RAZ- PARTY OF 6

"Spinderella"

2012-02-10T08:03:00.000-05:00

I have been feeling a bit like Cinderella- eternally cooking, cleaning and shuffling kids places. I feel a bit like a hamster on a wheel with no hope of getting off.

A week ago we added a twist to my daily world when I woke up spinning. I've had vertigo twice already this deployment- 3rd time's a charm. It lasts about a week and ends with migraine pain. Check. Migraine today.

I actually feel over in the kitchen trying to get out a bowl. It's a horrible feeling. I have to keep my eyes on the horizon, no quick movements, no rolling over at night etc. Prescription meds help to knock me out but the feeling is still there when I wake up.

I did buy Sea Bands which are motion sickness bracelets to place on your wrist. I bought ginger flavored gum. Also non-drowsy dramamine. Somehow I'm making it.

I saw an ENT. I've had an MRI. I am going to get an eye exam and see a neurologist over the next 2 weeks.

For now Spinderella continues on.......

Throwing "Pies"

2012-02-05T11:03:00.000-05:00

We seem to have a new birthday game whether I like it or not. At Kassidy's birthday the girls smashed each other in the face with whip cream pies. This was pre-planned and held at an alternate location to keep the mess AWAY from my house.

This morning after breakfast they decided to pie each other out front. This is a massive mess but seems to be a whole lot of fun to them! Lots of beach towels, a hose and many showers later we have clean girls again.

Kelsey's 14th Birthday

2012-02-05T10:16:00.000-05:00

Kelsey is officially 14. How 14 years have flown by I can't comprehend! She had a handful of friends over for a sleepover to celebrate. They played lots of Just Dance the Wii, watched movies, ate lots of junk food and had a good time. They are having a healthy breakfast of egg burritos and hash browns and will be running low on sleep today. I hear they went to bed well after midnight! Happy Birthday, Kelsey!

Manatees and Mason

2012-02-04T21:27:00.000-05:00

On Friday we went on a field trip with Mason's class to see the Manatees. There were quite a few out there dispite the warmer weather. He must have forgotten what a Manatee was because he kept saying that he was afraid of the manatees. They don't move much and didn't really keep the lil guys interest. He saw a sting ray up close and enjoyed seeing lots of fish though!

Back in the Saddle

2012-02-04T21:19:00.000-05:00

Kelsey used to ride horses in 5th grade. Middle school hours and homework made it too difficult to carry on and we veered away from riding.

She has decided to give it a try again and has had 3 lessons out at Waterford Stables. It's fun seeing her back in the saddle again!

Backpack Woes

2012-02-04T21:14:00.000-05:00

This is a peek at what Kassidy is carrying to school every day. 6th and 7th graders do not have lockers so they must carry everything with them. Her backpack weighs 40 pounds!

She added more items to carry this semester. She is in band and now must tote a flute to and from school (I requested that she choose a very small instrument for that reason). She is playing soccer at school and has to carry her cleats, clothes, mouthguard, and so on.

She actually switched from her normal school backpack to using her soccer ball bag since it hold more!

Her back hurts every night and it's obvious why! I can't believe she has to carry that all day.

6th grade soccer

2012-01-31T23:03:00.003-05:00

Tonight Kass had her first game with her Middle School team. We added that fun to our world last week and it lasts 6 weeks with just 6 games. No week is the same practice or game wise which makes things tricky for the planner in me. This week they have 2 games. There are 28 girls so 8 girls don't go to each game. Apparently they won't know until day of who goes home and who plays---- again is staggering for Type A me. She knew she was playing tonight and I made arrangements for Matthew's practice so I could attend the game. 6 6th graders play the first 6 minutes of each half so I knew I needed to be timely.After school they changed, ate a nice buffet of lunchmeat and fruit platters provided by some 8th grade moms, boarded the bus, warmed up and played their first game after only 4 practices.They won 6-2 tonight and clearly had better possession of the ball. It's fun to see skill levels from 6-8th grade compete. Many nights she (and most every other girl on the team) scrambles from the Middle school 430-6 practice off to Club practice from 6-730. It's a lot-o-soccer but she loves it! I'm happy she had this experience.

Coming up Roses

2012-01-31T22:49:00.000-05:00

You know how I love my oversized "R" on the front door. I've had 6 months of fun with that $10 letter! It had yet another metamorphosis with approaching Valentine's day. I rubbed off the Buffalo Snow and hot glued roses from the Dollar Store to the front. Happy Valentine's Day!

Scary Alphabet

2012-01-30T23:44:00.001-05:00

This one is personal. And concerning. Mason has been gun-shy to show what he knows to the point that we can't determine if he can't or won't write letters and ID the alphabet. Orally he fools no one- he knows his stuff and beyond. A song came on in the car the other day and he asked if it was Adele. He knows full aircraft names. He knows movie stars, lines from movies, singers ( sadly much of "I'm sexy and I know it") and so on. He's smart- we aren't saying he isn't.He gets really quiet. Really bashful. Really worried when it comes to the alphabet, writing, flash cards etc. Almost tearful. He doesn't want to be wrong. Could it be a processing delay? I am not sure as his mom or as a teacher. We can only evaluate by what he shows.Recently at Walgreens he wanted to me to buy him something and I got him to very quietly sing the alphabet ("baby") song and he did. He knew it all. We played Uno sunny side up and I was able to glean that he could ID some numbers. It had to be sort of a trick- we are playing a game not playing school.Then at soccer on Saturday I had a bedazzeled team shirt on that said "Brandon Flames". On his own he started finding letters to spell M-a-s-o-n, M-o-m, D-a-d, and S-a-m. EXCITING!!!! He likes glitter and bling! I saw glittery alphabet letters at Walgreens and will go get them.We have flashcards, bath crayons, bath letters, chalk, stickers, play dough to roll letters, shaving cream to draw letters, iPod and iPhone games. I'm trying to immerse/trick/slyly put the alphabet everywhere. Even Cheese-Its makes scrabble letters!Tonight he had homework. He told me the alphabet was scary. He might mess up. I hugged him. Reassured him. We don't care. Teachers don't care. Just try! He says it is too hard. "The people" try to teach him to write and it's too hard. Gotta say....the writing isn't progressing.I reminded him that before I was a Mommy I was a teacher. I can work with him. I can help him- if he'll let me. He agreed to flashcards and surprised me what he could identify but it was very meek answers. Not much confidence and so afraid of being wrong.I am encouraged that he'd agree to flashcards. I think it's all about tricking him into showing us what he knows and really praising the correct responses. Sisters and brothers are cued in so hopefully the 4 of us can break him of his perfectionist streak. If not- time for resources~!

Sissy's Fridge

2012-01-30T23:08:00.000-05:00

What does a 12 year old save all her birthday money for? Why, a mini-fridge for her room so she "doesn't have to come all the way downstairs to get a cold bottle of water". She's obsessed with Slushy Magic which makes a slush out of any drink and wanted a small freezer in the fridge for her magic cubes. If this makes you want to run out for Slushy Magic you can go to an As Seen On TV store as we did- or save the commute and go to Walgreens!

We researched prices online and found one on Walmart then had it shipped to our closest store. It arrived on Thursday and we picked it up as soon as I could get there. Plugged it in and BAM!!! Power out!

We have a Guardian Angel down the street, Saint Shane, that we call upon almost daily. Kills us to ask for help for EIGHT MONTHS now- but we do. Kass called him over and we discovered a bum power strip. Excuse me, he discovered that (I had moved on to unclogging a toilet since electrical is out of my toolbox).

So- now Miss Kass has her icy cold water at her finger tips. The deal is water or gatorade- not sodas or bad-for-you stuff.

Here's the peek as of today.....

Floors, Glorious Floors

2012-01-30T22:57:00.000-05:00

After many visits to flooring centers, hardware stores, websites and Facebook surveys we decided on Pergo floors. Every guy I talked to said that with 4 kids and 2 big dogs we needed laminate VS hardwood. So- I pray we were led in the right direction.

The next hurdle was color. I knew I wanted wide planks. I love oak or even birch looking colors but they totally didn't go with our kitchen cabinetry. We found Berkshire Cherry when Matt was home for 2 weeks- a great looking match for the cabinetry and nice with our old world furniture colors.

Before Matt returned we committed to a color and contract through Lowes. The carpet was over 5 yrs old and N-A-S-T-Y. We earmarked our tax return for floors and decided to go for it.

A few good neighbors and I removed the tile in the front entry and tore up the carpet throughout the living areas. That was liberating, sweaty and sometimes bloody work! We spent a few days on bare concrete floors with all decorations piled in my bedroom. Life felt about as chaotic as it looked.

Lowes came out for 2 days last week and did a wonderful job. It felt like Christmas morning!! I couldn't be happier with our color choice and new flooring :)

The dogs nails clickety clack up and down the halls which we all think is adorable. They try to go flying when the doorbell rings and skid out! Very comical. I sure hope Matt finds the tippity tap as endearing as we do

Invisible Fence VS Juno

2012-01-30T22:39:00.000-05:00

Last Tuesday Juno came back home much to our happiness. He was treated to a new fancy flames collar (chosen by the girls) with a shocker. Invisible Fence wired the whole property and we added some extra shields by the exits. Ol' Juno didn't know what hit him and had a few rocky days. He was terrified to go outside- just didn't know where was safe to go. Shut down and didnt eat, drink or come out of the bathroom! He woke me up on the 3rd night to go out to the bathroom at last. He's finally coming around and stopped pouting. He won't go roaming ever again!

Gasparilla Parade

2012-01-27T11:54:00.000-05:00

For the first time in the 5 years we've lived here we made it to the Gasparilla Parade. Last weekend was the alcohol free children's version. They have an air invasion, ship off the bay shooting cannons, and float after float of pirates hurling beads. The kids had a fabulous time trying to catch their share.

Many thanks to the Richards family. We met at their house in South Tampa and hoofed it to the parade with a mere 9 kids in tow. Fun was had by all and we will be sure to try to hit it next year!

Dog drama

2012-01-22T19:37:00.000-05:00

On Monday the kids were off school for Martin Luther King day. Short story is I went to the grocery and came home. Kids came out to help me unload but left the door open. Mason crossed the road to pet the neighbors dog and Juno got out. Honestly- Juno got out often but it was never a problem.This was in the space of 5 minutes I pulled in the driveway until this happened! Anyway- heard a bark ran to grab his leash and found a bike and flip flops in the road.Apparently he nipped one of the neighbors as she rode by on her bike. I have NO CLUE why this occurred but assume she came between him and Mason and he felt she was a threat. I walked down with the bike and asked if she was ok. Parents were not home but the girl said she was ok but looked upset. I had to run out for a prescription and when I returned her father was in my driveway. He wanted me to take Juno to the vet because "the dog could only be tested for rabies within a few hours of biting and if he had rabies his daughter only had a week to live".I explained that he was up to date on shots. I was sorry it happened and that he shouldn't have been out. I said that I'd call the vet right away and get back to him. I called and the vet explained that he can't be tested(rabies is in the brain if a dog has it) and that he was up to date. I gave him the information and her business card to verify it. He did.I spent the night nervously waiting for the police or animal control to come. This never happened to us before and I had no idea what could happen. The next day he called me to say that he got her an antibiotic just in case. I offered to pay for them- and I did so. We saw her riding her bike in short shorts with not so much as a bandaid on. I feel terrible that it happened to her and don't want her to fear riding around the block!Tuesday was Kassidy's birthday. We spent the morning calling the Humane Society and looking for rescues because while we didn't feel his nip was a serious "attack" we couldn't promise he wouldn't get out again....even for a few hours! Then the cops would be in the driveway for sure.Via Facebook I found someone to take the dog temporarily while we decided what to do and dropped him off. There were a lot of tears all day- Daddy left 3 days prior and then the dog left:( I had some unhappy campers and it was one crummy birthday for Kass.After Matt and I could talk we decided he was a good dog for our family and that we would have an Invisible Fence rep come out. They guarantee the dog won't get out. He'll have a computerized collar to wear, the entire perimeter of the yard will be wired with a fence that doesn't shock once but keeps shocking if he pressed the limits/ran through. He'll have additional "shields" at the front and back door that he can't even walk up to them. All will be rigged up on Tuesday.Juno is wearing the collar and experiencing the system at his half-way house. He is "the biggest chicken out of 6 dogs to ever put it on". She said once he got shocked he glued himself to the floor for a long time. Sparky hasn't eaten almost anything since he left and is so lost. He doesn't know when to woof, go outside or move without his Alpha friend. We all look forward to reuniting.

Kassidy's 12th birthday bash

2012-01-21T23:09:00.001-05:00

Saturday, January 14th Kassidy, her soccer team and a few other friends celebrated her birthday. We went to Park Square because we had wet and messy activities planned. It was only in the high 50's - a bit chilly for what was planned but they rolled with it.We hauled the sports canopy down there and hung donuts from a string. Girls were blindfolded and attempting to eat the ENTIRE donut before it fell. Quite a few of them actually did it! For fun if someone completed a challenge or won it she got a strand of Mardi Gras beads. The girl in the end who had the most won a gift card to Target.Then we played "musical pies". The girls sat in a circle passing a water bottle. When the music stopped the person left holding the bottle got smacked in the face with a plate filled with whipped cream! That person then got out of the circle and waited anxiously to get their revenge on the next person. 5 cans of cool whip later and every girl got a turn! Messy, right? Much to my surprise I was included and Kass smashed me in the face too.Headed over to 2 man bobbing for apples where the first to remove an apple won. That was a cold, wet activity. She had 2 eating challenges after that. One was muffin a eating contest in pairs. First to unwrap, eat, and show us that it was gone was the winner.Back to a circle to pass a bowl of grapes. One New Years Eve Matt and I were in Barcelona. 12 minutes before midnight they put one grape in their mouth and keep adding them without chewing until Midnight. We challenged the girls to see who could make it to 12. Again- quite a few actually did! They all looked like chipmunks so it was hard for them to refrain from laughing.They played some soccer then hit a pinata. It actually fell but didn't break so one of her teammates took off running with it and the whole party chased her all over Park Square. Hysterical! Finally we went into the warm pizza shop for some pizza and cake. It was a wet and wild birthday! Hard to believe Matt had just left the afternoon before and we shopped for everything the night prior but it turned out to be a really fun party with a great group of girls.

Striker?

2012-01-20T20:39:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday Kassidy played her normal defensive position but then in the second half Coach put her in the striker position. She NEVER plays offense but actually got to goal 3 times. The last time she had a perfect set up to score but the ball went off to the left. She was really disappointed but I thought considering it was her first time she did alright.

Gone Baby Gone

2012-01-13T22:13:00.000-05:00

Our family of 6 said our farewells today. It's never pretty. It's not easy.

Matt left for another 5-6 months with an unknown rerun/homecoming date. Very difficult for Matt to leave his family- we all need him in our lives and are struggling in various ways without him. He is alone and missing 5 of us which I cannot begin to imagine.

Our life change is different. The kids miss him but for me it's both emotionally and physically difficult. One parent to 4 kids is very very tiring. Their homework and sports are exhausting. The house, laundry, dishes, appointments..........aaaagggghhhhh. I miss my husband, my best friend, my partner in life and am ragged with raising the peeps alone. Matt is now familiar with the job he returns to and knows what it entails for better or worse.

Neither of us relish returning to the last 7 months but here we go again for another 5-6.....

Archery for the Lil' Cowboys

2012-01-09T09:27:00.002-05:00

While we rode the horses the boys crossed the road and went to the Archery range. The boys never shot arrows before and I'm not sure how many targets they hit. They had fun and sure look cute trying!!!! They had a skeet range that we hoped Matt and Matthew could do. The brochure said 13 and up but I brought his Hunter Safety Certificate hoping we could sweet talk them. Since it was a resort they were firm on the rules so archery was the limit...

Trail Ride for the Cowgirls

2012-01-09T09:23:00.000-05:00

The girls and I decided to hit the trails. They have been on lots of trail rides but I, however, was always pregnant or in charge of a small child and never got to go! So exciting to get to join 'em at last and go out on a 45 minute ride through the countryside. My horse was named JoJo and he had one speed they said- "turtle". Turtle was fine for me and I really loved the ride.The ranch made me decide that we should scrap Kelsey's Art Monkey on Thursday nights and a girls group that she was about to begin. She once rode horses and it is so dang expensive- but so therapeutic that I'm finding her a new ranch!

Awesome air boat ride

2012-01-09T09:15:00.000-05:00

This was one of the activities I looked forward to the most. From the time we arrived in Florida I've wanted to ride one of the air boats through the swamps/wetlands to look for gators, birds, and turtles. We've passed on it and I'm not sure the kids would have been comfortable a year or two ago.Everyone was excited to go out on the boat ride. Mason was required to wear a lifejacket and rest opted not to. They can all swim- as can we- but who would want to swim with the gators?Anyway, off we went and Matthew got to sit at the feet of the driver up high. After a few minutes all of us sat up on the backs of our seats and Mason moved up to sit by the driver as well. The boat went about 30 miles per hour unless we stopped to see gators. We saw about 20 of all sizes. Some we swimming, some basking in the sun- none cared about us cruising by. We saw loads of birds and turtles on the banks. I think we were all struck by the beauty of the wetlands and now instead of a jet ski we'd want an AIR BOAT!

Ponies, petting farm and bison

2012-01-09T09:02:00.004-05:00

The adventure continued with a visit to the petting farm. We saw deer, peacocks, goats, quail, steer, a tea cup pig named Pearl, emu, llama, cows, pigs, sheep and more. We especially enjoyed going in the stall with Pearl the pig! afterwards Mason rode the tiniest pony named Bullseye and was quite a brave little cowboy! Then we went on a golf cart ride out to the pasture where bison roamed freely. They were enormous animals- I think we saw at least 7 or 8. Just beautiful!

Our 1st rodeo

2012-01-08T23:28:00.000-05:00

We cruised the River Ranch to get the lay of the land before the Saturday night rodeo. This was a first for us and we weren't really sure what to expect. My camera didn't take very good pictures of all the action in the dim light plus I was busy watching the show!

We saw barrel races and lots of bull riding. Who would ride a bull like that? It's totally insane. There were some acrobatic riders and lots of surprises. The boys actually got to go in the ring and chase 2 calfs with ribbons on their tails for a prize. That was one of the funniest things I've seen in a long time.

Afterwards there was a bonfire and dance party out front. We hung around for a few songs- well worth it to watch the kids try to shuffle during one of their favorite songs.

Off to bed as the biggest adventures would begin in the morning!

Cowgirl and Cowboy Up!

2012-01-08T23:16:00.000-05:00

We checked in with the lodge, found our villa, rented a golf cart for 24 hours and the fun began! We drove on over to the General Store and tried on all kinds of cowboy hats, then headed to the Smokehouse for a yummy dinner.

Wild West Surprise

2012-01-08T23:07:00.000-05:00

We had a rare 24 of freedom from homework, school or sports. We had a Daddy for only one more week and counting :( We needed to make some memories.

Matt and I spent Friday morning looking around online for some weekend ideas. We could cram in a few select special events or go somewhere overnight. We made the decision, told the kids what to pack and didn't tell them where we were going until they read this sign!

Cast-less Kassidy

2012-01-08T23:03:00.000-05:00

Thursday Kassidy returned to the orthopedic and had her well-autographed cast removed. She missed only one soccer game thankfully and was given the green light to go "all out" again without restrictions. May we never see another cast...