What season is this???

We woke up one morning this past week with 4 inches of snow. It was beautiful, and brought up feelings of Christmas and sleigh rides. One thing I didn't like, or expect, was that I couldn't drive up the driveway. I didn't even make it up a fourth of the way. Yes, our driveway is that steep, and my front-wheeled drive van is hopeless with snowy, slippery, steep hills. This may be a long winter. I would of parked on the street, but we're not allowed. So, I left the van at the bottom of the hill. A little bit later I receive a call from Ashley whose class was taking a field trip. She says, "Mom, is that our van stuck at the bottom of the hill???" I told her "Yes." and her and her friends burst out laughing. That summed up my day, and my attempts to make it up the hill.
Three days later the snow was melted and gone. That's typical here, so they tell me. My emotions are askew....wanting to start a fire in the fireplace, cooking pot roasts and stew...to spring cleaning and taking hikes outside in the 70 degree weather. The sun is so strong here, melting everything and warming things up. I think I'm gonna like it here.....
In other news, we're on fall break right now. Chuck took the girls with him back to Minnesota to get the rest of the stuff out of our house. So, the boys and I are having a party of our own. We went and saw "Beverly Hills Chihuahua" yesterday. It was really cute. Any dog lover will like this movie. Tonight we're watching 'The Hulk'. We bought a mini cart full of goodies for tonight. On special nights like tonight I let the boys get whatever they like. It's kind of a treat for me, too. :) Our favorites: Garden Salsa Sun Chips, Sour Cream and Cheddar chips, little containers of our favorite ice cream, Garlic Bread Pizza (yum), pop (non-caffeine for the boys), and CHOCOLATE!! I have to make up for the fact that they didn't get to go home to see their friends, like their sisters. I can't even bring it up as it 'causes great sadness--in both me and them. I'll be counting down the days until the holiday season, when we'll be home next. I take solace in the fact that the girls are on cloud nine. Chuck said that they sang all the way home. They were just giddy. Today they went to school with their friends, and have bonfires and parties this weekend. This is just what they need right now. Allison just recently broke up with Jack, her latest boyfriend, so she needed some best-friend time.
Otherwise, we're trying to come up with Halloween costumes. This may be one of the kids' favorite holidays (can you call it that?), but me....I hate trying to come up with costumes, and I hate buying ones from the store. Tanner wants to go as 'Edward Scissorhands'. I'll have to research that. He's invited to a halloween party and trick-or-treating with friends. He's very excited. Mitch, who knows? He wants to be something scary, but I've never allowed the kids to dress up as something too scary, so I keep saying no to everything that he suggests. I'm no fun! ;)
Does anyone have any unique ideas out there for costumes? What are you dressing up as?

My week--Thursday

Morning went the same as the others--driving Tanner up the hill to the bus. I know, I'm spoiling him. I would just rather have him leave home in a good mood rather than the opposite. His morning mood lasts throughout the day, unfortunately. He just can't shake crabby moods very well.


I didn't get many pictures today, and my computer doesn't want to acknowledge my memory card this morning. :(

I put in quite a few hours at work today. After class we switched the toys in the room for next week. I swear, I keep that preschool room cleaner than my own house!

After work I picked Mitch up for his doctor's appt. He passed his appt. with flying colors....shocker, huh? No shots for him today...just the flumist. He skipped his way out of the office, anxiously waiting to rub it into his brother and sister. :) Ashley is well today, and the doctor said that her reaction was from the meningitis shot. I remember when she was a baby, she would react so much to her vaccinations. One night I remember frantically calling the ER because her fever spiked to 104 degrees. I'm shocked that she still seems to react to them. Scary stuff! I hate putting those vaccines into their bodies. The doc said that just imagine her sickness and times it by 150, that is what it would be like if she GOT meningitis. I just couldn't imagine.....

Mitch had soccer after school today. That boy is amazing on the field. Tanner loves to stay and help, so he did. I had to run the van home for Allison 'cause she had to work, so I called Chuck to see if he would pick them up from soccer. As soon as Allison left for work, I get a call from Chuck--he locked his keys in his car! So, I had to walk over to the school to pick up the boys. It's getting cold here, but I was sweatin' my butt off (I wish) by the time I reached his school. I arrived just in time to see him kick the ball straight into the face of one of his teammates! Poor boy..... That finished the little boys' soccer practice and Mitch was so concerned. He kept apologizing over and over. :(

After making chicken and gravy for the kids for supper, it was Tanner's turn to do the dishes.

After getting the kids settled, Chuck had the great idea to go out for Happy Hour. He scooped me away in his company vehicle--since his sat at work with the keys stuck inside.

We went to a wine bar downtown that had the coolest atmosphere. We shared fish tacos (which reminded me of my friend Leanne, who was obsessed with them in Mexico) and french onion soup. It was nice to just catch up with each other.

We came home, slipped into our jammies and watched 'Kath & Kim', 'The Office', and 'Grey's Anatomy'. Great t.v. night. :)

Wednesday...

Today started out normally. Ruby wasn't up during the night last night, so that rice must have bound her up....YAY!!!!!! So I wasn't up with the dog, BUT...did I ever mention that my dear hubby has sleep apnea and has to wear a mask at night? Well, he does, and some nights his mask, or his mouth, make the most annoying noises. Last night was one of those nights. I feel bad 'cause he can't help it, but MAN!!! I kept poking him in the back to try and fix it. Of course he thinks I'm CONSTANTLY poking him all night...even though I did it, like, twice. sigh.

Tanner and Ashley woke up with tremendously sore arms. They could barely brush their teeth. :( Tanner thought he should stay home......good try, son) and doesn't know how he's going to play lacrosse tonight.

Today is 'crazy hair day' at Mitch's school. It's the elementary's equivalent to 'Homecoming' week. Here is a picture of Mitch's CRAZY hair.....

Did I mention he HATES doing anything different to his hair? So much like Tanner that way.....come to think of it, they're both like their Dad that way. :) No crazy hair for him...

I was off to work early today. We had a busy class...but fun all the same. While cleaning up the room I receive a phone call from Ashley. "I'm so sick, Mom. Can you come get me?" She sounds terrible...probably a reaction to all those shots yesterday. She aches all over, possibly from the flu-mist?? I take off to get her. I finally get her home, fix her soup, and within minutes she's out...

Poor girl.....

All I'm thinking about is Tanner. I wonder if he's feeling bad at all.....

Well, the answer to that was a resounding NO! When he got home from school he said his arms were still a little sore, but he was pumped for lacrosse. So, after a snack I dropped him off at lacrosse practice and ran to the grocery store.

My hubby was home when I pulled in.......

My love....

I have to tell you my insane Mom moment today. After school was out, I was waiting for Allison to come home. I waited 20 minutes....no Alli....so I called her to see where she was...no answer. I thought, "O.k. she'll call any minute, like usual." A half hour went by....no Alli, no call....so I called again, no answer. Forty-five minutes went be with nothing...and I'm starting to freak out a bit, thinking of running up to the high school to see if she was just 'hanging out'. I'm calling every 5 minutes at this point. AN HOUR comes and goes with no call or sign of her....I call Chuck to see what he thinks I should do. During this whole time I'm leaving increasingly angry messages. My last one to her was, "Alli...BE PREPARED TO GET IN TROUBLE WHEN YOU GET HOME!!!!...click" As I'm talking to Chuck Ashley pipes in from the couch, "Hey, Mom, maybe she's still on her field trip." ........that's totally where she was the entire time. They had gone into the city for French to see Les Miserables. Needless to say, I left a very sheepish and apologetic message to Alli after all this. She calls me back when they're done, I pick up the phone and all I hear is..."Mom, you're a dork." I'm glad she has a sense of humor.

Within 5 minutes of getting home she has her jammies on. (A girl after my own heart) Here she is eating her latest favorite snack.....caramel rice cakes.

After a spaghetti dinner with pesto bread, Mitch and I sat down to do his homework.

After picking Tanner up from lacrosse practice.....

feeding him a plate of spaghetti......

and helping with HIS homework.....

I snuck downstairs to take a picture of the girls doing their favorite thing....

Watching a movie with their favorite actor...

Will Farrell---can you guess the movie?? ....answer at the bottom of page....

It is now 8:00p.m. Time to do the bedtime routine. Chuck is down in the basement with the furnace guy. It is just not working right...and believe me, we need the furnace at night.

The troops are getting crabby....mainly because I said no bedtime snack--due to the fact we JUST ate spaghetti and I'm still burping it up.....and because I'm so 'crabby', as one put it, because I got mad that he was sticking his stinky, smelly, just-from-lacrosse-practice feet in his brother's face. I have to go 'crack the whip', I guess. ;)

Good night all.....

....Anchor Man.....

A week in the life of ME....

O.k. my sis Danielle is doing this this week, and I have so much fun reading hers that I think I'll try it, too. Please forgive me if it bores you to tears.

I'm starting on Tuesday of this week. I have no pictures prior to 7:00 a.m.--I won't do that to you. I crawl myself out of bed, reluctantly, at 6:30 a.m. in order to get Tanner ready. I don't think you want to see that mess, so I'm sparing you. One morning I'll try to get a picture, but, like me, he is NOT a morning person. I'm afraid it'll just ruin his day, but I'll try to be sneaky.

Tues:

Tanner needs to be out the door at 7:00a.m. in order to catch the bus to his school. The bus meets at the high school, so Tanner has to walk up the hill to catch it. On this particular day, he thought it was too cold to walk, so I slipped my flip-flops on and drove him the 1 block to school. Yes, I know. I get back home to find that Ashley is mad at me because it's not 'fair' that I drive him and not her, so into the car I go. I finally get home to hop in the shower to get ready for work when Allison pouts that she wants a ride, too. See where I'm going with this?

Finally, after my shower, I wake up sleeping Mitchell. Yes, he gets to sleep until 8:00a.m. How unfair is THAT??!!

Every morning Mitch needs some cuddle time on the couch....watching the weather report.

After getting him fed, and in his room changing, I head back to the kitchen to mix up a gourmet breakfast for our dog Ruby. She has been sick off and on since we moved here--giardia from the creek....or elk droppings.....or both--and was getting better until I changed her food. Stupid...stupid me!! So these last few days have been terrible for her and us (mainly me... as I seem to be the only one that hears her during the night to go out). Poor Ruby! So, this morning she is having rice mixed with pumpkin. Everyone swears by it here, and has been working great.

Here's her pumpkin and giardia medicine....yum yum.

She doesn't mind it at all!

After that, I threw a chicken in the crock pot for supper......

....and packed Mitchell's snacks in his backpack.

"Mom, can you help me with my hair??"

"Of course, my handsome man!"

Off to the bus stop! I work late today, so I get to walk with him, and wait for the bus to come. He loves that. "Bye, my sweet...have a great day!"

Here's my daily water bottle on my way to work. It's sooooo dry here, I can't get enough water.

Here is some of the scenery I'm treated to on my way. It's a 15min. drive, but I love it. I crank the tunes and sing, and look at all the fall leaves changing on the mountains. Please don't ask how I got these pictures...

Here is the building where I work.

Something I learned today....Did you know that when the weather turns cold in higher altitudes, it makes the air pressure in your car tires decrease? I suppose it's simple science, but my car didn't know that....and neither did I before today. The light turned off as soon as the air warmed up. Interesting......

I left work a little early to take Tanner and Ashley to their doctor appointments. They needed check-ups and SHOTS. Here's Tanner being tough.....

.....while Ashley was getting hers done. Don't you love seeing me in the mirror? :) They had a total of 4 shots each...along with the flu-mist. Yuk!

We came home to find that poor Ruby couldn't hold it while we were gone. So, hence the drying kennel. Not a fun thing to return home to....especially when you have chicken cooking in the crock pot that smells delicious....and, well, you know....

After cleaning up, I monitor computer time,

and enforce trumpet practice and homework.

After supper it's shower time and bedtime snack time.

At this point, I'm trying to watch the debate, but....

this is so much more interesting...

While I was reading with Mitch, Chuck was doing the job I hate the most...washing dishes (especially crock pots with chicken cooking in them all day). Thank you, honey!

One more gourmet meal for Ruby. It's strictly rice tonight, baby. O.k. maybe a little chicken bouillon.

After scratching backs, and listening to all the super-hero names that Mitch has picked for his stuffed animals, it's lights out for the boys. Goodnight, 'blue-bear' (who can swim underwater without being noticed)...goodnight Freddie (who can disappear at any time), and goodnight Willy (who can disguise himself as a rock). O.k. maybe not too creative, but you gotta love 'em.

Finally, I'm off to the couch, exhausted, with a 'Mikes Hard Lemonade' and 'The Biggest Loser' on the tube. Sorry I hardly have any pictures of the girls today. Allison didn't get home from practice until after I was on the couch under two blankets. Hopefully tomorrow with be a little less chaotic.

What we've been up to.....

Yes, it's been a while. Once your life gets into a routine, time flies by....but here is some updates on our family.

Work for me is going great. I'm bonding more with the kids every day, and can actually be my goofy self and not worry so much about doing things 'right'...(though that is important, too). I love that these teachers/parents aren't so strict about fitting everything in. If we want to just get out the instruments and dance and march our morning away...we do just that! It's great, and most days I laugh so much (mostly at myself) that I carry that into the rest of the day.

A couple weeks ago we had our first fire in our basement fireplace. Yes, it was cold enough outside for it. It hasn't been since, though, but there are a few changes we will have to make before we have ANOTHER fire downstairs. We realized that the fireplace opening is too large and the smoke from the fire flows into the room before it's able to make it to the updraft thingy. The majority of it goes up, but quite a bit enters the room. We've had the smoke smell in our house for weeks now.

Last weekend we went to Golden, where they were having a festival. It was a beautiful day...one of those you just want to bottle up and save until mid-January.

While there we enjoyed a BBQ--ribs, chicken, potato salad, beans, and homemade pie. We toured some old buildings, including a one-room schoolhouse. We were amazed that it was used as a schoolhouse until the mid-'50's. Grandpa Merril attended school in a one-room classroom like this, and we were just imagining him sitting in the corner wearing a 'DUNCE' hat. :)

Some girls were in there playing school. It was so cute..I wanted to stay and play, too.

Tanner was able to make a hook with a blacksmith that day, too. It took a long time, and really made us appreciate how hard those blacksmiths worked...and how talented they were.

Tanner pumping the fire.

Showing Tanner how it's done.

Giving it a try....

So hard to twist that metal. See how red his face is?

Here are some more pictures of the day:

We really had a great day. Golden is a beautiful city, one you must visit if in Colorado. We walked along the river watching a father and son kayaking, and further down watching a group of college boys bath themselves in the FRIGID river. I shiver just thinking about it now.

We also attended a Farmer's Market and taste-tested a lot of yummy food.

On another note....We have found a church!! I'm so excited about this. We've felt comfortable since we stepped into the building. It is smaller than any other church we've attended, and at first we thought we would rather attend a larger church..mainly for the youth involvement. But, right away I felt at home. The pastor is a younger pastor and today was the first time we've heard him preach. All I can say is, "WOW". He just knew how to connect with us. So, yeah, that's exciting news to us.

The girls celebrated their Homecoming this past week. They've had a lot of fun....from a bonfire in the school parking lot, a carnival, the game, and last night had the dance. Here are a few pictures of my beautiful daughters.

One last thing. This is what I purchased at a garage sale this past Saturday:

This dresser doesn't fit in our bedroom, so we put it in our dining room where we'll use it as a hutch for now. It matches all our furniture. Did I mention that they have great garage sales up here in the mountains??!!