Galveston

I was just watching some of the news coverage of the damage and devastation caused by Hurricane Ike in Galveston, Texas this past weekend. Galveston is a special place to our family. As a child, Kevin spent a lot of time there at Stewart Beach with his family. He has many happy memories of that time. Every time we visit Kevin's parents in Houston, we always ask to go to Galveston to visit. This past summer we were able to spend three days there. We had the opportunity to do and see a lot and I took a lot of pictures. The city is (was?) filled with beautiful architecture and has such a charm. I want to share some more of the pictures I took:











Kevin and I are a little nervous...four years ago, after leaving Houston, we made a quick jaunt to New Orleans as I had never been there. After Katrina hit, we were so thankful that we had taken that opportunity to spend time in the Big Easy. Now this has happened in Galveston right after we visited. Kevin says we need to be careful visiting Gulf towns!

Employment?

I am employed once again.


What have I done??????????

Twilight

It's been a very long week, what with working three days and all. I am so spoiled. I used to work sixty to seventy hours EACH week.

It was a lot of fun though although those fourth graders got pertty rowdy during the last hour of school today. We were all glad it was Friday. I really like this age group. They think they are big but they're not so they still respect and like the teacher and aren't full of attitude yet. I felt like I knew enough to teach them something.

Besides working, my mind has been in overdrive all week and I am trying to make some decisions about my future. I fell asleep the past two nights when I went to lay down with Kaelyn, each night by 9 pm. That is unheard of for me! I am never to sleep before midnight,and that's on good nights. I did feel better so need to try to get to bed earlier on a more regular basis.

I also have been busy reading the Twilight Saga books by Stephanie Meyer and loving them. I am about halfway through the fourth and last book and will be sad to see them end. Oh well, the first movie comes out in November so will have that to look forward to.

Subbin'

I had a good day with the third grade yesterday but an even better day today with the 4th grade. I get to be with them again tomorrow so that will be nice.

Today is Tuesday

I have some pictures from the Renaissance Festival that I want to share but I need to get some rest tonight. I am substituing for the 3rd grade tomorrow and for the
4th grade on Thursday and Friday. These grades should be a little easier than the 1st grade. We'll see!

Kaelyn's friend from across the street is in the 3rd grade. Kaelyn couldn't wait to yell across the street, telling Haven that I was going to be her teacher tomorrow. I told Haven that she had better be good. Kaelyn had to add "because she spanks hard!"

Mermaid Art

Yes, this is my third post today...I am finally catching up on some of my blogging!

We went to the Renaissance Festival in Kansas City yesterday and I got to see some work from an artist that always exhibits there. Her name is Renae Taylor I have to share one of her drawnings that I fell in love with. Here it is:


I have a few more of her prints. I just love them. Check out her website!

Garden?

Inspired by Gayla's post about her Child Husband's garden, I had to share mine:

Heather, Heather How does your garden grow?

Right in the middle on my flower bed~and not even planted. It just showed up there. I finally remembered that Kaelyn had a small pumpkin that fell over into the flower bed so I am thinking it's a pumpkin plant.

Girls Weekend

It was Girls Weekend,well, three girls plus one gay guy weekend, and we went to Tan-Tar-A. I could only go for Friday night but I had so much fun that it was totally worth it. We didn't do much of anything:

Sat outside and watched the sunset over the water



Watched the ducks get closer and closer to us


Barbecued and ate one of the best meals I have ever had



Drank champagne and played games


And just laughed and had a great time.

Yada Yada Yada

It's been a really good week, albeit a fast one with the holiday on Monday. Kaelyn is going to bed so good. At 8 pm, we crawl into my bed and read five books that she has picked out. When there are done, it is lights out. I lay with her as long as she is quiet. She's been to sleep by 8:45 every night this week. I am really proud and so happy that our new routine is going so well. I can't believe another week is by us.

The kindergartners take turns bringing the afternoon snack. Kaelyn wanted to bring fruit roll-ups so I bought two boxes of them today. Of course, Kaelyn and Kate broke into them (when will I ever learn?) so I had to supplement with Kate's fruit snacks to make sure we have enough. While Kaelyn and I were discussing this, she exclaims "Do you know what Jamie brought for snack today?" I shook my head no. "Ice cream!!! We had chocolate and strawberry and it was so delicious!" That's a hard act to follow. MY fruit roll-ups just don't seem quite as impressive.

And tomorrow night is girls night at the lake. My friends have rented a condo at Tan-Tar-A for the weekend. I can only get away for one night but plan to make the most of it. I have the best friends...we just laugh and laugh when we are together. Big thanks to my sister Kellie for watching the girls so I can go.

90210

The new CW series 90210 premiered last night. I was so *addicted to Beverly Hills 90210 that I just had to watch this one. It was okay...a definite guilty pleasure. I have to admit I had tears in my eyes to see Kelly and Brenda together again. Wow! Fans have been waiting since 1995 to see that one. If the producers and writers were hoping to rope in some old viewers, well, it worked for me. I will watch it again.

I can't even begin to tell you how addicted I was to this show. I even wore my hair like Brenda's and people often told me how much I looked like Shannon Doherty/Brenda. I'll have to find a picture to share of my Brenda days.

Waste Not, Want Not

I heard Kaelyn calling my name from the bathroom. "What?" I yelled back. "If I go poop, I will use two squares of toilet paper and if I just pee, I will use one, so I don't waste. Just like at school."

And that folks, is what she is learning at school. Yes, I am proud.

Day 29

Today is the start of my fifth week on Atkins. I weighed in this morning and am down 13.5 lbs. Happy, happy, happy!

My Babies

More old pictures I just have to share. These were my brand-spankin new babies, fresh from the oven. When we went to the hospital to have Kate, I forgot my camera. We borrowed my sisters but then never saw the pictures until yesterday....after I searched through her many, many pictures. Thank goodness it was Kellie, my organized sister.

Remarkably Kaelyn and Kate were the exact same weight and length and birth...8 lbs. 11 oz. and 22 inches.

Six Years Ago Today

Kevin and I got married. Kind of. Six years ago today we had our wedding, we were already married. I was looking through pictures at my sister's yesterday and found these so had to share. Here is another of our wedding party:

Our Busy Weekend

It's been a busy weekend! Saturday was the Alumni Banquet at my high school. They have one every three years. I have never been before despite graduating seventeen years ago. The younger people don't really go to this but I am glad I did. Here are some pictures:






I had a nice time and it appears I will be part of the planning committee for the next one so maybe we can get more younger people there.

After the dinner, Kevin and I went out to celebrate our anniversary. We went to Red Lobster for dinner (yes, another dinner). Our first date was seven years ago on September 1 at Red Lobster. Kevin gave me an emerald cut Mystic Fire Topaz pendant and chain and pearl earrings. I love them both.

Then yesterday, we went to church and later in the day to my sister's for Devan's birthday party. She is eight years old now.


We got home late, got the girls in the tub. Then they were hungry so I made them a cup of soup to share. I checked on them once and they were eating. The next time I checked on them, this is what I found:



Kate had crawled up on the pillows and went to sleep. Poor baby! I felt like a bad mommy!

Refreshed

Although I am still pretty sure that I don't want to return to the work force quite yet, at least not full-time, I did have an awesome interview today. I interviewed with a small, grass roots agency that seems to be doing some really great things in the lives of the people they support. I interviewed with two women and we had several connections of people we knew and things in common, that we spent an hour and a half talking more than asking and answering questions. They shared their success stories and it made me feel so good. It was so refreshing to see an agency that wasn't trying to put airs or be something they weren't but were truly passionate about the work they do. In my last few years at Woodhaven, I had become disillusioned about some things, not that they don't provide awesome services, because they do, but due to more of the beauracratic side for lack of a better word. I know administration has it's place, but I have always felt it is important for everyone to stay focused on the mission and work toward a common goal. I didn't always feel that way. I had become so disillusioned that I have been considering other career paths despite my own passion for the work I did.

Anywho...I'm not sure what will happen but as I left that agency today, I thanked those two ladies for their committment and their passion because people with disabilites need those type of people. I think they need me too.

Back to Work

I got a call this morning at 7:41 am from Kaelyn's school wanting to know if I could substitute teach the 1st grade class today. Mom and Dad agreed to watch Kate so off Kaelyn and I went to school. Kaelyn was upset that I was going to work at her school but not in her classroom.

It was a good day. It felt a little strange at first but I was helped tremendously but the aide in the classroom. I grew more comfortable as the day wore on. The first graders were really cute and fun. I had to stop myself from laughing at a lot of the things they said. One boy wanted to share the underwear he had in his backpack for show and tell. I'm not sure why (and probably don't want to know why) he had underwear in his backback. The aide told him that was inappropriate but I couldn't help to giggle.

A little girl with gorgeous red hair and curls had writer's block during the Writing Workshop part of the day. She called me over to her table and asked for advice on what to write. I tried several suggestions to no avail. Trying to prompt her, I asked her what she did after school, she said "nothing, just get off the bus and go to bed". I asked her about her siblings, she said she had one brother but he was too boring to write about. It didn't sound like her life was too exciting either. Surprisingly, it was the boys who really spend significant time writing.

We read books, talked about the calendar in math, worked on handwriting, did phonics centers, social studies, made a trip to the library, had lunch and recess and let me tell you, by 3:15, I was worn out!

Just Wondering...

Is it too early to put my kids to bed??

Just Wondering...

Is it too early to put my kids to bed??

Miscellaneous Thoughts

Oy! The weekend went fast! And we didn't do a darn thing. I did take the girls to Sunday School and church today and then later to the church Ice Cream Social. Kevin ate four bowls of ice cream there before I ran him off. I resisted and ate no bowls of ice cream. Go Me!

I cooked ribs for dinner last night but they took longer to make then I thought so it was close to 9 pm by the time we were eating. And then when we weren't looking, the dog ate all but two of the ribs out of the pan sitting on the stove. So I had ribs for dinner and I sauteed some shrimp for Kevin. And he burnt the green beans so dinner left a lot to be desired.

I managed to keep Kaelyn on her schedule all weekend so am happy with that. She starts ballet/tap/jazz class on Tuesday. She looks so cute in her leotard and tights, dancing around the living room. She makes us pretend to be the audience and one of us has to say "Ladies and Gentlemen, put your hands together for the dancing ballerina" and then she comes twirling and dancing into the room. Quite an imagination, this kid has.

And Kate seems to be feeling better so maybe her teeth aren't hurting her like they seemed to be. I am really not sure if the teeth were the cause for her grouchiness but I am going with that.

And that is all I can think of tonight.

TGIF!

It's been a really long time since I have been this happy to see Friday come. But our first week of school went really well. We only overslept twice, once mom had to call us and the other she had to come over to wake us up. Thanks Mom! Kaelyn has went to bed better than I expected but she is still so tired by evening. Tired and grouchy! Whew! But it's weekend now, time to relax.

We don't have any big plans for the weekend. I am thinking about taking the girls to the Columbia Balloon Invitational tomorrow night to watch all the balloons. I think they would like that. Kevin has to work until 5:30 pm so we could meet up with him then. Otherwise I think Mom and I plan to tackle the toy room closet in hopes to better organize the toys in the room. But first we have to find a home for everything that is in the closet. I don't think Mom has any idea of what a project this is going to be.

My new and improved healthy eating lifestyle, aka diet, is going well. I really don't know how well because I can't find a reliable scale to save me life. Mom and I got to walk several times this week. I had two doctors appointments that got in the way and it rained yesterday.

So all in all, a very good week. I am tired and it is time to get the little one to bed.

First Day Pictures

It is so hard to wake up in the morning! Kaelyn dozed back off with her poptart in her hand.


In front of the tree we planted a few years ago.


Kaelyn in front of the school. This is where I went to high school at. It seems like just yesterday.


Kaelyn already busy making new friends.

Kindergarten

The first day of kindergarten went off without a hitch. I am having problems uploading pictures of the momentous event tonight so will try again in the morning.

Today is Day Fourteen of my new Atkins lifestyle. I started walking again today. I have to get Kaelyn to school every morning so am going to walk each day as soon as I drop her off. No excuses! Tomorrow is weigh in and I am nervous!

Bedtime?

It's 12:19 am and I finally got the little bug to sleep. Mind you I had her upstairs in bed by 9 pm! Fun, fun. I have to get her up at 7 am to have her to school on time. Which means I need to be up around 6:30. And that means I need to get my butt to bed.

WAAAAH! Where have five years gone? My baby is going to school!

I will post pictures in the morning.

Goodnight.

Sleep Over

Today was just a great day! Do you hear that sarcasm? You should because it's there. My niece and Kaelyn had a sleep over last night although they didn't do much sleeping. It took me forever and a million threats to finally get them to quiet down and go to sleep. And then they were up at the crack of dawn. Yes, 8 am is the crack of dawn! Can I please pay someone, anyone to get Kaelyn up and off to school every morning?? But I digress...and just totally lost my train of thought.

I think I was pointing out that I started the day out tired. I had one thing to do today, take Kaelyn to the doctor for shots. As I have previously mentioned, Kate has spend the majority of the summer naked. Just ask the neighbors, they'll tell you! And anyone else who will listen. Anyway, Kate no longer likes to get dressed or to have me help her with anything. Her favorite sentence at the moment is "I Do It!" said about everything. She kept grabbing her clothes out of my hand, yelling I do it and then throwing the clothes across the room. I let this go on for awhile before forcing her to get dressed. That was good for a really good tantrum. She was still screaming when we ran out of gas on the highway. Still screaming when some farm boys stopped and pushed us off the highway and onto a gravel road. And still screaming when Papa showed up with a gas can. I called the doctor's office to let them know we would be late and of course, had to reschedule so we wanted interfere with the doctor's schedule. I only want shots! I don't even need to see a doctor! They told me to try the health department so we have an appointment in the morning. Meantime, Kaelyn has fallen asleep as she is tired from her no-sleep over. Kate found an old Cheeto in the seat and that did quiet her down.

We got home from our canceled doctor's appointment and it was time to turn around to go to Back to School night at the school. Thankfully, Dad watched Kate as I don't think I could have handled her again on my own. She is a handful! Kaelyn got to see her classroom and put her school supplies away. There are going to be 17 kindergartners this year! That is HUGE for our school. Last year there were 9.

It was funny...I felt like I was back in school as there were about 10 parents there that I went to school with plus some of the teachers I had. Too funny!

And that was my day.

Hump Day

Breckoma Lodge

This is where we will be staying for a long weekend, the weekend before Thanksgiving. It's located at Broken Bow Lake in Oklahoma. There will be 16 of us staying here for three nights! Kevin's mom and step-dad, his aunt and uncle, two of his cousins and their spouses and children, including a month old baby! They are wonderful people and fun to be around so I know it will be a great time.

Today is Day Nine of my new and improved lifesyle. Atkins Induction is usually for two weeks but I will do longer as I have so much I need to lose. I am very satisfied and feel strong, like I can do this forever, which is what I need to do. Have you ever felt like you have to make yourself eat? That is the way you feel on Atkins once you get past the first few days of carbohydrate withdrawl. I haven't been exercising but plan to begin after I take Kaelyn to school every day. That starts next Monday!

And I finally finished a strong rough draft of the project I was working on and got it turned in. For the first time, while working on the project, I started getting a little "homesick" for Woodhaven. Not that I want to go back to work...it was more a sadness for all the information and knowledge I had from being there for eleven years. I felt like all of that was sitting in my mind, just wasted. Oh well.

I need to get my college transcipts and up to the school to get my subsitute teaching license. That will be interesting and give me plenty of stories to share, I am sure! One already...I had emailed my friend Enola asking her a question about subsituting. She had spent a year doing subsitute work so is an expert! She emailed me back and told me "the one thing I can tell you, is to never teach kindergarten!" I emailed her back, saying it couldn't be that bad, I had a kindergartner! Enola emailed back and said, "You have one kindergartener! Try 30! Trust me!" Words of wisdom.

Guilty Pleasure?

Is is strange that I really kind of enjoy watching Drake and Josh? For those that don't know, Drake and Josh is a kids show on Nickolodeon. Kaelyn watches it sometimes. It's on all the time and I just found myself watching it when Kaelyn wasn't even home. I think it is pure comic genius!

Kaelyn

Ijust had to share this picture of Kaelyn. I can't believe my baby will be starting kindergarten in nine more days!

Friday Musings

Is anyone else having trouble getting to this site? It isn't loading for me. Not sure what the problem is.

I have a really big project to finish that I should have done by now. I am the world's worst procrastinator. Hmmm, should that read, the world's best procrastinator? Regardless, I am now down to the wire with it and will spend the majority of my weekend working on it. I don't know how I ever got through college.

And yes, I should be working on it right now, but instead I am on here rambling to you all.

Kevin and I went to Columbia today to do some grocery shopping and had lunch at Bob Evans.

Kate is having a rough week. She is really screaming and having tantrums a lot! She is usually pretty good natured. I don't know how to respond to her because most of the time I don't know what is wrong. It seems to center around wanting something that we don't have (donuts) but not always. I am worried that she is sick but hasn't had symptoms of being sick. Do they get teeth around this time? I'll have to google it. All I know is, she is wearing me out.

And that was my day. All is quiet now, Kate is in bed asleep and Kaelyn is watching a movie.

I am done with Day Four of my new and improved healthy eating. Next week, back to exercising. I am past the carb withdrawl and feeling pretty good now. One day at a time!

Bored Yet?

I have been reading some random blogs today and have become convinced that I am really, really boring! I'll try to shake things up a little bit around here!

Lots of Reading

I haven't felt very good this week so I have been a bit lazy. So far this week, I reread all 897 pages of the book "I Know This Much is True" by Wally Lamp, which may just be the best book I have ever read. Then today, I just finished "Creature" by John Saul. I remember reading John Saul's book as a KID! They scared me then and they scare me now. Kevin and I reading "The Puprose Drive Life" together. We're only on Day Three but it's very good. I bought this book several years ago but had never read it.

Kaelyn and I made my favorite low-carb food, Crunchy Chicken Nuggers and sugar-free jello for dessert. Yum!

Day Two

Well, today didn't go exactly as planned but I did manage to get a few things accomplished.

One of my goals for this summer was to lose weight. Well, the summer's nearing the end, and I havn't lost a pound and probably gained a few. My scale is broke so I don't even know! My problem, besides my obsession with Key Lime Pie, has been that I really didn't have a plan.

So, yesterday I started Atkins Induction phase. This is a two-week phase where you drop your carb count to 20 grams a day. One slice of Key Lime Pie has 52 grams of carbs. You get the picture. Induction is hard, especially the first few days as your body adjusts and your blood levels regulate. I am wondering if my headache these past two days is related. But once you get through the first few days, you feel totally awesome, like totally! Your appetite is supressed and craving disappear. I have done really well the past two days. Last night, I kept telling myself that if I could do this for one day, I could do it for two days. Well, tonight, I can say if I can do this for two days, I can do it for four days.

Blah Blah Blah

How did it get to be Wednesday already??

I have a busy day ahead of me. Yuck! I don't miss these days of running. But I have stuff to get accomplished, so run I must do. I have to go to Colubmia to get fingerprinted for my substitute teachers license, go by Columbia College to get my transcripts also for my license, go by the pediatricians for the girls' shot records and then over to Jefferson City for a job interview. Whew! I wish I felt bettr. I have some sinus pain and headache and am out of Excedrin for Sinus.

I need to go try to wake Kaelyn up. We got information from school yesterday, and school starts at 8:12 AM. Yikes, that's early! She is going to be a bear.

That's all for now! Over and out.

Key Lime Pie

Did I name an earlier post that too??

I have been on a huge Key Lime Pie kick since our vacation. I had a slice for dessert while eating at Fisherman's Wharf in Galveston. It was so good that I have been trying to recreate it at home. I finally found a very, very good recipe and it is so simple. Here it is:

4 egg yolks, 2 cans of sweetend condensed milk and 1/2 cup of lime juice adn 1/2 cup of lemon juice. You can use fresh limes of course but I just used the bottled. Stir it all up and pour in a pie shell. Bake it at 375 for 25-30 minutes. Yum! I also added a few drops of green fool coloring to give it a nice lime color. I serve it plain...no merangue or whipped cream. Try it and tell me what you think! I have one in the over right now!

Simplicity

It really is the simple things that mean the most. I feel so content right now. Kevin had the day off, for the first time in several weeks. His on-call job has been really busy lately, which is good. It was nice to have him around. We didn't do a darn thing today but relax and put around the house.

I sold a candle basket yesterday and when the lady came to pick it up, she brought cucumbers, peppers and sweet corn from her garden. We just finished dinner...hamburgers, cucumbers, sweet corn and baked beans. It was so good! I think I ate half of the cucumber myself! Kate is on her second piece of corn. Fresh fruits and vegetables are the best.

Vacation Bible School

Last night was the last night of Vacation Bible School for Kaelyn. The families were invited to come see a presentation and visit the Jerusalem Market Place. It was awesome! Kaelyn loved it. Here is my little girl dressed in traditional Jerusalem clothing.

Cooper County Candles

I don't know if everyone knows that I am a Independent Distributor for the best candle company there is. They really are great candles and I am a huge "candle snob" and have tried them all, so that is saying something. The scents (over 100 of them) are strong and true, meaing that the Lilac really smells like a Lilac bush in bloom.

Anyway, I wanted to announce that our company just released new prouducts. In the bakery line, they added three new pie candles: Strawberry Cream Pie, Chocolate Dream Pie and my favorite, Key Lime Pie. I have the Key Lime Pie in a jar candle and it is to die for! They added a new car freshner scent, Bayleaf and Cloves. We now have melts in Banana Cream Pie and a new foaming hand wash in our signature scent, Sweet Orange and Chili Pepper. I will be placing an order soon!

I offer any of my friends and family a 25% discount for ordering through me. If you are reading this, you are considered "friends and family"! Or if you are interested in having a home party or a book party, let me know.

Lunch Date

I went to lunch today with some friends that I used to work with. Two of them still work for Woodhaven while Hope and I no longer do. It was good to get together and visit. We went to eat at my favorite restaurant, Bob Evans! It was funny...during the meal, Jennifer and Mary were answering pages and having to make phone calls and complaining about work. I looked over at Hope and asked "Do you miss it?" She just shook her head and smiled. I had to laugh because I don't either! Oh, I miss a lot about it but certainly not the pager or having to have my cell phone with me at all times.

Kaelyn Funny

Oh my gosh, Kaelyn just said the funniest thing! She went to Vacation Bible School tonight and seemed to have a great time. When we got home, she was telling me what they did. She started telling me that the class planned to make some food for God. She elaborated that some people do that and angels come down and get the food and take it to Heaven for people to eat. I was a little puzzled, so asked her what kind of food. She answered "spicy burritos!" I burst out laughing and she quickly backtracked and said, "I mean spices. They grind up spices." Oh! That made more sense. But I have to tell you that the image of Jesus and the angels sitting back eating some Taco Bell takeout really, really cracked me up!

Dreams?

Is it strange that I still dream about Woodhaven almost every night?

Dark Knight

Kevin and I saw Dark Knight yesterday afternoon. It was a good movie, maybe even a great movie. The special effects were awesome. The story was good. The acting was very good. And yes, Heath Ledger definitely deserves a posthumous Oscar for his performance as the Joker. But I didn't enjoy the movie. Maybe I am just getting old or maybe this type of movie isn't my cup of tea. But I was ready to walk out of the movie thirty minutes into it. It was so dark...there wasn't anything light about it. It wasn't relaxing to me. Now I realize that not all movies are made to be relaxing, that some are to be thought provoking or educational or just plain funny. But I found this one almost disturbing with it's darkness. It's like there was no HOPE in it at all. I felt the same way with the last movie we saw, I Am Legend. Again, a great movie but it scared the beejezus out of me. I guess I am just a romantic comedy type of girl!

Jeremiah 29:11

"For I know what I have planned for you,’ says the Lord. ‘I have plans to prosper you, not to harm you. I have plans to give you a future filled with hope."

This scripture was shared today at a bridal shower I went to. The bride-to-be has been through some dark days and is now facing a bright future. She told us how this passage helped get her through some really bad days.

My life has undergone so much change over the past three months. The job I had, and left, was my life for eleven years. I realize now that since having Kaelyn and later Kate, I had been trying to hard to reprioritize my life and I wasn't succeeding. The job was still coming in first place. I often justified it by telling myself that I was doing "God's work" by helping to care for those that needed help. My work filled my heart with joy and made me feel good about myself for a long time. The only identiy that I felt I had was my job. Leaving this job behind me in April was one of the most difficult things I have had to do in my life. I have had to use these past few months to heal and to get to know myself outside of my job. I used to joke with my co-workers/friends that I could never stay home with my kids. They drove me nuts! But now I realize that this is the most important job I will ever have and it's a one shot deal. Oh, they still drive me nuts some days but it's a good nuts. I feel like a new person these days. I have such a feeling of contentment and serenity.

so, today I reflected on the passage from Jeremiah 29:11 and know that I do have a future filled with hope. God has led me to be right where I am supposed to be.

Potty Training

We have been working on potty training with Kate the past few weeks. She is doing so awesome! She is going in the potty all the time while at home. We haven't been anywhere to try her out away from home so that will be next. I am still putting pull-ups on her at nap time and bed time though. She is so cute, after she goes, she runs out of the bathroom, singing "I went! I went! I went!" and doing a little dance. She usually goes in there without telling us but sure lets us know afterwards. Of course, we all make a big deal about it and clap with her. Kaelyn had a friend over the other day and you should have seen her face when she looked in the little potty bowl that Kate brought to the living room to show everyone. It was filled with little poops! Her eyes got big, she much have thought we were all crazy. Yes, I am a proud mama! I have been doing diapers since April 2003...over five years now. I won't know what to do with myself.

And thanks to the benevolence of my parents, I have a date with my husband today. Kevin had a job from 1 to 3 pm today, and then a break until 6 pm, when he has to be at his other job. I am going to meet him at the movie theater where Dark Knight starts at 3:10! I havn't been to a movie in ages and have been looking forward to seeing this one. I took a shower, put on make-up and am dressed up. Kaelyn and her friend came downstairs and Kaelyn stopped and said "Ooh! Look at my mom!" She makes me smile.

And that's all for now. I'll post a movie reveiw later tonight!

???

It's been a really uneventful week. So uneventful that I can't even think of something to write about.

Madison County

I found my old copy of Bridges of Madison County on my bookshelf when we were painting our bedroom. I set it aside to read when I got the chance. Ever since our trip through Iowa in May, I have been wanting to reread this book.

I got the chance yesterday and read the entire book (it's a short book). I was again swept away in the romance and beauty of this book. It's such an amazing love story and this time, while reading, I could picture the places described in my head. Set near Winterset, Iowa, which is a charming little town. I would have loved to have had more time to explore. Now I am going to have to rent the DVD and rewatch that!

Here are a couple of the pictures we took while at Roseman Bridge in Madison County.

My New Feather Duster

It's been a really good week. I feel like I have gotten a few things accomplished. I am really proud of my house! I have been keeping up with the cleaning, picking up, dishes and laundry. I even managed to get a few extra jobs done like straightening my closet and washing mini blinds. I am so proud of myself that I rewarded myself with some Fly Lady tools. I got them in the mail today. I never thought I would be so excited to receive a feather duster!

I also got a timer to use because the Fly Lady motto is "You can do anything for 15 minutes!" This works great with Kaelyn. We do 5 minute room pickups by setting the timer and racing against the clock. Of course we have to do this after Kate is in bed because she tears it out as quick as we put it up.

I love our home and I am filled with such happiness to see it at it's best. It had really gotten away from me this past year. I was always so tired after work and getting the kids settled in for the night that housework came last or often not at all. Oh, we did what we had to do but usually that would have to spend all day Saturday or Sunday just cleaning. I was grouchy, Kevin was grouchy...it wasn't good. Things are so much better now. I feel such a peace and want to be at home. Life is good!

Sisters

I was sitting here at the computer, watching last night's episode of Big Brother because we aren't getting our local CBS right now. I realized that it was pretty quiet in my house. Quiet is unusual with two girls. There is always some drama, or a need that only I can meet. I peek into the living room and this is what I see:

They were acutally laying on the couch TOGETHER and not arguing! I realize that the arguing is only going to get worse, and that some days it will seem like they never stop. That is why I plan to cherish all of these moments that I can. The moments where Kaelyn comments that Kate has such a beautiful smile. Or the moments when Kate runs across the room and throws her arms around Kaelyn...all of the moments when it appears that they understand when I tell them that a sister is a best friend for life.

Letter

Subject: Letter
To: YOU
Date: TODAY
From: GOD
Subject: YOURSELF
Reference: LIFE

This is God. Today I will be handling All of your problems for you. I do Not need your help. So, have a nice day.
I love you.


P.S. And, remember...If life happens to deliver a situation to you that you cannot handle, do Not attempt to resolve it yourself! Kindly put it in the SFGTD (something for God to do) box. I will get to it in MY TIME. All situations will be resolved, but in My time, not yours.

Once the matter is placed into the box, do not hold onto it by worrying about it. Instead, focus on all the wonderful things that are present in your life now.

**I got this as a forward today and had to share it. So simple and so true.

Domestic Goddess

That's me! A domestic goddess! Here is a picture of a homemade Key Lime Pie that I made today. Except our little part of the world doesn't carry Key Limes so I had to use Persian Limes. And the graham cracker crust was homemade by the Keebler Elves. And from my internet research, Key Lime Pie really shouldn't have any topping, but I love merangue so mine does. It sure looks pretty, doesn't it? And it tastes pretty good too!

And here is a picture of a hydrangea that I grew myself, in my very own yard. I can't post a picture of my actual flower gardens because I need to weed really bad, and it's been too hot to do that.

I have been trying to keep my house neat and tidy with the advice of The FlyLady (www.flylady.net). She emails out daily missions/reminders of ways to take care of your home and yourself. The FLY in Fly Lady stands for Finally Loving Yourself!

The Fair

This week has been busy with our town fair. Our town has a population of around 200 people but the fair is a really nice one and draws a good crowd. The fair comes for four days and by the following Sunday (today!) we are all ready for it to be gone and for life to return to normal. Everyone had a great time though and here are some pictures of the week.

Thursday night was the PetParade. We entered Bella as the Great White Bark and the hermit crabby family representing our theme of "Life's a Beach".


Kaelyn and Kate riding the cars.

Kevin and Kaelyn on the big slide.

Kate had the most fun with these two inflatable unicorns that they won on the duck pond.

Extreme Master Bedroom Makeover!

Sorry, I have been taking a little hiatus from blogging our trip. I was busy putting my house back together. Here are some before and after pictuers of the Extreme Master Bedroom Makeover!!!

The BEFORE pictures of our bedroom and foyer:



And here are the AFTER: