Pictures

Posing with kitties "Laura" and "China" (pronounced CHIN-NA).

I found this picture on mom and dad's computer. I liked it. It was taken at Lily's birthday parade.

School Supplies

I love school supplies. Claire and I went shopping for her kindergarten supplies this past week and I was reminded just how much I love them. The new crayons, markers, and notebooks get me excited! I bought some new pens for myself--the nice fine-tip kind and I held the 20 count package of rainbow colored sharpies in my hands, but knew better than to purchase them (an 18 month old Claire colored on my then brand new washer with a sharpie. NEVER AGAIN!). We loaded up her stuff in the cart. I could tell she was geeked over the new things too.

Even as a kid I loved office/ school supplies. I would hide pens and paper in my room like precious treasures. The kid in me drools over the beautiful things at Paper Source , but I rarely browse the e-store--it makes me covet. :)

The NEW Neglect-o-matic

I have put the infant swing in the attic. It has been replaced by the excersaucer. It is a bulky piece of baby equipment that mothers for centuries survived without, though I really don't know how. What did moms do at 4:00 PM when they were trying to cook dinner, deal with cranky children, and a crying baby? Drink Diet Coke?

Laundry

I am convinced that if two pieces of laundry are left alone in a private place that "baby" laundry will be born at an exponential rate.

I currently have a mountain of dirty laundry in my laundry room. I really don't mind doing it. I rather enjoy the entire process. I get to go downstairs in my "own" room, listen to talk radio, and just be by myself for a while. But I have to do at least a load everyday or mountains start to form, and I feel somewhat anxious until the mountain goes away. I need to relax--it is JUST laundry. Arghhhhh.

Tutu

She is feeling better. Anyone need fashion advice?

Storm Tracker Jim

We had thunderstorms last night. I am terrified of storms. It stems from my childhood. I am pretty sure my siblings are not fond of bad weather either (not that anyone LOVES bad weather, but you know what I mean).

My father is obsessed with the weather. Not with the physics of the weather or how it works, just the predictions and current status. Since the Internet has been in our house, the NOAA has been the homepage. He has gadgets all over his house that give information on the humidity or changing pressure. He is a remodeling contractor by trade and he follows the weather--trends, predictions, radio broadcasts, etc. He needs to do this because of his job; if he has a roof open it is best to have a sunny forecast--or a damn good tarp.

On top of this, my childhood home was in the woods. I remember waking during violent storms, listening to the wind whip through the trees, trying to stay calm and waiting for my father (who was no doubt listening to the weather radio) to call through the house "EVERYONE DOWNSTAIRS!". Trees did fall down around our house in bad weather, and on a few occasions onto the house. So, the combination of the constant awareness of the weather conditions and anxiety over being squished by a windfallen tree has left me scarred for life.

My husband, one of the lightest sleepers I know, can sleep through thunderstorms (he actually likes them because they make his grass green). I have resigned to the fact that I am the storm tracker for my family. Hopefully my children will grow up unscathed.

Diet Coke

My name is Erin and I am completely and hopelessly addicted to Diet Coke. I consider my addiction only slightly better than smoking cigarettes, especially considering that urban legend e-mail that goes around, stating that aspartame causes brain tumors. If it is true, which I have been assured that it is NOT TRUE by compulsive Google searches, I am surely a goner by 36. (Though oddly enough, I noticed a new study out, apparently I am going to die from this stuff after all.) Whenever I start feeling my blood pressure rise, I have an immediate craving for Diet Coke. I know it is going to be a bad day if I drink a can by 9:00 AM.

I probably average 7 12 oz. cans a week. Compared to some other Diet Coke addicts I know, I am not too bad. I read in a gossip magazine that Victoria "Posh Spice" Beckham only drinks Diet Coke--she apparently hates the taste of water.

I drink Diet Coke from the can. I wait until it goes on sale and buy LOTS. At one point this summer I think my stash in the basement was 2 or 3 cases. But it tastes best from a soda fountain. My good friend Jill (also an addict) talks about a favorite Mexican restaurant in her old town that had free refills on fountain soda. She said the cups were almost liter sized, and she would drink 1 1/2 of the giant cups. I don't know if I could show as much restraint. The summer promotion at McDonald's for a 42 oz. soft drink for 89 cents----is always very tempting.

Do I want my children to learn my Diet Coke habit? Of course not. I am a terrible example of how to cope with stress. I have tried to stop. My husband thinks that it is hilariously ironic that it is called Diet "Coke". I went cold turkey, only to break down (within a day or two) and buy a 2 liter bottle from local convenience store. When Chris opened the refrigerator and saw the half-gone container, I felt like a naughty puppy with my tail between my legs.

Princess Drool

Isabel sporting the tiara that Claire made for her. Could she be teething already?

Blueberry Muffins

I have an adventuresome 85 year old grandma who drove to Michigan just to get blueberries on Monday. She brought me home 5 pounds. It is a lot of berries.

I will make a pie for my dad's 52nd birthday on Sunday. I will put some in the freezer (so we can have food for the winter...think Blueberries for Sal) and I made some delicious muffins this morning.

Blueberry Muffins

3/4 c white flour
3/4 c wheat flour
3/4 c white sugar
1/4 c oat bran
1/4 c oats
1/4 c wheat germ
1 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
1/4 t salt
1 c blueberries
1 banana, mashed
1 c buttermilk
1 egg
1 T vegetable oil
1 t vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Grease 12 cup muffin tin. Mix together dry ingredients, add wet, and fold in berries. Bake 15-18 minutes.

Of course I made some without any fruit for my oldest, who considers all fruit, with the exception of "green juicy apples", to be poisonous.

Rainy Morning

Unprompted by me, the girls set up a reading room on the porch this morning. It was pouring rain outside, and it was indeed a relaxing place to enjoy a book.

John Doe Amendment

When Kyle and I (and Isabel) fly next month to Nebraska to visit a very pregnant Kristen, we will not be able to report any suspicious behavior on our flight to authorities without fear of being sued for discrimination. Our United States Congress killed the John Doe Amendment last week, which protected citizens from lawsuits, stating that racial profiling is often used.

On top of that, the TSA has confiscated cheese being used for practice bombs. Apparently blocks of cheese and other clay-like substances are being found with electronic devices embedded in them--a few from the Milwaukee airport.

I have recently been having nightmares about Muslims murdering my family. It is probably due to the fact that I listen to so much conservative talk radio, but I do wonder why so many Americans have already forgotten about September 11th. The threat of terror is still very much real.

Mighty Morphing Music

My daughters are big music fans. I almost always have some sort of music playing, especially in the car. Their favorite genres by far are bluegrass and Lutheran hymnody.

I had a good chuckle listening to them play with their horses this afternoon. The tune and text were changing quickly between Luther's Small Catechism (musical version from CPH) and some random hits from their Appalachian Stomp CD.

Baby Baby

No Power Against Hogwarts

My neighbor offered to let me borrow the Harry Potter book after she finished on Sunday afternoon. I declined her offer. I knew if the Deathly Hallows were anywhere within my reach I would neglect my children--stick them in front of Mr. Rodgers or various Disney princesses--in order to read. I would probably also stay up late into the night, missing out on much needed sleep. I told her I would pick up the book on Friday afternoon. Chris takes Saturdays off from work. Maybe I can have a Potter marathon this Friday night and Saturday? Please?

Sicky Boo

My middle daughter has voluntarily placed herself in quarantine this morning. She doesn't feel well, despite the smile for the camera. I find a strange pleasure in mothering children with bad colds. They want to be snuggled and let me baby them! Plus, they tend to be lethargic. So, I get to baby them and get a break while they are sleeping.

From a recent trip to the beach.

Mostly Martha

Chris and I were watching TV the other night and saw an advertisment for the upcoming movie No Reservations starring Catherine Zeta-Jones. I thought I had seen a similiar movie recently. I did! It was titled Mostly Martha and it was a German film.

Mostly Martha was brilliant! It was heartfelt, well written and the actors were very good. It was the first movie in a long time that really made us laugh. We gave it a 5 stars rating on Netflix. Chris remarked (and I agree) that he doesn't think that Zeta-Jones will be able to pull-off the main character as well as the German actress. I feel somewhat saddened that they are remaking such a good movie. Are Americans so lazy that they won't read the subtitles?

Shall We Dance, with Richard Gere and Jennifer Lopez, was first a Japanese film. Much of the movie's charm was lost in translation. I hope for a different fate for Mostly Martha.

Harry Potter Mania

I am very much looking forward to reading the new Harry Potter book that is being released at midnight tonight. I am too cheap to buy it though. I put my name in the queue at the library sometime in early March. I am number 78.

You Know You're Tired When...

You know you're tired when you curse at the birds singing outside your window at 4:30 in the morning.

Grocery Store Gripes

I went grocery shopping with all 3 girls yesterday. I would prefer to do it without them, but I also hate to ask Chris to watch the girls for grocery shopping. Whenever I have the 3 of them with me I am always leery of complete child-meltdown to occur at any unexpected moment, especially one requiring an immediate evacuation of the premises. People must be laughing at me, or at least wondering if we will try for "that boy" after all.

We got through the produce and frozen sections without a mishap. We had a minor run-in with an elderly woman studying canned vegetables in the middle of the dry goods aisle, oblivious to the traffic jam she was causing. But overall, it was uneventful and I was pleased. So, with my toddler in the seat and "big girl" standing on the end of the cart, and with the baby strapped to my chest, I started my heaping cart (laboriously) for the check out lanes.

As I rounded the corner I made (unfortunate) eye contact with the SLOWEST check-out clerk in the universe. I had been her lane before. She takes forever. She needs to look up every vegetable code, looks for the UPC's to scan, and moves ridiculously slow. I could do it faster, even with 3 screaming children attached to my body. As people with children know, the check out lane at the grocery store is the worst part of the entire trip -- the bombardment of whining and requests for things puts you almost over the edge. "Moooommm, can I have a treat?" "Mom, this oinking pig key chain is pretty cool, isn't it? Can I buy it?" "Mom, I am thirsty. (imagine their little faces pressed to the soda cooler window) Can we get one of these?" Having a slow cashier makes it just a little bit worse.

But I made it through, only to hear (as always happens with a full cart of groceries) "Mom, I have to go potty."

Turtle on Her Back

Last night was a long one. Isabel (who I lay on her stomach to sleep--very bad of me) has learned to roll from her stomach to her back. At this point in her life, the movement is still somewhat involuntary. She woke up hysterical quite a few times, and I fell asleep nursing trying to calm her down. So, I spent most of my night sleeping upright in her room, and needed a significant coffee fix to get me started this morning. It is hard for me to feel frustrated with her during the night, despite the sleep deprivation, because it is rather funny from an adult perspective. I am thankful, though my mother threatened to rename me Grace on a number of occasions (purely for the irony), that I have the coordination to move from front to back, and vice versa, voluntarily.

New Wheels

I taught Claire how to ride her bike without training wheels on Saturday. She has been proficient with the training wheels for quite some time now. We recently raised up the training wheels and she was only relying on them when she slowed down or stopped. I couldn't believe how fast she learned how to balance herself. Seriously, I only had to run beside her 2 or 3 times until she took off without me. Of course, when she noticed that I wasn't there she crashed, but isn't that how it always goes (especially in Hallmark commercials)?

It took me forever to ride my bike. My parents bought me the coolest pink, banana seat bike (with basket accessory) for my 4th birthday. Unfortunately it was big enough for a 7 or 8 year old to ride. It is a standing joke in my family that my little sister learned how to ride her bike (size appropriate) before I did. I remember going to the bank parking lot adjacent to our house with my mom and practicing, going around in circles until both of us were dizzy and needed to go home.

I didn't think that I would be the one to teach Claire how to ride her bike. In my mind I assumed that Chris would have the responsibility, as I usually give him the tasks that require any sort of coordination. I am glad that it came down to me. I hope that Claire with remembers the event with the same sense of fondness.

Beginnings

Under the advice and encouragement of good friends and family, I hereby start my blog today. I find it somewhat hypocritical of me to be writing a blog, as I do not have much "blog fodder" besides my routine domestic life. I have often made fun of women who, after having children, forget how to talk about anything except their "cute" children and tasty recipes. However, that is precisely what I will write about most--my children (not always cute) and recipes I have recently tried. Every once in a while, when I find the time to read a book or watch a movie, I expect I will write about those. Random pessimistic rantings about my life will also make an apperance.

The thing that I hope to accomplish through this blog is to stay connected to people that I care about very much, but, because of my own laziness I never seem to call or email or send pictures or even write (gasp) a letter. So, before I start getting too mushy, here's to a new beginning!