Comes with a WARNING!!!!!

CAUTION!!!!! This, (i.e. Eli napping) only occurs when preceeded by vomit and/or diarhea.

But, as an optismist, I see some silver lining...at least it 'happens'! Apparently we don't have enough cooties at our house, so its time for another round....

Monkey baby

I think one of the things I will miss the most when Landri grows is her 'ooo ooo' noise and face. Anyone who's been around her knows what I am talking about. So, I caught in her in the act, for memories...

Piggie Points

 This is what I found today: Avery's above, Kenna's below. Think they knew their luck wouldn't hold two days in a row.

So, in an effort to motivate my girls to keep their rooms cleaner I've started "awarding" piggie points. These are NOT redeemable for anything fun: usually the acknowledgement of piggie points comes with an assignment of extra work. And that has worked pretty well....until recently! I don't know what the problem is, but my girls are pigs! Such.....GIRLS! Their floors are littered....and with Kenna, this isn't just a good word. I mean, LITTERED. She dumps out her backpack on the floor. Because she's a smarty pants she usually has some form of sugar contraband, which translates to wrappers. Add that to the excess of pony tails and barrets from her Christmas caboodle....and her recent hobby of drawing...and its disgusting. The boys do get off easy: I know this. Their rooms are 3 levels below me,  sort of 'out of sign of mind'. So, they don't take near the ribbing from me. I'll work on it. But I expect the girls' beds made and rooms tidied every morning before school. As proof my girls are very different, the principle of piggie points wasn't really pulling equal weight with both of them. So, I adjusted my tactics.

Kenna LOVES the idea of having her own room. Avery HATES the idea of having to share, if Kenna has her own. So, last week I told Kenna if she received 3 piggie points in a month, I'd be putting the bunk beds back up and she'd have a roommate again. Might as well confine the hazard to one room don't you think? For Avery, the thought of sharing with Kenna is ticklesome....(is that a word?) Kenna seems bothered to have Avery around sometimes...which Avery thinks is great. She loves to just casually touch her as she walks by...just to watch Ken squirm. So, obviously this piggie point system isn't gonna motivate a change in the right direction for her. So....the only thing a mom can do? Tv. It seems to be the pulse of this little couch potato. If her room is a mess when she leaves for school, no tv. About ten minutes before they leave I ask them how their rooms are. Yesterday I was in for a treat:

Kenna's had her jammies on the floor, and her bed unmade....So, by previous standards, not bad. Avery informed me that she 'just loves little towel chairs." What???? "You know how you can just squish a towel in the corner? It becomes a cute little chair. I love it!" Ding. Ding. Ding. The red flag went off in my head. Okay....see you later then. As I went about my morning I peeked into their rooms. Both obviously failed. This is 3 piggie points for Kenna. And no tv for Avery. Don't know which will prove more tramautizing....

When they got home I said "Kenna, I'm afraid you have earned another piggie point." She looked panic stricken...and bolted upstairs. A minute later she popped her head out with a kind of pleading, please-fall-for-this-face. "Mom, the reason my bed isn't made is because I was giving my American girl a sleepover. Didn't you notice her all tucked in?" Seriously, about died laughing. And...to prove I'm either an inconsistent or well-humored mom(you choose) it worked. I forgave the piggie point and she made her bed.

Avery had the priviledge of showing me her couch chair. I'd already looked, I just thought she should show me. It was about 18 inches high...a little tall for a towel right? Well, apparently 4 pairs of pants, 2 jammies, several underpants and a bathrobe HUGELY add to the optimal comfort of a towel chair. For asthetics though you must cover them entirely so just the towel shows. NO....this isn't what a mom would formally consider 'stuffing'.

Because, as previously stated, I'm either very inconsistent and a pushover...or, I value the creativity of naughty girls...both girls earned piggie points that were negated by some quick thinking! Love 'em!!!

Eli Chronicles...

I should just rename this blog. Because its pretty much just that...the tale of Eli.  Maybe my other kids are boring, you think?They're not....in fact far from it. They all ooze personality. It just seems that Eli is the one that warrants the most attention....attention of all kinds! :)

Tonight my mom was taking Eli on a sleepover to her house. Whenever my dad is gone, which is every other week, my kids fight for who's turn it is at grandmas. And, usually Eli tags along with whoever's turn it is because he's Eli, and my mom can't tell him 'no' when he begs. As it turns out, tonight belonged to Avery and Kenna...but they were deeply involved in a tv show and decided it would be worth forfeiting their sleepover. Hhhheeeeellllllooooo! My mom has the SAME cable as us. But oh well...their loss! And Eli was oh-so thrilled to take their place....all by himself.

My uncles still have some dogs that live at my grandma's farm. She's been dead an awful 6 years now...so the boys and my mother take turns going up there daily and feeding the pack of mangie muts! Yuck.(I've never liked these dogs....)On the way home from the farm mom told Eli maybe they'd go visit my uncle Tom. Eli squished his face up....and looked at mom suspiciously. "Is HE fat?" Mom chuckled, surprised. "No. Why?" Eli then explained that my dad had taken him to visit some 'fat' man with a dog one day when he was watching him. The dog's name is Bozo. Mom asked if Eli liked this man...he said no. Mom was trying to figure out who papa's fat friend is by a little game of 20 questions...so she asked about his wife...Eli told her, "Act-shoo-lee....I think she's dead."

A little while later my mom decides to play a little more with the fat friend tale...and asked Eli why he didn't like this man.
Eli: Because...he's fat!
Mom:(pretending to be wounded)Well....I'm fat.
Eli instantly knew what he'd done and recovered perfectly.
Eli: Ohhhhhhhhh......I LOVE fat girls!

Every day with this boy is a reminder that Heavenly Father has an incredible sense of humor. Its apparent in the things he does...and says...good and bad.

At least his dad is the skinny one. And....at least he loves fat girls....cause this one loves him to pieces!

Ah-hah!

It has been a really long two weeks! Thankfully I got the worst of it, by far....because with as miserable as I've felt I can't imagine trying to console sick babies with this! I'm still coughing so much that my chest/throat burn...and I'm stuffed up. But the worst is hopefully behind me...I had fever, chills and the aches, sore throat, cough and pink eye, fever blisters....basically, I'm looking good!

My parents have been supplying me with different kinds of cold medication to try and they were here late SAturday night with the newest brand for me to try. They'd come from MIssoula that day and while talking to mom on the phone, she mentioned driving by the "Montana Canabis" store...*medical marajuana* and asked if I wanted some :) I said sure...though I had some concerns what it would do for my diet.

There have been a couple confirmed swine flu cases at the school....in my children's classes. When mom came that night to drop off my medicine(no, not marajuana...I value my temple reccommend!) she said, "I think you have a case of H1N1...the real deal."

And there it was...I replied, "Well, at least THAT would explain my pot belly."

My take on it...

You've probably heard of 'little house of horrors'? Well....in a very related kind of way...we are the 'little house of horrors' this week! Seriously, we have some sick stuff happening here!

Poor Eli started on Friday night...about seven, getting incredibly onery and fussy. By ten he was burning a fever and totally dillusional. He would cry "I want my momma" and when I'd try to reassure him I was right here he'd say, "no!!!! my REAL momma!" He asked over and over again where we were and if we could go home...all night long, where's my momma? where's my momma? He stared screaming with ear pain and by morning his ear had nasty stuff oozing out. The doc thinks it may have ruptured, and he's got a double ear infection. Much better now with the help of some high powered antibiotics that our insurance company didn't pay for! Don't worry, I'm plenty cranky still, it didn't wear off, and I'll be calling them first thing tomorrow morning!

Poor Landri! She has had this dang cold now for who knows how long! I asked the dr to examine her yesterday but because I hadn't checked her in officially, she did a quick look at the ears and said she was fine. Well, today her eyes, which have been puffy and watery for weeks, are crusty. Both ears are seriously oozing. And her nose is a disaster. She's so miserable...poor thing. I finally got a hold of said dr who authorized me to give her some of Eli's meds and she'll have her own, shiney $80 bottle tomorrow. Dang insurance better be over its little glitch baby.

And then there's me. I've had a toothache all week. The kind that flattens ya. Now my ear hurts, and I've had the chills today, as well as the most delightful outbreak of fever blisters on my mouth.

I think we're looking remarkable. Very photo-op ready.

Here's to hoping that the next week brings LOTS of sunshine to shoooo cootie season out the door!

I hear birds....

Aside from the fact that I think I may have passed out last night from exhaustion(and pain pills) and enjoyed 3 full hours of sleep...before being up all night

or...the fact that Landri is miserable and fussy and hacking and green nosed...

or...even the fact that my children are arguing as we speak about which episode of 'Suite Life on Deck' to watch....

I notice a HUGE improvement in my spirits today! Why? Because the snow has been replaced with huge, sloppy piles of mluck. But...that is progress. The sky is blue and this morning, I heard birds. 

So I am celebrating by cleaning the cars out! And then I am gonna trim out the closets in the family room and paint them...so I can check one room off my list! Its ridiculous how my motivation seems to have come back with the birds....