Papa and Kama visit

My Dad flew into Branson last Thursday and my mother showed on Friday (a little later due to work obligations).  We all very anxious for their arrival.  It was very nice to just be around my folks again and for the kids to get some time with their grandparents. It seems weird to me that I get to see them once a year and if I'm lucky, twice.  Friday night we saw the production "The Miracle of Christmas" at the Sight and Sound theater.  It was our second time to see it and my parent's first time.  It was awesome!  Saturday night we went out to eat at a Japanese Sushi Steak house and then went to the Festival of the Lights at Shephard of the Hills.  Sunday night we had a small birthday celebration for my Dad.  The cake turned out horribly as I used some old oil and it had a funny wang to it, but it was thought that counts right?

The girls loved having their Papa around to horse around with as you will see from the pictures and the rats did too LOL.  Their only complaint was that he ate all of the good halloween candy up.  When Kadyn asked why I replied, "Remember, your Papa has a horrible sweet tooth."  Kadyn replied, "Well I think he needs to have that sweet tooth pulled!"  Brennan stomped off after her sister in a huff and said, "Why did Papa do that?"

It was very funny.  Anyhoo....here are  few pics.  I feel bad that I didn't get more, but when you're in the moment it tends to slip your mind.

I must admit.  I wasn't as excited about Halloween this year.  Last year it was a big deal as Jeff's family came in for the holiday, and we all dressed up and trick or treated together.  This year Jeff had work obligations, and it was just the girls and I.  Such a bummer.  However, we still made the most of it, and the girls had a blast anyways. 

Carving pumpkins, on the other hand, was a little more fun than it usually is.  Both Jeff and I felt like it seemed easier this year, and I'm not entirely sure why.  The girls really got into to it this year, more than normal.  Kadyn even carved half of her pumpkin by herself.  I had to clean out at least three of the pumpkins myself as the gross factor always comes into play with my girls.  Jeff and I went outside the box for our pumpkins.  Since we have two new ratty additions in our family, I thought it would be fun to carve a pumpkin in their honor.  After all, don't most people consider rats to be creepy.  Perfect for Halloween!  Jeff, of course, stuck to paying honor to his favorite school. 

Anyhoo...here's a little of our holiday this year in pics.

Happy Halloween Everyone!  From Sister Darci, Spider girl Kadyn, and Leopard Brennan.

Forgot....no problem

If you forget the lyrics to a song, no problem!  Just make up your own.  Hope you find this amusing as I did.

Popping colors

Fall has really popped at our house.  Happy fall every one!

Dada saves the day

The kids were playing t ball in the front driveway.  They ended up hitting the ball into the culdesac and it rolled into the gutter (one of many times we've lost a ball to a gutter) Dada, and all his ingenuity, rigged a butterfly net to a broom stick and fished it out.  It was kinda cute watching the kids trotting behind him determined to retrieve their ball.  I couldn't believe Dada did it in his dress cloths.  Such a good Dada!

Downsizing....again

Every time I try to watch more than two daycare kids, it NEVER works out.  The baby I have been watching is probably the most demanding child I have EVER watched for a baby.  The little baby I watched a year ago came close, but this one wins the cake.  I am almost as stressed as I was when I was watching those two rowdy boys.  She is six months old. I have had her since she was 8 weeks.  I kept thinking things would get better as she ages, but they have only gotten worse.  Today she wouldn't even take a nap.  She was here for 5 hours and dog tired and CRANKY.  I tried 4 different times to get her to go down and nada!  She would throw fits EVERY time I put her down to do anything so there's definitely some separation anxiety at play here too.

I hate that I will probably be sending her on her way as I have really enjoyed working with her parents and we have a good friendship which makes this all the more awkward, but at the end of the day I am running a business and I have to do what is in the best interest of myself, my family, and the other daycare kids.  They are being robbed of time with me because of her.  They are also being robbed of a sane woman watching them.  I have tried every trick under the sun to make this little girl happy and get her on a schedule. It always ends the same, crying, crying, and more crying.  Yes, it is time.  A child like this needs to be a facility where there are more hands to help.  This way they can take shifts so it is not at the expense of the baby or the other children.  I simply do better with older children.


Anyhoo...I wish I could say that this is the last baby I will watch, but the little boy I watch has a little brother on the way and I have agreed to watch him next year.  This little guy is a typical toddler, he likes to pick on Brennan, but overall he is a sweet boy and if his brother on the way is anything like him, it should be fine.  It would seem I'm not a baby person.  I've watched two babies in two years, and I had to let them go.  However, I have watched two newborns before them while I was in Springfield and didn't have the issues I'm having now.  It really is a child by child basis.  Thankful God gave me easy babies.  I'm not cut out for the fussy ones.  Sure am looking forward to getting back to teaching in a school again soon!  God has made it very clear that daycare is not my true calling.  Thankful for the what it has taught me and the perks it has given our girls socially and our family financially, but I know deep in my heart that I am meant to be teaching in a school.  Just two more years....hopefully ;)

Hoping for the best

I can't even begin to tell you how crazy I am about our new pets.  I know it sounds silly.  A rat right?  They are everything you read about them and more.  They really are like little dogs in rat bodies and each with their own very unique personality.  Every morning when we wake they are just as excited to see us as we are them.  Daisy especially is known to scale the walls of her cage to let us know she wants out to see us.  She will even bypass a treat to get to us.  She is soooo playful. I have been able to wrestle with her, play tug of war with her, hide and seek, and peekaboo.  She doesn't like to sit still very long and has even started giving me kisses.  Not one bite, only what I like to call "love nibbles" because they are friendly and tickle.

Daphne is so much more laid back, however, I'm not sure how much of that is due to the fact that she is not feeling well.  Both rats were sneezing when we brought them home. I thought it was just them adjusting to the new smells in our home and read that sometimes happens, but Daphne is getting much worse.  I'm not sure she'll make it.  She is super snuggly and chatters when we hold her (supposedly a sign of contentment).  She will even take a snooze and snuggle with us.  We are too attached to take them back to the store, and if we loose one or both we will certainly get some more, maybe from a different store.  It just makes me sick to think we got sick rats.  The man at the store said they were sneezing because he had just used hand sanitizer.  I stupidly believed him. 

Anyhoo....preparing for the worst, hoping for the best.  Didn't think we'd be loosing any of them this soon.  Just wish I wasn't attached; can't believe how easy these little rodents are to love.