bunch of randomness!

taken today; few minutes ago

1. went outside and took random photos. felt good getting my camera back out.

2. sad that my little nuggets at school because she's usually my eager model.

3. definitely need to get my other lens fixed. its not focusing. i sent my zoom lens here and was happy with the results. [price + time]

4. mike invited a co-worker over for dinner yesterday so i was busy cleaning + cooking.

5. before he came over we went and had parent/teacher conference for ham. he's getting 2 A's and 2 C's. the c's are in AP physics + AP calculus- i think both are college credit courses. hopefully he brings them up by the end of the semester.

6. today is going by super slow. guess that's what happens when there's a clean house.

7. tuesday my allergies almost killed me! ok that might be an exaggeration but i threw up because my sinus were so stuffed that i felt like i couldn't breath through my mouth.

8. was going to clean the craft room but decided to shop around for kaylee's halloween costume.

9. kaylee came home the other day saying she wants to be a kindergarten teacher. so glad to hear that she likes her teacher enough to be one.

10. sad that i only have 3 comments on my giveaway. i know more people read this blog!!

holla! [a giveaway]

remember a few post down when i said i might have something for ya'll? well, i'm hosting my first giveaway! can i get a what! what! a $35.00 gift certificate to CSN store. this does not include shipping but they've got tons of items that offer FREE shipping! i know- sweet! right?!

since this is my first giveaway, i'm going to make it easy peasy. tell me what department interests you. are you looking for bed sets or a little something something for your kitchen? are you remodeling or does your pet need a new toy? come on- tell me! i'm nosey like that.

this giveaway ends midnight october 7. winner will be announced october 8th!

spread the word about the giveaway on your blog and leave another comment [or link] saying you did so and you will be entered again.

great day + brain dumping

super adorable! [getting me a pair tomorrow]

via truly smitten

1. had a great day today! filled our bellies with pf changs for lunch. mike wanted to eat first so i could take my time shopping and not having to rush so he could eat.

2. went to ikea in bollingbrook because its super easy to get too and it took us less than 2 hours to get there.

3. got a bunch of little stuff like a shelf for the laundry room, picture frames, clothes hangers besides other bits and pieces.

4. i think the best purchase was a bed for alex, kaylee's american girl doll. the beds in the catalog are SO expensive and the one's at the festivals were pretty pricey too.

5. told kaylee we would buy it for her but only if she slept in her own room tonight. if she cried then i would have to take it away. her and alex are sleeping in their beds right now.

6. i feel so mixed with emotions right now. she got a little teary eyed but didn't cry because she wants to keep alex's bed so badly.

7. then i wonder is it really that bad for her to be still sleeping with us? and who said it was? and why is it? [need to google this]

8. i am getting old and lame. got invited out for a girls night of dancing but turned it down, again. i would rather spend the money on ikea rather than booze and dancing.

9. and with kaylee starting school full time and mike traveling, i wanted to spend the time with my family.

10. the other night kaylee said to me" i only get night time with you now." oh how i love that girl!

11. if i didn't remember what it felt like being pregnant- sick! and the delivery, i would have another one.

12. and please do not take some of the stuff i post on here seriously. especially if it has anything to do with me. its just me brain dumping!

friday night

love this!

via scrapbook studio

1. we lost our soccer game thursday night. we were ahead 1-0 all the way till the very end then a kid who was playing defense came in and scored 4 goals on us.

2. but it was ok, he was a cutie pie [thinking future boyfriend for kaylee. plus he was part asian and white] and two of my girls almost scored a goal. kaylee was one of them.

3. went to book club right afterwards so i was probably more stinky than usual.

4. we read 3 books: catcher in the rye, franny + zooey and mrs. perfect. can you guess which book i choose for us to read? i couldn't even finish the other two.

5. book club is not for me. i walk out feeling like the groups idiot. [i made a comment and then some other comments were made like if i had a brain or something along that line]

6. plus i feel like i have the social skills of a door knob.

7. and this is not a feel sorry for me post- its the truth and i can handle the truth!

8. going to ikea tomorrow. for some small stuff. and pf changs.

9. went and got some more hardwood floor samples. going to get estimates since mike doesn't want to do any of the work. he just wants them done and have it be over with.

10. trying to scale back on all the blogs i have as favorites. most just repeat what others post.

couple crushing and more

taken over the summer [she sticks out her tongue a lot]

1. today i got to love on some babies- twin girls!

2. and got to eat really yummy food. [i took over a carrot cake and outfits for the girls]

3. their mama + papa are super funny people. i hope to hang out with them more often.

4. i love hanging out with happy people. makes me want to be happy too.

5. and i love their house. its country on the outside but totally remodeled in the inside. [they are my couple crush]

6. and i realize my photo has nothing to do with this blog post but i think that's what i'm famous for.

7. soccer practice tonight. made the kids run a lap for horsing around. game tomorrow night. [only two games left after this one]

8. which will be nice. get back on a more "normal" schedule of cooking and maybe cleaning though not sure how soccer interrupts my cleaning.

9. and we might be proud owners of a time share. my parents are giving us theirs since they never used it. i think between us and mike's parents, it will get used. plus, this guarantees us a vacation every year since we will be responsible for maintenance dues.

10. and i received an email today...might have a nice surprise for you all. got to see if it all pans out first.

11. oh! and did anyone watch GLEE last night? i seriously can not wait for the britney spears episode next week. i'm giddy as a school girl crushing on justin bieber.

this is not another fashion post

1. this is not a little nugget fashion post but had to share this photo. got her a new purse that she just "had to have."

2. i wasn't going to buy it for her but glad i did. once we turned it into an over the shoulder bag she said "oh good, now i have a purse like yours!" [she wants to be like her mama!]

3. went over to a friends house saturday and i couldn't believe just how much older she was acting. she was "too big" to play with the little kids even though she played with them all summer. [she played later after some other big kids started playing with them]

4. got more flowers and tall grass out of the yard. still more to get out!

5. had myself a break down yesterday. it was much needed with all the things going on with the bigger nugget and getting no sleep saturday night.[mike was out of town]

6. last saturday there was another guy roaming the neighborhood around 1AM. mike tried to chase him down in his bare feet.

7. i miss the bigger nugget. he's too old to hang out with mom anymore and i miss those days when we would snuggle up and watch tv together.

8. going over to my neighbors for some tea today

9. with my new lifestyle change aka as kids in school, feel like i should be in a retirement home playing bingo on tuesdays.

10. or maybe i should find a job. was thinking that i would love to be able to travel and show the kids what the world really has to offer besides cows and trains.

naps, plants and the smart one

1. kaylee's outfits for thursday and today.

2. nana bought her the green + brown outfit and said if anyone can pull of those colors its kaylee. so true!

3. she's doing much better in the mornings. if she goes cry-free till oct. 1st, then i will stay for lunch. [i'm volunteering for her jog-a-thon]

4. don't be hate'n but i took a 3 hour nap yesterday and did nothing the whole day. even went to bed by 10:30pm. it was much needed. [i don't have kids that wake me but i do have allergies and a bad back]

5. our soccer team won thursdays game even though the kids were all bratty at practice on wednesday.

6. after all that sleep, i had lots of energy to dig up plants i never liked. a whole flower bed is now empty. there's still a few more plants/shrubs that need to come up.

7. can't wait to start planting now. got some ideas brewing in my head.

8. watched wall-e tonight. such a cute movie!

9. let me tell you that even though she's 5.5 years old, she knows what's going on. [see #10]

10. when we got home from dinner tonight the home phone rang which is rare these days. i mumbled- oh great! but it ended up being an old friend asking if i wanted to go clubbing which i did but couldn't. kaylee then says to me- i know who you thought that was and i said who. she says "the police". smart cookie she is.

today feels like thursday to me

what she wore yesterday: what she's wearing today

1. *sigh* she even dresses better than me. [at least she still lets me pick out her clothes]

2. went to her open house last night. the teacher informed me that she's a super reader + listener but she's been crying in class in the mornings.

3. so i gave her a family photo to keep in her backpack, will be enforcing for her to be ASLEEP by 9pm and i will not visit her school till she stops. [she mentioned that i visited her class often last year]

4. today she got a little teary-eyed before the bus came but the teacher emailed me and said she was all smiles today.

5. i was once again planning on "fall" cleaning the house but my back is out of whack. WAY OUT of whack people!

6. so i did the dishes. then went baby clothes shopping because i get to see twin girls on friday.

7. i hope no one thinks my oldest is some delinquent even though he sort of is. he's clean, intelligent and can be funny. he's also moody and chronic complainer but i figure that's because he's 17.

8. i post these things because they are part of what my life is like now.

9. my mother in law has suggested a girls only weekend down to indy. though now i don't feel like spending any money. [its been flying out the window lately]

10. i didn't think i would like them but i do. [caught them on vh-1 this morning]

heartache + birthday plans

1. kaylee told mike since he wasn't going to be able to make it to her open house at school she drew him a picture and it was on the couch for him to see in the morning. talk about heartache!

2. the second drawing is her birthday party plans. [balloons, cupcakes, 5 tier cake with 6 candles and a kitty pinata]

3. we looked at some birthday stuff on-line this morning. not sure about that 5 tier birthday cake. more like 3 rows of krispy kreme donuts like last years.

4. speaking of parties, check out hip hip hooray for great ideas! [like that art gallery party they just posted today]

5. kaylee cried again this morning. just don't know what to do about it really.

6. desperately wanting an ikea trip. maybe saturday?? if i can get the balls to drive myself there.

7. messed around with the blog again last night. not sure if everyone can see the new font on the blog titles. need to get it changed on the blog post and would love to do a new header.

8. going to the habitat restore today to look for some cheap goodies.

9. oh and to keep things real around here. went to ham's "meeting" yesterday. because of his bad choices he's pretty much grounded. not by us, the parents, but by the county. he has to ask permission to go the next city and we, the parents, have to ask permission if we want to take him out of state.

10. the crazy thing, growing up i've always talked about good things vs bad things. actions = consequences but it did not matter. kids will end up doing whatever they want.

rough monday moments

6 months

[i know i posted this before- taken by a professional]

1. that little nugget has her daddy wrapped around her finger.

2. she cried crocodile tears right before the bus came this morning.

3. then i went for a 1.6 mile walk and got pissed off.

4. i could list all the things pissing me off this morning but i won't since its mostly about my family. [6 year old sleeping with us, not happy about school, mike being immature, ham.*sigh* being 17 and making bad choices!]

5. i need to go on and start thinking positive, happy thoughts like:

6. how i finally found the perfect light pendent for the dining room and the price is right.

7. or how extremely funny i find this guy. [thanks for sharing him michelle!]

8. or how funny this movie looks [katherine heigl is not my favorite actress] via tulips + flight suits

9. or how happy this little photo makes me so i finally bought it.

10. or how a 3 year old boy interprets telling mike he's not very smart into "your not very fart"

2nd's

i did not make this, someone brought it with her

1. 2nd annual phaeton pl. football party.

2. 2nd year that our team won.

3. 2nd year that it came down to the last quarter.

4. 2nd year that it came within minutes of the game. [28 -24]

5. 2nd year mike + i got to do our victory dance. [next year i think we should do a ross + monic dance since we really don't have a dance]

6. this is us right now. okay. not really.

7. made 8lbs of italian beef. wasn't sure if it was enough. it was.

8. made garbanzo bean salad, football + helmet shaped bread for hot pizza dip, football + helmet shaped ice cubes for the lemon cooler drink, football + flag shaped brownies with the letter "m" on them, made my usual jalapeno peppers, chili con queso dip and shrimp salsa too.

9. i had 2nd's of everything!

10. got to hold a month old baby boy. so sweet! hope another pregnant friend has a girl, so many cute dresses right now. [talking to you megan!]

my kids

taken with my iphone

1. finally remembered to give kaylee some bangs before her bath last night. she's been wanting them for awhile now and i must say she looks A.DOR.ABLE!

2. after brushing her hair and looking in the mirror she gave me a BIG hug and said "I LOVE YOU!" she's the sweetest thing.

3. She said it to me earlier in the day too on our way to dance class. i had her eat her sandwich from lunch and she asked if the cut-outs were flowers. i told her yes and she says "OH, I LOVE YOU". i love how the simplest things makes her happy.

4. we've played manicure/pedicure recently and she is now sporting 5 different nail colors on her fingers and toes. she even painted my toes for me.

5. lately she has been filing and buffing my nails and rubbing lotion on my feet. *bliss*

6. yesterday ham got a t-shirt in the mail that i am not too keen with.

7. its got bad words on it and an illegal plant. something he will wear only when he is out of the house. guess that's what i get for not checking his purchases!

8. i asked kaylee if she will be a good girl forever and she said yes!

9. been talking with our neighbor while waiting for the bus to arrive. i really do have it made. both of my kids don't argue too much with me like hers do. [every morning she fights with her 5 year old daughter on what to wear in the morning]

10. made hamilton go to monday night dinner since it was a "holiday". he voiced his opinion but that was about it. and i pick out kaylee's clothes for her. i do ask her if she prefers something or another sometimes or how she wants her hair done.

happy day after labor day

one morning last week waiting for the bus

1. kaylee loves her hair in braids. its her request every morning now.

2. loving the fall like temps. love being able to have the windows + doors open! though i wish it would rain some more.

3. saturday headed over to the in-laws for a cookout again. ate WAY too much! ended up with pain around my heart at 3AM. figured it was just heartburn. boy did that hurt!

4. sunday woke up to no more impatiens near the mailbox. deer(s) must of ate them. they left the stems. and the weeds.

5. went to the blueberry festival on sunday too. would love to find out how many people were there. it was packed shoulder to shoulder! while waiting for my in-laws, turned around and there was my sister and her family.

6. trying to walk again. went for a mile today. say my whole self in the mirror the other day. oh the horror! it was not pretty.

7. can't wait to get this in the mail. got it for 50% off from facebook + lucky magazine. [only way to be able to afford anything from emerson made]

8. though i did get this because it is in my budget. going to put it on a headband for kaylee for school pictures, then on my jackets for me to wear.

9. was going to move craft table upstairs then decided against it. it would take up too much space. so i started to clean out craft room only to have to shove everything back in there since we are having a football party saturday.

10. seriously want to hire a painter. and house cleaner. so i can start doing some of my fun projects!

the week

my goofy ballerina

1. i need to get better photos of her but this is her on that day.

2. getting use to this being at home alone thing.

3. tuesday was a super busy: waited last minute to buy kaylee leotards and of course target didn't have any in her size. doubtfully went to kohls who acutally had some. bought her two so she could pick the one she wanted out. back to target to get skirt in case she choose the one without a skirt. cleaned house, put beef brisket in crockpot, iron ham's clothes for "meeting." go to meeting. take kaylee to dance class, then back home to change for soccer game. we win! after soccer game finally home for the night. feed dinner, give bath. sit + relax.

4. wednesday went shopping. got kaylee her school picture outfit and me some tops. went looking for shorts but couldn't find any.

5. though i'm only going to get kaylee's class picture and will take her "school" pictures myself.

6. yesterday i was asked to take a buddy to his "meet and greet teachers" since his mom is sick. what an honor-love my buddies!!

7. decided to move one of my crafting tables from downstairs into the dining room so i can rid of this broken nightstand that i'm using as a desk.

8. finally got some much needed rain yesterday. wish it would continue- lawn needs it very badly!

9. mike brought home pf changs last night and boy was it yummy! ended up in a food coma with a bad belly ache from eating so much.

10. i've been feeling kinda lost lately. not sure what to do even though i have a list of stuff to do and i've been sleeping a lot lately too. took a 30 minute nap and have been going to bed by 10:30. 11pm the latest. hope these are not signs of old age!

some people make me sick

with their coolness! rockstar diaries are having a lil' baby rockstar who will be sporting these wickedly cool kicks which use to belong to daddy rockstar. how cool is that?