Levett-ventures

Last Post from Blogger

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 22:21:00 +0000

Hellooooo!

Blogger is changing things around and we won't be able to publish our blog like we used to (upload to our own server) - SO, this will be the last post here. I've already imported everything into Wordpress on our server, so nothing will be lost.

The only thing that may happen is that you might have to update your link/feed to http://www.thelevetts.com if you use a blog reader.

The quickest way to do this is to just copy the URL from above into your reader and it will search for the new feed info.

See you on the other side! :)

Potty Boot Camp - Day 1

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 00:57:00 +0000

Yes, I know I'm a little crazy - but why not make potty training (cold turkey mind you) a little more exciting? So this banner is hanging up in our living room right now. I'm dancing around singing potty songs (the good kind!), and we've got loads and loads of laundry going on too.

Here we have Team Pink - aka Megan. She's the most agreeable to this little endeavor I've decided to impose on our family this week. (Thank goodness it's vacation week!) For the most part, she doesn't complain when I "encourage" her to go sit on the potty every 45 minutes or so.

(Though I did get "Mommy, I don't want to go potty anymore" a few times....she's just going to have to get used to it, everyone has to pee sometime, right?)

The end of Day 1 meant a bunch of stickers on her little pink chart, a promise for a Happy Meal because she pooped on the potty 1 1/2 times. (Don't ask about the half...believe me...), and about 3-4 changes because this whole routine is new to her. Luckily, "something" happened every time she was on the potty, so we're moving forward, I hope!

Here we have Team Blue - Ryan. He's the whole reason for this cold turkey event. He's 4. He refuses to go to the potty and would rather just wear a pull-up all the time. (Notice the mis-matched clothes? We most of the others were in the laundry!) We've gone around and around on all the theories as to why. Here are just a few...

1) He's just stubborn
2) He's lazy or too busy to take the time out to go to the bathroom.
3) He scared of something. (I would be too - have you seen our turquoise toilet?)
4) He really can't tell when he has to pee - maybe he's just not aware of it until it happens.
5) It's a power struggle and he's trying to remain in control.

We have no real answer yet. It's been REALLY frustrating though. He does show embarrassment when he does have an accident, does that mean anything?

I think something else happened today too...though I don't have all the details. He did go out to play with some of the boys down the street. Somewhere in there he had a small accident and ran home to change. When he went back out, the boys had gone inside and wouldn't let him come in with them. That makes my heart hurt, but maybe it's what he needs to learn and pay attention. I don't know. Maybe not.

Anyway...my day looked like this.:

And Ryan ended up like this:

Can You Tell the Difference? I can't!

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 20:19:00 +0000

Snow Shovels, Snow Flakes, Snow Angels and Snow Balls!

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 20:17:00 +0000

Snow Shovels

Snow Flakes

Snow Angels

Snow Balls

Disney's Nemo On Ice

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 19:23:00 +0000

The day after Christmas we went to the Civic Center (Dunkin Donuts Center for those who are new to RI) and watched Nemo on Ice. The kids LOVED it, and it was cute. Here are just a few pictures, some are blurry because my camera doesn't like to take dark photos very well. But at least you'll get the idea of how colorful and fun it was. (Not to mention sticky cotton candy faces too!)

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 14:59:00 +0000

For a vacation, the past two weeks have been packed with things to do! In just a couple of days, Ryan and I go back to school and we'll be back into a routine of some sort.

The Saturday night before Christmas, we were expecting a TON of snow, so before the first flake fell...we got the call the Church was canceled. It was a good thing because at about 10pm, it started to snow and when it was all over in the morning, we had almost 22 inches! It was a nice day off for all of us.

Christmas Eve meant only a half a day of work for Ric. (Of course, he's forced to take vacation time for the other half! Grrr...) and he had promised to help the kids make a snowman that day. His idea of a snowman is filling up buckets and stacking them up. The kids LOVED it though!
He's pretty cool with his shades, don't you think? We changed his hat to a Santa hat the next day after Santa stopped by our house. Unfortunately, the day after that, he was melted and gone. :)

Megan was so pooped after the snowman that she completely crashed on the floor afterwards. That night, we joined some good friends for dinner. The kids were all off the wall with their friends while the four parents, just sat back and watched.

Our Christmas tree and stockings this year were all made with paper (of which I have PLENTY!) because we packed our decorations and everything into a storage unit to make room for the garage remodel. Of course we thought we were going to be a lot further with that little project. So rather than dig into the back of the storage, we made everything. Do you like our poster board stockings? :) You can see the tree on my business website.

Somehow that night, Santa made it to our house. We had a nice Christmas morning with Orange Rolls and tons of wrapping paper. One thing that I wanted to do was to go see a movie - so we chose The Chipmunks, Squeakuel. It was cute, and the kids liked it. That night was Chinese Food at one of our favorite restaurants and then home again. It was a REALLY busy day, and I don't think we'll pack that much into one day again...especially since we were going out the next night to see Nemo on Ice! (Tickets courtesy of Santa - I'll put up a separate post about that one.)

So that was it...I leave you with a crazy Christmas greeting...

What a stupid I am...

noreply@blogger.com (Ric) — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 00:10:00 +0000

When we got home from the movies this afternoon, I thought that I would start my van and let it run for a little while to check out if the overheat / no-heat problem is any better since I took the thermostat out. Well...when we went outside to leave for dinner (2+hours later) the car wasn't running any more! I completely forgot that I left it running in the driveway and laid down on the couch for some napping. D'OH!

Thought so...

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 20:32:00 +0000

Referring to the post a few days ago. I was right. Now...after walking around on it for 2 weeks, how do I convince everyone that I should stay off of it?

Cool picture, huh?

Sugar Cookies...

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 19:37:00 +0000

...and what happens when the KIDS control the colored sugar sprinkles! :)

More Snowy Snow-Day Fun!

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 19:33:00 +0000

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow-Day! YAY!

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 14:42:00 +0000

The First of Many!

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 18:14:00 +0000

As I mentioned below, Ryan had his first Christmas singing concert yesterday. It was SO me cute!

(Much better than the Primary Program a few months ago where he snuck down from the stand to avoid his part!)

After the program, the kids brought hand made ornaments to their parents. I'm sure that this ornament and the Christmas Concert is the first of MANY more to come!

(Why he didn't smile in the picture, I have no idea...)

Enjoy - it's in two parts since the file was so big my dinosaur of a machine wouldn't convert it! (About 3 1/2 minutes each)

Random Stuff

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 17:31:00 +0000

Since Fall quarter is DONE, I can finally breathe a little! It's been an INCREDIBLY busy 10 weeks with so much to blog about, yet so little time. In no particular order (and what I remember)...here we go:

1) It's going to snow today in RI. The same storm that's causing all sorts of blizzard conditions in the Mid-Atlantic is on the way. This means PANIC at the market! (And possibly a Church cancellation tomorrow!) Don't get me wrong, we always enjoy going to Church, but a break once in a while is always welcome because we're both so busy at Church too - it's hard to enjoy it sometimes!

Because the snow is coming I moved about 5 wheelbarrow loads of wood from the back to the front by the garage so we could stack it inside. That way we just have to go to the garage for wood when we need it. It's cold (19 or so degrees) and the kids were out with me for a little while, but got too cold so they came in for Mary Poppins (A regular feature at our house lately - Megan practically has the entire 2 hours and 22 minutes memorized!) Anyway...when I was finally done, I came in to see this:

Two kids, on the couch, with the Cheesy Poofs, watching the movie. What a life!

2) I went to Ryan's FIRST Christmas singing concert yesterday. It was cute! Details and video in another post to come!

3) I think I broke my toe. About 2 weeks ago, I tripped in my office while trying to get something away from Megan (she's a little "swiper" lately!) and I caught my foot on a shelf. Yes, it was graceful. I initially thought that I sprained it. I had a really pretty bruise for a while. But now it just hurts - all the time. Soooo...in addition to taking the kids to the Pediatrician on Tuesday (regular appt - no vaccines for us!) I'm going to try to sneak in an appointment with the foot doctor who happens to be in the same building. Lovely...

4) Megan - has been REALLY fresh lately. She'll look us in the eye and do just what we tell her not to do. She's quick too! I can't tell you how many times she's gotten the camera, a permanent marker, food, mom's craft scissors, and other stuff she's not supposed to have. She's also acquired a BAD habit of waking up in the middle of the night and coming into our room. She doesn't say anything anymore, she just climbs into bed with us. Of course Ric and I are always exhausted or half asleep and don't realize that she's there until the morning. *sigh*

Oh, and she also bit Ryan on the cheek the other day. He most likely deserved it because he'll hold her down and won't let go even if she's screaming so the only thing she thinks she can do is bite! He has some nice purple teeth marks on his right cheek. The joys of siblings!

5) Ryan - what can I say about this kid? He's grown SOOOO much, but still refuses to go to the potty! We've all but given up and are just encouraging every once in a while. Neither of us have the energy anymore to force him to sit/stand in the bathroom. At least he wears them... somewhere!

6) Ric has been coming home mentally and physically exhausted every day for the last few weeks. First, let me state here (and Ric would agree) that the people who run the Post Office are a bunch of idiots who don't listen to anyone who actually works with the general public.

At the end of November, two jobs in Ric's office were abolished. Then one was relisted for bid. (This happened at many offices around here.) Ric's coworker decided that she had had enough of the "public" and bid out for another behind the scenes job, so luckily, Ric was able to stay in his office.

Now...there are only TWO people in his office and one part timer. His office is EXTREMELY busy all the time. Think about it...just two weeks before everything starts to heat up for Christmas and they cut one position in a really busy office, PLUS hire someone brand new to it all part time that has to learn everything while people are lined up in the lobby and out the door? (sorry for the run-on sentence!) It does mean a little bit of overtime pay, but SO isn't worth it when Ric comes home and he looks like he's been beaten up!

Of course, today he's working and has to deal with not only the people who procrastinated and are rushing to the post office to mail Christmas stuff, BUT the people who HAVE to buy their one or two stamps because the snow that's the way! (And we all know the panic that happens when even one flake is mentioned here on the news!)

7) Take a look at this. My 14 year old fat cat, SuziQ. She's a permanent fixture in front of the fire lately. I think I just might join her while I work on Christmas Cards that should have been sent out WEEKS ago! (By the way...we actually didn't have to turn up the oil heat until just this week because of this fire insert!)

Crazy Kids!

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 13:54:00 +0000

Happy Birthday Ryan!

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 13:06:00 +0000

SO BEHIND! I can't believe that Ryan is FOUR! He had been talking for WEEKS about his birthday. Always wondering how many more days he had to wait.

FINALLY it arrived and he was pretty excited.

We were pretty low key on his actual day, with some gifts and cupcakes. The REAL excitement was going to be the NEXT day with a party at Chuck E Cheese!

Ryan's favorite birthday gift has to be his new drum set. This kid has rhythm in his blood and will always go around tapping some kind of pattern wherever he is. Soooo... since he's taking after Mom, (YAY!) we decided to get him something to drum on! He loves it!

------------------------------

Now for the Chuck E Cheese festivities. You'll probably notice in this slide show that Megan is not in the pictures. That's because Megan ended up with a really high fever and wouldn't have been able to enjoy the party. Of course, Ryan chose to have Dad go with him to the party, which was probably best since Meg was a little clingy. So I stayed home. :(

From all accounts, everyone had a great time!

Just the way we like him! :)

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 16:28:00 +0000

I happened to come upon this little scene a few months ago and snapped a picture (and never posted it!) What other little boy do you know who falls asleep on a half inflated bouncy house with a can opener in his hand? Hmmm....

More Garage Progress

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 16:12:00 +0000

It's finally starting to look like a ROOM! We've got most of the insulation up and the walls built.

Last night we pulled out the washer and dryer to see what fun things we could find! We knew that the plaster at the bottom was falling apart and that there was some mold behind it, so it wasn't too much of a surprise to see this.

We've decided to take part of the plaster down and just replace it with sheetrock to clean it up a bit. I'm hoping that we won't find anything that requires MORE work! :) We have one more wall to build in this area that will be behind the washer and dryer to enclose the water and oil pipes - then comes the ceiling!

We had hoped to get so much more done this week - but Ryan and Megan had other plans. It's very frustrating, but that's the way it is.

From Megan's Viewpoint

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 15:11:00 +0000

Megan is a little sneak. She's always found with things that she KNOWS she shouldn't have. One is the camera. Even though we put it away, she always seems to find it and start snapping pictures! (Good thing they are digital!)

I was going to delete the pictures she took one day when I noticed that these pictures were what SHE saw from her level! I can't delete them now...rather I've put them into a slide show so that you can see what she sees. It's pretty interesting! (And maybe a little incriminating too!) Enjoy!

Please mom...no more pictures!

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 15:09:00 +0000

I had to post this one separately... too funny!

Happy Halloween!

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 14:53:00 +0000

Halloween 2009! The kids are still young enough that I can pretty much dress them the way I want to. :)

This year, Ryan was a magician and Megan was the bunny he pulled out of his hat. SO CUTE! Here are a couple of pictures, we did have one taken, which is currently at Ryan's preschool. When we get that one back, I'll add it to this post.

Megan wasn't too sure about trick or treating, but she got the hang of it pretty quick and had a ball at the Trunk or Treat at the Church and going around the block with Dad. (Would you believe we still have candy left today? I sealed most of it up in jars to put away for later. LOVE my jar sealer!)

Fall Leaves in Our Back Yard

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 14:30:00 +0000

Before time slips completely away...I've got to catch up here! We've been WAY too busy, and it's time to slow down a little bit. Between my Stampin' Up! events, FOUR New England Tech Classes, Church, the Post Office, the garage and the KIDS, we're just plain exhausted!

Anyway....

We've had to rake our back yard about three times this year. Not only because of OUR trees, but our neighbor behind us has a HUGE oak tree that seems to only drop it's leaves in OUR yard!

There's no way we can bag it all up without spending a fortune on the leaf bags, so we just dump them all into the trailer and haul it off to the Warwick city compost pile. This picture was taken on one of those leaf raking days - and one of the 3 or 4 trips we had to take to the dump! :)

Look at those two blondies!

Oh...and here's the official "leaf jumping of 2009" video:

It's Hip to be Square

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 15:20:00 +0000

Summer Sunset

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 15:19:00 +0000

Swirling Leaves

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 15:18:00 +0000

Happy Cows (come from California?)

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 15:16:00 +0000