How long???

Too long!

Wow, I can not believe how long it has been since I have updated on here. I've come back to the site on several occasions to update and have been so embarrassed by my absence that I haven't posted!

I guess I don't have a lack of information for this update! First and most importantly, our family is great. The boys are healthy and loving life and so are Chris and I. Since I last posted Wes has become a kindergartner. He loves kindergarten and I am so proud of him. He is learning so much and enjoying every day at school. Connor is growing up too. He has become potty trained, finally, and just seems to be getting so smart!

I started my own business. In my last post I had talked about a Silpada jewelry party I attended. Well, I just fell in love with the jewelry and decided it was the perfect time for me to become a rep. I enjoy selling the jewelry (and wearing it!) and I'm always looking for new ladies to host parties for me!

Chris is in the middle of high school football officiating. He has varsity games every Friday and enjoys them very much. Even the boys and I have gotten into our fall routine. We try and always find something to do while daddy has a game! We are headed to Flint this Friday to spend a couple of days. Most importantly....we have to get our pumpkins. I think this is Wes' favorite trip to Flint when he gets to go out to the pumpkin patch and pick out our pumpkins!

Since fall has arrived so has Purdue football. Chris attends all the home games and I usually try to make it to my once or twice a year game. I had the honor of making it to the Norte Dame game over the weekend and it was fantastic. Fantastic because I finally got to witness Purdue beat ND and also great because the entire tailgating crew was there. Chris tailgates with a great group of friends that he met while going to school at Purdue. Over the past couple of years several families have moved across the country and are missed from the group. Thankfully the whole group was able to make it over the weekend and it was a great reunion! So much fun was had by all. I'll post some pictures soon. The best part was being able to see my friend Amy from Seattle and also spending time with Rhonda! Thank you ladies for a great time! I can not remember a day that I have laughed as much as I did on Saturday. Jade and Beth, you guys are too funny!

Well, so much to say, so little time. I'm just happy to have finally gotten back on here. I nearly couldn't remember how to get on! I promise to keep this going again now that our lives have settled back into a routine!

Beautiful day

Today is a beautiful day. The sun is shinning and it is warm. We are all going to get outside and enjoy it after Wes is home from school. I know that tomorrow it is supposed to start raining and then turn cold again, so we have to enjoy all of it we can today.

Wes had a dentist appointment this morning to get his teeth cleaned. He is so good for that and has never even considered making a fuss. He even got his first x-rays today. No problem. As a reward we stopped by the Y and played for a while before coming home to eat lunch. Nice job Wes!

I went to a Silpada Jewelry party last night with a friend. The pieces were so amazing and I could have bought one of everything, but it was so expensive. I ended up buying a pair of earrings for $65. Afterwards I wished that I hadn't spent my hard earned gourd money on that, but at the time I couldn't say no. I've got an idea brewing that I might be able to get a local artist who makes his own gorgeous, affordable jewelery to have a party at my house. I don't believe he has many shows this time of year and I think he would benefit from a party at my house.

Anyway...gotta run and get some stuff done so we can play outside in a bit.

Shall we dance?

Welcome to NCAA tourney time! The greatest part of the tournament this year, Purdue made it in! Thank goodness. I think Chris knew they would make it but I also think he was holding his breath yesterday until he knew for sure! They got a great spot and hopefully they will beat Arizona! Go Boilers.

To top that off, we had great weather here over the weekend. It was sunny and warm. The boys were able to play outside and I was finally able to get the rest of the x-mas lights off the trees. It had been to snowy and icy to risk getting them down. It's nice to have all that done.

We had our time change yesterday and as a result, the boys are still sleeping. They went to bed when they normally would have and are sleeping till when they would have gotten up. Now it is just an hour later. Gradually this week I will change them over but not all at once. They are just now getting up so I need to run!

Have a great Monday!

Florida pictures

Home again, damn!

We made it safely back from Florida on Saturday. Damn! It's cold, snowy and not 80 and sunny here. Usually I adapt to the change better than I am this year. I just want to go back! We all had a great time. Lots of time spent in the pool, at the beach, at the park and eating too much of my grandma's good cooking! Two words, cream puffs! Oh, I love those cream puffs!

The boys were very well behaved as well. They did great on the airplane and were pretty good while there. We had to break them up a couple of times a day, but that is normal. They each had their own tent to sleep in on the screened in patio. Connor's was shaped like a shark with a long tail, dorsal fin and teeth. It was so cute! I wasn't sure he was going to sleep in it the first night because he kept saying it's going to eat me.

I am happy to say that I really, really liked my grandma's new boyfriend. He is a really sweet man and they are very happy together. It makes me happy just to see her happy again and not lonely. Someone once told me that pets and children are good judges of people's character. If that is the case, Bob is in! My boys just loved him. They always wanted to play with him and kept asking, "Where's Bob?" They wouldn't leave him alone.

I'll post some pictures of various places we visited in a later blog. Now I just have to get caught up on things around here. Thankfully I left the house in order, so it was nice to come home to a clean house.

Golf, teachers and fat.

Great quotes from Florida:

Wes was happy to have the window seat on our flight down and I sat between him and Connor. As we were approaching Fort Myers for landing we were checking out the Gulf of Mexico. Wes was showing me the "big pond" as I corrected him and told him it was the Gulf. He proceeded to tell me that no one could hit a golf ball across that course.

While visiting the beach in Cape Coral we were enjoying a walk along the pier. As we were returning I spotted a school of fairly large fish. I pointed this out to the boys and told Wes..."see the school of fish?" He wanted to know which one was the teacher.

While also at the beach there were several older women wearing two piece bathing suits they had no business wearing. My favorite was a woman in her late 50's who seemed to think that she was all that and a bag of chips. Chris even commented as she was walking around with her bikini top undone, I sure hope that doesn't come down! Unfortunatley she walked by us while we were sitting on the pier. Connor took one look at her, points at her and says "What's that?" She fortunately had a small purse in her hand and I told him it was a purse. She stopped to show herself off and said "boys sure start looking at the ladies much younger these days!" I wanted to gag, she was so nasty. Obviously even Connor thought that she was weird. He didn't look at anyone else at the beach as ask, "What's that?" I wanted to tell him that she was a fat old lady dressed inappropriately and "that" was wrinkled fat!

Anyway...those were just a few tidbits I wanted to remember before I forgot. I'll post more of our trip when we return. The boys were so good coming down on our flight and have been good here as well. So far we are having a great vacation.

So busy

We have been so busy around here. I see it has been weeks since I've made a post, shame on me. I've finally nearly over a sinus infection and the boys are healthy again. We had a nice Valentine's Day, Purdue beat IU and Chris and I went to see Delirium by Cir De Sole (or however you spell it).

We are packed and ready to head to Florida tomorrow. Every single one of us can not wait for a week of sun, relaxing and vacation time. Wes can't wait to show Daddy his new moves in the pool and I just want some sun. Till we return. Adios!

Stupid Germs

Yuck. I am now sick with the stupid germs that have been in our house. My throat was sore yesterday but last night and today it is raw. My head is killing me, I can't breathe and my ears hurt. Such fun. Thank you very much Wes! Why is it that when our children get sick we can hardly keep them parked but when I'm sick all I want to do is lay around? Unfortunately, the lay around option doesn't work well for the boys. Wish me luck today!

Yeah Dad!

The best news of the day and the best news for a while is that my Dad had his annual angiogram to check his fixed AVM and the results were very positive. They showed no change, which is exactly what we wanted! That is such great news and I think my mom is finally starting to breathe again. I know I was holding my breath today until I got the news. Yeah for Dad and thanks to the great doctors at Henry Ford Hospital!

In other news...it's cold. Yeah, we know, we know. But I had forgotten what true cold felt like. It's been a while since I remember feeling what 0 degrees felt like. And, thank you very much, I'd rather not feel it again for a while. But, it's still cold and will remain that way for a while. Therefore, the count down to Florida is on. 15 days until we go to Florida!

Wes has a cold, Connor is fighting off the cold and I am coming down with the cold. Wes missed school yesterday but was very much up to going today. I figure that if he can run around the house and terrorize his little brother than he is up to going to school.

That's about it for now. Still no new bowling team mate. Tami and I are liking it just being us and we are trying to see how long we can get away with that! Purdue won their b-ball game last night. We might go to a hockey game tomorrow night...and that's about it!

400 Series

I bolwed a 423 series today, really. I was on fire today! Everyone watching me kept asking what I was doing different...I finally decided I was putting a little more strength into my last two step and the ball was hitting the lane faster. Whatever it was...I'll take a 423 series. Now I get a cool pin!!! Maybe not worth the stiffness in my left knee, but...Yeah me!

Snow Day!

We have a snow day today. It snowed most of yesterday afternoon and then started up again sometime early in the morning. The schools were all closed around here and Wes didn't have school today. Although, if they would have asked me, I would have said go. We only got maybe 4 inches of snow. Where I come from that wouldn't even have been thought about as a snow day.

So, Wes was very bummed because it was supposed to be Daddy Day at school. Chris and Wes were very excited about spending the afternoon together at school. I finally heard that it will be rescheduled in a couple of weeks. Wes was so sad he cried because they couldn't do that today. That's okay, tomorrow night they are headed down to Purdue to a b-ball game. Ohio State no less. I hope Wes doesn't learn any new words!

I like snow days but I sure don't like cleaning snow off the drive. I waited till this afternoon when it had completely stopped snowing and then went at it with the snowblower. That machine is fun but a lot of work. It is in the single digits here and with the wind the temperature feels like -15. So, I layered to beat all complete with the hat with ears, scarf, fleece and coat, snow pants and my old winter barn boots. I was certainly scary looking. And, in hindsight, I over dressed. That was hard work and when I got back inside I was sweating like a horse. Man, nothing beats having wind wiped snow blown in your face will you sweat buckets at the same time. Good times, good times! At least it is done and Chris can get back up the drive tonight when he comes home. I was afraid the little Honda wouldn't make it.

If it wasn't so bitterly cold I would have bundled up the boys and let them play, but it is just brutal out there. I'm sure looking forward to Florida in just a few weeks! That will be my warm sunny thought of the day!

Happy Anniversary to us!

Seven years ago today Chris and I were married. We had a beautiful day that we will never forget. It has been a wonderful 7 years with my husband and it seems like we just got married. Time just seems to go by so fast these days. Where does it go? I just reserved a spot in March to sign Wes up for Kindergarten. That really put the scare into me. It seems we are all getting older, fast.

So, we celebrated this weekend by going out to dinner on Saturday night. We had a late dinner and came home to enjoy a quiet house. It has been so cold here and it was snowing, so I didn't really want to go anywhere else. G & G wanted to have the boys over to spend the night Saturday, so it just worked out good for all of us. We also went and saw Night at the Museum on Sunday. It was so funny. I laughed my butt off during it. Cute movie!

Wes is at school right now, he has swim later and then Chris will be home. So, that's about the rest of our day. It's snowing really hard right now, so I hope I don't have to drive on shitty roads later!

Where has the time gone. I see a week ago I was complaining about rain and today we have snow on the ground, finally. Snow came here over the weekend and should stick around for a while. It makes me feel like it really is winter. I hope we get some more!

Our family spent the weekend in Michigan visiting my parents. It seems that everyone had a good time. I worry that Chris is always bored just sitting around with my family, but he is a great sport about it. Even when I insist on pancakes for brunch so I can have my dad's specialty, bacon!!!! Good stuff. Chris isn't a fan of pancakes!

It looks like we (Tami and I) will be loosing our third bowling team mate. She is having a very difficult separation from her fiancee and is in the process of moving her children and herself. It is just an awful thing for her kids and for her to have to go through. Tami and I are doing everything we can to help her pack, find a place to live and get some money out of this "guy" she was supposed to marry! It makes me so happy to be in a happy marriage, with an honest and loving husband.

The boys are getting into our winter routine. Swim lessons once a week, preschool 4 days a week and playdates thrown in there. They are really excited about our trip to FL at the end of February and so am I.

That's about all I have. I've cleaned up some great messes this week involving jellybeans, Girl Scout cookies, pee in the Gator and so on and so forth. None of which were all part of the same mess. Aaawwwwwwwwww, life is good!

Monday, Monday!

Where does the time go? We had a nice weekend, although it seems it has been raining around here for weeks on end. Where is our snow? I'm ready for snow, not rain. But, I guess rain is better than ice, which many in the Midwest are dealing with today.

Everyone is good around here. Wes doesn't have school today because it is MLK day. Most schools are closed around here to observe the holiday. Of course the two of them are into everything today and bored out of their minds. I dearly miss school when Wes is bored!

We are finally booked on our cruise for this May. I'm excited and nervous at the same time. I'm thrilled beyond words to be able to take a real vacation with my husband, alone! It has been a long time since we have had more than just 48 hours together on a trip. I'm nervous about leaving our boys for that long but I know that they will be very well taken care of and spoiled with G & G while we are gone. Spoiled rotten to be sure. Wes will be fine, he won't hardly miss us but Connor will definitely worry me. But, I'm stoked about beautiful open seas, lovely Caribbean ports and all that while I'm with my cute hubby! That is my happy Monday thought!

It should be a quiet week, knock on wood!

Football

Wes has finished up his indoor football season. Their team played for the "championship" and lost. He was cute about it but happy because they got little football helmet "trophies". He had to play 2 games and was really tired. Several times Chris and I had to actually tell him to stand up while play was going on. That is the football stance you see here. Oh, so embarrassing!




I took a couple of pictures, but the light was really not so good inside and they are rather dark. Oh well. At least we have proof!



We have managed to keep busy this first week back to school of 2007. I took the boys over to the Y today to play and swim. Or, at least Wes swims. Connor doesn't really want to have anything to do with the pool. So the two of us just sit and watch Wes play in the shallow end of the pool.

Tonight we are headed to a hockey game and then tomorrow Chris and his dad are headed to a Purdue b-ball game. I'm afraid the old days of loosing tough games is returning. Oh well...what can we do about it! Not much!

Have a good weekend.

What is this?

What is this, I'm asking myself? The house is clean, the laundry is done, there is nothing to paint, Wes is at school, Connor is napping, I'm alone and I have nothing to do. I'm not really sure what this is? I'm also not sure if I like it. Having nothing to do has never been a good thing for me. I like to stay busy. So, I'm here rather than being bored. This just seems so strange.

We have our regular old routine back this week. Yeah! Wes missed school and I missed having Wes in school. We have swim lessons again and other scheduled events. Plus, this is Wes' last week of indoor football. He is sad about that. We are glad that he liked it, but boy does he have a long, long, long way to go on the football field. If they win their game on Wednesday they will play a second playoff game. Dear God! Just don't give the ball to Wes, please coach!

Have a great Monday.

TGIF

Wow, what a week. To top it off it is raining and nasty outside. It compliments the dreary feeling of having all the Christmas stuff put away and the first week back to work for Chris. Wes has been home from school all week and doesn't return until Monday. Both him and I are ready for that return! He misses school and I miss our schedule. Not that we haven't gotten to do some fun stuff while he was off...but it is time for school to return.

After much debate, and I'm not kidding here, we have our airline tickets booked for our family trip to Florida. Kudos to AirTran for offering affordable fares for this family of 4. I was beginning to question if our budget (or what there is of one) was going to allow the trip, but it's ago. I'm already looking forward to our day trip to Sanabal, walks to the park, swimming in the pool and being lazy...and seeing my Grandma!

Well, I need to wrangle up the ponies downstairs. It sounds like whatever game they are playing is getting out of hand. Have a great weekend. Chris and Wes are headed to a Purdue b-ball game Saturday and I get an evening out with Heather. Yeah, girl time.

Holiday Highlights

Today seems to mark the true end of the holiday season for me. I finally have all the decorations put back into their boxes and the tree is ready to "leave the building". It will taken to the park with all the other sad trees thrown out! That always makes me sad!

Moving on! I've also finally managed to look at all my pictures taken over the festivities. I've picked a few jems to share with you all...mostly because the boys are cute...the rest of us just look like idiots!








We are looking forward to some trips in 2007. Carnival and Marriott need to get their acts together and produce some mysterious "codes" necessary to book our cruise. We are waiting for that emaculate conception to occure and then mommy and daddy will be off on a 7 day cruise in May. I have mixed emotions about that. Chris and I will have a fantastic time but I'm so nervous about leaving our boys for that long. Hopefully G & G are up to them!

I am also researching the cheapest way for our 4 family members to get our "travel on" for the annual Fort Myers, Florida trip to see my Grandma. We drove last year and it was painful, but cheap. This year we would have to rent a vehicle due to the excessive miles racking up on the Buick. Therefor, cheap direct flights out of Indy are looking pretty good. By the time we add up the rental and gas the flights have an advantage. Have I ever mentioned I hate driving long distances....I'm hopefully for AirTran!

So, that's about it. I took the boys swimming at the Y today with our little friend Sage. They had lots of fun while Connor looked on. He wanted nothing to do with the swimsuit or pool, but by the time we left he would sit on the edge with me and get a little wet. Silly boy. Guess swim lessons are a distant goal for him.

Gotta go finish dinner! Till next time.