Marble Game

When Colby was a child, he played a marble game made by his great grandfather. It is a simple game. The one Colby played was made from old fruit crates, I think. Marbles have been a staple of childhood for years and years. Knowing how much Colby and his siblings enjoyed the marble game, his grandfather Marvin made a marble game for our family and the families of Colby's siblings and cousins. With the prevalence of video games and television, you might think that such a simple toy wouldn't carry favor. On the contrary, Brody has been known to stop playing Wii and join the girls in the den when he hears the familiar sound of marbles rolling down the wooden ramps. Tiger in particular enjoys the game, and I have to take marbles away from him for hours afterward. I have only recently taken the game out of storage because of the fear of having to pick marbles out of Soren's poop. With he birth of each child, the marble game has faced and survived exile to the closet until the age of putting everything in the mouth has passed. The kids are enjoying their "new" toy. If they only new that their great grandfather played with a toy just like it.

Please excuse the mess in the photos. With our home improvement projects in progress, the den has become a dumping ground for all crap that would get in the way. It's mostly cleaned up now, but the den tends to be like one big junk room.

Just One of Those Days

It all started with the need to actually function properly before 9am. Brody had a dentist appointment at 9am this morning to get some cavities filled. I got up at 6:30 am in an attempt to be showered, have all the children fed and presentable, and still have time to make it across town on time. Keep in mind people that since school let out we have been a bunch of late risers who eat breakfast at 8:30 am and like to sit around in our jammies until lunch. I took a shower, watched an ER rerun while my hair dried and I ate some Cheerios (my first bowl since the teeth pulling), and woke the boys at 7:35 am. They were not pleased but reluctantly got up all bed headed and drowsy. Evie didn't get up until 8 am, and Soren was even lazier with an 8:15 am start.

We made it to the dentist on time, and it took about an hour to get Brody's cavities filled. The girls fought the whole time. We went to Barnes & Noble afterward for story time and drove through the nearby McFatAss because I felt bad for Brody. Soren then cried the entire 20 minutes home because I wouldn't give her my soda. She had also bolted outside the B&N, and I had to run for the first time in 11 years to catch up before she got hit by a car.

When we got home, I put Soren on the potty to poop. She promptly kicked me out, as usual. She decided to get off the toilet by herself with a poopy butt and smeared poo all over the potty seat. During the clean up poo was also deposited on towels and a bath mat. Yummo.

I'm hoping the day improves, but it's not looking good. Every time I sit down to type someone has to take a dump, needs a drink, or is trying to swallow a marble.

So Busy

We've had such a busy weekend that I have neglected my blogging and Facebooking. When you're at home as much as I am those two things become very important tools for keeping in touch with the outside world and ones self. Luckily, I was occupied with many exciting activities this weekend and had real people to talk to.

Friday night we went to my cousin Rebecca's wedding reception in Omaha. She had a lovely vegetarian meal at The Uptown Brewing Co. and a great reception at Lauritzen Gardens. We had free access to all of the paths and gardens, so Colby took the kids on a few long hikes through the foliage. I sat at a table with my cousins in an air conditioned room and drank too much wine from the open bar. I had the best chocolate cake I've ever had in my 30 years of chocolate cake eating. I had to take a photo.


Saturday Colby took the kids to the zoo so I could go on a girl date with my friend Amanda. We went to lunch, Target, and David's Bridal to try on wedding dresses for her wedding in April. When I got home, we ate s'mores after supper and watched some of the new Good Eats dvd I bought while on my girl date. Around 10 pm I got a craving for a chicken strip basket from DQ, so my loving husband went out and got me one. Gorged on fried chicken and white gravy, we headed to bed.

Today we went to ShopKo and Target to pick up some groceries and roman shades for the new kitchen. Shhh. . . Colby hung one shade crooked, but I told him we could leave it so he wouldn't have to drill anymore holes in the door. We went to a fantastic Mexican restaurant for lunch, Las Margaritas. It's family-owned and 100 times better than Carlos O'Kelly's. The weather is fantastic today with a nice warm 87 degrees but humidity only in the 30 percents. I wish the whole summer could be like this. We are hoping to have supper with Sara and Travis and their kiddos tonight. It would be a great finale to a great weekend.

Snowglobes

I have this soft spot for cheesy snow globes. You know, those plastic ones with glitter for snow and poorly crafted figurines. I am trying to see if I can collect one from every place I visit or friends visit. My collection is pretty scant right now, but I'm hoping to expand it before all the water evaporates from my existing globes. I also like to collect donkeys, but they're kind of hard to find. I guess nobody loves a jackass (hardy har har). I've placed my collections above the cupboards in the kitchen. Lots of empty space for knick knacks and junk up there.

Quick comment about Governor Run Off to South America With My Mistress: You should be ashamed, sir. It's not the cheating so much that bothers me but the blatant disregard for the care of your family and your state. Seriously, when you're the governor you are in charge of an entire state. You can't just hire a babysitter and sneak out the door hoping no one sees you. Jeesh.

Cheese and Rice It's Hot in Here

It is now 82 degrees in my house. Yes, my air conditioner is running. Non stop. I had it checked out last month and all was well. Frankly, I'm not convinced. I've been doing some research online, and most sites said that realistically the air conditioner should keep one's house 20 degrees cooler than the air outside. Looking at it this way, I guess my system is fine. The local news website says the heat index in 109 degrees. WTF? Is this frickin' Arizona? It's JUNE!! Good god. I'm about to leave and take the kids somewhere cooler. Like HELL.

Have I mentioned how much I hate the summer? I'm thinking I need to have someone come and check out my whole HVAC system (ducts, air return, etc) and not just the a/c and furnace unit. Or am I just expecting too much on a hotter than hell day?

Summer Is Here

Summer has officially arrived, and it greeted us with a hell of a thunderstorm and a heat index warning today. Colby took the recycling bins to the curb this morning. When I called him at 7:15am to tell him thanks, I'm sure the bins were already filled with 20 gallons of rainwater. At least they didn't blow away like the patio table and umbrella did. Lucky for me, the recycling picker upper took all my soggy recyclables.

I let the kids go outside this morning, but in an effort to thwart a constantly-running air conditioner told them they must ask permission to open any door that leads outside. As a result, the air conditioner has actually turned off many times today instead of running nonstop despite the blazing heat.

In honor of summer I want to share my kids' favorite smoothy recipe with you. They had it with lunch today.

Blueberry Smoothies
1 c. vanilla soy milk
1/4 c. frozen blueberries
1 spoon full of frozen apple juice concentrate
1/2 banana, better frozen but can be fresh

Mix with hand blender or in a regular blender. You may need to add more soy milk if it's too thick to suck through a straw.

Father's Day

Today was hot and muggy, but that didn't stop us from having a really nice day as a family. To celebrate, we went to Cracker Barrel for breakfast, and I was able to kind of eat eggs in a basket (you know, where they cook the egg inside the toast). Colby spent most of the afternoon putting together our new hall table and watching an Elvis movie. After that, he placed his first F-Day gift, a record player, on the new hall table. It also plays c.d.s and tapes. You can hook up your mp3 player, too. Now the whole house can enjoy my mix of Faggoty Attention (yes, I love gay guys singing "love" songs), Fall Out Boy, and rap hits. On second thought, maybe I should keep those to myself. Yes.

Moving on, Colby mowed the lawn while the kids played in the pool and the boys got sunburned. Yowch. I mowed like 5 feet before my teeth started to hurt. Thank goodness I have a big, strong baby daddy around to do yard work and kill spiders.

For supper Colby cooked brats for everyone but me (I had salmon, much easier to "chew") on his new charcoal grill. Then, he took the kids on a bike ride with the girls riding in his new bike trailer. I don't have a bike, so I stayed home and clipped coupons while watching Food Network and imagining all the things I could be eating if I could chew. Curse you, Giada Di Laurentis!

All in all, we had a great day. It was an ordinary day, really, but I wouldn't change a thing.

The New and Improved Vescapades Kitchen

Make a Smilebox slideshow

The kitchen/dining room is about 99% finished. Things that aren't done yet: still need a new ceiling fan, still need to paint the lights, and still need a new table cloth. The cupboards may or may not get finished. Much of the wall art is from garage sales or Gordman's. I love a bargain. The whole inspiration for the color scheme is the kick ass metal star swirly thing. I love red, white, and blue but didn't want to overdo the whole America thing. I also love stars, so I think I got just what I was looking for.

Next up: master bedroom (easy, just paint) and living room (hard, damn vaulted ceilings).

Chili Dogs

I decided that tonight Colby needed to both plan and cook a meal for the family. So what does he pick? Chili dogs. "I'll cut up some apples to go with it!" he says after my comments about the nutritional value of said meal. Besides, only he and I like chili, so the meal really isn't that thought out. Undeterred, he charges ahead.

He goes to the store and this is his list: can of chili, Cheez Whiz, hot dog buns. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, that was his grocery list. As he is preparing the chili he notes, "I used to keep a can of this on hand all the time when I was in Ohio. I made that chili Velveeta dip all the time." And he blames MY cooking for his girth. Right.

Anyway, always one for finding a new way to make Dade cry, Colby proposes a challenge: if Brody and Dade each eat a whole hot dog with chili he would buy them each a guy at the toy store. After careful consideration they both accepted. Rules were laid out and the eating began. Brody actually liked his dog, I think. He didn't complain about the taste but kept repeating for his own enjoyment that he was "going to have the toots later from these beans." Classy. Dade on the other hand was much more apprehensive. He is known for his ability to take up to 2 hours to finish a pork chop or chicken breast or some other food he doesn't like.

Brody was winning, so in order to speed Dade along I threw in an additional rule: whoever finishes first gets to pick the guy out for both boys. This threw Dade into a fit of tears and snot, all while holding in a ginormous mouthful of hot dog. You see, Brody's strategy was to take a bite, chew, and swallow. Dade's strategy was to take a bite three times too big for his mouth, cry, blow snot out of this nose, then swallow.

Needless to say, Brody will be picking out two wrestling guys tomorrow. Oh, and I promised Dade I wouldn't blog about this so shhhh.

My House Is A Mess!

With all the painting projects going on right now, the house is kind of a mess. The dining room chairs are in the living room, which Tiger loves. He sleeps on them all the time. The kids also use them to sit directly in front of the t.v. Luckily for her, Soren can now say, "Moooo!" That's how you say MOVE when you're 20 months. I wanted to post a few more before photos of our kitchen and living room areas. I'm hoping to replace the circa 1989 entryway light with something a little more 2000's.

By the way, does anyone else's cat lick the air vents while the cold air is coming out? I've caught Tiger doing this a few times and find it odd.

The girls and I went to the library today for a special storytime: dancers and cheerleaders performed. Evelyn was mesmerized. We then headed to Target where I purchased a wine rack, patio tables, a curtain rod, and some other stuff we actually needed.

Kitchen Progress

The painting in the kitchen is coming along slowly but surely. We only have a few hours when Colby comes home from work to get the painting done, so projects like this usually take us a long time. Plus, Colby now has a cold, so he didn't paint last night. The kitchen side of our kitchen/dining room is almost done. Colby has some touch ups and such, but it looks amazing!

Does the Cat Look Stoned to You?

Our cat Tiger is infamous for his feline instincts. He stalks his prey from atop the chair. He waits until an unsuspecting child, grown up, or dishwasher repairman walks by and then WHAM!!! He jumps up (or down) and grabs on to an arm or leg, wreaking havoc amongst family and friends alike. In essence, I was sick of Tiger being, well, a tiger. Brody is afraid to even walk by our Puss Puss. So, in an effort to curb his meanness, my cousin Shane the veterinarian suggested we give Tiger a small dose of Prozac for a few months. He said that cats are sometimes kind of crazy and that my uncle's cat used to jump out of trees and attack his kids. Phew. It's not just my cat.

So, I made the trip to Walgreens to pick up the "pussy Prozac" as I have been calling it. Despite modern use of the term in reference to female genitalia, our cat is often called Puss Puss in reference to the old use of the term. The woman at the pharmacy told me that she had a prescription for Puss Vesely and added that this is only one of many prescriptions she has filled for pussy Prozac. Again, phew. It's not just my cat.

After two days of puss Prozac, Tiger is definitely much more mellow. He actually lets the kids pet him. He hasn't attacked anyone. My neighbors can come in the house and not worry that they will leave with cat bites. He doesn't sit by the back door and loudly MEOW MEOW MEOW to be let outside. All in all, I think my attempts to curb his natural instincts have been a success. Why do I feel so dirty?

Home Improvement

The moment I have been waiting for has arrived: Colby has started painting the kitchen and living room. The vaulted ceilings have been a pain in the butt, but with the help of a neighbor's extension ladder Colby got the ceilings primed and ready for paint. The holes are all puttied. The walls are emptied of all photos and knickknacks. Soon our kitchen will no longer be the mossy green chosen by the previous home owners. It's being replaced by denim blue and creamy white. The cupboard refinishing project may be put off until a later date, but I think I can speed it along if I just keep bitching. The living room will be shades of coffee brown and antique white.

In teeth news, I just want to mention that I hope to never see another cup of tomato soup ever again. Ever. I'm even getting tired of Panera Bread broccoli cheese soup. I eat more sodium and pudding in a day than any 30-year-old woman should. Please goddess, let my mouth feel better soon. I'm desperate for a bowl of Cheerios. There is smoked salmon and fresh mozzarella sitting in my fridge, and all I can do is dream about them. And maybe lick them. But that's gross. And desperate.

The Wisdom of Teeth

Yesterday was wisdom teeth pulling day. I think I did surprisingly well. The doctor did a fantastic job of putting in the iv sedation. I passed right out and woke up covered in a cozy blanket with my loving husband by my side. . . laughing at me.

Julie took my three oldest home with her, and Connie is here today helping me with Soren. I don't have much pain, but I'm pretty swollen on one side. This photo shows the extent of my ability to smile. I couldn't even put on make up. Woe is me.

Doctor Trip Tuesday

Today Colby had the day off so that we could drive Brody (and everyone else) to Omaha for a check up at the ear, nose, and throat doctor. He still has a perforation in his right ear drum from where he had tubes as an infant. He's had the perforation for years and years, but due to the intricacies of the American insurance system, now has been the only time we could actually have it done. Or so we think. You see, having a hole in one's ear drum fixed is considered to be an entirely elective procedure. The fact that one has a hole in his ear drum does not necessitate, under our current insurance system, a repair. Who the f#*k needs an intact ear drum anyway? Colby will certainly be spending countless minutes on the phone with Blue Cross Blue Shield checking out whether or not Brody will have a mended ear drum or a holey one. By the way, the perforation has caused hearing loss and could continue to do so. But fixing it is elective. . .

A trip to Omaha meant a trip to While Foods for deliciousness and gelatto. I hope to someday be able to afford to buy all organic foods, but for now we'll stick with some yummy fruits, cheeses, and produce.

Tomorrow I have my wisdom tooth pulled. I have some Valium waiting to help me get through the i.v. You know me and needles. . . I can give birth without pain medication and i.v.s as a direct result of my irrational fear of needles. Completely irrational. I really need to get a grip.

A Tale of Two Cousins

Yesterday we drove to Omaha for Ethan's 4th birthday party. Scott and Amber had everything ready for a Jedi showdown, including lightsabers made of swimming noodles. It was a little muddy from all the rain, so at the bottom of the steps Ethan held Evelyn's hand to help her across the mud. Sooo cute.

Ethan and Evelyn are only about 6 weeks apart in age. They will inevitably end up sharing many milestones of life: kindergarten, driving, prom, and graduation. He is big and quiet and acquiescent. She is petite and chatty and mouthy. They are two leaves from the same tree, blowing on the same breeze through life's days. They play together beautifully. They eat fruit and spread ice cream on top of their birthday cake together. When Ethan accidentally pooped on the floor, Evie had his back, making sure someone came inside to help. I hope that they will continue to walk on life's path together, forever holding hands and helping each other out when needed.

Last Day of School

Today was sadly the last day of school for the year. When I asked Brody, "How was your last day of school?", he replied, "It wasn't the last day of school. It was the last day of kindergarten." True. Since it was the last day of school (or not), the kindergartners had their traditional water day. They had swimming pools, sprinklers, and an inflatable water slide. When we arrived at school, Brody refused to get out of the van because he thought he would be the only one wearing swimming trunks and would therefore "look like an idiot." Turns out when we got there that almost all the kindergarten boys we saw in front of the school already had on their swimming trunks. Idiocy avoided. This time.

Dade's graduation from 5th grade was also held today. Grandmas Marta and Connie came, as did Aunt Carrie. It's very hard to believe he's headed to middle school. Colby and I were just discussing when Dade was in preschool and read the story about the "bamfire in the punkin patch" at Halloween. Bamfire was 4-year-old for vampire. He would also stand on our bed and belt out these words from a preschool song: A tooty tot, a tooty tot, a tooty ta ta. It had a dance that went along with it. Classic. I asked him to sing it yesterday, but his response was a disappointing, "STOP ASKING ME THAT! I'M NOT SINGING IT!"

After graduation we headed to Dade's restaurant of choice for lunch, The Golden Corral. We lovingly refer to it as The Golden Trough. Dade ate his weight in fried stuff and pizza. Of course, he won't gain a pound.

Now that school is out the kids will begin all their favorite summer activities: reading, swimming, playing Wii, and pissing off Mom.

Groceries

As you can imagine with a family of 6, I spend a lot of time at the grocery store. To spend $700 a month on groceries/diapers/shampoo isn't hard. I think I spend about $30 per month on milk alone. This morning's trip to Super Target was planned just as any other: list neatly organized, coupons sorted by department, and stroller removed from back of van. I had also planned for the other usual Target moments: getting a snack at the food bar before shopping, Soren pooping, Evie begging for High School Musical fruit snacks. However, today's shopping trip was unusually awful.

First of all, neither of the girls would sit in the ginormous two-seater cart thingy to eat her snack. Soren insisted on standing on the seat. She's already gotten a huge goose egg on her forehead from aforementioned activity, but I guess she's not one to give up. Before I even had 4 items in the cart Soren had dropped her Icee and half of her fruit snacks on the floor. I needed to buy Father's Day cards, and Soren needed to pull every card at toddler level out of its rightful place. Both girls ran off, but I just walk away and hope they catch up. I always know where they are from the sound of yelling and flip flops.

In the end, we were there for an hour and a half. Soren didn't poo, thank goodness. Evie got her High School Musical fruit snacks. I still had my sanity, or at least enough to get me through the car ride home. The Hannah Montana c.d. playing in the van didn't help matters, but at least it's better than Soren bawling the whole way home. Or is it???

Fishing

While in Norfolk, we took the opportunity to go fishing at our favorite spot: Jim Monk's pond. As soon as the worm hits the water you've got a fish. Colby tried to take the kids fishing at a regular fishing hole where you have to wait for a fish, and the kids grew tired of it very quickly. Jim's pond has spoiled them for life. :)

Dade caught the most fish. He claims 30, and I wouldn't disagree with that. My father-in-law Dean was the bait man, and he's also the only one who can get the fish off the hooks. He was a very busy Grandpa. Soren had a great time until Grandma Connie accidentally whacked her in the face with a bullhead. Tally the fish eating dog only took a few from us. Travis brought Gavin out for his first fishing adventure. How awesome that I got to watch Gavin catch his first fish! After filling the entire 5 gallon bucket with fish, we went back to Grandma's to clean up and refuel.

The ride home from Norfolk was much better than the trip there. Evie passed out before we were out of town. Soren did not fall asleep, however, and cried from about Valparaiso to our driveway. I don't know when we'll make it up that way again, but this trip was certainly worth my headaches.

Happy 11th (gasp) Anniversary!!

The Vescapades family headed to Norfolk this weekend for the wedding of my cousin Jaima. We haven't been to Norfolk in ages, and this trip reminded me why: 15 minutes from home Soren was fussing, Evelyn and Brody were fighting, and my head was throbbing. I really and truly hate car trips.

Despite the rough start, we had a lovely time at the wedding and saw some family we haven't seen in forever. My cousin Shane is a veterinarian. Anyone who knows my cat will be pleased to know that Shane recommended we give Tiger Prozac to curb his constant need to attack small children. We also finally met Colby's cousin Jamie's little girl for the first time. She's already crawling, and I'm amazed that we hadn't yet gotten the chance to see her. Colby fell in love with her right away and tried to stuff her in my purse when no one was looking.

Jaima's wedding took place on May 30th, which just happens to be my wedding anniversary, as well. Colby and I have been through some really rough times in 11 years. The old saying about making lemonade when life gives you lemons. . . We've had to make lemonade, lemon pie lemon cookies, and lemon chicken. We are lucky, nonetheless. We've had the tenacity to weather a lot of storms, but the tenderness to enjoy our life and our children. I hope that we are given the opportunity to grow old together. I also hope that May 30th brings good luck for my cousin just as it has for Colby and me.