We can do it!

We can make resolutions that we stick with

October

Saturday October 29th, snow! The perfect snow, three to four inches, fluffy and white, melted by the next day.



I went around taking photos of the halloween decorations covered in snow. Here are our pumpkins enduring the storm.


Luigi, McQueen and a kitty cat all ready for the Halloween parade and to go trick or treating!

Ok, NOW you can judge me

Once a month a local antique store has a design open house that I like to visit. The store is open 7 days a week, but once a month they decorate a single family home on the property with new furnishings, holiday decorations and other such sundries. I like to go and get ideas and the kids don't mind because there are always neat things lying around. It is known to them as the "Buffalo House" as the main store used to have a stuffed Buffalo Head (which someone recently purchased!), now replaced with a stuffed Yak head.

I like to go on Friday to avoid the crowds, but I should have known the "holiday" house would draw crowds all three days. So we waited for Charlie to get home from school and by 11:30 we were on the road north.

It was so crowded when we arrived. The design house made me claustrophobic. While all the finely dressed women looked for Christmas decorations, this no showered, 12 year-old northface fleece jacket wear-er surged through the crowds with two little boys. I was on a hunt for some furniture pieces that would round out some empty rooms in our house and this store rarely disapoints.

Dining room buffet, check! Bench for dining room table, check! Upholstered chair for family room, check! A few other little tchotchke's and I am ready to pay.

Thankfully the store set up an outdoor cashier, so I told the boys they could play where I could see them while I waited to pay.

Not two minutes later Jackson comes up to tell me he has to go to the bathroom.
Of course.
The nice woman behind me tells me she will hold my spot. Yay! No port-a-potty within sight, Boo! I rush him behind a barn and ask him if he has to poop, "no", another YAY!

As I get back in line, Charlie comes over to tell me he lost his toy in the pile of leaves near the barn. I tell him I will help him when I am finished which should be any minute now but feels like forever.

Finally, I am next in line. I can see Charlie sitting on the stone bench waiting for me and I can see Jackson's bight yellow coat (with him in it, thank goodness) playing in the pile of leaves. I pay, rush over to find Jackson standing half naked in the pile of leaves announcing to me he has pooped.

This is where I feel like time slowed and as I looked around saw everyone laughing, pointing while I turned bright red. As I pulled up his pants (should I wipe him with leaves?) he kept telling me "I didn't do it in my pants!" as I kept asking "Why didn't you come and get me?"
Besides this incident, I have let him urinate outside several times. Never have I let him defecate, we always find a bathroom for that...until now.

Trying to figure out the correct way to handle this situation, Charlie asks if we can find his toy now. I looked down at the pile of leaves and just laughed. No way was I going to stick my hand in that pile of leaves to find a $.20 toy. As his lip trembled, I told him we would stop at the Dollar store and get a new one, as I don't think he realized his toy was now probably covered in human feces.

Little man is pretty independent. I love that he is willing to get himself a drink or snack, put on his shoes, come looking for me OUTSIDE of the house (YIKES!), he is a go-getter. More often than not, I am caught by surprise at what he can do at age 3. Oh boy, caught by surprise this time is an understatement. When I asked him again why he went right there in the middle of all those people, he told me because that way I could still see him and he wouldn't get in trouble. Love this boy!
But yeah, I am THAT mom who can't control her kid and lets him poop in public.

Don't judge me, HELP me!

I would say we had a busy week, but I seem to say that every week. So I will just concede that we have a busy life. Most of it self-induced, but so be it.

I will get to Lucy's adoption story one of these days, she is too cute for words.

In trying to give this new dog a stable environment (which reads "I don't want her chewing things while we are out of the house"), Lucy, Jackson and I took a trip to the pet store to buy a crate and a few other things she desperately needed (the knit sweater is an absolute must for a short haired, underweight dog in the winter!).

As soon as we arrived at the automatic doors I realized she probably has never been shopping (how uncivilized!). Skittish and pulling in the opposite direction were good indicators.

We managed to get through the doors and she actually seemed to enjoy the outing. All kinds of people petting her, dogs wagging their tails at her and picking out new toys had her relaxed a bit...until we had to walk through the doors again.

This time the doors freaked her enough that she got in the way of the shopping cart. So jumpy, she pulled her neck right out of her collar and ran right across the parking lot. Heart pounding I yelled her name, but why would she come to me? I am a perfect stranger to her, I have traumatized her and she has only been called Lucy since August. I am sure she keeps looking at all of us calling her this and thinking, "Who the HELL is Lucy??!!"

Telling Jackson to stay by the cart on the sidewalk, I walked quickly across the parking lot to the little spot of grass Lucy had found and is sniffing (thank you town of Leesburg for perfectly placing that fire hydrant!). I grabbed her by the skin of her neck, put the collar back on and dragged her to our car. While I am opening the car door and getting her situated, I see my little man strolling up behind me.

My three year old crossing the busy parking lot, I nearly fainted. I closed the door to keep the dog in, hugged little man tight and just kept asking him, "did you even look for cars?" And then saying "buddy, you can't cross streets like that by yourself."

Pretty much in shock over the entire situation, this elderly woman walked by shaking her head at me and my stellar parenting skills and muttered, "he didn't look, you know."

Thankfully, thankfully, I believe the good people outweigh the bad. As I am in disbelief that this woman just said this to me, another woman is pushing my cart across the parking lot over to my car, asking me if everyone is ok. I almost cried and I almost hugged her. Thankfully we are all ok. A little rattled, but ok.

Hershey Park

So much fun!

After trying to meet friends at Hershey Park this summer without success, we finally made it towards the end of September. We had great weather and so much fun!
The kids all got along really well, the boys enjoyed many of the rides.



Avery's favorite ride was the Frog Hopper. She went on it many, many times. It was so much fun watching their faces.


Jackson went on a lot of rides, but there were some that he wasn't quite big enough for...yet. While the big kids went on other rides, we found a toddler scrambler for him to enjoy.



Charlie experienced his first big rollercoaster! While he says he liked it, he also says it was very scary. And while the husbands went on all the crazy coasters, the wives and kids enjoyed the more tame ones.

It was so great to get the two families together, we hope to do this again next year.

A lot of fall fun

We have been blessed with a lot of beautiful weather this fall. We have taken advantage and the kids are having so much fun!

Yesterday Jackson and I met Charlie's kindergarten class at the farm we visit frequently. It was nice to see Charlie interact with his class and meet some other kids and parents. The kids picked pumpkins, learned about growing pumpkins and apples and then fed some of the animals. Always a fun place to visit.



Went pumpkin picking and the kids had a great time trying to lift the heaviest ones into the wagon.


This was the first time visiting this local farm and it was great. Really close to our house, family run, great picking and prices. Looking forward to their strawberries and raspberries next year.

A visit to the Lake

Two wonderful visits to Grandma and Grandpa's lake house this summer. Seeing the area from the water is fun and so beautiful. The kids have never been on a boat, so they were excited!




We beached the boat in a cove to let the kids get out and swim and explore.


A view of the 'hood from the water.

September 11

I was trying to figure out the appropriate way to spend Sunday, the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on our country. The kids don't know a thing about the day, have never seen images, have never talked about it, so I knew it was up to me to make the day special in my eyes, to remember all those lives lost.

I knew there was going to be a special presentation at church, so I was a little nervous about the oldest going into service with me. Thankfully there were no photos included in the presentation, she is still oblivious which is fine with me at age 7.

We heard from an American Airlines pilot who lost many of his colleagues that day. What is typically his flight, 77 from Dulles to Los Angeles (which eventually hit the Pentagon), was scheduled for another pilot that day. He was able to help support the families of those that lost their loved ones, the most memorable moment, his pick up of the deceased pilot's car from the airport parking lot. He also told us about his orders to fly that flight 77, changed to 149, for the first time once it was reinstated September 21, 2001. He told us how the crew prayed together before take off and when they landed, how they all cried that flight 77 had finally reached its final destination.

We also heard from a couple who owned a bed and breakfast in Cape May. How they took in a man with no luggage, no home address, no phone number and no credit card number in October 2001. The couple's mission, to take in all who are weary and weak and need a place to rest, housed this man for weeks while he got his life back together. He had lost 13 staff members in the towers falling and was not able to get to his lower Manhattan apartment due to the damage and toxic smoke. He needed that place of refuge and the B&B was able to help him start healing from the horrific events.

It was so touching to hear these stories.

(A fantastic Raven's win should be noted for making the day exceptional)

The evening was pretty special as well.

Our little town unveiled a memorial statue, dedicated to all first responders, especially those who lose their lives in the act of saving lives. The statue is one of the I-Beams from Tower Two of the World Trade Center, the stone that supports it was found near the crash of flight 93 in Pennsylvania and the flag flying was flown over the Pentagon days after the attacks. Three local men came up with the design, local high school students help weld the piece together and the town came out to pay tribute to all first responders. It was a wonderful ceremony and quite emotional to watch local fireman touch the I-Beam and start crying.

I love that this town paid tribute to the day in such a special way.

The child that will sleep anywhere

First child, I was the sleep nazi. That child slept in her crib for every nap and bedtime, not a chance of her being lulled to sleep in the moving car, stroller or rocking in someone's arms, she was to learn how to fall asleep without any aide.

Second child, still the sleep nazi. But probably because first child had places to go, things to do, he fell asleep in the car more than once. But I really focused on being home when it was naptime so he could teach himself to fall asleep as well.

That is what I learned from the books. And it worked. Much to the chagrin of my mother-in-law, the babies could cry in their cribs and eventually learn to soothe themselves and fall asleep.

Third child. His life has been in upheaval since the day he was born, well, even before then. When I arrived home from the hospital, the house had to be packed for our move. He didn't have a schedule, it was pretty much survival. Pack, eat, feed baby, put baby back down, sleep, repeat.
The books say not to start any type of sleep, eat schedule for at least four weeks after birth, so I was relieved I had time to let things slide. Little did I know that with the third child you let a lot of things slide.

Whether it is his personality, parenting the third child or a combination of both, this child has never had a sleep, eat schedule. It does not suit him and because life was so hectic, I couldn't obsess about not doing it "correctly." HA! As if there is a perfect way to parent any child.

This laid back child sleeps anywhere, eats foods the other two still do not eat, and is up for any adventure. It is terrific! But he does have sleep issues. I question whether his bad sleeping habits (up past bedtime most mights, up in middle of night some nights, up early some mornings) are due to his personality or my lack of teaching him a scheduled sleep pattern.

But who has time to care?

Instead I cherish that he wants me to lay down with him so he can fall asleep easier, that he falls asleep in my arms out in public, or that we find him on the steps, couch, floor happily sound asleep.

The good in growing older

There certainly is a lot "out there" telling us we need to stay young

First day of school!

The second grader!



The new sheriff of Kindergarten



The bus stop and all the neighborhood kids.

Busy, fun July

Jackson turned "free" and enjoyed a birthday lunch before we left for the beach.



A rainy day spent at the aquarium on Roanoke Island. The kids enjoyed petting the stingrays and watching the diver swim with the sharks. A highlight of Avery's day was finding a mako shark tooth in their outdoor dig.


I remember our first trip to the Outer Banks. Avery was six months and terrified of the sounds of the waves. We didn't spend much time on the beach at all. Each year we have visited we have spent more and more time on the beach.
This is our best year yet. All three kids love the ocean! Avery and Charlie are body surfing, Jackson jumps and rolls in the waves crashing on the beach.
This photo is called "little 'old' men sitting on the beach".

Intro to Camping

The kids and I have wanted to go camping all summer. Stephen thinks Jackson is a bit young (and crazy) to adventure very far. So he compromised and set up the loaner tent from our friends in our backyard. The kids had so much fun packing for the camping trip, setting up their sleeping bags and pillows and dancing around the yard.
We kept the kids up late telling ghost stories and climbed into bed around 10pm. Everyone did so well, fell asleep quickly and slept through the night (except for the potty break!).
It was the perfect night for camping and we all had a great time.

Blueberries from the farm

The kids were so excited to find so many ripe blueberries and they were HUGE! Not to mention delicious.





Most were this size or bigger.

I pretty much stopped eating blueberries from the grocery store because of their lack of flavor. We have been spoiled this week with these tasty treats and we look forward to going back this week for more.

I had all of these recipes in mind to use the blueberries in, but we ate so many that we only had enough for blueberry pancakes.

New landscaping

We had some new landscaping put in and I wrote my weekly article about the project. Now we are busy trying to keep everything alive as temperatures rise. Exciting times at the Keller household! (Article starts on page 5)

http://digital.olivesoftware.com/Olive/ODE/Homes/

Wish you were here

To hear our daily dueling piano concerts! They are quite entertaining!




Why do we have two pianos?

The one on the right is a friend's piano. They do not have room in their current home for the piano, so we said we would take care of it for them. The husband is a painter and painted a lot of the interior of our home. When he came to give me a quote for the living room, I called it the piano room. Steve laughed and questioned why I called it the piano room since we didn't own a piano. I have visions of it becoming a room to enjoy reading a book or listening to one of the kids play piano. He offered the piano to us, on a loan until they had a place for it.

Then last week Charlie's preschool director heard another mom and I discussing piano teachers. She came up to me during the conversation and asked if we needed a piano. They are in the process of moving and since their kids are grown and don't play anymore, they were willing to part with their piece. I jumped at the chance knowing Steve and family will want their piano back someday soon. Piano on left.

So our front room now has two pianos and we have stocked up on a lot of Advil for head relief!

Since we moved into this house I have been on the lookout for a piano. I was hopeful a local church would part with one and our only "cost" would be picking it up and getting it to our house. Well God provided above and beyond, the family even delivered the piano on Saturday!

Spring recital

Avery had so much fun dancing in her recital on Sunday. They danced to a Beauty and the Beast song with Miss Sophia as their student mentor. Miss Cherie has been a wonderful teacher and will be missed as Avery moves up to a higher level of ballet next year.

The class



Silly face photo


Finished and enjoying the beautiful flowers Daddy and the boys picked for her.

Life lessons on the farm

Unfortunately Avery learned a life lesson this week about life on a farm, the food chain.

Our peeps, Max, Flap, Izzy and Jake were eaten by a fox the night we brought them over to the farm.

I stopped by the farm yesterday to pick up our crop share (thankfully by myself) and took a look in the pen where Farmer Chris had put the chicks. When I didn't see them there, I assumed he moved them over to the pens where we dropped Joe off weeks earlier. Nope, not there either.

Then I saw Chris and asked him about the chicks and he sadly shook his head. Not only were our four chicks taken, but six other little ones as well.

My heart sank thinking about Avery. At her dance recital dress rehearsal she asked me if I saw the chicks at the farm. I told her "no" but knew I needed to tell her about the incident.

After dinner Stephen and I told her and while she got upset, she took it rather well.

At bedtime prayers she thanked God for the time we had with the chicks and that we were able to see them hatch. Love that girl.

weeks of accomplishment

May has been a GREAT month so far.

Avery announced at 6am this morning that Max had hatched, our second chick from our second attempt at chicken hatching. I was so relieved as I made quite a few mistakes with timing and temperature/humidity levels.



On Thursday Charlie graduated from preschool! It was such a nice ceremony with a reception following. We also took Charlie out to lunch to celebrate. Charlie had two speaking parts and performed them flawlessly. What a difference from 8 months ago when we had to beg him to go into the classroom! Instead of Charlie having tears, mommy shed a few.



Our other big news: Jackson is potty trained! And the older two are riding bikes without training wheels! This has been a month of huge successes for our kids and we are so proud.

The lessons we don't like teaching

Inquiring minds want to know.

"Who is that man they keep talking about on TV?"

The boys weren't really paying attention, but the inquisitive 7-year-old was focused and wanted to know more about this Bin Laden man.

I tried to tiptoe through the topic, not wanting to scare her but also give her the truth. Her brain wants the truth and when we don't give it to her or give her enough of it, she finds a way to learn more herself. So instead of sending her off to school to ask questions about Bin Laden or find her googling the man's name (and seeing images we know she is not ready to see), we talked.

It was a great lesson about human nature, our choice to do good or bad, what God wants us to do with our lives, but it still came down to him being a "bad" man who killed a lot of people.

A few hours later a shiny blue square caught her eye, as Stephen cut his Amex card over the garbage can. "Oh Daddy, that is pretty, why are you cutting it?"

After having a second credit card number stolen, Stephen was taking care of the issue. Another bad person had stolen something from daddy. A thief.

So we begin the growing up stages of life. Not growing in the sense of height and weight, getting out of a car seat...the deeper issues. The emotional, sensitive issues. The introduction of bad people doing bad things. The issues that were only a part of books we read together now entered her real life.

My heart was heavy for her as she took in what Daddy had just told her. I know they have to grow up and I would much rather they know the things that happen in this world than be naive. Our world has changed and it just seems that 7 is a very young age to know about terrorists and thieves.

God's sense of humor

Spent some time at the Monterey Aquarium today. I took so many pictures for the kids, I know they will enjoy looking at them. Like me, they can't get enough of sea life. I think I stood and watched the otters for an hour, they are just so funny.
I am always amazed at some of the creatures we see at aquariums. Like the leafy sea dragon.


This tank showed how garbage incorporates itself into sea life and the animals that live around it.


And jellyfish, just plain weird.

Meet Joe

Our first hatch! Friday night we heard loud peeping and scratching and we knew one of the chicks was close to hatching. Saturday morning the kids all watched Joe hatch out of his shell and fumble his way around the incubator.
Stumbling over what we hope will be siblings (no other hatches yet) he learned how to stand up, but spent most of his time sleeping from his difficult journey.
This is Joe in the incubator shortly after hatching.



The kids and I went over to our Southern States store to get all the essentials for raising chicks. Heat lamp, feed, containers to hold both feed and water.
This morning we moved Joe from the incubator to his brooder (fancy for cardboard box with a newspaper lining). The kids all held and pet him before placing him in his new home. Following our chicken "bible" we dipped his beak in water so he knew where to find it and also threw feed on the floor. Stephen thought it was pretty disturbing for Joe to be walking around on a grocery flyer with chicken breasts on sale.
Joe seems to be doing really well in his new home, we have about 24 hours for the other chicks to hatch, if they will. Avery is hopeful, Stephen and I are just very ahppy to have one healthy chick here. Here is Joe in his brooder. Isn't he cute?

I am in love

With spring and what it brings to where we live!
This morning

Chicken Eggs

12 days ago Avery began her chicken egg hatching experiment. Arriving at our door in the hands of a very interested Fed Ex delivery person, 12 eggs arrived safe and ready for incubating. Unfortunately, the incubator only had room for 9 eggs. Gently marking each egg with an "x" on one side and an "o" on the other, Avery has been vigilant about flipping her eggs three times a day for best hatching results. She also keeps an eye on the temperature, keeping them nice and warm at 99.5 degrees. 9 days remain and we are all anxious to see some beaks breaking through the eggs.

Hi Ya!

Charlie at his Tae Kwon Do Tournament.

Showing the judges his forms.



Sitting in proper position, waiting for the judges to score the contestants.


Charlie with his trophies. Second place for forms, second place for breaking his boards by kicking and punching.


I will load video soon. Charlie came home yesterday with orange tape on his belt which means he is ready to test for yellow belt.

For the love of Mario

How do you know your kids play and watch too much Mario (as in Mario Cart on Wii and old Mario Brother's cartoons)?

The youngest, the two year old says "Are we going there to-mario?" "What are we doing to-mario?" Does Charde (his version of Charlie) have Hi-ya (Tae kwon do) to-mario?"

So cute, makes me laugh every time he says it (with a silent shutter that Mario has found yet another way to sneak into our daily lives).

The Difference a Day Makes

We spent at least half of our day outside today. Taking walks, going to the park, enjoying the beginnings of spring. All of us are much better for it, happier, healthier, hungrier, sleepier.
I love winter. Sweaters, fires, hot cocoa, a beautiful snowfall. Part of our reasoning for moving back from southern California included the need to see seasons change. 65 degree weather is so much more enjoyable and relished after several months of freezing temperatures.
And with that, the rumblings of thunder.

Skuut

Wins best Christmas gift in our house this year. We actually bought another one because the kids were fighting over it so much. Intentioned for Jackson, all three children ride the pair in circles around the house.
Why it wins awards:
1) The kids play on them for hours, in the house, getting rid of winter energy that has nowhere else to go.
2) The kids are practicing balance for their outdoor bicycles.
3) Skuut's are quiet.
4) They do not scratch the floors or leave any marks.
5) Since it IS a bicycle, of course it wins awards in this house.

His first boards

Stephen and I were a little disappointed when soccer didn't work for Charlie. Two agonizing seasons and we knew it just wasn't his "thing". After Christmas break, we decided to sign Charlie up for the Tae Kwon Do trial class at the studio here in town. We told him he had to try it three times and then we would make a decision on whether he would continue.

Very excited to wear his uniform and belt, he entered the class a little apprehensive, but within seconds he was laughing, smiling and enjoying the class. A little over eager to understand everything and be the best, he walked away from every class asking how many more he had to attend.

By the third class something clicked. And he has never looked back. Two big differences between this and soccer, he attends twice a week instead of one and he gets individual attention. He asks us every single day if he has TKD. He practices his kicks and punches around the house. He cleans up his room and is being more respectful to us as well as his siblings. Charlie has found his "thing".

Last night he broke boards for the first time. I asked him if he was scared before he did it and he told me no. Atta boy! Master Jo also told us that Charlie is ready to test for his next belt, next Tuesday.

It is so nice to see him excited about this, his confidence and self esteem is flourishing. Such a different boy than 6 months ago!

Happy Birthday Punkin

7 years old! Avery had a GREAT birthday. She came downstairs this morning to a huge pink butterfly balloon and a crazy birthday card singing "I like to move it, move it" to her.

When Jackson and I visited her at school for lunch, she was wearing the class birthday crown.

We went to McDonald's for dinner (her pick of course!) and then came home to open presents and have cake. With a lot of effort to get in bed and keep her eyes open, she told us she had the best birthday EVER.