Captivity

No, this is not my daughter's cry for help.  Well, I sure hope it isn't.

My Holland girl has a hanker for doodling and writing and instead of asking for help verbally, she often writes, "help please" alongside the question she doesn't understand.

Evidently, she does not understand the vocabulary word "captivity". 

I appreciate more than ever before her quirky way of asking for help.  I've been laughing every since.

Love my girl and these impromptu funny times during our education journey at home.

Award-Winning Rolls

These are my rolls.  I made them 22days, 5 hours, and 32 minutes ago. 

They are hard and would hurt someone if used as a weapon.  I mean, they look perfect.  Like I just baked them.  And I swear I didn't put any weird preservative in them. So everyone reaches to grab one, with a hopeful and thankful look in their eyes, until they realize they are really. hard.

But I can't throw them away, so here they sit.  Every so often I ask one of the girls, or Brian, if they want one.  And then I laugh.   I'm one of those people that are far more amused with myself, than others are with me.
I can't bring myself to throw them away.  Not because I take myself and my rolls seriously.  (I am an award-winning baker, now, after all), but because I wouldn't get to ask someone if they want one of my hard-as-rock rolls again.  Or laugh after I ask them that.
And because if I threw the rolls away, it would be nerdy to keep the tray with the second place ribbon on it without the rolls.

My girls think I'm strange.

The funniest part of these rolls, though, is that the girls really wanted me to enter some things into the fair.  So, I entered the only thing I can bake really well.  These rolls. 

For me, truly, the most rewarding part of the fair exhibits, is watching my girls pull in the blue-ribbons.  I love it.  This year, I even had to hold back the tears when Holland realized she won the youth award for creativity, along with a huge blue ribbon and a gift card to an art store.  The excited grins on their faces are so much fun.

So when we went to the box office to allow the girls to gather their prize money, I stayed with the stroller while Brian took the girls up to get their money.  My photographs hadn't won anything, and I know Brian loves to be a part of the fair projects with the girls, too.  I was slightly annoyed when he told me I had to sign the paper.  Really?  You're a parent, too. Why do they need me?  So, I signed.  Then, the lady gave me three bucks.  "What's this for?" I asked.  You won second place.  "On WHAT?"  Then it dawned on me.....my ROLLS!  I laughed so hard I had tears rolling down my face. I totally forgot that I even entered them.  I didn't even try to find them in the midst of all the other baked goods in the Expo Hall.

I'm weird like that. 

I might hang on to these rolls for awhile longer. 

Revenge

"That girl dances to the beat of a different drummer".  He said it nonchalantly as we walked along the street, watching our three daughters skip ahead of us.

"What makes you say that", I ask him, "the rubber goulashes in 90 degree heat, or the fact that she came home from Sunday School today with the word "Revenge" written on the front of the card she made?"

Georgia Reese: Taking Modeling Lessons?

August 2009:

We suspect that Georgia Reese is secretly enrolled in the Derek Zoolander Center for Kids Who Can't Read Good (And Who Wanna Learn Other Good Stuff, Too).  Familiar looks keep popping up in the camera.  You decide for yourself:  

Blue Steel:

Ferrari:

Le Tigre:

Magnum:

******************************************************
Update: May 31, 2013

Not much has changed here, 3.5 years later.  She is still enrolled and scoring, as you can see, at the top of her class.  These shots were taken on a recent camping trip.  What a goofball!


Blue Steele:

Magnum:

le Tigre:

Undercover Agents

I'm finding that it's all in the expression.

ManCamp--Foiled!

Last weekend, we up and left for a spontaneous camping trip, just the 5 of us.

Risky, I know, to go without reservations during the last camping weekend of the Summer. We Wiebers like to live on the wild side.

We drove up to McCall and the first campsite was full--the last spot taken by the car in front of us. We traveled to the North side of the lake and pulled into the campground there. We hadn't traveled 20 feet when, we came upon our great, great friends Axe-Wielding-Scott and his little guy, Trevor. Brian was thrilled to not be the only guy in the forest.

Apparently, Scott and Trevor were in the middle of "ManCamp".

Good thing the Wiebers show up, right? What with all their girls and all. But seriously--can you even believe it? Not only do we get to be neighbors to the Swans, but we also get to camp next to them without any planning at all!

Did I mention this was "ManCamp?"

We tried so hard not to ruin ManCamp.

We really did.

Yes, these would be The Wieber girls...at...ManCamp...dancing with...fishing poles.

Yes, I did say "dancing."

This was obviously just a momentary lapse of reasoning on the girls' part. It won't happen again.

The girls got to fish for their very first time. They were so excited.



Notice the stylish trench that Holland chose to wear camping? She's a rugged one!

Liv tried especially hard to fit in at ManCamp.

Trevor kept good ManCamp form throughout:

Keri came up to ruin ManCamp with us.That was a highlight of camping for me!

This was the day before The Swans celebrated 6 whole years of wedded bliss. Happy Anniversary!!

But back to ManCamp...

I know it's hard to take ManCamp seriously when Trevor is the only guy in the picture, but just stay with me, ok?

Trevor knows tricks and apparently these can be exhibited using everyday items, like, say, a shovel.


Liv was able to learn these tricks. This was an added bonus from being at ManCamp.



I think we'll go crash ManCamp again next year. Thanks Scott and Trevor!
That was so much fun!

Oh Look--It's Reese With Her Spoon!

Thirteen Years

13 years of wedded bliss. 13 years of shared life. 13 years...summed up...

1 honeymoon to Hawaii

2 college graduations

4 rentals

2 professional jobs

1 colon removed

3 pregnancies

3 beautiful girls

3 dogs

2 mortgages

1 home sale

Celebration of 10 years of marriage in Costa Rica

I really did marry my best friend. And 13 years later, he's still my best friend! I'm thankful that God brought us together and thankful that He keeps us together.

Year one was quite eventful:

1. Brian was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis the month we were married.

2. Brian lives to tell (and does--again and again and again) about the inaugural "dinner" as husband and wife: Jen feeds Brian 3 grilled cheese sandwiches...without removing the paper between the cheese. It didn't make sense when Brian called his sandwiches, "chewy". Now, it all makes sense. For those of you wondering about event #1, don't even go there. :o)

3. A gooey, impressive apple pie explosion made our first Christmas together memorable and frightening. Yes, that's right--apple pie explosion.

4. Husband and wife attend college together at Boise State University. Jen pastes Brian with snowball in the parking lot, landing him flat on his face.

5. On their first anniversary, Jen sits atop her bike at the start of the 7 mile mountain bike race--her first--only to find out that she gets to ride 21 blissful miles. Shooting glares towards husband did nothing to reduce the miles.

The house we lived in our first year of marriage (a whopping 500-600 feet!):

We have several pictures like the ones below. It's way too fun to goose Brian while he lets his guard down during photos.

This photo makes me laugh because you can see from my "innocent" mischievous smile (the same smile pictured above) that I had planned to goose him. You can also see that he has blocked the goose with his hand. He's a quick learner, my husband.

Last week, I had to write a biography about myself. It's very difficult to write about yourself, agree? When I was stumped, Brian offered to write it for me. "Aw, how sweet!" I thought. Here is his bio of me, and perhaps sums up what married life has been like for him:

Jen Wieber, a former elementary school teacher. Became famous for helping out wounded forest creatures by setting bones and putting animals in splints. She would often be seen around town with her latest patient. People misunderstood her undying love for wounded furry creatures and finally chased her out of town. She took up residence in a shack in the forest and was known to the local people as “CHUPACABRE” which roughly translates into “Smoking hot crazy lady that lives in a forest shack and takes care of wounded animals”

Eventally Jen found someone to take pity on her situation. He married her as a charity case. In this marriage Jen had three beautiful little girls and occasionally her sanity would return for a visit. Jen currently lives in Boise and can often be seen talking to her mailbox. Both Jen and her parole officer are encouraged that she is again writing. Her psychiatrist has pointed out that since writing again it has been the least amount of psychotic episodes she has had in years.

And I think I should just end this post right here. :o)

Trail Trek

We have a wonderful library just down the street. Trail Trekkers is a Summer Program which seeks to educate kids about the outdoors through nature walks. The girls and I joined the walk yesterday and are so glad we did! During a short 20 minute walk, we learned that:

Cat tails are the name of the weeds in the marsh outside of the library

Yarrow is a tall weed with a pretty white flower. The leaves can be used to stop bleeding!

Red-winged Blackbirds make beautiful, rolling music

Silver Maple Tree are the variety of Maples along the River

Cottonwood Tree seeds are long and encased in cotton

The tender bark of a willow tree stem can be used as asprin.

Poison Ivy: Leaves of 3, let them be...and yes, all along the greenbelt! (I was happy the girls now know what it looks like.)

Erosion of the river bank takes away the bank and a look at the best type of plant to prevent it.

A dead tree is called a snag, and the Cottonwood snag is a long-time home for birds and their nests. A Willow snag doesn't stay put for long.

The shade of a Willow Tree over the river provides nice, cool water for the fish.

and last and perhaps most significant:

Poisonous Hemlock is pretty and just asking to be picked.

Wait...that's not what we learned about Poisonous Hemlock. That's what we already KNEW about Poisonous Hemlock when we took the above pictures last week....a week before we learned that this plant is poisonous. Yes, that would be my baby touching Poisonous Hemlock. And my other daughters sandwiched around her did indeed pick this Poisonous Hemlock with their own gloveless fingers. And yes, there might have been a bouquet or two lugged home between sweaty palms and placed in vases at their Auntie Chelsea's home. You heard right: my daughters gave Poisonous Hemlock as a gift.

Glancing nervously at each other, I asked the question these Wieber girls were waiting with bated breath to know, "Are the blossoms and stems poisonous?"

"No, just the root".

And I saw my eldest's shoulders drop in relief and her big eyes crinkled in a gasping smile. "Oh GOOOOOOD! Mom, I was so scared!"

Only The Best

...for our baby.



Note: image has been cropped to show guilty party.

Your Know You're a Fighter's Wife When...

Actually, this post could be titled the following ways:

A. You know you're a wrestler's girlfriend when...

B. Cutting Weight Sucks

When I met Brian 16 years ago,

(seriously, it's been that long? Aren't I still 27? Hello....anybody?),

he was a wrestler for Boise State. This immediately catapulted me into the title depicted in letter A, above. I suddenly found myself sitting in bleachers, biting my knuckles, the stench of sweaty gym clothes filling my nostrils. It's not as glamorous as it sounds, but it's close.

After we graduated, Brian walked into a martial arts gym and began training jujitsu and soon began fighting in amateur matches. Road trips abounded and I found myself at different venues in different states. Soon, his sport expanded into boxing and he had a few amateur matches through Golden Gloves gym and CBO, Christian Boxers Organization. The amateur fights soon turned to pro fights and that brings us to where we are now.

In honor of his fight coming up this Saturday at the Qwest Arena in Boise, I've decided to draw up a list to show the wifely point-of-view. :o)

So, without further adieu:

YOU KNOW YOU'RE A FIGHTER'S WIFE WHEN:

1. You have had to make a midnight run to the local grocery store to pick up 12 packs of fruit stripe gum to be ingested in an agitated manner while sitting in a theater next to someone with a steaming bag of popcorn. Note: this would not be the wife with the bag of popcorn. She would not be heard from again if she had ordered said popcorn. (See letter B, above)

2. You have snuck food into the closet to be scarfed down as soon as weight-cutting fighter is out of nose-shot.

3. You have found yourself on an exercise bike at the YMCA for 3 hours next to wrestler boyfriend who needs to cut weight. Who signed up for this anyway?

4. You have carefully selected cute fight-night attire and show up at the event feeling like a prude. (this was actually voiced by my dear friend, another fighter's wife :o)

5. Sitting nonchalantly on the couch, you suddenly find yourself in a choke hold.

6. Your sweet daughters give ferocious choke holds.

7. The same little girls mentioned above have multiple pairs of boxing gloves. All pink, of course.

8. You wash 8 pairs of workout clothes. In one day.

9. When cooking dinner for your children, you make it hours ahead of when weight-cutting fighter comes home so that the decadent smell has left the house by the time he arrives.

10. When you see a first time fighter with his wife sitting alone in the crowd you think: rookie mistake. (that one's for you, Dana :o)

11. After successful weight-cutting fighter makes weight, you watch 15 pounds come back on in a matter of 2 hours, or 3 meals later.

12. When your 6-year-old daughter asks weight-cutting-fighter-husband, "why don't we have pancakes, waffles, and crepes anymore?" (again, please see letter B, above)

Here are some images of Brian, all taken in April of this year, 2010, at different Grappler's tournaments. The first tournament, he won 1st and second. (He entered into 2 different weight classes for the extra practice). Though it's hard to tell from the pictures, the guy you see below was 125 pounds bigger than Brian. It was funny to see them on the mat together. The girls asked if he was a giant. Next to Brian, that question was a good one. Minus a boxing match when Liv was 2 months old, this was the first time the girls got to see Brian fight in an actual match in person. They were thrilled. Our great friends Adam and Eli got to be there, too, and Adam took these great pictures.

Brian was so tired here. Because he fought in two different classes, he didn't have many breaks, and he had to fight some monstrous guys. We are waiting for his turn.

This guy below (the next two pictures) is 51 years old. He is amazing--a local legend. Brian beat him with an arm bar the first match. But he got Brian the next two times. Now the two are friends and have been working out together regularly.

And here is a picture of Brian with his proud family. The girls have been wearing their medal "necklaces" daily and can't wait to tell everyone about them. I admire my husbands grit and determination, his perseverance and strength, and how much he loves the sport. But mostly, I love watching the girls clamor into his car with their gloves and boxing bags and snacks, excited to spend the evening with him at his boxing gym. This picture cracks me up a bit, because both Brian and Reese look spent. I assure you, they were! :o)

At the second tournament, Brian got placed 2nd. Liv and Holland hung that medal in Reese's room. :o)



Our awesome friends Damie, Victor, and Kedrick came to root for Brian. Brian and Damie go way back when they were both collegiate wrestlers. Damie has also fought in the cage. :o). Just this morning, Liv told me that "if I ever have to fight Damie, I'm definitely using the choke hold!"

Victor is right at home in this gym full of grapplers.



And you guys, did you ever think you could see such cuteness in a gym so full of testosterone? I tell you I did not, but here is a picture to prove it.



Reese's medal:





The girls were so proud.



Post pizza eating back at the house with our new, totally sweet friends.