If It's Not One Thing...

So the morning sickness seems to be subsiding as it usually does at this stage in my pregnancy. Then the heartburn kicked in and was especially rough last week, but even that seems to be getting a little better -- so things should be good right? No Worries...

...Except that it would appear that we have a mouse problem. Let me start by saying our house is NOT dirty. Not to mention, I have a cat...and a dog for what it's worth, which apparently isn't much, because there's still mice in my house. I have no idea how many and I have yet to see one, but we've found the droppings. This is of course exactly what every mother of 2 small children and one on the way wants to hear...that there are mice in her house. At first we thought we had caught it early, that there was probably just one -- and we even thought maybe it went away on it's own since we cleaned up the evidence and it was days before we saw more. No such luck. A few days later we noticed that the mouse trap Chris set was empty...no mouse, no peanut butter either. Chris kinda grinned a sheepish, "my bad, I'll set it on 'sensitive' this time". So he loaded it with more peanut butter and set it on sensitive. We still have yet to find a mouse, but have found more droppings not just under the kitchen sink, but in the laundry room closet, the coat closet and, yes, today even the pantry. To make it all worse, Chris leaves on Sunday for a month in VA...so who gets to empty the traps once he's gone? You guessed it, my neighbor's husband :)

I called the housing maintenance office since technically this should be their issue as well as mine, and it seems to be a common problem here on base. Their solution is to drop off some glue traps for me to put out - ????? Some help that is. Who gets to remove the live stuck mouse then? So I'm going to try and drag Chris back out to town with me tonight to pick up more mouse catching supplies and set them everywhere we can think of, which really isn't many places when you also have 2 small children and pets to worry about! Lord, give me strength!

And as if a mouse infestation isn't enough, the freezer appears to be broken. If the thawed meat wasn't proof enough, the ice bin full of water was. So I let the housing office know that little tidbit of information when I called this morning as well, yet here it is 3:15pm and no one has been by to check on the problem before all my food goes bad. I guess technically it won't go bad as long as we cook it all in the next couple days. Lucky for me the freezer has scarcely been full since my morning sickness hit a couple months ago. However the amount of 'convenience foods' in there has gone up, and there's really no saving those once they thaw :)

Say a prayer for a quick resolution to these nuisances and that once there is resolution, we also get a break for a while.

Shake It...

...Don't Break It!

Horse Play

These pictures are courtesy of Clara - she did a GREAT job!

Gitti-up, Daddy!

Holdin' On!

Gotta love that smile (and the laugh that goes with it!)

It's a Good Thing He's Cute...

...'Cause sometimes I worry about his smarts!

Superman doing a crime sweep!

Eating Bubbles

Looks appetizing, doesn't it?

And my favorite...Mr. Potato Head. He seriously walks around the house playing like this.

Only Mickey Mouse gloves can complete this outfit!

Clap, Clap!

Princess Clara

Grandma Yonka and Grandpa Michael sent the kids cards for Valentine's Day. The kids love receiving mail - esp. cards. Grandma and Grandpa really know how to pick them. Both of Clara's cards were Disney Princess-themed to which Clara's response was, "Awww, they must know that I really like princesses!"

Each of the kids got one card that played music (Jonathan's even had a recorded message from Grandma and Grandpa), and one card with some sort of art project within it. Jonathan hasn't colored his yet, but here's a picture of Clara's finished project -- a bracelet and crown decorated by stickers!

I'm in trouble, she has learned to pose!

Thank You Grandma Yonka and Grandpa Michael!

Valentine's Day

Saturday morning Clara and Chris had a special Valentine's Date at Lowes to make a Jewelry box through their free program "Build and Grow". Clara was super excited to get the chance to make a special project with tools!

Lowes equipped her with Clara-size safety goggles, hammer, and apron - and she was ready to go!

Swingin' her hammer like a pro!

In addition to the awesome project, Lowes also gives the kids an iron on patch for their apron each time they come to do a project!

Clara couldn't wait to put her jewelry inside it when she got home!

Isn't that the cutest little jewelry box?

I got her to sign the bottom and put her age. Chris picked up some polyurethane while they were there so they can protect it.

Check out Lowes' website for upcoming projects. https://lowesbuildandgrow.com/ Currently they'll be making Jimmie Johnson cars on the 28th and Tabletop basketball on March 14th. You can check availability and sign up at the Lowes near you and on the website above. I know Home Depot has a similar program as well, but I don't know if they have a way to check it out online. Clara and Chris had a lot of fun. Chris said many people brought their younger children along as well (i.e. Jonathan) I wasn't sure if they'd allow him there for safety issues. It's definitely something we'll do again!

Call CPS!

Yesterday I took the kids to Walmart to pick up a few groceries and such. As we were walking through the meat department I was messing around with Clara, as I was in a good mood for a change (the morning sickness is finally starting to wear off!) I was doing that thing where you bend your foot up behind you and 'kick' the person next to you on the bottom. It's hilarious to do it to Jonathan, because he's not quite old enough to know the taps on the bottom must be coming from me, and he dutifully turns around and looks behind him each time I 'kick' him. Clara, on the other hand, knows it has to be me, even though I can usually get her about 6-10 times before she is quick enough to catch me doing it!

Anyway...I was pushing Jonathan in the shopping cart and 'kicking' Clara on the bottom and after a few times she managed to slip as she tried to get away from me. She fell and somehow managed to get her thumb caught up in the wheel of the shopping cart -- the one with the little stoppers they put on them now to prevent shopping cart theft. I don't think I ran over her thumb, but I am certain that her thumb came into contact with that wheel in some way and the outermost layer of skin was scraped back a little. We're not talking any blood or anything, but it certainly had to hurt. She cried, I hugged her, apologized, suggested we not mess around anymore in Walmart, and promised a Band-aid once we got home.

Once we got home and washed up her hand, added a little neosporin and a Sesame Street Band-aid (one for Jonathan, too) - all was good as new. Clara was proud of her battle scar and couldn't wait for her friends to ask her what happened to her thumb!

A while later Clara headed outside and down the street in search of friends to play with. She came back and informed me that she had told Mrs. Sarah what had happened to her thumb, "She didn't ask me, but I told her anyway." It wasn't until then that it occured to me just what the story was going to sound like coming from Clara. Sure enough, later in the evening I had the chance to overhear Clara tell another neighbor how it happened, "My mom and I were kicking each other and I fell down and she ran over my thumb." And again over dinner as she told the same story to Chris...I was laughing so hard tears came to my eyes as Chris inquired for more information. It's all a matter of perspective.

Mom Knows Best

So I'm sure I've mentioned a few times that both of my kids (as well as myself) are picky eaters. One of the few cooked vegetables my kids will eat is green beans. I like to make fresh green beans rather than the canned ones. I just really can't get myself to eat the canned ones anymore, and have gotten the fresh ones down to a science: Just add a cup of water and 4.5 minutes in the microwave in my Pampered Chef steam bowl, drain water, add butter, sprinkle with Seasoned Salt and Viola! the kids love them.

A few weeks ago while I was being puny, Chris made green beans with dinner. He is used to cooking them in the electric steamer for 35 minutes. I told him it's so much faster to do it in the microwave for a few minutes. So he pacified me by cooking them in the microwave, but only for about 3 minutes. Clara was sure to tell him she didn't like them that crunchy and refused to finish them.

The other night Chris was late coming home from work, so I threw together a quick dinner for the kids and myself with green beans as a side (He's still been doing most of the cooking since food is still a bit of an 'iffy' subject for me). When Chris came home from work the kids were still sitting at the table finishing their dinner. The first thing Clara said to Chris when he came in was, "See Daddy, this is how I like green beans, like mommy makes them, not crunchy like you made them!"

I LOVE THAT GIRL!!!