THIS CREW

knows how to have an

Aquarium seein',

Ocean discoverin',

Beach lovin',

Sea Shell huntin',

Life contemplatin',

Turkey Feastin',

Pie Stuffin',

(OF COURSE we didn't get any pictures of this!)

Hula Hoopin',

Nap takin',

Ice Cream eatin',

Cousin bondin',

Stroll takin',

Picnic enjoyin',

Heart breakin',

Baby holdin',

ROCKIN' GOOD TIME!

The Most Precious Gift

There are many different types of gifts.

You know what I'm talking about: the candle that was a nice gesture, but no matter how much you like the person who gave it to you, it stinks. Or the gift card that you absolutely love (because they gave you exactly what you wanted--the means to buy that perfect something for yourself!)! The socks, the toys (adult or kid alike), the DVD, the sweater, the kitchen appliance, etc. Some you love, some you like, some you sit on your shelf to collect dust for an allotted amount of time before you get rid of them, and some are definitely re-gifters from the start. (I have never regifted anything YOU gave me, of course!)

The perfect gift, however, is the gift that truly comes from the heart.

It may be cliche, but it's true, nonetheless!

Background:

When we moved to our current abode, we were given the dining room set Bart grew up with. Up to that point, the nicest thing we owned was our own bed. Everything else was...well, poor student-ish. Of course, we were ecstatic to have something in our possession that was so nice!

There was one draw-back: the WHITE CUSHIONED CHAIRS. Not that I'm complaining because they are wonderful. But think about it. We have small children. WHITE and SMALL CHILD do not exactly go. To add to that, we began to notice that when you sat in said chairs--especially a few of them--you felt like you were going to fall through. They were over 20 years old after all.

Our plan was to save up and get them reenforced and recovered in child-proof material as soon as possible. That didn't quite work out as planned. LIFE got in the way--how dare it!

LUCKILY (or blessedly?)~

We have a wonderful SIL named Barbarous Bel,

and B.Bel is crafty and ingenious.

She and St. Anthony have our names this year for Christmas and...well, see for yourself!

As you can see, the white cushions were in a little less than pristine condition.

Barbarous Bel even let Charlie help!

Finished Project: 8 Wonderfully Wipeable chairs!

(There are only 7 here--we use one as a computer chair.)

And I can say that this is one of the best and most thoughtful gifts we have received.

'Nuff said.

Squirrel!

This morning Charlie and I were watching a squirrel out our back window.

He said,

"I bet she's a mommy squirrel, like you!"

Bet you didn't know I was squirrel, did you?

Let's just keep this between you and me...

Hooray for the Chileans!

Nothing could have been better than to see the Chilean miners surface and be reconnected with their families. I thought this interaction on David Letterman was great!

INTRODUCING!

THOMAS ANSTIS

(We'll call him Tommy or Tom)

Pirate Prodigy

Tommy is now 8 weeks old

and after this period of probation,

our crew has decided to let him stay.

Welcome aboard, Lil' Pirate!

A Late Happy Halloween!

The Deep Abyss--THE COUCH

This morning I decided to dejunk all the kids' toys. It's amazing how fast we accumulate JUNKY toys. The water guns that work for one fight (or less) before they are leaking every where, the Happy Meal toys--when they're good, the pieces of who-knows-where-the-rest-of-the-set-this-belongs-to-is. You get the picture.

While I was cleaning up I came to Charlie's pile of toys that he stashes on top of our couch between the cushion and the back. (You know, every person has a special place they keep the stuff they need for later--this is his!) Action figure Darth Vader was missing his helmet. I thought, "Hmm. It probably fell between the cushions," and went on a hunt. I felt between the cushions and made my way down to the bottom of the couch. You know what place I'm talking about. The place beneath the sitting cushions where it meets the back. The crack where EVERYTHING gets stuck. In went my fingers and sure enough they felt...something. Make that MANY somethings. I began pulling things up and once I started I couldn't stop!

1 Darth Vader Helmet

6 Action Figures: Luke, Anakin, Obi Wan, Han Solo, Knight, Princess Leia

1 Backyardigan's Ship Mast

Jane's Pink Sunglasses

1 Computer Remote

Bart's good watch--STILL TICKING (he "lent" this to Charlie eons ago)

1 Heating Pad made of a sock filled with rice

1 Adult Male Sock

1 Adult Female Sock (for the record, this was put there by the kids. Just ask me!)

1 Lego man's hair

1 Blue Lightening McQueen

1 Child Cup

3 Magneato Magnets

1 Vacuum Attachment

1 sm bunny

1 Horse

1 Pirate Sword

2 Wooden Spoons

1 Aqua Doodle Pen

1 squishy Halloween Mouse from last year

6 Ugly Red Trolls (pieces to LOTR Risk)

3 Ugly Black Trolls

4 Crayons

1 Letter "T" magnet

2 Child Butter Spreaders

1 Pen

1 C3PO Arm

1 Recorder (that's right--the INSTRUMENT) Cleaning Rod

7 Fake Food Items: Potato Chip, Hot Dog, Strawberry, Ice Cream Sandwich, Ice Cream Cone, 2 French Fries

An embarrassing amount of paper, lint, candy wrappers, M&Ms, jelly beans, etc.

I'm not going to mention that by cleaning out the couch, I just found more toys to add to the original problem in the first place.

AND if all that isn't embarrassing enough, there was only a meager $0.16. 3 Nickels and 1 penny. All that and no spare change?? Sheesh. I guess this means I need to clean out the couch more often. Either that, or lose more change down the crack so it's worth it when I DO clean it!

Patience

NO,

We have NOT forgotten we have a blog.

(The question is, do we still have any readers??)

YES,

We have a BAGILLION pictures to post.

YES,

Almost four weeks later, I am still just getting my groove on.

PATIENCE, people.

PATIENCE!

But for now, here are a few pics to appease your appetites.

(Side note: We have a photography book that says we should capture every part of our family life/parenthood--including some of the crying moments--you know, so we can look back a "laugh" at how it was. I only wish I could truly capture one of Jane's tantrums the way this next picture captures TPirate3 [still working on a name] when hungry.)

And the verdict is2...

BOY

7 SEPT

8 lbs 13 oz

Congratulations to Heads of Household VACATIONERS

who were the closest in respect to DOB and weight,

and to all those who guessed BOY

(over 1/2 of you did!).

Welcome to the world Young Scallawag!

(you'll don your official pirate name at some future date. Suggestions welcome.)

Scary Ghosts

Tonight Charlie and Jane came into the kitchen wearing their blankies over their heads.

"MoooOOooooo! MOOOOooOOOOOO!"

Apparently all scary ghosts are bovine.

P.S. Yes, today is my due date. No, no sign of a baby yet.

"Get used to Disappointment."

--Westley, The Princess Bride

SO--I had this really fun post with pictures and all, AND the time and energy to do it today. However, our camera is having problems and won't download the pics, SO it'll have to wait. I did, however, want you all to know because I was really disappointed about it. Don't you feel my pain?

That's all. Have a good night!

LET THE GAME BEGIN!!

Ok, all you friends and family &/or blog-stalkers.

I'm now at 36.5 weeks which means the

COUNTDOWN IS ON!!

Not that I'm overly anxious for Baby to get here early, per se, but this gives us time to have a little fun and excitement around here.

THE GAME:

You Guess:

1) Gender of Baby

2) Date of Arrival

3) Poundage

How to Play:

Post a COMMENT with your guesses. I'll keep track and let you know who wins.

Rules:

Uh...You have to type it with your toes.

A Little Background Information--Just to make it fair:

~This baby is due 3 Sept.

~I had more "morning sickness" (in the evening--which was different than either of my others) with this one.

~I am measuring small, as usual.

~I have numbness of the right leg at random moments (even while walking). This also happened with Charlie, not with Jane.

~I have absolutely NO premonition with this one as to Gender. Call me a bad mom if you want to.

~Charlie was born 4 days before his due date. He was 7 lbs, 15 oz.

~Jane was born 5 days before her due date. She was 6 lbs, 9 oz.

How to Win:

It's obvious, isn't it??

What You Win:

The satisfaction that YOU can guess gender, birth dates, and pounds of babies--even from afar! You might even receive a Birth Announcement in the mail--but not likely since we didn't even do that for our other kids.

HAPPY GUESSING!!

The Muppets: Bohemian Rhapsody

We've seen this several times, but we were reminded of it again today and we can't get enough of it!

Simple and Good

Due to Charlie's sudden awareness (seriously, it's a 180 from his usual behavior) that he likes putting his face in the water at the pool and blowing bubbles, we bought Jane and him goggles.

They were immediately donned as MASKS,

and they have been worn almost nonstop since.

Meet BADGUY JANE:

She chose the name!

and SUPERHERO CHARLIE:

It's hard to find a time when they aren't battling by land,

or by sea.

Charlie-ism

Tonight, because it rained today, I made soup for dinner. When I asked Charlie what color bowl he'd like to eat from, he looked at me with a completely innocent and serious face.

"Oh, am I hungry, Mom?"

As if he needs permission. Am I really that bossy?