Utter Chaos

Academic Excellence

2010-03-16T10:04:00.002-05:00

Congrats to Ellen! She has worked hard...and has achieved "academic excellence". Due to all of her hard work, we, her family, get to go eat dinner tonight and watch the awards presentation. Im sure it will be long and drawn out and probably somewhat boring, but so very worth it when they call Ellen's name to come get her certificate. Good job sis...keep up the good work!

Help!

2009-02-20T10:25:00.003-06:00

I twisted my ankle pretty badly on Wednesday night...well, I blame Carl! We were at wrestling practice and I wrapped my leg around Carl's, like he was showing the girls to do, and he proceeded to throw me, like he was showing the girls to do, only somehow my leg got in the way and twisted around in a weird way. After lying on the mat for about 10 minutes trying not to cry, I hobbled out to the van and went home. I could tell immediately that it was bad when I couldn't even push down the gas peddle on the way home without excruciating pains shooting up my calf. Waaaa!! I made my way down to my bedroom (in the basement) and elevated & iced my poor throbbing ankle.
It felt pretty good the next morning so I eased out of bed attempting to put a little bit of weight on it....NO WAY! The pain was immense so I hopped the rest of the way into my bathroom. It was then that I realized there was no way I could make it upstairs. I was stuck in bed for the day. Normally this wouldn't seem to be such a bad thing ... but the dogs needed to go out and I was hungry... this wasn't good. About 30 minutes later Meg's nurse called saying she was sick and needed to come home...well I cant get to the car, let alone drive! so I told the nurse that I was stranded in the basement and she arranged to have someone bring her home. This was great news...at least I wouldn't be stuck home alone! Megan was truly sick and proved to be no help to me at all so I called and requested that Ellen walk home from school to nurse us. Ellen cooked for me and took care of the dogs....it was wonderful.
Today my ankle seems to be a little better....I put just a little bit of weight on it this morning so I packed up my stuff and had Carl help me upstairs. I didn't want to be stuck home alone in the basement again today! At least I can crawl to the kitchen and let the dogs out or get something to eat if I need to. The only bad thing about being up here is the fact that the kids didn't clean up after themselves at all yesterday and the house is in shambles. I am planning to sit here all day and make a list of chores that need to be done when they get home from school....I have nothing better to do. :)

Missouri Rookie State Wrestling Tournament

2009-02-18T12:40:00.002-06:00

The 2009 Rookie State tournament was held in St. Joseph MO this year and I was pretty excited for Madison to be wrestling in it. It is a tournament held for 6 & unders and first year wrestlers from all over the state of MO. It was at our last girls tournament in Emporia KS that Ellen mentioned that she would be interested in practicing and possibly wrestling in the next girls tournament at the end of February. A few weeks ago she said that she wanted to be entered into the Rookie tournament too even though she would be wrestling boys. I still cant believe it....Ellen is so weird about wrestling in front of boys, let alone against boys....but we applied for her USA wrestling card and entered her into the tournament.
So this past weekend me, Carl & one of his wrestlers, Jenny Germany (who just took 2nd at Nationals) took the girls to St. Joseph for the big event. It was crazy there....there were 15 mats and more kids than I had ever seen at a meet before. Ellen was first to wrestle between her and Madi and she was up against a pretty tall kid that was nothing but muscles. She got pinned pretty early in that match and afterward told me that she was so nervous that she was on the verge of crying throughout the entire match and felt like she could throw up at any time. At least now that she had wrestled her first match, she had that out of her system! Madi had her first match and did pretty well but ended up getting pinned in the second round. Ellen wrestled one more time and fought pretty hard...it was much better than the last one, but she still ended up getting pinned just as the first round was ending. Madi lasted longer in her second round as well but also got pinned. Madi's best friend Levi however took 1st place in his weight group and left as State Champion for 10 & under 120lb group! Yay Levi! All in all, it was a VERY long and stressful day for me and the girls...but a lot of fun. Now we cant wait for Feb. 28...MO Girls Tournament in KC!!!

2009 Girls Wrestling Camp

2009-01-29T09:00:00.002-06:00

Girls wrestling camp will be from June 28 to July 2 2009 this year at Missouri Valley College in Marshall MO. Madi and Ellen will be participating this year and I'm really excited about it. I need to start planning activities early this year. We plan to have some great energy at camp this year. Hopefully camp this year will exceed camps past and may just involve another famous flour fight! Those are always fun...especially right after swimming! Nothing mixes better with flour than water...to make for a big pasty competition!
For more information on Missouri Valley College Girls Wrestling Camp contact Carl Murphree at murphreec@moval.edu .

Busy Times

2009-01-04T12:16:00.002-06:00

A lot has been going on lately. Madi is in a wrestling tournament every weekend, which involves getting up @ 430 a.m. to travel...sitting on hard bleachers all day...then travelling home. Its exhausting and generally takes a day or 2 to recoup afterwards. She has practice 2-4 times per week in the evenings and of course the holidays + Ellen's birthday came and went in between.

Whew....

Sometimes I feel like I barely have time to breathe, let alone keep up with a blog! Maybe its a good thing that I dont have many people following my blog!

The girls got a Wii for Christmas, along with the Guitar Hero World Tour bundle with the drums & microphone. They also got a Wii Fit (which I have taken control of) and some other games. We spend so much time playing Wii! The entire family (minus Meg most of the time) is in the livng room together playing tennis & golf...bowling, skiiing, doing yoga....it is SO much fun...and great to spend time together as a family. This was a great investment!

Madi had a tournament in Jefferson City yesterday and kicked butt! I told her on the way there that I knew at some point the fighter in her would come out and then she would realize that she can beat these boys and yesterday was that day. She had the first kid an inch away from being pinned for over 30 seconds until time ran out. It ended up in a tie and the kid won the tie breaker but Madison fought til the end....I was so proud of her! We are looking forward to a couple of all girl tournaments coming up...Ill keep everyone posted!

Weekend Activities

2008-12-23T09:20:00.004-06:00

Here are a few pics of Madi's 1st wrestling match!

Here she is warming up...

she was so nervous that she walked out onto the mat biting her fingernails.

They shook hands and off they went...

Madi wasnt being very aggressive, she spent more time trying to defend herself

This kid had no mercy...we found out later that he was a state champ last year.

And theres the pin....it didnt last long...but everything seemed to be happening in slow motion.

I was a nervous wreck the entire time!

This kid came up to her after the match and said she did a good job and patted her on the back.

I thought it was sweet....he knew how nervous she was.

The Rockettes!!!

We spent all day Saturday in St. Louis. It was such a great day! Em & Chris have an awesome apartment on the top floor of this huge building. It was really cool. We all exchanged gifts and then went down to the fabulous Fox Theatre, where Em works, to see the show. We went into the private entrance and the place was breathtaking. I cant put into words how beautiful this theatre is. All of the details were overwhelming and we hadnt even seen inside the theatre yet...this was just the hallway! The lobby area was amazing...the enormous ceiling and great detail in all the painting and woodwork. There is no way I could justify it with words.

We had private club level seats, which were big comfortable chairs around a little table. Our waiter kept our drinks full through the entire show and the kids had french fries, candied nuts and rock candy suckers during the performance.....and the performance...WOW! It was so fun....the Rockettes are amazing. The wooden soldier part was my favorite. It is unbelievable how they do some of the stuff that they do. When they all fell down on each other, like dominoes, we couldnt beleive it...it was wonderful! One of the best parts of the show was the live Nativity scene. They had Mary on a real donkey....the set was spectacular! The wise men's clothes were beautiful and the camel's were so sweet! Madi swears she saw one guy whispering harshly to his camel and was all worried about it.

Anyway...all in all, we had a very amazing, fun-filled, exhausting weekend that words cant even completely describe.

Rockettes....Here We Come!

2008-12-17T06:27:00.002-06:00

Thats right!

We're going to see the the Radio City Christmas Spectacular featuring the world famous Rockettes!!!

Emilee works at the Fox Theatre in St. Louis and has acquired several tickets to this wonderful show and invited Carl, me, the girls & my mom to go see the show on Sunday. Em even said that we wont be sitting in general admission seats...we will be sitting in the Fox Club Seating, with a private entrance & waitresses come around throughout the show to bring dinner & drinks. I cant express to Emilee how very grateful we are...this is a once in a lifetime opportunity & I can hardly wait!

More booties & onesies

2008-12-08T08:24:00.004-06:00

Here are the pics of the other sets that I made for the baby shower.....the moms-to-be loved them!

Bitty Booties & Onesie

2008-12-06T08:34:00.003-06:00

2 of Carl's wrestlers are pregnant with boys so I have been making booties with matching onesies to give to them at their baby showers. I got the bootie pattern from Heather Bailey's website, which I love, and the idea for the onesies from Martha Stewart's show. I dont normally watch Martha Stewart, but I do love her....I just happened to stumble across the program one day and thought the onesies were really cute. I took pics of this first set but have actually made 2 sets of booties & onesies for each baby. If I can remember, Ill take pics of the others tomorrow before I wrap them up.

Gobble Gobble

2008-11-27T13:34:00.003-06:00

Thanksgiving is here, and Im sure everyone is looking forward to the turkey. Well, everyone except for the poor turkey.
I was watching the news last night and heard that there was a man delivering live turkeys in New York when a freak accident occured, and several of the turkeys were thrown carelessly from the truck. Thank goodness, they survived the incident and could be heard gobbling, "WE'RE FREE! ... Run for it!" Of course the police came and an ambulance (not for the turkeys), and since the driver and truck were fine, the driver was released to go on with his delivery. But not before they caught the turkeys that were thrown free and PUT THEM BACK ON THE TRUCK. Can you believe that? Why would they do that? I think this accident happened for a reason....maybe God wanted them turkeys free. Maybe they had families to return to. Oh no....the police caught the poor little guys and put them back on that truck which led to their certain death.
So as you all sit down today to eat your delicious turkey dinner....think of the poor little turkeys that were almost home with their families...but now are probably in the bellies of yours.
I leave you with a Thanksgiving song.....sung to the tune of "Oh Christmas Tree" :
Oh turkey leg, Oh turkey leg...Im glad you lost your feathers
Oh turkey leg, Oh turkey leg....your skin's as tough as leather
If you could speak to us right now...You'd say, "Why me, and not a cow?"
Oh turkey leg, Oh turkey leg, We'll see you next at Christmas"
Sorry turkeys!

We survived the frozen tundra

2008-11-24T08:06:00.002-06:00

I think no matter how many scarves you pack, you cant be totally prepared for North Dakota weather. It is about a 13 hour drive to Jamestown ND...and that is only if no one wants to eat or use the restroom along the way. We stopped in Sioux City, IA and stayed the night. That was a nice, relaxing stay. We got there about 8pm so Madi had time to swim in the pool and we (those of us that didnt have to make weight the following morning) walked over to Culver's for dinner and ice cream. The girls that were trying to make weight were working out and making steam rooms in their bathrooms so they weren't out socializing much, but the rest of us had fun. The girls weighed in at 7am the next morning and then we were free to eat and be merry. Spirits were up more now so people were a lot more talkative and happy on the bus. We drove on to Jamestown and ate dinner and settled in to our hotel room there. We all walked (yes, it was very cold) over for frozen yogurt and hung out at the hotel. Carl had a coaches meeting at the college and Madi went to play charades with some of the wrestlers in their rooms while I hung out in my room relaxing and playing Sims on the laptop. The next day Carl and the girls left for the tournament around 7am....Madi and I stayed in bed and watched TV until 11. We took a bus (which Madi hated) to the college for wrestling until 4pm. This was a VERY long day. Right after the tournament ended we drove an hour to Fargo and had dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings (yum) and then headed south. We made it all the way to Sioux Falls SD before stopping for the night....then up REALLY early the next morning and off for the 9 hour drive home. Needless to say, we're exhausted. Madi is sick now...I think this trip just sucked the health out of her. She is home today from school to recuperate and will hopefully be all well and good by Thursday!

Heading North

2008-11-21T08:39:00.003-06:00

There is a wrestling tournament in Jamestown North Dakota tomorrow and I am the assistant bus driver for the trip. Carl's assistant coach couldnt make it so Madi and I are on our way to the frozen north. After much deliberation we made the decision to allow Megan and Ellen to stay home alone for the next few days. Megan is 17 now and Ellen is a very responsible 13 ...not to mention that they have several viscious dogs there to protect them (and keep parties from happening).
The temperature in Jamestown over the next few days is supposed to be FREEZING COLD so we packed plenty of layers to wear. The girls will only be wrestling for one day...but it will be a long day so Madi and I may try to brave the weather and walk somewhere. There will be breakfast with Santa at the hospital ... about a block away from the tournament ... and there is an art museum and some shops we could browse through. Of course it may be so cold that we decide to just watch wrestling.

Caesar

2008-11-13T08:25:00.003-06:00

Julius Caesar was a big success. Megan and I had seats near the center about 12 rows back. It was perfect! This was the first time I had ever seen a baroque (long O sound....not pronounced like our new President) opera before so I must admit I was a little shocked when Caesar started singing...it was all I could do not to snicker a little (Meg says I did). Most popular operas that are performed now were written in the 1800's & 1900's but this one is from the mid 1700's and back then all masculine male roles were sung in very high pitched voices. Once again...it would have been nice if I had known this in advance. Overall, it was a great performance....great opera.... and Megan and I both had a wonderful time and really like it a lot!

Julius Caesar -- the opera

2008-11-12T11:41:00.005-06:00

Meg and I are off to the opera...just the two of us! Meg is studying Julius Caesar in her English 2 class and I found out that Julius Caesar the opera is being performed tonight at the Lyric Opera of KC so off we go! Carl and Madi both have wrestling practice so they cant go...and Ellen cant put her book down for 5 minutes so shes not going either. It will be nice to be able to spend a fun evening with just me and Megan. It has been a while since we have been able to do that. Im sure this will be a great opera anyway...its all about desire, seduction & power...what could go wrong?!?

Back to Quilting

2008-11-10T11:29:00.002-06:00

Ive started working on my quilt again over the weekend and this morning. I had quit working on it for almost all of October because I was busy with halloween costumes and other things. I must say it is nice to feel like Im making progress toward the quilt again, but I am hating the pinwheels. What used to be so much fun and exciting is now a tedious downer. They are really pretty and cool to look at, as long as someone else is making them. Kathy gave me a wonderful guide to an easier way of making them...THANKS KATHY!....but I still dont enjoy them nearly as much as I used to. The pattern that I am using calls for 90 pinwheels and after making 12 this morning, I now have 70 done. I know...most people would say "Wow, your almost there, why not just bust them out and get it over with?"...and I would say "why dont you come over and bust them out for me...Im tired of them." So now I am going to piece some blocks together and cut squares and maybe Ill feel like doing more pinwheels in a day or two.
P.S.
I was going to take a picture of the blocks but one of my lovely daughters has used my camera and didnt put it back where it belongs...so now we will have to wait until they get home from school and return it.

Our New President

2008-11-06T10:04:00.002-06:00

Broc Obama

Election day was a lot of fun for us. I was really excited to go and cast my vote on Nov. 4 2008. Carl and I generally always go together and this time was no exception. We talked all morning about the issues that would be on the ballot and looked things up online so that we would be educated voters this time. Not that we normally arent, but there always seems to be something on the ballot that I didnt remember reading about or dont know much about ... so this time we went in prepared.

The girls came home from school all abuzz about who their classmates voted for and who won at their school...Obama won at both Bueker Middle School and the High School. Ellen said that Bueker has picked the president for as far back as any of the teachers can remember so I became a little worried. Madi and Ellen both voted for McCain...Ellen had been campaigning around the house for Obama for weeks and changed her mind at the last minute. Madi never waivered in her choice. She told me back in April or May that she was picking McCain. She had learned that he has a lot of pets...16 or 17...and thought that if he could manage that many pets, he could manage our country. Shes very wise for a 10 year old. Megan, on the other hand, chose Obama. I think she just liked him because everyone in her school was saying that McCain was an old fart and Obama was younger so he would be a better president. They didnt really have any facts...typical for teenagers, if you ask me....and this is my blog so my opinion is the only one that matters. hahaha

Anyway...we attended an Election Extravaganza at the college library that evening. There was folk music, cookie voting contest, funny masks for everyone to wear of their favorite candidate, door prizes (I won a calendar), and of course we all watched the progress of the election on TV. It was a lot of fun...but all good things must come to an end. We came home and continued to be glued to the news/internet watching the results....Obama wins....congratulations Megan...she is the sole winner in our house!

Happy Birthday Meg!

2008-11-02T19:46:00.004-06:00

My sweet little girl turned 17 today.

We spent the day at Worlds of Fun yesterday

for Meg's birthday and she took her best friend Christy with us.

Every time we go to amusement parks Meg has always refused to ride anything that

goes upside down. She loves roller coasters, as long as they stay upright.

This drives me crazy because I know she will like them if she would just try it...

but NOOOOOOO...she wont even try....until yesterday.

Yesterday Christy convinced her to try the Patriot, and guess what?!?

Yep! She loved it!

She then went and tried the Boomerang and loved that one too.

I was so proud and we all had a lot of fun!

She's growing up!

Goth Barbie

2008-10-31T22:27:00.004-05:00

Ellen was Goth Barbie for halloween this year. I found this cool dress at a consignment shop here in Marshall and it worked out perfectly! The super goth shoes I found on eBay and may have paid too much for them, but it all looked great! Ellen's barbie box was fun to make, we covered it with pink wrapping paper and wrote funny "goth" things on it. A couple of things we put were ... Accessories Included : Home Facial Piercing Kit, Punk Black Lipstick, Overall Bad Attitude....it was really funny. We had a lot of fun with the costumes this year. Halloween isnt officially over yet but we're already thinking about next year!....

Madi's costume 2008

2008-10-29T11:22:00.004-05:00

Last night (10/28/2008) Madi went to "Trick or Treating on the Square" here in Marshall and her costume was a big success. We usually dont go to this event because their homemade halloween costumes always involve a lot of preparation and I dont want to go through it twice but Madi really wanted to go so we did. Im glad we did, it was so much fun seeing everyone come up to her and comment on the costume. She even had her picture taken twice by the local newspaper. Hopefully we will see her in the paper in the next few days.

Im now on facebook

2008-10-28T07:14:00.002-05:00

Shyrock's Corn Maze

2008-10-26T20:33:00.003-05:00

I took the girls to Shyrocks today for the big corn maze. We went a couple of years ago and it was a lot of fun. The last time we went it was dark out...and really cold...and a little muddy, which wasnt so great in the dark. This time we went in the afternoon and it was SO much better.

Madi went with me (against her will) and Meg went with Ellen and the competition was on! Madi and I found each check point and answered all of the questions without help. I think we won!

The great things about this maze are that ...

1. It is enormous!

2. They have 10 check points randomly placed throughout the maze with various questions.

3. They offer prizes to people that find and answer the questions.

4. They have really good hot chocolate waiting for you inside the barn when youre done.

5. The HUGE gumball roller coaster thing.

There are more things that make this place great, but you will have to visit and find out for yourself!

Past Homemade Halloween Costumes

2008-10-21T09:10:00.004-05:00

I have always loved Halloween....as a child nothing is more fun than playing dress up and having the entire neighborhood play along by handing out candy for your efforts. I wonder if small children think they can get away with this every day.

Making the kids halloween costumes is one of the most fun things I do all year. The actual ' making of the costumes ' isnt so fun I guess...but taking them around Trick or Treating is just great. I love to listen to people comment on their cool, one of a kind costumes while I secretly hide out in the car. Its so much fun!

I have posted pics of some of the costumes from the last 3 years. The one of Meg as Pepperoni Pizza cracks me up because of how horrible my digital camera was back then....and I was so proud to have it. The pizza had a back crust as well with straps that hung over Meg's shoulders and straps down near her waist that kept it from flopping around too much. That year Madi was a bunch of grapes. I stitched purple grapes to a purple sweatshirt which was stitched closed between her legs so it would stay down. I hand sewed a little grape leaf with curly vines coming off for the top of her head. It was really cute and Im sad that I dont have a picture of it :(

I should also note that all of the costumes in these pictures were put together by hand, without a sewing maching...because I didnt have one back then. It would take me a VERY long time to make these costumes so that the kids could wear them for a couple of hours on one night....but it was so worth it to me! They are always a huge success!

Ellen & the Rip Cord

2008-10-14T07:41:00.003-05:00

This is a video clip of Ellen and Bobby riding the Rip Cord at World's of Fun in Kansas City MO. It is basically a cable that pulls you up 180 feet in the air and you pull the "rip cord" to free fall up to speeds of 80 mph. I get scared just watching other people do it....I cant even explain how scary it was to watch my little Ellen do it! I obviously turned the camera sideways when I took the video...although I dont know why. I guess I wasnt thinking clearly. Its not the best quality...but here she is!

Madi's School Spirit

2008-10-07T09:20:00.003-05:00

Madi's got spirit
Yes she do!
Madi's got spirit
How bout you?!
Madi wanted to go all out for homecoming Spirit Day.

So we got up really early and spray painted her hair and painted her face.
She loved how the look turned out.
The Owl's won their homecoming game....maybe because of Madi....who knows.

Bubble Letter T-Shirt

2008-10-07T09:07:00.005-05:00

I saw someone with a shirt like this and decided to make some for the girls. This is the first one, which turned out pretty cute. The girls' school mascot is the Owl.

I cut bubble letters out of different colored fabric & iron on backing and ironed them together then stitched the letters on the t-shirt with a zig zag stitch. We thought it would be cute to cut and tie up the sides of the shirt and the tops of the sleeves. It did turn out cute....Ellen wore it to the football game last night and all of her friends want one. I could start a little side business. haha

Saline Animal League

2008-09-23T09:05:00.003-05:00

Featuring Tom Trott!

Tom Trott is currently seeking a loving family to adopt him and give him a good home. He is very lovable and playful and would make a great addition to any type of family.

Ellen and I have had our eye on Tom Trott for quite a while now. We just fell in love with this cat one day while we were cleaning the cat room at the Marshall Animal Shelter. He is quite mischievous and a lot of fun to be around. I was out taking pictures to put on the Petfinder website and just had to add Tom Trott to the site. I am going to log in to Saline Animal Leagues page on Petfinder a little later and see if I cant update the web page a little. It has been the same for as long as I can remember and is due for a change. I hope I don't mess anything up!!!

La Boheme

2008-09-17T09:08:00.004-05:00

Carl & I are taking the girls to see their first opera tonight, La Boheme. The following information about the opera was taken off the Lyric Opera website:

La Boheme

Music by Giacomo Puccini

Liberetto by Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica
Sung in Italian with English subtitles
In one of the most popular and romantic operas ever written, bleak winter weather can't cool young love's passion. Puccini's masterpiece has inspired audiences for more than 100 years with its glorious melodies illuminating the eternal story of starving bohemians and star-crossed lovers in the Latin quarter of Paris. Don't forget your tissues! Sometimes love can't cure all.

Carl and I are pretty excited...I think the girls are more excited about going to Chipotle before the opera! Ill be sure to write about how they liked/disliked it.

Atticus - My Sweet German Shepherd

2008-09-16T09:35:00.008-05:00

Atticus somehow wound up at an Animal Shelter in Concordia MO. I dont understand who could give this dog up or at the very least, look for him if he was lost. From what I was told, he was on the "kill list" at the other shelter because they had deemed him unadoptable due to his uncertain behavior. Someone from our organization adopted him from this other shelter and brought him to Marshall Animal Shelter to save him. THANK GOODNESS!!! It was in the Marshall Shelter that I walked in, to take some pictures for the website, when I noticed Atticus (then named Houdini). That first day, I took some pictures of him to send to the German Shepherd Rescue group in MO and I admit, I was a little scared of him out in the yard. He wasnt too sure of me, and I wasnt too sure of him.....but neither of us bit the other one, so it all worked out. I brought Carl in to see him the next day. Carl is very good with bigger dogs, that may be slightly aggressive. He is strong, and patient, and soft spoken, and the dogs eventually learn to trust him. I told Carl that he should work with this dog to help him become more adoptable....I secretly hoped Carl would fall in love with him and bring him home.....Didnt happen :( Carl did like him and enjoyed working with him, but thought 2 big dogs in the house would be too many. We learned right away that Atticus could sit, shake and would stay for as long as Carl asked him to. Someone had worked with this dog.....where were they? ...did they miss him? I couldnt help but wonder.

We held Atticus at the shelter for a week to await the response from the German Shepherd Rescue. When Sheila heard back from them, they stated that they were pretty full and he was more light colored than most of the dogs they normally accept. Did this mean that he is less of a German Shepherd? I wish I could have talked to them myself. He is obviously full blooded German Shepherd.....just look at him. Anyway...this was great news to me. By this time, after working with him every day for over a week, I really felt myself drawn to him. I work with a lot of dogs and there are very few that I really feel a close connection to. Not that I dont care for each one, because I do...each dog is special in its own way...but this dog was special to me....it was more personal. I cant really explain it any better than that. I was concerned for Atti's welfare...I didnt want him to be adopted to just anyone. He is too good of a dog to go somewhere where he will be chained to a tree and never loved or taught new things. (This makes me sound like I think some dogs ARE meant to be chained to a tree...that isnt true...I really hate chains and hate it when dogs arent allowed to run around...but I cant save the world) I used this argument to convince Carl to foster him. I felt that once he came home and Carl got used to him being there that he surely couldnt take him back to the shelter. ...I was right!

Carl adopted Atticus about 2 weeks later. He adopted him to be his dog...to train him and take him everywhere. We soon realized that Atticus loves us so much that he wants to protect us.....and doesnt want anyone else to come in to our house, or near us. Atticus now thinks he is my dog...he follows me everywhere, if I go down to put laundry in the dryer, Atticus goes down beside me. If I go to the bathroom, he waits outside the door for me. He sleeps on my side of the bed every night....He is my dog. Carl used to be a little upset about this but he has Isolde now, so he is getting over it.

Delicious Spinach Quiche

2008-09-14T19:13:00.005-05:00

I made a wonderful spinach quiche for dinner tonight. I have never made a quiche before but have always wanted to. I dug around in the refrigerator and found some broccoli, mozzerella & cheddar cheeses, and an onion and knew I had the beginning of a great dinner. I only had one pie pan and wanted to make 2 quiches so I improvised and used one small round cake pan for the second. The recipe for one is as follows:

1 pie crust

2T butter

1/2 onion

1 tsp. minced garlic

2 cups chopped fresh broccoli

1 1/2 cups different cheeses (whatever you have on hand)

3 eggs

1 cup milk ( I used 1/2 milk, 1/2 whipping cream)

1 T melted butter

salt/pepper to taste

Place pie crust in pie pan. Melt 2 T butter in saucepan on med. low heat...add onion, garlic & broccoli and saute until veggies are tender. Lightly press cheese in bottom of pie crust ( this helps prevent crust from becoming soggy ). When broccoli mix is done, spread on top of cheese. In small bowl, beat eggs and stir in milk and 1 T melted butter. Pour over broccoli mix and bake @ 350 for about 30 to 35 minutes.

I served this quiche with crescent rolls and the kids loved it! Here is a picture after we were finished with dinner.... only one little piece left!

Bon Appetit!

Dog Blog

2008-09-11T21:31:00.003-05:00

Ellen made a webpage for our dachshund Newton on Dogster...if you would like to make one for your dog visit this site:

Join the Dogster community

because everyone knows dogs LOVE to blog!!!

Quilt Pinwheels

2008-09-09T10:23:00.005-05:00

Its been a little over a week since my last blog.....Ive missed it. My Dad had neck surgery last week...they had to put in 2 cadaver bones and a titanium plate in his neck. He is doing great! He was ready to go home that afternoon but the Dr. wouldnt let him. It was nice to be able to see everyone...it has been a while.
Aunt Shirley invited me and the girls to a bluegrass festival in late September then we are all going to get together out in Galesburg for a bonfire and family reunion type thing. Its been a long time since we have done that. This will be a lot of fun. Carl's team has to work Nascar that weekend so he wont be able to go :( I really wish he could meet my family.
Madi has been practicing bluegrass songs that she can sing at the reunion. Uncle Leon wrote down some guitar notes for her to learn before the reunion too. She is doing a good job practicing. She should be able to learn the guitar pretty easily due to our musical background.
I started my quilt yesterday. My dad bought a couple of quilting magazines for me and I picked a really nice quilt out of the magazine to attempt to put together. It is a beginners quilt but will take quite a bit of time to finish. I made pinwheels yesterday...I finished 6 pinwheels and the pattern calls for 90...so I still have a ways to go. Ill charge my camera batteries today and take some pics of the pinwheels...theyre really cute.

Thats all for now.....ciao

Isolde & Newton

2008-08-29T11:52:00.003-05:00

This is a funny little video of Isolde trying to play ball with Newton. She is trying really hard to keep up with him.

The Green Pumpkin

2008-08-29T11:43:00.005-05:00

After walking Madi to school this morning, I noticed the blossoms on the pumpkin plant were wide open and begging for attention so I took this picture.

The pumpkin is getting greener. I dont think its going to turn orange...I think it is going to stay green. I did have a little green pumpkin in my fall display last year. This one is nice...and is still the only one we have.

My cats are funny...they caught me taking pictures of the pumpkin and decided it was a great time to beg for breakfast. Here they are begging.... Isabella is the white cat and Jillyan is the darker cat.

Ellen before & after

2008-08-29T11:38:00.002-05:00

I had said I would post pictures of Ellen before and after she had her gap filled in and I am finally getting around to that.

She does look much better with the gap gone.....

...and I think she feels much better about herself too.

7 Minute Icing

2008-08-25T10:55:00.004-05:00

Yesterday I was planning to take the girls to World's of Fun but ended up not feeling well, so we stayed home and rented movies instead. The girls were very nice about me cancelling at the last minute. As a small treat, after dinner, I made chocolate cupcakes (from scratch) and 7 minute icing. This icing was my all time favorite as a child. My mom only made it a few times but I have never forgotten it. It is so sweet, and soft....like eating a sugary cloud. I have never made this icing for my girls before so I was slightly excited because I knew how much they would like it. The cupcakes turned out very nice, fluffy and moist, and the icing was just finished when I called the girls in to help ice the cupcakes. I like to dip the cupcake into the icing and swirl it, like a DQ ice cream cone. This soft icing is perfect for that. Ellen was too busy with her laundry to want to come help so Meg and Madi enjoyed icing them. Madi really liked the icing, but she loves eating anything sweet...while Meg wished I had added some peppermint to it, she thought it could have used more flavor (how do you type rolling your eyes?). I had to beg Ellen to eat a cupcake ... she doesn't really like chocolate cake that much and after she made me tell her what was in the icing, she advised me that it sounded way to fattening for her. I did force her to eat the cupcake and made her tell me how good it was. She then over dramatized and said "this is sooo good, its the best cupcake Ive ever eaten"..then shoved the entire thing in her mouth and said "happy?". I should have made this special treat for themwhen they were younger.....they grow up so fast.

You know you grew up in the 80's if.....

2008-08-25T10:47:00.003-05:00

1. You've ever ended a sentence with the word "PSYCHE."

2. You can sing the rap to the "Fresh Prince of Bel Air" and can dothe "Carlton."

3. Girls wore biker shorts under their skirts and felt stylishlysexy.

4. Two words: Hammer Pants.

5. You wore a ponytail on the side of your head.

6. You wore stone washed Jordache jean jackets and were proud of it.

7. L.A.Gear....need I say more?

8. You know the profound meaning of "WAX ON, WAX OFF."

9. You ever wore fluorescent clothing. (Some of us...head-to-toe,not to mention matching!!)

10. You can remember what Michael Jackson looked like before hisnose fell off and his cheeks lifted.

11. You still get the urge to say "NOT" after every sentence.

12. You ever owned a pair of Jelly-Shoes.

13. After you saw "Pee-Wee's Big Adventure" you kept saying "I knowyou are, but what am I?

14. You remember "I've fallen and I can't get up."

15. You remember going to the skating rink before there were inlineskates.

16. You ever got seriously injured on a Slip and Slide.

17. You had or attended a birthday party at McDonalds.

18. You've gone through this nodding your head in agreement.

19. "Don't worry, be happy."

20. You wore, like, EIGHT pairs of socks over tights with high topReeboks.

21. You wore socks scrunched down and sometimes still do.

22. You remember boom boxes.

23. You remember New Kids on the Block when they were cool.

24. You know all the words to Bon Jovi's "YOU GIVE LOVE A BAD NAME."

25. You just sang those words to yourself.

26. You remember watching Magic vs. Bird. Oh yeah............it willnever be that good again.

27. Homemade Levi shorts... (The shorter the better.)

28. You remember when mullets were cool!

29. You had a mullet!

30. You still sing "We are the World."

31. You tight rolled your jeans.

32. You owned a banana clip.

33. You used to (and probably still do) say "What you talkin' 'boutWillis?"

34. You had big hair and you knew how to use it.

35. You know what Coke clothing is.

36. You had a Swatch watch and a crystal protector.

Busy busy day

2008-08-21T21:04:00.005-05:00

I don't think I could have fit another thing in today....Meg and Elle had their dentist appt this morning. Ellen's gap is gone (she is so very excited). Ill post the pics tomorrow. Isolde got her shots...she is approximately 10 weeks old and weighs 3 pounds (aahhhhh). Dr. Blumhorst said she is doing well and that we are doing the right thing by letting her cry in her little kennel because she needs to get used to it. I needed that confirmation, it breaks my heart to hear her cry.
After dropping Isolde back off at home I went to Sedalia. I stopped in at Kay's Crafts and bought some fabric. I am toying with the idea of making a quilt. Since Carl inherited his late father's enormous tie collection, I thought it would be nice to make a quilt or wall hanging or something out of them. Before I attempt that feat, I should have some practice with a normal quilt. I found some really nice patterns on the http://amybutlerdesign.com/ site. I love Amy Butler fabrics and patterns ... her quilt patterns are gorgeous.
Once I was finished shopping I headed to Bodyworks Day Spa for a full body massage. Ive been there several times before and usually get the same lady each time, who is wonderful! Today I had a new girl...I think maybe she thought she knew me and was seeking revenge for something. This girl tore me up! She was ROUGH! It was all I could do not to cry out in pain. I think I may bruise. I will definitely be sore tomorrow.
I left Bodyworks and went to the salon for a haircut then off to Lowe's. Anyone that knows me well knows that I cant go to Sedalia without at least stopping in to Lowe's to check the clearance racks. :) I was actually going to buy some wood so that I can build a shelf for Madi's room, but thank goodness I checked the clearance rack; I found a really nice light fixture, regularly priced $40 on clearance for $2.90!!!! Can you believe that?! The cashier thought it was a typo but had to give it to me at that price! I don't even have any place to put this light fixture, but I couldn't pass it up. Ill find somewhere for Carl to put it. I just love a good bargain!!
I made it back to Marshall in time to pick Elle up from practice then after dinner we all (minus Meg) went to the gym to watch some of Carl's team + Madi wrestle. Today was a good long day...now everyone is ready for a good nights sleep. Goodnight.

Fruits of My Laziness

2008-08-20T20:31:00.007-05:00

Here are a few pictures of the fruits of my laziness! I had a beautiful fall display last year...gourds, white and green pumpkins, knobby squash looking things.....anyway...it snowed and got really crappy outside and I, out of pure laziness, didnt pick any of it up. The veggies got all squishy and gross and after all the ice and snow melted they were pretty much ground into the yard. Well, this May/June I was mowing the yard and attempted to mow this area of the yard down when Carl kind of flipped out and told me that I had just mowed down a fruit bearing plant of some kind. He nursed it back to health, babied it, watered it and watched it and tonight brought me outside to show me this little jewel. I dont know what it is....but its ours.....and its beautiful!

Tomorrow's Appointments

2008-08-20T12:09:00.007-05:00

Ive just made an appointment for Isolde to get her shots. She has to go at 9:30 tomorrow morning for her first set. Im sure she will not enjoy this trip whatsoever. While Im there I am going to get some eye drops for Atticus. I think he has pink eye...the poor dear. I have been holding a warm washcloth on his eyes in the mornings and wiping away the goobies but it hasnt gotten any better....his eyes have been running for a good 3 days so its obviously not going to go away without medication. Meg and Elle have dentists appts. at 8am tomorrow so I hope they are all done by the time Isolde has to go to the vet. Meg has a filling and Elle has chosen to have her tiny gap (which I dont even notice) filled in. I tried to advise against it, but the decision is ultimately up to her...and she wants it filled so it will be filled. I will try to remember to take a before and after picture for the post tomorrow.

Banana Pudding

2008-08-20T10:53:00.006-05:00

Ellen has been begging for banana pudding for weeks now and I just haven't really had the time. So this should be a nice surprise for her when she gets home from volleyball practice today. I cheated and used instant vanilla pudding but it still tastes really yummy. Here is what I did:

I ground up some graham crackers and mixed with a little bit of sugar and melted butter and pressed into the bottom of the glass bowl. Mixed together 2 small boxes of instant vanilla pudding with 2 cups cold milk and one can of sweetened condensed milk and beat for about 2 minutes. I then mixed up some whipping cream and sugar until firm and folded in half of the whipped topping with the pudding. Now its time for the fun part.....layer the pudding mixture, sliced bananas and vanilla wafers on top of the graham cracker "crust" until you run out of pudding...then top with remaining whipped topping and sprinkle some graham crackers over the top. This dessert tastes better if it sits in the refrigerator for a couple of hours (at least) before serving.

I'm sorry that I don't have better measurements but I generally just throw things in without measuring much. This makes it really hard when teaching the kids how to cook. Ellen always asks "how much of that do you put it?" and I never know....I just say "oh, just a little bit, enough to make it work". I'm sure its quite confusing to her. She is really a great cook though. She cooks for us quite a bit and can really follow a recipe good. When we went camping this last time, she cooked one of our meals for us over the campfire all by herself and did a great job!
I am experimenting with a recipe for an Eye of Round roast that I found online recently. I made a rub out of coffee grounds, cumin, cayenne pepper, minced garlic, salt & pepper and I'm supposed to put it in the oven on 475 for 7 min. per pound,then turn off the oven and leave it in for 2 to 2 1/2 hours without opening the oven. Its supposed to make the roast super tender. We'll see.....we're having that tonight...Ill let you know.

Long night

2008-08-19T06:55:00.002-05:00

The girls are getting ready to leave for school...I barely got up this morning. Isolde kept me up late last night. I could tell that she needed to potty so I took her outside about 11pm and the grass was damp so she cried and ran to the driveway as fast as she could....she hates to potty on a puppy pad, she hates wet grass....what am I supposed to do? We spent about an hour outside last night coaxing her to potty. She needs little rain boots to keep her feet dry. Atticus came out to see what was going on and looked quite perturbed, of course he doesn't really like Isolde anyway. She thinks she is a pit bull by the way she growls and snaps at him, with the hair all raised up on her tiny little back. She bites his tail and paws (since its the only thing she can reach) and poor Atticus just looks at me hoping I will save him, which I always do. Anyway, I have a long day ahead of me today and I'm exhausted and sweet little Isolde is sleeping like a baby.

First Day of School

2008-08-18T10:32:00.000-05:00

My babies are off to another year of school. Megan is a Junior this year...which is completely crazy! She shouldnt be 16 years old already. It's hard for me to believe sometimes, I feel like she is still my little girl....until she rolls her eyes when I speak and stomps away from me , slamming her bedroom door in my face...that always seems to snap me back into reality. Ellen is in 8th grade...her last year of middle school. She is quite popular and always dresses so cute. She can throw the oddest combinations of clothes together and somehow always pull it off. Elle is trying out for volleyball today. She hasnt practiced much (at all) but is very athletic in general so hopefully she will do well. I will be praying for her. Madison is going to 5th grade at Bueker (middle school) this year. Even though she isnt technically a middle schooler, just dropping her off at that enormous building was scary. She was sooo excited!! They have a malt machine in the lunch room at Bueker. Madi may never miss a day of school now because of that. I hope all goes well for my girls today! I cant wait until they get home this afternoon and can tell me all about it!

My online classes start today as well. This semester I am taking Business Ethics, US History post 1677 and Lifetime Wellness. I hope I can manage okay, I logged on this morning to check the assignments list and it seemed to be neverending....and its only the first day!

I am planning to take Atticus and Newton to the park to play tennis ball when I get the house cleaned...and maybe stop by the animal shelter and clean up the cat room. I always have big plans for the day and never enough time.