Amazing pooch strikes again!

When you is a dog, lifes can be hard sometimes....

Last night around 1 AM, there was a growl & bark from the living room, where the pups usually sleeps soundly. Then there was a jingling of tags and really quiet barking while she ran to the back door.
This behavior is totally out of sorts for the dog who sleeps in when it rains, so I let her out to see what was what. I didn't see anything unusual but Rhianna-belle spent a good 5 minutes barking & growling into the dark.
Then when she came back in, I caught a whiff of a musky animal scent on the breeze.
She paced & grumbled for a while before settling back down for the night. And I was quietly amazed that this 50 pound pooch decided she needed to protect her home & family from animals that go stink in the night.

Photos for you!

These loaded backwards, so bear with me!
First the awesome climby tower in the backyard which recieves 4 small thumbs up. (And 4 big thumbs up, although we don't actually climb the thing)

And then there are gifts from the elusive but generous spiring time bunny. Adrian has it in his head that the Easter Bunny looks and is the size of your average pet rabbit. Which gives us questions like: How can he reach the gate lock to get in the backyard?

And here we are Easter morning prior to getting dressed & hunting eggs. The bunny was very into eyewear this year.

And the night before:

Nina cooks 2 dozen carrot cake cupcakes. We have run out of counter space, top of the fridge space, and table space to put them to cool. The solution: put them on the front step to cool.

Turns out we have theiving squirrels!

Mom! Come & gone.

My mom was here!
(Hi how are you, how was your easter, ours was quite nice, thanks)

She arrived on the 7:30 train Sunday night. Adrian & I picked her up and drove her to Chez Flecker-DeCarlo, where she was fed and entertained and sent to bed at a reasonable hour.

Monday morning, doom struck.
Fion woke up crying at 6:30 (early for her), because she had thrown up in her bed. She spent the next 10 hours being sad & listless and throwing up once more. Thankfully, Adrian took Granma to play and to the grocery store and they had a lovely time. We ordered pizza for dinner, by which time Fion was approaching her old self.

Tuesday, Fion still on the mend--problems out the other end this time. She is mostly cheery, but quite disgruntled that I won't let her have her favorite snack from the fridge (prunes). Dinner rolls around & it's french onion soup for the grown ups and chicken noodle soup for the kids. Fion has 2 helpings, while Adrian lays on the couch & brews a small fever. Sniffling & coughing ensue.

Wednesday: I am exhausted. I was up 3 times with the kids and 3 times with the animals. We can our plans of a trip to the zoo & opt for a trip to the pet store instead. Then I take the cats to the vet, spend more money than I see on a regular basis and come home to make dinner. My mom walks the dog (god love her). We have dinner, I get the kids to bed by 8 and colapse on the couch like something what colapses--lawn furniture, maybe?

Thursday: ANOTHER SLEEPLESS NIGHT. I contemplate nyquil for babies....Mom leaves at 8:30.

And we have done zero of 3 activities we had planned. And I have no pictures from this visit (just like the last time), and she didn't get to see the kids climb on their brand new super awesome backyard tower of fun.
I feel like the worst hostess ever:
welcome to my house! have some germs!

Sorry, Mom. Please come back. I'll have the kids on quarantine the week before.

Sunday, and why my house has a peanut butter surplus

Ok! So the snow has mostly melted and I am ready to stop crying into my Cheerios and tell you about our fun Sunday.

The first and third Sunday of every month, Adrian has scouts. Not cub scouts, but Spiral Scouts. Since he is wee, he is in the first age bracket, known as Fireflies. This is for kids aged 3-8, and anyone who has spent any ammount of time with children of this age will tell you: they are not known for their lengthy attention spans. To that end, we meet in each other's homes, and we keep the meetings short.

This past Sunday wasn't our turn to host, but the host family had their sump pump fail (doom!) so we had everybody here instead. We were working on our birding badge: we made nesting bags out of old mesh onion bags which we stuffed with dryer lint, yarn, twine and twigs. Then we made pinecone birdfeeders by smearing peanut butter on pinecones and then rolling that in birdseed. I had 6 children under the age of 9 with peanut butter fingers in my house and somehow I do not have peanut butter walls. (Will wonders never cease?)

Adrian loves scouts. I love that his group is a mix of boys and girls of various ages. I love that he can do projects to achieve a goal (a badge) and that he is gaining an understanding of his world in a fun & interactive way. It's also nice to be around a group of creative & fun adults on a regular basis.

Our next goal for the birding badge is to identify some of the birds that live in our neighborhood. We have robins, sparrows, a woodpecker, crows, cardinals...we'll see who else in the coming weeks!

Whhhhhhy?

Firstly; Fion says "cheese". She's so cute you want to just pinch her.

Secondly, it snowed last night. I hate this place.

It's Thursday, right?

Oh heeeey.... so Fiona all of a sudden looks huge. And last week she dumped 1/2 a cup of pink milk into the DVD player. Turns out electronics don't drink pink milk.

And Adrian is enjoying the pup. Here he is brushing her with a grooming glove. My favorite thing is to watch the two of them run in circles in the backyard, while Adrian shrieks with glee.

And this past weekend with two days of beautiful weather, I took Adrian outside and showed him how to build "pirate houses". Teaching him to find natural materials and see them as building materials has kept him busy for DAYS. And I am exhausted from trying to cram everything into the regular 7-day week.

Where would you go?

Occasionally, Aaron and I toy with the idea of moving. Not just from Chicago, but from the United States. (Don't get all panicky, we aren't actually going anywhere)

Our criteria for our new home country varies wildly depending on our moods, the weather, and what time of day we're having these discussions. We have chosen places based on free healthcare, year-round temperatures, the national custom of a many-houred lunch followed by a nap, the ability to thrive on 5 US dollars a day.

Which leads me to wonder: where would you go, if you had to?

Looking for suggestions

What can I give the pup to chew on when she's bored?
I have an aversion to rawhide, as it gets all slimey.
I can't keep giving her treats or she'll never eat her kibble.
And she can't keep raiding the kids toy bin, because that is just trouble waiting to happen.

On to happier things

I just looked at the calendar this morning and saw that it was Friday the 13th.
And to that I say: enh. Just another of 52 Fridays in a calendar year.
I do like the number 13, though. 13 full moons in a year. 13 plates on a turtle's shell. It's one of those numbers that pops up & waves from nature every so often.

Tomorrow it's supposed to be 50 degrees! I can totally take the kids outside to play. Or rather, Adrian will play and I will try to keep Fiona from eating dirt by the shovelful. I was pretty sure she was supposed to have outgrown that by now, but as of last Friday she was still enjoying dirt as a part of the food pyramid.

And Sunday we will be hosting scouts! I am excited. It is always nice to be surrounded by people with whom you can just be yourself. It's been a while since I have had that in any quantity. Us grown-ups will be talking about upcoming projects, and the little ones will be hunting for eggs and burning off energy so they will sleep like rocks. (Hooray for sleepy rocks)

And Friday next is the FIRST DAY OF SPRING. (happy dance-happy dance)
I am excited because I am no great lover of Winter. The kids are excited b/c we can go outside to play more often and we're going to watch a tadpole grow into a frog. Aaron is excited b/c it'll be the first time I have shaved my legs since the first day of Winter.

Is it just me?

Or does everyone have that person in their life; the one you want to take by the shoulders and shake while you yell:
WHY CAN'T YOU JUST LOVE ME FOR WHO I AM?

yeah.
so that's on my plate now.
I'm going to art it out.

Meet Rhianna!

Hey! We adopted a dog. Because I am crazy. Crazy for chaos. Her name is Rhianna, she's a 2 year old english coonhound. She is sweet and gentle and AMAZING with the kids. She is also scared of the cats (they are pretty pleased with that).

Adrian is currently enamored of her. He talks to her, feeds her, trails after her and makes sure that she is never lonely. He is so enamored of her that this morning he didn't even turn the TV on. Fiona cries whenever Rhianna goes outside. Did I mention that this dog is housetrained? That right there is a whole bag of weasels I can completely avoid. So, she's keeping us entertained and we're making sure the kids don't love on her too much....And Aaron the self-proclaimed hater of dogs has said that he might like to get another coonhound in the future. (behold the miracle of a good dog!)

Mixing business and life

I try not to have too much crossover between my art blog & this one, but I have just open my etsy store and I am too excited to keep it in one place.
So go visit!
Or I will set an onery 4 year old upon you.

norabbitshere.etsy.com

Farewell!

Last Monday, when it was still February, we had some men come and cut down our pear tree. It was a decision I struggled with. I liked the free fresh pears. I loved that the kids would beg to go outside and watch as I manuvered the giant manual pear picker around the branches, searching for the perfect snack. I loved that they would eat and laugh and smell like pears for the rest of the day.
But I did not care for the the pears that would fall when the wind blew, and turn to jelly on impact. I did not enjoy the fact that your previous owner had let you grow untended and that most of your fruit was too high to reach, even with a 20 foot pole. I did not like the influx of mice brought to my attention by generous cats. I did not like the wasps which were territorial and covered the back half of the yard for three months.
So farewell to you giant pear tree. You were fun for a bit.

Adrian's quote of the day

"But, Mom, I always want to get what I want"

Don't we all, my son.
Don't we all.

Hello, stranger!

Hey! I have not been ignoring you! Not as such. I have been busy over here, and the kids have ensured that daily life isn't boring! Adrian was quite the hellion last week: he bit his sister, threatened to punch me "until you die", and generally explored the boundries of acceptable behavior and my patience. He IS still alive, and so are we all. Fiona has been exploring the world of negotiations, alternately declaring "no!" and "2 more minutes!" She is also trying to convince Lunchbox to be her bestest friend ever....

There was snow. Adrian & Aaron shoveled. I sat inside in the warm and played with Fion.

Fion's turn to play with snow! We brought it inside and set her up on a towel on the kitchen floor. I tried to show her how to make a snowman, but all she really wanted to do was eat it.

Hey February!

It's February! And we're enjoying a false spring! The temperature is above freezing and should be for a few more days. I'm so happy, I could cry!
But instead, I'll recap the past few weeks: with photos!

Fiona! Is huge! And looks more like my mom & her sisters every day. She is lovely and mostly good humored. And still insists: I need dogs. (God bless that girl!)

The snow has all melted, but when there was snow, Adrian took to balancing precariously on fallen branches.

And hey! the sparrows are back! Which means that real spring is approaching, even if we get more nasty cold & snow.

We are chugging along. Adrian only has 2 days of school this week, thanks to parent/teacher conferences and some other stuff. I am hoping that the warm will hold out long enough for us to take a trip to the zoo.

And Wenesday is Aaron's birthday. He's not a big birthday celebration kind of guy, but too bad for him because I am. There will be birthday dinner and birthday pudding (he doesn't like birthday cake), and birthday dancing. Mostly the kids and I will dance and he will watch and laugh.

48 hours. Of minor mayhem.

Hello to all!

For those of you who know me, you probably know that I love animals. I learned the unpleasant and hard way the ultimate truth of NOT caring for animals when I was in elementary school--they were hamsters. I regret that due to my ineptitude they became ex-hamsters sooner than they should have. But again, I was 9 and I learned a valuable lesson: domesticated animals can't take care of themselves.
We currently have 2 cats and I have been lobbying for a dog since Aaron and I got married.
I would say let's get a dog!
And he would say NO! I have been bitten by dogs! On the butt!
And I would say but that was years ago! And you do have a very cute tushie!
And he would say my tushie is quite awesome, but we're not getting a dog!
And I would say but I love dogs!
And he would say but they are terrifying--teeth out of nowhere!
Then I would list all the dogs with which he has had a good teeth-free relationship.
And he would go yeah, but we can't have a dog now because a) we have babies b) we are renting c) dogs are terrifying.

Well, we are no longer renting.
And Adrian is 4.
And the apple of his eye, Fiona Leigh, keeps saying "i need dogs". He has been outnumbered, outvoted, and has given in. (hooray!)
Thus the great dog search of 2009 has begun. Last night we went to the animal welfare league shelter. Rows upon rows of dogs, leaping at their cages, barking their fool heads off. The whole time, Adrian has his hands over his ears and Fiona is clapping her hands exclaiming "yay! dogs!". We met 3 dogs that we thought might be a good match. The first dog was a one and half year old male hound dog mix. He was the size we wanted and was reported to be good with cats and children. It was hard to tell because his tail was tucked between his legs the whole time, and the look on his face was "please don't hurt me". It was so sad. The second dog was a 4 year old female, she was friendly, playful and sweet...and had been handed over because she had snapped at her previous owner's child. And the last was a large male black lab. He was a giant spazz and kept knocking Fiona over. She didn't mind, but I could just see him inadvertently destroying the whole house.
So that trip was a wash. We looked again on petfinder and contacted a few rescue groups, but as Aaron says we aren't looking for A dog, we're looking for THE dog.

And then there was today. I went to the dentist. I like my dentist. Sadly, he only does root canals now....so I have a new dentist. He looks like a cross between Jason Bateman and Rod Stewart. But he filled a cavity and I'm scheduled to go back next Thursday and get 2 more filled. And then, because I have hit the dental jackpot! I have to get a root canal/crown and I need my wisdom teeth extracted in the next 12 months. I am a lucky lucky girl!

As a result of todays novacaine, I spent the better part of today looking like a lopsided chipmunk. Aaron spent the better part of today trying not to laugh at me. He was mostly successful.

Where oh where oh

Where did my safety glasses go?
I need them b/c I have some glass cutting and soldering to do.
I am crafty like ice is cold.

I love me some flamey burney hot molten metal.
(With appropriate safety precautions and emergency fire extinguisher at the ready)

Although there are days when the idea of walking around weilding a flamethrower does hold a certain appeal on a primal level.

Yeeee haw!

And other exclamations!
We are most pleased to see the era of Bush & Cheney to come to an end. Now maybe we can just get our soldier friends home (hi jesse!), make a little cash, and mend all of those damaged relationships across the globe.

A funny:
We were watching the inaugural proceedings on tv and every time Obama was on the screen Adrian anounced: There's our emperor!

I hate winter.

And Old Man Winter knows it. He's taking it personally. Let me say this: a high of negative 4 is not the way to win me over, Old Man.

Ice! And Snow! And frosty frosty doooooooom!
(Photographic evidence to follow)