Bishop's Believe It, or Not

Ian lost another tooth!

This also coencided nicely with our scheduled visit to the dentist. We go to Dr. Chad Johnson. I grew up with Chad and the kids always like to play the game of how tall is Dr. Johnson. Like; is Dr. Johnson taller than the trees? Is Dr. Johnson taller than Cooper's dad...(Chad is tall). At the dentist they get to wear sunglasses and when they are done they get to pick a toy

from the treasure chest. This makes it all worth while:)

and the wildlife in our neighborhood is down by one...

Ya know those chunks of filthy snow that look like stalactites by the wheel well of your car? Well the other morning Todd was going to drop Ian off at school on his way to work. Randomly, I decided to walk Ian out and help him into the car. As he was walking around I noticed it looked like one of those massive chunks had fallen off - in the center of the driveway, under the truck. Hummm? I thought it was weird to have one in the middle of the drive, and when I looked a little closer it looked like it had rust. Well, our truck seems to be on falling to pieces anyway so I wondered if something had rusted out and fallen off. So I bent over and saw... it was a dead/frozen/rigor mortis squirrel - yuck! The only redeeming thing is that we are about 90% sure we did not cause its demise.

Hair is dropping too

OK! So the boys' cuts are 'homemade.' Whats the difference between a good hair cut and a bad one?

A. 2 Weeks;

or a hat.

Jens and I like to 'spike'-it-up a little

Cannon Bomb!!

Swim lessons are under way for the next 6 weeks. The boys love it and Ian says he wishes he could have swim lessons everyday except Sunday.

And finally, youth has fallen by the wayside.

So long 20's. If tomorrow weren't a holiday, I could probably go down and stand in line to start collecting my social security. At leaset I had a few people around me who were excited for me to have a birthday. No doubt, they are thinking they are just another year closer to an inheritance...

All four of my fella's made and served me breakfast in bed. I ate toast, eggs, bacon, blueberry muffins, and drank orange juice. Uummmm MMMMMM!!!! I also made out like a bandit with gifts. Thanks for all the loot boys. You are the best (especially Todd). After helping to unwrap my gifts, Todd and the boys also tried them out to make sure they are safe for me to use. So thoughtful. I love having a house full of boys. They are the best.

And BELIEVE IT, OR NOT... I really did have a great day. I had delicious food. I had many well wishers. And got to spend it with friends and family. I went hot tubbing, I watched the Olympics, and not once did a change a dirty diaper all day. I could turn 30 again if only to have another day like that.

So, to pass the time...

We made Valentines decorations.

We found a Rubik cube is a great way to confuse 4 & 6 year olds.

We freed Ian's mouth of its FIRST TOOTH!! (He got a whole quarter from the Tooth Fairy and a certificate)

And when we couldn't take it anymore we went to The Playground For Kids which has blow-up slides galore for the kids to run, run, run and burn off the energy they have been storing up. It did the job and was money well spent.

In addition to the ice causing everyone in Iowa to be a little stir-crazy, lots of folks are having roof leaks. The ice is making dams in gutters so the melted water can't drain. Water is a funny thing and can travel up. We have not escaped this. Our gutters have had ice-dams and we have had a few leaks in our kitchen and Ian & Jens room. So we have had buckets all over the kitchen collecting the water that has traveled up the roof because the gutters are blocked with ice. Todd asked around at work and they said we really just have to wait till spring - when winter is done, things are dried up totally, and we can have a better look. So, we were ok knowing we just had to deal with the leaks for a little bit. Turns out we won't have to deal with it too much longer!

We were all gone to various places all day Saturday. The last place we were together was at my parents house. From there, Todd went to work for the rest of the night because he has a deadline next week and is one of only two architects on this job. So, around 7:00 I walked into the house with the kids.

BELIEVE IT OR NOT....

Yup, the ceiling in the kitchen had collapsed! Lights, sheetrock, plaster...everything.

Jack: (GASP! - and in a loud whisper) "MOM! Wook what you did!"

Mom: "No Jack, I didn't do it."

Jack: "India? India is naaaaaughty."

Mom: "No Jack; it was just the water. The water made the ceiling too heavy and it fell."

Jack: (Looks at Mom like she's telling a whopper)

So I cleaned up as much as I could. I didn't want to call Todd and have him come home, or worry about it at work. He needed to concentrate on what he was doing. And if I am being honest - there was a part of me that thought it would be funny for Todd to come home ( I knew it would be about 12:30 - he tries to follow the letter-of-the-law and work up until the Sabbath day - and not on the Sabbath. So he will stop at midnight and then shut everything down and come home...; and once he is home he usually wonders into the kitchen for a snack or a little treat) ANYWAY, I thought it would be funny in his sleep deprivation for him to wonder in, try to turn on the light - only the light won't turn on (since it came crashing to the ground) - look up and ....you get the idea. I know, I know - warped sense of humor.

So Monday I will go find a cheap light to get us by for a while. Then when our tax return comes in we will be in construction mode...once again. We had wanted to remodel our kitchen...just in 8 years when we had money to do it like we want. In the meantime, this gives me a great excuse to camp out at my parents house and watch the DIDY network non-stop!