Kid Quote of the Day

Nathan and the kids were playing a game in the living room that I'll just call "trapping a baby koala". Isaiah kept saying he wasn't a baby koala and then Nathan "trapped" him and said, "Well, you fell into a baby koala trap. What does that make you?" and Isaiah said, "That makes me MAD!" Oh my kids make me laugh every day! :)

No More Cooking!

Well, we did it! We cooked for Thanksgiving successfully! I got so many compliments on the bread I made, which I decided to make at the last minute. It was rising as I was driving over to Nathan's sister's house. It was a nice day full of family and FOOD. We have enough leftovers to make it through the week without having to cook at all. We will probably re-purpose some pork though. We made an entire Boston butt to have in addition to the two turkeys the others cooked and we still have about 90 percent of that left. Any ideas for shredded pork? We will probably do some barbecue and Mexican with it later in the week, but right now our stomachs are too sensitive. Nathan and Isaiah woke up throwing up on Wednesday, and today Toby and I have a touch of the tummy troubles (no puking, but you know...) I guess Lydia got off the hook this time. She keeps a cold weeks longer than the boys though, so I guess it's her turn to be well. I'm just glad we're getting it all out of our systems and getting all better before Nathan and I head to Texas in January. We have to be really healthy there so we won't make Ezekiel sick. We are really starting to get amped up about our trip! We can't wait to see Daniel and Kristin and to finally meet baby Zeke. And it will be the first time we have had that much time together without the kids. We love road trips, you know, minus the roads and traffic... At least we are getting better at travelling together. We still get lost all the time, but we are learning not to get mad when that happens. We were driving to a house in Hustonville (about 40 minutes from where we live) ---with a map--- and we still had to stop at the gas station and ask for directions. It's okay. We are directionally challenged, although Nathan would say he's not as bad as me. (I would agree.)

Yes, I got up this morning at 4:30 and was at Wal-Mart at 5:00 to get a few things for Christmas. I only ended up getting a few things because It. Was. Crazy. I had to park across the street. The Wal-Mart parking lot couldn't contain the (crazy) people that were there. I couldn't find most of the things I was looking for, so I got what I could find and hightailed it outta there. I was home by 6:15. I guess it was worth it because we got a pretty nice printer for $30. Whatever, I just don't know if I'll ever do it again.

Also, I have been trying to learn how to read a crochet pattern, and I feel like a complete moron! I thought I knew how to crochet, but apparently I knew only the very basics. I'm learning, though. Today I learned about increasing and decreasing stitches, and I am kind of learning about crocheting in the round. I think before I tackle all the hard projects I am going to try for Christmas, I am going to try crocheting a simple ball. I found a good video on YouTube that gives very clear instruction on making this ball and it would be good practice for increasing, decreasing, and crocheting in the round. Ooh, and we are going to make the presents for my parents this year. I can't decide what to make. We will probably do some pictures of the kids with some crafts by the kids mixed with a few hand made things from Nathan and me. Did you know Nathan is the sewing machine master. I think it's because it's a machine. He can just figure anything out. I can push the pedal and get the top thread on, but he has to fix the bobbin for me every time and if there is ever a problem I just hand it off to him. He's so good.

Now, I need a nap. 4:30 is way to early for me.

I got to go to the store by myself today!

My kids--all 3 of them--slept all night last night until after 7:00 this morning. You can't hear it right now, but the Hallelujah chorus is playing. I hope it wasn't just an amazing fluke. We have started giving Toby a bottle before bed instead of nursing him (again!). It seems to really help with him sleeping longer. We could probably do food instead, but the bottle puts him to sleep in addition to filling him up and that makes me a happy mama. We were just giving him the free samples of formula we had gotten after he was born, but I read the ingredient list on the last one and almost had a panic attack. They were almost all gone SO, I went out and bought some Earth's Best formula, which was the best choice between Wal-Mart and Kroger in Danville. It's got to be better than all the crap in the other ones. If you don't know this about Toby, he LOVES food. All food, all the time. I am dead serious. He would eat every hour, maybe every half hour if I offered. I have been nursing him about 5 times a day, and giving him breakfast, lunch and supper, and maybe something else if other people in the house happen to be eating when he's not. By 9:00 I am SO tired of feeding this child!!! Sleep already! Hopefully the bottle is the trick. The first night we gave him one, I cried, though! I had never seen him take a bottle before because he only takes one when I am not around. I just couldn't believe how big he has gotten.


Stealing something from Teresa's blog--Lydia has our quote of the day. I told her not to throw her baby because she might knock someone out with it, so she said, "I'll just SEND her." as she proceeded to do exactly what she was doing before. A little bit more gently than before but still... I just couldn't do anything but crack up.


After nap time, (what would my life be like without scheduled nap time?!) I have special snuggle time with each one as they wake up. It is just one of my very favorite times of the day. I think it is Isaiah's favorite time of the day too. He cannot get ungrumpy without snuggle time. We had good snuggle time today.


This week I am fixing half of the Arnold thanksgiving meal! I'm so excited to show off my from scratch culinary skills. I am cooking the sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, stuffing, corn casserole, sweet potato pie, a cheesecake--my first one from scratch, and if I have any more time I may think of a couple more things. Nathan's sister Trina is cooking the turkey, macaroni, green beans, and some apple dumplings, and probably more. Nathan's Momaw will bring the yeast rolls (YUM!) and no telling what else. Then we will go on to my grandparent's house for another round of the same foods, only I don't cook anything for that one.


We are trying to keep the thermostats very low in our house this winter. We are doing pretty well! I was worried about the kids at first, but we are finally getting the hang of staying warm without the heat. Last night I made some rice and bean warmers for the bed and our bodies. Odd baby socks make pretty great hand warmers. This is what is going to get us through the winter. Before these we just talked about maybe setting the thermostats back, but now we pile the covers on and keep sweatshirts on and sometimes hats. My perpetually naked children are learning to keep their clothes on. Isaiah actually put his socks on without out my urging the other day. Lydia is harder to keep clothes on, but at least she usually has pants on now. That has been a battle....

Also, I bought a whole bunch of new crochet needles today and some new yarn to make Christmas presents! I had time to briskly go through the craft section today, because I was by myself. Nathan was working from home while the kids were napping. It was kind of fun not to be talked out of that 5th ball of yarn. (I love that my husband is so good at keeping us within our limits at the store, but still, it was nice to not have "direction" today!)

We got Netflix this week since we are getting rid of the tv--haha. It is so bad! We have the movies on demand on our computer. Nathan JUST said as I was typing, "DO you wanna watch a movie?" This is ruining the progress we have made in the "watching" department...Ah, but we love it. I have been on a documentary craze. Business of Being Born (loved it), My Kid Could Paint That (so so), and I have a few more on the queue. We also watched a good one called The Amish: A People of Preservation. We were surprised the Amish allowed all the video, but we really liked that one.

Good times at the Arnold homestead this week. Gotta go watch a movie! :)

Christmas Gift Inspiration

I was checking out a new website I happened upon today on another blog. It is a site for buying and selling homemade crafts! So cool. I saw some really awesome crocheted things that I am thinking about making for the kids for Christmas. They seemed to think the pictures were cool and asked if we could get them, so if I have the skill, they may get homemade gifts this year. They are selling the patterns, which I am thinking about buying, but the doctor kit is only $18 dollars and after buying the pattern for $4 and all the different colors of yarn, I am thinking about just buying the crocheted doctor kit pre-made. It would be cool to have that pattern, though to make gifts.

The ice cream scoops are removable and can be crocheted in any color (obviously).

I think the kids would especially like the doctor's kit. They are starting to get into playing doctor.

I am trying to think of different ways to incorporate more natural materials into the kids toys, and this is one way. We also got them the cutest SIGG water bottles for their stockings this year and we are throwing out all the plastic cups. Fewer cups to wash, better for the kids. :)

In other news, I can't keep Toby out of the toilet. Since all my kids are constantly using the bathroom, Toby just follows them in and proceeds to splash until I catch him. It's usually not too long before I catch him, and he's not yet put the toilet water in his mouth, but GROSS. We have been taking extra precaution to have everyone put the lid down and shut the bathroom door and he still managed to get to the water twice yesterday. Today he got close but I caught him first. He was racing me to the toilet and I won this time.

Lydia is rocking her baby right now and I just want to pick her up and snuggle her! I thought about trying to make Lydia a baby for Christmas...I just might do it.

I have to learn to crochet in the round before I start making all these gifts, so I have been brushing up with YouTube videos. I really think I can do it!

Isaiah's Birthday = Success

Happy Birthday, Isaiah! What a good day we had today and yesterday! Isaiah's party was big-time fun. Bunches of family came to the party and even though 4 of his cousins couldn't make it because of illness there were still plenty of kids to play with. There were balloons and streamers, cake, and lots and lots of presents. I asked Isaiah what his favorite part of his birthday was and he said, "Owen and Jerome. And PRESENTS!" (Jerome is Nathan's sister Trina's husband and Owen and Samantha's dad. I keep Owen and Samantha 3 days a week.) Isaiah chose to have a "Ben 10" party. Ben 10 is this cartoon that he sometimes gets to watch with Nathan. It is about a boy who turns into all different kinds of aliens. So Isaiah got a whole bunch of new Ben 10 figures, some cars and a car case, some Moon Sand (BOO! So messy. But very very fun, too!), some pants, a new set of Spiderman sheets and Spiderman blanket, money, and some new games. That is our new thing these days--We have been playing lots of games. We already had Chutes and Ladders, and Isaiah just got Candy Land, Memory, and Crazy Eights. We played Memory a lot today. Lydia just flips the same two cards over every time and says, "I got a match!" even though it doesn't match... Isaiah gets Memory and Candy Land very well, but HATES to lose. We are trying to teach him to be a good sport, but every time he loses he's furious and every time he wins he gloats. Ah, well, in good time... But the party was great! No meltdowns, Isaiah was very patient and well-behaved, he said his thank yous and gave hugs all around. I can't believe how big he is!

This week is also break-Toby-from-his-middle-of-the-night-feeding week. NOT FUN. He was up for about 2 1/2, maybe 3 hours last night--from 2:30 until the roosters crowed (Literally..until Henry crowed at about 5:00AM)...Maybe tonight will be easier. I am so ready to sleep all night, or at least without a baby in the middle of the bed. The other night I practically slept on the night stand. No more!

Today, Lydia got shut out of the playroom and wanted in. I told Isaiah and Owen to let her in, but after that I heard, "Lydia, say ding-dong!" in hushed voices. So, Lydia said, "Ding-dong." in a sad little voice. Then the response, "Who is it?" Lydia said,"ME!" and then was let into the playroom by the boys. Oh, they make me laugh.

Yard Sale

Snow or shine but not rain. No one wants to buy soggy clothes and toys so no yard sale today.

Yard Sale, Party, Hobby, and Laundry

I think they are prettier in person.

I have been a loser on the blogfront, and I apologize for my blog laziness. This week has been kind of nice. We went bowling last weekend for the first time in around a year. We average about once a year for bowling, but we love it! I actually bowled pretty well--not at all like the time I bowled a 22. For real.

We have been digging through closets and under the bed in preparation for a massive yard sale we are having tomorrow, snow or shine. Anyone need a tv or a lava lamp? We have much to offer! Yes, we are getting rid of the tv. I am actually really glad to get rid of it. We can still watch tv on the computer if we feel the need--and we did last night to watch The Office and ER.

Sunday we are having Isaiah's birthday party. He's going to be 4 on Monday! I can't believe I am going to have a 4 year old--that makes me feel ancient! So in addition to dragging out every last piece of junk in our house for our yard sale, I am also trying to clean like a mad woman for the party on Sunday. And I'll have to cook before then, too. I have so much to do, but I work much better with a deadline. Now that I have a goal, the house should look pretty good by the party.

This week I have been crocheting a pair of fingerless gloves. I didn't know if I even really liked them until I started crocheting them, but I definitely do now. I also love picking up a hobby again. Without tv I am going to need one! I have also read about 4 chapters of my new book about keeping house. I really like it, but am taking a mini break from it until my house is clean enough to implement her strategies for KEEPING house. She doesn't have any tips for bringing a house out of the depths... But a tip I got from Nathan (not from my book) has really worked for me this week. I have been struggling with keeping the laundry even moderately kept up--the only form of clean laundry being jumbled basket on top of basket of clean clothes waiting to be folded in the living room. Literally for weeks. So, Nathan suggested I try folding clothes straight out of the dryer on top of the washing machine. I was very resistant at first, but it really does work! I usually have just enough room to fold one load and then I HAVE to put them away because I need to get the next load out of the washing machine and into the dryer. The result is approximately 8 loads of clothes not only folded, but put away where they belong! Last night I thought I would put just one load in a basket and fold them while watching the office. I folded about 4 baby shirts then quit and that basket still sits jumbled in my living room floor along with another basket from 2 weeks ago. SO, I have learned that the folding-on-top-of-the-washer system works way better than the leaving-in-baskets-on-the-floor system.

Routine

What a long, routine week. We did the same old stuff all week long. Laundry, dishes, playing, discipline, eating, sleeping (a little....Toby is teething.). I'm glad the weekend is here just to shake up the routine a little bit. We did at least go to my parent's for supper last night. That was fun!

We ordered new books this week! I can't wait until they get here! I chose Home Comforts, a book about the lost art of keeping house. Just what I need! We also ordered The Foxfire Book, the first in a series of many, and Nathan chose Ideas Have Consequences. Hooray! I can finally take a break from The Encyclopedia of Country Living (which I will probably never finish--who needs to? It is the ultimate homesteading resource! If I ever need to look something up, but don't have access to the internet I check that book and so far I have found what I wanted to know every time. Of course most everything I was looking up was related to simple living.)

We changed our phone/internet/tv plan last month because our bill just kept getting higher and higher. Last month it was $114! For the amount we use it that is just outrageous! So we switched to the "greenstreak" with windstream, where we pay less for higher speed internet, we don't pay for phone at all and we get to keep our phone number. People can call us and it's free, and we can call 800 numbers and 911 for free. We have to pay 10 cents a minute for local calls if we make them and we can't make long distance or collect calls at all, but we just use our cell phones and most of the time people call us back. And we also (finally!) got rid of our dish. We had it down to a $10 a month plan (which was actually $15 a month), but we never watched it. We mailed back our receiver and remotes and something Nathan had to get off our dish on the roof and now we're free! No more dish! They cannot talk me into more tv again! So all this to say, our bill was only $16 this month! It will be around $35 next month, but we had prepaid for the dish service and didn't use it so we got a credit! An extra $100 this month!

Wow, my blog is boring today. This has been my life this week, and I love it!

Heels!

I made it through a wedding in 3 inch heels! NO! I just measured--4 inch heels!!!I am actually surprised that I made it. I had to be at the church at 1:30 to take a bunch of pictures. The wedding didn't start until 4:30. So I had the shoes on and off a lot before the actual wedding. You know, take a picture, take the shoes off, put them back on, take another picture.... But at 4:30 it was game time. I walked down the aisle like I had been walking in giant heels all my life. Then I stood there, very painfully for around 30 minutes. It was a short, beautiful ceremony and the only "extra" thing they did was light a unity candle while a friend sang a short (and beautiful) song. Every time there was a prayer you could see all seven bridesmaids shifting, just trying to get some feeling back in their toes before we had to walk out. I waited patiently for my turn to be ushered out of the church and I almost didn't make it. The groomsman laughed all the way up the aisle because I was wobbling the whole way! My feet were numb, but still in pain if you know what I mean. The very second I got through the door the shoes came off and the blood came rushing back to my toes. It took about 15 minutes to feel them completely again, but I guess it was worth it:) My friend's wedding was beautiful and I think it turned out just the way she wanted. Now, I'm trying to figure out what to do with those shoes....should I burn them? I don't think that's harsh enough!