More funnies...

Happy Halloween!

Some funnies...

Two witch's brooms were stored in the same closet for such a long time that they fell in love and decided to get married. One was the bride broom and one was the groom broom. They sent out their invitations and prepared for their upcoming nuptials.

The wedding came and it was a glorious day! They had some great guests, including the mop couple, the vacuum, the feather duster and the fly swatter. As the day started to dwindle down, the bride broom leaned over to the groom broom and said, "I think I am expecting a little whisk broom!"

The groom broom, completely stunned says, "That's impossible!"

"Why?" asks the bride broom.

The groom broom responds with... "But we've never even swept together! Apparently some one's been sweeping around!"

****

An extremely modest man was in the hospital for a series of tests, the last of which had left his bodily systems extremely upset.

Upon making several false alarm trips to the bathroom, he decided the latest episode was another and stayed put. He suddenly filled his bed with diarrhea and was embarrassed beyond his ability to remain rational. In a complete loss of composure he jumped out of bed, gathered up the bed sheets, and threw them out the hospital window.

A drunk was walking by the hospital when the sheets landed on him. He started yelling, cursing, and swinging his arms violently trying to get the unknown things off, and ended up with the soiled sheets in a tangled pile at his feet.

As the drunk stood there, unsteady on his feet, staring down at the sheets, a hospital security guard, (barely containing his laughter), and who had watched the whole incident, walked up and asked, "What the heck is going on here?"

The drunk, still staring down at the bed sheets in amazement, replied: "I think I just beat the sh*t out of a ghost."

Happy Halloween!

Mikayla reading me a story...

Crazy Weekend

We had quite the weekend and honestly, this is really my first time to get on here and update everyone. Grab a drink, this might take awhile!

We have been doing more projects on the house, or the property, I should say. We put a water hydrant in the barn and I'm so excited for the prospects this winter. If this works, I say if because we don't have it completely done yet, it will be much less of a headache for us when it comes to watering the animals. Until now, we'd been hooking up the hose, running it to the animals, then shutting it off and having to drain the entire the hose. Not so fun when it's 5 degrees outside. This new hydrant will ensure us that we don't have any draining to do, as it's supposedly frost-free. We shall see. Regardless, the southern section of my yard is now dirt and bob-cat marks, but the trench is filled. Tonight is the night for connecting the water supply, so keep your fingers crossed.


Saturday was filled with parties...and hospital visits. My dad had an accident while climbing into his tree stand on Saturday morning. He is now favoring a joke that has him 1" shorter, thanks to 2 compression fractures in his back. He is home and doing okay, but the next few weeks will be hard for him because he is not the type of person that can sit still for long (unless he's watching football or hunting shows, hehehe) I'm sure he'll be anxious to get the all clear to go back to work and just regular activities. We had a birthday party for my great-uncle's 80th, which was fun. It was great to see so many family members that I hadn't seen in awhile. And of course, it was great to show off my beautiful girls!


Saturday night we went to the community Halloween party at the school. The girls got enough candy that I think we can forgo trick-or-treating tomorrow night, but I'm told that's not an option. Oh well. They had a lot of fun playing games, seeing friends and just taking it all in. Of course, they were the 2 cutest kids in the place (we didn't dress up Mikayla because I knew a stroller would be horrendous to push and I didn't want to have to carry her in her furnace of a costume!) Here are some pics of our two princesses from the weekend...

I'll be sure to put up a lot more pics after tomorrow when they are all 3 dressed up to the nines. You all will be soooo jealous!

Sunday was a nice day of family. We went to our church for brunch, then went to our sister church to see baby Brett be baptized. I didn't get to see any of it because the service was in the middle of Mikayla's nap time and she wasn't having any of it. So I got her to sleep in the nursery and was at least able to listen to the service. After a nice lunch of lasagna, we came home and finished things around here.

One last thing to note, Mikayla has figured out how to pull herself up in her crib. She's only ever pulled herself up twice before, and both times were with encouragement from me and a little help, too. (she pulls herself up with our hands all the time, but gets shy of other objects) Anyway, she was chatting away in her crib, happy as a clam and supposed to be sleeping. She quieted down for about a minute, then started chatting and laughing again. Andy and I thought nothing of it, but then she started to scream! So I ran in there, only to find her standing and see her screams turn back into squeals. She was so proud of herself and to be honest, so was I! But that pride turned into panic when I realized that we hadn't lowered the mattress all the way down yet. She was standing there with the crib rail a little lower than chest high. YIKES! So we quickly lowered the crib mattress and still made it back into our room before the commercial break was over on Desperate Housewives. Talk about timing!

Tagged by Carol...

Five things I was doing 10 years ago:

1. junior year in HS
2. dating Andy
3. working at the Super Valu grocery store
4. driving the Corsicrap...I mean Corsica
5. Riding horse all day, every day in the summer

Five things on my "to do list" today:

1. Call the insurance company
2. Work on my Christmas cards and get them ordered
3. Wash laundry
4. Load dishwasher
5. Pay some bills

Five things I would do if I were a millionaire:


1. give each child a fund with enough money to live comfortably, but not be spoiled
2. buy some land and build my dream home
3. travel, travel, travel!
4. give some money to my parents, grandparents and in-laws
5. invest the rest

Five things I will never wear again:


1. shoulder pads
2. teased bangs
3. high top sneakers
4. hyper-color shirts
5. my shirt knotted at the waist/hip

My 5 favorite Toys:

1. my computer
2. cd player
3. cell phone
4. digital camera
5. my kids!


Five people to tag:

1. Brandi
2. Kandace
3. Amanda
4. Kate
5. ummmm, Carol?! ha!

If you see your name on here (and even if you don't...if you want to play too, go ahead), repost it to your blog or myspace page and fill in the blanks. (I promise I won't be offended if you don't do it...)

I probably have the only 3-yr-old who...

Is helping me throw her toys away!

Let me explain where we started with all of this. Lilly has been on this huge kick that she wants anything she sees on tv commercials. The hair bedazzler thing, she wants it. The Rose Petal Cottage, she wants it. The Barbie Island Princess thing, she wants it. It needs to stop, but I know it won't. Those advertising demons are just starting to ramp up the commercials in preparation for the holidays. I can hardly wait. Anyway, I finally had enough of it and today told Lilly that if she got her latest "I want it!" proclamation, I would throw all her other toys away. I started to gather up her toys, waiting for her to yell for me to stop. But no, she proceeded to point out toys that I was missing in my attempt to make a point! I was putting them all in a big pile, saying I was going to throw them all away so she could have that one toy. Even her favorite toys that she can't part with are now in the pile. When I asked her what she would play with when she doesn't have any more toys, she said "That new doll house!" Boy, will we be in trouble with this little girl when she gets older. Yikes. I thought she wasn't totally grasping my ideas and thought process, but she completely did.

BUT, there is a silver lining to all of this. Tonight may be a great night to put some toys into a garage sale or donation box and clean out the over abundance. It is getting ridiculous and this may be what we need to kick us in the pants and sort through it all. One can only hope, right?

Fall Pics

I took the girls out to the edge of the driveway last night and took some pictures. I thought they turned out so good! I was most impressed that my camera and I actually got along and the girls' eyes all are so vibrant looking, without any touch-ups from me! So, here are my little super models...

Best Wishes Tracy & Ross!

This past Saturday my good friend Tracy got married. It was a beautiful day, ceremony, bride...everything went so well. I am so glad that I was able to be there and participate in the day as Tracy and Ross started their new life together.

So here's a cyber toast to Tracy and Ross! May you have many happy, healthy years to enjoy one another and continue to love.

(all of my pics of the bride and groom together didn't turn out. Grrrrr)

This past week...

We have been doing a lot of nothing this week, but it's all been busy. I know those of you with kids know exactly what that statement means. So I'll just do a quick recap of what's been going on...

First off, Mommy is sick. I came down with a head-cold in about an hour on Wednesday night and it's kicking my butt. I really hope that it leaves as soon as it came, because I am personal attendant in my friend's wedding this weekend. I won't be of much help and service to her if I feel like curling up in the fetal position with my footie pajamas, will I? So those of you that pray, please pray that I am feeling better by tomorrow afternoon! I will repay the favor, I promise!

ALAYNA: This little lady has had a big week. She brought home a note from her teacher last night saying that she'd been selected to participate in a fall writing contest! She is very excited and couldn't wait to go to school today, where she and her teacher were going to start working on the entry. I don't know all the details, but it's pretty exciting. I do know that only 2 first graders were selected, one from each classroom. I'll update on that again as soon as I know a little bit more information. Regardless of if she wins or not, it's a big deal and something that Alayna should be very proud of. We sure are!

And on another note, I was checking Alayna's homework last night. She had a worksheet of 12 math problems (5+4, 6+2, etc) to finish and she did it on the bus so she could play when she got home. At the bottom of the sheet, it said "Number of Problems: 12 Problems Correct: ___" Alayna must have seen that and not realized that the teacher was supposed to fill in the blank with the number of problems she had correct. What did Alayna put? "yes" And she's right, all the problems were correct. Actually, if I can brag a bit...those problems are very easy for her. Alayna loves to learn and recently wanted to learn harder math. So we taught her to add with carrying numbers and she's doing it like she's known it forever! Her teacher even wrote up her own little "worksheet" the other day for her and had problems like 4837 + 8569 and she was getting them correct the first time! This girl amazes me, she really does.

LILLY: She has had a big accomplishment in the last week or so, too! She can now recognize all of her upper case letters. She occasionally gets N & M mixed up, or Q & O, but all in all she gets them right 99% of the time! She loves to point out letters everywhere and it's so fun to see her excited about learning.

The rest of her update isn't so much things going on, but a few classic Lilly statements that she's said. First off, the other night she told me she had a "boogie" on her finger. I told her to go wipe it on a Kleenex and then wash her hands. About a minute later, I noticed that she hadn't left the room. When I asked what she did with the boogie, she said, "I just put it back in my nose!" Of course! Ugh....This morning I think that she's missing her Daddy a bit. He milked cows for our friend last night, so the girls really didn't see him at all yesterday except for a goodnight kiss. While eating breakfast this morning, Lilly looked at the clock and exclaimed, "It's 40-clock! Daddy better get home quick!" When I told her that it was still morning time and Daddy was at work, she pulled a Swiper and said, "Oh, man!" Then later, when Diego came on, she again says, "Daddy will be home soon! YEAH!" I asked her why she thought that and she said it was because Daddy gets home after Diego is done. Oh, right. But that's the afternoon Diego, not the morning one. I think someone needs a little Daddy time.

MIKAYLA: If you read my previous post, you know that Little Miss is now standing sporadically throughout the day. She loves to be a big girl and stand up, though sometimes she loses her balance and Mommy has to catch her while she's falling. But she loves that, too! I think she's going to love a good thrill ride when she gets older.

The thing that I'm MOST proud of is that she finally has starting saying MOMMA! She'll still be a stinker sometimes when I prompt her to say it and will say Dada instead (along with that sly smile), but when she wants my attention she'll now babble "Mamamamamamamama" And she means it, too, because when I look at her she'll stop and smile. Finally, she realizes who really matters...(just kidding, Andy!)

I stand alone

I am waiting to get a picture with the camera, but in the meantime I'll just tell you all about it. Mikayla has loved to stand since the day her legs were strong enough to hold her. She loves to pull herself up in our laps, stand whenever anyone grabs both her hands, etc.

Today I stood her up next to the farm exersaucer that we have. She was busy hanging on, enjoying herself, when Lilly came over and offered her the coveted Baby Joe. Baby Joe is Lilly's stuffed Joe doll from Blue's Clues, but Mikayla just loves him. Anyway, Lilly handed Joe to Mikayla and she was so obsessed with playing with him that she completely let go of the farm! She stood there for about 5 seconds before she started to tip and caught herself against the farm. I was so excited! So of course, like any parent would do, I kept encouraging her to stand by herself. She did so numerous times, with the longest one lasting 11 seconds (yes, I was timing her) Mikayla has yet to pull herself up on anything other than a person's hands, but standing is a big thing!

Then when I thought that she couldn't amaze me any more, she actually took one tiny, itty-bitty step. Okay it was more like she picked up her foot and placed it back in the same spot, but she never lost her balance! I was so happy for her but I really don't know that she realized she did anything, LOL. Time shall tell. Alayna was walking at 10.5 months, so you never know. Mikayla's 9.5 right now...

Magna-Doodle

Lilly has one of those Magna-Doodle things (though hers is generic) where you draw on the screen with the magnetic pencil, then run the eraser band under the picture and voila-the slate is clean again. You all know what I'm talking about, right?

Well, apparently one of the daycare kiddos or the girls' little cousin got a hold of the clean slate and a color crayon, or 4. There is a beautiful picture of yarn, maybe, or spaghetti. Whatever it is, it's brightly scribbled with black, red, blue and green all over the screen. Lilly was just at a loss, because she loves her "drawing game." She just brought it to me while I was writing up that last post and demanded to know who did it. When I told her I didn't know and that we'd maybe have to throw it away, she goes, "We'll just erase it!" and she slide the eraser under the screen. Imagine her surprise when it didn't erase!

"Whoever did this is in a LOT of trouble!" she angrily declared.

So, I'd better get off the internet. I need to go try to wipe or wash or whatever that crayon off of the screen area. And if it doesn't work, I know what someone's getting for Christmas!

Phone Dependency

Yesterday I was talking to Amanda, my sister, on the phone and all was great. I had been on the internet shortly before and that was great, too. Anyway, we hung up and a half an hour passed before I went to make another phone call. Nothing. No dial tone, no noise, nothing. So I checked all the phones to make sure they were hung up, checked to see if I could get on-line and nothing happened. I called the phone company and the woman there was nice enough to point out that no dial tone meant that I couldn't get on the internet. Really? That's why I'm calling. So they had someone come out and found that the main computer for our area was out. We went all afternoon and night without a call. It was so quiet and nice.

This morning I thought to check our voicemail from the cell phone because we still didn't have service. Hmmm, there was a message from the phone company checking to make sure the phones worked. Uhhh, nope again! So I called them again and informed them that I still had no service. The lady was shocked and sent someone out. I ran into town to go to the bank and post office and got home just as he was pulling out of the driveway. "Your phones are working now!"

So I unloaded everyone, went into the house, picked up the phone and.......nothing. No dial tone, no noise, nothing. I took the corded phone out to the box on the side of the house and heard a millisecond of dial-tone there, then nothing. Great. So I called the phone company again, apologized for being a pain in their backside, but informed them that I had service in the outside box for only a second, then nothing. The lady was shocked and promised to send someone out right away. The same guy came out, apologized profusely and went to look at the box. Finally, he found what the problem was. Remember how we were struck by lightning this summer (and last spring?) apparently the receptor finally went out completely. So he replaced the unit, called our number and it rang! Yeah!

Of course I had 4 voice-mails and 15 e-mails since yesterday at noon. Oops. But it just made me realize how dependant we are on our phones and internet. I don't know that it's a good thing at all.

Listening to Mommy

I've always wondered why it's so hard to listen to Mommy, or Daddy for that matter. There seems to be this blockage in our girls' heads at times, one that doesn't allow for listening. They listen to their Grandparents, their aunties, their friends, teachers, siblings...but not their parents. Grrr, can that get frustrating. I know it's all about learning their boundaries and testing their limits, but what about testing MY limits? I can only handle saying "Go brush your teeth" so many times before I want to scream. Or telling them not to do something 15 times before it sinks in. That has to be one of the worst parts of parenting, besides the pukes and runs you get to clean up at 2am.

Anyway, if anyone has any big tips that will make the girls listen on that very first try, please let me know. Don't get me wrong, they aren't always bad or even close to it. The majority of the time they are very sweet, respectful, wonderful and well-behaved. But when that switch is turned, and they are in the "not listening mode," it's almost unbearable. You all know where I'm coming from, right?! Please tell me it's not just my kids!

You are in the presence of royalty

Our monthly Bunco was last night and since it's October, we all dressed up. I was going nuts trying to figure out a costume when I looked in my closet and saw something that would work. So I pulled out the bridesmaid dress from our friends' wedding four years ago, threw it on, did up my hair and make-up, put on the tiara from my own wedding and voila-Queen Mommy.

Mikayla's New Trick

Step 1: Suck on shirt for awhile and then pull shirt up....
Step 2: Pull arm out and show Mommy how proud you are of yourself!
Mikayla is the youngest of our girls to figure out the strip-down thing. She hasn't gotten the whole shirt off yet, but with her determination I don't think it will take too long. Should be interesting, coming into a Wisconsin winter and all.

And the stats are...

Lilly: 39" (90%) 32.5 lbs (50%) and her head is 19.5" (75%)

Mikayla: 28" (60%) 17.5 lbs (25%) and her head is 17.5" (60%)

Lilly is keeping right with her big sister, and Daddy for that matter, as far as very tall and skinny. I figured that's about where she would be because she's consistently growing in sizes at the same age as Alayna. She just turned three yesterday, but most of her clothes right now are 4T.

Mikayla, on the other hand, is built more like Mommy. I'm average height and weight and Mikayla is there on the height, but behind on the weight. But our doctor wasn't concerned about her weight being so low since she's always been a little low on that front.

But besides the stats, both girls are ahead of where they should as far as physical abilities. They were quite surprised that Lilly can, and does, dress herself completely without help on most days. They were also surprised that she could stand on one foot, jump with both feet together, do somersaults, talk so well, etc. As for Mikayla, they were impressed with her strength when it comes to pulling up, standing, kicking. They also liked that she waved at them, babbled, said Hi and Dada repeatedly, clapped and did "So big!" So all in all, everyone had great appointments and they both look like they are developing wonderfully! The best part? NO shots for either one of them! YEAH!!!

Happy Birthday Lilly!

Today, one of my little girls turned three. Lilly is now a big three-year-old and she proudly tells that to anyone that asks her. It just doesn't seem possible because I very vividly remember her as a tiny little baby, worrying over her lack of interest in her bottles. But she quickly rebounded and became a very good eater who will try anything and eat everything. She's grown from a 7 lb 1 oz helpless baby into a tall, skinny and independent toddler (I'll know her official stats tomorrow) She's full of energy, love, fire, spunk, sweetness, joy, sugar and spice.

Lilly-I hope you had a great birthday today-you are 3! Daddy and I, and everyone who knows you, are so blessed to have you in our lives. We love you and can't wait to spend many more happy years with you!

Lilly's Birthday Present

We let Lilly get her present a little early this year. Does anyone notice anything different?

She's been wanting earrings like Mommy and Alayna for quite some time, so we thought her birthday was the perfect time. She picked out the "really pink" ones (which happened to be the October stones) and sat so bravely. Then they did the first ear and she cried. She was not too happy. So for the next ear she sat on Mommy's lap and sat so still, but she still cried. That is until it was over with and she looked in the mirror. The tears immediately stopped and she proclaimed "I'm so pretty!" That, along with a sucker, was all it took to make the pain go away. Now, she's has beautiful earrings "like a big girl."

Dancing Queens!

We listen to a lot of music in our house and the variety is quite wide-80s hair bands, Christian, pop, country, 80s classics, new age, classical, hard rock, etc (pretty much the only thing we don't listen to is rap and hip-hop). One of their favorite songs to dance to is called "Thunder" from a duo that call themselves Nuttin' But Stringz. They are an amazing brother duo who take their violins and combine classical sounds with hip-hop, rock, jazz...basically any kind of music you wouldn't expect. I was originally turned on to them by "Jack's Big Music Show" on Noggin. So anyway, here are all 3 girls dancing to "Thunder." And if you listen closely, you can hear Mikayla laughing at her sisters while they all dance...

Breast Cancer Awareness Month

I just remembered that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Ladies, please make sure to do your monthly self exam and be proactive in your own personal health. I know we all do everything we can to keep our kids, our husband, even our pets healthy, but how much do we do for our own health? I know I can speak for myself that if anyone's health is going to slide, it will be mine over anyone else's. Well, if we aren't here anymore, we can't take care of everyone else. So PLEASE do those monthly breast exams so that if God forbid you do find a lump, you find it early and have a better chance of beating this beast. Below I've posted some links with helpful information on doing a self-exam, general information on breast cancer, and ways that you can help beat this disease!

http://cms.komen.org/komen/index.htm

http://www.nbcam.com/

Disclaimer!!

Fantabulous is a word that I've been using forever!

Explanation for the disclaimer? Sure. I am a huge Rachael Ray fan and watch her show most days while my own kids and the daycare kids trickle awake from their naps. I have been known to use phrases like "Yum-O" and "Oh my gravy" thanks to her, often without any forethought. BUT I just heard her say fantabulous and that's something I've been saying for years. Hmmmmm, maybe we're starting to channel eachother? Of course sometimes, Ms. Sarcastic that I am, I will throw in a fan-freakin'-tabulous when things aren't quite so great. Can't wait to hear Rachael say that one when she burns her finger or drops something.

"Sunday, at 2-clock!"

That's Lilly's response whenever anyone asks her about her birthday:

"Do you have a birthday coming up?"

"Sunday, at 2-clock!"

"Who's birthday is this weekend?"

"ME! Sunday, at 2-clock!"

Apparently she's well aware that her birthday party is this Sunday, at 2 o'clock. We've been preparing her for her birthday, which is actually Sunday, by telling her that she's going to be three, we'll have a party, etc. She is so excited! She can't wait for the cake and the candles and the people and to say that she's "This many!" and proudly hold up 3 fingers. When you ask her how many that is, she says, "Count 'em!" Yes, she's still stubborn in her old age.

Yesterday Auntie Amanda was over and asked Lilly what she wanted for her birthday. She proceeded to tell Amanda all the movies that she already had, showing each and everyone to her. We assumed that was so she would get her a movie that wasn't a duplicate? One will never know.

This morning Lilly was ecstatic to find 3 toy cars in the toy room that she had never seen before. I'm thinking they must have been buried under something for her to have never seen them. She quickly climbs the stairs, cars in tow, and proceeds to play with them for 20 mins. I asked her if she wanted some cars for her birthday.

"I don't have enough cars. Yup, I can get some new....wait! I be-member I have a couple cars." And she runs to get her stackable trucks from Discovery Toys. I laugh because that's totally Lilly, always on the go and never one to want 500 of one thing. So then I asked again what she wanted for her birthday. This time she had a list ready..."Some moooovies...and books and games. How 'bout some puzzles? And a few cars. And some baaaaarbies and new clothes-pretty ones-and that's it." OKay, got it.

My leg HURTS!

If someone tells you that a pony can't kick that hard...DON'T believe it!! I got nailed by little Matilda on Saturday for some unknown reason and let me tell you, it was just as hard as when I've gotten kicked by full-grown, full-sized horses.

Matilda was fine with Cookie and I following her the entire time through the trails, but when we got into a clearing she decided that it was no longer okay. Or whatever. But for some reason, without warning, little Matilda hauled off and kicked at Cookie, hitting me in the shin. I heard a crack and thought she'd broken my leg-no kidding. But then my toes all moved, my leg went numb and I felt fine. Yeah, not that easy. I checked out my leg and there was a hole in it. Apparently Miss Matilda had a rock or something stuck in her back hoof because I ended up with a deep puncture wound in my shin. And let me tell you, it hurts. Bad. But I'm tough. I can handle it. I'm a mom, I can't afford to be laid up or in too much pain.