HAPPY HALLOWEEN

happy halloween from all of us and the spooky dog!!!  i'll post later when wonder women and tinkerbell make their appearance.

i am wondering if i should give up this blog thing....i have gotten to be terrible about keeping up to date with the day to day lives in the rimbo household.  it's just been insane.  no better way of putting it.  the only nights i seem to get quite a bit done is when i am up all night at work....but should i be doing this at work????  probably not, but i need something to help me stay awake.  

the girls have been doing great....getting all ready for halloween.  lainey already had her school party.  she loves her tinkerbell costume (that ohie made, i might add).  she even prances around when she wears it.  it has been so hard on kylee to have to wait all week to wear her costume.  "mommy, is it halloween after this night or another night?" (she has stopped calling me "mother."  i am once again mommy:)  kylee is busy with school and homework...yes, homework in kindergarten believe it or not.  tonight she was writing math problems on a piece of paper (1+4=5).....what!!!!  i was blown away.  it amazes me so how much and how fast these kids have to learn things these days.  but it is really exciting to see all that she has learned in the two and a half months she's been in school.

lainey just makes me laugh everyday.  she is such a goof.  she is getting so big.  i know i keep saying that, but it's true.  the time goes by too fast.  it makes me a little sad.  i am trying to take advantage of every hug and kiss, because they soon become few and far between.  just thought i'd say hello to the blogging world, but i really need to get back to work.

who couldn't love this face....my baby is a big girl now, what am i going to do?

kylee's kindergarten class.....

best buddies (they are together everyday, play soccer together and are in sunday school together....do you think they'll get sick of each other?)  they have so much fun!

it has been too long....again.  what can i say, time just slips away.  fun things have been happening 'round these parts and i need to share.  first let me say HALLELUJAH!!!!  we are finished with diapers!!!  anyone else feel like doing a cheer.  alaina is officially potty trained.  two sundays ago i decided that it was time...so the diaper fairy came and took all of our diapers away "oh my."  i put her in a pair of panties and sent her off to sunday school.  yes, sunday school (i actually put a pull up on her during that time period and just took them off as soon as we picked her up...she actually went on the potty for her sunday school teacher).  that afternoon was the only accident she had.  she has done amazing!!!!  i am so relieved to be rid of stinky diapers....so is our garage.  our girls are growing up so fast.  

today, kylee had her first field trip...the the KC pumpkin patch.  it was so much fun watching her in her own element.  the little social butterfly that she is.  she was so excited about her trip to the pumpkin patch.  actually, i think she was more excited about riding the bus.  i even got to ride the bus...how cool is that?  not really, it was actually a little frightening, since the bus driver didn't seem to know what he was doing.

 

what else....hmmm, oh yeah, we painted our kitchen (we meaning toni and i).  it really needed to be freshened up a bit, and the color is very fitting for fall.  i love it.  next up is our bedroom!  as soon as the lawn loses it's need to be mowed, alan has already been hired to be my painting buddy!  i know that there is more, but it is 2:30 in the morning and i am getting too tired to think....it's a real good thing that i'm at work, huh?

beauty school drop out

morning bed head...this kid has the worst!  she woke up the other day and her hair was going every which way but down, so i had to take a picture.  after seeing this one too many mornings i thought is was time to take her somewhere to get her hair cut.  So us girls and Ohie went to run some errands, then get lainey's haircut.  

her she is....ready for the cut,

afterwards (and after a nap i might add)....by the way, can anyone scream BRACES!

that 'fire marshall bill' smile just makes me laugh.  i absolutely love it!  anyway, the following day i come walking down the stairs to see alaina standing at the kitchen counter with a comb up to her head.  i asked her what she was doing.  she said, "cutting my hair."  my first reaction was, "oh, she is pretending with the comb again....no big deal."  uhhhhhhhh, that is until i walk over to her and see a pile of hair lying on the counter and all over the stool she is standing on.  god was with me at that moment because all i could do was just laugh.  (it still makes me laugh thinking about it).  while trying to contain my laughter i told her she should never cut her own hair.  i told her not to move so i could get my camera....she didn't like this (i think she was embarrassed or something) because as soon as i walked away to get the camera, she quickly dusted the stool off, removing all evidence!  do you think she knew that it would soon become available for the whole world to see....hmmmm.  she is a pretty smart girl you know.....just not a very good beautician (at least not just yet).  mommy loves you sweety, it will be fun to look back on this an laugh together one day:)  JUST DON'T DO IT AGAIN! :)

hello again....we're back

i can't believe that it has taken me this long to post. we've been back for four days now and i've wanted to do this everyday, but life after a vacation....what can i say "back to reality." i had actually planned to blog while we were away, but time got away from us...we were having too much fun and too tired at night because of the time difference. i don't think we really started adjusting until the night before we left.

we had a wonderful time. nine glorious days away with my husband. i had so much fun with him. we haven't been alone like that for six years. i enjoyed every second. here was a typical day in the life on maui.....wake up 5:30/6:00 (10:30 KS time), take a walk on the beach, have quiet time, then breakfast. eight thirty grab our chairs and head for the beach, read a little, sleep a little, then snorkel, then lay out some more. We would do this until 11:00, then head up to the lawn area because the trade winds would pick up (it's not so much fun when the sand is blowing in your face). Have lunch around noon, then go back down to the lawn (the lawn overlooked the beach), read and sleep for a few more hours (i must say that alan did a lot better then i thought he would because he gets so darn antsy....he can't just "lay out"). Then we would go back up to the condo, clean up then have an afternoon cocktail.....alan became a pro at making Mi Tie's. yummy....but i would only have one! then around 5:00 i would start making dinner, we'd open a bottle of wine and have dinner on the lana'i. we'd watch the beautiful sunset and just hang out. it was wonderful.

it was the first time in a long time where i think we both just completely relaxed. no work, no stress, no worries.....just paradise. i will post pictures to flickr so you all can see (even though i didn't take as many as i thought i would...and the pictures look kinda crappy because t tried resizing them for easier download....well, it didn't save to a new file, so now i have to re-download all my pictures so they have better resolution, oops).

we missed the girls so much, talked about them all the time, but we still had a hard time leaving. i wish we could have more time like that. we are just so blessed to know that we will be back. mom and dad, we can't tell you enough how grateful we are that you allowed us to stay there. mom you did an amazing job redecorating the place....it is AWESOME! we also want to thank both grandparents for taking such wonderful care of our girls. they had a wonderful time. it sure is good to have them back. i missed their little hands and sweet kisses and hugs. anyway, i need to go back to work. with any luck i will post again soon:)

mmmmmsch!

i love this little girl.....she makes me smile so!  tomorrow she is starting KDO (kids day out).  she is so excited....."i'm going to school!"  although i think she would rather be in kindergarten with kylee.  she sure speaks well enough!  though she is only two this girl can speak...everyone always asks how old she is because she does not speak like a typical two year old.  how can this be.  our kids are growing up too fast.  this girl, from the moment she was born has been on the move.  she has kept us on our toes that is for sure.  right now she is currently known around here as the "bag lady."  she is constantly walking around the house with her princess high heels on, three bags on her shoulder (filled with STUFF), pushing her grocery cart.....and talking on the phone (always calling the doctor)!  she really is a hoot.  

look for this photo, it will be making it's appearance on my new website soon (spite her naptime hair....i absolutely love this picture)!

big "K"

i can honestly say that i cannot believe that this day has arrived!  today we went to kindergarten.  i just got home from dropping her off.  yep, the mom who doesn't cry when her kids get shots shed tears this afternoon.  i didn't think that i would, and i'm not sure that i am conscious of the reasoning behind it....probably because i am so excited for her.  alan makes so much fun of me because i loved elementary school (he says he sees the brown on my nose).  i know she is so excited too!  all morning it was, "mother, is it time yet?  when can we go?  is it time yet?  i'll get the keys!  is it time yet?"  (yeah, do you like that i used "mother" instead of mom....she no longer calls me mom or mommy, just "mother.") i just hope she has a very fulfilling year, learning new things, making friends and having fun.  kylee you are such a great kid, we love you so much and hope you are having a great day at school....you BIG KINDERGARTNER YOU!

it's only 2:37 am

i am sitting here at 2:37 in the morning at work....extremely tired, when i thought, why not blog.  i haven't done it in a while, and for those of you who still check it might like to see a nice picture of the girls.  about the picture...this is one of about three or four pictures that actually turned out.  i am a photographer and i photograph other peoples children all the time, yet when it comes to mine (hmmmm...alaina) it just doesn't seem to work out so well.  no kylee on the other hand is my ham.  it wasn't too long ago that she asked me if i would take pictures of her in a field so she would have them for her kids one day....seriously?  alaina my dear if you ever wonder why you were not in very many pictures (except the ones aunt d takes...for some reason she is the only one who can capture her in any light) it's because you have the worst case of "ants in the pants" i have ever seen...and bribes don't seem to help either.  

i know every mother out there has had there share of "grouchy" days, when all you seem to do is bark at everyone....especially the kids.  well, today was like that for me.  as i was driving to work tonight, i was looking back on the day and i felt my heart just sink to the floor.  i don't think i said one nice thing to my poor kids all day long.  i just barked, nit-picked and nagged.  to top it off, right before i left for work i let lainey know how mad i was that she lost my necklace, then demand that she look for it......have i forgotten that she is just two, man, what a crab!  after being at work for half an hour or so the gals at work tell me that there are two little girls coming up the elevator to see me.  kylee had looked so hard for my necklace after i left and found it.  my dear sweet husband brought both girls up to work so kylee could give it to me.  my heart melted.  i hate days when i am like that, and it seems to be more frequent than not.  so girls, mommy is sorry.  i love you both so much....no matter what.  please forgive me when i am being a big ol' crabby patty!  (alan, thank you for bringing the girls up to see me, it made my night...only 4 1/2 more hours to go). 

quick update

most of you knew that this morning kylee had her sinus surgery so i wanted to give everyone a quick update.  she is doing AMAZING!  i can't believe it.  i thought we would have a long day sleeping....nope, not this kid.  the only time she slept was on the ride home from the surgery center.  she didn't close her eyes the entire afternoon.  she only complained a handful of times that her throat and nose hurt, but that was when it was time for more codeine (i think the codeine has the opposite effect on her...it winds her up instead of knocking her out).  her major complaint was hunger.  it started the minute we walked in the door.  i swear, nothing can come between her and food.  so after lots of flavor-ice's, jello and milkshakes....it was time for dinner french toast with strawberries and bananas (as i am writing this i just realized that i wasn't supposed to give her anything red....so it can't be mistaken for blood...oops).  anyway, we'll see how she does tonight and tomorrow morning.  thank you everyone for thoughts and prayers they were well heard and felt!

long awaited

mom, i know that you really didn't like the idea of this picture being public, but this is such a momentous occasion that i just had to.  you are finally back home!  what has it been, ten years? too long i must say.  we are so excited, there are hardly words.  this is going to take some adjusting to.  we're so used to you coming for a week or so and seeing you most of that week....but now you are here for good.....you may see a lot of us the first few months.  it may take a while for the girls to understand that you don't have to leave anymore.  except for the occasional worldly excursion:)  anyway, just wanted to tell you how happy we are to have you back.  you may get sick of us!  love you tons!!

safety

safety has never been cuter!  i just had to post these pictures really quick.  summer has been so busy already.....though it is a third of the way over if you can believe it.  hope everyone is having a great one.  will post again soon...hopefully.

last week was SBO Jr (VBS) at church....and this morning all the kids sang during worship.  can you see kylee up there jammin'?  she's the one in the middle on the second row really gettin' to it. the songs they sang were so fun.  you can tell that the kids liked them too!  

alan and i just sat there watching her with tears in our eyes.  seeing her up there made us both realize how big she is getting.  for me it is seeing her up there singing songs to jesus.  how he loves her voice.  i know he is smiling down on everyone of those kids who simply love him for who he is.  they don't need all the answers, they just believe.  oh how sweet that is.  kylee, i pray that your heart for jesus will only grow.  that you will seek him and find him when you search for him with your whole heart (jeremiah 29:13).

on another note, happy fathers day to my husband and my dear dad's.  i (we) love you so much.  you are all so important and influential in my life.  i have been blessed to have been loved by such loving, sensitive and wise men.  thank you.

breakfast

is it just me or does this look like a painting?  this is actually an overexposed picture that i took about 6:30 this morning (while taking the puppy to pee.)  the mother bird was watching me like a hawk.  i was interrupting breakfast.  she would sit on the fence post waiting for me to leave so she could feed her babies.  watching her feed them was so neat.  all three heads popping up, mouths wide open....so cool.  okay i am a little obsessed with these baby birds in our backyard.  but in my defense i have never seen for myself anything like this before.  while my sister in law is in africa taking amazing pictures of wild animals....i am here in kansas taking overexposed pictures of a mother bird feeding her babies.  hmmmmm.

"b" is here

meet "bella," the newest addition to the rimbo fam!  she is super cute.  the girls love her...well i should say that kylee loves her (a little too much, if that is possible), and alaina loves her from afar.  kylee is slightly overbearing...can you imagine:)  alaina on the other hand is either on the couch or sitting on the fire place with her feet pulled up.  she just tells bella how cute she is from across the room.  if bella is on the floor and starts coming towards her alaina just stands there and screams.  poor dog.  i hope she can survive in this house.  i am already in love....and alan thinks she's pretty darn cute too.  it feels nice to have a special four legged friend again!

hatched

we have been watching and waiting for these little birdies to arrive.  actually, we noticed only a few weeks ago that there was a nest in our tree (in the backyard.)  i tried taking pictures of the eggs last week, but didn't get close enough.  however, tonight, while grilling dinner:) i decided to take a chair over to the tree to have a look...and this is what i found.  three baby birds....if that is what you want to call them right now.  they look pretty gross.  when i first stood up on the chair i was only expecting to see a few blue eggs....not a "freaky looking bug eyed thing" (there eyes are still closed).  kylee is so excited.  i guess her preschool teacher just had baby birds at her house a few weeks ago.  the class had a great time naming them...so that is what we will be doing the next few days.  my vote, "huey, dewey and louie."  and yes, i know they are not ducks:)

happy memorial day

this is how i am feeling right about now.  though slightly better than saturday!  i haven't posted in a while and probably wouldn't have for a little while longer, but i am stuck in the house.  getting ready for the gym saturday morning, i picked up alaina while standing up and completely messed up my back.  i cannot believe how much i take my back for granted. i really have felt like a little old lady this weekend...all hunched over, very slow to move and in pain.  i have to say that as the day goes on and after bouts of stretching, and magnets taped to my back it feels better...but it's still slow going.  i am just praying that it will heal quickly because on thursday we have a new addition joining our family.  baby bella as the girls call her is coming on thrusday and i will definitely need my back to be somewhat functioning.  so please pray for healing.  

as for the girls, they are doing good.  kylee's last day of school is tomorrow....then we begin summer activities.  daily bouts at the pool (we'll see), dance class and vacation bible school.  i anxious to see how she likes dance class.  she wasn't too thrilled about the leotard....she actually started crying in the store.  lainey on the other hand thinks they are great and wants one too.....she says that she wants "a tard too!"  she may be in dance class by the time she is three...even though the poor thing has very little rhythm (sorry sweetie, but it's true.)  they both growing up way too fast.  kylee wants to marry every boy she see's (lets just say the apple didn't fall too far from the tree...this topic will take another post) and alaina is talking and acting like a three year old.   stop!  slow down girls!

well, i hope everyone else is mobile this memorial day.  have fun...stay dry:)

"alaina bit me"

"alaina bit me and it really hurt!"  i am actually quoting from "charlie that hurt" on youtube...heck maybe that is where she learned it!  the girls absolutely love that clip.  they think it is hilarious.  i love it because i love british accents.  tonight the girls were fighting over something and kylee was pushing her way past alaina and alaina got mad and latched on!  and i mean LATCHED on!  i don't think kylee thought that was so funny.  what is happening to my sweet, innocent little alaina jean?  it was just a few days ago she slapped me in the face after she had gotten in trouble.  she is really testing the waters right now.  a lot earlier than kylee did, but kylee didn't have a big sister to watch and learn from:)  all in all everyone is okay...after time out, apologies and hugs!  i think we just may be entering rougher waters with the little one....fun!

friends

little friends are so fun to have. kylee and alaina have sweet sam and "aggix" (alex). today sam and alex were able to come over and play with us. kylee, the wonderful take charge girl was directing traffic....from one activity to the next (i couldn't even keep up with her) she was a wonderful little hostess/entertainer. lainey on the other hand had a lesson in sharing. whenever she goes over to their house she typically doesn't have a problem, but in her own enviroment it was a bit of a struggle. walking around hoarding everything that was hers...."lainey no share." when alex would pick up something, alaina of course would imediately want that exact same thing. when i told her that she had to share and that it was okay if alex was playing with it she would start this uncontrolable, so sad, cannot breath sobbing. i couldn't help but laugh the first time she did it...it really was pathetic. luckily everything ended on a happy note. it is so funny to see little ones interact with each other.

tooth fairy

it looks like the tooth fairy will be visiting our house tonight!  what's the going rate these days?our tooth fairy is on a tight budget so we'll see:)  yep, kylee lost her very first tooth.  she was amazing.  it's been loose for a few weeks now, but yesterday i could tell that it would be coming soon.  yesterday, i noticed that it bled a little when she wiggled it.  it totally grossed me out!  and after telling her so that just gave her more initiative to wiggle, wiggle, wiggle!  so at lunch today i told her that she should try wiggling it with a wash cloth like i used to do when i was loosing teeth.  she thought that was a great idea...and even better if she could get it out before dad got home.  so for a half and hour or so she wiggled and twisted and pulled when finally it just came out.  what a sport.  i seriously couldn't watch.  why is it that i don't remember it being so gross when i was doing it to myself as a kid, but seeing that tooth just hanging there gave me the heeby jeebies?  i am glad it's over.  now on to the next tooth...the one right next to it is loose too.  we'll see how long that one takes!  way to go kylee.  i am so proud of you.  you were determined and so brave.  you are a rock star!!!!  (i still can't believe that you are even old enough to loose teeth....what the heck?)

nelson

this picture really reminded me how small the girls really are.....not just in size!  they seem to grow up so fast and each day i expect so much from them.  i need to remember that they are this small only once!  i need to take a step back, slow down, take a breath and savior the moment.  

today the girls and i went on an "adventure."  i knew that the weather was supposed to be amazing today so i wanted to seize it (knowing that is may snow this weekend...on easter!)  i have lived in kansas my whole life and i can't remember if i have ever been to the nelson atkin's art museum.  is that sad?  so i thought it might be fun to go and run around outside, have a picnic and admire a few pieces of artwork.  it was so fun even thought it was so muddy!  lainey kept falling...her knees were soaked.  i told kylee that i would bring her back, just her and i, and we would actually go inside and look around.  i wasn't sure how lainey would have handled that. i love days like these with my girls.  it's even better with an ice cream cone for the ride home:)

"fire marshall bill" and her sister!

"mom, we're hungry.....will you stop taking pictures and feed us????"

::2::

how beautiful you are!  how lucky we are to have been blessed by that beauty inside and out for the last two years.  every day you make us laugh...whether it be the look on your face, something you say, or your crazy hair!!!  i honestly didn't know how i would be able to love another child as much as your sister, but it is amazing the capacity for love God has given us. did that make sense?  you are changing everyday.  you already count to 16 and say your abc's...you practically repeat everything anyone says.  you blow me away.  baby girl we love you so much. you have brought so much added joy and excitement to our lives.  i am always so speechless when i try to write something special...probably because there are too many things to write about.  but baby, know this, we love you more than you will ever know.  i hope you had a great day....even if you weren't feeling yourself.  happy birthday sweetheart!!!!!

sicky poo

nice hair!  bed head after taking a three hour nap (which is not like her).  for the last three days this poor kid has had a fever.  it reached 104.3 degrees twice.  we took her to the doctor yesterday and she was tested for flu..negative, strep throat...negative, ear infection...negative, pneumonia...negative.  than what else could be causing this ongoing fever?  possibly a bladder infection.  and since we won't know anything for sure until next week (when they get her test results back) i requested we start some sort of antibiotic.  i didn't want my poor baby to have a fever all weekend...that couldn't be good for her, nor giving her motrin and tylenol for so long. 

while she was taking her nap today i frosted her birthday cupcakes..."zoe" from sesame street.  (i'll post a picture tomorrow.)  after finishing i turned around to find her standing there drinking her juice with a goofy smile on her face.  how long had she been standing there?  she is so darn quiet!  i could tell that her fever had broken so i decided we'd recheck her temp and take some pictures.  she is just too much for words.

in the midst of obviously feeling like crap her sweet funny personality was still able to shine through her fabulous smile!!!  i love you lou.  i hope you continue to feel better.  mommy hates to see you sick.  we'll have a good time at your party tomorrow.

:sad face:

if this isn't a sad face i don't know what is.  for many of you who know our sweet girl know that she has this awful chronic cough.  she has had it for more than two years, but now it is followed by a lovely "snort."  so today we spent the afternoon in the allergists office.  we had a difficult time getting through the skin test.  it didn't hurt, i just think the whole idea...and not being able to see what was happening freaked her out.  i do think she thought having x-rays were pretty cool...didn't have twist her arm to do that.  but then came the blood work.  what fun it was...poor baby.  we made a special trip to target for a special treat.....a new stuffed friend.  

it turns out she has a sinus infection that she has probably had for several years because of allergies.  the test also showed that she is allergic to a few types of trees, cats, dust and cockroaches.....yes, cockroaches!!!  i have never heard of that.  it must be the over exposure she has had at our house.....yeah, that must be it.  we'll see how she does in a month after taking all of her new medications.  i'm just glad the day is now over.  i know she is too!

"five"

today you turned five....wow!  where has the time gone.  five years ago on a saturday morning at 9:30am you came into this world, and what a blessing it has been.  these last few years have been challenging for all of us.  you are really discovering yourself and your feelings/emotions.  you are beautiful inside and out.  your strength will carry you far, your sensitivity will allow to love deeper, and your intuitive side will make you wiser.  sweet girl we love you so much.  we hope you have a fabulous birthday!  i also hope you have a good time at your birthday party...mommy is a little nervous to have a house full of five year olds (i've never done this before.)  knowing you, you will probably take charge and run the show!

"smooshed" cake

preparing for kylee's birthday party tomorrow, i spent almost three hours on this cake.  (thank you grama for the wonderful chocolate frosting recipe.)  i think it turned out pretty cute.  but this evening when i went to pull something of the top shelf of my cupboard.....my hand mixer fell smack into the middle of the darn thing....

.....this is what it looks like know.  WHAM!  i am so darn mad, but all i can do is laugh.  that is after saying a few curse words (the kids were in bed.)  so tomorrow a the party it looks like the kids are going to enjoy smooshed cake.  sorry kylee!

great fun

i just had to write a quick update to say that yes, we are still alive....barely!  i am not kidding when i say that we have had just about every kind of illness pass through our house.  so no pictures this time.  they wouldn't be very pretty.  i cannot wait for spring!!!!!

snow

just wanting to wish everyone a very merry christmas. in just two days santa will be making his appearance and we will celebrate the most important birthday of the year....our Lord. the last four years, we've been torn about whether or not to make a big deal about santa claus. we didn't want all the emphasis on him, we wanted it on jesus. however, last year i watched for the first time the "polar express." it made me cry and it made me think. i know the true reason for this season and want to celebrate it as such, but there is something about being a kid and believing in santa claus (i didn't want the kids to miss out on). it is magical, it is mysterious....ya know, isn't believing in jesus? you can't see him, he knows when you've been good or bad, except he is always with you. he can forgive. his gifts....eternal. his love....endless. awesome!

so back to the "polar express," tonight, i want to start a new tradition. we're going to have movie night...watch the "polar express" accompanied by hot chocolate. she probably won't believe in santa clause much longer. i just pray that she believes in jesus forever!

i really do hope you all have a wonderful time celebrating the birth of jesus, opening gifts with the kids and spending priceless time with loved ones. merry christmas!

on a roll

okay....what is it now three posts in two weeks? most of you probably haven't noticed because you've stopped checking:) i don't blame you. but i am back, hopefully a little more consistently. i had to post something that kylee said this afternoon. it really made me laugh. we were in the car just her and i and she piped up and said,
k: "mom, when you have a baby in your belly you can't eat."
m: (i asked curiously) "why not?"
k: "because the baby will get food all over it!"
m: "really?"
k: "yeah, it would get all messy."
i then went on to explain that the baby wouldn't get messy, that the baby is in a special sack....and the stomach was a separate sack where all the food goes. with that she was done. it amazes me how their minds work. i mean really, i can see how she could think what she did. sweet girl!!!!! (and no, for any of you who are curious after this conversation, i am not pregnant!)
look at this crazy girl. it takes a lot of work to get a smile that big! man, i love me girls!!!!!