Woe to me

I just can't take it anymore. Every day I have to deal with the same thing. Day in and day out. The problem never goes away, in fact, to me it just seems to be getting worse. Why? I just don't understand it at all. Why now and how come? What am I talking about, you ask? Cowlicks. These darned things are out of control. I have two in the front on my bang line and two at the nape of my neck. And I don't know which is worse. When you have short hair like I do, the ones at the nape of your neck just make it look like your hair was cut wrong. One side grows this way and the other side grows that way. Sometimes it looks like I have a couple of straggly ponytails and other times it looks like when a little kid cuts their own hair, leaving big gaps here and there. And if that's not bad enough, the two at my hairline in front, just refuse to go in the direction that my hair was cut in. So what happened all of a sudden? I've always known I had cowlicks, but I was always able to control them. Lately, they just completely have a mind of their own and won't settle down no matter how I tried to dry them, spray them, gel them or twist them with my finger. I give up.

Today Erika went for another ultrasound and Dr. appointment. The baby's kidney is still the same. No change there. Erika said the baby was quite active, at one point the baby grabbed its foot and put its toe in its mouth. How cute is that? Her appointment with the dr. went well, no changes to speak of. I'll keep you posted if anything should happen. 4 days to her due date.

I had a terrible night's sleep last night. This cold had me tossing and turning all night long and the dry cough was the worst. Don't you hate when you're lying there and suddenly you feel the slightest little tickle. Before you actually cough it out, you try squishing your throat, or swallowing, or making it so that you don't breathe any air on it making it more dry. You try so hard not to make any noise but finally you just can't hold it in any longer and you cough, cough, cough. Then, when you're finally finished, you settle your head back on your pillow, close your eyes to fall back to sleep and it happens all over again. Yup, that was my night last night. Today, all day, my left nostril has had a tickle in it like I'm about to sneeze, but I never do. That just makes my eye water and nose run and, well, I think you get the picture. LOL. The cold medicine works for a bit, but not like I wish it would.

Tonight is New Year's Eve. We were going to go out and do something but between me not feeling well and the 8 inches of snow we got today, we're going to just sit right here and share the evening together. That's fine with both Mark and I. We'll probably cook or get something to eat and watch a movie. I'm not sure if I will make it to midnight, but that's okay with me too.

Well, I'd like to wish everyone a very happy 2009. May God bless us all with good health, provision and happiness.

Love,

Janice

Christmas Etc.

Hi everyone

Well, we had another great Christmas holiday this year. It was a lot of fun having Cora and Trevor to watch open their presents on Christmas morning. It's amazing how you don't realize how boring a family can get until you've added a couple of little ones to the mix, LOL. What a big difference they make in adding excitement and joy to the day. Warren, although he had no clue what was going on, was so darned cute and never fussed or cried the whole day. And we all know how the late nights and going house to house can make any baby cranky. He just sat pleasantly on a lap or in his chair and took in the whole scene, cooing and ahhing away. He's such a good baby.

We began our holiday on Christmas eve at Nana and Grampy's house. That's my mom and dad. As we do every year, we opened presents, ate dinner and basically couldn't move for the rest of the night due to food drunkeness. Between marriages and babies, the family has grown so much that, this particular evening is just about the only time of year that the entire family...parents, sisters, aunts, uncles and cousins and now second cousins, all get to see each other in one place. We had a great time and it was over too fast.

Christmas morning, Mark and I got up first so that we could video Cora walking out to the Christmas tree to see what Santa had brought her. She was so sleepy from being up late the night before that she didn't really seem to care what was under the tree. With a little coaxing and ohhing and ahhing on our part about the different toys under the tree, she finally came around and was a bit, and I mean, just a bit, excited. I think next year she'll react a lot different. The whole Santa concept is still a little hard for her to understand. Anyway, shortly after she opened her presents and we opened our stockings, Erika and Scott came over followed by Krista, Steve and the boys. The next hour was filled with the ripping of paper and the excitement of watching Cora and Trevor opening their gifts. At this point in a child's life, it is actually more exciting for the parent to see what their son or daughter got than it is for the child. Cora had more fun popping a piece of bubble wrap for a half an hour, than she did discovering what was in each box. And Trevor had to be called back to the living room on several occasions as he was just as content as could be playing with Cora's play kitchen set in the other room. Something he's played with a hundred times before, LOL. Kids? Go figure.

Krista and Steve had to leave to have dinner at Steve's sister's house but Erika and Scott stayed here with us. Dinner was ran behind so we ended up not going to my sister Julie's house for dessert this year. Not that I wouldn't have loved to have been there with everyone, but this was the first time in 19 years that we actually stayed home all day on Christmas. It felt great not to have to rush around to get ready and be out the door by a certain time. Ashley was as sick as a dog on Christmas and slept most of the day. When she finally woke up, she felt well enough to go to Mark's brother's house with us but ended up leaving there early because she was just too sick. Poor Ashley. We had a great evening at the Persson's, opened more presents and ate more food. In all, it was a great Christmas.

Saturday was Trevor's 2nd birthday. We were all supposed to go to the zoo to see the Christmas lights on display there but since it rained all day we just hung around the house until the evening when we went to Trevor's party. We only gave him a small gift and told Krista we'd like to get him something for the yard when the weather gets better. Maybe a sandbox like we got Cora for her birthday. Krista liked that idea and it will be nice for him to get a present in the summer. Kirsta made a big pot of chili for supper and afterward we all had cake and ice cream. The kids were all so darned cute playing with each other and were so well behaved. Trevor is really starting to use a lot of words and it's so much fun to see what he'll come out with next. I just love 2 year olds. They're so smart and cute and funny. Not to mention, stubborn, independent and defiant, LOL.

I started to notice a slight tingling in my throat and ears while we were at Krista's and wouldn't you know it, by the time we got home, my head was starting to hurt and my chest was feeling tight. I've been battling this cold or whatever it is for three days now. So far I haven't had it full blown like Ashley or Mark did and I ask that if you are reading this to please say a prayer that I will NOT get sick. My new grandchild is due in 5 more days and I refuse to miss being at the hospital to meet him/her. In fact, please say a prayer for Scott as well. He's been home for two days with the same cold and sore throat and cough as well. Whatever strain we all caught, it's not your average cold but something a bit more intense with a wicked sore throat. Mine feels like someone torched it, a nagging cough and sinus pressure like you wouldn't believe. Scott NEEDS to get well ASAP so pray, pray, pray, please.

As far as Erika's last ultrasound went last week, there was no change in the baby's kidney. That's good because it means the obstruction didn't get larger or worse. She's going for another ultrasound tomorrow to see if there are any changes. We're praying that the obstruction will clear itself as they often do on their own before birth. I'll keep you posted on that.

That's about it for today. Here are a few pictures of all of us opening presents at our house Christmas morning.

Our little photographer

Look at my new doll house

What a mess

Check out the fireplace burning on the TV. I had it going all morning, LOL

Ashley putting the dollhouse together

Trevor giving his baby brother some Christmas love. Awww.

Trevor with his new hard hat. Warren teething on Krista's sleeve.

Cora's present she made for mommy. Ashley lost it when she saw the scribbles. She LOVED it.

Poor Steve had a bad sinus infection. That's tissues you see stuffed up his nose, LOL.

Can you see Erika's big belly back there?

Hmm, Just what I need..Chapstik

It's been a lonnnng morning.

I'm Obsessed

It's 7:30 Saturday morning. I've been up since 6:45ish. Right now I'm sitting here on the living room sofa, the Christmas tree lights are on, as they are every morning from the second I get up, I'm drinking my coffee and watching a yule log burn on the TV, LOL. I can't help it, I love this thing. About two years ago, I discovered that, on On Demand they had a burning log that you could watch if you didn't have a fireplace or for whatever reason you liked. Last year we had Verizon and they didn't have it on their On Demand. But this year, whoo hoo, we are back on Comcast and I am obsessed with watching this log burn. It even crackles, lol. Unlike two years ago when you could only get a burning log, this year you can chose from a log that crackles, a burning log in a fireplace with Christmas music. A couple of different winter scenes, I think one has music and the other doesn't. And I think there's a living room with a Christmas tree and decorations also with music. My favorite is the yule log and the fireplace with music. And, you'd be surprised that, just like a real fireplace, you can just sit here and stare at it for minutes on end. I was at Erika's the other day and I put it on at her house while we were babysitting Warren, and he fell asleep watching it. Hmmm, too bad Krista has Verizon, this could have been her best friend, LOL.

Well, it's snowing out right now. Yesterday we got "the big storm". We ended up with about...I don't know, something like 8 or 10 inches of snow. Anytime we have snow, I'm always slightly disappointed because I wanted more than what we got. Even if we exceeded the amount that was predicted, lol. It's crazy, I hate winter, but if it's going to snow, I want a ton of it. It just makes everything seems so clean, and cozy to me. The neighbors all come out to shovel or snow blow, and there's a quietness to the air because the snow has insulated the everyday noises. I know, I'm nuts, but whatever, lol. We're supposed to get more tomorrow so I HAVE to get out today and finish up my shopping. I'm NOT looking forward to the stores today.

Mark has been sick the past two days. He rarely gets sick but when he does, boy he does it good. First it started out with a bad sore throat. I mean really bad. You should have seen the look on his face when he tried to swallow. Then in the night his teeth were chattering like some kind of a musical instrument. When he woke up Friday morning, I kept saying, "stay home, why are you going to work?" Mark NEVER takes a sick day. In 21 years, the only sick day he ever took was last year when he had to have his radiation seed implant. One time he broke two toes and cracked the bone on the top of his foot and went to work the next day. It was the most hideous bruised and swollen sight I've ever seen and hobbled off to work like nothing was wrong. So, why did I think he would stay home with a bad cold? Janice, what were you thinking? LOL. He's paying for it though. His voice is gone, well, maybe that's not so bad, LOL, and he could barely walk last night with body aches. Normally, he would have been out clearing the snow, sometimes even late into the night. He LOVES it out there when it snows. Not this time however. My poor baby was bundled up on the sofa sipping tea and falling asleep. I hope he feels better when he wakes up.

And speaking of sick. Poor Cora woke up at 1:00am, crying and burning with a fever. The good thing about Cora is, now she can tell us what's wrong. Just a few months ago, it would have been guess work and an array of yes and no questions to figure out what was wrong. Last night when Ashely came out to the sofa with her, Cora told her, "sick mama" and when she asked her what hurt, Cora pointed to her throat and her head. I pray that whatever she has goes away FAST and that when she wakes up this morning, she will be as good as new.

Also, I'd just like to request your prayers for Erika and Scott's baby. Tuesday's ultrasound showed that the baby had a swollen left kidney. We were assured that it is very common and in most cases, corrects itself with the first urination after birth or sometimes even before birth. After the ultrasound was sent to the radiologist, they found however, that in addition to the swelling there is also a kidney obstruction. Erika spoke with the urologist and again, she was assured that it is not severe and not to worry. When the baby is born, they will do an ultrasound right away to get a better look and determine what should happen from there. In the meantime, Erika has to go for another ultrasound on Tuesday to see if there's been any changes. I feel confident that through prayer and our faithfulness to God, the obstruction and the swelling will be gone. It is my hope that anyone reading this will pray for the same. Other than that news, the baby looks great. Estimated weight at this point is 6lbs. 13oz. She had an internal and has already begun to dilate and the doctor said it looks unlikely that she will have to be induced due to going overtime, lol.

So that's about it for today. It'll be a busy week, but I'll try and update you on what happens at Tuesday's ultrasound.

I hope you are all enjoying the snow. Keep warm everyone.

Janice

In Memory Of Our Trevor George Persson

This entry is in memory of Trevor George Persson who would have been 25 years old today.

December 19, 1983 - March 16, 1984

It's hard to believe that 25 years ago on this day, our son Trevor George Persson came into the world. We were so happy that after having two daughters, we now had a son. Our little family was complete.

Trevor came into the world via C-section early on a Monday morning. His due date was actually December 21st, but because his older sisters had been born through C-section, he too, would arrive the same way. After all, it was only 16 months later. He weighed 6lbs 12oz. and although he was not a tiny baby, he had trouble breathing at birth. Nothing severe, nothing out of the ordinary, but would require some extra time on oxygen. I remember one of the nurses commented to us right there in the delivery room, "he appears to be a little early." I told her no, that he was a planned C-section. Looking back, I can't help but wonder how long this baby would have stayed in there had I been given the chance to carry him longer. Given the fact that Krista and Erika were only 5 days early, which, for twins is pretty remarkable. And Ashley was 10 days late, I have a feeling little Trevor would have liked to bake a little while longer.

Having a baby in December is not easy, especially when you have two toddlers at home, a husband that works the night shift and Christmas shopping yet to be finished. I slightly remember that most everything was done by the time I went to the hospital, which by the way, back then it was the night before. We dropped Krista and Erika off at my mom and dad's and off to the hospital we went. I remember feeling sad leaving them there. They were so little still and really didn't understand where mommy was going. And none of us knew, that the next day, a life would enter this world, that would forever change our lives. Trevor was born early in the morning. What a joy and surprise to hear, "it's a boy." Mark, who was sitting right by my head, was crying his eyes out and whispered to me, "that's our little Trevor." We were so in love with that name. I remember sitting at the kitchen table discussing names one night when I came up with the name, Travis, if it was a boy. Mark liked it but said, "what about Trevor?" To be honest, the name was not really familiar with me but I liked it. I really really liked it and it wasn't popular at all, which made it all the better. We were still mourning the loss of Mark's dad, George, who had passed away unexpectedly, just three months before, so in his honor and memory, our baby became, Trevor George. Despite the fact that he had respiratory distress, he was perfect. His little head was so beautiful with just a bit of peach fuzz covering it and his skin color was like mine, olive. After having two little blondies with light skin, it was nice to have a baby that was unique to himself. One that everyone couldn't say, "oh he looks just like the twins." He was Trevor.

I went home on December 23. Trevor had to stay in the hospital longer than I did. I hated going home without him, but he needed more time on the oxygen and couldn't leave. I went directly to my parent's house to stay because that's where Krista and Erika were and Mark had to work that night so I stayed with them. What a blessing they were, taking care of my daughters and me all during the busiest week of the year. I had such mixed feelings. On the one hand, I wanted Trevor to be home with me so badly. On the other hand, I was sore and it felt good to be able to rest at mom and dad's. On the other hand, I wanted to go home and hated that Mark had to work the night shift for the Christmas rush. The next few days were a blur to me. Mark and I spent most of our time going back and forth to the hospital to give Trevor his feedings while our family watched Krista and Erika at home. We were exhausted and relieved when the day after Christmas, Trevor got a clean bill of health and was released from the hospital.

Finally, we were all together. Krista and Erika met their new little brother for the first time. I'm sad to say, that after all these years, I can't remember what their reactions were. In fact, after all these years, I can't seem to remember all that much about those short lived months that Trevor was with us. I hate that about myself. I want to remember every detail, but my memory of him has failed me. If only I had known what the future was about to spring on me, I would not have taken each day so for granted. I'm jealous that I don't have a million digital photos at my fingertips or instant videos that I just took with my telephone. Well, I'm not really jealous, I just wish I had had some of the technology that young parents have these days. How lucky you all are. I don't have many pictures. I don't have any video, and because he was gone so fast, I don't have any memories of first anythings. Easter, summer, pools, walks in the carriage, drives in the car, birthday parties, sitting on Santa's lap, or playing with his sisters. None of that. What we do have though, is the blessing of his life. He was and will always be our one and only special little boy.

We often wondered over the years what another son would have been like in our family. Now we're glad it never happened because that makes our Trevor all the more special to us. His life and passing has changed us so personally, that the lack of memories of when he was here, have become less important than the changes that have happened since he's been gone. And for that, we praise God.

Happy Birthday Trevor. We love you and think of you every day.

Pictures From the Mall

Hi Everyone! Here are the pictures we took of Cora at the mall the other night. In the first one, you can see that she was still scared to leave Ashley's arms. Even though we had been all over the mall since first trying to get her to sit with Santa, when we came back to take pictures at the decorations, she thought we were still trying to get her to sit with Santa again. It took her a few minutes to calm down and realize he wasn't there.

When we had taken a good gazillion pictures, mall security came up to us and told us there were no cameras allowed in the mall. We apologized and said we had seen someone else taking pictures and thought it would be okay. Then we we asked why, she told us "because of 911". At first we didn't really think much of it, we just accepted it as some kind of security precaution. The more we thought of it though, the more ridiculous it seemed considering all the people walking around with (perhaps concealed) cell phones with cameras on them. Heck, here we were with a camera the size of a breadbox, taking pictures of a baby and she tells us no cameras allowed, lol. I just found it a bit amusing. Anyway, we got a few shots before putting our camera away and here are a few to share with you.

Bad Santa

Well Erika is officially considered full term now. Only 19 days left until her due date and we are all so excited to welcome another new little life into our family. Today I am going with her and Scott to her ultrasound and dr. appointment. I can't wait. I went to several of Krista's ultrasounds and all of Ashley's when she was pregnant, so I'm very happy to be able to go to one of Erika's with her. This ultrasound is to determine if the baby is head down or if it is laying transverse. The doctor wasn't exactly sure when she checked Erika last week, but Erika thinks it may have just been an excuse to get her another ultrasound that was medically necessary. Anyway, I'll let you know all the details later.

Well as most of you already know, New England was hit with a major ice storm last week. Hundreds of thousands of people were left without electricity and trees covered with ice, broke all over the place, taking down power lines everywhere. Luckily, we were not one of the areas that reached those freezing temperatures but my mom and dad, who live just 20 miles north of me, were left in the dark. My sister Julie called me Friday morning to tell me that mom and dad had no electricity and it would not be restored for another 1 to 3 days. Well, I called mom right away and told her to pack up their bags and get themselves to my house right away. I told her we were going to have a slumber party, lol. It was fun. Friday night we ordered calzones and we made a salad. Later we all got in our jammies and watched The Nativity Story on DVD. Although I know my parent's felt like they there were "putting us out", we LOVED having them here and they really enjoyed getting to be with Cora and seeing all her funny ways. Saturday they went to my sisters to stay for a couple of days since she's got an extra room, but the plan was that they would come back on Monday to stay until the power came back on. Fortunately, for them, their area was restored late Sunday night so they got to go back home on Monday. As of this writing, I know much of NH and parts of MA are still without electricity.

Sunday Mark and I got a lot of Christmas shopping done. It felt good to finally get some people crossed off our lists. We just about finished up all the babies, which to me was the most important of all. After all, isn't Christmas for children? LOL. I can't wait to see their little faces on Christmas morning when we open gifts at our house. We really don't have too much more and I mostly know all the things we have to get which make it a lot easier than walking around the stores aimlessly, which is usually how we shop, LOL.

Yesterday poor little Trevor had to go to the doctor because of a high fever, and a couple of bouts of throwing up in the night. When Krista brought Warren to my house while she took Trevor, his little face was so pale and his eyes looked puffy. He ended up having double ear infections and the doctor said they looked pretty bad. I'm happy at least, that something was actually wrong and can be treated. There's nothing worse than your child being sick and the doctor says, they can't find anything or that all tests come back negative. Now he's on his antibiotic and starting to get better.

So Cora went to see Santa Claus at the mall last night. She cried and clung to Ashley like a piece of Velcro. When Ashley would turn around for Cora to see Santa, she looked the other way so that she didn't have to look at him. Finally, Ashley sat down with Santa so that Cora, who was now in Mark's arms, could see that he was good. What we didn't learn until later, was that Santa wasn't too good at all. With a grip that he wouldn't let Ashley escape from, he quietly asked her what she wanted Santa to bring her. With his low southern drawl, he asked her if she wanted a carat on a ring, or a convertible sports car. Then he said to her, "honey, you can have anything you want cause your sooo beautiful." Ohh, my skin is crawling just writing that, LOL. Well, Cora never did sit on his lap or even wave to him, I guess her instincts were better than ours, LOL. She did however thank him for her candy cane.

Well, I guess that's about it for today. I do have pictures that we took of Cora at the mall, but for some reason it's a pain in the butt to arrange them on this blog site and at the moment, I'm pressed for time so I'll have to do it later on.

I hope everyone is having a good week so far. Only 9 days until Christmas, yipeeeeee.

Decorations, Colds and Baby Names

Well, I've finally got the Christmas decorations put up around the house. It was a challenge with Cora helping but there wasn't much I could do about it. I had my whole day planned out around her nap, which she did very nicely, but not nearly as long as I had expected. In fact, I think her radar was at work even in her sleep because just as I got the boxes opened and unwrapped and unboxed some of the decos, that ever familiar, "MIMI, called me from the bedroom. I thought, OK, I'll just have to do this with her up. I'll give her a thing or two to place on a table and she'll think she's helping me, LOL. That's basically what happened but she got bored of that really fast. I thought for sure it would be a nightmare trying to keep her out of the boxes, but instead she was thoroughly bored with the decorations and it was a nightmare just trying to keep her entertained while I decorated and cleaned up. Surprisingly I did it all pretty quickly. I think that's because I didn't put out nearly as much as other years. Most of the "untouchables" went back downstairs, and the rest is unreachable, lol. It's so much fun having a 2 year old in the house. Honestly, I really do mean that.

So far this week has been pretty quiet. Cora's got a pretty nasty cold and cough and I've had a sore throat for two days, so we've just been hanging around watching TV and doing easy housework. It kind of feels nice to sit and do nothing after having a few busy weeks of getting ready for Thanksgiving, Erika's shower and babysitting. Any other year, at two weeks before Christmas, I would be majorly stressing out if I couldn't get out to go shopping but for some reason, I'm not really worried about it. Like so many other families out there, we are cutting back dramatically on the gift giving this year so I think I feel a sense of relief knowing I don't have so much to buy. It really does feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders.

Hey guess what? Erika is due in 25 more days. Can you believe that? Of my three daughters, her pregnancy really went by the quickest. I'm so excited and I can't wait. I love that we don't know what the sex of the baby is. It makes the anticipation of the big moment so much greater. So how cool is this. If the baby is a boy, their going to name him Persson. Persson Scott Bales. I read somewhere that naming babies after the mother's maiden name is becoming very popular these days. In this case, if it's a boy, he could very well end up being called Per (sounds like pear). In Sweden, when Per has a son, he becomes, Pers son. It was the same with other common Swedish names as well, like, Anders son, Eriks son and Lars son. Most of which dropped the second S during immigration. When Mark's dad came to this country when he was a young man, he refused to drop the S and so, we remained Persson. I'm glad he kept it. Either way, if the baby is a boy, he'll be Persson or Per for short. And if the baby is a girl, her name will be Eliza. I don't know where they came up with this name and for the life of me I can't remember what the middle name will be. That's terrible, I should remember that. Hey, what can I say, I'm a grandmother, LOL. It took me a little while to warm up to that name, but now that I've been hearing Erika talk about it more, I'm really really liking it. Erika is now at the point that if she went in labor, she'd be very happy, LOL. I remember those days well. But, since most first babies arrive later than their due dates, I'm predicting some time after her due date of January 4th. I keep telling her, the farther away from Christmas the better. In years to come when she has to have kiddie birthday parties, she'll be so much happier with the holidays behind her. Not to mention that Trevor's birthday is December 27th and Scott's sister's son, is December 31st. Anyway, her doctor is saying if the baby hasn't come by the 11th, they'll talk about an induction. She has an ultrasound scheduled for Tuesday so we'll see how things are going at that point.

Well, that's about it for today. I think I'll go make a cup of tea for my sore throat and actually sit and enjoy it while Cora is taking her nap.

Take care everyone,
Janice

Random Pictures

Just some random pictures I thought I'd share. They are in no particular order. Enjoy!

Mimi's helper

Peeking in the bird cage.

Watching the trash collector.

Eating pizza and watching TV


Now that's some crazy hair.

There, that's a little better.

Mom and dad to be at their baby shower

Trevor

At the church on dedication day


Princess Cora


Ashley and Cora, 2 years old. Can you see a resemblance?

Cora and Trevor at Chuckie Cheese's.

They really are best friends

Cora's version of putting on eyeliner

Cora's version of putting her shoes on

Brothers who pray together stay together, LOL

Erika and Krista. I think they were about 3 years old here. Not sure.

This and That

So much to say, so much to update, so many things have taken place and happened, where do I begin, or do I even want to? Life is so strange. Every person has his or her own level of wisdom, tolerance, experiences, stress. I spend so much time, thinking, thinking, thinking, and where does it get me, nowhere but right here. I'm tired of so many things, yet there is nothing I can do about it. I just go with the flow, keeping silent. I wish I could open up my head and sort it all out. Just reach inside and arrange all the words in the right order. Everything is jumbled. My one constant, my one everpresent, my one sure thing, is my God. Always there, always listening, always blessing me. I whine, I complain, I think out loud and when I ask for another chance, He never refuses. He is quick to forgive and slow to anger, His mercies are new every day. Thank you God, for loving me.

Last week was busy and tiring. I won't go into detail. Thanksgiving was festive fun and filling. It was Christmas without the gifts. I only wish Christmas could be so easy. Friday Mark and Ashley had to work so Cora and I totally vegged out. Erika's baby shower on Saturday was so pretty. The room at the restaurant was decorated for Christmas and was truly set for a feminine affair. Flowers on the table, cloth place mats and napkins and candles, all overlooking the river. The brunch was delicious and Erika got so many great gifts. Sunday we put up the Christmas tree, although I will admit, this year I did things a little backwards. I usually put up all the decorations that go around the house before putting up the Christmas tree but this year, I was so anxious to see Cora's reaction, that I went ahead with the tree first. At this very moment, the house decorations are still packed up down in the basement. I am so sapped of energy lately that I just can't seem to find it in me to get them up and out. For Cora's part, she loves the tree and she loves to touch all the decorations. I've had to rearrange a few so that she can't reach them but for the most part, she's been pretty good. With each day, she becomes a little less interested in touching.

Cora. What a blessing it is to have this little one around. She is cute and entertaining and loving and I can't imagine what this household would be without her. Everyday she amazes me with something new she can do or say or recite. She can clearly say her ABC's from start to finish missing just one or two letters. The other day I was in her room with her watching as she was hanging toss rings on the knobs of her dresser. With each one, she counted as she placed it on. Now I knew she could count to ten, but I was totally surprised when she continued to count to 15...even though there are not 15 knobs, LOL. Thinking it may be a fluke, I asked her to count something else, but of course, being a 2 year old, she refused. Today, when we were coming up the basement steps with the laundry, she counted each one as she stepped up. There are twelve steps which she counted, and as she got to the top she countinued to count to 15. I guess it wasn't a fluke, lol. She can recite the "now I lay me down to sleep" prayer at bedtime and sings Jingle Bells with any object that will remotely jingle in her hand. Songs have become a big part of her little life and I hear her all day long singing bits and pieces of all different songs she is familiar with. I don't remember being this excited with my own children upon seeing the new things that they could do or say. Perhaps I was, and I've forgotten, or perhaps I was just too occupied being a new mother and wife to have taken the time to pay attention to it all. I guess that is why they say being a grandparent is so much different. It really is. I am seeing my grandchildren with brand new eyes and it is really so fun and rewarding and amazing.


I'm finding it pretty challenging to write my blogs lately. Cora's naptimes have become pretty erratic and that is really the only time I have to sit and write. I usually try to get some personal time in when she's sleeping and only after that can I sit and write. Sometimes that just doesn't work out timewise. Other times, I thinks she's sound asleep, I sit and begin to write, and suddenly a call comes from the other room...MIMI, MIMI, c'mere. I can't begin to tell you how many blogs are sitting in my draft folder right now. I always think I'm going to get back to them and I never do. As a matter of fact, I started this one yesterday, LOL.

In closing, I'd like to ask if you would please say a little prayer for my son in-law Steve and his family. His grandfather was diagnosed with lung cancer just a few weeks ago and passed away yesterday morning. He was such a vital part of the family and a big presence in all of their lives. His family is hurting so badly right now as this all happened so quickly. He will be greatly missed.

I hope you all have a great day.
Blessings,

Janice

Busy Weekend

What a productive, tiring, happy weekend I just had.

Did I tell you that my son in-law's family was coming up from Mississippi this week to have Thanksgiving with us and to attend Erika's baby shower on Saturday? If I didn't, I just did, LOL. Friday night I went over to Erika's to see if there was anything I could help her with before her in-laws got there. Scott had to work late and she's not really in any shape to be doing anything too strenuous so I figured I'd see what I could do. They have a nice guest room but when there are no guests, they use it for a laundry folding room and a dressing room for themselves. Erika and I put all the clothes away, stripped the bed so that the sheets could be washed and then proceeded to hang out on the sofa eating frozen pizza, LOL. Actually, it was a pretty low key night. We kind of just goofed around not doing too much. The room eventually got finished the next day.

Saturday Mark and I went back to Erika's to help them both out with getting the new family room put together. Their downstairs had been completely cleared out for the new carpeting earlier in the week so we were working with a clean slate. It was fun putting the room together and it looked so cozy and nice when we were finished. We all got a ton of little odds and ends done, Mark and Scott did some errands and by the end of the day, Scott's family were landing at the airport. It was so great to see them, I love when they come up to Boston. By the end of the evening, I was pretty tired and my back was very fatigued so Mark and I headed home and I conked out.

Sunday was Cora, Trevor and Warren's baby dedication day at our church. Cora and Trevor should have been dedicated a little bit ago. Krista and Ashley always wanted Cora and Trevor to be dedicated together, but our church only does dedications two times a year. Between the way the dates fell and Krista getting pregnant again with Warren, they just decided to wait so that all three could be dedicated together. So, the dedication went really nice. They were so darned cute standing up there. When the pastor said, "let us bow our heads and pray," Cora put her little hands together and closed her eyes. It was so cute. Trevor was a bit wiggly in Steve's arms. He was just itching to get down and check things out. Finally, because he was practically hanging upside down, Steve let him down and he sat nicely before crawling away between Steve's legs. He didn't really go anywhere, he just needed to get down. And Warren was Warren. Quiet and content to look around and take it all in.

After the dedication, our pastor gave one of the best sermons I have heard in quite some time. It was called, A Flaw In The Model: Thinking Biblically About The Economy. To start out, they showed different clips of new casts talking about what is happening with our economy and how bad things are getting. Then Pastor Bryan gave his sermon. If you are interested, I encourage you to listen to it on your computer. You can find it here http://www.grace.org/audio
I believe it is something you will really think twice about. In fact, channel 5 news was pretty interested in it as well. They came to our church to film and later, interviewed our Pastor. It was pretty exciting to see them there. Of course, Mark said they were there for him and that he saw them filming him throughout the whole sermon, LOL. We watched it last night on the news. Actually, we did see Mark standing in the balcony, LOL.

After church we all went back to Erika and Scott's for a small family gathering to celebrate the dedication. It was a great day and so nice to be all together.

So that was the weekend. Since I forgot my camera at home Sunday, I have no pictures to show you but alas, have no fear, Erika too a gazillion pictures and I will get some from her as soon as possible.

This will be a busy week with getting ready for Thanksgiving, getting ready for Erika's baby shower, and putting up my Christmas next Sunday. I'm so excited to put it up this year because I can't wait to see Cora's reaction. I just know she's going to LOVE it.

So friends, if I don't get another chance to write before Thursday, I wish everyone a very happy and blessed Thanksgiving holiday this year. Some of you I will see and others I will see at the shower on Saturday. Thank goodness it's not a surprise, it makes life a whole lot easier, LOL.

Love to all,
Janice

Wasted Eggplants

Do you waste food?

We waste food sometimes and it drives us crazy. Just about a week or so ago, Mark and I were in the produce department of the supermarket and I picked up a couple of eggplants. When Mark saw me, he got so excited and asked if I was going to make Parmesan. Mmm, we love eggplant Parmesan and that was exactly my intent, until so many other things caused the eggplants to get pushed to the back of the fridge and eventually to the wastebasket. You know how it is. You have every good intention of cooking or using something you bought, but because of one thing or another, it never happens. In the case of the eggplants, it was just day after day of, either I was not home to cook it, or Mark and Ashley were not going to be home to eat it, or I had to babysit, in which case I cannot cook with 2, two year olds running around. Then the weekend comes and by that time, I've forgotten that the eggplants are even IN the refrigerator. So Monday rolls around, Mark discovers the eggplants, probably tucked in some little crevice, places them smack dab in the front and leaves them there for me to see. What's he telling me? Cook these, or look dear, I think you forgot about these eggplants, or, see the soft spots on these eggplants, they've turned to mush and you've wasted good food again, LOL. Well, I guess it doesn't really matter what he was telling me. They got thrown away, just like the leftovers from days before that I hoped someone would to take to work for lunch. Or the cold cuts that got slimy, or bread that got moldy or the milk that went sour. I hate it when it happen and I feel bad when I have to throw, what was once good food, away.

Fast Busy Week

Hey everyone,

First, I'd just like to say, I've added a new, anonymous rating feature at the bottom of each blog post, where you can check off which box most applies to how you felt about the blog. I hope you will all try it out. Thanks.

So far this week has gone by pretty fast. Maybe it's because there was a holiday Tuesday, I'm not sure, or maybe it's because I've had a semi-busy week.

As I have mentioned before, Erika is now in her eighth month and is slowing down a bit. A couple of weeks ago, she called me to ask if, on Veterans Day, I would help her redo their bathroom as a surprise for Scott, while he was at work. I didn't mention it in my other post because I didn't want to take the chance that Scott may read it. So, Tuesday morning, I headed off to Erika's to paint and help her with some housework. Actually, I was happier doing the dusting and vacuuming than the painting. Housework is my thing, lol. Well as it turned out, Mark and Ashley were there for the day as well which was a huge blessing. Ashley did all the run around work and errands, including lunch, while Mark, primed and painted the whole bathroom including patching two big holes where the old towel rack had been removed. Because Erika's back was really giving her trouble, I made it her job to rest on the sofa and watch TV with Cora. By the late afternoon, Erika felt better and her and I painted the bathroom cabinet, doors and drawers. By the time Scott called to say he was leaving work, we all moved into high gear cleaning up and putting the new shower curtain, mirror and decorations in the bathroom. It was like we were on , "While You Were Out" LOL. Mark had gone to the store and picked up ingredients to make pumpkin raviolis and was in the process of cooking when Scott got home. Good idea, no paint smell when he walked in.

In all, it was a very long, tiring, fun and satisfying day. One only had to see the look on the surprisee's face to know the hard work was well worth it. Scott was so happy with his surprise and it gave him such a sense of relief to know it was one less thing he had to think about before his family comes to visit for the holidays. Well, maybe he has to think about it a little bit. We did leave a few spots for him to finish and touch up, lol. Sorry Scott. And Mark's pumpkin raviolis...All I can say is YUMMMY!

Wednesday I had Trevor for the day while Krista ran out to do some errands. I always gear myself up for mayhem when I have Cora and Trevor together, but Wednesday was the complete opposite. Trevor came here without having had his morning nap and I thought he may be cranky and in need of rest, but he was so delightful and well behaved. I've made this observation that if I eliminate some of the toys and limit them to just certain ones, things go a lot smoother around here. There's no fighting over a favored ride on toy or push wagon and removing the 100 pieces of playfood from the toy kitchen is not only better for them, but I don't have to go around the house looking for plastic bologna and hot dogs to put back where they belong, LOL. Although they did watch a couple of recorded episodes of Caillou, that only came after hours of playing together and having fun with Mimi. It's always nice to see them settle down on the sofa together with a blanket and a sippy cup. It's especially adorable when they lay down together and Cora affectionately rubs Trevor's hair. So cute.

And yesterday Ashley had the day off so that gave me a chance to do some heavy duty housework. I've been looking at the accumulated fog from the radiators on my bedroom windows for a few weeks now so I was happy to get them washed along with a few other non everyday house cleaning things. By 1:00 I was pooped and ready to call it quits for the day. Ashley and Cora had gone in to take a nap, poor things worked so hard watching me clean the house, they needed to rest a while, lol. I took my shower and afterward, plopped myself down for the rest of the day. Ohh, it felt so good. And since Mark was not going to be home for supper and Ashley goes to church on Thursday nights, I didn't have to cook a real supper. Cora and I ate leftover macaroni and baked cookies for dessert. Again, another long but satisfying day.

Well that's about it for today. Cora's asleep right now so I better go get a few things done before she wakes up and I lose my chance.

I hope you all have a great weekend.
Janice

This Is The Truth

I thought this was pretty cool. Check it out.

Feeling Ho Hum

I've been feeling a kind of heaviness coming over me the past few weeks. I feel like there is so much to be done before winter sets in and so little time or lack of energy to do it. Every weekend in November and December is booked up and I'm beginning to feel the pressure of the holidays even before they get here. The stores are decorated as if Christmas is next week and we haven't even had Thanksgiving yet. I don't like that I am allowing myself to feel stressed with the thought of too many people in my house, babies, decorations, food, presents, money, shopping, Christmas dinner. It's only Nov. 11th and I'm already wishing the holidays were over. Sometimes I feel like I wish I didn't have to do any of it, and that's not good. I have so much to be thankful for and God has blessed this family in ways untold, but still, this feeling comes upon me and I don't like it.

Well, today I am going over to Erika's to help her at her house for the day. She is now in her 8th month of pregnancy and she is slowing down a bit. She has been in pretty bad pain with knots in her upper back and is finding it very difficult to get relief. The other day she went for a pregnancy massage which she didn't feel was all that great. In fact, she said that although there was some knot relief, the guy doing the massage worked on her spine so hard, that she felt bruised. I didn't see any bruising but it did look like it may be a little puffy. Not exactly swollen but somewhat irritated. I put an ice pack on her and she laid down on my living room floor while Cora played with her ammimals (animals) on Erika's back, lol. I hope she feels better today. If not, I'll be more than happy to take care of the house. It's a very rare day that Erika has a day off to sit and do nothing. I swear, I've never seen anyone with a schedule as busy as hers.

Well, it's just about 8:00AM and miss Cora just came out to the living room. There's nothing better than a kiss from Cora first thing in the morning and I just got one right now. I cherish these times because I know they will not last forever.

Hope you all have a nice day,
Janice

So Happy

When I was little, I had a friend named Katie. We didn't live in the same neighborhood but we lived close enough that we could walk to each others houses. I loved Katie. She was fun and lively and smart and she had a big family. I only had two sisters but Katie had, something like 8, 9 or ten brothers and sisters. Not really, actually, I think it was 7, but when you only have two sibling of your own, 7 seems like an army, LOL.

Katie had beautiful red hair and a great big smile. Her smile is one of the things I remember about her the most. That and the fact that she had a deep voice. I always thought my voice was deep as a young girl so I liked that Katie's was deep too. We stayed pretty close all throughout high school and a few years later, she was in my wedding. But as we all know how it is after getting married, life went on. I had babies and Katie went to school. Eventually, Katie got married too, and moved away with her soldier husband. I don't remember what branch of the military he was in but I know they traveled. And that's how I lost touch with Katie. With the exception of one time back in the 80's, when she came home to her parent's house for Easter, I haven't talked to Katie. Over the years I wondered where she was, and thought about her countless times. A couple of times in the early years, she sent me pictures of her two daughters but other than that, we lost touch.

My husband, has a love/hate relationship with the Internet. On the one hand he hates it for its lack of privacy and addiction. You just can't do without it anymore. And on the other hand, he loves it for its enormous wealth of information and convenience. He despises the social networks out there, although he has a Myspace and a Facebook account, neither of which he uses. He loves my blog but thinks blogging is unnecessary and a potential invasion of one's privacy. That's true I suppose, if you are not careful. I agree with him in some respects but I have to admit, I love the Internet, I love researching, I love searching, I love reading blogs and I love finding old friends. With all this loving, you'd think I spend a ton of time on the computer, but I don't. Well, sometimes I do, but most days I don't. In fact, I would not even compare it to the time that most people sit in front of a television each day. Now I know some of you reading this will say, I don't watch that much TV at all. And that right there is my point. Some days you may watch a 2 hour movie and the news, and other days, not at all. That's how I am with the computer.


A couple of months ago, I had a dream with Katie in it. A few nights later, I had another dream. Both dreams made me feel that I needed to find Katie. And that I did. Since I didn't know where she lived, I started out with last name searches. Not much luck there. I thought about searching her siblings, but with one of America's most common last names, that didn't work. Her two sisters are married and I had no idea what their last names were. Hmmm. Next, I thought I'd check out Classmates to see if she had registered. Nope. But, guess what? Her husband was registered. GREAT, I could write to him and finally make the connection I so longed for, for so many years. Wrong again. You have to be a paying member to write to someone on Classmates. What now? Let's try Facebook. Searching for someone on Facebook is a lot easier when you have an account and thankfully, I have one. I didn't really think I was going to find Katie or her husband on FB but I thought, maybe, just maybe, I'd find one of her daughters. So, I typed in their last name and viola', there are some people registered with their last name. Slowly I scrolled through the names, not recognizing any of them. Then again, how would I? I can't remember her daughters' names. Hummph. But wait. Here's a girl from Tennessee, that goes to school in NH. If my memory serves me right, I think Katie had moved to TN, or was it Kentucky? I'm just not sure. I stare and stare at the picture trying to see my friend Katie in this girls' face. Nope, I don't see it. But I can clearly remember the pictures of Katie's children from years ago and I think this could be one of them. Her Facebook account is in a privacy mode, but I can still send her a note. Okay, it's a stab in the dark, but I'm going to send this girl a message to ask her if her mom is my old friend. She'll probably think I'm an Internet loony stalking young girls and delete me, but hey, I'll take that chance. So, I sent my message and waited as I reasoned, she must be in class, then will go have supper and maybe I'll hear back from her in the evening. Well, I don't know if that's how her day went, but I did hear back from her that evening. I saw the little message icon and my heart jumped. Oh please, be Katie's daughter. As the page opened and my eyes read the first line, "you have found the right person" I was SO excited I wanted to cry. I don't know which made me more excited. The fact that I was about to make a connection with Katie, or the fact that I was so brilliant in my searching skills, LOLOL.

Katie's daughter wrote that she had called her mom to verify who I was and that her mom was very happy that I had found her and couldn't wait to talk. She left me her phone numbers as well as her email address and Tuesday night, after many many years, Katie and I talked on the phone and caught up with each other's lives. I love meeting new people on the Internet. I think it's fun that my daughter's friends send me friendship requests on Facebook, but let me tell you. There is nothing like connecting with an old friend, a piece of your childhood and reliving memories that had been stored away. Katie will be coming up north in December to hear her daughter sing in her school's choir. I hope, that even though December is a very busy month, that we'll be able to meet up and see each other. There's nothing I would love more.

Halloween Update

Well today is election day. I'm so glad that it's finally here and almost over. It's been a very long campain season this time around and I think just about everyone will be happy when the votes are tallied and the results are in. I also know that no matter who wins, tomorrow there will be many sad, angry and disappointed people in this country. I just want to send out a prayer for the safety of both candidates and ask for God's blessing for a fair and honest election.

So, a few days have gone by but I'm happy to report that we had a really fun Halloween with Cora and Trevor this year. Mark came home from work and in typical Mark tradition, he put on something that was somewhat costume-like. This year it was his old Garciapara baseball shirt, a baseball hat and a weird clear-faced mask with painted lips and eyebrows on it. As in years past, he lit the outdoor fireplace and sat outside waiting for the trick or treaters to show up. One mom and dad came with their son and the mother said, "see, I told you he'd have a mask on this year." LOL, usually Mark wears a paper bag on his head with two eyes and a mouth cut out, LOL. He never fails to crack us up.

After Krista, Steve, Trevor, Warren, Erika and Scott got here, we took off to go around our neighborhood. We have the perfect neighborhood for two year olds. It's a small circle of just nine houses and we know all the people who live here. Most of them were waiting for us. It didn't take long but it was long enough for Cora and Trevor, especially since they had no idea why they were dressed in costumes and walking around to different houses in the dark. All they knew was, when they got back to the house, they could eat candy. Neither Cora or Trevor usually eat candy so you can imagine how much fun this was for them, and us. I have to admit, I had a couple of pieces too, lol.

Here are a few pictures of Mark and Cora carving our pumpking the day before Halloween and some pictures of the babies in their costumes.

Bup drawing the face.

Scooping out the inside. Cora hugging her pumpking that Bup grew in the garden.

Cora had to scoop some too.

What's inside?

All done

Trevor, the little gorilla

Cora, our little ladybug.

Trick or treating with mommy.

Warren was a cow, but he slept through all the trick or treating.

Happy to be out of his cow costume