Thanksgiving at school...

Today John took the day off from work and we went to the kids' school to check out what they've been doing for the past few months. Nate gave a speech for a book report on Magyk. I'll post a picture of the boat that he created as a visual when I get it back from the teacher. Amanda had a party in her classroom with all of her friends. Nicole's class put on a play about the pilgrims and she had a solo speaking part in it!

After school, Grandma and Geri took the girls to see Bolt the movie in 3-D. They all had a wonderful day!

Popcorn sales - again...

We made the decision as a pack to buy extra popcorn to sell at a local grocery store. The only problem was that everyone was busy at this time of year. Nate volunteered to spend the whole day Saturday selling popcorn to help the pack out. Just to set the stage, it was FREEZING cold that day, the girls were throwing up all night so nobody slept well, and Nate had a HUGE homework assignment due on Monday. Still, someone had to sell that popcorn so the pack didn't end up losing money on popcorn sales, so off we trudged to the store.

Nate was such a good salesman, and a good sport. Whether the customers at the store ignored him, berated him, or praised him, he thanked them with dignity and told them that he hoped they had a wonderful day. He understood that some people couldn't afford and/or didn't choose to buy popcorn, and that we couldn't judge them just on whether or not they bought our popcorn. He served everyone with a smile and enjoyed every moment of it. What a great Cub Scout! The other boy in my picture is a younger brother of a Cub Scout in Nate's den (and his class) who was busily working on the previously mentioned HUGE homework assignment for Monday and couldn't help that day.


One final note: There was a Salvation Army collection person sitting right next to us that kept reminding people to support the Cub Scouts. He was a huge help to getting people to buy popcorn. They would stop in their tracks, turn right back around, and listen to Nate's pitch with a smile. I can't believe I didn't get a picture of him, but we owe him big time. We enjoyed chatting and working with him!

YUCK!!!

Last night I put the kids to bed like normal and started picking up the house before I went to bed. Just as I was getting ready to crawl into bed at 11pm, Amanda came running down the stairs and told me that she didn't feel well and there was something all over the floor. I think you can guess what was all over the floor and I could too. Especially after I caught the aroma drifting down the stairs. She had thrown up, all over her floor, bed, dresser, walls, and even the bedskirt. You name it, it was covered. I put her to bed with Daddy and worked on cleaning her room.

I finally crawled into bed at 1am and was sleeping soundly when Nicole came into the bedroom at 3am and told me that her forehead hurt. I gave her medicine and sent her back to her room after cuddling for a few minutes. She came tearing back into the room a few minutes later and told me that SHE had thrown up in her room. I was back at work again cleaning another room from top to bottom. By that time I was feeling sick and thought for sure I had gotten it. I think though that at that point it was just a combination of lack of sleep and wading through the cleanup that got me. So far I'm okay. I just know I'll be getting it soon though.

Nicole is much better now and just wants to be held. Amanda got a worse case of the bug and she is STILL throwing up as I write this. She says she feels better and has longer periods between getting sick, but she's still not well. She just wants someone to be with her but doesn't want to be touched. They are so different it surprises me! I just hope this bug goes away quickly:(

I didn't think you'd need to see pictures this time. You can easily imagine the mess...

The tooth fairy has been busy...

Two weeks ago, I thought Nate had really messed his mouth up. One of his canine teeth fell out and I panicked. I went on the Internet and found out that it is SUPPOSED to fall out between the ages of 10 and 12, which means he was right on schedule. This week it was AMANDA'S turn! She had both bottom canine teeth taken out yesterday. She was a real trooper! She came out of the dentist's chair asking for her ice cream, ate normally all day yesterday, and was just fine today. Here's what it looks like:

Kind of scary, but not painful at all. Now we get to work on straightening the rest of those bottom teeth.

Back from Grandpa's House...

We got back early today from Monitor and the kids immediately went to the playroom to catch up with their games and movies. We all had a wonderful time this weekend. I went shopping in Wenatchee with a friend, and looked at the beautiful fall colors, the kids picked all kinds of apples and pears, Amanda watched the horses frolic in the field, the guys fixed the van, Nicole worked on the driveway, Nathan trimmed a tree for Dad, and the dogs enjoyed roaming the yard all by themselves! I played Scrabble with the kids and we all read books together. It was such a relaxing weekend! We really needed it after a busy week of Brownies, Cub Scouts, Boy Scout meetings, and birthday parties.

Skating is fun!

I took the kids to a birthday party at the skating rink tonight. I can't believe how much they loved it! Nate was a natural and was amazing on his inline skates. Amanda tried her hardest and finally was able to go around 5 times without falling down (after many first attempts). Nicole never really got the hang of it, but she enjoyed spending time with all of her friends from the old school. They had pizza, cake, and got to play on the bouncy toys too. After we got home from skating, we immediately packed the van up and headed off to Grandpa's house in Monitor. We enjoyed seeing all the snow in the pass, watched a long movie, and arrived at Grandpa's house just in time to crawl into bed. We're looking forward to having a relaxing time and letting the dogs run free!

We have guests staying with us...

Linda and Geri left on vacation today and let us keep the dogs for the time they are gone. So far it's been interesting. Teddy follows me around constantly, making sure I'm not leaving him. Sassy is content just being with us and laying around, while Teddy insists that I sit down several times a day just to hold him. They love going for their morning and evening walks which is really forcing me to exercise. Teddy sleeps with Amanda and Sassy insists that Nicole's bed is perfect. They tolerate Nate and he tolerates them but they don't really interact all that much. We'll see how the rest of the week goes!