That's right folks! A new baby for the Rogers. :) ETA March 5th.
Megan is waffling back and forth. "I want a brother." Five minutes later: "I want a sister." Five minutes later: "I want a brother AND a sister." She also informed me that she could feel that baby kicking. :)
We are very excited, and slightly terrified. :) Please keep us in your prayers for a safe pregnancy and delivery.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Weekend in Wasilla
Well, not weekend really. We went out to Wasilla on Saturday night and spent the night at the Dunaway's cabin. It was truly delightful. The cabin is tiny, homey and cozy. You walk in and right away smell woodsmoke from the stove, and it reminded me of the tiny cabin where Dn. John and I lived for a year. There are huge picture windows overlooking Reed Lake, and it is set so far back from any road that you can't hear a thing but ducks and rain beating on the roof. It was so peaceful, and rejuvenating. At one point, we saw a bald eagle swooping down low over the water. We thought it was fishing....until we realized it was trying to eat a family of baby ducklings. However, Dn. Tom (who lives next door) hopped into his canoe, rowed out and ushered the ducklings to shore before they became eagle food. Megan spent the night at my parents' house, so we only had Marina. Only having one kid around is odd. She really enjoyed the attention though! And Meg had a good time with Grandma. She'd been asking to spend the night for awhile, so it was a treat for her.
Today, Megan, my Mom and I went and saw Toy Story 3. What a great movie!! Love, love, love it. I totally recommend it!!
Tomorrow, my friend Helen is coming over and we are going to paint the girls' room. I will post pictures after the overhaul is finished...which involves me getting their quilts done, finding a sale on twin beds, Dn. John assembling their bunk beds, and me making new curtains. Whew! I think I'm going to try and paint the dresser, too. So, don't be too anxious for photos, because I'm sure it will be the end of the summer before we are done. :)
Today, Megan, my Mom and I went and saw Toy Story 3. What a great movie!! Love, love, love it. I totally recommend it!!
Tomorrow, my friend Helen is coming over and we are going to paint the girls' room. I will post pictures after the overhaul is finished...which involves me getting their quilts done, finding a sale on twin beds, Dn. John assembling their bunk beds, and me making new curtains. Whew! I think I'm going to try and paint the dresser, too. So, don't be too anxious for photos, because I'm sure it will be the end of the summer before we are done. :)
Saturday, June 26, 2010
10 Great Things That Happened On Friday
1.) Had my highest grossing day so far at Friday Fling
2.) Met a new potential wholesale customer
3.) Did NOT hit the moose that was running towards the highway on my way home from Palmer (I tell you what, nothing gets the blood pressure up like the sight of a giant moose running towards your vehicle).
4.) Celebrated Luke's 3rd birthday
5.) Got to welcome Matthew back to Alaska after a six month absence
6.) My friend Rebecca had a baby boy!
7.) Beautiful, perfect weather (which was great since I locked my keys in my truck and couldn't have gotten my coat if I wanted!).
8.) The itch from my infernal mosquito bites finally died down
9.) Dn. John thought if was funny, rather than annoying, that he had to drive from Anchorage, pick up the kids in Eagle River, and bring them to Palmer to unlock the truck.
10.) After a long, exhausting day, the kids slept through the night. :)
2.) Met a new potential wholesale customer
3.) Did NOT hit the moose that was running towards the highway on my way home from Palmer (I tell you what, nothing gets the blood pressure up like the sight of a giant moose running towards your vehicle).
4.) Celebrated Luke's 3rd birthday
5.) Got to welcome Matthew back to Alaska after a six month absence
6.) My friend Rebecca had a baby boy!
7.) Beautiful, perfect weather (which was great since I locked my keys in my truck and couldn't have gotten my coat if I wanted!).
8.) The itch from my infernal mosquito bites finally died down
9.) Dn. John thought if was funny, rather than annoying, that he had to drive from Anchorage, pick up the kids in Eagle River, and bring them to Palmer to unlock the truck.
10.) After a long, exhausting day, the kids slept through the night. :)
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Jam Jam Jam Jam Jammy Jam Jam
My gracious, I have a lot of jam at my house right now. With the help of my younger sister (who is amazing, awesome, incredible, fantastic, and every other great adjective in the book), I got 13 dozen done today, added to the 13 dozen or so I already had at the house. Whew! (I also love that Jess consented to be paid in BBQ sauce). I've had to remove most of the family food from the pantry shelves, and am now storing it in an (until now) poorly used closet. This has given me more space for jam, but with 200 some odd jars on the shelves, I'm rapidly running out again! Especially since I really need to start making jumbo batches to keep up. This whole making of ten flavors in one day has got to stop. I'd like to get on some kind of routine where I make 4 or 5 flavors a week, just a ton of them, and keep stocked that way.
In any case, tomorrow's plan includes another overhaul of the utility room, trying to clean out that closet of the stuff we never use so I can convert it into a pantry, so I can use our current pantry for jam. Good gracious. Home remodel cannot come fast enough!
The cool thing is that I am now stocked with all twelve flavors of jam that I wanted to offer (this year at least!), and two of the three BBQ sauces. The last BBQ sauce is waiting to be Dn. John approved, which will happen (hopefully) on Monday. I'm making pulled pork (black bears, you are not invited) to have after Liturgy.
In any case, tomorrow's plan includes another overhaul of the utility room, trying to clean out that closet of the stuff we never use so I can convert it into a pantry, so I can use our current pantry for jam. Good gracious. Home remodel cannot come fast enough!
The cool thing is that I am now stocked with all twelve flavors of jam that I wanted to offer (this year at least!), and two of the three BBQ sauces. The last BBQ sauce is waiting to be Dn. John approved, which will happen (hopefully) on Monday. I'm making pulled pork (black bears, you are not invited) to have after Liturgy.
Monday, June 21, 2010
Sunny days
It was a glorious and gorgeous 67 degrees outside today, and the girls and I walked up to the church lawn. The kids put on their swimsuits, and went and played in the sprinkler. This is always amusing to me, because I have so much family in the deep south, where 67 is too cold to be in the sprinkler. :) Here, however, it was sunny and hot and we loved every minute of it. We played outside all afternoon, and now that evening is here, the clouds are rolling in and it looks like rain, so I'm glad we took advantage!
We are on the final countdown of Little League, with only 1.5 weeks left! I'm pretty excited about this, because it means Dn. John will only be gone one night a week, instead of four. Also, on Thursday Megan's Godfather (and our good friend) gets here for the summer, and we will celebrate our God-son Luke's third birthday this weekend. It should be a fun week. If we get some more sun, I hope Dn. John will get a chance to mow the front yard (we have a giant weed patch that we loving refer to as a lawn, and mow it as such).
We bought new recliners on Saturday, along with a set of bunk beds for the kids. We need to find mattresses for them (I am keeping my eyes peeled for a sale), and then we'll get to put those up. I'm hoping to paint their room before we put the bunk beds in...my friend Helen said she'd help, so with any luck we'll get to that next week. I'm also working on quilts for both kids, since they don't have any blankets big enough for a twin size bed (they're both in toddler beds right now). It'll be pretty cool to do a whole room redecoration. I'm about half way done with Megan's quilt, and it is going together quickly, so I hope to get both done by the middle of July.
Wow, it is 7:30 already. Around here, that means bedtime!! Especially for Marina, who was up at 6 a.m. and did not take a nap...and is now having a meltdown. Okay, off we go to pick up the playroom, and head to the Land of Nod. :)
We are on the final countdown of Little League, with only 1.5 weeks left! I'm pretty excited about this, because it means Dn. John will only be gone one night a week, instead of four. Also, on Thursday Megan's Godfather (and our good friend) gets here for the summer, and we will celebrate our God-son Luke's third birthday this weekend. It should be a fun week. If we get some more sun, I hope Dn. John will get a chance to mow the front yard (we have a giant weed patch that we loving refer to as a lawn, and mow it as such).
We bought new recliners on Saturday, along with a set of bunk beds for the kids. We need to find mattresses for them (I am keeping my eyes peeled for a sale), and then we'll get to put those up. I'm hoping to paint their room before we put the bunk beds in...my friend Helen said she'd help, so with any luck we'll get to that next week. I'm also working on quilts for both kids, since they don't have any blankets big enough for a twin size bed (they're both in toddler beds right now). It'll be pretty cool to do a whole room redecoration. I'm about half way done with Megan's quilt, and it is going together quickly, so I hope to get both done by the middle of July.
Wow, it is 7:30 already. Around here, that means bedtime!! Especially for Marina, who was up at 6 a.m. and did not take a nap...and is now having a meltdown. Okay, off we go to pick up the playroom, and head to the Land of Nod. :)
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Megan's charm bracelet
Megan and Marina went to my sister's house yesterday while I was at Friday Fling selling jam. Well, Kali's Goddaughter Danielle was there also, and gave Megan a Citronella bracelet, telling her, "It will keep away all the bugs and bad things." Well, Meg took that to heart, and when her Uncle Steve came over to her later (she's not a big fan of Uncle Steve), he was teasing her that he was going to take her snack away. Apparently, she threw herself over her food, held up her hand that had the bracelet on it like some kind of voodoo charm, and cried, "No Uncle Steve! I have my bracelet! You stay away!"
She also told me later that it worked to keep Nathan (her cousin) away.
She also told me later that it worked to keep Nathan (her cousin) away.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
An early, but good, morning
Well, last night my sanity was gone by 7:30, therefore the kids were in bed by 7:45. They actually slept really well, without either of them waking up during the night (which is almost unheard of!), and woke up happy and ready to rumble at 6 a.m. Now usually, a six a.m. wake up call is not something to be happy about, but Dn. John and I hit the hay early also last night, so I was rested and felt pretty good. The girls got to say goodbye to their Dad when he left for work, and we were all fed, dressed and showered by 7:30 a.m. Claire is spending the day with us, so we got her ready, fed, and did all of our hair by 8! It's pretty cool. I feel like I have all the time in the world to get stuff done today, which is great because I'm going to need it. True to form, our house is a mess, but I plan on whipping it into shape this morning. We'll have an early lunch, put Claire and Marina down for naps around noon, and I may even get to have some Mommy time this afternoon! I've been itching to sew some stuff, so I think I'll break out my sewing machine. :) I'm excited.
Monday, June 14, 2010
Crazy kiddos
Perhaps we are having a few days of full moons...perhaps something is in the water....perhaps some odd radioactive bug has bitten, but we are in full insanity mode here. My girls have been CRAZY for a couple days now. I am at my wits end.
Thankfully, my best girlfriend is in town going nuts with her kids too. (Okay, I'm not really thankful her kids are nuts also, I'm just thankful that I am not alone). Our solution tonight was for me to head to her place, since Dn. John was at a Little League game and her husband is in Greece, and let the kids run around, entertain each other, and we could just sit and look at each other with shell-shocked expressions.
In any case, it is bedtime. Actually, it's a little early for bedtime, but I don't care. 7:45 has become bedtime at our house, since by 7:30 I'm about to lose my grip on sanity. I am going downstairs to curl up with a bowl of chocolate ice cream and a chick flick.
On a side note, Marina just tiptoed out of her bedroom. Apparently, she thought I had gone downstairs already, because she peeked around the corner, spotted me in the office, and took off like a shot back to her bed. BUSTED.
Thankfully, my best girlfriend is in town going nuts with her kids too. (Okay, I'm not really thankful her kids are nuts also, I'm just thankful that I am not alone). Our solution tonight was for me to head to her place, since Dn. John was at a Little League game and her husband is in Greece, and let the kids run around, entertain each other, and we could just sit and look at each other with shell-shocked expressions.
In any case, it is bedtime. Actually, it's a little early for bedtime, but I don't care. 7:45 has become bedtime at our house, since by 7:30 I'm about to lose my grip on sanity. I am going downstairs to curl up with a bowl of chocolate ice cream and a chick flick.
On a side note, Marina just tiptoed out of her bedroom. Apparently, she thought I had gone downstairs already, because she peeked around the corner, spotted me in the office, and took off like a shot back to her bed. BUSTED.
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Marina's Traumatic Day
Well, we started off the day strong today, heading off to my 10 year high school reunion at a park in Palmer. We were there for half an hour or so, when someone said, "Oh Christine, your daughter just fell." I was looking around for Megan, until I realized that she was fine. Dn. John, however, was holding Marina, who wasn't making any noise. Yet. I got close enough to see the prolific amount of blood on her face, and then she started screaming.
Twenty minutes later, we were in the Emergency Room, where my baby girl got six stitches above her left eye. She gashed her forehead open on the slide. It was gnarly. Blood blood blood, and a giant, wide cut. Thankfully, I earned my Mommy points by not being freaked out by the sight of my child's blood. I then lost my Mommy points by just being freaked out that she was hurt in general, and doing a lot of fast talking and pacing.
Marina was such a trooper though. She settled down pretty quickly, and we got the bleeding stopped at the park, and patched up with a friend's first aid kid. In the hospital, she didn't make a peep, except when we had to take her cookie away (they didn't want her to eat anything until they were done stitching her up). But all through the shots and stitches, she laid there like a champ and let the doc do his stuff. The nurses commented that she was better behaved than most of their adult patients. Both Dn. John and my sister Jess are taking credit for that part of her personality (heck, I know it wasn't me!!).
Megan was pretty funny. She was walking a fine line between being worried about her sister and jealous of all the attention. She had fallen on the slide about ten minutes before Marina, and busied herself informing the ER doc that she had gotten hurt too, complete with rolling up her pant leg to show him her (unscathed) knee. He asked her if she thought she needed stitches too, but she politely declined. :)
After the ER (which we were in and out of in about an hour!! Awesome.) we headed back to Palmer for the tail end of a little fair they were having downtown. A pony ride and stick of cotton candy later, both girls were as happy as can be. They passed out on the way home, and are currently watching the NBA finals with their Dad.
In any case, it was a crazy afternoon! I'm thankful Marina is such a tough cookie. I'm pretty sure it would've been a different ball game had Megan been the one getting stitches, but we're not even going to go there. Ever. I'll post a pic once it's safe to take the bandage off.
Twenty minutes later, we were in the Emergency Room, where my baby girl got six stitches above her left eye. She gashed her forehead open on the slide. It was gnarly. Blood blood blood, and a giant, wide cut. Thankfully, I earned my Mommy points by not being freaked out by the sight of my child's blood. I then lost my Mommy points by just being freaked out that she was hurt in general, and doing a lot of fast talking and pacing.
Marina was such a trooper though. She settled down pretty quickly, and we got the bleeding stopped at the park, and patched up with a friend's first aid kid. In the hospital, she didn't make a peep, except when we had to take her cookie away (they didn't want her to eat anything until they were done stitching her up). But all through the shots and stitches, she laid there like a champ and let the doc do his stuff. The nurses commented that she was better behaved than most of their adult patients. Both Dn. John and my sister Jess are taking credit for that part of her personality (heck, I know it wasn't me!!).
Megan was pretty funny. She was walking a fine line between being worried about her sister and jealous of all the attention. She had fallen on the slide about ten minutes before Marina, and busied herself informing the ER doc that she had gotten hurt too, complete with rolling up her pant leg to show him her (unscathed) knee. He asked her if she thought she needed stitches too, but she politely declined. :)
After the ER (which we were in and out of in about an hour!! Awesome.) we headed back to Palmer for the tail end of a little fair they were having downtown. A pony ride and stick of cotton candy later, both girls were as happy as can be. They passed out on the way home, and are currently watching the NBA finals with their Dad.
In any case, it was a crazy afternoon! I'm thankful Marina is such a tough cookie. I'm pretty sure it would've been a different ball game had Megan been the one getting stitches, but we're not even going to go there. Ever. I'll post a pic once it's safe to take the bandage off.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Change
It is a constant source of amusement (and irritation) that Megan is so resistant to change. Anything from a major life change to a hiccup in her bedtime routine will send her into a spiral of insanity. Today, I informed her that our afternoon routine was going to change. Usually, she watches a movie while Marina naps, but then when Marina wakes up, she is sometimes fussy and clingy and I can never get dinner started until Dn. John gets home to deal with her. I hate the idea of Megan watching three or four hours of TV in the afternoon. So, I thought maybe if they watched a movie together after Marina woke up, it would distract her and I could cook. My plan is foolproof, except for one thing: Megan.
My gracious, she put up a fight. Thankfully, I have finally distracted her with the prize of doing things that are difficult to do while Marina is awake, like painting, playing with play dough, etc. She is happily painting away, singing a little song to herself. The house is quiet, and I am still getting a much needed minute to myself.
My sister gets home today, after a couple weeks of fighting forest fires up in Tok. I hope to catch up with her this weekend, but I am definitely waiting until she's had a chance to bathe. :) Two weeks of camping while firefighting with no showers does not lend itself to big sisterly hugs. We're entering the final stretch of weeks until her wedding, which is crazy. I think it's six weeks away (maybe seven). The girls have beautiful flower girl dresses and little ribbon crowns. It remains to be seen if they will actually perform their duties as flower girls. I may have to walk down the aisle with them. (Heck, that's one way to wheedle my way into the wedding party!)
In other news, my jam business is off like a shot. I had no idea it would take off like this, and I am busy busy busy trying to keep up, but enjoying it quite a bit. I have a new pectin that I'm using (and I'm totally in love with it) and in the next week or so, I'll be ordering a huge shipment of jars from a supplier in Seattle. I am almost up to my goal of 12 jam flavors, then I will be developing some more BBQ sauces.
Dn. John and I enjoyed a nice dinner out for our 8th anniversary yesterday. Can't believe it's really been that long! It was fun thinking about our wedding day and all the craziness that led up to it. I can't wait to see what the next eight years have in store.
Speaking of reminiscing, my ten year high school reunion is this weekend. Boy, that's going to be crazy. I have no idea who is coming, but hopefully it will be a lot of fun. Dn. John is super excited to go to the picnic on Sunday and attempt to make conversation with a bunch of people he's never met. Hahahaha....haha...ha...no seriously, he's a little cranky I'm making him go, but ah well. It's a family event, so if all else fails he can just play with the kids and ignore everyone else. Out of sheer love for him, I am going solo to the adults only dinner tomorrow night. :)
My gracious, she put up a fight. Thankfully, I have finally distracted her with the prize of doing things that are difficult to do while Marina is awake, like painting, playing with play dough, etc. She is happily painting away, singing a little song to herself. The house is quiet, and I am still getting a much needed minute to myself.
My sister gets home today, after a couple weeks of fighting forest fires up in Tok. I hope to catch up with her this weekend, but I am definitely waiting until she's had a chance to bathe. :) Two weeks of camping while firefighting with no showers does not lend itself to big sisterly hugs. We're entering the final stretch of weeks until her wedding, which is crazy. I think it's six weeks away (maybe seven). The girls have beautiful flower girl dresses and little ribbon crowns. It remains to be seen if they will actually perform their duties as flower girls. I may have to walk down the aisle with them. (Heck, that's one way to wheedle my way into the wedding party!)
In other news, my jam business is off like a shot. I had no idea it would take off like this, and I am busy busy busy trying to keep up, but enjoying it quite a bit. I have a new pectin that I'm using (and I'm totally in love with it) and in the next week or so, I'll be ordering a huge shipment of jars from a supplier in Seattle. I am almost up to my goal of 12 jam flavors, then I will be developing some more BBQ sauces.
Dn. John and I enjoyed a nice dinner out for our 8th anniversary yesterday. Can't believe it's really been that long! It was fun thinking about our wedding day and all the craziness that led up to it. I can't wait to see what the next eight years have in store.
Speaking of reminiscing, my ten year high school reunion is this weekend. Boy, that's going to be crazy. I have no idea who is coming, but hopefully it will be a lot of fun. Dn. John is super excited to go to the picnic on Sunday and attempt to make conversation with a bunch of people he's never met. Hahahaha....haha...ha...no seriously, he's a little cranky I'm making him go, but ah well. It's a family event, so if all else fails he can just play with the kids and ignore everyone else. Out of sheer love for him, I am going solo to the adults only dinner tomorrow night. :)
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Grandma
Just a heads up, to everyone who has been following the situation with my Grandma:
She is doing really well, recovering at light speed and is almost entirely her old self again. The final guardianship hearing is tomorrow, so please say a prayer that everything goes well. God willing, she'll be in Alaska living with my folks in time for my little sister's wedding at the end of July.
She is doing really well, recovering at light speed and is almost entirely her old self again. The final guardianship hearing is tomorrow, so please say a prayer that everything goes well. God willing, she'll be in Alaska living with my folks in time for my little sister's wedding at the end of July.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Chuck Norris
Chuck Norris doesn't mow his grass. He stands outside and dares it to grow.
Chuck Norris has already been to Mars. That's why there are no signs of life there.
Chuck Norris doesn't own a watch. He decides what time it is.
Chuck Norris can start a fire by rubbing two ice cubes together.
Chuck Norris can gargle peanut butter.
Chuck Norris has already been to Mars. That's why there are no signs of life there.
Chuck Norris doesn't own a watch. He decides what time it is.
Chuck Norris can start a fire by rubbing two ice cubes together.
Chuck Norris can gargle peanut butter.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Bucket List
I follow a food blog (www.browneyedbaker.com) and I really enjoy it. I found her kitchen "bucket list" today...all the things she wants to learn how to make. Quite a few of them were crossed off too. It is an awesome idea, since there are gobs of things I want to figure out also. I think I am going to make my own, and post it on my refrigerator.
On the docket for today? Angel food cake. Never done it before, but I've got a fridge full of farm fresh eggs and strawberries....yummy!
On the docket for today? Angel food cake. Never done it before, but I've got a fridge full of farm fresh eggs and strawberries....yummy!
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