Promised pictures

It may be days/weeks before everything is back in place. A few boards may have to be re-done. There are also some unfinished things that the guys will come back for next week so, we are not rushing to get it all put back.. But here are the current before and afters...
Before

After (Just after they finished the last board actually. See all that dust on the floor?!)

After (I can't find a kitchen before and the tile had not been grouted or cleaned up in this picture.)

Before (Actually this was day 1 of installation. Our frig is not usually in front of the phone by the kitchen table!:)

After

Before

After

Notice the fireplace tile.
No more fake green marble!
I was so happy to see that go. And yes, I did take a few swings at it during the demo phase! The entertainment center is a not back in place as I am trying to figure out new furniture placement. I forgot to take before and afters of the hall. I will have to post some more "afters" later when we get it all put back together.

Next up I think I need to get a few rugs...
Does it ever end?

Parents needed

Anyone who would be remotely interested in adopting an 8 year old boy...Please read this post!
And you can keep reading Kelly's blog and join me in frequent and fervent prayer for a boy named Viktor!

Going Private

Video added at the bottom!
No.
I'm not.
Not yet.
But it seems everyone else is.
They are getting creepy comments. Or perhaps they have a healthy fear of strangers looking at their children. Some can see from their site meters that UFB's (unidentified freaky bloggers) are coming to their blogs at weird hours and clicking on pictures of their children multiple times. They fear they may have blog stalkers.

I have wondered about all that from time to time. But according to my site meter I don't have that much traffic. No UFBs in the night. ('cept me when Rob is doing papers and I can't sleep) I don't get creepy comments. No one is negative or mean to me here. So I currently don't see the need for me to do the private blog thing. I feel like my little blog world is being divided into gated communities. I see the need, but it makes me a bit sad.
And honestly...
I'm feeling a bit left out.
What is wrong with me that I don't need to go private? Why am I not worried? Why don't I get more anon. comments? Why don't people visit my blog in the middle of the night? How come other people's kids get clicked on? Could I actually have blog-stalker envy?
Now that is sad!
Not sad in that my blog/life is not interesting enough to rate a stalker. (Which, come to think of it, is kind of sad.)
But SAD in that I could feel left behind by something as silly/creepy as that! I think the "loco" in "mi vida" has gone to my blog head!

Speaking of my crazy life....
Today was the first day in two weeks that there were not installers or repairmen in my house! YEAH!!!! I had the freedom to run around the house in my PJs all day... and I did!
Kolby was at home sick today so we three girls just stayed home... and dusted!
Wow. There is a thick coat of white dust on everything. And I mean EVERYTHING! How could just changing out the floors make everything so dirty? But as soon as we get rid of the dust and get all the furniture put back in place, I'll post some pictures! Overall, I love my new floors and am so happy to have this major big home improvement project behind us! Yeah!

And lastly...We have not had our TV plugged in/hooked up for over a week. I haven't missed it. EK has watched Elmo on the computer every morning and the kids have watched movies on Kolby's little TV when need be. I think I could live with out the big TV for good. (Though I have missed HGTV a little bit.) No one else in my family feels as I do. They are so excited that Rob is hooking it all back up tonight. But I'm a little sad. Without a TV we have had many moments together like the ones in this little video.

Free MySpace slideshows, photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

I think I am going to have to declare some TV free days in the future. Of course my family might counter with some computer free days for me! And that's not even funny. :)

And yes, life has been crazy. I won't go into how crazy, but suffice it to say this week was on par with the week before it. (The one I blogged about last Tuesday.) However, as crazy as these days have been, it hasn't been all bad. As I was rocking EK to sleep tonight I was able to reflect on these last two weeks. I remember a lot of the funny things, lots of laughter, and things that happened to that show me that God has a great sense of humor so I should too. Yes, my kids were/are a handful at times, but they are also the most precious little people! I am still in awe that God has blessed us with these three great kids. Rob and I did nothing to deserve them, but we love them so very, very much! And they are all three growing up so fast! (Is there a way to slow this ride down?) Maybe I have become a little "crazy" myself because I would not trade these days, not even the last two crazy weeks, for anything. Thank you God for my crazy life!

PS I'm having way too much fun with my Playlist over there! I love that site!!!!

"Mi Vida Loca"

I started this post last Tuesday and never had a chance to finish. Life is still crazy so, I'm going to just publish this post "as is" and finish it later... Maybe! At this point I feel the need to journal. Am I recording the beginning of a nervous breakdown? Hope not! :) Read if you dare. Today (3-31-08) is day 7 of the floor installation. Oh boy! corrected

My crazy life. So fitting this week. Why you ask? Let's review the last 7 or 8 days or so.

First some back ground. Last Monday we went back to school from Spring Break. I had a horrible sinus infection that would not allow me to sleep. I averaged 3 to 4 hours of sleep at best. Our washer was broken and had spewed oily stuff all over my clothes. The water heater was putting pebble size white chunks of something in our hot water and stopping up the washer, dishwasher, shower heads etc. The time had changed a week earlier but because we were on Spring Break we were not at all adjusted.

Monday... Our PTA brought the Fort Worth Children's Opera's production of "Carmenella"
to the kid's school. I'm the Cultural Arts PTA person so I got to play hostess, which was really fun. Had I not been sick or had I not had a repair guy coming to my house, I would have totally enjoyed it. My sweet Mom who was on her Spring Break stayed with Ella Kate and let the repairman in. It was a hurried morning. At the last minute I remembered to put on the only clean green thing in my closet. (Never go to an elementary school on St Patrick's Day not wearing green!) I made it to school just in time to greet the "Carmenella" cast. I showed them around going all over the school. They set up , the kids filed in and it began. I was so relieved. About 15 minutes into the show my friend leaned over and whispered that the tag to my sweater was showing in the back. She tried to tuck it in for me but couldn't. About that time I looked down and we both realized I had my sweater on INSIDE OUT!!!! It was hard not to burst out laughing. I had just greeted strangers and gotten up in front of the whole school wearing my sweater inside out! NICE.

I went home to find out that there is a 4 foot 6 inch long piece of PVC like pipe in a water heater called a dipstick. When the repairman pulled the dipstick out of our water heater it was less than an inch long. That means that 4 feet 5 inches of this pipe had disintegrated and clogged everything in our house that gets hot water. And all those things have to be cleaned out or if too clogged, replaced. And the water heater tank needs to be drained weekly until all the stuff is out. AND none of that "cleaning out" stuff is covered by the Home Shield we have on our house. So we will be doing all that ourselves. FUN! But I have to say, I love how much better it feels to take a hot shower now that there isn't a cup of crud blocking up the shower head! :)

Later that day (wearing a different shirt put on the right way) I took Rhett and Ella Kate to get eggs for their class Easter Egg hunts. I thought Rhett would enjoy picking out his eggs, candy and a cheap "take to school" basket. I was wrong. Maybe it was the fact that I made Rhett stand in the shopping cart baby seat to get "BIG" eggs for me off the top shelf that drove him over the edge. I'm not sure. But half way down the crazy crowded Wal-Mart Easter aisle, with his baby sister screaming and pulling all she could grab off the shelf, and an grouchy old woman behind us ramming my heels with her basket if I paused for too long in the bumper to bumper basket traffic... Rhett lost it. "Mom let's just get the eggs and get out of here!" he roared. Every man on the Easter aisle seemed to cheer in agreement and all the women snickered. Rhett turned bright red and melted on to the basket which made it even harder to push. Evidently, he's not a shopper.

Tuesday my fever rocketed. It was raining hard. Mom took EK to school for me. I slept. Finally my fever broke around noon giving me enough time to get up, shower, go to the pharmacy for prescription #3 and pick up EK and the big kids from school. We later met Rob for Taco Tuesday at Rosa's for dinner. I then sent the kids with Rob and set off to Target and Dollar Tree to get some Easter shopping done. I had accidentally left my cell phone at home so Rob gave me his. Long story short, someone took Rob's cell phone out of the outer cell phone pocket of my purse in the Dollar Tree. I was only in there 25 minutes. I realized the phone was gone as I left the store and went back in the store immediately to call it. I wanted to see if I had dropped it in the store. Maybe someone would hear it. When I called it went straight to Rob's voice mail. I knew something was wrong right away. Whoever took the phone had already taken the SIM card out. I can not tell you how infuriated and violated I felt. I cried the whole way home. It really upset me and Rob. To add insult to injury, we found out that somehow we didn't get insurance when we upgraded phones last fall. So someone has Rob's cool new black razor and he has his old phone. I offered him my hot pink razor, but he passed. I'm still sad about it. And I'm not going back to the Dollar Tree unless I lock my purse in the van. But even then I'm not sure. I have since heard that there are between one to three purse snatchings or car break-ins on that corner area every week. Did I mention Target is across right the street? UUUGGGHHH!

Wednesday... Well, I got to start Wednesday before I finished Tuesday. Ella Kate woke up screaming just as I was going to bed around mid-night Tuesday night. She didn't go back to sleep until around 5 am. It was not fun for either of us. The washer repair guy came at 9am. I was not pretty when I greeted him at the door. He fixed the washer anyway. The rest of the day I tried to catch up on over a week of piled up laundry. Wednesday night we were heading to church to eat. They stop serving at 6:30 and Rob doesn't get home until 6 at the earliest. It is always a rushed thing if we are trying to make it for dinner at church. As the kids were getting in the van, I unloaded some top secret Easter stuff from the trunk. I had both arms full and was trying to hide things, so I left the hatch up. Rob didn't realize the hatch was up and backed out to wait for me in the drive way. I knew what had happened as soon as I heard the crash and grinding metal noise. The garage door, door molding and Van hatch all took a hit. Most still work, but aren't near as pretty. We ended up being too late to get dinner at church so we went to Jason's Deli. Due to a potato malfunction, Jason's ended up taking too long and we ended up missing church altogether. Kolby was in tears because she wanted to go to church. It went downhill from there. It was one of those nights that if properly documented on film would inspire any sexually active person to use multiple forms of birth control. Par for the week, Ella Kate had another very tough night.

Thursday... I called to get EK a doctor's appointment before I even got out of bed. (I just knew it was going to be "a virus" but after three nights of little or no sleep, I felt it necessary to have her checked out. ) Since I had spent some major time stuffing Elmo eggs the night before, and since i am a sucker for holidays, I really wanted EK to get to go to her first Easter Party. I also needed her to go to school so I could go help at Rhett's Easter party. So by 9 am I was on a role. I had everything ready for both parties and had a doctors appointment for EK after school. My mom came over to wake up Ek and get her to school for me so I wouldn't be late to Rhett's party. When Mom got EK out of her bed she was hard to wake up and completely covered in snot. I'll spare you the gory details, but I have never seen that much dried snot in my life. SO disgusting! Poor little thing just cried and cried. And she had no voice. And she had fever. Change of plans. EK did not go to school. My sweet Mom kept her and I went to Rhett's party as planned but a tad late. That afternoon we found out it was more than a virus. Double Ear Infections. (EK's first ear infection ever) And a sinus infection. Happy Easter! But I was happy to get an antibiotic and some drops to help EK sleep at night.

All dressed up to go to the doctor... I couldn't let that cute dress go to waste!

If you are still reading this LONG entry, you might find it hilarious that as I was typing this (Tuesday, March 25) I was interrupted by a phone call from my Mom. All her fire alarms were going off and the Fire Truck was on the way. "Could I please come help her get their cars out of the garage?" No kidding. It really happened. I even took pictures to prove it.

Turns out my parents hadn't changed the batteries in one smoke detector, but all the smoke detectors and alarm system are electrically wired to go off together, so everything went off. (Thank goodness they don't have fire sprinklers!) Ours smoke detectors work the same way but they usually give us a beep warning before going off like there is a fire. (Question. If the smoke detectors are all wired together electronically, why the need for batteries? ) My parents didn't get a beep warning. Instead, they got 6 screaming alarms and 5 firefighters standing in their living room (who were very annoyed at being called out for a dead battery.) At least the neighborhood kids got a show.

It's just another example of how crazy life has been around here. That's all my time to blog for the day....

Picture Perfect?

Not exactly!

Good Friday

I had so many things to type today, but it can wait.
Please say a prayer for the family of Suzanne Catchings Motes tonight.
Suzanne passed away this afternoon.
No more pain.
No more tears.
God speed sweet Suzanne.

Spring Break

Well I didn't mean for our Spring Break to be a break from blogging, but that is what happened.

I'm afraid this Spring Break was a bit dull as far as the kids are concerned.

We had a normal soccer Saturday last weekend.

Kolby had a stomach virus from Friday night until Sunday around noon.

One of Rob's aunts (who we really didn't know very well) passed away last week. She was only 58 and had just found out the week prior that she had cancer. The family was devastated as anyone would be. Rob really wanted to go to Denison to the funeral, but I really didn't want him to drive all that way by himself with one arm still in a sling. So we all went! Nothing like a last minute family road trip! Sunday night we spent the night in Plano in a new to us hotel which the kids loved! (Gotta love that Priceline "name your own price" site!) We took a portable video game system that hooked up to the room's big 42 inch flat screen. The kids and Rob were in gamer heaven. I think I know what Rob wants our next big ticket purchase to be. I however fell in love the sofa in the room and would love to find one just like it for our house! Since our sofa is 12 years old and showing it's age, I bet we buy a new sofa first.

We got up early Monday and drove to Denison in the rain. Rob went to his aunt's funeral while I stayed at his parent's house with all the kids. On our way home we went by IKEA in Frisco (YEAH!) and then we went west and hit "The Incredible Pizza Company" for four hours.

It was really fun as apparently no one in that area was on Spring Break and we pretty much had the joint to ourselves.My favorite was go- kart racing with both Kolby and Rhett. EK loved the little rides in her area. The big kids loved it all!


We got home just in time for bed and were all completely tuckered out.

Tuesday we did nothing. NADA. Stayed in our PJs all day. I loved it. The kids did to, until they realized it was 7pm and we had not "done anything fun" all day. sigh.

Wednesday we went for donuts, played outside, and ate at Chili's with Daddy for dinner.

Thursday was our big CHUCK E CHEESE outing followed by soccer practice. To round out the day Ella Kate fell into the neighbor's pool fully clothed! Kolby immediately pulled her out by her feet. EK didn't even cry. She seemed pleased as punch to be all wet and the center of attention. However, Mommy and our poor neighbor were/are a bit shaken up! I have thanked God (and still am) that EK's big splash was just that. I am well aware that it could have been so horrible. Rob and I decided that EK can't go next door with out a floatie on from here on out.

Today I went to the doctor to find out why I have been feeling so blah and coughing non stop for a week or so... another nasty sinus infection! And I also have symptoms of acid reflux. So my short lived coffee drinking career is over. (I just started in December) A "bland, nothing fried, nothing spicy" diet was ordered. Fun Fun! Chips and salsa are out for a while. In the mean time Rob is off braving the Zoo with our three monkeys. They have been begging to go to the Zoo. What is it with kids and animals?

That about sums it up for us.
As exciting to read as wall paper.... AND you know how I LOVE (not!) wall paper!

Unlike waking up to snow last Friday, today we woke up to a balmy 70 degrees. It is now 88. We could see 90 or above before the day is done. I guess spring did break through this week! Happy Friday!

Snow?

For weeks I have been longingly looking at everyone else's "Snow Day" pictures. Kolby and Rhett both went to sleep last night praying we would get some of that elusive white fluffy stuff and have a rare Texas snow day.
This is what we woke up to this morning!

6:30AM
We still have school today because it was just a freak over night dusting. As you can see the roads are perfectly clear. Right now there's hardly a cloud in the sky and the sun is out. But for 30 early morning minutes before school, Kolby and Rhett had a blast out in the snow!

The mini snowman we didn't have time to dress!

Ella Kate even woke up and reluctantly joined in the fun.

Our little snow bunny.

Even though it didn't last very long, we are thrilled to say we saw snow in 2008!
8:30 AM
What a fun way to kick off SPRING BREAK. Happy Friday!

Things that go "crash" in the night....

Remember the other day when I blogged about the "Leap Day Madness" that took over my body when I was on a ladder changing a light bulb in the kitchen? And I pulled all the wallpaper down? Well a few nights later, Rob and I heard a huge crash in the night. It appears in my fit of wallpaper removal, I failed to properly secure the plastic cover sheet thingy back up into the (ugly) light box. Two nights later it came crashing down around 3AM. It not only scared the ba-jeevies out of us, it broke. And can't be put back up. UG!

Luckily, no one and nothing else was hurt... unless you consider my do-it-yourselfer pride. I am wondering why I think I can do all this stuff when I could not even change a light bulb? And as for that light bulb... The next day it and the one next to it went out! There was a sizzle sound and poof, they were dark! I think the whole light fixture contraption has gone bad and needs to be replaced. But I don't want to replace it! I want to take it down. NOW! This has fueled my burning desire to take thet light box down myself. Of course then there might be the small matter of a big gaping the hole in our ceiling... Yes. I think I need professional help.Before the madness struck... Well this picture was actually taken five years ago, but you can see the busy wall paper and the ugly, albeit functioning, light box.

After... As Crazy as is it sounds, I still like the way it looks now better! Torn wall paper backing, broken light and all! The madness may have outlasted Leap Day! (And YES! This picture was strategically taken to hide the mess in my kitchen!)

I had a bid from a fix-it man to take the light box down, texture the walls and put in recessed lights. However he hasn't been returning my calls. (Bigger fish to fry?) Since I was not to thrilled with the last work he did for us, I'm OK with finding someone else to do this. But who? And when?And most importantly, how much is it gonna cost me?

So back to square one. Living in a half lit kitchen with torn wallpaper backing on the walls and a broken ugly light box hanging from the ceiling is not what I envisioned when I started all this. Got to love home improvement projects! It's bugging me to death! But I spent all my "house" money on floors.

Speaking of floors... Our floor installation has been pushed back until the last week of the month. The tile was not in and then there was Spring Break and Good Friday to contend with. So March 24th is the big day!

Since I am out of $ and Rob still just has one good arm, (and since recent events have made me doubt my home improvement skills) we are just going to have to live with it for now.
I'm going to try not to let it drive. me. nuts.
It's just. a. kitchen.
People in Kenya are happy with fire pots and a hot plate in the corner.
I can live with this.
It won't drive me nuts.
I am just going to focus on getting my house as clean and organized as I can before the new floor installation.
And not. look. up!
That will work.
Right?

Maybe we'll leave town for Spring break...

If you are in Texas today...

1. Please go VOTE (and Caucus) in your parties primary!

2. Put the kids in bed early tonight and feed them a great breakfast in the morning because TOMORROW is the first part of the TAKS test.

3. Carry a tank top and a heavy coat in your car at all times because the weather is crazy! Freezing cold one day, burning up the next.

4. Check out the March issue of Texas Monthly. The cover story is one that I have discussed a few times on this blog in the last two years. Also there is a "review' of Oak Hills Church where Max Lucado preaches. And if you live in Houston...be glad your DA finally resigned. Wow! That guy has issues!

5. Have a great day! :)

Enough already!

I have been called by a different political candidate/party everyday, several times a day, wanting to talk to me about my primary vote. The commercials are everywhere. The election is all the news/entertainment/tv/radio/internet people want to talk about. Even my HGTV is dogged with commercials from Hillary, Obama, McCain and Mike Huckabee (Really?! Would someone please tell him McCain is not going to ask him to be VP so give up already!) They are even coming to my town and causing traffic problems. (For almost 8 years Bush has been coming here regularly and the traffic kept flowing. Hillary is in downtown for 30 minutes and the interstate is a mess.)

The parties haven't even picked their candidates and I am already tired of "the election." Is there any way to just vote now and skip all of this election stuff for the next 9 months? DON"T MISUNDERSTAND.. I will vote. I believe every person who is able should vote. I will even try to vote early. BUT REALLY! Do we have to hear about each breakfast, lunch and dinner each candidate ate, who they ate with, where they were going, where they stopped, what nit they picked, what babies they kissed and which opponent they bashed... EVERYDAY... for 9 months? End Rant.

On a happier note...
HAPPY LEAP DAY! I know a guy who claims to only be turning 10 today. The world and mirror say different. So cool to be born on leap year though! Think of how much his parents saved on birthday parties and gifts? :)

I went a little crazy in my kitchen today. I'll call it leap day madness. I got up on a ladder to change a light bulb and an hour later all the wall paper had been pulled off my walls! Yeah. I know. What was I thinking? We do plan to texture eventually, but it is not in the budget right now. Soooo... I think I am going to just tint some primer, paint the drywall and live with it until I can figure out what to do next. I'm considering bead board instead of texture. I love the look of painted bead board. But my timing is lousy. There are only two rooms in this house in which I do not have a major project going. Nothing is finished. All of it will take a lot of woman hours on my part as my handy husband just had surgery and can not help much with just one good arm. We are having new floors put in 65% of the house next week and I have not even started packing up stuff or clearing out space in the other 35% of the house for all the furniture from the 65% to be moved to for four or five days. I still have to figure out how we will function without the use of the kitchen and laundry room for two days. What about my refrigerator? I need a plan.. and maybe a clone of me to get this all done. And on top of all this, I pulled down all the wall paper in my kitchen. Today. While changing a light bulb? I need a design/decorating intervention!

I know! The next politico call I get I 'll tell them that I will vote for the candidate who will come (or send some able bodied staffers) to help me finish all my decorating projects... Do you think any of them need my vote that badly? :)

Happy Weekend Bloggies!

P.S. Ella Kate has pink eye. No pictures again this weekend. Should I just give up?

Found the Camera!

Yeah!
(Random post warning)
Rob's doctor's appointment went well. He is still restricted from using his arm and will be in the sling for at least another 4 weeks, but he is back at work. (Yeah! I mean, boo! :) We were able to squeeze in lunch at the Cheesecake Factory before we sped back home for Rob to make his class. The sweet tamale corn cakes and white chocolate macadamia nut swirl cheesecake we split almost made up for the 7.5 hour car trip... But there was this matter of someone moving a house down 290 and blocking all west bound lanes. We traveled 37 miles in about an hour behind that thing. Not fun! Really! House moving down major highways should be against the law! Somehow I am sure that it is.

On a brighter note... Here are some pictures of the samples of the new floor which we will hopefully have installed next week.

This distressed wide plank wood will be in our living areas, dining areas and halls.

The tile will be in the kitchen and laundry room.

This same tile (only 13 inch instead of 18 inch)will also replace the green fake marble ceramic tile around our fireplace. (YEAH!) The guy at the floor store laughed when I said that I personally want to demo that tile. It will give me great joy to take a hammer and smash it all to smithereens!! I am so excited about all of these changes. I've dreamed of replacing these floors since we moved into this house 6 years ago. Can't wait!

And lastly, here are some pictures of little Miss EK aka Tooty-pants.

She loves to play in the kitchen that Santa brought her, but not exactly in the way that Santa, Mommy or the manufacturer envisioned! :0 Happy Wednesday!


P.S. I have a question for you. Be honest now... How many of you regularly (as in never miss unless you are really sick) attend Wednesday night church? I'm just wondering....

Blog much?

No, not lately.
I read your blogs but don't have the words, time or attention span to write for mine.
We have managed to put about a 800 miles a week on the van since we purchased it in January. I stayed in my fifth hotel this month last Saturday night. I have not seen my home church two consecutive Sunday mornings in a row since Christmas. I can not remember when I last saw an empty laundry basket. And WOW! Weeds sure do pop up fast in that backyard!
I'm ready for some down time at home. After this week, I might just get my wish! But first,
Rob and I go back to his doctor in Houston on Tuesday. Back in forth in a day = 7 + hours of driving:( Rob is itching (literally and figuratively) to have his big shoulder pad/pillow and sling removed, along with as some of the restrictions lifted. He wants to get back to work too! He loved being home for a few days, but we are going on day 8 now. I think he has visions of not being able to see the top of his desk for months with all that has likely piled up.
HOWEVER, while Rob was home we were able to go and do something we have wanted to do for a LONG time but never seemed to have the time... We went together to the floor store and ordered new flooring for a big chunk of our house! YEAH! I can't wait to get it in and get the house back up to snuff! I'll post pictures (Which reminds me that I can not find my camera~OOPS! Don't tell!)
Our frequent travels will die down a bit after this week. This is also the last week of basketball for K & R and the first week of soccer R&R . And I just realized I forgot to get EllaKate's 18 month pictures taken! (She is 19 months old and will be 20 months old on March 5th) YIKES! How did I let that slip my mind/to do list???? This is truly one of my most favorite stages. A photo shoot for my littlest Miss is definitely going to have to find it's way on the calendar!
See.
Busy
happy
life.
Just not much to blog about
or time to blog.
How bout you?
What's up?
Does anyone even still read this after my dear friend BST erased me from his link list? :)
Just wondering?

One Arm

Last weekend is a blur. First and foremost Rob's surgery went just as the doctor hoped and all is well...or slowly on it's way to well. Rob's doctor explained that the surgery is the easy part. Rehab and compliance with the restrictions is the hard part. Rob is doing pretty well on both of those fronts, which means he basically can not use his right arm at all. And yes. He is right handed. He can not drive, or write, or open jars. It is hard to do things with one arm when you are used to two.

My dad has had to do that for his entire life. I am always amazed how well Dad does considering he only has one hand that works. Rob may find a new appreciation for my Dad in the next two weeks.. and I may have a new appreciation for my mom!

Robs days are now divided between rehab/exercise, ice, and pain pill intervals. My days are spent keeping up with everyone and helping him keep up with the exercise, ice and pain pills. Ella Kate was scared of Rob's pillow sling at first, but was thrilled to find Daddy home again today. She loves her Daddy! Rhett and Kolby have been really sweet and are trying to help Rob however they can. My parents have helped us so much with the kids the last few days! Our sweet Robby and 'Ria have also pitched in. How do people live without family? I don't know how we would make it without ours! Rob will be home from work for one more week before we head back to Houston to (hopefully) have the doctor release him back to work.

On the home front...
I am wondering how 5 people can create so much laundry in a week. Really! Do we have too many clothes? Are we super sloppy? Why does everything get so dirty so fast? There is not a closet in this house that I do not need to go through and clean out. I should get rid of at least half of the stuff we have managed to once again accumulate. How does it get so out of hand so fast? I feel like I am always cleaning out and putting up, but I never finish. It's a tad overwhelming to be honest. But as Shel Silverstein once said "There is only one way to eat an elephant... ONE. BITE. AT. A. TIME."

Off to start on that elephant! Here's to two functioning arms, eaten elephants and clean closets! Happy Monday!

Happy Valetines Day!

Wow having three kids at Valentines wore me out this year. 9 teachers gifts and over 50 "Valentines" later, I will be a bit happy to see cupid go! :) But no time to rest! Rob and I head down to Houston today to go to his pre-op appointment. Tomorrow morning he will have surgery to repair his torn labrum. I am a little nervous about how he will feel and what he will be able to do in the coming weeks. I 'm also a little nervous because Ella Kate has become quite the Mommy's girl. I hope she will not give my Mom too much trouble. It's hard to leave a little one at this age. But, aside from the surgery, it will be nice to get away for tonight just Rob and me.
The last time Rob had shoulder surgery, he asked me to marry him. Yes. Rob was under the influence of narcotics when he asked me to be his wife. And I still said yes. Wonder what he will ask me while he is "under the influence" this time? Wonder if I'll still say yes? :) On that note...

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!

Lipstick

So much for Estee Lauder #710!
Ella Kate has a fascination with lipstick. Yesterday when she fell asleep(or so I thought) watching Elmo in the floor, I thought I could hop in the shower. Mid shower I thought I heard something. I grabbed a towel and went dripping into the living room to find this. It isn't the first time this has happened, just the first time I thought to grab a few pictures before cleaning up. I don't think the rug will survive this one.
This is why God invented Mother's Day Out!

Double Digits

10 Years Old.
My first baby girl is 10 years old today.
Wow.
If I close my eyes and think back, I can almost feel the little warm pink newborn swaddled and sleeping on my chest so early that rainy February morning ten years ago.

We were both exhausted from a long night of labor which had ended around 5am when little Miss Sara Kolby Grosz made her world debut. Rob and I called and woke everyone up early that morning to tell them "It's a Girl!" Everyone says this about their baby, but Kolby really was such a beautiful baby girl. (Well, once they cleaned her up and her nose plumped out from being squished inside the labor canal!)
Kolby seemed to be born with her eyes wide open. I'll never forget my first moments holding her. Those navy blue eyes calmly stared back at me as she took in the first sights of her new world. She was so content for a newborn. She barely even cried when she was born prompting her slightly drugged Mommy to ask "Why isn't she talking?" My question was met by giggles from the nurses. They must have thought "first time Mom."
It sounds so weird to say this, but Kolby was a confident little baby. She knew just what to do to nurse, which was great since I was clueless. She slept at will and let us know if she needed something. She was a pretty easy baby...for the first week or two at least! ;)

And now she is ten. A big girl who likes to listen to her I-pod, play with her Webkinz, and hang out with her friends. She wants to get a cell phone (uh..NO!) and talks about the car she wants to drive someday. (Be still my heart!) But no matter how grown up she thinks she is, when I look at her I can still see that confident blue eyed baby I met so early ten years ago this morning!

Last week one of Kolby's teachers stopped me in the hall at school to say how much she enjoyed having her in class. "I just love your daughter. I wish I had a whole class of Kolby's," she said. I was truly touched by her words and very proud. But I was also a little ashamed because my knee-jerk reaction was almost to say something like "My Kolby? Really?" But I stopped myself because I knew the teacher was very sincere and I know Kolby is a great little girl. In the hustle and bustle of day to day life I'm afraid I loose sight of that. I feel like I am always having to get on her for this and that. Mostly little things. I sometimes forget to sit back and see the big picture. I don't always acknowledge what a great little girl God has given us. But not today. Today I am so grateful for my little girl. God has blessed me through Kolby in countless ways in the last decade. I can't imagine life without her sweet smile and tight hugs!

So Happy, Happy, Birthday my sweet, sweet 10 year old girl! Watching you grow up is one of the greatest blessings and adventures of my life. Though I hope it goes by slowly, because it is hard to let go of something you love so, so much, I get excited thinking about the amazing woman God will form in you in the decades to come... And I don't want to miss a minute of it! I love you forever!
Mommy

Funk Fighters

It's official. I have had my winter funk. But I think it is lifting, thanks to a few days of blue skies and hopefully a break in the winter virus season. I don't like to blog when I feel funky. It feels like I'm spreading gloom. However I have learned a few tricks over the years to help kick the funk. I thought I would share them here for anyone else fighting the dreaded winter funk. These things have really helped me this time around...

1. Clean the house. Or just one room. Really well. Nothing makes me happier than a clean, orderly room that smells of Fabuloso and glass cleaner.

2. Get out of the house. Even if it is just a trip to the library or mall, get out. Walk. See people. Smile.

3. Buy yourself fresh flowers and put them where you can see them.

4. Get out of bed! Drink one cup of coffee (no more) drink tons of water and cut out sweets and carbs.

5. Do something for someone else but don't tell them. Even something little. It will warm your heart.

6. Pray outside of your bed. Pray all day. At stop lights, and in carpool line. Pray for God to use you and remove the funk from your mind and heart so you can think and feel clearly.

7. Pretend your kids are your best friends kids for a few hours. You will be nicer to them and see them in a different light.

8 Make a healthy meal, set the table, don't answer the phone and DINE with your family. Even have a healthy dessert like berries and cream. Dining feeds the soul where as just eating only fills the tummy.

9. Take a long walk. Even if it is cold out- bundle up! If it is too cold, go walk in a mall or find an indoor track. Just walk fast and hard.

10. Plan for spring. Look at your spring clothes.(Yes this can be a bit depressing in pasty white winter skin, but it might push you into thinking of warmer, sunnier days.)


And of course, if you think it might be more than a seasonal funk or rut, talk to your doctor. I have had to do that before. In fact I have many friends who at one time or another needed to get some medical help to fight a funk. There is no shame in that. It will eventually lift, and you will feel better. Believe that.

Have any funk fighting secrets you want to share? I can always use some more to add to my arsenal!

G.N.O.

We had a great time. Here is a look at Kolby's Birthday Girls Night Out (of town).
Yes, I know this music is LOUD! It has to be for you to appreciate the weekend!

Oh yeah... As I thought might happen, after I got it in gear to take the girls THIS weekend because The Hannah Montana Movie Concert was supposed to be only a "1 week run," Disney decided "TODAY" to "let the movie run it's course!" Read it here. But I'm glad we have next weekend at home.
And for those of you sitting on the edge of your seats about the Dodgeball Tournament... In the second biggest sports upset of the weekend, a three-peat championship was not to be had by the "Tuscan Raiders" (aka: old guys). Some young whippersnappers from ACU took them out early. But still, a good time was had by all.