4 Wheeling...Not For the Faint of Heart!

My children took their first spin on a four wheeler last night and fell in love. I knew my boys would love it. They have their fathers need for speed, thrill of adventure, willingness to try new things. I thought maybe Morgan would be more like me. She is a bit of a worrier, not quite as much of a thrill seeker. I was wrong. Her first trip on the 4 wheeler she was mild, she didn't try and wheelies, she just putted along. The second time she got a little faster. Her third trip she wanted to upgrade to the somewhat larger 4 wheeler. After that...she was in love. I saw her going around the track with a huge smile on her face. She started hitting puddles and mud and just laughed, she hit a fence post got stuck in the mud and thought it was the greatest thing ever.

At the end of the evening my kids were ready to sell our camper and buy a bunch of 4 wheelers. I think Brian was even considering it.

That's where i put my foot down. Not. Selling. The. Camper. It was time to go home, scrub the dirt of my babies and pray the memory of 4 wheeling left them by morning.

Where has my summer gone?

Seriously....can summer really be about over? Did i really just get the registration packet for my kids to start back to school in a few weeks? Does this mean i should unpack their backpacks from when school ended?

Its been a crazy summer, and honestly, i might just be ready for school to start again. Although something tells me that once all the school activities start up again that we will be just as busy if not busier!!

We have done a lot of camping this summer. Camping and hiding out from severe weather...that's how i would explain what we have been doing this summer.

The good news...my earwig bug problems are going away...finally!!! They have been replaced by the mud wasps. My daughter asked me the other day which ones i preferred, the mud wasps or the earwigs. She herself is terrified of wasps so her only time outside is spent dashing from the house to the car...goofy girl. I also hate wasps with a passion, but at least they don't come in my house. I have killed so many earwigs in my house, my laundry, my clean laundry!! I have just really grown to hate the little suckers....probably even more then the wasps.

Also something exciting for us is Dylan is starting a new Physical Therapy. The bonus is that its right here in town and the therapist is AWESOME!! I can't say enough good about her. For the first time since Dylan was found to have CP i feel like we finally have a therapist that can get Dylan to his full potential!! This however does require PT at least 2x a week, maybe even 3 if we can manage it.

So that about sums up our summer. We have one more vacation planned in August, then its school registration, Dylan gets tested for visual processing disorder (and possibly even MORE therapy), Morgan turns 10....YIKES, i finish up my FINAL CLASS...WOOHOO, and then back to school for 3 of my kids. Morgan will be in 4th, Dylan in 2nd and Logan starts kindergarten. Then my baby...he will start preschool:(

So odds of life slowing down anytime soon are not looking good, but that's ok...its keeping me young and i sleep REALLY good at night:)

Say Cheese!!

This is the response i get from my youngest when i ask him to give me a nice smile. I give up:) Picture taking was much easier when they were babies and thought every little noise i made was funny.

Life

I am going to use life as my excuse for not posting anything for over 3 months. March came around and it was just one thing after another. School has been my main focus and i am SO happy to say that i have one more class and i am DONE!!!!! When questioned by my student advisor if i wanted to go on to get my Bachelors degree in business management i just busted out laughing and then finally managed to say "NO!"

I am also happy to report that in the last 3 months the snow has finally gone away....for this brings me great JOY! May has been lovely (minus the 30 degree weekend we camped and the 30 degree day at Tulip Festival). I am really enjoying being warm again, its great.

Not much else is new, Morgan and Dylan will have their last day of school tomorrow and then off to a fun filled summer at Summer Care. Logan finished up preschool and will be heading to Kindergarten in the fall, i am hoping the teachers get LOTS of rest over the summer cause they will need it!!

Jackson will also start preschool in the fall. Kind of hard saying those words as he is my baby. Yet its so much fun watching him grow, i really missed out on some of these things with my other children because there was always another baby on the way, or an infant to take care of, or a toddler to chase after. So even though i am sad to see him grow, its amazing to watch him transform from toddler to little boy.

So what does the summer hold for us? Hopefully no strep throat. That's really all i remember of last summer and i could do without that. Forever. We plan to do some camping, the kids love camping and i love making memories with them! Also a trip to Minneapolis with the entire family, very excited about this and keeping my fingers crossed that we are all speaking to each other by the end of it J/K! Sort of.

The rest of the summer will be spent with the kids at the pool, playing some Summer Rec activities and just enjoying the warm weather. Cause i know that i will blink and we will have a foot of snow again!!

I'v got the winter blues....

I may have mentioned this in previous posts, but i hate winter. Most winters i can tolerate the snow, and the cold, and i really prayed for a mild winter, but that was just not in Gods plans i guess.

I think we have had something like 500+ inches of snow...that might be a bit of an exaggeration, but its close. The drifts on either side of my driveway are almost taller then me....that just a ton of snow. Then of course there is my lack of coordination to deal with. Me + Ice = pain. I have fallen twice now, neither time was all that graceful of a landing, and i could feel some very bruised body parts for a few days afterwards...is that a sign i am getting old?

So today is the 1st of February, i am trying to stay optimistic and thinking that next month is March and then spring will soon follow...or it had better soon follow!!! Hopefully it wont be long and i can enjoy being outside again, i can go outside without freezing exposed body parts, i can go outside and not get several inches of snow stuck up my pant legs, i can go outside and stay on my feet....well maybe, i am really not that graceful on completely dry ground, but still...Spring can't come soon enough!!

What i did during the blizzard....

I hate snow, let me just say that right up front, i hate it. I was praying for a mild winter. I thought since we had a mild summer that it was only fair that we have a mild winter...with no snow, i guess God didn't see it that way, he disagreed and had to prove his point by sending us a massive snow storm...over Christmas no less.

So i spent Wed-Sunday with my family, lots and lots and lots of bonding. So what can you do during a snow storm that lasts for days. Well we played a lot of games, we watched movies, played in the snow, and my favorite...did 100 loads of laundry!!!! I thought that maybe, just maybe i would get completely caught up on laundry since i had nothing better to do. I was wrong, i will never be completely caught up on laundry. I figured it out, the only way i was going to get caught up on laundry during the snow storm was if everyone stopped wearing clothes, and that, just seemed a little weird.

Christmas day we let our children go outside and play in the snow. They all got bundled up, looking like little sumo wrestlers and headed outside. Jackson only managed about 5 min. outside and then he was done. When you are only about 3 feet tall, the 6+ snow drifts just seem a little scary. He kept getting stuck, and then did a face plant in the snow and after that he was just done, he wanted to go inside, dry off and take a nap. The other children had a blast, this includes their father who i think may have actually had more fun then the kids.

All in all, its was not a bad Christmas, there was something very relaxing about just being together with the family, about not having to rush from place to place. I do believe that God had a point with his snow storm. Not to make me miserable, but to make me slow down, to think about the true meaning of Christmas, to realize that one of the bests gifts you can get is family, and to maybe get caught up on my laundry.

Thankful

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and i feel i have alot to be thankful for, i am truely blessed and don't take the time usually to think about the many blessings i have been given.

Here is a top ten list of 2009 blessings
1. my mom had a succesful knee replacement surgery and is even thinking about doing her other knee this year!!
2. We took a family trip to St. Paul this summer, everyone stayed healthy (a blessing right there!!) and we had a lot of fun.
3. Lots of camping this summer, i am thankful for our camper and the chance to build memories with our children.
4. I am thankful that i no longer have strep throat and have gone almost 4 months without getting it!!
5. I am thankful for my home. Its not perfect, its not always clean, its not organized, but its my home and i am thankful for it.
6. I am thankful that my kids have so far had a successful year in school. They are both adjusting well and especially for Dylan has made so much progress...its great to see.
7. I am thankful that my children made it through the H1N1 virus without to much trouble...it was some stressful days, but God blessed them with speedy recoveries.
8. I am thankful for my job and for Brians job. We are lucky to have them, now more then ever.
9. I am thankful for my new van (well new the begining of the year) I don't have to worry about it falling apart on me, i don't have to worry about Dylan struggling to get in and out of it...or stuck in it.
10. Finally i am thankful for my family and extended family. I turned 30 this year and every year i think i realize a little more about how precious life is, how precious good health is, and to be THANKFUL, for every day given to me.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!