Ramblings of a SAHM

Tuesday, November 30, 2004

Three Pictures

I haven't used the digital camera lately to post pictures here so I'm borrowing this idea from Philip who borrowed it from Mindy, Ben, and so on and so forth.

Think of three pictures you'd like to see. Leave your ideas in the comments. Things around my house, outside my house, on my person, whatever - something I can take a picture of easily. If I can't, or won't, take a picture of something you've requested, I'll let you know.

I'll take requests until midnight and try to have all the pictures shot and ready by the weekend. Have fun and remember my in-laws read this! (Well so does my own family but they are beyond being shocked by anything I do.)

Quote of the Day: "When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence." -Ansel Adams

Katie at 9:17 AM

Monday, November 29, 2004

Sorry about the impromptu blogging break. Late Friday night we decided I was healthy enough to travel to my cousin's wedding back in my hometown (which was a lie, the healthy part, not the hometown part). So off to The Middle of Nowhere, Indiana we went Saturday morning! It takes 5 hours to get there. And did I mention the TV screen for the DVD player in the van is broken? *sigh*

But the bride (my cousin) and groom were gorgeous and so in love, the wedding was perfect, the reception food excellent. I was able to see family and friends (the groom graduated the same year I did, we worked together at the same fast food restaurant, and he even dated my best friend for awhile) that I hadn't spoken to in years. And guess what? I couldn't speak to them Saturday either. My voice in fact has still not returned today. Okay I can whisper a bit. But it's hard to understand my whispering under normal conditions, forget about it over the band. So we played this weird little form of charades, I'd touch my hand to my throat, I've lost my voice. They'd nod understanding and I'd point to their families so they would tell me what they've been up to for the last few years. Then I'd point to Greg (he'd wave from across the room) and then hold up 5 fingers and point out the kids. Occasionally I could drag Greg over to interpret for me but most of the evening, he selfishly talked to other people. *sticks tongue out* The kids had a fantastic time dancing and it was a very enjoyable event for all.

Oh and to my above mentioned best friend, I'm sorry I didn't call. I realized it's really hard to talk on the phone without a voice. We also didn't stay very long, we were there for less than 24 hours. So next time, I promise we'll swing by and visit!

Today I'm paying for this weekend excursion. I can't talk, my head is completely stuffed, I have a headache, and those narcolepsy tendencies are back. *so tired, must sleep* Oh and Greg flew out to Baltimore this morning. As always, it should be an interesting week.

Quote of the Day: "I love being married. It's so great to find that one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life." -Rita Rudner

Katie at 9:14 AM

Friday, November 26, 2004

I'm now completely unable to talk but this morning, bright and early at 5:30, I did my part to help the US economy. Why spending $250 at that ungodly hour caused me to lose my voice, I have no clue. But you wouldn't believe the deals I got! 28 more shopping days until Christmas and I'm 75% finished. I'd say that's worth the inability to speak. *winks*

Katie at 3:45 PM

Thursday, November 25, 2004

Happy Thanksgiving!

Now can I go back to bed?

(I'm still sick with something. *hack, sniff, sneeze, yawn*)

Katie at 7:42 PM

Wednesday, November 24, 2004

Um...

I just went through three stores with two screaming children. At one point, they were yelling with lollipops in their mouths. And that's probably considered a chocking hazard so be sure to send my name in for the "Worst Mom of the Year" award.

I think I would like be puking again so I can stay home.

Katie at 1:57 PM

Tuesday, November 23, 2004

So at least the puking part has passed. Four pregnancies worth of morning sickness (and did it stop at the magical end of the 1st trimester, hell NO!) has made me an old pro at spending one minute in the bathroom on my knees and then the next back playing the itsy bitsy spider with the kids. See, I have all these fantastic talents to list on my resume someday...

The tricky part is going out. I do not like to drive when I'm sick. My driving skills are mediocre at best (well at least according to Greg *winks*) so when impaired with a queasy stomach, a headache the size of Cleveland, and narcolepsy tendencies, being behind the wheel is not a good idea for me. But I had to pick up the kids from school yesterday (Greg was able to do both drop-offs but then he had to go out of town, I'm sure not to escape the House of Germs). I only almost rear-ended a car once. In my defense he stopped short of the stop sign by about 15 feet. One of these days I really should find a back-up ride for the kids.

Now my week is all screwed up. *grumbles* I didn't go grocery shopping on Monday for obvious reasons, the laundry isn't finish from Sunday, the kids are off school starting Wednesday, and I have to prepare a dish to bring to Thanksgiving on Thursday. Oh did I mention I need to sew up a plaid jumper for Kelly before my cousin's wedding on Saturday? And Friday (and this is the only reason I still have the will to breath), I'm going shopping! Without kids! On the best bargain day of the year! Woohoo!

Anyway, I hope you all are doing well and that you have a lovely Thanksgiving in case I don't make it back because I'm: sleeping, folding laundry, puking, sewing, grocery shopping, attempting to cook something that won't kill anyone, playing EQ2 (most likely, hehe), or in a car accident. Have a great rest of the week!

Katie at 9:44 AM

Monday, November 22, 2004

Caught the kids' puking stomach flu bug. Be sure to wash your hands and spray Lysol on your way out.

Katie at 4:02 PM

Saturday, November 20, 2004

So far today I've spent an hour and a half at the YMCA soccer field (girls' 40 minute soccer game plus team pictures), changed the gerbils' litter, cleaned the three bathrooms, vacuumed all the carpet, emptied the dishwasher, started dinner in the crockpot, taken out the trash, and swept the kitchen floor (I'll mop after lunch).

The reason for this unusual cleaning binge? 5 billion leaves outside that I'm suppose to be raking. That I've been procrastinating for a week... Forget everything I ever said about the changing leaves being pretty, they should have stayed green and on the trees. *sighs*

Katie at 11:53 AM

Friday, November 19, 2004

For any of you keeping track, here's where we stand on the Fleck household sickness record for the week:

Stomach flu: Zach (Monday), Kyle (Thursday), and Kelly (this morning) are all down for the count. Emily and Ally are holding out.

Sore throat/voice loss/coughs: Emily, Ally, Kyle, and Kelly are all recovering. Somehow Zach dodged this one.

Yellow snot/fever: Kyle has beat this one, Kelly is struggling. Unsure if the other 3 will face it.

Me? I'm just tired with that minor headache and loss of appetite still.

Greg arrived home late last night and hopefully he will avoid all of the above.

Quote of the Day: "The quickest way for a parent to get a child's attention is to sit down and look comfortable." -Lane Olinghouse

Katie at 10:07 AM

Thursday, November 18, 2004

A Handy Guide on How to Pick your Breakfast Cereal

Kyle, Frosted Flakes or Coco Puffs?
- Zach has Frosted Flakes, Emmy has Coco Puffs, Ally has Frosted Flakes.

Yes. Kyle, pick one.
- I have a blue shirt!

Um, okay. Frosted Flakes or Coco Puffs?
- And there's a red car on my shirt!

Yes I know, nice shirt. Which cereal do you want, Kyle?
- *silence except for the munching and slurping from the other kids*

Kyle, Frosted Flakes or Coco Puffs?
- That box is blue.

Yep.
- I have black pants!

*rolls eyes and sighs* Kyle, pick a cereal.
- *wheels turning in head* Frosted Flakes!

Just for the record, I chose Coco Puffs and I'm wearing a white t-shirt and blue pj pants. hehe

Katie at 8:52 AM

Wednesday, November 17, 2004

Kelly's 2 year check-up
Height 2' 10"
Weight 27lbs

She's between the 50th and 60th percentiles for her growth. I always say she's my petite one. (The others are regularly off the chart.)

Other than her cold, she has a little patch of eczema on her leg and her skin is drying out like the twin's skin also does in the late fall and winter. Time to dig out the prescription lotions...

The pediatrician said she was the best 2 year old check-up he's given in months. Kelly is a such sweet little girl. Except when you piss her off. hehe

Katie at 10:28 AM

Tuesday, November 16, 2004

Update...

I'm officially sick. Temp of 101 degrees. And to top if off, my period started this evening. 5 days early! Well at least that explains the bloating.

Kelly and Kyle both have fevers with runny noses and Emily's lost her voice. Ally and Zach seem okay at the moment.

So it's going to be an interesting rest of the week. We skipped Zach's Cub Scout pack meeting last night and as I type, we're missing the girls' soccer practice. Tomorrow's schedule includes Kelly's 2 year check up with the pediatrician and Zach's hockey practice. Thursday is the PTO Nut Sale sorting (I promised to help) and Zach's Cub Scout den meeting. Depending on how I feel, we might miss some or all of those. And Greg returns home Friday, probably just in time for him to get sick over the weekend.

It's a good thing I stocked up on Children's Tylenol and Mountain Dew at the grocery store today.

Katie at 7:43 PM

A few things before I hop in the shower and run a gazillion errands today. I have had this headache for a few days now. Not a painful migraine, just an "oh bother, I have a headache the strength of an annoying fly." Tylenol won't touch it, caffeine seems to help a little and my sleep habits are about the same. At first I thought it was because I was playing Everquest2 (more computer time) but then I realize I still have the same amount of computer time. I've just traded writing, blog surfing, and Pogo time all for Everquest2. Maybe it's the weather. *shrugs*

The other weird thing is that I've lost my appetite. Food just doesn't sound good. Which is very strange for me because I'm normally counting the seconds until my next meal. And don't even ask how many times in the past I've made Greg stop somewhere because I was hungry. Plus I've always been a huge fan of breakfast and now I can't stand the thought of eating before noon. Not that this has resulted in any weight loss. My body has probably dropped into starvation mode because of the drastic change from my normal 6 little meals a day. Which is not good and I don't want to permanently screw up my metabolism (it's already on shakey ground). Why can't I eat?

Maybe I need to exercise more. Or maybe I'm just getting old. Oh bother...

Quote of the Day: "Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I'll try again tomorrow." -Mary Anne Radmacher

Katie at 10:07 AM

Monday, November 15, 2004

The house is full of sick kids. Kyle and Ally have been fighting a combination of coughs and sore throats. They both lost their voices over the weekend. That really freaked Kyle out. He was very scared when he first realized he couldn't talk but we reassured him it'll come back. It's kinda funny listening to him croak out sentences. hehe

Zach on the other hand has the stomach flu. I was up with him twice last night and called him in sick to school. He puked again this morning when I was making Greg breakfast (eggs and sausage). Poor kid. I gave him some weak tea at 10 and so far that's stayed down.

Kelly is coming down with the cough/losing voice bug now. Em seems fine but I know it's only a matter of time before she catches one or the other (or both). It's been my experience that the kids rarely all get sick at the exact same time. They like to spread out the timing on when they catch a certain illness and drag on the misery for at least a week or two. It does making diagnosising what they have easier though. "Oh you caught Ally's cold" or "the fever is from the flu bug Zach brought home from school."

*yawn* It's going to be a fun week. *sarcasm*

Katie at 11:04 AM

Sunday, November 14, 2004

Happy 2nd Birthday Kelly! Where did the time go?

The birthday girl at her party last night.

Katie at 8:10 AM

Saturday, November 13, 2004

OMG! I'm in love!

With my new Target store that is.

I've always liked shopping at Target but I never felt quite as passionate about it as some. Today I needed to do some birthday shopping for Kelly and I remembered the new Target store that opened last month nearby. It's only a quick 15 minute drive through the country (much better than half an hour to the one near the mall) so I though what the hay, I'll go there.

It's so new! And shiny! And it's huge and full of lots of stuff that I really would buy if only I weren't such a cheapskate. *shrugs*

But I did buy Kelly's birthday gifts and I saw many, many possible Christmas gifts for the kids. In fact I might go back tomorrow. This may just be the store to shake me out of my miser status. Ah, true love is so wonderful.

Katie at 4:31 PM

Friday, November 12, 2004

Major dilemma... (names have been changed to protect the uh, innocent? Guilty?)

For Thanksgiving we're suppose to go to a relative's house and then attend my cousin's wedding that Saturday. Both are in the same town about a 5 hour drive from here. The problem... The relative is a serious obsessive/compulsive buyer and packrat. The guest room is completely filled about 4 feet high with stuff bought and never used. The rest of the house usually has tons of stacks of newspapers and magazines that can't be thrown away because they might be needed some day. So not the ideal (or even safe!) place to stay a few nights with 5 young children.

Now we've sucked it up and dealt with the mess before. But for one night. This would be for 2 or 3. The relative's adult children have often helped partially clear out the guest room and other living areas beforehand so that we could be sort of comfortable. Unfortunately circumstances prevent the children from doing that at all this year.

A hotel, you say! The nearest hotel is a good 15 miles drive in the country through two towns and $100 a night. Remember my beloved 8pm bedtime for the kids? We'd be sitting in the hotel room every night by 9. The hotel room idea also hurts the relative's feelings. Yet the relative refuses to do anything to make the house reasonable for overnight guests.

So... I'm not sure if I should confront the relative and be blunt ("clean up or we can't stay there") which would probably only hurt the relative's feelings but not accomplish any cleaning (relative refuses to admit the problem). Or maybe I should stay quiet about the mess and spurge on the hotel room and deal with the boring-ness at night. We'd still have to deal with the clutter while visiting the relative's house for Thanksgiving day and I'm sure we're expected there on Friday. Or go a bit extreme, cancel our Thanksgiving plans and not go to the wedding and just stay home (requires a good excuse because relative really wants to see us).

I have no idea what to do. I don't want to start a family feud or hurt this relative's feelings. But there's no possible way we can stay there in the cluttered state it is in. The story of the two packrat brothers who died because their stuff crushed them? Getting close to being a possibility for this relative. A stack of newspapers once fell over on Zach (he was 3 years old) and hurt him. But like I said before, the relative refuses to see this packrat and obsessive/compulsive buying as a problem. The relative is also probably a borderline depressive.

I feel I'm stuck in between a rock and a hard spot.

Katie at 5:15 PM

Thursday, November 11, 2004

Today was unbelievably better. Whew! The kids were off from school (combo Veteran's Day and parent/teacher conferences). Also it's Greg's brother's 20th birthday. Happy Birthday!

So we picked up the van (space, we have space!) and went to lunch with the birthday boy and mother-in-law. Afterwards she came back to our house to watch the kids so I could go to the parent/teacher conference. They went well. Em and Ally are both improving on their alphabet skills although they still have a ways to go. Zach's fine.

The rest of the day we worked on some crafty projects and finished up homework. And I played Everquest. *evil grins*

A bit early but... Have a Happy Friday!

Katie at 10:41 PM

Wednesday, November 10, 2004

Not...A...Good...Day. One of those 1 step forward, 5 ga-billion steps back types of days. Which is why the kids had cold cereal for dinner, immediately followed by a few minutes bath each (with no toys), and then straight to bed. It's 7:15pm now.

*deep breath* Tomorrow will be better.

Katie at 7:15 PM

November in the Midwest: While running errands today, we had the pleasure of being stuck behind a pick-up truck with a dead 10 point buck in the bed. (Is it bad I know how to classify deer?) Yee-haw!

*rolls eyes*

Katie at 1:45 PM

Tuesday, November 09, 2004

Everquest 2 arrived today! So long Blog Explosion, maybe next year NaNoWriMo, hello MMORPG*!

*Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game

Katie at 6:14 PM

Monday, November 08, 2004

My alter-ego, "Clean Freak/Prepared for Everything", has found a new way to torture me. Copying and pasting 13 months of blogs posts to Word documents. (Ultimately to be burnt to a CD). *bangs head on desk* It didn't sound like a difficult task in the beginning because I can easily pull off a month's worth of posts in one quick copy/paste. The painful part is going back through every entry and grabbing the comments and then pasting them to the correct post in Word. Cause what's a blog without its comments?

4 1/2 hours later and I'm just now starting August. *bangs head on desk*

Katie at 10:49 PM

The Van Ding Saga Continues...

To bring everyone up to speed, on Thursday Oct 28th the neighbor's friend backed into our 12 passenger van parked on the street (and half on the curb, I'm a great driver like that). It's only this enormous black shiny box of metal, I can see how you'd miss it on a bright sunny afternoon. *sarcasm* Neighbor's friend offered to pay out of pocket, leaving her number so I can call her with the total.

Friday Oct 29th, I took the van to the local body shop. $700 and 3 days! Our other vehicle is Jeep Wrangler which is usually parked at the airport for days on end while my husband travels for work. Quick count... Hmm, still have 5 children. Called neighbor's friend, she'll swing by with a check.

Saturday Oct 30th, neighbor's friend stopped by and wants us to go through her insurance instead. Fine, whatever but now I'm definitely getting a rental.

Monday Nov 1st, called insurance company and body shop. Insurance company approved body shop's estimate and authorizes rental mini-van. Body shop can start work on Monday Nov 8th. Rental place called 3 times over the week (changing my rental location once) and every time I stressed: "I have 5 children, I need a mini-van." Rental place will meet me at body shop at 9am on Nov 8th.

Sunday Nov 7th, Greg drove Jeep to the airport for the week.

Monday Nov 8th, we took Zach to school and then drove down to the body shop. I unloaded all 5 carseats and miscellaneous other stuff (CD's, DVD's, etc). I took a picture of the ding too. We all trudged inside and talked to the body shop guy. Our rental was here already!

"That gold car out in the parking lot."

4 little kids running around the little waiting room and they brought me a fucking Chevy Impala. You could have seen smoke coming out of my ears at that point. I called the rental place and as politely as I possibly could while screaming every curse word in my head at them, I told them I was approved for a mini-van, everyone I spoke to said "yes, you'll have a mini-van", and that they better bring me a mini-van NOW!

Oh they don't have one. At least not yet. But they can put me in a Pacifica at noon when someone drops off the keys. And the Impala seats six!

So technically there are only 6 of us this week but it would require the Big 3 to go without their boosters so that Kyle and Kelly's carseats would fit in the back. And two of the Big 3 would have to sit in the front. I am fanatical about carseat safety, the kids probably won't be out of some sort of booster until they are driving. Plus I'm barely considered tall enough to withstand an airbag impact, I definitely don't want the kids in the front seat. An Impala is not going to cut it especially since I was told I was getting a mini-van numerous times.

*blah, blah, blah* I relunctantly agree to drive the Impala home and since we'll be driving by the rental place after 12, we'll switch the vehicles then.

Why do I have to be related to the Murphy's? *grumble*

Katie at 10:15 AM

Sunday, November 07, 2004

Picture Time!

Sherry's newest baby, only 8 days old and me. He is sooo adorable! Couldn't you just melt?

Greg and Zach before the Cub Scout Spaceship Derby. They made it look like a shark and he won Best Design! Way to go Greg and Zach!

Just a cute one of Kelly. She found out that her little tush fits in the dump truck and happily scooted around the floor backwards for quite awhile one afternoon. And since she couldn't see where she was going, she hit the steps. Which lead to:

LOL

Katie at 11:22 AM

Saturday, November 06, 2004

Blogging for Books

Just when I thought my life couldn't get any crazier...

I found myself making mud angels on a soccer field in the rain at 9:30 on a Tuesday night while others chanted above me: "This is the way we wash the pledges, wash the pledges. This is the way we wash the pledges, all night long."

It was the first semester of my freshman year at college and I had joined the Army ROTC program as suggested by my dad. Pledging for Perishing Rifles, a co-ed ROTC fraternity, had been the idea of a fellow ROTC freshman. It's only eight weeks, he had said, and we'd be Actives (members of the fraternity) before we knew it. Little did I know what I was about to get myself into...

The craziness had begun long before making mud angels. I was seventeen years old in a new state where I knew absolutely no one with 19 hours of college courses (biology major with a chemistry minor) plus an on-campus job. The over-achiever attitude I had in high school had carried over into college and I saw no problem pledging a fraternity on top of everything else.

8 weeks, no sweat! Only there was a lot of sweating. In the form of at least two extra PT sessions (physical training) a week at odd hours of the day on top of the regular 3 times a week ROTC PT times. We ran three miles at 4 in the afternoon, dozens of push-ups at 9 at night, half an hour's worth of stair climbing at the basketball arena at 5 in the morning.

It didn't stop at physical work. I had to learn all 32 Active's names and ranks and greet them whenever I saw them on or off campus. I memorized nomenclatures of weapons I would never fire and spout them out whenever commanded. I was drilled to assemble a M16 in less than a minute. Since the Perishing Rifle members were also the college's Color Guard, the other pledges and I were taught precision drill maneuvers with 9 pound Springfield M-1 rifles. Imagine standing at attention holding one of those in your right arm seemingly forever while an Active measures the centimeter space between the toe end of your boots.

And then there was the silly stuff like the mud angel incident. We were required to always carry a blue binder containing all our Perishing Rifle information, visible at all times. You did not want to be caught without it, trust me. I slept with mine. A fellow pledge (the same one that got me into this mess) and I once had to make a midnight run to a 24 hour grocery store to buy all eleven pledges a can of lemon scented Pledge furniture polish on the whim of an Active. We threw a Halloween party for the Actives, we made a music video (oh boy, do I wish I had a copy of that!), we played cheerleaders at the Actives' football games, and we serenaded them on their birthdays. All this on top of keeping a 3.0 or better grade point average with shiny boots and pressed uniforms. Unless you wanted to hear: "Front leaning rest position! Exercise!"

And then came Initiation Week. But if I told you about that, I'd have to kill you. *winks*

Pledging the fraternity was one of the craziest times of my life but also one of the most rewarding. I'll never forget the feeling of pushing cold clammy mud aside with my hands as the rain poured down on my face and soaked my uniform. But just like the shower afterwards was pure bliss, the sense of accomplishment after all the madness of pledge period was worth every "Yes, sir!"

Katie at 8:23 AM

Friday, November 05, 2004

Hear ye, hear ye, Katie Fleck is about to spend money!

Those crazy people at Quality Paperback Book Club have suckered me into joining again. 6 books for $6! What can I say? Course then you have to buy two more books at regular price within a year. But wait, pick out a 7th book today for $4.99 and then it's only one more book to buy! I shouldn't have but I fall line, hook, and sinker for books every time.

Normally I'm too cheap (frugal!) to buy, preferring to visit the local library (I've worn out two library cards since moving here 5 years ago). But the rising cost of late fees (*cough, cough* procrastinator!) and 5 children "helping" me browse at the library has slowed my borrowing habit. And since we packed up the majority of our books to declutter the house (I'm still pouting, books aren't clutter!), I'm going through page turning withdraw.

While the selection at QPB.com isn't near the mind boggling offers at Amazon.com, I managed to find 6 books to buy. Although they count as 7, one book counted as two, whatever... Links to Amazon.com (just cause I really like Amazon):

Digital Scrapbooking by Maria Given Nerius- I've wanted to try my hand (mouse?) at this for awhile.
The Writers Handbook 2005 by Elfrieda Abbe- Step 1 to stop procrastinating sending out my writing.
Biggest Book of Slow Cooker Recipes (Better Homes & Gardens)- Gotta eat!
How to Cook Everything: Simple Recipes for Great Food by Mark Bittman- Same reason as above plus has high reviews (this is the one that counted as two).
Peanuts: A Golden Celebration by Charles M. Schulz- I adore the Peanuts and I couldn't pass up this book for $1.
A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein- Zach is a huge fan (we have Where the Sidewalk Ends already).

Speaking of novels, remember my NaNoWriMo book? Uh... I gave up on my first idea and have completely swapped genres. I'm now writing a sci-fi chick lit featuring a foursome of super heroines (think X-Men powers). A bit of a change from a historical romance set during the Civil War. What can I say? My writing muse is crazy like that.

Katie at 1:51 PM

Thursday, November 04, 2004

Homework! Who wants some homework!

Zach- practice multi-level reading book, finish math portfolio and worksheets on patterns, and write spelling words.

Emily- draw an "animal skin" (brown paper bag) pictorial story, decorate a paper turkey feather, and practice numbers 11-20.

Ally- finish worksheets on the letter sounds B-G (I don't know what happened to A), decorate a paper turkey feather, and practice numbers 11-20.

My homework- write a story for Zach (why we chose his name, a bit of his birth story, and special activities we do as a family), write on paper stars the names, ranks, and service branches of veterans in our family for Veteran's Day, finish the paper work on the PTO nut sale, write out questions I have for Emily's upcoming parent/teacher conference, and fill out two "Can you donate?" papers for the upcoming Kindergarten "Indian Day."

Is it possible to homeschool paperless?

Quote of the Day: "Forget your mistakes, but remember what they taught you." -Dorothy Galyean

Katie at 1:07 AM

Wednesday, November 03, 2004

My Soccer Stars

2 games and 4 practices later, Em & Ally love soccer! Here are a couple pictures, I haven't figured out all the features on the digital camera yet in order to take good action shots.

Em on the left, both waiting for the center kick.

Em on the left, "Send us in coach!"

Katie at 10:50 AM

It's not easy being green. Night!

Katie at 2:58 AM

Tuesday, November 02, 2004

Fine you all don't like gloom and doom posts. *sticks tongue out* Two Advil Migraine pills & two Mountain Dews (you, be quiet!) and I'm feeling better. Plus I voted. That felt really good. I'm actually looking forward to watching the results coverage tonight.

If you haven't voted yet today, GO NOW! I don't care who you vote for, it's just important that you do.

Katie at 4:02 PM

Migraine... Gloomy wet weather... Dealing with her car insurance company... Need to go grocery shopping... Staring at the edge...

I should probably take some of my own advice but until my Fairy God-Nanny shows up to watch the children, cook, and clean, I'll muddle through. Maybe I'll go kill someone off in my NaNo novel. heh

Katie at 9:18 AM

Monday, November 01, 2004

Sherry, Mother of 7 Boys, has announced the arrival of # 7! I've seen pictures, he's a keeper! Go on over and congratulate her (and send cyber Mountain Dew, hehe).

Katie at 6:47 PM

5 children + 2 nights of "trick or treating" = well, this:

My sister and her college roommate have graciously agreed to take some of it off our hands. So Sarah, I hope your mailbox is big enough! I'm considering eBay'ing the rest of it: My Kids' Halloween Candy 50+ pieces of candy hand collected by my 5 adorable children dressed as the characters of Peter Pan. Hmm, maybe that's a little too evil.

News in the writing world:

This month's Blogging for Books (entries due Nov. 8th), choose one of the three "starter sentences" listed below, and use it as the beginning of a blog post totaling no more than 2,000 words:

Just when I thought my life couldn't get any crazier...
Before I had kids, I thought ...
I enjoy reading the stories in your magazine each month, but I never thought something like that could happen to me until a few nights ago, when...

The last one is cracking me up. If this wasn't a family blog... *evil grins*

NaNoWriMo kicks off today! 50,000 words in 30 days, are you ready?

An update on the new template: I found an idea I love (although Greg thinks it looks like all the other blogs templates in the world) and I was halfway through copying and pasting all my links and pictures and stuff when Greg pulled the test blog up in Firefox. Um, not good. I haven't tried it in Opera yet but Firefox hates my coding. It looks pretty good in IE. If you want a peek, here's the link. There's suppose to be an image in the upper right hand corner but after the Firefox problem, I didn't feel like making it. Since I have Blogging for Books and NaNo now, the new template design will be shoved to the back burner. Oh well.

Quote of the Day: "Writing is a socially acceptable form of schizophrenia." -E.L. Doctorow

Katie at 9:22 AM

BACK TO THE TOP