Losing a little friend :(

Our baby boy kitten, Mickey passed away yesterday morning. We got him and his sister Maddie from a free kitten giveway and just fell in love with them both. Mickey was the runt of the litter and much smaller than his sister was. His eyes were so huge that we nicknamed him buggy because they reminded us of a bug's eyes.

What a joy he was to have around :) The kids just adored him...especially Genin.

When we first brought him home, we wondered if he may have had some mental troubles because he didn't really do anyone except just sit there. We started out having to feed him through a syringe since he wouldn't eat at all. As the weeks went by, he started coming around more, but still seem to not have the mentality that his sister did, he didn't even meow! Once, one of the kids closed him into a kitchen cabinet...had I not been looking for him that night, I would have never found him because he doesn't make noise at all!

At his first vet appointment, the doctor informed us that he had a very bad heart murmur and this probably caused his size and may have caused issues with his mentality though he was still getting better as time went by. When we checked into getting him neutered, the doctor did worry that he wouldn't make it through the anesthesia. We had a choice to make on whether to not neuter him and have him spray all over the house or just let him know how much we loved him and get it done. We decided to get the neutering done and were thrilled when he woke up. Once out of his cage at home, he was breathing rather heavily...but soon calmed down and was back to normal..actually better than normal! He was jumping around and meowing! He would run to his dish for food, snuggle up on my lap every chance he got, stare out the window at the spring daffodils...sweet little Mickey bug! He even started to grow more during that time period! In the beginning there was such a difference in the siblings sizes

On Saturday night, he was laying on his favorite kitchen chair sleeping when we picked him up and closed him into the basement like we do every night before bed. The next morning, Genin came upstairs and told us that Mickey was acting strange...meowing like she was in pain and drooling. I told him to get him some water and take him to his bowl. He said that Mickey scratched him when he tried to pick him up (not like Mickey at all) When I went down, I noticed the slobber, very heavy breathing, and a wet tail end. I was so scared and immediately burst into tears. I left the room and my husband told me that Mickey went into the litter box and collapsed. He was still alive and breathing heavy. I didn't know what to do! The closest ER Vet was in Monroeville and I was worried we would never make it in time. At this point, all we could do was make him comfortable...I had Greg get him out of the litterbox and put him onto a soft blanket while I pet him and told him how much we loved him and wanted him to get better. I decided that my best bet was to give him some privacy and hope for the best. I prayed that if it was his time, that God would not let him suffer anymore....he took his place back in the corner of his litterbox and was gone within minutes. I kept trying to figure out what we could have done differently for him...he was only 7 months old. Unlike our other pets, Mickey had to be treated quite differently..almost taking on the care a baby does...so this was quite hard to deal with.

My husband assured me that Mickey had a wonderful life in the time he was with us...he was played with and loved by his birth sister Maddie and loved so much by his adopted family. Greg and Cameron buried him out by our daffodil patch..

Now whenever spring comes around and the flowers sprout...we will always remember the day that Mickey made his fresh start in heaven...maybe even happily pouncing among the daffodils....

Ohio Drivers...again!

Alright...what is it with Ohio drivers and why do I constantly have to bring up this topic?!

In PA, you always get stuck behind an Ohio driver in the passing lane on I-70. Do they seriously have no idea that the passing lane is for passing?! It is like when they get their licenses, they are taught that there is no difference in the 2 lanes. If they plan on driving at 25 mph on I-70, they do it in whichever lane they want. When we all go speeding past them in the regular driving lane, they don't even notice! I don't like to think negatively, but it is really hard to not yell "moron" at the top of my lungs (and not roll down the window before I do it!)

FYI Ohio Drivers: Drive at regular speed in the right lane only, pass in the left. If you fail to heed my warning, you will start a riot of overly agressive PA drivers with angry faces, loud screeching noises and horrible finger gestures!

Don't give yourself a dimwit reputation...or do you want that?!

Crunchy No-Fry Chicken

Made another recipe out of the RCB Cookbook last night. For anyone who didn't know, my son suggested that we cook our way through a cookbook just like on Julia & Julie. He just wanted to be able to say that he accomplished this in his life. So, we chose the Robert C. Byrd Band Cookbook which my dad bought me for Christmas this year (my youngest sister is in the band currently) We have made a few recipes so far...only 1 failed :( Last night's recipe was really tasty!

I have seen people make chicken coated in corn flakes before, but not with a kick like this! A keeper!!

3/4 cup finely crushed corn flakes
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp ground red pepper
4 skinless boneless chicken breasts
1/4 cup chicken stock (I used a can of chicken broth)

Heat the oven to 400F. Stir the corn flakes, garlic powder, black pepper and red pepper in a shallow medium bowl. Dip the chicken into the stock (or chicken broth) Coat with corn flake mixture (I did not use a bowl for the mix, I just put it into a large ziploc bag, threw in the chicken, closed it and shook it...this may also be how it got such a good spicy kick to it!) Place the chicken onto a baking sheet (I put it into 2 small glass casserole dishes so it could soak in its own juices) Bake for 20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

So good!!

5 Year Anniversary in Our Home :)

We are so excited to have been in our house for 5 years today. Coming from a great house in Clarksburg, WV to a brand new house in Washington, PA to where we are now...Centerville, PA.

Our home is everything we could have wished for...3 level house (14 rooms total), 6 car garages, 10 acres, pool, gorgeous landscaping, and very private!!


The picture below is from when we first moved in...we have since painted the outside trim lime green which has really brightenend up the house.



Since we have been in this home, we have put our heart and soul into it. In the first few months we were here, we added color to every white wall in the house except the foyer. The first floor: The Great Room was given Paprika and tan walls, white stayed in the vaulted glass foyer, sunny yellow in the dining room, cool blues in the den, lime green in the kitchen and white in the laundry room. I also designed new fireplaces in each living area (love how they turned out!) The kitchen had to be given a new faucet, dishwasher, and range hood. They left behind a wonderful double oven! After having one of these, I will never use a single again.

The second floor: The Master was given Palmetto green walls, Reiner and Brandis' room (which was Genin's at the time we moved in) was painted light blue with one wall of state maps, Kaplyn's room was painted lilac, and the kid's bath was painted cappucino.

The lower level: This area had to be finished. We painted the gameroom tangerine and added a custom pool table w/tangerine felt, 2 arcade games and 1 pinball machine. Cameron and Genin's room (just Cameron's room at the time we moved in) was painted lighter green with a sports theme, the bathroom is green with a beach theme and the discovery lab is primary colors..this room has computers and learning tools for education. The lower level foyer is tan and we just recently added schooldesks to a storage room for the kids to do homework when they get home from school.

Our fav areas are the pool...Pic 1: The Pool and hot tub.

Pic 2: Yard in Pool area beside the hot tub.

Pic 3: Yard to the right of the hot tub.

Pic 4: Patio of the Pool Area.

We have many birthday parties and get-togethers in this area every year. It is very relaxing during the spring/summer months. We string white lights along the fence every spring to give some wonderful mood lighting along with the tikis. In 2005, Greg and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary with a catered event in this area. We plan to do the same this July for our 15 year anniversary.

The front of the house landscaping...

Front Flower Garden :)

Between weeding and mulching, this takes me a while to do, but is totally worth it once it is finished and very fresh looking. Look forward to posting new photos once we get our yearly landscaping finished.

While in this house, we gave birth to 2 more sons, Reiner and Brandis and have a little girl on the way. This house is perfect for our expanding family. Though we have 5 bedrooms, the bedrooms are also large enough to put more than one child in. The yard is large enough for our kids and their friends to run around, the front hill is great for sleigh riding and the driveway is big enough to accomodate all of our guests cars for parties.

The only thing I would wish for is a warmer yearlong climate, but since I am in PA and am amongst cold winters, I will just enjoy what I have been blessed with. A gorgeous home filled to the gill with warmth from the love of a mom, dad and their 5 babies :)

More Things I Learned at the Grocery Store...

More things I learned on my recent trip to the grocery store...

1. 79 cents a lb for bananas!! Not even a monkey would pay that price!

2. Genin doesn't talk as much as Cameron on grocery trips, but when he does...it is strange..he told me if the store caught on fire, he would save me because I have a person inside of me!

3. I saw a woman older than me walk up to the bulk candy area and take 4 mini twix bars without paying...she is going to make the ripoff price of 15 cents each, even higher!!

4. No, thanks. Just because I sample the zuccini pancake doesn't mean that I am going to buy it...I just like taking samples and not buying anything...

5. Genin can make a pretty awesome throne out of diapers and toilet paper packages.

6. Many people like Throwback Pepsi...but I don't think it tastes nearly as good as the kind they make now so...throw it back!

7. Don't question a cashier about a price that an item was supposed to be..."She doesn't know anything about it...she just rings them through!!!!!"

8. I can't stand people who park in the stork spots and try really hard to push out a non-existent stomach to make it look as though they are pregnant...they are worse than the people who come up with a ridiculous looking fake limp and park in the handicap parking.

9. Genin accidentally rammed a cardboard display and there were 3 mini York Peppermint Patty wrappers under it...guess the candy thief made her way down that aisle as well.

10. We have a heck of an assembly line at home to put away groceries...3 months worth for a family of 7 brought in and put away in 15 minutes...boy are we good!!

The Top Ten Reasons I Love Uniontown Mall

Kaplyn and I visited Uniontown Mall yesterday and while there, I came up with the Top 10 Reasons I Love Uniontown Mall

1. JCPenney has an entrance right next to the bathroom.

2. Gamestop always has a quick bargain to satisfy any child's video game fix.

3. It is funny how many people in Uniontown are nuts over Auntie Anne's pretzels...there were at least 20 people in line!

4. Uniontown people are scrappers! There is always an argument in at least one store we go into...this time it was Claires.

5. Gene and Boots! (Need I say more)

6. Uniontown Mall always has the best holiday decorations...where else can you find a 12 foot easter basket with the same size bunny included?!

7. The $1 clothing racks at Rue 21.

8. The employees at Hot Topic :)

9. Fries and ranch (or bleu if you prefer) at The Boston Beanery.

10. A ton of benches and couches to just sit and people watch...better than tv!!

The Aftermath of Winter...

Now that the sun has melted away the last of the snow, I look forward to spring with a vengeance!! Gone are the days of slipping and falling in the driveway, having children walk in from the bus with snow halfway up their pantlegs, having use of my Yukon XL since my husband can finally get his Camry down the driveway, etc...at least until next year!

It is amazing how green grass can put a huge smile on your face that has been missing for a few months...until you discover the aftermath of winter...Fallen trees, destroyed bushes, less privacy for sure! Since we have been in this house, we have had trees fall during thunderstorms and other rough winters, but the trees are noticeably sparingly at this point. I am afraid with a few more winters like this, there will no longer be the privacy between houses that we longed for when we moved to the country. Hopefully when the leaves return, it will give us back some of this privacy we all love so much!



My favorite bush has a branch split right down the middle. Although all of my other bushes which were flattened like pancakes during the heavy snowfall made their way back up to the sky with the help of the wonderful sun, this one has stayed lower no matter how much talking I do to it. Usually the prettiest bush we have with it's pink leaves in the spring, it has now become the ugly duckling among all the swans. Don't worry little bush, I will continue to praise you and nurse you back to health until you are well enough to spread your branches to the heavens above once again...

We have found many items that were missing during that month time period as well:

Found!!!
1 broken snowshovel-this had a slight crack in it before the snow buried it. Now in 2 seperate pieces, it will join a lot of other items in the garbage during spring cleaning. I believe, although my husband acted boggled by where this went, he was actually happy to report it missing...

Found!!
1 butterfly net-Reiner decided that a butterfly net could easily be used to catch snowflakes, but has yet to understand the concept of snowflakes melting. I was happy this came up missing...saved me from a lot of temper tantrums.

Found!!
1 unrecognizable soccer ball...Genin sent this flying out into the yard during a break in the snowfall...it became covered somewhere in the yard overnight and was long forgotten...not sure what mixed with the snow in that area, but this ball is crazy looking at this point!

Found!!
1 black cat...This stray cat was coming around everyday for weeks before the snow fell. It was never seen again! With fear that the snow had somehow come down too fast, I spent a morning digging out my porch (with a tiny gardening shovel since the snow shovel was MIA) hoping that I could get some reassurance and not find a frozen, flattened cat attached to my porch floor. Nothing found, but happy to report, it is back along with the sun that was missing for so long!

Found!!
1 snowball in my garage freezer...someone must have been worried that we wouldn't have enough snow to enjoy...they were soooo wrong....


Thank you to Mr. Sun for all of his help in finding these missing items. Although I did not offer a reward for their safe return, I do promise to bask in the glory of your wonderful rays for the next few seasons with a sincere smile of graditude on my "hopefully" tanned face. XOXO