In the words of the the Whos down in Whoville,

WE ARE HERE WE ARE HERE WE ARE HERE! (Okay, so I like Suess books....)
I'm STILL here, I just am packing, cleaning, removing wallpaper, removing wallpaper, shopping, removing wallpaper, packing, cleaning, removing wallpaper....

I HATE WALLPAPER....at least the removal of it. My dream last night was that I would finish removing some from one room, go to the next room, and it would be there. I would finish there, and go back to the other room, and it would be back up....and it cycled like that all night. I was tired when I woke up.

It's okay, though, I'm still loving this whole process! My husband and dad and a few other people painted until they couldn't see straight most nights...even Luke has been in on the action. Don't worry. Before and after pictures are on the way....

Can you believe after all this time....

I've never known God to fail me, so don't mistake what I blog today....

I never thought it would happen. When Chad and I got married, we moved in to a 930 sq. ft. 2 BR 1 bath house that had storage coming out our ears. There were about 200 kitchen cabinets...well, it seemed like it. There were 2 closets in our bedroom. One in the other bed room. The house just seemed really open. Maybe it was because we were new to marriage and didn't have a bunch of junk yet...It also had a detached garage and fenced in yard. The bathroom had big, roomy cabinets above the toilet and a big counter filled with drawers and cabinets that was the length of the room. To our small family of 2, it was perfect. Then we had Luke.

With the big bedrooms that were in this house and all the storage, his stuff didn't seem too bad. We were still very comfortable. Then our landlord decided to sell the house. We had thought about buying it, but his daughter wanted it, and rightfully so, she had "first dibs," so to speak. So we went on the hunt.

With a tight timetable, we found the best we could afford, having only been married for about 2 and a half years. The best we could afford, was still pretty good....for 3 people on a very tight budget. We lost the garage, the big back yard, and all but one closet in the entire house. Our living space is similar in that it's about 900 sq. ft, but at the same time, the layout is completely different and MUCH more crowded. Our bedroom space was cut in half, I'd say. Our kitchen was cut by about 80%---easily. We lost the laundry room, which was HUGE at the other house, I forgot to mention. It was definitely bigger (with two closets and cabinets) than my bedroom is now. We also lost a nice sized deck for grilling and lounging. Even our bathtub size shrunk. I know that may seem hard to believe...but it really did.

It didn't matter. We were still a family of 3. But not for long. Shortly after moving in, I became pregnant again. All was not lost. We could easily squeeze in another baby with Luke. Hopefully, it would be a girl! :) God had other plans. On the day after April Fool's Day of 2002 (perfectly timed, wouldn't you say?), my ultrasound revealed that not only was there a Baby "A," there was a Baby "B"!!! And NOT ONLY was Baby A another boy, so was Baby B!!! Instant mini-van status...and space problems. Luke wasn't even out of the high chair yet....what a rude awakening! He got an instant posse, and we seriously didn't know how we would fit all the clothes, two swings, two high chairs, two cribs and a toddle bed, etc. all in this tiny space.

We managed...maybe a little too well. It's like God said, "Hey, Pete, check this out! They've made it with 3 little guys...let's see how they do with another baby. Hey, I'll make it a boy again. THAT ought to do it." I'm not the perfect parent by ANY Stretch of the imagination, so I was a LITTLE overwhelmed, to say the least. I don't believe Chad spoke fir 2 weeks after finding out for his 28th birthday that he would soon have one player short of a starting line up.

Well, Gabriel is now 28 months old or so. After 4 years of outgrowing this house, WE ARE MOVING!!!!!!! I can't tell you how blessed we feel.

We are moving to a 4 Bedroom, 2 bath house with a HUGE kitchen, an attached 2-car garage with a huge back yard complete with swing set, sand box, slides, space to ride their bikes! We will have so much space! I can't wait! We hope to start painting sometime this week. Then the owners are putting in brand new carpet for us. Sure, it's renting, and it's moving slightly backwards for what the world sees as the proper timeline for home owners. But I honestly don't give a hoot.

GOD IS GOOD. HIS TIMING WAS PERFECT, financially and otherwise. (The only sad thing has been that the kids must get rid of their doggy. We're hoping to find a temporary home for him until we eventually have enough money saved to move again...but it may be a while, so this is a difficult task. Drew and Evan really cried tonight when I told them about it...but I'm hoping having their own room will perk them up.) Either way, I'm very excited about the opportunity God has given my family! I praise Him for it continually!

Cabin Fever

In the past two weeks of school, I have worked one day. I love my kids and all, but COME DIG ME OUT OF THE 17 INCHES OF SNOW WE NOW HAVE, PLEASE??!?!!?!?!

Friday oddities

1. I have missed an entire week of work. two snow days and two family illness days. What will my classes be like when I get back? hmmm...

2. I received an emergency phone call from the Kokomo Police Department. Apparently a 16-year old boy wearing a black hoodie and jeans with dark hair was last seen at 2:30 this afternoon and needs medical attention. I am to report any person fitting the description in my area. I'm to check my back yard and out-buildings. That took all of 2 seconds.... :)

3. I was asked to complete a survey and read a free magazine for which I will get free groceries. We'll see...I'm a skeptic.

4. I currently have all 4 boys sitting in what the world calls "time out" - they are truly on a couch cushion because if they wander from their own cushion they will touch someone and that will be trouble. All I know is that a few minutes ago I heard a big bang while I was on the phone and the contents of an entire shelf were on the floor....to which when I walked in the room, Luke pointed at his brothers and said "They told me to throw it." It ALWAYS happens when you are on the phone. Future parents, mark my words.

5. Our tv is dying. You'll be watching and out of the blue, no sound. It has been steadily getting worse...The only remedy seems to be pounding the thing on top.

6. We are getting a HUGE tax refund, PRAISE JESUS! Having 4 children and paying an arm and a leg on childcare each year has it's ups! We are hoping to catch up all bills - pay off all medical bills - and maybe get our house ready to put up for sale. That's the goal...we'll see what God has for us!

More

So in the middle of the night, I was awakened by my other twin, coughing and sputtering, "Mommy, I pute in my bed."

Thus began my day at 3 AM....

Now I am tired from little to no sleep for 3 nights, stuffed up and cranky....

We picked up our kitty today. Boo did well. The vet's staff loves her! They made all over her, again....she has a morphine patch on her back which I have to remove on Saturday. THAT should be oodles of fun! And she has 2 oral meds that she gets one or twice a day, depending on which one...She doesn't like it, but she purrs at me all the same when I go in to the bathroom. We have her locked up in there to keep the kids and the dog from getting her too active. She hurts when she walks, I know it. Poor girl. She lays down and carefully folds her paws under her chest. She inches at you with her paws still tucked under, wanting you to love her but hating the pain. The meds will be a 12 day process...so I hope not to spook her too much. I don't want her to hate me forever...The kids were SOOO excited to see her today.

Please pray that no child throws up tonight. My washing machine is on overload! I need a good night's sleep. I have not worked since last week because of snow days and flu days. It's like I've given myself a vomit-filled early spring break....sort of. Ok. Maybe not. Spring break is supposed to be MUCH more fun.

Have a good night! I'm going to go watch Grey's Anatomy, which has already started.

Thank you from the land of bodily fluids

Got your attention?

:) I know it's sick, but that's where I'm living currently. Chad (my husband) has been sick with the flu since Monday night. In an effort to keep the children from getting sick, since we have had Monday and Tuesday off from school due to lovely Indiana weather, I took the kids to my Dad and Jenny's house yesterday during the day. All was well until dinner time...Evan hadn't eaten well all day, but he didn't complain of anything. He did not take a nap, so when he said he was tired at dinner time, I was not suprised at all. After forcing him to eat 2 bites of vegetable soup, I let him go lay down. My plan was to help finish in the kitchen and get the kids back home to bed. My dad went in to lay down with Evan, and the next thing I knew, he was yelling my name repeatedly. When I came in the living room, my dad was holding Evan on his lap in the recliner and trying to catch what Evan was throwing up so it wouldn't go all over the room. So much for separating them from their dad to keep them well. I apologized so many times to my dad who just desperately wanted out of there to get a shower....

I took today off of work to stay with them again...Evan has been fine. That's how it is. If I would have taken him to the sitter's and gone to work, she would have had to call me to get him. At least he's feeling better.

My thank you goes out to those of you who read my previous post and have sent me (via email or comment on blogger or otherwise) encouraging words. Sometimes being a music teacher is stressful and unappreciated. I don't know what will come of it, but I plan to talk to my building rep about it. I have already gone to my principal, who was less than thrilled. I just want to handle it with dignity and integrity and grace. SOOOO it's probably a good thing that I haven't been back to school yet becayse today is the first day I can think about it or talk/type about it without my blood boiling. :) So thank you to those of you who have been my Barnabas. :)

Incidentally, Boo is in for a declaw right now. She came through it yesterday really well. They called to tell me. Do you actually KNOW how they do that? I assumed it was just removal of the claw. OH NO...they actually go in and amputate what would be our last nuckle on down in order to ensure that the claw does not grow back....OUCH! The vet said it would be especially hard on her since she is 8 months old and not 3 months old. She is also fat which puts more weight on her when she walks, so she is probably going to have a morphine patch as well as oral pain meds!! Poor little girl. She probably won't come out of the bathroom for a week. Partially because we have to keep her calm for a week and the dog could get to her any other place. And partially because I imagine she'll be a tad upset with us.

Have a beautifully warm day....okay, well, try to stay warm. :)
Michelle

What a weekend!!!!! I'm still bleeding orange and navy blue!

So my Bears didn't make it past Peyton and Bob Sanders, but at least they were there. Their future looks bright, so I have to be proud of them....Rex Grossman on the other hand, should probably prepare a resume....if I were him, I'd get it ready.

My oldest son hit a milestone on Saturday. He has lost his first tooth, obviously. I am super proud of him. He pulled it himself and said it didn't hurt. :)

Now on to a little rant...sorry!! I was literally told today by one of my superiors that what I did was "insignificant." I am furious and hurt and outraged. My professional response to that was, "Oh. Ok. Thanks." and I hung up the phone. I didn't see what yelling and screaming would have done for me. Of course, when I hung up, I came up with SEVERAL smart-allick questions and statements to make and even a few that were pretty valid and should be discussed. I decied to let my direct superior handle it. He is currently in a meeting discussing it....so we'll see how it all goes. In the mean time, anyone know of an any full time jobs that I could stay home part of the day to do? :)

oh - and by the way...I always hate those little comment verification things, but after I logged on today and there was an ad for teen xxx sites and male member enlargements, I decided it was time....sorry...I was trying to avoid it. Hope it won't keep you from commenting! :)