That's Not What I Paid For....Is It?

I like my boys' hair short.

Summer is my favorite when they get it buzzed super short!

Unfortunately, we let them go a little to long between hair cuts and they all discovered how fun it is to have hair long enough to spike.

The desperately needed haircuts, but they all refused.

In the spirit of compromise, I offered to let them go to someone other than the Jonker Boy Barber--aka Ben.

Forty five dollars later--that's why it's a special treat!--they all had nice haircuts that they could still spike and style how they wanted.

Three hours later, I was chatting with Ollie and noticed this:

He was super, super mad when he ended the day with a short summer buzz cut.

It will be awhile before he gets anything but a Daddy Special!

The Year I Ruined Christmas

Last year Luke was on the fence about all the Christmas fibs--Santa, the elf....

He would make little comments about how we are the ones that move the elf around the house and other little bits about Santa.

Usually those sorts of things came out when he was feeling a little rotten.  Plus it seemed like his way of getting under his brothers skin while testing the water at the same time--not actually asking the BIG question.

I dealt with it by pointing out that there were other people in the house who actually did believe in all the magic and, although he was welcome to believe or not believe, I would appreciate if he didn't try to ruin the fun for the rest of us.

It worked.  

He stopped making comments, I didn't lie to him, and he seemed to believe more than he didn't by the time Christmas was through.

About two weeks ago, Luke started in on it again.  

I'd already told myself that this was probably going to be the year that he stopped believing.  He was already on the fence, plus a lot of the other moms said that their 4th graders already knew.  I was prepared to have a sit-down with him.

As soon as we dropped the other two off at school, I laid it all out for him.  The elf, Santa, everything.  

He said that he already kind of knew.  I felt good about our chat--a little sad but excited to have a helper and someone to scheme with! 

Later that day, I went to check the mantle where Henry left notes for elf to take to Santa.  What I found were two notes from Henry and one from Lucas.

My heart immediately broke.

I realized that I completely jumped the gun. 

I worried all day.  I went to work before he got out of school so the first chance I had to talk to him was in the middle of the night when I got home.  

I woke him up and told him how sorry I was that I spoiled everything for him.  He told me that he was a little sad about it, but excited to help.  It was a dagger straight through my heart.

I cried--a lot.

I probably could have gotten away with just telling him that we move the elf.  Anytime that he questioned Santa it was just thrown in at the end of his "Mom and Dad move the elf" bit.  I don't think that he made it far enough into really questioning Santa.

I should have never doubted his belief in Santa.  I do an excellent job at it!  

I never give anything, not even candy, that can be directly linked to a store.  Everything is generic or gets reworked and repackaged so it looks generic.  If anything's ever questioned I say that the stores must have gotten the idea from Santa!   

Luckily Henry and Josh believe in all of it with every fiber of their being--especially Henry.  

After what happened with Luke, I may never tell them.  They are going to have to learn it the hard way, and even then, I'll deny that it's true!

Henry's Wishlist

Our elf, Elmer Sam, showed up at our house yesterday.

The kids have been anxiously waiting for him since Thanksgiving.  (Well not Luke because he thinks he's "creepy"!)

The other two, though, love to search him out!

Their favorite was when they found him in the fridge!

One time when Henry was about 3 or 4, Elmer Sam was hiding on the shelf in his closet and Henry shot him with a nerf gun and he fell to the ground.  I don't really know if it was on accident or on purpose, but Henry came tearing out of his room screaming bloody murder.  He was terrified!

I had to go in and talk to the elf, make sure he was okay, and tell him how sorry Henry was.  Luckily, he flew back up to his place on the shelf and there were no hard feelings.

The boys love to talk about the time that "Henry shot the elf"!

Anyway, last night, Henry left him a note to take back to Santa.  (Elmer Sam forgot it last night, but he's taking it with him tonight.)

All Henry wants is a camo bow.

It may not be from the North Pole, but he's going to be over the moon when he opens his present from Gigi, and Grandpa John!!

The Jester

Gigi took an unconventional route with Josh Oliver’s Halloween costume this year—she made it first and  then convinced him wear it.

It was exactly the best strategy!

He really wanted to be a puppy, but I got to her before he did.  After two years of full fleece turtle costumes, I have forbid her from making anything that involves the dreaded material—it’s a nightmare in a house of dogs!

She instead made him a Jester costume.

He wasn’t the least bit excited when he first saw it.  It took a lot of convincing, plus a matching outfit for his stuffed dinosaur, before he would even consider wearing it.  Even then, he was really on the fence.

If anyone asked him what he was going to be, he would tell them that his Grandma and Grandpa were making him be a Jester.  (How sad that he has such bullies for Grandparents!)

When we actually got to Halloween, though, he was really happy with his costume.  He got so many compliments on it—way more than he would have as a puppy!  

Even Henry noticed how people gushed over it.  I told him that apparently next year he needed to let Grandpa and Gigi pick out his costume for him if he wanted to be a crowd favorite! 

As for the other boys….

Henry went as a vampire.  Gigi made his costume, too.  It was really cute, but it’s hard to stand out as a vampire.  Plus, he ditched part of his outfit which would have probably gotten him a few more compliments.

Luke made his own again this year—a zombie.  I’m pretty sure he picked it because it was a good excuse to rip up some clothes!  He looked good, though, and as a bonus, he fit in perfect to work an impromptu spot in the haunted playground at church!

A Slippery Slope

Our house is in a bit of shambles right now.

Our washer has leaked one to many times and our flooring has to be replaced.

This is our third floor that we've put in since we moved--thanks to a broken disposal and a crappy washer.  

This time we decided to go with tile, instead of laminate wood, in the hopes that it stands up better in our next inevitable flood.  

We should probably just buy a new washer, but I just won't give up on it yet.  I'm my parents' girl!

Getting new flooring seems to have started us down a slippery slope. 

Since the flooring is getting replaced anyway, I want to knock down two doorways and a partial wall to make our entry closet and laundry room one big functional mudroom. 

I've been working toward getting that done for awhile!  Sometimes I have to do things in babysteps with Ben!

We also decided to extend the tile into the dining room.  The carpet was gross and it just makes more sense to have cleanable flooring where we eat.

Then, since the flooring that I fell in love with is a dark walnut, my orangey oak cabinets have to be painted white--another job that's been on my list!

I don't really do well with the chaos of our main living space being turned upside down.  I'm slowly learning to work around it.  I just keep repeating to myself, "It's all going to be worth it."

Sadly, we are both already dreaming about phase two.  

Ben's hoping for a new counter and backsplash.  I'm shooting for a revamp on the bathrooms.  We both want a nice backyard!

Either way, I'm planning on painting all the trim in the house white and switching out all the doors.  

Wish us luck!

I'm trying hard to stay focused on making it through our current mess.

One step at a time!

Saying Our Prayers

Cooper had another seizure early Thursday morning.  

There was only 4 hours between the 2nd and 3rd.

They are getting less scary for me.

I know what to expect.

It was the first time for Ben, though.  I think he was equally terrified and relieved that he finally knew what exactly was happening.

The vet now has him on Phenobarbital to try to control the seizures.  Ideally it will fully kick in within the next 5 or 6 days.  We're praying that there is no more excitement before he reaches that mark.

She also straightened me out on the priority list.

While I felt like the stones were next on the list--I just really want to take care of what we can--she said that once the seizures are under control, we really need to figure out what's causing them.  In addition to the concern about putting him under anesthesia, we need to make sure that he is going to live long enough to make the surgery feasible.

It was really hard to hear it laid out like that.  

Really, though, she's right.

For now I am being pessimistically hopeful.

I have to assume that he is going to take a turn for the worst at any time--I can't emotionally afford to be caught off guard again--but we are holding on to the slim possibility that the seizures are a side effect of the injection that he got on Tuesday.

It's only a sliver of hope, but at least it's something.

I Spoke Too Soon

Ben took Coop to the vet yesterday.

We were pretty sure that he had a urinary tract infection, plus he needed an update on some medicine.

They did an x-ray and it turns out he has kidney stones.  

That's a rough one, but it's manageable.  

He looked like he was in great shape, otherwise.

Today, however, he had a seizure.

It came from out of nowhere.

It was so very scary, but I'm grateful that I was home with him.

Ben rushed home and we took him to the vet right away.

She told us that it was most likely either caused by one of his organs shutting down (worse case scenario) or a tumor on the brain (usually they're slow growing).

That was the most terrifying things to hear, especially when we just lost Bailey.

I ran some tests on his blood at work.  His liver, kidneys, everything looks good.  His urine, however, showed that the type of stones he has can't be broken up with medication.  

He's going to have to have surgery to get those out.  

The problem is, that since he just had a seizure, it's very risky to put him under.  We're kind of in a bad position.

After talking to the vet, I felt like we had a good grasp on things.  The kidney stones are our immediate concern.  We'll deal with what's causing the seizures once we get past the surgery.

How naive.

He had another seizure tonight.

Two within twelve hours is not good.

I don't know where we're at with things right now. 

It's hard to stay optimistic in the middle of the night.

A Good Dog

Amy's dog, Bailey, died on Tuesday.

He would have been 11 in November.

We are unbelievable sad about it.

He's been in bad shape for awhile now--his hips weren't good--and, we all knew that he was getting to the point that they needed to make the decision to put him down.  I don't think any of us thought that he would go downhill so quickly or so soon, though--we just saw him on Sunday.

I'm thankful that I went back in for a last cuddle with him as we were leaving.

Amy got Bailey when we got Cooper--they were litter mates.

Cooper and Bailey--2 months

Unlike Bailey, though, Cooper's in great shape.  I'm thankful for that, but it makes me extra sad that Bailey got dealt such a bad hand.  

Our Maggie, on the other hand, is three years younger and seems to be on her way down the same path as Bailey.

I've always thought that, when the time comes, I would much rather my dogs go on their own, than having to make the call to put them down.  I just don't know how either Ben or I could make that decision.  After hearing what Amy and Bailey had to go through on Tuesday, though, I pray that we make that decision before the suffering really sets in.  

Bailey sure was a good dog.  

We are going to miss him--a lot.

Working Things Out

We decided to bite the bullet and put all the boys in soccer this year.

It was a big leap for us--well mostly for Ben!

The problem isn't with them actually playing.  The problem is trying to work three sets of practices into a week full of homework and other activities with only one parent to balance things on most nights.

We've put it off long enough, though.

We signed them up and prayed it would work out.

It's been a bit rough, but we've gotten it sorted out--thanks to the help of Grandpa John!

Our Saturday mornings are spent jumping between their games.

Josh's are quite entertaining!

I think he often forgets that he's actually playing in a game.  I've seen a shocked look on his face more than once when he sees the ball suddenly roll past him! He'll catch on, but I doubt it will be this season!

Henry's fierce on the field.

He goes after the ball with everything he's got.  He's pretty good, too.  It surprises me, because I don't think he's really played much, other than kicking it around a little in the front yard.  I'm pretty sure he's a natural athlete. Really, everything seems to come natural to Henry--lucky him!

Luke's done really good this year.

He hasn't played on a team since 1st grade, but he plays almost everyday at recess.  Much to Ben's sadness, he really wants to be a goalie.  He's not currently big on running, so the goal may be the perfect spot for him!

I'm really glad they all got to play this year, but I must admit that we won't be too sad for the season to be over.

We're not big fans of chaotic schedules!

Abner

I love the name Abner.

I loved it long, long, long before I had babies.  

Had it been up to me, it would have been Luke's middle name.  

In all fairness, I never brought it up to Ben.  I had to work hard enough to bump Lucas from a middle name to a first name;  there was no way I'd win him over on two names! 

I secretly still consider him my Abner, though!

After school yesterday, the boys and I tagged along with Luke while he took a quick test in his school library.

I saw this book sitting on top of one of the shelves:

I about fell over dead!

I never come across the name Abner.  

On top of that, it has not one, but two of my favorite names!

I almost read it to the boys, but I decided I am going to wait until I track down my own copy.  

Then I can savor it's loveliness!

*     *     *     *     *

We were in there for a grand total of 10 minutes.

It was long enough for Ollie to fall asleep.

Kindergarten wears him out!

Josh vs. the Wall

Josh Oliver has done it again to his lip!

This time he was trying to catch a ball at recess yesterday and somehow fell into the wall.

He has a gash all the way from the front of his lip around and up to the gum inside.

He didn't get stitches this time, though.  He lucked out with it mostly on the inside of his lip!

He's doing alright with it today.  His lip is super swollen--way more than you can see from straight on.  He has trouble biting into food because it puts pressure on his lip, he's talking a little funny, and it seems to bleed here and there, but he hasn't really been complaining about it.

On the plus side, he said he now holds the record for both the most blood spilled and the most paper towels used by any kid at St. Catherine's!  It's the only thing that got him through the day yesterday!

Now I just have to pray that it heals up nicely.  

We lucked out with his "can" scars being only barely noticeable.  I hate to think he's going to have a new one.

Happy Birthday, Audrey!

Today is Audrey's second birthday!

She looks coy, but don't let her fool you!

She's ornery and lively and fun!  

She reminds me so much of Henry!

The difference is that I get to enjoy her rottenness without dealing with the aftermath!

It's a nice change for me!

Our Trip to the Candy Store!

We kicked off the last week of summer with a trip to the old O'Henry candy store.

It's been on our summer list for the last two or three years.  I figured it was about time that we got it checked off!

We definitely should have done it sooner!

While we were there we got to watch them make peanut brittle, which was really neat, and then we stocked up on candy.

It was all so good!

On our way back, we decided to have an impromptu picnic at a park.  We were really just trying to get ahead of the sugar rush by letting them burn off some energy, but it turned out to be a really great stop.

Linda and I have already decided that next year we are going to plan a whole day around our trip to the candy shop!  Next year, though, we are going to have a well planned out picnic and spend a bit more time exploring the park!

I'm really glad we finally made it down there!

A New Era

Today is the boys' first day of school.

It's a big year for us.

Luke, 4th grade, has switched schools this year.  He's a Catholic school boy now!  

He's excited.  I'm nervous.  I hope he makes at least one good friend today.  I'm sure he will.

Josh Oliver is in all day Kindergarten.

He was definitely ready for it!  He already knows a handful of kids that are in his class and Henry's been giving him the ins and outs of going to school!  He's most excited that he no longer has to go shopping with me.  I'm pretty excited about that myself!

Henry is the only one who started today knowing what to expect.

I absolutely love his teacher.  She's going to do great with him--naughtiness and all!

*     *     *     *     *

It's going to be strange being home by myself--ALL DAY!

I prefer summer days when all my boys are home, but I'm definitely excited about this new schedule!

I actually don't think it's going to be that much different from last school year.  

Josh was plenty happy to watch T.V. or play on the computer while I got my stuff done around the house or just vegged out myself, but the difference is I'm no longer "grounded"!

Most days I had a terrible time convincing Josh to run errands with me--even fun ones--so I'd have to run them while he was at school.  Now that I'm solo, I can leave whenever I want! 

I spent my morning running errands and slowly wandering around the stores.  It was such a luxury!

Even with all my new freedom, I have some concerns.  

I now have three boys worth of uniforms to keep organized and clean.  I had a really good system with Henry last year, so hopefully it will work out just as smoothly this year!

My other big concern is adding a third boy to the homework mix.  I work most evenings, so it's mostly Ben's thing to work out.  I feel bad for him, but he'll manage. 

It's going to be a great year!  

I just pray everything goes well for them today--especially Lucas! 

Meeting Baby Junebug

We have a new baby to cuddle and hold and love on!

June Katherine was born early Tuesday morning.

The boys and I had to leave for Kansas City well before dawn to get one of the first glimpses of her, but it was totally worth it!

She's the spitting image of my dad--auburn hair and all!  

I love that!

52....and holding!

Today is my pop's birthday!


We celebrated last night with a delicious chocolate cake!  


Unfortunately, when I went to the store to buy the candles I apparently was thinking that he was only going to be 49.


He is, in fact, 59.


Gigi only had enough candles on hand to get us up to 52.


No one would have noticed the missing 7 except Henry started questioning if he was really only 52!


Happy Birthday, Pop!  


Thanks for being such a great dad!


Love ya!

On Your Marks...Get Set....Go!

Last Saturday, we rode in a bike race.

Ten miles on a crazy, hot day.......piece of cake!

Ben and Ollie didn't make it very far, though.  

Once he saw that the road wasn't actually shut down, Ben decided that they should just be the cheering section.  It was probably the smartest move considering Josh had only been riding on his own for less than a week.  He was kind of iffy even without the threat of cars running him over!

Luke, Henry, and I made it the whole way.  

The race was airport themed.  We kind of did a tour of some of the aircraft companies and hangers.  We also went past the post office and airport pick up/drop off zone--that made it fun because we only ever get to drive down those roads!

About half way through, Henry and I lost Luke.  I told him to keep going while I stopped with Henry.  I kept thinking we would catch up with him or find him stopped at a water station, but we didn't see him again until we got to the end.  He's speedy!

We had two accidents along the way.  Luke fell just before the race and skinned up his elbow pretty bad.  Henry got a little wild, jumped a curb and scraped his back.  Thankfully, no one broke anything and the bikes held up--we saw several people with flat tires!

It was a really fun event!  So exciting!

We'll be doing it again next year for sure!!

The same day, the Art Museum had an ice cream social to celebrate it's birthday.  

We walked there from Gigi's, ate some ice cream, contributed to some artwork, and headed home for a nap!

It was a great way to spend a Saturday--even a really hot one!

Learning the Basics

Recently, I have come to the realization that my boys are no good at coloring. 

They have no patience for it. 

Generally they do a quick scribble and call it good.  

Shockingly, they often get marked down for neatness in school! 

In contrast, though, they all love to draw.  Give any of them a blank piece of paper and some crayons and they go crazy!

I just can't relate to it.  I will take coloring over drawing any day!  (Just coming up with an idea of something to draw is a lot of pressure to me.  I'm just not creative.)

I've decided that I need to fix this little situation, so I've been making the boys sit down and color with me.  

It's a bit like torture.  

Henry's has the hardest time.  I make him not only slow down and color the entire area, but I also make him hold his crayon the way he is suppose to hold his pencil.  Torture!

They are getting better, but I don't think I've convinced them that coloring really is fun and relaxing if you don't just rush through it!

Can you guess which one is mine?

One Handsome Ring Bearer

Josh Oliver got to be the ring bearer in Josh and Elizabeth's wedding a little over a week ago.


He looked so unbelievably handsome in his tux!


I was kind of afraid he might get the grumps on the day of the wedding--it would be a shock, I know--but he did great!  


He happily did what he was asked to do.  He smiled great for pictures, did an excellent job walking down the aisle and standing on the altar, and patiently coaxed the flower girl to come down the aisle with him.  


I couldn't have been more proud of how well he did!


I think the most exciting thing of the day, though, was the fact that he had the same name as the groom.  


He really loved that!  


He kept trying to take his place in pictures--just a minor confusion!  He made sure he signed the guestbook right by Josh's picture and paid a dollar to dance with him during the dollar dance--obviously you must dance together if you share a name!


The other two boys were also asked to do big jobs.


Henry helped bring up the offertory gifts.  


He did great, but he was carrying the wine with his casted hand.  I held my breath until he made it to the front of the church because I was terrified he was going to drop it.  He made it, though!

Luke served Mass.  


There were five priests in attendance, which is way more than Luke's ever served for.  I think he was little nervous just before the ceremony, but he did excellent!


After the wedding the boys break danced the night away.  They've got quite the moves!  I love that they get out there a live it up!  


Josh kept trying to get one of the older girls to dance with him.  He never managed to convince her, but he kept at it.  


The other two happily danced alone!


I love all weddings, but I must say, getting to watch my boys be a part of one, especially Elizabeth's who we all adore, just put it all over the top!


We were really lucky to be part of such a special day!

Henry's Wonky Arm

 Henry got his cast off yesterday. 


Finally!


He is now the proud owner of one wonky arm!

His radius has quite the bend to it!

Although, it's not until I ran my hand along his forearm, that I really noticed how arched it is.

I'm not exactly sure how we didn't notice in the two weeks that we were debating whether it was broke or not.  

After the Orthopedist looked at his follow up x-ray, he said that his break was more extensive than he originally thought--every doctor's appointment things just seem to be getting worse!--but he should heal up fine.  It'll take a few years before the bone works itself straight again, but otherwise it's fine!

To celebrate the cast coming off, we went swimming.

We've waited a long time! 

Who's Side Are You On, Anyway?

Josh showed his English pride at the 4th of July bike parade.


Probably not the most appropriate day to wear his beloved shirt! 


Sadly, none of us even made the connection until Linda commented on it--even then it took us a minute!  We'll try to do better next year!

*     *     *     *     *

Our 4th was great!


We started off with a pancake feed and bike parade.


It's my favorite way to kick off the holiday! 


The boys were bummed that they didn't win a prize in the drawing at the end, but their bikes looked great and Josh even got his picture on the newspaper website!


It felt like an overall win to me!


We also spent some time hanging out with Grandpa J and Great Grandpa, and then I took the two boys without casts swimming for a bit.


Our evening was spent at the Country Club, where there was an ice cream social and a fabulous fireworks display.


We rounded out the night with a quick trip to my Grandpa's where we parked and watched all the surrounding fireworks go off.  


That 20 minutes may have been my absolute favorite of the whole day--just sitting quietly with my three little chicklets.


I love the 4th!  


It's such a mellow, laid back holiday--the epitome of summer!