Poor Sickey Pukey Poo
September 2, 2010
Yesterday Kimberly came home from school feeling yucky. She said her head, tummy and ear hurt. She was running a temperature and just lazing about.
Today she had to stay home from school, even though she didn’t want to. She watched some tv and played on the computer. She also read books to Paul for 63 minutes. She was so proud of herself. She stopped reading at one point to ask me how long it had been, I said it was 50 mintues. She thought about it and then decided she wanted to read for at least 60 minutes because that would be over an hour and she would impress herself and her teacher.
I am taking her into the doctor after the other kids are out of school. I suspect an ear infection or something to be the cause of the high fevers and pain.
*Update: She has strep throat. She will need to stay home tomorrow from school as well. Hoping nobody else gets it.
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Stain Maker
September 1, 2010
Just yesterday I was reveling in how blessed I was to be Paul’s Mother and what an amazing boy he is. It is a good thing I am so enamored of this boy. He certainly can make one crazy from time to time.
Today he was watching his tv and drawing on the dry erase marker board when he decided to draw off the board and onto my carpet! Thankfully I caught him quickly and he only had time to circle around twice.
I quickly turned to the internet on how to remove dry erase markers. I found multiple sources that said rubbing alcohol was the way to go. It did get the dark black lines off but you can definitely tell that someone drew circles right there. They are just more blended in. If you have any ideas on how to clean it please let me know.
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Is Your Family Complete?
August 31, 2010
Sometimes we go through life and we think we know things. At one point I thought Annie and Kimberly were the only children I would ever have. (Well, actually before them I thought I would never be able to have children.) Then Madeline came along and surprised us. After she was born we knew we were done. We knew it. No question. We were thankful to have the Girls and we were good. Then we felt like we were missing someone and we traveled half way around the globe to find the missing piece to our family puzzle.
Are you missing a piece?
This video was created by a friend who wanted to promote adoption. Often adoptive parents are seen as special people, and while adoption is a very special thing you don’t have to be special to adopt.
*Right around the 6 minute mark you will see a very special family that was blessed abundantly by adoption.
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Moody Girls
It is obvious that Kimberly and Annie are asserting their personalities more and more. They are both very strong, opinoinated girls. Sometimes this takes the form of wanting to dress a particular way and sometimes it shows itself when they want to do whatever they please. Dressing with their own style, within reason is something I can tollerate, behavingy poorly is not something I can handle. Lately, they have been doing whatever they please and it is very hard to see them doing it. I feel disappointed and let down.
Just last week Kimberly put on makeup before school and somehow thought Bill and I wouldn’t notice. It is pretty hard to not notice blue eyeshadow on your 6 year old. I don’t mind them having makeup when they are at home and playing dress up but she was trying to sneak out of the house with it on. Isn’t she supposed to wait until she is a teenager to try this kind of stunt.
Over the weekend Annie got down her nail polish and got out water bottles. She proceeded to paint the water bottles with nail polish. At no point in their lives have they been able to #1 use nail polish without asking, #2 paint anything with any type of paint without permission. It was so disappointing to see her making these choices.
I know that they are going to make bad choices along the way. Bill and I both made plenty as we were growing up. It is the way one learns, but it is just so hard to see them going through it. What made it even more hard to take was the fact that when we questioned each one of them they knew it was wrong but they still did it. 
Parenting is one tough job.
sandi > Annie, Kimberly | Comments (0)
Stuck Like Glue
August 30, 2010
You may have heard the new song by Sugarland, Stuck Like Glue. Paul and Madeline love this song and anytime it comes on the radio they want it turned up and they sing to each other. Seriously cute moment!
Today during lunch Paul started singing the song to me over and over. It was so adorable. Thankfully the camera was nearby and he sang a bit while I had it on.
In this next video his noodles are singing to me. (Yes, he always eats soup like this, hence why my table is never ever clean.)
* Sorrry both videos are sideways. I always forget that you can’t rotate video.
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Learning on His Own
Paul has been having a hard time adjusting to the Sisters not being home. He mainly wants to watch tv until they come back.
The last time I pulled out puzzles he threw pieces, stacked the pieces like blocks, pretty much anything that didn’t have to do with building a puzzle he did with the pieces and the piece they go into. Today when I pulled them out he built them all and did it over and over again.
It was nice to see him finally doing things on his own. He was very skilled and he had picked up the labels for his shapes from normal day to day conversation.
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Annie Lost her 3rd Tooth
Today when I picked up Annie and Kimberly from school Annie had a very cute tooth necklace around her neck. Inside was her tooth. She said that she twisted it during PE today and it fell out.
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Gone too soon
August 25, 2010
It has been 4 months since someone has rubbed the top of my head and called me “little Sandi.” It may not seem like a lot but it means a lot to me. I miss my Dad. I miss him all the time.
I want to call him or drop by and see him. I want to sit across from him at the table and talk about anything and everything with him. I want to see him talking to my kids and imparting his life experience to them. I want to joke with him and hear his laugh.
Most of all, I miss him in my Mother’s arms. I miss them together. I can’t really express in words how hard it is to see them apart. The pain in her eyes. The knowledge that as much as I am hurting, the pain is a million times harder for her.
Yesterday I was reading a blog and it asked for prayers because their daughter in law was being moved to hospice. She had fought her brain tumor once and it had come back. She was losing her battle with it and was near the end of her young life. She was leaving behind a six year old son and a husband. I want to shake my hands and yell, why them, why that young mom? Why my young father? Why are these souls taken so early.
There are no answers . . .
sandi > Thoughts | Comments (3)
All Fun and Games
August 24, 2010
“Paul where is Daddy?” ~ Mommy
“He’s at work.” ~ Paul
“What is he doing at work?” ~ Mommy
“He is having a tea party.” ~ Paul
sandi > Paul, Quote of the Day | Comments (1)
All By Ourselves
August 23, 2010
On Saturday Bill and I escaped calmly walked out from our house and left Grammy in charge of the kids. We left and spent the time together at the Arizona Biltmore. The Biltmore is a very lovely hotel and one we had been meaning to spend some time at but never got around to.
When we arrived we went to our room to get settled. The room was HOT! We called down to the front desk and they said they would send up an engineer. We waited a half hour, which felt like a couple hours, and there was no engineer. I called back down to the desk and they told me they were having cooling issues and would we like to be upgraded. Of course we did. 
The new room was twice the size and had a balcony overlooking the pool, best of all it was ICE COLD. We decided that we wanted to have dinner at Frank & Albert’s, made reservations and decided to just relax for the afternoon. Just relax, no kids asking us for things, nobody calling us needing anything, nothing. Just us relaxing. At first it felt so foreign and then it came back to me.
I had been reading the book Women Food and God since the beginning of summer. I was only about 1/3 of the way through it. I closed the book at 11 pm after having finished reading it completely! It was wonderful to be able to read the book! It is a great read, one I will write more about in another post. 2/3 of a book done in one day, I cannot remember the last time I did that. I would have to say when I was on bedrest with Annie was the last time I sat down and read a book cover to cover.
Bill and I talked a little about how weird it was to have all this free time. (By the way it was only about 20 hours, but when you haven’t had free time in a long time 20 hours feels like an eternity.) We wondered in amazement what we used to do when all our days were like this.
Dinner was amazing. We sat, talked and ate at a slow pace. It was nice. After dinner we took a stroll around the resort and went back to the room to watch a movie on cable, since we don’t have that at home either. (Which after having cable for only 20 hours I know why we don’t there is so much crap on there!)
It was a great getaway. We had a very enjoyable time. The kids loved their time with Grammy and I think Grammy liked it too. We are blessed to have such a great woman in our life. Grammy always takes good care of all of us. Thanks Mom for taking the time. I love you!
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Abundance
August 19, 2010
One of the main drawbacks to having a huge pantry is that sometimes it get stuffed full of food. We are currently in that situation.
It is also a sign that the kids have been shopping with me a lot. We have so many cereal varieties down there! The shelf above it is lined with bags of chips and pretzels. And no we are not huge mayo consumers. This tired Momma must have picked up another jar just in case we were out.
I want to work hard to dwindle this down. I need to be much more organized in food planning and preparation. I want to challenge myself to use as much of the pantry as I can in a month. Come 9/20/10 I will take another picture of my pantry. Hopefully there will be a decrease in the amount of excess we have.
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Doll Quilt Swap
I was participating in the Doll Quilt Swap for Newbies on flickr. My partner has received her quilt and I have received mine. It was fun to create something for someone. She loves the quilt and that is just icing on the cake.
I was feeling very inspired by rainbows when I created this quilt.
I didn’t have time to create another for myself but I am going to have to do this soon. I love that quilt. It was hard to put it in a envelope and send it off.
I received my mini quilt yesterday and I have it on the coffee table.
It was a fun swap. I can’t wait to do the next one.
sandi > A Stitch of Mine | Comments (2)
We’re Adjusting
Paul and I are adjusting well to our time without the Girls. He is still lost without their constant direction but he is getting along. He likes to swim and hang out with just Mom. He hasn’t really gotten into playing by himself yet, but I know it will come. We have only been on our own for 4 days now.
One of the biggest changes is that I actually get about an hour a day all by myself. I haven’t had that kind of time to myself in a long time. I have always had one kid awake while the other is napping. Right now I am just using the time to rest and just enjoy the quiet. I know in time I will use this time much more productively. For right now I just want to be lazy.
The older Girls are adjusting to their new schedule and demands. Yesterday was gymnastics night and it proved to be a very long day. It even included a meltdown from Annie which is pretty much unheard of. Annie and Kimberly love their new teacher and are excited about learning.
Madeline is adjusting to Kindergarten. She is EXHAUSTED when she comes home. She has had many tantrums and outbursts this week, which I think are due to her exhaustion. She even yelled at her Grammy yesterday, something she never does. It is a hard adjustment. She really enjoys her alone time and she now has to figure out how to spend 6 hours a day surrounded by people and stimulation. (You would have thought our busy house would do that, but she goes off on her own and ignores us a lot.) She is excited for her learning and can’t wait to read chapter books. I told her she won’t learn this in Kindergarten but she says she will and honestly she is probably right. Mimi loves to push the envelope.
We are all trying to find our new normal. Soon, very soon we will be back to “normal”.
sandi > Annie, Gymnastics, Kimberly, Madeline, Paul, School | Comments (2)
The utmost love
August 17, 2010
“I can’t aleive you.” ~ Paul
Paul says this all the time. He says I love you and then he says “I can’t believe you.” His amazement of the love he has for us amazes me.
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I need them more
It has become very clear that I need my children more than they need me.
Today as I dropped Annie and Kimberly off they rushed off onto the playground. I had to call them back to give me a hug and kiss. (*I had the camera with me and was tempted to pull it out to snap a picture of them running off, but I knew it was a moment I would not forget.)
Madeline ran off and played on the playground. When it was time to line up I had to remind her to give Paul and I a hug and kiss good-bye.
They are growing up. It is happening and I am not sure I am ready. I need them more than they need me. Hopefully the pitty party will be over soon and I can be more excited about them growing up again.
sandi > Annie, Kimberly, Madeline | Comments (3)
First Day of School
August 16, 2010
First Day Sassy Outfits
Madeline had her first day in Kindergarten.
We celebrated the day with First Day cakes.
It was a nice day. The kids all enjoyed their classes, except for the fact that Annie and Kimberly said recess was way to short.
sandi > Annie, Kimberly, Madeline, School | Comments (4)
‘Twas the night before school
August 15, 2010
Today was the last day of summer for my kids. Tomorrow a new school year begins. Because of this we did some family traditions and started a new one.
The kids really took their time in the bath tonight making sure they would be clean enough for school. We reviewed their morning checklist. They laid out their sassy outfits to wear in the morning. I snuggled each one individually and we talked about their thoughts about the upcoming school year.
When I was talking to Annie she changed the subject and started telling me how to take care of Paul. She was telling me that he likes to play trains, and that I will have to help him make the track. She gave me many pointers on his care. I didn’t say anything to her but inside I was busting up laughing. Who does she think taught her how to play with him? Who took care of her when she was a baby? We certainly didn’t have a 6 year old around to tell me how to do it. How did I manage? 
I told her that I knew how to play with Paul and that he would be okay while she was off at school. It is always interesting to me how her anxiety is manifested.
We read The Kissing Hand and I drew hearts on their hands. This year they asked if they could draw a heart on my hand. Each girl drew a heart on my hand so that I would have their love while they were away.
Unfortunately we could not find our copy of Owl Babies to read. We had to go without this year.
Then I kissed them goodnight and I went off to make their First Day of School Celebration cakes. This is a new tradition for us. I am excited to see how the kids react to their individual cakes. It is clear that my cake decorating skills need quite a bit of work. Maybe by the time they are in college I will have it right. At least I have star candles to adorn them with and that should make up for the lack of pipping skills I have.
While waiting for the cakes to cook and cool Bill and I created their first day lunch.
They are all so excited. I know this is going to be a great year for them.
sandi > Annie, Kimberly, Madeline, School | Comments (2)
Heartache
August 14, 2010
Tomorrow is my Father’s birthday. He won’t be here to celebrate. It breaks my heart.
Tuesday is Elizabeth’s birthday. She isn’t here. Every year this date opens that wound and makes my heart ache.
“Break a vase, and the love that reassembles the fragments is stronger than that love which took its symmetry for granted when it was whole.” ~
“Will you love me for the rest of my life?…… No, I’ll love you for the rest of mine.” ~quote from the movie Phenomenon
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Rainbow of Memories
Rainbows have always been a symbol that represents peace and love to me. As a child I slept in a bedroom that had a bright rainbow across one entire wall with a sky blue background. This mural was painted by my Father.
I remember clearly watching The Muppet Movie with my parents and listening to them belt out the song Rainbow Connection.
I cannot hear this song and not think of my Father. He was the biggest dreamer and believer in the magic of things that I have ever known. Of course The Muppet Movie also included the “Fork in the Road” joke that always thrilled him and made him laugh, no matter how many times he had heard it.
When I saw the rainbow cake on a blog I knew that I wanted this cake for Madeline’s 5th birthday. My parents made so many cakes in my lifetime. With the exception of one year all my birthday cakes were homemade. They were gorgeous works of art and I loved each one. My parents always got such a thrill creating the perfect cake. They even made my wedding cake. I asked my parents if they could figure out how to make this cake and they told me they could.
They dyed the cake batter and made the cakes.
When I first saw the text with these cakes on it I was concerned that they looked so much like playdoh. Then they stacked up the cakes and sent me another picture of the height of the cake.
You can see my Father’s hand, literally, in each picture. He was there creating the most beautiful of all the cakes I had ever seen. As I had said before I wanted the cake to be a surprise for Madeline. The reveal was an amazing moment.
I loved that cake. I still love that cake. Of all the cakes my parents made for me it seems so appropriate that the last cake they made together was a rainbow cake. I can’t see the cake without smiling (and choking up), but smiling. It is peace and happiness in cake form.
I have always loved rainbows. I always will love rainbows.
Why are there so many songs about rainbows
And what’s on the other side?
Rainbows are visions, but only illusions,
And rainbows have nothing to hide.
So we’ve been told and some choose to believe it
I know they’re wrong, wait and see.
Someday we’ll find it, the rainbow connection,
The lovers, the dreamers and me.
Who said that every wish would be heard and answered
When wished on the morning star?
Somebody thought of that, and someone believed it,
And look what it’s done so far.
What’s so amazing that keeps us stargazing
And what do we think we might see?
Someday we’ll find it, the rainbow connection,
The lovers, the dreamers, and me.
All of us under its spell,
We know that it’s probably magic…
… Have you been half asleep? And have you heard voices?
I’ve heard them calling my name.
… Is this the sweet sound that calls the young sailors?
The voice might be one and the same
I’ve heard it too many times to ignore it
It’s something that I’m s’posed to be…
Someday we’ll find it, the rainbow connection,
The lovers, the dreamers, and me.
Laa, da daa dee da daa daa,
La laa la la laa dee daa doo…
sandi > Family News | Comments (2)
Back to School Fever
August 12, 2010
The kids are so excited and ready to go back to school. Each has their “sassy” outfit and two new pairs of shoes (one running and one any style). They have played every video game until they are bored with them. The swimming pool is no longer a great source of excitement. And they are all pushing each other’s buttons on a regular basis. I would say we are in need of some structure and time away from each other.
Tonight we had the ice cream social and the kids were happy to see teachers and friends. They start back on Monday and I can’t say I am all that sad. Yes, I will miss them but it is the start back into our routine that I crave the most. Bedtime has gotten later and later as the summer has drawn on. The house is in a constant state of mess in one area or another. I can’t even remember what it was like to not have a messy house. I hope to someday find that again.
Mimi is going to be a kindergartener. I just can’t believe it. It seems unreal to me that she has grown and matured enough to go to school. I will miss her but am excited for the burst of maturation that will occur in her.
Annie and Kimberly will be graders. The time with them has flown by. I can see them literally maturing right under my nose. We got their haircut earlier this week and it shocked me how grown up they looked. My girls are getting to be so big and independent.
One more day of summer left. Seems so unreal that the summer is already gone. . .
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