RATS.

Well, we are on the go, again...

This time headed for a week of fun jaunting about Oregon and Washington.

Here's the trouble. We rushed about getting ready to go. I thought I had "everything." I don't have everything. I forgot my "card reader" for my SD Card. I took some pretty cool pictures today of part of our fun. They are stuck on the camera until I can get them downloaded.

So, I will just be wordy this time. Although, not really too wordy as I am tired and want to catch some zzzzzzzzs before all of our fun that we have planned for this week. I neeeeed my beauty rest. And I need regular rest to help me keep up with my family.

I will be back soon... but, I gotta get some sleep, first!

A quick run-down...

I know... It's been a while since I made the time to sit here and say hello. Lots of stuff going on, but none of it terribly exciting.

-Pops and I are doing a Couch to 5K run/jog program and we go nearly every night to a local track where the treekids can play on playground equipment.

-Schooling is in "full swing" although now that we are going at it every day and have been working the plan for a while now, I am not sure that everything is just right for this year. So, I have been contemplating a few changes - which involves reading some homeschool books.

-I laid down the hammer and we got the school stools (which are hollow cubes that each kid can store papers, stickers, notebooks, etc...) cleaned out, tidied up and organized. There was a LARGE black garbage bag available for throwing away. It was filled half-way!!

-We went camping for a couple of days for Pops' birthday! Did I mention that here, yet? Hmmm.

-The enormous amount of book shelves were organized back to normal (Strawberry Shortcake and My Little Pony books do not go on a shelf with more learning style oriented books with dinosaurs and Thomas Jefferson, right?!?!) so that books can be found more quickly these days. (Read: Mom organized the books that the treekids brought to her.)

-Brats on Saturday morning for breakfast has resumed. College Game Day is back on ESPN at 6 AM Pacific Time. And the weather is getting cooler... it is looking like fall is on its way and it has rained off and on for the last three days!!!

-Branch had her lemonade stand open for business downtown in our little town. She did pretty well. One lady who bought a cup of lemonade told me that she was really impressed by my little girl's business. She said it was very clean an and she appreciated that. I must have had a questioning look on my face because she clarified that she kept the cups clean in the plastic bag, her table was clean, the pitcher was clean, she used a scoop for the ice and didn't touch it, her hands were clean even though she didn't use them. WOW! She must've been with the health department!! The gal told me that this was the first cup of lemonade that she has ever drank from a lemonade stand and that she usually supports the little kids in their entrepreneurial adventures, she usually walks away and dumps the cup without the littlest sip! So, she could also say that the lemonade was tasty! You Go Girl!! Maybe one more set up of the "treat stand" before the cool weather sets in.

-It has been discovered that Blossom will need to pare down... in a VERY BIG way. Yesterday morning, she traded out some toys (I keep all the toys in a storage closet and they have to give to me the tote of, say - Polly Pockets to get a new grouping of toys.) and had me put her kitchen in her room. Her room was nearly perfectly clean. Pops was up in her room to see if her statement of "I hung up that other shirt I had on for a few minutes" was true and he would owe her $25 for not believing her (the bet I suggested!). He nearly blew a gasket when he saw that there was no carpet in her room. Well, there was carpet, but it was covered in clothes of all sorts and some stuffed animals and other assorted stuff that was with the baby doll toy box. Apparently during the last clean the room session... all the things she didn't want to deal with, she stuffed in with the dolls?? All this to say that TODAY is not going to be too fun. We are getting out the black garbage bags and filling them for charity. Pops suggests five tops and five bottoms. I think she needs a couple additional items of church attire: two nice dresses, a skirt and top AND more like seven of each top and bottom (she wears shorts, capris and skirts) plus two pairs of jeans. IF that was all she had in her closet (with plenty of socks and underclothes) I think that she would be set. She just cannot seem to deal with TOO much. (So, sidebar to the grandparents... Little Miss Blossom does NOT need any clothes. NO CLOTHES!! OK? Kiss. Kiss. Thanks!) This is going to be hard for me. She is going to want to keep some tops that are... mmmm, well used shall we say?! Those are the favorites and with only seven tops? They need to be ones that are good for all things and can be more versatile and such. Breathe... Breathe... Breathe... this is gonna be a tough day.

-Ok, now I am so overwhelmed by this task, that I can't even remember what all else has been going on around here. But, I do remember one more detail about that little Miss Blossom. Do you remember way back a year and a half ago or so?? If you haven't been reading regularly, you might go check THIS out. Well, Blossom has been talking about her hair being in her eyes and how it is bothering her. She told me that she wanted her hair to be cut. SO, I didn't want a repeat of that other experience, so we looked at some pictures of hair on the computer and set to cutting her hair!! Here's a peek at the the new Blossom haircut!!

Before

After

What a BIG girl she has become!!!

-OH! How could I forget?!? Bump has just cut his fifth tooth and a snotty nose and neediness came with these last ones all coming in at once. One more is really working on popping through any day, now. Oh, teething crabbiness be gone!!!!

I do have a few more pictures of some of these other "events" and I will update this post as I have time in the next day or so with those pictures! So, I'll just delete this notice when all my pictures are added here!

Lotsa Laughing!!!

So, today... Branch and I ran downtown to the bank. We noticed a sign by the local elementary school that said that school was back in session. So, I asked her what she thought about kids having to go back to school. She said that she thought it was sad that kids have to return to school (her little playmate who's grandma lives nearby won't be over most days, now). I asked if she thought she had a better "deal" just having to have school at home with mom and all that jazz. She told me that she did have the better option. She is happy to not be in public school, she said. Then, I asked her why she gives me trouble, now and then, about getting all of her school work accomplished. Her very serious "Winnie the Pooh logic" response:

"Well, I guess I would rather like it if I didn't do any school at all."

Later, Blossom and I were whispering to each other while Bump was nursing and falling asleep. She was telling me how babies are great (sidebar: they ARE great, aren't they!??) and how maybe one day she would have ONE baby.

I told her, "Hold your horses! You have to grow up and get married first!"

Blossom replied, "Oh, yes. I know. I have to find my prince. Then ONE baby. A boy. And I will name him {bump}" she giggled. "Just like our {bump}!"

I responded, "Uh, mmm... you know that's your brother's name, right?"

She giggled again, "Yes, but that is the only baby boy name I know!"

So, we talked a little about baby names. Then she looked at the cluster of portraits I have on the wall... each of my four treekids as an infant. Blossom said, "I don't want to have my tummy cut open to have a baby, though."

"Well, babies don't always come out of a cut in a mommy's tummy."

"Oh, ok. I will have a baby the other way. Not out of a cut in my tummy. So, {Branch} and I came out of your tummy the same time, right?"

WHAT?!? "Um, no. You were in my tummy at very different times all by yourselves. Why would you think that you were there together?"

"Well, it HAD to be that way. 'Cuz people should get babies boy, girl, boy, girl you know - pattern. So, it works that {Branch} and I came out together."

Interesting... very very very interesting logic. Glad it didn't HAVE to work that way, though!

Evening arrived and after some baking this afternoon, everything seemed to be smelling good and taste buds were drooling around here. One of the things that was baked today was some good ol' quick bread. While Branch and I were reading the recipe together, I briefly explained the concept of quick bread versus yeast bread. At that time, Bud was out on the deck waiting and watching and wishing that his yeast dough (soft pretzel dough) would grow FASTER. Then the quick bread went into the oven and began its hour of baking and smelling up the house with its spicey goodness! Bud kept asking me to test the bread and getting out the toothpicks. I continued to tell him how much longer and he finally protested:

"I thought you said that this was FAST bread."

Laughing is a GREAT thing and makes the day feel sooooo much nicer!

Wordless Wednesday - Elk Jerky!