A new fixture to the front?

I hate when Thanksgiving becomes the "forgotten" holiday. It goes against my principles (ok, principles might be a strong word) to put up Christmas decor before Turkey Day. It bugs the heck out of me to be shopping for Halloween candy and listening to "Deck the Halls" blasting from the speakers at Pat Catan's. (True story.)

But, this is also Cleveland -- and I am a realist. It doesn't take a complete genius to conclude that it makes much more sense to put up outside lights on Monday -- when it's Greg's day off and the outside temperature is predicted to be low 60's and sunny, rather than on Friday - -the day after Thanksgiving -- when weather men and women are calling for a chance of snow. I mean c'mon....we don't want to repeat the year when the kids were little and we put up outside lights exactly one week before Christmas, now do we?

And so, principles were tossed aside with the wind of last night and today...and we set to work. Can you say, Family Home Evening? (And no, hopefully, I'm not always so quick to toss aside my principles.)

Some of our after-Christmas purchases from last year were the first (and last) to go up this year. I don't know the height of our roof...but it's up there. And Greg is tall. But despite that, it still took a huge ladder --on the highest rung -- with the screw gun in hand -- to drill in the plastic pieces that were to hold the rope lights. Hmmm...worked well...until some of them broke and I had to climb the ladder in order to re-deliver the screw gun so Greg could try again.

Have I mentioned I don't love heights? Or at the very least...climbing a ladder...at night...when it's windy?

We only got the job half-finished last night. So, this morning (when the temperature had dropped about 15 degrees), we were back at it. Only this time, Greg had to rig up a contraption to keep himself from sliding off the pitch of the roof.  Notice in the bottom two pictures. Now, imagine me sprawled out on the red ladder -- with it braced against the house -- holding up the silver ladder which Greg was balancing on all the while drilling screws into the woodwork and weaving the rope lights through.

For obvious reasons, there is no picture of both of us at the same time.

While I cautiously braced my hand on his ladder, trying to wiggle my fingers to keep them from freezing to the rungs (ok,  it wasn't THAT cold), I had a flashback. Perhaps it was a dizzy spell of sorts. They always say not to look down. So I tried looking up. The clouds moving across the sky didn't help me feel more secure, so I just stared straight ahead and remembered Christmas the year I was pregnant with Addysen.
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I'm always a fan of decorating early in order to enjoy it for as long as possible. (Just not way before Thanksgiving). We lived in Southern Utah at the time so we had the luxury of paying $5 for a permit and cutting our own tree from the mountains.

Long story short:
We saw the "perfect" tree...from the bottom of the mountain. Young fools that we were...we started hiking up the mountain and through the snow trying to reach the tree. I'm pretty sure that we either weren't really looking at the same tree -- or we lost sight of it as we got closer. Either way, being very large with child (gave me much more appreciation for Mary riding a donkey while pregnant), I got a little panicky. Not only was I out of breath, but I was slipping and sliding all over the mountainside when the realization struck that I would also have to figure out how to get DOWN the mountain. I distinctly remember thinking that perhaps this was not the best activity for someone in my state.

So, I sat right down in the middle of the mountain and told Greg to go ahead and get the tree...while I waited. It wasn't too long after that I heard him yell, "Ok, I've got it." And it wasn't too much longer after that I heard, "Oh shoot." That exclamation was quickly followed by large tree slipping and sliding (branches snapping and breaking) down the mountain.

Thankfully, Greg wasn't attached to the tree.

I'm pretty sure we broke some rules of engagement among tree-cutting folks there in Southern Utah because we abandoned that "perfect" tree in search of another...this time, we thought we'd look for one a little closer to the road...a little closer to the truck.

By that point, we were out of time...so we had to go tree hunting another day. Finally, after getting stuck in the snow and pushing/digging/praying our way out of THAT mess, we found another "perfect" tree which we promptly cut down, took home, and decorated.

Hmmm...too bad I can't remember if that was the year Greg got pneumonia and spent the entire Christmas break asleep on the couch.
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Anyway...we finally got the lights up...and no one died or ended up maimed. Now, I'm just thinking that the lights might be up till next May....

Or maybe...it's more likely they'll be up forever.

Don't you wish your kitchen looked like mine?

For more time than I would care to admit...we've had a "bad guy" (Cambrie's words) lurking in our kitchen ceiling. As happens most often, it started small enough...and without receiving the proper attention...continued to grow and grow and grow. Two weeks ago -- when it started "raining" in the kitchen, I had had enough.

You might imagine the ever-so-pleasant conversations we had about getting the problem fixed. I was resigned to the fact that there was no other way to resolve the problem than to hack into the ceiling and find the culprit. I was also resigned to the fact that I might have to live with a hole in my ceiling for oh-say...the next 4-6 years. (I know, I know,  you are thinking I am being a bit dramatic...but I promise you, I'm not. Past history of plumbing problems in Kerr kitchens has more than proven that once a hole is there...there is little-to-no sense of urgency when it comes to covering it back up. Just ask anyone who ever visited our old house from say, 2002-2008.)


Yesterday, Greg's friend came and conducted the hatchet job. (Kenzie came into the office and under her breath whispered, "Uh, Mom, you should probably come and see what Dad and his friend are doing in the kitchen.) Lo and behold...they found the problem in a matter of minutes. Seems a faulty seal on the master toilet was the problem. Seems a certain builder should have done it right in the first place. Seems that the floor boards are slightly uneven -- thus causing the water to cascade down the seems. It also seems I somehow got 'blamed' as someone made the comment, "Well, now you know why it's wet every morning -- you go to the bathroom all night long." Hmmm...go figure. All I can is, "You give birth to 5 children -- all of which are nearly 9 pounds or more at birth and see how it affects YOUR bladder." Yeah. Score one for me. Good come back.

One trip (yes -- only ONE) to Home Depot, $5 and a few minutes later...no more leak. This story might just have a decent ending. G's friend said he'd come back on Wed. to patch the ceiling. He's a little worried about matching the texture....as am I...but we'll address that issue when it happens. Right now, I'm trying not to get too excited to think that I might not have to live with a hole in my ceiling until Addysen enters college.

I'll keep you posted.

A little of this

We've had a little of this...and a little of that going on around here. Around 3am Friday morning, Greg woke me by saying, "I'm freezing. Do you think it's cold in here?" Somewhere in the midst of my deep-in-sleep conversation, I think I said something to the effect of, "are you sick?"

Around 4:30am  -- he got up for work. I called him around 8:30 am -- while taking Kenzie to school. I honestly couldn't remember if we'd had the conversation or not....since Kenzie and Brynnley both took turns coming in and waking me up -- telling me they were hungry of all things. (I promise, my kids do get fed...even real meals now that I am no longer working.)

Turns out, he was sick -- with bronchitis -- and he was on his way home. He then spent the entire weekend alternating between sleep, hacking up a lung and trying to get his fever down.

Good to know I don't just talk in my sleep.

Oh -- and speaking of Greg -- he got to spend a lovely -- very restful - -night at a sleep clinic about two weeks ago. Too bad I don't have the picture on this computer. I'm not sure how well most people would sleep with 27 probes attached to their chest and face.  Not to mention a lady yelling at you every time you tried to turn to your side.

Turns out he has sleep apnea and gets to go back for more tests.

Glad to know there is a diagnosis and possible treatment. Also glad to know there might be a chance of snoreless nights somewhere down the line.

What kind of mother would I be if I didn't post these?

School parties, parades, ward parties, family game night...who would have known that Halloween was on Sunday this year? Multiply treats times 5 kids and there is still plenty of junk -- even without "official" trick-or-treating.

Where is Addysen, you might ask? No parties for middle school -- but she did attend a party Friday night - dressed as a referee. (Not the elementary school party though...because, afterall, she is in 6th grade now!) Saturday night she was a pirate -- but blogger wouldn't upload the picture.

Only Cannon had his costume figured out in advance...and that is thanks to our friends who found out he is a Steeler's fan. Which Steeler was he? Troy Palamalu. Ask how he knows the names of the players as we rarely have football on around here...and I will tell you, with some embarrassment, that he learned their names from playing X-Box...or Wii...or some sort of video game. (We pretty much have to pry the jersey off of him in order to wash it. Rolls of toilet paper worked perfectly as shoulder pads. )

As for the girls, it's wonderful to say, "go pick something out of the bin in the basement."

Life is beautiful

Life is beautiful.
Even when it's not.
Life is beautiful.
Even when kids fight, laundry piles up and the garage door breaks to the tune of a $235 repair.
Life is beautiful.
Even when renters don't pay, bills exceed paychecks, people get sick and the scale stays stuck on that last 10 pounds.
Life is beautiful.
Even when car batteries die, kitchen ceilings leak and people lose their jobs.
Life is beautiful.
Even when friends move away, or worse, when friends die of cancer.
Life is beautiful.
Especially when babies are born, children laugh, dress up for Halloween or sing silly songs.
Life is beautiful.
Especially when leaves change colors, flowers bloom, and the sun shines bright.
Life is beautiful.
Especially when elections are over, when justice is done and teacher conferences bring good reports.
Life is beautiful.
Especially when hot chocolate is the drink of choice and Mother Nature gives an extra hour of sleep.
Life is beautiful.
Even when there's not time to blog about it.
Life is beautiful.