tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59446040784696589902024-03-13T11:38:50.625-06:00Spilled MilkSkip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.comBlogger155125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-36167711772338655642012-08-25T15:13:00.002-06:002012-08-25T15:13:29.084-06:00Hmmmm<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Yes, we are alive! Life got insane again. I am *hoping* it will calm down again soon. Not quite there yet. Brief recount. Kids all accounted for, some doing better then others. Summer was eh, nothing fun happened here. Dominic is walking, he is still Trouble. Gabrielle started Kindergarten! And Julian was diagnosed as autistic. Most days are bad days for him. Some more other day.</div>
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And here is one picture from FL in April, and just about the last time I took any pictures. No, I wasn't kidding when I said it was a bad summer!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxVPbNx7Q6FPAH_2-s20N6rZKePJ-AELnGZuPsTC1pFtF6VGOaD2rY8nZZEalkE70r5sh5ox4QkTZqs1zTJSzt8_F1Au96X5zQwDJkgchBt-XGc7Tz7jSunhO2ZMcENkOl9FhQ7CBgEhc/s1600/kids.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxVPbNx7Q6FPAH_2-s20N6rZKePJ-AELnGZuPsTC1pFtF6VGOaD2rY8nZZEalkE70r5sh5ox4QkTZqs1zTJSzt8_F1Au96X5zQwDJkgchBt-XGc7Tz7jSunhO2ZMcENkOl9FhQ7CBgEhc/s320/kids.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
<br />Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-52121450232617248232012-02-09T22:49:00.001-07:002012-02-09T22:51:03.432-07:00cursedYep. I should of known better then to say how well Madeline was sleeping in my last post! That was probably the last time she slept well. She attempted to have a friend sleep over for her birthday, the friend was fine. Madeline was not. Apparently having someone strange in her space made her anxious. It just spiraled her out of control again. Several emergency sessions with her therapist, every night in my room, she hasn't entered her room other then to get clothes since that night, and one discovery later. Madeline sleep walks!<br />
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We had no idea. Now that I can tell, I know that it has been going on for 3+ years, ever since that fateful vacation when her anxiety disorder was triggered. She appears awake, slightly groggy, but awake. Madeline will talk to you, answer questions just fine, eat, use the bathroom even and the whole time she is asleep! I never once thought to ask her the next day if she had any memory of the night before which is how I finally realized it. I knew about her night terrors that she has sometimes now and she talks in her sleep, but realizing the sleep walking has been eye opening. It is the root of many of our night time issues with her. It happens when she is anxious, on a good week it may be once a week, when she is in one of her cycles, it is nightly. And she can do it several times a night.<br />
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I'll put her to bed, check on her on the agreed upon minute, she may or may not be asleep, and then we do another time for me to come back. I return and she is snoring. 5 minutes later she is out asking why I never came in. This is her sleepwalking! She may want a snack, may ask questions about something, she could up for for 30 minutes before I walk her back to bed, the second she lies down she is snoring loudly again. She may or may not repeat it another 1-3 times times. Once it has been about 1.5 hours from the time she went to sleep then she stops doing it and will sleep soundly. If you ask her in the morning about anything that happened once she started snoring, then she has no memory of any of it. We have done this for years! Now that I know I have more patience for when it takes 2 hours to get my 9 year to stay in bed.Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-20461613079448568942012-01-08T15:18:00.002-07:002012-01-08T15:18:51.311-07:00a new yearA new year and another birthday. Madeline turned 9 yesterday! We celebrated early because she was supposed to have snowboard practice but it was canceled so we celebrated again. She went bowling early in the week before she went back to school after winter break. We invited 2 of her friends to go along. She is moving out the party age, we have limited friends that are girls, and she did not want to invite her entire class from school. 15 kids all together and only 2 of them are girls. Yesterday we went swimming , out for pizza and then made her birthday dinner. Her friend that spent the day with us wanted to sleep over last night so I agreed to try the sleepover thing again. We've tried two other things in the last year, once at another house in our neighborhood and then we had another neighbor girl try to sleep here over the summer. Neither one were successful. And neither was last night!<br />
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Madeline usually does not problems sleeping now but everything has to be perfect, right temperature, right night lights, right time, someone checking on her exactly every 20 minutes, on and on. She sleeps in my room at times when something isn't correct. She got scared with someone different in her room and after an hour of trying to problem solve, I called it quits and took the girl home. Madeline now says she will try again when she is 11, I thinking that might not be a bad idea. She doesn't want to completely miss out on events so I take her to sleepovers and then pick her up at 9pm or so to come home to her own bed. It has worked out ok so far. It was a bit of an issue with a dance team mandated sleepover with having to sneak her out the back so the other girls didn't see. We elected out of the gymnastics team sleepover completely last month since it didn't even start until 7pm at night, she is one of the youngest members and the majority of the girls are teenagers. One of these days...Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-80037100195108582232011-12-05T19:55:00.001-07:002011-12-06T15:18:26.707-07:00sports<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu_NpFX-sCqG25TlF8H3KXq07R_yogdVSQ1XgfWjxbU0Da6RVjoDBARan67lrAg39sxquh98uLe2jquyoZKYhyphenhyphenqk6vuKY3HBDxWfB0ppMnv1lgPfDP_OX-9UUTbe1vFqJiRq3ByKgaYRQ/s1600/board.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu_NpFX-sCqG25TlF8H3KXq07R_yogdVSQ1XgfWjxbU0Da6RVjoDBARan67lrAg39sxquh98uLe2jquyoZKYhyphenhyphenqk6vuKY3HBDxWfB0ppMnv1lgPfDP_OX-9UUTbe1vFqJiRq3ByKgaYRQ/s320/board.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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Obviously Madeline is the one with the most sports in this house! Gabrielle did try a few news ones this year. It turns out that she loves baseball, soccer was close behind, but baseball was a clear winner. She was the only girl playing for the 2 months over the summer, I don't even think she noticed because she had so much fun. She would complain about going to soccer but then when she was there, she loved it. And couldn't wait until next week when she would start complaining on the drive over again...No idea if she will elect to do it again in the spring, she asked to play t-ball though. She is taking one ballet class and still enjoys gymnastics.<br />
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And on to Madeline. She discovered skateboarding over the summer! We spent 2+ days a week at the skatepark for 3 months straight. We didn't get out much on the river because of baby. She was able to do one week and then couple of river runs but that was all the kayaking for 20111. Hiking. My dad is an avid hiker, he usually does long mountain hikes in the summer and he discovered that Madeline can keep up with him. This is huge. My dad is 6'4, long legs with a stride to match and he waits for no one. She became his hiking buddy doing 8+ mile hikes, not flat ones, but 3-4,000 vertical feet. I finally let her do the rock wall at the rec center, not because I didn't think she could but because I had a feeling it would be a new hobby. By the second time she tried it, she was going up all 3 routes to the top. Now she is like a little spider monkey, she makes it to the top in just a couple minutes. And we'll just add that to the list of hobbies for someday when there is more time in the world because of course she starts to go to rock gym here in town and try it out, of course she wants to try outdoor rock climbing.<br />
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Organized sports.<br />
Dance. Madeline is competing in lyrical, ballet, and tap. Add in a special ballet trio competition piece they asked her to do and all that adds up to be 5 hours of dance a week. All team dancers must take a stretch class once a week so they become more limber. Madeline loves that because now she can literally kick herself in the head and do the full splits. Gymnastics moved her to Level 4 competition team right after school started. And by the looks of things, Level 5 is not far behind. She already made one trip to Denver last month for dance, 2 more this spring and several for gymnastics. I'm just hoping to hit IKEA one of these trips! Snowboarding. She is on the team at Telluride. We really aren't sure what level she ended up in, but they told us it was 3 levels above her normal age level. And all boys, there are no girls at that level. One boy said he was in 7th grade so we are guessing 6/7th age group maybe.<br />
<br />Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-38863407988578981792011-11-22T10:10:00.001-07:002011-11-22T10:42:13.146-07:00schoolBoth the girls are in school this year. Madeline is in 3rd grade of a 3/4 combo class and Gabrielle is doing 3-4 full days of preschool. It has been interesting. Madeline's teacher is wonderful and is working hard to get to know Madeline and all her issues. It has been a little rocky though. She spent the last two years with the same teacher who watched her go from being able to recognize only a few letters to reading at grade level. This year has been harder because by all appearances, Madeline looks to be normal. she can pass for it most of the time, and is at grade level. It isn't until you really dive into a subject that you realize that she is just compensating and has no clue what she is actually doing. She can read!! I still find that amazing, she reads books and can understand them. Reading is not fun for her, and it isn't something she will do of her own free will. I ask her to read for an hour a week and other then that we don't force her. I just want her to be able to do it but I doubt that it will be a passion of hers.<br />
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Up until 3rd grade she was able to process material quicker, as the work becomes harder, she is struggling to keep up. It takes A LOT of effort of our part to make sure that she actually understands what is going on. We spent hours a week alone working on math. Because she is dyslexic, she starts out at a disadvantage and then we have to work 3 times as hard at everything. Everything is a challenge and I do not say that lightly. Reading on the computer is harder for her to comprehend then reading off paper so I have to read it to her. She can't do math in her head while looking at the screen or take what is on the screen and put it on paper easily so I write it out for her and then she can do the problem. And then we have to try and put the answer back on the computer.<br />
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Madeline has two penpals. She only writes in cursive so she doesn't reverse her letters, they can not read cursive so I type out her letters for her. Testing is huge. We elect out of all standardized testing. It isn't an issue, she is either sent to the 1/2 classroom to be a helper or I keep her home. In 3rd grade they start regular tests, like a science test every other week. Many many tears because she takes weeks to learn new concepts with her memory issues. We might of finally got the testing figured out because she actually passed the last one. She doesn't know that she had been failing all of them. Her teacher, her therapist, and I work together to find what does work and what does not, lots of trial and error. Her teacher has been wonderful about assisting us in anything we need to do differently for her.<br />
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I did ask at one point if she wanted to homeschool again, she absolutely did not want to. I really work at keeping her self esteem up. She is never the only dyslexic child in her class, there is one above her and one below her so there is always one with her and several more children with learning issues in her class of 15. We bring her to school at 8:15, school starts at 8:30, she works from 8:15 to 9:15 every day with her therapist there. In the summer, she comes to our house first thing in the morning, 7:30! We do an session with a tutor for math for an hour on Mondays after school before she goes to gymnastics. He is amazing and volunteers for free to help her. She can do math but it takes her longer then the other kids that he is helping her learn short cuts and teaching her extra rules that she really needs. I started the tutoring thinking it was be a one time thing to get her over a hump we were having but then quickly realized that it was very helpful for her to learn all these extra tricks that he has, any little advantage goes so far with her. Last year I was starting to believe that Madeline would not struggle her entire life, that we had caught the dyslexia so early, she had done years of reading therapy, she would go on and it would not hold her back. I now know just how much it affects every aspect of her learning, that it will truly be a life long struggle but hopefully we can provide her with enough tools to work around it.Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-39913358229752037022011-11-20T19:33:00.002-07:002011-11-20T19:53:55.282-07:00Dominic<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW9RRogMT0MQ1UuMbMLZ3gnnaDZt5KLWa9oxgYqR6y30Y6a14ziS45d5lH0BgcRZBl5Q4ycoHUbMf6TT4e1ni5c8A57kdLXGZbqrYUhcoq7p5gEEHx1ns6HPCMTHsvYYLu0gx1cX2GQEw/s1600/D.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW9RRogMT0MQ1UuMbMLZ3gnnaDZt5KLWa9oxgYqR6y30Y6a14ziS45d5lH0BgcRZBl5Q4ycoHUbMf6TT4e1ni5c8A57kdLXGZbqrYUhcoq7p5gEEHx1ns6HPCMTHsvYYLu0gx1cX2GQEw/s320/D.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5677272262373251474" /></a>And this is just about this guy's story in a nut shell. Grumpy. I say that he hates being a baby. He has been crying since the very day we was born. I remember being up for 2 days straight because he was born in the middle of the first night and on the second night, he would.not.stop.crying. He stops sometimes, generally when he is asleep. <div><br /></div><div>It is better (a little) then it used to be, he is almost 4 months old and no longer spending hours a day screaming but he still isn't a happy baby by any means. He is a carbon copy of Madeline, I'm hoping this isn't a life long problem! Dominic hates the car, hated being put down, hates anyone else holding him, isn't find of his siblings. It would be a reach to find something he does like. He doesn't like nursing to sleep, he has to be bounced, hard. A friend called the other day. Her: "What are you doing?". Me: "Jogging through the house with the baby strapped on me screaming." Yep. I've been kindly told by two different mothers that they thought I was bouncing the baby too hard. Um, no. Unless it looks like I am doing step aerobics, he just keeps screaming and won't go to sleep. </div><div><br /></div><div>We leave a puddle of spit up breastmilk in our path everywhere we go. I even broke down and tried reflex meds, no difference. So we just deal with the 3+ shirt changes that I go through a day and his many outfits and burp clothes. We were at the museum a month or so ago and this older gentleman approached me to tell me that my baby was spitting up everywhere. I looked down expecting to see a small lake (very normal for him) since his tone wasn't exactly kind. Instead I see two small nickle sized dots on the ground. I really couldn't help myself from laughing at him. I did have to refrain from inviting him to hang around another 5 minutes and see a real spit up. All my kids have been pukers but Julian wasn't this bad and I never left the house with Madeline and Gabrielle when they were this age so I didn't have to deal with baby puke in the public eye. </div><div><br /></div><div>I have another velco baby that doesn't sleep anywhere but on top of me. Do people actually produce babies that do anything else? If so, my genetic material sure doesn't allow for that. He only sleeps during the day if I am in motion so I pace around the house or attempt to cook while bobbing up and down. I don't advise cutting objects with sharp knives though. I just keep repeating that it is a short lived phase, it shall pass. </div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-39204252396554498222011-11-15T11:38:00.004-07:002011-11-15T19:42:36.360-07:00Julian<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg548nQzTFjOZpBSV9YL4NOJ96KU7A642B42KVGvl15uf_P4r41lZv62bXSIz1EqNldUpA_Kty_GIF6d5VTsJZrNNUnh6ZR1SxjdMN1uTjqmw_hp9K2CavAP01hCILy9ZSuApnhGTmCUG4/s1600/Jul1.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg548nQzTFjOZpBSV9YL4NOJ96KU7A642B42KVGvl15uf_P4r41lZv62bXSIz1EqNldUpA_Kty_GIF6d5VTsJZrNNUnh6ZR1SxjdMN1uTjqmw_hp9K2CavAP01hCILy9ZSuApnhGTmCUG4/s320/Jul1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5675296709283214210" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>So this little boy is amazing. Julian is the sweetest kid. People say that all the time, but out of my older 3, he really is. Always has a smile on his face, always in a good mood, he is just so happy all the time. Even his "fits" are laying down and pouting. He does get upset and cries at times, but rarely and that is usually when he gets tired. Everyone that works with him, and there a quite a few of them, adores him. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>He still qualifies for weekly speech therapy through Early Intervention which he has been doing almost a year now. He comes up for his annual reassessment at the end of November and the local district is supposed to start the preparation to transfer his services over to them on his 3rd birthday. Julian's EI speech therapist has been great, he loves playing with her. This summer she met us as a park and did his speech therapy there while Gabrielle played t-ball next door. She was in a severe car accident shortly after school started and has been unable to see him yet this fall. I called right away and got the last slot with the only private SLP in town so we have been seeing her for the last few months. His progress with the new SLP has been amazing, he is talking so much more, still under 50 words, maybe 40. I also discovered a small speech playgroup lead by a SLP 40 miles away so he has been doing that 2 mornings a week. </div><div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH12ExGvKISoizM8P63p0pkelvHE-w1Q3HXGX2XHAXLFowYZZSVeb6MKazX3KyMgd5G3TfVB0ZbPq8qAFvpbKf-Ei_ESvLVh_4rZ_hAgeik9KPyDZ2mUuageaNKJSTiqWVIS3mMN4swdw/s1600/Jul2.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH12ExGvKISoizM8P63p0pkelvHE-w1Q3HXGX2XHAXLFowYZZSVeb6MKazX3KyMgd5G3TfVB0ZbPq8qAFvpbKf-Ei_ESvLVh_4rZ_hAgeik9KPyDZ2mUuageaNKJSTiqWVIS3mMN4swdw/s320/Jul2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5675296695946021394" /></a><br /></div><div>This winter he is finally able to go outside! Last year he was not able to walk in snow boots due to his feet so he missed all outdoor fun. He doesn't understand about gloves yet...</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXaOcilBC4C0nJGySmbG1_3slA-3If_5POHqL6SrBqLNgZIawWuqTAr4G8hyphenhyphenxD4BxDwf_c9BsOg_1bXVCKqA2Xnw1zLAmTdOEEQw1HkRv0R1xMB46HY4d5GaM96FTZRMJ4YFqlcAPTUPM/s1600/Jul3.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXaOcilBC4C0nJGySmbG1_3slA-3If_5POHqL6SrBqLNgZIawWuqTAr4G8hyphenhyphenxD4BxDwf_c9BsOg_1bXVCKqA2Xnw1zLAmTdOEEQw1HkRv0R1xMB46HY4d5GaM96FTZRMJ4YFqlcAPTUPM/s320/Jul3.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5675296689182462514" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Still loves all things train. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0nVdU2UnI1uldEc4AU0Cu4Wp8Zgmo63F-zEU_AO7tS7xSy9lXsxpMnvMinHNrn32g7dnsNTWZjW_Gzm4KvNbZkI1Pw4ZK4GBXuNQORW7oI4EQCxpBqer5KeZMj_7Tb6lKXahXDlzTlTA/s1600/jul4.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0nVdU2UnI1uldEc4AU0Cu4Wp8Zgmo63F-zEU_AO7tS7xSy9lXsxpMnvMinHNrn32g7dnsNTWZjW_Gzm4KvNbZkI1Pw4ZK4GBXuNQORW7oI4EQCxpBqer5KeZMj_7Tb6lKXahXDlzTlTA/s320/jul4.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5675296685470150658" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>He isn't an easy toddler. He might not throw many fits but he likes to wander. A lot. Someone has to keep a constant eye on him. I was at a friend's house last week with some other moms. I went to bathroom, came out and went looking for Julian. He was found outside going down the sidewalk! We have to keep all doors deadbolted and the garage door shut at the house because he will and has just walked outside and down the street. Our gates are keep padlocked now because he can escape those as well. I've lost him at the park once for a horrid 15 minutes once since you can not take your eyes off him even for a second. Our house is becoming more and more child proofed as we discover what he can get into. Like an entire bottle of child resistant medication that he found after I hid it... It took 2 weeks for him to be normal again after that one. Julian prefers adults to kids. I take him to open gym, he will ignore the kids and find an adult that he thinks looks fun and attempt to play with them instead. He is very trusting and willingly goes off with anyone, he loves people, just as long as they are adults. We've gone through several babysitters in the last year and he cries when they leave, even on their first day! Our current nanny says he is her all time favorite child. Which I love to hear, it is hard enough paying someone to do things with your child that you want to do (more on that another day), but it is better when they truly care for them. </div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-56297032363806536032011-10-26T11:37:00.008-06:002011-10-26T11:54:22.547-06:00long time!<div>Yes it has been a while! Life got crazy, and I didn't think I was going to continue with a blog. I just decided that I would keep it up as a record for the kids. So... where to start! I guess I'll do a brief recap of what they have been up to.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Vq7cDOwPujtlqWyKhpdLZlSm4o0Niko0cQqNRARXKyvtFb53N9GjxSeH4Zi66B11PAM_9xE2XYCcpbwQnVvkm3W1b3Cz637ObJYAOj2zswFNNV7nxvgZoKxaINx0AbNB-_csSJDbh9A/s1600/J.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Vq7cDOwPujtlqWyKhpdLZlSm4o0Niko0cQqNRARXKyvtFb53N9GjxSeH4Zi66B11PAM_9xE2XYCcpbwQnVvkm3W1b3Cz637ObJYAOj2zswFNNV7nxvgZoKxaINx0AbNB-_csSJDbh9A/s320/J.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667858674163937954" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>Julian is now 2.5 years old. He is still our sweet, little, quiet boy. He currently gets 7 hours of speech therapy a week to help him talk. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie3nOO2PkwyTHX5znny0ESxmT4CB5C3UKUH57A1cfysuq6hAuwY7B1lM9WGYNtx0o4ZJW7yySjk78edZ8aZhMJcVa094Um-9d6CdfRuWknzcKVkfE5nYxxTP9i2mmf1vdeh7oEr3X5HKU/s1600/M+gym.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie3nOO2PkwyTHX5znny0ESxmT4CB5C3UKUH57A1cfysuq6hAuwY7B1lM9WGYNtx0o4ZJW7yySjk78edZ8aZhMJcVa094Um-9d6CdfRuWknzcKVkfE5nYxxTP9i2mmf1vdeh7oEr3X5HKU/s320/M+gym.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667858531386135842" /></a><br /></div><div>Madeline has been hard at work as usual. She was asked to join a dance team this summer and recently was moved up to the competitive gymnastic team as well. She keeps us hopping!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWiG1UOmPo3RW19gE6aujJygMVCzrprBw0zHMjaxVfR7G1wCu36i5_L1XzyhecBob755bT9zBaam0egSP3ebbANfrE3Y43IH2WotBybzgCrpfs5HoC9ewVyL8CqTDBIQDQ-CP6tRFcYcM/s1600/Mgym+2.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWiG1UOmPo3RW19gE6aujJygMVCzrprBw0zHMjaxVfR7G1wCu36i5_L1XzyhecBob755bT9zBaam0egSP3ebbANfrE3Y43IH2WotBybzgCrpfs5HoC9ewVyL8CqTDBIQDQ-CP6tRFcYcM/s320/Mgym+2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667858404108732818" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyDSE7j3Kn8OZYoe3Lxz6TNNLMK69iWFrlhiLMer3a-2_8h9V2YArxzaVJDbKuv6r5mQl3_vEUdB0k0fOVNd2Sli6lkMwYeGaYotsAsDuj79n8l2iWz_01SWd1oL5CMLK3nPllkUOV5IE/s1600/dom.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyDSE7j3Kn8OZYoe3Lxz6TNNLMK69iWFrlhiLMer3a-2_8h9V2YArxzaVJDbKuv6r5mQl3_vEUdB0k0fOVNd2Sli6lkMwYeGaYotsAsDuj79n8l2iWz_01SWd1oL5CMLK3nPllkUOV5IE/s320/dom.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667858297820714018" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div>This is Dominic James. He will be 3 months old tomorrow. He isn't exactly the happiest baby out there. I say that he wasn't thrilled to be born and hasn't been enjoying life as a baby! He isn't colicky just very particular. </div><div><br /></div></div><div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitjrHVTLBhEot4t7g7ulzsTWmJSF55g6E5VxZ0cashoK-M5vNJj-cvR_bN9eKI42acFn_L4LU68lXfha77aimQEG4y8oLdsnfokwdq47EzYuckzYWyhA6N5lGr6vRJsSMDsc1zLxotiSg/s1600/cake.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitjrHVTLBhEot4t7g7ulzsTWmJSF55g6E5VxZ0cashoK-M5vNJj-cvR_bN9eKI42acFn_L4LU68lXfha77aimQEG4y8oLdsnfokwdq47EzYuckzYWyhA6N5lGr6vRJsSMDsc1zLxotiSg/s320/cake.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5667858150150255698" /></a><br /><div>Gabrielle turned 5 recently! She is thrilled to be older. </div></div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-54684982137446736642011-04-24T22:37:00.006-06:002011-04-24T22:58:09.499-06:00He is 2!Well, almost. As of tomorrow morning anyway, but considering that tomorrow I have to work and I am wide awake at night now, this is as close as it is going to get. Sniff. My sweet little boy is 2, I just spent a good hour looking through pictures of the last 2 years, and it really has flown by. 2 years ago, this was little Julian Miles. An almost 9 lbs little boy that almost swore me off of having anymore children (please let the next baby NOT be posterior...).<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKTIkcxsbpnfJhks3ucGL_KltvZPjGz8zM_N4VFBe3vASRNqqLHHn1QBpoGRIcpR4zJQ8ExgbNaFpYACkq2crE0Ri6gEJ3Kq_XJ62mOwt8zw4tsxBxUAqwVDxWIr9OKIh625605xwgtJs/s1600/julian3.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKTIkcxsbpnfJhks3ucGL_KltvZPjGz8zM_N4VFBe3vASRNqqLHHn1QBpoGRIcpR4zJQ8ExgbNaFpYACkq2crE0Ri6gEJ3Kq_XJ62mOwt8zw4tsxBxUAqwVDxWIr9OKIh625605xwgtJs/s320/julian3.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599376441062930770" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNd9LXlVv3FP8RYcvURwTLSfCcKIPlxuzWwhUBwUUpFv8sEhYmf7-gtwcJP03JyzBp16NdyMQicpbLrlqeB2tsopxTT_XR5AqbrnW-gG5kFOmfMHy8WPINkoMywAJpEf6LM3LHGSDURls/s1600/J+now.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNd9LXlVv3FP8RYcvURwTLSfCcKIPlxuzWwhUBwUUpFv8sEhYmf7-gtwcJP03JyzBp16NdyMQicpbLrlqeB2tsopxTT_XR5AqbrnW-gG5kFOmfMHy8WPINkoMywAJpEf6LM3LHGSDURls/s320/J+now.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599376267637903842" /></a>And now look at him! I have more recent pics from today but that would involve getting up and getting the camera. Besides, I'm still denying his haircut, what was supposed to be a tiny trim at a salon last week, ended up in them cutting off most of his hair in a cut that my 8 year could of done a better job at. <div><br /></div><div>We celebrated his birthday today. A day full of chocolate and trains, his favorite things. He is already far less attached to me then the girls were at this age. He cries when his sitter leaves, and cries when I make him go to bed to with me every night instead of his dad. He already will and has slept with Ryan with no fuss. He loves music, loves to dance. Anything that has wheels and moves. He spends his days playing with all his trucks and trains. He loves chasing his sisters, although does get annoyed that they are noisy and pester him, he prefers to be left alone. Now that it is warmer and this year he can walk, he has discovered the outdoors. If he could spend all day driving his trucks up and down our street, he would be a very happy boy. And swinging. He can sit and swing for hours, you get tired of it FAR before he ever will. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>He does get frustrated at his minimal communication skills and will hit and throw things at me to convey that frustration. His little temper is small though, and he very quickly moves past things. And then he breaks out that beaming smile and laughs for no reason, just because he can. </div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-90379167036728512972011-03-25T22:23:00.002-06:002011-03-25T22:35:39.355-06:00Julian<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaT2iFINhmxEV3cUCBOFTrEEt3fB7qXwRAfVBXYLApVBlNeroyZ50NZZXJZoZLYjwmOm1slFT-VKkaNo8KeyeipUDmYzOd5CB1pQDjhI9SFKYKDe3L2dVcULp4w6v58b7hAB6PgPU2gw4/s1600/julian+face.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaT2iFINhmxEV3cUCBOFTrEEt3fB7qXwRAfVBXYLApVBlNeroyZ50NZZXJZoZLYjwmOm1slFT-VKkaNo8KeyeipUDmYzOd5CB1pQDjhI9SFKYKDe3L2dVcULp4w6v58b7hAB6PgPU2gw4/s320/julian+face.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588239803982638050" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>And Julian's pic didn't make it in the long post so he gets one of his very own. He really is such a sweet little guy, very mellow. I had to do an emergency home visit Wed morning, I had no choice but to drop him off with a sitter that he doesn't know at all and dash. I came back 2 hours later to him refusing to leave her side and crying when I picked him up to leave. I think he would go home with the mail man if I let him! He just loves everyone, and tagging along with his siblings. Still no talking after 4 months of speech therapy, he can say mama and sign more, other then that he has various noises he makes when he really wants something, and he has gotten excellent at making all sorts of expressions to get his point across. I was getting worried that when his IEP expired in early June, that he wouldn't qualify for speech therapy anymore, but at this rate, he isn't close to meeting a single goal so the chance of that happening is rapidly disappearing. He is able to understand more and more of what we say, he can follow simple instructions now, nod no, but he just does not verbally communicate often. He is fairly quiet and rarely even babbles, I guess it remains to be seen if this is just him, his low muscle tone affecting his speech this much, a combo of both, or something else. </div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-44323690931524327082011-03-25T21:29:00.006-06:002011-03-25T22:21:09.901-06:00March<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcYw4SoL8MV4sEhHJlO_AhsyX7e1kCXBndnvnVY-FpBIKxQl2zc_v9L1ygwGIWfpnUenSoSwnUARIUC_EpClZt7BSHDIbPruSI9D0bHXpnHJwBVjeryzSS-CBB6_885CCX-Wv83G6Kzic/s1600/nap.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcYw4SoL8MV4sEhHJlO_AhsyX7e1kCXBndnvnVY-FpBIKxQl2zc_v9L1ygwGIWfpnUenSoSwnUARIUC_EpClZt7BSHDIbPruSI9D0bHXpnHJwBVjeryzSS-CBB6_885CCX-Wv83G6Kzic/s320/nap.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588227040140109586" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>So this is what happens with 3 children. You start going through pics of the last several months and realize that some how one child got the short end of the stick. This is the only picture I could find of Gabrielle, oops. She has preferred to be on the other side of the camera and I could show probably 200 pictures that she has taken with the camera! She actually started going to preschool again here and there. At Madeline's school in the amazing little preschool room they have where they grind their own grain for snacks. Heck, I want to go there! It's my kind of place where the kids run around bare foot and explore up the hillside and out of sight at times. My goal for now is just to keep it low key, end this school year on a good note so that when next August rolls around, Gabrielle has a new sibling, and school starts back up that she will have pleasant memories of previously attending. Mostly since I do need childcare on days I work and finding a sitter is hard enough now, forget if I had 3 small children for them to watch.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDXS6Ol2a55HoxU91xIeAN8rfqUhmQ1t5knR16jlZCZ4wIrMtRV9bSo9HaJVopQB1psG27TDrT2CMYNWFo_bQ7Mozzpa9s2SPO2tVtIR_CSJWF5dj-JEQhnOFJP6OdiFmyn30ibTZlGEY/s1600/butts.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDXS6Ol2a55HoxU91xIeAN8rfqUhmQ1t5knR16jlZCZ4wIrMtRV9bSo9HaJVopQB1psG27TDrT2CMYNWFo_bQ7Mozzpa9s2SPO2tVtIR_CSJWF5dj-JEQhnOFJP6OdiFmyn30ibTZlGEY/s320/butts.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588226694172193426" /></a><br /></div><div>I love this picture. And I also see that Madeline and Julian will have the same body type. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXeyQFe7T2BqhGQjVAwwQ9THhTy8kGRgNL_10nTOlYBdab-C0nf7S799zGJO1halJW6WcbFNbD8V-blmHx0pJjp9CDAFyuFMATtyfGL_80LTCUHxCFY4afHQfzVFE9VMMjDtQutnQsWrU/s1600/race.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXeyQFe7T2BqhGQjVAwwQ9THhTy8kGRgNL_10nTOlYBdab-C0nf7S799zGJO1halJW6WcbFNbD8V-blmHx0pJjp9CDAFyuFMATtyfGL_80LTCUHxCFY4afHQfzVFE9VMMjDtQutnQsWrU/s320/race.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588226352284982210" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Still loving snowboarding. This was her 1st place prize for a race, 2nd place came in at double her time... She discovered the terrain park late this season and is learning how to jump and ride the rails. She came home last weekend after having flown by and passed ski patrol on a sleep slope, sounds about right, there are not too many adults that can keep up with her now. I certainly couldn't anymore. Next year I guess it is snowboarding team time, more then likely at Telluride which will require quite the commitment. Telluride has the extreme backcountry runs that Ryan prefers and the closer option doesn't.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA7_nAg773z9HP_75tmHywPSBu4cVUML4cCUHl258WFed5YE703hUo_ImeUFDJ4j-u4W4hASnXlAXU1ROV3r5oh5JvYyQ3ogik6rrVfUd54tthFL18SySAoyxznwU77VPMZwLfZb4F9qs/s1600/reading.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA7_nAg773z9HP_75tmHywPSBu4cVUML4cCUHl258WFed5YE703hUo_ImeUFDJ4j-u4W4hASnXlAXU1ROV3r5oh5JvYyQ3ogik6rrVfUd54tthFL18SySAoyxznwU77VPMZwLfZb4F9qs/s320/reading.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588226088299213154" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Yep! New as of this week, she can really read! Madeline has been reading for a few months but at the see spot run level. She reads with her therapist but rarely has chosen to at home. I've never pushed but rather left easy reader books lying around, sometimes she will ask to read to me, but not often. I guess the unschooler inside of me isn't completely dead because I've just waited, wanting her to do it on her own. She discovered this fairy book series a couple months ago, they are not easy reader, but rather advanced. I've been reading them to her here and there but back to the 3 children thing, there isn't always enough time to read as much as she'd like. We did our weekly trip to the library on Tuesday and she found one of the fairy books there. And this is what she did with it! I cried. It has been 2 long years working towards this, 4-5 hours of language therapy a week. She read 20 pages that night and has read every chance she has got since. For the first and last time tonight, I pulled into the driveway only to turn around and drive the 45 minutes round trip back to school because she left her book in the desk. I couldn't bear to left her go all weekend without it when she is so excited about reading. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT-PWEeo3GfWljNNhtiGo3OHZyU93eX2Mfe3XJpTdmUtHl83-B1BTnb9P8yQd5YQlKGLqKffI8avBdC6jH0Mz79tWDvsg7y1KfL6SuMKjSak1IE6AzX0SHbHaLPbVAeZOiXLDlkkEkR_4/s1600/20w.jpg"></a></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT-PWEeo3GfWljNNhtiGo3OHZyU93eX2Mfe3XJpTdmUtHl83-B1BTnb9P8yQd5YQlKGLqKffI8avBdC6jH0Mz79tWDvsg7y1KfL6SuMKjSak1IE6AzX0SHbHaLPbVAeZOiXLDlkkEkR_4/s1600/20w.jpg" style="text-decoration: none;"><img style="text-align: left;display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px; " src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT-PWEeo3GfWljNNhtiGo3OHZyU93eX2Mfe3XJpTdmUtHl83-B1BTnb9P8yQd5YQlKGLqKffI8avBdC6jH0Mz79tWDvsg7y1KfL6SuMKjSak1IE6AzX0SHbHaLPbVAeZOiXLDlkkEkR_4/s320/20w.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588225918093823298" /></a><br />Halfway through all ready, And yes there is only one in there, I can't count how many times I've been asked that. It is going to be a long summer I think, if I am already this big and waddling around in March. </div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-34567450631883599292011-01-30T20:06:00.003-07:002011-01-30T20:30:41.998-07:00Let's try this again!I have a very good reason for not keeping up like I swore I would. I do really! Last baby has been busy sucking my life away, or maybe that is just how it feels? Due in early August and the little bugger is already performing gymnastics events in there. I've been slow announcing this time for multiple reasons. When you get to #4, you feel like you've uttered those words a few times before. I guess I am feeling a little defensive about the pregnancy. It isn't like it is a secret that all my children have some mild special needs, and yes I am quite busy. I am already aware of all that and I have not been interested in hearing it from others. Now that I am in the second trimester, it isn't possible to wear baggy clothes and pull off the look anymore so I've been starting to tell some here and there. <div><br /></div><div>Timing is eh to me. This will be my closest spacing, 2years and 3 months between Julian and new baby. Julian with his current delays really is just a large baby himself. Ever since Julian was born I had been going back and forth, do I have to have another. There was no question in my mind with the first 3, they needed to be here. <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Some days</span> I thought I could possibly get by with the three, and other days I'd look in my <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">rearview</span> mirror and see the heads and think one was missing. I had always said 3-4 children and we'd decide after #3. My biggest fear was that I wouldn't go on to have another and then seriously regret it in a few years and have another then. That is not want I wanted to do. As much as I love babies, I've had a baby for 8 years now, part of me wants to move on with my life, starting enjoying having older children, get rid of the massive amount of baby/toddler gear I have stored in the garage. I want to close this chapter of my life and move on with no regrets. I didn't think that would be possible without having another child. </div><div><br /></div><div>Ryan and I were in serious talks about having another child, I did want Julian to be a bit older, when I discovered I was already pregnant and had been for some weeks. Which certain explains why I had been feeling like crap for a while. Never had a pregnancy where I still got periods before! Obviously we were open to the possibility of another child then or else some preventing would of been occurring. Honestly for me, it was nice to have the pressure removed from having to make the decision to actively try to get pregnant and to discover there was no deciding of what was the right time, etc... It was rather freeing for a person that is a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">compulsive</span> planner. So there it is, and maybe that I am feeling more human again I might be blogging more and maybe you shouldn't hold your breath either. </div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-12811039080839008722010-12-24T20:08:00.004-07:002010-12-24T20:32:43.245-07:00Merry Christmas!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiubWY3U-RUssiiNJlMDO_w6voHbkXOMLo2u9qiLoHTPKzxWED0hXwyhsXHbBQgMVBBugoDKNkC_Ymbuw2IIBz1KYC796-GabpTEr4ptOxfMDntmCEO-3UpEDKBI1S17w7d4IBxGOgw35M/s1600/J+and+g.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiubWY3U-RUssiiNJlMDO_w6voHbkXOMLo2u9qiLoHTPKzxWED0hXwyhsXHbBQgMVBBugoDKNkC_Ymbuw2IIBz1KYC796-GabpTEr4ptOxfMDntmCEO-3UpEDKBI1S17w7d4IBxGOgw35M/s320/J+and+g.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5554452171886518642" /></a><br />Next year I promise to spend more time blogging! I miss it, I keep thinking things will slow down and next week, next month, I will have more time, but that doesn't ever look likely. And I need to take more pictures, I am finding a month will go by without me picking up my camera, oops....<div><br /></div><div>Madeline is doing so well this year. She is back to tearing up the slopes on her board this winter. She has jumped FOUR reading levels this school year already, she is at first grade, month one placement currently. She still has years of therapy ahead of her but she doesn't balk at doing it daily, it opens up a whole new world to her. We will start in 2011, the massive paper trail that is needed to get her always classified as dyslexic, this will allow her to receive alternative testing options, etc... for all of her school years. This will not be an issue for some time but come high school/college, it will be a must. This will be her last year with her beloved teacher who teaches a 1st/2nd combined class, next year Madeline will move on to the 3rd/4th class which will probably be more of a challenge for her, higher expectations, etc...</div><div><br /></div><div>Gabrielle turned 4 in October. I can't remember what I went over in my last update, she only lasted at preschool for a short time. She just wasn't ready, wanted to be with Mama, I don't blame her. She is learning how to ski, loves tap dancing and gymnastics. She is much more interested in books then Madeline was at this age and will sit and "read" to herself for hours at a time. She loves just hanging out at home with me, she is certainly more of a homebody then Madeline is. </div><div><br /></div><div>Julian is 20 months, and really the sweetest boy ever. He is no longer easy like he used to be. We discovered that he is rather delayed, especially in speech but he has issues in other areas as well. The evals he had this month put him at 12-13 months, so a good 6+ months behind. He doesn't talk at all, barely babbled, after he started speech therapy, he is rapidly trying to babble more. He will get 60 minutes of speech therapy for 6 months and get reevaluated. His gross motor skills are at 15 months, walking is difficult for him, he still will fall over if he is sitting with his legs out. He has seen 2 otho docs and multiple PTs this month about his legs, no one is in agreement about what to do with him. Both feet turn out, he walks on the side of one foot, nothing is abnormal in his bone structure, multiple x-rays of hips and feet turned up nothing. His gait is off, meaning he frequently has to stop and catch his balance, he just toddles around like a drunken sailer most of the time. Both ankles just collapse when he walks. We have been told everything from he will grow out of it to he has celebral palsy to he needs braces on his legs. What ever it is, I want to figure it exactly what we are going to do with his legs next month, focus on the communication, and then we see what happens.</div><div><br /></div><div>As for Ryan and I, we are doing well. Busy. His work never ever slows down, he travels a lot more now, about a week a month in addition to his normal crazy schedule. My job is going, some months it is fine, others I feel it it is too much for what we have going on. I have been pleased with my decision to withdraw form grad school, I am sad, but now is not the right time. </div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-73233303949937722132010-10-17T23:02:00.006-06:002010-10-17T23:22:29.020-06:00Madeline writesSo I am lying in bed tonight attempting to go to sleep and instead I kept thinking about how far Madeline has come in the last year. A year ago after she started working with her wonderful language therapist, she started to recognize letters and very slowly started learning them. She has therapy 5 days a week year around, in the school year her therapist goes to her school, in the summer she comes to our house at 7:30am. Early yes, but at least it goes doesn't ruin our entire day, we have the option of the entire day ahead of us afterwards. Next summer I think lots of this will be in her future!<div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmyDb4u_AZcvSW0fdfOsSiIBS18jwnIhjGg2TQyIHOIra89j8pSZ7WioQ0ccf9TRD6O1vtUN0P_hp0RmBnCD_Iy7SUl_DtQfAW-0C4X86qqkMd8hKmIoZNk2ZD4JhV1OyQ50paLfocWXY/s1600/kayak.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmyDb4u_AZcvSW0fdfOsSiIBS18jwnIhjGg2TQyIHOIra89j8pSZ7WioQ0ccf9TRD6O1vtUN0P_hp0RmBnCD_Iy7SUl_DtQfAW-0C4X86qqkMd8hKmIoZNk2ZD4JhV1OyQ50paLfocWXY/s320/kayak.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5529248091869287170" /></a><br /></div><div>Progress has been slow but Madeline is getting there. In the last couple months, she has really taken off, it is thrilling to watch her world open up. She attempts to sound out words, can read some here and there, can write sentences with assistance. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSu_i4-0dhjZqpjdpNYDwNrRvQbD7TvEEgh-5L72DP8HCWzExZzjIUSTN6JDVmNOW2xLPU3dR9l4REsuzhtIARQ2a2rRGsn5lrLYUGUUgltuvvWPeBncIsTddkAeUQcHcaVm3ZUSz7Bog/s1600/note.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSu_i4-0dhjZqpjdpNYDwNrRvQbD7TvEEgh-5L72DP8HCWzExZzjIUSTN6JDVmNOW2xLPU3dR9l4REsuzhtIARQ2a2rRGsn5lrLYUGUUgltuvvWPeBncIsTddkAeUQcHcaVm3ZUSz7Bog/s320/note.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5529247505824826978" /></a><br /></div><div>Madeline isn't at grade level and won't be for a while, but she is close to a 1st grade level which for her, is huge. She still has years of therapy ahead of her, every single little thing has to be painstaking taught to her, she does not easily grasp any reading concept. Next year we will start working on the paperwork and paper trail that is required in order to always have her dyslexia accommodated. She will require things like verbal testing, extra time to write, etc... for the rest of her academic career. </div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-79630606068024807872010-08-21T21:45:00.002-06:002010-08-21T22:30:39.417-06:00end of the summerI can't believe it is August, end of August actually. School starts next week, the summer flew by way too quick, we didn't get to do a fraction of what we wanted to do. I spent all of July studying for an exam. Madeline discovered a new sport that she loves, kayaking! She was going down the river on her second day, white water on her 3rd. Madeline has talked Ryan into learning how so they are heading out tomorrow for his first lesson. Gabrielle is *supposed* to start preschool two days a week next week, we shall see... Julian is growing up so fast. He is just shy of 16 months, still doesn't walk or talk, but is such a cheerful little boy. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbiR09tKGYSuG2raynOsRWtNExRHSZxO2lIBS4489UEJBJSZpu6i8gKKPmoJDq39MJgTNLQko6888e6JdOzuUfMCRwMfw349whFeYiRDUO1moZMYUX6xIXigyc1B-bOq3053Ar9TMh3tA/s1600/julian2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbiR09tKGYSuG2raynOsRWtNExRHSZxO2lIBS4489UEJBJSZpu6i8gKKPmoJDq39MJgTNLQko6888e6JdOzuUfMCRwMfw349whFeYiRDUO1moZMYUX6xIXigyc1B-bOq3053Ar9TMh3tA/s320/julian2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5508076443698273874" /></a><br /><div>Ryan's family has chosen not to be involved in our lives for the majority of our relationship. He had a neighbor as a child that was heavily involved in his life and has continued to be. Our children has known him as a grandparent, he eats dinner with us often, is included for all holidays, and worked for Ryan for the past 5+ years. We managed to get him to retire in May, he was unable to work any longer. He ended up having a double bypass the last week of June, we got a call early August 4th from the ICU. He had a major cardiac incident, spent two weeks in the ICU. It was very touch and go, he was on life support, we made the decision to remove it and see what happened. He is still in the hospital and is not doing well, along with the physical issues, dementia is rapidly settling in. He has no family, and only a couple friends so the vast majority of the work has fallen to us. He is getting transferred to a nursing home next week, long term prognosis is not good. All the arrangements, fielding the many confused phone calls from him daily, the social workers, doctors, the visits have been quite taxing on the family with no end in sight. </div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-20959846600139920392010-06-28T17:34:00.004-06:002010-06-28T19:24:59.573-06:00June<div><br /></div><div>I meant to do this early this month and never got around to it until someone reminded me about my monthly posting, thanks Sarah! We spent two weeks in Florida, our first real vacation in a very long time. I had rented a condo on the beach for 11 days and then we went to Orlando before flying out. The beach was a blast, the kids had so much fun. They spent all day every day outside playing. Our last night in the condo, Gabrielle got very ill and ended up in the ER. Out of all times she has ended up in the hospital, this was the first time that she had to go quickly. Usually I decide that she needs to go in, we gather our stuff, and head that way. This time I handed her to Ryan and told him he had to take her now, there was no time to get the other kids together. We ended up doing Disney with her lying in the stroller with a 102 temp, and then flying home with 3 sick children, always a joy especially with hours and hours of flight delays. But on to the beach....</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxSDLPyagzip6lA6K8e6CjSXTw0Yw4g3mfs0CnUdSlHiKEZ-HkyJzWVjcuPAeaYm9Au0jSSw0viruCUrJZ12lLLnImoLJLnxTA0Ul54TI06Zll7rmlJdxXb4lOyaU9iJqk5bnFvQ2e73I/s1600/crab2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxSDLPyagzip6lA6K8e6CjSXTw0Yw4g3mfs0CnUdSlHiKEZ-HkyJzWVjcuPAeaYm9Au0jSSw0viruCUrJZ12lLLnImoLJLnxTA0Ul54TI06Zll7rmlJdxXb4lOyaU9iJqk5bnFvQ2e73I/s320/crab2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5487974755846034482" /></a><br /><div>Gabrielle spent her time befriending small creatures, birds, and this crab who actually followed her around for the better part of an hour!</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFZxCtynAQR0AdWksi2fH_7gFwaqBvU8LDht3A7STeI3sPChj7Yl7R2cfv9BWhD2FhtsRVkCMFpi5cm2HN5ZHVSJA6NXVrkqrbvC6qKyNzJnG5fO4h1fXoc4GCQwIG_fkEQNyYQhyuiTk/s1600/crab.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFZxCtynAQR0AdWksi2fH_7gFwaqBvU8LDht3A7STeI3sPChj7Yl7R2cfv9BWhD2FhtsRVkCMFpi5cm2HN5ZHVSJA6NXVrkqrbvC6qKyNzJnG5fO4h1fXoc4GCQwIG_fkEQNyYQhyuiTk/s320/crab.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5487974743075849074" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmyFuZ3is7y8TzmQIDGP_3VXBLFkpwwB5CJZWGiIERoGGEBh9ce5rgXJP3Q3DhiWnMtfokUZMgcN7DYZCdjMTt_nVH6_WnClgWVmZDSrkxB9391LyjZAK2zGsXLtMpkAgLxy40wv7pZfE/s1600/J.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmyFuZ3is7y8TzmQIDGP_3VXBLFkpwwB5CJZWGiIERoGGEBh9ce5rgXJP3Q3DhiWnMtfokUZMgcN7DYZCdjMTt_nVH6_WnClgWVmZDSrkxB9391LyjZAK2zGsXLtMpkAgLxy40wv7pZfE/s320/J.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5487974729408819298" /></a><br /></div><div>Julian loved the sand and waves. He would crawl as fast as he could out into the waves, giggling every time a wave crashed into him. </div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCI8cs9pWahKuP7FwPIR4Jno2aoyjrDGJ7KqgrFx_M8eFGdckJ4GQcs8vhQqHvWWZNxaaduISE2bLuGCO05ewb7MRIiwgruioFhxhKgxFW1SCyTD8XFJCIvDsTo6ztAmSH3T4A1gXzUHw/s1600/M3.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCI8cs9pWahKuP7FwPIR4Jno2aoyjrDGJ7KqgrFx_M8eFGdckJ4GQcs8vhQqHvWWZNxaaduISE2bLuGCO05ewb7MRIiwgruioFhxhKgxFW1SCyTD8XFJCIvDsTo6ztAmSH3T4A1gXzUHw/s320/M3.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5487973882972404418" /></a><br /></div><div>Madeline spent all of her time like this.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh86JJhDiLnd04-aGKxhQaukkgjSjbOGlEq3A1hFM6N44lJ5aV3kvgfJxYLGu73JEhuKHEbkHv_eKXgVfIErsmnCuqJQnrAzHEck11q-5njUtoWM8P3WvTcR3ACO8soWJx8ubPD07ElX90/s1600/M2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh86JJhDiLnd04-aGKxhQaukkgjSjbOGlEq3A1hFM6N44lJ5aV3kvgfJxYLGu73JEhuKHEbkHv_eKXgVfIErsmnCuqJQnrAzHEck11q-5njUtoWM8P3WvTcR3ACO8soWJx8ubPD07ElX90/s320/M2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5487973876049405170" /></a><br /></div><div>And this.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDAuIxYOsERF3TfSazotWsNtwJw0hQvevt_hfFMZcRitC9vF6iAzLrBWEj02qi1CWcwT_enfI6LlSf-eHHD1heAN6A2MM-W3rUqI7E4vhrPr6Vg1_e-bJvOD_JukV4z6PFn70FCkzyGPc/s1600/M1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDAuIxYOsERF3TfSazotWsNtwJw0hQvevt_hfFMZcRitC9vF6iAzLrBWEj02qi1CWcwT_enfI6LlSf-eHHD1heAN6A2MM-W3rUqI7E4vhrPr6Vg1_e-bJvOD_JukV4z6PFn70FCkzyGPc/s320/M1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5487973861657584946" /></a><br /></div><div>And like this.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUJ9N-r79MWNu7VnoR1NdDFCtIPOv1iWsEdzlTtc6pknSMGMlT3xTH9ZwwCkZebKWCDGlIZXnVuXW54SqClZa1OH-14vi5iFCAoAUHKppZGlvIqx3h1Dvk_ePviPKOdiE5jXxUJtLgd_A/s1600/sand.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUJ9N-r79MWNu7VnoR1NdDFCtIPOv1iWsEdzlTtc6pknSMGMlT3xTH9ZwwCkZebKWCDGlIZXnVuXW54SqClZa1OH-14vi5iFCAoAUHKppZGlvIqx3h1Dvk_ePviPKOdiE5jXxUJtLgd_A/s320/sand.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5487973097008513714" /></a><br /></div><div>Ryan has yet to learn the art of relaxing.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguS8kMriGXORB1cmLVb2BTQAcXu30D1OMt1x3vEFOqhTKbTmOfnjW57kPdA_MBMSGllbexQSfNlbmrvPPaEn7PXYzMQzit1IGgUvfezPqBN8MIzS1oUXo2K1ZOs0NnQF1rmKo_7khYnV4/s1600/sanda.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguS8kMriGXORB1cmLVb2BTQAcXu30D1OMt1x3vEFOqhTKbTmOfnjW57kPdA_MBMSGllbexQSfNlbmrvPPaEn7PXYzMQzit1IGgUvfezPqBN8MIzS1oUXo2K1ZOs0NnQF1rmKo_7khYnV4/s320/sanda.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5487973089126032658" /></a><br /></div><div>It was a good vacation until the very end, we actually plan on doing it again very soon. Ryan has to do some work on a house in Cabo later this year and the owners have offered us all the use of their house, which I certainly will take them up on!</div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-63470534517509597972010-05-27T22:42:00.002-06:002010-05-27T23:11:36.858-06:00and one for MaySince May is almost over, I guess it is time for me to make an appearance. Just doing the usual and then some has kept me busy. My program at the health dept is up and running. I put in over 40 hours already this month training, creating forms, etc... 40 hours doesn't sound like much but for someone who doesn't have regular childcare, and a baby who is a night owl, it was tough. A little over half of those hours was in-office time without children, from now on my work time will be much less and much more child friendly.<div><br /></div><div>I have to admit that I really enjoyed working professionally again. I have "worked" over the years with LLL but it is almost always with children in tow. I speak at meetings, present topics to various groups, with a baby or toddler attached to me, this was different and I loved it. Not enough to actually commit to doing it more, I do admit that 2 different positions become available at the health dept that I was qualified for and would of loved to have, I entertained the idea for 2 seconds knowing that I enjoy being around daily for my children more than I want to be working outside the house (mostly) right now. </div><div><br /></div><div>Juggling the program I now supervise, studying for an exam this summer, and 3 children has made me realize that I can do more. I am seriously considering going for my masters in science/nursing. I already have spoken with a university that accepted all of my old college credits, I am short 3 classes to be admitted to the program. I had tested out of Biology and math 11 years ago when I was taking classes for nursing, now I need those credits and doubt I can pull off testing out at this point in my life. I am giving myself some more time to mull it over before I commit, this is something I do want to do, just is this the right time? I wouldn't start until the fall, I need to finish my current studying first!</div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-70391724122457283822010-04-20T19:32:00.002-06:002010-04-20T19:42:07.595-06:00because...I am posting because apparently it has been a month since I have had the time! Next week or later this week *might* be calmer so maybe I will be back later. Job is in full swing, I have hired NINE peer counselors! yes, you read that right. 4 are guaranteed a position, one is conditional, and the rest will be trained and then placed on inactive status waiting for a position to open up. It has been rough coordinating everything, baby, activities, all the calls, office time, etc... And I thought I was always on the phone previously, I truly have reached another level now with that, I feel like one of my 3 phones is always ringing. <div><br /></div><div>One of the perks of working in lactation is that no one minds a nursing baby! I have Julian brought to me every few hours to eat and he has been doing well with it. I am in a lull at the moment, employees hired, I put them through a 25 hour training in May, and right now I am just slowly working on training material, and lining up job shadowing. I am looking forward to June, everyone will be trained and other then 3 meetings a month, my job will be mostly at home. </div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-84452598052582725302010-03-20T20:31:00.002-06:002010-03-20T20:33:55.893-06:00my child is a ski bumI just counted the days that I happened to have marked on my calendar, I have 35 days marked on there since the week of X-Mas that Madeline has gone snow boarding. I'm sure there was more, but 35 is not bad for a child, I think many adults would be envious of that!Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-81198591004587795192010-03-08T19:54:00.014-07:002010-03-08T20:25:59.437-07:00and it is March<div><br /></div><div>It has been busy around here lately, and the snow is still here, blech. February was a whirl wind month of lots of illness, studying, and our regular life. Gabrielle got pneumonia, we discovered later it was RSV, then Julian got it, went on a 5 day nursing strike, AND got a stomach bug all at once. Needless to say, he got IV fluids and lost a few lbs. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6BDqrq09_WhNeRxTqIHcKMG3wp_28GPLI0b9XCYEdIFpwkAA6pyKVtgR64rmiQachR6KbAwlRAZct2PxunbeSJczH9OI6WlLw2AfVAoj05ohzLpxoEjl3cWyyEqRenbe3xXCIlxEHi8Q/s1600-h/cascade+3.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 239px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6BDqrq09_WhNeRxTqIHcKMG3wp_28GPLI0b9XCYEdIFpwkAA6pyKVtgR64rmiQachR6KbAwlRAZct2PxunbeSJczH9OI6WlLw2AfVAoj05ohzLpxoEjl3cWyyEqRenbe3xXCIlxEHi8Q/s320/cascade+3.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446466358556201922" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>Madeline's school does this big annual trip to a lodge in the mountains every winter. It is a overnight trip, Ryan went with her since this was right during the RSV period. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT4cha6yOXdF8sOaNAjL_sn1VtG_RUU63bqIqrQequ6fVNzCfp_qcYkpuXWSsrS4H6mP8_uBNB15wELH_Lum8rRmbZ6f9CZ7tQmajZlN-13tFSPyUIAuYYMDUJpLzxhlhwgNCRV8ndE_Y/s1600-h/cascade+2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 239px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT4cha6yOXdF8sOaNAjL_sn1VtG_RUU63bqIqrQequ6fVNzCfp_qcYkpuXWSsrS4H6mP8_uBNB15wELH_Lum8rRmbZ6f9CZ7tQmajZlN-13tFSPyUIAuYYMDUJpLzxhlhwgNCRV8ndE_Y/s320/cascade+2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446466167911822370" /></a><br /></div><div>She had so much fun!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi29mmS9NdUYF3MmfPCQx7xkFPRk-J62AGe7yLaosrbMm3hFTM2OjGobqKzIhsn6lfrAyykB54q1MpB_6ekOnTayKczBVUSxOagZIk0Lrp_aTYG3sr5koqtJorQfgq6mCaFYvqpl487-xo/s1600-h/cascade+1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 239px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi29mmS9NdUYF3MmfPCQx7xkFPRk-J62AGe7yLaosrbMm3hFTM2OjGobqKzIhsn6lfrAyykB54q1MpB_6ekOnTayKczBVUSxOagZIk0Lrp_aTYG3sr5koqtJorQfgq6mCaFYvqpl487-xo/s320/cascade+1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446465735210232242" /></a><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1roaoSFHyp82IqiLMtXjMyQrf277OpCMAEoxtF7bnN3N8aRvSDo6PSVpNIE82HFYK-3zAkL9hMAxH8IhLxk0LjMqcn6OCzaNliL6Svg1ugxqnXl0ErVQbRO7T7qRk_3Qg86knQ25vUOw/s1600-h/snob.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1roaoSFHyp82IqiLMtXjMyQrf277OpCMAEoxtF7bnN3N8aRvSDo6PSVpNIE82HFYK-3zAkL9hMAxH8IhLxk0LjMqcn6OCzaNliL6Svg1ugxqnXl0ErVQbRO7T7qRk_3Qg86knQ25vUOw/s320/snob.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446465212774755858" /></a><br /></div><div>Madeline still spends every second that she can up snowboarding. She is not pleased that this is the last month before the slopes close for the season.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVT8I2pfNMjy4vizlA7Sm2wD9Z0t-xyelCPAiZxxujSGEGljs1RNYQwViVBxsT-HjAUDBUA8IGLIgdENnsT1xA4RXCGp3afGVsHoD9haDmaoTkbB5lTK31zXhckSecv0upAn_cN-fbgaA/s1600-h/snow.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVT8I2pfNMjy4vizlA7Sm2wD9Z0t-xyelCPAiZxxujSGEGljs1RNYQwViVBxsT-HjAUDBUA8IGLIgdENnsT1xA4RXCGp3afGVsHoD9haDmaoTkbB5lTK31zXhckSecv0upAn_cN-fbgaA/s320/snow.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446464964711320738" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>We have never had this much snow while we have lived in this house. This is my living room window, this window is high off the ground due to our sloped lot, it is basically as high as a 2nd story.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-TAbmr5yq8DAzCWH01PDoav5nOyaz0o_OFe56YaZr20f9zHyOAV1RA9uQMiexVg6PtNQ1MQhxDJQKqpvo-8g6-3ZzMN7xlR2cDfkFwSgAXETxYrPaxptHe_yhdJrkw3HM6rtowxjji-o/s1600-h/nakid+2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-TAbmr5yq8DAzCWH01PDoav5nOyaz0o_OFe56YaZr20f9zHyOAV1RA9uQMiexVg6PtNQ1MQhxDJQKqpvo-8g6-3ZzMN7xlR2cDfkFwSgAXETxYrPaxptHe_yhdJrkw3HM6rtowxjji-o/s320/nakid+2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446464669526552882" /></a><br /></div><div>Somebody is into everything now.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCGWZYpOjodTMohFzKNmT3h_0AUVz_9TytWl8ThSDKRegoo4kd8_bzlONstqGwjBIw7DdekRnGif5ZTAV6mgD67LEHIi0ifh0NS10EqON06ZJPtGx9Xr3yq3yT6TNvRcl8J0EW3iAN3L4/s1600-h/nakid.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCGWZYpOjodTMohFzKNmT3h_0AUVz_9TytWl8ThSDKRegoo4kd8_bzlONstqGwjBIw7DdekRnGif5ZTAV6mgD67LEHIi0ifh0NS10EqON06ZJPtGx9Xr3yq3yT6TNvRcl8J0EW3iAN3L4/s320/nakid.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446464394630906770" /></a>m</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCGWZYpOjodTMohFzKNmT3h_0AUVz_9TytWl8ThSDKRegoo4kd8_bzlONstqGwjBIw7DdekRnGif5ZTAV6mgD67LEHIi0ifh0NS10EqON06ZJPtGx9Xr3yq3yT6TNvRcl8J0EW3iAN3L4/s1600-h/nakid.jpg"></a>And he seems to think that he is cute as well.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhenIcpMYai1vSxYYi0DTny5TAka_aYDjy1fXDTU4GPqbW-iH3ZO91CFnC98HKMlk_Mna9fCrRD4Evf-zC1KG4rHupIHU0sMksafLFmgR6Sd4LlaZhBVP0KPjsj7mNh9LtWotecP6nxcnk/s1600-h/shoes.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhenIcpMYai1vSxYYi0DTny5TAka_aYDjy1fXDTU4GPqbW-iH3ZO91CFnC98HKMlk_Mna9fCrRD4Evf-zC1KG4rHupIHU0sMksafLFmgR6Sd4LlaZhBVP0KPjsj7mNh9LtWotecP6nxcnk/s320/shoes.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446463806513775586" /></a><br /></div><div>Gabrielle is ready for summer. I told her she couldn't go outside in sandals so she changed, sort of.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIXDP4hcWQ-Gx0CyX-l9qo7adgDt9KO87g6ZBVdckFpag_fpAz3ZK6u6-CVX76VLsIuprMOWhz2vWn8W8eUli7SKHDFM5IdmGz7PqdnPss7w74T7ycw8IMEaMW9YgTL3Z02dmifx9ZpK4/s1600-h/into+.jpg"></a></div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIXDP4hcWQ-Gx0CyX-l9qo7adgDt9KO87g6ZBVdckFpag_fpAz3ZK6u6-CVX76VLsIuprMOWhz2vWn8W8eUli7SKHDFM5IdmGz7PqdnPss7w74T7ycw8IMEaMW9YgTL3Z02dmifx9ZpK4/s1600-h/into+.jpg" style="text-decoration: none;"><img style="text-align: left;display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px; " src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIXDP4hcWQ-Gx0CyX-l9qo7adgDt9KO87g6ZBVdckFpag_fpAz3ZK6u6-CVX76VLsIuprMOWhz2vWn8W8eUli7SKHDFM5IdmGz7PqdnPss7w74T7ycw8IMEaMW9YgTL3Z02dmifx9ZpK4/s320/into+.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446463298550587810" /></a><br /></div><div>See, into everything.</div><div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqVr5uUAfW5PDagUh8IUVg8cE-lu1JrIjuLa9a7Fw7w8GTN8mw3RVAvFi6gFveF3GUuM4vbcKlblN_oCSBtN2bdGgf540FosrdaIN1Pd6kMPeg02w0p9VCviRVG7oCfIdpaxadABJNtF0/s1600-h/jul.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqVr5uUAfW5PDagUh8IUVg8cE-lu1JrIjuLa9a7Fw7w8GTN8mw3RVAvFi6gFveF3GUuM4vbcKlblN_oCSBtN2bdGgf540FosrdaIN1Pd6kMPeg02w0p9VCviRVG7oCfIdpaxadABJNtF0/s320/jul.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446463120277210738" /></a><br /></div><div>I can't tell yet if Julian's eyes are going to be a darker hazel or turn brown. Right now they are the same as Madeline's, they look light brown but when you really look at them, you see green as well. </div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2X8-qyVGlXIHC57oRDGpwe6rWmtsnE2dheNFJAtng9NQUFDvpNUl9Jk9G2kZw8DE5DV2nD1wMnI-J2waiAMFi8S4zH97dCaNuA7IOu7XlaOuRN_1q4g4RWJEMSDPu6aaLjQZiJiVS4Bc/s1600-h/mad+and+jul.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2X8-qyVGlXIHC57oRDGpwe6rWmtsnE2dheNFJAtng9NQUFDvpNUl9Jk9G2kZw8DE5DV2nD1wMnI-J2waiAMFi8S4zH97dCaNuA7IOu7XlaOuRN_1q4g4RWJEMSDPu6aaLjQZiJiVS4Bc/s320/mad+and+jul.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446462687428179170" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Ryan was working late yet again tonight, I had a tired Gabrielle who wanted me to lay with her while she went to sleep and a tired baby boy. I left the baby with Madeline and went in with Gabrielle for 10 minutes, and this is what I came out to. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_-mHq_I1GIWueobbUbBeysJ2SJR7yOHxGbm-5s1B4u13yhp_VBkpON_-D-lHRXBjeIvantqVYSBKKQ_rKm10hQyGYa-YH6e0DUCQMIliA9O_HL5yU2E23iyRCG7mvZel_C5MDDWkFbCI/s1600-h/pop.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_-mHq_I1GIWueobbUbBeysJ2SJR7yOHxGbm-5s1B4u13yhp_VBkpON_-D-lHRXBjeIvantqVYSBKKQ_rKm10hQyGYa-YH6e0DUCQMIliA9O_HL5yU2E23iyRCG7mvZel_C5MDDWkFbCI/s320/pop.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446462492026667042" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-10841742023175346322010-01-24T07:31:00.008-07:002010-01-24T08:05:15.554-07:00our january<div><br /></div><div>Has been a busy one. You can expect a long, random post every now and then from me, there just is not enough time to do small frequent ones at the moment. </div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKVnRFNji4tDxDjRFzYnVDwTj3gbtjexZ_581jSmeWT9YGVTwi1kw57uxkBNflO-WxfaZrNZYh4xYSIF3hVwVwgi4HOSl1ZDVXVLDj9aGob6sjgk90QM8Ec535ETTZ5mnQ_YSnMTkvzZQ/s1600-h/crawling.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKVnRFNji4tDxDjRFzYnVDwTj3gbtjexZ_581jSmeWT9YGVTwi1kw57uxkBNflO-WxfaZrNZYh4xYSIF3hVwVwgi4HOSl1ZDVXVLDj9aGob6sjgk90QM8Ec535ETTZ5mnQ_YSnMTkvzZQ/s320/crawling.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430316811962251122" /></a><br /><div><br /><div>This is an old pic, but Julian is crawling. He is all over the place doing an army crawl. I was making dinner in the kitchen last night and here he comes crawling down the long hallway to join me. Cute little bugger. He will be 9 months old tomorrow which I can not believe. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihX_xPMlH7x0W8DKnB9rtkemvS_AdzH-8fZOx9hyOf_Kw4UzsGdy4jlIP_NxB3bU0PBdgr4_E7EfzdQR10WeK5ElZZeQP761rGHBDVjpyv3_PvyDp-FbNpvQbOSAijWOhkZjGGS19vU70/s1600-h/make+up.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihX_xPMlH7x0W8DKnB9rtkemvS_AdzH-8fZOx9hyOf_Kw4UzsGdy4jlIP_NxB3bU0PBdgr4_E7EfzdQR10WeK5ElZZeQP761rGHBDVjpyv3_PvyDp-FbNpvQbOSAijWOhkZjGGS19vU70/s320/make+up.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430316217922244370" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I have been studying and studying and studying. Gabrielle has had more free time and less supervision as you can see. I am attempting to finish an intense 3 month class in less then 2, and I am getting close, I think I might be done in another 2 weeks. My reason for working my butt off is that then I can hit the books for my IBCLC exam. I am hoping to take it this year but may postpone it a year if I am not able to get enough study time in the next few months. I only have one chance a year, it is always only offered in July. My other reason for working so hard is that my grant for my new job has been sent in as of last week, I hope never to work on another grant ever again by the way! The money is expected to roll in March 1st and then I have to hit the ground running. </div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1zRi92I2MA6XqF9Sxly66noIXkYSHcfIn4cGL5HS7KoTjdfbhahAz3iiwK91u4jnPq64zy3izLijmjZTQgmk5WF16KMKfW30KurJ1yNgtNTIoAUS0LDER6KyuTQgvJbrIHTwYpJlg2wk/s1600-h/front+of+house.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1zRi92I2MA6XqF9Sxly66noIXkYSHcfIn4cGL5HS7KoTjdfbhahAz3iiwK91u4jnPq64zy3izLijmjZTQgmk5WF16KMKfW30KurJ1yNgtNTIoAUS0LDER6KyuTQgvJbrIHTwYpJlg2wk/s320/front+of+house.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430316048638434258" /></a><br /></div><div>It has been snowing as you can see. We have officially run out of places to stash the white stuff. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4cA6DRS8t2m7hl1BoObIvGfxQBrb3ZagfSaERXPQsrevK0Cjv9oIwmn-Qp6EY0XYjXAJwwduERv7r3-Lqf0wxpOvi_rD255wfeG-NvCc9HWYsJ5vFpDQ5-FXxB_wfUD0am3PkczHcd7Q/s1600-h/sledding.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4cA6DRS8t2m7hl1BoObIvGfxQBrb3ZagfSaERXPQsrevK0Cjv9oIwmn-Qp6EY0XYjXAJwwduERv7r3-Lqf0wxpOvi_rD255wfeG-NvCc9HWYsJ5vFpDQ5-FXxB_wfUD0am3PkczHcd7Q/s320/sledding.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430316041683506242" /></a><br /></div><div>The good news is that the snow mounds are so high that every one makes a great sledding hill! I caught Madeline and a friend on the roof of the house yesterday trying to sled down. The snow hill was up to the roof so I guess I don't blame them for thinking it would be fun.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixPka4Ghp9lEUzVWQ4hXXnsK5daWMkDwPc8Sm5JJTsV5a0LoJi60ZjYm1tnDXGc_SgaiAGpN2vE9Z_a2Uy7RRPuDZSGXT75v49YtcF3PMRG8goh-FqpaoZG9UrZPVjz4Ul3eQTUZl7Ens/s1600-h/hot+tub.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixPka4Ghp9lEUzVWQ4hXXnsK5daWMkDwPc8Sm5JJTsV5a0LoJi60ZjYm1tnDXGc_SgaiAGpN2vE9Z_a2Uy7RRPuDZSGXT75v49YtcF3PMRG8goh-FqpaoZG9UrZPVjz4Ul3eQTUZl7Ens/s320/hot+tub.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430316039190505906" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Once we dug out the hot tub, we discovered that the last storm dropped so much snow at once, 40 inches, that the cover broke in half. We had to quickly drain it and cover it for the winter.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1eP6lJsvKKWHwnBBM38ZVXyYaI4UYgsd7kfEuXdInxjJOSJLbCKAA6YZC66uF1l_ec1-cy_TrGELzm5C_KvH4cUXtxTM3OqBsy0RjBL2zwLbJpUFPujGrTBDwvx6PjLo6UOMnmPapFIs/s1600-h/crew+on+roof.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1eP6lJsvKKWHwnBBM38ZVXyYaI4UYgsd7kfEuXdInxjJOSJLbCKAA6YZC66uF1l_ec1-cy_TrGELzm5C_KvH4cUXtxTM3OqBsy0RjBL2zwLbJpUFPujGrTBDwvx6PjLo6UOMnmPapFIs/s320/crew+on+roof.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430315615375188834" /></a><br /></div><div>For the first time we hired a crew to come out and shovel the roof, we had 5 feet of snow on the roof and it had to come off. It would of taken Ryan the entire weekend and he refuses to climb up there after falling off last year! </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqmm9VpHQVABfDZNJXjzy-jMn9Uczppw7AcWEBTyOpy4RSKX53lDf1Cc-e9lTQ3xyeF86RQokWaEEW-tcyxYexiY3tlABFk686wKITGa9qjN0cNGdW-EweA5u_7N85jSv6LbzjcsU04Pk/s1600-h/snow+shed.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqmm9VpHQVABfDZNJXjzy-jMn9Uczppw7AcWEBTyOpy4RSKX53lDf1Cc-e9lTQ3xyeF86RQokWaEEW-tcyxYexiY3tlABFk686wKITGa9qjN0cNGdW-EweA5u_7N85jSv6LbzjcsU04Pk/s320/snow+shed.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430315609598726338" /></a><br /></div><div>My backyard. My living room is raised from the backyard, you have to go down an entire flight of stairs to get to the yard, and the snow is up to the window in the living room. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe4lZdi8hYW9sJYj045YPrXz8m2ygu6BexhwSvUXKPYyawfbq7Bnl00uau8qz4wnaVvsDSXlG58oC5nqrqWoiksUTIJOqFgqGRMjzFxceUO3N20FlJq4pwYgRdRapcVbwa62ZNBjOy7kM/s1600-h/hesperus.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe4lZdi8hYW9sJYj045YPrXz8m2ygu6BexhwSvUXKPYyawfbq7Bnl00uau8qz4wnaVvsDSXlG58oC5nqrqWoiksUTIJOqFgqGRMjzFxceUO3N20FlJq4pwYgRdRapcVbwa62ZNBjOy7kM/s320/hesperus.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430314600274635186" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Madeline has been snowboarding and snowboarding and snowboarding. She went 4 times this week, not bad for a 7 year old whose dad works 60 hour weeks and two younger siblings. She is quite good. This hill is less then 10 minutes from our house, offers challenging runs and night skiing. Ryan took up her to Purg the other day, which is the big ski resort 40 minutes away. She spent the entire day doing all the black runs, which is what she does at Hesperus as well. She quickly learned how to board in all this recent powder but does have a problem once in a while like the other night where she sunk up to her chest in the fresh snow. She is going up again today, snowboarding is all she thinks and talks about, I didn't expect to have this problem with a child when she was 7 years old!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPrWAsSW74Ido7fCRotMF-e5GBKaLTC4OvtUXlhBwKCChfor2N23MZU8IU4Oy9BhpYIN_97hA309fhlw9nTmfm9KFpRUFHWxyD7Pyjcpk8hT4RGGdmt64h5zttf5ddAdzMIYTVaYWpHDk/s1600-h/wind+burn.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPrWAsSW74Ido7fCRotMF-e5GBKaLTC4OvtUXlhBwKCChfor2N23MZU8IU4Oy9BhpYIN_97hA309fhlw9nTmfm9KFpRUFHWxyD7Pyjcpk8hT4RGGdmt64h5zttf5ddAdzMIYTVaYWpHDk/s320/wind+burn.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430314595627883298" /></a>The pic didn't show it but her face is actually wind burned from all the time spent flying down the slopes. </div></div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-68637806546584129482010-01-10T19:41:00.007-07:002010-01-10T19:53:30.553-07:00what we have been up to<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyYQZl5jcegSGuBXcz5WMrR4QCAKh4zDby19z1UvoS2VMZairYV2wnd0VnmgSIVJ_1RDJGSZHPTzN0NBJXfxg52NeoBLyFWZ9YCXcU4ugXhc-r3NPLE81zGGVx9wtnTRgE199izI7HepI/s1600-h/roomba.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyYQZl5jcegSGuBXcz5WMrR4QCAKh4zDby19z1UvoS2VMZairYV2wnd0VnmgSIVJ_1RDJGSZHPTzN0NBJXfxg52NeoBLyFWZ9YCXcU4ugXhc-r3NPLE81zGGVx9wtnTRgE199izI7HepI/s320/roomba.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425308897705280802" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>A Roomba is great fun in this house. It cleans the floor for me, the girls chase it around, and Julian tries to catch it crawling.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJjOGhR3xQcIJBbR84fIG8LSKI7fXQ61R5czv9hkvpBxyWY2str1NrVjimQdONJHD80VdqA6PO95YjFwQtwhX5xO3Y4TBfELHR-ZuVkP01Q14XOs4PNTzASol8fAViC2C3l-kvxxJx-bo/s1600-h/lady+bug+cake.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJjOGhR3xQcIJBbR84fIG8LSKI7fXQ61R5czv9hkvpBxyWY2str1NrVjimQdONJHD80VdqA6PO95YjFwQtwhX5xO3Y4TBfELHR-ZuVkP01Q14XOs4PNTzASol8fAViC2C3l-kvxxJx-bo/s320/lady+bug+cake.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425308708050231970" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>What Madeline decided she wanted for her birthday. A ladybug cake, much easier actually then the gumball machine cake I made for Gabrielle a while back.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzKXaxgzAovptuwRhAi39UI7Dnm7SjoePATnMqaw_jUJQRXe_KKhrUZnQTM4Ye1-0OEqaWwsKZi6VrDICGL9qnPr8fHTzQ7DWyAWsbHUAmP7Fti3U7SIJWE988kTYizgMnsjPDbhffLYY/s1600-h/j+sleeping.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzKXaxgzAovptuwRhAi39UI7Dnm7SjoePATnMqaw_jUJQRXe_KKhrUZnQTM4Ye1-0OEqaWwsKZi6VrDICGL9qnPr8fHTzQ7DWyAWsbHUAmP7Fti3U7SIJWE988kTYizgMnsjPDbhffLYY/s320/j+sleeping.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425308701130489442" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>When you are the third child, you are just so happy that you get to sleep that you don't care where. One of the girls never would of been sleeping like this.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy7bPtmB5Pf5jmcsCM0F4qlDNUZMKa1mPHM_cjXPSgMatJuhQXA3e-pssxN9JvyEhS2jYrmuyK-fqTfC-f5C0CtEdXnHPnFcvQNZN2j3Hfhx3AWRp1umGf7EDw0yWNaHtx72j7OxZZHZE/s1600-h/party+m.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy7bPtmB5Pf5jmcsCM0F4qlDNUZMKa1mPHM_cjXPSgMatJuhQXA3e-pssxN9JvyEhS2jYrmuyK-fqTfC-f5C0CtEdXnHPnFcvQNZN2j3Hfhx3AWRp1umGf7EDw0yWNaHtx72j7OxZZHZE/s320/party+m.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425308218285051922" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Happy to be 7 years old.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipX83Q9xVZ80kHFS0F6Mdz-4VIaH7QVS0IpYG78HUhEdltISOPjdPIj8a6_MGG6FXINuHlJFQ8XxJQ22jscX9u3FAJ8z_ILfI5li4Vvz52MnvL8VRPmIimqAFSFFUjurGU7K17GTjhXc4/s1600-h/party+g.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipX83Q9xVZ80kHFS0F6Mdz-4VIaH7QVS0IpYG78HUhEdltISOPjdPIj8a6_MGG6FXINuHlJFQ8XxJQ22jscX9u3FAJ8z_ILfI5li4Vvz52MnvL8VRPmIimqAFSFFUjurGU7K17GTjhXc4/s320/party+g.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425308206825000802" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwGu80yfErEQ2mPIRGe66YBvbyRkkqqLRWdEj9d1HSqvpAtrhxqNibweCMMXMGL907bRYOOC8Vcl63CLYZUYJX4W2RXXnIlt8Jj6wsiCAiQaHc6oGHsK3j7DYajIzZwzjj8cvAxtVlhnU/s1600-h/party+j.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwGu80yfErEQ2mPIRGe66YBvbyRkkqqLRWdEj9d1HSqvpAtrhxqNibweCMMXMGL907bRYOOC8Vcl63CLYZUYJX4W2RXXnIlt8Jj6wsiCAiQaHc6oGHsK3j7DYajIzZwzjj8cvAxtVlhnU/s320/party+j.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425307928133352546" /></a><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX4pSmTxuz5IxrZVpmAdGalENkpVx_HKvQ100skx2gcc1e3toc_rVf3eJxv-JzsVP1YrLgQH2Xg5x2YcdnqzrjOj_pJrxJRP-KzNapj0wCDfaEfdcMbRfeLdpUKHWGjEG8sfCvDVfhLD0/s1600-h/me+and+M.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX4pSmTxuz5IxrZVpmAdGalENkpVx_HKvQ100skx2gcc1e3toc_rVf3eJxv-JzsVP1YrLgQH2Xg5x2YcdnqzrjOj_pJrxJRP-KzNapj0wCDfaEfdcMbRfeLdpUKHWGjEG8sfCvDVfhLD0/s320/me+and+M.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425307923016104466" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibn0HT277C1OBUEsl4Ct7jGKKWa24POJSCYDk6lwXl1FyRt3eZsJv2LYExGKfzoBcb8DhWRXvgk0AguIKJEGZDNI-_Bzg4KO-gg4AEQBgOBr-seyt-pzxsMcjfRhM6bu0UMreeb2ZAT5s/s1600-h/eating+cake.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibn0HT277C1OBUEsl4Ct7jGKKWa24POJSCYDk6lwXl1FyRt3eZsJv2LYExGKfzoBcb8DhWRXvgk0AguIKJEGZDNI-_Bzg4KO-gg4AEQBgOBr-seyt-pzxsMcjfRhM6bu0UMreeb2ZAT5s/s320/eating+cake.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425307520194715938" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIyv_XpNKBSADIQN3yC6bI0SgdHztEZ7JCb7-iD1Vm21CsLwADuAGYTelnmdN-yQv2pKI_HK-0Crp-n-dtpdi1sotbRYendXqNt-qjYCl9pgkEoleYw5vuMJ1_IIOHVb9mgdCnWI0eAvo/s1600-h/birthday+party.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIyv_XpNKBSADIQN3yC6bI0SgdHztEZ7JCb7-iD1Vm21CsLwADuAGYTelnmdN-yQv2pKI_HK-0Crp-n-dtpdi1sotbRYendXqNt-qjYCl9pgkEoleYw5vuMJ1_IIOHVb9mgdCnWI0eAvo/s320/birthday+party.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425307515323138594" /></a><br /></div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-24687042949663325402010-01-02T06:53:00.008-07:002010-01-02T07:16:22.431-07:00Happy new year!<div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div>A day late but hey it counts! </div><div><br /></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixuK56hCm8MhZjLDE1ZhY6THPtmurmVLFjjYeAF7lDJpBE01Ca_a1gjZyz3p0KrH_SZL8-k67MhSZqmWETVu8sWs5qIP1bVNPPH62SJ8f6fMz5Me7HP0vYUXB_YwAtMrHRAvOV3WOXPdE/s1600-h/chapman.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixuK56hCm8MhZjLDE1ZhY6THPtmurmVLFjjYeAF7lDJpBE01Ca_a1gjZyz3p0KrH_SZL8-k67MhSZqmWETVu8sWs5qIP1bVNPPH62SJ8f6fMz5Me7HP0vYUXB_YwAtMrHRAvOV3WOXPdE/s320/chapman.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5422141913541000450" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>Madeline just wrapped up two weeks of snowboarding lessons, she is doing quite well. I've been taking her to the little ski hill in town. I never used it as a child, my dad always took us up to the "real" mountain since he was/is an avid snowboarder. I'm loving this little hill. It is less then 15 minutes from my house, has two tow ropes for the kids, and is quite cheap. Perfect for learning on.<br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-7Oi63OX_8eX8dgW_Ikoc9VcXq2096gC07s3xCCIfORQcCRpwCTOsQcrt8xZOia3r_gzHr9hrGHy9AQ8hasHRckIHMjW-YSIhroD0dJDgBPbHKX5ZVQUUFl8NJU1wdTFeMTK1vRGIY2U/s1600-h/ice+skating.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-7Oi63OX_8eX8dgW_Ikoc9VcXq2096gC07s3xCCIfORQcCRpwCTOsQcrt8xZOia3r_gzHr9hrGHy9AQ8hasHRckIHMjW-YSIhroD0dJDgBPbHKX5ZVQUUFl8NJU1wdTFeMTK1vRGIY2U/s320/ice+skating.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5422141317281134930" /></a><br /></div><div><br /><div>Right next door to the hill is the skating rink which we are just starting to use as well. Taking the kids ice skating is rather difficult when there are 3 of them, two unable to skate, a mother who does not skate and is accident prone enough that she doesn't want to learn at this point in her life, and a father who barely skates! Madeline attempted it last week, she fell and fell and fell. I could not believe that she kept trying but she did and is asking for lessons. Another thing to add to my list of things to do I guess. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWYFG75Z9OPx5wfODGbSIWKGpJmOrgv2LtXCPsIIDYHL4F9iU0cRlmIWsX5_TYJROFfDqcT2SJaxx6YJNqsbOc9AX_umW-L2M5ARO2l_H_pC9dqHvzCJy461NbZa6-fi8c2sYdRoSsDOk/s1600-h/up+to+top.jpg"></a></div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWYFG75Z9OPx5wfODGbSIWKGpJmOrgv2LtXCPsIIDYHL4F9iU0cRlmIWsX5_TYJROFfDqcT2SJaxx6YJNqsbOc9AX_umW-L2M5ARO2l_H_pC9dqHvzCJy461NbZa6-fi8c2sYdRoSsDOk/s1600-h/up+to+top.jpg" style="text-decoration: none;"><img style="text-align: left;display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWYFG75Z9OPx5wfODGbSIWKGpJmOrgv2LtXCPsIIDYHL4F9iU0cRlmIWsX5_TYJROFfDqcT2SJaxx6YJNqsbOc9AX_umW-L2M5ARO2l_H_pC9dqHvzCJy461NbZa6-fi8c2sYdRoSsDOk/s320/up+to+top.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5422141063473511714" /></a><br />Crap. I put the pics in the wrong order and I'm not interested in moving everything around right now so we'll just go backwards. This is Madeline at the top of the little rope tow they use to teach the kids how to use on. She is up towards the top middle in the pink jacket. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDaaxfpn42yagwSGBFzVwB2SnG4Z4CHucRqeeAjVdxxIrPddv2h-7MKeS_TNQlLskLdXTUzDOD4P0aozE4J4xvKWBU_mX1AO5wCBzu7vLUfmn47_OL3SD9BggbHVgIv8cFSGfgcfuFaxo/s1600-h/going+up.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDaaxfpn42yagwSGBFzVwB2SnG4Z4CHucRqeeAjVdxxIrPddv2h-7MKeS_TNQlLskLdXTUzDOD4P0aozE4J4xvKWBU_mX1AO5wCBzu7vLUfmn47_OL3SD9BggbHVgIv8cFSGfgcfuFaxo/s320/going+up.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5422140875176211170" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>This rope goes very slow and is literally on the ground, they have to pick it up and then kneel down, hold on and keep their balance while it pulls them up. A rope tow is actually quite tricky to learn how to use it. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKCFGzbKp7et29bnKX8SfaDUxrTpr_-NYqUrQ0ACp52bgwHx1UwoWz3lU8FEZkLLQ4PvMFp46tRXIfdJS2ujs6JdukTkjbxroW-1RpPlOm6mo6EYBNhZjoglAgvTeHIXrC2Pp3JHKMZ_4/s1600-h/coming+down.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKCFGzbKp7et29bnKX8SfaDUxrTpr_-NYqUrQ0ACp52bgwHx1UwoWz3lU8FEZkLLQ4PvMFp46tRXIfdJS2ujs6JdukTkjbxroW-1RpPlOm6mo6EYBNhZjoglAgvTeHIXrC2Pp3JHKMZ_4/s320/coming+down.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5422140662225106946" /></a><br />And here she is on the left snowboarding down! She can turn and stop without falling, sometimes, now she just needs lots of practice. </div></div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-34090579074924995172009-12-26T21:11:00.009-07:002009-12-26T21:33:29.272-07:00our christmas<div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Merry Christmas!</div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiePNPv9j3__55tRloo22Qc2_xRdEgRAuYcMllNHANqDMfpC0jNLgS1B4-UrcSIHfczZ4EePd1qwGMKRj3wHVyBQWFizgvucT_lolPsh4fCuz4wsd6RpZWLIyscvO_vlddSWrMpGk3I0z0/s1600-h/sad.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiePNPv9j3__55tRloo22Qc2_xRdEgRAuYcMllNHANqDMfpC0jNLgS1B4-UrcSIHfczZ4EePd1qwGMKRj3wHVyBQWFizgvucT_lolPsh4fCuz4wsd6RpZWLIyscvO_vlddSWrMpGk3I0z0/s320/sad.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419769039473133042" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJPfxIH9tGmBB9Nt5-No1aoEZnizeY9lZKMbvMzTNymSh0haYCdAslu-YV_5pnNoDSYVNBqsfzI4B_I2sNZjgTlolZ6KZXg8FK77KMAqYsn8rT8QdHBs6LEE-ZPnoUJ3kk_NawRmxWWAo/s1600-h/gingerbread+houses.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJPfxIH9tGmBB9Nt5-No1aoEZnizeY9lZKMbvMzTNymSh0haYCdAslu-YV_5pnNoDSYVNBqsfzI4B_I2sNZjgTlolZ6KZXg8FK77KMAqYsn8rT8QdHBs6LEE-ZPnoUJ3kk_NawRmxWWAo/s320/gingerbread+houses.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419768666120088738" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW_Zlu4BSi2hylVLOSUctwW9Kq7lVc2DdZSXmn16dGcsbCNGzYeMw7H80XQeK8xoMM_fLSr0wt79TteZuQtLmytiixMoaJ652IGRAnRBLS-uIQxOvCpGou1WzqU_PjVHbrgRP5EUZafxE/s1600-h/J+presesnts.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 222px; height: 166px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW_Zlu4BSi2hylVLOSUctwW9Kq7lVc2DdZSXmn16dGcsbCNGzYeMw7H80XQeK8xoMM_fLSr0wt79TteZuQtLmytiixMoaJ652IGRAnRBLS-uIQxOvCpGou1WzqU_PjVHbrgRP5EUZafxE/s320/J+presesnts.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419767925997808946" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ30G9C0flMcPO4kUUSx_AH-1tXKRqY3P_9mJ58cKeBpqZV3GQt5cxr4qkwxYFA2uhqwPnGo_cxg6PLbxtvZ-sXYhOQjk5guLlDwty8ltXLIEsuX-i_zkXUChAnpnYDHT-UlWAXPz6U1g/s1600-h/dresses.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ30G9C0flMcPO4kUUSx_AH-1tXKRqY3P_9mJ58cKeBpqZV3GQt5cxr4qkwxYFA2uhqwPnGo_cxg6PLbxtvZ-sXYhOQjk5guLlDwty8ltXLIEsuX-i_zkXUChAnpnYDHT-UlWAXPz6U1g/s320/dresses.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419767645002123794" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh63mBBpCFx01N3s6Y8kUND9Nj6RZA-2XvhL4Xymn0DXcd4U6302tEQAwlaXdvzwV_-8z6faN2Xc9X9N8DdYB3UKP9O70WuQwJpsP4TzJ2jovtnucytt3qvTtjvItmbC6vWnxwTh30m5Co/s1600-h/m+doll.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh63mBBpCFx01N3s6Y8kUND9Nj6RZA-2XvhL4Xymn0DXcd4U6302tEQAwlaXdvzwV_-8z6faN2Xc9X9N8DdYB3UKP9O70WuQwJpsP4TzJ2jovtnucytt3qvTtjvItmbC6vWnxwTh30m5Co/s320/m+doll.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419767119783783138" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwfcRGTBKV3eIZ57Vh1OB4rDW8nky6N7WoTgXbUQQwuTehW7OC9nw4pkW5iiD4LRHGFISYXqVxHfqRAQIoUqFoZGCCLwwUxq6wayQsjCO2Juv2g8QpqeyAeaFFcQ8GWSN6Z5SAO2EBBfs/s1600-h/g+dolls.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwfcRGTBKV3eIZ57Vh1OB4rDW8nky6N7WoTgXbUQQwuTehW7OC9nw4pkW5iiD4LRHGFISYXqVxHfqRAQIoUqFoZGCCLwwUxq6wayQsjCO2Juv2g8QpqeyAeaFFcQ8GWSN6Z5SAO2EBBfs/s320/g+dolls.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419766857310055138" /></a>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5944604078469658990.post-27618859388616118212009-12-21T22:25:00.009-07:002009-12-21T22:46:29.846-07:00another train post<div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>We live in a town with one of the few remaining steam powered trains. Needless to say the train is a big deal here! The children love watching it going by, and riding it even more. Right after a snowstorm last week we went on the train for the Polar Express. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrvTNbk_Y4mDchgJiFh5May03bwcn9LSDJl3lY71Oltupr17vXK93Ri1ZoenbmKohZZ-pCLacspiKxZSjU4H2SIDTA8zjVcuGUqar15jvxT0KtHOE_MMiTrp-_eOHFQRfh09gf0jdnlMQ/s1600-h/5.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrvTNbk_Y4mDchgJiFh5May03bwcn9LSDJl3lY71Oltupr17vXK93Ri1ZoenbmKohZZ-pCLacspiKxZSjU4H2SIDTA8zjVcuGUqar15jvxT0KtHOE_MMiTrp-_eOHFQRfh09gf0jdnlMQ/s320/5.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417930927557543730" /></a><br /><div>Gabrielle was just a little excited to go.<div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP0Q8U4TzjtH_kNmq4hP-vp10sLmSZGfToR5ElQ7LEssGqKmqTFBhW6JKgT_9_txkqf0F5vwaJtSfId8K_pXOk1tKwSRgNv3Cs9IHE5ED4bL25VSXXuemT7oMQzGkiURlC-i99GV7fdig/s1600-h/4.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP0Q8U4TzjtH_kNmq4hP-vp10sLmSZGfToR5ElQ7LEssGqKmqTFBhW6JKgT_9_txkqf0F5vwaJtSfId8K_pXOk1tKwSRgNv3Cs9IHE5ED4bL25VSXXuemT7oMQzGkiURlC-i99GV7fdig/s320/4.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417930636882263218" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNu3P5LBQJCFPVXjOgeJ8nta2AMIZ1DqSz5MGqzr8I8BrlQ7m7xMMYWuZHNiNWYdgG4s-9UgkSL6J9bg2s75nH-v7XDryMmn3fAYFdVCaT2FIvtVnvaqba083J3SW_UKYrZJBUFNLukZY/s1600-h/3.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNu3P5LBQJCFPVXjOgeJ8nta2AMIZ1DqSz5MGqzr8I8BrlQ7m7xMMYWuZHNiNWYdgG4s-9UgkSL6J9bg2s75nH-v7XDryMmn3fAYFdVCaT2FIvtVnvaqba083J3SW_UKYrZJBUFNLukZY/s320/3.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417930267873987282" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinAIHriTfdArOry-KyfAnDi-M9bHqWaQHrjZxWX-AjdkAAgD8-bER3NPgW8K4hTOXakFQnCFS5x_hJ8mOhTm4TWK5uPC3QKHDR6KvPSq5LzZX5wyntYLsG5L6iV79exnLDf2G5CE41yQ8/s1600-h/2.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinAIHriTfdArOry-KyfAnDi-M9bHqWaQHrjZxWX-AjdkAAgD8-bER3NPgW8K4hTOXakFQnCFS5x_hJ8mOhTm4TWK5uPC3QKHDR6KvPSq5LzZX5wyntYLsG5L6iV79exnLDf2G5CE41yQ8/s320/2.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417929919585208082" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKtXjVW5C6rzmnry5LLqamKrF72BwvQrbe_UrUMUjiHfqtNLJFcApXqARKsJepuleAL3wV9_oQrfB_570KqAb2E7WvOLnTpWqcEC0FaqSbg61KttbV_l5lwh-53xUNNoNFyvMiwe0vxMA/s1600-h/11.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKtXjVW5C6rzmnry5LLqamKrF72BwvQrbe_UrUMUjiHfqtNLJFcApXqARKsJepuleAL3wV9_oQrfB_570KqAb2E7WvOLnTpWqcEC0FaqSbg61KttbV_l5lwh-53xUNNoNFyvMiwe0vxMA/s320/11.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417929720826238946" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUJ6T0vibo6gQ-kPR6iY3N8Kv4QVbijn0DaYWUFV8aedX40nmU0O1rMmFnc0Re1eGSclHdxxqgEmjnCmwg6-S7A9IrGpluDigknITztgR_2vem7GOkETEs6TB8wHEIXAFvkMG5xWRIvYQ/s1600-h/all+3.JPG"></a></div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUJ6T0vibo6gQ-kPR6iY3N8Kv4QVbijn0DaYWUFV8aedX40nmU0O1rMmFnc0Re1eGSclHdxxqgEmjnCmwg6-S7A9IrGpluDigknITztgR_2vem7GOkETEs6TB8wHEIXAFvkMG5xWRIvYQ/s1600-h/all+3.JPG" style="text-decoration: none;"><img style="text-align: left;display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUJ6T0vibo6gQ-kPR6iY3N8Kv4QVbijn0DaYWUFV8aedX40nmU0O1rMmFnc0Re1eGSclHdxxqgEmjnCmwg6-S7A9IrGpluDigknITztgR_2vem7GOkETEs6TB8wHEIXAFvkMG5xWRIvYQ/s320/all+3.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417928482865647122" /></a><br />We don't do Santa but that doesn't stop the girls from getting excited to see a Santa!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbVA0E9oIRe5zHh-LrXSRMLTF-qs-DdLB_M8ZyRT6Fl679kYks_fYQ-poTToKC9uvE9U82h9M9g98VGQtmy97ajl_-gbu8d953rM7ncTXJGBK-e3jDfUipWfG8hLm1a-4cnc16wbpdfao/s1600-h/looking+fr+s.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbVA0E9oIRe5zHh-LrXSRMLTF-qs-DdLB_M8ZyRT6Fl679kYks_fYQ-poTToKC9uvE9U82h9M9g98VGQtmy97ajl_-gbu8d953rM7ncTXJGBK-e3jDfUipWfG8hLm1a-4cnc16wbpdfao/s320/looking+fr+s.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417928197166097106" /></a><br /></div><div>Waiting for Santa to get on the train.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_6I4hQT-MG1H_gEDSi4HiyWiXMPAC_mwcgoPhxwsB0yu3BpsUT9PxyrRLyfuzxSA02YXbr2vrHXWFKqw3yeI4tsTHcEpkCHitRbPg_n7JV2ePfg6xIrSbXZsYztiEHsmrvNMnpyrqLJQ/s1600-h/singing+with+chef.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_6I4hQT-MG1H_gEDSi4HiyWiXMPAC_mwcgoPhxwsB0yu3BpsUT9PxyrRLyfuzxSA02YXbr2vrHXWFKqw3yeI4tsTHcEpkCHitRbPg_n7JV2ePfg6xIrSbXZsYztiEHsmrvNMnpyrqLJQ/s320/singing+with+chef.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5417927556969901602" /></a><br /></div><div>I was quite surprised when Gabrielle crawled out of her seat to go dance with the chefs.</div></div>Skip and Dashhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12248197921871665733noreply@blogger.com0