Letters

These are all the letters that Mac knows from sight.  I actually think he knows more but this was unrehearsed. :)

My favorite things Mac says lately-

"OH MY GOSH!"

"hippopotamus"

"playground"

"goodnight"

Last week was Spring Break. We didn't do much. Had lots of company, dog sat, went to SixFlags but mostly just hung out at home.

I read The Hunger Games. So did Nolan! It was grrreat. I will probably not read the next two in the series though. The movie will have to answer my questions.  Nolan bought and has started the second book. 

Everyone here is great.  Here are some random pictures.

Weekend

Nolan played a great season of basketball!  It almost makes me want to watch professional ball.  Almost!  

It was a BEAUTIFUL weekend.  The big kids rode their bikes to the lake/park near our home.  Kennedy and I followed comfortably in the car.  

The big girls and I have been watching the Twilight movies on dvd, along with my niece Megan.  We watched the first three over the weekend and have plans for the 4th tonight.  I read the books a while back, I'm slow, ok? I'm definitely not going to be a fanatic, but they have been fun.  Megan has talked me into reading "The Hunger Games".  Sounds scary and weird but she has  been backed up by many others.  The movie comes out soon, so I need to hurry! 

Could you survive on your own, in the wild, with everyone fighting against you?

Twenty-four are forced to enter. Only the winner survives. In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. Each year, the districts are forced by the Capitol to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the Hunger Games, a brutal and terrifying fight to the death - televised for all of Panem to see.

Survival is second nature for sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who struggles to feed her mother and younger sister by secretly hunting and gathering beyond the fences of District 12. When Katniss steps in to take the place of her sister in the Hunger Games, she knows it may be her death sentence. If she is to survive, she must weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

WINNING WILL MAKE YOU FAMOUS. LOSING MEANS CERTAIN DEATH. 

Current favs

My current favorite things said by Markus-

Yes, of course.

Guess what?

Spectacular!

Let's go.

Go away!

Reagan made A/B honor roll!  Haven't seen other report cards yet.

Some cute Reagan quotes- "Is jail kinda like time out for grown ups?". "I think the people at Sonic are mean, cause they don't let you eat inside.  They just make you sit in your car with your food".

Myself, Karrigan, Mac and Nolan have all been sick with sinus/cold/allergy/ear junk.  I can't wait for the house to be snot free!  So far only Nolan has required a doctor visit.  He had a bad ear infection, but he is much better now. 

Karrigan started a new season of volleyball.  She wasn't going to play this season, but softball was canceled since there weren't enough players signed up for our division. :(  Volleyball was an easy second choice! 

Nolan plays the last two games of the basketball season tomorrow.  One of those games determines if his team will make it to the play offs.  We haven't won a lot of games this season, but Nolan has made huge personal improvements!

Happy weekend! 

Love this!

Sad news

My Grandpa died on Sunday.  I left for Oklahoma on Friday morning.  I got to spend Friday afternoon/evening and Saturday morning/afternoon with him.  He knew me when I got there.  He always cries when I first arrive, that tears me UP!  He was aware of the people in his room.  He would answer yes/no questions, say what was hurting him and short phrases like "love you too".  He would watch Fox News with one eye. lol  It's fair to say he was never too sick for politics!  He started Hospice Saturday and passed Sunday afternoon.  He went very peacefully, with my aunt and uncles with him. He was so frail, so tired, so ready for Heaven!!  My nephew (Levi) and I talked a lot about Grandpa's passing.   I told Levi how strange it is for me to feel my own grief, the heavy coat of sadness, and to know that Grandpa is not sad.  Grandpa doesn't miss us!  He isn't mourning or dazed, he can't feel sad!  He is is HEAVEN!  He is with our Lord.   He is with his wife and parents, friends and family.  He will never want or need anything again!!  We should rejoice in that!  He also left an AMAZING legacy for his family.  When a loved one dies, people tend to remember the good things, to idolize the person and "beef up" their memory, if you will.  NO ONE will have to beef up Grandpa's life or legacy.  He was the kindest, most gentle, caring, selfless, generous, hard working, loving man I have even known.  I never heard him say an unkind word....to anyone!!  He honored his God EVERY day.  He loved his wife EVERY day and honored her.  Do you know how many promises I have ever known Grandpa not to keep?  Zero.  Do you know how many times I ever heard him raise his voice in anger?  Zero.  Do you know how many times he "just needed to get away", either from the kids or his wife?  Zero.  Do you know how many times he let his family down?  Zero.  It seems "super human", but it's all true.  He loved....loved....his family.  And we loved him.  Like I told Levi, it's our job now to carry on Grandpa's legacy.  We now have to make others feel the undeserving, but unwavering love that he made us feel. I imagine I will write a lot more about Grandpa.  There is a lot to talk about. :)

Grandpa, I love you!  

Upside Down

I was playing with Markus this evening, holding him upside down and kissing him.  He would laugh so big that all his teeth were showing and say "upside down".  I was so impressed by this!!  What a BIG thing to say!!  So I kept doing it!  Then I noticed  HUGE booger in one nostril.  I mean BIG.  I had to fish this baby outta there!  So I held him down and with the rounded end of a bobby pen, set out on a mission.  As it turns out... it was not a booger, but a huge piece of fuzz.  Maybe from the carpet, maybe a blanket, who knows.  Mac is obsessed with rubbing soft things on his nose.  I guess he thought "the closer the better".  This thing must have been in there a while, because blood and goop had formed around it and it bled for a little while after I took it out.  I'm sure it didn't feel good, getting ripped out!  But I also am sure he is feeling like a new man, with it taken out! :) Oxygen is your friend!  We "skyped" with his birth father and grandparents this evening, as we do often.  What a great invention!  Tomorrow is back to school for the big kids.  Glad it's a short week.  

2012

It's 2012 and about time I update the blog!!  So much is going on, it's hard to make time for blogging.  I have started working from home on the computer, so IF I get any free time for the computer, it's spent working and not blogging. :)   Not to mention the cleaning, feeding and chasing of 5 busy kids.  
Cute memory....when Kennedy was 3-4, she got a watch.  Whenever you asked her what time it is, she always gave the same answer "twenty twelve".  I think about that often, now that the year is 2012.  

Basketball season is underway.  Nolan and Reagan are playing this season (on different leagues), Karrigan decided not to play.  I was disappointed, I love watching her.  School is rocking along.  We are all counting down the days till the next break!!  School and homework STINK.  The kids have one day off tomorrow, then a week in March.  
I know you want to hear about Markus.  He is....in a word....AWESOME.  He talks talks talks all the time.  There is nothing he CAN'T say.  He makes all of his needs known and anything he is unhappy about. He calls everyone by name, even people he doesn't see very often.  He is as active and busy as ever.  He is rarely still.  He can get wherever he wants and lots of places I'd rather him not be. :)  His favorite toys right now are the musical ones.  He loves instruments!  He still loves books and likes several tv shows.  At the top of his tv list is Blues Clues, Dora the Explorer and Yo Gabba Gabba.  He loves animals.  He loves to talk about animals, make sounds, watch shows with animals, sing about animals, etc.  He loves to bathe and always needs to!  Even when he just got out! lol  
The kids had their first rodent.  It WAS a guinea pig named WeeWee.  Everyone loved him.  Then the dogs killed him.  Yep, it's the circle of guinea pig life. lol  So....there is a new pig  now, named Charlie.  Charlie lives at Randy's place.  Which is another thing I need to mention.  Randy has moved out of the house.  We have filed for divorce.  So far the kids are doing well.  I am keeping a close eye on them though.  
My Grandpa is not well at all.  Since I last blogged, he has been in the hospital a couple of times.  He has deteriorated so much now that the family isn't making him do PT or even get out of bed.  They just keep him company and make sure his needs are met.  I just HATE that his life has come to this.  He was such a wonderful human being.  Now he is a shell, just existing.  :(
I hope your year is off to a grrrreat start!  I am looking forward to everything the year has to bring, both trials and triumphs!  I'm looking forward to watching the kids grow in body and mind.  And having the pleasure of getting to teach and also learn life lessons.