GROUND BEEF...YUCK

My husband has been steadily increasing in his dislike for ground beef. He went from tolerating it...eating it only if it is overly flavored, like meatloaf...to banning it from the house. The problem was that I had about 20 lbs in the freezer. There is no way I would use all that before it goes bad, if he won't eat it.

So I canned it. Yep, I felt very domestic. I looked up a how-to video on You tube and I believe it turned out edible. It was the first time using a pressure canner by myself. I did not realize and do not understand why ground beef that is cooked before it is canned, has to be in the pressure cooker for another 75 minutes. It was a lot more work than I thought but I did it. The hardest part was keeping the kids out of the kitchen all day.

Shane says that he might eat it if he is starving and it is an emergency. By the way, Shane is not picky. This is one of the few things that he has put his foot down.

POTTY

Jackson and Landon think it is cool to pretend to use the potty. Jackson is the most persistent about it. About 3-4 times/day he asks to go "pee pees". I sit him on the toilet, he rips off a tiny piece of toilet paper, throws it in and says "all done".

Sometimes I press on his lower belly so that he might get the urge and go pee. Instead he now presses on his stomach a few times before saying, "all done".

Neither of them have actually been successful, but they are having fun pretending.

COSTUMES

My plan for Halloween costumes was going to be very low key. I wanted Brenna to be a princess because she already has a dress and accessories from her last birthday. The brothers were just going to borrow from Ashley's toy chest (policeman, cowboy, knight, builder...they have an abundance). But...I made a mistake. I got a flyer in the mail full of costumes and looked through it with Brenna. She caught sight of a Jessie costume, from Toy Story, and nearly died with excitement.

She has been talking about it for a few weeks...everyday...every minute. I try to distract her by telling her how cool it would be to be a princess...but with no avail. She has told everyone that she is going to be Jessie and Landon and Jackson will be Buzz Lightyear and Woody.

Last year they were little Bo Peep and her sheep but I was not planning on making them a theme every year. I still haven't decided if I will give in.

SNUGGLE

A friend at work who has twins told me that her 8-year-old boys are different from the other kids because they are always sitting close to each other...almost on each others laps at times. Ever since She said that, I have noticed that the brothers do that too. If they are laying down to watch a movie their heads are touching. If they are sitting, they are right next to each other. They are buddies.

TWINS

A friend told me on Sunday that she just found out that her 5th child will have a twin. It is not a good idea to ask me what it is like to have twins when I have not slept for 30 hours. I probably terrified her...but the truth is...I LOVE it.

Part of the reason that I think that I like being pregnant is because you get a lot of attention and always have something to talk about. Twins provides the same bonuses. I often use it to build re pore with my patients. If they are not warming up to me, I pull out pictures of my twins and soon they are smiling laughing and telling me about their loved ones.

It is hard when they are sick at the same time. It is hard when they are both climbing out of cribs. It is tough being a whale when you are pregnant. It is AWFUL being on bed rest. It is tough for the men who have to help out because you cannot do it alone...no matter how super mom you are. It is tough feeling like you cannot go anywhere or find a babysitter to watch two babies.


It has not been horrible to have twins. In some ways it has been easier. They always have each other instead of needing mamas attention every minute. You get really buff from carrying them around. You get thin from breast feeding and chasing them around. You have to babies smiling at you and saying cute things. You learn to love to play, play, play. People always step into help, you will not be alone.

THE MARKET SUCKS

Sorry about the strong language. Our hopes for a moderate hit on our house has turned into a nightmare. What we were offered was soo low, we are more willing to foreclose then spend a lifetime paying off a house we no longer own. I prepared for emergencies by having a healthy savings account, paying off student loans fast, and paying out most bills for 6 months. We never wanted to be in need, God willing, but now it looks like we might consider joining the masses and ruining our credit, unless someone pays our asking price which is already making us fork out 10's of thousands of dollars.

WITHIN EYES/EARS VIEW

There was a brief period of time that I felt I could lock myself in my room for a phone conversation or a shower. Those days have passed.

Last week I had a fifteen minute conversation with my brother, only to come out of my hiding place and find...pen marks all over the back of my bedroom door...a shattered glass cup on the living room floor...and a baby splashing in the kitchen sink.

Then...as if I did not learn my lesson. My sister called, this time I stayed in view of the children but was not focusing on them. The result was not pretty.

I cannot take my attention off of them now-a-days.

I LOVE NURSING

Got you there!!! No I am not pregnant or nursing...I love my job as a nurse. I think that it is the EXACT job for me. I love taking care of new patients every night. Each has a new story and new life. At work they call me a bumble bee, always buzzing around. Most nights I am BUSY, but when I am not I am butting in and helping other nurses. I am a life-saver, a house-keeper, and a waitress...and yet I LOVE it.

The pay is great. The hours are doable. The coworkers are my friends and a social outlet that needs to be fulfilled a few times a week. I love it...but I love being at home too. As soon as Shane gets the word, I will decrease to 4 nights per month...but I am selfish and cannot give it up completely.

MY HUSBAND ROCKS!!!

I feel the need to write it. My husband ROCKS!!! I like to tease him in my blog but the truth is...He is amazing.

SIPPY CUPS

Landon is SOOO particular about his sippy cup.

For the first year and a half he drank out of a bottle because I was still pumping. When I tried to transition to a sippy cup it was a battle. There were tears and throwing of sippy cups. I taught him how to love the new one by leaving in his bed full of water (hence the buck teeth). When I was not looking he would try it. Finally he gave in and the bottles were gone. But he would only drink out of the nuby sippy cups with the soft spout.

The brothers starting chewing through the soft spouts. We transitioned to the cheap sippy cups that you see everywhere. They quickly learned it was fun to chew on those and squish the nippy shut.

I bought hard spouted sippy cups. Landon would not have it. I had to go through the whole battle again. He did eventually give in. I have 4 of those now and threw all the other ones away.

Yet the battle with Landon continues. Since they are all the same, I thought it would be easy...but Landon has decided that the yellow one is his and I get an earful if I accidentally hand him the wrong one.

This is one silly kid.