A FAN

Anyone who really knows me, knows I'm a hockey nut. I'm a fan of the game as well as a fan of the Pittsburgh Penguins. I believe a fan follows their team through thick and thin and accepts when heir team struggles and still proudly wears their team's apparrel. Then there are fans (I'm related to one) who come out of the woodwork when the playoffs roll around and their team is making a run for the championship. They couldn't name the coach of the team or name players that were traded during the season, etc. but gladly jump on the coat tails of the team.

Also being a fan means accepting defeat graciously. Maybe having watched my child play sports for over 10 years make you realize that calls get screwed up, any team can beat any team on any given day -- that's why you play 9 innings, 3 periods, 4 quarters. It's not over til it's over. AND as important as skill is, luck has more to do with winning then some people would care to admit. A lucky bounce this way or that, a rebound in the right direction, etc. may make the difference in a game.

I have a handful of very close friends who like me are Penguins faithful, through thick and thin wear our Pens gear, display our team on our vehicles, even when earlier this season things looked grim and there was a coaching change. It's a long season and while I certainly didn't get to see as many games as I would have liked, I often followed the games online.

After all these years I've learned it's best to do my talking when the game is OVER and not before, and not to whine, which makes this victory so much sweeter. I know I have enjoyed my team as a gracious fan.

So with that said, Congratulations to the Pittsburgh Penguins, I am so very proud to be a fan.

When it rains it pours!!

It's been an eventful week.   Apparently we wanted to keep with the dreary weather with our dreary events.   I would like to see the sun for more than an hour or two, maybe today, before the next rain system comes through.  But on the bright side, the "unsettled" weather is supposed to be gone for Mother's day and next week looks brighter.

On Saturday we were rearended.  It was quite a big hit, the guy must have totally been not paying attention.  We were on our way to Zac's baseball game and it was a field we had never been too before, so we weren't driving all that fast as we were looking for a road (out in the boonies where the GPS didn't work).  We saw the road and Chuck stopped to turn left . . . lots of oncoming traffic.  We both looked behind because it was a quicker stop, but the car was about 2 blocks behind us, so neither of us continued to watch him and waited to make the left.   All of a sudden we heard screaching, in that split second I was looking around thinking who is that? never thinking it was the guy behind us.  And then BAM!!   Of course, as soon as it was done I was screaming, are the kids ok, are the kids ok?  Jaxon cried for about 20 seconds as I think he was startled out of a doze.  Zac proudly announced that it was the "THIRD" accident he's been in (none were all fault).  Zac was closest to impact as he was in the third row of the van, but he was fine and quickly crawled out.  The guy did try to get around us, but didn't quite make it, so our major damage is the back passenger side of the van and his front driver side was a mess.  He screwed up his axle and the car was not drivable.

The most important thing, of course, is that we are all fine.  Zac's neck was sore a bit the next day, but we haven't heard any complaints since.  And I've learned not to ask, if it bothers him he'll say something, if I say something it just reminds him to get some sympathy! ;)

We will be replacing two car seats and will need a rental for about a week (the adjuster figured we'd be out of the van for at least that long).  Since fitting two car seats and a teenager in the back of Chuck's car would not be a pretty sight, we will have to get a rental.  Which is all covered by insurance.

Then Sunday, Jaxon was especially cranky.  He still tried to smile and be happy, but he just would cry all of a sudden.  No fever, BUT an occasional tug on the ear.  So since he wasn't sleeping well either, I decided on a Monday morning pediatrician visit.  As all you moms know, calling the peds on a Monday morning is so much fun, NOT.  

So Monday morning rolls around and I'm greeted by a smiling infant AND a feverish, snotty toddler, who was on her way to losing her voice.  Normally, I wouldn't have taken Cassidy to the ped because she gets a cold like this every 6 months or so, but since I was already going I made an appt for both.  I was only on hold about ten minutes and had an appt for 9:40.  Chuck had emailed work to say he was going to work from home, so he could help me with the kids and get the van stuff squared away.  So we both went to the docs.  Cassidy was quickly confirmed as a cold and Jaxon was confirmed with a double ear infection and prescribed bubble gum medicine.

So a couple days later everyone is on the mend.  Cassidy did lose her voice, but it's back in full force and Jaxon slept through the night last night and is back to normal.  

Then yesterday when Zac came home from school he said his cell phone wasn't working (the screen would keep disappearing).  Well it's only a couple months old and still under warranty, so I told him to get his butt outside and help dad with cutting the grass and we would probably have time to run to the AT&T store before his 8 o'clock game.   So we head to the AT&T store, I stayed in the car with the munchkins for a while, until Jax was ready to get out.  Then I ventured in with both kids.  Luckily, things were moving quickly when I went in.  They replaced Zac's phone without much fuss and we headed back to the van . . . buckled everyone in . . . and then CLICK CLICK CLICK -- the battery was dead. UGH!!!    The lights and radio came on, so we knew it just needed a jump, but we didn't have cables.   Now this wasn't the end of the world because across the street was an auto store, but we only needed a jump.  Thankfully, our bestest friends were home and they only live about 5 minutes from where we were and Jim was there before we knew it giving us a jump.   This is the 3rd or 4th time we've needed a jump in the last couple years (mostly due to Zac leaving something on in the van after we vacate it!) so Chuck is going for a new battery later today.   We grabbed some Taco Bell and headed home and got Zac to his game on time -- HOWEVER, he was a whiney brat about it, because he likes to get there earlier than the coach asks so he can throw with one of his friends and proceeded to whine about it for the whole 2 minutes it takes to get to the field.  I was in no mood and told him to stuff it because our household no longer only revolves around him!!    I admit it did when he was the only one for 13 years, but gimme a break!

So after dropping him off I run to my mom's to let her pooch out because they are on vacation and head home to make myself presentable because I'm working the concession stand.  Kiss everyone goodnight and am excited that I get to miss out of bedtime duties for the first time in . . . FOREVER?  no not really but feels like it.      I get to the field with Zac's hat, because Mr. Whiner who was complaining I didn't get him there earlier enough forgot his hat.  And as I'm watching them warmup I feel PLOP PLOP PLOP . . . not a light drizzle, but BIG drops.  Oh joy.  At least I'd be in the stand if it rains.   Suffice to say, at 7:55 it decides to POUR.  With all the rain we've had recently it didn't take long for our field to look like a big old mud puddle. 

After a 15 minute discussion with the umps (at least I was smart enough to grab an umbrella, since the parking lot is quite a distance) it was decided no game.  So we headed home (first had to pick up my mom's dog cause he spends the night with Zac) and headed home.  Everyone was asleep; Cassidy in her crib and Jaxon on Chuck's shoulder.  Of course, about 90 minutes later our little fusspot woke up crying and didn't put himself back to sleep, so 15 minutes on my shoulder sent him off to dreamland and HE SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT!!  So I'm taking that as a sign that things are going to be getting brighter.

And with that said, the sun has come out . . . even if it's just for the day.

Lil bit of this and that

So here are some pictures of the "coloring of the eggs".   Things went pretty well, Cassidy didn't want to share the colors (no surprise there) and she certainly didn't understand the concept of being gentle with the eggs, so there are several cracked color eggs in the box.   We will probably give it another go on Friday with another half dozen or so eggs.   Zac loves hard-boiled eggs, so there's no worry about getting sick of egg salad here.

On to other tidbits.  Zac was actually ASKING for a haircut.  I always promised myself that I would never whine about my kid getting a haircut.  As long as he washes it on a regular basis and runs a brush through it, I swore I'd never be one of those parents who makes their kids get a haircut.  So far I've been pretty good about it.  So now that baseball started and he put a baseball hat on and got these cute little flippys under the hat, he has been bugging for a short haircut.  Well if you can see above, it's not all that short, but he's happy with it, and that's fine with me.  He had a gentleman cut his hair this time and gave him an edgier cut, so for now, he's content.  Of course, I also noticed at dinner last night that he's sporting a hint of a mustache.  Since he's so fair skinned and has blonde hair it isn't extremely noticeable, but it's there.

And since several of my mommy friends have made "poop" posts over the last month or so I thought I'd have to share one.  I don't think I ever mentioned that Cassidy has been diagnosed with a type of chronic diarrhea.  Now it's not as bad as it sounds, it has to do with the fact that her movements are never solid, which always makes for a very messy cleanup.  Luckily, she only goes every other day (sometimes even a bit longer) but when she does go, break out the wipes!   So I am looking forward to when she gets a bit more interested potty training.  For now she'll sit on the potty with the diaper, she'll tell me right after she poops with a loud "I'm STINKY!"  

This morning while cleaning up her toxic waste, it was so delightful to hear Jaxon behind me, grunting and pushing . . . . . Jaxon is a dainty pooper LOL.  He prefers to leave me "little presents" several times a day.  

Hope everyone has a wonderful Easter Weekend.

Da Easter Bunny!

Here is the picture from the Easter Bunny visit.  If you notice Cassidy is not looking especially thrilled.   Luckily, once again her big brother came to her rescue and sat with her.  Notice the hand on her face.  This is her "if I put my hand here, you can't see me" gesture.  She does this at home when she doesn't want her diaper changed, or when someone comes over and she doesn't want to talk to them, this is her way to "hide".

Jaxon was oblivious to da bunny and even tho Zac isn't smiling, he offered to be in the picture of his own free will because he knows teenage girls eat up these pics with him and his little brother and sister.  He took a wallet picture and posted it on his facebook page. . . he is way "smoother" than his father ever was.

If you think babies are expensive . . .

She may look petrified, but she LOVES this slide . . . there's a little bump and she goes airborne and flies down this slide.

Daddy and Jax take a slower side slide than little miss daredevil.

When I look back to when Zac joined the family, I really don't see how he added that big of an expense to our way of living.  Yes, I became a SAHM and lost my income, but our lifestyle changed immensely.   We would eat out 5 times a week, and that didn't include the 5 or 6 buck lunches we'd buy at the work cafeterias every day.  We bowled in a couple leagues, we went to movies regularly, we went out dancing/drinking at least once if not twice a week.   Now I never was into clothes or fashion, but I did need to maintain a work wardrobe, etc.   So most of those activities diminished. And even tho I formula fed (not my choice, but it is what it is . . . or was) and used disposables, I guess I didn't see it as a huge monthly expense.

Now, these with these two little peanuts I realize that babies are INEXPENSIVE!!  I can feed Jaxon for less than $3 a day and it costs about a $1 a day to diaper both kids.  Jax eats about $1.50 of formula a day and I'd guess about a $1.50 in yogurt, cereal and baby food.   Cassidy probably costs about $5 a day to feed.  Most of their toys are presents or I found at yard sales or Craigslist.  Not so easy to find an almost new iPod touch at a bargain basement price at a yard sale ;)

I don't get past NOON to feed Zac for $3 . . . every morning starts with a huge bowl of cereal and or a couple poptarts and a glass of milk . . . his school lunch is $2 and then there's the 10 a.m. break he gets from class and he goes to the store and gets a bag of Jalapeno kettle chips every day  . . . I however, do not fund his snack, that comes from his money he earns by doing various chores.   We are extremely lucky because he probably eats more like $5 in lunch, but my SIL is a cashier in the lunch line and no matter how much stuff my kid piles on his tray she charges him for the basic lunch.  I'm sure we'll have huge sticker shock next year and he'll have to reel in his eating habits next year when he will have lunch at his home school (he eats lunch at the Tech school this year).

He comes home from school and heads straight to the pantry for a snack.  Now, I remember why my parents always hid goodies, if you want to actually eat some of those chocolate covered pretzels you bought or hershey kisses or trail mix or cookies, you better hide them because they will vanish!  You will open the pantry 4 days later and find ONE item left in whatever container you look in, because, Zac will never eat the LAST goodie.  Dinner he eats as much as me or Chuck and of course there's that evening snack finished off with a HUGE glass of milk.  

I can find second hand clothes for 25 cents for the peanuts, consignment shops, yard sales, and handme downs outfit the peanuts 90% of the time.  One pair of jeans for Zac is easily $20 and sneaks are about $25, and I can be thankful that he doesn't care that his clothes doesn't come from Hollister (SERIOUSLY a joke, IMO) or Kmart.  I do get his jeans at Old Navy when they have a sale and Aerospastle has wonderful sales.  Even tho we don't buy expensive items for him, his wardrobe, which is considerably smaller, than the peanuts probably costs twice as much as their wardrobes put together.

Then there are the miscellaneous activities that pop up:  $25 for a field trip, plus money for lunch, $100 to sign up for baseball, $35-40 for baseball cleets, $12 for baseball socks, $10 to repair a catcher's glove because a new one would cost $90.  You try and convince him he doesn't need a new baseball bat (easily at least $100) and to use the one he has and use team bats, going to the movies with friends; hanging out at the hockey rink/baseball games (can I have money for a drink/snack?).

I won't go into how much hockey costs, because that is a very expensive sport that many do not participate in, so that wouldn't be fair to compare that to the peanuts . . . but all those extracurricular activities cost money, there are dues for girl scouts/boy scouts; there are fees for karate/dance/gymnastics . . . and some have quite the price tag.

So if you think babies are expensive . . . JUST WAIT!!   

An early trip to the "Zoo"

I have zoo in quotation marks because it's not really a zoo, I will never think of it as a zoo.  It was called a game preserve for the better part of my 41 years, so I have a hard time thinking of it as anything other than that.  It is very small, with a limited assortment of animals, that can be traversed leisurely in about 60-90 minutes.

When Zac was little we got a season pass every year and we would go at least once a week, it was wonderful, we knew all the animals names from talking to staff, we could identify which arctic wolf was which and knew their favorite hiding spots, we saw a llama being born, etc.

So now that we have two little munchkins I am glad to say we will be frequenting our little game preserve again.  This is wonderful because earlier this year there was a debate from the county that it would be cheaper to close it.  Which would have been a huge bummer.

I wish I was a more adventurous mom when it comes to driving, I'm a country bumpkin who prefers backroads to highways.  I wish I would happily hop on the turnpike and travel 90 minutes to get to "The First Zoo in the USA" in Philly, but truth be told I am a complete wimp in heavy traffic ESPECIALLY when carrying such precious cargo as my children.

Anyway, we had a pretty warm day for early March and headed off to the game preserve.  We were anxious to see the new animal exhibit!  PENGUINS, we now have penguins, JACKASS penguins to be exact.  And they did not disappoint.  Unlike many of the animals, they didn't hide in their cave, hang back from the visitors.  No sirree, these little guys were happy to swim and stand as close as the fence would allow.

Over the years of visiting the zoo, we have learned that the camels enjoy eating seed pods from the trees.  Since half the pods land outside their enclosure we always are happy to treat them to the ones they can't get on their own.

When I was a toddler, my parents and grandparents have pictures of me feeding the animals in the petting zoo.  Of course, in the day when parents weren't neurotic about a llama slobbering on their child or suing the zoo  a deer nipping.  So there are wonderful pictures of me feeding deer, llamas, sheep and goats. When Zac was little it had dwindled a couple llamas and goats.

And now, sadly, they just have goats.  One of my most cherished pics of Zac is him sitting next to a baby llama and hugging his neck. 

 

Stupid people ruin it for everyone, if you are worried your poor little angel 

might get nipped or nudged or whatever, stay out!!

Cassidy and the Jackass Penguins!

This pic is too sweet for words.