Christmas 2009

This Christmas things didn't go exactly as planned, however I think it will forever remain one of our best Christmases ever!

 Christmas Eve it started to sleet a bit in the morning.  My hubby's sister and her kids came in from Austin, TX and we had planned to go over to his mom's house where they were all staying. We saw that the weather was getting pretty rough and we thought it would be best to head over to my MIL's house before it got too bad.  We left home around 10:30am and drove over to her house in MWC.  It was sleeting all the way over.  About an hour after we arrived the snow hit.

We knew that there was going to be snow, but there was conflicting information on just HOW MUCH snow.  At first they said "flurries" then later in the week they said "1-2 inches", then they were reporting 4-7 inches.  We ended up getting a total of 14.1 inches (an all time record) and it was a blizzard!

We made some soup for lunch and I baked some sugar cookies to later decorate with the kids.  The snow continued to fall and conditions outside got worse and worse.  We decided it would be best to stay for the night there rather than try and make it home.  My husbands uncle even ended up staying because he was one of the cars in a 50 car pile up on I-40!  Thankfully he was able to make it to my MIL's house.  Also my husbands brother and his wife and kid ended up staying also.  So, there were 17 of us in my MIL's two bedroom house!

Christmas eve we have a tradition to have pizza, and well, there was no place open to get pizza due to the blizzard, so the men decided to walk in the blizzard up to Target to get some frozen pizza.  The guys got all bundled up in layers upon layers and covered their faces and eyes to avoid getting their face completely wind chapped.  Here you can see what they looked like when they were ready to leave.  It took them well over an hour to get there and back even though it was only a few blocks away.  I heard my nephew lost a shoe in a snow drift on the way there.  Thankfully he found it!

So, the kids began to get cabin fever so it was time to decorate the cookies.  We had a blast doing that.  The kids seemed to really like it.  My hubby started filtering pizzas in and out of the oven.  We had our pizza, then my MIL baked a cake. We have a tradition to bake a cake and sing happy birthday to Jesus after we read the story of His birth out of the bible.  This year I got to read the story from the bible.  Each one of the children holds a piece of the nativity set and moves it into the manger as we get to their part of the story.  They love this and look forward to it every year.  

After that we ate cake, had hot cider and my MIL made snow ice cream (we stayed clear from any yellow snow!)  We were all pretty exhausted and headed off to our various corners of the house to go to sleep.

The next day it was sunny out and we woke up to a gorgeous blanket of snow on everything.  My first white Christmas!  It was beautiful.  The kids opened up their gifts (well the ones from Grandma at least...my kids gifts were at home).  The great thing was is that my kids didn't even CARE that there were gifts there.  They were nice to have and all, but this Christmas was about so much more than presents.  It was about family, and time together.  It was amazing.

After breakfast we decided to venture home.  The roads were scary, but with my husbands excellent driving and his 4WD truck, we made it just fine.  The kids opened their presents  and we started to prepare dinner for family.  The family came over to our house for Christmas dinner.

The day after Christmas we went back to my MIL's house and we all went sledding.  Once every few years I decide to pull the stick out of my rear end and have fun.  I'm so thankful I did, because I felt like such a kid sledding and playing in the snow.  I can't remember the last time I had that much fun.  I laughed until my side hurt.

My hubby sledding!

My nephew and I in a snowball fight

Cookie Catastrophe

Christmas eve I always make sugar cookies and decorate them with the kids.  I've done this since I was a teenager and carried it on with my kiddos.  I love it.  This year I'm excited I get to do this with my niece and nephews also who will be visiting from Austin!  I also make white chocolate covered pretzels on Christmas eve and some other cookies (usually chocolate chip).  I am in the kitchen normally most of the day baking.  This year I decided to do it a bit early and get the baking done so I can relax more on Christmas eve and only do the decorating, also I thought it would be nice to take some cookies to family members tomorrow.  It kinda threw me for a loop and I wasn't prepared for this change of plans.  At around six o clock tonight I stared baking cookies.  Four double batches to be exact.  Yes, that's eight, EIGHT batches of cookies.

My poor hubby comes home starving, to a pitiful looking lasagna on the stove and a wife covered in flour surrounded by what appears to be a cookie explosion in my kitchen.  He is painfully aware that his plans for settling down for a movie and a relaxing evening just flew out the window, and he is going to have to come to the rescue of his disorganized crazy wife once again.

Thankfully we got the cookies finished and I owe my husband and children thanks for helping to bail me out of my cookie catastrophe I had going on in the kitchen.

I just seem to always bite off more (cookies) than I can chew.

Magical Evening

Tonight we took the two oldest children to the Oklahoma City Ballet to see "The Nutcracker.".  I had been looking forward to this for quite some time, since we had been planning this since last year.  (Last year we went but didn't take the kids because we assumed that they would get bored, we later regretted not taking them and planned all year to make sure that we took them this time).  I had no idea how much I would enjoy this evening with my kids though, it was so much better than I could have ever imagined!

We took a photo opportunity by the Christmas tree since we were dressed our best.  Brett looked so cute and handsome in his vest and tie, and Myah was looking so grown up and pretty in her red dress.  Brett thinks he is James Bond since he has a vest and tie on, and he tries to pose like him.  I told him that if he took one serious pose that I would let him pose like James Bond afterwards.  He agreed.

Next we were off to Pearls Oyster Bar for dinner.   Brett was so adorable.  On the way there he said, "since we are going to a fancy restaurant can we be nice people?"  Jamin and I laughed and replied "honey, we ARE nice people."  He said ,"no that's not what I mean."  I'm still not exactly sure what he meant about that.  The kids were on their best behavior and so well mannered at the restaurant.

After dinner we went to the civic center.  They were offering photos with a cast member.  The kids stood in front of the large Christmas tree in the civic center with the dancer who played Clara and took a photo (we had to pay for that one, we will be getting that later).  We found our seats and settled in.  Brett was on the edge of his seat the entire time.  The kids LOVED it.  I was afraid they would get bored.  Myah was mesmerized with the ballet dancers, and Brett didn't get antsy until the end.  He did look over at his dad and giggle and say, "Dad, I can see their weenier!"

Afterwards the kids wanted hot chocolate and dessert, so we took them to a small Italian restaurant across the street called "Trattoria".  When we got there they asked, "are you here with the party?" we told them no and didn't think much of it.  There was a large table set up behind our table.  Jamin looked over at me and said "they are having some kind of party coming in, must be people that went to the ballet."  We ordered dessert and hot cocoa.  They brought the kids each their own silver pot full of cocoa.  The kids were EXTREMELY impressed.  Here are some photos of the kids with their hot chocolate!

A few moments later a lady came over to our table.  She complimented our kids and how cute they looked and asked if we had just gone to the ballet.  She introduced herself as the chair of the patron committee for the ballet.  She said "we are having the patrons of the ballet come here for dinner and some of the cast will be here along with the artistic director for the Oklahoma City ballet!  Make sure you stay around so I can introduce you to them!"  She seriously was so sweet and nice I couldn't' believe it!

Moments later the dancers begin to file in.  The kids got to meet the dancer who played the Sugar Plum fairy and talk with her for a while.  She loved the kids, it was so cute!  Brett got to meet the Russian dancers from the second act (they were his favorite), the Caviller and we also got to meet Robert Mills the artistic director for the OKC ballet.

It was a magical evening with my kids, one none of us will ever forget!  I'm so glad we took them and got to spend this evening with them!

Logo Work

Ok, so I've been staying up until midnight or later this week, but I've been doing some logo work.  It's been WAY too long since I've done anything remotely creative, so the lack of sleep is worth the payoff in the long run.  Well, at least I'm HOPING it will pay off and I will get some business coming in!

I'm pretty hapy with what I've come up with this week.  I feel like I've been pretty productive (graphic wise, however the laundry is still a hopeless cause...)

I did a logo for my hubby's work.

Then I did my business cards...

Then I did a few logos for my friend who currently is making adorable bags, and is also a great photographer.  You should really check out her bags and photographs.

So, all in all not too bad of a week.  I'm back in business again!  Hopefully offers will start pouring in ;)

Sigh

Ok.  Take a deep breath.  Count to ten.

(From my daughters room) "I want to watch Max and RUBEEEEE!"

Stop crying.  Stop crying.  Stop crying.

She stopped!

Nope.  She's at it again.  I guess she was just taking a breath.

I believe she has gotten louder.

Can you tell it's been one of those days?  I know, I spend quite a bit of time on here venting.  Most people must take me for an angry person, and I guess I am to some degree.  It's not that I'm angry as much as I have a VERY short fuse.

I ventured to the dreaded Wal-Mart today to try and fix that pesky overcharge that I was speaking of in my previous blog.  I stood in line for 20 minutes at customer service, then it took them another 10 to try and figure out how to give me the return.  I finally get my $14 back (which I'm beginning to think was NOT worth the hassle) and get my items.  I then go to the "express" lane.  This takes 30 minutes, because the cashier at the register was handed a gift card that was worth $15.  The cashier thought the guy said to PUT $15 on it.  He did not say that.  I heard him loud and clear.  So then it takes another 40 employees to come over and figure out how to fix this faux pas.

I swear, one day I'm gonna snap and burn that place down.

So, I get home at 2:45 and my two year old has not had a nap.  She is in thermo-nuclear meltdown right now.  I just realized that I have to go pick up my kids from school in an hour (I normally don't pick them up, they ride the bus but I have to pick up cinnamon rolls for my daughters fundraiser).  So trying to get my two year old to nap is almost futile since I have to leave in less than 45 minutes.

I love my kids, and I do love Christmas, but I've had just about enough Holiday "cheer" this season.  I'm turing into the Grinch, and I'm ready for it to be over.  There are only so many lines, so many pine needles on my floor, only so much pushing, shoving, rudeness, and bad customer service that a human being can handle.

This is SO NOT what Christmas is about, and frankly, I'm tired of it.

Fear

For years in my life I have lived in a constant state of fear.  This is totally contrary to what I know in my mind that I should be doing, the problem is that it is a heart issue, and a issue of my constant wavering faith.

I feel that God has been so good to me and has continually blessed me.  However in this state of thankfulness there is an underlying fear that lives there, it is a fear that I'm afraid to speak of or admit that is there, because if I speak of it then it may happen.  If I begin to talk about it and acknowledge it then I have to deal with it, and that is not something that I've ever wanted to do.

It's the fear of "what if".

What if I loose one of my kids.  What if I get cancer like my mother, and leave my family as my mother left me.  What if something were to happens to my husband?  What if, what if, what if...

This fear goes so deep that I can't even talk about it without coming to tears.  If I hear stories of tragedies happening to others I dwell upon those tragedies to a point that is unhealthy, or I avoid the emotions all together.  If I avoid it then I can live in denial that the fear doesn't exist.  I've had such a tragedy happen to me with the loss of my mother when I was younger, and it's a pain that goes so deep I refuse to deal with it.  For me to even talk about it I have to dis-associate myself from the emotion, or it becomes too overwhelming to bear.

Friday I heard that pastor Matt Chandler of The Village Church (who's teachings have stirred many things inside of me) found out on Thanksgiving day that he had a brain tumor, and that he was going in on Friday to have it removed.  The fear started to set in. If it can happen to him, then it can happen to me.  That whole feeling of "you are just one phone call from your knees" sets in.

So, I have been following this all weekend long.  This morning I watched the following video from Matt Chandler.  What he said at the end thoroughly convicted me.

http://hv.thevillagechurch.net/blog/hvpastor/?p=363

At the end he says "for those of you who live in fear, and continue to live in fear and would try to use this as an excuse to continue in that fear, don't you dare use this to continue in your lies."

Wow.  That leaves me totally speechless.

I live in a constant state of fear.  So, why all of a sudden am I coming out and talking about it?  I have to.  I can't hold onto this anymore, because the fear of "what if" is leaving me in a such state of panic that I can't even enjoy the present. It is becoming clear to me that the time is drawing near to deal with some things, and by writing this I'm ripping off the band-aid and exposing the wound to the world, so I will be forced to deal with it.

Thankful

It is once again that time of year.  Time to stuff yourself with turkey, and stuffing and mashed potatoes.  Then stuff yourself again with pumpkin pie, and goodies and treats.  Somewhere in the middle of all this gluttony you will most likely bow your head and say "thanks" to the One who has given us everything.  

There are so many things in this life to be thankful for, the obvious, my kids who are the greatest in the world, my husband who puts up with me, my family and good friends, and a house over your head.  What about all the little things though?  All the things daily we take for granted that make life so much richer?  The other day I was eating peanut butter (yes straight from the jar) and realized how AWESOME peanut butter is, and so many other things in life, so I started to make a list of things I'm thankful for.

I am thankful for...

a warm shower

Diet Vanilla Dr. Pepper from Sonic

my pillow-top mattress

peanut butter

a warm fire and apple cider on a snowy day

music

laughter (especially my kids)

flowers in the spring

trees in the fall

kittens
the Twilight books
my comfy sweat pants even though my husband hates them
LOST
watermelon in the summer
Guitar Hero
chap stick
contact lenses (though I'd be more thankful for Lasik...)
my mixer, my blender, my food processor and all my kitchen gadgets
The Office
good food
good wine
good movies
games
my fuzzy boots
lotion
pumpkin spice candles
chicken soup
my camera
my iPhone
Target
my van
leftover Thanksgiving food
pumpkin pie
cheesecake
and so much more....

My Boy

He is as exhausting as he is funny, as ornery as he is entertaining, he is my only boy and he is turning eight today.  

I can't believe how the years fly by.  I can remember back to when I was pregnant with him.  He did somersaults in my tummy ALL THE TIME.  This obviously was quite the indication on how he was going to be.

He is so smart, and so strange, and so funny.  He loves Star Wars, Super Heros, and GI Joe.  He loves to draw pictures and read comic books.  He loves video games and anything to do with movies.  He has this genius creative mind, that I don't completely understand yet.  I think he will be a movie director when he grows up.  When he gets his mind set on something he just won't let it go.   He is persistent.

He has a short fuse but a big heart.  There is no end to how much this kid can love.  He has a tough exterior, but is full of compassion.  He argues endlessly with his sisters, but they are truly his best friends and would do anything for them.

He loves to laugh.  He has this wonderful giggle and when he laughs his eyes squint to almost closed.  He has sandy blonde hair and big blue eyes.  He is short and it doesn't bother him one bit, because what he lacks in height he makes up for in strength. 

He is a fantastic reader, but hates math.  He loves science and animals but he can't keep a pet to save his life.  His track record for small animals is two days max.  He HATES homework.

He doesn't care about what others think is cool, or what everyone else is doing.  He is a leader, not a follower and you won't convince him to do anything he doesn't want to do.

He is my boy, and I love him more than words can describe.  I'm so thankful God has given me the honor of raising him. 

Old Lady

I realized tonight that I'm quickly am turning into an old lady.  I realized this as I was taking my CALCIUM SUPPLEMENT.

Here are some of the other reasons that hit me...

I'm starting to see the merit of supporting undergarments (Spanx, control top pantyhose, the 24 hour bra...)
I now use Oil of Olay
I wear age defying foundation
I enjoy eating at Luby's
I not only enjoy eating at Luby's I want to make it there before the "evening rush"
I LOVE to play Bingo, so much in fact I would go to a Bingo night if invited
I honestly think I may need two pairs of glasses or bi-focals
I don't like to drive at night, because I have poor night vision
I need a good daily dose of fiber to keep me, um, well, you know..."regular"
I have Icy Hot and Ben Gay in my medicine cabinet

and, like I said before, I'm taking Calcium supplements to avoid loosing bone loss because nursing (according to my OB) givess you "pre-menopausal" symptoms.  At least now I know why I have all these dang hot flashes.

Oh, and the icing on the cake that made me feel about a hundred years old.  My daughter and I were shopping the other day, and she was starting to act strange while I was pointing out clothes to her and she whispered "mom, stop." and rolled her eyes.  I said "WHAT?"  She replied with "mom you are embarrassing me, talking all loud and also your bra is showing."

Wonderful, and so it begins.

Cute Things

My friend Carolyn has the cutest blog called The Daily Lily.  It was basically her way of documenting all the funny things that her daughter says so she won't forget them.  Great idea, that I may steal from her someday, but for now since I all ready have a blog, I thought that I would write some of the things down that Evie is doing that I don't want to forget.  They are so precious at this age, I just don't want to forget a moment of it.

The other day we were at Hobby Lobby looking at fabric.  Evie was wearing her cute little green sun-dress with her pink cowboy boots (which everyone kept commenting on how much they LOVED her boots).  Evie recognized the same material that Grandma used to make her diaper bag.  She picked it up and said "OOOH!  Evie's bag!" she then hugged the material and said "Oh I LOVE it."

Last week I was scolding her and I shouted her full name "EVANGELINE NO!".  She turned around and gave me a dirty scowl and said "I EVIE, not EBANGEL.  I EVIE!".  She was SO mad at me it was just adorable.

When you ask her a question she does not reply "yes".  She said "uh huh".  I can't even explain HOW she says it but it is hilarious to hear.

The way she says "Grandma" sounds like g-maw.  It is so cute.

Her latest thing is "I scared".  If she doesn't want to do something she says "I scared."  For example:

Me:  Evie it's time for a nap
Her:  I scarrrred....

It is the middle of the day with the blinds half open.  Dear God help me....

Also she has a new thing with food.  If she doesn't want to eat it it is too spicy (sp-eye-ceeeee).  I gave her a cookie the other day.  "It too spiceee" she says.

Yesterday she told me "I ate bubbles."  This was right after breakfast.  I said "you ate bubbles?  Do you mean you ate breakfast?"  She said "yes, breakfast," as if I didn't catch it the first time.

She is so sweet, so funny, and SUCH a two year old.  One minute she has me giggling and the next she has me ready to pull my hair out.  She has all ready begun to terrorize her little sister, pinching, poking, biting etc...but then she will melt my heart when she says "HI DUCY!  Awww...Ducy so cute!" and give her kisses.  Ah, the roller coaster ride it is.  I wouldn't trade it for anything though.

Lucy's Birth

Lucy was born on Monday August 24th at 5:51pm.

Many have commented to me that they wanted to know how everything went, others I'm sure don't want all the gory details, so go ahead, feel free and turn away now.

We arrived at the hospital at 7:15am, my induction was scheduled for 7:30 but I was eager to get there. They immediately got me to my room and all set up. She checked me and my cervix was at 2cm. About 8:30 they started my pitocin drip. We sat there and just waited for the contractions to begin.

We told my nurse that I usually go fast (Myah - my first - was a 8 hour labor, Brett was 5 hours and Evie was 7) but all came within thirty minutes to an hour of my water breaking, so once I go I REALLY go. So about thirty minutes later the delivery team came in and set everything up early just so we were ready to go.

Mom and Ashley arrived at the hospital sometime that morning. The next time the nurse Amy (she was AWESOME by the way) checked me I was at a good 3-4cm. This was around 11:00am. She asked me about the epidural and I went ahead and said yes. The pain was not unbearable, but considering I went from 4cm to 10 with Evie in a matter of about 45 minutes, I didn't want to gamble going through pushing without an epidural.

They came in and gave me my epidural, then doc came in and broke my water. This was around noon.

We waited.

And waited...

And waited....

2pm I was STILL at 4cm, and contractions were all over the place. Nurse Amy helped me get things going by switching the position I was sitting in. We all start to take bets on the time she will be born and the weight of the baby. The nurse even gets her bet in.

About and hour later I was between 5-6cm. This lasted for a while. They upped the pitocin. During this time Aaron arrives at the hospital and we discuss them going to meet the kids at the house when they get off the bus. My cousin Treasure has Evie, so we don't need to worry about her for a while. A&A leave to go get the kids. The school calls Brett had missed the bus. So now we call A&A and have them go to the school and pick up Brett.

Myah calls a few minutes later from home (she has a house key) in a frantic panic that her brother got left at school. Daddy calms her down and lets her know we have it all under control.

During this time my contractions became regular and STRONGER. By stronger I mean pretty unbearable. I thought I had an epidural to avoid this? I found out later these are called "breakthrough" contractions meaning the pain is so intense they break through the epidural. Nice. Didn't know these existed.

The anesthesiologist comes in and gives me more epidural. By now I'm at a good 8cm. The kids get there and I get to give them hugs and kisses before I deliver Lucy. The doctor comes in and we send the kids out in the hall with Aunt Ashley and Uncle Aaron. Now I'm ready to push. I hit my epidural button one more time just to make sure I won't feel anything (I find out later this was QUITE unnecessary I was numb for HOURS into the night).

Lucy comes out without a hitch, two pushes later. She is gorgeous and totally healthy! Doc exclaims "she has more hair than her daddy!"

My ten hour labor. The longest of them all. Who would have guessed that? All things considered it went well, but it was definitely harder than any other one I had experienced. I am so glad though to have my little girl here with us. She is a total sweetie.

Oh, one last thing I forgot to mention. Jamin comes home to get the kids ready for bed that night and the dog (the suicidal one) is all bloody and scratched up again. Just couldn't be a Miser birth without a kid missing the bus and a doggie suicide attempt...

Craigslist

I don't know what it is with me and my luck on Craigslist, but I always have THE WORST experiences.

People jerk me around, never come to pick up when they say they will, they try and get me to give them things for free, and people are just downright rude to me. It's to the point where it is just not worth the hassle to make a little bit of money.

I recently tried to sell my broken TV on Craigslist. I didn't ask much but thought someone handy could fix it. That didn't work so I just offered it for free to get it out of my garage. Once you offer something for free, the offers start FLOODING in.

There was another TV I was selling and some guy wrote me saying he wanted it. I told him ok, come and get it. FOUR days pass by and I receive an email that goes something like this:

Thank you for your quick response. Please consider the item sold to me. I will be paying you via check. I will send my delivery man to come and pick up the item. Please send directions.

Obviously this was some kind of scam. If it wasn't he was just the biggest prick I've ever seen in my life.

Also, if I find something I want, I email someone about it. They NEVER email me back, or they write me back saying it's sold. If it is sold DELETE YOUR POSTING ALL READY. Geesh.

So this lady comes by last night to look at this vanity I'm selling. Her and I have been talking over the weekend, but with our wedding, and some of her family issues we were never able to get together. She decided to come by yesterday, no problem right? She was supposed to be here at 7pm. She shows up at 9:00 at night! 9:00! Her and her daughter stand in my living room looking at it for 15 minutes. She tries to talk the 7 year old precocious girl into it, but the 7 year old is finding ALL kinds of problems with it (it's not big enough, she has to bend over too much to write on it She can't open the drawer right). I mean, are you friggin serious? You are letting your 7 year old make this decision? I don't even let my ten year old make these decisions on furniture.

They leave, said they will let me know today if they want it. I think she is going to try and talk her daughter into buying it. At this point I don't care if they take it or not. It's not worth it. I'm only selling the thing for $30. My time is MUCH more valuable than that.

I think I'll just call Goodwill and have them pick up my stuff from now on. It totally isn't worth the hassle.

The Wedding Day

So this past weekend was my brother in law's wedding. Now, normally you expect wedding days to be a little bit complicated and have some issues, but nothing major usually happens.

Unless you are part of our family.

My morning started out with my sister in law, her kids, my kids, and our hubby's sitting around the breakfast area by our arcadia door. All of a sudden a duck flew into our back yard. What are the chances? One in a million if you are anyone else on the planet, but if you are the family that owns a beagle chances are pretty high that the duck will wind up in your yard.

Of course the dog started howling at the duck. The duck laid down flat on the ground like it was dead. Finally we were taking bets on wether the duck was dead or just playing dead. I brought the beagle in the house and I went out to go poke the duck to see if it was alive. I got about 10 feet from it and it started flapping. Me, being scared of birds screamed and ran back into the house.

About half an hour later the duck was still in the yard, but I needed to let the dog out. So, there we are and all of a sudden WHACK. The duck hits the arcadia door with a HUGE thud. All the kids and girls scream, my sister in law dumps her coffee everywhere because of the fright.

So, this should have been an omen to me as to how my day was going to go.

Here is a short list of the other wacky events that happened that day:

My daughter took her diaper off like ten times today. She ended up peeing on the kitchen floor.

The dog (our beagle) was vomiting all over the house.

The family members that were decorating the church accidentally locked themselves out of the room that had all the tables in it for the wedding.

We forgot the sash to the brides dress at home and had to stall the wedding while I came back home to get the sash.

The AC in the sanctuary got turned off to avoid the candles from blowing out: caused PROFUSE sweating.

The dog (the beagle, of course) comes downstairs eating a dirty diaper.

My niece poops her pants.

My other dog (the normally well behaved one) jumps up and grabs a chicken leg out of my sister in law's hand and eats it.

Now for the icing on the cake, the part of the story you have all been waiting for.

My son floods the church during the reception. Yes, let me repeat that again, MY SON FLOODED THE CHURCH.

Let me tell you one of the worst possible noises in the world that someone can hear is the sound of GUSHING water where there should be NO gushing water.

Come to find out my son was in the handicap stall in the church. In that stall they have the toilet and a sink attached to the wall. In the next stall over is my nephew. I don't know what happens to my son when these two get together but trouble just seems to find them, and my son absolutely looses his mind. Typical boy, he decides to stand on the sink and peek over into the next stall to be funny and irritate his cousin.

This causes the pipe in the wall to break, the sink to fall off the wall and hundreds of gallons of water to begin gushing out of the pipe. I don't ever think I'll forget the look of terror on my pastors face while this event unfolded. I'm certain at this point we are going to have to find another church to start attending (ok not really, our pastor is a SUPER cool guy and we have an AWESOME church).

This is the point in time where I melt down. The shear embarrassment of the entire situation just broke me down. Luckily the water got shut off, and the men did an excellent job of cleaning up the water disaster, and a plumber came out and fixed the pipe before service tomorrow. It COULD have been much worse.

I swear to you that this is the complete truth about my day. I can't possibly make this stuff up. I have witnesses that can account that this is my "normal" life.

One day of drama in our household is equivalent of what some people only get in a lifetime.

Honest Scrap

I must say that I'm completely flattered that another blogger friend of mine would pass along this Honest Scrap award to me. I think personally she is one of the funniest bloggers that I've ever read, and I look forward daily to checking her blog to see any new posts that I can totally relate to as a wife/woman/mother and chuckle at her humor.

Ok, so I guess this is one of those "tagged" things. The rules are that I list ten absolutely true statements about myself and then tag ten other bloggers that I find worthy (hopefully I have ten I can tag if not I'll tag as many as I can, and all are worthy...)

So here goes: The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help me God:

1. Since I have been pregnant (especially over the past month) I've been watching the Food Network. A lot. A WHOLE lot. Not that there is anything wrong with watching this channel under normal circumstances, but lately I've been watching it like a lion would watch a gazelle, sitting they preying on it, drooling over it.

2. I've been making dessert almost every night. This would account for the extra 10-20 pounds I've gained with this baby. That being said though I've been making these wonderful brownies, then you take them out of the pan hot, put vanilla ice cream on top then smother it in caramel syrup. OMG it's the best thing I've ever tasted. A moment on the lips is TOTALLY worth it on the hips.

3. I hate dogs. I mean, REALLY hate dogs. I think it is because they are so "needy". With a cat you put out food once a week, stick a litter box in the garage and they basically take care of themselves. Dogs are a completely different story. Also because they smell and are pretty much disgusting. The funny thing is that I always have at least TWO dogs at a time, and I always seem to have the most dog drama of anyone I know. I can't seem to ever get rid of them.

4. I have identity issues. I used to be a person who wasn't into brands, and would snub my nose at the girl who would go pay an astronomical amount for a handbag. After all it's just a handbag. Then I moved to this neighborhood and school district and all of a sudden I feel like I have to live up to this certain standard and I start to conform to it. I am now the girl who has THAT handbag. Of course I NEVER pay full price. I refuse. So here I am torn between to lifestyles, the frugal one that I strive to embrace, and the other part of me that wants an extravagant lifestyle. I am working though to find a good balance and impart that into my children.

5. I am haunted by the fact I never sent out thank you cards for my wedding presents. I know I'm an AWFUL AWFUL person. Someone told me I had up to a year to send them out as far as etiquette goes, so I took this to mean I could procrastinate. Then we moved out of state, and things just got lost in the shuffle and it never got done. I still feel horrible about it to this day. I don't think I'll ever forgive myself for it.

6. I love labor, hate pregnancy. I LOATHE being pregnant. I'm not one of those women who feel like they bond with their baby or adore being pregnant. I personally think those women who say they love being pregnant are total liars. I like labor not because I'm some kind of freak who likes pain, I like it because it's my own personal version of "A Baby Story." It's the most exciting part of all of it, getting there, being in the hospital, being the center of attention, and finally seeing your little baby. Also I have pretty easy labors, so I'm lucky there.

7. I wish I was closer with God. I'm just never where I want to be with him. I'm a Christian and I love Christ, I just know that I need to be better, but then again who doesn't feel that way.

8. Also being raised charismatic/Pentecostal and having all these emotions attached to God is very different than being in more of a Baptist like atmosphere, where those emotions are missing. I don't get that "church camp high" that comes along with the charismatic lifestyle. I'm having to totally learn who Christ really is, and it is difficult, and heartbreaking because I feel sometimes as if I've had him ALL wrong. I'm not saying either is right or wrong, they are just both very different.

9. I have a pretty shady past. I have a hard time shaking the feeling that I'm still THAT girl. It constantly makes me feel unworthy of friends, relationships or leading at a church. I know in my head that Christ forgives, I just think I haven't forgiven myself yet.

10. End it on a funny note (since I got so serious). I'm a hypochondriac. My husband pointed this out to me a few weeks ago. Here is how that conversation went down:

Him: You need to stay of WebMd. You are a total hypochondriac.

ME: I certainly am NOT. I am just informed and cautious about our health.

Him: How many diseases have you thought we have had in the past six months?

Me: (sit there and ponder this for a moment)

Him: Diabetes? Swine Flu?

Me: Yes (sigh) and yes. And Lupus, Lyme disease, Pancreatic Cancer, and Spinal meningitis.

Ok so he has a point. I need to stay off WebMd.

Ok, so I'm "tagging" the following people on this.

1. Ginger (because she is HILARIOUS and only has one blog written and I need more)

2. Treasure

3. Mom

4. My hubby (because he is HILARIOUS and needs to blog. I'm in withdrawal)

5. Melissa

6. Erica

I don't have ten people to tag on blogs because not everyone writes them that needs to have them (ahem Lanie, Sarah and my brother to name a few).

There you go. You know WAY more about me than you should. Now go and confess something yourself.

I need an organization intervention.

I'm on day four, yes FOUR of sorting through bags and boxes of children's clothing. I know, I can feel your eyes rolling and all the sighs coming from my friends who are sitting in a cubicle right now, but seriously I think at this moment I would trade places with ANY of you.

I'm TERRIBLE at organization. Positively terrible.

Side note:Now, don't get me wrong, I'm totally and completely thankful for my friends, neighbors and family who have given us clothing. Thanks to all of you, are needs are totally met and we have to buy practically nothing. That being said, read on.

My previous method of organization was to just throw it all into a plastic sack, label it with a sharpie and toss it into the garage/attic. This method was not working well for several factors, pets, and kids both would rip open the bags that had not yet made it into the attic, and the clothes would get filthy, also thus by being in a not so accessible bag in the attic, I'd forget about them.

The other day I ripped open a bag FULL of adorable 24 month and 2T dresses from my cousin Treasure. I didn't even KNOW I had these. I was sure I had gone through everything that she had given me but obviously not. Now I'm frantically washing clothes hoping to get Evie into these dresses before summer ends. I think literally there are enough dresses that she could wear one a day for the next month and never repeat. It's so sad I will never get through all these adorable clothes.

Another issue I have is not all clothes are the same size. They may SAY 3T on them, but as any mother knows not all 3T's are the same. So then it is my job to evaluate these sizes and determine if she will indeed wear them this winter or not. Do I keep them down for winter so I don't forget about them, or put them in a box? If I put them in a box I will surely forget about them, but if I leave them out I'm creating clutter. I'm supposed to "judge" how much she will grow between now and fall/winter? Then do I sort by size only or by size and by season? The problem with that is we have bi-polar weather in Oklahoma that can be warm until November, with a few cold days mixed in. Oh, and don't even get me started on March weather here...so if I pack all the winter clothes up I could be shooting myself in the foot.

It's enough to make a normal woman go insane, for me, it's putting me in a state of helplessness. You remember, I'm the girl who can't even decide on what size macaroni to get, much less figure this crap out. Here I am, sitting on the floor pregnant and pitiful with piles and piles of clothes around me, unable to make a decision at all as to how to organize these.

So, finally I came up with a plan and created a "staging area". I now have two dressers in the girls room. One in the actual room for clothes they wear now, and one in the walk in closet that is "staging" for winter/fall and the next size up. That way they are accessible, but yet put away somewhat. Everything else is going in labeled boxes, NOT plastic sacks. (this was my husband's doing).

So I just went through my last bag of clothes from my cousin and I saw the light at the end of the tunnel. Then I realized I have about six, yes SIX boxes of clothes in my garage from our friends who just moved to Nebraska. SIX BOXES.

Dear God, I'm going to be in the looney bin when this is all over.

Charlie Suicide Attempt #6

So, my beagle, Charlie had yet ANOTHER suicide attempt the other day.

If you haven't read about the other five you can get a recap here.

The hubby was painting the girls room and had the window slightly open to let out the fumes. He noticed the dog sniffing around the window area and closed it enough that he thought the dog couldn't get out of.

He was wrong.

About two minutes later our dog Charlie had jumped out the window and was walking around on the three foot landing outside our daughters window sniffing the gutters, inches away from a 9 foot decent to death.

My husband calmly called him over within arms reach, grabbed his collar and pulled him in, once again saving our dog from death.

Thanks Sweetie

I've been doing all these wonderful Facebook posts that say things like the following:

• Julie is washing boxes full of baby clothes by size, and scouring Craigslist for a double stroller. If I feel adventurous today I may tape off Myah's room to prep it for painting.
• Julie Got the girls room painted, furniture moved in, and baby clothes down from storage and sorted! I'm finally starting to feel prepared for another baby!

But, I have a confession to make. I'm not the one who has been doing all these things and doing the "nesting". It's been my wonderful husband. Without him I wouldn't have any of this done. Seriously.

Thursday night after went into a bout of false labor, hubby began moving furniture, changing outlets and light fixtures, taping the room off and painting until 10:30 at night. Saturday morning, he got up and painted ALL day. Then even after painting he moved all the furniture in while I sat on my butt and tried to decide where I wanted the furniture (and was quite bossy during the process I may add. I'm lucky he puts up with me).

Then to my surprise yesterday he got into the attic and pulled down all the bags of baby clothes, car seats, baby toys etc that have been in storage. Him and the kids sorted them by size into individual boxes that he picked up. It would have taken me days to figure out how to sort them: by size? by season? Lately I've been completely incapable of making any sort of decision. I have no idea what is wrong with me (I'm not kidding about this decision making thing. When I went grocery shopping on Saturday I stood in the pasta aisle for about five minutes staring at elbow macaroni trying to just decide if I wanted regular or jumbo size It's pretty pathetic).

If it wasn't for him I'd be sitting in an empty half painted room right now feeling pretty helpless. He is the best husband in the world and I can't believe how much he got done this weekend. He worked his butt off.

Now, I really am washing the clothes, the ones he sorted. I did go grocery shopping on Saturday while he painted the room, so I have done my fair share (especially for being as ginormous pregnant as I am). I just have to get this off my chest that without him, I wouldn't get much accomplished. He is my rock, and I am so thankful that God blessed me with such a wonderful husband.

I have a two year old in denial

My youngest (soon to be not the youngest), has been in a state of denial recently.

It started when my belly began to expand. I would tell her constantly that there is a baby in mommy's tummy and that she was going to be a big sissy. She would shake her head and say "no" and cover up my belly.

I kept on telling her this because somehow I wanted her to understand that she would no longer be the youngest. You see, she has been our baby, and we have babied her so much I'm worried about the transition period and jealousy of the baby. I want her to be prepared, well, as much as a two year old can be. So I continued to show her my belly and she continued to say "No!" and cover it up.

Two days ago she came up, pulled up my shirt, kissed my belly and said "LUCY!". I was pretty amazed. She has finally started to make some type of association with this.

So, she now knows that her old crib is Lucy's bed. Today I cleared out most of Myah's room except the big furniture, we plan to paint that this evening and move the little ones into that room. She saw everything missing from Myahs room and got very excited. She ran into her room and started pushing on the crib and saying "Lucy's bed! Lucy's bed" and trying to move it. She then ran around to her brothers room "Bubby's room?" asking if he was moving, I told her no. I then went to the door, and said "Evie's room" (touching the door) on her new room and "Myah's room" on her old room a couple times, to explain we are switching rooms.

She looked at me, smacked her door (her current door) and said ,"NO! Evie's room".

And the fun begins AGAIN.

4 Weeks to Go

I'm in the final stretch, the "Driving through Texas" stage of pregnancy. You know what I mean by that. It's that horrible stretch where you feel so alone in the world, so miserable, that there can't possibly be an end in sight. Every day moves on but it feels like a week.

So, that being said, you would think that I have the crib set up, the room decorated, diapers neatly stacked in the bin and Lucy's clothes all washed and ready.

But I don't. I have NOTHING done. Nothing I tell you.

Ok, I'm stretching the truth a tad. Last night Jamin and I switched the closets. We moved our oldest into the small closet and moved the girls stuff (Evie and Lucy's which Jamin now calls "the twins" which drives me crazy but that's a WHOLE other story) into Myah's larger closet. This is step one in the big room switch.

Our next step is to paint the rooms (Evie's is purple and green baby colors and Myah's is a blinding shade of hot pink that makes your head spin...I can't POSSIBLY subject an infant to that), switch furniture, then and ONLY then can I begin pulling boxes out of our attic and washing clothes, folding, putting away, washing bottles and taking inventory of what we have and what we need.

We have our work cut out for us. I have no desire at all to paint. I LOATHE painting. I can't even bend over to pick up a toy off the floor or sneeze without wetting myself, let alone paint. Just the thought of this daunting task makes me want to crawl into bed and pull the covers up over my head.

Can someone just wake me up when it is all over? Please?

The good news: baby is head down which means no c-section! YAY! The thought of a c-section has had me up in panic ridden night sweats for the past two weeks. I know, everyone says "what's the big deal?" The big deal is I DO NOT want someone basically gutting me while I'm awake, and the whole "you won't feel pain" doesn't give me any comfort. Someone would still be slicing me open while I'm awake and alert and that puts me in a complete state of panic. So the whole no c-section news is FREAKING FANTASTIC news to me!

The bad news: Jamin has come up with a new nickname for me during this pregnancy. I made the mistake of wearing a red shirt the other day. He has now deemed me "the kool-aid guy". Wonderful. Oh well, it could be worse. When I was pregnant with Evie I was "Jabba the wife," but on top of that every time I'd get up he would make the noises of Jabba to go along with it. Good times I tell you...good times.

So, in four weeks I will have myself another wonderful baby girl. I don't think the reality of this has completely sunk in yet, Evie is still so young and I'm busy with her constantly. It's a different state of mind than my last pregnancy, the excitement is still there, but it is overshadowed by fears of having four kids, and two little ones at the same time. I did it with Myah and Brett, so I'm sure I'll be just fine.

After all, once you have three, what is one more?

It could only happen to me

Anyone who knows me at all knows that I win hands down when it comes to crazy pet and animal stories. From my Shih-Tzu being dognapped to my suicidal Beagle, from frog orgies in my kids swimming pool to dying guinea pigs, I have the strangest pet stories of them all.

Our cat Scout has gone missing again, I decided to take a long detour through our neighborhood to scan for him. While I was doing this two dogs come running out in front of my car. I slam on the breaks to avoid hitting them. Rather than scurry on their way, these dogs just stand there and stare at me as if to say "you shall not pass." I honk the horn, nudge the van forward a bit, but nothing. They won't budge an inch.

You HAVE to be kidding me right?

So I get out of my car and the smaller of the dogs (a little ugly pug that looks like the dog from Men In Black) barks and barks at me, will barely let me out of the van door. I try and shew them away, but they just are hell bent on not letting me go anywhere. I see collars, but no tags on these dogs.

This standoff continues for about 5 minutes. I'm at the point I'm about ready to just run over the dang dogs, and I'm starting to envision horrific scenes from Cujo where they poor lady is stuck in her sweltering car for days trapped by this rabid dog. The kids get out and try and move them out of the way while I get the van a little forward, but while doing this the little one bites my son. It's not a massive bite, a teeny little puncture wound no bigger than a pin prick, but it does draw a little blood. I quickly get the kids back in the car. I begin nudging forward and the dogs move a bit, the kids look out the window to make sure I'm not hitting them. As soon as I'm FINALLY clear of these dogs I FLOOR it. The dogs CHASE MY CAR through the rest of the neighborhood and around the corner.

I swear I've never seen anything like this in my life.

A quick call to hubby and the doctor (luckily my son doesn't need a rabies shot), then a call to animal control while in the middle of Eyemart (getting yet ANOTHER pair of glasses for my son) gets some stares from a few individuals. Can't you just see me now? The two year old pulling glasses off the racks and hiding under chairs with me on the phone to the doctor saying "Yes, I think my son needs a rabies shot." While the lady at the counter is repairing my sons glasses (oh and the oldest is crying because they can't repair her sunglasses for her).

I just look at them as I leave and say out loud "Welcome to my three ring circus."

Our Suicidal Dog

My husband and I have come to the conclusion that our dog must be suicidal. He has almost died on us a handful of times, and we keep saving him. Maybe we doomed him the minute we named him "Charlie" (after the character Charlie on Lost). We are his Desmond, no matter what we do, or how many times we try and save him, he is going to die.

It all started when we first adopted him. He dug a hole under the porch of his old home, and crawled under there to die. It took hours for him to come out so we could adopt him. We get him home to find out he has Parvo. After a week of this dog trying to die we nurse him back to health with Pedialyte and chicken broth, along with antibiotics.

A few months later, he decides to steal food from our larger alpha dog. She of course tries to bite his head off, leaving his eyeball bulging out of the socket. (That has been fixed, popped right back in at the vet's office that night). I still have nightmares about witnessing this horrific event.

About three days before we leave to Paris, he comes in the house bloody and swollen (the dog seriously looked MESSED up see photo to my left). We have no clue what he did to himself, but we nurse him back to health with antibiotics and aspirin. Our dog lives to see yet another day. We are still debating if he got his head caught under the fence or if the big dog attacked him again. We just can't be sure.

About a month ago he gets himself caught on my staircase in a noose. If I would have gone downstairs 30 seconds later I would have had a dead dog hanging from my stairs (talk about having to go to therapy after seeing something like that...). Anyhow, he noosed himself around the stairs and actually let go of his bowels and bladder he was that close to death. My stairs now have claw marks dug into the wood where he tried to claw his way up them to save himself.

Two weeks ago he somehow got a hold of an ant bait and ate all the poison out of it. Luckily he survived that one. The "counter" went back (zero days since last Charlie suicide attempt).

I have NO clue what it is with this dog. I guess we just keep trying to save his life and live out the doggie version of the movie "Final Destination". He cheated death but it keeps coming for him? Sounds like a feature film to me...

Scattergories

How fitting that the head of the poor man on the cover is nearly exploding. This is how I feel sometimeswhen I play games with the kids.

Now, don't get me wrong. They are finally at the age where games are SOMEWHAT enjoyable with them, which is pretty darn cool, however there are a few games that NEVER need to be played with children. This is one of them.

My oldest asked if I would play Scattergories with her. First of all, there were only two of us, but she insisted that it would be just fine. Ok, I give in. I'll play.

Round one is over and she got four or six out of the ten possible answers. We go through and compare and I veto a few (for example: Things that are black - her answer: Elephant). I know you must think I'm completely cold hearted, but I'm not one of those people who let kids off easy. You want to play with the big kids, you have to be able to play by the rules. Also, my folks were ones that let me off pretty easy, and "let" me win a lot, which has well, created a monster when it comes to competition.

Anyhow we are going pretty well when the 7 year old comes along and wants to play. I have my doubts but what is the worst that will happen? Well, he first of all annoys the crap out of me by jumping ahead of the orderly process I have going and blurting out ALL his answers.

I can feel my head starting to explode because my natural order and progression of things is getting interrupted...I have control issues ok? Don't judge me.

This continues on for a few rounds until I'm fuming.

However something funny happens in the process. The category was "Nicknames" that start with the letter "L".

My sons answer was "Lincoln". He said (and I quote) "OH! I got it all wrong! I thought it said NICKEL NAMES, so I put Lincoln."

There was an old lady who lived in a shoe...

That's me. You know me. I'm the woman in line behind you at the post office or grocery store that has too many kids all ready (and dear God she is actually pregnant with another). Hello. It's nice to meet you too.

That was me, and is me, because even though my older children are TRYING to be helpful, they still can't manage to go get some bananas without skipping and making annoying noises on their way to do it.

Oh, then your son tucks his arms in his shirt and runs down the aisle saying "I have no arms! I have no arms." The problem is that you are too busy dealing with your two year old who is having a nuclear meltdown in the aisle because she can't get out of the cart to deal with his inexcusable behavior. The whole store stares at you like you just beat your child or something, but you can't beat her bottom, because you are in public. Then what would you look like?

So, now you are the pregnant lady, holding a two year old trying to push a shopping cart down the aisle while two others are in tow behind you. Hello, my name is Julie and I look like I live in a trailer.

Once this realization hits me, it is at this point that I now become the crying pregnant lady in the store, holding a two year old, with two others in tow behind her. Do I drop the cart and bail or keep on going?

Turns out that crying in front of your children is the best thing you can do to get them to behave. Maybe it is because you look so pathetic, they have no choice but to feel sorry for you. Thus I have now perfected the mom guilt trip. Cry until you make them behave. That will work.

Ok, so. I'm making a declaration. I REFUSE to go grocery shopping with children. No more. I will go alone in the evenings when Daddy is done working. I will no longer look like the crazed mother that has too many kids!

Why yes, I did swallow a watermelon.

Ok, so it's summer and the season for fresh fruit. I love to buy all the fruit, come home, wash it and put it in tupperware containers so I can munch when I please and all the work is done. I purchased a watermelon two weeks ago at the supermarket (part of my normal summer routine), came home and began chopping away at the thing.

I decided while chopping to take a little sample, and well, I could have just died and went to heaven. I could have SWORN that this was the sweetest best watermelon that I had tasted in my entire life.

So, let me paint you a picture of what this looks like. Me, barefoot and VERY pregnant in the kitchen with a butcher knife in one hand and a dripping piece of watermelon in the other hand. I'd cut a piece and put it away, then eat a piece, and so on and so on....i'm sure it was rather disgusting and unladylike looking me there with watermelon juice dripping down my chin and landing on my very big belly.

By the time the watermelon was finished and cut up, I didn't have as much in the container as I expected.

Three days later the watermelon was gone. My family griped for a few days that nobody else got any, but it's not possible is it? I didn't eat the whole thing did I?

Today was grocery day. Yes, I bought another one. My daughter moaned about how she "won't get any of this watermelon either because mom is going to eat it all!"

I noticed chopping it up today that I must have bought a much larger watermelon, because rather than one tupperware I had three. Then I came to a horrible realization. I ATE HALF the watermelon last time I cut it up. No wonder I didn't have as much as I expected.

So, when asked "are you pregnant or did you just swallow a watermelon?" I can just simply say "Yes".

Things I thought I'd never say.

When you become a parent you truly say things that you NEVER in a million years could picture yourself saying, things like "please don't lick the shopping cart handle," and "dear God he stuck something up his nose again..."  (emphasis on the AGAIN part).

Every time I turn around they are doing something so ridiculous, you look at them and shake your head in astonishment that they are yours, and could swear that they were raised by monkeys instead of civilized parents.

For example today we were at a restaurant and I looked over and my ten year old is shaving a crayon with a knife.  I look at her and just give her the "mom" look and say "Really? Can you please stop shaving the crayon with your knife."  I glance across the table and my two year old has taken her straw out of her drink, and is slurping Sprite directly from the table top to her mouth, lapping it up like a dog.  Where is her straw you ask?  She is using it to sip ranch dressing from a bowl.

Yes, these are my children.

Yesterday they tied a rope to a branch on our tree outside in a swing like fashion.  My husband and I watched from the kitchen window as my oldest decided to try and hang a plastic lawn chair from that very string as some kind of makeshift swing.  This is the point that my husband looks at me and says "so, do I call the ambulance now, or wait and see how this plays out?"

There you are again saying something you never thought you would say in a million years "kids, please don't hang the lawn chair from the tree and try to swing on it." 

Some of the top things I've said as a parent that I thought I'd never say:

• Stop chewing your toenails!
  
• Stop biting my feet!
  
• Honey I need the tweezers, he has a tick on his balls.
  
• Yes doctor he drank pool shock.
  
• No, the cashier at Walgreens is not the midget from Elf.  Please stop asking him that.
  
• Hold still while I pull the eye-shadow sponge out of your nose.
  
• You can NOT spank your friends on their butts while they are peeing at the urinal.
  
• Don't lick your sister!
  
• I found the penny in his poop!  We don't have to take him to the hospital!
  
• Stop playing with the toilet water!
  

Then of course my all time favorite "Please stop licking the shopping cart handle."  (I know I said this before but it's worthy of being mentioned twice.

Girls Weekend

So, my hubby, brother in law and my son packed up yesterday and went on a backpacking / camping trip in Tahlina, OK, which he has been VERY excited about all week long.  He asked me "you sure you don't want to go?".  No thanks, I'll be fine here with my air conditioning, soft mattress, meals that ARE NOT freeze dried, and water I don't have to filter in order to drink.

So, this was just a girls weekend.  Myah was excited because she has been begging for a girls weekend.  So, we started the afternoon off with a little nap, then off to Cici's for pizza, then a stop by Braums to get some ice cream for the evening.  We came home and did some make up while my dog almost hung himself (not kidding here, he got himself noosed around the staircase.  If I had gone downstairs 1 minute later the dog would have been dead.  My wood on my staircase now has claw marks embedded on it and the poor dog peed and pooped himself...it was REALLY sad, poor doggie).

Anyhow, after I saved our dogs life for the millionth time (not kidding I can devote a whole blog to just this dog), I came back upstairs and taught Myah how to shave her legs (wow, she is growing up SO fast I can't believe it).  Talk about a girlie weekend.

We then stuffed ourselves on ice cream while watching girlie movies.

We got up this morning early to try and make it to Old Navy by 9am when they opened for their $1 flip flop sale.  We made it there around 9:15.  I saw my cousin coming out of the store and I yelled out my window and waved.  I'm not used to doing stuff like this, I usually avoid the crowds, but I thought it would be a neat experience.  We parked at THE VERY BACK of the parking lot and walked in.  I immediately regretted not bringing in the stroller.  The store was wall to wall people.  It took us about 20 minutes to find our colors and sizes then we went for the line.  The line wrapped around the back of the store, then circled back around half way to the front it was so long.  I was beginning to wonder if it was worth it, but I was in too deep to back down now.  I was sweating bullets and holding a two year old (and I'm pregnant).  While I was in line I sent Myah to the front of the store to wait for someone to check out that had a cart and bring it to me so I could deposit Evie into the cart.  The line took about 30 minutes which wasn't bad considering there were nearly 500 people in line (I'm NOT kidding).  Myah and I each got 5 pairs of flip flops and we headed out of the store at about 10:05.

We then headed to the mall for some shopping.  I picked up some beach balls at Disney store that were 40% off, and books at Borders were buy one get one free on some, and discounted books on others, so I got some good deals at the mall!  We then headed to Snip-It's to get Evie a haircut.  She looked so cute with a little bow and sparkles in her hair when she was all done!  Then I dropped Myah off at a birthday party and it was 2pm so I stopped by Sonic for half price drinks at happy hour!

Hubby sent me a photo text of Brett wading in the lake.  I talked to him for a minute before his phone cut out.  They were wading in a creek looking for bugs.  I think I got the better end of the deal as far as weekends go!  I'll take my girlie weekend!

Coupon Mom

I have once again became the coupon mom.  I did it for quite some time, but got too busy with school, but now I'm back!  I was using them just at Crest for a while, but Homeland does double coupons up to two dollars.  Homeland was always more pricy than Crest so I just never figured it was worth the hassle.  I was WRONG.  

I made my first homeland trip the other day.  My total came to $45 (this was after store discounts).  Then she started scanning my coupons.  The price came down to $24 for all you see in the photo here.  This is all name brand stuff.  Some of it ended up being free after coupons.  

Here is what I got if you can't see it in the photo:

• Kraft Miracle Whip
  
• Kraft Mayo
  
• Two Oscar Meyer Bologna
  
• Velvetta Cheese
  
• Velvetta Shells and Cheese
  
• 2 Kraft Easy Mac's
  
• 2 Velvetta Easy Mac's
  
• 4 Jello Puddings
  
• Rits Bits w/Cheese
  
• Cool Whip
  
• 2 Hidden Valley Ranch Dressings
  
• 1 Kraft Blue Cheese Dressing
  
• 3 Two Liters of Dr. Pepper
  
• Lipton Tea Bags (24 count)
  
• A1
  
• Lea and Pearlmans Worchestire Sauce
  
• Kraft BBQ Sauce
  
• Premium Saltine Crackers
  

The game is to use the coupons when the items are on sale and at their lowest price.  Now, this is normally REALLY hard to track, but I enrolled in a site called Consumer Queen.  On their message boards other people post deals they have seen around town.  This is for ALL grocery stores, drug stores, etc...they post what coupons to use and when.

Now, I have gone a step further.  I buy two Sunday papers, double the coupons, so I can stockpile when the price is SUPER low.  Anyhow, this info was just too good NOT to share it.  

Now I'm off to the grocery store again, because the new ad came out yesterday!  I can't wait to see what my savings are!