Happy Birthday, Cookie

We wanted to make a cake today, and Delaney said it was for Cookie's birthday (btw-Cookie is Delaney's webkinz). I guess he/she is 6 years old today. So-we had a cake and sang Happy Birthday. I'm sure (Jeff) Cozzo was happy that he was here to help us celebrate!

The Girls and Dogs like IKE!

After we got the basement mostly taken care of, the girls and dogs went out to play in the neighbors flooded yard. They had a blast, but because it was so cold, we didn't stay out long at all!

Damn you IKE! You flooded our basement

That's right...the 2+days that it has been raining straight in Illinois proved to be too much for our pump, which quit so conviently during the middle of the Bears game. We went downstairs to check out some annoying alarm going off. My VERY smart husband happened to buy a flood alert 6+ years ago when we moved here. Thank goodness for his thoughtfulness! It saved our basement!

I think it took about an hour to get the pump working again, after many failed attempts. We ended up only having about 2-3" of water, and since our basement is a split level-it only affected 1/2 of the room. I moved out the toys and stuff as quickly as I could as PJ worked on the pump. Then I ran and got the help of our awesome neighbor, who helped Pete with some stuff, like moving our heavy, HEAVY couch and the chair. Curt ripped up the carpet, I ripped up the padding, and Pete carried load after load after load (etc.) upstairs to the garage. Then we swept and shoveled the water to the pump. Once the pump started working, the water left quick.

I have a lot of laundry to do-like towels and such, and we purchased some fans to dry things out. Underneath the stairs is cleaned out-thanks to Pete and Cozzo. I guess I can go through that stuff now vs. this spring! ahaha

Luckily the water didn't even climb the bottom stair-so our carpet on the higher level in the basement is all good-as are all the toys and furniture. Thankgoodness (again) for Pete's smart move 6 years ago, our neighbor-Curt, and Cozzo. Whew. Now-it's time to relax...I mean do homework.

School, Butterflies, and Grasshoppers

The girls enjoyed their first full day of school...and their first Show-and-Tell Day. Delaney brought in her Webkinz, Cookie, and Katie (surprise, surprise) brought in her princesses. I have NO idea what they share with their classmates, because neither will tell me too much. But-when picking up Katie from school yesterday, she ran out with the biggest smile on her face and telling me all about the Big Bad Wolf who huffs and puffs and blows the houses in. It was pretty cute. She seemed a little dazed or distracted when I was watching her through the classroom windows during rug time, until it was story time. Delaney seemed a bit antsy when I peeked in on her class during Show-and-Tell time. Girls walked home, the 'secret' way, and enjoyed playing outside until about 6:30 or so. It has been so beautiful here lately, that our windows are open 24-7 (Thanks, Feldco!!!), and we've been outside quite a bit.

The bushes around our deck...that haven't been destroyed by Riggs napping on them, have bloomed and are attracting a lot more than a thousand bees this year. The very first day of school, the girls and I watched, touched, and were in awe of all of the grasshoppers, butterflies, and bees (which we didn't touch). It was pretty amazing.

Katie ended up finding a (sigh) dead grasshopper, so it became Delaney and Julia's pet. They made it a home, bed, and playground. So thoughtful!

Ahhhh...NFL! It's Great to Have You BACK!

Here's to our LOVELY CHICAGO BEARS! Not many expect much of you...but I'm hoping you can at least pull off a winning season, to match that of our beloved CUBBIES and the White Sox! Come on...make Chicago a WINNING CITY!

We all enjoyed breakfast this morning, with lighter hearts as the Cubs finally broke their 6-game losing streak to the Reds last night. We're getting all full with some yummy cheesy-scrambled, toast, and sausage so we can have enough energy to root on the Cubs this afternoon and DA Bears this evening! The girls even brought their doll and puppy to the table for our weekly weekend breakfasts together.

Rain (gear)...on a Sunshine Day

The girls new rain gear arrived just a day after the storms...go figure. But that didn't stop Katie from donning her new apparel and going outside. The best part, was watching Pete open the impossible package...and Kate letting him know that he wasn't very good at it! ahahah.

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

Well, the time has come (sniff, sniff) for Katie to start school. I was curious to see how she would do, as she's a bit more attached than Delaney. Luckily, Delaney went to school before Katie (i.e. all last year), and Katie saw how much Delaney LOVED it! Well, that love for school is either genetic (think of me...still in school at 31 years old) or Delaney's positive attitude transcended down to Katie.

Both were super excited, and couldn't wait to get dressed up for their big day. Both will have Show-and-Tell on Tuesdays. Delaney can't wait to bring "Cookie" (her webkinz) and, of course, Katie will be bringing her princesses (no surprise there). Here are pics from their first and second days of school.

And, the second day of school...rainy and chilly. Perfect for their new Puma warm-ups!

Hender-Q

We had our every-other-year BBQ...the HENDER-Q this year. It was a lot of fun, but tamer than the last one. I wonder if part of that is me being sober, cleaning throughout, and not enthusiastically begging people to do shots, have ghetto-pops, and enjoy Julie Dilly's jello shots. It was still a late night and many of our guests stayed until 2:30. Pete donned his Daisy Don'ts that were hanging hot tub side throughout, letting guests know what they had to look forward to or leave before. ahahha. All in all, it was another fun year. This year we even got a moonwalk for the kids to enjoy, along with the pool, swingset, and slip-n-slide!

Okay, Okay

So, once again I've become lazy in updating the blog. We've had some great things happen since I last posted, and for some odd reason, at night when the girls go to bed, I have little desire to do much of anything than just watch some tv and drift off to sleep. Actually the last week has been a little better (re: my exhaustion), which is a good thing, since my new crazy schedule at school has begun.

I'm starting to show...Yikes! It's too early, right? Ah well...I'm 15+ weeks, so being in maternity clothes for comfort isn't too bad...or is it? I think I started wearing them around 12 weeks when pregnant with Delaney just out of pure excitment, not necessity.

The girls have started school. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, Kate is so hyper, she's hard to control. She loves school, and in the two times she's been there, she almost is in tears when it's time to come home. She doesn't want to leave, and I think that's GREAT! Delaney is a pro at school, and think she'll be even happier next year when she gets to go on the bus, and go five days a week.

We had a short, but very sweet visit from Nana on Labor Day...we (she) planted flowers, transplanted my big plant, made deviled eggs, and played with the girls. See-it IS called LABOR day for a reason! ahahah. The girls already miss her and we're looking forward to our visit to Iowa at the end of the month.

Since I know most of you prefer the pictures and videos over my narration, I'll give you what you're looking for on here, and stop typing.