All I Want for Christmas is...

Sara's two front teeth! It's been a full six months since Sara cut her bottom teeth. It seems like she's been teething that entire time--drooling, gnawing, smacking, biting. I just hope she gets some more teeth soon (not another six months from now) so we can get this stuff over with and start eating some REAL food!

Top Ten Reasons Why it's Good to Have All Girls #2

#2: You Get to Poke Holes in Their Ears.

(For those of you who are new to the blog, you can catch up on the other Top Ten posts here)

I have wanted to pierce my girls' ears ever since Amy was about 6 months old. Joseph was dead set against it. Our compromise was this: At the age of 5, the girls should be able to understand pain and the responsibility associated with taking care of pierced ears and can then decide for themselves. So, for the past year, I have subconsciously convinced Amy that she wanted earrings. We just happened to be in a mall in Savannah on Black Friday (another story for another time) which was the day after Amy's 5th birthday. As we entered the mall, Claire's was right there. I asked Amy if she wanted to get her ears pierced and--surprisingly--she said yes. We went and picked out a pair of earrings, but after watching another girl get her ears pierced, Amy said: "That hurts. I don't want earrings." We walked out of the store, but she kept looking back. She changed her mind at the last minute, and decided that she did want earrings after all. She was very brave and only cried from the initial shock. She has been modeling her pretty blue-green earrings ever since.

Leaves

Anniversary Post!

To mark the 1st anniversary since our first blog post, we're posting our family picture taken after Sara's adoption was final. I thought it only fitting since our first post, entitled Sara Christine Hood, was about introducing her to everyone.

This is what we wore as a family to the court room. We had a hard time getting everyone to settle down . . . and we're lucky we got them to look toward the camera, much less get any smiles.

So, in celebrating our blog's 1st anniversary: here's to you--all ye who dwell in the bloggernacle--may your posts be fun and your comments be many!


While I'm at it, I may as well mention some milestones from the past year:

1-The kids are all still alive, and relatively well (this was harder than you think to achieve).

2-I'm not crazy . . . yet. But I am suffering from some sort of Post-finalization Depression (I went through PPD with the other three and it's fitting for it to happen with Sara--just means I have truly accepted her as my own) who knew!?!

3-Our cars are still alive, but our HVAC system, washing machine (twice), dishwasher, stove, alternator, 2 car batteries, and the radio in the van all died beyond repair and had to be replaced. (yes, all while paying for a VERY expensive adoption)

Pumpkin Polling Results

Ok, the pumpkin polling data are in:

The correct answer was "B"

Name That Pumpkin Carver

Our family pumpkin was carved into the logo of our beloved Alma Matter this year. And, for a little friendly competition, we're going to play that game we all know and love: "Name That Pumpkin Carver."


For those of you that haven't played for a while, here's a refresher on how it works:

Choose one of the following options and record your choice in a comment to this blog:


A) Joseph (good choice, the "awesome artist")
B) Tamra (also a good choice, the "patient perfectionist")
C) Amy (bad choice, the "4 year old that's not allowed to play with knives")
D) No one, its a fake pumpkin (another good choice)


The winner will be chosen randomly from the correct guessers and will get their personal pumpkin carved for free next Halloween into anything they want by the expert carver who created the above masterpiece*.


*Offer void if the answer is C, because even though Amy will be 5 next year, she still won't be allowed to play with knives. Winner will be responsible for purchasing the pumpkin to be carved. Winner will be chosen at random via the eenie-meenie-minee-moe method. All rebates to dealer. Offer void in California. Also, effective retroactively, the winner may not request their pumpkin to be carved to resemble a TIGER PAW.

Good luck!

Find Your Pumpkin Self

One of our Fall/Halloween Traditions is to Get a pumpkin for each member of the family. In our second year of this tradition, we decided to give our pumpkins more personality, and we created a jack-o-portrait for each of the kids.

Sealing

No words, just pictures . . .

How to build a backyard - Part 3: Hiatus

Step 1: Put all tools away (because there's a chance of rain for the next three weeks straight--not to mention the hurricanes.)
Step 2: Dam up dirt piles so they stop spilling into the sidewalk.
Step 3: Turn wheelbarrow over so it doesn't become a cess pool of mosquito larvae.
Step 4: Wait....and wait....and wait. Wait 'til your husband is back into the swing of grad school, wait 'til you're used to waking up at 6:00 am so that Amy can catch the bus at 6:30 am, wait 'til all the school orientations are over, wait 'til all this adoption mess is final, wait 'til Tammy, Sara, and Claire's birthday parties are over, 'til formal family portraits are taken, 'til Sara is sealed to us for time and all eternity, 'til Sara is blessed, and FINALLY, wait 'til after General Conference is over before getting back to work on the most important project for the house. Maybe the weather will be nicer and you can work for longer than 15 minutes before almost passing out and being forced back inside for water breaks to recuperate from the humidity--maybe.

Finally, Finalization.

It's official--this little girl's name is Sara, and Joseph and Tamra Hood are her legal parents. The adoption was finalized on Sep. 5th, 2008. I know what you're asking, and yes, all of her sisters were there in the courtroom and there was NO order in the court. There were however a lot of smiles. We are a happy family

How to Build a Backyard Part 2: The Wall

Yes, it's time to check in on our major backyard renovation. We have completed the demolition work and are now building the wall for the lower level. The walls are being built out of treated wood timbers, rebar and a gravel foundation. The wall is supported by perpendicular "deadmen" that tie the wall into the earth behind it.

For anyone thinking that the Hood's must be expert wall builders, check back with this wall in a couple of years and see if it's still standing. The only thing we're going on is some how-to websites and common sense. We'll see how it works out.

4 Little Girls + Sleeping Parents + Markers =

Amy sports a phat goatee . . .

Claire contracts a rare case of Smokey Mountain Spotted Fever . . .

Sara's outfit gets a makeover . . .

Mikala draws an amoeba, while Amy experiments with a new subject: a One Eyed Monster . . .

Amy practices her art next to Daddy's artwork on the playroom wall (Amy is understandably confused about why she is not allowed to draw on the wall) . . .

Mikala thinks Amy's artwork is very hip and commissions body art based on her One Eyed Monster.

Lessons learned:

• The Olympics are fun, but sleeping is better.
• Do not leave markers where children can find them.
• If you absolutely must leave markers where children can find them, remove the sharpies from the mix.
• Use a Magic eraser for the walls, baby oil for the babies.
  

Nebulizer Baby

Sara had a bad cough--bad enough that we had to take her to the urgent care to have her checked out. Apparently, she was working on getting pneumonia, and she was almost there. Her treatment is a nebulizer, steroids, and antibiotics. She doesn't mind the nebulizer too much, except that she hates it. She pulls it off constantly so you can't leave because you have to hold it in place the whole time. Anyway, her cough went away very quickly and she's pretty much back to normal.

In other news, Sara's crawling now--not the commando crawl, but the real thing. That's right, she's able to get her belly off the floor and stop mopping the floor with her shirt. Good news for her, bad news for the floor.

How to Build a Backyard Part 1: Excavation

This is the first in a new blog series about our major backyard rebuild. We decided that whether we sell the house now, or live in it for while longer, we need to make the backyard usable. Our backyard has been a useless slope since we moved in. The plan is to terrace it with retaining walls and make three level areas, with a patio on the lower level. Our plan is also to do it for a $1,000 instead of $10,000.

The Plan:
The first step to this process is moving several tons of dirt. This is very brutal work. It's a good thing we waited until the hottest part of the year to do it (heavy sarcasm).

The Excavation:

We will keep you posted on the progress.

Not Just an Empty Threat

A couple of months ago, Amy picked up a bad habit from one of her friends. She started chewing on her hair. For months I threatened, and threatened, and threatened some more. The more I threatened, the more I bluffed. I couldn't stand to see all that soft, pretty, curly hair go away. So, whenever Joseph would ask me when I was going to cut her hair, my answer was always something close to, "whenever I get a chance." Yeah, right. Like anyone in their right mind would ever cut gorgeous flowing locks like Amy's. (For those of you who are having a hard time remembering, please refer to: Top Ten Reasons Why it's Good to Have All Girls #6.) Well, last Sunday, Amy chewed on her hair nonstop. I got so fed up that I told her she was getting her hair cut in the morning. And voila...we have the new Amy!

And the flipside...

Bye bye beautiful locks. :( (Hopefully not forever though).

Oh, and after I was done cutting Amy's hair, I went to give Kala a trim while I was at it, and found her like this...

here's another angle...

and one more for good measure...

Sweet Memories

A Different Kind of Tag:

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together (either with just me, just joseph, or the family). It doesn't matter if you knew us a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.

Thanks for playing along!

How to Replace an Alternator in a 2002 Kia Sedona

This is Joseph, and I'm hijacking the blog today to perform a public service. Usually when I do car work, I google for instructions and get complete details on how to do the work. This saves me from extra work, injury, and death. However, when the alternator went bad in the Kia, I could find no online help for a 2002 Kia Sedona. I have learned the hard way how to replace this alternator, and I'm passing this knowledge along to all.

And for all you female readers of this blog: I know this is not the type of post you are used to on this blog, but just think--you could have bragging rights with your husband (i.e. "I know how to replace an alternator in a 2002 Kia Sedona and you don't, so there!").

Step by step instructions:

1) Are you sure the alternator's bad!?!? Replacing an alternator in this vehicle is NOT an easy task and is not recommended for men with high blood pressure, or women who are pregnant, or may become pregnant. Side effects include nausea, insomnia, and very dirty fingernails. If you experience that it takes you longer than 4 hours to remove this alternator, call your mechanic immediately.

To make sure the alternator needs to be replaced, google "how to test an alternator" and invest in a good multimeter if you don't have one.


2) Remove battery terminal connections and wait at least 30 min for the airbags to be disabled.

3) Remove the air filter intake (large black plastic thing on top of the radiator that connects to the air filter housing).



4) Remove support beam above radiator (6 x 14mm screws and 4 x 12mm screws).



5) Remove radiator hoses connected to the pipe that runs along the front of the engine block. There are two, one on the left that connects to the radiator, and one on the right the connects to the thermostat housing on the side of the block).



This will cause antifreeze to spill all over your driveway. Ideally you should put something down to catch it, but if you didn't, this would be a great time for those disease-ridden stray cats to come around looking for a snack.



6) Now remove the pipe that these hoses were connected to (2 x 12mm screws). You will now get a visual of the alternator, which is a good thing considering you have to replace it.


7) Remove both fans attached to the radiator. This is the hard part. There at least 4 screws holding each one down, one on top, one on the bottom, and two on the side. The side screws are very difficult to get to. You will need one or more of the following to get them loose:

• Extremely small and agile fingers
• Psychokinetic abilities that allow you to move things with your mind that you cannot possibly reach with your hands
• The proper tool (flexible ratchet extension)

After you remove the fans, you will have created a path to move the alternator across the front of the engine block and out.

8) Loosen (or remove) the serpentine belt by loosening the manual adjustment pulley. This is the pulley with the 12mm nut on the side and underneath. If you do not know how to loosen a manual adjustment pulley, you are dumb. (google it if you need to know how to do it)

9) Remove the black support bar the connects the alternator to the engine block. (2 x 12mm screws)

At this point, your kids (who should be asleep by now) will be crying at you through their bedroom window because it's so unfair that they have to go to sleep while Daddy gets to play outside and have fun.

10) Ignore them. You have work to do. Remove the three bolts on the left side of the alternator. Two of them will not come all the way out because of lack of space, but they will come out far enough to remove the alternator.

You will now have to install a light because it has taken you longer to do this than you thought could ever be possible and it is 10:00 at night.

11) Disconnect the hot connection to the alternator (11mm bolt) and the wire harness for the voltage regulator and ground connections.

12) Remove the alternator.

13) Buy a new alternator. This will cost more than you will want to pay. Mortgage your house, sell one (or more) of your kidneys, or embezzle funds from work as necessary.

14) Attach the new alternator and put the car back together better than you found it.

15) When it comes time for you to put those stupid fans back in, do what you should have done before--get your wife who has small and agile hands to do it for you. 16) When you are completly done, sit back and admire your work:

You will probably have at least two screws left over:

They probably don't go on anything important. If you do not have any screws left over, then:

• You are an amazing mechanic and should probably do this for a living.
• You dropped most of the screws into the engine in tiny crevices where they will never be recovered.
• You're just reading this blog for fun and haven't actually replaced the alternator in your personal 2002 Kia Sedona.

17) Disinfect and bandage wounds.

18) Sleep for the 2 hours you have left before you have to wake up and go to work.

All done.

Top 10 Reasons Why it's Good to Have All Girls #3

#3: Creative Color Coordinating: Claire has found a new hobby...munching on markers. Claire is very sneaky in this endeavor. She takes markers from Amy when neither Amy nor mommy are looking. Then she hides. Claire likes to experiment with different colors (and her 5 senses). So, sometimes they mix. But Crayola has made things way more complicated. It's not just "green" anymore. It's "mountain meadow". And with all this creative color coordinating, we must match Claire's skin tone with "piggy pink", her eyes with "beaver", and her hair with "desert sand". (Shout out to Crayola for always making their products non-toxic!)

Two Teefs

Guess who bit my finger at Stake Conference? That's right folks...Sara has two teeth that broke through on Sunday. I've been wondering when this milestone would come her way. With her being premature and all, I really wasn't sure. She's been acting like she was gonna cut teeth for about 4 months now, but her gums were never swollen. Oh well, maybe now I can start feeding her some actual food instead of mush.

Genesis 43:1

We came home from our week long trip in Chattanooga to a special treat: crunchy grass!

It is a liberating feeling to finally embrace the fact that our lawn is completely--and utterly--dead.

The previous two summers were marked by feeble attempts at watering and worrying about the grass. This summer, we were just unwilling to pay for the water or lose any sleep over it.

Well, gotta go mow the weeds. . .

Excuses

What has kept the Hood's so busy that they've been virtually blogless for the past 2 months? Let's see . . .

It all started when Joseph was sent on a week-long business trip to Las Vegas . . .

Red Rocks Canyon, NV

. . . Where he learned about fancy engineering things and had to go to Red Rocks all by himself because all his engineering friends were too busy trying to get rich quick.

Anyway, with Joseph gone for a week, Tammy was left to fend for herself against the heathens . . .

Mikala Wearing her War Paint

. . . And then Joseph was sent to New York for week . . .

China Town, NYC

. . . Where he learned about fancy engineering things and ate chinese food in china town, which coincidentally tastes a lot like chinese food in South Carolina.

Anyway, again, this left Tammy alone all week with the demolition crew . . .

Claire Taking a Quick Breather between Demolition Sessions

And then Joseph was sent to Chattanooga for a week. (A pattern has emerged) . . .

Lover's Leap at Rock City, Chattanooga

. . . And, because Tammy couldn't stand being left alone for another week with the infidels, we packed 'em up and made the Chattanooga trip a family vacation . . .sortof.

Sara and Claire, Just Thrilled to be on a Business Trip

After all this traveling hither and yon, we had a lot of work to do with the adoption . . .

Daddy Instilling Musical Genius with "Popcorn Popping . . ."

Tammy and "Sissa"

. . . And just when we thought life was back to normal and we could go back to our old blogging ways, the washing machine broke. More specifically, "there was an arching fault in the main relay on the motor inverter circuit." Unfortunately, the 1 year warranty was up a week ago . . .

The Late Washing Machine Motor

~ 2007-2008 ~

What you have just read is our post created directly after the washing machine was fixed the the backlog of clothes finally began to get washed. We are now out of excuses and excited about sharing our adventures again on Life is Hood.