our lives in suburbia

so thankful..

2011-11-21T19:24:00.009-06:00

Yesterday marks TWO years since Jason's aneurysm incident. It feels like a long time ago and yet it feels like it just happened. I ran through the whole day in my head..'right now we were at the first emergency room, now we're in the ambulance, now we're at Parkland, wheeling you into the operating room....'

It was a great day yesterday, we were lazy, we cuddled, we played and we just enjoyed being with each other, and for that I am so grateful. I am so lucky, we all are. My girls have had their Daddy for two more years !! I thank GOD because I know it is only because of his grace and love that we were given this gift.

A couple of weeks ago Miss Priss and Jason went on another Indian Princess campout. It was a huge success with 10 girls and dads participating - a cabin busting at the seams with 20 people in it. Campfires, smores, BB guns, hikes, boat rides, horseback rides, and not a lot of sleep. They both had a great time, but they walked in the door, straight into the bath/shower and were pretty much exhausted for the rest of the day. I took this picture of them knocked out later that day and smiled because I know Miss Priss is going to cherish these memories with her Daddy and all the things he did to spend time with her and make her feel special. I was so grateful that she got to make this memory with him. Every day is a gift to us..

this child...

2011-11-21T19:15:00.008-06:00

This child, this angel, this sweet delicate princess... she makes me laugh and keeps my on my toes every second...I've got a ridiculous amount of grey hair these days...

She decided to draw a masterpiece on herself during naptime..

Balanced on TOP of her sit and spin toy..

She travels with her goggles and rain boots, just in case..

This room is too bright for my nap..

state fair 2011..

2011-11-21T15:53:00.003-06:00

We made our annual visit to the State Fair of Texas. It was nice and crowded, not the best combination when pulling the grumpy toddler in a wagon, lesson learned. Anyway, many corny dogs, funnel cakes, spicy nachos and about a million tickets later, we checked off another successful visit to the fair!

halloween 2011

2011-11-21T15:46:00.005-06:00

Halloween in our new neighborhood was fun! The lack of sidewalks and distance between the houses made it a bit tricky for little miss and her little legs, but we had the wagon to help us out. They collected a pretty good amount of candy and we handed out a bunch so all in all it was a great night!

we moved!!

2011-11-21T15:29:00.005-06:00

This might have been one of the first posts in my latest updates but better late than never. We MOVED! again!

Long story short, we had always loved this one neighborhood since we moved to this area. Beautiful quiet street, no sidewalks, gorgeous trees, huge lots, right by the park... Anyway - this summer the opportunity to look at this house for sale came up, and although we were not looking to move, this house just seemed like it would be perfect for us. One story, beautiful big front and back yards (the front of our old house felt like a mini freeway and we never felt comfortable letting the girls play out there), and huge potential (we love our home projects!)

After some back and forth we decided it would be a great time and opportunity for our family. It seems crazy, we sometimes think we're a little crazy, especially because our new house needs SO.MUCH.WORK and our old house was finished (had JUST finished remodeling the master bath), but we are all enjoying our new house, and little by little it is going to look exactly the way we want it to. For now, we are so happy enjoying our new space and looking forward to the future in our new home.

fourteen

2011-11-21T15:20:00.004-06:00

The teenager turned 14 this August! She is growing up so fast. She loves her new high school and her grades are great. She is doing amazingly fantastic on the swim team and is having a ball with her swim friends. She loves going to church on Wednesdays and Sundays with her high school youth group. She is very busy and has a ton of energy. She wants to participate in everything, be everywhere, hang out with everyone. She is the best big sister and we all love her tons! Happy Happy Birthday Sissy!

homecoming 2011

2011-11-21T15:12:00.005-06:00

This year the teenager went to homecoming with a bunch of her friends. She loves high school and has a great group of fun friends. She said her first homecoming was SO.MUCH.FUN. She said the danced and laughed and had a great time and she can't wait to do it again next year!

little miss starts school ...

2011-11-21T14:59:00.005-06:00

Little Miss started school this year too, she goes Tuesdays and Thursdays for a few hours and she LOVES it! She did not shed one tear on her first day and barely looked back to say goodbye to me.

She had been very anxious to start school since we used to pick up big sister there last year. She looks forward to it all week and gets a little irritated with me on the days she gets to stay home with me because she wants to go to school too!

Smiling with teeth, haha

Look at that HUGE backpack! She picked it, she wanted DORA

Posing with Mommy!

Playing by the big tree

Her teacher, Miss Karen

catching up...

2011-11-21T14:57:00.001-06:00

I've dropped the ball (again) in keeping up with all the stuff we've had going on so standby for several updates ;)

new beginnings..

2011-08-23T20:14:00.004-05:00

Monday was the first day of school for the Teen and Miss Priss. They were nervous and excited respectively and they both had a fantastic first day. I almost shed a tear when I hugged Miss Priss goodbye, but she was cool as a cucumber!

High School and Kinder in one year, and in two weeks Little Miss will start her Kids Day out two days a week! Everyone is growing up and it's happening fast! We are so blessed and grateful for our sweet, beautiful and smart girls. Here's hoping for an amazing year!

beach bums...

2011-06-30T09:41:00.007-05:00

Summer vacation planning planning fell on my shoulders (as usual) and I thought it would be great to take our family to the Destin FL area - we had never been and I have many friends who have raved about the beautiful beaches and great family trips they had taken.

We decided on Seacrest Beach which is right between Seaside and Rosemary Beach. Originally we planned to fly with our benefits, unfortunately the flights were too full for us to go that route and since we'd already booked a beach house, we just decided to drive...14 hours... with all our kids (plus some, the teenager took friends). It was a looooong drive, we cut it in half and spent the night both directions in Jackson, MS to give everyone a break.

Overall, we had a great trip, the kids loved the beach (most of the time), we had so much fun just not doing much of anything but swimming, playing, napping and just relaxing! Perfect vacation!

Our little beach cottage for the week..

Teenagers! They had so much fun..

Little girls playing in the sand..

Jason's only quiet time that day..

Look, I was there too! We went shopping one day in the cute little town of Rosemary Beach just down the road..

Beautiful sunset..

end of middle school

2011-06-23T16:07:00.003-05:00

So the teenager is officially moving on to high school! We've got some exciting years ahead of us, but we will look back fondly on her years in middle school. The only thing she said she is going to miss about middle school is Ms. Springer - the most amazing, fantastic and loving Principal you will ever meet. When do you ever hear a kid saying they're going to miss their principal more than anything else?? That's how awesome she is!

Friends forever!

Final 8th Grade Walk of the Halls..

Best Buds!

Ms Springer! We'll all miss her..

spring break...

2011-05-30T13:06:00.009-05:00

I know this post is MONTHS late, but I wanted to make sure to do a quick post about our little road trip in March to Broken Bow, OK near Beavers Bend State Park.

We rented a cute little cabin and stayed for two nights. We visited the beautiful State Park, went for a nature hike, had a picnic, fished, played on the playground, thew rocks in the lake, spent some time 'swimming' in the hot tub, had a bbq, and made smores! All three of the girls had so much fun, and J and I did too.

It was a quick, fun trip. It was so pretty and we really had a great time together.

On the road..

Cute but tiny on the inside of the cabin, J 'napping' with Little Miss..

Making a campfire..

Swimming in the hot tub..

SMORES!

Little Miss just wanted graham crackers, and jumbo marshmellows too!

Playground at Beaver's Bend State Park..

Family before the hike - all smiles!

Are we almost done, i'm tiiiiiiiiiired....

...and sleeeeeepy...

Fishing! Miss Priss is starting to show signs of boredom from all this waiting around for bites business. She thinks there's not enough action involved in fishing.

Mini train ride around the park..

Only picture I was in all weekend, proof I actually went on the trip too :)

graduation..

2011-05-29T22:10:00.004-05:00

Miss Priss graduated from Pre-K last week. She was SO sweet! She's officially ready for Kindergarten, I can't believe it!

She said when she grows up she wants to be a teacher :)

Miss Priss with Ms. Lynette her teacher

Best Buds

five ...

2011-05-10T21:06:00.007-05:00

happy happy birthday sweet baby girl. I CAN.NOT.BELIEVE that you are FIVE years old!!!! holy cow, it seems like just yesterday you were born and now you are going to be starting kindergarten !!

you are amazing, so so smart, so sassy. you are a girly girl through and through. you LOVE dresses and sparkles, you love being crafty and creative. you always want to help in the kitchen but you also love working on projects and getting dirty in the garage with daddy.

today you woke up with a fever and had to stay home from school, but I didn't mind because I really enjoyed the extra cuddle time, I know before long you won't want to cuddle with me and work on puzzles and paint suncatchers, but today you did, and for that I am grateful. I love you baby girl.

indian princesses ..

2011-04-16T21:02:00.007-05:00

J and Miss Priss joined the Indian Princesses program this year (actually it is called the Adventure Guides, but that sounds lame and apparently everyone who participates in the program still refer to it as Indian Princesses). They have been having so much fun at some of their recent events.

They participated in Derby Days and created a wooden race car together. At the big race Miss Priss won 2nd place! Her purple polka dotty car beat some fancy schmancy cars and she won a trophy, a medal and a patch. She was SO proud!

A couple of weeks ago, they attended the Spring campout at Collin County Adventure Camp. They both had such a great time, they got to shoot bow and arrows, beebee guns, they went on nature walks, made smores, went to a bonfire and she earned two feathers - one for being a new camper and one for bravery when she saw a small snake on her nature hike (EEEEEEK!!!)

J can't wait until the next one, he said it was so fun spending good, uninterrupted, quality time with Miss Priss and I know she felt exactly the same :) As I was packing up her things for the campout, I told her I was going to miss her and maybe Little Miss and I could come to the campout too. She promptly informed me that Indian Princesses was NOT for mommies or babies, and I needed to stay home and take care of Little Miss, and that she and daddy would be back soon. sweet sweet girl..

the tooth fairy is comin' !!

2011-03-30T20:59:00.004-05:00

major milestone at our house today! miss priss lost her first tooth - she was so excited when it started wiggling, she spent some quality time jiggling it back and forth, helping it along. today she asked me if I would wiggle it a little and once I had my fingers on it, I could tell it was barely hanging on. I gave it a little tug and it was out, she didn't even know until I showed it to her laying in my hand.

she is SO excited that the tooth fairy is coming tonite!! can't believe how big she is getting.

happy birthday sweet little miss...

2011-03-26T13:05:00.004-05:00

sweet angel baby, i can't believe it has been two years! some days it really feels like it is just flying by, and some days (I mean, i'm just gonna be honest) it really doesn't!

you are beautiful, playful, cuddly, sweet, loving, silly, sneaky, mischievous, high maintenance, dramatic, picky... and I couldn't imagine our family without you!

you love to watch Dora, and sing and dance. you are the worlds pickiest eater, but your favorites are CHEESE (who can blame you), berries, goldfish, tortillas, frozen peas (weird, but whatever it takes). you adore your sisters. you are a great nighttime sleeper, love playing with playdough and crayons - maybe you're going to be an artist!

thank you for all of your daily hugs and kisses, even when I think I might pull my hair out, you still can make me melt with that little snaggletooth smile :)

love you, sweet girl..

don't forget the 'un-romantic' valentine's date...

2011-02-09T15:04:00.003-06:00

I know I haven't blogged in... forever. But I was scrolling back and remembered that this time last year we had our first 'Un-Romantic' Valentine's Date - we painted pottery, and J learned how to make a clay pot on a wheel - verrry Patrick Swayze ;)

Anyway - just revisited the blog, Prudent Baby, that game me the original inspiration, and she just posted about some of the things they have done on their dates, plus there are lots of great ideas in the comments also.

This year, we have childcare (woohoo) and we might swing by Rahr Brewery early in the day - J loves it there. Then we're having sushi (free gift card - thanks Mom), and I think visiting DFW Gun Range for some Dirty Harry practice - I actually think it will be fun! Other great ideas that were suggested, whirleyball, or TopGolf (yuck) but he would have a ball! and in the words of 'Prudent Baby' .. 'The whole point of the day is to plan something you would not ordinarily want to do, something ridiculously manly and out of your comfort zone. Then smile the whole time and act like you love it.'

It should be a memorable date :)
Happy V-day!

mission..

2010-08-25T19:02:00.004-05:00

This year the Preteen has gotten involved with her middle school youth group at church. She had an amazing opportunity to go on a mission trip this summer with the group. They went to New Orleans for 6 days and then wrapped up that week with a few days in Gulf Shores, Alabama for beach camp.

They spent a lot time in the lower ninth ward cleaning up debris, garbage, tearing out, hauling off and just working hard in an area that, still after all this time, is in such bad shape and needs help. These kids had a chance to meet the people in the neighborhood, hear their stories, and serve them by getting their hands dirty and doing the work that needed to get done.

In the afternoons, the group would go to the projects and play with the children there. She said that as soon as they'd show up in the park, all the little ones would start trickling out to play with them - she said it was her favorite part of the whole trip.

It was a great experience for her, she learned a lot, she met a bunch of people and made tons of friends. She was touched by what she saw and learned there, I can tell by hearing her talk about it. She grew up just a little bit more. She wants to go back next year, says she can't wait..amazing!

first day of school, last year in middle school..

2010-08-24T14:06:00.005-05:00

In preparation for the first day of school, I sent the preteen to bed early on Sunday, had her set her alarm, made her breakfast Monday morning, offered to make her lunch (she declined, she wanted to buy on the first day), I offered some fashion advice (it was warranted**) drove her to school FULL of excitement..... what am I forgetting, what am I forgetting???? Oh yeah,

I FORGOT THE PICTURE!!!!!

First day of 8th grade and I got no picture! WORST.MOM.EVER!!!! Sigh...

So when she got home, I made her put her outfit back on. She had just gotten out of volleyball practice, nice and sweaty - cute hairdo in a ponytail, but she looked cute anyway. She had a great first day, is excited about her last year in middle school!

**update : I just want to say for the record, I did not offer fashion advice when putting this outfit together, I give her FULL credit for that. I persuaded her (gently) from wearing the hideous, nonmatching, totally goofy shoes she had on when she first came downstairs. Oh, if I only had a picture of that!

summer vacation...

2010-08-20T20:05:00.007-05:00

Last summer was rough, Little Miss had just been born so I was exhausted and sleep deprived with an infant nursing every 2-3 hours, all the kids were home and bored, I fell in early July and badly twisted BOTH my ankles, plus it was a bajillion degrees outside so no one wanted to go out. Needless to say, we were homebound and had major cabin fever. Worst. Summer. Ever.

I was really looking forward to a better summer this year, I think we all were. We've had a couple of Disney vacations, and although they can be fun and memorable in lots of ways, they are just not relaxing, and Orlando in the summer is a nightmare - HOT, crowded, humid, HOT. We wanted a vacation that the kids and adults could both enjoy. J and I thought that Washington D.C. would be a great trip to take, he hadn't been in years and the girls and I had never been, and the Pre-teen especially was at the perfect age to appreciate D.C.

Little Miss stayed with Nana and Papa, which we were so grateful for, she loved getting 100% attention all week and we loved that we had more freedom and flexibility in the activities that we were able to do on the trip.

Now it was definitely warm there, but not like Florida hot, ok well sometimes it felt that hot, but the difference was that we were indoors a lot of the time. We rode the Subway/Metro all over town - it was very clean, seemed safe, and was cheap and easy to use. We saw so much! We did a great guided walking tour and saw all the monuments, we visited the White House, the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum, Natural History Museum, American History Museum (mainly just the First Lady dresses exhibit), we went on a guided tour of the Capitol (awesome!), we saw a Presidential motorcade drive out of the White House (awesome!) We walked and walked and walked - thank God we took the little stroller for Miss Priss, she would NOT have been able to keep up with all the walking we did.

Kids in front of the Capitol

The girls and I in front of the National Art Museum - we didn't see much art here unfortunately, we ate lunch in the cafe and enjoyed their A/C.

The fountains at the National Sculpture Garden. The building directly behind is the National Archives.

Natural History Museum. This is the elephant that was in the movie Night at the Museum.

Washington Monument. Notice the stone changes color half way up, they ran out of money during the Civil War and construction was halted for several years until they could raise enough to finish it.

Family picture in front of the White House.

The girls at the Lincoln Monument

Lincoln Monument. I'm pretty impressed that my camera got such a nice picture of it, almost looks like a postcard.

J and Miss Priss at the Lincoln Monument

Stephen F. Austin statue that Texas contributed to the U.S. Capitol. TEXAS!!

Dome in the Rotunda inside the Capitol. Beautiful!

Miss Priss on the Metro. Her favorite part of the trip!

All in all it was a great vacation! There is so much to do, there is no way to see everything in just a few days. Miss Priss was a little bored in the museums, but luckily she kept busy and was happy to be on vacation. Her favorite parts? The airplane to get there, the train to get into the city, the hotel and the subway. Ha!

swim lessons..

2010-07-30T17:46:00.005-05:00

Miss Priss took 4 weeks of swim lessons this year. Her learning to swim was top priority this summer and I think with her awesome instructor, Mr. Ethan, she is doing fantastic. No life jacket at all this summer, maybe she's going to take after her older sister after all.

long days of summer...

2010-07-30T17:10:00.003-05:00

It's been a long and busy summer and I have totally slacked on the blog postings it seems like we've been super busy, but then at the same time we have days (like today, and yesterday and....) where it seems like the day is just dragging.

Miss Priss is at a point where she wants to be entertained constantly, all day long, one activity after the other, finger painting, playdoh, swimming, sidewalk chalk (can you say HOT outside?), candyland, chutes and ladders, etc etc. We can't put one activity away before she's asking what we're going to do next, and what can we do after that, and by the way, what are going to do tomorrow???? I'M BORED MOMMY!!!!!

Mix all that together with the Little Miss wanting to get all involved in whatever activity Miss Priss is working on and let the drama begin. MP does not like LM playing with her stuff 99.9% of the time, and that is alllll that LM wants to play with. sigh...

MP has asked and asked and asked and asked when school starts again, and she can't wait until September and neither can mommy!! Holy moley summer's are busy.

The Preteen has been BUSY this summer too - summer vacation with mom, then another trip with dad, then a church mission trip then she's going on a little trip with her BFF and then another trip planned to visit grandma right before school starts. Throw in some sleepovers and other stuff and she's hardly been around, and when she has been, she sleeps until noon. Oh the good 'ol days of childhood summers, how I remember them fondly..

Anyway - i'll be posting some pictures of summer vacation and other fun things. Stay tuned...

my sweet girls ...

2010-05-06T12:22:00.004-05:00

Sisters playing and giggling...sweet sweet baby girls.

happy earth day!!

2010-04-22T11:59:00.002-05:00

Happy Earth Day! It seems like everything on TV, Radio, in the stores, etc etc is all about the Earth, recycling, being eco-smart, supporting local farmers, businesses, etc.

It makes me happy and sad at the same time.

Happy, that there is such a huge awareness now of things that we've been doing that have been hurting our planet - we are borrowing it from our children and grandchildren and it is so important to maintain it! On a small scale around here, we have done things like changed to flourescent lightbulbs, added insulation, turned up the A/C, turned down the heat (get a blanket!), turned off the lights, recycle everything possible, use cloth bags when shopping, CLOTH DIAPERS (holy moley!), cloth napkins every day for breakfast lunch and dinner, reUSE things or give them to others instead of throwing them out.... I'm sure I could go on. We're not perfect, but we try to do our part and it has been pretty easy just to change a few things here and there.

I get sad when I see how some people are still so wasteful, or in denial that there is a even a problem, or act like it's not their problem. So so sad.

A HUGE goal of mine is to do better supporting local businesses, local food and farmers and to stop giving our money to large scale companies that are industrializing our food production, ruining the Earth and making Americans sick with the junk that is widely produced for us to eat in this country. If you haven't seen it, watch Food Inc., very informative, and I think it is so important to know what we are eating, where that food comes from, how is it produced, and what we are feeding our kids and families. Amazing stuff that I was shocked to learn about. Knowledge is power and I definitely want to use what I've learned to do better for my family (especially the grandchildren that I might have one day!)

On that note, I hope to get out today and plant something nice in celebration of this day!

new wardrobe...

2010-03-30T20:20:00.004-05:00

So thanks to Kohl's we have added some new dresses to little Miss Prissy Pants' wardrobe. Also - everything she wears now MUST be T5 (not 5T as I say it and she corrects me). She'll get the item of clothing, and look at the tag first, then say 'No, this is not TEE FIVE Mommy, this (shirt, pants, etc) is TEE FOUR and it does NOT fit me and I'm not wearing that anymore.'

UGGGHHHHHH! REALLY?!?

Definitely on the list for her birthday, more dresses and skirts (maybe skirts might be acceptable to her, who knows) in TEE FIVE. Oh yes and flip flops or basically any new sandal/shoe - she really loves new shoes, but I mean really, who doesn't? She IS a smart girl!

I think it would be wise to start a savings account for her future wardrobe....yikes!

dresses and tights...

2010-03-29T21:01:00.004-05:00

So Miss Priss has decided that the ONLY thing that she is happy wearing every single day is dresses and tights. The problem with this is that we only have so many dresses, some of them are more dressy and not suitable for every day wear, and a few of the other everyday dresses we own, she has decided she does not like for some crazy reason. That really narrows our selection.

The other problem is that this week the weather is finally becoming Spring-like and beautiful, which really doesn't work well with tights (which she totally does not understand and thinks that I am just crazy). Well now with the change of season, the few dresses that she wanted to wear nonstop are too hot, so I am on a mission this week to add a few more spring everyday dresses to our arsenal. Picking outfits every morning (or the night before) has become increasingly unpleasant when we don't have a dress that is acceptable and **GASP** she need to wear something else like a T-shirt and jeans (jeans also becoming highly unacceptable to her, she prefers leggings, thankyouverymuch!)

WHAT THE HECK?!?!? SHE'S ONLY 3 GOING ON 4!! Wow, I've got some interesting years ahead of me... Lord help us!

happy happy birthday!

2010-03-26T21:04:00.003-05:00

Our sweet baby girl, the Little Miss turned one today! Where did the time go? Actually I know where it went and I could rattle a laundry list of stuff that went on this year..

It was just a year ago that we were blessed with such a sweet angel. She is, sweet as can be, just like her sisters, but with quite an attitude and personality as well - she can be a little toot!

She has brought so much joy to our little family this past year (and, ahem, quite a few middle of the night wake up calls, we really need to whip that into shape).

We LOVE you, we thank God for you and we look forward to your beautiful, one toothed grin every day. HAPPY BIRTHDAY sweetie! Mommy loves you more than I could ever say.

Party tomorrow with pictures (hopefully) to share :)

busy busy busy...

2010-03-19T20:01:00.002-05:00

I am still here but seems like I have been so busy the past few weeks. I was planning a Spring Break trip for the girls and we just got back! Houston, Austin and the Hill Country, great road trip, we all had so much fun.

I've been busy with Little Miss - she's taking steps now! We're getting about 3-4 before she decides she needs to crawl! She also got one tooth finally! It's a bottom tooth and the one next to it looks like it may come next - she's surely taking her time with those teeth.

Miss Priss is prissier than ever! She is loving school, loving the beautiful spring weather we've been getting. She wants to play outside all the time, either on her tree swing or drawing pictures on the sidewalk, or blowing bubbles. We are all super glad to be out of the house and enjoying the sunlight!

The Pre-Teen is crazy busy! She finished up volleyball and basketball, now she's on to track. She is also in Select and Swing Choir, youth group for church that are ramping up preparations for a summer mission trip that she is very excited about. Friends, homework, projects, performances, track meets, meetings, chores...whew! I'm tired just writing it out, and more tired that i'm the taxi that shuttles her around to all this stuff.

J is fantastic! He's back in the saddle, he got the itch to start some projects at home so he's been working on the kids bathrooms. New tile on the floors, new updated faucets and lighting - everything is looking great! Next up - yardwork! As soon as it finishes freezing this week, I think we'll be all set to start cleaning, digging, planting and getting our yards ready for spring! I can't wait.

Other than that, I'm just trying to get some things done around here. Still need to work on decorating the master bedroom, ugh, will I ever be done??

Little Miss turns 1 this week!!!! I'll post an update on the festivities later.

11 months!!

2010-02-26T07:51:00.003-06:00

What?!?! Where has the time gone?? Little Miss is 11 months today!! Can't believe it. She's sweet as can be, and not ;) She's developed quite a little personality and temperament these past 11 months! Oh, how I love her!

She weighs 19 lbs now. She's working on her first tooth! She's crawling ALL.OVER.THE.PLACE! She's opening (and emptying) every drawer or cabinet that she possibly can and tries for days to open the ones that are locked. She's eating all sorts of table food and it feels like she eats all day long. She's getting close to taking a step, won't be long now.

the un-romantic valentine's day..

2010-02-14T20:09:00.006-06:00

So it's no surprise that most men, J included, are not particularly fond of Valentine's Day. Hallmark holiday, overpriced flowers, crowded restaurants, yadda yadda. I can't say that I disagree with all of that. I'm waaay too practical for most of that, and actually think the unexpected is more romantic than the planned valentines-y stuff.

I recently read a post over on Prudent Baby about their Un-Romantic Valentine's tradition. I thought it would be nice and fun for us to do something different and not the typical dinner and movie. So I googled, you know me. Somehow I stumbled upon this place, Quiggley's Clayhouse, that had a 'soiree' planned. We had dinner and dessert catered in (Saltgrass Steakhouse), BYOB (yummy German beer!), and we painted pottery (I made a fun serving platter and a trivet, and J made a coffee mug) and then J tried throwing clay on the pottery wheel - just like Demi Moore in Ghost - haha! It turned out to be SO FUN! We sat at a table with two other couples, all worked on our projects, got to know each other, ate and drank. It was a great date, and surprisingly enough, a little romantic :)

This will be our new tradition, J has already suggested the shooting range next year, umm I think I might need to see what other good options I can locate before then.

The girls got little Valentine's treats and just loved them :) It was a great weekend FULL of love :)

**Update - just before I went to sleep I found my Valentine on the nightstand, J made a heart shaped box with 30+ year old Lego blocks (that he's had since he was a kid) and inside was a handwritten note on plain white paper. He wrote the sweetest letter and didn't even have to rely on Hallmark for the words :) It was honestly the best Valentine i've ever gotten. **LOVE**

project

2010-02-10T13:34:00.003-06:00

I will (correction...J will) make this for our master bedroom. Not in this fabric, not sure what fabric yet, and maybe (probably) not in this shape. So basically it will look totally different than this, BUT the method and theory is the same. It's going to be fab... one day.

sickos...

2010-01-27T07:42:00.002-06:00

Well I'm back to playing nursemaid over here. The little girls caught a cold, it started with Little Miss and what I thought was teething (will this child ever get a tooth?) but turns out might be a cold. Miss Priss jumped on the bandwagon and decided to add to the snot bucket and she threw a little puke in for good measure. uuuuugggggghhhhh...

Little Miss is so tired of me wiping and sucking boogies out of her nose, but the poor thing can't breathe and she cries in her bed between coughs and snorts and hacks, good times over here I tell ya!

I hope things are better today, staying in the house this much isn't good for us (me). We need some fresh air before things freeze over later this week!

J had a GREAT birthday this past weekend and he's super excited about our date to the Mavs game this weekend.

I've got several travel projects on deck... trying to plan a getaway for Spring Break, we must drive since the planes will be waaay to full for us to nonrev, and I'm too cheap to buy a ticket! I'd love some suggestions, i'm kind of stuck. Also, I need to plan a trip for J and I to celebrate our anniversary in May - thinking probably Napa/Sonoma and then maybe Carmel? OR Tahoe, OR Redwood National Forest in northern CA, we've always wanted to see that - so basically we're going west! Then, I need to figure out what we're doing for summer vacation, I know we're spending a few days visiting mom and going to Schlitterbahn in San Marcos, probably July. We have some vacation days (5 weeks!!) to burn so we definitely need to make the most of it!!

Okay, gotta get the day going, hopefully these babies are feeling good and I don't catch the bug!

Two months!!

2010-01-21T13:13:00.003-06:00

Yesterday was two months since J had his aneurysm (how in the heck do you spell that ?? i've typed it like a million times in two months and it still is/looks wrong each time).

He is doing great, gained a little weight, back to work full time. We've been enjoying our time together more than ever, because we know we're lucky to have it! I see him looking at the girls with a different look in his eyes. It's the 'I got a second chance' look. It also means that Miss Priss is really getting her way with daddy these days :) He LOVES those girls!!

Saturday is J's birthday - and we'll have some fun celebrating! It won't be a big party like we do each year, we'll have one of those in a couple of months. We're going on a brewery tour in Ft. Worth and then to celebrate with good friends and food! The girls and I are making a chocolate cake and wrapping gifts tomorrow and then next weekend I'll take him to a Mavs game - his favorite!

We're lucky, and we know it! Thank you God!

baby it's cold out there...

2010-01-08T08:42:00.003-06:00

It is 16 degrees outside right now as i'm writing this!! CRAZY! Weather like this pretty much means we're not leaving the house. Toting around a wayward toddler and squirmy baby with mounds of puffy coats getting squished into carseats while I"m frrrrreeezzzing my rear off sounds like NO FUN to me!

I REALLY wanted to get out of the house and go to IKEA today. I have a monster list of things I've been compiling that needs to be purchased from there (plus maybe a hotdog and cinnamon roll too while i'm at it... just sayin'). I'm decorating our Master bedroom since we got new king mattresses (YAY!!!) and I need a little bit of everything to pull it together, duvet, shams, dust ruffle, rugs, accessories, artwork, a new dresser, night tables.... yeah, basically our bedroom looks like we're in college, mattress in the middle of the room, and that's about it. It will look awesome once i'm done with it, whenever that is. The poor preteen still hasn't had her room finished and it's been a while now. I will finish decorating this house one day... work in progress.

Well that decorating won't be happening today as we're on lockdown in our warm house. I thank God for our warm house, warm jammies, steaming hot coffee, endless toys in the closet and Dora on the DVR, and for the internets, my lifeline to the outside world...oh how I love thee.

Maybe I should get some cleaning/organizing done...or not.

We had a bit of a scare with J this week and thought something scary was showing up on a head MRI. He had to do another CT scan, and I can only thank God that it was absolutely nothing and am so grateful for everyone's prayers this week! WHAT A RELIEF!!!

As you can probably imagine, J and I are in need of a MAJOR vacation!! We're getting ready to plan a nice getaway soon, lots of ideas, but hopefully someplace that's warmer than Dallas (never thought i'd say that!)

back to work...

2009-12-30T09:16:00.003-06:00

J went back to work yesterday. He's only doing a couple of hours a day to get used to doing it again. He was so exhausted when he got home yesterday. I know this is good for his mind and spirit, and I know this will help his strength return as well but it makes me so nervous to have him out of the house, and out 'on his own'.

But, with the return to work means back to business as usual around here, which is also a good thing! Yesterday I finished putting all the Christmas stuff away. My mom helped with all the outside and big stuff the day after Christmas because with the small kids, those things would take me FOREVER to finish by myself. The kids begged to keep the tree up a couple more days so I did (i'm not a scrooge but by the end of Christmas, i'm DONE with the decorations), but finally put that up yesterday. I always feel so relieved to get all the decorations put away, all the 'stuff' really makes me feel flustered.

Speaking of clutter... our kids are SO fortunate and blessed by all our family! But OH MY, there are so many new toys and things all over the place. I need to spend some quality time this week and next going through the toy closet and baskets and getting rid of the old to make way for the new. Normally I would have tried to do this before Christmas but this year just didn't allow for that, and that's okay :)

I also really can't wait to get back to the gym - haven't been since before Jason's surgery, there was just too much stuff going on all the time around here. But I am anxious to get back to the treadmill to work off some of these holiday pounds - ugh. I feel like a red hot mess being cooped up in the house for all this time. I need some exercise, a hair cut and color, and lucky me got a massage and facial from J and the kids for Christmas, so I've got to schedule that ASAP!!

The PreTeen and Miss Priss start school again next week and I am ready!!! Loved being home with the family, but it's time to get back to our routines!

In terms of J's health, he's had all sorts of tests run in the past week and everything is looking good and healthy - THANK THE LORD!!! So aside from just allowing his healing to continue and building back his energy levels, which will take another couple months according to the doctors, he's fine now. We just have to breathe a sigh of relief with this news and praise God for looking over him and our family and helping us through this challenging time.

Looking forward to a safe, happy and healthy New Year!

christmas eve!!

2009-12-24T10:17:00.003-06:00

Yay! Mom will be here soon, Sister and family coming later. Breakfast for dinner, Christmas PJ's! Gifts wrapped, about to start snowing outside. Gonna be a great day!

Merry Christmas to everyone! Here's hoping for a happy HEALTHY holiday for everyone!

santa 2009

2009-12-18T17:14:00.001-06:00

Here's our beautiful girls with Santa.

Merry Christmas!!

she's crawling!!

2009-12-18T16:45:00.003-06:00

So Little Miss has been thinking about crawling for weeks and weeks now but just couldn't 'get it', but she finally started this past weekend! I definitely think the Christmas tree was an incentive, she reaaaaaaaalllllly wanted to get over there..... and now she can..... all the time..... all day long, she's headin' over towards the tree.

She's doing all kinds of stuff all of the sudden .... crawling, she's pulling up to stand up on the exersaucer, ottoman, etc. and she's also holding her bottle (sadly, the nursing came to an end during our week at the hospital and my out of this world stress levels, but she's adjusted great to formula and eats a TON of baby food, plus it makes it much easier for the kids to spend the night(s) with grandparents - woohoo!)

Anyway - she's about to be 9 months!!!! Crazy! She's developed such a sweet little personality, and is just a wonderful baby girl, we are so blessed!

a week away?!?!

2009-12-17T21:01:00.004-06:00

Wow, it seems like December is just flying by. I'm having my family over on Christmas Eve and I just looked at the calendar and realized it's a week away! Luckily, we planned to have Breakfast for Dinner (new idea this year - and EASY) and we're doing allll the good stuff, breakfast casseroles, bacon, french toast, etc .... YUM!

I'm NOT a turkey and dressing type of girl so we like to switch up the Christmas Eve menu pretty often since it's so close to Thanksgiving and most of us have had our fill of turkey.

We're also going to be wearing our Christmas pajamas at our Christmas Eve party. Pj's and pancakes - perfect!

The Pre-teen did some gift wrapping for me tonight but once I pulled stuff out of my hiding spots, I realized that I do have a little bit more shopping that I need to do - ack! Hopefully I can get that done asap!

Tomorrow we're taking the girls to see Santa as soon as the Pre-teen is out of school (early release) so I hope that we won't get stuck in any long lines! If all goes well and J is feeling up to it, we might drive around town to let the kids see some Christmas lights - Miss Priss just loves the lights!

Things around here are getting back to normal, J has a little more energy each day and is enjoying this extra time he's getting to be around the girls. We sure do love having him home with us! He thinks he might try to go back to work the week after Christmas, I pray that he'll feel strong(er) and healthy by then.

need.sleep.must.go.to.bed.goodnight!

our house is quiet....ahhh

2009-12-11T08:14:00.002-06:00

This morning our house is sooo quiet. J's parents came yesterday and took the two little girls out to their farm for a couple of days. Miss Priss LOVES her Nana and Papa and runs to their car to buckle herself into her carseat so they can leave. Then comes the 'oh yeah, bye mommy!' Little Miss loves that there is a constant stream of arms over there that want to hold her, so her bottom doesn't sit on the ground very often, which is right up her alley! Honestly, I miss them as soon as they drive away, but I do appreciate a little break.

The Pre-Teen had to be at school eaaaaaaarly this morning, but I came back home and got right into bed. I love all my girls, but it is NICE to not have any noses to clean, diapers to change or Dora the Explorer for a couple of days! I think there is a nap in my future - yay!

J is doing better each day. Slow and steady but he's getting there. He's still figuring out that his energy isn't what it used to be and it's going to take a while, which is frustrating to him. He's got bad cabin fever so we try to get out of the house at least once a day, even if it is just for a little drive and some fresh air and sunshine.

Selfishly, I love having him home. I love the conversation and company. The kids love it too. I'm sure Miss Priss probably thinks it's extended vacation or something, she doesn't even ask if he's going to work every day like she used to. Sure, sometimes it's hard to remember that he can't help with picking up a kid or loading them in the car, etc. and by the end of most days I am BEAT. We have been eating so many delicious meals that our friends have been bringing and I am SO THANKFUL for so many reasons, but mainly because I don't know how I'd fit cooking into these days!!

More than anything though, I love having him home all day because I can see him and see that he is okay. If I'm out at the store or somewhere else, I feel I need to get home urgently to see that he is okay and feels well. I just am so aware of how lucky we are that everything turned out the way it did. I definitely cherish every day with him, you just don't realize how quickly things could change until something like this happens.

On another note, we've been getting ready for Christmas. Thank GOD for my mom who helped get the majority of our decorations up in the house. I've done 95% of my shopping (online - thank you amazon.com!) and just finished my Christmas cards - whew! The Pre-Teen and Little Miss both had Christmas programs at school and were so cute! I was wanting to do some Christmas activities for the kids this year, but we might only make it to take a picture with Santa, and drive around to see all the beautiful lights, which will be good enough! We'll make up for it next year though!

I have lots of pictures to upload, but who has the time, sheesh! Okay, i'm off to enjoy my quiet house and day off!

patient recovery..

2009-12-02T20:53:00.002-06:00

We've been home about a week now and things are slowly getting into a sort of rhythm. Things are not back to 'normal', nor will they be for a while, but the girls are happy that daddy is back home and we're kind of easing into things. J is still in a lot of pain, but it's getting a little better each day.

I took him to see the Dr. yesterday and she was pleased with his progress but assured him that this was MAJOR SERIOUS stuff that happened to him and that recovery is going to slow and painful. This can be so discouraging for anyone to hear, but especially J who just isn't one to sit around, do nothing, ask for help, have people do stuff for him.... it's an adjustment. My patient isn't usually very 'patient', but he's learning to be since he has no choice, he hurts. My heart hurts for him because I can see how hard and painful it is right now. It's like when your kids are sick and you literally feel sick because you can't make them feel better, that's how I feel.

I try to keep his spirits up as much as possible and the kids are really a great help. Those three girls sure can put a smile on his face! I'm having to be extra cautious with Miss Priss because she does not understand the extent of the 'boo boo' on daddy's belly, so when she's sitting with him or cuddling, i'm on eggshells and ready to swoop in and grab her if I need to. Hard to be cautious but not scare her, it's a fine line.

Mom has been her since the day of J's surgery and she leaves this Saturday. I.AM.NERVOUS! She has been such a huge help with the kids and I am so grateful to her. I know I can handle things, but I'm already beat by the end of the day and she's doing so much of the kid work - eek! Luckily our local parents are coming to help or be on standby, thank God for all of them!

All of this scary stuff has really been such an eye opener in so many ways, some of which I'm sure I'll write about in the future. For now I just thank God for J and for his life, for his improved health and strength, for our girls and for our family.

WE'RE HOME!!

2009-11-26T16:18:00.004-06:00

We're finally home!

I didn't update for a couple of days because I was able to get J a private room and so I stayed with him the past two nights. Once I waved our insurance card a little, they moved us pretty quickly and J was able to rest so much better. He slept well because there were half as many nurse interruptions and because I was able to be there with him.

He was able to walk around a little and his belly and insides have started 'working'. It has been painful and uncomfortable for him but little by little, things in there are trying to get back to normal. He was able to eat solids this morning and was so happy to finally have some real food after 6 days. Just a little food has already done so much for his mood and energy level. The doctors were very pleased with his progress this morning and told us we could go home, and we couldn't get out of there fast enough!

He's so comfortable right now (well as much as can be expected), he has had a great long nap in his own bed. He's wearing his comfy pj's, and laying in the big chair watching the Cowboy game. We're home alone for a little while while the girls and my mom have gone to have Thanksgiving with different family members. It has been nice and quiet for several hours and so nice to be able to sleep next to each other again - I missed my husband so much!

Recovery will be slow and will be hard on J, mostly because he does NOT like sitting still and tends to get cabin fever very quickly. Also, it will be difficult on him and the little girls (Miss Priss specifically) because Daddy won't get to play and do normal stuff with her for a little while and she's going to have to be very gentle with him while he heals.

The doctors said that he'll need to just rest at home for about 2 weeks. After that, take it easy, no heavy lifting (more than 10 lbs) for 6 weeks, and he will feel back to 'normal' in about 2 months.

This last week really has been such a whirlwind and seems a little foggy in my head. I'll admit I've just been on auto pilot and and just going going going and doing what needed to be done to make sure he was okay and get him home. I'm coming really close to hitting the wall - now that we're home I can feel myself relaxing and just feeling so exhausted. I'm looking forward to just being home for a while.

I'm so grateful to my mom for coming into town and just taking over watching the kids for me. My sister and inlaws have also been a huge help juggling the kids and keeping my house running (all my laundry is washed and folded - wow!) We both are so genuinely touched and humbled by the love and prayers that have been sent our way - to all of you who have sent us messages, texts, calls, snacks, dinners, books, magazines, etc.... THANK YOU, we could never express to you how much it has meant to us.

This Thanksgiving we are thankful for so much, J, his life, his health, and our beautiful family. Thank you God!

Happy Thanksgiving!
Liz

I'll post occasional updates on his progress, and hopefully we'll be back to normal life around here in no time.

he's gettin' there...

2009-11-23T23:00:00.003-06:00

Today was a better day. J was moved out of ICU today and into a regular room. Unfortunately it is not a private room which at this hospital, I was sort of expecting :( Even though he has a roommate (who is suffering from the after affects of appendicitis and has had some moaning/groaning pain), it is still quieter and darker than the ICU and he has been able to get some nice deep sleep/naps during the afternoon and evening and if that continues tonight I know he will feel so much better tomorrow.

He was able to see the Almost Teenager and Miss Priss today. That really lifted his spirits and made him so happy. Although I had tried to prepare her for what J would look like in the hospital, M.P. was a little freaked out when she saw him, she didn't want to get too close at first, but eventually warmed up to him and gave him a hug and kiss on the cheek before she left.

I was really unhappy that I had to leave him alone tonight, but since it is a shared room with another male, they wouldn't let me stay. Not to mention the room is small and cramped so there really was no place for me to stay, but I hated to leave him there, especially since now the nurses aren't as readily available as they were in ICU if he needed anything.

That is one thing I will say about the ICU, loud and bright and all, they were EXCELLENT nurses and took great care of him, I was very pleased with everything that they did for him. I just pray pray pray that the new nursing staff can provide him with the same service and care that he needs at this point. Please God, continue to look over them as they care for J.

Also - Jason's bladder and kidney are having some trouble jump starting back to normal working order which has been a huge frustration for him today. This is one thing that the nurses are really urging him to do and have been trying to get him to drink a lot of water so that he can get things flowing. He wasn't able to this evening which upset him but hopefully things will get going maybe tonight and tomorrow. Of all the things I have been praying for, PEE is the big one today, I pray for the PEE to come and give him some relief!

Tomorrow it is my goal to use and flex my insurance card muscle and get us into a private room. I don't mean to sound ugly or snobby, because I am GRATEFUL to this hospital, but I know we are one of very few people with insurance in that place and I want to use it for J to have a private room for some private recovery. Wish me luck.

I need some sleep, long day at the hospital tomorrow.

p.s. J received so many text messages and emails from friends and coworkers that he was finally able to read today and it really made him feel good. Thank you again to everyone who has called, written, and sent us prayers and messages - they have brightened our days.

Liz

fresh on my mind...

2009-11-22T06:46:00.006-06:00

I'm home for just a little while and thought i'd journal this while it is fresh in my mind, although nothing in my head is very clear right now.

Friday morning J was about to take a shower and got a terrible stabbing pain in his right lower back, he was doubled over in pain. It subsided a bit and with some tylenol, he went about his day, so did I. I later got a phone call that he was going home but was probably goin to swing by the urgent care and see what the deal was, we both thought that maybe he was having kidney stones. They took xrays, thought it might be stones but suggested he get a CT scan for a clearer view.

The CT scan revealed a 'bloody mass' in his stomach and they sent us immediately to the ER. They did another CT scan that revealed the same and said it appeared to be a leaking or ruptured aneuryism on the artery that leads to his right kidney. They transferred us to a Parkland County Hospital - level 1 trauma center (after the first hospital they tried said there were no available beds for him there). Once again, they ran more tests and throughout the night he was asked, 'how did you hurt yourself, did you fall, did you get hit, did you bump into something, history of stones? kidney issues? other symptoms?' to which his answer was 'no - just this back pain this morning'.

The Vascular specialist team came in reviewed the information and determined that it was an extremely dangerous ruptured aneurisym, also extremely rare especially on someone young and healthy like J, which is why I assume everyone seemed so confused by the situation. Then the plan... they needed to get in there to fix it and that required removal of the kidney. They could not get to the rupture and focus on fixing it and saving his life without removing the kidney and since his other kidney was healthy that was what they were focusing on.

He had the emergency surgery early yesterday morning, it took about 5 hours and they said he did very well, but it was a very serious situation. The aneurisym was about the size of a ping pong ball and had attached to a big vein that should have been the diameter of half a pencil but was bigger than a large hot dog. They took it all out, with the kidney.

The doctor who did his surgery came to talk to us after they finished and told us that this situation is so rare that many Renal doctors only see one or two IF ANY of these cases in their whole careers! Our surgeon just so happened to have trained at a program that specialized in this very rare situation. Amazing that we ended up at this hospital, only after the first one they called turned us down because they had no empty beds, and the doctor that just so happens to be on call (at midnight) has been trained on this very rare case!

I can only be grateful to God for putting us exactly where we needed to be and in the hands of the most capable people because those doctors clearly said that this could have killed J. A pain in his back and no other symptoms and he could have died - I still can't really process it because the whole thing feels like such a bad dream to me, almost like it's not happening, even though I know it is.

Today was a better day, his pain is more under control with his meds. He's been able to sit in a chair for a bit today. ICU is tough on him because it's so loud and bright and there is a lot of activity in there, so he's not really getting any quality rest. Luckily he should get moved to a room in the morning sometime. He will be in the hospital at least 3-5 days.

We have received so many kind prayers, words, encouragement, offers of food, help, babysitting and any kind of help we need. The outpouring of love, friendship and caring from all of our friends and family is so overwhelming and genuinely appreciated more than I could ever put into words. I am humbled.

I am so tired, so i'll sign off now, but will try my best to regularly update.

what i'm obsessed with ... today....

2009-11-19T15:28:00.002-06:00

I recently viewed a wedding video clip by this super talented woman, Vanessa McKellar, and clicked around some of her other videos, and found this gorgeous family video . I've watched it at least 10 times and am obsessed with it, it literally gave me goosebumps and made me teary.

This family is doing it annually to chronicle the lives of their children and I just thought to myself, what a wonderful memento to be able to look back at your kids after they've grown up and moved away, or as a grown child to see your family and your parents so young and happy. I almost get teary writing about it. Pictures are great, I love pictures, but this is so much more, and i've never really been a video type of parent, which now makes me sad because I know we've missed a lot of great things.

Anyway, the video session is a bit out of our budget, but i'm going to try my hardest to save my nickels and dimes here and there to hopefully be able to do one of these one day.

hallelu-yer

2009-11-14T14:49:00.003-06:00

TV fixed, $200 for a stinking bulb. stupid TV. But we have our TV back, and oh how I am grateful for the 30 minute episodes of Dora that are available any time of day when Miss Priss (or mommy) need a 'break'. Maybe we'll get lucky and this bulb might last us 10 more years, unlikely. I should start saving now.

bad TV juju ...

2009-11-13T13:55:00.003-06:00

So J has been oogling new TV sets every time we are in an electronics department - I guess that's a normal man thing. He also gets so upset every time he sees how crazy cheap the tv we own is now compared to when we bought it (right after we got married). So Thursday morning, Miss Priss is watching Dora the Explorer and J mentions that the sound track seems a little off..

me: "no, the TV is broken, we probably need a new one" (totally joking)
J: "TV is fine, I think this channel's sound is off:
me: "I'm just kidding I thought I'd trick you into thinking we should get another TV" funny funny ha ha, right?

Then I grab my keys and drive the Almost Teenager down the road to school, back in the house in less than 5 minutes. When I walk in Miss Priss says 'mommy, the TV is broken..' Yup, between the time I walked out the door and came back, the stinking DLP bulb in our TV burned out (or something) and the TV was not functioning. SERIOUSLY?!?!?! Did I give the TV bad juju?

So, Thursday was a quiet day in our house, and today has been too. J has taken the TV to some place where hopefully (and probably in exchange for lots of our monies) they will fix the stupid thing. This is the 3rd time (in less than 6 yrs) that something $$$$ has happened to this dumb TV. Just sayin', back in the olden times, our parents had TV's for 25 years before something broke or went out on them! I want a TV that lasts THAT long, for as much as we're friggin' paying for it!

Okay, that's my gripe for this day. If it comes back still broken, I may have more gripin' to do.

tired

2009-11-07T21:26:00.004-06:00

The baby went to stay the night at nana's yesterday. She was worn out after breakfast. What a rough life she has.

my new favorite thing...

2009-11-07T14:46:00.003-06:00

Had a date night with my hunky hubby last night. We went to the Old Monk and had good beer, good food (cheese) and good people watching. For dessert we swung by a place I'd recently read about in D Magazine's Best of Dallas issue. Frozen yogurt has never really been a big deal to me, but I'm in love.... Yogi-licious was sooo good, i'm obsessing about it. I had avocado tart yogurt - sounds so yuck but was suprisingly delicious! Can't wait to go back soon!

52 days..

2009-11-03T19:47:00.007-06:00

There are 52 days until Christmas. I've already gotten a few things marked off my shopping list, but I have quite a ways to go. I plan on doing a lot of my shopping online this year because, really, there is no way I will be able to accomplish anything productive out in the stores with the demanding infant and the wayward toddler. No way.

I just love how much you can get done online, makes things sooo easy, and I like getting things done early, but especially like marking things off my list. Hopefully this proactive-ness (is that a real word?) will help me make this holiday fun and super special for the girls and J.

Okay - off to watch Weeds, love it!

trick or treat

2009-11-01T20:10:00.005-06:00

Our girls had a great time on Halloween. Lots of candy and lots of fun. Miss Priss is really starting to enjoy the whole thing which made it so much more fun for us. Little Miss could care less, and the Almost Teenager hasn't accepted that she's almost too old for trick or treating!

i want that..

2009-10-31T15:27:00.005-05:00

What I'm obsessed with today... I want this

I've made many Pioneer Woman recipes and she never does me wrong. I want this new cookbook bad... santa can you hear me??

tgif

2009-10-30T15:14:00.004-05:00

It is a beautiful day today, the rain finally went away and we had such a nice warm sun. It's a perfect Fall day today! The girls and I took a walk around the block and they both loved it, especially looking at everyone's Halloween decorations.

I love how Miss Priss is just thrilled by all the pumpkins and scarecrows and she just LOVES the inflatables in peoples yards. I've never been a huge fan of these, but I love how excited she gets when she sees them - so I may be changing my tune as far as us having one in the future.

Busy weekend lined up, should be fun!

ugh...

2009-10-29T13:04:00.003-05:00

So it's raining outside again today ... for about the bazillionth time. I love rainy days, but a bazillion of them? not so much. I woke up with a killer headache and haven't been able to kick it :( Even a totally diet breaking lunch of Chicken Express chicken strips and a diet coke isn't making it any better (in my defense I was starving and it was really the only thing on my way home that didn't have 30 cars in the drive thru line). I need a nap. I hope these girls are in the napping mood this afternoon!

On a happier note, I got to snuggle sweet little Charlie K. today. What a little peanut! Little Miss looked like a giganto baby next to him.

muffin love

2009-10-27T21:28:00.002-05:00

Just made the most delicious Pumpkin Spice muffins.... just ate way too many of them...should have stopped at one. Will not fit into my skinny(er) jeans at this rate.

... is this thing on?

2009-10-27T12:33:00.004-05:00

I've decided to start another blog. The last one is still around but doesn't have much on it, hasn't been updated in approximately 2 years, and pretty much has been kicked to the curb. If you're ever interested, go here.

So, I'm not sure this blog will be similar to the old one, it might, might not. I'm sure I'll have stories and pics of the family to share - I might use 'code names' instead of real names for everyone. I'm slightly paranoid about info online so doing this might make me feel better about sharing things with the Internet ;) I'm still toying with that idea.

Other topics on here may be just random rambling, things I'm thinking about, interesting things I've found that I want to share (quotes, articles, other blogs, etc), things I like (or dislike) that day. I plan to make this more of an online journal for myself (and whoever decides they want to read my daily thoughts - enjoy!)

So anyway - that's the scoop. Have an awesome day!
Liz :)