Wednesday, March 30, 2011

boring

I am the most boring person in the world.  I bore myself which is sad since I'm the person I'm with most of the time.

Can a person sleep too much?

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Grandkids

Well, some of my babies are gone.  They've headed back to Kentucky.

All my kids & grandkids live here in Wichita except for my daughter, son-in-law and 3 little ones.  They were here for 2 wonderful weeks.  It was noisy, the house was dirty, there was major chaos but I don't mind so much really.  Told Brayden, he's 3, that I'd miss him and he said "I miss you too Gramma".  What a sweetie.

A few things about each of my grandkids.

Jacob 6 - The first grandkid.  He's active, loves Ben10 stuff, his DS, and has had a mad obsession with dinosaurs his entire life.  Loves his Gramma.

Ellie 6 -  The first granddaughter..  She's loves all things princess. She can be "all girl" or  a "all tomboy" depending on the time and place.  AKA EllieGirl.  Loves her Gramma.

Caedmon - 4  The first of the 3 boy cousins all born within 5 months of each other.  He's smart, funny, has his own opinions about things.  Loves all things Batman.  Loves his Gwamma, aka Gramma.

Gabriel - 4  A sweetie of a boy!  Gabe love to play.  He would make a perfect only child because he's happy either on his own or in a group.   Very cuddly.  AKA GabyBaby.  Loves his Gramma.

Malachi - 4  Very cuddly.  A definite introvert.  LOVES computers, cell phones, video games.  Is going to be a supersmart brainy nerd.  aka Kai Kai.    Loves his Kai Kai, aka Gramma.

Brayden - 3 Super active boy!  Loves matchbox cars & trains.  He jumps, darts, rolls and is totally fearless.  aka Mijo.  Loves his Mija, aka Gramma.

Kylie -2 Adorable little girl.  Loves elmo. Happy all the time.  Likes to sing and loves her Daddy.
Loves Gramma

Abigail -1 The baby(so far).  She's funny & huggable.  Like her Mommy she has 3 older brothers and can hold her own among them.  They best not mess with her or endure her wrath.  aka Abbi or BooBoo.  Loves her Gramma.  

I could write for hours about each of these kiddos.  All different in so many ways.  I love to have them here all at the same time.  Holidays when everyone can be here are the best.   Right now I'll just enjoy the quiet for a time and look forward to grandkids coming over.

Monday, March 21, 2011

Spring Break

I'm tired and need a nap.  My house is 3/4 way to being a total disaster.  I'm so far behind on laundry.  Glad the kids don't have school because it doesn't matter what they wear.  


It's beautiful outside.  I have at least a full day's work that needs done to clean the garage.  About the same amount of time for each yard, front & back.


*sigh*

WORST game of Whack-A-Mole. ever.

Let me first say.  I ABHOR basketball.  I don't care who is playing or why they are playing.  I don' t care to watch 8+ games a day.

Saturday.  One of the kids notices there is water in the backyard.  Upon inspection by Heather it is determined that sewage is backing up out of the clear-out pipe.   So, the clear-out pipe is what you snake when you have a clog......but what do you snake when the clear-out pipe is clogged??

Where are the men?

My clear-out pipe did not have a cap on it because one of our dogs ate it about 10 years ago.  I  mention this because this is a WONDERFUL thing.  Had I had a cap on there the sewage would have had no where else to go but back up into the house.  Oh wouldn't that have been a pleasure!  Yeah, NO.

Where are the men?

First plan of attack was to send the hose down with a high-pressure nozzle on it to see if we could dislodge the clog.  No such luck.  Some things came up......this is where the title to the post came from.  My oldest son was outside watching.  Yes, watching.  It was dark and he turned on his cell phone flashlight.  At one point I told him to point it back on Heather as she was having to grab "things" coming up out of the pipe so they did not go back down.  That's when Jarrett said, " Worst game of whack-a-mole ever!".   I should probably  mention now the protective rubber gloves Heather is wearing.

Where are the men?


So, dark, raining, still clogged.  We gave up for the night.

Sunday.  I make a trip to Home Depot.  Mike, the son-in-law, goes grocery shopping.  Husband cooks his famous french toast and bacon for breakfast. I then run to another son's house to pick up a small hand auger that he has.  Try the auger in both toilets. Nothing.  Put a cap on the clear-out pipe thinking maybe just a little back pressure will flush out the clog.  Nope. This is getting serious.  We are nearing "call the plumber" stage.
I go to Home Depot, again, and rent a very large electric 100 foot sewer snake.  Heather and I wrestle it into the back yard and get started.  God bless her.  She's the one standing in the muck feeding the snake into the pipe.  I'm standing on dry ground about 4 feet away working the power on the snake machine.  I did occasionally have to do the following things for her....pull her pants up for her.  Push her hair out of her face.  Get a piece of hair out of her mouth.  Let her scratch her face against my shoulder. etc.

Where are the men?


We did get a bit of supervision (from the men) after a few attempts to snake the pipe.  After about 30 minutes or so, and 50 feet of snake,  Heather finally broke through the clog.

I won't describe it.  Trust me and just be thankful for that.

So, total $ spent today to unclog the main drain from the house - $65.   No clue what a plumber would have charged but I'm sure it would have been much more.

I'm very proud to have a daughter who takes after me and isn't afraid to fix things herself.  I've learned a lot of stuff doing things like this as they came up.  I've replaced thermostats on clothes dryers (easy).  I've replaced spark plugs and wires on a Miata, I removed and replaced an alternator on my son's old truck.  I can change a tire.  I can change my oil & filter (if I wanted to). etc.

So you men can have your basketball March Madness or whatever, but don't holler at us if we don't put your tools up exactly how we found them.  The toilets flush and that is what's important here.

We defeated the Whack-A-Mole!

Friday, March 18, 2011

Phlegm

*SIGH*  A conversation I had with Davis this morning.

Davis - You know that stuff that you cough up in your mouth?  And you either spit it out or swallow it?
Me - Yes, what about it?
Davis - Mine is green.  Here, I'll show you. (Sticking finger in his mouth)
Me - NO! I don't want to see it.  Go spit it out.  I believe you.
Davis - Sometimes when I'm in bed I swallow it.  Or, I put it in your ear. (laughing).
Me - You're disgusting!

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

There is something seriously weird about my kids.

What is wrong with my kids??!! Lots of name calling in the car on the way home from school! 

Rylie: You're Benjamin Franklin!
Davis: No, you're Benjamin Franklin!
Davis: You're John Wilkes Booth!
Rylie: Well, if I'm John Wilkes Booth then you are Abe Lincoln! *pause*    OH BURN!

My kids are nerds!!