And now we have a video!

I finally got the video of Annika giving her Amelia Earhart speech to post. And look at that sweet little pumpkin face at the end there. I just want to squish her cheeks! However, would someone smart tell me if I can turn it so it will go vertical instead of horizantal so I don't have to twist my neck to see it?

And we finally have pictures

of Annika aka Amelia Earhart

Look

at those eyelashes. It doesn't seem quite fair; mine don't even look like that after three coats of mascara.

Funny baby....and then sick baby

Karl called me into the living room to show me this:




Elizabeth does not usually fall asleep at 5pm so I checked her temperature. Sure enough, she had a fever. Poor baby. But she looked awfully cute in her tutu sleeping next to her daddy.

The fever hit her right at dinnertime. Before she got sick she was busy running around, playing and making me laugh. Here are a few of the funny things she did:

-She ran into the bathroom and I heard her sitting on the potty and then she said "Good job Baby!" to herself when she went.

-Later,I tried to grab her up and give her a quick hug as she went running by. She got mad and said "Give me my baby back!" I said, "Where is your baby?" and she pointed to herself.

-But then she got mad when Ian called her 'baby'. She came running into the kitchen to tattle on him. "E-Wee call me baby!" she said indignantly.

Still no pictures

I got some great pictures and even a little video of Annika as Amelia Earhart at her Wax Museum program at school. My mother-in-law brought her camera for me to use and it takes really good pictures. When I got home I found my card reader (yay!) But for some reason no computer in this house will let me upload the pictures so I can't share them with you until IT support gets home. And my computer? I am so mad at it right now. It doesn't recognize any device I plug in. So I can't charge my ipod, put any pictures on it...nothing. IT support has already looked at it and could not fix it. And he didn't come right out and say it, but I got the feeling he felt that I was somehow responsible for the problem.

What else is new around here? Alexandria has what I suspect is a double ear infection. I had to go pick her up early from school today. Also, she is getting braces for sure. Her first orthodontist appointment is next Friday. Karl said she has been so sickly that he is worried she is falling apart and is not sure we should invest the money in her. Ha. Insurance pays next to nothing, so the way we figure it, we will be paying for braces for the next decade. We have to pay for Alex's phase I, then her phase II, by then Annika will probably need them, and if Ian keeps up with the finger sucking, he might be next in line.

Speaking of the finger sucker, he got injured playing Wii. He was bowling and went to bring his arm back to throw the ball and slammed his finger (his sucking finger!) right into the coffee table. It swelled up and bruised pretty bad. It is better now but he is still unable to slurp his fingers which has upset him. When Karl found out he said, "Every time you turn on the Wii there is a warning about how you need to be careful to make sure there is nothing around you when you are playing." To which I say...okay, but Ian can't read.

As for me, I am on Week 3 of the 5K training program. Except that week 3 was really really hard so I am going to have to go back and redo week 2. Also I could not run tonight on account of Annika's Wax Museum. Reading the New Testement in 30 days has not commenced, so I need to get on the ball with that. School started last Monday so I am busy trying to avoid reading about ethical issues in social science.

So that is all that is going on around here. While I was typing this Karl got home and put the pictures on my computer, so I will put them in the next post.

Shopping for a great cause

I wanted to an share a great Etsy shop with you. I met Cristin through Lucy(my step-sister) and she is awesomely crafty and makes the cutest things. Right now 90% of proceeds from her current inventory will be donated to aid Haiti in relief efforts. She knits hats, scarves, headbands, cowls and makes adorable gift tags too. Check out her stuff here:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/cristinrae

I have my eye on the headband/earwarmers. How cute would those be on my girls?

Breaking news: I have misplaced something

You guys, this might come as a surprise to you, but I lose things. A lot. So now I can't find the card reader for my laptop which equals no new pictures for the blog. I don't find blogging as fun when I don't have pictures. So I will keep looking, but until then, I might not be writing as frequently.

Dear Ian:

I am happy you have an interest in protecting the environment. Cars do cause pollution and it would be good to reduce how much driving we do. However, I am sorry but no, it is not feasible for me to walk or ride my bike to the doctor's office 15 miles away from our house with four kids in the dead of winter. Nor can I ride my bike (with said children) to the grocery store to do the weekly grocery shopping for a family of six. Keep the ideas coming though!
Love,
Mommy

An end to cabin fever

Yesterday's status- We had been stuck in this house for days and days. Our groceries were running low, tempers were flaring (Ian) and tattling was at an all-time high. All the Christmas toys have lost their luster; even the Wii hadn't been played in days. So needless to say I was a little excited at the prospect of getting out today. First I took Karl to work, as his car is still under a giant pile of snow. Then we went to the dentist. It was Ian's first time and he was awesome. He sat there in the chair with his big old cowboy boots and did everything the dentist told him to, with no complaints. Alexandria and Annika also had check-ups. The verdict? Alex and Annika have kept up their no-cavity streaks. (I think they got Karl's strong teeth genes.) Ian had one small cavity that will have to be filled on Monday. We caught it early so the dentist said it will be easy to fix. I suspect his habit of sneaking downstairs at night to get into food (after his teeth have been brushed) may have something to do with it. I have to make Alex an appointment with the orthodontist next week to see if she does indeed need braces and the dentist said Annika will likely need braces in a few years too.

After a little grocery shopping we headed home where Elizabeth proceeded to throw a giant fit. She has been having these episodes a few times a day where she just screams and cries and can't be consoled. That, combined with the fact that she still has a runny nose led me to make her a doctor appointment. And lucky I did, she has an ear infection again. I hate that her ear is bothering her, but I have to admit I was relieved that these fits have a cause and are not just some new behavioral trait she has developed.

Then we picked up the Girl Scout cookies from Alex's troop leader. (I have already eaten waaaaay too many peanut butter sandwich cookies.) After that it was time to pick up Karl from work then we came home and I ran. And, ummm...it was cold. Also I find running around my neighborhood boring. I told Malcolm I am not sure how something can be so physically difficult and manage to be mind-numbingly boring at the same time. I think I need to check out the Y so I can use the treadmills and watch tv while I run. So anyway, after all that I am grateful to be spending the evening at home. Although I am about to chuck these cookies in the trash before I eat anymore. Seriously.

Lessons from my stint on jury duty

1. I should not be allowed downtown by myself. EVER. I get lost every single time. And I am so busy trying to figure out where I am and where I think I need to be that I drive really, really poorly. Which leads to:

2. You can't make a left turn from the right hand lane going the wrong way on a one way street. Especially not when there is a car in the left hand lane.

3. There are some really kind people out there! The gentleman whose mirror I knocked loose (see #2) told me not to worry about it. Whew!

4. If you want to get out of jury duty, declaring to the judge and the lawyer, "I shouldn't even be here. I don't know nothin' about nothin' you all are talking about!" will definitely work. And no, it wasn't me that said that.

5. If you park in a parking garage and get the early bird $4 special (for arriving before 9am and leaving before 7 am) for the love of Pete DON'T leave said garage for your lunch break. You then will have to get a whole new ticket and won't be eligible for the early bird special, thereby potentially costing yourself an additional $12.*

6. It actually is kind of fun spending an entire day not dealing with bathroom messes, refereeing arguments between kids, cooking, cleaning, fetching drinks and snacks and tripping over toys.

7. It was also kind of fun to spend the day with adults, talking about grown up things.

8. But it was even nicer to come home and have four kids coming running at me with hugs, telling me they missed me.



* In another of a long line of many things that make me go "huh"-that whole parking situation was mystifying. So I leave the parking lot, and when I get back I park in a different lot, which was closer to the courthouse. The sign said it would cost me $12. I get my ticket and go along my merry way. At 7pm I go to leave and when I hand the attendant my ticket and try to pay her, she just waves me on. So it cost nothing? Huh. So I only paid $4 for parking all day. Plus I made $6 for doing 11 hours of jury duty, netting myself $2. Sweet!

Ian, the reading wizard

As I mentioned before, Ian has been really interested in letters and sounding them out. He walks around saying 'key starts with 'k'' and "Mommy, why is the word 'on' in the middle of the word 'snowman'?" Today he was in my room as I was trying to calm Elizabeth. He said "I want the light off. Off. O-f-f"
So now he knows how to spell the words 'off, on, Ian and stop'. He loves for me to give him words and then he thinks up rhyming ones.

All this pre-reading activity has prompted Alexandria to say "Well Ian is just the little reading wizard today isn't he?"

My goals:

1. Reading the New Testament in 30 days. Check out the program here:
http://www.newthru30.com/resources

2. Running a 5K in March

3. Doubling up on my course load so I can finally graduate already.


So there you have it. I figure if I put it on here maybe I will feel pressured to accomplish these things.

My sister gave me:

this sign for Christmas^^

Ha! I love it.

Catching up

With this post I will be caught up with writing all the happenings (such as they are) at the Dains household. It is easier for me to write a little bit every day and when I get behind then I have to think of everything I missed, which makes me tired.

Elizabeth has been sick all week so we stayed home for New Years Eve instead of going to church like we originally planned. We had fun though. We made cookies, painted nails, played games, made kettle corn and played the Wii. Alex and Annika managed to stay up until midnight to watch the ball drop. Ian crashed out on the couch at about 11:00. Elizabeth of course went to bed much earlier. Ian beat me at baseball on the Wii and I was actually trying my hardest. He gets aggravated when he is batting though and gripes at me for 'pitching him foul balls.'

Elizabeth is doing really well with her potty training. We pretty much haven't left the house with her being sick so that has helped keep the momentum going. She has been so easy to potty train, compared to someone else who shall remain nameless. (She has had a fever and a runny nose, but is otherwise running around playing. Just had to add that in lest you think I was torturing a poor sickly baby with the potty chair.)

Well that is all that is new here. Huh. There isn't much to talk about when you haven't left the house in almost a week. Not that I am complaining, it is far too cold for me to be out traipsing around. Too bad all this staying warm at home is about to come to a screeching halt. Monday I have jury duty, Tuesday the kids go back to school and Annika has a Challenge project on Wednesday night. But for now? I am enjoying sitting around in my sweats.

Shopping

Alexandria and Annika both got money for Christmas that they couldn't wait to spend. They got matching shirts. Can you read what they say? 'When all else fails, I blame my sister.' They think it is funny to wear them at the same time. Annika got some moccasins, then both girls went to Build a Bear. They each made a bear- Annika named hers 'Katie' and Alexandria named hers 'Ali'. Which also happen to be the names of their cousins. Coincidence?

Christmas, Part 2

Sunday we had our final Christmas celebration. My sister and her kids were in town so we got to have a big get together at Ethan and Tricia's house with them. We had our 2nd annual gift exchange which is Yankee Swap or dirty Santa, or whatever you want to call it. And guess what? I managed to avoid getting Uncle James' stamp collection, whew! I got a wet/dry vac that you can plug into the cigarette lighter of the car. It makes me happy. I can't wait to try it out. And Karl? He stole the Hickory Farms gift box that we ourselves brought.

I love it when Chandra is in town, she is so much fun. Also? She is who I want to be when I grow up (although I guess it is a little late now.) She knows directions! And she doesn't lose things! And she is really good at organizing and figuring things out! While she was here we went to the movies, went shopping, went out to eat and played games. Also while she was here she fixed my ipod and brought me two huge bags of clothes that are so cute. I was really excited by this, considering my wardrobe mostly consists of yoga pants and t-shirts.

So, anyway, we were all so glad Chandra and the kids were able to make it for Christmas. It was so great being able to celebrate with her, Mom, Barry, Aunt Tommie, Sue Ann, Ethan, Tricia, Amanda, Leandra, Kara, Katie, Bethany, Ella, Micah, Ali, Devin, Eli, Malcolm and Zach. I love my family!