Pumpkin Carving

Last night Tanner and I carved our pumpkins, with little help from Colter. It took all evening but we had a good time.

Yeah, I know I'm looking hot. Please do not stalk me now. Gut buster there. I will post more after this evening.

Happy Halloween Everyone!

A Beautiful Fall Morning

My tumor

Meet Chopper. She is a dramatic diva, tap dancing princess, food addict, heating pad, vacuum cleaner, doorbell, furniture critic and a tumor. She has a huge personality which seems to fit well with her large build. Just look at her. She is so huge, she takes up one whole corner of the couch cushion. The fact that she is 1/2 pomeranian &1/2 minuter pincher must be the reason she is so large. At least that is what you would believe if you had to sleep with her. Did I mention she is also a bed hog? You would think that since I almost always have the bed to myself, I could sleep in the middle and roll all over. Not so. In my queen bed, Diva chopper allows me to have about 10 inches of mattress. The rest is hers. I suppose if I ever become as large as her, I will just have to get another bed.

If you happen to be staying over, you may also want to bring an extra blanket. She likes to help you use HERS, but even a queen size comforter will not be enough for her. You may wake up in the night half uncovered because she has mastered the tuck-n-roll move. You should also be ready to retire for the night before she does. If not, you might have to sleep on the floor, because she moves for no one.

Annoying? Yes. Worth never having pets over? NO WAY!! Funny how pets are such stinkers, but some of us couldn't live with out them. Kind of like husbands. KIDDING!!

Here is to everyone having a fun loving friday and a wonderful weekend!

I have been wanting to post some pictures, but the batteries went dead in my camera. The pictures I wanted to post were on the internal memory and not the memory card. Hopefully, tomorrow I will remember to get batteries! So until then, I leave you with this........

Tomorrow is my last night shift! Woo-hoo!

Have a super day folks!

Sick boy

I have a sick little boy on my hands. Colter came down with a cold sunday. Thankfully, he still seems to be jolly enough, so I am taking that as a good sign. He barely slept Sunday night, and was not doing so well Monday night. I could tell he was bushed, and I felt so bad for him. I had Al high tail to the store before closing time, to pick up a vaporizer. I had no idea that those things were such miracle workers. I am so glad we decided to try it. He managed to get a full night sleep and hopefully is on his way to feeling much better.

I don't think I will ever get over being amazed by the little things Colter does. He has recently started to shake his head no when I tell him no. It is so stinking cute, I can hardly stand it. Cute for now, anyhow. I keep wondering if he is trying to say things, or if I am just thinking he is. I probably will not be sure until it is blatantly obvious. You know, like he smacks me in the face and says "Mom, I am talking to you." I could swear he is trying to say the dog's names. He has also started to wave bye bye more. He eats things that shock the heck out of me, like supreme pizza. Cut into small pieces of course. I hope that means he will not be a picky eater.

Colter recently discovered the tattoo on my back. When ever I lay on the floor with him, he has to lift up my shirt and point to it. He has even tried to taste it. He is my kid, what do you expect? The other day, I think he was trying to tickle me. He pulled up my shirt, touched my back, and then looked at me and laughed. Okay. So may be he was laughing at my roll, but I have to tell myself something.

Everyday, he seems to do something new. I look forward to each and every day. How could life get any better than this? What more could I ask for?

Enjoy your Wednesday!

I love the Dr!

Yesterday was my annual Dr appointment. I am a lucky gal, I know. I sped all the way down to Sioux Falls, because I just couldn't wait to get in there to see my doc and have her see me. ***Sarcasm detected*** I would have much rather taken a cheese grater to my arm, but I couldn't find it. Its still in a box somewhere. :O) Anyhow, I knew I had to go if I wanted my drugs refilled. So I tried to be as enthusiastic as I could be.

Most of you will be happy to know that my Dr decided to keep me on my "crazy pills." For those of you who did not know, I was diagnosed with PPD (postpartum) about 3 months after Colter was born. My thoughts and understanding of PPD were much different until I actually experienced it first hand. My Dr had warned me prior to Colter's birth, that I was at high risk because of my high risk pregnancy. I thought the signs of PPD were not wanting to be a mom, feeling worthless, etc. I didn't have any of those symptoms. But apparently, wanting to bash every ones face in with a shovel is a sign too. :O) So with that, I apologize to all of you who felt the wrath of Miah during those three months. Especially my mother, who seemed to be the bulls eye on my target. Sorry mom!

Al will not be so happy to know that they did not up my dosage. He thought perhaps I should ask the dr to, so that I would not nag at him, ever. I think he wants me to be comatose. I did tell my dr his thoughts, but her eyes seemed to roll back in her head, and then she uttered, "may be we should get him on some happy pills." That's what I have been telling him all along. :O)

Mom, if your wondering, my blood pressure was normal. They also checked my hemoglobin and it was in the very bottom of the normal range. I am going to live!!! No need to worry until next time. ;O) XOXO

Happy Tuesday!

Conferences

Last night we had Tanner's conferences. All I can say is wow! I had know idea how different things would be once he got into middle school. Obviously, I knew it would be some what different. I guess I was just not sure what to expect.

Tanner had to give the conference, and then his teachers would come in and talk to us. I thought that the kids received grades for every 9 weeks, but apparently it is ever 6 weeks. Instead of 4 nine weeks, its 6 six weeks, with the ending grade being based on the average of all of the 6 weeks combined. Say what? I must be getting old. It is hard for me to accept these kinds of changes. :O)

I was very happy with Tanner's grades. He had all A's & B's, but of course I had to tell him that they should have all been A's. I want him to keep trying to do his best. His teachers all had good things to say about him. One said he is always smiling, which makes me smile. I am so proud of him.

When we first arrived, he had to show us some pictures of the kids in his grade. They had a picture of each class, and their "class name." The class name, had to start with the teachers first letter of the teachers name. Example, Miah's miracles. Well his class were the "bikers". Which according to Tanner, it was the "Big Bad Bikers." I laughed so stinking hard at these pictures because everyone stood there so nice for the pictures. And then there was Tanner and his friend DJ. Tanner was flashing some kind of sign and trying to look like he was "bad". His friend DJ was standing there with his chest pushed out and his nose in the air. It was hilarious. If you knew my Tanner, you would know that he is harmless and has a super tender heart. He doesn't have a "bad" bone in his body. Judging from the picture, I would have to say that he may just be the class clown. I have no idea where he gets it. ;O)

Have a super weekend ya'll!

Autism fuss

I am sure a lot of you have heard all the talk about autism recently. It is driving me mad. I don't know the actual stats right off the top of my head, but its something like 1 in 150 kids are autistic. Boys seem to be affected more, with a rate being close to 1 in 90. That is some crazy stuff.

Colter will be receiving his MMR shot in a few months. I have been trying to read up on all the articles about whether or not there is a link between autism and the MMR shot. I want to be sure I feel I am informed and make the right decision. I feel a bit sorry for our ped & his nurses. They will be interrogated hard at the next appointment.

On top of all this, the news has been talking about a website with a video library that demonstrates signs of autism. I am telling you, I think this is going to cause a lot of parents to freak. It has certainly caused me some anguish. I have watched most of the videos, and some of the things they show as signs, Colter does. I have never thought that there was anything wrong with him, however, after viewing this website, it has put a hint of doubt in my mind. I think it is an unnecessary. I am not telling you the link if you do not all ready know, because I think everyone may be able to find something on those videos that you can relate to your child. It should in no way be used to diagnose your child. I can see mass hysteria in the near future.

On a happier note, the sitter said Colter said "Hi there!" to her cat again today. Why does everyone else get in on all the fun. I guess the cat is more exciting than poor old mom. :O) Any how, I sometimes find it hard to believe, but today I was shocked when she told me. Every morning, I say to Colter, "Good morning. Hi there. How are you." And after every nap, I also say "Hi there." So he may have indeed said that. Perhaps he will say it to me one day.

That be all for today. Have a terrific Thursday!

This & that, take 2

All though this past weekend was dreary for most, it was darn exciting for a few. I am so happy for my BFF Paula and her family. They made a huge purchase that will change their lives immensely. They purchased a house! Its a four bedroom, two bath, in a little town about 15 minutes from Sioux falls and it has a large yard for the kids & dog to play in. It is a picture perfect family home. The only thing missing is the white picket fence. They are finally getting out of the big city trailer court and into a great community for their children. I am so proud of Jake & Paula. They have both come a long way. I am tickled that they have a great place to raise a family and make some great memories. Congrats to them!

That was my excitement for the weekend. They purchased the house via an estate auction, and as soon as I heard it was theirs, I jumped in my vehicle and burned rubber all the way there. There was no way I could just sit at home and be happy. I had to get there ASAP to give her a big hug, and of course, see her new home. I had hoped to head into Sioux Falls afterwards to find a Halloween costume for Tanner, but I was tired and decided to just head back home.

On Monday, Al wanted to go to Sioux Falls to look at guns so I decided to tag along in the hopes of finding Tanner a costume. For those of you who do not know, my husband is a gun collector. Sigh. I do not know exactly how many he has now, but I think it is too many. I am sure he has way more than I even know about. He "forgets" to tell me of his purchases from time to time. He tries to smooth over his new purchases by saying they are for the kids. I am not sure how many guns a 12 year old needs, but lets just say Tanner has more than enough. I told Al I didn't think he needed any more for a while, so his most recent wanted purchase, he said was going to be for Colter. He does not have any guns yet. Not sure what my 13 month old will do with an AK47, but you never know. I am sure he will have more than his fair share too. Mmmm, I just had a light bulb moment. Al will eventually need another excuse to buy more guns, so perhaps he will need to have another child. ;O)

I did manage to get Tanner a mask at the halloween store in the mall. There stuff was not exactly cheap. I really wanted Colter to be a monkey, but the monkey costume they had was $30.00, and it was just cheesy., The material was very thin, etc. I decided to head over to old navy and what do you know. Their costumes were 50% off. I got him a dragon costume for $12.00 and it is no where near cheesy. I also got some great deals on clothes for myself. I bought 3 pairs of pants for work, and 3 tops, all for under 60 bucks. That is unheard of, to me any way. I never see deals like that. I was super excited. So if your in Sioux Falls, check out old navy.

I have one other thing I wanted to share with you. Someone left some magazines at work and one of them is called All You. I love it! It has some great tips for cleaning, hair, makeup, etc. It has some great recipes and coupons too. I have never heard of it or seen it before, but I am definitely subscribing to this magazine. Ladies, you should check it out.

That's all folks! Have a happy wednesday!

Walkin' with my truck

Last night, I was going 90 folding clothes and picking things up. I kept hearing this noise of Colter moving something across the floor. After I finished folding my clothes I turned around to see him pushing his truck all around the house. I was so excited that he finally figured out what he was suppose to do with it. I bet it won't be much longer before he braves it on his own. I have a short video of the big event. I used my camera because that was right there and handy. The quality is pretty poor, but oh well!

Hope you all have a great week!

This is the title

Caution: This is going to be a very random post. You may experience confusion, dizziness, nausea and a decrease in brain cells. Reader discretion is advised.

Since nothing earth shattering has been happening, I don't have anything really juicy to talk about today. But, I am an addict and need to blog so I will bore you all with random tidbits and thoughts for the week.

Encyclopedia boy has returned. I sometimes have to slap myself when I realize that I am arguing with a 12 year old. I made taco's monday night, and Encyclopedia boy (Tanner) informed me that he did not like the kind of lettuce that I had. He only likes the shredded kind of lettuce. I told him it was the same thing, just cut differently but he was not having it. Shredded lettuce comes from a certain kind of lettuce and it is not the same. I thought you should all know. Don't be fooled by impostor heads of lettuce saying they are the shredded kind. It could happen. Another quick note, almost everything you see on cartoons is a fact, or real.

The paper boy/girl? The one that my babysitter and I were convinced was a boy?. Its a girl. Last friday, we were standing on the step when paper boy/girl came and I notice that it looked like it was wearing a bra. My babysitter said something to paper it, and it answered back in a femme voice. We decided may be it was a girl. Then this past week, there were pictures in the paper of all the carriers with their names. Turns out paper boy/girls name is Misty. Definitely a girl.

The house progress? Nada. Al has been working on getting the garage done, because we will be needing it to work on house stuff when it gets cold. We will need heat, etc. Its a good excuse for him to get his garage done, but I am sure his motives for completing it are not 100% because of the house work. I am guessing more like 15% house, 85% tinkering.

Hopefully, in three more weeks or so, we will be able to pick up the pace on the house. After today's shift, I will officially have two more weeks of nights and then I will be going to days. I am sad and happy. I am sad because I will miss my friend whose shift I will be picking up, and because I really do enjoy working this shift. However, I am so glad I will be going to days because it means I will have more time with my family and Al & I will actually have days off together. Its been a busy and rough year, trying to juggle our schedules. With a new baby, new house, and us hardly seeing each other, it will be a much welcomed changed. I may actually feel like I will have a social life again. And people will not have to worry about having a shotgun shoved in their face when they wake me up during the day. :O)

Ya'll have a super fantastic weekend, ya here!

Domesticated?

I have not posted much this week because it is killing me to sit here. Have you ever had your hip out? If you have, then you know how much fun it can be. I managed to throw mine out again on Monday evening. This is by far the worst it has ever been out. I did go to the bone crusher Tuesday morning, and I can actually walk now, but I think I am going to have to go back for more.

I bet you have had thoughts or are wondering how I threw out my hip. Well, get your mind out of the gutter people. I can't believe I have to admit this, but I was doing laundry when it happened. I threw my hip out picking up a laundry basket. Not too exotic, is it? Unless, you are one of those freaky deaky's who have a bizarre love affair with your washing machine & its spin cycle. If you are, then I got news for you. You are a PERVERT! You need to register on some sort of list.

Enough about that. Not much has been going on lately. I am almost positive that Colter has said a few words. Ball & Hi. I told him to get the ball about three times in a row, and after each time he said bow. I have also thought that he has said Hi to me before, but was not sure. Today the babysitter said he said hi twice to her cat. He is still not walking, just cruising. He loves to climb on things. I often catch him trying to climb the gates. Luckily he can't, but I did see him standing on one of his toys the other day and he was trying to nose dive over the gate. There is never a dull moment. Other than that, not much else to report.

Have a great Thursday!

My Trainie

Just be glad I am not YOUR kids aunt!

Attempts to be sneaky

Why do men try to be sneaky? Don't they know that mom's are all knowing? Don't they know I have eyes in the back of my head? Don't they know that I have a super human memory when it comes to naughtiness. I love the look on Tanner's face when I call him on something. It's one of amazed wonderment and it is priceless.

Normally, Tanner is the one trying to pull the wool over my eyes. I guess Al did not want to miss out on all of the fun. The other day as I pulled into the driveway, I happened to glance up and see this.

I know you are all thinking "Yeah, so?" That would have been my thoughts to, but if you take a closer look, you can see a statue up there. This is a fountain for my yard. It has a little boy & girl on it. Your still saying "Yeah, so?" Well take a closer look at the picture below.

No, this is not a little boy wearing a dress. Its a headless girl making it appear that way. The poor little girl has been decapitated. Her head laying in the filthy pond below. Who could do such a thing? I had a pretty good idea.

I waited a few minutes, and then I approached my husband and asked him casually what happened to the little girls head. His look....priceless. He immediately made a confession, however he stated that it was an accident. He never meant to hurt her. (That's what they all say.) He hid the evidence in the the attic of the garage, with the intentions of gluing her head back on in the hopes that I would never find out. He honestly believed that I would not sense anything was wrong. Well, I guess I showed him. He will be serving a fairly long sentence for this one. :O)

Have a fantastic weekend ya'll!

Father Son Bonding

A great way to bond with your son is to teach him how to change the oil in vehicles. Hopefully, the end result will be that you can pass on the duties to him, right Al?!

Yesterday afternoon, Tanner got the honors of doing his first oil change. Under the close supervision of dad or course. I guess my vehicle was their guinea pig. I have to make a trip to Sioux Falls today, so we will see if Tanner was successful.

It seems so crazy that Tanner is big enough to learn things like this, yet he still seems so young. I must face the fact that in 2 more years, he will be able to drive. SCARY!! Okay, well may be I will try to face it in another year or so. I don't want to think about it now. I find myself thinking he is still a little boy and trying to protect him from everything. I know he still needs guidance, etc, but I think I could loosen the apron strings a little bit more. But I probably won't. :o)

Tanner also attended his first "social" (dance) last week. He was so worried about not having a date. 6th grade people. I told him he did not need a date and he should go with his pals. He finally decided to go. They attended the homecoming game afterwards, and he had a great time. I am so glad he did.

I never did post Tanners school pictures, so here you go.

I think they turned out pretty darn good.

Attack!!

It seems every time I get my camera out these days, this little munchkin attacks. He is always ready for his close up, and if he can't get it, he will knock you down and crawl on top of you. You have been warned!

Parade

This past weekend was a relaxing one and it was much welcomed. As most of you all ready know, our annual parade was on Saturday. I was excited to take Colter but unsure how he would react to the sirens and sitting in his stroller the whole time. He was so good. He just sat there staring the whole time. I took him out of his stroller once, and he got fussy, so I put him back in and he was fine. This was his basically his first parade. I did take him last year, but he was only a month old. I can't wait until next year when he may actually be able to participate in the candy gathering. Well, may be I can.

I was a little disappointed with the parade this year. It seemed there were hardly any bands and the floats were nothing special. It looked like they just threw them together a 1/2 hour before the parade started. Sad. I think next year, I am going to throw together a float and show them what a float is suppose to be. Perhaps it could be the blogger mom float. LOL!!! Yes, I am crazy.

Other than having a glorious cold, not much has been happening. I am planning on getting to Sears to pick up Colters pictures on friday. I have a birthday party to attend on Saturday and I thought it would be nice to get much of my family their pictures then. Then I will have less to mail. So hopefully this next week, the rest of family will be receiving their pics. As long as I don't forget. I still have CRS.

That's all for now. I hope you all have a great Thursday! I leave you with a few pictures of parade day. Enjoy!

Deep in thought

Cousins~ Chase, Brayden, Colter
Ah yes, brotherly love.

Oh Schnikey. I almost forgot. Yesterday was my nephew Chases 2nd Birthday. Happy birthday buddy! You are Aunt Miah's Favorite 2 year old. Love ya!

Your madlibs!!

I was going to just use so many of every ones answers, but how could I do that? You all get to read your own mad lib. I was going to finish Jamie's for her, but I didn't think it was fair since I all ready knew what the mad lib was. You can still finish it if you want to, or we can do a special one just for you! Any way, you have all re-written the lyrics to the song "I will survive". Here are your versions of the song...........

~~Paula's~~

First I was crabby
I was jumped
Kept thinking I could never lick
without you by my toe
But then I spent so many staplers
thinking how you did me wrong
I grew runny
I learned how to get along
and so you`re back
from outer bathroom
I just cooked to find you here
with that old look upon your scalp
I should have changed that stupid sock
I should have made you kick your key
If I had known for just days
you`d be back to throw me

Go on now go eat the door
just turn around now
`cause you`re not hairy anymore
weren`t you the one who hugged to hurt me with goodbye
you think I`d crumble
you think I`d lay down and push
Oh no, not I
I will drag
as long as i know how to love
I know I will stay brown
I`ve got all my sponge to live
I`ve got all my love to build
and I`ll drag
I will drag (hey hey)

It took all the beavers I had
not to read
kept trying hard to mend
the pencils of my broken armpit
and I spent oh so many staplers
just feeling sorry for myself
I used to sleep
Now I hold my eyeball up high
and you see me
somebody new
I`m not that chained up itchy carpet
who fell in love with you
and so you felt like dancing
and just expect me to be shiny
now I`m saving all my protruding
for someone who`s protruding me

~~Erins~~

First I was scared
I was walked
Kept thinking I could never leap
without you by my elbow
But then I spent so many cars
thinking how you did me wrong
I grew juicy
I learned how to get along
and so you`re back
from outer bathroom
I just hammered to find you here
with that long look upon your eye
I should have changed that stupid underpants
I should have made you spray your key
If I had known for just 5 to 7 days
you`d be back to hop me

Go on now go shout the door
just turn around now
`cause you`re not nasty anymore
weren`t you the one who yawned to hurt me with goodbye
you think I`d crumble
you think I`d lay down and bite
Oh no, not I
I will carry
as long as i know how to love
I know I will stay sweet
I`ve got all my cup to live
I`ve got all my love to wash
and I`ll carry
I will carry (hey hey)

It took all the skunks I had
not to draw
kept trying hard to mend
the dice of my broken neck
and I spent oh so many cars
just feeling sorry for myself
I used to talk
Now I hold my lips up high
and you see me
somebody new
I`m not that chained up dry toilet
who fell in love with you
and so you felt like grabbing
and just expect me to be crusty
now I`m saving all my spitting
for someone who`s spitting me

~~Lori's~~

First I was sad
I was tired
Kept thinking I could never run
without you by my arms
But then I spent so many books
thinking how you did me wrong
I grew heavy
I learned how to get along
and so you`re back
from outer home
I just raided to find you here
with that light look upon your legs
I should have changed that stupid shirt
I should have made you see your key
If I had known for just 1 week
you`d be back to feel me

Go on now go taste the door
just turn around now
`cause you`re not bigger anymore
weren`t you the one who waited to hurt me with goodbye
you think I`d crumble
you think I`d lay down and go
Oh no, not I
I will hit
as long as i know how to love
I know I will stay taller
I`ve got all my store to live
I`ve got all my love to take
and I`ll hit
I will hit (hey hey)

It took all the cows I had
not to slept
kept trying hard to mend
the toys of my broken face
and I spent oh so many books
just feeling sorry for myself
I used to sit
Now I hold my head up high
and you see me
somebody new
I`m not that chained up small school
who fell in love with you
and so you felt like walking
and just expect me to be smiley
now I`m saving all my talking
for someone who`s talking me