Question for you CA people

We're planning a trip out to the LA area to visit my brother from April 30th-ish to May 5th-ish. 

We're tentatively planning to spend a day at the beach, a day at Knott's Berry Farm, and possibly drive down to SeaWorld.  Maybe a day at Disneyland?  I don't know.  It makes me tired just thinking about all the walking...but the kids would LOVE it. 

Any other suggestions?  I have never really been to any of the national or state parks over there.  We just need something that is KID friendly.  The big boys are pretty good about keeping up with hiking and such, but 2yo Dozer is getting a bit heavy to be carrying all over the place.

In other news, Spring is most definitely here!  The cars and driveway are yellow and green and my eyes are watery and my nose is stuffy and runny and this is getting to be a very long run-on sentence. 

We also spent the morning pumping mud out of the septic tank.  The boys thought it was totally fun while David and I were less than enthusiastic.  I know, y'all really wish you were here. 

Not to worry, we weren't wading through raw sewage or something stinky like that... it was in the cleaned water tank but still... ewwww...  Nothing like the prospect of spending $8K on a new system to get in there and pump out a little mud!  We should be good until next year.  The flooding last week really messed things up.

Okay, time for supper.  Don't forget to tell us what we should do in CA!

Overheard today...

Tank (5) bounds into the bedroom.  He excitedly tells his big brother (7): 

You know what?!  When I turn my head to the side like this (turns head), then my eyes stay turned to the side!  And then when I turn it like this (turns head the other direction), my eyes are still on the side!!!  I don't know why it does that!!!

They are both currently in a state of...weirdness.  Yes, weirdness is a good word (and I'm sure it will be a lifelong state).  But curious too.  I haven't explained to them the why's of such an odd occurence.  I don't know if I ever will either.  It has been too fun watching them turn their heads to the side with their eyes staying focused on one position! 

All morning long, tuuuuurn the head, looooook to the side, tuuuuuurn the head, looook to the side... :-) 

Who needs TV or the zoo?  I have my kids to entertain me!!!  Oh, and they get that stuff from their dad's side of the family. hehehee...

Birthday bashes, boogers and being a bum

Last week was my own dear mommy's 60th birthday!  We threw her a humongo birthday party that had lots of Korean food, cake, friends, all my sib's and in-law's in attendance, and even a pinata. 

Weird, I know, but it was fun...and my mom looked too cute whacking that big ole bear that looked like it was strung up on a noose (in the church fellowship hall, no less!).

Here's a pic of my mom back when she was in her 20s.  She was a professional singer back in the day.  Beautiful, no?

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A great time was had by all, except for moi.  Well, it's not that it wasn't fun but that I was SICK.  Can you believe that as soon as I got there, I started feeling odd, bleh, and then just bad?  Yup, the FLU.  I spent the entire weekend laying on the couch and being absolutely miserable.   I tried to hide it though...

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(My mom is on the left.)

So we are now back home and trying to catch up on things...School has yet to be one of them though as all three kidlets have been sick all week.  *sigh*  Fever, boogers, fever, coughing, fever, chest congestion, fever, boogers...  But I'm so very thankful that we are finally getting better!  Sitting on the couch and laying around in bed gets old after a while (I never thought I'd say that!).  Besides, it makes me feel like a bum.

A couple other things wandering through my mind:

* Be sure to check out the HSB Literary Society-- aka book club!  We just started our first discussion on chapters 1-3 of Ishmael by E.D,E,N. Southworth.  We'd love to have y'all join the discussion!

* Have I mentioned that I love my hubby?  He is the bestesterest daddy.  The boys have been amusing themselves the past couple of days with a new "just because" gift from daddy.  They each got their own Craftsman Tape Measure!  This is right up there with the shovels we got them for Christmas one year.  Besides measuring, estimating, and practicing practical math skills, you can return them to any Sears store for a free replacement!  We've returned several shovels the past couple of years and had no problems getting them replaced.  That's what we love about the Craftsman line of hand tools from Sears...boys can get pretty rough with their tools!

* Gena (TOSpublisher) is having a photo contest for a new e-book.  Besides fame, you can also win a little fortune with a gift certificate at The Old Schoolhouse Store!

*  Can anyone recommend a good cookbook for cooking light?  I need normal food (no gourmet here) without too many ingredients.  Needs to be family and picky hubby friendly.  David's good cholesterol levels are too low and I need to adjust our diet.  Actually, this is a GREAT thing since it's the exact incentive he needs to try to eat better.  I am happy to report that he's been working out every day since then, though!  (I'm happily cheering him on from the sidelines...while I eat my thin mints and drink my coffee that is deliciously laden with two spoons of sugar and a healthy dollop of Vanilla Almond Parfait creamer). :-)

I need a translator

My original idea for this post was to talk about how you're a big boy when...  Like today when Dozer (2yo) went round and round and round on the Sit n Spin.

But instead I got distracted first by this weirdness

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(The boy needs a pet or something, doesn't he? That's just really sad...) 

And then by this gobblety-goopy-talk that I just could NOT understand!  I can usually kinda figure out what he's saying, but not this time...  Anyone care to translate?  Anyone?


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PS Is anyone going to the Texas Above Rubies retreat this year?   It's in April and southwest of Dallas...just wonderin... I'm not sure if I'm going but a blogger friend in attendance might encourage me to make time for it!

This struck me as particularly funny this morning...

Early Monday morning, as President Bush got out of the helicopter in front of the White House, he was carrying a baby piglet under each arm.

The always-squared-away Marine guard snapped to attention, saluted, and said, "Nice pigs, sir."

The President replied, "These aren't just pigs.  They're authentic Arkansas Razorback Hogs.  I got one for Senator Hillary Clinton and I got one for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi."

The Marine, still at attention, said, "Excellent trade, sir!"  

Be a part of THE club!!!

Nope, not Country Club.  But the HSB Literary Club! 

C'mon, all the cool people are in it... Gena, JenIg, Kate, AnneMarie, SuperAngel, Jaybird, redmom, creech7s, workinprogress, Maria, Jenn and moi...  Plus a bunch more!!!  You don't want us to have all the fun without you, do you?

Don't worry, we won't charge dues or make you do some silly initiation stunt or dare... (right, Jen?)

We'll be starting our first book Ishmael by E.D.E.N. Southworth in March, so please join us!!!

 

Jillian is coming home!

Jillian is coming home on Saturday!  AND the tumor has shrunk!

Quality time, ALONE time! :-)

I am very blessed to have some very thoughtful (and patient and kind) in-law's!  Seriously.

They had agreed to take the boys to their house tomorrow and we'd pick them up on Tuesday (they live 2 hours away).  Well, they just left tonight with them and asked if they could bring the boys back on Wednesday!!! 

So not only do I have TWO extra nights alone with hubby, but we also do not have to go pick them up.  Oh, and dh is actually off of work until THURSDAY.  Could it get any better?!

YEEEEHHAAAAWWWWWW!  (not a word I use IRL, but it seems to fit this auspicious occasion, don't ya think?).

Okay, I'm going now.  BUH-BYE!!!

I'm getting old...er...

Okay, I realize that almost 32 is not very old, but I think you jump to Old-dom when you get WHITE HAIRS! 

Actually, my older sister takes great delight (a little too much if you ask me) in finding and plucking these scraggly-straggly-wirey-completely-white-from-root-to-tip hairs from my head.

It's one thing for my big sis to notice these things, but it was bad today when my dear sweet blind-to-all-things-that-require-attention-to-detail husband suddenly blurted out to me: "OH MY GOODNESS!  What is that?!" 

Huh?  What?!  Is there a spider on me?  Did you finally find that set of extra eyes in the back of my head?!  Am I going bald?!!!

Nope, he noticed (apparently was shocked actually) that I have WHITE HAIRS!  Aggghhh!  It was noticeable enough for HIM to notice???

That's just not cool.  And on Valentine's Day Eve...  (just kidding...I'm with the dancing queen on that one).

Several questions now BEG to be answered:

1.  Will I end up with completely white hair like a Q-tip?  Or will I end up looking like Pepe Le Peeeuw?

2.  Should I color my hair?

3.  If so, should I go really dark?  I like mamaduso's black hair.  We're sisters, ya know...well, not biologically but we're both halvsies! 

4.  Or should I go that crazy asian red color?  Or I could stick with my boring doo-doo-brown color...

5.  Do YOU color your hair? 

I am completely UNtalented in the hair department.  I'm lucky to get a plain old ponytail done without lumps!  I might get it colored professionally the first time (and ask for LOTS of advice) and then do it myself after that.  Tis waaay to expensivo for me to visit a salon more than say...twice a year (which is currently how often I squeeze in a regular old haircut!).

I imagine that it will take me a loooong time to actually do something about the aforementioned white hairs that have attacked my head.  There are just too many other pressing needs... Like the little booger boys that probably gave said white hairs to me in the first place! :-)

But to look on the bright side, at least my darling hubby noticed white hairs on my head and not coming out of my ears and nostrils.  Now that would've really been depressing!

Urgent Prayer Request for Fellow Blogger

This in from the Company Porch...

A prayer request came in this evening for Katie of TeamBettendorf and her daughter Jillian.  

Jillian is 4 years old.  She was taken in Thurs morning for what they though was an enlarged spleen.  She was found to have a football size tumor in her chest, that is squishing her heart on one side and filling her left lung completely with fluid.

A biopsy was done on Friday, and chemo is supposed to start on Tuesday.  Jillian will be an inpatient for one month, then she will be on in/out patient chemo for 9 months to 3 yrs.  

Jillian's heart is very weak and they don't know if she can survive long enough for the Dr.'s  to shrink the tumor enough to remove it.

Please keep this family of 11 in your prayers!"

UPDATE - Jillian is now intubated and sedated and has received her first round of chemotherapy.  There is a preliminary diagnosis of Pleuropulmonary Blastoma.

There is much hope now, as her heart has moved over to the center again.  A catheter and ventilator are helping her lungs clear and has reduced the size of the tumor enough to stop 'smooshing' her heart.

Tia Linschied
Senior Editor of HSB