Saturday, November 25, 2006

More about me....

You are supposed to answer the following questions using photographs or images. Hmmm...maybe I will try this soon.
one. who am i?
two. who knows me best?
three. how old am i? (or how old do i feel?)
four. the most important thing in my life is _____________
five. i always carry _____________________
six. something i always do _____________________
seven. i'm at my happiest when _____________________
eight. on a monday morning, you can find me ____________
nine. my favourite mode of transport
ten. my eyes are _____________________
eleven. my favourite material posession
twelve. to relax, i like to _____________________
thirteen. the town i live in is _____________________
fourteen. my worst habit
fifteen. my guilty pleasure
sixteen. when i look at someone, the first thing i see is _______
seventeen. i think _____________________ is beautiful
eighteen. one thing i can live without
nineteen. one thing people don't know about me
twenty. my life is ___________________

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Thankful for.....

...Mason getting a haircut today
...popcorn and diet pepsi
...snuggling under a cozy blanket with Kyla while watching Harry Potter
...Pepper cuddled up on my lap
...finishing 9 of 11 items off my to do list today
...a warm house with rain dripping onto the roof
...a movie date with my husband last night
...the prospect of NOT cooking dinner tomorrow
...an email from my good friend Shelley
...watching Harry Potter in Spanish and laughing with the boys
...Kyla being kicked off the computer so I can use it
...my yummy cranberry chutney chilling in the fridge
...talking to my Grandma on the phone yesterday
...a day filled with family tomorrow
...3 days with friends and wine tasting next week
...LIFE

Monday, November 20, 2006

Holiday fever

Every year I swear that I will not get bogged down by the holidays.... it's such a beautiful time of year filled with the opportunity for peace and introspection and gratitude and love.... But inevitably I end up stressed by the pressures of gift giving and cooking and just the sheer EXPENSE of it all. So even though Thanksgiving is only a mere 3 days away, I am pledging to use this most precious time of advent for what it was intended... to prepare my heart to once again accept the gift of Jesus.

Sunday, November 19, 2006

By far the best shot of the day..


was of MY baby.... Pepper. Isn't that a great look.

(Also, the great light really makes the shot!!)

Here are the shots of Charles...



By the time I arrived at Charles' house, the day was pretty stormy and the light was not great, but we got a few good shots.... Here are my favorites....

Wanna be photographer






















So yesterday I got to go up to my inlaws house to take some pics of my new nephew, Charles. In order to get ready I whipped out my camera manual and proceeded to read about how to shoot without using the preprogammed modes. All that reading inspired me to take a few pics at home before venturing up to see Charles. Here are a few of the shots I took.....

This is my niece Alyssa looking cute..... and quirky in her pink fishnet sleeves!! And of course Kyla is being her crazy but beautiful self!

Friday, November 17, 2006

A random chat


One of the best things about commuting with your kids is that you are stuck in the car together, and they are almost always forced to talk to you! Now, don't get me wrong, Mason and I by no means talk for 20 minutes straight to and from school each day. But, we are having more conversations overall since we started driving around together.

Today we were laughing about all the ridiculous incidents the news was reporting concerning the release of the new PS3. I mean, come on people, shootings and fist fights over a gaming system!! Get a life!! The conversation then turned to the many gaming systems Mason has owned in his life. He actually saved up his own money for months to buy his first Nintendo back when he was 10!!

That triggered a memory for me of him in his room at about the age of 4 with money (mostly coins) in a loooooong line from the toy box to the door. At least twice a week he would spread his money out this way with the BIG money (AKA $1 bills) on one end and progressing down to the pennies. Then he would meticulously count the money all by himself. It was the cutest thing ever.... and may I say that his Math skills were VERY advanced for a 4 year old! When I mentioned this to him, he remembered that he was saving up to buy a Darth Vader toy.

It was a nice drive home today.

Wednesday, November 15, 2006

bad day/ good day....

Well, my day started out pretty badly.... not enough time to blow dry my hair all the way.... always ends up looking FUZZY! Kyla was freaking out about not knowing how to finish her math homework.... had to spend 15 minutes explaining Lowest Common Denominator before breakfast..... grab everything and start to run out the door.... don't have lunch, realize I forgot to pack lunch.... grab dull pasta with nothing on it and race out.... get into the car (already 5 minutes late) and don't have enough gas to get to work.... get to small gas station closest to my house and both pumps are already in use.... wait (parked back a little bit) for person to leave so I can pull up to pump and another guy comes cruising in and steals my spot.... get stuck behind a large truck on 2 lane road on the way to work... arrive at work promptly at 8:10.... have numerous children and parents waiting for me. UGH!!

Right before recess, one of the other teachers calls me and says the reading program I've been dying to use has arrived..... I walk to the teacher's room and realize it's GOODIE DAY (this means other people have made a yummy lunch with lots of desserts for all to share) AAAAHHHH!! My day is better!

I'm pretty easy to please!

Saturday, November 11, 2006

Good Story

An elderly Chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole, which she carried across her neck. One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walk from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full. For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do. After 2 years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream. "I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house." The old woman smiled, "Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side?" "That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every! day while we walk back, you water them." "For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house." Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding. You've just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them.

Friday, November 10, 2006

A new baby in the family


Monday was the big day! Liz’s water broke at 2:50am, and after a 15-hour labor adventure, Liz gave birth to a 8lb-5oz, 19-3/4” baby boy at 6:08pm – Charles Nicholas Bergenske. He is just adorable and both he and his mother are recovering well.


We are so excited about our newest Bergenske!!

Congratulations to the happy (sleep deprived) parents!

Thursday, November 09, 2006

She's 4!!

She ran....
She jumped....
She leaped....
She giggled....
She bounced....
She shrieked with joy....
She was wild and crazy....

It was a lovely party at gymnastics....

And when we sang...

Happy birthday to you...
Happy birthday to you...
Happy birthday dear Maddie....
Happy birthday to you!

She positively GLOWED!

It was perfect.

Tuesday, November 07, 2006

Halloween Hauntings




Here are a few shots I took of the girls on Halloween before trick or treating. Maddie was dressed up as Kipper (her own personal black and white cat), Livi was Minnie Mouse, Alyssa was a pirate girl, and Kyla was an AC/DC school girl. They were all adorable. It sure took a large amount of coaxing (and bribery) to get Kyla to wear her outfit, but we did it!

We enjoyed a night of roaming the Lundbar Hills area. Near the end Maddie had to be carried, but it was worth it..... There is still candy scattered all over the house!

This is certainly one of the BIG advantages of living in Eureka again.

P. S. We did not go the aforementioned neighbors house!

Friday, November 03, 2006

The dreaded neighbor....

So, we have lived in this neighborhood for barely 2 months, and already we have an enemy. WARNING: I take full responsibility for NOT being a bigger person and diffuisng the situation. Prepare to be shocked.... as my friend Joanna says, "It is really shocking."

So, here's the story......

Once upon a time (hee hee) Mark was home alone with Pepper, and Pepper was outside barking his sweet little heart out while Mark watched TV. Out of the blue, this grouchy old man comes to the door. Mark answers it. The old man complains that the dog barking is bothering him, and it is against the CCR's. Mark is polite, apologizes, and brings the dog in.

Fast forward a few days..... We are all home. I am cooking dinner. The washing machine and dryer are going. The kids are in their rooms doing whatever they do in there. Mark is watching TV. Pepper is outside barking. The grouchy old man comes to the door. I answer it.

Old man (with vein pulsing on his forehead): Your dog has been outside barking for almost an hour. Could you.....

Me (with mouth pursed and eyes narrowed): Goodbye (Door is closed)

Now, I know that was not the best way to handle the situation, but I was tired and really, if I would have actually talked to him, I would have said something RUDE (even more rude than shutting the door in his face) and possibly containing profanity!! So, under the circumstances, I did the best I could.

The newest update in the saga occured on Halloween. I had a pretty decent day at school... The kinders were pretty well behaved. But, it was Halloween, and the amount of sugar is only rivaled by the high energy level. So when I got home I was mellowing out on the computer.... checking email, visiting blogs, and playing solitaire. Mark was on the golf course. Mason was in his room, and Kyla and Alyssa had just arrived home from Jr. High. Pepper was again outside (barking). Kyla yells to me that their are early trick or treaters, and I need to get the candy ready. So, I log off and start heading to the kitchen, but as I pass the front door, I see THE DREADED OLD GRUMPY MAN coming up the steps. As I walk passed the glass door, he looks in at me. I keep walking. I say to Kyla, "Go get Pepper" and I go into the kitchen to get the candy. He rings the doorbell. This time when I open it, he truly looks like he is about to have a stroke. He is so worked up and angry. Before I can say anything he snaps at me, "I have been listening to your dog bark for over an hour, and he's driving me crazy!!!!!" I say, " I already sent my daughter to get him." I shut the door. I get the candy ready. I answer the doorbell to 3 trick or treaters. I snap at an approximately 7 year old boy who takes 2 handfuls out of the basket. HEY!

That grumpy old man spread his grumpiness all over me..... That is not how I want to spend my time! It is then that I get a mental picture. This old guy from across the street is retired. He has a lovely sweet wife. He bothers all the neighbors about the CCR's. He sat in his house for an hour with nothing better to do than listen to my dog bark and let himself be overcome with anger.

That is when I became full of remorse.... not for letting my dog out to work off a little energy after being locked up in his kennel... but for the people who have no joy in life.

So here is my note to the grumpy old man....

Dear sir,
I am truly sorry that you have nothing more exciting to do in your day than to sit home and listen to my dog bark, so I have come up with a list of things you could do while my dog is outside each day.

1. Turn your TV up.
2. Put on some big band music and dance with your lively wife.
3. Get in your car and go to the store for earplugs.
4. Watch an action movie.
5. Call someone you like and make pleasant conversation.
6. Mow your lawn.
7. Take a walk in a quieter neighborhood.
8. Drill or hammer or saw something.
9. Scrub something. (Scrubbing always gets my anger out.)
10. Put on some Marvin Gaye or Barry White and have a MATINEE with your wife.

Whatever you do, please avoid my front door. Sincerely, your helpful neighbor

So, I'd love to hear your comments on what to add to my list. Gotta go, I hear a knock at the door.....