The details...

I haven't updated in a while, because I couldn't think of anything profound to write about. Lots of little things, though - so maybe I'll give a smattering of our minutiae.

We've LOVED having Dean home for a couple of weeks now. We could get used to that! Of course, last night he remembered to mention that he was leaving tonight (Sunday) for a "military conference" at Ft Bragg, a couple of hours from here. He'll come back on Wednesday. He's there now, and still doesn't have any idea what it's all about. They'll find out tomorrow. Welcome to the army! He's been sick on and off this week with some bizarre fever/infection. We're wondering if it's not related to whatever unknown injury he's had in his ankle region since he was in Texas. He's scheduled for a bone scan at the end of the week.

He took the boys to the stake fathers and sons outing/campout on Friday night. He was still sick, but more or less masking the fever with ibuprofen. The boys had a blast, of course, jumping in the water, rolling in dirt, canoeing and playing with the other kids. Kyler came home so tired that after sleeping all the way home and a shower to clean up, he slept on the sofa all afternoon.

Hunter has been memorizing the Articles of Faith, which are basically a summation of our religious beliefs - http://scriptures.lds.org/en/a_of_f/1. He has completed numbers one, two and three so far. Kyler is even picking up on them as he hears us go over and over them. I was at the store the other day, and have been on the lookout for new dress pants for Hunter as he only has one pair for church. I actually found suits marked down (I assume after Easter) for $15, so I bought him a nice pinstriped one. It's a little big now, but he wore it today and looked handsome.

I'll take a picture soon, but Kyler, at 3 1/2, has mastered a two-wheeled bike! He's been riding one with training wheels for some time now, and last week the neighbors gave him a slightly bigger model, without training wheels, and low and behold he can ride it like a champ! He took a tumble or two initially, but is doing great now. He is speaking better all the time, as well. He still likes to cuddle and be our baby. Hopefully he won't feel too dethroned when a real baby comes next month!

I am doing well incubating baby. Some days are better than others, but overall I can't complain too much. My nose is noticeably bigger, and my face oozes oil, but some of my other usual pregnancy maladies haven't appeared yet. We still don't have a name yet, but are getting closer. I had a very nice Mothers Day. Dean made me a scrumptious breakfast of a bagel sandwich with eggs, ham and cheese. Hunter had made a dozen "gifts" for me at school, and even wrapped them all himself with newspaper at home. Dean gave me a GPS, a Garmin Nuvi. I am somewhat technology shy, but I'm getting tired of printing out google maps every time I need to go anywhere new, not to mention that I'm often getting lost. We tried it out going to church today, and it's great so far!

My square foot gardens are coming along nicely. (see http://www.squarefootgardening.com/ for more info - I even bought the book to learn how to do it right). I have three 4x4 boxes, all with lots of growing things in them. It is a bit of an investment initially, but I realized today, that what I've spent so far still wouldn't nearly add up to the cost of a small tiller (like a Mantis), so comparatively it's really not that much, and hopefully it will pay for itself with what it produces, and we should be here next summer for sure, and at least part of the summer after that...

I bought six packs of several vegetables (tomatoes, peppers, broccoli and cauliflower). Only one of each of those is supposed to go in a single square foot (one tomato plant, one pepper plant, etc.), but then that would take up most of the three boxes, so I put more than one in a lot of the squares. Dean always chides me when I don't do things how they are supposed to be done, but we'll see what happens. If I didn't want to take up the entire gardens with them, I might as well have just thrown the extras out, which I couldn't bring myself to do. I also bought a package of small gladiolus bulbs a while back at the dollar store, and put them in one square foot. They have shot right up. I bought some onion sets as well, and put probably 16 in another square foot, and they have also come right up. I've planted beans, peas, squash, carrots, beets, radishes, pumpkins, dahlia seeds (perennials used as annuals), honey dew, watermelon, etc. The big plants and vines are supposed to grow vertically up a trellis, which the book details how to most easily build, so that is still on the to-do list. I had a more traditional garden last summer in Oregon, but kind of got depressed by August when we knew we would be leaving, and just left it there, with broccoli and peppers growing... I do as much as I can with the energy I have, then leave it alone. With the Square Foot Gardening, after the initial work of building the boxes and making the soil mix, it's pretty darn easy (no weeds, fertilizing, hoeing, digging, irrigating, etc).

This picture is from a month or so ago. It looks much different now; I'll take more pictures soon.

The Circus

Or maybe more appropriately the circus that is living with Master Kyler. Sometimes I don't know if I should laugh or cry. That kid usually has the household in an uproar to one degree or another. I could give blow by blow accounts of the day, but that would consume novels, so just a highlight or two from the last few days of recent memory should make the point:

On Thursday we got home from somewhere. He rarely follows me into the house from the car willingly, so after hauling in whatever I had, I headed back out to collect him. He had his pants/underwear around his ankles and was standing up straight. This isn't necessarily unusual in itself - however, he said that he was pooping. That is far more unacceptable than what he would normally be doing in that situation, and I proceeded to march him into the house. As of yet there were no deposits from him. He hooted and howled all the way, and did leave one small snippet before we got to the pot. After filling it up, he got to go back and retrieve his mishap.

Friday: something earlier in the week possessed me to brave the circus - without Dean. Normally such a feat would be unthinkable, but I figured it would be cheap entertainment for the evening. I had free passes for the boys, and bought my ticket in advance for $12. Dean said on the phone that he couldn't believe I was doing it on my own - neither could I by the time it was over. So, on the way there, Kyler decides to pee his pants, in the car. The kid has been perfectly potty trained for nearly a year and a half, since he was 27 months. That hasn't stopped him from just letting loose about every 6 months or so for no good reason (that isn't often enough for me to think about keeping spare clothes in the car). My options were to forget about the circus and just go back home, as there wasn't enough time to go home, then make it to the circus, nor was there time to stop anywhere on the way and just buy something to wear (even a diaper with no pants wouldn't have bothered me, but alas no time). So, I got to smell him all the way there, and all throughout the circus, and all the way back... Then, to add insult to injury, I had to take the carseat out of the car, and figure out how to take it apart to get the cover off and wash it. That is always a terrible ordeal, but it got done.

The circus was excellent, by the way, with all the excitement one would hope for, such as the motorcycle guys in the cage, the guy being fired out of a cannon, girls hanging from and doing acrobatics by their hair, and much more. I stuck to my guns and didn't drop an additional cent, as their objective is to separate you from all your money. I didn't even pay for parking, and we all got a little exercise to boot by walking a bit!

Saturday, we went with some friends to an awesome aquarium that is about 45 minutes away. That was lots of fun, and Kyler wasn't terrible there - just the typical running away and such. When we got home, once again he didn't come inside, so I went out to retrieve him. He was on top of the car jumping up and down as though it was a trampoline. I've been telling him lately to not climb the car - the kid climbs anything and everything, and if it isn't hurting anything I usually let him - he's never fallen yet. But the car is a different story. So I marched him to his room for a time out.

Hunter is getting up close and personal with the pelican in the first picture; Kyler would be the one hanging from the viewer. I happened to be standing very close to where the pelican is in the picture when it decided to come over and land (I was momentarily concerned that it might land on me or do a dirty deed on my head). I assume it was looking for handouts, but it was amazing to see it so close and friendly. Hunter and his little friend were so cute holding hands on the nature trail.

Today, Sunday, we went to church as usual. I sat behind a friend who has kids Kyler's age and younger, with whom he loves to play. That seat happened to be open, as we don't ever get to church on time, so that's why we sat there - I do know better than to put such a temptation right in front of him. He proceeded to act like he was on fire or something, gyrating uncontrollably and being terrible. I wanted to nip that in the bud, so I marched him right out to his car seat and locked him in for a few minutes until he decided he wanted to be good and come back in. The rest of the meeting was unexceptional, although he never was perfectly still or quiet (far from it, but at least under control). I sent him and Hunter off to Primary after Sacrament Meeting, and apparently they both went there just fine. But after the three hour block of classes, the Primary Secretary brought the boys to me and was very apologetic and said that he had apparently left primary shortly after it started (it is for 3-11 year-old children) and went to the Nursery (for 18 month -3yo children). He is well aware of how much fun Nursery is, and that it is stocked with toys and snacks and endless play. With the right attitude, Primary can be fun, as they sing songs and have interactive lessons and such, but apparently the temptation was just too great today, and off he went, apparently unnoticed. Oh, and did I mention that he peed on his bedroom floor this morning before we went to church, just for grins?

He can be the sweetest little devil, and is full of hugs and kisses all day, and loves to rub my ever-growing belly and talk about the baby. He is terribly cute and good looking, and is funny and occasionally obedient. We do love him to pieces, and life would be dull without him. I'm re-reading John Rosemond right now, figuring out what I'm doing wrong. So, slowly I am making progress. He is starting to listen more the first time, as the consequences are happening immediately now, rather than useless threats, bribes or pleas.

Anyway, that's my boy!

Welcome Spring

In moving to North Carolina we expected warmish weather most of the year, and indeed it was pretty mild through about Christmas. Since then it's been mostly cold, with an occasional warm sunny day. Of course people in the North East or midwest would beg to differ about the meaning of "cold", but it has been cold enough to warrant a coat, and to keep me from wanting to go outside much.

Last week it was my turn to plan a playgroup that we attend with other ladies from church, so we had a little Easter egg hunt in the backyard, then quickly came back inside where it was warm. The kids had fun, and Dean, being home for the week, was a good sport and even mowed the lawn the day before and hid the eggs for the kiddos. Since it was a school day, only the little guys were participating. In this picture Kyler is picking up his eggs that escaped from his basket.

And, in case you're interested, here I am six and a half months preggers. I don't feel like I'm nearly as big as I look in the picture, but perhaps the proof is in the puddin'. The clothes I wear make all the difference, and that blouse happens to make me look very large. Although, on Saturday someone asked how far along I was, then proceeded to ask if I was carrying twins. Ha ha. That's a first for me. The OB says I'm carrying high, which she said the old wives' tales say means it's a boy, which indeed baby is a boy...

So Dean has always been on me for Easter and other such holidays to do more of the festive stuff like color eggs and carve pumpkins and all that. I'm not sure why, but that stuff is never terribly appealing to me. Actually, I think it has a lot to do with just having so little energy for some many years. I just don't feel "up" to the non-essential things in life. However, after being treated by the naturopathic physician last year, I actually wanted to decorate the Christmas tree, so that's progress! But being in the third trimester of a pregnancy will zap most anyone's energy, so that's my excuse right now.

Anyway, Dean usually ends up doing the kid stuff, and I usually don't even manage to get pictures. So on Saturday, he had been here a week and was preparing to leave again on Easter Sunday for another two weeks of training in Texas. He wanted to color eggs with the boys. I had hard cooked seven eggs earlier in the day, as I needed some for a potato salad we were taking to a get together. So there were three eggs left. So in the evening when we were home, he started to get worked up about coloring eggs yada yada, and I said that we had three eggs. Of course that seemed ridiculous to him, but I said they didn't need to do dozens to have the experience - three ought to be enough. So, I pulled the food coloring and vinegar out of the cupboard and he went to town with the boys. I had to run get gas, as the car was on fumes just before the Sabbath. So, I wasn't involved, and there are no pictures for evidence, but they did it.

Also on Saturday, Hunter finally wiggled out his two front teeth that have been loose for ages. He won't eat apples these days because he always has loose teeth. I am not one to harass him and threaten to yank them out. I figure they will come out when they are good and ready. Apparently he was good and ready, and must have helped them a bit himself. He told us that a kid at school says that the tooth fairy brings a whole lot of money (like $6) when one loses two teeth. That sounded a little rich to me. Since Dean was here he took care of all that business, to the tune of $4. His mouth has been bleeding since Saturday, from losing the teeth, because of his hemophilia. So I found his medication that is specifically for mouth bleeds in hemophiliacs. It helps to keep a clot intact if one forms. I gave him some before bed tonight. It is quite a bit expired, but hopefully will still help. There was a much newer bottle of the stuff from his tonsillectomy last summer, but I couldn't find it. I don't remember if we used it all up or what. It was kind of pitiful this evening to see small bits blood on his chicken sandwich while he ate dinner.

Dean was wanting to hide Easter eggs Saturday night for the morning hunt, but by the time we went to bed it was late and we were tired, and decided it could wait until morning. However, Hunter got up bright and early, and searched high and low for Easter eggs, and came to report to us that apparently the Easter bunny hadn't left any. Dean was awfully frustrated and was grunting and thinking and wondering what to do about such a predicament. I asked him what was the matter, and he would only say "nothing", but he was obviously upset. So, I called to Hunter and asked if he wanted to get in bed with me. He always wants to, but I usually don't allow such an intrusion. He was delighted to climb in, and of course the stipulation is always that he must tickle my back. So, Dean took the cue and ran outside and hid eggs for the boys, then came back and told Hunter that the Easter bunny must have hid them outside so that he wouldn't run into the tooth fairy inside, as that just wouldn't be right. Hunter said that that was what he had thought. We told him he had to wait until Kyler was awake, so he promptly ran upstairs and woke him up for the excitement. Dean escorted them out while I stayed in bed a few more minutes, hence no pictures. Kyler, being a quick observer, noticed that the eggs were the same eggs he had hunted earlier in the week with the play group, and he was none too happy about it. Dean and I thought that was pretty darn funny. Hunter had no idea what he was talking about, fortunately. So, somehow it all went off without a hitch, and we more or less covered all the silly Easter bases.

And, I've been contemplating what to do as far as Easter gifts. I am of the opinion that it just doesn't seem right that a bunny should be giving eggs and presents because Jesus was resurrected. I don't want the focus of Easter in our home to be eggs, plastic grass, bunnies, candy and presents. But then is that hypocritical if we celebrate Christmas as the Savior's birth, and have candy and presents? I definitely didn't want to lavish them with presents by any means and support the commercial nature of the Holy Day, but I did get the "game" Hullabaloo on sale recently, and figured this would be as good a time as any to give it to them, along with a couple of things from the dollar store (card games and sidewalk chalk). We told them it was from us.

Laid the Baby

I have to tell a funny on Hunter before I forget. He is six and a half. By the way, Kyler claimed to be six and a half for a good year or so as a two and three year old; now when asked, he does say that he is three. Anyway, last night Hunter came downstairs and was concerned. He told Dean that he thought I must have laid the baby somewhere, as he could hear a baby crying. I had no idea what he was talking about, but Dean knew exactly. Hunter's only experience with "babies" coming into the world are the chicks and ducklings we used to incubate and hatch in Albuquerque. So Dean explained to Hunter that people don't "lay" babies... they give birth.

It turned out that the neighbors were playing with some remote control cars or something outside, which kind of had a squeal like a baby.

Treasure Hunt

Today a friend invited the boys and me to go to their battalion's scavenger hunt for the kiddos. The boys loved getting to dress and act like pirates, hunt for clues, follow a map, get prizes and eat yummy food.

After that we went to the playground for a few minutes, ran an errand, then came home. By then I was worn out and swollen! Both the boys got to feel the baby jumping around in my belly today. Kyler didn't know what to make of it and ran off. Hunter thought it was great, and wondered why baby would be jumping around in there. We are still working on names... We are counting down the last week of Dean's current training - he should be back by next weekend, for a week anyway!

On Thursday evening I took the boys to a birthday party at ChuckeCheese for a classmate of Hunter's. It's not my favorite place to go, but they, of course, had lots of fun.

More Kylerisms

So Kyler refreshed my memory recently with some of his words and phrases. One word that he has made up is "bumbo". I really have no idea what it means, and it has more than one context. He uses it when referring to eggs, i.e. "are we having egg bumbos?" or "I want to bumbo the eggs". Could it mean scramble/scrambled? But then the other day he was wanting some "bumbo cereal", so I really don't know.

Hunter used the "words", if you will, "sour", "dower" and "tower" constantly when he was about two. They were all-purpose words that worked for any occasion as far as he was concerned.

My favorite Kylerism is his word for fungus, which is "humungus". Dean doesn't like to eat grapes (the man seriously eats 5 or more servings of fruit a day, but doesn't like grapes) because he says they usually taste like they have fungus (he is a super taster). So Kyler picked up on that, and often accuses the grapes of having a "humungus".

vote on a baby name

I'm surprised that I am doing this, but maybe it's a good thing... After all, giving someone a name is a big deal, as he will carry it through life, and we wouldn't want to choose anything too weird, but definitely don't want anything too bland, either. So, here are a few names I have selected. Some I absolutely love (Lucius, Maximus, etc.) but they might just be too out of the main stream. The process was easy with Hunter - Dean had said that if it was a boy, he was to be a Hunter. For Kyler, we stressed and looked and looked and had lists... until we finally ran across Kyler. We knew someone who went by that name in college, and I always loved the name, and we both decided it was the one. Now, here we are again... I was just about settled on Deiter until I mentioned it to Dean a month or so ago, and it wasn't the first time I talked about it, but he finally said he hates it, so Deiter is probably out. Anyway, cast your vote!

http://babynames.com/namelist/9686784

Kylerism

So Kyler came running to me very concerned after his bath this morning, because he had discovered "a hole in my bum" (his words). Yep, Boy, indeed there is a hole in your bum. He wanted me to "take it out". Sorry, Kid, it's there to stay, and you need it!

Mormon Temples

If you've been wondering what the hubbub is about "Mormon" Temples, here's a clip with more information, that is actually done by The Church (not ex-mo's with agendas).

http://www.youtube.com/mormonmessages

Happy Anniversary

Since Dean's been gone (over two months now, less than one to go), I occasionally let Kyler sleep with me. Hunter feels left out, and has been begging for the same privilege. So I finally relented and let them both sleep with me recently. I learned that Hunter talks in his sleep. He said (among other things that I don't remember) "I didn't do it". Sure you didn't! It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Last night I was actually sleeping alone and heard a thud in the night. Then Hunter appeared and told me that "it feels like someone kicked me in the head". I'm guessing he fell out of bed. I sent him packing. Then he appeared again later insisting that he must sleep with me. I relented and in he climbed. Then a while later Kyler appeared, wondering where Hunter was, as he climbed into bed. I was too tired to fight it... The alarm went off and I stayed in bed for a while, then finally ordered Hunter out of bed, as he's the one who needs to get to the bus, and it takes the boy way too long to do the simplest things (put on shoes - 10 minutes). He tried to continue sleeping, but I pulled him out of bed and marched him off. Funny, though, I didn't hear anything from upstairs (our bedroom is downstairs), so I went up to investigate, and wouldn't you know, he had crawled back into bed and was snoring away. He told me that he had been up most of the night. The daylight savings change is always hard!


Kyler got the hiccups today. He thought he was burping, so I explained that it was hiccups. Both the boys always seem to think that anything that goes wrong is somehow my fault. He said to me "You don't hurt my hups!" His speech still isn't terribly clear; I can usually understand him, but often have to translate for other people. He's even made up a few words of his own (he called nuts "nuffins" for some time). When he and my mom and I were driving out here from Oregon, he had learned a few phrases that he would use indiscriminately. For instance, if he had unbuckled himself from his carseat, and we would tell him to buckle back up, he would say "I don't [re]member that!" and ignore us. One of his favorite phrases these days is "after soon", meaning some time in the future: "After soon can we go to the park?"

We've been with Progressive for our car insurance for a few years now. When we moved to Carlsbad, NM after Dean finished vet school, they were a lot cheaper than State Farm, whom we had been with for several years. But, I've been thinking for a while that the premiums seemed awfully high, for responsible people who haven't had accidents in many years... So with the premium being due soon for nearly $700, for two very modest cars, I finally called Geico to get a quote, and wouldn't you know, it was about $300 cheaper (for 6 months). I only wish I had compared sooner - so much money down the drain!

And, nine years ago today, Dean and I tied the knot. He called this morning to wish me a Happy Anniversary, and I got a sweet card from him on Saturday. I usually don't like reading mushy stuff people write on their blogs, but I will say that the Lord knew what he was doing when He sent Dean my way. When I first looked at him (on more than one occasion) I didn't think he was "my type", whatever that means. But he was persistent and once I got to know him, I fell hard and fast. I am daily aware of what a blessing he is in my life, and I can't imagine that I could have ever found anyone more suited to me. He treats me like a queen, and I am constantly in awe of his wisdom, character, ambition, determination, knowledge, patience, humor, wit, intelligence, steadfastness, faithfulness, and so much more. I love you, Darling!

Seriously So Blessed...

Here are a couple of pictures of the boys at a children's museum I took them to in Wilmington a few weeks ago. They especially liked firing balls out of the cannon, as did all the kids there.

I was recently pointed to this blog, and it's great for some laughs . . . It makes sense if you know the lingo and culture of younger Mormon women.

http://seriouslysoblessed.blogspot.com/

I don't know if it's spring fever trying to emerge, or boys will be boys, or that Dean has been gone for 7 weeks now or what, but the boys have been extra feral lately. I don't really blog about how wonderful my children are, like everyone else does. It's kind of hard to find the good in them sometimes (especially when I don't get a break while hubby is gone), such as the other day when I walked in on Hunter charging out of the kitchen with my 10" chef knife after Kyler (mind you that's a 10" blade, and my knives are professional). I don't believe he was really trying to hurt him, but at six years old I would have thought he should know better. He was getting a rise out of Kyler, and thought it was all fun and games, apparently. He doesn't get to touch so much as a butter knife until Dean's home.

Hunter can be a really sweet kid most of the time, actually, and has stellar behavior at school and usually at church. But put him together with Kyler at home, and all hint of common sense and responsibility go out the window. They spend all their time brawling, screeching, wounding each other, tattling, trashing the house, etc. If either one is alone with me, he is generally cooperative and will do what I ask, but throw the other one in the mix, and all they will do is antagonize each other, driving me up the wall.

Kyler isn't innocent by any means. If anything, he usually has the upper hand in their brawls, at three years old. Last weekend for instance, we had company over, which, granted, will rile up any young kid, and Kyler got hold of a boyscout belt, and hit Hunter on the side of his neck with the buckle end of it. It produced a mild hematoma, but with some frozen green beans on it immediately for half an hour it went away within a day or so (hemophilia boy has been pretty darn lucky so far).

As another example, the other day Kyler had hold of Hunter's hoodie by the hood (with Hunter in it), and Hunter was on the ground on his back. I was nearby, and Hunter was screeching to be saved. The boy seriously needs to learn to defend himself a little. I told him to turn over, which he finally did and was able to get out of Kyler's hold. To some degree, Hunter has trained Kyler to be a fighter/wrestler, as he started wrestling with him when he was three and a half, and Kyler was six months old. Kyler couldn't even sit up yet, but loved rolling around on the floor with Hunter. Kyler can also be very sweet when he wants to be, and loves to cuddle and snuggle (when Hunter's not around), so we do plenty of that during the week while Hunter's at home.

So today, Saturday, I'm looking forward to maybe going out to the park with the kids, or otherwise doing something fun. They, on the other hand, just want to do their usual behaviors, namely brawling near my bedroom and screeching/tattling loudly. I told them to take it elsewhere, but that didn't happen. So I sent them to their room for an hour, and there's always the stipulation that it must be clean after said hour if they wish to come out. As always happens, though, they spent the hour further trashing their room (which wasn't bad to begin with) and brawling. The marines are often firing artillery, which rattles the windows a bit. I seriously can't always differentiate between that and what goes on when they are put in their bedroom. I don't usually hear the artillery on Saturdays, so I don't know if it was them jumping off the furniture in their room - or whatever they do in there, or if it was actually artillery. So, it's been three hours, and they are still in there, "we're starving", and still nothing has been picked up, and all they will do is point fingers at the other who isn't helping. I have no sympathy. If they would just do it, they could pick it up in 10 minutes, but they'd rather rot and starve in there. That's fine with me!

In four months we'll bring another baby boy into this mix (mess?). Dean keeps telling me that this one won't necessarily be as wild as his brothers. But for survival he my have to be...

We did have a lovely weekend with Dean home, and it happened to be Valentine's weekend. We didn't even try to go out on V-day, as the restaurants fill up pretty fast with 50,000 marines. We did go to the Olive Garden for lunch on Monday before he left - and still had a fifteen minute wait (the marines had the day off as well, for the holiday). I found a blue t-shirt a couple of weeks ago that had the Superman insignia on it, only it says Captain Love (that's pretty close to Cpt. Lavallee). I knew Dean would love it; he's been wearing it back at training. I also got him a box of truffles, as he loves truffles. He got me some herb and vegetable seeds, and I've been starting what will be our garden, in the house.

Dean finished with the three weeks "in the field" at Officer Basic. It was tedious and sometimes poorly orchestrated, as there was a whole lot of sitting around. They ate MREs a couple of times a day. Some are better than other, he says. They slept in big heated tents on cots. He used the ear plugs they were given for the firing range to help him sleep at night (30 men in a tent makes for a whole lot of snoring/flatus all night, believe it or not). He graduates early next week, but then has additional veterinary training for a month. And, he is now assigned to be deployed to Iraq in November, so has a lot of additional training throughout the year, including at the very same place he is now for two more weeks in April (a week after he finishes OBC), and again the very week I'm due...

So that sums up our lives of late. Can you tell how cheery and blessed I am??? I think my nose is starting to swell, along with the rest of me, by the way.

It's a ...

Boy! Another boy. I figured as much. But we're excited. I can hardly makes heads or parts of some of the ultrasound pictures, but here they are, and apparently one has the identifier. Baby kept his hands pretty close to his face much of the time. We may end up with another thumb sucker/ear caresser like Kyler. Hunter sucked on a bottle until he was three, and held his ear (or mine or Dean's) all the while. When we finally weaned him from the bottle, he stopped with the ears. There's no taking Kyler's thumb away, and it doesn't bother me yet anyway, especially since it is so soothing for him - he can go from screaming his head off to nary a peep when he pops it in his mouth and works that ear.

I've been just dying to buy foofy little girl Christmas dresses that are marked way down right now, but have been holding off until today. Alas, I won't be needing any!

I texted Dean, who is out in "the field" again this week, and consequently isn't supposed to be using the cell phone outside of the tent, which they are only in at night. He texted back saying "Great, a future missionary!"

When I was pregnant with Kyler, I ate like a piggy and put on 40 pregnancy pounds (Kyler included). It was difficult to lose! With Hunter I had lost all 20 pounds and then some in a month (he came 7 weeks early, so I didn't have the opportunity to gain so much), so I assumed it would be easy again. Anyway, I was terribly swollen all over with Kyler. One day I happened to be at the post office, and a lady who worked there said "oh, you're having a boy". I was indeed, and asked how on earth she knew. She was a bit reluctant, but said "It's your nose". So I went home and looked in the mirror, and sure enough even my nose was grossly swollen. So this time around I'm being more careful and trying to not gain excessively.

So in "the field", Dean and all the other folks (nurses, MDs, PAs, dentists, scientists, lab techs, etc.) are going through the motions of what the enlisted soldiers have to master. They went through the obstacle course last week. Yesterday, they went through a mock Iraqi village looking for bad guys, and did combatives. They really want the women to learn to defend themselves, so they pair them up with men to practice. He says he sure has developed an appreciation for all the training and skills that combat soldiers have to have in order to do that every day. They've also done the gas chamber now, where they get gassed, so they know what it is like and how to deal with it. It was most awful, I'm told, but over quickly.

nothing in particular

Life is a little dreary and boring with Dean gone for nearly five weeks now. He gets to come home for a four-day weekend over President's day, so we're all looking forward to that. We don't really have TV to speak of, as I refuse to pay for it. So I watch some of my favorite shows online after the kids go to bed (CSI, House, 24, NCIS). One night there wasn't anything to see, and I was bored out of my mind (but too tired to do anything productive), so I restarted a netflix subscription. But, I'm too technology challenged to get DVDs to play in the computer (I tried), and the DVD player on the DVD/VCR combo isn't working, so I found a Magnavox very basic and small DVD player for $30 at Walmart. We have a small TV (that the former owners of our home in Astoria left for us) that I was about to freecycle. Instead, I set it up last night in my bedroom, and watched Cinderella Man, which had come in the mail. That's pretty exciting stuff around here lately! I enjoyed the movie, by the way.

I've never gotten in the habit of flossing, even though my parents faithfully took us in for cleanings twice a year and I always got lectured by the hygienists about flossing... I've been using Listerine since we got married, and I always justified not flossing in my mind because I figured the Listerine did just as much. But alas, I've had to have a number of fillings done or redone over the years, and had to have a root canal last year. I would then start flossing and do it for a week or two, then give it up. It was tedious and annoying to thread one of those hand held flosser things, and just as unpleasant to use my fingers, so I never kept up with it. Then a few months ago on a whim, and with a buy one/get one coupon - plus a sale, I bought a couple of packages (90 count) of floss ups. I don't think I've missed flossing since! And I'm stunned every night at how much food I get out of my teeth, after thoroughly brushing. My jaw is small, hence all the teeth straightening I had done as a child, so my teeth are close together, and it is impossible to get all that out with just brushing. I don't mind flossing now at all. There's no threading, no tedium. I just grab one and get it all done in half a minute or so, and I'm sure my teeth are thanking me. Getting all that stuff out is rewarding, much like squeezing a black head out of a pore.

Dean is terrible about getting the oil changed in his car. He had it done sometime in the summer, then I drove it across the country in September, and it's not been done since. Don't even suggest that he do it. The last time (6 years ago or so) it turned out a bloody mess (literally) and he vowed he would never do it again. (I'm much better about taking my car in, but Dean took it to Texas, so I'm stuck with his). So, a few weeks ago the "service engine soon" light came on, so I figured it really needed to be done. I took it in, and of course they acted like the air filter was so filthy that chunks would be falling out if it was turned upside down, and they would change it for $15. I declined, and headed over to walmart, and got one for $8. So, I actually changed it myself, without a hitch. The "service engine soon" light has not gone off, though, so that's annoying. And of course they had a list of $250 worth of maintenance that needed to be done according to the mileage. I told them I'd consult the hubby, who did say that most of it should be done. But then how do I get it over there for the day, and get home with Kyler, with no hubby around yadda yadda. We'll see. It's on the to-do list.

Living with a bird, and presently being responsible for said bird, I am keenly aware of how much and how often they defacate. The Birdie Birdie in the Sky wasn't written for nuthin' (you know: ... drop that white wash in my eye; I don't care, I won't cry; I'm just glad that cows don't fly... to the tune of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star). Anyway, Kyler observed as we were driving around today that birds were sitting on power lines, and he asked what they were doing. Well, they were just sitting there, but that's never a good enough answer for Kyler. So I said they were sitting there pooping. That is a topic near and dear to Kyler's heart, as it is one of his fond daily activities. He asked if they wipe their bums. How do you answer that? He didn't understand "no". So after that, every time he spotted some birds sitting on power lines, he would say "There are pooping birds". Incidentally, I wondered a while back why birds aren't electrocuted by sitting on power lines. Dean is a font of knowledge, so I asked him, and he said it's because just one line is not a closed circuit (or something like that) and they would have to be touching both lines in order to be zapped (imagine the amount of poo that would come from that size of bird!). He explained that it's the same as household electrical outlets, which have two holes (and there are two prongs on plugs), to complete the circuit. Anyway, like I said it's pretty boring around here!

http://www.freefoto.com/

Ft Sam Houston

So Dean left two weeks ago for the long drive to San Antonio, TX for him to go through OBC (officer basic leadership course). So far it's been fine for him, except for some minor issues with his roomie, an African Muslim who is a physician's assistant. The guy likes to watch whatever porn comes on HBO. He asked Dean if he didn't watch porn with his wife! Yeah right! Dean asked if porn was ok for Muslims, which they guy seems to think so. He finally turned it off when Dean told him he was going to buy some bacon and sausage and cook it up in their room and eat it in front of him. He is enjoying the classes so far, and passed the physical fitness test, although was disappointed that he didn't score as well as he did here on it. He is coming home for the four-day holiday weekend (in the military at least) in February. We're getting used to carrying on without him here at the homestead, but miss him terribly. The children actually behave a little better in church when he's not there to fight over. He'll be done with Texas in early April.

Lock and Key Update

I never did get Kyler to tell me where the lock and key were for the TV. We did manage to clean up their room this past week, and I've been on them daily to put their things away instead of throwing them on the floor, and to celebrate we watched my favorite kid cartoon, The Hobbit, over the course of a couple of days.

So on about Wednesday I happened to be looking through a drawer in my sewing desk, and low and behold, there were the missing locks and key! Kyler rummages through that drawer daily, although I never would have thought to look there. I immediately replaced a lock in the TV plug, much to the chagrin of Kyler, who then ran to my desk to have a look for himself. I won't be leaving the extra lock/key around any more!

Crafty little devil, or criminal in training?

So I am well aware of the dangers of young kids watching tv. The experts say they should see none before age three, and it should be severely limited after that. The rule in our home for years has been that "as soon as your room is clean, you may watch tv". We've never paid for tv, so if we don't happen to pick up any with the old rabbit ears, then we have plenty of kid videos (courtesy of Grandmas), and an occasional one I have picked up here and there. I'm not in the habit of keeping their room clean, and they certainly are not either. They go to great lengths to avoid cleaning, or pretend to have cleaned (i.e. stuffing it all under the bed - it would have been just as easy to put their things away). So, they pretty much never qualify for tv watching. This has never stopped Kyler, though, from getting in some vegetative time.

So, I finally took the advice of a dear friend who shares my TV philosophy (although her entire home is always immaculate). To keep her kids honest, she purchased a small luggage lock, which fits perfectly in the holes of the plug for the tv. I finally invested in a two-pack on Thursday. I excitedly told the boys about it, however they were less enthused. I put one of the locks in the plug, and hid the key in my bedroom. I left the package, containing the other lock and key, in the kitchen and didn't think anything of it. I was stunned then when they were watching the tv by Saturday. I found the now-empty package, but no locks or keys. I tried to get Kyler to tell me where they were, but he wasn't about to. Apparently he got the other lock, with the accompanying key, and the keys must be interchangeable with either lock. Hmmm.

And, he's finally started scaling the fence in the back yard to go into the neighbor's yard to play on their nice swing set. It's one of those wooden ones, with nice tall slides and all that fun stuff - too much of a temptation. I caught him hopping back over the fence, and as I scolded him, he explained that he had to do it, because the gate was locked.

Yesterday was his first day as a Sunbeam at church. He ran from the chapel into the nursery, so I had to pull him out of there and take him to primary. I'm told he did well, but at one point they were taking a trip to the drinking fountain and the potty. I saw him in the hall, tackling another boy to the floor.

He looks so innocent!

Milk the Allergy

So we've discovered, once again, that Hunter must be allergic to milk. When I nursed him as an infant, he would have bloody stools if I drank too much milk. When I weaned him and he started drinking milk, he had diarrhea. I would go back and forth giving him other things to drink (rice or soy), then eventually revert back to milk. Starting at about age 4, he had non-stop ear infections. We don't know if drinking milk influenced that or not. We finally had tubes put in his ears this summer (again) and had his tonsils and adenoids removed. His life is much improved, but I wonder if all that inflammation and distress was at least partially due to the milk. Then, late this summer he developed some eczema on his hands. I gave him fish oil for a month and it cleared up. Then a couple of months later it came back with a vengeance, with his skin cracking and bleeding. The fish oil helped at first, then not so much. I stopped giving him milk to drink, and within two weeks his hands were nice and smooth again. It must be the milk!

Late Thanksgiving

For no good reason I never did post anything about Thanksgiving. We made a 12-hour drive down to Kissimmee, Florida to meet up with Dean's family, who flew in from Oregon and New Mexico. Admittedly, neither of the car rides was enjoyable for us or the children. But the time there was a lot of fun. On Thanksgiving Day, Grandma Dee treated us to the Magic Kingdom at Disneyworld. Hunter must have thought he was in heaven, and gleefully had a magical day. We knew better than to take Master Kyler, but didn't have any other options for him. He demanded to sit on his throne most of the day (aka Daddy's shoulders), and expended a lot of energy trying to make the rest of us miserable, and fighting against his leash (during the few moments he was off his throne). There were many, many other people with the great idea of spending the holiday there, so the lines were long, but we had fun. We did take a stroller for Kyler, but he wasn't much interested so it mostly carried my purse.

The following day we had a lovely Thanksgiving dinner. The greatest excitement during the event was when Kyler attempted to climb on Daddy (possibly his shoulders again) just as he was standing up from a sitting position. The result was that Kyler's head landed on the coffee table, which happened to be wicker with a glass top. The top completely shattered. Surprisingly and luckily, Kyler was stunned, but unhurt. The men quickly cleaned up the mess, and Kyler recovered after howling for a while.

We took the occasion to make the announcement to the family that we are expecting a baby. The due date is late June. We are thrilled! I attribute finally being pregnant to the Naturopathic Physician I have been seeing since early this year.

Hunter is the Mancala Master.

Heiroglyphics and More Amaryllis

The amaryllis is in full bloom now, and is gorgeous! It was just in time for our Relief Society's progressive dinner last night, as I was one of the hosts. There are five flowers.

And, since I was hosting, I had to straighten the house up enough to be acceptable, so it was a fine time to take pictures.

Recently we discovered some heiroglyphics around the house, namely on the kitchen counter and the bean bag of all places. Kyler only scribbles, and I thought that surely Hunter was old enough to not do such a thing, so Dean actually crossed my mind as the possible perpetrator, but then I came to my senses and we both approached Hunter about it. He denied it, of course, but the evidence is there, in sharpie no less.

Blooming Amaryllis

So last year I told Dean that I wanted an amaryllis kit for Christmas. It quickly grew leaves, although being at the mercy of Master Kyler, said leaves got twisted Indian burn style more than once and there were casualties. It survived a week in the car as we moved to NC from OR in September, and I put it in the West-facing kitchen window where it gets plenty of sun. Well, it quickly grew all new leaves and a stalk for the blossoms. The three remaining leaves from last year started looking old and tired, so I cut them off. Now it is blooming just in time for Christmas! Beautiful! My mistake was in not turning it as it sat in the window, so it grew to face the sun and became very side heavy, such that it couldn't quite stand on it's own if wasn't leaning against the window or wall. So I've turned it and put it in the dining room with the sun far behind it, and it seems to be correcting itself as it doesn't just topple over now. It's taken a year, but it is paying off.