Weekly Weightloss Update: Celebrate!!

There’s a party goin’ on right here
A Celebration to last throughout the years
So bring your good times and your laughter to
We gonna celebrate your party with you

Come on now, Celebration
Let’s all celebrate and have a good time
Celebration
We gonna celebrate and have a good time

It’s time to come together
It’s up to you, what’s your pleasure?
Everyone around the world come on!

If you haven't guessed it yet I hit my first goal. Actually I am 1 pound less than that first goal. My new current weight is 129 pounds. It only took me 4 months to loose the 10 pounds but right now I don't care because I did it and I am going to shout it from the roof tops! I am guessing that all that yard work over the weekend really paid off because I didn't exercise and I didn't eat that well. Whatever the reason for this week's 2 pound loss is I am grateful. Now let's just hope I can keep it off.

PS: If you haven't already check out my Friday Foto, it's a cute one and I love it!

Friday's Foto Fiesta

This weeks foto was taken during Dave and my trip to the Bahama's. It's the only time either of us have left the good ol' US of A. It's also the only time in my life when I won anything. I must say to win an all expense trip to an All Inclusive Resort was pretty darn cool. We had a blast! This pictures is of an imprint of each of our feet. D = Dave and J = Me in the sand. I just love it.

You should know the drill by now. Head on over to Candid Carries right now and join in, it's fun I promise.

Why do humans need sleep?

Today a friend of mine made the comment that she wished humans didn't require sleep because she could get so much more accomplished if she didn't have to sleep. She also said that if we cut out things like showers and annoying stuff like that we would get even more done.

At first I thought she was crazy but the thought of this kept nagging at me as the day went on so I decided to do the math. I thought it would be easiest to go with the 8 hours of sleep you should get each night to calculate the hours. This is what I came up with:

I have been alive for approximately 6 leap years which are 366 days so that equals 2,196 days. That leaves 21 years with 365 days in them totalling 7,665. I then added 2,196 + 7,665 = 9,861 days that I have been alive. Next I multiplied 9,861 x 8 = 78,888 hours. If you keep doing the math this means I have spent about 9 years of my 27 years alive sleeping!

HOLLY CRAP that is allot of hours spent sleeping, I don't think I want to add in the time spent showering because that really is allot of wasted time. I can't even begin to imagine how much more I would have accomplished by now if we didn't need the sleep.

So now I am wondering what I would do with all that extra time any suggestions?

One Amazing Tote

Alright ladies I am totally using you guys today and I am posting just in hopes that I will win this amazing tote.



Candid Carrie is actually the one that tipped me off to this contest so Thank you Carrie. If I don't get it I hope you do.

Here's the deal Pauline over at Berrie Sweet Picks is giving away this Diaper Bag Tote. All you have to do is choose your favorite pattern on HooHobbers and then leave a comment for Pauline letting her know which is your favorite. She also said if you mention this on your blog you will get an extra entry and I'm all about that!

So ladies cross your fingers for me! This would look a million times better than the Spiderman Book bag I am currently sporting.

Funky Funk

I'm not sure what my problem is today but I am in a weird funk!

Maybe it's the gloomy weather?

Maybe it's work stress?

Maybe it's a grunpy husband?

Or maybe it's the hyper, out of control kids?

Whatever it is I hope it goes away because I hate feeling like this.

Crop Dusting!

Alright ladies, Candid Carrie wrote a hysterical post about the affects of dairy products on her bowels. This reminded me of an evening I spent with my husband and his friend Joe and I thought I would share it all with you. When your done here you should really check out Carrie's post, it's worth it I promise!

So one Saturday evening a few years ago Dave, his friend Joe, and I went out to dinner and then to a movie. The evening started like a normal evening out with friends. We went to Logan's Steakhouse for dinner and it was good but nothing special. Dave and Joe were actually behaving themselves for once which was kind of a surprise to me because when those two get together they seem to turn into 13 year old boys. I actually remember thinking to myself that those two were actually acting like men.

Well I guess I jinxed myself because as we were walking out of the restaurant the hostess, who normally says goodbye or have a nice day, didn't say anything to us but instead she gave us a very nasty look. Now my husband can not stand stuck up people like this so he decided in a split second to crop dust her.

If you don't know what crop dusting is; it's when you fart while walking by someone and you keep walking so you don't have to smell the affects.

Back to the story, I was walking in front of both Dave and Joe so I didn't hear Dave do this but I was almost run over by the two of them running out the door. Once we were outside I turned around and started yelling at Dave and Joe for running me over and pushing me out the door, but it wasn't worth it because they were laughing so hard that they couldn't walk. I finally got them to calm down and tell me what was so funny. I was so embarrassed by what Dave had done but we didn't have to go back in so I let it go.

Off to the movies we went. When I started writing this I couldn't remember what movie it was we had gone to see but just now it came back to me and it couldn't be a more perfect time. The movie we saw that night was Borat and it was a fitting movie for both the guys to have gas during. I am pretty sure the people sitting around us heard and smelled what was going on and it was very very very embarrassing for me as well as hilarious. Why is it that farts and gas are so funny even as adults?

After the movie we were walking through the parking garage to our car and there were these two men walking behind us very close. Actually to close, we sped up, we scooted farther to the left but these men stayed right on top of us. Just as we got to our car Dave stopped very suddenly so that one of the men almost ran him over, he lifted his leg, stuck his butt out and farted as loud and long as he could. I could have died at that moment of both laughter and embarrassment! The look on that man's face was priceless and I wish I could describe it for you. The best I can do is to say that it was a combination of confusion and disgust. I think it's probably safe to say that these men will think twice before walking so close to strangers.

So there you have it, the story of my evening spent crop dusting!

God Bless America!

I'm not very good at saying things like this but I am going to try.

I want to thank all the men and women who have or are serving this great country. Without you we would not have the freedoms we do.

I also want to thank the families of the men and women serving. I can't even begin to imagine how hard it is for you to not have your loved ones with you every day. Without you they would not be able to do what they do each day.

So Thank you all and God Bless America!

Emma's date with Indiana Jones.....

Well tonight Dave and I had our date with Emma and we took her to see Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls.












The plan was to see the 7:20 showing but just like the past two nights Dave got stuck at work so we ended up seeing the 9:10. That was a little later than we wanted it to be but we promised Emma we would take her. I was able to take a few picture of Emma and I before we left, but we didn't have time to take any with Dave before hand.

My mom and brother KJ came over to watch Ian for us and apparently she gave Emma a $20.00 bill and told her to buy us some popcorn. She did really good at hiding it from us and while we were standing in the concession stand line she pulled it out of her pocket and told us "I'm treating you two to some popcorn!" So Dave and I got a popcorn and some pretzel bites to share and Emma got a kids combo of popcorn, a drink, and a treat (pixie sticks). She also wanted some cotton candy and since this was her night we got it for her. Yes, we spent our life's savings on tickets and food!

We let Emma pick where to sit and since we got there early she pretty much had the entire room to choose from. I must say she did a good job! She took us a little less than half way up and then sat in the middle of that row. I figured as soon as we sat down she would dive right into her popcorn and cotton candy, but she just sat there and watched those silly commercial things. I even asked her at one point why she wasn't eating her popcorn and she said that it was better during the movie. Sure enough once the movie started she started eating her popcorn and it was so stinking cute to see her sitting there eating her popcorn and intently watching the movie.

I have determined from this that either I am a big fat scaredy pants or she is one brave girl! I probably jumped 5 or 6 times during the movie and Emma only did 1. Actually in a few parts she laughed when I jumped. She didn't even seem to be grossed out by some very disgusting parts. You could tell by the end of the movie she was getting sleepy but she wasn't about to let herself fall asleep. She made it through the entire thing and loved it!

I will say that it was a very good movie and it connected well with the other 3. I think that there will be at least one more with Harrison Ford but Dave isn't so sure. I think I might have to place a bet with him on this one but I'm not sure what to wager. Any thoughts????

Well back to the point, we were able to ask Emma which one of the 4 was her favorite before she fell asleep and she declared that the Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls is now her favorite and The Temple of Doom is her second. She also told us that her favorite part (this will not ruin anything) was when they found the crystal skull behind the dead man. Don't ask I really don't know where she gets them from!

I also took some pictures when we got home and as you can tell she was a sleepy little girl. I really hope she sleeps in tomorrow!

So far, so good!

I am referring to my weekend! I was really worried Friday when I left work that this weekend was going to be crappy. With all the craziness at work I knew I needed a nice fun relaxing weekend. I also desperately wanted it to be nice outside.

So yesterday morning my day started at about 7:30 when I had to get up and run to the store. I didn't make it Friday night so Ian had no diapers and there wasn't anything to eat for breakfast. I had to get those few things before Dave left for work hence the 7:30 wake-up call.

I got home just in time for Dave to leave, so I fixed the kids thier breakfast, made my real grocery list, and got the kids dressed so we could go to Wal-mart. The kids were so good at the store. I was sure they would act up on me since it was busier than normal but they didn't. They even helped me carry all the groceries in and put them away. Then I made them some lunch and while they ate I cleaned up the kitchen and bathroom. Then the kids helped me sweep and mop the floors and vacuum. By the time all that was done it was Ian's nap time so off he went. Usually he fights me on this and cries for about 20 minutes but yesterday he climbed right into bed and went to sleep.

While Ian was napping Emma helped me make my potato salad for the cookout we had last night.

Around 5:00pm one of Dave's friend Joe who lives a few blocks from us stopped by and asked if the kids and I wanted to walk over to the Arts Festival on Main Street (only 2 blocks). Since the kids had been good all day we decided to go. They have this every year but we have never gone before. It was really nice. They had a local Jazz band playing and tons of booths set up with some amazing art pieces. Emma spotted a booth that was selling wind chimes and they had a glass one in the shape of Brutus the Buckeye's head. If it would have been a little cheaper I totally would have bought it! :(( Joe and I did stop off at a wine tasting booth and had an awesome glass of something that I can't remember the name of. Hopefully he does because I would love to get a bottle of this. I also got the kids a homemade chocolate chip cookie that was amazing!

After about and hour down there we came back home and I fired up the grill. We had the normal burgers and dogs. Dave got home just in time to eat (he had a car deal right at closing so he was about an hour late, it always works like that when we have plans). I did open up a bottle of Merlot for myself since the guys were drinking Corona's which I don't like. Since it was so nice outside we ate on the patio and the kids ran around the yard for a while. Then I put them to bed and us adults watched Knocked Up. If you haven't seen it I highly recommend it, super funny. I think I drank one to many glasses of wine because I was feeling pretty good last night and pretty crappy this morning.

All in all I have to say that yesterday was a pretty darn good day and it was much needed. So far today has been pretty good too. The kids helped me work in the flower beds earlier this morning and they are just finishing there lunches. As soon as Ian is done it's off to bed for him and I desperatly need a shower. I don't have any plans for the rest of the afternoon other than to fold the load of laundry I didn't get to yesterday. Dave and I are taking Emma to see the new Indiana Jones movie this evening. She loves the first three, her favorite being the Temple of Doom which scares me a little. She is so excited and so am I. Her Mamaw (Dave's mom) takes her to the movies all the time, but Dave and I have never taken her so this will be fun.

Well it's time for me to go shower and make myself presentable to the outside world!

Weekly Weightloss Update: Good Bye Dear Friends

After what has seemed like a year without a cahnge in my weight I finally lost 2 pounds. I think this is the most excited I have been in a long time.

The really funny thing is, I'm still not at my 1st goal. I need one more pound for that to happen.

I'm pretty sure that these two pounds were lost because of all the stress at work and since the Rhino called off again today that stress will be carried into next week. If I loose another two pounds the stress just might be worth it, but we will see!

So untill next week......

Friday's Foto Finish Fiesta

This weeks foto is from Emma's 3rd birthday party. She is an October baby and loves Halloween so we did a fall/ Halloween theme. We had the party at a local Greenhouse that has a ton of fun things in the fall. Inside they had a hay maze set up for kids, then outside they have a corn maze (it's pretty difficult), one of those blow up bouncy ball things for the kids, and some swings. They also have a hay ride that takes you through a bunch of different scenes. Oh and you get a pumpkin with all of this. She had a blast and I think the guest enjoyed themselves too.

In case you didn't notice we are both wearing our OSU gear because that's what you do on Game Day duh!

If you want to join in, check out Candid Carrie.

How to Stop a Rhino From Charging

OK so if you haven't read my Predator post you might need to start there, but it's kind of long (sorry about that I had a lot to get off my chest). If you don't just know I am having some issues with a big nasty lady in my office and I had to file a complaint against her.

Well she hasn't been in the office this week so she doesn't know the complaint has been filed. She will however be back Friday and will be given the written letter explaining everything. In this letter she will be informed that she is to have no contact with me even if it is work related, we both have to go through our supervisor. Non-compliance with this will result in termination.

So at lunch today the ladies and I were discussing this and how our supervisor has to give her this notice first thing Friday morning. That is not going to be easy because we are pretty darn sure The Predator (or Rhino) will explode and our poor supervisor is on her own since our Manager and Chief are off on Friday. One of the ladies suggested that maybe our supervisor should call the zoo and ask where she could find a tranquilizer to take a out a baby Rhino (this is funny because when I say a big nasty women I really mean big, she is huge, 6'5" and she has to be over 200 pounds).

After lunch I get an email from one of the other ladies titled How to Stop a Rhino From Charging and man did I get a kick out of it. Allot of the descriptions of a Rhino explain The Predator very well so I am considering some of the advise given. I also thought you all might enjoy and find it useful if ever in a similar situation.

OK so here is what the e-mail said:

Step1 -- Know about typical rhino behavior. This can help you prevent a charge and recognize that most charging rhinos are trying to scare off intruders. Their keen hearing and bad eyesight make them wary. Rhinos are also more likely to be aggressive in areas where humans disturb or hurt them.

Step2 -- Keep aware of your surroundings. As rhinos often rest during the day, you can get quite close to a rhino without either of you being aware of each other's presence. Watch for signs that you may be approaching a large animal and leave the area if you think one is present.

Step3-- Give any rhino that you see plenty of room to prevent having the rhino see you as a threat. Watching the rhino from a distance may not be as exciting, but it will probably keep you safer.

Step4 -- Listen to the advice of any guides or individuals familiar with rhino behavior that are with you. Their experience and knowledge will help you avoid the rhino from charging at you.

Step5 -- Get out of the way. With a rhino's speed and size, stopping a charge at close range isn't going to happen. If you can't prevent a charge from starting, your only hope is to get out of the way.

Step6 -- Drive away from a charging rhino if you're in a safari vehicle. The presence of the vehicle or the people in it may be threatening to the rhino or be viewed as entering the rhino's territory.

Anyone know where I can find a Safari vehicle for sale???

Man POOP!

Beep, Beep, Beep! This is a warning! If you are in anyway grossed out by poop STOP reading NOW!




For the rest of you gross people last night my son had the most disgusting smelling poop. Of course he is still in diapers because he thinks the potty is a toy which means someone (me) has to change his diapers.

I was not in the same room as Ian when he started pooping but the minute I walked in the living room I thought I was going to instantly vomit! It really smelled as if something had died three days ago and had been sitting in 90 degree weather since then. I should mention that the only reason I walked in there was because Emma and Dave were both yelling for me to come and change Ian because he stunk. When they said stunk I just though a normal poop smell, not 3 day old death stink.

Seriously the crap (pun intended) we have to put up with as mothers is just amazing!

So brave me takes a gigantic breath and opens the diaper up. I was expecting to see a diaper full of diarrhea like poop because what else could smell that bad, but instead I see one tiny little hard turd. Now don't get me wrong I was very thankfully that was all it was, but come on, one turd! This one turd was nastier than a full grown man's poop according to my hubbie, who has produced some good ones over the years.

I quickly wiped Ian's butt and put his pants back on then Dave, the kids, and I had to go outside for a few minutes because the smell was sticking to the air inside the house. I also wrapped that nasty diaper in two grocery bags and walked it to the trash can's in the very back of our yard by the alley. Even after being outside for 5 minutes we could still smell the poop so I sprayed all the furniture with febreeze and the air with air freshener.

Gross as this is I actually considered taking a picture of the turd to add to this entry but then my senses kicked in and I tossed it in the trash. I think this will be one story to use as blackmail when he gets older. :))

Real (wo)men of genius: differnt word, same meaning

My good friend Tiff over at McCallen Mussings has started a new series based on the Real Men of Genius commercials from Budweiser. After reading her entry I shared a story with her through e-mail and she thought I should share it with you all to.

Yesterday afternoon some ladies in my office and I were having a conversation and somehow it turned into a conversation about nicknames for cities in our state. One of the ladies was talking about how when she was a kid everyone called the city of Circleville Roundtown. Now one of the other ladies whose name I will not use (I will tell you she is one of the Assistant Attorney Generals for out office, and a very intelligent women)asked why they would call it Roundtown.

OK how to put this, Circle = Round and Ville = Town. Ding, ding, ding went the light bulb in her head! :) We all laughed are butts off for that one.


* Hey I just wanted to let you all know that my good friend Lindsay over at The Adams Family has joined in the fun and added a post of her own.*

Tagged- 6 to 10 fact about me

So as usual I was reading some blogs when I realized that Careysue over at A Womens Prerogative tagged me so now I must tell you 6 to 10 facts about me.

Since Careysue, and Carrie over at Candid Carrie used Elementary school game analogies I will stick with their theme. Back when I was in school I too was picked last for allot of things because I was so stickin' tiny, but in the blogging world I have felt very special and like one of the popular kids that was always picked first because of careysue, and Amber over at Amber's house full. So thanks for the confidence boost ladies.

OK well here it is, 6 to 10 things about me.....

1. My favorite candy is Gummy Bears (the real ones). As and adult I have found them to be a great stress reliever. All you have to do is bite their heads off while imagining it's the head of someone that you don't like. Trust me it works wonders. All, and their fat free!

2. I have some serious OCD tendencies, like after I set my alarm every night I have to check it 3 times before I will actually lay down in bed. Yes I know this is a problem.

3. I'm still scared of the dark. I blame this on that stupid high school boy that I caught breaking into our house in the middle of the night 6 months after my dad died. I was only 5 at that time so it was a very traumatic experience.

4. Just hearing the Theme Song to the X-Files gives me the chills. My husband thinks is sooooo funny to whistle the tune late at night just to get me going. It's soooo not funny!

5. I have the tendency to overreact to things, but once I stop and really think about it I calm down. Not such a good quality when you have toddlers, but I'm learning to check myself before exploding.

6. I hated my mother my entire Freshman year of High School for getting pregnant. Hey when your 14 the last thing you want is for your mom to be pregnant because that means she had sex. So GROSS!!!!

7. I am one of the biggest klutzes on the face of the Earth. My senior year I even received one of those silly awards from my entire class for being a klutz and while walking up the steps to the stage I tripped. Yep, I deserved that award and I'm darn proud of it.

8. I work for the State of Ohio Attorney Generals Office and the Attorney General just resigned because of a sexual harassment suit that exposed him to having an affair with an employee, as well as being aware of some other not so good behavior. All I can say here is that I didn't vote for the man.

9. I can't have any more children. Well I can get pregnant but in the very unlikely event that I maintain that pregnancy for any length of time I will most likely die along with my baby because my uterus walls thinned to much with Ian that they will rupture. When I say thinned I mean it, when the doctors were doing my c-section and got to the point of cutting into my uterus they stopped to show my husband how thin the walls were. According to Dave it was like Ian was inside of a balloon that had been blown up just to the point it was going to explode. You could actually see all of Ian's features. Scary I know!! I'm OK with this because all I wanted was a boy and girl and I got it.

10. I have always wanted a Maltese and I want to name her Daisy. Instead we inherited a Chiuaua named Ginger. Don't get me wrong I love Ginger but I have always dreamed about a Maltese.

OK that was harder than I thought it would be.

So now it's my turn to tag some people and my picks are (drum roll please).....

The Adams Family

McCallen Musings

Ambers House Full

The Mommy Logs

One Crazy Chick

The Predator

OK ladies, I am about to let you in on some issues I'm having at work right now. However I first must explain the women we call THE PREDATOR. In my section at work we have this lady that has been there for 15-20 years and she thinks that because she has been there for so many years she knows how things should be done. Well in a normal situation this might be the case, but not in our section. The problem is about two years ago we had a system change and it was a pretty large one. This women can't quit keep up with the new technology and she has struggled with it. Honestly she can't do much of her job without struggling, but instead of admitting she needs help she does the opposite. I also think she is jealous that she is not the supervisor and that someone much younger than her is now (our old supervisor retired in February). The nicest was I can put this is that this women is just a mean, nasty, idiot that thinks she knows it all.

So I'm sure your wondering why we call her the predator. Well it's simply really, instead of trying to figure out her own job she spends all day questioning what the rest of us are doing and trying to find any and all errors that we may make. She seems to think that since she has been there so long she can boss us around and it really makes her made when we don't listen to her. Oh and she also looks like the Predator, I swear on my life!!!

So now that I have explained her to you I will share with you what happened last Wednesday.

Every other week we have a staff meeting to discuss any changes that need to be made, or just to talk about things going on in the office. During this meeting my supervisor Amy asked me to explain how I work what we call Error Sheets because our chief wants everyone in my section to work these for voluntary comp time to help get them caught up. So as I was explaining the process when The Predator interrupts and starts to question why I am doing things that way, and no wonder I am behind and can't get my work done. (I should clarify that I am not behind because I am not doing things correctly but because of some system errors as well as mistakes made by others.) Of course this upset me but I maintained my cool and excused myself using the excuse of going to get examples. While I was gone Amy explained to The Predator and the rest of my staff (who was fine with things) that the way I was doing things was the correct way and that if anyone was going to work on them they needed to do things that way. When I got back things were different in the room and nothing else was said to me. After the meeting I forgot about everything because in our staff meeting The Predator always attacks someone like this so it was nothing new to me.

I went about the rest of my morning and early afternoon as normal, until about 2:30 when I heard The Predator call Amy over to her desk. The Predator proceeds to tell Amy, in a very loud voice, that I (used my name) had screwed something up, and why had I done this when I say I don't do things that way, and why was I complaining about others making mistakes when I was making them. She basically made it like I was completely incompetent when I'm not, and everyone that sits in our area hear her say this. (Also I do not complain about people making mistakes, I have however made comments to my supervisor about the same people making the same mistakes day after day after day. That is why I have been asked to create a training manual and this women knows that.)

Anyway, this clearly made me mad because it was very disrespectful to me and unprofessional. So as soon as Amy was back in her office I went in closed the door and told her this as well as that I wanted something done about it because I wasn't going to be treated that way. My supervisor agreed with me so we went and talked to my Manager Ted. They decided that I need to write a letter to Amy describing what had happen and then they would take it to our chief. So that is what I did, and I must say it was a darn good letter. After my chief read it the next morning she suggested that I file a complaint with and EEO Officer (Equal Employment). Have I mentioned I work for the State of Ohio, well I do so I am part of a union.

About 30 minutes after I left Ted office I hear the Predator telling one of our coworkers that I am a crybaby tattletale and that I need to start acting like and adult and learn how to take criticism. I really could not believe she was saying this. A women that can never be told she has made a mistake because she knows how to do everything! I immediately picked up my phone and called Ted to tell him what was being said and he called her into his office where she stayed until after I left for the day.

On Thursday afternoon I filed an official complaint and the EEO officer interviewed me. In an hours time the EEO office took over 30 pages of notes because I had to not only give my account of what The Predator did to me, but also what I have witnessed her do to others. This nasty women has turned our section into a hostile work environment and we are tired of her and the way she treats us. My meeting with the EEO Office went very well and I felt pretty good after I left.

On Friday the EEO Officer interviewed Amy and Ted, who backed me up and also gave some accounts of other instances where The Predator has acted like this.

Today my Chief called me into her office to let me know that she was supporting me 100% with my complaint and she also had to give me my official letter about the complaint as well as make me aware that I am to have no contact with The Predator and she is to have none with me. Even if it's work related we have to go through our supervisors. I know Fun right?!

So the only thing left to do now before the full investigation can begin is to notify her. Problem is she called off Friday and today, and then stopped by the office to tell Ted that she wouldn't be back until Friday. It kind of sucks because all I want to do is get this part over with. I don't think she is going to react well to me filing a complaint and I am really worried about her trying to retaliate, even the management is worried about that. Unfortunately, I have to wait till Friday morning. On the plus side of things she is out of the office until then and it's always much calmer when she's not there.

Now you know what is going on in my life, doesn't it sound like fun?! :)

Truly Honored

Amber over at Amber's House Full was kind enough to award me with an excellent Blog award. Thank you Amber I am truly honored.

So now it's my turn to award my favorites and this is going to be tough.

McCallen Mussings and
The Adams Family

It wouldn't be right if my first two picks weren't you two ladies who got me started on this adventure So here's to you for inspiring me and giving me the courage to start my own blog.

Bottles Barbies & Boys

You were one of the first blogs I read after starting and I have come back everyday since then. You always make me laugh.

Candid Carrie

Oh Carrie, what can I say about you except for you're awesome. You can make me laugh and cry all at the same time and you inspire me. You were also the first stranger to comment on my blog which made me feel so special. So thank you!

view from the front porch

The first post I read of yours was the time you took your youngest to swimming lessons and ended up exposing yourself. I laughed so hard I almost peed my pants and I've come back ever since.

There are so many blogs I read on a daily basis and it would take me forever to talk about each one of you ladies so to all of you thank you for giving me something to do at work other than work. You all are what keep me sane these days.

Cleamsongirl and the Coach

Caffeine Court

Puttin' On the G.R.I.T.S.

Ladybug's Picnic

The Mommy Logs

One Crazy Chick

So Thank you ladies for all letting me into your lives.

Daddy's Cookin Tonight!!

OK so not really cookin but he got us dinner.

I always call my hubbie when I leave work and am on my way to pick up the kids. It's the only quiet time for us to talk except after they go to bed and then we are both tired. So as usual I called him this evening and he was acting kind of weird and wanted to get off the phone with me. I just chalked it up to finals stress (i don't know if I've mentioned this before but Dave went back to school last fall and is working towards is IT degree). I was a little irriated though becasue as I mentioned earlier today I didn't go grocery shopping last week so we don't have any food, and I wanted to know if there was anything he wanted for dinner tonight. I decided to let it go and we woiuld dicuss it when I got home.

So I went and picked up the kids and came home. As I walked in the door Dave was standing in the dinning room pouring me a glass of pop and sitting on the table were the kids and my plates pilled high with pepperoni and sausage pizza! I was so excited, I didn't have to cook, or even wait for my dinner tonight it was all taken care of for me.

A girl could really get used to this!

Weekly Weightloss Update: Not so weekly

OK so I haven't given any of you an update for a few weeks. Things have been really crazy with my brothers wedding!

I was really good two weeks ago but from all the pre wedding stuff going on I forgot to weigh myself. I didn't even think about it until after the rehearsal dinner which was at an amazing Italian restaurant so I figured all my hard work probably went down the drain with that one meal.

Now here comes the real excuse! I usually do my grocery shopping on Friday evenings but again wedding stuff got in the way last week so that didn't happen. My thought was that I could run to the store Monday night and get some stuff to get us through the week. What I didn't count on was the sheer exhaustion I would feel come Monday night. Then Tuesday was the depressing Early Entrance Testing so of course I didn't want to go then. At that point I figured whats the point we will finish out the week and start again next week. I think we have eaten out about 3 nights this week and the other two were frozen foods so I am not weighing myself this week, it's been a bad enough week. All I almost forgot since I have this little conflict with a co-worker right now I have been shoveling in the candy and chocolate that's always on someones desk here at work. Just another reason not to check my weight.

All I can say is I really am getting back on the horse come Monday, I am so close to my goal I can't stop now and I promise I wont!

Friday's Foto Finish Fiesta

It's that time again. If you want to join in the fun head on over to Candid Carrie and check it out.


My Foto this week is of Ian. I can't remember now why the babysitter wasn't working that day, but she wasn't so Dave had to stay home with the kids. At the time Ian was about 4 months old and still a fussy baby who wanted attention all the time and there wasn't much that would keep him entertained except for the exercauser. Now, I have no idea why Dave put him in there with out any clothes on but he did and it seemed to work. :))

Am I crazy for talking to myself?

This morning as I was driving to the sitters house I realized that I was kind of having a conversation with myself. Ok let me explain before you pass any more judgment cause I know your thinking I'm nuts.

When I say having a conversation with myself I mean that in my head I started thinking about an incident that happened at work yesterday where a co-worker of mine who is one nasty women was harrassing me. Like most people do I was replaying all the events from the previous day and coming up with things I should have said and points I should have made. The problem is I wasn't just thinking them in my head I was actually saying them with no sound. My lips were moving like they do when you talk and saying the words I was hearing in my head but no actual sound was coming out.

When I noticed I was doing this I also realized that I do that alot. When ever there is something stressful going on I talk to myself. I think partly to make myself feel better and give myself a pep talk, and partly out of sheer frustration. What ever the reason it does seem to help so I will continue to do it even if it means I'm certifiable but I would like to know if I'm the only one.

Please tell me that you do this to??? PLEASE!

O.H................

OK ladies and maybe some gentlemen it's time to see a little of my tom boy come out and we are about to talk about FOOTBALL. More specifically Buckeye Football.

In case you haven't figured out I am a dye hard Ohio State Buckeye fan and I will support and love my team no matter what until the day that I die. I never miss a game even if it means I have to listen to it on the radio. In high school I was on the color guard and if we had a contest on a Saturday game day I would take my walkman and have one headphone in listening to the game while we practiced our routines. :)) Yes I know I'm crazy but I don't care I love it. There is nothing like the feeling when you wake up on Saturday morning in Buckeye country and you can feel the intensity of game day in the air.

Now I know there are allot of you out there that are haters and please bring it on! :))

So your probably wondering what brought this post on right? Well, I'll tell you. ESPN has adjusted there top 25 college football rankings and they have MY Buckeyes (yes my) at #1!!!!!!

I will be honest here, like I always am this scares the shit out of me. Two years ago when we were ranked #1 in the pre season I was nervous, and for good reason. Yes we did stay #1 that whole year and went to the championship but we didn't really show up and made asses out of ourselves. Then again last year we go an don't play like our normals selves. It is defiantly an honor to even get to that game which is why I will never say really bad things but I don't know if I can take another year of going and loosing. I think most of us in Buckeye Country were hoping for a little less stressful season.

Now having said that I am also totally psyched that they are being recognized and I would love for them to go back to the championship and WIN!!!

Only time will tell, and regardless of the outcome of this year I will be a FAN!

GO BUCKS!!!!!!!!!

* In case you don't know a very popular cheer around here is for one person to yell O.H. anD for someone(s) to respond with an I.O., I know pretty cool, don't be jealous!. :)*

What is that smell?

This morning I went upstairs to get the kids up to go to the babysitters and as usualy Ian has made his way into Emma's bed sometime through the night. I have a really awesome babysitter who gets my kids dressed as long as I pack their clothes for the day so in the morning all I have to do is put shoes and coats on. So I pull back the covers so that I can get to Emma's feet and I notice Ian's naked butt!

At first it wasn't registering that he no longer ahd his diaper or pj pants on. Once it did I also recognized a very distinctive smell in the room. Yep it was the smell of pee! Of course I had to make sure so I pick up Ian's blanket and put it up to my nose, oh yeah he so peed the bed.

Of course I don't have time for any of this. I quickly got Emma up and smelled her clothes, crap she needs cahnged to. I ended up taking Emma and Ian downstairs with clean PJ's and a couple blankets that didn't smell like piss, changed then and headed out the door as quick as I could.

This of course means that as soon as I get home tonight I will have to strip the bed and wash all the sheets and blankets.

Ok, now I have a question for all of you. How do you keep a 2 year old from taking their diaper off? Ian does this all the time during the day, but this is the first time he has done it in the middle of the night and I really don't want this to happen again. It makes for a very stressful morning.

Shove It Up Your BUTT School Psychologist!!!!!!!!

In Ohio the state mandates that your child is five on or before August 1st to start Kindergarten that year, but they do have an Early Entrance test for children who will turn five between August 2 and December 31 of the school year they would start. Of course Emma's birthday is the very beginning of October.

Now I am not tutting my own horn but Emma has always been advanced for her age, she said her first word at 4 months, her first sentences at 9 months, and she was using words like medicine and actually by 1 year. She knew her entire alphabet and numbers 1-10 by 18 months and colors and shapes before 2 years.

So this winter I started doing some research on what the Early Entrance testing consisted of to see if it was worth doing. Before anyone starts in on me about "let her be a kid, enjoy her for one more year" let me tell you that for about a year and a half now Emma has been asking Dave and I when she could start school. Emma loves to learn new things, she will spend hours doing the different activities in those Pre-K workbooks, that is why I started looking into this. I did tons of research online to find out what they test the children on and I even called the school and spoke with one of the Kindergarten teachers and the guidance counselor. They both told me that the child's, social skills, and mental capacity were more important than what they knew. Based on the information given at that time we decided lets have her tested, what could it hurt, if she doesn't pass then we will just wait till next year when she is old enough.

At the end of March I went and registered Emma for kindergarten like they said to do. At that time I was given a packet of information for the Early Entrance testing. The front page of this letter was a letter from a State psychologist and it stated that early entrance was only for children who were gifted and it went on to say that gifted meant a 4 year old would be at the same level as a 6 year old.

What the hell?! They never said this to me.

I figured I was already there so I would just go through with it anyway and if she passes great, if not oh well. So we scheduled the testing. Part of that testing was an at home test us parents had to give the child. We were instructed to ask Emma the question and write her answers then circle the ones we felt were correct.

Some of these questions were things like; (= Emma's answers)

How are coats and sweaters alike (they're both warm)
How are nickles and penny's alike (they're both coins)
boys grow up to be men and girls grow up to be (Ladies)
You kick with your legs and throw with your (arms)

So far so good right?

They also had us have her stand on one foot and jump four times and skip, no problem. Then Dave and I had to write a letter as to why we thought she was gifted. That was really tough, thankfully Dave came up with the idea to take a list of characteristics that a child is gifted and explain how Emma showed those.

That brings us to today. At 10 am Emma and I arrived at the school. The guidance counselor took us both back to her office where a state psychologist was waiting and they explained to me what they were going to do then I went out in the hall to wait while they both tested Emma. When they were done they called me back in. While Emma played with some puzzles they tell me that Emma is "BEYOND ADVANCED, and GIFTED" when it comes to academics, social skills, and metal capacity (Thank God, is going through my head at this point), BUT (yep there's a BUT, oh shit) she is not when it comes to motor skills.

What??? Motor Skills?? Yep Emma was tested on six things under the motor skills:

Skipping
Running
Jumping on one foot
Dribbling a Ball
Tying shoes
Cutting with scissors

Emma passed the first three but not the last three and this kept her from passing the motor skills portion of the test. Which kept her from being gifted, and that is keeping her from starting Kindergarten this fall.

Now I don't know what all you are thinking but to me keeping a child who is gifted academically speaking from starting school because she can't dribble a basketball is just plain stupid. What's even more stupid is the answer I got from the psychologist when I asked why it was she had to be so advanced in all those area when children that meet the 5 year old age mark are not tested on the same things? His response to this was "Well we feel that the age mark we have set is appropriate and is the most fair way to set a standard in the state." Yep that's what was said, I mean could he be any more vague? I have a feeling he wasn't expecting me to ask that question and he really didn't know how to answer it. The guidance counselor did tell me in private later that the teacher all feel the same way I do, that all the kids need to be tested more so that only the ones that are truly ready start and they want the state to also change it's standards on the early entrance. She went on to say that she had no doubt Emma would have been at the top of her class based on what she saw today but they can't go against the state!

So there we have it No Kindergarten this year for us, which is ok except for how it is crushing my daughter. She so badly wants to go to school and now she will have to wait and watch all her friends go off without her. That's probably the worst part for me, watching her little heart be crushed because she can't dribble a ball, tie her shoes, or cut a circle with scissors.

Nick-Mans Wedding

Yesterday was my little brothers wedding (yes on Mother's Day, the bride always said she would get married on her grandparents anniversary). The wedding ceremony was planned for outside at this gorgeous park, but thankfully they had a back up plan for bad weather. The back-up was one of those large tents with the sides that would sit up against the room for the reception and the large glass doors would open into the tent.

So Saturday for the rehearsal the weather was amazing here in central Ohio. Sunday morning though we wake up to rain and kind of chilly weather. Not a problem right? That's what the back-up plan was for. So us girls spend the morning having our hair an makeup done and we head off to the ceremony site. The plan was to for the guys to arrive at 12 for pictures and the girls at 1. We were running about 5 minutes late so I called my hubbie (groomsman) to tell him to let the photographer know and he tells me she's not here yet!

Me: WHAT?????
Me: The photographer hasn't shown up yet????
Dave: Nope, Alicia's (bride) parents are taking care of it but they haven't come back to tell us what's going on.
Me: OK, well we will be there soon

So we get there and take Alicia to the restroom and her mom comes in and say "We have a problem!" Now I am thinking they can't get a hold of the photographer and there wont be any pictures, but no that was not it at all. Alicia's mom goes on to tell us that the big tent with the sides they ordered was not deleived, instead a smaller one with no sides was. Since it was raining the only option was to set up the reception room for the ceremony and once that was done they would set it up for the reception.

If this would have been my wedding, someone would have needed to give me some kind of drug to keep me calm because I would have lost my freaking mind! Both Nick and Alicia handle all of this really well and the worst hasn't come yet.

About 5 minutes later I am standing in the main room with my sister and the groomsmen when we here this really loud siren go and we all look at each other with the same (No Freaking way, it can't be) look on our faces. It was a Tornado siren! I am dead serious a freaking TORNADO SIREN, and it wasn't a test. Being that the wedding was at a city park the employees forced us all into the kitchen and bathrooms. At first we were all OK with this because there weren't very many of us and we didn't know what was going on.

Until yesterday I never thought having the Internet on a cell phone was important, but man did that come in handy. We very quickly were able to find out that the Tornado was in the northern section of out county and it was heading north (away from us). Naturally we all started to head back out but we were quickly ushered back in and told that in no way were we allowed to leave the designated rooms until the warning was over for out county regardless of where it really was because they were reasonable for all of us. So for the next 45 minutes to an hour we were stuck in those rooms. Of course during this time the guest started to arrive and we taken in to the safe rooms to wait it out with the rest of us.

Once the warning was over, Alicia's father had to make an announcement to everyone that because of the Tornado the ceremony room was not set up and they would finish it as quickly as possible.

I'm really not sure how much longer we had to wait or when the ceremony finally started but it was not on time. The ceremony was very nice. My husband and I were in the bridal party and got to walk down the isle together and it's a good thing because emotional me started crying as soon as I saw my little brother standing up there. Emma and Ian were also in the wedding as the Ring Bearer and Flower Girl and they both walked down the isle. After the rehearsal I was convinced Ian would go so I told Emma that if he didn't she should just go without him. Somewhere in her mind she took this as don't wait at all just go, so off she went cute as can be dropping her petals and Ian folled behind her stepping on them (on purpose). About half way down Ian decided he wanted to walk beside his sissy but she was not for that and blocked him every time he tried to move up. Yes Emma loves to be the center of attention!

Next up was the bride and man did the tears start coming then. I think I would have been OK had I not looked at my brother who had tears running down his face. Even now writing this I want to cry, it was so sweet. I was able to calm myself down fairly quickly and then it was time for the exchange of rings and that brought the tears back. When I was 5, Stpeh 2, and Nick 9 months our fatehr passed away and Nick decided that he wanted to use our Fathers wedding band as his so there are Steph and I balling our eyes out. I did make it through the rest of the ceremony without any more tears. :))

After the ceremony we had some chaos between trying to get the pictures taken, which had to be done in the only room so the employees could only set the reception up to a point until we finished the pictures (oh yes the photographer showed up during the tornado)and since she was late we had to do all of them. I should tell you all this, the employees were amazing and worked very fast to get things done for us.

Finally it was time to eat! The food was amazing, one of the groomsman's father owns a Barbecue restaurant and he catered the reception for Nick and Alicia. We had barbecue chicken, beef brisket, mased potatoes, corn casserole, green beans, some kind of rice, and cheesy onion casserole. I know the meal is a little unconventional but that is the bride and groom and it was free for them.

While everyone was finished there dinners the bestman KJ (my 12 year old brother) and one of Alicia's sisters gave the toast. Alicia's sister gave a very traditional type of toast that made us cry and laugh. Then KJ made his, our sister helped him write in the night before, and it went like this:

Hi I'm KJ Nicks little brother
and I just want to congratulate Nick and Alicia,
and I'm so glad to have Alicia's as a sister
because 9 just weren't enough!

(KJ is mine, Nick's, and Steph's half brother and yes he has 9 sister, oops 10 now)

OK so there is is Nick-Mans wedding day. Sorry it was so long but I wanted to get everything so I wont forget it in the years to come. Even though things didn't go according to plan it still ended up being a very special day and I am so happy to have another sister in my life and I wish Nick and Alicia only the best life can offer!

Time to Brag!

After 12 years, a million hints, and a thousand I want this it finally happened.

What happen you ask? Well my wonderful, amazing, thoughtful husband finally ordered me flowers and had them delivered to work. Can you believe it? I was so shocked and surprised. I had pretty much given up all hope of ever having flowers delivered to me to work and then there was the receptionist walking down the isle calling my name.

What makes this even better is that it was not the typical bouquet in a regular vase (which would have been fine), it was a mix of Roses, Carnations, and some really pretty filler flower arranged in a Tea Pot with the lid in with the flowers. Something you need to know about me is I love Tea Pots but I never by them for myself, there are always more practical and useful things to be bought. so this was perfect, once the flowers die I will still have the pretty Tea Pot to display or use for other arrangements.



Now the absolute best part and what gave me absolute bragging rights with all the ladies at work is what the card said.

To the best mother,
my beautiful wife,
and my best friend.

Love always and forever,

Daddy and the Munchkins

I know, isn't he the best husband ever. Not that it takes much for me to cry, but those words brought tears to my eyes instantly and I didn't care one bit that I was at work. You know you would have cried to.

My Little Musicians At It Again

With the upcoming wedding of Emma's Uncle Nicky (my brother) Emma has learned (kind of) The Wedding Song. Like most people though she only knows the first two lines.





Here comes the bride
All dressed in white





So last night after the hundredth time she sang those two lines she asked me to teach her the rest of the song. Problem is I only know those two lines, so I had to tell her sorry I don't know it. I thought this would bring on a fit but too my surprise she said OK I'll just make them up then.

That's a great idea Emma!

So after many different versions and trials she finally came up with this;




Here comes mommy
All dressed in blue
With diamonds too







I like the sound of that, now go tell your daddy!!

Friday's Foto Finish Fiesta

It's that time again for Friday's Foto Finish Fiesta. If you would like to join in the fun head on over to Candid Carrie's.

This weeks picture is of my Sleeping Beauty. This was taken by my mother the week after I got home from the hospital with Emma. My mom took that week off so I wouldn't be alone. I had to have a c-section due to the fact that Emma decided the most comfortable position was to have her head smack dab in the middle of my ribs and her feet standing on my pelvic bone and she refused to turn her self around. It's a good thing she was my first because I didn't know that the pain she was causing me wasn't normal! For all you women that think the pain and pressure that the head causes in the pelvic area is the worst thank your lucky stars that you never had your baby stomp on the pelvic bone, now that's some pain!

Anyway, since I wasn't very mobile my mom came and stayed with me during the days while Dave was at work and she captured this beautiful picture of Emma sleeping. It's probably my favorite picture of Emma as a newborn. She looks so peaceful and innocent.

The Ideal Mothers Day Gift

With Mothers Day this weekend everyone keeps asking me what I'm getting for Mothers Day. Before I tell you what my Mother's Day will be like I want to tell you want my ideal gift would be.

I am not one of those women that needs a be expensive gift, all I want is to be able to sleep in while my hubbie gets up with the kids and entertains them so I can sleep in peace and quiet until 10am. If I happen to wake up before then on my own I want to be left alone in my room to enjoy the peace and quiet and maybe watch some food network. Then at 10am I will emerge from my room and would love to find a nice brunch waiting with all my favorite breakfast foods, thick french toast w/ Karo syrup, some kind of eggs (quiche, scrambled, omelet's), some fresh fruit, and don't forget the pork (I love sausage and Bacon).

This is all I would need for the perfect Day.

Now this year I will not be getting anything close to this. Instead I will be dragging my tired stressed butt out of bed around 7:00 - 7:30 am so that I have myself decent by 8:00 when 6 other women and two hair dressers will be entering my home. I will then spend the next four hours getting ready for my brothers wedding. Around 12:30 we will all head of to the ceremony site to have loads of pictures taken and then we will have the ceremony and reception. Oh I forgot while getting ready I also have to get both the kids ready sine they are the ring bearer and flower girl. It's a good thing I love my brother and his soon to be wife!

At this point all I can hope for is that my hubbie will read this post and keep this idea in the back of his head for next year.

To all you other mothers out there I hope you get your ideal Mother's Day gift!

Kids Bedtime Rituals

We've all seen the family sitcom where the young kid is supposed to be going to bed but has one excuse after another as to why they can't go to bed tonight.

This happens in my house almost every single night and it seems to be worse on the nights that Dave works like tonight.

I usually hear the same excuses night after night of:

I forgot to go potty

I'm thirsty

I want a hug/ kiss

These PJ's are itcy

All of these are pretty easy and quick to fix and get the kids back upstairs and tucked in. Tonight however I was given a brand new excuse from Emma. She came downstairs after being in bed about a total of 5 minutes, complaining the whole time about wanting to stay up, and walks up to me with the sweetest little face on, batting her eyelashes and says to me

" I didn't want to go to bed tonight because I didn't get to cuddle with you today and I wanted to!"

CRAP, how am I supposed to send her to bed after that? I would for sure get the Worst Mommy of the Year award for that, but I might get it for not sticking to a strict bedtime (because they need their sleep). I guess if I'm going to get it I might as well get some good cuddle time with my baby girl while I still can, even if it means she will be a complete bear tomorrow from lack of sleep. So we cuddled up for 10 minutes and then back to bed she went. We'll see how long she last this time.

Isn't that the sweetest thing you ever heard!

I want my money!

Can someone please explain to me how the government is handing out the stimulus checks please?! The website says it is based on the last two digits of your SSN# but I think they are BIG FAT LIARS. Some of my friends whose last two digits are 20 to 30 number higher than mine have already got theirs but I haven't. Did I miss something here?

I even got on the IRS website and checked the status but all you get is some generic response that says;

It will be in your account no later than MAY 9, 2008 and if you haven't received it by MAY 14, 2008 then you can contact us.

Let me tell you if I don't have my mula by Friday I will be raising some major HELL!

Just give me my money would ya!

Just not appropriate

Last night on my way from the sitters house to Ruby Tuesday's to met my mom for dinner I was talking to the kids. I asked Emma how her day was and she proceeded to tell me this:

Emma: Becca got in trouble today
Me: For what?
Emma: She took the bottom of her shirt and pulled it down through the top (she was also demonstrating how this worked)and taught Mady and Me how to do it.
Me: Why was that bad
Emma: Because it's JUST NOT APPROPRIATE MOM! (add allot of attitude behind that)
Me: OK then (trying my hardest not to laugh my ass off)

When did my 4 year old learn to use the word appropriate and in the right context? I asked the sitter this morning if she said that to them yesterday and she didn't so somewhere along the way Emma has learned the word Appropriate and how to use it.

Emma also tried to use the word Antioxidants but that one didn't' quite come out right. We were in Target after dinner walking by the food and Emma said "that stuff smells like antioxidants" only it was pronounced like antiodegents. It took me a few minutes to figure out what she was trying to say but once I did I explained to her how to say it right as well as what it meant. I also asked her where she learned that word and she said from TV so who knows.

Goodbye AWSME 69

Towards the end of June 2000 my husband went and looked at a 1969 Chevy Impala that was for sale. At the time Dave and I were engaged but I was living in the Dayton area attending College while he was still living here in Columbus. Since we knew I would be moving home soon he discussed maybe purchasing this car with me. It was a good deal but I didn't see why he wanted it or what he was going to do with it. Of course he said he wanted to fix it up and then we could take it to car shows. He also said that it would be something I could drive. Now I may not know allot about cars but I was pretty sure that back then they were all made to match the size of boats, which would be significantly larger than my tiny little Celica. So of course I said to him that I wouldn't be able to drive that huge thing and Dave tried to convince me that it wasn't any bigger than his moms Taurus. Yeah Right, do I look stupid (don't answer that)?! So I let that comment go and after some more discussions we decided to buy it.

On July 3, 2000 Dave pulls up to our friends house in this car that is bigger than a freaking boat and no where near the size of his moms Taurus. I do have to say though that it was pretty cool looking from the outside. The inside however was horrible, it was completely covered in Avocado green vinyl and carpet. Now on July 3 ever year in Columbus we host Red, White, and Boom (the largest display of Fireworks in the Midwest) so we all hopped in the new car and took it downtown to watch the fireworks.

For the rest of that summer Dave worked on some of the small things the car needed fixed, then winter came and into the garage it went. The following spring Dave and I got our first apartment so AWSME 69 moved into our garage there where Dave still occasionally did things with it. The next summer it didn't get a whole lot of attention because of our wedding and the following summer it got even less because I was pregnant with Emma and we moved.

Since Emma was born Dave hasn't done anything with the car it has just sat in storage, or our backyard (I swear we aren't white trash). This past winter Dave finally started to discuss the option of selling the car. We could defiantly make a profit off of it which could be used to pay of a few bills we have and really help us. We finally decided that selling it would be the best option and Dave was trying to figure out if he wanted to put it on eBay or not.

This brings us to yesterday evening. While I was cooking dinner Dave went out and started mowing the backyard. He didn't get very far when a man pulled up and asked him if he would consider selling the Impala. So Dave and this man negotiated a fair price. The man gave us $500.00 as a down payment and said he would be back in afew hours with the rest of the money. Sure enough a few hours later he came back and off AWSME 69 went.

Dave wont admit it but I know he was sad to see her go as was I. Even though Dave hadn't done much with the car it felt like she had become part of the family. Dave had allot of dreams for that car. Maybe one day when we have more money and he has more time he can find another one but for now this was the smart decision and the money we received for it will more than help us out.

So Goodbye AWSME 69 we will miss you!

PS: When we first got the car we went and purchased custom plates for it that said AWSME 69.

Busy, Busy, Busy

This weekend has been so busy for us Wilson's and I am starting to feel the affects.

Yesterday the kids and I met my mothers at the mall. She still hadn't bought any shoes or jewelry for the wedding next weekend, so I went to help her. We found a really cute Blue Topaz necklace and earnings for her to wear. It's not the pearls she wanted but I really think the Blue Topaz will look better with her dress. No luck on the shoe front, she has this picture in her head of what she wants but I think it only exist there.

Then we all headed off for the hair salon. I had our lady cut Ian's really short, shorter than we have done before. He looks really cute, but not so little anymore. It's amazing how a hair cut can make you realize just how big your kids are getting. I also got mine trimmed and she gave it a slightly different look since my stacked bobb has become so popular here recently. Grandma Do Do got hers cut to but it's the same as usual.

After the hair cuts we went off to dinner and then came home. It was about 7 by the time we got home so it was baths and bed for the the kids. I however had some cleaning to do and I made my grocery list for today.

This morning it was kind of rushed, we had a birthday party for the daughter of one of the girls in bookkeeping and it was at 10:30. Of course stupid me wasn't thinking yesterday and I hadn't bought a birthday present yet. So I rushed around here to get the kids and I ready and we went to Walmart before we headed over to the party. The party was at the skating rink which my friend Jenn's husband runs (Jenn is also in book club). The kids had a blast, Emma actually skated by herself but Ian wasn't so sure. Ian ended up spending most of his time playing the different arcade games with Andrew (Jenn's son who is 19 days older than Ian and they go to the same sitter). In my rush to get to the store this morning I completely forgot to grab my camera so once Jenn sends me the ones she took I will post them.

After the party the kids and I headed back to Walmart to do the dreaded grocery shopping. I usually go Friday nights after Dave gets home and the kids are in bed so I don't have to deal with the packed isles and long lines. Shopping around 1 this afternoon made me realize what I good idea it is to go on Friday nights.

Of course once we got home I had to bring all the groceries in and put them away. Then I had to put Ian down for his nap. I have started some laundry and mopped the kitchen, breakfast nook, and bathroom floors. Now I am finally sitting down to relax for about an hour then it will be time to start dinner.

In case you were wondering where Dave has been this weekend, it was his weekend to work so that has left me with the kids by myself. I really hate these weekends.

Well I hope all of you had more of a chance to relax and enjoy your weekends than I did!

Still haven't decided who to vote for

So I was reading some blogs and I came across this and thought it was so funny I just had to use it. Hope it helps!

"We in Denmark cannot figure out why you are even bothering to hold an
election.

"On one side, you have a bitch who is a lawyer, married to a lawyer,
and
a lawyer who is married to a bitch who is a lawyer.

"On the other side, you have a true war hero married to a woman with a
huge chest who owns a beer distributorship.

"Is there a contest here?'"

Suffocating

Can anyone explain to me why it is toddlers and husbands find it necessary to sit right on top of you wherever it is you are sitting?

I think I have moved to a new spot in my living room about 5 times in the last hour because one or both of my children have pretty much sat on top of me and are refusing to move. Their knees, elbows, arms, and legs always seem to find the most uncofortable place to rest as to inflict the most pain on me. Even my husband came over and laid on me after about the third time I got up and moved away from my kids.

I love them all to pieces and I don't mind cuddling but sometimes it makes me feel like I'm suffocating. All I want to do right now is relax and read some good blogs, but that doesn't seem to be acceptable this evening. I might explode here very soon, bedtime can't come fast enough!

Ok rant over.

Friday's Foto Finish Fiesta

Ok this weeks picture is of my kids again. This was taken this past Halloween. In September I asked my daughter what she wanted to be for Halloween and she immediately responded with an Ohio State Cheerleader!

Of course being a huge Buckeye fan I was beyond proud of her for this and was thinking to myself how cute it would be if Ian was an Ohio State football player. For some reason I decided to ask Emma what she thought Ian should be and again instantly she said Brutus the Buckeye. I hadn't even thought about that being an option and I knew that is what he had to be. There was a problem though, no one makes Brutus costumes that small so I had to make his myself.

I must say that his costume turned out much better than I could have ever wanted and we were stopped so many times by people wanting to take there picture with him and asking me where I got the costume. I was a very proud mother that night. Of course to finish it off both Dave and I wore our best Buckeye gear.

If you want to participate in Friday's Foto Finish Fiesta visit Candid Carrie site for all the details.

Weekly Wieghtloss Update: On Vacation

Ok So there isn't much to report this week because I took a vacation from dieting and exercising.

After my evening with the kids Monday night I had no energy to workout and that seemed to carry over into Tuesday so I decided to take a vacation.

I am proud to say that even though I ate whatever I wanted this week and didn't exercise once I did not gain any weight.

I will be back at it Monday and I am hoping that this little break will help me losoe these last 3 pounds.

Wish me luck!

Bath Time!

When is it that bath time goes from being one of the best parts of the day to just another thing you have to do?

I am serious with this one. When I tell my kids it's time for baths they race each other to the bathroom and see who can be the first one to get all their clothes off and into the bath even when I haven't started running the water.

For me taking a shower is something that takes time away from doing other things that need to be done, and it has become just another item to add to my list of daily chores that is way to long anyway. Don't get me wrong here once I'm in the shower I love being there because of it's relaxing qualities, as long as my kids, husband, and the dog stay away from the bathroom door. I guess I'm just wondering when it was that I stopped thinking that this daily activity was the best thing ever.

I know there are women out there that love to take baths but not me. I remember loving it as a kid but that changed at some point I just don't remember when. Am I the only one that thinks this (very possible because I am a bit weird)?

* I just wanted to say that I thought about using one of the really cute pics I have of the kids taking a bath but I decided to save that for a time when it will embarrass them the most. Isn't that what moms are supposed to do?!*