Small Scare

Had to go buy a pg test at the Walgreens tonight. For some reason my period has been super regular, so I know right away when I'm late. Well, the test was negative, but it really got me thinking again. I miss holding my babies. I actually miss nursing in the middle of the night. The cute little baby outfits. The big belly. That first smile. And maybe I do still want a girl. I've been telling myself and everyone else I was done, but I was a bit dissappointed when there was only one line on that stick. But the rational side of me says what would I do for work? And where would the carseat fit? And Ben's already an attention hog, how would he react? And we can't afford it. And.... I just keep picturing that little baby in my arms. Oh dear. Now what? Someone else close to me better have a baby soon so I can get my fix, or we're in big trouble. I think Daddy would give me the go ahead, which is even scarier. And what about my depression? That's been a battle of late. So I think I'll try to find a baby to hold and not make one of my own for right now. The timing really isn't what I want, so it's for the best.

So I need to be thankful right now for what I've got. I'm thankful for school being almost done. I'm thankful for being able to wear green shoes. I'm thankful for cars that work. I'm thankful forboys who clean up the first time I ask. I'm thankful for all the support I recieve from everyone. Thank-you

Real Quick

Ok I need to get to bed, but I wanted to record this so I don't forget. We were waiting in the truck tonight while Daddy ran in to the pet store to buy dog food. Ben was talking in the backseat and said "Mommy, last time daddy got dog food at the other store I was awfully, awfully naughty."
"What happened?"
"I was just awfully mad."(except he has a southern accent so he was ma-ad)
Well. My three year old is apparently now 14. I guess he knows when he is naughty, just not how to stop.

Oh. And Joey thinks I'm one thousand and nine years old. But Daddy is 30. What the heck? Daddy thought that was sooo funny. He had to point out that it must be because of my hair.
Grr.

Welcome

Check it out! I went to Michael's today and got this sign, painted it, and put my UL welcome on it. Then I didn't have any way to hang it so it is propped in the window. SO cute. I even distressed it. So proud of my creativity. And now I want even more from UL.

All right, the blogger is driving me nuts. I realize now why I don't put pictures in very often. Now I'm doing another post to see if I can make it work the way I want.

Ok- we got decorations up so here are a couple pics of that.

And here are some adorable pictures of my adorable boys (if I do say so myself)

Well it still won't work, but hopefully you get the jist.

More Fun

I got my uppercase living tonight and had to run home and get at least one up. It looks so great in the kitchen. Now we are going to get our family picture taken and then put a black and white under this. I love it. I'm going shopping tomorrow for some backgrounds for 2 of my other ones, and I can't wait to give my gift one. SHH.


I just found this on my camera. Bonus points to Daddy for taking pics while hunting.

Turkey, Turkey, Turkey

We got home late last night from all our Thanksgiving travel. We had a great time and nobody got hurt. Thursday we went to Aunt Nancy's. It was a small crowd this year as other families take turns with their in-laws, but the food was delicious and the boys had kids to play with. Thursday night and Friday morning Bill went shopping for Black Friday deals. He was really wanting a good laptop deal so he camped out at Comp USA from 2 am, but unfortunately he was behind 2 too many people to get it. He bought some other small stuff and came home for a nap. Then we headed up to Janesville to my Mom's. She has a Golden Retriever puppy named Gus. He is huge and eats everything. The kids loved it, and Ben did not have an asthma attack with his new meds. YAY! I'm so happy to not have to worry every time we go somewhere. Another yummy meal and then Nana was ready for us to leave. (I think she is used to her peace and quiet, which my boys do not relate to.) We drove 3 hours up to my Dad's and spent some quality time there. They live in such a small town (pop 300), that they were able to take us down to the local restaurant and introduce us to their friends who happened to all be there too. We stayed the night and I got to listen to the trains go by every twenty minutes (that's the other thing- they live right next to the train tracks). Saturday morning we got up and Dad had to go ref some basketball games so we went to the next town (pop 4000) to go to the library and a movie. The library so I could research my Dad's wife's first husband's family for her kids. {Sounds kinda weird, but he died and the kids are interested so I'm doing it.} And we had to stop at Cabela's, but it was tiny compared to the new one in Hoffman Estates so we just stayed for a minute. On the way back we stopped at Walmart hoping to still find a laptop deal, and I've had my eye on a new camera. No purchases there, but when we got back to Dad's house dear hubby got on the computer and ordered my camera for me. I can't wait- 7.2 megapixels and 10x optical zoom here I come. It also has anti-shake so I hope for less blurry pictures when I'm in a hurry. One more yummy turkey dinner and we were on our way home. Got home about 11, hubby went back online to try to find his computer, went to bed and got up this morning to try to find his computer. Still looking. Cyber Monday is tomorrow. Wishing him luck.
So now that we were out of town, I only have today to get Christmas decorations up. The kids have been begging to get them out, so that is what we will be doing all day (along with a quick trip to the grocery store- we have no milk).

Friends and Family

We won't discuss how day 2 of Open House went. Let's just leave it at not well. I did meet two people who I formed a quick relationship with, which was very unlike me. Charlsanne was selling Stampin' Up and has the most friendly 11 month old I've ever met. She just kept reaching for me to hold her. I told her she makes it very hard to resist those "I want another baby" thoughts. And Deanna sells Southern Living, but really "got" Once Upon A Family. How can I not be friends with someone who loves OUAF as much as I do. She is having a party in January and I am really looking forward to it.

Today was my one day of work this week, and the kids were a bit crazy. THe Holidays really do affect them as much as us. Or maybe it's because our minds are elsewhere the day before vacation. This year we are only having one Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday, with Bill's family. Then my Mom on Friday in Janesville. From there we go to Dad's in Prairie du Chein. Looking forward to getting together with everyone. I have been appreciating family more lately (especially since we've all been getting along), and can't wait to see what everyone has been up to. I'm really looking forward to some Pumpkin Pie! I hope it is as good as I've been anticipating.


Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Open House

Yesterday was day one of my open house at some model homes. I've not been having too much luck so tried not to set myself up for disappointment, but I actually did OK considering. Considering NO ONE come. Considering I was in the last house and by the time they got to us they were out of time and money. Considering I had a Mary Kay lady next to me who was very aggressive. She would even keep trying to make a sale when the customer had moved on to my area. ARG. So other than that- I sold a Family Tree Poster that I had been carting around for months, I booked two parties (except one is that Mary Kay lady), I moved one customer/fellow direct salesperson to tears {love that}over Letters To My Dear Sweet Child, I got a ton of reading done between customers, and I did meet several very nice people. Sarah's friend Amy is great. She was very sympathetic about my "issues" and stopped by a couple times to check on me. Today is a new day. We're hoping for more customers with the better weather, and the Mary Kay lady will not be there. Phew. It is very difficult for me to be pretend nice to someone who is driving me nuts. Oh, and I will be eating something before I leave. Yesterday I went from 8 to 4:30 without eating. Talk about headaches.

PS Joey has gone out with Daddy morning and evening the last 2 days and is out there again right now. They've seen 18 deer (Joey's keeping count) but so far nothing to bring home. Daddy had a chance at a doe yesterday, but now Joey is saying he only wants a buck. Hmm. That might make things a little more difficult.

Etc.

I think the sick bug hit our house. Ben was running a fever last night. He woke up cool this morning, but he has been wheezing pretty bad. Probably has an ear infection. He is sleeping right now, which is pretty unlike him, so we'll just rest tonight and hopefully it won't get worse than this.

Joey went hunting with Daddy this morning. No deer:( They saw a couple but they were on someone else's property and for some reason wouldn't come over close enough. They are going to try again tomorrow afternoon. Joey did really well. He got up at 4:30 this morning and was excited even though his little eyes were still puffy. His fingers got a little cold, but other than that he was a trooper sitting up in that tree stand. He even took a little nap. Then he still had to go to school this afternoon. I wonder how that went. :)

Tomorrow is my Open House at a model home with several other vendors. They advertised in the paper and we all handed out fliers, just like mine. I just hope the turnout is better. I'm going in with a positive attitude. People will want to buy. My products are beautiful. Christmas is coming and they make great gifts. Family is important. People will want to buy. Or book shows. Or join the company.

Tonight is the Brad Paisley, Taylor Swift, Rodney Adkins concert. I'm real sad we won't be there. I actually tried bidding on some tickets last night on ebay, but got outbid. Boo-hoo. Man, I really wanted to go to that!

Not one of my better days

I try not to complain. Life is usually actually pretty good, and I'm not having an episode or anything, but today has not been good. First I got up this morning and my throat was sore and flegmy (ok I don't know how to spell that or even if it's a word). I remember coughing last night so I'm sure I didn't sleep well. Got the kids up and got ready for work. Ben goes with me today so I had to get him ready, too. At school today we were making totem poles, which was fun for the kids, but a mess for me. It involved squirting liquid watercolors into empty bottles and of course at some point I squirted blue all over one of the few pairs of pants that I like right now (they used to be green). Whatever. Then the kids just destroyed the room so we had early clean-up time. I bent over to put something on the floor and stood up right into the corner of the cabinet door. Ouch. Oh ouch. So I'm just standing there holding my head with my eyes watering and noone notices. For like a whole minute. Finally one of the kids looks at me and says "What happened?" I said I hurt myself but they had already walked away. We're going to work on empathy next. Then today was my hair appointment, which is usually a cause for celebration, but not when you have a big lump on your head. And tomorrow is the Brad Paisley concert and we do not have tickets for the sold-out show. Real sad about that. So today is just one of those days. Right now I'm typing this when I should be playing with my kids who are pounding each other. GGRRRR.

Lets see, do I have anything positive to report? Nope, don't feel like it right now. Hope everyone is having a better day than me.

Updates

Apparently I forgot to let everyone know that yes, indeed the flood was cleaned up and taken care of in the basement. The problem was the same as 5 years ago (the day we got home from the hospital after having Joey). The tree roots in the front yard start growing down in the pipes and eventually cause a clog. The roto-rooter guy put the scare in Bill at first saying that it was going to cost alot of money and take alot of time and effort. He did end up having to go down the manhole in the street, but it wasn't as bad as anticipated. He got done in a couple of hours, and $135 later he was out the door. He did warn us that getting it cleaned out every 2 to 3 years is better than waiting 5 years between visits. Catastrophe could have been avoided. Hopefully we'll remember that before next time.

And I did finally talk to the owner of Swanson's. He was a bit defensive, didn't offer to make things better, and told me that the person would not be getting in trouble but he would be sure to "handle it." That wasn't good enough for me, so we will not be shopping there. We looked in consumer reports and they recomended the Eureka Boss Smartvac, so that's what we got. So far it seems great. Lots more attachments than I'm used to.

Okay two posts in one day is more than enough. Oh wait, I need some gratitude:

I am thankful for the world wide web, for my new good friends at WBCGS, for bonuses, and for naughty children other than my own (it's nice to know I'm not alone sometimes).

Field Trips, YAY!

I had three field trips in two days to the Discovery Center this week. It was actually a really fun time, despite 15 three-year olds doing the same thing three times. As a grown-up, I think I might have a better time than the kids. I went down the mouse holes with all three classes (only two classes really appreciated this), played in the park, solved puzzles, did all the body activities, and nothing is broken. I'll have bruises on my knees later from crawling on the floor, but it was worth it. The only little problem was my fault. Yesterday I decided to give blood on my way home and it left me feeling pretty weak for some reason. So I got just a tad light-headed when I was climbing around in the mouse holes. That would have been fun to explain to the kids: "Yeah Mrs. Leese got tired and just fell asleep while she was climbing. Look at that cool ambulance!" The kids of course showed a different personality around their parents than they usually do at school. Basically they acted like Ben acts every day. Which made me feel a little better.
Ben also got his flu shot yesterday. I know he's tough, but I was pretty impressed when he didn't cry as he got poked. He just said "ow, ow, ow, ow," and then was done. Big boy.
Joey is super excited about going hunting with Daddy this weekend. He has been counting down the days. I'm thinking there might be a story from this experience. More on that later.

Fun Times

Last night was scrap night/girls night out. I worked on something new- some large tags that I'm putting pictures of all the boys' different facial expressions on. I didn't get much done, but I had a great time catching up and laughing about the funny stuff we can't put on our blogs. I'm so glad to be able to be part of this group and have friends who are not just co-workers. (Something new for me.)

Today I have been married for 7 years. I have to say that there is no 7-year itch in this family. We are closer than we have ever been. We laugh together more than ever, support each other, and have hobbies that we actually enjoy doing together. I'm not saying that it's perfect (we'll work on what is and is not appropriate for wiping children's noses:), but I look forward to spending the rest of our lives together and seeing how much fun we can learn to have. I love you, honey, and I hope you have a chance to read and appreciate this.

I think for our anniversary we are going to go shopping! 'Cause we really haven't been doing enough of that lately ($463 at Walmart!). Joey is now outfitted for hunting. We got a camo coat, snowpants, boots, mittens, and a blaze orange hat. Then Ben had to get something so we got him a blaze orange ski mask and Spiderman slippers. He runs around saying "I'm a ninja!" And we finally got a vacuum (not at Swanson's thank-you very much). Consumer reports rated the Eureka Boss really high, so Walmart saved us yet again. And THEN we had to go over and get groceries for Bill's new diet. The doctor informed him that his tryglicerides level put him at a 50% greater risk for heart disease and recommended the South Beach Diet. Lots of meat and veggies, no carbs, low fat. Not too difficult, but not what we had in the house. So after all that, the total was $463. Oy was that difficult to stomach. But we're back at it today because we need a new dryer and Bill has his eye on a big screen TV.

Happy Veteran's Day. Remember our heroes today.

Bad News, Good News

The Leese household has been having sooo much fun the last few days. Our basement flooded. Again. For the third time. Saturday morning we all got up and took baths and showers, and I was doing laundry because we would be busy the rest of the day (good news section). I walked into the laundry room at one point and was suddenly ankle deep in water. AAAHHHH!!!! Not too much is ruined, but it did get on the carpet in the play area right where all the stuffed animals lay. Darnit we might have to throw some out. Well, we figured it was just because we overloaded the drain so I cleaned it up and Sunday morning I started another load of laundry. Nope- flooded again. Well great, now we need to call someone and actually pay to have something fixed- not something we do often at this house. Bill decided to try pouring drain cleaner down and running a snake through it. It seemed fine so today I started yet another load of laundry and watched to make sure it drained. So far so good. Then Bill gets home from work and it's flooded again. This time it seems to be the toilet. So now we really did call someone but they won't be here until tomorrow at 8, and I reeeaalllyyy need to take a shower before then. So if anyone sees me tomorrow, don't get too close cause I'll be havin a pretend bath.

So enough yucky stuff. Saturday we had our genealogy meeting and I am going to be Vice President of our society. Yay. I have fun at these meetings and it is nice to be appreciated.

Sunday Bill's Dad and family came to visit for a short time. We don't get together often enough with all of our busy schedules, but it was nice seeing everyone. Joey and Ben love it because their Aunt and Uncles are young enough to still enjoy rolling around on the floor with them. Of course, Grandpa tried it too, but he got kicked in the chin and that was the end of that. After they left we went to the Office store and finally bought a new desk chair (our old one was in two pieces under the desk). We got a really nice one that is more comfortable than the couch. Now I can sit at the computer for hours and be all cozy comfy.

Yesterday Joey didn't have school so the three of us ran errands all morning. We went to Target to buy a new table, Kohls to get a tree to hang my OUAF keys on and a Thanksgiving decoration, the library, the toystore to window shop for Christmas, and then we rounded it all off with a trip to McDonalds play area.

Tonight was Bunco night. My throat hurts from screaming. We get so excited, and it is so much fun. I won $35 for having the most wins! (Actually it was a tie, but I won the roll-off!) I never win anything:)

We've left two messages with the owner of Swanson's and they have not even called us back, so they apparently don't want our business and we are now back to looking for a decent vacuum. Needless to say I am very disappointed in their customer service and will not be recommending them. The thing is, I like when local businesses do well, and I believe it is because of service.

My grateful list for today: down comforters, changing leaves, cool weather, libraries, God, medication, comfort food, and pumpkin (pie, ice cream, bars, whatever as long as it's pumpkin)

Costumes

Ok here they are. We had a great Halloween. Ben had his school party yesterday, Joey had his today and I was able to make it. The boys went Trick-or Treating (in full daylight- how are you supposed to know who's open?) for an hour or so, then we went over to Grandma and Grandpa's to tell Grandpa Happy Birthday. They only had a piece of candy (or 2), but I think I can still hear Ben talking upstairs. He's probably not going to want to get up in the morning. And for some reason I don't have lesson plans done for tomorrow. I'm really winging it this time. Perhaps the children won't notice since they'll all be hungover from their sugar highs.

We'll see how this picture thing goes. I guess I needed to rotate before I uploaded. Just tilt your head, sorry. *Ok nevermind I fixed it, yay.

H-A-doubleL-O

I sing that song in my head all season until the big day. I've decided that Halloween is at least on the top 3 for favorite holidays, although ask me how I feel about that after I do three Parties over the next two days for my 45 students. We've told the parents to stay, so it can only be crazy. But then I get to go to Joey's first kindergarten party, and then there's Trick-or-Treating. And did I mention how cute the kids are in their costumes?

I've actually been doing some scrapbooking the last few days and I love how it turns out. I'm the least creative person I know, so I'm extra proud of myself for being able to put something together that looks cute. I did some more disney pages, pages from our Minnesota vacation, a park day, and a page about being a Mom. The quote is In Raising Children I Have Lost My Mind But Found My Soul. It's true. My kids are everything to me even when they make me crazy.

Yesterday we ran to the apple orchard (currans)for about 5 minutes- just long enough to get apple cider slushies and some donuts. Yum, my first apple donuts of the season and it's 2 days before Halloween. We never made it to the pumpkin patch, so I'll be putting that on my list of things to do first next year. We just realized that we never made it to the zoo this year either. Something about doing parties and booths on weekends makes these things difficult.

K- Chuck is on, then Heroes. Gotta go watch my shows.

Misc.

Ok just a quick Thankful for the season. I love fall- the cool weather, the yummy smells (and tastes), the Trick-or-Treating. I do not love that we don't have heat yet. Right now it is 59 degrees upstairs. Not exactly getting things done temps. More like snuggle up and nap. Bill is working on the furnace but doesn't want to call someone and pay a bunch for something simple. I say pay before we all decide to hibernate.

Joey has been learning sooo much at kindetgarten. Now he learned about exclamation points. He calls them excited marks, like when you say WOW. So every time he sees one he lets us know and makes sure to read the word in an excited voice.

Off to a show today. Hope it goes well and I get a booking or 2. Shows have not been going well and I'm really starting to see other signs that our economy is struggling. Scary times right now. I hope everyone is doing ok in these slow times.

Vacuum shopping

I've been waiting to write this story, partly to calm down and partly I don't know why.
The other day we finally found time to go look for a vacuum. We'd been hearing great things about the personal service at Swanson's so we headed over to their Machesney Park store. We were the only ones there and the saleswoman immediately started showing us vacuums. She started with a $650 vacuum, then moved up to $750 and $1000. Now, we know we need to get something good for Ben's allergies, but we also did some research and know we don't need to spend that much. I had heard a scecific model that several people were happy with that was only $200. When we asked the woman about that model, though, she would not even show it to us. She said that one doesn't even have HEPA filtration. Well, Bill kept talking to her and I walked over to it and saw right on the front "HEPA Filtration." So that threw me off. Oh, you should know that during all this the kids got bored and were being themselves (a little crazy). The woman gave them some push vacs to play with and that lasted a few minutes, but finally I had to take them outside while Bill continued to get information. I knew from the beginning that this person was not going to sell us what we wanted, and so would not be selling us anything, but Bill likes a lot of info. So 10 minutes later I see him heading to the door with her information. She made sure to write her name on a card so we would give her credit for the sale when we came back. I know these people make their living from their sales, but I truly believe that service makes the sale, not pushiness. Anyway, Bill hesitated at the door for a minute and then came out and started driving before he said anything. I started to say he should have just come by himself and we should know better by now not to take the kids when he said "she just lost that sale." Well, yeah, she wasn't selling what we want.
"No, she just called the kids brats."
"WHAT!?"
She apparently didn't make sure he left the (very small) store before she started talking about us to her coworker. He heard "One of those little brats has allergies" before he opened the door. Now, why did he not go back in and rip her a new one? I don't know. His gut told him to leave and handle it higher up. We will be contacting the owner today. We also have a slim family connection- Bill's brother's girlfriend's uncle is the owner. We talked to her last night and she thought the whole situation was just crazy. So hopefully soon we will get the vacuum we want and the service we deserve.

What a weekend

Well, today I had my Holiday Open House that I organized. I was soooo nervous that no one would show up and everyone would blame me. Unfortunately not very many people came, though we did have at least a couple of people all the time. But I did meet some really nice fellow direct sales people. And no one blamed me for the turnout (at least not to my face). Of couse Lia Sophia did well, and the Gold Canyon candles. I at least got one order and lots of interest. I think I'm going to back off of booths for awhile though. Too much time invested for just "leads."
The boys went fishing and to set up the tree stand for hunting season while I was gone. Joey is VERY excited that he gets to go hunting with Daddy this year. We were at Cabela's last night and put some cute camo hats on the boys. Too bad we didn't have a camera with us.
Joey is also really starting to read and write. He wrote fntastg 4 (Fantastic 4) on his doodle board and has been writing our names next to his pictures of us. (The one of Ti-ti has lots of teeth, she apparently was angry when she was being drawn. Perhaps after watching my 2 boys all day in a house with no toys, you would be angry too.)
We've decided that Ben was born without that part in him that wants to please people by doing good. He pretty much does what he wants and then smiles so we see his cuteness and don't get mad. Unfortunately for him, that's starting to wear off. He's going to have to come up with another way to be cute. Hopefully it involves behaving, though I doubt it. His new thing is to go willingly to bed, and then 15 or 20 minutes later come out wanting another kiss. He tries it several times until I get mad or he finally falls asleep about an hour later. And who can resist getting a kiss from a 3 year old.

Gratitude

I spent the last two days down in Oregon at my friend Shannon's mother-in-law's Open House. Sales were OK, but the best part of my experience was getting to know Ruth. What a strong and courgeous woman! She has been battling (and winning) breast cancer for the last year. She shared with me what she has gone through, but I witnessed her strength. She was busy the whole time we were there, and most of the people who stopped by were old friends coming to visit and wish her well. Several people made sure to let me know how strong Ruth has been. She also shared some insight about the important things in life. Since she has recovered, she got out her "good" dishes for everyday, she spends her money the way she wants to, and only does jobs she wants to do. She doesn't let anyone push her around, but neither is she pushy. I just had the greatest time, and Ruth is such an inspiration to me. I hope she shares her story with more people.

I am also grateful to my sister, my mom, and my mother-in law for all their babysitting help.
And to my husband for buying a new garage door remote. (Long story)

Ok so here's the long story: I was gone all day yesterday and left the remote with my Mom so she could go somewhere with the boys. I got home before them and was waiting in the driveway (yes, the only way in the house is through the garage, and yes we live in a fortress.) They pulled up, opened the garage, got out and got the car seats out, Mom came in for a minute to say goodbye and went home. Later, we were going back out and I didn't see the remote. Oh great, Mom took it to Janesville and we have to go get it. Well, when we called she didn't have it, then we checked the house and car- no remote. Needless to say we have searched everywhere and the remote is nowhere. It is the big mystery of the day. Very frustrating, ggrr.

Now I have to be grateful that that is the biggest problem we have. There was a family in town who just lost their brand new home to fire, one of the other sellers at the open house lost her 22 year old niece to an asthmw attack a couple weeks ago, I could go on and on about much bigger problems than my own.
I am grateful for our health, I am grateful for our house, I am grateful for our jobs, I am grateful for our family, I am grateful for our friends, I am grateful for the weather, I am grateful for our country, I am grateful for our ancestors, and I am grateful for us. Amen.