Goodbye August, Hello September

The Walls and Border Before Paint

After the success we had in painting our bedroom, we foolishly decided to paint the stark white living room and dining room the same week. It did not come together quite so nicely as the bedroom. I started by buying the paint color too dark and having to purchase more in a lighter shade called Camel. It took us most of the week of extremely late nights, but we finally finished it (and got to watch a LOT of Olympics in the process)! It looks so much better without the hideous 70's inspired border and heavy drapes. I still need to touch up the woodwork in a few spots and install the new hardware on the windows, but the worst is over. We still need to paint the dining room as well, but it can wait! I've had enough painting this summer to last me for a while. Painting with the kids and cats wandering around and making messes behind my back (or right in front of me for that matter) is exhausting and frustrating. I think I need a live-in nanny :)

After Paint! (curtains not back up yet in photo)

FireplaceNew Fan
Wall of Family Photos

The next weekend project was to clean out the basement. We went through all of the kids old baby clothes and paraphernalia and organized them into plastic bins by sex, age, and size. What a job that was! It look me most of the week to finish sorting through my "weekend project".

The mess in the playroomLibby playing with baby clothes

I finally got the basement cleaned out just in time to set up the kittening box for our very pregnant foster kitty, Sunflower. Unfortunately, she decided that she should give birth in a litter box instead. I spent all afternoon playing midwife to the poor kitty as she was having a difficult time. Most of her babies were presenting breech, and she was exhausted. We knew she was having seven babies from the X-rays that we took several weeks ago. Number seven, however was just not coming out, even after 4 hours of labor and still no progress. Finally, at 1 AM, I called my friend Karrie and we took the poor cat and all 6 kittens to the emergency vet. After several more hours of waiting, additional X-rays, two injections of pitocin, and warnings that the cat may need a C-section, she delivered the last baby. It was stillborn after all that time. By the time I got home and into bed, it was 4:30 AM.

Sunflower in her nestSix perfect little babies!

Caleb woke up bright and early a few hours later, and we headed over to Mom and Dad Rohrer's house to celebrate Labor Day. The kids had a blast swimming around in the pool all morning. Caleb learned how to float on his back and was actually jumping right off the diving board all on his own. Libby was a little less enthusiastic about jumping in, but with Uncle Zack's encouragement, she was soon jumping off the side to him and practicing floating and putting her face in the water.

Libby Having Fun


Floating, Laughing Caleb


Loving the back float!


Olympic Diving Gold!


Libby being towed by Zack on a noodle

Flying Caleb

Caleb went down for a nap after a few hours in the pool, and Libby got to go to the park with Grandma and Papa where she fed the ducks and was nipped on the fingers by an over enthusiastic goose. When she came home, she curled up in Papa's chair and said she was cold. When we took her temperature, she had a 103.4 fever. She continued feel lousy all afternoon. We let her sleep as long as possible, but finally packed everyone up and headed home early in the evening. By the time we arrived home, both kids were running 104 and 105 degree fevers. We are assuming that they have Hand Foot and Mouth Disease since it starts with a fever and continues with lesions and blisters in the mouth on the hands and feet. Both kids have the lesions in their mouths already and have a faint rash so far on their hands and feet. The virus is supposed to last for around a week and then goes away by itself. Both kids are feeling somewhat better today, although they are both still running fevers. They are enjoying being pampered and eating the ice cream and popsicles that Nathan brought home for them tonight. Hopefully, they will be over this bug and back to themselves soon!

Big Foot in better days


Caleb playing with the squirt gun (note the marker art on his arms)

For more pictures from the last few moths, click on the links for July, August and September.