Two Mystery Flowers:

Flower #1:

Flower #2

These are not actual photos from my yard, but I do have them here. I was just too lazy to put the memory card back in the camera.

Wasp Stings and other Things

Hi there,

Well, we found out yesterday that Craig developed an allergy to wasp stings. He was stung twice on his route yesterday and had a pretty bad reaction. No anaphalactic shock or anything, but SEVERE hives. He now has to carry an epi-pen when he is outside. His comment on the whole thing was :"It would be nice to continue having one member in the family without a medical issue" hahaha! Between me and Mason and our own allergies and other things, Craig WAS the only one without anything. I just welcomed him to the club!

I am on psuedo bedrest right now. Having a few contractions and other things going on last week. Went in for monitoring on Friday and was sent home with many restrictions. It is pretty boring, but at least it is not full bedrest like it was with Mason. This coming weekend I can try adding a few things to my day and see how it goes.

The nice thing about this, is I am not so rushed or trying to accomplish so many things, so Mason and I are having a lot of quality time. I think he kind of likes it too, although I can't run around with him or take him anywhere.

WARNING: If any men are reading this, you may not want to read the next part. FYI
At the hospital I had to be "examined" and it was a resident. A nice resident, but I heard him mutter under his breath "I can't find the cervix". This had also happened when I was pregnant with Mason. I am not sure where the cervix can go, or how hard it is to find it, but apparently mine likes to play hide and seek with the residents. So that was a lovely "exam"

Heat has left and so has the humidity, but I think it is coming back tomorrow. It has been nice to be able to breathe again!! i hope everyone else is cooling down and enjoying more tolerable weather. I am going to try to put some camping pictures on here soon.

What's Wrong with this Picture?????

Now how did this happen????? 'Tis a puzzlement!!!!!

I HATE this HOT weather!!!!

Just want to let everyone know that it is hot here in Tomahawk, too. I hate it!!! Today Mr. Jim and I have to sit at the Historical Society for 2 hours. It's our time to volunteer. They have fans but no airconditioning. We don't have it at home either but it's always hotter in town.
OK, Jolee, the flower is on the milkweed plant. I never noticed that they had flowers before. I'm waiting to see if it forms a pod. Will keep you posted.
Poor Mason!! Just blow up one of your air mattresses for him to fall on.
I'm off to sit in front of a fan. Keep cool everyone.

Can't Stop Movin'

Well, I am up at 1:30am because I have Restless Leg Syndrome in my left leg. I had this when I was pregnant with Mason, but it didn't start until about 28 weeks. I am at 22 weeks now. At that time, I just called it "Crazy Legs", but now there is a real name for it. It is HORRIBLE!!!

My left leg won't stop moving, and feels horrible if I don't move it. It woke me up tonight and it won't settle down. 18 weeks to go!!! I can't wait!! I have never been more excited for fall to come!!!

Mason has been falling out of bed at night. Poor guy. We used to have a crib mattress on the floor for him, but he went several months without falling out of bed, but he's back at it again. We'll get him one of those rail things. he usually doesn't even wake up, just keeps sleeping on the floor, or gets up and goes back to bed and doesn't remember in the morning. Tonight was a big one though. He'll remember this one. And the hardwood floors don't help, but he can't have carpeting with the dust mite allergies and ear infections.

He slipped on a dock yesterday and hit the back of his head. I always worry about brain injuries, but his little skull has been doing a good job of protecting him. That is the bad thing about my job, the "exceptions" are the "norm" in my world. Seen too many brain injuries from little things and the results of those injuries.

Well, I am hoping to fall asleep soon. Mason may have a very crabby momma tomorrow.
Might be a good day for a video!!!

FEELIN' HOT HOT HOT HOT!!!!

Well, another almost 90 degree day with humidity at who knows what levels. It has been 3 days of this and I think I am truly melting!! I am hot and miserable. I was hoping to post some camping pictures, but I do not have the patience to wait today. Tomorrow is supposed to cool down with rain, and I hope it does!!

Today Mason informed me that "When I poop momma, all my naughty thoughts come out"
Can't say I have heard that one before, but if it actually works then hooray!!

Critters are doing well. Finally took the bully grasshopper away from the frog and the frog is so much happier!! She actually hops around now and even looks like she is smiling. We put the grasshopper in with 2 others that Mason had caught, and he mated within 5 minutes!!! So we will probably have baby grasshoppers. Then, we had an ant problem because a bunch of them and their eggs had hitched a ride in a branch we put in for the grasshoppers. we took care of that last night, but that was a hoot. Grasshoppers hopping everywhere, sticking to me and Craig and the counters, ants crawling around. Who knew these little critters were so much work? :) Things should settle down now. But those grassh0ppers are SMART! I'll give them that much!!

We cleaned out our garage and got rid of a bunch of stuff on www.freecycle.org It is a wonderful website!! We just posted the items we wanted to get rid of for free and then people emailed us back about coming to get it, and then they did. In 24 hours we got rid of: large bookcase, large wooden coffee table, bag of picture frames, stroller that didn't work so well, exersaucer, dresser. And we didn't need to do a thing!!! All of this had been in our garage for 6 years in the hopes we would have a cabin. We are putting that dream on hold until the children have grown up. So, if you need to get rid of anything, check out that website. they have local ones, so you only post to people in your area.

Well, just wanted to say hi. i hope everyone else is doing well and that it isn't too hot where you are. Oh yeah, Aunt Janis...what WAS the mystery flower? I am kept up at night just dieing to know what it is!!! Please tell us so I can sleep better at night!!!

And when the Smoke cleared!!!!

Had a great time celebrating Cathy's birthday. She had to bake her own cake which was delicious. They wouldn't let me take food across the border. So here she is another year older and a whole lot wiser.

She's getting ready to blow out all her candles!!!! 1 - 2 - 3 BLOW!!!!

No trick candles. They all went out with one try.
Happy Birthday, Cathy!!!

What a Group.

A picture of all of us; minus Alyssa. I'll get to her later....

The Boys!

Junal wanted to post this picture of her handsome boys. Jeeze, they're almost young men. How'd that happen?

Farewell Sophie

Well, Today Sophie went to the vet. It is a sad day. She just hasn't been quite right lately and I had a conversation with the vet on Sat, and he said it was the best decision for Sophie, especially with her changes in behavior lately that have been so unpredictable, so today Craig brought her in.

We told Mason kind of what was going to happen...well, that Sophie was dieing and was going to the vet to a special room just for dogs and that is how it works with dogs sometimes. To which he replied: "Well, I'm glad I'm not a dog! We humans sure last longer" and then "Can I get a new dog?"

We were so worried about telling him and decided to go with the truth after much agonizing (except we left out the special medicine part...especially since he needs to go under anethesia for the tubes in his ears, and they refer to the "sleepy medicine" as "special medicine" sometimes.) He has taken it well. He hugged her and petted her (as much as she would let him) and had pictures taken with her.

So, we start our vacation with a goodbye to Sophie, but I know she is in a better place and can actually feel what it is like to be loved and not scarred by the previous owners anymore...although it is still pretty yucky....no matter how much she frustrated me.

Welcome Back!!` I don't know what i am doing with the pictures.

Welcome back Cathy!! and Happy birthday early!!! Looks like you had a great time on your vacation!

We have aw digital camera now!!! Yes, we have almost fully entered the 21st century!!! I will now attempt to put a picture on this post. It is of our little froggy buddy. Mason is at my mom's, so that was the only interesting thing to practice on. Here goes:

Well, I am not sure why the picture is at the top of the blog, i wanted it here. But it worked!! We definitely need to get off of the dial up connection though. i took out garbabe and recycling and loaded the dishwasher while waiting for the picture to upload.

Had the ultrasound the other day and everything looks good. they also did a 4D one, I'll try to put a picture on here. it may end up next to the frog. They will do another ultrasound in 8 weeks because my fluid levels were a bit high. But no big worries. Well, as you can see, the picture of the baby is at the top with the frog. How do you put the pictures where you want them?!?!?

Baby is getting really strong. Mason was able to see my stomach move from the baby moving around and he thought that was pretty funny. He is doing well.

We are going camping next week, so I probably won't be online for a while. need to get everything ready. Sophie may be taking her last visit to the vet the day before we leave. We are still trying to figure out when to bring her. No-one will take her, not even rescue foundations because she snapped at Mason. So, that is sad.

Back from Vacation

There was much fish-catching....but not by me. Randy and his dad caught these: They caught more two nights before this, but I can't tell you how many, as they hadn't read the regulation book fully. We ate the evidence, as well.

They sure are pretty, tho. Ginger spent much time in the water, but here she is just being a pretty girl. While a good time was had by all, it's good to be home (with more than one bathroom!!). I luv television and all of my kitchen gadgets!!!

Jolee, I've had to feed crickets to salamanders and a tarantula. Good stuff. I've never dipped them in the powder....just figured God didn't do it, why should I?? My snake would eat crickets, but it just wasn't enough to keep him full, so I had to make the switch to 'Mice On Ice'.

I have an endless supply of useless knowledge that's cluttering-up my brain. Much of it having to do with pets.

And Mom, I read your 'SHHHHH' draft. Very funny.

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Don't tell anyone but someone is having a birthday next week!!! And she will be ????? Oops, guess I shouldn't have said anything. Wonder who it is????

Fun with Dick and Jane

Mason read his first book tonight!! He read a Dick and Jane book my mom had gotten him for Christmas!!! He was so excited!!! The child has been dieing to read and tonight he did!!!! It will be fun to see if he wants to continue or just happy with this. We are going to celebrate with icecream tomorrow. (He read it at bedtime).

Our digital camera will be in tomorrow or Friday!!! I CANNOT wait!!1 We have been without a camera for about 3 weeks now and I have been going crazy!!!! So I can post pictures now!! I may even start my own personal blog as well.

Our zoo is doing well. The spider is still alive, although he hasn't eaten anything. Not sure how much longer he will make it. Our snails either mated last night or fought. One of them hasn't moved since. We will either have a stinky snail pot, or lots of new snails. If we have baby snails, let me know if you would like some!!

Our frog and grasshopper are doing well in their new home. the grasshopper is a bit of a bully though. He picks on the frog by touching him with his long legs and the frog bats at him. I may have to separate them. The frog is eating the crickets dusted with vitamin powder. He eats them as soon as we put them in the aquarium. Keeping the cricktes alive is becoming quite the challenge though. They keep dieing off in the container I have them in. It is also a process to catch them to feed the frog. He is quite the little hunter. I think he is much happier in his new home, it's bigger and has more sticks to climb on. We are going to try to find him a buddy. I guess they do better in groups.

My stomach is definitely getting bigger. I can feel it all over!!! I feel as though my lower body is being stretched apart!! Already having a hard time sleeping at night and getting up off the floor. Baby keeps moving and is very STRONG. Already having a few uncomfortable kicks! Big ultrasound is tomorrow. I can't wait!!

Oh yeah, My mom came up with a DELICIOUS gluten free Rhubarb cake. I will definitely be gaining weight with these new recipes of hers!!! Way to go mom!!!! Not sure why the font changed here, but too tired to fix it. Take care everyone!!

Wiediger Zoo

Well, I think we are officially running a mini "zoo". We have a tree frog, grasshopper, 3 large freshwater snails, and a snail living with us.

I am surprised at how smart the grasshopper is. he is a tricky little bugger and got out the other night...into my hair...

He and the tree frog will smash their little faces agains the glass of the jar and look out at us sometimes. They seem like buddies. I think I am having as much fun as Mason with them if not more!!! I really like the tree frog. He has a lot of personality. Tonight we are going to transfer him from the picklejar into a nice aquarium. Also started buying him crickets to eat and a vitamin powder.

Aunt Janis...Is the flower a hyacinth? That is my only guess!!

Talk to you later

Can you identify this Flower??

Hi everyone,

Can you identify this flower?? It is growing in the woods by our shed and is very pretty and fragrant. I know what it is and I didn't even know this plant/weed had a flower. Now, I want you out there in HaugenLand to guess. There is no prize.

Hope everyone had a great 4th of July. We took in a parade which is the highlight of Mr. Jim's life. He gets to visit with all his old , and I mean OLD, buddies from school and the neighborhood. I sat with a friend and enjoyed the sites. I actually saw the parade.

Chipmunk report. I think we have relocated about 25 of the little buggers. And I still see more. Where in the world do they all come from.?!

Today we are having a Neighborhood Get-Acquainted Party. All of the homes on North Kings Road are now occupied so another neighbor and I thought it would be a good idea to have a party. Of Course, it's supposed to be in the 90s, humid with storms. Oh well, we can visit in the garage.

Stay cool. Enjoy!

Mom/Aunt Janis

hello

Hi everyone!
I hope everyone had a fun 4th of July. We went up to Washburn with my parents and sister and Vinnie, Nic and Gianni. We had a great time!! Spent the night on the 3rd and went home on the 4th. The kids had a great time lighting off fireworks on Tuesday night. Wed we went to the parade in Ashland and they got a TON of candy!! Then they played outside all day long in the sprinkler. Everyone had a wonderful time. It was hard to leave!
My mom made a ton of gluten-free food, so that was nice too. She made the best chocolate chip cookies...which I OD'd on of course. I think I may need to hire her to make my food!!!

Not much else is going on around here. Just enjoying the warm weather!! Summer is finally here. Too bad my gardens look so pathetic though!! I am going to have to move all of my bulbs this fall. All 95 of them. Of the 30 or so irises I planted, one bloomed. Live and learn.

The baby is moving pretty much all the time now and is getting stronger every day!! I have my ultrasound on the 12th. Can't wait for that, but we won't find out what it is. I had the craziest dream the other night. I won't tell you all of it, because it doesn't make sense, but I had the baby in my dream and it was a boy and we named it "Steffani Gianni", and I kept saying the name over and over and was crying because I loved the name so much and everyone kept telling me what a beautiful name it was! (We were in a field with all our family and friends). ---Mason keeps saying we should name the baby Gianni if it's a boy and he has been "rapping" a lot lately. That is probably why the name rhymes.

Mason continues to grow and grow and grow!!! He is getting taller every day!!! He wanted the toyroom to be his bedroom because of all the toys, and I said "no". so he sat down with some paper and markers and made a sign stating "My bedroom. Please Stay out" and taped it to the door of the toy room.

He told me the other day that he hopes the baby is a girl. I asked him why and he said"Well, you're a girl and a mommy and Daddy is a boy, That way I can be a daddy and the girl can be a mommy and then we can get our own house and make all our own choices alone" We are already having conversations about him moving out so he can make his "own choices and decisions"...at 4 1/2 years!!! We may be in trouble later :)

Lately our conversations typically go like this: (MS stands for Mason and M stands for me)
MS: Mom, is Gianni taller than me?
M:Yes
MS: Am i taller than Gianni?
M: No.
MS: Gianni is taller than me?
M: Yes
MS: Am I taller than Gianni?
M: No
MS: I'm not taller than Gianni?
M: No, Gianni is taller
MS: Gianni is taller than me?!
M: Yes
MS: WHY?!?!?!?!?!
We have several of these conversations throughout the day:)

Mason caught his first frog yesterday. It is a tree frog and it made it through the night last night!! He wants to keep it until Monday to show his friend Naomi. I hope we can keep it alive until then. I feel kind of bad for it.

Well, I'm sure that is enough information for everyone. I need to get some cleaning done before it hits 90 degrees. We are going to the beach when Craig gets home. I always feel bad for him in this weather. He still drives one of those aluminum trucks and they don't have air conditioning. Just a cage fan. He could drive a van with air conditioning, but he would need to change his route. They need the aluminum trucks for the mounted mailboxes.

All right. Take care everyone and stay cool!!! Cathy, I hope you are having a great vacation!!
How are you doing Aunt Janis...haven't heard from you in a while.