Quite an eventful week or so!

Our last fun summertime outing was up to Classic Skating. The kids had a ball playing on the inflatables and the Jungle playset. We got some nachos too (who can go to a skating rink without buying some nachos?). I loved it because I was able to read while they played : )

Unfortunately, they brought home more that memories. DS and DD2 both woke up with a sore throat and flu-like symptoms. They didn't eat and just laid around all day. I could tell they really felt awful. It lasted about two days, so not too terrible, and at least it didn't spread throughout the family! Poor DS missed the first day of school, though.

Right after that, I left to go to my brother's wedding in Liberty, MO. It was short but so much fun! My brother and his fiancee picked me up at the airport and we went out for lunch at an Irish pub. We each odered something and shared. My brother's "bangers and mash" were my favorite. Sausage, mashed potatoes, onion gravy, and creamed peas. Mmmm....I'll have to try making it sometime.

We met up with all of the parents and kids after that and went for a big family meal at Golden Corral. Then back to my brother's house to work on things that needed to be done for the big day!

Here we are after the ceremony and reception:

I had so much fun getting to know my new family members : ). Three new nephews and a niece! I can't wait to see them again in October when we go on our big extended family vacation.

That evening, I went out for a delicious meal at Carraba's with my stepmom, mom, and dad(that's the order that they are in this picture, from left to right)

My stepmom and dad headed home and my mom and I went back to the hotel and watched "Last Chance Harvey" on her laptop. Cute chick flick!
I got back home on Sunday and things were pretty quiet again until today. DD1's birthday and DD2's first day of kindergarten. Fun stuff!

DD1 had a very grown-up wish list this year. She wanted make-up, so we got her this cute little box with lip-gloss, shimmer gel, a brush, and little fingernail polishes in it:

She also wanted a mirror, and I found this one at Ikea. It looks soooo cute in her room! And it came with a matching hand mirror, too.
She got bath salts, beads, and confetti:
And she loved modeling her "fancy dress" for us : )
She also got some stuffed animals and she has an off-brand imitation Nano on the way. She's a lucky girl! We had birthday cake with friends this afternoon and then sang to her after dinner. The flower on the cake was a "magic candle". We lit it, it did a roman candle kind of thing for a bit, then the petals opened up and it turned and played "Happy Birthday"!

Now, on to DD2's day. The first day of kindergarten! She was very excited to get going in the morning. Here she is all dressed up in her uniform:
Our first stop was the doctor's office for her 5 year exam and vaccinations. She was very nervous about the shots--she had been talking about them all week. At one point, the nurse poked her finger to check her iron levels. DD didn't like it, but she did ok. When it was over, DD was clapping her hands and saying "Yay! My shots are over and it wasn't even that bad". When I told her that the shots were still coming, she FREAKED out! Screaming, crying, the whole nine yards. Luckily, we survived, but she had sore legs because she had been so tense when they were giving her the shots. Poor thing!

After the doctor's, we went on a mommy/daughter date to the Asian buffet. Her favorite part is the ice cream at the end.

On the way back from lunch she said to me "Mom....those doctors were sure nice to me." I said "Yes, they sure were." She said "I'm sorry I was mean to them". Awwwww.......so cute! I told her that I'm sure they understood that she was just very scared.

Then it was time to take her over to the school. The teacher was showing them how to line up before class each day. I love this picture because sweet DD is so intent on listening to her teacher and doing what she wanted. I hope her year is full of happiness and friends and new adventures!

Little Tinkerbell

We just got back from visiting our new kitty, Tinkerbell. Her eyes have just opened and she is still super tiny : ) DD2 was there also, but she is a little nervous about holding the kittens.

Farewell Little Mosey

Most of you know about the fate of my poor, cute kitty, Mosey. So, this is really more for me and for our family history than for anyone who might read it. Just a little rememberance of one of my favorite pets.

I know Mosey was "just a cat", but he was sure cute and a great little companion. The fact that he liked me best and the circumstances surrounding his demise have made his departure pretty emotional for me. More than if he had just "dissapeared" and never come back home like our previous kitty.

I picked him up in Salt Lake about a year ago--his owner had developed asthma due to cat allergies, so he had to go. (She is a follower of this blog--I hope this doesn't make her too sad).

We put him in the crate to go home with us, and he was so mad he wouldn't even look at us. Major cattitude. It was hard to get him to warm up to us--he hid under the couches for weeks. Here he is in one of his better early moments when he actually graced us with his presence. However, he was still so upset that his pupils were constantly dialated, which explains the glowing eyes in this picture.During this time before he warmed up to us, he showed interest in going outside, so we let him explore a bit. He had a little "adventure", and when he came back it was as if he had always lived with us. These are some of the things I miss:

I miss him curling up against me at night.

I miss seeing him in his favorite cuddly spots

I miss him sleeping on my printer while I play on the computer

I miss him liking me more than anyone else

I miss him kneading my tummy while I read

I even miss him walking on my keyboard while I'm trying to type

Anyway, the poor little guy got hit by a truck last week. A neighbor saw it and came to get me, so I saw him at his worst moments. I'm glad to know what happened to him, but the memories of him there are lingering. I wish I had just kept him indoors all of the time. Once a kitty gets a taste of the outdoors, they are hard to keep in. He really liked to go out for a few days and then come back in for a week or so.

That same neighbor just had two litters of kittens last Monday, so we've enjoyed going out to see the kitties and have even picked one out. I picked one that looks like Mosey, but it's a girl because I promised DD1 we'd have a girl pet sometime (and picking out a collar for a girl is more fun--I know, I'm a nerd!). We've named her Tinkerbell. We can't have her for at least another month, but it will be fun for the kids to see her grow. She will definitely be an INDOOR kitty! Hopefully she will love Smuckers.

If you've ever had a kitty, you'll love the "Simon's Cat" videos. Here's my favorite. Makes me laugh every time : )

In other news, we've had some crazy wind storms lately! Last Wednesday we were having dinner when the wind started. The haziness in the picture is dust. Yuck! The house in the center of the photo is where the kitties are, and the accident happened right in front of that.Our patio table has about 20 tiles in it, and they all were blown out. Luckily only 3 were broken. We actually bought that table because we live in an area that gets a lot of wind and we figured that tiles would be easier to replace than a glass top. We also had heavy patio chairs go rolling across the lawn--and luckily they stopped before going through the fence!

Zucchini, anyone?

I'm home sick with a cold today. Ugh. The kids are excited to set up a tent in the living room this evening. We're trying to find things to do together. I thought I'd let the girls bring in some things from the garden. Check out this zucchini!

I've already grated and frozen many bags of zucchini/squash to be used in breads and muffins thoughout the winter. My plants have done better than ever before!

The funny thing is, all of this produce (and lots before this pic was taken) came from a few plants I planted in April. I put these plants against my back fence and didn't do a thing to the soil to improve it. I guess we've got some good soil! On the other hand, a couple of summers ago I got interested in square foot gardening and put together a raised box in the back yard filled with the suggested mixture. Everything I've planted in that spot has pretty much sucked. Go figure! I've just let that plot totally go this year--I think next year I'll empty it and fill it with potting soil which might be more successful.

I have about 6 spaghetti squash ripening up out there too. Mmmmm. I discovered how much I like it when I was on the Southbeach Diet a couple of years ago. I just substitute it for noodles whenever we're having spaghetti for dinner. Good stuff.