I’m going to add this link to my “links” on this blog – A friend of mine invited me to join today and it looks like a very cool program that Avon is sponsoring to gather information on women of all makes and models to help scientists find a cure for breast cancer. Joining is easy and there is no commitment.
Up to our knees in it October 24, 2008
This Monday poor little zoe has to go in for knee surgery.
We found out a couple of weeks ago that she has a torn ACL and some knee cap damage. She’ll be at the vets for a couple of days BUT THEN she will have to be kept IMMOBILE for 6 to 8 WEEKS! yikes!
We are dreading the whole thing for all involved but we know we just have to get through it. I’m just hoping Fi will sense the seriousness of it and cooperate with me until Greg gets home. We’ll have to keep zoe crated and assist her to the bathroom for that entire time.
Anyone want to take some days off work and come and surf the web at our house? oh – and take a 70 lb. drugged up dog to the bathroom?
S to the T to the U B B to the ORN-ery !
We seem to have hit a patch. I’m finding myself taking several deep breaths and closing my eyes and reminding myself that this is just a phase….it will be gone tomorrow…or a year and tomorrow…but it is just a phase.
I do see a correlation between Greg being gone and Fi’s behavior, but it’s just so hard to really tell because they change so much – and I’m just that much more tired when G is gone that that probably influences it too. Man, how do single parents do it?
Anyway:
We’re throwing food again – looking me right in the eye and taking large fistfuls of food and throwing it as far as we can in both directions – then the spoon – then the bowl – then the cup if I can’t get there in time.
We WILL NOT put our coat on -or anything else for that matter – INCLUDING OUR HALLOWEEN COSTUME- if mom wants us to. Only when mom doesn’t.
We are pushing and pulling and pinching the animals again. On purpose just to get mom to react.
Some kids won’t get in the car seat – we will NOT get out.
And my favorite. At swim lessons there is a baby doll that the teacher uses for examples. Fiona is BABY CRAZY and spends the whole class asking for the baby. This week she threw a fit – i was just about to leave – when the teacher gave her the doll. She was fine the rest of the class until it was time to take the doll away. I tried to prepare her for what was about to happen – it didn’t matter – she was NOT going to leave without the baby. I had to literally pry her fingers off of the doll while she screamed and cried at me all the way to the locker room – the whole time we were getting dressed – and most of the way to the car. There is a pool baby in her future. She can win this one. I paid too much money for those lessons for it to become a scream fest each and every time!
whip whip whipped
This last weekend was my dad’s 70th birthday so fi and zoe and i headed to enumclaw for the weekend. Greg was leaving for China on Sunday so he stayed home and packed. Fi had a great time playing on the tractor at cousin Karl’s farm, petting is Belgian Clydesdales and chasing his poor cat all over the barn yard.
Auntie T and Uncle A taught her the pleasures of whip cream in a can. I think I’ve convinced her that that only exists at Grandma and Grandpa’s house and mommy and daddy don’t have any – even though she keeps asking me for “whip whip whip”
My Little Helpers October 15, 2008
No-Na (Fiona’s name for herself) LOVES to help with the dishes. Helping means that we fill up one side of the sink for her and she splashes and makes more dishes dirty while we do the washing. It keeps her entertained while we finish a necessary task and we’re hoping…though we doubt it….that it will grow into a true life long love of doing the actual dishes.
Most nights of the week I cook dinner so Greg cleans up (i’d WAY rather have my job!) so here are NoNa and Daddy doing the dishes-
Daddy Is A Rock Star October 13, 2008
We had another beautiful fall week here in Seattle. The temperature is dropping (mid 40’s to high 50′) but the sun was out and no rain. These are the best kind of days! We were busy all weekend running errands and enjoying some fall festivities but the highlight of the weekend was going out on a date with GG Friday night. He asked me out and everything =) We had a co-worker of mine who loves to babysit come over and watch Fi and G and I went out for dinner and a movie. It was GREAT! We don’t get a chance to do that as often as we should but we’re going to try harder at in the future.
Fi did great with her new babysitter. She told us that she really missed us and did a fair amount of crying and asking for mommy, but that she was sweet about it =) And went to bed NO problem at all! It made us sad to think she was missing us and crying but we know this is good for her to spend some time with new people. Hopefully she’ll get a chance to get used to Teresa (which would mean more dates for me =) and it will get better!
To top the weekend off Greg totally cleaned and detailed my car for me on Sunday….what a man I found!
Pumpkin Time! October 6, 2008
Daddy left again this morning for SRAM camp for 3 days so we decided to head out to the pumpkin patch.
Last year Lori and I wanted to go with Fi but the day we chose was poring rain and since Fi was still just a little pumpkin herself we went shopping instead and spent tons of money =)
This year worked out a bit better. Ellie and Jackson were looking for some fun too so they joined us and we all headed out to South 47 Farm for some pumpkin fun.
We went on a tractor ride and got to pet some chickens, alpacas and a couple of goats. Then we wandered through the pumpkin patch and went for a ride in the wheel barrow. Jackson was aMAZEd by the pea-patch maze…we skipped the corn maze deciding that is would be lost on the little ones. There were
photos galore!
Lori and Fi in Gord Heaven and Fi and Jackson on the Tractor ride!
Scarecrows – Our first Ever Kettle Corn (gift from the gods) – and Lori and Fi bringing in the days haul.
The best part of the patch were the steps up to this thing…she didn’t want to leave them! And one really tuckered out little farmer.
Oh AND! October 5, 2008
In one of the whirlwind weeks (which is why i forgot to brush my teeth) I took all 4 pets to the vet and Fiona to the dr. for her check up (finally).
We learned that poor Zoe may need to have knee surgery….we took x-rays this week and will find out next week what’s going on.
The cats are – you know – still cats.
And Fi checks out great at her 18 month…uh…20 month appointment. She’s smart as a whip….obviously advanced [ =) ] 25 lbs. and 32 and some inches long. PERFECT!
Daddy Was Home
Finally Greg came home last Tuesday. We all missed him SO much. Fiona was SO EXCITED for him to be home…which kind of caught him off guard I think….normally she is a mommies girl…but this time she wouldn’t let him out of her site and wanted everything Daddy! He commented on how much she changed in just a couple of weeks…her talking is really taking off and when he left he was Da-Da and now he is Daddy! It was great to see them so happy together. AND….since he’s been home Fiona has resumed sleeping through the night! WHEW! I don’t know if it was because she sensed him being gone…or after her cold she was out of sorts and just needed the “full routine” back or what….but MAN am I happy!
This last week our friend David was in town so we spent some time hanging out with him and I spent some time cleaning out the garage and making a work out space for myself. Generally this is Greg’s space but since he’s going to be gone so much I told him that I was going to get to use it (at least while he’s traveling.) I found myself right back to feeling like I did all of last year – I HAVE TO BE ABLE TO EXERCISE! – or I just go crazy. And when Greg’s traveling – between work and fi’s sleep – there’s just no way to leave the house…work out time is 5 a.m. or I don’t get to. So I set up a nice little area in the garage hoping that I will utilize it now – and explaining to greg that i get A LOT LESS mad at him while he’s gone if I get to exercise! =)
Working off all that soup.
There was one more weekend until Greg got home and the sun was out so we met up with Ellie and Jackson for a bike ride on the trail. Our bike trailer sits two (for GROCERIES! says Greg…not another baby…he says…) so we put Jackson and Fiona in there together and rode from Marymoor to a nice little park that’s about 8 or 9 miles out….MAN! I road there and Ellie road back and I have to tell you that is a work out pulling the two of them! It felt good to get some exercise since that is once again proving hard to do when greg is out of town and the kids had a great time. Jackson can say our names perfectly and Fiona can say Ellie (and LOVES Ellie) and calls Jackson “nan – nannnn”. It’s all very cute!
The next day I had a bunch of girls over for another food exchange. This time it was soups and sauces. We had a great turn out and now my freezer is full of yummy home made soups! yeah us!
The Golden(ing) ChildREN 