Sleeping Babies

I was reminded by Burnt Cookies when I went over to her blog today about another blog that I really enjoyed and forgot to put on my blogroll: Who Says 8 is Enough (a mom of nine - think she ever gets any sleep?) and she has on her blog a great post about sleeping babies. I had to join in!

I am surprised that I have so few pictures of my oldest two sleeping. The oldest princess was good at sleeping, she mastered the art at a young age. The second princess didn't sleep much those first two years, she sure did a lot of screaming and crying though. I did find one sleeping picture of her as a tot. ONE. Princess Gracie sleeps pretty good once she's down and out. Getting her there is a challenge. She's a great mix of her sisters.

The pics I found were so cute that I couldn't narrow it down to just one of each princess. So... you get a few of my slumbering babies in no particular order. Have fun trying to figure out which is which, I have to look at the labels on the photos!

Here are my sleeping babies.... and one sleeping teen for good measure!

The Big Party!

My Grandma Gracie turned 100 years old! Wow! What a birthday bash! I'm posting a few of the hundreds of photos we took. It was a three day party including cake, cake and more cake... the best fireworks show ever, tons of family and friends, picnics and great food, and really beautiful weather. The birthday girl had a blast! We all did!

Here's one of her delicious cakes: It is a full sheet, and it was so pretty, this picture doesn't do it justice.

This is the birthday girl on the right. My Great Aunt Spuddie on the left, she's only 98. Spuddie broke her kneecap a month ago, but she was running around faster than me at the party. They made her bring a walker, she parked it and never touched it. See, attitude runs in my family.


The museum in town put up a huge display of my Grandma's personal things with pictures and all . Here is a section of the display. There was a lot more!

Ok, it wasn't all pretty cake, old ladies and museums. There was a merry-go-round too! Fun!!!


And there was entertainment. Here are two of my princesses singing and playing music for the crowd. The kid in the middle is dating my oldest princess. We took him along to see if my family would scare him and make him run home crying. He didn't. He passed the family tolerance test with flying colors! Good boy!

Cowboys in kilts. Doesn't everyone have Scottish cowboys in their family?

This is how my family got from place to place. The bus driver would take a load and come back for the rest. And you thought I drove my mini-van!

This is how my 100 yr old Gramma got around. On the back of a Harley Davidson!

She also got a ride in a one-horse buggy.


Just for fun, I thought I'd throw in this cute picture of an adorable baby! Awwwww, he's so cute!

Happy 100th Birthday, Gracie!!!

Hoola Hoop!

This is how I welcomed the third trimester! Bring it on, baby!

100th Post!

Here it is.... blog post #100!!!! And my blog isn't even a year old yet!
I know it's blog tradition to write a 100 things about me post. But really... are there 100 things captivating enough to keep you reading? I'll give it a try, but don't add them up and do the math in case I fudge a little here and there.


1oo Things About Me:
- I have 3 daughters, actually make that 4
- They were all born in different states, except #4. Maybe I should run across the border just for fun.
- and a dog who thinks she is my baby too
- I plan to graduate with my BA in Literature and Writing in May 09
- I've attended 5 colleges in 4 states. EMU, NWCC, NSU, NWCC (again), MSJC, and CSUSM.
- I've driven through Las Vegas 11 times, add two more cuz I'm going to drive through and back again soon. Only stopped once.
- I come from a long line of cowboys and cowgirls, that's my ancestry. But I was raised in town. Good thing, I sure can't ride a horse!
- My grandma turned 100 yrs old and I'm going to her big monsterous 3 day long party! Woo Hoo!

Oooooo this'll add up.... here are the jobs I've had since I was old enough to work...
- restaraunt dishwasher
- waitress
- motel maid (yuck!)
- babysitter for several families, I'll just count that as one
- fast food worker at Hardees, Kentucky Fried Chicken, A&W, and Taco Johns
- College parking ticket writer
- YMCA after school program babysitter or whatever I was
- snack bar at the bowling ally
- Lifeguard at 3 different pools and two lakes
- swim teacher at the Y pool and lake
- 4-H camp program staff, I taught archery, canoeing and songs & games
- Girl Scout camp counselor
- Ymca Camp counselor and later camp director
- Teachers aid at an elementary school working with grades P - 6
- home daycare provider
- daycare center child care provider (30 kids including 10 babies each day)
- bank teller at 2 different banks
- I worked for 2 weeks for Super 8 learning how to take reservations, that sure didn't last long
- I was a goon in the basement filing paper folders of accounts at a collection agency, they moved to a new building and I was "alphatizing" their files. Fun, and my boss couldn't say "alphabetize"
- sold hot dogs and cotton candy at a traveling carnival when it came through town
- data entry for medicaid
- receptionist for the state economic development dept
- travel coordinator for same state office
- loan information specialist for So. Dak. Economic Development
- event coordinator, executive asst, and newsletter publisher (3 in 1 job!) for SD Bankers Assn.
- and my latest and greatest job.... mommy and mooch off my hubby!

And my volunteer work:
- Odyssey of the Mind, later named Destination Imagination Coach (I was so bad at this!)
- DI Parent fundraising volunteer
- DI chaperone for the trip to international competition in Tennessee, twice
- PTA member, district representative, and then President
- organized a trike-a-ton for cystic fibrosis
- Governor's Hunt worker: decorated, drove a bunch of guys the hunt, took photos, took the one who got shot to the ER... all that sort of thing. this was actually part of my job, you were required to volunteer.
- host family for Up with People
- host family for Artist in the school
- host family for a foreign exchange student.
- volleyball concessions and wrote a weekly e-news
- 4-H parent volunteer, led a sewing class, an art activity, and had meetings at my house

More..
- I feel like I just updated my resume
- I'm hungry
- I'm always hungry - ha, what's new.
- I just trimmed my bangs and royally screwed them up. So, they got pretty short. Ooops!
- I really enjoy reading all your blogs, so keep updating, my bloggy friends!

Bored yet? ok, we're done..... that's 100!

How to Pee in a Cup

I put on a nice demonstration of how to leave a urine sample in a tiny little pee cup at my last doc appt. I showed 'em all how it's done! I've got the skill and technique mastered, why not share?

Last Friday, I had my pregnancy checkup but forgot to arrange for a sitter or a sister to watch Princess Gracie. Oh, well, I'll take her with me. It's just a quick little checkup. So, silly me, I took along a 2 yr old to my ob appointment.

First thing you do at these checkups is leave a urine sample. No big deal, they have a nice little restroom between the waiting area and the exam rooms, so I just took the princess in with me. First off, she wanted the sharpie marker. Nooooo..... you do NOT get the sharpie marker! I wrote my name on the cup, which incidentally goes all the way around the cup cuz my name is so darn long and the cup is really small. Then I put the marker way up high on top of the towel dispenser. The next preggo woman is gonna wonder where the marker is. Ooops.

I take that back. First thing you do is shut and lock the door. That, I did.

So, I'm peeing in the little tiny cup, and Miss Gracie chooses that exact moment to figure out how to turn a doorknob and open a door. She did a wonderful job! Her first time opening a closed door all by herself! I can't reach the door from the toilet.... I'm peeing in the little tiny cup.... facing the open door.... people are following the nurse to an exam room and I'm screaming at Princess Gracie, so of course they all look. And more peek around to see what's going on too.

Yes, I put on a show for everyone at the clinic. If there were any people there not knowing how to piddle in the little cup they know now!

I rocked the CBest!

Oh yeah!!! I rocked the CBest! That California Basic Educational Skills Test is a 4 hour long reading, writing and math skills exam required for getting into the teaching credential program. All teachers in California have to take it and pass it before stepping into the classroom. I took it this morning.

Had to drive an hour to get to the test site. Found it! I was there with ten or fifteen minutes to spare, so I had time to find a ladies room! Score! My test admission ticket said to be there and ready by 8am. It's Saturday, getting there by 8am was awfully early, but hey, there I was. The registration and instruction process lasted way too long. *yawn*

Testing finally began at 8:40. People! Why'd I have to bust my butt getting here by 8am? Do you not understand that it is Saturday?!?!! AKA Sleep in Day?!?!?! And I left my house at 6:30!!! No, they don't really care.

The test itself was a piece of cake. It was just never-ending. Very lengthy! It took me the entire 4 hrs to finish it up. I was impressed with the anti-cheating measures the proctors took. Wowza.

Well, one more thing I can mark off my college to-do list! The CBest is done! El Fin!

Motorboat, Motorboat...

You know that little rhyme.. motorboat motorboat go so fast!!! Then you make silly noises really fast, ok, do that now shake your head around.... oh yeah.... that totally describes my week!!! It's really going fast. And it can only be described by making that motorboat noise! One day just quickly turns into another and all of a sudden a week has gone by. And then I think, but ... I didn't get anything done! I am afraid the whole summer will sneak by me like this.

I have a very long list of things to do this summer, if this pace keeps up I might not get much done. I did start on a research paper that is due in December. I want to have it done by August so that I don't have to worry about it at all after the baby arrives. So far, getting started on it doesn't mean a whole lot. I chose and author to research and write about, got his book sitting here (unopened as of yet), and did some googling on the guy. That counts as getting started, right?

Saturday I have to go take a big long test as prep for grad school. I'll be taking the CBest. It's a 4 hr long basic skills exam that teachers are required to pass before entering the credential program. Reading, Writing and Math. I'm not too worried about it, but ugh, a 4 hr long test! I'll sure be glad to have it behind me. Then I'll need to sign up and take the CSet. That one I hear is a mother bear. I've also ordered all my books for the fall. Got 3 out of the 4 I ordered; I need 8 books for this one class I will be taking and I want to read all of them before the class begins. I've read 4 already, not recently, but all within 2008 which is good enough for this dusty old brain.

The princesses are all keeping me busy. They are busy! Oldest is working a lot, and she has been playing some coffee shop gigs on the weekends. She finished her second semester of college and will be teaching private swim lessons this summer along with working as a bridal consultant at the dress shop. Her life is so fun! Middle princess is finishing her junior year of high school this week. She's been goofing off pretty bad lately, so I sure hope she does well on her final exams so that she will get passing grades. I really don't want to send her to summer school. Gah! She's smart, just has already shut down her brain for summer. She just turned 17 and still hasn't decided how to spend her birthday money. She got a lot of cash, yet, it's just not quite enough. Oh, to be a teenager! I got to take some time out and have a "date" with my teen girls. We all went and got pedicures together. I tell ya, that was so nice! And we all have really pretty toes!

Little princess never stops. She's always going going going. She's two!!! She's doing well without nursing, although she still asks. Lately she's having a language explosion. I've been waiting for this! So exciting! Just when I started calling around looking for a speech assessment for her, she starts talking up a storm. She must have figured out Mama means business. She's also discovered that getting ready for the day with Daddy is pretty fun stuff. He lets her wear his man-stinky deodorant. Great, now she smells like a man all day. She's also decided that she doesn't care to be "stuck" in her carseat any more. So, I have to wrestle her in, pin her down while buckling this kicking screaming toddler, and then get where I'm going listening to her cries and pleas for freedom. Sure adds to the excitement of an average day!

Baby princess is being a brat. In fact, I think that might be a good name for her. She is sideways now; I'm not so sure that is an improvement over being breech. Her head is on my left, her butt on the right, back up and all arms and legs kicking straight downward. Lemme just say..... uncomfortable! She also likes to arch and push off, like she's trying to get more personal space in there. Well, it sure is nice to know she's like me in wanting some personal space... but, honey, its just a dream for you at this point! Baby brat is also giving me hell with my sugar levels. I have to go in for a Gestational Diabetes test (standard test these days) and so I was checking my sugar levels with my diabetes finger stabbing blood checker thing, and my sugar numbers are way outa wack!!! I'm afraid I'm gonna fail that GD test for sure! I've gone on the diabetes diet and will be stabbing my finger 4x a day hoping for good numbers, but I fear that I am doomed to eat healthy for the rest of this pregnancy. I hope to at least get it under control in a few days and then I'll go fail my test next week. Ugh.

Between the 4 princesses, my overworked sleep deprived husband (who lost his keys and had a temper tantrum over it - similar to Princess Gracie's many daily tantrums), trying to get ahead with school while keeping up with the house and home..... all I can think of to say is that Motorboat noise while shaking my head! Spaz!!!

Got my Bewbies Back!!!

My boobs are Mine! Mine! Mine! Wow - boob freeeeeedom!!!

I haven't nursed the little princess since last Wednesday, 4am. That was 9 days ago. I believe 9 days qualifies as weaned! I am reclaiming the bewbies as my own! Well, sort of... I don't own much of my own body these days as there seems to be a fetus staking claims to most of it too.

Princess Gracie is 27 months old. I've been breastfeeding for 27 months. I've been bitten, cut by little teeth, woken during the night, yanked, pulled, pinched, exposed and just boob abused for 27 months. I'm very excited for this 3 month breastfeeding hiatus that I am beginning!

She is still asking though. I am done but she's still wishing she could nurse. She says "Where boo boo go?" "Happen?" "Stuck?" and "Peeeeeeez!" Totally heart breaking, but still.... I'm on a 9 day streak here, I can't cave now. The boobs belong to ME!

By the way, I'm investing in a pump and glass bottles for the next bambino.

Guilty of Blog Neglect

I've been so busy! Having a great time, but I'm worn out and ready for a lazy day. Today's plan: Sit, lay, eat, repeat. We had my Brother-In-Law and my nephew here for a week, so we did some fun touristy stuff and never slowed down. My daughter also turned 17 a couple of days ago. And... I was trying to keep up with the house and getting my daughter to school and back too. Plus, I had to get three flat tires repaired. Yeah, I said three! Had to keep up appearances and pretend we live like normal people who do their dishes and clean their bathrooms every day. I think I pulled off the illusion nicely. But, I'm worn out!

We went to Knotts Berry Farm... that one I told you about while my husband took over tourguide duty. Then hubby went back to work (two jobs and no time off left me as chief entertainer and taxi driver). So, I took them to the beach (twice), San Diego Zoo, USS Midway Aircraft Carrier Museum, and SeaWorld. I think I walked 500 miles these past few days.

Oh, Sea World was hilarious! Princess Gracie thought that the Shamu trainer was her daddy. She was yelling "Daddy!" repeatedly and clapping and just thrilled to see her daddy swimming with the fishy. What a guy... that daddy is sure special!


I'm all proud of myself for keeping up with the Farmer and the kid. But, wow, being pregnant sure gets in the way of being a tourist. Of course I was always carrying a bunch of stuff, pushing the stroller and/or had Gracie on the leash, taking pictures, and stopping in every ladies room in Southern California. I took plenty of photos... no, not of the ladies' rooms!.... here are a few...


Oh, I got this awesome shot at Sea World during the dolphin show. They ask a volunteer family to participate. The mom and dad stand on the little bridge on the left side of the photo with the Sea World Entertainer guy (in the hat) and the little boy gets to pet the dolphin. Cute! Anyway, the dad stood in front of the mom and so she was leaning around the dad to see the boy... click the photo so you can see it larger and check out Mommy.... actually.... don't look with a full bladder, you'll wet yourself.... take a little potty break then come back and click the pic and take a peek at Mom.

Baby Photo Shoot

Here is our precious little nameless baby. Looks like she's thinking of a good name!

This was her third photo session. She's getting pretty good at posing for the ultrasound camera. This time we got to see her in 4D. Very cool! Her next photo shoot is July 1st. Hopefully she won't be quite so bald at the next modeling session.