Halloween fun!

Halloween 2009, Sidney and Phia are dragons this year. Sid has started calling Phia "bangs" cuz it seems they have just sprouted over night into her eyes. Sidney made out like a bandit and came home with an over full pumpkin AND stomach...that boy has a sweet tooth the size of his head!
Sidney did NOT want to stick his hand into the pumpkin to get the seeds out. The spoon didn't work to well either so we ended up doing ALL the work!
Here's our masterpieces...Sid did the upside down face, Sidney is next, Phia's had hearts and mine was supposed to be a bat. Sidney wasn't too sure about the scary pumpkins!
Baby dragons still hafta ride in car seats between trick-r-treat adventures!

Went trick-r-treating with Gabriel and his Momma and family on his block...got a whole bucketful just from ONE block! That's me trying to hold the candy monster at bay...
And here is the baby dragon in her ride...no, she did not eat Sunshine Bear for dinner!

We hope everyone had a safe and Happy Halloween! Until next year...

Since it's been 3 months since my last post...

OK, so the excuse is a really hectic schedule since nursing school started! I really should be doing homework, but I just HAD to update my blog TODAY! Here's a little a dis and a little a dat of our lives...
Phia has turned into our little thumb sucker. Kinda odd considering I was not a thumb sucker, Sid wasn't and Sidney wasn't either. Right now though, she is AWFULLY cute suckin' on that thumb! I may have different ideas if she keeps it up for years and years...

Here, Sidney thinks he is hiding from us...

We went to the Yakima County Fair in September for Hannah's THIRD birthday....it was a L-O-N-G and HOT day for all but well worth the drive.

In August, Josh and Nichole and their kids (notice it is plural now!) and our family took over Gramma and Granpa Gaertner's house for some pics and food. This was the best shot we could get of all the Gaertner cousins in one spot! No, Phia is not drunk, Aiden did NOT let go of his lovey, Shaylee did make it out alive and I do believe Sidney is pointing out a dirty diaper. This is something we are going to try and do every time we are together, take a picture of all the kids in one spot!

We took the kids to a corn maze outside of Quincy a few weeks ago and Sidney LOVED....the dirt! He had a blast chasing and being chased thru the corn. Phia was sucking her thumb and falling asleep by the end of our time there. It was great! I'm totally loving all the fun things we are able to do, especially the older Sidney is getting. And Phia is such a trooper and ADORES her big brother!

Sidney put a remote in the microwave and started it on fire...fortunately, I remembered that baking soda puts out flames on the stove, so why not a microwave?? I have a shiney new microwave now and did you know they DO make them with lock-out features for kids such as my little pyro?? It kinda works like locking your cell phone from accidental 911 "butt" calls...

Well, I can't seem to post anymore videos or pics at the moment so I'd better post before I lose it all! Check back again soon for more goodies! Love to all our family and friends...ya know who you are and we miss you lots!

Just a cute video of Sidney feeding Phia...and yes, he is wearing a bib! He put that on by himself...I guess for added protection??

Proof that baby dragons ARE cute!

This is for all those who have not seen Phia walking yet...she is a baby dragon for Halloween and I promise, she will be wearing something warm on those chubby legs!

I'm trying to update my blog throughout the weekend, so check back often!

Sidney serves drinks

Last weekend, we had the immense delight to have family over from Bremerton and Sidney was in hog heaven over all the audience and attention he had. Poor guy worked himself into a lather everyday and is just now getting back into a normal schedule. Anyway, he was hysterical, pouring drinks for his cousins' Michael and Jessi who each had measuring cups and a lot of good humor! Sidney's cute outfit was made by his Great Gramma Rosemary and I thought he looked adorable!

Phia and kitty

My first attempt at posting a video clip! We were at my in-laws one day and a cute little kitten that someone dumped at Julie's work was vastly interested in a little girlie toes. Phia was awfully cute and gentle trying to pet the kitten, but the kitten had other plans!

Apricots and my garden...

To my friend Justin: I laughed when I read your ode to apricots! Here is a small encore...
So, I have been DYING for apricot jam for quite a few years and decided this was the year to DO something about it! I think Sid is concerned for my mental well-being because I have no qualms about knocking on strangers' doors asking for their fruit. So many people let it fall to the ground and go to waste! Anyway, haven't had anyone turn me down yet, but I have had some strange looks! Gramma Lila let me borrow her dehydrator and I think I ran that sucker 3 times and it's 12 trays high...since it has to run constantly, the noise was annoying out in the kitchen. Clever me thought it would be great to put it in the downstairs bathroom on a TV tray and let that puppy work! After it was going for a few hours, I had to visit the loo and upon opening the door, HOLY SMOKES! An apricot sauna! We kept the fan on after that and it helped. The pints of jam were fun...I haven't canned a thing in a while (yes, Rach & Nichole, we did do about 1 million jars of elderberry jelly what, 3 years ago now??!) and I had no pectin for the jam but I did find a recipe that called for an obscene amount of sugar but BOY is it good! I gave my friend a pint and a baggie of dried cots, told her to bring me the jar back, and she was back with a clean jar and empty baggie the next day! Hope they have plenty of TP... I made about 20 more jars and if all goes well, I'm gonna try and pick/jam more Monday & Tuesday.

Oh, and if anyone hears/has/knows of any fruit trees that need to be picked, I am WILLING to get them! I'm hoping for apples, pears, nectarines, more cots...anything really. And you can rest assured that I'll be knocking on more doors before summer is up!

On another note, my in-laws are letting us use their old garden plot. With planning help and seed from my Mom, a master gardener (Yay Mom!), I have got 9 rows of sweet corn in, 5 heirloom tomatoes, 2 rows of purple bush beans, 4 basils, 2 zucchnis, one watermelon? could be squash but I didn't label, two small rows of great northern bush beans and 3 yellow crookneck. I still need to work on the whole bean tent idea...the scarlet runners my Mom gave me didn't come up and neither did hers so there was something wrong with the seed. I gotta try and get some peas in before it's too late. I will also be planting carrots and potatos for a fall/winter crop. I'm shooting for a self-propogating garden in the future and I'm having fun learning and playing in the dirt! Even got Sid and Sidney involved weeding and working! I will also have you know, I made the bean tent ALL BY MYSELF, including cutting the boards down with skilsaw, figuring out it wouldn't stay upright on its own and therefore needed to pound metal stakes into the ground to act as anchors, as well as using yards of baling twine to keep it all together. We plan on blanching and freezing the corn, lots of tomato sauce, shred the zucchini for bread and Phia food later, and LOTS of steamed yellow crookneck, a summer favorite of mine! Whew!

And here is my favorite garden helper although he likes to step on the corn stalks!

And although she can't garden yet, she is an awfully fast growing, cute weed!

Ritualistic cutting...

And now that have your full attention... we performed our own cutting session recently and have a picture to prove it.


Now, we just gotta pay it all off! Boy, that was a good cutting session! One we wish to never repeat! POWER TO THE PEOPLE!!!

Goin' home to Grammas...

So on July 6, I took the kids home to my Mom and Dad's for a week of fun and frolic. Sidney was SO excited to be able to go outside whenever his little heart desired and the doggie and goats were a plus. Here, he is helping Gramma feed hay to the goats. What you can't see in the picture is that the whole front of him is soaking wet! That's because he not only learned how to operate the handle on the hose, but he learned that Xena LOVES to play in the water jsut as much as he does! It was bright and early in the morning, nd he and Xena were in the front yard playing in the water. Sidney was hysterical over her antics and Xena was in love with the little boy who endlessly played with water! Those two were so cute...she would even play chase with him!



There was even chickens to feed although once again, his little finger was pecked by the bravest hen which caused a huge emotional breakdown and big alligator tears! He also helped Great Granpa Wayne with some firewood, helped Gramma weed her garden, and learned how to open up Babi's (Granpa, my dad) contact lens case behind the truck...

Phia is very close to crawling but fortunately, not this trip to Gramma and Babi's! She spent the nice, sunny days in her bouncy seat under the apple tree, just bouncing and rocking her days away.


Great Gramma Arlene LOVED to hold a juicy girlie although Phia looks a little dubious! Phia is so chunky that G Gramma can barely lift her! Isn't Sophia's hair getting long? Wonder where she gets that from...









Gramma is trying to demonstrate just how long Phia's hair is...I can't believe the funny face I got! And that's Great Granpa Wayne there...egads, sorry about the running shorts and chicken legs!

We all had such a wonderful time and as usual, the visit was too short. Love you Momma! Love you Dad! Love you Gramma and Granpa! We will see you again real soon at Family Camp!

Children are gross

*** DON'T READ IF YOU HAVE A WEAK STOMACH OR GET QUEASY OVER BODILY FUNCTIONS!!!*** You've been warned...

My kids are gross...what they do to perfectly good food is gross...when they decide to do nasty things to that perfectly good food is not only gross, but usually in a public place.

This past week, I've really come to realize just how gross my little girlie can be. How can such a cute cherub of a girl POOP SO MUCH and WHY does it INSIST on leaking out of her dipe EVERY TIME??!!? At the park Friday, sitting pretty as you please in the sunshine on the big car blanket..yup, pooped out the sides and up her back. Good thing we brought an extra outfit but she was naked for all Lion's Park to see on the concrete picnic table...and yes, I did clean up the splatters of poo off the bench. And then there was the time I pulled her out of her carseat and was carrying her inside. Felt something wet on my arm and asked Sid if she leaked (meaning pee) and he looked at me in horror...me picking her up and squishing her dipe had forced the poop out and up and then back down my arm, oozing its way closer to my elbow. That outfit got thrown out. Then there was the time I was cradling her in my left arm, feeding her a bottle in the recliner. I felt something warm and wet on my thigh so I got up to check...AGAIN, poop had oozed its way over the top of the dipe, down into the recliner and all over my pants and arm. And then there as the time we ran to Walmart for something and in the 3 miles between here and there, Phia pooped out the dipe and ruined her outfit. We had to take a baby into the store in only a dipe...we got plenty of ugly looks for that one although the check-out girl understood!

Sid and I have contemplated many ways on why this is happening. It is no secret that Phia has a boo-tay, acutally, more than her brother ever had. Is it the shape of her butt that forces the poop out? Is the dipe too small? Too big? Leg gussets not tight enough? Should we check here every hour? Half hour? So far nothing helps...and my mom is beside herself with glee...apparently, I was a major pooper as a baby so she's glad to see some payback. These are only some of the incidents as Phia usually poops thru at least one outfit a day.

Yesterday was the frosting on the cake however. Both the kids have been snotty and coughing and I'm thinking it's probably allergies. This means lots of snail trails, snot in the mouth, snot in food and boogers galore. Sidney is old enough to pick his nose, which he does frequently and with relish. He got a particularly big one yesterday and was trying ot feed it to Sophia...she wanted nothing to do with THAT, so he wiped it on her cheek instead.

Anyone want to come visit?

Memorial Day trip

I know it's outta order, but I had to post the pictures we took at the Wilson Creek cemetary on Memorial Day to share with everyone...they turned out so well! It was a gorgeous day and we wound up at Coulee Dam and just meandered back home through Coulee City and past Dry Falls. Speaking of Dry Falls, when Sid and I were dating, he told me about these falls that were bigger than Niagra, right here in the middle of Washington. I could NOT figure out why I had never heard of falls bigger than Niagra but didn't really bother to contradict him (boy, has THAT attitude changed!! ha ha!!) and just smiled and nodded that yes, I'd like to see them. What he didn't mention was that there was no water!! I felt a fool.....

Sid is attempting a family portrait...

Here is a good one of my little girlie and I at the cemetary.

I was trying to keep Sidney still and he was waving bye-bye to Poppa.
Sidney is showing Sophia one of those tree 'helicopter' things...I did not know that the straps on Phia's little dress were too far apart and would NOT stay on her shoulders! So all the pics have this half-naked hussy girlie but she was just so cute!!
For those who know her, Phia's tongue is a happiness thermometer...when it pops out, she's happy! We see that little bubble gum tongue a lot...

On our way out, Sidney REALLY wanted to yank that flag out and play with it...but I got him to salute our veterans instead. For all those serving, for all those who have served whether living or dead, our little family thanks you for your sacrifice and service...we salute you!

Sidney turned TWO!!

Well, I think we may have stumbled upon a new family tradition...this year, in the interest of everyone elses busy schedule, we decided to have a "birthday breakfast" for Sidney at Gramma and Granpa Gaertners. We made pancackes that the kids, including Uncle Josh, Aunt Sara and Poppa, decorated with whip cream and chocolate chips. We also made a fruit tray, bacon, scrambled eggs and OJ...THANK YOU Nichole and Sara for your help!! My good friend Denise and her son Gabriel made the cupcakes for us to decorate with frosting and sprinkles and as you can see, I just put a big #2 in Sidney's cupcake for him to blow out...although I think Aunty Nichole did the honors! We also had a pinata for the boys to beat on but it took Sid several good wacks to bust it open and then we had to sprinkle the candy all over to make it fun to pick up. He also got some pretty neat presents including a brand new trike from Momma and Poppa. HE LOVES HIS TRIKE!!! He was all smiles when he was plunked down on it as a surprise and now he tries to make a break for it whenever the front door opens.

It was a really great day and we all had lots of fun...thanks everyone! I'm sure another year is going to fly by just as quickly!
Aiden figured out real quick there was storage in the trike for candy!

Ag Extravaganza!

So, this morning my friend Denise, her son Gabriel and her Mom and me and the kids went to the Ag Extravaganza at the Ephrata HS. They had a petting zoo, a greenhouse where the kids got to poke some seeds into little cups of dirt (and wound up ALL OVER the back seat of the Tahoe...thanks little man), hammered nails into 2x4's, sat in big tractors, colored, ate ice cream ( at 10 in the morning!!) and learned how to milk a plywood cow. It was a treat to get out and do something geared towards little people! Gabriel and Sidney are still getting used to each other....we think Gabriel sees Sidney as a novelty and wants to constantly hug and touch and maul!! Gabriel turned 2 in April and Sidney will be 2 in just a few weeks...they are evenly matched in size too! Anyway, the boys seemed to have a good time and I thought some pics would be in order...

Here they are, learning to "milk" a plywood cow. Gabriel kept dumping the bucket out!

Mommas KNOW not to feed ice cream to little boys this early! But hey, it's a special occasion!

Here Sidney is test driving the smallest John Deere they had on display...FFA anyone??

And this is how Gabriel felt about those tractors!

Sophia fell asleep in the stroller after sucking down a bottle and she wasn't remotely interested in the whole deal. Tomorrow, we're taking the kids to the Spring Fest in Moses Lake for the lighted parade in the evening. Although keeping Sidney up WAY past his bedtime means at least two days of him reorienting himself to his normal schedule, we are looking forward to the fun at the carnival and the parade. Hopefully I'll have time to post those pics too before months have passed! Love to all!

And the winner is....

ME!!! It is official everyone...I have been accepted into the nursing program at Big Bend Community College and will be starting in September. That means we will be here for at least another two years until I'm ready to take the NCLEX and be an RN for reals. Haven't really made definitive plans on what type of nuring I'd like to do but I'm leaving that up to the next few years during clinicals to help me decide where I'd like to go in the future. For now, I like the idea of legal nursing, getting a BSN (and even on to an MSN), maybe teaching?, maybe being a nurse anesthetist, nurse practioner......so many choices! Anyway, I'm surely excited, nervous, intimidated, anxious, happy and ready to take on this new adventure. I'll be working on getting up-to-date on shots, CPR class, trying to buy books/uniform and getting ready for the program. I'm also VERY happy that my little circle of good friends will be with me on this endeavor...Justin, Denise, Heidi, Staci (yes, you ARE in!), ya'll we are gonna ROCK this thing! I'm looking forward to getting more acquainted with you and your families and to becoming the best nurses this program has ever seen!!

On another note, I am extremely behind on how the kids are doing. Way back in April, Josh, Nichole and Aiden came over and we took the boys "fishing" at the Oasis Park pond in Ephrata. Aiden wanted to just run right into the water and Sidney was interested in throwing rocks AND his pole into the water. Good thing for little people leashes! Anyway, nothing fishy was ever caught but we all had fun watching the boys and daddy's "fish". Oh, and did I mention it was free?? Definitely something to do on nice weekend mornings!

Everyone knows Sidney does not favor talking but he is picking up new words everyday now. Although he isn't trying to put together two words or more as of yet, his vocab is getting bigger. Just today he said sorry, popcorn (more like AH-orn) and he's saying bike, STOP, da-da (sister), book, butt (when he needs a clean one), thank you, ball, bus, car, and WOW. There are other's too, but I can't think of them right now.

Sophia is quite the little Hunca Munca...at her 6 month check up she weighed 22 pounds, 10 ounces and is 27 inches long. She is the BEST little baby girl around as far as temperment. She is so HAPPY all the time and fusses when she is hungry, dirty or tired. lately, she's been battling a persistent runny nose and we just started her on some medicine today so hopefully that will go away. Her and I have been sick for THREE weeks and we are DONE!! Her poor little nose is done being messed with and we can get some pretty good screeches and howls out of her when we have to suck the snot out....poor thing! Anyway, here's a cute pic of her worn out and asleep on the floor...yes, that IS all her own hair! Hmmmm...wonder where she get's that trait from??!? I realized after trying to find pics to post that I don't have nearly enough of Fia, at least cute ones. Sidney gets a hold of the camera and leaves smudgy prints on the lens and takes 50 pictures of his nostrils or my butt and it doesn't really dawn on me that that's happened until I download pics from the camera, looking for cute updated ones for everyone to see! I'm tellin' ya, everyday is an adventure around here!

Well, I do have more to blog, but I'm going to close this one for now and do another about what Sidney and I did this morning. Love to all!

Blue highlighter and cousins

So, Sidney decided to raid my backpack and found a blue highlighter he must have found tasty.... he also colored the inside of his ear a nice highlighter pink as well! Forutnately, it wiped off fairly easily..as well as the black computer desk but not so fortunate for his little wooden tool box set. *SIGH* Sidney s actually been sick for the past day and hasn't been his normal perky self. It's kinda nice when he is needy and lovey!! And so far, Sophia has been well and I am PRAYING she continues to be.


Today, Sid is on his way to Wentachee for an appointment for a sleep study thing...I' pretty sure he has sleep apnea and Dr. Milligan shares my assumption. I don't think today is the day he actually sleeps, all hooked up to electrodes and such since his appointment is at 1:30...who goes to bed that early??!? Anyway, I'm anxious to find out and perhaps I can get a good night sleep instead of counting the seconds/minutes he goes without breathing sometimes and the SNORING when I'm trying ot go back to sleep!


This past weekend we had the wonderful pleasure of having Rachel. Brian and the kids over for a night. Sidney, Hannah and Brock roared up and down the stairs an obscene amount of times, screaming, panting, sweating, laughing and thumping their little hearts out. Sidney's room was also a playground and stuffed toys were strewn about from downstairs to up and they also discovered the 'joys' of throwing toys downstairs (sorry Susan our neighbor lady!!). I'm sure people thought I had let a wild herd of elephants move in! Anyway, Sidney ADORED having his cousins over and him and Hannah especailly worked themselves into a real lather. This picture was awfully cute...we put in Wall-E for a movie to calm them down and Brock started out on his tummy, then Hannah plopped down, then Sidney. Too cute!! Brock is quite the celebrity in Sidney's eyes and there was a lot of copycatting going on!

It was a delight to have my sis stay the night with her family...the third bedroom is so worth it! We traipsed around and checked out all the nifty little thrift stores in EPhrata, Soap Lake and Moses Lake Saturday before they ad to leave. They couldn't find anyone ot watch their dog Napoleon so they had to go back early. We even took the time to make dino-shaped pancakes for the kids' breakfast Saturday morning and just enjoyed each other's company. Uncle Brian made sure to get some valuable Sophia cuddles in as well...don't they make a cute pair?? Loved having you sis!! PLEASE come again soon with everyone!!!

Do you wanna win something?

I got this from my friend Kreanna's blogspot and thought it would be fun...and interesting to see who will comment!

So, here's the deal...do you want to win something homemade by me???? Something fun, creative, and downright cute? Well here's your chance!

I will make something just for you, I hope (but can't guarantee) you'll like what you get! I promise you'll have it by the end of the year (see how I give myself plenty of time, you might not get it until 11:59 on December 31st :) The first five people to comment to this post will win.

But wait! There's a catch...YOU have to make a post on YOUR blog with the same offer! I know, this is the part that made me hesitate...but don't you think it would be fun?!!

Now.....GO! ;)

FINGERPRINTS!

So, I'm guilty of letting Sidney play with the camera...he can take some pretty weird pictures. I THOUGHT it was on the blink anyway because recently, all the pics I take are kinda fuzzy and blurry...I really didn't want to buy another camera. What did I discover was the problem though?? FINGERPRINTS!!!! Fingerprints on the lens!! Now I just have to make sure to wipe

off the lens after he's played with it and before I take a picture! Silly little man!

In other news, Fia is starting to sit on her own...actually, it's more like slowly-fold-in-half on her own. Sidney finds this vastly interesting and entertaining...he gets down there with her and talks to her and kisses her the entire time. Still wobbly from side to side, but look at those thighs and diaper butt she has as a sturdy foundation! Last night, Valentine's Day, she rolled over from her belly to her back for the first time. Wouldn't you know it, once the video camera came out, she didn't do it again! ARG! And today, she did it again when no one but Sidney was looking. She is also sleeping in her OWN crib at night and usually goes down between 9-10 and then up between 7-8...we are INCREDIBLY spoiled parents!! Her and Sidney are sharing a room and they are both doing very well in the same room together so we are very relieved/glad/SPOILED! Lotsa love from the growing and busy Gaertner home, Erica

Bottle Feeding and other tasks

So , Sidney has figured out a rather clever tactic to getting his hands on Sophias' bottles...pretend to feed her and if she refuses, take what's left! But once in a while, he is truly helpful and tries to feed his sister...and I caught him in the act while doing dishes! He was very proud of himself...and still managed to eat the last drops she didn't. A few nights ago, he also tried to be helpful and pull her out of this chair to hold her as she was crying for attention while Sid was busy in the kitchen and I was posting my homework. She ended up on the floor, totally unhurt but scared and BAWLING and poor Sidney was BAWLING too because he thought he was in trouble and he was upset that Sophia was crying. Too cute but boy, this place is too small for two crying babies! Sidney has also made a few leaps and bounds these past few weeks; he has learned how to unzip his jammies, take his diaper off, throw it away, open his bedroom door and come downstairs stark naked. He wants to climb up the stairs like a big kid and fell from the top step because he was so excited he did it, he lost his balance and down he went; Sid said he jumped all the stairs to get to Sidney and he only suffered some red scuff marks on his cheeks from the carpet and of course, a big blow to his little boy pride. Sidney also has learned where the toaster is and will get it out for breakfast, he's learning how to put Sophia's bottles together, how to say "sshhhhh" and even said 'all done" twice today when I was putting the vacuum away. Oh yeah, and he's also interested in sitting on the toilet with his little ring insert so he won't fall in. We aren't even remotely pushing potty training at this point but he goes in there and puts the lid up, gets his little seat on there and starts unzipping or taking off clothes!! I figure if he does accidentally use the potty, we'll be lucky and he's having fun at least!

Sophia is starting to smile more and more, usually when you pick her up, when she's getting her butt changed and when Sidney is acting goofy for her. It's really hard to catch them, but here's one of her smiling because her brother was rocking the chair and yelling like a banshee. She is an total awe of him and her eyes get wide when she stares at him running around- Sidney also gives her many kisses exclusively. Her two month check up was Tuesday and she had 3 shots of which she was NOT happy even though Sidney tried to 'help' Debbie with the band-aids. She weighs in at 16 lbs. 8 ozs. and is the picture of health and vitality. She is growing well and quickly and I have healed completely and quickly. I am also excited about an upcoming doctor visit to see about getting some minor surgery done to remove a cyst that has bothered me off and on for about 10 years now- I'm excited about the prospect of having it gone forever!!

And in closing, this is what Sophia thinks of all the kisses I give her...look at those cheeks! Hers, not mine...She's a wonderfully easy baby and we are ridiculously blessed with such easy going kids. Here'e me crossing my fingers that the trend continues as Sid and I want more...

Happy 2009!

So, we had our first Christmas at Sid and Julie's on Christmas Day and after eating entirely too much dinner, everyone napped including Sophia cuddled up on her Aunt Sara. That girl LOVES to be held, especially while sleeping! We had a very nice, small unwrapping session with Sid, Julie, Sara, Sid, Sidney, Sophia and me and Sidney wasn't really into the presents themselves as much as shredding tiny pieces of paper off the gifts. Both kids got some really cute things like clothes, stuffed horses and little toys- Sidney really likes his Little People farm animals! Sara got a nice keyboard and Gramma Lila showed her some of the things it can do and Sidney just had to be involved! He sat on Great Gramma Lilas knee and bounced around to all the beats she played as well as trying to get involved in some of the key-pushing a well...

Next weekend we'll be headed to my sisters house for Christmas with my side of the family so we get to have TWO Christmases! We've ususally done that for quite a few years mostly due to working around my uncle's cop schedule and now Rachel and Brian have funky schedules working at the jail. My Mom and Dad and Gramma will be coming over from Bellingham and then me and the kids will go over for the weekend (Sid has to work-bummer!!) I'll have more to post then too.

Yeah, so Sid is a detention monitor at the local juvenile hall...he's basically paid to babysit juvenile delinquents. I think he's a good fit for the job because he's not easily ruffled (as long as Josh or Sara isn't there!!) and he's kinda intimidating to some kid PLUS, he can take away points and levels (thus losing privileges) if they get outta line. He just started this past Friday and although it isn't his dream job, it's a JOB and we really need that right now and its' full time AND it's right here in Ephrata like a mile away.

We are having a good 2009 so far and there's lots of snow on the ground outside and lots of fun going on inside! Here's Sidney being goofy and all the mess in the background is from him- he has discovered we 'hide' all sorts of things in drawers and he constantly pulls blankets off Sophia and throws them over hius head and leaves it wherever it happens to land. I do get tired of picking up the SAME thing a million times but he enjoys watching me slave away.