STRINGING CHEERIOS!!!

This takes serious concentration!

One for me, another one for me,

One for the string.

Ellie did better at this then i anticitated. unfortunatly we have one seriously short attention span and after about two dozen beads she decided it would be more fune to go and torture the bird. Oh the joys of living in a zoo!

Top 4 reasons I Love My Job! (in no particular order)

i suppose its cuteness like this that got me four kids.

truth in advertising

There is a blog that i read and so enjoy for it's wit and honesty, today she posted about blogs lately being all sunshine and roses. although i don't think shes referring to me in honor of the lovely and talented Sandra
@ http://jazzieandtahlia.typepad.com/my_weblog/
I give you, the reality of my day with four kids under 11.
we were up at 6:30 am when i awoke to Ellie's pull up on the floor (needless to say she wasn't in it)
the big kids were up at 7, Mitch still had homework from the night before and was actually late to school because he couldn't finish it ( i made him go to be last night, probably a bad call) we got the big kids off to school and mom and i tried to clean up the back yard. during that hour or so Ellie just kept yelling up up up up up up up up up up (i think you get it) so we gave up on that pretty quickly. we got through lunch and nap time without too much of a fuss. the big kids came home promptly followed by "mom, can i eat this, mom, can i eat that, mom, Ellie's eating my....., Connor ate the last ....." ( i think you get it) and i am a MORON, cuz i thought, hey let's bake some cookies, Ha have i mentioned I'm an idiot. got the cookies baked but the entire time ellie is ( alternately sitting in her high chair, laying on floor) yelling uh uh uh (her words for "iwant to eat some of that now") after all the kids eating more then there share of said cookies we ended the day with a rousing round of Human Fountain in the living room. so I'm off to clean up (i should be done some time before the Apocalypse). have a great night

FFFF Gotcha Clothes

This is my first attempt at the Fanily Foto Fun Friday challenge from Donna at Double Happieness. This week it is Gotcha day clothes. Well we certainly have us some of those. When Ellie came to the civil affairs office she was wearing tree pairs of pants, one long sleaved t shirt, two sweaters, and a thick jacket (please note it was 68* outside and about 80* in the office) It took us hours in the hotel room to get her to take of her many layers and we were surprised to keep discovering more clothes.
eventually we got down to skin and we discovered the dirtiest little kid. she didn't like the tub at first but over the last month it is now one of her faverite places to be.

when i took the clothes out to take the picture below ellie got very upset, so back they went into the holiday inn bag where they have lived since China.



Our sweaty girl in all her terrified glory

Ellies gotcha clothes
We sent three disposable cameras to the orphanage over the past year and in probably 70% of the pictures Ellie has some variation of these clothes on.

Thanks Donna for the FFFF. This was fun!

In the interest of full disclosure

I give you Me, in all of my infinate glory (ok maybe not glorious but there is becomming infinatly more of me over time) these are from last weekend when we took our first outing to Chili's as a family of 6, it was fun, Ellie did really well and charmed everyone and Mitchell ate off of the adult menu and ate all of his food, man he's getting big.

our saturday in pictures

Well here you will find Big Daddy doing his bi-weekly oil change, bi weekly is too often you say, well our big daddy DRIVES. ALOT! he works hard and so does his truck.




In a stunning display of crappy motherhood below you will find mitchell wrapping birthday gifts (its april by the way) for his friends in Christmas wrap. i know that i have birthday wrap but it has dissapeared into the abbys some might call a garage. But he had fun at the party and no one even noticed.

Kyleigh and Connor so wanted to go in the pool, it wa hot enough outside (i think the high was 101 or so) but the water in the pool was BURR cold. they came out 40 minuites later with blue lips.



Ellie found herself doing yet more

manual labor. she volinteered i swear. mom was cleaning the fence (the dogs like to pee on it, sweet aint they) and Ellie decided it looked like fun. this was followed by an odd ritual of filling the bucket with water, putting her feet in the bucket them dunking her head in the bucket, then shed dump out the bucket and start all over. she is an odd duck but such a great kid.
you will notice a distinct lack of pics of me, well im not stupid enough to let anyone take my picture when im cleaning house, it just aint pretty ya'll

Friday Fun

I know I know this is a pittiful picture but please before you turn away take note of the obvious remnants of the BLOOD DRAW FROM HE double hockey sticks!!!! friday my little Ellie had the pleasure of having 9 yes i said NINE vials of bllod drawn by the lovely vampires at the lab. The had to stick her twice, and boy howdy she didn't like it. She is being tested for everything under the sun. since she's already been diagnosed with a staff infection and is being treated to get rid of some, uhm, little friends she brought home with her from China. Fun Fun Fun.