Sticks and Stones

Sticks and stones will break your bones and apparently so will putting up Christmas lights. Tim received the official word today that his heel is BROKEN. He was instructed by the orthopedic Doctor (who strongly resembles my Dad) that it is a clean break and should heal with time. He is to wear a gel heel pad and stay off it as much as possible for 6-8 weeks. Tim was happy with this news although the Doctor said he can expect to have arthritis in that heel for the rest of his life!!
And yet Tim continues to defy the advice of his doctor and wife. He is trying to be "Timmy Tough Guy" and helped our friend move today and then borrowed an even bigger extension ladder to finish up the Christmas lights. What am I going to do with him?!

Christmas Light Mishap

Once upon a time it was a cool, breezy Sunday afternoon and Tim was filled with Christmas spirit. He bundled up, brought out the ladder and proceeded to decorate the outside of our house with Christmas lights. He was up on the roof at the peak above the garage while Blake, Bryce and I were watching from the window all of the sudden we heard such a cladder and we winced as we watched his blackberry fall off the roof and shatter. He shook his head and moved right along, hoping to finish the lights before dark. On his last stretch the ladder began to wiggle and he jumped off to the ground 8 feet down. He hurt his heel and hobbled around the rest of the night and refused to listen to his RN Wife. The very next day he was still in pain every time he stepped down, so I made him an appt. with our family Dr. She sent him for an Xray and we got the call today that they suspect a hairline fracture in his heel. He is scheduled for a CT scan Friday and seeing an orthopedic surgeon immediately after.
Christmas Miracle: his blackberry was put back together and works just fine. Now let's hope for good luck with his heel!
Tim's biggest concern: He starts his new job on Monday and he doesn't want to go in with a cast!

Happy Thanksgiving

It's Thanksgiving Day and we woke up to several inches of snow on the ground. I felt a little nostalgia, like waking up to snow on Christmas morning, only this is a month early. My parents came Tuesday night and my brother came in from Virginia last night, so we have a full house! The food is prepared, the turkey is in the oven, and the boys are laying down for "quiet time". We had a family photo shoot this morning thanks to my brother and my mom, here are some of the pics. I hope to get some pictures of Uncle Allen with the boys, so I will post more later.

Congratulations Tim!

Tim has accepted a new job with a different company. Tim has worked in technical service and sales within the automotive industry for several years now and with that job comes a lot of travel. His new job will be an office job with minimal or NO travel and it will be back in the waste water treatment business. He worked in this field with PPG and he really loves it, so this is an incredible opportunity for him to combine the field he loves with business and management. He will no longer be working from home, he will drive to Auburn Hills (only about 20 minutes) to the Plymouth Technologies headquarters every day starting December 3rd.
I am happy to see him so excited about starting the new job; he has been unhappy with his current job for some time.
I'll keep you posted on his transition.
In the mean time, dinner time boot camp has begun for Mr. Blake Vincent. Last night I made grilled fish, vegetables, and cheddar mashed potatoes. Blake requested his usual PB sandwich, but I informed him he also had to try one bite of my food. I set a fork in front of him with mashed potatoes on it. He absolutely refused and tried to make himself throw up several times to get out of trying it. We finished dinner, cleaned up, and started playing with Bryce and he still sat at the table. FINALLY after an hour and fifteen minutes he gave in a took a tiny bite. He said it wasn't too bad, but he didn't want to try it again. Tonight will be a new food!

Harvest Lunch

Yesterday Blake's class hosted a Harvest Lunch for the kids and their families. The kids were wearing their pilgrim and Indian hats. sang songs, and sat in their spot with the place mats and napkin rings that they made themselves. They even made their own mini pumpkin pies in class and this is what Blake is so proudly displaying in this first picture.

Here are Bryce, Collin, and Ty. They all go to Nancy's house and are best buddies.
Blake and Bryce relaxing after their busy morning
Brycie the Ham, he always models for me
See, I told you! He LOVES to put his hands in his "pocks"
Blake is just happy Bryce got out of his chair
It looks like happy times in these photos, but in reality we are all sick. Blake has a cold, I have strep throat and an ear ache, and Bryce threw up five times yesterday! So far Tim is feeling ok and we are keeping our fingers crossed for him!

1 Year Ago Today

I am happy to say that exactly one year following the fire it finally feels like it's over. There are still many things we haven't replaced and our walls are somewhat bare compared to what we used to have, but emotionally it is over. Blake continues to bring up the fire and the damage it caused and he will probably always remember "Mommy crying at the fire", but he loves our new house and has a better understanding of all that happened. Luckily Brycie doesn't have a clue about any of it. Here are a few of the pics during the reconstructive process last year.



November 7, 2007: As Bryce would say . . . "ALL DONE!"

Crazy Brothers: Blake and Bryce

This morning they boys were having so much fun, I couldn't resist snapping some pictures. They usually hang out in the toy room or in the play area in the basement, but they have been hanging out in their rooms a lot lately . . . new territory to conquer!
They got tired of taking turns on the rocking horse, so they tried riding double. It didn't work out too well, but they laughed so hard they had tears in their eyes.

Blake accessorised all by himself today by adding an orange vest and a camo beach hat.

It made for an interesting ensemble. This is how he wanted his picture taken.

Brycie said "My turn" and smiled pretty for his picture
Aww, a sweet brotherly moment . . . YEAH RIGHT they started knocking each other over right after the picture was snapped!
Happy Faces: The End!

By the way, I had another check up with my Ear Dr. today and everything looks good, Whoo-hoo! Now we are gearing up for the Michigan vs. Michigan State game on Saturday. We are 2 against 2 in this house, I'll be sure to post some pics :)

Trick or Treat

Blake and Bryce had the best time Trick or Treating. We went to visit all of our old neighbors then came back to our subdivision and trick or treated on our street. The boys got A LOT of candy, all of our neighbors were handing out fistfuls and I won't even let them eat it!! Well, I did let them have the chips and some m&ms, but that's it!
They had more fun handing out candy to the kids coming to our house. Blake would give about 5 things to each trick or treater, he's quite generous :)

Here they are again Buzz Lightyear and Woody straight out of Toy Story

They kicked back, ate their chips, and watched all the other kids on the street
Minnie Mouse even came for a treat!
Then a monkey and a banana came over
After all these Halloween parties I am trying to convince Blake he doesn't have to wear his costume anymore, but he insists there must be another party to go to!