Winter for the Tonsagers mostly means Wrestling!!!!!
Our schedule revolves around it, our weeknights are practices and coaching, our weekends our traveling and tournaments. In order to devote the attention it takes, I have decided to separate the winter into two posts. Wrestling & Other Stuff. See the WRESTLING POST HERE.
Because sometimes there's some other stuff going on, like....
Holidays. See the full post HERE
Andy's Birthday! See the full post HERE
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| A really rough version of a Perry the Platypus Cake. |
We had a "flood"....
Our master toilet on occasion likes to run every 30 seconds and one day Luke went back there and used an extreme amount of toilet paper which of course clogged it. We unfortunately didn't notice until 3 hours later and by then the water had filled the toilet, ran over, filled the bathroom, ran down the floor vents all over my preschool curriculum and toys, gotten the carpet in our room and went through the bathroom closet and into our closet. It was horrible. Our bedroom is laundry central and the catch all for crap as it is in the back corner of the house and not seen. Sooooo every article of clothing, bedding and towels were rewashed, all storage in the bathroom closet and our closet was sorted and cleaned or pitched. Furniture had to be moved, the carpets shampooed. And then there was the preschool. This would be the worst part that even now, in July, is still not 100% done :( Many books were dried and saved but some had to be thrown. Every time I thought I had opened the last wet box or tote, I would find another. It was soooo frustrated. I had to pull up all the foam flooring and clorox it, mop the cement under it and wipe down absolutely everything.
On the bright side, every piece of laundry was washed, the carpets were cleaned, stuff was sorted and downsized and since I had to tear apart the preschool and knew I would be going back to teaching come fall, I decided it was a good time to start clearing it out, downsizing toys and rearranging the basement. I started moving the living room to the huge area that was the preschool, then starting moving and consolidating the preschool into a smaller playroom where the living room had been. HUGE project. Still not done come July as I write this.
We visited Mark & Jenn in Gillette.....
This was Gillette in January, Jenn dyed my hair. Jake discovered dogs, which he LOVES. Then we went again in March....
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| our favorite china buffet |
Gillette Civic Center Children's Fair....
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| pounding golf tees |
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| this stuff was really neat, I need to find some |
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| Alice & the Queens |
GAME NIGHT!!!!
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| reece's peanutbutter cookiedough dip |
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| Megan likes stickers |
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| Jake likes puppies |
Making Pizzas....
Puppy Love....
Farkle!!!!
Jakers is ornery!!!
And as any trip to Gillette brings, inclement weather to drive home in....
But it always changes at "Dead Buffalo Hill" by Sundance....
We had a game night. The day started with a kiddie carnival at the Civic Center, then we went shooping, followed by homemade pizza & hor' dourves. I made a mess in Jenn's kitchen. Hey! When you remove the beaters from my mixer, you push the button down and it doesn't turn on, they come off. Peanutbutter cream cheese everywhere! AND my kitchen shears don't come apart in half and try to drop themselves on toes either. Just sayin'!!! Bartender Mark made some delicious drinks & the food was all super yummy. We had a great time.
Wayne & I were really into 4pics1word and would race to solve all the puzzles. I got the first two rounds and he got the third. It was fun. We have both abandoned it by now.
It snowed.....
Then we had our last Murder Mystery Party: Murder at Deadwood Saloon.....
We had the biggest crowd and the least amount of pictures. It was a really good time, but we could tell the group had evolved, the friendships had evolved and the level of extremes had as well. We hit the bars afterward and although it too was a great time, the amount of fun had caused us to still be in bed for the superbowl the next night.
The Superbowl was with Wayne' s all time favorite team, the 9ers.....
Wayne has loved the Niners since childhood. They finally make it back to the superbowl and we were too tired to set up the projector as planned and instead watched it on the computer from bed. It was cozy. :)
There was Valentine's Day....
Our Valentine's craft....
Andy's School Treats.....
Andy did glow sticks for the second year in a row (they are peanut free and not homemade), last year they "made his heart glow" and this year they were "light sabers" with Star Wars valentines.
Zach wanted Scooby Snacks with Scooby Valentines. We got Scooby fruit snacks. Luke & Jake had Disney themed valentines, Jake had balloons with his and Luke had marshmallow hearts. We also had "have a ball" and another one I can't seem to remember. We decided to save the bouncy balls as most of our preschoolers were toddlers and we thought they would eat them.
Daddy...
Andy....
Luke....
Jake....
Zach...
Mommy.... "Hey Kandi, I got something for you. One of my Driver's Ed kids left this in the car, Happy Valentine's Day." Romance at it's best in the Tonsager House.
State Wrestling when Dad left and the baby got sick.....
Wayne headed off to state wrestling with the High Schoolers ahead of a winter storm (thank goodness it missed them this year, not like last year where they barely made it through), to Watertown. I still do not understand why 2 of the 4 year rotation for hosting are an hour apart in the northeast corner of the state where the majority of teams have to travel the farthest drive on the inconvenient roads during the notorious snowy terrain during the most likely to blizzard season. I hope that changes in the next few years before I myself have to start making the trip to watch my own boys. Nonetheless, Wayne had a great time on his mini man vacation and even made it on tv......
Meanwhile back at home.....
Day 1 of 5 of single mom to 4..... I can do this, but you owe me.
Day 2 of 5 of single career mom to 4...The baby's "cold" he's had for a week and a half, takes a turn for the worse. He struggled to breathe while turning non pleasant hues of red and indigo. At noon I can endure no longer and close Lil' Broncs, make an appointment in the next town, pick up the kindergartener early and gamble I make it back before the second graders play date ends. While loading the MommaMobile, my Mukluks catch a slick spot and the baby & I go down in some ice capade-esk maneuver. I mange to keep most of him from lightly making contact in a horrible bending fashion. Pure terror in the poor thing's face and cry. I wanted to cry. We make it to the appointment (early!!!). Jakers has his 6th ear infection in 6 months, referral to ENT for tubes, severe eczema, steroid cream to be used with extreme caution as it can alter skin, he still needs a heart echo done for his random blue spells, and he now has full blown RSV with O2 sats in the 80s at best, nebs 4x a day (no hospital though). On the way home,as we approach the top of Redwater, I slow and multiple cars fly past. The next knoll brings back memories of my accident two years prior in similar weather. Sure enough, top of said knoll and there before me lies no less than 12 emergency personnel with multiple ambulance, fire trucks and patrol cars as well as a crunched truck in the median. All other vehicles have now matched my speed. We make it home nearly the same time as second grader. After an extremely nutritious supper of 20 nuggets for $4.99, 2 plain McDoubles for the oldest and my McChickens (food for 5, $11- don't judge), we proceed with movie night; Jurassic Park Trilogy. After 4 attempts in 45 minutes, the computer we use as a tv has proven it isn't meant to be as the boys riot and all hell breaks loose. Likely too scary anyway. 3 Angry, tired, whiney boys put to bed. 1 terribly miserable baby climbing on one frazzled mommy not half way through Dad's vacation to state wrestling. The "you owe me" anti has just doubled!
Day 4 of 5 of single career mom to 4....MUST get out of this house and breathe fresh air!!!!! We went to the store, the library book sale and ran a couple errands. We had hoped it be a quick trip, back by after lunch, hahahaha!!! Zach pulled one of his stunts, took two stores to find what we needed and there were oh so many good books to choose from. A blast from the past was laid out before me including, The Babysitter's Club, Sweet Valley Twins, Are You Afraid of the Dark, Goosebumps, Hardy Brothers and Full House, just to name a few. We filled a couple bags to fill Andy's book shelf, he should be set until at least the end of summer. When we got home we found ready-made meals and a gift bag of goodies awaiting us on the porch!!! THANK YOU soooo muchDanyaorAdam Foote for providing enough food for us to easily get through the rest of the weekend!!! It is great to be reminded of the truly amazing and giving people in this world who are always willing to lend a helping hand and I will definitely pay it forward in the future!
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| Skylander Legos!!!! |
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| We went a little hog wild in the library. |
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| Box Car Children, Hardy Boys, Goosebumps, Animorphs, Little House |
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| Sweet Valley Twins!! |
I wish I could say that concluded the excitement for the day, however, come witching hour, after nebs and falling asleep upright, the baby had a coughing spell so bad he was purple and shaking, I was reaching for the phone ready to throw in the towel and call the ambulance when he finally found air. We then sat awake for two more hours followed by an additional hour after Jake fell asleep to be sure it didn't happen again. I filled the time watching 10 Years, as this year will be my 10 year reunion. The show was okay, but I can't say it was so inspiring that I'm calling my class president with a list of activities. I simply hope she finds a time and place to hold it when we are able to make the trip. Even with keeping in touch on Facebook, it would still be nice to see some of your faces again.
Day 5....
With much resistance we managed to get the living room and dining room clean before Dad gets home. Dad gets home, all is right with the world.
.....Dad leaves for supplies, 20 minutes tops, baby goes all Exorcist and covers us both in barf.
start cleaning process again. But, dad is home. It's always easier to deal with when dad is home
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| Andy representing H-Town |
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| Luke's way of keeping Jake from rolling off the bed |
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| being silly |
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| watching science experiment videos |
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| making their own volcanoes again |
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| dino land |
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| stick puppets |
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| tech baby |
Jake also had 6 ear infections and a tube referral and surgery scheduled, then rescheduled when he relapsed the RSV. He also had periodic blue spells and was referred to a cardiologist who came up to Black Hills Pediatrics (same place Zach went after NICU) from Omaha Pediatrics, UNO. He diagnosed, or rather non diagnosed, Jake with "Benign AcroSinosis" meaning "non disease, around the edges, blue coloring". He said basically, Jake's skin pigment was so light it was nearly transparent and every time he gets cold, gets a fever, has been really active, his blood vessels would fill with blood in the feet, hands, forearms and around the mouth and would be highly visible under the skin, appearing as a blue color. He said he would be fist to look cold at the pool. Just like his brother Zach. We were relieved that this was not a heart issue after all. Wayne is still frustrated we were sent to the ER "for testing" then once there, sent right back to the Dr to schedule said testing that can only be done by a specialist. Wasted $6-700, but definitely a price I am willing to pay for peace at mind. 
WE CELEBRATED WITH CHINESE FROM OUR FAV BUFFET
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| I know the routine |
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| same view, different day |
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| tired of this tree and this room and this place |
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| Andy had quite a few appointments this year trying to figure out his bladder... total bust :( |
Remembering Grandpa...
A meteor hits around the world, then an asteroid narrowly misses Earth!
We celebrate by watching Armageddon.
The Boys celebrated their 100th day of school.
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| 100 stickers on my crown |
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| counting out 100 Kix to take in |
March roared in like a lion, always does...
Then Nebraska got their big blizzard of the year for the 2nd year in a row!! It was big news.
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| Facetime with Tiff in Orleans |
HOLDREGE
We celebrated Read Across America Day/Dr. Seuss's Birthday with a Dr. Seuss birthday party at Lil' Broncs of course! We watched The Cat in the Hat and read Green Eggs & Ham & The Cat in the Hat Comes Back. We made a Red Fish, Blue Fish craft and ate "green eggs & ham" which this year we made out of green pistachio pudding and vanilla wafers for the yolk. They were yummy, but Zach needed reminded of the lesson from Sam I Am to try them, as even if it does not look appetizing, tasty it might be. 
We had a winter storm warning that day, couldn't even see the car out front....
Pi Day...
St. Patty's Day this year we made Leprechaun traps. The boys were pretty creative with their traps. When they woke the next morning they found traces that leprechauns had been through them and notes saying "nice try", "tricky", "almost got me", and "better luck next time". They also found "trinkets" the leprechauns left them (glow in the dark pot of gold and shamrock necklaces). It was fun!
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We FINALLY did haircuts. The boys were pretty darn shaggy. Many people commented on how they didn't even recognize Zach.
Wayne & I went to the teacher fair at BHSU. We turned in some applications and spoke to some places. There weren't near as many there as years past and there were not any schools with a Math/Sped combo which is really rare as well. I did get a couple call backs for interviews from it though, as did Wayne. None we took in the end.
Zach lost his first tooth...
He said it hurt, so he pulled it out (at school). He soon lost his second (also at school) by biting into a sandwich.
Then he lost one the night before Easter so he had 2 "guardians" visit him in one night.
Then there was some time to hang out after wrestling ended, before spring arrived.....
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| Holdrege was in the running for best school mascot, not sure who won? |
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| ornery baby |
SIGNS OF SPRING...
