Friday Thoughts

Can I just say that I LOVE getting something on sale?  I was talking to my brother the other day and was going through how cheaply I had gotten everything I was wearing.  I had on a shirt that cost $1.99, jeans for $6.98, a sweater for $4.98, sock for $0.33, and shoes for $6.48.  Yes, I just feel good when I get something on sale.  The other day I popped into Kmart and found some shoes for baby Paige that were on sale for 50% off, which would mean I'd pay $2.00 for them.  When I checked out, the total was less than I expected, so I looked over my receipt and saw the shoes had only cost me $0.01.  That right--a penny!!!!  I think it was an error in the way someone had entered it into the computer, but they sold it to me anyway.  Nice, right?  I've also been getting a few things for the kids for next year and haven't paid more than $2.00 for any shirt or pair of shorts I've gotten.  I really love clothes, but I love it even more when I know everything I bought was a bargain!

We've been working on getting flu shots for everyone, not the swine kind, but the seasonal ones.  Ian and Elise got theirs at the same time.  They did great and didn't even make a face.  It could have helped that they were trying to be braver than Uncle Adam or the fact that they were getting to pick out a pack of gum or piece of candy afterwards, but whatever the ultimate motivation, they were troopers.  Paige had hers the next day and she didn't make a peep either.  She squinched up her face, but never fussed at all.  Then yesterday I took Merry Grace.  I already knew this was going to be tougher then the other ones.  Merry Grace cried when Paige got hers.  She covered her ears at all the other flu shots, worried that someone would cry.  We went to the minute clinic at CVS pharmacy.  First of all, we had to wait for about 45 minutes which was torture.  When we walked into the room, Merry Grace immediately attached herself to my leg and began sobbing.  This was well before we even got started thinking about a shot.  By the time the nurse got around to giving the shot, I was holding Merry Grace on my lap with her arms pinned to her side while she struggled to get free.  When the needle went in she actually screamed louder (I didn't think it was possible) and then completely stopped crying.  I guess she realized it wasn't as terrible as she'd imagined.  Boy, am I glad to have that out of the way.  Now I can just look forward to taking her to get the swine one.  How fun. :)

 Here are the cute cousins this past Sunday.  If they get any sassier, any fancier or any sweeter, I don't know what I will do!

In the afternoon, they rode around in the jeep for a while.  Thankfully, there always seems to be room for one more.

Cory put the training wheels back on Ian's old bike and Merry Grace took up riding right away.  She was great at it and loved the feel of being on a big kid's bike.  She kept saying, "I'm pretty good at riding bikes!", in her cute little voice.

Oh my word, sweet little Merry Grace does love to take care of that baby.  She is so good at it too!

We made Halloween masks the other night.  Merry Grace's is a little too big, but she doesn't seem to mind at all.

   

After a bit, she pushed it on top of her head like sunglasses and her hair bushed out behind it.  So cute and funny!

Elise and Ian made them too.  Elise was only concerned about fashion!  She wanted hers to look stylish and was slightly disappointed when it bulged out a little once she put it on.  She was a good sport, though, and can't really be blamed for the fact that her mother isn't a professional mask maker.  Ian wanted his scary which means NO GLITTER.  Finally, after coloring on his black mask with a black marker for about 20 minutes, he decided a small amount of green glitter might actually be scary.  I don't know, though.  I think he might be too cute to be scary.