The Big Ten

My little boy is growing up very fast. I had to get rid of a ton of his clothes this week because he wasn't just being lazy...he really couldn't find anything to wear. It was all too small! What's the deal with summer making our children grow as quickly as the grass? (Ignore the dates on the pictures, my camera battery keeps falling out and re-setting the date. These pictures were taken on and around August 15 2007)




I didn't mention it at the time because his birthday is the feast of the Assumption but he turned 10. I remember, when I was 6 or so, thinking that I couldn't WAIT to be ten because that meant I was as old as I could ever be (you know, because that's all the fingers you have?)! I always thought that something magical must happen when a person turns ten because it's such a nice, round number and it seems so final (the fingers again). Well, the only magical thing that happened on Matty's birthday was that we made it to Mass on time and that the kids were pretty good in church that night.

We got home and had a little party with the neighbors in the garage. First, we went and bought a movie (Flubber, the kids laughed out loud! We hadn't seen it for a long time and Analise had never seen it so it was a hit!). We bought cake and ice cream and dad lit the candles with style...true, Butchy, garage style...



The kids were rioting like monkeys all around the garage waiting for Matty to blow out the candles (it was about 8 and we had just started a late supper of pizza, they were WAY too wired!).



I think he had a nice birthday. I am very proud of my Matthew. Whenever I ask him to do something, he jumps up and does it without complaining. It's always reported to me that he never forgets to say his before meal prayers and always says, "Thank you!" to his hosts. I'd like to take credit for his politeness, but I'm afraid it's just his nature. Don't get me wrong, he's no perfect angel, but I wouldn't trade him for one in a billion, gazillion years...unless that perfect angel would eat something NORMAL for breakfast (instead of hotdogs, pizza, or any other gross leftovers that would make even a non-preggo person wanna barf in the morning)or if that perfect angel would not be so ornerey because their mom is unwilling to make non-breakfasty things at 8 in the morning...I might consider trading then.

I would have liked to do something else for him but the next many days were really rainy, yucky days. We'll have to do a lot of field trips this fall. I don't talk much about our homeschooling so I think the next post will be all about our plans for the upcoming year. It should be an adventure this year with one on the way and two toddlers in the mix!

I need lots of suggestions on keeping the 1.5 year old and the 3.75 year old busy during study time. Last year we had a lot of frustrated moans and groans from the older ones when Niklaus would act up so loudly.

He hasn't gotten any quieter over the summer.

Here's another, cute, window picture to add to my collection:

Everything I Need

I have everything I need for this new baby. I have clothes, siblings to hold him/her when I need to take a shower, baby toys, bassinet, beds, sitter/walker/occupiers, all the baby accoutrements (except diapers. I hate storing too many of those things and you never know which brand won't make your baby all rashy).

But...

I still have my eye out for the specialties. You know, the cool inventions they've come up with since the last baby? One that I found the other day was this cool thing.

So, if anyone is going to visit me and the new baby...and happens to want to bring a gift along (NOT required!!!!)...hinthinthint.

I'm just saying.

My Temper Thingy

In an effort to improve myself and my bad habits, I took the Temperaments test and now I'm only going to post the "bad" parts (seee how humble I'm becoming?) of being a choleric-sanguine which is what I am, apparently:

Without strong formation and a deep spiritual life, however, your temperament’s weaknesses will be intensified. Without attention to self-formation you may find yourself quickly aroused to anger, yet also unforgiving. You can be impatient with others and overly opinionated. You may speak frankly or impulsively without regard for others’ feelings. You should take care that you become neither a workaholic nor driven by your passions. You may insist on having your own way, and become angered, blame others, or make excuses when corrected. But, once you become aware of the weaknesses of your nature, and make a commitment to self-improvement, you will be able to be equally determined in pursuing self-formation.
Yup, that about covers it! All of the nicey-nice things it said in the preceding paragraphs made my head grow really large and then I read this paragraph and thought, "What? That is TOTALLY NOT...okay, that is totally me. I admit it!" Although, I'm sure not worried (and neither should anyone else be) about ME becoming a workaholic. I am very driven by my passions. Here are some of my latest:

1. Unfair taxation and stupid decisions on the part of city government.
2. Genetic testing samples taken from my babies' feet (during the pku foot prick) in the hospital. They send it to the government and test for genetic anomalies without our knowledge or consent. I just found that one out today on the radio...Big brother, anyone?
3. Broken ovens and no money to buy new ones.
4. Hyper 3 year olds that don't want to listen.
5. Big bellies when one is only 11 weeks pregnant THATS JUST FRICKEN PLAIN NOT FAIR I TELL YOU
6. Kids who get hurt or are hurting and all we can do is pray.

Okay, done griping. I'll go pray now and check out some of the blogs of people way nicer and happier than me right now. Maybe the next post will be something shiney and glowey instead of this junk right here.

One, Good Thing...

about having a broken oven? Having wonderful neighbors who feel sorry for you make you a huge turkey dinner that feeds all seven of you with leftovers to boot!

Does Anybody Work For GE?

'Cause if you do, this post's for YOU. My very pretty, very fancy, stainless steel, digital, electric oven started beeping and flashing "F7" when I came back from the hospital with Mari 1.5 years ago. I tried and tried to figure out what was wrong with the thing and after I spend 75 dollars for the "repair man" to tell me the digital panel needed to be replaced for about 400 dollars I couldn't believe that something less than 4 years old would poop out that fast. When I called GE to complain, they basically accused me of cleaning it wrong and causing the damage. Real helpful. Thanks.

Then...it spontaineously fixed itself! And it worked fine until about 3 weeks ago.

NOW it's telling me "F0" and I keep thinking, "No, FU" and I feel like getting one of those old fashioned, little house on the prairie wood stoves because I KNOW they don't come with stinkin' digital panels that are so sensitive they don't work after 4 years. I can still use the stovetop but I can't bake anything. If it only had dials, I could use it but NOOOOOO, I had to go all fancy and pick the thing with the cute buttons that go "beep".

I keep "Fonzie-ing" it but that isn't working too hot (get it?... I wrote "hot" ha ha I'm so funny :-I). So I just keep praying that it spontaineously fixes itself again because school is starting soon and I've got NO extra moolah to buy a new stove or even fix the old one.

Bocker is about going nuts for the lack of fresh baked cookies. He loves to help me make them.

Does anyone know a really good, microwave cookie recipe?

Ugh.

God's Plans, NOT Laura's

We had it alllll planned out. We were going to go camping up North with our neighbors this weekend. Butch ended up working a really, long, hot day on Friday and didn't get home until late. We decided to see if the weather would hold and go the next morning instead. The storms came and flattened the tent in the front yard that I was airing out for the trip. We decided that we weren't going to chance the storms and cancel but we couldn't get a hold of our friends to ask them how the weather was up there (only about 3 hours away). They called later in the afternoon begging us to come and telling us that the weather was wonderful the whole time. Dangit. I hadn't actually gotten to sleep on Friday night because of the storm being one of the loudest, longest storms in the history of crappy, Minnesota weather. I think I fell asleep at around 4:30 am on Saturday and had to get up early to go get Trina from a sleepover so I was pretty well "done" with that day before it even began, much less to plan, shop, and pack for 7 people to sleep in a tent that night!

Trine (sis) and I joke about how God is really having fun with me lately. It seems (I know I've said this before) that every time I make really great, solid plans...SOMETHING happens to blow it all to heck! Butch even noticed it this time. He says I ought to let the local farmers know of my big plans, that way they can pretty much count on rain whenever they need it...all I'd have to do is plan a really big, outside party without tents and invite tons of people. It would almost be a rain guarantee! I have really made lemonade out of these lemons, though. It really is true that God's plans are SO MUCH BETTER than any dumb thing I could think of.

We ended up going out to Trine's house so Butch could help set up concrete forms for the new steps, patio, and driveway surrounding the new barn. The kids loved being free to roam and play and it was a good thing I was there because Wyatt touched the 4 wheeler (we think) and burned his finger. If I wasn't there, maybe it wouldn't have been treated properly and he would have lost his finger. Okay, that was a slight exaggeration (the dads were there, but they didn't exactly figure out what was wrong with him and sent him into the house to get sympathy from me) but still...We really had a pretty good day and enjoyed each other's company. Trine got to go help at church making pretzels for the upcoming fall festival and we got to spend some time playing with the kids. We haven't done that for the longest time! I played ball with Wyatt and gave Belle a back massage with a rolling ball rattle thingy until she laughed herself silly! It was so nice to just play for a change without worrying about where we have to be, what we have to cook (we ordered pizza and brought some cake for desert), or how much time we have until naptime meltdown (we came AFTER nap but before supper!). Today, we just kind of putzed around and I didn't feel so very great all day, so I was grateful that we didn't have to pack a tent, gather up stuff, haul our butts into the van for a long commute home with all the other Sunday drivers only to get home and undo everything plus give everybody showers and do all kinds of laundry.

God is Good.

We probably would have gotten some great pictures if we went up there in the wilderness but...We probably wouldn't have had time before church (we went to the 6pm Mass this evening) to take shots like these (ummm, did I mention that I had left my camera out in the full force of the storm? It got soaked and I decided that, since it was ruined anyway, I'd try to put it in the dryer after taking out the battery and memory card. I put it into a full, dry load and wrapped it up in some socks so it wouldn't bang around too much. It worked! My camera took the following pics after all that! Cheap, Kodak Easy Share, it's the way to go!):






The girls decided to do some major posing in their funny, opposite outfits that they came up with themselves when Bocker tripped Mari while he was doing a flip. Luckily, big sister Trina came to the rescue:

So, then, because they were all basically clean and ready for church, I decided to get one of those rare, foolish shots all parents try for, but never really achieve. You know, the "all my children in one place" shot? Well, I gave it my very best try and this is what I came up with:





THAT is why I never pay for professional pictures. It would just be a waste of money at this point! I don't think I've been to a studio since Niklaus was a baby and that was just one picture. It wasn't the very best experience and I don't think I'll ever do that again. With all of the fun, candid shots we take and with the advent of digital cameras, I just don't see that it's necessary anymore. Especially when the camera takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin' like mine!

Don't You Just Hate It...

...when you find out that one of the people that you have privately nominated for living sainthood just got diagnosed with cancer? I think I'm going to be sick.

Please pray so hard for a very humble, gracious, and faithful person.

She has six, beautiful sons and a wonderful husband.

Wrapping Up Summer

These two pictures were taken different days from the inside of the house looking out on to the porch through the window (subjects unaware). I love the porch in the summer time. It is a busy place! I gave the free turtle sand box to Trine (cover, good for keeping cats out) and used the old swimming pool instead. It sure keeps the kids busy and the porch messy. The little bistro table that I moved out there is so great for tea parties, or doodling, or playing house, that I will feel bad about moving it back into the house for the winter (it makes a great chess table).


My mom and Trina


Neighbor, Gabby, and Weazy

We borrowed some tape from the neighbors and Weazy and Bocker decided to have some fun with it. Mari felt bad she was being left out so they used regular tape on her and she felt much better. Niklaus isn't suffering from cyanosis or anything, he just really likes blue popsicles.


Does anyone know what these flowers are called? I got them from my mom and they didn't have a tag. They are so pretty and super vine-y. I keep wanting to re-plant them into a bigger planter and maybe try to train them up a trellis, but it's getting too late in the year. I wish I could winter them over somehow. Can it be done?


I just thought this one was so funny (Mari will only eat the marshmallows, of course, notice the spoon content). That morning she decided to put on the infant, winter hat that I had gotten on clearance from work for some baby gift or some baby in the future. She claimed it as her own and insisted on wearing it through breakfast!

God Bless The USA

Trine has some nice pictures of our trip to Washington D.C.. Go check 'em out!

P.S....Side view...NOT my best angle...just throwin' it out there.

Have Mercy

Picture from Ironic Catholic

14 Years Ago Today...

...I would have never guessed that 14 years from that time, I'd be sitting in my living room, pregnant with my umpteenth child all from the man that I married on that day! I didn't have any future ambitions with Butch, I was just happy to finally be with him and looking forward to whatever was going to happen to us, together.

It was a hot day. I mean HOT. There was a flash flood in the morning (so it was pointless to even do my hair that day, as evidenced by the wedding pictures) but the rain did nothing to alleviate the humidity and steam coming off of the sidewalks. The whole day was a blur and I only had about 1 glass of wine all day!

Today it was pretty, dang hot, but it wasn't as hot (even on my two mile run this afternoon) as it was under 3 crinolines and a very heavy, satin dress...With long sleeves...That were poofy. Really poofy:



Okay, I'm getting sidetracked...

The wedding day was one, teeny blip on the radar screen of our lives. If I were to do it all over again I would have eliminated all the fluff, gotten a simpler dress, gathered flowers from the garden instead of paying through the teeth for "professional floral arrangements", invited only close friends and family, had a night (candlelight) ceremony, and had a daytime reception in the backyard, made a yummy desert instead of an icky ol' cake, had ONE maid of honor and ONE best man and THAT'S ALL for a bridal party, and I would have had some kind of pig roast or maybe a prime rib roast instead of lame-o chicken.

BUT...

I can't do it all over again because, holy man, why would I want to get married again? I did okay the first time and I'm still with that guy! He wanted to watch a movie tonight but I am going to work (I got a very part time job at a children's store in the area for at night, when the kids are in bed and I'd be up on the computer or reading anyway! I pretty much spend my income on the super-sale priced clothes that I get for an extra 30% off!) so I think we'll move the festivities to the weekend.

I love him very much and would like to do another tribute to him, but I'm afraid I'd bore you all with the mooshy gooshy stuff. Let's just say that, even after all these years, he still makes my heart go all aflutter. Especially when I see these, sexy things sitting around the house when he comes home from work:



AWWWW, Yeah, baby! That's the STUFF! I swear there is nothing hotter than a pair of Redwing work boots that someone actually WORKED in! Okayyyyy, it might not be for every woman. Some ladies really get all cranked up by guys who are all unnaturally buff, wear designer clothes, and get manicures. It may seem strange to those ladies that I find a trim waist on a guy to be kind of disgusting, but it's true! Give me a well-fed, naturally muscled (from actual WORK), slightly scruffy guy over those pansy guys any day of the week (oh, except maybe Sunday, I wouldn't mind if he actually styled his hair or spiffed up a little for church!)! No pretty boys allowed!

NOT FOR ME!

There's something so endearing to me about the manly-man stuff like, oh, I don't know...Working, taking care of your family, practicing ball with the kids (even in the house), teasing everyone and loving them so much that they don't so much mind the teasing, vacuuming, and just being a great husband who makes a woman feel so loved and desired at all times (yes, even when U.G.L.Y like when my eyes were puffed shut after having Mari and I cried, got all bloated, and went crazy for a couple of days after I got home from the hospital. If he could stay with me after THAT, he either has REALLY LOW standards, or is very love-blinded).

Alrighty, I said I wouldn't go on and on about that guy, so I'll talk about some girl stuff now.

I lost the diamond out of my wedding ring about 3 years ago. The prongs got entangled in the carpet when I was playing with the kids, and one day I realized that the "big" diamond was missing. There were two, teeny diamonds on either side of it and the bigger one was set up higher than the other two. It was VERY simple, which is how I liked it. I didn't mind so much not wearing a wedding ring set because my hands are so ugly and short-fingered, wrinkly, and freckly with short, bitten nails.

I thought that I would never really get around to getting it fixed, and even toyed with the idea of not replacing it with a diamond, but a CZ or something instead. I started to bring Trina to the custom jewelry shop to make a ring for herself with some of the other homeschoolers (Katheryn said she wanted to help someone learn about what she does and I was happy to oblige! She did this on her own time and for free) and I finally brought my ring in for Katheryn to look at for some ideas. My sis gave me the idea of a colored stone. It's my October birthstone (pinkish-purpley) in tourmaline and she added some white gold in the crack of where the engagement ring and the wedding band were fused together. She used half round bezels instead of prongs and replaced the two, little diamonds because she said she ruined one when she was making it all. I think they are much prettier and I can't believe how little she charged me. I think she gave me such a discount because I helped her when she needed a wine-pourer for her grand opening (again, happy to oblige!). She's a very talented woman and a very sweet friend! Here is a picture of how it turned out. I took it at night so it's kind of hard to see:


Pretty, huh?

So, all in all, today turned out to be like most days but I like most days. So that's just fine by me!

I look forward to many more years and maybe many more children with this hunk of a man. Happy Anniversary Hubs!

Ah loves yew.

Mari Reads

Mari is only 17 months old and already she can read. Watch as she reads to each, chosen member of the family with such inflection, such precision, and such animation! However, I can't understand her particular language, so if there are any blog readers from Korea...or maybe Iceland who could translate, it would be greatly appreciated!



P.S. Ignore the white blobs on my walls, I've been patching and in the process of painting over for so long now, the kids think that it is part of the actual decor!

Time For Tea

I met some really great MN bloggers in person yesterday!

Paula is a super cool chick from out in the boonies. She is a fiery, spicy gal that I totally relate to. I was so happy to meet her and hear all about her recent wedding and her struggles to get the Tridentine Mass said in her area. She's what you'd call "A Good Woman".

Mary is the sweetest, funniest, most open lady you could meet. She is unassuming and wide-eyed and wants to know all about you...and actually CARES what your answer is! She is expecting a baby and is just glowingly beautiful right now. I'm happy to have met her and enjoyed her company tremendously!

Tracy is not a blogger yet, but she knew some of the ladies from some homeschool message boards and I actually realized when I saw her in person that I had met her before. Her daughter and mine were in Little Flowers last year. She just had a little girl 3 months ago and I saw pictures. I hope to see her and her kids again soon and maybe help to get her involved in our homeschool group since she's been looking for one and she only lives a little ways away from us.

Margaret was the main photographer and got some good shots which she posted on her blog. I don't exactly know how I found her but I think it was a while ago off of someone else's blog and I was attracted to her "Minnesota Mom" moniker. I saw her on Danielle Bean's blog when Danielle came to MN for the homeschool conference and stayed with Margaret and they both posted pictures which I thought was cute. I guess when I first started to follow Margaret's blog, I was always hoping to meet her in person and I finally got to! She is so lovely, composed, and pretty. Very unlike me. But I admire someone who thinks before they speak and doesn't have to stick their foot in their mouth or stammer with a lot of "like"s and "ya know"s. She is so kind and hugged me TWICE when we parted which was really sweet and meant a lot to me. She has a way of making one feel special, and really listens to what you have to say (even if it's the idiotic stuff that comes out of my mouth). That is a very awesome quality!

One, funny thing that happened: At this table next to us, two older ladies were enjoying tea also. When we asked the hostess to take our picture a bunch of times "because this will be seen all over the world!" the ladies' ears perked up and they asked us how THAT would happen. After our picture was taken, we explained to them that this was the first time we had met in person and that we have known each other from the computer only up until this point. They stared at us blankly and went, "Ohhhhhh!". Heehee, it was kind of funny to see the wheels spin in their heads of how on earth that kind of thing could possibly happen! I thought about how I'll react to technological advances when I'm old(er) and how, even now, I'm mystified by text messaging and why the heck anyone would want to do that silly thing!

I hope I can meet more blogging friends in person in the future. It was a great experience. I hope I can get together with these particular ladies again someday soon! It's so nice to know that I can be a part of their lives as they share them on their blogs and in emails. Whatever the bad stuff on the internet, the good far outweighs! I would probably never have met or gotten to know so many wonderful people if it weren't for the blogs. I am so blessed!

Parker is a Pure Gift

Oh, how I hate to read stories like these. Yet, I torture myself by reading them so I can pray for the people going through these things because it's the only way I can help. I know that someday, that could be me or someone in my family and I would want as much love and support as possible. So I read, cry, and pray. Is it wrong to hope that nothing like that ever happens to me? I don't think my heart could take watching my child suffer so much. I guess that's the point. It's not up to me to "take" it, I'm supposed to trust that God knows better than me the reasons for the sorrows of life. I never question why a thing is so beautiful or why a person is so nice, so why do I question the seemingly bad things of life so much? Please click on the link and help in any way you can. Things are very bad for this precious and beautiful, suffering, little boy.




Parker's Story (blog)
The Contest

Lighten UP, Wouldja?

In my zeal for solving the big problems of the world and touting my oh-so-important personal philosophies...I got a little sidetracked. The really important things are happening all around me and I do pay attention to them, and actually photograph them once in a while!

Okay, first is a big event that I missed blogging about...Sofia's (my brother, Pete's 3rd child) baptism! It was a nice, Saturday evening Mass with our new associate priest. He had only done 1 baptism before, I think, but he did a great job and got 'er done just fine! We sat toward the back of church near the baptismal hot-tub (as I like to call it, I don't care if I sound like a big meanie, that thing is hideous), and then during Mass, Father came back to the font and the whole congregation got to share in the baptism and the renewal of our baptismal vows. I sure do like a baptism during Mass! I don't know if it's super-liturgically proper, but it is nice. Like having a wedding, or an ordination, it seems more proper to celebrate the sacrament with Mass. Here is the best picture I've got (I know Nellie has better ones) of Butch and I (the GODPARENTS, did I mention WE GET TO BE THE GODPARENTS???) and little Sofia. Can you see the family resemblance? The date on the picture is the date of the baptism. I held her last night and I can't believe how CHUNKY she is! She is going to need liposuction pretty soon. Her rolls have rolls. She's such a sweet baby with hugemongous dimples! Her chins have chins. Did I mention she's a butterball?



Next is Analise's birthday!
She preferred to have a family party which left her the choice of one, big present. She chose a Nintendo DS so she could play with her big bro and sis (it's interactive) and I didn't mind because it's something to keep them distracted in the car, in the winter, and they have fun at night "pictochatting" (they sketch messages and pictures like on a "notepad" then "send" them to each other, it's pretty cool, kind of like text messaging) from their bedrooms (I hear them giggling late and have to tell them "enough!" but I think it's cute.

We had the neighbors over for a small party and this picture was taken immediately after she had opened her pokemon card pack she got from them. They all chased her into the classroom and she stood up on a chair to begin the negotiations. It was hilarious! They looked like wall street a few minutes before bell or whatever signifies the end of the market's day. They were all shouting and waving their own cards, "Weazy! Weazy! I want to make a trade! Pick me! Pick ME!". Trina, Matty, Brenden, Brady, and Jacie were all crowding around her and she was loving every minute.

She turned 7 on 7-6-07. All I can say about that is that I hope this is her "lucky year"! She is a really good big sister and a really trying little sister. Soon she won't be stuck completely in the middle, so I think things will look a lot brighter for her when the baby is born. I felt so sorry for her for being kind of "left out" of the bigger kid's club and too old to be treated like a baby, but she's finding her way. The best thing about Weazy is her spirit. She is always enthusiastic about everything and like me, has great hope. It's a good virtue! Her eyes are always wide with wonder and she has a good grasp of humor. If I were to guess, I'd say she will be involved in entertainment in some capacity. She's very, VERY imaginative and dramatic (in a good way, most of the time) and I hope she develops that and doesn't mature her way out of it!
She also shows more love than most children and that's another, invaluable virtue.
I love you, Weazy!




Matty tried baseball for the first time this year. He really didn't know much about it when he started but at the end of the season, the coach had said that Matty was the most improved. He also found his baseball niche...he is a great catcher! Even on those stuffy, hot days he played catcher and did a REALLY good job! He sometimes caught the whole game. They ended the season not winning in the tournament but playing a game they could really be proud of and Butch also enjoyed watching Matty play and helping him during practices when he could. It was good, bonding stuff, I tell you!



This last picture is just a day that we went to my brother, Nick's pool. His son, Johnny and our Mari were born about a week apart and I like to photograph them together whenever I can. They were all chilled out, floating in the water for the longest time, just enjoying each other's company and lounging in the sun.


About the only family resemblance between these, two goofballs are their peppermint Chiclets bucky beavers. I love those things!