Catching up on pictures...

Okay..so I haven't added any pics of the kiddos recently...so it's time for a little catch-up! :)





And...what a difference a week makes!! These are our baby birds now.

It's been a while...

I just realized how long it's been since I last blogged....a long time!! I was going to complain about the mosquitoes..but I'm sure no one else likes them either...so I decided to not go there. Then...I went outside and look what I found in our bush right outside our living room window (close enough for Caleb to see right into the nest!!)


There are four little chicks in the nest...and the nest is only about 3 inches across. They are Chipping Sparrows, in case you were wondering.

And ladies and gentlemen...that's about all the excitement from around here. Abby is sleeping through the night almost constantly now. Caleb looks like he's a connect-the-dot game with all his mosquito bites. We're back down in Illinois, tackling Brent's grandmother's house....this weekend is the "deadline" that we set for her getting into her apartment...she's been putting it off for a long time. There are a LOT of things to go through! Anyway...that's about all from here!! :)

SO this last weekend we went back home to help clean out Brent's grandma's house...oh my! We just tackled the outbuilding...six weedwackers, three push mowers, a chopper, a tractor, a motorcycle, a riding lawn mower (the old 3 wheeled kind called a Big Mow). I lost track of the motors, etc. That's just the larger stuff....there was a TON! It was actaully a pole barn and there was only enough room to pull the car in and out. Brent's grand-dad loved to tinker with things. He did a lot of electrical work and always wanted to fix the motors....just didn't' do much with them after he fixed them. The first roll-off dumpster is full....and that's just with the stuff that wouldn't sell at the estate sale....We'll tackle the house next. Hmmm....wonder what we'll find!

Hula lessons from Dad...





Isn't she a doll?




Why is Abby wrapped in a blanket? What you don't see is the fact that she pooped up to her armpits...literally. Ugh!


Look! She's pushing up! I have a feeling she'll be making a forward motion soon :)


Abby and Grandma



Abby and Grandpa



Abby is starting to hold her own against Caleb...

Icky, Icky, blahs...

Ugh! So I worked today. I NEVER go home sick from work or call in...I just don't like doing it...but I did today. Oi! The kiddos haven't been themselves the last week or so, not eating well...etc (don't worry, I won't go into too much detail!). Anyway...I was being optimistic, thinking I wouldn't catch it...even though Brent had it for the last few days too. So I wake up this morning to get ready for work, and I start to think...uh oh. But then my optimistic side kicks in again, and I say to myself, "I just overdid it at the zoo yesterday. I'm fine." So, I go into work....and as the day goes on, it becomes obvious that I shouldn't be there. Now, we were already short staffed, so I wanted to stick it out, but I ended up coming home at 4pm anyway. Hopefully it only lasts a few days! Anyway...I thought I'd include pics from Abby's first day at the zoo (yesterday, Memorial Day).



We didn't tell Caleb what we were doing until we got to the zoo. That may be the first time I can remember him being speechless. Then he got so excited, he couldn't finish any sentences. Hehe....I think he had fun!



It was so nice and warm....almost too warm. It got to be 82 degrees. The bears had a little rough time with it!



Abby decided she'd had enough. Boy, am I thankful for strollers!



Caleb got a special treat for lunch...we were having so much fun we decided to eat before we went home.



It was a nice little surprise to find baby ducks when we went to the park to eat our lunch.

Football practice...

Okay, so my brain is fried from working all day (got home at 8:30pm!!) and I can't think of anything to talk about. Except, that is to vent about administration wanting us to go to a full unit and not getting us the staff we need. Granted, my boss needs to hire on more people, but the hospital is SUPPOSED to float us staff to cover what is needed. That would be what a greatly dislike about being in charge (like I was today). Considering I'm one of the most senior people on the unit, I'm getting used to it again...between Caleb and Abby, I didn't have to be in charge all that much, but when the ICU and general care split into two separate units, I stayed with the general care (seniority has its perks, especially on holidays!) Weird how seven years makes you a senior staff person. Anyway...I wanted to post new pictures (of course)...we're trying to teach Caleb about football. He's kind of grasping the concept, except he doesn't like to pass the ball. We also got some fun pictures at the park. :) Okay...so the football pics are in sequence.

So I haven't blogged in a while...

Yup...my promise to blog at least once a week when I started this thing has long since passed. I'm lucky to update it a couple times a month sometimes! Oh well...I had good intentions! Let's see...what's new? Went down this past weekend to my parents' house...they had a housewarming open house for family...it was fun to see everyone again! My brother and sister-in-law made it up too. Caleb loved the fact that the yard was all dirt. Abby is sitting up now...no not pulling herself to sitting, but she'll stay put if you put her there! :) She has TWO teeth now! And....sleeping through the night has once again gone to the wayside. Ugh! Caleb is FINALLY climbing on his swing set. He's not a very big risk taker...and don't get me wrong, I'm thankful for that...but he wouldn't even climb up the side of his swing set that Dad built last summer...until this past week or so. He started going down the slide by himself too (I know....you'd think he'd have done that already). The slide is a little too steep....he goes bouncing on the ground at the bottom....but giggles the whole time. And, of course, here is my installment of new pics!

A sure sign of spring...

Nope, not Robins...garage sales!! :) Okay, I admit it...I'm a little addicted. BUT, when your kids grow through their clothes like maniacs....garage sales save money to buy diapers....don't ask how many of those I go through! No seriously...Abby is pretty much clothed 'til she's 3. Between swapping clothes with a friend and being given a TON of awesome hand-me-downs, she's set. Now, Caleb on the other hand...I actually found quite a bit of stuff in his size this Friday (city-wide garage sales). That's no easy task, especially since he's the age that starts to wear things out. I behaved myself well and only bought a few girl clothes. I think the grand total for garage sales I made it to was about 20. No, I wasn't insane enough to try taking the kids. Brent took a day off so I could have my free day :) Besides...retail therapy (even the cheap version) is good for destressing after such a loooooooonnnng week.