Two Weeks of Craziness then Christmas

The past two weeks have been extremely busy. It felt as if time was against me and I could hardly catch my breath. When one thing went wrong there were at least two more things going wrong to follow and yet somehow, as of today, I can finally exhale. It all began with the finale of Winning With Wellness on a Monday night. I placed 6th and lost over 9% of my starting weight. I am happy to be able to wear jeans comfortably again, my engagement ring fits again, and I am much more healthier. I would have liked to have won a prize to the dealership in town so my husband could get an oil change without having to deal with the freezing weather but those prizes were randomly drawn instead of given out to winners. Whatever. I will continue to work out when the time allows cause I really enjoy it, I feel better when I do it, and there is still weight to be lost. I met a great deal of wonderful people that I want to continue to get to know and become friends with. So the benefits of Winning with Wellness were vast. That following Tuesday Michael had wrestling in Portage. We loaded up everyone, headed up and ended up spending about $2.00 per second to watch Michael pin his opponent in 31 seconds. It was worth every penny! Wednesday was Alex's actual birthday and he wanted to go to Pizza Hut to celebrate. I was game since I hadn't eaten that type of deliciousness in 3 months. Thursday brought more wrestling and since it was at home I managed to make it to kickboxing only to have to rush to the school so I wouldn't miss the introduction of the varsity team. Michael wrestled heavy weight that night and pulled an impressive jap wizzer on his opponent before he pinned him. Proud, um heck yes! Friday night was Kato's work party up in Portage and we decided to stay the night in the hotel. They had an ugly sweater contest which I didn't know I was allowed to participate in until the day before which did not give me the time to come up with the winning look. I came to terms with that slip since he got a new I Pad 2 and has since then shared it with me. Kato didn't participate either tho, he said he didn't want to look stupid all night. Next year I will rock it! I had to get up early that Saturday to head up to Fon du Lac for more wrestling. I watched Michael take 2nd place at the Marty Loy and I was more then proud. I am dedicated to being there for every one this year, no matter how far we travel. My parents arrived that night and waited up for my arrival, it was bittersweet only because the girls got sick and had high fevers. So while they were visiting they too got sick and had to spend some of their time resting in a hotel. I wished that hadn't happened. Alex was in a school program where he was an Indian named Brave Eagle, my mom was nice enough to stay home with Ella and Jade so I didn't have to take them to his performance where they might have run a muck. Anyway, it was a good visit and I appreciated everything they had done. They worked on a beautiful doll house for the girls and since then Jade and Ella have been playing with it everyday. My mom helped me wrap some presents and cook dinner. I ended up taking Ella to the doctor where she was diagnosed with a double ear infection and pneumonia. Antibiotics for Ella and after one day she was almost back to her sweet happy self. Friday was no school and the little kids went to Grandma Jaynes so that Kato and I could watch Michael take 3rd place at Badger State. It was a tough tournament, maybe even tougher then Marty Loy! It was a long day and we didn't get home till after 9:30pm. Saturday was Christmas eve and I had to finalize the grocery shopping and prepare for Christmas at our house. Finished the wrapping, left the cupcakes for Santa (figured he would like the change from cookies), prepared the cinnamon rolls for breakfast, and snuggled in for a movie with my man! It was great! The kids were in bed and awaiting the visit from Santa as they dreamed about the morning glory of goodness that was to come. After 5 short hours of sleep that was interrupted by bouts of Jade kicking me in my back, coughing in my face, and talking in her sleep it was time to celebrate Christmas. Santa left a letter to the children thanking them for the cupcakes and reminding them its about Jesus' birthday and not to yell so much in the house. The presents were opened and they all seemed happy. We ate cinnamon rolls, bacon, sausage and orange juice which was actually mimosas for mommy and daddy. Cleaned up the messes and prepared for a wonderful Packer victory clinching home field advantage for the playoffs. Jayne and Keith came over and we opened gifts and enjoyed their company. I found four bottles of wine with each of the kids names on it because after all they do for them and us they too need a bit of relaxation. It was really nice to stay home and enjoy Christmas without having to rush somewhere and I think the kids appreciated being able to actually open and play with all their new toys. Now that the holidays are over I can get back to kickboxing and release some of the stress built up from all the little things that happened over the past two weeks. thanks for reading xoxo

2nd 3rd 7th

It was a busy weekend.

Michael had a wrestling tournament in Sun Prairie. It was the first time the Sauk Prairie wrestling team went to this event. There were 17 schools competing. Michael did fantastic and took home 2nd place. It was the first time I had seen him pin a guy using only his legs. I was very impressed. The team took home 2nd place which was only 14 points behind first. It was a great day of wrestling!

I came home to a house full of young lads anxiously awaiting cake. Alex had his birthday party to celebrate turning 7. He had about 6 boys come over for a slumber party. We got right into opening presents, cake, and ice cream. Afterwards they changed into pjs found a spot on the couch or floor and watched Cars 2 with popcorn. Most fell asleep before the movie ended. Some were still awake when I went to bed. A few claimed they stayed up all night, I know it wasn't true cause when I came down the next morning to make pancakes, bacon, and sausage they were sleeping. They got picked up by 10am and we got ready for the next round of birthday celebration.

Jade's 3rd birthday fell on that same day but because of wrestling schedules, holiday parties, and Christmas we had to give Alex his party on Jade's birthday. She insists she is only 2 1/2 and frankly I don't care how old she says she is as long as the terrible twos are over! She isn't that bad but she does have her moments. Since I had just made a cake for Alex I bought a very small already made cake for Jade and decorated it up a bit. She opened some presents and blew out her candles. She sang happy birthday to herself and even though it was technically the day after her birthday she didn't care. She was perfectly happy to celebrate the way it was.

After all the birthday stuff was over, we cleaned up a bit and settled in for Mr. Poppers Penguins and called it a night. It was a very busy weekend which will be followed by an even busier week. So AWESOME Job Michael, Happy Birthday Jade and Alex and thanks for reading xoxo

Alex's Indian Artwork

Alex has been learning about Indians in school. He was very interested in learning that he has a very small amount of Indian in him. It got a bit complicated explaining that its not in his foot or arms but yet his entire body. He then explained to us that his hunting skills and part of his warrior skills are in fact because he is Indian. I told him the best person to talk to about this kind of stuff would be Grandma Kim because she also makes wonderful Indian art and has learned more about the Indian heritage of our family then I have. Anyway, he got very interested in the Indian life of long ago and made some really wonderful pieces of art. He was excited to show us all the things he colored and created. He showed us the types of homes they once lived in and even made a map of the United States showing us where they lived. He was very proud of his work. I am very proud of his work. I picked a couple of pieces he recently brought home and decided to share them with you. So here is his Woodland Indians Designs and his Thunderbird. thanks for reading xoxo

Potty Training Went down the Toilet

Time is flying by and I haven't been able to write much lately. We have been potty training Jade which is more difficult then we thought it would be. We hunkered down one weekend, put her in big girl undies, got stickers and had her go potty on the potty every few minutes. By Sunday I was running out of pp on the potty dance moves and I was honestly feeling like giving up. She did great for those "little jobs" but when it came time to do the "big jobs" she basically just had no desire to even try. Since I am not opposed to bribery and she really wants Lalaloopsies I tried to use that as a way to promote the use of the potty. It didn't work. So here we are a few weekends later and although she does good she is not quite there. She turns three next Saturday although if you ask her she is only 2 and a half. We will keep trying until that one day comes when all of sudden we realize she isn't wearing any type of diaper anymore. thanks for reading xoxo

Lime Green Wrestling Machine

Wrestling season is here!! The Sauk Prairie Wrestling team has already made it great! Thursday was his first match against Sun Prairie. The team won 48-24. Gator pinned his opponent in about 1 minute. It was a great night. He has yet again selected lime green as his color. I guess it fits with the name Gator!!

Saturday was the first dual tournament that they had. It was in Janesville which is about 1 1/2 hours away. I was lucky to be able to go. Michael had 6 matches to compete in. The first was against Parker High which he won by a pin, next was a forfeit from Middleton which gave him a win, then came a win by points against Lake Mills, followed by another win by points against Edgerton. His final win was a quick pin again Turner High. He was surprised to find out later that two of his opponents were also State qualifiers last year. He went undefeated along with about 6 others on his team. The team won 1st place and left very happy and tired. He is a team captain this year and if you ask me, he is leading by example! GO SAUK PRAIRIE WRESTLING!! thanks for reading xoxo

Outside the lines...

The kids have been doing alot of coloring lately and they got their dad involved. One night while I was in my room watching tv Alex came in with a present for me. I thought it was going to be one of his many masterpieces. When he showed it to me I was happy to see it was a special picture for me from my husband. Kato always has been good at art and when we first started dating he drew me a picture of a house that we would eventually have. It doesn't look like the house we live in today. Anyway, he was so proud of his coloring that he got the brilliant idea to come up with coloring books for adults. Now that's thinking outside the lines, hope it makes us a million dollars!! So thank you hubby for my picture, I love it!! thanks for reading xoxo

18 with life to go...

Michael turned 18 on Saturday and he kicked off his adulthood with macaroni and cheese, kielbasa, and a chocolate cake. He invited some friends over to help him eat it all. He bought his first lottery ticket or I should say tickets. He went to the "adult store" where he was denied access because his ID is expired and had some buddies sleep over. I hope he had a good birthday. Even though he is technically an adult he is still in high school and working on figuring out what he really wants to do after graduation. Realistically I have him for only 8 more months. Eighteen years...that was fast! thanks for reading xoxo

Halloween 2011

Happy Halloween!! We had it twice again this year and as usual Alex and Jade took full advantage and dressed up in two different costumes. Ella only went out once and was a pink leopard. She was also the big helper at the door and passed out the candy to the kids. Now my goal is to stay away from the candy. thanks for reading xoxo

Bajamas Breakfast and Brushing

Love it when kids come together to clean. That includes their teeth!! Last night when Kato worked late we decided to do everything backwards. So we got out of our day clothes and into pajamas (bajamas as they say) made breakfast for dinner, brushed our teeth, and went to bed. Even though that is a normal bedtime routine the kids thought it was just like a weekend morning. The kids got to stay up a little later because there is no school today. They were all asleep by 9:30. It was a fun night and I am glad I had the kids all to myself. Love love love em!! thanks for reading xoxo

Chim Chimney

Michael had an opportunity to help a neighbor work in their basement. They ripped out a chimney and did some cement work. He was gone all day and earned his pay. I knew he would be dirty when he got home but I had no idea it would be this bad. The black marks on his hands is his farmers snot! GROSS!!! thanks for reading xoxo

How to get out of eating your vegetables, by Ella. The sad part is she really loves corn. I guess all that self feeding can really tucker a girl out. thanks for reading xoxo

Lil Monsters

My little monsters, so sweet! thanks for reading xoxo

Housework for Ella

Ella is terrified of our vacuum but has no problems when it comes to the toy vacuum. She does her best to keep things neat and tidy, except when it comes to the toy boxes then she can't wait to tip them over and dump them out, leaving the mess for mom. thanks for reading xoxo

Wisconsin 59, Indiana 7

Saturday, Kato, Michael, Mikey, and I got to go to the Badger football game. It was fun, cold, and worth it! I wore layers upon layers, poor Kato said he just wanted to be close to me but I know he was probably freezing. There had been some issues with the ES FU chant and the efforts to get it to stop were basically tossed in the toilet. Sad, just because you know the words doesn't mean you have to use them. Anyway, the Badgers blew the socks off Indiana and the homecoming festivities continued into the streets and probably lasted all night long. As for us we got a movie instead. thanks for reading xoxo

Halloween prep work

We went to Green Thumb last Sunday to pick up some pumpkins. Alex, Jade, and Ella each picked out a pumpkin with Daddy's help and then they picked one out for Michael and one for the family. They decorated them right away. We decorated the house and even managed to get some stuff put up outside. Just in time too because it got super cold really quick! I am not looking forward to the raking but I am looking forward to flannel sheets and down comforters! thanks for reading xoxo

Kirby Rider

My grandparents owned a Kirby vacuum. When I was little I got excited when it was time to vacuum but not because I wanted to help. Their Kirby was red and heavy and big enough for me to ride on when my grandmother vacuumed. I would jump on the front get a free ride while my grandmother did all the work. I think back now and probably should have given her a break more often. The other night we needed to vacuum bad! We had everything from cereal to popcorn to who knows what else my kids have brought in with them all over the floor. I busted out our Kirby which is still heavy but silver in color, to get the job done. Jade wanted to help but something isn't working right on our Kirby and so it goes forward with ease but backing up is not easy when its in drive. Once we switched the drive to neutral I showed Jade what I used to do to my grandma when she vacuumed and surprise she really likes it too. So not only did I get the floors cleaned but I also got in a great workout. Thanks for reading xoxo

Toothless and Useless

A couple days ago, Alex was brave enough to pull out his top front tooth that had been so wiggly he could actually twist it around in his mouth. Once the morning came and he looked under his pillow to see what treasure the tooth fairy had left, I knew before it even began what he would think about it. Unlike the last time when she left him 8 shiny quarters and he wanted dollars, this time she left him 2 dollar bills. Do you think he was satisfied with this? No he wasn't, he thinks he should have gotten more. There is no winning, there is no satisfying, there is no compromise, there is no use with him. Stuck in his ways and yet every once in a while he will get excited over getting something. Whats a parent to do, its useless? Love em and hope that one day they will understand. Until then just keep swimming. thanks for reading xoxo

Homecoming Kings

Friday night was the big homecoming football game in our town. Our Eagles got their butts handed to them again so at this point I am a little bit glad that Michael doesn't play anymore. Saturday was the homecoming dance and Michael, Dylan, and Mikey decided to go. They got dressed up in their finest and headed out for dancing and fun. I am happy that Michael has decided to get more involved in school activities because he won't have this chance again, unless he flunks which could happen. With that positive note I will say thanks for reading xoxo.