07.22.2007 | 9:23 am | Everyday Life
Okay, I admit it. I am no longer interested in toys for the pure entertainment value. My sense of fun has changed from kiddie toys to the mechanical creations of the grown up world.
While we were on vacation, I did several loads of laundry at the hotel. Oh, my goodness! I was SHOCKED at how huge the interior of the washing machine and dryer were!!! After starting a load of laundry, I went back to the hotel room and told B, “I could put 3 of our loads of laundry at home in this washing machine at 1 time!” I was absolutely giddy! We are in need of a new washer and dryer (washer is 10 years old and dryer is 9 years old) and I have already begun shopping around. NOW I know what to look for!
Back to the title of this blog - The Ultimate Water Sprinkler. For the past 9 years, as long as we have had a house, I have searched for a water sprinkler that will:
- allow me to water my lawn without it flipping over because it is made of cheap plastic and can’t withstand the pressure of the water
- not break because it is made of cheap plastic and the kids threw it (or I kicked it because it wasn’t working right)
- water my lawn constantly without the sprayer stopping because the little cheap flip switch that controls the circular area to be watered fails to stay put.
I just want a water sprinkler to water my lawn under my specific conditions - that it waters my lawn consistently and works according to the packaged information.
Hopefully, one day, B and I will have a professionally installed irrigation system. Until this day arrives, I have found the ultimate water sprinkler!
I purchased 2 of these water sprinklers with a circular base - one for the front yard and one for the back yard. It is made by Nelson (THANK YOU, NELSON!!). Get this - it is 100% METAL. I had begun to think that NOTHING could be purchased any more that is made of metal. Granted, this sprinkler cost more than I wanted to spend, but I thought I would give it a try. The package said that this sprinkler would spray an area up to 85 feet. No kidding - it does. I even had to adjust the METAL(!) arm to reduce the maximum spray of the water so water didn’t get wasted on my driveway. This has never happened before to me!!!
Our lawn service put down much needed fertilizer last week and I needed to water it in. I have been dreading this time. All summer when we have gotten fertilizer, we have been blessed with a rain to water it in. Not this time.
The sprinklers are working great. I never dreamed that I would be thrilled to shop for washers and dryers or that I would be thrilled to find a water sprinkler that is totally awesome! Either I am growing up or I am a REALLY dull person!
Comments (0)
07.20.2007 | 5:21 pm | Everyday Life
C, D, J and B in Gulf Shores, AL
C with a handful of sand at the beach
Sea Gull catching Cheetos in mid air while we were on the ferry on the way to Daulphin Island from Gulf Shores, AL
D in the white shirt with diaper bag over left shoulder; J in the red shirt and C in the white shirt with blue sleeves on the USS Alabama in Mobile, AL
C jumping in the hotel pool
J in the hotel pool swimming/dog paddling to the water ball
J and B in the hotel pool
a couple of the dolphin that we saw on the dolphin cruise
J at the beach in Gulf Shores, AL
Comments (0)
07.19.2007 | 1:40 pm | Everyday Life
Well, the boys, B and I survived our first family vacation and are glad to be home again. With being pregnant and then the boys being too young to enjoy a vacation, we haven’t had a family trip before, other than holiday travels. For our first family vacation, we decided to go to Gulf Shores, AL to introduce C and J to the ocean and beach and the other tourist sites. B wasn’t thrilled about seeing a “huge fish potty” as he called the ocean, but he enjoyed watching me and the boys loving the beach.
We left out on Saturday from home and drove south. After arriving at the hotel, we got situated and changed clothes. Then we headed for the beach. Since it was approaching dusk, we only had a little time to see the beach, but it went just as expected. B parked the car near a boardwalk and C instinctively knew to run to the boardwalk to get closer to the water. J, on the other hand (who lives life in the here and now) ran to the side of the boardwalk and squatted in the sand to play. I had previously told him that the sand on the beach couldn’t compare to his sandbox and he was successfully impressed with its magnitude. B and I coaxed J out of the sand and onto the boardwalk with the promise of lots of additional sand. C took to the water like a fish. He loved to splash in the waves and see the fish swimming around him.
Since it was approaching dusk, the beach guards came around telling everyone that they were about to close the gates to the parking lots. J got upset and started running towards the car repeating, “they’re gonna close the gates. Gotta get Daddy’s Murano.” We convinced him to slow down, that the guard wasn’t going to lock us in. When we got to the end of the boardwalk, there was a water faucet to wash sand off feet. C and J really liked splashing in that water, too.
We picked up some fast food on the way back to the hotel and ate in the hotel room. After dinner we played in the hotel pool until we had to get ready for bedtime. In the pool, C and J wore their swim suits that have a built in inner tube that goes around their chests, under their arms. While wearing this, C was courageous and learned how to jump off the side of the pool, become immersed in the water, pop back up out of the water and dog paddle to the ladder on the side of the pool. He jumped off the side of the pool at least 60 times in the 3 nights we were there. C kept asking me to say, “on your mark, get set, go!” and off he would jump. Also at the pool, B swam/walked in the water with J holding on to him and B taught J how to dog paddle (wearing the yellow inner tube swimsuit). B or J would throw a water ball and J would dog paddle to it, throw it again and swim to it. Both C and J found their water legs.
The next morning (Sunday) we woke up, got some donuts and headed for the beach. I held J in the water for a little while, but he kept insisting that I “take me (J) to dwy (dry) sand.” C loved the ocean again and we played and splashed for quite awhile until we needed to go to the hotel and get showered and changed so we could go to Pensacola, FL to the Naval Air Station (NAS).
At the NAS the boys loved the airplanes and helicopters. There were a few airplanes and helicopters that the boys could get in including a Blue Angels airplane. B commented that he could spend at least 2 days going through the NAS museum. I enjoyed it, but am not into the planes and history as much as B is and was ready to go back to the ocean.
We left the NAS and went back to the hotel for rest time. The boys both took a nap while I read my new Mary Higgins Clark book that I got for my birthday (It’s about time that I had some free time to read! I finished the book on our way home.) After rest time we went out to a restaurant to eat, but before our name was called on the waiting list, we decided instead to go get a pizza, take it back to the hotel room and then swim. The boys were too energetic to sit still and we knew that the pool would wear them out for bedtime.
Monday morning we went on a dolphin cruise on the Southern Rose. The boys were thrilled to ride on a boat and see dolphins. The boat had a lower deck with a glassed in sitting area and an upper observation deck. On the upper deck there were child sized steering wheels and C and J both concentrated on “steering” the boat away from the jetty and also away from an oncoming pleasure craft. While we were heading back to shore after watching the dolphins (we saw 6 or 7 individual dolphins playing), the rain started. We even got to see lightening strike the ocean. Back on dry land, J was getting really tired. We went back to the hotel and C and I changed into our swim suits to go to the beach while B let J have rest time. C liked not having rest time, but “Mommy time” instead.
On the way to the beach, we got McDonald’s to eat on the beach. At the beach with C, he ran into the water and left his chicken nuggets sitting out. The sea gulls started to eat them and I called him back to eat what he wanted before there was nothing left. After lunch C liked for me to splash him and he would splash me back. We looked for sea shells and then played in the waves some more. The waves were 3 and 4 feet high. I even got knocked over a couple of times! The ocean was beautiful!!! C and I left the ocean and went to a souvenir shop. I got an airbrushed shirt with a ladybug, rainbow, clouds, and my name. C got an airbrushed shirt with his name and a crab (why a crab, I don’t know. I just let him pick from the pictures and that is what he chose.). We got J a shirt with a purple octopus on it (there was another souvenir shop that had a large purple octopus as a decoration outside and J always pointed it out to us with a big grin.).
Swimming in the ocean on this trip was very different from times before. This time, I was the parent and I kept leaping to C every time there was a large wave or calling to him to turn to see the wave approaching. There was a protectiveness instinctually instead of the care-free feeling of youth.
C and I went back to the hotel, got showered and changed and got B and J. We went to dinner at the Gulf Island Grill. I ate fabulous crab legs and had a great time. After dinner we went back to the hotel for a swim with the boys in the pool. J enjoyed dog paddling again and C was thrilled to get to jump in the pool some more. At the hotel was a girls’ high school volleyball team. J started talking to three of the girls while in the pool and asked “how big are you? I’m three.” They thought he was adorable (he is!). While B was playing with J, I let C get in the hot tub for a few minutes since he was incredibly cold. With the cloud cover and the rain in the area, we were swimming in the outdoor pool while the temperature was in the middle 70’s. C told me, “I like this warm bath tub.”
We went back to our hotel room. B was downloading pictures from his digital camera. I was relaxing watching television and J was playing with his cars and trucks on the floor. Completely exhausted C climbed into bed, got his blue blanket and went to sleep. Now THAT’s tired - a 5 year old choosing to go to bed and not waiting for Mommy or Daddy to tuck him in.
Tuesday morning we went to the beach first thing since I wanted to get a picture of the four of us at the ocean. After playing for just a little, we needed to get back to the hotel, shower quickly and pack up to leave for home. After packing the car, we drove to take the ferry from Gulf Shores to Daulphin Island. The boys liked having the car to ride on the boat. While we were on the ferry, sea gulls were flying above us. I had a couple of small packages of Cheetos and threw Cheetos out the window one by one and the sea gulls would catch them in mid-air. Our car was next to the railing so I put some Cheetos on the railing to lure the sea gulls closer. The sea gulls would land, get the Cheetos and then fly away. The boys loved watching the birds and I must say that I had a fabulous time, too.
From Daulphin Island, we proceeded to Mobile, AL to go through the USS Alabama battleship. I think the boys were successfully impressed with the magnitude of this ship. It is huge. We climbed all the way to the top as far as is allowed, with the boys and talked to them about the guns, sleeping quarters, mess hall, pressing room, and other aspects of the ship. Then we looked in the aircraft hanger at the airplanes before looking at the submarine. After the USS Alabama, the boys were fascinated at one of the tanks sitting on the grounds. C and J have toy tanks, but to see a real one was neat!
Finally around 2:30 we were ready to head home. It was a long drive and C kept telling us that he wanted to rest in his own bed. Around 6:30 we stopped at a McDonald’s to let the boys play for awhile before getting back in the car. We knew that their bodies had to be tired from traveling. We had dinner in the car a bit later. Finally we pulled into the driveway at home and both boys were already asleep. I took C to his room and helped him into bed while B placed J gently in bed.
We unloaded B’s car so he would be ready to use it to go to work on Wednesday morning and then we both crashed. We had a great vacation, but the old saying stand, “there’s no place like home!”
Check back later - I hope to have some pictures up soon of our vacation!
Comments (0)
07.12.2007 | 11:09 am | Everyday Life
J just brought inside to me a little baby frog. It couldn’t have been even an inch big. I was surprised that the frog wasn’t jumping out of J’s hand and then noticed that the frog was upside down. Hard to jump when you are upside down. After J showed me the frog, he put the frog in a little plastic cup that he had had his Smarties candies in (that he got for going #2 in the potty). I still was surprised that the frog wasn’t jumping out of the cup. Then, maybe baby frogs can’t jump very high or the frog was scared.
I inquired to J as to why the baby frog had a red (blood) mark on his leg. C walked in the house at this time from where he had been playing with J out back. J told me, “I made the frog dead.”
I shouldn’t have been too surprised. It is not the first time the boys have “made dead” small critters. I have seen them step on spiders and ants and one time B was showing them something (I don’t remember what) and they crushed it. I asked C and J how the frog got blood on his leg and was “made dead.” C and J replied, “we scooped him up with a penny to put him in the water ’cause he was cold.” I guess the boys used too much pressure with the penny and crushed the frog.
The boys went back outside and I proceeded to do more housework. B called to check in since I had previously called him and he was too busy to talk. While we were talking, J brought the dead baby frog back inside. I told him, “You’re not God, you can’t make him alive again. Take it back outside.” B was taken aback from this comment since it not a comment that I make frequently - or ever have made before - to the boys. He could tell I was busy and we parted from the phone.
I tried to explain to the boys what “dead” means - that the frog will never jump again or play in the water or jump in the grass ever again. I also explained that the Mommy frog would miss her baby and that the froggy brothers and sisters would miss this baby frog. I don’t think C understood, since he replied, “It’s a good thing the Mommy frog has other babies.” However, C understood that if something happened to him, I would be very sad and cry lots and lots.
A while later the boys were inside watching Bob the Builder. I asked them where the frog was and C replied, “on the concrete.” I asked, “On the patio?” and C said, “oh, yeah.”
Ewwwwww! I guess I will be the one to dispose of this one.
I’m sure this is not going to be the first animal that the boys bring to me. I just hope that the rest of them are alive, or if they are dead, that they aren’t “made dead” at the hands of C and J!
Comments (0)
07.11.2007 | 7:20 pm | Health
I have a summer cold. It’s been awhile since I was sick. Usually it is the boys that come down with something and I keep washing my hands and praying, “Please, don’t let me get this!”
This time, I am the instigator of the virus in the house. I haven’t been around any sick people that I am aware of, don’t know where this came from. Yesterday was my worst day. I couldn’t find any medicine to open up my sinuses. And believe me, I tried a lot. I could hear B’s voice in my head, “You know you should go to the doctor instead of self medicating. These over the counter medicines should probably not be mixed…” But I didn’t want to bother with the doctor. She couldn’t do anything. Antibiotics don’t work on viruses and most colds are indeed viruses and go away in 10-14 days. I’ve heard it enough from taking the boys to the doctor with a cold.
Today, I am coming out of the fog. I had a little energy and abused it to the fullest. C has fresh bed sheets and so do B and I. The kitchen is clean and toys are put away. Now, I will sit for the remainder of the evening.
The past two days, like I said, I haven’t had any sinus relief. Total blockage. Only could breathe through my mouth. When B got home last night, he brought dinner with him and gave me mine and sent me to bed to eat and rest. THANK YOU, B!!! At bedtime, I was ready to help get C and J in bed. B took care of C and I took care of J.
I was rocking J to get him sleepy and he wrapped his arms around my neck holding on tightly saying, “I’ll keep you and make you feel better.” I liked the sentiment, but having his arms so tight around my neck, combined with the sinus pressure and I started to have a panic attack that I couldn’t breathe (I suffer from claustrophobia. This didn’t help the situation at all!). I gently loosened his arms and breathed slowly. I got really scared, but was able to calm myself and still keep J content. Rocking was good for both of us.
This evening, B got home from work relatively early and took the boys to the park and out to eat. This gave me a break and by these past several days I am reminded of why I love B so much. I understand how tired he is by the end of the day, but he sacrificed his precious time at home by choosing to help me get better. Plus the boys love going to the park (fresh air will be good for their lungs. I don’t want them getting sick!) and spending time with Daddy.
Thank you, B, for loving me so unconditionally and unselfishly and helping to keep this house running smoothly while I am under the weather.
Comments (0)
07.11.2007 | 6:58 pm | Everyday Life
C and J are full of testosterone. They live life to the fullest and play hard. Often this results in toys getting broken.
For the toys that I can fix, C and J bring them to me. If it is a toy that I can’t fix, it goes into the trash. Since C and J are learning to respect toys, they are not receiving any new toys unless it is a special occasion like birthday or the new McQueen pillow that J received for keeping his cotton underwear dry. (I think we are real close to having him totally potty trained! 
!!!!)
The other day, J brought me a small tractor that had a broken wheel. This I could fix. J climbed up in the kitchen bar stool chair and said, “I’ll get the super glue for you.” J knew that I keep my super glue in my wooden bowl that Grandpa made. This is my miscellaneous bowl of all important things (super glue, car keys, loose change and the inevitable little pieces of toys that haven’t made their way back to their home).
Smart kid to know exactly HOW to fix the tractor. No, I WILL NOT let him loose with super glue by himself. Yes, I’m smart enough to know what kind of damage could be brought on by a 3 year old with super glue… He wrecks enough havoc on the kitchen table trying to glue pictures with his washable glue stick.
But I was thankful for his helpfulness in getting the super glue. He understood that I was doing something for him, so he was helping me as well. C and J will be assets to the universe. Long live their kingdoms.
Comments (0)
« Previous Entries Next Entries »