ever wonder...

what it is like to get 5 children to participate in photo-taking?

clothes

the gals

Our good friends, Dede and Ed came for a visit this Thanksgiving weekend. We loved seeing you! We missed all the gals that couldn't make it to the party, that was thrown by Leesa and her family. I miss the girls nights. I looked forward to them each month. That maybe a resolution of 2009...to get the gals together more often. :)

On a separate note...
Jacob has a funny way about expressing himself about food. Usually when I make it, his funny-isms consist of "This is the worst food I ever tasted." or "there's not one good thing about this food." Yesterday he stung us again. Clyde had made this wonderful beef gravy, strognaff dish and served it w/ au gratin potatoes. Jacob gets up from the table and says, "Dad, this food gives me diarrhea!" as he goes into the bathroom. Oh...the sting! I am still laughing about his comment. (Should we tell Jacob that it was all the pears he ate @ Bubbie's house that upset his tummy? He wouldn't believe us if we tried. Nothing can go wrong @ his Bubbie's house!)

thanksgiving fun

Happy Thanksgiving! We went to my folks house for some family fun. Not all of my siblings and families were there, but we enjoyed the few that made it! After lunch we went outside to help feed the horses. Slim and Fly were out in the pasture, so Bubbie loaded up the wheel barrow with hay and grain and gave Jacob and Penny a ride over to feed the horses. They loved it! We had a blast!
The Wardlings stayed @ my folks' house Thanksgiving nite, so that we could go shopping this morning. (Our original babysitting plans fell through@ the last moment. Thankfully Mom and Dad said that the Wardlings could spend the nite.) Clyde and I were up before dawn to hit the stores. What mayhem! We were successful in our determination to get what we went for. Again, what mayhem and foolish behavior on some people's part! We had fun going from store to store and going out on a breakfast date. I just love spending alone time with my Clyde!
When it was time to get the Wardlings, we found them all done up...boys included! They all had rubber bands in their hair. Some in mohawks, others randomly spiking out, while others had little tiny twisty knots in their hair. The Wardlings had such fun @ Bubbie and Pop Pop's house!
We hope that you had just as much Thanksgiving fun as we did!

hayride

'play' fighting

Last night, I happened to be chatting with Maylee on the phone when I heard a huge bang. Penny has picked up on how much fun it is to slam doors. So, when I heard the slam, I thought that it was Penny slamming the bathroom door shut. Within a few seconds of hearing the slam, I heard crying. Not a good combo. It turns out that Penny didn't slam the door, but Jacob had hit his head. After some prying, it appears, that Josh and Jacob were 'play' fighting and Jacob went to kick Josh. Josh grabbed Jacob's foot and by doing so, Jacob lost his balance and came crashing down on the hard floor. After comforting him, keeping him awake, and making him ice packs, he began to complain of fuzzy vision and within 5 minutes or so he was standing over the toilet complaining that he was going to throw-up. That's when I called our pediatrician to see what I needed to do. It was advised that we take him into the ER. Now, here's where it gets tricky...Clyde accidentally took my keys to work with him yesterday. (He had already started his car and needed to get into the trunk, so he used my keys and put them in his pocket and drove off with them. yippee!)

I called my sister to see if she was home and if she could come over to sit with the other Wardlings and let me use her car to take Jacob to the ER. She was here in about 5 minutes. (Thank YOU!!) She walked in handed me her keys, I got Jacob's carseat in her car, along with Jacob and we were o.f.t to the hospital.

It must have been a light nite @ the hospital, because there weren't tons of people there. We checked in, sat in the lobby, and Jacob looks at me and says. "I'm going to frow up." leans over the chair and proceeds to throw up all over the floor. MMM...wheat pancakes! We got some 'ew...s out of the people waiting and when the nurse asked why he was there, I told him that he had hit his head. We were immediately taken into another room and vitals taken. We were then taken back to the pediatric wing, where he was given some Zofran to settle his tummy. Within 30 min. or so, we were seen by the ER pediatrician and then another 30 minutes later we were taken back to have a CT scan. Then it was the waiting game. Really it wasn't more than 45 minutes of so. Long story to say that he has a mild concussion, but he is fine. No skull damage or brain damage, no hemorrhaging. All good news...except for the concussion that is. He was to take it easy and we were to wake him up @ least once during the night to make sure he was fine.

Meanwhile...I had been trying to get ahold of Clyde on his cell, but there was no answer. He was @ a basketball game with no reception. I texted him several times, to no response. He didn't find out about what happened until after the game, to which he was flying home to get to us. We were trying to call each other from either the road or hospital but no cell phone reception. Thank goodness for texts! He did make it to the hospital in time to check out and take Jacob home. Ricky, Clyde's brother and girlfriend Myra came over to sit with the Wardlings, while Clyde and Raegen drove to the hospital. (Raegen was getting her car.) Thanks again to Raegen, Ricky, and Myra!

So, we had a busy nite last night, but thankfully Jacob is fine...taking it slow, but just fine.

singing

primary program

Today was our Ward's annual Primary Program. I think that it went really well, with all the children singing their hearts out and saying their lines, some even memorizing them. I really enjoy Primary programs. It is so sweet to see the children up on the stand in those big chairs wiggling away. Their messages have always been touching. I have been thankful to have been apart of the Primary program in our ward, for the past 4 years. I am glad though that the stress is gone about the preparations, line changes, music changes, seating arrangements, can the ctr-5 class hold pictures up? etc. Whew- it's over. :)!!

I made the girls each a new dress for today. I made Penny's back in August and have just saved it for cooler weather. I had enough fabric, left over from Penny's dress, to make Libby's jumper. A year ago or so, I taught a sewing class. One of the girls had this really pretty micro-suede embroidered fabric. I liked it so much that I went and bought some for my stash. (I waited until it went on sale and bought what was left.) It was my luck that there was enough for a skirt for Erin. I took Erin's measurements and made her skirt without a pattern! I was impressed with myself. I also made Penny's pink peasant dress and Libby's shirt under her jumper. I made Erin a cute top, but it just didn't work out. It came down too low in the front, so I'll have to adjust it before she can wear it. I wanted to make my boys each a tie, but time slipped away from me. Soon. I have promised myself that soon I'll make their ties. They are easy, I just have to do it. Soon, I say.

dresses

Twilight's opening night

I have been so excited to see this film! I know there are some who do not like the books, but I have really enjoyed them. I think my Mom and sister Raegen are #1 fan's. They got to the theater an hour or so in advance so that they could be first in line. There were some gals from other Wards in our stake who were next. They were nice enough to let me in with Mom and Raegen. Raegen ran into the theater, once they checked our stubs, so that she cold be first in to see the movie. Funny gal! I had a fun night enjoying Edward and Bella on the big screen, but mostly hanging out with Mom and Raegen. Thanks Raegen and especially Mom for a wonderful girls night out.

pete and repeat

Sorry for the repeat in pictures. Yesterday I had a hard day posting my slide show to our blog. It drove me crazy. I sat trying to figure it all out and it took nearly 2 hours. I even texted a friend who uses photobucket in hopes of figuring it out. I should learn to have patience and figure that these things would just work themselves out. All I want to do is click and have my slideshow post to my blog without any complications.

We had snow yesterday morning. It was really exciting to see the Wardlings' eyes pop, when they learned that school had been delayed. We were hoping that Libby's honor roll breakfast wouldn't be cancelled. Josh was begging to stay home from school. Jacob came down crying from his nap, telling me that he hated the sun, because it melted all the snow.

1st prize

1st place

This morning we were invited to attend Libby's Honor Roll celebration breakfast. We were all so very proud of our Libby getting on the A-B Honor Roll. Jacob, Penny, and I waited in the library for Libby to join us. When I went up to the table to make plates for Jacob and Penny, our Principal asked me where Libby was. (Our principal knows every child's name in our school AND knew that I was her mother on sight. Our old Principal knew me too, but not from a positive standpoint.) Anyway, there was another teacher serving oj and she said, "oh- this is Libby's Mom? Libby is the 5th Grade Science Fair winner." What?! I was so very happy!! When I saw Libby walk into the library with her friends, I grabbed, hugged her, and asked her if she knew that she was the winner. She told me she just found out and went to show her teacher. SO, Libby's project goes on to the county level. Go Libby!

The other teacher was concerned because she thought that someone had taken off something in the far left corner. We had left it blank because, to be honest we didn't have anything else to put there. The teacher said that we'd have to add something, but would be in touch with us. I was impressed. Libby's project won over turning lemons into electricity and another one using batteries. There was another one with fruit loops and which sugary things lead to tooth decay. We are all very proud!

multiple whitey-tighties??

The other night, Clyde and I heard the boys cackling @ the top of their lungs. This usually happens @ bedtime. It is not uncommon to yell up the stairs 5+ times to get the kids to quiet down for sleep. This is what we found...boys wearing multiple whitey-tighties on top of their PJ's. Jacob had on 3 spare pair and Josh had on @ least 4. These boys are totally goofy. (I took the picture the following morning...)

Yesterday Josh had to return to the oral surgeon to get the broken root out of his mouth. We were the 1st one to be called back, after lunch, but I noted all the other patients in the lobby. It was completely full. Why do Dr.'s do this? Why do they double and triple book their patients? Josh was a big fella, walking back all by himself. He was in the mini- surgery for about 30-40 minutes. The nurse that took him back, would tell me he was all good each time she would call a new patient back into their office. Josh came out all gauzed and stitched up. The Dr. gave Josh his choice of rewards and Josh chose this yellow, plastic change holder, to give to Jacob for all his loose change. How sweet is Josh? He is extremely thoughtful about others.

I am beginning to hate sweeping the floors. This is usually what I get once, sometimes twice or more a day. Where does the dirt come from...oh...children. Note the dirt: candy wrappers, (because taking them to the actual trash can is too hard, considering how heavy an empty candy wrapper can be), leaves, colored on paper, and yes the endless amount of crumbs. The crumbs are mainly from under the dining table. Gross!

Do you have this much dirt when you sweep your floors?

parent's panel

I have mentioned in the past that we belong to the Family Support Network here in the Emerald City. It is a group that offers support for families who have special needs children. About 2-3 weeks ago, I got an email telling the parents in the group, that our local UNCG was asking for a parents panel to talk about our IEP process, for a class of undergrad students who are wanting to become EC teachers. Well, after thinking about it for a day, I submitted my name. A week went by to no response, so I figured that the panel had been filled. A day or so later, I got an e-mail from the teacher's assistant, to whom needed the parent panel, saying that I had been selected to talk about our experiences. I was so thrilled. We have 2 children with IEP's in place and so this was my opportunity to talk about the crap we had to endure to get and IEP in place for one of our children. The years of struggling, anxiety, tears, frustration, nasty letters, etc. These issues were equal in weight after the IEP was in place, as they were before. This was my chance to put in these young sweet, dough-eyed students how we were treated, how long this journey has been and continues to be, and how not to treat others in this same boat. I was accompanied by 2 other Moms, one of which had quadruplets, with one having autism. The other mother has a young 18 month old daughter who has a rare genetic disorder which is degenerative. There are only 51 known cases of this disorder in the world. Clyde gave me about 2 minutes before I got emotional, to which I lasted 5. We Moms, each told our stories with our children and their special needs. I had something like 10+ pages of notes to share within the allotted 20 minutes. This was a wonderful opportunity, one that I think that had I not shared with others, it would have been a regret. Thanks to Michelle A. for coming over and watching the young Wardlings while they slept and opening the door for the older Wardlings after school! Thank you!

spin me a yarn

Libby's 5th grade class had a science project to complete and it was due today. We were going to get some 'help' from Erin's last year project, but decided against it. We thought for a while and thought about the different types of yarn...natural, blends, and synthetic. Then we wondered which one would shrink the most. That's what we did. I helped her out and knitted 2 swatches from the different types of yarn that I had on hand; wool, alpaca/ acrylic blend, cotton, cotton/ acrylic blend, and acrylic. Then she washed and dried one of them giving us the results. I thought it was alot of fun to felt the wool. When we dried our swatches, we didn't know that a blue crayon had been placed in the dryer. Thankfully, I had just taken out the load of semi-dry clothes to put the swatches in. The crayon melted all in the dryer and on the swatches of yarn, but not on the entire load of clothes. I flipped out when I saw the blue mess. It took awhile to get the blue out of the dryer. On the positive side, crayon melts, so I had to run the dryer long enough to re-melt the crayon and wipe it clean. This step took some time and some effort. Anyway, thanks to Michelle A., we were able to cricut the titles for the section, saving a bunch of time. I think that it turned out sweet!

drummer duel...josh style

Clyde has challenged a few of us to a duel to see which one of us can come up with the most cheesy, most awful video of the past, well the 80's. We can only use the MTV link too. While searching, I found this one and showed it to Josh. He said that he liked the group, but the "drummer wasn't as good as the drummer from the Red Hot Chili Peppers." Time to step it up fellas!

(This video doesn't count, because it was from the 90's. just fyi)

"http://media.mtvnservices.com/mgid:uma:video:mtvmusic.com:8760"

Clyde's original E-Mail
I challenge thee herewith to a battle to see who can send the most disturbing/cheesy/provocative/unwatchable/yet delightfully/sinfully/deliciously randy/salacious/outrageous/stomach-turning/mind-boggling/waste of money/train-wreck/mostly 80's/if you want to call it "music", videos. Our challenge is limited to the music videos found on www.mtvmusic.com I shall strike first and draw blood forthwith offering up as a mere sample of my deep knowledge of the cheese with this little gem:

http://webmail.triad.rr.com/do/redirect?url=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.mtvmusic.com%252Fastley_rick%252Fvideos%252F55088%252Ftogether_forever.jhtml>>

Do not engage in this battle unless you are for real. To the victor goes immortality; to the loser: whatever. It doesn't matter because I shall prevail. p.s.--And don't even think about using Cher, I already call Dibbs. Yours, Clyde

Care to Play??

PLAYERS CHOICES THUS FAR:

jamey's scruplelessness- http://www.mtvmusic.com/video/?id=204180 and http://www.mtvmusic.com/video/?id=9081 ouch!

jeremy's- http://www.mtvmusic.com/video/?id=81237

cyndie's- http://www.mtvmusic.com/video/?id=213880 and http://www.mtvmusic.com/video/?id=204184

mine- http://www.mtvmusic.com/video/?id=99039 and http://www.mtvmusic.com/video/?id=58685 (go oliva and madonna)

tracy's- http://www.mtvmusic.com/video/?id=33961 (which left clyde breathless...) and http://www.mtvmusic.com/video/?id=183023

P to the B (Peter) : http://www.mtvmusic.com/video/?id=46574

Maylee's: http://www.mtvmusic.com/video/?id=55135

clyde: http://www.mtvmusic.com/video/?id=54323

libby's solo

Last nite @ our elementary school, the 4th and 5th graders put on a show. Libby was selected to sing a solo in a song. It was so cute too. She was very brave and sang very well. Ahh...to have a beautiful singing voice. GO LIBBY!

solo

a big splash

Our yard is possibly the leafiest yard on the block. Since we are fairly new homeowners, the rake I had wasn't going to cut it for today's work. Clyde and I ran out this morning to buy a couple of rakes. I was very anxious to get the yard looking better. I suited up for work and went to raking. Josh and Jacob came out to lend a helping hand. Their job was to rake up the scragglers that were left behind. They did a good job. The boys had loads of leaf fun while jumping into the pile. Josh asked if I was going to jump in and Jacob said, "No, because she'd make a big splash." Really?!While we were raking, a neighbor came by to introduce herself and then the girls came out to help out. (They were supposed to be cleaning their room, so they couldn't come out with us @ first.) Once we said our goodbyes, we went back to work. I continued to rake and rake. Then I got out our saw to saw down a bunch of the scrawny trees and limbs that were dangling. I think I impressed the boys with the sawing. I was scooping up more leaves when I heard Jacob yell, "There's a snake!!" Sure enough there was a snake just inches away from where I just was on my hands and knees sawing away. I had Josh get the saw back out of the garage. At first I thought that the baby snake was dead, but once I prodded it to check if it was dead, it coiled up and opened its mouth. That was enough for me and I began to hack @ it and saw it up. Jacob was not happy with me. He wanted the snake as a pet. Too late! :)

p.s. When I went to upload the photos I got a few surprises...especially the one with me and the saw hacking the snake to pieces. I mean really, I was killing a snake...who would have time to say, "hey take a picture of me killing the snake!" Libby had been playing with the camera and got a few unexpected shots.

the big sweep

weekend bliss

After school on Friday, we headed down to Myrtle Beach for a weekend vacation. I am not a fan of packing everyone up and trying to remember it all. Clyde's grandmother, Bam, had come into town for a visit. Four of the five Wardlings had never met Bam before, Erin, being the only one and being 9 months old, really didn't count. I mean we did get to visit and I got to meet Bam and Papa. That was a fun Thanksgiving, 11 years ago.
We made it to our hotel late and the Wardlings were all ready for some sleep. They were still keed up from the long drive, but were very comfy in their new room for the night. The room was sweet with 2 double beds, a pull out couch and a murphy bed. We opened the balcony to a beautiful view of the ocean. Spectacular! Thank you Papa and Grammy!

This was the view from our room, Saturday morning. Libby and I snuck out to get breakfast. The Wardlings ate on the balcony looking out @ the ocean.

After breakfast we headed to one of our favorite spots in Myrtle beach...the Flea market. We walked up and down each little row with such awe. The boys got these wooden pirate swords, we haggled with a lady to get Erin a purse, we got some jewelry, apples, sunglasses and made memories. Penny was a bit grumpy because she wanted to go swim. Plus she was tired. After 2-3 hours @ the flea market we had a quick bite to eat and then it was off to Grammy and Papa's house. There we visited with them and Bam and then it was off to the park for a reunion.

There are a lot of posts and pictures of our weekend.

reunion @ the park

Saturday there was a family reunion of sorts in the park. We Wardlings, almost in entirety, joined in the festivities. We played, ate, and made statues out of playdough. Now, I am not a fan of playdough. I seem to remember a post not to long ago, titled. "death to playdough." It was fun to play with OUTSIDE! Bam suggested that we all make a statue out of playdough. So, the majority of us dug in. We gathered around the table and began to play and create. Bam said that it was hard not to make something obscene. She settled on the Angel Moroni, because it was either something obscene or the Angel Moroni, like there wasn't middle ground. We were at the park for nearly 3 hours. The Wardlings were filthy from play. I loved seeing Clyde's family and getting to play with the nieces, that we haven't seen since they left our house in February.

While we were @ the park this boy and girl, with their dog, randomly sat the table with all the food. Their dog was going crazy, because 1- he was sitting near a bucket of chicken. (the smell of it must've driven him crazy) and b- because children were running by him. The dog began to bark and kinda snap at any child, mine included who walked by him. At one point, I yelled out, in my mother voice, "Hey- watch your dog...If he hurts one of my children, I hurt the dog!" The boy and girl didn't move. They just sat right there making non smarmy remarks. If they were hungry and wanted food, then that was fine, but do not bring a feisty dog around my children. Mama bear just might attack. Anyway, after Clyde sat right beside them, they did finally wander off. What was that about? I did feel a bit embarrassed for yelling @ strangers, but I wasn't going to let this dog bite any child.

park

22 pools?

The hotel that we stayed in had 22 pools. Why 22? Don't know...maybe they are so busy during the summer that they had to come up with pools to accommodate the masses. Some of the pools were mini pools, or hot tubs, but were still counted amongst the 22. There were several lazy rivers, a few heated indoor ones and several outside. If the weather would have been warmer or if it were July, the kiddie one outside would've been the place to go. It had a submarine thingy, like a few of the parks here in the Emerald City that looked like a ton of fun. After the family party @ the park, Penny and the Wardlings were ready to go to the pool. Penny had been signing 'pool' all morning and was even a grump @ the flea market that we went to Sat. morning, just because she wanted to swim. They were all exhausted afterwards and Jacob hung his head and expressed it..."I want to go home. I don't want to swim anymore. I want these armies off..." but then ran and jumped right back in the water. What a clown.

The indoor lazy river was a hit, except with Jacob. He was afraid to swim over the things that were making the lazy river move. The older girls took turns keeping up with Penny in the water. Some girl swam by Libby and kicked her in the nose. I grabbed photos as the Wardlings swooshed by me, in the lazy river, hence their silly faces below. I forgot my swimsuit, and was feeling poopy @ that point, so getting in the water wasn't an option for me. I had fun simply watching.

Once the Wardlings were officially worn out, we took them back up to our room, dried them off, got them into pj's and tucked them into bed. Sammy was cool enough to come to our room and watch the Wardlings sleep, so that Clyde, Maylee, Jared and I could go on a double date to the delicious-o seafood buffet. All I can say is, CRAB LEGS! Yum! Maylee liked the meat but was totally grossed out by the barbaricness of breaking the legs to get the meat. Pass me the leg cracker! All worth it to me! All I ate were the crab legs. I did have to tap out after my share of them. I had begun to lose my voice by then and a cold began to settle in. It was hillarious to hear Clyde and Maylee tell werewolf stories of their childhood. We closed down the restaurant. Once we got back to the hotel, I went straight to bed...clothes & all. What a busy day!

pool fun

pj's on the beach

Sunday morning was our day to leave. We had been so busy on Saturday, that we didn't have time to go down to the beach. It woulda been a shame too, because we were right on the ocean. It was beautiful! We have a small tradition, in the regard that if the weather isn't warm enough to wear our swimsuits to the ocean, we usually go down in our pj's. We do it so that if we get wet, we have other clothes to change into. The Wardlings walked, ran, dug, & played on the beach. They found some pretty cool shells and played with a big red ball that they brought down. It was rather windy on the ocean and a bit chilly. We didn't stay on the beach for long, but we had fun watching our children have fun. Jacob being Jacob ran up onto the grassy part of the beach and christened it. That boy goes just about wherever we go. I love watching the ocean. It doesn't get old for me. I love seeing the sparkles on the water. We are all looking forward to returning soon.

beach

penny's money

Sunday morning, after we played on the beach, we checked out of the hotel and went to Grammy & Papa's house to visit with everyone and eat lunch. We all had a fun time visiting with Bam, her sister Auntie Nola, Maylee, Jared, Ricky, Myra, Sam and his family, & Papa and Grammy. What a fun filled afternoon of laughter and playing. Clyde took a small nap and was the victim to some brotherly pranking. He awoke with shaving cream in his ear and to the roaring of laughter from his brothers Ricky and Sammy. Family Fun! We loved getting to meet Bam and her sisters Aunties Nola and Aloa. This was such a memorable visit. Now when we talk about Bam, our Wardlings will have a a memory and can think about her. Spectacular!

Penny had a fun time playing cash register with Bam. Bam gave her a dollar and a hand full of change to put in the register. Penny carried the register around and continued to show Bam the money. Penny is on such a routine that when it was naptime, she climbed up on the couch in between Bam and me and fell asleep. She rested her head on Bam, holding her money in her hand. How sweet!

@ Grammy

not so hellish

now that we are where we need to be, this weekend hasn't been as hellish as i thought it would be. just an update. i just hate getting things together and organizing and making sure that we have everything. i need to write things down and make a list, because i forgot my swimsuit, q-tips, and toothpaste. we have had a great time, doing what we like to do and waiting for no one. sounds selfish not to wait for people, but if we waited that all we'd do, is wait...and who wants to do that?

salt to an opened wound

So, I have about a gazillion things that I need to do today. A gazillion I say. ( I don't want to do them, so I am sincerely stalling.) The first order of business this morning, was taking the boy Wardlings back to the dentist. Our appointment was an early appointment. We waited and waited for an hour past our appointment time, when I went to the receptionist and told her that we were @ the hour mark and if it was much longer, I WAS GOING TO SCREAM MY HEAD OFF...not really but, that's what I was thinking. I told her that we'd have to reschedule, but in a very upset tone. I mean really, in the world of dr.'s offices, is the wait necessary? I have AN APPOINTMENT. If I am 15 minutes late, then we are asked to reschedule. I think that in the reverse situation, they should not make you pay for your visit or simply pay you for the time lost, @ their going rate. That shoulda been a clue as what this appointment would be like. We finally get back to our private room this time, where Josh has to have his two lower k-9 teeth removed, (Remember...big teeth, little mouths?) to allow for his permanent lower 4 to have room to sufficiently come in. One of his teeth came out sweetly. The other one, however, didn't. The tooth came out, but the root cracked and broke, leaving it in his gum. He had to have an x-ray to see if the root was just short or if it was lodged in his gum. It was broken and stuck. The dentist pryed and pryed, giving him 2 more shots to completely numb the spot, to no success. She referred us to an oral surgeon to get the root out. And- when I called the oral surgeon, their office is closed on Fridays. Of course...add salt to an opened wound. Thankfully we got an Rx for some antibiotics and some tylenol avec codeine, to help with any discomfort. Josh was a good sport, considering he had 2 non wiggly teeth pulled this morning.

Then it was Jacob's turn. He had to have a facial filling and usually is quite the grump, requiring a papoose. He did just fine, once the laughing gas took effect. Meanwhile, Plus one and Penny were @ their wits end. Plus one didn't stop interrupting or SCREAMING & crying while we were waiting. I thought that this appointment would go just as smoothly as the last. I WAS WRONG! way wrong for that matter. Penny was exhausted, since we were still there @ the peek of her usual nap time, so the overdrive of wiggles has set in. She was also climbing on everything with and without wheels that she could.

Thankfully we are all home, now, with 3 fourths of the children currently napping. This will hopefully allow me some time to run around like a seriously mad woman to prepare for our upcoming weekend of hell. That's right hell. I am looking forward to a few fun events of this weekend, but it is the never ending drama and stress that will most certainly weigh it down, as it usually does. Why are things so complicated? Why does there have to be so much drama, and in most cases simply for drama's sake? Why can't things go smoothly and uneventfully? You know, no broken bones, garage doors working as they should, finding that matching sock that has been MIA, and complete teeth coming out in their entirety? Do I think that this is just some spice to add flavor? Yes, but sometimes, I like life bland, plain, and simple. And I'm off...

rebirth of george washington

Clyde's 8th grade class had a field trip here to the Emerald City to visit the museum of history. To make the day more complete, Clyde wanted to dress-up like George Washington. Thankfully, we have a lovely friend who owns a costume shop and she let us borrow a costume for the day. (See George Washington in the back??)
I was a bit hesitant to see if Clyde would actually sport the costume all day...he did...tights and all! (To be honest, I was surprised that the knee-high tights were able to stretch enough to go over my Clyde's calves. Go spandex!) The young Wardlings, plus one, and I took the fellas lunch and boy were we thrilled to see Clyde!

He was gracious enough to try it on for me the night before. What a rockin teacher Clyde is. I never had teachers dress-up for historical field trips. Clyde rocks!

Saturday Clyde and I were checking out craigslist. Penny wanted to play with the camera and this is what she captures. Can you tell I was tired after a long day @ the zoo??

Just about the time Clyde arrived home from his big field trip yesterday, he and his pal J. Jessup were out the door to go to a Duke game! The seats were super sweet too! Clyde came home 1- exhausted but b- thrilled to have been really close to Coach K. Thanks J.Jessup for the spectacular night...it made Clyde's week! :)

duke rocks!

did you know..

...that if you go to Starbucks, Krispy Kreme, Ben and Jerrys today and tell them that you voted, some require seeing a "I voted sticker", that they will give you a free coffee (I sweet talked the gal into giving me a hot chocolate intead), a free glazed donut, and a free scoop of ice cream. Go vote and get some freebies. Krispy Kreme gave one to the kids as well for voting. Just FYI. More importantly...GO VOTE!