Brandon Family News
Friday, May 28, 2004
School's Out!!
School's out, and Crab Festival is on! Of course, it has been beautiful and sunny here until last night, when Crab Fest officially started. Then it decided to RAIN and the wind has been blowing like mad! It is supposed to clear up Sunday and Monday, so hopefully there will be at least one nice day to play. The kids of course are looking forward to the parade tomorrow, and the rides and booths. I have one purpose in going to Crab Fest, and that is to get my plate of king crab legs. Normally I like to watch the Search and Rescue Demonstations and the Survival Suit race too, but with the rain, wind, baby, and huge crowd of people I'm not into it too much this year. I will probably go with Brian and the kids and walk around to see what there is to see, but will likely send them off to have fun while Chip and I stay home with my plate of crab legs! I may even splurge and get a smoked turkey leg too! Monday is wrist-band day, so they can buy wrist bands and ride all day for one price. It's much cheaper than the ride tickets which usually are quite spendy.
Meanwhile, I have gotten all the books packed, and ALMOST finished packing the sewing room. I moved the baby into Kasi's room for now, which she continues to complain about, but she is surviving. Anyway, I am using the sewing room to stack boxes, so there isn't much room for the bassinet in there right now. But I am managing to get the stack of boxes confined to that room for now, and out of the living room.
We are going to have a moving sale on Saturday, June 19th, so wish us luck. Not expecting to make too much money, but am hoping to get rid of some of the excess "stuff". We are down to 63 days now, and I think I have more than enough to do to fill them up and then some! I went over and helped a friend with her move-out cleaning yesterday. She had borrowed a Eureka Enviro-Steamer from someone so we were using it. I was REALLY impressed with how well it did! It cleaned EVERYTHING and then some! I had also bought some of the Mr Clean Magic Erasers and wanted to try them out. WOW! Did they work well!! They took stuff off with VERY little effort that we had been scrubbing on before! So, I am stockpiling! I told Brian I am going to invest in a bunch of them and an Enviro-Steamer, and this house cleaning is going to be a breeze!
Will try to get some pictures of the kids this weekend and get them posted up here next week.
Meanwhile, take care, and we send our love and best wishes to all of our friends and families.
- posted by Rosanna @ 11:15 PM 0 comments
Meanwhile, I have gotten all the books packed, and ALMOST finished packing the sewing room. I moved the baby into Kasi's room for now, which she continues to complain about, but she is surviving. Anyway, I am using the sewing room to stack boxes, so there isn't much room for the bassinet in there right now. But I am managing to get the stack of boxes confined to that room for now, and out of the living room.
We are going to have a moving sale on Saturday, June 19th, so wish us luck. Not expecting to make too much money, but am hoping to get rid of some of the excess "stuff". We are down to 63 days now, and I think I have more than enough to do to fill them up and then some! I went over and helped a friend with her move-out cleaning yesterday. She had borrowed a Eureka Enviro-Steamer from someone so we were using it. I was REALLY impressed with how well it did! It cleaned EVERYTHING and then some! I had also bought some of the Mr Clean Magic Erasers and wanted to try them out. WOW! Did they work well!! They took stuff off with VERY little effort that we had been scrubbing on before! So, I am stockpiling! I told Brian I am going to invest in a bunch of them and an Enviro-Steamer, and this house cleaning is going to be a breeze!
Will try to get some pictures of the kids this weekend and get them posted up here next week.
Meanwhile, take care, and we send our love and best wishes to all of our friends and families.
- posted by Rosanna @ 11:15 PM 0 comments
Tuesday, May 25, 2004
Another Day
Well, here we are on the next to last day of school. The kids are excitedly awaiting their summer vacation. Little do they know they are going to be put to work packing and getting ready to move. We'll probably let them have some fun at Crab Fest this weekend, but then we are ALL going to have to buckle down and get some serious packing done. Brian wants to have a garage sale, which I think we will probably do to get rid of some of the excess stuff we don't need to take with us. I think we are going to try to sell the snowblower and the lawn mower and edger, then will buy new ones on the other end. The snowblower is good for Kodiak, but not big enough to handle the Valdez snows anyway.
We have ferry reservations to leave here the night of August 2, and get into Homer on the 3rd. Then we will drive up to Anchorage where we will probably take a break until around the 14th. Brian has to check into work in Valdez on the 16th, and the kids start school over there on the 23rd. As it gets closer, we'll have more information on when our house will be ready for us over there and all too.
Meanwhile, Brian is still working, and trying to sell some bus seats, tires, and other misc. stuff from the shed. I have been packing, and am frantically trying to get the sewing room packed up so I can have room to stack boxes. Right now the living room has become quite the obstacle course/maze with boxes everywhere. Hopefully I will be able to finish the sewing room today so we can start moving boxes into there. We have also decided that we need to find someplace that sells hand-trucks so we don't end up with hernias and back troubles from lifting all these boxes!
Kasi had a really nice program at the school the other night. It was DARE graduation (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) I thought the DARE program was just a matter of having a police officer come into their class and talk to them about staying away from drugs, but apparently it was a really big program that they studied for an entire trimester. They wrote essays, learned about the effects of drug and alcohol abuse, talked about ways to solve problems without violence, and really did quite an extensive program. Then they had graduation from the program. They had speakers from the Coast Guard, and the City Mayor come and talk to them about making right choices. The governor sent them each a nice letter. They all made a committment at the end of their essay to stay drug free. I was rather impressed. They each received a certificate for completing the course, as well as a medal from the DARE officer, and a pin from the mayor, and a letter from the governor. Kasi said she really learned a lot about making choices and what the affects of drugs and alcohol can be.
Kenny went back to the orthodontist on Saturday. They were able to fix his broken retainer, thankfully, and didn't charge for it. The doctor said he could tell that Kenny hadn't abused it, and that it was simply a matter of the plastic having a weak spot in it. Luckily he was able to fix it, so it didn't come to having a whole new one made. He also showed me that he had built the plastic up around it more to prevent it from breaking again. I am noticing changes in his upper teeth anyway. Looks like they are starting to line up where they are supposed to.
I also did a search of his bedroom yesterday and located his missing library books for him to return to school so we can avoid paying replacement costs for them. He had searched his room "a million times" and "they just aren't there!" but I managed to find them in a matter of a few minutes. He had a laundry basket that had them in the bottom and stuffed animals on top of them. At least I didn't have to go search Kasi's room! I could have been lost for days!!
Chip is doing really well, and growing like crazy. Yesterday Kenny was playing with him and he started laughing. He probably laughed for a good 5 minutes. It's the most laughing I've ever heard him do! He's a very happy baby most of the time, and squeals and giggles a lot, but yesterday was the first time he's ever really laughed more than a few little chuckles. It was really cute! But he seems to have quite a connection to his big brother. Every time Kenny walks into the room Chip lights up and starts grinning and giggling. It makes his whole day when Kenny comes over and talks to him or better yet, plays with him! He gets excited with Kasi too, but seems to be much more so with Kenny. I think he's going to have a good relationship with his big brother.
Well, not much else going on here. I guess I need to go light a fire under Kenny to send him off to school. Kasi has already left so she wouldn't be late. Then it's time to make the bottle so it will be ready for His Highness whenever he decides that he will grace me with his royal presence....
Take care, all, and we'll try to keep you all updated.
- posted by Rosanna @ 7:34 AM 0 comments
We have ferry reservations to leave here the night of August 2, and get into Homer on the 3rd. Then we will drive up to Anchorage where we will probably take a break until around the 14th. Brian has to check into work in Valdez on the 16th, and the kids start school over there on the 23rd. As it gets closer, we'll have more information on when our house will be ready for us over there and all too.
Meanwhile, Brian is still working, and trying to sell some bus seats, tires, and other misc. stuff from the shed. I have been packing, and am frantically trying to get the sewing room packed up so I can have room to stack boxes. Right now the living room has become quite the obstacle course/maze with boxes everywhere. Hopefully I will be able to finish the sewing room today so we can start moving boxes into there. We have also decided that we need to find someplace that sells hand-trucks so we don't end up with hernias and back troubles from lifting all these boxes!
Kasi had a really nice program at the school the other night. It was DARE graduation (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) I thought the DARE program was just a matter of having a police officer come into their class and talk to them about staying away from drugs, but apparently it was a really big program that they studied for an entire trimester. They wrote essays, learned about the effects of drug and alcohol abuse, talked about ways to solve problems without violence, and really did quite an extensive program. Then they had graduation from the program. They had speakers from the Coast Guard, and the City Mayor come and talk to them about making right choices. The governor sent them each a nice letter. They all made a committment at the end of their essay to stay drug free. I was rather impressed. They each received a certificate for completing the course, as well as a medal from the DARE officer, and a pin from the mayor, and a letter from the governor. Kasi said she really learned a lot about making choices and what the affects of drugs and alcohol can be.
Kenny went back to the orthodontist on Saturday. They were able to fix his broken retainer, thankfully, and didn't charge for it. The doctor said he could tell that Kenny hadn't abused it, and that it was simply a matter of the plastic having a weak spot in it. Luckily he was able to fix it, so it didn't come to having a whole new one made. He also showed me that he had built the plastic up around it more to prevent it from breaking again. I am noticing changes in his upper teeth anyway. Looks like they are starting to line up where they are supposed to.
I also did a search of his bedroom yesterday and located his missing library books for him to return to school so we can avoid paying replacement costs for them. He had searched his room "a million times" and "they just aren't there!" but I managed to find them in a matter of a few minutes. He had a laundry basket that had them in the bottom and stuffed animals on top of them. At least I didn't have to go search Kasi's room! I could have been lost for days!!
Chip is doing really well, and growing like crazy. Yesterday Kenny was playing with him and he started laughing. He probably laughed for a good 5 minutes. It's the most laughing I've ever heard him do! He's a very happy baby most of the time, and squeals and giggles a lot, but yesterday was the first time he's ever really laughed more than a few little chuckles. It was really cute! But he seems to have quite a connection to his big brother. Every time Kenny walks into the room Chip lights up and starts grinning and giggling. It makes his whole day when Kenny comes over and talks to him or better yet, plays with him! He gets excited with Kasi too, but seems to be much more so with Kenny. I think he's going to have a good relationship with his big brother.
Well, not much else going on here. I guess I need to go light a fire under Kenny to send him off to school. Kasi has already left so she wouldn't be late. Then it's time to make the bottle so it will be ready for His Highness whenever he decides that he will grace me with his royal presence....
Take care, all, and we'll try to keep you all updated.
- posted by Rosanna @ 7:34 AM 0 comments
Wednesday, May 12, 2004
Family News
Well, I guess it's about time I put my 2 cents worth on here as well. I think this is a good way to share information about the family without having to send out a whole lot of separate emails.
Pretty much things are just plugging along here as normal. Life seems to be really fast paced, and the time seems to be going a little too quickly for me as we are getting ready for the big move. Brian has the seats unbolted from the bus, so we only have to do minor work to it now to get it ready to move. Meanwhile, we need to rebuild the deck on the trailer for the motorcycle which I will be towing behind the van. I'm also trying to pack a little bit at a time, going through room by room with the stuff we aren't currently using. It is slow going, as I only seem to get time to work on it after the kids are in bed at night.
I am also planting flowers, which some have told me is a crazy thing to do when we are moving. But in doing so, I am using landscaping paper to keep the weeds out, so hopefully will save myself a bunch of time and effort in weeding before we leave. Besides, I would like to enjoy my pansies for a couple of months anyway! If our Walmart would carry the flowering tobacco again, that's what I would plant, but they didn't get it, so I went hog-wild with the pansies instead. I do feel bad that I won't be able to take my salmonberry bush with us, and the Coast Guard will be ripping it up while they are remodeling. I may find a way to dig it up and put in a bucket yet!
Meanwhile, Kasi is leaving for Camp Woody with the 5th grade tomorrow and will be camping out for 2 nights. They are really looking forward to having a good time. I just hope the beautiful weather we've been having holds for them. They are riding the CG Cutter Storis out to the island, and then will be getting into the small boats to actually ride up to the beach. They will be working on some outdoor survival skills, birdwatching, and just having fun in general. She got to watch THE video in school yesterday.... all about growing up, puberty, and a basic clinical explanation of where babies come from. When I asked her what she thought about it, she just said, "EEEUUUUWW!!" Today she came home from school with bright green streaks in her hair. After I just about had a coronary on the spot, I asked her what she had done. Apparently one of the little girls in her class brought in some green hair dye (supposed to wash out.... not sure it all did!) and a bunch of them got together and streaked their hair!! Her latest vocabulary word is "WhatEEEver!!" which is said in a rather snotty little voice and usually accompanied by eye rolling! And so it begins....
Kenny is still being my little sweetie, at least for now. He hasn't gotten into the snotty pre-teen attitude yet. He has had his retainers on his teeth now for a little over 3 weeks, and I can tell a big difference in his uppers already. His mouth is widening to make room for his teeth to come in straighter. He managed to break his lower retainer already. I put in a call to the orthodontist but they haven't gotten back to me yet as to how they are going to get it repaired or replaced. I just hope they don't charge us another small fortune for it! But when he gets all done with this dental work, he is going to have a heck of a smile!
Chip, AKA "your highness" is growing like a little weed. He has been eating and sleeping a lot lately, so think he's in another good growth spurt. He looks a lot like Kasi, I think, but with Kenny's stubborn personality. I think we may be in for a real run for our money with him!! He has started to get the "whine" down, which really gets under my skin. I keep telling him to either cry or not cry, but quit with the whine! Most of the time he is a really happy baby, but when he gets tired, the whine starts. I finally put him to bed the other day for a self-preservation-nap! He was in a much better mood when he got up. But he is really a little sweetie, who loves to snuggle, has an adorable little smile, and has won over all of our hearts. He pretty much has his big brother wrapped around his finger pretty tightly! His big sister denies it, but don't think she's too far behind. Of course, Mom and Dad don't spoil him any at all! I think his biggest trouble is that he's so DANG CUTE!!
Well, this is getting long, so I'll quit now and head off to bed. Take Care everybody, and keep checking back. We'll continue to update as more news happens.
- posted by Rosanna @ 12:14 AM 1 comments
Pretty much things are just plugging along here as normal. Life seems to be really fast paced, and the time seems to be going a little too quickly for me as we are getting ready for the big move. Brian has the seats unbolted from the bus, so we only have to do minor work to it now to get it ready to move. Meanwhile, we need to rebuild the deck on the trailer for the motorcycle which I will be towing behind the van. I'm also trying to pack a little bit at a time, going through room by room with the stuff we aren't currently using. It is slow going, as I only seem to get time to work on it after the kids are in bed at night.
I am also planting flowers, which some have told me is a crazy thing to do when we are moving. But in doing so, I am using landscaping paper to keep the weeds out, so hopefully will save myself a bunch of time and effort in weeding before we leave. Besides, I would like to enjoy my pansies for a couple of months anyway! If our Walmart would carry the flowering tobacco again, that's what I would plant, but they didn't get it, so I went hog-wild with the pansies instead. I do feel bad that I won't be able to take my salmonberry bush with us, and the Coast Guard will be ripping it up while they are remodeling. I may find a way to dig it up and put in a bucket yet!
Meanwhile, Kasi is leaving for Camp Woody with the 5th grade tomorrow and will be camping out for 2 nights. They are really looking forward to having a good time. I just hope the beautiful weather we've been having holds for them. They are riding the CG Cutter Storis out to the island, and then will be getting into the small boats to actually ride up to the beach. They will be working on some outdoor survival skills, birdwatching, and just having fun in general. She got to watch THE video in school yesterday.... all about growing up, puberty, and a basic clinical explanation of where babies come from. When I asked her what she thought about it, she just said, "EEEUUUUWW!!" Today she came home from school with bright green streaks in her hair. After I just about had a coronary on the spot, I asked her what she had done. Apparently one of the little girls in her class brought in some green hair dye (supposed to wash out.... not sure it all did!) and a bunch of them got together and streaked their hair!! Her latest vocabulary word is "WhatEEEver!!" which is said in a rather snotty little voice and usually accompanied by eye rolling! And so it begins....
Kenny is still being my little sweetie, at least for now. He hasn't gotten into the snotty pre-teen attitude yet. He has had his retainers on his teeth now for a little over 3 weeks, and I can tell a big difference in his uppers already. His mouth is widening to make room for his teeth to come in straighter. He managed to break his lower retainer already. I put in a call to the orthodontist but they haven't gotten back to me yet as to how they are going to get it repaired or replaced. I just hope they don't charge us another small fortune for it! But when he gets all done with this dental work, he is going to have a heck of a smile!
Chip, AKA "your highness" is growing like a little weed. He has been eating and sleeping a lot lately, so think he's in another good growth spurt. He looks a lot like Kasi, I think, but with Kenny's stubborn personality. I think we may be in for a real run for our money with him!! He has started to get the "whine" down, which really gets under my skin. I keep telling him to either cry or not cry, but quit with the whine! Most of the time he is a really happy baby, but when he gets tired, the whine starts. I finally put him to bed the other day for a self-preservation-nap! He was in a much better mood when he got up. But he is really a little sweetie, who loves to snuggle, has an adorable little smile, and has won over all of our hearts. He pretty much has his big brother wrapped around his finger pretty tightly! His big sister denies it, but don't think she's too far behind. Of course, Mom and Dad don't spoil him any at all! I think his biggest trouble is that he's so DANG CUTE!!
Well, this is getting long, so I'll quit now and head off to bed. Take Care everybody, and keep checking back. We'll continue to update as more news happens.
- posted by Rosanna @ 12:14 AM 1 comments
Sunday, May 09, 2004
Formatting
Well, it looks like Blogger has made a major upgrade to thier service. Which is cool, because now I can allow comments on my weblog.
In addition I have made a couple of minor formatting changes to the layout. Go ahead and leave me a comment to let me know of any changes or suggestions you may have for me.
- posted by AK-Brando @ 10:45 PM 2 comments
In addition I have made a couple of minor formatting changes to the layout. Go ahead and leave me a comment to let me know of any changes or suggestions you may have for me.
- posted by AK-Brando @ 10:45 PM 2 comments
Tuesday, May 04, 2004
Minor Update
I have updated the links section of the webpage. If you are still seeing the old links page, hit the "refresh" button in your browser. If you have any problems or would like specific links added, e-mail me your request. This only applies to friends and family that already have my e-mail address, the rest of you are just out of luck!
- posted by AK-Brando @ 2:16 PM 0 comments
- posted by AK-Brando @ 2:16 PM 0 comments
