Whipple Family Blog

Bri left on a business trip this week to St. Louis and left me with a few things... On Monday I was informed that a package is coming and I needed to get it out of the cold AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. No, it wasn't for my birthday... It was a package of live red ants!! Yes, you read it right. He is doing another scientific experiment this time with Shaylee and this time instead of flies, ants... So, they were supposed to come while he was here, but of course they died in the mail so he had to order new ones which came on my watch. And, to make it even better, on the package it says, "CAUTION, DO NOT TOUCH ANTS, THEY WILL STING!!" Then it proceeds to tell you what to do in case you get stung for about a paragraph. In the next paragraph it says, "Transfer the ants out of the shipping tube as soon as possible." If you know me well, you know how much I hate bugs, insects, mice etc. etc. Anything that crawls. I really hate them. Whenever we have a spider in the house, I try...

So, if you have ever talked to my husband for longer than ten minutes or so, you probably know how much he wants an HDTV. Yes, he wants it that bad. Over the past say, about three years he has wanted one and has given subtle hints on a continual basis (which is actually not like him unless he wants something BAD). At first it totally surprised me. I really thought he was kidding. We really aren't the kind of people who typically get the biggest baddest thing on the market. I don't know, I guess we are too practical and a little cheap. I mean, we just got a cell phone for the first time about two years ago. And yes, I don't buy anything unless it is on sale. It just kills me. When his little hints first started coming, I thought it was just a phase. But then, he got his friends and the Bishop in on it. Yes Bishop, I remember that night at your house where everyone tried to talk me into it. I thought to myself, "they don't know who they're talking to". I mea...

You know that old movie, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, with the flying car? Well, my kids love it. Okay, Bri and I do a little too. But my kids absolutely love it!! You know, it seems the really old cheesy movies are the ones that my kids love the best. Hmmm.... go figure. I guess I am a little on the old fashioned side too, in a way. Anyway, about that movie, we decided to break the bank a little this year and go see the musical at the Hippodrome Theater in Baltimore. We got our tickets about three months ago (before the Christmas crunch) and waited patiently for it to come. Well, we finally got to see it and it was awesome!! I guess I thought we broke the bank a little more than we did though, because I thought I remembered buying pretty good seats, but it turns out we were third from the top! Yes, it was so so crowded for our long legs, but since no one sat in front of us we just stretched out. It was great, and totally worth it. Our favorite part by far was when Chitty sails up in the ...

I have some not so great spellers in my family. Yes, It's true. I will admit it. I didn't realize this when I agreed to marry my husband. You would have thought that he would have told me huh? I mean, who knew that all of our little offspring would get this wonderful trait from him. Okay, okay, I shouldn't blame it all on him. I am not a born fantastic speller either. It took some hard work. Although, I have to say I always thought I was. I won two spelling bees in elementary school. I thought I was on top of the world. I mean I thought I was amazing! Who knew that I once had problem with spelling? I sure didn't, at least not until I got married. Then one day my mom mentioned that she couldn't believe that I had won those spelling bees because I was horrific! What!? All this time I had thought I was an amazing speller. You mean all those years of being so confident in my spelling attributes was all a hoax? So, I have finally come to the conclusion that I am just gre...

I am dying to go running again. I know that sounds crazy, but it's amazing how much it helps me to feel good about myself. I started it last March (almost a year ago), took off for a few months for a sprained ankle, but have come back and am finally loving it. Okay, I shouldn't say "loving it". It's hard, and sometimes I want to quit. Some days are harder than others of course, and sometimes I have to take one step at a time to meet my goal, but it always feels so good when I do. The ice and rain are the hardest times for me, and I have to say if it wasn't for my husband who rolls me out of bed every morning it would be much tougher. My goal is a half marathon. No, I'm not quite halfway there, but almost... I am getting so I can do almost four miles a day. Now, I need to get past that point. One of my biggest problems is time. I go at 6:30 in the morning, but need to be back in enough time for Brian to go to work. I can't go much earlier (it's pret...

Yes, it has been quite a while since I have written. I have to say now that my older girls are in school again, life is finally coming back to normal so hopefully I will be getting my routines back. I could spend all day blogging about what we've been up to, but don't worry, I won't. I'll just make a quick list of our December and early January events... *Annual work Christmas party - my kids love this! They get to see Santa (Raegan's favorite part, see below), watch circus shows and reptile shows, eat lots of yummy food, and all the ice cream bars they want. It's great. *Shay's basketball on Saturdays- Yes, my Shay started basketball. I have been amazed at how aggressive those little girls can get. I think Shay was pretty amazed too. I don't think she realized it was okay to grab the ball when someone else looked like they wanted it... She is getting much better. (: *Gingerbread house- I know this is a tradition in many families, but this year was so m...