Down For The Count

#1 Kid's hotel incident has continued on and off all week with the added bonus of some horrific leakage.

(guess who gets to clean it all up?)

Which brings me to....

#2 I might be dying. Whatever Kid has, I have, with the spectacular addition of blood (sorry... but it's true).

Yesterday, I said by day two of blood in my dog's stool I'd have taken him to the vet. It's day 5; I'm still sitting here.

Hopefully, I'll live through the weekend.

P.S. Kid seems to be better today, so I'm hoping I'll follow suit tomorrow (pretty please).

As soon as Kid felt better, she went sledding.

Which brings me to....

#3

Kid sprained her ankle (or broke it... not sure yet) while sledding with Mr F last night.

Of course, she's too heavy for me to lift, even if I weren't huddled on the bathroom floor. Last night I managed to drag her around, with her grasping around my waist from behind, me hobbled over so as to help support her weight with my rump, and her pogoing behind on her good leg. Think two man horse costume arrangement... but with hopping. It took us a good half hour to get from the playroom to her bed. I wish there had been pictures. Well, needless to say, I can't do that going down the stairs to our garage to our car, and she needs to see a doctor. So, Mr F had to come home. And amazingly HE DID. If you've been following along, you know that that NEVER happens. I've actually passed out from the stomach flu, with very little kids at home, and he still hasn't come home to help. I think the blood is working in my favor ;)

On to better things...

#4 We got a Playmobil advent calendar again this year. These things (especially if you have Playmobil) are the bomb. And, this year, they come in already assembled boxes (if you've gotten these before you know what a nightmare that assembly was!).


Not exactly how I had wanted to start off the holiday season, hopefully this weekend sees a tremendous turnaround. Or at least the unpacking of our remaining trip bags and such.

Update Winter Style

P.S. I think I've figured out the volume glitch... of course... after I taped this. Next time!

Bust Out The Snow Pants, Peeps

We are definitely going sledding tomorrow!

Well, We're Back

Recap:
We had a good, albeit completely exhausting, time.

We managed to stay on budget food-wise ($440 for all 9 days... 5 at Disney, 4 on the road).

We did Disney like we've never done it before.

The kids were really into it, in a different way than they have been before.

No rest for the weary style... but a couple of awesome apple turn-overs from the Main St Bakery to keep Mr F & I going.

Character meals, unless you have Disney Dining... are just not worth it. The end.

Our hotel did NOT have bedbugs (in case you wonder about stuff like that).

5 hours into our first day of driving Baby strongly suggested we should drive straight to the nearest airport and fly to Disney.

The 2nd day of driving was easier with the excitement of Disney looming.

How many billboards for one strip joint can there possibly be?... apparently HUNDREDS.

The weather was mostly perfect. Only one hot day, and we really maxed out the comfortable evenings.

Driving home was a lot more tedious, both days took 3-4 hours longer than they should have.

10-12 hours in the car is hard, once you step over 13 hours?... it's kind of Hell.

We we're stopped up on the highway for more than 8 major multi-car accidents (and, no, it was not snowing)... it was crazy.

Oh, I didn't mention that Kid woke up yesterday (drive day two of our return) and threw up in our hotel.

Awesome. On all counts. I wasn't sure how that was going to go down with a full day of travel.

But that girl is some kind of a soldier. She never even complained, kept trying to weakly pretend she was okay.

She just dealt with it, even though she must have felt like HELL, and the trip was over 13 hours.

As soon as we got home she admitted how sick she was and went to lay on the bathroom floor.

Okay, that's the wrap up.

I'm not feeling too hot myself...






The Take Away....

Next time we're switching back to staying on-site, with the meal plan, and we are going to FLY. If you are going to max-out Disney, and apparently my kids have reached that age, it just makes it more of a vacation IMO to have everything you need as easily as possible, without having to stress about how much everything is EVERY time you try and eat, park, etc. AND we really missed having the sit down meals, and character meals that are just cost prohibitive without the meal plan, now. As long as Disney keeps giving the meal plan away for free, next time we'll plan our trip for their deal dates and take advantage of it. For me, in the end we only saved a couple hundred dollars, and in return I had to make up the difference (personally) with work and planning, which effected my vacation enjoyment. I'd rather wait until we can afford to fly and use the meal plan, just because I'd like a vacation that's completely fun & relaxing for me, too. Which is not to say we didn't have a great time. But 4 days of car travel with kids, and trying to manage food on the cheap, was just a lot of work for a vacation. Last time we stayed off site the kids were much younger, needed more downtime, didn't eat as much, and we lived a full days drive closer! ;)

Mom! How Do You Spell...

"Unfortunately, I'm So Sweaty!" Baby calls from the kitchen table.

Don't Let The Princess Dress Fool You

Every day Baby begs me to paint her face, to her exact specifications, as a zombie.


She also keeps telling me I really need to listen to "Zombie Rob ... He creeps me out!"

Update 11-14

Updates

I made pork tenderloin, peas, and stuffing for dinner

Baby said...

"Thank you for Heaven."

(make a note, Mother)

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I've finally gotten over myself and realized that if I want to see any recognizable weight loss I will, in fact, have to lower my calories.

One week at 1400... 2.5 pounds down

That's more like it.

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6 months ago, My father came to visit and I was forced to make our guest room an actual guest room. So, we did what anyone else would do... we threw all the weird half unpacked boxes and piles of *important* paperwork, left out from doing our taxes, on the floor of our room.

My Dad came again last week... the shit is STILL all over our floor. Except now it is not even remotely stacked... it's like a carpet of important documents.

When are they going to file themselves, already?!!!

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Any one time breastfeeding mother probably has a tube of Lansinoh lanolin in the back of a bathroom drawer.

You know what it is GREAT for?! Your kids' super chapped lips.

Kid really suffers with extremely chapped lips once we have our heat on... and I've tried everything... even diaper cream.

And this is the best.

Hypoallergenic, 100% natural, no preservatives or additives.

I don't know why I didn't think of it before.

Plus, it's not as disturbing as putting diaper cream... which you've actually used on someone's ass... on their mouth.

Go ahead and put it on your heels, too.

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Disney, we're coming for you... in 12 days.

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P.S. My Brownies co-leader... is... C-R-A-Z-Y.

Holy Darkness, Batman!

Oh, Goody

Apparently, It's Hobo Day...

Trick or Treat

Kid who is now OFFICIALLY 9!...


And a little foxy lady who was really feeling it tonight...

Just Found The Kids...

Lying on the kitchen floor, heckling the electrician (at work in the basement), through the heat vents.

Awesome.

She Does Seem Pleased

Sometime early (early) this morning I finished...


Now I just need some face paint and a length of tulle to adorn the head piece... and I call it done.

Amazingly, everything fits... which... is impressive, if I do say so myself, since I wasn't using patterns or her measurements.


Of course, I finished just in time to sleep for 1/2 hour before Kid woke up not feeling well... and then woke up again every half hour to tell me about it... ALL NIGHT (er... morning) long.

I stumbled into Mr F in the hall around 8 and said...

"I was up all night with her."

And he said (get this!)...

"I know, me too."

Hmm... really?... because I was in her freaking room all night.

Turns out he got up ONE TIME when I had tried to go back to my bed at 7:30 AM. Yeah, not exactly ALL NIGHT.

Oh, God, he really makes me laugh.

Updates

This weekend...

I signed the kids up for My Job Chart. And, people, miracles have been preformed since then. It's free, it's engaging, and it just might be genius. Take a moment to investigate it, while it has a heavy financial literacy bend (not terrible in it's own right)... you can (if, say, you don't actually want to give your kids a ton of $ as chore compensation) load your child's "store" up with free family activities (movie night, computer/TV time, making cookies, etc). It also has a sliding bar that allows the child to delineate how many of their points they want to put in savings, "share" (give to charity), or spend. The girls are most excited to try and earn a date with Mr F, even though an American Girl doll is up for grabs (which I listed at 12000 points, which will take roughly a year to earn). Kid said when she saw the rewards "Oh, I really would like to earn that date with Dad." very seriously. It was a heart tugging moment, and reminder that even amidst the glitz and glam, your time and attention are all they ever really want. Of course, no one was fighting over a date with me... moving on....

Mr F and I had a rare (VERY RARE) night without kids this weekend. After I spent several hours playing in Kid's virtual American Girl world earning her tons of points and filling her virtual closet with surprise outfits (dedicated parent.... or one the reasons I'm still in therapy after... oh... twenty years, is up to you)... Mr F finally came home from work and we went out to dinner and a movie. We saw The Way (thank you KB for the recommendation!) and highly recommend heading to the theater while it's showing. The gorgeous scenery makes this a theater movie rather than a Netflix one. Very moving and thought provoking. As was the theater attendant who gave us "student" priced tickets... weird... but... thanks. We couldn't tell if he made a mistake and then felt embarrassed to ask us to pay full price, if he was just being nice, or if we looked really spunky that night. Seeing as Mr F is old enough to have college aged children... hell, out-of-college aged children... and I was wearing day 2 yoga pants, I'm thinking it was scenario #1.

P.S. That movie really was very, very good. I hope my mom wants to be cremated.


Baby has decided to be Maid Marian the Disney fox version... which means I need to make both a fox costume and a Maid Marian costume... fun times. Especially when she has chosen florescent orange velour as her fox fabric. I'm committed to following her creative direction... but... the taste level is questionable. And the time and effort going into the world's tackiest fox/woman is kind of hard to rally for.


I had the worst day in the world today (thanks for asking) taking both kids with me to my doctor and then to Kid's yearly eye appointment. The bad news is I am falling apart, the good news is her eyes are doing fantastically. This is the 2nd year in a row where her prescription has changed so little getting new lenses is optional, and no further complications from her drifting, or her cataract have come up. So, despite the 3 freaking hours we spent at the eye doctor (mostly waiting)... causing us to just miss Baby's cute Halloween dance class... and my brain feeling like it was about to splatter all over the room, due to yet another migraine ... the outcome was worth it. So happy that we don't have to have any major health stress (for the kids anyway) these days. It is a real blessing when you don't have to worry about your child's actual life every time you drop them off somewhere! Been there, done that, and it takes a real toll.


I will leave you with this hilarious evening conversation:

"I'm sorry I was grumpy today, I feel like I have someone drilling into my head and someone holding a burning torch to my stomach." I explained.

"You don't know what either of those things would feel like." Kid retorts.

"I feel like I do, I'm in almost unbearable pain." I say.

"Looks like it's bearable to me." Kid returns, sarcastically.


As they say, homeschooling allows you to be your child's main role model.

In some ways that's good... In some ways that's bad.

Sometimes It Does Seem That Way

"Dad got me those because he loves me... are you surprised?" Mrs F says in reference to the roses on the table.

"Yeah... Dad loves me more than he loves you." Baby says.

"Actually... he loves his cars more than he loves me or you!" Baby exclaims.

We've Finally Found The Key To Kid's Future Celibacy

"Are they twins or do they just look exactly the same?!" Kid remarks.

"No, everyone looked like that in the 70s" Mr F explains.

"Oh, God! I'm glad I didn't live back then." Kid exclaims.

"Why, you don't think men that look like shaggy hairy women are attractive?" Mrs F surmises.

"No! I'd totally be single.... and I wouldn't even mind." Kid returns.

Compliments To The Chef

"Fucking Delicious!" Baby exclaims at dinner.

"What?!" Mrs F asks.

"That means I like it." Baby explains.

"It is a real word." She adds a little nervously.

Yes, I know.

12:38 AM

"Why are you so hyper?" Mr F asks.

"Because I need to cut my hair... right now." I say.

"Don't you want to help me cut it?" I ask.

"No." He replies.

"Why not?!" I cry.

"Because... I don't want to be responsible for it looking bad." He explains.

"But I don't care. It can't look worse. I look like I have a Russian fur hat strapped to the back of my neck. Don't you think you can cut a straight line?" I urge.

"It's curly so you can't really mess it up... you won't be able to tell." I beg

"I guess." He grumbles.

"Okay, just come with me and I'll show you... it's going to be easy." I tell him.

15 minutes later.... buh bye mullet

Ye Olde Lost and Found

"Okay, If I go in there and I see it right away, you'll be regretting it." Mrs F warns.

"It's not in here." Kid pleads as she shows Mrs F the room.

"Oh... I forgot... I left it outside." Mrs F remembers.

"Then I shan't be regretting it." Kid returns sassily.

update 10-10-11

Bonus round: