Best of Friends

???

2011-07-03T11:07:00.000-07:00

i have been a slacker.
i'm working on getting back to blogging...but for now i'm working on some personal things. i've started another blog where i am putting my focus for the time being. the things i write in there are very personal. from my heart. i expose myself 100% and don't plan on holding back. i don't feel it's appropriate for this blog...don't know why exactly, this blog has been about me, it's not just my family blog but it is mine...however the other one is more raw. i don't want to be judged. i need to let some things out. it's a healing blog for me. so until i feel better, i'll be living around there. i'll come back to here someday. and likely, well hopefully, i'll be on here to get caught up and post some cute pics that i have.

cheers to the journey of life.

changing my name

2011-03-28T13:00:00.000-07:00

after much debate and consideration, i think i must change my name. no, no, not my last name but my first name. i think it should be grace. kinda pretty huh?

my mom has teased me that i used to be her little ballerina, and aren't ballerina's graceful? well as each year passed (now this is when i was much younger) i became more and more of a clutz and my mom would tease that it was a good thing she didn't name me grace. for the last few years i have been rather impressed with myself and assumed that stage of my life was over. i was regaining some "grace".

well, of course my luck ran out. a month or so ago i ate it while walking on campus. a nerve got pinched in my hip and gave me no warning what-so-ever and i went face first into the snow. fortunately there was snow. everyone around assumed i had just slipped on the ice. no big deal, my hip (the pinched nerve) was killing me and this exact thing had happened just a few days earlier where I couldn't stand for nearly 15 minutes, however i was at home when it happened. so being in the middle of the sidewalk at school i quickly looked up to the heavens and pleaded that i be able to stand at least this day. it hurt and was difficult but i managed to get my butt up.

i was feeling good this morning. got up early. ate breakfast. was on time and didn't need to rush. yes, it was a good morning, a good start to the week....that is until 8:10 am hit just moments after i stepped off the trax. I was crossing the busy street up by campus, you know the one where the VA hospital is, and just east of there are all the big medical centers...and you know at this time there is a BUNCH of traffic. so anyways, i was feeling good almost to the point of whistling...until my body lunged forward, my feet did some dance that they were never trained to do for about 10-15ft and then SMACK and the awful sound of brakes screeching on a car! my feet didn't rescue me, instead they attracted everyone around attention leading in for the grand finale. i somehow managed to not only fall in the street but i did some acrobats. you know, if you're gonna fall might as well make it worth it?! i somersaulted. not sure how, but i did with my extra large back pack on.

I laid there for a minute, wide-eyed, mouth slightly ajar and then realized i better get up before i hear more screeching brakes.

Normally, this sort of thing doesn't embarrass me much. I can usually laugh a sincere laugh....but today's display of my lack of grace was anything but "normal". i was mortified. while i laid there i honestly had hoped someone would rush over and help me up, so that i'd at least have a laughing partner, one with whom i could pretend that i wasn't so embarrassed. but i never saw an extended arm, only blue sky. so i bravely lifted my neck (the whole time wishing the darn car would've just hit me) and saw people standing with their hands over their mouths. really? did they think they could disguise the fact that they were laughing at the performance I had given? the girl who was closest mustered out "ah, ah, arrre (hee hee) yyyou ok? (hee hee)"
I smiled and nodded with my eyes closed.

i kicked my feet, as if i were shaking the humiliation from me, grabbed my cracked water bottle, and whatever pride i could muster up at that point and turned myself around to continue walking to class.

it was over. it happened. now get over it i told myself for 50 minutes that should have been spent learning about databases. after class i took a deep breath and started my walk across campus to my next class. during my walk, i felt someone grab my arm and a sweet voice ask if i was ok. i looked at her with question in my eyes and she explained that she had seen me earlier but was laughing too hard to help me. i busted up laughing and assured her that i was fine; other than a few scrapes and bruises and that big old dent in my pride.

serves me right i guess. last semester a boy was riding his bike around campus and for no apparent reason he went over the handle bars and fell to the ground, his books flew into the air and scattered like confetti. I couldn't help but burst out in laughter. today it was karma, complete karma.

i have pics finally....and ALOT OF RAMBLING

2011-03-08T20:01:00.000-08:00

As if I didn't have enough on my plate to worry and fret about right now (financially speaking), I figured it was time to take myself on a mini vaca...ok so really I had just come home (well was on my home) from a weekend in St. George when it hit me that I needed a real vaca, not helping someone move and spending my entire weekend cleaning (which is a whole other story).

Let me back up a few years. lol. not really but..so 2 years ago one of my very bestest of friends moved to AZ and I have yet to visit her there. The last few months I have desperately needed some sort of distraction from HERE (not that life here isn't wonderful and full of joy, but sometimes despite all the blessings there is a whirlwind of disaster too) . So like i said i decided on the way home from st. george that no more waiting for me to get a job (that's what i kept telling myself, once i got a job i could go) because i realized that once i had a job and school going how the hell would i ever find time to get away. it was now or never...well ok i hope not really but I NEEDED it so i tried to logic it that way. i text krissie sunday afternoon and asked what her plans were for the following weekend. her response was to spend it with me. we were on the same page. i decided to leave thursday and come home sunday. only missing 2 days of class, which i had talked to my professors and found out nothing was really going on anyways.

I told my friend tj my plan...ok back up a little bit here too. tj is my little helper right now. he is my best friend (among a few others). he sees something in me that not many people see and pushes me to fight for it. he is the one who got me in counseling (which thinking of, i need to get back to doing that) and has paid for it all. he is who i was in st. george with, it's his family that lives there and his sister that we were helping move.

So, on with my story...i told tj my plans of going to AZ (which we had talked about before because his brother lives there and we thought that eventually we'd make it down together to see both his brother and krissie) --sorry this story is messy because i like to tell all parts, so another side note, tj is staying with his family for....um....we don't know, until he feels like coming back north or until work starts back up.--tj, is also my little protector, i'm not allowed to drive in snow, walk across the street to the grocery store after dark, stop in "shady" areas of town, or anything that could possibly be "unsafe" (secretly i really like this, no one has ever really cared before) so with that being said, he of course opposed to my driving me and the kids all the way to phoenix and requested that we pit stop in st. george and pick him up and he would drive us the remainder of the way.

thursday morning at 5:58 am zaden and i backed out of the driveway and headed to ivy's dads to pick her up and were off. we made awesome time, the kids were outstanding, i think they are born to be little road-trippers (wahoo) they never fussed or whined or anything so the drive was rather pleasant. UNTIL we got off the freeway on st. george blvd and zaden puked all over. luckily tj's brothers house was less than 5 minutes away so i called and told them to be ready for me with towels.

after a bath and an hour of playing we loaded back into the car and set sail for AZ.
(the kids were begging me to take pics of them, how could a momma say no?)

(This made me laugh, the kids were being super super quiet so i turned around and
they were both sleeping with blankies on their heads.)

it was little sotera's 6th birthday thursday (i had thought it was on saturday, oops) so we surprised her and claimed to be her birthday present. she was thrilled and so surprised. I had SO much fun. it was nice to just relax and be around good company. we didn't make ourselves super busy sightseeing or anything, which was fine by me, all i needed was krissie time.
(i know this is the ugliest or goofiest pic of myself but i had to post it because right
before i snapped it tj warned me to not close my eyes)

(i really don't think this one is any better though,
my eyes are open but they are super exhausted after no sleep the night before)

(oh he is so funny, so funny i think i had drink coming out of my nose.)

(we played wits and wagers, tj's favorite game, and during it krissie and chad started
marking each other, thank goodness it wasn't sharpies that we were using)

(our last day we decided to let the kids do something extra fun and took the to the fountains)
(zaden absolutely loved it, he wouldn't get out)

(on the way home, we were stuck in a pretty bad blizzard and the kids were so good,
well i found out why when i turned around and saw this...thank goodness for girl scout cookies)
(little miss did so good at cleaning up chocolate boy for me so i could focus on the snowy roads.)

some, i'm sure, have judged me for taking this trip (you know me being a financial mess and not having an income and crying about bills all the time) but the gas money was well worth the recharge i got. krissie talks openly to me, tells me what i need to do but in a way that is out of love and kindness and full of respect. things were said to me that made me feel so much better about myself, who i am (which by the way i felt more alive there then i have in so long), what i deserve, and how i need to go about getting it.

this trip was better than that even (can you believe it?? could it seriously get any better?) tj and i had a few good conversations too. we cleared a few things out of the air between us, and krissie had a big old chat with him (he's only known this downer moody sad girl) about who i am and what i need from him. he couldn't quit saying how lucky i was to have a friend like that. a true TRUE friend. someone who deep down to their soul cares. and he pointed out another friend of mine whom he believes cares the same so i'm twice blessed there. and you know what I AM!!

I was super sad to leave, i called her house my paradise. it was perfect weather, i didn't have to really worry about or entertain the kids, i laughed so much, i started to come back to life even if just ever so slightly...

i thank you krissie and chad for allowing me a minute to get away from my reality and be able to enjoy life. thank you tj for driving us there safely and taking such good care of us always. and thank you dear Lord for my friends! for their rescue, for allowing me to remember what really matters in life.

My OH my!! Time for a change huh?!

2011-02-15T18:57:00.000-08:00

Honesty moment for a minute. For the past few months (far too long) I've allowed myself to become subject to an awful enemy, depression. I hate it, yet when it started coming on I really did try to fight it. I thought at times that I had succeeded but then there are other times that I can't hide from it any longer.

I just went through 2 years of my blog, which wasn't really that hard to do because i've slacked off so much, but looking at the pics my smile was so much brighter. The words I wrote were much happier. hmmm...makes ya think for a minute, and then it makes me get down right upset with myself. Don't get me wrong because i know that i have SO MUCH to be eternally grateful for. But i suppose I just "like" to dwell on the rest.

I've started a class, like counseling somewhat, about self-analysis and getting to truly know yourself. It's been interesting so far. But after seeing my blog I AM SO READY to find happiness again. I miss smiling and laughing til I pee my pants.

So, here's your warning: Soon, very soon (with the help of big man upstairs) I will be the goofy adult with so much zest for life that I will be skipping and singing through parking lots. I'll be the wacko rocking out to her music in her car. I'll be the person who you will wonder why I'm smiling (what's tucked up my sleeve).

(oh see just the thought of that makes my mouth corners turn up...so goal for tomorrow: skip to class. LOL)

here's my favorite song lately. The lyrics just speak to me, maybe you'll like it too.

Do you ever feel like a plastic bag; drifting through the wind; wanting to start again.
Do you ever feel, feel so paper thin; like a house of cards; One blow from caving in.
Do you ever feel already buried deep; Six feet under scream; but no one seems to hear a thing.
Do you know that there's still a chance for you; cause there's a spark in you.
You just gotta ignite the light; and let it shine; just own the night; like the fourth of july.
'cause baby you're a firework; come on show 'em what you're worth; make 'em go "oh, oh, oh!"; as you shoot across the sky.
baby you're a firework; come on let your colors burst; make 'em go "oh, oh, oh!"; you're gonna leave 'em fallin' down.
you don't have to feel like a waste of space; you're original, cannot be replaced; if you only knew what the future holds; after a hurricane comes a rainbow.
maybe the reason why all the doors are closed; so you could open one that leads you to the perfect road.
Like a lightning bolt; your heart will blow; and when it's time, you'll know.
You just gotta ignite the light; and let it shine; just own the night; like the fourth of july.
'Cause baby you're a firework; come on show 'em what you're worth; make 'em go "oh, oh, oh!", as you shoot across the sky.
Baby you're a firework; come on let your colors burst; make 'em go "oh, oh, oh!"; You're gonna leave 'em all in awe.
Boom, boom, boom; even brighter than the moon, moon, moon; it's always been inside of you, you, you; and now it's time to let it through.
'Cause baby you're a firework; come on show 'em what your worth; make 'em go "oh, oh, oh!"; as you shoot across the sky.
Baby you're a firework; come on let your colors burst; make 'em go "oh, oh, oh!"; you're gonna leave 'em all in awe.
Boom, boom, boom; even brighter than the moon, moon, moon; boom, boom, boom; even brighter than the moon, moon, moon.

"Firework" - Katy Perry

DO NOT EVER

2010-12-27T17:59:00.000-08:00

and I MEAN EVER get the Depo provera shot!!

Pardon my french here, but I need to bitch for a minute.

If you know anything about my "femaleness" you know I've had problems forever with hormones and such. Well I finally decided to do something about it, I'd been having my period about every 10 days for about 10 days (ICK), and went to get on some birth control. Since I have no insurance I went into planned parenthood, spoke with an assistant who suggested the best form of birth control for me would be the shot. They stuck my arm THEN the Dr came in and shared some of the side effects with me. I used some bad words with the doc, I was so upset!!

My memory isn't as good as it once was, and when the assistant suggested the shot I specifically asked her if it would make me gain weight because I thought I had heard that a lot of people gain an excessive amount of weight on the shot. She assured me that was untrue. Sold me on the damn thing...but when the dr came in AFTER I was loaded full of the medicine she told me that I will likely have an excessive weight gain (oh, same exact words I used when asking about it) and likely get acne...I was pissed. I pointed to my face and showed her that I absolutely do not need help with acne, for some reason I'm suffering from it already and what girl wants to know she's going to have weight gain??

Who in their right mind, knowing those side effects, would ever chose this?! I wouldn't have ever. Well, that was 7 weeks ago. In the first 2 weeks I had gained about 5 lbs, and fortunately I'm hovering right around there ever since. My acne actually is getting a little bit better I only have about 9 (yes i just counted) pimples.

But sad thing is, those are not the worst side effects. I'm so freaking crazy now!! I feel like I'm losing my mind, control of myself. I see no good anymore. It's hard for me to smile. I hate life. I have pity parties almost daily with myself. I only focus on what struggles I have right now...THIS IS NOT ME!! Not that I'm miss sunshine and rainbows all the time, but I promise I like to smile. I miss smiling.

I have a very dear friend someone who is so patient with me and tries to understand me but this person is the one who sees the most ugly I can be. I feel like a little jack in the box and the crank on the side is turning and we are just waiting to see that scary clown pop out. You never can be too sure when it's coming and that's how I have been. One minute things are ok, I'm not in a bad mood (wish it was a good mood) and then a switch flips inside of me and the world comes crumbling down.

The worst part of all of this is I know that I'm being illogical and what I'm doing is not warranted however I allow those emotions and feelings to take control and get the better of me. That is what is so frustrating!!

After my last "BIG" freak out I ran into one of my closest friends at Target and I was telling her that it had been almost 24 hours and I was terrified to slow down because I feared if I did that I'd have another episode. She laughed as I told her of my rantings and stupid behaviors and said that something must be imbalanced because the way I was acting was so far from "trichelle". Then she asked if it could be my birth control...at that point I remembered another friend telling me about his friend who got on the shot and she'd went psycho for a year (he told me this without me telling him anything about my personal life). When I got home from Target I ran to the computer and googled it. Sure enough one of the most dangerous side effects is severe depression and that patients are supposed to have their mental health checked because if you have ever suffered depression you should not ever get this shot.

UGHH!!! I have 1 1/2 more months of this BS. I wish I could go sit in a sauna for all day every day until it's out of my system...I really feel like I'm losing my mind, losing control.

I've decided that once this is out, I don't care if I bleed every day for a year, I don't know if I can do anymore birth control.

time flies when you're having fun

2010-11-18T17:58:00.001-08:00

well, i don't know if i'd really consider the last few months "fun". I have had some absolutely fun times, but with that comes the opposite right?!
A brief recap of my life the past little while:
love
dwindled love
ivy turned 5
laughter galore
confusion
tears
re-prioritized my life/goals
trying to figure out who the hell i am
laughter
broken friendships
tears
concerts galore
tears
mini road trips
black eyes
my 30th birthday (ok really i'm 29 but 30 for some reason sounds better)
started school
homework
laughter
tears
homework
making new friends
homework
laughter
tears
girl talks galore
and more homework
......
and here I am today. Like that recap?! lol.
It's been a rough few months, lots of tears have been shed. however, there has been much laughter right along with all the tears. I've come to realize how truly blessed I am in my life with an amazing family (and I am including my friends in with my family because they are my family too). I have to admit that I am so thankful for all my trials and struggles because without them I wouldn't be who I am today (not to be read that I have it all figured out, nor am I the person I want to be, but I'm on my way there) I have learned to be more compassionate and understanding to the people around me. I try so hard not to judge others based off of stereotypes or ignorance to their circumstances. Everyone makes mistakes in their lives, yet I have learned that we can either choose to learn from them and better ourselves or we can surrender and let them get the better of us. And if someone surrenders (which I have done plenty of times, and I'm sure I will do a few more) we still cannot judge.
I am happy. I am finding myself. I have hope for my future and for my children's. I am embracing the opportunities God has given me and I hope not to let Him down.
A friend and I watched a movie and there was a line in it that I loved: when one story ends it's so another can begin.
here's to the next story of my life. :)

best intentions

2010-05-21T09:43:00.000-07:00

alrighty friends, i know i totally suck at blogging lately!! So, today i really did have the best intentions to sit my tooshy on the couch and get to typing. I'm so far behind and there are so many good times to tell you all about. But!!!!! As I got to organizing my pics, it's taken me over 2 hours already, and I'm probably only half way through :( BOO!!! If only facebook (I upload all my pics to there) would work a little better today, I could get this going...but it isn't, so I shall put off blogging for another day when I don't have to sit here crying over these pictures taking so long.
Until then....CHEERS my friends

Mom, Mommy, Momma, Mother

2010-05-11T07:52:00.000-07:00

The greatest title in my life that I could ever be given is MOM (or any of the synonyms).

My greatest joy in my entire life has been the moments spent with my beautiful children. I remember the feelings of unconditional love in amounts I was completely unaware a human being could experience the moment each of their sweet bodies were laid on my chest for that very first time. It amazes me how in that instant you would give your life for this tiny creature you met only moments ago. The love is unreal.

As they grow and develop their little personalities I can't help but love them more. They are what brings pure joy to my life. We may have our differences and get frustrated with each other from time to time, yet they have this ability to take away all the pain. Nothing heals like the sweet laughter of a child, the slobbery kiss of your baby, or the tender words of "momma, i'll protect you, it'll be alright".

I never thought being a mom would be such a rewarding and coveted job. I can't imagine my life without my children. I thank the heavens each day for blessing me with my two little angels.

Also, since becoming a mom you suddenly realize all that your own mother has gone through for you. I have a new respect for my mom and all other moms out there. You are a miraculous being. Often times I know my mom feels like she didn't do things quite right or questions her abilities as a mom...MOM, you are the best!! God sent us to you for specific reasons. Each mom has her strengths and weaknesses, but the ability to love her children and care for them is definitely among the greatest of her strengths. I love you mom!! Thank you for teaching me all that you have, for being an example of the type of mom I hope to be.

Perfection

2010-05-01T07:40:00.000-07:00

Main Entry: per·fec·tion
Pronunciation: \pər-ˈfek-shən\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English perfeccioun, from Anglo-French perfection, from Latin perfection-, perfectio, from perficere

Date: 13th century

1 : the quality or state of being perfect: as a : freedom from fault or defect : flawlessness b : maturity c : the quality or state of being saintly
2 a : an exemplification of supreme excellence b : an unsurpassable degree of accuracy or excellence
3 : the act or process of perfecting

I honestly thought that when I looked up the word perfection in the dictionary I would find a picture of Joe. Perhaps if I'd used a picture dictionary instead of merriam-webster I would have.

Joe is a "perfect" person. I know that you may think there is no such being besides Christ and you technically are correct...however aside from walking on water and a few other attributes; Joe is right there near perfect.

This guy is amazing. Everything he does is for someone else's benefit, never his own. He loves to see me or the kids or our family or friends smile and so he will do anything for them to bring them happiness. He is completely selfless. He gives and gives and never asks for anything in return. He defends those he cares about and loves much at his own expense. Joe is a hard worker. Joe loves his family above anything else. Joe understands each of our needs/wants and does everything in his power to meet them.

I feel so truly truly blessed to have met Joe and very lucky that he gave me a chance.

I LOVE YOU!!

shoot for the moon

2010-04-20T20:58:00.000-07:00

You know that saying shoot for the moon, even if you miss you'll land among the stars?

I know I claimed to be on a journey to becoming a domestic diva or something of the sort. And I tell you I honestly thought I could do it....How hard could it be right? Cook dinner, clean house, keep the weeds out of the garden/flower bed/lawn, sew my children's clothing, craft my little heart away, keep up on blogging, and say "yes dear, let me rub your tired feet after a long days work".

Well as you can see from the lack of posts...I gave up. MAN O MAN being a woman is tough work. LOL.

I shot for the moon, missed, missed the stars on my way down and I landed back on the couch. BOO!!! Well....I didn't let that get me down (all the way). I decided to start it up again, . Wahoo. I have cooked a dinner (with side dishes and all the trimmings) every night, I worked on a few fun crafts, started the sewing (read: looked at it and organized fabric into piles), pulled weeds and hand tilled part of the front lawn, forgot about blogging but I did start reading (which I haven't done in years) a really good and BIG book, instead of rubbing my "dears" feet I rub his back and after all that I'm exhausted and getting pudgy.

As I stood and checked myself out this morning, as I do every morning I noticed my clothes are fitting a bit more snug, and there's pouches of cushion were I don't really need it....I understand on the bum (if only I could gain some there and the chest), but c'mon who needs cushion on the belly? NOT I!! So after seeing the results of my cooking efforts, I think I might be ready to go back to eating ramen, spaghetti, and pb&j sandwiches. So much easier!!

I haven't gotten the crafting done fast enough, I wanted to have a boutique oh um last month. LOL, and now the holiday items are passed..might as well give up on that one.

The rest of my goals follow this same pattern...

It is SO completely overwhelming. How do all of you do it?!! Did God short me out on some "oomph" and motivation and skills that it takes to make it from day to day being domestic? Cuz for me I'd rather sit on the couch stalking all these blogs, having lunch with my girlfriends, shopping for some new shoes, and enjoying treatments at the spa. Sounds like I'd make the perfect millionaire huh?! I know right? I totally agree, I would. Wonder what went wrong there?

Anyways,

Perhaps that will be the positive thing of me going back to work. I won't feel so obligated to do all those wonderful chores that could make me feel like a domestic goddess. Until I talk to Cindee, the world's greatest working mom (no kidding either, she's awesome even if she wasn't a working mom, but that makes her job even harder). Works full time but is on top of it all; now that's just depressing. But I could look at it on the bright side: She is human and I know her, tabloids haven't created her perfect image. She's my moon.

Thoughts....and a field trip

2010-04-16T09:28:00.000-07:00

So as we've come to the conclusion that we are most definitely PRO homeschooling, I've started to get really terrified at the prospect of doing it. It's such an overwhelming task, I mean if it all works out and we enjoy doing it, my children's education depends all on me!! Can we say pressure?!
I have read book after book after about 10 other books....and I know deep in my heart it is what I truly want to do.
Little Princess is currently wrapping up her preschool year. She loves her school, she loves her teachers, and she loves her friends. Sometimes I feel like she will be deprived of all that, but then I have to remind myself that she will still have an education, I will be the teacher she loves, and she will have many friends through all the groups out there. She is very excited and onboard for the idea of homeschooling. She told her teachers that she can't wait for kindergarten because I will be her teacher. Her sweet teacher pulled me aside one day and asked if I was sure I could do it. She mentioned that her daughter tried to do it and she completely ruined her kids. I have no college education in the field and am really not qualified. I just smiled, winked and gave her hug and said it would all be ok. But regardless of the gestures I made, my head did start spinning. I stood there and watched Little Princess playing with her friends, and I of course doubted myself yet again.
But, regardless of all my doubts, fears, insecurities, and lets face it laziness is definitely up at the top of that list; I can't deny how my heart feels. I keep assuring myself that it's only kindergarten anyways, if I can't do it, if she doesn't like it, if it's too much stress well then I can just send her to first grade next year. Kindergarten isn't required so if she misses it in the Elementary program, she misses it. I am really excited though to see how this next year goes. Wish me luck. :)

I volunteered to help walk Little Princess's class on a field trip to the flower shop. Those kids are so dang cute, and very special. Little Princess had made wonderful friendships and she adores her friends. There are a few in the class who are starving for love. My heart aches when I am around them, but at the same time those little spirits are so sweet that they fill me with an overwhelming amount of happiness. They cling to any smile or kind gesture shown to them. I was able to walk with one little boy who needs the most love. He's so sweet and I just wanted to take him home with us. After that time walking with him, he always gives me the biggest hugs when I walk into and am leaving the class room, he always has a story to tell me and sometimes even a picture for me. I hate to think of what his life must be like at home, because he is a hard child to care for in the classroom and you can tell he just isn't cared for at home.

Anyways, back to the field trip....I hate when I get side-tracked, which happens frequently.
The girl at the flower shop was so cute with her presentation, she took the children on a tour of the retail part and explained what every little thing was and she went into a lot of detail; the kids loved it. When she took them in the back Little Man started acting up and so we didn't stay back there for fear of him grabbing a vase and throwing it.
The kids had so much fun, but we're completely exhausted after their outing. We arrived to the school with only 30 minutes left of class so I opted to take Little Princess home with me. She was quite upset with me, so I had to bribe her with an ice cream cone. Thank goodness McD's is right on our way home. Anyways, we had a fun field day.

My innocent daughter

2010-04-07T17:40:00.000-07:00

Teacher:"today we'll learn the differences between letters, words, sentences and punctuation.... ...at the end of a sentence is a period."

MY DAUGHTER: "ew, a period? a period? why a period at the end of a sentence? Teacher just exactly what is a period?"

Apparently in our home I've only taught my daughter about one type of period. LOL!! Poor child was completely disturbed learning about punctuation.

Christ is Risen

2010-04-04T07:33:00.000-07:00

I asked Little Princess why we celebrate Easter. Of course for a 4 year old her answer was right on....because that's when the Easter Bunny comes. I did laugh, but part of me was sad to realize that I sure haven't been doing my job at teaching my children the real meaning of these holidays that we celebrate. So, that is my new goal...to teach my children more about Christ and how his life has affected them and who HE is. I know He is my older brother, I know that He loves me unconditionally, that I am of worth and importance to Him. I am grateful to His life and the love he showed and the lessons he taught. I am most grateful for his atonement and his rising from the dead. I cannot even start to understand all that it signifies but, I do appreciate it as I know it was out of selflessness and for the rest of us. I will teach my children these things.

Little Princess woke up and couldn't believe her eyes, she came running down the stairs to tell us the Easter Bunny had stopped by. We all gathered in the living room to find what special treats he left for her. O-my-Goodness, Little Princess and Little Man sure got spoiled this year, must've been extra good or something. They got a cute little patio set for them, plus an extra chair for a special guest. Little Princess designated it right away for her friend Sotera. They also got gardening supplies (which I honestly don't know the first thing about gardening so we will all have to learn together) and then of course I had to put out their Easter outfits for them.

The kids were so cute playing at their new table. Little Man quickly realized he could put his feet up on it to rest. We had a very nice morning just lounging around. Daddy Joe went outside and spotted a few eggs, he rushed in to tell the kids that the Easter Bunny left them some eggs to hunt for.

Later in the afternoon we went to my parents for the big hunt there. It really is a fun hunt because every year it's done slightly different. This year the real eggs had symbols on them and signified a "winning"; however we didn't know about this before the hunt. The grandkids got an outfit with their eggs. Among the other prizes were: a new pair of shoes, a new dress, part of tuition paid for, a dinner out, a tank of gas, 4 packs of diapers, and I can't remember what else (see what happens when I delay blogging, I forget half of what happens). We all had so much fun. I love the holidays and spending them with family.

our first hunt of the holiday

2010-04-03T07:24:00.000-07:00

Justin called and invited me and the kids to join Natalie and Mya at an Easter Egg hunt at an elderly care facility. I love doing things like that with the kids, because they just love it. This Easter egg hunt blew me outta the water though, it was not what I had expected at all. There were so many eggs, SO MANY!! And even though there were plenty of kids, there were still 100 times more eggs and treats. Kimi was great and took Little Princess to her age group so I could be with Little Man on his first egg hunt. He was so funny, not quite sure of what to do, but he did love picking up the eggs and throwing them back down. The kids most definitely made out like little bandits, which is fun for them, but not so fun for momma....that is just a lot of temptation for me to deal with cuz we all know I LOVE sugar!

After the hunt they offered us a very yummy breakfast. There were eggs, hashbrowns, bacon, sausage, fruit, yogurt, donuts, and honestly I can't remember what else, but I know I left with a very full tummy!!

Thanks Natalie for taking us with you.

Another B-Day

2010-04-02T06:51:00.000-07:00

Have I mentioned I love birthdays? I didn't think so ;) Tonight was Dave's birthday! Adam arranged everything, dinner and then a night at Gracie's in Salt Lake. Adam likes to make birthdays special, just like I do, so it's no surprise there were plenty of balloons. Adam called me around 3 that day to see if I knew where to get some "certain" pans for him to make Dave a cake, Adam works til 4ish in West Valley, buy the pans, and then he would have to drive to South Weber to make the cake then drive back to SL for the party. He didn't have enough time and I knew it, so I offered to make the cake, seeing how I had a pan that would "cross our fingers" work.
Kimi (my little sis), my 2 kids, and I ran to the store to get the "decorations" for the cake and started baking. Luckily I made the cake, because I barely had time to get it finished (and I had to 2 extra hours). Kimi and I were quite impressed with ourselves and our cake making abilities.

And hey! don't judge, yes I had my little sister help, she even came up with some of the finishing touches. ;)
We had our car full driving down there. Dana, Amy, and my friend Ryan rode with us. Even though we were packed in there, we had a lot of fun just on the ride.
The bouncer at the door insisted that I go in with no cover charge, just for being such an incredible cake. HAHA, silly boys, but hey I wasn't complaining. The cake was a hit with our group too.
We had so much fun socializing, eating and dancing.
Joe had to buy shots of water for Dana and Ryan so they could have one shot for the night :) He also bought a prairie fart for Dave and his little brother John. I don't know what is in it, but it stinks just like a fart. SO DISGUSTING!!! They were champs though and able to take it, just the smell would've made me vomit.

Amy happened to be sitting in the chair where the balloons were tied so a man from the band came over with his harmonica and was playing for her. Of course none of us told him it wasn't really her birthday, but when he invited her up to the dance floor she grabbed Dave to go with her, and since it was only a day early for John's birthday he had to get up there too. There was another lady celebrating her birthday so she joined our friends and the entire place sang to them. After our musical disaster, they all danced.
At one point, it got a little dull, so what else is there to do then make your own fun. I love my girlfriends because we really can make so much fun for ourselves. We of course all had to go into the potty together, where we ended up taking a lot of pictures. We posed all over the place taking silly pics, our purpose was to make the battery on Adam's camera die...which we succeeded at. (this is the only pic I have from then...I guess I better start talking to mr adam and get the rest of them)

SUNSHINE

2010-03-28T06:36:00.000-07:00

The sun was shining today and we were tired of being trapped indoors, so what more perfect way to relish the sun than by going to the park (ok, so maybe I really could think of some more fun things to do...but this is close to the top of that list).
Little Man gets so excited when we tell him we are going bye-bye...and until he's buckled in and the car is moving, he gets really upset...maybe he thinks we are pranking him or something.

Little Man absolutely loves the park. He loves running around and swinging. He and Gunner (our dog) would race to get whatever it was Lover Boy would throw. Of course Little Man isn't half as fast as Gunner so he often got knocked over by Gunners wind and he raced by. It was so entertaining for me to watch the 3 of them play fetch.
I'm now anxiously awaiting the warmth of summer and being able to relax outdoors on a daily basis....man, life is good.

Girls night in

2010-03-20T06:24:00.000-07:00

Maria's boyfriend was going to Vegas for the weekend with his buddies so Maria decided it was the perfect opportunity to have the girls over to her place. I hadn't yet seen her darling apartment so part of the reason was to do just that....sad because she'd lived there like 6 months...hmmm, bad friend moment.
When you get us girls together of course all we do is chit chat, laugh, and sometimes cry to one another. This night was without exception. Dana and I were the first to arrive, then Deb, and Amy got there only minutes later. We just sat around and had a good old time, the conversation seemed to be more on the serious end, until Amy's cousin showed up. He and Amy are quite the team of jokesters. They had us all laughing til tears were streaming down our cheeks....oh and yes, we will still consider this to be a girl's night because he is gay after all. :)
Then right as Amy and her cousin were leaving she was saying "good-bye Deb, good-bye Dana, good-bye Maria, good-bye Trichelle" Eric, her cousin was already half-way out the door, he stopped, and almost shrieked "Trichelle?" We all just sat there like "yah, Trichelle!?" He didn't recognize me at all, you see I used to hang out with them quit a bit before Amy ever moved to Virginia nearly 9 years ago. I guess 9 years is a little bit of time :). Funny thing is though, I just saw him at Christmas; but that would explain why he was so "weird" towards me. hahaha. We all just sat there and laughed. In all fairness, I have changed drastically. Most people don't recognize me at first, so I wasn't too upset with him.

**and yes these pics are me au-natural. No make-up on and hair just pulled back...such a beauty I know, but when it's just the girls it's a-ok.

Friends Birthdays

2010-03-15T19:04:00.000-07:00

So 2 years ago when Steph moved in with me it was the week of her birthday. Her mom insisted that she didn't like to celebrate her birthday. So I figured I wasn't going to push it, you don't want to piss that chica off.

Well a week or so later I find out (from Steph) that she does like to celebrate birthdays. I felt so bad. So this year plenty in advance we planned on dinner on her actual birthday and then Wise Guys comedy the following weekend. Everyone showed up to the night we went to the comedy club. It was so much fun being with everyone! I love my friends. Steph is a true friend. She is a person who I can open entirely to and she won't judge me for one second. She's very good at seeing all sides of situations and giving advice. She does so much for everyone. And she has a sick sense of humor. By sick I mean this girl never stops, she is hilarious!!this was the only pic I took that night. Oops, I just like pics of myself apparently. hahaha

Then a few weeks later we celebrated Dana's birthday (which it was like a week and half early) by doing our tradition of Lava Hot Springs. I don't know why we love to drive all the way up there just for a couple of hours in the hot pots and drive back home, but we do and I wouldn't have it any other way. I'm really not much of a Hot Tub person, the heat gets to me too fast and I have to get out. But I still love to go :) Must be the company, ha of course it's the company. Again, I love my friends. This year after being in the pots for a little bit, we were hungry so we headed to the restaurant across the street. My eyes were surely bigger than my tummy. We ordered SO much food and it was delicious! I crashed on the drive home. It was a wonderful night.

Then on Dana's actual birthday I took her to lunch at El Matador. Maria and Little Man joined us....and I'm just noticing that Little Man is wearing the same shirt in nearly every post. I promise he does have other clothes, but obviously this is my favorite. hahaha pathetic. Anyways, Dana is sure a beauty isn't she?!! Look at that hair, and yes it is real! I love Dana, she's the kindest most Christlike person you will meet. She is my inspiration to be a better person. Love you!

Thank you friends for having birthdays! I love getting out and spending time with you:)

Disney on Ice

2010-03-11T19:47:00.000-08:00

Months ago when I first got the email about Disney on Ice, Lover Boy and I decided that we were going to take the kids. We get to purchase them before they actually went on sale for a very discounted price so we decided to invite all of the family. Well, since you know how I LOVE to procrastinate, the day I invited everyone was a day past getting the discounted tickets. So Justin and his family decided not to go and we thought the same thing.

Then a month or so later I got a call from my dad asking if I had plans on Thursday and if I'd like to go to Disney on Ice. I assumed he'd gotten confused and reminded him that I didn't end up getting the tickets. Apparently it was I who was confused. He'd bought tickets for our entire family to all go. And when Dad buys the tickets, he doesn't mess around. We were so close I could almost feel the ice shavings, ok so that might be exaggerating a little but seriously we were so close. When we go we always buy the nose bleed tickets, so this was truly a treat for us.

If you went early you could meet Princess Tiana, who is now a favorite at our house. Little Princess was so excited to go and she wanted to wear her Cinderella costume. To our surprise Cinderella was also there. She got to meet both of them (they stood on the stage and waved to all the eager little princess out there). Little Man did awesome. He loves cars and they were first out there. He sat and stared....which is amazing considering the show started one hour past his bedtime. Towards the end he was getting fussy and antsy, but all-in-all he did awesome. Little Princess loved it all, but mostly she loved her million dollar snow cone! A show in the Energy Solutions Arena isn't complete without that golden snow cone.

Thanks Dad so much for a fun family night!!

Jeeping

2010-03-07T19:28:00.000-08:00

Lover Boy has been dying to get out and take the jeep climbing. He asked me to make a date of it Sunday. Of course I agreed....I love dates. We asked Little Princess to come with us but informed her she'd have to miss church. I was pleasantly surprised when she said she'd rather spend the day with us. Don't get me wrong, I DO love the fact that she gets so excited to go to church, but I was thrilled when she picked us over church...ok, well I can't explain it without it sounding so absurd...I give up.

We packed us up some yummy lunch to have a picnic and headed up Farmington Canyon. We couldn't go all the way because the road was closed and covered in snow. When we'd barely started on the trail, my heart started racing, knuckles turned white and sweat was flowing in my under arms...I realized just how deathly afraid I am of heights. I ducked many times to avoid seeing the steep edge right out my window, or the beautiful scenery of the Great Salt Lake confirming that we were in fact high up on the mountain. I think I even shrieked a few times. My hands were gripped to the handle and Lover Boys hand the entire time. Little Princess just laughed and said I was being silly because she's only 4 and she wasn't scared and that Little Man is only 1 and he isn't scared....Well child, I AM!! I kept begging Lover Boy to turn back around. Eventually we did have to turn around, PHEW!! We went a little lower and found a spot that went across the bottom of the mountain that had some huge puddles and a few spots to actually climb. It was so fun watching them splash through the puddles. We all had a great time. We enjoyed our day as a family having fun and admiring the beautiful world we live in. I really can't wait to go again.

Day with Gramma at the Treehouse

2010-02-24T18:47:00.000-08:00

Today we thought we'd take advantage of the last "free day at the zoo" for this season. I picked up Little Princess from her daddy's house and the snow was coming down pretty good. As the minutes passed, more snow kept coming. By the time we got to my mom's house it was pretty slick. We'd pulled out of the driveway and then at the stop sign that we should've turned right to get on the freeway, I decided that perhaps I wasn't up for driving in the snow, and better yet walking through it at the zoo. I turned left instead and suggested the Treehouse for that day. I'm sure glad we did that. It was nice and warm and the kids thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

Little Man was content to just stay in one place and play. He loved the little town with the cars and trains, however Little Princess knew that there was so much more to see so she didn't want to stay in one place for too long. Next we moved onto the farm area. Again, Little Man just wanted to sit and play with the tractors. The favorite area was hands down the classroom. Little Princess loved playing "teacher" and Little Man made a wonderful student. Before too long, the classroom was full with little minds ready to "learn". It was so cute to watch them all. I really enjoy watching my children play and their completely different personalities shine. Little Princess is a social butterfly. She loves to make new friends everywhere we go and loves to be all over the place. Little Man is more reserved, he's definitely a momma's boy (I LOVE IT) He's shy, but getting a little bit better, he won't scream if you look at him anymore however he will nuzzle his face into my shoulder but also give you a sly little smile. There is nothing more in this world I'd rather be doing than spending time with my kids. I try to teach them, however they teach me so much more. They are my life, my joy! I'm incredibly thankful to my husband for allowing me to stay home with them. Having me work would definitely make our life easier financially speaking, however he is so good to understand my desire to be home with our children that he works with me to lower our standard of living so that I can. I love him and appreciate his efforts!

It's time

2010-02-23T12:24:00.000-08:00

It's time for an intervention. Who loves me and cares enough for me to step forward and intervene?

Anything my hand touches, I lose. In December I had this problem with money. My cousin gave me some cash that I put in my pocket...throughout the night I kept checking to make sure it didn't move. Then when I got home to put the cash in a "safe" place, my pockets were empty. I searched the Jeep. Not there. I searched my pockets and found a hole. I retraced my steps coming from the car into the house and around the house...Nothing! Searched the Jeep again. Nothing. Joe searched the Jeep. I called my parents (we had been at their house) and they hadn't seen anything yet, my sweet mom dug through the bags of garbage (oh did I mention it was the family Christmas party with all the extended family) and she found nothing. The next day my mom thought she'd compensate for my loss and gave me some cash plus a little extra. She tucked it in my pocket while I was sitting in the drivers seat so I couldn't lose it. However the pocket she put it in was a small one that I have lost things out of before so I switched pockets. Immediately upon arriving home, it was gone. I frantically searched the car, it had to be there! Nope! By this point I couldn't hold back my frustrations any longer. I cried.

The next day my mom came over and searched my vehicles again. She found the $60 from my cousin deep under one of the seats (where I really did look a bazillion times), but not the $100. Heck, at least she found something. I told her that I did stop at my grandpa's to get a paper from him right after she'd given me the $100. She was on her way to his house after leaving my house, and .....SHE FOUND THE $100. YAY for moms!

The next few months I'd lost things here and there, most of which I eventually found. Then Feb 9th I took the kids to Great Grandma's for her birthday. On my way out the door I snagged the camera. However when we got to gramma's house I left the camera in the car because I forgot it while my arms were full of kids and whatever else. As soon as we got in the door, I mentioned how I'd brought my camera but it was in the car and good thing my grampa had his camera. Then we got home, I didn't want to leave the camera in the car incase (heaven forbid) someone might steal it. I put the strap around my neck, grabbed the baby, diaper bag and my purse. While unlocking the door, the camera swung and hit the door. (proof that I was taking it in the house). Once inside we had to rush to get dressed to get Little Princess off to Preschool. Later that night Lover Boy asked me where the camera was so he could get some pictures....hmmm...where did I put it?
I looked in the kitchen, nope, living room, nope, kitchen again, nope, bedroom, nope. hmmmm.....So I searched the kitchen. I opened every cupboard, drawer. Not in any of them. Not in the pantry. Not in the fridge. Not in the freezer. Not in the garbage. In the living room I lifted every cushion off the couches and chairs. Not under there. I moved curtains and checked the window seals. Not there. I moved furniture. I searched that room for over an hour. And considering how small that room is, that's a very thorough search. Onto the bathroom, perhaps it was still around my neck when I used the bathroom earlier that day. Did the same thorough search in there. Nothing. I searched our linen drawers and cupboards. Tore out all the blankets...grrrr...nothing, so I had to re-fold everything. I checked the kids' rooms. Tore through their drawers, bedding, toys, closet....still nothing! After 3-4 hours of panic and frustration I decided that it had to be here somewhere, I was certain I brought it in the house, I decided to rest in my room...But once I was in there I had to pull out everything. I went through every purse (I have a wall of them) and it wasn't hiding in any of those. I cleaned out the underneath of the bed. Nothing under there but dust. Pulled out everything from the closet. NO CAMERA ANYWHERE!! Sleep was all I could do at that point. I wasn't too worried, it was probably in the kid's closet deep in a toy bin that I didn't dig all the way through.
A few days later I was putting on a pair of boots from my closet and my foot wouldn't quite fit in...well that's because my camera was in there. How on earth did it get there? I don't even want to know.

Well today it's happened again! But this time it isn't something small and camouflage like a dollar bill. It isn't even medium sized like my camera. It's my steam mop.
How does one lose her purple steam mop? Only if your name is Trichelle and you've lost your mind somewhere along the way can this happen to you. Again I have searched everywhere. Not as in depth as when I searched for my camera because this thing is big. Not many places it can be hiding....Ugh. really? really? does this have to happen to me again?

All I can say is: Thank you God for understanding that some of us in this universe aren't as talented in the memory department so I thank YOU for attaching my head to my shoulders, my arms to my torso and making my body something that doesn't require assembly each morning. I have a hard enough time getting dressed properly....Once I went to meet some friends at a club, this club has strict dress code and although I had never been I was fully aware (that is why I have never been, I hate dress codes). I walked in, the security looked me head to toe then back up...then glanced down quickly. Shoes are the least of my concern because my shoe wardrobe consists of 50+ pairs of shoes and no more than 5 pairs are flats. I love "dressy" shoes. However when laughter burst from his lips I glanced down, and there I stood: Hair done, make up over-done, nice blouse, designer jeans....and dirty disgusting stained slippers. I forgot to change from my slippers to some shoes. Fortunately he had a sense of humor and when I explained I had just had a baby 7 weeks earlier he sympathized and let me enter. He must be a daddy and understand that the woman can lose her brain....but aren't we supposed to get it back?

Chow Down Boy

2010-02-18T18:37:00.000-08:00

My Little Man sure can eat. He loves to eat. He will eat anything and everything. There have been a few things that he doesn't like, but honestly I can't even think of what they are. He's such a good eater. He's even started insisting on feeding himself. Momma isn't too ready for that yet, it just makes such a mess! But it is so fun to watch his little legs kick and him get so excited for food. I just love this kid and could "eat" him right up. hahaha.

Happy Lovey Dovey Day

2010-02-14T18:13:00.000-08:00

I am one of those few people who absolutely loves Valentines Day. I know most people consider it to be a stupid holiday. Who needs a day to celebrate your love? Shouldn't every day be that day? Well, my response to that is: Most Definately!!! However, many of us (and I know I'm not alone) get caught up in the day to day life and sometimes neglect to show our significant other just how much we do love them and appreciate them. I like that there is a day to show this specifically. Now Lover Boy certainly could do without this day, but truth be told, my feelings would be somewhat hurt if he insisted that we not celebrate it. Not that I would take it that he doesn't love me...but he isn't one of those guys who sends flowers or leaves a note here and there; and that is perfectly fine. But a girl does need it once in a while, and once a year works just fine for me!

Lover Boy knows how to show his love to me in so many ways so come Valentines day it makes me heart the happiest that he thinks mostly of the kids. He came home Saturday with
a bouquet of balloons and a game for both children, a monster truck for Little Man and
a stamp set for Little Princess. That alone would've made my Valentine's Day. Hidden were my favorite flowers.
I love all Lilies. Calla Lilies are my very favorite, however the floral shop was out of them, so he got me the Pink Lilies that they had. They were so pretty and I was quite impressed that he remembered which flowers are my favorite. AHHH!

We had such a nice day, however once again let me reiterate how badly I hate sharing my child (yes, I'm very selfish). Little Princess was able to spend the day with her daddy, which I am glad for. She's fortunate to have 2 families who love her and value her. When she came home she was so cute and excited about the balloons. Balloons, they are the best! Little Man loved his monster truck (he loves anything with wheels and this is his first real truck from us, not from the dollar store). He cruised that thing around all day. Little Princess was so excited to use her stamps, however we made her wait one day due to the fact that she was brought home after her bedtime. We all hugged and just enjoyed each other and shared our love.

Lover Boy: I love you insanely!You have taught me so much. Each day I am amazed at the qualities you possess. You are so giving and never ask anything in return. You love me with your whole heart and I KNOW IT! I still feel like we are in the very beginning of our relationship (which we are, but...you know) when the butterflies are in the belly when you walk into the room. I get so excited each day when you call me on your lunch break. I love when I catch you watching me. You are so patient with me, I know I'm not an easy person to live with, to love, to listen to....yet you do without ever complaining. Thank you so much for being my best friend!! Without you I am not whole.

Kids Carnival

2010-02-06T13:30:00.000-08:00

I joined a group called Kids Club. It's so much fun! There is a daily calendar with lists of activities for your children to do. Most activities are very reasonable cost, if not free. Also by joining you get major discounts to all sorts of places. Our first activity we joined them for was a kids carnival. On the website it listed: bounce houses, mechanical bull ride, Hannah Montana impersonator, Harry Potter, Sleeping Beauty, valentine making for the soldiers, reptile encounter.

When we arrived Lover Boy and I were slightly disappointed. There were booths everywhere with all sorts of vendors (that's where they make their money) trying to get you to listen to their sales pitch. After being polite to the first few, we decided that we didn't want to be there all day long, so we weren't going to get roped into the rest of them.

Little Princess made a valentine for the soldiers first. She was so cute and excited to be doing it. Then we hurried to the bounce houses. They had a ton set up everywhere. When we heard that Hannah Montana would be arriving soon, we rushed over to the stage to get a seat because Little Princess is a HUGE fan of hers. As soon as she started singing Little Princess came over and said something along the lines of it not being Hannah Montana, just look at her mom! and listen to that voice. She was right, although from where we were I thought the girl looked like her, but surely didn't sound like her. So we went on to face painting and one more round on the bouncy toys.

We had a good afternoon, and despite my disappointment in all the vendors being there, I did get some great info on other programs.

My boy

2010-02-05T22:29:00.000-08:00

My Little Man is growing up far too quickly. I want to cry each time he says another word or walks a bit quicker, out of sadness and joy. He is such a blessing to me and I'm amazed each day watching him.

He is the HAPPIEST baby I know. He is always laughing, and his laugh will make you laugh to where your guts will bust. His laugh sounds so fake and forced but it is how he laughs and in some odd way you know it is his sincere honest to goodness laugh. We were out shopping last night and Little Man had a 3 lb weight in his had that he was lifting (oh-boy I can see it already, he's gonna be a meat-head. lol) then he decided to throw it out the cart at my foot. Luckily I jumped in time and barely missed getting a bruised toe. He laughed and laughed and laughed, at which point how can I avoid laughing? Then I hear a woman (not too close by) laugh and a man join in, was this a coincidence or where they laughing at my boy? Within seconds their heads came popping around the aisle and said "O-my that little boy has the cutest laugh I have ever heard" He really does, it's so deep and LOUD!

The other day I took him and his big sister on their first excursion to the public library. He was tickled pink. He couldn't hold his laughter in his little belly. He laughed and laughed. Every head turned to us, my panic instantly hit that we were being such a disturbance to everyone else and I immediately hushed him...which hushing him doesn't work, he finds that hilarious. He burst out again, and that time I figured I'd let him laugh, maybe it'd brighten someone's day and if anyone had a problem with it hopefully they'd give me a look or come tell me or tell a worker on me. We never were asked to leave so we stayed and I listened to Little Man laugh for 1 1/2 hours. Pure delight!

Little Man is terribly shy! It is one of my favorite things about him. I don't know why, because the opposite characteristic is what I love about Little Princess. His soft head nuzzles deep into my shoulder and tucks his face away, he will try to peek out but clenches onto that fat on my arm...that must be why God gave me that, must be the reason right?...usually when he gets attention while we are out and if he is not being held (ie in a shopping cart, highchair, or walking) he will start screaming! He doesn't like all the attention he gets. But, without fail he will get attention from nearly everyone who sees him or hears him. He's a beautiful little boy and there is no denying it. His big blue puppy dog eyes with eye lashes cleopatra would've killed for make every girl go crazy.

Little Man idolizes his big sister. He loves to play with his cars and "boy" toys while sister is at pre-school, but as soon as she gets home he wants to play with barbies, babies, ponies, pom-poms and make-up, many of which are his idea to play with, it's not like he just wants to join in. When big sister walks into the room Little Man is in, his face beams the biggest smile followed by his boistrous laugh. His first word, well after daddy, was IVY. He adores her and asks for her as soon as he wakes and all day while she is at school. She loves him too and loves to try to help him walk and stand (which he can now do on his own, but she likes to help).

Little Man loves our dogs. Mostly Molly cuz she'll get up in his face and cover him with kisses (which I do have to hold back, because he'll be dripping with slobber but loving it and keep sticking his face right in the line of fire for more, EWWWWW but he loves it so I hold back for about 30 seconds and then call it quits), when Gunner is around Little Man will chase him all over. One of his first 5 words was dog-gy. I love it....so cute.

If you ever need a boost to your day spend 5 minutes (actually it might take more like 30 for him to warm up to you fully) with Little Man. He's a ray of sunshine!

Love Letter

2010-02-05T22:07:00.000-08:00

TO my dear lovely Spring,

Would you be my valentine? Please come just a bit earlier this year. I promise if you come to spend my days outside, to laugh a little more, to eat healthier fresh foods, to attempt at gardening, to lather myself fully in sunscreen, to take care of my yard this year, to play more with my children! Isn't that bribe good?!! If you can't make our date tomorrow I fear I may be grouchy yet again, sit on my lazy bum, and sulk for my loss. I don't like being stood up, not one little bit. Don't make me beg, I hate to sound clingy and needy, but truth be told: I DO NEED YOU! I need bright color in my life. I'm sick of the white snow, the brown mud, and dingy looking cars driving the roads. I need green grass, blue sky, bright sunshine, freshly washed cars, newly painted doors, flowers blooming, bright colored sandals, and highlights in hair. I must soon hear all my chirpy neighbors, few have moved back but not all of the birdie family yet. I'm yearning for that beautiful music each morning as well as the smell of fresh cut grass, kicked up dirt and mostly a warm spring shower.

Please do not delay your response to my request. I'm anxiously awaiting your reply,

MRs. Impatient.

Movie Fanatic

2010-02-01T13:22:00.000-08:00

My Little Man loves his Disney movies. It amazes me how different my two children are. Little Princess did not care for television one bit until she was about 2, now I can't get her to turn the thing off. But Little Man is mesmerized by the music and colors and everything. When he is fussy and doesn't want to be held, doesn't want to play and is rather unsure of what it is he wants, the movies calm him right down. I know I know I shouldn't be sticking my child in front of the TV every time he fusses...but hey, sometimes ya gotta to keep a little bit of sanity.

The other day I was doing some housework and just getting frustrated with Little Man. Lover Boy came to my rescue. They whisked off into the bedroom...after awhile of complete quiet I thought maybe I should peek in and see what they were up to (usually you only do this when it's only children right? well I was just curious when it is Daddy and baby).

This is what I saw:

Another day when Little Man was just doing his thing:

Free Day at the Zoo

2010-01-27T12:56:00.000-08:00

In my homeschooling group they send emails daily about activities to do with your children. I guess the Hogle Zoo offers during the winter months a free day on the last Wednesday of the month. When I heard about it I figured that it'd be perfect to take the kids to, Wednesday is Little Princess's day off from preschool. I called Natalie to see if she and Mya would like to go with us and luckily Justin had the day off work so their family joined us.

It was very cold, so many of the animals were inside. We missed out on seeing most of my favorites, but the kids still had a fun time...well mostly. Little Princess has learned that "outings" mean treats and toys. All the little shops with food were closed. The train was closed too. That put quite a damper on her trip to the zoo. Fortunately Aunt Natalie was prepared with yummy Cheetos for the kids to munch on.

Little Princess was in control of the camera.

F

2010-01-26T15:22:00.001-08:00

There are moments in life when we are tested....Today I was faced with one, and might I say I failed miserably. Moments after the test I sit here and re-play it out....wanting to bang my head against a brick wall. Why didn't I pass that silly test? Why did I not focus on what I have learned and apply that knowledge? I DO know better, I should've aced it!!

Awful part of it all is until I do pass this test, there will be another one. *sigh*

These moments, these tests, do they define me? Do I show my true colors? Part of me fears this is who I am...but definitely not who I want to be.

Where does one begin when trying to ace that blasted test? I know it starts on the inside, and that is my least favorite place to be. There's too much in there. There's things I don't want to know about my self, things I don't want to admit. But I know that's where I need to start. I can compose myself enough on the outside to put off the appearance that "why yes of course I can pass that test", but when it comes down to the wire time for the test which is more like a pop-quiz with no warning, the inside of me is shown, the inside that is untouched un-composed.

I've made one change as of this last week, it might be a small change but I think it's one of the biggest changes I could make and will only get bigger as time passes. I prayed. First time in almost 3 years. It was a small prayer, not a day long prayer, not one where I really needed something big, just a prayer to let my Father know I was still here. Don't get me wrong because I have always believed in God, never felt his absence and continued to say small prayers but my heart wasn't truly there. I abandoned Him. I felt so unworthy of His blessings in my life that I quit asking for them. I would ask for blessings for others but not myself. I know that God loves me, He loves all His children. But there was something inside of me telling me I was not good enough to pray, not good enough to ask for His help in my life. I won't get into the details of it all, because there are too many and I fear offending anyone or giving off the wrong impression.

I know that change only works from the inside out, I can't change my "answers" to life's tests without first changing the inside. Perhaps I needed this test today to get me working on it all a little bit faster. I canNOT fail it the next time...but hopefully it won't be for a long time.

Another conversation with a very insightful 4 yr old

2010-01-08T16:22:00.000-08:00

"Mom, can we say what we are thankful for?"

"Sure sweetie"

"Ummm...I'm thankful for my little brother"

"Oh, good sweetie, and I'm thankful for my two little kiddos"

"I'm thankful for the toys Santa brought for me"

"I'm thankful for Daddy Joe"

"Oh mommy that's a really one. God made you marry him and that was very good of God, huh?! He's kinda smart and knows stuff to make you do. Anyways, I'm thankful for my compooter."

At this point I had to call a time-out on the game so I could document this. So sweet!

Figured it out....hopefully!

2010-01-08T07:48:00.000-08:00

Well for about the last week Little Man has woke up screaming every night between 10-11:30 p.m. I usually try to let him cry it out, which in the past has worked. He'd fuss for a maximum of 5 minutes and gfro right back to bed....and it was just a small soft fuss. But like I said this last week he is SCREAMING. A blood curdling scream, the first time I sat and listened in shock when I heard it and then raced up the stairs. He was tossing wildly in his crib. When I reached out to touch him he scream louder. I tried to hold him, he'd arch his back and flip out of my arms. His sweet eyes that are usually so full of love were glossed over and seemed full of hatred. He seriously seemed possessed. There was absolutely no soothing my baby. My heart would just ache for him. What did I do wrong, why wouldn't he let me hold him, why wasn't my voice comforting him? After a few nights of torture and not knowing what to do, I surrendered. I sat one night in my bed while he laid up in his screaming and watched the clock. The minutes ticked by, after about 25 minutes (by this time he had just started coughing) I headed up the stairs. I got him some warm milk in a bottle and took it in with high hopes of being able to calm him down. Milk always works magic with my babies. However this night it had lost it's charm. He threw the bottle across the room and just glared at me with those bloodshot glazed eyes. They reminded me of a much older man's eyes. A man who had a life we would never want to believe existed and the only way for him to escape was through the use of drugs....that's what my baby's eyes reminded me of. I couldn't take it any longer. I put him back in his bed, placed his bottle beside him, and closed the door. I collapsed in the hallway. What could I do? I prayed. Prayed that whatever was happening would pass. If I was the one causing my baby such pain that I could change whatever needed it. I prayed for peace. Nothing happened immediately. Another 5 or 10 minutes passed with him screaming. Then he stopped. The next night it happened again. I knew there was nothing I could do, so I let him scream. After what feels like hours of screaming I began to question myself again...was I being a neglectful and selfish momma as I let him scream and I just sit there? Was I causing him some sort of pain and that is why I couldn't comfort him? My head was ready to explode...Then it hit me, maybe all of this is a night terror. I've heard a little about them, my friend's daughter experienced them...my head raced with how they treated it...was there something about music?? I couldn't remember. Then he stopped, so I decided to sleep and think about it the next day. The next day came, and of course with my "perfect" memory his episode didn't even cross my mind. After a few more days, these outburst of screaming that lasted about 30 minutes just seemed to become part of our nightly routine. Every night between 10 and 11:30 Little Man would scream.

During this same time, Little Man has refused REFUSED his 2nd nap of the day. It really doesn't work out very well for anyone. He used to take his first nap around 9, 9:30 and then his second around 2. So around 2 I lay him in his bed. He fights it and plays and talks. I don't mind that because eventually he'll take his nap...but after about 30 minutes of play he cries to get out. I'm not a mom who just gives in when baby cries. I let him cry, I go check on him after a while to make sure he is ok and kiss his cheeks and cover him with the blankie, but he needs his nap and I'm not going to give in. Until he cries for over an hour...then I'll give in with a bottle. He's quiet and I think I've won, until 20 minutes pass by (about the time for him to drink the bottle) and he's crying again. By this time he's been in bed over 2 hours. I give in. I take him out and let him play with his big sister.
It's very stressful for him as well as the rest of us when he misses his naps. He's fussy and that makes for one stressed out mommy and a frustrated sister. I still try each day on the same schedule but there's no having it, he simply won't take a nap.

Last night when Little Man started screaming at 10:26 I was exhausted..."not tonight Little Man, mommy doesn't have energy for this". I layed in bed while he scream for 34 minutes (I did time it, how can you not?!)...the tears started down my cheeks...this wasn't just a phase, I should take him to the doctor, get him a blessing from my dad, clear his energy, I needed to find a solution a treatment for this. I walked in his room and tried to hold him, he flipped out of my arms and onto my legs. I placed him back in his bed where he'd be safer than me dropping him and rubbed his back. My touch seemed to irritate him more. He rolled over and glared at me with those eyes. Those awful eyes. I couldn't take it, but I couldn't leave. I tried singing "I am a Child of God", he scream louder. I rubbed his forehead and he smacked my arm. He started to calm down slightly...this was the longest episode he'd had to date. I figured I'd get him some milk to comfort him. When I got back to his room he was screaming again. After an hour of him screaming I thought that maybe if I forced the bottle in his mouth and held it there he'd eventually latch on and calm down. BAD IDEA!! He freaked out! I didn't know what to do, I again decided it best if I leave and let him cry before I get too worn out and frustrated. I came to my laptop and searched night terrors. I hate to self diagnose things without fully understanding them...so I'd better find out before I just assume this is what it is. Here's what I found on About.com/pediatrics

Night terrors are a common sleep problem among children. By some estimates, about 15% of younger children have occasional night terrors. Although most common in children between the ages of 2 and 6 years, they can occur at almost any age.

Although usually considered to be normal or benign, they are often very scary and distressing to parents who often overreact, especially during a child's first night terror.

Symptoms

When you hear how most experts describe night terrors, it is easy to see why parents find them distressing. Children who have night terrors are usually described as 'bolting upright' with their eyes wide open, with a look of fear and panic, and letting out a 'blood curdling scream'. These kids will usually also be sweating, breathing fast and have a rapid heart rate (autonomic signs). And although it will seem like they are awake, during a night terror, children will appear confused, will not be consolable and won't recognize you.

Typical night terrors last about 5 to 30 minutes and afterwards, children usually return to a regular sleep. If you are able to wake your child up during a night terror, he is likely to become scared and agitated, mostly because of your own reaction to the night terror, especially if you were shaking or yelling at him to wake up. Instead of trying to wake up a child having a night terror, it is usually better to just make sure he is safe, comfort him if you can, and help him return to sleep once it is over.

Diagnosis

The diagnosis of night terrors is usually made by the history of a child 'waking' early in the night screaming and being inconsolable. Night terrors are most often confused with nightmares, but unlike night terrors, a child having a nightmare is usually easily woken up and comforted.

The other worry for many parents is that these episodes are a type of seizure. Although different types of partial seizures, including temporal lobe and frontal lobe epilepsy, can appear similar to night terrors, they are usually brief (30 seconds to a few minutes) and are more common in older children and adults.

Treatments

No treatment is usually necessary for routine night terrors. Since they are often triggered in children who are overtired, sticking to a good bedtime routine and making sure your child is getting enough rest can help to prevent them.

For children who get frequent night terrors, it might help to wake your child up before the time that he usually has a night terror. This is thought to interrupt or alter the sleep cycle and prevent night terrors from occuring (it also works for sleepwalking).

Rarely, sleep medications might be used for a short time if your child gets very frequent night terrors.

What You Need To Know

Night terrors are also called sleep terrors or pavor nocturnus.
Similar to sleepwalking and sleeptalking, night terrors are considered to be a disorder of arousal and are a partial arousal from non-REM sleep.
Unlike a nightmare, children usually don't recall having a night terror.
Also unlike nightmares, night terrors usually occur in the early part of the night, about 1 to 4 hours after going to sleep.
If your child gets night terrors, make sure that baby sitters and other caregivers are aware of them and know what they should do if one occurs.
Most children outgrow night terrors as they get older.

(I highlighted the symptoms of Little Man and italicized the things for a parent to do.) Every thing that I saw in Little Man was listed there...Every symptom listed we'd experienced. I seriously felt so much better after reading this site. Then I went to wikipedia, which said basically the same thing. Then I visited webMD and searched it there...everything was the same. I'm certain that this is what Little man is experiencing, night terrors. When I read about the causes for night terrors, it all made sense. He isn't getting the sleep during the day that his little growing body needs. Today we will try a different nap schedule. Wish us luck, I hope and pray this works and that he can go back to taking 2 naps and avoid those awful awakenings.

Update: After waking Little Man up at 6:00a.m. the last 2 mornings so he's dying to take that 2nd nap, he's slept through the night!! Not one peep out of him! YAY!! I surely don't want to jinx myself with this, but I'm happy for the 2 peaceful nights, and that extra nap each day!!

Happily Ever After

2010-01-05T16:55:00.000-08:00

Well 2009 has come to an end. We had a wonderful year, so much has happened and so many lessons learned (we hope we learned them). As I sit here reflecting on this past year, I am so thankful!! My heart is full of love and joy for 2009.

I was blessed and able to finally do what I have wanted to for 3 1/2 years. I was able to be a stay at home mommy and be with my children. I loved it, although I will admit some days got boring and too routinish for me, I still wouldn't trade it for the world.

I married my "soul-mate", ok so maybe I don't really believe in "soul-mates" but if I did, I'm certain Lover Boy would be mine. We had a nice small simple wedding that was perfect. After our wedding we faced our struggles as I know all newly weds face some sort of struggle in the beginning.

When Lover Boy first lost his job, only days (4 to be exact) after our wedding, we didn't know what to do. Fortunately my dad had asked if I wanted to go back to work 2 days a week, I had agreed to and so when lay offs made their way to Lover Boy we at least knew that I would be bringing in a little bit to help out. Lover Boy made many great attempts and sacrifices to find work...but nothing worked out. Work picked up at my job and I was able to do full time...Such a blessing!! I hated working....HATED IT...but it was a blessing that my family needed.

Through our struggles we grew so much closer. We learned to rely on each other and become each others best friend. We shared almost every moment of every day together for 5 months. Most newly weds can't say that unless they are quite a bit older than we are. It was a trial, but such a wonderful blessing. Our family grew so close to each other and I'm so glad that the little ones were able to spend so much time with their dad.

And we were so blessed with the perfect ending to our year. Lover Boy got a job!! (I'm doing a happy dance as I type this)

We will all live Happily Ever After as we learn to trust in the Lord, trust his timing, and enjoy the day as we live it and not long for the future.

Cheers to 2010 and all the experiences to come:)

Resisting the temptation

2010-01-05T16:08:00.001-08:00

Do you find it as hard as I do to hold your sweet baby and not kiss him?

I think that everytime I pick up Little Man there is a magnetic force that draws my lips to his head. It's a sweet gesture however there are times when it's not appropriate. Times like NOW.

My poor children never stand a chance at missing sickness once Momma gets it. I hope so badly that today, this sickness will be different. I hate seeing my children suffer and I'll admit I just don't know how to care for them when they are sick.

Today the flu sickness that my entire family has had hit our house. We thought we'd made it pass the stupid bug, but at 1:30 today Little Princess's teacher called and said that she'd lost all coloring and was complaining of a tummy ache. I rushed over to get her, they'd taken her temperature and she was fine, I felt her skin and it felt fine to me, but they were right her coloring was gone.

Once we were home, I suggested that she just take rest on my bed or the couch. She chose my bed (that's where our only TV is) and laid down groaning. I brought her water and soda crackers. After about 1 1/2 hours she was completely fine. Color restored, energy was bursting from her seams. I hope that was as much as she'll get. How lucky?!

About 1/2 hour after she was running around and playing with her brother it hit me. I just felt queasy for a while, but then it hits hard and fast. You'd think with me feeling so yucky I'd be fully conscious about keeping my germs to myself...but those magnetic forces are far stronger than I.

Perhaps I will just put Little Man down for bed shortly....He did miss his 2nd nap today, so going to bed 30 minutes early shouldn't hurt him, especially since it will keep my germ infested lips far from his sweet chubby cheeks.

Share your thoughts with me about....

2009-12-28T18:15:00.000-08:00

HOMESCHOOLING

I know when I think of homeschooling I think of the woman who's plain jane wearing someone from an earlier generations hand-me-downs with children who are messy and a little "weird".

Lover Boy suggested a few months ago that we homeschool our children. I laughed at the suggestion with my vivid picture in mind of what a homeschooler looks like and what her children look like. He informed me that he was serious and started pointing out some very important things to me. I kinda agreed with him for a moment, but you know my impressions that I have in my head have been there so long that I wasn't completely sold on the idea, regardless of how good it sounded.

Then I started noticing some of my friends have opted to and are homeschooling their children. Blogs that I stalk often refer to homeschooling and how everyone loves it. Is it becoming a new trend or has it always been and I've just never had my eyes open to it?

Have I been mistaken all these 28 years of life? Could there be something out there that I haven't known? Am I so naive to picture a person who homeschools and the poor children the way that I'd described?

I will completely admit that I do like the idea of homeschooling. Last night I spent over 5 hours reading pros and cons and different methods/styles of homeschooling and seriously I think I'm hands down all for it!

I'm not going to share why I now feel so supportive of homeschooling, I want to hear what your thoughts about the whole idea are. Will you judge me and my children and make fun of them or assume they are socially inadequate? If there wasn't such a stigmata attached to homeschooled children I'd pull Little Princess out of preschool right this second, ok really I'd wait til Monday when she returns to school. My concerns are just the stupid semi-unimportant "what will others think?" It is silly and stupid to care what others think, however others reactions and the way they treat others do affect us all and I don't want my child discriminated. So that is why I am asking for your opinions and thoughts.

Thanks in advance:)

Cherish the Moments

2009-12-26T13:00:00.000-08:00

If I have crossed your path the pass few days, you know from my obvious behavior that I've been a little Negative Nancy. I've had nothing but complaints streaming from my mouth...how sad!! Especially at this most wonderful and magical time of year. Today I realized that if I were the person talking to me (or I should admit, listening to me) I would not want to be around me . I really don't enjoy downer people and am sure I'm not alone on that one.

From today forward (sounds like a resolution for 2010, that will begin a week early) I will be "the glass is always full" type of gal. I promise that I will constantly force myself to see only the blessings in my life (which are so abundant). However, I will admit that sometimes I do like to write down my struggles and those nasty thoughts that are in my head...maybe so that when others feel them they won't feel alone. I know when I struggle I do appreciate learning that other people go through the same things and that I CAN survive it all.

This post will be honest and parts a bit depressing for me...however I will point out the good things that come from the bad.

Christmas is truly a magical time of year (I can't even start writing this without tears filling my eyes). I remember as a child all the wonderful excitement and energy this season brings. Christ was born, his life started here. We read of the Christmas story and learn and reflect on the life Christ led for each one of us. We sing the songs that also remind us of our purpose in this life and recognize our role model. Santa rewards us on Christmas morning for good deeds and actions that we've done.

As we grow older we look forward to creating similar memories with our children. We want to teach them the true meaning of Christmas and enjoy their sweet spirits and enthusiasm as Christmas draws near. Many of us have traditions that we expect to be able to carry on to our own little families or ones that we'd like to start.

This year, Little Princess's family from Mexico came into town to celebrate with all their grandchildren and family. How very fortunate for Little Princess to be able to celebrate with them and be part of the love that emulates from their family at this time of year. I knew it would be so special for her to spend as much time as possible with them so I suggested that she spend the entire week with them until Christmas, however once she was gone from my home and the reality of all my "dreams of Christmas with children" would not be what I had hoped for, I held a major pity party for myself in her absence. I felt like I was being jipped for "my Christmas". I had no sweet 4 year old asking "is there only 3 days left?" "Mommy what time is Santa coming?" or staying up hardly able to sleep Christmas Eve. And I chose to only focus on what I was missing! How terribly sad I now realize that I was so self absorbed and didn't just delight in the fact that she was having a truly wonderful Christmas and that I could be too with Little Man and Lover Boy.

I have thought and cried and cried some more and finally did a little more thinking and realized that our dreams are never the way real life works. Even if her daddy and I stayed married and we wouldn't have to send away our Little Princess for Christmas there'd be something else that would'nt have been in my dreams. My dreams just need to be altered. I need to cherish each moment that I am with my children so that the days they are gone I can know and feel confident that the last time I saw her was the best day. (I know this is so much easier said than done, right?!) I fully understand that there will be many bad days in the mix, those are unavoidable, but that for every bad minute we need to make sure to have 10 good ones.

Lover Boy and I have set goals with each other to spend more quality time together, we spend about every minute of every day together but it adds up to only be a number of hours spent together at the end of the day and we decided that we want to change that and make it memories not hours. Last night we played a few of the games we'd gotten for Christmas with Little Princess and had so much fun, as she crawled in her bed she gave me a big hug and said "Mom, I love you so much, that was so much fun tonight. I love playing games with our family." I came out and mentioned this to Lover Boy and he agreed that we needed to not only make more quality time with he and I but with our children too.

It was at that moment that I realized just because my dreams of "Christmas" didn't come true, that didn't mean that we couldn't still make the most of the little holiday time that we had.

It was a perfect Christmas!

Conversations with a 4 year old

2009-12-12T18:30:00.000-08:00

Today we were in the car grabbing the last of our Christmas gifts for our "family/friends". While we were in the car Little Princess was telling me about her friend Aila (pronounced Ila). She was telling me how to pronounce it and spell it and that the capital A is silent. Then I told her that I had wanted to name her a similar name "Ilea". She had a very hard time pronouncing it, then she said "Mommy didn't you want to name me Sophie? and what other names?" I told her I'd wanted Ilea, Sophie, Isabelle and who can remember the rest of the names I'd went through with her daddy. Then I told her how her daddy wanted to name her Ingrid. She laughed and said "oh my goodness that's the dumbest name I've ever heard of". HAHAHA I laughed so hard and told her that's what my reaction was too! We laughed about it for a good hour. Ingrid, Ingrid, Ingrid...hahaha...but I will confess the name has grown on me and I no longer think it is so atrocious, however I'm glad I didn't give in and that we found a much more suiting name for our little princess.

Today we went to a missionary homecoming. Before the meeting started Little Princess was entertaining herself by finding letters in the hymn book. After finding some letters she turned to the back of the book in the index and said "Mommy lets find your name. How do you spell Loser?" I laughed so hard....minutes later I was still laughing. This kid is so funny.

Special Order Items

2009-12-08T19:39:00.001-08:00

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!!!
I've Now sold practically everything I had left over! YAY!!! HAPPY!

If you want to order anything I will of course do special orders on certain items that i've listed with pricing below, just email me: tmmonroy@yahoo.com or call 801-458-9867

The long Magnet Board is $25, (one of my best selling items)
It is only the magnet board no magnets,
i just put some of my own and pictures on there for show:)

The Post with Hangers : $45

Knock and it shall be opened : $25 (#1 seller)

Key to Happiness is Smiling: $25
Spring birdie: $15
Candy Cane: $20
Snowman: $20
Knock and it shall be opened: $25
Happy Birthday Clown: $20
Sewing Bird: $25
Key to happiness is Smiling board: $25

Pedestal Magnet Board (it's in the far right corner): $20
Snowman: $20
Sewing Bird: $25
Happy Birthday Clown: $20

Post with Hangers: $45
Snowman: $20
Christ was born magnet board: $45
Merry and Bright Magnet Board: $45
Picket Fence Bench: $40
Spring Bird: $15
Spring Bird: $15
Candy Cane: $20

what a month...

2009-12-06T10:03:00.001-08:00

I refuse to apologize, I would like to but I'm gonna just say it was all worth it!!

Have I lost you yet? I have not blogged very faithfully for at least the last month. I love (really honestly) blogging, you know it's a release for me, a place for me to get out my feelings and emotions judgement free (lol, i know readers will judge me, but i don't see facial expressions or hear tones of voices) and a place for me to relish in what will soon be my memories.

I often catch myself needing to blog...but lately I've distracted myself with other things, and that is what I refuse to apologize for. Much has been going on in our life. We have been very busy and when I'm very busy and going in different directions I feel a large amount of emotions which I would like to express on here, yet didn't and I'm ok with that.

After Halloween, our little family started making crafts for a boutique. We decided that since no actual work-for-a-paycheck jobs were coming through, that we HAD to do something. We have a garage and basement full of supplies that we felt would be substantial to do a boutique with...and guess what, it was! Lover Boy cut all of the wood, Little Princess and I painted and dressed up everything and Little Man just played.

During this time I realized just how lazy I've become. Each day I would see more and more accomplished and at virtually no out of pocket cost. I enjoyed spending that time with my husband and my daughter. Now of course there were stressful moments, times that I just couldn't have a little body in my way or knocking things over or playing with things and misplacing them...so the kiddos did spend quite a bit of time alone watching movies or playing in their bedrooms. Those are the moments that I realize just how blessed I am with my kids. They are so good. I can put them in their rooms, close the door, and disappear for an hour or so and they don't get into things, they don't climb (yet, knock on wood), they just play and play well together. YAY!!

Mid November Lover Boy and I took our "Honeymoon" finally. We went with 3 of our friends and some other people whom we've become friends with now:) He took a cruise to Catalina Island and Ensanada Mexico. It is a very small 4 day cruise to nowhere spectacular, but that doesn't make it any less fun. We had a blast. I'll blog more about that seperately because I have so many pictures and fun memories to share.

When we came home we jumped right back on our crafting frenzy. Every day seemed to be crafts from the time we woke til way passed my bed time.

During my time crafting, I did a lot of thinking and analyzing. I realized that I'm so blessed. What a perfect time to realize that we have much to be thankful for, right as Thanksgiving approached.
Blessings in my life include:

my darling little family who make each day worth getting out of bed for.
my family that raised me and help me raise my family. They teach me so much and are always willing to help me whenever I need it.
my home. I'm truly lucky to have this home and have a place that fits our family comfortably (of course I'm dying for a slightly bigger home, but that's just cuz I have so much "crap") and that we are able to use it as a supplemental income (renter).
love. I'm a very loving person and I'm so thankful for that. I love everyone (although I can honestly say there is one person that I really do NOT care for, but I'm working on that, really I do try). I'm so glad that I love people, and all kinds of people, I really try not to judge and when you can put everything aside how can you not love people?
the town i live in. for those of you who know where I live might question why I love living here, but just know that I do. Everything is practically within arms reach. I can walk to the grocery, I could walk just about anywhere that I need to go. And for me that is a blessing...for you it might be a big turn-off, but I love being so close to everything.
friends, I've been so blessed with such amazing and caring friends. I have friends from all walks of life and they teach me so much. My friends are always there for me.
hugs...I simply love hugs. There truly isn't much a hug can't help fix.
my talents-this one is very hard for me to recognize, I always look at others and see how truly amazing they are and compare myself and see how I don't quite add up...but while I was crafting I thought well this is at least one talent that I do have, and I'm not saying that anyone isn't better than I, because the way I craft is simple (obviously if I have my 4 yr old helping me do every step) and I think most people are just afraid to try it, because I know anyone could do it.
My life. My life is such a blessing, each day I learn something new. Whether it's through a great experience or through sorrow I'm constantly learning new lessons...now sometimes I might not take the time to focus on what is meant to be learn, but eventually it broadsides me and I learn at least a little.

I am blessed, even though there are many times that I struggle and think I'd like to throw in the towel I have so much to be thankful for.

Oh and one blessing that I didn't mention is having a truly brilliant daughter. This little girl is so smart and understands just so much she amazes me. This is for my memories, don't feel obligated to read. Mid November (2 days before we left on our cruise) I found out that my unemployment was going to be reevaluated and they were putting me on a 2 week hold. I am about to admit just how white trash we are (and believe me this is a complete embarrassement to me but...) we live on my unemployment and our savings. Lover Boy is collecting too, but his seems like pennies and couldn't ever support us. So a 2 week hold (effective immediately) killed us. We had just barely depleted our savings account so we couldn't even rely on that to get us by. Fortunately I was able to make some visits to my car lender and make arrangements with them to hold my car payment this month and we decided that our flexible spending would just have to be drastically cut down and basically eliminated as well as a few other payments would just have to be late, until I did the boutique and could get everything hopefully caught up. Anyways my children have problems with milk. Little Princess can ONLY have Soy Milk. 1/2 a gal is $4.00. She drinks a lot of milk which ends up costing us quite a bit each month, which honestly I'm not complaining about because I'm so happy that she loves milk and will pay whatever to have her drink it, however during this time that we couldn't go to the grocery store or what not, she had only a little bit of milk left. When she was thirsty through out the day I asked her to only drink water, I explained to her that she needed to save her milk for breakfast and dinner because it was nearly gone, and once it was gone I couldn't just run to the store and replace it for a week or so. A day after explaining this to her, she came up to me and said that she was ready to paint a lot of things because she really wanted a glass of milk for her snack but she knew that she had to work hard so she could help mommy make some money for her milk. Bless this child's sweet heart. I'm thankful for our financial struggles because it is teaching my daughter that money doesn't just come everytime you put your debit card in the ATM, and that you have to work for money. So i guess this struggle that I absolutely despise is worth it as long as my children learn from it and remember it when they are older.

Ok here's pictures of the finished projects from the boutique: If you want to order anything I will of course do special orders on certain items that i've listed with pricing below, just email me: tmmonroy@yahoo.com or call 801-458-9867

The long Magnet Board is $25, It is only the magnet board no magnets, i just put some of my own and pictures on there for show:)

The Post with Hangers : $45

Knock and it shall be opened: $25

Key to Happiness is Smiling: $25
Spring birdie: $15
Candy Cane: $20
Snowman: $20
Knock and it shall be opened: $25
Happy Birthday Clown: $20
Sewing Bird: $25
Key to happiness is Smiling board: $25

Pedestal Magnet Board (it's in the far right corner): $20
Snowman: $20
Sewing Bird: $25
Happy Birthday Clown: $20

Post with Hangers: $45
Snowman: $20
Christ was born magnet board: $45
Merry and Bright Magnet Board: $45
Picket Fence Bench: $40
Spring Bird: $15
Spring Bird: $15
Candy Cane: $20

Come On Over...

2009-12-01T21:33:00.000-08:00

come on over baby (imagine me singing it, no wait, don't then you might run in the other direction)

Cuz I'm finally doing another boutique!!! After 2 years in "retirement" I've come out of my "NO CRAFTING" slump.

I've got some things that I'm simply so excited about.

There will be Christmas decor as well as year round treasures.

As I fully understand that everyone around the world is feeling crunched on finances, I've done my very best to keep prices affordable to all.

So, when is this boutique? Dec 5th 9-3. Where? At 311 chimes view dr.
And just a heads up, if you've come to my boutiques before you may have noticed that things tend to go quickly. There are just a few people who have to get here right at opening...and I've received a heads up that it will be happening again. YAY!!!! but, since I'm doing it solo this time I do fear that I don't have enough done :( so due to this fear...and since I know only what I like (and I'm fine with admitting that my favorites, likely won't be yours) and not what everyone else will and what not...I will offer special orders on certain items.

I hope so badly to see you SATURDAY...even if you are pennyless as I am, just come by and say Hi, I'll try not to cough or sneeze on you (I am praying that it will be gone by then).

And if you can't make it, no worries...I'll invite you to my next one in the spring, which I'm already planning some really amazing things for...and if you don't ever come, well then I'm not sure we'll remain friends. hahaha ok so I'm totally joking.

PS. all crafts have been hand-made by our entire family. Little Princess has helped with the painting, and Little Man has drooled on some (I've done my best to sanitize them), and then of course Lover Boy and I have done all the easy things that the other 2 didn't. Even my wonderful mommy helped with some.

VACA

2009-11-17T15:54:00.000-08:00

Along with some friends we decided that we needed a little vacation. My sweet friend Amy had just recently moved back from the East Coast and ended a 9 year marriage and needed to get away. Who wouldn't?! Lover Boy and I were telling her about the cruise my parent had taken us on and how much fun it was. She suggested that would be a perfect vacation for all of us, we (lover boy and I) could celebrate our recent marriage and she could celebrate the end of hers. You know it really doesn't take much to sell Lover Boy or myself on the idea of a vacation, let alone a cruise. We got online immediately and found a super deal with Carnival. It was a 4 day cruise to Catalina Island and Ensenada Mexico and left from San Diego! How perfect, we could drive there and not have to be gone for too long, you know it's kinda hard going for too long when you have kids to leave behind. We asked all of our friends who would want to go, it was about 6 months away and we got a great response, we could've qualified for a group discount (off of what was already an incredible price); however we couldn't book it right away til we got some money saved up...by the time we booked everyone had backed out except the 3 of us who had planned it and 2 others. The price was still incredible so we weren't too bummed out about missing out on the group discount.

We were all so excited to go, we counted down months, weeks, days and then hours. About a week before we were going Amy had 2 friends decide they wanted to come along too. Drama happened after they had booked their room and one girl dropped out, Carnival wasn't too great to work with however. They would allow them to cancel their room for a full refund, but both would have to cancel. We suggested that the girl who still wanted to go just bunk with Amy and Deb (that way they would still get her money and she could still go, win/win); but they said they wouldn't do that but they would give her 1 hr to find a replacement. 1 HOUR!! Can you believe it? Fortunately we have modern day technology and she sent a mass text to her entire phone book explaining the situation. Her friend told her of a girl who might be interested because she had just mentioned that she needed a vacation. Anyways long story short(er) this friend of a friend got booked on the cruise.

We were a little worried about having such a small group with one person that none of us had ever met before, but once we met Candy-Mae we knew we would have a great time with her.

We left Sunday night and drove through the night, I slept most of the time (motherhood tends to wear me right out). We got to Cali and were a few hours early to board so we had some yummy breakfast and let ourselves get so excited!!

We had such a blast! We made friends with so many people and even met a group about our ages from good ol' SLC. We ate, danced, sang, ate some more, sun bathed and ate yet some more!!

The first day was my favorite. I loved exploring the ship and anticipating what good times we would have.

On this trip, (hahaha, you'll find out why I'm laughing at calling it a trip just now in a moment) I did something very "like" me, but out of control. I tripped every single time I saw this group of guys. HAHAHa nice right?! I'm there with my husband, but tripping every time I see guys. LOL...let me explain before you think I'm a jerk of a wife.

The first day as we are finding our cabin, Amy (who is recently divorced...well about a year) noticed a very attractive man walking out of his cabin just down the hallway from us. So everytime we would see him in the hallway we would tease Amy. Well by day 2 we began questioning his sexuality. Everytime we saw him he was surrounded by a group of beautiful men. One was obviously gay, but we weren't too sure about the rest of them. SO everytime I would see them I had to stare (ok, I should've only looked, but I couldn't help myself) for 2 reasons....they were beautiful and to see if I could tell if they were all gay or just the one. One morning, well it was the 2nd morning I was walking near the pool to "our" table that we met at each day and saw the group of "beauties" sitting at a nearby table. I turned and stared, and then tripped over the stupid LARGE lounger chairs, you know the ones that are right by the pool, those big long things that you could NEVER trip over!! Well I stumbled over 3 of them, needless to say I got that tables attention along with everyone else's who was on that deck. To hide my embarrassment I just smiled and said "well if you weren't all so pretty I wouldn't have stared, and then wouldn't have tripped". That was the worst of my trips so the only one I'll share, but I will just add that on the last night of the trip I had a few bites to eat with my "friends" and they thanked me for making their trip so unforgettable. They were flattered that I would trip every single time they came into view and so sought me out just to see if they could get me to make a fool of myself. At least I made them laugh right?!

One night on the dance floor, well first I should probably explain a little about my dancing abilities....I HAVE NONE!! The girls we were with can move, they are like fluid moving on that dance floor and looking rather sexy, well not I. So we were out there and rather than try to look halfway decent, I just looked as ugly as possible. Brandon (one of the fellows from SLC) decided to join me, after Lover Boy got embarrased and suggested that I remove myself from the dance floor. Brandon and I jumped and threw our arms about and had a blast!! So glad someone can make a fool of himself with me:) Lover Boy is such a great guy, not a dancer, but a great guy none-the-less. There was a guy out on the dance floor in a wheelchair just spinning in circles and having fun. Lover Boy grabbed me and another girl and told us to go dance with him and make his night. So nice of him to suggest that, so we did...I did feel a bit funny after the first song ended, you know with my husband sitting at a table while I dance with someone else, so I decided that I'd rather just dance by myself the rest of the night. There were some breakdancers out there...which I totally love breakdancing, so amazing!!! I thought maybe I could try one move like theirs...I attempted the backwords fish flop (ok I don't have a clue what it's really called) hahaha it was hilarious. I most likely embarassed all my friends, but o-well. I tried to breakdance.

A Daughter of God

2009-11-14T22:27:00.000-08:00

As I sit here frustrated and confused, not uncommon in my life, while trying to make sure every base is covered before we leave for our "honeymoon" trip tomorrow I checked my emails. For some reason I scrolled down past quite a few emails that I had already viewed and then saw one that I hadn't yet, it was from Monday. How'd I miss it? I honestly don't know, so I'm just gonna say that someone upstairs knew I needed it today...although I think it would've been so nice to have gotten on Monday because the beginning of this week sure was a rough ROUGH one for me. Anyways the email was from my dear brother Braxton who is on his mission is Mexico City.

(I hope he doesn't mind but I'm pasting the entire email on here)
And it says:
how the heck is ya? hey i dont know if you read the letter i sent to mom, but this week i had an interview with elder tenorio(a member of the quorum of the seventy) and he was asking about each member of our family and a bunch of stuff and as he said the closing prayer he asked for blessings for the family in whole but asked for specific blessing for you and i thought you might want to know that a general authority has offered a prayer in your behalf. i love you a ton, dont worry about struggles in life, just remember your testimony and rely on the Lord to bless you, strive to strenghthen your testimony daily, it has been one of the greatest blessing for me to be able to do that in my life.
i hope all is well, tell joe hi and give him a hug for me. and make sure that my little princess knows i love her as well as little man even though i havent met him yet. take care. remember that i love you and that your a beautiful daughter of God!
farewell for now
brax

WOW huh?! Tears are streaming down my cheeks as I re-read this. It is so comforting to me that people, people who have never met me and likely never will, care. Life is rough for me right now, some days I just want to resign and quit...as if this is a game or a job or something. Don't get me wrong, my life is no harder than the next persons and I know that, I know that I am truly blessed and very fortunate in my life; however I just get on these kicks sometimes and let that ugly darkness enter my heart.

My patriarchal blessing tells me that "many times in life you will be discouraged and despondent" and it doesn't tell me just once...it's 8 times. I used to hate those warnings and just thinking about them would make me discouraged and despondent, however now I realize that it's one of those backward blessings. It's comforting to know that someone saw forehand that I will battle those feelings and will now bless me with the right people at those times to help me get through. I see it every time I enter the black hole of depression, there is always a sweet angel reaching out to help me get back to the light.

Thank you to all who have been an angel at one time or another in my life. You are my blessings that I am so grateful for!!

Trick or Treat

2009-10-31T22:11:00.000-07:00

Have I mentioned that Halloween is my very favorite holiday? Well, in case you've forgotten, it is! I love it. I was so excited this year, because face it, last year wasn't that great. I was 9 months pregnant (had the little guy Nov. 2nd) and just not comfortable walking, standing, or sitting. Our night ended very early as I crashed in bed around 9:00 p.m.

This year was sure to beat it. Little Man's first Halloween, Little Princess with us this year, and my in-laws here to celebrate with us. I was stoked!!

UNTIL...about 3:00 p.m., after Little Man's party, he started coughing and wheezing. It wasn't like Little Princess's asthma wheezing, but still had me concerned. By 4:00 it was just getting worse. In my head I was contemplating calling the Dr, then my father in law advised me to get him to the Dr Monday if he didn't get any better. You know with this swine flu and all the crap going around you just don't wanna risk anything. Well once he said that it confirmed my fears and I decided that I should probably just call the dr now. We were planning on going trunk or treating at my parents at 6:00, so I had about an hour until we needed to start getting dressed up and ready to head out there. I called the dr. hoping that they would say he was ok and to just enjoy the holiday, but when I mentioned all the symptoms (he had vomited Thursday night, due to teething is what I had thought, but who knew at this point) she said he was border line. I didn't have to take him in because the Motrin was calming his fever. We talked a little bit more and I asked her what she would do if it was her child to which she told me she'd be at the ER right now...Needless to say I told her that's where I was heading then. My heart was hoping that due to a holiday it'd be empty in there and we could be in and out and nothing seriously wrong and we could celebrate this fantabulous holiday...

well, the waiting area was empty, no one was at the stations where you first come in...could I seriously be getting lucky this far? But as soon as the lady who took his info heard him she called for dr's to come right over and they rushed us down the hallways and into a room. My heart crashed and realized that something could be seriously wrong. I didn't want to admit it, but up to that point I had been acting pretty selfish in my hopes...you know just wanting things to work out so we could celebrate...but not really thinking about what this poor little guy could be going through.

After 3 hours in the ER and tests being done, we were released. He was ok, no swine flu, no pneumonia, just the croup and the rest was from teething. YAY!!

Well, we missed trick or treating...I mean Little Man and I missed it. Lover Boy and his family took Little Princess out to my parents and did the trunk or treating with them. She had a wonderful time and was so happy that they went with her.

Hopefully next year we will all be in good health and be able to celebrate together.

One year older and wiser too....HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!

2009-10-31T21:13:00.000-07:00

A week or so ago we received a delightful call from Lover Boy's sister, Aunt Angela, asking us if it'd be ok if she came in town to spend Little Man's first Halloween with us. DUH, of course we would absolutely love it!! We canceled our other plans that we had for Halloween with friends and we're just so excited to have Aunt Angela come in town. About a week before she was coming, we were informed that their Dad would be coming too!! What fun!!

Little Man's birthday is 2 days after Halloween and we were planning on celebrating it on Sunday, Nov 1st so that my parents could be here for it (they were going out of town on the 2nd), but then when we got the exact days that Aunt Angela and Papa Joe would be here we decided to celebrate Little Man's birthday one day earlier, on Halloween, so they could be a part of the celebration.

I had big plans on how to do a fun themed party for him, but with life being life right now I didn't do the theme, which will be fine and we'll do it another year when he'll understand and be able to participate in the games. We just had balloons for decor, a happy birthday banner, and then I hung some pictures of him throughout this first year of his life. It was simple, but worked.

We were so happy that everyone except the Grandma's in Colorado and Great Grandma Ropelato was able to make it. Little Man's fever was still there, but would go right away with Motrin, so we kept him drugged up so he'd be in good spirits.

First we had pizza and veggies, while everyone got comfy (or squished). Then we did presents.
He had so many gifts, and wasn't into the whole unwrapping them and tearing through the paper. Thank goodness for big sister to save the day and be more than willing to step in and take over...Luckily for Little Princess before the party, Papa Joe and Aunt Angela got her some gifts to make her feel special too.:)

After presents, we sang "Happy Birthday" and brought in Little Man's very own cake. He didn't know what to think about that, it took a few minutes for him to dig right in and when he was done he let us know by pushing it onto the floor.
There was a big mess of cake so Lover Boy treated the remainder of our family that we left outside, our 2 doggies, to the left overs. Molly loved it and cleaned it all up.

My little baby boy is so big!! ONE YearR OLD! WoW!

My dear Little Man:
I've never been the type of person to just hold a baby constantly and not ever want to let go until the day you were born. I was so happy to have you. You were my rainbow in my life that had been lost and confused. You brought me so much happiness that first time I held you! It felt as though I was a first time mommy again. I couldn't believe the little miracle that you were. You were beautiful, a miracle. I wouldn't let the nurses take you to the nursery to sleep, you had to sleep with me. I really couldn't imagine you being away from me. You have continued to be one of my rays of sunshine. Your sweet smile each day just makes all troubles seem so insignificant. I love watching you grow and develop. My heart beams when I watch you and your big sister interact. I get chills constantly the instant she walks in a room and your entire face lights up and your chubby little legs start kicking in excitement to see her. What I really love, even though I sometimes sigh in frustration about it, I thoroughly love that you are such a momma's boy. It makes my heart happy that you just want mommy if I'm around. You are so sweet when you are playing and see me and crawl right on over to me and snuggle up to me, even though it's brief, I love that little snuggle. You have the ability to make everyone smile. You are so happy and love to laugh. Your laugh is contagious. You have a full hearty laugh that comes from your gut and no one can resist it. You will forever make people smile and happy. I love you busy little boy!!

Kids Halloween Party

2009-10-29T20:43:00.000-07:00

Little Princess was thrilled to see her name along with Little Man's on an envelope left in our door. We had to hurry to open it, once open it revealed a Halloween party announcement. Excitement went throughout the house. You'd have thought the Grand Duke arrived with a letter inviting us to the Royal Ball.

Finally the day arrived to get dressed up and go. Unfortunately Little Man just started cutting teeth that morning and was running a slight fever, nothing a little Motrin can't handle. We got all "fancied" up and headed to the party.

My cousins did an amazing job! For $1 a child everyone was served a bowl of yummy yummy soup, rolls, and soda; then they had activities like decorating a sugar cookie, making a trick or treat bag, guess the monsters body part (you stick your hand inside a paper bag and try to guess what body part is inside), a blindfolded hunt through a bucket filled with popcorn for treasures.

Little Princess loved it. She was so excited to everything, however Little Man's fever started kicking back in while she was decorating her cookie, so we hurried and left. There were so many kids and families and everyone there had a wonderful time. I'm sad we had to skip out early but we did:(

Aren't the kiddos so cute?!! Little Princess is Morticia Adamms and Little Man is a wigger Dracula. The costume got dried (which it's not supposed to) so the hair turned into a fro, hence the name wigger Dracula.

3 recipes you should try, if you like chicken and tortillas that is

2009-10-23T12:42:00.000-07:00

Over the pass few weeks, I've neglected blogging about my Domestic Diva adventures. I've cooked, but with a memory as fantastic as mine...hahah...I can't even remember what I've made.

We did have a delicious moist roast, some spicy fajitas, and a few other things...haha can't remember.

Here's 3 recipes of some of the yummy meals that we have had in addition to those others. They are all pretty similar as far as ingredients go, but just enough different too.

Chicken Tortilla Casserole (from my s.i.l. Natalie)

Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts; cooked and diced
1 small can green chilies
1 stick butter
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 pt. sour cream
1/4 c. chopped green onions
corn tortillas
1 1/2 c. grated cheese

Instructions:
Combine butter, soup, onions, green chilies, and sour cream. Heat and then add the chicken pieces. Butter 9x13 dish. Place a small amount of mixture to coat bottom of dish. Now layer corn tortillas, mixture, corn tortillas, mixture, corn tortillas, and mixture. Top with 1 1/2 c cheese. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes.

Sour Cream Enchilada's

Ingredients:
12 Flour Tortillas
3 chicken breasts cubed
1 can green chilies
1 pt. sour cream
2 cans cream of chicken soup
10 oz. salsa
4 cups shredded cheese

Instructions:
Mix sour cream, soup and salsa. Put thin layer on the bottom of pan and set aside a small amount to pour over tops of tortillas. Mix chicken, cheese and sour cream mixture and put in tortillas. Lay tortillas in pan and cover with remaining sauce an cheese. Bake at 350 for about 25-30 minutes.

Tortilla Soup
2 cans (14 1/2 oz. each) chicken broth
1 c. diced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 t plus 1 T chopped fresh cilantro or parsley
3/4 t. dried cumin
1/2 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
8 oz. chicken tenders, diced small
2 corn tortillas
12 oz. plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and diced; or 1 can (14 1/2oz) whole tomatoes, drained, seeded, and diced
1 T diced canned mild chilies
2-3 limes, juiced
2 T chopped green onion
2 oz. shredded cheddar or monterey jack cheese
1/4 avocado, seeded, peeled, and cubed
4 slices lime for garnish

Instructions:
1. In medium saucepan bring chicken broth to boil. Add onion, garlic, 1 t. cilantro, cumin, salt, and pepper. Simmer over medium heat 5 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 400.
3. Add chicken to simmering soup. Stir, cover, and remove from heat. Let stand 10 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, cut tortillas in half. Cut crosswise into 1/4 inch wide strips. Place strips on baking sheet. Bake in oven until crisp, 5 to 8 minutes.
5. Stir tomatoes and chilies into chicken mixture. Place over low heat just to heat through. Add lime juice to taste. Remove from heat.
6. Ladle soup into 4 bowls. Top each with green onion, shredded cheese, cubes of avocado, and 1 T chopped cilantro. Scatter tortilla strips over top. Garnish with lime slices.

A new roommate

2009-10-23T12:10:00.000-07:00

We have a roomie!! Sergei moved in with us last week. He'd been wanting to move out of the house he was renting a room in for about a month. Since he started mentioning it I'd thought ok if Lover Boy asks, of course Sergei can move in with us. He's here every night anyways to have dinner, he's very handy and likes things to get done quickly, he'd give Lover Boy someone to talk to about computer stuff, cuz we all know I don't get it.

But Lover Boy never suggested it. Our house is full. It's 4 very small bedrooms, so each kid has their own room, then theirs our room, and the 4th room is the playroom because the bedrooms are so small there really isn't much room for toys at all. One night for who knows what reason, I blurted it out, "Why doesn't Sergei move in with us?". Lover Boys eyes lit up, obviously he'd thought of it, just didn't want to ask. I'm kinda mean and scary you know. He immediately called Sergei and offered him our house. Sergei came over the next day and said he'd move in the following day. YIKES! I needed to clean out the toy room and find somewhere for all those toys. We threw them all up in Little Princess's room. I eventually got them moved into the joint closet between her room and Little Man's. It's tight in there, but it works.

I do miss the toy room. It was my way to be a lazy mom. Stick the kids in their, pull out some toys, close the door and do my thing. LOL. But really that was the way at least 2 hours a day were spent. These pictures are of one day when I put Little Man in there alone. We had to take the door knob off because the door would jam and it'd lock the kids in there, so now I had a spy hole...look at how cute, he's just in there playing.

Well Sergei is moved in and getting settled. It's been such a blessing already having him here. He's tore out some walls in his bedroom and is re-sheetrocking them and adjusting the wiring. The financial help is obviuosly a major blessing, especially in time for the Christmas season. And he helps us with groceries. Sergei is an amazing person and we're all so happy to have him be a part of our family!

A good laugh

2009-10-23T11:36:00.000-07:00

Do you ever see something that just makes you laugh?

Don't you love it when unexpectedly you burst into laughter?

Well, my friends I love it!

I was driving through the grocery store parking lot (a short cut to my house) and a man well into his thirty's was skipping out the store doors and across the parking lot. HAHAHAHA!! He was very tall and skinny and just looked so out of place to be skipping. I'm glad that he's having a wonderful day because he made my day wonderful now too!

I wish I had a picture to show you so you could laugh too...but just sit back and imagine....

You're laughing now right?! I sure hope so.

Adult Time

2009-10-22T23:48:00.000-07:00

BAM...BAM...We had a heart thumping, head banging, kids screaming, arms waving, toe smashing, arm-pit stench smelling good time!

One of Lover Boys favorite bands, All That Remains, came to Salt Lake tonight so of course we had to go. He's suffered through 2 James Blunt concerts with me, so I thought I guess I owe it to him to go to one of his bands concerts...Let me just tell you I'm so glad that I did!!

Sergei had never been to a concert before and he loves this band too so the 3 of us went. We walked in and I instantly felt incredibly old. The kids there were SO young. There was one child with his parents, I'm not kidding he had to be Little Princesses age and not to pass judgement but...who would take their child to that concert. This isn't just a rock concert, it's a METAL ROCK concert; screaming and scary gruffy voices (which I will admit was pretty amazing listening to live), kinda not something I'd take the kids to and obviously didn't.

Lacuna Coil opened and I was stunned. She has the most amazing voice!! It was a nice mix of a soft feminine voice with some guy screaming and singing with an equally amazing voice. I just stood and stared at her, she is very talented and simply beautiful. This band is from Italy and funny thing is, I thought the man looked Italian, he kinda had one of those big Italian snouzers on his face...I'm gonna be getting their songs put on the Ipod ASAP, love them!

Then All That Remains entered. SO not what I expected. The singer came out all preppy looking, cargo shorts, blue sleeveless shirt with huge biceps, and a ball cap. His voice is soothing, that is until he starts into that screaming. The crowd was crazy, I felt like a giant. Those kids heads were only up to my chin, but that didn't stop them from moshing with the big boys. They jumped right in with 6' + guys and went wild. So funny to watch. Lover boy serendaded every song to me, which I absolutely loved. He really has such a good voice so hearing it in my ear was just delightful.

As we walked out of the theater the lobby was filled with parents picking up their kids. It made me laugh, am I really that old? hahaha

I thoroughly enjoyed my night with Lover Boy and Sergei. It was fun seeing them get so excited and have so much fun, and of course I had fun too:)

Friday morning: I just went and picked up the kids from my mom's house and she informed me that my dad spent a few hours yesterday with the band!!! AAAHHH! Lover Boy and Sergei are gonna be insanely jealous when I tell them.

All That Remains trailer broke down or something so they stopped at good old TJ Trailers to get it repaired. So my dad was able to spend a little bit of time talking with them. Too bad I wasn't working yesterday, LOL.

Halloween Festivities and Picture Overload

2009-10-21T08:51:00.000-07:00

What is your favorite time of year?

I simply LoVe Fall. The crisp air outside. The warmth coming from the heater vents. Snuggling with a soft blankie and a warm body. The awesome colors of leaves outside my window. The burn of hot chocolate hitting your tongue for the first time.

My very most favoritest (yes I know that isn't a word but too bad) holiday is Halloween. Don't get me wrong I love Christmas and the excitement and feeling that seems to be the entire month of December, yet I still favor Halloween. It's the beginning of my favorite time of year and leads to 3 more wonderful holidays.

This year we missed the Wee Witches Weekend at Gardner Village, but we at least were still able to make it to Ride To A Witch. We went on a little Hay ride to a Witches house. They showed us all through the house and yard. Little Princess had a blast!! She was beside herself with excitement. We hardly get to see her get so excited so it was so rewarding for us as parents to watch her.

The first witch who we met spoke with a British like accent. She was hilarious! After her explaining that eating eyeballs is like gummy snacks, Little Princess turned to me and said "oh my gosh, she is so weird huh mom?!" Of course I burst with laughter.

We froze our tooshies off, brrrr.

Then Little Princess had a primary activity at Gramma's church. She was so excited to get dressed up as Morticia...I think that's my favorite part of Halloween, getting dressed up. We had fun being girly and flipping her hair and applying lots and lots of makeup, which I did stress to her is only appropriate for Halloween.

A few days later it was off to the Pumpkin Patch to get our pumpkins to carve this weekend. But before we could leave the yard we just had to play in the leaves. Little Man loves the leaves. He especially liked when Daddy would drop a big handful and let them spill on his head. Little Princess decided that she wanted to wait til all the leaves were raked so it'll be a HUGE pile for her to jump in. When we made it to the pumpking patch Little Princess was very particular in choosing the perfect one. LOL, the one she chose is lop-sided dirty and warped yet it's her perfect pumpkin.

Such a time of year to spend with the kids and forget for a moment that I have grown and am no longer a child. It's fun to be a kid again:)

Snakes and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails....

2009-10-14T21:24:00.000-07:00

If I were the author of that cute little saying I would have chosen a different set of words to describe little boys. Wiggles and Worms and lots of Germs.

I am NOT used to this busy BUSY body boy!! He is all over the place and into everything. I know he will be just like his dad and have to tear everything apart and see how everything works, I can see it in his eyes already.

Since the womb, Little Man has been full of wiggles. He doesn't know how to hold still. If he ever stopped moving for more than 2 seconds, it'd be because he was dead. You might think I'm exaggerating, but NO I'm not. I just want to cuddle him and rock him while I feed him or get him to sleep; but the little guy won't have it. His legs will just be going crazy or an arm will be swinging. If I don't lay him down soon so he can wiggle all over, he'll arch his back and pop out of my grip.

Another thing I'm so not used to is his messy MESSY face, hands and feet. Anything he can grab instantly goes into his mouth. He likes to play in the toilet, EWWW I know. He likes to try to grab things under the floor boards and while in the process grabbing dirt, rocks, and cobwebs. He's eaten cow manure, dirt and just about everything but human feces.

This kid amazes me....Boys are so different from little girls!! Or at least from my little girl. Sometimes I'm ready to pull my hair out, like today. I figure it's easier to kill one bird with 2 stones right? So for bath time I throw them in together (literally throw). But you know it becomes quite a trick to get Little Princess's hair washed while he's playing Spider Man and trying to climb up the shower wall. He got his leg up and over the faucet and thought he could ride it! I freaked out, and he just looked and me and laughed...Can you just see it? Oh what the future holds? I don't even need a psychic for that one...lots of dr visits and stitches I'm sure.

He's a joy none-the-less. He's a rather happy boy, always has been. I love hearing his deep gutted laugh, it makes my whole day. He makes my heart just smile. He's definitely become quite the momma's boy and I'll admit I love that whole-heartedly (don't know if that's a word...hmmm). He loves me to hug him and hold him, even if it is briefly, and loves to lay his head in my lap while he plays or watches tv.

I DO LOVE BEING MOMMY TO A SWEET BUSY LITTLE BOY! It's an adventure for sure, but such a thrill too. MUAH Little Man!

Cheese Burger Soup

2009-10-13T17:29:00.000-07:00

Now the name is kinda funny and I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but let me confirm that this is one yummy soup. Especially when the wind is whistling outside my door, the clouds are dark, and when you just want to snuggle up with your favorite blankie.

I got this recipe from my friend Cindee's blog. She'd told me about it before, in fact I'm sure she's given me the recipe but when your mind is as young and fresh as mine (hahaha) it gets filed away somewhere and nearly forgotten.

Go try this for your next dinner, you won't be disappointed, you will be delighted. Now if only my dinner dates would just get home so I can eat more and not just snitching some every chance I get.:)

Cheese Burger Soup

1/2 lb ground beef, browned and drained
3/4 c shredded Carrots
3/4 c chopped Onion
3/4 c diced Celery
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp parsley flakes
1 stick butter
2-3 c Chicken Broth
4 medium potatoes
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 c Flour (add more if needed)
1 1/2 c Milk (add more if needed)
3/4 c Sour Cream
24 slices Kraft cheese torn into 1 inch pieces

In large pot or crock pot, add browned ground beef and broth. Cook on LOW heat. Peel and quarter potatoes. Place in microwave-safe bowl and cover with water. Cover and cook for 13-15 minutes. In the same pan you cooked the ground beef in, sauté 1/2 stick butter, onion, carrots, celery, basil and parsley (about 7 minutes). Add sautéed mixture to large pot. In the same pan you sautéed vegetables in, place flour and 1/2 cube butter. Cook over medium heat and whisk in milk slowly. Let thicken. Add salt and pepper. Remove from heat and add sour cream. Mix well. Return to heat and add torn pieces of cheese slices and stir over medium heat until melted and smooth. Slowly add to large pot. Cut cooked potatoes into bite sized pieces and add to pot. Let thicken for one hour. You can adjust the milk and flour for a thicker or thinner soup base.

Everyone needs a Mexican Friend

2009-10-12T21:12:00.001-07:00

LOL, I know that title may seem a bit "wow", but honestly that's how we refer to her. Either that or Pure bred. LOL. Let me explain that one cuz it's a funny story.

We were hanging out at my friend Jordan's apartment one night, the first time he and Pure bred met. Jordan meant to ask her if she was full Mexican, but it came out "are you pure bred Mexican?" It was so funny and has stuck.

NOW, back to my claim of everyone needs a Mexican friend. This Pure bred Mexican friend can cook. Funny thing she will assure us that she cannot, however I have been the guinea pig for many of her cooking attempts and I will vouch for her ability to cook, and not just good, but superb!

Have you ever had a Mexican style steak? If not, you need to try it. It is cut near paper thin and easy to just pull it apart with your fingers if you are savage like me. Pure bred invited my family and some of our other friends over for dinner. We all sat in her nice dining room around a large table and ate Thanksgiving style. We had steak, tortillas, pico de gallo, salsa, rice, followed by brownies topped with ice cream and flan for dessert. Not only was it delicious to the taste it was so much fun. More fun than I've had in a long time. Simple. Dinner, no movie, no games, nothing other than great company. It's moments like this that I consider myself one of the luckiest people alive.

I know I've said it before, but I realized it again tonight. My friends and I are all so different but so similar at the same time. We have Catholics, Mormons, Atheists, Christian, and just "whatever' but we all respect each others beliefs and surprisingly will often discuss religion, but with the utmost respect to the next person. Our lives are all so different and going in different paths that sometimes it does make it hard to get together...However we do always make time for one another. it's so nice.

Our evening was perfect. Little Man ate and ate and ate while Little Princess played with other children that were there (her new bestest friends). While we were sitting at the dinner table I mentioned that with all the variety of foods Little Man was taking in he would surely have a tummy ache and some yucky poop. Within an hour he vomited all over. I've never seen someone so little puke so much. It was so sad. I hate when my kids puke, they never do so when they finally end up doing it it terrifies them. It was all over himself, the carpet and me. Well, needless to say we learned our lesson about stuffing him full of everything in sight. Poor little guy:(

Anyways....we had a great night, despite the upset tummy of Little Man's. Thank you Pure bred. Sure do Love ya! You are a truly amazing cook!!
-side note: you know these Mexicans cook everything from scratch, either they don't know that much of it comes in a can pre-made or they just know how much better it really is home made. Really it is incomparable to the store bought anything. just a little tid bit from me.

Homework

2009-10-12T11:46:00.000-07:00

Little Princess had her first homework assignment. She was given a large white paper and told to do whatever she would like to it to let her class know about her and her family. She wanted to just draw pictures on it. She drew herself, Little Man, her other brother Alan, her Daddy, Mommy, Daddy Joe, and Mommy Martha. Then she traced one of her puzzle pieces because she loves to do puzzles. She drew a square in it with Mickey Mouse's head because her favorite is Disney Channel. She also drew some books. She loves to read!! And she started reading on her own one day at Lowe's.

We were in Lowe's getting some paint and she looked at the wall and said "C-O-L-O-R-S, Mom, does that say colors?" I was astonished!! "Yes, yes it does Little Princess, how do you know that?"
"Well, because it starts with C and then O then L then O then R then S." Can you believe this kid? She's only 4!! Geez...maybe by the time Little Man is ready for bedtime stories, she'll be reading them to him. (we've tried reading to him, but he's not at all interested.:( )

Back to her homework...When she was at Preschool they had her draw another picture of her family. When I arrived to pick her up they invited me to look at her picture. Lover Boy looked like a pig on it, so of course I asked "Little Princess, did you make Daddy Joe a pig cuz you think he eats alot?"
"No mom, that's his teeth cuz he always likes to show me his teeth". She had drawn a zigzag through his mouth, duh of course it was teeth! So funny. Can't wait to bring that picture home and frame it. :)

Sunday's and sundae's

2009-10-11T21:02:00.000-07:00

Here I sit on the couch watching television, bundled in not only a blanket, but those favorite long sleeve T-shirts with a comfy hoody on and slippers. Ahh...I love this time of year. It is simply delightful, is it not?

I just got home, from what should've been a wonderful steak dinner at my parents. About half way through the meal, I started to get queasy, then my head was spinning and every noise was amplified, it surely doesn't help when there are 11 people and one of them is my squeeling Little Princess...my guess is a migraine was coming. I felt sad to rush myself and the kids out of the house but, when a migraine comes in this head of mine I black out and vomit and let's just say it's SO not a pretty sight. I threw some Ibuprofen in my mouth and whisked crying babes out to the car. Luckily I didn't have to pull over due to black out or vomit! We made it home safely and after resting on the couch for 2 hours I'm feeling back to normal. YAY!

My busy body crafting frenzy mood did not escape me last night while I slept...another HOORAH right here! Having motivation is a treat for me, I savor it!! It's better than ice cream, better than pie, and yes, it's even better than brownies...ahhh brownies! Sometimes I wonder if I suffer from ADD or ADHD, however it usually only occurs when food is my distraction.

SOoooo...for my projects:

My Gramma Ruthie gave me a darling little kitchen cupboard that was my mom's when she was little. She'd given it to me 2 years ago, but I of course lacked the motivation to do anything to it. Finally a few months ago I painted it...then I found some super cute and oh so perfect scrapbook paper that I just HAD to incorporate into it somehow. One of the glass was broken for the cupboards, we were planning on just getting it replaced, but then I feared the kids breaking it again...I opted for curtains:) It turned out so cute and fun, I love it (even if you aren't impressed, I don't mind cuz I know it's my style and many people don't like that). Anyways there were just a few things that I needed to finish on it, and I did that today.

Then I found some cute fabric in my stash and so I had to change the sleigh that I put together for my mom and use the fabric in there...Much better with the fabric:)

The other day I had seen a cute idea on another blog with bats and masks...I went outside and gathered some branches that have fallen from our tree to make myself a halloween tree and then proceeded to make some decorations of bats and masks for it. This seemed like such an easy simple project...WRONG. It took me 5 hours, but you know what it's ok. I like my halloween tree and it gave me something to do today.

Now it's time for me to get to bed...Lover Boy has his test tomorrow and he's terribly nervous (if you could just see him, it's so apparrent, I feel so sad for him) so I think I better give him a back rub to help soothe his nerves....hmmm....just occured to me that I must be nervous for him to, hence the migraine earlier. I only get migraines when I get stressed....interesting.

A late night surge

2009-10-10T22:22:00.000-07:00

I may be lazy and stay in my jammies all day long, but once night rolls around and I realize that I've done absolutely nothing besides watch HGTV I kick it in high gear and get cracking.

When Little Man was born I took pictures of him and developed them immediately for a project I wanted to do. I ordered my vinyl and was all ready...but lacked motivation. LOL, story of my life. hahah.

For my birthday back in August we spent the day at the Gateway and I'd found a darling hat that I HAD to have, until I saw the price tag that is. $49!! Can you believe it? Lover Boy assured me that it was my birthday so I could have it, but also brought to my attention that I could totally make it. So about a month later when I had a girl's day with my friend in Park City we were at the Gap outlet and I found the perfect hat for my creation. The price tag said $4.99, but when they rang it up it was $1.99, so of course I ran to the rack and grabbed the other color too! For that price, why not right?! Then I went to JoAnn's and got the remaining supplies that I needed, each hat cost a total of $10 to make. SO much better and now I have 2:)

SO....here we go: (Side note, these projects that I've delayed so insanely long took me about 2 hours to do entirely. HAHAHA I am just so lazy sometimes. and also please don't judge me by my red eyes and smudged makeup; it is 11:30 p.m. and I'm an eye rubber when I get sleepy)

Domestic Diva has been on leave for the last few days. She's taking a break. Really we just haven't wanted to go buy groceries for the recipes we've been wanting to try. We did fajitas, tacos, and our favorite spaghetti, meals that we had all the ingredients for. House has been clean, but no major organizing other than the craft room this week. I'm really wanting to do my bathroom closet next. Hopefully Monday that chore will get tackled:)

A ray of sunshine

2009-10-08T11:28:00.000-07:00

Sometimes in life I catch myself only seeing the gloom. Lately that has been my outlook. I see gray clouds daily, sometimes drops of rain and hear rolling thunder. I love that in weather but not so much when it's my perception of daily life.

Don't get me wrong, I have thoroughly enjoyed being in "retirement" with my husband. We refer to it as retirement to keep us from getting so down...it really has helped slightly. I enjoy spending each day with the ones I love most in life. It is so nice to be a newly wed and see your lovely spouse for more than a few minutes each day. We have so much to be grateful for. We have really become to know each other inside and out. We are able to appreciate each other so much more. It has been a blessing.

However as each day passes, we have let the fear of what this life really means creep into us. It's in our hearts and souls. Lover Boy has been looking for a new job since last August. Fortunately he had a job at the time, so it wasn't such a big deal when there were no call backs. May came around and Lover Boys hours at work were slaughtered. He was "lucky" if he could get in 20 hours a week. I wasn't working at that time and so the tremendous cut back hit us quite hard. Then my job contacted me and asked if I'd like to go back to work 2 days a week, it was their busy time of year and they could use an extra person. Honestly I wasn't thrilled about going back to work, but thrilled that it would be an extra income. We got married the first of May and within one week, Lover Boy found out he would be terminated within a month. They cut his hours back even more. By then he was working a max of 10 hours a week. He spoke to management and explained to them that it was impossible for him to support his family with no guarantee of hours (which not to mention he had to be to work at 5 a.m. and was usually sent home by 6 a.m, what was the point of waking up so early?). He asked if they could immediately lay him off so that he could gather unemployment. They agreed. His unemployment was still hardly worth anything, but at least we could count on the same amount each week, which made it much easier to adjust our budget. We were blessed because my work picked up enough (or they felt sympathy towards my situation) and I was allowed full time hours for the summer but informed I wouldn't be able to stay pass Labor Day weekend. We were ok with that because that was 3 1/2 months away and surely Lover Boy would find something by then. Labor Day came, hundreds of applications and resumes were sent in (even to Mc Donalds and other fast food chains, every gas station in the area, restaraunts, mall jobs, just about everywhere), and only a handful of call backs were given and even fewer interviews. We were able to negotiate terms on my car loan with the credit union so that my credit wouldn't be effected but my payments could be less, we adjusted our grocery and gas bills, we switched our phone plans, cancelled unnecessary services, sold many things that we didn't NEED and did everything that we could to make our income work. Selling the house became an idea, but was quickly put out the door once we checked rent prices, our house payment is the same as rent and much bigger.

We decided that we could clean out the basement and turn that back into a rental unit. I was not looking forward to that idea, but...what other option did we have, besides sell the house and move in with family? We are really trying our hardest to be responsible and not become someones' burden.

Needless to say, I was terrified. I cannot see the future, how long would we have to go on like this? Now, don't get me wrong because we truly are blessed and I know our situation doesn't even compare to so many other families out there...but regardless of that fact I have still been down.

Lover Boy's wonderful friend Sergei told him that he could apply at his work and that he would give him a good referral. Lover Boy got an interview, but no job. That was crushing...

My dear mom kept reminding me that "Faith in God is also faith in his timing" or something like that. She is right, of course mom's always are. I decided to just put it in His hands. We are surviving just fine, our needs are all met along with many of our wants. Really money isn't the issue for us, we live on less than many people's house payment (and not the really big new homes either), it's just the feeling of taking advantage of the system (although I don't feel we are taking advantage, but you start to wonder sometimes if you are slacking off and becoming the ghetto person).

The ray of sunshine:

I'm so lucky to have a cousin who cares. My cousin knows Lover Boy is highly interested in the IT industry, and this cousin works for a rapidly growing IT company. Lover Boy had applied there last year, but the job was given to another applicant. My cousin called my dad a few weeks ago and asked if Lover Boy was still looking for a job, because there would possibly be 2 positions available in the future. Long story short, my wonderful cousin has taken the time to prepare Lover Boy for the position he's applying for. Of course there is no guarantee Lover Boy will get it but it has warmed our hearts so much at the generosity of my cousin. Lover Boy had his first interview yesterday with them, and passed that! YAY! Now he will be tested on his skills, if that is passed then I believe there are more interviews. After he'd gotten out of that interview yesterday he was contacted by an employer that he'd applied at and interviewed with asking for a second interview. What a great day!!

Obviously Lover Boy would hands down prefer the job in the field that he's interested in, however if he doesn't get it he's thankful to have this other opportunity available. Our home was been much brighter the last 2 days, moods are happier, stress is dying down...We do fully understand that it is a possibility that nothing come from either of these, but it's been a confidence booster (you know you kind of wonder about yourself when even Mc Donalds won't call you back).

ANYWAYS, HAPPY HAPPY DAYS...SOMETHING WILL WORK OUT EVENTUALLY.

and a big huge THANK YOU to my cousin, regardless if Lover Boy getting the job or not it means the world to us that you are taking the time to help him and care enough about us, and it's not just from me, Lover Boy mentioned it last night after leaving your house that it is so reassuring that you would help him in such a way!!

Getting organized (for a few hours at least)

2009-10-07T09:49:00.000-07:00

Despite my lack of enthusiasm to tackle my crafting area and get it organized, I drank my energy booster and forced myself to just get it done yesterday afternoon. Here's what I dreaded...

Regardless of the looks of it, it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought. I was finished in less than 2 hours. And it looked so nice...

But as of this morning, it has 4 projects out and ready to be done: 1- I had started to scrapbook Christmas 2007 and need to finish that so I left those pages out so that I can finish them later this week; 2- I have some picture frames that need painted and pictures put in (easy I know, but...); 3- Trying to avoid the house yesterday I called my mom and we went to Tai Pan, she got a darling sleigh and I thought it'd be cute to put a fun bow, snowflake and bell on so she put me in charge of it , so now that is out and ready to be done; 4- I made Little Man a blanket for his bed right after he was born and have yet to finish it, all that needs done is the back, I just am too nervous working with pieces of fabric that large, it's so easy to screw it up. So I have a few projects to keep me busy...speaking of which I'm gonna go do the one that is funnest for me, mom's sleigh. Hopefully by the end of this week I'll finish at least 3 of these projects (you know which one I'm not too thrilled to do don't you, yes the blanket).

A simply wonderful day!

2009-10-05T15:54:00.000-07:00

First off, thank you all so very much for all of your comments and support on the situations with Little Princess and her daddy.

I feel that I probably didn't clarify very well exactly what he was asking...He just wanted to rotate roles. He would have her "live" with him, and I would have visitation rights. I thought and thought and prayed about how to approach this. I knew in my heart that there was no way that I could actually switch roles...but I definitely did want to make sure that I wasn't being selfish and get some facts about children and moving between households, etc.

After much thought and contemplation on the subject I came up with an idea. Things would stay just the way they are now, except her daddy could have a few extra hours each day that he takes her...I figured up how many hours she spends at each household that way and I only ended up with 8 extra hours in a week. Wahoo, now is that "fair" or what?! Immediately after writing up the plan, with hours tallied and it fully explained for him, I text him and asked him to call me when he got a second. He immediately called, I approached him by letting him know that I'd done much thought about Little Princess's living arrangements...and then he cut me off. He said that he was being selfish, that once he sat down and looked at things the way they are, that he realized I was right, that we really do divide the time very evenly. He told me that he appreciated the fact that he does get so much time (by law he only has rights to 2 hours during the week and then rotating weekends). He had spoken to his mother after our "meeting" and told her what he'd asked and that my response was so mature (see some of us do get pass it...sometimes at least). He didn't out right say it, but I assume his mother said something to the fact of "little girls need their moms more than their dads"; because he said he realized that while speaking with her. I don't honestly know how true that statement is, but I like to think it is true too (just seems logical).

PHEW!! What a relief!! Seriously you have no idea the relief I felt, NONE at all...a terribly huge weight has been removed from my shoulders. You know he is a great guy, but the fear of telling him "no" then made me afraid that what if he presses this issue, what if he takes it to court, what if the court grants his wish, even though in Utah the Mom is more favored, we don't have jobs currently in this house and how would that look? I didn't think he would take it that far, but sometimes fear just get your mind racing and going every which way.

What a delightful conversation it turned out to be. He was very appreciative and supportive and complimentive. I'm so glad that I called him before meeting with the school psychologist later this week about the matter and getting facts from her, now it's over!

As for the rest of the day, I got 6 loads of laundry done, kitchen completely cleaned, and car cleaned out. Lover Boy put a pot roast in for dinner that is smelling quite delicious and I cannot wait to eat.

Tomorrows project is a biggy. I've got a crafting area in the basement that now doubles as Molly's room (we moved her kennel in because it's sad to watch her shiver out in the cold) that is a disgusting mess...Honestly I don't know how I get to be such a slob, it simply amazes me though...But by tomorrow night it will be much better. I've charged my battery in the camera so there will finally be pictures to post. :)

Goodnight!

Best Cuddle Bugs

2009-10-04T12:35:00.000-07:00

Little Man loves Molly. He loves it when she licks his toes, his nose, his cheeks. He loves to crawl over and pet her. For this reason I really am so glad that we have a dog. I'm not an animal person in any way, but seeing my baby not be afraid of her and love to chase her around and lay by her makes having a dog so much fun. Oh, look he's getting so big too, huh?! Where does the time go?

my 2 cents....

2009-10-04T12:18:00.000-07:00

Many of you know I just simply love having my great friend Melissa Davis do my family's pictures. If you've come in my house you see her work on every wall at least once. She does an amazing job!! She is currently offering mini sessions. In it you get 25 christmas cards (along with other items)and enevelopes too!! YAY since it's that time of year. Go check out her blog and schedule an appointment with her. YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED!! I guarantee this.

Ok I'm finally getting caught up

2009-10-03T11:11:00.000-07:00

So I've caught up on blogging...finally. You can go back through the beginning of sept to catch up:)

Friday night with friends....

2009-10-03T09:06:00.000-07:00

Thursday afternoon cute Steph called and said she wanted to stop by for a minute if we were home. You know my friends are so good, they always stop by to see me. I love it. Anyways when she came by she said that she missed hanging out with everyone and thought we should plan something for Friday nigh, which of course I completely agree. Conversation went from subject to subject and then I began telling her about the hilarious video (The Ugly Truth, warning: it is a crude show that should not be viewed around children) that Lover Boy and I had just watched. I laughed so hard I was short of breath and ended up snorting throughout the entire movie. Then like a light bulb in my brilliant mind going off...I suggested that we should get together with everyone and just watch a movie Friday night. It would be free and local!!

Needless to say: We had so much fun watching a movie together. We were all rolling! We've decided to make this a weekly treat. We are all on different paths in our lives and it's so difficult to get together, and we're all strapped for cash so this is the perfect solution. I'm excited because my children were able to be here (Little Princess watched a movie in her playroom that was suiting for her age, and Little Man was catching his zzzz) and it's something that we usually do just Lover Boy and I so our schedule doesn't have to change one bit.:)

Well, with life being life...there are times that we lose focus, that we are overtaken by some other force. In our household we've been trying to fight off depression. We have no really great reason to be experiencing it because we do know that we truly are blessed and very fortunate in our life, but despite that knowledge it's creeping in. Fortunately we have recognized it and know just a little bit about it to know that it's knocking at the door...Friday I let him in and nearly gave him control. You know depression is so so scary!! I hate it! I felt the need to take a nap early on in the morning...then about 2, I NEEDED another nap. I woke at 5. While I was awake I was a b*tch to everyone within 50 yards of me...Little Princess just couldn't do anything right, Little Man just drove me crazy, Molly (our dog) bugged me so bad, I even told her that you bug me one more time girl and I will take you down....hahaha wouldn't that make a great YouTube video?!

We were making Miso Soup, Salmon, Stir-fry and Rice for dinner...Lover Boy and Sergie went to the Asain Market to get the ingredients for Miso Soup while I was napping. When they returned I had just woken up, I was NOT in the mood to cook. Luckily for me they were so excited to make this soup that they did just that. (at the Japanese resturants you will pay anywhere from $2-5 for this yummy soup, to make a large pot of it cost $5...no more paying at the restaraunt.) Then feeling a bit guilty for my lousy behavior throughout the day I forced myself off the couch and into the kitchen. I made Salmon baked in Soy Sauce, the stir fry veggies, and rice...at least I got something done finally...While I was cooking though Little Man popped himself out of his bumbo chair that was in the center of the kitchen table (which it says directly on the chair NOT to do) and crashed to the floor...I cursed and began crying with him. Little Princess was just being a four-year old asking questions and informing me that the spoon I gave her was too large and that I shouldn't have given a child a glass bowl...I exploded at her about just being quiet and not complaining...Then I realized it was not her problem she was completely right, but I was the one over reacting about everything...I had a mini breakdown for a minute in my bedroom, wiped the tears, and then headed back upstairs to finish the dinner. Lover Boy is so good because as soon as he sensed my terrible mood swing, he offered to help (which I snapped at and said I was capable of doing it myself), he took the baby and got him ready for bed. After eating I thought it would be best to spend some time with Little Princess before our friends came over. I went down to her play room and layed with her and watched part of a movie with her. I am glad that I did that because I need her to know that mommy may freak out but it's not her fault it's mommy's and that I love her regardless of anything. Man, it sure is rough being a mom!! The rest of the night went much better:)

Here are some recipes from the meals that have been our favorite the past week or so:

Miso Soup

1 bag Dashi soup stock (you can substitue with mushroom stock or fish stock)
3 T. Miso paste
1 brick firm tofu
1 pinch of seaweed
green onions
10 c. water

Boil water with Dashi soup stock. Chop tofu into small cubes and add to soup. Take out 1 -2 Cups of the soup and mix in small bowl with Miso paste until paste is dissolved. Turn to Med-Low Heat, remove Dashi stock bags (like tea bags) then add pinch or 2 of seaweed. Make sure soup is not boiling, then add Miso paste. Stir, do not allow to boil with Miso paste in it. Add green onions.

Chicken Noodle Soup

2 chopped chicken breasts (uncooked)
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped carrot
1 cup chopped celery
1/2 t salt
5 cups water
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 t garlic
4 chicken bouillon cubes
1 dash of parsley
1 pkg egg noodles.

Put all ingredients minus noodles in large pot and boil til chicken is cooked. Pour in the noodles and simmer til noodles and veggies are tender.

Chicken & Broccoli Braid

2 cups cooked chicken, chopped
1 cup broccoli, chopped
1/2 c red bell pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, pressed
4 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded-1c.
1/2 c. mayonnaise
2 t. dill mix
1/4 t salt
2 pkg. crescent rolls
1 egg white, lightly beaten
2 T slivered almonds

PreHeat oven to 375. Chop chicken, broccoli and pepper. Press garlic over vegetables, add shredded cheese. Add mayonnaise, dill mix, salt. On cookie sheet lay out crescent rolls with the long point going towards the outside and the short side down the center, do on both sides...You will be scooping the mixture down the center and then braiding the long pieces over. Brush on the egg whites and sprinkle with almonds.

Bake 25-28 minutes

Joe's Sisters Spaghetti Sauce

1 large onion, chopped
1 small green pepper, chopped
2 T Olive Oil
2-3 Garlic Cloves, Minced
2 cans whole tomatoes, crush them
2 plain tomato sauce
2 t. Dry basil
1 t. dry oregano
1/2 t. fennel seed (KEY INGREDIENT)

Heat olive oil and cook onion and pepper. Combine all ingredients and bring to a boil. Then cover and simmer for 1 hr stirring occasionally. BE PATIENT

Mowing for Meatloaf

2 1/3 c. coarsely crushed soda crackers (1 1/2 tubes from package)
2 lbs. lean ground beef
1/2 pound breakfast sausage patties
1 large egg
2 medium onions, chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, minced
3/4 c ketchup, + 1/4 c. for the top
1/3 c. worcestershire sauce
1 t. salt
1/2 t black pepper

Preheat the oven to 325. In a heavy duty plastic food-storage bag, place the crackers, seal and roll over with a rolling pin wntil crushed but not powdery.
Take any rings off your fingers and send them to me! {that really is in the recipe..this is from Naomi Judds cookbook and she adds fun little personality like that to every recipe. lol} In a large bowl, with clean hands, mix together all the ingreients except the 1/4 c. ketchup for the top. Mix thoroughly but lightly, being careful not to pack the meat too much. Place in a 13x9x2 baking pan and shape into a loaf. Cover with aluminum foil.
Bake in the 325 oven for 45 minutes. Removed the foil. Spread the top of the loaf with the 1/4 c. ketchup. Bake, uncovered, another 60 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before slicing.

~when I made this one I ended up with only enough ketchup for the mixture and none to put on top. I searched my food storage but was completely out of ketchup but did find a bottle of bbq sauce. So I topped the meatloaf with that...We prefer it with bbq sauce on top~

Decisions, decisions...what to do?

2009-10-01T20:46:00.000-07:00

Little Princess's daddy asked me a week ago if we could meet sometime and talk. I thought it was a great idea, but as soon as I agreed nerves set in. What did he want to talk about? (you know when someone says "we need to talk" there's usually a negative connotation) Was I in trouble for something? I asked him if I should be nervous and he said there was no need so I let the fear leave, for a moment...as today crept nearer I began to get nervous again...The hour before I was to meet him I was a wreck, I thought I was gonna puke, a major headache came on.

We met at TGIFridays to have an appetizer and drinks. We just talked about everyday happenings for about 45 minutes or so...dun dun dun dun...then he got quiet, repositioned himself and I knew the reason for the meeting was finally to be addressed...NOT WHAT I EXPECTED!! He asked me if it'd be okay if we rotate years with Little Princess. Not quite following him I asked him to clarify because we do already rotate years, as in holidays etc...He expanded and meant her living arrangements. My heart sunk. He asked me not to react immediately but to really think about it. Honestly, does more time thinking about it make it any less severe? My palms started sweating...heart racing...tear ducts forming tears...

He explained to me how hard it is on him not seeing her everyday. I explained that really we do split 50/50. I have thought in the past how hard it would be to be in his shoes or any non-custodial parents for that matter. It would be the most difficult situation...one that I would never want to be in. My heart really ached for him. I was not angry at his suggestion, but saddened by the sincerity of his need for her in his life.

I'm selfish, I need her!! I NEED my Little Princess. After another hour of him pouring out his heart about other issues that he needed to get off his chest I still couldn't get my mind to grasp what a year without her living in my home would be like. We returned to the topic of her and I told him I wasn't sure that would be the best thing for her. He assured me that she wouldn't be changing schools or anything, she'd stay on the same schedule. And suggested that I speak to a professional about the issue, someone at her school or where I took the step parent classes at who have degrees and deal with similar situations on a regular basis; he really does want what is best for his daughter. Still my stomach couldn't handle it...I suggested that maybe for the summer she could live at his house and I'd have visitation rights. That'd be easier on me and maybe less confusing on her, it'd be like a summer vacation thing.

Our current situation is she is with me on Monday and Thursday and him Tuesday and Wednesday and then we rotate weekends. To me that is 50/50. Granted now that I'm not working I do get to spend Tuesday and Wednesday with her while he is at work, but still....My heart is torn, how can I deny her father rights to his daughter? He is an amazing dad, there is absolutely no denying that. She loves him. But did I mention that I NEED her!!

We sat and talked for 3 hours! It was a great talk. He is one of my most dear friends and I was glad to spend the time with him. I'm so grateful that we have remained friends and are able to be so open and close and honest with each other. We are so very fortunate when I see others that fight and bicker over every little thing. We have a great relationship!

About my Domestic Diva adventure:

I failed on my cleaning duties today. I was "scheduled" to clean the bathrooms. But honestly I just didn't feel like it, Lover Boy and I was up far too late last night watching a hilarious movie and I was just exhausted today (and I had the awful nerves getting the better of me) so I didn't clean; instead I took a lovely nap and had a wonderful visit with Steph.

Sergei did text me this afternoon asking if I was cooking dinner tonight. I knew that I was but wasn't quite sure what it'd be because I didn't know how long I'd be with Little Princess's dad so I figured we'd do something simple. He asked if I could make soup because he had a Russian soup recipe. I told him I could follow a recipe, but not to expect perfection. He said he'd grab the groceries and bring them over. He arrived right when I was heading out the door, so I told him I'd make it when I returned.

I guess I was too long (LOL got home at 8:00) because when I walked in the aroma of something delicious over took my sense of smell. They made the soup for me tonight. It was delicous; it had 1/2 cabbage, beef, 1 jar of chopped clams, 2 onions, 5 carrots, mushrooms, 2 cans of beets and 5 potatoes, 4 oz. tomato paste seasoned with season salt, garlic salt and pepper. It was a perfect dinner for such a cold night...my heater isn't working so our house feels like winter! This made a ton (and when I say a ton I mean like 2 large pots) of soup.

*sigh* My heart is still torn...hopefully I'll be able to sleep.

Note: I asked Little Princess her opinion on the living situation suggested by her dad and she got so excited and said she'd love it ...heart ache...

~If you feel so inclined to leave a comment please do NOT bring any negativity onto Little Princess's daddy.

RAIN RAIN PLEASE DO STAY

2009-09-30T20:00:00.000-07:00

Today was delightful was it not? I woke to hear pitter patter on the swamp cooler and Little Man cooing in his crib. Quickly got dressed and ran out the door to pick up Little Princess from her daddy's house. I was so excited when I stepped out and saw the puddles filling my broken driveway and sidewalk, the glisten on the grass, and the gray in the sky. I love love LOVE rainy days. Little Princess didn't have school so we were all able to enjoy the day together. Yesterday I had told Little Princess that the weather man predicted snow for today, so as soon as she was in my arms she asked where it was...I told her that it was in Salt Lake so of course she begged me to take her to Salt Lake, I told her maybe another day we could do that when there would be more snow and it'd be funner, like when they do the lights at Temple Square.

We made pancakes for breakfast, which Little Princess did all the work; she measured, stirred and flipped the pancakes. I will hopefully be able to teach her to enjoy cooking. We sure did enjoy eating them:)

Shortly after cleaning up breakfast and the rest of the house, we piled in the car to run a few errands. Our first stop was the credit union. As soon as we pulled in the drive-through Little Man began vomitting. Fortunately for me my children are not really pukers, but also it scares me when they actually do. This was his first time, it was all over so Lover Boy dropped me and the kids off at home so we could clean up while he finished the errands. Little Man had 2 more bouts of throw up:( Poor Little Man.

So for the remainder of the day we had a very lazy day. We watched Disney Channel all together and then a movie while stuffing our faces with candy, except Little Man of course, he just sipped his Pedialyte.

I chickened out on the panty idea...sorry friends. Little Princess just wanted so badly to help me with dinner before her daddy picked her up that I felt it would be quite inappropriate, so instead we wore fun headbands. Panties will have to wait for a special "alone" night, or just another night that she'll be with her dad and won't insist on helping me with dinner.

We decided that with the weather we would do Chicken Noodle Soup. Lover Boy's dad had made fun of me a year ago when I made my first homemade Chicken Noodle Soup...I cooked everything seperately. I didn't want to use the chicken stock because of the nasty foam it gets on it...Since then I've tried to use it but it just disgusts me: WELL, tonight I used it and boy oh boy was it the best batch I've made...guess that is the trick. YUMMY.

PS Little Man is doing much much better. We kept him on the Pedialyte and there were no more incidents with vomit.

PPS: I've been procrastinating at charging my battery for my camera so it is never ready when I'd like to take a picture. Patience with me will be greatly appreciated, I will post pics soon:)

Nailed it!!!

2009-09-29T18:02:00.000-07:00

I nailed it, I'm going to be totally conceited for a minute or two...I made the most delicious dinner tonight. I'm so happy, it was YUMMY. It was easy so you will laugh: Spaghetti and Meatballs. However I made my very own sauce, I chopped my onions, mashed fresh tomatoes from Susie's garden (thank you Susie), pressed my garlic, chopped my parsley...and followed Joe's sisters delicious recipe. I followed the recipe on the back of Kraft Parmesan Cheese for my Parmesan meatballs. And then I steamed some carrots. It was a fabulous dinner:) YAY for ME!!

Tonight I wore a darling apron that I just HAD to have over a year ago that I'd seen on Etsy. I haven't wanted to wear it because it was just too cute to get dirty, but thanks to Cindee's suggestion I wore it and loved it and felt so fun:) Krissie tomorrow I will wear some cute panties and funky jewelry...Now no one had better stop by my house from 4-6 while I'm in the kitchen cooking in my panties:)

Smarty pants

2009-09-29T11:12:00.000-07:00

When I was picking up Little Princess from school today, the teacher pulled me aside and informed me that they did evaluations today in the class. They gave the children a test depending on their age.

Teacher LaVonne told me (as if I had no clue) that Little Princess is very smart and advanced for her age. They gave her the test for the year older because she is the biggest child in the class and she's so smart. After the child takes the test they have to put down the child's age, in months, on the test. They noticed that they had given her the wrong test. But when they graded them she had scored the highest even out of the older children.

Right after having this discussion with Teacher LaVonne, who is an assistant teacher, Teacher Morgan came in, the actual teacher, and told me the same thing. She let me know that they were very impressed and would work with her according to her capabilities and not according to her age. I'm so glad that she is in this awesome Pre-School. The teachers all have their bachelor's degrees and are very well prepared and know how to teach for children with different capabilities.

Proud moment for me:)

Adventures on becoming a Domestic Diva

2009-09-28T15:28:00.000-07:00

After weeks, if not months or years, of feeling somewhat of a failure to the female species I've decided that if I want anything to change, I must take charge. That surge of motivation came to me after having a girls night and watching the wonderful movie Julie & Julia I decided I would take a fun journey as she did. I will not be cooking 524 recipes in 365 days. I am not a cook in the slightest. I would give my...I would say my right arm, however that wouldn't work especially for ME, so I would give my big toe to be a fabulous cook. I've mentioned this many times to my biggest supporter Lover Boy but he insists that I am just fine. Fortunately for me and my lack of determination to conquer becoming a good cook Lover Boy has a single friend who frequents our home with a McDonalds bag, sometimes it's Del Taco. Sergei has mentioned that he would love home cooked meals, but we all know how difficult it is cooking for one. A week or so ago we made a deal that I will cook meals and he will come eat with us. It is nice because I know that ramen noodles or mac & cheese just won't cut it when there is a guest coming for dinner so I have begun cooking.

While starting my journey down the cooking lane, I've realized my biggest enemy in the kitchen the one ingredient that I absolutely despise cooking with is also quickly becoming my favorite. THE ONION. In the past I've just figured that when a recipe calls for onion it should say optional and I opt out of using it. I'm not a fan of that crunchy strong flavor and definately not a fan of crying while trying to chop it. However, that flavor really does add to the dish and when chopped so small and then cooked, it isn't so crunchy and noticeable. I now enjoy the tears streaming down my face, chopping that onion blindly, because I feel that I am sacrificing...I'm sacrificing my vision for a moment, sacrficing a perfectly made up face (well, we'll just pretend it's perfect, lol) while my mascara drips down my cheeks, my nasals burn with the smell of onion, and often the kitchen will smell like onions for a day after. I love cooking with onions:)

Cooking is not my only adventure! I have found myself compeletely slacking on housekeeping duties. Every room in our house has been taken over with clutter and filth. Shelves are full of dust, mirrors covered in splatter marks, floors with sticky messes. Yes I will admit it, we live in horror. Funny thing is I know that if you will just spend 1 hour or less a day the house can remain "clean". I have made myself a routine once again (it really does work for me, maybe not for you, but for me). Monday is the Kitchen. I clean the fridge, throw out old leftovers and wipe spills, I wipe down all the cupboards, appliances, countertops and table. I clean the floors spotless...ok so we all know that's a lie, my floors can never be spotless unless I replaced them, but I do as well as possible. The rest of the week I tackle one room a day(or like on Thursdays I do all the bedrooms). It has been working out quite nicely. I love having a clean house, one that may not look clean because it is old and ragged, but that I know is clean.

Also in my routine I have scheduled set aside time to do certain activities with my children. I find it rather easy to get side tracked and stick them in their playroom (which they really do enjoy) while I venture off on my own...you know catching up on reading everyone's blogs, emails, facebook and browsing the internet for whatever. We have reading time each day (which is my favorite thing to do with the kids because I know it will benefit them later in their lives), we also have art time (I have yet to start this activity with them because I've wanted to get organized personally before creating messes with them...hopefully only a few more days til our house is decorated in one of a kind masterpieces).

Back to the movie Julie & Julia, didn't you just love how she had to wear her pearls?! I loved it. I will not copy her exactly and wear pearls every day, but I am thinking of something. I just thought it was so cute and feminine. I love femininity!! Perhaps when I do yard work I will wear my tallest stilletos, it would serve a double purpose you know, I'd be aerating the lawn while mowing...however that is too dangerous for someone as graceful as I. Back to the drawing board for that perfect idea...what do you think would be fun?

AH...KITCHEN MISHAP..I am cooking my favorite meatloaf recipe while blogging. You bake it for 45 min covered, then uncover and pour the topping on and bake another 60 minutes. The timer just went off, I rushed in put the topping on, while placing the pan back in the oven it slid from my hot pads and splattered...This is my life. Should be no surprise, but still a bit of devastation sneaks in:( O-well right?! I'm sure Betty Crocker or Julia Child made mistakes such as that here and there...I sure hope so anyways.

A truly great friend is hard to come by....how have I been to fortunate?

2009-09-26T08:44:00.000-07:00

I met Mr. Adam nearly 2 1/2 years ago. I had just finished my marriage to Daniel. He was going through a divorce too. We had children just months apart. Immediately there was a connection with us. We knew exactly what each other was going through and was more than willing to listen, offer advice, and be a crying shoulder for each other. He was so much fun!! Always ready to go out and try something new. I loved it and needed that at that time. It was so nice that he had a son because all of my other friends didn't have children and it was hard for them to understand just how trying it was to hang out, attempt at a social life, yet be a parent at the same time. Adam and I weren't friends for very long (time wise), only about 3 months when our friendship drifted. Our lives parted as he took on a relationship. For some reason guys and girls friendships are frowned on when dating someone else. LOL, I completely understand that. We kept in touch here and there through email. Then I found out he'd moved to San Diego. We still kept in touch and when he realized he deserved to be treated better (and that's just my perspective of it) he ended his relationship of almost 2 years. We started talking much more frequently, I was so glad to have him back in my life. He's one of those friends who keeps it real. He's honest but it the kindest way. He came back for a quick visit and I met up with him. It was so SO good to see him again. And now he's finally moved back and it's awesome to have my friend local; and what's even better is that Lover Boy really likes him too!

Adam, if by chance you read this: Thanks so much for everything!! You helped me get through the hardest time in my life. You helped me realize who I really am. You taught me to accept and love myself. You were patient and understanding with me when I was a confused mess. You're a truly great friend who I'm so lucky to know!!