2 year old talk

There is nothing much better than the cute talk of a 2 year old. Don't get me wrong, some of Cooper's talk is just plain sassy, but when he says, "Mom, I like you!" there's nothing much better!

He's also been talking a lot about his "best buddy Colby." He's been carrying a blanket he got from the Burpo's when he was a baby saying "I miss my best buddy Colby."

We can't wait to see our great friends on Saturday!

Construction Zone

Brad & my Dad have spent the last 2 days in the basement construction zone. The egress window is in! It just needs trimmed out & the hole outside finished off. It looks great!

My dad asked Brad what he learned (neither of them had done this before) for next time..."hire someone to do it," was his response. Hmmm. Maybe we'd better wait a few days (weeks, months...) to ask. Kinda like asking a mother who's just given birth when she wants another baby I think. :)

Thank you so much Dad for your work & Ryan for your saw. We appreciate you so much.

Merry Christmas

What a sweet day today was. After sleeping in until 8:30, we drank hot chocolate while Brad told the story of Jesus' birth, death & resurrection. Our kids know lots of bible facts...they are learning for sure! Our prayer is that they will not only learn the facts but have a personal relationship with Jesus.

Opening presents with children is so much fun too. The past few years I've taken the kids (girls & boys separately) shopping for their siblings. They have a $1 limit each gift, but have a grand time choosing the perfect gift & then seeing them exchange gifts is great. We had everything from trucks to cotton candy to lipgloss to gummy worms.

We hope you've had a glorious time celebrating the greatest gift of all, Jesus.

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”- Isaiah 9:6

Reminder Next Year

Remind us next year to not wait to go Christmas shopping 4 days before the big day. It seems this year has been so full of changes & activity that we weren't in a hurry to shop. Last night we got a babysitter, went for supper & shopping.

There were many others in the same boat as we were. It was crowded! You could hardly push a cart through Target. At one point in Walmart we sought respite in the craft department because no one was in those aisles.

We did get almost everything done & even polished the night off with ice cream from Culver's. Anyone want to come over for a wrapping party?

Stuck

We woke up in the night to Cooper crying saying, "Dad, I stuck!"

He has been sleeping on the floor in our room (to get him apart from the other kids so he'll go to sleep easier) & somehow wriggled under the bed. Brad had to pull him out by his feet!

Brad laid him back down, gave him his blanket, he started sucking his thumb & was quiet. All was well.

6012 Pounds

The Minden Public Schools' challenge the last week was to donate at least 5,500 pounds of food for the food pantry. If they did they would get all of Friday off rather than just get out of school early that day. The kids were searching the kitchen for food--but not just any food; it had to be HEAVY!

Today alone the kids brought in over 2,000 pounds of food! That brought the total up to over 6000 pounds.

Although I'm happy the food pantry will benefit (last year the food donated by the school kids kept the pantry shelves stocked for almost the entire year) I told the kids I was sending them to school anyway on Friday if I heard any fighting going on.

Macarena & More

Imagine: 50-some kindergarteners doing the macarena--even in motion; 50-some 1st graders doing the hand-jive; 50-some 2nd graders dancing around the gym doing the cotton-eyed joe.

The Christmas Program was music, art & PE combined. Very neat. Each class sang 2 songs then did a PE routine. We laughed so hard at the 5-6 yr olds doing the macarena. And there was a girl trying to do the cotton-eyed joe who kept losing her shoe.

3rd Attempt: Success-full

1st weekend: ice, 2nd weekend: snow, 3rd weekend: success! We had pizza at our house, then Brad took the 6 4th graders & Parker to the movie, Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium for Hunter's 10th birthday.

But what do you get when you have our 5 kids plus 5 more 10 year olds? A wild & crazy-FULL house! They were all good, just a little loud. Only 1 injury (minor), 1 person vomiting & lots of fun.

Potty Training 101

Set the timer for 30 minutes & hear Cooper say "time to go potty!" when it rings. Give 1 gummy bear "tinkle treat" (thanks for the tip Angie).

Works well so far. Day 3.

Tooth Fairy X 2

Parker did end up going to have his tooth pulled at the dentist. This was actually right before Thanksgiving. Dr. Chris pulled both his bottom teeth. Parker did great with the shots, he just said, "Ow. Ow. Ow."

Recent Pics

No More Crib

We took down the baby crib yesterday. That is a milestone 10 years in the making! It's hard to believe after having at least 1 crib--sometimes 2 for the last 10 years that we no longer need one.

A moment of silence please...

Ice Cream Torture

We know a new way to torture Hunter--put a bit of ice cream on his left thumb. He can't get his thumb to his mouth because of the angle of his cast. Hmmm, think of the fun we could have with stuff he likes. Maybe a piece of donut or barbecued ribs...

We'd better use this while we can since he'll go to a short cast soon. :)

And the color is...

Blue! Hunter chose a blue cast this morning at the doctor. He has a long cast (from the hand to the shoulder) for now but will be able to go to a short cast in a few weeks. He's a little sore but in good spirits. I don't think he minds missing school today.

Sticks and Stones

Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me...

Well, falling (jumping) off the back of the couch onto a cement floor will also break bones. Hunter fractured his ulna this afternoon, has a splint & will see an orthopedist tomorrow. The fracture is not displaced but the doctors here rarely cast, they usually send them on to a specialist which is fine by us.

So, here's Hunter as he's resting tonight in a splint...

I'll also say that our company (see below's post) reacted with great ease in crisis. Everyone cooperated with me as we tried to help Hunter. They also all colored him get-well pictures & prayed for him while he was at the doctor's.

5+3+3=11

Wow, what a crazy-fun weekend. We were able to keep 3 of my brother's kids, Chace, Kennadie & Ryan for the weekend. Saturday evening we also had some friends' kids here, Quenton, Sidney & Abby. So, 5+3+3=11. Wow! That's crazy-fun!



We really did have a good weekend, the kids all played well. They played in the snow, colored pictures, played downstairs & watched a lot of movies. Jumanji about 3 times, Evan Almighty at least 2 times as well as others. They also helped us clean the basement several times (after they'd wrecked it...). We've had a small sewer problem, so they also kept watch on the drain in the basement.

I'm tired tonight but know the time spent with those kids was well worth it.

Parker's in trouble

Parker got in "trouble" today for writing in cursive. Evidently 1st graders are not allowed to write their names in cursive. He said his teacher didn't tell him the rules! He has gotten quite good at his first name in cursive. That d'nealian writing Imperial teaches makes it so EASY to transition! They use the regular script here, so we'll see how easy the transition is for Parker & Kamrie...

Crib Climbing

Cooper can climb out of his crib in 3.2 seconds flat. At 2 1/2 yrs old, he is our child who has had the pleasure of being in the crib the longest. We'd move him to a real bed but hoped to wait until we had the egress window in the basement so the kids could spread out. For now they are all sleeping in one bedroom, so keeping the crib a bit longer makes sense space-wise.

I think Erica summed Cooper up the other day when she said something to the effect of him being such an easy baby that now he's making up for all that lost time! He has sure gotten ornery, I think I agree.

No news is good news?

It seems like I've went a long time with hardly any new posts. I think the saying "no news is good news" sort of applies. It seems like we've been busy but not really anything too "noteworthy" to report.

Unless you call water in the basement noteworthy. A few loads of clothes through the washer & a phone call to Bill's Plumbing & walaa! Problem solved.

Brad's been digging a 5X7 foot hole in the ground outside for an egress window also. My arms are SORE from hauling dirt in the wheelbarrow. We've put a lot of dirt around the foundation of the house. That hole created a lot of extra dirt! I was amazed at how much. Anyway, the window is about to be put in if the weather permits. Then the kids can spread out a bit rather than sleep all in one room. The rental house was good practice for us since we are all in 2 rooms again for awhile.

I have been hanging stuff on the walls here. I was using the cordless drill & the bit slipped off the screw & went into my finger today. OW!! I have a phillips' shaped puncture wound from it. I'm not getting a whole lot of sympathy & will probably survive. I did get some things hung & mini blinds put on a few windows.

The house is coming along, we'd love to have to come & visit!

So Amazing

We are so thankful for the modified atkins diet! Our friends' son, Austin, has had problems with different kinds of seizures this last year and found a doctor who helped them get Austin started on this diet.

Within 3 days he was seizure free! It is so amazing. God can work miracles, and this diet is one of those ways God is working in Austin's life.

You can read more about Austin's story at www.jblutz.blogspot.com.

We're praising Jesus with you Brooke & Jeff!

80's

brad went shopping today...for an atari!! atari flashback to be exact. i just used a valuable 1/2 hr playing frogger & other games i enjoyed as a child. hmmm. i remember it being more fun then for some reason.

bruce, wanna come over & play?

Dillan Family Tuesday

Here's a sampling of what went on at our house today:

1. Yeah! Running into Imperial friends, Erica & Sherri at the mall in Kearney.
2. Lunch with 2 great gals & their kids--thanks Mandy & Diane!
3. Parker has minor black eye from "breaking up a fight" on the playground.
4. Broken toilet. Hammer & porcelain do not mix well.
5. Mom, I was looking at your contact & accidentally put it in. (how does this "accidentally" happen?)
6. Toys & games put away--about 8 boxes unpacked!
7. Christmas trees put up & decorated--thanks kids!

All in all, just another average, ordinary day at the Dillan house.

New House

We're all moved in & enjoying our new space tremendously. We are slowly but surely finding a home for all the stuff in our boxes. It's almost like Christmas when you open a box a bit unsure about what is packed inside.

Some of them have not been opened since packing them in June. And oh the happy thoughts that abound when you find something you've dearly missed.

Here's a big THANKS to all of you who helped with our move. We appreciate you so much.

200 Signatures

I'm icing my hand after signing my name about 200 times at closing!

We are officially "Mindenites" & homeowners once again. We are excited about the space this house provides. It needs a little TLC, but we're not afraid of that.

We spent the afternoon & evening there cleaning & hauling in a few things. Tomorrow is the big day when we plan to move EVERYTHING.

Thank you Angie for watching Chloe & Cooper today & tonight. I know they are having fun at your house. What a blessing it's been to know they are having a great time & not have to worry about stepping on them while we move.

Final Note: Have you noticed that once you are moving your things you realize how messy you are? Or you think, wow that's really dirty & we've been using it like that for months.

Philippians 3:16

Philippians 3:16
"Only let us live up to what we have already attained."

Brrr!

This morning when I got Cooper out of bed, he was completely NAKED! He'd slept all night with no diaper or jammies. Hunter said Cooper had taken them off last night. His bed wasn't even wet but he sure could've been chilly all night!

6 Days 'Til Closing

It was definitely worth the time & effort to get pre-qualified for our home loan. It will be 22 days from first look to closing. Yeah God!

Now if I just had everything packed. Even though it feels like we never really got "settled" here, we still have a lot of stuff unpacked.

We're going to be putting in an Egress window if anyone has experience in that field as well as putting up a privacy fence. Anyone out there know how to dig post holes?

Dickies 500

Here's the view from our seats. They were great, we could see the whole track. It was taking them about 31 seconds to go around the 1.5 mile track.

Texas Trip

Tooth Fairy, Can You Read Me?

Breaker Breaker 1 9. Tooth Fairy, come in tooth fairy.

Parker has a loose tooth, actually about 4, but hasn't lost any yet. He was at the dentist a couple of weeks ago because his permanent teeth are now coming in behind his loose baby teeth.

This doesn't seem like it should be that big of a deal, because normally the permanent teeth would push out the baby teeth, but no. His baby tooth has seemed to get wedged in so that it is hard to wiggle it loose.

Here are Brad & Parker's attempts at pulling the tooth.

The tooth is STILL in there! Daddy whacked Parker's arm while he was holding the string & it just broke the string, didn't pull the tooth out. Parker was so mad! They got it a little more loose after Daddy yanked on it hard himself but it didn't come out.

I could hear them on the baby monitor downstairs & after about 20 minutes of yanking & trying Daddy said, "Do you want to take a break?"

mom don't sing

a couple of times cooper has put his chubby little hands on my cheeks & said "mom don't sing." he's probably doing the world a favor! i love it when little kids are so honest & just say what is on their minds.

House

Yeah!!

We found a house.

We close soon. Possibly even by next week.

4 bedrooms, 3 baths, plenty of room to spread out & build more bedrooms in the basement. 3600 sq ft of running around room.

It'll be GREAT. We're thankful for God saving this one for us.

No, we don't get to keep the wagon wheels. They are already moved. It's funny how several people have asked about that...

9 Hours

We sat through about 9 hours of racing--2 hrs of trucks Friday night, 3 hrs of busch cars Saturday afternoon & about 4 hours (or more) of it on Sunday.

I'm willing to admit when I'm wrong. It was

GREAT!

I told Brad that he knows how to get me interested in something. There were 6 couples there & we had SO much fun. I'll be in front of the TV this weekend watching them race again in Arizona. Gotta see how Ryan Newman does this week!

p.s. i had to choose a different driver sunday because paulette already had kasey kahne picked. so ryan newman was a great 2nd. he ended 5th while kasey kahne ended a lap down, at 18th or so. see, look at me talking the nascar talk! :)

p.s.s. i think ryan newman looks a bit like brad, that's why he is now my favorite driver...sonja he was born in 1977, is that better than 1980??

And we're off!

Tomorrow we'll all be up bright & early (well it won't be bright) to get ready to get kids off to school & to Kearney. Thank You to Dad & Mom, Joyce, Seth & Melissa, Jason & Tonya, Chris & Nikki for taking care of our kids!

We are so thankful to have willing people to care for our children while we're away.

A big thanks to Sonja for making my trip more fun by helping me with my "driver" choices. I'm really looking forward to seeing how Kasey Kahne & Ryan Newman do!

Watch out, I may be another Nascar fan in the making.

lucky girls

Nikki & Kennadie had a great time at the Hannah Montana concert last week, and they didn't even have to pay over face value for their tickets!

Amazing since some people were paying several hundred dollars for their tickets & some people paid that much & never received their tickets.

Such a Good Friend

You know you've got a good friend when she'll do your homework for you! My dear Sonja sent me pages of NASCAR tidbits & good ways to choose a driver. Brad & I are headed with several other couples to Texas on Thursday to watch NASCAR all weekend long.

I'm very much looking forward to getting away, but since I'm not a huge NASCAR fan myself (although Brad & the boys are) I don't have a "driver" to follow. I was actually kind of stressing out over who I should follow when my very wise friend showed me a smart way to choose a driver...

She listed all kinds of stats for the top 10 drivers & gave facts about them, and then said, and I quote, "HERE’S the latest STATS. This can help you determine who to follow. Or go with whoever has the cutest car. Ha. Or even better the cutest driver."

Nice! Now why was that so hard to figure out? Of course, I can just pick the cutest car or driver! I just needed my friend to point out the obvious! That's what true friends are for.

By the way, I've narrowed my choices down to Kasey Kahne, Ryan Newman & Jeff Gordon (Hunter's favorite). Maybe I'll choose who has the cutest car to see which one I'll really root for...

Here's my choice, Kasey Kahne & the Dodge car. I think he can do it even though he's only #17 right now. He has 1 win at Texas Motor Speedway, he has experience! See how much Sonja's information helped me?

Kites, Pumpkins & Movies

Sunday afternoon was very nice. We flew kites (thanks grandma!) for awhile before the wind pretty much mutilated them, then daddy helped with pumpkin carving. We topped off the day watching Matilda together.

The Bus Barn

The pond across from us has been so great. The other night the kids & I walked around enjoying the evening. My two favorite parts of the evening were:
1. Kamrie posing for her "senior pictures" in the gazebo. She thought it was so funny to pose like that.
2. Cooper looking at all the buses in the bus barn. The Bus Barn is in between the school & the pond. He truly didn't want to come home, it was the first time I'd taken him that close to all the buses. We've seen them plenty of times driving by, but hadn't walked up to them.

Sister Picnic

Kamrie & Chloe shared a fake-food picnic across the road the other day. What sweet memories these girls will have growing up as sisters.

The Surgery is Done

As I was sitting at the table earlier today, Parker came in from outside & said to Hunter in the living room:

"The surgery is done."

I'm chuckling in the other room, because I know they are talking about a dead rabbit we came across yesterday in the field behind our house. I didn't say a word, but heard this next:

"I took out the other lung & that stuff by the stomach too." "The intestine?" "Yeah." "Oooh, Parker, you should spread it all out & see how long it is!"

"YUCK!" I'm thinking from the other room as I hear the boys talk. All I said was, "Parker are you touching that with your hands?" "No, I'm using a stick."

OK then, I guess it's ok.

Top 10

Here's my Top 10 reasons to not have a dishwasher:
10. You get to wear rubber gloves at least 3 times a day.
9. You get creative about using as few dishes as possible.
8. It's a way to get out of doing something you don't want to do..."oh, I can't change that dirty diaper because I'm washing dishes."
7. You get time to reflect on whether the meal was worth the mess.
6. It's a diet in itself..."Hmmm, I don't feel like washing dishes, so I won't eat!"
5. You realize how good your tennis shoes are after standing in one place for a long time.
4. You get to refine your debating skills by deciding whether or not the dish means enough to you to make it worth washing.
3. You don't let leftovers in the fridge start to grow because you don't want to have to scrub moldy dishes.
2. You hone your competetive skills by racing to get a pile of dishes done before the washer/dryer dings.
The Top Reason to not have a dishwasher:
1. It's good prayer time. Actually this is true (as were the other reasons). Just like it says in Diapers, Pacifiers & Other Holy Things (thanks sonja!) it's a time to say, "Thanks God for scrubbing me clean just like these dishes."

calm your heart down mom

terri's phone call to her dad: how do you get spray paint over spray off of our suburban?

hunter & parker were trying to make robot halloween costumes & were in the garage spray painting their boxes, with the doors shut, right next to the suburban.

the boys have been begging for their privileges back all weekend.

as parker was telling daddy how it all came about he said, "i should have told mommy to calm her heart down."

yep, mommy could use a lesson in calming her heart down.

side note: suburban is fine, the paint came off no prob.

2nd note to self: don't forget to feed the children

last night brad & i were fortunate to got out for supper with another couple. when we got to my parent's house to drop the kids off, parker said, "i'm hungry."

brad & i looked at each other & said, "did we forget to feed the kids?"

good thing grandma saved the day with hotdogs & peanut butter & jelly sandwiches.

Brilliant Idea

Brad & I have talked about a limo-like screen that we could put up in the suburban to block out the noise, but this would maybe work...

Pumpkin Patch Fun

It was a COLD day at the pumpkin patch. But we had lots of fun!

note to self: check to see if you smell like supper

A couple of weeks ago I'd made supper--yep, I actually cooked a whole meal. Anyway, then we were pushed for time to get to Awana. I got there & could smell supper on my shirt. It was like I'd been to a soup supper! I told my yellow sparks group that I was sorry because I smelled like supper. I almost couldn't stand myself!

Anyway, this one little boy sat by me during their council time & kept grabbing my arm & smelling it, saying "I want to eat your shirt!" He was so funny.

At Awana on Wednesday he & I sat by each other again (he & I are kind of buddies) & he smelled my shirt--put his nose right on my arm! He just wanted to see if I smelled like supper again...

look closely

If you look closely at the picture you can see kids hiding behind the trees across from our house. Near as I can tell (as I was spying on them from inside) they were in PE class & supposed to be running around the pond. I was cracking up because several times kids would stop behind this group of trees, evidently out of the line of sight of the PE teacher, for a bit of a rest.

i had the best dream!

chloe: i had the best dream mommy!
mommy: you did?
chloe: i was dancing with orrin.
mommy: ooh! were you wearing a beautiful dress?
chloe: i don't know what i was wearing, but orrin was wearing his black suit.
mommy: i'll bet you were wearing a beautiful dancing dress!
chloe: daddy was there, so were you mommy.

p.s. orrin is brad's sister's oldest son

Learning from my daughter...

Kamrie set a good example for me living in this snake-y area. She even makes the snakes look friendly!

Kamrie's Pictures

I love Minden's kindergarten! (although i surely loved imperial's too--how can you beat imperial's kindergarten teachers? parker still talks about his adventures with mrs. cupp--she'll always hold a special place in his heart...)

They team teach here--they have 2 teachers & 4 paras for about 60 kindergarteners. They are divided up into 4 color groups who rotate through different stations through the day.

Kamrie's letter of the week is "M". Check out her monkey picture, I love it!

all grown up

i miss the days of

hunter

saying "choc-o-late milk" (well, ok, i don't really miss this one, especially because it was usually at 5:30 am)

parker

shouting "pt crusier! pt cruiser!" whenever we'd see one

kamrie

loving on her pink baby every chance she got, rubbing baby's pink ribbon right along her lip

chloe

saying "i have big teeth like a horses!"

cooper

saying "bus! bus! bus!" whenever we'd see a bus.

cooper is the only one that still does his somewhat. he still loves buses, but now says "there's 1-2 buses!" or "there's a bus right there!"

they grow up & move on to different fun things but there is nothing like the innocent chatter of a baby just learning to talk.

Germos!

I let everyone sleep in yesterday. 3/5 kids were coughing & 2/5 were feverish. Parker & Chloe are the most healthy. Parker did go to school right before lunch yesterday, he's feeling ok. Everyone is on the mend today, I think.


The boys were excited about their new suits for Grandma Neva's funeral. Hunter got a haircut (yep, his hair is now cut--even though people kept saying how LONG it was!) but Parker just wanted a trim & then buzz his hair after the funeral.

Parker: "there's a boy in my class who is bald & I want to be bald too!"

How to Know Christ Personally

FamilyLife: Articles - How to Know Christ Personally

Saying Goodbye

Brad's Grandmother, Pete's mom, passed away on Friday & we were able to spend time with family today saying goodbye. We will sure miss our visits to Great-Grandma Neva's house. The kids loved to go see her; there will certainly be a hole to fill.

The pastor did a great job during her service today. He said that Neva was a good person, but being a good person doesn't get you to heaven. He explained that you have to know Jesus personally as your Savior to get to heaven. He told us about how Neva understood God's grace. He said that heaven isn't a place for good people, it's a place for forgiven people. He said that heaven is a place for sinners, like you. Like me.

Brad & Neva had had long talks the last couple of years about her relationship with Jesus. We have no doubt she is in heaven right now.

Are you going to heaven?

You can know for sure, you don't have to wonder.

Click on the link above to know more.

Mustache Day

Cooper drew around his mouth with a blue magic marker, looked at me & said, "mustache!" It was adorable & of course he was all for it when I asked him if he wanted me to draw a mustache on. He giggled the entire time I drew. Chloe took one look & wanted one too, so they wore their mustaches proudly, in honor of Papa Mustache!

Super Cute Sleeping

Chloe put herself to bed the other night. Of course it wasn't in her own bed, but that is beside the point. She was so cute!

Cambridge Park

The kids & I spent some time at the park while Brad visited his Grandma Neva in the hospital. After playing we went to see her too. She's not doing well, but was able to talk to us a little bit. All of her kids were there to see her as well as a few grandkids.

Felt Like Home

I asked Brad if Imperial was too far to commute to church every Sunday after visiting there yesterday. It sure felt like home. It was great to see friends, especially those special ones in SONShine Gardens! Look at how they praise Jesus during the Kids' Worship time.

Colby's 3rd Birthday Party