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So, picking up where we left off... Ha. We are doing well. We are incredibly busy. M= is currently napping and E & K are doing their math. This week has been a little crazy. Our normal schedule is to go to our group meeting of Classical Conversations on Monday and we didn't meet this week. We missed it last week because of business travel. So, we had two weeks to get our memory work really down pat. I believe we had it all down pat the first week, but we are still working on it nonetheless.

Today is Valentines Day. Jenny surprise the girls with baskets of chocolate, stuffed ponies, and the older girls got miniature roses in their favorite colors. Then the older two had a doctors appointment. That's about as in keeping with the day as giving blood. K ran to the door to wish the UPS man a Happy Valentines Day which he thoroughly got a kick out of.

M's birthday is nighing up. She is quite excited and we may have to celebrate all day to make it what she is working it up to be. I guess her older sisters will do all they can to celebrate. They may do a good job of making up for the lack of excitement that I'm made up of.

Monday, I got a project to a stage of finishedness. I've been working on a continuation of the previous owners flower bed. They had planted roses in a semi-raised bed against a fence. A few years back, I decided that it was a good place for tomatoes (the only thing that I can grow with any success.) I extended the bed one fence span to accommodate. Then, on the advice of a friend, I started the extension all the way around and across the other parallel of the yard. My indispensable yard man ordered the dirt and he and his helper wheeled the dirt from the large pile into the raised beds while I tried to complete one that I had overlooked. So, next step is planting. Planting is more fun and motivating than building the beds.

We have had a really busy August. Hope you enjoy these pictures.

We just got back from weekend 5 on the whirlwind coupon tour. This weekend we spent some time with family on the Isle of Palms. Sounds all fancy. It was nice to get away, relax, hang out with family at the beach. I didn't get any pictures but Mary loves the beach and loves the water. She's like the little sandpipers that run in the surf. She will run out until she is up to her knees and then turn around and run back up to the sandy part of the beach. It is quite entertaining to watch but it will wear you out if you decide to chase her. She still needs a bit of supervision because she gets going and the pull of the waves make her lose her footing.

The older two had fun also, but I think Mary likes the beach more than they ever have. She played in the water more than they did, too. Not only is she fearless, but if she gets water in her eyes or even if she goes under, it won't even phase her. She will get right back up and continue with her sandpiperish ways.

The Gervais Street Bridge at sundown, Columbia, SC.


Lake Murray, SC.

Hope everyone has a good weekend!

 
For your viewing pleasure, here is my poor man's soldering station. It works well. Come on, who doesn't have a class or a mug laying around. Just make sure that there isn't any old coffee in the bottom or your coworkers will think the coffee's on.

This week marks Mary's 1st birthday. It feels like she has always been
a part of the family. I guess I felt the same way about the girls,
though since they were our first, we were still new to the parenting
thing when they had their first birthday.

We had family in both this weekend and last. Everyone here but me is
healthy and everyone is happy. We haven't been doing much. I've been
busy with work. I have a good many projects going on and I'm finding
that the weeks fly by pretty quickly. Jenny is busy with her website
and with her group of friends - working out, bowling, play dates, and
the like.

I've taken up a new hobby - home brewing. Hobbies with me are a come
and go type of thing. I've been roasting my own coffee beans for a
little over a year and it may be the one hobby that I have stayed
consistent with - because coffee is essential to life. Its work
juice. You could give me an IV. I should start finding new and
exciting ways of using coffee. Chocolate covered espresso beans are
good. Caribou Coffee's granola bars have a coating of ground Arabica
on the top that makes it one of a kind. So, something similar to
that. Maybe infuse oatmeal with it so that you're getting caffeine
while you lower your cholesterol. Its my idea quaker-man.... can't
steal it now.

What else have I been doing. Its been so long since I've posted. I
took a trip in January to Ottawa to meet with a vendor about the
specifics of implementing VPLS in our environment. I had a little fun
while I was there. It had snowed before I got there and it stopped
before I had to really leave the hotel to go anywhere. So, I got to
see some flurries the first night. The second night I experienced the
coldest weather in my life - we went to a hockey game - Senators vs.
Capitals. On the way, the sales-person that took me was driving. I'm
not used to driving or riding in the snow. She drove like there was
no difference. I guess that was what concerned me. She hails from NC
so I figured that she should drive like she was slightly concerned
that the roads weren't quite the same as they are in SC. When the
game got out, it was 1 degree out. That's F not C. Too cold for my
blood. I was prepared though. I may have looked like a red-neck
ninja with my mask on, but I was warmer than everyone freezing their
normal looking faces off. I got what I came to Canada for though. One
thing of note, I had never thought about evaporation working
differently in cold climates. I just expected that snow melted up
there like it does down here. It doesn't. It goes straight from
solid to gas. I should have known from what happens to old ice cubes
in the freezer, but snow just slowly sublimates up there.

Hello. Just thought I'd give you all an update.... those of you who still read this or visit our site.

This weekend has been very busy so far. Friday, I worked from home and did well until about 2PM. Jenny yelled for me to come downstairs with some panic in her voice and I came down to a very bloody Emma. She had been trying to stand on a bouncy ball and I guess she doesn't know the bounds of science, the laws of physics, and gravity. She said that she hit her head on a chair, but by the huge gash taken out of the back of her head we doubt was cause by the chair - the chair next to the fireplace. Anyway, I didn't know why Jenny had called me, but old Boy Scout training kicked in and I applied pressure, treated her for shock, and tied her a square-knot. We got the bleeding stopped and then Jenny took her to the ER while I got Kate napping. Emma ended up getting two staples (without any local anesthetic). Kate got a good nap. I asked Jenny what voodoo hut she'd taken Emma to. That was the drama for the weekend. Emma seems to be okay now. She does continually ask for the staples to be taken off so that she can sleep, though.

Today, I finished up a little project that I started. I bought a canoe off of craigslist. Thing is, it didn't have seats. I know... it seems like the guy selling it probably got the better end of the deal, but I got to make seats for it. So, I pulled out some old Brazilian cherry I had in the garage from my former life of being a woodworker. I bought some poly webbing from McMaster (the best online parts place in the world). A dozen trips to Lowes and I have a canoe with very nice seats.

Jenny and I took the canoe out on its maiden voyage, down the Lower Saluda River. We almost got stuck on a riffle that was a bit higher than it looked. Well, we did for a while. Here are some pictures for you to enjoy. If you have any flair to contribute, we will stick it on the canoe before we take our next venture.



To all you facebookers... Small group is at our house Sunday. Bring a friend!

There are a few things that as a Pediatric Nurse I just thought would never happen to my kids. One happened to us a year ago when Emma and Kate got into my prenatal vitamins. A second one happened yesterday...

I was sitting nursing Mary and Kate came running to me tell me that her green "circle" (eraser) was stuck up her nose. We have never had an instance of anything like this before. I asked her why she put it up her nose, she said "Because I needed a tissue." Maybe a plug was a good idea... Well I went to try to get it out and it by the time I found tweezers it was so far in her nose I couldn't see it anymore. I got on the phone to call the pediatrician, mostly to see did we go there or to the ER. While talking to their office she started crying so hard that it slipped out on it's own. I was thrilled hung up the phone and we went on with our day.

I only have a few things left that my kids should never do, me being a nurse, and I'd really like to think that those will truly never happen.

One thing from the event sticks out to me... the pediatrician's office says "no, you don't need to go to ER but we can't see you until 2pm" what??? I don't think the three year old would have coped well with an eraser stuck up her nose for 6 hours!

Everyone is learning something...

Mary:

• is getting good at moving. Today she started pulling up, mostly on me everything else is to high to reach but I give her a week...
• She has also mastered eating vege puffs and keeping them in her mouth. This is an exciting feat for James and I because this is a tested and proven way to keep infants quiet during church!!
• Lastly she is getting very good at giving kisses, though they are extremely slobbery and energetic as she smashes her faces against your check. Who can't help but love it though.

Emma:

• Is writing notes to people, you tell her what letters to write, she writes them. She does not need any help writing her name, Kate's name or Mary's

Kate and Emma:

• Both learned today how to put on shirts all by themselves (the one piece of clothing that has stumped them for months). I was slow getting upstairs to put them to bed and by the time I got to the stairs they were both standing there fully dressed and ready for bed. All they need us for is brushing teeth and reading books.

 
 

Jenny wanted me to post these pictures for you. The girls have been playing soccer this season at SOAR in Columbia. They weren't quite focusing on the game until for some reason, it popped into one of their minds that they should play holding hands. They actually were doing fairly well except for the whole three-legged race reverse manuever.

This weekend was busy but we had a lot of fun.  Friday night, we had Anna and her roommate Gretchen over for dinner.  That of course meant that the girls were a little crazy.  

 

Saturday, we woke up fairly early for the girls’ soccer game.  They still don’t quite understand the game.  They seem to play harder during practice.  I guess that with experience, they will probably get better at chasing the ball and staying with the game.  Maybe the other kids will rub off on them.  The only thing about oblivion is that they don’t get their feelings hurt.

 

After soccer we went to the farmers market.  It was downright chilly.  I don’t know whether it was the lack of trees near the stadium or what but the wind made me wish I had jeans and a jacket.  We bought some produce, found out when some other crops were expected, and headed to the Greek festival. 

 

Jenny and the girls ate gyros.  The only thing I really enjoy about the Greek festival is the food and I enjoyed the art show that was on an adjoining street last year.  There was no art show and that leaves food.  I was full from the Bojangles biscuits and just couldn’t eat any more.

 

Just to show you how big everyone is getting, we are starting soccer soon. We got all of our equipment in (had to get it online no one sells cleats that small here) and had to go test it out. The girls love running and kicking the ball, hopefully they will love it the same when there are 15 other kids running around with them. We'ff find out in two weeks.

So, I realized that we weren't really updating this very often. Some of it is that I haven't been taking many pictures and I like to post pictures more than stories. Anyway, I thought that I would include a story from the day.

As I was putting the girls to bed, Emma told me that she didn't want me to turn off the light.
Me: Why?
Emma: Because the shadow will point at me.
Me: But shadows are just what light makes. They aren't anything to be scared of. God made the light and God made shadows.
Emma: God is in here with us!
Me: Yes, God is everywhere so he is here, too.
Emma: I'll turn this way so I won't see the shadows.
Me: Okay. Goodnight girls.

One part of Emma being scared of the dark is that once I say goodnight she goes into super quiet mode. No matter how hard I try I can't get her to say goodnight back.

Wow this has to be the busiest summer we have had so far with kids. We spent a week at the beach and had a couple weeks with different family in town. Right now we are having a very first for us and Emma and Kate are having a week away at Ma's house (sorry Granddaddy it's just Ma's house). For me I have never had them away this long, so i'm enjoying my first vacation. I do still have Mary with me, but one baby for a mama who has NEVER had just one baby is a breeze!! There are many things I miss though.

1. The house is way to quiet.
2. I found myself whispering to myself yesterday during what would be nap time.
3. I almost forgot to change the channel this morning and watched Curious George for a few minutes before remembering to change it to the news.
4. A lady in the store yesterday asked me how I was handling being a new mother.
5. I actually miss all the people in store that say "You have your hands full" -- one guy yesterday said "at least you only have one" when Mary was fussing...
6. Every time I hear a bump in the house or something outside it makes me feel like the girls are up in their room.
7. I cleaned Sunday night and here it is Tuesday morning and it's still clean!!

They return home on Friday so we have a few more days of the strangeness and then it all goes back to normal again.

Jenny's new hobby is coupon-ing (to be read COOP-un-ing).... in case you didn't know. She has just created a new website for her hobby: http://southernsavers.com. Go check it out and print out some COOPuns.

So far if there is a phase you go through at 3 years old it would be one of irrational fears for Emma. We went to the State Museum yesterday with some friends. We have been there at least 5-7 times I would guess, always cheering on the way there because we would see the big shark. This time we walk in and Emma sees the shark and screams then runs and hides behind me. Yes it is a big shark, however it is not real and it's hanging from the ceiling very high up. She cried and screamed as we walked under it (you have to as you enter the main part of the museum). Kate meanwhile stands there with her hands on her hips saying "It's not scary, Emma it's a silly shark". Today at the park Emma sees a centipede (something we see all the time) again screams and runs sideways and backwards -- still screaming-- to get away from it. At the same time, now that she has alerted Kate and a friend that it is there they move in and poke it and have a grand time watching it. The only thing I can think of is that we need to start picking up bugs when we are outside and showing her how neat they are etc. to get her over this. I thought about that for a long time and decided that while I love her I just can't bring myself to touch bugs... so James started today picking them up and showing them to her. Maybe she won't realize that mom never touches them. I'll gladly tell her how neat they are if I don't have to touch them. The fear sharks... that might be a good one to hold onto and I have no idea how to work through that one.

Kate's quote for the day "Worm's make me happy".

It's been a long time since I've gotten pictures up. I am hoping to get better at posting again, but don't hold your breath...



This is Emma for those of you that didn't get it from the presence of bunny also in the picture. This is her favorite way to wear sunglasses.








What we could catch of a smile. It's very tricky to photograph, but she loves to do it so maybe we can catch one soon. She has gotten to be a pro at holding up her head and smiling, isn't life so nice for babies...








Kate. This just looks like a classic photo, maybe it's the glasses, I don't know but she just looks famous for some reason.








Kate after some instruction in golfing at Ma and Grandaddy's house. She actually listened and improved. We are heading there this weekend, we'll see if she remembers anything.

Okay no we don't have another set of twins... this is an old picture. The other day the girls and I were helping my mom go through the last of her boxes in her spare bedroom. We came across her photo album from when E & K were born and a few months worth of pictures after. Emma and Kate were sitting next to me as we went through the book and we get to the picture. Emma quickly say "Emma's wearing a stripped shirt" Kate then follows saying "Kate's wearing a pink shirt". I laughed for the rest of the day... currently these 3 year olds have a dressing nitch that they are stuck in and it appears to have started when they were 3 months old. Every morning Emma must find a stripped shirt and Kate must find a pink one. If there is a shortage of one or both you are set for a bad day. I always thought they just started this random rut but obviously they are innocent :)

Wow who knew throwing in one more kid made the days go by even faster. Most weeks I wake up and it's Friday and who knows where Mon-Thurs went. I don't think Mary has had the same effect on James at work though, to bad...

Last week was a busy week and fun.

Emma and Kate had their very first dentist appointment. The girls did great no crying and screaming (we kept hearing a lot of it as we sat in the waiting room so we were getting prepared mentally for it). They had a real visit with x-rays and the little polishing thing. We were amazed at how great they did and I'm up for laying down with them for the next 5 years if they keep doing that great. Well maybe the next 2 years...

Mary has started sleeping between 10-11 hours every night. That doesn't really need anything else said.


We went to the zoo for the first time since Mary was born. She loved the fish and sat there following any that were bright as long as we would stand there. The girls were thrilled to be back at the zoo and enjoyed that it was member night so the carousel was free (meaning they got to ride) and they had other hands on things that were not normal. Saturday was the annual Freedom day at Fort Jackson. The girls loved it yet again this year, climbing in helicopters and seeing plans fly over and parachuters. I didn't get to take many pictures but a friend that went with her kid took a lot so maybe she'll send us some.

Here's hoping this next week is a little slower. I'm starting to learn that they never are...