Copper.....one month later

We've had Copper exactly one month now.  How's it been?  Really well.  Waiting until the boys were the ages they currently are was the right thing to do.  Plus it's really nice that I do work from home.  I believe we've been able to get her house broken faster because I'm consistently letting her out.  I made a quick, fun list of what I love about her and what I don't so much love about her.  LOL

What I love about her
*she's almost house broken
*she's really smart
*she is loyal and loves the boys
*she makes me stop working during the day to let her out and sometimes we get in a quick walk.  It's been a really nice part of my day

What I don't so much love about her
*she isn't quite house broken but she's oh so close
*she does sleep through the entire night but once she's up in the morning.....she wound like a top and there is no sleeping in for anyone in the house

Overall things have gone really well and Copper has been the perfect addition to our family. 

Nick, age 5 & kindergarten

 Copper is proving to be very protective of her boys and although overall she plays with Jay more, she never likes to have Nick get very far from her eye sight.  She's proving to be such a smart dog that I think she knows Nick is the youngest, therefore he requires extra protection.  Ha.  Such a sweet boy and his puppy!

Nick will be six in April.  Can I believe it?  Yes and No.  He's really growing both in body and mouth.  Because he's the younger sibling he can hold his own with Jay and Jay's friends.  That is one area I have to really compliment Jay.  Jay does a really good job of including Nick when he has friends over and his friends are really good to Nick - probably because the majority of Jay's friends are older siblings.  Nick loves to talk and talk and talk.  Mike jokes that Nick's mouth is his best and worst attribute.  He tends to talk at times when he should be concentrating on something we've asked him to do.  But I really do love listening to him.  Right now he's obsessed with learning about God & Jesus.  Today he asked me if I thought the cross was heavy when Jesus had to carry it on his back.  He has a really hard time understanding how you get to heaven after you die.  He can't understand if you walk to heaven or climb a ladder.  He's still trying to wrap his head around the whole spirit thing.  He is my child with a more sensitive side but he's also my child who can complain like no other.  He tends to turn everything into a negotiation!  He can also be full of the dickens.  I didn't blog about this but at Christmas time he threw his hat up on the ceiling fan at school and then sent the teachers on a wild goose chase for his hat.  He told them it was on the playground, in the cafeteria, you name it.  All along Nick was staring at his hat hanging from the ceiling fan having a jolly time knowing his teachers couldn't find it.  Many times during December Jay would walk out of school without Nick and I would sigh because I knew that Nick's teacher had sent Jay out to get me so she could chat with me.  I really like Nick's teacher this year and I can now say that Nick seems to have calmed down since December but as with both my boys........one must always be at the top of their game and stay on their toes!  Nick is pure delight and we joke with him (but yet we're kind of serious) that with his charisma and personality he'd make a great politician one day.

By the way, the picture above is of Nick in his new jammies that Nana bought him.  He loves them.  He put them on and asked for Jay's approval right away.

Mary & John's new pad

Many of you know about my good friend, Mary.  We were college roommates so we've been friends for nearly 20 years. As I write that I can't believe it's been 20 years since I graduated high school and started college.  Good heavens!  Anyway, Mary and her husband, John just got married in December 2010 and they purchased their first home.  Like I needed any reason to see Mary but my good friend, Jenny and I thought it was a good excuse to pay her a visit. 

Mike and I.

Mike & Jenny.

Mary & John.  Mary had things decorated so nicely.  We ate dinner and relaxed on her patio.  It was so nice!  John is a chef so he made us DELICIOUS ribs and Mary made all the sides.  It was so yummy! 

Mary made these delightful cupcakes.  She said she made them from a strawberry cake mix and added crushed pineapple to them.  She dabbed whipped cream on top with diced strawberries and wa-la.........what a lovely dessert. 

Mary and I have a good laugh together with her pretty cupcakes.

And to all a good night!  I am so happy for Mary.  She found a wonderful man and is living in a beautiful home.  She is one of those people who is truly beautiful inside and out.  Love her!

My Berry Boy

Jay loves berries - strawberries, rasberries, blackberries!  He's so excited when his dad brings them home from the grocery strore he helps wash them which translates to eating them!

Our new morning routine

The weather this March has been unbelievable.  It's been 60 and 70 degrees the past two weeks.  The buds are budding on the tress and everything is looking green again.  And for March in Central Illinois this never happens.  But the boys and I have taken full advantage of it.  Because the weather has allowed us to and because we have a new puppy the boys and I have been walking to school.  I drive my boys to school everyday because we live about 12 miles from school.  But lately I have been driving to the post office - which is in the center of town and the boys and I walk the rest of the way to school.  We put Copper on a leash and walk the remaining 5 blocks to school.  We love it!  It's good exercise for Copper and I and it lets the boys burn off some energy before they start their school day.  But mostly I am so thankful that I have a job that allows me to spend this time with my children.  There is nothing like having a leisurely morning with your children.  And although there are many mornings I can't wait to drop them off at school, our new morning routine has really helped slow things down and it's helped me "set the tone" for the day.  I tend to forget all the things that went wrong at home during that 5 block walk.

The sure signs spring is here and summer is coming

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In my house I can always tell when spring is here and summer is coming by three things: frogs, turtles and MUD!  Last night as I was cooking dinner I found this on my counter.  Jay had caught frogs and put them in this nice bug friendly holder and put it on my counter.  It was "lovely" to see this while I was preparing food.  Notice how he even used my dish towel underneath

Here is Jay and his friend.  They got home from school and immediately caught turtles and fish!  And although you can't see it, they are quite MUDDY from the waist down.

And here's my Nick with his turtle friend.  The boys think nothing of bringing these creatures home and filling up my tupperware as homes for their new pets.  Does all this bother me?  I'd  be lying if I said it didn't.  I really don't mind all the frogs, fish and turtles but it's the sand and mud that get to me.  Tonight Nick brought in a squirt gun that had been in the sandbox.  He dragged it inside because he wanted to fill it with water - even though we have a hose outside.  I tend to turn into the naggy mom and tell him to take his mud and sand outside ASAP!  And Yes, I get bitchy about it.  But being a girl who sees the glass as half full I am so thankful my boys love being outside.  This time of year and throughout summer they live outdoors.  They have tons of land, water and sand to fulfill their imaginations with.  I am so thankful for that.  I have learned to not sweat the small stuff and although some days are better than others in that regard I really do try and I hope the boys remember and appreciate that....................some day!

A beautiful weekend

On Saturday my mom, Kim and I came up with a brilliant idea of taking the kids to the RiverPlex in Peoria.  What a facility!  We were impressed.  Both Craig (Kim's hubby) and my hubby are "indisposed" all weekend so it was just us moms.  The kids swam and played in the park and it was a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon. 

Even I got in on the fun!  Although I look like a harpooned whale in the picture, I do like to post pictures of myself every once in awhile to prove I am actually at these events.  LOL!

The boys picked these for me yesterday.  As a side note for my own records this March has been incredible, weather wise.  We've enjoyed 60 and 70 degree weather.  It's been amazing.  The boys have gone to school in shorts most days which is unheard of for mid-March!

The biggest monkey of our crew of 4!  Jay happily went to the RiverPlex with us yesterday - although he didn't have a choice.  Ha!  He is getting so old.  He listened to his I-pod the entire drive there and back - so preteen!  As soon as my mom got to our house that morning Jay asked her right away how her back was.  My mom was touched that he had remembered and asked her. 

Good Morning........I'm back

Sorry for my long hiatus from blogging!  I had to go to Cincinnati this week for work.  I did enjoy myself but boy after 2 nights am I ever ready to come back to my family!  The boys did great with their dad as they always do.  Mike took Copper to work with him while I was gone which cracked me up.  Because the two of them spent every waking minute together they were thick as thieves when I returned home at the end of the week.  I'm so thankful I can leave for awhile and have a husband who keeps things running smoothly.  Normally when I return  home Mike has the house spic 'n span but not this time.  But trust me, I was delighted to come home to a disheveled house - it proves Mike is human!  Ha.  He even admitted he didn't have time to clean the house.  He was too busy taking care of the boys, Copper, packing lunches, doing homework, etc...... ahhhhh music to my ears!

Sand box joys

This weekend was nice weather wise.  Yesterday the boys argued so much in the sand box I told them they both had to get out of the sand box and not return - until they decided to get along.  And wa-la today, they were bosom sand buddies once again.  Nick buried Jay.  I'm not quite sure how Jay was able to handle being buried because although the weather was nice, that sand was COLD! 

Here's a letter from my oldest.  I am leaving for a business trip tomorrow which I rarely have to do.  The last time I left for a business trip Jay was not happy about it.  Today he gave me this cute letter.  I'm going to tuck it in my suitcase so it can give me a lift all week long! 

Yo, what's up?

Okay, I promise I'll cool it with the puppy posts but really........isn't she the cutest?  I love this puppy and I am by no means a huge dog lover.  But this Vizsla is wonderful.  She is so sweet!  She has grown a lot in the 11 days we've had her.  She's getting longer.  She's still peeing and pooping on my carpet but she is slowly but surely starting to cry at the door when she wants to go out.  She hates doing her business in the rain.  Don't we all?  She refuses to go and then when she's in the house out of sight, does her business!  I don't find her so sweet when she does this!

I know I said March was going to be my picture post month but there has been a couple of cute things about the boys I wanted to blog about.
The Math A Thon with Nick goes on.  The other night he went out to the shop to ask his dad if he'd contribute money.  Nick came back in & announced that dad didn't have any money on him (at the moment) but that he'd take the money out of Jay's four wheeling account (the be all and end all in Jay's life right now).  Jay gasped and about had the big one.  Nick broke out in gales of laughter on the spot.  Mike never said that......Nick came up with that on his own.  You gotta love Nick's sense of humor and the innocent dig he made at his brother.  Then the other night Nick and I were driving to swim lessons and Nick was asking me a dozen questions about the moon.  Some I could answer, some I couldn't.  It always delights him when I don't know the answer and he does.  Yes, I often get "burned" by a kindergartner.  He said to me last night......"You know, mom, I ask really good questions." 
Recently there has been a nice girl in our neighborhood who is in Jay's class and she comes over after school to play with him.  She's a really nice girl.  Anyway, apparently Jay has a girlfriend.  I suspect it's this girl but do you think he'll tell me.  I've asked him several times to tell me who it is and he won't reveal her.   This should be a "warning" of what little information he's going to give me during the teenage years.  Jay told me he wouldn't in fear that I'd blog about it.........hence what I'm doing right now but notice how I never mentioned the girls name.  LOL!
I'm really enjoying the boys as they get older and I'm really looking forward to the spring and summer.  My biggest obstacle with them is the bickering and often it's Nick who gets his feelings hurt.  The fate of being the younger brother. 

One nice day

It was so nice in Central Illinois today.  It was 60 and sunny but horribly windy but we didn't care!  Mike got some things done around the yard on the tractor and took Copper along.

Copper loved having free reign over the yard today.  Let's just say she'll sleep well tonight.

The boys went out to the timber where they made their own mud pit.  This is typical for my boys.  They are covered in mud from about March 1 through May.  My washer doesn't stop during this time. 

Puppy love..........one week later

It's now been one full week since we got Copper.  What has happened that first week?
*She is a daddy's girl.  She loves Mike (hence the picture above).
*She wants to be with us all the time.  Check out the picture of her above.  Even if we can't hold her, she snuggles up to us so she's touching us at all times.  It's so cute.  Check out all her rolls of wrinkles above.  She has a ton of skin that she'll eventually grow in to.
*Having a puppy is like having a 14 month old baby - seriously!  You have to keep your eye on them at all times. 
*Copper cried the first two nights we had her but now it's smooth sailing.  She will go to bed around 9:00 and on week days she's up at 6:00 and on weekends she sleeps until 7:00!  It's awesome. 
*She has had her share of accidents this week but just today she has started to go to the door and wait for us to let her out.  I'm hoping it's not a fluke and that we are on the way to house breaking her.  Cleaning up pee and poo is getting kind of old & disgusting! 
*All in all everything is going well and she's fit into our family perfectly.  We can tell she feels at home now because she isn't crying as much and she roams the house.  She isn't afraid to check things out! 

Happy Birthday Mom

Yesterday was my mom's birthday.  How was it?  Well........let me start with what was good first.  My sister hosted a dinner for her and my grandparents came too.  My sister is a teacher and has two small children but she managed to make a fabulous meal.  She jokingly told my mom to keep her expectations low for her birthday dinner but she didn't give herself enough credit.  Her meal was wonderful.  The craziness of 4 kids never ceases to amaze me.  And then my poor mother was walking down the steps with Luke.  She put him over the baby gate first and then we all realized he was headed for the basement steps.  I made a bee line to stop him before he fell and when my mom realized her youngest grandson might fall down the steps she reached her leg over the baby gate, lost her balance and fell down, landing straight on her back and hitting her head on a cabinet.  Kim said next year just me, my mom and her are going to dinner to celebrate her birthday and I for one am on board with that idea. 
As of today, my mom's back is miserable and she's spending the day in her chair with her heating pad.

March is going to be my month

I'm going to do something different for my blog this March.  I'm going to try to post a picture of some sort everyday.  I know it sounds kind of boring but I make my blog into a book and capturing my memories in this blog is something I really cherish.  Plus my mom likes it.  LOL!  Some days - as far as picture posting goes - may be better than others but I'm going to give it my best shot.  I'm also going to re-commit to working out again.  I kid you not when I say I've been sick the entire month of February.  I got bronchitis then the stomach flu then bronchitis again!  I was miserable, lost my voice and I was exhausted.  So March is is going to be my month filled with picture posts, a re-commitment to working out and just looking forward to spring! 
As a comment to the picture above.  Nick loves taking Copper out to do her business before school in the morning.  Nick likes Copper but he's also still getting use to her.  I wouldn't say he's too young but he has a hard time with the puppy stage.  He doesn't understand why she nips.  Plus Nick is not the true animal lover at heart like Jay.  His new animal of choice is a bird.  Tonight he suggested he bring his gerbil (Minnie) downstairs so Copper could eat Minnie and then he could get a bird!  What??  I told him he's not getting a bird and Copper is not eating Minnie.