Misc.

Winter scene from our backyard and some of Ryan's fall crafts from preschool. I love the turkey and pumpkin, they are just lunch bags full of paper.

Happy Thanksgiving

We had a very nice Thanksgiving. My parents came down, and I cooked the entire meal except dessert and my mom's dressing. I am wondering how come the mothers of the world have not revolted and just started going out for lunch. It is a lot of work for it all to be over in 20 minutes. Plus by the time I got sat down, I wasn't hungry any more!

Friday my parents and I took Ryan to the Festival of Trees and Lights downtown. It was really cool. They had a lot of pretty trees to look at, and Ryan only touched 3 ornaments. They also had the train from the mall there, so he rode that twice, and we attempted to make a Gingerbread House but he ate the door. He didn't want to get his face painted. I think the highlight of the day was Grandma G bought him 3 cookies, and he got to ride in their car (formerly my Grandpa's). Every 5 minutes he would say that he liked their car! That would have made my grandpa happy. Later that night we went to Jolly Holiday Lights. Ryan conked out at the end and slept until 5:40 am the next day.

Chip off the Old Block

Ryan is just like his dad....

Last Saturday I spotted one of the neighbor's cats in the backyard. Ryan ran over to the patio door (in his pullup and it was freezing), yanked open the door and yelled "CAT! YOU GET OUT OF MY BACKYARD!" The cat took off and Ryan was all proud of himself. A few weeks ago he informed our neighbor that her cat keeps pooping in his yard, and he doesn't like it.

Is it just me?

Is it just me, or does the world seem to be going to hell-in-a-handbasket in all sectors all at the same time? The economy is depressing, all this climate change stuff is terrifying me, and now I am reading all these articles about the increasing number of starving children in the world.

I guess tonight when Ryan wants me to lie in bed with him and sing 'On top of Spaghetti' until he falls asleep I will cherish it and not be annoyed that he isn't sleeping.

By the way, in Ryan's version, the spaghetti is topped with butterscotch, not cheese. He thinks it is hilarious - his own little ode to pudding.

He also now tells jokes that make absolutely no sense but he thinks they are hilarious. His favorite is "What starts with banana? A bononna!" (say it with hand gestures)

Fun with Birds - Great for Kids

The Great Backyard Bird Count - I found this in a DNR newsletter I got. For 4 days in Febuary people all over America can count the number of birds in their backyards and send the count to a website. This is used to do a complete inventory of what kinds of birds are in America at one time. I think they give a way prizes on the website. This would be really fun for kids I think.
http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc/

Posting

I was actually going to put some new stuff on my blog today, but I have to go into work :(
Actually, it might be nice going in to work. It will be quiet and I won't have to play Superfriends in the Bat Cave! I need to get a 2 yr old for Ryan to play with.

Halloween never ends at our house. Ryan and I spent the afternoon outside. Despite being Wonder Woman to his Bat Man, I got my tulips and daffodils planted.

Yesterday I went to a 15-hour crop with Heather, Jen, Roni, Steph, Jan, and Sue. It was awesome. We were all in good moods and none of us was bitching about anything. We all got a lot done too. My neck and back have been killing me, but after the most painful 10-minute massage I have ever had in my life I was a new woman.

Ryan and me on Beggar's Night before he told us he didn't want to Trick-or-Treat. He has been wearing 4 different costumes for 6 weeks, and on the big night he just wanted "his milk, his blanket, and watch Scooby Doo". We made it to about 10 houses.

Ryan and Todd at house #3. Ryan also didn't understand that you don't eat each piece of candy as it is handed to you.

Night Eyes and Ryan's 3rd Birthday

Working our Butts Off

I took Friday off so we could repaint our living room. It is now Ecru and Leap Frog Green instead of that nasty "sage" green I put up last year. We also ripped out the carpet and discovered we have awesome hardwood floors underneath! I spent all day yesterday on my hands and knees repainting the woodwork, pulling staples, and taking out the tack strips. Thankfully, Mike and Sandy were happy to watch Ryan this weekend at their house.

The third shot is of Ryan's playhouse. Todd has been working on it for at least 3 weeks. It is totally awesome. He just has to finish the roof. He is going to put on a mailbox and put in furniture. I get to landscape it.

The fourth shot is of our new patio door in the dining room. It has more than paid for itself. Now Ryan can just step outside to play and I can watch him from inside. If I need something from the garden, I can just step outside and get it. It's awesome. I also painted my dining room red, but I will have to save that for another post.

I need to catch you all up on everything that has happened in the past month, including our "vacation" in Omaha, but I need to go paint the hallway before Ryan gets back.

Why Women Should Vote

I got this as a forward...but it is very thought-provoking.

Remember, it was not until 1920 that women were granted the right to go to the polls and vote.The women were innocent and defenseless, but they were jailed nonetheless for picketing the White House, carrying signs asking for the vote. And by the end of the night, they were barely alive. Forty prison guards wielding clubs and their warden's blessing went on a rampage against the 33 women wrongly convicted of 'obstructing sidewalk traffic.' They beat Lucy Burns, chained her hands to the cell bars above her head and left her hanging for the night, bleeding and gasping for air.

They hurled Dora Lewis into a dark cell, smashed her head against an iron bed and knocked her out cold. Her cellmate, Alice Cosu, thought Lewis was dead and suffered a heart attack. Additional affidavits describe the guards grabbing, dragging, beating, choking, slamming, pinching, twisting and kicking the women.Thus unfolded the 'Night of Terror' on Nov. 15, 1917, when the warden at the Occoquan Workhouse in Vir ginia ordered his guards to teach a lesson to the suffragists imprisoned there because they dared to picket Woodrow Wilson's White House for the right to vote. For weeks, the women's only water came from an open pail. Their food--all of it colorless slop--was infested with worms. When one of the leaders, Alice Paul, embarked on a hunger strike, they tied her to a chair, forced a tube down her throat and poured liquid into her until she vomited. She was tortured like this for weeks until word was smuggled out to the press.

see - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/suffrage/nwp/prisoners.pdf

So, refresh my memory. Some women won't vote this year because- -why, exactly? We have carpool duties? We have to get to work? Our vote doesn't matter? It's raining? Last week, I went to a sparsely attended screening of HBO's new movie 'Iron Jawed Angels.' It is a graphic depiction of the battle these women waged so that I could pull the curtain at the polling booth and have my say. I am ashamed to say I needed the reminder.All these years later, voter registration is still my passion.But the actual act of voting had become less personal for me, more rote. Frankly, voting often felt more like an obligation than a privilege. Sometimes it was inconvenient.My friend Wendy, who is my age and studied women's history, saw the HBO movie, too. When she stopped by my desk to talk about it, she looked angry. She was--with her self. 'One thought kept coming back to me as I watched that movie,' she said. 'What would those women think of the way I use, or don't use, my right to vote? All of us take it for granted now, not just younger women, but those of us who did seek to learn.' The right to vote, she said, had become valuable to her 'all over again.'HBO released the movie on video and DVD . I wish all history, social studies and government teachers would include the movie in their curriculum I want it shown on Bunco night, too, and anywhere else women gather. I realize this isn't our usual idea of socializing, but we are not voting in the numbers that we should be, and I think a little shock therapy is in order.It is jarring to watch Woodrow Wilson and his cronies try to persuade a psychiatrist to declare Alice Paul insane so that she could be permanently institutionalized. And it is inspiring to watch the doctor refuse. Alice Paul was strong, he said, and brave. That didn't make her crazy.The doctor admonished the men: 'Courage in women is often mistaken for insanity.' Please, if you are so inclined, pass this on to all the women you know. We need to get out and vote and use this right that was fought so hard for by these very courageous women. Whether you vote democratic, republican or independent party - remember to vote. History is being made.

ABC's - Too Cute!

Todd has been working with Ryan on his ABC's. I think he's got it!

The Sweetest Thing

Ryan has a very big vocabulary. Last night we ate at the new Mexican restaurant by Dahl's. Ryan says, that's a picture of a pyramid! By gosh, he was right, they had pictures of the Mexican pyramids. When we were paying, the waitress asked if he was 4 since he talked so well. I said no, he's 2 1/2. She said, "well I hope you have more babies because he is beautiful and smart!"

That was one of the nicest things anyone has ever said to me.

One more thing that just popped into my head - I am shocked. First that Bernie Mac died, and second that John Edwards turned out to be just another sleazewad politican that can't keep it in his pants. The chick he cheated with was homely too. I bet if his wife wasn't dying she'd ditch him.

Obsessed with Dressing Up

Ryan is obsessed with dressing up, wearing boots, and wearing socks on his hands. Here are some of his recent outfits.

1 - Mr. Hip Hop

2 - Super Hero

3 - In Chase's Spider Man Outfit

Trying to Adjust - It's a Good Thing!

Last Friday night was the first Friday night that Todd hasn't worked in 3 years. We went out to TGI Friday's, then to the park, and then for ice cream. It was a great night. Here we all are at Dairy Queen. Todd and Ryan were even color-coordinated.

Ryan sporting the same shirt the next day - see the monstrosity behind him?

Ryan in his new outfit with a BIG BOY BELT!! that Todd bought him, and the SpiderMan shoes Sandy bought him. Ryan is very excited about his belt and has been wearing it over his pajamas.

The rest of the story is that we are all trying to adjust to Todd not being at the bar all the time. He is trying to sleep normal hours, and it isn't working so well. It also doesn't help that he and I have each been sleeping alone in the middle of the bed for 6 years, so inevitably one of us ends up on the couch. The gout has also spread to his wrist, thumb, and foot so it is hard for him to get comfortable. The hard parts for me are that Todd is eating us out of house and home, I have to cook for him and actually plan meals, and there is absolutely no silence in the house after Ryan goes to sleep because Todd is around. It's hard, but it's a good thing. Ryan and Todd are on cloud nine, and I am actually relaxing a bit for the first time since we had Ryan.

The entire month of July was shot to hell by the bar. Todd started selling stuff and cleaning it out on June 25, and finished at 8 pm on July 31, four hours before the lease was up. Every weekend was either spent working at the bar (or me watching Ryan at the bar while Todd's parents worked instead of me) or building the new shed in our backyard (aka "The Monstrosity"). Todd and his parents worked a lot of nights there. The idea was to build a new shed (our little one got smooshed by a tree limb) and then move the stuff in the garage to the shed and put the stuff in the bar in the garage. We bought a shed kit from Lowe's that said it would take 6 hours to build. It ended up taking 4 days with folks from Humboldt coming to help and then Todd, Mike, and Big Gilk finishing it on the hottest day of the year. It was not finished before the bar closed though, so all the bar stuff is in a 10 x 25 storage unit next the Des Moines River. That sounds ominous. The shed is huge and shaped like a barn. Ryan believes it is his barn for his toys. He likes to go inside, fling open the doors, and yell Surprise!

In the midst of this chaos, we had new windows and a patio door put in the dining room, and I repainted it and ripped out the carpet. It has taken forever because I am using 4 colors and I paint one coat of one color at a time while Ryan is asleep.

I have also been gardening every Wednesday night at the Fair and at home too. If you go to the Fair, my bed is the raised one next to the gazebo south of the Ag Building.

Pacifier Free!!!

We are finally pacifier free! Last Saturday we bought Ryan 4 Superfriends on the condition that his fussy (pacifier) stay in the crib. No using it in the car or to watch television. That went really well. Every time he asked for the fussy, I threatened to take his pacifier away.

Yesterday I was on the phone with my mom and Ryan said he wanted to go to the store and buy the Planet Hero from Venus - http://www.fisher-price.com/fp.aspx?st=10&e=planetheroeslanding. I told him he had to throw away his fussy FOREVER. He said no.
I continued to talk to Mom, then hung up. He told me he wanted Venus and went in the kitchen and threw the fussy in the trash. We immediately went to the store and bought Venus, and that was that. He played with Venus all day and took his nap just fine. Going to bed was another story. He never asked for his fussy, but couldn't get to sleep. Finally at 2 am he fell asleep with me in our bed! It was a long night.

Did I mention that he did all this while he had a fever?

Misc.

Speed Racer

Three Generations of Steins

Ryan in his new pool, which lasted only 5 minutes before it started leaking and collapsed

Magellan Zinnia in Jean and My's Bed at the Discovery Garden

My front flower bed when it was brand-new in 2006.

My front flower bed in 2008. I did all the work myself, except my dad helped me dig the bed, and Ryan waters it. Everything in it is red, orange, or yellow.

Happy Fourth of July

Happy 4th everyone! As usual, I am home alone with Ryan today, but I got the better end of the deal. Todd is working with his parents to clean the bar and get stuff ready for the sale. For those of you that don't know, Todd closed the bar a week ago Tuesday to spend more time with Ryan and me. It is sad, but I think he is ready to be done with it. Last Saturday he and I worked there until 10 pm packing up the liqour and doing inventory. Ryan stayed at Mike and Sandy's. Sunday I went to the store and gardened all day. Literally like 8 hours because I didn't have a 2 yr old pestering me!

Ryan has been enjoying going next door every Wednesday night for 2 hours so I can work at the Discovery Garden and run errands. It's worth the money for me.

Not much else new - just trying to keep my #$%^ together at work and home. Whoever says they can easily balance their career and family is lying. Ryan is very clingy now when I drop him off at school because he wants to stay home with me. The other day I bawled all the way to Merle Hay Road.

Two weeks ago we had my grandpa's and great uncle household sale. It didn't bother me like I thought it would. I was just counting my lucky stars that I didn't have to help clean out his house or schlep the stuff to the sale. Ryan had a good time with Big Grandpa, and we got to see some of the tornado damage. It seems weird to look out my parents' windows and see the neighbors house (the barn blew away).

Todd's Birthday and Father's Day

Last weekend was busy. Saturday Todd turned 38, and Sunday I had Mike and Sandy up for a little birthday/Father's Day celebration. Ryan and I spent the weekend shopping, cleaning, and cooking. He helped me stir things and chopped the carrots by pounding on the food chopper. He also got the grape jelly out of the jar into the bowl. Oh, and I mowed the lawn too since Todd has gout in one hand and chopped off the tip of his thumb on the other hand.

I made an awesome chocolate cake for Todd and a German chocolate cake for Mike. I also made macaroni salad, little smokies, and cheese dip. The afternoon was a success. Ryan provided the entertainment as usual. We were all standing outside talking, and no one noticed that Ryan had turned the water on and picked up the hose. Suddenly, he sprayed Todd!! Then Grandpa!! All the boys ended up soaked, and we all laughed a lot.

Stupid blogger is not uploading my pics. I will have to try later!!

Rain, Rain, Go Away

I'm pretty sure the next time I look out the window I am going to see Noah and the Ark go by.

My garden is flooded, and I put the tent up in the living room for Ryan since he can't go outside.