Dutch Wonderland

Since I was a kid I have been going to Dutch Wonderland. I remember vividly burning my hand on the big slide. But now I am the parent and I am taking my kids. So this weekend was the first time my kids have gone. I loaded up the three oldest kids and myself and headed there. They, of course, loved it. It was the Reader's Jamboree weekend and so it was pretty packed. I scored two extra free tickets from our friends, the Barnums. Which made Issac pretty happy because otherwise I wasn't planning on taking him or Wyatt.Pictures were hard to get because of all their excited movement, twirling rides, and my playing right along side them. But here are a few. My favorite was taken by a stranger who stood in line behind us. After the ride he got my email address to send me the copies. Ted was super nice and if anyone ever needs a tow he has his own towing company and a AAA contract in Lancaster county under the name TJHuyser Enterprises. What a great way to spend the weekend.

Birthday Wishes

(Kristin, Jenny, Emilie, Moi)

A girl after my own heart, Emilie, my new friend/churchmate arranged to have four different birthday celebrations for herself this year. She also has a sugar momma, no lie. She's so enviable sometimes.

Last night I took part in the shoe party event #3. We fancied ourselves up enough to put on some great shoes -heels of course-, went out for a freakin awesome meal -Iron Hill Brewery-, and a not so good waiter - he just started working there and it was busy-. I ditched the movie which was the last part, but I am sure it was equally fabulous.


Here's to happy birthdays especially when you get to plan the details of the celebration(s).

Desperate Housewives

thursday night was a celebration of academics for me starting with a neighborhood bookclub, it actually turned into a "twilight party". i love my neighborhood, i love my neighbors, we are the perfect mix of fierce divas and awesome moms. we started the movie at 9:00pm.

kids in bed - check

ample movie snacks - check

posters, face cut outs, and party favors - check

movie - check

here we watched, mocked, rewound, drooled, and laughed hysterically for two and a half hours. next we clicked off the movie to catch a conan o'brien skit mocking the acting skills. more hysterical laughing. talking, splitting up leftover food to feed a small nation and walking home at 12:30 am. my life is blissful.

I'm Retarded

lately i've been uninspired about blogging, until today that is. and what inspires me, but our school's homecoming court as listed in picture and bio in the manheim merchandiser.

now i don't know how many of you watch "GLEE" a new sitcom this season. i have mixed feelings which are better left to an entirely different post. but...they had a bit about an abstinence club, and of course in attendance were several male "predators" and female "cougars" - and sadly this last one is also a name of a show that will be gracing our televisions this fall.

anyway apparently our high school has a Wednesday Morning Worship Group. Who knew? and what exactly do they do? i remember in my high school days they tried to start something similar.
regardless on this page I was a little surprised to find Allison Heverling, girl 2, as one of the WMWG girls. and instantly I wondered if this was a situation similar to the "Glee" scenario. although what you gain by going to a group such as this i don't know.

what does a religious person look like? i don't really know. but a part of me doesn't think they look like Arielle Tornabe, girl 5, and a part of me is not surprised that Caitlin Hosler, girl 3, is a WMWG girl.

it doesn't really matter...I suppose. and after reading their bios, in the end, I'm rooting for Allison Heverling to win as queen based on nothing more than combined picture/bio - i mean she plays the banjo too - how cool is that. but it's not often that i am surprised. yeah for pretty and fashion forward religious girls.

It's Fall and I Love It

Need Evidence? (home grown veggies)
(cold, crystal clear blue mornings)
(fall decorations)

(cool apple basket - won it at Travis's company party)

(oh and Travis got me flowers - yeah)

Dancing Diaries Dos

Yeah i'm mixing the middle eastern flair with Spanish in the title there. But i like alliterations.

Tonight's class was better than last week's. i had practiced some and was feeling more confident. More than anything i was in a more playful mood and so was just thrusting to the bass beat. Then she breaks out the choreography most all of them know, so the new girls can learn it and we can add on to it. Crap a curve ball i wasn't expecting.

Alas i picked up the choreography okay just not the actual moves so much. But she sent me home with some top forty type Indian/Middle Eastern Music to practice to. Taught me some isolation exercises to practice at home. And told me next week she would bring me written choreography to practice to a slower beat, because the music is dang fast.

Left feeling a little beaten but still in high spirits. At least i am having fun now.

Fear

I am not a fearful person. It's not something I've worked on being, it's just come naturally to me. There aren't a lot of times in my life when I've even felt afraid, but when I do I try to be logical about it. Today I was afraid. Really afraid and not so much during the incident but after. Here's my story:

Kody and Issac were sleeping and I was on the computer working. Bella and Wyatt were playing outside. When Kody awoke I had Bella run up and let him out of his room. He was making his way down the stairs when Issac awoke running down the stairs to go out and play with the other kids. They love the outside.

Issac comes dashing back inside to grab something from Bella's room and Kody tails him in excitement. But just as quickly Issac comes barreling past Kody down the stairs and outside again. Kody is slower and I still hadn't heard him come back down the stairs to go outside. The sliding door was open and the screen in place and I could hear happy kid noises. All of the sudden I hear Wyatt saying to Bella that Kody pushed her screen out. Yes the screen to the window.

In my mind flashed a picture of my son climbing out the window. Call it the spirit, call it mom's intuition, call it what you may I had no doubt what my son was in the middle of doing. I jumped up yelling, "No Kody, Stop." I am screaming Stop the whole way up the stairs and to the back bedroom where I see Kody half hanging out the window staring back waiting for me feet off the ground teetering on the ledge. Below him lies a 15' drop to ground level and an additional 3-4' of a basement window enclosure. An 18' drop total. I have never been more grateful for one training my kids to be obedient to me, especially my crisis voice, two for the sudden flash that let me know exactly what was happening the exact second I overheard the screen had been pushed out of the window.

Once safely in the window with it shut and locked I felt total body shaking fear and a whole load of gratitude that a potential tragedy was escaped. I tried to explain to him why it was a no no, but I don't think his two year old mind grasps it. I honestly think in his head it was the quickest way for him to get his little body outside to play with his brothers and sister.

The Girls/The Guys

Bits and Pieces

My ten year class reunion came and went Labor Day Weekend. Yes I am still a babe in arms I know. Some parts were too awkward, catching up was fun. More pictures on facebook.

(her hair looks really nappy here but it was just post pool dryage)

Also Bella has been wanting to cut her hair. She wanted to wait long enough to start school and then do the transition so there would be more people to oww and ahh over it. She's very cute with short hair. But so beautful with long hair. I'm not sure which I like best.

(look at the wet hair mark on her shirt from where it used to hang to)

Last I got back in the saddle Tuesday night for the first time after a couple of years of not riding. Our friends horses haven't been ridden in a while add to that there was a particular horse getting all of the other horses riled up. Needless to say I was only bucked off twice. You should have seen how many times that horse tried to do it. Each time I landed on my feet but it sure made me mad.

I'm A Mom

I know this seems ridiculous, but sometimes I forget it and am surprised all over again to learn it.

Case in point: Today I was eating tortilla chips with a black bean salsa, such an awesome recipe (shout out thanks to Solviej, lovingly called Silver by Issac). Kody comes toddling up to me mid handful of chips and wants one. I have just eyed the perfect dipping chip. I immediately hand it to him. Then the shock of it hits me and I'm a little surprised at how easily I gave it up. Now he doesn't need it for dipping so the chip wouldn't have mattered. But that is such a mom thing. I gave him the thing I wanted most, the thing I had deemed best because that is what mom's do. They sacrifice the best stuff for their kids willingly and happily.

Knowing that I would give my kids anything I have is just another happy moment in motherhood.

Belly Dancing Diaries

Wow I suck. And not just a little. I really blow.

And crazy as I am I just thought I would naturally pick it up.

I now realize that those were dreamlike delusions but they have turned to the nightmare variety.

Furthermore I am quite convinced I have no rhythm.

Also people from the middle east, yeah their bodies are built differently or at least I am pretty sure of that after attempting several basic moves or maneuvers because I'm pretty sure each requires twenty parts of your body moving simultaneously in opposite direction.

On the upside I did pay up until December so hopefully you will all be graced with the humorous or depressing -for me anyway - fodder as I bring it to you live each Wednesday evening.

Good Bye

So I'm officially a little sad. Labor Day has come and gone and already this morning Issac has asked about the pool. I tried to let him down easily by saying it's too cold for swimming but the reality that even if it was warm the pool is now closed.We made some good memories this year and I considered it one of the best investments we made.

Pretty much every sunny day at some point you could find us there. And a whole lot of not sunny days too as long as it was warm.

Already I can see our tans fading and that makes me sad because I look good tan, sans the copious amounts of freckles that fill my face.

But is also makes me sad because it means long summer days are coming to a close.

Already the constant kid chatter that exists outside is gone with the start of school. I love those happy noises.

And the world's best kid distractor is no longer an option.

But at least I have a whole album of pictures to help me remember.

And best of all I have next summer to reinvest in a pool pass, the best thing I've discovered for family fun so far.

Labor Day Good, Because of No Labor

Today was quite a spectacularly perfect day. I started the day off with a restful ten hours of sleep. The first in a long time. The kids came and cuddled in bed for a bit before Dad took them down to start breakfast and I read for a while. Then I came down and made myself an omelet and cut some fresh cantaloupe.

We were invited to a rather new friend's farm where we had plans to barbecue. But first up we got to take the kids on pony rides. They love horses. Then I was asked if I liked to ride. I love to ride and she just happened to be looking for a riding partner to help get her horses in shape. I now have a standing weekly appointment to go horseback riding. Then we BBQed. After eating we got down to some real farm work. We moved rocks, cut down a tree, burned the brush pile, gathered eggs from the chickens, etc...

Our kids well past nap time were behaving good and we skedaddled before things came unhinged, but Kody beat us at the end with a minor meltdown. We came home for late naps. I also took one (I love sleep) and read some more. Travis made dinner - Terriyaki meatballs and rice. The kids and I came down from naps, ate, played, bathed, and we put them to bed.

I also caught up on some things I've been meaning to do around the house: folding laundry, sweeping and mopping the kitchen, mowing the back yard. Happy restful day. (Pictures to be added later. My camera is on the fritz)

That's What (S)He Said.

Lately I have been hearing the crazies around my house. Here are a couple:

Issac: Monkeys eat bananas, macaroni and chesse and pizza, not peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

Bella: Do you live in a townhome because you are too poor to be able to afford a house?

Wyatt: When you and Dad go to prison will we get new parents?

Moo-zam

Lest I forget the last museum, or moozam as my kids call them, we visited this summer was the Clock and Watch Museum. Although not as geared towards kids as some of the other museums we visited this summer it was still really neat. And the kids found enough to keep them entertained for forty minutes or so.

School Starts and...

I'm just going to start with the and to get it out there. I went into Costco this past weekend. Technically it was still August and all. What do I see but loads of Christmas stuff displayed: wrapping paper, Christmas tags, ornaments, pumpkin pie samples, etc... Seriously crazy people my kids didn't even start school yet give me a break. I love Christmas but what a buzz kill to my just finished vacation and relaxing weekend before school.School started Monday. I have a new kindergartner who had a partial day on Monday. Bella went full day. And then Tuesday they raced to the bus stop where they loaded together and unloaded at the end of the day. Where has the time gone. I love my little kiddos. But they sure look big to me in these pictures.

My Baby

My baby is now a raging two year old complete with tantrums and all. I lovingly like to think of him as Popeye since his default facial expression is a scowl that only affects half his face reminiscent of a person who has had a severe seizure. But he is quite amazing. He laughs really hard when he laughs and he loves his mommy and daddy so much. He happily plays with his big brothers and sisters. He loves to be sung to and to pray all the time. He eats most vegetables but the only fruit he will touch is a banana. He thinks that balloons are the world's best toy and that sitting on your face is an appropriate way to wake you up. He gives crusty looks to most strangers and even some familiar faces, sorry Aunt Elizabeth, but he adores Grandma and even listened intently as she sang birthday wishes to him over the phone. He thinks that my breasts are his property as evidenced by a very loud fight with Issac in church where he grabbed them and yelled mine. He has the most amazing shade of red hair but the temperament to match it most days. He is very smart but rarely shows it to people. He loves to be touched really softly on his neck and he talks tons in his sleep. This boy is like no other and I just can't believe I am so lucky to be his mom. Happy Birthday Kody man.