January....oh yes...January

In the words of Daddy, "We just got our little tax credits to bed." --Yeah he just got done filing taxes.


Life at the Schnake household has pretty much halted in the last few months. I am getting almost NOTHING done--this includes housework. By the time I get the wee lass down for a nap, I am exhausted and am taking a mental break to prepare myself for the next round until Daddy gets home. She just doesn' t quit. From getting up in the morning, she is constantly climbing on stuff and prying things open. EVERYTHING has become a step stool for her. She pulls down gates and runs when she knows she is in trouble. Let me give you an example of this little girl's tenacity.

Day 1--The computer and printer are on the desk in the living room--where they have always been. Well, Alaina has learned how to crawl up chairs, so now she climbs up on the desk chair and BANGS on the computer. (I apologize if you have received any emails from me with random garble in it--you can assume it was from Alaina.) So--as a parent--simple solution--push the chair in.

Day 2--Alaina has figured out how to pull chairs out. Now the computer is her favorite toy again. I take her down, push the chair in, turn around and discover Miss Alaina seated at the dining room table (did I mention she is FAST!) meaning she pulled the chair out there, and munching on an apple. (I keep a bowl of fruit on the table.) The optomist in me is saying--well at least she is sitting at the table and isn't ON TOP OF IT--like I have often found her. And hey--an apple is healthy. I set her in her high chair to finish her apple.

Day 3--I moved the dining room chair with arms to the computer desk. My thought on this was--she would have to pull the chair WAY out in order to get into it. This is very hard for her. She ususally only pulls chairs out 4-5 inches and shimmies her way into them. Well--I was right, it was too much for her to move--HOWEVER--She uses one of her toys as a step stool to get up onto the couch, next to the computer. From there she climbs up the arm of the couch and somehow careens herself on top of the desk--COOL! Now she can bang on the computer with her whole body. *SIGH*

Day 4--I move the couch some to make things a little more difficult for her. Miss Monkey moves her little Tykes table toy over to the desk chair. She uses it as a ladder (yes a ladder) to climb up and over the arm of the desk chair.

Day 5 --Please pray for me and my sanity. As of now, I put her on a time out every time I find her banging on the computer. There have been MANY MANY MANY time outs. I honestly don't know what more to do other than cover all the walls with mattresses and remove all furniture and breakables--but even then I am SURE she would find something to get into.

I need some warm weather.  Can you tell?  Alaina is everywhere all the time.  I go to bed exhausted, the house is a mess.  I clean up one thing that she has gotten into/destroyed and I turn around and I find her in something new.   It is an ENDLESS cycle.  I go to bed exhausted feeling like I did nothing all day (because the house looks the same as when we woke up) and yet all I did was pick stuff up. 

It is funny too--because she seeks out my mistakes, like leaving a chair pulled out or if Ky leaves the bathroom door open--then she runs in there.  The best way to get her to the bathroom if you need to change her diaper is to simply leave the door open.  Within 60 seconds she will discover it and run in there.  On the other hand if I call her and tell her to come so I can change her diaper, she will run the other way. 

The weekend of MLK we went up to Shawano on a get away.  It was a nice time.  We forgot something--of course--which just happened to be Alaina's booster chair.  She actually did really well though without it.  We were really concerned that since she wasn't strapped in she was going to be all over and tossing food, but amazingly I think she enjoyed being a big kid so much that she acted the role.  (Though of course once we got home she went right back to the high chair.)  When she can eat with a plate in front of her (and not toss it on the floor) then she can sit at the table with us. 

Ky had a blast at Grandpa & Grandma's cottage because there were trains in the basement.  He spent hours down there watching them and starting and stopping them.  On Sunday we took the kids sledding at a big hill.  It was a really neat hill--actually it was two hills with a valley in between.  We all had a lot of fun.  Alaina was very non-chalant about the whole sledding adventure.  I am sure my little dare devil wanted us to take her on the more steep side of the hill, but I was not going to chance a wipeout with her.  It was so funny watching her face as she came down.  She was just taking it all in--no smile, no nothing.  Ky had a good time as well, though eventually all he wanted to do was eat the snow, so then we decided to call it quits.  We went back for Hot chocolate and lunch.  It was funny, I put the hot chocolate in front of Ky and said "Don't drink it yet, it's too hot" and of course what did he do--chug-a-lug--and then spit--EVERYWHERE--and then he cried.  Lesson learned.  I love those natural lessons where you can just sit back and watch.  Kylan--this is why it is important to listen to Mom & Dad.

So the theme of January was shapes and opposites.  I took a picture of Ky making his fruit pizza because he was SO excited.  We made it using a simple sugar dough and then cream cheese for the cream and on top of that we cut fruit into triangles.  And finally we cut it into triangles.  What a great way to celebrate the shape. 

Mid-January they began residing our house.  If you remember before I mentioned that we got hit with some golfball sized hail last July.  We had some pretty nice dings in our siding so the insurance company was kind enough to pay to replace it.  We had aluminum before, and through a friend we were introduced to a company that does seamless steel--which is a step above aluminum.  Well the owner was a nice guy and offered to do our house for the price of aluminum!  YEAH!  And to add to it he said he would also side our sunporch (which was not sided) for no extra cost.  We signed on the dotted line pretty quickly.  We decided on our colors in October--a cream with red shutters.  We did a lot of research and found that the lighter the color of siding, the bigger your house appears (thinking resale).  Also we found that lighter colored houses tend to sell quicker.  We chose red shutters because it went with our brick walkway and it also reflects the colors inside our house.  In October I even painted part of the sunporch to match the eventual new siding.  We were pretty excited. 

Like I said, in January they began the work.  It took a long time though.  They make each piece of siding on site (that is why it is seamless) and they make sure it is perfect.  Our neighbor had her house redone in vinyl and they did it in 2 days.  You could really tell how thoughtful our company was since it took them so long.  They would also ask us questions before they did things and warn us/fix othere things that were not right.  We definitely will go with them again in the future if we need anything.  The workers were so nice.  You will see the finished house revealed in the next blog.  It is FABULOUS!  and looks QUALITY!  I really feel bad for my neighbor next door who did vinyl, even she is wishing she hadn't.  It just doesn't look as nice and you can see all the seams in her vinyl--and even more so next to our house which has none.  It's funny--I was really upset with all the damage the hail caused to my garden in the summer--but God had some good blessings up his sleeve--that loss was worth the new siding 50 times over.

You will also notice some pics of Ky with some kids outside.  We went on a little exploration trip at a nature preserve.  The kids had a nature kit and we explored the nature area.  It was a chilly time.  And since we had trouble even finding the paths we were wandering into really deep snow drifts.  It was okay--but I think next time we will wait for things to thaw out a bit.  It looks like a cool nature reserve--just not as much fun in the winter.

At the end of the month Rob and I had a mini get away.  I am so thankful to have a husband that thinks about these things and plans them.  He heard of a marriage seminar in town called "Laugh your way to a better marriage."  So he bought us tix to that and then booked a room for us at a B & B down the street.  He also arranged to have Nana & G'ma Jan stay the night and watch the kids.  It was  a great time.  We stayed at "The Speckled Hen B& B" which is just a few miles down the road from us.  The owners have lots of property and actually built the B&B separate from their house.  If we do a B & B eventually we will also do the same (we don't want to live with constant visitors.)  The house was wonderful.  They even had their own wine cellar.  Very cool! 

The next morning we went to our seminar.  It was very funny and so true!  Definitely worth the money, if this seminar comes to your area.  We were laughing the WHOLE time.  We also learned some new things about ourselves and each other.  After the seminar we went to a tapas restaurant and had a nice relaxing dinner.  Thank you Rob so MUCH for investing in our relationship.  I had a wonderful time!

A couple of stories from the past month.  Since I have had kids I have been in the men's restroom more times than I ever thought I would.  First of all, Alaina is magnetically drawn to the men's restroom--and if the door is open--she will run.  Secondly, when Ky has got to go--he has to go--and I am not going to wait in line in the ladies restroom when the men's room is vacant.  I bring this up because we were at the library last week and Ky had to go.  There were three ladies/children in line for the restroom, yet the men's was empty.  I had KY walk in and verify it was empty and then accompanied him in.  When we walked out, we got some dirty looks.  OH WELL!  GET OVER IT!

And finally to wrap up this blog entry...kid updates...
Funny story with Kylan---

All the siding had just been ripped off the house and we were coming home.  I exclaimed "The house is naked" and Kylan said "WHAT?!"  He didn't understand my metaphor.  So I explained to him that the siding was like the house's clothes and since they took that off it's like the house is in it's underwear. We got out of the van and went inside.  A few minutes later I noticed Ky wasn't with me.  I went looking for him and finally found him outside.  I asked him what he was doing and he said "I'm looking for the house's underwear!"  HA HA!

Ky was sitting on time out crying and I told him I was not starting the timer for his timeout until he stopped crying.  He then screamed "I'm never going to stop crying!"  Yeah--it was a very long time out.

Ky words of wisdom "When a book doesn't open, you can not read it."  A wise kid indeed!

Kylan was eating lunch one day when he turned to me and said, "Mom, I want to munch your head off."  Hmmm...still debating if this is a good thing or a bad thing...

I have accomplished convincing Kylan that Rob wipes his butt better than I do.  It took some work, but it has all paid off.  I mean who enjoys wiping their kid's butt?  So each time I would do it, I would say "Man--I am just no good at doing this.  Daddy is so much better."  The payoff--Ky now only wants Daddy to do it when Daddy is home!  YEAH ME!  Mommies--take note!

We have stepped back from reading for now with Ky, but he is continuing to recognize words and sound them out. I stepped back because he was getting annoyed with trying to read some of the beginner books. I think it is just a bit too much for him right now. Sentences can be awfully intimidating at his age. I continue to write words on his hand almost every day though--and that has really helped with his word recognition.

Alaina says shoes, socks, duck, dog, peep peep (chick), woof woof (dog), all done, clean up, hi, by, mommy, daddy, kylan--but it does not sound like Kylan---it usually takes me a few minutes to figure out what she is saying, sorry (wawa), please, excuse me (meme).  Excuse me is too cute!  Whenever she burps she says "meme" in a little embarassed voice.  I am sure there is more, but I can't remember...oh well!  That is it for January...soon to come..,.FEBRUARY! 

Ky vs. Dinner

Getting Ky to even taste dinner has been a constant battle.  Watch these videos and then the last one.  The last one was recorded after the first two...Ahhhh...Children...they always leave you laughing...

Ky vs. Dinner Part 1


Ky vs. Dinner Part 2


Ky likes mommy's food?

Using the blog for good...

I received an email the today from a local radio station Z104 Madison/ 97.3 BREW CREW Milwaukee.  They invited me to enter their contest "DITCH MY DUD".  You simply write a 100 word essay on why you have the worst spouse. They will then "air" the top letters. The one with the highest vote gets their divorce paid for. Here is a link to their contest: http://radiobase1.clearchannel.com/front/OpenContest.asp?Action=Login&SurveyID=57432&zx=530



I am pretty appalled.  Thus, I am asking anyone in the Madison/Milwaukee area who wants to keep families together to write to the radio station.   I attached my letter to them below and here are some email addresses if you would also like to send a letter.

email addresses:

connieandfish@clearchannel.com, laurasteele@clearchannel.com, nathantonarelli@clearchannel.com, kerrywolfe@clearchannel.com, enidparkinson@clearchannel.com, christinaking2@clearchannel.com

Hi,

I would like to start this email by saying I have neversent an email like this before. This is my first. I am a teacher, a parent, and a wife and was shocked to find an email in my inbox offering to PAY for me to ditch my husband. Not only that, asking me to write a letter against him which can be shared with the rest of your listening audience. I understand your desire to promote your radio station, but this contest is going too far. 
I am a teacher. I have worked with hundreds of students from torn apart families every day. These
students listen to your radio station. How great do you think it would be for them to hear their mom's letter on the radio saying nothing but TERRIBLE things about their Dad? And even if they didn't hear it on the radio--you know these kids will HEAR it later from word of mouth, podcasts, etc...

Instead of having a contest to tear apart families and marriages, why don't you have a contest to put families back together. What kind of "INVESTMENT" do you think you are making to America's future by offering to pay for a family to be torn apart--not to mention have many other families get trashed on the air.

How about a contest to see what families are willing to do to STAY together--to MAKE things work? How about offering counseling or get away time to some of these stressed and overworked husbands and wives who have just lost each other in the busyness of life. This is the type of investment you should consider making for these couples and more importantly the children of these couples--HOPE that it can be worked out.
I would really love to see you guys take on the challenge and respond to this email. I know you most likely
won't, but please just take a few minutes to think about it. Let's rebuild families NOT tear them apart.

Jessica Schnake

LuLu Responds!

Amazingly, 2 days after I sent that email and posted to my blog as well as some things on Facebook, Lulu contacted me.

They apologized for sending me incorrect calendars and told me they were sending me corrected ones immediately.  Days later (after the email), I received the calendars for the correct year. 

First of all I would like to thank Lulu.com for responding and correcting the error quickly.  At the same time, I am still annoyed that I had to wait so long for them to respond.  Why does the "angry" customer finally get the company's attention?  And only after posting negative reviews about them on 3 different sites? 

I just wanted to update my blog and let people know that I was given a response from the company and they corrected their error.  If you choose to use Lulu.com in the future, I would do so with caution.

Do NOT order Products from LULU.com

We ordered a series of calendars online from a website called lulu.com.  We ordered them mid-December.  We received the calendars in record time, however we quickly discovered they were 2009 calendars.  *Interesting*.  So we ordered calendars in December of 2009 and they sent us 2009 calendars...hmmm..how does that happen. 
Anyway we emailed the company asking them to please correct the problem.  They never emailed us back or even addressed our complaint. At this point we are very angry--having spent a significant amount of money on these calendars.  Here is where you have to LOVE modern technology.  To all my blog readers---NEVER purchase anything from LULU.com.  You do not know what you will be sent and if you get sent something incorrect, they will NOT follow up with you.  Please pass this  info along to your friends.   Stay away from LULU self publishing MY LULU and of course LULU.com.  (I am trying to put their name in here lots of different ways in case anyone googles them --they can see what this company is all about.)  And finally--I would like to enclose my last email to the company.

Problem:  LULU website


Describe the problem:   We emailed over a month ago with a complaint on the calendars you sent us. You NEVER emailed back or even ACKNOWLEDGED our complaint. We are very angry with your company and its procedures for having NO CUSTOMER SERVICE. For the record, I would like you to know that I will NEVER be purchasing anything from your company again--and I will be sure to let my friends and fellow employees know about your indifference towards your customers and their purchases. I will also be sharing this info on my blog and Facebook. You have to LOVE modern technology.
Your Ignored Former Customer,
Jessica Schnake