I lost track!

Of the last time I updated this blog, that is. At least it's only five days with this one; over at my LJ it's been about two weeks, lol. I'm such a slacker!

Sunday was Ethan's birthday; he turned 7 yrs. old. So cute to see how excited he was. He got some great presents from the family (mainly Lego Star Wars sets), and even got some money to spend. I had to take the money for safekeeping as Ryan had just about convinced Ethan to buy something that he (Ryan) wanted, lol. Big brothers are funny.

Weather-wise, summer is winding down here. The weather has been turning cooler, but that hasn't stopped the kids from wanting to play outside until dark.

Other than that, our days are just filled mostly with school stuff. Exciting, huh?

Things Vanessa has said and/or done this week...

Vanessa is becoming increasingly weirder everyday. Not that I mind or think it's bad. It's actually very hilarious and brings lots of laughter into our house (or wherever we may be). So here's the list for the past week:

1. Put a small basket over her head and ran around the house yelling, "I'm a ghost! I'm a ghost!"

2. Woke up later than usual one morning, discovered Scott and the boys had already left for the day and exclaimed, "Why is everybody leaving me?!"

3. Tried to sing-along to the Care Bears theme song while watching the DVD, but made up her own words when she couldn't get the words right. Something about a dog, a tutu and burnt popcorn, lol!

4. Reminding me of the time we got caught at McDonalds during a hail storm, by asking, "Remember the ice cubes at McDonalds, Mommy?"

5. When told to get ready for the day, she took off her pajamas and promptly put on a clean pair because "They're really nice! And, I'm a princess!"

6. Tried to share her ice cream sundae with Jeff and proceeded to get it all over him, including in his hair, down his shirt and up his nose. Later, I also found some in his ear!

7. Stopping whatever she was doing to strike a pose, then exclaim, "Take a picture, Mommy!" She did this throughout the course of one day, never mind that the camera is broken, and I've told her numerous times, lol!

8. Everytime we would go somewhere and open the garage door, she would tell me, "Remember, Mommy. I'm not supposed to hold onto the garage door, alright?"

9. Showing me her underwear so I would know she was a Big Girl who went to the potty and not a baby. Luckily, we were home during all the times she decided to do this, lol!

10. Rolled Jeff up partway in the rug and claimed, "He told me to do it!" Meanwhile, Jeff is giggling his head off and smiling at her.

Well, that's just the top ten. There were many other things, but I don't want you to get the idea that my daughter's mental, lol!

It was pouring here!

Well, not literally. I'm just being dramatic. Monday was not a good day. First off, the water line for our refridgerator broke or came loose. How do I know? By the cascading waterfall that came pouring out of the water dispenser and down the shelves when I opened the freezer door. Panicked, so I called Scott at work, who told me to turn the water line off. This, however, means I have to pull the big, black appliance away from the wall, crawl into the space between the wall and said appliance, and turn the dusty knob.

Once that was accomplished, I cringed at the dusty, dirty mess now in plain sight. Not good, considering Jeff wanted to play in it and the water puddle on the floor. So I called up my sister, begged her to watch Vanessa and Jeff for an hour or to while I cleaned up the mess. For now, we're without a water dispenser and ice maker until we can either get it repaired or save up for a new refridgerator.

Second, Scott and I discovered the spring for the garage door was broken, right before we went to bed. I was in the bedroom, listening to the garage door being opened and closed. Curious, I went out to the garage and found Scott staring exasperatedly at the garage door. Upon closer inspection, we found the spring really messed up, as well as some of the wheels in the track were ready to pop off. We think it's because the kids like to hang onto the door as it opens, lifting them up into the air. Something we've told them countless times not to do. But, we're just parents, so what do we know, right?

Anyway, we got the garage door repaired yesterday, which was a big sigh of relief. We had to leave the garage door open during the night, which made me nervous. I fully expected the kids' bikes and the lawnmower to be gone the next morning. But, they weren't. Everything was still there; I guess parking our cars to block off the opening really worked.

So, that's what's been happening so far. And today is only Wednesday.

I plead temporary insanity!

Yesterday I was out of my mind and managed to drag Scott along with me, lol. We took Ryan & Ethan and 5 of Ryan's friends to see Star Wars: The Clone Wars. The ride to the theater was only five minutes, but these boys did not stop talking the entire time! They were excitedly anticipating this new movie, lemme tell ya.

We got there a bit early, got our tickets, then stood in line for some snacks. When it was our turn to order, we confused the poor guy behind the counter ("I think we're missing a lemonade." "We need another lemonade, please." "Oh, wait. Never mind. We have enough drinks."), but he didn't lose his cool. But, he did look very glad when we finally walked away from the counter, lol.

I do have to say that the boys were well-behaved. They quietly talked among themselves while the previews played and they shared the popcorn with no problems. And, there was no obnoxious laughing or talk during the movie, which was good. Apparently, the way to keep a group of 8 and 9 yr. olds quiet is to give them some popcorn and drinks to occupy their mouths, lol.

After everything was said and done, it was a good day. The boys were happy, and I was able to take a nap afterwards, lol.

My kids are insane!

Or trying to make me crazy, take your pick! The only problem is that I'm already crazy (I have the therapist to prove it!), so they're only succeeding in making me even more loony! Nice kids, lol.

It's all a chain reaction: Ryan will pick on Ethan, who will turn around and beat up on Vanessa, who will push Jeff down in retaliation. It all adds up to four grumpy/screaming/crying kids in the morning. Fun, let me tell you. At least Ryan & Ethan have school, which lessens the noise a bit during the day.

The noise level rises, however, once the boys come home from school. As soon as they walk in the door, I can guarantee someone will start crying. Usually, it's Ethan because Ryan knows how to push his buttons, but sometimes Vanessa will fight back and make Ethan cry for taking it out on her. She's a bit scary the way she really doesn't take crap from her brothers.

And, if I succeed to get one to calm down, another will start. It's never ending! Grr!

And, do I have to mention how many episodes of SpongeBob Squarepants or Dora the Explorer that I've watched today? Ugh.

The kids have too much clothes!

It's true! I just spent the entire day doing laundry; the entire day! Usually, I try to do at least one load a day, but I've been slacking a bit, so the laundry piled up. It was literally a HUGE mountain of clothes to be folded in the office; quite daunting if you looked at it. But, it's all washed and dried, and all I have to do is fold and put them away. Er, can I take a nap first?

Who has the most clothes? Well, it's a tie between Vanessa and Jeff. Understandably, Jeff's is more onesies and stuff, but there are alot of those in his closet! I think it's a mix between Ryan & Ethan's old baby clothes, plus the ones I bought for Jeff. He has alot of jeans, too. Don't know why.

Vanessa, on the other hand, has TONS of clothes: dresses, skirts, jeans, shorts, tees, blouses, you name it. I think i took the joy of having a girl so I can buy little girl clothes a bit too far. Her closet and drawers are stuffed; and this is AFTER I sorted thru all the ones she no longer fit. Aack! And her shoe collection? I have to admit, this girl is a clotheshorse...but only because I made her that way, i think.

Ryan & Ethan are okay, for the time being. However, Ethan is catching up to his big brother, so it's only a matter of time before he needs a new wardrobe. *sigh* And I JUST bought them some jeans for school, too!

Is it bad that I'm jealous of my kids' closets?

Let the week begin!

Yesterday's birthday party for Vanessa was great. We only had cake, ice cream and juice, but Vanessa was happy all the same. Lisa & Paul, Breanna, Brandon, and Kim & Shawn were missing, which disappointed Ness, but she still enjoyed being the center of attention, lol.

We have lots of cake and ice cream left over, which is dangerous for me, considering I like to eat. Plus, the kids wanted to eat cake for breakfast. Yeah, right.

And now, Ryan & Ethan are at school, and Vanessa is impatiently waiting to go shopping with her Tutu and Tata. Jeff is...well, he's just being himself, lol. So, it's relatively quiet. Notice I said relatively. The only time it's quiet is when the kids are out of the house, lol.

She's turning FOUR?!

Today was spent preparing for Vanessa's birthday. We cleaned, as the house was in sore need of it, but I doubt it will stay that way once the kids are up tomorrow morning. For the most part of the day, the kids were "banished" to the family room in the basement, so the main floor didn't get too bad. The kitchen, of course, needed another cleaning after dinner, but that's a given. I think.

Anyway, we also bought Vanessa a purse so she could have something to hold her birthday money when she goes shopping on Monday. My mom and sister are taking her to the mall so she can spend the money that they're going to give her. Nothing like starting them young, lol.

It's been raining today, which made the kids a bit stir-crazy, first at Papa & Tutu's, then when they came home. The basement is proof of that. And, right now, it's started to rain again. Ugh. Scott got lucky; I wanted him to mow the lawn today, but he decided to wait until it got cooler this evening. Well, it started to rain this afternoon, so no mowing for him. I think he planned it, lol. Well, at least we have no doubt that our lawn is well fed; the tall grass and wild weeds prove it.

Now, all I have to do is wait for the cupcakes (they're for Vanessa's Sunbeams class) to cool so I can go to bed.

If it isn't one, it's the other!

So, today Ethan stayed home from school with a sore throat and a slight fever. I'm assuming he caught whatever Ryan had. Another day with another sick kid. Fun. Sort of.

Jeff is still grumpy; I really don't know what the problem is. He cries alot and never seems to want his bottle for feedings. I really want to blame his teething, but I don't know if it's really that. Maybe I should just put his formula in a sippy cup; he seems to like drinking his juice from a cup.

Sunday is Vanessa's birthday; she'll be 4 yrs. old! Yikes! When did she grow up so fast? We'll be having the family over for cake and ice cream that evening. Which reminds me: I have to order Vanessa's cake! It looks like another Dora the Explorer cake this year. Oh, well. At least her interests have grown to include Littlest Pet Shop, Disney Princesses, and My Little Pony.

What a way to start the week!

Okay, so it's not as dramatic as the title suggests, but Ryan stayed home from school today. Yesterday he was running a fever, and I'd hoped that with a good night's rest, it would break. Obviously didn't happen. He still felt warm this morning and was very sluggish, so I dumped him in my bed where he stayed for the rest of the day, fighting with Vanessa over what to watch. He did take a couple of naps, so now he's looking and feeling a bit better.

Vanessa, on the other hand, was a bit miffed that she had one more person to contend with for my attention. Usually it'll be Mommy & Me time when Jeff goes down for a nap, but today, no go. She did finally accept having to watch SpongeBob Squarepants with Ryan...eventually.

We also had to make a quick t-shirt run to the school this afternoon because Ethan had a nosebleed and wiped it on his shirt. I think he freaked his teacher out because it was a fair amount of blood, but Ethan was unfazed. Poor kid sometimes gets nosebleeds when it's too hot; I don't know why, he just does. The doctor isn't too concerned, so I'm not either. Much, lol.

Jeff was a bit crabby today; I think his "fangs" are breaking thru. Such good times. Not! At least this time he doesn't have an ear infection while teething; that was so not fun! He was also "stuck to my butt" meaning I couldn't be out of his sight or he'd let out his "I'm being murdered!" scream. Oh, what the neighbors must think.

And now, dinner is done, and the kitchen looks like the cabinets threw up. Does anyboy else's house look this way?