Saturday, June 20, 2009

Happenings

We're really having a great summer. Just a bunch of this and that. No official plans, no vacations to prepare for, no impending guests (although my mom and aunt are working on a trip down in July!), no summer camps, no scheduled activities. It's great!

So what have we been doing?

Well...

Daddy loves his pressure washer. He has noticably been interacting more with the girls lately (amazing how that happens with men when the kids stop being babies and daddies discover how much fun it can be to teach them stuff!) So he was out pressure washing the driveway the other day when he decided to call out the girls to get in on the action. They loved it...







Sarah also got a little work done on Dad's tires...


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In these uncertain economic times, I have been doing my part by keeping Target in business. It is a sickness, really. I can't stay away. On our never-ending quest to find something exciting for the backyard since we ripped the trampoline out of the ground, tore it to shreds, and stomped on it for good measure (to find out why, visit here or here), I recently spotted a three-lane slip-n-slide at said store.







I really thought I was on to something here until Daddy had a nervous breakdown over the torn up grass. So now its been sitting in a pile on the deck the last few days while we let the grass dry out and negotiate the finer details of what is more important in life...beautiful grass or our kids enjoying their backyard...hmmmm.

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The girls and I had a lovely time chatting while sitting around the table in our screened in porch yesterday. I started a story and then we'd go around the table adding to it. They seemed to enjoy it. Or rather, they seem to enjoy my undivided attention. :) While we were chatting, I noticed an unusual caterpillar climbing the screen. After crazy screams and gathering of bug nets, we got the little beast and decided to check on line for its species. We discovered we had found an American Dagger Moth Caterpillar




A little learning never hurt anyone in the summer, right? Since it turns into such an ugly moth, we decided to release it back into the wild rather than try to create a habitat where it would hopefully cocoon and turn into a butterfly. We have actually been successful at that once or twice, but more often than not, they cocoon and leave it at that, never realizing their full potential. Perhaps they are just afraid of emerging to so many screaming, squealing little girls.

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I have discovered that the girls love sitting at the counter on barstools. We never have utilized this space for sitting before. I bought some nifty Batter Blaster pancake mix at Costco last week. It comes in an aerosol spray can (like redi-whip) and you just squirt it out onto the skillet. The girls love it and they sit at the counter as I make one after the other. The only problem is we only have 2 barstools, so the younger 3 fret, whine, and cry over who gets the two coveted stools. Obviously I am going to have to pick up one more (my big E is too old and above all this ridiculous behavior over a barstool! :)




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Well, speaking of pancakes, Mady has taken her post on one of the barstools and is begging me to unglue my eyeballs from my computer and make her some. I am off!

Friday, June 12, 2009

Cast Off, Cast On

After 6 1/2 long weeks in the full cast, Sarah finally got her short, and waterproof, cast today.

It wasn't pretty.

As soon as the cast was cut off she freaked out and was crying and saying it hurt so bad and felt wierd. She was begging for them to put the cast back on! They still needed to xray it, so to stabilize it, we put half the cast that had been cut off, back on her and walked her to xray which was another trauma, getting her arm in position. I was worried, but they assured me that this is a normal reaction for a little one after wearing a cast so long. The elbow is very stiff, and the skin and arm feel wierd, stiff, and vulnerable.

They showed me the new xray and were commenting on how "great" it looked, and all the new bone, and how it looks just like its supposed to, and I am thinking, well I guess I will have to believe your 7 years of medical school experience, because to me it still looks very broken and bulgy! They assured me that is normal and the new bone growth looks good and it heals from the outside in and because both bones were broken in half and new bone has to be created to connect the bones back together that it all looks good.

Okay. So then she picks her cast color - Green - and whimpers through the putting on of that, and then cries through the guy molding and squeezing the arm as the cast dries. Pfew!

We got the gortex material inside the cast so she can now bath and swim at her leisure, which is great, since she will be in this cast for 3 1/2 more weeks...10 weeks total in the cast! Would titanium rods have been better? I sure hope the bone fully heals and is strong enough when all is said and done!

We headed to Gma's to swim in her pool and she was being so cautious with her arm, afraid to move the elbow. I just let her go at her own pace, and soon she was swimming in the water and having a great time. I think we are now over this hump...I am sure there will be more trauma when they fully take the cast off in 3 weeks, although she is supposed to wear a removable splint after that. I will just be glad when all this drama is over!

I photographed the whole thing, so here it is, enjoy!











Sunday, June 7, 2009

How many people does it take to build a picnic table?

2 adults, 4 children, and a dog, if you are trying to make it a family project for Super Special Saturday!

CJ and I had spied a picnic table kit at a home improvement store (Lowe's, if you must know) last month but delayed gratification until payday. We picked it up with some stain yesterday and went to work!




We chose a "cheerful, happy" red stain, per Evie's request, and daddy went to work staining the boards.


He captivated his audience and soon everyone wanted in on the painting. It was a harrowing experience for daddy, but he managed to get through it, letting each girl take their turn at staining...






Then I decided to get in on the action to help the project along. (check out The Goo kicking back on her tricycle!)




We got 'er dun, and before she was even dry, started putting 'er together...we like instant satisfaction!







Meanwhile, Evie got distracted by the directions and got inspired to make a canvas drawing of a picnic table...







And, VOILA!! A family project well done!






Other cute pics during the project...










And after all that excitement and fun, daddy relaxed by vacuuming the garage.



Now go and build yourselves a family picnic table! :)