Organized Chaos with the Montgomery Family

It's already March

2011-03-15T20:25:00.000-04:00

Wow, it's March already.

How is it that I haven't blogged? It seems like time is just getting away from me. I guess I've been updating my facebook more and more and spending little time here.

What's been going on?

Well....

I took the kids bowling for the first time the other day. They had great fun and of course I only got one picture on my phone and none with my camera because I was too busy making sure the kids didn't drop any bowling balls on their toes. I hope my friend Marissa posts some pictures on her blog so I can steal them. :)

We have seedlings. We bought a bunch of different veggies to plant and already we have some seedlings. As soon as we know the last frost has happened these suckers are going in the ground. We aren't too ambtious though we do hope that we get some veggies this year.

We have 3 weeks of classes left and and our second homestudy left before we are done with the foster parent training. It has flown by even with all the paperwork, classes, etc. We have a space almost ready for kids in the house. We still have to get a few things. A second mattress, a lamp, some hardware to finish putting the bunkbeds together, and some little things too. Overall it's coming right along. Oh course one of the best perks to this whole process is meeting some really awesome people. I've gotten a chance to get to know a few people and it's really exciting to know there are people who think about kids the way that we do and who are willing to step out of their comfort zone to help someone else.

I went on a women's mini retreat with my church a couple weekends ago. That was a very different experience for me as I can count on one hand how many times I've left my kiddos overnight while I was gone. I missed the kids greatly but I knew they were in good hands since they stayed with Grandma and Grandpa Montgomery. The retreat was awesome and it really helped me refocus and center myself. A really great thing and I'm glad I was able to go to it on such short notice.

We have decided to sell the tv. It's currently pending sale I guess. A few people have expressed interest in it. Todd and I agreed that the tv was better suited outside our house. The amount of tv viewing is now a non issue and nobody wants to watch tv even when they have time. We've found ways to fill our time with more meaningful activities and seem to be better off for it. Not to say that sometime in the future we wouldn't buy one again but for now the decision to get rid of the tv is the best choice for us. Oh the cooler things that has happend with less tv viewing is that the kids are playing more and playing together better. :)

I'm sure there is more I'm just drawing a blank at the moment. I promise I'll try to update more and do it a little more frequently in the future.

3:30am

2011-02-05T06:45:00.000-05:00

I've been up since 3:30am. The dog woke me up because he wanted to go out. He's asleep now and I'm still up. Got a chill I couldn't shake and then got to thinking about somethings. Funny how that happens huh?

Anyways here are just a few things on my mind...

1. Dave Ramsey Financial Peace program -- We couldn't afford to attend any of the seminars we heard about last year but I did check out the books from the library for free and we've been plugging away at that. So far 3 debts eliminated (2 credit cards and 1 small student loan) Woohoo! Moving on to the next several things.

2. Thinking about gardening and stuff. Wondering if it's more cost efficient to grow some of our own stuff and how to get started. hmm...checked out some books from the library on it so we have the basics down we just have to decide if we are going to do it or not.

3. Foster Care training and preparation. loads of paperwork. It's a slow but steady process of events and paper work that have to be done. We've completed the orientation, the initial profile packet (37pages!), gave them our info for references, completed 2 classes of training (6hrs) and still have 8 more classes (24hours) and more paperwork. This coming week we have our first of two home studies and also go and do a fingerprinting session/background check. Whew! lots to do there. Also we are re-arranging the house so the kids go back downstairs to their old rooms and we try and make the upstairs room ready for a kid(s). Not that we will get placed right away but it could be as early as late May or early June that we could get a placement. We aren't taking any chances and are trying to do our best to prepare for that.

4. Simplify. Yeah I know it sounds weird to say that when we've got the above stuff going on, but really it's more about eliminating unnecessary distractions. I've deleted my myspace page (I never used it) will be eliminating probably one of my other blogs, and am considering getting rid of my twitter. Maybe being too connected isn't a great thing. I understand the value in it, but maybe if we can't access people in 800 ways then the connections we do make with people will be more meaningful.

5. Simplify more. Last year (ha that sounds so long ago but it was just in Nov/December) that I took all my Cd's and sold them. Yep. I have only a handful of Cd's left. The rest I downloaded to my Ipod and said the heck with the Cd's. I didn't need them and they were just in the way. Gone. I also got rid of a ton of books that I had sitting around waiting for the day for me to read them. The sad reality was that I wasn't probably ever going to read them since most of them I had forever and hadn't gotten to. What I did is just write a list of books though down to checkout from the library and read them as I get to them. I don't know why we have to feel like we have to own everything we enjoy but I'm glad that we are getting away from that. Dvds have also been majorly purged down. Sold lots of stuff that we liked but didn't enjoy anymore. No point collecting stuff. Even the kids have gotten on board with this and told me which toys/books they no longer want to play with or need. Very cool to see your kids getting that you don't need stuff to be happy.

6. Be different. Ok so I'm going to assume that most of you know that Todd and I gave up our microwave last fall, that we became vegetarian, and that we got rid of our cable. I know we are majorly weird. Those few changes have made a big difference though. We eat better (even though I've been sick off and on for 2 months and put on a few lbs the stuff that goes into my body is still better than it was before) and we are more intentional about things. Which is awesome! We've also changed our schedules around so we go to Church twice a week. We're getting plugged into our community and it feels good. I have a feeling even more changes are coming. Maybe we will get rid of the TV all together?! I dunno, but I can feel more change is coming and we have to be open to it. I think we really are ok with the idea that people think we are weird. We are different. We don't ask that people do what we are doing or make changes like us but we do ask you be positive and support us as we figure things out.

7. Church. Wow! We are loving our church. http://www.bridgelexington.com/ We haven't had a place where we have felt called to be in a really long time and it's great to feel that again. Like I said before we made some schedule changes and we go to Church on Sunday's as a family and then also do Small Groups on Wed. night. Every time we leave the door there are a million reasons not to go and/or struggles but we don't give up and every time we go we are really blessed. I know our church isn't for everyone but if you don't have a place to go on Sunday's and you really want to try something new or you know that you do I encourage you to come with us and check it out.

8. Kids. I love my kids. Sam is becoming such a great little guy. I heard him encouraging Sophia the other night when she kept screaming "I can't" over something she was trying to do. It was awesome to see him being so kind, offering to help, and being so reassuring. Granted his sister hit him and wasn't having any of it, but still he has such a sweet heart and it makes me so happy. Sophia is sassy. Yes sassy, she told me the other day 'to get out of my face because I've got Jesus'. lol. She cracks me up and is trying to hold her own. Gotta love the sassy and the strength that comes with this age.

9. Rufus (AKA the dog). Trying to figure out what to do about him. We love him. He is very much a puppy still and it's very hard to give him all the attention that he craves especially with having small kids. The kids aren't very nice to the dog and so it's a constant struggle to figure out how to teach them to be nice, how to get Rufus to settle down (and not bite when he's playing), and how to give everyone the time and attention they need. Not only that even with being a short haired dog there is lots of sneezing going on around here. Sam often complains that his eyes are itchy after playing with the dog so I have to wondered if he (and I have dog allergies too).

10. Weight/health. It's been on my mind a lot lately. December was not kind to most of us in the house. Me especially I had the flu and a respiratory infection and then January I had a double ear ache, sinus infection, and pretty much a constant fever. That's all in check at the moment and I'm feeling ok (though tired but that's from getting up at 3:30am and not being able to go back to sleep). I'm up a few lbs but still have to lose about 20ish lbs to be considered healthy. I had been making good strides but then getting sick threw me down and I've not found my motivation to get back to it again. Don't get me wrong I'm eating well it's just the no exercise part that has me keeping this weight on. Anyways I need some motivation to keep it up. I also decided that I wasn't going to be a Beachbody coach anymore (I love the products) I just didn't want to be a salesman anymore and I just really don't have hours upon hours to focus on it when there are other things that are a whole lot more pressing like spending time with my kids while they are still kids. :)

So yeah that's probably not all of it but it's a chunk of stuff. Anyways I'd be curious to hear how you my readers are doing? If I've said anything that made total sense to you or if you have any questions?

Random things that Nikki has been enjoying

2010-12-11T21:47:00.000-05:00

This is going to be a bit random, but I thought it would be fun to tell you all about a few things that I've been enjoying lately.

1. Music:

The band Metric. I love them. I had been listening to them off and on but after we (Todd and I) saw them open for Muse I really started listening to them even more. My favorite song by them right now is called Gimmie Sympathy. You can check it out here: Metric Gimmie Sympathy Music Video

A friend got me into the group called XX. They label themselves as being pop/experimental. At first I wasn't sure what I thought but the more I listened the more I liked them. What I like about them is that they are a little funky. Here is one of their songs that I really like called Crystalised Crystalised Music Video and another one called Basic Space Basic Space Music Video

2. Reading.

Since we got rid of the cable I've been doing a lot of it. Not always the same type of stuff but the last book I finished was called Dracula in Love by Karen Essex. It takes the classic story of Dracula and turns it around so it's in the female perspective. I picked up this book at random when I was at the library last time and I'm glad I did. It was a very enjoyable read. The best part of it was all the historical refrences. The author really took the time to make sure she stayed true to the essence of the classic story and I thought that showed in her work. Oh and this book isn't as innocent as Twilight as far as the romance stuff goes so if you plan on letting your kid read it be warned there is some sultry scenes in there. You can see more about the book here: Dracula in Love

I've also just finished the House of Night series by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast (well all 7 of the books that are out currently anyways). This is a vampire series but it's set in a high school realm. I wasn't really sure what to think of the series when I started it but as I read more I found that I liked the good and evil/light and dark thing that they were doing and how it touches on lots of subjects that affect kids now. The only thing I wasn't crazy about in the beginning was the 'teen speak' that was going on. After awhile though I didn't mind it and got use to it I think. You can learn more about the House of Night series here: House of Night Series

Besides my reading about Vampires I've also been doing lots of reading about becoming Vegetarian, Raw food eating, mindful eating, and just general educating my self on how the food industry works. It's really interesting reading and I have to offset it with my other reading since some of the books can get to be very heavy in information. Here are some of the books that I've been reading: Being Vegetarian, The Everything Guide to Being Vegetarian, Super Natural Cooking, Raw Food, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, Eating Animals, Omnivore's Dilemma, Savor, and 101 Reasons Why I'm a Vegetarian. As you can see lots of reading and lots of information.

3.TV/DVD:

When I have watched tv I have wanted to watch documentaries. Checked out a few from the library. In a few days I managed to watch Bowling for Columbine (documentary about gun control and it's impact on teens and society), Sicko (talks about socialized health care and the state of healthcare in the USA) and Food, Inc. (a closer look at the cost of convience foods and the damage it's doing). All very thought provoking stuff. The first two documentaries are by Michael Moore which I head heard as being very controversial. Despite his political views I thought he made some valid points on some things and at least made me want to find out more about other things.

To continue the Vampire theme from above I was pretty happy when my dvd for Eclipse showed up in the mail. I did get to watch the movie but have yet to explore the bonus features. I love watching all the behind the scenes stuff after I've seen the movie so I get a better look into the filming process. I'm not a fan of that before the film though since that tends to be all I can think about prior to viewing it. Anyways if you are a Twilight fan and haven't gotten your copy the best deal I've seen as far as price and features has been at Target. You can check it out here: The Twilight Saga: Eclipse Movie

4. Celebrating:

I love seeing my friends/family doing great things and so I celebrate with them. Here are a few things that I've been celebrating:

Today I got word that my former neighbors (and still great friends) that Hilary had been published. He's been talking about this book for awhile and it was awesome to see that he's now published and his book is being sold on Amazon. Very excited for my friend and to read the book myself. It's a Western which doesn't fit with the Vampire reading I do (hahaha) but I am excited to read it. Check it out here: A Wayward Tale

Todd had his work Christmas Party last weekend and we won a cash prize that allowed us to buy a dryer. Woohoo! It's been too darn cold out to hand laundry up to dry or out so it's nice to have a dryer that works again. When it warms up though I'll be back to line drying. I don't mind the extra work and it did reduce our electric bill so it is worth it.

I was suppose to run the Reindeer Ramble 5K with my sister Siobhan and her teacher crew but was too sick to go. Even though I wasn't able to go Siobhan ran and did great. Her team finished around 35 mins and I'm so proud of her for doing it since I know she wasn't overally excited about since running isn't her thing. Way to go Sis! We have talked about running together in the future since I missed out on this race with her. Looking forward to doing that with her and celebrating that afterwards.

Opportunity (and seeing Santa)

2010-12-08T10:02:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday we had the wonderful opportunity to go to the local Ronald McDonald House in Lexington. Todd and I have been feeling like we need a place to volunteer so we got in touch with an old friend of Todd's to see if they could use at the RM house. Oh course they said they could and we were invited to attend the open house they were having for Christmas.

We didn't know Santa or that Ronald McDonald was going to be there but the kids were suprised. I didn't take my camera but the pictures above are from Kelly Hamilton the director of Volunteers there at the house. Sam loved seeing Santa and told him for Christmas he wanted an orange dog and a some trees. lol. Sophia was not impressed and wanted nothing to do with Santa. I have bruise marks on my arm from how hard she was holding on to me.

All in all we had a wonderful time despite the freezing snowing temps outside and we are thrilled to join the RM house after the new year as volunteers.

Our newest family member

2010-12-07T17:54:00.000-05:00

Everyone this is Rufus. We adopted Rufus from the Lexington Humane Society. He is 3 yrs old and is super sweet. He loves the kids and doesn't seem to mind a lot of noise and chaos. He's a small breed dog that is a mix of a Terrier and something else. We think the something else may be a beagle. Because of his size he doesn't scare the kids which is good since the kids showed some anxiety with some of the other dogs we looked at that were a lot bigger than Rufus.

Besides being the smallest dog he was also the only one that showed in interest in the kids and gave lots of love right off. He's a perfect fit for us (though I don't really think he'll be going on morning runs with me). He's already got a bed and his carrot toy and has been exploring the house like crazy. We have had a handful of accidents but are sure in a couple of days he'll have it figured it and that wont be an issue. It's a learning curve for all of us. Oh and yes Rufus was his orginal name and we decided to keep it. Seems only right to let him keep it since that's the name he's had his whole life.

It's that time....

2010-12-01T19:12:00.000-05:00

We have our 2010 ornaments. Todd and I took the kids to pick out one ornament each this year at Target. After much debating and lots of "no" from Sophia we all finally found the one that we loved. They are all now happily up on the tree with the ornaments that we got last year.

Here is the break down of who picked what:

Todd got the pirate nutcracker man
Nikki picked the doll in the sweater
Sophia picked out the penguin
Sam got the lion

Fall Pictures

2010-11-02T18:15:00.000-04:00

Marissa Noe Photography is where these beautiful came from. As most of my readers know we are big fans of Marissa and her photos so much so that we try and get family photo's done twice a year.

Please take a moment to go to the link and leave a comment on her website about how great you think these photos are. If we get enough people to comment we get a free print in a larger size. I would love to have it to add to my wall so please go and comment on her website.

My oops....

2010-10-30T18:33:00.000-04:00

Even though I'm not a fan of Halloween I am ok with the kids dressing up for school events and stuff. Last week the school sent home a notice saying that the kids were to dress up like book characters for the following week. We were to send the book with the kids and they were going to have a little book parade and class party. I thought the note said Friday. It didn't. It said Thursday. I of course didn't realize this until Friday afternoon after Sam got home from school.

Sam got home and I asked him how the party was to which he responded 'mommy the party was yesterday but I had fun being a fireman today'. Well stink...I failed. I'm glad he had fun being a fireman (Todd went to the store after work on Thursday to find the jacket for us) but I was bummed that my little guy missed out on dressing up with his classmates the day before.

Oh well...guess we all make mistakes from time to time. Oh and Todd said Sophia was dressed as an 80's pop star since she was decked out with all her accessories. :)

Puppy

2010-10-30T17:50:00.000-04:00

It's no secret that I want a dog. I've wanted one for a long time. Thing is though when you are trying to plan a cross country move the last thing you need to add to the mix is a dog.

Well today while Sophia and I were out running errands we stopped by Hobby Lobby where Sophia immediately fell in love with this little puppy. She started kissing and hugging him and cried when I told her we weren't going to get him. Of course she pulled out all the stops and we wound up buying this little guy.

He is in fact adorable and the best part is we don't have to feed, walk, or house train him. Sophia is happy and hasn't let him go but for just a few seconds for me to snap this picture.

Thoughts on Halloween.

2010-10-29T10:51:00.002-04:00

I feel like the Grinch of Halloween. I just really really really don't like this holiday. It's kind of a complicated thing really.

As a kid my mom went all out for this and would get dressed up and spend time trying to figure out our costumes. However, the day always ended with my parent's fighting (I'm talking about my biological mom and step dad) and the police around. He would be drunk. We would be tired, cold, and frustrated. Not my idea of good time.

As I got older I saw that more and more women's costumes are now labeled as sexy. What's wrong with just being a normal firefighter? Why does it have to be sexy? Sorry not interested. That's just not me.

Also the idea of marching my kids around in the dark and cold just isn't something they or I want to do. I told you I'm the Grinch of the holiday.

I'm not saying that dressing up shouldn't happen. In fact Sam is dressed up for school today. They asked that the kids dress like a character from one of their books. I'm totally fine with that. The idea of pretending and wholesome fun is ok with me. It's the darker side of the holiday that I don't like.

Will I take my kids trick or treating? Nope. Did we attend a fall festival this year? Nope, but that's because we just didn't hear about them in time to plan to attend. Are we going to do some Halloween type things? Sure.

Tonight I'll carve the pumpkin with the kids. Put on Charlie Brown and Scooby doo. Light some candles and enjoy some non scary and totally comfy fun with my kiddos at home. I'm not handing out candy as my street doesn't get any trick-or-treaters anyways (last year I bought candy had my light on and everything and didn't get a single kid so this year I didn't even buy candy).

Will my mind change about the holiday as my kids get older and they understand more about what is going on? Maybe. For now though I'll just continue to be the Grinch of Halloween.

Beautiful Chaos

2010-10-24T21:25:00.010-04:00

Plant mom bought me after I finished the Komen Race

Sam in his new bed

Sophia loves her new bed. Look at all that space.

new bed

Sam cheering me on at the 5K

Heading out the door for my first 5k

Todd trying to teach Sophia how to play

Muse concert

At the Muse Concert

So it seems I have a touch of ADD lately. I have so many projects and things going on that I have been getting overwhelmed and just plain deciding to let some things go to the way side...like this blog. Anyways I'm going to try and get back to blogging regularly for all 2 of you that read this. lol. Actually I don't even know if anyone reads this or if I'm just doing it for myself.

Whatever the case may be. Here is what we have been up too.

*Nikki and Todd went to a Muse concert and the kids spent the night with Todd's parents

*Kids got bunk beds and we took away the baby gates for good

*We found out my bro in law and his wife are expecting a little boy on March 15th

*Todd loves to jam with the kiddos and has even tried on several occasions to start to teach them how to play guitar

*I ran my first 5k. I ran the Susan G. Komen 5K and completed it. 38 mins 20 seconds and I didn't pass out

*I spent the day uploading all my cds to Itunes and then figured out how to export it to my external hard drive (no joke it took me all day I had tons of music that was not even on my IPod yet)

*One of the cars decided to have issues so it's in the shop which worked out ok for us anyways since we decided at some point we did want to be a one car family. It just happened sooner rather than later. lol

*We have been working as a family to purge the house of stuff that we don't need or want in preparation for our move to Portland next year.

*Todd has been working as usual at Saul Good and also spending his time off researching about Portland and spending time with the kiddos.

*I'm still working part time

*The kids and I had a 24hour stomach bug. Yeah that was fun.

*We have re-arranged every room in the house I think

*Todd has made no less than 30 trips to Goodwill to get rid of stuff for me

*Kids and I played in the leaves in the back yard today

*We have been to the Farmer's market every Saturday for the last month

*We have made a weekly trip out to 1/2 price books to sell our books, records, cds we still need to go back out for another round of books, cds, board games, and possibly the gamecube and it's games.

*Learning we can live with less and be happy. More stuff does not equal happiness.

*We volunteered to host Thanksgiving or Turkey Day 2010 at our place this year. It's one of the tings I wanted to do before I was 30 and we figured this would be a good time to do it since it'll be harder to do after we move.

*I read the book The Shack (it was eh for me but if anyone really wants to talk about it let me know and I'll do a post about that)

*Sam's class went to the pumpkin patch and he had a great time

*Sophia and I have been watching Scooby Doo together on days when we haven't felt very good. She loves it and I love that she wants me to watch it with her. It's a nice change of pace from Dora and Spongebob all the time.

*We canceled the cable. Don't miss it at all. In fact we've been enjoying our stuff on dvds when we want to watch something. We haven't really watched much though. The kids play more with their toys and I've gotten to listen to more music. Not only are we saving money but everyone seems happier without the tv on all the time.

*The kids are really big into pretend play lately which is a lot of fun. Today they had a road rally in the back yard while I raked leaves.

Ok so that might be everything. I can't say for sure, but that does at least catch everyone up.

I love my life....

2010-09-26T18:18:00.002-04:00

Some a few of my favorite pictures from yesterday. We spent the morning at two different farmers markets, went to lunch at Jalpenos, and had ice cream at Brusters. Todd had to work afterwards but I got to spend some cuddle time with the kids watching scooby doo. I'd say that life is pretty good. :)

Super Kids

2010-09-11T23:43:00.002-04:00

The kids picked out their clothes separately this morning at the same time and both emerged wearing their Superman shirts. It was just too cute. Oh course we couldn't get a single good photo of them together so these will have to do.

Fun

2010-08-24T13:33:00.004-04:00

I've been deal hunting again. :) Anyways one of my finds was a Harry Potter puzzle at Goodwill for $0.50. Not a bad deal I thought since I love the HP series and stuff anyways. Well last night after our amazing long day I sat on our living room floor for 3 hours and put this thing together. I couldn't believe that this 300 piece puzzle was made for 8 yr olds and up. It was hard! After all my hard work of getting together I took it apart and put away for another time.

Playing Dress up

2010-08-21T19:10:00.003-04:00

Tonight I cleaned out my closet. The kids were more than willing to help mommy do that and even spent a little time playing with my shoes. Sophia was actually walking around in some of my really tall heels too which was really impressive. Sam decided that my winter boots were more fun and had a great time running around in those. :)

Playing catch up

2010-08-20T21:44:00.002-04:00

What have we been up to?

Sam started school on Thursday.

We moved Sophia's room upstairs and moved the spare room downstairs next to Sam's room. He kept getting Sophia up in the middle of the night to play and this was the only solution that could work so it's been an interesting couple of days with the new adjustment.

Todd is working like normal.

I've been doing the P90X workout program, joined a book club, and signed up to run my first 5K in October.

I'm sure there is more but it's honestly to hard to try and sum up everything we've done in the last month...check out some of the other blog entries from tonight to see a glimpse at a few things.

Sam goes to school

2010-08-20T21:37:00.003-04:00

Sam's first day back at pre-school was on Thursday. He was thrilled to go back to school and couldn't wait to go. In fact every night since he saw his teachers on Monday he has asked about going to school every 2 hours. He's even gotten up in the middle of the night several times claiming that we have to get ready for school. lol. The boy loves his teachers and learning.

Red Robin

2010-08-20T21:30:00.004-04:00

Took the kiddos to Red Robin to enjoy their freebie meals they earned from the summer reading program at the public library over the summer. As you can see they loved their meals.

It is possible...

2010-08-20T21:27:00.001-04:00

The kids can get along. Check out the photo. It is possible for them to interact without screaming, fighting, or pushing. Ah...how I long for more days like this. :)

Sam's quilt

2010-07-24T19:35:00.003-04:00

After Sam was born I thought it would be great if I could find a way to re-use all his beautiful and soft baby blankets again. They grow out of them so fast and I hated the idea of just getting rid of them. I wanted to make a quilt for him but I lacked the skill and had a really hard with getting the basics of using my sewing machine down. I also had a really really hard time figuing out how to put it together and spending the time doing it. I was lucky enough that my friend Julie said she would do it and viola Sam now has a quilt that will cover his twin bed that he will now have for the rest of his life. I love how it turned out and am excited that Sam will always have a piece of his baby years with him. Julie is also going to make a quilt for Sophia using her blankets too in the future and Sophia will have her own blanket for years to come as well.

Everyone loves to read

2010-07-24T19:26:00.002-04:00

Each night the kids like to look at a book before they go to bed. Sam picks a different book every night but Sophia usually picks the same Dora book. I love that we have a family full of readers.

Thank you Aunt Stephanie!

2010-07-24T19:13:00.002-04:00

Aunt Stephanie bought the kids a shopping cart for thier birthday. The kids just started playing with it. As you can see Sophia not only uses it to shop but also to sit in. I think she thinks that since she sits in the carts at the store that this can be used the same way. I had to actually stop Sam from pushing the cart with her in today as it would just topple over with her weight in it. Thank you Aunt Stephanie for the fun toy!

Happy Birthday Nikki!

2010-07-18T13:16:00.002-04:00

Yesterday was my birthday. :) Thank you to everyone who came and cooked out with us. Thank you to my super talented Sister Siobhan for making my amazing birthday cake. To see more pictures from the day go check out my photos on facebook.

Slow Down

2010-07-13T15:34:00.003-04:00

So far from where I started out
So far from where I wanna be
Listening for answers in the wind
But can't find a rock to plant my feet
Looking for love in all the wrong places
Down on my knees and now I'm praying for patience
I know there's gotta be a better way
In the back of my mind I hear my momma say

Slow down, Baby you're going too fast
You got you hands in the air
With you feet on the gas
You're 'bout to wreck your future
Running from your past
You need to slow down before
You go down baby

Thinking the faster that I go
The faster (that) I will reach my goal
The race is not given to the swift
But to the one who endureth
I thought that all my obstacles were behind me
Walking around like I'm made out of diamond
I tripped and fell and it remindedme
Move over and let my angels guideme

Slow down, Baby you're going too fast
You got you hands in the air
With you feet on the gas
You're 'bout to wreck your future
Running from your past
You need to slow down before
You go down baby

Sometimes you gotta be still
Before you can get ahead
Be still
Ask the universe for help
Be real
You can't do it all by yourself
Ah, no no
Sometimes, sometimes you gotta be still
It take some time to reach you and they
Be still
Take some time to clear your space
Be real
Chaos isn't good for your health
Ah, no no, ahhh
Cuz I'm breaking things and losing things
I lost my cell phone again the other day
Now, I don't wanna live this way, no
In the back of my mind I hear my mama say

Slow down, Baby you're going too fast
You got you hands in the air
With you feet on the gas
You're 'bout to wreck your future
Running from your past
You need to slow down before
You go down baby
(Slow down baby)
Slow down (baby)
You're going too fast
Slow down (baby)
Feet on the gas
Slow down (baby)
Run from your past
Slow down baby (4x)

More Books I've read recently

2010-07-01T22:13:00.006-04:00

These are in no particular order since my last posting about the books I've read. I think I'm missing a book or two in this round up since I sold a couple of books a little while ago. Anyways here are the books that I've read:

This is a fluff book. I knew that when I got it and I'm glad I did. It was lots of fun. The story is based in New York and is about a woman who gets in the PR world and learns it's not all that she thought it was. This is a light fun read and worth it if you like pop culture references like I do.

The Uglies Series by Scott Westerfeld. There are 4 books in this Young Adult series. The premise of the main story line is that the government has decided that everyone should be "pretty" by the time the turn a certain age to keep war at bay. The series does offer some interesting thoughts but overall this wasn't my favorite read. In fact it took me a little bit to get through the series because I often got bored and put it down many times.

I picked up The Pact by Jodi Picoult when I was on vacation in DE at a goodwill. I needed something new to read for my flight home. I had not read anything by Jodi Picoult before but I knew that she had written several books that had been adapted into best selling movies and that was enough for me to try it out. This book is sad and thought provoking (as I'm told all her books are apparently). It wasn't a difficult read and I think I read the whole book in less than 6hours. If you want a good cry this will do it.

I just recently learned that this book was being made into a movie and I was curious to find out what all the buzz was about so I purchased this book off of a friend. Water for Elephants is written by Sara Gruen and is about the Circus in the 1930s. I was actually really suprised to find that I liked this story. It has some circus history or legends mixed in with orginal characters. Overall it was a really fun book and I am looking forward to the movie adapation when it comes out.

Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick is a young adult book about angels. Fallen angels and the possibiltity that they could live among us and the possibility for change. It's an interesting concept and has some interesting twists. From what I understand there will be a sequel that will be coming out in the fall and I'm looking forward to seeing what else she has in mind for her lead characters.

Remember Me

2010-07-01T22:04:00.002-04:00

I don't usually mention movies that I watch from home but I thought this one was worth mentioning. Remember me stars Robert Pattinson (yes the same guy who plays Edward Cullen in the Twilight Saga) and Emille DeRavin (she was Claire on the show Lost). Chris Cooper, Lena Olin, and Pierce Brosnon are also in it. All I can say is that it's worth watching and that you will need lots of kleenex. Check out the trailer above for an idea of what the film is all about.

Eclipse

2010-06-30T09:35:00.009-04:00

As many of my loyal readers know I'm a big Twilight Saga fan. It's not so much about the vampire/wolf thing it's more about love, family, and figuring out who you are that really captures me in these stories.

The latest movie Eclipse just came out. Midnight last night to be exact. Though this year I didn't travel to be with my friends who are big fans like myself. This year I decided to stay home and try and catch the movie at midnight with Todd. I lucked out since my sister in law is also a fan and wanted to go so we met up with them. Anyways here are my thoughts on the night:

First I was disappointed with the lack of organization at the theater. Granted we couldn't get there to line up till 10pm but it was just one huge mass blob line that ran around the theater. Not cool since there like 15 screens showing the movie in intervals and it just didn't make sense to have everyone in one line. After the last movie ended though it was basically a free for all as people found their way to the appropriate screens. We got decent seats but it was kinda crazy.

Secondly there were lots of New Moon shirts on people. We were in line for Eclipse. Guess everyone got their New Moon shirts on sale at Toy's - R - Us at it's grand re opening or at Hot Topic. I saw only a handful of Eclipse shirts and I was the only that I saw with my shirt design on. Lots of people without movie shirts on at all. If you are gonna wait for a midnight movie at least have a little fun with it and wear a shirt or something. No shame showing just how geeky you are if you are already there for the midnight showing.

Thirdly--Fan girl squeals when Jacob is seen without his shirt, when Bella and Edward kiss, or when Jacob and Bella kiss is not necessary. Really we know it's going to happen and it's just distracting listening to someone giggle hysterically because the couple on screen is kissing.

Fourthly--The movie itself was great. I just did a re read the book the other day and I thought the movie did an excellent job of capturing all the big moments in the book without dwelling on anything too long. I heard a few complaints about the bed room kissing scene not being long enough but I felt it was fine and in some ways kinda weird to watch on screen. Kinda like I was intruding on some one's personal moment. The chemistry between all the actors has gotten better and everyone seemed to settle into their roles a little more and it really did feel like you could have been watching real people up there and not just characters in a movie. My personal favorites though were Billy Burke as Charlie Swan. He had some really great moments and it was great to see more of him in the film. It was also nice to see Gil Birmingham as Billy Black more too. I wish they had spent a little more time on the Indians history. The movie moves quickly and when the 2hours is up you feel like there is no way that it has already been 2 hours.

Overall I had a great time and experience. Glad I made it to a midnight showing and can't wait to see it again (which I will when I have time). I can honestly say that I'm glad I stayed away from leaked or released clips that were online and in interviews since I was able to be really surprised when I did sit down to watch it in full. I really enjoyed the movie and would recommend it to any Twilight Saga fan.

Hanging with the troopers

2010-06-26T14:34:00.003-04:00

Jo Beth had it's Star Wars day event so Todd and I took the kids to go check it out and have a little fun. Here is just a few of the pictures from that event. Go check out my facebook photos for the rest.

One of the many things we've done...

2010-06-23T17:54:00.002-04:00

Last Saturday we took the kids to Jo Beth bookstore and let the kids feed the ducks in the pond behind the building. They had a great time and Sam got a big hoot out of the baby ducks swimming after everything that he threw into the water. We had to actually stop him from throwing in stuff since he would just grab anything and throw it in there just to see them all swim and quack over stuff.

Besides the bookstore we also took the kids to the humane society event that was in front of the store and checked out the adorable animals that were all there for adoption. We would love to get a dog eventually but for now we were just happy to play with all the wonderful animals. Sophia actually gave this huge 80lb dog the biggest hug and the dog just gave her a kiss. If we had the money that dog probably would have come home with us that day. lol. Sophia was in love.

We also managed to head over to Whole Foods and Good Foods for some shopping and some lunch. We are loving the healthy food options of things in these stores and the kids love going shopping so it was a win win for us all. Though we don't get much on these trips the kids are enjoying the change of pace and getting to do things that we don't do on a regular basis.

In fact this weekend we plan on taking the kids to the free event at Babies r us/Toys r us grand re opening tomorrow to see character appearances, story time, and to get some free prizes and then we plan on taking them out to lunch with the freebies they earned from the public library and then on Saturday afternoon we are heading out to Jo Beth again for the Star Wars event (face painting, characters, etc). We are taking advantage of the freebie events in the area and are having a good time despite the hot and humid weather.

What events, activities are you all up to?

Summer is almost here and what the heck is wrong with my kids?

2010-06-11T14:33:00.002-04:00

Sam has been out of school now I think 2 weeks. Summer will officially start on the 21st of this month and it feels like it. It's been very hot and humid around here and I can say that I am not loving it.

Honestly though the point of this post is to let off a lit bit of steam. My kids seem to have become little monsters over night and I'm not sure how to deal with it. Sophia has become a very good actress and can turn on the waterworks in .001 seconds. Not even kidding. It's crazy how good she is at it. Sam on the other hand has decided that he doesn't want to use the potty but instead pee in his underwear everytime and then change his clothes put his wet ones back in the drawer and act like he didn't do anything. Grrrrrrrrr....yeah frustrating. Not sure what to make of this behavior. Sophia I think just doesn't feel good but Sam is acting out I think. I think he's mad he can't go to school for the summer and is taking it out on me. *sigh* whatever it is I'm ready for it to stop already.

Since there isn't school we have decided to take full advantage of all the great free things around here. Library story time on Mondays, Library free programs on Tuesdays, Friday's he goes to the barn with his Nana Peg, and Saturday's we go to the Farmers market. He's got games, toys, and new movies to watch even so it's not for a lack of activities that are avilable for us. We've even taken them to play in the mall play area just for something different. Ah the joys of summer. Looks to be a long season for us especially since the kids are refusing to get along at all. I'm trying my best to be patient, hold out till nap time so I can get some exercise in to let off some steam but it's proving to be difficult. Nap time isn't happening since my children have now decided they don't need to sleep ever. Up late, up early, and no naps. :( Maybe it's just the adjustment period of the seasons changing or whatever but I really hope this little sleep hiatus ends soon.

Anyone else having a difficult time with their kids right now? Any tips on how to handle the lack of sleep or the potty issues that have come up?

Kid's birthday Party

2010-06-07T10:28:00.002-04:00

Yesterday we had the kids joint birthday party. With Sophia's being on the 2nd of June and Sam's brithday being on the 14th we decided to party on the 6th. For now it's fun to have the party together and we are taking advantage of that since I'm sure that wont last forever. lol.

Anyways we had a great time. The kids got some reallyg great gifts, ate some yummy food, and really enjoyed having all of the Keeley and Montgomery family together in the same place. The kids really loved their Dora and Diego cake that my sister made for them and loved their custom Dora/Diego shirts that I had made for them. The big question of the night was "where is boots?". lol.

I can't believe that Sophia is now 2 and Sam will be 4. It seems just like yesterday that they were babies.

If you want to see more pictures of the fun check out my facebook pictures.

Sam's last day of preschool for the year

2010-06-03T10:07:00.002-04:00

Sam is off to his last day of preschool today. I have mixed feelings about it but mostly I'm just so proud of my little guy for all he has learned and how much he has grown up. I'm also thankful for his amazing teachers who have the patience to teach not just my child but loads others on a daily basis. In honor of his last day of school I'm letting him wear whatever he wants to school. Don't you just love his hat, shorts, and snow boots combo? I love this kid. :)

Happy Birthday Sophia!

2010-06-02T16:21:00.002-04:00

My beautiful little princess is 2 today! Where has the time gone? Sophia is my rough and tumble princess. She loves frilly clothes, the color pink, hair clips, shoes, and playing in the dirt and jumping off of things she shouldn't. She is full of spunk and attitude and is never shy to tell you what she wants. She is a girl after her momma's own heart. :)

May Updates

2010-05-13T20:51:00.003-04:00

I don't really have a good reason for not blogging other than I just haven't wanted to. Anyways without giving excuses here's what is currently going on with us.

It's been up and down with Sam. He's been moody and aggressive and also sweet and very helpful. I think it's just the age and the fact that there has been a lot going on. He's starting to express that he doesn't like that Daddy has to work, that Sister isn't very nice or that he doesn't love me. I take it all with a grain of salt and try to be as understanding as possible and continue to encourage him to express himself. He's also getting very good at telling stories about things. Often times it's things that we talk about like friends don't hit friends. Seems my passionate little man is loyal to his friends. One kid was picking on another kid so Sam hit the bully kid to make him stop. lol. Not exactly the best way to handle it but I do love that he's sticking up for the kid that was getting picked on. I'm sure this wont be the last time the school calls me. lol.

Miss Diva Sophia is currently sick. She has a serious ear infection and eye infection and has been in a lot of pain. I mean a lot. 48 hours worth of screaming, crying, etc. It's been exhausting for us all. She is resting now as I type this. I'm thankful. I was able to finally get her to eat today -strawberry muffins, a nutrional shake, and some cherrios. Not the best meal but at least she finally ate something. Before she got sick though she was doing very well. She has gotten brave and decided that she wants to walk down the stairs. She already walks up them but always asked to be carried them down. She is also showing a growing interest in reading and asks to go to the library all the time.

As far as things with Todd or myself we are doing ok. Both of us are tired. I picked up my workout routine again and have been feeling pretty good (until the last 48 hours lol). Todd will be going back to the first Saul Good location on Monday and then I'll be gone for a couple of days next week going to visit my old college roomie.

Yep, that's about it I think. I'll try and post more often in the future. Don't hold your breath though I might not. lol. :)

Working out

2010-04-28T19:43:00.002-04:00

After several weeks off (sickness and pain) I'm back to working out. Well I worked out today anyways. 30 mins on the event training mode on my elliptical and I felt like I was going to pass out. My lungs hurt, my legs feel like jello, and my abs/core is killing me. I haven't hurt this bad since the first time I started working out regularly almost 13 weeks ago. I had planned on doing 30 mins of cardio and then doing some weight training but I just couldn't muster enough strength to get to the weight training.

I don't know why it was so hard to get that workout in today. My health is decent. I'm no longer on antibiotics and yet I really really didn't want to work out. I knew it would be good for me. I would be glad I would do it and yet I still didn't want to do it. I am feeling really discouraged. Being off 3 weeks and then realizing that my weight goal was still a ways off (like another 30lbs!). I feel crushed. Lost. and annoyed. I've made good progress and even while I wasn't working out I managed to stay within 4lbs of the weight I was before stopped working out.

I should be happy about what I've done but yet here I feel frustrated at what I still have to do. On the elliptical tonight as I was breathing through the sharp pains I had to tell myself that I could do this over and over. It worked sorta. I think I just need to re-adjust my thinking and find a way to make this fun and find my motivation again.

This is where I need some help. What do you do when you hit a wall? I thought about changing my music again. I was documenting all my exercise and my food but that got really old really fast and I felt like I was a slave to it instead of enjoying my exercise or the healthy food I was eating because I was concerned about the calories or whatever. So yeah I need help and I'm open to ideas.

19 days later...

2010-04-28T11:14:00.002-04:00

Wow, so yeah I haven't updated in awhile. What's been going on with us you might be asking. Well I'll tell ya.

I was sick. More allergy problems and stuff like that. It never ends. Migraines and stomach problems. It's been suggested that I have some allergy issues to glutten maybe and that's why I have so many headaches and stuff. I dunno. Dr would like me to go see an allergist and to run some tests but since we don't have insurance and pay for everything out of pocket we can't do that right now. I would love to figure out what is making me feel so icky but for now I'll just have to make do and try to take care of myself as much as possible.

Todd has been sick with seasonal allergies but seems to be ok with the help of some Zyterc every morning. He's been busy working away at the new Saul Good location out at Hamburg and when he's home we've been working on the yard and going to the library with the kids to check out books and stuff. Todd also just celebrated his 29th birthday yesterday. We had a great time hanging out with mostly family and a few friends and enjoying the yummy food and great cake that my friend Julie made. Check out my photos on facebook. The photo uploader on blogger isn't working for me today. :(

Sam is sick. Yep sick. He hasn't been feeling good for the last few days and we finally took him into the doctor. He has strep. :( Poor guy is miserable and doesn't understand why he can't go to school and see his friends. Doctor said to keep him home and he can go back to school tomorrow (Thursday). He's on some antibiotics and takes tyelnol every 6 hours to help with the pain and stuff. Oh and he's moody. I'm talking major moody. Like crying because he has to wear white socks or has to pick up a spoon to eat crying. Not fun.

Sophia is doing well. She's had some seasonal allergy issues too but seems to be doing great. She just doesn't understand why Sam is so grumpy. She is a trooper though and seems to handle everything pretty well. In fact she's taking a nap on her bedroom floor right now. :)

What's coming up next for us? Mother's Day weekend we get to see my sister Suzanne graduate from Asbury University (doesn't that sound weird to anyone else?) and see my other sister Siobhan graduate from the masters program at Asbury University too! Squeeze in there some dentist appointments, haircuts, and other random stuff, and that gets us to the end of May. I'm going up to see my college roomie and one of my best friends up in Maryland. After that it'll be party planning for the kids birthday's in early June (Sam will be 4 and Sophia will be 2!). Whew. I'm just tired thinking about all that.

Gotta get back to taking care of the sick kid, laundry, and household chores. Hope everyone is staying healthy and is doing well.

Things on my mind:

2010-04-09T21:47:00.002-04:00

1. General health and physical well being

*Feeling better after I had a major allergy attack on Monday. It was not a fun experience. I now have an epi pen and have been on a whole round of meds to normal me out. Without having had a allergy test the doctor wasn't sure what caused it but has some thoughts that it might have been the fish oil supplement that I started taking.

* Since I couldn't work out because of the allergy thing I've been trying to figure out what kind of workout goals I want to focus on when I can work out on Monday. I started working out first to be healthy but then shifted my goal to see if I could reach my FDA recommened weight. I honestly don't know if I could even reach that weight but I think I'd still like to see. For that to happen though I'm going to have to figure out how to change up my work out plans to help with that. I also need to figure out how to eat less calories too but still maintain my enough to keep me going. I want to be healthy while doing this.

2. Better communication

* A friend mentioned in her blog about learning how to talk to her kids. She talked about how acknowldging how you feel and how your children feel and verbalizing it makes things easier. What do you know? It does. I did it all day long. It wasn't always easy but the kids seemed to respond better and we actually had less temper tantrums. I can deal with less tantrums. :)

3. church

*Went to church last week with the family and am looking forward to going this week too and hopefully finding out how to get involved. I am excited.

4. activities and ideas for family/kids to do

*Trying to find things for the kids and for us to do as a family. I'm trying to come up with ideas for crafts and activities. Also trying to find some things the kids can get involved in for a long term like karate or soccer etc. Sadly it seems like lots of those types of things are really too expensive for our small budget. Also trying to find a schedule that works for us a family so we can all get our time in to rest, read, workout, homework, etc. I've got one that seems to be working so we continue to see how that goes.

5. job/work/figuring out where I fit

*Still trying to figure out what I want to do or if I should be working in a different capacity than just stay at home mom. I have a desire to be a professional organizer/decorator but know that would mean schooling and work. Besides being a stay at home mom too I feel like I'm missing a part of myself by not working. Trying to figure out what that means and how to find a way to gain that back without creating more problems (like work schedules that conflict with Todd's and means I'd have to pay someone to watch the kids).

Anyways thats some of the things that are going on in my head. Anyone else have things that they are trying to work through? Anyone feeling what I'm feeling about things above? I'd love to hear from you to know I'm not alone in all this thinking.

Easter

2010-04-08T12:58:00.002-04:00

Easter was lots of fun. We got to go to church as a family and then went over to the Keeley family house for lunch and an Easter Egg hunt. I of course didn't get a single picture because I was helping the kids find eggs that we were told was going to be easy. lol. It wasn't easy at all and in the end most of the adults were helping the kids find the eggs. Anyways a great time was had by all.

Easter Egg Fun

2010-04-01T17:43:00.004-04:00

Blogger is at it again with loading my pictures in reverse order. Anyways start from the bottom and scroll up to see the Easter egg dying fun in order. My mom came over today and we dyed eggs with the kids. The kids really loved it and it was a lot of fun getting to show the kids how to dye the eggs. Mom was great since I could not remember at all how to do it since it had been forever since I boiled an egg or dyed them lol.

Disney Princess on Ice

2010-03-29T18:40:00.003-04:00

On the 25th we took the kids to see the Disney Princess on Ice show. It was a little bit of a later evening for them with the show being at 7pm and all but they loved it and I'm glad we took them. The show was 2 hours long and the kids didn't complain or cry once though we did miss the grand finale because the kids were exhausted and weren't really paying attention at that point. Sam loved seeing Snow White and 7 dwarfs and was giddy with each new song. Sophia seemed to love the whole show. She sat in Todd's lap for the entire show pointing and clapping at things. At one point in the show Sam gave me a big kiss and exclaimed that it was awesome! He kept asking me questions about the characters and tried to keep them all straight. Some he recognized and some he didn't. Overall it was a wonderful time (even if we did have the cheap seats and couldn't see everything so well). We all had a wonderful time and I look forward to doing more things with the kids now that we know they can handle being up past their bed time from time to time.

Don't let that face fool ya he was enjoying the show as much as the kids were. :)

At intermission Sophia streched her legs and told Daddy all about the show.

Genie and crew from the Aladdin movie. Most of pictures did not turn out so well but I got a few of this act because they had more lights on.

The kids watching the show.

Just complaing about being tired so you can skip this if you want lol

2010-03-23T18:09:00.003-04:00

I am tired. I don't really get why. The last 2 nights I've gone to bed early (like 9:30 and 10pm early) and gotten up around 7-8am. I'm exhausted. I also have a headache which I think is due to Spring's arrival.

Oh and did I mention sometime late last week I started to feel some awful pains in my left knee. I decided to take it easy after that last incident and because the week before I pulled a muscle in my back. I've not really gotten a good workout in a awhile and I'm antsy to get back to it. I long for time to myself to not think and just workout. It's not happening though like I said I'm tired and oh did I mention my sweet sassy Sophia has decided she doesn't need to nap and needs my attention every waking moment. Yeah I'm not sure how to handle that and now my window for workingout is gone.

I know that if I worked out I would feel better (physically and mentally). Though I'm sure the strain in my knee and back was from me pushing myself too hard so I'd have to slow things down a bit and go at a pace that isn't so hard on my body. Anyone else have this dilema? How do you handle setbacks like uncooperative kids and bodyparts that ache? Do you push through? Do you take time off? How do you feel if you don't get your workout time in? Lastly is it strange that I would be exhausted even with getting a normal amount of sleep? I'm just not a fan of feeling blah and would love to know how to get over these hurdles.

Awesome giveaway

2010-03-18T18:20:00.003-04:00

Ok everyone you need to go over to:

http://beneathmyheart.blogspot.com/

and check out the awesome giveaway she is doing.

She is giving away a $50 value gift certificate for some really awesome Vinyl letters that are made by http://www.leenthegraphicsqueen.com/. Lots of really great lettering and designs. In fact one of the designs was featured on HGTV.

If you are interested in winning this great prize and I know you are make sure you go to http://beneathmyheart.blogspot.com/ and enter to win.

Here are just a few ideas of what you could win.

Easy dinner

2010-03-18T17:46:00.002-04:00

This was so easy and tasted so yummy that I had to share my little experiment I made for dinner.

I took leftovers from my fridge -grilled chicken cubed, steamed white corn, and some leftover turkey stuffing- and put it all together into a baking dish. I tossed in some shredded cheese and mixed it all up and then put it into the oven at 350 for about 15 mins. Sprinkled it with a little sea salt and some peppercorn and it was good to go.

Super easy and super yummy. The kids loved it and I used up leftovers.

What is the best thing you've made to eat lately was super easy?

Today's blessings

2010-03-18T16:04:00.002-04:00

1. The sun is shining.
2. I don't have to have the heat or the air conditoner on.
3. Sophia having a tea party with her teddy bears. Cutest thing ever!
4. Sam giving me huge hugs and kisses after getting home from school.
5. After several days of a painful back issue I am feeling better and did 2 miles on the elliptical machine.
6. Fun mail day: New Moon goodies, new checks, and my Word Made Flesh tshirt.
7. Did I mention the sun is shining?
8. Watching Sam and Sophia play and fight with each other I realized these two will always be best friends and that makes me smile.
9. Shoes--time for flip flops and sandals. Goodbye winter wool socks and snow boots.
10. Having a conversation with my kiddos and understanding what they are talking about.
11. Having a good book to read
12. Two days in a row of getting to talk to one of my neighbors and remembering my trips to Bolivia (and petting the cutest baby bunnies)
13. Watching Sam give his bus driver flowers this morning he picked from the yard just because they were pretty and wanted to give them to her (yeah for picking dandalions lol)
14. No cook meals for the kids - they love when I just give them random things from each food group and I love that I don't have to cook
15. Because it's warmer there are less clothes to wash (yeah for not having to do just a load of sweaters/sweatshirts)
16. Planning a birthday suprise for Todd's birthday in April and actually getting details put together for it
17. Weekly weigh in and I didn't gain weight but I didn't loose weight which means even though I didn't work out most of the week I did alright with what I ate. I can live with that.
18. Realizing my goals are not impossible but that sometimes we have to adapt them just a little bit
19.Thankful for a husband who deals with the frustrating things (like the bank) so I don't loose my temper
20. oh yeah and sitting in the sun and getting a little color on my otherwise very pale complexion :)

Decorating and taming the chaos

2010-03-16T19:39:00.003-04:00

I was recently asked if I could do anything I wanted and money wasn't an issue what would I do?

My response was decorating/organizing.

I'm obsessed. Ask my husband he will tell you. I can't let things be. I always have a project to work on and have something that needs to get done above and beyond the normal household stuff.

I've been debating about how to pursue my passion for decorating and organizing. Should I go back to school? I don't really want to do more schooling right now. I love how my space feels but would I be able to do that for others? I dunno. I haven't had the opportunity to do that yet. Could I do that kind of work and still be avilable for my kids and husband? I'm sure there is a way.

What does all that mean? I don't know. I'm trying to figure that out. I do know that I often get compliments on how nice our home looks, how comfortable it is, and how it's so us.

I love the colors in our home (burgandy, blues, hints of green, and pops or orange), I like the mixture of chrome fixtures and the wrought iron pieces too. I love our over stuffed couch, our very tranditional pieces of furniture mixed with contemporary pieces. I love the clear glass vases, the childrens art work everywhere, and the natural elements like the wicker baskets that I use. It fits because it is us. It suits us. We want to be comfortable so we have too many pillows and several throw blankets out and candles in places you don't think you should have them. I just wonder if I could make someone else's space just as comfy in a way that works for them and not for me.

I love a good bargin. I hardly buy anything new and when I do I've gotten for a steal of a price. As I look around my house I can easily tell you the things that I've gotten new as there are so few. I like using what is considered second hand and finding new meaning in things that would probably be tossed away for something sleek, new, and without scratches. I know there are others out there like me that have a desire to make your home look good without spending a small fortune on things and who may or may not be handy/crafty. I'm kinda crafty but not so much with the handy part I haven't actually tackled many overhaul projects on furniture and stuff like that. Anways my point is I think I could help people make a space comfortable for them by using what they already have and love, using what they have and don't love so they do, and finding the rest of a small budget.

I think I'd like to try anyways. I don't know where to go from there though. I'd be willing to offer up some of my ideas on how to make a space work for you for free to get my feet wet and see what I think. If you live local I'd be willing to even give you 2 hours of my time in person to come and help you set up a room if you'd let me take some pictures and use it to help me start buiding a portfolio of sorts to help me figure out this crazy dream of mine.

If you don't live local you can send me pictures, call me, etc. and we can figure this out. I really would love to try and it's totally free. You can spend as much or as little as you like on your space and I'll help you get right.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder

2010-03-16T19:13:00.005-04:00

Despite being tired and in pain (I somehow manged to hurt my back and it's killing me and that is part of why I'm so tired. I only slept 4 hours last night because it hurt so bad). I needed to get out of the house and have a few minutes to myself. I'm fairly happy with the way that my home looks at the moment as far as decorating goes. There are a few subtle things I'd like to change but I'm happy with it. Anyways because I had to get out I figured I would make a quick trip out to Goodwill. You never know what kind of goodies you can find and it's been awhile since I've gone. I was very happy that I went as I scored some fun little goodies. Check them out and the price that I paid for them below.

Old desk fan $5.50

It works too! It's a pale blue color and is really beat up. Not sure if I'll find a way to paint it or not as I kinda really like that it's old looking. The best part of this is I put it on the dresser near my elliptical machine and it'll help keep me cool. I'm thrilled to find this little guy.

Dark contemporary stand (holding the lamp now lol) $4.50

Love this. It's not traditional at all and it can be so many things. Put a cushion on top and it's a stool, stack things on top of it as a stand, use it as a side table or a game top table. Love it. It's not too heavy either and is a beautiful chocolate color. Right now it's holding the lamp that I just got and is next to Todd's record player in his chill room.

Dark brown/burgandy color lamp with bleh lampshade $6.00

I love lights. I really do. I love the personality and the shapes and the lighting options. lol Yes I'm a dork. Anyways I found this beautiful little guy and couldn't be more pleased with it. The base is a deep burgandy color and the shade is kinda bleh but that can be replaced later and is in decent condition right now. I love it and it's a great fit for Todd's chill space.

2 velvet orange pillows $2.00 total

I'm a sucker for the color orange. I love my burgandy, browns, blues, greens, but most of all I love the punchy color that adding something orange adds to your space. I added these pillows to the ones already on the couch. Love them. They feel like someone made them (and weren't mass produced or anything) and I love that. They are oh so soft too!

Tinkerbell flower headband $1.00
Oh course I saw this and thought Sophia would love it. It's addorable and was in great condition and for a buck who could pass that up.

Tiny woven basket $0.75
This little guy is adorable. He's big enough to store random office supplies, movie ticket stubs, receipts or whatever I want. I love natural element it braings in to my office. It is a nice mix with the orange storage bins, the chrome desk lamps, and the other baskets I have mixed in too.

I can't believe I got all of that for under $21! I love it when I find good deals!

Have you guys found any great deals lately?

Home is where all the fun happens

2010-03-16T12:23:00.002-04:00

We had the lovely opportunity to have our pictures taken by Marissa Noe again. She is a long time friend and an amazing photographer. We had planned on going out to Shaker Village but because it was cold and wet we decided to do the photos in our own home. We had so much fun. We cranked up the music, pulled up the blinds, and just had fun. We did what we normally do at home except this time we had someone taking our pictures while we did it. :) Marissa has posted more pictures over on her business blog so if you are interested in seeing more (and I know you are) go to www.marissanoephotography.com now. KY friends if you need pictures she is the woman to do it!

Books from the year so far

2010-03-14T09:34:00.008-04:00

Thought it might be interesting to share some of my thoughts on the few books that I've already read this year. I'll start with the most recent one and work backwards. There haven't been many so this shouldn't be too bad.

3. Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

http://beautifulcreaturesthebook.com/

Book Snynopsis:

Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she’s struggling to conceal her power and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps, and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town’s oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them. In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.

My Thoughts:

This book was just ok for me. I didn't love and I didn't hate it. I felt like there were a lot of holes and that the whole story just felt a bit awkward to me. I have no idea if the book is going to be a movie or not but I did see the book trailer (they make trailers for books now?) on the authors website and honestly I like that more than the book at this moment. Though I did just read that there is going to be a second book and that might change my mind on the whole story. I'd give it a solid 3 out of 5 stars (and hope the second book is better).

2. Unwind by Neal Shusterman

http://www.storyman.com/books/unwind.html?animate=1

Book Synopsis:

In a society where unwanted teens are salvaged for their body parts, three runaways fight the system that would "unwind" them Connor's parents want to be rid of him because he's a troublemaker. Risa has no parents and is being unwound to cut orphanage costs. Lev's unwinding has been planned since his birth, as part of his family's strict religion. Brought together by chance, and kept together by desperation, these three unlikely companions make a harrowing cross-country journey, knowing their lives hang in the balance. If they can survive until their eighteenth birthday, they can't be harmed -- but when every piece of them, from their hands to their hearts, are wanted by a world gone mad, eighteen seems far, far away.

My thoughts:

This book blew me away. It was given to me by a friend as a Christmas gift since she knows I love Young Adult books. Boy was she right. This book was amazing. I'd give it 5 out of 5 stars. You have to read this book. It will leaving you thinking without a doubt and will be with you days after you finish reading it. I'd say more but I really don't want to give any of the story away. It's really that good.

As a side note I did just see that the book rights were purchased to be made into a movie. I'll be looking forward to seeing what develops with that. In the mean time I'll be checking out more of Neal's books.

1. The Lovely Bones by Alice Seabold

Book Synopsis:

My name was Salmon, like the fish; first name, Susie. I was fourteen when I was murdered on December 6, 1973."

So begins the story of Susie Salmon, who is adjusting to her new home in heaven, a place that is not at all what she expected, even as she is watching life on earth continue without her -- her friends trading rumors about her disappearance, her killer trying to cover his tracks, her grief-stricken family unraveling. Out of unspeakable tragedy and loss, THE LOVELY BONES succeeds, miraculously, in building a tale filled with hope, humor, suspense, even joy.

My thoughts:

This was an interesting read. I'll admit the reason I picked up the book was because the movie was coming out and I like Peter Jackson's films. I still haven't seen the film but if it's anything like the book it'll be hear wrenching. The book deals with the murder of a young girl (which was very difficult for me) and shows you how everyone deals with grief, life, and everything in between. While I didn't feel blown away by the story I did like it. It was heavy to read and in some places I felt a little let down. I did put this book back on the shelf to possibly read again later. I would give it a 4 out of 4 stars and a warning that if you plan to read this have your tissues ready because it will probably make you cry.

Here is the movie trailer to give you an idea of what the book was about:

Something that makes me happy

2010-03-11T09:28:00.001-05:00

Life is good

2010-03-09T14:13:00.003-05:00

It's been a busy couple of days. First we found out that pop pop keeley (my dad's dad) had passed away and thought we would try and go up to PA for the funeral. After much consideration though we decided we just couldn't do it in the short time that we had to work with. Since we didn't do that though we did decide to get some other much needed chores done. We got both cars oil changed and tuned up and more. Oh and since we got our tax refund we even did just a little splurging on ourselves. :) Anyways here are just a few of the candid shots of the kids from the last couple of days.

Thankful Thursday (Pictures only)

2010-03-04T17:56:00.005-05:00

Crafty Monday

2010-03-01T18:14:00.004-05:00

Today the kids made some treasure boxes. I found some craft boxes and stickers at walmart on one of my last visits to the store. I wasn't sure what I was going to do with the boxes but I knew that the kids would love the stickers since they are some of their favorite characters (Cars and Tinkerbell). Today I figured out what to do with both of those things. I let the kids decorate a craft box first by coloring on it with crayons and then putting their stickers on there to create some little treasure boxes for each of them. They turned out pretty good. We let the kids place the stickers on the boxes or tell us where to put them. They love their little boxes and I love that they did it themselves. :) Afterwards they colored the little color sheet that came with the stickers.

How sweet they look when they sleep

2010-02-26T11:17:00.004-05:00

I love my kids I really do, but sometimes they drive me crazy. I don't know if it's because we have to spend so much time in doors due to this interesting winter weather we have been having this year or if it's just because of their ages but they have been really wound up and some what difficult.

Sam has taken to telling us No to everything that we tell him to do and is very rough with his sister at times. I think he really has missed the days he wasn't able to go to school because of the snow. He always seems like he is in a better mood when he has time away from all of us.

Sophia has gotten to be very sassy and I don't mean that in a good way. She likes to hit, push, head butt, and pull hair. She refuses to use words and instead points and screams. I remember Sam doing this too so I'm pretty sure it's an age thing and the fact that she has a brother who is just as rough.

We decided it was time for Sophia to move to a bigger bed. The crib was just not safe for her anymore and so we purchased a sweet little Disney Princess toddler bed for her. She didn't care for it at first but is slowly warming up to it. In fact she put herself to bed last night because she was so tired.

Since we got her a new bed we decided to revamp her room a little bit and decided it was only fair to do a little bit in Sam's room too. With some moving of furniture, a purchase of a used dresser for Sophia's room, and a couple posters the kids have rooms that reflect them. Sam has a Cars theme and Sophia has the princess room. Both kids rooms look good and only need a few smallish touches (new blanket for Sam's bed, a new lamp for Sophia's room and some refreshing on her dresser) and I'll be happy with how they look.

The kids seem to be responding well to the updates and it has helped the moods to have some special things being done for them. I'm trying to keep upbeat that the kids moods will continue to improve and that we can have more fun and less pulling hair and screaming. :) Here's to hoping that Spring arrives soon so we can spend some time outside playing too.

Making the best of a snow day

2010-02-16T13:14:00.005-05:00

We have been lucky enough to have Todd home for 2 whole days! We've also managed to have snow days both days so the kids are getting to hang out with Todd too. Our first snow day did not go so well. Sophia was a monster the whole time and we spent most of the day being frustrated and not getting to really do anything. Today though has been a different story. Todd and I decided to have a plan. :)

The plan was that he would head out to run some quick errands with Sophia and I would get to hang out with Sam. We would each get some quality time with one of the kids and then the kids would color while Todd made lunch and I got a workout in. After that Sophia got a nap and the boys played video games. After Sophia got a nap we headed out for a bit. I needed to get out of the house. We headed out to Kohls and then we stopped by Goodwill (where I scored a new shirt, a pair of sandals, 4 Neil Gaiman books, and an ab roller all for $20!). After getting back we had a lovely dinner that Todd made and now we are putting the kids to bed so Todd and I can try and watch one of many new movies that we got from Christmas that we haven't had time to watch yet.

It's been a good day and has gone more smoothly than yesterday did. I'm thinking the kids are just as tired of these snow days as I am. Sadly for them school is already canceled for Wed. So tomorrow I'll have to come up with a plan of action since Todd wont be here to help since he has to go back to work.

Sophia loves to color.

Sophia and Daddy after coming in from the snow to run errands.

Sam buidling a playdough tower.

Rolling the dough

Sam and I made a playdough person.

The boys playing video games

Story time before bed

Cuddles and hugs with Mommy before bed. :)

Valentines and all it's goodies

2010-02-14T15:22:00.005-05:00

The day started rough. Sophia woke everyone up screaming. We aren't sure why. Then She proceeded to get sick in her bed later on during a time out (for hitting her brother) and Sam falling and hitting his head. Not off to a good start at all. Since Todd worked so late last night he didn't have time to pick up a gift for me and I had a frustrating time yesterday trying to go and see him at work and getting stuck in traffic for 2hours on Nicholasville Road! Anyways tried to make the best of it and after we got Sophia settled Todd took Sam out for a quick trip to the store before he headed off for work (a double). It's been ok day. Didn't make it to church because of all the chaos around Sophia getting sick. Honestly Sophia has been terrible all day (moody and sick). I'm just thankful that they are watching Wall-E now without killing each other. The best gift of the day I think will be when the kids go to bed and the house is quiet for a bit. lol.

Todd picked up some adorable Disney princess hair clips for Sophia who has outgrown her baby hair clips. Todd said her pjs made her look like a candy heart because of the colors. lol.

Sam finally got his King and Doc cars that he didn't have. He was very excited about this.

My gift to myself. :) Dark Chocolate and a movie. Don't worry I'll share with Todd and he can even watch the movie if he wants too.

Todd loves Rice Krispy Treats so I decided to make a batch for him. We haven't done a lot of treats in awhile so he was pretty thrilled to see these this morning.

The kids made some pictures for Daddy and I put them in frames and hung them by his side of the bed.

Found a little something sitting on my Elliptical machine when I got on to workout today. Todd picked up Princess Bride on dvd and card for me. :)

He also got me these beautiful roses and carnation flowers.

Sam's first school Valentines Day Party

2010-02-12T16:45:00.003-05:00

Sam had his first Valentines Day Class party today. Parents were allowed to come in and help out and see the kids so Todd went (I went to the Christmas party and thought we should each try to go to a class function if we could). Todd said that the kids were loaded up with sweets. cupcakes, cookies, candy, and chips plus the fruit juice boxes that we sent for the class. Wowza that's a lot of sugar for kids who probably aren't use to getting that much. Todd said Sam's eyes were huge and he ate as fast as he could since he never gets all that. We don't do a lot of candy and stuff like that around here. Anyways Todd said they had a great time. At the end of the party each kid went home with their box (cereal boxes covered in paper) with all their valentines and goodies from their classmates. Here is Sam's loot that he got today. He was very excited about the pencils and stickers and asked for a candy treat but laughed as soon as he said it since he knew he wasn't going to get any more sweets.

On a side note we had some mcdonalds for dinner tonight. We rarely get mcds so it was a nice treat for the kids (and for me not to cook since I'm not feeling well at all). Nothing say's Happy Valentines Day like fast food and heart burn later. lol.

snow day crafts

2010-02-10T16:12:00.004-05:00

It's snowing and I was tired of watching cartoons so I had the kids do some creative stuff. First up we spent some time painting and then some coloring. We also did a little valentine's day project for Todd from the kids.

Something to hoot about

2010-02-10T11:55:00.003-05:00

While I was over at my family's house on Sunday to celebrate my dad's birthday I spied an owl pillow downstairs in the basement. I LOVE Owls. I've always been fasinated by them and adore them. Anyways I saw this pillow and asked my mom about it. Turns out it was a pillow that she made that was no longer in good conditon. It was falling apart and she wasn't sure what to do with it and was probably going to throw it out. I asked if I could have it and she gave it to me. Today I pulled apart the pillow and took the owl that she lovingly made and put him into a picture frame. He now resides next to my beside and couldn't be more perfect for the space. Most of all I'm glad I was able to rescue something that was handmade and loved by someone that I love.

What we are up to.

2010-02-09T19:48:00.003-05:00

It's been busy around here. It's always busy though. Anyways here is what everyone is up to for those that are wondering.

Nikki:
-I've been working on purging unneeded items from the house and my closet. I've gotten rid of tons of clothes.
-I've been working out a min. of 15 mins a day on my elliptical machine and am feeling great!
-Read the book Unwind by Neal Schusterman. Wow! What a read. It's a thought provoking book.
-Pre-ordered New Moon on dvd :)
-Reading the Bible daily. I'm using the Read the Bible in a year program.

Todd:
-working at Saul Good like regular. The 2nd Saul Good location is opening in April and at the moment it looks like Todd will be going out there to help with the opening.
-Took care of a car problem we were having. The avalon wouldn't start and so we had to have some things to figure out in order for that to get fixed. Luckly for us it wound up being a simple fix (a battery cable had to be replaced).

Sam and Sophia:
-Sam and I just put together his class valentines today. He didn't have school because of the winter storm.
-Sam has been showing lots of independence and has made a huge effort in doing things on his own. It's nice to see him act like the big boy that I know he is. :)
-Sam and Sophia fight non stop. Pulling hair, pushing, biting. It never ends. It gets to be very frustrating for everyone. They can't play nice together but they refuse to play seperately.
-Sophia is very clumsy. I think she thinks she's faster than she is and often trips over her own feet, falls, etc.
-Sophia loves the movie Tinkerbell. I think I've seen it more than 500 times. lol.

I'll try and get some recent pictures of the kids up soon I've been a little lacking with the picture taking and it seems the kids have grown so much in jsut a month.

On a mission

2010-01-29T19:17:00.003-05:00

I'm on a mission. Yep you heard right. I'm on a mission for change.

I was getting very frustrated with things in general and then it struck me that if I wasn't happy that I needed to change instead of waiting for change to happen.

What does that mean? It means a few different things. I've started a process of purging things that we don't need or use on a regular basis. We don't have to hold on to baby gear, clothes that don't fit, or housewares that we don't use and will never use.

It's been a process and I've been documenting some of that on a more private blog. It's been a learning process and it's been good to discover some things about myself.

I've also decided to work on eating and exercising habits. I figured part of the reason I wasn't happy was that I wasn't feeling good about myself. I wasn't feeling good because I wasn't taking time for myself. I'm now back on Weight Watchers and working out on a regular basis. I was so serious about working out and taking better care of myself that Todd and I went and purchased an elliptical machine so I can work out at home without having to leave the kids. Before even buying the elliptical machine I had already trimmed off 6lbs.

I haven't been to church in a long time. I miss it. I wasn't really feeling the place I had been going before even though it was a nice place I just didn't feel like I fit in there or that the kids were really getting anything out of it. I was praying about it and asking for a sign and then I just decided to ask people where they are going. I got tons of recommendations and though we've had two foiled attempts at getting to church we are determined to find a church home. Pray for us now that we make it to the church we want to try out this Sunday.

Part of this change process is also spending more time reading and being creative and spending less time being involved online or watching tv. I feel like I'm making a good strides towards postive changes and feel good knowing I'm doing things to make our lives better.

Kids and the stuff they say

2010-01-22T18:31:00.003-05:00

Today I watched my friend Colleen's little guy. Sam and Nate are about the same age and have played together on occassion. Anyways today Sam had to go to school a few hours after Nate got here. Sam was pretty upset that he had to leave his friend here to play and that he couldn't stay. After a couple of hours though Sam came home and Nate exclaimed, "you came back to see me I thought you were going to stay at school." Sam looked at him and smiled and said, "yep". Nate smiles and then says 'Let's be friends, ok?' to which Sam says, "ok". Nate then looks at him very serioulsy and says, "Let's be best friends ok?". Sam looks at me and then over to Nate and replies, "Nope, mommy is my best friend". Nate looks disapointed but then says, "oh ok just friends then."

This evening as Sam and I watched cartoons Sam is picking sock lint off his toes. I look over to see what he's doing and he takes a piece of sock lint that was between his toes and acts like he's putting it in his mouth. He says to me 'mommy it's good you want some?' and cracks up laughing. Of course I say no and he laughs even harder and then says, "thats gross mommy I kidding." Silly kid!

ah the fun you have when you have small kids around. :)

3 out of 4

2010-01-21T17:58:00.004-05:00

Sam making a monkey face instead of smiling :)

Sophia started crying right after I took the picture. She isn't happy with me since I was gone most of the day and she had to stay home with Daddy.

Self portrait and some kitchen junk. lol. I got a new hair cut today and some new highlights put in but you can't really tell from this photo.

For a different blog that I work on I take pictures daily (not well mind you) so tonight I decided to try and get pictures of each of us in the family. Since Todd is at work I'll have to get one of him later to post.

Sam's school project

2010-01-21T17:51:00.003-05:00

For Sam's class project this week (or maybe it was last week I get so confused sometimes) they made gingerbread houses using milk cartons, icing, and candy. Not a bad little idea actually. When Sam got home from school he happily showed me his lovely project and wanted me to take a picture of each side of it for everyone to see. Oh and in case you are wondering the school sent it home in a plastic baggy. :)

When did she turn into such a big girl?

2010-01-16T14:02:00.003-05:00

Baby it's cold outside

2010-01-08T21:41:00.003-05:00

Sam had a short week at school. We started getting snow on Thursday afternoon and because of that he didn't have school on Thursday and Friday. Not sure what the official snow count is but it's cold out and it doesn't appear that the snow has any plans of leaving us anytime soon. Here are a couple of shots that I've gotten from just inside the doorway of all the winter fun. I haven't been able to go out and take any good photos as the kids have zero interest in being in the snow or being outside in the cold.

Christmas

2010-01-08T21:25:00.003-05:00

Here are just a few snapshots of all the fun that we had. Christmas was a lot of fun as the kids were very excited about seeing gifts under the tree and having all kinds of new stuff to play with. We actually had our family Christmas on Christmas Eve morning since Todd was going to be off and was going to be home for Eve day and Christmas Day itself. We wanted to maxize the time he got to be a part of things. It worked out really well since that evening we went to Todd's parents house and then on Christmas Day we went over to celebrate with my side of the family. Sadly I didn't think to get any pictures as I was busy in the kitchen helping to get food ready. Overall a great holiday and we had a lot of fun being together as a family.

Christmas Eve with the Montgomery side of the family

2010-01-08T21:09:00.003-05:00

Playing with the train set that Sam got from his Great Grandma Irene
Grandpa Mike removing the batteries from the doll that Sophia got from Grandma Irene.

Great Grandma/Grandpa Zimmerman

Todd with his Mom Faye

Great Grandpa Zimmerman playing ball with Sam

Visting Grandma

2010-01-08T21:03:00.002-05:00

We decided to take a little visit over to see Grandma and Grandpa Montgomery before the holidays. The kids love playing on the piano over there and always enjoy hearing Grandma play.

Pretty much the happiest kid ever

2010-01-08T21:00:00.002-05:00

Casey's Christmas visit

2010-01-08T20:53:00.004-05:00

Right before Christmas we got the chance to visit with Casey. It's always a treat to see him and the kids love having him around. He's the best play buddy ever. He played cars, did flashcards, and even jammed with Sam and Sophia. Look out world there is going to be a new band starting soon. :)

Southern Lights 2009

2009-12-18T10:32:00.005-05:00

This was towards the end of the night. Sophia was playing with my camera. I wont show you all the finger print photos. lol.

Sam and Sophia admiring the large scale train display. They loved seeing the trains and the gentleman who ran this particular display got a big kick out of Sam's reactions each time he stopped the train in front of Sam to look at it.

Mommy and Sophia under the Christmas tree.

We tried taking a self portrait picture. I don't think we did that bad really.

Sam wasn't about sitting still to take a picture with me under the tree.

Sophia and Daddy check out the animals at the petting zoo. Sophia loved watching the camels.

Sam was so excited to see all the animals. He and I even got to feed the donkey and some goats and we petted just about every animal in there.

Sam loved these guys. The cows were so soft and were so friendly.

Entrance to Southern Lights. It wasn't snowing but this picutre makes it look like it was.

*Last night we took the kids to Southern Lights out at the KY Horse Park. We have gone every year for the last 3 years and have enjoyed it. This year was even more fun than the last few years as Sam was really getting into all the lights and telling us about everything that he saw around him. We had a wonderful time seeing all the beautiful lights, petting animals at the petting zoo, checking out the train and doll house exhibits, and most of all getting to see Santa. Sam was wonderful and didn't cry at all and was very excited to see him and get his piece of candy. Sophia didn't like it so much but all in all it was a great time. Oh and the best part since we went on a Thursday night we got a free 6pack of Ale-8.

Isn't she charming?

2009-12-18T10:28:00.002-05:00

Sophia and I made it out for lunch one day without the boys. She really enjoyed being out with just mommy and being able to have a whole meal to herself without having to share with her brother.

Trip to the eye doctor

2009-12-18T10:20:00.003-05:00

On Wed. Sam and I took a trip to the eye doctor. He has to have an eye exam for school and I hadn't had one since my freshmen year of college so I was over due for one too. I had Sam watch the episode of Blues Clues where Blue goes to the eye doctor so he would have an idea of what we were doing. As it turned out we had fun. I made it all seem like a game and that each time we did what the doctor asked us to do that we were winning and in the end we would get a treat.

We both had to have our eyes dialated which was not fun at all. It was very difficult to see clearly and Sam was a bit frustrated that everything was so brite and that he couldn't see. He did great though and we even managed to play with his Thomas flashcards while we waited for our eyes to dialate fully. Sam really was a trooper though and in the end got a Sally sticker (from the movie Cars). The pictures above were taken while my eyes were dilated and I wasn't sure if you would be even to tell what was going on as I couldn't even see when I was taking the pictures. lol.

Spotlight on Etsy

2009-12-14T18:13:00.015-05:00

Thought it might be fun to share some of my favorites from Etsy. I am constantly looking on there for fun ideas of things to make or to buy. What can I say I'm a sucker for homemade or recycled items. Here are 10 things that I found that I wouldn't mind owning. If you need any gift ideas for someone (and I'm not saying me) maybe you could check out the links for each item to see if maybe one of those could be the perfect gift for someone (or for yourself :))

It's winter and who doesn't need a new scarf. These look super comfy and very durable and would be great for jazzing up my black or gray winter coats. Best part too is that it could be a Harry Potter scarf :) Check them out here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/ShockMePink

I want this necklace! I love the mixture of the metal and beadwork and even though I'm not sure what I would even wear this with I find it very charming and would find a way to have it on display. Check it out here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/JustTheThing4U

I'm not a wine drinker but I love this tray. How stylish is this little tray and what a great conversation piece it would be when you use it to serve beverages or treats on at your next party. Check it out here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/LizzieJoeDesigns

Love this earthy flower vase. It would look great with a huge bunch of flowers in it or sitting out for all to see without anything in it. http://www.etsy.com/shop/CocoaMarie

Nothing says winter like snowflakes. This simple but fun little necklace would be a great way to let everyone know that I'm excited about winter. They can be found here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/izzyink

I wish I could make one of these little hats. I know that my little girl would be tickled to have one of these hats. Look at how precious it is. Love the colors and the little flower. Check out this hat and others here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/nogginsnbobbins

These are beautiful and simple. I could wear these with everything and feel just a little dressed up without being over the top. You can find these and other great handmade items here at: http://www.etsy.com/shop/helenapuck

This little book would be a fun little pad to take notes in or to stash away in the kids bag for them to color in. This little book is made with recycled game boards and the seller also has some books made with recycled disks. Check them out here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/heavensentcrafts

Love this bag. It's cute and it's sylish. Technically it's a diaper bag but it would be a great bag to carry around even if you didn't need it for baby gear. Lots of great colors to choose from and a very reasonable price. Personally I love the red. Check it out here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/wildcatwear

I love Owls. I found this and though it was absolutely adorable. This would be great on my bed. Check it out at this store: http://www.etsy.com/shop/slightlysanedesigns

Stormtrooper iphone/ipod/itouch cover. How fun is this? The seller also makes other covers that have Batman and other things on them too. Check them out here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/nokomomo

Wilmore Old Fashioned Christmas

2009-12-05T20:41:00.002-05:00

Tonight I took the kids down to Wilmore for the Old Fashioned Christmas activities. We met up with Peg and walked down to see the tree lighting and then went over and met Santa. Neither Sam or Sophia were very excited about being too close to Santa so I wasn't able to get a good picture of the kids with Santa. It was pretty cold out too (in fact we had our first snow this morning when we got up so it was a brisk day all day) so we bundled up and headed out to explore a few of the businesses around town to get some treats. Sam had his first taste of Hot Chocolate and loved it and Sophia enjoyed her first taste of chex mix. We even got to see a fire truck up close. Sam wasn't thrilled about it up close but mommy got to sit up and the truck and check things out and that was pretty cool. :) We also got to check out some live music around town which was lots of fun for my kids who love to dance. Thanks to Nana Peg for her help in keeping everyone warm and helping us navigate through the masses.

Gingerbread house

2009-12-05T20:30:00.003-05:00

Today Todd, Sam, and I decorated our first gingerbread house. We bought a premade kit that we picked up Kroger. It was a total mess and it's already falling apart but we at least had some good laughs trying to get it to stay together.

Waiting for the bus....

2009-12-04T20:44:00.002-05:00

Just some pictures from this week while we waited for the school bus. The kids are much too cute together and have too much fun waiting. :)

Crafting and coloring

2009-12-04T20:38:00.002-05:00

Sam has been very busy crafting and coloring. He loves it. So be ready you might be recieving a piece of Sam's art this Christmas :)

Roses in December and other thoughts

2009-12-04T14:06:00.005-05:00

Took this picture on Tuesday. Yes it's a rose in bloom and it's December. Guess it's not too cold after all.

Sam started school on Tuesday which has given me a little more time and energy. I'm spending lots of time with Sophia and still able to get things done around the house while she is able to get a proper nap in.

I've gone back to writing a grocrey list and meals list and have been sticking with it. It's a lot easier to plan for meals when you don't have a toddler screaming at you they are hungry only an hour after breakfast and you haven't had time to even figure out what to make. We've only been doing a schedule for meals for a week and already I feel better about how I'm feeding my kids.

Since Sophia gets to actually nap now for about an hour I'm getting things done --like making an appointment for the kids to finally get their flu shots, cleaning the bath tub, and blogging :)

In the evenings after Sam gets home I've been trying to do a craft time with them. It's been fun for the most part and we've got a couple of different projects going on at the moment. More about that in another blog later.

Christmas music is on all the time at home. I love Christmas and have been enjoying the musical selection that is played on the Dish Christmas channel on our tv. The kids are enjoying it too and love dancing around to it and looking at our christmas tree and pointing to the oranaments.

This year we were finally able to start our ornament tradition. The goal is for every year we will all pick out a new ornament and evenutally when the kids get older they will then be able to take their ornaments with them to use on their own trees. This year Todd picked out a music note. I got a owl. Sam picked out Spongebob Squarepants in a santa hat and Sophia picked out a pair of pink shoes. :)

Todd is working just as much as ever but yesterday he was off and we were able to spend the day doing some shopping. Don't worry we didn't break the bank or anything. We went to a couple of goodwills with Sophia and was able to get the kids some nice but gently used toys for Christmas. $20 gets you a lot of stuff if you shop like I do. :)

Sophia's fun without her brother around

2009-12-04T13:56:00.002-05:00

Since Sam started school it's been an adjustment for us all. Sophia has adapted well though and is enjoying her new found freedom of getting to play with whatever toy she wants to play with instead of the one brother gives her to play with.

It's been fun watching her play with toys that Sam normally stays away from (and doesn't like others to play with because of the noise they make). She loves playing with the barn and also playing with her ball popper.

Most of all though she is loving this new time alone with mommy which means lots of laughing and dancing and being silly. Sophia now likes to pick up her toy cell phone and say "hello hello mommy" lol. She's also taken to carrying around her dolly and saying "ok" as she pats it's back. Most of all she's loving that she gets to go on errands with mommy that allow her to go shopping (grocrey and whatnot). I must admit I'm liking it too. I forgot how easy it was to do things when you only have one kid in hand and not two underfoot.

Sam's first day of school

2009-12-04T13:30:00.003-05:00

Sam's backpack complete with George tag that mommy made for him so he could pick out his own bag and and wouldn't miss his George too much (since he can't take him to school with him)

Daddy is helping Sam finish getting ready for school

Sam reads his book about going to school and riding the bus that his teachers made for him and brought over to the house the day before he started classes.

He waits patiently for the bus to arrive.

Getting home from school.

On Tuesday Sam started Preschool. We were all very excited for the news that he was going to be able to go. It had been a long process of evaluations and paperwork to determine if he was eligable to go since he is younger than the normal age that the school system takes. We are blessed that he is going to the Jessamine Early Learning Village and has amazing teachers to help him develop his skills. He goes to school from Tuesday-Friday in the afternoon. He's also riding the bus and loving it.

His first day taking hime out to the bus was hard. He was excited but at the same time I think he was a little scared about riding the bus and mommy not going with him. He cried and so did I. In the end though he did great on the bus and at school and I've not gotten any phone calls or notes about how poor his behavior has been. In fact on his second day he waved goodbye to me as he got on the bus and his teacher wrote a note that he was all smiles when he got to school.

My little man is growing up. Since he started school on Tuesday his whole attitude has been different. He seems very happy and he talks non-stop about his teachers, his new friends, and the things they have been doing in school. I'm so glad to see him happy and I know it was the right decision for him to start school now. :)

Thanksgiving

2009-11-27T20:36:00.003-05:00

Yesterday Todd and I decided to have our own Thanksgiving instead of going to both our familes. We decided to make our own turkey and fixings and watched the Macy's parade and worked on decorating our home for Christmas. All in all it turned out to be a great day and it was nice to start our own family traditions. Most of all I was impressed that we were able to make a turkey without it being a disaster. lol.

So I went on vacation....

2009-11-27T20:15:00.002-05:00

Last week I flew out to CA to hang out with some friends, see the New Moon movie, and just have a little fun without worrying about kids or housework. I had a blast. I had so much fun. We did so much that's its really impossible to tell you all about everything but here are a few highlights:

--Meeting the hilarious guy who does the Twilight Saga spoofs

--Eating at Hugo's. Celeb spottings and running into an old friend from high school who I haven't seen in like 10 years or more only an hour after getting into LA

--Seeing New Moon (3 times) and getting to see my friends and making new ones while we waited in line for the movies

--Meeting the guys of the band The Absoulte (go check out their music on myspace!)

--Seeing the beach (it was beautiful I could have spent all day there)

--laughing until I cried

--Baking a cake a midnight

--Wearing flip flops and tshirts in November

--and getting to spend quality time with the people who I've talked to on a regular basis for over a year now.

The only downfall was that I slept very little. We did so much and I was completley messed up with the time change that I was only getting about 3 to 4 hours of sleep each night. It's taken a couple of days to catch up and feel like a normal person again, but it was totally worth it. I recommend that everyone take a personal vacation from time to time without kids/husbands etc. and recharge your batteries. Even though I was exhausted after getting home I felt more like myself than I had in a long time.

More Twilight goodies

2009-11-16T09:52:00.003-05:00

Check out this site:

http://olivebites.blogspot.com/2009/11/giveaway-sherry-truitt-twilight-new.html

Sherry was featured in People magazine for her Twilight Jewlery.

Right now she is running a contest and will be giving away a pair of her now famous Twilight Earrings. Go check it out :)

Halloween 2009 Pictures

2009-10-31T22:27:00.005-04:00

In case you can't tell what the kids are Sam was a cowboy (his awesome chaps and hat were given to Sam for Christmas last year (I think) from his Aunt Siobhan) and Sophia was a pagent winner. I had made her a sash that said 'Little Miss Jessamine County 2009' but she ripped it up. Guess this beauty queen has a bit of a temper. lol.

Freddie Punkin

2009-10-27T16:09:00.003-04:00

Today was the day that our pumpkin got it's face. We had been meaning to do it for a couple of days but for one reason or another we didn't. We did a quick look online for some ideas of some simple faces. We didn't want to do a very complicated one with the kids and not knowing if we would be able to finish it in time. Sam was a great helper and watched with much interest. I can tell that this tradition will be a fun one each year. Here are a few pictures of the fun and of the pumkin seeds I made. Oh by the way our pumpkin's name is Freddie Punkin. Sam was so happy to see him with his candles that he declared it was Freddie Punkin's birthday and happy birthday to him. lol. What a silly kid.

Boyd's again

2009-10-20T12:55:00.006-04:00

This morning we decided that since today is the warmest day we've had in awhile that we were going to go out and enjoy the sun. It's 65 degrees today. Anyways we packed up the kids and treked out to Boyd's orchard in Versailles. We had so much fun the last time we went that we figure it would be just as fun and this time we would get some apples and pick our pumpkin. Little did we know that there would be tons of kids there. I guess every school in the surrounding area was taking a field trip there today. lol. Despite the large number of people there we were able to have some fun. I took lots of pictures (like 100!) but here are just a few of the ones that I love.

Art

2009-10-18T13:26:00.004-04:00

Last week I took the kids to Hobby Lobby and we bought a few art canvas to paint on. I figured it would be something a little different than normal and could make some interesting wall art. Well today we finally got around to doing it. Sam helped me place some tape randomly on the pictures and then painted away. The end result is pretty nice. I have them up on the wall already as they dry so we don't knock them over. After they get done drying though I think I'm going to tack in some picture hooks into the back and maybe hang them from ribbon or something for a fun effect since I've got lots of wall space to display them where they are hanging.

Sam painting

Pictures before the tape was off. I liked them that way too.

Partially dry with the tape removed

Struggle Fantastic

2009-10-17T13:38:00.002-04:00

I know I've talked about Bobby Long, Marcus Foster, and Sam Bradley but there are other musicians that I help promote and support. One of those guys is Andy Mac. www.myspace.com/andymac He's a NY musician with a lot of charm and wit and he just released his second album Struggle Fantastic last night. If you are looking for some new music I highly recommend you go and check out Andy's myspace page. In the meantime enjoy the above video from his cd release party last night. Let me know what you think or if you are interested in helping get the word out about Andy.

Some of my favorite pics I've posted on Twitpic

2009-10-12T19:14:00.005-04:00

Below are some of my favorite pictures that I've posted on Twitpic. I've been an avid Twitter user and have been posting pictures on there with my phone. I can't believe how good some of my photos have turned out with my phone and I love that I can share them right away on Twitter. Not figured out the whole blog from your phone yet thing but maybe when I do I'll start posting my pictures right here. Anyways here are the pictures. Enjoy :)

cutie girl

someone is not sleeping like she is suppose to be

yummy spice cake that I made with cream cheese icing

Bobby Long at 3rd & Lindsley in Nashville

Sam heading out to a Preschool meeting with daddy. He wanted to wear my sweater since he said he was cold. lol

Todd making dinner. I love when I don't have to cook :)

*Gasp!* Sam is eating peas and I have the proof

I beat Todd in scrabble for the first time ever! I was so excited I had to get a picture of it :)

Sophia got her first pair of shoes. She picked them out and everything.

My favorite time of day. This is when my creativity starts to set in and I really start feeling like doing things.

Family Fun

2009-10-12T19:06:00.003-04:00

We have finally made our way to the library. It's only minutes away from us and we have been meaning to go for a long time so it was nice when we made the time to go. lol. I can say that we were all plesently suprised with how nice the Nicholasville public library is. We all got library cards. It's never too early for the kids to learn a little responsiblity and have their own cards so they can get their own books and videos. :) We each checked out a few things and even made it for the family story time which happened to be with the local firemen. Sam got a firehat and made some new friends and seemed to enjoy himself pretty well. We have made it back for another story time and got even more stuff. I was thrilled to check out a few cds as well of some music that I wanted to try out. We are looking forward to going back every week for story time and checking out even more goodies. Best part it's all free and we are all about the free activites we can do with the kids.

Updates on the Kids

2009-10-12T18:41:00.004-04:00

Sophia is a walking fool. She loves to show off her skill to anyone and everyone. She doesn't even mind walking in public and smiles really big when anyone notices her. She has also taken to sitting in boxes. Not sure why she thinks that is so fun but any time we pull out any type of storage bin she has to sit in it. She is also getting to be even more chatty than before. She knows lots of words and is continuing to amaze me with each new word. Sophia even recognizes objects in books and will go and get other books and open them up to the pages with the same objects which I think is very cool. Oh and she has taken to playing with the big leggo blocks that we have and has started to build her own castles. All in all it's a fun time with her and watching her turn into a little lady who is full of spunk.

Sam has taken to coloring and building castles. He also likes to play with his cars in his room by himself and has been telling me stories lately. Mostly his stories revolve around a boy who has to go to Walmart to buy chicken, pizza, and french fries to eat because he's hungry and is with his two friends who want a drink. lol. Sam loves the above foods and is always asking to go for a ride to Walmart so it makes sense that his storeis around those very things. It's so much fun to see his imagination kicking in though. Another cool thing about Sam is that we are having lots of success with potty training. He even made it all day today with out an accident in his big boy underpants. We have him in pullups for night time (though he's not had an accident at night in awhile now) so we may be that much closer to no longer needing diapers for Sam and that would be awesome.

Todd plays Solomons Porch in Wilmore

2009-10-12T18:31:00.003-04:00

This past Friday Todd played his first show in a few years at a small little coffee shop in Wilmore. Though it was a really small crowd Todd did an amazing job and I'm proud of him for deciding to play in public again. He's an amazing classical guitar player and I'm always thrilled when others get to hear just how good he is. At some point I'll have to post a video of him playing for those of you that don't live in this area and who wont be able to hear him play. Here are a few pictures that we got of him while he was playing.

Sam and his hair

2009-10-12T18:20:00.004-04:00

A few weeks ago I took Sam to get his hair cut. As you can see from the photos he really needed it. I think he looks great with his hair trimmed down just a little bit. :)

Meet me on the Equinox

2009-10-08T17:46:00.003-04:00

Here is the new music video from Death Cab for Cutie. This is the first song off the New Moon Soundtrack. If you don't want to know what happens you probably shouldn't even look at this as it does have some clips from the upcoming movie.

Feeding the ducks

2009-10-03T15:15:00.004-04:00

One day when we were all feeling kinda well (I had been sick with pneumonia and pleurisy for awhile...not fun) and we decided to take a quick outing. We went up to Joe Beth Bookstore and feed the ducks and hung out a little bit. The kids had a great time and it was nice to get out. The only bad thing was me pocket dialing 911 on accident while I was Sam to use the potty when we were out. lol. Oops.

Boyd's Apple Orchard

2009-09-17T20:23:00.003-04:00

Tons of pics posted on Facebook so check them out there for the rest of our fun :)

We've all been feeling sick for the last few days and needed to get out of the house and do something fun. We decided to take the kids to Boyd's Apple Orchard to have a little fun.

Several really cool things happened while we were out there:

a) Sophia went on the slide by herself and didn't care for it but loved going down it with us.

b) Sam climbed up the stairs to the play house and went down the slide all by himself!! This is huge news as Sam NEVER does anything like this and always objects to doing things like this.

c) fresh air did us all good. We had a great 2 hour time and then came home and had a wonderful 2 hour nap.

New Moon Trailer

2009-09-13T22:51:00.001-04:00

Movie Trailers - Movies Blog

New Moon Trailer!!!!! Yeah!!!! I can't wait to see this movie. Suddenly feeling the desire to re read the saga again.

Picture time

2009-08-30T18:35:00.003-04:00

Trying to get a picture of the two of them together proved to be pretty difficult. lol

Sam is pretending to sleep so Sophia can't get back on the couch.

Finally a picture with the two of them together.

Me with little miss sassy pants Sophia.

What a lovely face he is making huh?

Hey Sophia :)

Sam reading his favorite book.

She's a drooling mess.

What a ham.

The kids work together to build a house.

silly things kids say

2009-08-29T18:45:00.002-04:00

While playing with the kids today on the floor Sam noticed my butterfly tattoo on my lower back. He said, "momma that pretty". I said thank you and continued to play with Sophia. After a couple of minutes Sam came over to Sophia picked up the back of her shirt and looked at her back. After a couple of seconds he looked at me and said, "Momma where hers at?" lol. I guess he thinks because I have something there that everyone is suppose to have one. Poor kid he was so confused.