Confessions of a Wild and Crazy Household!!

My crazy last 2 weeks!

2012-01-05T17:14:00.000-08:00

The Wednesday before Christmas, I tried to burn out house down. Yes, that's right. I did. I put a candle on top of Sara's tv cabinet and it set a plastic box that was up there on fire. The smoke alarm went off, the house filled with smoke, the entire house semlled like burnt plastic. I got the fire out and waited for hubby to get home the next morning. He just looked at her room and said we had a lot of work to do. And yes, we did!!

The top photo is her ceiling right above where her cabinet was. The bottom picture is the wall behind the cabinet. I had to strip the wall border off her walls before I could clean them with special cleaners. I don't now what was worse...the burned parts or the smoke damage.

We cleared out her room of everything but her dresser and loft bed. Hubby scraped off the popcorn ceiling and put Kilz on the 2 walls that had been painted blue and went halfway down the other 2 walls that were painted pink. I put Kilz on the parts of the walls that the roller couldn't get to.

Yesterday he rolled the new poprn on her ceiling and made sure it was ready to be painted. I put tape on the floor so when I painted her baseboards I didn't get paint on the hardwood.

I painted her entire room today and the 4 closet doors. I was able to put her bed and tv cabinet back in their places. I still need to get her bed made and the rest of the stuff back in, but the hard parts are done.

I will never buy another candle. I will stick with my Scentsy warmers. I wanted to repaint her room and cover up the blue walls but certainly not like this!!

So there is my story!

School's Out For Summer!! Let the fun begin!!!

2011-06-05T17:09:00.000-07:00

The school year has come to an end here. Making a list of things to do with the kids!! I know they love to play outside, except when it hits 90 degrees. Though I do say to go play in the sprinkler or in the little plastic pool! Sara and Joseph love to run through the sprinkler while it's watering the grass or sit in their pool in the driveway.

I know we will do a lot of camping this year. I love the outdoors and love to pull our pop-up camper up to Heber Springs or Choctaw and spend 3 or 4 days just sitting outdoors. Even when it's 80 degrees outside, there is nothing like getting up and building campfire. Its just natural when camping. We take the kids to the lake and let them swim and swim and swim until they can't swim anymore!! Just being outdoors away from electronics, and phones, and the tv and just spending time together as a family. There's nothing else like it.

We always plan a trip to Texas to see hubby's family. Hoping to plan that for the end of July because my very best friend is expecting a little girl and I would love to be there afterwards to get my baby fix!! :D I am hoping we can visit Galveston this year...has been so long since we have been and we have never taken Joseph. The hurricane came through a few years ago and we haven't been back. Would love to take some pictures of his first time at the beach and what his reaction is to the ocean and the sand.

What makes a friend?

2011-03-07T16:07:00.000-08:00

What is a friend? That's my question today. What is a real friend to you?

16 already??

2010-11-17T18:05:00.000-08:00

Can't believe this weekend is already here. I remember looking at my newborn son and just wondering what was going to happen in his life, what excitements we were going to go through, the pain, heartache, you name it. And now this time has come and my "baby" is turning 16. In just 2 short years, he will be graduating from high school and looking at colleges and leaving home. Where has the time gone? He has been a joy to have, a pain in the neck sometimes, all around a great kid. He's learned a lot about being a kid and I sure have learned a lot about being a mother. And I'm learning with each child that I have had. Each child is different, in the way they talk, act, learn, understand....have to treat them all different but love them all the same.

He's come a long way in 9 years!!

2010-03-16T12:23:00.000-07:00

Today, Jacob turns 9! I still remember when he was born. Was an interesting day. Was going to be a sad day, as it was the day that Curtis' brother was going to be buried. Curtis' brother and dad had come up from Texas for the funeral. Little did they know that they would be attending a birth instead. But I think they would have preferred the delivery over the funeral. Welcoming a new life into the world on a sad day was a good thing for them all.

Contractions started the night before. I knew what they were and Curtis' dad was sitting with me watching tv. He could tell something was going on but I didn't let him. I mean, it was #3. How fast could this one come?? HAHA Drove to get pizza counting the minutes between contractions. FIL and BIL went back to campsite that night to get some rest and to greet the next day. Called them about 5 in the morning and said we were heading to the hospital and if they wanted to meet us up there. It might have been earlier, but with 9 years going by, kind of hard to remember.....LOL

They both came up to the hospital. Curtis and his brother left the room to go outside and smoke while their dad sat in the room with me. Let me tell you, was quite an experience having my FIL in the delivery room. He was really quiet...just sat in a corner on the far end of the room...LOL Almost like hwasn't there. Curtis and his brother showed back up and his brother planted himself on one side of my bed watching the monitor. And everytime it showed that a contraction was coming, he would let me know. As if I couldn't already tell!!!!! I guess he was trying to help by getting my mind off of the actual contractions. And it did help...he had me laughing and it was something I could remember through the years.

Jacob is now 9 and such a sweet boy. Doing well in 3rd grade...making lots of friends. Has a best friend named James who is over almost everyday. They are inseparable. It is so nice that he has a friend like that. They both enjoy the same things, sleepovers at each other's houses, birthday parties, etc. I still can't believe that he is 9 already and next year will be hitting the Double Digits!!! Oh my goodness!!! Can we count the gray hairs on my head??? LOL

I am looking forward to many more years with Jacob. I know he brings such joy and laughter to this household. I expect more joy and laughter throughout the years to come!

Wow! Time does fly!

2009-12-03T08:52:00.000-08:00

Wow! It's been a long time since I have logged in. You would think I had a lot of say with my busy household but sometimes it's hard to just sit down and write anything or catch my breath. Always going and going and going...never seems to stop.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Hubby's brother & wife, sister & hubby came up and we flew in his Grandma from California the day before they all showed up. Was a nice surprise to have his siblings come into the house and see his Grandma. We hadn't seen her in over a year so was great! The guys hung out that Saturday installing an air conditioner/heater in the boys' room and spent Sunday golfing. The ladies and I spent Saturday cooking the dinner so we could have our Thanksgiving with all of them.

Sunday we had Robert's 15th birthday. Gosh, I feel old with a child that age!!! He had quite a few friends attend which was nice. Even had a raccoon climb our small flimsy tree and hang there for a while. My friend and I sprayed him with the water hose and she kept spraying as I swayed the tree. Our dog was sitting at the bottom of the tree just waiting for it to drop!! That raccoon left the tree and landed at my feet and I tried my hardest to climb that tree to get away from it! Would have been great if someone had remembered a video camera...haha

Now we are getting ready for Christmas. My favorite time of the year. Not just because of the birth of Christ but love to see my childrens' faces that morning as they come in and see their gifts and stockings. With 5 kids, we have had to limit our spending on them and just try to get things that we know they will use and not just play with for 5 minutes and then get stuck in a box. With some advice from my dad I did our front yard in christmas lights and decorations. Looks great!!

Havent decided what resolutions I will make for the New Year. Always make some and then never follow through so hoping this year I can come up with some that I will be able to keep.

I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year!

Joseph's First ER Visit

2009-10-23T06:12:00.000-07:00

So I know this blog is about 4 days late but we have been busy this week...school, hubby working, life, ect. Legitimate excuses, you know!!

So Monday started out BORING!!!! Kids went off to school, I started my usual routine..dishes, laundry, floors, picking up after kids, etc. Same thing I do everyday, people....clean my house!! Anyways.......Cassandra and kids came by for a visit. And things were normal...kids fighting over toys, Laila driving her mommy crazy, etc etc. Had a great visit....when it was time for them to leave, we all went outside. Joseph got the skateboard and was "riding" it on the sidewalk in front of the house. Now our sidewalk is the rocks that are imbedded in concrete...not loose rocks. Very pointy and hard to walk on. My feet can only handle walking on it for so long....the kids dont care! So Joseph was tryin to get it to move down the sidewalk...well it only went so far and then stopped.....didn't stop Joseph from moving. He kept going forward!! Get the picture??

Bam!!!! Down he went face first into the sidewalk. At first I thought maybe he had just hit his nose pretty hard and that was it. Until I got closer and there was blood!!!! Now I hate the sight of blood and needles and all things gory. But I have 5 kids and have been through this A LOT!!! Cassandra just couldn't understand why I was soo calm...I said "after 5 kids, its routine around here"...hehe. I picked poor Joseph up and ran into the house and put a wet rag on his forehead THAT WOULDN'T STOP BLEEDING!!! Ran and woke up hubby...an EMT you know! He looked at it and calmly said "it'll be ok, needs a couple of stitches but we can put a butterfly bandage on it for now".

Now the mother inside of me wanted to rush to ER to get stitches but he said to wait till the boys got home from school (an hour later) and then we would all go. Since he works at ACH and had to work that night, we would all just go in together. So I waited. Boys got home, Joseph had pulled off the bandaids, I stuck new ones on, hubby got up and said that Joseph would be ok, just leave bandaid on. I said "are you sure"? After asking several times, he said just to take him in. After 3 hours total in ER at ACH, they came in, put numbing medicine on it (which Joseph proceeded to pull off!! ),cleaned it out, and glued it togehter. I am not a big fan of glue...I wish they had stitched it. He has banged it so much since that night that it started bleeding again. At that point I said screw it, it'll be fine....LOL He will have a scar but so do his brothers.

As hubby says, "he wouldn't be a Venable without an ER visit". So true in our case!!! ALL the kids have visited the ER for one thing or another in the last 12 years. Sooo exciting in our household!!!!

Call him Mr. McGyver

2009-10-01T09:21:00.001-07:00

Last weekend we spent a nice weekend camping at Old Hwy 25 in Heber Springs. Had a wonderful time!!

My husband can build, fix, mend, etc. just about anything. Changes the oil in the vehicles, checks the tires, repaired part of my driver's seat when it fell apart, jerry-rigged the hot tub to work, etc. Well he can now build a campfire....with just paper towels and pine cones. Yes, I said paper towels and pine cones!! We had run out of fire starters and didn't check before we left nor did we remember to get any when we headed into town. So we got paper towels and pine cones and started the fire. After the smoke cleared, had a great fire!! Nice and toasty warm..great enough to roast marshmallows..or just sit and eat marshmallows right out of the bag!! I will never doubt the abilities that my husband has..hehe

Motherhood

2009-09-21T18:46:00.000-07:00

How come when we have kids, they don't give us an instruction manual on how to deal with them? Like when they start talking back, or smarting off, or heaven forbid fighting!!! And dont get me started on the sibling rivalry and the teenage years!! I could sure use an instruction manual right about now. Having kids is hard work. They know EVERYTHING and you know nothing. And be prepared to know nothing until you die. Because they will think they know it all and you are always wrong.

Be prepared to never sleep again. You have to be on call 24/7 and those little bags under your eyes? Dont bother buying stuff to get rid of them because they will just reappear the next morning and be twice as bad. And even when they start sleeping through the night, you will always have one ear open to hear in case they wake up or you hear any disturbances.

Those tv shows you like to watch? I say What tv shows??? I have no idea what happens through half of my shows because they like to sit in here with me and talk!!! Thank goodness for the internet or I would never know what happens on CSI or Numbers!! HAHA

Like a clean house?? So do I. But I dont see my house being spotless until I die. And then I wont have to bother about it being clean because I WONT CARE!!!! Yes, I do do my dishes and sweep my floor several times a day but I'm lucky if my floors get mopped once a week. I know, I know...that is gross....but I do wipe up spills but mopping it is hard to do with 2 little ones running around and the other 3 kids with their friends coming in and out. One of my sons' friends told him that I needed to mop my floors!!! Well buddy, here is the mop! Have at it!!!

And don't get me started on laundry!!! When I die, St. Peter is going to hand me a box of laundry soap and some bleach. That is going to be my job....laundry!! I won't be able to get away from it even after I die. I think I might just be buried naked....that way I won't have to get any clothes dirty!!! HAHA Laundry is never done at my house. I know I say "I'm going to finish laundry today"..well that really means that I am going to stick this load in the washer and scoot the other piles of laundry to the side and say I am done for the day!! HAHA Will never be done. Laundry is my life.

Last note...make sure to make time for yourself. My "me" time is after the kids are in bed and it's about 1 or 2am. Either play on Facebook or read a book. I dont get any chores done at night even though it would be nice to wake up to a clean house. Because I know it won't last long after the kids get up. I might "pick up" a little bit but other than that, waits till the next day. I don't remember the last time I had some time to myself without one or more of my kids calling me wondering when I was going to be home. And time with hubby? Non existant unless the kids are gone somewhere or passed out. I look at hubby sometimes and go "who are you"? LOL

Anyways....having a rough time as a mother so needed to vent a little bit. Get some frustrations out and blow off some steam. Don't get me wrong...there are a lot of joys to being a mother...first words, walking, silly things they do, mud fights, water balloon fights, kids playing in the backyard, no kids..hehe, no fighting..hehe, and finally sleep! I know that I will miss them when they are gone and to enjoy each moment I have with them. But can I please have some time to myself?????? Please??? LOL

What a crazy week we have had!!

2009-09-13T19:46:00.000-07:00

I sure hope I never have to repeat last week!! Was HORRIBLE!!! Ok, so Tuesday was a good day even though bittersweet. Last visit to the kids pediatrician Dr. Deane Baldwin. He is leaving to do research on the Swine Flu Vaccine.

Took kids into see him and 3 got shots and Sara just got a well checkup. All were fine....gaining weight and growing like weeds. I had to laugh though because my 14 year old and 11 year old weight THE SAME!!!! Yes, I said it! They are the same weight. Sara and Joseph are only about 3-4 pounds apart in weight...which is no surprise. Sara is kind of little....cute but little.

Wednesday Joseph had a slight fever but got over it that night. Sometimes he and Sara get a 24 hour fever every couple of months. Sara got a fever also that night, which was 103.1. The highest it has ever been. Gave her meds and they both went to sleep. She got up middle of the night and still had a fever so hubby gave her more meds. Fever was back Thursday night though not as high. Gone Friday morning. Back Friday night. I had decided if she still had the fever Sat. morning, we were hitting the doctor's. It was gone!!!! And hasn't been back..knock on wood.

Also on Wednesday my sinks clogged up. All 4!!! 2 laundry room and 2 kitchen. Was horrible. Couldn't use the dishwasher or washer. Could dry clothes all I wanted to but could not wash them. So laundry piled up because I didn't want to drag 2 small kids to a laundry mat. Hubby looked at it Saturday afternoon when he finally had some time. Took a long time!!! I ended up doing the dishes in the bathtub which was something I DO NOT ever want to repeat. But they got clean!!! Oldest son got behind washer and clogged the hole where the water goes after it leaves the washer and I plugged up both sinks while hubby plugged up one sink in kitchen and ran the garbage disposal. Had enough pressure from the towel clogging the hole that it pushed the clog out and sinks were clear!!! YAY!!!! JOY JOY JOY!!! I did a load and watched the sinks. NOTHING!! Ran the dishwasher. NOTHING!! WOOHOO!!! So I spent all day today doing laundry. And might have one more load to do to be caught up for today!! Just to start all over again tomorrow...hehe

So..that was our crazy week. Blah!!! I am exhausted. I should be in bed but I am a night owl...never go to bed before midnight if I can help it. Dont know why....seems I can get lots more done at night after most of the kids go to bed than during the day when they are all awake. I just did the dishes and started some more laundry and cleaned the kitchen. Never rest for the weary!!!!

Taking care of the outside

2009-09-02T06:46:00.000-07:00

Hubby and I have been talking about making some changes to the front yard of our house. There are some hedges that didn't look nice and some bricks that were breeding grounds for ants. And I hate ants!!!! It's like I kill them and the next thing I know, they have multiplied 10 times!!! Get the taken care of in one tree, and they show up in another tree. And we LOVE our trees!!! Provides shade for us so when I find ants in them, it devastates me!!

So we decided to make some drastic changes to the front of the house. Pulled up some plants and heges that we wanted to get rid of. You can see to the right of the house in front of the window where the house is "green"..that's where some of the plants were. And I dug up the rest of the hedges (to the left of the front door where the big pot is...ok just looked at the picture and you can't see the big pot....LOL so behind that planter sitting in the yard with the green in it...haha) and boy were those hard!!!! The previous owners must have just dug a hole, planted the heges, then put the plastic around them, then some bark mulch and some rocks. So needless to say still a lot of work to accomplish but it does look better!! Hubby also pulled up the small trees that were close to the street and not in any real formation. Just planted and left. The hardest was the tree closest to the driveway. Though hubby was going to curse at it and condemn it to hell before he finally got it out. It was heavy!!!! Now trying to decide if we want to plant something else in the spots we cleared or leave empty. I've included some pictures. People might wonder why I'm posting pictures of my yard but I like it!! So..enjoy!

Blog Issues

2009-07-14T09:34:00.000-07:00

Ok so I like having a blog. Finally figured out how to add a picture to my header. But now I can't figure out how to change the color of "the Venables". Can hardly see it. I guess it is trial by error and just playing around with it to see what fits and what doesn't. Wonder if there is a class about how to blog??? LOL If anyone has any suggestions or any help they can give me, post in the comments please!!!! I want a purty blog!!! hehe

Camping Trip to Choctaw, Arkansas

2009-06-11T22:48:00.001-07:00

So our camping trip started last Sunday. We loaded up and finally left the house. I said house, not Cabot....LOL. Stopped at Walmart for gas for the bbq, gas station for soda and some candy and then FINALLY on our way.

Hubby pulled the popup with his truck along with the bbq grill and bikes and ice chests in the back. I followed...really really slow. After following for what seemed like HOURS, he finally pulled into a flea market type of place. Looking for a hitch receiver for my van so I could pull the popup. Apparently his truck did not like pulling it. So after visiting 3 flea market type places, we found one.....right about the time #2 son Nathan came in and asked "is this what you are looking for"??? He had my friend Cassandra's hitch receiver in his hand...had been in the van the entire time!!!! But we ended up buying the one we found because hubby decided we NEEDED it!!!

So finally on our way again. This time me in front pulling the popup going "where am I going"? I didn't know where I was. So had to keep looking at hubby in the rearview mirror to see if he turned his blinker on or what so I would know where to turn. I finally recognized the gas station and turned. Not too much longer and we would be at the campsite.

Finally got to the campsite and got the popup straightened out and level and everything out and set up. Time to eat. Everyone was exhausted...and it's only supposed to be an hour and a half drive from our house. We ate, made a campfire and roasted some marshmallows and headed to bed.

Next day we got up, cooked breakfast and headed to the lake. We couldn't keep the kids out of the lake. Not even our dog Spot. She loved it!!! Joseph preferred to sit at the beginning of the lake and talk to himself and play with the waves. Hubby and I chilled in the chairs and made sure the kids were behaving and playing semi-close to shore. If they wanted to go out far, they had to have the life jackets on.

I couldn't believe how far the water had come up!!! When we were there 2 years ago, there was a whole lot more of the parking lot available. Now only one row. The trees were almost completely underwater and there was no sand!!! But kids had a blast anyways. I enjoyed standing on the concrete parking barriers to show how far the water had come up.

Our trip home was uneventful. Actually kind of boring. Got home in record time and parked the popup in the driveway and crashed onto the couch. Still haven't put the popup in the backyard or unloaded the back of the truck (except for the ice chests) but did get the van unloaded and dirty clothes washed. Now back to reality and housework and laundry and blah!!! I hope you enjoy the pictures that I have put on Facebook, Myspace or on here!!

Mother's Day

2009-05-09T19:10:00.000-07:00

I hope all the mothers out there have a Blessed and Wonderful Mother's Day!!! I think everyday should be Mother's Day. I mean, look at all that we do. We clean, do laundry, cook, take care of our sick kids (including hubby), make sure everyone has homework and chores done, make sure hubby is happy and calm, make sure holidays are special.....etc etc. We do A LOT!!!!

No matter how much I made my mother's life miserable (she is my step-mom but has been my mother since I was 4), I know she did a great job!! I would not be the person I am today without her. Yeah she drove me bonkers and she still drives me crazy sometimes, but she will always be my mother. And the day she's not around, I'll be wishing she is. There to talk to or get advice from. There to laugh or cry with. There to drive me bonkers.

She always made birthday parties fun. Always had the door open to our friends. Made holidays special. Green oatmeal for St. Patty's Day, Stocking Stuffers for Christmas, Great Birthday parties, Awesome Halloween Costumes for Halloween.

I just hope that I am that kind of mom to my kids. I know I probably drive my kids bonkers, but isn't that our job? To make them into the people that we hope they turn out to be? To be respectful, loving, caring Christian children? To embrace everyone? Not put anyone down? To accept everyone, not tear them down?

I hope all you moms have a GREAT DAY!!!! Cherish being a mother because one day you wont be around.

Crazy things kids do

2009-05-04T19:04:00.000-07:00

Ok...so is it just me or do babies like to headbutt??? Joseph is horrible at it and my poor nose is beat up from the nose pieces on my glasses. I figured I would give my eyes a break from my contacts and wear my glasses since it has been raining and no need to wear sunglasses unless I want to look weird.....well Joseph has hit me in the face several times over the past few days and it HURTS!!!!! If it's not his head, it's his hand. I slapped his hand earlier tonight and told him no, and you should have seen his face. It went from smiling to pouty and red and he almost cried!! I felt horrible!!! I hate it when he hits me but soo hate it when he cries.

Apparently I'm a jungle gym too. They always have to climb on me and drives me crazy!!!! They have a jungle gym in the backyard but they like me better!! I have "swings"...my legs. LOL AARRGGHHH!!!! HAHA

Sara and Joseph being silly!!!

2009-05-03T19:10:00.001-07:00

Sara and Joseph outside on the deck playing!

Joseph pushed Sara off of this!

Daddy took picture of Joseph being silly!!

Joseph kept screaming at Daddy to watch him!

Sara and Joseph hogging our bed!! They are HORRIBLE!!!

Sara and Joseph playing in cardboard boxes. The best toys!!

Joseph had the best time with this hat!

Welcome to our page!

2009-05-03T18:41:00.000-07:00

Ok...so I have never had a blog before. I didn't see any point. I mean, I have a Myspace and a Facebook page. What could I possibly say on here that I haven't said already on those 2 sites? But I figured I would try it out and see how it was. Who knows, I might actually like it!!