Hangin' with the Fam

Well, a fun time was definately had by all, and as always, when it was time to go, Evelyn "hadn't had fun yet." See, if you don't have fun by the time Mommy and Daddy say it's time to go, you have to stay longer until said fun has been had. This post will be a bit redundant for those of you who read Kerrie's blog, but here it goes...


This past weekend, we loaded up the kids and headed east to Milbank. My cousin, Holly, and her husband, Robert, who live in Florida, were having their son baptized at the church we all grew up in. So, we had a "mini" reunion. Holly's immediate family was there..from both sides..our grandparents who live in New Mexico were there, and Robert's mom and dad made the trek all the way from New York to be there as well. It was great fun to see everyone again. We caught up on each other's lives, reminisced about old times, and laughed and giggled like school girls. It was so much fun. Kerrie has more pictures on her blog, but here are a few that I have...

Here's Izzie, ready to do some shoppin'.

Me with my sister Kerrie and her daughter Claire

A Blocker/Wood/Goosen family picture..front to back..Jack, Nathan (Kerrie's kids) Evelyn...2nd Row: BJ (grandmother), Kerrie, Me, Mom...3rd Row: Claire (Kerrie's daughter) and Izzie...back row: Papa (grandfather), Justin (Kerrie's husband), Jim, Roger (step-father)

My family with Holly's son Alec.

A Whole Lot of Nothing

Well, there's not really much to talk about today. Just a couple of kid funnies...

Evelyn: Mom, I don't want to get a sunburrs.
Me: Oh, you don't?
Evelyn: No. And if you go outside, you should use sunscream.
Me: That's right.


If you visit my house, be careful when you use the bathroom...especially if you happen to be accompanied by Isabelle. It doesn't matter what you're doing on the potty, she crinkles up her nose and says, "Ewww...", then she covers her nose with the collar of her shirt and says, "Gohse".


This morning after I got out of the shower, I dried off, put a towel on my head and went into our bedroom where everyone else was watching TV. Izzie was speaking "toddler-ese" to Jim, so I wasn't really paying attention until I heard him say, "Yep, mommy has a hat."

Just Another Day in Paradise

Well, there isn't much to report today. Saturday was our 5th Anniversary. We didn't do much, just had some friends over for supper. They have a little girl who is 2 months older than Evelyn, so of course they're best buds. Evie loves it when Shaine comes to play...she finally gets someone her age to play with. I'm sensing she's getting tired of playing with Izzie, but that's another story. Anyway, when Shaine comes over the kids tear it up!!! They play hard, which usually means they sleep hard...yay :o) They played outside on the new swing set, then they played inside, then back outside, then inside...now I understand why my mother used to yell at us all the time about coming in and out. It didn't have anything to do with the A/C like she said it did, it does have everything to do with the fact that it's annoying as hell!!! ***GEESH*** Can someone please tell me why children behave badly when other children are around? It's seems that when there are other kids at our house, and it doesn't matter who those kids are, all rules completely fly out the window. It's like it's a free pass to be naughty. Oh well, I suppose "this too shall pass.". I'm very much looking forward to this coming weekend. My cousin and her family from FL will be in Milbank to baptize their son. The best thing about it is that the entire family will be here. Don't get me wrong, I'm very excited to see Holly and Robert and to meet little Alec, but I'm just as anxious to see Holly's sisters and parents. I haven't seen them all together since Evelyn was about a year old. In addition, my grandparents will be there...yay!! They live in New Mexico, so I don't get to see them as often as I would like either. We all used to live in Milbank and do fun things together, then Bagauses got jobs with Disney and BJ and Papa got tired of shoveling snow. I can't wait for this weekend!!

Ready for the weekend!

"It's Finally Friday!"...the words of George Jones have never rung more true. After only working two days in the office last week, a full week of work was almost incomprehensible. But, as it turns out, I've survived...but only barely :o) I don't really have much to report since the last time we spoke. Oh, I'm pretty sure I've lost my Mother Of The Year nomination...AGAIN! Hee, hee. Last week, on Sunday I think, the girls and I had to come to the radio station so I could get some work finished from the weekend. They get excited to come out to the station, especially lately. We have a cat that seems to have taken up residency here, which is great. We're located in the country, about 2 miles out of town, so having a cat around has really cut down on the critter population...snakes, mice, etc. Anyway, the girls love to come see Gus, as we've affectionately named him. Sunday was no different. We pulled up, got out of the van, gave Gus some love and came inside. Then when we were done...repeat in reverse order. The girls loved on the cat until I said it was time to go. Evelyn jumped in her seat and was ready to rock and roll, but not so much for Izzie. She LOVES Gus, and wasn't quite done petting him yet. She's also at that stage (Evelyn went through it too) where she doesn't listen and says no a lot..wait, do they ever grow out of that? :o) Anyway, I told her it was time to go, she said no, so I said, "OK, Bye!" and pretended to get in the van. That trick only works until she realizes you're bluffing, then she continues doing whatever it is she's doing. I tried it twice more and she still wouldn't come with me, so the third time I told her bye, got in the van....and shut the door. OH MY GOD!! Of course I wasn't going to leave her there, but you would have thought I had already driven out of the driveway. Izzie screamed no, but the thing that made me giggle (I'm not sure why) was that Evelyn screamed, "Mommy, no!" and started bawling her eyes out. I opened the door as soon as I shut it and tried to reassure Evie that we weren't going to leave her sister, but she could not be consoled...and all I could do was laugh. **sigh** I guess I'm gonna just have to shoot for Mom of the Year next year. I'll leave you with an Evie funny. Last night in the bath tub, Evie noticed a little red bump near her knee that she said was itchy. I asked her if it was a mosquito bite, and she told me no, it was a "squito ma-bite". And, like the good mother that I am, I said, "What?"...just so she would repeat it.

No work, No cry.

Did you hear that? Listen...it's me, heaving a sigh of relief :o) Don't get me wrong, I'm glad I made the decision to help Tami while she was recuperating, but I had no idea how much work it was going to be. At the most, I had four kids to watch and two of them were my own. Tracy, and all you other moms out there that stay home, whether it's just your kids that you take care of, or yours and someone elses...KUDOS!!! I don't know how you guys do it. I think it takes a stronger woman than me to do that job. I have never been so happy to have a day off in my life :o) Our day off was wonderful. Jim didn't have to leave for Sioux Falls until around 10:30-ish, so he was able to get up, get his stuff done, mow the yard (hee, hee), and still have time to play with the girls a little before he left. The kids never like to see Daddy go anywhere without them, so it was rough for a few minutes after he left but they got over it quickly. We didn't do much. Evie helped me fold some clothes (and she did a very good job!), we ate lunch, helped Tami run some errands, took naps, ate supper, and here we are. Over all, a pretty non-productive day, but sometimes those are the best days. I took the kids to a friends house this evening so I could come to the station and get some weekend work done, and we discussed possibly having an outing to the park tomorrow. Sounds like fun, I hope it pans out. There's not much else to report today, so I guess I better go get some work done. "Tune in next time for...A Day In The Life of a Fish" :o)

Out of the mouths of babes

People always say "kids say the darnedest things", and for those of us with kids we know all too well how true that saying is. Yesterday, Evelyn asked me, "Mommy, why did Jesus die for our sins?". I stopped, did a double take and said, "What?" even though I heard her clearly the first time. I think that's a built in "mom reflex". It's used when you aren't sure how to respond to your child. I wasn't sure what to say, but the thoughts that were racing through my mind...Evie goes to a Lutheran pre-school, so she is taught those things there. I know I should take her to church...and it's not that I don't want to, the fact of the matter is, I'm just lazy and a little stingy with my Sunday mornings. Anyway, I'm not sure what triggered the question, possibly Tami's collection of Precious Moments figurines, but I answered it the best way I could. I told her Jesus died for our sins so we could go to heaven. It seemed to be the answer she was looking for, if she was looking for an answer. She said, "oh, that's right." and went about her business.

It's true that kids do say the darnedest things. Sometimes it's funny, sometimes it's embarrassing, then there are the times when it's so profound you're not sure how to respond. It's those times that leave me in wonder and amazement.

Finally, a day off...

WHEW!! What a relief it was to NOT have to get up at 5:30am, get in the shower, get kids ready and be at work at 7am...ish :o) I took the rest of the week off, yay me! Tami, our daycare lady and a close friend of mine had to have surgery this morning. She does so much for me and Jim, and for the kids so I wanted to help her out. Since I have paid vacation and she doesn't, I offered to stay home and take care of her daycare kids while she recovers. Trust me, I would much rather be here than at work. It's been so hectic at the office, that a few days off is more than welcomed..trust me. So, here I sit with my two kids, and another. The extra one is 9 months old and sweet as can be. Tomorrow, I'll have mine, the baby and another little girl that is close to Evie's age, then it looks like the girls and I will have Friday all to ourselves. Jim will be out of town, and there won't be any kids at daycare. I hope the weather is nice so we can play outside or something. Maybe it will finally be nice enough to break out the Slip and Slide that Jim's sister gave Izzie for her birthday.
Have you ever noticed that your kids behave different ways around different people? I know everyone does it, big people included, but take my kids, for instance. There's the way they behave around me, which is sometimes less to be desired, and there is the way they behave around people they're less familiar with. Usually around people they're not familiar with, my kids are a little more reserved. I don't know why I thought they would act different today, but I did. There's no one here that they don't know well, so why should they act any different than any other day? I had also hoped that they wouldn't be any different considering it was me being the babysitter today and not Tami. That is also proving to be false. The kids started getting hungry a little before 11, so I made lunch right at 11:00. Fifteen minutes to eat, and they were done. Before we ate, they also started laying around like they were tired, so after lunch I laid them down. It is now 2:15, and still, not everyone is asleep. Evelyn, for whatever reason, is refusing to sleep. As I type this post, I look back over my shoulder at her and catch her watching me. Oh well, I guess it will be no movies and early to bed for a certain pre-schooler.
When I first had kids, it was suggested to me to "sleep when the baby sleeps". I'm proud to say, that I have heeded that advice every day possible for the last five years...baby or no baby :o) Now that some of the children are asleep, I'll see if I can sneak a few Z's myself. Until next time...

People Are Cool!

We have a saying here at the radio station, "People Are Cool!". It's our code for "some people are morons." In a business like this, we get all sorts of ridiculous phone calls and emails. Since I answer the phones, I usually get the pleasure of fielding these annoyances. My biggest pet peeve is summer time..ok, not summer time per se, but the fact that kids are out of school and apparently they have nothing better to do than to call the radio station multiple times a day and request the same song...over and over. It's enough to make me wanna pull my hair out. I'm not sure why this is such an annoyance to me, but for some reason it absolutely drives me nuts. Another phone call that I hate to get is the one where the person at the other end of the line wants to know if their event has been postponed or not. Now usually, I get these phone calls when the weather is not cooperative, but sometimes, people just call for the hell of it...to see if their event is happening. Here's a hint..try calling your organization first because chances are, they have WAY more information than I do. For instance..here in Aberdeen, they have stock car races every Friday night during the summer time, weather permitting. There was some rain earlier this week that prompted the promoter to pull his advertising temporarily until he knew for sure the track was going to be ready. Friday came and we ran the commercials saying that there would be races that night. Sure as s*#^&, I got between 10-15 phone calls asking me if there were going to be races. I know it's easier to pick up the phone and call someone than it is to keep your attention span on the radio for 15-20 minutes, but gee whiz!! If these commercials were sporadically scheduled and didn't play very often, I could understand some one's impatience, but these ads are heavily, HEAVILY played on all six of our stations. It's exhausting.

I know I should try to be more patient, but nothing is more frustrating than promoting the fact that we have those sorts of updates as soon as they become available, both on the air and on our website. Really, if you had an event that you had to be at, say for instance a sporting event for your child, wouldn't you try to call other parents, or perhaps look on the paperwork that you got when you signed your kid up for that sport and see if there is a contact number for inclement weather? I'm sure I'm overreacting, and probably suffering from a severe bout of PMS, but, come on people! I think I am more than ready for a vacation!

Great, now that I'm all riled up, blogger is pissing me off too!! What the heck happened to my font? I better stop while I'm ahead. I promise I will medicate myself over the next few hours and be better next time!