Happy Birthday to Jeebs!!!!!

Today is Jeebs' 30th birthday. I would post some cute pictures of him if I had any on this computer, but as it turns out Jeebs has the computer with all my pics. I'll have to add some later. This won't be the greatest of birthdays. But, it can always be worse. Every year I try to make Jeebs a different Halloween themed cake. This year he has a chocolate cake with bought, yes bought, (the horror) cream cheese frosting piped on in little meringue looking kisses. Then Tater's helped me add sprinkles and I free handed some chocolate ghosts and a 3 and an 0 onto parchment, let it harden and then stuck it on his cake. I told him those are the ghosts of his twenties and teens slipping away- never to be seen again :) I'm only 6 months behind him :(

For Jeebs' birthday he's already gotten- 2 trips to Cagey's room to get him water in the middle of the night, a sick wife complete with mucus, cleaned up Cagey's vomit, and having to dump the recycling bins in the trash bins because he forgot to get it all out last night and we missed the recycling pick up :) Happy Birthday honey!!!!

A lovely walk to the duck pond.

So what is the worst possible thing that could happen at a duck pond? (besides somebody drowning- which Jeebs just informed me he almost drowned in a duck pond when he was 2) Yes, someone FALLS IN. It's 50 degrees outside and Cagey has been snotty and coughing. He's throwing in rocks on the little slope next to the pond. Then my worst nightmare happens- he loses his balance and the weight of his head starts throwing off his balance as he trips in slow motion closer and closer to the *&*#*^ (add any explicit lyric here) water. This water is disgusting- btw- it has tiny gross little fish, duck poop, mud, and who knows what else has grown this past summer in the heat. So as he goes in I'm trying to get to him- I'm only a few steps away- my stupid legs don't move so fast because my pelvis just doesn't hold them firmly in their sockets for the time being- he keeps going down an more in the water and more in the water. I kept thinking he's going to be able to stop himself surely- oh no!!! He goes ALL the way down -Hands and KNeES- jeanssoaked- boots soakeed- shirt SOAKED!!!! I had on a sweater over my undershirt- which is very form fitting- I rip off his soaked shirt, rip off my sweater and wrapped him in my huge sweater. I had to wheel him home on Taylor's bike while he whimpered from the cold and Tates drug his little super wheel thing behind her. I kept paying that Jeebs would drive by and save us, but to no avail. 2 seconds after i get home- get cagey in the tub and start the laundry-Jeebs walked in. I wanted to cuss-so I did.

Since no one else is bogging

Okay- since no one else is blogging- I thought I would yet again ramble here in my blog. We had a pretty fun weekend. Well for me anyway- I convinced Jeebs to go to a "marching" band competition on Saturday in Snow Hill- which is just under an hour's drive away. One of his young men is in the band and his band was performing at this competition. So- I thought it would be fun to go see the bands and to show a little support for one of his guys. Anyway, the style of marching here is way different than in Texas. I have to say I much prefer the military style marching bands to the show or corp bands. But, if that's all they have here in NC then I guess it has it's place. I was just remembering how much I loved being in the band and marching. I know it's pretty dorky to be all about band- but who cares? I loved stepping onto the field and hearing the announcer welcome the band and step off to the drums. It was such a rush. I was also a twirler- which I know also has some dorky stereotypes attached to it- but I really enjoyed performing. I hated the drama of being on that line though!!! gag!! So, my senior year I gave it up and just marched with the band- which was almost just as fun, but I had to wear a band uniform, which was hot, hard to put on, and not very pretty. I hope some day my kids have an interest in the band, but judging by the interest they had in the band competition- that's probably an unlikely scenario :)

So- today I'm recovering from sitting on the bleachers for 3 hours. My bum was numb halfway through. Afterwards we took a trip to Aldi!! Our first trip to Aldi- for those of you who have never heard of Aldi- it's this super cheap little grocery store. My little brother had hilarious stories from his mission in Chicago shopping at Aldi's. So, for him I took pictures to document our trip. We got canned goods for 49 cents and milk for 1.99! I was excited about the cheap milk. It kind of reminded me of shopping at the bread store when I was little with my mom. All the super cheap day old bread, pies, cookies, cakes, and cinnamon rolls. Except they had other things besides baked goods.

This week is Jeebs' birthday- things are not going great for Jeebs, but I hope he can have a happy birthday anyway. The big 30! He's already got the gray hair- so really it's been going downhill for a while :)

The Fair...

Monday night we went to the fair. It was really fun for the kids. As soon as we drove up Cagey started screaming about all the rides and how he wanted to ride this and that and everything. He nearly died when Taylor got to go ride the bumper cars with her daddy. (even though he had just gotten done riding them!) So after that I decided it was time to go home. Here are a few pics.

Jeebs actually liked the soup!

My grandma made a very tasty potato soup, think it was a lion house recipe, which she passed on to my mom, which passed it on to my sister and me. I love it- but jeebs is not a huge fan (shocker) because it doesn't have meat in it. So the last few times I've made it- I'll cook up some sausage or bacon or some kind of 'meat' for him to add at the last. He's never really said it was good or whatever, until tonight. He actually told me I should have tried it with the sausage and I said I did put sausage in my bowl- he said "really, cuz i thought it was pretty tasty". For Jeebs, that is a big compliment on my cookin'. It makes me happy. I finally made something he said was "pretty tasty". Work it!!!

Yes on Prop 8

You've been tagged. PLEASE READ THIS no matter what state you live in. Failure to pass Proposition 8 will hurt children. If gay marriage remains legal, public schools will put it on equal footing with traditional marriage. Children will likely receive “age appropriate” information about sexual relations within heterosexual and homosexual marriages.

Failure to pass Proposition 8 will hurt churches. The court’s decision will inevitably lead to conflicts with religious liberty and free speech rights. Society will become more and more hostile to traditional beliefs about marriage and family. Over time, greater acceptance of nontraditional marriage will be demanded of all people. This could impact the ability of any religion to teach and practice its beliefs, including adoption agencies.

A YES vote will not hurt gays. In California, the law provides for marriage-related benefits to be given to civil unions and domestic partnerships. Proposition 8 does not diminish these benefits.

For your information: On Friday, October 10th, 2008 a first-grade class took a field trip to witness a lesbian wedding in California. Click Here for the article from the San Francisco Chronicle.

A father in Massachusetts was frustrated when his kindergartner was taught about homosexuality at school by the teachers. He insisted he be notified in the future before such things were discussed so he could pull his boy out of school. He was taken to jail. Click Here for the story.

A Catholic adoption agency In the UK closed their doors because of the Government's new homosexual equality laws. The Equality Act forbids discrimination in the provision of goods and services on the basis of sexual orientation. The law was forced through Parliament last year despite past Prime Minister Tony Blair's recommendation that Catholic adoption agencies be exempted from the rules. Click Here for more info.

Earlier this month judges in Conneticut overturned the state law (just as the judges in California did) to legalized gay marriage. This is not just an issue in California. We voted years ago to keep traditional marriage as the only marriage recognized in the state of California, 4 judges overturned our vote…and we need to fight back. That is what this Proposition is about.

This is happening everywhere and the leaders of the church and others have warned that the outcome of California’s vote will affect the way the other states vote. So PLEASE…even if you don’t live in California, put this on your blog or email this on. The internet knows no state line. You know contacts in California that I don’t…and so do your friends. Please pass this on as it could eventually have an effect on everyone!

"Occasionally discouragement may darken our pathway; frustration may be a constant companion. In our ears there may sound the sophistry of Satan as he whispers, "You cannot save the world; your small efforts are meaningless. You haven't time to be concerned for others." Trusting in the Lord, let us turn our heads from such falsehoods and make certain our feet are firmly planted in the path of service andour hearts and souls dedicated to follow the example of the Lord." --Thomas S. Monson

Click Here for excerpts from the broadcast given by Elders M. Russell Ballard, Quentin L. Cook and L. Whitney Clayton. A good resource mentioned in the broadcast: http://www.preservingmarriage.org/

October 20th: Last day to apply for an absentee ballot if voting out of state. Click Here to get one.

October 27th: Last day to apply for “Vote by Mail.” Click Here for info.

November 4th: Election day. Polls close at 8:00pm. Vote by mail must be received by this time and can be hand delivered if necessary.

YOU'VE BEEN TAGGED...Here's what you do:In the broadcast we were asked to "go viral on our blogs, etc" by Elder Ballard. This is my way of going viral. If you feel this is an important issue I ask that you copy and paste this post...and post it on your blog. PLEASE keep it at the top of your blog through November 4th, which you can adjust each time you post under the "edit post" option.

Life is Good

Ya know when lots of things are going wrong- you sometimes are freaking out and you think what else could go wrong? Well, we've been having lots of things go wrong lately, but strangely enough I just feel ok with everything. I just know things will eventually work out. I know Heavenly Father sees the big picture and I just have to enjoy the ride. So, I'm not going to let this stuff get me too down and I'm going to enjoy the fact that my kids are healthy- I got to hear my little baby's heartbeat last week and so far my groin hasn't started hurting YAY! I guess things that don't kill ya make ya stronger- because before I lost my sister and all the things that happened to our family and to her- these little blips would seem huge. But, like my mamma says, "any day I wake up and nobody is being diagnosed with cancer, it's a good day!" Amen.

Taters is 6!

I can't believe I have a 6 year old and a nephew only one year away from baptism. I'm getting old. I guess it was bound to happen. Anyway, Tates is so excited to be 6, but while her best friend, Bart, is around she will never be happy with her age. He turns 7 in January and I'll hear all about how she wants to be 7 after that. I guess we all wanted to grow up fast.

Tates had a fun birthday- we took her to Chuck E Cheese and let the kids play and eat pizza. It wasn't miserable. There were hardly any other kids there and the pizza wasn't too terrible. The awful part of the day was having to go vote early (because Jeebs never got his voter registration card) and stand in line for 2 HOURS!! I thought I was going to scream. My back took 2 days to recover. The old people in this town were going extra slow. I wonder if they had decided who they were voting for before they got there or if they were debating it over in their minds while they stood at the booth- ARrRRGH. I love old people, just not when they're going freaking slow- and yes, grandma, I know you're reading over my shoulder and saying "Vanessa, you're going to be old someday." I know I will be old, but I'll still be fast- cuz that's how I roll :) Actually, thinking about it, I'll prolly be like that old lady in the Notebook- with alzheimers - and Jeebs will be reading me our life story- making up crap to make it sound like we did all kinds of cool stuff and like we really loved eachother hehehehehe-

Okay - back to Tater's birthday- She got a new.........................................BiKE!

Hooray for a Heartbeat!!

I had my doctor appointment this morning. I just realized it is the first time I've actually been to an OBGYN. I have only ever had midwives. huh. Anyway, it was a super fast appointment - doctor says everything looks great. Taylor came with me and so we both got to hear the little heartbeat. I was so excited and I'm now breathing a huge sigh of relief. There is actually a baby with a little heartbeat flipping around in there. Poor Cagey wanted to come along too, but I just couldn't trust him to sit still while I got examined like Tates does. She just stood there while I got checked out. When the doctor looked at the southern region I looked back at tates and she had her hands jammed over her ears. I don't know why she didn't want to hear anything. She's kind of crazy like that. The doctor seems really nice and he says he's sensitive to women who've had homebirths and then move to NC where not many people deliver at home. He says he wants to prove to me it can still be a good experience at the hospital and that if he gets off track to let him know. He seems like a good man. But, the thing is- he won't deliver my baby- it's whoever is on call when you go into labor- ridiculous. Anywho- one step at a time.

Shake it to the left, Shake it to the right

Peel your banana and OOMPH take a bite! That was a cheer I learned in kindergarten and for some reason it plays through my head all day long.

Anyway, Taylor has taken a new interest in coloring. She says she wants to be an artist. She has colored 5 pictures of horses in the last few days. Yesterday was a traumatic day for her- she had that worried expression on her face and told me her tooth hurt. I looked at it to see if she had a cavity or something noticeable, but I couldn't see anything. She told me she put it back in place with her tongue. I immediately got excited and sad at the same time- she's going to lose her first baby tooth! All of her primary class seem to have already lost several of their baby teeth so now she'll fit in with the rest of the crew. She didn't take the news so well that her tooth was going to fall out. She was crying and boohooing for about 20 min about it. Then I told her about the tooth fairy and she thought for a while and then thought of a new worry. "What if I wake up in the middle of the night and see the tooth fairy?" good grief. She has way too much of her mother in her. I drove my whole family crazy with my constant worry about dying. "I'm gonna die!!!" - they should've made me a t-shirt. Sorry mamma, daddy, glen, and yang- I think Page just tuned me out.

Cagey got a haircut on Saturday- he was very upset about it. I don't know what he hates about getting a haircut, but I tried a few days before Saturday and he had such a reaction I gave up. When I got back from putting the clippers away he said "did you put away the sharp?" Anyway, I started shaving his head and Jeebs came running around to the back of the house to make sure Cagey wasn't getting killed. He really hates it. I missed a few random hairs, but at this point it's really not worth the struggle.

I have my first doctor's appointment tomorrow and I will be exactly 12 weeks- according to the ultrasound guy from the ER. I'll be able to hear the heartbeat- and I just pray that everything is okay. This baby is already making me lose a lot of sleep. I'll have a full report tomorrow after my doctor's appointment. I'm sure every orifice will be violated in some way. I'm still trying to decide whether or not to have a home birth. I really DO NOT like the idea of having another hospital birth, but I really don't know about all the legal issues. I'm hoping that we will move before I have to make that decision. I had a dream last night our realtor was telling us that we had 4 offers on our house and there were 2 that we really needed to consider. Maybe that's a good sign:)

I love Halloween...

I've always been a little too excited about Halloween. There's something about getting to dress up, the spooky aspect and the glorious weather- if you don't live in the south. But, even in the south there's always a hope that we'll get some kind of cold front. Since we've got our house back on market I haven't wanted to put too many decorations up. But, my mirror over my mantle was just begging for a spooky something or other. I found a cute "Spooky" sign at Pier 1 and I made some bleeding candles. This was the final product.






Here's Cagey and his new boots- again with no pants.

Food glorious food

I've been obsessing about food lately. It has to be just the right food. It's really annoying. I've been trying to take it easy because of the problems I've been having and I get really bored and I eat. I stopped watching food network for a while because it would make me want to eat this or that or bake something. Well, I've been watching it again lately. There isn't really anything that I want, I just want something. I'd go shopping to take my mind off of it, but I usually end up spending money on things we don't need. The weather has been wonderful!!!! Today the high was 71- it was perfect, I just wanted to rollerblade all over our neighborhood or go for a hayride or something- but I didn't want to do too much. Tomorrow we have a realtor showing for 4 hours- hopefully something will come of all this cleaning :) We are hopeful!! We have enjoyed our time here, but the job has moved to Raleigh and there is nothing else here- we need to move on too. Oh man, I just wish I could go to Whole Foods and eat everything on the hotbar. It's probably a good thing right now that we don't live in Raleigh because I would spend SOOOOOOOOoooo much money on a variety of all kinds of food- especially at Whole Foods. I think some lettuce wraps from PF Changs would be tasty right now too. DANG- I gotta quit thinking about food!!! :)

This is for Glen- I used 'fun' as an adjective yesterday at Pier 1. I'm so ashamed:(

Triple D

Man, I've got to stop watching Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. At this moment I want some onion rings from fresh farm ranch in who knows where, picadillo enchiladas from Austin, TX, fresh ricotta cheese in Omaha, Nebraska, and some dadgum perogies from somewhere else I can't remember. Seriously, if you're hungry and/or pregnant do not watch this show. There should be an advisory at the beginning for husbands. "Husbands, do not let your pregnant, hungry wives watch this show without supervision. It may lead to several irrational outbursts when your wife realizes that most Diners, Drive-ins and Dives don't deliver 1200 miles away." Yeah, I don't know why I gain so much weight :)

A sad day...

Today was a sad day in the Nicolaysen household. My baby girl, Taylor, wears a size 7! I bought a little gymboree outfit on ebay that was a size 7. I thought "it'll be roomie, but she'll be able to wear it soon". Oh, I tried it on her when we got it today and it fits perfectly. I couldn't believe it. A 7!?! She will be 6 in a couple of weeks so it's not really a huge difference, I usually buy her a size bigger so she has room to grow. But, 7 makes me so sad- that's a little girl, not a baby or a toddler. I can't believe I have a baby in kindergarten/1st grade. She is growing up way too fast and so is Cagey. My mom always told me not to wish away my life and I've always wished different parts would get over- like when will they sleep through the night? when will they potty train? Well, I have both of my kids sleeping pretty much through the night and both completely potty trained. It's seems like only a few months ago I was gaining 3 pounds a week pregnant with Taylor, wrapping Cagey in a blanket and putting him in his crib, changing diapers and going to Good Earth every other week for organic baby food. I've decided I'm going to really enjoy this pregnancy- as long as everything goes well. Having had all the problems I've had, I'm paranoid every day. I haven't worked out in a week and a half and I feel like a total pudge, but that's ok- there'll will be plenty of time to lose weight after all my babies make it here safely. Please let this one make it here safely!