Stop The Madness

We've had a nonstop holiday season and I'm ready to drop. I'm exhausted and my to-do list is miles long. All I want to do is crawl in bed.

• My sink is full of dirty dishes.
• My dishwasher is clean.
• The basement has toys from one end to the other.
• The mountain of laundry is turning into Everest.
• I have oodles of pictures to upload from Lefse Day.
• I have a boatload of clock work to do.
• I have a huge stack of books I want to read.
• I am in so much pain from my stupid arm and PanAway or Advil isn't cutting it.

Thank goodness we have no plans tonight or tomorrow. Maybe I'll treat myself to a snooze. Check back soon for Lefse Day pictures. I'll also be updating my foodblog with a sushi review. As soon as I wake up. Which might take a few days.

ADDENDUM: Avrie slept for 20 minutes and Nolan didn't sleep at all. TRANSLATION: I did not sleep. At all.

GRRRRRROCERY SHOPPING

It was Old Mother Hubbard's cupboard around here so I bundled us up and went to Cub. In hindsight it was a ridiculous thing to do being neither of my kids had naps today. Avrie immediately sees something that looks like candy and wants it. I say NO and she throws a screaming fit complete with crocodile tears. This happened about every 3 feet for 45 minutes. The only thing that kept me sane was the nice football player who bagged for me (they were fundraising and I used all my cash to pay for the groceries so I had nothing to tip him). And the fact that my husband was home to carry in my groceries.

I used to love grocery shopping. USED to. Now I kind of loathe it. Okay, really loathe it. Someday I'm going to have a lovely neighbor I can trust and we'll kid swap for grocery day.

Good thing they're cute most of the time.

Real good thing.

Bubble, Bubble, Bubble

Holiday Pictures

Whew! We're exhausted after a long holiday! We spent Christmas Eve Day at Grandpa and Grandma T's and ate cookies, played Deal or No Deal for real money, compliments of Grandpa, ate cookies, ate cookies, played Cranium, ate cookies (and some food), opened gifts, ate cookies. We spent Christmas Day at Grandma Helen's and did pretty much the same as the day before! We've had our share of junk food for the season, that's for sure. The kids are crabbier than crabby and it's reinforced how I feel about junk food. They are so much happier today after a good breakfast and lunch. I don't seem to have any good pictures of Nolan with his presents, but we got him a racetrack, a fishing game and a handheld memory game.

There are presents in the basement?! Oh boy!!

Tinkerbell Fairy playset for Avrie.

And a Littlest Pet Shop.

Avrie and Stefanie playing airplane.

Amanda and Elliot wishing March was here already.

Avrie made her way around the room and begged for ice cream. It worked.

Mooching from Tonya.

Stefanie and Nolan having a ball. I'm so punny!

Happy Christmas!

My Fabulous Hat

I broke down and spent $25 on a hat. It's amazing. I love it. It's huge. And it was on sale. Just not very much. Hopefully it will last a long time.

Misc of the Kids

Avrie is talking up a storm. She copycats 1-2 syllable words. She's also got a few sentences down pat: I want that. Gimme that. Want Be-Be (blanky). More (which totally qualifies as a sentence). New words: balloon, snow, belly. She also sings Do-Da-Ditty-Ditty-Dum-Ditty-Do.

This is Avrie's silly face that she does on command.

Popsicles were our main source of nourishment the past month.


Kisses for Mommy.

Sexy Shampoo

I got a good laugh from my shampoo bottle. At the very top it says: Sulfate Free, Organic Vanilla Bean Oils. Check out the ingredients:

DI Water, Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Glycol Distearate, Dimethicone Copolyol, Cetyl Alcohol, Cocamide DEA, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Polyquatemium-11, Hydantoin, Silk Amino Complex, Panthenol, Organic Vanilla Bean Oil, Shea Butter, Tocopheryl Acetate, Fragrance.

Of course it's all marketing, but why bother with ORGANIC vanilla bean oil after all that load of chemicals? And sulfate-free? Not really. The 2nd, 3rd and 4th ingredients are all variations of a sulfate. It's like buying deli meat that says it's nitrate-free and the ingredients say lactic acid starter culture...which creates nitrates. So your deli meat isn't nitrate free. And this shampoo is not sulfate free.

I bought it purely for the smell. One of these days I'll care about what's in my shampoo but today isn't the day. I put it on dead hair that doesn't absorb into my body and I'm not too worried about the inhalants. Now deodorant and lotions are a different story.

Anyways...the back of the bottle (hence, SEXY shampoo):

Why We Love It...
It's smoothing, silky, luxurious and totally addictive. It is utterly, completely and totally tempting.

Why You Want It...
Smoothing Tahitian Vanilla Bean oils blended with exotic silk amino proteins create a decadent treat. All you need for soft, smooth and seductive hair in one irresistible formula.

What's In It For You...
A totally indulgent blend of Tahitian Vanilla Bean oils to instantly nourish and moisturize your hair while silk amino proteins strengthen and seal your hair's cuticles. A can't-say-no combination to keep your hair looking silky, smooth and shiny.

What You Do...
Lather up and rinse until your hair is rejuvenated (because hair has feelings).

NOT FOR THE WEAK OF STOMACHES

Don't say I didn't warn you. Do not complain to me if you continue to read.

Cheri: Which is worse? Raisin-filled diaper or raisin puke?

I've cleaned up my share of puke over the last 10 days. 1-3 times per day/night. This afternoon was the absolute worst. I was feeding Klara a snack of Indian pudding and Avrie wanted a bite. I gave her one and she promptly gagged (she must agree with Daddy). She then threw up the entire contents of her stomach. Which was: an entire box of raisins, unchewed, congealed ice cream, curdled orange juice, curdled milk, chunks of oatmeal. To clean this up I got a bowl and spoon. It was all held together by snotty mucous. Which made it impossible to scoop up. Is it strange that I'm so used to her throwing up by now that I just kept feeding Klara her snack and waited until she was done?

Sick, Sick, Sick and Sick Again

I am so sick and tired of being sick and tired of being sick and tired of being sick and tired....and on and on.

In the last month:

Nolan: pneumonia, 24 hour flu, horrid cough, ruptured eardrum.
Avrie: ear infection, flu, RSV
Evan: ear infection,24 hour flu, bad head cold
Me: so far nothing but minor drips. Mommy has to escape it so she can take care of everyone else.

We've never had cleaner sheets and the kids have never had so many baths.

100 Things About Me--A Blog Classic

1. I hate cherry flavored anything.
2. Ditto for fruit punch...this gets my gag reflex.
3. Maybe this is because I had chronic ear infections as a kid and was on amoxicillen all the time. Doesn't it taste like a combo of the two?
4. My dream vacation would be a silent retreat. I think we could learn so much about ourselves if we'd just shut up. If only our thoughts could be silenced!
5. I hate shopping.
6. With the exception of Thrifting.
7. I do believe I have a slight email addiction. I like that people want to email ME. By people I mean my mother and Cheri. Oh, and the bill collectors. I don't like them at all.
8. I cut my nails outside. This is really brilliant if you overlook the strangeness of it.
9. I take scalding showers. I tried to overcome this for the sake of my skin/hair but I didn't like freezing to death. My version of freezing to death is still scalding to most people.
10. There is a house near us that is plastered in Tweety Bird. You'd have to see it to believe it. I hate Tweety Bird.
11. I wanted to be a Vet when I grew up and now I really don't like animals. They shed. And pee on your furniture. And cough up hairballs that you step in first thing in the morning. And contaminate the whole tank.
12. I like pets at your house.
13. I once wrote down 365 things I wanted to do with Evan after we were married. He drew one each day for the year we were engaged. I wonder how many of them we've done?
14. I desperately want a room of my own for reading. My husband just laughs at me. I'd settle for an amazing reading corner. If I could only find a corner.
15. My children amaze me. Every single day.
16. They also try my patience. Every single day.
17. I have a thing for eyes. They really are the window to the soul. Or something poetic like that.
18. I can't stand character clothes and shoes on kids.
19. I think communal living is interesting. I could never live with anyone other than my family.
20. I was obsessed with boys. I once had my friend get this boy to breathe in a Ziploc baggie so I could have his breath. Remember this Trina?!?! I wonder what Dustin S. ever made of himself. Last I heard he had STD's and no one liked him.
21. I'm so glad I never had to date. I had a guy hit on me last week and I didn't even know what to do.
22. I once had a guy hit on me at a mental health clinic. My dad was with me and thought it was hilarious. He tried to give me his phone number written on the back of his therapist's card. Classy.
23. I miss therapy so, so much.
24. I've done Landmark Education. It saved me from myself. I am forever grateful for my in-laws paying for us to go. I wonder where I'd be today without it.
25. I french-kissed Scott S. in the backseat of the bus for monopoly money. We were convinced it was real. We were 7 and didn't know better. It wasn't long after that that the busdriver made 7th grade and under sit up front.
26. I also kissed Adam D. in the gym in 3rd grade. He had won his wrestling match. He was my best friend until 4th grade. I still get weepy when I think of the emptiness of his funeral service. He was the last boy I kissed until Evan.
27. I'm highly opposed to pacifiers. Highly.
28. I'm also opposed to commercial formula. If you can't breastfeed at least make your own from fresh, raw milk. Don't get me started on breast versus bottle.
29. I cried when both my kids self-weaned. I would have nursed them until 2...much to some people's dismay.
30. I cannot believe how hard this is. I have 70 to go.
31. I would love to live in a big old barn. Converted to a house of course. And minus the mice.
32. Or a quonset.
33. Oh, Oh, OH!! I HATE musicals. With a passion.
34. I really, really want to try a sensory deprivation tank. There is one in Minneapolis and it's relatively cheap...just haven't made it there yet.
35. I'm starting to love BodyPump. It's heinous for an hour but the results are amazing.
36. I love itty-bitty diamond nose studs.
37. Wow, this is getting to be quite random. Once, when I was 12-ish, I went to brush my horse with a currycomb and I dropped it on the ground and she swooped down and picked it up in her mouth and proceeded to scratch her butt with it. No one believed me.
38. I miss being a kid. I miss my imagination.
39. I want to take an art therapy course. I wonder what kind of art would come out of me. I'm a wanna be artsy-fart.
40. I sew.
41. I knit. Correction: I knitted before two kids. They undo projects faster than I can start them.
42. The nicest piece (most $$) of furniture in our house is our foosball table. Maybe it needs to be more prominantly displayed. We need to get a piece of glass cut for the top like Chandler and Joey's.
43. I was on Accutane. Terrible, horrible stuff that gave me beautiful, radiant skin.
44. I LOVE rearranging furniture. I saw a book once titled Decorating for Good. I gasped and turned and RAN.
45. I have no idea what I like for art. My living room walls are filled with pictures of my family, a clock and a mirror. I'm not willing to invest $$ in something I won't like a few years down the road. I do love Peter Max. Evan almost bought me this for Mother's Day a couple years ago: http://www.sunshoppecafe.com/images/artists/Max-BetterWorldIII.jpg.
46. I turned 25 in October and had to renew my driver's license. I wonder if I'll ever weigh what my old one said I did. I was honest on my new one.
47. I've been to a nude beach. It was the most liberating thing I've ever done.
48. I don't like bagels. I'm not much for bread actually.
49. I don't like baked potatoes.
50. I sang a solo for the recital in 1st grade. It was called Two Little, New Little Moccasians. Or something like that. Mom was afraid I was going to gather my skirt up too high in my nervousness.
51. I just tried to explain to Nolan about how the Sun goes around the whole Earth. He wanted to know if he has an astronaut suit so he can go to the moon. I love him so much!
52. My vehicle is always messy. I never get car washes. I vacuum it twice a year.
53. I wish I could afford laser hair removal so I'd never have to shave again.
54. I haven't owned a hat since grade school. I want one this year. A fur-lined knit bomber from AE. It's $30. It will have to go on sale for me to buy it.
55. I also want nice winter boots. I haven't had a pair since grade school either.
56. I love lip gloss. Avrie already does too.
57. I have never slept with a top sheet. Fitted sheet and down comforter with a duvet cover is the only way to go.
58. I have to have three pillows to sleep. One for my head, one between my knees and one to hug.
59. I will pay anyone $100 if they can get Nolan to poop in the toilet. I'm dead serious. Permanantly, not just once. Although, I'd be amazed even then.
60. When I was young I had 30-some plantar warts burned off my feet. I have a wart on my index finger right now and it's so incredibly annoying. I guess they are viral. Another reason to get more sleep.
61. I have inactive vertigo.
62. Alan paid me $5 once to go downstairs and get him an alarm clock. He was afraid of the basement.
63. Before we had Nolan we seriously considered traveling the world for a year. We researched Madagascar the most.
64. I was once enrolled in culinary school at the Art Institute. I had even ordered my knives. It was at a time in my life that I can't remember and I don't know why I didn't follow through. Probably because I wasn't eating then.
65. I grew up on a farm and maybe drove a tractor by myself once. I'm a non-farm farm girl!
66. My mom used to combine and I'd fall asleep with my book on the floor by her feet. Until I got too big.
67. I love my hardwood floors. Even if they are scratched from the kids...they are still beautiful.
68. Nothing beats convention.
69. I have no idea what my favorite food is. Nolan's is Pad Thai with chicken. It has been for at least a year. I wonder when it will change?!
70. I'm not passive.
71. I'm not exactly aggressive either.
72. I think professional athletes get paid too much. I think professional sports are ridiculous.
73. My favorite part of 1st grade was Reading Rainbow. My favorite Reading Rainbow book to read to the kids is "The Piggy in the Puddle".
74. I used to brush my teeth 8+ times a day. I'm down to 3-ish.
75. I NEVER use a hairdryer and rarely use hairspray.
76. I'm not at all athletic.
77. I don't like mainstream.
78. I hate putting clean laundry away. Absolutely loathe it.
79. I really don't enjoy winter. At all.
80. I love tea. With honey. Or pure maple syrup.
81. I cannot even imagine living a life without children. That said, there are a lot of people out there who should never have them.
82. Oooh, I did think of something I like about winter: fresh popcorn and Rook in front of the fireplace.
83. I just bought my first pair of bunny slippers a few weeks ago and I LOVE them. The kids think I'm silly. Now I can be the cliche comic strip character.
84. I love comics. Get Fuzzy, FB or FW, Pearls Before Swine and Baby Blues just to name a few.
85. I want my own milk cow and laying hens someday...soon.
86. Sometimes my joints feel so old.
87. I had severe sciatica with both pregnancies. I'm scared it will get worse with the next one.
88. There's nothing like a great pair of heels to make me feel like a million bucks. Unfortunately, my knees can't take them anymore and I'm down to flat-ish. Ugh. Flats make me feel frumpy.
89. I'm feeling very conceited writing this...like people really want to know 100 things about me. But it's been too much work to stop now!
90. I rarely, rarely wash a dish by hand. I am in love with my dishwasher. His name is Whirlpool and he makes me so happy. I hope I'm not too much for him.
91. I never rinse my dishes prior to the DW. Why bother?
92. We don't use a microwave and people think we're weird.
93. Ummm, I've never cleaned my oven and we've lived here 3 1/2 years. My mom did it when we moved in. I don't think it's gross....but I haven't exactly stuck my head in to check.
94. I have a fern phobia. When they develop spores on the back of the leaves to reproduce or whatever...it totally freaks me out. I get nauseous. Seriously. Just come at me with a fern and I'll leave you alone! I walk through the fern room at Como Conservatory as fast as I can.
95. I don't like IKEA. I like SOME of their stuff but I hate going there. It's annoying.
96. I love people watching. I want to know their stories. But I'm not aggressive enough to be a reporter.
97. I always thought it would be cool to be the tough skater-girl chick who did extreme sports. See #76.
98. One of my 6th grade teachers pinched me. I wish I would have decked him.
99. I was in the "fat club" in elementary school. No wonder I have issues.
100. I always want to keep my eye on the prize.

I'm Alive!

Haven't been in a posting mood lately so these pictures are old. Been busy being busy I guess! Avrie has cut two new teeth in the last few days and loves to show them off! I'll have to get a picture of her funny face before the novelty of showing it wears off. I'm in the process of trying to get our junky camera replaced. Another reason I haven't posted...good pictures are hard to come by.

Father and Son watching the snow.

Avrie must be related to Grandpa Elroy...check out that tongue! She's deep in concentration...checking out her nails.

Gladys slept in Nolan's room last week and he slept in our bedroom. We had the purple chairs stored in there from meeting and Evan made a fort for Nolan, which he slept in.

Avrie loved the snow...for about 5 minutes.

This face is what I get when I ask him to smile for the camera.

My Eskimo.

Snow, Snow, Go Away

Things we did today:

Went grocery shopping at 10 a.m. with the masses of humanity. Lost Avrie's shoe in the midst of the chaos. A nice man found it for us.

Bought a new mattress for the guest room.

Made two batches of buns for the potluck tomorrow. Got the pork roast cooked and shredded for sandwiches. Made the pasta salad.

Made cornbread to go with our chili for supper and dropped the entire container. It was not funny and my husband had the nerve to laugh. Which made the kids laugh. Our vacuum sure doesn't go hungry.

Got two picture shelves hung in our bedroom...finally. We've had them for a year. It took all of 10 minutes.

Murdered the bunny colony under our bed.

We're now enjoying our nightly tea and trying to decide what book to pick from our new library stack.