Contests

Go to Momsblogging to find my Contest Frenzy column for many more contests!

Nell is having a give-away on her blog, Casual Friday Everyday. Win a free year to a menu planning service called “menu planning central!” This is a very generous gift, enter by Sept 15. ($239.64 value)


I am having a couple of give-aways for my Blogaversary! Enter for a new DVD of the movie Joshua on my Blogaversary Give-away! Ends on Friday, August 24th. I am also having a contest for a $25 gift certificate to Amazon.com, answer these 13 questions about my blog by Wednesday, August 29th. On Friday I will be having a give-away for a 1lb bag of Little Miracles Diapers and Pails detergent from Reversal Miracles.

Life from my laptop is having a Back to School Contest sponsored by Momagenda.

Last week My Two Boys and Signing Time started a series of give-aways of sign language products. Week two is a bit different, email with the answer to a question. Contest ends Friday at midnight, then week 3 starts up.

Mums the Wurd had a couple of contests, but they do not seem to post the winners. There are several great give-aways going on at Mums the Wurd right now: All things baby...and more for a $25 gift certificate to The Polkadot Platypus' eBoutique, ends Sunday, August 26th.

Pinks and Blues Girls always have the most spectacular contests, don't they? Well, they certainly have managed to keep up the standard on this Little Girly-Girl Giveaway! Wow, that is a lot of girly-girl goodness! Ends Wednesday, August 29th at 3 PM EST. And the Primarily Pink Contest for the moms ends MONDAY, AUGUST 27th at 5 PM EDT. Win a $50 Gift Basket from Be So Beautiful Baby Gifts, ends FRIDAY, AUGUST 24th at 3 PM EDT.

Five Minutes for Mom is always having great give-aways. The KooKoo CaChoo Baby Blanket is still open for entry. Does Your Toddler Want A Comfy Easy PC? enter by August 24th!

Lessons from the Scrapbook Page is having an End of Summer Blog-Abration! There are so many prizes, ends August 31st! Lisa’s Baby Bootie Contest is really cute. It’s Potty Time… a great book for those of you with toddlers.

Scribbits is having her Write-Away Contest, and every Saturday she gives away some adorable product she has found.

Kailani is having a $50 give-away to Olive Kids at An Island Review!

Would you like to win a Pink Plaid Funky Lunchbox from KooKoo Bear Kids? Two Moms in A Blog is giving one away, and you can earn up to 5 entries.

Blue Thistle Books is having a big giveaway, a Cuisinart Pure Indulgence 2 QT Frozen Yogurt, Ice Cream & Sorbet Maker…. and a huge Back to Homeschool Sale throughout the month of August!


ModMom is giving away a Botticelli 4-bike storage rack, leave a comment with the answer to a question by August 31st. How about a dyson dc07 pink vacuum? Enter by October 1. kaboost? ModMoms got that, too! Enter by August 31st. Go to mod*mom for more information on all 3 give-aways.

Growing A Life is celebrating baby Flybaby's birthday week with loads of prizes for September 3-7. Go check out the prizes and find out how to enter.


Summer from Summers Nook is having a little give-away in her End of Summer Party Giveaway of an adorable Hannah Anderson outfit with some sleepers, and a second winner will win a package of sleepers. Ends Friday, August 24th.


The Pumpkin Patch is having an end of summer party. There are several blogs doing give-aways with her party, stop buy and check it out.

Thursday Thirteen~ Blogaversary Contest

Instead of just a give-away for my blogaversary, I decided it would be fun to do a contest inspired by No Diet Coke for Mommy! She ran a TT contest while on vacation, ensuring we'd be back over and over to find all the 13 things she had us hunting for while she was gone. I won the $25 gift certificate!

Now I shall do the same thing: 13 questions for you to answer about my blog. And I will give the winner a $25 gift certificate to Amazon.com.
1) This contest is open to anyone who can use Amazon.com, the gift certificate comes in an email, so I don't even need an address! (if you would really like the certificate to be from somewhere else, I'm open to that, too)
2) Email the answers to qtpies5(at)msn(dot)com.
3) Contest ends Wednesday, August 29th. Winner to be announced Sept. 1st.
4) Winner will be picked by the respondents with the most answers correct randomly drawn by one of my kids. No, family and friends, you can't win! Sorry, but you know me too well.

Don't forget my Blogaversary Give-away! for the movie Joshua. And tomorrow there will be another give-away starting!

1. What is my favorite sitcom/tv show? I love this show! Its the only show we've bought on DVD. But I wouldn't watch it at first because we thought it was so stupid it would dumb us down. (is that enough hints?)
2. Where were my first 3 kids born?
3. What is my one true phobia?
4. Who is my favorite author? (there are two listed)
5. Why would my husband be afraid to give me jewelry?
6. What was the topic of my very first Thursday Thirteen?
7. What did Devon do to shave time off his swim that made his father gag?
8. Boys are pretty gross, but what is the most disgusting thing my boys have said they would eat for money, and for how little bit of money?
9. You have to have a sense of humor when you have lots of kids! What is my favorite come-back to the question "Don't you know what causes that?" (there are two answers, either one is fine!)
10. Here's a tough one: What sport is a "religion" to our youth group?
11. What did we tell our kids is the most powerful weapon on Earth?
12. Besides the computer and blogging, what am I addicted to? (sick, twisted addicted, according to the kids) Not coffee or chocolate!
13. Who was the uninvited guest at our ladies night out?

I will answer these next week with links to the posts.
If you are not interested in playing, then you should at least have something fun to take away from here! The Perfect Gift is the perfect post to get a laugh, enjoy! There is also a funny story on my post Day 2 of the blog party!

Wordless Wednesday~ Look what I Can do!

There's no stopping him! He's also climbing up the couch and standing on the back of them.
Don't forget my Blogaversary Give-away!

More contests!

Don't forget my Blogaversary Give-away!

Adventures in Babywearing is giving away a super cute baby pouch from Baby Dagny, who is also have a huge sale! I love, love that cute pouch, and I'm bummed it is sold out, so I really hope to win it. My kids love to carry Sam around, and this would be perfect for them, my sling is pretty big, and my wrap is REALLY big, so I know they would love something more sized to them. Plus it is really funky!


There is a great Back To School Giveaway from Two Moms In A Blog, win a personally monogrammed Funky Plaid lunch box from Koo Koo Bear Kids.

Recently I won a super cute sleeper for Sam from Apples N' Oranges, and they are at it again with a really great black onsie from Babes in Black! This one ends Wednesday night, so hurry!

Yippee!

Don't forget my Blogaversary Give-away!

I got a check for $76.17 for 3 secret shopper jobs! Those were my biggest jobs, and they were PAINS in the butt! I wish I had been checking for customer service in some of them instead of what I was shopping for, because heads would have been flying if that were the case! It took 31 minutes to get help on one place! And one manager came over asked if I could wait for her to get off her break, and I told her I had already been waiting for 27 minutes, and she shrugged and walked off to her break! Seriously! But that wasn't what I was evaluating, and they instructed me to wait for 35 minutes before leaving. One of the other jobs was easy and great, the other was to check that a company had taken down all signs of the brand of company that they used to be under, but they had not, and I had to take pics of it all and send them in. No idea what all happens with that, but it was pretty easy, and the best paying.
My favorite jobs are the food jobs, I go order a meal, check out some stuff, report on it and they pay me and buy my meal.

Blogaversary Give-away!

One year ago today I started blogging! I am not really sure what I thought would come of it, but I thought it would be a nice way to share with family and friends what my kids were up to and share pictures. Turns out that the only really close family that reads it regularly is my mom, but I am so happy with where this is going for me.

To celebrate I want to give away something that has touched my life in some way. Years ago I had some very crushing, shattering things happen to me. I felt so broken and lost and wondered why God even let me live. I did get through it, God is so good! I know one day that my experience will be used for God's glory and to help others, and I welcome that day.

One night, as I was working an overnight shift, I was watching this movie, Joshua, which happened to be on the shelf of movies. I was just trying to stay awake, but what happened was so moving that I just couldn't forget it. Through this movie I realized that breaking my life into little shards allowed God to make something more beautiful than what it was before! It gave me a hope I hadn't known and a desire to get to that beautiful part of my life!

Aside from that, this is just an incredible, family friendly, amazing movie. Go here to watch a trailer for Joshua. This is a brand new, unopened DVD of Joshua.

To enter:

1. Leave a comment. That's all! Make sure I can find you, if you don't have a blog, please leave an email for me. I'm sick, so I don't feel like hunting someone down, thanks!

2. Blog and share the love for a second entry, let me know in your comment that you did it.

This give-away will run through midnight Friday, August 24. I will announce the winner on Saturday.

Keep checking back, I have another give-away planned and a contest on Thursday!

A book review

The Melody Carlson blog tour is from August 20-24th, and I am on board.



I was given a copy of Melody's book Mexico, which is the third book in her Notes from a Spinning Planet series. This series follows a young 19-year-old girl named Maddie through her adventures with her Aunt Sid, who is a reporter.
In the book Mexico, Maddie and Aunt Sid have many minor and major things happen to them, or end up witnessing them, anything that can go wrong, does. A running theme in the book is alcholism, but it is mixed with adventure and friendships and some other lessons. Maddie observes a new friend in her life being destroyed by alcholism. What can she do to help? She does seek advice from adults, which is refreshing. This book is written from a Christian point of view, but I'm torn on whether she should have added more spirituality to it, or if that was just enough for a non-Christian to not be turned off by the book. Maddie does things realistically they way a teen would handle things, not how we want Christians to handle things. I also have not decided if I will let my teen daughter read the book. I do want my daughter to learn some of the points brought up in this book, like being aware of your surroundings and taking heed of that voice that tells you that something is not right, but I don't want her having to see these tough topics yet, either. Over all, it was a pretty good book.

About Melody
Melody Carlson is the winner of the RITA Award and the Gold Medallion and has published over ninety books for adults, children, and teens, including Finding Alice, Crystal Lies, and the Diary of a Teenage Girl series. Carlson is the mother of two grown sons and lives in a "cabin in the words" near the Cascade Mountains in central Oregon with her husband and a chocolate lab retriever. A full-time writer and part-time gardener, biker, skier, and hiker, Carlson can be found on the Internet at http://www.melodycarlson.com/.


Don't forget about my Blogaversary Give-away!

Guess what??

Its finally time to reveal my secrets!
See that little count down to the left?? The one that says "Blogaversary 1 day"????
Yep, tomorrow is my blogaversary! And I have a couple of events planned for this week.
Tomorrow I will be starting a giveaway, and then on Thursday I am having a contest with a prize. There may be another little prize or two tucked up my sleeve, you never know!

We interupt this blog.....

for a special announcement. The Qtpie Family is too sick to do anything. We are hacking up pieces of lung left and right, we are filling trash cans with tissues of snot, and visions of NyQuil are dancing in our heads. (visions FROM the NyQuil is more like it!)

OK so I have to blog, I'm doing the 30 day blogging challenge that Nell at Casual Friday Every Day is having. But we are so drugged up and so sick that we don't want to do anything. Except drink more drugs.

I will still not admit camping would be more fun. Even though it would.

Can you believe this?

I think most people know that I am insane and want to have twins. I don't care if they are both boys or girls or one of each, or if they are identical or fraternal. I just want twins. I know, I must be sick.
But here is something I have never prayed for or hoped for, and I know I will never go that direction! If it happened to me, then I would be fine, but I am not so crazy as to actually want this to happen!
Calgary woman gives birth to identical quadruplets! This is truly amazing. The children are identical, it was completely natural conception. I don't think I have ever heard of this happening before. They also have a little toddler, too.
Thanks, Michelle, for linking to that article!
I think this is probably as exciting as the Duggars having thier 17th baby. Certainly more amazing!

Sam did it!

I have been trying to teach Sam some basic sign language since Sunday when he was attempting to imitate the girl who was signing at church.
Tonight while nursing Sam did the sign for milk! I was so excited!!! He watched me to it several times before nursing and after he started and then when I looked away and stopped, he thought and then held up his hand where he could see it and he did the sign.
We'll be working hard on that now!

Nursing moms!

I've been a nursing mom with all 7 of my kids. I have never had a kid who was willing to be covered up, though. It is tough being modest and still nursing when your child needs it. I was really good at it, but with my last two kids my cup size is double what it was for the first 5 kids. It is MUCH harder to not be exposed!










So when I came across this product I was just totally head-over-heels in love with it! And the attached burp cloth is just a big ol' bonus!
Mom4Life is giving one away. I will be spreading word of this incredible product because I think it will be a life saver for many women. This week's contest ends Wed the 22nd at 9PM PST.

WooHoo!

We're not going camping! We're not going camping! We're not going camping!

Praise God for fevers and headaches and coughing and lots and lots of snot!

Babywearing

I love to wear my baby. I have tried 3 brands of ring slings with little success. I thought I loved the Over the Shoulder Baby Holder, but when Sam started standing up in it I knew I had to find something else.
Sam likes to be held. I like to hold him. But I need my hands free with 6 other kids. I finally chose a wrap and bought it. I love my wrap!
When I walk with Sam in a stroller he looks around, but mostly just sits there. When I wear him in the wrap he grabs for tree branches, squeals, tries to fly (at least that is what that arm flapping looks like), talks to people, and generally interacts with the world. It is like two different babies. He is never afraid someone is going take him away from mom, so he is comfortable with everyone talking to him. He is safe and secure.
That is why I love wearing my baby. Not to mention that he can't get into things when I am wearing him. Or take his diaper off. Or eat cat food (or worse).

Go tell Renee why you love wearing your baby. Baby you will be rewarded.

Contests

Check out my Contest Frenzy post at Momsblogging for more great contests!
Update**
I can't believe I missed this one!
You can enter to win a $25 gift certificate to Mom 4 Life! Just sign the Mr. Linky and be sure to link toAdventures in Babywearing as well as Mom4Life.com for a chance to win before this Friday August 17, 11 PM (CST) when a winner will be picked at random. If I win, there will be a few more Babylegs at our house! I even got my s-i-l hooked on them!

My Two Boys and Signing Time is having a series of give-aways of sign language products. A winner will be drawn at random this Friday after midnight for Week One.


Shannon at Rocks in my Dryer is hostessing a giveaway wherein one lucky winner will win a sign of their choice from the Prim and Proper Sign Shop. Check out the details on this post. Friday, August 17th.



Sheri from Purely His is having a giveaway for back to school goodies for those teen girls in your life.


Win a Bag of Books and some bath goodies from Welcome to My World of Dreams, who is celebrating the birth of her new book review blog by giving away a book bag full of well, books, of course, and bath goodies, too! Enter by August 26 and be sure to visit The Long and the Short of It on Monday, August 27, for the Grand Opening Bash.


Enter to Win some Bella Bubs goodness from Mums the Wurd! Deadline to enter is Friday, August 17th at 10 PM.
They are also giving away a Tutor.com 75 minute session ($40 value) to one lucky reader. To enter this giveaway, just leave a comment. Winner will be drawn on Saturday, August 18th.

Mommy Life is giving away an autographed copy of Real Women Scrap for a comment by 8AM EST August 20.

Multi-Tasking Mom, in conjunction with momAgenda, is having a contest so that one of you Multi-Tasking Moms can win a momAgenda Desktop Planner! Add a banner to your sidebar. Click here for more details on how to enter. Enter by Friday, August 17, 2007.


Pinks and Blues Girls are at it again! Enter these two contests by Friday, August 17th: Gotta Go giveaway for a DKNY bag and TONS of toiletries (write a post about a potty experience) AND Win a $20 Dunkin’ Donuts gift card (send an email)! Enter by August 20 to win a pair of Czela Bellies CesareanWear, panties for the mom who recently had a c-section! (enter by email)

Five Minutes for Mom is giving away a KooKoo CaChoo Baby Blanket! Leave a comment, I could not find an end date, but the contest started August 14th. Does Your Toddler Want A Comfy Easy PC? enter by August 24th!

Have you entered the Write-Away Contest at Scribbits? What is up this Saturday? You will have to stop by to see! Ok, so I do happen to know it will be Shoshona Snow Pottery. I wish I was not going to be camping so I could enter.


Renee from When 2 became 3 is doing her second give-away, which ends August 22. You need to write a post about why you love baby wearing, and you can win a gorgeous wrap that Renee made! It is beautiful!

Skimbaco has a custom Tuuli Tunic, from Riiminki Design, to give to one lucky Mama.Leave a comment on the giveaway post, mentioning your favorite Riiminka Design product and your link or e-mail address. August 19th.


If you didn’t make it to BlogHer you can still experience the “swag.” Hop over to Who’s the Boss? to check it out.All you have to do is comment on the giveaway post by Friday, August 17, 2007

Thursday Thirteen~ Hmmm

Thirteen Things that drove me nuts! 1. We paid off the car last month, and the "Service Engine Soon" light came on and we lost power steering. Knew something would happen though, that's the law of paying off your vehicle. 2. The electric company mistakenly turned our power off yesterday and I had to go yell at them to get it back on, the tech did not believe me that I should not be on his "list" to shut it off. And now the A/C or the furnace doesn't work because of it. 3. We are trying to move our in-laws to our town, but I could not go because of the car and because I can't speak. I have laryngitis. 4. We are camping this weekend, but even though Donnie is on vacation, he can't get the stuff together because he is busy constantly until Friday morning. This means I have to do it, while sick, and busy. And I hate camping, I don't know what we need. 5. I enrolled Cody in online public school, but our two schools don't agree on the paperwork, so he may have to start in October instead of September. (but they supply the computer and printer!) I have to run around today trying to fax and print things without either machine.Can't work it out on the phone because I have no voice. 6. Tuesday we went to Minneapolis to drop one kid at the airport in the am and pick another up in the evening. LONG wait in between. Wasted a whole day in the cities. (well, it wasn't a waste, we just didn't get the stuff we needed done at home done.) 7. Everywhere we went Donnie drove the wrong way first. Weird because he is incredible with directions and finding places. And I do mean "everywhere we went" he went the wrong way first. 8. Our dryer is broken. Hope to get that fixed soon. And our freezer doesn't freeze ice cream but does keep meat frozen. 9. Two of our vehicle windows are broken. One from a bathroom sink, and one from a rock off a gravel truck. 10. Our roof leaks in windy storms. Won't be fixing that any time soon, but need to. 11. Sam is teething and has a cold so he can't breathe, is in pain, and nurses. We are not getting enough sleep especially when he has to open his mouth to breathe, but to keep hold of his food supply he has to use his teeth. I woke up more than him with my scream! (And I am positive I will NEVER get a piercing on my chest area thingies!) 12. We are missing one of our hamsters. It has been missing for a couple of weeks. Imagine when we do find it...... 13. While in Minneapolis on Tuesday, someone dinged our car with his door, while we were in the car. Didn't even acknowledge it. I wanted to go all "Lois" on him, but Donnie wouldn't let me. I know once I post this, I will have a dozen more, but I struggled to get 13. My brain is stuffed up. Next week will be a surprise with a surprise!

Hey, Power Company

You know today, when you cut my power off? Yeah, it wasn't supposed to be cut off. Why did your driver not believe me? Why didn't he call you and figure things out before he left so I wouldn't have to load up a baby and drive there and have a screaming fit at you? And why did it take so long for them to come back out to fix the problem after we got it straightened out? Were you getting back at me for yelling at you? You know you would be yelling too if you had your power cut off by mistake when you needed to be doing 7 other things that day instead of fighting with yourselves.
You set my day back 2 hours. You set my friend's day back, too, because she couldn't get a hold of me to drop kids off so she could go to work. And I couldn't call her because I had no power. And I couldn't leave to call her because I was expecting her to show up at my house, and I couldn't call her because my power was out.
I also needed to make a meal for a family whose child recently had a horrible biking accident and has a brain injury. But I couldn't go to the store or cook anything because my power was out and I couldn't arrange to get the kids so I could leave, and I couldn't cook without power.
And I couldn't call my husband about the car problems, because, you know, the power was out and my phones need power.
I also could not wash clothes this morning before I go out of town because my washer doesn't work without power.
But you are right. I should look at it from your point of view and not be mad at you. Don't bother your little heads about it, m'kay? Good.

Wordless Wednesday~ Sharky

Sharky at the Mall of America

Jerk!

While in the cities today, we stopped at our bank and pulled in next to a really nice, new car. Fancy, schmancy car with a "Daddio" license plate. And old couple is in there. So the guy goes to get out and smacks his car door into our car. He doesn't even LOOK at us, doesn't apologize, nothing. I step out and look at the damage, and still he doesn't acknowledge it. His wife gives him a look, but that's it.
And there was some damage, and they had white paint on their black door. Not that we would go and do anything for something so minor, but jeepers, we were right there! Why couldn't he acknowledge it?
I felt like doing a Lois from Malcom in the Middle, and digging his car 5 or 60 times. Then maybe start a demolition derby right there in the parking lot.
But you know, Donnie wouldn't let me. He wouldn't even let me say anything to the jerk. He's a much better Christian that I am, I guess.

The end of summer must be here

Two of my boys started football season today. (did I mention that on my list of things to do? No? That's because they didn't TELL me it was coming up!)

We had to do some running to get Cody enrolled in football and get him a helmet. Devon had one at his age, but we can't find it. We have the pants and pads and shoulder pads, but no helmet. But really, Cody has a bigger head, so it may not have fit him anyways.

Devon shouldn't need anything because he is in high school. Just a cup, hopefully.

Cody was asking me how to wear his cup, over or under the boxers, and I'm like, ummmm, seriously dude, I don't have one of those things, so covering them is NOT my hobby. Ask Dad, Drew, Devon........ not the mom. Drew is not into the true contact sports, as he had no idea how to wear it. Drew was in tennis, then gave it up for speech and drama. Devon is the contact sports dude. He said it didn't matter, but probably over, and Donnie said over.

So, Cody comes home from practice and reeks! Bleeeahhhh!!! This should be fun, two of them reeking up the joint, I'll have to do their laundry every day.

Samuel Cuteness!

Our church does a church service at the county fair every year, and we are encouraged to attend it there.
We were standing there singing and worshipping. I was holding Samuel, who was a squirmy worm.
He started watching the worship team and we had a young lady doing sign language up front. I looked down at Sam who was moving his arms over his head and then crossing them in front of his chest and making funny motions. I looked back up and watched the signing, and looked back at Sam. He was trying to do sign language! He is only 9 months old! Isn't that just too adorable?!?

Where thoughts get jumbled up and spit out

in no particular order with no rhyme or reason.

Parenting teens is way harder than triplets in the terrible twos.

Pink eye is painful.

I hate not having my camera. Where is it????

I am sick. Sam is sick. Trinity is sick. Drew may be getting pink eye, too.

Hope-Anne has a magic thumb that gets rid of migraines. And it is so awesome that my head felt as though it was part of the pillow and I felt as though I was floating. She's the best! She's my favorite child today.

Devon is not my favorite this week.

I had to cancel my Tupperware party. We are not getting better, and no one wants to come over and get pink eye for the honor of spending tons of money on Tupperware. Even though Tupperware is incredibly cool and awesome.

Sam got his top two teeth in recently and he looks rather dorky right now. But I can't take his picture because my camera is missing.

Prepare to be exhausted!

Here is my schedule from Friday (yesterday) to Friday:

Friday:
Jody's birthday, meet at the DQ
Get to the church for ladies night out (aka, bat hunting)
Saturday:
Pack Trinity up for a sleepover
Go to another town for their school supply give-away
Go to the grocery store
Go to the Demolition Derby!!! Women only!
Sunday:
Church at the fair
Free lunch at the fair
Get all camping supplies together
Clean for Tupperware party and make calls
Monday:
Clean for party
Have party (unless the kids are still sickos)
Tuesday:
Bring Devon to the airport in the am
Sit at the Mall of America ALL day
Pick Kaytlin up from the airport
Wednesday:
Donnie drops Drew in St. Cloud to be sworn in to the Air force
Donnie goes to his parents
I take the kids to the movie for a MOMS field trip
I head to Donnie's parents
We pack his parent's house up
Thursday:
Finish packing and bring them to our town
Unload the stuff
Figure out how Drew is getting home, I think the recruiter is bringing him home
Friday:
Go camping for the weekend.

Sad

Isn't it sad that $10 worth of gas won't even get my gas light to turn off?

Blog-Abration!

Tasra at Lessons from the Scrapbook is having a huge blog-abration with tons of great prizes! I've posted about this before, but I want to remind everyone to go and get signed up for this!

Ladies Night Out~ Just batty!

I do not miss a ladies night out unless I am puking. I love going to ladies night. Even the time that Nikki threw a boxelder bug at me and I thought it was a spider and screamed and cried and threw my baby at Jody. I can't imagine anything but a spider to be worthy of screaming like Nikki was doing, and then to throw it at me, well, I just sort of flipped out a little. Jeannie, brave, brave, Jeannie just flicked the bug off of her and stepped on it. I cried for awhile and Nikki had the heebiejeebies for awhile. Sarah missed that night because she was too busy having a baby or something like that.
Other nights we get really goofy and laugh until the wee hours of the morning. Not that we'd ever divulge what is said at ladies night. But it is a lot of fun. Nothing gets us down. We are die-hard for our night out.
But tonight, tonight was a whole new level of terror/fun. We get in the church, just us ladies, late into the night, all alone. In the basement. Its dark outside. Typically its not bad, we walk out to our cars together, so we are not too scared.
We were sitting at our normal table, doing our normal things, like playing games and eating and talking and laughing. Minding our own business, not gossiping at all, well, maybe a little, but mostly minding our own business. When all of a sudden we have an unwelcome guest crashing our party!
Really! Not just unwelcome, but completely unfriendly! We were terrorized! We were screaming, running for other rooms, the phone to call for help, and Cindy took a silver tray and tried to beat our attacker off. We did get him out of the room and locked ourselves in, but soon he was back through a different door and terrorizing us again! This time we got him locked in a room! Whew! Several of the ladies left at this point. We had sore throats from the screaming and help refused to show up! (that would be my husband)
But the rest of us are die-hards, like I said, and we are not giving up our ladies night! But the rascal got out of the room and went for us again! This time I got the tray and went for the stupid bat!

Everyone except Jeannie and I ran to the bathroom screaming. We went and chased it out again. I'm feeling pretty brave now. Cindy left and someone had to do it. (thankfully she doesn't know how to get pictures off her camera to show anything to the contrary)
Ok, its gone again, so we sit back down and clean up a bit. Sarah has to feed the baby before we leave.
We get to talking about how we can get the church to seriously get an exterminator because we are not the first to see the bats. We decide it would be funny to put one of the dead ones recently found onto the silver tray and put an M&M in its mouth and leave for proof. (ok, its after midnight and we are a little loopy and full of adrenaline from 3 bat attacks, don't judge us) So, Jeannie and I go into the big, huge sanctuary, which is actually a gymnasium, looking for dead bats. We didn't find any, though. That's ok, because really, who was going to pick it up?
But wouldn't it be funny to go running and screaming back into the room and watch all the chickens scatter into the bathroom? Oh, yes, it would be funny! But Jeannie doesn't play along, she just wanders back in there, knowing what I am about to do. I trail behind, shutting off lights and doors. Then I start screaming! And they start screaming and jumping out of their seats! Sarah is almost standing up fully with the baby in her arms on the way to the bathroom until she sees my face.
Yes, she should have known with me!
Sarah double dog dares me to make sure the bat was still in the room since I believe this was a different bat. The room was empty. Yes, I did go check it out!
Really, we should leave, the bats are getting angry.
So we pack it up and of course its tricky getting out and turning off lights and getting through doors not knowing where the next bat might turn up. Jeannie leads the way turning on lights, and I tail the crew turning lights off. As the other 3 crouch and hide behind doors and walls, I let out a blood curdling scream. And they all jump and start screaming, too! Oh, it was sooooo worth the little bit of pee in my panties, soooo worth it!

Contest Frenzy~ August 9th

My column is up at Momsblogging! Go check it out for some great contests and to see who the winners are of last weeks contests. Here are just a few of the contests going on.

Blessed Nest is giving away a $100 gift certificate to the Blessed Nest store. All you have to do is leave a comment on the giveaway post, stating what your favorite Blessed Nest item is, and post a link on your blog back to the contest. Deadline to enter is August 31

Mom4Life is having a great giveaway, at least for those with toddlers, enter to win a Hot Toddies Car Seat Cover.

"Multi-Tasking Mom's Contest" is giving away a lovely set of goodies from The Body Shop! Yummy! You need to comment and put up her button on your sidebar by August 10th. Go to this post to get the html code for the button.

Scribbit likes to have a give-away on Saturdays! Check with her on Saturday for a Glostar Handbag. Plus she has a writing contest each month. This month it is on your collections and the prize is a cool t-shirt.

Over at the Pinks and Blues Girls Blog you can win a Carolyn’s Kitchen apron and glove set of your choice! Simply leave a comment stating your favorite Carolyn’s Kitchen set! Enter by Friday, August 10th at 12:00 noon EDT

So a Blonde Walks into a blog is having a contest with lots of great prizes, cookbooks, apron, hat, for blonds, or not, lol. Open until August 12, just for a comment.

Gymboree is offering two of Love Shak, Baby's readers each a $250 Gift Card to be used at the Gymboree store or Gymboree online.Check out Love Shak, Baby for all the details ~ You need to know what kind of comment to leave on the giveaway post to be entered! Enter by August 17th.

Check out the Four Peas backpack giveaway that Fina' Drea is hosting over at Fina' Drea. Enter by Friday, August 10th.

Mums the Word is the hoppin' place for contests right now. They have a $25 gift certificate (not including shipping) to Kids Central Kitchen, plus a copy of I Heart My In-Laws or a Rockin' Car Seat Cover!

“Let’s rock The Rock Chick’s World! Send Life is RANTastic to the A-List.”

Shelly is helping Jessica the Rock Chick get to A-List! And so can you! Stop by Shelly's blog to find out how you can help Jessica out and get the chance to win some great prizes!

Thursday Thirteen~ injuries

Thirteen injuries/bad things my kids have done Drew 1. Drank Windex. The poison control center said that he'd probably seem to have the flu, but he could just have the flu so who knows? Yep, he got the "flu." 2. He reached into a drawer that was over his head and grabbed a tube of super glue. Know where this is going? He super glued his eye OPEN. Kaytlin 3. Fell in the bathtub and split her chin open and needed stitches. TWICE. 4. Sprained her ankle doing gymnastics. Devon 5. Fell off of a Little Tykes gym at the mall and fell on his head on a stone floor. Later I couldn't wake him up. 6. Fell off the playground in our backyard and landed on the support beam on his nose. I was sure it was broken. While I was arguing with Donnie about taking him to the doctor over a broken nose Devon got up and went to play. 7. Walking down the street Devon sprained AND broke his ankle and I didn't even know he'd hurt it until 2 days later. 8. He skateboarded off the roof of the CHURCH and landed on his butt on the skateboard. Probably broke his tailbone, but I don't cater to stupidity so I didn't take him in. (they don't do anything for a broken tail bone anyway) Cody 9. Fell sideways off a chair and broke his collar bone. 10. Got flung off a tire swing and broke his nose. The pediatrician LAUGHED and laughed at that! 11. Sliced his finger open cutting summer sausage with a "miracle knife", needed 4 stitches. Trinity 12. Tried to go outside naked, so Cody slammed the door right on her finger, she needed 4 stitches in her little, tiny pinkie finger. 13. She was running and fell and hit her ear on our baseboard slicing through the cartilage even. They thought they would need at least 3 stitches, but one on the edge held it! And she did NOT cry at all for the stitches. So far, Hope-Anne and Samuel have not had to go to the ER for anything they caused.

“Let’s rock The Rock Chick’s World! Send Life is RANTastic to the A-List.” Shelly says "Jessica’s posts are pithy and fun to read. She knows what’s happening in the world of entertainment. She’ll take you on a journey without you having to leave your chair, as she tells you about stalking Jon Bon Jovi or riding on an elephant at a Renaissance Fair. She can tug your emotions with a post about her grandfather, or have you rolling on the floor with laughter as she muses about Paris Hilton."

Lets Say....

(This happened to my brother)

Lets say you were driving home one night and you maybe fell asleep at the wheel. And lets say you hit a traffic light pole head on.

Your car is totalled.

You sheared the light pole off the ground completely disconnecting it from the ground, even.

You hit so hard that your tire even completely fell of the car and the other side if flat.

Now lets say that the airbag did not deploy. And your face smashed into the steering wheel so hard it smashed out your teeth. Over $5000 worth of dental work worth of smashing.

Now lets say within two weeks your car company sends you a recall notice on defective air bags.

If an airbag had gone off in the head on collision you would not have smashed your teeth out.

Now lets say your car was a GM model. They would tell you it is inconclusive on whether or not the air bag should have gone off and they will not take care of you.

Lawyers are not taking the case because you only want to repair your broken teeth and that isn't enough money for lawyers to bother with. That is pretty piddly compared to what could happen with a lawsuit about a defective airbag not deploying, isn't it?

Why won't State Farm take care of his teeth? He had full coverage insurance. They covered the cost of the loan when the car was totalled. Well, he was possibly knocked out, he does not remember what happened, and he was rather out of it and did not go to the hospital. The police report has pictures of him. They can prove he was injured in the accident. Why are these two companies not taking care of their responsibilities?

Wordless Wednesday~Sharp objects are Dangerous

This is NOT me or my family. I don't know who they are, I got it in an email. But I just KNOW that I have met them both before, I just can't figure out who they are! LOL

Where is my camera???

The other day one of the kids was playing with it and annoying the snot out of us with the flash, but we can't find it since then.
And I got my hair cut today! I'd love to post a pic, but can't. Its short, sassy, layered. Very different than I normally wear my hair, and I love it!
Donnie was mad. I didn't tell him I was going to do it because I thought it would be fun to surprise him. Turns out he suspected I was going to do it, so I don't know why he was mad that I didn't talk to him about it. Its not like he talks to me about getting his hair cut. He says he likes the cut, though. Just doesn't like that I didn't talk to him first. And he was just thinking today how much he likes my hair long. But last week I said my hair was going through a blah phase and I needed some spunkiness to liven things up, and he agreed.
I'll search the couch cushions for the camera tomorrow.

Drew Enlisted!

Drew did sign on the dotted line today with the United States Air Force. I don't understand all of what transpired, and I'm not really sure I'm happy with it, but Donnie and Drew were. So, I will be meeting with the recruiter later this week to sign the papers since Drew is still a minor for another month, and I'll get all my questions answered then.
Basically, he gets sworn in next week, then he's delayed entry until next summer/fall. He gives them a list of career paths and they choose from there for him. (we'll pray for God's direction there, since Drew doesn't actually have any one path narrowed down) IF Drew has a year of college credits the first year in the AF, then he can apply for ROTC. That is what I am not happy about, but he has $38k GI Bill for college, and that is nothing to sneeze at. Worst case, Drew does his time, does college online or after he gets out, and it gets paid for by the GI Bill. Best case, he goes ROTC, becomes an officer, and has a bit better edge for a career later.
Now, does this mean I have to start treating him like he's an adult?

Is tomorrow the day?

Tomorrow Drew and Donnie head to the recruiters office. We felt it was to negotiate for what Drew wants and for some perks, like college money. But the recruiter thinks he's signing on the dotted line. "Bring your certificate of birth abroad, drivers licence and social security card."
Is tomorrow the day I become the mother of an adult? An adult who is heading off to the military? Not that he would leave yet, he has his senior year left. But he turns 18 in September and would be signing up in the Air Force with college plans, and ROTC plans.
I am really comfortable with our boys being in the military, I completely believe in our sons serving their country. But I'm not sure I'm ready to stop being "mommy" and start being his mother. KWIM? I'm so proud of him, and yet I'm also well aware of his immaturity and faults. I don't think he's ready to be out of our house. Granted, he would still have another year here, but still......
My husband will be with him and helping him negotiate for a great college plan.
The neat thing is that in talking with the recruiter today I found out we had our babies in the same town in Germany! Kind of funny!

*Update*
I am not worried about Drew joining the military or going to war. We have always told the boys that they need to serve their country, it is important. We know it will help them grow up, mature, see the world, and get a deeper love for their country. Young men should do it if they are able. (that is MY opinion, and I'm sticking to it!)
What concerns me is that Drew may be pressured into a field he is not interested in to fill a quota. Or that they will lie to him, or say that he should do this and that he can then apply for this and he loses out on schooling. If he doesn't go in as ROTC the Air Force can send him straight to war, but if he starts ROTC he has to be able to finish college first. And I want to make sure that life doesn't get in the way of college. Drew is a very intelligent person and he should go to college.
As a mom, I want him to focus on education and then head for a career and THEN start looking for a wife. He thinks I am trying to keep him from life, but I am actually trying to encourage a good life. Waiting for a spouse is a good thing, and being secure and mature only helps a marriage. Obviously it can be done in reverse order, I was married before I graduated high school, and I am still married to the same man. But it was ROUGH. And AWFUL at times.
Thankfully my husband is with Drew right now on their way to the recruiter and Donnie was "redirected" to a path they wanted to fill telling him he could cross train into what he wanted later, but he couldn't. They lied. Donnie was not able to have a military career because they did away with his position, and it was a high intel position that he was not allowed to cross train out of. Basically he was forced out of the military later on.
First things first, Drew has to figure out how to get out of joining the German Army, lol. He has dual citizenship and at 18 he has to join their Army, or denounce his citizenship.

Kidnapping, hijacking, all in the last 24 hours......

That and turning 36.
Last night Donnie wanted to take me to a movie. I did not want to go. I didn't want to spend money, and we were out of hot water for a shower last night, and the gym was already closed, but Donnie insisted that we were going. So I washed my hair in COLD water and felt like I was getting frost bite on my head. When he called me from his cell on the way home I told him I was NOT going tonight, lets go on Sunday. He said no, he wanted to go tonight, not Sunday. So I said "Unless there is no movie tonight and the girls are coming to kidnap me." To which he said "...................." Then I knew. So he said "When they get there you have to tell them you can't go because I am taking you to the movies, because they told me I had better do a better job of lying than Terry did."
So I decided that I would play a little trick on them. But what to do??? Go to the store so I'm not here and they have to hunt me down? No. How about not be ready? But I have to really be ready because they WILL take me out no matter how bad I look. They would probably let me get dressed, but shower? Not so much. I already was showered and dressed, so I went ahead and got all prettied up with make-up and all. But then I put a towel on my hair and put my bathrobe on.
Donnie beat them to our house and he blew his own slip up by saying "They're here now." when they got here. So they look at me sitting on the computer not ready to go and Jody says "Lets go, we'll take you just like that." and Jeannie says "Unless she's ready under there." Ok, so they got me. They're smart cookies.
I still don't know where they were taking me though.
And Donnie was a good lier. He didn't give it away.
We went to Applebees and met Sarah and another Jodi, and then our friend Kara. Jodi and I share a birthday, though I am 9 years older than she is. We stayed until almost midnight and had a great time. We finally broke Jeannie down to our level, but I won't divulge how that happened or what that means!
We started this tradition with Jeannie's birthday, then we kept it up with Sarah, but she figured it out because her husband, Terry, can't lie. Now they got me. All that is left is Jody. Hers is coming up soon and you know she is expecting it. I was expecting it, though I figured they'd do it today. I think we'll just have to not kidnap Jody and just plan something because her husband is traveling so much and she is temporarily working full time.
While I was out being kidnapped, my mom and dd were hijacking my blog. Putting ugly and embarrassing pictures up. The only one they so kindly left out was one of my in my bra when I was a teenager. Now, I know my mom wouldn't have a problem putting that one up, but Kaytlin was too nice. I think it would have been funny, but I probably would have taken that one down, lol. Kaytlin also wouldn't put pics of me and former boyfriends on there because Donnie gets upset when I even mention old boyfriends. Now, to be fair, he only gets upset about two of them, both having been friends of his, lol.
Then, at church today, we were given 4th row tickets to the Minnesota Twins game. But Sam has pink eye and is NOT handling me being away from him very well, and I really didn't think it was a good idea to bring him in public like that. We batted ideas around and Donnie ended up taking Hope-Anne. Long story, but I'm sure she will appreciate the "date" with her daddy. But Donnie and Hope-Anne is a combination that means he will be broke when he gets home.

happy birthday again!

These would be the hijakers of my blog: My mom and Kaytlin!



We Love You - Have a Great Day

Happy Birthday Lisa - Gotcha! Mom & Kaytlin

You never should have told me your password!!!!

My boys in Extreme sports!

Sam

Drew

Cody

Devon

Stuck at home........

Guess I'll have to blog all day! Sam has pink eye, I'm thinking from going to the gym, we really haven't gone anywhere else or been around other kids.
Right now I'm treating him with breast milk in the eye. I know it sounds weird! I've done it before with Hope-Anne and it worked great! But with Sam its taking some time. He does seem a little better today. I was going to take him in today, but he is a little less swollen and red. So, we'll try the milk for today, too. And see how tomorrow looks.
A nurse told me about using breast milk for pink eye AND ear infections. It works great for ear infections! Trinity had one and Donnie made me take her in and get meds. I never got the prescription filled, I decided to try the milk first for a few days, and then it was gone! Now Donnie trusts me a bit more on this. I don't remember how long it took for the pink eye, though.
I'm worried I am getting pink eye, too. That would stink. I'm not sure if it is that or the smoke from yesterday's incident. Another awful thing about yesterday was having the doors open to get the smoke out let flies in the house. They are SO annoying! Its August and this is the first we've had flies in the house. Another reason to praise God for our house with air conditioning! I really wasn't sure about buying this house. It has its problems. But Donnie was so sure about it being perfect and he just felt that God was leading us here. So I followed. And I do love the house now, even with all it's imperfections. If I have to be stuck at home, I'm glad I have this home to be stuck in!
This actually is not the first house that Donnie decided to buy that I hated. And he turned out to be so right on both of them! But I still think I need to pick out the furniture. It took us 15 years to pick out a dining room table. We could not agree, and there was NO way I was going to get what he wanted: black lacquer, he doesn't wash the fingerprints off, and it is UGLY anyways. (not all black lacquer is ugly, it is ugly with my furnishings, all country and flowers) I wanted one of those wooden tables with the ceramic tiles on them. Donnie hated those, thinking how they would stain in the grout. Well, that would not have been the bigger problem, which was our growing family. We finally got a table after our 6th child was born. It is expandable, which we leave up almost all the time. We bought 12 chairs so we could entertain. And the price was right. What did we end up with? Country looking style! LOL Not exactly what either of us were looking for at first, but it is perfect for us, our family, and our old dining room. We have a 97yo house with a very neat dining room.
I'm droning on here, guess I should go fold clothes or load the dishwasher. Maybe clean the house. I want it clean tomorrow, and it won't happen unless I do it. Even though tomorrow is "my" day and all I ever ask for is a clean house, I never get it. So, it will have to be my present to myself.
Don't forget about Nell's 30 Day Blogging Challenge! I'm well on my way to making it. (have I ever run out of things to say?)

Can you guess what this was?

Cody set the microwave for 1 minute for this and Trinity decided it wasn't long enough. I don't know HOW long she cooked it for, but there was still 4 minutes left on the timer when Hope-Anne found the kitchen filled with thick smoke. I couldn't even breathe while setting the fan up. I can't get the smell out of my house or my clothes.

It WAS a Hot Pocket!

End of Summer contests!

Tasra at Lessons from the Scrapbook Page is hosting an End of Summer Blog-Abration through August 31st. Tasra has lined up tons of fabulous prizes! All you scrapbookers should head over on the double!
I want to scrapbook again. I need to pick it back up, its been years and years. My last 2 kids aren't in any albums at all! Maybe I'll win something and I'll get motivated to start again.


Blue Thistle Books is having a big giveaway.... and a huge Back to Homeschool Sale throughout the month of August!

Blue Thistle Books is giving away a brand spankin' new Cuisinart Pure Indulgence 2 QT Frozen Yogurt, Ice Cream & Sorbet Maker! It is an amazing machine, valued at $79.95! This contest is also open until August 31st.

The BIG Reveal!

A week or so ago, my mom told me that she thinks I should write for a magazine. Now, being that it came from my mom, I just laughed it off, not because my mom isn't smart, but because she is biased about me. But then Kaytlin didn't laugh about it, so maybe I should think about it. Donnie didn't even laugh, though he wasn't enthusiastic, he said he thought I could do it. I'm not really looking for a magazine to write for yet or anything.

Well, I was going along checking out blogs and things and came across a new site about mom blogs. Nell at Casual Friday Every Day started a new website for mom bloggers called MomsBlogging.

Nell has two podcasts up right now, which is a great feature of this new site.

While reading through the site, which I found because Heather was featured on there, I saw that Nell was looking for a columnist for contests. All my readers know I LOVE contests, and my mom thinks I am a good writer, so I applied! Now, personally, I think that I was the only one looking for the position, because I don't think I'm all that great, lol, but my family thinks its great!

I waited to make the big announcement until my first Contest Frenzy post was up. It is now up!

I will be featuring contests on mom blogs in the column. So, hopefully, I will not fill as much space here with contests, though I will still be linking to them in order to enter if I need to! Plus the other great contests that are not on mom blogs, like the crazy guy who is giving away $2500!

I don't do this for pay, so make my day and leave a comment over there! I work for comments, people!

For now I plan to post on Thursdays, but that may change. I need a few days to find all the contests, and I need to get them posted before the end, which is usually Friday or Saturday, so I may change to Wednesdays. We'll see. If you find great contests, please pass them on to me! And if you are a mom blogger who is going to have a contest, give me a heads up so I can get it out there for you.

Now, this is just ONE of my August events! The other will have to wait a bit longer, but it will be worth it, and it will be featured in my column...........

What is my BIG announcement?

What could it be? What could it be?
Should I tell you today?
Should I wait a day? Maybe two?

Oh, ok, I will announce it later this afternoon, ok?
Maybe I will be the only one excited about it, but we'll have to see! I'm happy!

*Update**
I am NOT pregnant! LOL I wouldn't be able to keep that one a secret! And besides, Kris, you know that you would already know that long before it got on the blog!
Yofed, I would LOVE to be pregnant, but I would NOT like it if one of my kids were engaged while still in high school OR if they were secretly married and now pregnant with me! YIKES!!!! That would NOT be a big announcement to me! The big announcement then would be that I killed one of my children, lol.
It's coming later today, I promise! I just can't "show" you yet, so it has to wait!

Thursday Thirteen~ ingestion

13 Things ingested by my kids that shouldn't be ingested

1. Windex with Vinegard~ flu-like symptoms.

2. Bottle of Infants Tylenol~ way more serious than the Windex.

3. 3/4's of a crayon

4. Various coins- they make pretty x-rays!

5. A bunch of dead lady bugs in a bottle of water on a bet.

6. An uncle's chew spit that he spit in a soda can. (and yes I did ream him a new butt-hole! and no, he didn't have kids then)

7. Beetle and a June bug.

8. Soggy, ant covered Oreo.

9. Plasticy backing to a band-aid, found in p00py diaper.

10. Human p00p.

11. Cat p00p.

12. Cat litter.

13 Cat food, dog food, bird food.

I have to work hard to kiss my kids! I really never know!

Don't forget to go see what my BIG announcement is!

More contests!

I will soon post less of these contests, and I will tell you why later. But for now, here are some awesome contests, thanks to my friend Laura!

Wow! This mom blogger is giving away 3 Disney Software to celebrate her 300th post! This is quite a collection!

Contest ends 9PM (PST) on Wednesday August 8th!

Would you like to win a $50 gift certificate to KooKoo Bear Kids?

You can win over at An Island Life if you enter by August 4th.

Musings of a Domestic Crunchy Goddess is having a giveaway for a super cute shirt of your choosing from her CafePress store Cute As A Bug! And these shirts are really cute!

Enter by August 3rd.

Win A Hawaiian Prize Pack! This prize pack values at over $60! Bonus Prize: If you link to this contest from your blog or website, we’ll add a $25 Amazon.com gift certificate to the prize pack, if you win.
Sometime between now and the end of August, Go Visit Hawaii will put a secret message (at the bottom of one post) that only subscribers will see. Once you see the secret message, copy and paste it into this contact me form along with your name and e-mail address. I will then include your entry into the random drawing.

Robinznest is having a giveaway in honor of her 100th post. She is giving away a one year subscription to Martha Stewart Living, Today's Christian Women, Real Simple or Home Companion. You can read her "100 Things About Me" and get more details on the contest.

When 2 became 3 is having a contest, her first ever!
Renee is giving away a canvas grocery bag from Myconservationbaby.com. Join the mailing list, link to them both, and post a pic of you doing something "green" like cloth diapering!

The bag is fun and useful! It says "Paper, Plastic or ME?"

Kaytlin called

Kaytlin called from my mom's this morning. She had some time between mom going to work and being picked up by her step cousin and step aunt to go to a lobster fest on the coast of Maine.
My mom lives on a mountain area. And I know there are all sorts of creatures out there, like porcupines and wild turkey for sure. And my mom has a cat, Midnight, who they affectionately call Nightmare, and she doesn't like people much. She pretty much isn't seen by guests. Drew stayed there for nearly a month once and he rarely saw the cat. Mom told Kaytlin that the cat doesn't go all sweet and follow you around and rub on your legs like normal cats.
But then why was Kaytlin tripping over the cat so much and having to brush off layers and layers of black cat hair off her pants? Its because Midnight LOVES Kaytlin. Like all cats do.
Kaytlin was on the phone with me, sitting out on the deck admiring the view................. of spiderwebs. She counted 12 huge spiderwebs on one side of the house. My mom is a creature lover, she doesn't get picky about what they are. She admires the spiders spinning their webs. And Kaytlin spied the spiders that make those huge webs. Their bodies are the size of Kaytlin's thumb! And at least 4 of them live over a door to the house. I would NOT be walking in that door! And my mom asked her to photograph the spiders, yuck!!!!
As we were talking she started kind of freaking out, more like getting creeped out, by something following her and clicking. She went in the house, but she heard it again later, too. Then it flew over the house! She thinks it was a locust. lol
I can't wait to hear how much fun the lobster fest was! Maybe Kaytlin will do some guest blogging while on her vacation!

Wordless Wednesday~ No, I'M the baby!

Our cat, Lexx, is always crawling in the baby furniture. The crib, the bassinet, the car seat, the bouncer, the exersaucer...... The kids like the treat him like a baby when he gets in them. He loves it. But he doesn't like the baby very well, because Sam eats his tail, pulls his ears, etc. This is our big, strong Tom Cat who roams the neighborhood and catches squirrels without his front claws.