Three In One...

I have three posts that I have wanted to share in my memory bank, so I know it's long, but just pretend you're reading three.

#1: Surgery

The boys surgery on Tuesday went well. We had to be at the Surgery Center at 7am for check-in. In the beginning I thought it was going to be a nightmare. The nurse took us back to the pre-op area, and said "Only one of you is going to be able to take them into the changing rooms." You have GOT to be kidding. We come as a team for a reason... "I'll do it", I say. So I take the boys back to get blood pressures, weights and to change into these adorable tiger gowns...

After I get them changed we get to meetup with daddy again for time in the playroom/waiting room. Dr. H comes in for a quick pre-surgery consultation, and then takes Carter back.

Here is Boo after his surgery. He ended up having another ear infection when he placed the tubes, I think that would be #7 this year! No exaggeration. When they went back I told Dr. H. that I thought there would be 14 molluskums (skin tags) to remove. He removed 24!

Then it was Cole's turn. Cole did well during surgery. Dr. H. placed the tubes. He also said that his adenoids were the size of his thumbs.... uh, maybe that's why his ears are always infected. Cole had a really hard time coming out of the anesthesia. He was fighting the nurses (common side effect) and throwing up, so they gave him Demerol and put him back to sleep for about 30 minutes to sleep the effects off. What this ended up causing was a drugged baby for the day. In all honesty, the rest was probably really good for his body. He did not wake up for the day until 5:30 in the evening, and he still went to bed by 10.

So, it's over, now I'm just waiting for the bills. But thank you God for healthy babies. If this is the most I ever worry about I am blessed.

#2 School's Out for the Summer!

Woo Hoo!

We finished the school year, and I will give a quick recap... because we change so much each year.

I got to see 2 babies learn to crawl and then walk this year.

We moved from bottles, to baby food, to chicken nuggets (I cooked approximately 672 of them this year).

We have survived 534 diaper changes, and 558 hours of naps.

We have been to the park, the zoo, on walks, and we even bought a van to make it easier next year.

We painted, colored, did play dough, cut cookies, cut ornaments, and made messes in general.

We added a new baby to our group. I have watched babies turn 1, 2, and 3 this year.

We survived ear infections, sinus infections, strep infections, hand-foot-and mouth, more colds and allergies than you can count, and I think we even did it with grace.

We spent 3 months with daddy added to the group. Love ya!

We cried, hollered, pushed, pinched, bit, pulled hair, but mostly we laughed and loved each other. What a great year.

To end the year we celebrated Friday evening with BBQ and a movie. We all came together to share some yummy summer dishes, and then we watched a movie in the back yard.

For those of you that have requested Alyssa's jello recipe, here it is.

(You will need to do this for each color you make. Alyssa and I recommend lots of color- they'll all get eaten, we promise!)

9 oz. flavored Jello

3 small packets of unflavored Knox gelatin

2 1/2 cups boiling water

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

1. Mix the flavored Jello and the gelatin packets together (dry)
2. Add the boiling water to the mixture and stir well until it is dissolved
3. Mix in the heavy whipping cream (it looks kind of funny, but trust it)
4. Pour into 9x13 pan (ungreased)
5. Refrigerate overnight (the whipping cream will float to the top, oh, and make sure the jello is on a flat surface in the fridge, or the cream will move to one side, and it doesn't turn out.)
6. Cut into squares, and enjoy!

Quite a gorgeous little treat huh. They were truly enjoyed by all. (This is lime, berry blue, and strawberry)

The Grill Master.

Storing bananasicles in the trunk- he even ate them.

Some time on "the playground" (aka: swing set)

It's movie time!

Everyone get comfy.

Lights out.

Fun times.

#3: More Determined Than Ever

So Saturday morning I had some things going on, but I was DETERMINED to get to the Y before the day got crazy. (I even stayed up until midnight packing and loading the car to get there by 8:30), so when I arrived at the Y at 8:43, you can believe that I was already frustrated. You see to start off, on the drive over I realized the parking lot of my normal Y was closed for a race, so I was going to have to go to a different Y, or risk hauling the kids from far away lands to get there, so I trudged on. I arrived at the other Y, and I forgot socks for the kids (I just can't get used to putting them in sandals and packing socks). Since it was not my normal friendly kid zone, these women seemed to care less about my determination, and just wanted me to scoot along... oh no sista, not me. So I said, "Uh, so you want me to take them?" (voice full of sarcasm and disgust) Now, I should say, I know rules are in place for a reason, but good god, let the kiddos wear their sandals in the Kid Zone for what now is only going to be a 40 minute workout... "Well I can sell you socks for $1.00." Ok, now we're rolling... s***, I don't have my wallet. So, she put a note on my tab saying I owe $1.00- Good luck lady, join the club. Now, MORE DETERMINED THAN EVER to make the next 40 minutes worth while I jumped on the treadmill. I skipped the warm up... (my heart was already racing, and my blood was pumping from the journey, I think I had covered that) and went straight to running AND...

I RAN MY FIRST 5K ON THE TREADMILL!!!!! I did it in 35:14. I have never done anything close to that. I just started running, and I kept telling myself that I could do better, and I did. I think I may run the 8K race (not to race anyone, but to prove it to myself) on June 20th, details to come...

Summer Sweet Summer

... Can you smell it, it's just around the corner. The air is warm, the sun is out (as are the bugs), we can play outside for 15 hours a day if we want.... ah, sweet summer.


We have had such a wonderful week enjoying everything, that we are getting to bed WAY TO LATE to think about blogging. I'm going to get the "joy" slightly more under control, but I am loving it for now.

Last Saturday night we concluded the Riverfest with the fireworks show. Can you believe this is where Brian proposed to me 7 years ago. It really doesn't seem like it's been that long. Anyways, I was excited to take the boys to see the fireworks, and although I see a lot of kids their age freak out over them, I thought, we have fairly even keel kids when it comes to things like this, so it shouldn't be a big deal.

We told Cole in the morning that we were going to see them, and all day that's all he talked about. By evening he was stoked. We loaded up the wagon with toys, snacks, blankets, even their PJs. We were ready to go. The fireworks started, and WE WERE READY TO GO! They wanted nothing to do with it.

We finally convinced Cole to sit with Uncle Don. He would not face the fireworks, he wanted to be turned away with his ears covered. Carter hated them, but would not stay in anyone's lap. Every pop that went off was like he was being shot. He would jump up, cry, and run to another person. Finally, Brian and I tackled (literally) him between us, covered his ears, and he fell asleep. So they didn't see a single firework, but we'll do it again next year.

Sunday, we went to see the new Slawson Tiger Exhibit at the zoo. We have a World Class Zoo. I also shot some pics of the giraffes, they just seemed happy to be there that day. Carter is hilarious to take to the zoo. He will go to the window and growl at everything... even the fish.

Wednesday night I let the boys have "movie night". What this really consist of is a bowl of popcorn with some sweet treats mixed in, mommy and daddy's bed, and a movie that lasts as long as the popcorn (10 minutes)... ha! This was the first time we had Carter participate, and they LOVED it. We watched about half of an episode of Fraggle Rock, and ate two mini bags of popcorn. What a fun time.

Finally, tonight we grilled outside and played in the sprinkler. I didn't take many pics as I was actually using the video camera to catch the boys first time in the sprinkler, but it was adorable. We partook in a dinner consisting of Spinach Asiago Chicken Brats, Cucumber and Tomato Salad, Chipotle Grilled Corn, and Watermelon... jealous? Here was Carter's favorite part of the meal... MckMama would probably say this was against my better judgement food wise though...

So raise a watermelon slice to the kickoff of summer... Cheers!

Cutting Boo's Curls

I think I had to do one of the saddest voluntary things ever this week. We cut Boo's baby curls off.... for several reasons I succumb to this right of passage to boyhood. First of all, I could braid a rat tail, and put beads in it like they did in the 80's (thank God we have better sense now!) Secondly, we were officially living at 1042 Mulletville. Thirdly, when he has his mulloskums removed I don't want his hair in the way. Finally, I was getting more attached every day. If I waited much longer, he was NEVER getting a haircut. I love having boys, but if Boo were a girl, I would let that hair grow and grow. So, the painful day came when we cut the curls off. Here are a few pics. (None during the actual event as daddy needed help with a squirmer.)

A decent picture, but nothing will ever reveal the full cuteness of those curls.

I loved to run my fingers through them while he would sit in my lap. (Tear!)

Boo's gonna do it himself.

He's not so happy about the change either.

Look at that baby boy head. So cute.

Handsome as always.

Ramblings...

We have been sooo busy, I hate posting once a week, but that seems like my pattern. Maybe it will get better this summer, maybe. Here is a recap of our week.

I had my interview for Nursery Director last Wednesday. I think it went well. I would really love to do this job... now I just have to wait. They thought they would know something in a couple of weeks... I was the first interview. I hate that. Besides the fact that I am not a patient person to wait for everyone else to interview, I always wonder, by the time they finish interviewing everyone else, will they even remember me? I hope so.

Friday night we went to the River Festival Parade. It was so much fun watching the boys enjoy the parade. Cole was absolutely still the entire time. It was also really hot. Look at everyone's red faces!




Since then he has been marching around the house with this drums, and making the fire trucks follow him. So cute.

Saturday was a big day for me. I ran my first 2-mile race. I did it in 25 minutes. Believe me, I know the time is nothing to be proud of, but I did it, I ran 2 miles! I ran it, and I finished it. My hubby did not take a pic of me jogging across the finish line, but here is a pic a little later in the morning where I did finish... every step.



The rest of the morning was spent enjoying the festival events. We took the boys to see Little Red Hen, walked around a bit, and ate a little festival food. Fun times.

Look how tired this baby was after our Saturday morning events. He couldn't do anything other than snuggle with his daddy.

Mother's Day was nice. The boys allowed me to sleep in (best present ever), then they presented me with cards. We went to church, then had lunch at Terradyne. Sunday evening we went to workout heaven (Andover's New YMCA- more about that later) to take the boys swimming. We got there, got changed, put our feet in the beautiful pool, got barely soaked, and then.... some kid pooped in the pool! EVERYONE OUT! The pool was evacuated, and closed, not more than 5 minutes after we arrived. So...
last night we spent the evening at the pool with the boys again. They loved it. We didn't even get home until 10 o'clock.

Finally, I think we should get our own Grey's Anatomy episode. After a visit to our ENT (Ear, Nose, Throat) doctor, the boys are scheduled for 2 T-tube implantations, 1 Adenoidectomy, and 12 Molluskum removals on May 26th. Poor babies. I do not think this will be the funnest day ever for them, but it has to be done. I just want them to be better. This will be Cole's second set of tubes. His first set is retracted (falling out), infected, and the right one has developed a polyp. I will update when they are better.

So there you have it. Our days start at 6:30, and end at midnight. We never seem to find time to breathe, but I do love The Anderson Shuffle.

A Really Late Not Me! Monday!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I believe I've told you about Not Me! Monday! before, so here I go...

1. I did not completely blow my "lifestyle change" out of the water last week by eating out like 5 of 7 days. I did not open a bag of Sunchips, and sit down and eat out of the bag without thinking, and I most certainly did not eat like 10 mini fruit pizzas on Friday night. Not me.

2. I did not give my child Benadryl this morning in hopes of sedating his wild child a bit. (He does truly have a hive like rash), but my main concern for using the Benadryl was certainly not in hopes of peace and quiet during nap. Not me.

3. I did not wear a pair of jeans for a few hours, and then decide I did not like them. I did not dig through our trash to find the tags, and most of all, I did not take them back to the store and claim I just did not like them.

4. I did not act like a psychopath last night while doing the dishes. I did not yell at my husband for changing the way the dishes were loaded, and I did not go to bed without speaking to him because I could not say anything nice. Not me.

5. Finally, I am not counting the days to summer break. I do not know there are only 18 days, 180 hours, 432 more meals to serve, 252 diapers to change, or approximately 10,800 more times I have to tell someone "no" for something. Not me... not me at all.