Crazy Week

 

RETRO DAY! She doesn't look too peace loving - looks like she could take a chunk out of your leg if you let her get too close. 

Critter Patrol

 A recent special visitor noticed some gopher holes in our yard.  He got busy trying to catch the critters and did not come up empty handed - what a prize!

Checking traps with his assistant

A little less lip . . .

I have a weakness for all things pewter and recently scored a pair of these chalices at the Goodwill for 2$!

When you handle one of these goblets, you are immediately transformed into a medieval queen. One with a beautiful flowing dress - complete with jeweled crown, servants at your command, and most importantly - a knight in shining armor.

In order to have a chilled drink - I stored one of these vessels in the freezer. Perfect. Except for the little princess that spied the cold cup and pressed her lips to it's frozen edge . . .

Thus you see the remnants of her fleshy tongue. OUCH! Guess we will just chill them, not freeze them! Sorry Mare Mare!

Giving 26 Spankings Today

7-11 is a big date in this house! We have- not one, but 2 birthdays to celebrate. Our first baby and our last baby.

Here they are at Maren's first and Sten's 9th birthday

17 years old now, unimaginable!

Mare Mare is 9! Boo hoo

Schools Out!

Maren & Mr. Swanson - last day of 3rd grade

Soccer Again

We started early, ended late and came home with 2 first place trophies!  Milah & Maren's teams were victorious in the tournament today.

Would you like FRIES with that?

So, I'm wonderin - how can 1 tsp worth of ketchup (in a packet) rolled and squeezed in a child's hand suddenly explode into a 2-3 cup coverage area?

Ask Maren who succeeded in making a gigantic mess in the pickup.  Ask Milah who got an ear full of ketchup.  Ask Scott who ran into the house fetching a rag to clean up the mess -sternly informing Maren - DO NOT MOVE!

Winners!

Today was the last day of regular season Spring Soccer.  Maren's team was undefeated this season and Milah's team tied for 1st.  Milah's team was victorious over a team that has been undefeated for several seasons!  The girls love to play - and it is a blast to watch them. 

The Knights

The Determinators

Real Kids

Yes - we grow real kids here too.  They aren't perfect (they get that from us).  They fight, they argue, they occasionally complain, they aren't perfectly coifed, they don't (all)get straight A's and they make poor decisions at times.   Real life folks - it's not a neatly posed picture in a perfect field of mustard.  It is tears and hugs mixed with joy and gutwrenching sorrow.  

I had a recent revelation.  It told me that I signed up for a lifetime of concern. Just because these tender creatures leave the nest, doesn't mean the mommy in me flutters away.  I get to be concerned for the REST OF MY LIFE.  At some point it will get more complicated, adding their spouses and their kids.  ACK - what were we thinking???!   

Happy Mother's Day to those of you that are walking this journey and to those that have survived! 

Altogether Now - Ahhhhh

So, we're driving by this beautiful field of mustard and the children holler in unison to stop the car.  They pile out with big smiles on their faces and beg me to take their picture.  Who am I kidding?  The grumbling and complaining started the moment the car began to decelerate.  It was in full roar as they struck this pose - whaaaa whaaaa - sounds like a bunch of babies.  Our cute little babies.

Well Deserved

You're looking at the student of the month!  This girl was recognized for her outstanding achievements in reading and her rapidly improving math skills!

Notice the new spectacles.  The day after we picked them up from the (overpriced) eye doctor, she was unable to locate them.  They have been missing for weeks, and FINALLY were discovered in a different glasses case packed in a bag.  Cause for celebration! 

Three cheers for Maren!  Whoop Whoop!

FYI - for simple (but way cool) photo editing - check out this site.

Bad Timing

Walking through the laundry room I spot a small serrated knife on the dryer. Hmmm, that doesn't belong there. I grab it and head for the kitchen. At the exact moment my hand falls to my side, Maren gives me a hug. Her thumb grazes the blade of the knife. She stares up at me - eyes widened in disbelief that her mother has just stabbed her. There is blood. There are apologies. There is more blood. There is a wet rag. There is a bandaid. There is another hug. I think there may be a "bad mom" citation in the mail tomorrow - Yikes!

I smell a RACKET!

We are new to the world of eyeglasses. Just last year, we discovered that Maren needed glasses and we went to a warehouse style store (yeah- you know the one - famous for their (icky nasty) hotdogs) for a test and glasses. They did not accept insurance - price for the glasses was appx 100 bucks. We also grabbed 2 pairs at Wallies when the others were lost - appx 70 bucks/pair.

This year, I decided to support the local dude. I regretted that decision when they tallied the bill and it has continued to burn my conscience. Today I was informed that they undercharged us, by 76$. We are going to get 1 pair of glasses for $344.00! What!!?? I feel like I've been robbed! I'm all for supporting the "little guy", but this is foolishness.

What's your experience? What's the best deal?

More of the White Stuff

Not 1, but 2 snow days! We had about 11 inches total - a near record amount. The power was out for over 24 hours and, as usual, our house became "snow fun headquarters" for the kids' friends.

Sten's orange machine did double duty. He used an old Ford hood, turned upside down as a giant sled - with the old Kubota towing his cronies.

My least favorite part of snow days - PILES of laundry and dirty boots

This is called Rambling . . .

With 4 swimmers in our house, we have a heaping basket of swim goggles. Maren was reorganizing her swim bag tonight and explaining to me just how important goggles are to competitive swimmers. She mentioned that once at a swim meet, she was on the starting blocks and just before the whistle blew, she realized that her goggles were upside down. She didn't have time to fix them and consequently swam poorly in the race. I replied, "You didn't do that bad." She shook her head slightly, gave me a look like "get a clue" and said, "Mom" - I got 11th place. Do you have any idea what color the ribbon is for 11th place? (Paused for emphasis, thinking I would know this) It's brown, MOM - the ribbon for 11th place is brown. Apparently the brown 11th place ribbon is beyond disgusting.

In other news - I noticed Maren was wearing one of Sten's tshirts to bed. When I casually asked her what the deal was, she said it was because she likes the smell of him. He smells good, so says she.

Unlike the dog who has apparently been frolicking in cow poop. Sheesh! I guess we'll have to dress Danner in one of Sten's shirts to see if we can get him smelling any better.

For the record, Sten recently won 1st place in a mechanical skills competition at the local community college. 3 cheers to Sten! Him's a smart feller and a good smeller to boot.

Friday Fun

The girls have become avid OSU gymnastics fans. Last night was "Pink Out" (a breast cancer benefit) and OSU tied for 1st. Maren went all out - even using pink hair spray.


Their favorite part - getting autographs after the meet. The gymnasts mingle with admirers and happily sign posters for swarms of girls.

A favorite of theirs - Olivia Vivian, from Australia.

Revenge is Sweet (not)

Maren and Milah got in a tussle last night before bed over an online job chart program (I know, sounds stupid but they can fight about the most insignificant things).

An hour after they were supposedly sleeping, Maren came down - eyes reddened from crying. When questioned about her distraught state, she blurted out that she "accidentally" deleted Milah's account. Accidentally? The tears began to roll and she admitted that "she just wanted to do something back at Milah!"

Vocabulary lesson for the evening - revenge.

Apparently she had laid in bed, agonizing about her behavior and regretting what she had done. Haven't we all been there? One of the things I love (occasionally cringe) about Maren is that she is so honest. She doesn't have the sense to "bury or hide" feelings that maturity will bring.

I guess our human nature is one of the things that makes us so "human", but why does it have to have to be so snarly? I know that it is to allow us to feel a need for God's control in our lives, but dagnabit - that glimmer of glee at plotting a sweet revenge is incredibly strong. If we could only think of the sickening feeling of regret instead of the pleasure of the moment, we would see revenge for what it is. Just ask Maren;)

It's the little things . . .

Do you have a few unfinished projects around your home?

We sure do.

You get busy living and it's not a big deal. But when you run through with a critical eye and make a list, the piddly things start piling up.

Enter retired father with extra time on his hands who just happens to be a master woodworker. Amazing what 2 days of dedication to finish work can accomplish . . .

This faux support has always bugged me in Maren's room. I mistakenly read the tape measure in the beginning, and it is "swinging" in the air - looking ridiculous.

Why didn't I do this last year? Now I can sleep at night, knowing that the ceiling won't cave in - Ha!

In the basement, we had 5 windows that did not have sills. They are a deeper sill and required gluing 2 boards together - using the table saw, the joiner, the planer, and the biscuit joiner (in the process creating heaps of sawdust).

Ahhh, much better. Looks official. Thanks, Dad - you can come back anytime. There are still a few things on the list. Oh, and bring that planer!

White Out!

Winter finally showed up! We all turn to 4 year olds when the white stuff starts flying - giddy with excitement.

Katrina is a bad girl in the snow. She has remained parked since her slippery trip down the hill yesterday. Bad girl.

6+ inches! It's supposed to keep snowing throughout the afternoon and night. The kids are definitely cheering for no school tomorrow.

Oops!

Exciting weekend around here - we were on an odor hunt in the kitchen (can you spy the cans of room deodorizer). In the process, we pulled the refrigerator out of the cabinet and blew out the compressor unit. Yes, this is dust flying in the house - nasty. Our conclusion was that there was a dead critter in the ceiling and we would just have to "ride" it out. However, we were not correct in that assumption . . .

2 weeks ago, we cooked 4 whole chickens for a potluck. After getting most of the meat off, Scott threw the pan in the upper oven and we forgot about it. The origin of the odor became clearly apparent when we used the upper oven yesterday. "Gag, shiver and wretch" does not cover our reaction . . . do I hear a "duh!"

The argyle gypsies and their gymnastic genius were busy while we were making a big mess

Sten was also busy at the shop - starting to look like a real beast