Nora, Nora, Nora...

Well over the past 4 months we've gotten to know our newest member and lets say she is a character to say the least. She loves to go outside whatever the weather. It could be down pouring rain and she wants to be out. She knows our schedules and will get up with Darin in the morning so she can sneak out back door with Bronson. She also knows that when the kids get up they'll go looking for her outside. She always comes running and meowing to them. For some reason she doesn't run away from them. Even tho Katelyn can't get enough of her. She's very curious when I have sessions and will always come around. Which always gets a smile out of a weary two year old.

Nora also gets a long with Bronson, she has never run from him but stood her ground. They will actually play. Bronson will start making this snorting noises saying he's having a great time and Nora will role over on her back for him while he pretends to bite her (he doesn't and he's very gentle). Nora will bite his ears and occassionally squeal. Its nothing for them to encounter each other in the yard and Nora will usually arch her back so Bronson can sniff her. I need to get a picture of it because Bronson is this huge dog with long gangly legs and nora is 10 times smaller.. its very cute.

Nora also likes to hunt... no she LOVES to hunt. She's constantly entertaining us with what she has caught. The not so fun thing is she likes to show it off by bringing it in the house and 9 times out of 10 it isn't dead. So here is a list of what she has caught.. we find it quite humerous. Grasshopers (eats those whole..crunch, crunch), snakes (they've learned to play dead), frogs (thats quite a scene watching her carry one of thse in her mouth), birds, mice, shrews, bees, flys and her latest was a squirrel. The squirrel almost did me in. Tonight she caught a squirrel and brought it in the house nowhere near dead. Bronson caught whiff of it and let out a squeal of delight. Of course then Nora let it go!! I heard the commotion ran downstairs and screamed. Then quickly ran back upstairs! What the heck am I going to do with a squirrel in the house! Of course Darin is out of town this week! Uggg... So Emma and I armed with a broom in each hand went downstairs. Bronson and Nora were hunting for it in the basement. In the end it ran to the bathroom and then into Darin's office where Bronson swiftly got it before Nora could and came trotting out to the living room. Emma and I both screamed and got on the couch. So he drops it.. NO! Luckily, for us anyway, he had injured it so it wasn't going anywhere. We quickly shoved it in a bucket and got back outside. Ugggg... Nora was scolded and Bronson was on cloud nine with all the "good boy" 's from us. Bronson has been trying to catch the squirrels in our back yard all summer. I swear he was smiling the rest of the night!

So thats our Nora. She's a great addition and personality. Not sure what she'll bring in next or what she'll do when the snow flies.

***UPDATES***
10/22/08 - Apparently Nora brought in a snake and didn't tell anyone. Marie found it alive while cleaning the bathroom she stepped on it and screamed! Sorry Marie
10/23/08 - Nora brought in a bird.. again not dead.. uggg... I locked her in Darin's office until she killed it then swooped it outside.

Another one bites the dust...

The school called today and said Emma has the chicken pox as well... ugg! How strange.. Emma had the vaccine and the booster as well as had the chicken pox when she was 2 years old. Luckily both girls aren't miserable as it seems to be mild cases but they are banned from going anywhere. I have them armed with cortozone ointment and oatmeal baths are on the menu. If you wondering where we are ... we are home.. not going anywhere!!

What is it...

So we woke up Monday morning and Kate said she itched... looks like a mosquito bite.. and off she went to school. She came home had a few more on her face. mmmm..... I asked my neighbor Erica and Kim.. both thought it was a rash. I thought so too.. she was in the woods over the weekend and she also had tried a new body soap.. so either could have been the culprit. So off to school on Tuesday too. Then I began to second guess myself.. Darin suggested calling the nurse line so I did and they thought she should come into the doctor that evening. Once we got there they immediately put us in a room so she didn't contaminate anything. The doctor came in and confirmed my fear that it was chicken pox. Uggg... yes she was vaccinated and had the booster and she still got it! Must run in the family because Emma had the vaccine also but still got chicken pox when she was 2.

So she's home for the rest of the week until they scab over. But today a lot more spots showed up.. I'll have to take a picture of her later.. maybe once they all turn crusty and gross!

First Day of School!

The first day of school was today. Emma started 5th grade and Kate is in 1st grade. School starts time is over an hour earlier this year due to some district changes so the girls had to get up at 6:30 (well I did too! ugg). But we did it and quickly got back into the routine of snacks, make beds, backpacks, whats for lunch.. bus!!

Emma said she was most nervous about her retainer she got two weeks ago. She said she would just die if her teacher asked her to repeat something because he couldn't understand her! She's gotten much better about her pronounceation. She came home reporting most people didn't notice she had a retainer until the end of the day. What a relief for Emma. She was a little mad at me for making her take her trumpet to school this morning as i knew she had band. She said only one other person brought it and the band teacher said they wold officially start on Thursday. Oh well bad mom!

Kate said she was most nervous about finding her class. We went over it with her when we went to open house last week, but she was still nervous. I asked Emma to watch out for Kate and walk her to her class. When they came home I asked about it and Emma said Kate ditched her as they got off the bus at school and disappeared with her friends leading the way to their classrooms. So much for that! Kate said her favorite part of the day was recess even tho they had to play in their classrooms because it was raining outside.

Even tho summer is over it feels good to get back into a schedule and the girls were excited to start up again. We are hoping the year goes well for them!