Strange Item of the Week - Jack Pot!!

I just got an email with this ingenious idea for potty training. NOT!

I think this is crazy! Slot machines to go potty? Really? Love the play on words. JACK POTtty. Yea right. Raising the next generation of compulsive gamblers?

We never got a separate potty for the Kid. He always just had a potty seat that went over the regular toilet so he didn't fall in. He did just fine. And was potty trained - all by himself, I take NO credit - by 2 years and 7 months. :)

Party Party Party

Yesterday we had 2 parties.

The 1st was a bowling birthday party with a bunch of 3 and 4 year olds. The Kid was such a cranky pants. He was mad when it wasn't his turn, mad when the ball didn't hit any pins, mad when it was over. It seemed never ending.

I was hoping he'd pass out on the way home (about 35 min away) to be all good for the 2nd party of the day, but he didn't. He said "I promise I will try not to be cranky later."

The next party was my cousin's graduation party from Harvard. It was mostly a keg party with a mess of family through in there for fun. I was SO jealous of all the 20-something college guys hanging out drinking out of the keg and playing beer pong.

As we were leaving I told my cousin (not pretty much shit-faced at this point) that I would have totally come back and drank with all of them after I put the kid to bed, if I didn't have another one coming. He said, "You are having another one?!?!" Seriously. It was too funny. The family that was in earshot was cracking up. No, I didn't just get this fat for fun. But in his defense, I only found out I was pregnant in January and he wasn't at Easter. And I usually only see the college/working cousins at major holidays. So I let him off the hook. He's been pretty busy graduating Harvard and all.

And the Kid wasn't cranky at all and we didn't get home until almost 9!

PLUS! I found out that all 3 of the boys (Tulane, Princeton and Harvard) all had some wort of scholarships and/or financial aid. My Aunt doesn't have one bill for any of them! Lucky her!!

Today we pretty much bummed around the house. Hubby and I went to pick out a new shed for the back yard. And then we had a little Birthday dinner and cake for my grandmother. :)

My Kid the Photographer

Alright, alright. I have a belly shot. The Kid took my camera and wanted to take a picture of me. It is the suckiest shot ever, however, I do think I look ok and that's what's important. It's not like he is Ansel Adams or anything, I was surprised my head wasn't chopped off. The Kid had his hand over the flash too, so here is the Kid's shot of his new kid brother cooking...

28 weeks

And a disclaimer of all the crap behind me in boxes. Remember we have construction going on and all of that belongs in the pantry that we had to empty out to put new pipes for our bathroom upstairs.
And that truck. Kid's favorite toy. Best 5 bucks I ever spent at a yard sale.

Wordless Wednesday - The Perfect Beach Day

As I have said before; PREGNANCY = PIN CUSHION

So I am home from my 3 hour visit to the hospital. Ugh. I also had the Rho Gam shot last October when I had a miscarriage and I was in and out of there so fast (except for the hour and a half I had to wait between the blood draw and the shot..... oh wait some of you probably have positive blood and have no clue what I am talking about!)

Rho Gam is basically a shot that a pregnant mom with negative blood type (I am O-) has to get at 28 weeks and again after giving birth if the child has positive(+) blood. (My Kid is O+) To protect any babies in the future. Something to do with the antibodies of the (-) blood attacking the (+) blood of the baby and something can go seriously wrong.

When I get it done (my insurance dictates that I have to get it done at the hospital outpatient) I have to get my blood drawn so they can make sure I have (-) blood, because I would really go through all this shit for a painful shot in the ass if I knew I was (+). Then wait for a specified amount of time (anywhere from 1-2 hours) and come back pick up the shot from where you got your blood drawn and walk to the other side if the hospital to ONCOLOGY where they administer the shot. And you're done.

Anyway, since I went to the hospital last Oct for the SAME shot I thought maybe they would just look up my blood type on the computer and we could skip the blood sucking, I mean, drawing part and just get the shot and go home. NOPE! I brought the Kid and he was as good as an almost 4 year old can be in a waiting room. ie. pain in the ass and climbing all over me.
While we were waiting the hour before the shot was ready, we went to the cafeteria at the hospital for lunch. Last time it was almost 2 hours, so we went to a park together so the hospital time was much shorter and the Kid was so much better behaved. So fun picking out crappy food only to find out they only take cash (no signs - anywhere!) I had to leave our food and go to the ATM in the hallway and got charged $3 more for the cold crappy food....luckily my bank reimburses ATM fees.

Thank goodness that is over with. Now I just have to look forward to all the needles during the birth!

Computer Frustration! (& update)

Bad blogger! I have been reading many other blogs, but just haven't sat and wrote anything myself. For a couple reasons. One is that my computer is a pain in the ass and has been freezing up on me almost every time I am online all week and the other is I have been real lazy and have been waiting to download pictures from my camera that I want to blog about, but haven't. So I am going to try to catch up today and jump back on this bloggy wagon. :)

I had to try four times to get these pictures up for today. I know it's not Blogger's fault. I can't get on any web sites when the computer freezes. But OMG! I am getting very pissy about this.

I finally got a picture up! I was trying 5 at a time the last few times, but now I guess I have to do 1 at a time.

Last Thurs we went and swam at a friend of mine's house. It was so not really hot enough and her pool wasn't heated, but it was so nice to be weightless for a little bit!

Sunday we had the Kid's good friend's birthday party...at least you would think they were good friends. They are always so excited to see each other and then when they are actually together they fight like nothing else! It's quite amusing. It was a pirate birthday. Complete with a pirate pool, hats, eye patches and a pirate pinata!

Happy 3rd Birthday 'A'

We actually have a pretty slow rest of the week. Not much planned, except for a trip to the hospital at some point to get my RhoGam shot. This weekend I have the last birthday party of June and my cousin's college graduation party. This is the last kid of 3 brothers to graduate college in that family. One went to Tulane, one Princeton and this one just graduated Harvard. Seriously. I only hope to be so lucky and have at least 2 smart boys. My Aunt certainly did something right with her 3 boys.

I will also be moving right on into the 3rd trimester this week. Wow! Has time really flew by. I am sleeping like crap and my back hurts more when I actually get up each time to pee at night.

Oh and just an update on the Kid's cough. It is still lingering, but he'll cough maybe once or twice an hour and the duration has been shorter. So I am hoping he is kicking it. Another couple days and it will be a full 2 weeks, so I may be making another trip to the doc with him.

Thanks for sticking around my little hiatus. :)

Bullet Catch Up with a Funny...

• The Kid has a cough and is back on the nebulizer. He has been on and off that thing since he was 4 months old. It's only been in the winter until now. When he was born he inhaled the meconium, so I think his lung problems started at birth. His 1st winter he had bronciolitis, the next year was pneumonia and the following year he was diagnosed with a dust mite allergy which caused severe coughing in the middle of the night. This past winter was his best one yet. Last time he used it was last October. But this cough wasn't going away on it's own, so I had to break out the nebulizer and call the doctor to make sure I could use the expired meds. The are only over by a few months and he said it was fine. Thank goodness, because I had almost 20 boxes! I didn't want to have to buy more.
• I watched my youngest cousin graduate from HS last night. It was so awesome. She is SO talented and has won awards for everything from singing to concert piano. We are all so proud of her. She got accepted to Oberlin Conservatory! I can't wait to brag about her when she is on Broadway..seriously, she will be there one day.
• I said goodbye to a very good friend of mine yesterday who moved back to Texas today. Her entire family is there and I know it is the best move for her and her family, but I am going to miss her terribly.
• And here is the funny for the day... A friend of mine's son just lost his first tooth (and swallowed it) today and it reminded me of the time that my Kid wanted to know when he would lose his teeth so the tooth fairy would come visit him. Then he says he feels really bad for Franklin because the tooth fairy will never visit him. When I asked him why? (And thinking who the hell was Franklin?) Well, because turtles don't have teeth. Duh Mom. Damn TV. Seriously, he really watches. He will come to me and tell me exactly what Little Bear was doing after school and want to do it too.

On the Lighter Side

Hubby was able to take off work yesterday. So the Kid was SO happy to be able to give him his presents he made at school. Actually, the only reason Hubby was able to take off work was because there were some big storms in the area and he had to work and didn't get home until 2am. So they didn't make him come back 5 hours later. He slept for most of the morning, except when I went and got McDs breakfast around 9. I would have totally made my own pancakes and bacon if I was told he was staying home before 3am.

Although, it kinda threw my day off a little. We then had to go to the IL's house to see his dad, which was totally fine, but no one was expecting him to be home either so his dad was out in a canoe all day with my SIL (I am SO jealous!) So we kinda had to squeeze in my step-dad and my FIL in the same time to get over to the previously planned BBQ at my Aunt's to see my dad and my other grandfather.

But, it was a beautiful day and the Kid had a BLAST, as always. And surprise, Hubby is back to work today. And he has to work late and probably won't be home until midnight. But this is his last day. Now he'll have the next 5 days off to work upstairs. I will be taking and posting pictures of construction in the near future.

Laws are meant to be broken, right?

Disclaimer: I do not know anyone in real life that I am talking about.

So, today, someone on one of my bazillion online local mom's groups asked a question about car seats and booster seats. Recap is: She is pregnant and has 2 other children. Her car has a 3rd row seat, so no worries about where the car seats and boosters can go, but her mom's doesn't. "Is it illegal to have my 6 year old (the oldest) in the front seat in his booster in my mom's car?"

This was the reply from one of the mom's on the board.
> "From what I've been hearing, car seats and weight limits are guide lines, not the law. As long as your child is buckled some way it doesn't matter, it's the parents choice to follow the car seat rules not the law, but I'd go for the safest."

Are you FREAKING KIDDING ME?!?!?! NOT THE LAW?? Where the hell is she from? Everyone on this mom's board is living in NJ as we speak? Is there another state somewhere that I don't know of that she *may* have come from that it wasn't the law to put your child in a car seat?? NJ has the most strict laws of almost any state with it's 8 years old or 80 pounds in a booster.

Of course, I couldn't keep quiet and here was my post back to her:

"OH NO! In NJ is it a LAW that children be restrained in a proper restraint for their size and age. You can be ticketed and fined for not doing it.
This is the title 39 statute that an officer would write out the ticket. I used to be a police officer and my hubby is a detective.
39:3-76.2a Failure to use a child restraint when transporting a child under the age of eight and weighing less than 80 pounds.

And here is the NJ web site with info about the LAW: http://www.state.nj.us/lps/hts/childseats/childseats_newlaw.html
Especially if, God forbid, there was an accident and the officer can determine that your child wasn't in a car seat or booster. It is the LAW. Not just a suggestion.

Please don't go around telling people you don't have to put your child in a car seat! ONLY when you child is over 80 pounds or 8 years old can they be exempt from the LAW. If your child is under 80 pounds, but over 8, they are exempt from the law, but it would be up to you to see if the seat belt fits them correctly and keep them in a booster seat, if needed...but not under the law, at that point ONLY.

That being said, and I think someone already said it, if you just don't have a big enough car and all the other seats in the back are taken by other younger or smaller children, you wouldn't be ticketed for having the oldest in the front seat. Just turn off the air bag if you can, because that can do more damage than anything to a child if you are in an accident.My hubby is a cop and he has had my son in the front of his pickup only about 3 times his whole 4 years of life, because it is an older truck and no airbag and it's only a bench seat. But we weren't real comfortable about it. We didn't have a choice at the time.Good luck!!!"

My head is still spinning from all the research I did to find those good web sites and the Title 39 statute. But, I just couldn't let that one go. I know I won't be letting her drive my kid around, if I ever even meet her.

Oh yea, and did you hear? It's just a guideline that you need to stay on the right side of the road in America too? And red lights mean go and green means stop....ok, green light. I could go on forever with that one.

No News is Good News

I didn't hear anything from my doctor's office this week. They said the results from my glucose test should be in in 48 hours. I am assuming I passed. I am estatic that I don't have to take the 3 hours test! I never had to take it before and hopefully never will.

Oh, and I realized I actually have 6 birthday parties to go to this June....but 2 I can't make it. So I have only 4 that I have rsvp'ed to.

If any daddy's read my blog - have a Happy Father's Day tomorrow! If you are a mommy, go ahead and give your man a squeeze. Mine is working all day and the Kid is SO upset that he can't give daddy the presents he made him in school and we hid away last week. I am hoping he can come home a little early and get his hugs and kisses. Tomorrow will be Hubby's 6th day straight working and he is supposed to go in on Monday too. ugh.

There is a lighting storm rolling over, so I must shut down.
Nighty night.

My First (and ONLY) Sunburn of the Season...

Ahhhhhhh. I am so relaxed. Today was such a nice day. We had no where we had to be. My grandmother took the Kid for a couple hours this morning so I could stay in bed a little longer this morning since I got up about 20 times to pee and didn't really fall back asleep easy. After lunch we went over to the beach and spent 2 1/2 glorious hours there. It was our first official summer day at the beach. The only reason I say that is because we both had bathing suits on and actually got wet! Although, I forgot to put sunblock on my legs and the front of my legs are all hot and sunburned. :(
For dinner the Kid and I went to a local place to eat that you can eat outside. And now, it's 8:15 and he is sound asleep. Sooooo tired. It was just a nice day all around. I took a mess of pictures and they all came out so cool.

My baby's footprints in the sand.

Yesterday we GOT OUR TILE! We took my grandfather, who is in his mid-80's, to Lowe's to help us pick it out. He has been doing tile for 60+ years and will be doing the tile in our bathroom upstairs. He is so strong and his knees are still in great shape. It's amazing.

This was waiting for the fork lift to get down more tile from the top shelf. Made the Kid's DAY watching the forklift.

This is our tile! It's beige and shiney and beautiful, and the 9x12 tiles that are going up and down will be going side to side and they will be uneven...like how you would lay bricks. I will post pictures when they are actually applied to our walls and not just the Lowe's sample.

Tomorrow we have our 2nd of 5 birthday parties for June. It's in the late afternoon, so I don't know if I'll be online much. I warned you all in an earlier post that once the summer hit I would probably be an every-other-day poster. I am doing my best!! :)

Last Day of School

Today was my baby's last day of nursery school. We got to go in 20 minutes early to pick them up and we got to collect all the things they had been using all year, from their names on their attendance cards to the picture on the wall next to the star with their birthday to their snack place mats that they picked out photos and stickers to put on it and his teacher lamented it.


Not only that, Mrs. C. made a huge folder with a few different things that the kids had been making all year. It had his hand prints from the beginning of the year, different crafts from some holidays, photos from class time, and his foot print out line at the end. It was so sweet. I totally cried. Especially when she started crying first.

The Kid and his Girlfriend are loving the cookies I bought for their last day.

Blowing bubbles outside school that Mrs. C gave them all.Climbing the tree that they climbed every day after school.
Then the Kid and I went to Friendly's for lunch and I was miraculously able to get him to fall asleep in the car about 5 minutes from home! And he napped about 2 hours! So we were able to go to the boardwalk tonight and celebrate his last day.

Daddy came home early from work to come with us. We got to stay out late and have hot dogs and ice cream and he got to go on as many rides as he wanted. I was trying to make his last day of school a fun happy day. Because I know he is already sad when I tell him he will be going to a new school next year. So I am hoping we can look back on today and I'll remind him how much fun the day was.

No More Needles, PLEASE

A quick post before I go collapse in bed.



The cable guy was here for almost 1 1/2 hours, but fixed everything that needed to be fixed...no charge! yeah!



Then I sucked down the lovely orange sugar water and headed out to my doctor appointment. They take the blood right in the office and most of the time I can barely even feel the needle. Well, this time it hurt! I even have a little bruise around the shot site.
Next is the Rho Gam. ugh. Pregnancy = Human Pin Cushion

Damnit! I had a bunch more typed, but my computer froze up before I could save it. Here is what I can remember until I fall asleep at the computer.

I also got to see the little peanut on the ultrasound today. Nice bonus. Everything is doing well over here. The Kid got blue exam gloves b/c he was such a good boy. The doc thought it was for him to pretend to be a doctor...but I told him since daddy is a detective he likes to pretend he is on a crime scene. He even has the detective jacket, handcuffs and magnifying glass at home. Too funny.

This was a long story, making it short, went to my mom's after the appointment. Didn't call my Gram. She freaked out and called my mom around 7:30 asking if she heard from me. She had been checking the driveway every 10 min to see if I was home. She was so worried. She thought I was sent to the hospital or somthing. Poor Gram. I feel so bad. And not used to this living with other people thing just yet.

Going to bed now...my huge body pillow is calling me. Tomorrow is the Kid's last day of Nursery school and I will need all my strength not to cry.

Trying to Keep Cool

• Yesterday was much lying around doing nothing. TOO HOT! Our pathetic little a/c units do not keep the whole house cool, but at least they are at least 15-20 degrees cooler than outside.

Closest shot you are going to get of me in my bathing suit.

We basically sat in the pool all afternoon again, and then went to my MIL to visit and have dinner. They have central a/c, very nice.

• Today was the Kid's 2nd to last day of school *tear* and we hit up McDs and some playtime in the airconditioned playplace of germs and came home and went back in the pool. This was day 3 of the pool water, so it was a tad slimey on the bottom. We emptied it out and will fill it back up tomorrow.

• I am so happy my friend is letting me borrow her big curved body pillow! I have been flopping around this last week with a pillow between my legs and another behind my back. I happened to mention to her today that I was going to order one and she said "I have one!" I am so excited to go to bed tonight...and Hubby has nothing to do with it! hahahaha

• This baby boy is being very stubborn already, just like his big brother. When you last read that the Kid felt the baby kick for the first time it was the only time he has felt the baby. Everytime I call him over and put his hand on my belly he just runs away and says "I already felt the baby!" And then, when the one other person in this house that wants to feel the baby puts his hand on my belly the baby totally stops moving. So Hubby has yet to feel the movement.

• Tomorrow we have the cable people coming to see why we can't get the Disney Channel in our bedroom. There is a box, but it's just a black screen. And since it has never really worked well in the living room (3 boxes later) that was the only place he could see his beloved Higgly's. And then...I have my wonderful 'drink the nasty sugar water' glucose test. Yeah! Good times. At least the doctor's office will have a/c. That is a requirement of where ever I go these days.

Hot Weekend

Yesterday we had our first of 5 birthday parties for the month of June. It was so fun. There was even a little bounce house. So the Kid was thrilled. Of course he was having a little too much fun when he was sucking down whole juice boxes at a time and then going bouncing. He threw up all over the bounce house slide. Thank goodness he wasn't really sick and that the bounce house is washable. The dad of the birthday girl just hosed it off for us.


And what a beautiful day today!! We were outside all day. While the rest of our area suffered in sufficating heat, we were sitting near the shore about 5-10 degrees cooler and in a little blow up pool! It was awesome. Sorry you guys that were sweating.

Waiting for daddy to fill up the pool with the air compressor.

We blew up the pool this morning and invited my friend and her son over and the boys played in the pool most of the afternoon. Then after they left The Kid and I sat in the cooooold water together. Without all the splashing. It was COLD. I stepped in it and didn't think I would even sit down, but I did. :)

The boys having a blast.

Having SO much fun dumping water on his head!

Darn it, I forgot about the water getting in my eyes.

We were mostly comfortable all day. I was actually shocked. I thought it would be much worse. But they are calling for even hotter temps tomorrow. We just turned the a/c on when we got home from my in-laws around 8:30pm. They live a town away, inland a little, and we could feel the difference when we got there. It was crazy.

Hope you all enjoyed your day! I'll be back in the pool tomorrow.

Little Accomplishments

What did I do today? Absolutely nothing. Much.

• I did manage to wash and dry 2 loads of laundry. Folded? No.
• I did empty and re-fill the dishwasher.
• Fed myself and the Kid breakfast and lunch.
• I did manage to get a shower in today around 1:30, and then sat in my robe most of the afternoon.
• I did post 2 entries today and was able to catch up on all my blog readings and emails.
• We did go to my mom's house for dinner. So I didn't even have to cook. AND she gave him a bath!

Nice. This was like a day off from sahm-land...although, the Kid still was here (of course) and had a huge melt down. He broke one of his favorite 'toys' which really isn't a toy. It's like a kitchen utensil that looks like a meatball maker. He acted like he lost his best friend. He wouldn't even throw it out. (It can't be fixed and it was metal and had a sharp edge now that it broke.) I sat on the kitchen floor next to him for 1/2 an hour while he was crying so hard he couldn't talk. It was so sad.

But other than that, it was a nice relaxing day. :) Must plan more of these more often.

Magic

Well, first the magical thing is.... I HAVE NOTHING TO DO TODAY! No plans. No outings. Nowhere to be. I may just hit a park and sit and relax. As long as the sun stays out. This is the first day in the last 9 that I have an empty square in my calendar. I am very happy about this. :)
Tomorrow we have a birthday party, and nothing to do over the weekend. (OMG!) Of course this weekend is supposed to be in the 90's. So I will be sitting in front of the a/c. Oh and catching up on all the laundry I have been neglecting for the last 9 days.

In school yesterday the Kid had a magician come to entertain all the 3 year old classes. It was hysterical. I was standing in the hallway listening. The laughter of 4 classes of 15 kids was so infectious.


While he was in school I even went and got myself a pedicure! I now have some pretty pink toes and much smaller callouses.


We went the mall after school to have lunch with his 'girlfriend'. We went to Johnny Rockets. It was the first time we had ever been there. He was so excited to have the chocolate shake before his lunch. I was a little worried that he wouldn't eat his grilled cheese, but he ate every bite.

Then we went to Babies R Us to check out baby stuff. Then we then went to the DMV, MVC, whatever the heck they are calling the NJ inspection station nowadays and got my pretty new sticker that keeps me from going back there until 2010! :)

Photo update

Well, since we both forgot our cameras. And my camera on my phone is broken my friend got one shot of them on her phone together right before we left the game the other night. It was NOT easy. They'd be standing together for about a milisecond and then go running around again. So this is the only shot of the Kid's first baseball game.
Our seats were actually right behind the 3rd base. But behind the grassy area was where the bounce things were and we were just letting them run around.

Can I Go To Sleep Now?

I think as we will be becoming a family of 4 in about 3 1/2 months I think I have caught something called donottrestaminuteitis. I seriously have been going non stop for what feels like a month. From my friend AndreAnna....


"So I go to these family events - Great Adventure, the boardwalk, this Air Show. And I walk a lot. In the heat. I have a good time and I try not to complain. I come home tired, but happy I was there and have those memories."


I think that is how I feel. I am happy that I have these memories. And now, that I have this blog, I won't forget them!




I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact I am trying to squeeze as much one on one time with the Kid before he has his little brother to compete with. mmmmmmmm.




I already told you all about going to Great Adventure on Thurs (but didn't get to post it until Saturday), because I was busy doing other stuff.




~On Friday we really didn't do much until the afternoon when I went to my mom's and dropped my car off at my step-dad's shop for the tire changing to begin. Thank GOD I have a mechanic in the family...can't say that too often.




~Saturday, my grandmother and I took the Kid to her church carnival they were having. It was tiny, but there was a bounce house and that is all that mattered. Luckily we were able to get there and he could bounce before the sky opened up and it poured on us.



~Sunday, my mom and I went to the street festival in her town. It was hot, it was crowded...but there were MANY bounce things, some even had slides. The Kid was in his glory.

Resting on my mom's chairs after our day at the street fair. Poor baby.

~Monday - school day - We had his little Circus Day. His school doesn't do a 'graduation ceremony'. They believe it would be silly to take the kids out of their element for a day or 2 just to practice standing in line and sitting still. Too much to ask of 3 and 4 year olds. I totally agree. Plus all of them have another year of a pre-school before they go to kindergarten anyway. So each of them put on a little performance with the character of their choice as a member of the circus. There were many tightrope walker, tigers, a puppy, a monkey, a vender and a clown. It was adorable and the Kid was SUCH a ham.

My own Magnús Ver Magnússon

My little Strong Man

Yes, I made his barbells out of a painted dowel and 2 Styrofoam circles. I am crafty like that.


After we went out to lunch with my MIL and grandmother (the rest of the family had to go back to work.)

~STILL Monday - I was able to get the Kid to nap for a couple hours after I went to Shop Rite. Not an easy task for a kid that has fought naps since last summer. It usually entails me driving around for at least 20 minutes anytime after 3pm. I succeeded. Why? So we could go to the Blue Claws game that night. We had been given free tickets from my step-mom that she won at an auction and it was a 7:05 game. We went with my friend that was at the Please Touch Museum with us....of course, we both forgot our cameras. Mine was still in the camcorder case from Circus Day. Argh!!! And I wasn't as mad because I am all about the blogging now and I wanted to post some pictures (which I really wanted too) ...but because it was his FIRST BASEBALL GAME EVER!


Of course there were bouncing things there too. So being in the seats lasted about as long as it took to eat a couple hot dogs. We left in the 5th inning after MUCH bouncing and it was already close to 9:30. *YAWN*


~TODAY~ We had a wonderful playdate with some of my very close friends. One of which is moving back to Texas in 2 weeks. We have known her and her daughter (just 6 months younger than the Kid) for over 2 years and we will miss them dearly. They have all of their family there in TX, so it is a bitter sweet move for all of us. Love you A!

Groundhog Day

We have a groundhog living under our deck. My grandfather said it has been there for over 3 years and it never bothered them. Well, now it has eaten our newly planted cucumber plants and my grandmother's black eye susans.
This. Means. War.

They called out the calvary. Muskrat Jack. He does all animal removal/rescue, you name it.

He came out 2 days ago and set a humane trap with an apple. Today the groundhog took the bait.

M.J. had to make sure what the sex of the groundhog was before he would take it. Well, wouldn't you know. It's a GIRL. So most likely she has some little babies under the deck too. We did let the big girl out and finish raising her babies to be a nice size to catch them all too.

They WILL be released somewhere safe and sound. Just no where near our garden.