a.rose

Tonight I tried to take the pictures off of Devin's computer and put them on my computer.  He doesn't like to have pictures taking up space on his work computer.  I put 200 or so pictures on a CD, then tried to put them on my computer.  Only 87 of them loaded.  The others it said were not in a format compatible with my computer. Does anyone understand why that might be? As far as I can tell, they are all .jpg, and they were all working on his computer, and I think they were all taken on the same camera even.  Why would some come over, and not others?  Any thoughts on what I could do to get them all? At least I got a few pictures.  Enjoy a little stroll through memory lane with me, if you'd like.  A white peacock at the zoo.  And no, that's not one of my girls. That is my friend's daughter. Bald eagles!  Cool!  Baby Goat!  Do you think we'll really get one in the spring?  I am crossing my fingers...  Heather on her blessing day.  She had

Once, Devin went to China.  His trip happened to be the same weekend as my brother's birthday.  And then, wouldn't you know, his wife had the baby and they were going to bless him that same weekend! How could I not go?  Once I overlooked the fact that it would take me two days to drive there, and two days to drive back, with a four year old, a two year old, and a six month old, the whole thing seemed really exciting and fun! and now, PICTURES.  It is really flat between Nebraska and Michigan. Really, really flat.  You probably knew that? Wouldn't it be fun to drive that car? One time the girls were being really quiet, and I turned around to see what they were doing (sleeping?!) and this is what I saw.  I don't know why. And then there was a helicopter. I love family get togethers, don't you?   Yes, my brother is taking a picture of me taking a picture.   Classic. Welcome to the family, Wi

You know when you're young, and you think you'll be young forever and ever and ever ?  And it is sort of fun to be young, because you are so beautiful, fresh and innocent that you practically sparkle , but then it is sort of a drag because adults get to do all the really cool stuff? And then you go to high school, and you feel like you've hit the big leagues, hanging with the big dogs, like your life is big time now baby?  And then you graduate from high school and you're really strutting around because boy oh boy, you're going to college ! You're moving out on your own, maybe even with super cool roommates .  You are going to do your own grocery shopping (oreos and chicken nuggets), and your own laundry (maybe). And then, quite suddenly, you find yourself graduating from college, getting married, having children, watching those children grow up up up ! and the next thing you know, you are only a few months away from having 30 candles on your cake, an

The girls and I went to the mall today.  We were stopped every five minutes by people who wanted to talk to my girls, tell them how pretty they are, how well behaved, how sweet.  Or they wanted to stop me and tell me that I look just like they did when they were young moms, or how brave I am to go out with my kids but how I must be a good mom because they are all such nice girls. That's the reception I am used to.  And obviously, it makes me feel good.  Obviously, right? We were hanging out at the play area.  I made one small choice.  The consequence of that choice was that a lady standing nearby criticized me severely in a biting tone. I collected my girls and we quickly left, I was working to fight back tears.  I would like to think that I am normally confident enough that I can take criticism, digest it, and value it for what it is worth.  This lady's words hit me in the face like a swarm of angry hornets and it stung all day.  Because she was right.  If Devin, or my

You know I love naps.  Love isn't really strong enough of a word. Revere?  Adore?  VENERATE. Yes, oh yes.  Naps. You can see I've taught my children well. Well, I'm still working on this one.

We went on a walk today.  Actually, I went on a walk.  Hallie was riding her bike, and Hanna and Heather were sitting back, cruising along double-stroller style.  The sun was shining, giving the earth one of its last few warm embraces before winter comes and blankets us with heavy snow.  Hallie was pedaling furiously in front of me, her feet and her mouth going a mile a minute.  The wind rushing past swooped her words away from me, and I could not pick out any distinct words.  I listened then to the steady rush rush of her voice, watched her tan little legs hurrying up and down, up and down, her slim back postured up so straight and tall.  She talked on and on, the wind carrying her voice up up and away to where only angels could hear.  My ears missed her words, but my heart caught the meaning in her voice. Enjoy this moment, Mama.  You may have a million more moments like this one, every day feeling exactly the same, but sooner than you know I will go to kindergarten, quickly follo

I've been struggling with some ADD type thinking difficulties, combined with extreme forgetfulness, in addition to exhaustion, on top of a morose-like almost depression type mindset.  All of which made me realize that I needed to have my TSH levels checked again.  Bingo.  I just got back from the pharmacy, and am hopefully on the way to feeling better again. I've had so many things flashing through my mind but they don't stick in long enough for me to formulate an entire blog post, but they are beating me down - almost as though my thoughts don't feel like they have been fully appreciated, fully thought about, until I have written them down.  Here's to you, Thoughts. Hanna has been making me laugh lately.  She will suddenly yell, "Don't be an elephant-dan!" And we all try really hard to not be "elephant dans", as if any of us know what that is. Right now I am typing this blog post on the left half of my screen, the right hand open to i

Some of you may recall that I get strange mail sometimes, in particular from the Marlboro Man.   We are pen pals, I suppose, although the relationship is shockingly one sided to be honest.  Most recently he has sent me the opportunity to Win! A Trip!  to the Bahamas! Scratch Here!  But I couldn't help but think that it would be terribly awkward if I won, and then requested a "No Smoking" room on their dime. I also think it is sad that Devin is the one that gets all the mail from Mitt Romney's campaign, all the letters starting with phrases like, "We're writing to you because you have shown yourself to be a strong supporter of the Republican Party and..." when Devin walks around murmuring how he'd like to declare himself an Independent because everyone is ridiculous anyway and I'm the loyal Republican around here, but have I ever gotten noticed? No.  Am I the one that is on all the email mailing lists for my local government leaders? Yes. Have

I keep thinking that I want to write in my blog.  I sit down at my computer, and I stare at the screen.  I stare at the little piles of notes, and bills, and m&m wrappers scattered on my desk.  I stare at my fingernails that need to be filed and repainted.  I have stories I want to tell, pictures I want to show, and general and exciting news to share, but my brain is so liquid right now that thoughts just float around like lost ice cubes, and when I try to grab for them I realize they have already melted away.  That said, I am determined to try and tell you the Story Of The Peacock.  If it doesn't make any sense, if you feel bewildered after reading, just let me know and when my brain takes on some semblance of functionality again I'll try to rewrite it.  Maybe I'll just keep it simple. My grandpa was visiting us. Devin took the day off of work. We went to the zoo. We walked around, enjoying the nice day, seeing the animals, and spending time together. We

I wasn't going to be held back this time.  I had been thwarted over and over by this and that and a hundred little nothings that all add up to a day gone by and I still hadn't managed to go. Yesterday, I stood a little taller and said enough was enough.  I was going to lace up my running shoes, strap my babies into the jogging stroller, and see the world! But first I had to wait until everyone was awake from naps, and everyone had gone potty, and everyone was wearing pants, and Hallie had her running shoes on because, well, I don't have a triple jogging stroller you know? It is incredible how long it takes four people to get ready so one person can go for a run.  When I started the process the skies were blue, the sun was shining, little birdies were chirping from their lofty branches.  As I began putting on the final pair of shoes however, I noted the sky had dimmed.  Undaunted, I pressed forward.  This thing would happen! As we walked toward the door to go outsid