Friday=donuts?

Every Friday since I started at my current job over 6 years ago, there are donuts that appear in my office. I have mixed feelings about this tradition. Yes, I like eating the donuts, but on the other hand, they sure aren't doing my diet any good. We tried unsuccessfully a couple of times to get them to add a healthy option (i.e. fruit) but the only thing that has made an infrequent appearance are bagels. For those of you who don't know, bagels actually have MORE calories than a donut, just less sugar. Go figure. Anyway, I will have to go see what is left after getting into work later than usual (I had a meeting).

Last night we decided to make a run to Kohl's after dinner to find a new pair of pants for Scott. Caleb decided that he wanted to wear his "backpack" into the store which I was thankful for. His backpack is actually a stuffed puppy harness that has a "tail" that Mommy can hang onto. In essence, it is a leash. I never understood why parents would do this to a child, but then I had a 2 year-old. A 2 year-old who likes to run and hide amongst the clothing racks at the store and scare the crap out of Mommy but not coming when called. NOW I understand why people put toddlers on leashes. So, we are walking around the store, which is nearly empty, getting many dirty looks from people who used to be just like me. And very knowing looks from the people who have actually been there. Caleb pulled me from one end of the store to the other, but at least I knew right where he was.

Plans are moving along for the party this weekend. Tonight will be cleaning the upstairs. The ENTIRE upstairs, including our closet and master bedroom. *shudder* We can do this....it's just not going to be pretty. I have 4 separate lists that I have been diligently creating so we can keep everything together, including my sanity. I don't want my entire weekend to focus on this one event though. I AM going to be doing some geocaching. We only have 12 more to go before we hit 400 and I have done a cache in over a month. There is valuable weather wasting away that I need to take advantage of!

Mom and Dad are still in Oregon (maybe) but are headed south into northern California today. Then they are planning on taking several days to drive back north to Washington along the Pacific coast. I am so jealous! I just hope they take lots of pictures and really enjoy it. How could you not have fun driving that little Mini in that kind of country? Gorgeous!

Off to finish some work and then run out of here early today. It is an absolutely perfect weather day out there and as soon as everyone else is gone, I am outta here!

Day from H-E-Double hockey sticks

Yesterday was a horrible day. Bad news at work, bad attitude at home. It was truly one of those days that makes you want to run away a pretend you never existed.

And the people who's shoulders I would normally lean on are unavailable so here I am. But I don't want to say too much because this is far to public of a forum, even though I don't think anyone has ever read it.

There are so many days that I consider making this blog private, but then again I really don't care if some one out there in cyber land reads it.....I just don't want the people that I KNOW to read it. Make sense? I can whine and cry and complain all I want here without actually having to confront some one, which is something I definitely do not do well. After all, why would I let some one know what I am truly feeling when it is much more fun for them to make them guess? (*insert sarcasm here*)

Can't think of a catchy title

Caleb learned how to climb all the way up into my Jeep, all by himself! Considering he will be three in a week, that may not sound like much, but let me assure you that since he is such a little guy, this is a big deal. He has been getting more and more independent so this is a real victory for him. Go, Caleb!

Also, last night he was throwing a fit because he wanted some fruit snacks before dinner. I told him "no" and he proceeded to throw a fit. I tried a new approach of ignoring him. Completely. He was even hitting me at one point, but I just kept on ignoring him. So you know what he did? He put himself in a time out! I had to try really hard not to laugh because it was just too cute. He kept begging all the way through dinner...then when dinner was over and he had eaten a good amount, I told him he could have his treat. Hopefully, I didn't screw anything up in the discipline area.

Mom and Dad called last night and they are in Idaho. Trip is going well, but they had more bad news from home and may just send the trip into a tailspin. It is hard to have fun when your business is having problems 4 states away.

Another dull day

Since I am trying to diligently post something each day in hopes of capturing the small gems that may happen in our humdrum life, I will try to summarize our day yesterday as concisely as possible.

Caleb started his first day in the new classroom at daycare. He is now in the big kid room with 8 kids instead of 6. So far he is loving it. Scott also had his first day in his new office at the Fitchburg facility so he is not loving it as much. He is constantly complaining about the decorating choices, but I am sure they will stop offending him so completely soon. Either that or he will learn to deal, because there is nothing that can be done about them at this point.

The weather was gorgeous here yesterday, so of course I spent the entire thing at my desk or in my house. Why would I want to go outside and risk all those nasty mosquitoes? (said with tongue firmly in cheek) I really hate what this sedentary life is doing to me, but I don't know how to fix it. I hate being cooped up, I hate my job, I hate being fat. I guess I am just all around unhappy with my life right this second.

After we all got home, we ate dinner, watched some TV and Caleb fell asleep on the couch about and hour before bedtime. Guess the little guy was just worn out from all the running he was doing at school. Once he was tucked in, Scott and I decided to watch an episode of "Top Gear" on BBC America. I don't think we have ever laughed so hard! Jon and Becky turned us onto the show two weeks ago and I think we have a new favorite show. Let's just say that last nights episode had a competition to see who could build an amphibious vehicle.....and one of the was called a "Toyboata"....get the picture?

Mom and Dad have left Glacier and are on their way west again. They got some pretty bad news from home yesterday, though, so I don't know how much longer they are going to be out there. I sure hope they can finish out the trip as they had it planned, but I have a feeling that might not happen.

Looks like I am planning a party for this coming weekend after all. The past two years we have had Caleb's birthday party on labor day weekend so I am usually running around with my head cut off trying to get everything done. Since we planned his birthday party this year at the Children's Museum, I was looking forward to not having to do all the work. Well, there are several people here from New Zealand installing the equipment that Scott spent the last 2 years working on and he would like to invite them over for a real Wisconsin BBQ. Actually, I really don't mind doing it. At least this way my house will get cleaned! And I love putting the menu together and getting things checked off the to-do lists. Makes me feel organized. The part I really hate though....cleaning up. I spend all that time cleaning and then have to re-do it all the very next day. Ugh.

So for not having anything to say about yesterday, I guess I typed a lot. I am off to start creating about 4 separate to-do lists. Wish me luck!

Welcome to life with a 3 year-old

What a weekend. On Saturday Scott went to Oshkosh for the great outdoor festival, so I decided to take Caleb to the park for a picnic, followed by a few hours at the zoo. We arranged to meet my friend Eryn and her 9 month old son Drew there, but they weren't able to make it until the afternoon. The picnic went well, although it was a dumb idea to take Caleb for a picnic at the playground....why eat when you can play! It was a wonderful day and I am so glad we didn't just sit at home and watch TV. The only draw back was that Caleb didn't get his nap until after 4:00. He slept for over 3 hours and then went to bed at his normal time, but his schedule was thrown for a real loop.

Sunday we went to a birthday party for one of his friends in the neighborhood, Josie, and had a great time. Came home and had a quick visit with his grandparents who stopped by to drop off his birthday gifts. Didn't get down for a nap until after 4:00 again, but this time it was disastrous. He slept for little more than an hour and woke up crabby and whiny and just plain hard to live with. We tried to get him to eat dinner with us, that resulted in a tantrum. We told him he couldn't watch TV while we ate dinner, that resulted in a tantrum. He wanted water but when we brought it in a red cup instead of a blue cup, he threw a tantrum. Get the picture? So, before I had even finished my dinner, I took him upstairs to get him into his PJs and ready for bed, even though it was only 7:00. Really had to fight him but I knew he was so over tired that I managed to not loose my cool. Tried tucking him into bed, but that resulted in a tantrum the escalated to a MEGA tantrum. This was very scary, and behavior we haven't seen from him before. He was throwing himself around and screeching at the top of his lungs. We basically tried to ignore him, but it just wasn't getting any better. Finally, Scott crawled into bed with him and was able to get him calmed down slowly. He eventually passed out and slept the whole night peacefully. Note to self: NEVER LET CALEB GO TWO DAYS IN A ROW WITH REALLY LATE NAPS!

One week from today Caleb turns 3. We are already experiencing the independent streak, the stubbornness and smart mouth. I am scared by the concept of discipline, because I know there are 1001 ways to do it wrong. We are currently using the time-out method and have recently added a timer. He has to sit on the step for 3 minutes before he can be done with the timeout. That is working pretty we actually. Whining is a HUGE problem, but when we tell him to stop, he usually does. I know there are many things we are doing right, I just hope they out number the things we are screwing up.

Still raining

It rained yesterday. It rained last night. It looks like it is going to rain again today. My patio is beginning to mold. Caleb hasn't played outside in 4 days. Even *I* am beginning to go a little stir crazy. The forecast says that we should have sunny skies by tomorrow but I am not going to hold my breath.

My parents made it to Glacier Nat'l Park during their trip west to Washington. They said it is absolutely beautiful and right now I wish I was with them. I could use a little change in my life.

Caleb was feeling fine yesterday morning so we took him to daycare. I hadn't even made it to work yet when they called to say that he had thrown up poltergeist-style and needed to be picked up. Since Scott was doing something important at work, I turned around and went straight back to the westside. And of course, he was perfectly fine when I got there and was never sick again the whole day. He ate fairly well yesterday, but I made sure to give him only the blandest foods I could find. We took a risk and dropped him off at school again today and so far so good.

I was up WAY too late last night (or should I say this morning) but I really didn't feel like going to sleep. Did some crochet, watched some TV and enjoyed the fact that my kitchen was (mostly) clean. Since I was home two days this week my house actually looks like it wouldn't have to be closed down by the health department. I know that is temporary, but it will be nice while it lasts. The floor still needs to be mopped, but taking care of that, cleaning the bathroom downstairs and doing a little dusting should make the downstairs livable. The upstairs on the other hand....that needs a LOT of work.

I MIGHT get some stuff done this weekend, but at this point I think that is doubtful. Scott is headed up north on Saturday for the Ducks Unlimited event in Oshkosh and Caleb and I are staying home. He has already watched enough TV to last him until he is in kindergarten so I should try to come up with something ELSE for us to do tomorrow. Maybe the zoo....will have to think on that a little.

Under the weather

The title for this entry definitely has a double meaning....

Caleb woke up early Tuesday with a fever and I decided to stay home with him all day. He was a perfectly happy, active little man the entire day, he just had a fever of 101°F for most of the day. He watched too much TV and I managed to find the living room floor again. By the time Scott got home last night, the kitchen, dining room and living room were much better than they had been in the morning. Not company ready, but definitely nothing I would be ashamed of if some one stopped by expectantly. Since Caleb still had the fever this morning, Scott is staying home with him. Hopefully he can get the vinyl floor mopped and then everything will be as clean as it gets these days.

Also, it has been raining here for almost 2 weeks and they are calling for rain for most of this week again. The grass is growing so fast that is was just cut on Saturday and needs to be cut again on Wednesday! The only problem is that it doesn't dry out long enough for us to cut it. The sun has been peaking out a little between rain storms the last two days, but it is soooooo muggy that you could drown just by taking a deep breath. It is grey enough that it reminds me of being in Houghton in the winter....although there isn't any snow.

Sounds like Mom and Dad are having an enjoyable journey west in the Mini. Mom did say that it is completely different being in the Mini all day with Dad than being in the Envoy with him. Of course, the Mini is 1/3 the size of the Envoy so that is understandable. :)

I have my neighborhood bunco group tonight. Should be fun and exciting....NOT. I have been a member of this group for almost 5 years now and it is really getting old. I have less and less in common with these women all the time. Most of them are SAHM's and have quite a bit of disdain for my CHOICE to work. I am probably reading too much into it, but I really dread going most months. If I could only think of a way to back out of it gracefully, I would.

Tonight is also Caleb's last swimming less for this session. We didn't go last week because my parents were here and there were just too many scheduling conflicts. And other than the fever, he has no symptoms of being sick. A dose of Tylenol will keep the fever in check long enough to let him have the last lesson, followed by a quick dinner and then I am off to bunco. Should make for a rather unproductive evening to say the least.

Where did the weekend go?

Zoooooom! There went the weekend! How did they do that? Friday night I went scrapbooking with my friend Vicki, which was really nice. We scrapped at a church (not usually my favorite thing) but it had huge tables, great lighting and was open as late as we wanted it to be. Perfect! I got about 8 pages done, not bad for my usual speed. Hope I can find the time to get some of them posted onto the 2peas website, but I really want to get my space organized before I focus on that.

Anyway, we left the church at 3:20 AM on Saturday to head to Vicki's house. Got a few hours sleep and made it home around noon on Saturday. Came home to a house that had some how exploded in the previous 12 hours and a family that hadn't made it out of their PJ's yet. I jumped into the shower, got everyone else cleaned up and then spent most of the afternoon trying to get the house cleaned a little bit. Scott did the bathrooms and I worked at the downstairs, but couldn't concur the living room. I decided it was best to work on sorting and packing away the mound of toys than stuffing it into the corner and we are still working on that.

Saturday night we decided to go out to dinner, then take Caleb bowling for the first time. They didn't have bowling shoes small enough, so Caleb bowled in his socks. Very cute. We got through about 4 frames before Caleb had had enough and was dragging us towards the video games. Finished out the game as quickly as possible, then moved onto a trip to Culver's. Did I mention that it was pouring rain since noon? We dodged a lot of rain drops before settling into the house to watch the last half of the Packer pre-season game that we forgot was on.

We were up and going early on Sunday. Headed to see our friends just outside of Delafield, about 75 minutes east of Madison. Spent the morning with them, had lunch at McDonald's (with the playland), grabbed some MORE ice cream at Coldstone and headed to Oconomowoc to drop Mom and Dad's truck off at my aunt and uncle's house. Left there around 4:15 and decided to try for a stop at the outlet mall in Johnson Creek. Grabbed a bunch of clothes for me and Caleb before heading back to Madison. Ate dinner on the eastside of town, got home around 8:30. Watched a little TV, stuffed Caleb into his PJ's and collapsed into bed.

No wonder I am tired this morning. Some how even those weekends that we don't have anything planned seem to fill up really fast. This next weekend isn't going to be much better either, since Scott will be gone on Saturday and then we have a birthday party to go to on Sunday. Sheesh! maybe things will slow down soon? Pretty please?

Pooh's Fair

Last night was the "Pooh's Fair" at Caleb's daycare. Basically, they turn the playground into a little mini carnival with games and face painting and cotton candy. I thought he would love it! Instead, he freaked out and was clinging to me the entire evening. Huh? Maybe he was just freaked by the crowds, maybe having all those people on his playground was too much for him...I don't know. After a while he finally calmed down and seemed to enjoy playing some of the games.

The highlight of the evening for him was definitely the bouncy house. He went in there twice and wanted to go in a third, but they had to take it down. He ended up spending the most time playing in the sand box with Alex, his buddy from class, however, we had to leave when he grabbed the truck from Alex and then threw a fit when we made him give it back. We left there with him screaming, he screamed while we put him in the car, and he screamed all the way home. Lots of fun.

OMG! Toy recall!

I have heard about so many recalls over the past few years, but I got used to the fact that they never concerned us. I always over-research EVERY purchase we make and would only buy products with proven track records, etc. However, last week we were shopping for a birthday present for a friend of Caleb's at Target and we ended up in the "Cars" movie toy section. Well, Scott went crazy when he finally saw the "Sarge" Jeep toy available. We had been looking for this toy on and off ever since the movie came out almost TWO years ago! A full grown man jumping up and down in the middle of Target is not something you see every day, so how was I going to say no? So we paid the $3 for the small toy and took it home. It was out of the package and in Caleb's hands before we left the parking lot and everyone was happy.

Flash forward to this week and I innocently get an email from Fisher Price (I signed up for their newsletter when Caleb was a baby). I almost just deleted the email as I do with most of them but decided to read it. Lo and behold, it was a bulletin discussing the recall that their parent company, Mattell, had announced. So I said, "what the heck" and started looking at the items that were recalled. Sure enough, there was a picture of poor little Sarge. After some investigation when I got home, it turns out that our Sarge toy was made in China and was from the batch suspected to have lead paint in it, therefore, I need to send it back to them and will receive a voucher in place of the toy. And, oh yeah, make sure you allow 10 to 12 WEEKS for delivery of the voucher after receipt of the toy. I thought Scott was going to take it harder than he did, but he was pretty much OK with it. We just have to go find one that was made in Taiwan instead. Luckily Caleb is far past the stage where he has to put everything into his mouth. I would have been really worried if I even suspected he got it near his mouth, but I doubt he did.

Luckily, that is the only toy that we have that was even close to being recalled. The rest of them were all for "Polly Pocket" dolls or toys that are too old for Caleb yet. Definitely makes you think...

Some day I will be good at this...

Apparently, I suck a blogging. I have managed to make ONE post for each of the last several months. I missed July completely. This was supposed to be a quick method of recording the daily happenings in our lives, like an online journal, but instead it just started collecting dust like every other method I have ever tried.

I guess a lot of life just doesn't seem like it needs recording as it happens, thus it doesn't get made a priority. Besides, I feel like I am going 5 different directions all the times and end up spending any "extra" time I have doing something at least semi-relaxing. Most nights I am so exhausted that even watching TV takes too much effort.

Well, you haven't really missed anything during the last 6 weeks. Caleb is getting bigger, Scott and I are still working, and my parents are still hard to track down. They are leaving for a driving trip out west on Sunday morning to take a friend's Mini Cooper to Olympia, WA (long story). I got a chance to drive the little car yesterday and it wasn't as much fun as I thought it would be. Expected more zip, although Dad did say that without anyone else in the car is was plenty zippy.

Caleb has been taking swimming lessons and although he protests before each lesson, I think he does like them. At least they are only half and hour and he doesn't tend to cry once we have him in the water. We are going to continue his lessons this fall and winter, but it may be a challenge to get him to stick with them.

Scott and I are planning on taking our first real trip "away" next month, which we are both really looking forward to. Caleb is almost 3 and we have never left him for a full 24 hours with some one else. He has been over night with Nana and Bumpa before, but we were home before breakfast the next morning. I think he is going to be fine, but I may worry about it too much despite it. Anyway, we are headed up north, back to Houghton to take a stroll down memory lane. We haven't really spent much time up there since we graduated NINE years ago and really want to get back to see what has and hasn't changed. Plus, it will almost be peak color so it should really be beautiful. Did I mention that there is also some prime geocaching to be done up there? I can't WAIT!

We have really kicked up the burners on the geocaching this summer, since Caleb is finally old enough to "help" us out a little. He can walk down the trails and likes hunting for "treasures". Last night he even wanted to hide one of his toys and then we could "geocache it", which is his language is "find it". To funny!

It looks like my brother is having a great time in Florida. He has been helping Mike out at the Eden house with some repair and odd job type stuff. They have been so pleased with his work that he could be there for 3 years, just finishing the projects that Mike has started and not gotten back to. Glad he is finally getting away and a little more on his own. Plus, if he decides to relocate down there we will have some one to visit! I would love any excuse I can get to go back to Key West.

Well, that is just about all I have for now. Maybe if I do several short posts each week it won't turn into a huge event when I get around to the once a month post. :) Maybe that will happen....but don't hold your breath.