Myles' Birthday

Yesterday afternoon I went into Myles' classroom to bring the kids funfetti cupcakes baked in ice cream cones. Myles rode home in the truck with me instead of on the school bus, which is always a special treat.
Grandma Faye and Grandpapa came over for dinner, dessert, and presents. Myles requested my homemade macaroni and cheese, which just happens to be Jerry's favorite mac and cheese. I feel quite flattered that Jerry likes one of my signature dishes, since he's lived so many years with such an excellent cook.
















Myles wanted the ice cream sandwich cake. I like it because there's no mess of baking, and it sure is delicious.






















I got Myles some nice bulky yarn to help him learn to knit. He's been trying for a while but hasn't had the right supplies. Speaking of encouraging addictions -- I mean hobbies-- Myles also asked for and received a camera for his birthday. Now there will be two knitting camera hogs in the family!

Happy Birthday to Myles

Six years ago today, Myles Raymond was born in Burlington, VT at 5:35am. He weighed 8lbs, 13oz. I had a drug-free, quick labor after weeks of bed rest. It's hard to believe the tiny baby in these pictures is a kindergartener this year.



Bryan looks pretty tired -- I don't know why, since he slept all night while I was in labor. We played Enya and our bedroom was dark and peaceful. Faye sat in the rocking chair to keep watch since Bryan was sleeping.

Here's Myles ready to leave the hospital.

And here are my three boys.

Carter, of course, was enthralled with his little brother.

While looking for pictures to scan, I realized that even way back then most pictures don't include me. There's some of me pregnant and some of me in the hospital, but other than that I hardly ever appear in photos. I guess I've been a camera hog for a long time.

Bad News and Good News

Well, I finally got around to transferring pictures to the computer just now. The card reader thing that I use malfunctioned. I could even smell it burning (gross). Then I had to find the cord to attach the camera to the computer, which I've never used before. Well, it ends up that the card reader malfunction lost all the pictures on the card. There were a ton, too. I took a picture of Berkleigh this morning and it said I had 962 pictures left, and it holds about 1200. I don't even remember all the pictures that were on it. There were some of my parents' house and my dad's motorcycle that he wants me to sell on ebay, and of course pictures of our visit there. There was a beautiful sunset which turned the snow on the Green Mountains pink across the lake. The other day we got our first snowfall. It didn't stick, but Merlyn and Berkleigh were so excited. I got a picture of them standing on one of the windowsills watching the snow. The one this morning was of Berkleigh with Mr. Potato Head's teeth in her mouth and a lego on each finger. I can't get too upset since there weren't pictures of a birthday or something on there. I'll take lots of Thanksgiving pictures to make up for it. The good news is that all my bloodwork was perfect (especially my cholesterol) and my CAT scan was normal. The doctor thinks that since I am so slim (as she put it) that my organs are more pronounced when she feels my abdomen. So, I guess the bad news could be worse and the good news is good, so I'm grateful and looking on the bright side.

Random Pictures

Last Saturday I took the kids to my mom's house, then went to get Bryan from the airport. I do have some pictures of our visit, but this has been a weird week and I haven't gotten the pictures off the camera yet.
On Sunday the whole family went to Home Depot and Walmart, which of course is always a production when the kids outnumber the parents two to one.
Myles got a cough on Sunday and was up in the night crying with ear pain.
I had an appointment with our new doctor on Monday, so he came with me. I like the new doctor a lot, and it's less than five minutes away (versus 45 minutes for our old doctor, who was worth the drive). Anyway, Myles had a double ear infection. I had to go up to Massena to get his prescription Monday evening.
Monday night Merlyn was up twice throwing up. Luckily she's a good sick girl and makes it to the bathroom even in the middle of the night. Tuesday morning I had to go have a CAT scan. During the day I got the stomach bug from Merlyn and had to take care of myself as well as Merlyn and Myles.
Wednesday afternoon was my second Odyssey of the Mind meeting, this time at the school.
This morning I went back to the hospital for fasting bloodwork. Bryan had to put the kids on the bus for the second morning this week.
Tomorrow morning a nurse is coming courtesy of the county to review my daycare's health plan and give me an overview of the medication administration requirements (I have to have a new health care plan, a a nurse consultant, and an eight hour class to give any medications, including Tylenol, to my daycare kids).
















This was the view of the fall foliage from the back porch in the middle of October. The leaves are gone now, so it's not as pretty, but now we can see Mr. Bernard's tree stand near the right end of the tree line.

Here's what we see when we go

out to do wood. The barn is on the

right, and then there's the road

leading to the rest of our property.

A few weeks ago a storm seemed to be heading our way. We thought there might be snow, but thankfully there wasn't. In fact, we didn't even get rain from those dark clouds. I took this picture on our front porch. I loved the gray clouds behind the trees that were brightened by the sun still shining from beyond the clouds.

Piper was resting patiently the day that the girls were painting outside. One parent who came to pick up an Odyssey of the Mind student last week asked if Piper was half lab, half cow! I told him he got the lab part right, but the other half is mastiff. She certainly is huge, but she's the best dog I've ever seen around kids.











One day I looked into the playroom while I was doing the dishes and saw that Berkleigh had made herself a taller chair. She put the antique kids' rocker on the antique "rose chair" that my mom gave me, and sat by the window reading for about half an hour. It was pretty cute -- she reminded me of a princess on a throne!