Mary, Mary quite contrary...

How does my garden grow?  

Here is what I tackled last week.  I put out a late garden.  I'm very pleased to have these green bean plants sticking up less than a week after being planted.  Go here to vote for your favorite daylily pose - Vote for your favorite!

Click on the link below and go see what others tackled. 

4th at the Fair

We went to the fair last night.  There was water everywhere from the rain.  The weather was almost cold.   This is the first time I can say that we got cold while at the fair in July.  By the time we got home around 9:30, the temperature outside was 67 degrees.  The blowing wind and the sprinkles added to the cool weather. 

The rest of the fair should be hot like we are used to though.  We still had fun.  We will go again soon, I think, but probably not today. 

What We've Been Up To

I cannot believe how fast the summer is flying by.  

If you thought I'd never let Sean have scissors again... well, I just redirected him to cut grass, not hair. 

About a month ago, Sierra had a visitor.  Mrs. J. will be her preschool teacher this fall.  She was Sean's teacher two years ago and Callie's teacher...  nine years ago I think.  Mrs. J. has been on our mind recently because her home was flooded on 6/7 and they are not currently able to live there. 

Sierra loves her new floor.  She likes to pretend she is ice skating which looks more like dancing.  She also likes her new blue walls.  Will be a while before her room is finished.  We will get doors and baseboard back up, but since Sean will be sleeping in there while his floor is being replaced, we will wait to finish decorating until he can move back into his room.  I will post more pictures when her room is done.

Here's a project that Sean, Sierra and I have been working on.  A new garden.  We did plant some seed but not sure if it will come up.  It is certainly a late garden but we did not have access to a tiller.  I am so sore that I am almost wishing that I still did not have access to a tiller. 

I put a few squash plants out.  I'm hoping they'll do well since they got a headstart at the nursery. 

How Much???

 

I took the van in to the dealer to have them look at our sliding door handle to find out what part they need to fix it.  It's obvious that there is simply a pin missing.  Sounds rather simple, eh?  No.  The part they need to replace is the door handle.  Ok, how much could that be?  Good news is the labor is only $109.  The bad news is the part.  WHAT???   $154???  Grand total of $263 and in small print is "+ tax".  Ok, so for only $282 dollars, we can get a new door handle on our 7-year old Honda Odyssey. 

So, I'm thinking surely our guy who does body work can do better.  Well, he will only charge $137 for the part, but his grand total was a whopping $317.  He explained that our paint is complicated.  Something about being 3-steps instead of the usual 2-step which is why it is a pretty color.  Remind me next time to get an uglier vehicle. 

I'm now attempting to locate a used door handle which will probably be similar to hunting for a needle in a haystack. 

More Flood Pics

 

Sierra's ophthalmologist's office was in the 2nd building.  He has relocated. 

Jeff's brother's office was in the basement of the building below. 

 

Used cars for sale?   New upholstery? 

New Project

We've started a new project.  This weekend we hope to install new flooring in Sierra's room.  Tonight Jeff removed baseboard and doors.  I stripped most of the border from Sierra's room.  We are upgrading her from a nursery to a little girl's room.  She is temporarily moved into Sean's room.  The plan is to finish her room, move both kids into her room, then do Sean's floor.  His room will not be repainted.  If all goes well with that, we might move into Sean's room temporarily so that we can do our room.  All this flooring work is in the interest of our health.  Dust mites be gone! 

I thought I would post a few flood pictures.  We know so many people and businesses that have been impacted by the flood that we just feel so blessed.

  

Update

Sean has a new word in his vocabulary and it is my fault.  I bought some Lego car sets at a good deal to let him assemble when he needs something constructive to do.  I explained the other day that they are for when he is "bored".  I knew I was in trouble when he asked what that meant.  Now, the past two mornings, he has been complaining to me just how bored he is.  I haven't caved yet so he is still having to find something else to do. 

At the gymnastics center today, Sierra asked me if I wanted to play "I Spy".  I thought, wow, that is pretty good for a 3 year-old initiating a game like that.  But then she went first and, while looking straight at a mural on the wall, she said, "I spy a monkey hanging from a tree."  Then I learned later that Daddy plays that game with her when he takes her.  Oh well. 

Sometimes after gymnastics we will go to our favorite restaurant.  Unfortunately, due to the flood it is closed.  It was not flooded but it is a small family-owned restaurant so someone close to the owners must have had some flood damage.   The kids have not asked for Burger King since learning it is closed due to flood damage.  I haven't reminded them that we have another one close to us. 

Grab some tissue

http://www.curesearch.com/

Happy Boy

Sean was thrilled that Daddy put the caps in his cap gun. There's something about boys and guns that is natural. His other favorite activity this weekend was shooting his super soaker squirt guns.

Warm day.... Cold Treats

Weekend Pics

Nature walk.

Playing basketball.
Hanging out.

Chatting with great-Grandma

Our Princess

Sierra enjoys watching Cinderella. One day I asked her to pick up some things and she replied, "Yes, Stepmother." I asked her if she thought I was mean like the stepmother and she said, "No, I'm just pretending I'm Cinderella."

Here, you can see that Sierra wanted to be a cat. Of course, being the helpful brother that he is, Sean obliged her with the marker.

Below is an example of another use for Lincoln Logs.

Cinderella

One of our favorite songs right now is Cinderella by Steven Curtis Chapman. I think this song will touch any parent who has a daughter.
Yesterday, Steven Curtis Chapman's youngest daughter was killed in a tragic accident.
See news release.
Please keep their family in your prayers.
Below are some videos of Chapman talking about why we wrote this song and performing it live.

SUPER BOWL

Indianapolis' Big News

What Day Is It??

With our change in schedules this week, we have our days all mixed up. I was pretty sure yesterday was Saturday almost the entire day. Sean thought today was Saturday for a while. Today was errand/enjoy-the-sun day. Sean had his appt. at the allergist. She said he has an infection (sinus) and put him on antibiotic. That probably explained the 102.6 fever he had on Monday. As far as his allergies and asthma, he is doing well. She did suggest that we remove the carpet in his room when we can. Basically anywhere he plays we should try to dust-mite proof. That means a lot of carpet and furniture too, I think. She reminded me that he wasn't just a little allergic to dust-mites but that he was extremely allergic to them.

After the doctors appt., we had lunch while watching planes take off at the airport. Then we hit Target with our 10% discount card to stock up on some things and get Sean's prescriptions filled. While it is nice in some ways when certain medicines become available over-the-counter such as Zyrtec. But OTC costs more for us than generic prescriptions. Oh well.

After Target, we headed to the library, FINALLY (the kids thought). We got a lot of books and several DVDs and a few educational software CDs. We love our library. Sean is reading so well now that he can help choose books that he wants to read or that we can read together. I think we got more non-fiction books than fiction this time. The summer reading program will be starting soon where the kids can earn prizes for reading.

Next was the grocery store. I was once again reminded why I do not like the grocery store on Friday evenings. :)

Tomorrow Sean has a birthday party to attend for a preschool classmate. The girls and I might check out the Literacy Festival downtown. Callie and I might check out some neighborhood garage sales in the morning depending on if Jeff stays home from work and if the weather cooperates.

Here are some videos of Sierra at gymnastics. The first one is of her walking backwards as part of warmup time. She is not the only one but seems to enjoy doing warmups solo. The second one is of her on the low beam. She is in the center of the video on the beam.

Garage Sales

I've been busy getting ready for our first garage sale in about 3 years. I need about another month to get ready but someone picked tomorrow for the neighborhood and it saved us from being the ones to organize it like last time so I am not complaining. I'm sure we have plenty more we could sell but anything will be a bonus.

Sierra had an eye appointment today. Her eye has gotten worse so we wants to see us back in 3 months. It's possible she will end up having to wear a patch on the stronger eye or possibly even surgery if it continues to get worse. She is really good for the doctor.

While I'm talking about Sierra, let me tell you some more about our princess. Today I asked her to put away her shoes and she replied, "Yes, stepmother." She then explained she was pretending to be Cinderella. I'm really glad it wasn't my bossiness that she was referring to. At bedtime, I said, "Goodnight, Sierra Nicole." She corrected me and told me to say "Goodnight, princess." My bad.

On to Kindergarten

I know I still have not scanned the art work from art class last week. I still plan on it, but it has been a busy week.

This week was Sean's last week in preschool. Tonight was an ice cream social with families and the teachers. The kids got their memory books which are just awesome. It is a bit emotional for Sean as he is really attached to his teacher and his friends. Here are some pictures I took.

Sean with his teacher, Mrs. R.

This is a high school helper in Sean's class.

Sean with his best friend.

Future preschool classmates. Sierra with Sean's best friend's little sister.

Time Flies

We had our third and final day of the art workshop (see previous post) today. We really enjoyed it and learned a lot in a short amount of time. I have had my days all mixed up because we have been out of our normal routine. Sean had a field trip yesterday morning to a farm. He normally has school in the afternoon but field trips are usually in the mornings. It worked out great so he did not have to miss school to attend the art workshop. On Thursday, we did not have the usual ice skating practice for Callie but instead had art class. Yesterday I had no idea what day it was half the time. We have another busy day tomorrow with church activities. I will try to scan and post some of the kids' art in the next couple of days.

How Great Thou Art

Callie and Sean are taking an art workshop called How Great Thou Art. Parents must attend with younger children so I am sitting next to Sean in the class. We really enjoyed it today. There are two more days of 2 1/2 hours each. The kids had four art assignments to do tonight. We were all rather tired, but it was a good kind of tired. The class is very fast-paced but is designed to teach us a lot in a short amount of time. Sean did a really good job of paying attention and keeping up for being just five years old. Callie seems to be inspired as well as she wants to start an art journal like the instructor does. He allowed the teenagers to take one of his journals home tonight to look at.

Children, Obey Your Parents

Silver Blades - Opening Night

Here are some videos I took tonight at opening night. I made them smaller so I could record more. In some it is tricky enough to keep up with Callie so it is also tricky to find her on a couple of the videos. Enjoy!

Some video of Ice Show Rehearsal

I did not have a lot of memory on my digital camera but did get a little video from the rehearsal today.

Ice Show Preparation

Callie had ice show rehearsal today. We also had to pick up her costume. Her costume has me wondering where my refund is for the missing material. We were warned this weekend that she would need a strapless bra for her costume. That was our first clue. Shhh, don't say "Bra!" That must be one of the most embarrassing words for an early teen to say or hear out loud.

We also knew we needed to buy tights which means no pants. Her costumes have never had pants. Few of them do so this was no surprise. This year she will not even have boot covers.
Ice skating tights are heavy duty. $16.00 worth of heavy tights. In the days when I wore hose to work, if I would have worn $16.00 pair of tights instead, I might have only needed one pair for my entire career.

Her costume is a "dress" and a scrunchie for her hair. That's it. I was carrying it across my arm and kept checking to make sure it was still there. It is so light that it would have been easy for it to slip away unbeknownst to me. The good news is that it does have a neck strap to keep it on. That will be helpful. This just happens to be the skimpiest costume she's worn. She's usually had at least some wings or some gloves or a hat or some additional accessory, not to mention sleeves. Okay, maybe it's not as bad as it seemed on the hanger. I'll try to have a more positive outlook. I'll post pics when I have some.

Good News and Bad News

This was an eventful day. It started at roughly 5:39 am with the house and the beds shaking most of us awake during the 5.2 earthquake we felt this morning. I remember the last time we had an earthquake... it was in 1987 and I missed it because I was in the car driving to or from class. The anchors on the news kept reminding us that it is normal for us to have earthquakes because we are close to the Madrid fault. Once in 21 years is a little less than what I would call normal. But that's just me.

Sean and Jeff went on a field trip with preschool to a wildlife refuge. They hiked and had a great time looking at nature through the binoculars.

Immediately following the field trip, I took Sean to the allergy/asthma specialist for his first appointment. He did pretty well with it all except for the skin test but the nurse was wonderful and was quick with it so it was over in a couple of minutes. Except for the itching. I wanted to scratch his back for him, poor little guy.

The good news was that Shadow and Sam can stay in the family. Sean is not allergic to cats or dogs, or at least not yet.

The bad news is that what he is allergic to isn't as easy to get rid of. Trees, grass and most of all - DUST MITES! "Even the cleanest homes have dust mites." said the nurse. Oh well, so then a not-the-cleanest home (such as ours) could have a few armies of them, perhaps? So I'm thinking. Well, after some hot water wash cycles and the new mattress vacuuming tool, we should have at least a few less dust mites to contend with. But, I'm not sure just how quickly they reproduce. More cleaning to resume tomorrow. Time to fling the stuffed animals.

Quick Status

The story on what was wrong with Sierra from yesterday's post is that she got a little haircut over the weekend. Evidently, since they couldn't play outside over the weekend, Sean and Sierra decided to play barber and Sean took a little chunk from her hair. Neither said anything to me about it and we didn't know what had happened until Jeff discovered a lock of hair in the trash can. The thing most comforting in this experience is that he only made one cut and did not touch her long wavy hair in the back. It will grow back.. in a few months.

Sean went back to the doctor today. Dr. M added Singulair to his daily regimen and keeping him back on 3 or 4 breathing treatments a day. We also went for a couple of X-Rays... chest and sinus. The sinus xray was clear and the chest x-ray showed he has some kind of a virus going on which would explain why he's been coughing a lot today and rubbing his nose.

After the doctor appt. I took him to preschool. He walked in and proudly announced he was going to get an x-ray after school. Later at the imaging place, when the technician called us back, Sean was brave. He asked the tech if he could see the pictures when she was done. She told him they are on computer now. He paused a second... (I'm sure he was thinking, "so?") then asked her if he could see them on the computer. She started to explain to him that she has to protect others' privacy and then she said to herself "he's not going to understand that." and stopped talking. For the sinus x-ray, she put him with his face up against the screen or panel and had him balance with his hands. Then she told him to not move. While standing completely still, he asked her "What if I need to breathe?". She laughed and told him it was okay if he breathed.... she kept shaking her head and laughing as she went into the booth.

Notice anything wrong?

Notice anything wrong with Sierra?

Sean reading "Quick Quack Quick" to Ma.

More reading.

Cousin.

Silly Putty

A five-year old and silly putty do not mix very well. The first time Sean played with some silly putty, he tried to make a necklace out of it and got it in his hair. It was stretched thin enough to give it the same consistency of cobwebs.

Today he was playing with it so I reminded him... keep it out of your hair, don't get it on the carpet, you know, the things I could think of he might do with it.

So, tonight, just before bed, he brings me the pants he was wearing today and says, "There's something I need to tell you about the silly putty." He then apologized as I pulled his pocket inside out to reveal the silly putty woven in the cotton of the pocket. I didn't tell him not to put it in his pocket.

The good news is that thanks to the internet and Google, we have many answers to us that were unavailable just a few years ago. I searched and found that rubbing alcohol works well to take out silly putty stains. It does. I also found an interesting link about accidental inventions. Take a look just for fun. Accidental Inventions.

A New Use for Legos

Yesterday my three-year old walks into the room with a rattle in her step. She says, "I got Legos in my butt!" She had put Legos down her pajama pants. I'm glad she entertains herself so well.

How to Learn About Product Recalls

Do you feel frustrated about all the recalls of products that you hear about on the news? Well, the ones that make it to the news aren't the only products that are recalled. But, the good news is that the Consumer Product Safety Commission has a website where you can search for recalls on products. It also has email lists that you can sign up for so that you receive emails about recalled items. If you want to find out more or sign up for free emails, go to this link https://www.cpsc.gov/cpsclist.aspx.

We have learned of several recalls of items we have owned from these emails. These included recalls on a car seat, playyard, high chair, toys, etc. Some recalls are only for a part or for a warning about an item's use. These are the kind of recalls that are important but might not make it to the news on television.

It works for us! For more tips, go to Works For Me Wednesday at Rocks in My Dryer.

Busted!

Beautiful day today!

Last night Sierra woke up crying with a leg ache. The kids had played outside yesterday and did a lot of running.
Sometime today I was telling Jeff that I used to get leg aches at night (when I was a kid), especially on days when I rode my bike a lot. Sierra overheard me and she just laughed liked it was one of the most hilarious things she's heard and said, "Mommy, you don't even have a bike!" I guess she hasn't seen the one in the storage barn that I haven't ridden since I was pregnant with her. But maybe that doesn't really count.

Please pray for Ethan's family. Here is the latest update from his site. I would encourage you to go to www.ethanpowell.com and send an email and help encourage them. It bothers me that they may feel that it was their lack of faith that caused this. Their faith was tremendous.
April 5th- Day 424 DAY +96

4th Update 12:11 pm [Ben] - This is the update that I hoped never to type. At 11:37am, Ethan left this earth peacefully in our arms. I apologize for my lack of faith and letting you down. I ask that you stand strong in your faith and please continue to pray for "Ethan's friends". I thought alot about this over the last hour orso, and I have decided to keep updating for a short time. I am so angry at cancer and I plan to dedicate my life to fighting it. We need your help to do it. Please continue to check the site to find out the next step. I am speaking for myself when I say this... no child should have to die because of a lack of cure. And I plan to find that cure with your help! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE help me in this fight. I truly feel so lonely without him here, and I really need this to move forward. Please help me to beat this terrible illness.Although the devils wants to convince me and you otherwise, I still BeLIeVe... PRAYER WORKS!!! And I hope that you do to.

He Changed His Mind

Sean went back to the doctor this morning because he is still coughing. On the way there, he tells me that he doesn't want to be a firefighter anymore. This surprised me because it is the only career he has ever wanted to pursue. He used to worry about where he would get his firetruck or his helmet. I assured him more than once that those items would be provided at the fire station.
But I suppose it is okay for him to change his mind since he is only 5 years old.
So, I asked him why he didn't want to be a firefighter any more. He said, "Uh, Fires?!" (like Duh, Hello??) "Someone could get burned!"

Later, while waiting for the doctor in the exam room, I asked him what he thinks he wants to be when he grows up since it is not a firefighter. He didn't seem sure so I suggested he could become a doctor like cousin Chris or Dr. M. It doesn't hurt to plant a few seeds once in a while. He liked that idea so he proceeded to pretend to be both Dr. M and himself. He ran back and forth between the doctor's seat and the exam table. Our doctor carries a small laptop that he uses to view Sean's chart and input his results. From watching Sean pretend to use his own computer while "playing" doctor, I noticed that he thinks the doctor is searching the internet for how to treat his patients.

Trying not to laugh, I explained to Sean that Dr. M does not need to look on the internet for the answers, that he knows what to do. He just uses the computer to keep Sean's information.
I am thankful that Sean is so verbal. It has been a joy to learn how his young mind works.

About his cough, the doctor said Sean is drastically better than he was last week. (Last week we did not need a stethoscope to hear his wheezing). But, Dr. M still hears wheezing and tightness in his chest so we are stepping back to square one with breathing treatments and taking a slightly different path this time. Hopefully, we can get his asthma under control soon.

It has been a while since I have mentioned little Ethan Powell. While continuing to fight his leukemia, he has contracted some kind of a virus at a time when he has no immune system and is now in very critical condition on life support. It does not look good but God is powerful. Pray for healing and for peace for his parents. Click on the link to Ethan's website on the side of this page for regular updates.

Color Wonder by Crayola

If you have not seen the Crayola Color Wonder products, here is a description from the Crayola website:

Explore the wonder of color using Crayola® Color Wonder™. Color Wonder is a unique ink, developed by Crayola scientists, that appears only on special paper. The ink is clear on most surfaces, but each marker "magically" shows up a different color on Color Wonder paper.

We have a few of the Color Wonder coloring books with the markers. These markers and books have been one of the best things for keeping the kids happy at times when they have to sit and wait. However, I am beginning to think that maybe these wonder markers are not so great.

Sierra has been coloring with real markers this week. Evidently, it's been a while since she used the real markers because she seems to be fascinated with them. Yesterday, she colored half a beard on her face. Real attractive. She also colored yellow marker on bed sheets. Today, she gave her belly button a pink tattoo... inside and out.

At dinner this evening, I discovered a large spot on the wall that was colored with orange crayon. I immediately accused Sierra, but quickly realized that the marks were a bit tall for Sierra. Sean tried to help me rationalize that Sierra could reach up that high. I wasn't falling for that, since he had also colored crosses all over our white vinyl tablecloth earlier this week. You know, for Easter.

I can blame the tablecloth incident on our doctor's office. They give him crayons so he can color on the paper that they use to cover the exam table. He thinks our tablecloth looks like that paper.

Well, about the wall, he finally confessed that "Sierra told me to do it." Needless to say, we had a chat about not doing what someone else tells you to do, especially if you know better.

The good news is that I did not panic. "Why is that?", you may ask. Because of this wonderful invention... It works great on walls. But it does tend to take some paint off as well, so it is only a good solution so many times. Eventually, you will need to repaint.

With All Your Heart, Soul, Mind and Strength

Mark 12:30 (New International Version)

30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.

This is the greatest commandment.

Enjoy this video.

Imaginary Friend

Sierra has a new friend. Her name is Madeline. Suspecting that she had a little help with her imagination, I asked Sean whose idea this was. He said it was both of theirs. I have a feeling that this new friend looks kind of like this picture, that is if we could see her.

Sierra explained to me that Madeline is staying with us because her house had a fire. She also said that Madeline doesn't really have a mom and dad. I didn't ask her where Miss Clavel is these days.