Live from Tormville!

Siblings

excuse my white balance.  I had to get the shot quick...didn't have time to fuss.

This has been the reality at our house lately.  Wendy is talking to grandma on the phone..Brian wants his turn.  Look at him on his tippy toes stretching out in earnest.  Poor thing.  It ain't easy being the baby.

This morning he had gotten ahold of one of Wendy's pens.  I got the giggles watching Wendy trying to get it away as Brian kept spinning around in circles and holloring.  We're entering a fun stage here.  ;)

Anyway...nuthin' too earth shaking.  Just another day in Tormville.

be good! 

Catch-up post

It's been awhile since I've posted.  How did that
happen?   Another month flying by.

Tonight we walked up to the school to see the Rain Forest show. We being me and 3 kids.  Allan and Wendy sat up front and Brian and I paced in the back.  He's not at a good sit still age right now. 

And I learn, when I go to these types of things, how little patience I really have for disrespect.  None.  zip.  zilch.  There were some boys sitting right behind me...young teenager types...and they were heckling.  Rude.  disruptive. I find it ironic when my young children are better behaved then kids old enough to know better. I didn't last 5 whole minutes and I was in their face.  I have no patience.  None.  They quieted down for a little while.  I gave them my speech on being respectful, quiet, or get the heck out or I'll find someone to escort them out.  I've given the speech before, so I have it down now.  WHY are some young people so rude?  As the show went on I learned that one of the kids was the older brother of the troublemaker in Allan's class.  hah.  Surprise.  Allan says that this kid in his class cusses all the time and doesn't understand what's wrong with that because his parents cuss all the time. 

So it's really no surprise then, the lack of respect and manners in the boy I leveled.  But I still find it sad. 

hmmm.  I didn't intend for this to be a ranting post about parenting and youth...but I apparently needed to vent that just a bit.  Thanks for letting me!  ;) 

The show was a lot of fun.  Snakes, alligators, monkeys, bobcats, birds.  fun stuff.  An evening well spent..I feel like we *did* something. 

What else?

I had scrapping company today...and I accomplished close to nothing.  ;)  Why is that?  We did however jump right on the email that came thru about Ali Edwards class here locally at The Scrapbook Zone.  We were on the phone so fast it would make your head spin.  Fun to be registered for a couple classes and a crop. Knowing that she'll be here takes the edge off of me not attending CKU.  Now to just make sure Greg doesn't travel on those dates!! 

What else?

I debated going up north this weekend...it's winter break at school, but because I read the debt-proof living book I know that I shouldn't because I'd have to charge it.  oh...and I'm a tad apprehensive about winter driving with 3 kids and no cell phone.  We're going to stay home and gut/clean/purge Allan's room instead.  Long overdue...a good weekend project.

What else?

I have another wedding to shoot in August.  That's 2 weddings I'm shooting this year...and I don't shoot weddings.  Hah!  Both fit into my criteria, tho, of relaxed and non-stressful.  At least...that's what I'm hoping for!  I still need to purchase another lens.  I have the kit lens and the fixed 50.  I have the DRebel XT.  Any suggestions??  I have to get on it quick I suppose.  Also debating about a flash.  debate debate.

What else?

I'm weaning Brian.  His days are numbered.  He takes a bottle and a sippy cup really well...I just need to teach him to fall asleep.  ;P  I nurse my kids for a year, they get a sippy cup for their first birthday. lol

What else? 

I'm purging.  Really. It's hard to really tell yet, but every week our dumpster is full.  Okay...so for a few weeks it's been full of trim and floor tiles.  But really!  And I am going to ebay.  I am I am I am.  I am, even tho they now require that sellers accept paypal credit card.  darnit.  But I still am.  In a way...I would love to have another garage sale..I do well with those...but when I look at my calendar I am busy with something every single weekend in April and May (prime garage sale months) so having one sounds exhausting. So I will ebay. 

These will go up first (each set individually).  Probably next week...if you are interested...email me privately (link on left there) and we can work a deal. ;) 

Laugh with me

It was a quiet Sunday in Tormville.  Brian was playing...I was cozied up with a book.  The big kids were playing in the backyard with a few neighbor kids. 

I couldn't help but be distracted by the big kids. They were having so much fun!  We have just enough snow for them to run and jump on the inflatable sled and shoot across our backyard.  And they were having a ball!

It was situation irresistable.  Just when they had it all set up I shot out of the doorwall as quickly as an overweight near 40 woman can.  I landed on that sled just right and shot across the yard whooping and holloring the whole way, much to the children's glee.  I stood up pretty darn proud of myself.

And the first person I saw was the father of the girl from down the street. She's been playing here for near 3 years now and this was the first time I've ever seen him. He came at that exact moment to come and pick her up.

*heh*

*heh* *heh* *heh*

Down Memory Lane

The house where I grew up.  143 Hecla Street, Laurium Michigan.  Upper Michigan.  Over the bridge, 100 miles north of Marquette.  My childhood mansion.

You see...in my mind, it was a mansion. To this day, I consider this to be the best house I ever lived in and I've lived in about 30 separate places.  Because, you know...kids don't care about having classy immaculate digs.  Kids care more about what's *in* the home.

And we had it all in here.  I don't know what the actual square footage was (the house is no longer standing) but I do know that back in the booming copper mining days 3 separate families lived here.  The house had 3 separate entries. 

There was a huge front porch.  There were windows across the whole front, and I have many a fond memory of sitting out there watching the lightening.  I remember sneaking outside to stand under the downspout to get soaked.  I lay out on the roof right on main street to get a suntan, crawling out the bedroom window to get there.

We had a trapdoor to the basement, and the basement scared me.  But we hauled all of our wood down there at the end of summer.  And during the winter we had to make our way thru the trapdoor, down the steep steps and into the Michigan basement to carry up wood for the woodstove that warmed this home.  When we moved south and came up just for summers, it was buckets of water we hauled from the basement, up 2 flights and we abided by the 3 pees and a flush rule.  gross. But we abided by it, because to not would be to haul more water, and that was painful.

It was in this house that I adopted the lifelong habit of washing my hair first in the shower.  The water tank was only so big, and if I didn't do my hair first, then it was icy cold water I was rinsing in.  brrrrrr. 

The paint on the walls of this home were easy to scrape with ones fingernail.  My brother did that on the bathroom wall...he scraped a large heart that said "Sharyn loves Alfie"  while he sat on the pot.  gross.  Alfie was the half-witted teenager from down the street. 

When we first moved to this home it had 2 stairways.  Boy....if you ever want a fun game of tag, have 2 stairways in your home!  The ultimate circle.  We ran and we ran and we ran.  Steep early Michigan home stairs.  The second stairway got tore down eventually...I'm not sure why.

This home had an attic where I spent many many hours.  We had a makeshift schoolroom up there for playing school, me the teacher...my siblings the disobedient students.   The Barbie townhouse was up there, with the Sunshine family taking residence.  It was hot, dirty, rough wood...but it was magical.

This house had history...and I miss it.  We had crytally doorknobs, push button light switches, a party line and trapdoors.  I became an expert at Atari here, thought the red room from Amytiville was in our basement, heard ghosts in the attic and lived like a princess in my own bedroom.  I would sneak into the off-limit office when my parents weren't home, and I'd watch bad programs on tv when I was babysitting.

I'm rambling a bit, and my thoughts aren't coming together cohesively. You see...my kids are up and working hard at making their memories in our home right now.  Our home that I think is too small, that I wish was cleaner, neater, newer....

But it doesn't matter, really.  It's what you *do* that matters.  Content.

enjoy your day. 

You know what's yummy?

A deep 2 1/2 hour nap in the middle of a cold February afternoon. 

mmmmmmmmm...........

I've been making up for lost sluggish time in January.  Be back soon!

Lazy and sluggish

I've been feeling lazy this past couple days.

Yesterday I accomplished nothing of note.  I spun my wheels all day long but didn't get anywhere.  I fell asleep on the couch just after 9.  A lazy end to a sluggish day.

Today isn't starting off a whole lot better.

We've been battling colds, new teeth and lots of dust.  Even when I insisted upon the floor sawing being done outside, we still managed to raise a film over everything.  More obvious now that the sun is finally shining. 

I need to get back to my list making...otherwise my day is sunk before I get started.  I spend too much time wondering which direction I should go.

Lists rock.

So...nothing earth shattering or relevant goin' on.  Just life...just spinning our wheels.

be good!

Have I mentioned...

that Wendy is creative?

Still Tuesday

We didn't make it to story hour.  We made a feeble attempt...and it wasn't happening.  Brian was crabby, and had gotten in a fight with a slam jam, we all needed tubs, the neighbor girl was ringing the phone by 9am.

Story hour just didn't happen.

I scrubbed Brian up good, smeered orajel on ever spec of gums, gave him some Motrin...and off to bed he went.  2 1/2 hours he slept.  He mocks me.  He sleeps when he knows I can't. 

change of subject

I was thinking this morning about writing.  I love to ramble on and on.  I've kept journals for as long as I can remember.  But I have a quirk.  (who knew?)  I can't read what I've written.  Actually...there is a grace period.  I can read something I've written for maybe 2 days to a week after the fact.  Then..nope. Can't do it.

I always knew this, but became more acutely aware of this yesterday when I was asked to final proof an article I wrote in December.  Thank goodness I have a week to do it because for the life of me I cannot open that file.  I've tried.  Several times...to the point of actually laughing at myself out loud for how ridiculous I'm being.  But.I.Can't.do.it!

I'm the same way with layouts.  I don't like to look at them when I'm done.  Sometimes I can break thru this one, but not real often.  To the point of when one of my published ones comes by way magazine...I stick that magazine right on a shelf.  Can't look. 

I'M A WEENIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyway..that's my thoughts today. 

Allan's a writer also.  He has this homework assignment which he spent the better part of yesterday on.  He's building a model of the Mayflower then writing a story to go with it.  The story can be written in report format or as a diary, as if he was really there.  They can be creative.

Now, while Allan enjoys reading and writing...his writing, while creative, can be somewhat choppy.  He came downstairs with his first version yesterday and it was all over the place.  It left so many questions, and I pointed this out.  I sent him back upstairs and told him to write something that HE would enjoy reading...to answer the questions and to follow thru on the thoughts.  He came back down with this.

Elias Story's Story (Elias Story was an actual passengar on the Mayflower)

I'll miss England I thought to myself as I walked up the gang plank.  Looming above were the tall stiff masts.  The passenger room was crowded, it was 2 to a bunk.  I stayed awake the first night thinking of a possible shipwreck, I doubted we would make it.  When it was my turn in the hawks nest I pleaded no, but lost.  the main beam broke when I reached the crows nest, my gripping slipped and I fell suffering 2 fractured bones and a sprained wrist.  Luckily I got to reject going up the ropes again.  The first storm everyone was forced below decks for safety.  The ship bounced from wave to wave like a ball being passed between two people.  When we finally weighed anchor we had....

And he stopped right there!  Midsentence!  I'm dying to know what happened next!!!! 

Brians Motrin has apparently wore off.....I'll check back again later.....

Tuesday

And the days go rolling by. 

Allan's getting ready for school, Wendy's leg hurts, and Brian sleeps best from 7am-9am.  Thus is our routine. 

Brian and I slept together on the couch again last night.  He's spoiled.  spoiled spoiled spoiled.  When did that happen?  Truthfully tho..I'm not sure if it's his teeth or still his ears.  He's sporting some swollen gums, so I'm thinking teeth.  again.  How many do they need anyway???

Yesterday I played catch-up.  As much as I could with a cranky baby hanging on my pant cuffs.  Today I'm going to organize my nook as much as possible as it seems it's going to be left in the living room for some time.  Greg starts overtime soon, and it may be awhile before we get everything done to the point of being able to put everything back where it belongs.  We'll make due.  Wendy likes the couch in her room and....

ACK!  I *just* remembered it's story hour this morning!!  Gotta fly!!!! 

Monday

Read quick.  I've already posted and deleted 2 blog entries this morning.  ;)  I'm in one of those moods. Just can't seem to get my posting groove on. 

The first time I posted I told you about how I slept on the couch with Brian all night...not sure why, he's apparently spoiled and given to temper tantrums if he doesn't have his mom.  While it does wonders for my mommy ego, it's exhausting on my back and wrecks havoc on my sleep patterns.  And then Greg came down this morning and casually mentioned that, oh..by the way...Allan was up puking last night.

Since I'm a chain puker, a fact which my husband is very well aware of, I was concerned about the location and status of the sheets.  They were balled up on the bathroom floor.  Husband did some laundry duty before he went to work. ;) 

So, I let Allan sleep in, and he woke up in quite the mood.  Mood is the operative word today.  Allan was bent out of shape because he wanted to go to school, he feels fine...except for a slight headache and bellyache.  hah.  Upon further questioning I found out that today is the day book orders are due and that he's supposed to be getting his prize of a McDonalds happy meal for lunch.  I emailed his teacher to make sure she doesn't buy him his lunch today and make him eat a cold happy meal tomorrow (his big concern) and all is again well in Tormville. 

The second blog entry that I deleted was about my HOF entry.  I haven't really shared if I'm entering or not...and I'm still not quite sure if I'm ready to.  So, I'll just let you know that thru husbands travels, sons teething, no sleep, nook uprootal, power outages, new floors and so on....it appears that I have 10 layouts done, printed and in an entry format.  I just need to put some pukers and teethers in the van and bring it to the post office.  Anything could happen between now and then.  The way things have been going...my entry may never leave Tormville.  ETA:  noon - my entry is enroute via express mail.  The lady at the counter said it was *very nice* So there you have it.  ;)

And we have a new floor.  It's hard to take a decent picture of the new floor, so I'll leave you with a few.  We still have to finish up the hallway and then start working on some trim.  The planks are 5" wide.  Hickory.  Multi shades..which I like.  The only thing that I don't like, and wish that I had forseen how much they would bother me is the knotHOLES.  There are a few planks with some big holes in them..and well...I have this aversion to holes.  They completely freak me out. Especially the one right in front of my pantry that has this little wiggly thing in it. Shudder.  I'm thinking of squishing yesterday's mashed potatoes into it to fill it in.  ;P

A coupla hard working Finns.

I told hubby I now want new cupboards. Is that bad?

As you can see....the nook isn't back yet. It may be a few weeks.  Also...the cardboard under the table is because we still need to get those protective things on some of the chairs so we don't scratch the floor right from the get go.  ;)   And you can see from the table that Wendy got a real early start on creating today. 

It's all good.  Here's hoping we finish the hallway this week and start returning some order to Tormville! 

Happy Monday!