Long week.....

Last Thursday I woke up at 2 AM to Maddie having a temp of over 104. When we got up around 9 she would not stop screaming & her fever kept spiking. I got worried since she is only 5 months so I called the Dr. They took her right away.
They could not see anything obvious was wrong so they figured she had a virus. They said to keep her comfortable, hydrated & let her rest. We had a hell of a time for 5 days & it finally passed on Tuesday. I was beyond tired & run down after this point. She was very much a mommy's girl while sick & that carried over for a few days afterwards. It finally got to the point just on Thursday where she would let anyone else hold her again.
All of this while the older 2 had school & all that entails plus my 4 year old at home. The joys & stresses of being a mommy. I am glad she is well & seemed to weather her 1st illness. I am sure more will be on the way as fall approaches & I am not looking forward to it.

weekend recap

   I meant to post this yesterday but as you can see life got away from me. My older girls started back to school yesterday so it was a long, busy, tiring day.
  Brooke is now in 7th grade, I am not sure I am ready for her to be in junior high. Catie is now in 5th grade. They both said they had a good day which is a plus. Brooke is having to adjust to getting up at 6:30 AM & having to ride a bus.
  Now on to my weekend. Friday I turned 34. The girls decided to make & decorate cupcakes for me. They turned out wonderfully. I was proud of Brooke as it was the 1st time she baked anything on her own.
  We had Chinese for dinner which I love. Well the girls & I had it. I got something else for Joey since Chinese raises his blood sugar way to high. I also got a yellow birthday cake, though I don't think I took any pictures of it.
  We needed a new wireless router for the computers so Joey told me to go to best buy & get one. He also told me to get whatever I wanted for my birthday. He is the worst shopper & knows I know exactly what I want. This system has worked well for us for years. He does sometimes surprise me with things he thinks I'll like, which I also love.
  I had done some research & deep thinking about whether I really wanted a tablet computer or not. Joey was afraid I would end up not using it. I decided I wanted the Hp touch over the iPad since I wanted something that supported Flash.
  I got a 32g HP touch & case. I am really enjoying it. The typing is touchy now that we put a screen saver on it, but I am figuring that will work itself out. I still have not read the instructions manual, but I am loving it.
  Saturday Joey's cousin from New York came over. He was in the area for the week visiting my sister in law. I had never met him & he wanted to meet our girls. My sister in law brought him & his partner over. They were both very nice. Maddie decided she liked John's partner Dave right away. She held out her arms to go to him. It was sweet. She let Dave hold her too.
  The girls & I had plans so we did not get to visit long. They were having the closing party for the summer reading program at the library. Brooke had won 2 books in the weekly raffle. All 3 girls won at sometime during the summer. We also won a 4 pack of tickets to the zoo, we will just have to buy 1 ticket.
  I spent Sunday getting ready for the girls to go back to school the next day. I am trying to get back into the habit of going to be bed at 11 PM, so I can get the girls up.

Started my workout today

   I started the Biggest Loser game on the wii today. I started with a 4 week challenge on beginner. I am hoping I can stick to it. I need to get back into working out.
   On Tuesday I got the last bit of dental work done before my partial comes in on August 30th. I am wanting to transform into the new me that I am happier with. I was doing really well a few years ago then I had major marriage problems. I am an emotional eater so I let it get the best of me.
   I am getting hi lites in September for the 1st time. We are holding off until the sun is not as strong outside as to cut down on fade time. I got my hair cut in June so I won't need a hair cut for  a while.
   I need to get my sugar problem under control. I need to find better snacking options & portion control. I also stay away from artificial sweeteners so that limits a lot of the so called "diet" foods. I am need more veggies & fruits. I seem to forget about it once I buy it & then it ends up going bad :(
     

beware of making the mom mad.................

   My oldest has a friend of sorts I guess you would say. We will call her L. She is a grade higher than she is & they will both be in junior high together this year (Brooke will be a 7th grader).
   L has the bad habit of calling over a dozen times a day on Brooke's cell phone. Brooke has asked her to stop calling so much, will not answer the phone & has even turned her phone off.
   We were having some issues with Brooke yesterday & L was around with her mom. I asked her to please give Brooke some space for a few weeks. 2 hours later she was at my house again with her mom wanting Brooke.
   This did not make me happy since she would not respect my wishes. It was beyond hot here today & a trying day for me. Brooke was on her way to see her friend R when I went to get her & bring her home. She had taken the baby with her outside after we told her it was way to hot.
   I am dealing with her when L calls for about the 14th time that day. I finally answered it & said to not call again. When we got home R called wondering where she was. I told her to go ahead & answer the phone & let her know she would be not be there.
  I hear Brooke getting really upset & start yelling. It turns out L is there & saying that next time I answer "Brooke's phone" she will call the police. Well for starters Brooke is 12 so it is not her phone. She is not old enough for a job to pay for it nor can she enter a contract.
   I ask to talk to R. I ask about the current drama going on, R knows I have no tolerance for drama. I can hear L in the back ground ranting & raving like a lunatic. I told R Brooke was not going today but maybe she could tomorrow. I do not want her to be there if L is there. If she shows up & Brooke does not leave than she will not be allowed at her house anymore.
   I had been trying to block L's number but AT&T was having issues. I was able to get it blocked tonight though so hopefully that will cut down on the piddly junk. 

Mommy, mommy there's a bead in my nose

   These were the words my 4 year old just came crying at me. She had a small green bead in her left nostril. I tried holding one side of her nose & trying to blow it out. 
   I got the tweezers out but it was to far up to even try. I then thought of the chop stick in the kitchen drawer.  I had to give it a try because I did not want to end up in the ER at 11PM. I was pleased that it did the trick & pulled it far enough down so she could blow it out.
   I am hoping this teaches her a lesson about putting things in her nose or ears. I did stick a bean in my ear when I was younger & did not tell anyone. It started to hurt as it sprouted. I am just glad she told me right away so we could get it taken care of.
  That was my excitement for the night. She was not wanting to go to bed before that but now she is in bed on her way to sleep. I am hoping I can get some sleep of my own now. I have to be up early to go to the dentist in the morning.

Yes Virginia, I am thinking about Christmas shopping

   I am trying to get a jump start on Christmas, especially since 3 of our daughters have winter birthdays. Their birthdays are 12/22, 2/8 & 3/4. 
   I will wait on most things for the older girls since their choices will change as they see stuff being released. I know some video games, movies & such I will get. 
   I am going back & forth about getting them MP3 players. We would have gotten them iPod Nanos but do not like the new design, we have an older generation that we love. I am not willing to put out over $250 a girl for touches. We do have 2 iPhones that will turn into touches but we will not want them carrying those around with them.
  Our youngest will be 1 in early March. The problem is after your 4th girl you run out of things to get that you don't have a version of all ready. I have a few things on my amazon list for her. Our oldest will be 12 1/2 by Christmas & just at that awkward stage to buy for. Our soon to be 11 year old still wants to be into things that I feel as getting to be to young for her. It is not that I want her to grow up to soon I just want to get things that will grow with her.
   I have talked to my sisters & they said our brother wants a PS2 for Christmas. I guess his ex wife threw his away or something like that. We are looking into getting him a used one from Gamestop. I am using my points from Myview survey site to get a $25 gift card to there to put towards it.
   I am saving my change to cash in at coin star for amazon codes for my sisters & mom. I also know we will take our points from our debit card & get gift cards for my dad & in laws. That just leaves my sister-n-law & her husband to figure out. 
   My mom & FIL have late Dec birthdays too plus my dad has a late Nov birthday. That time of year hits hard.  Starting in early Oct until March we have 10 birthdays not including all holiday spending.
   I also have to make our 6 stockings. DH is the worst to shop for. He is one of those people who basically wants for nothing & gets what he wants when he wants it. I am the same way. I do love makeup, books,  bath things, movies & video games though. That gives me lots of choices for my stockings. I end up getting DH things I know he will use (hair gel, body wash, gum, tylenol & such)

Back to school shopping

   One of the things I hate about going to school year round is the short shopping time we get for the next school year. My girls last day was June 30th & we start August 8th. 
  I am finding myself trying to get the basics for a 5th & 7th graders. The problem is a lot of the school supplies are still on the expensive side. That does not include that even our public schools wear uniforms here too so that really adds to it. I hate that they have to wear white shirts especially since I am allergic to bleach so that makes it hard to keep the shirts clean. You can add to that a child who gets chronic bloody noses & I am sure you can imagine my disdain.
   On Wednesday I went & tried to get the bare minimum they will need & then hopefully get the rest when better sales hit. I do still have to get a note book since I forgot 1 for my oldest. I spent $65 & all that I got was: 2 back packs, folders, 2 binders, pens, 1 box of crayons per girl, 1 pack of glue sticks, notebooks, 3 packs of post it notes, computer paper.
   I still have to get uniforms, 2 pairs of shoes per girls (3 each if I get gym shoes) plus extra paper, poster board, notebooks, folders, glue, crayons and the list goes on (imagine in your head me singing & "the beat goes on"). I am lucky my 4 year old does not start preschool until mid September so I can wait for things to go on clearance for her.  None of that cost included the workbook fee for them.
   My 5th grader wanted to take her lunch this year until she learned she would have to make it herself & that deterred her. I told her she was old enough for that responsibility. I don't think she quite saw it my way.
   Oh I forgot to add into the cost of a new cell phone since my oldest will not be at the same school as my 5th grader. Then in late fall we will have to replace our oldest daughter's phone. We got her a cheap starter phone & it has not held up well these past 2 years. Normally we would just passed down our phones when we upgrade but we got iPhones. We have decided we do not feel comfortable with the girls walking around with those. We will turn off the service & turn them into iTouches they can use around the house.

wordless wednesday

Weekend recap

  I took the girls to the dentist Friday. Catie need her 2 eye teeth pulled. She was born with a cleft lip & it has caused some dental problems with her. Abby needed a filling & has to get more in Sept. Brooke was fine this time, which is surprising. She is12 & hates to take care of what needs to be done, it drives me nuts
  We did end up flooding early Saturday morning. We got over 6 inches of rain outside & about an inch in the basement. I have a load of clothes to wash from it but it was not bad. Dh is looking into seeing what it would take to seal the basement so it will not flood.
  We took the longest time deciding if we would go to the fair on Saturday. We knew it was going to be overly hot & possibly rain. We did not go last year because it flooded & we had water up to my upper thighs (I am 5'7). We have only missed going 2 years in the last 12 years so we like to keep the tradition.
  We were going with my 2 sisters (they are 24 & twins) they were going to help since I needed someone to help with the baby & then someone to watch a girl while on rides. It is to hard to watch the girls ride when the older 2 are on big rides & Abby is still on little ride.
  We decided to bite the bullet & go. Yes it was beyond hot, i put on sunscreen & still ended up fried.  Around 4 the heat got the best of my husband & his sugar fell fast. Catie & I stood by the rides trying to hold him up so he would not hit his head on the concrete. Finally someone noticed that something was wrong & helped me get him to the ground. My sister Jamie had the baby in an air conditioned building so I sent my sister Randi after the paramedics. 
  We found some people who were really helpful. Most people seemed he was just over heated & offered water, it was still nice. I had one lady who was in her mid 20's who offered to buy him water. I said I appreciated it very much but he was a type 1 diabetic so it would not help. Catie was so upset by everything, it is still hard on her after 10 years.
  The ambulance showed up & took him to the front, I walked the girls over to where Jamie was & then went to be with Joey. Once I knew he was okay I called Jamie & asked her to let Catie know he was fine. I asked her to take the girls for their last hour of rides. There was a ride special from 12-6.
  They got things under control & asked me if I could handle things from there or if they should take him to the hospital. I said I had it under control, I knew he needed to eat. The ironic thing is when this all happened we were just talking about what he was going to eat. I had kept an eye on him making sure he was eating & hydrated since I know the heat makes everything worse for him.
  Sunday was fairly laid back. Joey needed soda for work so he got up & took me to the store for it. I washed all of the dishes & cleaned the sink. Catie cleaned the front room all on her own without being asked so I took her for ice cream later in the evening. I did some laundry. Catie & I played marbles while her sisters were at a friends house.  
  I watched a few movies "Charlie St. Cloud" "Cruel Intentions 3" "The Kids are All Right" the last 2 were pretty weird. That is what happens when nothing is on tv & you have 100's of cable channels.

Myview survey site

  I am getting questions about myview from a reply to a blog. It is a survey site that is by invite only. I love it because if you start a survey even if you do not qualify they give you 125. I started the site in Oct of 2010 & have earned 316375 points so far. I average about a gift card a month. They have a number of cards to choose from. I just keep the window open while I am doing other things & click on it when I think of it to see if I have any surveys. It is one of the few survey sites I have found to be worth my time & effort.
  If you are interested send me your email. I promise to only use it to send you an invite & not for mystery meat (spam). 

I hate down pours

  I live in an area where when we get heavy rain you have to worry about flooding in your basement. It is a major pain in the rear to say the least. It usually seems to happen when I am home alone & have to deal with the flooding alone.
  My husband has been a drummer off & on for years. He has a very expensive drum set that is set up in our basement. I have a few problems with this. For starters that is where we have family  our get together & they take up way to much room. The second problem is he refuses to keep them off the floor. If it starts flooding he expects me to run down there & try to break down this huge, heavy set & move it. It is not something I can really do myself. I am also worried about other stuff that may need to be gotten up in the mean time.
  We know the stuff should be kept up but with 4 kids, it happens. I am getting ready to leave after lunch to take the older girls to the dentist. There will be maybe a 3 hour span where no one is home to watch the basement. It is pouring out and that means the potential of flooding. He told me last night to get the floor picked up in case the rain hit but did not do anything with him drums. I am wondering how long it will be before he is texting or calling about it.
  I better get moving. I still have to try to pump more milk for Maddie's cereal. Abby is not up yet & I still have to make lunch. Brooke is irritated I made her get up to shower before the storm hit, oh well. 
  Here is to hoping I come home to a dry basement.....

Looking for reviewers for necklaces

 

 This is one that was made for a young girl

I can take close ups if someone likes, I was pressed for time.


  

  



  I am not sure how many reviewers I will need yet as I am not sure how many necklaces she will donate. They are all one of a kind. I will be looking for people who normally wear necklaces. 
  I do have pictures of some of them. They usually come on a cord that you can then transfer over to a chain if you wish. If I find more examples I will post them (have to ask Catie if she knows where anymore are). The ones I have are ours personally, so you would receive something different.
  I am not sure how soon I will need the reviewers but would like to have everything in order when she decides to do this. If you are interested please leave your email address & I will contact you directly.

wordless wednesday 2

Here are my 2 older girls

Wordless Wednesday

A new app on my iPhone

journey to a size 8

  
waist 36'
hips 41'
R thigh 24'
L arm 13'
chest 41 1/2'




  Those are my goal jeans, as you can see I have a ways to  go. I am not going to be to hard on myself as I did just have my 4th c-section 4 months ago. I am nursing so I have not been as diligent about things as I could be. 
  I am not going to use a scale to gauge things. I am going to use my tape measure & those pants. I want to count calories & get back into exercising. I will aim for 1600-1800 calories. I want to make sure the baby gets the milk she needs & can't really cut calories to compromise her.
  It is really to hot to be doing much outside though I do enjoy running & have a jogging stroller. I have a wii & xbox360 with kinect. I have 14 workout games between the 2 systems so no excuse to not get moving. I also have a mini trampoline & hand weights.
  My problems are I have the worst sweet tooth, I eat to late at night & it is junk food. I also am drinking to much soda. I know my weak points so there is no excuse for me to not reach my goal. I am majorly lacking motivation though & I am well aware of this. I did my measurements this morning. I will do them again on the 1st & then on the 1st of every month from here on out.
  Once I hit my goal I will make Dh get me a new wardrobe. I am trying to figure out some smaller goal rewards for me that don't involve clothes. I am in a size 14 right now, so 1st goal is size 12, then 10, final is an 8.

Monday meme

1. What did you do this week to take time for yourself? My nightly baths

2. If your life was a movie, what would the name of it be and what would it be about? life with 4 girls. It would be about the ins & outs of with my girls

3. When was the last time you swung on a swing? I hate swings they make me dizzy

Birthday present dilema, can he really be right?

  My birthday is August 5th. I am trying to decide what I would like. I thought I had it all figured out but now Dh has me doubting myself. I like gadgets but then seem to not use them much. Dh likes to point this out & I then get to remind him that he is the same way.
  I have the original nook but don't use it all that often. I use it more now that I added the app to my iPhone. I wanted a Keurig for Christmas. It really is not geared towards someone like me because I am not a coffee drinker. The last thing I wanted was my karaoke machine. It is not getting used as much as I would like either.
  That now leads me to my newest want. I want an iPad with 3g capability. I have a lap top & desk top but want a tablet computer. I want to be able to walk wherever I want to be without lugging around the weight of a laptop. My nook has Internet capability, so does my iPhone.
  Dh worries that I will not like it as well I think. He says it is like having my iPhone be the size of my Nook. We are looking to upgrade to the new iPhone that is coming out this fall. He said there are things I still will not be able to do. I know it does not support Flash & I am not sure what else.
  I have tried to ask what others think of theirs but you gt mixed reviews just like with anything else. I really want to be sure before we lay down over $900 for it. I am going to pay for 1/2 of it with gift cards I have from Target (this was my suggestion, he has no problem paying for it all). He suggested we save the money & get me a Mac laptop which I know I don't want.
  I am now not sure what I want at all & it is driving me nuts. I just don't want to get it & then have to admit my Dh was right. That is not what I want for my 34th birthday haha
  

Introducing Abby Cadabby

  Here is the last of my girls Abigail Marie. She was born Dec. 22nd 2006. I call her my Christmas present. She is such a mommy's girl. I can't go anywhere without her if she is around. I always tell her I am going to run away & she asks to come along haha.
  She is still adjusting to not being the baby of the family. I nursed her for 39 months, I stopped when we decided to try to get pregnant again. She slept with us until then too.
  She has 1 year of preschool left. She gets irritated with her class since a lot of the kids seem to not want to do their homework, cry & some even sleep the whole time. I wonder what she will do when she hits kindergarten & they don't behave there ;)
  She enjoys the color pink, gymnastics, Calliou, Max & Ruby, playing her DS, dancing games on the wii. She is like me & always singing something. She loves Abba & knows a number of the songs by heart, pretty good for a 4 year old.
  It took forever for her to have a relationship with daddy. It was not until October & he was home for a few weeks after a work injury that she grew close to him. I was glad to see her open to him. 
 

Catherine, calling Catherine.

  I still had 2 daughters to introduce so figured I better get started. I need to find decent pictures of them to show off. Dh wiped this computer clean though so I only have what is on my phone picture wise for now.
  Catie turned 10 in Feb. Take notice that I said Catie & not Cathy. I decided before she was born that I did not want her to have the nickname Cathy so I started calling her Catie very early on. She gets upset when someone calls her Cathy.
  She was born with a cleft lip, we got it repaired at 4 months. She was a difficult sort of baby. She did not want anyone to hold her unless she was sick. That was hard because we all love to snuggle & love on babies & she wanted none of that. She was very shy & still is to a point.
  She has strawberry blond hair that she loves. Her grandma (mother-in-law) is one of her best friends. They will spend days on end together, luckily she only lives 3 streets away. 
  She is on the local gymnastics team. She just finished her 1st year. She did well & worked hard for years to get to be there. She gets frustrated that she can't do some of the things the other girls who have been on the team longer can do. We just tell her that things will come for her with practice.
  She is still content to be a little girl in most ways & play with Littlest Pet Shops & the likes of it. I am fine with that, so many kids feel the need to grow up instantly.
  She will be going into 5th grade in August. I can remember when it was her 1st day of preschool & she did not want to let go of me. My girls are al growing up & it can be a hard pill to swallow.
  She loves the color red, collects cows. She likes to read, play webkinz & various online sites. She is helpful & like to bake. She has a temper to match her beautiful hair, haha. She loves to garden with grandpa.

No, I don't want to clean

  I hate to clean with a passion. It feels like that is all I do especially with 4 kids & a husband. It seems like no matter what I do I can't stay on top of things. I know a lot of it is our fault for not staying on the older girls better about picking up after themselves.
  I hate to see the mess around me. Dh calls it the lived in look. We have 4 kids so we do not expect perfection but orderly would be nice. The baby still has her infection & is on her 2nd day of meds. She is not feeling well & did not nap well earlier or I would be tackling this mess. I also admit I lack motivation & get overwhelmed. Not just with the task of cleaning but with many aspects of life.
  It is like I look at it & know it won't stay clean so why try. I know better so I do attempt to keep it under control. I grew up in a house with a mom who is a borderline hoarder. I was expected to constantly clean up after her & my 3 siblings so cleaning frustrates me. 
  I expect the girls to clean up after themselves & help out with something if we request. My oldest knows how to do her laundry & think it is time to introduce dishes too. I had a friend when I was growing up that never learned how to do anything for herself. She could make mac & cheese, that was it as far as domestics. I do not want my girls to find themselves in that spot.
  I need to get better about doing certain things every day. I used to be really good about it. It is hard to get back into the habit with 2 younger ones always at home & one of them being a baby who needs me.
  I always wonder how others manage to keep things together & what works best for them. Ideas, suggestions are always welcome. I need to see if Maddie will let me put her down so I can get something accomplished.

25 random things about me

 This is on a friends blog, so thought I would hop on the band wagon

1. I have been a stay at home mom for 12 years now
2. I am a mom of 4 girls
3. I do not eat anything that would turn my mouth blue
4. I am the oldest of 4
5. My younger sisters are identical twins
6. I grew up in Indiana
7. I have lived in Chicago about 12 years
8. My favorite holiday is Halloween
9. My favorite season is fall
10. I never learned to drive
11. I love to read
12. I am an 80's girl at heart
13. I love most animated Disney movies
14. My favorite color is coral
15. I lived in Germany for a year at 21
16. When I was 19 I joined Active Duty Army
17. I got out of the Army after a year when I got hurt
18. I love to sing though I don't do it well
19. I sing out loud all of the time, even while walking down the street
20. I collect frogs
21. I nursed my last baby for 39 months, only stopped because we decided to try again for a baby
22. I take a bath every night
23. I have to have my own computer & refuse to share
24. I played volleyball 5th-12th grade & have coached 
25. I hate avocados

update on the missing time

   I figured I would update on what has been going on since I posted about Brooke. As you can read I took my youngest to the dr. today & what was entailed there.
  The older girls last day of school was June 30th. I have a little over a month with them & they start their new year on August 8th. That does not give me a lot of time to replace their school uniforms (even public schools here wear them) school supplies & such. It is a pain & expensive since a lot of the sales are not even under way yet.
   We have gone to story time at the library a few times. The older 3 are in the summer reading program. They have all earned their shirts all ready. Abby has won a raffle & got 2 free books. It has kicked up my reading too. I discovered a new author named Therese Fowler & read 2 books by her. I am reading "44 Charles Street" by Danielle Steel right now. I better get a move on it since it is a library book.
   The Saturday before the 4th of July our block had it's 1st block party in 25 years. It did not go as badly as feared. No real mishaps. I did not have to strangle anyone. All went well until my sister in law showed up dressed like a hooker. It did not go well with me with her standing in front of my house like that at a neighborhood function. Joey felt as though I over reacted & I probably did. I was tired by that time & just ready for bed.
   The Saturday after the 4th of July they always do fireworks where I lived during my high school years. My parents still have a house there though they now live 30 min away. We went to see the fireworks there with my 2 sisters & parents. My dad went any way as my mom ducked out at the last moment. We went to a miniature golf, activity place before hand. Joey's 2 cousins own the place so we sometimes take the girls. They gave us 8 passes so the girls could do things.
    Brooke went on a trampoline thing that you bungee jump on. Her, Joey, Catie & Abby all went on the go karts while I was with the baby. I did not feel like going on them. Brooke took 2 turns at the batting cages. We also used 100 tokens in the arcade. The girls then got all sorts of candy & trinkets with their tickets.
    Tonight I will take the girls to see "Shrek ever after" in the park at dusk. We have been doing it for years. Joey stays home & enjoys the peace & quiet which is fine with me. The park is only 3 streets away so we will just walk there. I will pack snacks, the girls will visit with their friends & such. I am glad it has cooled down a bit, it is not as nice as it was yesterday though.
   I am going to try to lay down for a bit. I have had the worst sinus headache for days that just does not want to quit. Hopefully I can get better about keeping up to date on this.

You're getting shots so why are you laughing

   Well life got away from me as it often will when you have 4 kids. Today we are at Madison's 4 month check up so I figured it was time to introduce her.
   She was born on March 4, 2011. I can tell you it was a Friday afternoon. I am never good at remembering the time the girls are born. That is probably because I am allergic to the anesthesia and throw up all over afterwards.
   She was 9lbs and the biggest baby to date. She was 20 1/4 inches long which makes her the shortest baby at birth. She had a head full of reddish dark hair and blue eyes. She spent time under the lights due to blood issues. It is a funny story.
   I am type O+ as is Brooke and Catie. Abby is O-. We thought Joey was O+ his whole family thought they were O+. Well Maddie gets here and is A- we can't figure out what happened. There is some rare blood disorder my mom researches so we are afraid she has it. I tell Joey call your doctor and confirm your blood type. Well turns out he is A-. At least we know can stop worrying about Maddie.
   She is a very happy baby. She gets lots of attention which she loves. She loves to imitate people. She has the cutest laugh and smile. She has learned to screech which can be a bit much at times. She loves to scoot all of the place on her tummy. She is convinced she is old enough to eat what she wants. She is a breastfed baby which she loves.
   I am wondering how much she weighs now. I know she packing on the pounds and getting quite long. She is growing by leaps and bounds. I want to make time stand still as she will be my last baby. She is now 18lb 4oz & 26 1/2 in long.
   She could not get her shots as she has some weird infection on top of her scalp. She has to take 10 days worth of medicines & a cream. We will then see if she can get her shots. This medicine is nasty tasting even with me telling them to add flavoring so I don't see how I am going to force it down her 3 times a day for 10 days.
   I am going to nurse her & see if she will nap before we head to the movies tonight. That is our Maddie in a nutshell. 

  
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

not quite a teen angst

  First off I am beyond mad. I had a whole post about my oldest & it would not save it & it disappeared when I tried to post it. I now have to try to recall all of my witty antidotes.

  I was trying to decide if I should start with my youngest or my oldest. As you can see my oldest won out in the end.  Brooke just turned 12 this month. She is caught in limbo between young girl & a teen. She seems to be 12 going on 21 most days.
  She has drawn the conclusion that her parents are idiots & her 10 year old sister is a few select unmentionable names most days. She knows better than to utter those words out loud though.
  She feels are main objective in life is to make her as miserable as possible. I can't deny that the thought does cross my mind some days. She does not have the newest, coolest phone so she is devastated. She does have a basic text capable phone. We do not let her dress in a way that could get her mistaken as a street walker which makes us uncool. We do not let her roam at will the streets of a major city which makes up stupid. She has no clue how well she has it.
  She has been fairly safe in her own little bubble that seems to encompass most of her friends. They are at the start of their I'm invincible stage. She is pretty typical across the board for most girls her age that I have seen. She at times does not have the good sense that god gave a rock though.
  She will be starting 7th grade on August 30th. She will finish this school year on June 30th. Her & her sister Catie (10) go to school year round. They are changing the tracks on us this year so I have no clue how well it is going to work for us.
  She loves the color purple, which is just like I did at her age. I had so many articles of purple clothing & even purple bedding. She loves things with skulls on it which mainly seems to be clothes right now. She liked lighthouses but i think that are phasing themselves out.
  She is tall for her age & on the thin side. It makes it hard to find clothes that we deem appropriate. She is in a size 0 in juniors for pants. The tops are not quite built for her body yet much to her chagrin. She is wearing a size 8 1/2 in women's shoes. She is going to have big feet like I do, as I am in a 10.
  She is the daughter that looks the most like me. She has brown hair & hazel eyes. All of the girls look like sisters though. She is not sure how she feels about looking like her mom yet. Hopefully in time she will realize that is not a bad thing.
  She loves to read which she also gets from me. She seems to like horror. I read it at her age just on a much milder level. I try to not censor what she reads to much. I look up anything I feel is questionable.
  She likes music that comes on radio stations her mom would ever in a million years listen to which just makes me lose more cool points. I am an 80's girl at heart. She does love Kiss though. We took & Catie to see them in concert a few years ago.
  One of these days she will figure out that we do most things with her best intentions at heart. We will just have to deal with her not quite a teen angst until it turns into full blown teen angst I guess.

The beginning or maybe it is the middle

As the title suggests I am a mom of 4 girls. They are 12, 10 & my last was born in March 2011. I figured listing that is easier than constantly trying to label her in months. Though she will soon be 4 months. I am going to be 34 in August. I have been married almost 9 years. My husband will be 39 in August. He has also been a type 1 diabetic for almost 30 years. I reside in Illinois but grew up in Indiana. 
I am the oldest of 4. I am sure you will meet my brother & 2 sisters somewhere along the journey. My sisters are 2 of my best friends, they will be 25 in October. My brother is about 28 I am thinking. I won't touch on him much as it is a sticky situation where he is concerned.
This is mainly just a brief look into our jumbled life.