The Husband Strikes Again, Dorks

Hello, husband here.   This week is the first week of Melissa's and my split shift work week.   She works the day shift, I work the evening shift.  It is also the first day back to school after Thanksgiving Break for the kids.   So, not counting the bunny, two dogs, and one annoying cat, I am here...ALONE!  
It's quiet...a bit too quiet.   And WONDERFUL!   I love the kids, but I haven't yelled at anyone to stop hitting their sister or to find their shoe or to stop licking something.   It's great!  
So, here I am, ghost blogging on my wife's account.   So, here now, are some random thoughts.

• Turkey is wonderful...once a year.   Sincerely.   We love turkey.   We love stuffing (only my wife's will do).  And we tolerate cranberry dressing.   Once a year.   That's it people!   Maybe I need to start deep frying them...
• I am taking bets now on how many hats and gloves I will need to buy this year.   Everyone else in the civilized world will say 'Seven kids?   That's seven hats; seven pairs of gloves!  Learn yourself some math, doofus!'   Whoa there!  Slow your roll, player.   My kids REGULARLY lose their hats and gloves.   That's why we are a fan of coats with hoods and pockets.  My daughter Emily got a hat from a crossing guard who loves my kids on Tuesday morning.   She had lost it by the end of the day.  I'm going with four of each right now...(side note, dollar tree sells hats and gloves for a buck.  FYI)
• Housework is for losers.   That being said, I lost.
• I just did a kickboxing cardio work out.   On a completely unrelated note, what does a heart attack/stroke feel like?
• When the Mayans were figuring up the date for the end of the world, did they figure in leap years and daylight savings time?   And if so, does that mean the world will end in Australia first?  And do people in Starke county have one more hour than us in Marshall and St. Joseph?  Does that really seem fair?
• I called my wife a dork.   Later on, she looked up the definition of the word dork.   She was not amused.

Well, that's all for now.   Let us make preparations for Festivus!

Turkey with the fam....

Today we celebrated Thanksgiving....because well, that is what today is. We filled ourselves, said the prayer and ate off off turkey plates. "Blue" as Tobey named him tasted wonderful, and everything besides the brusell sprouts (which took me an hour to individually take off the stalk and peel) was a hit. Those brusell sprouts were not even edible, huge waste of time. Going on...

We did not however get around to the pumpkin/squash hunt, nor did I do any crafts with the kids. Why? You my ask? Because I managed to catch whatever the kids had and instead of feeling like I could do this....

On the day of feasting. I felt and looked like this.....

Not fun, I felt like I was run over by a truck and I am pretty sure that I asked Eddie a few times to let me just simply die and go meet our Savior.

Thanksgiving in 2 days!!!! WHAT!?!?!?!

Hello blog world, I sit here in disbelief of how fast time has been going. We have had so much going on in our house and that calendar doesn't stop for nothing. Today, I am home with a sick Emily and Tobey Jude. Yesterday, Eddie was home with a sick Olivia and Melody....tomorrow, who knows.

One thing that has been keeping us so busy was Eddie and I have 2 new jobs. After almost 5 years of being with Steel Warehouse and working his way into management, Eddie's plant shut down. He was able to find work in Plymouth (thank you God) but, they are obviously not going to give him the same pay starting at that we need to support a family of 9. So, I went to work in a factory. Do I think I am supposed to be working at a factory with a bad back and 7 kids with demanding schedules? Nope. But you do whatever it takes to take care of your family. I am however, going to need to find a job done the line that won't KILL me!

So, as you may know I kinda have a thing for holiday's. And this Thanksgiving is no different. We are starting a new thing with the kids this year. Wal-Mart had bags of mini pumpkins and gourds for $ .02. You read that right 2 cents (btw, where in the world is the cents sign on the keyboard? I can't find it!) so I bought 5 bags and we are going to hide them around the house (Easter egg style) and then the kids will bring them to the table for the centerpiece and as they put in each one they are going to say what they are thankful for. I have a feeling that Edwin is going to throw one at me, but we are trying to make a memory here people!

So, if you are not one of the people on Facebook that heard about Miss Emily...she may be gifted. I opened the letter from school and I was totally expecting for it say that she needs to be tested for Autism, or that she didn't put socks on. Something along those lines, because to be honest that is really all we ever get. But no! They think that Emily may be gifted! I am in shock of this kid!

The rest of the kids are doing alright, except for Tobey. The little dude is honestly getting to be quite the handful to take care of. He is getting bigger and stronger. A dear friend gave us the name of a Dr in Indy so we are going to check him out. I am in hopes that he has the answers for Tobey.

Olivia and Edwin are going to bell ringers for the Salvation Army for a couple of Friday's this holiday season.  Now, I was all about Olivia doing it. She is very polite and charitable minded. I also don't worry about her saying insane things. Edwin however, I have no idea how this is going to go down. I can totally see him in his monotone voice saying things like " I know you have more than a dollar lady" or "If you don't give me money I will blow up your car" or he could start doing jumping jacks or Gangham style right there at the entrance of Kmart. I am relieved that I don't have to be there and if something does happen I can blame Eddie because this was NOT my idea.

Olivia, Edwin and Alison are also going to perform at the town's Christmas tree lighting and parade. I think that one will go really well as long as the weather is good.

So, I suppose I need to do something around the house, take care!

Sometimes it really does take a village...

I remember several years back when I heard Hillary Clinton taking about that very topic, I think she had a book or something about it....she may have even won a Grammy for it. And not to get too far off the subject, but if she did win said Grammy for it....how hard is it really to win a Grammy. I know that Justin Beiber has way too many..... Okay, back to my blog on Hillary Clinton....ahhh, villages raising children that's it!!!!!

I started working at a new job last Thursday...I had about one day to actually prepare to go to work at a full time job. Now don't get me wrong I am not complaining, I need the job. But getting seven kids prepared to take on new responsibilities, making bulletin board charts on bus times (for 5 schools, mind you) rescheduling Dr. appointments, therapies and then trying not to kill my children, it was a rough 24 hours.

The hardest thing however was to find a place that will watch the Tobey Jude, and man I got to be picky, the last after school program lost him twice, and I am a little leery of these places now. So let me try and put you  in my shoes. Tobey is not an easy child. Now he is the cutest little dude I have ever laid my eyes on. But the fact that he could be hurt and have no way to let me know, and then I have to trust a virtual stranger with this precious boy and all his Autistic beauty, is harder than I can ever put in words. And once you find this person in Plymouth Indiana (not easy) they have to be willing to take him on. They have to feel comfortable and have the capabilities of taking care of him They are going to have to be willing to change him, medicate him and keep him safe. Just keeping Tobey safe is such a huge job....he knows of no danger. And while taking care of Tobey they have to also take care of other kids , not easy. There are days that I have no idea how the rest of our kids made it through the day with no injuries, with the days that boy has.

Well, the day that I got the phone call with my new job....God was with us. Because not only did we find a place for Tobey, but Emily and Melody are going with him. And that miraculous place that I am entrusting 3 of my beautiful children? Lifeplex! Holy cow, this place is AWESOME! The 3 littlest of the Holstein's have gone for 3 days this week, and so far they have learned about healthy food choices, taken Karate lessons, ran track (they were very impressed with Tobey's running skills) and had swimming lessons! They also give them help with homework, and they even teach them manners! We have been blessed beyond words to have found a Christian run, and health conscious place to send the kids!

We also got amazing help from the schools, as far as bending over backwards to help us out with bus schedules changing...making sure the kids looked appropriate for the school day (Lena has been helping with mornings now) and offering any support we could need.

The Boys and Girls Club has also been an amazing place with helping us to get Edwin adjusted to schedule changes and of course being Olivia's and Ali's favorite hang out after school....and handling the homework for 2 exhausted parents.

I can not thank our village enough for all they are doing for our kids. Years ago, when Ed and I were closed off I could not imagine having this many people helping us to raise our brood. And now I can't imagine how we could ever have done this without support. The other day I went to Jefferson, and the social worker wanted to be sure that she hadn't offended me (Emily forgot her coat, and it was getting colder that day...she let her borrow one) I looked at her and told her I was thankful that she loved my child enough to do that....how could someone loving my kid offend me?

Ed and I don't have Grandparent's coming over to visit the grand kids or ever even babysit for that matter. They have their own lives, and that's fine. But what we have is the most amazing friends, teachers, caregivers and Church that have given us more advice, support and most importantly loved our family. And so if I was doing that thankful Facebook thing, it would go something like this.....

Day 1- I am thankful to my God and our Church for everything that I have...everything
Day 2- My Husband
Day 3- 7 of the most amazing people I have ever known
Day 4- Our jobs, things can be tough without them
Day 5- Our Village
Day 6- Our home
Day 7- Our Pets
Day 8- Autism...I know it sounds nuts, but I am. Except for the meltdowns...I am NOT thankful for those.
Day 9- Our medical team for the kids...yes it is a team now. Everyone from Pediatricians (3 of them) , therapists (5 of them), Psychologist, Psychiatrist, Cardiologist (he could be nicer...anyway), CVS pharmacy (Hi Tabatha!) the nurses at our Pediatricians and the office staff who has been amazing!
Day 10- I really should have split up days 9 and 10, that is a ton of people! So, let's say Holiday's for day 10! I love me some holidays!

Long blog today...whew!