There He Goes!

We just took these pics of our little guy this evening. What do ya think?






(Excuse my enormous rear here!)

Just About Got It

My little man has finally started taking some steps!! He has taken like 1 to 1 1/2 steps before, but today he has started taking about 5 steps in a row on his own! Yea! I am so excited! He will be 14 months old on the 26th, so I think it's about time he finally started gettin' his walk on!

Questionaire

1. What is the geekiest part of your music collection? I don't own anything geeky.
2. What do you eat when you raid the fridge late at night? Chocolate
3. What is your secret guaranteed weeping movie? Any one where someone is sick and then dies.
4. If you could have plastic surgery, what would you have done? laser stretch mark removal (3 kids'll do that to ya...is there such a thing anyway?)
5. Do you have a completely irrational fear? I don't believe any of my fears are irrational
6. What is the little physical habit that gives away your insecure moments? When I can't maintain eye contact.
7. Are you a pyromaniac? A little bit, yeah
8. Do you have too many interests? I don't think so
9. Do you know anyone famous? I recently got my picture taken with John Heffron :)
10. Describe your bed. "Love nest"...no really, king-sized and comfy!
11. Spontaneous or planned? I like to plan, but I am impatient, so I'll plan something and then want to do it immediately.
12. Who should play you in a movie about your life? Gwyneth in a fat suit similar to that in Shallow Hal.

13. Do you know how to play poker? Not really
14. What do you carry with you at all times? My 1 year old (seems like it anyway).
15. What do you miss most about being a kid? Not having responsibilities.
16. Are you happy with your given name? Yes, I used to hate it, but now I like it.
17. How much money would it take to get you to give up the Internet for one year? $10 million: I could spend all my time shopping instead of surfing the web.
18. What color is your bedroom? Beige, burgundy and tan.
19. What was the last song you were listening to? All I need is the air that I breath and to love you (in my head because I was just reading Oz's blog.)
20. Have you ever been in a play? Yes, several.
21. Have you ever been in love? Yes
22. Do you talk a lot? Sometimes
23. Do you like yourself and believe in yourself? It depends
24. Do transient, homeless, or starving people sometimes annoy you? Yes, the bums that stand at off ramps with a cardboard sign bug me. They probably make more in a day than a lot of the people that give them $.
25. Do you consider yourself to be a nice person? For the most part, I try to be, but I admit I can be a real witch sometimes.
26. Do you spend more time with your girlfriend/boyfriend/wife/husband or your friends? Hubby and kids.
27. What is your ideal marriage location? In the church that I belong to...and that happens to be where I got married.
28. Which musical instrument do you wish you could play? Piano
29. Favorite fabric? I don't know what it's called, but that soft, plush velvety stuff they make baby blankets out of.
30. Something you love and hate? My life
31. What kind of bedding do you use? soft, cool, cottony sheets and a comforter.
32. Do you tell your friends about your sex life? Occasionally if the topic comes up.
33. What's the one language you want to learn? Sign language
34. How do you eat an apple? Sliced and dipped in peanut butter caramel dip.
35. What do you order at a bar? Diet Pepsi/Coke or some sort of non-alcoholic frozen margarita.
36. Have you ever pierced your body parts? Just my ears
37. Do you have tattoos? No, but I've considered getting an ichthus (christian fish) on my ankle, but I hate needles and pain so, probably won't happen.
38. Do you drive stick? I know how and used to drive one.
39. What's one trait you hate in a person? know-it-allness
40. What kind of watch do you wear? A gold and silver timex indiglo
41. Most frivolous purchase? A mixer I saw on an infomercial and had to have, but never use.
42. Do you consider yourself materialistic? Yes, and I hate that about myself.
43. What do you cook the best? Does spaghetti count? No? Ok, how about baked garlic-pepper chicken on my baking stone. Yummy
44. Favorite writing tool? A keyboard
45. Do you prefer to stand out or blend in? Blend in. I don't like drawing attention to myself.
46. Would you ever go out dressed like the opposite sex? Sure, if it's Halloween, or someone pays me.
47. What's one car you will never buy? this one:

48. What kind of books do you like to read? Romance novels
49. If you won the lottery, what would you do? Wonder how I won without even buying a ticket!
50. Burial or cremation? Hopefully Jesus will return first.
51. How many online journals do you read regularly? 10-ish
52. What's one thing you're a sore loser at? Losing falsely
53. If you don't like a person, how do you show it? I try not to show it. I do my best to avoid confrontation.
54. Do you cry in front of your friends? I have, but I don't like to. Unfortunately, when I get angry or upset, I cry uncontrollably. I can be pretty emotional at times.
55. What kind of first impression do you think you give to people? I think people see me as a decent, nice person.
56. What's one thing you like to do alone? Read. I can't read when there are a lot of distractions around me.
57. Are you a giver or a taker? I do my fair share of both.
58. When's the last time you cried? I can't remember. It hasn't been too terribly long ago though.
59. Favorite communication method? Depends on what I am communicating about.
60. How many drinks before you're tipsy? No idea
61. Do you think you're cute? Sometimes (mostly regarding my personality, rarely my looks).
62. Do you have problems changing clothes in front of friends? Kind of, I am really self-conscious.

So Disappointed!

I am so disappointed in Luvs new diapers! They were my favorite brand of diapers of all time! After 3 kids, I have tried practically every diaper out there and Luvs were, in my opinion, the best.

With absolutely NO warning on their package, Luvs has changed their diapers from being outlined in light blue and smelling wonderfully of baby powder (LOVED that smell!) to being outlined in a girly purple color and smelling like some sort of lavender perfume or something!

On top of that, they are thinner and don't prevent leaks as well. I never had any problems with leaks using Luvs until now. My little man woke up this morning with his clothes soaked!

I am so mad. Luvs were the absolute best for the money! Better at preventing leaks than Huggies and much better than the generic brands and didn't cost that much more (and WAY less than other name brand diapers!)

I did email Luvs with my disappointment and according to the Luvs website, I'm not the only one who feels this way.

If anyone else uses Luvs and is disappointed with the new product, please contact them and let them know! Maybe if enough people voice their disappointment, they will change back to the original Luvs that we all knew and loved!

Snackwell's Yogurt

Did you know that Snackwell's used to make yogurt? Did you also know that it was my cashier at Walmart last night's favorite yogurt? And that they stopped making it? Her mom got hooked on it, who got her sister hooked on it, who got her hooked on it. And then they stopped making it and she was so upset, because it was her favorite yogurt. They had chocolate banana, and all kinds of other chocolate flavors that were very good. It looked like pudding, and tasted like pudding, but it was yogurt. Blah blah bliggity blah blah!!!!!!

Well I know it! Want to know how I know? Because she saw this Yoplait Whips chocolate cherry yogurt I was buying and asked me if it was good. I told her I didn't know because I hadn't tried it yet. Well, this brought on this entire 7 minute, one sided conversation that you see above! (if you notice, it probably took you about 10-15 seconds to read it. She kept repeating the same 3 or 4 things over and over and, oh yeah, over again!!!)

And oh yeah, her mom told her that Snackwell's has a website and that she should see if she can buy some online or at least send them a suggestion to bring it back.

WOW! Now you are enlightened just as I was!

8 Years!

My big girl turned 8 years old today!! I can't believe it. She is going into third grade this fall! What happened to my chubby cheeked little baby?!!!


hospital pic......................................................today

My hubby took the day off work today and finished his final paper for this semester of classes. While he was typing that up this morning, the kids and I spent a couple of hours at the pool. (Note to all: the coppertone continuous spray sunscreen is awesome, but doesn't last very long. I used almost the whole can just today on the 4 of us.)

Then, after swimming, we came home and all got showers and went to drop off hubby's paper then to lunch. We had to go to Burger King per the birthday girl's request because they have Star Wars toys! Yea.

Then we stopped at WalMart because the girls were begging for light sabers (and we needed more sunscreen) but they didn't have them! (light sabers, not sunscreen) Bummer!

One of the girls' friends is on her way over right now to go back to the pool with us this evening. This is good because I decided not to give Emmy a kid party this year. We will probably go to Libby Lu's on Saturday and let the girls get makeovers. That should be fun! Then on Sunday, we will have lunch with the whole family at The Olive Garden (also, EE's choice).

Time is FLYING!

I'm Back!

Well, this past weekend was my trip to Indianapolis to see Beth Moore. I had such a blast! The first night there, I was in a room with just one other lady and got my own bed!! That was nice. The second night there were 5 of us in that room so I had to share, but it wasn't so bad.

I rode with 3 other ladies from my small group and we headed out of town around 1 pm and arrived at our hotel, (The Indianapolis Hilton) which was very nice, around 4:30. <--we ran in to some traffic on the way there. We got checked into our rooms and got ready for the first part of the conference. After that we headed back to our rooms and ordered dinner (at about 11 pm) and had it delivered to our room.

Not too long after that, we were all asleep (well, the 4 of us that rode together at least. The other 2 were in the room next to us). We were so beat!

Saturday morning it was up and at it early. We had room service delivered to us at 6 am and were at the RCA Dome for the second part of the conference when the doors opened at 7:30. (oh, BTW, we were apparently the designated seat holders. That was nice, having to reserve 3-4 rows of seats while 17,000 other women strolled by wondering if "all those seats" were taken!) So we got our butts up early to get there when they opened they doors just so everyone else could lolligag (yes, I said lolligag) around and get there an hour and a half later when the conference started. O well!

After the conference was all over at noon, the entire group from our church (27, I believe) went and ate lunch at Champps.



After lunch, everyone but the 5 of us went home. The 5 of us that stayed hit the mall! Then the games began. We spent a couple of hours just browsing the stores and picking up a few things, mostly for our kids of course, and a few things for ourselves. Then we decided to catch a movie....Monster In Law. Cute movie, we all enjoyed it. (The best part was getting to leave the movie and not have to go directly to pick up children!!) Then, we hit one more store on the way back to the hotel, Old Navy, and then Buca di Beppo for dinner.

Then, finally back to the hotel. We all changed into our suits and headed down to the pool. We got in the hot tub first, then cooled off in the pool.

After About an hour or so of that, we headed back up to the room and chatted and started watching a DVD (How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days...such a good movie!) but we were all too tired and ended up turning it off and going to bed. I have no idea what time it was at that point, but it was definitely Sunday.

Then we got up (later) Sunday morning and again had room service deliver our breakfast, only this time at 9:30, not 6:00! As we ate our breakfast, we watched the movie we had started before bed.

After the movie, 3 of us decided to go back down to the hot tub and pool and relax a bit more before heading home. A couple of people came and stayed a few minutes and left and we had the entire pool to ourselves. That was nice.

Then it was back to the room to get showered, packed, and back on the road home. The weekend totally flew by.

We stopped for a late lunch/early dinner at Cracker Barrel on the way home and were back in Columbus by 6:30 (and I was home by 8 after picking up my kids).

Wow! I SOOOO needed this weekend!!! It was so fun and relaxing, and nice to be able to get up and not have to worry about getting anyone besides myself ready. Now I am back to reality this week. And the family survived wonderfully while I was away, but I'm sure were all happy to see me back (especially the baby!)

Sorry I don't have any more pictures to post. I was too busy having fun to think of taking pictures!

A Blast!

What a great time we turned out to have last night!!! We had a very yummy dinner at CPK. We all shared a large barbeque chicken salad and pizza. Then we walked around for a little while and all bought our girls something from Club Libby Lu. (<--Very cute store BTW!)

Then off to the Funny Bone. The show was SO incredibly funny. The only thing we didn't really care for was the host (you know, the one who starts out telling a few jokes then introduces the opening act and the headliner.) He really liked the "f" word and said "g.d." a lot. The other two comics were very funny. I can't remember the guy's name that opened for Heffron, his last name I think is Cummings, but he was hilarious. I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard. My head was beginning to hurt and so were my jaws from all the laughing.

Then on the way out, my friend Mindy said that she wished she had brought her camera because she wanted to get a picture with J.H. I said that I had a camera phone and so we went back over to where the comics were selling and signing their CD's and asked for a picture. I felt a little silly, like we were back in high school or something, but it was fun anyway. She asked and of course he agreed and we got some guy to take our picture. I'm the one on the right in the pink. (I know, the camera adds 10 lbs. and unfortunately, there is only one camera on me!) Mindy is the short blonde in the middle and Angela (who I got to know through our small group) is the dark haired one in the front. The long haired guy is the Cummings guy and of course, all know, John Heffron...



After the picture was taken he commented on how one of us uses pert. Which, if you had seen the show, was funny in and of itself because he said he gets "excited just smelling shampoo". I won't get into the details but it has to do with "happy time" in the shower if you know what I mean.

After that we headed to Cup O Joe and got some coffee and sat there and talked and laughed for quite a while.

I really needed that! Good food, good laughs, good coversation, no crying baby, no fighting kids. Just plain fun!

(And thanks to my hubby for staying home and watching the kiddies so I could go out!)

Funny Bone

Anybody watch the show Last Comic Standing? While I wasn't a loyal viewer, I did see the show a few times. The season 2 (I think) winner of the show, John Heffron, is going to be at the Funny Bone comedy club near my part of town tomorrow night and a couple of my friends and I are going to go see him. We're going to eat dinner at California Pizza Kitchen and then catching the 8:00 show. It should be a fun evening. We have been talking for months now about doing this and a few weeks ago decided that we should go see Heffron. I have heard his CD and he is a pretty funny guy, and not too bad to look at either. (The friends I'm going with are both Single moms. ) I'm looking forward to a night out! My only problem now is finding something to wear. I may just need to go shopping tomorrow. Finding clothes sucks when you're fat. O well.

Burned!

I went on an outdoor field trip with my oldest daughter yesterday. We went to the Festival of Cultures at the Ohio Expo Center. We were outside from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. It was nice and the weather was good. Not too cold, not too hot, not rainy. But of course, I didn't even think about putting on sunscreen, and boy does my face show it! My forehead is bright red! I also have a circle-o-sunburn on my chest. Nice! Oh, and I don't want to forget the white rings around my eyes from where my sunglasses were! Oh, yeah, I'm a pretty picture today!

Yeah, Carrie Won!

I have liked Carrie from the beginning. I think she has an awesome voice! However, I honestly thought that Bo was going to win. I think the judges were really trying to steer America to vote for him. But, alas, Carrie pulled through!

To tell you the truth, I wouldn't have really been upset if Bo had won, I think he is good too, and he'll have no problems getting a recording contract.

What did everyone think of miss Mikalah? Like her new hair-do? I think her hair looked good, but the voice, still not that great.

I enjoyed seeing some clips from the beginning of the season that I had forgotten about. Like the "can ya dig it" guy for one. Good ole' Leroy.

Sorry to keep you waiting

I had a very busy weekend and didn't really have time to get online. My friend did, of course, have her baby. Her 4th child, 3rd girl. She was born just after 9 pm on 5/19 (after only 10 hrs of labor, her shortest so far). She weighed 8lbs 8oz and was 20.5 inches long.

I got to see her on Saturday and hold her for about a half an hour (I was the only visitor at the time). She is so sweet. She has a little bit of black hair. It brought back memories, being there on the maternity floor, of last year for me. I passed the room I stayed in on the way to hers and felt a bit sad. Time is just flying by too fast!

I talked to my friend again today and she says that she has been having spinal headaches from the epidural. She's hoping that they will go away soon and that the doctor won't put her on bedrest or anything since she is supposed to be moving in less than a week and still has lots of packing to do. Not to mention 4 kids to take care of.

Other than that everything is going well. The baby is doing great and the older siblings are adjusting.

Well, I will have to fill in more about my weekend tomorrow, I've still got lots to do before bed.

Anxious

A friend of mine went in to the hospital this morning at 10:00 to have her labor induced. She is 9 days overdue with her 4th baby. With the last three, she had over 20 hour labors each, so we kind of figured this one would be no different. However, she was already 3cm dialated and 70% efaced before her due date, so I thought there may be hope for a faster labor this time. I don't know as of now if she has had the baby yet or not. I am supposed to be at the top of her list of people to call once the baby comes. I am anxiously awaiting the call so I can go visit her and see the new little sweetie.

I'm Torn!

Ok, here's the thing. My friend Mindy has been telling me for a while now that I need to go on this women's conference to see Beth Moore that the ladies from our church are going to.



Last night at our small group, they all told me that they would make sure I got a ticket if I still want to go. I really do want to go. The thing is, I haven't left my baby overnight yet. I know, I know, this is my 3rd baby and this isn't anything new to me (leaving a baby overnight for the first time) and I left both of my girls overnight before they were even a year old, but it still isn't an easy thing to do. I know that he (and the girls) will be in good hands while I'm gone, but I kind of feel guilty. He is very clingy to me and I know he will miss me (will he think I abandoned him? I don't know.)

I realize this sounds irrational and that I should just go. I need time away from my job and all the chaos that is my life too. But....argh....I don't know what to do here.

The other thing is that a few of the ladies from my group are staying a second night for a little R&R and I've been invited to join them. This sounds like a lot of fun. I hardly ever get to do this kind of thing and it will probably be a long time before another opportunity to do this comes up again. So I guess I'm asking you blog world, should I stay or should I go? (<---remember that song?) I know I should probably take the opportunity and go, but how do I get over feeling guilty about leaving my baby for the first time?

Questionaire

Stolen from Trinity.

1. Your name spelled backwards: hsleol
2. Where were your parents born? Ohio (I'm pretty sure my dad was, my mom definately was).
3. What is the last thing you downloaded onto your computer? My hubby does all the downloading, I don't know how.
4. What's your favorite restaurant? I don't think I have just one favorite, I just like to eat!
5. Last time you swam in a pool? One time last summer. I'm too fat to wear a bathing suit in public, but one time when I took the kids, there was no one else there so I got in too.
6. Have you ever been in a school play? Yes...Cinderella, Fiddler on the Roof, Jack and the Beanstalk and The Wizard of Oz
7. How many kids do you want? 3 or 4
8. Type of music you dislike most? I don't really care much for crap, uh, I mean rap
9. Are you registered to vote? Yes.
10. Do you have cable? Yes.
11. Have you ever ridden on a moped? No, but I've ridden on a motorcycle
12. Ever prank call anybody? Yes, my friend and I used to prank call people all the time in Jr. high.
13. Ever get a parking ticket? No
14. Would you go bungee jumping or sky diving? I don't know, There was a time when I would have said yes, but I'm much less of a daredevil these days.
15. Farthest place you ever traveled? Phoenix AZ (Actually 600 miles farther away from the next farthest place, the Bahamas. I thought the Bahamas would be farther, but I looked it up.)
16. Do you have a garden? No.
17. What's your favorite comic strip? I'm not a big fan of the comic strips. There are some funny ones out there, but I don't have a fav.
18. Do you really know all the words to your national anthem? I think I actually do.
19. Bath or Shower, morning or night? I almost always shower at night. I cannot get my butt up early enough to shower in the morning. I haven't taken a bath in years!
20. Best movie(s) you've seen in the past month? None of the movies I've seen in the last month were really good. I just saw Raise Your Voice with Hillary Duff this evening and it was o.k.
21. Favorite pizza toppings? Mushrooms and lots of cheese.
22. Chips or popcorn? Chips with french onion dip.
23. What color lipstick do you usually wear? I don't usually wear lipstick, but when I do, I like "flirty" colors.
24. Have you ever smoked peanut shells? No.
25. Have you ever been in a beauty pageant? Pah-leeze!
26. Orange Juice or apple? Orange juice with lots of pulp!
27. Favorite type of chocolate bar? Probably Snickers.
28 When was the last time you voted at the polls? Last November.
29. Last time you ate a homegrown tomato? It has been a long time. But I do enjoy a nice, juicy slice of tomato on a burger.
30. Have you ever won a trophy? Yes
31. Are you a good cook? Not at all.
32. Do you know how to pump your own gas? But, of course.
33. Ever order something from an infomercial? Yes, some mixer thing that I never use.
34. Sprite or 7-up? Diet 7-up.
35. Have you ever had to wear a uniform to work/school? When I was a server at Spageddies, I had to wear black dress pants, a white dress shirt with a tie and a black apron.
36. Last thing you bought at a pharmacy? An antibiotic for my hubby's ear infection...just yesterday.
37. Ever throw up in public? Yes, at church when I was little.
38. Would you prefer being a millionaire or to find true love? True love.
39. Do you believe in love at first sight? No, I believe in lust at first sight.
40. Ever call a 1-900 number? No.
41. Can exes be friends? I suppose so.
42. Who was the last person you visited in a hospital? My hubby when he got admitted for a large kidney stone a few months ago.
43. Did you have a lot of hair when you were a baby? No, I was pretty much bald until I was 2.
44. What message is on your answering machine? A generic message that came with the machine.
45. What is in your backpack? I don't carry a backpack, just a purse and a diaper bag.
46. Favorite thing to do before bedtime? Take a shower.
47. What is one thing you are grateful for today? My entire family.
48. What is the first concert you ever went to? Probably DC Talk at King's Island.

My Little Artist

Here is a cute pic of my oldest daughter yesterday at the doctor's office. She has been having some issues with her ear feeling clogged and hearing as though through a tunnel. The good news is that it isn't an ear infection (at least not yet). But she loves to draw and that's what she was doing to pass the time while waiting for the doc to come in. I saw it as a great photo opportunity.

Bounce With Me

Bounce fabric sheets:



The US Postal service sent out a message to all letter carriers to put a sheet of Bounce in their uniform pockets to keep yellow jackets away. The yellow jackets just veer around you. And all this time you've just been putting Bounce in the dryer!

It will chase ants away when you lay a sheet near them.

It also repels mice. Spread them around foundation areas, or in trailers, cars that are sitting and it keeps mice from entering your vehicle.

It takes the odor out of books and photo albums that don't get opened too often.

Repels mosquitoes. Tie a sheet of Bounce through a belt loop when outdoors during mosquito season.

Eliminates static electricity from your television (or computer) screen.

Since Bounce is designed to help eliminate static cling, wipe your television screen
with a used sheet of Bounce to keep dust from resettling.

Dissolve soap scum from shower doors. Clean with a sheet of Bounce.

Freshen the air in your home. Place an individual sheet of Bounce in a drawer or hang in the closet.

Put Bounce sheet in vacuum cleaner.

Prevent thread from tangling. Run a threaded needle through sheet of
Bounce before beginning to sew.

Prevent musty suitcases. Place an individual sheet of Bounce inside empty luggage before storing.

Freshen the air in your car. Place a sheet of Bounce under the front seat.

Clean baked-on foods from a cooking pan. Put a sheet in a pan, fill with water, let sit overnight, and sponge clean. The antistatic agent apparently weakens the bond between the food.

Eliminate odors in wastebaskets.. Place a sheet of Bounce at the bottom of the wastebasket.

Collect cat hair. Rubbing the area with a sheet of Bounce will magnetically attract all the loose hairs.

Eliminate static electricity from Venetian blinds. Wipe the blinds with a sheet of Bounce to prevent dust from resettling.

Wipe up sawdust from drilling or sand papering. A used sheet of Bounce will collect sawdust like a tack cloth.

Eliminate odors in dirty laundry. Place an individual sheet of Bounce at the bottom of a laundry bag or hamper.

Deodorize shoes or sneakers. Place a sheet of Bounce in your shoes or sneakers overnight.

Golfers put a Bounce sheet in their back pocket to keep the bees away.
Put a Bounce sheet in your sleeping bag and tent before folding and storing them. Keeps them smelling fresh.

My Mother's Day

We started on Saturday by buying some flowers and taking them to my mother's grave. It was the first time I've visited it since her funeral in January '04. I just kept putting it off not knowing how I would handle it. Well, Saturday was a beautiful day and I decided during lunch that we should go. I didn't want to wait til actual mother's day, I wanted to go right then. We spent a little while "visiting" her and walking around the cemetery a bit reading tombstones. (There are so many people buried around her that were really young when they died! It was really sad.) I did get a bit teary eyed, but didn't cry (there).

Then Sunday, we went to the 8:30 service at church and then out to lunch with my mom's parents and my dad. Then we went to visit guru's crazy mom for a few minutes at the run down, hole in the wall bar she works in. We gave her a card and a teddy bear (she really doesn't deserve more than that, she's not been the best of mothers or grandmothers, but that's a whole other subject!)

For some reason the rest of Sunday is a blur to me. I honestly can't remember what else we did. I think we just came home after that, but seriously, I can't remember what we did.

I did get some nice stuff though. My grandmother gave me the same thing she gave trinity...the coffee cup with coffee mixes inside. My MIL gave me some glass thing that you're supposed to hang on a window. Apparently she has a friend that makes them. It has some etching and writing on it. Then from my kids I got the latest Avalon CD...


And this three diamond necklace....

Happy Mother's Day, Moms!

And as a present, something cute to read...

Why God made moms: answers given by 2nd grade school children to the following questions.

Why did God make mothers?
1. She's the only one who knows where the scotch tape is.
2. Mostly to clean the house.
3. To help us out of there when we were getting born.

How did God make mothers?
1. He used dirt, just like for the rest of us.
2. Magic plus super powers and a lot of stirring.
3. God made my Mom just the same like he made me. He Just used bigger parts.

What ingredients are mothers made of?
1. God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and everything nice in
the world and one dab of mean.
2. They had to get their start from men's bones. Then they mostly use string, I think.

Why did God give you your mother and not some other Mom?
1. We're related.
2. God knew she likes me a lot more than other people's moms like me.

What kind of little girl was your Mom?
1. My Mom has always been my Mom and none of that other stuff.
2. I don't know because I wasn't there, but my guess would be pretty bossy.
3. They say she used to be nice.

What did Mom need to know about dad before she married him?
1. His last name.
2. She had to know his background. Like is he a crook? Does he get drunk
on beer?
3. Does he make at least $800 a year? Did he say NO to drugs and YES to chores?

Why did your Mom marry your dad?
1. My dad makes the best spaghetti in the world. And my Mom eats a lot.
2. She got too old to do anything else with him.
3. My grandma says that Mom didn't have her thinking cap on.

Who's the boss at your house?
1. Mom doesn't want to be boss, but she has to because dad's such a goof ball.
2. Mom. You can tell by room inspection. She sees the stuff under the bed
3. I guess Mom is, but only because she has a lot more to do than dad.

What's the difference between moms and dads?
1. Moms work at work and work at home, & dads just go to work at work.
2. Moms know how to talk to teachers without scaring them.
3. Dads are taller and stronger, but moms have all the real power cause
that's who you got to ask if you want to sleep over at your friend's.
Moms have magic, they make you feel better without medicine.

What does your Mom do in her spare time?
1. Mothers don't do spare time.
2. To hear her tell it, she pays bills all day long.

What would it take to make your Mom perfect?
1. On the inside she's already perfect. Outside, I think some kind of plastic surgery.
2. Diet. You know, her hair. I'd diet, maybe blue.

If you could change one thing about your Mom, what would it be?
1. She has this weird thing about me keeping my room clean. I'd get rid of
that.
2. I'd make my Mom smarter. Then she would know it was my sister who did
it and not me.
3. I would like for her to get rid of those invisible eyes on her back of
her head.

My Life in Song Titles

ok, I'm still working on the "If I could be a ______" list. I just don't have any answers for that one. I've tried to think of answers, but I've just not been feeling very creative lately. So here's this one...



Name of the Band: Avalon

Are you male or female?: The Best Thing

Describe yourself?: A World Away

How do some people feel about you?: You Were There

How do you feel about yourself?: Never Givin' Up

Describe an ex boy friend: Wonder Why

Describe your husband: Let It Be Forever

Describe where you want to be: Far Away From Here

Describe how you live: Good Way

Describe how you love: Love Remains

Share a few words of wisdom: Forgive and Forget


That was funner than I thought it would be. Anyone else?

Getting There...

Wow, I am so proud of my little man (and myself). I decided at the beginning of this week that I was going to get the baby on a more predictable bed time schedule. (better late than never!!) Every night this week he has been fed and in his crib by 9 pm. I have just put him in there and turned on his little fisher price aquarium thing and off to sleep he went.

Monday night he whimpered off and on for about 30 minutes or so, but then slept through the night (for the first time in FOREVER!) and didn't wake up until 7 am!! How wonderful it was to be able to get a complete full night's sleep. That hasn't happened in over a year.

Sure, he has slept through the night before. He was for a while, then started waking up around 3 am again for no good reason. I, being too tired to deal with him, just kept him in bed with me for the rest of the night. In turn, I didn't not get restful sleep from that point on. It also didn't help that I wasn't able to get to bed til about midnight or later.

I truly believe I have some sort of sleep disorder. I can be dead tired and still lay in bed tossing and turning for hours. So this on top of having my sleep disrupted, makes for a very exhausted mommy.

It felt good to be able to sleep through the night again. This also gives me more time to do other things around the house that I didn't have time to do before. My home is much cleaner as a result and I am a much more relaxed person. I just can't relax when there is a mess around me. My laundry is caught up for the first time in weeks. The dishes are all done. It is just superb! Now, I just need to find time to work out and I'll be all set.

I did a walk away the pounds video tonight, but I had to hold the baby the whole time. He was super cranky. He woke up too early from his nap this afternoon and was very tired this evening. He fell asleep about 6 pm but I only let him sleep for about 30 minutes because I didn't want him to not go to sleep tonight. So he was a cranky crankenheimer and was coughing and gagging from crying so hard (I was trying to make him sit there and watch me, but he wanted no part of it!) So I just picked the little booger up and walked while holding him. Guess it only served to help my calorie burning because of the extra weight.

I don't know if I really like those walking videos or not. First of all, I don't like working out to videos much as it is. And I don't really feel like I'm really working out when I do them. Maybe that's the beauty of them, but I don't feel like I've done enough when I'm done.

Well, I better stop for tonight. I better get to bed now, if I want to be asleep before 2 am.

Gonna be an aunt...again.

My hubby's brother's (girlfriend?, fiance'? live in? whatever she is...) called this evening to let us know that they are expecting again. I am very happy for them. Here's the thing...not too long after we heard they were expecting 4 years ago, we found out that my bro and his wife were expecting their first as well. Here's to hoping that will happen again!

Hallelujah!!!!!!!!!!

Finally!! Scott is gone! For crying out loud, he should have left weeks ago and now he's finally gone!!! I am just giddy with excitement!!

100 Things

1. I am a natural blonde
2. I don't get my hair cut as often as I'd like (twice a year, if I'm lucky)
3. I have been married for 7 years (on 9/12)
4. I never went to college
5. But I would like to get a degree someday
6. I was always VERY shy growing up
7. I still am, but not to such an extreme
8. I don't like telling people no
9. Which means I often get stuck doing things I don't really want to do
10. I get bored easily
11. I think I have a bit of A.D.D or something
12. I will turn 26 this year
13. I have 3 kids
14. I had no difficulty conceiving any of them
15. I am truly grateful for that
16. I had 2 of them without an epidural
17. One with
18. I loved the epidural
19. Would definately get one again
20. I don't know if I want any more children
21. I love babies
22. But they are really expensive
23. I got pregnant my first "time" ever
24. I was 16
25. I was 17 when I had her
26. I still lived at home with my parents
27. My mom helped me out a LOT
28. My mom died while I was 6 months pregnant with my son
29. I miss her terribly
30. I love to shop
31. But I generally don't go into stores unless I need something
32. I can rationalize why I should get something I don't need
33. Then feel bad later when there's something I need, but can't afford it
34. I am a minivan mom
35. And I'm proud of it!
36. I love my van!
37. I can separate my kids
38. And still have room for the stroller and groceries, etc.
39. I love going on dates with my hubby
40. But don't get enough opportunities to do so
41. There is NO person from my husbands family that I would ever leave my kids with
42. I love to sing
43. I think I am ok at it
44. But I could always be better
45. I don't like to sing in front of people
46. Because of my shyness
47. I recently rejoined my church's praise team
48. I love to sleep
49. I usually take a shower at night
50. I don't like getting up early
51. I love not having to work
52. I am able to stay home with my kiddos
53. I am enjoying it...most days :)
54. I never want to work full time again
55. I want to work part time while my kids are all in school
56. I have a hard time concentrating
57. Something has to catch my interest immediately
58. If it doesn't, I get disinterested in it
59. I am extremely impatient
60. I don't like that about myself
61. I am very critical of myself
62. I don't like that either
63. I can't stand arrogant people
64. I don't like confrontation
65. I cry uncontrollably when I'm angry or upset
66. That bugs me too
67. I make my bed everyday
68. Even if it is right before I get in it
69. I can't stand for my covers to be crooked!
70. I like sleeping under a sheet and blanket year round
71. I sleep with a fan on all year too
72. I don't like cooking
73. I love to eat out at restaurants
74. I only own one pair of jeans for myself
75. I buy clothes for myself last after my kids and hubby
76. Since I stay home, I don't need as many clothes as they do
77. Plus, I hate clothes shopping for myself
78. It depresses me
79. I always say I'll wait to buy new clothes til I lose some weight
80. Then I don't lose weight
81. And I'm stuck washing and wearing the same pair of jeans everyday!
82. My legs are kind of long
83. But I wish they were longer
84. My legs are longer than my hubby's
85. And I am at least 5 inches shorter than him
86. My parents never got me involved in sports or other activities when I was a kid
87. I wish they had
88. Maybe I wouldn't have gotten fat
89. I used to just come home after school and watch t.v. and eat
90. I don't want that for my kids
91. I want to keep them active
92. I am almost always hungry
93. When I'm not eating, I'm thinking about food
94. I live to eat instead of eat to live
95. I wish I had a good workout partner
96. I can drive a stick shift
97. Learned when I was 15 on my bro's truck
98. I think it's kinda fun
99. I love the fall time
100. And going for walks in the park while the leaves are changing colors.

My 10 Things That I Hate About Me List

I'm FAT!

I am quick to anger.

I have a very difficult time getting up in the morning. I have a hard time getting to sleep at night and am, in turn, very sleepy in the mornings.

I can't cook. I don't like cooking and have NO desire to learn how.

I'm shy. I have a hard time making friends because of this. People think I'm stuck up because I don't talk much. (Why is that by the way? Why do people assume that quiet people are stuck up and not just shy?)

I am forgetful.

Did I mention that I'm fat? Oh yeah, I forgot :)

I care about what other people think about me. I really hate that. Why should I care what you think about me?

I am lazy. (Partially, I believe, because I am ALWAYS tired...read line 3)

I don't like to read. I miss out on so much and feel uninformed because of this.

I can not think of 10 things that I actually like about myself.

One Whole Year!

Well, today my baby is officially one year old! As promised yesterday, here are some random pictures of him from his hospital picture to today!

His hospital pic:

(sorry this is so big!)

With biggest sister a few hours after birth:


In swing watching mommy on the computer at a few weeks old:


In his bouncy seat around 3 months old:


In Pack-N-Play at great-grandma's at 10 months:


With mommy (me) and papaw at his party last Saturday:


And finally, today, the birthday boy with great-grandma:


Well, I hope you enjoyed my little slide show presentation of my boy!

Too much Cake! (And a birth story)

O.k, so we had my son's first birthday party on Saturday. It went pretty well, I think. There was so much left over cake. Of course, I cannot have cake within my reach and stay out of it. It's simply impossible. I have zero willpower. I love cake and creamy icing! So I ate sooooo much cake this weekend. Not only cake though, but lots of other stuff too. The word "diet" just did not exist for me this weekend. As a result, I felt like total and utter crap last night. I was up and down all night with acid reflux and woke several times in the middle of the night to the taste of vomit in my mouth. EW! Ok, so I am officially back to watching what I eat. I love to eat, but I haven't felt so full and sick in a long time. There is even still some cake downstairs, but I haven't taken one bite of it today!

Well last year at this time I was having contractions about 6 minutes apart. They started around 7:30 pm at 10 minutes apart. Then soon got to 4 minutes apart and I was at the hospital between 10 and 10:30 pm. When I got there, they were about 3 minutes apart and getting closer and much, much stronger. I walked the halls for a while stopping every 2 minutes on the dot for the contractions. I finally got to a room and asked for an epidural. (I did not get one when having either of the girls, but at this point, they were right on top of each other...no breaks in between. One would start practically before the last one ended!) By about 12:30 am I had the epi and was feeling NO pain. God bless the anesthesiologist!!

So by that point, this was by far the longest labor I have had seeing as how I wasn't even near delivering yet. (1st baby 5.5 hours, 2nd baby 4.5 hours). The epidural slowed down my contractions considerably, but it wasn't so bad, since I wasn't feeling anything.

Somewhere around 5 am I was fully dilated and started pushing. I was really scared that it would take a long time to push him out since I couldn't really feel how hard I was pushing. However, at 5:20 am he was out. All 9 lbs 4 oz and 20 inches of him. I simply cannot believe it has been a year! It just does not seem possible!

Well, hopefully I will have some pictures to post tomorrow.

Not too much going on tonight...

I've been dealing with a sick baby this week (yes again, the kid just can't seem to get completely rid of this stomach bug). Since Monday morning, he hasn't been able to keep much of anything down. Nothing gets you up and going in the morning better than being puked on! Today he has been better.

I hope he is all better by this Saturday. His first birthday is Tuesday, but we are having his party on Saturday. I'm really excited that I may be seeing an old friend from high school there that I haven't seen in years. We were practically inseperable in junior high, but then started hanging out with different crowds in high school. Never had a falling out or anything, we just didn't have any classes together and pretty much just lost contact. I ran in to her dad the other day and asked him to have her give me a call. Come to find out she has a little girl that's 4 (I did know about her) and a little boy that just turned 1 on the 2nd. So I invited her to the party. I really hope she can make it.

I also have 2 other high school buddies hopefully coming (one if she doesn't have to work and the other if she doesn't have her baby before then). It'll be like a mini reunion.

I still can't put on my sneakers. I can walk a lot better on my broken toe, but it still hurts to put on any shoe that covers my toe.

I'm not going to mention how disappointed I am once again this week. Maybe if I don't mention it, a certain "idol" will finally go home next week.

Well, better go take a shower and try to get some sleep.

A Word Of Thanks

I just want to say thank you to Trinity, who spent ALL DAY yesterday watching my 2 girls! We decided at the last minute to accompany my father in law to Pennsylvania to visit my hubby's grandfather (his last living grandparent) who has been having some health problems and was recently hospitalized for a week. My grandmother watched the boy, and Trin and G took the girls. She even had to take my oldest to a birthday party. I just want to let you guys know how much we appreciate your help...and not just this time, but all the other times you've watched them for us. I don't know how we'd survive without our family!

Butterflies

Well, today I took my 5 year old on a field trip with her preschool class to the Franklin Park Conservatory's butterfly exhibit. It was really fun. I also took my older daughter on this same field trip 3 years ago. She had a fun time and brought home a caterpillar (which she appropriately named "caterpillar"). We will put it into a shoe box once it forms its chrysalis and watch it transform into a butterfly. Then we will let it go. She learned some very interesting facts about butterflies today. For example, did you know that if a human baby were to eat comparably as much as a baby caterpillar, that by the time it was one month old, it would be the size of a bus? Wow! That's a lot of eatin'! Maybe I should have been born a caterpillar???!

NNOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!

AGAIN?!!! I am so devastated!! Please, please, please, America, I am begging you, SEND SCOTT HOME!!!!

Great Weather...

Ok, so it isn't very often we get to say this here in Ohio, but what great weather we're having! Today was awesome! Not too cold, not too hot. Just right.

Today was a nice family day for us as well. The girls played outside for a while this morning, then we went to lunch and then to the park. All the kids had a fun time swinging, even the baby. He did very well for quite a while before getting bored and trying to chew on the swing. The girls, of course, did not want to leave (they could swing for hours!!). I was really itching to go on a nice nature walk, but with my gimp toe, I couldn't. We didn't stay as long as we could have either, because we forgot to pack the stroller up in the new van. The little man got really squirmy and wanted badly to get down and eat the mulch.

So, we came home and the girls went back outside. (I'm glad to say that they are making all kinds of new friends here now that the weather has been so nice and everyone is sending their kids outside.)

Overall, it was a very nice weekend. I started off the weekend, Friday night, by going to a surprise birthday party at a friend's house. I stayed later than everyone else and watched a movie with the hostess. We watched Closer. I'll tell you what, my friend is not the best movie selector. This movie was, as my hubby would say "a$$". We thought it would be decent since it had Julia Roberts and Natalie Portman in it, but alas, we were wrong. The last move we watched together (also her pick) was The Forgotten. That movie also wanked. Next time, I'm picking the movie, my friend.

Saturday, I went and visited my dad's parents for a little while. They don't really live all that far away, maybe 15 minutes, but we don't get to see them very often. We had borrowed one of their vehicles last week, before purchasing our new ones, and accidentally left a couple of the kids' jackets in it. So that gave us a nice excuse to go visit them.

Then we stopped on the way home so I could buy my son some spring/summer type clothes, since he had absolutely none. Then we were back home for a relaxing evening with the kids playing outside and us lounging on the couches with the windows open enjoying the breeze.

That about sums up my weekend. It is over all too quickly. Hopefully this nice weather will stick around and we will be able to enjoy many of these incredible weekends before summer kicks in!

I Wish You Enough

Recently I overheard a mother and daughter in their last moments
together at the airport. They had announced the departure.
Standing near the security gate, they hugged and the mother said "I love you
and I wish you enough."

The daughter replied, "Mom, our life together has been more than enough. Your love is all I ever needed. I wish you enough, too, Mom".

They kissed and the daughter left. The mother walked over to the window where I was seated. Standing there I could see she wanted and needed to cry. I tried not to intrude on her privacy but she welcomed me in by asking "Did you ever say good-bye to someone knowing it would be forever?".

"Yes, I have," I replied. "Forgive me for asking but why is this a forever goodbye?". "I am old and she lives so far away. I have challenges ahead and the reality is - the next trip back will be for my funeral" she said.
When you were saying goodbye, I heard you say 'I wish you enough'. May I ask what that means?".

She began to smile. "That's a wish that has been handed down from other generations. My parents used to say it to everyone".

She paused a moment and looked up as if trying to remember it in detail and she smiled even more. "When we said 'I wish you enough' we were wanting the other person to have a life filled with just enough good things to sustain them".
Then turning toward me she shared the following as if she were reciting it from memory ---

I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright.
I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun more.
I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive.
I wish you enough pain so that the smallest joys in life appear much bigger.
I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.
I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.
I wish you enough hellos to get you through the final good-bye.

She then began to cry and walked away.
They say it takes a minute to find a special person, an hour to appreciate them, a day to love them, but then an entire life to forget them.

I received this in an email and I know some of you who read my blog received it as well, but I thought I would post it anyway.

So Close!!!

It was so close, I could taste it. Scott was going to leave and then, NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! What? Are you kidding me? Why Oh why? Why did he stay? He SOOOOO should have been the one to leave tonight. Once again America disappoints me:( !!!!!!!!!!!!
Send Scott home! Send Scott home!!
And what was with that little speech he gave at the end when Seacrest asked him if he thought he was leaving? Was he reading that? Seriously! That was terrible. Could he have talked ANY slower? I submit that he could not have.

As a side note, I would also like to add that it bugs the snot out of me when Fantasia pronounces her "s"'s like "sh"'s!!! Jusht shtop it already. It'sh really annoying!

Sick Boy

Well, as I mentioned before, my little boy is sick. He's been running a fever and tylenol hasn't seemed to help much. He has also not been eating very well and I'm afraid he's going to get dehydrated. I will probably end up taking him to the doctor tomorrow, well today technically. If you are familiar at all with our situation, you know that it has always been a task to get this little guy to eat, especially when he's sick. Everything makes him gag. I have noticed recently, before he got sick this time, that he has been eating well as far as solid foods go. It's just the whole drinking thing, he doesn't do well. He still won't nurse or take a bottle unless he is sleepy and still refuses the sippy cup or straw. I don't know what I'm going to do with him. He is also being extra clingy right now. He doesn't want me to even put him down and heaven forbid if I have to leave his sight.

My daughters have found a couple of new friends here in our new community. They have been complaining about having to leave their friends at our old house and not having any other kids around here to play with. Well, the past 2 evenings, they have played with the 2 kids from 2 doors down. They have been having fun kicking a ball around, jumping rope and doing flips in the grass. However, they tell me that the kids are moving soon. Hopefully this summer they will meet more kids at the swimming pool or outside playing. I just feel so sad for them when they say they miss our old house and their old friends. I miss our house too, but we are moving on, starting new with a lot of things. Our new home, my hubby's new job, our new cars we got this past weekend, new schools for the girls next year. Let's just hope and pray there are no new little people in our lives anytime too soon!;) I would definitely go over the edge of craziness that I am teetering on right now.

Well, that's it for now. Time to try to go get some sleep before the baby wakes up crying.

Broken Toe

Ok, I have never had a broken bone in my life. I've sprained my ankle before, but never broken anything. Well tonight while walking through my home, I stubbed my toe really hard. I have obviously stubbed my toes before, but this time, my toe swelled up and I can not put any pressure on my foot at all. I thought, well, I should at least be able to walk on my heel and still get around, but even that sends a sharp pain through my toe. Man, this sucks! How am I supposed to lug a clingy sick baby around when I can barely get myself from one place to the next? Don't think there's much sense going to the doctor either, since they can't really do anything for a broken toe. (Alright, so I don't know for sure that it's broken, but it may as well be if I can't walk on it.) I know what you're thinking...if I didn't weigh so much, it wouldn't hurt as bad to support my weight on it. But, I don't think I could weigh 10 pounds and support my weight on it. How am I supposed to work out when I can't use one foot? Of course, I haven't lost any more weight this week, in fact I think I've gained one or two back. I could be retaining water as I am cutting way back on, and coming close to an end of breastfeeding my almost one year old and could be getting my "visitor" back at any time. But now, I won't even be able to work out if I wanted to on my gimp toe. I give up, I am just meant to be fat!

Time for a new post

Wow! How boring am I that I can go for so many days without anything to blog about? I did attempt a post on Wednesday or Thursday but then I lost it when I tried to post it and I didn't feel like typing it out again. So here are some more "why"'s that are on my mind tonight:

*Why are there so many stupid people? I'm not talking book smarts here either. Just plain ole common sense stupidity.
*Why is my mother-in-law such a nut job?
*Why is it that people (humans) hold grudges? (I'm not excluding myself, so don't give me any lip! :) )

Well that's it for now. I better try to get some sleep. I have a feeling I won't be getting much tonight since the baby is sick. He'll probably have me up all night. On top of that, Spring break is officially over now so I'll need to be up bright and early to get the girls ready and off to school in the morning.

What Doctors Really Mean:

"This should be taken care of right away.
"Translation: I'd planned a trip to Hawaii next month but this is so easy and profitable I want to fix it before it clears up on its own.

"Let me check your medical history."
Translation: I want to see if you've paid your last bill before spending any more time with you.

"Why don't we make another appointment later in the week."
Translation: I have a tee-time in fifteen minutes --or-- I need the bucks, so I'm charging you for another office visit.

"We have some good news and some bad news."
Translation: The good news is, I'm going to buy that new BMW. The bad news is, you're going to pay for it.

"Let me schedule you for some tests."
Translation: I have a forty percent interest in the lab.

"If it doesn't clear up in a week, give me a call."
Translation: I don't know what it is. Maybe it will go away by itself.

"This may hurt a little."
Translation: Last week two patients bit off their tongues.

"Well, we're not feeling so well today, are we...?"
Translation: I'm stalling for time. Who are you and why are you here?

"Do you suppose all this stress could be affecting your nerves?"
Translation: You're as crazy as a loon. Now, if I can only find a shrink who'll split fees with me...

"I'd like to run some more tests."
Translation: I have no clue what's wrong. I need time to go home and search WebMD.com.

Thank You America!

Let me just say...God Bless The U.S.A.!!!

She's gone! Hip hip hooray!

I'm EWE-nique!

Here are my results from a quiz I took off guru's blog.






You are a -
Neutral Sheep!
Congrats - you do what you like! You make your own rules, not follow the flock!

Which flock do you follow?


this quiz was made by alanna

She needs to GO! NOW!

Two words for ya, Mikalah....Buh Bye!
Man, if she doesn't leave this week, I will be extremely disappointed in America!!

Another "Why?" post

WHY:
-do people not know how to take a joke?
-do people try to make me feel like I'm worthless?
-do I let what they say affect me?
-did some guy in a nearby city here in Ohio just shoot himself because he lost his job at Safe Auto today? (I mean come on, so you lost your job, sack it up and get another one you crazy mofo!!!)
-does my son not sleep through the night anymore? (argh! this is getting really old, son!)
-do I not have any close, reliable friends? (No offense, sweetiepie, by close, I also mean in distance).
-are none of my MSN contacts never online at the same time as me?
-does no one want to take part in my neck/knee measurement experiment?

Today

Today would have been my mom's 47th birthday. I miss her terribly. I wish I still had my mommy around. There has been so much stuff going on in my life lately that I would have gone to her to talk about and she would have said things to make me feel better. She was one great lady and I will miss her everyday until I see her again.

Interesting factoid

My hubby and I were just taking measurements of ourselves to see how many inches we have lost since the beginning of the year. (Well, he never actually took measurements to start, so he was just checking to see what his were). Well, we found something interesting about both of us. The measurement around my neck (just goofing around measuring stuff-this was not one I am keeping track of) and the measurement around my kneecap were the same. So my hubby measured his neck and kneecap and also got the same measurement for both. So I thought I would get a little experiment going here. You don't have to post your #'s but, just for kicks, measure your neck and knee and see if you get the same # for them. I'm just curious to know if this is a coincidence, or if it is pretty standard, like your wingspan is supposed to be the same as your height.

I Finally Got It...

Everyone around me seems to have been under the weather in some way or another recently. It's been through my household and up until now, I have been fortunate enough not to catch anything. However, yesterday morning, I woke up miserable. My head was throbbing and so full of pressure it felt like it would explode. My nose is runny and stuffy at the same time. And I had a fever. I feel really weak, like I can barely lift my arm. I do feel a bit better when I'm pumped with tylenol and cold meds. But I just hate taking those since I am still nursing some. The little man doesn't feel well either right now, I was hardly able to get him to eat much at all yesterday. He's done a little better today, but still not great. We did go to church this morning since I took meds early enough that I was feeling a bit better by time for church, and he stayed in the nursery the whole time... for the second week in a row. That little man is such a mommy klingon. He stays well with my grandma, cause he sees her frequently, but doesn't really like too many other people just yet.

Oh yeah...

Happy St. Patty's day!

Btw: you can't pinch me cause my blog is green:)

The Restroom

My mother was a fanatic about public bathrooms.

When I was a little girl, she'd take me into the stall, teach me to wad up toilet paper and wipe the seat. Then, she'd carefully lay strips of toilet paper to cover the seat. Finally, she'd instruct, "NEVER, NEVER" sit on a public toilet seat.

Then she'd demonstrate "The Stance," which consisted of balancing over the toilet in a sitting position without actually letting any of your flesh makes contact with the toilet seat. By this time, I'd have wet down my leg and we'd have to go home to change my clothes.

That was a long time ago. Even now, in my more "mature years, "The Stance" is excruciatingly difficult to maintain, especially when one's bladder is full.

When you have to "go" in a public bathroom, you usually find a line of women that makes you think there's a half-price sale on Nelly's underwear in there. So, you wait and smile politely at all the other ladies, who are also crossing their legs and smiling politely. You get closer and check for feet under the stall doors. Every one is occupied. Finally, a door opens and you dash in, nearly knocking down the woman leaving the stall. You get in to find the door won't latch. It doesn't matter. The dispenser for the new fangled "seat covers" (invented by someone's Mom, no doubt) is handy, but empty. You would hang your purse on the door hook if there was one - but there isn't - so you carefully but quickly hang it around your neck (mom would turn over in her grave if you put it on the FLOOR!), yank down your pants, and assume "The Stance.

Ahhhh, relief. More relief.

But then your thighs begin to shake. You'd love to sit down but you certainly hadn't taken time to wipe the seat or lay toilet paper on it, so you hold "The Stance" as your thighs experience a quake that would register an eight on the Richter scale. To take your mind off of your trembling thighs, you reach for what you discover to be the empty toilet paper dispenser. In your mind, you can hear your mother's voice saying, "Honey, if you would have tried to clean the seat, you would have KNOWN there was no toilet paper!"

Your thighs shake more. You remember the tiny tissue that you blew your nose on yesterday - the one that's still in your purse. That would have to do. You crumple it in the puffiest way possible. It is still smaller than your thumbnail. Someone pushes open your stall door because the latch doesn't work. The door hits your purse, which is hanging around your neck in front of your chest, and you and your purse topple backward against the tank of the toilet.

"Occupied!" you scream, as you reach for the door, dropping your precious, tiny, crumpled tissue in a puddle, and sliding down, directly onto the insidious toilet seat. You bolt up quickly, knowing all too well that it's too late. Your bare bottom has made contact with every imaginable germ and life form on the uncovered seat because YOU never laid down toilet paper - not that there was any, even if you had taken time to try. You know that your mother would be utterly ashamed of you if she knew, because you're certain that her bare bottom never touched a public toilet seat because, frankly, dear, "You just don't KNOW what kind of diseases you could get."

By this time, the automatic sensor on the back of the toilet is so confused that it flushes, sending up a stream of water akin to a fountain that suddenly sucks everything down with such force that you grab onto the toilet paper dispenser for fear of being dragged off to China.

At that point, you give up. You're soaked by the splashing water. You're exhausted. You try to wipe with a gum wrapper you found in your pocket, and then slink out inconspicuously to the sinks. You can't figure out how to operate the faucets with the automatic sensors, so you wipe your hands with spit and a dry paper towel and walk past a line of women, still waiting, cross-legged and, at this point, no longer able to smile politely One kind soul at the very end of the line points out that you are trailing a piece of toilet paper on your shoe as long as the Mississippi River!

(Where was it when you NEEDED it??) You yank the paper from your shoe, plunk it the woman's hand and tell her warmly, "Here, you just might need this."

As you exit, you spot your hubby, who has since entered, used and exited the men's restroom and read a copy of War and Peace while waiting for you.

Annoyed, he asks, "What took you so long, and why is your purse hanging around your neck?"

This is dedicated to women everywhere who have ever had to deal with a public restroom (rest??? you've got to be kidding!!). It finally explains to the men what really does take us so long. It also answers their other commonly asked question about why women go to the restroom in pairs. It's so the other woman can hold the door and hand you Kleenex under the door.



Thanks, Sweetiepie, for this little funny. I have heard it before, but thought it would be blogworthy (at least opposed to the nothing that would have been in my blog today).

Sicky Girl

Well, my oldest daughter stayed the night at a friend's house last night and when we picked her up today, she was sick. Of course! She is extremely congested and her cough sounds horrific! She has also been throwing up, mostly flem (I know, TMI!). Poor girl. Come to think of it, the last time she spent the night at this girl's house, she came home with pink eye. I think maybe she won't be staying the night over there anymore???

"Why I Love Mom"

Another steal from babycenter...

Mom and Dad were watching TV when Mom said, "I'm tired, and it's
getting late. I think I'll go to bed."

She went to the kitchen to make sandwiches for the next day's lunches. Rinsed out the popcorn bowls, took meat out of the freezer for supper the following evening, checked the cereal box levels, filled the sugar container, put spoons and bowls on the table and started the coffee pot for brewing the next morning. She then put some wet clothes in the dryer, put a load of clothes into the washer, ironed a shirt and secured a loose button. She picked up the game pieces left on the table, put the phone back on the charger and put the telephone book into the drawer. She watered the plants, emptied a wastebasket and hung up a towel to dry. She yawned and stretched and headed for the bedroom. She stopped by the desk and wrote a note to the teacher, counted out some cash for the field trip, and pulled a text book out from hiding under the chair. She signed a birthday card for a friend, addressed and stamped the envelope and wrote a quick note for the grocery store. She put both near her purse.

Mom then washed her face with 3 in 1 cleanser, put on her Night solution & age fighting moisturizer, brushed and flossed her teeth and filed her nails.

Dad called out, "I thought you were going to bed."

"I'm on my way," she said.

She put some water into the dog's dish and put the cat outside, then made sure the doors were locked and the patio light was on. She looked in on each of the kids and turned out their bedside lamps and TV's, hung up a shirt, threw some dirty socks into the hamper, and had a brief conversation with the one up still doing homework.

In her own room, she set the alarm; laid out clothing for the next day, straightened up the shoe rack. She added three things to her 6 most important things to do list. She said her prayers, and visualized the accomplishment of her goals.

About that time, Dad turned off the TV and announced to no one in particular. "I'm going to bed." And he did...without another thought.

Anything extraordinary here?
Wonder why women live longer...?

CAUSE WE ARE MADE FOR THE LONG HAUL..... (and we can't die sooner, we still have things to do!!!!)


Lo's commentary: O.k., so on one hand I'm reading this thinking "true, how true!" Then on the other hand, I'm thinking, who on earth truly has all that to do in one night. And I know it never actually said this was a daily ritual, but it sort of implies it. Sure a night like that may happen occasionally, but every night she has to write notes to her kid's teacher and file her nails and whatnot? I say, if you're that dang tired, go to bed and let the sugar container and the grocery list wait til morning!!!!! Can ya dig it?

Better Late Than Never

Ok, so I realize that this was 2 weeks ago now, but I'm finally getting around to posting my pics from the arena football game guru and I went to. Ok so here's a couple of pics from my view of the field...

So why does this happen to me no matter where I am? Church, the movies, arena football games? It never fails.

And then there was the crazy pink shirt guy that couldn't stay in his seat!

That was annoying. As if I wasn't having a hard enough time seeing, this drunk prick couldn't keep his butt in his chair!

And then of course the guy in front of us that kept getting up and going to get things for his woman...who, unknowingly, had the tag sticking out of the back of his pants!


I didn't get any pics of them, but there were 3 girls that came in and sat beside us who were drinking and kind of obnoxious. Two of them decided to "go get something" while one stayed behind at the seats. Well a bit after they left, I got up and went to the restroom and came back and the 2 girls weren't back yet. More time passed and still they weren't back and the third girl finally gathered all her stuff and the other 2 girls' drinks they left behind and got up and left too. They were not to be seen again the rest of the game. So did the first 2 girls ditch the third cause she was annoying the crap out of them?...I'd like to think so.

New Look!

I was getting a bit bored with my pink background. I thought I would try out a little something different. I've been looking around for the perfect template, however I cannot find one that I am really happy with. So, for the meantime, I will see how this one works. It is time for a little change. Hope you all like it, if you don't, I don't care, I'll pull down your underwear! (<--Remember that from when you were a kid?)

(ok, so maybe that was just an excuse to post this pic! So what?)

Am I THAT Bad Of A Driver?

It seems as if my son has to pray every time we get into the van to go somewhere. "Please, Lord, let us survive!"

Still Here

I've kinda been m.i.a. the last few days. I've been trying to finish getting everything out of my house and moved to my apartment. When I'm at the apartment, I've been trying to get boxes moved to the rooms they go in and get them unpacked and put away. This is wearing me out. I am exhausted. Other than moving, I haven't been able to get in any workouts the last couple of weeks. That really sucks. Now that we have 24 hour access to a workout facility, I should be able to workout more. I say "should" because that doesn't mean that I actually will. Pretty much the only times I will really be able to workout will be after guru gets home from school and can watch the kids so I can go. However by that point in the day, I am pretty much pooped! If I do workout in the evenings, and get a bolt of energy, then I won't be able to get to sleep at a decent hour and will be up too late and not be able to get my day started well the next morning. It's an endless cycle I tell ya. Boy this being a full time mom to 3 thing is really something. I always really wanted 4 kids, but I am beginning to doubt my ability to keep my sanity and function properly. I have a hard enough time with 3. Oh well...I just have to keep reminding myself that in a couple of years, I'll have a built in babysitter. Haha. Well, I'm just rambling cause I don't really have anything blogworthy and I'm waiting for guru to finish his online homework on the other computer so we can go back to the apartment and unload another bunch of stuff for me to unpack. More to come later. I still need to post some pictures from the arena football game last weekend. Good times...good times.

You Know You're A Mom When...

* Your feet stick to grape jelly on the kitchen floor--and you don't care.

* When the kids are fighting, you threaten to lock them in a room together and not let them out until someone's bleeding.

* You can't find your cordless phone, so you ask a friend to call you, and you run around the house madly, following the sound until you locate the phone downstairs in the laundry basket.

* Your idea of a good day is making it through without a child leaking bodily fluids on you.

* Popsicle's become a food staple.

* Your favorite television show is a cartoon.

* You're willing to kiss your child's boo-boo, regardless of what body part it happens to be on.

* You're so desperate for adult conversation that you spill your guts to the telemarketer that calls and HE hangs up on YOU!

* You buy cereal with marshmallows in it.

* You count the sprinkles on each kid's cupcake to make sure they're equal.

* You have time to shave only one leg at a time.

* You hide in the bathroom to be alone.

* Your kid throws up and you catch it.

* You get up at 5:30 AM and you have no time to eat, sleep, drink or go to the bathroom, and yet... you still managed to gain 10 pounds.

I found this on my babycenter board and there is just so much truth in it that I just had to post it.

Bad Attitude?

Actually, at this point, I'm suprised I scored as high as I did on this. I thought for sure I would've scored lower. Hey, I'm average, maybe I'm not as bad as I thought!

How Your Attitude Ranks

Your Attitude is Better than 30% of the Population If you scored... 80-100: You've got a winner attitude. You're always optimistic and cheery. Your personality will get you far in life. 60-79: You have a good attitude. While a realist, you do see the positive side of most things. People love to be around you. 40 - 59: You have a positive attitude... somtimes. You prefer to see the world through clear glasses, not rose colored ones. 20 - 39: You have an average attitude. You take the good and bad in life as they come. Though sometimes you could use a little more good. 0-19: You have a negative attitude. You tend to see the dark side of every situation. Free ice cream? No thanks, it will just make you fat!

How's Your Attitude?

But Everybody Else Is Doing It!

So I'm going to post a quiz too.

You Are 30 Years Old

30 Under 12: You are a kid at heart. You still have an optimistic life view - and you look at the world with awe. 13-19: You are a teenager at heart. You question authority and are still trying to find your place in this world. 20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences. 30-39: You are a thirtysomething at heart. You've had a taste of success and true love, but you want more! 40+: You are a mature adult. You've been through most of the ups and downs of life already. Now you get to sit back and relax.

What Age Do You Act?

Packing and Puking!

Those 2 words pretty much sum up the last couple of days around my house. As some of you may know, my family and I are moving. (In an effort for me to be able to continue to stay home with the kids, we are cutting back on our expences by moving out of our house and into an apartment and taking our children out of private school and into public school. I still have mixed feelings about public school, but at this point we don't really have a choice monitarily. It's just plain too expensive and I do NOT have the patience to homeschool!)

So anyway, I have been working my butt off the last couple of days by cleaning out closets and drawers and getting rid of stuff we no longer need. We cleared out our crawl space in the basement and I'm currently going through all those totes and boxes full of (mostly) toys and throwing a TON of stuff away! I've also been sorting and washing kids clothes and separating them into stuff to take to a second hand store to see if they'll buy any of them and stuff to just skip that step and take them right to good will. Bad news is, they only take 2 boxes of stuff at a time, per person at the second hand store. So, looks like I'll have to take a few trips. Dag, how in the world have these kids accumulated so many clothes? It's sickening I tell ya.

And the toys, oh the toys!! I know I could probably sell a lot of them, but it is so much work and very time consuming (and since we're on a time limit) I'm simply tossing the toys we no longer want to keep. It's amazing how much junk we have.

Now on to the puking part. Yesterday, my oldest daughter woke up not feeling so great and by mid morning, she was puking! Great! I tried to keep her away from the other 2 as much as possible, but nevertheless, my 9 month old son woke up around 6 am throwing up! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! Poor little man!
Fortunately, he doesn't act sick except for when he's puking. Then he gets cranky and unhappy for a few minutes. But then he's back to normal until he pukes again. Not fun times! I am still hoping that the rest of us won't get this virus, but, I'm sure it's just wishful thinking.

Do you all know how impossible it is to pack for a move (or do anything for that matter?) when you can't put the baby down for more than 2 minutes at a time? Darn near, I tell you, darn near! If you looked at my house now, you would probably be wondering what I've been doing around here besides making a mess. But I promise you I HAVE been busting my butt as much as I possibly can. Well, time to go change a poopie diaper. Ah, the joys of parenting! :)

Snow"ball" fight anyone?

Ho Hum

Wow! I can't believe it's been almost a week since I last posted. It really doesn't seem like it's been that long. Nothing really going on with me worth blogging about. The baby has been sick and has had me up in the middle of the night for the past couple of nights. As guru blogged about, we went to see Hitch on Saturday. That was our Valentine's date. We don't get to go out very much by ourselves anymore. With three children and no one who can watch all of them at once, we often have to get 2 different sitters. My dad kept the girls for a couple of hours and my grandma kept the baby while we went to dinner and a movie. It was a good time. I found the movie very enjoyable. I love Will Smith movies, and Kevin James is just hilarious (the fact that he looks and acts like my bro, ghraper, makes him even funnier to me). So, the combination was good and made for lots of laughs. I love to laugh, but don't do it often enough. Guess that's the price that comes with a depressing and boring existance. Well, that's it for now. I need to go feed the baby.

Dirty Monitor?

Here you go...Let me know if it helps.

Food Pyramid