Home again, home again...

Wow, we sure packed alot into the last two weeks of 2008! I don't know if I'll have time to post pictures today since I'm only allowing myself a few minutes here before I face the piles of luggage and mass-recieving from all of our parties. I am overwhelmed and yet very thankful for how blessed we are - but I'm seriously considering packing up half of the gifts and bringing them out slowly throughout 2009 so my kids can really appreciate each one.

Our trip to PA was wonderful as always. It pains my heart so much to leave that part of our family behind each time; especially my neice and nephew (okay, everyone really) who played so well with Raegan and Sydney. My nephew Benjamin is a gem. I have never met another almost 10 year old boy who is more loving and gentle (and endlessly patient!) with 3 little girls. It was so neat to watch them all together and it really got my tearducts working overtime when I watched them all hug goodbye. Ugh! I'm tearing up now...

Some 'highlights' from our trip - besides seeing family that we only see once a year - were; attempting a family-fun overnight at the Great Wolf Lodge Waterpark in Sandusky, OH, visiting Hershey Park and Chocolate World (twice!) and eating at an 'authentic' Chinese restaurant that is one of Brent & Kristin's favorites. We also experienced our first earthquake one night that was a 3.3 on the richter. Okay so it wasn't "major", but it was still a pretty crazy/freaky experience for those 4 minutes or so!

And now, we are back home and looking ahead to 3 more get togethers in the next 24 hours. Pictures to come, but in the meantime...enjoy your last day of 2008!
"Boy, this was an expensive year!" =)

"I love you!"

Many of you know that I'm a huge Sara Groves fan. She is a Christian artist that I discovered about 4 or so years ago and since then I've had her in 5 of the 6 slots in my car c.d. player and rarely has she been replaced. She not only has a phenomenal voice but she is a married mom of three and so many of her songs speak to the struggles of being a "normal" Christian woman; which I just love.

Well Saturday night a tiny dream of mine was fulfilled when I not only got to see her live in concert for the first time but then got to meet her during intermission when she was wandering around signing autographs and posing for pictures. I was so excited! So much so, in fact, that while waiting (impatiently) for my turn I was carefully planning in my head what I would say to her because I'd waited so long for this moment and I did not want to blow it and sound like a blubbering idiot! Well, I was literally shaking with nerves and excitement when she turned to me and said "Hi" and so what comes gushing out of my mouth before I could even put a filter on? "Hi, I'm Bradi and I just love you!!" She paused, and what felt like hours was really only seconds that passed while she registered my statement of undying devotion. Luckily she was much more poised then I (and hopefully used to blubbering idiots) so she just giggled and said "thanks" and then asked how to spell my name.

So...I guess we probably won't be 'besties' now like I'd hoped. Pretty sure she might have tightened her security after that situation. Oh well, I still love you Sara (!!) and maybe next time I can just shake your hand like a normal person and act like I meet celebrities everyday like it's no big thing...I hope you can forgive me.

(Oh, and to make matters worse, of course my loving husband witnessed the whole exchange from behind me and has not stopped laughing at me since. Thanks honey.)

So much for Dobson

You read all the books and consult all the websites and then you have a child like Syd; who defies all reason and tactics.

She is a bit young, but this kid KNOWS what she is doing and is starting to really test us to see how serious we are with our follow-through. Yikes!

Recently, I decided to try implementing the "naughty" chair - Super Nanny makes it look so easy - and as with every other punishment, it pretty much blew up in my face. She 'acted' like she was sad and walked forlornly to the chair but after a few seconds there she is with a big you-know-what-eating grin on her face and her chubby little legs swinging back and forth. And then only to jump down a minute later after we "chat" about being sorry, and off to find her sister to continue the antagonizing (or whatever naughty thing she was doing that put her in the chair in the first place!)

The worst part is, now when she knows she is doing something wrong she states in her matter-of-fact voice with a big grin; "I nawny, I sit!"

Looking forlorn for a minute...

....Ha! Just kidding!

'O Christmas Tree'

Our Annual Tree Hunt over Thanksgiving weekend wasn't quite the same without Nana & Papa but we all tried to make the best of it. I'll be honest & say that every year when we're hoofing around the tree farm and it's freezing and my kids are crying cause they're cold and sick of walking I always question why we don't just give in to the ready-to-decorate plastic trees that could be so easily pulled out of the box.
However, once we get it home and the scent of fresh Fraiser Fur pine is filling up my living room and my husband is making sap jokes, I always seem to forget why I thought I wanted a plastic tree instead. (That is, of course until after Christmas when we come back from PA and there are a mess of pine needles littering my carpet...then those previous thoughts come back to mind. But for now I'm thoroughly enjoying our live tree!)

Ready for the hunt


Posing with Aunt Tara

Posing with Aunt Krista

The boys loading up all their hard work


Cousin-Friends in the back of the Harvey wagon


Caden being silly at lunch afterwards

Ta-Da!

Thankful

This year God reminded me (and probably my whole family) that life is indeed precious and no matter what,there is nothing more important then the people you love.

Wednesday night I got a dreaded call from my mom that she was with my dad in the hospital and he was going in for immediate surgery to have a pacemaker put in. No matter how calmly it's worded, the phrase; "we're at the hospital" will drop your stomach like a rock to the bottom of the ocean. I pray I do not have to get a phone call like that again soon.

But yesterday he was able to come home and still made it to our house for our Thanksgiving celebration and we had a wonderful, relaxing day and were just so thankful to all be together!

A highlight from the day (aside from the food, of course) was a gingerbread house-making project with all 4 generations present. Raegan was in her glory being able to do such a meticulous project all by herself!

Sorting through all the goodies
Assembling the house with Great Grandma Huizinga, Aunt Krista, and Nana
Everyone was kicked off the project once the icing was placed. Raegan was determined to decorate all by herself.

The finished product!

Happy 33 to me

Tuesday was my birthday and I just had to post because it was so much fun and I was so spoiled~ (Not that I'm not every year...I've trained Brad well by now!) =)

Anyways, it started out with a girl's night on Monday including a pedicure at the Douglas J Aveda Salon downtown and then wine and sushi at Rockwells. Such a relaxing and fun night with my friend Kelly!

Then on Tuesday, my actual b-day, I woke up to a Starbucks Chai and warm muffin waiting for me on the counter from Brad and then was surprised at lunch with him coming home and having a mini-celebration complete with cake (baked by him and RG the night before) and then a BIG surprise present of a new iPod Nano!

Then that night we whisked away to one of my favorite restaurants - On the Border - and then ended things with the new movie Twilight. All in all it was a great day from start to finish although I will say that the night ended on a somewhat disappointing note only in that the movie was definitely not worth all the hype. If you haven't caught wind of this phenomenon yet I'd tell you to skip the movie(s) and just read the books. They are MUCH better.

And here are a couple pics of my birthday celebrations...

Yes my toes are stubby...but they look better polished, trust me.

We sang "Happy Birthday" literally 4 times AND blew out the candles at least that many times. It was a hit.

My BFF and fellow Twilight fan!

Me and my hubby gearing up for Twilight...not such a flattering view of Brad but what can you do when you're trying to get a pic in a dark theater?

Catching up...

It's cliche' I know but this time of year sure flies by! I have such good intentions during the holidays too, and yet it always seems like I'm left with a partially-completed list come January. Something about the cold weather and having a pellet stove in the basement makes me just want to cozy up on my couch during my free time and do something other then blog!

To fill you in on what I've been up to since October here's a list:

- Celebrating Brad's b-day which included two dinners out and baking/decorating a Red Velvet cake with Raegan (and then dropping it... but that's another story).

- Having a glorious weekend away on our church's Marriage Retreat in Shipshewana, IN. It's ALWAYS a great time and goes way too fast.

- Being a deer widow...twice so far

- Spending way too much time on Facebook. If any of you are my friends on there you will understand this completely.

- Devouring (pun-intended) the new "tween" book series phenomenon: Twilight. (We're going to see the movie tomorrow night and I can't wait!)

- Signing myself up to hostess my family for Thanksgiving and then our large Huizinga clan for Christmas two weeks later.

- Trying to get a jump-start on Christmas shopping (which isn't very hard since I love to shop and Raegan is really fun to buy for this year)

- Making lists (all around my house) of things I would like to do during the Holidays, namely crafty things like: cookies, homemade ornaments, gifts for teachers, etc.

- Counting down the days until I can haul out all of my Christmas decor

(T-minus 5 days!) Thanks to my mom for instilling that love in me!

So, now you know why I have slacked in my picture taking and posting a bit. Sorry! I'm sure there will be lots to come. Bear with me.

This year's kill thus far...

Brad got his first deer of the season only a few hours after going out on Saturday. This is apparently a "small" 7 point but I think he's pretty happy with it.

He leaves again for his annual Illinois hunting trip on Thursday so I'm sure this won't be the only deer I have packed in my freezer this year...so if anyone has a great recipe for venison chops be sure to send it my way! Lol.

"Funny" for the day

Okay to make up for my 'whoa is me' post a few minutes ago I am following up with this story that someone emailed me. It's a forward and I've read it before but it did put a smile on my face so I thought I'd share. I can TOTALLY see this happening at our house if I was to leave on a Sunday afternoon while football is on...

One day my Mom was out and my Dad was in charge of me. I was maybe
2 1/2 years old and had just recovered from an accident. Someone had given me a little 'tea set' as a get-well gift and it was one of my favorite toys.

Daddy was in the living room engrossed in the evening news (or
Sports Center in our house!) when I brought Daddy a little cup of 'tea', which was just water.

After several cups of tea and lots of praise from him for such yummy tea, my Mom came home. My Dad made Mom sit in the living room to watch me bring him a cup of tea, because it was 'just the cutest thing!' My Mom waited, and sure enough, here I come down the hall with a cup of tea for Daddy and she watches him drink it up.

Then she says, (as only a mother would know... :) 'Did it ever occur to you that the only place she can reach to get water is the toilet?'

Now, that had to put a smile on your face!

Lord, Grant me patience to deal with my blessings...

That is an expression available in my Uppercase Living catalog that has always made me chuckle but now has personal meaning to me. Some days I think I should have it tattooed on my arm so I will see it all day long.

As most of you know from just reading this blog, my youngest "blessing" has been quite a challenge in her total 19 months and lately my patience feels shot. I feel like I could cry at a moments notice from as much exhaustion and frustration as I did when she was a newborn. And although I know that "this too shall pass" I'm afraid what we will "pass" onto next.

Let me just list the ways I've felt challenged lately so you can get a taste of what I'm going through:
Sickness. Not once, not twice, but 3 times now since October.
Teething. Constant. And never the same symptoms twice.
Erratic sleeping. We've now brought it up to 6:00 a.m. from 4:30 a.m. since the time change so I guess that's an improvement I should be thankful for but still...6:00 is early. And her naps have been pathetic.
Whining/Crying/Fussing. All the time this week. ALL the time. Yesterday and today she's cried if I pick her up, put her down, or left her lying on the floor. Nothing worked.

So that's all I have to say today. Pretty depressing blog I know but somehow I feel better and I guess if you have a moment to pray for me I'd appreciate it. Here's hoping that next week things will be better.
Thanks for listening.

Can I just say...

that I simply CANNOT wait for this weekend and the two FULL glorious nights of sleep I will get and that someone else will have to deal with my children who have decided to wake up progressively earlier as the week has worn on (4:45 this morning).
Along with the two glorious mornings of not having to fight with my 3 1/2 year old about what skirt, shoes, shirt she will or will not wear.
I will not have to listen to Sydney scream at me from her high chair for two full days.
I will have two days of no screaming, no "mines", no crying, no fighting, no disciplining.
That's 48 hours of pure adult alone-ness with my husband and a few hundred of our "closest" friends from church.
I simply cannot wait.

Election Day Baby!

Happy 34th Birthday today to my hubby. May this next year bring bigger and better things for you that involve all things CONSERVATIVE and REPUBLICAN!

(Ha! Did you think I wouldn't put in my plug today? Sorry.)

Guess we'll know by the end of the day if my birthday wish for Brad's upcoming year comes true...

Love you babe!

The big 3-0

Happy 30th b-day to my 'little' sis Tara! (She's the one on the right that doesn't look much older then 20, the one on the left is my other sis who truly isn't much older then 20.)

Ohh, to be 20 again...

Since I feel like the T.V. has been perpetually on since last Monday and I've also recently been accused (love you JZ) that I haven't given Raegan enough face time on the blog I thought I would quickly post a fun T.V.-less moment that we had this weekend in between illnesses (Brad and I both came down with the stomach flu two days ago after the family's long bout with nasty colds the previous week).

So Sunday afternoon we finally went to get pumpkins and although I had talked it up to Raegan several times I was doubtful that she would enjoy the messy fun as much as I was hoping (here at the Kreiders we've learned to meet most new activities with low-expectations so that we can be pleasantly surprised when Raegan loves them). So anyways, we got our pumpkins and talked about what faces we would carve, etc. and once I started carving and scooping I thought no way would she help me and touch the innards but, low and behold, she COMPLETELY shocked us by reaching in and squishing the guts to her hearts content for almost a half hour. She couldn't get enough and of course had to announce to me about 30 times in that 30 minute period that she was squishing the pumpkin guts and it was messy and I needed to watch her. Wow. I felt like we had crossed a major barrier of messiness that is usually intolerable for our little Type-A. Of course she followed up her unlikely behavior with very specific (Type-A) instructions of how to carve the faces, where to put the candles, where exactly to put the pumpkins on the front porch and then how long to leave the candles lit, etc.

Hey, we can't expect leaps and bounds. I'll take the baby-steps, it keeps life interesting around here.

Okay so I now see that I didn't get actual footage of her touching the guts, you'll just have to take my word for it. And yes, in case you were wondering, the tank-top and princess crown (on backwards) on a 35 degree evening were a very necessary attire specific to pumpkin carving; according to Raegan.

School makes me sick

So I was warned that once RG started school she would be bringing in all sorts of fun germs and illness and I'm starting to believe it. Of course it could also be that we are entering the "season" without flu shots (yet) and we frequent the germy mall tree house, the germy grocery store & Target carts, and the germy church nursery all several times a week. Guess I can't really blame it on just school but it feels better to pin-point it doesn't it?

So since Sunday we have had a range of symptoms from phlegmy coughs, sore throats, fevers, and lost voices. RG's cute quote of the week was when she finally got her voice some-what back and stated: "Mommy, my voice is talking again!"

Anyways, that would be my reason for lack of posting lately. I'm waiting for the self-medicated fog to lift and for my motivation to go beyond dragging my buns off the couch and up the stairs to this chair in front of the computer. Once I get here it feels like I have accomplished plenty and I can only muster enough thought to click on my email and Facebook. Pretty pathetic I know.

Yesterday I did, however, bundle up the kids and "drag" them outside for some much needed oxygen and it was actually good for all of us. Of course then it dawned on me that only a short few weeks prior I was doing the same thing in a tank-top and flip flops...which made me want to crawl back inside to the comfort of my couch. Yes, I miss summer.

But this kid, sick or not, is always good for some free entertainment. Goodness I could watch her all day long...

This girl

1. Takes after her father
2. Is so attached to her "Dee" (binky) that is drives me insane.
3. Is a never-ending source of entertainment.
4. Has only 8 teeth, none of which include her top-front.
5. Talks more then any other child her age I have met to-date.
6. Loves to antagonize her Type-A sister. Relentlessly.
7. Loves to hit. Constantly. And is unfazed by any sort of chastisement. She laughs at me.
8. Is a snuggler. Especially after she hits.
9. Is the loudest child I know. Happy, sad, mad...you will hear her before you see her.
10. Is why I have to get my grays covered every 6 weeks...and they keep increasing.
11. Was 18 months old on the 11th and I forgot to document it.

Love you Syd!!

Daddy/Daughter Craft Time

It never hurts to provide a simple option for Daddy to connect with his daughter(s). I mean, a man can only handle so many princess dress-up tea parties...you know?