Remodel Mess

Our remodel is a mess and is ending up costing WAY more than I originally expected. Plus, we had to empty out my quilt room because they had to tear out the ceiling. Doug knows how much I hate a mess and he keeps looking at me as I am trying to keep up with dust and say, "It's really bugging you isn't it" YEAH!!!! It is, the mess and of course I have absolutely no patience for this. I want it done and done now. Hopefully, by Christmas everything will be done.

Happy 13th Birthday Megan

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Daughter!

I can't believe my baby is already 13. I remember the first time I saw her, now she is into friends and boys and shopping. She made a haul with birthday money, but my guess is that once she walks into Abercrombie or Holister that large sum of cash will disappear quickly, especially if she is like her brother who like to buy 150.00 jeans that makes me cringe every time he does.

Megan had a party with 4 girls and 3 boys. They made homemade pizza and watched "A Haunting in Connecticut" the girls stayed overnight and now today they are going to skateland for the afternoon.

Andrew is Varsity Basketball

Andrew made the Varsity Basketball team at South. He is so proud. He is 6th man on the team, which I have no idea what it means, but apparently it's pretty good. His first game was last night, but we couldn't go to Bismarck, because it is also Megan's Bday and she had a party. We did listen to the Radio and he got quite a bit of playing time. He hip-checked someone during the game, because the announcer all of a sudden said, "WHOA..Okland hipchecked.."

They lost last night, but there is another game today. Doug left a little while ago to drive up to Bismarck to see him play today.

November 2009

WOW! Could we get any busier...I don't think so.

Andrew is doing well in school. Right now he has a 3.6 GPA, so we are very proud of him.
He finished cross country and said that never again will he do that sport. Next year he is planning on going back into Football. The football coach has been on him for the past year to come back to football, he just didn't know if he wanted to.

Megan is doing well in school - she has discovered friends and added self-esteem with the weight she has lost. We're having a bit of a struggle with getting in steps, mainly because we have all taken turns with getting sick. At least none of us had the H1N1 virus.

I'm in full swing with my courses and feeling totally overwhelmed.
Doug was promoted to CFO of the entire clinic, so he has been extremely busy with the merger and everything else.
Our house didn't sell, so now we have decided to stay and remodel the bathroom.

September 2009

Life is Hectic. I haven't had time to write in our blog in a couple of months, so now I am playing catch-up.

I am teaching 3 face to face courses at MSUM and teaching 2 courses online, plus I am still teaching at UTTC online, AND I'm a full-time PhD student at NDSU. If I make it through this semester, I will be amazed.

Megan has lost another 10 pounds, Doug lost 20 pounds, and I've lost 18 pounds. The plan works, but it takes time everyday for all of the walking to get in our steps.

Andrew's class pictures were so wonderful that the company asked to have his picture on their brochure next year. He is SO HANDSOME!!!!

August 2009

What a summer. Andrew lost his license this month for going 60 in a 33 zone, so he gets to start over with classes and can't get his license back until March. A hard lesson to learn, but I don't think he will speed again. We keep telling him that he ALWAYS gets caught doing anything he shouldn't be, so he should stick to the rules. Even Felix told Andrew that he isn't sneaky enough to get away with anything.

Andrew is back in Piano and his teacher says he is truly gifted. She has learned that she can't play a song for him before teaching it to him, because then he won't read the music, he'll just play it back by ear. He is starting to get how to read music and he is playing the piano at home often, so hopefully, this will help me for college.

Megan has lost 48 pounds since June. WellSpring Camp was truly worth every penny it cost. We are back at Courts and Megan is working out with Debbi as much as possible. She can run the mile in 11.2 minutes. We are so proud of how she has done!

Andrew gets a pierced ear

Tonight, Andrew got one of his ears pierced. I suppose they need to show their individuality. As long as it's only his ear and not his lip I can deal with it. We met Tanner's mom at the ear place, both her and I were just rolling our eyes. But, knowing Andrew he'll get tired of it or someone will make a comment and it will come out.
For right now, he is very impressed!
Andrew is back in piano lessons. Twice a week so that he can learn to read music. He can play anything on the piano by ear, but the notes part get him, so he decided that since he is thinking about majoring in music in college, he better learn to read music. His piano teacher is our realtor's wife and a retired music teacher. Andrew really likes her and has been practicing his notes and the piano a lot the past couple of days.

Megan has lost 24 pounds

Megan is doing great!!! She has lost 24 pounds so far and has two weeks to go. She was upset because she only lost 1 pound this past week, but they told her that it is normal to have a off week or so. We are going to get her next week. We will be going through four days of classes before bringing her home. I am planning to pack pretty much everything up in the pantry and take it to the food pantry because we are suppose to have an empty kitchen so that we can go and buy the right kinds of foods for her. Megan has been having a hard time the past couple of weeks. The 6 week kids (most of her friends) and her original counselor have left, so this week she has been pretty upset. But, overall she told us she is so happy that we sent her to Wellspring for the summer. She has run in a 5K and is thinking about joining cross country with Andrew or at least training with him. I do have to say that I am so nervous about bringing her home and doing the right things to help her continue to lose weight. She looks great and I think she is very proud of herself, which she should be!!!!!! We promised her a MAJOR shopping trip at the Mega Mall in Minneapolis on Sunday when we bring her home. I hope Dad's pocketbook is ready, because it's going to be smoking!! I set up a SPA day for her the week after she gets home, nails, hair, toes, the works. I think she totally deserves it for all the hard work she has shown.

Andrew has a surprise when he gets home

Andrew has been asking for a new bed for about a year now. He doesn't fit very well on the twin bed because he is so tall. Since, he is in New York, I painted his room (just white) and we just got back from buying him a new Queen size bed. So, tomorrow Doug is going to finish getting the molding put back on the baseboards and I am going shopping for new bedding to match the music quilt that I made him. He is going to be SO Excited!!!! I can't wait for him to see it on Sunday.

Andrew is in New York City

Andrew left today to go to New York City with the church on a Mission trip. He was so excited. I slipped him, his credit card (He usually only gets it when he needs gas), and then Doug gave him $200.00 He was excited!!!! I hope that he has a good time. The church didn't allow any of the kids to bring ipods or phones, I think they will all be going through withdrawal from not being able to text. The plan in New York is that they will serve at the homeless facilities and then teach bible school. Andrew comes home on Sunday August 1, 2009. I miss him already!!!

Andrew has LOTS of Allergies

Well, Andrew is pretty much allergic to everything!!!!!! They are going to run some more tests when he gets back from New York, but the initial test are showing that he has a lot of allergies. He had trouble getting tested because he is so ticklish that he couldn't lay still. The nurse said he was the most ticklish boy she had ever had. They also think that Andrew has Asthma, but because he is in such good shape, he hasn't had any difficulty with it. They are planning on doing more testing to see if he is an asthmatic. I hope not. I know how awful it is having asthma and I don't want him to have it. So, hope for the best and keep your fingers crossed!!!

Felix Leaves

Felix left for home today. It was a tough early morning. His flight left at 6:30am and he won't get home until tomorrow at 8:00am. We all feel the emptiness in the house with him gone. I've been dreading this day for weeks and once it finally arrived, it hit us like a ton of bricks. Andrew cried all the way home because his brother is gone. I think the hardest for Andrew will be tonight. The boys always spent a lot of time talking and laughing at night. After a year, Felix became such a part of our family that letting him go was awful especially when it will be a long time until we see him again. It's not like he lives in Florida, he is on another continent.

Megan Loses and it's a GOOD Thing

Usually when someone loses it's because of a wrong play in sports or they have lost a personal item. In Megan's case however losing is a GREAT Thing. Megan has lost 18 pounds after 3 weeks at camp!!!! She is so proud of herself and she should be because it is quite an accomplishment. We are going to see her next week. We are going to pick her up on Thursday and take the kids to the Wisconsin Dells until Saturday. She has to be back at camp by 4:00pm.

New Pictures

I have uploaded some new pictures of the kids on the blog. Check them out and enjoy. I see Andrew has been adding a few pictures of his own to the blog. :)

Andrew is a Driving Nanny

Andrew got a job as a driving nanny for the next month. He is driving 3 kids around in the morning to their swimming lessons, Trollwood club, and other places. He likes it because it's easy and he is done by noon, so he can go to his basketball camp in the afternoon and then go to his basketball club at night. I think this is a great way for him to help out another family, make some extra spending money, and still have his nights and weekends free.

Megan goes to Camp

Tomorrow I am taking Megan to Wisconsin to camp for 8 weeks. The longest she has been gone from us is 1 week to camp Cormorant. This summer she will be gone for almost 9 weeks and we won't see her until August 14. I'm scared, nervous, and ready to cry as the days get closer. I know that this is the best thing for her, but she's my baby and as a parent, it seems that time goes by too quickly.
This is a special camp...a weight loss camp for kids. My daughter's body biology is not working with her and at 5'0" she is weighing in at 200 pounds and just started taking a diabetic medication, so while I know that this will help her, I know she's worried about being gone for so long, she just won't say anything about it.

Megan Calls Home

Megan called home tonight. She was so excited to tell us that she has lost 10 pounds in one week. She also said that she is having a great time and making some good friends. She didn't really want to talk to dad or I, she wanted Andrew and was so disappointed that he wasn't home to talk to her. We forgot to tell Andrew that Megan would be calling, so next week when she calls, we already told Andrew to make sure he is home. Megan adores him and wants to be and do everything that Andrew does.
I was so surprised at how much Megan lost in just one week. I know now that we made the right decision in sending her to this camp, but I still miss her like crazy!!!

Boys Week Trip

The boys went on their annual fishing trip this week. Andrew caught the biggest Northern and Felix caught the biggest Walleye. The boys said they had the best time. They laughed every night and Felix was amazed at how "vibrant" Grandpa's could be. They had a deer, a baby owl and a grouse in their camp as their pets for the week. They saw a fight between an Eagle and another bird in the air. The eagle won and got the other bird's baby. Otherwise, they don't tell me much about their boy trip, just that they had a Great time!

Last Day of School

HURRAY!!!

Today was the last day of school. I came home from work at 1:30 today to see 6 boys watching t.v. eating pizza, and just chilling out. They all seemed much more relaxed then a couple of days ago when they were taking finals.
The kids are so excited to be home for the summer. Andrew has a job in June be a chauffeur for one of Doug's co-workers kids. Then in July Andrew is going to New York on a mission trip for the summer.
Megan is going to camp for the summer in Wisconsin. She leaves next week, so we are going to spend the next few days getting all of the items she needs.
It's going to be a busy summer. The boys leave on the 10th for their annual fishing trip in the boundary waters of Minnesota. This is always Andrew's favorite vacation.

Andrew makes Pizzazz and Improve and Leadership

Andrew made the Pizzazz singing team at school for next year. He was so excited! Then he spent 3 weeks in Improv classes after school (No, I didn't know he was doing it~typical Andrew) and made the team. Then he also got involved with CORE a leadership club that goes out and talks to younger kids about drugs and alcohol.
He loves to be active in school.

Andrew goes to the Emergency Room

Andrew was playing basketball outside and his eyes started to swell shut. We gave him some benadryl right away thinking that it was an allergic reaction, but this is the 3rd time this month this has happened. His eyes and face started to get worse, so we took him into the Emergency Room. It took a couple of shots and an IV with medicine to get his face to stop swelling. The doctor said that it could be allergies or he could have hereditary angioedema. We are working on getting him into a pediatric allergy specialist for testing, but until then he has 4 medications in case it happens again and 3 epi pens. The swelling lasted for a couple of days and thankfully in the past couple of weeks he hasn't had it happen again. It is so scary to see your child in the emergency room with IV's. Andrew handled it so well though, he spent more time chuckling about the guy in the next bed who was drunk then anything.

Sioux Falls News

We went to Sioux Falls for Andrew's basketball tournament this weekend. The boys spent Sunday morning at the mall and got interviewed by the local news station. Below is the interview. I am working on getting the video from it. My boys are so responsible.

Matt Johnson checks in with teens in Sioux Falls to see how they feel about sexting.
Cell phones, they're the lifeline of today's teenager.
Felix says "I don't know how I would get around without it."
Andrew says "I'm on it like every minute, like I'm always texting people and stuff."
There's texting and then there's sexting, taking and sending explicit photos by phone or over the internet. It's happening all over the country, and that's the problem. In many states, sexting between people can be considered possessing or distributing child pornography, a charge that can land them on the sex offender registry. Lawyers in some states, such as Ohio and Vermont, are trying to change that.
Lawyer says "We've heard evidence of up to 20 percent of America's teens are sexting, and I certainly don't want 20 percent of America's teens being charged with child pornography."
Here in South Dakota, some teens think in today's text-savvy world, a picture sent out, could end up anywhere.
Felix says "If they wanna have their pictures on the whole net, I mean, somebody is able to get access to that."
Even if the picture is sent to a boyfriend or girlfriend.
Felix says "It's never safe if you even just send it to one person."
Some feel that while sexting can have dangerous consequences, they feel the punishment doesn't fit the crime.
Andrew says "It shouldn't be something you should have to make illegal."
The issue of sexting isn't going to be deleted from the message box, and as teenagers continue to use technology as much as ever, the laws and awareness regarding sexting warrant a closer look. Matt Johnson, KDLT News. Police say the investigation in Brookings continues in the case involving a male and female, ages 16 and 17. The state's attorney will decide whether charges should be considered.

We are in a Flood in Fargo. The Red River is suppose to crest at 41.0 Feet on Saturday, but it seems that the number is continually changing. We have been emptying the basement and putting stuff up high in case our home floods. We aren't in immediate danger like some of the places around Fargo/Moorhead, but with the record setting water level, they want everyone to prepare for the worst. Felix and Andrew have been sandbagging around Fargo since last Friday. The school has been busing kids to different areas if they want to help. Both boys have been working about 10 hours a day helping others. To make matters worse, it has been raining or thunderstorms everyday since last week until today, when the weather decided enough rain, lets drop 7 inches of snow on the area. The entire state of North Dakota is under a Flood Warning. In Bismarck, they have two ice jams on the Missouri river and they are going to blow them up with explosives because the Missouri river is flooding homes. We have plugged all of our drains, gotten a generator, and have portable diking coming tonight in case our lake floods. It is a real mess here, many of the roads including the main highway are closed because of water. Doug had said if they evacuate us we would go to the cabin, but now that wouldn't work because we can't get there and we don't know if our cabin has been flooded yet. I am attaching a picture of the highway. IF you want to see more pictures of the flooding go to this website:

http://www.younewstv.com/areas/kvly

NCAA Bison Basketball

We are leaving for Minneapolis tomorrow. NDSU (North Dakota State University) is playing in the NCAA Championship game on Friday. I was going to take the kids to the Mega Mall since they are on spring break, but Doug got tickets to the game, so the boys are going to the game, and the girls are shopping on Friday. The tickets were spendy, but this is such a big deal because this is the first time NDSU has made it to the Championship. (You might be able to see the game on t.v. and see the boys. They are in the 7th row. We are leaving tomorrow afternoon (Andrew, Felix, Megan, and her friend) we rented a van so that the kids have more leg room than the truck or my hummer. We will stop at Albertsville at the outlet mall and do some shopping and then we got a hotel room with a pool so the kids can swim.

Felix says I am just like his mom. I came home from work today and started cleaning. I told Felix that we had to clean today because I can't go anywhere when my house is a mess, he said his mom is the same way.

I think we'll have a fun couple of days, they boys are SO EXCITED about the Games.

The Bad Bad Puppies

Panda and Bear are so cute together when they are sleeping. But, they aren't so cute when they are awake and in the laundry room. Then they become naughty dogs. They have learned how to open the washer and dryer. They preceded to pull out all of the clothes so that I get to rewash them. They then go and dump their food. Then, they open the pantry cupboards, pull open the bottom and 2nd to bottom shelf and open up all of the box goods (scallop potatoes, salads, etc). They don't like being kept in the laundry room, so they are getting even.

Andrew and Felix

Felix goes to Church with Andrew every Wednesday. He didn't when he first came, but now he goes. He says it's fun. Last Wednesday and tonight the boys served soup at the Church before going to Elevate (Senior High Church Group). One thing that I have noticed with the boys is how close they have become. They truly act like brothers. They hang out at night talking and laughing in their beds. Yesterday morning they were in each other's bed. Apparently, they got up to go to the bathroom and were still sleeping and ended up in the wrong bed. I think that these two boys are going to miss each other and the time that they spend together. Every night they come up about midnight and make something to eat. Andrew usually gets Felix to make eggs. So, when I get up in the morning, the kitchen is NOT like I left it. I'm glad that they have become good friends and good exchange brothers. I hope that they will continue this when Felix goes home.

Snow Day! Hurray!!!

We had a snow day today because of the Blizzard that decided to hit North Dakota. The kids loved it, because they got to sleep until 1:00pm, then lounge around watching t.v. and playing on the xbox, that is of course when they can get it away from Doug. He has become addicted to this one game.

Bummer!

Bummer! they lost, but it was such a GREAT Game! It was neck and neck the whole game. It went into overtime and the other team (North) just got a couple of lucky shots in and we couldn't rebound it back. South took 2nd place in the championship and 1st place in the season. Not a bad way to go out. I am attaching the video highlights from the game.

EDC Conference Today

Hurray! They have won both games this weekend. At 2:30 they are in the Championship Playoff's. Hopefully, they will take first, but regardless they have had some great games! Stayed Tuned, I'll give the full report with some video later today.

Sheri gets into PhD Program at NDSU

I've been taking classes as a non-degree student to see if I could handle the PhD program at NDSU. I applied last October and have been anxiously waiting until February to see if I am one of the 15 who got into the program. I'm so excited. I got an email today from the head of the PhD program asking me to join the NDSU Social network on Ning. I went in and took a look around, registered and wondered why he sent this to me. Then about an hour later I got an email telling me that Dr. Stammen had left me a message on Ning. I went in and below is what he wrote.
Hurray! I'm going to get to be a Dr of Education. Now, I just have to do it!

School Conferences

We went to conferences tonight. Andrew has 2 different personalities when it comes to his classes. Either his teachers adore him and say he is funny, positive, speaks up in class, and does a fabulous job or his teachers say he is quiet, doesn't say anything, and never speaks up. It sounds like two different kids, but after talking to each of the teachers, it's the teacher that are different. If Andrew likes the teacher and they are bubbly and outgoing he does great. If the teacher is quiet and more reserved, he basically stays quiet in class. All of his teachers did say he is very respectful, listens in class and is a good teenager. We spent quite a bit of time with his music teacher-he just couldn't say enough positive things about Andrew and how he will be such a great addition to Pizazz (Show Choir) next year. He did say that Andrew and Connor tend to talk a little more than necessary, but the two of them always know the music better than anyone in class and when it's time to work they work the hardest. Because Andrew has been talking about becoming a music teacher-his music teacher finally talked him into taking piano lessons again. I'm so glad!

Flash Video

We want to send Megan to a camp for weight loss this summer. It's very expensive, but her doctor thinks it is a good idea. Camp La Jolla in California is the one that she would like to attend, of course this one is the most expensive, but probably the most fun also. They are having a contest. Create a video on healthy living and exercise. The prize would be 1/2 the tuition for the summer for Megan. The boys are taking web design and Flash in school so I asked them to create a video for Megan following the contest rules. They did an awesome Job. It was so nice to see them all working together to create this. See the video below:

Megan's Conferences

Megan had conferences tonight. She is doing pretty well. We need to continue to work on Math, but more importantly she is 12 in 6th grade and Friends rule. It's hard to get upset with her because this is really the first year that she has had a large group of friends and been social. We have never lived anywhere where there has been a group of girls, only boys, so seeing her social is wonderful. She works hard, so that helps.

Megan Loses! Mom Gains!

You'd think from the title that I had the better deal. Gaining is usually a positive attribute, however in this case, it is not! Because gaining means weight. Megan and I have been tracking our calories, working out nightly (at least she has) and trying to be good about what we put into our body. Megan has done wonderful. She is losing 1-2 pounds every week. She is really working hard at it. Me on the other hand, I get those chocolate cravings and I don't have anyone telling me NO! so of course, I figure I can work it off, which doesn't happen.
We got a new treadmill, so Megan and I take turns between the treadmill and the elliptical. Doug also connected the cable to the t.v. in the exercise room so we have spent quite a few nights down there. Felix really likes the exercise room also, so he is usually down there on the weight machine. Sooner or later, I will figure out how not to cheat, but for now I am just so proud of Megan and what she is accomplishing.

Snowball Dance

Andrew had a date tonight. Her name was Addie. They went to the Snowball Dance at school. He was so excited about the dance that he spent hours in the bathroom. Then, once he would get dressed, Addie would text him and tell him to wear a different color. Finally, after 3 or 4 clothing changes he ended up with a white shirt, silver tie, and black pants. I let him take the Hummer for the night, which he was very excited about because he is always wanting to drive it.
The bummer of the night was when he got to the dance he couldn't go into it because he had 3 detentions he was suppose to make up before semester grades came out. We have been after him for weeks to get them made up and he just doesn't. It was a hard lesson to learn, but hopefully he will make them up. (2/6-no he still hasn't made them up). His girlfriend was NOT happy. They ended up going to a friends house and watching a movie and then going out to eat at Space Aliens. Andrew was quite upset, it was a hard lesson to learn, but hopefully it will never be repeated.

Andrew Drives!

Andrew Took his driver's test today and PASSED!!! He says hurray, I say oh my...

Here is a picture of Andrew with his new car. He really likes his Chevy Cavalier?? (I think that's what it is) Our Uncle Larry found the car and it is in very good shape!

Anyway, the lady giving Andrew the driving test, said he was a very good driver and the only thing he needs to work on is moving his head to check left-right instead of his mirrors.
When he walked in from taking the test, I got the thumbs up right away! I'm so glad that I got to share this positive experience with Andrew.

Andrew took me home and then drove by himself to meet his friends to go to Sam's funeral.
If any lesson can be learned from Sam's death, it is that no one is safe from driving and you always have to pay attention and drive not only for yourself, but for the unexpected issues.

Both Doug and I spent a lot of time calling Andrew yesterday to see where he was and what he was doing. (Overprotective Parents, I know)