Meal Plan Monday

Monday - Tomato and Bacon Soup with grilled cheese sandwiches, apple slices
Tuesday - Spilt Pea Soup, bread and butter
Wednesday - Enchiladas
Thursday - Beef Fondue, sauces - horseradish, BBQ, garlic & lemon vinaigrette, baked potatoes, salad
Friday - Spaghetti, salad
Saturday - Chicken casserole with wild rice (kid request - yuck!)
Sunday - Beef Roast, cauliflower with burnt butter sauce, green beans, bread pudding

Merry Christmas

I'm Back

H1N1 didn't kill me. Surprisingly, Advent hasn't killed me either.

About a month ago, our shower leaked from our upstairs bathroom onto our laptop in the kitchen below. I literally poured water out of my computer. It was amazing to me that the water didn't touch anything but the computer...not food, or phones, or children's artwork, just the most expensive thing on the counter. Chris called the church trustees. I called the computer fix-it man to do some data recovery. All the work is done now. The shower is fixed and I own a new-to-me laptop (a hand-me-down gift from a friend who upgraded to a Mac--wasn't she nice?). It was a pain, but it's over and I can't express to you the relief I feel that all of my pictures were able to be copied off of the old hard drive.

We traveled to Michigan for Thanksgiving. Jeannette hosted and prepared a great feast! The cousins made some big messes and acted out some play they made up about Snow Fairies. The grown ups ate too many calories and played some mean games of Scrabble.

The Sunday School Christmas Program was earlier this month. It was CPH's "From Heaven Above to Earth I Come" program. It was a lovely, beautiful evening. All of the kids did a fantastic job of memorizing both the hymn and their spoken verses from the Gospel of Luke. Here is a picture of the dress I finally found for Claire on eBay ($11.00 plus shipping!) with a red sweater from Goodwill ($2.99).

I tried to take a picture of the four of them together. This is the best of 171 tries. Ha! It was as traumatic as Gus makes it out to be. I think that I put on a DVD for them and had a glass of wine when we were finished.

There has been lots of decorating and Christmas crafts and baking going on here. I am glad that my children enjoy the season as much as I do. One particular afternoon, as Lily was working on a Christmas craft and sipping hot chocolate she said, "I feel so Christmasy."

My husband gets me a glass ornament every year for Christmas. I hung them on the light above the dining room table this year. I love them and it seemed a safer place to put them. I put the others in a glass vase.

Here is our tree and other decorations.

My parents took the 3 girls this past weekend. They all had a nice time baking cookies, doing some Christmas shopping, and going to church with my parents. Claire and Lily were so excited to see their godparents, who all attend my parent's church. Chris and I also had a nice time with just Gus at home. It was so quiet without his sisters! We cleaned (and it stayed clean!) and ran some errands. I worked on Gus' stocking (which still isn't finished). We made mussels on Saturday night. They were delicious.

At one point this month Claire was missing 3 of her upper teeth. One finally starting coming in. I had her practice singing "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth..." for the camcorder. She reads a lot. The latest book series to gain her attention is the Sister's Grimm Detective stories and the Great Illustrated Classics--she loved King Arthur.

She has been practicing for her upcoming, first-ever piano recital. Her selection is "Away in the Manger". Not exaggerating...she plays it at least 23 times a day, most often at 4:30pm, when Gus and Izzy are both crying and I am trying to simultaneously cook dinner and listen to Mark Belling.

Lily finished up swimming lessons with Claire early in the month. The girls really enjoyed the lessons. They both idolized Lou their instructor. "Lou swims on the swim team. Lou has blond hair. Lou said this. Lou does that." I signed them up for another session starting in January.

Lily has been growing up really quickly the past few weeks. Chris and I both have noticed a shift in her thinking...her memory work has been easier for her, she is loving math, she is really starting to understand phonics and her reading skills have greatly improved. She has been struggling with the distinction between fantasy and reality, and has been asking some great questions. She is understanding the Nativity at a deeper level, and it has been a pleasure to watch it all enfold before her eyes this Advent. "You mean Jesus is both God and man?"

Isabel has been pretty easy to love. She has a wonderful sense of humor, and is quick to laugh and do funny things to make others giggle. She has enjoyed creating ornaments for the Christmas tree...and sometime while she was crafting she gave herself a haircut. You know what? The 45,632,568th time self styles happen in your house, it doesn't bother you too much at all.

Gus is almost 11 months old now. He is crawling VERY efficiently and getting into all the girls' projects, as well as the toilet paper and (dare I say it?) the toilet if we don't keep the doors closed. He likes to chew on almost anything; toys, toothbrushes, and if nothing else is available, your shoulder. We just recently figured out that he is allergic to eggs--we thought it was nitrates for a while. I have to make an appointment with an allergist sometime soon.

H1N1

So.

Turns out Chris didn't have a man-cold. And what Gus, Isabel, Lily and Claire were sick with last week wasn't a cold either.

Gus started with a fever last week Monday very early in the morning, 1 or 2 am. Isabel was hot by morning. They were so sick--fevers, coughing, runny noses, and lethargic! Gus's fever got up to 105.2. I was concerned, but he never refused a bottle and seemed content to cuddle in my arms. Lily's fever started on Thursday morning. Claire started feeling sick on Friday.

Chris and I started feeling sick on Friday night. Saturday my fever got as high as 103.2. Sunday night's sleep was one of the most miserable I can remember. My head was pounding, my eyes hurt, my ears hurt, it hurt to breathe, I was freezing, the kids woke me up repeatedly because they didn't feel good, and every time I got up I felt like I would pass out because I was so weak. I told Chris that I thought that I should go to the doctor on Monday morning. He agreed.

The doctor diagnosed me with H1N1, two minor ear infections and the beginning stages of pneumonia. He prescribed me an antibiotic and I feel a lot better now, but it has been a long two weeks! I am glad to be back.

Man Cold

My husband came home today and told me that he has a man cold. Poor little bunny.

Confirmation

The kids and I traveled to Fort Wayne on Saturday to attend Grace's confirmation on Sunday morning. There was a lot of driving over a 36 hour period, but the kids were so good! The only uncooperative element? Chicago. Still, I am so glad that we were able to be there. Congratulations Grace.

Meal Plan Monday

A friend recently reminded me about a tradition I used to have. Every Sunday night I would make a cup of tea after the kids went to bed and cuddle up with my notebook to plan the meals for the upcoming week alongside a grocery list. Somewhere in the middle of my busy schedule I lost the cup of tea and Sunday night, and it has become a frantic list on the way to the grocery store.

I saw the Idea for "Meal Plan Mondays" somewhere around the blogosphere. Thought that I would start posting my meal plans here. I hope that it will keep me more disciplined about planning. My week goes so much smoother when I plan it out and stay organized. Wonder why?

Monday - Cauliflower Gratin, applesauce
Tuesday - Chicken Noodle Soup
Wednesday - Beef Satay, peanut dipping sauce, coconut rice, cucumber salad with cilantro
Thursday- Pea Soup
Friday - kids eat leftovers, C + E this and maybe this? after kids are asleep
Saturday - spaghetti, salad
Sunday - Packer Party @ friends, bring chicken wings
Monday - homemade pizza

Portrait

A busy, but good day.

Woke up too early. Why don't babies get the whole time change thing? Fed Gus a bottle. Changed his diaper. Fed kids Multigrain Cheerios and bananas. Showered. Got dressed. Got children dressed. Changed another diaper. Pulled children away from books and shoved them outside to go to Matins. Put Gus down for morning nap. Cleaned up kitchen. Checked email and blogs. What should I make for dinner? Looked for a Christmas dress for Claire on eBay. Why are Christmas dresses sleeveless? Math lessons. Reading lesson with Lily. Started reading The Snow Queen to all the girls while Gus was sleeping. Fed kids again. Diaper change. GET IN THE CAR!!!! Piano lesson. Drove home. Read Isabel a book. Tucked Maisy and Izzy in for a nap. Checked the Halloween stash--Snickers. Checked email. Made map of Leif Eriksson's and Christopher Columbus's explorations with Claire and Lily. Cleaned kitchen. Helped girls tidy living room and dining room. Finished reading The Snow Queen to Claire and Lily while Gus chewed the coffee table and a Snickers wrapper. How did that get there? Diaper change. Put Gus down for a nap. Dinner? Called sister. Set table for dinner. Fed girls snack. Who knew that a tray of crudites is great cuisine to use with a miniature tea set? Gave Gus bottle. Refereed sibling fight. Wrapped birthday gift for neighbor girl. Prepared dinner. Put dinner in oven on time bake. Shoes! Jackets! GET IN THE CAR!!! Swimming lessons. Drove home. Fed kids dinner. Changed Gus into pajamas. Tickled Gus. Said prayers. Good night. Searched downstairs for Isabel. Why do you have salt in your hair? Pajamas. Brushed teeth. Books. Prayers. Good night. Lily? Claire? Pajamas. Book. Told them to brush teeth and wash hands. Prayers. Good night.

Tired.

Quiet.

Too early to go to bed?

Trick or Treat

Claire as the Rainbow Magic Fairy Trixie and Gus the puppy.

Lily the Hawaiian Dolphin Rider (where did she come up with this idea?).

Izzy the butterfly and Chris as Johnny Appleseed.

Me as tired Pippi.

Pumpkin Feast

My parents came yesterday for our annual pumpkin feast eaten by jack-o-lantern light.

Nine Months

Hanging out by his favorite spot...the dishwasher.

WRONG thing to say Mr. UPS man!

In the middle of everything this morning---simultaneous 2 year old potty accident, little man crying upstairs waking up from his morning nap, and two separate math tutoring sessions at the dining room table while I was carving pumpkins, literally up to my elbows in pumpkin guts, the phone rings.

I answer the phone precariously, trying not to cover the handset in goo, "Hi."

"Oh. Hi. Yeah. This is the UPS guy. The church is locked. Can I put this delivery in your garage?"

"Sure. I'll open it right now." I hang up the phone. Quick wash my hands. Dry my hands on my apron. Run upstairs, get a hysterical Gus. Run down two flights of stairs--yelling some math instruction to the girls on my way to the garage and assure a naked Izzy I'll be able to help her in a minute. Open the garage door. I pick a pumpkin seed out of my hair and wipe the tears from infant son's eyes with my shirt sleeve.

The UPS man scans the garage strewn with bikes, outdoor play equipment and sand toys and looks at me holding a baby.

"Do you run a day care over here? My wife and I have been looking for a place."

In Stitches

I should have taken the Christmas photo of the kids yesterday when I thought about it.

Oh My

The following are actual quotes, uttered by me, during a 20 minute phone conversation with my sister this afternoon:

(1) "Isabel! Please put your clothes back on! No going naked in our house!"

(2) "Who wiped A+D ointment all over the chair?"

(3) "Lily, don't get upset. Your pumpkin does look like an orange, but it is really cute. Isn't it? Very round."

(4) "I just gave Gus a whole apple. It keeps him busy for like 45 minutes or an hour. I just tell him not to choke. He eats the whole thing."

(5) "OH MY!!!! Claire! Take this towel. Put it on your forehead. Lay down on the kitchen floor. No! Don't look in the mirror! I am calling your dad!"

My sister says talking to me on the phone is like talking to someone with Turrets, constant spontaneous shouting and random conversations.

Claire is at Urgent Care right now with Chris. I insisted that they not put Dermabond on her wound and that she gets a plastic closure. They called in the plastic surgeon to do the stitches. I wonder if Christopher's collar warranted the special treatment.

Winners!

Or should I say "Wieners!" PW style?

I picked two winners for the Caption Contest. Gail's entry made me laugh and Cate's was really cute.

The prizes will be finished soon!

Horicon Marsh

We visited our annual fall destination today, Horican National Wildlife Refuge. I have been going almost every fall since I was a little girl. I am happy that my husband indulges my love of nostalgia. The weather was beautiful. There were not as many geese as usual, but we saw flock upon flock of Sandhill Cranes.

Here are some pictures from 2007.

Lizard Mound Park

We went to the Lizard Mound County Park yesterday before dinner. It is right down the road from our house. Wisconsin is home to hundreds of effigy mounds, and apparently there were thousands and thousands more at one time. We see them all the time when we take hikes on trails around this area. Oh look...another effigy mound. It is a shame that they are not teasured more as a valuable piece of Wisconsin's history. I'm sure that it has something to do with the fact that not much is known about the Native Americans that built them. The tribes vanished around 1300 A.D.

Native American Study

Our Native American meal included venison and the three sisters (corn--in the form of corn cakes, beans, and squash).

Learning about traditional Cherokee pottery at the Cherokee Indian Oconalufee Village in North Carolina. On a whim we decided to visit the reservation. The girls really enjoyed being able to meet a "real Indian" and the tour was informative. It was a highlight of North Carolina for them.

A picture of a mock Cherokee Tribal Council at the Village.

A model of how the Cherokee built their homes after the European settlers came.


We finished our Native American Unit on Friday and celebrated with a themed meal. It isn't my favorite part of history to study, but the girls enjoyed it. I guess that is all that matters. I would have to say the best part of our unit was being able to visit some of the people and places we read about in books. I wish I had the resources to always study history like this! Look Claire the Coliseum! Lily, there is the Great Wall of China!

The Cherokee Indian Reservation was hard to swallow for the adults. It was just so sad. Every stereotype that we hear about Native Americans was pictured in that place--"Casino Just Ahead", unkempt grounds, and a people who don't take themselves or life too seriously. Can I blame them? Yes and no. History was very, very cruel to their people, but I do believe that at some point everyone needs take responsibility for themselves, their family and community today.