Wet Wednesday

Much to Morgan's dismay it rained all day today and we couldn't go to homeschool park day. She really wanted to see her friends and when there is inclimate weather we meet at a B&N near the park but that just doesn't work when you still have youngens. The teens can wander the mall but not the others. Alex does NOT do well and what is the point in going if there isn't a place to play and Mommy can't talk with the other Moms because she is trying to keep the kids from killing each other or pulling all the books off the shelf, etc. So we did school work and had plenty of play time. We also decided to make up a daily schedule (our counselor's suggestion) and I hope this will help all of us some. Alex did a page of his math workbook completely on his own with NO prodding from me! I knew he got his book but the next thing I know he is telling me he finished a page. I praised him quite a bit for focusing on his page & completing it without any word from Mom. This is a biggie for him. The good thing about all the rain is that we don't have to water the garden....Mother Nature took care of it for us today. Yea! With all of this warm weather the trees have started budding...well, add today's rain and we have GREEN everywhere! Our huge tree in the backyard still looked "dead" from winter. We saw a minimal amount of leaf buds at the very top but that was it....today little green bits everywhere. Our smaller tree had green leaves at the very top, and tiny leaf buds all over...today exploded with little green leaves all over. And our almost brown grass (and weeds) are all green. It is just amazing how quickly it all happens. Isn't nature wonderful? Spring has brought forth new life once again.

In the past couple of days we've hung some more pictures in the master bathroom. They are 2 that GC and I bought while in Jacksonville. I picked out one and she picked out the other...a set of 2. After she realized they were a set (but sold seperately) she insisted that we have both of them for our bathroom. I also caulked over the shower (it needed it). We had some leftover from when we replaced the french doors so we used that. Well, apparently some of it hardened in the tip, despite using something to prevent that, and when we used the caulking gun it went too far and we exploded the back of the caulk tube. LOL! We had none coming out the tip and then suddenly this white goo coming out the back. How delightful. So there I am standing on the edge of the tub, using the left hand to scoop goo out of the caulking gun that Corey is holding and then using the fingers on my right hand to spread it along the top edge of the shower wall (one piece tub/shower). It was a sight to see, I tell ya. Morgan's dance classes went well and she has next Monday off for Spring Break. I asked at the dance studio if they knew of any places that had boy classes like tumbling,etc. They told me of a place just a couple blocks away and so I went to check them out. They are Discovery Gymnastics and they have tumbling classes for little boys. The price isn't bad and the first class is free so we are going to let him try them out. Alex had soccer practice on Tuesday and has another game on Saturday.

Corey has tomorrow off as his comp day for having pager duty last week. We aren't sure yet what all we will do but it will be nice to have the day to do stuff. On Friday, GC is off and we will be having a girls day out. Should be fun.

I realized today that Alex, my sweet baby boy, will be *6* three weeks from today...21 days! How can this be?? Where has the time gone? He still has some seriously snuggly moments so I just try to enjoy them while they last. Thankfully I don't feel he is growing up, read maturing, as quickly as Miss Morgan did.

I did it!

Of course... LOL! :-) For anyone that doesn't know what I am referring to, I participated in World Shutdown Day yesterday. I actually did it longer than the 24 hours so I'm proud of myself. I knew I could do it and it wasn't difficult at all. I was going to go all weekend but decided I wanted to post a blog.

On Friday I took the kids to the library and we all got books. I started Family Tree by Barbara Delinsky while the kids had some library computer time. Then we took Alex to get a *much* needed hair cut. He looks just too cute now. We enjoyed some chinese food for lunch (sesame chicken & roast pork lo mein). Yum! Friday after dinner Morgan and I went to her HP Club movie night. They were showing Hoot. A couple of other mom's were there so I ended up chatting with them instead of watching the movie. The Children's Librarian has pulled her daughter out of school and is hs'ing her now. Cool! So the 3 of us, all hs'ing moms, enjoyed some nice mom chat time. Morgan was a little miffed at me for not watching the movie so I'll have to rent it and watch it with her. She really liked it. After we got her into bed, Corey and I watched The Prestige. It was good but I had a hard time following the characters.

On Saturday, Corey mowed the yard and I did a lot of reading. Alex had soccer pictures and a soccer game so that took up our early afternoon. He's doing great and really enjoying himself. It is very warm for this time of year and with there being no shade at the soccer fields it was pretty darn hot. After we got home we decided that we had to turn on the a/c. Such a bummer to have to turn it on so early but it was so warm & there was no breeze to come through the windows. We met up with GC for dinner at Zaxby's and then came back here for ice cream sundaes.

Today we planted our veggie seeds... beans, carrots, cucumbers, onions, green peppers, summer squash and corn. Now we just need to find a place for the sunflower seeds and find something to plant in our deck planter. :-) The kids helped and played in the sprinkler. The cool water felt good when I got close enough to stick my feet in it. Hmm....I think we need a pool. ;-) I finished my book. Woo!

Happy Ostara!!

That is the Spring Equinox or First Day of Spring for anyone that doesn't know. :-) It was a gorgeous day today... sunny, warm but with a beautiful breeze that sometimes turned downright windy. We took delight in the beginnings of our garden, the birds and bunnies that we've seen return to our yard, and all the color popping out all over as proof that life indeed returns after the "death" of winter. We have a tree in the backyard that is just about to burst forth...it has these extremely purple buds all over it. I don't know what kind it is, I'm working on researching that. Corey has started some watering and will need to start mowing the yard soon. The grass isn't really growing much yet but man the weeds are. LOL! The weeds around here are actually mild onions and look like chives or small green onions growing all over the yard. And when you pull them or cut them (like with the mower) you can smell onion all over.

*GIRLS GIRLS GIRLS*

That is what we have at our house tonight. Morgan is having her 2 best friends spend the night. We all met up at park day and when we left we brought the girls home with us. They get along so well, her friends are sisters that are 10 and 9 and then Morgan is 8. They are like 3 peas in a pod. Morgan is 9 months younger than the 9yo so I tease their mom that Morgan could be her's too. LOL! Alex loves it when the girls come over but he pesters them like crazy. He just loves Tayler (the 10yo) and claims he wants to marry her but drives her nuts. Typical little brother.

I got all my mom's sewing repairs done and dropped everything off at her house. Not much else got done today but that's okay..that is how Wednesdays usually are. :-)

Quiet Monday

Definitely a quiet Monday here at the Larabie house. Corey started his pager week this morning and ended up working late today. The kids and I made chocolate chip cookies today. We were out of brown sugar so I used demarra sugar instead. We were also out of pecans...ack! So nutless cookies (sorry but I just LOVE pecans in chocolate chip cookies...that is how they are supposed to be made) is what we have. They are still yummy. :-) Morgan put on a concert for us this afternoon with some songs that she made up just for the concert. Very cute. I really am amazed sometimes with how creative she is. She had her dance classes and they are almost done with their recital routines. Next week we can go watch her during class. I got the sewing machine out and fixed some pants for my mom and Morgan's jammies (had to take in the elastic). I need to do some more sewing while the machine is out. Hmmm....just not sure what. Tomorrow Alex has soccer practice and I think we will head to the library and do some gardening. Otherwise it will be another quiet day.

Ooh...I have to report I've lost another 2 lbs. This morning was weigh-in. So far I've lost 8 lbs. I'm just thrilled. I hope it continues. I've got to start helping the medicine along. LOL! Corey said for me to imagine what we can do if we start walking,etc. Yep! Now we just have to do it.

Pictures and such

I put up some recent pictures of the kids on a photo page. The link is on the right side, click on Morgan & Alex in March. :-) You can see our little man with spots. LOL!

Yesterday Alex had his first soccer game of the spring '07 season. The game was scheduled at 9am and it was *COLD!* It was 36 degrees and the wind was blowing right into our faces as we watched. At least the kids were running around on the field so weren't too cold. They all had sweat pants & long sleeve shirts under their soccer uniforms too. Morgan had make-up dance class at 9am as well (from President's Day when they were off). It worked out just right though so I was able to get everyone where they needed to be and watch Alex's game. Morgan's classes lasted longer than the game so we could all go pick her up afterwards. Alex's coach this season seems really nice and pretty good. Alex was ready to play and did great. Wonderful after last season's start.

We had GC, Michael & Tish over for dinner and cards last night. We grilled out some chicken to help welcome in spring. The spring equinox is on Wednesday, March 21st, so we thought we'd start celebrating a little early. It was pretty chilly though. We had Michael & Tish bring the doggies so they could visit longer & we could visit the doggies....so Bailey, Remy, Stoli and Abbie all came over too. They were very good. We had a nice time.

Corey had to work the 2am change window and they had some issues to work through so didn't finish up until almost 5am. He's dragging a little bit today. But we are going to take the kids up to the park when he's done with a meeting.

OOoh....have to share some good news and a proud spouse moment. Corey has been working his buns off with this new project at work. It is a biggie and a lot of future stuff hinges on it. Anyway, he's been working days & days in a row, weekend after weekend,etc. He just had his annual review and he got the highest rating he could get, a nice raise and a pay grade bump. WOOO HOOO!! Congratulations to Corey, my wonderful, hard-working husband!!

Our garden grows

We got the asparagus plants in the ground in our garden today. Yeah! We have a couple nights of freezing temps coming up so we haven't put anything else in the ground yet but we will within a few days. Morgan is also dying to plant some flowers. We got a flower box for our deck railing and she wants some pretty flowers in it.

I took the kids to Maury County park today. They have several play structures, one is called Kids Kingdom and is this HUGE wooden play area....with many towers, bridges, walkways, and all sorts of fun. It is fenced in its own area and the kids had a blast. I took some pictures of the kids while they were playing and I'll work on putting them up tomorrow or Saturday.

Behavior and attitude wise Alex had a very rough day and it was taxing on all of us. We even took an hour of quiet time but maaaaaan he doesn't get that concept at all! Something was going on for him and while he was driving us crazy and really getting us frustrated and upset with him, I felt bad for him. I wish I could get him to express himself better so I could understand what had him so upset and downright angry at the world today. It is difficult being a mom on days like today. Not for the reason you are thinking (misbehavior) but because I felt like a bad mom not knowing what to do to help him not be so angry.

Morgan had a little bit of a rough time at bedtime. She came downstairs a couple of times telling us she felt a tightening in her chest. She has had allergy symptoms the past couple of days but not today really. We've had the windows open & she's been outside a lot and the pollen count has been high (thus the allergy symptoms). So I listened to her chest with my stethoscope but didn't hear any wheezing. She used her inhaler but came down again saying it had happened a 3rd time. So this time we gave her a breathing treatment. It seems to have worked because she went to sleep without anymore trouble and Corey just checked on her and she's sleeping and breathing just fine...no wheezing.

Tomorrow Morgan and I will be heading over to GC's house to help her with some chores. Morgan will also work on some beading. GC and Morgan have become interested in beading. Tomorrow night I'll be going with both kids to movie night with the HP Club. And then on Saturday we will be busy in the morning with make-up dance classes and Alex's 1st spring soccer game. Then Saturday night we are having family night at our house so GC, Michael and Tish will be coming over.

Corey and I watched A Good Year tonight. It was a pretty good movie. I wasn't too keen on the music but enjoyed the story and the setting. We have Babel to watch but that will have to wait a couple nights.

Yard Work Wednesday

First off I just have to say that it feels wonderful to have a yard all our own in which to be doing yard work. LOL! During Corey's lunch break we went outside and planted the 2 grape plants that he bought on Sunday. There is one white seedless and one black seedless. We put them near the deck stairs. We framed out a raised garden bed the other day and Corey got that all cleared out and put several bags of soil into it. Meanwhile I went around the outside of the house and trimmed up the various bushes & trees (well, as high as I could reach). It felt really good to be out there working in the yard and knowing it is our's and we can do whatever we want. The kids seemed to really enjoy it too. Morgan commented that gardening made her feel happy. She did tell me it was a lot of work and she wasn't expecting that. She said, "I thought it was like those commercials you see where you roll out the carpet of seeds & water it and voila you have flowers." LOL! She did agree that it would be really neat to see what all came of our hard work.

We met Alex's soccer coach & teammates yesterday. Everyone seems nice and I think he'll have a good season. It is supposed to be chilly Saturday morning when they have their first game (9am). Morgan finished reading Hoot and read an adapted version of Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde. She loved it. Alex finished his A to Z Mystery book tonight at bedtime. Both kids want to go to movie night on Friday with the HP Club, but Alex insists that I must come with him or he will be too scared. The movie is Charlie and the Chocolate Factory so I said I'd go. I think he is finally wanting to become more involved in things but isn't quite ready to do it on his own. I want him to see it can be fun.

And before I forget again, The Guardian was a great movie!

Just another manic Monday...

Okay, it is another Monday but not so sure about the manic part. LOL! Alex is officially spot-free as far as we can tell. Both kids cooperated well and we got school done this morning without a fuss. It is so nice when that happens. We played Monopoly for an hour and then I headed off to the dentist for my root canal. My dentist thinks he is quite funny....I think he is more corny but to each his own. He did a good job. I had laughing gas for the first time. Now I just have to go back for the crown. Whee.

Morgan had her dance classes and is excited because they've learned more on their recital routines. I think they are almost done with the routines and the rest will be practice, practice, practice. While she was at dance class, Corey put together the frame for our raised garden and then we started digging out the grass. I also played baseball with Alex. He is doing really well keeping his eye on the ball and making contact. He got several hits while I was pitching to him.

Tomorrow evening Alex has his first soccer practice and Morgan has her HP Club so after dinner Corey and I will each take a kid and head out.

Slow, Sunny Sunday

Well, we sprang forward 3 weeks early without experiencing any problems. LOL Thankfully the time change preparations that Corey had to make at work went well and there were no problems. Yeah! He had to work a change window at 8pm last night and was prepared in case he got beeped during the night. Considering they had problems with this exact change last weekend & had to back it out it was a great relief to everyone involved.

Oh what a delicious day it was today! Sunny, 60's with a mild breeze...just perfect. We opened all the windows so we could enjoy it and air out the house. The kids played well and not so well depending on the moment. We've had some progress...they got into it while playing in Morgan's room and appeared to be on the regular disaster, drama course. When lo and behold partway through they started working out the problem. Yes....progress. FINALLY! Seriously though we are thrilled because up until now they have NOT been able to work out anything together. It is very nice to see.

Corey decided to make a trip to Lowe's today and came home with a bunch of yard work/gardening goodies. He got the lumber & such needed for our raised garden bed, along with 5 bags of soil for it. He got me a planter box to hang on the deck railing. He also got some veggie seeds, some asparagus plants and 2 grape plants. I'm not sure of the exact type but they are 2 year old plants. We shall see how things go. :-) He also found some stackable recycling bins. YES! This will make recycling much tidier for us.

The kids and I have been doing some reading....I finished The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold and have started Silent Treatment by Michael Palmer. Morgan is working on Hoot by Carl Hiaasen. She's read a couple of smaller books but really wants to finish this one so she can see the movie during movie night with her HP Club. Alex is working on The Orange Outlaw by Ron Roy (the "O" book in A to Z Mysteries). He is really enjoying these books along with his Guardians of Ga'Hoole series.

Corey and I watched Stranger than Fiction and enjoyed it. We have The Guardian to watch tonight. I'll let you know what I think of that one later.

Tomorrow I have to get a root canal but it is on a tooth that is bothering me so it is actually a welcomed procedure...if it weren't for the cost. Good grief how did this get to be so darn expensive. Ugh!! We have really good dental coverage and it is still going to cost a small fortune for a root canal & crown. :-( Blech.

Ooh, Alex's new soccer coach called and he has his first meeting/practice on Tuesday evening. And they have their first game at 9am on March 17th.

Alex's Allergic Reaction

This morning Alex and I were enjoying a nice big hug when I noticed some little pinprick red dots on his cheek and under his ear. At first I thought he must have been pressed against something and then I thought maybe the bare trees pricked him yesterday while outside playing. I asked if it itched and both kids piped up that they decided he had poison ivy because he had it everywhere. So I lifted his shirt and sure enough...everywhere. Here are some pictures.

His tummy.

His back.

After seeing all this, had some on his arms...but not very many & tiny pinprick like on his cheek...same with his legs. Majority of them, as you can see, on his torso. So, I'm thinking chicken pox but when double checking what that rash looks like figured it didn't fit. They weren't blistering up, didn't have the white center, and there were so many. He's also had the vaccine so the case should be a mild one if he were to get them. So I called the Pediatrician to let them know we didn't know if it was chicken pox, allergic reaction or something else and they had us come in. Turns out that Alex has a textbook allergic reaction to the penicillin family. The Amoxicillin he's been taking for 7 days for his ear infection did its job & cleared up the ear infection but he can't have it anymore. He has to have Benadryl until the rash clears up, which hopefully won't take long. At least he isn't contagious.

Recovering

Alex is doing better. How can I tell? He's bugging the daylights out of his sister again! LOL! Seriously though he wasn't himself for a couple days but is slowly coming around. He's finally eating again (more than 1 bite for a "meal") and that's a good thing. He started the antibiotic on Saturday afternoon and on Monday he was still running a temp off & on. I think that is finally done so he just needs to finish up the antibiotic. I think the temp was a combination of the ear infection, sore throat and cold symptoms.

Yesterday we had a beautiful, sunny, breezy day. The kids and I took lunch to the park and had a picnic & played for a while. Then we went to the library. I got a couple books and the kids did too. Morgan signed up for another session of READing Paws (reading to a specially trained dog). She picked the same dog that she read to in January, Bailie, a gorgeous Golden Retriever. I'll have to get a picture of her reading with Bailie. She is planning on reading A Dog's Life by Ann M. Martin. She read some of it in January and Bailie's handler asked her to please finish it in March. LOL! She said she just had to know what happened. Alex won't have anything to do with it.

Corey is off tomorrow, a comp day for working so many days in a row & working so darn hard. He's so worn out and stressed from this current project & what all is going on with it. I worry about him. He's like a zombie sometimes because of it. :-( The kids and I plan on getting him out of the house tomorrow.

On Saturday we plan to go to a tree giveaway that our county is doing. Each person can get a bundle of tree seedlings. This year each bundle is 5 white pine, 5 pecan, and 5 bald cypress seedlings. We might even get the kids to the Lowe's Build & Grow workshop. We shall see.

Looong night

Alex and I had a looong night last night. He hasn't been himself for a couple days and has the beginnings of a cold coming on. He doesn't eat much to begin with but Thursday he ate less and on Friday he ate 1/2 bagel for breakfast and the remaining 1/2 after lunchtime and then fell asleep on the couch (something he NEVER does anymore). We had planned on meeting my mom, brother & his girlfriend for dinner. We are trying out local places and wanted to try out Loveless Cafe . Well, Alex wasn't waking up and we decided that if he was feeling icky enough to fall asleep on the couch then he was probably coming down with something that he didn't need to share with others and he wouldn't be a happy camper at a restaurant. So Corey stayed home with him and sent Morgan and I out to meet up the rest of the family for dinner. We went, dinner was okay, not sure we will go again. Far drive, not really worth the drive & price for what we all had. But you never know until you try.

On the way home Corey and Alex requested that we stop & pick up something for them and we did. Morgan headed off to bed and Alex stayed up eating (the 2 1/2 hour nap wasn't going to let him go to bed at normal time). He wasn't eating much despite requesting something special and claiming to be hungry so I asked if his throat hurt and he said it did a little and that his left ear hurt a little. We gave him some cold medicine & Tylenol before putting him to bed and he acted okay. About 1am he came into our bed shivering and then settled back down. He woke us up at 2am crying & holding his ear. We gave him more medicine and he settled down once again. At 4:45am he woke me up crying again & writhing around in our bed. Poor little man just had this horrible, heart-breaking sob. I tried getting him to put a warm relaxation pillow on his ear but he wouldn't have anything to do with it. I ended up calling our Pediatrician and she said to try the heat, give him some motrin and bring him into the office at 8:30am, they have urgent Saturday morning hours. She also said sitting up might help relieve the pressure. So, Alex and I snuggled up together in the rocker/recliner with the heated up relaxation pillow. We rocked and played I Spy in the dark and about 6:30am he asked to watch TV. He didn't want me near the left side of his head at all. We got to the office at 8:30am and was finished and back in the van by 9am. His throat was red and he has an ear infection. We got prescriptions for antibiotics and numbing ear drops. We dropped those off at the pharmacy, grabbed some donuts for breakfast & came home. He and I fell asleep in the living room and Corey & Morgan went to pick up the meds for him. We got everything in him, despite his crying & fighting me on the ear drops. Thankfully the drops are really helping..enough that he can relax. He's napping again on the couch. GC came and picked up Morgan to spend the night at her house. Corey has to work 2 change windows tonight so having Morgan at my mom's will help me be able to focus on Alex tonight. Hopefully by tomorrow the antibiotics will be working and he will start feeling better.