That's the new t-shirt idea I came up with yesterday. Marc thought it was good and I'm sure I could market it and sell a ton of them. Half of my family would be eligible to wear them as well...LOL!
Countdown to the last day of school has begun. The girls only have 5 days and 30 minutes (including today). Olivia's last field trip of the year is tomorrow and they will be going to Green Meadows Farm in Wisconsin. She is very excited and we are all hoping that there will be no rain...at least during the time of their visit.
Memorial Day Weekend was kind of quiet but productive. Both Katie and Olivia got their ears pierced so that was their highlight of the weekend. Their cousin Emily also spent the night with us and that was fun...other than the times when they were fighting over who's friend she was and who could or couldn't play with her. Marc and I spent the weekend doing yard work, planting flowers and cleaning out the storage and furnace room downstairs.
Just wanted to post something new as it's been awhile. Seth and I are on our way to the Chevy dealer to get the oil changed. We are travelling almost every weekend in June so need to get that done!
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Saturday, May 20, 2006
Productive Morning
Monday, May 15, 2006
I hope everyone had a Happy Mother's Day! I made out pretty well!! Matthew bought me a dozen roses, a huge balloon and a lovely card. Stephen gave me a $25 gift card from Barnes & Noble (which I've already spent). Katie and Olivia bought me flowers and a beautiful butterfly necklace. And, Suzanne made me a beautiful card. All the girls brought me breakfast in bed on Saturday which was sweet!! They also brought breakfast for Marc and said Happy Early Father's Day. Guess they didn't feel right about bringing breakfast for only me. All in all it was a quiet weekend which was nice for a change.
Olivia and Katie are both a little under the weather. Not sure if it's allergies or a cold. Katie is home from school as she does have a slight fever today. Olivia wanted to take medicine and go to school so I of course complied with her wishes. Tonight is her first night of swimming lessons (level 2) and she does not want to miss that. I think that's why she was adamant about going to school. She knew if she didn't that swimming lessons would not be a happening thing.
Olivia and Katie are both a little under the weather. Not sure if it's allergies or a cold. Katie is home from school as she does have a slight fever today. Olivia wanted to take medicine and go to school so I of course complied with her wishes. Tonight is her first night of swimming lessons (level 2) and she does not want to miss that. I think that's why she was adamant about going to school. She knew if she didn't that swimming lessons would not be a happening thing.
Monday, May 08, 2006


This is the layout I started on Friday at our monthly Schnockered Scrapper's Soiree. I finished it on Saturday. Haley is my youngest niece and will celebrate her 1st birthday the end of June. I just thought these pictures went perfect with the paper!!
Used my new template and made gift bags for Katie & Olivia's teacher's. Inside I put 6 cards (which I made). Each card was for a different occasion, sure hope they enjoy them as I had a great time making them.
It's official....I've now got all three of my daughters hooked on scrapbooking. I found a cute 8 x 8 making memories album on clearance at Target and picked it up for Olivia. She spent all day Saturday and a little bit of Sunday with me at the table working on it. She's got about 6 pages done and they are really good for a 6-1/2 year old. I have a feeling she could become obsessive about it...is that good or bad, LOL !!
Saturday, April 29, 2006


I'm doing a study for Diet Coke next week and I had to make a collage of the top 3 situations where I drink Diet Coke and how it makes me feel. I also had to refrain from drinking Diet Coke for two 24-hour periods and do a collage on how that makes me feel. Not sure you can read the words I used in these pictures but I have a word for every letter of the alphabet describing my feelings for both. Much thanks to Ana, Dianne and Marnie for helping me with the words. If my collages are voted the best the study pays an extra $50!!
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
Well the living room is finally finished. Just in time too. Marc and his Dad finished Saturday morning about 11am and Suzanne's party started at 4pm. The party was very nice and I think everyone had a good time. If anyone went away hungry it was their own fault.Sunday's confirmation service was very nice and we are all very proud of Suzanne. I'm not sure she'd admit it but I think she's proud of herself as well.
Well, today it's all about me!! Marc should be leaving right now to go to Best Buy and get a new computer. We've been having trouble with ours off and on for the last few years and it's just time to upgrade. The one we have in the basement went kaput as well so we will move the old one downstairs and hopefully everyone will be happy. I also stopped at Kohl's this morning and got new throw pillows for the couch and a new purse for myself. Speaking of it's all about me, I also finished my scrapbook "All About Me" yesterday. All the pictures and journaling are done, with the exception of the page about life lessons I've learned. I still have to give that one some thought.
Monday, April 17, 2006
I'm Amazed
Marc and I celebrated our 5th anniversary on Friday. He actually said Happy Anniversary before I got the chance to. After he left for work I heard knocking on our bedroom door and Suzanne asked if she could come in. When she did, she was carrying a cookie sheet with a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal, a Pop-Tart and a can of Fresca. Now if that's not a healthy breakfast I don't know what is...LOL. Katie spent some of her birthday money and bought us a lovely card and some vanilla sugar wafer cookies as she knows we both like them. Late Friday night Matthew gave us a very nice card and then on Saturday Stephen came home with a lovely card and gift. He got us a motion/sound picture of a waterfall in a beautiful gold frame. We've already got the perfect spot picked out in the living room for it.
Speaking of the living room, it is really taking shape. The ceiling has been textured and Marc put in over half of the wood flooring over the weekend. His parents arrive on Thursday morning so they can put up all the oak trim. I'm so pleased with the results and can't wait to see everyone's reaction to it at Suzanne's party on Saturday.
I planned a really nice Easter dinner for last night as with Dinorex being closed I figured we'd all be here (which is rare). However, Matthew got hired at Dominick's and you guessed it, his first day of work was last night from 4-10 so he missed out. He'll get to enjoy the leftovers today though. Both he and Stephen have to work next Saturday during Suzanne's party too but they will both be at church on Sunday to see her confirmed which I think will mean more to her.
I went to Walmart (1st of many trips this week I'm sure) this morning and got everything I needed and then some. Bought Suzanne the prettiest pair of cross earrings as a confirmation gift. I'm sure she'll love them...if they'd had a second pair I'd have been tempted to get myself a pair. I do have to go back to Walmart tonight after school as she'd like to get a new skirt and top, plus sandals for Sunday. Since her birthday is May 6th, this will be part of her birthday gift as well as a few other things I've picked up for her.
Well I'm in spring cleaning mode so I better get back to it. Happy Spring!
Speaking of the living room, it is really taking shape. The ceiling has been textured and Marc put in over half of the wood flooring over the weekend. His parents arrive on Thursday morning so they can put up all the oak trim. I'm so pleased with the results and can't wait to see everyone's reaction to it at Suzanne's party on Saturday.
I planned a really nice Easter dinner for last night as with Dinorex being closed I figured we'd all be here (which is rare). However, Matthew got hired at Dominick's and you guessed it, his first day of work was last night from 4-10 so he missed out. He'll get to enjoy the leftovers today though. Both he and Stephen have to work next Saturday during Suzanne's party too but they will both be at church on Sunday to see her confirmed which I think will mean more to her.
I went to Walmart (1st of many trips this week I'm sure) this morning and got everything I needed and then some. Bought Suzanne the prettiest pair of cross earrings as a confirmation gift. I'm sure she'll love them...if they'd had a second pair I'd have been tempted to get myself a pair. I do have to go back to Walmart tonight after school as she'd like to get a new skirt and top, plus sandals for Sunday. Since her birthday is May 6th, this will be part of her birthday gift as well as a few other things I've picked up for her.
Well I'm in spring cleaning mode so I better get back to it. Happy Spring!
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Sorry
Sorry, it's been over a week since I posted anything. It's been crazy around here, which is normal I guess. Olivia started her swim lessons on Saturday, Katie and I took her and then on the way home picked up a friend of Katie's who spent the entire day with us. Seth was supposed to start T-ball on Saturday but there was a scheduling conflict and the kids were all there and raring to go but there was no coach. So...the lessons will start next week and they will tack on another week at the end. Sunday the kids sang at church and they were of course adorable. I was able to get pictures but have been having trouble with my computer so it may be awhile before I can get them downloaded.
Marc has been diligently working on the living room. He's got most of the ceiling done (he's texturing it himself and it looks great) and hopes to finish that up tonight. Then he's going to rip up the carpeting (YEAH!!!) and start putting down the hardwood floors. Suzanne's confirmation/early 8th grade graduation is on the 22nd so he's trying to get it done before then.
Friday is not only Good Friday but Marc and I will celebrate 5 years together that day. Unfortunately I have a Tastefully Simple show that night but we agreed that we celebrated our anniversary early by taking our trip to Texas and enjoying some time alone. Katie is going to sleepover at her friends house that night and Olivia is going to sleepover at Emily's as well. We can't tell you how much we LOVE Aunt Marnie and Uncle Dave!!!! I'm going to have to get after them about our taking their girls every once in awhile to at least try and make up for all the times they've taken Seth and the girls. Doubt we will ever come close but we will certainly try!
Well I spent the morning running errands so I better get some things done around here! I'll try and post again before another week passes us by.
Marc has been diligently working on the living room. He's got most of the ceiling done (he's texturing it himself and it looks great) and hopes to finish that up tonight. Then he's going to rip up the carpeting (YEAH!!!) and start putting down the hardwood floors. Suzanne's confirmation/early 8th grade graduation is on the 22nd so he's trying to get it done before then.
Friday is not only Good Friday but Marc and I will celebrate 5 years together that day. Unfortunately I have a Tastefully Simple show that night but we agreed that we celebrated our anniversary early by taking our trip to Texas and enjoying some time alone. Katie is going to sleepover at her friends house that night and Olivia is going to sleepover at Emily's as well. We can't tell you how much we LOVE Aunt Marnie and Uncle Dave!!!! I'm going to have to get after them about our taking their girls every once in awhile to at least try and make up for all the times they've taken Seth and the girls. Doubt we will ever come close but we will certainly try!
Well I spent the morning running errands so I better get some things done around here! I'll try and post again before another week passes us by.
Monday, April 03, 2006
Back to Normal, Whatever that is??

Well everyone is back home. My girls returned from North Carolina at 11pm on Saturday night. They were so happy to be home but luckily went right to bed after a little conversation. We celebrated Katie's birthday yesterday (it was 3/30) and she was pleased with all her gifts and of course any money that she got.
Jonathon graduated from basic training on Friday and as of today should be headed to California to prepare for tech school.
Everyone's back to school today so hopefully everyone will fall back in to our regular routine.
Walgreens had an April Fool's No Joke for all their customers. I was able to get a free 8 x 10 and I've attached a copy of the one I chose. It's Olivia and my niece Haley and I just think it's adorable, although I'm a little biased!!
Have a great day!!
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Proud Mom Moment II


Well we survived our quick trip to San Antonio!! We left here Wednesday night about 9:15pm and arrived at my brothers (near St. Louis) at 2:00am. Slept until 7:00am and were back on the road by 7:30am. We arrived in San Antonio late Thursday evening, about 11:15pm. We would have made it in less time but we hit Dallas rush hour and we lost a little time.
We were at the Air Force Base by 8:00am on Friday and sat through graduation. However, Jonathon was not among the graduates. He doesn't graduate until this Friday and he claims they wouldn't let him call home to notify us. Oh well we know what graduation is like and we did get to spend a few hours with him on Friday evening and he was allowed to go off base all day on Saturday. Marc and I spent Friday afternoon on the Riverwalk and we went back on Saturday with Jonathon. We also went to the Alamo and RiverCenter Mall as Jonathon was itching to play some video games. Jonathon looks great, what a difference 7 weeks has made in him. We are still amazed!!
We left San Antonio bright and early (5:20am) on Sunday and got to my brothers about 8:45pm. I was able to spend a little time with my nieces which was nice. We were on the road by 9:30am yesterday and arrived to pick up Seth at about 2:30pm. He had a great time with Uncle Dave, Aunt Marnie and the girls but I think he was happy to come home. As I'm sure they were happy to see him go home!!
Well I have a lot of laundry to do so I'll close for now.
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
What a week!!
It's been a hectic week around here and it's only Wednesday. Monday the girls only had 1/2 day of school so I took both Katie & Suzanne to the doctor for their school physicals. They took blood from Suzanne and Katie completely freaked out. Imagine her dismay when the doctor checked out her veins and announced that they should get blood from her too! We had to hold her down and when I told her it would hurt worse if she didn't lay still she quieted down a little. Although we all know my Drama Queen....she screamed when they put the needle in and again when they took it out. I told her she should never have children and she responded with a quick "OK". On the way home she told me she was going to back to school and warn all her friends.
Today is the day that Marc and I leave for San Antonio. We are leaving at 10pm and driving as far as my brothers in southern Illinois (near St. Louis). We are going to crash their for 3 or 4 hours and then get up and head out in the morning, hopefully missing the St. Louis rush hour!! Jonathon is so homesick he called home twice this past week and the last time I talked to him when we hung up he said "I Love You, Mom"...not something I hear from Marc's kids much. We are thinking that since he gets the entire weekend free that maybe we might stay an extra day to spend more time with him. My girls will already be in North Carolina and hopefully Marnie will agree to keep Seth one more day if need be. We probably won't decide until we get down there and find out what's going on.
My Dad is back in the hospital and having surgery as I type this. They want to scrap some of the dead tissue off his foot, however if they have to go deep he will lose his Achille's tendon and then will not have any control over his foot. He would then need a leg brace. I think my Dad would rather loose his leg and have two prosthesis and walk with two canes. I'm sure he told them that if they got in there and decided it was necessary it was OK to take his leg. Keep those prayers coming!!
I'll be out of touch until next week but I'll fill you in on our trip and hopefully have some pictures to post!
Today is the day that Marc and I leave for San Antonio. We are leaving at 10pm and driving as far as my brothers in southern Illinois (near St. Louis). We are going to crash their for 3 or 4 hours and then get up and head out in the morning, hopefully missing the St. Louis rush hour!! Jonathon is so homesick he called home twice this past week and the last time I talked to him when we hung up he said "I Love You, Mom"...not something I hear from Marc's kids much. We are thinking that since he gets the entire weekend free that maybe we might stay an extra day to spend more time with him. My girls will already be in North Carolina and hopefully Marnie will agree to keep Seth one more day if need be. We probably won't decide until we get down there and find out what's going on.
My Dad is back in the hospital and having surgery as I type this. They want to scrap some of the dead tissue off his foot, however if they have to go deep he will lose his Achille's tendon and then will not have any control over his foot. He would then need a leg brace. I think my Dad would rather loose his leg and have two prosthesis and walk with two canes. I'm sure he told them that if they got in there and decided it was necessary it was OK to take his leg. Keep those prayers coming!!
I'll be out of touch until next week but I'll fill you in on our trip and hopefully have some pictures to post!
Saturday, March 18, 2006
Proud Mom Moment

Katie participated in her first karate tournament today. Out of 16 other 9-year olds all in various stages of the yellow belt, she took home a 1st Place Trophy. She is so excited and we are so PROUD!! She's only been taking karate lessons since September and a lot of the other kids she participated with have been taking lessons for a year or more! Way to go KATE!! Of course now she's going to want to participate in every tournament possible.
Friday, March 17, 2006
I Guessed Right!!
OK, so about 30 minutes after I wrote the first blog today, I had an idea of what my anniversary present was. I was right. We have finally leapt into the 21st century....I am now the proud owner of a digital camera. I'm so excited as Katie's first Karate tournament is tomorrow and I can use it and get my pictures right away. Marc said the reason he gave it to me almost a month early is so we can use it when we go see Jonathon next week.
Have a great weekend everyone!!
Have a great weekend everyone!!
What is It?!?!?!
At 8:30 I get my daily morning phone call from Marc, wanting to be sure that everyone is up and ready to head to school. He then proceeds to ask if I will be home all day, not a typical questions so I'm wary. I say yes, why...and he responds with..."if the UPS man stops by and brings a package you can go ahead and open it". My first thought is OK what has he ordered that we probably don't really need. I immediately feel guilty for this thought when he responds that it is an early anniversary present for me. Now I'm shocked. Our 5th anniversary is not until April 14th and he's already ordered me something (making up for last year's birthday??). He then says it is something I can use and that he ordered me two things. Hmmm I could use diamond earrings but somehow I don't think that's what it is...it can't be a vacuum cleaner as we just bought a new Kirby. In fact I was going to tell him that he didn't need to buy me an anniversary or Mother's Day gift since I now have a really nice vacuum. I then ask will the box give away what is inside?? He responds with I'm not sure. Then I say will the return address give it away? He again says not sure. I proceed to tell him that if the box says what's inside (like my birthday present last year) then I will go ahead and open it...but if not I'll wait for him to come home. But will I really be able to wait or will the anxiety get the better of me....guess time will tell.
Potty training with Seth yesterday went well. I only changed two pull-ups and only because they were stinky. The rest of the day he went on his own. I hope this will continue to be a daily thing as I'd like to stop buying pull-ups. I also know that Aunt Marnie would really appreciate not having to deal with changing him next week as she is trying to train Abbigayle. He keeps assuring me that he will go on the potty at Aunt Marnie's all the time. Again....time will tell.
Happy St. Patrick's Day!!! My girls went off to school decked out in whatever green they could find to wear. I'm going to surprise them when they get home with Shamrock cookies. For those of you who know me well you know it's the Pillsbury ones you just put on a cookie sheet and bake. Although I did make cookies from scratch for the Christmas cookie exchange last year. I think once Seth is in school all day I'll be better about cooking and baking cookies from scratch...or at least I hope I will.
Look for another post later today or tonight about my anniversary gift. With my luck the UPS man will come really early, there will be nothing on the box hinting to it's contents and I'll have to wait until Marc gets home!! LOL!
Potty training with Seth yesterday went well. I only changed two pull-ups and only because they were stinky. The rest of the day he went on his own. I hope this will continue to be a daily thing as I'd like to stop buying pull-ups. I also know that Aunt Marnie would really appreciate not having to deal with changing him next week as she is trying to train Abbigayle. He keeps assuring me that he will go on the potty at Aunt Marnie's all the time. Again....time will tell.
Happy St. Patrick's Day!!! My girls went off to school decked out in whatever green they could find to wear. I'm going to surprise them when they get home with Shamrock cookies. For those of you who know me well you know it's the Pillsbury ones you just put on a cookie sheet and bake. Although I did make cookies from scratch for the Christmas cookie exchange last year. I think once Seth is in school all day I'll be better about cooking and baking cookies from scratch...or at least I hope I will.
Look for another post later today or tonight about my anniversary gift. With my luck the UPS man will come really early, there will be nothing on the box hinting to it's contents and I'll have to wait until Marc gets home!! LOL!
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
I'm a Karate Mom
Last night both Katie and Olivia had their Karate tests to see if they can advance to the next level. Both Marc and I went to watch as they wanted both of us there. Big mistake for me to go as Olivia continually looks over to make sure I am there and watching. They don't find out if they pass until next week. At the end of class Sensei tells each kid what they need to work on. The list for Olivia has quite a few things on it, Katie has none. Marc and I are both assuming that Katie has done well enough to advance and that if Olivia works on what he mentions and does the moves well at the beginning of class next week she will also advance. Poor Olivia can't decide what she wants to do...one minute she says she wants to continue (if she passes) and the next minute she says she wants to quit. I talked to Sensei Tex and he claims that for her age she is doing as well as everyone else which makes me feel a little better and I tell her hoping to encourage her. Next week I'm sending them alone with Marc as I'm sure she will pay better attention if I'm not there.
Katie on the other hand is excited as she's pretty sure she passed although she did ask Sensei what she should work on since he didn't call her name. He told her to just keep practing all the moves. She's also signed up for a tournament on Saturday where she will compete against any other 9 year olds that are the same rank as her. She's very hopeful that she will come home with a trophy....and so it starts. I'm hoping that this will toughen her up a little (she's too emotional at times, who does she get that from?? LOL) and make her a little competitive but not obsessively so.
Marc really enjoys taking them to Karate and helping out when needed. By September Seth will be old enough to go so I'm sure he'll want to join as well. I told Marc to take the class with Seth if he wants but who knows.
Today is my day with 4 hours of no kids. So far I've managed to get some laundry done, plan some scrapbook pages and make some phone calls. And, I still have over 2 hours left, hmmm what to do??? Now that's a good question....
Katie on the other hand is excited as she's pretty sure she passed although she did ask Sensei what she should work on since he didn't call her name. He told her to just keep practing all the moves. She's also signed up for a tournament on Saturday where she will compete against any other 9 year olds that are the same rank as her. She's very hopeful that she will come home with a trophy....and so it starts. I'm hoping that this will toughen her up a little (she's too emotional at times, who does she get that from?? LOL) and make her a little competitive but not obsessively so.
Marc really enjoys taking them to Karate and helping out when needed. By September Seth will be old enough to go so I'm sure he'll want to join as well. I told Marc to take the class with Seth if he wants but who knows.
Today is my day with 4 hours of no kids. So far I've managed to get some laundry done, plan some scrapbook pages and make some phone calls. And, I still have over 2 hours left, hmmm what to do??? Now that's a good question....
Monday, March 13, 2006
All She Wants for Christmas is her Two Front Teeth
Olivia came home from being with her Dad last night and showed us that her other front tooth was getting looser. Before bed she wanted me to pull it out and I said I didn't think it was quite ready yet. This morning I heard a joyful scream from the basement.....Dad, Mom my tooth fell out. She was so excited that she'd done it all by her self. She of course put it in a ziploc snack bag as she wants to show everyone at school. She also said she wasn't going to smile at anyone because she wants to be sure that she gets to be the one who tells her teacher that she lost her tooth. Needless to say she looks extremely funny with both front teeth now missing. Hopefully she won't have to wait until Christmas before the adult teeth come in.
Yesterday I took Matthew to Kohl's so he could use his Christmas gift cards. He offered me is $20 card in exchange for $20 in cash which I agreed to. I used my $20 to buy to nice casual/dressy tee shirts. Matthew was able to get most of the items he wanted and we spent all but 5 cents which they gave us back in real money. He got a great rolling duffle bag that was marked down from $29.99 to $19.99. At the register it rang up $22.49 and when I complained they gave it to us for $10 off the register price so we got it for $12.49. I'm almost tempted to go back and get a few more of them to use as Christmas gifts! Although by now they've probably changed the price on all of them anyway.
Well I just received the portraits that we had taken for our church directory. I think that I'm missing some pictures so I'm going to get on the phone and see what's going on!
Yesterday I took Matthew to Kohl's so he could use his Christmas gift cards. He offered me is $20 card in exchange for $20 in cash which I agreed to. I used my $20 to buy to nice casual/dressy tee shirts. Matthew was able to get most of the items he wanted and we spent all but 5 cents which they gave us back in real money. He got a great rolling duffle bag that was marked down from $29.99 to $19.99. At the register it rang up $22.49 and when I complained they gave it to us for $10 off the register price so we got it for $12.49. I'm almost tempted to go back and get a few more of them to use as Christmas gifts! Although by now they've probably changed the price on all of them anyway.
Well I just received the portraits that we had taken for our church directory. I think that I'm missing some pictures so I'm going to get on the phone and see what's going on!
Saturday, March 11, 2006
Am I Wrong??
OK, so I can't be the only one out there that hates the prospect of taking my girls out to buy birthday presents for their Dad (my ex). I hate it!! I know they love their Dad and want to buy him stuff but they always want to either buy him things that are way more money than I want to spend on him...or they want to buy him something that I know he won't be thrilled about. A lot of times I suggest just giving him $20 so they can all go out for dinner although I know it's not very personal. I also realize that he is very good about taking them out to buy me things for my birthday, mother's day, etc. but lets face it....aren't women easier to buy for. So regardless of this I took the girls shopping today as it is their Dad's birthday and they will be seeing him tomorrow. They both bought him a shirt, Olivia chose a nice polo shirt and Katie got him a Homer Simpson t-shirt. Hopefully he'll like them both and wear them every now and then to make the girls happy!
Marc is outside at this very moment grilling our dinner. Pork chops, bratwurst and hot dogs with salad as a side dish. I'm so glad that we are that much closer to spring as that's one of the things I miss during the winter, our weekly grill outs.
Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend!!
Marc is outside at this very moment grilling our dinner. Pork chops, bratwurst and hot dogs with salad as a side dish. I'm so glad that we are that much closer to spring as that's one of the things I miss during the winter, our weekly grill outs.
Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend!!
Friday, March 10, 2006
Energized
The taste-test survey for the energy bars went well. We had to try 4 different ones and I was completely shocked that they weren't bad. I expected them to be AWFUL but out of the 4 there were two that I would definitely consider buying if I was an energy bar kind of gal. It only took about 20 minutes and I was rewarded with $25 so you can't beat that.
Two cute stories about my kids to share....
Yesterday Olivia decided to wear a dress to school, she came upstairs all decked out in a pink dress with the appropriate hair acessories and a necklace. When Seth saw her he looked at her and said..."Olivia in that outfit you look pretty". Talk about melt my heart. Luckily Olivia was polite enough to thank him. I have a feeling she won't hear those words that often if ever again from her little brother who usually takes great pleasure in tormenting her.
Renee (scrapbooking friend) spent a few weeks in Arizona in February and brought back the cutest mood rings for each of us. Of course we all put them on and kept checking our moods throughout the evening. I still had it on the next morning and Katie (10) immediately said.."is that a mood ring?"...when I said yes she immediately asked if she could have it as she's always wanted one. News to me I didn't even know she knew what it was. Olivia (6) completely does not get the concept it. They keep checking to see what color it is and Olivia keeps telling me to make faces at it. Apparently she thinks this is how it knows to change colors. Completely cracked me up.
My Dad called me last night. He's home from the hospital but my Mom has to take him back on a daily basis for the next 6 weeks. It takes an hour for one IV of medicine and 1/2 hour for the other. Add on the driving time and they are spending about 3 hours in the morning away from home. Then they have to rush home as a visiting nurse comes everyday at 1:30 to check and re-wrap is foot. He is not supposed to put any weight on it at all and he said it's almost impossible to use crutches as his left leg is a prosthesis and it's hard to use it as the support leg. So they were given a wheelchair but they don't have a ramp leading to the house so Mom has to park the car as close to the porch as possible and he hobbles up the stairs and she carries the wheelchair. This is really starting to take it's toll on my Mom as well. My Dad is so negative and depressed as he really can't go anywhere or do anything and he just can't get comfortable. They aren't even sure if they will be able to come back to Illinois at all this year so that means they won't be coming to see us and we may not get to see them either. Which of course is depressing to me. Then he proceeded to tell me that he thinks Marc and I should go see Jonathon graduate and let him know how proud we are of him. Also that we need to listen to Jonathon and let him tell us everything and show us around the base and to act interested even if we're not, and if he really wants to go to McDonald's for dinner when we are there then that's where we should take him. Give me a little credit Dad. Then in the next breath he is telling me that it's going to take a lot longer to get their than we think and that we are going to end up getting ourselves killed and then who will raise our children. OK, now I'm confused....are we supposed to go or am I supposed to send Marc alone and stay with my kids so nothing will happen to me?? Couldn't I just as easily get hit by a bus while crossing the street? Doesn't he realize that as a Mother I am constantly worried by the the thought that something will happen to me and I won't get to see my children grow old and enjoy grandchildren? However, I try not to dwell on that as I don't want to be a negative/depressing person! Needless to say I was very depressed and crying the rest of the evening. I'm sure that wasn't his intention but that was the affect never the less.
OK, so enough of that. We have another busy weekend ahead. I have a Tastefully Simple show tonight and Katie has girl scouts. Tomorrow is "Celebrate Kids Day" at our church and since I'm a team leader for children's ministries I will need to be there the entire time (10am-1pm) as well as a little before to help set up and a little after to clean up. Marc is going to be there too as he is in charge of the Underwriters Laboratories table. This also means all the kids have to be there too but there will be enough activities and such that I think they will be fine. Then after that I have to take my girls out to get a birthdray present for their Dad. Sunday my girls will be gone all afternoon and Matthew wants me to take him shopping at Kohl's so he can spend his Christmas gift cards and get some things he needs.
Marc's been busy working on getting our taxes done. He also has to do them for Stephen, Jonathon and Matthew although they shouldn't take as long. He is anxious to get them done so he can continue working on the living room. He went to Menard's last night and bought the paint as it was on sale and he's done patching and sanding walls so it's time for paint.
OK, I think I've rambled on enough for today. Have a Great Weekend everyone!
Two cute stories about my kids to share....
Yesterday Olivia decided to wear a dress to school, she came upstairs all decked out in a pink dress with the appropriate hair acessories and a necklace. When Seth saw her he looked at her and said..."Olivia in that outfit you look pretty". Talk about melt my heart. Luckily Olivia was polite enough to thank him. I have a feeling she won't hear those words that often if ever again from her little brother who usually takes great pleasure in tormenting her.
Renee (scrapbooking friend) spent a few weeks in Arizona in February and brought back the cutest mood rings for each of us. Of course we all put them on and kept checking our moods throughout the evening. I still had it on the next morning and Katie (10) immediately said.."is that a mood ring?"...when I said yes she immediately asked if she could have it as she's always wanted one. News to me I didn't even know she knew what it was. Olivia (6) completely does not get the concept it. They keep checking to see what color it is and Olivia keeps telling me to make faces at it. Apparently she thinks this is how it knows to change colors. Completely cracked me up.
My Dad called me last night. He's home from the hospital but my Mom has to take him back on a daily basis for the next 6 weeks. It takes an hour for one IV of medicine and 1/2 hour for the other. Add on the driving time and they are spending about 3 hours in the morning away from home. Then they have to rush home as a visiting nurse comes everyday at 1:30 to check and re-wrap is foot. He is not supposed to put any weight on it at all and he said it's almost impossible to use crutches as his left leg is a prosthesis and it's hard to use it as the support leg. So they were given a wheelchair but they don't have a ramp leading to the house so Mom has to park the car as close to the porch as possible and he hobbles up the stairs and she carries the wheelchair. This is really starting to take it's toll on my Mom as well. My Dad is so negative and depressed as he really can't go anywhere or do anything and he just can't get comfortable. They aren't even sure if they will be able to come back to Illinois at all this year so that means they won't be coming to see us and we may not get to see them either. Which of course is depressing to me. Then he proceeded to tell me that he thinks Marc and I should go see Jonathon graduate and let him know how proud we are of him. Also that we need to listen to Jonathon and let him tell us everything and show us around the base and to act interested even if we're not, and if he really wants to go to McDonald's for dinner when we are there then that's where we should take him. Give me a little credit Dad. Then in the next breath he is telling me that it's going to take a lot longer to get their than we think and that we are going to end up getting ourselves killed and then who will raise our children. OK, now I'm confused....are we supposed to go or am I supposed to send Marc alone and stay with my kids so nothing will happen to me?? Couldn't I just as easily get hit by a bus while crossing the street? Doesn't he realize that as a Mother I am constantly worried by the the thought that something will happen to me and I won't get to see my children grow old and enjoy grandchildren? However, I try not to dwell on that as I don't want to be a negative/depressing person! Needless to say I was very depressed and crying the rest of the evening. I'm sure that wasn't his intention but that was the affect never the less.
OK, so enough of that. We have another busy weekend ahead. I have a Tastefully Simple show tonight and Katie has girl scouts. Tomorrow is "Celebrate Kids Day" at our church and since I'm a team leader for children's ministries I will need to be there the entire time (10am-1pm) as well as a little before to help set up and a little after to clean up. Marc is going to be there too as he is in charge of the Underwriters Laboratories table. This also means all the kids have to be there too but there will be enough activities and such that I think they will be fine. Then after that I have to take my girls out to get a birthdray present for their Dad. Sunday my girls will be gone all afternoon and Matthew wants me to take him shopping at Kohl's so he can spend his Christmas gift cards and get some things he needs.
Marc's been busy working on getting our taxes done. He also has to do them for Stephen, Jonathon and Matthew although they shouldn't take as long. He is anxious to get them done so he can continue working on the living room. He went to Menard's last night and bought the paint as it was on sale and he's done patching and sanding walls so it's time for paint.
OK, I think I've rambled on enough for today. Have a Great Weekend everyone!
Thursday, March 09, 2006
Change in Plans
We finally heard from Jonathon last night. Unfortunately he won't be graduating on the 17th as originally planned. Now his graduation will be on March 24th. Everything came to a screeching halt for a few hours. But all is OK. Hotel and rental car reservations have been changed. And, most importantly we still have somewhere for all of the other kids to go. All that is left is just informing my brother that we will not be stopping by on our way home until a week later.
Marc was happy to hear from Jonathon as this is the first time he's had a chance to speak with him since he left on January 31st. Seth talked to him as well which I'm sure meant a lot to Jonathon. He always asks how everyone is and I know he misses us all. He also told us that once he graduates he will be headed to California for his technical training. He will be at Vandenberg AFB which is near Santa Barbara which is one of those places I've always aspired to visit. Maybe now I'll get a chance!!
The one good thing that came out of the change in plans is that now I will be able to go see Katie take part in a Karate tournament. I was a little distressed about missing out on a photo op which of course will I'm sure end up turning in to a scrapbook layout.
This also means that the week of spring break that my girls are spending with their Dad will now be expanded by 2 days. They will be travelling to North Carolina to meet their grandmother and Aunt for the first time. Yes, I know what you are thinking the girls are 9 and 6 and they haven't met them yet?? Well Katie was 6 weeks old when she met her grandmother and I belive 6 months old the last time she saw her aunt. It's a very long story and would bore you to tears!
I'm off to do a taste-test survey on energy bars. I'm certainly hoping that it gives me the energy to come home and get all the income tax information together for Marc. I'm not holding out much hope though.
I got my Tastefully Simple order today for the show I did last week. I spent the entire afternoon sorting, labeling and bagging everything up. I have another show tomorrow and just booked one for April and have another tentative open house for April as well. WOHOO!! The new Spring/Summer items will be available April 1st and I can't wait to try them. We will be throwing Suzanne a joint Confirmation/Early 8th Grade Graduation party on April 22nd and I'm sure I will be serving some of the new items. I especially can't wait to try the Key Lime Cheese Ball, YUM!!
Well time to get dinner ready. Haaave a Great Night!
Marc was happy to hear from Jonathon as this is the first time he's had a chance to speak with him since he left on January 31st. Seth talked to him as well which I'm sure meant a lot to Jonathon. He always asks how everyone is and I know he misses us all. He also told us that once he graduates he will be headed to California for his technical training. He will be at Vandenberg AFB which is near Santa Barbara which is one of those places I've always aspired to visit. Maybe now I'll get a chance!!
The one good thing that came out of the change in plans is that now I will be able to go see Katie take part in a Karate tournament. I was a little distressed about missing out on a photo op which of course will I'm sure end up turning in to a scrapbook layout.
This also means that the week of spring break that my girls are spending with their Dad will now be expanded by 2 days. They will be travelling to North Carolina to meet their grandmother and Aunt for the first time. Yes, I know what you are thinking the girls are 9 and 6 and they haven't met them yet?? Well Katie was 6 weeks old when she met her grandmother and I belive 6 months old the last time she saw her aunt. It's a very long story and would bore you to tears!
I'm off to do a taste-test survey on energy bars. I'm certainly hoping that it gives me the energy to come home and get all the income tax information together for Marc. I'm not holding out much hope though.
I got my Tastefully Simple order today for the show I did last week. I spent the entire afternoon sorting, labeling and bagging everything up. I have another show tomorrow and just booked one for April and have another tentative open house for April as well. WOHOO!! The new Spring/Summer items will be available April 1st and I can't wait to try them. We will be throwing Suzanne a joint Confirmation/Early 8th Grade Graduation party on April 22nd and I'm sure I will be serving some of the new items. I especially can't wait to try the Key Lime Cheese Ball, YUM!!
Well time to get dinner ready. Haaave a Great Night!
Monday, March 06, 2006
Weekend is Over!
Weekend was good! My Tastefully Simple show was a big success and I did manage to book a show for April so that's good. It was an early party and I was home by 9:00. On Saturday we went to our niece Abbi's 3rd birthday party on Saturday and had a great time. The goody bags were a huge hit. Especially the Little Einsteins coloring pages and the conductor wands. Seth has been conducting music ever since. When he's done he asks for me to clap so that he can take a bow. The cake was absolutely adorable, it looked like Rocket from the Little Einsteins. Marc liked it so much (especially the frosting) that he informed me that from now on we should just hire Marnie to make our kids birthday cakes. Guess the bunny cake I made last year wasn't as impressive, LOL!! On Sunday my girls were with their Dad for most of the day and so it was just Marc, Seth and I that went to church. Then later in the afternoon Seth went with his friend Hawk to see the movie "Doogal". So Marc was able to watch the race in piece and I took a nice nap.
Only a little over a week to go before we leave for Texas. I'm both looking forward to it (seeing Jonathon and watching him graduate) and dreading it (the 19+ hour drive there and back). It will certainly be an interesting weekend!
My Dad is doing better (I think). He will hopefully be going home from the hospital tomorrow, although he will have to remain on heavy duty antibiotics for 6 weeks. So instead of returning to Illinois the first of April, they will have to stay in Texas until May 1st or so. According to the MRI he had the infection is not in the bone so they are still very hopeful that it will not be necessary to amputate any of his right foot or leg! He's on several prayer chains and I'm keeping him on them indefinitely. He's still very depressed and nervous as he finds it hard to believe that he won't need surgery. Mom did say he's not eating well, but who does in a hospital. I'm sure once he's back home he will start to eat and feel better.
Well I better get some work done around here. Happy Monday everyone!
Only a little over a week to go before we leave for Texas. I'm both looking forward to it (seeing Jonathon and watching him graduate) and dreading it (the 19+ hour drive there and back). It will certainly be an interesting weekend!
My Dad is doing better (I think). He will hopefully be going home from the hospital tomorrow, although he will have to remain on heavy duty antibiotics for 6 weeks. So instead of returning to Illinois the first of April, they will have to stay in Texas until May 1st or so. According to the MRI he had the infection is not in the bone so they are still very hopeful that it will not be necessary to amputate any of his right foot or leg! He's on several prayer chains and I'm keeping him on them indefinitely. He's still very depressed and nervous as he finds it hard to believe that he won't need surgery. Mom did say he's not eating well, but who does in a hospital. I'm sure once he's back home he will start to eat and feel better.
Well I better get some work done around here. Happy Monday everyone!
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