Hello again!

Hello blogging friends! It's been so long since I've updated my blog that there are still snowflakes on it! I will have to get to that another day. Work, home, and family take all my time. I just have time for a couple Owen stories.

This evening, and all week really, he's been a bit trying. He has fought with his sisters, pestered, annoyed, and been a little stinker. I told him if he would be good the rest of the week (and I gave examples) and over the weekend, on Sunday I would buy him a video game he's been wanting. I told him he could only have three strikes, then he's out. I asked if we had a deal. He said "Yes. I will sign the treaty." So he got a piece of paper and wrote "Yes" on it and signed his name (okay, he printed his name in green crayon).

Now, for the ultimate Owen story. A couple weeks ago he had been in bed asleep almost two hours. Chloe was in bed reading. I heard her call for me. I went in and saw the back of Owen going back into his bedroom. Chloe was giggling and said "I think Owen just peed in my closet". She said he walked in and she said his name a few times, but he didn't answer. Then she heard WATER in the closet. Then he turned around and left. He was sleep walking and went in her closet and peed in the floor, as if he had gone to the bathroom!! The next morning we asked him about it and he had no clue he had done it. However, he did find it hilarious and said "It was a good thing I didn't have to poop!!".





I hope to keep up with the blog a little better, and I hope to catch up with all of you too!

What was he thinking??

Phoebe got this Melissa and Doug magnetic dress up dolls set for Christmas.



(Hers is a tiny bit different with different clothes and girls, but the same type of set.) She loves it and plays with it all the time. Yesterday Owen was messing with it and throwing the dolls around and making them battle or something crazy. This evening Phoebe was playing with the dolls and she was telling me the big story about how he was throwing them around. She was acting all outraged by it. She said "He was throwing them around! He thought they were his guys! What was he thinking???".


And, something odd about Phoebe when she plays with this set. She has trouble putting the shoes on the girls. She often asks me to help her put them on, and sometimes she tries to put them on and she gets them upside down, or on the wrong feet. Strange.

Tooth #2

Owen lost his first tooth on a Saturday, and the second tooth on the following Thursday. He looks so cute. I always thought he'd be one to freak out over losing a tooth, but he doesn't. The second one was pretty loose, then he bit into an apple and it got really loose. So, he took a tissue and pulled it out. Phoebe insists that she also has loose teeth. I think it's safe to say, the tooth fairy can take a break for awhile.

Tooth Fairy

Owen lost his first tooth on Saturday. It was an exciting day for him. There was some tooth fairy discussion. Chloe still doesn't own up to the tooth fairy not being real (Chloe lost a tooth on her birthday), Phoebe thought the tooth fairy actually pulls the tooth (to build a castle), and Owen was just wanting some loot. She flew in and left $10 (the first tooth always gets more) and some pixie dust (aka glitter). Owen wonders if he rubs the pixie dust on himself if he could fly. He also wonders how she carries the money. When Chloe lost her first tooth, the tooth fairy had no change and had to leave a twenty. The tooth fairy later suffered from inflation and the poor economy, and usually just leaves a five. I think she'll be flying in here again soon because Owen has another tooth about to fall out. Let's hope she has change when it happens.

First Day of School

I can't believe the summer is over. Chloe headed to sixth grade today, and Owen to first grade.





I've wondered, worried, and prayed about and for them all day. I think Chloe will be fine but I worry the most about little Owen. He's such a baby in so many ways, and gets so nervous about things. He was very brave this morning though. I'm hoping they both had a great day, and I can't wait to hear about it, and kiss their faces! Three hours to go!

Bed Head

When Owen wakes up in the morning his hair looks likes this:



It always sticks up in the back. I've found that Suave's kids tangle spray makes it lay down with a little work.



It is like waking up to a rooster every morning. Just another Owen quirk that I love.

Owen's 6th Birthday

Owen's birthday was Friday and his party was on Saturday. Friday we took him to Bob Evan's for lunch, let him rent a couple movies, and had cupcakes and ice cream. We gave him the gifts from us, and later my parents and grandmother came with gifts too, and we had cupcakes and ice cream again. I made the cupcakes in ice cream cones, we all love that. If you haven't tried that, you must! Just make a cake mix from a box, and fill ice cream cones about 3/4 way full. Bake, then use icing for the tops. (Best eaten the same day you make them, or they get too soggy.) So good and kids love them (and so do I)!





Making a wish:









Chloe made him this sweet game:


He asked for Screature, and Mom and Dad got it for him. He loves it!





Saturday was Owen's party at McDonalds. It was the first McDonalds party we've had, I always plan a big party on the kids' birthdays, so it was kind of strange not to this time. It's what Owen wanted to do because he'd been to his friend's party there in the winter. It was a good day for a party and the kids loved playing on the playground there. Owen said it was the best day of his life.










Happy Birthday, baby boy!

Bikini Bread and other ramblings

Dad has zucchini ready in his garden now. I love zucchini from his garden. Love. It. Today I made zucchini bread with chocolate chips (with chocolate chips because I was dying for chocolate). Phoebe helped and told everyone she was making Bikini Bread. Not suitably named because you can't wear a bikini after eating two loaves of it like I am going to do. (Recipe from Paula Deen here.)


To update you on weird things found in my fridge, I found a Lego today along with a tomato with a bite out of it. The other day I found a diver "guy". The trend of toys found in the fridge leads me to believe the culprit is Owen. (The tomato incident though has Phoebe written all over it.)


(BTW, the pink stuff in the pitcher in the pic above is my Crystal Light raspberry lemonade that I totally love this summer.)




Chloe and I got our hair cut yesterday. I like hers a lot. Mine, not so much. It's the first time Chloe has ever had bangs in her life. They are long side bangs and she got some layers around her face, and about an inch cut off the length.

And finally, six years ago right now I found myself in the hospital ready to give birth to my baby boy, Owen. Chloe and I had been at the pool all day with my friend Mindy and her daughter Camryn. That was back in the day when we only had one girl each. Those girls would swim for hours and we'd kick back and gossip the afternoons away. That day was very hot and the pool was busy and rowdy. All day I told Mindy I was having contractions. It was June 25th and my due date was July 7th. I knew I was in labor. I oddly didn't panic. I knew it would take forever to have him, as it did Chloe. So we swam. When we were about to go a lady asked if she could have my chair. After I rolled myself out of it, I said sure we were leaving. She said I looked like I was about to have the baby any day. Why yes, I was. I told her I thought that day was the day.

I went home, took laundry off the line, cooked dinner, and got Chloe ready to go to my parents. I told Danny we would be going to the hospital but he stayed on the computer and took his time reading whatever it was he was reading while I scurried around. So that evening we finally made it to the hospital. I was dilated to 3 or 4 (I can't remember which now). The dr. on call sent me for an ultrasound and thought the baby was big (he wasn't, but bigger than Chloe who I barely had)and we should go ahead and do a c-section. I was worried about that because I didn't have one with Chloe. He called my dr. and my dr. said to wait until morning and he'd come in. They gave me cervidil and a sleeping pill. By morning I was ready to have Owen. I pushed for 2 hours and nothing. They were thinking I'd need a c-section so they gave me an epidural. I hadn't ever had one before and found it blissful. Finally after much drama that I won't bore you with, they wheeled me in for a c-section. He was facing up, instead of down like he should have been to be born, and he had a big cone head from being stuck so long. My first boy (as he likes to call himself) was born on June 26, 2003 at 5:37 pm. He was 7 pounds 9.4 ounces and 19 3/4 inches long.






What a joy he was then, and now.

She needs trained

Yesterday Phoebe and I were writing and coloring. She is getting better at writing her name, her P and O are great. She loves to spell her name and is so proud when she spells it for us. Owen was watching her write and said she couldn't write her name because she hadn't been trained.

We were swimming and Owen said it was hard to walk through water because it was so thick. He also thinks swimming takes the place of a bath. At the pool today there was a water battle going on between Owen and the girls (all my friends and family have girls) and they said it was girls against boy.

Things are busy with summer reading at the library yesterday, a sleepover here last night, swimming at the pool today, haircuts and going to the movies tomorrow, and all the usual stuff too. Owen told me today I looked tired which can never be good when a five year old tells you that. Then he promptly told me to carry him to the porch.

Food confusion

Owen has had some trouble identifying food. When Dairy Queen opened for the Spring (it's one that just serves ice cream so it closes in the cold weather months) I told the kids we'd go. They were excited and telling me what they'd order. Owen said he wanted banilla (notice the b) ice cream in a cup with a lid and a straw where you drink it. Oh, a milkshake!

Last week there was a sale at Kroger on all the Cheetos and Fritos. We got chili cheese Fritos (my fav!) and two kinds of Cheetos. The puffed kind and the crunchy kind. Because I'm all about healthy snacks. One evening Owen asked for some Cheetos. Then he said the kind that are a line, not the curved. Oh, crunchy!

Yesterday (a mere five minutes after dinner) he asked for those little square brown things in a bowl that he thinks are called Golden Grahams. Oh yes, Golden Grahams!




Totally off subject, but it's 11:00 and I am already totally stressed out. The two classes I'm taking are A LOT of work and requires more thinking than I have done in 14 years. I have fought with my computer for days to get important things to download and I just this morning FINALLY figured out what was wrong. (No thanks to the two computer tech people I've talked to for hours. Thank the Lord and Google for me figuring it out.) I have laundry and dishes to do, the kids are all in their swim clothes wanting to go to the pool, I need to do class work, and the house needs cleaned. So, I better get to it!

AND! Happy Birthday to my friends Rosie and Nellie!! Have a great day girls!

Who cares??

Phoebe was putting her shoes on to go outside. She started out the door and I told her that her shoes were on the wrong feet. She said "Nobody cares!" and went on out the door. Today we went to swim at my mom and dad's house. We had lunch on the porch. Mom asked her if she wanted more cantaloupe and Phoebe said "I'm not sure". I think because sometimes I will ask if she is sure that she doesn't want more of something.

My friend Sherry and I have being doing the 30 Day Shred workout dvd. (It's killing me, by the way.) I walked in the other day to find Phoebe in the living room like this. She said she was doing the 30 Day Shred.



Owen went with Danny one day last week to the auto parts store. While he was gone Sherry and I did our exercise. He was so disappointed when he came home and had missed it. It is quite the show I guess.

Chloe has some bug bites on her back and is certain she is going to get the West Nile virus. She gave me a long lesson this evening on all the facts of West Nile virus. She gets all kinds of information from a website called Brain Pop. This evening she brought in a pair of ugly turquoise socks that I am sure have never been worn. She wanted to know if she could cut them up and make Barbie clothes. She's a big fan of doing that. I said yes because when is she ever going to wear turquoise socks? The next thing you know she made arm socks with a thumb hole instead and she is wearing them in bed asleep right now.

I was trying to do some of my class work on the computer a couple days ago for one of the online classes I'm taking. While I was doing it Owen brought me a can of chicken noodle soup about 24 times so I'd make it for him, and Phoebe was in the bathroom a little too long. I went to check about her, and the bathroom sink was full of bubbles and water. There was a Barbie in it. I asked Phoebe what was going on and she said "I'm making a Barbie hot tub". Oh well, nobody cares.

Friday Funnies

Phoebe was a riot today. I wish I could remember everything she said. This morning was cold. We saw some cows in the field and she said the cows were cold. Then she said "The cowboy should build them a house". The cowboy. We live in rural WV. We have farmers.

We went to the bank today and she stuck her little head up to the counter and said, "Lady, can you give me some money?". What's with the Lady thing?

I was muttering to myself in the van today and Phoebe said "Are you talking to me??"

She was eating mandarin oranges out of a cup today with a spoon. She was having a little trouble and said "These oranges are hard to catch".

We're going camping tomorrow and Owen was talking to Phoebe about where we would all sleep. He asked why I sleep with Daddy. I said because we are married. He said "And that's how you got us".

Finally, this is Owen in the bathtub this evening:

She's a Lady (with a job)

A couple funnies from today. Phoebe brought me a game piece today with a word on it and said, "Lady? What does this say?". This evening she was measuring herself with a yard stick and said "I weigh 50 pounds".

At school on Tuesday I helped out at the school library with the Accelerated Reader store. The "store" is glass case with prizes in it with the prizes having points (like Chuck E. Cheese). The kids cash in the points they've earned reading for the prizes. Owen had a good time picking out his prizes when I was there. I was behind the counter handing out the prizes and helping the kids figure out how many prizes they could get with their points. Today we were talking about his good prizes. He said "So, you've finally got yourself a job".

Zoo Trip

On Sunday we went to the Columbus Zoo. It was Phoebe's first time going to a zoo. She had a good time. She liked the manatees and the monkeys the most. Owen says he liked the rhino, the slushie, and the train ride. Chloe's favorites were the red panda and the monkeys. The monkeys are always my favorite. The kids were excellent and we had such a fun time together.



This flamingo was grouchy and pranced up and down squawking at us.



I always like the flamingos, they are such a beautiful color in person.



At the aquarium the kids got to touch several different sea creatures.





The manatees are always so neat to watch. So big, yet so graceful.



There were lots of statues to take pictures with but usually the kids didn't want to be bothered with it.



Chloe at the penguin exhibit.



Chloe and I touched a rosy boa snake. I so wish I hadn't, it gave me the creeps afterward every time I thought of it.



The carousel:



Phoebe did lots of pointing at things:



I loved this gibbon monkey. It would swing from the ropes and trees.



Chloe was put out she had ride by herself in the seat behind me on the boat ride (don't you love her shades?). They only allowed two to a seat. Danny rode with Owen, and I rode with Phoebe. If only we had a third parent (preferably a mother).







This orangutan was so cute:



Chloe with the gorilla. He ate a piece of cardboard while we watched him.



These two bonobos were so cute snuggling each other:



On the train. Owen loved the train. He kept telling us he wanted to ride the train but we worked our way to it while looking at the animals. He said "If we didn't have to look at all these animals we could ride the train".



Finishing up the trip with some slushies. Owen loved this double stroller we rented. He wanted to take it home with us.



As Danny says, a good time was had by all.