Someday I'll look back at this and laugh.

This summer during the break between summer school and regular school, Peanut had a hard time. He expressed this hard time by smearing poop over every surface in his bedroom everyday for 21 days straight. It was not fun. As a result, we took the carpet out of the boys room. This meant we needed some other sort of flooring in there. Filbert has had this idea for quite a while now to take the laminate flooring from the living room and put it into the boys' room and then get new flooring for the living room. We also thought that, if we were going to it, we should rip out the carpet in our bedroom and continue the flooring into there. Filbert thought it would be a good idea to knock down my closet since it is poorly designed and has some functional obsolescence. (there's my effort at pretension for today.) Walnut and Peanut had the whole week of Thanksgiving of off school, so I packed the two of them plus Cashew up to my parents (the Grandnut C's) on Sunday, giving Filbert three and a half uninterrupted days to work on this grand project. His dad and mom (they prefer not to think of themselves as nuts) were enlisted to help.

Remember that three and a half uninterrupted days? It turns out, not so much. I was under the impression that since Filbert had this huge project to do, he was taking Monday through Wednesday off to work on it, until he came to join us in Iowa for Thanksgiving. I should have known better. He took Monday off and really only had half of Monday because since I was in Iowa with the kids, he had to go to the boys' parent teacher conferences that afternoon and go bowling that evening. (Bowling is sacred, don't even suggest that he take a night off.) I discovered through phone conversations the misunderstanding regarding the work schedule and then lived in fear for the rest of the trip. (Bonus: Cashew potty-trained while we were there. Yay. (Peanut is still not trained, but he no longer plays Picasso with his poop, either. Yay.)) We still managed to have a lovely Thanksgiving and Filbert returned home early to continue work on the closet.

I arrived home to see my lovely new floors and my missing closet. I still don't have a closet. I haven't been able to put the house back together after moving the furniture out of three different rooms. Chaos reigns (remember in Get Smart the evil agency was called Kaos?). And that chaos led us into the Christmas season and prevented any sign of Christmas from appearing in our house. We did get the small tree put up, but the cats keep knocking it over and chewed through one of the light strings. (Oh, by the way, this summer we got 2 kittens. They are named Lavender and Fairbanks. The kids love them.) So anyway, I was feeling kinda bummed about the lack of Christmas cheer in the house, but I have resolved to do better next year and also, Filbert is not allowed to start any new projects until all the projects he has started are completed. Oh, that's right, I forgot, part of the reason we chose the timing of Thanksgiving to do this project was because Filbert thought the bunk beds that he is building would be finished by then. Unfortunately, the work of getting three rooms ready for new flooring delayed the completion of the bunk beds. They're still not done, either. (Filbert is not a loser. I told him I would say that, because he was concerned that people might think he was a loser. He's not a loser, though.)

So anyway, we muddled toward Christmas and tried to look forward time with family and friends instead of focusing on the chaos. We've also had to deal with the escalation of Peanut's PWS related food-seeking behaviors and our fridge has a shiny new padlock on it. Peanut has been getting up early in the morning before anyone wakes and has delighted in finding many ways to strike fear into our hearts. He's really too smart for his own good.

On the 23rd, Filbert and I and his sister, Lisa, and her husband took their grandparents out for a special Christmas breakfast. While there, we got a hugely unexpected (and generous!!!) wad of cash from the Greats to spend on Christmas. Later that day, Lisa and I thought it would be a fabulous idea to go shopping with the money to get stuff for the kids that they could open in front of the Greats on Christmas. (Really, we just wanted to get away from the kids, between us we have a 7 year old, a 6 year old, a 5 year old, a 4 year old, a 3 year old and a 2 year old, and one of us is pregnant, and I'll give you a hint, it's not me.) I asked the kids what they wanted and got various answers, but Peanut was quite emphatic about wanting a "blue guy". I didn't know what this was. I got him a light saber, instead.

On the 24th, we opened presents with the family and Peanut again expressed his wish for a "blue guy" and we finally figured out that he wanted a Perry the Platypus toy. Since Filbert had to go out and exchange the two seated bicycle VCR we had gotten for his parents, he told Peanut that if he could find one, he would get him a "blue guy." We also didn't have any tape to finish wrapping presents. It turns out everyone closes at 8:00 PM on Christmas Eve and the only thing Filbert was able to get from our list of last minute stuff was some tape from Walgreens that cost about a thousand dollars. I finished wrapping everything up, put it on the card table in the middle of the family room, hung some stockings and went to bed.

At 6:30 this morning, Walnut came into our bedroom and said Peanut's up and I think he's opening presents. We rushed to the family room and every stinking, last present was unwrapped. When asked why he did this, Peanut just replied, I can't find the blue guy, where's the blue guy?

I'm gonna do this.

Cashew has been asking for a red "sprinkle" dress ever since Filbert took the kids to see Toy Story 3. I got some clearance fabric a couple of months ago, but just haven't gotten around to getting started on this. Now I will.

Speaking of innocence...

Earlier tonight, there was a Stars Wars movie on TV. Walnut thinks Stars Wars is the coolest thing ever, even though he has never seen any of the movies. (Isn't peer pressure grand?) So, Filbert called Walnut to the TV and they settled in to watch. After a while, I hear Walnut ask what Anakin's mom was doing. Filbert said, "That's not his mom." Walnut replied with the wisdom and disgust born of 7 years on this planet "Then why is he kissing her?"

Diagnosis

I have mentioned my sciatic nerve pain multiple times in recent weeks. I finally have a diagnosis. Thanks to Amy's husband, Filbert, who is a chiropractor and muscle mangler galore, I have been told that the source of my pain comes from my piriformis muscle.

As I was googling the piriformis, I found it referred to as "the pain in the butt that won't go away." Lovely. As glamorous as it is, I'm really looking forward to the day that I can pick up String Bean without cringing in pain!

I gotta go. Time to heat up my heating pad and put it on my butt. Like I said, glamorous.

I was a little scared, but it turned out okay.

A few years ago, I heard a woman say that she prayed one year to become organized. It was the worst year of her life. The next year she prayed for organized friends and things have been great ever since. Well, yesterday, my organized friends, Mandie and Aimee came to visit. Mr. Bean and Filbert took off with the kids and I was left to fend for myself against the organizational push. Three rooms were tackled and defeated. Mandie made me get rid of my wedding shoes and then even after that she said I had get rid of at least one more pair, but preferably three pairs. (This is when it got scary.) (This is also when the term Nazi entered the conversation.) (In my defense, it was actually Mandie that said it.) (I just quietly agreed.)

After about 3 hours, 3 rooms were clean and organized, except for a couple of piles of Filbert's stuff in our bedroom. I even went a little further after and Aimee and the Nazi Mandie left. My entire fabric stash is organized and stored on a book shelf. Yay me!

And Yay for Organized Friends!

Thankgiving Eve

'Tis the eve of Thanksgiving, so I suppose I should think of some things for which to be thankful. (like how I made sure not to end that sentence in a preposition? )

I'm thankful that I don't have to cook the turkey.
I'm thankful for my dear sweet Filbert.
I'm thankful for my delightful Walnut.
I'm thankful for my precious Peanut.
I'm thankful for my boundless Cashew.
I'm thankful for godly parents who love me.
I suppose I'm thankful for 3 older brothers. ;)
I'm thankful for loving in-laws who are not the stuff of nightmares.
I'm thankful for my dishwasher (even though Filbert does most of the dishes.)
I'm thankful that Filbert does most of the dishes.
I'm thankful for my house.
I'm thankful for my bed. (I really love my bed.)
I'm thankful that even though times are tight, my children have never gone hungry. (I mean actually hungry, not whiny privileged American hungry which just means I want a cookie.)

R.I.P. Sparky

My cat died Saturday night. Well, actually, we had him put to sleep. He was 13 years old and recently diagnosed with diabetes. He was suffering and didn't have much time left. The kids were all in bed, but we thought Walnut would like to have a chance to say good-bye. I woke him up and he groggily petted Sparky and sadly bid him "Farewell." I took him back to bed and held him while he cried and I cried a little bit, too.

Peanut was sick and staying home from church with Filbert. Walnut said he wanted to stay home with daddy to "see what the house will be like without Sparky." So while Cashew and I went off to church, Filbert took the boys to Lowe's and they picked out a birch tree under which to bury Sparky. Walnut helped Filbert dig the hole. Peanut watched. Finally, Walnut asked if the hole was big enough. Filbert told him that it was deep enough, but it needed to be wider, to which Walnut replied "Can't we just crunch him up into a ball?"

Fish Oil

I just watched a program on the History Channel about Alaskan Pollock. I'm really grossed out now by the fish oil pills that Amy's husband, the chiropractor, insist that I take. Blech.

Dear History Channel:

I do not need to know what happens with every part of the fish. Just seeing you catch it was enough entertainment. Excuse me while I go and puke.

Yours Sincerely,

Happy Father's Day!

We hope you are enjoying Father's Day and celebrating not only your own dad, but the father of your children, too. Amy and I couldn't be married to better daddies. Do you have a great photo of your child/children with dad? Send us a link to it so we can appreciate your man, too!

Happy Father's Day!

Mr. Bean and String Bean looking over the edge of the ferry.

Photo by Mandie

Filbert entertains Walnut, Peanut, and Cashew.
Photo by Hazel

We Survived

I recently had a conversation with Amy and Filbert about things our kids have that we didn't...and we survived! The conversation mostly revolved around seat belts and car seats neither of which were required when we were young. Although I do not advocate letting your kids do without seat belts and car seats just because we survived without them, there are certainly things that fall into that category.

Wipe Warmers. Sure it makes the experience more pleasant, but is it necessary? I think not.

Remote Controlled Mobiles. Really? My daughter never had a mobile, so maybe I've just missed the whole boat. I guess parents who are too lazy to get up and go across the room/house to start the mobile or change the speed/sound need a remote. Speaking of remotes, where is my TV remote...?

Mini Washing Machine for Cloth Diapers. If you don't believe me, check it out. Although this link does not advertise to use this gadget for cloth diapers, other places it is advertised as a solution for keeping pees and poops away from the rest of your laundry with this new machine. If you have expendable income, go for it. And it fits on your counter top! That's where I like to clean my poops and pees!

Crying Analyzer. Maybe I'm the odd mom out, but isn't it easier just to check the diaper, offer food, and look for something uncomfortable than to pull out a machine, have your baby cry into it and hope that this is right, as it is 87% of the time, about your baby's cries?

Shopping Cart Covers. *Dodging tomatoes* I know many of you out there think this is a necessity for your precious little one. I'm told that 95% of first time moms will take precautions for their firstborn and then just find that to be a hassle and unnecessary with their second. (You caught me, I made up that statistic, but you second and third and fourth time moms know there is truth to that.) Our grocery store has disinfectant wipes at the door next to the carts. I just use those and try to keep my life simple and my diaper bag light. (Similarly, there are these same covers for restaurant high chairs.)

Lead Testing Kits. Somewhere the Consumer Product Safety Commission has just started a file on me. When I was a kid, we ate lead for fun! My elementary school had a back alley where not only my sister was caught kissing a boy behind the shed, but the lead dealers (who were all in 4th and 5th grade) would go to sell their product and get us all our fix before the dreaded afternoon dolldrums. The trace amounts found in toys just are not worth the hysteria the CPSC has thrust upon us. Unless your kid is eating paint, the lead threat just isn't that great. And you have a bigger problem. YOUR KID IS EATING PAINT. Besides, I saw an exposé on the news that showed these tests often give false positives and fail to detect lead in some cases.

What would you add to this list?

E is for Elephant

This is a proud mommy post, so if any of you are turned off by that, here's your chance to escape.



Last night as Filbert was reading to the little nuts, he started pointing to some letters for Peanut. Filbert pointed to a "d" and Peanut said "whoof, whoof" as in d is for dog! How much does that rock! That's pretty smart for a 3 year old, let alone a 3 year old whose parents were told he would be retarded! But, that is not all! Filbert pointed to the "e" and Peanut did his elephant sound and sign! His evaluations have always shown that he does not have any cognative delays, but it's nice to get a little extra confirmation every once in a while.

Happy Birthday, Cashew!

As soon as I knew I was pregnant with each of my kids, I knew something about them. With Walnut, I knew as soon as I saw the pink lines, that he would weigh over nine pounds. I don't know how I knew it, but I was without a doubt that this baby I was carrying would be huge and he was, 9 lbs, 4 oz. With Peanut, I knew he would be born early. Mind you, I was thinking 2 or 3 weeks, not 7. Filbert's parents planned a long vacation, for the entire month before his due date. Their plan was to be back 3 days before my due date, and I assured them that they were going to miss the birth. As it turns out, they missed their whole trip, as Peanut arrived before they even left, and they couldn't bear to leave with him in the NICU.

Five and a half months after Peanut's birth, I knew I wanted another child someday, but not quite yet, and I didn't know what Filbert wanted. So it was with great trepidation that I took a pregnancy test. I cried when I got a positive and showed it to Filbert. He got that funny look on his face that a man gets when he knows he is "da man" and then I was relieved and started to be a little bit happy. I knew that this was the daughter I had always longed for and even more, I knew that she was going to be fine.

My darling Cashew, I wish you that happiest of birthdays and many more to come. You overwhelm me with your life-force and I hope you always will. I pray the Lord will guide me in the way to mold you into the woman you are meant to be, for you are a force to be reckoned with. You are so much more than fine, but words fail me.

Lay-Off Update

As a follow-up to this post, I should mention our congregation decided not to lay off our music pastor after all, provided that the giving increases over the next few days (60? 90?).

I'm interested to see what happens!

Also, at our annual business meeting at church, Amy's husband, Filbert, and I were voted onto the Nominating Committee. (This is the committee that picks the Elders at our church.) Exciting things are happening!

Baseball

My child and Amy's children will never be able to connect over a game of baseball. Since we live in Chicagoland, we have 2 major league baseball teams: the Cubs and the White Sox.

Mr. Bean is a Cubs fan. Filbert is a Sox fan. String Bean is already saying, "Go Cubs!" and I know Walnut roots wholeheartedly for the White Sox (it is just a matter of time for Peanut and Cashew if they haven't started being fans already). Amy and I count our lucky stars that the rivalry between the teams hasn't affected the friendship of Mr. Bean and Filbert, yet.

Right now the Bean family is out-numbered by the Nut family. At least we can agree on football. The Bears are the team to root for! Go Bears!

The Chronicles of Narnia, Book Review

Today, we have a guest blogger giving us a review of "The Chronicles of Narnia" by C. S. Lewis. Filbert has been reading the book series to Walnut over the past couple of months and they are on the seventh book. Walnut has graciously agreed to share his thoughts on Narnia with our readers.

Aslan made Narnia. Lucy discovered Narnia by a wardrobe. Edmond met the White Witch. Peter, Susan, Lucy and Edmond turned into kings. I like it because it's magical. Aslan died and then came alive.

Thank you, Walnut, for your insights! I think that's a pretty good job from a 6 year old book reviewer.

Peanut's First Day of School

Since Peanut celebrated his third birthday last week, he is no longer eligible for Early Intervention. This means he goes to school now to receive his therapies and so forth. We had an IEP meeting (Individual Education Plan) and it was decided that Peanut would go to pre-school 4 mornings a week and receive Speech, Occupational and Physical therapies. The classroom that he is in is especially for kids with speech problems. We visited the classroom and Peanut had a wonderful time. Our biggest concern was that he would have an hour bus ride home from school. So yesterday was the big day, Peanut was nearly beside himself with excitement and couldn't wait to get his back-pack on. Filbert got to drive him on his first day, because I took him for the visit. I'm still not sure that was quite fair. Then I just had to wait for the bus to bring him home. The bus was scheduled to drop him off at 12:07. I had my coat on and was waiting by 11:55. At 12:17, I called the school to find out where my baby was, and as soon as I was put on hold I saw the bus coming up the street. I ran down to driveway to meet it, but it drove right past. I ran after it for about a 1/2 block but then I could see it turning a corner, so I turned around to head it off at the next block. I flagged the bus down and found that the driver had been given bad directions. Peanut was sound asleep so he did not see the crazy lady chasing a bus down the street, but I'm afraid most of my neighbors did and I've been trying so hard to keep the crazy in the house.

The Birth of Walnut

Super Bowl Sunday, every man's worst nightmare, missing the big game because his wife is inconveniently in labor. Although, when my labor started at midnight, on the eve of the Super Bowl Sunday, Filbert fully expected he would still be able to attend the big party at church and would be handing out chocolate cigars and showing pictures during the half-time. He thought surely, a chiropractor's wife would have no trouble and sail through delivery quickly and easily. Oh, if only....

I learned a few things in my 20 hours of labor which ended in a C-section. First, considering that it was my beloved Filbert's idea to do the Bradley Method, he is a lousy labor coach. Second, I don't like company while I'm writhing in pain for hours on end. Third, football is not really a great distraction, especially when there are 5 injuries in the first quarter (although, the distraction was greatly appreciated by my dad) and lastly, when an anesthesiologist who specializes in pain management and a chiropractor get to chatting, they end up trying stuff out on each other and forgetting about the pregnant lady waiting for relief over in the bed. (In case you were wondering, I don't think Vicodan actually changed hands, but Filbert did shove the guy up against the wall and crack his back.)

I would probably make different choices regarding birthing if I were able to start all over again, but I wouldn't changed anything about my first-born child. He is a delightful little person, he is the one who made me a mother and he teaches me about life, every day.

Oh, and Filbert just reminded me that he missed a chili cook-off in addition to the church Super Bowl party. To him I say, "Cry me a river."

To Santa or Not to Santa

This has been the dilemma for Filbert and me. We thought we had decided that we would not do Santa and always present him as a legend or a fairy tale, if it came up. We reckoned not with Walnut. This charming little lad of ours has bought into the Santa hype, hook, line and sinker and there is no talking him out of it. A couple months ago, he would have said that Santa was not real, but no more. It all began when we went the Courthouse lighting in Newton, IA. There was a parade and Santa was there and in the words of Walnut "He looked right at me and he waved at me". It was like no one else was there in the town square as Santa and Walnut had a "moment". We've tried to counteract this in various ways. I found a website about St. Nicholas and read him stories about the real St. Nick (who, I was surprised to learn, calmed the seas once) and explained how the stories of St. Nicholas turned into the legend of Santa Claus, but he's not buying it. For him Santa is real and he believes it with his whole heart. The public schools aren't helping us out, either. Yesterday, in Kindergarten, all the kids got a boarding pass to "The Polar Express" and got to wear jammies to school. He came home and asked me if I believed in Santa and I told him no. He said that I wouldn't hear the bell that he produced from his backpack. He rang it and I heard it and after the look of great consternation that crossed his face, he concluded that I must really believe in Santa Claus, after all.

Nuts and More Nuts and Some to Giveaway!

In case you were wondering, my nut name is Hazel. I cannot not take credit for the idea of naming my kids after nuts, it was my co-blogger, Mandie, that came up with it. She and Mr. Bean have always called Peanut, Peanut and Walnut is a play on our last name and Cashew is, well, just another nut. I decided to follow the trend and give my husband and I nut names, too. I picked Filbert because I think it's funny and Hazel just because I like it. Plus, they are kind of the same thing, just like a happily married couple should be! So when we were given some nuts to giveaway, it seemed only appropriate that I be the reviewer.


Since one of the primary concerns with Prader-Willi Syndrome is obesity, I am always looking for healthy snacks, and I think I've found one in Snacktrition. As most people know nuts are full of fat, but that's not actually a reason to avoid them. Nope, quite the opposite, in fact, because the fat in nuts is the good kind. Almonds and Cashews have only 17% and 6% (respectively) of the "bad" fat, and have about 20% protein, making them much more filling than an equal amount of chips or cookies. They are also rich in minerals, something most of us are sorely lacking. One thing that makes most commercial nuts unhealthy is the oil that nuts are usually roasted in. However, Snacktrition offers 4 different variety of nuts that are oven roasted with no oils. Even better though, is that they bake on fiber and calcium along with yummy sea salt, so besides the good fat, you're getting other nutrients that your body needs. Now, the big question is, how do they taste? Well, they taste like nuts. Ha! (Sorry, I had to do it.) Actually, they are quite tasty and your hands don't get greasy when you eat them.
Snacktrition offers Sea Salt Cashews with Fiber, Salt and Pepper Cashews with Fiber, Smoked Almonds with Calcium, and Sea Salt Almonds with Calcium. Their fifth offering is a Fruit and Nut Mix which combines the Sea Salt Cashews and Almonds with dried blueberries and cranberries and yogurt chips. This one was an especial favorite at our house, I didn't really want to share it, but we had a family emergency and I needed to take the kids to visit a relative in the hospital and Filbert missed dinner because he was too upset to eat and once we knew the crisis had passed, everyone just started inhaling the stuff. Filbert would stop chewing every once in a while to comment on how awesome the stuff was. He has even commented that he would buy both the salt and pepper cashews and the fruit mix again, and he is a notorious cheapskate. Peanut and Cashew seemed to like all the nuts equally, although, sometimes Cashew just sucked the salt off of the almonds. I took my sample pack to my family's Thanksgiving gathering and the reviews were all positive, but there was no clear favorite, although the men seemed to favor the salt and pepper cashews. So all in all, Snacktrition is good stuff and gets the Nut family seal of approval (or Hazel looks down and pats her tummy.)

Now that I've got your mouths watering, who wants some free nuts? I thought so! Sign up for our giveaway! 5 lucky winners will be receiving a sample package of Snacktrition products to enjoy, just sign up below. Remember just one entry per household.

Giveaway ends Monday, December 8 at noon (central time zone)!

True Confessions, Part III

My husband, Filbert (not his real name) has a deep and abiding love for sweaters. I mean *deep* and *abiding*. Seriously, it's a problem. He used to keep about half of them in Cashew's closet, but since that is no longer an option, he redesigned his own closet so that each sweater has a compartment where it can lovingly be stored. I had to establish a "one in, one out" rule for his sweaters and about a year ago, I finally convinced him to get rid re-home his last Cosby sweater. When I decided to start using cloth diapers to save money, his first concern was for his sweaters and the impact of washing diapers and then washing his dear sweaters. He was dreadfully afraid of poop transfer. I assured him that it could never happen, and reluctantly he agreed, although, he always tries to make sure another load goes through the washer between the diapers and his sweaters and when he sprays poop off of a diaper, he sprays and rinses and swishes that diaper so thoroughly, it almost doesn't even need to be washed. I am not quite so diligent.

Now, I am going to tell you something that he must *never* know. First, my kids really like cereal that has dried blueberries in it. And dried blueberries pretty much go straight through to the diaper. One time, (seriously, do not tell my husband this, he will freak out and take all his sweaters to the dry cleaner and we cannot afford a dry cleaning bill for 40 sweaters), so one time, I was taking the diapers out of the washer and there at the bottom of tub was one fully reconstituted blueberry.