Steelers stuff
I was searching amazon for Steelers stuff for Christmas presents for Eugene. I was more than shocked at the different things I found. My favorite were the toaster that toasted the word "steelers" into the side of the bread, the Steeler's garden gnome, and the Steelers Mr. Potato head. I also saw snuggies, sandwich makers and family car decals oh and a tooth brush. I didn't see a chia pet though, that shocked me, I was also half expecting to see routers with all the other computer things they had, mouse pads and even computer mice! I've bought him a few things and was just hoping to find something small for him to show his love for the Steelers. Guess it will have to wait.
some sweet talk
Through my life there are a few of my loves that I haven't outgrown. One is my love for sour patch kids, I don't remember a time when that wasn't my favorite candy. Another thing that I absolutely love is York Peppermint patties. I have no clue when the first time i tasted one was, but i am completely addicted to them. Right now I feel like I should just buy a York factory, if I could eat only them right now I would. In fact, I'd rather have those than some fancy jewelry like michael kors watches or pearls! I don't know what it is about them that has me wanting them so much right now. I definitely would choose a york over sour patch kids right now. So far I haven't passed my love for them on to any of my kids yet, they both will eat them, but they'd rather have something else if they had the choice. Oh well, there is plenty of time for me to rub off on them. :)
Spazz Cleaning
Am I the only one who does Spazz cleaning? You know, when you realize things have been neglected for far too long and nothing is in the right place anymore. Around your computer looks like a paper company exploded, the dinning room looks like a craft store, the living room looks like a toy room, you hair things in every room and you just want to scream. The cleaning that comes from that is what i call Spazz cleaning, because I normally go crazy, and quickly fly through each room finding something that is out of place and putting it where it belongs. When I'm done I end up with every room looking good, so I normally sweep and vacuum and then sit down and stare at my house. Of course, it only stays looking that good till the kids wake up, but oh well!
Today I had my spazz moment I think my favorite thing about it is when I find something completely out of place and you just wonder why on earth that object was in that room. In past spazz cleanings I've found tv antennas in places that would make anyone say "um... ok?" Today wasn't as bad, but i still hate it that it is normal for things to be out of place.
Today I had my spazz moment I think my favorite thing about it is when I find something completely out of place and you just wonder why on earth that object was in that room. In past spazz cleanings I've found tv antennas in places that would make anyone say "um... ok?" Today wasn't as bad, but i still hate it that it is normal for things to be out of place.
running group
Thanksgiving week some people in my town started a running club. I was very excited, it's been the merge of the group of girls I was running with over the summer and a few other people who have been running together for years. They had a thanksgiving day run, but I was unable to run since I was busy cooking the meal, but I've been running with them two mornings a week (they run at 5:45am just about every week day). It's been fun and challenging, they are faster runners than me, plus they run up the big hill, which I love running up, but I am used to running it slower than they do. By the time we get to the top I'm dead. The past two times I've had to stop and walk. It's funny to me because they run up then pause their Garmins to wait for me. :)
One of the guys owns a jewelry store that I will be visiting before Christmas to look for some presents for Lexi, I need some good hypoallergenic earrings for her. She seems to have pretty sensitive ears. I might also look for a cute steel pendants for some gifts. I might even convince my husband to buy me a ring. :)
It's been really nice having more people to run with, the group of girls have gotten really busy since school started. Knowing that there is someone running almost every morning is good accountability, plus, running in the mornings makes my days nicer, even if I do freeze my tush off like I did this morning!
One of the guys owns a jewelry store that I will be visiting before Christmas to look for some presents for Lexi, I need some good hypoallergenic earrings for her. She seems to have pretty sensitive ears. I might also look for a cute steel pendants for some gifts. I might even convince my husband to buy me a ring. :)
It's been really nice having more people to run with, the group of girls have gotten really busy since school started. Knowing that there is someone running almost every morning is good accountability, plus, running in the mornings makes my days nicer, even if I do freeze my tush off like I did this morning!
Christmas
It's that time of the year again. The tree is set up, the stockings are hung. Tonight we went to our towns Christmas parade. The kids had a blast, the girls enjoyed seeing everything, and Josiah mostly just liked the fire trucks and marching bands. Anything that made noise or had lights. :)
We're not doing much presents this year, we've set a budget, and even a limit on number of presents for each kids. We will be doing 3-4 presents, plus stockings. We bought the first gift for the girls yesterday, pillow pals. They've been begging for pillow pets, but I think $20 is extremely ridiculous for a pillow shaped like an animal. We found pillow pals at a discount store near us for $5. $20- no, $5- YES! I also have a few stocking stuffers we picked up really cheap. I'm not sure what we'll do for Josiah for his stocking, but we are excited to get presents all done!
I'm not sure if we are going to buy each other presents at all, we both have crazy things we want, Eugene wants an xbox and I want an ipod touch. but those things wont happen, we're taking it easy this year, in an attempt to pay off our debt.
Lexi is asking for an "ipod nano touch or iphone" I laugh when she says that. In the past she carried around a sock for a week pretending it was her ipod. she wont be getting on either, there's something not right about a 5 year old having headphones in their ears all the time. Right now her and Caylee both pretend they have them when they are in the car, it's cute. We don't really have much ideas of what to get the kids like normal. Most years we have gifts picked out, this year we're just waiting to see what stands out to us.
We're not doing much presents this year, we've set a budget, and even a limit on number of presents for each kids. We will be doing 3-4 presents, plus stockings. We bought the first gift for the girls yesterday, pillow pals. They've been begging for pillow pets, but I think $20 is extremely ridiculous for a pillow shaped like an animal. We found pillow pals at a discount store near us for $5. $20- no, $5- YES! I also have a few stocking stuffers we picked up really cheap. I'm not sure what we'll do for Josiah for his stocking, but we are excited to get presents all done!
I'm not sure if we are going to buy each other presents at all, we both have crazy things we want, Eugene wants an xbox and I want an ipod touch. but those things wont happen, we're taking it easy this year, in an attempt to pay off our debt.
Lexi is asking for an "ipod nano touch or iphone" I laugh when she says that. In the past she carried around a sock for a week pretending it was her ipod. she wont be getting on either, there's something not right about a 5 year old having headphones in their ears all the time. Right now her and Caylee both pretend they have them when they are in the car, it's cute. We don't really have much ideas of what to get the kids like normal. Most years we have gifts picked out, this year we're just waiting to see what stands out to us.
Cake Day
Today is my husband's birthday. A few months ago he had mentioned liking red velvet cake, something I have never even tasted, let alone tried to make, but i decided at that moment that I was going to try to make one. I started searching about a month ago for a good recipe, i found one on allrecipe that had great reviews, and a lot of them. This morning I started working on the cake and icing. I normally just make butter cream icing, but decided to try something new. I found a recipe that called for regular sugar, milk, flour and vanilla. I was really confused about how it was going to work out and not be grainy, but it did. it was liked a whipped icing, pretty good, light and airy. I made cupcakes and a cake, i tasted a cupcake, it was kinda dry, the cake seemed to be more moist, but still on the dry side. I'll definitely be changing the recipe if I make it again.
I was also asked today to make a cake for my mother in law's party which is tomorrow, her birthday was yesterday. I had a chocolate cake recipe I have been wanting to try, and nothing is better on chocolate cake than peanut butter icing! I haven't tasted the cake yet, but the icing was delicious. I can't wait to taste it all together tomorrow!
I'm far from making cakes with cake delivery nationwide, but I'm excited to try some new recipes and make some cakes for things other than my families parties.
I was also asked today to make a cake for my mother in law's party which is tomorrow, her birthday was yesterday. I had a chocolate cake recipe I have been wanting to try, and nothing is better on chocolate cake than peanut butter icing! I haven't tasted the cake yet, but the icing was delicious. I can't wait to taste it all together tomorrow!
I'm far from making cakes with cake delivery nationwide, but I'm excited to try some new recipes and make some cakes for things other than my families parties.
job hunt?
My husband and I are getting serious about our debt. finally. One of our talks that we've been having recently has been on the topic of me getting a evening/weekend job. It's something my husband doesn't want to happen, but I kinda feel like it's the only thing we can do right now. I don't mind getting a job, it might be kind of fun to do something outside of the house. not to mention exhausting. I wouldn't be getting a full time job, or anything that would mean us putting the kids in childcare of any kind.
I'm thinking about things like being a waitress, the bowling alley here is hiring someone to work the snack bar. that made me laugh a little. working at a bowling alley might be fun. I've toyed with the idea of starting my own thing, making and selling cakes. I'm just a little nervous about the starting up part. plus, it wouldn't be regular so it would be hard to really rely on. Knowing we would be using whatever i make towards paying off debt is helpful, but it would take a lot longer. A few years back I had attempted to start a business helping people clean their houses. It never got very far though, not like the house cleaning service cary NC has to offer. I don't know if I'm not motivated enough, or not pushy enough, or just not a good business lady, either way I'm nervous about the thought of trying to make money by baking cakes. which is why I am currently kind of on the job hunt.
I'm thinking about things like being a waitress, the bowling alley here is hiring someone to work the snack bar. that made me laugh a little. working at a bowling alley might be fun. I've toyed with the idea of starting my own thing, making and selling cakes. I'm just a little nervous about the starting up part. plus, it wouldn't be regular so it would be hard to really rely on. Knowing we would be using whatever i make towards paying off debt is helpful, but it would take a lot longer. A few years back I had attempted to start a business helping people clean their houses. It never got very far though, not like the house cleaning service cary NC has to offer. I don't know if I'm not motivated enough, or not pushy enough, or just not a good business lady, either way I'm nervous about the thought of trying to make money by baking cakes. which is why I am currently kind of on the job hunt.
Beach Treasures
I can't help but want to go dig in the parks and the sand when I see metal detectors. I'm thinking bounty hunter metal detectors would be a good present. :) They have some commercials on tv advertising them and they do make me want to try them. I'd be excited to walk up and down the beach, or through the field at the park and find some random stuff. I'd like it even if it wasn't valuable, because I just like finding stuff! I don't really know if you do as well as they make it seem on tv or you hear in stories but who wouldn't have fun with the suspense of wondering what is setting the detector off?
Answered prayers
I am always amazed when God provides money to pay bills and things we need, but I get even more blown away when He provides exact needs. I have lost 40lbs since the week before Easter, in doing so I've dropped 4 pants sizes. We don't have a ton of money for me to get new clothes, I've bought a pair of jeans and a few items from goodwill- far from designer t shirts, but at least they fit! The jeans I have are "fashionable" and holey, so it's very obvious when I wear them often (which I do, since they are the closest jeans I have to fitting).
While running with my friend Saturday morning I mentioned something about the way pants fit and how I needed more. She just happened to have a few pairs of jeans that she didn't wear! So God answered my prayer with my exact need- jeans! not just money to buy them. Then that night I was with a different friend talking about furniture and how we were going to start saving money for a new mattress. Guess what she just happened to have sitting in her basement!? yup, a fairly new mattress set. brought it home that night, and it's Very nice!
I know I shouldn't be surprised that God cares about even our littlest needs, but it did blow me away to have a friend hand me some very new looking jeans and a mattress!
While running with my friend Saturday morning I mentioned something about the way pants fit and how I needed more. She just happened to have a few pairs of jeans that she didn't wear! So God answered my prayer with my exact need- jeans! not just money to buy them. Then that night I was with a different friend talking about furniture and how we were going to start saving money for a new mattress. Guess what she just happened to have sitting in her basement!? yup, a fairly new mattress set. brought it home that night, and it's Very nice!
I know I shouldn't be surprised that God cares about even our littlest needs, but it did blow me away to have a friend hand me some very new looking jeans and a mattress!
achy muscles
i ran today, faster than normal i think. man my leg muscles were achy! i'd love to find a massage therapist, or maybe just take some classes, get a license and look for message therapist jobs! except then I couldn't get a massage, i'd be too busy giving them.
My side muscles are sore too from zumba this morning. The lady that leads it does more muscle group focused zumba than dancing. I like it because my obliques hurt! Last week she did one that worked out my arms like crazy! (i'm not very good at dance moves so this type of zumba is better for me.:) )
My side muscles are sore too from zumba this morning. The lady that leads it does more muscle group focused zumba than dancing. I like it because my obliques hurt! Last week she did one that worked out my arms like crazy! (i'm not very good at dance moves so this type of zumba is better for me.:) )
Homeschool coop
We joined a home school co-op. Today was our second day, they meet once a week. The girls love it. Caylee ends up coming to find me once or twice a day, but that is amazing considering she doesn't even like to go into nursery at church on Sunday mornings! They are having a blast and learning a ton.
Lexi especially is learning, well it's easier to see her growth. She comes home talking about presidents and saying rhymes or singing songs that get stuck in your head like commercials for www.wholesaleinsurance.net http://www.wholesaleinsurance.net/. They are learning a Bible verse per week, it's from a CD called Sing through the word. It's actually something we are (or will be) doing in school at home once we get the cd.
Something crazy has gone on with fedex I think. They said they delivered our package a few weeks ago but they delivered someone else's here instead. i called twice, and delivered the package to the right address, hoping I'd find mine on their doorstep. but I didn't. So Sonlight resent my order... and I'm still waiting to get it. it's annoying doing school when you don't have all the stuff you need.
Oh well, I'm sure it will show up sometime. Oh I'm also waiting to find out if my shoes that were broken and I had to mail back to arrive at the store so they can mail me ones that aren't broken! I really hope they show up!! I would love to run in a pair of shoes that don't have holes. :)
Lexi especially is learning, well it's easier to see her growth. She comes home talking about presidents and saying rhymes or singing songs that get stuck in your head like commercials for www.wholesaleinsurance.net http://www.wholesaleinsurance.net/. They are learning a Bible verse per week, it's from a CD called Sing through the word. It's actually something we are (or will be) doing in school at home once we get the cd.
Something crazy has gone on with fedex I think. They said they delivered our package a few weeks ago but they delivered someone else's here instead. i called twice, and delivered the package to the right address, hoping I'd find mine on their doorstep. but I didn't. So Sonlight resent my order... and I'm still waiting to get it. it's annoying doing school when you don't have all the stuff you need.
Oh well, I'm sure it will show up sometime. Oh I'm also waiting to find out if my shoes that were broken and I had to mail back to arrive at the store so they can mail me ones that aren't broken! I really hope they show up!! I would love to run in a pair of shoes that don't have holes. :)
Sleep
Sleep is a rare gem in this house lately. At least for Eugene and I. Eugene has been busy working on Battleground stuff and last week I was busy almost every night working on his nieces wedding cake. (which by the way I think turned out beautifully) so things have been kind of crazy, and Josiah has been acting weird during the night. Now he has a stuffed up nose, which never helps him sleep so I'm not expecting tonight to be much different. Today at nap time I was honestly half wishing I had an iphone or one of those tablet netbooks so I could just lay down and watch some tv while getting him to sleep. instead I ended up falling asleep myself! It actually felt good, despite the fact that I knew I had work I should be doing.
My weeks have become more busy and two days of the week I now have to get up and get us all out the door around 8am. We've joined a homeschool co op, which pretty much consumes all of Tuesday. I like it and am happy for the opportunity. The girls both love it too. Then Thursday mornings I go to Zumba and Bible study at church, i get done at 11ish, so that's not too bad. The other days are pretty much normal household stuff with school with Lexi, cleaning, cooking, laundry etc.
Hmm... seeing as tomorrow is Tuesday, maybe I should go over my math lessons for co-op!
My weeks have become more busy and two days of the week I now have to get up and get us all out the door around 8am. We've joined a homeschool co op, which pretty much consumes all of Tuesday. I like it and am happy for the opportunity. The girls both love it too. Then Thursday mornings I go to Zumba and Bible study at church, i get done at 11ish, so that's not too bad. The other days are pretty much normal household stuff with school with Lexi, cleaning, cooking, laundry etc.
Hmm... seeing as tomorrow is Tuesday, maybe I should go over my math lessons for co-op!
Holloween or not holloween.
We're not fully set on whether or not we will take the kids trick or treating or not. The past 4 years we have taken them some years, and not others. I personally love dressing up. I always have, and I love to have a reason to dress up. I'm not into the sexy bunny costumes or anything, but I have a friend who's whole family dresses up as a theme, last year they were Peter Pan characters. This year they have something else fun planned. I just think it would be kinda fun to pick a book or classic movie and each of us pick a character to dress as! Think of how cute it would be to all fit in together and walk around as a family getting candy. :)
I just wish there wasn't the evil behind it, I don't like having to explain to my kids why there are scary looking decorations, or people dressed up as witches, vampires and other scary things! Not to mention the bad dreams they have just from seeing some of the stuff that they see in stores. So who knows what we'll decide this year.
I just wish there wasn't the evil behind it, I don't like having to explain to my kids why there are scary looking decorations, or people dressed up as witches, vampires and other scary things! Not to mention the bad dreams they have just from seeing some of the stuff that they see in stores. So who knows what we'll decide this year.
The Cost of Running
When I first started running way back in 2009 (2008?) It was purely because I needed to lose the weight I had gained during my pregnancy with Caylee (and Lexi) and we had no money for a gym membership. Running was free. Slip on some old clothes, some sneakers and get out on the road. I hated running. I had NO intentions of running in a race of any sort. I had no desire to buy fancy "running clothes" or even good shoes. My new balance sneakers were ok and worked fine.
At some point in late winter/early spring of 2009 the running bug hit me a little. I decided (mostly because my sister ran) that I'd run a race. I thought a 10K would be a good challenge, but I found an 8K close by that looked good enough for me. I started training. I had never run 5 miles before and didn't know if I'd make it. My sister decided to run with me, she flew down from Maine to run my first race. I enjoyed having her with me because I knew NOTHING about racing. I had no clue that you'd get caught up in the gun fire and take off at speeds you never dreamed of, only to make it half a mile and die. Luckily she was there to keep me running when I wanted to walk. I finished my 8K in 48 minutes or something like that. I was just glad I was done. I never wanted to run again.
Almost a year later I decided I needed to lose weight. We were going to a church where there was a huge group of young married people who ran marathons, half marathons, triathlons, even iron man competitions. I thought I'd try my hand at running again. I asked for advice. They all said the same thing "just sign up for a race, pay for it, and you'll have to train because you've already sunk your money into it". I got a little caught up in the moment and decided a half marathon would be fun. 13.1 miles. Sure, I can do it. I found one and signed up. I thought we'd make a vacation out of it and decided Virginia beach would be fun. After all, the race was one of the cheapest I found (Dismal Swamp Stomp) and started training. It was crazy to me to think I paid $40 to run. (Now I realize that $40 for a half marathon is CHEAP). The first week of my training I had to run 5 miles. I knew there was no way I was going to be able to run it. I could just barely do 3, and it took me a month to get to 3. Much to my surprise I ran the whole 5 miles.
I still wasn't going to buy fancy running clothes. My knees were hurting though and I had to buy some better shoes. I got sticker price right away. $100 for a pair of sneakers that will only last me 6 months? YAH RIght. I did it though. $100 was cheaper than knee surgery. By the time my race had come around I had lost 30lbs. my clothes were all falling off of me, I broke down and bought a few running shirts from Target and a pair of capri's from old navy. It felt good to have clothes that fit and were made for running. I was starting to see how running could be expensive.
By the time I finished my race I was in love with running. I was planning on taking a few weeks off and then found out I was pregnant and ended up taking about 9 months off. I could not wait to get the all clear from the doctor saying I could run again after he was born. I got the all clear, started running and had all sorts of knee problems. I ended up having to wait about 3 more months before I could start up full force.
Now I am about 6 months into my running, I had to buy a new pair of shoes, but found a pair that were discontinued for less than half the price. I'm down about 40lbs from my "normal" weight, and about 10lbs from where I was when I got pregnant with Josiah. I've had to break down and buy a pair of running capris too. I could have easily got caught up in the cute running clothes this time around had we had extra money. I run with group of women and the pressure to look cute while running is stronger than when you run alone.
The main cost of running that I've noticed is races. I haven't run a ton, and the ones I've run have been cheap ones, but it's hard to find races (5K's) under $20. So it would be easy to spend a lot of money on running. I try to keep it on the cheap side, but it's still money being spent.
Aside from the monetary cost there's also the time cost. It either takes away from my sleeping time or my family time for me to go run. I think that it is good for me to get out and run though because it's a good stress relief for me. I am a much happier mommy when I run. It also cost me almost 40lbs. but I don't care about that cost! :)
At some point in late winter/early spring of 2009 the running bug hit me a little. I decided (mostly because my sister ran) that I'd run a race. I thought a 10K would be a good challenge, but I found an 8K close by that looked good enough for me. I started training. I had never run 5 miles before and didn't know if I'd make it. My sister decided to run with me, she flew down from Maine to run my first race. I enjoyed having her with me because I knew NOTHING about racing. I had no clue that you'd get caught up in the gun fire and take off at speeds you never dreamed of, only to make it half a mile and die. Luckily she was there to keep me running when I wanted to walk. I finished my 8K in 48 minutes or something like that. I was just glad I was done. I never wanted to run again.
Almost a year later I decided I needed to lose weight. We were going to a church where there was a huge group of young married people who ran marathons, half marathons, triathlons, even iron man competitions. I thought I'd try my hand at running again. I asked for advice. They all said the same thing "just sign up for a race, pay for it, and you'll have to train because you've already sunk your money into it". I got a little caught up in the moment and decided a half marathon would be fun. 13.1 miles. Sure, I can do it. I found one and signed up. I thought we'd make a vacation out of it and decided Virginia beach would be fun. After all, the race was one of the cheapest I found (Dismal Swamp Stomp) and started training. It was crazy to me to think I paid $40 to run. (Now I realize that $40 for a half marathon is CHEAP). The first week of my training I had to run 5 miles. I knew there was no way I was going to be able to run it. I could just barely do 3, and it took me a month to get to 3. Much to my surprise I ran the whole 5 miles.
I still wasn't going to buy fancy running clothes. My knees were hurting though and I had to buy some better shoes. I got sticker price right away. $100 for a pair of sneakers that will only last me 6 months? YAH RIght. I did it though. $100 was cheaper than knee surgery. By the time my race had come around I had lost 30lbs. my clothes were all falling off of me, I broke down and bought a few running shirts from Target and a pair of capri's from old navy. It felt good to have clothes that fit and were made for running. I was starting to see how running could be expensive.
By the time I finished my race I was in love with running. I was planning on taking a few weeks off and then found out I was pregnant and ended up taking about 9 months off. I could not wait to get the all clear from the doctor saying I could run again after he was born. I got the all clear, started running and had all sorts of knee problems. I ended up having to wait about 3 more months before I could start up full force.
Now I am about 6 months into my running, I had to buy a new pair of shoes, but found a pair that were discontinued for less than half the price. I'm down about 40lbs from my "normal" weight, and about 10lbs from where I was when I got pregnant with Josiah. I've had to break down and buy a pair of running capris too. I could have easily got caught up in the cute running clothes this time around had we had extra money. I run with group of women and the pressure to look cute while running is stronger than when you run alone.
The main cost of running that I've noticed is races. I haven't run a ton, and the ones I've run have been cheap ones, but it's hard to find races (5K's) under $20. So it would be easy to spend a lot of money on running. I try to keep it on the cheap side, but it's still money being spent.
Aside from the monetary cost there's also the time cost. It either takes away from my sleeping time or my family time for me to go run. I think that it is good for me to get out and run though because it's a good stress relief for me. I am a much happier mommy when I run. It also cost me almost 40lbs. but I don't care about that cost! :)
First Day of school
We finally started school. I've been holding off because we're missing 2 things we need, but I decided to try to do what we could get done. The day went very quickly and smoothly. I'm almost afraid I did it wrong! Lexi didn't fight me or give me a hard time. Of course she pretty much knew everything, it seemed like a lot of review for her, so that was nice. She hesitated a little bit in the end when I made her practice more of her handwriting, she's forgotten a lot of form and how to write the letters. So i wanted to review a little more. Caylee even sat down a little bit and practiced some handwriting. It was kind of humorous, she is in no way ready to start school. She will be getting some education through the co-op we are going to be a part of this year, I'm hoping it will spike some interest in school and learning so we can do a little bit of fun stuff at home.
On a completely different note, There are new babies all around me! I knew a bunch (like 9) women who were due in August, and although I don't see too many of them in real life it's still fun to see pictures of all those new babies! I saw a cute picture of a gift basket new mom would appreciate. Instead of being geared toward the baby it was geared toward the mom and pampering her! Sounded good to me!! Seems like pregnancies go in cycles, in fact I think i only know 1 or 2 pregnant mothers right now- dropping from 9 that's a bit low! I do know a few ladies trying to get pregnant that I hope will be added to this list of pregnant moms soon!! (NOT ME! it will be a few more months before I start thinking about another baby... I'm still content with my 3)
On a completely different note, There are new babies all around me! I knew a bunch (like 9) women who were due in August, and although I don't see too many of them in real life it's still fun to see pictures of all those new babies! I saw a cute picture of a gift basket new mom would appreciate. Instead of being geared toward the baby it was geared toward the mom and pampering her! Sounded good to me!! Seems like pregnancies go in cycles, in fact I think i only know 1 or 2 pregnant mothers right now- dropping from 9 that's a bit low! I do know a few ladies trying to get pregnant that I hope will be added to this list of pregnant moms soon!! (NOT ME! it will be a few more months before I start thinking about another baby... I'm still content with my 3)
Change of plans
We've spent a ton of money trying to get the van fixed so we could go on our vacation this week. we were suppose to be leaving tomorrow afternoon to head to Virginia Beach for a wonderful camping trip. We only go camping twice a year, and this year we only got 1 trip in. and 0 trips to the beach. it makes me so sad, but there wasn't much we could do. My sister and her husband are coming down here to visit instead, so at least we'll get to visit with them! We're taking some time to go have some fun so I'm so excited to just have a relaxing, fun weekend!
We'll get to spend some time at the Labor day flea market that consumes the whole town next to ours this weekend. hopefully we'll find some good bargains! Lexi and Josiah need some clothes, and i have a small wish list for the house. you never know what you'll find at yard sales, especially in a town like ours, who knows, we might find some custom pins, or valuable antiques sold by someone who doesn't know what they have!
We're also going to paint the girls bedroom. that will be fun, the girls are excited to have a pink and purple room, and anything is more fun when you do it with your sister!!
We'll get to spend some time at the Labor day flea market that consumes the whole town next to ours this weekend. hopefully we'll find some good bargains! Lexi and Josiah need some clothes, and i have a small wish list for the house. you never know what you'll find at yard sales, especially in a town like ours, who knows, we might find some custom pins, or valuable antiques sold by someone who doesn't know what they have!
We're also going to paint the girls bedroom. that will be fun, the girls are excited to have a pink and purple room, and anything is more fun when you do it with your sister!!
Party fun!
Well, we had a blast at the girl's party! As far as I know everyone (except maybe the teenage cousins) enjoyed themselves. We even had a little "after party" the last few guests hung out until about 9:30 at night. of course we didn't mind because they were friends that we don't see too often! The girls had so many presents the were overwhelmed. Lexi does the normal kid thing, she tears through the presents and then looks through more. I love my Caylee Bean though. She takes her time enjoying each present as she opens it. I think she would have been happy with just one present!
hopefully life is going to slow down now and I'll be able to blog a little more, things have been crazy!
hopefully life is going to slow down now and I'll be able to blog a little more, things have been crazy!
Birthday Party x2
This year we decided to do a joint birthday party for the girls instead of having to go through the stress twice. Yah, we cheated. But the past two years Caylee has gotten our left over energy since we put so much into Lexi's parties. This year we decided it would make more sense and be more fair to just do it together. (plus the girls thought it was a great idea, and we figured they wouldn't like the idea for too many more years, so we might as well take advantage of it while we could!)
We went back and forth about what to get Lexi for her birthday. It's so hard to buy presents for them, Lexi says she wants everything, then forgets about it and changes her mind daily. One of the things we considered getting her was a mini Ipod or MP3 player. she carried around a sock for two weeks pretending it was her ipod. We didn't go looking for apple store coupons or anything, but we saw a use one in a pawn shop for pretty cheap. We decided she was too little for one though, and skipped that idea. Caylee is hard to buy for because she has had two loves for the past two years of her life... animals (mostly puppies) and baby dolls. but if you saw her room and the toy room you would know that she doesn't need any more of either. She's also not the type to play with much of anything. We wandered around the toy sections and clothe sections of 2 stores and had a really hard time. I could have gone crazy for Lexi, mostly because she's in a Hello Kitty phase and Hello Kitty is really popular. Plus, as I said, she really does like a lot.
I'm excited for their party tomorrow because there are so many people who are going to be here, this will probably be the biggest party either of them have had. (Another reason I'm glad we're only doing this once!) It's now 2am, and I am still awake. I have two cakes to make tomorrow (well, to decorate) and a house to clean. Maybe I should go to bed.... good night!
We went back and forth about what to get Lexi for her birthday. It's so hard to buy presents for them, Lexi says she wants everything, then forgets about it and changes her mind daily. One of the things we considered getting her was a mini Ipod or MP3 player. she carried around a sock for two weeks pretending it was her ipod. We didn't go looking for apple store coupons or anything, but we saw a use one in a pawn shop for pretty cheap. We decided she was too little for one though, and skipped that idea. Caylee is hard to buy for because she has had two loves for the past two years of her life... animals (mostly puppies) and baby dolls. but if you saw her room and the toy room you would know that she doesn't need any more of either. She's also not the type to play with much of anything. We wandered around the toy sections and clothe sections of 2 stores and had a really hard time. I could have gone crazy for Lexi, mostly because she's in a Hello Kitty phase and Hello Kitty is really popular. Plus, as I said, she really does like a lot.
I'm excited for their party tomorrow because there are so many people who are going to be here, this will probably be the biggest party either of them have had. (Another reason I'm glad we're only doing this once!) It's now 2am, and I am still awake. I have two cakes to make tomorrow (well, to decorate) and a house to clean. Maybe I should go to bed.... good night!
Shoe shopping
Well, it's time for the fun search of finding my husband new sneakers. I hate this chore, not only is he picky, he has wide feet. and it's hard to find shoes for wide feet, especially shoes that he likes- that don't cost an arm and a leg. I need big neon signs that say "find coupon codes here" or "Cheap Wide shoes here" anything to make this easier. He used to find shoes he likes at payless, but they got cheap and then stopped carrying cool shoes. we've found a few styles on shoebuy.com but they only have a few in our price range.
Anyway, I love buying shoes, just not for him. :) Too bad we can't buy shoes for me!
Anyway, I love buying shoes, just not for him. :) Too bad we can't buy shoes for me!
First Grade
Well, my baby girl is going to be five in just a few weeks. We'll be starting first grade here at home using the sonlight curriculum sometime in the middle of August. FIRST GRADE. my daughter reads, she LOVES to read and she loves to color. We've been printing off a lot of color pages lately, I'm thinking of buying stock in laserjet ink cartridges. At the rate we're going through printer ink we need something! Maybe a SAM'S club membership. Anyway... my point is that my baby is in first grade. We are doing a homeschool coop that meets at our church this year. I'm excited and nervous. It meets once a week and lasts all day, Lexi will be learning all sorts of stuff, Caylee will too for that matter. I do have to teach two half an hour classes, not a big deal. I'll be teaching math and I'm excited. I love math. So our year is going to be busy, but fun.
