Easter

Rehm and Charlotte dyed Easter eggs with Grandma on Saturday before Rehm's baseball game. They did a really nice job with them and didn't make too big of a mess. Of course Ruby and Eliza Claire are oblivious to the fact that easter egg dyeing happens - poor neglected children. Rehm and Charlotte were dyeing eggs by the time they were the twins age but I just wasn't willing to tackle it with all four this year - maybe next year. We'll see.

Sunday we got up and got everyone ready for Easter church. We were only 5-10 minutes late for the 8:00 am service. I think that is doing pretty good since we had to get everyone up and dressed, see what the Easter Bunny brought, take pictures, eat breakfast and get in the car by 7:40.

They sure look cute, but I'm still not sure you can tell I ironed their clothes...

Happy Easter,
Jenn

Why I don't Iron

It is 10:30pm and I just finished ironing two dresses and a dress shirt for Easter morning. I have a two inch long blister on my forearm that stings like crazy. By the time my children get to church you will never know their clothes (or at least some of them) were ironed. Now I remember why I don't do this.

When I got out the iron, ironing board and starch I felt like such a good wife and mother. This is what a mom is supposed to do. She is supposed to iron her families' clothing so they look neat and presentable. I am not this mother. If it has to be ironed I don't buy it! If I do buy it then the cleaners iron it. If I forget until the last minute and don't have time to take it to the cleaners, I put it in the dryer with a damp hand towel to "steam" out the wrinkles. (If I had my dream steam dryer I wouldn't need a damp towel). I don't iron! It takes forever, it just gets wrinkled in five minutes and I always seem to burn myself!

But alas it was the night before Easter. And Rehm's choir is singing in church tomorrow. And the girls all have such adorable little dresses to wear. And I had already polished two pairs of shoes. So I will be the "good" mother and iron. And now I will be sporting a nice reminder of why this isn't a good idea for several weeks to come!

Did I mention that I don't polish shoes, either? But my adorable four year old informed my that her Sunday shoes needed to be polished so they would be nice and shiny for Easter morning. How do you say no to that? Then my wonderful husband saw me polishing her shoes and asked if I would do his. I told him no but then I felt like the "bad" wife. I mean how can I polish my kid's shoes and then tell him no? That didn't seem right. So I told him if he would bring them downstairs I would do them. Cause you know I might be willing to polish shoes but walking upstairs to get them is just asking too much.

Oh and the twins adorable little dresses were dug out of the hand-me-down box earlier today because I hadn't had time to shop for anything for them. Thus the need to iron them. And the cute matching shoes - also out of the hand-me-down box!

Somebody remind me next year that this ironing business is extremely overrated!
Jenn

Easter Flashback

Ruby and Eliza Claire 2007

All four 2007

Rehm and Charlotte 2006

Rehm, Kennedy, Lael, Charlotte 2005

Rehm 2002

Rehm 2001

Flashback Friday - Rehm and Charlotte

Charlotte at Rehm's 5th birthday party in 2006

Charlotte at the berry farm in 2005

Michael, Charlotte, Rehm and Cousin Zachary at the Salt Lick in 2005

Rehm with a big announcement in 2003

Rehm cooking in 2002

Potty Time

This is what happens when two toddlers decide to occupy themselves in the bathroom for 10 minutes. I knew it got too quite....

In case you are wondering that was only about a half a roll of toilet paper. Don't you want to come live at my house during the potty training months? It should be a blast!

Jenn

Flashback to 2007

Ruby enjoying her dinner

Ruby and Eliza Claire after getting splashed

Rehm and Charlotte all dressed up for the baptism

Who are those pretty girls?

Friday Flashback of a Different Sort

This is a trip back to 1982. Yes all the way to when I was nine. I have gone back in time and I am so excited. OK my mother is getting ready to roll her eyes big time. Are you ready for why I'm so excited? What could it be? Here's a hint

La, la, la, la, la, la ...

Yes, today at Target I found the first season of the Smurfs on DVD. I was as giddy as the nine year old that used to love watching it on Saturday mornings. I promptly came home and started watching!

Yes, I even took a picture of my TV screen

You know what? I still like it and I still have this goofy big smile on my face to get to see the show again. I'm sure when Rehm and Charlotte get home they will burst my bubble and find something lacking in the best cartoon of all time. Well that is assuming Rehm gets the privilege of TV back, but that is another issue altogether.

Mom are you done rolling your eyes yet? Wanna send Dad to the attic to look for my stuffed Smurfette doll?

La, la, la, la, la, la....
Jenn

The New Grocery Game

This morning we needed to go grocery shopping and no one had any scheduled activities. We took a suggestion from the book Baby Proofing Your Marriage that I read recently and made grocery shopping a game. Each parent got a big kid and a little kid and half the grocery list. The first team done won and did not have to help unload the groceries from the car.

It is amazing how much quicker the grocery shopping was done and how much easier it was. Everyone had a good time. Charlotte, Eliza Claire, and I won. But only because Michael didn't follow the rules. He stopped and picked up some things that were on my half of the list and that time was enough for us to win.

Now I know you are wondering why this idea was in Baby Proofing Your Marriage. If I remember correctly it was talking about excepting this new life after kids and making it fun. Thus the example of making a family activity out of a chore. It really did make for a fun morning and I think we all enjoyed it.

I definitely think we will be playing this game again.
Jenn

PS. I thought Baby Proofing Your Marriage was a good book to read. It is witty and good humored and peppered with quotes from real people. It also has some good advice as well.

Flashback Friday

About three weeks ago I cooped in Charlotte's class when they were doing their unit on Dinosaurs. That day they were starting some triops (aka auqasaur) eggs. I told the teacher all about my expensive and unsuccessful attempts to grow triops and she laughed and said she didn't think they would have any luck because she hadn't followed the directions.

I noticed about a week ago that they were still there. I asked the teacher about them. She said one day she started to throw them out because they hadn't done anything - she had them sitting on a shelf and hadn't fed them or anything - and one of the students saw something moving. Sure enough there were two triops!

As of today they have two nice sized triops living in their classroom. They are in a plastic container, have not had a constant temperature and are being fed fish food. They are doing great!

Michael continues to laugh at how annoyed I am by this. But of course he wasn't the one that failed miserably at growing them in the past. Of course this is making me want to try again. Apparently I tried too hard when I was doing them before. Here are last years endeavors...

From January 12, 2007
Our other excitement right now is growing Aquasaurs. Rehm received them for Christmas. From his parents - I managed to loose them the first time I bought them and had to purchase a second set. Then we had to have a desk lamp to help regulate the temperature. Finally, way too many dollars later, we are raising baby Aquasaurs. Rehm was very funny. After we had added the eggs to the water he got a funny look on his face and said "Oh no! in one to three days I'm going to be a parent!" He didn't sound so excited about them then.

The Fake Auqasaur - January 28, 2007

What is Frank? January 29, 2007

So long Frank February 4, 2007

Another try for Auqasuars February 17, 2006

Announcements

Today Rehm got to read a segment over the intercom during the morning announcements. One of his classes is adopting a sea turtle for their independent study project. As a class they have to raise $25 to adopt the turtle. They have made posters and collection banks and now they all get to take a turn reading the morning announcement asking all the students to donate to their cause.

Rehm was the first of the six students to have a turn. The teacher knew he would be out later in the week to have new ear tubes put in and didn't want him to miss out on the fun. He brought home the script last night and practiced several times. This morning he read through it a few more times. I could tell he was a little nervous about doing it.

I asked him how it went and he said "fine." Later he mentioned that when he came back to his class he got a round of applause. So I guess he did a good job.

Here is what he had to read:

First graders are working as hard as can be
To save the turtles that live in the sea.
So please bring your change and help us out
We'll change the world without a doubt!

Once they adopt the sea turtle they will be able to track it on the web. The class will all be working individually on learning different things about the sea turtle. They will each do a 15 minute presentation in May complete with project board and other materials.

I'm sure you will be hearing a lot more about the sea turtle.
Jenn

Aggie Women's Basketball

Yesterday we headed to College Station to watch the A&M Women's Basketball game. Charlotte has been looking forward to this for a week. She was so excited to see the girls play!

We were leaving straight from church to go to the game so the night before Michael and I decided we would all just dress for the game and wear those clothes to church. So I get dressed, get the kids dressed and then Michael comes out of the closet in...a dress shirt and slacks! That is not what my husband typically wears to a sporting event! And he is the one that always tells me that God doesn't care what I wear to church, God is just glad I'm there. But there he was in dressed for church while the rest of the family was dress for a sporting event. He did decide to bring a different shirt to change into, but never quite got why I was so annoyed by his clothing choice. Men!

We got to College Station early and walked over to the MSC in hopes of shopping at the Student Store. It ended up being closed. The kids enjoyed seeing a bit of campus. Rehm wanted to know where the chemistry building and oceanography building was. Then he wanted to know why the oceanography department was in the same building with the meteorology department. Then he wanted to know what "specials" we took in college. He meant PE electives. Then he started asking why you would ride your bike on campus, and did we ride bikes when we went to college. It went on and on and on.

When we arrived at Reed Arena we learned that it was Breast Cancer Awareness day and everyone was wearing pink BTHO Breast Cancer shirts. For those of you that don't know BTHO stands for "beat the hell outta," Don't worry I didn't have a clue what it stood for and had to ask my husband, who of course knows all. Oh, and when the game started the Aggies were also wearing pink.

We went down to the Kid Court for the kids to play a bit before the game started. All four thought that was pretty neat. They had balls everywhere, including a big blow up goal and balls in the center of the court and toddler sized goals. The kids loved dribbling and passing and running around on a real basketball court.

Finally it was time for the game. We bought some popcorn and found our seats. I was surprised to see that the band and the dance team were both in attendance. For some reason I didn't expect them for a Women's game. The bottom level of the stadium was about half full. I remarked to Michael that I remember when just a few years ago that was the crowd their Men's team would have had and then there was no band, dance team, jumbotron or ribbon boards. Aggie basketball has definitely come a long way. And for a girl who grew up on Tarheel basketball, it finally seems to be a "real" basketball program.

Speaking of the jumbotron and ribbon boards. I realized at one point that I looked up at the scoreboard to check the score and was confronted with sensory overload. Between the TVs, stats, advertising, and moving graphics it took me 45 seconds just to locate the score! And the combination is so overwhelming it completely competes with the game for your attention. I swear it took me several minutes before I found the players on the actual court again! What happened to just a basketball game with a simple scoreboard? Do I really need all that? And what does the ribbon board really add to my game experience? It just distracts me while trying to tell me who my insurance carrier should be and what fast food restaurant I should eat at.

The Aggies beat Texas Tech. All four kids enjoyed the game. Eliza Claire and Ruby enjoyed the band and clapping. Charlotte like the basketball players and the strippers, I mean dancers. Did I mention that the dance team annoys me.
Why does every single dance have to have at least half the steps look more like something you would expect to see in a strip club than at a wholesome family event? Do they understand that my worst nightmare is for one of my daughters to tell me they want to be on the dance team in college? Hmmm. I'm starting to sound like an old fuddy duddy. When did that happen?

Oh, and Rehm enjoyed the game. He has obviously learned a lot playing basketball because he actually followed the game and clapped and cheered at the appropriate times.

We really did have a fun day!
Jenn

Laundry, Laundry and More Laundry

It appears that lately I'm obsessing about laundry and washers and dryers. This morning I was thinking about the laundry situation and realized that in a given week I do at least one load of just regular clothes every day, plus 2 or 3 extra loads of linens on Tuesday. So that is 10 loads of laundry a week assuming no one throws up or has and accident and the cat is being good.

Last week Zach added an extra four loads to the weekly total because he peed on Rehm's bed twice and some blankets the girls left in the playroom. I had to wash everything on Rehm's bed including pillows. Luckily, he has a water proof mattress pad on his bed so the pee didn't get to the mattress.

No wonder I'm obsessed with laundry and a better washer and dryer! I'm constantly dealing with it. Either treating stains and soaking, washing, checking for stains and retreating, drying, folding, hanging or putting it away.

I have found my dream set. I know what I want. I check every week to see how good the sale is this week. And yes, I have a brochure on the fridge so I can look at it every day.

My washer is leaking if you don't push the button in after a load but not enough to have to replace it. This morning I went in to move laundry from washer to dryer. When I opened the lid the tub was still full of water. Uh oh. My first thought was "Hallelujah! I get a new machine now!" Then I realized that I accidentally pushed the button in and turned it off and didn't realize it. So it is still chugging along.

Every time I get a piece of the kids clothing out and realize that there are grease stains that got missed I think "the steam washer would have gotten that out." Or when I see the sleeves of Charlotte's shirts that I just can't get completely clean I think "I wonder if the steam washer can make that look better."

So yes I'm obsessed. I think it might be time to look for a self help group:)
Jenn

The Grocery Bill

Ruby, Eliza Claire and I went grocery shopping this morning. They do great for about the first half of the trip and then they are ready to be done. Today I was a bad mom and gave them unwashed grapes to keep them happy. Yes, I understand that I didn't pay for a couple of ounces of grapes and that my children may have ingested pesticides or other toxic substances. But I needed to finish shopping and it was the first thing I found in the cart that wasn't going to require me to explain to the check out person that "yes I was aware the box was open because I opened it to feed my starving children so they wouldn't scream in your store." Not to mention it was Ruby and Eliza who make a sport out of seeing what they can find on the floor to eat!

Going into to the store today I thought this would be a cheap week at the grocery store. I didn't think we had that much on our list. But when the final bill was tallied after coupons it was $142 and some change. Ugh! How do I trim the bill? Last week was a big trip - it had been a week and a half since we had been to the store - and it was $160. It appears we spend roughly $150 a week on groceries. That is $600 a month and doesn't include all the things we buy at Sam's (diapers, cat litter, laundry detergent, dog food, about 1/2 of our meat, etc.)!

So how do I reduce the bill? I try to buy meat on sale. I use some coupons. I buy a LOT of store brand items. I try not to buy too much prepackaged stuff - today I did buy juice boxes, sponge bob crackers, and propel that were prepackaged. I try to only buy the produce that is in season. I did buy strawberries today but only because they were finally under $3 a pound.

I did notice that all of the dairy items have gone up significantly in price recently and we seem to eat quite a bit of dairy. I probably purchased $40 of dairy products alone - that included block cheddar, shredded cheddar, 4 gallons of organic milk, and six containers of yogurt- it seems like there were other items but I can't think of them now. I know I'm paying more for the organic milk but at the moment feel like the extra $6 a week is worth it to not have growth hormones and antibiotics in my kids milk. Maybe not, I'm really still on the fence but that $6 a week isn't the problem.

So where do I cut? I feel like we are doing a good job of eating at home and packing our lunches instead of eating out but I feel like the grocery bill is still too high. I think I do a good job of price comparison and buying store brands. I try to use coupons when it makes sense. So what else can I do? Or is this just what it costs to feed a family of six?

Off to finish putting away groceries.
Jenn

Valentine Girls

I tried to get a good picture of the three girls together on Valentine's Day. I never got one where they all three looked good in the same shot. But they still are cute!

Friday Flashback

I am shamelessly stealing this idea from my friend Linda. She started this a few weeks ago and I have throughly enjoyed it. I am adding a little twist and not doing all pictures. I hope you enjoy, maybe this will become a weekly thing.

Here is my blog entry from last Valentine's Day. I read it last night and it made me LOL. I had completely forgotten about this. It made me so happy that I am blogging and recording all these wonderful snippets of life. I hope you enjoy it reading it again too.

And now for some pictures...

Eliza Claire and Ruby Feb. 2007

Rehm and Charlotte Feb. 2006

Rehm and Charlotte in the snow at Cici and Papa's house in Feb. 2006

Rehm 11 months old in Feb. 2002

Happy Friday,
Jenn

Happy Valentine's Day

Wishing you all a very Happy Valentine's Day with lots of Hugs, Kisses and Smiles!

Uh Oh!

What a fun day. I've just realized there is literally only one diaper left in the house. And I don't know when either Michael or I will have time to get more. As soon as Ruby and Eliza get up from their nap I have to take Rehm to choir. Then I have to work until 7:45. Michael has meetings until 5:00 and then he has to come to get the kids from church and get them to bed.

I wonder which one of us is going to cart 3 or 4 kids into the grocery store to buy diapers. Why doesn't the grocery store have a drive through for picking up those one or two items you need? It would be so helpful on days like today. I even have a slew of cloth diapers, but I gave away all of my covers so they are no help either.

I never let the diapers get this low. How did this happen?

And to top it off I just went in Rehm's room and oops I left the cat closed up in there all day. Not a great thing to do when the cat is 14.5 years old and diabetic. He has peed on Rehm's bed. Luckily it has a waterproof mattress pad on it. Now I have at least two more loads of laundry to do today and that doesn't count the three loads I've already started that are waiting to be folded. As I was stuffing the comforter in the washing machine, I kept chanting to myself, "I need a front loader, I need a front loader!"

Jenn

Wrestling

Ah the world of twins is a whole new experience. The way they interact with each other and the things they do are so funny. A few days ago they Eliza was laying on the floor. Ruby walked up and sat on her stomach. They both burst out laughing. This is what followed.



If you can't view the slide show you can see the pictures here.

Ruby, Ruby, Ruby

Last Thursday or Friday I made popcorn for the kids to snack on. One of the big kids spilled some on the carpet. I saw Ruby messing around and realized she had put a popcorn kernel up her nose. I helped her blow it out. This happened a second time before I got the popcorn cleaned up. I just shook my head. Why in the world would you want to put something up your nose?

So this morning Ruby is eating breakfast and her nose is runny. I get her a tissue and ask her to blow. She blows really hard and out pops a popcorn kernel! Any bets on if there are more still up there? That could not have been comfortable for the past three of four days. Silly, silly girl.

Ah the joys of toddlerhood.
Jenn

Another Visit So Soon?

Yep, we are keeping the tooth fairy busy this week. Rehm has lost another tooth! If she is as generous as she has been in the past he will have had a very profitable week. Rehm earned a $10 Toys R Us gift card at Bible Adventures (Sunday school) and has been trying to earn another one so he would have enough money to buy a Pokemon starter kit. It looks like he will have enough money to buy it tomorrow without having to earn another gift card.

In case you are wondering, the tooth fairy brings $5 a tooth to our house. Before you start giving me a hard time, remember that is at most $100 over the course of 6 years or so. So far in 10 months we have had to cough up all of $20. Rehm only gets $1.50 a week for allowance and he only gets $1.05 of that to actually spend. So if the tooth fairy is a little generous that is OK.

Where do you think I'll be tomorrow afternoon?
Jenn