Warmup = Ladybugs!

The warm weather last week brought the ladybugs out of the woodwork. Who needs a bug zapper when V will just run around gathering everything she can see?!?

Just another lazy Sunday

I was sitting at the dining room table reading through the paper. Victoria saw the comics and asked if she could have them. Here's what I looked down to see...

Glimpse of what's to come...

I glance at V's chair, where she should be sitting, eating dinner. The chair's empty. I holler, "V, what are you doing?" as the last time I glanced up, she was right there.

Her response? "I'm reading a book! Can I read AND eat?"

It's a struggle to get her to wear anything but a dress. Luckily, I found a ton of cute dresses at WalMart for $5 each, so they're great for everyday wear. I finally got to take the tags off this outfit I bought for her last year, by convincing her that everyone would think she was beautiful in pants OR a dress. Still, every day it's the same question, "Mom, can I please get dressed into a dress? PLEASE?"

Halloween pics

Just a few of our little witch :)

Saying goodbye to an old friend

We knew it was only a matter of time, but didn't think it would be so soon. On one hand, Olly made the decision for us, and left on his own terms. We didn't have to struggle with the weight of making the choice, and when to make it. On the other hand, we didn't get much time to prepare for it, or to say much more than Goodbye.

I let him out this morning, glanced and saw him walking the perimeter as he always did... When I looked out a few minutes later, he was lying near the woods. When we went out there, he lifted his head briefly, but seemed to know it was time to go.

When Rod got back from the vet, we sat down to tell Victoria what happened. She seemed a little sad, asked why, then asked if we would get another dog. It's interesting to hear how matter-of-fact she is about it. I think she's a little sad but probably doesn't understand the permanence of it.

Goodbye, Olly. And thank you for your service, obedience, and loyalty.

More pics from Idaho

At the pumpkin patch

The girls had a great time carving pumpkins - so did the dogs!

By our flight home, V was ready to go, and worn out. One of the last days there, I asked her what happened to her manners, she said, "They went home."

Jinx... But that's okay!

Apparently my last post jinxed us out here - it was raining this morning, and was overcast and chilly all day. But I'm STILL not complaining, as it's still been warm enough to keep a window cracked, at least, and the sun did make an appearance toward the end of the day.

We've been pretty busy helping around here with all the fall prep, and the girls have been tons of help - from cutting back plants outside to peeling, cutting and canning apples.

And some fun in between.

Victoria and I are out here until Thursday, and I'm so glad I feel like I'm able to help out around here, and (hopefully!) lighten up a little of the stress Amanda feels while she's on restricted activities. If nothing else, it just confirms that I want to start saving for all of us to come back out here when we can see the mountains, the parks, and just have fun as friends and family.

Our visit to Idaho is underway

Victoria and I are in Idaho for a week visiting Manna and her family. We're having a great time, as are the girls, for the most part. Of course, there are the usual breakdowns when they both want the same toy, but it's been great. The weather so far is WONDERFUL compared to what we left behind in Michigan. It's been nice enough that the windows pretty much stay open all day, the sun's always shining, and this afternoon, Victoria was hot with her dress on outside.

Here are the only two pictures I've managed to take since we got here.

The many faces of Miss Victoria

Nothing much going on, just trying to survive day-to-day life. Neither of us is back to 100% healthy, yet, but hopefully we're on the mend.

I try to keep the camera on the end table in the living room so it's handy when I sense Victoria's mood is picture-friendly, which of course, is pretty frequent :)

Pure solicitation for thoughts/prayer

Amanda's surgery is tomorrow morning. She has to be there at 9:30am, the actual surgery will start an hour or so after that. Surgery expected to last 6 hours, then she'll be in the ICU for a day or so. This is scary - for her, and for all her friends and family. No matter how you look at it, it's brain surgery.

If you pray, please pray for her. If you don't, please keep her and her family in your thoughts for the next 24-48 hours.

Low energy girl

Victoria got to go to school this morning, but came home a little early. She was running in the gym, and of course went into a major coughing fit, so she and her teacher decided she should come home. She asked me numerous times today if we could go on a bike ride (it's raining and really windy here today). After the last time about 5:30 this evening when she threw a fit because she couldn't go outside, I found her like this 5 minutes later.

We also had one of her follow up appointments this afternoon. Luckily for us, the doctor she saw in the ER on Saturday (Dr. Kris) is one of the partners at V's pediatrician. I learned why she has to have another Xray in a month to make sure the pneumonia is gone. Apparently there *might* have been an enlarged lymph node in her lung that they want to check on. I also found out the pneumonia was probably worse than I was led to believe. When we were in the ER, I forgot to ask Dr. Kris how bad it was (assuming it wasn't too bad, as she couldn't hear anything, and upon asking the nurse, she said if it was too bad, they'd have admitted her.) We saw Dr. S today (same one we saw on Friday), and she said she could now hear some noise in her lungs, and upon discussing the situation with Dr. Kris, I was told that V's x-ray looked like it had come from a totally different kid (that she would never have believed she couldn't hear anything when it was that bad).

So, doc's appt next Thursday to make sure V's getting better, then X-ray in a month. Fun stuff.

Sickie :(

This morning, Victoria woke up with a 102 fever that couldn't be tamed with tylenol or motrin. She spent the morning on the couch, and had to miss her first school field trip to the local fire station. Victoria didn't want to do anything this morning - she said walking hurt her legs and her whole body felt funny. She just pretty much stayed on the couch and cried because she didn't feel right, till she passed out.

Twice.

After her second nap on the couch, she woke up soaked and asking for ice cream. Hopefully it's on its way out, but we'll still head to the doc this afternoon just to be sure. After the ice cream, she's a new girl.

What's the haps?

Some more great one-liners:

One nation, under God, congratulations to all.

I wanna watch "Humfalump Hears a Who!"

On another note, per her teacher's suggestion, Victoria and I are trying out a different system of rewards and punishments. This has come about for a variety of reasons. Her two favorite things are her new bike and school. The bike's already been taken away for a week, and if we kept her from school, we feel like we'd be sending the wrong message (tho she LOVES it). As Miss Michelle put it, "That's what you have to deal with when you have a child with the mind of an 8-year-old and the emotions of a not-even-4 year old."

The new system? Good Behavior Tickets. I created tickets (simply 8-per-page layout), cut them apart, and explained them to V. For every good thing she does (doing something after I ask ONLY ONCE, eating all her food, helping around the house), she earns a ticket. When she gets in trouble, a ticket gets taken away. Ticket may be redeemed for a bike ride, a cartoon, or a treat. Day 1 went pretty well, and she told me as she was getting ready for bed that she wants to get 5 tickets tomorrow - setting goals!

Dead Buell...Alive Rod

As many of you may know, I wrecked. Nothing serious, but enough to total out my bike. Today was a sad day for me...not here to witness, but Kristin took photos of my bike being taken away by the auction company. Possibly the end of my riding days...