look at pictures of him being really sweet to get over it. 

Anna went in for a kiss here.  She's perfectly content to let Kedzie slobber all over her face. (EEWWWW! I COULD NEVER BE LIKE THAT)

And here's Grace smothering him.  He is such a good sport.  A few minutes later she tried standing on him to jump onto the couch.... so I had to put the kibosh on that.

My kids have been playing with the neighborhood kids EVERY day.  They all love it and have a blast together.  Notice Anna Sue out there?  She was having the time of her life with the big kids. 

I made a planner for myself in a binder with free printables off the internet to try and stay a bit more organized since I forget nearly everything.  Anyway, when I first started filling out my August sheet, I decided this would be a worthy focus.  So far, so good.  

The kids have REALLY taken well to the new baby.  They are eager to help with him and no one seems to have a jealous problem.  I'm so thankful for that. I love this picture of Grace and Caleb.  Grace has been awesome lately.  She's really dominating as a big sister and being a great little helper for me.  

Here's little man. I CANNOT get enough of him. 

Especially the open mouth sleep.  It's the sweetest thing ever. 

So in the last few weeks Caleb has started READING.  Like, he can straight up read.  I would love to take credit for how hard I've worked with him to reach such an accomplishment, but I can't. I did nothing.  He also started riding a two wheeler.  THIS I take full credit for.  Want to know why?! I turned his bike into a balance bike by taking the pedals off (unfortunately we somehow managed to lose the pedals and still can't find them....).  I had him ride that for a while to learn balance, and BOOM, one day he could just do it!  I didn't have to break my back holding on to the bike running down the sidewalk!  I know, he's kind of old to just be learning-- but we were lazy and he was uninterested.

I just bought Grace a bike at a garage sale.  See below.

It was $2. (!!!!!!!!!!!!)  I was so happy when I found it because it's the PERFECT size.  It looks a little junky up close, but hey, we're not picky!  I was hoping to take the pedals off this bike and have Grace riding around on a two wheeler in no time, but since she's having such fun pedaling, I thought I'd wait.  

I found THIS website and love her character charts!  I was motivated to look for that because I started reading "Shepherding a Child's Heart" again and have been extremely convicted.  Ouch.  If you haven't read it, it's mind blowing.  I've read it before and still my mind is being blown.  Parenting is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyy harder than I thought it'd be.  What I need to do is become like Susanna Wesley and pray over an hour a day for my kids with an apron on my head. Amen?!?!

That's all I've got for now!

-Melanie 

  

Andrew's Birth Story

This whole pregnancy I was less anxious than I was with Anna.  And I think it's mostly because I made it to the hospital with Anna, so I had more confidence in my ability to know when it was time to get there.  This pregnancy I had toooooonnnnnnnnssss of braxton hicks again.  It's just the way my body works I guess.  I think I started having them around 28 weeks this time.  And, towards the end, they get painful and make me crabby.  It's not that they hurt THAT bad, it's that they hurt AND they aren't doing anything.  Well, I suppose at one point they are, but for all those weeks they aren't.  Anyway, enough whining.

Monday, August 1, I went to a check up (39 week checkup).  When my midwife measured me, I measured small, which is normal for me, but then she looked back and noticed that I hadn't grown in 3 weeks and that made her a bit concerned.  SO, up I went to labor and delivery for a non stress test and bio physical profile (ultrasound).  I passed the test, but the ultrasound looked a LITTLE weird.  I guess some things were measuring small and we were debating what to do next.  My midwife said I could come in the next day for her to strip my membrane to try and move things along in case something was wrong, so I made an appointment for the next day.  

Monday evening (Aug 1), Ben needed to head into Lansing, and I said I would go with because I wanted to take care of a few things in our church nursery.  I was having some more frequent contractions and started wondering if I was maybe in labor.  I was distracted by that and totally forgot the whole reason I was heading to Lansing, so I accomplished nothing.  THAT was annoying.  Anyway I went to Aldi instead with Caleb and Anna. While I was holding Anna and a heavy grocery bag in the parking lot, I had another stronger contraction.  That was not a nice moment, and I started freaking out.

On the way home from Lansing, I told Ben I was going to text my mom and dad and tell them I thought I might be in labor and that they should be ready to come.  About 4 minutes later I said, "Ok, start heading to my house". Since I tend to have fast labors, I was getting really anxious that I was running out of time!! Ben tried talking to me in the car, but as I've learned the last few times, I do NOT like talking when I'm trying to determine if I'm in labor.  I prefer complete silence while I freak out.  

We got home and Ben put the kids to bed (in record speed) while I finished packing my hospital bag. My parents came, and Ben and I headed to the hospital. (It was about 7:30) I got there and of course, my contractions slowed waaaaaay down.....  SO then I felt like a total idiot for coming in.  But, when my midwife came and checked me, I was 6 cm!  It was a HUUUUUUGE relief!  Just like with Anna, I threw my hands up in victory. I DID IT! 

I sat on the bed for a while and really was having just a few contractions here and there.  It was just like I'm used to at home on a daily basis with my braxton hicks.... SO, I didn't really know what to do in the hospital. I went in the tub for a few minutes, but it was kind of boring.  Then I took a walk with Ben.... then I sat on an exercise ball in my beautiful gown.  The Cubs game was on, so that was nice for Ben, but after a while he went to sleep.  (don't panic, it's ok with me ;))

 I took another walk, laid on the bed.... and just wondered why in the world it was taking so long and when would things start progressing!?! (After an hour I was 7 cm but then stayed at a 7 for the next couple of hours).  After my midwife checked me and I was still a 7 (at about 11:40p.m. or so), she decided to break my water.  I fought her a little on it because I was worried that breaking my water would just make my very bearable contractions more intense, and then I would be miserable for however many hours.  She basically said, no, let's do it, and broke it.  That was a weird feeling.  THEN after a few minutes things reeeeaaaaallly started picking up.  I went in the tub, which I really like for stronger contractions.

Soon I knew it was getting serious and the baby would be here in no time, so I had Ben pull the string to alert everyone I needed help, and they came rushing in.  I DESPERATELY wanted to stay in the tub, but silly St. Anthony's won't let you have a baby in the water anymore (Boooooooo!!!!), so I had to move to the bed.  And really, when you're in intense pain, you do NOT feel like getting up and moving.  I think I even said "I don't think I can move." Anyway, the end for me seems like an eternity, but apparently I only pushed twice and out popped a baby boy. During the horrible part (the ending), I was frantically grabbing for a piece of gauze I had put some clary sage essential oil on.  I was basically inhaling that while driving my head into a pillow.  Ben is still making fun of me for that. ;) My midwife called to Ben and asked if he'd like to catch the baby, so he did.  Ben says it definitely wasn't as cool as catching Grace, but I think he preferred this way.  I had the baby 34 minutes after she broke my water.  In hindsight, breaking my water was brilliant, and I probably should have done it a couple hours earlier to move things along.  But, how do you know?! You just don't.  Well I s'pose I do now.

Those first few moments after you have a baby are so amazing aren't they?! For me it's a HUGE feeling of relief "I'm so glad it's OVER" and also, "I can't believe this child is MINE."  I got to hold baby boy for THREE hours before they took him from me (even to weigh him!).  He basically nursed the entire time. ( Little did I know that was a foretaste of how he would eat.  Slow. Reeeeaaaaally slow. ) I'm calling him baby boy because we had no name for him.  Ben loved doing it this way, but I felt weird not knowing who I was holding.  Ben went home about 2:30 (I had the baby at 12:18am) to try and get some sleep, and I sat awake most of the night because I'm pretty wired after I have a baby.  Plus when the nurses need to take your blood pressure every 5 minutes, it's hard to get sleep.  And for the record, those automatic blood pressure things are terrible! OUCH.  If you move they just keep squeezing and squeezing your arm.  AND when you're trying to nurse your 3 minute old baby and they need help re-latching, you kind of have to move.  Amen? 

Anyway, l basically named him while I had him all night, and later in the morning when Ben came back and I took a shower, he named him something else.  So then we had to battle between two names.  It took us until about 4 pm to come to an agreement.  Ben's name got picked (in case you're wondering) because I eventually came around.  And, lest you think he's a big, fat meany, he WAS willing to go with my pick by the end.  We named him Andrew William --Andrew after the disciple and William after my dear ole dad.  Now all four of our kids are named after a grandparent.  Pretty neat eh? 

He's the sweetest ever, is nicknamed Drewbie Doo, and today he's TWO weeks old.  We are so incredibly blessed.
-Melanie 

Main floor reno

SO, towards the beginning of summer, we decided we wanted to do a bit of work on our main floor.  We have a quad style house, and had an eating space in the kitchen (pictured below) and a dining room next door.  We were finding though, that if we ate in the kitchen with guests, we were constantly banging our elbows on the wall; and if we were in the dining room, we couldn't move the chairs on the carpeting to get in and out.  Since our family is growing, and we like to have people over and sit in the same room as them, we decided the wall had to GO.  

Here's the dining room below.  I should also mention the carpet was really really really really really bad.  The Kappers + light carpet = HORRIBLE disaster.  You can see some of the stains in the picture even.  But it was getting to the point where I was embarrassed to have people over because it was so disgusting. (Hello Kedzie)

So one day the wall got knocked down.  It was CRAZY! 

And we got rid of our kitchen table because I didn't want to have two tables. (although I did love that table with all my heart).  We decided to get new flooring throughout since I wasn't in love with our kitchen laminate (it was the 69 cents a square foot kind and terrible to clean), and I didn't want to put it elsewhere in our house.  

I didn't take a before picture of our living room, but I do have pictures just from us living in it.... So here's a birthday party picture from a while back! 

Then it came time to choose a paint color that would be ALL over.  This was highly stressful.  I ended up choosing Revere Pewter, which is a Benjamin Moore color I had matched by someone else.

We painted the trim around the windows white, and painted all the walls in the kitchen/living/dining/entry areas.  Our hero Dean Kuper even came to help, and he DOMINATED the ceiling line once again.  Thanks Deano!!! (and his daughter Anna helped too.)

Then it came time to have the floor put in.  When they moved my piano, THIS is how disgusting the vent was. AHHHHH!!!!!!!!! It was INSANE.

There was also a surprise under our laminate flooring in the kitchen.... TILE! 

We had recessed lighting put in our living room too, so I had to empty out the pantry in order to have access to our attic.  The mess was overwhelming. 

We lived in chaos for a week or so and started eating meals in the family room at a little white kid's table.  And it was when Ben was gone.  Lucky Ben. (And hello again Kedzie)

I thought I might lose it, but I didn't.  That's the good news.

Then, it was done, and we could put our stuff back!! I LOVE the wall down!! I love having ONE eating space, and I like how open it feels now.  (Like the lighting?) 

I love our light fixture.  Ben found it.  He rocks.

I'm still working on curtains, but feel pretty good about finding pillows, an area rug, and accent chair I love! (Old Time pottery is the bomb.com) 

I still need to do a bit of cleaning next to my piano... 

Ben picked out those pictures above the couch in the picture below.  I love them because they just seem to tie the whole business together. 

I am absolutely loving the change, and I'm so glad we finished it before the baby came!  I have some curtains ordered online that are coming in the mail, so we'll see if we like those and can get them up in time, but I kind of doubt we'll manage that.  Overall I feel like we have more space, and I LOOOOOOOOOOOOVE the new floors!!!!

I think we'll take a break from home projects for a little while, but I'm so glad we went for it this time!

Catch up

Yikes! I just looked at how much has happened since early June.  It's a lot.  Don't worry, I won't bore you with all the details, but I'll point out a few highlights.

First things first.  I know I've said this before, but my dad and Caleb are BFF and ever.  I mean, really.  It makes my heart so happy.  And I'm posting this picture because it's my dad's birthday tomorrow.  Happy Birthday dadsy! Thanks for being a great grandpa!!

Then my second born turned THREE.  This is the cake I made. I have no problem with my birthday parties being low key and not very pinterest worthy. I do however LOVE when other people have pinteresty parties.  I have no issues with that, and I find it more inspiring than intimidating.  So, keep on you amazing mothers out there. (see Kedzie's mouth right there?! He's SO lucky he didn't jump)

Gracie got a doll and some accessories for her birthday, and she LOVED it. 

In fact, she loved it SO much that she didn't want to eat any cake.  

We took a trip to the beach, and it was a blast!  All the kids loved it.  My parents came along and my dad took Anna for a nice walk when she got fussy, so that was SUPER handy! 

Caleb started swim lessons a few weeks ago (twice a week), and it has helped TREMENDOUSLY.  In case you forgot, Caleb is terrified of water.  He's ok in like a kiddie pool walking around, but actually going in a pool where his feet can't touch or his head might get wet-- no way.  I decided it was time for us to get over this fear of water (and of getting his head/ears etc. wet), and so I put him in swim lessons.  Day 1 he clung to me screaming while the teacher pried him off my legs.  Then, another teacher carried him around the pool, through the showers (which was also traumatic) and he was hysterical through the entire lesson yelling "MOOOOOOM! I WANT MY MOM!!!!"  His teacher made him do everything everyone else did and dunked him underwater about 1,000 times.  Parents watching their kids kept looking at him and then back at me with sympathetic smiles.  It was awesome.  The good news was that when we got home he made it seem like he had the best time ever. ????? Day 2, he went in screaming and needed back up once again BUT, he stopped crying for the actual lesson, and I even saw him LAUGH!  It was incredible.  From then on, he's been GREAT.  Seriously, he's over it and not crying at all and looks forward to lessons.  I CANNOT BELIEVE IT.  The other day we swam at a friend's house, which I thought would be a real test of how he's doing.  And, although he's still uncomfortable in the water, he was loving it and keeps asking me if we can go back.  He even swam in just his puddle jumper for a few minutes, which I'm telling you, is HUGE.  And he jumped in the pool.  Which, he may have had a puddle jumper AND inner tube on while doing.... but we're talking about progress ;) 

I treated myself to an iced coffee a couple times during lessons (the 99 cent deal at Dunkin Donuts) since I also had to endure trauma.  AND because with Ben gone, I've had to bring the girls with too. Thankfully they've done well overall. Although Grace keeps asking if she can go in.  How do you explain to your 3 year old, "No Grace, you can't go in because mom doesn't want to fork it over for you to have expensive swim lessons. I plan to give you the cheapest lessons out there when it's your turn." HAHAHA ;) 

My favorite brother Alan came out for the 4th weekend, and we had a blast! We miss him terribly having him all the way in Iowa and were very glad for the visit. 

I gave Kedzie a haircut all by myself the other day!  I need to get around his eyes better, but I'm afraid I'm going to poke his eye out. I need back up.  I used the scissors for the whole thing because the loud clippers makes him FLIP out, and I didn't have the energy for that. 

I made chicken broth! Is there a real trick to it? It seemed pretty easy, but I had some floaties in it even after I strained it.  Is that normal?? 

Oh! We have been working on our house the last month or so.  We got a wall knocked down, got new floors, painted, got some new lighting.  Anyway, I'll post pictures of it soon when it's all done.  I REALLY want to get it all figured out before the baby comes. 

Which speaking of the baby, I'm having a baby soon.  When people have babies, they have big bellies.  They have big bellies because they have babies in them.  When mother's have babies in their bellies they can get crabby when people make comments like, "Are you due tomorrow?", "WOW, you're REALLY REALLY pregnant"  "Were you this big with all your babies?" 

I totally get it when guys blow it with the comments because they're fairly clueless and have never had children in their bellies.  However, I have less patience for the women who have carried children and seem to forget that feeling like a whale and then being told you look like one, isn't that great or helpful.  ANNNNND, I'm about to start getting real nasty up in here.  So beware because if you carry on about how huge I am, I might start making fun of how many big macs you must have eaten for breakfast.

I can't figure out how to rotate this picture.  But I just want to say you're welcome to Hershey's.  I ate a bar today, and appreciated the thank you on the back of the wrapper. I DO feel like I made a difference. 

This week I had to take Caleb and Grace for their 5 year and 3 year annual check ups.  I brought Anna too of course, and everyone was doing just fine the whole time.  Truly, I was very proud of them because they were cooperating very nicely.  Well, except when the nurse was asking Grace questions like, "Who are your friends" and she had answers like, "Legos".  Anyway, it came time for shots, and they both needed one.  SO... before the nurse even came back Caleb was freaking out.  And his freaking out made Gracie freak out, so they hid behind the chair in the waiting room.  THEN when it was time for the shot, Caleb went first.  He had to lay on the table, and I had to hold his arms down while they shot him in the leg.  He was completely hysterical before during and after. I mean, screaming at the top of his lungs.  Grace was second.....and, when your bro is screaming like someone set him on fire, you don't really want to go where he was. Amen?  So, Grace was also hysterical when I laid her down and also behaved as if she was on fire or got her legs cut off.  Since Grace and Caleb were screaming like lunatics, Anna decided it would be a good time for her to do the same although she had nothing to cry about.  Anyway, by the end of it all I think Anna was probably crying the loudest, and I started laughing.  I think it was a coping mechanism.  We got Wendy's for lunch and to associate shots with fun.  I'm sure it worked.

Anyway, I'll leave you with this sign I saw at Hobby Lobby the other day.  I had a friend over the other day making fun of the way I "fold" fitted sheets.  This sign really resonated with me.

Have a good weekend!

-Melanie