this little white Puma jacket? It was my favorite. She wore it once and we never saw it again. If it's at your house we'll come and get it.
12/19/07
she's baaaaaaack
I sort of thought we were past all this, Whitney. I guess I let my guard down too soon.
for the record...
I just wanted everyone to know that a very minimal amount of Wade's mischievous tendencies as a youth have spilled over into his adult life and that he is NOT a bad person. Quite the contrary. Really he is a very good, generous and thoughtful person, but you all know that.
12/18/07
Elizabeth Tells Falsehoods
Anything you read on this blog about the angel of a child Wade Pilling is false and unsubstantiated claims.
i married a hooligan
Wade's brother, Jordan, came for a short visit and stayed with us last night. He left this morning and now all my kids are sad. So, as often happens when Wade gets together with any of his brothers, we took a little trip down Memory Lane. Now, I thought I had heard most of Wade's stories and I would have categorized him as a bit of a trouble maker with not as keen of a conscience as you might expect a young boy to posses. Yes, most boys get into trouble, but we could all safely say he was trouble on another level. Not true!! After last night I can say he was not just trouble on another level. He was trouble in an entirely different league. Like maybe the "federally offensive" kind of league.
You can imagine my horror when the words, "Remember when You tazed the lunch lady?" flew from Jordan's mouth. First of all, where the heck did a 7/8th grader get a tazer; secondly, did he have no conscience? Apparently it was considered great fun to taze each other at home. I doubt the lunch lady saw the humor. They were all waiting in line for their hot dogs, the lunch lady walked down the line, and Wade stuck out his arm and tazed her butt. Wade maintains there was no way she could have known it was him cause' she was out cold and that someone must have ratted him out. He was sent home for the rest of the day. What? One half day out of school? Where was the expulsion or the community service or the jail time? His mom had to come get him. Good thing she thought to ask for the tazer back. Where was he the next day? Right back in line for his hot lunch.
So I never really considered that he might be a bully either, but my opinion on that matter started to shift last night too. He says his favorite thing to do was to "roof" the balls at recess (or kick them on the roof). Of course this happened from time to time by accident but if the yard duties noticed a trend of frequent roofings from any one specific student that student was in trouble. That's why each student had to check out their balls at the beginning of recess. This posed a problem for Wade. But he had a simple solution. Two actually. The most obvious being to steal balls from smaller kids and kick them to the roof. The second, much more sinister solution - check out the balls under a stolen identity. He'd check out balls saying he was someone else and then kick them to the roof having all the fun of roofing a ball while other kids got in trouble for it.
Wade claims his greatest idea ever came in the form of a prank that involved a toilet plunger. Step one : break into the janitor's clost (off to a bad start). Step two : find the toilet plunger. Step three : emty bladder in the upturned plunger. Step four : when the coast is clear, stick the filled plunger to the ceiling of the hallway. Step five : (This is the most crucial step) Wipe the ceiling around the plunger with a damp mop to erase any leaked evidence of the plunger's contents. Step Six : Walk away. Wade says,"those kids just couldn't resist a plunger stuck to the ceiling. They fell for it every time!" And we all know what happened when someone succeeded in catching the end of that plunger. They were probably too humiliated to spread the word and warn each other. If he didn't have to "go" when it was time to fill the plunger he'd put warm water in instead. No one likes a mystery fluid.
Another favorite past time also involved breaking and entering. In the summertime, after a trip to the barn store where they'd pick up chips and candy and put it on their parent's tab (which they'd been banned from doing and later were supposed to supply a password in order to purchase things on the tab, a password which Wade was never given) Wade, Jordan and a cousin, Chris, would break into the elementary school. Chris' dad was the principal. They'd climb on top of the portables and from there climb on top of the gym. There was a small door in the ceiling of the gym that they could pry open, for some reason it had no lock. Then they had the gym to themselves. When they got tired of kicking balls and shooting hoops they'd go down to Chris' dad's office and find a key in his desk drawer. Not just any key. THE key... to the pop machine. (I have to say "pop" here because that's how Wade tells the story. We all know it's soda, but to be true to the original telling we'll say pop.) Down to the pop machine where they indulged in all the grape and orange Crush they could ever want. Aweful, I know. It gets worse. They didn't just steal pop, but the money in the pop machine too. But not all of it. They didn't want it to look like someone had been in the pop machine. Very smart.
So then a discussion about the politics of child punishment ensued and Wade and Jordan were both adimant that Canada was lawless when they were growing up and they both lamented the fact that kids today can't do more of the things they did growing up without suffering severe consequences. You're right, Wade and Jordan, it is sad that our kids aren't allowed to be the social miscreants their hearts yearn to be.
You can imagine my horror when the words, "Remember when You tazed the lunch lady?" flew from Jordan's mouth. First of all, where the heck did a 7/8th grader get a tazer; secondly, did he have no conscience? Apparently it was considered great fun to taze each other at home. I doubt the lunch lady saw the humor. They were all waiting in line for their hot dogs, the lunch lady walked down the line, and Wade stuck out his arm and tazed her butt. Wade maintains there was no way she could have known it was him cause' she was out cold and that someone must have ratted him out. He was sent home for the rest of the day. What? One half day out of school? Where was the expulsion or the community service or the jail time? His mom had to come get him. Good thing she thought to ask for the tazer back. Where was he the next day? Right back in line for his hot lunch.
So I never really considered that he might be a bully either, but my opinion on that matter started to shift last night too. He says his favorite thing to do was to "roof" the balls at recess (or kick them on the roof). Of course this happened from time to time by accident but if the yard duties noticed a trend of frequent roofings from any one specific student that student was in trouble. That's why each student had to check out their balls at the beginning of recess. This posed a problem for Wade. But he had a simple solution. Two actually. The most obvious being to steal balls from smaller kids and kick them to the roof. The second, much more sinister solution - check out the balls under a stolen identity. He'd check out balls saying he was someone else and then kick them to the roof having all the fun of roofing a ball while other kids got in trouble for it.
Wade claims his greatest idea ever came in the form of a prank that involved a toilet plunger. Step one : break into the janitor's clost (off to a bad start). Step two : find the toilet plunger. Step three : emty bladder in the upturned plunger. Step four : when the coast is clear, stick the filled plunger to the ceiling of the hallway. Step five : (This is the most crucial step) Wipe the ceiling around the plunger with a damp mop to erase any leaked evidence of the plunger's contents. Step Six : Walk away. Wade says,"those kids just couldn't resist a plunger stuck to the ceiling. They fell for it every time!" And we all know what happened when someone succeeded in catching the end of that plunger. They were probably too humiliated to spread the word and warn each other. If he didn't have to "go" when it was time to fill the plunger he'd put warm water in instead. No one likes a mystery fluid.
Another favorite past time also involved breaking and entering. In the summertime, after a trip to the barn store where they'd pick up chips and candy and put it on their parent's tab (which they'd been banned from doing and later were supposed to supply a password in order to purchase things on the tab, a password which Wade was never given) Wade, Jordan and a cousin, Chris, would break into the elementary school. Chris' dad was the principal. They'd climb on top of the portables and from there climb on top of the gym. There was a small door in the ceiling of the gym that they could pry open, for some reason it had no lock. Then they had the gym to themselves. When they got tired of kicking balls and shooting hoops they'd go down to Chris' dad's office and find a key in his desk drawer. Not just any key. THE key... to the pop machine. (I have to say "pop" here because that's how Wade tells the story. We all know it's soda, but to be true to the original telling we'll say pop.) Down to the pop machine where they indulged in all the grape and orange Crush they could ever want. Aweful, I know. It gets worse. They didn't just steal pop, but the money in the pop machine too. But not all of it. They didn't want it to look like someone had been in the pop machine. Very smart.
So then a discussion about the politics of child punishment ensued and Wade and Jordan were both adimant that Canada was lawless when they were growing up and they both lamented the fact that kids today can't do more of the things they did growing up without suffering severe consequences. You're right, Wade and Jordan, it is sad that our kids aren't allowed to be the social miscreants their hearts yearn to be.
12/15/07
got husband tagged
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1. What is his name? Wade Austen Pilling. His middle name is after the actor Steve Austen who played the Six Million Dollar Man in a 70's show called Bionic Man
2. How long have you been married? 8 1/2 years. If you ask Wade he says, "seven, eight years".
3. How long did you date? Met in October, engaged in March, married in July. Yikes! We only knew each other 9 months when we were married.
4. Who eats more? I totally eat way more than him. He'll forget to eat, and if I'm not home to fix him something he doesn't eat. That's why he always loses at least 5 pounds every time I go out of town.
5. Who said I love you first? I can't remember. Probably me, but I think we felt it at the same time.
6. Who sings better? Well, that depends on who you ask. I'll leave it at that. I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings.
4. Who eats more? I totally eat way more than him. He'll forget to eat, and if I'm not home to fix him something he doesn't eat. That's why he always loses at least 5 pounds every time I go out of town.
5. Who said I love you first? I can't remember. Probably me, but I think we felt it at the same time.
6. Who sings better? Well, that depends on who you ask. I'll leave it at that. I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings.
7. Who is taller? I'm 5'4" Wade's 6'.
8. Whose temper is worse? Mine, by far. He calls me a firecracker.
9. Who does the laundry? That's a joint effort. I do it more consistantly, but Wade's been known to rescue me from huge mountains of laundry on many occasions.
10. Who does the dishes? me, but not exclusively. He helps a lot, but the whole kitchen area makes him a little uncomfortable.
8. Whose temper is worse? Mine, by far. He calls me a firecracker.
9. Who does the laundry? That's a joint effort. I do it more consistantly, but Wade's been known to rescue me from huge mountains of laundry on many occasions.
10. Who does the dishes? me, but not exclusively. He helps a lot, but the whole kitchen area makes him a little uncomfortable.
11. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Wade, but that switches sometimes.
12. Who does the cooking? Did I mention he's scared of the kitchen? If he does any cooking it's on the grill, and he does grill an amazing steak.
13. Who is more stubborn? We're both really stubborn.
14. Who proposed? Wade.
15. Who is more likely to admit when they are wrong? Me. Wade kind of thinks he's right, all of the time. The frustrating thing is he is most of the time.
16. Whose parents do you see the most? We live two hours from his and 12 hours from mine, but actually it seems like we see mine as much as we see his.
17. Who pays the bills? That's all me. Well, not ALL me. I guess he does make the money with which to pay the bills.
18. Who wears the pants in the family? Do I really need to answer this one?
19. Why do you love your husband? Why not is more like it? First off he's totally charming, funny and gorgeous. I've always felt completely safe and secure with him and have never doubted his ability to take care of me and the kids, ever. He sees most things exactly opposite the way I do (he plays the devil's advocate A LOT), so he constantly makes me think and reassess my points of view. A lot of times this frustrated me, but most of the time I feel like I'm learning and growing when I'm with him. Wade is the most capable and assertive person I know. If there is a way to get it done he will make it happen. He can make me laugh till' I pee my pants, he snorts when he laughs, he does the best rump shake you've ever seen, his morning hair totally turns me on, and he's pretty much amazing on a pair of skis. He loves me and the kids so much and pushes us to experience new things and test our limitations. He really is a good man with a big heart. And, seriously, did you see those pictures of him? Be still my heart! Love you Babe!
So I'm not tagging anyone specifically, but you all know I'd like to hear all about your hubbies.
14. Who proposed? Wade.
15. Who is more likely to admit when they are wrong? Me. Wade kind of thinks he's right, all of the time. The frustrating thing is he is most of the time.
16. Whose parents do you see the most? We live two hours from his and 12 hours from mine, but actually it seems like we see mine as much as we see his.
17. Who pays the bills? That's all me. Well, not ALL me. I guess he does make the money with which to pay the bills.
18. Who wears the pants in the family? Do I really need to answer this one?
19. Why do you love your husband? Why not is more like it? First off he's totally charming, funny and gorgeous. I've always felt completely safe and secure with him and have never doubted his ability to take care of me and the kids, ever. He sees most things exactly opposite the way I do (he plays the devil's advocate A LOT), so he constantly makes me think and reassess my points of view. A lot of times this frustrated me, but most of the time I feel like I'm learning and growing when I'm with him. Wade is the most capable and assertive person I know. If there is a way to get it done he will make it happen. He can make me laugh till' I pee my pants, he snorts when he laughs, he does the best rump shake you've ever seen, his morning hair totally turns me on, and he's pretty much amazing on a pair of skis. He loves me and the kids so much and pushes us to experience new things and test our limitations. He really is a good man with a big heart. And, seriously, did you see those pictures of him? Be still my heart! Love you Babe!
So I'm not tagging anyone specifically, but you all know I'd like to hear all about your hubbies.
11/30/07
11/29/07
a new woman?
I know what you're thinking. "Is Elizabeth fit to be a mother?" Yes she's stuck in the grate of my stove. But this was post-removal of the kitchen stools. This child cannot be kept out of ANYTHING, despite all my childproofing efforts. So, those of you who talk to me on a regular basis know how frustrating this dilemma of outsmarting a barely two-year-old has been. But, I feel Whitney deserves some applause for recent improvements to her mischievous behavior. I'm not sure what it is, but she's been a little (and I stress "little") better lately. Hey, I'll take any bit I can get! She's not on the counter quite as much. She hasn't smeared butter on the counter or cupboards in a couple of weeks. I don't have to duck tape every diaper on. She's clothed about half the time, as opposed to a quarter of the time. I now have some use for the seat belt on the shopping cart now that Whitney chooses not to slither out of it and stays put. It's been a while since she took a bath with all her clothes on. Wait ... no. I take that back. She did that last night, but it had been a while before last night. I haven't gotten the Spot Shot out for poop-portraits in a while. I've brought the stools back into the kitchen. So it's been easier to see the sweet, loving little baby girl who is my Whitney. Mad props to Whitney. Love you baby!
chubba-chub
I keep getting harrassed to put some updated pics of the wee bebe.Here she is just over two months old. She's already changed so much, and if you can believe it, is going through an even sleepier stage. Love the cheeks!
11/16/07
11/7/07
6 weeks ago...
Hard to beleive it's already been six weeks since we had Devan. These are just a few of her first pictures right after she was born.
Wade's pretty proud11/3/07
Sleepy Time
Nikki wanted to hold Devan and watch a cooking show. When she wants to watch a cooking show I always know that means she's tired and will soon be asleep. This is how I found them a few minutes later.
10/5/07
10/3/07
Devan is fitting right in with the rest of the Pilling kids. 
Whitney loves to take care of Devan. She always wants to hold her and tuck her in and likes to make sure all her toes are still there.
She's such a good baby. All she does is eat and sleep and poop. WOuldn't we all like to live such a life?
9/27/07
Devan Elizabeth PillingShe's finally here. Doesn't look too happy in this picture. We had her Tuesday night at 9:44. Things went just as planned. Fast.
She weighed in at 6 pounds 5 ounces and measured 20 1/2 inches. And she looks just like all our other kids did!
This is Wednesday morning when my mom brought the kids to see us. The first thing they said was, "She's so tiny!"
Sorry Max. Now you're REALLY outnumbered. Max doesn't seem to care that he's the only boy. He's just so excited to have a new baby. That's because he's such a sweetheart and loves everyone.
Whitney LOVES the new baby. She wants to hold her every second she can, and she's really pretty gentle and very enthralled with her. She just looks at her and points excitedly to all her parts.I've got a lot more pictures on our other camera that are much better. I'll post them this weekend, but I thought this could tide you all over until then. We're all doing great. Came home Wednesday. Feel free to call or drop in.
9/21/07
So we took a camping trip earlier this month with our good friends the Terrys. We went up to the Sawtooth Mountains and camped at Alturus Lake near Stanley, Idaho. It was breathtaking. We try to go here at least once a year. This picture of Max should be at the bottom. He's trying to do a flip but he described it as a "belly-flop-flip"
This was the preferred form of entertainment among the kids. I wish I had a picture of all the kids together. I think the Terrys have a picture on their blog http://www.theterryfam.blogspot.com/ Nikki was not the dirtiest of the bunch.
This is the fox that would not leave us alone the first night. And River, the Terry's dog, gave me no added comfort since he didn't even notice the fox, and when he finally did I think he was scared of it.
Kids in the lake. I think Whitney thought the whole trip was especially arranged just so she could be in the water. She is a total water baby.
Nikki and Ayden, the Terry's oldest daughter. Looks like they could be related.
Max was having a blast searching for dead fish.
Here is Wade's version of a morning bath. It was cold.
Notice how everyone is all bundled up? Now imagine jumping into the water like Wade and Brad.
Here are Brad and Jenni with their second daughter Alex, the only brown-haired kid in the whole lot. Brad was being a little grumpy and wouldn't give me a decent smile.
Apparently Whitney and Alex really really really like chips. They pretty much ate the whole bag of Dorritos by themselves before moving onto the Ruffles.
This is me and Jenni. I told Jenni we were getting in the water for sure. She didn't really want to . When we got to the lake I sat and my duff and watched Jenni swim. I had fun watching though.
This was Wade's second of three naps for the day.
Whitney's a little excited to be at the lake. Looks a little crazed to me.
According to Max this is his favorite place in the whole world. The dads took the bigger kids on the paddle boats.
This is the fox that would not leave us alone the first night. And River, the Terry's dog, gave me no added comfort since he didn't even notice the fox, and when he finally did I think he was scared of it.
Kids in the lake. I think Whitney thought the whole trip was especially arranged just so she could be in the water. She is a total water baby.
Nikki and Ayden, the Terry's oldest daughter. Looks like they could be related.
Max was having a blast searching for dead fish.
Here is Wade's version of a morning bath. It was cold.
Notice how everyone is all bundled up? Now imagine jumping into the water like Wade and Brad.
Here are Brad and Jenni with their second daughter Alex, the only brown-haired kid in the whole lot. Brad was being a little grumpy and wouldn't give me a decent smile.
Apparently Whitney and Alex really really really like chips. They pretty much ate the whole bag of Dorritos by themselves before moving onto the Ruffles.
This is me and Jenni. I told Jenni we were getting in the water for sure. She didn't really want to . When we got to the lake I sat and my duff and watched Jenni swim. I had fun watching though.
This was Wade's second of three naps for the day.
Whitney's a little excited to be at the lake. Looks a little crazed to me.
According to Max this is his favorite place in the whole world. The dads took the bigger kids on the paddle boats.
9/20/07
We spent a whole day in Old San Juan. The streets were all really narrow cobble stone and totally shadowed by huge trees and vines. It was exactly how I hoped it would be. There was this cool little sweet/coffee shop under a monstrous tree.
The whole city is surrounded by a 500-year-old wall that is dotted with these really charming lookouts. The walls come to a point at this huge fortress right on the cliffs by the ocean. It was really cool to see how this half-century structure had held up to time and the elements.
Someone shaved their dog to look like a lion. I was totally convinced. I guess they had something pretty valuable they wanted protected.
Out of nowhere it started to pour. We had to hide in a doorway while the street turned into a river. I guess we were in a tropical rain forest.
Here is another picture from Flamingo Beach near where we were snorkeling.
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