Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Friend or Foe?


Jillian's new 4 wheeler

In May, Brett and I got Jillian a 4 wheeler of her own. She loved it! She thought it was so cool! Until we tried to get her to ride it....

She and Alissa had been sharing one the last year and having a blast on it! So, the logical thing was to get another one so that they didn't have to take turns and could ride at the same time together. Great thought, right? Not so much. 

Jillian is so confusing. She likes it, likes that its "hers" but doesn't want to ride it; at least not by herself. She always wants Brett to ride with her or else she doesn't want to ride. AND she wants me to be out at the shop (where they ride) or she will throw a fit thinking that she will get her way to not ride and stay home with me. Not so, in our house, when you throw a fit you don't get rewarded. She's a smart little thing and figured that out (in regards to 4 wheeling only) and now will say that her stomach hurts. (Yes sweetie, I've caught on!) It frustrates the begeesies out of me! We thought this purchase would bring a smile to our daughters faces, giving them an opportunity for some quality time, just them and their Dad. (It did and it has, it's just frustrating to have a hassle before the fun can begin.)

Alissa LOVING every minute of it!

Alissa LOVES it! She loves that she can ride all over the farm and that she has time with Dad. Jillian's torn and I haven't truly figured out why. She's a mom's girl and doesn't like it when I don't go but I don't ride - by choice, and it's not so fun after awhile for me to sit there thinking of all the things that I could be doing at home. I know, selfish. But this whole activity is a Brett and the girls thing and I love that for them and me.

Brett and the Girls

Today, as we were driving home from dance camp, we passed by a local 4 wheeler shop and Jillian says, "they only have three 4 wheelers left." Where in the world did that come from? I truly think that Jillian likes everything about her 4 wheeler so I don't know why we have a battle at times when they have an opportunity to ride. So it is friend or foe? I don't even think that Jillian knows. 

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Time to Catch Up

It's been awhile since I've had the opportunity to post.....maybe that's why I never do these sorts of things; fear to disappoint...who? I have no clue, but someone I'm sure.
It's been a whirlwind since my last post...lots of good stories!


Saturday the 19th, my girls and I went to see the movie Space Chimps (cute, but not a run to the theater to watch) with their cousins Maiya and Piper. The four girls had a blast! My girls had the kids trays - popcorn, drink, and fruit snack like always. Loved it!










The girls after the movie




(WARNING!! The following is not for the easily grossed out person.)

After the movie, we decided to watch Riley and Cayli race in Ephrata; so we went to pick up Charli and Camyrn. (Justin was already at the track with the Riley and Cayli.) As soon as we pull into Charli's driveway, Jillian has big alligator tears rolling down her face as she tells me that her stomach hurts. Literally, perfectly fine to alligator tears! She's pointing to her diaphragm and telling me it hurts really bad. I suggest we go inside and get some Tylenol; I'm sure that should do the trick. No more do we walk in and Jillian says 
to me, "Mom, I feel like I need to throw up..." and within the word "up" she looses it all! All over her, all over me, and all over Charli's floor. MY POOR BABY! I'm standing there in shock reprocessing what had just happened through my mind when a second round comes! At this point Charli has just come out from her room to find us just inside the entry frozen like statues; I truly think Jillian was in shock too! Charli gets the garbage can just in time for round three. After she's through, I can not even speak; I just start cleaning. Thank goodness it happened on the tile floor (primarily) rather than the carpet. I tell Charli, I don't think we're gonna make it to the race and Jillian gets all upset. She feels fine now; she wants to still go. "Really? Okay then." So, I clean everything up, borrow a shirt from Charli, get a bowl for the road - JUST IN CASE, and off we go.

It's about a 20 minute drive to Ephrata, Jillian slept about 15 minutes of it. MY POOR BABY! We pull into WalMart to get some ice; I stay in the car with the kids while Charli shops. She comes back, loads up and we're off - just across the street - literally. I ask Charli as we're pulling out, "why does it smell like french fries all of a sudden?" Because Charli picked up some popcorn chicken for the kids - oh, how thoughtful....

We pull up almost to Justin and the kids and Jillian and I have to JUMP out of the car so that she can throw up AGAIN! POOR THING! She was severely sensitive to smells at this point and popcorn chicken was not a smell she wanted apparently. I ask her if she wants to go home, "no." She wants to watch Riley and Cayli race. Ok, we're here, let's watch.


Jillian waiting for the race to start.













Riley and Cayli with their race face on!













Riley and Cayli's first heat was the second event; it's three trips around the track. (I am not a four wheeler person, so please excuse me for not using the proper terminology. :)) After their first trip around the track, Jillian comes to me and tells me she needs to throw up again. We go off and take care of it to come back to their heat being over. I asked her if she was ready to go, "yes". POOR THING! 


We pack up and head for Melissa's house to get some kid Pepto and then head home. We pass the a dairy and that sensitivity to smells gets the better of Jillian and she throws up again! At this point, just the medicine, there's nothing else in her poor little stomach! We get home and she bolts for the bathroom to try to throw up again; just heaves. POOR THING! Then she puts herself to bed. What a day! MY POOR BABY! I try to reprocess the day of what she's eaten and can not figure out why she's so sick. Everything she ate someone else (me or Alissa) ate too. Could it be a 24 hour bug?

The next morning, after I've racked my brain all night, Jillian comes be bopping up to me and says, "Mom, I feel all better today!" Big smile on her face! I'm happy but perplexed; it wasn't even a 24 hour thing! What was it? I may never know. All I did know is that I was happy she was better.

(It's okay to read now...)

Last week, the week of the 21st, the girls did "Yougottawannago" Day Camp in Ephrata. 8am-4:30pm; a day FULL of all sorts of activities including swimming lessons. I think my girls were more excited to be going with Ashley and Ivie than anything else. In addition to swimming they went for walks, watched a movie, rode bikes, did crafts, etc. Needless to say, they were exhausted when they got home! I asked the girls if they had fun; yes, but they were tired. I asked Jillian if she wanted to do it again next year and she said "no!" 
I said, "but I thought you had fun!"
"I did."
"Then why don't you want to go?"
"'Cause it was too hard! Too much walking everywhere!"
We'll see.....

This week the girls are at dance Boot Camp. It's teaching them ballet and technique basics that are the structure and base for a good dancer. They're not so into it, but I wasn't either when I was a kid. I liked the routines, the fun stuff. I'm sure they do too. At least their liking their instructors. It's definitely one of those look back on and appreciate kind of thing. 

Brett and I are planning on a family trip this weekend - Seattle Aquarium, Pacific Science Center, and Woodland Park Zoo. Shhhh...it's a surprise! I'm hoping for some great pics! I'll share! Until then!



Friday, July 18, 2008

It's a control thing...

A day in the life of me - crazy! I tend to think that I am in control, when in fact my husband and two beautiful girls are truly running the show. 
Right now, running around is the big event for me; gymnastics, dance, playdates, work.... 
Don't get me wrong - I LOVE IT! I am so very thankful that I am able to do all of this; I just have control issues. It was just recently that I identified and embraced my control issues. I'm pretty sure that they've been there for quite some time and I must have been in denial. I tend to keep the beast (the control issues) at bay by working on various projects. Right now that project is my house. (Come to think of it, I always have some sort of house project going on...)
Just before school let out for summer vacation I rearranged EVERYTHING in my home. We literally moved within the walls of our home; including painting. Of course the kitchen and bathrooms remained in their places; no remodeling - yet. It's all slowly but surely coming together. I'm really happy with the changes made thus far and my mind keeps creating new ideas to try. My new battle, clutter.
Clutter is not a friend of mine but one that I've always had. I am an organizer-wanna-be and can spend HOURS "organizing". It does turn out working better and looking better than before but when I'm the only one "organizing" it doesn't last for long and then I end up doing it again sooner than I planned. Once the clutter is better under control and the rooms are completed I'll share some pics.

Summer means farming time at the Carvo house; meaning long days and nights for Brett. Today he started in on the Odessa fields; which makes the days and nights even longer as he adds a 45min drive each way.
Brett is very fortunate to have such a supportive family willing and able to help him out on the farm. Over the years its become quite the family affair; Larry, Josh, Alex, Elliott, even Jeff every now and then. To each of them, I am very grateful. (I get an out- I'm allergic to hay.)
With farming in full swing that usually means that the girls and I are on our own. We look forward to certain activities that we're pretty sure dad can make; like the rodeo. When the fair comes to town it's rodeo time. The girls LOVE the rodeo! They especially love to look a the rodeo royalty and see how they've glitzed up their horses. Rodeo time is August/September! First ours, then Grandma Genia's, then the Ellensburg Rodeo! Each one builds on the other for excitement for the girls. I always wonder who the clown will be?....I LOVE to watch Flint! Even though he hasn't been in EBurg the last couple of years and won't be for awhile - he's a PBR entertainer. We go watch "Outside the Barrell..." at the NFR in Vegas - ALWAYS a great show!

Side note: I must say, this year we've been able to have Brett home a little more than we usually do. I LOVE that! Still, after 14 years, I want him to be around hanging out with us, going places with us, I don't like to not have him there sharing in those moments. I count my blessings daily for my family and my friends. They help me be me. Thanks guys.