New Bag?

Are you in the market for a new bag / purse / beach bag / wallet / key ring/ diaper bag?? If so, then you MUST visit Dani Bags Boutique. I had the privilege to take a few pictures for her new website that she is launching. I couldn't decide which one was my favorite--I wanted them all. Here are just a FEW of my favs. And, they are such good quality and awesome designs. She is extremely talented. Take a peek--you'll be hooked.

Infatuation

Elli: "Mom, can I have some tape?"
Mom: "Ummm, what are you going to do with tape?"

I say this, b/c a time not so long ago, her asking for tape ended up in Thys' mouth and eyes being taped shut, and a very distraught mommy trying to rip tape off of Thys' eyebrows and eyelashes.

Elli: "I just NEED it....PLEASE!!!"
Mom: "You aren't going to tape any one's mouth or eyes again, are you?"
Elli: "No, I am not going to do anything naughty with it...I PROMISE!!"

Reluctantly, I gave in....wondering who's eyebrows or lashes were going to get ripped of this day.

Minutes later, I go upstairs sure that I am going to find some sort of act of defiance being performed...instead, I find a little girl gazing into the eyes of Troy, and the other High School Musical cast. Sitting on her top bunk, she had taped this poster to her wall right by her pillow. I had to take a picture, b/c of my own "Teen Beat" and "Tiger Beat" memories. Although, I think I was more like 13, not 5. Maybe it is the hormones in milk now a days, that are making our kids mature earlier.....

Choose Life

More than three million unintended pregnancies occur every year in the United States.

Since 1973, there have been over 42,000,000 abortions in the United States - on average, that's 1,400,000 babies every year, 27,000 babies every week, 3,800 babies every day, 160 babies every hour, 3 babies every minute, 1 baby every 20 seconds.

Abortion is the #1 cause of death annually in the United States - more than heart disease and cancer deaths combined. More than stroke, lung disease, accidents, pneumonia, suicide, diabetes, kidney disease, and HIV combined. More than 88 times the number of homicides.

Each year, almost 1 million teenage women become pregnant

Nearly 4 in 10 teen pregnancies end in abortion

49% of pregnancies in America are unintended; half of those are terminated by abortion

24.5% of conceived children are aborted.

The majority of abortions are women between the ages of 20 and 24

80% of the women having abortions are single

Most abortions are performed in the first eights weeks of the pregnancy

More than half of all abortions are Caucasian women

This being Right To Life Sunday, lets remember all of God's precious "masterpieces", that have never gotten to show this world what God had planned for them.

Randomness

My kids talk a lot!! I was in the car this morning, contemplating running the car off the road. First, I get the:
"Can we listen to kids music?"
Which to me, raises my blood pressure just hearing those words--why do all kids CD's have to be so "shrilly"?
Then, after putting on the music, I get (from a 2 year old):
"Up mommy, up!!"--said in a shrill double the octave of the music. She wants the music LOUDER!!
After the mommy turns it up to make the 2 year old happy I get the boy thinking he needs to ask me every question about the rules of the road. He thinks he knows all the rules, and ends each statement with,
"Right mommy?"
I'm not answering him, b/c as noted earlier the music is LOUD to satisfy the 2 year old, who is continuing to yell.
"Up mommy, up"--no, we have never had her hearing checked, but maybe we should.
Then the boy decides that he is going to cry, b/c he feels neglected that the mommy is not applauding his knowledge of the road rules, and bursts into a full blown crying fit, equipped with:
"You never listen to me, you only like to listen to girls!!"
I say,
"I'm sorry, I can't hear you. I am not ignoring you, I just can't hear you over the LOUD music".
All this said still over the 2 year old yelling,
"Up mommy, up."
The boy obviously didn't hear my apology, because he continues to cry and blame my deafness on the fact that I DO NOT like boys, only girls.
I turn the music down, much to the protest of the 2 year old, only to begin a conversation that was so random, it caused to me take out a receipt from my purse and write down all of the subjects my kids covered in a 10 mile stretch on the highway:
The subjects were as follows: (remember--all this in 10 minutes)

• Josie does not want to be buried when she dies, b/c then she won't be able to get out when Jesus comes again.
• Josie reminds Thys that when she was younger, she liked to pick up bugs out of the slider and eat them. (Yes, this is true)
• Thys proceeds to tell Josie that coyotes never sleep--they are awake all the time hunting their prey---random.
• Thys takes his shoes off and decides to let everyone know that there is little black "flakes" between his toes, and they are meant to be there, so that he has something to play with in the car when he gets bored.
• Thys and Josie discuss the fact that when it snows, there should not be bits of grass poking up through the snow, b/c then it means it hasn't snowed enough yet--yes, very confusing!
• Josie wonders why we have to pass big trucks all the time. (Yes, I admit that I tend to have a lead foot).
• Thys and Josie ask me why I always have to drink coffee in the car. (I didn't tell them that they are to blame for this one--I need the energy only coffee can give).
• Both ask why we need a new grocery store in Dorr. (Yes, we are finally getting a grocery store with more than 5 aisles, and it is very exciting buzz).

I stopped listening and writing after this point, b/c again the 2 year old must have gotten sick of hearing the babble of them as well, b/c from behind my head I hear:

"Up mommy, up".

Are they ever quiet?

Sneak Peek For Nicole

This post is for Nicole. I got to take pics of her beautiful clan this morning. I felt like I already knew them, even though I have never met them in person before. I frequent Nicole's blog a lot. She is very whitty, and a joy to read. Very real about "mom-life". It's funny how you never know who is lingering on your blog!!--Scary too in a way!

The fourth and final challenge. Ahhh...the challenge of potty training. Fourth time around, and it isn't any easier. Tessa constantly wants her diaper off, and I am constantly trying to put it back on her. I am not ready. She wants to sit on the potty any minute she can get--and then she just sits...and sits...and sits. She cannot sit alone. She is a girl, by the way. She needs to chat. So there we all sit... on the bathroom floor waiting for her to "finish". She wants us all to be quiet so that we can hear the potty hitting the water, and anytime we make a little noise we get the "shhhh" from her (equipt with the whole index finger over the lip and the long drawn out shussshing). All 4 of us (everyone but Tessa) has the rolling of the eyes down to a science. The bathroom is not considered a "warm and cozy" room to hang out in according to me. How does a 2 year old persuade 4 other people (one who happens to be 30-something) to sit in a bathroom for the better part of their day? I find myself lying to the other kids that "mommy hears the phone ringing, stay here with Tessa while I go grab it", just so that I can get out of this "prison". If we are not in the room I hear --"MOMMMMMMM, MOMMMMMM ". She looks so innocent and cute in this picture, but don't let her fool you--she is the bathroom nazi. It will be done soon enought, right?

2007 Mix

Baby Boom!

I love the tatoo on her daughters hand.

My friends are in a baby boom again. This time, I am not a joiner. And, I am happy to say, I can look at a pregnant belly now and not have any bit of a tinge of jealousy. Contentment--ahhh, how good it feels!! This mommy, a good friend of mine, will be joining the "4th Child" Club too. Yahoo!!

Family Photos

My family did the family picture thing this Saturday. A special thank you to my neighbor, and an awesome photographer by the way, who took the large group shot of all of us, and Dean and I's family. My mom figured since there will be no more grandkids coming along (cross your fingers that modern medicine works!!), it would be a good time to have a family picture taken. Even though the weather was frigid, the kids did wonderful, and we are so glad that we got them done.

Someday, when I get older....

Tessa eyeing her cousins beautiful wings.

One of my beautiful princess'

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas Opa and Oma--We MISS you this year!!

Don't take away my Christmas

So, we had a pretty rough night last night, or early morning. About 5am, our power went out due to strong winds. Our whole family is so used to having white noise going during the night (fans, dehumidifiers), that the silence of the morning was too much for any of us to sleep. So, at 5am the kids were talking, getting up to look outside, acting like it was morning, according to Dean and I, "acting like morons." Needless to say, we are all a bit tired. Dean and I are a bit "touchy" with eachother and the kids, the kids are overly emotional about EVERYTHING, and everyone needs a nap. Dean gets very crabby if he doesn't get his Sunday afternoon nap, and I say that with his approval. So, as the kids were finishing lunch this afternoon, he looked at them, and in full seriousness said, "If you guys DON'T take a nap today, there WILL BE NO CHRISTMAS." My eyes popped out of my head--WOW---who threatens their kids with taking away their Christmas? Those are pretty big threats that he'll have to run by Jesus first I'm sure. So to you all, here is hoping that the Vink kids take a nap today, otherwise Jesus may just cancel Christmas this year. Someone is a total bah-humbug!!

Who's The Boss

So, we're all in the car this morning bringing Elli to school. On the way home, here is how the conversation went:

Josie: "Mom, can you marry your brother?"
Mom: "Nope"
Josie: "Well, then who am I going to marry when I get older?"
Mom: " I don't know yet honey--we'll have to wait and see."
Josie: "Well, all I know is that I WILL be the boss when I get married!! And I WILL eat burritos"--(totally random)

You go girl!!!

We Got Dumped On

We finally got dumped on. Last night we had a ton of snow come down. The kids were begging to go sledding this afternoon. Why is it that it takes you 20 minutes or so to get them all dressed in their snow gear, and then after 10 minutes outside, they want to come in already? Frustrating. Is it wrong to lock your kids out of the house for a few more minutes, just so that you feel like it was worth your time to put all those clothes on?

Playing in the snow!

Yes, I had a snowball in my face after this shot!

My Failed Attempt

My son is a whiner. Whining to me is like running your fingernails down a chalkboard. It gets my blood boiling and sends evil shivers down my spine. I turn into an evil mom whenever I hear it. I would much rather be locked in a room with a screaming baby than in a room with a whining child. Looking back on video of Thys, he seems to have always been a whiner. I don't know why all of a sudden the last few weeks it has irritated me so much. Simply telling him to stop whining wasn't helping. I felt like a broken record, telling him up to 50 times a day to quit whining and use a "normal" voice. He got to the point where he wouldn't even talk in a "normal" voice anymore, just whine whatever he needed. So, I thought I would try the reward approach to parenting. I am so not against bribbing or giving candy for good behavior--my philosophy is, "If it gets me through the day, I am all about it". So off we went to the Dollar Store to get the supplies we needed to start the "Reward Program". The insentive was--if he made it through the day without whining, he got to put a sticker on that day. I would give him 3 warnings throughout the day, but no more. If he exceeded his 3 warnings, he lost the sticker for that day. If he filled an entire week with stickers, then he gets to go to the Dollar Store and pick anything out that he wants. (I lose $1.00---he gains the best present in the world according to him). Well, as you can see, the first week went great. The 2nd week--not so good, the 3rd week--horrible, and now we are on the 4th week and so far things aren't looking so good. The whining has resumed, the stickers are a thing of the past, and not so fun anymore, the cheering from the siblings is long forgotten----oh the failures we as parents have to overcome.

Happy 2nd Birthday Tessa

My baby turned 2 yesterday. I love the fact that I am FINALLY able to do most things now--get out of the house, skip naps if need be....but, I am also a little sad that her "babyhood" is flying by. I absolutley love this age, and would freeze her right now if I could. But I know I can't, and am excited to see all that God has planned for her life as she grows. She is such a delight to us. She definately is the "Princess" of the family, and I am sure (I know) she gets away with everything she shouldn't just because she is the youngest. She is the nightly entertainment at the dinner table, with all of her funny faces she has to show us. She is a walking tape recorder, as I hear daily my own words come out of her mouth. She definately has been a blessing to our family, and I pray God allows us many more years with her.



Proof of the terrible 2's. Yesterday I put her down for her nap. She has always been the easiest one of my kids to put down. You lay her down and she just goes right to sleep--no fussing or crying. And, she sleeps 3 hours--no hands down. Well, yesterday (on her 2nd birthday) she decided to refuse a nap--the FIRST time she has ever done this. So, I let her talk to herself for 2 hours, and then decided that because it was her birthday, I would just let her skip a nap today--which if she hadn't gone to sleep yet after 2 hours of talking to herself, she wasn't going to do it. So I went up to her room to get her, and this is what I found. A completely naked girl who had thrown everything out of her crib. This is the first time she has even attempted to do this--weird that she decided to choose her 2nd birthday to start. And yes, it happened again this afternoon. Completely buck naked!

New boots, New boots, I can't believe my eyes...

$1 to whoever can guess which kid DIDN'T get new boots this year? Hint.....it's all in the faces!! The sacrifices that middle children have to make.

Vink Christmas Tree

We went to a local Christmas tree farm and picked out the 2007 tree. I always fight for the artificial ones, but for some reason, Dean always seems to win out every year. Although, he isn't the one picking needles out of 8 tiny feet all day, or listening to shrieks from 4 high pitched voices as one spears them in the heel, or picking up needles for the next 10 months, just in time to pick out another tree and start all over. For some reason he feels that our house "smells" better with a real tree--like he is saying our house stinks!! The Boys

The Girls--minus mommy!
My Clan.

The pre-cut tree!

The finished product!