Claire's Birthday

Next weekend is Claire's birthday, but her dad has her that weekend, so we celebrated with her this weekend. She is 11 now. She was complaining about not being able to go to girl's camp with Lexi and Emylie. I told her this would be the last year she did not go.

She wanted to see her old friends in Coppell, so we decided to have a party at the park we lived next to. Since she did not have contact information for most of those friends, we decided we would have a reverse surprise party. We knocked on the doors of all her old friends and said, "surprise! It's Claire's birthday. Want to come to our party?" Or something like that. Only her friends Lauren and Marissa (twin sisters) and two neighborhood boys and the family were able to come. The bulk of it was facilitated by our dear former neighbor, Sybil. She made cake and had balloons and streamers. I brought burgers and dogs to grill.

It was sprinkling before we started grilling. Then the sun shone magnificently for the party. Then, as soon as we had everything packed in the cars, a downpour began. I guess that was Claire's little birthday gift from Heavenly Father.

It was a lot better than what I got her. I was going to get her some of the advertised dollar flip-flops at Old Navy, but they were totally gone and had been for hours by the time we were done with all our fun. She did pick out a handbag while were were there (she already has 1/2 dozen of them). But wer were not able to find anything else in the remaining 1/2 hour of store hours. The store was a wreck after a major shopping day and finding anything was a bit of a challenge.

The kids had school off on Friday, and Claire asked me if I could come to her track and field day on Wednesday, so I figured I could come on Weds. and spend the night with my friend Theresa (who took me on the cruise) and her husband nearby and then take the kids home Thursday evening. I spent the day on Thursday working with Theresa in her yard and brought home a bunch of monkey grass. I only planted it along the back of the house until I could get the plastic border to plant it around my things out front. Three of my four new rose bushes are blooming. Myy friend, DeeDee gave me daylilies which probably won't do anything this year, but at least I have something besides the monstrous shrubs that the developers put in.

10 Minutes at the Park.

Amelia is sitting on my lap with a fever and I can hardly see the screen because my eyes are so puffy and swollen with allergies, but I missed you, and I don't feel like cleaning anything. Anastasia was really fussy this morning and was better after I put some teething gel on the tiny spot of gum between her front teeth and molars. While I was at it, I put some on Amelia since they always cut their teeth together. That may be why Amelia has a fever.

I finished my anthropology class, but I did not post any of my writing from there and now I can't because ANOTHER computer had a breakdown. Fortunately my assignment was turned in before the failure. The problem is the power supply. It is like a car having a dead battery. The engine is fine but it won't start. We will replace the power supply as soon as we get paid. I had a dream last light the Mike said we got paid early and it was $3000. I was a little disappointed to wake up with only a memory.

I put the babies in the wagon this morning and took them for a walk to the park. It was a solid 10 minute walk, 10 minute play time and 10 minute trip back. Anastasia was a little more excited about climbing and sliding. There are no swings in the neighborhood : ( We got home in time to watch Backyardagains over lunch. Then it was nap time.

I am looking forward to the American Idol finale. Kris made it to the top two because Mike voted for him. Mostly, Mike was hoping that Adam would get the boot. He can't stand the theatrics and doesn't think that Adam is anything like a rock star. I think Adam is expressive and creative and that he has a great voice, but I agree with Mike that Kris has a much better chance of being a really successful artist. Adam will have a ridiculously loyal fan base but he takes too many risks and will not appeal to the masses.


Kris is an all-around guy-next-door CU! TIE! He just needs a good producer to guide him through the music selection process and he will be all over the charts. Did you notice, he plays piano AND guitar. He is a good all-around musician.

I think it would be great if he won, but he will probably be better off if he doesn't. Idol fails to maximize the success of their artists.

A Job!

All the paperwork is signed, so Mike officially has a job. He spent Tuesday and Wednesday in Tyler (The lovely city in which we met 3 years ago this month) to do a network installation for the electric company's division there. He spent the night there last night because it was cheaper for the company to pay for a hotel than for gas 2 times. The babies are crying at my legs and trying to turn off my computer, even though I have spent more time playing with them and giving them attention than I have all week. It is 15 minutes till bedtime. They are bathed and ready. Once they are down it will be time for my American Idol results show, though I only saw Danny's performance last night, so I really don't know who to vote most likely to go home.

Alright, now I am typing with both of them in my lap and the screaming has not stopped. That means we flex on the 10 minutes till bedtime. It starts now.

Don't Mind Me, I'm Asleep

I don't even know how long it has really been, and I am really too tired to post anything, but I'll give you a sloppy snack of Janika's Latest. Kids were all here this weekend and we got to have a little adventure. It rained off and on all day Saturday, getting progressively worse through the evening. The sky got darker and greenish. The rain came down really hard. Hard enough that the kids were done playing in it. It got so intense that we couldn't really see out the window. But the kids were able to see well enough to know that the trampoline had been picked up by the wind and got its legs dropped out of their sockets. Our eastern fence blew over and the western one had a little more lean than it used to have. Our neighbors behind us got one of their fences knocked over too.

When it died down, the girls went outside to tell our eastern neighbor that their dogs were out and our fence was down. They worked together to put it back up. They said one of the neighbor ladies saw a funnel cloud and a bird get struck by lightning and explode. Don't know about all that, but there was flooding and a whole lot of fences and signs down this morning.

We never lost power. We heard at church that some people did, but they were not in our neighborhood.

This is the last week of my anthropology class, so I have a term paper due this week, so I will not be likely to post here in that time, unless I put up some of my anthropology discussions like I have been thinking of doing.

Now I have to convince my husband to go to bed.

But Hopeful

My brother-in-law is showing responsiveness and has been given tons of love and attention by family and local church members. Progress was most noticeable after a recent fast. Mike's relief is visible. I can see the burden lift from him. We are still tense, but not depressed.

I am taking Cultural Anthropology right now. I like it, but mostly I like being intellectually engaged. It is almost 10 AM and I have not heard the babies. I am sure they woke up this morning, but fell back asleep. They walk all over the place now. Their vocabulary is increasing. They are good at "bunny" and "bird" because that is what they always see out the kitchen window as they eat. Which is also why I have not planted a garden this year like I intended to. We have 3 bunnies that spend a lot of time in our yard. They would eat my garden all up, and I couldn't make a fence for it this year.

Time to check on the babies and eat breakfast.

Not Good

I am only a third-hand source for information on Max, but it would seem that it is time to step up the prayers. The doctors say that his rate of progress is such that his chances of coming out of the coma are very thin and that his brain damage is extensive enough that if he does come out that he could require full-time care.

Medical miracles are almost common. It is possible that the doctors could be wrong, but we have to be prepared for either possibility. There are heavy decisions to be made. Please pray for the decision makers (Craig, Consie, and the doctors) that they will get all the information they need and know what is best. Pray that they will have insights into the Lord's will for Max and the family, and that we will have the strength to accept it. I am still praying for a miracle, though.

In Case You Didn't See

These pictures are from our visit to the museum of flight at Dallas Love field and are the property of Corrie Alvarez. They are bigger on Facebook, but I don't know if you can access them without her being your friend, except the ones she has tagged me in.

This Week

The girls are walking more than crawling now. They have started mothering their baby doll. When they are in their car seats, they will sometimes reach out and hold each others hand and giggle at each other. They can reach to climb onto the couch now.

Amelia is very verbal. She likes copy what I say. She imitates sounds--anything she hears--and likes to make up her own streams of gibberish. She also loves to sing along whenever there is music.

Friday was Mike's Birthday. I bought him a cheesecake and "took him" to dinner at Razoo's (Cajun food for non-locals). The batter fried green beans were good. Mike had the gator tail (not a catchy non-descriptive name like buffalo wings, but literal gator tail) because that is his favorite, and the only place to really get it. Steve and Lori (old friends from Mike's Colorado days) joined us for that and gave Mike an iTunes gift card--very nice.

After that, Mike picked up Mikey and Steve and Lori came over to our place for a bit to play Rock Band. The newbs held their own very well. We had to call it off before too long, though because I was singing too loud and the babies couldn't sleep in those conditions. They had come over earlier in the week to eat dinner with us as well. It is really nice to have friends around.

The next morning I woke Mike to tell him that his parents were on the way to AZ to be with his youngest brother Max, who had been discovered on the roadside, not breathing after a motorcycle accident. The paramedics revived him, but he has been in a coma all along. They took him into surgery and removed some skull to relieve the pressure on the swelling brain. I just now got the message that his MRI shows a lot of blood clots. The doctor is not hopeful, but hope is all we have.

I am trying not to get wrapped up in future possibilities, but that means holding our breath and living moment to moment. Not knowing is the hardest part. Pray for all of us to have the strength to accept Heavenly Father's will, and that His will might include some level of recovery.

Easter Bunnies

We have bunnies that live in our back yard. Anastasia likes to watch them from out the window. They have a better view when they are in their high chairs. Two Sundays ago Anastasia made major strides in walking on her own. While Mike was gone to Utah to fetch some printing equipment with a friend for his business, she has made the transition from being a crawler to being a walker.

Amelia will stand up and walk on her own, but she is still pretty convinced that crawling is the way to go. She is also much more interested in raising her arms and getting people to carry her where she wants to go.

They have also both cut all four of their 2-year molars. When I was their age, I had 4 teeth total. What is silly, though, is they refuse to chew. They like to shove a bunch of stuff in their mouths and just swallow.

Their nap schedule has been off since daylight savings time. They are cutting back on the number of hours they sleep and are loosing a little of their baby pudge. Did I ever tell you I gave them their first haircut? Mike was not happy, but I am glad they no longer have a kentucky waterfall.

They fight over toys now--or over mom. They are doing a little bit of hitting and pushing. Then, sometimes when they play, one will be silly enough to stick her finger in the others mouth. She ends up crying. But they also giggle and hug each other, and will even comfort one another when one is sad.

Well over a month ago, I went to Emylie's Solo and Ensemble festival. She got a 1 on her solo. I snapped a few while she was hanging out with her friends. Andrew and Claire are the ones without matching shirts. The girl on the left is Emylie's buddy Samantha. Emylie has the short hair and choker.

Disconnected

It has been a really long time since I blogged. A big part of that is because my internet provider went out of business. Every month we have a 24hr minimum outage. If it happens over the weekend, it will not be taken care of until mid-day Monday. My jobless IT skilled husband has gone up to the office and offered his expertise for hire every time this happens.

Service went down early Thursday evening. Mike went up Friday morning prepared to actually go to work and not take no for an answer, but they brushed him off again. When we still did not have service on Monday, he went back and the office was closed--permanently. Thank goodness the credit card had a glitch when he tried to pay them, or we would be out 50 bucks for no reason.

The reason we went with that company in the first place was that our homeowners association has blocked the major providers out here, so there are only 3 choices--2 now. He found another company and pressed them for immediate installation. They got it set up on Wednesday--just short of a week after the other went down indefinitely.

Mike spent some time tracking down the Homeowners Association to complain as well. He was told that when they laid out the development, they installed fiber optics and are working on a contract with Verizon for FiOs delivery.

In the meantime, Mike and I got so behind on our online school work that we had to drop the classes. I can't describe the emptiness I felt not being connected to the world.

Spring Break

Everybody is here for spring break. But I don't really have a spring break for my online classes. So I don't have anything like a break. Claire is not feeling well today and the babies are still off and on with...uh...loose bowels.

Amelia had to be changed during Sunday school after I had been bragging about how I hardly knew where the changing tables were in our new building because my babies just didn't usually do that at that time of day. It wasn't a big mess, but there was a penny in her poopy panties. Last week Anastasia ate a bracelet. I thought my daughter had turned into an oyster and was turning out pearls, but those pearls I preferred not to fish out.

Perhaps this implies that my daughters need more supervision. Or that my house needs more keeping. But maybe I just need more help.

Life Beyond Blogging

One of the most important things I have had to do that has kept me from blogging, is get the final achievement in Hexic on the XBox. I can't explain the compulsion of it. I only wish the truly important things in life were as compelling. But I succeeded in getting over 2 million points after creating 6 black pearls and joining them in a circle. And, yes, I am a better person for it.

It was in pursuit of that goal that I noticed how quiet the kitchen was. As I expected, both babies had fallen asleep over their animal crackers.

They also have become afficianados of the Xbox themselves. I let them play with the uncharged extra controllers and the push the buttons. They cuss (euphamistically of course) and cheer the game like I do.

My digital achievements pale in comparison to the relief of getting our tax return. With 2 new baby deductions for 08, and a new home deduction, we are sitting pretty. Well, we would be if we weren't so far behind from being out of work for the past 6 months.

The girls can both walk, but do not. They still think crawling is a lot faster. They are 14 months old and one day. They h-a+ve bee+n really fu+ssy the+*96+st*9*99999 past few days because they have messy sick.d It has been really hard for me to get anything done. That was Anastasia's signa-ture, by the way. I don't know where Amelia is, but I am sure the click of the keyboard will lure her soon enough.

I missed sacrament meeting on Sunday because of stupid daylight savings time. Apparently they just decided to go with the songs the previous ward had used on the board, and I have no idea who ended up leading the music (because that is all my job, see).

I gave the babies their first hair cut yesterday. They do not have their cute little curls anymore, but they no longer look like they have mega-mullets. I am trying to help their short top hair catch up with their long back hair.

It was almost too warm here last week. I actually had to use the A/C. Now the heater is back on because we got a very wet cold front. We had tons of rain yesterday (2.6 inches). So I am stuck in the house, bored out of my mind while Mike parties in Denver because he had to go up there and pay a traffic ticket in person. They told him he would just have to pay and that would be the end of it, but they told him when he got there that he needed to appear in front of the judge and they needed 3 business days to get the paperwork together and set the date. We cannot afford to have him going back and forth, so he pushed them on the time frame and will be there until Monday, which will be nearly a week since he left.

I have actually talked to people on the phone lately more than read blogs. It is a kind of nice change, but I miss reading everybody else's. I am really far behind now.

I am enjoying my math class because I don't have the textbook everyone else has, so to make up for it, I have just been looking up stuff on the internet and came across coolmath.com Great website for all types of math. Get your kids on it. Tell them they can't play video games and surf the net until they have spent a certain amount of time on it--I'll tell you if that actually works for me over spring break.

I am going to grab some pictures for you and then I need to find both of the babies. I just remembered I left my bedroom door open.

Blasee

I made it through my first week of online math class--not sure if I passed it, but I made it through.

I have a few pictures to post, but I do not have the camera up here. I noticed that it has been a while since I posted anything, and I wanted to let you know that I still think about you and love you. After I check my email, I may read some of your blogs, but I doubt it, since it is after 11 right now and I did not get to sleep until after 3:30 am "last night."

I am profoundly grateful for the blessings of hot water and central heating. We were without for nearly 5 days. There is no good reason why. Suffice to say, I hate my gas company. Still I love my modern luxuries.

Yep, I am falling asleep as I type. Time to go.

Trouble, Trouble

That's right, double trouble. Anastasia has taken several steps completely on her own, but they are still quite hesitant to walk. Maybe they spend too much time in slippery footed pajamas. When we we hold their hands to have them walk, she says "wakwakwak." But none of that is really any trouble.

The trouble is, our electronic components are all at eye level for them, and they love buttons and lights. We moved the coffee table to in front of them to deter them, but since it is a lightweight bamboo, they have figured out how to push it out of the way. They know now when they are doing something wrong and will check to see if I'm looking before they get into stuff. If they find that I am looking they rush doing whatever troublesome thing they were going t-o do so they get in as much trouble time as possible before I get to them.

Remember, there are two of them. One will be told no and be removed from the place she is not supposed to be and the other one will rush to it and make sure that the rules apply to her to. This is what is commonly known as a tag team. -**-*-* that is Amelia- tou-chi+ng the+8 +-88keyboard while I try to hold Anastastia off and continue typ*ikn*g. Fun game she -thinks.

Now you know why I don't blog so much these days. Today, though I am also starting back to school, so that is one more reason to be on the computer and not blog. I will probably post writing assignments for you on occasion, but my first class is math, so I would++ not expe+*ct to have much of interest to post on that. (The extra baby type is less because- th-e*+y-********************ach- +++++++++++++++ HAD been pulling everything out of the desk drawer.

Love y'all

Where is Everyone?

I think blogger is getting a lot less activity these days. I know I have been kind of out of it and my regulars have not been commenting as much as they used to. But I'm here anyway.

I am starting back to school next week. It is a good way to keep from having to repay my student loans. My degree will be in organizational management. I don't know how much I have left to do, but it should be getting pretty close--especially if I test out of some of my general courses. I just hate the headache of filling out the financial aid paperwork.

Friday I will be going to support Emylie in her Solo and Ensemble competition. Saturday my voice student will have hers. This is the first time I have taught one-on-one voice lessons. It was a bit of a challenge for me to translate my own skills into lessons. How do I sing? I don't know, I just always have. I think she got something out of it, though.

Isaac's birthday is on Friday. He will be 15. I am not sure what we are going to do, but he will be here with me.

Before

Just for the record, both Anastasia and Amelia could dance before they could walk. They have excellent balance and will stand unsupported (usually with something in their hand for security) and bob up and down or sway from side to side. And yet they refuse to take more than half of a step.

They are 13 months old and have yet to be determined to walk. I really would prefer not to carry around 23x2 lbs. regularly. I do have a little bit of extra tricep bulge, but I would rather have the weight training be purely optional and not mandatory.

They are starting to really play with each other. I have not captured any of it on film, but but I say "Say Hi sis!" and stick them together and they put their heads together and giggle at each other. They have started hugging and tugging at each other. Amelia is really cuddly and she will initiate loving on her sister. They aw sigh and laugh at each other as they do it.

They also are picking up a whole bunch of words and actions. Whenever we are sitting at the table to eat, when there is a lull in the "conversation" they will look to the window and woof at the sound of the neighbor's dog. They can also say dog. We are working on bird and "tweet." They are starting to mimic hand actions to Popcorn popping on the apricot tree.

But, again, for the record, they could sing before they could talk. They have ah ah ah'ed little pitches in response to my singing to them for a long time.

They have both overcome their fear of navigating the stairs from the top, so they are downstairs playing the piano this morning while I am up here blogging. I suppose I should do something about that. Bye

Rain!

Last night around 5 am it started raining. I have been hoping for that all week. I have some berry bushes to plant and I want the ground to be soft and delicious for the little sprigs. I am yearning to do yard work. It has been 3 years since I've gotten involved in my flower beds. I also hope to plant a few vegatables this season.

I do fear that spring has come to Texas. Puxatawnee Phil is on the east coast. What does he know about Texas? The cold happened in December. My heating bill was lower in Jan, and I haven't turned on the heat here in 5 days. I expect there will be a few more cold fronts this season, but I am seeing some ant activity and the amount of green grass in my back yard is increasing. I only fear that because it means having to worry about pest control and A/C sooner. But I am looking forward to planting and digging in my new yard and making it distinct from those of my neighbors with colorful blossoms instead of this bland contractors landscaping.

I hope we have a really wet spring, because it has been a really dry winter.

Glory, Glory, Halleluia!

In The Overworked American by Juliet B. Shore, she reports a study on the usefulness of household appliances, and their ability to reduce the number of hours a woman spends doing domestic tasks. "Studies of US women also found that those with more durable equipment in their homes, work no fewer hours than those with less. Only one major appliance has been shown to save significant amounts of time (the microwave oven). Some actually increase housework (freezers and washing machines)." (p. 88)

If you will recall, it was several months ago that I reported our microwave had blown up and was no longer working. Shortly after we contacted Maytag who sent someone to look at the microwave and repair it. That was in October.

By the way, the reason the Maytag Man of commercial fame does not have anything to do, is not because the machines never need repairing, but he was fired. There is no such thing as a Maytag man. Maytag contracts their repairs through private companies.

So after 2 different repair companies, 5 different service calls, 10 replacement parts (and 5 back order holds on those parts), 3 major holidays (and 3 minor ones), and, most notably 4 months without a microwave, glory be! we have a fully operational machine again.

We celebrated by popping a whole box of microwave popcorn. My babies can have warm baby cereal in 9 seconds, instead of me having to let the water run until it gets hot. I can defrost meat that I need for dinner right now since I never think of it ahead of time--again, I save time and water by not having to thaw it in the sink. My husband can have his beloved melty cheese hot dogs. I can use the storage containers I put my leftovers in to reheat them instead of having to dirty a pan to warm it on the stove (which usually means having to wash it out first, since I have such a limited quantity of cookware). 1-2 minute reheat calculates to much less than all of that.

In short, I was skeptical of the findings of the study when I read it a decade ago. Though I was able to maintain food quality and care without a microwave, I am satisfied that there is some validity to the conclusion that the microwave is an actual time saver, and I am ever so thankful to have one that works.

Baby's Got Bum Bum

This is how they sleep in the morning. I usually do not peek in on them until I hear them, but this day we had a lot of things to do, so I went in to make noise.






The camera is the kind of noise that wakes them up. They have gotten to the point where they realize posing for pictures is appropriate. *Snap* *shing* "Someone wants to take my picture? Why yes you may."

By the way, I am really irritated with the way my layout is publishing, but I have no interest in taking the time to play with it. You have a ton of pictures to look at, so quit complaining. I know, I am the one who is complaining, but I can project myself onto you if I want.

Is that a Skembo, or what? I don't know if it is Craig's baby picture or Consie's, but I call her Anastasia, and I pretend she's mine.

Same Box; Different Day

Sure it looks like the same pink outfit in all the pictures, but it is not.

It is better if you click on the pictures and get the full size image to see how ADORABLE these kids are, all the way down to their rosy, chapped little cheeks.

Their cutness today is only slightly minimized by nasal drip. They have what Mike and I had, but other than sinus issues and a little more neediness they are okay. We just have to keep them hydrated and their noses cleared out so that crud doesn't get into their lungs and cause problems.