As if you don't know enough about me...

A: available or single? i'm pretty sure this question was supposed to ask available or taken, but it doesn't, so I am neither.

B: best friend: rico

C: cake or pie? cake if it's store bought, they always make the best frosting... pie if it's homemade

D: drink of choice? dc, fountain. it tastes different out of a can. if you want to know why, ask me, i know the answer

E: essential items used daily? car, cell phone, toilet, internet

F: favorite color? green

G: gummy bears or gummy worms? is there a difference? renae - what's up with these questions?

H: hometown? ummm... now that is a tough one. where to call home? how about...place i've lived in longest: minnesota

I: indulgence? a shower longer than 3 minutes

J: january or february? february, january has not been a good month for me in the past

K: kids and names? ethan and cohen (and little noah)

L: life is incomplete without... family, friends and food

M: marriage date? June, 12 1999

N: number of siblings? 4, all sistas

O: oranges or apples? apples - carmel apples

P: phobias or fears? other than losing my husband and having to date again at age 30, with two kids.... debt

Q: favorite quote? you know what you do when life gives you a lemon....
seriously, you thought that was my favorite quote, that quote makes no sense.
how about: see my quote of the day

R: reason to smile? upcoming vacation

S: season? fall

T: tag 3 people... NO!

U: unknown fact about me? i don't floss all that often and i am married to a dentist

V: vegetables you don't like? eggplant & cauliflower - nasty

W: worst habit? biting my fingernails, snacking all day long

X: x-rays? huh?

Y: your favorite food: a good waffle

Z: zodiac sign? taurus

Happy Feet

Tonight while Eric and I were watching the Packers beat the Broncos, this Verizon commercial came on and Ethan just started busting out dancing. He made me rewind it so that he could dance to it again and again. I didn't mind because I was able to get it on camera.

p.s. you don't need to tell me that his pajamas don't match

I'm married to a superhero

In the past two weeks Eric has been told that he looks just like Clark Kent/Superman on multiple occasions. The other night he was home teaching and the woman flat out told him that ever since he moved into the ward that their family refers to him as Clark Kent. Today he came home and again said that his patient told him he looks like Superman. What's the deal?
I don't know if I see it.

Personally, I have always thought Eric resembled Mark Ruffalo,
especially in the following photo!!

Without further ado...

Ethan and Cohen were the talk of the neighborhood. Everybody loved their costumes. People kept coming up to them to take their picture. Ethan had a great time with his friends Van and Clara. It was sad to think about how much he is going to miss this next year. It has become his favorite holiday - thanks in part to the amazing costumes that he has had to wear. Diane's squirrel costume was amazing. It fit Cohen like a glove. Ed painted Ethan's wood grain and I did all the leaves/grass. Eric just sat back and gave his two cents about what more needed to be done. Luckily, Ethan is more interested in the act of collecting candy rather than actually eating it. Happy Halloween everyone!

Putting on the final touches of Ethan's Tree costume.

Ready to go!

Cohen working his squirrel costume.

Spending some time in the forest - he didn't want to leave,
it's where he belongs.

JackOLanterns

Tales from last nights carving party....

Don't bother me - I'm carving. It is a very focused activity!!

All lit up! From L to R...
Josie, Ethan, Eric, Ed

I'm kind of obsessed with leaves for some reason.

The aftermath.

Full Moon

Appropriate? I think so.

And now it's Saturday, a whole week later.

BUSY, BUSY! Having the Browns here for a visit has been great!
Here are a few of the recent highlights...

Eric's new pet. Rocky the raccoon. He has been coming around ever since I found him in our garage the other night. Freaked me out so bad. So, of course Eric decided to feed him a full meal and now he comes back begging every few days.

Ethan trying to rob the collection box at Holy Hill Cathedral.

"Mom, are we Catholic?"
A view from the top.

The Men - climbing to the top of Holy Hill Steeple.

Ethan giving Cohen a shoe made from silly putty. Adding a little dimension with the fork.

Cohen wasn't too thrilled.

A preview of Ethan's tree costume.

A preview of Cohen's squirrel costume.

What happens when one tries to comb my kids hair against the grain.

Wow, it's already Friday....

This week has been pretty busy having Diane here. Pretty much all of us have had doctors appointments this week, me because I have bronchitis once again and I also have some crazy lump on my chest that I think is getting bigger. We will see. Cohen has his 1 year check-up where he of course of off the charts. He was very proud of himself as you can see. The kid is a tank. So today we were off to JoAnn's to get all of our supplies for Ethan and Cohen's costumes. Ethan has decided he wants to be none of the previously mentioned choices and has decided on a tree. Therefore, Cohen has no other choice than to go along with the theme and be a squirrel. I am laughing just thinking about it. Little does he know what we have in store for him. Diane is kicking Eric and I out of the house tonight to go see a movie, and I am not complaining. I think we have decided on Michael Clayton. Should be good. I hope I can stay awake...this cough syrup they have me taking is strong.

Catch-up

This past weekend started out good but ended in me taking amoxicillin for like the 100th time. I always get sinus infections and have the hardest time shaking them. I was sick two weeks ago and I thought it had disappeared on it's own, but yesterday I woke up and had pain all down the right side of my head - ear infection! Cohen was just on antibiotic for one so I guess it's my turn. So yesterday was a total bust - i just sat around all day - which actually was ok because Eric made dinner and put the kids to bed, but I still hate being sick.

Saturday, I went to Karen's for a pumpkin party. Ethan was so obsessed with it all weekend asking me who was going and what we were going to do and if he could come with me. Everybody that came was instructed to bring something with pumpkin in it. I figured there would be way to many pumpkiny things so I brought sugar cookies in the shape of a pumpkin. Still works, right? Fun times!

When I got home I got to take the kids to the park because Eric had promised they would go. It was either that or mow the lawn, I chose the park. There were these sketchy old guys there that were hovering around my car, looking in the windows and stuff. I was at least 30 yards away and couldn't remember if I had locked my car so I hit my automatic lock on my key chain and they got spooked and walked away. Weird.

Grandma Diane is coming to town tomorrow and we are all so excited! I think Ethan is the most excited, but deep down I probably am. Another body around to entertain the kiddos is always a big help. We are going to start work on Ethan's halloween costume which will be very fun. Then in about a week or so Ed will be joining us as well. It's sad to think that this could be the last time they are here before Eric graduates. We will have to be extra diligent in experiencing all the things they love about WI one last time.

Oh, and just a few minutes ago I was IM with Karen and we were just talking about how I didn't go to church yesterday and she was like I know Jos, you told me last night. Huh? No I didn't. Come to find out Eric was IM with Karen last night posing as ME! So busted. What a weirdo.

Little Cohen

October 11th, 2006 - 6:25pm

I'm not just saying this, but it seems like just yesterday that I was pregnant with Cohen. This past year really did fly by. I will post some video of him eating his birthday cake in the video section - he sort of burned himself on the candle, not good.

Disconnected

I imagine that we've all seen these stupid sayings floating around in some form or another. I remember seeing this example when I was in Cabo for my senior trip. I thought it was pretty idiotic because what is beer anyway, like 95% water? Unfortunately, I still see these shirts almost weekly because of where I live. Get rid of them already.
Anyway, in the past few weeks I have felt kind of disconnected and I am blaming this blog. The original purpose of this blog was to alleviate Eric's responsibility of updating our website. It was something that hung over his head and seemed to be refreshed only every couple months. So... this seemed like the right solution. Although, now the burden fell on me. Yet one more thing to have to worry about. And let me tell you I worried. I worried, like I'm sure all bloggers worry, that it wouldn't be clever enough, boring, too personal, and that shady people would be checking it without my knowledge. What I didn't worry about was that this blog would ultimately eliminate the need to actually pick up a phone and talk to people. I found myself the other day having this conversation with Eric:

Eric: So what did you guys do today?
Me: I guess you haven't checked my blog yet.
Eric: Nope, not yet, I just got home.
Me: Well, it's all on there....

Like, just check the blog already, I don't have time to repeat myself. Thus, the feeling of disconnection. The makers of these t-shirts should start a line for all the bloggers out there. Here's a few to get them started.

"Save precious breath, blog."
"Save cell phone minutes, blog."

Seriously, this isn't good. I almost never get on Ichat anymore or call people to have an actual conversation because my life is pretty much all spelled out online. And what's sad is that blogging, on average, actually takes longer than making a phone call would. Help! Am I the only one out there experiencing this?

GottaGettaGourd

Today's outing was to the Cedarburg Family Farm where kids can participate in all things fall. It was perfect fall weather which was much appreciated.


First on the list was feeding the goats and sheep. Ethan has warmed up to the idea of putting his fingers anywhere near farm animals. The first time we took him to the zoo he wasn't having it. At least now he doesn't just drop all the food on the ground - it actually makes it in the goats mouth.

Ethan & Carter

Then they had this sweet bowling lane where Ethan could bowl down wooden candy corns with a green pumpkin/gourd thing. He was loving that. Check out that follow through.

A visit to the hay barn!!

Potty stop. Not really, it's been retired.

Coco

Taking a hay ride to the pumpkin patch.

Ethan's picks!

Tagged again

If you are reading this right now, consider yourself tagged. I'll be checking your blog.

1. Three biggest fears? (besides anything bad happening to a family member/child)

- Debt, thus I live in fear daily

- Sun dried tomatoes

- Public speaking

2. When was the last time you danced? Real dancing - probably at my wedding - 8 1/2 yrs ago. Flailing around with the kids dancing - probably a few days ago.

3. Do you creep on stranger's blogs? No, usually I know the people or it doesn't interest me.

4. If you could go back to be any age for a day, what age would you be and why? 19, attending college, having tons of fun.

5. Are you a good liar? I think I'm pretty good.

6. Do you judge someone when you can tell they've had elective cosmetic surgery? No

7. If you have children, what's one thing that you always told yourself you'd never do when you had kids? If you don't have children, what's one thing you tell yourself you'll never do. (Psst! You. Yah, you. The one without kids. Guess what? You'll probably do it.) Make them take piano lessons.

8. What's something that totally grosses you out? Yogurt.

9. Do you ever delete forwards without reading them? Most of the time.

10. Do you ever lie to get out of obligations? Yes.

11. Consider your body weight and your yearly income at their present states. Would you rather be 200 pounds heavier and $200,000 richer or stay at your present states? Present state. I think I should have added another greatest fear - that being weighing 200 lbs more than I do now.

12. When was the last time you bought a pair of shoes and what were they? Polka dot ballet flats from Old Navy.

13. The Olympics. Take them or leave them? Leave them

14. What's your favorite accent? Irish

15. What's your favorite scent? A bakery

16. Gum or breath mints? Gum

17. If you could look like any celebrity, who would it be? Jennifer Garner, body mostly.

18. If you had the chance of looking like said celebrity in exchange for your thumbs would you do it? No. Well maybe just my left thumb.

19. Do you religiously wear sun screen? No, well maybe it's in my moisturizer...who knows.

20. Do you generally trust people/their motives or doubt people/their motives? Doubt

21. Would you describe yourself as a complicated person or is what you see what you get? What you see is what you get.

22. Do you watch what you eat? Yes, I watch it as it goes in my mouth.

23. Do you watch what other people eat? No.

24. Do you judge how other people raise their kids? Yes.

25. Do you judge people who dress poorly? No.

26. Do you judge people who are homely? No... remember when I said I was a good liar!

27. Do you judge people who are overweight? Yes, me being one of the one judged.

28. Your interest in politics: High, Medium-High, Medium, Medium-Low, Low, Obsolete? Medium Low

29. Favorite song of all time? This was the hardest question of them all... I really don't know.

30. Acoustic or electric? Acoustic

31. If you were a hermit, would you shave? No.

32. If you could shave your head without your significant other throwing a complete hissy, would you? No

33. What was your least favorite age? 13

34. How many times a day do you check your email? Quite a few.

35. Are you in a tiff with anyone right now? Don't think so.

Ymca madness

Many of you out there know that I frequent the local YMCA on a regular basis so that Ethan can actually learn a few things via preschool and so that I can burn a few calories to begin my day. Ethan's school lasts from 9-11:30 and it's nice because they have a "kidcare" area for Cohen to play as well. My usual routine is to do cardio for an hour or so, go upstairs and test Ethan before snack time, go back and do some weights and/or go swimming and then shower and go home. There is a group of LDS moms who also frequent this YMCA, but are very leery of showering in the locker room. I think their problem stems from the fact that they think there is no where private to get dressed. Just go in the bathroom...what's the big deal? If I didn't shower and get ready for my day at the Y there would be no time to do it at home unless Cohen was asleep and that is usually my cleaning/computer time. Thus my conclusion to do it at the Y. But that's not my reason for this post. The reason is this. I walk into said locker room each time thinking the same thing, will I ever be ballsy enough to walk around butt naked with all my giggly bits hanging out for everyone to see when I am 45+ years of age? What is it about these fully naked women who feel comfortable enough to:
- stand with one foot on the floor and one foot on the sink counter shaving their leg in front of a huge mirror?
- take a towel between their legs and dry their area by pulling back and forth on either end of the towel?
- bend over, period?
- lay down in the sauna with their feet resting up on the wall?
- shower without a curtain?
- be 200lbs+ but act like they are 120?
- sit and do their hair and makeup before they put on their underwear?
I can NOT imagine ever getting to this level of inhibition. These women are not fit. It's actually kind of a motivator. But I gotta give them credit, a lot of them are 70+ and still going to the Y at least 3 times per week. Their little clique is called the Silver Sneakers and they all enjoy water aerobics. Each one of their swimsuits are so stretched out and see-through because they've probably been wearing them for over ten years. Again, they like being seen naked. I wonder if the men at the Y are as ballsy, ha ha, as these women? From now on I think I need to use a different locker room. All of this skin is getting to me.

Things I can count on...

1. Ethan wanting breakfast first thing in the morning.

2. Cohen waking up at least twice a night.

3. Ethan asking to go to some sort of restaurant for lunch after Preschool.

4. That I will be jealous of something or someone at least once a day.


5. Weighing the same or more than the last time I stood on a scale even though I work out on a regular basis, drink diet coke in stead of regular, and carry around a 28lb baby all day.

6. Eric coming on to me once in bed.

7. Cohen pooping every morning around 6:00am.

8. That Eric will ask 'what's for dinner' on his way home from school and when I tell him that I haven't even thought about it he will spell out in great detail (all the while wondering - then what has she been doing all day) what he would like to eat for dinner, after first consulting with his palate.


9. That on any given day I have at least 1 load of laundry to do.

10. That my favorite bloggers will entertain me with their
consistently great posts...thank you for doing so. It gives me something to look forward to among the other nine things I can count on during the day.

Alex, I'll take 'wrong answer' for $200.

After a long day/evening dealing with a very disobedient Ethan....

Me: What does Heavenly Father want you to be? (answer=obedient)
Ethan: A ghost.
Me: What?
Ethan: Heavenly Father wants me to a ghost for Halloween.
Me: I was talking about how he wants you to be obedient.
Ethan: I don't want to be odeebient for Halloween.

As requested...

Cohen has been taking a few steps here and there for a while now,
but within the past few weeks he has improved a ton.
So...here's a clip if you care to watch. And yes, he
has a Trader Joe's balloon tied to his ankle...he would lash out
every time it got away from him.

Oh, the many uses of pipe cleaners

It's been kind of rainy lately so Ethan and I decided to get into the Halloween mood by making some spider webs for our windows. Since Ethan is obsessed with everything Spiderman I think he thought it was extra special. Unfortunatly, he didn't really participate all that much. Ethan is an observer when it comes to crafts. He gets really excited about the idea of fun projects such as this, but when it comes time to do it he prefers to just watch. He does chime in when he doesn't like what he sees, like if I am making it too big or too small. He definitely knows how to give his two cents. The other day we were at the market and I asked him if he wanted to make some caramel apples with me. He said of course, and went and picked out the apples. Since he was so excited about making the apples I figured, what's the harm, it's once a year, I will just dose him for the sugar filled caramel. So we get home and he helps me peel off all of the wrappers from the caramels, he pushes the sticks into the apples and then he disappears. I finish dipping the apples and set them aside to cool, and then after dinner ask him if he wants one for dessert... he says NO! What? After all that? I guess I should be happy that he doesn't like sweets, but now that means that I will have to eat them all. It's funny, he really doesn't like candy all that much. He likes chocolate, but that's about it. I was worried last year when he went trick or treating and came home with a huge bag of candy. I thought I was going to have to buy it from him or something. Fortunately, he liked the social aspect of Halloween much more than the candy. He loved showing everyone his costume and visiting all the houses in the neighborhood. Hopefully, this trend lasts. It really is a depressing holiday for kids with diabetes.