... around the house.
Besides the massive remodeling project we've started in the basement, there are all sorts of other things that always need to be done.
Today, I took the kids to the Gnome Despot to pick up a 5 gallon bucket of DryLock to paint onto the cinder blocks in the basement. Apparently, a good chunk of the basement cinder blocks are already painted with DryLock, but the part of the basement that will be our living space does not. It will take 2 coats to do it right; the first coat should be painted up/down whereas the second coat should be painted left/right. Hopefully, this will be an initial moisture barrier!!
When I got home, I inspected the basement walls to see if there is any mold or mildew. I don't think there is, so I don't think I need to scrub them down with a wire brush and bleach. However, inspecting the walls made me notice that there are some holes that I should probably patch with some quick setting concrete before I start painting with the DryLock.
After lunch, I decided I had the energy to tackle a job I've been wanting to do since we moved in, but on days I had the energy, it was bad/cold weather... wash the windows! Today was the perfect day as it wasn't cold, it wasn't hot, it was sunny, and the bugs aren't out in force yet.
Now, I didn't take a shortcut and Windex the inside window only. In fact, I would have made my father proud today! I washed the inside AND outside of the windows with a Lysol solution-soaked rag, squeegeed them dry, and then washed each of the screens, the tracks, and the sills. What I found was that the windows were not only disgusting, but the number of STINKBUGS hiding in the window tracks was also disgusting!!! It turns out that these 1992 windows don't have a wide enough weather strip to keep the bugs out from between the screen and the window. UUUUGH!!! I'm wondering if Gnome Despot has weather stripping for windows like these. I'd have to custom cut one for each window, but it would be worth to keep all of these critters out!
I also have to call Andersen to see if they are still under warranty (I think I have until the end of this year, actually) because there is condensation forming in between the panes of 3 of the windows. Guessing the Argon gas has leaked, so either they need to be refilled or replaced. Either way, I have to call soon!!
As if that wasn't enough work, I also decided to tackle the Ghetto Light project. The Ghetto Light is the one light outside of our garage that lost its top during the winter of 2009. To protect the bulb, we covered the top with a piece of tin foil. Pretty ghetto..... When I looked at all of the lights that hang off the garage, 4 matched, and 4 didn't. I found the lights that look like the ones that actually match, and bought them. Today, I decided, would be installation day. Naturally, this was not as simple as it should have been as it required drilling extra holes to make the hanging screws fit. Steve helped me with the first one, and I did the second one. After throwing the breaker back on, we confirmed our lighted success! No more Ghetto Light!
Hurray for house projects!!
- Posted using BlogPress from my newest toy.
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Pics of our demolished basement
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| Stairs on the right side, looking back towards the basement door. |
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| Section under the master bedroom; stairs are behind me in this picture. |
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| Basement door is in the top left (out of sight); facing the laundry room. |
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Sad news
Unfortunately, Steve and I will not have triplet nieces/nephews. Nancy found out that 2 more of the babies no longer have heartbeats. That leaves only 1 baby of the original 4.
Need lots of prayers that this remaining baby is healthy, and that (s)he goes full term.
We are very sad for Dave and Nancy. They were so excited to have multiples, and this is just heartbreaking.
:-(
Need lots of prayers that this remaining baby is healthy, and that (s)he goes full term.
We are very sad for Dave and Nancy. They were so excited to have multiples, and this is just heartbreaking.
:-(
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Pediatric ophthalmology update
Today, I took the kids to visit Dr. Collins for their progress check with their glasses. To my surprise, Dr. Collins had moved out of the GBMC Eye Clinic into her own office down the hall. It was so nice and quiet and calm as compared to the zoo of the Eye Clinic!
When we were called, Elektra put on her best charm, and happily ran to sit in the exam chair! Therefore, she had her eyes examined first. No need for big brother to show her how it's done!
Elektra did great with the depth perception test (in fact, she wanted to keep the purple glasses on... What a stylista!), the red/green test, the test where she has to track an object, and the eyes are not crossing test. She also had to name shapes (we've been practicing at home!) of different sizes to gauge her sight capabilities.
The result: Elektra is reading about 20/40 in BOTH eyes! That means the glasses are working because before she got glasses, her left eye was not seeing to the same level as her right! And, this is better than what some three year olds can see! Starting her with glasses this early is a huge win for her.
The comic relief during Elektra's exam was as not only how outrageously charming Elektra was being, but also that DJ would yell out the answer at times. Oops!
To keep Elektra occupied during DJ's exam, I pulled out the secret weapon.... The iPad. We didn't hear one peep out of her!
Meanwhile, DJ did great with the initial depth perception tests, but you could tell he was playing/not paying attention as we asked him to do more. Red/green test was no issue, but DJ asked for "no flashlight" to be shined in his eyes. Don't know why he balked that that....but bless Dr. Collins because she obliged him.
When it was time for gauge his sight capabilities, he was asked to name 4 letters on a page to test to make sure he knows his letters. I nearly died when he named 2 of the 4 letters incorrectly... I know he knows his letters, but he was making it clear he didn't want to do it!
We covered his strong eye first, and he didn't make it past 20/40....worse than in previous appointments! He was really pushing limits. I tried bribes, pleading... Nothing worked.
We switched and covered his weak eye, allowing hook to see with his strong eye. He got down to reading 20/25, I think, and he did it with fairly little fight, actually, now that I think about it.
Result: the glasses alone are not working as hoped for DJ. Therefore, 3 days in a row each week, we are going to put a drop of Atropine in DJ's strong eye to blur its vision capabilities. This will force him to use the weak eye, and hopefully bring it up to speed, as it were. There are other side effects (pupils dilate so some sun sensitivity, maybe), but I want to take no chances that the corrections we are trying to make won't work!!
He goes back to Dr. Collins in 3 months to see if that is working. the alternative is to have him wear a patch on the good eye 1-2 hours per day, but this assumes he'll a) leave the patch on b) he would wear the patch in the mornings when he is freshest and c) someone can watch him all the time to make sure he doesn't take them off or he doesn't cheat.
I've chosen the fight to put a drop in his eye every morning instead of the patching fight. Hoping this works!!
- Posted using BlogPress from my newest toy.
When we were called, Elektra put on her best charm, and happily ran to sit in the exam chair! Therefore, she had her eyes examined first. No need for big brother to show her how it's done!
Elektra did great with the depth perception test (in fact, she wanted to keep the purple glasses on... What a stylista!), the red/green test, the test where she has to track an object, and the eyes are not crossing test. She also had to name shapes (we've been practicing at home!) of different sizes to gauge her sight capabilities.
The result: Elektra is reading about 20/40 in BOTH eyes! That means the glasses are working because before she got glasses, her left eye was not seeing to the same level as her right! And, this is better than what some three year olds can see! Starting her with glasses this early is a huge win for her.
The comic relief during Elektra's exam was as not only how outrageously charming Elektra was being, but also that DJ would yell out the answer at times. Oops!
To keep Elektra occupied during DJ's exam, I pulled out the secret weapon.... The iPad. We didn't hear one peep out of her!
Meanwhile, DJ did great with the initial depth perception tests, but you could tell he was playing/not paying attention as we asked him to do more. Red/green test was no issue, but DJ asked for "no flashlight" to be shined in his eyes. Don't know why he balked that that....but bless Dr. Collins because she obliged him.
When it was time for gauge his sight capabilities, he was asked to name 4 letters on a page to test to make sure he knows his letters. I nearly died when he named 2 of the 4 letters incorrectly... I know he knows his letters, but he was making it clear he didn't want to do it!
We covered his strong eye first, and he didn't make it past 20/40....worse than in previous appointments! He was really pushing limits. I tried bribes, pleading... Nothing worked.
We switched and covered his weak eye, allowing hook to see with his strong eye. He got down to reading 20/25, I think, and he did it with fairly little fight, actually, now that I think about it.
Result: the glasses alone are not working as hoped for DJ. Therefore, 3 days in a row each week, we are going to put a drop of Atropine in DJ's strong eye to blur its vision capabilities. This will force him to use the weak eye, and hopefully bring it up to speed, as it were. There are other side effects (pupils dilate so some sun sensitivity, maybe), but I want to take no chances that the corrections we are trying to make won't work!!
He goes back to Dr. Collins in 3 months to see if that is working. the alternative is to have him wear a patch on the good eye 1-2 hours per day, but this assumes he'll a) leave the patch on b) he would wear the patch in the mornings when he is freshest and c) someone can watch him all the time to make sure he doesn't take them off or he doesn't cheat.
I've chosen the fight to put a drop in his eye every morning instead of the patching fight. Hoping this works!!
- Posted using BlogPress from my newest toy.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
It's going to be a long strange trip(lets)!
No, I'm not pregnant...!!!
But my sister-in-law, Nancy is!!! She's married to Steve's brother, Dave, and they are expecting triplets!!!! Nancy let the cat out of the bag on Facebook last night, soooooo I think I'm pretty clear to announce it on this blog, too!
Nancy is due October 27, but there is a very good chance the pregnancy won't go to term. So she is asking for lots of prayers for the babies to come out healthy and to carry them as long as possible!!
She also has a blog in case you are interested reading about her journey thus far. http://quadyssey.blogspot.com/
Steve's Facebook wall has gotten some pretty funny posts from fellow cousins, too. :-)
HUGE CONGRATS to Dave, Nancy, Axel, and Brillo!!
But my sister-in-law, Nancy is!!! She's married to Steve's brother, Dave, and they are expecting triplets!!!! Nancy let the cat out of the bag on Facebook last night, soooooo I think I'm pretty clear to announce it on this blog, too!
Nancy is due October 27, but there is a very good chance the pregnancy won't go to term. So she is asking for lots of prayers for the babies to come out healthy and to carry them as long as possible!!
She also has a blog in case you are interested reading about her journey thus far. http://quadyssey.blogspot.com/
Steve's Facebook wall has gotten some pretty funny posts from fellow cousins, too. :-)
HUGE CONGRATS to Dave, Nancy, Axel, and Brillo!!
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Operation Stinkbug
When the stinkbugs came to Maryland 2 years ago, our house was assaulted. I thought that they were coming in when we'd open the back door to let the dogs in. And they were; we'd have to wipe down the door every time it opened.
Unfortunately for us, the problem isn't limited to that and to make things worse, last year, the assault intensified from the first year of stinkbugs. I heard somewhere that stinkbugs like soybeans, and that was the crop planted in the field behind us last year (planned rotation: one year corn, the next year soybeans). At one point in the fall, the weekend before Elektra's birthday party, the house siding looked like it was alive because it was crawling with so many stinkbugs. It was so gross.
To boot, we were catching at least 15-20 of those buggers a day inside the house. When we started finding them in the master bathroom, it became clear that their entry point was through the fan because when we'd turn it on, you could hear them getting rattled and crushed by the fan blades. So we left the fan on 24x7, and that seemed to slow their direct entry. My thought is... If they can get through the gauntlet, then they deserve to be flushed down the toilet!
The fan vents directly to the outside, not the attic, and the "bug guard" is NOT stinkbug proof!!! I watched them crawl in during the summer because the outbound "breeze" isn't strong enough to keep anything but gnats and flies out. Fantastic.
We also found them regularly in the kitchen. They would receive either a flushing or a garbage disposal treatment. That's when I figured they are in our attic.
We would also find them in our living room... And garage... The only place we didn't find them is in the bedrooms, thankfully. However, the window screens do not keep them from getting between the window pane and the screen!!
For once in my life, I couldn't wait for the first frost to kill them!!! The first, second and third frosts came and went, and there seemed to be no sign of the invasion slowing down. In fact if anything, it got worse because clearly they were looking for a warm place to go.
&$@(%#*{ !!!!!!!!!!!!
Then we got our fireplace fixed in January and that is when we found out how they were getting into the living room..... The stench of burning stinkbug nearly drove us out of the house for three days, and this was AFTER the fireplace tech had vacuumed it!!! Noxious.... Absolutely noxious stench!
Stinkbugs, when it gets cold, don't die. They hibernate. And they decided to hibernate in our chimney, in our attic, and in our master bathroom fan venting.
Over the last few days, I have been on the war path to find the holes and plug them to keep stinkbugs out of our living space. I can't do anything about the chimney without creating a carbon monoxide hazard, so I will always have that issue. I don't know how much I can do about the attic; I have to go up there and look at all the eves to see if the screening is sufficient.
However, I can fix the bathroom fan problem! I borrowed a tall ladder from our neighbors today, unscrewed the "bug guard", and screeched in horror as hundreds of stinkbugs fell out from around the edges and from inside the venting. It was so gross!!!!!!!!!!! What's even more disgusting is that about half of them were still alive!! Ugh!!! But it explains why we have had to keep our fan on all winter, too!
I cleaned out the bugs I could find/reach, and then added screening to the outside. I know it reduces the airflow, but it's the price we are going to have to pay!! I screwed it back in, but I am going to have to add a significant amount of caulk around the edges to make sure it is stinkbug proof for a few years. Those little suckers can get pretty flat and can wedge themselves into locations that you never dreamed!
We also opened the bay windows in the kitchen, and found at least another 20 live ones wedged in between the top of the window frame and the frame itself. I cannot, for the life of me, figure out HOW the are worming their way into the house through what looks to me to be a tight seal!!
I've also ordered a trap... Yes, a trap. I ordered it from http://www.stinkbugtrapsonline.com/. The guy is a do-it-yourself-inventor, and I figured I can put this in my attic to see if it works. At this point. I'm game to try almost anything, and this has gotten some good reviews and press. He can't build them fast enough and fully refunds money if dissatisfied. What do I have to lose?
I can't kill them at their source, but I'm not going to sit back and let them invade my home anymore!! I won't win because they will always get in, but I can at least slow the stinkbug parade down to a trickle instead of a 10-20 a day!!!
I am so done with them!!!
- Posted using BlogPress from my newest toy.
Unfortunately for us, the problem isn't limited to that and to make things worse, last year, the assault intensified from the first year of stinkbugs. I heard somewhere that stinkbugs like soybeans, and that was the crop planted in the field behind us last year (planned rotation: one year corn, the next year soybeans). At one point in the fall, the weekend before Elektra's birthday party, the house siding looked like it was alive because it was crawling with so many stinkbugs. It was so gross.
To boot, we were catching at least 15-20 of those buggers a day inside the house. When we started finding them in the master bathroom, it became clear that their entry point was through the fan because when we'd turn it on, you could hear them getting rattled and crushed by the fan blades. So we left the fan on 24x7, and that seemed to slow their direct entry. My thought is... If they can get through the gauntlet, then they deserve to be flushed down the toilet!
The fan vents directly to the outside, not the attic, and the "bug guard" is NOT stinkbug proof!!! I watched them crawl in during the summer because the outbound "breeze" isn't strong enough to keep anything but gnats and flies out. Fantastic.
We also found them regularly in the kitchen. They would receive either a flushing or a garbage disposal treatment. That's when I figured they are in our attic.
We would also find them in our living room... And garage... The only place we didn't find them is in the bedrooms, thankfully. However, the window screens do not keep them from getting between the window pane and the screen!!
For once in my life, I couldn't wait for the first frost to kill them!!! The first, second and third frosts came and went, and there seemed to be no sign of the invasion slowing down. In fact if anything, it got worse because clearly they were looking for a warm place to go.
&$@(%#*{ !!!!!!!!!!!!
Then we got our fireplace fixed in January and that is when we found out how they were getting into the living room..... The stench of burning stinkbug nearly drove us out of the house for three days, and this was AFTER the fireplace tech had vacuumed it!!! Noxious.... Absolutely noxious stench!
Stinkbugs, when it gets cold, don't die. They hibernate. And they decided to hibernate in our chimney, in our attic, and in our master bathroom fan venting.
Over the last few days, I have been on the war path to find the holes and plug them to keep stinkbugs out of our living space. I can't do anything about the chimney without creating a carbon monoxide hazard, so I will always have that issue. I don't know how much I can do about the attic; I have to go up there and look at all the eves to see if the screening is sufficient.
However, I can fix the bathroom fan problem! I borrowed a tall ladder from our neighbors today, unscrewed the "bug guard", and screeched in horror as hundreds of stinkbugs fell out from around the edges and from inside the venting. It was so gross!!!!!!!!!!! What's even more disgusting is that about half of them were still alive!! Ugh!!! But it explains why we have had to keep our fan on all winter, too!
I cleaned out the bugs I could find/reach, and then added screening to the outside. I know it reduces the airflow, but it's the price we are going to have to pay!! I screwed it back in, but I am going to have to add a significant amount of caulk around the edges to make sure it is stinkbug proof for a few years. Those little suckers can get pretty flat and can wedge themselves into locations that you never dreamed!
We also opened the bay windows in the kitchen, and found at least another 20 live ones wedged in between the top of the window frame and the frame itself. I cannot, for the life of me, figure out HOW the are worming their way into the house through what looks to me to be a tight seal!!
I've also ordered a trap... Yes, a trap. I ordered it from http://www.stinkbugtrapsonline.com/. The guy is a do-it-yourself-inventor, and I figured I can put this in my attic to see if it works. At this point. I'm game to try almost anything, and this has gotten some good reviews and press. He can't build them fast enough and fully refunds money if dissatisfied. What do I have to lose?
I can't kill them at their source, but I'm not going to sit back and let them invade my home anymore!! I won't win because they will always get in, but I can at least slow the stinkbug parade down to a trickle instead of a 10-20 a day!!!
I am so done with them!!!
- Posted using BlogPress from my newest toy.
DJ's 4 year checkup
On April 1, DJ went to the pediatrician for his 4 year checkup.
This year, not only did DJ stand on the big boy scale and against the the big boy height ruler, but he also had his blood pressure taken for the first time! DJ must have been nervous because his blood pressure was high. The nurse said we'd take it again in a few minutes.
DJ weighed in at 40 3/4 pounds and is 41 1/2 inches tall. This puts him in the 75th percentile in height and the 85-90th percentile in weight. A year ago, DJ was in the 65th percentile all around, so someone has grown despite his being a picky eater!
During the actual visit with the doctor, DJ did a great job letting the doctor look for monkeys in his ears, eyes and throat. He also let the doctor check his chest, spleen, and other body parts without a fuss. In fact, DJ did great.
I asked about his headaches, and the doctor said it isn't sinuses because he doesn't have sinuses yet! It's very likely to be a tension headache, if anything.
I also asked his recommendation about putting DJ in a booster, and he said that the recommendation these days is becoming more conservative. So we'll leave DJ in the 5 point harness seat until he doesn't fit in it. Next winter, he won't fit in his car seat while wearing his winter coat, so I suspect we'll have to change him to a booster then.
Meanwhile, the nurse came back in to take DJ's blood pressure, and everything was normal!
Unfortunately, our 2 year streak of no shots came to a roaring end. DJ received 5 boosters. The nurse came back, and administered them in less than 30 seconds (she was super fast!!), but DJ was pretty traumatized, understandably.
I got DJ back to Eleanor and Sonny's house, and went to work. DJ took a long nap and when he woke up, said his legs hurt and that he didn't want to walk! He sat on the couch the rest of the afternoon, asked me to carry him from Eleanor's to the car, and then from the car into the house. We administered some tylenol for the pain and about an hour later, he was feeling better.
On Saturday, DJ took a 3.5 hour nap!! Talk about fighting off the shots!! But he was back to normal by bedtime, and he's been doing great since!
This year, not only did DJ stand on the big boy scale and against the the big boy height ruler, but he also had his blood pressure taken for the first time! DJ must have been nervous because his blood pressure was high. The nurse said we'd take it again in a few minutes.
DJ weighed in at 40 3/4 pounds and is 41 1/2 inches tall. This puts him in the 75th percentile in height and the 85-90th percentile in weight. A year ago, DJ was in the 65th percentile all around, so someone has grown despite his being a picky eater!
During the actual visit with the doctor, DJ did a great job letting the doctor look for monkeys in his ears, eyes and throat. He also let the doctor check his chest, spleen, and other body parts without a fuss. In fact, DJ did great.
I asked about his headaches, and the doctor said it isn't sinuses because he doesn't have sinuses yet! It's very likely to be a tension headache, if anything.
I also asked his recommendation about putting DJ in a booster, and he said that the recommendation these days is becoming more conservative. So we'll leave DJ in the 5 point harness seat until he doesn't fit in it. Next winter, he won't fit in his car seat while wearing his winter coat, so I suspect we'll have to change him to a booster then.
Meanwhile, the nurse came back in to take DJ's blood pressure, and everything was normal!
Unfortunately, our 2 year streak of no shots came to a roaring end. DJ received 5 boosters. The nurse came back, and administered them in less than 30 seconds (she was super fast!!), but DJ was pretty traumatized, understandably.
I got DJ back to Eleanor and Sonny's house, and went to work. DJ took a long nap and when he woke up, said his legs hurt and that he didn't want to walk! He sat on the couch the rest of the afternoon, asked me to carry him from Eleanor's to the car, and then from the car into the house. We administered some tylenol for the pain and about an hour later, he was feeling better.
On Saturday, DJ took a 3.5 hour nap!! Talk about fighting off the shots!! But he was back to normal by bedtime, and he's been doing great since!
Saturday, April 09, 2011
DEMOLITION!!
Because we couldn't be any busier, we decided to add a major home improvement project to our list of things to do.
There are always home improvement projects to be done, but hanging new lights pales in comparison to the ones we're tackling this year. We've actually already completed one: we added recessed lighting and a ceiling fan to the living room (eliminating floor lamps... yay!). we also had our thermostat moved from out of the kitchen corner closest to the fireplace to the hallway by the bedrooms. I think we get more even temps in the house now... shocker!! We commissioned a contractor to do the job, and it was done in a day and a half. It's fabulous, and I'm thrilled we did it.
However, last weekend, we decided to tackle a major project - we are remodeling the basement. We spent last weekend and evenings this whole last week packing all of our stuff in the basement. And boy, there's just a lot of stuff down there!!
Yesterday, the dumpster was delivered to our driveway.
Today was DEMOLITION! And of course, I forgot to take a "before" picture. Ugh. Oh well.
Thankfully, a few people came over to help us:
- Eric, our neighbor from when we lived in the townhouse
- Andy, my friend since 1st grade
- Jill, a close friend of ours
- Don, Steve's dad
Without them, it never would have gotten done as fast as it did. The guys moved a few things to other locales first thing this morning, and then the noise began!! Crowbars, big feet and big hammers were tools of the trade and ceiling tiles, wood wall paneling, and wall/ceiling framing came down crashing. Between everyone, the vast majority the noise to be made was completed before lunch was delivered!!
I put the kids down for naps at 2, and then we started hauling the junk out to the dumpster. Then it was time to pick up the rug. We thought it might be glued to the concrete, but it wasn't! It wasn't glued to anything! That makes for easy disposal!
Except that there is linolium flooring under it. Can't have a major project without a surprise!! So we started asking questions like... Is it glued down? Is it tarred? Is it absbestos? We have no idea. Steve plans to rip it all out to lay down the Dricore easier and have it be effective.
So what did the demolition show us today?
- We suspected our master bathroom has a leak. Now we know for a fact.
- We have had water intrusion relatively recently. There was mold on the baseboards on one side of the room. We could smell how dank the rug was as we were pulling it, too.
- We really need to change out the metal water mains for PVC to create less locales in which stuff could leak.
- There was zero insulation in the basement. The frame for the walls were 1x's.
- Having open space gave us a 3-D canvas of what our space really looks like. Now we can really plan for what we want!
We have a loooooooooooong road ahead of us, but we have a deadline of Elektra's birthday to get it reasonably completed. Wish us luck!!
DJ's 4th Birthday
Clearly, I'm late in blogging about DJ's 4th Birthday. ::sigh::
On the day of DJ's actual birthday, Sonny and Eleanor threw a little party for DJ with all of his daycare friends.
As if that wasn't awesome enough, DJ's Nouno, Nouna, Nouna Alexandra, and Cousin Eleni from Minneapolis could be in town to help us celebrate it, too!!
We had dinner with the Minneapple crew the night before we were going to have DJ's birthday party at our house. While we were eating, both Alexandra and Eleni said that they wanted to come over and help us make DJ's birthday cake - the family favorite: Marshmallow Cake. This was a no brainer...! We got a chance to spend time with the girls, they were helping me cook, and they wanted to help with making their favorite cake! Awesome!! So the girls came home with Steve and me after dinner. While they made Marshmallow Cake, I trimmed the beef, marinated the pork loin, and made a spanakopita. Alexandra chopped the onions (remember, Alexandra - rinse the onion to reduce crying!) for the spanakopita for me, too! If it wasn't for the girls, I would have been up most of the night cooking, so I am very thankful they came to help!
The girls also learned a few new tricks while making the cake:
The next day was party day! We had nearly 30 people at the house for what turned out to be a gorgeous day! My parents brought steamed shrimp to have with the spanakopita and hummus I'd made, and there were just about no leftovers! Then we served lunch (beef and pork tenderloin - grilled to perfection by Steve), macaroni and cheese, and salad that my sister brought that had feta and dried cherries... yummy!! We had ZERO leftovers!!
Then it was CAKE TIME! Oh DJ was so excited he didn't know what to do with himself. Plus, DJ *loves loves loves* cake. He will wait soooooooooooooooo patiently for cake it's unbelievable a 4 year old can sit still that long. Really.
After we sang Happy Birthday to DJ, DJ blew out all of his candles in the first breath!! That was awesome!
Next, I relit the candles so that Elektra could have an opportunity to blow out the candles, too. This is a Hargest Family tradition (Steve's Mom's side of the family) because there is photographic evidence of Dave trying to blow out Steve's candles on Steve's 6th birthday. Because of that incident, the birthday child gets to blow out the candles first. Then the candles are relit and all children in attendance get to blow out the candles, too!
DJ devoured his entire piece of Marshmallow Cake. And as it turns out, the entire cake vanished, too!! Clearly, Alexandra and Eleni did an excellent job! Thanks again, girls! My sister also brought mini cream puffs and berries. All 110 cream puffs were gone, and only a little fruit was left. Wow!
After that, the cyclone that is a 4 year old ripping open presents as fast as he could happened. DJ received some awesome gifts... space ships, a Leap Frog tag reader, books, clothes, games, and a car carrier! We actually moved all of his toys out into the garage, and he's really only been playing with his new toys (and his duplos).
DJ had a great time at his party, and he loves his gifts. Thanks, everyone!
On the day of DJ's actual birthday, Sonny and Eleanor threw a little party for DJ with all of his daycare friends.
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| So excited!!!!! |
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| Cameron (way back) Front row: DJ, Grace, Sam 2nd row: Claire, Elektra, Evan |
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| Fish face (!) with Grace |
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| Elektra and Evan still in their party hats |
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| Grace and DJ (eating ice cream) |
As if that wasn't awesome enough, DJ's Nouno, Nouna, Nouna Alexandra, and Cousin Eleni from Minneapolis could be in town to help us celebrate it, too!!
We had dinner with the Minneapple crew the night before we were going to have DJ's birthday party at our house. While we were eating, both Alexandra and Eleni said that they wanted to come over and help us make DJ's birthday cake - the family favorite: Marshmallow Cake. This was a no brainer...! We got a chance to spend time with the girls, they were helping me cook, and they wanted to help with making their favorite cake! Awesome!! So the girls came home with Steve and me after dinner. While they made Marshmallow Cake, I trimmed the beef, marinated the pork loin, and made a spanakopita. Alexandra chopped the onions (remember, Alexandra - rinse the onion to reduce crying!) for the spanakopita for me, too! If it wasn't for the girls, I would have been up most of the night cooking, so I am very thankful they came to help!
The girls also learned a few new tricks while making the cake:
- Pam for Baking (Pam with flour)
- Magic Strips (strips soaked in ice water and then wrapped around the outside edges of a cake pan to make the cake top flat
- How to get cake layers onto a serving plate/stand.
- How to ice the cake!
- Another method for separating egg whites from yolks.
The next day was party day! We had nearly 30 people at the house for what turned out to be a gorgeous day! My parents brought steamed shrimp to have with the spanakopita and hummus I'd made, and there were just about no leftovers! Then we served lunch (beef and pork tenderloin - grilled to perfection by Steve), macaroni and cheese, and salad that my sister brought that had feta and dried cherries... yummy!! We had ZERO leftovers!!
Then it was CAKE TIME! Oh DJ was so excited he didn't know what to do with himself. Plus, DJ *loves loves loves* cake. He will wait soooooooooooooooo patiently for cake it's unbelievable a 4 year old can sit still that long. Really.
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| Listening to us all sing Happy Birthday to him |
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| oh boy... CAKE!!!! |
After we sang Happy Birthday to DJ, DJ blew out all of his candles in the first breath!! That was awesome!
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| DJ blowing out his candles |
Next, I relit the candles so that Elektra could have an opportunity to blow out the candles, too. This is a Hargest Family tradition (Steve's Mom's side of the family) because there is photographic evidence of Dave trying to blow out Steve's candles on Steve's 6th birthday. Because of that incident, the birthday child gets to blow out the candles first. Then the candles are relit and all children in attendance get to blow out the candles, too!
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| Elektra's turn to blow out the candles! |
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| OH BOY!!! CAKE!! |
DJ devoured his entire piece of Marshmallow Cake. And as it turns out, the entire cake vanished, too!! Clearly, Alexandra and Eleni did an excellent job! Thanks again, girls! My sister also brought mini cream puffs and berries. All 110 cream puffs were gone, and only a little fruit was left. Wow!
After that, the cyclone that is a 4 year old ripping open presents as fast as he could happened. DJ received some awesome gifts... space ships, a Leap Frog tag reader, books, clothes, games, and a car carrier! We actually moved all of his toys out into the garage, and he's really only been playing with his new toys (and his duplos).
DJ had a great time at his party, and he loves his gifts. Thanks, everyone!
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Eyebrows
On Thursday night, DJ said he wanted to go to bed because he didn't "feel good". When I asked him why, he said, "My eyebrows hurt."
Really?? Your eyebrows??
"Yes."
I got him some Tylenol, and then rubbed his eyebrows while he lay down on his bed falling asleep.
When he came to crawl into our bed later that night, I asked him if his eyebrows still hurt, and he said no.
That was the first time DJ had ever vocalized that he had a headache.
Really?? Your eyebrows??
"Yes."
I got him some Tylenol, and then rubbed his eyebrows while he lay down on his bed falling asleep.
When he came to crawl into our bed later that night, I asked him if his eyebrows still hurt, and he said no.
That was the first time DJ had ever vocalized that he had a headache.
Monday, March 07, 2011
Charleston 2011
Time for my annual blog about our annual trip to Charleston, South Carolina!
The drive to Charleston is long, but we were rewarded with gorgeous weather as we got further and further south. By the time we arrived, we had the kids in light jackets, if any jacket at all. It was in the 60s.
We had to actually find a new house this year since Andy's cousin's house was rented, much to our chagrin; we like Joyce's house a lot. But Damian found a killer house in the elite section of the Isle of Palms called Wild Dunes. That meant we needed a 24x7 car pass to get on/off the resort so we had to stop at the rental office to get the pass first before continuing on to the house. The house was gorgeous, and the resort (what we could see of it) was gorgeous. The house even had a rooftop deck that the kids loved to visit.
Damian, Jenn, Leo and Andy arrived at the house a few hours earlier than we did, and had hit the grocery store for some essentials and snagged dinner from Longhorn by the time we arrived and got settled. The kids went to bed early that first night, and we planned to go to Patriots Point the next morning.
The next morning arrived (Sunday), and the weather was meh... and it was projected to reach nearly 80 degrees on Monday, so we decided to bail on doing anything but go to the grocery store and Target. Plus, the kids were having fun being in a new place and playing with "new to them" toys. It was a nice lazy day.
On Monday, we made our annual pilgrimage to Patriots Point. The kids love climbing all over the USS Yorktown and running the length of its flight deck. Time for pictures!
The kids were exhausted from the millions of stairs (and steps) they walked, but no naps were to be had. We had an early dinner, and then took the kids to get ice cream and DJ's Perfect Potty Reward from a store called Discovery Ice Cream. Getting the ice cream was as exciting as eating it because a robot created DJ's ice cream treat! For $4, he got 3 layers of soft serve and added a layers of M&Ms in between each layer. The robot did all sorts of tricks and twirls with the ice cream, and it held the attention of each child and some of the adults, too. It was pretty cool.
On Tuesday, we decided to go to the local playground because it was another gorgeous day outside. The kids still seemed tired from the day before, so this was perfect "down time" for all of them to do something non-structured. Elektra had some fun with Leo on the see-saw, and DJ spent most of his time playing with the wood chips. Otherwise, Elektra hung out in a swing, and Leo scampered across most of the playground apparatuses. The playground also offers some awesome candid picture opportunities!
Wednesday, we went to Charles Towne Landing. This is the first permanent European settlement in the Carolinas, and it was a beautiful State Park. They even had a replica trading ship docked in the marsh with park rangers that would talk about why the settlers picked that spot (easily defendable), why they befriended the local natives (the natives wanted the European guns with which to defend themselves from a rival tribe, and the Europeans needed help to survive), and what route (through the bahamas to barbados) and cargo (wood traded for sugar) the trade ship would take. It was really neat, and the kids walked a ton.
As we kept walking, we came across a sign that explained how the State Park really was a vision of one woman.
Finally, we came towards the end of the State Park, and there was a sign: "Caution Alligators." There was an alligator statue on the ground next to a relatively large turtle, too. I strode purposely towards the turtle to take its picture... when the alligator statue moved its back leg.
Oh #*%^@!!!
That's NOT a statue!!!
This bugger was no less than 6 feet long. The turtle was pretty big, too.... Yeah, ok, I'm an idiot.... a very LUCKY idiot.
We asked the lady at the Visitor's Center if they had any restaurant recommendations. She said, "I can't recommend anything, but I really like to eat at Manny's." Manny's is a Greek bar and grill, and we ended up eating there for lunch two days in a row because their food was that good.
Thursday, we went to the Children's Museum of the Low Country because the weather was pretty chilly. We went there last year as well, and the kids had a ball. The massive water table captured DJ immediately (I brought a change of clothes for both DJ and Elektra - and we needed them, despite smocks!) and Leo explored the pirate ship and the castle. Elektra did a little exploring of the "grocery store", but she also enjoyed the water table area immensely.
After the Children's Museum, we went to see the Angel Oak tree again. This thing is HUGE and OLD and gorgeous.
At 4:30, Damian and I rented a tennis court. No, we didn't drive all the way to South Carolina to play tennis. But Andy had seen that the courts in Wild Dunes were being watered, and we realized this was our chance to play on a court other than asphalt. It turns out that the courts were clay!! Despite the hurricane-like gusts of wind, Damian and I had a blast hitting tennis balls at each other on the clay court. That was worth the price of admission!
On our last day, Friday, we went to the South Carolina Aquarium. It turned out to be a ball for the kids and the adults. The tanks and exhibits were beautiful. DJ and Elektra were fascinated by the big fish swimming so closely. We even saw an albino alligator!
Then we got to the touching tank in which there were stingrays and horseshoe crabs there to be touched by the kids. It just so happened to be feeding time, and the stingrays knew it. They would swim up the side of the tank, out of the water, flapping furiously because they knew food was to be had!! DJ got to feed a horseshoe crab by putting the piece of shrimp directly into the crab's belly opening. Then we watched as the crab would take its legs and stuff the shrimp into its belly to eat it. It was pretty wild!
We also saw a 4D movie short of Happy Feet. This was our first (ahem) 4D experience... for those of you who don't know, that means you are watching a movie in 3D and then during the film, you get sprayed with a mist of water, snowed on, your chair vibrates, etc. to corollate with the scene you're watching. Elektra wanted out now now now (I couldn't blame her... Steve and I were both surprised by the extra sensory effects), but DJ did great with it. I think he really liked the 3D effects; it was his first time seeing a 3D film!
Saturday came too soon again, and it was time to drive home. Both DJ and Elektra were sad on Sunday that we weren't going to see Leo or "the big ship". Unlike last year, where the kids got on each others' nerves by the end of the week, the kids had a ball with each other this year. And the adults had a good time, too. We look forward to doing this again next year!!
Just beware of the alligator.
And now for some extra pictures:
The drive to Charleston is long, but we were rewarded with gorgeous weather as we got further and further south. By the time we arrived, we had the kids in light jackets, if any jacket at all. It was in the 60s.
We had to actually find a new house this year since Andy's cousin's house was rented, much to our chagrin; we like Joyce's house a lot. But Damian found a killer house in the elite section of the Isle of Palms called Wild Dunes. That meant we needed a 24x7 car pass to get on/off the resort so we had to stop at the rental office to get the pass first before continuing on to the house. The house was gorgeous, and the resort (what we could see of it) was gorgeous. The house even had a rooftop deck that the kids loved to visit.
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| Leo and DJ looking over the rail on the rooftop deck |
Damian, Jenn, Leo and Andy arrived at the house a few hours earlier than we did, and had hit the grocery store for some essentials and snagged dinner from Longhorn by the time we arrived and got settled. The kids went to bed early that first night, and we planned to go to Patriots Point the next morning.
The next morning arrived (Sunday), and the weather was meh... and it was projected to reach nearly 80 degrees on Monday, so we decided to bail on doing anything but go to the grocery store and Target. Plus, the kids were having fun being in a new place and playing with "new to them" toys. It was a nice lazy day.
On Monday, we made our annual pilgrimage to Patriots Point. The kids love climbing all over the USS Yorktown and running the length of its flight deck. Time for pictures!
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| The USS Yorktown |
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| Andy, Damian, Jenn, Steve, Evanthe with the kids: DJ, Leo and Elektra |
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| Elektra, Leo, and DJ in the engine room |
The kids were exhausted from the millions of stairs (and steps) they walked, but no naps were to be had. We had an early dinner, and then took the kids to get ice cream and DJ's Perfect Potty Reward from a store called Discovery Ice Cream. Getting the ice cream was as exciting as eating it because a robot created DJ's ice cream treat! For $4, he got 3 layers of soft serve and added a layers of M&Ms in between each layer. The robot did all sorts of tricks and twirls with the ice cream, and it held the attention of each child and some of the adults, too. It was pretty cool.
On Tuesday, we decided to go to the local playground because it was another gorgeous day outside. The kids still seemed tired from the day before, so this was perfect "down time" for all of them to do something non-structured. Elektra had some fun with Leo on the see-saw, and DJ spent most of his time playing with the wood chips. Otherwise, Elektra hung out in a swing, and Leo scampered across most of the playground apparatuses. The playground also offers some awesome candid picture opportunities!
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| Elektra on the see-saw |
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| Elektra on the swing |
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| Andy throwing a frisbee with Damian |
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| Leo, Elektra, Steve and Jenn on the see-saw |
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| DJ proudly displaying his pile of wood chips |
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| DJ |
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| Leo at the top of the tallest climbing apparatus |
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| Andy, I'm not sure that's made for big kids... |
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| self portrait! |
Wednesday, we went to Charles Towne Landing. This is the first permanent European settlement in the Carolinas, and it was a beautiful State Park. They even had a replica trading ship docked in the marsh with park rangers that would talk about why the settlers picked that spot (easily defendable), why they befriended the local natives (the natives wanted the European guns with which to defend themselves from a rival tribe, and the Europeans needed help to survive), and what route (through the bahamas to barbados) and cargo (wood traded for sugar) the trade ship would take. It was really neat, and the kids walked a ton.
As we kept walking, we came across a sign that explained how the State Park really was a vision of one woman.
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| Ferdinanda Legare Waring |
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| The Waring estate... |
Finally, we came towards the end of the State Park, and there was a sign: "Caution Alligators." There was an alligator statue on the ground next to a relatively large turtle, too. I strode purposely towards the turtle to take its picture... when the alligator statue moved its back leg.
Oh #*%^@!!!
That's NOT a statue!!!
 |
| Caution... LIVE Alligators |
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| The turtle sunning itself next to the alligator |
We asked the lady at the Visitor's Center if they had any restaurant recommendations. She said, "I can't recommend anything, but I really like to eat at Manny's." Manny's is a Greek bar and grill, and we ended up eating there for lunch two days in a row because their food was that good.
Thursday, we went to the Children's Museum of the Low Country because the weather was pretty chilly. We went there last year as well, and the kids had a ball. The massive water table captured DJ immediately (I brought a change of clothes for both DJ and Elektra - and we needed them, despite smocks!) and Leo explored the pirate ship and the castle. Elektra did a little exploring of the "grocery store", but she also enjoyed the water table area immensely.
After the Children's Museum, we went to see the Angel Oak tree again. This thing is HUGE and OLD and gorgeous.
 |
| Steve, DJ, and Elektra walking around the Angel Oak |
On our last day, Friday, we went to the South Carolina Aquarium. It turned out to be a ball for the kids and the adults. The tanks and exhibits were beautiful. DJ and Elektra were fascinated by the big fish swimming so closely. We even saw an albino alligator!
Then we got to the touching tank in which there were stingrays and horseshoe crabs there to be touched by the kids. It just so happened to be feeding time, and the stingrays knew it. They would swim up the side of the tank, out of the water, flapping furiously because they knew food was to be had!! DJ got to feed a horseshoe crab by putting the piece of shrimp directly into the crab's belly opening. Then we watched as the crab would take its legs and stuff the shrimp into its belly to eat it. It was pretty wild!
We also saw a 4D movie short of Happy Feet. This was our first (ahem) 4D experience... for those of you who don't know, that means you are watching a movie in 3D and then during the film, you get sprayed with a mist of water, snowed on, your chair vibrates, etc. to corollate with the scene you're watching. Elektra wanted out now now now (I couldn't blame her... Steve and I were both surprised by the extra sensory effects), but DJ did great with it. I think he really liked the 3D effects; it was his first time seeing a 3D film!
Saturday came too soon again, and it was time to drive home. Both DJ and Elektra were sad on Sunday that we weren't going to see Leo or "the big ship". Unlike last year, where the kids got on each others' nerves by the end of the week, the kids had a ball with each other this year. And the adults had a good time, too. We look forward to doing this again next year!!
Just beware of the alligator.
And now for some extra pictures:
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| A Camelia flower found in the Legare-Waring gardens at Charles Towne Landing |
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| DJ and Steve in front of the fountain at Charles Towne Landing |
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| Leo, Elektra and DJ watching Phinneas and Ferb |
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| Southern climate agreed with Elektra's hair... POOF! |
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| We wondered if this would set DJ's potty training back a few weeks... |
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| ...but he loved it! |
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| The annual group pic! |
Tuesday, March 01, 2011
The (B)Log
Greetings from Charleston, South Carolina!! We are having a wonderful time here... the weather is awesome and the company is wonderful. I'll write more more on our adventures in Charleston in another post.
Really.
Meanwhile, since at least July 2010, this blog has turned more into the trials and tribulations of potty training DJ. Consequently, my siblings renamed my blog to "The Log", a subtle yet hilarious play on potty words.
And to my delight, I get to update everyone on DJ's latest accomplishment! DJ has been 100% with potty for over a week and a half! He had one accident - which was my fault for not waking up - but otherwise, he has been PERFECT since President's Day weekend! In fact, today, all Steve saw was DJ streak across the living space screeching, "I need to go pooooottyy!!!" as he ran himself to the bathroom.
He's been 100% with urine since the fall, but we've been really struggling with bowel movements. We've gone through a string of different reward methods - a sticker chart (this worked well for pee training), big and little stickers, hershey kisses, etc. The one reward that has seemed to stick the best, however, is the all-mighty homemade tollhouse chocolate chip cookie. I even gave Eleanor and Sonny a container to encourage him last week.
After 1 full week of perfection, Steve and I decided to reward him big time with a toy that he would get to pick for himself. Unfortunately, by the time DJ got up from his nap on Sunday, the stores were closed (what is up with the South and stores closing at 5pm on Sundays?), so we postponed until yesterday after dinner. Damian, Jenn, Leo, and Andy, with whom we are here in Charleston, had found a local ice cream shop that also was chock full of really nice Melissa and Doug toys.
I had prepped DJ with why we were going to this store (to get ice cream and so that he could pick out a toy because he has been doing SUCH a good job on the potty!), so he was pretty excited. After downing his ice cream, DJ walked around the store, played with toys, and then he walked over to me carring a log truck. I asked him if this was the toy he wanted for his potty reward, and he said yes.
Yes. I said a LOG truck. LOG.
Really.
That log truck could have been $100 and I would have bought it for him because it is just so perfect, despite the fact that the irony of it is completely lost on my son.
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| DJ and his Log Carrier truck |
He loves this toy, and has been playing incessantly with it. It was the first thing he played with when he woke up this morning.
Not to be outdone, it was clear that Elektra was going to throw a fit that he got something and she didn't. She picked out nesting alphabet blocks.
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| Elektra and her alphabet nesting blocks |
Keep your fingers crossed that DJ has finally reached this big milestone!
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
The house of sick
It's winter. The kids are sick. Pretty standard statement from a parent with young children.
Elektra started out with a cold: runny nose, nasty wet cough, lots of sneezing. At some points, she'd just stand there with enormous crocodile tears streaming down her face. She wasn't wailing, just tears. She also had a fever, and it was persistent. After a 4-5 days of this fever, Steve took her to the doctor. The doctor found she had a really bad ear infection in the one ear, and prescribed The Pink Stuff (antibiotic). Elektra loves "my pink medicine". It smells like it tastes great (bubblegum), but I think she'd love if it tasted like feces because it's PINK. Elektra is really into pink right now. When she's getting dressed in the morning, she picks out pink socks every time (if they are available). By this past Saturday, two days after she started the "my pink medicine", you could see her appetite was coming back and she was starting to feel better.
DJ, on the other hand, has got it rough. His fever comes and goes, it's always a low grade fever (99 or less), and it's not around for days at a time, and then will make an appearance. He's had a runny nose and nasty wet cough for over a week now. Then on Saturday night, he came into our room to sleep in our bed but without Pillow and Tiger. Usually that means he woke up disoriented. Well, he came into our room, asked to be picked up by just raising his arms, and while Steve was putting him in our bed, I went to get his pillow and Tiger. I wasn't gone 10 seconds, and DJ had vomited in our bed. Steve tried to catch it, but that's, well, impossible.
Awesome.
I cleaned up DJ while Steve stripped the bed. Luckily, none of our blankets got hit, so we really only had to change the sheets and clothes of everyone involved. We all snuggled again, and an hour later, DJ threw up all over me.
Awesome.
Once again, the blankets were spared, so we changed the sheets and clothes of all involved. We hunkered back down, with towels around us. DJ dry heaved a few minutes later, but then slept the rest of the night.
DJ was pretty snuggly all day on Sunday, and even wasn't quite himself even when he got to see Spiro, Sophia, Thio and Thia. But he ate well for dinner, including pounding down 4-5 strawberries and red velvet cupcakes.
Sunday night, DJ came into our bed again. I had a towel nearby... just in case. 3 hours later, DJ got sick on me again.
Awesome.
This time, it was a pretty red color, too!! Fantastic for staining things! And he'd managed to get all of the blankets dirty, too. I don't keep a full second set of king sized blankets around so... I went and slept in DJ's twin bed with him, and Steve stayed in our room with throw blankets. Clearly, neither of us really slept yesterday.
We took the kids to daycare yesterday as neither were sporting fevers, and DJ seemed to be feeling relatively ok. It turns out that at around 10:00, he asked Eleanor to go to bed, and he slept for 2.5 hours. Then he was very clingy, and didn't want to do anything but sit right next to Eleanor.
On our way out the door to go home, DJ vomited all over Eleanor's rug. Well, at least it wasn't on me...but I felt bad because it's Eleanor's new rug!! DJ was clearly feeling terrible.
We were only home for an hour when, at 7:00 PM, DJ turned to me and said, "Mommy, I want to go lay down. I want to put on 'jamas and lay down in my bed." And that is exactly what he did, and was asleep in 10 minute or less. That means he went to bed over an hour and a half early for him. He slept until midnight, and then crawled into our bed. Having learned my lesson, I had towels EVERYWHERE. Naturally, DJ slept for the next 7 hours without incident. In fact, he woke up in a pretty good mood. He drank some water when we got to the kitchen, and then started to wimper. I went to give him a hug to comfort him and .....
Awesome. Why am I a barf target?!
Got us all changed into fresh clothes again, and then DJ cuddled on the couch with me and watched some TV. About an hour and a half to 2 hours later, DJ asked me to go lay down. And lay down he did and was asleep in 5 minutes or less. He slept for 2.5 hours, had some lunch (chicken dipped in Greek yogurt), and seems to have a little energy now. Hopefully, he's turned a corner on whatever is plaguing him.
The one benefit to DJ throwing up on the bed (and the kitchen floor) is that it makes for easy clean up. No stench... unlike trying to get that out of a rug. On the other hand, well, it's pretty clear what the downsides are...
Elektra started out with a cold: runny nose, nasty wet cough, lots of sneezing. At some points, she'd just stand there with enormous crocodile tears streaming down her face. She wasn't wailing, just tears. She also had a fever, and it was persistent. After a 4-5 days of this fever, Steve took her to the doctor. The doctor found she had a really bad ear infection in the one ear, and prescribed The Pink Stuff (antibiotic). Elektra loves "my pink medicine". It smells like it tastes great (bubblegum), but I think she'd love if it tasted like feces because it's PINK. Elektra is really into pink right now. When she's getting dressed in the morning, she picks out pink socks every time (if they are available). By this past Saturday, two days after she started the "my pink medicine", you could see her appetite was coming back and she was starting to feel better.
DJ, on the other hand, has got it rough. His fever comes and goes, it's always a low grade fever (99 or less), and it's not around for days at a time, and then will make an appearance. He's had a runny nose and nasty wet cough for over a week now. Then on Saturday night, he came into our room to sleep in our bed but without Pillow and Tiger. Usually that means he woke up disoriented. Well, he came into our room, asked to be picked up by just raising his arms, and while Steve was putting him in our bed, I went to get his pillow and Tiger. I wasn't gone 10 seconds, and DJ had vomited in our bed. Steve tried to catch it, but that's, well, impossible.
Awesome.
I cleaned up DJ while Steve stripped the bed. Luckily, none of our blankets got hit, so we really only had to change the sheets and clothes of everyone involved. We all snuggled again, and an hour later, DJ threw up all over me.
Awesome.
Once again, the blankets were spared, so we changed the sheets and clothes of all involved. We hunkered back down, with towels around us. DJ dry heaved a few minutes later, but then slept the rest of the night.
DJ was pretty snuggly all day on Sunday, and even wasn't quite himself even when he got to see Spiro, Sophia, Thio and Thia. But he ate well for dinner, including pounding down 4-5 strawberries and red velvet cupcakes.
Sunday night, DJ came into our bed again. I had a towel nearby... just in case. 3 hours later, DJ got sick on me again.
Awesome.
This time, it was a pretty red color, too!! Fantastic for staining things! And he'd managed to get all of the blankets dirty, too. I don't keep a full second set of king sized blankets around so... I went and slept in DJ's twin bed with him, and Steve stayed in our room with throw blankets. Clearly, neither of us really slept yesterday.
We took the kids to daycare yesterday as neither were sporting fevers, and DJ seemed to be feeling relatively ok. It turns out that at around 10:00, he asked Eleanor to go to bed, and he slept for 2.5 hours. Then he was very clingy, and didn't want to do anything but sit right next to Eleanor.
On our way out the door to go home, DJ vomited all over Eleanor's rug. Well, at least it wasn't on me...but I felt bad because it's Eleanor's new rug!! DJ was clearly feeling terrible.
We were only home for an hour when, at 7:00 PM, DJ turned to me and said, "Mommy, I want to go lay down. I want to put on 'jamas and lay down in my bed." And that is exactly what he did, and was asleep in 10 minute or less. That means he went to bed over an hour and a half early for him. He slept until midnight, and then crawled into our bed. Having learned my lesson, I had towels EVERYWHERE. Naturally, DJ slept for the next 7 hours without incident. In fact, he woke up in a pretty good mood. He drank some water when we got to the kitchen, and then started to wimper. I went to give him a hug to comfort him and .....
Awesome. Why am I a barf target?!
Got us all changed into fresh clothes again, and then DJ cuddled on the couch with me and watched some TV. About an hour and a half to 2 hours later, DJ asked me to go lay down. And lay down he did and was asleep in 5 minutes or less. He slept for 2.5 hours, had some lunch (chicken dipped in Greek yogurt), and seems to have a little energy now. Hopefully, he's turned a corner on whatever is plaguing him.
The one benefit to DJ throwing up on the bed (and the kitchen floor) is that it makes for easy clean up. No stench... unlike trying to get that out of a rug. On the other hand, well, it's pretty clear what the downsides are...
Friday, January 28, 2011
snOMG!
I wish I could take credit for that title, but I can't... I got it from an autocross friend.
Anyway, on Wednesday night, we finally got The Big One. We got about 5" over the course of Tuesday night/Wednesday morning. Then on Wednesday evening, we got a thundersnow (a thunderstorm that's too cold to rain so it snows instead) that dumped at least another foot on top of that in a matter of 6 hours or less. At one point, it was white out conditions. If this has been a summer storm, we'd have gotten hammered with sideways rain and flash flooding.
Steve and the trusty snowblower got us unburied in about an hour and a half on Thursday morning. I drove the kids to daycare and on my way, I realized just how heavy the snow was. None of it had fallen from any of the trees overnight. And what's more, a lot of it hasn't even fallen today!! That also means it's perfect snowball snow.
When Steve brought the kids home from daycare, we partially cleared the deck to get to the grill. A dedicated grill master has no fear of grilling in... weather.
While the grill was heating, I spotted a stinkbug (cannot confirm if it was actually alive) attached to the top of the garage wall. As I mentioned earlier, this snow was excellent snowball weather. So Steve and I started to throw snowballs at the stinkbug to see if we could hit it. Curt Schilling we are not, but eventually, Steve hit the stinkbug square.
Making and throwing snowballs gave the kids the idea to throw them at us, and so the "fight" began! DJ had the BEST time trying to make a snowball and throwing it at Steve and me! He also enjoyed just picking up piles of snow and throwing them up into the air as far as he could, and watch the flakes come down again.
Meanwhile, I got the idea to knock down a big icicle for each kid. DJ threw it to see what would happen when it landed. Elektra, on the other hand, put it right in her mouth. Once she got ahold of that icicle, she was absolutely content. She didn't want to let go of it, and she didn't want to stop sucking on it.
I tried to get a picture of the two of them sitting on a mountain of snow, but that didn't work out so well.
Then Steve got a wild hair and decided to go DIVING into the snow in the yard.
Once you're *in* the snow, you may as well embrace it! The kids LOVED it when Daddy did this! we heard lots of laughs and giggles, and DJ wanted to join him with a snow angel of his own.
DJ made a snow angel of his own as well! Unfortunately, those pictures didn't turn out.
In addition to all of this, DJ also couldn't wait to help shovel. He loves the shovel that we have that is just his size, and helped us shovel at the house. He also was a HUGE helper at daycare by helping Sonny clean the walk and the driveway! Sonny was so proud of how hard DJ worked that he gave DJ his first earned $1. I'll pull down his piggy bank and we'll put it in there for him. We are very proud of him!
And there you have it... Snowpocalypse 2011.
Anyway, on Wednesday night, we finally got The Big One. We got about 5" over the course of Tuesday night/Wednesday morning. Then on Wednesday evening, we got a thundersnow (a thunderstorm that's too cold to rain so it snows instead) that dumped at least another foot on top of that in a matter of 6 hours or less. At one point, it was white out conditions. If this has been a summer storm, we'd have gotten hammered with sideways rain and flash flooding.
Steve and the trusty snowblower got us unburied in about an hour and a half on Thursday morning. I drove the kids to daycare and on my way, I realized just how heavy the snow was. None of it had fallen from any of the trees overnight. And what's more, a lot of it hasn't even fallen today!! That also means it's perfect snowball snow.
When Steve brought the kids home from daycare, we partially cleared the deck to get to the grill. A dedicated grill master has no fear of grilling in... weather.
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| A foot and a half of snow is not a deterrent to a master griller! |
Making and throwing snowballs gave the kids the idea to throw them at us, and so the "fight" began! DJ had the BEST time trying to make a snowball and throwing it at Steve and me! He also enjoyed just picking up piles of snow and throwing them up into the air as far as he could, and watch the flakes come down again.
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| DJ's glasses are wet from throwing snow up into the air. |
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| Elektra sucking on her icicle. Someone's going to love popsicles this summer! |
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| DJ and Elektra happy in the snow! |
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| Not a great picture, but you get the point! |
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| Steve making a snow angel. |
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| Steve's snow angel |
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| Boy that white stuff is COLD!! |
In addition to all of this, DJ also couldn't wait to help shovel. He loves the shovel that we have that is just his size, and helped us shovel at the house. He also was a HUGE helper at daycare by helping Sonny clean the walk and the driveway! Sonny was so proud of how hard DJ worked that he gave DJ his first earned $1. I'll pull down his piggy bank and we'll put it in there for him. We are very proud of him!
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| Sonny's BIG helper! Thanks for the picture, Eleanor! |
And there you have it... Snowpocalypse 2011.
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