Getting So Big

The day before Thanksgiving was a big day around here. Caroline lost her fist tooth. It is really amazing how small it is. And she was pretty excited about the whole thing. I am so happy about that because I was afraid she was going to freak out about it.


Caroline even had a visit from the tooth fairy. It was a lot of fun. We had to bring a purse to Uncle and Auntie's house so she could show them her treasures (a silver dollar and pack of Trident gum, same as her mom got when she was a kid). And that purse has been in her hand most of the time since then.

The only issue we are having is she still thinks she cannot eat apples or chew her gum because of her loose tooth. But we are working on it.

Caroline's Imagination and Milestones

After seeing an episode of Curious George where he breaks his leg, Caroline decided that she had also "broken" a couple of bones. She was serious about this. She needed casts and a wheelchair if we had one. Since we did not, she was happy to sit with her foot propped up. Her imagination sometimes is great.

In other big news, Caroline has her first loose tooth. I am really excited. And I am happy to say that she is too. There were a couple of tears at first but now she is mostly excited to have grown up teeth. She will not wiggle it much but she can do this in her own time.

She is not quite understanding the tooth fairy. But once it happens one time, she will be excited for it.

Facebook

I have had a few of my friends send me multiple invite to join Facebook. I had been holding off because I was not sure that I needed it. I mean I email, look at people's blogs, write a blog, why would I need something else.

But I gave in today and joined. And I should not have. It is a rather addicting site. I have been on at least 6 times today. It is interesting and fun. But I am going to be spending way too much time on it.

If you join up, search me out as your friend. We can chat some more.

Dog Update

Well, things are going pretty well with the new dog. Gypsy is fitting in really well with our family. Even the cats seem to like her (well at least they put up with her).

It definitely adds a little time to getting out of the house. It is like getting another kid ready to go. She is really good about it though. The only issue is that she seems to have some separation anxiety.

As a result, she likes to escape her kennels. She has totally wrecked one and is working on another. We are doing all the things that you should do to get her trained for the crate. And it is going slowly but I think that we are working it out.

The big upside here is that she has chosen us to be hers. She wants us to be around so that she can keep and eye on us. The girls are especially important to her. She likes to sleep with them (and that includes going to bed at the same time 8 pm). When I go and get her to take her out one more time before bed, she goes straight back to "her" room. When she gets there, she checks on Caroline, climbs onto the bed with Grace, checks on her, then she can lay down and go back to sleep.

We are feeling good about this. But it makes us feel even better to see that she feels good about us too.

Getting Fit

Well I am trying to do something about how I look. It is not out of control but it definitely annoying me lately. And since I have a date/event (Ruth's Wedding) to work for I am going to take advantage of it.

But the really cool thing about this is my whole family is taking part. We decided to do a fitness challenge and we are supporting each other to be the best looking family at the wedding. We even have a blog set up to help us keep in touch. I have it linked to this blog if you want to check it out.

Do you have any tips on taking it or keeping it off?? I would love to hear from you.

Bits of Nelson News

We have been pretty busy since I last posted on the blog. So here is an update.


Caroline had a big day at school last Thurs Nov 6. She went on her first field trip without a parent. She went to learn about squirrels and had a great time. The biggest highlight was of course her first ride on a school bus. Although she did inform me that it was not long enough. The only down side was that Grace was really upset about not getting to ride the bus.


Then Friday we went to my Mom and Dad's house. It was deer hunting opener. Kris and I both went out for much of the day on Sat. My Mom (bless her heart) stayed home with all 4 kids (my girls and my sisters boys). They had a great time. Us hunters did not have it so good. I have no pictures because we did not see a thing. The weather was not so cold but super windy on Sat. If was a bitter wind.

On Sun we did some visiting. We saw 2 aunts of mine (Pat and Janet) and my Grandma Moe. Then headed out for pizza. The kids had a great time. And even though hunting was a bust, it was good to be outside and with family.



We headed for home on Mon. When we got home, we unpacked quick and went to get our new addition to the family. We had been looking for a dog and we found one on election day. We put her on hold (since we were going to be traveling) and picked her up when we got home.


Her name is Gypsy and she is a 3 year old Border Collie/Coon hound mix. I see a lot of lab in her but she is really calm. I have only heard her bark once and it was deep like a coon hound. She is great about telling us when she has to go potty and we have not had an accident or midnight potty break yet.


She seems smart. The last couple of days she listens to most things. The only time she chooses not to hear me is when she gets out of the yard. Then she is too into smelling the world to listen to me. This morning she escaped from our bedroom when we were gone for a little while. But there was no damage done so we may be getting close to no kennel while we are gone. Obedience classes are coming and we are really excited to see how well she does with those.


She is very cuddly and happy to be with us. Plus she and cats seem to be finding a way to get along already. Gypsy and Simon made peace the first day and Simon is still in charge. But Amos and she still need to find a good relationship. But they are quickly finding a balance.


She is already a full member of the family. The girls could not be happier, in fact, they will not leave her alone. I am really happy with her personality, size and the whole package. And Kris, who is more of a dog person anyway, has a pet he can really enjoy. We are all happy to have her here.

What an amazing couple of days

I am just recovering from Election Day to be able to make a post. It was such a fun day to be a part of the process. And I hope that you were a part as well.

At my precinct, we were really busy in the morning and then steady all day. And I just marveled at the privilege we have living here. And it was exciting to see so many people actively participating this year. Many for the first time (in my precinct we had over 450 new registrations).

I do not care who you voted for but thank you for coming out. Thank you taking away some of the apathy that goes with voting. Elections are truly an amazing process. I am proud of it and proud to be a part of it.

VOTE!!!

Tomorrow is a big day. Whether you follow politics closely or not, tomorrow will make history for a variety of reasons. One of which is that voter turnout is supposed to be higher than it has been in decades.

I encourage you to be a part of it. And bring your kids. My parents always brought us and as an adult I really appreciate that. I learned a lot by watching them about the responsibilities of being a good citizen.

It is not a hard task. It may be different from your routine or hard to fit into your schedule but it is really important. You have a chance to have a voice and either make big changes or show support for the people who believe in. I honestly do not care who you vote for as long as you vote.

If you think it is too much time out of your day, I just want to let you know what the election workers do for you to make it as easy as possible. Poll open at 7 am but the workers are there by 5:30. They take time to plan to find the best floor plan for the room to make it flow as best as it can. They go to 3 to 4 trainings before election day in an effort to be as informed about the ever changing election laws as possible. They work hard all day to be as accommodating as the law will allow until the polls close at 8 pm. Then they work for a couple more hours to make sure that there have been no mistakes during the day. They take the polls down, the poster down, count write in votes, put the absentee ballots through the machine, make sure that all the numbers in 3 different places are the same. If they are not the same, they have to find out why. There is no stopping until the numbers are found. And when they are done, then they turn in the results and go home. And for an election like this one, that will be after 11 pm.

So before you dismiss it as too much work or too much time, think about the people who work their best to make it as easy as possible for you. And you are lucky!! You have a choice in your government. You have a voice. Think about all the people in the world who live in a place where this does not happen.

One last thing. You are NEVER wasting your vote. The goal is not to vote for the winner (although we all hope for that) but to vote for the person that you believe in. If you vote this way, you will NEVER waste you vote.

Sorry for all the preaching. But I am passionate about this topic. Have fun with tomorrow and get out to vote.