For this I went to college?

Our Oven Fiasco

2009-03-13T11:46:00.000-07:00

So, a couple of weeks ago, our oven stopped working. It was acting a bit strange previously (the main oddity was the light would spontaneously flash when the oven wasn't on and you couldn't make it stop) and one day, it just shut itself off while warming up. One number would show in the display, but nothing else was lit and pushing the buttons showed no results. We tried unplugging it, and when we plugged it back in, not even the clock came back on. We made a change of dinner plans that night. The next morning, it spontaneously came back on - but still wouldn't heat up without shutting down. We called someone to come look which took a few days. When he came, he was certain it was the board, ordered us a refurbished part, and scheduled an appointment for one week later. The part came, he came at the scheduled time, put it in, and things were looking good. The light was working as it should and it was starting to warm up. Then, it shut down, but the display was a bit different. After doing some major troubleshooting, he determines that the refurbished part was defective and orders us a new one. The appointment is set for a few days later. This time, a new guy comes. He puts in the part as I have seen before. It looks like this time is going to work. It warms for longer than the last time. I am talking about baking cookies in celebration. Then, the beeping starts. An error code has come up. He calls it in to see what exactly this code means. After a short discussion on the phone, he asks me to tell him a bit more about what behaviors the oven has been demonstrating lately. He then tells me that code is specific to a DIFFERENT part, which would also explain the strange stuff that had been happening before. Because this "membrane" which connects to the control panel will function intermittently, I now have a sometimes working oven. After all of the fun that we have been through, they are going to absorb the cost of the new part and come on Tuesday to put it in. It has now arrived via UPS, please say a prayer for me before Tuesday afternoon ;)

Samantha's fourth birthday

2009-02-26T14:40:00.000-08:00

Samantha's birthday fell on a Sunday this year, so we let her open her presents just after we got home from church. I told Jeff I might make the kids dress up for opening presents from now on since she looked so cute in her Sunday clothes ;)Lady and the Tramp - one of her new favorites.

The Barbie that Priscilla just had to get for her sister - although I suspect it was because she anticipated playing with it.

Natasha was an eager participant in the festivities. With her first birthday and Christmas behind her, she now understands what gift opening is all about.

Samantha's first camera - a Hello Kitty digital camera. Priscilla has probably gotten more use out it so far, but Samantha has managed to take a few pictures.

Her hair looks a little wild because we did the cake after her bath. I can't believe she is already four - where did the time go?

Christmas 2008

2009-02-06T22:29:00.000-08:00

It has been a rough winter for us health-wise. It seems someone has been sick every week! That is why the girls are pictured here standing in front of our last-minute ten dollar Christmas tree. Yes, they do get quite eager to unload their trees two or three days before Christmas. We just couldn't seem to get out to buy one until the week of Christmas. I didn't spend a whole lot of time putting on ornaments, knowing I was going to take them down again in a few days...

Natasha with Grandpa. She loves her "papa."

Samantha loves her "Puppy in My Pocket" and "Littlest Pet Shop" stuff.

The girls were wild about these dogs in a handbag :)

Barbie Mariposa - the one thing Priscilla particularly wanted.

The obnoxious singing penguin that Grandpa picked out. Oh yeah, he sings and waddles very loudly along our wooden floors. A truly vile toy, but she does love it. Grandpa can choose them.

Natasha's first birthday

2009-02-03T13:50:00.000-08:00

These pictures were taken on November 11th, her actual birthday, so posting this leaves me only a few months behind...
It is hard to believe that our littlest girl is over a year old now :( Natasha was a little hesitant with the opening of the gifts at first, but her sisters were more than willing to lend a hand and she caught on quickly.
Cake, however, was not such a foreign concept to her and she was eager to have her share of it.

Snowman

2009-02-03T13:40:00.000-08:00

The weather sure changes fast in Michigan! Just a few short weeks after taking pictures of the girls on the front lawn in their T-shirts, we have enough snow to put together a snowman. It took about all the snow we had, though. Jeff is the lucky one who has taken on the task of keeping up this annual tradition. I prefer to watch from the warmth of the house and take a picture when the deed is done.

Twilight

2009-01-25T18:21:00.000-08:00

A group of us ladies met for dinner and then went to see Twilight the weekend it came out. It was so fun. Of course, I had already succumbed to temptation and saw it at 12:01 Friday morning with Charity, but I enjoyed it even more the second time.

Melanie and Shannon

Elaine, Me, Charity

Tori, Melisa, Melissa

Jen, Jeannette, Holli

All of us.

Warm November

2009-01-23T23:59:00.000-08:00

Just thought I would take some fun pictures of the girls while we had such nice weather. Early November and we were all outside without jackets!

The big girls LOVED playing in the leaves, but Natasha was not as thrilled with it. I was able to get a few shots where she didn't look angry :)

Out of the mouths of babes...

2009-01-22T22:08:00.000-08:00

Matthew 18:4 - "Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven."

Tonight, after a very difficult night with Priscilla, I put her to bed early. As I listened to her wailing from the other end of the hall, I asked Samantha what she thought had gotten into her sister to which she responded "I don't know." When I asked her if she would ever behave in such a way she said "Not tonight." At least she's honest.

Fall pictures

2009-01-22T21:28:00.000-08:00

Fall is probably my favorite season. I couldn't resist taking some pictures of the girls on the lawn while everyone was in a good mood and we still had our tiny pumpkins

Barbies in the Attic

2009-01-20T11:07:00.000-08:00

The happened several months ago, but I just had to document it here, before I forget more of the details. One of my pet peeves is the post hurricane condition of my girls' room. This only changes on the rare occasion that I go through and take care of the aftermath by putting things where they actually belong. I know that kids will make messes when they play, but is it too much to ask that they pack up a bit of it when they are done? So, for weeks, I had been asking the girls to take care of the Barbie stuff that was strewn across their floor. I would ask them to just pick up some of what they weren't playing with - just some. One day, Natasha comes to the kitchen while the other girls are eating their lunch with an object in her mouth, which turned out to be a Barbie teacup. I was not happy. I went to put it into the container that contains all of the tiny Barbie stuff, or should contain all of the tiny stuff. It was empty. I was more unhappy. I started to ask the girls, once again, to pick up the Barbie things, but upon hearing my own voice say those words again, I lost it. I said "That's IT. I am picking it up myself!" Priscilla realizes this in not a good thing. She pleads with me to allow her to pick it up herself (a rare offer, I must say); however, I am fed up. I tell her "No, I'm putting it in the attic!" Now she loses it. There is much weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. I am unmoved. The problem is, this task is easier said than done. There is no easy access to the attic, it requires the ladder from the garage. I go get it. There is more screaming as I bring it in. I set it up in the hall and push aside the board to gain access to the attic. Throughout all of this, I am explaining to my oldest the consequences of her lack of action in this matter. I go into their room and start tossing things into a Rubbermaid container, while Priscilla continues to protest. Around this time, Samantha comes to me and says "Mom, ask me if I think you should put the Barbie things in the attic." I decide to humor her. She says "YES! Because I am tired of playing with them." This is one of the only things I can imagine finding humorous in this moment. Now, I have a cheerleader. An assistant even. She is by my side through the whole process, even making suggestions of other things that I might want to consider placing in the attic. "I don't mind if you put my pink baby in the attic." I assure her that I am not really looking for more stuff to put up there, just the Barbie things. She also provides me with lots of encouragement throughout the task "I think this is a good idea, Mom. I think you should put it in the attic!" All the while, Priscilla laments the loss of the Barbies. Samantha stays by my side as I climb the ladder, handing things up to me as requested. Maybe I should have discouraged Samantha's pleasure in her sister's misery, but I was kind of enjoying my one gal pep rally. It helped me. Finally, Priscilla's cries of protest fade as the task nears completion. I promise to return the Barbies when the girls can keep their room in respectable condition for a week or so. Clearly, Samantha is not overly concerned about the Barbies' return. In spite of her strong desire to have her toys back, it was still not enough motivation for Priscilla to keep the room clean enough to get them. After a few months, I decided they were ready to have them back. Jeff helped me to get them out of the attic, and they have returned to the girls' room. For now.

Halloween

2009-01-08T14:10:00.000-08:00

I am getting closer to being caught up ;) This was Natasha's first Halloween and because she is the neglected third child, I only have one picture to document the event and she isn't really wearing a costume. Still, I did tote her around in the wagon for a while as the girls went house to house on a strangely warm Halloween night. Of course, the big girls had to have different costumes for the "trunk or treat" at church and our trip around the neighborhood. They were at least content to wear items from our dress-up bin. So, I didn't have to buy anything new this year, although I did pick up a few things after Halloween in the hopes of getting them to wear them next year...

Sisters

2009-01-07T22:31:00.000-08:00

I don't really have any clever commentary to add to these, I was just really pleased to get a couple pictures of all three girls together that actually look good :) I usually can't get more than one at a time to actually look at me. Natasha is about 8 1/2 months here.

Better late than never

2009-01-07T22:03:00.000-08:00

I am not big on new year's resolutions, but one of my goals for 2009 is to get caught up on my blog and to keep it updated. So, I will be adding pictures from the past several months. These are from our trip up North in JULY!
The girls really enjoyed the trampoline at their "boy cousin's" house. Samantha mostly liked to watch the others from the security of her cousin Kayla's arms.

We also had a great time visiting the beach at Lake Antione which is just down the road from the Larson's home. The girls were twice as safe with their tubes and life preservers.

Natasha was perfectly content to sit in her little chair, but was happy to be held as well (by Aunt Sherri, here)

The Herrmann - Ferguson clan

The cousins.

After our visit at the Larson's, we headed to Nevins Lake for a quick visit with Grandpa Al and Sara. We, of course, had to take the traditional do-rag photo on the deck.

Too Busy

2008-09-25T10:48:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned previously, kindergraten started with a week of half days. This realy helped the kids to adjust to the new routine, and gave the teachers an opportunity to hold conferences with the parents in the afternoon. I had signed up for the first slot after school on the second day to get it done with. There really wasn't enough time for us to drive home, eat lunch, and come back, so I decided to pack a picnic lunch for the girls and myself, which we then ate on the school lawn.

As we sat there eating, a bus pulled up, a single kindergartener climbed aboard, and off they went. When Priscilla saw this she remarked "Oh, her mom must be too busy." This comment really struck me at the time and has continued to impact my thinking since. Now, I am not judging people who send thier little ones on the bus, I would if could. I don't know if her mom has to work, or if this little girl just likes to ride the bus, or anything about their situation. However, what I got out of this moment is that my daughter know that I am not too busy for her.

We make so many sacrifices for our children. There are times that I think we would be in a totally different world financially if I did work a little more often. Sometimes it can be challenging to be a stay-at-home mom, for various reasons. However, this moment with my little girl has completely validated me. I realized that all of the little things that I do for my child, whether it be carefully choosing her school even if it means driving her there every day, cutting sandwiches into heart shapes (shameful, I know, but it makes her eat more ;), or just playing with her, sends her the message that she takes high priority in my life.

First Day of Kindergarten

2008-09-23T11:56:00.000-07:00

I had to release my baby into the cold, cruel world of elementary school. Hopefully it will treat her well. We woke up bright and early, and set out with a princess backpack and Hello Kitty sandals. It wasn't as traumatic for me as I had anticipated, due to our preschool experience - the first week of kindergarten here consists of half days. Unfortunately, all of the schools here in Lansing have all-day kindergarten, so the second week was a little more heartbreaking. I realized that someone else now has my daughter for the greater part of the day! Priscilla, however, has been handling the change beautifully.

Poor Natasha is now spending more of her time than even in the carseat. For a while she was taking all of her naps in there and I was afraid she might not sleep in a crib again!

Priscilla with her teacher, Mrs. Gorbe.

Daddy's girls

2008-09-03T21:39:00.000-07:00

These girls sure love their daddy, and they love going to his softball games. They really don't pay much attention to the game once we get there, though, because there is a nearby playground that they find much more interesting. They also cheer for the wrong team and applaud almost any play during the time they actually ARE watching, so taking them away from the field does gain appeal the longer we are there....

The trip up North

2008-08-03T18:41:00.000-07:00

Well, we survived the trip to Aunt Connie and Uncle Eric's. The girls all did really well on the ride up, which is saying something since it is a seven hour drive to their house in the U.P. The ride home was a different story ;) We stopped at a roadside park just after crossing the Mackinaw bridge to take a rest. I really wonder what people did before portable DVD players...

Natasha really traveled well on the way there. The trip back was another story :)

Scenic overlook along Lake Michigan

Ready for Niagara

2008-08-02T21:09:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure what possesed Jeff or Natasha in this case

Eight months old

2008-08-02T21:07:00.000-07:00

Natasha is growing so fast. She is such a happy, fun-loving little girl :)

Cottage Visit

2008-07-17T11:48:00.000-07:00

The girls and I enjoyed a visit to "Great Grandma Jenkins'" cottage this week. Priscilla, Samantha, and I had a successful fishing session with Grandpa, and we also collected some water lillies. Priscilla and Samantha went home with Grandma and Grandpa, and Natasha and I had a VERY quiet ride home.

Mom and her girls

2008-07-16T22:50:00.000-07:00

The House That Mike Built

2008-07-16T22:31:00.000-07:00

Mike wanted to get Priscilla something really special for her birthday, so he decided upon this cedar playhouse. He came up the day before the party to put it together. It took a little longer than we anticipated, and we worked well into the night. We finally finished around 1am.

It was all worth it seeing her face the next day when we revealed it to her at the party that afternoon.

Princesses

2008-07-16T21:10:00.000-07:00

My girls have known from an early age that they are princesses. I am not sure how they know it, they just do. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that when they were babies I would dress them in head to toe pink to minimize the number of comments I would get about my cute little boy. Dressing up just starts earlier when you have two big sisters :)

Priscilla turns 5!

2008-07-16T17:00:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my little girl is already five. We had a nice party just the five of us on the night of her birthday. The following weekend we had some of the family over to celebrate.

Preschool graduation

2008-07-16T16:18:00.000-07:00

I remember telling Jeff how rediculous I think it is that they now have a ceremony for a preschol gradutation. Those feelings didn't stop me from pushing my way to the front of the room to get a good shot of my little girl. She had such a great experience and made so many friends at school and I am glad to see she isn't shy like her momma was as a kid.

Priscilla with her wonderful teachers, Ms. W and Mrs. Burch

The cupcake next to Samantha's plate is the one Priscilla dropped on the floor and then tried to give to Samantha. The sad thing is, she was going to take it. I made sure she got a fresh one, though.