Thanksgiving 2012

Happy Thanksgiving!   I would love to post some pictures of the Thanksgiving dinner we all ate, which included my first attempt at my Mothers stuffing reciepe. However, the computer has other ideas. We also have two new kittens. Roman has been gone for a while and we suspect that he may not be returning. Norah is loving having the kittens around and carries them all the time.   We once again have much to be thankful for this year.   Norah and the "big" kids (Both of the "big" kids are now employed, Jess has 2 jobs!) Norahs' school and the amazing staff there A new Brink coming into the world this next year My Fathers improving health My Mother and Father just in general My Brother and his Wife (The new addition to their family, coming next year) (Yeah! I'm going to be an Aunt) My job, which is starting to look more stable and new opportunities that are presenting themselves Great neighbors The opportunity to live in such an interesting and beautiful place An absolutely amazing Husband that is doing his very best along with me to "step it up" and start talking about what direction we want to go in as a family   There is so much more that we are thankful for that is outside of our little personal world.   Happy Thanksgiving again.   Lori             

Halloween 2012

Our first Halloween in the big house. It was quite wet outside, so Norah's mermaid costume that her aunt got for her had to be covered up with a rain coat and rubber boots. We went trick or treating on our street and then over to the Trunk or Treat at the church by our house. Norah had a great time and happily snacked on her candy until she reached hummingbird speed. Luckily she crashed right around bedtime. We only had 1, yes you read that right, 1 Trick or Treator. We were all very disappointed. Maybe next year we will see if we can participate in the trunk or treat. We all LOVE seeing all the little kids in their costume's and watching them get all excited about the candy and games.

 This picture doe not adequately show the amount of glitter that was in her hair and on her face.

 Norah doing the "Monster Mash" at Trunk or Treat.

 These two were so cute. They had their trunk all decorated as a forest. Complete with mushrooms and deer.

 This guy lives outside of a house close to us. He (or she) is always dressed up. His Halloween costume was a cloak. Very funny!

Norah ringing a doorbell to beg for candy. There is a GIANT cement horse head on the front porch. This is not just for Halloween people that horse head is there all the time. It makes me think of the Godfather Movie.   Lori

Good Men

Norah will grow up to be a strong woman because she has a Daddy that loves her without measure. I know it to be true because I have a Daddy like that and my Mother and my Aunts had a Daddy like that as well.

Lori

The Days Fly By

The days seem to fly by so quickly. I wonder if it is part of getting older or if my time management skills have gotten even worse. There are a number of projects that we really need to get done around here before winter sets in. The air today has turned from hot yesterday to a gust of wind just a minute ago that actually made me shiver. The change in the seasons always seems to have a sense of urgency to it. Boo is busy sanding down the deck railing so that it can be painted this next weekend. The paint was chipping and exposing bare wood that would rot in no time out here. There are also a few boards that will have to be replaced. I have started trying to round up hats, gloves, coats and scarves. After last winter (our first one here) I think that a pair of lined waterproof boots are in order for each person.

We are attempting to not use the truck on the weekends if we have only small errands to run. This weekend we rode bikes up to the community center and registered Norah for ballet classes. We also hit the little farmers market here where Norah got to pet and feed carrots to a alpaca. Norah, Boo and I made up some purple play dough with glitter and lavender oil. We also made up just some plain pink play dough.

Still no word about my job at the surgery center. I dug out my resume and updated it, my references are still good (I have AWESOME references. Hi Melissa and William!) so if comes to it I can be ready in about a day to start applying other places. I will be very disappointed if it comes to that but as an adult I also know that sometimes you are just going to be disappointed.

Norah will have a full schedule this year as she goes to school, has physical therapy once a week, speech therapy once a week and ballet once a week. This past summer I think that she didn't get the interaction with other kids that she needed so we are going to try and keep that from happening again.

It's nice to be back in the cooler climate but we sure do miss our family back in Arkansas.

 

Lori

First Day of First Grade

 Today was Norah's first day of first grade. I was fortunate enough to be off work today, Boo made sure he was up and dressed to be there for his little sister on this special day. Norah was so excited the night before school that she was also a little nervous. She climbed into my lap and wanted to be held. This is not normal behavior for Norah. She very rarely actively seeks comfort in that way when feeling nervous or anxious. It was quite a surprise, a pleasant surprise.
All of Norah's little friends from last year were there at school today. It is going to be another good school year.
Norah still will have physical therapy once a week and we re adding speech therapy once a week and signing up for a beginning ballet class at the local rec center. She (and we) are going to be busy busy.

We just got back from Arkansas on Saturday. United Airlines had to send us back on Delta since someone forgot to put a fire extinguisher back on our first flight, thereby delaying that flight so much that we had to go on another airline. This little fiasco added 6 hours to our travel time. With Glen's issues and Norah's issues it made for a very challenging day with lots of tears and added physical wear and tear that were not appreciated at all. It would have been nice to hear a "Sorry for the inconvenience" or perhaps a couple meal coupons or something. However the state of air travel being what it is I guess we are just lucky they didn't herd us down a chute with cattle prods at our backs.

Mom and Dad look good. Arkansas is hot! Oh, so much hotter than I remember. It is easy to forget when we live in such a cool climate now. We cleaned and painted and moved things around. We spent a couple days at the VA with Dad getting test done and checking out a great day program. We went shopping with Mom and had dinners with family and extended family. We drove by our old house in Cabot. It looks wonderfully cared for and tidy, with flowers on the front porch and the yard mowed and edged. Norah was totally spoiled by her Nana and her Aunt. I think she ended up getting at least a Barbie a day, along with a mermaid costume and a beautiful tulle dress. I didn't even get to see my friend from my old job there until Friday night. She had been hard at work most of the week and sick a day or two. Friday night though she called and said come over. We talked till 1 in the morning. I so needed it. I miss having my friends so close. As it stands now they are scattered from Arkansas to Utah.

It's hard to see Mom and Dad getting older. It seems like for a long time I saw them as immortal in a way. When you have had such loving parents as I have had it is really hard to even imagine a world without them in it. Then again maybe I am being selfish and just want to keep my cheering section around. (;
I have some pictures from the trip that I need to get up on here. I will try and do that soon. It is back to work tomorrow.

Lori

Back Down South

We are at my parents house this week. It is hot, hot, hot. I almost forgot how hot it is down here. Dad is not doing to well. We spent about 8 hours at the VA hospital yesterday and he has more appointments on Thursday. Norah is doing well and loves getting to see her Nana and Popi. She has even been pushing his wheelchair for him. Boo and Jess are holding down the fort back in Seattle. Pictures to come shortly.

fish tank photos

This is the fish tank big enuff to fit Norah in, it will have more lights on it soon these are just temp till they come in.

 



 

21

Well, Boo has made it to 21 years old. I am proud of the person he has become. Boo is super lovey and sweet. If you needed it he would literally give you the shirt off his back and help you put it on. I woke up on Boos birthday to find him in the kitchen making waffles (from scratch) with one hand while holding his sister wrapped in her blue blanket on his hip with his other arm. He picked pizza and chocolate chip cookies for his birthday dinner. Low key and perfect for a birthday. Then a couple days later he and Norah got to have 7 11 icees for the first time ever. Needless to say they are both hooked.  Jess and Boo are now on the search for jobs. They are still finding their way around, getting their bearings and settling in to the downstairs. All things that must be done when starting over.
Jess it turns out is a fabulous cook as well. She made some cinnamon rolls last night that were amazing. She may very well be a chef in the making.
Glen is starting to get his fish tank set up (the HUGE one). It has become an obsession, obviously. I have never known anyone that can be so focused and so not focused at the same time. A trait that can have its ups and downs. One of the ups is that we are going to have a massive (120 gallon) gorgeus fish tank that you see as soon as you open the front door. Pictures to come later.

Lori

Art Festival and other stuff

These are from the art festival in town. It was about 3 weeks ago, I think. There is a Solar Festival coming up at the end of July that everyone in the house wants to attend. They are supposed to have solar cars, cooking options, panels and much more. Yes, we are huge geeks.
So far the new neighborhood has not disappointed us. Everyone seems very nice but also tends to keep to themselves. We are slowly but surely making progress on the projects around the house and yard. Next Friday is going to involve another huge trip to the dump/yard waste facility. We are trying to utilize as much of what was left with the house as possible but there is still a large amount of yard waste and other stuff that has to go. I also have found that a power washer is my best friend. That thing is awesome! cleaning projects that would take forever to do by hand with a brush and soap can be done in no time at all and with minimal effort (as long as you don't count the aching arms for a few days afterwards minimal).
I think that it would be really neat to have a few chickens. Not this year, because this year is FULL already but next year, next year I think that I would really like to have some chickens in the backyard. Norah would get a huge thrill out of it and i like the idea of sitting on the porch and watching the chickens scratch around and find bugs. It seems like it would be very calming. I'm not sure what they are called but I want the ones that look like they are wearing pantaloons.
Boo turns 21 tomorrow. Wow! that makes me feel very, very old.

Lori

AND........we're back

Here are a few pictures of our new house. These were taken during the estate sale that the were having right before we bought the place. Ever since then things have been kicked into high gear (hence the miserable lack of posting) (Sorry Mom and Dad). There is so much to do, still. Brandon and Jess arrived on the fourth of July and are busy trying to settle into the downstairs and help around the house. My job is kind of up in the air since the small surgery center that I work for is being bought out by a big hospital. I am hoping to stay there but we still have not been told if we will be part of the merger. Yeah! I love uncertainty. Norah has completed kindergarten and started summer school this week. She will be moving on to the first grade this next school year. Her kindergarten teacher that we adore will be her teacher again in first grade and is teaching summer school too. We are flying back to Arkansas in August to visit my parents. I am so excited to see them. Norah got a package in the mail today from Nana, of paints and stickers and barbie clothes. She was in heaven! She signed that Nana and Popi love her and sent her a suprise.

There really is so much going on right now that it is almost overwhelming. I am not a good juggler when it comes to having my plate to full. I tend to just shut down and not be able to get anything done. Here is to hoping that the arrival of summer here (FINALLY) will motivate me to get my butt in gear and not focus so much on if I will have a job at the end of the year. Yikes! I think I need a nap.

ABCs

7th Birthday

Happy Birthday Norah! The big 7! The day started off with a phone call from Nana to sing her Happy Birthday! Mom always makes sure to call and sing Happy Birthday to each of us on our special day. It's my favorite part of birthdays. Glen got Norah's birthday stuff together and made sure everything was at the school for her party this afternoon. We were very fortunate that Norah's school encourages the kids to have parties there. Especially since over half of our house is packed up and ready for the move. The other half is laying all over the floor. Yikes!
They started out with a big banner for Norah over the door that goes into their classroom. Norah also had on her special "It's My Birthday" shirt.

Then at the end of the day all of the kids came in and had cupcakes and sang Happy Birthday.

There was even a crown with a 7 on it for the birthday girl.

Someone was just a little excited to get her presents.

Yeah! A new puzzle.

So sweet, all the kids and Norah's teachers put together a fantastic card for her and they even bought her a present. Nihao Kai-lan coloring book and story book. After all the treats we all spread out on the floor and put the puzzle together. So fun!
There were more presents after dinner at home. It was a wonderful birthday for Norah and she (and we) loved spending it with the kids and Norah's teachers.

Lori

Moving!

Last weekend we found a great little park that is 0.4 miles from where our new house is. It also had a really nice play area for Norah. We even ended up meeting some of our new neighbors there.

 Norah was joking around when we told her it was time to go. She put our "beach" bag on her head.

 This is what we have been doing this weekend. Packing AGAIN! It seems like to short of a time period since we last had to pack everything up. At least this time we don't have to drive half way across the U.S. It amazes me how much stuff we have accumulated in our short time here and how much stuff we were actually able to stuff into this little place. We will be closing this week sometime, hopefully around Wednesday or Thursday, then we should get the keys late Thursday or Friday morning. So next weekend we will be moving into the new house.

Even Roman is getting into the moving spirit. Glen has been working with him on getting used to his carrier. Last time he had to ride in this thing he pooped everywhere. Let us hope that there is not a repeat performance.
We got Norah's EEG results back from the pediatric neurologist. There was no indication of epilepsy or "spikes" that would indicate seizure disorder. Yeah! They and we are hoping that it was a one time deal. She has been doing fine other than a slight stuffy nose this weekend that I think may be due to allergies and us stirring up a whole lot of dust while packing.

Lori

The Many Faces of Norah - Age 6

Sometimes when we are in the car we give Norah the iphone so that she will be still and quiet for a minute so that we can figure out where the heck we are OR just have an adult conversation without someone calling "momma" or "Daddy" no less than one million times (i am NOT exaggerating). Today after we got home from going to the park we found these pictures on Glen's phone. Apparently while she was being all nice and quiet in the backseat she was also practicing the many faces of Norah. Hilarious!

I often wonder, what is going on up in that head of hers. Does she have some kind of running internal dialogue. "Oh, I like that face." "I could use that sad face on Daddy. I would totally get whatever I wanted." "That is a good face for when I want to look distant and like I really don't care." "So that's what the underside of my tongue looks like." There is no telling.

Lori


P.S. Eleven more days till closing! I can not wait to get out of this apartment. They have even stopped mowing the grounds at the apartment so now it looks all neglected. Yeah!