tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-179583852009-11-11T21:24:11.272-07:00I've witnessed every burp, smile, hiccup, and whimper my children have made at the expense of my career and sometimes my personal interests and social life. It's been a good trade.Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.comBlogger743125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-32709551703160190972009-11-10T09:22:00.003-07:002009-11-10T09:59:31.957-07:00

Hoover Trade-Off1997-2009After 12 ½ loyal years of service, our Hoover vacuum has finally died its last death. A lovely gift from my grandparents for our wedding, it has served us well. It has kept the floors clean in six different homes, various rentals that were left trashed by tenants, and more vehicles than I care to admit to having owned. It viciously chased the hair and dandruff of two

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-39026156611665464462009-11-05T17:07:00.008-07:002009-11-05T22:06:04.381-07:00

Playdough is a blessing from heaven.I haven't bought playdough in ages because it makes such a mess everywhere. I caved a week or so ago when Spicey wanted to spend her hard earned pennies on a playdough set. Anticipating territorial playdough play, I picked up an extra package for Jack. This time I got smart and set a strict rule: playdough only in the kitchen (no carpet) on the kiddie table.Oh

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-19811510947292295442009-11-04T09:36:00.002-07:002009-11-04T09:40:43.501-07:00

It's one of those times in life when it all just feels heavy. But there is Hope I have found to be true. I can rest in it.

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-77756105302401574222009-10-28T20:07:00.004-07:002009-10-28T20:14:16.798-07:00

This past summer we cleaned out the garage and I found a nurse costume that my aunt and uncle in England sent me for Christmas when I was about 5 or 6 years old. I'm not sure but I'm guessing it might have been around the same time that my aunt received her nurse's certification there. Maybe she'll see this post and correct me if I'm wrong. I loved wearing it and nursing my dolls so I was really

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-17540867197654775532009-10-27T12:21:00.006-07:002009-10-27T12:30:54.013-07:00

So raise your hand if the baby countdown ticker in the side bar mildly grosses you out.Yeah, that's me. Wildly raising my hand while using my other hand to try to stretch my arm out higher as in "pick me pick me!"It's just sort of bizarro, the way the baby floats around and bumps into the sides all stiff and nekkid like. One minute it's upright and then you look over again and it's banging its

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-91611173599881042502009-10-26T18:06:00.003-07:002009-10-26T18:23:44.584-07:00

I had a check-up today. Everything looks fine. I did manage to gain a few more pounds which was a bit of a bummer because I've tried to be careful. One reason might be that I'm actually living on more than toast and crackers these days. The nausea is still there but it's much more mild and food is appetizing again. Just after my doctor listened to the heartbeat and was checking the height of

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-58461720945773175642009-10-20T13:13:00.009-07:002009-10-20T20:56:15.894-07:00

It's a never-ending saga for me, how to make the most out of a house that is eternally too small for this family with no hope of getting out of it. It's the same song, but this verse is called, "Time to Adjust the Kids' Bedrooms Again". Oh wait, we've sung this verse before haven't we? Yes. Yes, we have.So as you may recall, Cool and Jack have shared a room for the past three years with the

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-64257144395351683532009-10-15T19:57:00.002-07:002009-10-15T20:12:06.115-07:00

During the first week back in school Cool came home and told me that they had done the "funnest" thing. Each kid was given a tube of toothpaste and was told to squeeze the whole thing out. After enjoying themselves squeezing out toothpaste they were instructed to put all the toothpaste back in the tube. Knowing that his teacher is a creative, hands-on teacher I asked him what the lesson was in

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-67587998721301906862009-10-09T12:10:00.003-07:002009-10-09T12:49:48.253-07:00

The excrutiating days of boringness are about to send me over the edge. Here is a synopsis of our day:8:45am: load kids in the car to take Cool to school.12:30: load kids in the car to take Spicey to school.1:00pm: Put Jack down for a nap3:30pm-ish: Jack wakes up and alerts me to his awakeness by laying on the floor and kicking his door with his heels. If ANYONE answers the door kicking besides

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-12397448145491182572009-10-01T14:09:00.015-07:002009-10-01T14:52:45.530-07:00

Goodness, it is quite sad how seldom I update my blog these days. In all honesty, there has been very little to say. No one, and I mean NO ONE, enjoys reading a blog that is nothing but whines and negativity in every post so I figured I better just shut my trap. I've been really nauseous and miserable for weeks, medication helps marginally. I'm tired. Blah blah. I actually feel carsick when I sit

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-58914545630875457072009-09-14T14:24:00.003-07:002009-09-14T14:34:58.272-07:00

So who wants to read a post about how tired I am? About how every day I claw my way through, inch by inch until the golden hour of naptime arrives? Oh my word I am so tired I just want to sleep for the next 12 days straight. After that I might need to take a nap. There is very, very little being accomplished in my home because of my excessive need for sleep. Every morning I think to myself,

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-72182961249843308992009-09-09T18:47:00.002-07:002009-09-09T18:49:22.287-07:00

I don't know which one of us loves this more, her or me? Spicey is 5th from the left, her hair in braids. Look at that lovely straight leg and pointed toe!Squee!

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-69437849824081919882009-09-08T19:33:00.003-07:002009-09-08T20:37:26.011-07:00

Armed with my little Sea Bands and a dose of Zofran, I actually feel like blogging tonight. Amazing, no? It's been a lousy week. A very lousy week indeed. So let's talk about the big news, shall we? Other than the surprise at the end of a post and little blurb a few days ago, we haven't discussed this little development at all.So.We're having another baby. I know, I can't believe it either.

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-35970559359207388662009-09-05T14:54:00.001-07:002009-09-05T14:55:46.408-07:00

Popping in to say that things looked good at the doctor's office, nice whooshy little heartbeat. EDD: April 20. The sick has set in. Worse then I ever felt with the other kids. I'm not spending much time with the internets these days. Thatisall.

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-53770232457791989592009-08-29T08:44:00.018-07:002009-08-29T09:39:26.015-07:00

School started this past week. Cool is a fourth grader. FOURTH, 4th, quatro, IV, fourth grade. Didn't he just start kindergarten? Seriously? And didn't I lament the same thing last year? I think I did.As usual, he could barely give me the time of day for a before school photo. Note the half smile, half grimmace. This is one of only two photos he allowed me to take that day. Sigh. The good news is

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-59926585284392324602009-08-27T08:18:00.004-07:002009-08-27T09:01:59.141-07:00

The other night I had what I call "The High School Boyfriend Dream". In this dream I am back in the middle of my first "love" relationship, as much as a 16-year old girl can love a boy, anyway. The boy was what I thought, a total Adonis. Football star, drove a cool truck, so cool and perfect, and so sweet. We adored each other. Until he broke up with me nine months later because I wouldn't

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-1277140518909432312009-08-24T15:34:00.003-07:002009-08-24T15:44:31.115-07:00

Looking forward to:Routine to the dayCooler weatherA quiet house in the afternoonDance classes starting again for the SpiceGirlEarlier bedtimesShorter eveningsSweaters and jeansSad to see go:Long, lazy morningsNo bedtime rules, conducive to late evenings out playingMy girl going to school every afternoonLong weekendsPlaytime with our friendsFlip flops**Today was a brief open house for the kids to

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-67198830859070511072009-08-22T08:24:00.004-07:002009-08-22T08:44:57.643-07:00

A few years ago I stopped using any sort of fabric softener in my laundry. I made the choice after seeing my tiny three-year old daughter with scaley, painful rashes in her armpits, behind her knees, and around her legs where her undies rubbed snug against her skin. This change included liquid softeners, dryer sheets, and any detergents that advertised to have softeners in them (i.e. "Now with

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-80385066063893825952009-08-18T14:25:00.012-07:002009-08-18T14:49:47.588-07:00

We packed up and headed for the hills on Thursday afternoon for an extended weekend of camping. This time we went with our friends from church, nine families in all. I love this annual trip in general, but I think this year was my most favorite year of all. The weather was cold, and we had a bit of rain on Friday morning but it wasn't anything we couldn't live with.The campground we go to for

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-36417345568455306702009-08-11T08:41:00.005-07:002009-08-11T15:37:50.743-07:00

My parents invited us over for dinner last night and requested that we leave 2/3 of our children there for a sleepover. We, of course, complied. So this morning it is just little Jacky and me rattling around the house and it completely reinforces why we have more than one child: built-in playmates. It's pretty boring and quiet without at least two small people running around here. For all their

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-84125988725894718322009-08-07T13:30:00.004-07:002009-08-07T13:52:27.920-07:00

I was just scanning my local newspaper's website and saw a blip about unemployment rising. Thank goodness that the government keeps on buying up all these big businesses to minimize unemployment and to thwart further economic downfall.Their most recent plan to "help" the economy is my total favorite so far. Cash for Clunkers, it's so rad. Here's how it goes, you take your old, possibly paid off

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-18192742620126598122009-08-06T21:01:00.004-07:002009-08-06T22:07:08.439-07:00

This is now the wallpaper on my computer monitor and at least fifty nine hundred times a day I yearn to crawl into the photo and go back to Vermont. I do believe that it's safe to say that Vermont has inched its way into my heart in a tiny little cranny next to the spot that is occupied by the Oregon coast. I'd love to take credit for the photo, but I can't. It was taken by Kelly Wilkinson, a

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-61085553586727197192009-07-30T08:27:00.006-07:002009-07-30T10:52:14.149-07:00

I honestly cannot even begin to put my trip to Weekend Sewing in Vermont into words. I'm trying, I really am. It was just so amazing that I am struggling to even pick little pieces out of my memory and adequately put them on my computer screen.So for now I will just link you to April's blog and you can feast yourself on her beautiful pictures and her perfectly concise, well done narration. I will

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-9941242178602911912009-07-20T21:02:00.002-07:002009-07-20T21:25:07.941-07:00

The most amazing thing happened on Sunday morning, I woke up and the sun was shining in my head. Everyone got ready for church and we were on time. I enjoyed the entire morning and afternoon before I realized that I had not lost my breath even once. Not a single shadow or grip in my chest. It was incredible. I felt so free. I got lots accomplished. We cared for my friend's sweet children

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17958385.post-87347294355206845102009-07-17T08:51:00.000-07:002009-07-17T10:19:02.968-07:00

In an effort to start kicking this week's earlier posts further down the bottom of the stack, how about a little sewing talk? Sounds good to me, too. Let's see, I've been busy sewing. As the temperatures have begun to creep up higher and higher and it's not cooling down at night I've felt compelled to make Jack some new summer pajamas. I've been tempted a few times to just buy some new ones, but

Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09652304693670344168noreply@blogger.com5