Fireworks!

Yesterday I asked my facebook friends for help taking pictures of fireworks and Jennifer came through with this link! So - our first night of celebrating the Fourth of July (also known as Mike's birthday weekend)! Of course, there are pictures...

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

The only down side to taking photos of fireworks - is that it takes some set up and then you sort of need to leave your camera there and ready - so I wasn't able to capture pictures of the pre-fireworks activity (mostly the kids playing around). Luckily, my friend takes just as many pictures as I do - so she took care of that part of the night for us! (Also - I have to give credit - Mike took all of the fireworks pictures. I just did the research.)

How to throw a baby shower for someone who hates pink.

And is having a baby girl.

You throw her an all pink baby shower, of course.

Request the guests to wear pink. Wrap their gifts in pink. And offer pink cookies as favors (thanks to Taste of Stepford).

Of course, there are pictures...

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

Probably the best part of the day was the "Guess the poop" game - in which you prepare several diapers each with a different mini-melted-chocolate candy bar and the guests guess what kind of candy is in each diaper. As one guest said, "That game was seriously grotesque, but fun."

Trying Not to Drive You Crazy

So - all I've been thinking about lately is Disney stuff. And in order to not drive you crazy I haven't been posting much about it at all - but I've found a solution. Here it is. Amy and I have started a Disney blog. You can expect some talk of our upcoming trip - and trip reports after the fact. Plus - some other Disney related stuff. Are you a Disney fan? You'll love it. Not so much a Disney fan? Keep checking back here - I'm bound to come up with something soon. Like maybe I'll tell you about how all the therapist felt Liam is doing. Or I'll tell you about Quinn and preschool. Or work. Or how much my life is driving me crazy. Or how dirty my house is. Or whatever. Just keep checking - don't give up on me, 'kay?

Oh - and by the way - only 29 more days! But who's counting?

The Thing I Love Most About Work

The thing I love most about work happens to also be the thing that bothers me most about work. You see, I'm so jealous of those people who can go to work and well, relax. But as a teacher - I go to work and pretty much work nonstop until I leave. I get to work and right away get busy setting things up for the day and answering parents' emails and/or talking with other teachers/therapists/etc. Then, the kids get there and I'm REALLY busy. I laughed today after the children had left because I saw an email from one of the mom's - as though I was going to be able to answer her while the kids where there!?! There's only one day a week where I get a "planning period" and that's on Friday - two half hour spots for library time. The rest of the time those kiddos are all mine! There's really no down time at work. But see, it's days like today that I love not having that down time. No time to think.

No time to think about Mike and all the blood tests and the 24 hour urine sample he had to collect this weekend (my bathroom smelled SO good. bleh.). No time to wonder what the hell is up with his mysterious symptoms. No time to think about this little guy. No time to think about whether or not Liam was eating his lunch. No time to think about Quinn's Chronic Whining Condition. No time to think about whether or not somebody left a comment on my last post. No time to think about how many people are reading this blog. No time to think. Until lunch.

I sat down and was asked, "So, how was your weekend?" And I lied. I couldn't not tell them the news of Henry. Because when I do stop to think - that is what I'm thinking about. I'm amazed at how heavily it weighs on my heart. But. I couldn't say, "oh, this person that I met online, her son is sick." That just sounds weird. At least to my friends at work. So instead I said, "Oh, one of my friend's way out in Portland just found out her son is sick and they're not sure what's wrong with him. But the worst part is I can't even give her a hug or see her to see if she's okay." And you know what? That last part is not a lie. I know that those of you reading this get that, right? (unless you're my family and you still don't get this whole blogging thing) You get how someone you've never met can really become a friend. A friend you care about just as much as you would had she lived right next door - perhaps even more. Because honestly, I know more about some of you than I do my own neighbor, or even some of my friends.

At times I find a lot of the "blogging business" downright stupid. (Sorry, but really, does it really matter how many comments, how many hits, etc - if all we're looking for is a connection or a place to air our dirty laundry and brag about all the good stuff?) But really, I love the friends I've made via this blog - some of which I've met, more of which I hope to meet someday. And I really love the support that people in this blogging world are so quick to offer. It's amazing. Truly amazing.

Chioces for Company Haiku Style

If you want to think
That I've got it together
Then follow these "rules"

Turn down basement tour
Don't open the bedroom door
Shower curtain? closed.

Don't look up at fans
Or out the kitchen windows
Focus on the food

If you want to feel
Better about your own house
These guidelines are yours

Open front closet
Go ahead and take a peek
At the bathtub too

Also don't forget
To use the basement bathroom
Cabinets? Look in!

But no matter what
You choose to do while you're here
Relax and have fun!

*****************
For more haiku fun
Visit Jennifer today
It's a Friday thing!

A Package From The Mouse

Alright. So my friend Amy and I have truly been going a little Disney crazy. We've got our dinner reservations made, days planned out (as to which parks we'll be visiting), some outfits planned for the kiddos, treats for goody bags purchased, and so much more. We've been working on letters for the kids to get every morning with a little goody bag - telling them what's going on that day. She made some really cool looking autograph clipboards - go see! And she made some stroller tags! Oh yeah - she is the more creative one out of the two of us - and actually most of the ideas of what we're making/doing start with her - I just sort of adapt them a bit or add to 'em. Did I mention we're not going until Oct? Yup - 70 more days - oh, that's the other thing we've got - a countdown chain!


Quinn and I wrote Mickey Mouse a letter the other day - letting him know we were going to come and see him in October and that we were so excited. So Quinn went out to check the mail today and found a package from Mickey Mouse. (I have a really cute video of him doing this, but alas, can not share it with the world, because our address is as clear as day on there - and although I realize this whole blogging thing requires some sort of leap of faith - I'm not about to jump that high.)

What's in here?

I see something.

Ohhh....look at this.

A letter from Mickey Mouse! Read it mommy!
(actually - it looks kind of like this - I changed my mind and printed it on 8.5x11 paper and that allowed me to change the layout a bit, but the words, they are the same)

Ohhhh...a camera. Mickey Mouse sent me a camera! Say Cheese Mommy.

Uh yeah, a $60 camera that was on sale at the Disney Store for $17. Shit, if I paid $60 for that piece of crap we'd be packing it up and sending it back to Mickey. But anyway, Quinn loves it and it'll hopefully keep him busy in the airport and on the airplane. We're going to have to tell him he can't bring it with to the parks - no way I'm lugging around that.

Cheesy Mastercard Commercial Post

2 slices of deep dish pizza:............................$8

1 "Polish Plate":.............................................$10

6 Drink Tickets:.............................................$24

1 Can of Punch:...............................................$1

1 Bottle of Water:...........................................$2

6 Chinese Yo-Yos:..........................................$1.50

ear plugs:.........................................................$6.00

snacks for baby:..............................................$8.00

22 Ride Tickets:..............................................$20

2 funnel cakes:.................................................$14

keeping kids up past bedtime........................ risky

watching kids' faces during fireworks............priceless

dealing with crabby kids the next day...........totally worth it

So refreshing...

Last night I went out to a Cub's game. You may remember that I'm not necessarily a Cub's fan and that Mike is most certainly a Cub's fan, so yeah, a little tiny part of me felt a little bit guilty for heading out without him to go to his favorite baseball park. But not too guilty because last night was so refreshing for me. Now...what made it so refreshing?

It wasn't the beer...

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It wasn't the nachos with the spicy cheese that made me drink that beer very quickly...

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It wasn't even the fact that Cubs played shitty baseball for the first 6 innings...

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And it wasn't the beautiful view from the ballpark...

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It must have been the fact that I got a chance to go out with a good friend. And the fact that I was in charge of figuring out how'd we'd get there - and we got there just fine (thanks! Kristabella). Usually when I go out to the city I'm never the one to lead, but since my friend is from Townsosmalltheydidnthaveastoplight, WI - I figured I'd be in charge. Although it was very comical when the two of us were trying to figure out how to use a card for the L - oh! - you have to first buy a card and also add money to that card - we did survive 2 train rides, 1 L-ride, 1 cab ride, and 1 walk home all by ourselves! And that was refreshing.

Where the Rope Begins Again

There is a place where the rope ends
And before the naps begin
And there the mess grows fast and proud
And there the screams holler deafeningly loud
And there the baby cries aloud
To be held by the mommy again.

Let us leave this place where the diapers fill quick
And the constant whining is filled with disdain
Past the floor where the breakfast messes grow
We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow
And watch where the others from this place go
To the place where the rope begins again.

Yes we’ll walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And we’ll go where the others from this place go,
For the others, they share, and the others, they know
The place where the rope begins again.

***
Special thanks to Shel Silverstein for the inspiration for this little poem. Even more thanks to each of you who gave me some great advice, but even more so, for letting me know that I am not the only one just barely holding on to the rope. Christie and Nicole both agree that a little booze can make anything seem okay. Oh – and Nicole also likes to go for a walk. AnglophileFF uses the TV when she’s at the very end (which is great, but you know, Liam’s not much into TV – yet), but more importantly, she suggests getting out of the house – every single day. Sue also agrees with getting out of the house, and I love her reasoning, “anything to break the bad mojo”. I’ve actually been using this advice along with Nicole’s and AnglophileFF and the boys and I have been walking everywhere lately – 7 Eleven, the Post Office, the library – the minute Liam starts getting too crabby and it’s no where near naptime, I put them in the stroller and go! This has helped so much. And well, I suppose it’s no surprise that the napwarden gets through the days with naps, “and plenty of them”. (Yes – I love naptime!) Amy, who’s in the same boat as me (being a teacher and just starting this stay at home adventure for the summer) is planning on “running, running, running, until everyone drops!”. And then there’s Jen – who handles the worst days by eating lots of chocolate and counting the minutes until they go to bed. So yeah, thanks again ladies! You guys rock!

It's About Time!

Well, I've always been a bit jealous of those of you who have real friends who also blog. I'm not talking about the friends we've all made blogging, but those of you who actually see and hang out with these friends in real life who also blog.
Well - guess what. My real friend, Amy, has started her own blog. So now I can join the likes of all of you and say stuff like, "We met up with Amy and the kids at the zoo. or My hubby and Amy's hubby are wanting to go to Green Bay again. or better yet I can't wait until our Disney Vacation with Amy and her family." Isn't that just so exciting? Maybe I'm a little more excited about this than I need to be. Either way - stop by and say hello to my friend, Amy!
And hello Dan and Leah! I totally consider you guys real friends, like real friends in real life real, but you know, since you live way out there in Portland, it's hard for me to talk about all the things we do together!

I Will

One of my good friends from high school was married this past Saturday. It was a beautiful ceremony in a small church. Her and her husband planned a small wedding with a small afternoon reception. There was no DJ, no photographer, no dance floor, no garter removal, no tossing of the bouquet, no first dance. But trust me when I say there was love.

My friend is quite possibly the biggest Beatles fan that exists. And yes, I know there are a ton of them out there, but she absolutely loves the Beatles. And when I found out there would not be a first dance I thought, "That's crazy. She has to dance to one of the Beatles songs. She has to." Well, the two love birds had a much better idea. The soloist sang, "I Will." Absolutely beautiful. And as she sang the two love birds just looked into each other eyes. It was possibly the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. And I may have had tears running down my face, except I was a bit distracted by the 3 year old trying to lay on me while I had a 1 year old on my lap who was trying to grab all the song books and throw them on the floor.

Who knows how long I've loved you,
you know I love you still
Will I wait a lonely life time,
if you want me to I will
For if I ever saw you,
I didn't catch your name
But it never really mattered,
I will always feel the same
Love you forever and forever,
love you with all my heart
Love you whenever we're together,
love you when we're apart
And when at last I find you,
your song will fill the air
Sing it loud so I can hear you,
make it easy to be near you
For the things you do endear you to me,
ah you know I will,
I will,
ooo, la

This wedding fit them perfectly. The last time I was at a wedding that I thought truly reflected the couple - it was their wedding. You should all go bug them to post about their big day - I think it was almost four years ago - but another beautiful wedding. And afterwards I figured that Leah was perfect for Dan, because the wedding they planned together seemed perfectly fit for Dan.

Not Only is Bossy

Not only is Bossy incredibly funny in her writing; she is overwhelmingly nice in person.
Seriously. She's one of those people I'm envious of during conversations - she knows just the right questions to ask, seems genuinely interested, and doesn't focus the conversation on herself. Now I just have to figure out a way to get her to our house whenever we host a party. I like who I am, but I'd like to be a tad bit more like Bossy.

Catching Up

I went out last night. To a bar. In Chicago. A karaoke bar. I was one of the first to leave. Just before midnight. I made it home by 1am. I think I finally fell asleep by 2:30. I got very little sleep (Liam woke up around 3:30...I tried to ignore him, but he wouldn't go back to sleep, so I fed him around 4am. Then Quinn woke up at 6am. I put him back to bed and he slept until 7am, at which point I told Mike to get him. I was able to sleep until 8:30). Anyway.
Mike took Quinn to swim lessons this morning and when they got home Quinn kept complaining about being cold. I can so relate since the outside temp. here today was 1 degree. So, I warmed up this neat little thing that's filled with beans, placed it on his lap, and put a few blankets on him. He looked all comfy and cozy I had to take his picture. Then I ran downstairs to do some laundry.

While I was down there Quinn got an awful feeling in his throat and started to tell Mike. "It hurts Daddy. (pointing to his mouth) It hurts. It hurts Daddy." Mike offered to get him so water and Quinn agreed. As Mike was getting up Quinn said once more, "Daddy, it hurts. BLAHHHH. (or however it is you write the sound a 3 year old makes when they throw up all over the place)." Poor Quinn. I should have known something was up when he barely took a bite of his cheeseburger at lunch and didn't want any milk.
Anyway - to wrap up my day in a nutshell, I never did get to nap. Liam never took more than a 45minute nap (more teeth coming, maybe??). And the laundry - it's still waiting to be finished. Ugh. However, at 5:30 both boys are in bed and sleeping. The only question is this - do we wake up Quinn to get him ready for bed or just let him sleep? And okay, one more question - how long will Liam sleep for??
~~~~~~Sunday update: Liam slept until 6am. We woke up Quinn and he ate and played for awhile, then went to bed again. The laundry finally got done this morning, but now there's more in the wash that I just remembered about - I hope it's not frozen. Quinn seems to be feeling much better and is eating again.~~~~~

Diablo Cody

So over at Dan and Leah's there's been a little discussion going on about Diablo Cody, the writer of Juno - Dan sort of knows her and I wanted to know how, because, come on, Dan and I went to the same schools preschool through college - so, how could I not know her and he know her? Anyway, we got that all figured out and then today I went to one of the blogs I check once in awhile and low and behold this person had lunch with Diablo. Go figure.

Oh - and in case you're wondering - I went and saw Juno and loved every minute of it. It's the second movie I've seen in the theater since Liam was born. The first being Dan in Real Life. I was shocked to discover that I loved every minute of that movie as well. "How?" you may ask, "How have you gotten out to see more movies in the past 7 months than you usually see in a year?" I've got it figured out like clockwork. I put Liam down for the night, kiss Mike and Quinn goodbye, and meet up with my friends. Now Mike and I have to figure out how to get out together, because it feels so good to get out, even if just for a few hours.

My Friend Kicks Ass

One of my friends ran the Chicago Marathon yesterday. I've been waiting all day to hear how she managed in all the heat. I just got this email:

Dear all,
I'm happy to report that I'm healthy and was able to finish the Chicago Marathon in 4 hours 37 minutes. Slower than my goal, but a time of which I'm proud given the extreme heat.
The officials actually "cancelled" the race, although I was in mile 24 when the rumors of closures spread. Of course, being me, I was just determined to continue running anyway. It was terribly hot, especially when facing into the sun. Every step south was both into the sun and away from the finish line in the Loop! I luckily didn't experience any water shortages and had plenty to drink throughout. I had trained thoroughly and hydrated as well as I could, and I'm happy I was able to finish strong. Only walked the water stations! Surely my body is wrecked today, but... what a feeling.
The spectators were truly awesome. Running through Boystown, Old Town, Pilsen, Chinatown was a blast. There were DJs and bands along the route to keep us going, mostly official but some looked rather informal. Folks with huge speakers blasted music out of their windows -- Aretha Franklin "Respect," U2 "Sunday Bloody Sunday," Queen "We are the Champions" -- whatever inspiration found them. (My favorite was Neil Diamond's "Coming to America" as I entered the gates of Chinatown. Hysterical. I actually got goosebumps. So cheesy.) Other business owners and individuals ran their hoses out and sprayed marathoners as we passed. A welcome feeling! I was soaked for most of the race, which I think was one of the only ways I survived. Teams of friends and high schoolers manned the aid stations and worked tirelessly to fill outstretched hands with water and Gatorade. Random strangers opened up their coolers and passed out ice.
Unfortunately, a pall or hush fell over the crowd for the last 2 miles, probably based on the closure rumors, so they were surprisingly quiet. Just when we needed them the most! Regardless, I ran into the finish and felt great. After half of a beer and a lot of food, I crashed pretty hard.
Thanks again to all for your support. And especially to my family: Grandma, Aunts Judy and Beth, and cousins Nora, Steve, and Tim for coming out to watch (and flying out!), and a very big to my sister Sarah for organizing! And thanks to brother-in-law Rob (and friends Doug and Arvy) for taking time away from tax returns the weekend before a big deadline :)
Until next year! Kathryn

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I'm so proud of her!

I feel like I've been wanting to post, but haven't. Mostly because our computer won't turn on so
I've been using Mike's laptop. Which means I can't post pictures, which is what I really want to do. Anyhow...here's a very interesting story involving one of my high school friends.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/05/15/baby.gun.ap/index.html

Hosting

The one thing I hate about hosting a party is trying to make sure everyone gets along. Not really just getting along, but that people have something to talk about. At all our parties we tend to have a mix of people...people from my work, Mike's work, my high school, Mike's high school, and college. I'm just picturing introductions now. "Jim, this is Mike, Mike this is Jim. Jim, Mike would like to own a classic car, but doesn't have one." "Annette, this is Shellie. Shellie...Annette. Shellie likes Euchre." Etc. Etc.
The thing is I'm not very good at carrying conversations, but luckily tonight we'll have a few good people in attendance who are good at that.

Christmas Songs!

We were so excited to receive another Holiday CD from danny g in our mail yesterday. We've been enjoying last years and wondering if we'd be lucky enough to get another unique set of Holiday songs. After listening to the second CD, I've determined that danny g needs to work part time at the Holiday Lite - 93.3, because he seems to be able to find fun and DIFFERENT Christmas songs to share, whereas everytime I turn on the Holiday Lite it's one of the same four songs.

Opps I did it Again (and again)

Yesterday I found my dayplanner that has been missing for well over a month. It was in my scrapbooking bag, which is black, and the planner is black.
I found it while unpacking at an all-day Scrapbooking Event I co-hosted. I was very excited, because I had just decided I would go buy myself a new one this week...but now I don't have to.
Two friends from work came to scrapbook and we went out to lunch. Annette offered to drive, so I agreed. On the way back, she said, "Hey, Cathy, do you have your keys with you, we could put this foam board (which she had brought for me) in your car?" I checked my pockets, no... okay.
So the two girls left around 5 and I was planning on staying until 8 or 9. Long story short, I got packed up to go at 8 and COULD NOT FIND MY KEYS. This is not a rare occurrence. Crap. I went out to my car and it was open, BUT NO KEYS. So I went about trying to call Annette, who drove, and see if they're in her car (she was also still in Schaumburg, where we scrapbooked, at Melissa's house). But I don't have Annette's phone number. I called a few people from work trying to see if they have the teacher directory at home and it turns out we didn't get one for this year, yet. And the two girls are NEW THIS YEAR. Uhh...Finally one person I talked to from work suggested I call Annette's aide, and thank God she had her number. I got a hold of Annette. No keys in her car, but hey, she'll come get me, I can hang out with her and Melissa and their husbands and Great Danes (yes, TWO Great Danes) and then Annette will drive me home, because she doesn't live too far from me. Sounds like a sweet plan to me...and I'm not driving so I actually got to have a few drinks.
Long story short...still no keys. I had a blast hanging out with the everyone, played some Texas Hold 'Em, fell in love with Two Great Danes...I got home around 1 am...woke up with a headache to Quinn's crying at 7am...went out to breakfast in Schaumburg and picked up my car with Mike's keys.
FYI - This is officially the THIRD time I've lost my keys in two years.

It's Not ALL Bad

I went and saw Wicked with some girls from work this past Friday. It was AWESOME. I forgot how much I truly love live music. You can feel it in your body. The story line was pretty good and there are two songs from the show that I can't stop singing. I even bought a shirt with the word Popular across the chest - and it's pink. And fitted. That was one of my favorite songs: Pop - u - lar. "It's not about aptitude, it's the way you're viewed, so it's very shrewd to be. - Very very popular like me." The other song I loved was Loathing. "unadultered loathing. For your face, your voice, your clothing..." If they had a shirt that said loathing across the chest I may have gotten that one instead.
It was a great night - we took a limo down, I got car sick (as I usually do in traffic) and we had to stop at a ghetto McDonalds. Ten white girls in a limo stopping at this place was just a bit scary. But don't worry, we had Val, our trusty limo driver, to protect us.