I have been wishing for winter to be over since it started almost 6 months ago, and now it is mostly over and I wish it was back! You see spring may bring pretty flowers and rainbows but it also bring MUD AND POOP. I HATE snow, more, I hate going out in it, so I have not been out in 6 months to clean up after our 70lbs black lab- HOLY CRAP - there is a lot of crap out there. I have been out there twice litterly shoveling the poop, then yesterday my very good friend Lauren gave me the number for Scoopy Poo - yep that's here in good old Eden Prairie you can pay someone to scoop your poop. Unfortunatly I had gotten this information a little late!
Otherwise we have very much enjoyed going to the park OUTSIDE, and having the windows open long enough to get the winter stink out. The other day, Ryan and I decided to take the kids to the park. I suggested that we put Logan's snow pants on, as his walking skills are still not 100% and he sometime trips over his own feet, I didn't want to get wet if he fell. Good thing mommy knows best, we were at the park about 5 minutes when Logan decided to explore the soccer field. When I went to get him out of the swamp land, he started to run from me, he of course took a face dive into the mud. I guess he should have worn a water proof shirt and face mask as well.
We are going to continue to enjoy the warm weather for 31 more sleeps until we leave for sunny HOT Orlando Florida!
Today is Xander and Noah's 4th birthday. As with most milestones of parenthood, the same paradox exists: it seems like only yesterday they were babies, yet it also seems as though they have always been around.
They are truly amazing boys. They play SO well together, they have a wonderful friendship. They create new stories and scenarios for pretend play every day. They share so well with each other. The twin relationship is wonderful beyond description. But, they certainly have their own personalities.
Xander is a ham, I love his sense of humor. He's interested in letters and numbers and has been writing his name for some time. He's passionate and wears his heart on his sleeve like I do. He often beats Dan at Wii bowling. He loves the color green, the Packers, the Badgers and saying "to Infinity and Beyond" when you lift him up.
Noah is silly and sweet. He's very good at puzzles and can draw really well. He likes to tell stories about his drawings, too. He's loving and easy-going, like Dan. He has an eye for patterns and structure, and builds amazing things out of all kinds of blocks. He loves the color orange, is a great shopping partner and uses the word "actually" to tell you how it *really* is.
We had a big Mario Kart Wii themed birthday party yesterday. It was a really fun time. The only thing missing was Libby and Ryan. They are in Jamaica! Libby will surely be blogging about that when she gets back later this week. But we did have Maddi and Logan here, and of course all the other cousins, aunts, uncles, 2nd cousins, plus Nana and Grandma. Here's a few pictures from the festivities:
I love Craigslist. I love finding good deals. I love getting a little pocket money while simultaneously finding a good home for something we don't need anymore. I love what it does for community. I love how I've stayed in touch with some people who I met by buying or selling on Craigslist. (like Laura) I love how easy it makes being green in the sense of reusing.
But, alas - relationships do not consist of love alone - they have their faults. There are the scammers - the ship it to me and I'll pay ya later, the pyramid schemes, the send me a money order and I'll ship it to you... etc. Most of these are pretty see-through, but they're still disappointing and irritating.
But this week, my Craigslist misfire was laughable... I've been looking for a bookshelf for the boys' room. Nothing fancy, just an actual wooden shelf to hold books and some toys. They currently have a plastic shelving thing, so it's not a necessity, but I'd like something a little cuter and more functional - but also pretty cheap.
So I saw a posting this week, vague and no picture, but interesting to me: Book cases (west side madison)
1) 3 shelf book case older heavy wooden Very sturdy. 10.00
2) Light wood aprox 6ft tall 5 shelves Sauder mabe 4 foot wide takes up little space and holds a lot of books or knic knacks . 20.00
So I emailed: Hi -
I was wondering if you could give me dimensions for the smaller bookcase, and possibly a picture, or at least a bit more description?
Thanks! Meghan
And she (the email came from a "Linda") writes back: it is a standard bookcase
That is the whole message! I nearly fell out of my chair. Libby happen to be online so I forwarded the email and immediately called her and we laughed and speculated... I mean really, if someone told you they had a "standard bookcase" would that call to mind a specific size, shape and color? Her original post said wooden, but we all know some people don't distinguish between 'wood' and pressboard with veneer. And even if her 'wood' meant regular 'cut from tree' wood - there are TONS of different types and stain variations... Grrr.
So I mulled it over a day or so and I decided to write back. Giving the benefit of the doubt - maybe she only had a minute to write, and didn't think through her response, or something?! So over g-chat, Libby helped me with the draft - I didn't want to come off frustrated or mean, just curious and genuine. So I sent back: Hi Again -
I guess I'm not quite sure what you mean by "standard"? If you were able to measure it, I'd really appreciate it - I'd like to make sure it will work for the space I have. Height, width and depth would really help me out.
And about a day later I get this message back: 3ft tall 3ft wide 1ft deep painted
No "hi", no "sorry", definitely still no picture... Sheesh! I don't get it! I mean I give her credit for giving the measurements, though I'm skeptical about those being accurate - in all my images of 'standard' I had imagined something a little taller than it was wide. But to say "painted"?!?! Again, I would have assumed 'standard' meant wood or wood-like - but painted isn't out of the question - but there a million colors in the rainbow!
I've dealt with strange/crabby/crazy/shady types from time to time on Craigslist. I just cannot understand why someone who you are offering to give money to, and probably drive to his/her house to do so, would treat people this way. When I sell stuff, I really try to make it a good experience. If someone asks me a question, I always give the answer and then some. I always have a picture. And most of the time my efforts are appreciated. And also most of the time, people I buy from are as helpful. But these crazy few - oh it just puts a damper on the whole thing.
I guess it just comes back to work ethic and customer service. This is a constant conversation topic between Libby and me. We have worked in offices, retail stores and restaurants. We've been responsible for helping in person, over the phone and by email. And we really and truly always tried our best to help. You know? I think this really could be a post in itself, so I'll digress.
So for now, I'm just gonna keep my eye out some more for that perfect deal on a good bookcase. I'm sure there is someone out there selling one who had a Mom to teach them to always do their best.
Ok so life is not all sit-coms and pretty dresses - I am going to tell you a story about how life is not fair.
Maddi has been complaining about her tummy hurting for a few days now. It seemed to only be when I asked her to pick up her room or do her homework. So being the rock star mom I am I ignored her complaints.
Only for her to come home from school yesterday in tears because her tummy hurt so bad she couldn't stand it. So I called the doctor and they suggested I bring her in. So I did - and the doctor thought that an x-ray would be a good idea to rule out any obstructions other then the "regular" obstructions that should be there.
So the x-ray came back with only ok obstructions and that we should start her on miralax (a move it along kind of medicine). Also to avoid things like bananas and bran type foods. So we got her home and put the heating pad on, and gave her the medicine. She seemed to be ok with that, and since I no longer had any mom guilt about her having some kind of more serious condition other than whiny princess, I was ok too.
So the evening went on, we had all kinds of "move it along" snacks and dinner, which worked a little but not as much as expected. So in anticipation of a mid-night accident I asked Maddi to wear a pull-up which she oked using a line from a pull-up commercial saying "it's ok mom good nites equal good mornings" so back to the mom guilt of too much TV.
So all seemed to be going well both kids went to bed pretty good, Ryan and I watched some good Thursday night TV, then went to bed. So around 2am I heard some whining, figuring it was Maddi's tummy I went to check on her, she was out cold. So I went back to bed, a few seconds later more whining, I opened Logan's door a crack to see if he was ok and was overwhelmed by the SMELL. Apparently Maddi's medicine had somehow worked for Logan.
After some breath-holding clean-up I threw him in bed with Ryan and went to start the laundry because even Huggies couldn't handle what Logan was dishing out. I got down stairs half asleep, both arms full of some potent sheets and blankets, only to remember about the load I had started earlier in the day, good thing I noticed before I put the not so fresh pile on top of the clean stuff.
Ok so back to bed I went, and to avoid lots of typing lets just say at 4am I had to repeat the last few steps. And so here it is 11am and I have lathered, rinsed and repeated - 3 more times. Poor Maddi wanted to go to school this morning - hopefully the medicine will start to work for her soon!
Here is a very cute picture of Maddi and Sera! I had bought these shirts last year after Valentines Day one for Maddi and one for Logan - however Logan is A LOT bigger then I expected he would be this year.
While I was visiting Libby, she introduced me to the show Modern Family. I'm hooked: totally my sense of humor and completely hilarious. But the funniest moment of the show was not intended to be funny at all, just a crazy moment of wacky sisterness... but to understand I need to back track a little...
We belong to that crazy pack of people who participate in the Black Friday mania. After the pumpkin pie and homemade whipped cream are gone on Thanksgiving, we spread out the ads and make lists and strategies for the wee hours of the following morning.
This past year we had all four sisters plus Mom, which hadn't happened in awhile, so there was quite a bit of coordination and we totally rocked the shopping. After we had hit some major doorbusters we went to breakfast at the Cracker Barrel and then decided to check out the deals at Old Navy.
The crowds had thinned a little at the late hour of 9am and we got to take our time and look around, try things on and pick things out for ourselves which Mom bought and then wrapped up for Christmas. That is FUN shopping!
We also wandered through the children's section, where I saw one of the cutest little dresses I'd ever seen. A brown and pink sweater dress... perfect for hoidays, but would still be super cute in January and February. EXCEPT I didn't see Sera's size! I pulled Libby over, and as she helped me comb the racks, she pulled out the dress in Maddi's size. GASP! How cute would it be if our daughters had matching dresses this Christmas! The answer is REALLY REALLY CUTE!
After determining that Sera's size was not there - we looked at some other choices, to see if there was another option with both sizes in stock. But there was not, the brown and pink one was just too perfect. So we bought the dress in Maddi's size, sure that we would be able to track down Sera's in one of our hometowns or at the very least online.
Ah, certainty! How "certain" it seems in the thrill of the moment! Libby returned to the Twin Cities and I to Madison. Over the next few weeks we each checked our closest store. Then we checked the stores on the other sides of town. Then we checked online - the dress was NOWHERE!
Well, December is a crazy time and while we were disappointed, we resigned to have separate dresses for the girls. So I began to keep my eye out for a different dress for Sera. Three days before we were to leave for Superior (where we spent our family Christmas this year, as our oldest sister was graduating from UW-Superior) I was frantic - no dress I saw was right!
So I called Libby IN TEARS! And being the best sister there ever was, she consoled me for a bit and then an hour later she chatted me on gmail... She had called around until finally someone told her they might have one at the Old Navy in Eau Claire, which would be en route for me to Superior. But after 30 minutes on hold with the Eau Claire store, they told her it might be in a shipment they had received that day, but she would have to call back tomorrow.
AHA! A shipment - that meant other stores we had tried weeks ago might have been restocked. So we both went into calling mode - and every store we called answered the phone with "Thank you for calling Old Navy during our Jingle Jammies event" which made me really wish my jammies were jingly... We called pretty much every store between Chicago and Minneapolis. After dinner and bedtime I made a call at 9:02, only to be reminded of the Jingle Jammies event, but then informed me she couldn't check because the store was already closed. Um, then why did you answer the phone?! Don't you know how frantic I am?! The fate of my world is resting on finding this dress! I'll jingle your jammies!!
After a fitful sleep in jammies that were not the least bit jingly, I called Libby and we went through our morning routines on the phone together. Not always talking; just listening to each other make breakfast, get Maddi out the door for school, change diapers, start laundry, change loads, just keeping each other company until finally it was 9 o'clock and the Eau Claire Old Navy was open.
We hung up and 15 minutes later Libby called me back. They had the dress in the right size! WOOHOO! They put it on hold for me and I could pick it up the next day on our way up to Superior. I found the address online and google mapped and was ready to go. We made good time to Eau Claire the next morning. I dropped Dan and the kids off at a McDonald's with a play place and then proceeded to follow my written directions.
I circled around a bit, but didn't see the Old Navy. I called Libby, told her I saw a mall, and asked her to try and determine if the Old Navy was in the mall... it was and she directed me to the nearest entrance. I walked in through Macy's and thanks to Libby's excellent mapping skills, I saw Old Navy as soon as I entered the mall. I went to the customer service desk and told them I had a dress on hold. She found it quickly and it was even on sale! I paid right away, since I needed to get back to Dan and the kids, I had lost time in my circling. I didn't even get a chance to check out the Jingle Jammies I'd heard so much about! But I really didn't process that until later. As I maneuvered my way back through Macy's to the parking lot, I called Libby and I was absolutely shaking with joy as I told her I had gotten the dress! She was equally excited and it was a very gratifying end to a month long saga.
Well, almost an end, the real culmination was when we actually got to dress the girls: totally worth all the trouble, don't you think?
Now if you've stuck with this story all the way to the end, perhaps you are wondering what on earth this crazy drama has to do with Modern Family...
When it came to this point in the show we both gasped, Libby paused the show (btw, so jealous of DVR) and we both looked at each other and burst out laughing. The dress Lily is wearing is the pink version of the one we had spent so much effort into getting for our girls. I know it doesn't look terribly similar, but having visited as many Old Navys as we had and scouring the internet, searching "Old Navy sweater dress" - it was instantly recognizable to us both.
It was such a simple moment - but remembering it has made me giggle out loud several times since it happened. And that's the idea behind both our 'shows' celebrating and laughing at the wacky moments of the family experience - it just makes the harder times so much easier to push through :)
So the last few days have been awesome!!! Ryan had to go out of town so Meghan and her 3 kids came for a visit. I think the best thing about your sister being your best friend is that you can do and say anything and she won't be mad. You see Meghan and I have very different parenting styles, and sometimes when our children are butting heads then Meghan and I butt heads, but at the end of the day we are playing games and drinking hot chocolate.
Ok enough about that, we have had a blast! They got here Tuesday evening so we just chilled and played, then Wednesday we took 4 kids to playgroup and had a so much fun at a local Rec Center.
Then we came home and since Meghan and I have started knitting latley Lauren came over to help us learn to purl (which is a differnt kind of stich in knitting). Then I called my awesome waxing lady to see if she could fix Meghan's scary eyebrows, and of course she could so Meghan ran to get that done. In the mean time I made lunch for 6 kids!
Since no one took a nap we decided to get all 5 kids dressed in snow clothes and out for some sledding. Thank goodness my friend's older boys were here to help with the sledding part.
One of the great things about a big extended family is all the clothes that get passed around. Libby and I are the youngest of 5 children (see how I pair myself up with 28 year old Libby? even though I'll turn 30 in July, I don't think I'll be officially in my thirties until Libby turns 30 in November 2011.) My mom has 14 grandchildren - so there are plenty of hand-me-downs and keepsake clothes around. Dan's mom also saved some clothes from when Dan, his brothers and cousins were young.
There is just something so special about seeing a younger child in clothes that used to fit an older child. It's emotional, I'm not even sure why. the memories? the tactile 'proof' of how much the hander-down has grown?
I wanted to post a whole bunch of pictures of kids wearing the same clothes, but the last few days have been rough, Sera caught a stomach bug so I've had to pull the "nurse" hat out of the mom box. Also, this resulted in quite a bit of extra laundry. So we'll have to make this a returning segment.
