Happy 17th Birthday Ray



Boys, pretending to talk so they don't have to look at the camera. :)






Ray's birthday was actually yesterday, but our family had a couple issues with having a family dinner at home yesterday. So, we planned the party for today. In this family, on your birthday you choose the menu. Whatever you want. Ray chose salmon, risotto (rice in cream of mushroom soup, he calls it), Caesar salad and french bread. For dessert he wanted a blueberry cheesecake. So... I made them all. :)



I'm not normally pictured in family events, but I didn't want the cheesecake to slide so Eric took the pictures





gonna blow out the candles


We did presents today. Grandma sent Ray a wonderful quilt. He was so excited he exclaimed "YAY! Now my blanket isn't white anymore!"


Reading quilt inscription from grandma and grandpa



This is the quilt his great-grandma made for him. How perfect! Great color choice!



Today was a lot of fun, good times, and good food. Now I'm tired and gonna nap.

The nap, of  course comes after they set off the birthday poppers that I got them. :) Noisy little buggers.

Bottom of barrel? Seek new barrel :)

Having a child with behavior problems is tough. Having a step-child with behavior problems who has only lived with you for two and a half months is, well, tougher? Bryan is a wonderful child, super sweet and helpful. He has severely curbed his behavior at home to the point that he is just a normal ADHD child with bubbly energy and a smile for everyone. (Most of the time, he is, after all, still a nine year old kid.) At school we encounter different problems. I went in search for a different barrel when I had reached the bottom of mine with ideas on how to encourage good behavior at school. His teachers send home three things about how Bryan's day went, so I figured we would use those. This is what I'm trying now:

The prize is a special going out breakfast with me (and dad if he's invited)



I figure we'll go slow and build up to harder and harder goals. And, with the harder the goal, the better the prize. I'm thinking that a perfect week would mean a family trip to a zoo/museum/something educational, but fun. Either way, I'll keep you all posted on our success/failure. I'm actually thrilled to see what the paper holds today when he gets home. Maybe we'll have a star to put up there (or two... wishful thinking.)

It's, um, cute?

I have, as we all know, been sick for almost two months. Thankfully the new medicine I am on seems to be making everything better. So, for those two months I did little for my appearance or anything else, for that matter. This morning on my way to school I happened to catch a glimpse of my shadow... It looked like I had a football helmet on my head. Then, I looked in the mirror. My hair looked something like Anthony Michael Hall's character in Weird Science. (Google it, it isn't pretty.)

I have been growing my hair out from a pixie style that I got late spring, so I haven't even had a hair cut in months. I went in and told the lady I needed a hair cut that I could grow out more. So, basically, I needed a shaping. She did a good job, and she fixed the overall bowl/football helmet look that I was so beautifully sporting.

When she handed me the mirror my first thought was: "Erma Bombeck"
then I went to: "Maybe a little bit of Audrey added in." (might have been wishful thinking there)

Either way... This is what I ended up with. At least it will grow out soon and be the hairstyle that I truly want it to be.

Thank you, Mr. Bus-driver, for my bedtime back.

There had been a great loss in our house recently. Bryan was devastated. Eric and I were perturbed and anxious. The other boys... well I'm not sure they noticed.

Bryan was prescribed glasses and got them on Saturday. He wore them all day Sunday and took them to school Monday. We never saw them again... Poor glasses, I was getting attached to them. Bryan received a sentence of 1/2 hour earlier bedtime until the glasses were found or we bought new ones.

Yesterday, after a rough week in the our little household, I was greeted by this angelic face running in from the school bus.

The bus driver found them, and for that we are all happy. Bryan has his bedtime back, and we have a little more sanity in the budget this month. :)

I'm tired, You're tired, let's Eat!

Eric had 24 hour duty last night. I'm not including any pictures of people in this post because we both look like a train hit us. :) Eric came home this morning at 8am after I had gotten all the kiddos off to school. He looked at me and said, "let's go eat."

Of course, that's what I was thinking (right...) I'm super sick and you're super tired, let's go out to eat. But, my husband, the smartest man in the whole world, knows of what he speaks. He took me to a dive diner called Ruth Anne's in Columbus. I had a breakfast I NEVER have, and ate almost 1/2 of it! Eric polished off the rest. We then topped off our exciting morning by coming home and sleeping until Bryan came home from school. AAaaahhhh excitement.

Well Ma'am, You ARE Sick.

But, we have no idea what is wrong with you. That is what the doctor told me Thursday afternoon when I went in for a mono follow up appointment. I have apparently been mis-diagnosed with mono. The doctor did a plethora of new tests and lung x-rays.

She declared that I have bronchitis... to which I said, "Um, I have none of the symptoms of bronchitis, and I've had it before."
Then, she changed her mind after hearing that... "You, ma'am, have walking pneumonia."
"Uh, I do? Are you sure?"
"Well, your chest x-ray is not positive for pneumonia, but I think that's what it is."
"Riiiight, ok."
"Well, you ARE definately sick, but I'm not sure what's really wrong with you. Come back next week, and take these pills. Hopefully you'll feel better."

I'm really beginning to have faith in my doctors. Anyway, mono is out... walking pneumonia is in. Hopefully these "miracle pills" will let me finally get better after over a month of being sick. Either way, I still get to go back to the doctor to find out another thing I don't have. Sigh, at least they're honest.