Archive for the year 2009

Ahhhh….. love…..

Jul. 1, 2009 No Comments Posted under: blog

Last night SBJ and I were sittin’ around watching America’s Got Talent and the kids were coming in and out watching something else on the other TV, but coming in once in a while to catch a snuggle and then go back to their program. At one point, K was sitting with us and said, “Mommy, do you think you would ever be on America’s Got Talent?” I chuckled, finding that quite a funny joke and replied, “Nope, don’t think so”. SBJ then pipes up and says, “She doesn’t need to, she’s already got the largest talent on earth. Raising and caring for you 3 is the greatest talent of all.” AWE… How can you not go soft hearing that?!?! ; )

Oh gosh!

Jun. 29, 2009 No Comments Posted under: blog

I nearly forgot! D has lost her second tooth! She was hysterical when it happened. She was so mad at SBJ for “brushing her teeth too hard” and yet, she was thrilled the tooth fairy was visiting! It’s the second/middle on the bottom…. unfortunately I’m trying to figure out how to get the stinkin’ photos and videos from my phone to my computer, then I can upload some funny stuffs….


Yea D! ; )

Summer is fun!

Jun. 29, 2009 No Comments Posted under: blog

It’s been far too long since I’ve update our doin’s…. It’s been a really really nice summer so far. We’ve only had one pretty intense week of heat and otherwise the weather’s been completely amazing!


I had an au pair meeting mid-June and it was a potluck picnic at the lake with a mini soccer tournament running along side. It was a very pleasant afternoon, surprisingly. The au pairs seemed to really enjoy and that makes such a difference in these work-things lately!

Father’s Day was quite fun. We drove out the Lego Fest in Wheeling and this was our first adventure there. It was a great fest. Pretty amazing creations. Only have a couple pix b/c camera batteries died just as we got there. But it was a fun family day, rounded out by stopping off to visit Grandpa for awhile and dinner out that was SBJ’s pick. (YES! ALL of those are made from legos!!!)
That week following, we enjoyed a beach day with the Evanston homeschoolers, and an art class with a group of friends, a pool visit with Grandpa (and of course and ice cream stop!), a court date against the previous building owners (which is such a long story in and of itself… but at least they were charged for the violations!), playdate with friends, park day with Evanston group, playing with friends, (my) lucky parents’ tea, rounded out by the latest drama…….

So yesterday I get a call from a family early in the AM saying that they have had suspicions for some time, and now confirmed (by witnessing) their au pair having an affair with their married man next door! I needed to pull her… she ended up with us, and really was not at all remorseful regarding anything that was going on, and was quite unappreciative for us housing her and feeding her… Ugh… could go on and on, but the smoking outside our door and cigarette smoke leaking into our place was the last straw for me. She ended up on a flight home tonight, and not a moment too soon…. I’m sure the details make this a very juicy gossip story! ; )

This week is play, play and more play! The weather’s been perfect. Couldn’t ask for more! Now only if S would sleep some more at night, life would be grand!

This weekend we are visiting Kenosha again for the 4th of July. Figured it be fun to swim in the hotel and check out the area some more before making the big decision! The move would be mostly dependent on my income/current job. My project is done and lokoing to get that on the market this week and start marketing like a mad woman. If the income can be generated there, I can also start working on the other couple of ideas I have mulling. It would be exciting to turn a new leaf and venture a new living space! We will see what life has in store for us!

Happy 4th of July!

Jarjusey’s Royal Kingdom

Jun. 19, 2009 No Comments Posted under: blog

D: “Mommy?”

Me: Yes?
D: I am no longer calling myself the Queen.
Me: Oh really? Why not?
D: Well… I’m a princess! You are the Queen.
Me: Ahhh. OK!
D: And S is the prince, and K is the king….. and….. daddy…… is the guard of the princess!


Man… she cracks me up.

D’s first tooth…. lost!

Jun. 7, 2009 1 Comment Posted under: blog


So Friday we were backing up to head to Kenosha for the night (2 days) and on the way we stopped off for lunch…. D bit into her sandwich and sowwy, her first tooth came out! Of course it had been quite loose prior. She’d been working that thing pretty hard before then. She was even having trouble eating that afternoon, but nevertheless…. out it came.



Kenosha was a blast. It’s very much our speed and very heavy thought is being weighed here on whether we will make the move up there. We’re having a hell of a time with our living situation at present. Our landlord has screwed us royally. In the smallest nutshell I can sum it up in, mainly b/c it’s not worth drudging…. the landlord is a broke looser who did not pay the gas bill. Our hot water was shut off. The new landlord has not actually signed on the dotted line yet and sale is not complete. Meantime, no hot water, some convenient vandal let themselves into the boiler room (with a key) to break a pipe down there and create some damage to the hot water heater and then walk out and lock the door behind themselves. We have our suspicions, but despite the police stating this as a crime scene, they won’t listen to us. Meanwhile, we are stuck in a lease to a looser who can’t even pay our gas bill, AND probably will never return our deposit. And if the new landlord decides to actually complete sale and fix the problem, it’s probably just to take over and convert to condo’s so we’d need to move anyway. Regardless, we are pretty sure a move is in the extremely near future…. faster than what we had intended. That’s a bit stressful, but maybe just needed to happen this fast b/c we were waiting out our lease anyway and really feeling ready to move regardless of all of this mess.

So we were up in Kenosha to explore as a possibility as a home to move to and shockingly really loved it. It’s really our pace, and just seems like a really nice place to plant ourselves for awhile. We will have to see how this all pans out… This week we will know what will happen with the water situation and who will take over ownership and just how much time we will have to move. The more time the better b/c I don’t want to have to pack up a family of 5 in a haste b/c of this horrible situation, and not really feel comfortable with where we’re going.

We will see. Life is an incredible journey.

Dear D

Jun. 2, 2009 No Comments Posted under: blog




Happy 5th Birthday my precious princess…. spitting image of myself. You were born to me to teach me so much of who I am and so much of who I was not allowed to be. You are an amazing young lady with a heart larger than most I know at wise old ages. It’s because of you that I have learned so much about myself at this age, and as your mommy. You make me want to be a better mommy each and every day! Your gumption and ability to just be who you are is admirable. You are a precious, tough girl. You have a warm personality and a spark that sets my mind a miss! You can push my buttons till I want to rip my head off, and yet I understand you exactly and know exactly who you are! You are an amazing wonder in my life and I love, cherrish and respect you in every aspect of your being, personality, soul and spirit. Happy happy birthday you awesome gal!
Love, Mommy


We had an amazing birthday celebration! Started last week with a gathering of friends at Wagner Farm. Everyone brought their own family picnic’s and we brought yummy chocolate/chocolate cupcakes. The kids had a true blast running around in the amazing weather, and just as we were wrapping up the day, it started to drizzle. The weather could not have cooperated any better! It was an awesome day. D even said “this was the best birthday ever!” ; )

That evening we met Grandpa and Aunt J at Baker’s Square for dinner. That was a fun and mellow gathering. She had a blast. Enjoyed company of Aunt J who’s been living in CA lately, so this was an extra special visit/person to celebrate. And of course Grandpa… she truly loves her Grandpa. That was super nice.

The day of her actual b-day (May 31st) we had a fun brunch with Grandma at Leona’s. Gathered for yummy food. Grandma enjoyed sitting next to her and they had a nice time. Shea was a little tired of restaurants by this point, so poor Seringe was doing a lot of juggling in and out of the restaurant and actually trying to get some food in the belly, but we all had a really nice time.

Fortunately after brunch S fell asleep which made the next activity easier to accomplish…. pottery painting. This was a new thing for D and she loved it just as much as (if not more than) I thought she would! It was really fun. K painted something as well. That was really nice for D to see him enjoy something she liked so much. They’ve been butting heads the last couple of weeks, so for him to be that invested in her b-day was really really special. They had fun and SBJ and I had fun helping paint as well. It was really nice.

Back home she opened a slew of presents from all of us. I have no clue how I accumulated as many presents as I did, but she made out this year! ; ) But she sure did appreciate every single second and every single gift. And of course…. chocolate/chocolate cake to top off the whole celebration!

Yea! We LOVE birthdays!!!!

As tough as that girl is, she’s just a softy at heart.
We love you D!

Ugh

May. 27, 2009 No Comments Posted under: blog

This week has been off to a rough start and I’d be glad if that’s all that’s in store for me. I’d love to know that all of D’s b-day plans go off without a hitch, and that the worst is done. Monday D was sure she could scale a slippery wet shower wall by grabbing onto a bar on the wall overhead. Sure enough, too slippery to shimmy her way up and on the way down gashed her right knee on this sharp porceline (from the broken soap holder on the wall)! Ugh….


Off to the ER, where I was less than thrilled with the staff there. Even with me prefacing (to the staff) the fact that she was totally petrified to be there b/c we had been there before and the staff that treated us were pretty not-kid-friendly…. they still sucked. I can’t say enough and the story is too long for me to produce this late a night, but had she not needed so many stitches, I’d have walked out with her at one point. Was not the best time… at all. She’s doing well. Recovering with 6 stitches in the most inconvenient part of the leg. Right at the bend. So we’ve already had a few mild bleeding episodes b/c she gains just the slightest bit of mobility and she’s off running and jumping around as if nothing ever happened. So she’s banged it. Last night I was certain she popped a stitch or two, but all turned out OK. Today she’s had a bit of swelling and I’m holding my breath that it’s gone down by tomorrow AM, or I’m taking her in to the pediatrician to check on everything (particularly worried about infection). Hopefully a night without major wraps on her leg will bring that swelling down. I’m hopeful since she does not seem phased by most of this.

Then today the car was swiped in the CVS parking lot. Man was I ticked. I just can’t envision people feeling kosher with themselves for have putting a 1.5-2 foot dent in someone’s car door and then driving off like that. Filed a police report but the CVS survielence is not so great, so there’s really no hope on that end. We were not in the store for more than 20 min…. it’s just so annoying.

Of course after all of that we did the b-day balloon shopping. An annual tradition we do for each of the kids birthdays. They get to go to Evanston’s Hallmark and pick out a bunch of balloons for themselves. They have high-float which helps the balloons last forever, so even 5-6 weeks from now she’ll still be celebrating! They do a great job. We had tested out a couple other places for balloons. Yes, they were cheaper, but man… they were cheaper. Hallmark is worth the quality AND the squirt of high-float. The kids just love this tradition! Good times.

Tomorrow SBJ is home from work! YEA!
Starts with me getting to sleep in later! Then I will bake some cupcakes with the Big D…. and then SBJ is also letting me escape to Starbucks to do some writing! So excited about that. Going to soak up this day b/c I rarely get to have that much time for me, aside from him being around for a full day at random! A huge treat!

Friday starts off the celebration for D. We will be meeting friends at Wagner Farm for the afternoon, later dinner with Grandpa and Aunt J (who is in town)! Sunday is her actual birthday and we are taking her (immediate us) to the paint-your-own-pottery-type place, and later out to dinner with Grandma! Busy weekend ahead! But should be lot’s of fun!

Recent Lowdown o’ Pix

May. 20, 2009 No Comments Posted under: blog


So I’ve updated on lot’s of this, but here are some great pix just recently uploaded to the computer (or should I say “finally” ; )



Mayor Dayley’s Kids and Kites Festival!




Children’s Museum of Immigration of the Swedish American Museum:







First Tennis Attempts!


Balzekas Museum of Lithuanian Culture






Lately

May. 19, 2009 No Comments Posted under: blog

I’m getting a little frustrated. I need to get a particular project done and feeling like I have no time to truly work on it. Granted, I’ve enjoyed every second not working on it, so it’s hard to be that frustrated, yet I’d love to actually accomplish it and not finding the time to do so, aside from staying up till 1am every night doin’ so, and this is just not cutting it anymore. I need *some* sleep!!!


Anyhoo– lives been so much fun lately… of course. After S’s birthday celebration we went to the Mayor Dayley’s Kids and Kites Fest with SBJ. That was super fun. Had our kite at the end of it’s line a full 300 ft in the air. Beautiful down there by the lakefront!

I had 2 days where I was able to have date-days with each of the older two. They really have seemed to need more of that one-on-one lately. And I can recognize that they have been feeling more independent than they’d like to be right now. So trying to adjust that a bit more. (Part of that is me trying to get a bit of work done during the day, but I recognize their need for me to be fully present and less independent during that time…. ahhh…. finding balance!)

Last week we had a few playdates and EHE park day, before S got a fever-type sick. Then he was better and we had a couple playdates, a trip to the Children’s Museum of Immigration that was super fun, but glad it was free ; ) . And then we picked up rackets at the thrift store and K’s really been interested in tennis lately! He’s really liked the sport and interested in lessons, which is pretty fun. We had an impromptu tennis date and lunch with Grandpa last week before our EHE park day. And even dragged SBJ out to play tennis this past weekend.

This of course, is in between S getting sick again, this time with a cold. Poor guy. He’s been hit hard in the last 2 weeks. Part of me thinks it has to do with the amount of solids he’s eaten on/since his b-day and how that may have made his immune quite low (less breastmilk)…. but that’s a proud nursing-mama’s philosophy. At least now, he’s on the mends and everyone seems to be doing well.

I had one of my frustrating “maybe school would be a good thing” days…. That usually passes quite quickly. But I was at witts end today. I had thought a nice bike ride would help us, and I really truly wanted them to ride in the trailer so I could haul a long distance and get a good work out, but K and D were sure they wanted to ride their own bikes. UGH. Sign for disaster. K has the tendency to not watch where he’s going and runs into a lot of things. D tends to use the tip of her sandals to stop…. ruining the pair of shoes we just bought about a week or two ago…. that were intended to last the whole summer. In doing this, she also got her foot cut under and twisted in her one and only training wheel…. ugh… I was sure we were not going to escape the ER today.

Anyhow… today ended up much better. I’m up late doing the writing project and really hoping I can stay on my personally scheduled goal. I want to complete the project by the 1st and have it up and running and selling. With only 2 weeks left I will be grateful to have the project done and editing the first week of June and selling soon after.

Tomorrow we have a museum date with Grandma. We are visiting the Balzekas Museum of Lithuanian Culture. We’ll see how that goes. I’m excited about the adventure with the kids. We will even sample to ethnic food as well…..

This reminds me that Facebook brought about an unexpected ‘friend’…. a distand cousin on my mom’s side found me and man, she is the family historian! She’s sent me some cool family tree info and pix. It’s been fun hearing from her!

D’s b-day is next week! Random thought there… she is very excited, and I swear she’s grown a couple inches for the occassion…. ; )

Time to get reading/writin’!
G’nite.

Happy Birthday Boober

May. 11, 2009 No Comments Posted under: blog

It’s official… a full 12 months has past and he’s a full year old! I truly can’t fathom how this year just flew right by us. It feels like just yesterday that I was stressing about the colicy-ness of his first 2 months, and then watching him cruise around by 4 months, and waddling around by 11 months. He’s just a super cool dude. No joke. He’s completely his own person with an amazing personality. So incredibly sweet and tolerant, loving and playful. You know each baby has given me a gift in my life as a mother. Taught be valuable life lessons as mother. And for this I am just so entirely grateful, lucky and blessed for each of their presence in my life. S’s gift to me was teaching me to ‘let go’ and ‘give up’ and ‘relax’!!! I call him my little tornado. He flies through this house inquisitive about absolutely everything. And as much as I love to have things kind kept up and in some sort of ‘order’, with S in our lives this is impossible. And I have just had to learn to be OK with this. Our home is always a mess, and I have had to deep breath through that and just let it go. Life is far more enjoyable when I don’t worry about this stuff, and man…. it feels really good. Aside, he has taught me to never take anything (at all) for granted. I constantly joke that with him, I feel like a first time mom all over again. I even joked with our pediatrician the other day that people may not even realize that he is my third baby! He has been a whole new adventure and it’s been a wild ride. He is such a little blessing.


His latest achievements…. well, I mentioned the walking thing. He’s cruisin’ everywhere and just loves that he’s mobile with his big bro and sis. He’s quite the music lover and really gets his groove on when he hears a tune or beat that gets his hiney wiggling. He’s so an on-the-go kinda guy…. loves and adventure, the outdoors, car ride, park, etc. He almost never naps and next-to-never is easy to persuade to sleep (I’m just shocked that a 12 month old could easily go without a nap in any random given day). He started eating very very early and since seems to have slowed up on the solid foods and loves nursing more. I have to admit that I was worried he’d stop nursing pretty early on b/c the food-thing was pretty serious for while. Hmmm…. he says a few ’starts’ of words, but mostly if prompted and not really intentionally. If asked he’ll give you a ‘ba’ for bada (nursing) and then ‘ma’ for mommy… occassionally he’ll bust out a “eye” which is both hi and bye! ; ) Way too cute. Four teeth on top, two teeth on the bottom, and lot’s of bumby suggestions that more are ready to poke out really soon.

B-day was spent at home this time around. Grandpa came over and played during the day, fed him a nice lunch and blew out a b-day candle. And then Grandma came later in the evening for dinner and another b-day cake/candle. It was a really nice day and he really got into it. The “happy birthday” song was playing on some TV show the other day and he stopped everything to run and check it out. He seemed certain he was going to hear his name and listened quite intently, even had the little boogy sway going on.

We love you Boober. You are the coolest little dude around!


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