Bit the Big One

A couple of important items have recently "bit the big one" here at the Visnaw house. First, Leon's 1989 Honda Accord died on the freeway. The oil filter was loose, all the oil drained out, and since engines need oil, driving it was a bad thing. The engine is damaged beyond repair and a new/used engine for it would be $1800-$3000 depending on whether we chose the used engine or the rebuilt model. This 1989 Honda only had about 100,000 miles on it, and the used engine (the cheapest option) would have 185,000 miles on it. Our mechanic felt it wasn't worth putting that kind of money into it even though the rest of the car is in excellent condition. It is a bummer having to consider buying a new car, but I know Leon is excited to actually drive a car with a stereo and air conditioning that work. We've been car shopping the last few days and I've been online for HOURS researching and looking at cars - brutal! As of right now, we are leaning toward a 2002 Ford Focus, well Leon is. I'm too much of a bargain shopper to buy something unless I KNOW I've looked at all the other options. I'm driving Leon crazy. It's like buying a house all over again. The kicker is that we had just done our taxes and were looking at a nice tax return. I guess we know exactly where that money is going.

Does anyone have any experience with the Ford Focus or Chevrolet Aveo? We've read good and bad about both cars. We've test driven several of them and either car could go either way. Car shopping should be fun, but not when you NEED a car and SOON. Being a one car family has been inconvenient. I'm not spending any money, though - can't go anywhere.

Our possible "new" car? What do you think?

The other important item that "bit it" is the memory card to the digital camera. Now I know a memory card isn't as important as a car to most people, but to me this means not being able to post pictures on our blog, and not being able to sell things on Criagslist. Thankfully, the only pictures on the memory card were of household items I was getting ready to list on Craigslist. It's really odd since our memory card reader actually MELTED the memory card - not sure why. So, the memory card is warped and the card reader is pretty much toast. I guess there won't be any pictures for a while - sorry.

New Dinner Recipe

(Photo Courtesy of "Dinner's On Me". Our dinners never look this pretty.)

Thanks to "Dinner's On Me" I have added several new recipes to my dinner menu. If you haven't ever checked out this site, you NEED to. We had "Creamy Rosemary Penne with Chicken" last night, and everyone loved it. http://www.dinnersonme.blogspot.com/

CPSIA Sale on Etsy

For all you Etsy and Boutique lovers, you must check this out.

Because of the new law (CPSIA) going into effect on February 9th, those small businesses and individuals who make and sell items for children under the age of 12 on Etsy and other boutiques will have to comply or go out of business. There are thousands of Etsy shops and boutiques, including me, who are discounting their items as a result. Anything sold after Feb. 9th will be considered illegal - too bad. Get your stuff now, or get it from a big manufacturer in China that can afford to comply.

For more information, visit this site: http://www.change.org/ideas/view/save_handmade_toys_from_the_cpsia

Also, visit my Etsy shop http://www.slvjewelry.etsy.com/ for discounted infant, girls, and boy's jewelry.

The End Is Near (For Me At Least)

Leon has been gone since Sunday morning and I have been a single mom this whole week. The first two days went by without a hitch. However, on Tuesday it was clear that my easy streak was over. Landon came to me with those dreaded words, "I'm not feeling well," and hunches into a ball on the floor. My first reaction was that he needed to visit the bathroom (still having #2 issues), but after reviewing his potty schedule in my head, I realized that this most likely wasn't the problem. I could feel my blood pressure and anxiety rising, but I did a great job of staying calm and talking myself out of my puke-a-phobe thoughts. He flopped around all evening complaining of his stomach and then developed a fever later in the night. He didn't sleep (and neither did I) most of the night. Wednesday was a difficult day with Landon complaining and being extra needy. He never threw up (answer to a prayer, literally) but I felt like he had enough symptoms that I should have him see the doctor to rule out Strep throat. After a BRUTAL experience for a germ-a-phobe at the doctor's office (I'll spare the details), the Strep test came back negative. Irronically enough, two hours after seeing the doctor, Landon seemed much better and his fever was gone by morning. Hmm. But, the story does not end here, unfortunately. Jayden started complaining of not feeling well Wednesday night (a fairly common occurance since I think Jayden is a hypochondriac). I tried to dismiss it, but with Landon already sick, I had to take it seriously. Jayden lives by the ear thermometer, checking his temperature daily (not exaggerating). So, I was not surprised to see that Jayden had a fever, too. Needless to say, Wednesday night was another sleepless one for me. Thursday was spent catering to Jayden's needs (and he seemed to have many), watching non-stop kid shows, and playing every two-player game we have in the closet - not such a bad day. Today being Friday I'm looking forward to this being the end of the week, but with Jayden home from school again, I'm afraid I'm destined to this for another day:
Leon comes home tomorrow and it's a three day weekend. I think I'll make it - wish me luck!

New Year's

For New Year's Eve we usually do the same thing each year. My sister and her family come over and we put a movie (or two) on for the kids and the adults eat themselves silly and play games until well after midnight. We have a tradition in our house, which I also remember doing when I was younger, of banging pots and pans when the New Year hits. We are usually the only ones in the neighborhood making any noise, but that makes it all that much more fun.

Christmas

Here's proof (based on the mess) that we had a good Christmas.

We stayed at my parents' over the weekend after Christmas and had a lot of fun. The adults (well, some of us) stayed up late playing games, the kids played on the Wii a lot, and we got to go sledding a couple of times. It's very convenient having a sledding hill right across the street. The little ones didn't last as long, but there was one afternoon that they stayed out until dark.

Dallin and Cousin Ethan

Grandpa Giving Landon a BIG Push

Leon and Jayden Out for a Thrill