New Year's Gift!!

Well, it is New Year's Eve!  Hard to believe 2010 is almost over.  It has been a good year all in all.  As I look back and reflect we have all grown so much.  The kids have grown and matured and can do so many things they couldn't do last year.

Peanut is edging closer to graduation and closer to more adult responsibility.  He is now gainfully employed and learning how to manage his time and money.  I pray that he will have a positive 2011 and mature into the man we know is in there somewhere.  I also pray that he would put God more prominent in his life and ask himself WWJD when he is faced with challenges and temptations.

Woobie is growing so much as well.  He is reading and doing 2nd grade math or better.  He is more independent and seems so much more settled.  He is sleeping so much better and not having night terrors like he used to have so often.  He is becoming quite a little gentleman.  He is so sweet and loving with his younger brother and sister as well.

Schnooky Bear is doing well at recognizing his letters and simple words and even dabbling in some math problems as well.  He is becoming more independent and loves to do what his big brothers do.  He is such a quirky funny guy and always make me laugh.

Missy has matured so much and can take on any adult in a conversation.  She knows all her colors and shapes and even recognizes some letters and numbers.  She loves to sing and has an exceptional memory for songs.  She is a tough cookie too.  Kind of has to be to keep up with 3 older brothers.  She gives them a run for their money and doesn't back down from a challenge.

The little boys are learning to be a part of a team as they completed their first season of tball this year as well.   They do so love and support each other and their teammates.

I feel like Sean and I have grown as well.  Our spiritual lives have really grown and our relationship with God and each other has really strengthened so much this last year.  It has been so wonderful to grow closer to my God and my husband.

Sean, Peanut and I brought in the New Year with our dearest friends at the Wynsma's house.  I so cherish our friends and our time together.  We have all grown closer to God together this year with our couples Bible Study as well as our individual men and women's studies.  Our teens have joined in on many of our meetings as well which is so important for them to help grow their faith as well.

We had a fun evening of reminiscing and eating way too much yummy food and then we watched the ball drop in Time Square and wished everyone a Happy New Year before heading home a little after midnight!!

The little ones stayed with Grandma and Grandpa and had a party as well, complete with party hats for all three of them.

New Year's Gift to you all!!  Here's to a blessed and memorable 2011!!!

Date Night and The Hard Rock Hotel!

I worked Monday (12/28) while Daddy stayed home with this little ones.  It was a smooth day at work and I was able to get home by 4pm which was so nice so I could spend some extra time with the family.

I was playing with Missy after I got home and kissing her toes.  She told me I shouldn't kiss her toes because they were fragile and they might break!!!  So funny!

Tuesday was Daddy on duty again while I worked.  I arrived home from work in time for Bible study with the girls and Daddy went to his Bible study.  The kiddies had a sleepover with Grandpa.

I had the day off on Wednesday (12/29).  We went to get "pinches" and then hit the mall to get an invisishield for the iPad and the Peanut's iPod and to get a case for the iPad.  Then we grabbed some lunch at the food court.

When we arrived home it was time to put all of the Christmas decorations away and tuck them in the attic.  It is so great to have the decorations up, but when they are all put away it is nice to have everything back to normal.

Then Daddy and I went on a date night for some one on one interfacing!  Once again we thank Grandma and Grandpa.  We went to Smokey Bones and then ran to the mall to get Peanut and Woobie's 2010 ornaments.  I had to order Schnooky and Missy's online because they were sold out.  Thank goodness for EBay!!

Thursday I worked and Daddy had a free day to do things around the house while my mom watched the kiddies.  I got home about 6pm and freshened up and changed.  We went to mom's house to visit with the kiddies for a little while before heading to Kathy and Steven's engagement party at the Hard Rock Hotel.

It was quite a party.  We had great music, food and drink.  Then all of us party guests got a big surprise when Brett Michaels came on stage and performed for everyone.  Marcy already knew and she pulled me on stage right up front before he came out and told me to stay put and wait for the surprise 80's star to arrive.  I tried to guess who it was but I never did figure it out before he arrived.  We left about 1030 to head home for the night.

Combs Family Christmas!

Christmas is almost here and the kids are so excited.  Grandma and I took the three little ones for some last minute shopping and Daddy stayed home to wrap presents.  I needed to buy the kids some dress shoes and also wanted to get Missy a new Christmas dress because her one from last year was getting too small.

First stop was Wal-Mart and we hit the jackpot in the kids clothing section.  I got Missy the cutest little dress for $4.  At first glance on the hanger I wasn't too impressed, but I figured for the price I wasn't going to be terribly picky.  Grandma bought Tinker Bell jammies for Missy and Thomas jammies for Schnooky, but she told them that they had to let her wrap them and put them under the tree for them to open later that day when Uncle Bobby came over for dinner.  I also picked up some stocking stuffers for Daddy and a new lightweight jacket for Woobie.

Next stop was the Dollar Store to get some more stocking stuffers and Grandma picked up a few more things for the kiddies. 

Then we braved the crowds at the mall to get them some new shoes from Payless.  We got three pairs of black dress shoes and headed for home.  The crowds weren't too bad and we had a descent parking spot too.

We arrived home in time to get everyone bathed and out the door to Grandma and Grandpa's for dinner with Uncle Bobby, Regina and Kelsey.  By the way, Missy's dress looked absolutely adorable once we put it on and she had her cute little tights and new black dress shoes.  The kids got to open a few gifts before dinner which they were totally thrilled about.  They got Lincoln Logs from Grandma and Grandpa.  Wow-what a blast from the past.  Who ever thought they still made Lincoln Logs.  We loved playing with those when we were kids too.

We had turkey and all of the trimmings for dinner.  I ate way too much to say the least.  We left about 515pm to head to church for Christmas Eve service.  It was a nice family service.  Only Schnooky and Peanut stayed in with us.  Woobie and Missy decided to stay in the nursery with Grandma.  Schnooky did very well during the service and he enjoyed the music and candlelight part too.

We went back to Grandma and Grandpa's for dessert and then it was time to go home and tuck everyone in bed in anticipation of Santa's arrival.  Schnooky was so eager to get home to bed.  He could see that it was getting dark during Christmas Eve service and he kept telling me that we needed to hurry and get home so Santa could come.

We left cookies for Santa and 3 carrots for the reindeer.  Everyone was asleep about the time their heads hit the pillows, which was good since mommy still had lots of wrapping to finish up before calling it a night.

Earlier in the day, Schnooky was sitting with Daddy and announced that he didn't want to have a beard.  When we asked him why he replied, "because that would mean I would be a daddy".  We then asked him why he didn't want to be a daddy and he said that he wanted to be a kid forever.  Out of the mouths of babes.

Well, Christmas dawned a little after 0700 with everyone piling in our bed and saying it was time to open presents and wanting to know if Santa had been here.  We then barged into Peanut's room to wake him up and wish him Merry Christmas! 

We then gathered around the Christmas tree and read the Christmas story before tearing into all of the gifts.  Everyone made out very well.  Missy got a big dollhouse complete with the family and all of the furnishings.  She also got a Disney Princess dress up trunk and little dolls with snap on clothes and many other goodies.  Peanut got lots of money to help fund his Senior Ski trip and an Ipod touch.  Woobie got a big remote control Mustang, a fire truck, a sword and shield and lots of other goodies as well.  Schnooky got a new red big boy bike, an ambulance and a sword and shield.  Both boys got nerf dart guns and goggles as well as lincoln logs.

I was very fortunate to get the new laptop that I am typing this update on right now.  It is so fast and I just love being able to relax on the couch and blog away.  I also got a new bluetooth headset and a digital photo frame as well as some other treasures.

We also got an Ipad for the whole family and Daddy got an Apple TV. 

Thank you to all of our wonderful and generous family!!

Grandma and Grandpa arrived a little after 0900 and we opened some more gifts and then had yummy cinammon rolls for breakfast.  A special treat for sure.

I then left about 1140 to head to work.  Yes, the sick people are still sick even on Christmas day.   It wasn't too bad though.  I only had to see 12 people and was back to Grandma's for dinner by a little after 5pm.

We had a repeat of turkey and all the trimmings for dinner and then pumpkin pie for dessert.  Then it was time to put all of the Christmas munchkins to bed and call it a night because work would dawn bright and early the next morning.

Daddy took everyone to church the day after Christmas.  They got to take their favorite toy for the blessing of the toys.  Woobie and Schnooky brought their sword and shields and Missy brought her Belle doll.

I arrived home to Grandma's in time for a yummy roast dinner and all the fixins'.

Great Family Moments!

Well, it has been a few weeks since I posted.  We just seemed to have one thing going after another this last few weeks and I wasn't able to steal any time to catch up my blog.  

So, needless to say I would have the world's longest post if I tried to fit in everything that has been going on since I last posted.  I will do my best to hit the most important memorable moments.

 

First things first, I have been really enjoying my new job.  I have had a couple of late nights as I am getting used to the routine of things and with emergencies arising at the last minute.  Now I am really getting the hang of things and for the most part I have been getting home by no later than 7pm and a few times by 5pm.  I have to say the change has really been great.  I am learning so much and loving being back in the hospital setting.

Daddy has been on vacation since December 16th so he has been playing the role of Mr. Mom while I have been working.  I know the kids have really enjoyed having him home with them.

December 18th was our annual Christmas party.  Before the party we were all working together to clean the house and Woobie and Schnooky were helping to dust.  They went in their room to dust and we walked in after a few minutes to find that Schnooky had taken every book off of the bookshelf so he could dust it.  Woobie had taken my ceramic Winnie the Pooh figurines off of the shelves over his bed and put them on his bed to dust the shelves.   I quickly thanked him for his hard work and carefully had him get off of the bed so I could put the figurines back on the shelves.  He was very careful and thankfully didn't break any of them.  Got to love their work ethic!!

The guests arrived about 7pm and we shared lots of laughs and good food.  We also had a Chinese gift exchange, but this year we had a regifting exchange and everyone dug through their closets and found treasures to give and we had the teenagers join us instead of having a separate gift exchange.  It went really well and everyone had a lot of fun stealing each other's gifts.

December 22nd we made our 3rd annual trip to SeaWorld for our Christmas visit with Santa.  We have enjoyed going every year before Christmas and seeing all of the decorations and festitivites.  We also get our picture taken with Santa in the Polar Express Experience.  The weather was perfect and we had a really good time.  We saw the Sea Lion and Otter Christmas show, the Whale and Dolphin show, the Shamu show and ended our day by seeing an awesome ice skating show at Bayside Stadium.  The kids also got to play in Shamu's Happy Harbor and climb around the nets and tunnels with me and Peanut, play in the sand and go down the big slides a dozen times or so.  Woobie even rode the little Shamu rollercoaster with Grandma.  Daddy, Peanut and I got to ride Manta twice.  There was no line at all!!!  That is a really cool coaster!!!  

On the way out, Daddy bought all three of the little ones their very own Shamu!  An awesome

 day for sure.  Everyone crashed out on the

 way home and we tucked them snug in their

 beds as soon as we got home.  Each one snuggled close to their Shamu!

The Christmas Program!

I left for work bright and early today so I could be sure that I got out in time for the kids Christmas program at church.  I left Grandma in charge and was out the door by 0740.

I finished up by about 430pm and headed to the church in time for the tail end of their last rehearsal and then helped get Missy in her costume.  She was a little Angel.  So cute she was too.  Schnooky was a sheep and Woobie was a palm tree.

They all looked so cute.  I had to keep Missy with me until it was her time to make her debut in the program.  She was very antsy and did not like waiting one bit.  Schnooky lasted on the stage for about 5-10 minutes and then spent the rest of the time sitting next to Grandma.  He made a brief reappearance to go see Baby Jesus and then he was back with Grandma.  Not exactly a cooperative little lamby!!

Woobie did great as a palm tree.  He was singing all of the songs and doing his best to keep the top of the costume on his head. 

Missy finally got her turn and ran out with little Ella to join the other Angels during their song!  They were so cute.  Both girls were not too happy about having to come back to their seats.  At one point Missy got away from Grandma and paraded across the front of the sanctuary.  It was really cute!!!

All of the kids did such a nice job and Miss Karen and all the helpers put together a great show!!  After the program the kids all had birthday cake and then it was time to clean up and head to Grandma and Grandpa's for dinner.

We had a nice dinner compliments of Grandpa and then it was time to get the little ones ready for bed.  Missy insisted on sleeping in her new pink tights!  I left all three of them sitting on Grandpa's lap watching Wipeout!

By the way, Missy is still doing great! Dare I say she's officially potty trained!!! Yeah!!!

Recap!

My the week just flew by.  Here is a recap of the week's events.  Just hitting the highlights.

12/3/10-I went to what I thought was going to be my first day of work, but due to an administrative issue I went home about an hour after I got there.  I went home and met the kids for lunch at McD's with Grandma, Grandpa and Daddy.  Daddy and I ran some errands together while the kidlets hung out with the grandparents. 

12/4/10-I had my first official day at my new job.  It was a long day, but I really enjoyed it.  Daddy was on duty at home and in charge of our ongoing potty training marathon with little Missy.  It was a little rough to say the least.

12/5/10-  I had my second day of work.  Wasn't quite as long of a day today.  I made it home in time for Sunday dinner and then Grandma and I took the kids around the block in the car to check out all the Christmas lights before sending them to bed.

12/6/10- Day 3 on the new job.  I think I am getting the hang of it.  I still have lots to learn, but I am really liking the new challenge.  I stopped at Grandma and Grandpa's to see the little boys before they went to bed.  Missy was already fast asleep.  The boys ended up coming home with me to go to bed.

12/7/10-Day 4 on the new job.  I was a little tired after 3 days in a row.  Started the day by having my yearly Gyn appointment.  Always a joy!  I arrived at the hospital about 1030.  I then proceeded to get a nasty headache which I nursed for most of the day.  Not fun!  I finished up a little after 6pm and high tailed it home to tuck the kids into bed and then have Bible Study with my peeps!!  We are studying Romans.  We had yummy Muenster cheese and crackers for dinner.  I have found a new love for Muenster cheese.  It is so yummy and I was really craving it and then Lisa surprised us with the Muenster!!!

12/8/10-Day off!!!!  I snuggled with the littles in bed watching cartoons until after 8am.  The boys were both under the weather and very clingy and whiny.  Missy is still a potty training rollercoaster!  Didn't get much accomplished before leaving to get lunch at Steak n Shake and got get Woobie's pinches.  He was really not into getting his shots more so than usual, but a necessary evil unfortunately.  We then met Peanut at McD's for ice cream which no one really ate.  I got everyone home and took the boy's temps and they both had 102 degree temps and Schnooky was complaining about his brain hurting again and Woobie complained of a sorethroat. A dose of ibuprofen for both of them really helped them feel better.

I was afraid they both had strep again so when Daddy got home from his pinches we went to my old stomping ground and got them tested and thankfully they were both negative.  We then went to dinner at Sweet Tomatoes.

Missy and Schnooky gave us the biggest scare while we were waiting to pay.  I was getting my wallet out to pay and all of a sudden I looked around and they were gone.  I was freaking out.  I couldn't find them anywhere around us.  I went running around the corner and found them both climbing into a corner booth.  I was so scared!  I grabbed both of them and held them very tightly until we were at our table.  I told all three of them how important it was to stay right with us at all times.  I told them that someone could take them and they would never see us again.  Yes, I was trying to scare them.  At one point, Missy hugged me and said "It was so silly of me to runaway from you".  Then she said if someone tried to take her she would spit at them.  They all went on and on about how they would spit at the bad guys and kick them in the butt.  We let them know just how serious the situation was and to never leave our side again.

I kind of felt sick the rest of the time we were there just running over all of the what ifs and how quickly they got out of my sight.  I think I will keep them chained to my side from now on or better yet strapped in strollers.  I was so freaked out!!!

We finished dinner and headed home.  Missy fell asleep in the car on the way home and we tucked everyone into bed by 8pm.

12/9/10-Today was operation clean house.  We had breakfast and then commenced to doing laundry and vaccuuming the house.  Grandma came down to lend me a hand with the kids and the laundry.   Thank you Grandma!!!  Daddy got home early from work which was nice.  We went outside for a little while and the boys played baseball and Missy played on the playground.  Then it was time to go in and make dinner.  I took the pup for a walk while the kiddies watched Christmas shows after dinner and then it was time to tuck everyone in for the night.

12/10/10-Daddy was on duty today while I went to work.  We are making progress with Missy and her potty training.  Less accidents and she is starting to let us know when she needs to go before she goes! 

12/11/10- Long day at work today!!!  Would have been home an hour or so early, but my last patient of the day had other ideas when I walked in to find him in respiratory distress!!  Missy is doing super with the potty training.  No accidents today and she has initiated all of her potty trips!!  Yeah-I think she has got it now!!  I am so proud of her!!!

And now I am up to date!!

Finding my mind at the park!

Today started out a bit of a chaotic.  Mommy was definitely having an out of my mind kind of day for sure.  For starters the potty training is not going as smoothly as I would like to say the least.  Missy just isn't quite getting it.  She won't initiate and go to the potty by herself.  If we aren't right on her every hour or so to sit on the potty then she goes in her pants and tells us after the fact.

At one point in the day she pooped in her pants and it was rolling on the floor.  Oh yuck!!  Then the dog had an accident that I had to clean up as well.  The icing on the cake was when I grabbed what I thought was an empty cup to fill up with water only to find that it was already full and I doused myself and the kitchen floor with water.

/During all of this craziness the kids were all a bit nuts as well and sitting still was not on their agenda. They were taunting and teasing each other constantly.  So between that and the potty training nightmare, playing sanitation expert and than wearing a cup full of water mommy was in for a mini meltdown. 

After taking a deep breath and saying a prayer we loaded up and headed to Subway for lunch.  It was a nice treat to have Daddy join us.  They were still a bit wound up at the restaurant, but at least I had backup!

After lunch Daddy had some errands to run so I decided to take the kidlets to the park and burn off some excess energy.  We had a great time.  They all ran around and played on the playground and made a new friend with a little girl named Chloe.  Missy especially enjoyed playing with their new little friend. 

Finally about 4pm it was time to go.  I was very pleased with all of them.  They came right away when I told them it was time to go without arguing or complaining.  Missy even took a potty break half way through our play time and stayed dry the whole 1.5 hours we were there.

The day definitely got better for sure.  It was so nice to just let go of all the crazy things that happened at the beginning of the day and spend quality time with my sweet babies.  Forgetting everything else and just having a carefree afternoon at the park was just what the doctor ordered!

Top Secret Mission

Day 2 of potty boot camp.  Grandma reported that she woke up dry and didn't potty right away and unfortunately about an hour later had an uh oh!!  I arrived a little after 0800 just in time for breakfast. 

The two boys and I then left about 0945 to go get Woobie's pinches and run a few errands.  Grandpa met us at the ENT office and he and Woobie got their allergy shots.  I am so proud of Woobie.  He really does well considering he has to get two shots a week now for over a year.  He really has improved considerable though and breathes much easier.

Grandpa treated us to lunch at McD's.  The boys said they only wanted drinks, but Grandpa bought them parfaits and they ended up eating them before we left.  It was nice to chat with Grandpa and catch up.  When I was in college he used to take me to lunch once a month or so just to connect.  I always enjoyed those times.

The boys and I then headed to the Altamonte Toys R Us to get Missy's dollhouse.  I swore them to secrecy and told them we were on a top secret mission!  They were both very good and stayed right with me.  Mission accomplished we loaded up and headed down the road.

Since Missy was napping at Grandma's, I decided to stop at the uniform store and look at some comfy shoes and scrubs for my new job which I will be starting in the next few days.

The boys were not quite as well behaved this time around.  They were just a little nuts and I had to redirect them several times.  Our short shopping trip lasted longer than anticipated in part because of having to wrangle with the wild ones.

We then ran into CVS to pick up Daddy's prescription and the boys had strict instructions to be on their best behavior or there would be some serious time in the thinking chair when we got home.  They were much better and stuck close with me. 

We got back to Grandma's a little before 3pm and Missy was still asleep.  As soon as she started to stir I  checked to see if she was dry and to my delight she was and I promptly plopped her little bum on the potty and she pee pee'ed!!!  Yeah!!

Soon after I loaded everyone up complete with Missy and her potty.  Daddy was home from work and waiting for us.  He took the little boys outside for some tball practice while I stayed in with Missy close to her potty.

When Daddy came back in with the boys I left him in charge and ran to another uniform store to look for some different shoes.  I bought a pair at the first store, but after wearing them for a while my toes kept hitting the end of the shoe and didn't feel like they were going to be the most comfortable.  I found another pair which were more expensive,but much more comfortable and comfort is going to be key because I will be doing a lot of walking for my new job!!!

I got home in time for Daddy to leave for the ball fields to return equipment.  I got the little ones ready for bed and Daddy arrived back home just in time to help tuck them in!!  Missy and Schnooky were not very cooperative and I had to get Daddy to help lasso them to sleep. 

Daddy and I then helped Peanut construct an email to the UCF coach thanking him for the experience at the baseball camp on November 20 and 21.

Then I worked on the computer for a little while.  I went to bed before some photos had finished uploading and then about 1040pm I got up to check if they were done and ended up working on the computer until Missy came in and I looked at the clock and it was 1230.  I tucked Missy back in her bed and called it a night myself.

Potty Boot Camp and Bowling Night!

Missy crawled into my bed at 0630 this morning and we snuggled with cartoons for a little while.  Then it was time for breakfast and the start of potty boot camp-fluids, fluids and more fluids was my goal with potty breaks starting every 10 minutes and "dry pant" checks every 2 minutes.

We started off a little rough with several accidents.  By about 1100 she was starting to get the picture.We had stretched our potty breaks to every 30 minutes and she had successfully pee pee'ed several times during our previous breaks.  She went for 3 hours with no accidents!!

We had a few other mishaps after that, one of which being on my freshly steam cleaned couch!!!!  Thank goodness for microfiber!! 

About 3pm I needed to shower so I locked her in the bathroom with me while I showered.  She had her little potty close by and I told her to make sure she kept her pants dry and to use the potty if she had to pee pee.

She stayed dry while I showered and then all on her own three times in a row she went potty all by herself!!  I was feeling pretty good about her abilities by then.

Daddy arrived home and made a big pot of mac n cheese for our Cha Cha couples and big kids potluck and bowling night.  I took Missy to Grandma's house while he finished up with potty in tow!!

Daddy, Peanut and I then headed to Krissy and Howard's for the potluck dinner made by all the hubbies.  We had yummy hot dogs, mac n cheese, ziti and pulled pork topped off with a yummy bundt cake compliments of Keith!

I also got to see the little pug puppies that Roxie delivered on 11/18.  They were so adorable.  I have always loved pugs, but hubby said no way to another dog in the house!!! Yes, as cute as they are the last thing we need is a puppy to add to our already crazy lives!!!

We left for the bowling alley around 8pm for dollar bowling night.  We had such a good time.  I can't bowl to save my life and really should have bumpers up because I am the gutterball queen.  The kids had a great time too.  It was so good to get them all together again.  Peanut has grown up with all of these kids and they don't see each other nearly as much as they used to when they were younger and playing baseball together.

We got home around 1030ish and promptly headed for bed.  Goodnight!!

Decking the Halls!

I slept in until about 0830 today which was such a treat.  I headed to Grandma's just before 0900 and had a yummy breakfast.  We then got all of Grandma's decorations down from the attic and put her outside lights up and then got her tree up and decorated.

Then as part of the deal she came back to our house to help me and the three little ones decorate our tree.  I put Grandma in charge of putting the lights on.  That is definitely not my gift!  We then began to decorate which was interesting with three half pints who want to put everything on their level.  Needless to say, Mommy did a little rearranging as we went.

They were all so cute as they hung each ornament they kept saying that each one was their favorite as they hung it on the tree.  We left Peanut's ornaments off for him to hang when he got home from school.

Once we finished decorating we loaded up and went to Harvest Time International to drop off bags of clothes and toys that we had collected in the garage over the last several months. 

Then Grandma stayed with the little ones while Daddy and I went on a date and to get some Christmas shopping done.  We had a nice dinner at Logan's and then hit Toys R Us to start our shopping.  We left there with lots of goodies for the kiddies to put under the tree.

Our next stop was Wal-Mart where we put the finishing touches on the shopping.  The only thing we didn't get was Missy's dollhouse which they were out of at Toys R Us.   Hopefully we will be picking that up in the next few days.

Peanut got some stocking stuffers and then Daddy is going to pick him up some tools to start his own kit to keep in his car.  His other gift is coming in the form of cash which is going towards his very expensive Senior trip!!

It was so nice to spend the evening with hubby and get the bulk of our Christmas shopping done before we even hit the month of December.

Grandma took the boys to her house once she got Missy to sleep and big brother Peanut stayed with our sleeping Princess.  Tomorrow is going to be a big day for her as it is potty boot camp day.  Her and I are going to be spending alot of time on the tile and in the bathroom.  Hopefully things go smoothly and there won't be too many messes to clean up.

The Cookie and the Christmas Tree!

Well, Missy was up at 0600 this morning and rearing to go.  She came in my room with her shoes on and climbed up in the bed.  I turned on cartoons for her so I could doze for a little bit longer and by 0700 both little boys joined in the fray.

Breakfast was next on the agenda and I decided to make oatmeal for everyone, however Woobie did not want what was on the menu and he started to whine, but then caught himself and very nicely asked if he could have something different.  I was so proud of him for stopping his negative behavior without even so much as a hint from me.  I told him how proud I was of him and that because of his wonderful self control that I would make him something different.

We headed to church and actually made it pretty much on time.  After church we headed home for lunch and each of the little ones had 2 cream wafers in hand that Aunt Ninny gave them to eat after lunch.  Of course those are mine and Peanut's favorite cookies so we were drooling over them and hoping the little ones would share.

After lunch it was time to see just how much the little ones loved us, but apparently they didn't love us more then cream wafers because no one was giving up even a morsel.  But then Woobie got up and walked over and gave me one of his two cookies.  It was so sweet that he would share with me.  I then reciprocated and gave Peanut half of my cookie.  Paying it forward!!

After lunch me and the three little ones put up the Christmas tree. This is one of the old trees that we have had since Peanut was about a year old and has to put together branch by branch and is not prelit like the trees of today.  They all did really well at taking turns and helping put all the branches on the tree.

 When we finished it was time to load up and head to the grocery store.  With all four kids in tow we ran up to Publix to buy a few roasted chickens to go with the other leftovers from Turkey Day.

We arrived home just in time for Grandma and Grandpa to arrive back from their trip to NC.  They came over to have dinner with us and then took the three little ones back to their house for a sleepover which meant a little down time for me and Daddy for the rest of the evening.

All in all a pretty good day!

The Kickolator, the Vet and the Wal-Mart Trip!!!

I awoke this morning to find that Noni's hotspot that I had been treating was getting worse so I decided it ws time to take her to the vet.  Schnooky tagged along with me to keep me and Noni company.

Before we left Missy was trying to pinch Schnooky and he tried to kick her.  I told him that it wasn't nice to kick his sister and that she needed to be nice to her brother.  Schnooky then announced that his foot was called "The kickolator and that's why you should never get near it because it might come out".  Where does he come up with these things????

We waited about 45 minutes before being called back to see the doctor.  It took 3 of us to get a muzzle on her so that she didn't eat the doctor when he was trying to shave her tail and clean the area.  I felt so bad for her.  I know it had to really hurt her.  They got the area shaved and cleaned and then gave her a shot of antibiotics and steroids.  After they shaved her tail, Schnooky asked, "Is Noni a poodle now"?  So funny!!!

One hour and $228.76 later we were on our way home.  Schnooky was so good the whole time.  He sat so nicely and didn't run around or anything.  He was thrilled when they gave him a lollipop before we left.

I was not too happy about the steroid shot as that usually makes her a drinking peeing machine.  I totally forgot to tell them that when we first got in the room.  We shall see how it goes.  They also want me to give her an oral antibiotic 3 times a day.  Ouch!!  I usually come close to losing a few fingers when I have to shove pills down her throat.  She has gotten too smart and doesn't fall for the whip cream or peanut butter trick anymore.

When we got back home I attempted to unpack all of the Christmas boxes with a little help from some friends of course.  Woobie and Schnooky helped me unpack while Missy played in the family room with Daddy.

A little after 3pm we decided to load up the wild children and the teenager and head to Wal-Mart for them to look down the toy aisles and make their lists.  We told them they could choose 5 toys each to put on their lists.  We went down the aisles once and then let them go down a second time and then decide on their 5 items.  It was fun to watch them make up their minds.  We of course censored what went on their lists.  Peanut is only getting one thing for Christmas and that is money for his Senior Trip coming up in March!!!

We then went to have dinner at Just Pizza before running by Aldi's to pick up some groceries. Missy fell asleep on the way home. We got back home around 7pm and I tucked Missy into her bed and and then we let the boys go outside and look at the Christmas lights before tucking them in for the night.  They always love to go out and look at the lights before bedtime.

Daddy went to bed a little before 10pm as he had to work at the crack of dawn on Sunday.  I stayed up until about 11pm catching up with my 19 Kids and Counting episodes and blogging.

Not so self cleaning ovens and Christmas Lights!!!

Today dawned very sluggish for me.  I guess I still had that turkey tryptophan syndrome or something.  Grandpa Rob left a little after 0800 to head back to Bradenton.

 I then decided to clean the oven as I had spilled a bunch of turkey juice in it on Thursday.  Big Mistake!!!  About 20 minutes after it started dark brown smoke started pouring out of the vent.  Then we noticed that there was actually a fire in the oven because of all of the turkey juice that was being burned off.  The brown smoke started to discolor the stove and I decided to stop it.  Too late though as it permanently discolored the burner knobs and took the paint off.  Leave it to me to pull off such an enormous misadventure!!

Needless to say, when the oven cooled and I was able to open it that it was black with soot.  I will be investing in some Easy Off oven cleaner at my first opportunity.  Also, due to the toxic smell that resulted we had to open up all the doors and vacate the premises.

It worked out well though because Daddy was working on the outside lights so we made it a day of fresh air and fun times helping Daddy and Peanut put up the Christmas lights.

We had a repeat of last night's dinner for dinner and then put the young ones to bed and I followed pretty closely thereafter as I was just wooped. I was tucked into bed by 8pm.

Thanksgiving Gift!

We started the day bright and early and got breakfast out of the way because I had a bird to put in the oven by about 0800 for a 2pm dinner time. 

I do so despise touching raw meat especially raw poultry, but I managed to pull the neck and gizzards out of the cold dead bird and get it stuffed and in the oven just after 0800.  I then proceeded to bleach the sink and the surrounding counter to prevent any contamination!!!

Nana, Papaw and Aunt Jennie arrived about 0930 to join in the festivities.  The kids were so excited to see them.  They came bearing some very large gifts for Christmas as well.  They let the kids each open one package each which they were thrilled about. 

The kids went out with Daddy, Grandpa Rob, Aunt Jennie and Nana to play for a while while I continued with preparations for dinner.  The table was set with my Christmas dishes and our Christmas table cloth and fun napkin holders.  I do love my Christmas dishes.  We even managed to get all 12 of us in the same room by adding our little card table to the end of the big table.  It was perfect.

The bird was finished about 130pm and then it was crunch time to get everything else ready and everything on the table while it was still hot.  A feat that is very hard to accomplish I must say.  Aunt Linny and Uncle Smitty arrived just in time for Aunt Linny to whip up the turkey gravy.  She brought her mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes which was a great help!

Dinner turned out great.  The turkey was moist and juicy and everything was good and hot!  It was such a blessing to have our family with us to celebrate this Thanksgiving Day 2010.

Dessert time was a big hit too.  Pumpkin pie was the sweet of choice.  Some had it with cool whip and some with ice cream.  It was the perfect end to dinner! 

We visited for a while after dinner and then it was time for Nana, Papaw and Aunt Jennie to head back to Bradenton.  Shortly after that Aunt Linny and Uncle Smitty headed out as well.   We got all the little ones ready for bed and tucked them in after the long fun day.

Grandpa Rob, Daddy, Peanut and I watched a movie together and then it was bedtime for all!  It was a great day of family fun and memories!

Thanksgiving Eve

Today dawned early as most every day does in our house with three early risers!!  We had breakfast and then I commenced to change everyone's sheets, vacuum, clean bathrooms, etc.  The little ones helped a bit and then played until I was done.

Around 11ish I was going stir crazy and decided to load up all 4 kids and go get some lunch!  The kids were chanting in the backseat to go to the new pizza place, so after taking a brief detour to Firehouse Subs for Peanut we were off to Just Pizza for some pizza pie!!

Daddy called while we were there to report that he was on his way home, which was a nice surprise as I was not expecting him until 5:00pm or so.  I dropped the 3 boys off at home with Daddy and then me and Missy went to Kohl's to return my "old lady" shirts that I bought last week and look for some more hip up to date styles instead!!!  Thanks Bob!!! :)  We cruised by Publix for some much needed diapers on the way home.  Hoping to try and get Missy through potty boot camp next week!

When we got home Grandpa Rob was waiting for us.  Missy Miss was so excited to see him when we walked in.  She was quite a Grandpa's girl while he was here.  Sweet to see her with my Daddy!!!

We went outside for a while after Daddy finished mowing and the boys played baseball while Schnooky and Missy played on the lawn mower and the playground.  Of course the time outside would not have been complete without Missy playing in the dirt.  My little princess is quite the dirt monster!!!

So it was bathes for everyone when we came in and then time to make dinner!  We had a very tasty steak, potato and broccoli dinner of which the children ate none of pretty much!!  They had peanut butter and jelly, cheese and raisins instead.  So picky they are!!  I will be glad when they outgrow this picky eating stage for sure.  I know I could be tough and make them eat what is served, but there are times when they just won't eat anything and they are so tiny to begin with it is hard to make them starve to prove a point!!!!

Bedtime went pretty smoothly and then it was peace and quiet for the grown ups.  We all took it easy and watched a little TV and then called it a night about 10pm!!

My Last Day!

Well, today was my last day at MC.  As of 730pm I closed the door for the last time and left behind my key and labcoats.  It was rather anticlimactic really.  I hugged everyone with promises to come and see them soon to make sure that everyone was behaving and walked to my car.

That was it.  Almost 5 years of my life were spent inside that little cubbyhole with the Picaso painting that my 2 year old could have conceivably painted.  I used to always joke with patient's all the time when they would comment about that painting and say how beautiful it was and ask who painted it.

I hit the grocery store on the way home to buy the perfect turkey and all the trimmings so that I didn't have to drag all of the young ones with me the next day to accomplish the task and hopefully avoid the last minute shoppers.  Almost $90 later I left.  I obviously didn't have my calculator and coupons on hand for that trip.  Won't be caught doing that again.  There went the grocery budget.  Hope the leftovers last a while!!!

I arrived home around 9pm and unloaded all of my goodies including my 20 lb Butterball turkey!!  Can't wait to cook that baby on Thursday.  Hopefully it will be nice and juicy!!

And for now I bid you goodnight!!  Tomorrow will be a crazy day of cleaning and getting ready for a house full of people on Turkey Day!!!

UCF Baseball!

Well last night I started to get sick!  Stuffy nose, sorethroat, earache.  Yuck!! I hate being sick.  I haven't been sick in almost a year and the timing couldn't be worse.  I was going with Peanut this morning to UCF and then I have to work my last two days at MC on Monday and Tuesday and then I am having a house full of people for Turkey Day!!!

Needless to say, at 0200 this am I couldn't breath and my throat was killing me so I popped a Mucinex D and a couple of Ibuprofen.  By 0400 I could breath, but now I couldn't sleep because I was wired on Mucinex D and having leg cramps.

I finally got up about 0620 to rouse the teenager so we could leave for UCF about 0700.  Missy woke up about 5 minutes later and insisted on having her light on in her room.  I went to get ready to go and the next thing I hear is fussing coming from her room and there is Schnooky sitting in her little rocking chair!  Missy had gone in and woken him up!!!  In a flash Woobie was up as well. 

Grandma arrived about 0650 to watch the little ones so Peanut and I could head down the road.  We stopped at Mobil for a Vitamin Water chocked full of Vitamin C and Zinc to help combat my cold and then hopped on 417 UCF bound.

We hit campus 30 minutes early and pulled into McD's for a bite to eat before going on to the baseball stadium.  Peanut warmed up in the batting cages with his team and then they took to the field to stretch and warm up. 

He then parked himself in the dugout until it was his turn to warm up in the bullpen to pitch.  His time finally came for the last 3 innings.  He did really well.  He struck out his first batter, threw another one out at first, picked off another one trying to steal second.  He was the only pitcher the entire game that successfully picked off a runner.  He got several more strike outs in subsequent innings and all in all finished strong!!!

Now we wait and see if they took a liking to him or not.  After shaking all the coaches hands and thanking them we hit the road and made it to church about 1130 to help Grandma with the kids.

I was beginning to feel really yucky again as my drugs were wearing off.  We took the littles back to Grandma's for lunch and then Grandma took the boys outside while I attempted to get Missy to take a nap with me.  She sat quiet while I read her a few stories, but then I could hardly keep my eyes open and she sat and looked at books while I dozed.

When Grandma came in with the boys we put movies in for all of them and I went and took a short nap to try and regain some energy!

Dinner was fairly uneventful except for Schnooky's meltdown about where he wanted to sit for dinner, but all in all a relatively relaxing evening meal. 

I tucked Missy into bed after that and she was out in less than 2 minutes.  She too is coming down with a cold so she was good and ready for bed especially since she had been up since the crack of dawn.

Daddy read the boys stories and then Grandma went and laid down with them and we headed home to call it a night.  I paid some bills and helped Peanut apply to USF before sitting down to catch up my blog.

And now I am taking my weary snotty self to bed!!!

Party Time!!

Today marked the end of the little boys first Tball season.  They had their game at 0900 and then there was a little party afterwards at the playground to give them all their trophies.  They were so proud of their little trophies.  They ran around and played with their friends for a while

and ate cookies and donuts.

Grandma came and picked up all three of the munchkins around 1100 so I could go to work for about 4 hours and Daddy went to be with

Peanut at the UCF Baseball Prospect Camp.  I had to work for a while

so that Kathleen could work for me on Sunday so I could be with Peanut on day 2 of his camp.  Someone had originally picked up my Sunday shift, but due to illness was not able to work so I had to strike a deal with my dear Kathleen to work a chunk out of the middle of the day.  She was gracious enough to work in the morning, then take off for 4 hours and come back to close the clinic because I had to pick up the little ones before Grandma and Grandpa went to church.  I told you we have a crazy wonderful life.

I met the kids at Little Gym where they had been invited to their little friend Joey's birthday party.  They had a blast running and jumping and rolling around all over the place.  We finished off the party with Chick fil a chicken strips, cupcakes and icecream.  What could be better!  Mommy even got to have some chicken strips and a couple of bites of the boys cupcakes.  Missy gobbled hers all up.  Not even a crumb left for evidence.

They really had a great time. I enjoyed chatting

with the other moms too.  We arrived home in time for a little more munching on some crackers and then it was off to bed for everyone.  I first had to pry the trophies from the boys hands and put them on a shelf.  I told them it would not be good to sleep with their trophies as they may roll over on them and they could break! They finally agreed and then it was off to dream land!!

 They were one tired out bunch and so was mommy!

And these are the days of our lives!

A recap of the events of the week shall follow here.  I tell you the days of my life just seem to fly by and there is just not enough time in the days to accomplish all that I would like to get done including blogging.

11/14/10-We headed to church almost on time today.  After church we went back to Grandma's and had lunch and then we played a fun game of baseball in the backyard with Miss Judy as the star pitcher.  Everyone had a great time. 

When Woobie was up to bat he announced that he was pretending to be 18 and then Schnooky piped up and said he was pretending to be 101.  Definitely the oldest baseball player on record I am sure!!!  They had fun hitting and running the bases.  Even Grandma, Missy and I got to take a couple of hits too.

We had a nice Sunday dinner with some very yummy Roast and all the fixings.  The littles stayed overnight with Grandma and Grandpa and I headed home to Peak 8!

11/16/10-Today I went to Florida South to have my hospital orientation for the credentialling process.  I got fit test for my TB mask and even got my badge!  The picture didn't turn out too bad either. 

I got home a little before 2pm and then we loaded up the kiddies and headed to Kohl's for a little shopping for Grandma and I.  I got what I thought were two really cute shirts with my Kohl's cash only to be told later by Bob and then confirmed by my Cha's that they looked like old lady shirts.  So now I can't bring myself to wear them and will be taking them back at my first opportunity!  Thanks guys, I think!!!

The girls arrived around 6pm for our walk before Bible Study and the kidlets stayed with Papa for the night.  We were missing Krissy and Aunt Ninny, but we had a good time diving into Romans!  It is so great to be able to fellowship with such beautiful Christian women who have the same desire that I do to grow in my walk with Christ!

11/17/10-This morning I got up and got the house ready for the carpet cleaners to come this afternoon.   I went a little after 1100 to Mom's to have lunch with the kids.  Then I headed back home to wait for the carpet cleaners.  Mom arrived with the kids about 1pm to stay at the house while I took Woobie for his followup appointment with the ENT.  I took Schnooky with me and Missy stayed with Grandma and napped. 

The ENT appointment went well and it was decided that avoiding wheat and corn wasn't a big deal.  The two foods he tested positive for were milk and eggs.  He has been doing a lot better on the Nasonex so we are going to slowly reintroduce milk and eggs and see if they cause him to get all stuffed up or not.

We got back home around 230pm and then the boys went to Wacky Wednesday.  I brought Missy up a little later after she woke up.  Peanut came home around 5pm and then I took all the kids to the new pizza place in town called Just Pizza.  Definitely wasn't going to try and have dinner at home as there were several chairs in the kitchen along with a large ficus tree that were waiting to be put back when the carpets finished drying.

We had a nice time at the pizza place.  The pizza was very yummy and we saw several people from Lakeside there as well.  Peanut is applying for a job there to augment his current income.  It would be great if he gets the job.

We got home a little after 7pm and it was time for the bedtime shuffle.  The boys went down pretty well, but Missy was in no hurry to go to sleep due to her late afternoon nap.  So I put on Dora and let her chill on the couch until about 9pm.  When I was getting Missy's jammies on she wanted to wear her Tinker Bell nightgown.  I mistakenly called them jammies and she corrected me by saying, "They're not jammies, they're a nightgown".  I stood corrected!!!
Daddy got home from his rescheduled Bible Study about the time I got Missy to sleep.  I then worked on some computer training modules for my credentialling until it was time for bed.

11/18/10- Work, work, work!!  Need I say more!

11/19/10- Work again, but I got a nice treat and Daddy and the kidlets came and met me and Kathleen for lunch at Tijuana Flats.  It was a nice touch to my otherwise same old day!!!

Farewell Party

We were up bright and early today for a 0900 tball game.  The boys are really enjoying game days.  They are usually up and dressed in their uniforms before 0700 and today was no different. 

After the game we went to Subway to celebrate and then we dropped Daddy and Peanut off at home and Grandma and I took the littles shopping at Kohl's.  Missy was in desparate need of some new clothes.  All of her winter clothes from last year are getting too short.  Grandma entertained the boys while I shopped with Missy Miss. 

I had to be careful not to get her too close to the shelves of clothes because she would try and knock all of the clothes off with her Tinker Bell doll and then when I told her not to do it, she would say "Tinker Bell did it!"  Little booger!!

I got her a lot of really cute clothes and stayed within the budget!!  I also picked up a few Christmas presents for some folks too.  It is never too early to start shopping when you get a good deal.

We got home in time for me to get ready for my farewell party with my MC friends.  They arranged for us to go to Brio's in Winter Park Village for dinner and fellowship.  Daddy got back from umpiring shortly before it was time to leave and took over parental supervision.

I arrived to Brio's a little after 630pm to 11 of my dear colleagues/friends to wish me farewell.  I was so moved by the gesture.  They paid for my dinner and gave me such nice cards and gifts.  My dear friend and fellow Clinic Lead gave me a beautiful leather business card holder and Cynthia gave me a beautiful harvest basket full of goodies.  My long time friend from NP school, Dawn even made me some of her homemade Chili frozen in a cooler!!  Yummy!!!

We talked and ate yummy Italian food.  I got lots of photos to remember my friends and hope to stay in touch with everyone.  We all left about 9pm and a good time was had by all.

Back on the homefront Daddy reported a funny incident when Schnooky and Missy were playing in her room and he came out and announced for Daddy to come and look what they had done in Missy's room.  He of course was thinking the worst, but when he came on the scene Schnooky said "Look we cleaned up" and everything was put away.  He and Missy then proceeded to clean up the family room as well.  They are definitely my little worker bees.

Subarctic Tball, Urgent Care and Crazy Chickens!!!

Well, another week has gone by and here I am at Friday again. Just going to hit the highlights to get caught up.

11/6/10-The boys had a very cold Tball game this morning. It was barely 40 degrees.  Poor Schnooky played one inning and then sat out for an entire inning on my lap covered in a blanket and then for the 3rd inning big brother talked him into getting back out in the field.  We went to celebrate at Subway for a change of menu. We got home around 1130 and then Daddy left a little after noon to umpire a baseball game.  It turned out to be the world's longest game in history! I in the meantime stayed home with the munchkins.

11/7/10-We went to church and then back to Grandma's for lunch.  I left the little ones with Grandma and took Mr. Peanut to the Urgent Care because I was concerned about a possible MRSA infection in his knee and he was complaining of left shouder pain.  The boy is falling apart at only 18 years old!!!  He has been started on antibiotics and we will go see my buddy at Jewitt Orthopedic for his shoulder. 

 While waiting for the prescription to be filled we went and had the oil changed in the Sedona.  They also checked the cabin air filter, which by the way I didn't even know existed and have never been asked to have  inspected before.  It is located behind my glove box and filters the air coming into the van. Let me just say that disgusting is not even a good enough description of what that thing looked like when he pulled it out. It was pitch black and had stuff growing in it!!!  Oh my goodness!!!  Needless to say I gladly paid the $40 to have a new one put in!!  I took the old one home to show hubby so it didn't think I was crazy for spending that kind of money on an air filter!!!

11/8/10-Work work work!!!  Not much else to say about today!

11/9/10- We loaded up the kiddies and headed to Volusia County Fairgrounds to meet some other homeschool folks and tour around the grounds before it was open to the public.  The livestock pavillion was quite interesting.  I had no idea there were that many varieties of chickens. Some of them were quite interesting. 

We also saw brand new chicks just hatched as well as the world's largest rabbit, guinea pigs, turkey, ducks, pigs, cows and the most pathetic looking sheep I have ever seen (they had just been sheered).  The poor sheep looked so dejected without their big wool coats!!!  We also got to pet a little calf and see a big model train exhibit complete with Thomas!!!

We left the fairgrounds around 1030 and went with Miss Amanda and her girls to Chick-fil-a.  The kids all ate lunch and then played on the playground while I

sat in the van and participated in a phone interview about allergic rhinitis.  I am getting $150 bucks for a 50 minute interview. Not to shabby!!!

We arrived home about 1240 or so and Missy was fast asleep in the car.  I put her in her bed and she slept until 330.  The boys chilled on the couch and watched a movie for a little while and I went through my drawers and got rid of more clothes and put away every stitch of clean laundry I had laying around.  It was such a great feeling to have my drawers organized and everything in it's place.  When Missy woke up we headed to Grandma's for dinner

and then the ChaCha's arrived for our Tuesday

night walk and Bible Study.  Grandma stayed

 with the little ones while we walked and got

them ready for bed.

The boys went to sleep pretty easily, but Missy was rearing to go after a 3 hour nap.  We let her stay up with us during our Bible study.  At one point she disappeared into the boys room and I went to look for her and found her trying to pull Woobie out of his bed by his feet.  I told her she shouldn't be doing that and she looked at me and said, "I want him to wake up".  Too funny.  She probably would have had him half way out of the bed if I hadn't come in when I did.

11/10/10- I had to leave at 0730 this morning to drive all the way to Waterford Lakes for work this morning.  Not happy about the hour commute at all.  Good thing I won't be doing that again!!!  I did get the nice surprise of being able to have lunch with my good friend Dawn whom I have known since my MSN days at UCF.  She is a very dear friend to me and I will miss her when I have left MC.  She was so sweet and treated me to lunch at Giovanni's. Yummy Ziti and great company. Who could ask for a better day.  I know we will stay in touch always.  We have remained close friends even before I drafted her to come and work at MC.  I am her "Gooberly"!!!

To add to the excitement of my day I received a call from Peanut to report that his knee seemed to be getting worse so I sent him back to the Urgent Care where they performed a little surgery and drained his wound.  We are waiting to get the results of the wound culture! He was none too happy with me for not warning him about that possibility, but I didn't want him to stress about it before he got there.  To add insult to injury I then sent him to see my buddy at Jewitt Orthopedic and he diagnosed him with a shoulder impingement injury for lifting weights and gave him a steroid shot in his shoulder!!  Yikes!!!  This by the way is a boy who does not like needles and trys to talk his way out of a flu shot every year!!!

11/11/10-Another day of work for me today and what a busy busy busy day it was.  I had a nice break for lunch and met my hubby and fellow MC colleague, Kathleen at Qdoba for lunch which was great.  I am hooked on the Mexican Gumbo!!!  Way too many calories consumed by both me and hubby though for sure, but oh was it good!!!  I finished the day after 8pm which I haven't done in forever.  I had patient's all the way to the bitter end and no time to get all of my closing duties done earlier.  Oh well,  pretty soon most of my days will end by about 5 and I can be home with my family for dinner!!!

11/12/10-We all got up a little after 0700 this morning and everyone was hungry,hungry!!!  We polished off breakfast by 0800 or so and then Daddy left for a short trip to work.  We had worship and then I set the playhut up for the kids while I made the grocery list.  Daddy came home around noon with another calorie laden meal from Krystal's.  I take all of the blame, however because I was the one who suggested it.  Who knew 5 little Krystal burgers would be 800 calories!!!  I am officially done with the high calorie meals for a while!!!  The boys discovered and old baseball movie in the entertainment center called Rookie of the Year and wanted to watch it.  They absolutely loved it.  Their eyes were glued to the set the whole time.  So cute how much they love baseball!!! 

Missy and I hit the grocery stores while Daddy stayed home with the boys.  Daddy promised the boys a private tball practice the other day which they did not forget about!!!  They have memories like Elephants, however, it is a selective memory because they have trouble remembering not to use the couch like a trampoline or wrestling mat or remembering to flush the toilet,etc. 

During our shopping I came across a Tinker Bell doll that I could not resist

getting for Missy.  She just absolutely loves Tinker Bell.  I took some pics

with my phone camera. She was so proud!! I picked up some matchbox cars for the boys too!!!

Missy and I returned from grocery shopping just in time for Daddy to leave to help move some furniture for a friend of my parents.  Have I mentioned that we are all too often like two ships passing in the night!!!  I tell you sometimes it feels like that for sure!!!

I fed the munchkins before Daddy got home and then it was time to tuck everyone in for the night.  We brushed teeth and read stories.  Hugs and kisses all around and then it was goodnight!!! Well, at least goodnight for Schnooky.  Woobie and Missy weren't quite as easy to convince. 

I went out to do my Peak 8 training with Noni and thought for sure Missy would have been asleep when I came back, but no way.  Finally, got both her and Woobie to sleep by about 8pm.  Then just a few minutes ago at about 840 or so Schnooky woke up crying and carrying on.  He wouldn't tell us what was bothering him.  Finally, after we ascertained that he didn't need to pee and nothing was hurting we had to just let him work it out.  He settled down and had a drink of juice and is presently crashed on our bed.

Quick update on Woobie and his allergies.  We broke the news to him about no milk, bread or eggs last week and he is really taking it pretty well.  I can't say we have been able to completely avoid wheat, but my little moo cow has not had milk for a week.  He is such a trooper.  Every now and then he asks when he will be able to have milk again, but he doesn't complain when all he gets offered is water or juice!!!  I tell you of all of my children, God knew that he would be the best with taking meds, shots, avoiding foods etc.  I thank God every day when he takes his mineral oil straight down his gullet and when he goes for his shots and rarely complains and now he has handled the food avoidance thing like a champ!!!  Hopefully, he won't have to avoid the foods forever!!!

Never a dull moment around here that is for sure!!!

The Week In Review

The week has just flown by.  Late Sunday night (10/31) Woobie came down with a fever and sorethroat.  He was under the weather with a fever off and on all day Monday (11/1) so we took him to the MC that evening and he had strep again!!!  So we had to put him on antibiotics again just short of one month since he had it last!  Ugh!!  I hate antibiotics!!  Hopefully this will be the end of it for good!!

We didn't get home until after 7pm that night and got everyone settled down.  I gave Woobie his Nasonex and he reminded me that I hadn't given it to him the night before and I said, "I know, I forgot", to which he replied, "I would have reminded you, but I didn't remember".  Priceless!

Tuesday (11/2) it was just me and the munchkins and boy were they wild!!  They had more energy then the energizer bunny.  They kept asking for Aunt Krissy at lunch time and so I gave her a call and she came over to visit.  The kids were so excited to see her. 
 
We put on some Scripture Rock and let them dance around the family room and burn off some excess energy.  Aunt Krissy even got Missy to sit still and let her make her hair pretty. 

Grandma came over about 3ish and after Aunt Krissy left we started project clothes sorting!!  What an undertaking.  We went through everyone's drawers and passed clothes from Woobie to Schnooky and from Schnooky to Harvest Time.  Then we went through Missy's clothes and bagged the ones that she has grown out of for two little girls at church.  Finally we went through the huge box of clothes that were given to the boys by friends and separated them and got them put away.

It was quite a task, but so glad that it is done at least we are set for a little while.  The boys are set for the winter for sure.  Thank you Nick and Liam for the great duds!!  Missy on the other hand is in need of a shopping trip!!  I do love to shop!!!

Wednesday I left early to take Noni to the doggie day spa for a much needed grooming and then headed to our Seaworld clinic to meet with Miss Debita who is taking over my Clinic Lead position when I leave.  We spent a couple of hours going over all of my duties.  Then Susan met us and we had lunch. 

I got home in time to get everyone ready and head to Wacky Wednesday.  The kiddies love to go to church on Wednesday and play with their friends.  I dropped everyone off at the church and went to pick up the freshly groomed pup.  I dropped her off at home and gave daddy the van so he could pick up the boys and take them to tball practice.  I went back to the church to hang out with Missy, Grandma and Aunt Ninny.

Daddy brought the boys back about 640 pm and then we went on a date to Tijuana Flats.  It is always nice to have a nice quiet meal together and catch up. 

After we got home, Peanut and I went out to fill up his gas tank and get a McFlurry!!  A little mother/son bonding time.  He may call it nag time, but hey I have earned it!  Just want the best for him and am trying to instill all the wisdom I can before he embarks on his journey into self sufficiency!!

I worked Thursday and today.  I had a nice treat at lunch today and had Daddy and the little ones join me at Friendlys.  That place brings back memories for me.  I used to work there back when I was in high school and for a little while after I graduated.  I remember our uniforms were like polyester checked tableclothes with little blue aprons.  Now they of course wear polos and pants.  I do still love their food and topping off my meal with a happy ending sundae.  The kids ate well too and got some cream cream too.

Also, we heard from the ENT office about Woobie's allergy tests.  He is supposed to avoid corn, wheat, eggs, milk and soy until we see her on 11/17. The poor boy lives on milk, eggs and wheat!!!  He is going to starve!!!  He is also allergic to more weeds and trees than he is currently be treated for!!!  Poor little guy!!!

Well, I am up to date!!  Peace out!!