The Gleasons

Mera's Head

2012-02-04T18:28:00.002-06:00

I feel like I owe a bit of a Mera update to the blog since she is over 18-months now and her development has not gotten much attention. I feel like I have expressed how sweet she is and not only that but she is content. It is so nice to finally have a content baby. I feel like I deserve it after the first two. She is content to play by herself and content to sit in her car seat for long periods and content to feed herself alone at the table (I still have to sit with Darby most meals and sometimes physically feed her to get her to eat). What I have not mentioned is how smart she is. It is funny because while I was running today I was thinking how happy I am that my blog has not become one big brag about my children. I think it is more a good illustration of the fun we have as a family and now here I am talking about how smart Mera is.

Alas, I digress. At this point Mera has surpassed a 50-word vocabulary and is combining two words into little phrases. "My water" My bite" "Dog treat" "Hi Georgia" are a few examples. She responds to one and two step commands and understands everything I say. She love her sisters and Georgia has a real novelty about her (probably because she is at school most days). We finally took down the crib from her room since she has never slept in it and the mattress on her floor will remain her bed for the future. This is weird for me since both the other girls were in a crib until the age of 3 and G until 4 (I know, weird). I am not used to laying in bad and having a little person come and climb in with me but this is what she does. My favorite part of it is when she wakes up from naps, she flings her door open, stumbles down the hall, and then looks at me and says, "Hi." Too cute.

She knows exactly what she want and will get it at all costs. I have a hard time saying no to her and she has eaten way more sugar in her life than either of the other two had at this point. She loves to climb and her favorite activity as of late is climbing on her stool and falling off. She enjoys giving the dogs treats and loves being outside. and most importantly she love to put things on her head and body. She has a pair of shorts she consistently wants to put on over her PJs and ends up sleeping that way. If she finds underwear laying around, straight on her they go.

Peek-A.....

BOO!

Allergy Testing

2012-01-28T16:52:00.003-06:00

We had Darby allergy tested this last week because I have a mother instinct about her and feel like something is going on that needs to be addressed. I have been saying for a while that I am worried she has a citrus intolerance and I just wanted to get it checked out. They tested her for 30 foods and the only one she had a reaction to was lemon. Granted it was a very mild little reaction but it is interesting that that was the one. I have not spoken with the Dr. since but hope to hear from her this week to see what this means.

For those who have never had a "scratch test" the name is a little misleading. It's really a poke test and Darby was a real trooper. The lady doing it said she was being really brave an that it does hurt. The lady stuck her about 32 time and Darby sat there and let her do it. Here is a picture of her little arm afterwards. You can only see 2 rows but there are actually 3 and them some more sticks on the other arm.

January...Really?

2012-01-28T16:41:00.003-06:00

Last weekend was so mild the kids were able to go out in the yard in their swim suits and play. I wouldn't let them get full-on wet but they made mud pies and taught Mera how to get dirty.

Darby loves dirty play adn would be dirty 24/7 if I would let her. The way it stands, I let her be dirty about 20/7.

Mera had her first taste (not literally) of mud and I would like to caption the following pictures now (note, I though it was a little too cold for a baby to be in a swim suit so she wore hers over her clothes):

"My sisters are doing this so I guess I should try it out."

"What the...it stuck to my hands. I don't know about all this."

"Let me just take a look at this, maybe it's not so bad."

"Hey mom look, it's not so bad. I can do this like my sisters."

"I can do it but I am not so sure I really like it."

"Okay, yea, can we get this stuff off my hands now."

Georgia is not afraid.

The Twins Turn 1!

2012-01-26T21:17:00.002-06:00

My brother's baby girls turned one on Jan. 6th. Thier Mom threw a great little family party for them an it was such a special day to be able to celebrate. They are so precious an really turning into fun little people. Her is Analiese on the left and Genevieve on the right.

The cake Christy made for them.

Little G diggin' in.

Little A showin' us what she's got.

New Year's Eve

2012-01-26T21:09:00.003-06:00

We spent NYE at my good friend Eva's house. We ate and talked and watched the kids play. G got into some dress up clothes.

She also lost her 3rd tooth the week between Christmas and New Year's.

After much playing we let the kids settle into a movie. FYI all of our kids are within 2 months of age of their closest peer so they really play well together.

Christmas Nanue/Big Papa Style 2011

2012-01-26T21:05:00.003-06:00

Christmas Morning 2011

2012-01-26T20:57:00.002-06:00

I didn't take too many pictures of Christmas morning but Santa did come and brought lots of bath stuff and a trampoline for the yard as well as some suckers. Mera LOVES suckers.

G made this awesome art at school so I framed and matted it for my mom because it has her colors in it.

After presents at my parent's house, we went home and played in the bath with our fun new foam soap.

The Desk

2012-01-26T20:47:00.004-06:00

So I took on an incredibly stupid and time consuming project three weeks before Christmas. I really wanted to get G an old school desk and I looked around on craigslist but to no avail. I spent a whole Saturday looking at the flea market and antique shops and just as I was ready to give up I found the perfect thing. Only it was in bad shape. It was a 3-piece desk set and here is the before picture of the chair.

I only got 2 of the pieces re-finished and the other will have to wait until spring but here is a picture of what I got finished. They turned out really great and later when I asked what her favorite part of Christmas was she said, "Getting my desk." Makes a Momma happy.

Darby and her buddy Matt.

Christmas Eve 2011

2012-01-26T20:33:00.005-06:00

So this is just a bunch of pictures of me and my kids and our family on Christmas Eve so feel free to skip it if you want.

This is Mera's little friend from playgroup. They both love to point out babies and this is what they are doing here. (photo credit to Eva Garringer.)

Hives

2012-01-17T21:33:00.003-06:00

Besides all of the fun we had over Christmas we also had a little un-fun. Darby broke out in hives on Tues. before Christmas after eating a bunch of tabouli and I immediately worried she was reacting to a food. We gave her some Benedryl and she was fine for a while and then they came back. This happened for a few days and the on Christmas Eve G broke out in hives. I wrote it off to nerves or something. Then on Monday after Christmas Mera broke out in hives. All hives responded to Benedryl and stopped after a couple of days so that was good and I came to the conclusion they were probably viral hives because that is the best I could do. G had it the worst by far and her whole face and neck were covered. Here is a picture bless her heart.

Gleason Style

2012-01-17T21:26:00.002-06:00

So now that I have explained how it works Gleason style here are some pictures of the various nights of Christmas at our house.

Mera got it really quickly and was all about opening the presents.

Georgia loves art and got a lot of gifts to give her different ways to create her art.

Darby is driving her remote control car and Mera is pointing at it and I am just being silly.

Darby wanted a telescope more than anything and her Dad obliged.

The Four Days of Christmas-Our Tradition

2012-01-15T12:57:00.002-06:00

Every year I kind of explain our Christmas tradition but we seem to keep adding family members so not that we are done adding this will be my final Christmas tradition explanation to be referenced for all Christmases to follow.

When I was almost 2 and my sister almost 4, my mom was 9-moths pregnant with my brother and had, what she claims, was the worst Christmas ever. She says by Christmas night she so disliked my sister and me that she swore she never would do Christmas again. Well thankfully she changed her mind but the next year she did things very differently and this tradition is where we get our tradition. The point of our Christmas tradition is to help alleviate the brattyness and grabbiness of Christmas morning and this is how it goes:

On December 20th we kick off the holiday by having our version of Christmas dinner (my mom always did the full blown turkey etc. but we just eat shrimp). That night the oldest child give the present she bought for her sisters to them and she, in return, receives her gift from her father. The next night the middle child gives to sisters and receives from dad, the next night the youngest child gives gifts to sisters and receives from dad. This brings us to the night of the 23rd when all children are given one present from Mama. On Christmas Eve they get to open Christmas Eve PJs from Nanue and gifts from the cousins. Christmas morning they get one big Santa gift and then open a present from my parents. We do Christmas with Matt's parents whenever they come in town so those presents are also appreciated for who they are from.

This worked really well this year and made Christmas so fun for me and Matt. No yelling and indiscriminately tearing into packages with no acknowledgment of who it was from. The way we did it, eat girl was thoughtful in her choice of gift for her sister and each family member remembers distinctly what they got from the others.

Now, being a bigger family there were some things I did to create more gifts without spending much money and I will share those now:

1. I bought all Mera's gifts at the Thrift Store and then let each girl pick from that lot what they wanted to get her. I got some great stuff and Mera, nor the big girls, seemed to know the difference.

2. I bought A BUNCH of used books, both online and from the Thrift Store ($.50 each), and let the girls open some books each night. I love books so this was really fun for me.

3. I saved up my Disover Cashback Bonus (not to worry, I pay my full CC balance every month) and bought most of my gifts from Amazon, paying with my Cashback Bonus so my bills through Nov. and Dec. never really jumped.

4. I started in Nov. buying stocking stuffers and bought a few each week at the grocery store so they kind of went along with my grocery budget.

5. We did baked good and homemade gifts for all the girls teachers (total of about 125 cookies I baked) and went to the dollar store for packaging.

Now all my secrets are out. It may not seem like much but it helped me enjoy Christmas a little more, still keeping the giving spirit, and not breaking the bank.

Student of the Week

2011-12-15T21:51:00.000-06:00

G was student of the week for her class in early December. She was recongnized at an all school assembly where an older student read a page of interview questions she had answered. Here she is in front of the whole school.

And here is what was read about her. (If you click the picture it will get bigger and more readable.)

The Dog

2011-12-15T21:43:00.000-06:00

So I realized I have posted about the dog since we got her back in July. Wow did we luck out. She is a great addition to our family and has been so easy to train and housebreak. She is six-months-old now and gets bigger every day. She loves to go run with me and it is so nice to have company. We go down in the valley and she runs and plays while I just run. I didn't really think I would enjoy a dog at this point in my life but I was wrong. She is really a great companion, watch dog, and family member.

Mera and her Towel

2011-12-15T21:30:00.000-06:00

Mera's speech is coming right along and one of her favorite words is "towel." She takes showers with me on a regular basis and every time we get out she is over at the cabinet saying "tow"(she leaves of the "el"). If I don't get her one of these awesome princess towels Nanue got us, she has a little fit. I then have to put the towel on her so she can prance around the house and show everyone her "tow."

TSHA Christmas Party 2011

2011-12-15T21:15:00.001-06:00

Each year TSHA (click here to learn more) has an awesome Holiday party for the kids with hearing loss and kids of families with members who have a hearing loss. This was our second year attending and it was so fun. Georgia sat on Santa's lap willingly for the first time in her life. Here they are signing "I love you."

They have crafts for the kids and treats to eat.

And here is Georgia and the audiologists who diagnosed her hearing loss. We love her!

Bed Time

2011-12-15T21:11:00.000-06:00

We have been having some bed time growing pains but I will talk more about that at another time. Here is Daddy doing bed time stories.

It is a group activity.

We Are Thankful!

2011-11-30T21:05:00.000-06:00

Let's see, it is the week after Christmas and I am just now getting Thanksgiving pictures up. Guess it has been a busy month. Here is Mera with the standard turkey leg bone.

And Darby in rare form. Well actually not so rare, pretty standard.

Georgia and Lilly.

Uncle Matt and Genevieve.

My girls.

Sisters.

Mera all dressed up.

The following are some attempts at group shots. You should see the ones I didn't post.

I love the one below. Mera crying, Darby clawing, Georgia being sweet.

Darby was out at this point.

Big Papa and Mera.

Big Papa actually fell asleep while he was holding Mera. She is such a calm and sweet little soul.

Reading bed time stories.

Happy Birthday Daddy

2011-11-20T21:55:00.002-06:00

Daddy had a birthday in early Nov. and we had a little party at the Ranch. I made a macaroon chocolate cake which was pretty tasty and we got to see lots of babies.

Matt and Genevieve.

Mera

Analiese

Big Bug

2011-11-20T21:46:00.003-06:00

Darby found this guy hanging out in our porch and was so brave about holding him or her. It was the biggest walking stick I have ever seen.

Haloween 2011

2011-11-20T21:18:00.005-06:00

Since it is almost Thanksgiving I better get Halloween up here. Darby was a purple monster (her idea) and Georgia was Pinkalicious (popular kids book character). I went ahead and made Darby her monster costume but was able to buy Georgia's. We went to a party at a school friend of G's for dinner and then went and Trick-or-Treating with another school friend (whose dad I went to high school with).

Darby was great as a monster and stayed in character when she was thinking about it.

G was precious as always and had fun seeing all of her friends in costume.

Here is G and the monster, Little Red Riding Hood and the wolf.

Mera was supposed to be a cat but in my hurry to get out the door I forgot her costume:( Bad mama! So I painted whiskers on her and no one seemed to care.

The girls were so sweet together.

And Mera loved the candy. She had her first sucker and first M&Ms.

Darby got to see her best friend from school and was most excited.

After we got candy we went back and let the girls hand out candy. They loved it!

Richie and my baby and his baby.

The loot afterwards (luckily there wasn't much).

Halloween Preview

2011-11-09T21:41:00.003-06:00

I have lost my will to blog for the night but I will throw up a couple of Halloween pics just to tide those loyal follows (Nanue) over.

Pumpkin Patch with Dad

2011-11-09T21:32:00.004-06:00

Here are the pictures Matt took at the pumpkin patch with the girls. First is the hay bale maze.

And more pony rides.

These pictures crack me up because G loved the slide and it shows...

...again so much fun...

...Darby on the other hand, utterly horrified her first trip down. Does it make me a bad mother that this picture makes me laugh out loud?

But after that first ride all is well.

Pumpkin Patch with Mom

2011-11-09T21:24:00.002-06:00

I took the little bits to the Pumpkin Patch one morning before Halloween and they had so much fun Daddy took G and Darby back the next day. Here are the pics from our trip.

Darby's first pony ride.

Wagon ride.

Peek-a-boo.

Mera loved this little car. I don't know how we have gotten through three kids without owning one.

Costume Parade

2011-11-09T21:20:00.002-06:00

Darby's school has a costume parade every year before Halloween and this year Darby was very excited about it. Here she is in her class waiting patiently.

Here she is showing off her purple monster claws. I will talk more about her costume in my Halloween post.

And marching right along.

BTW in the House

2011-11-09T21:10:00.004-06:00

One of my best friends of all time was in town recently so I hosted a little Booker T. reunion for some of our friends. Kim had not been to Tulsa since she was pregnant with her baby boy and so I had never met him and was so happy to do so. Here is the guest of honor, Gunnar, and his dad, Nick. Quite the ladies man in the pink car.

We had a celebratory cake denoting our high school mascot, the Hornet.

I took the kids on a Beast ride, or several Beast rides I should say, as every time we got back they all yelled, "Again!"

Kim and Gunnar.

Matt an Kiki were there with the twins since they both fall under the Booker T. grad category. Here is Genevieve having more fun than she has ever had.

And the whole motley crew along with kiddos.

It was so much fun to see everyone and reunite now that we all have spouses and kids. Having Kim there was the greatest part of course because I so rarely get to see her and miss hanging with her so much. Hopefully we can do it again next time she is through.

Mera

2011-10-26T21:42:00.002-05:00

I love this little thing so much. She is the happiest baby and such a joy to have in my life. She is so smart and laughs all the time. She knows exactly what she wants and makes her wants known (usually by SCREAMING). She loves her Mama most of all. I sleep with her half the night and love snuggling her little body next to mine and just falling asleep next to her warmth. She has an amazing attention span and is content to play by herself when she has a toy that interests her, sometimes for as long as 30 minutes. I call her my little teeter totter because of how she waddles around the house just going about her business. (She started walking about a month ago). She loves to be held and loves to eat. There is nothing she won't try, especially if I am eating it. She loves to shake her head "yes" and "no." She loves to slide and spin and be thrown around. She says bite, bye, mama, wawa (water), ouch, uh-oh, dada, GG for Georgia and some other things I can't remember right now.

I have three amazing and very different girls and Mera, some days, is my saving grace. Even on my worst of worst days, and as a mom we all have them, she is there smiling and laughing and loving me above all others. Some days she is all that keeps me sane and the only thing that reminds me to be kind.

The Big D-Part 2

2011-10-26T21:32:00.004-05:00

On the way out of town we stopped and visited Dan's parents. Here is Big Papa and his papa.

The girls got to be shown off around the assisted living facility and help Grandma with her wheelchair.

Mera let her hold her for a few seconds.

Darby go to take ramp rides.

Group picture with me.

Big Papa and his girls.

Group pic with Matt.

Darby and a really fun toy.

D and Grandma.

The time we spent with Dan's folks was very special and we are so blessed to have such a large, generous and loving family. WE are hoping to make a yearly trip to Dallas so the girls get to know all the family on that side.

The Big D-Part 1

2011-10-26T21:04:00.006-05:00

We took our first trip as a family of 5 a couple of weekends ago. We drove to Dallas to see some of Matt's family. He has 3 living grandparents that have never seen Mera so we figured it was time. Nanue has 3 sisters and all 3 were going to be in Dallas at the same time so we made the most of it.

We left on a Thursday and decided to spend the night in Atoka to break up the trip a little. The girls were so excited about sleeping in a hotel. I bought each girl a giant jaw breaker for the car ride as it was a tradition in my family when we were kids. Here is G with part of it smeared across her face.

Just outside of 'Okmulgee we had a blowout and had to change a tire on the side of the road and head back to the Wal -Mart in Okmulgee to get it fixed. This meant we left Tulsa at 3:30 but didn't get to Atoka til 8:30 (should have only taken about 2.5 hours). Needless to say we were all ready for bed by the time we got there. We did make time for a bath in the whirlpool tub that was in the corner of our room.

Matt read to the girls and then there was a little yelling in order to get them to settle down.

They are not used to sleeping together but did great.

Here they are helping get the luggage out of the room.

We stayed with Matt's Aunt Kerri who lives on a bit of a cattle ranch.

The girls loved seeing the cattle.

They got to play with several of Matt's cousins kids.

One of the high lights of the trip was a walk we took down a country we road. The girls got piggy back rides and picked up "treasures" (trash).

I got to practice my Karate Kid crane move.

We also got to go to one of the neighbors houses who raised reindeer and was a Santa in his free time.

We got photos in the sleigh.

They also had mini donkeys and horses.

MJ in the rocker.

There were a few rough spots of the trip but overall, it was great to be with family and our host and hostess were more than generous and made us feel so at home. We hope they have us back some day soon!

Tulsa State Fair 2011

2011-10-26T20:48:00.003-05:00

We took all three kids to the fair this year and it was the first time I didn't have a baby baby or was pregnant. I really enjoyed myself and so did the kids. Mera LOVES animals and the petting zoo was right up her alley. She screamed and squealed and couldn't get enough food in her little hands to feed all the goats and sheep.

She also is not afraid to eat a corn dog. She ate almost half of a jumbo sized one.

Both girls chose cotton candy as their treat and it was a sticky mess.

Mera got a little taste as well. She may have a bigger sweet tooth than Georgia if that is even possible.

After about 2 hours Daddy took the "little bits" as I call them, home for naps and I stayed with G so she could ride some rides and walk the QT Center with me. She is finally old enough for some of the rides and she really loved them. I had so much fun watching her and spending alone time with her. She is the best little companion and so easy-going.

A Girl and her Caterpillar

2011-10-13T22:01:00.001-05:00

Silliness

2011-10-13T21:57:00.002-05:00

Zoo Run

2011-10-13T21:48:00.002-05:00

Georgia's school has lots of extracurricular activities to participate in if you choose so she and I got up at the crack of dawn a couple of weekends ago and did the Fun Run part of the Zoo Run.

Several of her class mates were there.

This is her little buddy she has been doing Run Club with.

She got angry after getting her face painted but I think she looked cute.

Spanish Fiesta

2011-10-13T21:45:00.002-05:00

G had a performance at her school and while I didn't get any good pics of her performing...

...I got some great pics of Darby.

My Sweetest Things

2011-09-25T21:53:00.001-05:00

I just really like the progression of these pictures.

Race for the Cure 2011

2011-09-25T21:50:00.002-05:00

I am so mad I didn't get a picture with my mom but it was a very busy morning. I did get some pictures with my girls.

My Little DaVincis

2011-09-25T21:44:00.003-05:00

Well it turns out Mera likes to paint. A lot. She dipped her little brush in the paint and smeared it on the paper. She is such a happy girl.

Darby in a serious moment.

She is very focused.

And as always, G loves to paint as well.

Oh Darby

2011-09-25T21:42:00.001-05:00

Rock-A-Bye

2011-09-25T21:14:00.002-05:00

She'll Touch Anything

2011-09-03T21:49:00.003-05:00

When I was a kid, I was known for touching anything, especially anything dead. I think Darby got that. Here she is with a dried up dead lizard. Notice the stethoscope around her neck. She had to make sure it was dead.

First Day of School 2011

2011-09-03T21:34:00.002-05:00

G started Kindergarten this year and is doing great so far. We snapped a few pictures at the house before school. I don't do the picture taking at school thing. Seems too complicated for me on and already hectic and sometimes emotional morning. Her new school has uniforms which we have all enjoyed so far. Here she is with her sister.

And all alone. Such a big girl.

With Daddy and the sissies.

Me and Mera.

She has exceeded all my expectations and adjusted so well. She never cried or acted upset about going an d she really loves school and has such a desire to learn to be social. We are very proud of out big girl!

Always Dressing Up

2011-09-03T21:26:00.002-05:00

Georgia loves to plya dress up, and not your normal kind. She rarely uses the many dresses I have acquired for her to dress up in. Instead she prefers to wander the house and gather outfits with what she finds laying around. Here she found all the brown in the house and dressed up as a monkey. Notice dad's socks on her feet and hands and a belt for a tail.

Not really sure what she is in this one just that she thought she was fabulous.

Tinka is a Fun Dog

2011-08-14T12:30:00.004-05:00

Here the girls are meeting her for the first time.

And Mera was excited at first but then...

...said no thank you.

Milo checking her out.

And the end of a long day cuddled up with Daddy.

The girls are having so much fun making "beds" for her and treating her like a baby.

Won't be long until she will sleep with them.

Her first clipping. She slept through it:)

And here you can see her little face.

So tired after loosing all that hair.

She really is a great dog already and more than I could have hoped for!

Getting Ready

2011-08-08T21:37:00.003-05:00

We are picking up our puppy this Thursday and getting things ready. We got out Milo's old crate this weekend and set it up. She should fit in it for a few weeks at least. Mera crawled in and out for the longest time. I am thinking about keeping it out so she can play with it.

The Green-eyed Monster

2011-08-08T21:34:00.003-05:00

I found some green washable bubbles in the cabinet and let the girls play with them in the bath this weekend. They were truly awesome and I highly recommend them if you have the means.

A Hidey Hole

2011-08-08T21:30:00.004-05:00

We cleaned out our giant "buffet" as I call it this weekend and moved it into Darby's room so we could rearrange our living room a bit. The kids found it to be the best place to play.

They could all three fit in it. Mera is fresh out of the bath and has some crazy hair.

I've got the TP

2011-08-08T21:28:00.001-05:00

BTW Swim Reunion

2011-08-08T21:24:00.002-05:00

My high school swim coach came to town recently so we hosted a little reunion for all swimmers from any past year.

Darby had a great time playing with some of the little boys that came.

She was particularly fond of this little guy and we will have to get them together again soon!

Love at First Sight

2011-07-24T15:12:00.003-05:00

Living in the country dictates having a large dog in my mind. Both for protection and because we have the land for it. So Mera and I took a drive to a small town in Oklahoma yesterday to pick out or new puppy. We have decided on a Standard Poodle because I can' t deal with anymore dog hair in my house. I chose a sweet little black and white parti poodle. She was so sweet and I can't wait to bring her home in a few weeks. I am sure there will be many more posts about her. Guess I am not quite done having babies after all:)

Goodbye Glory

2011-07-21T22:48:00.008-05:00

We had a sad week this week in that we made the decision to put our dog, Glory, to sleep. This whole post is dedicated to her so if you aren't interested in a 9-year history of my dog, feel free to skip it.

Our family has a friend who raises German Shepards and since I can remember we have always had one. These are not your typical German Shepards though. She specialises in black and silvers and now solid black dogs. When I bought my house in 2003 (just off Cherry Street) I decided I wanted a big dog to live there with me. I called our friend and told her I would be interested in a grown dog that would make a good companion for me. I told her no hurry, just call if she had one she thought would work. She said she happened to have a 3-year-old female that the owners had returned to her because they wanted to focus on smaller show dogs and she had not taken to showing like they had wanted.

I drove out to her place the next day and met Glory and decided to take her home with me and give it a go. What a great decision. Part of the deal was I wouldn't have to pay for here as long as breeding rights remained with our friend. Fine with me.

So the time I lived in that house I got to play host to two litters of puppies. This is a picture of her second litter. Matt and I had started dating by this time and we both had so much fun with these puppies and Glory was such a good mommy.

Here they are starting solids.

Fast forward a few years and now we have a baby and a new home and Glory fit in perfectly. She was great with the baby and loved the country.

She always loved the snow and wanted to chase us when we would sled. She had one little quirk in that she was obsessed with tennis balls and retrieving. I think she thought when we were sledding she was supposed to retrieve us.

She loved to run and play with Milo and my mom's dog. She was the one dog Tucker would ever play with and he loved her so much.

You can see in this picture the intensity of her ball obsession.

The kids have always been free to play on her and she was always so patient with them.

When G was an only child, Glory was her favorite playmate.

When Darby came along Glory never missed a beat and Darby used to lay on her all the time.

I have a lot of pictures of naked Darby lounging on Glory but those are not acceptable for the WWW.

A few years ago Glory was playing ball and fell on some rocks and injured her hip. She was never the same after that and then developed hip displaycia. Her ball chasing days were over and she became home bound. We have watched her hips get worse and worse and often joked about having to have her put down. I think we joked on the surface but knew it would happen one day.

This last weekend I saw her fall and not be able to get up and I knew it was time. She was always the toughest dog and never yelped or cried in pain but she had lost her spunk and I knew she was in constant pain and that was not fair. I called our breeder friend and she agreed so I decided Monday morning I would take her. I felt like it was my place to do it, not Matt's, since she was my dog first.

We talked to the kids on Sunday and explained that some day Glory would not be with us anymore and Georgia immediately started pampering her. She made her a little bed and gave her covers. G had no idea at this point that we would loose our Glory the next day.

The morning before I took her I got some pictures of her withe the girls.

And her best buddy Milo.

And of course Mera who is, unfortunately, not going to get to enjoy her.

She was truly a great dog and so beautiful. My heart has a little hole in it that will heal with time but today I still miss her and wish she was waiting at the fence for me when I drive home. I hope she is whole again in doggy heaven and getting to chase all the balls her little heart desires, restored to her young gorgeous self. I wish she had just died here at home suddenly because I hated taking her in knowing what was about to happen. She didn't know my pats and scratches were a final goodbye but I was happy to be next to her as she fell asleep and then left my life forever. I will always remember her and the place she had in my life and appreciate her gentle nature and her love of my kids. We miss you Big Glory!

January 2000 to July 18, 2011

One Year Comparison

2011-07-20T22:30:00.004-05:00

I thought it would be fun to look back at the girls on their birthdays since this will be my last first birthday. Her is my little G with all her hair.

And baldy Darby

I remember she pooped herself during her party and we had to give her a quick bath clean up.

And Mera. Feel free to comment about how much they do or don't look alike.

Mera turns ONE!

2011-07-20T22:18:00.005-05:00

Mera turned one last weekend and we had a little family party at Mary's house. Her twin cousins were present and I realize I have put very few pictures of the on the blog but we do see a lot of them. They are 6-months younger than Mera. Alaliese is on the left and Genevieve on the right.

Genevieve loves to roll over.

Analiese is a bit of a drooler (in a good way).

Mera and cousin Vivian.

My baby girl loves balls so I did a ball cake for her.

And this one was for the grown ups in the group.

She had lots of presents and lots of help opening them.

Jack's birthday was in early July so he even scored a little something.

Here she is unsure of this thing in front of her.

And a taste.

"Me likee!"

She did a great job with it and really enjoyed it.

Happy birthday baby girl.

Jack Visits

2011-07-20T22:02:00.004-05:00

The girls cousin Jack came for a visit for the weekend of Mera's birthday along with Nanue and Big Papa. We tried to show him a good time and took him to the aquarium and I think he had a good time. Here are a bunch of photos taken there. They girls had a blast getting to spend time with him!

Mera was napping at home with me while everyone else saw the fish but she had a chance to check him out.

How Much for a Rib

2011-07-20T21:35:00.003-05:00

So Mary has been working on getting in good with Mera. Over the weekend of the fourth she fed her cheese ball and ribs. A few days later Mary was holding her I and I reached out to get her and she pulled into Mary and looked at me like she was saying, "I'm not going with you. This lady has the ribs and cheese balls."

Toothless in Tulsa

2011-07-20T20:29:00.002-05:00

Here is the last photo of my baby with all of her baby teeth.

The first one got loose on Thursday, the second on Friday and both came out by Monday. She was much braver than I was. I don't do teeth.

Here is the letter she wrote the tooth fairy.

"Tooth fairy, please leave my teeth. Big kids think their teeth are special to them. Love, Georgia. PS Thank you for leaving me dollars. Tooth fairy you are so sweet."

Fourth of July 2011

2011-07-20T20:13:00.003-05:00

We had a great holiday this year even though there were a few road bumps, therefor lack of pictures. My parents' decided to host their annual party on the 3rd this year at 4pm. Right about party time we noticed a rash G had been sporting for a few days had gotten considerably worse. After talking with our pediatrician we decided that Matt should take her to minor emergency. It turned out to be hives and she was at the party by 5:30. She had a little friend over who will be in her Kindergarten class next year and they ran after parachutes and had a great time.

And Darby hates loud noises so these guys worked out well.

We planned on doing more fireworks on the actual 4th but Mera had a fever(turned out to be a double ear infection and then she broke out in hives from the Amoxicillin) so we still have a big bag we will do when it is cooler and not so dry. Hopefully we can get some good pictures then.

Three in the Tub

2011-07-05T09:32:00.000-05:00

And Mera says, "Get me outa here!"

A Taste of Summer

2011-07-05T09:27:00.004-05:00

We went to the Blue Bell Taste of Summer again this year and had lots of fun. Mera really enjoyed sharing her first Popsicle with her sister.

New seat for G

2011-07-05T09:23:00.003-05:00

Mera is going through a phase where she wants to sit in and on everything. Needless to say she was delighted when I brought home a new car seat for Georgia and set it in the floor of the living room.

Cinderellas

2011-07-05T09:22:00.002-05:00

I think this photo needs no explanation.

Banana Bread

2011-07-05T09:19:00.003-05:00

It had been a long time since I had made banana bread and I used to make it all the time so we recently had enough old banana that each girl got to make her own batch. It worked so well. They didn't have to share or take turns and each loaf was equally tasty! Mera helped a little too with moral support.

Dallas for Daddy

2011-07-05T09:17:00.001-05:00

Matt drove to Dallas the first weekend in June to see his 3 living grandparents and spend some time with his mom and dad and brother. I survived just fine with much help from my wonderful mother and the girls got these fun towels when daddy got home.

Pre-K Graduation

2011-07-05T09:12:00.002-05:00

Graduated from Pre-K on June 3rd and they had a little ceremony for the kids

Here she is with one of her amazing teachers and her bestie.

The two women who loved and cared for and inspired my little girl for 9 months. We miss them so much already.

And then they had a dance party!

Slip Slidin' Away

2011-06-09T21:50:00.001-05:00

We got out the slip and slide last weekend and the girls are slowly getting the hang of it. Mera loves it.

Oh my God I love this baby (who slept for 8 straight ours last night)!

Mera gets a turn.

G head first.

Darby just splashin' in the puddle.

And she sticks the landing!

Casting Net with Aunt Bob

2011-06-09T21:49:00.001-05:00

Aunt bob came to town and brought her casting net. We took it down to the pond to see what we could catch.

Darby is considering picking up that fish.

Georgia beats her to it.

One fell in the mud so we had to do a re-throw.

Here she is casting it out.

And again. I don't know if you can see the moss flying through the air but it landed on me.

New Pets

2011-05-28T13:49:00.003-05:00

We caught these 2 little guys at the pond and have decided to keep them as pets for a while. This is Darby's and his name is Princey.

This is G's and her name is Princess of course.

I made a little home for them at the shop this week.

They are already best friends.

Last 6-tooth photo

2011-05-28T13:43:00.002-05:00

She has had 6 teeth for so long and I love this smile but the day before I took this her 7th poked through on the bottom. Thought I ought to get one last pic of her 6-toothed grin.

Cookies with Daddy

2011-05-28T13:38:00.002-05:00

I took G to Mayfest last weekend and G stayed home wit Daddy and made cookies while Mera napped.

She got special drinks of his drink too.

Debo's B-Day

2011-05-28T13:21:00.002-05:00

I made a yellow cake with chocolate butter creme icing for him. It was awesomely tastey.
Debo and his girls.

Matt and his girls.

Science Lesson - The Crawdad

2011-05-28T12:07:00.004-05:00

Most of you know from reading my blog, we live in the country and have access to a pond. By "access," I mean there is a pond on the adjacent land the city owns. Having a pond so close means there are lots of critters to learn about. After the giant rain on Easter we went down in the valley for a walk and noticed a bunch of these on the walking trails:

When we flipped them over we found this:

If you can't tell, those are bunches of babies holding on to the back of the tail. Now if you are interested you can google the life-cycle of a crawdad/crayfish as I did. I will spare those of you not interested in how it all works. Here is one in a hidey hole.

All around the pond there were remains of these guys. I guess the raccoons got to some of them and cracked em open to suck the guts out. (Reminds me of eating the head of a prawn. My husband and one other person will get that.)

The night before these pictures were taken all of the girls and my mom were with me. Mary was holding Mera and a crawdad at the same time. She stopped paying attention and Mera reached for the little creature and was promptly pinch. She screamed, I pulled the crawdad off, my mom laughed, G and Darby screamed. So Georgia is not in any of these pictures because she refused to go back down there. Mera had no hard feelings.

Holding a dead one.

I love this little girl!

Toofy McGrinner and the Twins

2011-05-28T11:57:00.003-05:00

This baby is all smiles. I love those gappy teeth!

Kiki comes and sees us sometimes while my bro exercises after work. She is a real baby slinger.

Easter 2011

2011-05-28T11:33:00.005-05:00

Easter morning I got up and played Easter Bunny and then G got up shortly after I was done. She got up and got dressed with some of her birthday jewelry and waited for Darby to wake up so we could hunt eggs.

The whole time they hunted eggs they would find one and then try to give it to each other. It was really sweet how helpful and considerate they were.

After the egg hunt we opened to the front door to find that the Easter bunny had left them...A new car!

Easter was aslo a big day for Mera in that she started crawling that morning. WE saw it coming and were able to get some action shots of her first crawl.

A rare picture of the entire family.

Sneaky Darby.

After our egg hunt we went to my mom's house and did it again.

It thundered and Lightninged ALL DAY on Easter so we had to let the girls drive the car around our tiny house. That was fun. Not really.

Our Video Blog

2011-05-26T22:33:00.001-05:00

I started a video blog since I have an iPhone. Quality is not the best but it gives a chance to see the monkeys in action. I will keep catching up on it and on this over the next few nights.

Click here for the link!

Family Update

2011-05-22T20:52:00.002-05:00

I am still really behind on pictures but I am in the mood to write tonight so I think I will ramble for a bit. I would like to start with Georgia. I can't express in words how proud I am of that sweet girl. She is the most pleasant, joyful, loving little being I could have ever have hoped to create. It has been a little over a year since we found out about her hearing loss and what a difference a year makes. I can still take myself back to the night after we found out she had a hearing loss, and more than that, she would need hearing aids. I remember calling my mom and sobbing as hard as a person can sob and telling her I knew that this was bad and going to be something G would have to deal with for the rest of her life. And of course on that night my mom had the wisdom and the confidence to calm me down and tell me in a year this won't matter and everything will be fine.

I hate it when my mom is right. Her hearing aids have just become a part of our daily routine. The weekends we take time off from them here and there while we are at home and she does fine. At school she wears them all the time along with an FM system and there has never been a problem. I know it is still something she will have to deal with for the rest of her life and my heart will break about it still as different situations arise, but she is such a joy and ray of light that I also know everything will be fine and the mom in me is the one able to say this.

Most exciting for her, perhaps, is that she was accepted to a Spanish immersion school so next year she will start kindergarten in an all Spanish speaking environment. The school is perhaps one of the most sought after and popular in our public school system so we are very blessed and honored to have gotten in. She will be in class with the same 28 kids from K though 5 and that is also exciting to me because hopefully the fact that she has hearing aids will never be a social issue, at least while she is in elementary school.

Next we have Darby, who is also a most impressive little being. Let me start by saying she is a rather big kid. She can wear size 4T clothes and just turned 3. She is the same size as a couple of the shorter girls in G's Pre-K class. I think she might be my freaky-tall one. What amazes me about Darby is her intensity. If she is feeling lovey, she feels it with her whole body and will wrap herself around you and bury her head in your chest and squeeze until she shakes. If she is interested in something, the questions are endless and can come out of nowhere for days. If she is feeling fiesty, she grits her teeth and squeezes or hits of grabs whatever she can get a hold of (including her sisters). If she is feeling silly, she throws herself around the room and giggles uncontrollably and sucks you right in with her. I love that little giggle.

I have described her as spirited and I stand by that. I think a lot of people think they have spirited children , but it takes one to know you have one. When G was a baby I thought she might be spirited but she is not (unless it comes to putting her socks on and in that one area she is spirited). I only know she is not because I have Darby. Darby challenges me in ways I never thought possible and part of me loves it. The best thing about Darby is when you get her alone, just you and her, she is the most personable and charming kid to be with. She is engaging and talkative and will even ask you things like "Tell me about your day?" And then she will listen. She also has a great since of humor. We have been working on a knock knock joke and she is close to having it but we will have to keep working. It usually goes like this:
Darby: Knock knock
me: Who's there?
Darby: Cow
me: Cow who?
Darby: Silly cow moo (should be: no silly, a cow says moo) And then she giggles and bends over and slaps her leg.

Finally we have Mera. This little turkey is so smart. Actually all babies are smart but I forgot how smart they can be. She knows all of the family members, including dogs, names. She knows the words eat, drink night night, nurse, cracker, Mary (plus Mary's dogs names). When I say "know" she looks for them when you say the word or acts interested in what you are saying, especially the word "eat." That girls loves food and if she is eating something you better just keep it coming or she will scream at the top of her lungs at you. It is quite unsettling. She has a great disposition and will play happily on the floor for a very long time (unless a big sister interrupts and maims her. Maybe all babies will sit on the floor and happily play at 10-months, but my other two never did so I am really enjoying this. Mera has a great smile and loves to flash it at strangers. She is also very giving of her waves, both hello and goodbye. She is a great baby and I have so much fun with her everyday. I can already tell she is going to be my buddy for the next few years.

Finally, we have had one more life change in that my husband is no longer working for the Tulsa World but has made a career move to the non-profit sector. He is working in the communications department on a mid-to large sized public relations organizations and enjoying it very much. I think he misses writing sometimes but I keep telling him he call get his blog on anytime. Overall we are doing great a s a family and I am truly enjoying my three girls for all of their differences and all the joy they bring me everyday.

G's Friend Party

2011-05-15T21:24:00.007-05:00

G's birthday party for her school friends was the Saturday after her birthday. We were planning on having a paint party at our house but rain was threatening so we moved the festivities next door to my mom's house. We filled their conversation pit(a sunken seating area in their living room) with balloons.

I made a rainbow cake.

We painted magic wands in the garage.

And did some volcanoes there as well but quickly moved that table into the yard.

We had a rainbow pinata which I didn't get any pictures of, just video. Her is Vivian holding the aftermath.

Nanue and Aunt Bob did some face painting.

Here is the birthday girl feeling like the queen of the castle.

Singing and cake.

Candle blowing.

Uncle Matt with Genevieve in their little matching outfits.

Birthday with Family

2011-05-15T21:09:00.002-05:00

Nanue and Big Papa came for G's birthday and brought some great gifts. Lots of art supplies to keep us stocked through the year.

They got put to good use right away.

We went to my mom's house for cake and more presents. I took a break from baking and let Sams Club take care of this cake. They always do such a great job.

G got some new sparkle shoes because her other ones were wearing out.

And more art supplies.

Georiga's School Party

2011-05-15T21:04:00.002-05:00

G's birthday fell the Friday before Easter this year which is also Earth Day. Her school had an Easter party and Easter Egg hunt plus a party which we wrapped into a birthday party. Here she is hunting eggs.

Her birthday was a rainbow theme this year so I made rainbow cupcakes for her class complete with gummy ladybugs since it was Earth Day.

Her she is eating some cheese puffs.

Spring Performance 2011

2011-05-15T21:00:00.002-05:00

Darby had her annual school performance on April 21st. She did very well and seemed very comfortable on stage!

Dirty Girls and Best Friends

2011-04-30T21:07:00.004-05:00

I don't think there was anything special about this day or this mess. In fact D looks like this most nights. G is a little more clean and refined.

Watching a movie together on a rainy day.

These girls sure love each other.

Darby's Friend Party

2011-04-30T20:54:00.004-05:00

On the Saturday after Darby's birthday we invited 4 of her little friends form school over for a party. Darby kept saying she wanted a Spiderman party but I don't do Spiderman so I made a spider cake for her party.

This little boy is her best friend from school and she talks about him all the time.

It was actually warm enough that we set up a pool and the kids got to splash around. Point in fact, it has not been that warm since.

Darby pushed her friend around a lot during the party.

The sand box was also open for business.

Lighting candles.

Singing.

And the blow.

My sister handed down some of Vivian's old dress up clothes which included two pair of high heel shoes which the girls now love.

Georgia in the red ones (hot property around here).

And Mera was there as well. Have I mentioned the huge gap between Mera's two front teeth? Well if not let me do so. It is too stinkin' cute.

Warn out after the party.

D-Rae's B-day # 3

2011-04-28T21:52:00.005-05:00

Darby's birthday was on a Friday so the family wandered down to the pond close to our land and threw in the fishing poles. We didn't catch anything but had plenty of fun.
Nanue was her for the fun and she got a little time with Mera.

Kiki and Analiese.

Byrne and Genevieve.

Milo looking pretty regal for a pug.

Nanue and Genevieve (we love to pass those babies around).

Darby wanted Spider man cupcakes to take to her class so we had the leftovers for her family party as well as some spider cake balls I had made for her.

G got her an Ariel wig.

My big blond three-year-old.

My Birthday

2011-04-28T21:44:00.002-05:00

I am a little late in posting but it is time to purge and catch up. I had a birthday about a month ago and had a lovely evening at my parents house with my family and some friends.

My sweet husband did an awesome job of making my day nice and went ot the trouble to get me my own special piece of carrot cake from The Daily Grill.

Me and my girls.

And just for fun a picture of Mera eating a baseball.

Pretty Pretty

2011-04-13T20:45:00.000-05:00

Blast Off

2011-04-13T20:33:00.003-05:00

G's class took a field trip to the Air and Space Museum at the beginning of March (I know I am so behind). Daddy was able to go with her and take some cute pics.

Shortly after a package was delivered to our home and the box soon became a space ship.

Well I couldn't resist bringing them home a real space ship so I took a box from work and Daddy helped them build the most amazing rocket ship.

Good thing we had some fun trash laying around that week.

The screen from our porch remodel was a nice touch.

He even got out he tin foil and made hats.

ET Phone Home

2011-03-20T22:43:00.004-05:00

This is what happens when you ask Darby to get Mera a toy. She gets Mera all the toys. Reminds me of ET mixed in with all the stuffed animals.

Find Mera in this one.

Oh, there she is.

Breakfast with Darby

2011-03-20T22:41:00.001-05:00

Messy Art Night 2011

2011-03-20T22:34:00.004-05:00

The Twins have Emerged

2011-03-20T22:04:00.004-05:00

My brother and SIL kept the twins on a pretty good lock down for the first six weeks they were home. They did finally venture over to my folks house where the girls got to meet their cousins for the first time. I think all of these pics are of Analiese except this first one. I am pretty sure this is Genevieve. (Pictures were taken Feb 22nd and babies were born Jan 6)

Mama Kiki and unknown baby.

Darby and Analiese.

Georgia and Analiese.

Mera thinking she might like to put that in her mouth.

All 5 cousins (Genevieve asleep in the background).

Me and my sweet niece. So excited about babies that aren't mine.

Grandmama and Analiese.

Before I foget

2011-03-16T22:24:00.002-05:00

From Matt Gleason:
I bought some Cadbury eggs at the store with the girls today. I told G and D that they had to eat their dinner before they could have one. G scarfed her dinner down fast to get one. D protested, so she didn't get her egg. We like to freeze the eggs, so I put ended up putting the remaining eggs in the fridge. Not long after, D was sitting at the base of the fridge trying to pry it open. While she was doing this, I walked by her and she said, "Daddy, I'm going to slam your feet in the fridgerator." I said "OK, you do that." Then she immediately said, "Daddy, I'm going to shove you down." Again, I said, "OK, you do that." To top off her threats, D gloomily said, "Daddy, I'm going to stick my hand in your butt." I had to cover my mouth to keep myself from busting out laughing. That kid is funny and not just a little vengeful.

By the way, V went to get the last egg out of the fridge tonight, but she found only an empy container. See, Georgia has free reign of the house after I go back to our bedroom and V is busy putting MJ to bed. That means G knows she could smuggle the last egg into her bedroom. She's a sneaky one. This is the same kid who has a 7:30 a.m. dentist appointment tomorrow morning to get her very first cavity filled.

On a totally different subject, I helped the girls make a spaceship out of a huge cardboard box yesterday. I even made them costumes out of plastic bags and foil. I told G she would look like an alien. She said, "Daddy, I don't want to be an alien." I said, "OK." Then she said, "I want to be an alien princess." So we added some pink to the costumes.

And today, at the park, G ran up to me, gave me a huge hug and said, "Daddy, I want you to call me your sweet baby princess." Later in the car, I said something like, "You're my monkey." Georgia corrected me saying, "Daddy, I told you to call me 'Sweet baby princess."

It's Done

2011-03-11T19:15:00.002-06:00

Georgia's room is finally finished. I have spent the last two weeks doing "painters" work (spackling caulking, sanding, painting) to it. Most nights it kept me up til midnight but most of it got done before the carpet got put down today. I am so happy with the finished product!

Here is the view form the living room. I got red curtain to hang in front of the french doors so she has privacy and if the doors are open she can pull the curtains and we can still hear what is going on.

The curtains will be made out of this awesome fabric that matches the room and the rest of our house so well..

Here is the sleep area.

And the play area.

A Bigger House

2011-02-23T21:45:00.003-06:00

No we are not moving or building but adding. We decided to close in our porch so we have a playroom and a place for G to sleep. It should be done next week except for carpet. Here it is in progress. I have spent my nights and last weekend painting trim boards so I don't have to paint them once they are up. This first pic is facing south.

Facing north.

Facing east. The west wall is the one to the house and the door that leads into the living room. More pic to come when it is done.

Turning a Corner

2011-02-23T21:11:00.004-06:00

When you have a new baby it takes a long time for things to feel "normal." For me it takes about 6 months to feel like I will have my life back some day and perhaps not always be attached to a baby. Well, Mera is 7-months and we have indeed turned a corner. Not to bore anyone but Mera had the most horrible habit of waking up 40 minutes after I put her to bed at night and it would take me another 40 minutes to get her back to sleep. I tried everything to no avail. So basically I have had no time in the evening for "me" time. Mera has recently dropped her early evening nap and I have made a change in the way I put her down and all of the sudden she is sleeping over two hours for the first sleep of the night. This makes me feel like a whole new mom. I finally have some time to myself and time with my sweet and ever-so-patient hubby.

So the point of all this is that we have turned that corner and are starting to see the future in a new way. This is our last baby and I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Don't get me wrong, I love babies, but I have either been nursing or pregnant since July of 2005. Granted I will still be nursing for a long while probably but just to know I don't have to be pregnant again and don't have to care for a 0 to 6-month-old again is very refreshing and freeing.

On top of all this, Mera is such a wonderful baby and such a joyful spirit to be around. I have enjoyed her babydom so much so far and am uber-excited about he next 6 months and all the changes it will bring. She is honestly the cutest little snaggle-tooth (she now has 5 teeth) baby I have ever seen. She loves loves loves her big sisters and is so content to sit on the floor and watch them play. They love to include her (which I do not encourage for safety reasons) and love to mother her.

In other news, Darby had one of the most difficult days today she has ever had. She is just so tormented some days it must feel awful to be her. The first "set off" involved her not putting her own bagel in the toaster because I had already done it. This led to a 20-minute crying and screaming jag during which she was unreasonable and inconsolable. It also include her crumbling up said bagel on my carpet which made me real happy. The second indecent was set off because G got a drink out of the water bottle before her. We were leaving Sam's at the time and she screamed for about 15-minutes while we were stuck in traffic and at one point yelled that she was going to throw up. She was screaming and crying so hard I would not have been surprised. I would also like to mention she ate a bowl of oats, a fiber bar, two pieces of whole wheat toast with cream cheese, a corn dog, a bag of apples dipped in caramel, half a bag of peanuts and 2 cups of milk all before 11 am. She has out grown most of her 3T PJs and will only be 3 in April. Needless to say, she might be my tall one.

This picture cracks me up after I say all that because she looks a little evil. She had gotten into some old makeup and done her eyes and cheeks up real pretty.

We are getting so excited about spring! G is my helper girl and always wants to help clean. In this case I let her wash all the salt and junk off my car.

My sneaky-snake as I call her.

And my itty bitty titty committee.

Mera has gotten a little aggressive and crazy about all that is edible. Here she wants the apple.

Here G is sharing.

Daddy loving on his D. She needs A LOT of this to stay on an even keel. Sadly more than I can give with Mera around. But like I said, a corner has been turned and I am hoping for a growing allotment of snuggle time with my big girls.

Valentine's Day

2011-02-23T21:06:00.002-06:00

Big Papa sent his girls flowers as always on V-day. They were gorgeous and the kids loved them. Mera kept pulling branches out as I was trying to take the picture.

Snowman

2011-02-23T21:03:00.002-06:00

We finally got out towards the end of the snow and built a snow man. From the size of his nose I am sure it is a snowman not a snowlady.

Jail Break

2011-02-08T20:27:00.002-06:00

Matt finally got the sickness. This morning I was in Mera's room nursing her and I heard our house alarm go off. This happens if a door is opened before we disarm it. It took a while to shut off. When I got up I asked Matt what happened. This is the chain of events as I understand them:
Darby woke up and went to get Daddy. He had been up all night coughing so he told her to go back to bed. She went into the living room and saw some birds out the window. She went in the kitchen, got some crackers and went out the back door to feed the birds. This is why we never go to bed without the alarm set. This is what we mean when we say spirited.

Randomness

2011-02-06T10:35:00.004-06:00

Here a picture purge of the last two weeks. Not enough of anything to deserve its own post but I thought worth putting up.

Nanue cam and stayed for a few days last week because I had to work due to an employee absence. It was a big help.

Mera just loves G and will be happy to just be with her. When Matt gives them a bath he sits just outside the door where he can watch but it won't upset Mera. She will just play with Georgia forever but if an adult other than myself enters the bathroom she will start crying.

I gave Darby her first set of pigtails but had to lead by example to talk her in to it.

Oh, and I bribed her with a Tootsie Roll.

Mera is on the food train. Lovin' some prunes and bananas.

We moved the slide inside for the snow storm. It of course ended in tears.

And more eating.

Matt did the girls nails and in turn, they did his.

When I'm 64

2011-02-06T10:31:00.002-06:00

Mary had a birthday last week and turned 64. She is so hot. Here she is with 3 of 6 grand-girls.
Her cake was an ode to the peacocks.

We ended the night with a dance party and Mera even let Debo hold her while he danced.

But the truth comes out in the end and Debo proved to all who his real love is.

ECCO Program

2011-02-06T10:26:00.003-06:00

I haven't done a hearing update in a while, which is good. Means there is nothing to report or talk about. We are participating in a program called ECCO (I don't know what it stands for, how bad is that). A nice lady (Petra) comes to our house once a week and works with Georgia on improving her listening and communication skills. It has been great so far and has taught both Matt and me so much. Here are just a couple of pictures of G and Petra playing games and working together. They did some sort of scavenger hunt where there was a toy at the end for G to find.

Snooooooooooooooooooo

2011-02-04T11:49:00.003-06:00

So we got some snow this week. It snowed on Monday night and all day Tuesday and then stopped, leaving somewhere between 12 and 16 inches on the ground. Since then it has been so cold not a piece has melted. Evaporated maybe, but not melted.

This is a picture of the final snow fall on our deck.

So Matt braved the roads today and went to work, parking illegally in a pay lot. He got paranoid and went to move his car and saw it was snowing again. As he tried to move he car he kept getting stuck so he headed home. This is what it looks like outside right now. Please let it stop. Since it started I went to my parents once and now all of us, except Matt, have been sick with fever and cold symptoms. Is this what they mean when they say "hell freezes over?"

Winter Wonderland

2011-01-22T21:02:00.000-06:00

(matt gleason)
Last week we had a couple of snow days for the Gleason family, so we all tried to stay civil cooped up in our shanty. The morning went really well considering and icing sugar cookies was the highlight.

After nap time, the girls were ready to bust out of the house, so we all went sledding off the slope where Mary's yard becomes the tennis court. I thought the girls would last about one or two runs down the slope, then we'd be done. Darby went on two rides with me and two rides with Georgia, then she was done. I figured Georgia would follow soon after, but Georgia was a sledding daredevil today. She even went down headfirst over and over again. Each time, she got a thrill from going just a little farther each time. More than once I had to keep her from speeding into a tree. It was one of those moments I wanted to last forever.