Lots to be thankful for

Thanksgiving wasn't painfully busy as it usually is in years past. We decided this year to just spend it with Karee's family and then next year we will spend it with my family. It was so nice not to have to rush down to Cincinnati just to rush back up here. The kids got naps, we got our Christmas decorations out, etc.

The Friday before, Jack went to Mike's for the weekend. Jack wanted to make sure that I didn't forget to feed everyone. He told me that I had 2 choices, to feed Kara & Grant. Then choice 3 was to feed Holly, choice 4 was to feed Libby and choice 5 was to shut Kara & Grant's doors at night. Without Jack reminding me, the rest of the family would not eat ;)

After dinner is usually a crazy time in our house. The dogs always play tug with their rope toy which is loud because they growl and bark. The kids are usually playing and that is loud. I don't realize how crazy it is until someone else is here. And you are trying to talk and you can't between the kids, the dogs, the tv blaring...to us this is all normal. To someone with no animals or kids, I am sure it seems like a mad house. I dont mind that kind of chaos as long as everyone is happy! We have some pretty cute and smart kids which makes us very thankful around here.

Rain Makes Us Crazy

It was so rainy here yesterday and I think will be the rest of the week. The problem is - it makes us crazy. Not sure if it makes everyone feel lethargic so the only way to counteract that is to be out of control...to fight the urge to sleep. The kids were fighting over a toy yesterday and Kara was getting so upset as she is screaming MINE that she turns around and hits me. Now wait a minute - I am not sure if she was hitting me because I wasn't getting the toy for her, maybe because I had a smirk on my face (hey, it was funny) or maybe because she didn't feel like walking around the coffee table to hit Jack.
I am always early when I take Jack to school and pick him up. I am usually about 10 min. early. I leave myself enough time to get the double stroller out of the car, unfold it, put Kara & Grant in it and walk into school. There was a really bad accident and I sat on I-70 for 20 min and ended up being 10 min. late in getting Jack. I hate being late and I was starting to have a sense of panic. My heart rate had increased some and I thought about being one of those idiots who drives on the shoulder to get to the exit (hey I was less than a mile away and at a standstill). No fear, I waited my turn but was super anxious.
Libby has been doing better with house training but still has about 1 accident in the evening. Much better than before but still a nuisance. I think it is due to the fact that I am utilizing her crate a ton more than I used to and she doesn't have the chance to go in the house. I certainly hope she learns this quickly. I haven't even tried to teach her anything else (besides sit) because house training is my top priority.
I have been running 3 miles every afternoon. Typically, Kara and Grant go upstairs for a nap after lunch. Jack stays up about an hour later than they do and I run while he plays or colors. Yesterday he was making a snake with his markers and they went all the way across the toy room. He was very proud. He also went through his entire day at school but he was Miss Wendy and I was one of the teachers. I had a great day at preschool with Jack as my teacher :)

The power of please

Jack is so hilarious and makes me laugh every day. He informed me of a few things today. First, he informed me that yesterday Kara had melted poop. She had an accident on the living room floor. The good thing is - Karee steam cleaned the carpets after that mess.

Today, Jack and I always talk about his day at school. He said that Devon wouldn't move and Jack got upset. I asked him if he asked Devon nicely and he said "yes, I said Get out of my way please". I explained to Jack that this was not a nice way to ask. He said "but i said please and thats nice so its ok". He also informed me that Miss Wendy had a discussion with him about it and that he needs to say please. He told me that he just doesn't like to say excuse me and would rather say get out of my way please. So, using Jack's method of thinking you could say "go eat shit and die please" if someone ticks you off. Hmm, I think I like Jacks way of thinking!

Coffee, please step away until I get it

There is nothing like starting your day 10 minutes before the alarm goes off to dog poo and pee on the bedroom floor. Yep, the aroma of poo jolts me out of bed much faster than any alarm. I picked it up with tissue and put it in the toilet. Guess what happens then - yep the toilet gets clogged and starts to over flow. No problem, 6am and mopping the bathroom floor with bleach. This is better than any way to wake up. Take Libby outside and some animal got into the trash and there are pieces of chicken carcass all over the porch. Not to mention, Holly got into the same carcass the night before. This was probably a coyote or something. So, I turn the coffee pot on and go upstairs while anxiously awaiting that first cup of coffee. It's the only thing that makes it worth waking up. Yes, in case I haven't mentioned it - I am addicted to coffee. Grant woke up which is fine - he had been asleep since 8 last night. 20 minutes later I came downstairs to get my coffee and low and behold, Libby peed on the kitchen floor. I decided she needed to stay outside for awhile. I finally get that first cup of coffee after I feed Grant his oatmeal. He was crawling on the floor stalking me as I was going to get the coffee because he wanted to be held. All of this before 6:45 am.

This afternoon went pretty well. The kids napped and i ran 3 miles on the treadmill which helped me. The frustrating part is typically when I am making dinner and cleaning up. It was a very loud dinner. 1 or all of the kids were crying at various times during the dinner. Kara is wearing Dora the Explorer undies around the house. She had a wedgie and I tried to fix them and she screams NO and gave herself a wedgie. It is hilarious seeing her run around with her underwear in her crack and her chubby butt cheeks as she walks around. I think she will wear thongs when she gets older.

The drama

There's always DRAMA going on here.

Drama over the cat, drama over the tv, drama over the dogs. Today took the cake. Jack always wants to know as soon as he gets out of school what we are having for lunch. I was throwing out some suggestions and he shot all of them down. He said "how about mac and cheese". I told him I was out of mac and cheese (and not to mention he just had it for dinner last night at my parents). He started whining - I tried to remind him of rule 3 (use speaking words). So then Jack exclaims "You are ruining my life because you won't give me mac and cheese for lunch". Hilarious!

Ahh, sweet relief

Ever since the start of all of our illnesses, Grant was back on a newborn schedule which means waking every 3 to 4 hours to eat. It was really wearing me out because I was not getting more than 2 to 3 hours sleep at a time. And being sick on top of it - it took a toll on me. Last night he slept 10 hours straight which is just what I needed!

Karee let me buy a used treadmill. I love having it in the house and I dont have to plan my day around going to the Y. Plus its a pain to get the kids in and out of the car multiple times a day. No, I can use it when they are napping and I can take my time. I can wear shirts that are a little too tight around my belly (think Chris Farley fat guy in a little coat routine), I can allow my belly blub to flow freely in the wind.....lol. It was a good investment that will save us $700/year.

Kara is talking more and more and using short sentences. I used to think that she would be very calm and laid back. As we approach the (terrible) 2's, she is more and more active. All of us will be sitting in the evening watching tv (yes, even Jack sits still) and Kara's running around from person to person. She is giving hugs, being loud, "KITTY", petting the dogs, jumping on Jack, "KITTY", sits on daddy's lap for 2.5 seconds, "KITTY"!

Jack had a great progress report from school. He is excelling at almost everything that a 4 year old should be and he is soooo much better behaved this year. He's like a celebrity at school. As we walk in he's waving and saying hi to various teachers and staff. Everyone seems to know Jack. Some will give him a hi five, others a hug.

Grant is perfecting the art of crawling. He gets so excited though that often times his legs go faster than his arms and he ends up doing a face plant on the carpet. That doesn't stop him - he gets right back up and gets to his destination. I think he is the best baby ever. He is always so happy. I think he just likes to show off his dimple truth be told.

Why?

Kara get down off the chair. Why?
Kara lets change your diaper. Why?
Kara naptime. Why?
Lunchtime guys. Why?

Rules of the Brown house (they are official now that they are posted on the side of the fridge)

1. Be polite (lots of things fall under this category including fighting, arguing, throwing, hitting, etc)

2. Be safe (another very general but important rule which encompasses running, jumping off furniture, playing with non-toy items)

3. Use speaking words (this is to nip whining in the bud).

A lot of the why's can be answered with one of the above rules

pumpkins, swollen lip, Lenny...

So Jack tested positive for H1N1 (swell) then Karee woke with a fever and Kara ended up with a fever (double swell). After everyone took long naps, we decided on Friday night to carve our pumpkins. Karee always does a great job and takes a lot of pride in his pumpkin carving skills. During all of this, Libby found and ate a wasp. I had to call our vet for the dose of Benadry. The Benadryl did not make her sleepy. I was planning on giving her a dose daily if it did just in case she decided to eat another wasp or stinging insect.Halloween went pretty well. With the exception of Princess not feeling well so she screamed...she screamed a lot....she screamed over everything. That high pitched scream makes me want to run away. It's always, always worse when Karee is around. I have NO IDEA why...
Kara on sugar. We had never seen Kara all hyped up on sugar before. She is typically calm with moments of insanity thrown in here and there. Last night she was blabbering like a fool, running, running into walls, hugging on Jack constantly, then when Fred came out she gets all Lenny (from Mice & Men) on us. "KITTY!" She yells as her bottom jaw protrudes out (with the big gap in the middle) and she has to pull the cats paws, kiss him on the lips, wants to hold him very tight by his neck, her entire body shakes with excitement. Easy Lenny, easy!


My dad asked me why Kara wasn't dressed as a princess this year. I had to explain to him that Kara is a princess the other 364 days of the year...she wanted to be something different for Halloween. We settled on the tiger costume for her. Jack was Woody from Toy Story and Grant was a bumble bee. The kids did seem to enjoy their scavenger hunt. It was very short because it was cold and I didn't want everyone out for long. It sucked the life out of the 5 of us though. Had we done anything else, we might all be in a coma. We all went to bed at 9 or was it 8...hell with the time change I have no idea but I believe it was early for us!