Gnarly Award

Whoa, dude, turns out I'm "EX-cell-ent!"!
I've been awarded so graciously by:
Shelly
Amy
Thorny
Swissmiss

The rules of this are that I have to award ten, totally, tubular, other excellent people's blogs.
Okay, like, chill...I got it covered! I'm stickin' with my MN homies on this one (just for fun because we've been shivering together and holed up in our houses getting crazier and crazier by the day from lack of heat and vitamin D):
I hereby award:

1. Tracy who has some of the greatest school ideas and is a wonderful, calm, sweet mom who does so much for her gorgeous kids!

2. Paula who is super cool, and woodsy and red-headed, just like me (except she's a lot nicer)!

3. The Koops because they have a funny name and they are creating such a wonderful home for their family in such a unique way.

4. Mr. D. (not sure if he wants his name public) because he's such a great dad (and his wife is equally great!) who helps to keep the TLM alive in our area. His blog is much more about faith than personal things but I think that makes it about both, doesn't it? Especially in a person that's so obviously faith filled!

5. The Dudes at Catholic Trenches because I love to raz them and I think they still like me even when I do. Also, I like the way that they offer historical info and don't shy away from controversy.

6. My seester because she's my rock.

7. Lovely Mary who I wish I lived closer to so I could be in her superkeen book club!

8. Adoro because of the great stories on her blog and the cause of much critical thinking being done (on my part) after reading the blog posts.

9. The RDC because I just think she's the bees knees! I hope to meet her in real life sometime soon, she's so sweet!

10. My buddy, Ray. He's so hip for an olde...I mean, "more mature" gentleman. I love that he keeps us MN folks up to date on all the haps on the Catholic scene locally, and around the world. Thanks, Ray!

I'm sure I left some people out but they are most likely listed on Ray's blog (they're all really great bloggers and people!).

I'm not going to let any of these people know I tagged them as a TEST to see if they ever, really read my blog (ttthhhppppttttt!) Thank you, everyone who visits to see what's up in this house and in my mind (amazingly, you actually CARE!).

Thanks to the ladies who gave me the award in the first place and the nice things they said about me on their blogs!

What Will She Play With When It's All Gone?

Remember this?

Well, almost exactly two years later, I am staring at much the same scene when I look in a downward fashion at the place I should normally find my feet.

Here is Mari (the previously linked lump), perched in her favorite spot, as usual but...wait...why is my normally smooth, rounded belly so lumpy?

Ohhhhhhh, I see. The baby wanted to play with the farm animals, of course!

FINE!!!!! (Stomp, Stomp) But This is the LAST ONE For a While...and THAT'S FINAL!

(Here is me, grumbling and shaking my fist at that girl.)

1. Thai or Mexican

2. bubble bath or back massage
(But only if I have a few hours, at LEAST!)

3. boots or sandals
(I would wear sandals in the snow if I could!)

4. the 90% "pro-life" good chance or the 100% pro-life long shot
(as if there was any question!)

5. a cruise ship or a mountain cabin
(but not in the winter)

6. Rome or Paris

7. Ordinary or Extraordinary

8. Rosary or Stations

9. surf or hang glide (Is that a joke? Neither!!...I'm with Amy on this one!)

10. Regal Cinemas or Netflix

11. sweet or salty

12. pen or pencil
(have you SEEN my penmanship? Definitely need erasers!)

13. how-to book or fantasy novel

14. crossword or sudoku

15. lose a leg or lose your sight

16. North or South
I really couldn't live with cockroaches. Mosquito's are bad enough!

17. a power outage at home or a dead car battery at Costco
(oh, pu-leaze! Butch has a welder on his work truck...a little power outage is NOTHING!)

18. classic rock or country Both

19. wool or linen
wool means winter and linen means summer...need I say more?

20. lots of good friends or a few great friends
(especially ones that make me do memes all the time. Ahem?)

21. soup or salad

22. Merlot or Chardonnay Both!

23. Picasso or Da Vinci

24. charades or trivial pursuit

25. Evangelical Protestantism or Orthodox Judaism
(Interesting choice! I'll take anything orthodox over protestant...but maybe they're the same??? Ohhhh, that one was tough!)

26. stone age or dark age
(I've always had the urge to dress up in animal skins, not brush my teeth, and have my hubs bang me over the head with a club.)

27. Steven Spielberg or Ken Burns

28. Thermopylae or Alamo
(because then, I'd always be remembered HAHAHAHA!)

29. Big Foot or Loch Ness Monster
(not a fan of deep, scary lakes)

30. babies or teenagers
(not a fair choice, I like them both...teenagers can dress themselves and wipe themselves...hmmmm. Teenagers stink and baby's smell sweet. Oh, I give up. Not answerable.)

Life

My Bestist Pal is so smart.

Just When You Thought You Knew All There Was to Know About Me

I'm tagged with another one of these goofy things!
Thanks a BUNCH, you crazy Aussie!

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE ?
My grandma, Laura. I always felt like the most important cousin. And I'm sure that I am. Grandma told me so, but told me not to tell the other cousins.

2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? Five minutes ago? It's been a bumpy ride these, last, few months. I waffle between hysterical laughter and weepywhining.

3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? NO. It hurts my hands and nobody can read it, not even me!

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Non-stinky, non-wet smoked turkey.

5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? No, I am not a goat.

6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? Absolutely NOT. I talk too much and don't listen enough and I think I'm prettier than everyone.

7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? NOOOOOOO, what's sarcasm again?

8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? NO. I got them out the same time as my brother (a two-fer?) he was around 3 and broke the hospital bed he was in by pushing the buttons all the time. The janitor came and scratched his head with wonder at the weird position of the bed. I remember being very sick from the anesthesia and wanting my head rubbed.

WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? Maybe about 13 years ago I would have said "YES!" but now, with all these responsibilities...no. Can you imagine how stupid it would be to leave six children behind? "My mom died bungee jumping, we really miss her.", yeah, I don't think so.

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? All. All Cereals. All kinds, all the time. If I were deserted on an island and could only bring one thing? Lifetime supply of cereal. Oh, except for generic brand "Crispy Hexagons" No, that cheap, knock off of "Crispix" is just an abomination to the good name of "cereal".

11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? No, and I always curse myself for it later when I put them on again!

12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Yes, but not all the time. I'm naturally really feminine on the outside but feel like Crazy Bertha, the Big, Babushka Lady on the inside.

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? Not a really big fan of the stuff. Ummmm, is there a cereal flavored ice cream?

14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? Their cheeks.

15. RED OR PINK? Pink...red clashes with my hair.

16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING YOU LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF? "My procrastination" is what Therese said...I would have to same the same about me. Oh, and my inability to use commas correctly or infrequently!

17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Karla

18. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Black pants (not maternity, OUCH!)

19. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? Chocolate truffle.

20. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? The sounds of crunching popcorn and "The Game Plan" movie right next to my ear.

21. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Copper. Have you ever seen that Crayola crayon? It turns a cool shade of greenish-blue when you color with it. It's by FAR the coolest crayon in the box.

22. FAVORITE SMELLS? Baking brownies. Gardenia.

23. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? Surprise, surprise...Trine, mah sistah.

24. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? Olympic curling.

25. HAIR COLOR? Reddish brown (and gray).

26. EYE COLOR? Green with rocks and pebbles.

27. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? no.

28. FAVORITE FOOD? Uh, you have to ask? See #10

29. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Scary movies with happy endings!

30. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? Cinderella Man. Everyone should see it.

31. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? Green, punky, boy T-shirt (not maternity, do you sense a pattern? I think I'm in denial.) from Old Navy.

32. SUMMER OR WINTER? Summer hands down.

33. HUGS OR KISSES? Hugs.

34. FAVORITE DESSERT? Cereal...but with half and half instead of skim milk.

35. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? The Covenant by James Albert Michener

36. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? A really worn out MN Vikings Jersey display of some sort.

37. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T.V. A little news and some channel surfing.

38. FAVORITE SOUNDS? Hysterical laughing babies.

39. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? Neither.

40. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? Guatemala

41. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? I can turn my eyelids inside out. It's super gross but super awesome!

42. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Minneapolis, MN

Baby on the Baby

Mari never falls asleep anywhere but her bed. This was taken last weekend when she must have been so tired that she broke her rule about that!
Her favorite place to spend time is right below my belly (here, she flopped forward and started snoozing!). My belly absolutely HAS to be uncovered to satisfy her need to bond with it. She rubs it, and squishes it, and says, "Tummytummytummy" and "Chubbychubbychubby" over and over and "feeds" my bellybutton from her doll bottle. Once, the baby kicked and moved and you should have seen her eyes! Ever since then, she really knows that there is a baby in there but, no matter how many times I tell her, she is convinced that she has a baby in her belly and then she lifts up her shirt and touches her belly to mine. That move always reminds me of Karen and Jack in "Will and Grace" and makes me laugh so hard! When I laugh, the baby kicks and moves even harder and that tickles me and makes me laugh harder! It's a vicious cycle!

This is the ONLY thing (besides the baby, of course) that I like about being pregnant!

Pray for the unborn and victims of abortion on this, the anniversary of the horrible decision to make abortion legal in this country!

I am 35 years old. Roe v Wade was decided 35 years ago! My parents and a "bunch of people from town" went down to the Basilica in the spring, marched around, and said the rosary (according to my dad)at that time. He said that everyone (in his Catholic circle and around the nation) was up in arms about the decision. I haven't talked to mom yet (she's been busy with Grandma who will be having a bunch of heart tests tomorrow. Pray for her if you get a chance, she's not been feeling good lately) but I'll put her reflections on here when she wakes up! Dad also said that the general feeling at that time was one of "I give up...what is this world coming to?". I know that with every, horrible social thing that comes up, every generation thinks that. I can't imagine how I would have reacted at that time. If I was sitting there with a newborn (I was four months old at the time) I would be praying and crying my eyes out. We are making strides, but it's going to be a long fight to change the culture!

Thanks to Mom and Dad who gave me the tools to fight! Thanks to my husband who's openness to life shows the world that we value children and faith in God.

My Super-Special, Three Hundredth Blog Post!

I can't believe I've been doing this for so long! It seems like I just started, but it's almost been 3 years! I'm sure I've deleted some posts, not finished editing some, or left some unwritten...but today, this entry, is number 300 and somehow that is sort of a milestone!

I was going to do a little wrap up of my favorite posts, but hey, that would be a little like making a "Sofie's Choice" (said with smarmy chuckle, hehehe) so, instead, I'll just do a regular post like always.

I was reading my blogfriend Michelle's blog and decided to skip over to her hubs' blog. He posted this and I thought it was a refreshing sentiment (and one that I agree with, 100%).

Voices from the interior

I recently saw an ad in the National Catholic Register from a group called "Sisters Witness Against War" calling for an end to war and calling for a return to the Catholic way of non-violence. While certainly laudable, their call rings hollow to my tone-deaf ears.

I pray for peace every day. I have to because, quite simply, my life hangs in the balance. In the Clauswitzian trinity, I'm in the corner defined by chance. Yet whenever I hear the reasoned and hopeful call to non-violence from someone whose life is that of a contemplative or has themselves answered the call for vocations, I get my dander up. Worse, I feel horribly guilty for it.

We need peace and a lot more love in this world. Every night, we pray for "Peace, Justice, and Forgiveness" as part of our evening grace. The world would be so much better if it had more of those three, and it must have all three or it will have none. Yet the sad reality is that it isn't like that at all.

We have war in this world and we always will, just like there will always be crime, dishonesty, jealousy, and every other human ill you can think of. No amount of prayer will solve that.

Wishing away the problem is no way to solve it. Joining peace protests and taking out half page ads advocating non-violence are nice and your inherent American right, but it doesn't solve the problem. There will be no heaven on earth, and unfortunately, peace in our time is likely to be short lived. If you are lucky, you'll suffer a martyr's fate and not have to live with the results of a non-violent life. Let's face it, if there is something worth dying for, then it's probably worth killing for. Thus there are Soldiers.

I hope the contemplatives of the world, the Sisters of Peace, and everyone else inside the secure walls of America, pray for peace every day. However, their prayers don't obviate the need for Soldiers to secure that peace and tranquility they need to quietly ponder a world without war.

Now, keep in mind that he's a soldier (God bless him!) so he may have a different, more practical outlook on the war than you. I like his attitude (I think I would be like him if I was a boy)...and especially I like his views on BEER! It makes me so thirsty to read his reviews of different kinds of beer! Check out his blog if you have a moment. He's a wonderful, God-fearing, wife-loving, family man!

Shhhhhhhhhh!

Check out the other "silent debates" on Harry Shearer's site! He's one of my favorite actors (probably a hopeless liberal...but still super funny!)!

Mysonthecrazymatty

Matty graduated from advanced blue belt into red belt in karate tonight. He also decided to stop going to karate after tonight(the dojo wasn't the very best and I had a lot of issues with the way they run their business, we'll probably all join a place that teaches Thaikwando in the fall). He really liked baseball last summer and is looking forward to it this year, and maybe trying football in the early fall.

Tonight, I was both embarrassed by him and so proud of him at the same time. See, when they finally receive their belts, the instructor asks them individual questions as he's putting on the belt. Such as: "Are you going to work really hard for your (next color) belt?", "Are you going to listen to your mom?"
To which the kid then says, "YES, SIR!!!" then each kid gives him a high five and they move on.

A thought occurred to me and I quickly tried to get Matty's attention. I mouthed to Matty, "Just say 'yes sir'!" because I saw that "Matty twinkle" in his eye and knew darn well what he was planning. I also knew that he was struggling as much as I was with what his answer would be...but after he saw what I was trying to get him to do, he looked pretty, darn confident in his decision.

Sigh.

So, the instructor called his name, told him to raise his arms up, and as he's putting on the belt he asks, "Matt, are you going to work really hard for your advanced belt?"

"NO! SIR!"

"Are you going to work really hard for your black belt...someday?"

"NO! SIR!"

What could I do? It's a small room with a ton of people in it, probably all thinking how disrespectful this kid is or that maybe he has "behavioral problems"? But, I just smiled (after I kind of cringed) knowing the truth behind his answer.

Matty will NOT lie. He will not say he's going to do something if he means not to do it. He will NOT say something just to appease everyone (even very publicly) if it is not the 100 percent truth.

(Oh, I forgot that before we even went tonight, we were discussing whether or not he'd continue with this place and he told me the reasons he didn't want to. One was that he was concerned that it was too much money. Two was that he didn't like the fact that the owner/instructor didn't teach them very much and he relied on his student/instructors too much. Three was that he thought it was appalling that the owner had a framed dollar in his office. I explained that that's just what new business owners do, that it was kind of a tradition to frame your "first dollar" but the more I explained it, the stupider it sounded and I realized that I have an very observant son. I knew (just by knowing him well) that he thought that that was a kind of blasphemy or "money worship" of some sort. I don't lecture or talk about that kind of stuff so I was surprised that he even thought of that!)

That's Matty. Oh, two more things about this goofy son of mine...After karate, we went to Papa Murphy's to pick some stuff up for supper. I went in by myself (Weazy and Matty were in the van) and I came out with arms full. Matthew jumped out of his seat and leaned into the driver's seat and asked, "What can I help you with, Mom?". It struck me that he NEVER forgets or misses an opportunity to help someone when they need it. I told him that. I told him how happy and proud I was that, when he sees someone in need, he doesn't EVER hesitate to help that person and that that was a quality that most people DO NOT have (especially so young, he's had it forever). He said, "Sure they do, everyone does that, right?!". And that's what he really thinks.

Weazy helped, too, but only after seeing Matty's example. She's been doing that a lot lately, too. She also sat and counted the cinnamon rolls that I got for breakfast tomorrow morning and noticed that there was one extra roll than person in our family. I joked to her, "Yeah, that's for me because I'm a 'two-fer'! I have a whole, extra person inside me right now, so I get TWO of everything!" She and Matty sat and thought about that for a second and Matty blurts out:

"Hey, Mom...AND you have TWO hearts inside your body right now!"

I love that kid.

Wanna See Something Cool?

...or gross, you decide!


This is Butch's neck and the needle going into it to distribute a steroid that's supposed to make his arm stop tingling and going numb. Niklaus, Weazy, and I took Butch to the doctor today. Trina and Matty stayed home with Mari. It took us a little longer than I thought it would because the first time they attempted to inject the dye to isolate the nerve, it wasn't a clear picture and the doctor suggested that he come back another time. No, I said, another time would not be very convenient...how long does it take for the dye to dissipate? He said hey wait, we could try again in about an hour if that's alright? Okay. I took the kids to Perkins to waste time and across the street was a great clips. Bocker needed a haircut and I'm sick of hair all over the place so he was treated to a professional "do". By the time we got back to the Dr. office, Butchie was all done and said that his discomfort was minimized (good sign) and we went home with high hopes that, at the very least, we are on the right track with what to do about that neck of his?

The kids were really good through this long, different day. Weazy did her school in the office while Bocker played Nintendo Mario Cart (DS). Trina called and said she and Mari were going to make cookies but on our way home, she asked if it was a good idea to use WAXED PAPER under the cookies (I usually use parchment paper and I keep it in a special place so I think she thought that's what it was!). They dealt with it quickly before it caught on fire (barely)and had the house relatively cleaned up by the time we got home.

Butch will be back to work tomorrow so say a little prayer that he has some relief and doesn't have to hold his arm up in the air all day like he was doing (He told me today that the guys would come over and hold it up for him sometimes to give him a rest! It really needed to be dealt with, don't you think?) before the shot. I was surprised that they shot those needles through the FRONT of his neck (right by his collar bone) I thought they would go through his back (that's what I read on the internet). For some reason, that gave me the heebies worse than anything!

Please, if you have a moment, say a prayer for a dear friend of mine who had her baby today. Michelle had placenta previa and was due for Cesarean on the 17th but had complications this evening and had the baby tonight! She was born healthy except for a cleft lip and palate (that they knew about) and is eating well (according to the initial reports) but this is their fourth baby and you know how busy and crazy a new baby can be without complications or future surgeries! The baby is Avery and weighed 6lbs 7oz (pretty good for being "premature"!) and is beautiful despite her lip difference!

Dang That Pesky, Global Warming!

Didn't anyone else (besides me and the kids when we heard it on the radio) laugh their butts off when they heard about this? All you need to do is read the headline of the article.

Actual quote from the article:

"The goal of this expedition is to help you learn more about global warming; we realize that it is ironic that frostbite and the cold temperatures contributed to our return. But, please know that global warming is real, and with it can come extreme unpredictable changes in temperature. Evidence abounds within this region and in our few days here we already observed some of its evidence."

Seriously.
So...what she's saying is basically this:
"I realize what a doofus thing it is to say that the planet is warming when we are sitting there, (literally) freezing our toes off...but that's part of global warm...I mean, 'climate change'...yeah, that's the ticket...it causes all kinds of fluctuations in temperature and stuff. I'll tell you kids all about it, right after I thaw out my gear and unfreeze my eyeballs so I can blink again. After a week or so of being home, I fully expect to be able to close them after a few more days."

How embarrassing for Minnesota.

So sorry...we're not ALL like that, I promise!

Blog Troubles

I used to love to visit a blog called "Many Little Blessings". The site is at http://randomangie.blogspot.com/ but every time I try to go there, it takes forever to view the page, and once it opens, it crashes my computer for some reason! Could someone try to go there and let her know that I can't comment or even try to find her email address? Or, if you're reading this...now you know! Email me at laura7550atyahoodotcom if you are Angie or if you know why this happens every time I try to visit the blog!

First Friday of the New Year

Please pray for a friend of mine who talks to teens about chastity. She works tirelessly for pro-life causes and has seven children of her own to care for. She is a pro-life rock star...Even rock stars need prayers every now and then!
Thank you

Back to the Grind

Well, we're back to doing the regular, boring stuff now that the holidays are over. Here is our first day back of schooling:

Of course, it didn't take long for our sophisticated endeavors to break down to a little more realistic level:


Such is life with lots of kids, not much dough, too cold to play outside days, and an almost two year old that associates pretty colors with "must be something to try and taste".