My Poor Baby

Last night was the third night in a row that Jacob woke up with a night terror. It is the saddest thing to go through. "Mommy, mommy help me" he screams, eyes wide open with sweaty hands clinching on to me. He usually doesn't have them this frequently but has had them for months now. It is so sad. They say it is actually better to not wake them as they may be more frightened as to why they are not in their bed. For some kids it can last up to 30 minutes. Fortunately for Jacob, he usually wakes himself up within 10 because he is choking from crying so hard. They say that sometimes it can be related to being overtired. I've tried to weed out that factor but I am not always good about making sure he rests when we are on the go.

This weekend we are heading up to the camp, tonight actually. Auntie is coming and she is bringing her two nephews. Once again, we will be outnumbered and over-run with testosterone. We haven't been up for a month so it will be good to get back. My summer is officially half over. Just finished week four of summer school. We will celebrate Joshua's 7th birthday on Sunday. God...7 can't believe it. His age though is finally catching up to his size. The poor kid has had such high stranger expectations since he was 2. Everyone has always thought he was older. Now when they ask and I say 7 it won't be as much of a shock. Can you believe he wears a size 10 and has a size 5+ shoe? Jeffrey as wearing a size 5 forever in the first grade.

Be back Sunday night or Monday :)

Call it cheap, call it recycling, call it creative

Call it what you want but I am excited about my new bathroom 'pictures'. I bought a tab curtain that was 84 inches long and only needed about 16 inches of it so I put the rest (small amount) to good use. A couple of cheap frames, a couple of matts, some scrapbook paper and Voila...bathroom art. The bathroom is really coming along and I am excited. I just don't know how bold I can go with color being that it is a small space and all.

In my quest to get photos onto disk, I have done my Dad's as well. We have decided to leave the originals at the camp so we all have access to them so I scanned them in so we all have them on disk. It is so fun. I put the disk in my DVD player and they look great. Even on our 52 inch TV. Here are a few of my personal faves.

That's me back there.

When Jim and I started seeing each other, he used to be into skiing. I tried to take it up to have something in common with him but it didn't work out. I would never take him up on his offer to teach me because he always says the way to learn it to go right up to the top...not happening.

So why would four wheeling be any different??? I suggested we bring Jacob to Sugar River, a nice flat, straight old railroad trail. Jim mentioned there was a short section of trail nearby that had a few bumps and rocky terrain for Jacob to get a little practice. Well this trail had roots, rocks, bumps and Jim doing jumps. Jacob loved it and did great. He takes after his brother and guns it whenever he sees any mud ahead. We did only go on it for a short distance and then went on to the nice and easy trail.

We had a little entertainment along the way. The kind that proves that men never grow up. We stopped by the river and two other guys stopped a few minutes later. One of them took his machine in the water a bit, we thought to check the temp (as he asked about it) and then figured out he was checking out a gash in his tire (apparently you can see the air leaking from the bubbles it makes in the water). Not being able to leave well enough alone or know when enough is enough, he decided to go a little further only to have the current take ahold of his machine and carry it and him down river a bit. His buddy had to go in, fully clothed as well, and help him get control of the machine. Thankfully, Jim had a few tow ropes and tied them together to help the guy tow his machine back through the water. A learning lesson for the boys. Unfortunately I did not bring my camera on the trail to capture the moment.

Best I could get, he was being a booger.

Gettin' Fancy

Same blog...different look. Spicing it up a bit.


The rain finally broke and we enjoyed a nice sunny day yesterday...hence the Rudolph look I was sporting.
(I just can't take a good self-portrait.)
We spent the day with my friend Karin and her boys at the Stratham Fair where she lives. She lives just across the street so we had no parking problems and walked right over. It was ride day so the kids got to ride all they wanted for $20. Within one hour, they had rode their moneys worth. They got to ride from 10-3. Being so close we rode for a bit and then went back for a short, dare I say, 'reprieve' from the sun. After we hung out, kicked back, shot the sh#t as the kids played. Thanks again Claude for an awesome dinner. Yum O!!

Today is another quiet day as tomorrow will be another full day with riding. We are going to take Jacob on a pretty straight trail so he can ride for his first time out on the trails. Jim is out there now, washing them before we go riding.

Simple Minds Simple Pleasures

Sometimes you just need a little 'pick me up'. So many times you get into a rut and don't even notice. I realized that I have had the same bathroom shower curtain and window curtain since we moved into the house 6 1/2 years ago. I've wanted to change it but I am so damn picky. Also, it is extremely difficult to find sets with matching curtains. This week I went online and checked on a few sites, Bed and Bath, JCP, Target and Linens N Things. I decided to just go into Linens N Things and splurge. I told Jim I was going to spend some frivalous money. A new bathroom look wasn't a necessity but it sure is giving me a 'pick me up'. It is so bright and cheery and just makes me feel good. Honestly, it is the first thing I see clearly in the morning after I moisten my contacts with saline. They had great bright colors there and it was a pattern/color family that was carried throughout the departments so I was able to find a matching curtain in bedding that I will alter down to a valance. It even inspired me to do some much needed trim painting in there as well. Now if I could just get Jim to tile the floor.

Today was a rough day. We have had crappy weather for a few days and the boys have been inside a lot. Today they were in from start to finish and it showed. As a result, I am tired and cranky!!!! Tomorrow I have Saint Auntie Chris' help and a nail appt. That should help. I have to remember to take my own advice and remember these precious moments when I feel like I could pull my hair out. (Especially since I can not afford to lose any hair if I plan on maintaining my stylish do.)

More Pictures

Going through pictures always gets me choked up. I love looking back and seeing the boys as babies. It makes me want more babies of course but also reminds me of how much I love them. I just can't put it into enough words. Looking back at pictures makes all of those whiny moments, attitudes and sibling quarrels disappear. Did you ever notice they are never in pictures? It also reminds me of how quickly the time passes. We really need to live in the moments because they fly by so quickly. Baby teeth in September have been replaced with grown up big teeth with barely a notice. The toddler has turned into a boy. And the skinny teen is getting man muscles. Slow down, watch them grow, take pictures.

Dreary Days and Mondays

This weekend was pretty low key. The sky was totally grey and the days were hot and humid. I don't think we really even went outside for any length of time on Saturday as we hid out in the AC. Even the boys who are always outside. Yesterday I brought them to a pool for a little bit before the thunderstorm rolled in for a change in scenery. They practiced diving. Joshua got the push off but was having a hard time keeping his head tucked. Jacob on the other hand was doing great. He looked so cute. He had seen a former swim team girl demonstrate for a boy there the other day. He steps right up on the edge, grabs the edge with his hands, arms out, push off and goes in. He looks like a little penguin because he doesn't go far under with his life vest on. Of course he needs to work on his enouragement a little bit "Joshua,watch me. I can do it and I'm 4 and you're 6!!!"


I started on my project to scan in my pictures to put them on CD's. Man what a project that will be. I wanted to start with my wedding pictures but for some reason could only find half of them. That was weird because all of our lose pictures are in one cabinet. Jim reminded me as I was off to bed that the were in an album. Oh yeah, after 6 years of marriage Auntie bought us an album to put our pictures into. Duh. Oh well. Started on some others. I got about an inch thick done in the 40 or so minutes I worked on it (I didn't start til after 10:15ish). We have at least three boxes that are 10-12 inches long. This project is going to take some time. But will be well worth it. So many times you take photos and they sit in a drawer. I haven't even put any in albums for 6 years. There are just too many with the digital cameras and all. I put about 700-800 from my computer onto the disks and watched them on the TV through the DVD player. It was cool to get to see the year in review, especially as we take far less video than we use to also. It will be even more fun to watch the older pictures.


Here are some that I scanned last night. I'll have to put some on periodically as I go.

Joshua wanting to be the 'HULK'.

Jenna at the camp (wrong date).
A few days after Jacob was born.
Jeanne, Jenna, Grandma Cil and Dad at camp (wrong date).
Joshua, Jenna and Baileigh
Joshua's trip into the rocking chair.
Jeffrey with his Storyland fashion statement.

Warning, Warning. There is something wrong with this picture...I'm just saying...

My apologies to all this offends...

So a while ago I went through my unmentionables drawer as it was getting a little full. It was full of the 'can't get rid of these, they will fit someday' items and the 'have to wear something in the meantime' items. I sorted through and put the 'can't get rid of these, they will fit someday' items in a bag. Years go by and Ifind myself cleaning closets and say to myself 'What's in that bag?" only to open it and say "Oh yeah".


So this morning was one of those 'years'. This time I decided to open the bag and pull out an unmentionable or two. It's moments like these that make you realize how far you have let yourself go. I mean I looked at these things and had to double check the size. I thought they were training bras by the looks of them. But no......

So I repeat. There is something wrong with this picture, I'm just saying.




I can tell you one thing. The boobs haven't gotten any bigger, so you do the math. Man I have to do something. :(

No One to Play With

So on these blog things you get to play games too, like tag. I just don't know enough people who blog, so I had to steal this from my sister-in-laws blog.

i am: hoping Jeanne jumps on the blogwagon
i think: i am a good mom and teacher
i know: chris will always be my friend (16 years so far)
i want: to put all of my pictures on DVD (they are so fun to look back at)
i have: to eat 8 tums a day since my thyroid surgery
i wish: i could lose weight magically
i hate: that my family is so spread apart
i fear: something terrible happening to my husband or kids
i feel: i am under-appreciated at home
i smell: i do? Gee thanks.
i crave: ice cream all the time (obviously)
i search: for my keys because i never put them in the same place
i wonder: how many times the same socks will go through the wash (they keep looking for the match in there)
i regret: not going away to college
i care: too much about making people happy
i always: hold a grudge (a character flaw)
i believe: tomorrow will be another day
i dance: like almost never
i sing: like Celine Dion (what? you don’t think so?)
i don’t always: do what i need to do (i’m a procrastinator)
i fight: to get jim to help me at home
i write: when jim is watching tv and the kids are sleeping
i lose: at sports, i’m a girlie girl
i win: most of the time at Cribbage
i never: finish cleaning (it just starts all over again)
i listen: to the radio only in the car
i can usually be found: at home or at work
i am scared: to go broke
i need: gastric bypass, jaw wiring, stomach stapled (something)
i am happy about: being able to work only a few hours a week in the summer

So I 'tag' Karin. Copy, Paste, make it your own and Post on your Blog.

Long story short...the new teeth won't actually cost us anything because another set was made a while ago when they were thought to be 'lost'. Auntie, who doesn't even wear them, knew where they were. Of course we found that out after we had the new ones made. Let's just say this wasn't the first time. I never did get to Big Bear the one and only time we went to California because we had to turn back 8 miles in on the 10 mile drive (speed limit 35), on a windy road with a crying, sick baby.

Here are a few pictures from out beach trip last night.

Beach Trip

Cost of parking.................$.25 for 10 minutes

Cost of large pizza.................$11.99 plus tax

Cost of new front teeth partial.........$350

Having another story to tell on my blog..........PRICELESS

Someone lost something in the ocean today...more details tomorrow...it's late.

It's only hair...right???

I joke that I think my sister in law has background blog ADD. She changes it all the time. This weekend I was inspired by her hair ADD. She is a brave sole who understands that it is only hair and it can always be changed. I, on the other hand, am a creature of habit as substantiated by the same hair style for let's just say at least 12 years. I did not change the 'big hair', but I did change the color. I darkened it and put some highlights back in.

Before...with Jacob.

During...the things we do for beauty (and a blog).
After (before I put a few more highlights in, and after I mowed the lawn)

"Mom what can we do today?" How many times have I heard that already? "See, that is why school is a good thing.", I reply. Today Jim set up the mini Slip N Slide. The boys enjoyed it. You know these things just aren't as easy as set up and go. The all ended up with scratched up bellies from the sand and Jim had to use Jacob's babywash to make it slippery enough to slide the whole way.

The boys in action.

B I NGO

Pretty quiet day today. The boys got up, let their mom sleep a little and Daddy was off to work. Auntie had the day off so we figured we would do something fun, something most likely involving water. I was in no rush this morning, so I let her sleep in. I usually call her to have her help me get my butt in gear and she hates when she comes over and I am still unshowered. We headed off to Pawktucaway State Park for some swimming. I was a little nervous because it is usually packed and there was a sign saying no bathrooms were in working order, just portapottys, Yuck! Of course the boys didn't think that was too big of a deal because Auntie Jeanne told them it is ok to pee in the water because the fish do (thanks Auntie Jeanne). It wasn't too crowded and I was pleasantly surprised to find out the reason the bathrooms weren't working is because they are building a gorgeous new bathhouse. Phew!!

Last minute tonight Chris and I decided to go play Bingo. It has been a long time since we went. Jacob asked me where I as going and I told him to hang out with the old ladies :) It was a good night for Auntie Chris...she won three times!!! Of course, the number of people attending was so low. Whether it be that they no longer have a smoking section, the bad economy or just the old ladies dying off, the usual 500 has dwindled down to 114!!! So needless to say, they cut the prizes way down. But as Grandma Cil always says, cash is always in style, always the right color and always the right size. Auntie Chris agrees!

Good news. I found out that Jacob is going to have the same teacher that Joshua had. I am happy because she was so good for Joshua and I know Jacob will have a great experience as well. I was telling Jim how each year I am sad when the year comes to an end and Joshua asked me why. I told him it is because we have to say goodbye to his teachers and he has had such good teachers. He put me at ease by telling me "and I'm going to have another good teacher next year". I am glad to see him already looking forward with a positive tone. He had a visit with his new teacher on the last day of school and has a good first impression of her.

Please give me your opinion about the size of the font. I usually do it bigger because I think it is easier to read, especially with longer paragraphs but then it seems long. You don't have to sign in to leave a comment anymore, I changed the settings. Just click on the word comments at the bottom of each post.

Calling All Princesses

Curious to see which princess you are like...Click here to find out. But be sure to let me know who you were. It said I was Snow White...I think I'm more Megara (whoever that is).


Which Disney Princess Are You?

Joshua Got a New Toy

Our children our very fortunate and we are very fortunate to be able to give them things that many other children do not have. We realize this and hope that they do as well. I always try to let them know that things aren't what make people happy. It is hard when their Dad likes 'big toys' too. Our family does spend a lot of together time exploring nature's beauty riding on the trails (which you know if you've seen the numerous pictures).

Joshua got a new four-wheeler today. He was very excited and smiling ear to ear. He has really gotten a lot of use out of his first one and has really outgrown it. He is ready to pass it on to his little brother. Jacob is equally as excited. He is Daddy's co-pilot on the trails but he is chomping at the bit to start riding on his own.

Big Day

Tomorrow is a big day...which is why I am up so late posting. It will have to be brief. I have been sitting at the computer making things for school tomorrow. School? you say. I teach summer school as well and it starts tomorrow. It is only three short days a week, perfect. We are also closing on my Dad's house tomorrow. Can you believe it? We have been so lucky. A long journey is coming to an end. I really can't go say goodbye to the house and I won't drive by to see what may happen to it later. All I know is that I accomplished what I set out to do. Turn the house into the place it could have been if my dad had the motivation, funds and energy to have done it.

I have posted several pictures on the friends and family link on the side. There are just too many cute ones to post them all here. I will put comments when I have a minute. But there really is a story to the picture of me cutting the bushes with my pocketbook. Chris says I always have it with me, the beach, Canobie Lake, everywhere!!! So she grabbed my 'purse' as Jeanne wants me to call it, and took a picture. Funniest part is that on our way back from vacation, we stopped at Wildcat Mountain and took the tram to the summet. Wouldn't you know that as we got to the top and were walking on the trails, I noticed I was carrying my pocketbook!!! I mentioned it to Jim so he just had to take a picture of it. Each time we posed for pictures, I placed it to the side out of the way as to not get teased later...almost forgetting it there each time :)

Still more snow up at Mt. Washington.