Green Smoothies

A few weeks ago Mike brought home a book entitled, "The Calorie Myth."  His first mistake was he said I could read it first.  Had it gone the other way around and Mike read the book first he would have learned about the green smoothies and probably told me the book wasn't worth reading and then our family wouldn't be in the green smoothie hell they are in right now.  Ha!  Since I am turning 40 in a few short months I really want to improve my health.  Sure losing weight would be nice but honestly being more healthy is more important to me right now so the idea of green smoothies was rather appealing to me especially when I learned I can use them as a snack vs a meal supplement.  My family, however, is not so keen on the smoothies.  Mike isn't saying too much because he knows it was his bright idea to buy the book in the first place, after all I'm just trying to change our lifestyles which started from him bringing a book home - a book, perhaps he might be cursing at the moment. The boys are less than thrilled about it.  When I first made them their green smoothies, Jay drank his without complaining too much (Nick was another story).  However, as time has gone by and the end of the green smoothies is no where in sight their complaining has reached a whole new level.  I asked Jay recently why he didn't complain at first but is now complaining all the time he responded by saying, "Well geez, mom, I didn't complain the first time because I thought it was  one time thing, I had no idea you were going to make them daily."  Ha!  As far as I'm concerned I'm going to continue with my green smoothies and somehow try to get my family to go along with me - wish me luck!   

Snow days galore

January has been a tough month.  We've had four snow days this month!  I love my boys but I've had my fill of them lately.  I ran some errands late this afternoon, by myself in the bitter cold and it was like a piece of heaven.  Who knew that running to Von Maur could provide me with such a feeling of excitement - excitement from being separated from my children for an hour!  I knew it was bad this afternoon as I was trying to work and it sounded like a herd of buffalo in my living room.  The boys had set up a basketball hoop and were playing basketball in the living room with two dogs.  The fighting between the two of them has reached a whole new level.  At one point this afternoon Nick was as red as a lobster.  I thought his head was going to explode.  He took a punch at Jay and I did one of those slow moving runs across the living room yelling.........."nooooooooo."  The boys have spent a lot of time outside even though it is literally below zero temps.  It's like those temps don't even phase my boys.  Nick has worn his face mask so much he has a rash around his chin.  I've had conversations with them that I have no idea what came from them or what they meant.  It's like the cold has destroyed any intelligent thoughts we had.  I have seriously wondered if there is a hidden camera in my house because it's been quite entertaining around here lately.  Okay, I'm being extreme.  All I have to say is No More Snow Days!  Please get these kids back to school and our regular routine. 

Fun on the ice

 The lake frozen up enough that the kids got a neighborhood group together and played ice hockey.  They loved it!  It was a great way to spend a holiday and their day off school. 

 Thanks to our neighbor, Jenny, Jay borrowed her skates and took to skating and ice like he's been doing it for years. 

 Laura let Nick borrow a pair of extra skates she had.  They had a hint of pink in them.  I promised Nick I wouldn't get the skates in any pictures I took of him.  Whoops!

                                                                       The group!

 I can always count on Laura taking care of me.  She brought me coffee while we watched the kids play!

The hockey "pros."  We had quite a group and the boys loved it!  They played for about 2 hours today and we had to force them to head home once it got dark. 

Basketball, Basketball and more basketball

 It is January and in January we are heavily involved in basketball.  I enjoy basketball.  In fact it's my favorite sport to watch my boys play.  We have tournaments and tournaments can be LONG days.  Jay had a tournament that started on Friday night.  He played 2 games on Friday night and 6 games on Saturday.  By the 5th game on Saturday he was pooped and anyone who knows Jay knows that if he's tired, he's tired.  The kid just doesn't get tired or have his energy sapped but it was sapped yesterday.  The boys played bball on Friday for 3 1/2 hours and we were back up and out the door by 7:30 the next morning.  The bad news is the boys lost every game - a real bummer.  The good news is there were a few games that were very, very close and in those games the boys played really well together! 

 After the tournament yesterday we all went out for pizza.  The pizza place had a gym attached (kid you not).  I really enjoy spending time with these families and their kids. The kids love it and it really helps build team relationships. 

                                                                 Some of Da Boys!

                                                           More of Da Boys!

 This is Nick's tournament partner.  He's in kindergarten but you'd never know it.  Nick and C. hang out together during all the games!  They are thick as thieves.

 The boys thought it would be fun to play dodge ball against the dads.  The dads beat the boys and they were so proud of themselves.  Us girls had to point out to them to not gloat too much, after all they only beat a bunch of 12 year olds - LOL!

                                      Dads vs. kids........the dodge ball game to beat all games!

Happy 12th Birthday, Jay

 Today is Jay's 12th birthday.  He was born at 9:23 a.m. on a very cold January day.  Is January ever warm?  So many thoughts went through my mind today as I started this blogged.  I wish I were a little more organized in my thoughts today but I'm afraid this blog will be more random than I intended.  I wanted to include the above picture of Jay in this blog because this is his true grin.  This is a grin we don't see very often.  That is not to say Jay isn't a happy kid because he is but when he breaks out that grin you see above then you know life is good in his world.  This is the grin I hope to see on him on his wedding day and birth of his children. 

 The reason for the grin above is this crazy Gilly suit you see Jay in!  Curtis got a gilly suit for Christmas and Jay loved it and immediately put it on his birthday gift list.  This suit fits Jay's personality perfectly.  Anything outdoorsy is all Jay! Now he and Curtis can look like sasquatchs in the woods when they play air soft. 

 My mom asked Jay if he wanted her to make him a birthday cake this year and he surprised everyone by saying Yes!  Mom baked him a dog cake, very appropriate for Jay and his love for his dogs.

 Jay requested monkey bread (his usual birthday breakfast request).  I put a candle in it and Nick and I attempted to sing him Happy Birthday.

 This picture is not stellar of either one of us.  Nick took it and I did very little to myself but I figure it's good to have some pictures of me on this blog.........proves that I do more than just write for this blog. 

All mothers say they can't believe how fast time flies and I'm no different.  I remember taking Jay home from the hospital.  He was a dainty 5 lbs.  At the time I had no idea who a strong boy he would grow into.  I could not have forseen his athletic ability.  The amount of moving he did in utero should have been my first clue.  Ha.  Jay has not been an easy child to raise (thus far).  He keeps me on my toes at all times and through Jay I've learned what it's like to raise a boy and I mean really raise a boy and I've loved every minute of it - mud and all!  This past year Jay has really come into his own and I've enjoyed watching him morph into the 12 year old young man he is this very day.  I look forward to watching him grow and mature even more through the years to come.  Happy Birthday, Jay and remember what Dad and I always tell you.........Jump now because we your dad and I are there to catch you and even help you back up when you need it! 

The end of Christmas break with a blizzard

 Today the boys were supposed to return to school.  The truth is that usually at the conclusion of Christmas break I'm ready for the boys to go back to school and get back into a regular routine.  This year is no different.  Don't get me wrong as far as Christmas breaks go this was probably one of the best breaks the boys have had.  The boys actually got along and spent a lot of time together.  Right after Christmas Nick camped out at night in Jay's room.  They stayed up late, talking and watching movies together.  Then on Jan. 5 a blizzard swept in.  We have about 6 inches of snow with below zero temperatures.  Yesterday the boys went out (of course) and played for hours.  Today it's even too cold for the Siebert boys.  They attempted to go out but the cold forced them to come back in.  Tomorrow the boys are still off school.  What is this crazy mom to do?  I have loaded and emptied the dishwasher constantly, emptied the trash consistently, planned more meals that I care to mention and have heard the question, "Mom, what can we have for a snack?" way too often.  I'm exhausted!

 I just thought this pic was cute of Mike and Cole.  He's a lover, just like Copper. 

 This is Jay who convinced his brother to sit on the front of his four wheeler with a shovel so Jay could use him to plow the roads.  Nick being the obedient younger brother that he is went along with it. 

Here's our other 2 children who add to the chaos that is our life.  Cole is quite smitten with Copper.

Cole, One week later

 We've had Cole one week now and he's growing on all of us.  We affectionately refer to him as Cletus.  When I think of a Cletus I think of a big, clumsy redneck (sorry to any of you out there reading this who is named Cletus) and Cole is our Cletus.  Where Copper is dainty and graceful, Cole is clumsy and a bit of a bull in a china store.  He loves meal time and we've had to put him in a separate room to eat to give our girl, Copper, time to finish her meal.  She's such a girl.  She actually chews her food where as Cole devours it.  But all in all Cole has been a good fit for our family.  He has learned the rules rather quickly and he loves Copper and Copper is slowly but surely warming up to him. 

 Copper and Cole spend a lot of time chasing each other around the yard.  Their favorite game is keep away.  Copper always wins. 

 I promised Nick he could have a friend over during Christmas break but I wanted snow so the boys could sled.  If I was going to do it, today was the day.  They had just enough snow to sled and tonight a big storm is coming in which is supposed to dump a bunch of snow and deliver sub zero temps.  I can hardly wait - KNOT! 

If you look closely you can see how dirty Nick and A's faces are.  Jay took them on a four wheeling ride pulling the boys in the sled behind and let's just say there was a lot of slush involved! 

Happy New Year - 2014

 We kicked our new year off with a new puppy!  Yes, a new puppy!  Ha.  We picked Cole up on Dec. 28.  We knew we wanted another puppy but we didn't expect one until March.  Cole came from a family who loved him but simply didn't have the time to put into a puppy, especially a vizsla.  Vizsla's are high energy dogs and we love them because they have the sweetest temperments.  Cole is five months old and house broken - another plus.  He's still all puppy though.  We affectionately nicknamed him Cletus because he's kind of like a big red neck clutz.  He's not nearly as graceful as Copper and although he's smart, he's no Copper.  Copper is adjusting to him.  They play together out in our yard sometimes up to an hour (even in this cold weather) and they they come inside and fall fast asleep in their beds.  The amusing part of this is this was all my husband's idea.  If you would have told me 5 years ago that we would be the owners of not one but two dogs I would have laughed in your face!  But here we are. 

I put this picture in because I took this of the kids last night on New Year's Eve.  We went to Laura's house - so fun!  Nick and S. have both lost their two front teeth so of course I had to get a picture.  I'm looking forward to 2014.  I don't really make resolutions.  I just want to keep doing what I'm doing......I want to keep running my race towards God and I want to keep doing my best to get these boys of mine raised.  Last night a neighbor said to me, "Every time I go by your house I see your boys out playing.  Those Siebert boys are doing just what boys should be doing!"  To me that was such a compliment.  I try to meet such a balance between their sporting activities and also allow them time to just be boys.  Being boys to them is being outside at any opportunity.  As I write this it is maybe 20 degrees outside and the boys are outside with hammers and nails working on Jay's fort together.  Mike and I are really making it a priority to help form Jay's relationship with Nick.  Nick takes all his cues from Jay and to just be real, Jay isn't the best brother to Nick.  But I know he has it in him. The last few nights the boys have slept together in Jay's room, staying up into the wee hours of the night watching movies together.  It's a process but I'm hoping with age, maturity, direction and prayer their relationship improves.  So here's to 2014 and all it has to bring!