I just wanted to let everyone know that my interview on Work At Home Moms Talk Radio is up and ready today. It will be there for a week, (and then it will be added to the archives for 90 days) so when you get a chance head on over and listen!

Well, I was exceptionally daring tonight and hauled the three boys off to the grocery store all by myself! Matt needed a bit of quiet time to finish up his sermon for tomorrow. I was planning on hitting two stores, (to take advantage of the good sales) but I didn’t realize they close at 8:00 p.m. (I haven’t gotten quite used to the small town living yet…) Dane is quite the little character lately. First off he refuses to sit in the cart anymore. Second, he insists he must bring his blanket EVERYWHERE he goes. (The one I mentioned the other day that he is all the sudden very attached to.) Things went fairly well minus the near crash of several alcholic beverages (and the discussion that followed with Ryan on what alcohol is), and then as I was paying Dane decided it would be a great time to run for it. Once they were all safely strapped back down into the car we made a trip through the Dairy Queen drive through for the special treats I had bribed them with if they were good. I can’t say that I want to go every time all by myself and three boys, but we survived.

Our hot sunny weather is back after a week of rain. Matt actually had to mow the grass this week as it is growing again. (YEA! I like green grass) Everything definitely needed all that rain, and I am guessing now with a week of sun the crops are going to be very happy.

Matt has decided that he will go to MN in August for a week of classes that are being offered. Another guy from church is going with him. They’re going to stay at Matt’s good friend Ryan’s house. I’m sure he’ll have a great time, but he will be gone for my 30th Birthday! Hopefully I dont’ have too big of a breakdown… LOL I’m sure I’ll be fine.

Tonight Matt ran over to church for a minute and called me out to see a big ol’ toad sitting right by the church enterance door. Too bad Ryan was already in bed, he would have loved to see that. He was timid and let Matt pet him with his shoe. He was ugly with lots of warts – ICK! We caught a Praying Mantis for the boys today too. I found it, but I made Matt catch it. They had a cute little fizzy caterpillar in their bug cage the other day, but unfortunately he got left out in the sun to bake and didn’t make it. Our kitty is still preggo. She is quite the lazy thing now. Matt tried to convince her to come out of the shop this afternoon because it was cooler outside then it was in there (if you can imagine that… – it was hot everywhere if you ask me!) . She had not interest. She doesn’t climb as high anymore either. She is sticking down low. I would think any day now, but I was thinking that awhile ago, so who knows. We’re taking a poll. I say 4 kittens, Matt says 5 and the boys say 6.

Well, I am off to put the rest of the groceries away, flip the laundry, start the dishwasher, and get ready for bed. We’ll have our house full tomorrow evening with a new Family Bible Study that we are starting. Should be fun!

C-

I thought this would be fun to share. I’m sure he’ll want to add more before the big day comes! (August 23rd)

- Hardware for Gameboy (I have no idea what he is talking about…)
- GameBoy Games
- Green Socks
- NIKE Clothes and socks
- CD Walkman
- Toy Cash Register with Fake Money
- Shirts & Pants – Size 7
- A Big Load Of Paper
- All the Dr. Seuss Books – except the ones I already have
- Books I Can Read All by myself
- Computer Games – Like Learning Ones That I could share with Christian
- Crayon Bank Like Christian’s
- Something Remote Controlled
- Trampoline

Is it really Thursday already? Ho Hum, I have to have the house clean by Sunday when we start our new family Bible Study. Although Matt tonight took one look at the kitchen and said “HMMM Maybe we need a mid-week Bible Study too!”. What can I say? It’s so much more fun to play than work… Guess I better get on that tomorrow.

The boys were busy today making musical instruments with boxes, sticks, paper plates and rocks. Then Ryan took up Sudoku today (if you don’t know what it is, you’ll have to read one of my past blog entries). He does the 4×4 puzzles and I promised him I would have some more printed off by morning.

I started wading through the bins of clothes today too – trying to figure out what will fit for fall. I plan to do most of our back to school clothes shopping online. It is just so much easier that way and I generally end up with some pretty good bargains too.

We had a quick trip to town this afternoon – Ran to the cleaners, Wal-Mart and then dinner at KFC. When we got home I recorded a commercial for Natural Moms Talk Radio and then did an interview to air next Monday on WAHM Talk Radio.

Tonight we watched the movie White Squall. It was based on a true story, so it was good, but a little sad.

On a final note, I found this video on another Blog and thought it was really Cute. Mr. Mom ENJOY!

LOTS of rain today. Our grass is actually starting to look green again. It was supposed to rain 1-2 inches today and I’m pretty sure we got that. I think it made us all crabby and tired to be stuck in the house on a gray rainy day though. The kids did sneak out a couple times between showers, but not for long and everything was wet and muddy.

Matt was gone most of the day visiting. He made a couple visits to shut-ins. Then he had a member in the hospital an hour away and he called to make sure he was still there and they said they couldn’t tell him because of the privacy laws…. So he drove all the way there and he wasn’t there. The hospital called us yesterday to tell us he was there and even gave us his room number, but today they can’t tell us anything. Lovely. I think it was the pastoral care office that called so next time he should probably ask for that office when he calls to check on things…

Yesterday we went to the city for some shopping Did the Sam’s Club thing, picked up the drawers for under our futon that were FINALLY in, and I even got to do some clothes shopping! Matt kept the boys entertained while I went to Old Navy, J.Jill, and Coldwater Creek all by myself. I picked out a few new skirts for church. I was getting tired of wearing the same things to church and out here everyone seems to dress up for church a bit more than I am used to. Both Christian and Dane had to get new shoes as well. Dane was a full size bigger and Christian half a size.

Dane is saying more and more words every day. Today he said “Christian”. He also has all of the sudden become very attached to one specific blanket. I changed his sheets and pulled a different blanket out of the closet and now he has to have it with him at all times. It is a homemade flannel one the MOPS Group gave me when he was born. It is Americana theme, so it matches with the house well when he leaves it sitting around. LOL I couldn’t find it at nap time so I tried to give him a different flannel one and that wasn’t going to do. I finally did find it thankfully.

Ryan has been busy creating his birthday list. I will post that when it is done. I have left a few things off, such as the laptop he wanted. LOL I don’t think we’re quite ready for that!

Christian had a monumental experience last night. He got up around midnight, went to the bathroom all by himself, and hopped back into bed! YEA! He usually cries until we go in, ask if he has to go, and walk him in. He is growing up! He also all of the sudden counted to six today all by himself. I have been trying to teach him to count forever, and he never has had interest. Then today we asked him how many kittens he thought our kitty was going to have and he says “1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6″. Matt and I both looked at each other and said “Did you know he could do that?” LOL Now if I can just convince him to write more than “C h” on his name we will be set!

Speaking of our kitty – yup, she is still pregnant and she’s HUGE. Every day she looks like she has doubled in size. She can hardly make it up onto my lap anymore. I’m thinking those babies have to be born fairly soon. I’ll keep you posted!

C-

Guess what word Dane learned today? Yup, the dreaded “Why?”. It started with me saying “Dane we need to clean up your toys.” In which he answered the infamous “Why?”. I went on to explain so I don’t trip over them and his response…. A defiant “NO!”. Ahhhh, the joys of toddlers.

Matt went to the Bush Race (You know – race cars) today in Joliet, IL. (I think that’s where it was anyway…) He left at 5:45 a.m. and got home around 9:30 p.m. 10 people from church went. It sounds like he had a great time. He’s already plopped into bed. He has to be able to preach in the morning.

The kids have been collecting “trash” items to make things with the last couple days – empty pop cans, yogurt cups, dixie cups, wrappers, toilet paper rolls, popcycle sticks etc. Today they made “fireworks”. I tried to light one for them out in the dirt, but I couldn’t convince it to light. Our lighter was out of fluid, so I was stuck with matches and wind….. I guess Dad will have to work on that one tomorrow. They are extremely pround of their creations.

I built the kitty a “nest” in the shop in a big rubbermaid bin with lots of towels. I am hoping she will take to it and have her babies in there, so we can actually keep track of them. I am thinking she will be in labor sometime within a week or so. She is really getting plump. I locked her in the shop tonight in hopes that she will get comfortable in there. I’m actually looking forward to having kittens.

Well, not too much else happening around here. I had the boys all day since Matt was gone. Inbetween our play time we hauled the piles of laundry downstairs and they helped me fold too. They were great little helpers.

C-

It was a beautiful day – 86 degrees, not windy, not humid – perfect. Here are the kids being goofy before we went outside to play.

Then we headed outside for some fun in the sun.
Here they are running through the sprinkler.

The Promised Swingset Pictures
The first one is a view from our deck.

Pool

Dane On the Go