Hodge Podge...

Abby's 9 month appointment was on Wednesday...she's 22 pounds, 2 ounces and a little over 29 inches long. She's also got two more teeth ready to pop through at any moment!

Caleb is potty training finally....and I think I'd rather hit myself over the head with a 2x4. It's not going well. I've tried everything everyone has told me for advice (and thank you thank you thank you for advice!!). We went shopping and picked out special "big-boy" underwear for him to use once he's potty trained. He was VERY excited to get Thomas the Tank Engine. We went home and he carried all his diapers to Abby's room since "big boy's don't need diapers." We then proceeded to try, one by one, every technique that people have suggested. Sorry, but nothing is working. I'm now trying bribes...stickers and Dum-Dums just may do the trick....slowly, of course!

And, of course all this is happening while Brent is on Annual Training for 10 days straight. Yea for me.

I decided to finally get the kiddos into the wading pool today. This is how it went...

I don't think Abby appreciated the pool at first...(at little disclaimer: it was the temperature of bath water, she loves baths)



It helped when she found toys!



And then the fun began...



Caleb didn't really help the fact that Abby wasn't too sure about the pool!



She is learning to defend herself, though!



The "big man" himself...

What a weekend!

So, yeah...if you go to my previous post, you'll see how our Friday started. Brent had taken the day off from work because his parents were coming up. His parents were coming because we were going to finally put up the flagpole that Brent has been wanting since we moved in. Would you believe that after it flooded like that, the sun came out, and the day turned out great...except the 90 degree muggy part...but we got a lot done. I'm posting a few pics...if you want to see all the progress, click on my Wells Web Links, "Picture Page" at the top right part of the blog, and go to the House Projects 2008 folder.






And, then I get the bright idea that, if the flagpole is in...we should mulch and plant, right? Actually, I was going to wait to plant until fall, but all the plants were on sale, so now begins the game of keeping them watered!



And, why stop at the front of the house? The sides needed to be done too. No, I didn't plant the WHOLE side...just the round part you see.



So, forty bags of mulch, eight bushes (small ones), six perennials (not counting the ground cover) later...we finished. Oh, I forgot about transplanting my irises too. Yeah...my back hurts!

Again....I can't find my Ark!

So, we're flooded again...it poured for about and hour and a half...this is what happened, and there's more coming. It's nothing like what they're experiencing up north...they got 10 inches of rain in 12 hours...that's on top of the flood that happened earlier this season.

This is the end of our driveway.

This is looking up one way.

This is looking the other way....that's our mailbox.

I walked over to our neighbor's yard to take pictures of the problem street. You can see the debris line....I didn't get out at the peak...it already started to recede.

The guy that lives on corner (owns the suburban) actually keeps sandbags in front of his garage.

Zoo time (again)...

So, we (the kids, dog, and I) were on our way back from our morning walk on Wednesday as I was trying to decide what to do for the day. Then, when we got inside...we had a message...it was a friend of mine asking if we wanted to have a zoo day. I thought this was a great idea, so I called her back, quick gave Abby a bottle and threw a bunch of stuff together. Now, of course, Abby decided she didn't need a morning nap, so things could get interesting! But...the kids did great, we were at the zoo for almost 3 hours. Abby didn't fall asleep until the van ride home. These are the pics from the day:

Thought we'd try out the new shades before we went outside...(okay, this was before Wednesday)


The shades at the zoo (they lasted long enough to snap a picture).

Caleb and his best friend....at this point they were going back and forth, saying "My buffalo!" "No, my buffalo." Yes, there were buffalo...you just can't see them.

They were so funny...like two peas in pod...they would both run up to the fence and step the whopping 6 inches higher to get a better look.

Caleb NEVER lets me take his picture by these things...only when a friend is around, but I couldn't get him to look through the lower one.

When he finally went over to it, Caleb and Timothy were too excited, and would only look at each other.

We had a good day, so we ended with ice cream.

Except, I think Caleb may have gotten brain-freeze...what else would cause this face?

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...