a look back

yes, i've been bad.

and i wish i could say i'll be better.

but i'm not sure i will;).  life is busy.

so here's what's been going on around here these past months.

marryn

turned 7 back in september.

got her ears pierced.

loves loves loves 2nd grade.  and is doing great.  already whippin' out multiplication facts on us.  (7x6=... anyone?)

was her class's first student of the month for responsibility.  then forgot her homework folder at home the next day.

played soccer again.  and shocked us with her competitiveness...

had her first dance recital in both ballet and tap.

has lost all 8 front teeth.

reganne

turned 5 just before halloween.

is learning all the letter sounds in preschool.

loves playdates.

received a *target* american girl doll from santa.

also had her first dance recital.

blew us away in soccer.  although she's not as competitive as the one above.

christian

just as lovable as ever.  and naughty.

still working on night-time potty training...(any advice?)

after much prep about what to ask santa for-he went his own direction and asked for a squirt gun.

santa brought him a nerf gun (and he was plenty pleased).

finally got a haircut.
and no longer in nursery.  now a sunbeam.

kellen

oh, my not-so-much-of-a-baby-anymore kellen.

loves cars.  loves them.

says very little real words.  (cars is one, as is movie-as in "i want to watch the cars movie.")

got his first haircut.  glared the entire time.

will eat cereal consistently.  everything else...anyone's guess.

has to buckle his booster seat every time he gets down from the table.

loves to wear shoes.  anyone's shoes.

at my feet

he makes it very hard to get much done.
but i know one day i'll miss it like crazy.

how I shower

a movie.

a pack'n play.

and a 4 year old waiting to shower and get dressed herself.

and thank you for all the comments (both here and on facebook) from my last post.

kellen is doing great.

and we are doing better.

a febrile seizure

My kids have been sick.

Nothing too bad, but it's just been a constant round of snot and coughing and even a complete strip down of Reganne's bed when she threw up.

But like I said, nothing too bad.  Or too serious.

Until the other night.

Kellen was running a slight fever Sunday night.  We gave him some Tylenol and put him to bed.  Didn't think much of it, other than Marryn had a fever the night before.  The next day he woke up fine.  Wasn't warm, but we could tell he wasn't feeling his best.  Nothing too bad though.  I even set him up in the cart when I went grocery shopping.  He was good.  Enjoyed it.  Then later that afternoon he started to warm up again.  I gave him some Tylenol.  Joe came home awhile later and he was still pretty hot, about 102 degrees.  So he stripped him down.  I had him later and he was still roasting, so we put a cool rag on his head.  And then as I was holding him, his plug suddenly fell out of his mouth.  Then his eyes glazed over.

"Kellen?  Kellen!"  I jumped up.  "Joey, something's wrong with Kellen!  Something's wrong with Kellen!!"

He took him as he yelled, "Call 911."  Of course I grabbed his iPhone, which would have taken me 5 minutes to get through passwords and apps and whatnot to even figure out how to even make a call, but then I noticed my phone sitting on the counter.  I grabbed it and started to dial.  I looked over at Joey, who was holding Kellen on his shoulder, as if he was burping him.  He was very still.

"Is he breathing?"  He put his hand on back to check.

He wasn't.  He handed him back to me and we could see that he was completely, head to toe, purple.

It was an all too familiar sight.

I took him and rushed into the living room where I layed him on the ground and just kept thinking "I'm going to bury another baby.  I'm going to bury another baby."   Joe's on the phone now, telling the dispatcher what's going on and I'm trying to do mouth to mouth.  But I can't get his chin to lift up.  I can't get his head to move back.  I'm giving him breaths (all the while I'm completely freaking out) but can't tell if they're going in or not.  I just can't get his head to move.  I look back over him and his purple little legs are drawn into his chest and won't go down.  And his stomach is complete sucked in.  But I keep with it, doing the best I could.  Then slowly his little body relaxes.  His color starts to come back.

And he starts to breathe again.

Soon his eyes open back up and he starts to cry a little.  I pick him up, but the dispatcher says to keep him laying down with his chin up.  So I do.  And he just looks at us, slightly out of it, as his cries get more and more consistent and stronger.  I just want to hold him, but I don't know what just happened and I don't want to hurt him, so I leave him there and talk to him.  I try to comfort us both.

Soon the firemen arrive.  They do some quick checks, but seeing that he's breathing fine on his own, they tell me I can hold him.  They ask tons of questions and shaking, I do my best to answer.  The ambulance arrives and offers to take him to the hospital.  They load his car seat in the ambulance and I go with him.  Joe follows later.  (Sometime after he started breathing again, I managed to get through Joey's phone and call Jean, his mom, to come over.  In addition we had a great neighbor who came over to offer help with the other kids and other neighbors who called as well.) 
  
In the ambulance, they don't find anything wrong other than a high temperature.  I relay the story again and the parametric thinks it was a seizure.  Again at the hospital I relay the story.

A Febrile Seizure.

Although extremely scary, they are completely benign.  The worry is not so much the seizure, but why do they have a temperature.

So at the hospital, they check him out.  His oxygen levels are excellent (98-99).  His heart rate is a little high, but nothing too worry about about (and it went down as the night went on).  His lungs are clear.  They did a quick test for the flu-negative.  Stiffness in the neck?  None.  (To rule out meningitis.)  Other than his high temp and a slightly stuffy nose, he was fine.  He mostly just wanted to snuggle with us, but occasionally would sit up and coo and play with his plug.  They gave him ibuprofen soon after we got there (around 8pm) and just kept monitoring his temp.  By 11 pm he was still running a temp around 102-103.  They gave him Tylenol and finally it started to go down a little.  We were on our way home now with instructions to keep him cool.  No clothes, no blankets, cool baths, cool room (open windows, turn on fans).  Just keep him cool.

Now, during all the commotion, Marryn was right there.  She was sitting on the couch when he seized up.  And although Joey sent her and the other kids upstairs, she knew something terrible was going on.  My freaking out didn't help either.  She was screaming, so much that the 911 dispatcher could hear her and Joey had to tell him that was another child crying.  She was complaining of an earache earlier, and while we were gone, kept complaining about it (despite having had medicine) and couldn't sleep.  I may not always know what's going on with my kids, but I knew that it wasn't as much her ear as it was Kellen that was keeping her up.  So when we got home, around 1 am, she was still awake, so I took Kellen into her room so she could see him.  That he was fine and home.  She went right to sleep after that.  And even the next day, she didn't have a trace of an earache and just wanted to be near Kellen and hold him.  It was really sweet.

So anyhow, we put Christian in our bed while I slept in his bed next to Kellen.  We closed off the vent to keep the room cool.  I froze.  He woke up twice.  The first I laid him down with me to nurse, and he was noticeably cooler.  He slept with me for awhile before waking up again, which we gave him more ibuprofen.  He then slept the rest the night.  Woke up happy and much cooler.  The day went on and as the afternoon hit, so did his fever.  We kept with the *treatments* of keeping him cool and didn't have anymore problems.   Woke up again without a fever, but was noticeably irritable.  And I myself wasn't feeling so great either.  I wasn't running a fever, but was constantly going from freezing to sweating, and my whole body just ached.  Even at night I couldn't sleep well.  But today I'm feeling a bit better.  And Kellen seems to be happier as well.   He even got into his favorite plant this morning.  Nothing like a little dirt to say I'm feeling better;).

Now back to his seizure.  

Is a Febrile Seizure dangerous?  No.  It is completely benign.  Yes, he stopped breathing, but only for about a minute or so.  There is no damage to him from this.  What caused this seizure?  An *overreaction* of his brain to his temperature rising too quickly.  Could he have one again?  Yes.  Now that he's had one, there is about a 30% chance he could have another, but only up until the age of 5 or so.  But he's not prone to seizures in general because of this.  Can we prevent them?  Possibly, by being proactive when he does start to warm up, but many times it may happen before we even realize he has started to develop a fever.  What should we do if it does happen?  Lay him down and wait for it to be over.  Am I comfortable with watching this happen again?  No.  Not at all.

This was a terrible experience.  But I am so very grateful that it was not something worse.  I have heard of these seizures before, but honestly knew very little about them.  Never thought it'd be something that I'd have to deal with.  So I hope our little story might help educate other parents.  But honestly when your child, for no apparent reason, stops breathing and turns purple, it's hard to stop and think, "Hmmm, maybe it's just a benign febrile seizure..."
 

enjoy

Good bye 2010.
And good riddance.

2010 was not a good year for me.

So here's to 2011.
A new year.
A new start.

And my word for 2011: enjoy.

When I look back over this past year not alot of joy comes to mind.  Yes, good things did happen, like our sweet little Kellen joining our family, but overall the year was well, not great.

My word for 2010 seems to have been survive.

And I'm not just talking about the toys that  litter our home.  Or the 2 year old who constantly gets yogurt and cottage cheese and sour cream and cookies and cereal all over.  Or the 1st grader who now throws jumping up and down tantrums.  Or the preschooler who flips out over anything.  Or even that sweet little baby who still wakes up every night between 4 and 6 am.  Or the running kids to and from school and the weekly YW activities and the never-ending piles of laundry and dirty dishes and the endless unfinished projects I've started.  Or the look of disappointment on the hubs face when yet again, there is no dinner or even an idea of what to even have for dinner.  Yes, these contribute to my survival mode, but they are not the cause.  I am the cause.  As I thought what my *theme* for this new year should be, the word simplify came to mind.  It's a great word.  And definitely something I need to work on.  But I realized that despite all my efforts, I have a lot going on.  And not much I can really cut out.  So last night, as I layed awake in bed thinking through this past year, it came to me.  My life is busy, it's hard, and not always what I want it to be.  And I can't change that.  What can I change?  I can change me.  I can change my state of mind.

So here's to 2011 and here's to enjoying it.  

Here's to enjoying my callings as a Young Women leader and a Visiting Teacher.  Or whatever they may be.
Here's to enjoying my hobbies in whatever little time I have to spare.
Here's to enjoying my what my home as to offer.
Here's to enjoying my kids.  In all aspects.
Here's to enjoying my time with my husband.
Here's to enjoying my life as it is.

I know it's not going to be easy.  But I have to try.

our little visitor

So.  One Saturday I spent the entire day cleaning out our garage.

Yes.  It sounds like it should be a job for the man-of-the-house, but I'll be honest,

it was my mess.

And by the end of the day, I was wiped.

(I'm telling you, it was bad.)

But boy was I excited to see how clean it was.  I had even sprayed it all out with hose which left it a little, well, wet.  And then we got a nice big rain shower that night that beat down on our garage...

So when we came back home from church on Sunday just before noon, I left the garage door open to help it dry up and air out.

Seemed like a fine idea.

That is until the next morning.

It was about 7:30ish and I was dragging myself out of bed to help Marryn get ready for school.  Joey yells down that the trash truck was coming (Monday is trash day, but it usually doesn't come this early).  So I head out to my very freshly cleaned garage and find a ripped garbage bag (we usually only fill our trash half-way, but because of all the cleaning, I had filled it and when we took out our kitchen trash the night before, I just set it to the side as not to leave the trash can open {= smelly}).  But not thinking too much of it, I just gathered the trash and recycling and set it out.  

As I was walking back up our driveway, I then noticed our bag of potting soil all over.  And a bunch of boards that I had placed ever so neatly knocked over.  And what is that yellow stuff...?

Then it hit me.

Remember last night when I opened the door to throw out a diaper and I thought, hmmm, that smells funny...

And remember how around midnight I got up about three times checking on the kids, looking outside, flipping on porch lights because I kept *hearing* something...

Yep, we've got an animal.

So after taking Marryn to school, Joe came back and we started pulling things away from the walls.  It didn't take long before we found it.

Hiding under the steps that go into the house.

First thoughts.

Racoon.

So Joe gets on the phone.  Calls 3 different people. 

One says, racoons are dangerous.  Keep the kids away.  We'll call you back when we can come.

Another, after mentioning the black and white fur we can now see peeking out, says skunk.

He was right. 

And he was the first to arrive.

An hour later.

So Joe spent the morning in the garage, keeping watch over our little visitor.

When the *animal remover* came, he sprayed some stuff to knock it out and then picked it up and away they went.  Along with a check for $55. 

So no, that little guy is not dead.

Although Joey wished it was.  

And people think he's a vegan because he loves animals...ha!

But before he left, we brought Reganne and Christian out and took some pictures.

Most likely the closest we will ever be to a skunk.

We hope.

And the smell, no it didn't spray.  Just peed and pooped all under our stairs.  So gross.

But it's all clean and sanitary now, thanks to another day spent cleaning.

PS - Joe here.  Look, I didn't really want the skunk dead, but I really wasn't to happy with it...maybe just put it in one of those hamster wheels and make it run for a while.

been busy

New baby.

Stomach bugs.

End of school stuff.

Colds.

Tantrums.

Sleeplessness.

Been busy.

And tired.

winner winner, chicken dinner

Does anyone else watch Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives (or Triple D) on the Food Network? Joey loves that show, so we watch it often...
****

Anyways, after a pretty crappy weekend, I got a sweet little message.

I won something off of the Making Memories Blog! Check it out to take a quick survey to win yourself something fun. And to see my name;)

And then Friday, after waking up to a sinus infection (you've got to be kidding me!?!?!), I got my little package.

Yippee!!!

a sick update

I guess I better post an update on the kids, before everyone really starts to worry that we've been swept away by the swine or something...;)

After my last post, I decided to take Reganne in. She was very excited about it and it perked her right up. Must be the sticker she knows she'll get at the end. And other than the vomiting and little bit of diarrhea, she was fine. Doctor did prescribe some medicine to help her keep stuff down. And it worked great. Didn't get sick again until the next morning...and then we just gave her another dose and she was good to go.

Christian started throwing up that next day, but just a couple times. And it was so sad. I think it wore him out just a little bit more. But like Reganne, he was fine otherwise. We put off a weekend trip to see my parents (who were visiting my brothers on the Western Slope) because we weren't sure how things were going to continue, but no one else got sick.

So the week continued on. Wednesday was Reganne's birthday (more to come) and Marryn's school was cancelled that day, despite having hardly a flurry until that afternoon (???) and Thursday (with a little bit of snow on the ground-we were not hit like "they" said we would be) and then Friday came along and so did a fever in Marryn. So she stayed home from school. No other problems, just a fever that was easy to bring down with some Tylenol. Saturday, same thing. Sunday-good to go. But then, yes, Reganne had a fever...and Monday too...but today is doing fine.

Now, as for me.

I. Got. Sick. (And after I bragged about how I never get sick...)

With a cold.

And it totally knocked me out.

Halloween, I could hardly get out of bed. Didn't even take any pictures of the kids. But don't worry, Grandma Jean was here and not only did she take care of everyone, she took some pictures:) Sunday I managed to stake claim on the couch and eat dinner, but that was about it. I'm better now. Just have a normal cold now, you know, cough, stuffy nose, that kind of stuff. But no fever or chills or body aches. Man, I have never had a cold like that before. Friday night when my chest was just burning, I thought, I better visit the Urgent Care in the morning, but I after a "you'll-feel-better-after-a-shower" shower, I was so wiped out that I never made it. But I got better, so no big deal.


But then I'm sad to say, Grandma Jean left us yesterday...with the start of a cold...


Yes, I am so sorry that she's sick, but I am SO grateful that she was here.

end of a good day

So that good day I was talking about. Yeah, it ended. At about 1am. Reganne came into our room, a common practice of hers, came to my side and as I reached over to pull her up, she proceeded to throw up all over me.

Nice.

We hopped in the shower, Joey cleaned up the bed. Made a little bed out of thick bathmats next to us and by 2ish, we were wide awake.

Reganne quickly fell back asleep and slept fine. She woke up asking for food. I hesitated, but after a call to the doctor, gave her a little. She has no fever, acting fine. Then as Marryn and I sat down for lunch, she came over, begging for more food and then threw up again.

Still no fever, acting like herself and laughing at the cartoons.

Good thing I managed to finish all the laundry last night;) Got a butt load to do now.

Ugg.

an apology

As I was hanging out Sunday afternoon (Joe was at church teaching a lesson, I was home with three snot-nosed kids), after a nice weekend, I was thinking about my recent post of "a single mom." (If you're reading this on Facebook, you'll have to look it up on my blog. I needed to make a change and once it posts on Facebook, I can't change it-so it got deleted.)

I feel I need to apologize. Apologize to any actual single moms out there. And to those non-single moms who really are living a single life. I know that I am very fortunate. Right now the evenings are lonely without my hubs, but this is temporary. And weekends are still spent together.

My complaints of Joe working late hours are not because he's not here to help, I'm actually doing quite well (surprisingly), but no, they're because I miss him. There is nobody else I'd rather be with than him. That would be why I married him;) So to have the night fade upon me, and him not being home, well, it just makes me a little sad. I'm spoiled. I know.

So again, to those mothers who really are single or to those whose husbands work alot (weekends and all) or to that mother whose husband is the bishop;), I apologize for my petty complaints. I may not have it as great right now, but it could be worse.

As for today. Wonderful 70 degree weather. Lovin' our new patio (extended it from a 10x10 to a 15x17). The kids have been in and out all day. Literally. That's what Christian does. Goes out. Walks around. Throws a ball. Comes back in. Walks around. Then repeats the process. Love our sliding glass door (with screen) and big windows looking out back. Our last house had none, so I hesitated to send the kids out by themselves. The ice cream truck even made a stop in front of our house. I have never bought anything from him, but the girls were so excited and they did each get a dollar from Grandma in the mail today, so I let them pick out a Popsicle. Or course they only had a choice of 2 that were a dollar. Good thing they're little still;) And as for that mountain of laundry, it's gone. Almost. And all our pots and pans. Clean.

Today was a good day.

And Joe will be home early tonight. Broncos are on;)

a single mom

Yes. That is what I've been feeling like lately.

Joe's been swamped at work. It's the end of a big financial...thingy(?), he's still somewhat training a new hire and his most recent boss left a few weeks ago for another job. So, getting home around 8pm if not later has been the norm lately. But I've been managing everything fine. Well fine if you agree that that means lots of take out, piles and piles of laundry (oh laundry...don't let me get started on that!) and stacks of dirty dishes;) It's not my ideal way of life, but I understand. Joe's job is important. It is what provides for our family. The good news: Joe has earned a promotion.

Yippee!

But with a promotion comes a price. A price in more time. But we're excited for this new opportunity for him. We know that this is a blessing from Heavenly Father. So, I better settle into my new role as a single mom. At least he's home to brush their teeth and put them in bed before we start watching Friends reruns;)

Well, what has a *single mom* and her family been up to lately besides that never ending mountain of laundry and running kids to and from school? Lets see...

***

Painted the girls' room while Joey was gone for the week in Cali and Kansas. Not quite the color I was envisioning, even Marryn said it looked "gold." But I think I'm liking it. (Hopefully I'll get the shelves and *stuff* put up soon-then we can really tell if it looks good.)

***
Went to World Market with my 25% off coupon. Proceeded to stare at this table.

Bought some oil jars and left.

***
Finally finished the backyard. Well, finished for this season. All that dirt is just waiting for some plants.

***

Marryn had her 5 year check-up and 5 booster shots. 38 lbs - 50%, 44 inches - 75%

***

Christian had his 15 month check-up with only 4 shots. 21.10 lbs - 25%, 31 inches - 55% (at least he's getting a little taller...Joey's really worried he's going to get my short genes...)

***

Put up some Halloween decorations.

***

Got hit with some pretty cold frost and a little bit of snow.

***

Eating lots of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Vegan approved for Joey.

***

Had to get Marryn a new pair of school shoes. Her $10 Target brand maryjanes are just not holding up. Trying to find a solid white pair of sneakers was not easy. Nor pretty. She loves her no-tie curly q's though;)

***

bad drivers

Since moving to Colo Springs, our car insurance has shot up. Well, actually it didn't shoot up until like 9 months after moving. I thought I had changed our address through the website, but then one day got a forwarded piece of mail (everything else was paperless-so I didn't notice). I then looked it up and no, my request did not make it through. So I did it again, this time I knew it was changed because we suddenly owed so much more. Seriously, it jumped about $350, for our 2 cars, every six months! We tried to tweek it to make it more manageable, but in the end, had to switch. We were pretty sad to do so, our *agent* was a good friend of ours from Fort Collins... But anyhow. I have now learned why it is so much more expensive here.

Bad drivers.

Over and over I have come home to tell Joey stories about what I have seen. And all in the area minutes from our home. Like the other day. I was at a stoplight in the turning lane. One car in front of me. The arrow turned green. And the car didn't go. I waited. Still didn't go. Was about to tap my horn (I really don't like using is, it has become such a rude thing) when I noticed why the car wasn't going. Here comes a car, just cruising through it's red light. Not in a hurry, so it obviously wasn't paying attention. Really glad I didn't honk. And this wasn't far from a small intersection that an off duty police officer was killed when someone turned into his motorcycle...

And then a few weeks ago, I was in a in front of some stores (Home Goods and TJ Max for those of you here) and a car started to back out. So I stopped. For 2 reasons. One, to be polite. Two, as to not get hit by the car. Then the idiot behind me whips around me as if I had stopped for no reason and then had to slam on his brakes to avoid hitting the car I was stopped for. Now, what if I had stopped for someone to cross the street? This is a parking lot. Would he have smacked into them?

Well, I have prided myself on being a courteous and good (not always great, but better than most;) driver. So the other day, I'm going to pick up Reganne from her pre-school. It's in a neighborhood a few blocks over. As I come upon the house, I flip around in the street so I can park *correctly* on the houses' side of the street. As I'm about parallel in the street, I notice it. A FedEx Truck right behind me, slamming his breaks as not to blind side me.

Oh. My. Goodness.

I was so embarrassed. I rolled my window down and apologized, which he was really nice and just laughed it off. But then there were 3 of the mothers, standing out in the driveway. Nice. At least he didn't hit me. That would have been way worse. For many obvious reasons.

Yes, not one of my best moments.

But I guess I can take some learning experiences from this.

Watch out for more than just kiddos in the small neighborhoods.

And you're never as good of a driver as you think;)

ketch-up

How's that joke go?

What did the daddy tomato say to the baby tomato as he was getting behind? Ketchup!

ha ha

This seems to be my life right now. Trying to catch up on everything.

So maybe someday, someday soon hopefully, I'll get some posts up. Until then, know that I'm sitting here, trying to decide what I should be doing;)

back on again

Well. 3+ weeks after I took our computer in for a weird start-up thing it was doing, we have it back and fully working. NO THANKS TO BEST BUY. Here's the low down. I'm still fuming mad about the whole thing...

Monday, July 27th-Took in computer (1.5 years old) to Best Buy (BB). Geek guy plugged it in and immediately knew what was going on. 30 seconds later it was fixed. Then he convinced me to have a diagnostic test, just to *enhance* it's performance and check for any future problems. I hesitated (big red flag here) but did it anyways, for it was included in our service plan. It would take 5-7 business days. WHAT? Okay, whatever. I can survive without my computer for a week or so....

Wednesday, Aug 5th-8 business days later, I call BB that evening to see if it's ready yet. Yes. Yes it is. And they found nothing. Big surprise, computer was fine to begin with. But did streamlined our internet video(?). So I brave the rain better than the 3 kiddos and pick it up that night. Bring it home and can't get it to connect to the internet. Wait til morning to look into it more.

Thursday, Aug 6th-Call Comcast. Twice. Both took me through all sorts of computer files I didn't know a thing about. Both saw the bad IP address. Both came to the conclusion that it's the netcard in our computer. Haul it back into BB with 3 kids. They plug it right into the internet and say nothings wrong. It's your cable connection. Try different cable cords. Nothing. Try different cables cords from modem to computer. Nothing. Joey brings home work laptop. Hooks up instantly.

Friday, Aug 7th-Call BB. Refuse to tell me anything over the phone. Must bring it back in. So I do. Joey and the kids wait in the car for 45 minutes (this was our Zoo day). Nothing wrong. Try uninstalling your antivirus protection. They don't do it, just tell me to do it. After a fun day, go home and nope, didn't work.

Saturday, Aug 8th-Call Comcast. Go through same things. Cable is working fine. Call BB. Must bring it in. Finally get someone who listens and actually tries to do something. Works on it trying to fix our bad IP address (of which another Geek tried to say was the "Best Buy IP address") Finally gets it to change. Come home. Nope, didn't work. Well, this time it partially loaded a page in about 5 minutes. Do finally thing suggested. Completely reload the computer. Completely wipe it out and start over. Nope. Still didn't work. I completely flip out. Take it out on Joey. Poor guy. Call Comcast again. Same thing. But this time they'll send someone out tomorrow. No, lets do Monday instead. Joey takes it back to BB, tells them our netcard it bad. Please fix it. No it's not, but we'll replace it for $90. Even though you paid for the protection plan. Brings it home and we just wait until Monday.

Monday, Aug 10th-Comcast guy comes. Is here about an hour. Tries everything. His computer hooks right up to the internet. It's that bad IP address. We need a new netcard.

Tuesday, Aug 11th-Take it back into BB with 3 kids. Tell them again we need a new netcard. Guy looks at me like I don't know what I'm talking about. We hang out for an hour while he "tries" stuff. Then sends me back home with it. Of course it doesn't work.

Wednesday, Aug 12th-Take it back into BB with 3 kids. This time they'll run another diagnostic test.

Friday, Aug 14th-Joey calls to check on it. They're busy, will call back.

Saturday, Aug 15th -Joey calls again to check on it. It's done, but they want to run another test on it.

Sunday, Aug 16th-Get a recorded message that our computer is ready.

Monday, Aug 17th-Wait until Marryn gets out of school so she can push Christian in the stroller and go pick it up. They found nothing. What a surprise. Still doesn't work.

Wednesday, Aug 19th-Joey goes to BB, without computer, to buy a netcard. Girl helping him says they don't have any. He asks someone else who shows him about 5 different brands he could choose from. He pays $35 for one. Installs it himself thanks to coworker who showed him how easy it was to do it and what do you know, we connect to the internet no problem.

What was that again we kept telling BB we needed? A new netcard? Oh no, that's not the problem. It's your internet, the one that others can hook up to but you can't. And that bad IP address (code for BAD netcard), oh, that's just our IP address. All those Comcast people don't know what they're talking about. So what was that protection plan we purchased good for? A diagnostic test on a perfect computer that left us without a fulling functioning computer for 24 days! And in the end, we had to buy the part and install it ourselves! To be fair, nobody at Comcast could really explain why we could connect to the internet at BB with a bad IP address. Thoughts were, it might have connected wirelessly or just that BB had a larger network or something like that. We're not computer nerds, but we do know one thing. We will never purchase a computer with the lame-o protection plan from Best Buy again. No, we'll pay less at Costco or somewhere and when something goes wrong, we'll find someone who knows what they're doing to help us. Joey does work for a computer company, of sorts, full of tech nerds;)
And now, I've going through the process of reinstalling all our software and getting out computer back to normal. It's a pain, but I must admit that I like how I can decide what goes on it and not the BB guys who sold it to us...

fyi

Our computer was out of service for awhile and now our internet is not working. Well, not working on our "fixed" computer (works just fine on Joe's work laptop he brought home for me to use...and worked just fine when I hauled it, and those 3 little kiddos back into Best Buy...)

grrrrrr.

So who knows when I'll be back in full blogging service...

But today Joey is taking the day off and we're off to visit the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo here in Colo Springs, not Wyoming;).

blogs and books

So, lately I've been rethinking my blog. Don't worry, it's not going anywhere;)
No, just rethinking what purpose I want it to have.

I love blogging. I love working out my frustrations and problems this way and then recording my joys they often seem to slip my mind more than the challenges. And I love reading all of your blogs and gaining insight and wisdom. This has become my therapy, if you will.

So this year I started my Project 365, taking a picture a day.

And I love doing this too. I don't always get in a picture every day, so some come from other days, but the point, to record our daily lives, is still there. But I have found myself not posting things on my mind because I feel I have to put up my daily pictures. So, I have started a new blog, just for my picture of the day, pollfamily2009.blogspot.com. There is a link over on the right as well.

And this blog will go back to being my therapeutic outlet, with of course the *occasional* picture and story of the kids;)

So in light of my blog reorganizing, here's some cute pics of that adorable little guy of mine with a book.

***

I also want to thank everyone for their kind words regarding my last post. Thank you for listening.

for everyone

My friend Annie posted this on her blog. I love it and wanted to share it as well.

(Sorry, it's hard to read. I made it as big as I could, and it doesn't get much bigger if you click on it...)

Although it may be directed to those without kids, I personally took it as a reassurance that I'm doing okay. I sometimes wonder myself, "what do I do all day?" and "why am I always so tired?" Whether I know it or not, I am constantly doing something even if I currently have nothing to show for it.

And if you want a little more pick me up, I have a great quote posted over on the side of my blog, 'Why I Do What I Do'.

goodbye old friend

Well, it finally reached it's last leg. It still works, but we know that it's time is short.

This blender was my high school graduation gift from my parents. This Spring it would be 10 years old. (Yikes, am I really that old??) It was a great blender. For the first few years it was primarily used for milkshakes. After working at IntaJuice, I learned how to make yummy smoothies. We then got into pureed soups (of which we eventually purchased a handheld blender...). But we knew it was going to need replacing when it started burning as I mixed up a salad dressing the other night....

So this is what we got.

I had been eyeing this guy for awhile. I really, REALLY want the Cuisinart food processor, but just can't bring myself to get it. We don't have one now, so did we really need to spend money on one at this point? So, as I thought and thought (this was a big decision for me you know), I decided to get the blender PLUS mini food processor.

I haven't tried it out yet, so I can't tell you how great it is, "but look how shiny!"

(Yes, that is a movie, ur, TV quote. Any guesses?)

my 'handy' hubs

I was raised by a "handyman." I have 3 brothers who are handy. I have grandpas and uncles and the such who are handy. In our family, if something broke or needed fixed, whatever it may be, we (and by we I mean "the men") just fixed it. Even if they didn't know how, they managed to figure it out. And always, ALWAYS, did an impeccable job at it.

Well, my dear sweet hubby is not such a handy man. Although his dad and brothers are, he spent most his time growing up with his mom and didn't quite learn those kind of skills. But every once in awhile, he surprises me and makes me so proud!

Since we moved into our home in May, we have had to deal with lukewarm showers. The bathtub and sinks get hot, but not our shower. Throughout the summer it wasn't so big of a deal. But these past months have been rough. So the other morning I woke up to find a toolbox on our bed. Joey had had enough! He took apart our shower handle and adjusted the safety clip thing to allow for hotter water to come through. YeeHa! I have had some of the best showers lately!

And then there was last fall. Just before Thanksgiving Joey hit a deer. In Fort Collins. In front of a gas station. Fortunately he was in the Yukon that has the big grill on the front of it (this was my parents car, they had put the grill on it just for this purpose when they lived on the Western Slope aka "Deer Country"). So the damage to the car was small, but it did break the headlight. But unfortunately, because this was my parents car still (about a month later the title was transferred to us...), so was the insurance and we (my parents included) were a little apprehensive to go through them for repairs... Estimates to fix the car were about $2500. So for a mere $200, Joey bought a new headlight and installed it himself. He installed a headlight. On a car. And it is still working! In addition, he even managed to fix some of the bend hood.

(Before)

(After)

Now, as handy as my husband has proven to be, I probably won't be getting him to do some of my other "projects" I want done, such as put on a porch railing and re-tile the fireplace (yes, that is the same tile on the fireplace that is in our bathroom....). His handiness is more out of a necessity, not want;) That and we really don't have a budget for that kind of stuff....