Christmas Helpers.

I'm not sure why, but the camera's autofocus seems to be off. Anyways, here are the pix of our tree-trimming today.

We all had a great time up at Grandma's. The boys are already talking about the summer visit!

AJ's first pony ride

He loved it!

Austin's Apple Turkey

Austin made this at school. It's a turkey with an apple body and marshmallow and raisin parts. Very cute!

It started in Iowa!!!

Yes, all....it started in Iowa and continued throughout the country. The man who I talked to, from home, on the phone on a Saturday night in October 07.....who Dale and I sat and chatted with at the JJ dinner in November 07.........who braved a cold winter night in December to speak at Waukee...........who we heard, met, worked for and supported has become the President Elect of the United States. Who says we can't all make a difference????

I think this pic says it all.

It's been 2 years and 2 months since we started this program. Austin ate 13 peanut m&m's yesterday. He had no reaction (other than to say that he didn't like how they tasted).

I can't believe it!

It's been almost 3 days since Barack Obama won the presidency and nobody here has got anything to say about it?

And on a lighter note... HEAD GEAR!

In the news last week. Peanut Study

Dr. Burks runs the Duke portion of the peanut study Austin is in. This is a broadcast from ABC News last week. As you all probably know, Austin and I will be heading back to LR, AR on Monday for more blood work, skin tests, and to switch his dose over to REAL peanuts. The new dose will be 13 peanut m&m's (or some equivalent of his choosing).

I have a very cautious hope that his RAST (blood) scores will come back saying he's no longer allergic. No matter what the numbers say, if he can safely consume 13 peanut m&m's... it's a whole different life he'll have.

I don't mean to get all sappy and mushy, but we've really seen a miracle here.

http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=6099992

Tournament Day

Austin and AJ participated in a MMA tournament today. AJ won 2 bronze medals. He was only competing with 2 other kids and lost all 4 rounds.. but he tried his best. He's very proud of his medals (as are we).

Austin did not win any rounds either and he did not win any medals. He's very disappointed, but we tell him that he put in a great effort and we're very proud of him. Pictures to follow.

Couldn't you just DIE?

if you want to see the whole session:
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Nathan's costume

As you can see, Nathan was less than enthused to be Mickey Mouse for Halloween.

Family Pix 2008

These did NOT come out very well. On the upside, the kids cooperated with us. Still, it's hard to get 5 ppl in a shot without someone screwing it up...

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Nathan Fenn... ULITMATE FIGHTING CHAMP!

Started shopping!!!!!

Aunt Weswee has finally gotten started Christmas shopping.....kind of hard working LOTS of hours to get in any shopping time.
I got the boys their light sabers, so take that off the list.....Anything else I bought, i can't post here for obvious reasons...

Love and kisses to all!!!
Weswee

Where's Nate-o?

I couldn't fine Nate AGAIN... I thought he was in the pantry. For one thing, I thought I heard movement in there (and I DID hear movement in that vicinity- but you'll figure this out in paragraph 2). Also, a few days ago I heard him screaming "MAAAAMEEE!". I searched the whole house and found that he had locked himself inside the pantry with the lights out.

Well, this time he wasn't in the pantry. I poke around and find him locked in A.J.'s closet. He's sitting on the floor in there with A.J.'s halloween basket (from Grandma). He's got his fists full of starburst candy, chips strewn about, Scooby snacks all over the floor, and a look of total shock and innocence on his face.

Did you figure out that A.J.'s closet and the pantry share a common wall?

Austin's kindergarten picture

Got the pic today... what do you think?? (not a trick question)

AJ's Robot

AJ made this robot from legos. He said, "when I pull the robot's head off, he says 'hi mom'... isn't that kinda creepy?"

Indeed it is!

Also, today another kid pushed AJ at school. AJ apparently bumped into the wall. (No big deal, but he got a band-aid). Anyways, on the way home from school I ask AJ, "well, was it an accident, or was it on purpose?" AJ responds, "It was ON PURPOSE! And if he does it again, I'm gonna put him in the arm bar!" (its a move the boys learned in Jiu Jitsu).

How 'Bout Them Rays?

Before we moved here, the Tampa Bay (Devil) Rays were the laughingstock of baseball, never winning more than 70 games in a season. The year we move here, the Rays win 97 games and beat the Red Sox to win the American League pennant. Coincidence?

Anyway, it's been a fun ride. I've been watching them all season, and I've really gotten into them. Nina and I have been watching the playoff games togather. Good thing they're not playing the Cardinals in the World Series, because it would be really, really hard to root against the Rays.

Cute pic

Dave took this pic when Grandma went to the zoo with the boys. Very cute!

AJ fell asleep

The boys went to bed late last night. Today has been...um, difficult. And, let's say, "Sucky". Anyways, AJ fell asleep on the floor at 4pm.

Halloween Treats from MO

The boys got a box of Halloween treats from Grandma and Papa today. They got baskets with Skittles, chips, and cookies and they also got some light up Halloween decorations. The whole time I was building the decorations, Nathan was saying, "woooooo!" and bringing over his Oreos and Skittles and giving them to me to open them. Then, Austin wrote "Boo" on the chalkboard all by himself! AJ got a basket that looks like a giant spider... and he said, "he's SMILING at me!"


The pic with the kids here is funny bc I specifically said, "don't eat the candy all at once". If you look at Austin's face, you can see him clearly ignoring my instructions.

AJ has a little light up pumpkin bear dressed up as a witch. I asked him what it's name was and he said, "Barry Scary" - the way he pronounced it, it sounded like 'Very Scary'.. I doubt he meant to be that clever, but I thought it was genius.

Trick or Treat!

Dave and I think it's VERY safe to make children's Halloween costumes in jet black. It said on the package that they are also not flame retardant and are made from asbestos.

Where's Nate-o??

INSIDE THE FREAKING CURIO, OF COURSE!

A Young Bath Cut Short.

Nate made a holy mess at tub time. Needless to say, he was dragged out kicking and screaming.

Flat Stanley

So today I come home during lunch, open up my mail and find an intriguing proposition. Austin has sent me (and maybe some of you) a guy known as Flat Stanley. It's a great premise...send Flat Stanley all over the country, or the world, and have the people you send him to record his adventures.

I put him in my pocket and took him to my middle school classes this afternoon. I guess I am late to the party on this one, because nearly everyone I showed him to already knew about him. The seventh grade french horn girls I teach everyday were eager to tell me where they sent theirs. They thought he was adorable, especially Austin's handwritten name on the back.

I promise to make Flat Stanley's time with me worthwhile. Let's see where we can take him!

Grandma went shopping

Ok, so far I've gotten Nato this: clothes, the Fisher Price Barnyard Basics Jumpin' Sounds Barnyard, the Fisher Price Little Peoples Build 'n Fun Playground, and the Fisher Price Learning Puppy (the big one).....If he already has any of these things, let me know.

AJ...clothes, the Lego Star Wars Separatist Spider Droid, the Legos Star Wars Rebel Scout Speeder, both the Fur Pet Bird and Puppy, and I have on order one of the voice changing Star Wars helmets.

Austin...clothes, the Star Wars Separatist Spider Droid (same as AJ's), the Lego Star Wars Imperial Drop Ship, the Star Wars Clone War Voice Changer (same principle as AJ's, only a slightly different style)

For both ....The Easy Bake Oven and Snack Bar......couldn't find the superpack yet but did get the Blueberry Muffin top mix, and chocolate Brownie Mix... 2 XBox games..Open Season and Crash Tag Team Racing, and four of the Step Into Reading Books Level 1...WallE Smash Trash and Dancing Dinos Go to School .....Level 2 ..WallE Love At First Beep and Here Comes Silent E.

I also have on order Radio Controlled Hummers for both Austin and AJ

I'm going to wait to see what Les, Dale or Mike might want from the list before I get much more
Dream on about the Wii!
I did get them all a lot of clothes so the others might want to limit the clothing except for t-shirts or something.

That's all for now, but I have plenty of time to get more stuff

Chuck E Cheese Again

Austin's been behaving very well in school, and the reward is a family trip to Chuck E Cheese!! Dave ran around chasing Oz and AJ... and I chased Nate around. Sorry these pix are blurry, the little dude is fast!

Also, I think Nate may be a thrill-seeker. I put him on the carousel (horses)... no response. Then we tried the Teletubbies thing... no response. Then we tried the little streetcar (wus style)- no response... then we tried the muscle monster truck (that dips and bumps around) and Nate had the biggest grin! This was the first time the little guy really seemed to like the 'Chuck E' experience. He also liked the big dancing animatronic animals. Oh, and he LOVES music and dancing... there's a pic here of him doing the Dance Dance Revolution thing. His dancing is hysterical. I'll try to get some on video for posting.

Henry

My dad taught me how to make 'Henry'. Now that A.J. realizes this, the possiblities are endless.

Here are a few pix of what we did today- it's a whole family. The fat white one is made from a king sized goose down comforter!

Christmas Ideas

Well, it's September... so that means it's Christmas shopping time! Here are some ideas for the 2 big boys. I really don't think Nathan gives a shit what he gets.

Ant Habitat
Ladybug Habitat
Microscope (Austin)
Magnifying glass (AJ)
Books- the Step into Reading books are good- level 1 or 2
Fur Real Friends baby bird (duh)
Fur Real Friends puppy (AJ)
Star Wars anything
Batman anything
Legos
Edu Science Mega Cosmos- it’s a planet mobile. Either kid.
Science kits
Easy-Bake Oven and Snack Center with Classic Light Bulb Oven
Easy-Bake 12 Mix Super Pack
Nintendo Wii Super Smash Bundle with 2 Wii Remotes and Nunchuks (we can dream, can't we?)

Santa’s probably buying:
A ripstick skateboard for Austin
A Razor scooter for AJ

Tough Guy

I took this pic of AJ today before Jiu Jitsu (notice his shoes are on the wrong feet). He finally had the shirt to his gi (uniform). The other pic is the cover of "Fight" magazine- a mag specifically for MMA (mixed martial arts), Jiu Jitsu, and UFC. I thought the name was funny. Turns out BJ Penn is some Hawaiian MMA genius that can apparently kick some a$$ in the cage.

Funny kid

Here are a couple AJisms:

• Me: "What stinks in here?"
• AJ: "I bought the cheese, and then I cut it"

• We went to Jiu Jitsu and got there early. The 'older' kids were there- more advanced by a LOT. They were all padded up and sparring- kicking, punching, wrestling. AJ says, "WOW! I wanna be in THIS class! Now THAT'S what I call karate!"

• I asked AJ to go in his room and get dressed. He runs in. In a couple of minutes, he comes running out and slides across the tile floor (a la 'Risky Business') and says, "AT YOUR SERVICE!"

Oh, the sweet irony!

So it occurred to me this morning that we here in Missouri have been more affected by tropical systems this year than have the Tampa crew.

As I write this, the skies have begun to clear here in central Missouri, but as you can see, the St. Louis area is getting pummeled by Ike. In fact, at the onset of rain here, it was still technically a named tropical system.

So I couldn't find the statistics for Tampa, but I know that there are places here in the Springfield area that have gotten 15+ inches of rain in the past 8 or 9 days from Gustav and now Ike. We here at the lake haven't been that fortunate...I think our September total may just now be pushing 10 inches. Mom and dad...I assume that low spot in the yard is pretty much a pond by now.

This is of course much better than the alternative. When you live in Florida, it's not usually the gentle flooding of persistent rain that accompanies a tropical system. While it all got soaked, my lawn furniture was never in danger.

A message for Grandma

Not feeling so well

Nate's a little feverish. Not a big deal, just a bit under the weather.

Home again

We're home. The kids had a blast and everyone is exhausted. Early to bed tonight!

AJ takes a nap

Today

Today Nathan:

* Played in the toilet

*drew on the walls

*screeched at me

*hit me

*threw grapes

*tried to pull his letters and pictures off the wall in his room

*climbed and stood on his nightstand

*sucked on a battery

and...

*threw the remote

and it's only 6:45pm...

Boys and Birds

A.J. just looks so content when he's feeding the Lorikeets...

sigh.

Oh ya, I found foil granola wrapper bits in Nathan's poop today. If you don't get this, scroll down a couple days to the pic of the granola wrapper.