BREAKING NEWS!

Obama wins the Heisman Trophy after watching a college football game!!!

Okay, there is your bad joke for the day. I've been sitting on it since Monday and just felt I should share.

Ch-ch-changes

Hi! How are you?

Oh, me? I'm fine, just tired and pregnant.

What's new? Oh, gee where do I begin.

We've potty trained the twins and more or less been 50/50 on our success. I've never failed at an aspect of potty training a kid in a day before. Alas, the book Toilet Training in Less Than a Day was not meant to be executed on twins at the same time. They are too distracted by their "friend". It would be okay if Owen would stop pooping and then pulling his pants down and leave a treat on the floor or in the yard. I'm so glad hard wood cleans up easily.

The homeschool year began about a month ago (the Tuesday after Labor Day). All in all it's been okay. Jackson was so excited, until he realized that kindergarten was coloring, glue sticks, safety scissors and playing. That was already life. He thought there was more too it. He's okay with it know.

Jonathan's job is interesting, things keep changing and there are times when it's great and times of frustration just like all jobs. One major change may come at the beginning of next year. Our family may move to Shanghai, China for 6 months to a year. I am a creature driven by change and I don't think things could be more different than China. It's not official, it could fall through, but an expat package has been requested for our consideration. We'll see what happens.

The baby is due Nov 2nd. That's less than a month away. My weight gain has stalled. She still doesn't have a name (doesn't Number Five have a nice ring to it j/k). My crazy nesting has gone on hiatus as my movement is getting more difficult. I'm not emptying cabinets and filling holes with steel wool and caulking gaps in my 110 year old kitchen. I did take a lot of stuff to charity instead of having a yard sale.

As my nesting has slowed, Jonathan's has picked up. We have removed carpet from 2 upstairs bedrooms, the upstairs hall and the front stairs. We will sand next weekend and begin varnishing the floors. Yes, I will varnish, but I will use a respirator to filter the air I breath. It's easy. It will be me an can of varnish, a paintbrush and sitting on the floor. No big deal. We will refinish the floors we just removed the carpet from and the floors where carpet has been removed in the past in our room and the sun room. Yes, we are crazy, don't ask.

We are doing Bradley Classes and Jonathan is coaching me. We are planning on having this baby without drugs.

That is a pretty quick summary of life at our house right now. I'll keep you posted as more crazy is guaranteed to occur.

Owen doesn't have a heart made out of stone...

...but definitely a head made out of stone.

Owen ran at me and crashed into my cheek bone with his head at full speed. I immediately saw stars and began crying. Not little tears mind you, but tears of unbearable pain, which rarely ever happens to me. He just grabs his head and says, "Sorry! Sorry!" and begins jumping on the bed like it's a trampoline. His head has to be made of stone. I honestly believe I will be bruised by morning. I've had to ice my cheek bone to reduce the swelling.

This of course caps off a long day. On rare occasions JR works late, and when I mean late we're talking past midnight to 2am. Those nights involve me calling him frequently at his desk to insure he is still awake with periodic calls for prayer at difficult spots in whatever has the deadline the next morning, and a late call to talk him home. They only happen a few times a year and they are always inevitable. They are the deadline that closely follows another one, so that no matter what, he has that one night that makes him want to sleep in Friday and take a long hot bath when he wakes and hide from the kids until at least noon. It might not have been so bad except he left the office to be at a doctor's appointment at 3 and sat in the waiting room until almost 5 and didn't get back into his office until shortly before 6. I felt really bad, I've used this doctor before and I've always been in and out in about an hour, of course I always take the first appointment of the day too.

I did do Jonathan one major favor tonight, so his time with the kids before bed is more pleasant tomorrow. I read the sad (someone died) chapter in the book we've been reading at night. At least tomorrow he doesn't have to incur the anguished cries of the kids or deal with the struggle of not crying himself. I'll admit I failed. Yep, I cried and 5 minutes later got bashed in the head.

Good times.

Now I'm going to call and see if JR is asleep at his desk or still chugging along.

Good night.

Poll

Here is a baby name poll.

No names are set in stone. There is still a lot of room for play.

Cast your vote.

Racism?

Honestly, former President Jimmy Carter is lost and irrelevant.

Accusations that people are having dissenting opinions is racially motivated, that is just ignorant, but then again I have rarely found myself in agreement with Carter (and he's a rich white guy...).

33 weeks

I'm in my 33rd week of my 4th pregnancy, with my 5th child. Do I remember week 33 with the first 2? No. Do I remember week 33 with the last 2? Maybe not, but I do remember week 32.

At 32 weeks with the twins I was placed on anti-contraction medication, because I was already dilated to a 2. We managed to hold the boys off until 36 weeks. I had just bought a huge bag of grapefruit and the medication they gave me was usually used for high blood pressure and wouldn't allow me to eat any. That was frustrating. V, J and I had all moved to Norman for the duration of my pregnancy 2 weeks before and we were staying with my mother in 1000 sq feet less than we live in.

It wasn't the easiest time for me. I had gained more weight than any previous pregnancy (I would more than double my most by delivery, gaining 70 lbs). I was starting to experience hip dislocation because of the weight (there is nothing more embarrassing than having to call for help to stand up in the bathroom). My activities were totally limited. I was allowed out of the house about an hour and a half every 2-3 days. That was filled with OB appointments weekly, 2 non stress tests at the hospital a week (usually resulting in an ultrasound), going to the Chiropractor to have my hip put back in and bi-weekly trips to a fetal maternal specialist (with a garaunteed ultrasound).

It was wild and crazy. My husband and mother couldn't understand why I opted to move in with my mom 2 1/2 hours from home to have this baby. Then at the end it made sense, I needed more supervision than I could get at home alone and when the boys ended up in the NICU, I had family to help with the other 2 and the hospital was 10 minutes away instead of 45 or more as it would have been to Tulsa. Jonathan and my mother decided that I had some conversation with God that they missed out on.

The situation doesn't seem real now. There was no nesting, there was just take it easy (without being on bed rest, but darn close).

Currently, I'm nesting like a crazy woman and running like I'm not pregnant (if you can get past the belly and waddle), but that is another story.

What a difference 3 years and only 1 baby makes.

The name game

This kid needs a name. I'm tired of referring to it as "the baby".

I need Girls names. We have narrowed her first name down to 12 contenders, but we couldn't make them work as middle names. I need middle names.

Here is the current list of contenders:

Cordelia-Irish-daughter of the sea

Fiona-Celtic-white, fair

Elizabeth-482 origins (though I would say Hebrew)-God is my Oath

Zeta-English-Rose (Jonathan's)

Andromeda-Greek-beautiful maiden rescued by Perseus (Jonathan's that will never happen in this lifetime, but that I leave on the list to be nice)

Marishka- Russian- I can't find it's meaning again

Ivy-English-Ivy plant (go figure)

Isla-Scottish-island ( again go figure)

Selene-Greek-moon (2nd least favorite)

Amelia-Latin-industrious (I like the meaning more than the name)

Rebecca (Rebekah)- Hebrew-tied (we are uncertain as to how to spell this one)

Katherine-Greek-Pure

If by chance our ultrasound is wrong the baby would be Xavier Hudson Ritchie. Why can't naming a girl be as easy as naming a boy for us.

Now it's time for NAME THAT BABY!

I did pop off and tell Jonathan we should name her Burgundy in honor of our wine making. lol

New posts to come.

I plan to post about our potty training adventure, insanity in nesting, and more. I know it's almost too much excitement for you.

Stay tuned (I have to finish sorting out clothes people have outgrown before I can come out and play).

$5 or $10

I don't give my kids an allowance (even at the age of three). My children have been required to do chores and in turn earn a commission. Thank you Dave Ramsey.

Here is the question of the hour. Victoria and Jackson each earn $5 a week. $1 per chore. Realistically they do more than 5 chores, but they are paid for 5 specifically tailored tasks.

Recently I've fallen off of the wagon of setting a list and paying them, something I am about to rectify.

Should I up V's chore list and her wage from 5 chores to 10 and $5 to $10? It seems fair, she's 9 and Jackson is 5 and she usually does more work around the house on a normal basis.

Downsizing

I'm seriously considering down sizing my Internet presence.

I've already eliminated my neglected (almost unused) twitter and myspace accounts. Now I'm debating eliminating my too frequently used Facebook account. It isn't that I don't like Facebook, it's that I spend too much time on there, being nosey and babbling on my status. In the process my little blog gets neglected. Things I would post here get a few sentence blurb there and they never see the light of day here. I consider the journal here a good indication of life, my thoughts and my family, but records aren't being kept when they are wasted there.

I've attempted deactivating my Facebook, but to reactivate you just log back in. That's far too easy. I may wait until the baby comes so I can alert friends to her arrival, but I haven't decided yet. I also find it strange and frustrating that I have over 350 friends. Yeah, I'm a friendly person and I know a lot of people, but seriously, that is ridiculous. Do most of them really care, or is it just nosiness? I'm leaning toward the latter. I've down graded from over 400. That's just nuts.

For now I will try to pay more attention to my little blog and less to the abyss that is Facebook. I have a feeling I will soon be cutting the Facebook cord though.

The hazards of sweet tea.

My oldest sister learned the hazards of sweet tea the hard way Saturday night. She was boiling water to make it and accidentally poured it over her left hand while putting it in the pitcher.

Needless to say, she burned her hand...really bad. She iced it all night and went to the ER the next day at the recommendation of a pharmacist. She has 2nd degree burns on her left hand. It isn't pretty.

I'm glad it wasn't her right hand.

In typical Jonathan fashion he said he wanted a picture to make the backdrop on his work computer. Being my sis, she reciprocated with a picture on Facebook. All I can say is ouch.

Maybe deep down this is why I don't drink sweet tea.

I'll spare you the picture.

Coffee

As the last post was about caffeine it only seemed appropriate to continue with that theme.

I just started us on the path of Gevelia today.

I picked the coffee maker and coffees and they should arrive in the next couple of weeks. I really do like coffee, but I'm lazy and I long ago got rid of our non-programmable coffee maker. The beauty coming my way is programmable. I will awake to fresh brewed necessity...daily.

I can totally handle that.

Obviously the exhaustion of pregnancy is talking and caffeine feels like my only salvation.

Caffeine after 3

It's 12:11 and I'm still up. I should go to sleep. but I had a cup of coffee around 5.

I'm a genius.

Explenation

This will be short, as the story and discomfort are long and weird. The person mentioned in this post, may not read my blog, but I was unwilling to take that chance. That is why the blog has a new name and address.

I posted on Facebook something I was doing and this person drove 2 hours to my house just to chat, when she thought I would be home. No warning, no call (even though she's called me in the past, she acted like she didn't have my number). She has cut her hair very short (much like mine), is driving the same kind of car, and is now homeschooling other people's children. There is more to the story, but we would be here all day. I have questioned for years if this person has compulsive lying issues and I've determined that it is in my best interest to sever ties, non-confrontationally.

My first attempt was to block her on Facebook. Then I started receiving e-mails from mutual friends that she couldn't find me. I e-mailed them and said I was deactivating my account, which I did until I blocked all mutual friends. She requesting to follow me on Twitter also, I never tweet, but after 2 requests I closed the account. I have gone to the lengths of removing my name and phone number from Whitepage and Google searches online.

As I said before, if I want drama and discomfort I have kids for that. We will now return to your irregularly scheduled babble.

New Bible

I bought Jonathan a new Bible. He has started teaching our Sunday school classes and he prefers studying books of the Bible. I have a Life Application Study Bible and he has been using it in some of his preparations, leaving me with my small pocket Bible that I used to put in my purse and backpack for years (it's little). His personal Bible has no notes, just some cross referencing.

I ran to Mardel after a doctors appointment in Tulsa on Wednesday and bought him a new Bible. I didn't buy him the same one I have. I thought different notes might help in lesson preparation. I bought him an Archaeological Study Bible (no I didn't spend the price on the link on it, it was priced at $35-YES!). Now he has explanation and history between the 2. I hope he likes it and that it serves him well in his lesson preparation. Well see what he thinks when he gets home.

There is a difference.

Carina, you classify as old friend and family, you're much more than an acquaintance.

For those wondering, if you haven't done anything weird, uncomfortable, creepy or just general over stepping the line, you're good. I don't think this person reads this blog and I know she doesn't read my tweets, at this point I'm dealing in paranoia.

In light of recent events

I never imagined that I would have privacy issues in my own little Internet world. I'm insignificant and small. Very few read my stuff who don't know me, but even at that those few have become friends (Hi, Wai-waving like a crazy woman).

Unfortunately that has changed. Discomfort has come in the form of an old acquaintance who I feel is overstepping boundaries.

This blog may go temporally to invite only. I haven't decided yet. It isn't like I've posted much lately (yes, I'm a slacker). I'll give you warning so if I don't have your e-mail I can get it. I've also limited who can see my myspace, twitter (not that I tweet often), and I've deactivated facebook for the time being.

I'm a tired mother of 4 going on 5. I don't need drama or discomfort...that's what I had kids for.

My security and that of my family is too important. What bothers me is this discomfort is coming from someone I know, not a stranger. Shouldn't it be the strangers that freak me out?

Current prediction from the ultrasound.

It appears to be a girl. V didn't cry like the last 2 pregnancies.

V also turned 9 on the 16th...something is very wrong with that.

The twins turn 3 Saturday...also very wrong.

Blackberry season will take hold of our lives again for the month of July. We aren't moving to the farm this summer, b/c I can't/won't pick 8-10 hours a day pregnant, nor am I encouraged to by the family. I will pick on the occasional early Friday morning and work farmers market in B'ville on Saturday's.

Seriously?

Okay, I've lived in OKC and I know there is plenty to occupy yourself. This is too bazaar. Jessica Alba decided while in OKC to raise awareness of the shrinking population of the Great White Shark, by pasting posters around downtown.

Hmmm. Let's think about this...Oklahoma is land locked, so there are no sharks...other people have to pay to clean up the stuff she pasted. I think she could have come up with another way to raise awareness. This just seems dumb and pointless. I guess not being wealthy or a celebrity I just don't know what's important.

Stupid.

I dreamed a dream.

Actually Jonathan did.  We had a weird start to our morning.  I was so out of it.  I usually wake up with the alarm (5-5:30) and never get back to sleep until I finally force Jonathan out of bed usually around 6:15.  Then I go close the windows and turn off the attic fan and crash until 7:15-7:30.  

This morning was different.  I didn't really wake up until 6:10 and I was snoozing the alarm in my sleep.  When I woke Jonathan he was so out of it, all he could say was, "Was I ever in the military and did I have a tick bite that caused me to lose my memory?"  I told him no and he slept for another 10 minutes.  He apparently slipped back into a very real and convincing dream that made him need assurance of who he is and his life.  After he was awake it was clear to him how off the dream was, but at the time he was disturbed.  His parents in the dream weren't his parents and they talked about him and not too him in the dream.  They discussed how he was "60% less verbal" since the tick bite and how "he no longer talked and used his hand with grace and articulation".

It reminded me of one instance in my life that I still vividly remember an odd dream.  I had been to the dentist to have cavities filled.  I was 6, and I think I had 6 to fill so they gave me laughing gas and I fell asleep for the procedure.  When I woke up I couldn't' remember what my mom looked like.  I kept thinking she was a tall and broad, red headed woman (my mom is short, at that time not broad with dark brown hair), but I knew it was wrong and I had to see my mom to get this image out of my head.  It's so strange what the dream state can do to disorient our minds.

After Jonathan get up and left I went back to bed and slept until 8:30.  It's been a strange start to everyone's day.  I think I'll go have another cup of coffee and try to make myself do something.