Ramblings of a SAHM

Tuesday, December 30, 2003

Why?
Because Kitty doesn't like to play with lego's.
Because couch stuffing is not food.
Because God already used green to color the grass.
Because Little People don't like being flushed down the toliet.
Because the Spaghettio factory is closed, just eat it.
Because ants don't have frequent flyer miles.
Because two pennies are not enough money to buy a horse.
Because Mommy likes her antique china in one piece.
Because dolly would miss her head if you took it off.
Because two plus two always equals four.
Because it's not physically possible to be at Walt Disney World in 5 minutes (from Ohio).
Because raining Kool-Aid would be too sticky and make your teeth rot.
Because if you went to the moon you wouldn't be home in time for dinner.
Because wearing a clean shirt will not kill you.
Because Santa Claus likes the cold.
Because dirty diapers are not toys.
Because chairs are made for sitting, not tables, otherwise chairs would be tables and tables would be chairs.
Because paper airplanes don't like water.
Because with only 3 fingers, you couldn't count to 10.
Because your sister's hair is not suppose to be blue.
Because I love you.

Katie at 5:14 PM

Monday, December 29, 2003

I hate bills... So much for the trip to the fabric store, it'll have to wait. *sigh*

Kyle, Kelly and I did the Christmas gift returns this morning. Actually they were extra gifts that Greg had bought for others and then he changed his mind and bought those people a different gift. Only one exchange this year, I returned the gray and purple robe that Greg's aunt gave me for a bright red one. hehe

Let's see, what else... Doing laundry at the moment. I hope to tackle the front room (my scrapbook desk!) later today and get rid of all the stuff that invaded my area. We'll probably take the tree down tonight, we'll need the space in the family room for New Year's (6 confirmed guests, yippee!). I'm way behind on my forums, they each have several hundred messages to read through and I haven't had more than half an hour total at the computer in the last 3 days. The house itself isn't too bad, I've been maintaining a decent level of clean. It's just the Christmas clutter that I need to deal with.

Quote of the Day (two today since they are related):

"Is life not a hundred times too short for us to stifle ourselves." -Friedrich Nietzsche

"You were born an original. Don't die a copy." -John Mason

Katie at 1:07 PM

Sunday, December 28, 2003

If I thought the clutter was bad enough before Christmas, it's driving me insane now! I can't see the top of my scrapbook desk (and unfortunately it's not because of new scrapbook supplies). Not that I'd want to scrapbook because the pile of paper and boxes and stuff beside it would make me nuts to sit next to it. I just need one full day without cooking or kids or laundry to go through and pitch everything. The kids' closets and dressers also need a good sorting and the kitchen cabinets are a mess. Ugh!

I think the sweatshop will be reopening sooner than I had planned. I need to recover the kitchen chairs (fabric in the kitchen with little kids is not a good idea) and I've been meaning to make a seat cushion for the fire place. Think window seat type long pillow. So with all the company coming over for New Years, now seems like a good idea to do both projects. I'm going to the fabric store tomorrow.

Kelly's screaming her fool head off so I'll be back tomorrow...

Katie at 6:06 PM

Saturday, December 27, 2003

I think I'm going to open a Toys R Us store here at the house. With a used furniture and electronics department. The kids of course received tons of toys and Greg's new big screen TV ("a 57 inch Hitachi" blah, blah, blah) arrived on Friday. So we have our old entertainment center with old TV and old dvd player (cause he had to buy a progressive scan dvd player to go with the new TV *rolls eyes*) in the front room (my scrapbook room!!!). I don't know what Greg plans to do with this stuff. I've been imagining our house like one of those cartoon houses that's about to burst at the sems because there's too much stuff crammed in it.

But Christmas went very well. The kids looked adorable in their outifits and the twins only had a few TMCS (too much Christmas syndrome) meltdowns. Lots of wrapping paper, lots of fun. Greg surprised me with a Sizzix diecut machine (scrapbooking tool). I'm excited, I hope to go to Michael's soon to buy a few dies.

So out of seamstress mode and into hostess mode. We had the in-laws over last night for dinner. Tonight my aunt, uncle, and cousin are coming to dinner. Caroline (cousin) will spend the next few days with us. She's a high school freshman, that giggly girl stage. It should be amusing. Then Tuesday, Sarah (my sister) and her Steven, Tommy (my brother), and Erin (my sister) will come over and stay here through Thursday. And then we're having more people over our New Year's Eve party, so far Patrick (Greg's brother) and his Jaye are coming and maybe Liz (Greg's sister) and a few of her friends too. So my next week will all be cooking and cleaning and entertaining. I enjoy this stuff though, I like having a house full of people.

Katie at 12:30 PM

Thursday, December 25, 2003

Merry Christmas!

Katie at 10:29 PM

Wednesday, December 24, 2003

Borrowed from Perptual Blonde:

THREE THINGS I DON'T UNDERSTAND
1. War
2. Whining
3. Why little kids get up very early on their days off from school but won't budge from bed on school days

THREE THINGS THAT SCARE ME
1. Being alone
2. The kids or Greg being hurt
3. Stepford wives

THREE THINGS I'D LIKE TO LEARN
1. Karate
2. To play the piano
3. To make an omelet

THREE THINGS I AM WEARING RIGHT NOW
1. Blue t-shirt
2. Blue PJ pants
3. Glasses

THREE THINGS ON MY DESK
1. Empty Mountain Dew can
2. My Franklin Covey dayplanner
3. AA batteries

THREE THINGS I WANT TO DO BEFORE I DIE
1. Parachute out of a plane
2. Be a published author
3. Go to Disneyworld

THREE GOOD THINGS ABOUT MY PERSONALITY
1. Patience
2. Forgiving
3. Friendly

THREE BAD THINGS ABOUT MY PERSONALITY
1. Sarcastic
2. Grumpy without sleep and caffeine
3. Laughs inappropriately

THREE PARTS OF YOUR HERITAGE
1. German
2. English
3. Murphy's Law (Irish)

THREE THINGS I LIKE ABOUT MY BODY
1. Green eyes
2. Hands
3. Tattoo

THREE THINGS I DON'T LIKE ABOUT MY BODY
1. Ears (they stick out and are pointed like elf ears)
2. Freckles
3. Short

THREE THINGS MOST PEOPLE DON'T KNOW ABOUT ME
1. I can spell zucchini
2. I eat Oreos whole, no dunking in milk, no twisting and licking the icing off
3. I can easily remember birthdays of everyone I know

THREE THINGS I SAY THE MOST
1. "No, get down!"
2. "What?"
3. "We're having FOOD for < insert meal here > and it'll be ready when it's ready!"

THREE PLACES YOU WANT TO GO
1. Italy
2. Ireland
3. China

THREE NAMES THAT YOU GO BY
1. Katie
2. Mom
3. Dish Fairy

THREE SCREEN NAMES YOU HAVE OR HAD
1. katiefleck
2. Kierana
3. ...

Katie at 1:37 PM

Tuesday, December 23, 2003

The sweat shop is closed for the rest of the year! I just finished sewing Zach's corduroy pants, zipper and button fly, belt loops, cuffed hems, and all! With a day to spare even, I'm quite proud of myself. Which is much better than the last minute sewing I had to do for my sister's wedding. As in, the bride is walking down the aisle in ten minutes and I'm fixing her button loops. lol

Quote of the Day: "I find television very educating. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book." -Groucho Marx

Katie at 5:06 PM

Monday, December 22, 2003

Pictures are up! Course you've seen them all already if you've been to my blog within the last few months. Scroll down past "My Favorites" to "Pictures." Over the weekend, Erin told me how to do thumbnails with links to the full sized picture. (Thanks!)

Katie at 8:45 PM

I cannot believe I slept 12 hours last night. Well with a few minutes being awake to talk to Greg on the cell phone (he's in New York State) although I don't remember the conversation. hehe It's been a long time since I went to bed before 9pm.

Today is a catch up day, lots of weird little tasks to do. We already went grocery shopping (the store was insanely crowded), filled up the minivan with gas (I don't like to get below a quarter of a tank in the winter), and went through a car wash (the red minivan was white). Next up are laundry (as always, *rolls eyes*) and sewing (still the zippers in the twin's dresses, fly in Zach's cords, and 5 pairs PJ pants). Eventually I need to start wrapping gifts and purge the toy room of excess toys (some will be put away, some pitched). Oh and I really need to make some scrapbook paper piecings to put on eBay to help cover the cost of my speeding ticket (oops). I'm not sure how well things sell over the holidays though. *shrugs*

Quote of the Day: "It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education." -Albert Einstein

Katie at 1:08 PM

Sunday, December 21, 2003

Driving two 5 hour stretches in the minivan, times 5 kids, minus one husband, plus one $100 speeding ticket, divided by 36 hours, equals no fun. Especially with only 6 hours of sleep during which I got a whiny wake up call every half an hour. The kids rotated wake up call duty so they were all rested enough to get me up at 7am. *yawn* On a good note, I did get to celebrate my dad's 50th birthday, chit chat with my sibs, and see Return of the King. But Dorothy had it right: "There's no place like home."

Katie at 6:36 PM

Friday, December 19, 2003

Updated my links and added the blogs that I'm reading. If you'd rather not have yours linked, leave a comment or email me and I'll remove it. Later (after I give the kids' baths, fold the laundry, pack for our weekend trip, and mop the kitchen floor) I'm going to add some pictures. :)

Katie at 7:50 PM

Ah... It's amazing how much better the world seems with a clean house and a long hot shower. And a good dose of chocolate. :)

Some more random musings: Always check your links immediately after a signature change. Blogs aren't nearly as much fun to read if they aren't updated daily. Zippers do not sew in well with 2 kids screaming in the background and another asking for a drink of water. Snow is much prettier when you're not driving in it. 2 year olds are not good at knock knock jokes. Kids never sleep in on their days off from school. Easy Bake ovens are not easy (especially when labeled "for 8 years and up" and the receivers are 5). 8pm bedtime is the most wonderful rule ever.

Quote of the Day: "Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep."
-Scott Adams

Katie at 6:57 PM

Thursday, December 18, 2003

So it's Thursday. And I'm going through Survivor withdraw. *sigh* And I'm a little sick. Yesterday afternoon I had a fever and headache. Today it's just the sniffles. But I am so done with Christmas shopping! I picked up the last gifts and PJ shirts this morning. With Kyle and Kelly in tow. And in the snow. Fun, fun. But I'm done!

Quote of the Day: "God had given us our memories that we might have roses in December." -J.M. Barrie

Katie at 1:08 PM

Wednesday, December 17, 2003

I'm trying very hard... not going to say it... *bites tongue*

BAH HUMBUG!!!

Blah, Christmas is really starting to stress me out. We finally decorated the tree last night, I don't know how we managed to keep the ornament breakage to 3. I'm not putting up the rest of the decorations around the house though. I feel a little bad but my clutter quota has been high lately and I don't want to deal with any more than I have to.

I'm almost, almost done with the shopping. It should be noted that I hate to spend money, I'm such a scrooge (we can go into that another day). This morning I bought fabric for the PJ pants (still need to find cheap t-shirts) and the kids' new ornaments. That was a trip, we went into the Christmas shop at the mall. We being Kyle, Kelly and myself. I thought we were going to give the cashier a heart attack (Kyle actually didn't touch a thing). Still need one gift for Zach and then family gifts for my dad and sister, Greg's dad, sister, and brother. Oh and I have about 20 Christmas cards that need to be addressed and sent. Again I feel bad, I'm not doing gifts for the kids' teachers. One I can't think of anything (my brain hurts and it's only noon) plus the Christmas money is running low and last, I'm sure the teachers have enough Christmas gift trinkets to last them a life time. I'll plan better and buy them a really nice end of the year Thank You gift.

*sigh* It really isn't too bad. I'm just pushing myself hard to have everything finished before this weekend when we go to Indiana for my dad's 50th birthday party (another stress but minor). I'd like to be able to enjoy next week and only have the presents to wrap. While I love shopping on the Friday after Thanksgiving, I absolutely hate shopping the weekend and days before Christmas. It's a completely different atmosphere and I don't enjoy it. On Black Friday everyone is looking for a good deal (which I appreciate) and there are still weeks until Christmas. The days before Christmas it's "I have to get something NOW because I'm out of time!" and very crazy.

Alright break's over, I need to finish the twins' Christmas dresses (zippers and bottom hems) and then start sewing the PJ pants.

Katie at 12:43 PM

Tuesday, December 16, 2003

Stop the world, I want to get off!!!

Ugh, I just need like an hour break and a shower. That's not asking too much, is it? I need to finish the twins' Christmas Day dresses before I go shopping for yet more fabric tomorrow morning for the kids' PJ pants. I keep telling myself the end is near.

Other weird happenings around the house... Zach is *sick.* I'm not sure how sick he really is. I got a call from the school 10 minutes before the end of school saying to come pick him up because he had a 100.5 degree temperature. And complaining of a headache. He was actually complaining about a headache this morning but his temp was 97 so I sent him to school. At home, I gave him some tylenol and he's acting okay except for the occasional pouting session because his head hurts. So who knows...

< grumble > Kyle and Kelly have both had 2 poopy diapers today, they are only *allowed* one each per day. Rotten kids. < /grumble >

Let's see, I'm still trying to figure out the South Beach diet that Greg wants to try. It looks much healthier than Atkins and less confusing than Weight Watchers. We'll probably start it after New Years (me too cause I should really eat more veggies and less processed foods). I bought the book (the website is like $65 for membership). I think it's worth the $15 just for the recipes (trying Portobello Mushroom Pizza tonight).

Quote of the Day: "The happiest families are those where the children are properly spaced 10 feet apart."
-Author Unknown

Katie at 4:47 PM

Monday, December 15, 2003

First things first: Happy 5th Birthday to Emily and Ally! :) That said...

< insert terribly witty interesting post here >

Um, yeah I can't come up with anything else today. Saddam's been captured, yippee! Sandra won Survivor 7, woohoo! Bengals beat the 49ers, go team!

That's all I've got. I'll do better tomorrow, I promise.

Katie at 4:26 PM

Sunday, December 14, 2003

Still trying to avoid work... My favorite movie too!

"You must remember this, a kiss is still a
kiss". Your romance is Casablanca. A
classic story of love in trying times, chock
full of both cynicism and hope. You obviously
believe in true love, but you're also
constantly aware of practicality and societal
expectations. That's not always fun, but at
least it's realistic. Try not to let the Nazis
get you down too much.

What Romance Movie Best Represents Your Love Life?
brought to you by Quizilla

Katie at 3:41 PM

One day into using Delphi's online hosting space and I'm already pissed. Grrr.... I hate red x's, they are my biggest online pet peeve (well besides someone typing everything in one long paragraph and not capitalizing). So sorry about the x's, please bear with me...

Again, the hours are getting away from me. 11 days til Christmas, eeek! So what am I doing? IM'ing a friend and writing this (hey, can't lose my charter membership in the Procrastinator's Club if we ever get around to starting it). I'd really like to write some in my novel. I worked out a great plot line in my head this morning while making breakfast. But I should be addressing Christmas cards and sewing the twins' Christmas dresses. The novel can wait, unfortunately Christmas will not.

Tonight we are putting up the Christmas tree and decorations. We are either really early (like the day after Thanksgiving) or really late (like 10 days before Christmas). And then taking it down... I like to leave it up past New Years. I think one year we left it up until Febuary. Oops. We have a fake tree by the way, I'm allergic to pine.

Oh well... Back to work!

Quote of the Day: "DISCLAIMER: The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of my employer, not necessarily mine, and probably not necessary."

Katie at 2:25 PM

Saturday, December 13, 2003

Greg is home! *doing the happy dance!* :)

So it's been a busy week, I'm so looking forward to Christmas being over. The kids' Christmas Eve outfits are finished but I do not have their PJ's or Christmas Day outfits (well, I have the boys' sweaters). It would be so much easier if it wasn't against the law to be naked in public. LOL I still have a dozen or so Christmas cards to address. None of the gifts are wrapped, most are at my parents' house in Indiana. Plus I need to buy ornaments, stocking stuffers, and another gift for Zach. Also don't have the twins' birthday gift (the party is tonight!) Eek!

On another note, my image hosting site is getting rid of their free 1mb account. I'm not paying $6 a month on top of all my other internet fees so I'm moving all my images to Delphi. There's going to be some dreaded X's around, I hate that. I *think* I have all the coding changed for my current stuff. I do understand that bandwidth isn't free but what a pain. Oh well, all good things come to an end.

Katie at 12:25 PM

Friday, December 12, 2003

I wrote this a few years ago when my twins were 3 years old. Enjoy!

Okay and I can't `member

I've decided that these are the two phrases that will answer any question that may be posed to you in life. Example:

"Ma'am, did you know you were going 40 in a 25 mph zone?"
--"I can't `member."
"Ma'am, I'm have to write you a ticket."
--"Okay."

Seriously my twins have decided that these are the only answers they will give when confronted:
"Who shaved the cat?"
--"I can't `member."
"Don't do that again!"
--"Okay."

Aw... How cute you might say. Ha! Imagine trying to get any information out of someone who will only answer with one of two things. Who am I to punish when Barbie mysteriously takes a swim down the toilet and I have to call the plumber again? And when I finally pick one of the twins as the culprit to send to their room (I'll blame the other one next time and it'll work out in the end), do I get tears or a sorrowful apology? Nope!
--"Okay."

I've tried everything to get another answer from them and somehow they can figure out a way to answer with their stock phrases. Even when it doesn't make sense, they will try anyways:
"If everyone else jumped off a bridge, would you jump too?"
--"I can't `member."
"That doesn't make any sense."
--"Okay."

I think I should rent the twins out to the FBI so their agents can practice their interrogating skills on them. The twins can remain calm under any circumstances and with a straight face, answer "okay" or "I can't `member" to anything. I can see the agents leaving the room to turn in their badges:
--"It's impossible, they can't be broken!"
I will pat them on the back and nod with sympathy.
"Here, have a cookie."
--"Okay."

I'm told they will quit answering with "okay" and "I can't `member" when their vocabulary expands in a few years. I'm looking forward to hearing long made-up excuses on why their brother's hair is laying on the bathroom floor and he's now bald. Even a forceful "No!" would be better than a half hearten "okay" they give while ignoring everything I just said and intently pulling out their doll's eyeballs instead.

In the time being I will try to not to be so frustrated with their lack of interest on why I think feeding the cat crayons is a bad idea. When I feel the dull headache start when I hear their series of "I can't `member" and "okay", I will take a couple of Tylenol. And not berate myself on the poor job I did teaching them to talk if these are the only words they have learned. Especially since the other day, I overheard them ask my husband:
--"Daddy, what does 'okay' and 'I can't `member' mean?"

Katie at 3:57 PM

Thursday, December 11, 2003

After yesterday's killer long post, I don't feel like typing today. haha A few updates, Greg made it to Baltimore okay and the twins are a bit under the weather from their vaccines yesterday (as expected). Kelly's dress is almost finished, I need to sew up the bottom hem. We all going out again here in a few minutes, to my favorite scrapbook store to meet Keli (her website: Perpetual Blonde ) and then to the YMCA so the kids can run off some energy in the padded room (um, well, I think it's really called the Family Gym).

Quote of the Day: "If there were no schools to take the children away from home part of the time, the insane asylums would be filled with mothers." -Edgar W. Howe

Katie at 1:23 PM

Wednesday, December 10, 2003

My Day
7:40am- Alarm goes off. I hear Kyle waking the girls up. Lots of yelling. *sigh* Turn off the alarm and take a quick 5 minute shower. Tell the kids to get dressed while I get dressed. Change diapers and dress Kyle and Kelly. Sort laundry.

8:10- Pour cereal and milk into bowls. Put Kelly in her high chair and fill sippy cups. Toss the load of darks in the washing machine. Turn the computer on so I can print out eBay addresses. Start filling the diaper bag with the things I need today (eBay packages, cell phone, JoAnn coupon & sewing pattern envelopes, BlockBuster dvd).

8:30- Tell the kids it's time to leave for school, "put on your shoes and jackets!" It's warm but rainy so I pull out the light weight jackets. "Backpacks!" I put a box of clothes in the mini-van to drop off at Once Upon a Child. Put jackets and shoes on Kyle and Kelly. Start buckling the kids into their carseats but have send Ally back in the house for her backpack first. Grab a Mountain Dew for myself.

8:35- Drop Zach off at school. Deal with parking lot madness and go around the block so that I can drop the twins off at preschool next door to Zach's school (but a different parking lot). The twins don't go in until 8:55 so I nurse Kelly while we wait. Walk the twins in and sign up for cookies and juice for their Christmas party.

9:00- Drive to Once Upon a Child. Arrive at 9:20, they don't open until 9:30. Wait. Struggle holding the box and Kelly and keeping Kyle from running through the parking lot. We're the only ones in the store so she sorts through the clothes quickly. Only wants $10 worth. Blah. Take it and struggle back to the minivan with the box, Kelly, and Kyle.

9:45- Arrive at JoAnn's Fabric store. Kyle picks out a $.25 lollipop and happily sits in the cart while I try to decide on fabric for the girls' Christmas Day dresses. Finally decide on black velvet bodices and green skirts for Em and Ally, red for Kelly. Get the fabric cut and pick up zippers, buttons, and snaps. Only spent $23. For 3 dresses, you can't beat that! Load Kyle and Kelly back into the minivan, did I mention it's been raining all morning? Drive back to town.

10:45- Stop at the post office, I have a few minutes before I need to pick up the twins. One of the few good things about living in a small town is that the post office is rarely busy even at Christmas time. Mailed 2 eBay auctions, realize that I charged too little for shipping on one ($2.50!) Oops.

11:00- Pick the twins up at preschool. Ally found her gloves that she had left there on Monday. Go home since I don't want to wait half an hour in the school parking lot for Zach. Grab the mail: birthday cards (with money) for the twins, a bill and junk mail. Unload the kids into the house. Put the darks into the dryer, whites into the wash. Change diapers. Nuke a couple of boneless skinless chicken breasts for chicken noodle soup. Unload the dishwasher. Realize I don't have any chicken broth or bouillen cubes for chicken noodle soup. Blah... Fries and hot dogs then. Put the cooked chicken in the fridge. Call Greg since I haven't talked to him yet today. He's stressed, a snowstorm came through Missouri so he can't get a flight out until tomorrow. So he plans to rent a car and drive to Tulsa OK to catch a flight today to Maryland. Yikes! Make him promise to call me as soon as he gets somewhere. Call my mom and ask her to pray for Greg's safe travels. Stress about Greg and hope everything starts going right for him. Put the french fries in the oven to cook. Load the kids back into the minivan.

11:30- Pick Zach up at school. At home, nuke the hotdogs and pull the fries out of the oven. Dish out lunch. Then unload the minivan (sippy cups, diaper bag, JoAnn bag). Make my lunch and come downstairs to check my emails. Send a few out concerning eBay auctions. Back upstairs to dish out seconds for the kids. Check my Delphi forums. Kids finish lunch so I turn on the TV. Put Kelly down for her nap. Sit down to blog this...

1:00- Take the darks out of the dryer and put whites in. Clean up the kitchen from lunch. Change Kyle's poopy diaper. Start folding darks on my bed. I hear yelling from downstairs, go referee the kids. Realize both lights are now burnt out in the family room, it's not because the kids turned out the lights again. Go back to folding the laundry and finish. Fill sippy cup for Kyle, he follows me around while I hang up coats, sort through hats and mittens (missing Kyle's, hmm), find an Easter basket to hold them (mental note: find something a little more appropriate), go through the kids' backpacks and pull out papers, sort and pitch the ones I'm not keeping for their scrapbooks.

1:30- Blog. Fill out Zach's "Do the 'Wright' Thing: Read!" Log Sheet. We live in Ohio so the school is doing a Read a 100 Books during the school year program (it's the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers' first flight, hence the "Wright" and 100. They worked in Dayton Ohio so it's a big deal around here). Zach is determined to be the top kindergarten reader. He's reading all these books himself although kindergartners and 1st graders can have the books read to them instead. My aunt just gave me all her kids' old books (like 5 grocery bags full!) so it seems like Zach has been reading constantly for the last few days. His teacher says he's at the beginner 2nd grade reading level at the moment. His favorites are Dr. Seuss books. :)

2:10- Rest! Lay on the couch and snuggle with Kyle while discussing previous and future Halloween costumes with the big 3.

2:20- Fold whites and put away all the clothes. Admire the empty laundry basket but know it'll be filled in less than 6 hours again. Referee another fight between the kids. Then it's time to get ready to go out for the twins' 5 year check up appointment at 3pm. "Go potty, get your shoes on, jackets!" Wake Kelly up from her nap (hate doing that), change diapers and load the kids into the minivan. Grab another Mountain Dew for me, so much for kicking that habit. I don't think I could do all this without a shot of caffeine and sugar.

2:50- Arrive at Ped's office. It's raining again. The sick waiting area is packed, great... Overhear Dr. Scott telling the receptionist no more sick appointments today. The kids stay semi-calm in the waiting room.

3:30- Called back finally. First weight, height, blood pressure, seeing and hearing tests. Ally's 1lb and 1/4" bigger than Emily. Grab a little cup of crayons when we're shown into our room. Answer more questions while the kids color on the white paper covering the examining table. Dr. Scott comes in and we discuss the girls' eczema. They are fine most of the year but once winter hits, they dry up so quickly the poor things. He writes a scrip for a steriod cream (I'll fill it tomorrow) and gives me a ton of free samples of lotion. Shot time! 3 each but they are done until their boosters at 11 years old. Only a few tears and the nurse promises them 3 stickers each.

4:10- Drive to Krogers for the promised candy bars since they were good and Em and Ally had shots. Taking 5 kids into the grocery store is so much fun. (NOT!) Picked up bouillen cubes and chapstick because Em's lips are chapped. Impatiently waited for the kids to chose a candy bar. *sigh* Went through the U-Scan line and back out into the rain.

4:30- Drop off Block Buster dvd and argue with Zach. "Dad said next time we're at Block Buster I can rent a video game!" That means next time you and Dad are at Block Buster, not next time Mom with all 5 kids drops off a dvd in the drive-thru box. Then argue with Zach that I can't make the radio station play Christmas music just because he wants to hear it (and the radio is mine, damnit! I'm not flipping stations).

4:50- Home. Unload kids, throw away candy bar wrappers and try to collect all of Kelly's wheat cracker crumbs out of her carseat. Walk downstairs and realize I totally forgot to buy lightbulbs for the family room (needs flood light type bulbs). Shit! I'll pull some lamps out of other rooms later. Sit down to nurse Kelly because my boobs hurt. I hate the weaning process. Talk to Greg on the cell phone, he's in Tulsa waiting on his flight to Detriot to Maryland. He's getting a free ticket out of this mess but was suppose to arrive in Baltimore at 1:30 today, now it'll be 9 tonight. Blog. Yell at whining, whistling kids and try to rub away a tension headache. Veg out in front of the computer catching up at the About.com SAHP forum and my Delphi forums.

5:40- Put 2 lamps in the family room on the end tables. Hope the kids don't mess with them. Make dinner: "Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup" 1. Boil 2 quarts water with 8 chicken bouillen cubes. Add 8oz package of wide egg noodles and cook for 10 minutes. 2. Add 3 cups cooked cubed chicken and 2 cans cream of chicken soup. Stir until well mixed and heated through. 3. Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup sour cream. Meanwhile put Kelly in her high chair with wheat crackers and milk. Played "Pick up Sippy Cup" as Kelly tossed it over the high chair several times. Yelled at the kids to pick up their toys and books. Yelled again a few minutes later when they weren't doing it.

6:15- Serve dinner. Kyle doesn't want to eat. Blah... Dished up a bowl for me and came down to the computer to print out some eBay stuff and check email. Blog. Yell at the kids acting like lunatics in the kitchen. Serve them and myself seconds.

6:40- Kids are done with dinner. Clean up kitchen. Pull out fabric and sewing patterns. Iron fabric and cut apart pattern tissue for Kelly's dress. Hear Kyle picking on Kelly. Go downstairs and talk and cuddle with the kids for twenty minutes until they are bored of me. Back to cutting fabric for dress.

7:30- Start baths for the kids. I have to do all the prep work before I call them up because I don't leave them alone once they are in the water. Gather towels, brushes, PJs, underwear, diapers, q-tips, lotions. Set out tomorrow's clothes in their rooms so they can get dressed right after they wake up. Put on my PJ's.

7:45- Go downstairs to get the kids and find that Kyle has pulled all the toys off the shelves and out of the bins. Maybe Greg's right by calling him the Tazmanian Devil. Turn off TV and order kids to help me pick up toys. Finish and tell them upstairs for baths. Zach takes a shower in my bathroom while Kyle, Em, and Ally get in the kids' tub. Kelly plays near the tub. Blah, blah, bath stuff. Get the twins out, put Kelly in with Kyle. Zach gets out. Kids brush teeth and hair. Put globs of lotion on the twins. They dress while I pull Kelly and Kyle out of the tub. Finally everyone is clean and dressed and in bed. Hugs and kisses and our usual night time ritual. Change into a dry set of PJs cause I'm soaked.

8:15- CLOCK OUT! Made a bowl of Coco Puffs (chocolate fix) and sit at the computer to blog. Since I'm probably done on the computer for the night, next I plan to read my friends' blogs and then finish customizing an eBay paper piecing so I can mail it tomorrow. I might start sewing Kelly's dress, the pattern is a familiar one so I should be okay working this late. (My brain has a bad habit of turning itself off at 11pm). Bedtime for me is between 11pm and 12:30am. And yes, this is a pretty typical day for me. *sigh*

Katie at 12:32 PM

Tuesday, December 09, 2003

Ha! I added the comments feature! Be good!

My eBay auctions did very well, thanks all! So I need to go donate a few PayPal bucks to Blog Speak and Blog Skins. I think it's important to help those who help me. :)

It's been a long day, I really should be in bed. I wrote another 2500 words in my novel today, writing can be so addicting. Also I vacuumed, swept, decluttered, cleaned the kitchen, and folded 2 loads of laundry (still need to fold the towels). I listened to Zach read a couple of books to me (I can't believe the kid can read so well!) and helped Em and Ally with their Santa count down project (in other words, we glued cotton balls to a printout of Santa's beard on the dates already past in Dec). Kyle and Kelly were their cute little selves for the most part. Kyle's still on his "knock knock" kick and calls everything "awesome!" Um, yeah, poopy diapers are not awesome, kiddo. Kelly likes to run (and fall down) while wrinkling her nose and almost closing her eyes and laughing. Maybe that explains the falling down part. Overall I'm just glad the weather was decent, I'm so not looking forward to the snow. *shivers*

Katie at 11:28 PM

Deck the Halls with... blah, blah, blah. Fa la la la la la la la la! I can't sing anyways so you're probably better off that I don't know the words. I'm sitting here doing more Christmas cards, I swear we have a list of about a hundred names. I don't even want to think about the postage costs for all this.

I cleaned up my NaNo novel last night. So it's decent grammatically but there are still some serious plot holes and I haven't ended it yet. Probably another 30-40 thousand words to finish. But at least during November, I got a pretty good start on it all. Maybe in Jan. or Feb. I'll do my own NaNoWriMo type goal for novels 1 and 3. Who knows by summer, I might have something worthwhile to show people (and a publishing company? *fingers crossed*).

Small excerpt from 2:
"Uh, Blether, Kierana," Jalask greeted, the surprise at seeing Kierana there with a horse clearly showing on his face. So much for the other warriors not knowing about her riding lessons until she was ready. "I needed to discuss something with you," he said to Blether.

"Okay, I need to tend to Lily first," Blether said. Kierana imagined that the horses were his first priority no matter who was there to speak to him. She could see him putting off even Lord Gitter to take care of one of his animals.

"Alright," Jalask answered as if he had expected the response. He glanced curiously at Kierana as Blether took Lily down to her stall.

She shrugged, there was no point trying to make something up. "He's teaching me to ride. Today was my second lesson."

Jalask nodded. "How did it go?"

Kierana couldn't help rubbing the bump forming on the back of her head. "I fell."

"It happens," was his reply.

A few minutes passed as Jalask waited for Blether and Kierana tried to decide if she was free to leave now. "Do you ride much?"

"A little."

"Do you have your own horse?" Kierana tried to picture the size of the horse needed to hold the barbarian's weight. She had never been through the entire stable, Lily's stall was close to the entrance. She had seen larger work horses and war steeds lead out of the castle walls.

"No," he answered. She noticed that he looked a bit uneasy. "There's a gelding that I get along with."

"Oh?" For some reason, she had imagined him on a wild stallion. Maybe it was just the big scary and fearless imagine he projected.

"Yeah," he cleared his throat. "His name is Tiny."

Kierana tried not to smirk at the image. Jalask on a horse named Tiny? It was tough not to laugh at the irony. "It's harder than it looks," she said, deciding to let the subject of Jalask's horse's name drop.

"Yes, it is," he agreed and looked thankful as Blether walked back towards them.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Miss Kierana." Blether smiled at her and she nodded back. "Now what can I do for you, Mr. Jalask?"

Katie at 9:18 AM

Monday, December 08, 2003

Happy Monday y'all! I really don't have anything to say other than Orlando Bloom is yummy. haha I finally saw Pirates of the Caribbean last night. Return of the King (LOTR) will be in theatres in a few weeks so I can get another fix of him soon. :)

I think I might be ready to tackle the editing of my NaNo novel. I received my t-shirt in the mail the other day (wearing it right now, haha) and it's put me in the writing mood again. Although it's book 2 of the series so it might not make as much sense if you don't read 1 first. And 1 isn't done. I really need more hours in the day, can someone work on that for me?

Quote of the Day: "I write because I want more than one life; I insist on a wider selection. It's greed plain and simple. When my characters join the circus, I'm joining the circus." -Anne Tyler

Katie at 12:45 PM

Sunday, December 07, 2003

Not a bad day as far as Sundays go. I went to the grocery store and bought brunch items and the Sunday paper then made brunch and read the Sunday paper. After that I did some cleaning and starting sewing Kelly's plaid Christmas jumper. I should be able to finish it tonight. I know the PJ pants will go together quickly once I buy the fabric. Greg's out of town for the week so I'm not sure when I'll be able to go to JoAnn's for it. More than likely I'll just go one morning while the big three are in school and deal with the little two being nutty in the fabric store. Fun...

Oh seeing Santa last night... Kyle doesn't like the big guy in red. lol So I held him to get the picture below. We always end up with goofy Santa pictures. Even when it was just Zach, they didn't turn out "right." Oh well...

Katie at 5:07 PM

Saturday, December 06, 2003

Need...Mountain...Dew... grrr I'm trying to cut back on my mountain dew addiction (does 3 cans a day count as an addiction?) so there's none in the house. My thinking is if it's not here, I can't drink it. The same theory works well with junk food, it's not here, I don't eat it. But then again I also don't often want junk food in the first place. At the moment I have a lack of caffeine induced headache so I think I will probably drive down to the store for one. It's not like I completely want to stop drinking it, I'd just rather not be drinking so much.

I actually sewed last night and today. 1 pair of corduroy pants (Kyle's) and 2 plaid jumpers (Em and Ally's) done! I'll probably make Kelly's plaid jumper next so I'll be finished with the tedious matching up of plaid lines in the sems (might be another reason for my headache). I still need to buy fabric for the dresses and PJ pants. Zach's cords, I don't know, I need to find instructions to add a fly. 19 days,eek!

Tonight we're going to the in-laws for dinner and to see Santa Claus at the Victorian Village. So I should get everyone cleaned up soon. Speaking of cleaning up, I need to clean up the kitchen from brunch still. And there's jeans in the wash that need to be thrown in the dryer. Blah, blah, blah.

Quote of the Day: "A family has two functions: to provide warmth and love in time of need and to drive each other insane." -Donald G. Smith

Katie at 1:01 PM

Friday, December 05, 2003

Woohoo, 12:30 in the morning! lol I'm tired but I'm staying up because Greg will be home any minute now. Just talked to him on the cell, "it's raining and I'm in traffic." Um, yeah... Anyway there's some scrapbook paper piecings on eBay from me, feel free to go look and bid gobs of money on them. haha I did scrapbook a layout for Kelly's album, it's cute if I do say so myself. Course the layout is the pictures of the older kids when they visited her in the hospital on the day of her birth and she's now over a year old. Time is not a thing I have much to spare around here. Dirty diapers and yelling yes but not time.

For all you who really desperately want to read that crazy 50,000 word piece of writing I did in November, I'm sorry but you will have to wait. Editing it is on my list of stuff to procrastinate along with sewing 2 pairs of corduroy pants, 3 plaid jumpers, 3 Christmas dresses, 5 pairs of PJ pants, and pretty much all the housework. It's in good company so it won't get lonely, you see. hehe

eBay auctions Thanks!

Katie at 12:35 AM

Thursday, December 04, 2003

Um, yeah, Thursday, this is my good day, right. I'm tired, I can't sleep when Greg's not around. Weird quirk. It's probably the whole "he's not here to protect me when some psycho picks our tiny little town to attack in the middle of the night" thing. Or he just bores me to sleep, one or the other. *shrugs*

You know I realized that I never talk about the kids much. Let's see, Zach's really smart and already reading at 2nd grade level and does simple multiplication. His teacher went on and on about how sweet and smart and wonderful he is, it was very embarrassing. On the other hand Em and Ally are my social butterflies, I know I'm going to be pulling out my hair with them when they are teenagers. School is to see and play with their friends, "oh, we're suppose to learn something too?" *sigh* Kyle is still potty training himself, I just need to be brave and put in his underwear and cover the furniture with towels and see how it goes. He hasn't been asking for "Jew Peas" (kosher veggies, of course!) anymore. Now he finds his cup and says "Milk." And then there's Kelly Belly. She just turned one year last month and has been walking since the beginning of November. And she's a grump. I think she may be teething. But if I'm in the room, she has to be on my lap otherwise she yells. Actually she still yells when I'm out of the room but that's easier to ignore. haha

Blah, I don't want to sew. I don't know why I set myself up with so many projects. I need to go make a few more eBay paper piecings, I have a couple in my head. I'll probably post links later, free advertising. lol

Quote of the Day: "It's not economical to go to bed early to save candles if the results are twins." -Chinese Proverb

Katie at 9:06 AM

Wednesday, December 03, 2003

Shameless eBay promotion: My eBay auctions hehe

Katie at 7:32 PM

Um, yeah, that getting off the computer idea to sew this afternoon didn't work... But I have a nifty new look for my blog and I didn't have to change my link buttons afterall cause they still match. Although now that I think about it, maybe I should have gone with a Christmas theme since it's December. Hmph. Oh well... Guess you're stuck with blue a little longer (and it's my favorite color in case you haven't guessed).

Katie at 4:17 PM

I need to add "Blog" to my list of things to do each day. I knew I was forgetting something when I crossed off the last item last night. Well that and calling my sister to wish her a happy birthday... Oops...

< rant > I hate insurance companies. I hate PMS. I hate the cold. I hate that the twins' preschool clock runs 10 minutes fast and Zach's kindergarten clock runs 10 minutes slow. I hate that Greg is flying to Texas today. < /rant >

There I feel better. Back to your regularly scheduled blog. Today I need to do laundry (again) and vacuum. I also need to finish up Kyle's khaki cords and try to figure out how to put a fly in Zach's pants (dang Greg and his ideas...). Also due to a couple of unexpected hospital bills, I'll be putting up some scrapbook paper piecings this evening on eBay. The bill is only $400 but any money I can make off eBay is money that I can spend on Christmas (need another $300, me thinks) and not put on a credit card which I'm desperately avoiding. I'm almost done Santa shopping for the kids (need one more gift for Zach and Kyle) but I don't have anything for other family members yet. I really just need to sew and stay off the computer for a few days. Ha!

Quote of the Day: "Life isn't a matter of milestones, but of moments." -Rose Kennedy

Katie at 10:39 AM

Monday, December 01, 2003

Where to begin? Thanksgiving dinner was very good, thanks Dad! Friday I went shopping with my sister and Mom, we were up before 5am to drive to Evansville to shop. Due to the weird Indiana time zones, Evansville is an hour behind so we didn't have to get up too early. hehe I found some really great deals. In fact I'm almost finished Santa shopping for Em, Ally, and Kelly. But since I bought so much, we couldn't fit the gifts and our luggage in the mini-van for the trip home. OOPS! We'll be at my parents house again the weekend before Christmas so I left the presents there until then. I'll just have to remember to pack lightly!

Kyle was sick over the weekend. It's frustrating for a 2 year old to have the stomach flu cause he just pukes where ever he is. The older kids at least warn me so I have about 3 seconds to stick something under their mouths. He's doing much better today, thank goodness.

Let's see, I just finished printing out our Christmas cards. Now for the slave labor, I mean kids, to color them all. hehe I need to start addressing envelopes unless I feel like fussing with the printer to make it do it all. Hmmm.... Would it be bad to print a generic greeting inside too? I'm feeling rather lazy if you haven't noticed. LOL

Along the Christmas line of thought, I need to sew the girls' plaid jumpers. And then their dresses. And all the kids' PJ pants. My poor sewing machine is going to get a work out this month. I don't bake cookies or other holiday treats though. I suppose someday maybe I will but right now I have no desire to make a gazillion dozen cookies to give people. I need to make one or two batches of homemade jam this year, that's only an evening of work so not a big deal.

I think that's about it. 24 days until Christmas! :)

Katie at 3:21 PM

BACK TO THE TOP