That's Progress

My older two know this, but clearly my post-Pampered Chef-child has never had put much effort into instant drink mix making. In deciding upon Kool-Aid for Alex's lunch, our pitcher already had green tea in it. No problem, I go down to me knees in front of the cabinet, breath deep and go deep, finally pulling out another pitcher (and the coffee filters I forgot I had, a tea jar with crusted instant tea 2" deep at the bottom and, hooray, a little packet of vanilla flavored coffee grounds).


Alex chose cherry, dumped the packet along with sugar inside and filled it with water. He hesitated, looked at me, down at the pitcher, me again, (I'd have said 'up at me' about three months ago, but now, my 11 year old little baby boy looks at me eye level) in all seriousness and asked "Mom? How are we supposed to stir this?".


With that, I know the art of stirring Kool-Aid into those great mini tornadoes that sometimes seep up and over the edge, is lost in my home. I don't do so well with progress...it took me two years to finally switch over to boot cut. It'll take me another six to switch back..and by then I'm not even certain we'll be putting our jeans on one leg at a time. I keep thinking there has GOT to be a better way.

Let The Second Half Commence!

First--thank you for your encouragement...an old high school friend of mine told me tonight to just look up and praise God. How right he is!

Well today marked a few first--Cody's first day of his second semester of his 11th year in high school. Niki's first day of NOT going to high school. And, of course, Alex's first day back at his little school I affectionately like to call 'get down to the kitchen NOW!'. You know, I do believe it's time for school pictures:

Math this year is on the computer--Fifth Grade Math whips me:

Aww Alex, you poor guy--you shouldn't even HAVE to go to school!

But.......if you're going to go, might as well feign joy!

On a side note:

This little guy in these photos, my Alex the Baby, got new shoes this weekend. Seems he shot out of his size 4 shoes he started summer with and is now a perfect...........SIZE 9???!!!

One half size less than his 17 year old brother and his daddy. He's shot up so much in the past few months that all his jeans we bought for Fall are now pedal pushers. Which is fine, keeps in line with the whole 'homeschool' look and all. But size 9? I REFUSE to give him a piggy back ride across the 'long bridge' to Africa at the zoo. He should be hauling ME back and forth. Well maybe not, he's grown so quickly his little legs look like flamingo legs, they're so skinny. Might break 'em....sigh. Okay I'll give him a haul, but I will NOT do the boing boing boing across the bridge game anymore!

The Waiting Is Over...Twin Tab Bottles, The Winner & Alex's Teeth

The first order of business: the winner of the $20 Amazon.com gift card!! Drum roll...duuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu

Mrs. C! Congratulations, Mrs. C...I'll email you the information before tomorrow is out!

I'll tell you all about the McCain/Palin visit to Lee's Summit tomorrow, with the pictures I may or may not have (haven't had time to download them yet). It was misting all morning, of course. We got there an hour before doors open, to find we were very far down the line, of course. We were told we wouldn't get in...so we might as well go over to the overflow area, where they would both come out and say hello AND we could hear their speeches. Ummmm...where was overflow? Outside, in the chilly mist. Of course!

Here are a few shots of Alex last week. He's showing off what's left of his poor little teeth (he has to have his THIRD root canal in the morning, shhh I haven't told him yet).

It just looked fun...that's why! We do get a little school done. But darnnit sometimes we just need to have fun.

Here they are: my beautiful beautiful Tab bottles--don't they just make you thirsty?

I think I'm going to funnel some Tab from my can down into that bottle and relive my childhood. Think it'll be the same?

The Cake That Makes The World Go Round

Almost a week later, sorry friends. I've over-committed myself with a few digi contests as well as taking care of what seems to be a never ending trail of mouth surgeries! Alex is healing nicely, these are pictures from this past week, what a difference a week makes! Cody had his wisdom tooth removed Tuesday--that was a ton of fun.

Alex and John last Sunday --you can hardly see a thing!

Louie!

John had to grill his own birthday meal, lol.Here's the cake recipe:

preheat oven to 350 and prepare 3 round cake pans.

Mix:

• 2 c sugar
• 1 stick butter (I use margarine)
• 1/2 c oil
• 5 egg yolks (keep those whites! don't do what I did the first time and throw them out)

Mix and add to first mixture:

• 2 c flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 c buttermilk (I never have this, I do the old TBS of lemon juice to the cup of milk, it works)
• 2 tsp vanilla

Mix and add to all the above:

• 5 egg whites, stiff (be sure your beaters are clean, don't do what I sometimes do and not clean them, you'll only have to restart)
• 2 c coconut
• 1 c nuts (I always use pecans)

Bake in 3 9" cake rounds for about 25 minutes--you'll know.

When I frost this cake, I always add between the layers extra nuts and extra coconut, then I top it with the same.

Frosting:

• 1- 8-oz cream cheese (lowfat works well)
• 1/2 c butter (again, margarine for me)
• 3 1/2 c powdered sugar
• vanilla--that's what it said--I use about a tsp or 2, it's whatever

If you bake this cake and put it in the fridge, it's one of those even better the next day kind of cakes. Or as my girlfriend Pam said 'I wanted to just sleep in it!'. It's that good.

I might be reemed for this but I really wanted to share this...I won't make you watch the first movie, it's pretty lengthy (but stinkin hilarious)...but the second one is funny too. It's Cody after surgery. He'd been telling me over and over how much fun it was...then he was trying to explain e=mc2 to me. And I, being a good mom, tried to trip him up, but even in a stupor he can out-think me. And all good moms of course record the conversation. For later. Because it's funny!

Updated Profile Pics--Summer Edition

To everyone who commented and prayed for Alex, thank you so much! I'm working my way to your blogs, it seems I get to a few and something interrupts me and I'm finished for the day. At this rate, I'll be 90 before I visit all my dear friends.

I'm pleased to tell you he is healing nicely and I'll be sure to post a new picture this weekend. You won't recognize him. His mouth is still very sore and looks bad, but he will heal. He goes in tomorrow to see about a root canal, I'm praying he won't need one. I can't imagine how much more he can handle going through, to be honest.

His summer is pretty well shot. We were headed to Six Flags because he earned two free tickets with our homeschool reading program, but because they expire on Aug 10 and he cannot do anything like that for at least a month, sigh, no go. I'm going to write them and see if they'll honor them in September, it could happen!



This is also VBS week. I'm working in crafts this year, and have to say I really really like that! The time definitely flies, probably because there just isn't enough time to get eight craft sticks glued side by side, the made into a frame then unstuck from the paper on the table, then decorated with stickers then glitter gel. I work too hard! I do!

Our air conditioner went out the other day...on THE hottest day of the year,
no less (see photo, I believe this summer has aged me at least 10 years!)

However, I'm connected. Yup, John's brother, Jim, owns a heating and cooling company here in Lee's Summit. But when the guy arrived, we found the entire unit kaput. Finito. Gone. AND to put in a new unit, we might as well go for zoned heating and cooling (the unit we have isn't adequate for this size house...naturally). And the furnace would need to be replaced too. A ton of money. And we are just coming up on the tail end of paying off all our credit debt. BUT in the process, we have cancelled all credit and we have saved NOTHING, used all our savings to do this. September was going to bring great relief, now this.

So...just when we were pondering what we were going to do, and just when it looked as if we would be sleeping with turbo fans directly on our bodies each night in the living room, John called from work. His boss decided to give him an extra bonus so we could get this system. It was unbelievable, we're still stunned. John's been there several years and Mike really relies on him, so I know he's earned this. But at the same time, what an incredible gift this will be. John told Mike he won't take a raise next year, which is fine with me! Besides, we're supposed to save at least 30% with the new system, so that alone is good enough for me. The ladies at VBS were praying, we were praying, and God did provide a way.

That's pretty much it....I know I'm still lagging in the blogging, but I really really have missed all of you. And I sooo appreciate your care and concern for Alex, you have no idea. It has got to settle down sometime--when Beth at the church office said it can only get better, I shushed her right away. Because I know better than most that it can always get a little worse! There seems to always be room for a little worse--it's a Poirier luck thing, I think!

Alex's trip to the ER

I'm working on the fly here, so I hope this makes sense....Alex was hurt in an accident Tuesday night. Alex, Niki and I were going for our nightly walk, John didn't get home in time to go. Alex usually takes his scooter with him and rides along for fun. This Tuesday, though, we didn't get far. Alex was coming back down our hill with his scooter and being Alex, was laughing and zig zagging across the road when he lost control. It all happened so fast, but at the same time, slow motion. He went down hard.

I ran to the top of the hill and turned him over and there was blood everywhere...pouring, not just streaming, off his face and I could see just enough under the streetlight to know his mouth was badly damaged. I picked him up and ran back to the car, yelling instructions to Niki, who had poor Louie on a leash. She finally gave up trying to drag him in and let go of his leash to run in and call Cody down, grab a beach towel and get back to the garage, where I was putting Alex in. She was able to pull and drag poor Louie into the house (he doesn't move very quickly and he really didn't like that his walk was up so soon).

So.....long story short, one long ER visit, one transfer to Children's Mercy downtown, another long ER visit and oral surgery. Alex was AMAZING through it all, such a brave little guy. He didn't break anything other than his tooth--one permanant tooth is missing and the two front ones were forced back into place and are held in by metal bars which are sutured into his mouth. If it sounds painful to us, can you imagine how he feels? We emerged from Mercy at 6am and Alex slept for the long ride back home...thankfully.

He's finally stopped throwing up, I think that part might be behind him. His swelling is going down and just before I snuck away to update, he had eaten some Jell-O and is watching a movie. We have an appointment with our dentist on Tuesday to discuss whether or not he will need root canals on the two front teeth, something that will have to be done within two weeks of his surgery. I'd appreciate it if you would pray he does not--he's been though enough. Niki and Cody (Niki is home) have been absolutely amazing with him, he's so lucky to have a brother and sister who adore him like they do. I have a photo of Cody napping with Alex this morning, I'll upload it soon, hopefully tomorrow....but for now, I need to get back out to the living room. The pictures below are somewhat graphic, they're from early yesterday morning.

He still has a sense of humor, I love this boy!

Zoooooooooooooo

Gosh the days just seem to fly by lately! I'd better get the zoo pictures up before Alex starts driving! In NO particular order.

Here we've just arrived in Omaha--have to say John did a much better job finding a hotel than the last time. I'm sure my friend, Debbie, will agree that this is much nicer than the icky icky hotel room we shared in Columbia! John got a suite almost identical to the one we got five years ago when we took the kids to Disneyland. Can you tell Alex is happy to be out of the car?


This is the end of the zoo day and we're in the fantastic jungle building...the waterfalls were very cool. The air? Not so much, they kept the weather...well, jungle-ish. But still very impressive.+
Of course he had to sit on the gorilla--it was almost calling his name!
John shaving before the zoo. You're welcome, honey.
A little more of Alex's tour of the hotel--this was his 'room'--the pullout couch.

The first place we went into was the desert dome--I think we wound around that giant dome building for over an hour--the basement had an incredible area where they kept the gators--we walked around in the dark on plankboard, praying one didn't jump up and grab a foot for lunch. And vampire bats, we saw vampire bats feeding on blood. That was my favorite part of the day!

After a long long day, the boys are down for a movie. Alex is hanging out with his new penguin buddy. THAT was very fun, the penguin area. We saw something similar at Sea World, so I was very surprised to see it in a regular old zoo! At the end of the penguin feature you can sit in a glass dome that makes it appear as if you're in the water with the penguins. You had to wait a little bit for your kids' turn to climb in for the photo op--to the lady who mistakenly thought her five children were ahead of Alex--you're still wrong, Alex was next. If you were nicer about it, I'd have let you go ahead of us, I really would have! But, sigh, you were a meanie mommy, and I don't like meanie mommies at the tail end of a very long day at the zoo. So...yeah.

On the road again.....I seriously could move to Omaha. It's one very cool city. Who knew?!

Happy Birthday Alexander The Great

He's our baby...the big 'uh oh...'...the one that came along AFTER we were finally able to get into the car without packing the kitchen sink. Four seats in the roller coaster, four easily fit into a booth, four chairs around our tiny kitchen table. We had no idea what adding one more so far behind the other two would be like, what it would do to our family. I cried, I'll admit it. I had a nice little life. What would it be like starting over again? I'll tell you: He blessed our socks off, that's what!

He's gets his strawberry blonde hair from his Grandpa (John's dad) and looks like his Papa (my late dad). My daddy adored his grandchildren, he truly loved being a Papa. And I have no doubt he's pleased to see what a beautiful, kind soul his "Alexander The Great" has become.

~HAPPY 11th BIRTHDAY, ALEX~

(There's nothing on my lip, it was part of the effect and I can't undo it! No, really, it's not me!)

The Funeral Story I Promised, Zip Lining, My Photo AND How I Halfway Died In Parkville, Missouri

Okay I don't EVEN think it's possible to have better friends, both new and not-new (not old, just not new). I've been blown away by your comments, by your encouragement and honestly I didn't think anyone would really understand the magnitude of John's death. So thank you and you can bet while it might take me a day or two to get all my ex's and oh's in, I'm gonna. (I'm still chugging away at that PowerPoint...then I'll comment, then PP then comment then PP...you get the picture).


John, Niki, Alex and I went to the memorial at the nursing home today, and I'm very glad. I told you before things were a little 'awkward' before, so I'll explain. John's only family nearby is an elderly sister, who is a bit controlling. It took several years for his sister to finally learn to trust me and know that I simply loved him. She eventually did and would call me when something was going on with John. So I wasn't prepared to find I'd missed an opportunity to say my final goodbye, that she called some folks from church but didn't think to call me. I would have been grateful for the chance to hold his hand if he was afraid and read to him from his worn out Bible.

Then she told me about the funeral service Tuesday and invited me to come to the Thursday memorial. She explained that only a few good friends and family were coming...and when I asked I was included she said "Well, John loved you, I can't deny you that...you and your husband can come for a few minutes, I guess". Ouch.

I know she loved John dearly and I know her controlling nature is what has gotten him through all these years, so it's hard to fault her, really. But I also know how deeply John loved me and my John, and he would have been hurt that we didn't say goodbye. She called back that afternoon and apologized and invited us to come for the whole ceremony, lol. I told her I'd think about it, but thank you.

John and I decided we would stay put, that it would be awkward at best to go knowing she didn't really invite us. So I took Alex to the zip lines with a homeschool group. (Photos down thar....) I regret not going...very much. That evening I got home to a message... she was crying and begging me to call her back, telling me over and over how much she loved me. It broke my heart. It was too late to call that night, so I called yesterday. She again apologized, told me she didn't have her head on straight and was ashamed of herself...would I please forgive her for her bad behavior? And that ended it right there ---I regret that I missed out, but I also must respect John and will never hurt her heart.

So...today she told me during the service that John was buried wrapped in the Scooby sheets I gave him. I can't think of anything more comforting than that. I brought home the Scooby Alex gave him, it smells like his room. I like that. And my John and I will go to the nursing home next week to help her move his things out (I know I know--close enough to John to do that....but it's okay, it's still for John). I think after this week, we're going to remain friends, his sister and I. I've lived enough losses to know death can bring about some downright cruel sides of people (one day I'll tell you all about my step-not-my-mother). But I don't think that was her heart, I believe her need to control got in the way. But only for awhile.

Now that I've gone and written a book, if you're still hanging with me, here are zip line photos!!!






This is the one of Alex going downnnnnnnnnnnnnnn.....wait! That's where he would have been if I had gotten the shot on time. Sigh. Sorry. Bad Mom. We only got one chance. By the time we hiked the 2000 mile 90 degree angle hill to the zip line, got their gear on, did the instructions, etc, they only got one ride.



Did I mention I almost died on the hills? I could have...the only thing that kept me going was Alex. How awkward for him if right behind the mom with the 20 kids, running with them up the hill on the return hike, had to come back for me and pull my crumpled body up? For that reason, I did it! Mmmhmm, I just pasted a smile on, nodded as my friend Susan chattered next to me, ignored the burning in my lungs and the cramping muscles down the backs of my legs. I wanted to take off my wind breaker half way in, but I was afraid the motion would have sent me tumbling backwards and my shirt would probably come off with it...and Alex might not think I'm the coolest mommy in the world anymore! I perservered...I conquered the zip line trail...and I will.never.do.that.again.

I've heard a few of you have missed the expression shots---here ya go--just before the zip line adventure (and clearly before the 500000 mile hike):

See this hill? That what I'm talking about..it's straight up, I'm not kidding!

He and his friend, Alec, had a blast!

And this is what makes homeschool so dang cool--I love days like this. I could clearly use a lot of sun here, but I still had fun.

PS--I ripped this song from my friend Sharon's blog, she's got it going on right now. It's been in my head for two days now. It's a great little song though...so Rita, this one's for you, girlfriend.

Wordless Wednesday....

The Whole Picture:

If you want to join in, head over HERE...and have fun!

Alex And The Leprechaun Invasion

I hope this finds you relatively free of tiny little bruises from all the St. Patrick's Day pinches! Last December I revealed we were caught 'in the act' on Christmas Eve. All feeble attempts to explain why we were taping name tags on the presents under the tree while holding stockings and bags of candy at the same time were pretty much a bust. So that's how our youngest (11 next month) got the news.

So with that, I was completely unprepared for what happened today. It's Spring break for our schools this week, which translates into Spring break for Alex too (no chance getting him to focus with his friends and brother out of school). I took advantage of the time off to work on an Easter layout for my digi blog. I'm finishing up when I hear Alex running down the hall and bursting into my room, breathless. "Mom! They were here! The leprechauns were here last night, Mom. I'm not kidding!"

Huh? Okay, my mind is racing, I don't really know what to do with this. Did he forget Christmas already? What's going on here? Is he serious? "Oh yeah? How so?" was all I could think of.

"Okay! Come here!" I reluctantly followed him down the hall, through the kitchen and into the laundry room. It was a long walk, I didn't know what to say! Yup, there it was. Clear as 7-Up, a streak of mud right in front of the door to the garage. Mmmmmhmm. That's suspicious. Especially given the 100 feet of rain we've had this week. Mud. Imagine that! I played along. I even inspected the minuscule specks of water on the kitchen floor, no doubt made by Louie's ears that always dip into his water bowl while he drinks. Yes, I bent over them, even crouched down to run my finger over the suspect water drops left by those pesky boys in green. I stood up, congratulated him on his great detective work and went back to my room to call John.

Here's what we decided: We think if we had a do over, we would not only ante up with Alex about Santa, but would also add this, "If he/she comes into our house in the cover of night while you are asleep then he/she does not exist!" That ought to cover leprechauns, Santa, The Easter Bunny, The Tooth Fairy and the Bogeyman. You'd think it would be a given. And now I must contemplate the upcoming Saturday night basket filling ritual. I don't wanna.

Prince Is Old, But John is Older....................

I'm sure you've heard about Prince and his need for hip replacement surgery. I took it hard. It's not an easy booger to swallow--he's PRINCE (The AFKAP, but that didn't take, he's Prince). I'm not clear on the status of the surgery, he's Jehovah's Witness, something about surgery and blood transfusions, blah blah blah.

I'm not doing well with Prince needing a hip replacement, I'm not doing well with the gray hair I pluck but keeps growing back (I'm not afraid to burn it, this is NOT a highlight), and I'm not doing well with the reality that I know what an 8 track, a record and a cassette tape are. Or maybe it's that my children fall over laughing at that revelation.
Friday, after wrapping up what I thought was a comprehensive unit study on the Revolutionary War (which had a great focus on the Militia and the difference between them and the British forces), I snapped the book shut and asked Alex what he thought. Oh! His eyes were lighting up, he wants more information! Wait, wait, let me get over by the dry erase, this could need detailed illustrations! Alright....GO!

"When Dad was in the Marines, did he fight in the Revolutionary War?"

"Mmmhmm, yes, Alex, he did. And when he was finished fighting, he put his musket away before he rode his horse back to the cabin where Grandma was preparing the wild turkey Grandpa shot in the woods. Cooking a good meal for Daddy over the wood stove while Uncle Jeff was busy fetching water down to the creek for washing up. Okay now, is that all?"

"Nope! Can I have Pizza Rolls for lunch?"

"Heck yes."

Help.Me!

Picture Time!

I'm all out of steam, running on about 1/8 tank right now, so I'm turning to my old standby for my weekend wrap-up post. Pictures! Yes it's picture time indeed....I thought I'd recap the week that is now mercifully behind me! Knock on particle board for thinking it will be better next week, because I'm just smart enough to know not to expect that!

A bright note--Alex in effort to hasten his earnings spent part of late Wednesday evening cleaning my bathroom. It's quite an undertaking, especially my counter...it's pretty hopeless. I was so tickled to see the end result:

Just like a guy thinks--if it can all be shoved together, clearing room on the counter, then it's good! The black fabric in the foreground is actually a piece of lining that fell off one of my tops and onto the floor. The soap box is empty, but bless his heart the root lifter spray looked so good on it! Why not? Loved loved loved it!

It snowed good Tuesday (or was it Monday--I forget) and the good news is, I do believe this is the last of the snows for us. Again, knock on particle board.

This is how skewed I am when I view my little boy (who is almost 11 now)....the other day I was cleaning the basement and came across these old outdoor end tables. I was going to throw them out when I had an epiphany! Alex loves to cook...sweet little tiny baby that he is. If I stored them in the laundry room off the kitchen, he could grab them and use them for step stools when he's working with me! And.....here you see how off my view of my little baby boy is:

WHEN did he grow ten inches?

Finally many of you already know Friday mornings are deadline mornings for me. Which means if I've dawdled around too much, I'll be up all night and into the morning typing. Last night (morning) 3:30 was threatening to catch me before I finally shut off the lights. I had time to capture this at about 2:30, dark circles and all:

And here is the stack I've already completed next to my very much coveted XM radio....of course Coast to Coast AM is always on from midnight until I wake up.

I've missed checking you all out over the past few days, so I'm excited to have the evening to myself tomorrow (John's got suite tickets to arena football and is taking Jeff, Cat's husband, and his brother, Jeff).

**If you're a digi scrapper, love bold and bright and have a vacation photo you want to scrap, head over to Nicoal Goes Digi Scrapping (and never turns back) and grab I Want My Vacation (it's a freebie!). Enjoy!*

****Hurdy Gurdy, JenGi!