Time flies!

Wow, I can't believe tomorrow is the last day of the year! Andy told me tonight that he thinks the year has gone by too fast, I told him to wait till he's my age, you blink and all of a sudden your baby is 11 and you're OLD!

So let's see, what's new with the Stovers???

Christmas was lots of fun! We pretty much spent 3 days in our jammies, always my favorite way to be! The kids got to open a couple of their presents early, namely their snow bibs and snow boots, but of course they wanted to open the traditional one gift on Christmas Eve! Jamie was up at 6:30 Christmas morning asking if I thought he should get the kids up! I said no, but was overruled, so we were up early! Santa brought sleds for everyone, but we haven't gotten to use them yet! He also brought Webkinz for the boys and a Strawberry Shortcake for Kate, they were all happy! They all got way too much, lots of neat toys and lots of clothes for all of them.

We've spent the week breaking in their toys and playing, enjoying their time off from school! Tomorrow Jen, Keith and the kids are coming over for New Years, I'm sure we'll eat ourselves silly and be in bed way before midnight! Jen and I spent 2 days making TONS of cookies last week, of course they're long gone now, and we're already planning our menu for tomorrow! I'm almost ready for the holidays to be over so I can stop eating!

I'm going to start a new family tradition this year- a time capsule! I've told the kids to think about what they want to put in it, and when we put our Christmas stuff back for the year I'll stick our time capsule in with it, then we'll open it next Christmas! I've been keeping all the Christmas cards we've gotten for several years now and it's always fun to go back and look at them, especially the pictures. I'm not sure yet what my contribution will be, definitely pictures of the kids and animals from throughout the year, but otherwise I havent decided yet.

So this week Jamie and the kids are home until Wednesday, then it's back to normal. I'm almost ready for it, it's been nice having them all home but I'm ready for everything to get back on track. I start school next week, Chemistry, English and Speech (I think, cant remember!). I'm absolutely dreading Chem, but I was dreading Microbiology, too, and I aced it and actually enjoyed it. I'm entertaining the idea of going back to work part-time, I havent found anything I want to do yet, though. I'd love to get on at the hospital 3rd shift, that way I'd have hospital experience, even though the patient care would be very limited, and I could still be home during the day. Kate really needs to be around other kids, so I think a few days of preschool would be good for her. Who knows what'll happen, I guess we'll see!

I noticed I haven't updated anyone on Alec and his "issues" in a while. He's now taking 40mg of Strattera at night and .25mg of Risperdal in the mornings, and they're working really well for him! He still has meltdowns, but only when he's really tired, and their severity and duration are much less than they used to be. He starts therapy next week with a Psychiatrist in Columbus next week, and I have high hopes for this attempt since the rest of his issues seem to be under control. I'm a little concerned about the possibility of having to drive to Columbus once a week, it's an hour one way and I dont want him to have to miss a day of school a week, so I'm anxious to see what they say about that next week. He has really blossomed this year in school, both socially and academically! His grades are excellent and his teacher says he's their class's best reader! I can see him at recess from my kitchen, and he plays and runs around just like the other kids, VERY nice to see! He's even having sleep-overs with one of his friends, a first for him! I love this kid so much, and it's been such a long road to this point, so I'm so happy to see him finally being able to be a normal kid.

Out of the Mouths of Babes

Look- a new post two days in a row! I rock! Actually, I thought it'd be a good idea to maybe try somehow to keep track of the funny things my kids say and do. A baby book would be a good place to record that kind of thing, I know, but since Andy's book is completed up to the point when Alec was born, Alec's has only his birth info in it, and Kate doesn't even have one, that probably wont happen. Ok, so lets see what my addled brain can remember:

Andy-
* one time he walked out the front door to see our dogwood tree covered in red berries. "Oooooh, look- ladybugs"!!
* one time at my mom's, he was about 18 or so months old, we went to see what had him so fascinated on her front porch- he'd speared about 7 or 8 ladybugs on a toothpick.

Alec-
* called piggies "pibbies"
* called something pointy "poinky"

Kate-
* looked at the bottom of Molly's (the puppy) foot and said "A clue!!!"
* Andy and J were in the kitchen looking for chapstick, Andy told J that my Burts Bees honey chapstick was on the shelf and J said, "I don't really like honey that well", K got a very worried look on her face and said, "You dont like Mommy anymore??"

Wow, pretty sad, that's all I can remember! In my defense it's 10:00 o'clock at night, the kids have been WOUND up all night and I've eaten way too many cookies!

Long time no see!

Wow, I'm as good as keeping this up-to-date as I am everything else! So here's what's been going on with us this year- taken from my Christmas letter:

Seasons Greetings from the Great White North!
Jamie has the biggest news of the year, he graduated from college! He received his Bachelors of Science degree, cum laude, in Human Resources/Business Management from Park University. He finished classes and got his degree in early summer, but participated in the graduation ceremony at the Defense Supply Center in Columbus on November 17th. He is still enjoying his job as Command Post Superintendent with the Ohio Air National Guard, and has been chosen to teach the next Non-commissioned Officer Academy Satellite Course this winter. It’s a big honor to be asked to do this, since only few are qualified to do it, so we’re all proud he was one of the ones chosen!

Rebecca has been keeping herself busy with the kids all year, enjoying her time being home with them full-time. Between soccer games, play dates, scout meetings and lots of traveling over the summer; it’s been a non-stop year! Her biggest adventure this year was going back to college! She took 3 classes this fall, will take another 3 over the winter, and will have just a couple more to take before she’s ready for nursing clinicals! Her grades have been great so far and she was surprised to find that the one class she’s been dreading for years, Microbiology, turned out to be her favorite class ever!

Andrew is in the 4th grade this year and is enjoying it! He was asked to join an advanced reading group, Junior Great Books, and has had fun reading some new books. He has also joined the school orchestra, which thrills his mom, playing violin. His biggest thrill of the year came in the multiple trips to Cedar Point Amusement Park, he and Jamie went a grand total of 21 times! He’s having fun playing football at school every day and wants to play for the city league when they start again. He’s also turned into a die-hard WVU fan!

Alec is now in the 2nd grade and has turned into a great student! He’s the best reader in his class and loves to write and draw. He has a folder full of poems he’s written and is even working on a newspaper for his family! He had a great time playing soccer this past spring and got his first trophy! He joined the Cub Scouts this fall as a Wolf Scout and is working hard on getting his first few badges. He is joining Andy in playing the violin; getting mommy-taught lessons, and so far is having fun with it.

Katie is 3 ½ years old and is the definite princess of the house! She is full of energy and has two speeds- stop and fast. She has the men of the house wrapped around her little finger, even though she can be a little rotten with her brothers. She had her first “real” haircut in late October, all the ends are the same length and she finally can’t wear the pigtails she hates so much! She’s turned into a hopeless Daddy’s girl, she thinks her Daddy hung the moon, but Mommy is glad that at least she gets to be the favorite when Daddy is at work!

Last, but not least, Max is still watching the kids to make sure they’re safe (and giving him treats)! He’s an old man now, going on 11 years old, and would rather lie on his bed in front of the fireplace than chase a ball. He was joined this year by Molly, a 9-week old English Springer Spaniel, who he’s pretty sure we could have done without. Molly joined our family in November and has no problems reminding us that she’s around and ready to play!

We are all enjoying living in Ohio, even though Jamie prefers the weather back down South. We miss each and every one of you and hope this year ends with blessings and good health, and that next year is even better.

Ok, so there's a quickie update on the goings-on in the Stover household! Hopefully I'll be able to keep this better updated, but don't get your hopes up!

Happy 4th!

Ok, so I'm a day late, but honestly, that seems to be the way my life goes!

We spent the holiday cleaning house and moving Alec's bedroom downstairs into Andy's bedroom! They actually wanted to share rooms again, how crazy is that? So while I swept and scrubbed and cussed at the amount of crap these kids leave in their wakes, Jamie carried all the toys and furniture and assorted junk down the stairs. Their room looks very nice, everything is in it's place, the beds are actually made, and you can walk through the room barefoot and not get impaled by anything! Now, did they sleep in their room last night? Well of course not, Alec fell asleep on the living room floor watching J play Sims Pets on the Wii and J caved and let them sleep in the living room. Again.

We had our friends Keith and Jen and their adorable kids over for dinner last night and had lots of fun! We had way too much food, which we all did our best to eat all of! I made Broccoli Salad, which is SOOO yummy, and we have LOTS of leftovers! I think we'll be sick of it before it's gone, I really did make way too much!

Jamie went back to work today, he's been home since he got back from MS last Friday and hasnt been at work since the end of May. He had something like 280+ emails to deal with, I bet he deleted most of them! Kate woke up and looked for him first thing this morning, then had a fit when I told her he wasn't here. She's calmed down, but I'm sure if one of us mentions his name she'll freak out again!

Today's plans?? Hit the library (I have a book I requested being held for me and today's the last day they'll hold it), maybe get to Krogers (they're having a sale on my beloved green tea- buy 2 get one free, that's over $5 in savings! haha), laundry, figure out dinner... Andy hasn't seen any of his friends since J got home last week, so I know he'll be asking for them before too long. Alec's best friend and his family left for a week-long vacation to Disney today, so he'll be bored I'm sure.

Speaking of Alec, here's an update on his meds and behavior. His Risperdal (for the ADHD) has been increased one notch to .5 mg (he was on .25 for a month, that's the lowest dosage) and he's still taking 5ml of Depakote (for the Bipolar disorder). We got back next Monday for a medcheck for the Depakote, I'm guessing it'll be increased, too. (5ml is the lowest dosage). We go next Wednesday to see his new child psych in Columbus, I really wanted to see someone closer, an hour each way is a lot, but our pediatrician wants us to see someone that specializes in children and this is the closest practice. I don't care, though, if it helps, an hour is a small price to pay. His behavior hasn't really improved at all. He still has "meltdowns" every day, but he apologizes quickly and at least realizes that he's done it. I still see a huge difference if he gets a nap every day. He usually has a screaming fit when I tell him it's time for a nap, but once he's "over" it and lays down he's usually asleep within minutes. I've started having a lot of problems with the way Andy relates to Alec. Usually Andy is very mild-mannered and sweet and kind, but he's getting to be a "pre-teen" (he tells me, anyway) and he's been instigating arguments a lot lately. He knows which buttons to push with Alec and he pushes them all! I'm trying to help Andy learn to deal with this, and I know Alec makes me crazy, but I can't handle all of them going crazy at the same time. Andy tells me all the time that it isn't fair, and I know that, but like the rest of us, he's going to have to deal.

That's it for now!

Welcome to our website!

Thanks for visiting our website! While we already have a photo site (www.flickr.com/photos/thestoverfamily), this one will allow us to keep our friends and family informed on all the goings-on in our busy lives!

So far we've had a great summer! The boys spent a long weekend with our parents in WV and I got to fly to Biloxi to spend a MUCH needed long weekend with Jamie! He's been gone for 6 weeks now and we're all ready to have him home! He finished his last test today and will be leaving tomorrow after graduation! He has a LONG 15+ hour drive back, but once he's home, he'll be home for a while!

The boys have had a lot of fun playing with their friends and going to summer camp. I think our house has revolving doors, it seems like someone is always coming or going, but I love having them close by!

The biggest news this summer is that Jamie graduated from college! He received his Bachelors degree in Management & Human Resources cum laude from Park University!!! He's worked very hard for a very long time to get this degree, and I'm so excited for him! We're going to have a party later this summer to celebrate, he deserves it! We got his diploma in the mail last week and the first thing I did was take a picture of it and send it to him, he hasn't seen in it person yet! We'll get it framed and hung with his 2 Associates degrees as soon as we can, we have quite a wall of honor for him, don't we?!

Of course, now that he's done with college it's my turn to go back! I'm scheduled to start this fall, taking Chemistry, Human Growth & Development and Nutrition. I have about 3 quarters of classes to take and I will be starting my clinicals next fall. I'm excited, but scared to death! I've been home since I got pregnant with Kate and it's going to be really hard to leave her. She will be starting preschool 3 afternoons a week this fall, though, and her excitement about that makes it a lot easier.