Books

I have been reading like crazy lately. I am not sure exactly why. I always loved reading, but always seemed to have a hard time finding time to do it. However, the kids and I continuously have books out from the library. I take them every couple weeks to return the old ones and to get new ones. They LOVE it.

I have recently read a couple really good books, and I think that has motivated me to read more and more. I mentioned one of those books in a previous post - Under the Banner of Heaven - but here are a couple more, one I finished and one I am about to finish:

This book was AMAZING. I couldn't put it down. I read every second I could. Highly recommend!!



I also am reading C.S. Lewis' Mere Christianity. A classic that I feel should be read by every Christian. To me, he just makes so much sense.

Read more...

Crazy Friday!

It was a crazy Friday. We finally decided to get our downstairs carpets professionally cleaned. Our family room carpet had more stuff in it than I care to even think about! So I spent all morning cleaning up, getting the gazillions of kid "stuff" into the kitchen, making sure the only thing left in the rooms was the furniture. We have too much stuff.

Anyway, I was done, waiting for the guys, talking on the phone, when I noticed a puddle of water on the kitchen floor. I just assumed Kallie dumped a cup of water, but as I began to mop it up, I realized it was coming from the fridge. I opened the freezer to find the ice maker pouring water out, into the ice bucket which was filled with ice/water and was overflowing now into the food below and out onto the kitchen floor! I unplugged the fridge, got the ice bucket out of there and called Eric. When I went down in the basement to I saw the water leaking all over the basement. It was a mess. Eric decided to make a quick trip home to help me - thank God he can do that as I really had no one else to call! So, after further inspection, we found that the basement water was the fridge water that had leaked under the floor and down along the stove's gas pipe. The water also flowed out to the wall and down the side of the basement wall! We mopped it all, cleaned up the fridge, just in time to let the carpet cleaners in the house.

After the carpet cleaners left, I spent the rest of the day trapped in my kitchen or upstairs. It was a strange feeling. I had so I needed to do, but couldn't until the carpets dried. I was also so tired. I just felt like I was in a funk for the rest of the afternoon.

Today, Saturday, Eric and I are actually going to get out for dinner. Unfortunately, for some reason, Kallie woke the whole house at 7 a.m. which is way too early for us! Christina definitely needed more sleep but once she is up, she is UP for good. So, I spent most of my morning telling Christina to be nice to Kallie, to stop this and that, and I am exhausted again. I wish I felt better, but maybe once we get out I will get a second wind.

Well, I will end this post with a recent pic of my troublemakers....

Read more...

Caroline's new chair!

We spent our Sunday visiting my parents who live about an hour away. Since we live in a very rural area, and my parents live in a semi-metropolis, I usually visit while also getting a lot of shopping in. I miss having so much shopping nearby. It takes me about 20 minutes....to get to Walmart! Pretty pathetic, huh? I spent most of my life living the "city" life, so when I got married and moved out into the country, it was a little adjustment. But, I have grown to love it. I love that there is no traffic, I love that at night all you hear is crickets, I love living in my own little little house in the woods. However, I also love shopping so I do have to say "Thank God for the invention of the Internet", I don't know if I could survive out here without it!

So, as I was saying, I was doing some shopping yesterday and decided that Caroline needs a new chair. Having a child in a wheelchair is hard. She doesn't crawl or sit well, so her only options are the wheelchair or the floor. She can't even lay on the couch much because she will kick and roll herself right off. We used to have a little reclining booster seat, and it is so light you can just take it anywhere - when out at friends' or relatives', outside, upstairs etc. But the chair broke after MUCH use. Oh, and our house is NOT conducive for wheelchairs. Caroline's bedroom is upstairs, our family room is a step down from the rest of the house.

So, I finally decided to shell out some $$ and get some other seating arrangement...and I got this!


This isn't, obviously, Caroline. Since it is a bouncy seat/rocker, there is a strap so she, unlike other toddlers, can stay put. Without the strap, she would be hanging off the chair, or on the floor in minutes. There are special "seats" for handicapped children, but they are so expensive and, although insurance may pay, it is a pain to go through the hassle if I can find something else! Anyway, she loves it and it is a great seating option for her. I am SO excited!

Read more...

Running

I run fairly regularly, but have been dealing with a sore hip for about a year. I have seen a sports med dr, tried some exercises, changed shoes, the pain is still there!. It really is depressing as I LOVE running. It is an easy sport to fit into my day as I just throw on my shoes and run out the door - no driving, no equipment needed - and I can do it during almost any weather. In fact, running in the rain - not downpour- is one of favs.

Anyhow, although my hip hurts, it usually doesn't hurt to the point where I can't run at all. I have just been cutting back my mileage and trying to do other things, like a little weight lifting. So, I decided to run a local 5K the first weekend in October. It is a flat course, so it isn't too hard. Having a race coming up really motivates me to get off my butt. However, I am a little nervous as I ran this race last year with a time of 24.8 - a little over an 8 min mile. I was really happy with my time, but now I am afraid I won't come near that time. It almost makes me feel like not racing...almost.

I do love the feeling of finishing a race. I am not a great runner - I will never actually win something - but the surge of endorphins is wonderful! Here is a picture from a race last year. I had a great time and was so happy I did it! Not too bad for a 40 yo mother of 3 little ones!

Read more...

Back to school, back to work...

And I am trying to get organized. We just have too much stuff....too many clothes that aren't worn, too many bedspreads from before our marriage, too many little junky toys that the kids don't play with and won't miss.

I think I have come to grips with the fact that I will not have another baby. I am 40, I have 3 little kids - one of which is very special needs so she often requires a lot of care - so having more probably isn't going to happen. It makes me sad though. I like big families, I think it would be great for the kids, but we really don't have the room (although I don't necessarily agree with that) and we are getting a little excited to get out of the baby years and have more freedom to do more things with the kids. Another baby would delay that again for a few years. The other issue is, at 40 or older, our chances of having another child like Caroline increase, and having 2 special needs children would be quite difficult!

Anyway, since I have decided I am not going to have another one, I have decided it is time to get rid of all the TONS of baby clothes and maternity clothes. I am selling/giving/junking ALL of them. I guess, if we actually do end up with another baby - never say never - I will just have to buy them all again! Not the worst thing ever, right?

Read more...

Crazy kids

Today started off a little crazy, Christina woke up WAY early, and accidently woke Kallie. Kallie started crying hysterically and would not calm down and go back to sleep. Christina was fine, but I am sure she will be a little tired by the end of her day. Caroline just now went off to her first day of preschool this day, Kallie just went down for a nap, and now I can enjoy some time off, maybe get some work done!


I had to share this photo, Kallie loves to imitate her sister who loves playing baseball. Now Kallie always wants to play, and she actually hits the ball fairly often! It is hilarious!

Read more...

Rainy Sunday

Today was the perfect Sunday, 67 degrees with a light drizzle all day. I got out for a morning run in the rain (my fav type of run), stopped at the Y to also do some weight lifting, got a big pot of homemade spaghetti sauce going, and relaxed with my book while my little one napped.

Eric also had a great day, he watched the Steelers crush the Browns (yeah!) and then watched the last Indy car race where Dario Franchitti won the championship! It was an amazing finish and Eric went nuts.

This week will be Christina's first full week of school. I am sure it may be hard for her to get adjusted - me too! She hasn't been sleeping much over the last week and yesterday she was quite the mouthy kid. We decided to put her to sleep in our room so we could eliminate the late night games with her sister. When we go to bed, we carry her back to her room. She fell asleep right away in our room, which leads me to realize she was quite tired, and her "mouthiness" is inversely proportional to the amount of sleep she gets. She was much better today, and much more rested.

Caroline has her yearly check up tomorrow morning. Her dr is an hour away, by my mom, so I will leave as soon as Christina is off on the bus, run up there, go the dr, visit with my mom for a bit and return in time to get Christina off the bus. It should be an interesting dr visit. Caroline has gained a lot of weight....after always being SO skinny. I think we are at the point of reducing her feedings.

See ya!

Read more...

Happy Friday!!!

Christina is off at her second big day of school! She was a little tired today due to some craziness at night with her sister Kallie - they share a room and have a very hard time calming down and getting to sleep at a reasonable time. Maybe once she is in school daily, she will be a little more tired and a little less wound up. We try to be calm and nice and tell them to stay still in order to fall asleep, but after many many trips upstairs, we start getting mad and taking away privaleges.

Today was a beautiful day, warm but very windy. Kallie and Caroline and I spent some time outside. I also got some more, much needed, cleaning done. Right now, I have 2 kids in bed for a nap, and Christina and Daddy are due home in about 30 min. I think I will take some time to relax with my book while I can.

I am currently really enjoying a book from Jon Krakauer - Under the Banner of Heaven. An eye opening book about Mormon Fundamentalism. Very interesting, and often very sad. I highly recommend it!

Read more...

First day of school

Yesterday was Christina's - our oldest's - first day of full day kindergarten. I dreaded the day, but knew it was time. She is almost 6, very smart, and eager to make new friends and have new experiences. It went well, she was happy, but tired, when she got home. She is off today as they are doing staggered starts for the kindergarten students, but she will be back tomorrow, then off for the weekend. The real test will be next week when she is there 5 days in a row...all day.

Kallie missed her sister, but was actually quite good. She just followed me around, we did a lot of cleaning, and played a little too. She was so happy to see her sister later that afternoon!

Read more...

Welcome to my blog!

I am a stay at home mom to three little girls - Christina, Caroline and Kallie, ages 5, 4 and 2, respectively. We live in the country and enjoy a fairly happy, average life. Our middle daughter is our special one. She has a rare genetic disorder and wasn't supposed to even survive birth. She did, and is now 4. She is tube fed, in a wheelchair and nonverbal, but she is the sweetest thing ever. She a very happy, funny little girl and she has changed our lives in so many ways.

Before staying at home, I used to have a career in Marketing. I got my B.S. and my MBA. I worked both in product and marketing management. Even though I liked my jobs (not LOVED), I always knew in my heart that if I ever had kids, I would want to stay home with them, even when they were all in school. My mom never had a career, she was always home, and I want my kids to have the same level of comfort knowing that mom is always there for them.

I ended up meeting my husband later in life - when I was 30 - and we married 2 years later. I knew he was the one from day one. It was just different with him. He made me laugh, I wanted to talk to him all the time, I just wanted to be with him. And with him, I could be 100% myself, there was a comfort there I never had before. We married and I kept working but had a very bad experience at work a couple years later, I quit on the spot - which I never ever did - and we decided it was time to try starting a family...10 months later Christina was born and my life has veered sharply from career woman, to happy stay at home mom! My husband is a teacher and we had to change our lifestyle a bit to be able to live on one income - but I don't regret it one tiny bit!

I love reading - often non-fiction, especially memoirs, but sometimes fiction as well. I *try* to stay active by running, occasionally biking, and visiting our local Y to weight lift. Before kids, we did a lot of camping and mountain biking and hope to again start camping once the kids are a little older. I have always liked cooking, but have come to LOVE it over the last year or so. Probably, one of my absolute favorite evenings is a wonderful, healthy home cooked meal with a nice glass of wine. Unfortunately, my husband and kids are horribly picky eaters so I am often enjoying a new dish by myself, but that is OK, maybe someday they'll come around!!

Until next time!

Read more...