Day 300: Pumpkin Carving

We slacked on getting pumpkins this year, and we didn't make it to the pumpkin patch this year either. A little bummed. It was like a yearly tradition. Oh, well...maybe next year. We just got pumpkins for Chelsea & Kwintyn since they are the ones who showed any interest in pumpkins this year. Chelsea is going to be Maleficent, and Kwin is Bob, the gas guy, and Kameron is wearing his gas mask again this year. Maggie & Sarge wanted to get in on the pumpkin fun, too.

P.S. 65 days left of this picture project, and to the end of the year!!!

                                            Pumpkins!!

Day 299: Oh, Da..da..da......DEER!!!!

Kwintyn has a new friend. Hahaha Frank brought this deer home from a job he was working at. The home owners were going to throw it away, so he decided he would bring it home. Why?! I haven't a clue. We don't need a deer decoy. But he's been having fun with it....hahahaha! He scared Keagan with it, and that was pretty funny. The dogs aren't to fond of the deer either. LOL What the hell do we do with this damn deer?!

                                Hello, Deer.

Day 298: Ah.....Poop!!!

Forgot my pic of the day, so I have this instead.

Day 297: Fall Family Photos

Well it's that time of the year, time for fall family pics. This never goes well....So this is what we ended up with. Frank & I, actually got a few pics of us together for once. That was nice. At least Kwintyn didn't cry this year, although  I now expect that crying photo of him because he has done it for the past few years. LOL

Fall Family photos

Day 296: Date Night

Momma & Daddy get a night away from the kids tonight!!! :D Grandma is coming over & spending the night, so that Frank & I can go to The Lacs concert. We had a blast!!

Kid Free Night

                                             The Lacs & I

                                             Frank & The Lacs

                                         We got to meet Bubba Sparxxx too!!!

Day 295: Training Day

Kyle starts training for his first job today. I hope he brings home some tacos. :D

Day 294: Dirt, Trucks, & Leaves

Played outside today, was a decent day. Kwintyn loves to play with dirt, mud, trucks, & leaves. He is all boy.

                                                Little Country Boy

Day 293: Bob, The Gas Guy.

Hey, it's Bob, Bob the gas guy. That is what Kwintyn is being for Halloween. He came up with his costume all by himself. He wanted to be a gas guy. He's obsessed with gas stations & propane tankns, and such. Well I had an ugly blue snow suit that was given to me, but it was to big, so I just put it away, thinking I could save it, or get rid of later. Well I am glad that I saved it, because it is his costume. We just added some patches that we found from a resale shop. We found a name patch that read, Bob, and hence Bob, the gas guy was born. Hahaha!!

                                                 Bob, the gas guy.

Day 292: Chili & Cornbread...and Ah, shit!

It's been chilly so I made chili, and corn bread for dinner. Frank went to pick up Keagan from football practice, and got hit!! A high school girl backed her car in to his. She was parked in the grass, and not paying attention. He roach did not let her leave to go file a police report because she was still in practice. Frank called the police, but they were on a shift change, so it would have been a hour or so before they showed up on scene, so they told him to go to the police station to make a report, which he did. Cops are going out to the girls house tonight, and Frank has a few phone calls to make tomorrow.

Chili

Day 291: Pumpkin!!

Pumpkin roll........Mmmmmmmmm!!!!!

Day 290: Baby!!

Today was cousin Jaci's baby shower! I am so super excited for them! This is Jaci's first baby, and it's a girl!! Kyle had a meeting at his job today & ordered his uniform! He will be training soon, and then bringing in a pay check. Crazy!

Baby Shower!!

Day 289: Relaxing Saturday

Didn't do much, cleaned a little, and went shopping. Was a lazy Saturday, but was needed. Kwintyn turned his cereal box in to a car ramp. he got a free Lego car in the cereal box too. He thought that was soo cool!

                                         My car ramp

Day 288: TGIF!!!

Keagan didn't have practice today, so he passed the hell out! LOL Football is whooping his butt. Kyle had to do some paper work online for his new job! Kameron had his first school dance today. I didn't get a picture due to the embarrassment reason's. Although I should have. haha! Kam & Keagan stayed at a friends as well, so it was a quite Friday.

                                           TGIF!!

Day 287: Last Home Game

Keagan's last home game was today. His next game is his last, and it's away so I will not be going to that one. It's in Alpena, so it's a drive. They lost this game, and haven't done so well with their last games either. But I am just glad he is having fun.

                        Last home game....we lost.

Day 286: You're Hired!

Kyle filled out an application for a job a while back, well he had an interview on Sunday, and they said they would get back with him. Well, today they called and said he's hired, but he just has to get some paper work in before he starts. Kyle's got a job!!! Holy Crap!! LOL Chelsea still isn't feeling well today. I gave her the laxative that the Dr's gave us last night, but she still hasn't gotten rid of all that poo yet! If she doesn't expel it soon, she will have to have an enema....ugh!! She isn't looking to great, she's pale, and her belly hurts again. It was feeling better earlier. Think she is going to miss school again tomorrow, and another trip to the Dr's. :( She's just miserable, and it makes me feel horrible to see her in pain. I went back to the chiro & found out a lot about myself. I have  a mild case of scoliosis, and my neck is curving the wrong way, and it has been that ways for a bout 20 years, and the scoliosis I had since I was a kid. Who knew?! And I went to a chiro when I was pregnant with Chelsea, and had no clue about any of this. This Doc is good!! I am very impressed. :D

                                         Way to go, Kyle!!

Day 285: Tummy Pains

Chelsea hasn't been feeling well all week. Her belly has been bothering her. I took her to the walk-in clinic yesterday since I couldn't get in to her Pedi. I hate going to the walk-in, they just are not through enough. She started getting worse later in the day, and she starred puking. I thought she could have appendicitis so I took her up to the E.R. at 11:40, we got home a little after 1am. She is bound up, aka constipated really bad. Thankful it wasn't appendicitis. She missed the whole week on school so far. My poor girl. :(

                                      Tummy pains :(

Day 284: Pain In The Neck

Oh this pain in my neck is horrid! I broke down today & went to the Chiropractor today. My spine is not curved as it should be, and it is curving in a different direction. Said arthritis would happen if I didn't get it taken care of. I feel a bit better after my adjustment, but I am still sore & stiff, but feeling much better. And I was doing everything wrong, I was using heat, I should have been icing it....UGH! I go back in a few days. Chelsea stayed home from school today, she is having some tummy issues. Hopefully she will feel better soon. We stopped at our good friend, Mark's house to kill some time while waiting to pick Keagan up from practice. He showed us his toy, a drone, and that thing is pretty darn cool! I want one! Kwintyn seemed to like it, too.

                                                Neck pain.

Day 283: Leaves!!!

Keagan is raking the yard for some cash, and Kwintyn thinks it's a better idea to play in the pile of leaves. Hahaha We have a lot of leavers to rake up, but there are still a lot of leaves on the tree. It's so, so pretty though! Love this time of the year!

Note: My past few days have been late, but my neck has been killing me the past week, and has gotten worse these past few days & it hurts my neck to write. So I have been slacking. :(

Day 282: Pawty!!!

Today was Chelsea's birthday party. Her birthday was last week, but I pushed her party off for another week. It turned out good. I thought more people would come, but as usual not a lot came. Her friends did come and that is all that really mattered in her eyes. LOL Just bums me out a little. Oh well. We had so much fun, and the party was a hit. I get told I throw some pretty good birthday parties. :D Chelsea picked a dog theme for her party this year, so I went to Pinterest for some idea's & made a few of my own things, too. I made the signs for the food, and the adoption certificates. We had a puppy adoption center, and doggie bags, too. The kids really giggled over the toilet water, and was "really good". Hahaha Was a success!!! She got some great gifts, and some cash, too. Now she has ideas of shopping in her future.

                                 Doggone Good time!!!

Day 281: Before & After

What a difference!! Frank & Kwin got haircuts today. They looked a like before, and they look alike after. LOL They both look so different!! Especially Kwintyn, as he has never had his hair cut this short before. He looks so grown up now. I had to save a piece of his long, soft, baby fine strand that got cut off. Haha. But Oh my what a difference!! He looks like a big boy!!

                                      Before & After Haircuts

Day 280: Snug As A Bug In A Rug

Chelsea got another gift in the mail!!! She was so excited to see another one. Her Aunt Sam sure loves her a lot! :) She got a Frozen comforter for her bed. She did need a new bed set, and so now we just need new sheets. She HAD to sleep with it right away.

                                           Snuggle

Day 279: Seasonal Road

On the way to pick up Keagan from football practice. Fall colors are almost at peak. It looks so beauty full!!!!

Day 278: Special Delivery!!

Chelsea got a package in the mail today. She was so excited to open it. Her Aunt Sam had sent her a birthday gift. She got a Frozen mirror with some lip gloss, and she loves it!

                              Kisses & Hugs, Aunt Sam & Seth!

Day 277: Keep Calm

Starting to freak like I always do, as I have nothing for Chelsea's party yet. Going to order her cake tomorrow, and then get a list together of the things I need to buy. Money is what is setting me back, but what's new?! So Friday is going to be a BUSY day!! I know what I want to do. I'm not going over board on decorations this year. I want to do a puppy adoption center, face painting, and fun food stuff.  I figure the kids can just run free & play. And of course there will be doggy bags! :D

                     Keep calm and party plan on.....

Day 276: Happy Birthday Chelsea!!!

 I just can't believe my baby girl is 9. She truly is my wish come true, I really did wish for a daughter. After 3 boys I wanted a girl so bad. Sure boys are nice, but I always wanted a daughter.  When I was younger I wanted more girls than boys, I got the total opposite, and I am thankful for that! Girls are full of attitude, sass, pickiness. It's sure been different raising her than the boys. Potty training was Hell with her!! They say girls are easier, it's a lie! LOL!!! I love my boys, but a mother & daughter just have a different bond. She has had the royal treatment since we brought her home. She knows how to work you, even her brothers. She has them by their finger too. Hahaha I can remember when she was 3 weeks old, and she came down with a virus. They thought she had spinal meningitis, and was transferred to a bigger hospital. Was such a scary thing to go through. I had the worst thoughts going, and was questioning why God would give me a beautiful daughter, and then want to take her away. I was so scared because she was so little. She stayed 3 days in the hospital, and they say it was just a virus. Not sure what kind, but it sure was scary. While she was there we had Doctors coming in, and they had said that some other Dr's & nurses had said that there was a beautiful baby girl in the ward & that everyone should go see her because she is just so beautiful! She was always a beautiful baby, she is way prettier than I could ever imagine she would be! I often think she can't be mine, she's just to pretty!

My biggest baby, weighing a whopping 8pds 14oz. came a week early, after a trail of spicy foods & walking, tacos' must have worked. ;) She came into the world fast, and we missed video taping her birth due to this reason, and the fact that Dad was slacking, and fell asleep. It was a total shock that "It's a Girl!!!" We did not know the gender, as I thought she was a boy. Her daddy got to name her after winning the bet that it's a girl. We had made a bet that if she was a boy, I got to name her, a girl, Frank got to name her. Well. He won. LOL But her did let me pick her middle name.....Chelsea Elizabeth, the most perfect name for our baby girl! She is so petite now, and has just grown so much. She has taught me more than I could ever imagine, and she continues to teach me more & more as time goes by. She's gonna make a difference. Some way. Some how. She's my special girl.

                      Happy Birthday 9th Chelsea!!

                             We had birthday donuts!!

9, must be rough, as she has scratches on her face, 24 hours ago she was scratch free! ;)

Day 275: Last Day Of Being Eight!!

Today is Chelsea's last day of being 8 years old!!! Where has the time gone?! 

Day 274: October Is Selective Mutism Awareness Month

I knew this Summer when I found out that October was Selective Mutism month, that I wanted to spread awareness about it. I found it kinda funny that October is SM month, and Chelsea's birth month. Not many know what Selective Mutism is, or have even heard of it. I know I had not heard of it until I started to do my own research as to why my child is SO shy. Selective Mutism came up and I read about it. I knew something was off from her 2nd day at school, as she still had not spoken to the teachers. I just kinda brushed it off. A whole week went by, and I knew this was not normal, but the teachers said se would warm up, and I even went in to class with her & stayed. Nothing helped. Eventually a month went by, then 2, 3, 4,........then it was the end of the year, and still she had not spoken to a teacher. She entered early 5's that Fall, and the same pattern started all over again. This time we went and sought help. We got nowhere with that therapist, he totally dropped us like a hot potato. With no recommendations, so we tried reaching out to the school.  The school counselor was awesome! She got through to Chelsea, and really put her heart in to helping her. Sadly, she left to go to another school. So here we are today with no help, and frustrated as ever to what to do, or where to go. She did take a big step today, she used the phone today to call a friend!! She always wanted to talk on the phone, but she always clammed up when it got time to talk. So proud of her. She also said today that her friends wants her to try Girl's Scouts. If it has any potential to help her be social, I will do it. She knows she has to earn badges, and we told her that somethings you might have to talk to get that badge. It's worth a shot. Anything to get her to be more social. Her teacher called me today, and said she still has not spoken with him, I told him I knew that. But he did say that she is warming up, and she is a great student, and listens, and pays attention in class, but she is just a little behind. Chelsea has always has been just a little behind in school, and I believe it's all due to her SM. He said that she is not behind that bad, just a bit. He has also talked to other teacher & other people about selective mutism, and they had no idea what it was as well. They had thought it was Autism, a lot of people think it's autism. It isn't. Yes, some kids with autism do have selective mutism, but they don't go hand & hand.

Selective Mutism is an anxiety disorder. People with SM are perfectly capable of talking, and have no speech problems, they just have a hard time speaking in some settings. Most people with selective mutism do speak to people, mostly those whom are primarily close, or who live in the house hold, but this could be different for many. My daughter talks to me, her dad, and her brothers, and 1 other family member, anyone else she does not speak to. She does speak with her friends as well. It's a heartbreaking condition, and can be very frustrating. But not pushing to speak, and being supportive, and knowledgeable are what helps those with SM. I just hope my efforts get the message of selective mutism out there.

Break the Silence...Spread Information about Selective Mutism

Day 273: Home Game

Keagan had another home game today, so we went to that. It was raining, well it stopped when we got there but we chose to stay in the truck & watch his game. I actually got to watch him play!! He was running to go tackle! I loved it!! LOL We stopped at Tim Hortons on the way, I wanted a Caramel Apple Cider, those are SO freaking good!! I have had 3 this week. I love my coffee people, they know how to make my coffee, and they always hook us up. Lexi hooked us up with some free doughnuts today. Funny thing about Lexi is that I had no clue that she was Chelsea's friends, Mom. Found that out last year, so they might come to the party. She has to work, so we will see. She makes going to Horton's that much sweeter. :)

                          Love my Hortons girl

Day 272: A Nice Autumn Walk

Took a walk today with Frank & Kwintyn. None of the other kids wanted to go, they never want to go anymore. Although Kam did go on a bike ride. The colors are so beautiful! We need to get our fall family photos done soon. Kwintyn & I did some errands around town today, and we met Grandma, she wanted me to go with her to help with her appointment. I'm happy to see that my Mom is doing better, I hope she stays on this path, and gets a little healthier. My Aunt came up to see my Mom & how she is doing, so I know we will be meeting up with her soon. I still have to get my but on things regarding Chelsea's party. I have invites out, just have to go shopping for gifts & decorations. My mind has just been running overtime lately. But I gotta get stuff done!!! So that sis why we took a walk today, to take our mind off things, and to kinda relax. I have to say it worked. :)

                                          Autumn Walk