TGIF

I really don't have much to say tonight- but since I signed up to blog for 30 days straight I am going to make an effort to get something on here.  It has been a long week and I am so glad that the weekend has arrived.  Tomorrow we will all take our time getting up and getting started.  The kids will fight over the remote control and what shows to watch while I try and get the cleaning finished around the house.  Laundry needs attention, and it's time to purge some things and put away summer clothes (yes I am late on this one).  We have birthday parties in the afternoon- 1 for the kids and the other for Steve and I (yeah!).  We will then have a nice peaceful Sunday- no plans as of yet.  Steve is still recovering from knee surgery, so it may be a family movie day.  Have a great evening!

So long IPhone my old friend...

Tonight is my last night with my IPhone.  My 2 year contract is up tomorrow, and I will be switching over to Verizon's new Droid.  I am not entirely doing this of my own free will- my husband is pretty much ripping my IPhone away from me- but he has legitimate issues with my phone.  AT &T does not have the best coverage and I can't count the number of times that I missed his calls or a call was dropped.  His frustration over not being able to reach me is understandable- I was frustrated too...but I LOVE my IPhone.  It is my portable computer, my music/video player, my note pad, my new favorite novel-it is so much more than a phone.  From all the reviews on the Droid it looks like it will be able to do everything my IPhone does, but I am a little nervous about the learning curve.  Rumor has it that Verizon will be getting the IPhone in 2010...who knows, it may be a case of "so long but not good-bye".  IPhone- you will be missed!

It has been almost 2 weeks since football ended.  I have enjoyed the freedom of an open schedule.  We spend longer hours in the classroom- working on assignments, reading books, playing on the computer, or drawing pictures to our hearts content.  With it getting dark by around 5:00 the evening seems very long with the kids.  Although they do get opportunities to run-around during the day they have far too much energy at night.  Bedtime has gone back to becoming a battle and I wake up to cranky boys.  I planned to wait a couple more weeks before starting swim team...but I think they need to get back into physical activity (especially one that sucks the energy out of them).  So back to the busy schedule- and hopefully boys who look forward to bedtime.

November is National Adoption Month.

If you know me or have been following this blog you are aware that our daughter was adopted last year through the state foster/adopt program.  We joke that we could be the poster family for the foster/adopt program, but that we would need to add the phrase "Results not Typical".  Our beautiful girl came home at one day old.  When she was 4 month old she was legally free, and at only 8 months old her adoption was finalized.  Results not typical.  Our experience was amazing.  We didn't experience the bumps in the road that many foster/adopt families face.  We were prepared for them- they just never came.  We have several friends who have adopted through foster/adopt, and some have had a challenging ride, but in the end they would not have changed a thing. 

Celebrating National Adoption Month brings to light that all children deserve a place to call home and a family.  If adoption is something you have been considering don't let preconcieved ideas about foster children scare you away.  There are no guarantees when it comes to becoming a parent and biological parenting can be a risk too.  Becoming a parent is a leap of faith.  Educate yourself and jump.

My Chickens

When we moved to this house in April of last year one of the features that I was most excited about was the chicken coop. I have wanted chickens for a long time, and now I was going to be able to realize that dream (said with my tongue in my cheek!). So shortly after we moved in we joined our neighbor (and landlord) at a livestock auction to add some hens of our own to the coop. The auction was quite an experience and there were many chickens to choose from. We came in with the idea that we would be able to get some "pretty" chickens at a cheap price- but soon found that the pretty ones were going for more than we wanted to spend. I was getting discouraged- and the kids were getting a little desperate when I laid my eyes on 4 pretty Rhode Island Red pullets (a pullet is a young female chicken). I had wanted my hens to be laying already, but the price was right on these beauties, and so we bid on them and won them.

We brought them home to their lovely coop by the lilac bushes and we fed and nurtured them. We watched them grow (and grow) and we soon watched them out-grow all of the other chickens in the coop. I started to think we got some special genetic blend of Rhode Island Red chickens. We waited patiently for eggs to start appearing. It was hard to know if they were laying yet since there were other chickens in the coop, but when some oddly shaped eggs started appearing we were sure they were from our girls.

Then one morning I heard a rooster crow at dawn. Strange I thought since we had no roosters. When I went to the coop to feed them their daily scraps, I looked closely at my GIANT hens. They had beautiful tail feathers and a large comb and waddle. I had seen them before, but I was in denial. The last straw was when Brendan pointed out the talon's on the feet of the hens roosters! I could deny it no more. We had been waiting, watching, nurturing, and expecting eggs from roosters. The next morning I heard 4 roosters crowing. The neighbors love us.

We learned from this experience. After finding the roosters a new home, we spent a little more money on some hens that were already laying. No mistakes this time. Fool me once...

A love/hate relationship.

Over that last several months I have been in control of my eating.  I had conquered my sugar addiction- and my nightly fat snack was becoming a distant memory.  I thought I had it all under control.  Then my favorite holiday comes.  The kids know I love Snickers- so they offer me all theirs.  Ok...1 or 2 won't hurt anything, will it?  Before long 1 or 2 grows into a candy chow down.  The flood gates have been opened.  I feel sick.  I hate  love candy.  Back to the 21day fast I'm afraid...I think I need an intervention.