I'm Back

Once upon a time,in a galaxy far far away (or at least is seems that way) I had this little blog where I wrote about my simple little life raising 5 children under the age of 10.  It was a good way to preserve some of the stories that I hoped to be able to share later when my memory goes and maybe to instill a healthy amount of guilt in my children for when they time comes that they will possibly be picking out my nursing home.   A few friends and family members would  read and comment in person or occasionally, actually leave a comment on the blog.   Until one day, someone introduced me to Facebook.   Maybe not at first,  but eventually I realized that instead of taking the time to blog I could spend a minute, jot down something silly that happened that day and lots of people would respond rather quickly,  thus fulfilling my desires to be lazy and to get immediate feedback.  So,  unintentionally my Blog became abandoned on the interwebs like a  bug carcass after the spider has sucked it dry.

Apparently,  certain members of my family do not support my love of laziness and a quick attention fix, and have been hounding me to start blogging again  (one of those members may have a bit of an attention addiction herself).   Then,  a few months ago I decided to take a Facebook vacation and deactivated my account (if  you missed it, that was because it only lasted about 12 hours).  When I told my husband that I thought I needed a break his response was, "How will I know what happened while I was away?"   Despite what it may seem, we do actually talk to each other.  About this same time I came across a collection of  family histories my dad had put together.  I loved reading the stories my grandmother wrote about driving across the country with 19 siblings and cousins in a pick up truck or how my parents first met, but I really just loved reading things my dad had written and hearing his voice in my head.  Realizing how much that meant to me and how important it seems to be to my family, I've decided to try to resuscitate this old thing.

For those of you who are new or haven't followed my life on Facebook the past 5 years,  I'll give you a brief introduction.  I'm a stay at home mom (still looking for a better title, since I rarely stay anywhere) of 5 kids who are now 6, 8, 8, 11 & 13 years old.  We have 4 daughters, including a set of identical twins;  our youngest is our only boy.  He just finished kindergarten and our oldest starts high school in the fall, so next year I will have kids at 3 schools; high school,  middle, and elementary.   My husband is a self employed IT consultant, which means some days he's a work at home dad and other times he's traveling.  Today,  he's teaching a class out of our bedroom (it's online), but most the month he's been working  out of town.  Luckily, he's a work at home dad more often than a traveling one.  He's a technical nerd and I'm a drama geek and our offspring,,, well let's just say they're the product of their parents.   Because I can't seem to just drive 6 hours to the closest beach and take a relaxing vacation,  we're about to embark on a cross country road trip which includes a family reunion in Utah, visiting friends in Lake Tahoe, San Diego and Phoenix and hopefully hitting a few National Parks on the way.  I intended to blog about our adventures, if I can just overcome these lazy tendencies.  

Welcome back and thanks for reading.

Independence Day

The kids really wanted to go to the local parade this year for the 4th of July. But Matthew and I vetoed the idea since it's a steam engine parade and 4/5 of children scream when they hear loud noises. So I suggested we have a parade of our own. they weren't thrilled at the idea at first and then Kendall confessed that what they really wanted was to catch candy. Once I guaranteed them candy to throw they were all for it. They spent the day decorating their bikes. And then that evening our good friends the Hatches came for a cook out.




After the parade we headed over to one of the parks on Lake Lanier just down the street. As we got their Kendall lost another tooth. Rebecca joked that Kendall's tooth had declared it's independence from her mouth.



At the Lake we let the kids play in the sand and water until it was dark and then we had an excellent view of the Lake Lanier Islands' fireworks. And the nice thing was that we were far enough away that no one screamed when they went off.

The Cherries Did it Again

Dakotta was telling me the other day that the cherries painted her nails red. The next day she ran into the room and yelled. "Mom the cherries did it again." Those mischievous little cherries. No wonder Dakotta loves them so much.



Apparently they got her face too.

After 2 magic erasers we were finally able to find Dakotta under all that cherry juice. (Not really)

Soap Cheese

Some of my friends have been raving about this homemade laundry detergent so I thought I would give it a try. The ingredients are Borox, Washing Soda and a bar of washing soap (after I finally located the one that was recommended to me I found out a bar of Ivory would have work as well). I spent about $5 on ingredients and only used a small portion of that to make a 2 gallon batch of laundry detergent. So it probably comes to about 50 cents per batch compared to about $8 normally. And anyone who know me, knows I love a bargain. It's also environmentally friendly so I figured it was worth a try.

Here's some pictures of the kids helping me make the detergent.



Elliott helping to grate the soap.



Corinna helping. (Please don't call the fashion police. Didn't you know tights on top of leotards are all the rage with 4 year olds this summer? )


We got down to the last little sliver to grate so I took over. Unfortunately he was a little too eager to help and got this for it.


Grated soap. Corinna said she wanted to put the cheese in and I explained it wasn't cheese. She said, "But it looks like cheese." I agreed that it was shaped like cheese and the color of cheese but it was really soap. Not willing to admit she might be wrong she declared it "SOAP CHEESE"


Adding more ingredients.


Yum.

Other people have told me this recipe takes 10 minutes. I don't think they had as many helpers I did so it took me about 45. I have washed my first load of laundry in it and so far I'm pleased.

Kid's Answers

1. What is something mom always says to you?
Rebecca (9): Go. (go brush your teeth, go do your homework, go get your shoes and socks on)
Kendall: (6): "Kendall!"
Corinna (3): I don't know.
Dakotta (3): I don't know.
Elliott (23 months): Mama.

2. What makes mom happy?
R: A day off.
K: Hugs & kisses.
C: Saying, "Please."
D: Love on sumpfing.
E: Mama

3. What makes mom sad?
R: When Kids destroy things/
K: Hitting and kicking her.
C: Yelling.
D: When her eyes get red.
E: Mama

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
R: Her jokes.
K: Tickling.
C: Silly
D: Being silly.
E: Mama

5. What was your mom like as a child?
R: A ballerina/granola girl.
K: A ballerina.
C: family.
D: FAMILY!!!
E: Mama

6. How old is your mom?
R: 35
K: 34/35
D: 3
C: 6
D: No 8
E: Mama

7. How tall is your mom?
R: 5 or 6 feet
K: 8 feet
C: Big as a giant.
D: This tall (reaches her hands way over her head).
E: Mama

8. What is her favorite thing to watch on TV?
R: LOST
C: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
D: Princess and the Pauper
E: Mama

9: What does your mom do when you're not around?
R: Clean.
K: Be on the computer
C: Stuff up in your room.
D: I will get lost.
E: Mama

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
R: How many kids she can keep track of.
K: Ballerina
C: All the stuff.
E: Mama

11. What is your mom really good at?
R: Reading
K: Taking care of the family
C: Doing all the stuff.
D: Drawing pictures on doodle pads.
E: Mama

12. What is your mom not very good at?
R: Getting Kendall up in the mornings.
C: Not doing stuff.
E: Mama

13: What does your mom do for her job?
R: Take care of everybody.
K: Take care of the family.
C: Make Birthday cakes.
D: Getting everyone milk and stuff.
E: Mama

14. What is your mom's favorite food?
R: Pork and something else.
K: Pizza!
C: Ramen noodles
D: Chicken nuggets.
E: Mama

15: What makes you proud of your mom?
R: She doesn't embarrass me.
K: She takes care of me.
E: Mama

16: If your mom was a cartoon character, who would she be?
R: A MOM
K: hmmmmm
C: Melissa
D: Goofy
E: Mama

17. What do you and your mom do together?
R: Talk
K: Help each other
C: We do stuff we want to do.
D: Go to Disney World.
E: Mama

18: How are you and your mom the same?
R: We both did ballet/
K: We both have brown hair.
D: We're different
C: Dakotta is the same as me.
E: Mama

19: How are you and your mom different?
R: She's older than me.
K: I have brown eyes and she has blue.
E: Mama

20: How do you know your mom loves you?
R: Cuz she tells me all the time.
K: She takes care of me.
E: Mama

21. What does your mom like most about your dad?
R: He's nice.
K: He works.
C: He's handsome as a prince.
D: He's handsome as a Eeyore dad.
E: Mama

22. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
R: Utah.
K: Kari's house
C: Kari's house
D: Disney World
E: Mama

I asked Kendall and Rebecca separately but the 3 little ones I asked at the same time.

Merry Christmas

When I put my blog address on our Christmas cards 3 weeks ago I had every intention of updating my Blog with a very nice "Christmas Newsletter." However it's been quite a crazy month here at the Hive and not just your normal December crazy. We're in the process of refinancing our house, in the midst of that we found a leak in a pipe above the living room, we got a plumber to fix it but then Matthew had to repair the ceiling, he also discovered a hole in the dryer vent and had to repair that as well. And of course the part of the ceiling that had to be repaired required us taking down our ceiling fan and light fixture, which required the power to be shut down in the living room. And did I mention it was also right by the Christmas tree, the same tree that has a already toppled over more than once. So it's been a rather frustrating month and all the things originally on my to do list have been pushed further and further down the list. In the grand scheme of things really it's just life but with the fact that this year I volunteered to invite my entire family for Christmas day it's been a bit overwhelming, to say the least. We're grateful to friends and family who helped us out, Matthew's friend John and Papa Hardin came to help Matthew install the drywall and Lettitia and Justin were nice enough to let me sic my kids on them for the day so that they could get out of the way of the project.

So now it's 2 days before Christmas, tomorrow we'll be gone most the day, and the next day we're expecting close to 40 people here. So now I'm off to knock out my to do list with hopes that there are no more surprises. Wishing y'all a Joyful Christmas.

Shout Out to Awesome Teachers

As the Thanksgiving season is upon us I have a lot of things for which to be grateful, but one thing that keeps coming back to me is how blessed we have been by our children's teachers since we've moved here. For the girls sake, I don't want to go into too many specifics but they've both had their share of struggles academically. The teacher's have always been very open to communicate with us and to provide whatever resources they could for us.

I keep hearing from other's about "one size fits all" teaching and I can honestly say that has been the furthest from our experience these past 3 years. I know each of these teacher's has gone out of her way to adapt the classroom and teaching to my specific kid and her needs. All of them have communicated with me openly and freely and what I love most is that they always come to me with a solution already in mind. Eveen when they have felt stumped they've mentioned that they would talk to the other teacher's in the grade for helpful ideas. They've been willing to listen to any of my concerns and to act on the things we've discussed quickly.

I can't express enough what a blessing and a relief it is to send my kids to school and know that whatever struggles they have that day they have someone at school who I know is in their corner routing for them. It's made an amazing difference. It fills my heart when Kendall comes home telling me how she did and I know it's a direct result of her teacher showering her with positive reinforcement and encouragement. Or when Rebecca comes home telling me of something she learned or accomplished and I know it's because of a teacher that has repeatedly demonstrated that she knows Rebecca can do it even when she might not be sure of it herself. Not only has it made a world of difference academically but socially and emotionally as well.

So I just want to give a big but inadequate THANK YOU to Mrs. Morea, Mrs. Proctor, Mrs. Jensen, Ms. Buchwald, Ms. Keiffer, Ms. Heard, Ms. Hurst and all the teachers that support them. I couldn't have asked for better teachers for my children if I had hand picked them myself.

My Poor Neglected Blog

Well sometimes something has to give and lately it's been this Blog. Matthew has been hounding me to post something for sometime. I was a little busy getting ready for Disney World and Halloween and then I came home to a broken computer. I have lots I wanted to share but it's just not the same without my pictures which I don't have easy access to at the moment.

The kids have been busy with school and all their other activities. The 3 younger girls are loving their dance classes and thanks to the Lego catalog I can now at least picture what it is that Rebecca does every Friday at Robotics club. We had teacher conferences the week before our trip and both girls are doing well in school. They both struggle with the same concept (spelling/ sight words) which I'm thinking must be a genetic thing. Both teachers are perfect fits for each of the girls and we feel like we've hit the teacher jack pot since we moved to this school district.

Prior to our trip I got the idea to make outfits for the girls to wear to Disney. So, much to Matthew's delight after 2 lonely years I finally pulled out the sewing machine. I've been having lots of fun with it. So far I've made each of the girls a dress for Disney and a Halloween dress and a vampire cape for Elliott. My next project is scrubs for the kids and Christmas gifts.

Papa completed the Play House and the kids are loving. Matthew has decided it's not bright enough in there so has been digging up the yard and laying cable so that it will have electricity.

Our trip to Disney was fun and exhausting. The twins had a hard time sleeping and it made for far more tantrums than we expected. Despite that we had a good time. Some of the highlights were probably getting to see the twins ride their first roller coaster, Rebecca overcoming her fears and being more adventurous in her rides (she actually road Everest), Kendall meeting Tigger and bouncing with him, having dinner with Matthew's friends, and meeting up with some of my online friends. We stayed in the Fort Wilderness cabins and we loved it. I would love to go back there for a week and spend half the time just at the campground and half the time in the parks. In fact someone told me that they've even stayed at the campgrounds and not even gone into the parks. It really was a great place to stay.

A couple of funny things. My brother Benjamin let us borrow his TomTom (GPS) for the trip. Well the kids didn't know what to think of it and Dakotta would start to argue with it. The TomTom would say "Turn Right" and she would retort "We already turned right." Then one day we got of the boat launch at the Magic Kingdom and Corinna says "Turn left and then turn left" just like the TomTom.

Also, the automatic flushers were quite the issue. Corinna and Dakotta caught on quickly that you have to hold your hand over the sensor. So we'd walk into the stall and they'd take turns holding the sensor for each other. Kendall on the other hand didn't trust them with this most important job and insisted that I was the only one responsible enough to cover the sensor for her.

Elliott got to spend the weekend with his cousins and Uncle Stephen and Aunt Shelene. He seemed to have a great time and came home barking whenever he sees a picture of an animal. And he even got to sing in church with them during the Primary program. His sisters were not happy with us for leaving him home but I think he had a great time and am pretty sure Matthew and I couldn't have handled all 5 of them without some help. I'm sure they will be sure to let Elliott know that they all begged mom and dad to take them but we were the mean ogres that didn't bring him to Disney.

Well maybe someday I'll have my computer working and will be able to update with some of the hundreds of pictures I've taken this month.

Some Odd Tuesday Update

Here's what's up with with the Hive:

Matthew is working as hard as always. When he's not working or keeping up with his fantasy football leagues he's been making plans to implement phase 2 of the backyard landscaping project. If if his estimations are correct we'll be getting twice as much dirt this go round. So if anyone likes a good mud fight give us a call.

As for me I'm living for Tuesdays thesee days. It's when I get to leave the house for 4 hours without any kids!!! The babysitter, Sara, is great and sometimes even manages to get a little housework done while I'm gone. In the past 6 weeks since she's started, I've gotten my hair done, (way overdue) started reading again, become obsessive about saving money at the grocery store, and even started a craft project. I'm also teaching the Sunbeams (3-4 class) at church. I think the Bishopric thought they were being clever when they asked me to teach that class but I'm not sure the fact that I will have 2 kids in that class come the first of the year is just a coincidence.

Rebecca got a job. Well technically I think it's an internship since she's not getting paid. Her teacher told them at the beginning of the year that anyone wanting a class job would need to apply and be interviewed for the position. Rebecca was worried because she wanted the secretary position but so did most the class. She filled out her application and had to get a letter of recommendation. The teacher's husband interviewed her and said she seemed perfect for the job. She came home beaming the day she got the news. I just hope she still has energy for her organizing projects at home after a hard days work.

Kendall is enjoying 2nd grade. Her exuberance kind of made for a rocky start to the year but her teacher is great and they came up with some helpful ways to remind her to stay on track. She's worked hard the past few weeks and ended up getting the Blue Bear award for her class for her effort. She also got a perfect score on her very first spelling test which is quite remarkable considering a family history of pour spellars.

Corinna is now daytime toilet trained and will even sometimes wake up dry in the mornings. She insists on wearing her "pretty panties" the minute she gets up. She loves being a big girl and is always volunteering to be mommy and daddy's helper. She continues to be bossy and we are working on toning her down a bit. She's also quite girly and gets upset when her curly hair dries because she prefers it long.

Dakotta has also been making progress in the toilet training, she's been wearing panties mostly with an occasional accident but I'm planing on how to spend the extra diaper money once they're completely trained. I've decided that Dakotta will either be an architect or a pro wrestler when she grows up. She can spend hours with the Legos, in the sand box or any other type of building project (cardboard boxes, couch cushions, canned vegetables). When she's not doing that she's bulldozing her family members. Apparently the 9 months of abuse she inflicted on Corinna is a lifetime addiction.

And as much as I hate to admit it Elliott is starting to be quite the little boy. He's really learning a lot of words lately and it's funny to me how much of a gender leaning there is (ball, car, (ba)nana, cracker, cookie, more, milk). Yes the boy likes to eat. There are nights that he out eats all of his sisters. I hacked his hair off yesterday but luckily his natural good looks make up for the botched hairdo. And one of the bonuses of me teaching the Sunbeams is that he got to start in the church nursery early. The teacher says he's doing really well but then a room full of other kids and toys strewn around, some singing and snacks isn't that different than home.

Happy Birthday Matthew!

Happy 9th Birthday Rebecca

A Walk in the Woods

Since Saturday was such a beautiful day and the girls were getting ready to head back to school we decided to go do something fun. We ended up just a few miles from our house below the Buford Dam and took a hike on one of the trails by the Chatahoochee River. We had taken the kids on a hike on the West side of the River a few weeks ago so this time we decided to try the East side. Corinna and Dakotta were funny because they would yell "Bear" and start running. And one point Dakotta said. "Whew! We made it past the grumpy bear!" On the return trip Rebecca said she though a particular mound of dirt was what they thought was the bear. Then when we stopped on a bridge for a rest Corinna started to do arabesques using the bridge railing as a barre. She looked like a little ballerina with her hair pulled back and dressed all in pink. Rebecca dubbed her, "The Hiking Ballerina." Towards the end Rebecca was offering piggy back rides to her sisters. At first Dakotta took advantage of the offer but when she was rested Kendall decided to hop on. About that time I decided to let Elliott walk himself. He didn't understand the concept of a trail and would immediately walk right off the path. It was funny to watch him climb all sorts of obstacles just to do it HIS way instead of what everyone else was doing. When we got back to the dam the were getting ready to release water so we hydrated ourselves and headed home.

Hair Today... Gone Tomorrow

So part of our back to school preparations included getting hair cuts for Rebecca and Kendall. Both had enough that we should be able to donate. They have both donated to Locks of Love in the past but this time we've decided to give it to Pantene's Beautiful Lengths. Kendall cut off 9 inches and Rebecca's was so thick they put her's in 2 pony tails and cut 11 inches.

My House is a Circus

So the other day while my mom was visiting I was going through some old premie clothes for my brother Stepehen's foster baby. While I was looking through bags of old clothes I came across a little lion costume. I commented that it was cute but that Elliott would probably be too big for it by Halloween. Apparently Rebecca tackled him and put it on him and the next thing I know all the kids were scrounging through the dress up clothes for circus costumes.

Art Education

The twins and I were looking at a book that had a picture of THE MONA LISA in it. As they do with everything else, one of them pointed to the picture and asked, "Whose that?"

I replied, "The Mona Lisa"

To which Dakotta declared, "She's grumpy" and quickly turned the page.

I'm thinking we may keep their art education to Little Einsteins for a bit longer.

Problem Solving: 3 Year Old Style

So yesterday Corinna was eager to go out and play in the sandbox but I was still getting breakfast for everyone, so she took it upon herself to get dressed. She came down stairs with a long corduroy shirt and some long pants. She brings them to me and asks me to help her get dressed. I look down at what she's picked out and say, "Corinna you can't wear those, they're too hot." She gets very mad and throws them down on a kitchen chair and exclaims "But they're not hot." Dakotta, who had witnessed the whole exchange decides to take matters into her own hands. She walks over to the clothes, blows on them a few times, hands them back to Corinna and says, "They're not hot anymore."

Best Laid Plans

So the backyard is coming right along but we've had a few bumps in the road. First, even though we're in a drought, we have the biggest mosquitoes I have ever seen. At night we put out citronella candles and lanterns but they only seem to help a little. And certain members of my family (me included) will be eaten alive within minutes of being outside if we forget to put on bug repellent. I finally convinced Matthew to put up a bat box. He actually opted to buy one instead of building it himself, but he'll still have the privilege of mounting it. So we've taken some temporary measures until our bat box arrives but are really hoping that we'll get us some bats soon to take care of our little mosquito problem.

Well then after Corinna uprooted all of Rebecca's vegetable plants and then used Matthew's flower bed as a sandbox Matthew decided that he wouldn't wait until the playhouse was finished to build them a real sandbox. Now mind you, Meme has been begging us to take a plastic "boat" sandbox but of course Matthew turned his nose up at that because his kids need a proper sandbox. So last week he selected the perfect spot and started leveling out a spot, except he didn't realize that a bunch of yellow jackets also thought it was a perfect spot. And of course this made our backyard pretty much useless for our 4th of July cook out with his family. So after watching the fireworks we came home to do a little exterminating. Not the most fun thing to do when you're allergic to them.

Anyway it appeared we successfully got rid of the nest under the sandbox and Matthew was able to finish the project. But now the rest of our yard is covered in them and we can't seem to find another nest. He spent hours the past two days trying to find the nest with no luck. So if anyone knows any ideas on how to get rid of the yellow jackets when you don't know where the nest is, we're all open for suggestions.

Check Ups

Well in the past 2 weeks 4 of my kids have had check ups. Last week I was able to get a sitter and take just the twins but Monday I wasn't so lucky.

So I had to take all of them. I had scheduled check ups for Kendall and Elliott but ended asking them if they could squeeze Rebecca for a follow up on some stomach issues she's been having. We get everyone weighed and measured and they ask Kendall for a urine sample. So we take trip #1 which of course means they all tag along because no one wants to be left alone in the exam room. (Luckily they were handicap restrooms). Then Kendall freaks out about the toilet (she has a fear of public toilets). I finally convince her to sit on the toilet. 5 minutes later. NOTHING.

Back at the exam room waiting for the doctor Corinna busts her lip playing hopscotch (they have a board painted on the floor tiles). Then the big girls get a kick out of pretending to page the doctor at the doctor's office. Apparently the irony of getting hurt in the doctor's office was not lost on them. Nothing like a minor injury to amuse one's siblings.

Finally the doctor comes in with a resident which was good thinking (although a bit crammed) since one is able to examing each of the 2 kids for the check ups. But apparently there wasn't enough going on during the exams so Dakotta bites Corrina.

Then the doctor asks for a urine sample for Rebecca. Which resulted in trip #2 to the bathroom. Rebecca pees in the cup. Since we're there I have Kendall try. Still NOTHING.

Back at the exam room we're greeted by the nurse ready to give Elliott a shot. I thought the poor woman was going to melt from all the evil glares she got from my girls. It was a good thing it was only one shot because I seriously doubt she would have been able to get to the 2nd before they mounted a protest. They all hovered over him with hugs and kisses when it was done.

Then as I'm packing them all up Kendall announces quite frantically "I have to go to the bathroom" while doing that signature dance that every mother knows all to well. I finally sent her and Rebecca for trip #3 thinking it was a wasted effort but not wanting to take any chances. Then while I'm checking out Rebecca comes out of the bathroom to report Kendall actually peed in the cup.

And the best news of the day was that now all my children are officially on the growth charts. WOOT. Elliott is now weighing in at 20lbs putting him in the 3%. The way he eats I suspect he'll be caught up to Corinna,, who only weighs 25lb in no time. The one nice thing about this go round of having a small baby is that when I told them I wasn't worried and to look at my other kids they actually listebed and didn't make an issue about it. Oh the benefits of experience.

A New Take on Playing Chicken

My Baby is Walking