Back from Never Never Land

Lisy, Rachel, Benjamin and Samuel showing off their St. Patrick's day finery.

Hello! Yes, I'm still here. There's really no reason I haven't written lately. So here's a summary of the last 2 and a half months (and a whole lot of pictures for the fun of it):



-Valentine's day was fun. During dinner we turned off the lights and lit candles, and Lisy started singing the happy birthday song. Then we went around the table saying what we liked about each person. The kids really enjoyed it and fell into a fit of happy giggles.








-We visited the zoo, and I took too many pictures. I was surprised at how small the Boise zoo is compared to Hogle zoo, and yet we didn't see everything. I look forward to going back.

















-Spring is extremely windy around here. Naturally we flew a kite. The boys each had a turn flying the kite, and they both did a decent job keeping it up in the air. Lisy was very excited and hopped around as she watched the kite fly.





-We visited Devin and Maran to celebrate Courtney's first birthday in March. It's always fun to visit family. At church someone asked if Rachel and Courtney were twins - nope, just cousins. The adults played many games of "Settlers of Catan," while the kids played with the 6-year-old neighbor girl.














-Thor the guinea pig can now run all over his cage, and he sprints around in circles whenever anyone enters the room. You'd think he would be used to me, but he is still skittish when I feed him. Whatever was wrong with his foot is now better, so it was probably a broken leg. He is also quite large - I hope he stops growing soon.

Samuel is feeding Thor a dandelion stem. Apparently Thor doesn't like the flowers or leaves.Who know a guinea pig could be so picky?

-Rachel now has 6 teeth and cruises everywhere. She has developed an off-beat sense of humor for a baby. She can climb up and fall down the stairs, for which we now have a gate. She makes a beeline to my laptop whenever I open it up - she likes hitting the keys.

-Lisy is laissez-faire about potty training, which has stalled, but at least she hasn't reverted back to diapers. I've upped the reward system: she can now earn up to 5 M&Ms per bathroom visit. She's slightly more interested now. Almost every day she has to wear a beautiful dress because she's a beautiful princess (or boo'ful, in her words).

-Benjamin's creativity is really obvious now that his speech has gotten clearer. His speech therapist says he picks up the sounds amazingly fast. She says his behavior is better, too, and that he's ready for kindergarten now. He is the self-declared watchdog for his younger sisters. He is quick to take away something they should not have, which usually leads to someone crying. He yells "choking hazard!" if he sees Rachel holding anything small.


-Samuel lost his second tooth. He now has a huge, gaping hole in his bottom teeth. I recently attended a parent/teacher conference. It was so much fun! She said that he makes her day better when he's there; he shows leadership qualities; he is very intelligent; and he can be anything he wants to be when he grows up. The only problem is that kindergarten isn't challenging enough for him.



-Dominic's job is going very well. As a matter of fact, he has a new client because someone requested him. They're also paying him the higher bilingual rate, because he has 2 Spanish-speaking clients. He put up shelves in the office, and he is going to build a bunkbed for the boys.







-I finally got back on my thyroid medication, and I don't feel tired all the time anymore. I'm currently working with the Cub Scouts. My boys are very excited to become scouts one day and to do fun things like the pinewood derby. I am also trying to get the paperwork together to buy the house; being a cluttered and disorganized person, this is a difficult chore for me.




Well, that's our life in a nutshell. We're happy, mostly healthy, and life if going in the right direction. I'll try to post a bit more often, but I give no promises.

Double pigtails! I love it!

Thor, the Guinea Pig

You may remember our pet degus. Yugi, our last one, lived happily through the summer. He and the cat were great friends, plus he had the entire garage to explore. We couldn't keep him in the cage - he chewed holes faster than Dominic could repair them. By September the garage was no longer enough. He would dart out and hide under the car's hood whenever we opened the garage door. So it was sad, but no big surprise, when we realized he was gone for good. We hope he is living happily out in the wild, but chances are good that a neighborhood cat or a predatory bird (lots of hawks in the area) got him.


Dominic missed the little critter - for some strange reason he likes rodents. 2 guinea pigs were free to a good home at a local animal shelter, but we were about to move. I said sure, he could get them, once we were in the new house (so they wouldn't be forgotten in the chaos). As luck would have it, someone else took the pair just days before Dominic went to get them.


Dominic was very disappointed. I reminded him that I had promised he could get a guinea pig. So he started looking around at the pet shops. 10 days ago Dominic took Samuel to pick one out. Samuel named him Thor, after the super hero.


After a couple of days it was clear that something was wrong with Thor. Dominic checked his legs, and the back right leg doesn't work. Sometimes we call him gimpy pig. We told the kids that Thor might also have internal problems and that he might not live very long. It was their choice to take him back and get a healthy pet, or to keep him despite the problems and shortened life expectancy. They voted to keep him.

I'm just a little nervous holding him. Can you tell?

Every day we take care of him, making sure his food and water are within reach. Lisy likes spending time with "my baby g' pig." Samuel feeds him lettuce. Benjamin likes to move him around the cage and talks about him dying. I can actually touch him and hold him. I think it's because he doesn't dart around like most rodents. And, he sounds just like a tribble when I pet him.

Promised pictures

I finally braved the cold and wind to get these fabulous pictures. I really like this style, because it reminds me of the houses where I grew up. Dominic thinks it's a tad boring, though; his dream house is a Victorian. He's planning on adding decorative trim, and I'll hang up plants and a bird feeder in the Spring.


The backyard has this great playset, and despite the weather, the kids are spending a lot more time outside. We also have these garden boxes that I look forward to learning how to use to grow something edible. That area with no boxes is a strawberry patch - apparently they thrive here.















Here are a couple of inside shots. First, Lisy is trying out the window seat in a bedroom. Who needs cushions? And Benjamin found a comfy seat in this corner cabinet, which now holds my mixing bowls. I think it's adorable that all the kids like to sit there and talk to me while I'm cooking.












I'll share more interior pictures as I complete the rooms.

The freedom to go

Today is the 2 week anniversary of Rachel starting to crawl. She loves this newfound freedom. It makes her so happy. So where does this ankle biter go? To me or my laptop. If she is in the living room when I go upstairs, she crawls to the stairs and plays, or cries, at the bottom step until I return.

Looks like she wants to start walking soon, too.

Learning curve

As my sister Jen pointed out when she moved, you can never transfer a kitchen as-is. You will always need to make adjustments. I have found the same to be true with kitchen appliances. It seems I need a bit of time to learn how to cook in my new kitchen.

There was no school today (something about it being the end of term), so I took the time to make a big country breakfast. Wouldn't you know it? My new stove runs a bit hotter than I'm used to - I burned everything. Only the biscuits were spared, but just because it's a cool oven and I had to leave them in a bit longer than usual. I felt like the stereotypical new wife who can't cook. At least no one complained.

New Home

We're done. It's finished. We are completely moved out of our old house, and finished the cleaning. Though if you ask me, the rental agency was a bit anal with the white glove inspection. (Who takes down the bathroom fan covers and dusts them with a q-tip?) They did let me go back and clean more thoroughly, so hopefully we'll get most of our deposit back.

Our new place feels so big. We went from about 900 sq ft to about 1600 sq ft. I didn't think I would like 2 stories, but it really helps with the noise - one can always find a quiet place to relax. Plus, I get a lot of exercise going up and down the stairs all day.

Another thing I like is the laundry room inside the house. I find myself more willing to do the laundry when I don't have to put on shoes and brave the cold garage just to switch the clothes. (Have I mentioned that I'm a weather wimp?)

Right now I feel like we'll never fully move in. Then I remember that we moved during the holidays (we didn't lose any presents in the transition :) and spent a bit of time cleaning the old place. I'm just now catching my breath and finding a daily routine again. As we gradually unpack the boxes stuffed in the garage, I vow to actually hang up our pictures on the walls. Confession: our last place only had clocks and a calendar up.

Our new landlords are great. We hope to eventually buy the house from them, and they are encouraging us to make improvements. For instance, we put in a cat door, and they were excited for us. How cool is that? At our last place, they said we needed to call an approved contractor to fix a poorly repaired hole in the wall; Dominic just fixed it himself and did a better job.

Three cheers to a new year and a new house!

*Yes, I will post pictures as soon as I take them.

Where did the time go?

Our little pumpkin

Somehow I never posted about Halloween. We actually carved the pumpkins, unlike last year. The kids were real troopers, and the 3 oldest trick-or-treated for a full hour.

Carving a pumpkin with a butter knife is exhausting work.

A very scary jack o' lantern. Grrrrr.

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Then Thanksgiving came and went in a rush. Because of work, Devin and Maran couldn't come until Friday, so we celebrated Thanksgiving with a big feast on Saturday. (We ate homemade pizza on Thanksgiving day.)

The following pics are courtesy of Benjamin, a budding photographer:

Devin

Maran holding Courtney












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The next weekend we went to a Metallica concert. It was amazing. Devin and Maran came with us. Both brothers love the band but never saw them in concert before. I'm slightly familiar with their music, but mostly I wanted to go to share the experience with my husband. It was a surreal experience seeing them live onstage. They look just like their videos. They even performed my 2 favorite songs of theirs: "Nothing Else Matters" and "Sandman." Unfortunately I forgot my camera.

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So, before this also passes by: we're moving! We'll be in-transition for the rest of the month. First, the owners are replacing the carpets and painting. So we're helping paint whenever possible. Then, since it's an in-town move, we have the option of moving out and then cleaning. That sounds so much better than cleaning while packing with kids running amok. All of our previous moves have been across country or out-of-state. I'm looking forward to this one. Although we'll be in a different school district, I'll be driving Samuel to school so he can stay in his class.

Since we signed the new lease back in November, I knew we would be very busy at Christmastime. All the shopping and mailing is done. Wahoo! I'm crossing my fingers that we won't lose any presents.

We caught a trash can!

It's been a bit windy here. So windy, in fact, that I heard something thumping down the street - not the usual sound in our neighborhood. When the wind calmed down enough to go outside without blowing away the children, we found this:











OK, so I arranged the hat on the fire hydrant, but the hydrant did catch it. I was hoping the owner would see it and reclaim it, but no. Samuel has now claimed it as his. I, on the other hand, claimed the trash can, which will soon be employed in clearing out the junk we've accumulated over the past year. Yup, we just passed the first anniversary of moving into our home. That was a fast, eventful year; hopefully things will calm down soon.

Sweet boys

Tonight as I was putting Rachel to bed, I was singing her a lullaby when Samuel came in and started singing along. A little bit later Benjamin came in and joined us for the end of the song. We quietly left the room together. I was touched with how sweet they were. They love their baby so much; this is one lucky little sister.

Starting Solids

I've inducted Rachel into the ranks of those who eat solid food. She was very excited, as though she understood the importance of this new phase in her life. Actually eating the rice cereal was another story. Her older siblings were more than happy to help out:

Benjamin eventually found her mouth.


Elisa is still learning how to be gentle.

Samuel did a great job.














The verdict? Rachel ate it all up, making faces with every bite.

Cold War Memories

The 20th anniversary of the Berlin Wall collapse just passed. At first I thought the cold war didn't really affect me, but in fact it had a big impact on my life.

1. My dad could either join the military or get drafted. He joined as an officer. Because of that decision, our family was stationed in West Germany when I was born.

2. As a child I thought the Berlin Wall was the Iron Curtain people kept talking about. They both conjured images of darkness, sadness, and depression in my young mind.

3. The wall came down when I was 12. It was an exciting time: pictures and videos all over the news, stories of families reuniting, radio stations giving away pieces of the wall, and an overall feeling of happiness and hope in the air. It wasn't until college that I realized how long it took for the Communist Bloc to disintegrate, or how the former Bloc countries fought for self-government and peace. Living in an established democratic republic, I think we forget how difficult change can be. It still surprises me that communist governments currently exist in the world.

4. My eighth grade year, 1990-1991, I began studying Russian. German was my first choice, but not enough students signed up for the class. I continued to study the Russian language and culture into college. It was new, exciting, and very different from the romance languages typically taught in school. I especially enjoyed hearing my teachers' stories about traveling in the Soviet Union - stories filled with danger and excitement, as well as the commonalities we shared with the regular, everyday people.

5. I hope to some day travel to both Germany and Russia.

I believe the Cold War will separate the generations before and after, much like the Great Depression and World War II did. In remembrance of Veteran's Day, I am very proud of my dad's, grandpas' and great-grandpas' military service. Thank you for your sacrifices.

Big Baby

Rachel recently went to the doctor, and she is in the 100th percentile! We knew she was big, but wow. The best part is that we can now teach her to sleep through the night. Yay!

Her new favorite game is blowing raspberries with the binky in her mouth, which of course makes it fall out. Then she fusses until we put the binky back in her mouth, and she does it again. It makes her happy.

She is such a happy baby. The other day she started laughing in the grocery store for no apparent reason. I was able to keep her laughing just by making little noises. Last night I was holding her upside down and saying, "ha, ha, ha," which made her laugh really hard.

She still doesn't roll over, yet. Soon enough.

I love babies.

Of blessings, haircuts and birthdays

First and foremost, Dominic got a job! We are all very happy about that. He is doing PSR (psycho-social rehabilitation) work again. He already has activities and lessons planned for his clients.

We blessed Rachel last Sunday. She's already 4 months old. Where did the time go? Dominic said it is much easier blessing an older baby: she was calm, quiet, and smiled at him.


Elisa before, front and back














I finally did it. I cut Elisa's hair. It was so long and wavy that it was difficult for me to do. But her hair was getting unmanageable. She wouldn't leave clips in, so her hair was always in her face. The other day she got mad and yelled at her hair, so I knew it was time. It's a cute little bob that she can comb herself. Now she looks a lot like my childhood pictures. It's so weird; I keep staring at her, but I'm gradually getting used to it.



And lastly, I celebrated my birthday. Dominic gave me the Cake Wrecks book and shoe shelves! Now our shoes are organized and not scattered over the floor. My mother-in-law gave me kitchen gadgets (thank you).

The morning started off with my turn teaching Benjamin's preschool class. Except when Benjamin cried because people were playing with his toys, we all had fun. What a bunch of cute kids! After lunch I got to take a nap. Aahh ... until I woke up and saw the mess the kids made. Drat. The one gift I ask for every year is to not make dinner. This year we ate at IHOP. We had a coupon for a free movie ticket on your birthday, and we saw "Where the Wild Things Are." (It was well made and exciting, but left me with a feeling of melancholy. I like the book better ;) Overall the day just felt fun, easygoing and a bit carefree. Mostly due to Dominic's efforts, it was a wonderful day.

Oktoberfest

Today we held our 1st annual celebration of Oktoberfest. We started off with several episodes of "Hogan's Heroes." Next we headed to a local military store to learn more about Dominic's heirloom item, a Nazi youth knife, which his grandfather acquired during WWII from a soldier who no longer needed it.



Now we know how to get rid of the rust, how to keep it in good condition, and the picture on the back is considered trench art. Interestingly, the knife's value would increase if we knew anything about the soldier or the girl.




Dinner featured brats and rootbeer, while we taught the kids a few German words, and some historical and cultural tidbits.

I ended the evening by telling the story of Hansel and Gretel. I realized that wasn't the best choice when the boys started crying. Perhaps next year I'll go with Little Red Riding Hood.

School days

Samuel on his very first day of kindergarten.

Our family has entered a whole new era. Samuel started kindergarten! August 27th was actually his first day (Thursday? Who starts on a Thursday?). I've fallen behind on just about everything lately, but this it too important to skip.

Every morning we walk Samuel to school, then he rides the bus home. The first couple of weeks, when I asked if he liked school, he said, "No, because we're not learning anything. All we do is sing and play games." When I asked about any friends, he said, "I asked three people to be my friend, and they said yes, but then they didn't play with me." There are people he plays with at recess, so he isn't friendless. This is the same kid who goes to a park and is immediately friends with the kid closest to his age, so I wasn't too concerned.

It's been a bit of an adjustment for all of us. Sometimes some people (I won't name any names) have a hard time waking up. Samuel still turns on movies in the morning, and I have to remind him that he doesn't have time to watch them. I keep forgetting that he has homework. But when I do remember, all the kids like to sit at the table and work or color at the same time. And then Lisy kept packing Samuel's backpack with toys until we bought her her own.

At first, Benjamin kept asking when he will turn 5 so that he can go to school, too. Now he's excited about preschool. We're doing a neighborhood preschool once a week, in which the moms take turns teaching. The first week he clung to me the entire time. Now I can drop him off, and he does fine. He also goes to speech therapy once a week, and his therapist gives him little books to "read" to practice his sounds. He especially likes reading to Samuel. Anyone who heard him at the family reunion will be impressed at how discernible his speech is now.

Not to leave out Dominic, this is a grueling semester of statistics with a demanding professor. He has a plan of attack, and there are ways I can help; together we can get through it. After this, he can get back to the classes he wants to take.

Rachel's check-up

Rachel's first smile caught on camera.

Rachel had a check-up today and got shots. The shots are always sad but better than the alternative. I am happy to report that she is in the 97th percentiles for height (26 in) and weight (15 lbs 12 oz). At 3 weeks old she hadn't regained her birth weight, and the doctor was concerned. I listened to his suggestions, followed my sister Emily's tips, and I fed Rachel everytime she cried. Apparently it worked. Dominic said, "she's a chunk, not a baby." My sister Ellen commented that "she is perfectly rotund."

By 1 week old, Rachel was sleeping 7 hours a night. So one of the doctor's suggestions was to wake her up to feed her. Well, the alarm woke up Dominic, but not me or Rachel. After 3 nights of that, I stopped setting the alarm. Sleeping through the night obviously hasn't stunted her growth. Nowadays she's asleep by 9 pm, wakes up once to eat, and then wakes up around 7 am. She is a great sleeper.

At 5 weeks old Rachel rolled over for the first time. She has only rolled over half a dozen more times, so I thought she forgot how or gained more weight than her little arms could handle. But no. She rolled over for the doctor! He said she never forgot, she just doesn't want to.

She has a scream that shatters glass. Not really, but it does reverberate around my skull. She has even been known to give Dominic a migraine. The weird part is that she doesn't have an intermediate fussy stage like most babies. Instead she goes from happy or sleeping to 100 decibels in the blink of an eye.

Other than that though, Rachel is a very happy, cooing baby. She is very ticklish and laughs easily. Her older siblings adore her. Samuel likes to hold her and say, "take a picture of us." Benjamin calls her "my baby Wachel." And Lisy likes to join Rachel for tummy time or pat her back to burp her. Sometimes she likes to get all wrapped up, not because she's cold or tired, but just to be swaddled. She especially enjoys lying on the couch, swaddled, staring at the ceiling fan.

Rachel's latest picture, from Sunday