Maddie grabs the remote whenever possible, and she immediately looks at the TV as soon as she has it in her hot little hand. She knows its purpose, and she also knows that around here, the woman holds the remote.



Taylor and Dezi had quite the raucous game going on, involving much chasing, tackling and jumping from one couch to the other ahem, of course I would never allow that on my furniture.

I don't know what kind of face she is trying to make, I only know she is at this moment sprouting two of the biggest top front teeth I have ever seen.

In case anyone cares, the update on this guy is not great, but ok. I can tell the actual infection in his skin is gone and the sores are healing, however last night he started scratching again. He is still on a twice daily antiobiotic, as well as a syrup for his mites/mange. His oral steroid is now every other day(it started out as 2 times per day), I think that may be it. The vet said once his oral steroid is gone, I need to give him Benedryl 3 times per day every day forever. Guess its time to start that. Good times.

Just some random cuteness to end our day.

Wish List Wednesday

Because money doesn't grow on trees 'round here!

I will start with a favorite, possibly over-used, but hey, it would be wonderful this time of year.

I wish I had one of these in my own backyard, so that I would not have to pay the electric company over $200 every month in the summer.

I would love a pair of these "7 For All Mankind" jeans. Or maybe its actually the flat, never-housed-a-7-pound-baby stomach that I really want!

I need a new stroller for Maddie, and this one is super cool. Love the color.

I could really use a new vehicle, not only do I need more space for my many children, but my current car is not working so great. But since I still owe 5 grand more than it is worth, this will go on my wish list for now.

What Have We Been Up To?

Maddie has mastered yet another skill, reached yet another milestone. Just last week she was our little scooter, then suddenly began crawling and pulling up, all within 3 days. This is a smart one, I tell you.



Oh, and you doubters out there, you know who you are, she most certainly is waving and saying hi when she sticks her arm up, moves it up and down, and lets out one long note "aaaaahhhhhhh". She did it every time we passed someone in the grocery store on Friday from her proud new post in the front seat of the cart.


And Taylor, well she is still Taylor. Just look at that attitude.

Right now she is mastering "The Legend of Zelda" on the Nintendo we gave Daddy for his birthday next week. I tried to keep it a secret until his actual birthday, but Taylor spilled the beans today when he came home from work and she proceeded to tell him we bought him games today. So, we gave him his gifts early. But alas, poor Daddy, he was called back to work tonight and Taylor is the one playing with his new toy.

***on a serious note, still praying for Stellan. My heart is breaking...

Random Attempt by a Nonprofessional to Take Arty Cool Pictures (and yes, I believe that is a technical term)

***********

Could those eyes be real? Daddy had better stock up on guns...

That reminds me, the funniest line I have ever heard relating to the way fathers threaten teenage boys was in the movie "New In Town". Fathers being wide awake, cleaning their gun, when the boy brings his daughter home from a date is a common line/scene in movies and country songs, and there are numberous variations on that idea. In "New In Town", Harry Connick, Jr. tells his teenage daughter's date this: "Remember this...whatever you do to my daughter, I do to you." Very funny. Probably very effective too...

For the few of you who don't already know...

Sweet Stellan is not doing well. Please, join me in prayer that God will bring him out of immediate danger, and then that the doctors will find something, anything, that will keep him out of SVT.

So Its Been Awhile...

How hot does it get in your house, in Texas, in July, with no electricity? To my absolute horror, I can now answer that question. The electric company currently servicing our new address (who shall remain nameless, though I will say it is not a large well-known company) was supposed to change the account into our names, but rather DISCONNECTED it on Thursday at 1:00 pm. Being the stubborn person that I am, we tried to ride it out, thinking how long could it possibly take to rectifiy their own mistake? We finally jumped ship this morning at 8 am. When we returned to check at 2 pm, it was back on. Nobody slept at all last night. For those who believe in the military using torture to elicit information from foreign enemies, no A/C is one that might work.
**Oh, and the worst part, I didn't realize until about 6 pm on Thursday evening how much I actually use the TV to entertain my 3 year old. Hmm...gonna have to mull that one over.

T-Shirt Change Time

Ohhh, life is hard when you are a dog. Good night, sleep tight, don't let the bed-mites bite.

Another Trip to the Vet

1 re-do of skin scraping test
1 3-week round of antibiotics
1 2-week round of oral steroids
1 treatment for mites/mange of unknown duration
1 bottle of medicated shampoo
total= $145

1 recommendation for reducing scratching, using baby t-shirts on the dog

Priceless.

Summer Doldrums

This insane mess educational game is a daily occurrence at our house. The temperature here in sunny Texas soars to over 100 degrees every day, making outside play short and sweet. When boredom strikes, Taylor unloads the dvds. There are so many things you can do with a dvd box, did you know?

But alas, it never ends there. No, it goes here...


And then ends here...

Rest assured, however, that the delightful end of this game is, indeed, this (after a little bit of yelling, of course)...

Fall weather, anyone?

Our Nightly Visitor

If the electric fence does not keep my 3 year old contained in our yard, how in the heck is it supposed to keep our nightly visitor contained in his "yard"?

**in another week or two, this girl is going to have this rather large cow eating out of her hand

Yesterday we (DH, Taylor, Maddie and I) spent 7 relaxing, wonderful hours with Grandma at her home in the country. These days, the time I spend with her uplifts my spirit and soothes my soul. I am blessed to have a role model for exactly the kind of mom and wife I aspire to be, just blessed to have her really. Many women are forced to navigate marriage and motherhood without this, beginning these journeys armed only with the determination that they don't want to be like their own mothers. Again, I am blessed. We wish you a safe trip, Grandma.

Madison is now crawling! Well, about 60% of the time, anyway. The rest of the time she is still resembling a soldier in the Marines (takes after her daddy!) the way she scoots on her belly, using her arms to pull and her toes to push herself forward. She is fast though!

There's Nothing Like Surprise Guests

Last night some friends needed a place to stay until Sunday, so we said come on over, of course! Then the other shoe dropped...they would be bringing 4 children with them. ages 10,12,14,17.
When you have children from opposite ends of the age spectrum running rampant through your home simultaneously, well, its like this...when they are tiny, you can't wait until they are older and are more independent. Then when you have teenagers (I do this weekend!), you long for the baby days. So the moral= enjoy the stage you are currently in, because the next one is not better or worse...only different!

Wanted: Mother's Day Out Program

I think Taylor really needs a friend! Although, Dezi certainly is a good laser tag partner (if you look closely, you can see he is wearing the other pair of goggles from the set)!

Wish List Wednesday

Because money doesn't grow on trees around here!




First off, I would love a new TV. Our current one is about 8 years old, and every so often you have to give it a good thump on the side to bring back the picture.





I lOVE these Frye boots! I saw them on a star in In Touch magazine (yes I read that drivel**gasp**). They are the Veronica Slouch style, and they are fabulous!




Currently I could really use my own private veterinarian. One who is at my beck and call!

Now head on over to www.nbjenni.blogspot.com to join the fun!

Blog Hop

Today's (actually yesterday's!) blog hop theme is Three Things You Don't Know About Me!

1) I am crazy about my tile floor being dirty. I mean, I never wear shoes in the house and can't stand when crumbs, etc. stick to the bottom of my feet. I sweep every single day. No lie! Some might say I am obsessed!

2) When I was working full time, I had tons of guilt about my Taylor being cared for by someone else all day long. I felt terrible thinking of her missing me every day. Now, as a SAHM, I have tons of guilt because she is with only me all day long, probably bored and not learning as much as she would in a structured preschool. As mothers, I don't feel we can ever really on the right side of this long-fought battle, no matter which side we choose.

3) I am in dire need of some new friends since moving to a new city. If any of you are in the Austin metro area, let me know. Perhaps we can meet up!

Rated R

Oh honey, your pasties are, er, slipping...

Rose Petal Cottage Continued

What started as peaceful, interactive play...

Soon evolved into trouble in the 'hood when Maddie tried to escape Taylor's authoritative and domineering control over household finances...

Perhaps a lesson to be learned for me everyone else?

First read the bib.
Then look up..up..

Any takers?

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.


This week, I did not consider, even for a second, affixing a Swiffer dust pad to my 8 month-old's belly so she could sweep while she scoots. Not Me!

I most certainly did not point out the, er, recent descension of Dezi's family jewels to my 8 year-old son and then watch his face contort in horror and I explained his upcoming surgery to "fix" that problem. Nope! Why, that would be just cruel.

I did not reuse a dry pull-up for 3 nights, until I finally considered it "used" when it began to emit a strange odor. Not me!

And finally, I did not drive back to our previous city of residence to return a kitchen rug at Tuesday Morning, only to drive away having spent twice the amount of money I was returning the rug for. Not me!

Warning: The following post contains ranting, raving and self pity

Hmmm....let me try not to cry curse as I relay this story.
Three trips to the vet, two rounds of different antibiotics, one round of an anti-inflammatory, a skin scraping test, a skin impression test (who knows exactly what these are, I only know they are a very expensive way to tell us what type of infection he has in his skin and whether or not its contractible by humans, very important when you have a baby scooting along the same surface as the dog), one bottle of spray-on hydrocortisone coat conditioner, one steroid shot, and a partridge in a pear tree.
And finally, Dezi was healed. Sigh.
And then, the bumps started appearing Saturday. Yesterday, even more bumps accompanied by increased scratching. This morning, red, raw, broken skin accompanied by maniacal scratching. Back to square one.
Who in the world can afford to take a dog to the vet every other week? I could have a new car payment for what I paid last month to the Bandfield Pet Hospital. Grrr..
And, at our last visit, the vet said that the shot was her last option, and if this issue persists, I have to take him to a doggy dermatologist. Who knew such a profession even existed? Yes, as a child, I dreamed of studying dog skin. Years of school, all dedicated to animal skin. Hmm..

Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader

So apparently a college education does not guarantee the ability to assemble a Rose Petal Cottage in under 2 hours without frustration, cursing, and general unhappiness.

*I guess it was during the 4th and final year of college (yes, the one I needed to actually be blessed with a degree) is when they teach you how to comprehend the directions on a preschool toy.

**And this is only half of it.

Just Because I Feel the Need to Make Up For Lost Time

Don't we all just feel like doing this to a loved one at some point during the day? The dog was the only one who would hold still for long enough.
*Just kidding, in case you don't know me!






Why do all of the pictures I attempt to take of the three of us look like this?

And one more picture, just because she is the happiest, squishiest, most squeezable, most edible girl I know. Couldn't you just gobble her up?