Mary's Life

Horses

2009-06-16T15:29:00.001-07:00

Being in Arizona the girls got a chance to go for a horse ride. Thank you Grandma Jane!!! They did awesome!!! Abby got to ride her own horse and take him around the yard all by herself. She spent most of her time trotting. The other two were lead around by Nancy the owner for a while and then got there own turn alone. Each got a chance to ride on their own without being held by the owner. I was fine until Anna wanted to "go fast" on her own. I looked up and her horse went a little to fast and got ahead of the owner and I about had a heart attack. Luckily he listened well and stopped when the owner yelled "wooh" aahhhh... They had a blast and didn't want to stop. Tomorrow is my turn for a hour long trail ride. Hurray!!!! Enjoy the pics!!!

The horse taking off with Anna on it

Audrey all on her own

Grandpa Bill and Abby

Galloping away

Chiquita Banana

2009-06-05T06:18:00.000-07:00

Abby came up to me a bit ago to tell me good morning. I looked over at her and saw that she had a sticker on her forehead. Not so unusual for one of my kids. I then read what it said, and thought it was funny enough to share with all of you.
"Place sticker on forehead. Smile"

My life in 15 years

2009-04-18T09:37:00.000-07:00

I was on a forum earlier today and some one was asking where everyone's dream place to live would be. This is what I would like in my perfect world. I guess we better start saving!! And looking. Where would we find such a place???

I want a small two bedroom cottage/house right on the beach (west coast) preferably with islands out in the water to look at and explore.
I good size yard with room to garden.
A nice porch to sit and have our morning coffee or evening hot cocoa and listen to the sea sounds, if its to cold outside I want huge windows so we can be toasty warm and still enjoy our view.
A fireplace to keep us warm.
Some Kayaks or maybe a canoe pulled up under the porch.
A separate heated work room for me to be artsy fartsy in my old age :)
Great neighbors close by like just over the fence (none of this living on a highway with no one to talk to crap)
bike/walking friendly streets.
A dog of course!!
A small down town five minutes or so walking from our house where everyone knows everyone. Great coffee shop and ice cream place for the summer is a must.
A big enough school for Brandon to be able to fulfill his work dreams of course!!
Great walking/hiking trails.
Warm summers and windy cold rainy winters (no snow would be nice)
And then the hardest part to fit in, a big city less then an hour away where I can get my shop on and we can enjoy the city life.

Are Brandon's last 8 years done yet??? I am sooooo ready to plant some roots!!!
Oh and we better start saving so we can afford this place of my dreams when we find it lol...

A Fairy Should Be Arriving Tonight

2009-04-16T13:35:00.001-07:00

Audrey has reached a new mile stone in her life. After many days of anticipation her first baby tooth has fallen out, well has been pulled out. Here is a picture of the proud and excited girl.

Snow day

2009-02-23T10:53:00.000-08:00

We have had a very long week over here in Maine. Tons of snow, me with a bad cold, Audrey’s ear infection and her insurance fiasco, Brandon out of town for the past two weeks, ext, ext, ext….
So with winter break ending, the idea of getting up early and getting Abby on the bus, Audrey missing yet another day of school, and running off to the YMCA for Anna’s swim lessons at 9am was a bit daunting… So I did it, I wished that the little snow we were supposed to get would be enough to close school…

WELL I TAKE IT ALL BACK!!!!!!

We got over a foot!!! I can no longer turn around in my driveway. The plower is working on getting a front loader in here so he can move some of the snow out of the way. He says that there are a lot of people with the same problem. There just isn’t enough room for all the snow we have had this winter. It doesn’t melt in between snow storms here, it just piles higher and higher… There is so much snow piled up at the end of the driveway that it is over my head for about 10 ft wide, all the way across the front of my yard!!! It’s insane!!!! I was out there shoveling for 2 ½ hours this morning!!! When I got a shovel full of snow I had to hoist it up over my head to get it on the pile!!! It reminded me of when I was a kid shoveling out my Dad’s fish hold on the boat. Ugh…. If this keeps up I won’t have to go to the gym, I will be getting all the exercise I need right here at home… My mail box was buried under 2 ft of snow. I had to shove the shovel into the pile just to find the thing!!! Two of my friends don’t have power. One of them since 10:30 last night when some power lines fell across her street!!!! I am glad we have power so we are warm. We might be having a few guests tonight so they can get out of the cold.

Anyway here are some pictures.

Pretty pictures

Route 17

Mailbox

The house, there is a swing set right to the left of the car behind the snow!!!

Disappearing driveway

Brandon's car

Car parked in little tunnel I made so I could clean out our parking spots

IS IT SPRING YET!?!?!?!

A New Old Adventure

2009-02-22T11:39:00.000-08:00

Well I am sure you all have heard our good news. Brandon, the girls, and I are all heading off to Alaska this summer. Thinking of this makes me laugh. I never thought I would want to keep going back up there. The draw of family and all that is familiar is very strong!! I am glad that I have a husband who is willing to understand what I feel and also like living in a small town in Alaska.

So far on our Coast Guard adventure we have lived in:

Sitka, Ak until married

Eureka, CA 2000-2001

Oxnard, CA 2001-2003

Sitka, Ak 2003-2006

Rockland, ME 2006-2009

Sitka, Ak 2009-????

Do you notice a trend? I sure do. It seems I am only able to make it away from home for 3 years!!! Is that sad? I don’t know… I do want the adventure, but for instance we had to choose between Sitka (home, family) and Hawaii this time around. What did we do? We chose a small boring town in Alaska over what some people would consider paradise!!! Now it was far up on our list, so we did have a chance of getting there, but the detailer chose Sitka for us.

I do worry that Brandon agreed to this job for me. It will be hard for him. The TAD billet is not that fun. He will be jumping on planes to head of to who knows where when ever they want him to. I hope he knows how much I appreciate the sacrifice he is making for us. I worry that we didn’t really think this decision threw and might end up regretting how much he is gone. I know I will have support with family in town, but no one can replace him, you know.

Ok enough of that mushy stuff…

Brandon and I are planning on driving across country on this move. Most people I talk to think we are insane. “Who drives across country with three kids in a tiny car?!?!?!” they ask. Well I guess we do. Besides my Mom thinks it’s a good idea. Thank you Mommy!!!

How could we pass up the opportunity to see so much of our country?!?!?! The kids will even remember a lot of it when they are older, and if not then pictures will jog their memory. This is what I would like to do if we had all the money we needed and all the time. So Coast Guard be nice to us and let me have my dream… please….

Put cats on the plane in Boston. Thanks Jen!!! Maybe go see the aquarium there.

Drive to New York City check it out for a couple of days.

Head up to upstate New York and visit friends and see Niagara Falls.

Head west to Chicago and see a Cubs game (Brandon’s favorite team)

On the way out west see Mount Rushmore and Yellowstone National park.

Veer South and head down to the Grand Canyon and then to Kingman AZ to see family

Head West again to San Diego to see more family

North to Alaska, and on the way

Stop in San Jose to see more family

Head up the coast threw the Red Woods (would love to show the kids those) to Eureka see more friends

Farther north to Portland OR more friends

North again to Bellingham to see more family and catch the ferry up to Alaska.

Arrive in Sitka 3 days later completely exhausted and ready to go insane.

I of course would like to drag Brandon kicking and screaming to smaller sites along the way.

So that is my dream. Will it happen? Probably not, but wouldn’t it be great!!! I think I might need to get a job so we can pull it off lol…

What am I looking forward to after our move…

The kids living on a street where they can ride their bikes and play with other kids.

Woods that we can go in and not get Lyme disease (this is a big one for paranoid me)

Walking distance to the beach

FAMILY FAMILY FAMILY FAMILY

Familiarity

We should be able to pull of classes like dance, piano, and what ever else they might want to do, for the girls.

Coffee and bagels for lunch at the Highliner.

FAMILY FAMILY FAMILY

My girls will get to know some of their cousins!!!

Family dinners with more then 5 people!!!

Being out on the water again.

Hiking in the woods

The smell of morning

Familiar faces every where

Being able to afford family vacations

I could go on and on and on

What I will miss while there…

TARGET!!! Lol

Roads going to other towns

Other towns

City life

The thought that we could have been in Honolulu lol…

Adventure of new things

That’s about it…

I guess we made the right decision. My first list is a lot bigger then the second.

So everyone, we are off again. Brandon’s report date is July 1^st and we should be finding out soon when we can pack up all of our stuff and head out. This means I need to start shoveling out this house!!!!! It’s amazing how when you get a bigger place it fills up over time. I don’t recommend having a basement if you move a lot. They are bottomless pits!!!!

See all of you in Alaska soon!!! And hopefully a lot of you along the way!!!

Hunter

2009-02-11T16:40:00.000-08:00

Tonight I closed the door to the girls’ room after tucking them in. About 30 seconds later Audrey came out crying telling me she doesn’t like bugs by her bed and she heard one. OH NO!!!!

So I went upstairs and sure enough a big old housefly thought it was spring and had come out during our unusually warm day. I was going to catch it for our pet spider named Rufus (a whole different story see below) but it was flying around so much I couldn’t.

Molly our cat and come in to see what all the commotion was about so I decided to use her as our hunter.

She cracks me up. I can pick her up and put my hand on her lower back and my other under her front legs and lift her all the way above my head so that she can reach the ceiling. She completely trusts me while doing this which I think is very unusual for a cat, her body will be very relaxed the whole time she is up there.

As soon as I lift her up, she knows that there is a bug that I want her to find. It took her about 10 seconds to find, catch, and then eat this particular fly.

I was going to get it away from her and give it to Rufus who hasn’t eaten since last fall, but she was to fast for me. And poor Rufus needed it so much more then Molly. She weights over 16 lbs already.

So hurray for Molly who saved the day!!! The children will not be eaten alive by the humongous house fly, but poor Rufus had to go without….

So about Rufus, I am not entirely sure why he is there. I hate spiders. The idea of one in my house creeps me out. What if it crawls away from where I saw it and ends up on my pillow!!!! You know all the normal stuff.

Well Rufus showed up in our upstairs bathroom one day and neither Brandon nor I felt the need to squish and flush the sucker. We soon saw that he was catching all the annoying bugs that live in the lovely state of Maine, well at least all of the ones that make their way to our upstairs bathroom.

He has never moved from the corner above our sink. The only thing that gives me chills is wondering if Rufus is really a Rufasina and will soon be sneaking a disgusting egg sack out somewhere and then we will be attacked by hundreds of tiny little nasty buggers. But as long as I just remember how interesting it is for us and the girls to watch him catch his prey, wrap it, and eat it, then I feel a little better about leaving an enemy in my bathroom. After all, what could be better for three girls who freak out anytime a bug is near? They are living with one in there bathroom! They will brush their teeth standing right under him. Although it only works on this particular bug. They trust Rufus, but any other spider or bug and its freak out time. Note the above story…

The only down fall is when he is threw eating he drops the carcass on our bathroom counter and also leaves some other unmentionable dots around. The good thing is Rufus hasn’t eaten in months. So we live together in harmony for now… The more webs he makes the less I want him there. The BIGGER he gets, the more I want to flush that little sucker. Right now I will try to hold out until spring so we can let little Rufus out side into the big old world of Maine. Where there are three billion million trillion bugs to eat!!!

Pretty Tree

2008-12-22T11:30:00.000-08:00

I plan to take some pictures like this with the girls in their pj's before bed on Christmas Eve. But I like how these turned out and wanted to share with everyone. Enjoy...

Some One Stop Me

2008-12-21T13:25:00.000-08:00

So it seems I am feeling better now. After being sick for 3 months it has been great to have some energy again. What am I doing with that new energy you ask?

Getting crafty!!! I haven't been in the mood to do things like this in I don't know how long, and I can't stop!!! My latest project? A forest of trees to surround the candles on the dining room table.

At least it is keeping me busy while we are getting snow dumped on us. We are predicted to get over 12 inches by tomorrow!!! And did I mention that it stayed around 15 degrees out today!!! Brrrrrrrrrrr.....

Abigail and Audrey Dancing Away

2008-12-20T10:42:00.000-08:00

I thought they were so cute and I wanted to share. They were dancing to Christmas music of course.

ELFIE

2008-12-16T06:26:00.000-08:00

I was crafty!!! A friend of mine told me about this elf that drops in on them every year and keeps and eye on her kids for Santa to make sure they are being good. He also gets into trouble at night while everyone is sleeping.

The girls having been talking about it for like two years. No matter how much they wanted an Elfie of their own it just wasn’t showing up. Well I read on the internet that if you make one and put it under the tree Santa might notice it and use his special Santa magic and turn it real.

I worked for like 6 hours on this thing. No pattern or anything as you can tell lol… and it paid off. Elfie is now making sure our kids stay well behaved and causing all kinds of mischief at night.

So far he has….

-Taken their toothbrushes and hid under the bathroom sink.

-Made a bed out of the girls’ Christmas stockings.

-Dumped a ton of markers out in the play room and drew a picture.

-Got out a box of cereal and a bowl and ate some, leaving a mess all over Anna’s chair and the table.

-Hid in Abby’s coat sleeve in hopes to go to school with her.

He has been a lot of fun and we are all glad he came to life. If you want an Elfie to visit you then you can either make one or send a letter off to Santa asking for one and he might show up.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Christmas Time!!!

2008-12-16T06:22:00.000-08:00

We went to the annual Coast Guard Christmas party. What does that mean? All five of us were all dressed up and ready for a family photo session. Enjoy.

Drawings by Audrey

2008-12-15T13:31:00.000-08:00

Audrey brought home some art work today. I of course thought it was cute, so I wanted to share it with all of you. Enjoy...

Discovery

2008-11-06T18:59:00.001-08:00

I have discovered some new things tonight….
#1 Don’t play with your wedding ring off of your finger near a couch with a black hole.
#2 Don’t ever give up on missing items in your house.

Tonight while relaxing and enjoying some evening TV I accidentally dropped my wedding ring. I hoped that it just fell on the floor, but much to my dismay it fell into the deep darkness of our couch. Tonight was not the night for this. I was watching my show and the last thing I felt like doing was shoving my arms into my couch and bruising them up trying to find my ring. Of course I had no choice so I reached in to see what I could discover.

What I found was not pretty… Lots and lots of unwanted things touched my stretched out fingertips. You know we all have them in there, don’t pretend like you don’t. I did pull out a few things. A toy spoon, a few cards to one of the kids’ decks, a few hair things….

After tipping the couch every which way, banging the bottom and stretching and bruising myself as much as I possibly could, I felt it. The cold smooth round shape of my ring!!! I slowly reached my fingers out. I had to be careful to not knock it our of my reach and lose it for ever!!! Slowly, slowly, (pain, pain, pain in my squished arms)… No it’s slipping away in between something!!! It was gone. But wait where did it go to.

That is when I discovered where the black whole went to… There was another layer of this couch. And after more looking I discovered a little hole which my hand could fit into.
What bounty!!! What Treasures!!! Toys I had long giving up on, pretty much a whole deck of cards, a thing of chap stick, even things I didn’t know where gone, and my Tetras game!!!! HURRAY!!!!
Last but not least my ring now sits on my finger where it belongs. Many adventures this ring has been on. Last year it was lost in my glove on a cold winter day, this year the couch, what will become of it next year….

A LONG MONTH

2008-11-01T18:50:00.000-07:00

Halloween is over!!! HURRAY!!! Ok I did have some fun, but I sure am exhausted!! Let’s rewind a few days. I have been feeling tired, tired, tired for about a month. Also along with that I was feeling dizzy, out of it, and have been having a lot of head aches. Well I went to the doctor on Thursday and found out I have a really bad ear infection. Oh, so the little pain in my ears and headaches I was having are from my ears yelling at me to go to the doctor and get some freaking medicine already!!! I waited long enough that now I have some scaring in my left ear and maybe have a little bit of hearing loss. Lovely!!!

Thursday night I got maybe 3 hours of good sleep. Don’t ask me why just couldn’t sleep!! My alarm was set for 6:30am so I could get in the shower and get ready before the kids were up. I had to bring Abby to the doctor that morning to have her leg looked at. So Friday went like this…

Rush, Rush, Rush to get kids ready.

Put Audrey on the bus.

Finish getting myself and the two other girls ready.

Make my coffee (duh, remember the 3 hours of sleep).

Make it to the doctors with a few minutes to spare.

Wait for a while to be seen.

Find out that Abby’s virus on her leg which aggravated her eczema which in turn has now caused a bacterial rash all over her leg. Lovely!!!

Dropped Abby off at school.

Took Anna to the library for story time.

Stopped by a store that is closing to see if I could score on some shoes (I was good and walked away empty handed).

Picked up Abby’s prescription (antibiotics for her bacterial infection)that took 20 minutes of wondering around Right Aid waiting with a tired 3 year old.

Went home had lunch and put Anna down for a nap.

Cleaned for a bit.

Collapsed on my bed in utter exhaustion and took a nap for 1 ½ hours.

Got up made some more coffee (decafe but still makes me feel better) and then cleaned and cooked and went crazy for a few hours until I had to get the girls’ costumes on.

Rushed to Camden because we were running late and went trick or treating with some friends (that was fun. The girls are old enough now that they can walk up and say trick or treat all by themselves, plus we saw some great costumes, and just had an all around good time).

Rushed home to finish up the house for our party.

People showed up while finishing up the house.

Put our crazy wild excited sugared up kids to bed.

And stayed up until 1:30am hanging out with friends.

I’m tired…..

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

Oh and I thought you might want to see some pictures of my adorable kids with their pumpkins and costumes. It was interesting getting them in the car with all that tutu fluff everywhere. I had to take Anna’s tutu off just so I could buckle her lol… Aren’t they sooo Cute!!!!

GEARING UP FOR HALLOWEEN

2008-10-14T14:16:00.000-07:00

I decided I would make the girls costumes this year. I wanted to get back to the basics, save some money, use what we had, and be creative. With some mixed in store bought things, a little craftiness, and a dig through our closet and the girls dress up. Waaaaallllaaaaa Halloween!!!

AAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGG!!!!!!

Abby the Dreaded Pirate!!

Audrey the pretty Kitty.

MEOW!!!!

Anna the fluffy little bunny.

HOP HOP HOP!!!

My three girls!!!

Uuuuuuummmmmm Abby?!?!?!

Happy Halloween!!!!

A Morning (Afternoon) In Maine

2008-09-03T06:55:00.000-07:00

Brandon and I won two tickets for a two hour sail on the Morning in Maine last winter. We finally got to go last Sunday. It felt so great to get out on the water again. I don't get the chance that often so I enjoyed it A LOT.

I was a beautiful day. Warm, sunny, and very windy. They couldn't even raise the main sail because of the wind.
Hope you enjoy the pictures.

Morning in Maine

The Abbie Burgess (Brandon's boat)

Dorky shot, but the one without my glasses was even worse. I was taking it with our big camera, so I will give myself that at least.

Breakwater Lighthouse.

No Main Sail

Pretty clouds.

Heading out!!

If you look really carefully you can see a butterfly to the right of the first post on the left hand side of the picture. We were pretty far off shore and it fluttered around us for a while.

Like I said it was really windy and I had to brace myself with my feet on the way back into the harbor.

I liked the lighting on this shot.

One of the first buoys worked when Brandon first arrived on the boat. It's in the harbor :)

Saying goodbye to his new friend.

First Day Of School

2008-09-03T06:23:00.001-07:00

Last week I sent two of my kids off to school. I still can't believe Audrey is old enough for Kindergarten. She just looks so little to me.

Here are the two school girls.

Audrey all ready for her first day of school!!!!

Abby my big first grader. How come that seems so much older to me then kindergarten?

Saying goodbye to Anna.

The girls had a great first week (3 days) of school. They both came home exhausted and wearing big smiles on their faces. Audrey even road in her own seat on the bus to school and home again on Friday.

To celebrate starting kindergarten Audrey came down with tummy bug and has been out of school passed out on the couch yesterday and today. She might even miss tomorrow. Poor thing.

Here we go!!!

From Abby

2008-08-20T12:54:00.001-07:00

I went to the hair cut place and I got a hair cut. I did a Locks-of-love donation.

I chopped off 10 inches.

This is how I would have looked before.

Now this is how I look!

2008-07-18T19:22:00.000-07:00

IT (was) THE FOURTH OF JULY

(These pictures are only two weeks late. But looking back on my blogging history I would say that is pretty good for me.)

This 4th really was a great day. Brandon and I started it off by sleeping in to late and then going back and forth on going to the parade. I then of course in normal Mary style decided that we should go, even though we really did not have much time to get ready. So we rushed around first I got in the shower then Brandon. I then of course had to make some coffee to go, oh and we can’t forget to sunscreen all the kids!!!!

We were in the car with just a few minutes until the parade started, when my cell phone rang. It was Jodie (who was on time and already there) telling me that the parade info we had was wrong and we still had an hour until start time.

So Brandon let off of the gas a bit and we leisurely made our way over to Thomaston. We were 45 minutes early so we found a great parking spot and made our way up to our friends. I then saw that they all had chairs and said, “dang it!!” And then Brandon said, “I asked if you wanted them right after we left the house and you didn’t answer me!” Then of course there was bicker bicker back and forth while I said I didn’t hear him and he said well I said it. Blah blah blah. And then we just stole our friend’s chairs while they weren’t looking. Ok they offered them.

Our friend Kevin getting fed pretzels by his son Kole.

After waiting and waiting and waiting (according to the kids) the parade finally started. Hurray!!!

This is Brandon's if you take my picture you will end up back in the basement look.

This girl was obviously having an awesome time in the parade.

Where’s me whiskey?

Look a picture with me in it!!!!!

Fire trucks our loud!!!!

Picture turned out great I think, plus he is our friend Justin.

Hours later it was still coming.

Ok maybe not hours, but man it was LONG!!!!

Erin and her baby Quin

Arn't they cute???

And you thought it was over....

After the parade we hurried home. The kids had a snack and I made up a salad. We grabbed all the things you need for an afternoon/evening spent at a cabin by the lake and headed out, and then got lost…

After we found the place we settled in for a lazy afternoon. We had some lunch and then went for a swim in the lake.

After our swim we spent some fun hours with our friends. Had some s’mores (thanks guys), ate lots of food, had a few drinks, and watched the kids play. They even had a noodle (swim noodle) fight.

The guys working hard making us s'mores.

Ummmmm... Don't ask.

A few of us were sitting and relaxing when the guys decided to play some sports. Like football and baseball. We had to dodge a few balls, seeing how we were right where they were all going lol…

Great bunch of friends.

Our hosts Macy and John with someone else’s baby.

The party was wrapping up around 7:30ish and we decided that our kids were old enough, let’s take them to the fire works. So we loaded in the car and drove back over to Thomaston (about 30 min.). Got some fried bread, OUR chairs, and watched the fireworks. The kids loved it, and it was a perfect ending to our VERY long day. We didn’t get home until after 10:30pm and we left around 9am that morning. Lets just say we all slept great!!!

Happy summer everyone!!!

T-BALL

2008-05-07T07:12:00.000-07:00

We signed Abby up for T-ball this year. She had to miss her first practice/game last week due to a tummy bug that showed up the day before the game. But this week she was ready!!

First they had them run around the bases a couple of times.

They had to make sure they touched each base as they went around. This little boy forgot one.

Next it was time to practice catching and throwing.

Ground ball!!!

Step and throw!!!

Fly ball!!!

Time to take the field.

Throw it to first, throw it to first!!!

We told Audrey and Anna to race to the tree and back. They were getting really bored. An hour is a long time!!!

After the light blue team all had a chance to bat it was the Navy teams turn. Here is Abby taking her first swing. It’s a hit!!!! Run and run!!!!

APRIL FOOLS!!!!

2008-04-01T16:02:00.000-07:00

April 1st is here again. If I recall last year at this time it was snowing. This year must be a little better, because is snowed yesterday instead. Of course who knows if this warm weather (50 degrees) will last. Knowing our luck we will be seeing more of that wonderful stuff floating down and covering up our lawn.

When Abby came home from school today we walked inside and I was doing something in the kitchen which involved messy hands. Abby came over to me and looked at my head very concerned. She then said, “Mom, you have a spider in your hair!” I then of course said, “What?!?!?? “Can you get it out for me?”

APRIL FOOLS!!!!

I was had by a six year old…

So because today is April fools I have come up with my own little plan. I served the kids Chocolate pie for dinner with strawberry whipped cream. Yummy!!!!

Or is it…..

Mom this isn’t chocolate pie!!!!

What ever it is, I like it!!!

So what is it that I made? Click on the link for the recipe.
http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=50523

So we had Chocolate pie for dinner, what do you think is for desert?

Chopsticks? "Not stir fry!!"

"I don't know"
What about you Anna, what do you think it is?

SUSHI!!!!!

Audrey, "This is the yummiest sushi I have ever had!"
Abby, "YEAH!"

"Whats in the middle Mom?"
Fish of course!

"No it's not, it's candy!"

Recipe for sushi
http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=50352

That wraps up this novel. Hope you had a great day and didn't fall for anything to extreme.

CHRISTMAS PICTURES

2007-12-17T10:56:00.001-08:00

We thought we would take advantage of us all being dressed nicely and take a picture in front of the tree. It’s not the best of one. It was 9 pm and we had just gotten back from the Christmas dinner so the kids were tired and all, but hey it’s a family picture!!! We were smart and got a shot of the girls before we left for dinner.

Coast Guard Christmas Party

2007-12-17T10:43:00.001-08:00

I got to get all dressed up!!! Brandon, the girls, and I all went to a Coast Guard Christmas dinner. It was held at the Samoset Club. They have a building with lots of huge rooms for just such a thing. It was a nice relaxing evening with well behaved children, lots of friends, and good food. The first picture you see is of Brandon and I and the next one is of Jodie, Katie, and I.

All I want for Christmas...

2007-12-11T13:16:00.000-08:00

"I lost my toof"

Oh Christmas Tree

2007-12-05T15:18:00.000-08:00

We drove up to my Grandparents house this last weekend. We bundled up the kids and ourselves and went on our search. After about 20 minutes the kids were all inside because they were freezing in the 20 something degree windy day. Brandon, my Grandma, and myself searched a little longer and I picked this one. Mostly because the looks on the others faces said, “Hurry up or you will be cutting this down yourself!!” Once it was cut down and away from the tree it was growing next to I saw how sparse it was. I do love the top, and after wiring on a few extra branches it is done lol… At first I wasn’t to sure, but now it is growing on me. Merry Christmas everyone!!!

Keeping myself busy...

2007-12-04T15:40:00.000-08:00

I have been busy lately making Christmas decorations.

I wanted some of the Christmas tree cones I have been seeing in all the stores, but didn’t feel like paying for them. So I bought (I know funny) some glitter, silver paint, and some poster board. After many burns from hot glue and tons of glitter everywhere they were done. Sparkle, sparkle, sparkle…

I was watching Martha Stewart (I know also funny) and she had this great idea of making snow ball like ornaments. This was a lot of work, but I like how they turned out. Here is how they were done;
1. Blow up balloon.
2. Tie on string.
3. Wipe with oil.
4. Wrap string around and around.
5. Paint with watered down glue.
6. Hang to dry.
7. Pop balloon and remove.
8. Paint with watered down glue.
9. Cover with glitter.
10. Let dry.
11. Hang.

2007-12-03T19:35:00.000-08:00

Well winter has official arrived here in Maine. It has been cold for a while, but we got dumped on with snow the beginning of this week. Abby and Brandon even got a snow day. It was great having the whole family home cozy and warm inside with snow falling softly all around us. Of course the kids wanted to go play in it, so we got them all bundled up and Brandon took them out. After shoveling a ton of snow he played with them for a bit. Some snow balls were thrown, tunnels were built, angels were made, and last of all a great big snow man with pine branches for hair. To end the day I put on my boots and braved the 12 inches of snow. I was on a mission to find clean snow for our snow ice cream. I grew up eating it and have passed the tradition on to my kids. All you need is a bowl of snow scooped up from the top of the snow fall. Poor in a bunch of canned milk, sugar, and vanilla (or any other flavor you might like) to taste and there you have it!

Audrey making a snow angel.

Help me up Daddy

Watch out Abby, Daddy is going to get you!

Just a little tunnel.

Yeah snow to eat!!!

Shoveling..

Starting the snow man.

Come on Anna help us.

Gotcha!!!

Working hard.

Frosty the snow man was a jolly happy soul. With hair of pine and a stick for a nose and two eyes made out of stone.

Here Comes Santa Clause

2007-12-02T18:49:00.000-08:00

We heard a rumor that Santa Clause was going to be flying in on a Helicopter to visit all the Coast Guard Men’s little children. It seams he flies in once a year out by the Owls Head Light House. He brings bags full of toys for all of the children waiting. After taking his seat in a big red velvet chair he begins to call out their names. One by one they shyly walk towards him. Sit upon his lap and get the toy just for them, with their name on it and everything…

When we arrived at the parking lot to wait for the helicopter there were cups of hot cocoa and donuts to be eaten. The kids were in heaven already!!!!

Then we heard it… The faint rumble of a helicopter arriving!! Listen Anna do you hear it?

There it is!!! Here comes Santa Clause!!!

Audrey’s face was a mess from donuts, I had to get it clean for photos!! :)

When the helicopter was landing the children all had to turn around. I guess it has been known to make a few pebbles fly!!

Little Miss Anna was the first name to be called. I brought her up there and she didn’t cry, although she looked very nervous for a bit. Santa gave her a very cute Zebra purse, which she now wants to sleep with every night. (Along with her pink blanket, her back up yellow blanket, her duck, and her bunny. She must be the youngest.)

Next in our family to be called was Abby. She didn’t sit on his lap, not sure why… (Hopefully she doesn’t think she is too old for that. After all she is six!!!) I am thinking she was just a bit nervous. She got a very cool puppy dog stuffed animal. When you unzip his mouth he reveals a very big red tongue and also a photo album. It is full of pictures Brandon printed out from our computer of Santa visiting. It is nestled in between her two pillows as I type this.

Last but not least to be called of our three little ones was Audrey. She was very brave and sat on Santa’s lap. In this picture you can see that she even started a little smile. Santa gave her a little monkey purse. Which she slept with for the first few nights as well.

Static attack. This is just in here because it was too funny not to show to everyone.

Group photo!! Notice Anna being held by Santa. I snuck in there and asked (I swear!!) if he would hold her for the photo. Look at all the kids!!

HO HO HO

Gobble Gobble Gobble

2007-11-19T15:28:00.000-08:00

We had our turkey visitors again. Last time I couldn’t get the camera to work so I missed getting any pictures of them, but this time we did.

We were just hanging out in the house, when I looked out the window and saw a ton of turkeys in our yard. They passed through pecking here and there and then wandered off in to the woods.

I loved the sound of their feet rustling all of the fallen leaves as they disappeared behind the trees.

THERE ONCE WAS...

2007-11-18T11:18:00.000-08:00

There once was a girl,

With a little curl,

Right in the middle of her forehead.

This moment was so funny, because she kept blowing it straight up and then it would fall right back down. Over, and over, and over again. The faces she was making just added to the hilarity of it. Anna loves to get us laughing, and this time she did so well that Abby almost choked on her lunch.

ABBY IS SIX!!!

2007-11-18T10:26:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to you!

You live in a zoo!

I can't believe she is six!!!

When the kids first showed up we had Little animals for them to paint.

It kept them busy for a bit.

These guys finished first!!!! (remember the zoo part of the song)

Ok so it wasn't that bad.

Audrey worked really hard on her car. I had to make her stop so we could play the games.

The first game was pass the sour blueberry (hot potato).

We played it twice they had so much fun with it.

Next was pick the blueberries and put them in the pail.

Of course they were blind folded.

Lots of giggles from the onlookers with this game.

Gift time!!!!

PJ'S

Getting a closer look.

Parker according to Abby likes to pretend to be dead (boys).

Lots of smiles

Not sure what Sara was telling her.

CHEESE Emma

Checking out her new watch.

What is it?!?!?!

Cake Time!!!

There was a stampede to the table, and Anna was almost crushed. But don't worry all survived.

La La La

Look at that face...

Big breath in and....

blow...

You did it!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ABBY!

HALLOWEEN

2007-10-31T09:12:00.000-07:00

I would like to introduce you to...

Abigail the sassy cowgirl.

Audrey the mischievous Pippi Longstocking and her trusty side kick Mr. Nilson.

And last but not least, Anna the roaring lion!!!

Lets see what we got!!!

Pumpkin Patch

2007-10-29T08:55:00.000-07:00

This year we headed off to a small local pumpkin patch.

We braved the weeds and went searching.

Abby picked up a pumpkin, saw that it wasn't a good one, and put it down. It then started to roll down the hill. "Stop it Abby stop it!!!"

We found one pumpkin in their field that wasn't rotting.

The kids had fun looking.

After searching and searching we headed over to their pile of already picked ones.

After more searching and changing of minds three million times, we all found the perfect pumkins.

It was a fun afternoon.

Abby’s First School Performance

2007-10-25T08:30:00.000-07:00

Isn't she soooo cute!!!

She was so brave up there. She didn't look nervouse at all.

Her music teacher's name is Mr. Dyer.

Macarena Months
January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December, then you turn around.
This song was sung to the Macarena, too funny.

Acorn Song
I’m a little acorn small and round.
Lying on the cold, cold ground.
People come and step on me.
That’s why I’m so cracked you see.
(Then they pop up and sing)
I’m a nut, chi chi
I’m a nut, chi chi
I’m a nut….
(then they lay back down)

A FALL DAY IN MAINE

2007-10-23T13:03:00.000-07:00

It was a beautiful fall day here in Maine. Of course it was almost 70 degrees out, but the wind was so strong it felt perfect.

The kids wanted to go outside and collect the falling leaves. I was watching them through the window and thinking to myself, "They are sooooo cute!!!"

So I grabbed my camera and headed outside with them.

The wind felt so good on my face. Leaves were flying through the air. Birds were riding the currents. The kids were running around having a blast. I just couldn't help but have a smile on my face.

After snapping some pictures of the kids I looked over at my garden and marveled at the fact that there were still flower is bloom. With everything else looking so fall like it was hard to remember that we have only had one frost so far this year. The bright pinks, yellows, and reds drew me over to them. So here is my garden in the fall.

While I was concentrating on taking the pictures of the flowers (no easy task in all the wind) the kids kept calling, "Mommy look at me!!!!"

There is a lawn under there somewhere.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AUDREY

2007-09-22T07:45:00.000-07:00

Audrey is four now!!!

The first game we played the girls had to follow their string all over the house and find the balloon at the end. What a mess!!! lol

Anna had a hard time getting around with all the strings in the way.

On the hunt.

Almost there.

You found it!!!

They were supposed to sit on them and pop them, but that didn't work out, so out came the fork.

My what big rings you have.

Freeze dance!!!!

Present time!!!

We got a few smiles out of her, but most of the time Audrey was soooo seriouse.

Happy Birthday to you!

Happy Birthday dear Audrey!

Happy brithday to you!!!

Good to the last lick!!!

MY LITTLE CUDDLE BUG

2007-09-20T05:11:00.000-07:00

Today is Audrey's Birthday!!! I can't believe she is four!!! And still as sweet as ever.

ABBY'S FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

2007-09-16T17:34:00.000-07:00

Well my baby is going off into the world with out me. I tell you what, it sure was hard to put her on that bus the first day.

She of course was EXCITED!! Maybe a little nervouse, but mosty excited.

She has finished two weeks and is still having fun.

A Sailing We Will Go

2007-09-01T07:12:00.000-07:00

We got lucky and went for a sail!!! Brandon had a hold of the tiller most of the time, and had a blast!!

The day was beautiful big puffy clouds in the sky, a great breeze, and no swell.

The girls even got a turn sailing the boat.

Here is the crew minus my Aunt Anna who was taking the picture.

It felt so good to get out on the water. Even though we always live near the ocean, I barely ever get a chance to get out there. Someday I am going to buy some sort of boat so we can go when ever we want. Even if it's just for a paddle around in a little row boat!!

AT THE CAUSEWAY

2007-07-25T11:50:00.000-07:00

These pictures were taken in South West Harbor Maine. My Grandparents live just up the lane from this spot. How awesome is it that they can find this on a leisurely stroll down the road?

The kids all ran ahead of us on the road. When we cleared the trees this is what we saw.

"Hurry up you guys!"

Audrey exploring the rocks.

The Causeway spans the entrance to Norwood Cove. It is quiet a sight to see the tide flow in or out. The water surges through the small opening at a pretty fast pace. There are all sorts of bottom dwellers eating off of the oceans riches along the rocks. Below is a seagull taking advantage of that.

Here is Dee giving Rosie bunny ears. Too funny.

Whoops, watch that puddle Audrey.

heading off to explore the causeway.

Look a picture of me!!!

2007-07-21T14:00:00.001-07:00

Jennifer is here visiting for a while, and she asked if I wanted to go down town early one morning and get some pictures taken. I am so glad I did. I would have to say that this is pretty much the first time that I have looked at a picture of myself and actually liked it.

SWING SET

2007-07-16T21:08:00.000-07:00

I don't know how this swing set holds all of these kids, but so far so good.

From left to right, Abby, Anna, Audrey, Krista, Caleb.

Little miss Anna can swing all by her self now. She sure is growing up fast!!!

LETS GO FLY A KITE

2007-07-15T20:51:00.000-07:00

There wasn't a lot of wind getting through the trees into our yard, but with a little bit of running the kids could get the kite off of the ground for a bit.

Go Abby!!!

My niece Krista helping out.

Man can my nephew Caleb run!!!

CRESENT BEACH

2007-07-13T20:41:00.000-07:00

Beach day!!!! Hurray!!!! It was a gorgeous day, not hot enough for the adults to go in the water, but the kids had a blast. We just sat up the beach a bit and tried to relax… They made sand castles and ran from waves. Collected rocks and shells, played with Bridget. We even had a picnic lunch. What fun!!!!

Anna playing with her friend Kole

Run girls run!!!

BBBRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!

OUR NEW CAT

2007-07-06T20:11:00.000-07:00

I recently talked Brandon into letting me have another kitty. As soon as he said fine I went right to the animal shelter before he would change his mind.
I had been there probably about 45 minutes trying to figure out what little kitty would be best for our family. When the lady who was helping me remembered a cat that had recently been brought in and wasn’t with the other cats yet. His name was Tubs, fitting I think. I fell in love with him and took him home that day.
Molly our other kitty was a bit pissed of to say the least, but with in a week was used to having the new guy around. Sam or otherwise know as Sam Sam according to Anna is great. He could care less about the chaos a household with 3 kids has. He is calm and puts up with pretty much whatever is dished out. Including my sister, bother in law, niece, nephew, and their dog all coming to visit a week after we got him.
These pictures are of Sam lying in the cat grass. The grass is dead now, but before it bit the dust he would lay on it, looking out the window and every once in a while bending down his head to take a little nibble of the grass. To funny, he did knock it over a few times and then the grass had just had enough. I now grow it somewhere else and in a smaller pot. So anyway, welcome Sam!!!

Taking a bite.

Just a bit squished.

Fouth of July Parade

2007-07-04T19:46:00.000-07:00

It was a lot of work getting to this parade…

We had stayed out late the night before and were not really planning on going. I woke up that morning and decided that the kids would never forgive us if we didn’t go. So we all rushed around and piled in our van. With poor Mike (brother-in-law) stuck on the floor.

We were running late so we wanted to go to the side of town where the end of the parade was. We were nearing our destination when we started to see cars parked along the road. I was not to happy to see this, because it was going to be a long walk and not much time left to get there. Not a good thing when you have 5 kids with you.

We bustled along going fast enough to pass a woman with two young children. Thank goodness I remembered the stroller. We made it to the top of the hill and could see the parade coming way down the street. We had made it. We chugged a ton of water and by the time we had gotten a chance to relax the parade had arrived. The kids loved it!!! Anna plugged her ears a few times especial when the fire trucks went by. I am not sure if it was from the sirens or Bridget (Jen and Mikes dog) howling every time they went off.

ABBY LOST HER FIRST TOOTH

2007-06-29T19:32:00.000-07:00

It all began one afternoon when Abby bit into her apple. I soon heard her say, "My tooth is loose!"
About a week later it was just about out, but Abby was just too scared to pull it the rest of the way. My friend Jody came to the rescue one night and out it came, no pain at all.
Abby put the tooth under her pillow that night when she went to bed. Her and Audrey woke me up the next m0rning with much excitment showing me the gold dollar coin the tooth fairy had left. I was so excited and said, "Oh WOW".
I then rolled over and saw that it was six in the morning. "Go back to bed" soon followed the oh wows and the girls hurried out of my room.
Abby was very excited to find out later after more searching that the tooth fairy had left her tooth for her to keep.
This smile is a bit out dated. She now is missing her two front bottom teath.

Tea and Popovers

2007-06-11T19:10:00.000-07:00

Going to Jordon pond and having tea (iced coffee) and popovers at the restaurant is a family tradition over here. If the weather is nice you can sit at a picnic table out on the lawn shaded by a big umbrella. Or if it's a bit drizzly you can sit indoors. Either way there is a view down to the lake. I love it!!!

Hmmmm!

Yum!!

YUUUUUMMMMYYYYYYY!!!!

Rosie and Dee (aka my grandparents)

Going exploring with Grandpa Bill.

Mount Desert Island

2007-06-11T17:23:00.000-07:00

Acadia National Park

We took Brandon's parents Bill and Jane up to Mount Desert Island to see the park and have lunch with my Grandparents. It was a beautiful day and we all had so much fun.

Smores

2007-06-10T16:17:00.000-07:00

Gotta love summer...

Uh oh Abby, quick blow it out!!!

She may look a little worried, but she was having a lot of fun. Audrey was determined to get her marshmellows toasted. It took her a while, but she didn't give up.

Kevin working hard

What a mess!!!

Kole sneaking in for some treats.

I love this shot of Brandon and the girls.

Jane looks like she was having fun.

How did her face get worse???

Emma striking a pose.

Eating up.

Katie and Justin.

Jodie

Summer fun.

Lobster

2007-06-09T15:14:00.000-07:00

While Bill and Jane were visiting they wanted to eat some Maine lobster. So Brandon took them down too Jess's market to pick out a few. They came back with this one!

Look at this monster!!!

Yummy!

What is this thing?

This thing is awsome!!

Happy faces.

Digging in!!!

Brandon making the lobster talk to the girls.

Getting to work.

OWLS HEAD LIGHT HOUSE

2007-06-08T10:39:00.000-07:00

Jane, Erick, Bill, Brandon, and Anna.

I want this view.

That was a lot of stairs.

In we go...

Grandma Jane and Anna.

Help me please Daddy.

Clasic Abby face. She is still cute even when she is pouting

Bill and Jane's Christmas card.

BUBBLES

2007-06-08T09:41:00.000-07:00

Anna was blowing bubbles, and Grandpa Bill decided to join in on the fun. That’s one of the things that are great about kids. You can play right along with them.

A new park discovered

2007-06-05T08:35:00.000-07:00

Brandon’s brother Erick came to visit us in June. On one of our outings we went to a park in Camden. I had no idea how wonderful it was. We parked our car along the street and walked down the grassy hill. The view was beautiful…

We wondered along the waters edge and at the end of the trail we saw a waterfall. They actually built the town of Camden over the river. At the top of the falls you can see restaurant decks built right over the water. What a great place to eat!!!

After blowing the seeds off of a few million dandilions we headed back up the hill.

This is Camden Harbor. I would love to take a sail on one of those boats.

Uncle Erick

The girls picking more flowers.

Brandon

2007-06-05T08:22:00.000-07:00

He could have just won a great hand playing poker, or maybe he just sunk a pirate ship. Aargh!!!!

Gotta love these girls

2007-04-04T16:47:00.000-07:00

Brandon called me this morning and said he was on his way home. The stomach bug has hit him. It seems that this family can never be free of being sick. As soon as we all get over something, someone comes down with something different.
So he has been sleeping all day. He came down stairs for a bit this afternoon. The girls love to cuddle, so when they saw a certain Daddy sitting on the couch all alone they thought perfect. So before Brandon knew what hit him he had his three beautiful girls sitting all over him. There is nothing better than that to make a Daddy feel better. Well at least for a little while. They were soon all told to find a new seat so Daddy could lay down and sleep some more. Poor guy.

You will also see in this picture Abby and Audrey’s hair dues. I took them in to get long over due hair cuts and the lady styled their hair so CUTE!!! They had a blast, and even got to have a sucker afterwards. Pretty soon its going to be time to bring little Anna in for her first hair cut. It’s going to be so hard to cut her little ringlets.

Our New Friends

2007-04-04T16:26:00.000-07:00

We have been seeing a family of deer in our yard lately. They started showing up about a month or so ago. I think there is a mother with two young ones. We all love to watch them, but usually we only get a glimpse before they dart of into the trees. There is something about everyone in our family running to the windows to catch a glimpse that scares them.

Today we were lucky. They must be getting used to seeing us stare at them, because today they stuck around for a bit. They are gorgeous animals. I know I don’t want them hanging out around the house, because they will eat all of my plants once spring arrives, but I still love to see them.

So anyway, here are a few pictures of our new friends. Note the snow. We are supposed to get a total of nine inches by Saturday.

Misc. pictures

2007-03-26T09:10:00.000-07:00

So it's been a while since I have posted any pics on here, so here are some misc. ones I picked out of our March folder. Enjoy...

The Bug

2007-03-26T08:49:00.000-07:00

We have had an interesting couple of weeks. There has been a bug traveling around this house. It has claimed three people so far.
The first victim was Audrey. We awoke to the sounds of puking in the middle of the night. They lasted until the morning. After a few days of recovery and a couple more occurrences of puking we were convinced we were free and clear of anyone else getting it.
Then the sounds awoke us again… This time it was Abby. There was another long night and a few days of recovery. Again we let our guard down thinking Anna, Brandon, and I had escaped it.
But yet again we awoke to the sounds. It was little Anna. From 2:30 in the morning until 9 am she was puking. Brandon slept with her on a make shift bed in our room on the floor waking up each time she started (I know he is a GREAT Dad). The night seemed endless, but we survived yet again. So after loads and loads of dirty blankets, PJs, and pillows I think we are free and clear.
Or so I thought… Abby just called from the play room “Anna has to throw up” I ran for the bowl. Anna came out not looking to sick. Abby said that Anna actually told her she had to throw up. So I gave Anna the bowl. She headed off to the living room and I asked her where she was going. And she said “Cartoons”
What a sneaky little girl I have. She wasn’t feeling sick at all, she just wanted to watch TV and she knew that when she was sick I let her watch it. I didn’t fall for it. It was a good way to get a good laugh at the end of this attack by the stomach bug.

TATTOO

2007-03-06T15:23:00.000-08:00

Well I finally did it!!!! I went in and got a tattoo!!! I have only been trying to work up the nerve for years!!!! The flowers are Forget me nots which is the state flower of Alaska (alaskan pride baby!!) and I had them put three so there would be one for each of the girls. So far I love it, but I have only had it for a couple of hours, so we will see how I feel tomorrow :)

Snow Day

2007-03-02T20:48:00.000-08:00

I knew it was coming, but when I woke up this morning too snow falling from the sky, it still surprised me. Deep down I was hoping that we had finally escaped the clutches of winter, and spring was on the way. No such luck!

We must have gotten around a foot of snow here today. I know that isn’t much to people who live in New York State or anything, but I haven’t seen snow like this in a while.

I was telling Brandon, that snow was a lot easier to deal with in Port Alexander. All we had to do there was make sure our skiffs were not going to sink from the weight. Oh and of course shovel our very long board walk, ugh… Of course I was just a kid then and it seems that childhood memories always have a bit of frosting too them. I do wish that I didn’t have to worry about driving on the roads around here. Nothing like being stuck in your house for days on end! Brandon had to drive home from work today going just 25 mph and that’s in a 55 mph zone.

The pictures I have posted on here are of the plow’s second trip down our drive way. As you can see the mountain of snow that they piled up was about as high as the cab of their truck!!
The kids would have had a blast playing in it tomorrow, except for the fact that it is now raining and by tomorrow will be a horrible mess. Oh and did I mention that it is supposed to drop down below zero on Monday, and all the way down to 18 on Tuesday? That will make a wonderful FROZEN mess of all the melting snow.

I also took some pictures of Brandon getting some exercise. We both probably shoveled about three times each today. Fun stuff…

Rockland House

2007-02-22T14:33:00.000-08:00

So you drive up our oh so long drivway and park by an amazing veiw.

We are surrounded by trees in all directions.

When you walk into our house you will see this. To the right is our laundry room/mud room. In front of you is the hall that passes through the kitchen and dining room all the way down to the play room on the end.

Here is our huge laundry room/mud room.

When you walk down the hall and look to the right you will see our kitchen. I sure miss our old one in Thomaston, but this one isn't bad at all.

The the left is our dining room slash office.

If you walk into the dining room at take a look to the right you will see the stairs and beyond is the living room.

Notice the big blue thing on the left. That is so the cat will stop destorying the walls and furniture. She loves it. I wish it were a diferant color.

Check out my new plant.

If you keep walking through the living room you will reach the hall again. On your left is the playroom.

The play room is HUGE. The girls love it and actually play in there all the time. Can't you tell?

Head back out to the hall and on your left is the bathroom.

Next I will take you down to the basement which is a door on the right.

watch your step on the stairs.

Still a lot of work to get done down here.

The new guest room.

All the out side toys set up inside, because it's to cold outside.

Out the basement door.

Lets head up stairs to the bedrooms.

The bathroom is at the top of the stairs.

To right of the stairs is the girl's room.

Twin bunk beds, a full size bed, a crib, 3 dressers, a book shelve, a chair, loads of dirty laundry, and it is still huge!!!

Take a walk across the hall and you reach the master bedroom.

It is bigger then the girls room.

I still have a pile to go through in this room.

I love that I have so much room. Now if I could just keep my desk clean so I could use it, that would be great!

2007-01-02T18:24:00.000-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

This happened all on it's own.

PRESENTS!!

Molly crawled into the wrapping paper bag, too funny.

Watching Daddy open his gift from them.

It's a rhinoceros (a joke he does with the girls all the time)

No Daddy it's a Mario Kart Yoshi remote controll car!!!

Here have a bow

Cheeze

What could it be?

No girls, Na Na didn't forget about you.

Check out what was in the closet!!!!

SOUTHWEST HARBOR

Not really sure what this face is for.

Nayan having fun with his new toy.

Abby trying to figure out the dang ribbon.

Checking out her puzzle.

Sawyer got a hair ball, all the kids loved it.

Miss Mia.

Caught ya Lunn. Playing with Nayan's remot control car.

Anna, Abby, Nayan, Audrey, Sawyer, and Mia

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

Christmas Eve

2007-01-02T18:06:00.000-08:00

All set for Santa.

They all wanted this one!

Pizza anyone?

I think she liked it.

Twas the night before Christmas...

Lady Bugs

2007-01-02T17:56:00.000-08:00

So it started in the middle of December...

Lady bugs have moved in. It must be to cold out side for them. They like Abby's bedroom much better. Now they are spreading through out the house. This evening the family was sitting around the dinner table eating peacefully (yeah right), when Abby said, "There is a lady bug on my plate!!" It's nice that they are a bug that I don't mind, but I can't figure it out. Since when do you see lady bugs in the middle of winter especially in MAINE!!!

Oh Christmas tree

2006-12-10T14:16:00.000-08:00

The Christmas season is upon us again. This year we found our tree in Rosie and Dee’s yard. We searched and searched and finally found the perfect one. By then the kids had gotten distracted and were feeding the chickens, so I had to call them over to watch the tree get cut down. I was lucky and Dee didn’t mind doing the hard part! We then hulled it over to the car and tied it up on top (that sure was fun, not). Next was the two hour car ride home. Luckily it made it with no injuries.
After getting all the kids, luggage, and other miscellaneous stuff from out visit into the house I went back out to the car to get the tree down. Once it was inside I realized that it was about 6 inches or more too tall!! Aaarrrrrrgggggg!!!!!! Instead of sawing the bottom off with my tiny little saw, I decided to snip the top. I was relieved to see that it looked fine, so proceeded to set up the tree. After much wrestling, poking, cursing, and eventually tying the tree to the ceiling by way of plant hanger and wire it was ready to decorate.
This year I had decided to let go of control of the perfect ness of the tree and let the kids help. I started by opening up the tubs of decorations (that was a mistake) then proceeded with the lights, and then the beads, then the glass bulbs were going to be next. But by the time the beads were done I was going crazy trying to keep the kids out of the ornaments and other decorations while trying to put on the things they couldn’t do. I finally gave up on being a great Mom and letting them help and said, “Lets put on a cartoon, Abby pick it out please.”
Well that was all fine and dandy except Abby didn’t want to put down the snow globe she was playing with so she had it in her hands trying to get a movie when SMASH it crashed to the floor. WWWWAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!! I loved that Mom!!!! Can we get another one!!!!! WWWWWWAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!! I walked behind the chair where she was standing. And saw very thin pieces of glass mixed in with water, lots of snow, and glitter scattered all over the floor, on the chair back, and under our cabinet. Ugh… I hate broken glass…
I put the movie on, cleaned up the mess, decorated for about 10 minutes, then put the kids to bed and finished the tree later. The next morning I let the kids put on the ornaments they had made while up in South West Harbor. They thought that was great, and I thought, why didn’t I just do that in the first place?????
Anyway our tree turned out great and I love it!!! Now if I can just keep my cat from breaking all the ornaments…

EIGHT ORANGES

2006-11-29T13:50:00.000-08:00

I have eight oranges that I don’t feel like peeling; I think we will make some juice…

Work it girls!!

The remains...

The product!! Good job girls!!

How is it?!?!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ABBY!!!

2006-11-29T10:06:00.000-08:00

"I have been wanting this game"

Making shadows.

The ribbon curtain into Fairy land.

Fiddle head breadsticks, chicken wands, and of course sparkling apple cider.

Everyone got fairy dust on their cheeks.

Lots of friends and presents.

All the boys were excited about this present, of course it had to charge for five hours.

Blowing out FIVE candles.

Catching butterfies.