We're out of here!!

Mr. Jim and I will be gone until next week sometime. We're going to visit Cathy and Randy at their cabin. Hopefully I will have some fish pictures to show you when we get back. Take care everyone. Maybe there will be a post from Derek or Junal or Marshall????? I hope, I hope, I hope. Come on, somebody, surprise me!!!

Before I Go On Vacation

AGAIN! Actually, for the last time.....and to close up the cabin. Here are some pics of the river. The water is really, really low, but it seems to be better hunting for the eagles. Here goes:

The nest doesn't look as huge as it actually is in real life. In the photo, it's probably a mile away.

And, as if on cue, the eagle swooped by as I was taking pictures.

Finally, here's a picture of Gingie enjoying the river.

Happy Anniversary #46

It is just dumb luck that I have been scanning my mom's photos for the past two days. So here are the pictures that you've been waiting for:

Alyssa is particularly fond of the glasses...

Happy Anniversary!!

Guess who's been married for 37 or is it 38 years ( it is 38 years--I just did the math) and haven't changed a bit!!!

Mr. Jim and I will have been married for 46 years tomorrow. I don't have my pictures so can't post one. Let me tell you we haven't changed either. Ha Ha

You need to scroll down

Hey there. I had saved a draft of a post on August 20th and posted it today (Aug 25),
Well it put the post near August 20th posts, so it isn't at the top of the blog. It may be on there quite a few times, because I kept clicking "publish post" because I didn't see it.
It's about Mason....and very long...just to warn you!!

Remember the pretty purple flower????

Well, this is what it looks like today. I never connected milkweed pods with that pretty flower. The flowers in the background I can do without. They make me sneeze.

Incase anyone is counting, we are up to 39 chipmunks and I still see more around. Hope everyone is enjoying this beautiful day.

ADVENTURES IN GROCERY SHOPPING

Mason and I need a definite break from each other. Shopping at Cub did not go so smoothly today. Of course, letting him watch 3 hours of Sat. am cartoons before going was not the most intelligent decision on my part.

So we're going along in Cub and he wants to be helpful, but he is in this new phase of energy
(and was a little spastic from the TV watching), so he is EVERYWHERE and it's like he has 100 hands!! and he is grabbing fruit and squeezing it to see if it's fresh, and tossing it in the cart or throwing it back into the bin. So we just barely make it out of the produce section with edible food, and we find out that Cub is out of the free cookies for kids. Not such a good thing. But Mason works through it and does great, and I was so proud of him.

Dairy aisle was a bit challenging as he is grabbing at all the yogurts and again grew 100 hands and assumed the speed of lightning. I think he actually morphed into 3 children at one point.

Now, the rest of the shopping entails Mason trying to hang onto the handle with his feet on the basket thing on the bottom. Usually not a problem, but today, he has to have his hands in a certain place and and so he is head-butting my arm, pushing me with his body, leaning into me to make me move over, and whatever other irritating thing you can imagine. I can barely push the cart as it is, and my energy is drained, I don't have any stamina, especially with the partial bedrest and this was my first outing in I don't know how many days.

I felt like everyone could tell I was going to BLOW!!! And he's whining and crying, and fussing, etc... I'm sure the single people out there were thrilled they didn't have any children yet. And I am telling him of his consequences in a forced calm voice with clenched teeth. But we made it, and he is in his room now for time-out. We just need a break from each other. This time in the house together is just too intense. I love Mason more than my own life and I appreciate every great thing about him and I absolutely adore him. And I need some breathing room. :) And I know he does too!!

The Dr said I could start gradually increasing activity, but I did some light cleaning today and with the grocery shopping and I am now crampy. I am guessing that activity will need to wait until the end of Nov.

I am starting to take Synthroid for my thyroid tomorrow am. I have subclinical hypothyroidism, which means I'm not really hypothyroid, but some of my levels are off. By taking the Synthroid, I will help protect the baby's IQ. If I didn't take the Synthroid, the baby's IQ would be lowered. I'm not sure by how much or why yet, my Dr called me on Friday from her car with her young children on her day off, so I didn't ask too many questions.

This is actually a relief, because at first we thought I was actually hypothyroid and there are some pretty devastating effects on the baby if I really was. I was in freak-out mode for about 24 hours...until yesterday afternoon when my OB called me.----I am sure that is also adding to the frustration with Mason. SOOOO, that is what has been going on around here. I started another post, but had to save it in draft, because it takes so long to upload the pictures on dial-up. I will have some fun pictures on here soon.

I hope everyone is doing well, and I bet that you are all glad now that your children are grown huh? :)

Oh yeah, Derek told me he was going to post on here a few nights ago, but I don't see anything. i'll have to get on him. He has a new "lady" friend now, so his time is being used up a bit more. And he is working alot too.

The answer to your squirrel/pest issues is...

Garlic!!

Today, I got the cloves of garlic that I ordered in the spring. Evidently, you are supposed to plant it in the fall. Now, I was wary of doing this because of all of the varmints around here. Recent sightings include porcupine, deer, bear, skunk, squirrel, and woodchuck. I was thinking that it would be garlic suicide to plant in the fall...all of those critters would just dig them up, and then where would I be? Deciding to do a little 'Google Research', I found that garlic is a deterrent to many of the evil planteaters of the garden; furry, crawling, and flying.

Now, go plant some garlic around all of your treasured plants. Anything in the onion family works: onion, chives, allium, garlic.

Go crazy. Garlic is good for you, too!!

How often does that happen?

Tuesday morning visitor!!

Wow!!! This morning as I was looking out the window at our much needed rain this bird perched on a limb. Guess he was looking for his breakfast.

There were slim pickings under our bird feeder. Only the hummingbirds ignored him.

I really didn't want the picture this large but don't know how to change it.

It's good to hear from you, Jolee. Glad all is well and Mason is keeping you busy. We went to Milwaukee for a few days. Mister Jim and Steve attended a Brewer game. I gave Steve my camera so I'd have a few pictures to share but he didn't take any. Bummer. No cooperation around here.

Steelwool is the answer to your mice problems. Stuff it in all the holes. We usually have problems with them in the winter when it gets really cold. Nasty little critters. I also found one in the toilet on one of my nightly visits. I've learned to close the lid. Don't use the poison. If they die somewhere in your house they smell just awful.

Hope it is raining where you are. I'm loving it!!! This is "find a good book" weather.

Good Times

OK, the blog won't let me move the pictures around tonight and it says it can't contact blogger.com. I hope I don't lose all of this! I am only going to put 2 pictures on this post. A half hour has passed, and I only have 1 on here. I'll do pictures another night.





This post will be about Mason, and may be long. Since I am not scrapbooking, it's nice to record some things here. So be warned, you are going to get a HUGE dose of Mason adventures.



All in all, Mason and I have been having a good summer.
He moved up a level in Gymnastics and is now in the Leopard class. He is learning a lot and loves to show us his tricks here at home.

He is really into climbing trees now too. I'm sure the trip to the ER will be sooner than later.


He is always coming up with the funniest sayings and comments. The other night he was kissing my hand, so I showed him how a Prince kisses a princesses hand. Then out of the blue, he says "Mom, when I grow up I'm gonna marry you!! That way you can have 2 rings. And it's going to be hard to find someone to marry you know!" Then he told me that if I have a baby girl in my tummy he can marry her and they can move into their own home (overriding theme with him) then he told Craig he was going to marry me later and Craig would get a different wife.

The next night he was trying to figure out how this would all work and was saying "When Daddy is a grampa I can marry you mom...wait...when will Daddy be a grampa? " So we explained that when his wife has a baby Daddy will be a grampa and he Really started thinking and changed the subject. Too funny. I do like the idea of another ring though!


In the car the other day he was watching an airplane and said "Mom! That plane is going mayonaisse!!" So, I'm thinking. And ask, "How do you mean?" And he said "The plane is going to crash! I don't see any fire in it's engine!! It is going Mayonaise!! (actual meaning: Mayday)" And now when he plays with his planes they say "Mayonaise, Mayonaise" instead of Mayday, Mayday. It is too cute to correct!!













The other morning I woke up before Mason. When he woke up he came downstairs, and I was excited to see him and he hands me his undies and says "Smell these mom". So I'm like.."uh, I don't think I need to do that. Why do you want me to smell them?" And he says "They STINK!!!" To which I replied "Well, put them in the dirty clothes. No-one needs to be smelling that."...but he kept on insisting I smell them for a while before putting them away. Good Morning Mom!!




















A few of Mason's favorite activities since the bedrest thing:






Copying everything I say






Licking me. Yes, licking me. One day I had it and my parents over, and I said "If you lick me again and keep on acting like a puppy, you are going in the dog kennel!! Because dogs in this house stay in the kennel when they do not listen!" OF course I would NEVER put him in a kennel, I just needed to get his attention and was sick of being licked.













He informed me the other day that erasers on pencils are great because they can erase the marks he makes when he draws on the walls. We'll be checking all our walls carefully! I think I finally have all the pencils and pens, markers, crayons, etc..consficated. Mason loves to "hide" them so he can get to them . he has little stashes of them all around the house.





We made gluten free brownies the other day (and these are DELICIOUS!! you can't even tell they are gluten free). We had a warm one with ice-cream and Mason exclaimed " I will never forget a brownie like that!!!"





He has been doing these races on Wed nights, through Grandma's Marathon. He runs a 1/4 mile with Craig and about 100 other 3-5 year olds. Everyone gets a ribbon, they are free and at the last race, next Wed he will get a T-shirt and enjoy a free BBQ. He has really been loving it! The first race was hard, and he was disappointed he didn't win, but he's worked through that now.

Mason is getting so excited for the home-schooling to start. We filled his backpack (courtesy of Nana) with new school supplies. We have started our "routine" without using the curriculum yet, so that has been a lifesaver while doing the bedrest.

That's probably enough for now!

Pregnancy Update

Mystery Picture:
Here's a hint...it isn't a plant, but it is definitely growing! This picture was taken a month ago.



Well, the pregnancy is going pretty well, except for the partial bedrest and contractions. I was having about 12 contractions a day, but i am down to about 6 or less...as long as I take it easy like I am supposed to. Easier said than done with an almost 5 year old boy!!! Some days it is very hard, i feel like I am starting to slow down with the pregnancy and all, but Mason is revving up...as he should be!!

I got stuck for the 1st time (and certainly not the last) last night. I squatted down to pick something up and could not move. I was literally frozen in place. Craig had to rescue me. Then he asked "Is this pregnancy harder than the 1st one?" To which I replied "Have you not been listening to me the last 6 1/2 months?" And he said "Oh I 've been listening...every hour of every day" hahahaha!!!!!

My newest cravings are: PEACHES!!! I can't get enough of them!! ICECREAM!!!...I can eat icecream now!! It has been 19 months since I have been able to eat icecream and I am in HEAVEN!!! I also love CHEESE and the cheese in the can!! I can't get enough!! And Reese's PEanutbutter cups are also on the list!! SO.....I am not having any trouble gaining weight. I think it is 6 pounds every 4 weeks! The other day Mason noted that my "back was squishy" and that his isn't. Nothing like having your child comment on one's back fat to bolster self-esteem:)

The baby is very STRONG and likes to hang out with my bladder and colon. It really doesn't move from those areas much...and I know it has room to move still. Some of it's personality is showing a little too. It definitely does NOT like it when anything is up against my stomach, and it always stops moving when I start talking. We can see it moving in my stomach already as well. I think it is enormous!! We didn't see Mason moving around in there until around 8 months. Mason likes feeling the baby move and is still excited for it to be born.


Mason is figuring out some things though. The other day I had a bigger brownie than him and he commented on that, and seemed OK with my explanation, and then remarked "Does the baby get to eat what you eat?" hahaha little stinker figured the baby was getting a bigger brownie than him. then he commented that I need to be sure to eat a lot of healthy food for the baby. Talk about a little watchdog :) Maybe he'll be a cop or judge? In the beginning he was concerned that the baby was staying up later than him because it was in my belly and going to bed when I went to bed. Always thinking this one:)


Mason just told me he "misses Christmas" and walked over with a pine needle he found from last Christmas. "Smell this mom. Doesn't it just make you miss Christmas and wish it was here? It smells delicious!"----who couldn't love this little guy?!

Well, I'll add more later today. Time for the much needed nap...as long as my leg will cooperate!! It's feeling a bit "antsy" this afternoon.

Wildlife Wiediger Walk

OK, we have been VERY busy with animals. Currently, we have the tree frog "Hoppy", 3 snails, a polyephemus caterpillar in a cocoon (it stays in the cocoon until spring).

The 5 grasshoppers died as did the spider. We also had a baby cedar waxwing and 5 baby bunnies in the yard and 4 mice in the house...we had all of these animals alive at the same time in our home.
(well, the bunnies were outside)



My dad found the baby bird near death on his hunting land. Mason named him "Tweet tweet" because the bird "tweeted" a lot. We were able keep him alive for 2 days, but I think one of the mice got to him. We had a burial service and Mason picked flowers for "Tweet Tweet's "grave. We missed him.


I saw the first mouse while I was going to the bathroom. The heating vent is right next to the toilet and a little mouse decided to peek out of the vent. It was horrifying! Talk about feeling vulnerable. so I yell for Craig and he thought something was wrong with me or the baby...but I told him I needed my shoes! We caught the mouse that night, and caught 2 others later. Craig found one drowned in the toilet one morning when he woke up. YUCK!!!!!!!! We set out over 11 containers of D-con, and have not seen any sign of mice. And we think we found out where they are getting in, so that should be done!!!....Sometimes I think Sophie sent the mice in.

Then we were outside and Mason and I were stepping on rabbits!! they just hid in the grass and didn't move until you stepped on them and we couldn't see them. Thankfully they were almost full-grown!! We had to put our shoes on, it was a little freaky. We caught one, and were going to relocate it, but it got away. They were ADORABLE!!! Thankfully I had my senses about me and we did NOT keep one as a pet!! I had an idea of catching all of them and having them spayed and neutered and releasing them, but that didn't work. I don't mind 5 rabbits, but I do not want a million of them!!


the poor grasshoppers did not make it. But I don't think they have a very long lifespan.

We almost have a petting zoo going on around here. Mason loves it. The tree frog will now eat crickets from our hands, it is pretty cute. and we got a 10 gallon aquarium for free on Freecycle.org so "Hoppy" is loving that!

And last night we had a RACCOON in our garbage!! he woke me and Craig up....(well, Craig was already up because of my leg going nuts!)I guess he was sitting on the bench on our backporch and chewing on a rock when Craig went down to check it out. Crazy!! Now that Sophie is gone, all the wildlife is moving on in!!! Not sure what is worse!!!

I'm Back

Hey all!!

I am now able to connect to the internet while on the couch, soooo, I am back!! Still on partial bedrest, so I need to be on the couch a lot and off of my feet. Sounds like fun, but believe me it isn't. My restless leg syndrome is really acting up, last night I woke up Craig because my left leg was in the air!! and flailing around. Only 14 1/2 weeks left...but who is counting :)

OK, I am going to try to put some pictures on here, but whenever I try to move them around, I get a circle with a line through it, so I'll open a new post.

Okay, so where is everyone?

I thought that I'd come back from vacation and find lots of interesting reading. But NOOOOO.

Now, I will punish you with a picture of my windowbox and planters:

I luv wave petunias. Next year, I'm going to get to the garden center early and buy them out!

I thought Someone was getting a new camera!!!!

Hey, didn't someone say they were getting a new digital camera???? Now let me think!!! Who was that??? I expected this blog to be flooded with interesting pictures. I bet they are still inside the camera.
It's too hot to go outside and take pictures here. I really don't like this hot, humid weather. When will it rain or cool down???? Hope everyone is finding a cool spot.
Looking forward to pictures.

Guess who is having a Birthday???

Happy birthday, Randy!!!
Are you baking that delicious cake for him, Cathy?
Yum, yum!!! Oh, to be 45 again......maybe.

Drum Roll, Please....

The flowers are:

1. Fireweed
2. Ornamental Oregano

I thought that you'd like to know before we went to the lake.........