Twin's B-day party at Splash Park

Grant in the splashpark

Kim and Jason "The Parents"

Hailey loving the party

Jason's son Cameron

Abby

Izzy

I love this pic

Jason and his birthday girls

Give me some sisterly love

On Saturday we went to a birthday party for Izzy and Abby and loved it! The girls are adorable and the party was so much fun for the kiddos. I got to take pictures all night and all was well in the world. Luckily i did since kim's camera decided to have dead batteries about 30 minutes into the party. It was at a splashpark and the kids went nuts playing in the water. They knew the perfect thing to make my little rugrats wear themselves out. The food was great: lots of pasta salad, crackers, vegies, dips and hotdogs, beans, mutton and another tasty bbq'd meat. It was fantastic. The shelter was huge with fans and screens, keeping the bees and bugs away from the food and us. I think we are going to plan our next family gathering there soon.
The twins got alot of cool clothes, pink bedspreads, some toys and giftcards! Lots of gooey butterfly cupcakes smeared all over the kids and adults ended the party on a sweet note

and soon after we sent ourselves packing.

The Dreaded Bus

Today my baby girl starts her fourth day of first grade and her first day to ride a school bus (EVER)!!! I am freaking out a little but i know it is going to simplify my life and help with our daily routine...and maybe save me some gas money along the way. I am still planning on taking her to school in the mornings but we might take advantage of the bus in the mornings occassionally. My main concern is that i have to wake grant up from his nap to go get her and i hate messing with his sleep schedule. Also hailey has been begging me since last year to ride the bus.

I know she will be fine and have a good time but i remember horror stories about the bus. I don't want my daughter getting involved in any crazy shenanagins. We are testing new waters and momma is really freaked out. I am trying to release the reigns and let her grow up but it is very very hard...i didn't want to leave her classroom again this morning. I just want to be there the whole time checking on her.

Do you have any horror stories from your bus rides in school or good stories that might ease my fears?? I don't remember the little kids getting in trouble much but just seeing and hearing the big kids doing the things they do really freaks me out...have you heard the things that come out of the kids mouths nowadays??

My BIG handsome man

Grant got his second haircut yesterday and he looks like such a big man. He sat very still without having to be distracted and let her cut his whole head of crazy curls off without even a budge. He looks so cute!!

I think someone REALLY likes his new haircut...do you like his winky smile??? I do.

The day before hailey started 1st grade!

To prepare for school we went shopping yesterday and found the kids some cute shoes at JcPenny's. It was a great deal but 1 get 1 free. We got hailey some adorable brown leather mary janes and grant some lowtop brown leather boots(look like Doc martin's). And we also found hailey some cute little shoes for next spring.

We originally went looking for a new backpack something a bit smaller and cuter(more grown up, brown with pink and multi-colored polkadots)) but the one we wanted was already sold out. So she went to school with the same one she used last year. Not like she really needed a new backpack her's barely looks used. I don't think she is really old enough to notice yet but i wanted it. I will look later this week and see if target or khol's has any left that are cute.

I tried to get pictures off their website but they are not cooperating. And they didn't have the right sizes so i had them order them for me(with in store pick-up instead of catalog shopping i have no shipping costs). So they will be here in a couple of days. And over the weekend hailey got new nike tf -shoes to start school with, also from penny's. I love their shoe sales this time of the year. So now we need winter dress shoes and the kids will be done shoe shopping for awhile.

Then we went and got grant's and hailey's haircut. They both look so grown up now. My baby's aren't exactly babies anymore. Grant sat perfectly and barely moved. It helped that he was 2 hours past naptime...i thought he would scream and cry but instead he was an angel. I didnt even give hima toy or sucker. Maybe he was scared whatever it was it went great. Hailey just got a trim. She says she wants her hair to grow long now so i think we will try. BUT we will only let it grow long if she takes care of it and doesn't complain. If it gets to be problematic then it will go back to a bob...which i think looks great on her and is soooo easy to maintain!

Other than that we spent the rest of the day at the mall getting some gifts and looking at the winter clothes that are coming out. Some really cute stuff is out right now...i am ready to finish up winter shopping already(we are almost done)! Then let the kids play at the mall play placebefore heading home.

Once home hailey swam(then took a bath) while grant took a nap. Then we made brats for dinner..yum yum with kettle chips(my favorite)and yams! Then it was almost bedtime for the kiddos. It took hailey longer than normal to fall asleep since it was so early but since she got up very early this morning i am hoping tonight will be easier.

I'm a Big Girl Now

Well she did it. I have a big girl now.

A. First. Grader.

I loved seeing her in school again.



She thrived last year and grew up so much.




I hope for a wonderful year making new friends and loving her teacher. I know how important this year is in terms of what she will learn and carry with her in future classes and i just hope she really learns everything she will need to succeed.

I want her to have the world and i know a quality education is the cornerstone of reaching the stars. A saying me and hailey have been saying lately is "Reach for the moon and if it is to far out grab a star and hold on tight"...she is a big girl now and she makes her own destiny!!! I want her to know how important school is and that it isn't for playing but for learning. I want her to have fun but know that is not the true purpose. She's a big girl now!!!

1st Grade Jitters

Tomorrow is the big day. Hailey starts first grade. I am excited but sad, as is she. She misses her kindergarten teacher so much. She doesn't understand why she can't have her beloved Mrs. kassenbrock back (only the best kindergarten teacher ever)!!! But on to new things. Her new teacher is Mrs. Shoulders. I have been praying for a nice teacher. I still remember my first grade teacher. She was so mean with long fingernails. She would grab kids by their ears when they were bad....i didn't like her much. But i am regressing. We haven't met her yet but we are hoping for a good day.
Only one thing we can't decide on yet and that is her riding the bus. I am having a hard-time deciding what will work for us. I am not really wanting her to ride the bus all the time because i like to meet her teacher occassionally and i think pick-up for first graders are outside anyways. So we are going to take her this week and then next week we will see what happens. It is all new for us.

So today we are going shopping to look for a new more modern backpack and i think i willlsuprise her with a new haircut. I want her to be excited about this new year and understand how important shcool is. I want her to grow and learn and be excited about the process. Last year she thrived and really loved going to school and i hope this year will be no different. I am hoping her jitters go away the first moment she gets up and sees all her friends. I pray some of her girlfriends who came for a slumberparty will be in her class.

She doesn't want to leave us. She doesn't want to get up early or go to bed early but last night was better. She was asleep before 9 and up by 7:45. Hopefully tonight we can have her asleep by 8-8:30 and up by 6:45...we will see! If not then she will go to bed extra early tomorrow night. We will try to post pics from the first day. I haven't really been taking many with my wrist being sore and the camera being so heavy and big. But i want to start picking it up again asap...i really miss capturing all of their precious moments in life!

Try living with one arm-it sucks!

I am still in a hard cast for another couple of weeks and i am starting to go stir crazy. I hate it. I feel helpless. I can't iron, can't do dishes, can't give kids a bath, can't pick kids up, can't push stroller, can't fix my hair, can't braid hailey's hair or put a ponytail in, can't shave my legs, can't paint my toes, can't use a can opener, can't lift anything over 5 pounds, can't write well, and many many more than that. All of those daily tasks we take for granted are borderline impossible for me.

I have been using my left arm more and more but it hurts 24-7 from using so much when it isn't used to it. Then they have me doing exercises 2 times a day on my right hand. Some of the exercises are ok but the others hurt like hell. They had me stop one of them cause of pain and left me in this cast longer to make sure my arm is healed. I have a feelign they didnt fix it. I am a little freaked out that it is worse than ever.

I go back on the 10th and get my semi-soft brace and i guess we will see how i am doing then. She said she is hoping only one more appointment after that but i am thinking it will be more since i am still having so many problems.

What sucks even more is the fact that my hubby is out of town and i am doing all of this myself. Try to do all of your daily taks with just one arm..it is exausting. I am trying to look at the bright side but it is hard to see right now...i am not happy how long it has taken and still is taking to recover. I was never told about this. I am frustrated with my surgeon for not giving me the rundown on the fact i woud even be in therapy and the recovery time...very frustrated. I am praying it is going to get better and i can forget all this pain and enjoy the daily life tasks without having to think about if tey will hurt or not.

Allergy Testing and speech therapy

Today we went to the dreaded alergist but Grant didn't know what he was about to dread. We discussed his file and problems and decided he needed to have all environmental allergies tested, all main foods and a small amount of other foods that might be problematic. It was slightly traumatic seing him get so many sticks. It was around 24 total pricks..give or take a couple! Covering his whole back and both arms. Hailey wanted to stay in the room and once they got to the individual pricks on one arm she was very upset. Probably worse that Grant was taking it.

The doctor said he might be lactose intolerant but he isn't old enough for the test yet. It is normally done on older people who can drink the fluid/meds then after 4 hours they blow and it can tell results. They said to keep him on soy because he has a strong likelyhood of having an intolerance and to give him lactaid pills ground up. If he takes the pills everytime he has lactose it will help him digest the lactose properly and keep him more comfortable.

In the end he didn't have any food allergies, thank God!! BUT he does have environmental allergies. The big one DUST. We are supposed to change his sheets often and wash stuffed animals and blankets very frequently. Also he have to get a HEPA air filter thingy for his room and keep his door shut. The obviously clean/vacuum/dust the house and try to keep dust to a minimum. He said all houses have dust so it has nothing to do with if our house is dirty or not. Cats are also a big problem. Luckily his dad is allergic also so we aren't arround cats often but we have some family with cats that we need to try to avoid if possible. But if we go visit we got a prescription that will help him tolerate the environment better. In addition he is allergic to cockroaches(gross) and mice. SO they said to keep our shoes off in the house because when you walk around outside you can get these allergens on your shoes. Ewww even grosser yet!

So that was interesting and told me what i wanted. I am happy he doesn't have food allergies and i can keep feeding him whatever he wants(within a healthy guideline). Also i am happy to know he can take the lactose pills and drink milk without any problems. I am going to look in to the lactose problem more and do some research but i think i am happy with the results overall.

Yesterday we had our appointment with first steps and set up his IFSAP and found some developmental specialists that specialize in speech delays. We are waiting for them to call us back with the one that is picked but they all seemed well qualified to help push him along. We had him tested earlier this month because he was lagging behind is his speech skills compared to what most kids his age are doing. Sure enough when they came to do the assessment he was actually behind in two areas both speech and social skills. The social skills are behind mainly because a component of it is speech. We set up his long term and short term goals and i am really excited to get started. They said his cognitive ability and ability to understand what is going on is above average. I am hoping that will work to his advantage and push him along.

They gave us a list of things kids to at certain ages and he has a few in the 7-12 mth category he hasnt met like his lack of jabbering and running vowels/consonants together. But most of his shortcomings are in the 12-24 month area. Some goals include getting him to imitate sounds, animals noises, etc. and get a vocabuary of 10-25 words for now. If he reaches these goals quickly we will advance him and try to get him caught up to his age range. If he hasnt caught up then in one year he will be reevaluated for eligibility and seee if he still needs therapy. I am very excited for him to get help and start talking up a storm. He is such a bright child i want him to be ready for preschool and talking like his sister did....well he doesn't have to talk quite that much..he-he! I will kee you updated on his progress.

Daddy's gone

Jason just started a new job at Abengoa Bioenergy at the beginning of the month. They have plants in the US and internationally. Well the first couple of weeks he trained locally and then on the 25th he got to fly to Nebraska...what is in nebraska you say??? I have no clue...anyone know what is in Nebraska?? Well if u are there, say hi to my hubby. He has been gone for 6 days and it feels like 36. Only 7 more to go. I kinda thought it would be nice getting a break and watching MY shows on tv, and doing whatever i wanted. BUT i was very wrong. I just miss him! I miss him waking me up every morning as he got ready for work(he is so loud), i miss the kids missing him all day, i REALLY, REALLY miss his cookin, i miss him cuddlin me, i JUST MISS HIM!!

Hailey misses her daddy also. She didn't think she would miss him. She said it would be nice to have him gone so he wouldn't worry about he and wouldn't be here to yell at her. Then he told her right before he left that he always worries about her and when he is gone he will worry even more. So right after he left she tells me that she is missing him alot and is really worried about how he is doing since he worries so much about her. It was very sweet!!

DeQuervein Release Surgery

When i was in the hospital giving birth to Grant they had a hard time getting my IV in. In my left arm they messed up twice and blew two veins. Then a nurse tried my right wrist and blew it very badly. It swelled up instantly and had me in tears. I told her something was wrong but it took forever before she finally agreed and apologized. Someone else put an IV by my elbow and it worked, barely. Afterwards my arm turned black n blue forever and i couldnt use it very well. I assumed after a couple of weeks that it would get better but unfortunately it didn't and at my 6 week check-up i was sent to physical therapy.

My arm was so painful that i could barely change diapers or rock Grant Using the arm for anything weight bearing was almost unbearable. It was horrible and after phyical therapy they gave me a huge brace but i couldn't feed Grant or barely move my arm for months making it impossible with an infant. It only got worse as time went on. At physical therapy they said it was from using my thumb too much for cutting and things...what???? I tried telling them what happened and still try to explain it but mainly i get looks of disbelief like i am lying!! Luckily my doctor has always been very supportive and finally sent me to a surgeon this spring after we met our full deductible. The surgeon said the surgery was imperitive because of some of the nerve problems, damage, and pain i have been experiencing. Over the month or so before the surgery it seemed to be getting better and little pain was happening unless i used it frequently.

I am in so much pain now after the surgery i sometimes think maybe i should have lived with it the way it was. I was thinking thesurgery would be horrible and it was nothing of the sort..it was very easy and less painful than expected. BUT the recovery time, the brace, the physical therapy is more than i ever expected. I have little movement of my thumb. I am not supposed to move it for at least three weeks. The brace makes it hard if not imposible to do even the easiest of tasks. Ponytails for hailey, diapers for grant, folding towels. I can't even take my kids swimming for probably the rest of the summer cause my arm can not get wet. I feel misinformed and very upset. No one told me of the recovery time...i guess i should have asked.

In my head i thought i would be sore until the day or two after and then back to normal...this is so unexpected. Will i even get all of my movement back??? I am freaking out about starting school in August. I can't write at the moment. I have to be able to take notes in the fall...i can't go to school without full mobility of my arm and hand....i am tired....i am so tired...i just wantto be able to do all the things i could do 2 weeks ago..i have to much to do to take all this time away...who is going to clean my house, wash my dishes, laundry, iron, weed the garden....and the list goes on..for gosh sakes i can barely get the kids buckled in the car or take a shower.

I hate to be a downer but i am truly exausted and just don't know how much more of t his i can handle. I hate when i can't be independent..especailly when i have two kids who depend on me for their every need!

What can i do??

Why am i so angry today..grrrr...my daughter is making me so upset that i am very, very close to spanking her and i HATE to spank. She is turning into THAT child. She is constantly, continuously, everlastingly bothering her brother just to make him scream at an annoying, earpiercing, blow your ears out level. She doesn't listen ever. I am up to my knee with her crap. She is ungrateful and spoiled and it is all my fault. I can't figure out what to do to make her listen and understand that what she is doing is wrong. I am at my witts end. I don'tknow any more techniques to teach her to do what is right to listen. She is starting to become sassy and talk back more frequently.

I am over the moon that my mom is coming to get her at any moment so i don't stick my foot up her rear.

I. am. exausted. and. stressed. beyond. what. i. can. handle.


I had wrote this the other day and just couldn't bring myself to finish it. Luckily she spent the weekend at my mom's and came back refreshed. She has been at Vacation Bible School the past two days and it has completely changed her (for the moment). She is a doll today. She has been learning about Rome and all the riches they had back then and all the things they didn't have. She has been learning about being helpful and doing things that are nice just to do it. She has been great. It has kept a smile on my face all day.

Sometimes when we are going through a bad day you think it has been like that forever but then things get good again and we realize it just feels like it. I have just been so busy that i have been letting her run the roost and she has gotten to think she can take charge. BUT i am trying to be more assertive with discipline and also spend more quality time with her. I think i am part of the problem..my busy schedule...but i am going to try and do better to teach her how a six year old or anyone for that matter should behave!

I love my daughter during the good times and the bad. Sometimes we just have to wait for the rough patch to clear and pass before seeing just how great things can be. This is the part of my daughter i want to see more often. The one who is good, helpful, and kind.....she is such a blessing! I am happy i got a chance to post this with both sides of the story..not just me being angry but also showing her true side, her good side!

Don't we all have good and bad days??

Sleepy time

It was a fabulous 9 days but also very exausting. I will try to get a post up tomorrow with pics from each day. We did so much cool stuff and really enjoyed the time with the kids. BUT it was very stressful with two kiddos in the car for 12 hours...both ways and trying to deal with different food, nap times, heat...EXAUSTING!!

I am happy to be home but also sad to be away from the beach. It was so much better than i remember. We will be going beck very soon. I refuse to wait another 5 long years. The beach was amazing until the jellyfish came to visit and our condo was perfect until the last day when the neighbors from hell moved in....that will be a post all of its own.

For now everything is unpacked, i have caught up on blogs and emails, and my hubby is sleeping and i am ready to lay my head down for sleep..if only i had my pillow....rats we forgot it at the condo!

Regressing again...good night everyone...hope you had as wonderful of a week as i have!

Guess i will be using an old standby memoryfoam...i will be getting a new pillow later this week. I have to have a soft cuddly pillow!

Never Enough Time

I read blogs daily but still never seem to make the time to post myself. Summer is flying by so fast. It is sad, i just want to S-L-O-W it down some. Many things have happened since i last wrote over 2 weeks ago. Two big things are that i finished school (for the summer) and my hubby has been offered a kick ass job. Both very, very important. I am thrilled for the prospects this job might have for our family. My husband can work in a bigger company with growth opportunities, good pay, bonus possibilities, yearly raises, OVERTIME...and better benefits. All things our family desperately needed.

This job is going to allow me to finally be a real stay at home momma again. I am so excited about this prospect i could cry. With school, the daycare, and everything else i have been so overwhelmed. I feel like all sided are constantly needing something. This might give me the opportunity to catch up and enjoy my family and concentrate on them and finishing my last year of school. Then once i find a "career" next year then we will be set...so much more comfortable. I can't even imagine!

We are going to stay in this house until i find a job next year but we can start paying off all our bills and hopefully get debt free..except our house! I am over the moon, can you tell?? This is so important, he is waiting on the formal job proposal but they already told him he was their guy!

On to other things, i have been starting to pack for our trip to Florida. I can't believe how much STUFF you need for a toddler and a 6 year old to keep them happy, clothed, and fed for a week. I do have a van but we have 5 people going on this trip..i am trying hard to pack light without lots of clothes..i figure we can and will wash them at the condo. I am interested in seeing the kids face when we get to the ocean, the look when sand touches the soles of their feet. The grimace when they get salt water in their mouth for the first time...all the firsts a beach hold.

Also, i am thrilled to think about all the photo opportunities i will have with my family. One week of nonstop photo taking opportunities. Hope i remember the laptop so i can keep everyone updated. I better go put it on the list.

Above are some pictures of Grant and Hailey i took at the library today. They have gorgeous flowers and cool stonework perfect for a photo shoot. if it wasn't so hot today i think we would have had even more great pics but the kid's were troopers. I love these pics, i know i can take good pics but i have problems getting the lighting right. I am reading some books now trying to get it right. I have never messed with F-stops, apertures, etc...i am trying to figure it out and how to make it do what i want. I am hoping vacation will give me the opportunity to do just that. Hope everyone is having as great of a summer as i am!

Happy 2nd Anniversary baby(It's been a great 9 1/2 years)

Today, June 2, is our 2nd wedding anniversary. Our wedding was perfect everything i had always dreamed about. It was 150 degrees outside, our flowers kept breaking, or DJ wore blue jeans(formal attire only), and our cake was lopsided but we could have cared less. I still remember how nervous i was and excited to finally be his wife. I had waited over 7 years for that day and i was ready for it. I remember a relief flood ove rme once we said our vows and walked out of the church...it seemed like i walked on clouds for weeks and weeks afterwards.

Jason was and still is the most wonderful daddy. After hailey was born he was so supportive and doting and i was ready for more of his children. Everytime i look at our son i think i made the right choice. Our honeymoon baby has made me respect his daddy even more. Jason is even a better daddy now with two kids. He is more patient, kind, and loves roughhousing with them. He is rough and tough and expects perfection but has this sweet, kind side.

Being married is like being a parent, it takes lots of hard work! Jason is a hard worker and "allows" me the opportunity to stay home and raise our children. He also has tolerated all my years of night school so we can provide abundantly and support our family.

Saturday we went out together to a bar for only the second time since being together and it was fabulous. I felt like we were dating again. I loved being with him and being by his side reconnecting. We are trying to schedule more mommy and daddy time and bring our marriage front and center and keep it there.

I am hoping that over the years through the good and the bad we will always come back and work on making each other happy. Sometimes it is easy to go about our daily lives and focus on things that are not important or to focus only on our children. But to keep your children happy you first must have a solid relationship. We are constantly working on this and trying to create a perfect balance. Thank you baby for two great years of marriage and almost ten years of happiness. You are my soulmate and i am so happy you chose me!!

girl cheese NOT grilled cheese

We had a lazy dinner tonight of soup, grilled cheese, fruit, and green beans. While Hailey and I were eating i started feeding Grant bites of the grilled cheese because it had been to hot to eat earlier. Hailey started giving me these mean looks.

I ignored them for a minute until finally i asked her what her problem was. She angerly says "mom, it is girl cheese and it is NOT for boys". She told me!!

My son is 15 months old (only 1 week late)!!

He loves to talk on the phone just like his momma!

My messy boy playing outside and eating a snack!

We have been remodeling our room and grant loves all the boxes.

He really is the big man on our campus!

I can't believe how big our baby boy is!

He is growing fast. We had our appointment on Tuesday and it went very well. Grant is finally back on track with his growth curve. His weight is 23 pounds...up almost 4 lbs. since his 12 month appointment! Woo-hoo!! He is around 35-40ish percent on his growth curve. His height is around 25% of kids his age at 30.75". His head was 48 cm which is around the 50%. All good news. The doctor was very happy with his growth. It seems that the tubes and lack of ear infections has made him all better.

His speech is still a little behind where we would like but he is progressing. He should be saying around 5-8 words at 15 months and he isn't quite there yet. We decided that we would recheck his speech at his 18 month check-up and see if he has caught up by then. If he doesn't catch up then our doc said he would refer us to the local first steps for assessment and possibly therapy. We are hoping he catches back up on his own. He is very bright and understands everything, he just isn't very verbal. I have tried to keep myself from comparing him to hailey knowing that gender, birth order, and his sicknesses all play a part in why they are different but it is hard. Hailey was doing so much already and ahead of most kids her age...i have to stop myself from beating myself and being frustrated with it all.

Also, we have decided that grant has a milk intolerance, not a huge problem or a full blown allergy, but still something to be monitered. With some research i found out that ear infections, diarrhea, belly aches, ezcema all are signs of milk problems. He has had them all. So we have switched his formula to soy but we have the okay to start weaning him off it now that his weight is better. He gets soy milk and loves it!!! He still can have milk products but we limit them and try not to give him large amounts at a time. Also when he does get milk products i have been monitoring how he acts afterwards-how his excema looks and if he is crabby, gassy, loose stools, etc. The doctor says if it gets worse then we can give him a pill that helps him digest lactose better.

Our doctor says that normally he doesn't do an 18 month appointment but so that we can monitor his weight, speech, and milk intolerance we will have an appointment then. Tuesday we got shots done and grant did very well. He only wimpered and stopped crying quickly. I think he was a trooper.

Grant has been starting to become a big screamer. He has lungs that can rival any girl i have ever heard. I haven't figured out a way to get him to stop but my eardrums are really suffering. He loves to be outside(what kid doesn't)and push his lawn mower or play with sidewalk chalk(while eating it). I can't wait to get a slippy slide/pool and see his face. He loves to play his piano or any intrument.

He is like a tornado and runs through the house tearing up anything he can as quickly as he can. He never plays with one thing for very long. He prefers anything techie over toys. He loves the remote, computer, and especially the cell phone. He loves toys that are soft especially his blankie and stuffed monkeys. He throws a ball well and climbs as often as possible. He is starting to learn body parts and animals. At least how to point to them when i say what they are. He is my cuddle bug and loves his daddy so much screaming daddy as soon as he is home.

I. never. wanted. a. son. BUT HE. IS. THE. BEST. THING. IN. THE. WORLD!! On the day i found out he was in fact a boy i was disappointed for about 4 seconds then i realized he was still mine, all mine. Every day when i wake up i can't imagine anything else so perfect. My daughter tried to trade him in for a girl baby in the hospital nursery but i am so happy they wouldn't let her (; He makes everyday an adventure and has given me the daily exercise i need. He makes me laugh and smile everyday and shopping for him isn't that bad either.

Nutrition 376- Hi everyone

Hi, nutrition class...this is my website that has me blabbing in a blabbery kind of way about all my daily nonsense. It barely makes sense at times and shows all my ways that can be a little crazy at times.

I have a bio on the right hand side of the page and other websites i run if you want to poke into my history a bit further...nothing interesting here except a web of family members that even i can't keep straight. I am hoping for you to stop by anytime and leave a comment. I only have 2 readers outside my close family so any advice would be much appreciated. I love adding pictures of my children and talking about my busy life that has me running around like a chicken.

I am only 26 hours from graduation and 6 of them i am taking this first summer session. One is our nutrition class, i am very excited about, and the other is a CIS class...not sure which one but it is advanced Excel and Access, not so excited about that one. I graduate in the spring with a degree in Management-emphasis on Human Resources. I previously have associate degrees in Accounting and Early Childhood Education...yes interesting combination.

I love to learn and have used all my schooling for various things just not much in the working world. I am a wife and mother first then a full-time student. I am quickly approaching 30..ouch...but really don't mind getting older. I feel much wiser now and not worried as much about what everyone else thinks of me. This is me and i lay it all on the line.

Hopefully we have a good time in this class and can make it fun and not so serious. I want to do well and learn a lot but not in a stuffy way like many online classes end up being. I look forward to reading all of your websites also. See you soon...

life is full of our everyday things

My day has been very full but productive. I got my van cleaned..at least on the inside. I vacuumed, washed the windows and shined up the leather. It looks pretty good. Didn't make it to the outside yet but hope i will have time tomorrow before the rain to at least get the bugs and dirt off it from soccer this week.

Grant seems to be doing better. His fever broke and his poopie seems back to normal. He is still drooling and chewing everything but his teeth have all broke through the skin so i assume he is better now. Grant has his appointment on Tuesday and i will be able to see if we can take him off the formula.

I am nervous about it because he is attached to the bottle but i know it is time to get rid of it and the formula...i don't want him to be one of THOSE kids and i worry about rotting out his teeth falling asleep with a bottle every night. Hailey was breatfed and she weaned easily at 10 months and i didn't have to worry about bottles she easily went to a cup...hmmm... He drinks out of a cup with his juice and soy milk so i just need to up those things while decreasing the formula...and more solid foods which he isn't liking very much but then again he has been sick. How are you supposed to get a routine when things are constantly changing???

Hailey has been having some problems as well at home and at school. She is doing very well on learning and reading and all that. BUT she has been starting to lie to her teachers and to us...it isn't about anything important not that lying is ever good but it is about things she wouldn't even get in trouble about....I don't know what to do about it. We have tried being nice, we have tried punishments...nothing is working.

At least once a week she is getting in trouble at school for lying!! Today she lost tv, coloring, must finish cleaning her room, and has to write "i will not lie" 75 times. Last time we made her write it 50 times....Do you have any suggestions for me...i don't want to punish her i just want her to learn to do the right thing...lying is wrong! I have even tried showing her in the bible what Jesus says about lies...nothing is working. I am getting frustrated. What have you done to stop your kiddos from lying?? Should i spank her?? I don't feel like that is the answer..i don't like to spank but i am to my wits end...H-E-L-P!!

Maniac Monday

Well today has been quite busy around here. Grant has been under the weather with a slight temperature, little bit of the poopies, and some major drool.

He has all of his teeth until he is about 6....but his eye teeth are only 1/2 way in. I am assuming it is those teeth that are causing most of the problems but i am not sure about the fever?? Hailey just got over a yucky little stomach bug that only lasted a couple of days so maybe that is it. Don't you wish we could just fix them up quickly. He is snoring on the couch next to me..it is so sweet! Hopefully he will get over whatever it is very quickly.

I got signed up for my other class, so i am in two classes now!! I havent looked online but i assume the one started today! The other starts tomorrow night...i should be very busy again for the next five weeks.... I took the kids this morning with me to get my books..bad idea! Grant crabby and into everything! He is not as easy of a toddler as hailey. He is into everything!!! ALL BOY!!!

My loans hadn't went through for summer yet so i had to get a book loan and that took soooo long. It was like they have never done this before. I have never seen a college so unorganized. I miss the efficiency of Ivy Tech...yes i know they were smaller but everythign always went smoothly there.

Anyways..got all that doen then went to eat and no changing table in the bathroom at Subway. I hate that. It is very hard to change a child standing up...i hope it was on all the way and not crooked or i might end up with poo leaking down his leg tonight.

Then we had to get food for the dinner with hailey's girl scouts troop tonight. I have less than an hour and haven't even started on it...and i haven't ironed on the last 50ish patched she has gotten....i better get off here and get moving!

P.S. mother's day was great for me..but my sister-in-law had a rough day. I don't want to go into details but my brother is a jerk and is treating her very badly. Pray for her safety and happiness and for her 4 kiddos to not see all of it.

Schools over ....until tuesday (:

One more semester has bitten the dust. Unfortunately i don't have three months of blissful vacation time ahead like most other students...i have as of today 4 days...but the good news is i only have two summer classes for a five week span then i am done. I am taking an advanced Excel and Access class and a nutrition class(that i am really excited about). Then i have two months of summer with my family and kiddos.

I figure if i get these two classes finished now i won't have so much of a workload over the next year which is my last year of college..at least for this degree..LOL!! It will give me the chance to only take a max of 10 credits for the next two semesters to graduate instead of having to go 12 or more....i am thankful for that. I am looking forward to days of sleeping in with my kiddos, playing noutside till dusk, and visiting all our local kid friendly summer fun places.

BUT most of all i am looking forward to FLORIDA!!! We haven't been in five long long years....hailey was the same age as grant will be this summer. We are interested in seeing how he reacts differently from her. I am so thankful we have the camcorder to capture all these moments. We had one when hailey went to florida with us last time but after that it broke..and we just got another one last summer...i am thrilled can't you tell!! I need a week of relaxing and beach..swimming...sun...fish...sushi...shrimp...oysters...food in general (: and most of all 100% family time...just us!! I am tolerating the next five weeks of school because i know that vacation is immediately afterwards...it can't come soon enough!