Back on the web again!

We've been having trouble with our phone lines and internet since we moved in August, but since the last guy who was here didn't really do anything and locked his keys in his truck, I've been reluctant about scheduling another maintenance appointment and stopping my life from 8 to 5 waiting for some guy to show up. But, it finally died completely and we were forced to make a service call. We needed some filters on our phone lines and a new modem, which ironically, is what the original guy was going to his truck to get when he locked himself out. After feeling incomplete and watching the children wandering aimlessly around the house for a few days all the while dying to know if anyone needed to be my friend on facebook, it's nice to be reconnected to the WWW.

We had a great Thanksgiving yesterday with Kevin's dad, stepmom, and brother. Uncle Weve (aka Steve) is here for the rest of the weekend. Right now, he's at the movies with the boys. It's a well known fact that I don't buy drinks or snacks at the movies so Nathan was packing a little backpack with a capri sun and a snack. Steve told him to put it away because he would buy him anything he wanted at the movie which will raise Uncle Weve's hero status even higher around here.

Tomorrow morning, the girls and I are headed to Dallas for a few days. I have a list of things I need to shop for there that are either not available or not as inexpensive here as I can buy them there. The main reason I'm going though is because I need a break from my reality--homeschool, work, household stuff, buying groceries..... I learned a long time ago that it's better for everyone if I take a break every once in a while and recharge. The girls will be staying with their best friends there and I'll be staying with Liz which is strategically close to Ikea, Stonebriar center, the outlet mall, the galleria, Harry Hines wholesale shopping.....

A Parent's guide to video games

We subscribe to Blockbuster Online...you know, the home delivery service of movies with no late fees. (Thank goodness because I do not have the brain cell that tells me to get into the car, drive to Blockbuster, and return the movie. There must be at least one phone call from Blockbuster, threatening to charge my credit card on file for the full amount of the movie if I don't return it, before I can actually return it. We won't tell them that the credit card they have on file has since expired.)

Once a month, we get a free video game rental. Nathan knows that on the 2nd of every month the coupon resets and then precedes to bug anyone with a driver's license to take him to Blockbuster until one of us finally takes him just so he'll be quiet. As you know, there's a lot of inappropriate games out in the world so Nathan has had to learn the video game rating system, which in our world goes like this:
E = Excellent choice!
T = Tiny chance we'll say 'yes'
M = Mommy says "No!"
And if you ask Nathan what the "M" stands for on the box, he will say "Mommy says No" thanks to Kevin's tutelage.

IT

I knew IT would happen one day. I just wasn't expecting IT so soon. I thought we might have another year or so before IT occurred. I'm not even sure when IT happened, but I just noticed IT on Sunday.

I was finishing getting ready for church. Zac and Alyssa were standing in the doorway to my bathroom talking to me when I noticed their reflection in the mirror. Zac's head was higher than Alyssa's. I turned around to see if she was slouching and saw that she had on 3" heels and he was still taller than her! The little brother now looks down on the big sister! This also means he is taller than his mommy. Since I'm only 5'3", we'll count this as a good thing.

Homemade haircuts

Note: We're constantly trying to stretch a dollar farther at our house so I thought I'd start sharing some of the ways we do accomplish that.

I just finished giving the boys haircuts and since boys need a trim at least once a month, I figure I've saved at least $2000 over the years. Scared to death to do your own kids' haircuts? Here's a few tips to help you out:

The next time you take them to the salon for a cut, watch carefully how the stylist cuts their hair. After a couple of trips to observe, you'll probably be ready to do a cut on your own.

Buy a set of clippers, a beard trimmer (to trim sideburns and the base of the neck), a good pair of scissors, and a cape. You'll probably spend about $40 up front but after 4 haircuts you've recovered you're investment. If your boys like the longer styles, you probably could get by with just a pair of scissors.

For your first try, just cut 1/4 inch. This will build your confidence and keep you from cutting too short. There may be books in your local library to give you some guidance also.

I used to cut the girls' hair also, but as they've gotten older that's gotten more difficult. We've all opted for longer layered cuts that don't require a salon trip very often. I still trim all of our bangs here at home to help us go longer between cuts. I also color my own hair and will share some pointers for that another day.

Don't Leave!

No you didn't go to the wrong site. I was getting tired of the pepto bismol standard blogger pink and have been wanting to change the site for a while but honestly, I didn't know how. Then I found this great website where I can download blog backgrounds for free! This is so much fun I may have to change it on a monthly basis. So what do you think? Like the new design? Feel less likely to have a stomach ache? Tell me...I need to know!

School buses and motorcyle cops

Last week, I was driving back to work after my lunch break, thinking about all the things piled up on my desk and unfortunately not paying attention to how fast I was going when I heard the unwelcome sound of a siren behind me. I pulled over and was told I was going 52 in a 40. Not good. Couldn't find a current insurance card. Also not good. While Mr. Motorcycle Cop is checking my record or whatever it is that they do when they leave you just sitting there wondering what your fate will be and how much it's going to cost, I noticed it was about time for Zac to be out of school. Since our neighborhood, Zac's school and my office are all on the same street, I knew there was a good chance he would be coming by soon. As I saw the parade of buses, I reasoned that his bus is usually in the second wave that leaves the school and hoped I was safe from even worse embarrassment than I was already suffering. Then my cell phone began to ring....Zac's ring. Zac hadn't noticed it was me; his friend did! "Dude, isn't that your mom pulled over?"

Thankfully, embarrassment and a trip to the courthouse to prove I have insurance are my only consequences. I think owning up to your mistakes and not making a bunch of excuses for yourself combined with politeness goes a long way. I can promise you that I'm paying closer attention to my speed through that area now. Just today I saw two more motorcycle cops pulling people over in the same area. Let's hope their kids weren't watching from a school bus window!

Blogging Sabbatical Over

First off, let me say I'm sorry for disappearing from the blog world the last 2 weeks. I can't even tell you why I haven't posted anything new because I don't even know. I think it might have something to do with exhaustion though. When Kevin is gone for a long time, it's almost like I run purely on adrenaline the whole time. I know I'm the only one here and I know if I don't take care of everything, it won't get done. When he gets back home, it's almost as if I just shut down for a bit because I can. I know I've got backup again.

But, I'm done with all that now and will resume attempting to entertain you with our crazy family stories, home improvement projects, and, coming soon, how to save money on your groceries. (I've managed to cut our bill in half over the last few months!)

For now, I'll leave you with one of Nathan's infamous quotes that made me want to crawl under a rock and die since this one happened at church. Last Sunday night, a little girl kept following Nathan around everywhere and would not leave him alone. He was getting aggravated so one of the teachers decided to talk to him about it and asked why he thought she was following him. Nathan said, "I don't know. She must think I'm hot."