I confess....I have an addiction...

No, it's not alcohol. It's Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch cereal. I have been eating it every day (at least once a day) for about a year now and I still LOVE it. What's weird is that I don't like peanut butter flavored things...except for this. Reeces Peices actually make me sick to my stomach...even just the thought of them! I do like actual peanut butter, but I rarely eat it. This cereal though, is "to die for." There hasn't been a single day in at least the past year that it hasn't sounded wonderful to me. I am sure I have almost single-handedly supported the employees of the Cap'n Crunch plant! ha ha So...I am wondering...what is your favorite cereal and how often do you eat it?

To drink or not to drink....that is the question.

Okay, I'm just gonna tell you now that this is going to be a strange post and a controversial one, I'm sure. However, I am broaching the subject because I am really unsure what I think about this and thought I'd pick the brains of my closest friends to see what you all think. So, here's the question: Is it a sin to drink alcohol?
This is where I am coming from. I was raised to believe it is wrong to drink alcohol of any kind at any time. As I've grown older and moved away from my childhood church, my beliefs have begun to change...or at least to make me wonder what I really believe.
When we first moved to this town and started going to our church, some friends of ours from our Sunday School class invited us over for dinner. She was the member-care person in the class and he is an usher at the church. They are very "up-standing christian people" and we really look up to them. SO---I was shocked to see that they were serving us wine with our dinner. Since I was breastfeeding at the time, I politely declined and drank water instead...but inwardly, I couldn't BELEIVE these people were drinking!!! Then after a few glasses of wine each, they decided to make a trip to the liqour store to get more, which really blew me away.
This has been about 2 years ago now...and since then, we've been with several other Christian couples who have drank too. Now...mind you...I am NOT talking about drinking until you are drunk. I don't need to know if that is a sin...the Bible clearly says not to be drunk...I am just wondering about an occasional beer or margarita? My "argument" has always been that we are supposed to be portraying a Christ-like image for the world to see and that it is unlikely that we would catch Jesus out for dinner drinking a Bud Light. However, if it's not wrong to drink a beer at home...why is it any more wrong to drink one with your dinner out at a restrurant? I mean, it's God who we want to please...not people. Right? Some people would argue that even Jesus drank wine in the Bible so it must not be a sin. I don't know...??? Some people would say "it's your own personal conviction." I don't know...??? For me...I am not a big drinker of anything...water, soda, milk, juice. I just don't drink much. So if I was going to drink an alcoholic beverage (which is very rare), one is always more than enough for me. I certainly don't drink it to get drunk...but usually just because soda and tea are getting boring and I want something frozen and fruity. So is that wrong?
Now I will say, I definitely believe that anyone who has a tendency to go over-board with drinking should just steer clear of it all together---so as to not get into a bad habit. I know alcoholism runs in some peoples families and those people shouldn't even play with the "fire." You know what I mean?
Anyway, just curious what all the rest of you think about this subject!---so let me know! okay? Thanks! I love you guys!

Home Room Mom....that's me!

I have been elected as the "Home Room Mom" for both Grant's and Brooklyn's classes this year! I don't know if that is coincidence or if I am the only person who volunteered...but I certainly didn't expect to be the "chosen one" for BOTH their classes! In a way I am looking forward to it because it will give me an opportunity to meet some more people in this town and also to maybe meet my kids friends (and their parents) which would be very nice. However, I am beginning to wonder if doing them both might be a little much since this is my 'first time' and I really have NO idea what I am supposed to do. All that I've been told is that I will be in charge of planning and putting on the holiday parties (mainly Christmas and Valentines). I just keep thinking...what if they end up being on the same day at the same time? I know I am probably stressing out way too much about such a simple thing...but I feel like all the other parents (probably 30 or more) are counting on me to make these parties fun and creative and special and what if I can't come up with anything???
A. and K., since you are both education majors and are both working as teachers, maybe you can give me some ideas/pointers...? I'm just a little nervous. Lately I've been second guessing myself a lot. I just seem inadequate to complete any task these days.
Speaking of me "messing up" check this one out. For months now, I have been trying to get some order to my checkbook but each month that I can't balance, I sink a little deeper into this deep, dark hole of checkbook-hell. (sorry, but it was the only word I could think of.) Anyway, finally yesterday I was just so fed-up and flustered with trying to figure it all out that I had just about decided to just close the account and open up a new one (which would be a MAJOR pain in the butt b/c I have all my bills auto-debited and I would have to change ALL of them if I did that). Anyway, my mom (who is a perfectionist and has always balanced to the penny her entire life and would make a great accountant) happened to be at my house. I half-jokingly said, "Hey mom...how much would you charge me to get my checkbook all balanced out and accurate again?" To my surprise, she was all for it. So, the dear woman spent probably the next 5 or more hours going through 6 months of statements and 4 different check registers to try to help me! When she called to give me the bad news, I really wasn't all that surprised. (the bad news being that I need to transfer six hundred bucks out of savings just to get back to a positive balance in my checking) I just wrote out several thousand dollars in checks yesterday to pay for the work on our upstairs room (which is finished now by the way! Hooray!) and I expected to need to transfer some money over. Anyway, this is the "good part": I made a mistake on my subtraction about 3 months ago and accidently gave myself $900.00 that really wasn't there. BUT, I had also (THANK GOD!) recorded a transaction as a debit for $1058.00 when really it had been a credit card charge---so the two washed each other out pretty much. It's just amazing that if I hadn't made the mistake of taking that $1058.00 out....I would have been $900 in the negative but somehow (I know it was God) I managed to mess up and it actually saved me! Yay! Now that everything is perfectly balanced again...I VOW to never, ever let it get like that again. It is my solemn vow to always carry a pen with me and I will write down every transaction that affects my account at the time it is made. No more huge stacks of receipts falling out of my wallet "waiting" to be recorded. No more forgetting to write down checks until I realize that I am on 1457 and the last one recorded was 1452. Nope...not gonna happen again. That was TOO much of a headache.
"I just keep thinking...I can't believe this is MY daughter!" my mom said when she called me last night (in the midst of doing the balancing) Well mom, I am gonna make you proud from this moment on! ha ha
Okay, well, I've posted like 3 or 4 times today...so I think I've hit my limit. I have a major muscle cramp in my back/neck and that always means I've been on the computer too long! Goodnight guys!

This Is God

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What a STINKER!

I was all set to write a post on here bragging about how my son who is 2 yrs. and 4 mths. is almost completely potty trained already when he did THIS! (see above picture). Gross, I know! Still, I am pretty proud of how he has been doing in this department. He started pre-school last month and the requirement was that he be potty trained (or at least not wearing diapers). I was very leery of enrolling him in the school since at that time, he had JUST turned 2 and hadn't even started to begin to potty train. However, over the next month or two, I started putting him in underwear every so often while running around the house at home. Then the big day came and he started school. I put him in his cute little Elmo underwear and sent him off. Much to my surprise, NO ACCIDENTS! In almost 7 weeks of school, he's only had 1 accident! WOW! The only time we put him in diapers at ALL anymore is when we are putting him to bed. For a while he was holding his poopoo until we put a diaper on him and then letting it all out...but here recently he's actually been going poopoo in the potty too! WOOHOO!! I'm not sure exactly what happened today. He was outside playing (wearing only underwear) when he came to the door with this really solemn look on his face. I knew right away he'd had an accident. But when I saw the huge lump in his undies, I couldn't resist taking a picture. I know he'll HATE me for it someday...but until then...I just have to giggle! Now I can add this picture to the one of him sitting in the bathroom floor surrounded by pads and tampons and a tampon (brand-new of course) in his mouth and I should have some GOOD blackmail for those turbulent teenage years! ha ha
Anyway, sorry for such a "stinky" post...but hey...when you're a mom...those things hardly phase you anymore. (Though I have to admit, I don't think I'll ever get used to having to wash out poopy-underwear---dipping them up and down, up and down in the toilet until they are clean enough to put in the washer!) okay..I am grossing myself out now...sorry ya'll!

What a STINKER! 

Nanny Nanny Boo Boo

Well, we got rid of "Poopy Head" (for the most part) but it has been replaced with "Nanny Nanny Boo Boo". How a 2-year-old picks up phrases like this and knows how to use them is beyond me. I have to think he's learned them at school because Brooklyn has never said either of those two things. What amazes me is that he says "Nanny Nanny Boo Boo" at the appropriate times (if there is such a thing! ha ha). Like if I give him a peice of candy and don't give one to Brooklyn...he'll say it. I didn't realize 2-year-olds understood things like that...but I guess so. That's one thing I can say about my kids...they don't lack in vocabulary skills. The other day I let Brooklyn peel potatoes for me. She was doing pretty good, but this one weirdly shaped potato was giving her trouble and she said, "Mom, this potato is being contrary!" I thought...how in the world does a 5-year-old know the word 'contrary' AND know how to use it? Wow! She has a love for words and their uses just like her mama! Ever since she's been able to talk, she's been asking what words mean and has amazed people with her vocabulary. Granted, there are a few words I'd LOVE to take out of her vocabulary too like "Whatever" and "Stupid" and the one she said last night "Bull Crap!" Poor thing. When she said that I instantly reached over and slapped her on the arm and said "You Don't Say That!" and she looked at me so innocently and said, "Why mom? Is that a bad word?" I guess I just assumed she knew.
Well, anyway, I am in a writing mood and I'd LOVE to go on and on talking about my little cuties...but I have LOTS of work to do and I need to get it done while they are at school. But, let me leave you with one final thing. If any of you are looking for a good movie...rent Akeelah and the Bee. We LOVED it. You will especially like it if you enjoy words/spelling and word originations, but it is a fun movie even if you aren't a word-nut.
Okay...Happy Tuesday to you all! (Ps. For those of you who are keeping up with my headache troubles...I have been headache free for 2 days and counting! Halleluah!!!)

This picture is a little better. Still...it's nearly impossible to get Grant to smile for a picture. They were both wearing their cowboy boots to church this day. 

Would you just look at that face? I think it's fair to say Grant doesn't like it when big sis holds him still for a picture! ha ha 

What a pain in the head!!!

I have had a horrible headache for about 4 days now (with the exception of most of yesterday). It feels like I have an enormous amount of pressure built up behind my eyeballs. Strange, I know. What really stinks about it is that nothing will get rid of it! I have taken so many Tylenol and Advil it's not even funny. I take more at least every 2 hours (if not sooner) and still nothing. I've even started taking 3 at a time instead of 2, and still nothing. If I lay down, that does seem to help some...but you know me...it about kills me to lay down when there are a hundred other things I could/should be doing. I am starting to get really frustrated with this though. I just want to feel good again. Yesterday, I felt a lot better but I can't figure out why. What was really weird is that this morning I got up and started cooking breakfast and everything was fine and then suddenly the headache came back...and I recognized the very moment that it came back. Now here I am again, popping pills left and right. Matt says I should go see a doctor but a headache seems like such a lame reaso to go to the doctor. I mean, what can they possibly do, other than maybe an x-ray or something, that would tell anything? I don't know. Anyway, I had a few minutes so I thought I'd blog. But, as you can see...I don't have much interesting to say. Well, actually--Matt's dad came down yesterday to visit us and that was pretty exciting. The kids just LOVE him and Matt and I have enjoyed having him here too. Last night my mom watched so we could go out to dinner. While we were gone, Brookyln baked a cake for her PeePaw and we all had chocolate cake and ice cream when we got home (bad for my diet, I know)! Right now, Matt and his dad are gone to the lumber store to get some wood so they can finish framing out Matt's shop building for the garage door he's about to have installed. Brooklyn is over at mom's and Grant is in the bathroom playing in the sink. (not my favorite thing for him to be doing...but hey...it's just water and it's buying me a couple of minutes of me-time)! ha ha

Well, I just typed another 4 or so paragraphs and then some how lost it all...so, I guess I will have to start ALL over! AUGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! That makes me way more mad than it should. It's just that I'd probably spent at least half an hour "wording" what I was typing and now it's all gone! ERGHHHHH!!
Okay....I'm gonna have to go for now. Hope you are all having a good weekend!

Time is Life

I know, it's been a while since I've written much of anything on here...but it's like this....for me....Time = Life. To some people, Time = Money (but that's probably those people who have a paying job). Me on the other hand...I feel like every minute that I spend doing something for myself (cleaning, shopping, blogging, watching TV, reading, whatever) is a minute I feel like I am taking away from my family. I know there are times when I need to do things for myself, but at the end of the day if I reflect on what I've gotten done... all I can list out is a bunch of me-stuff and hardly any "quality" time with my family. Granted...what I am calling me-stuff is cooking, cleaning, laundry, paying bills, grocery shopping, etc. REAL me-stuff would be scrapbooking, (fun) shopping, reading (a novel or something), working out, blogging, etc. Anyway, it sounds silly, but I feel like my husband thinks I am having an affair with the computer. Meaning that I am cheating him out of time with me so I can spend time on the computer. Usually, (at least up until recently) I did all my blogging in the evening when the kids have gone to bed. But...that is also the only time when he and I can have time together without the kids...so when I am in here doing this instead of in there with him...he gets kind of jealous. (which totally makes sense). However, about the only other time I can find to blog or do me-stuff is in the afternoon while Grant is napping...but then that is also the only opportunity I have during the day to spend special, quality time with Brooklyn (and she needs that right now SO desperatly). Plus, the afternoons is also the time I try to do my transcription work so that I can spend the evenings off the computer and with my family.
I don't know....maybe I am making things too complicated...it seems like I can't ever get my "ducks in a row" and have some order to my life. There is always a ton of places I need to go, things I need to do, people I need to call...and on and on. The minute I get home from Wal-Mart, I start making another list. It's THAT bad. Anyway, as much as I LOVE LOVE LOVE writing on here...if you don't hear from me for a while, (hopefully) it is because I am playing with my kids or "being" with my husband.
Anyway, when something noteworthy happens around here, don't worry, I will find time to tell you all about it...but as for my "fun" posts where I just debate certain subjects or ramble endlessley...they will have to be less often for a while...at least until my "ducks are in (somewhat of) a row"!
I love you all!!!

Grant and me on the float during the parade. 

What a handsome cowboy! 

Now for your 10 o'clock news...

Whew! It seems like its been a loooooong time since I've actually "blogged." Maybe because nothing REAL exciting has been happening or maybe because I've been too busy to actually sit down for the past couple of weeks...?! Anyway, this is what's new around here.

The upstairs is nearly completed and it looks awesome--better than I even expected. We have actually gotten the go-ahead to start moving stuff in now, but I haven't actually bought anything yet. We do have a couch to move up there thanks to my brother and sister-in-law. We lucked out and they decided to buy new furniture so they gave us their "old" (but in perfect condition) leather couch that has recliners in both ends. They also gave us 2 leather recliners but we are using those downstairs and will probably just keep them there. I have NO idea how in the world we are going to get that couch up the stairs though! It is VERY heavy and awkward. As for the "bookshelf/storage unit" thing that I am getting for up there...I still haven't made up my mind. Right now I am trying to decide between that creativity center one that I posted the picture of (which is from Pottery Barn Kids) or something I found at a local furniture store. I LOVE the one from Pottery Barn, but it's pretty expensive and then I would want to buy all the little storage boxes that go in it and they are $22/each. (I need 14 of them!!) The other one from the furniture store is black. It's actually peices from a bedroom set It's an armoir and 2 bookshelves just put together. It would look a lot like the picture I posted of the red shelving but be black instead. I know it's not as kid-sy as the creativity one...but it is very pretty and I know it would serve the same purpose and look good up there and it's about $500 less than the other one. Why do I have SUCH a hard time making decisions? (probably because it runs in my family).

In other news, my dad is leaving for California tomorrow!! For those of you who don't know...Matt and my dad and my brother all do the same kind of work, which is they are all lineman for PSO/AEP. Most people have no idea what a lineman is...but they are the guys who climb up the electric poles and fix the lines when your power goes out. They also do lots of rebuilding of old lines and also new construction. Anyway, right now there is a huge demand for lineman in California and they are making top dollar. It's good enough of a deal that my brother and my dad quit their (very good) jobs here and decided to go there for a year! My brother has already been gone a few weeks and my dad is leaving in the morning. Of course, all of this has got Matt and I thinking about it too. It would be unbelievably hard to be away from him for that length of time...but he would make enough money just over that period of time to pay off all our debt with the exception of our house...!! He would be making approximately double to triple what he makes now! Of course it is enticing...but we're not sure it's worth being apart for that long--Especially for the kids. If it were just the two of us, we could tough it out, or I could just go along...but I can't imagine the kids being away from their daddy for a year!

Now onto the next subject...tomorrow Grant will be riding in our town's fall festival parade! He has to dress up like a cowboy (which won't be hard since he loves to dress like that anyway). I will be sure to take pictures to share with you all.

Well, I know there were some other things I was planning on talking about on here...but I can't think of them right now..so I guess I'll get off here and try to actually get in bed at a decent hour tonight. I think I've only gotten about 5 hours of sleep for the past 3-4 nights!

Hope you have a great weekend!

Oops! I always forget that these pictures post in the opposite order of the way I want them to. The "big" explation is with the 3rd picture. Anyway, this is the window in our upstairs room. Notice how Bee-you-TEE-ful my floors are? They were expensive but I wanted them SOOOOO bad! It was my one big "Splurge" where this room is concerned. 

Another view of the room...looking into the bathroom. 

Here is what our upstairs room looks like right now. It is almost finished. Tomorrow the plumbers will come and put our toilet and sink in and the eletricians will come and put up our ceiling fan and our little "spot" lights. WooHoo! I am so excited!!! The long wall you see is where the big entertainment unit/storage/bookcase thing will go.  

This is another option for our upstairs play room. I am looking for something that can "hide" LOTS of toys when we want to but also display them for the kids to find and play with. Which one of these two do you guys like best? (this one or the Creativity one?)  

This is the "Creativity Storage" that I am thinking about gettting for our upstairs play room. I am for sure getting the table that you see in the picture. 

My grandma with her 4 children.  

As a "gag" gift, my mom gave my grandma a thong! ha ha It was definitely the funniest part of the evening! 

Brooklyn and Grandma---just about inseperable---those two. 

Matt and me at the birthday party. 

My neice, Chantel (a.k.a. Telly) and Brooklyn. Bestest Buddies! 

My aunt Peggy, aunt Patty, Grandma and my mom. 

For lunch one day, we went to McFarland's where they have a "rising" table. We pulled the joke on my grandma. She never even noticed that by the end of their meal, she could barely reach the table! Everyone else was laughing so hard she was about to get mad at them. Thankfully the waitress finally came to the table and asked if anyone needed a booster seat and then told her about the table. It was very funny.  

We had dinner with "Bob and Larry" from VeggieTales. The kids loved it although Grant was terrified to let them get close to him.  

Here we all are sitting on a GIGANTIC rocking chair.  

Grant on the carosel. What a handsome little man! 

Brooklyn and Grant on the tilt-a-whirl. Brooklyn could really get going fast by turning the wheel. 

Brooklyn and Grant on the "swing" ride. 

Grant on the motorcycle/bicycle's at Celebration City. 

I don't have an attitude problem; you have a perception problem!

Ha Ha! Isn't that a cute saying? I cut that out of a "Mom's" calander a year or two ago and it's still posted on my desk. Anyway, that has nothing to do with what I am writing about, but I thought it was cute and worth sharing with you all. What I am really writing about is that we are leaving for a little mini-vacation tomorrow and won't be back until Sunday, so this will be the last post you see until probably Monday. I will take lots of pictures though so you can all see what fun we had! We are going to Branson to celebrate my grandma's 80th birthday. The party is on Saturday but we decided to go up a few days early so we could fit in a trip to Silver Dollar City, Celebration City and the Dixie Stampede. It will be a busy weekend for sure, but that's the way I like it! ha ha The coolest thing about it is that LOTS of my family will be there that I haven't seen in many, many years so it will be a family reunion sort of too. So anyway, it's 11 pm right now and I've been up trying to finish my work and get the kids stuff packed and laundry washed and house straightened up and dog and fish fed, etc. etc. etc. Matt got called out to work at about 9 pm and he'll probably work all night long...which will mean I will have to drive the whole way to Branson! (Ick!--I like to use long trips to catch up on my reading!) I guess I should look at it in a more positive light--Matt is out earning the money tonight that we will spend during our weekend away...so I should be more than happy to do the driving. There, see--now I feel much better about it.
Oh by the way, another thing, I got my check today from JBF (the consignment sale where I sell my kids clothes that they've outgrown). I was really hoping I'd get enough to buy the craft table from Pottery Barn Kids that I want for them in the play room and guess what? My check was almost the exact amount of the table to the cent! God is just amazing! Now if I can just find a way to make some money to buy the chairs that go with it! hee hee...
Oh and one more thing...they are putting in our hardwood floors tomorrow! YaY! I am so excited. We went and picked out the paint color yesterday. I am a little nervous because we chose a darker color than "normal." It is called Charro...and looks a lot like the color of chocolate milk. We bought a quart of it today and I painted part of one of the walls so we could be sure of how it would look in the room and with the floors and I still like it....so we'll see. It's just that they will be painting the ceiling the same color and I am afraid that might be too much of such a strong color. I guess the worst possible thing is that we don't like it and I end up painting over it. Not the end of the world (especially since I love to paint). Okay, I've rambled enough...time for me to get catch some zzzz's. I will need to be rested up and wide awake for the long drive tomorrow. For those of you who are thinking it's not THAT long of a drive from where I live....believe me...when you have to listen to two screaming, fighting kids most of the way...3-4 hours seems like 10! My kids aren't like everyone elses---they refuse to nap in the car. Even though we have the tv/dvd player, that only holds their interest for about half an hour---then the chaos begins! Good thing Matt is such a sound sleeper! ha ha. He'll probably be snoring away while they are screaming their precious little heads off!
Okay, really...I gotta go to bed! Goodnight!

It shouldn't be this hard...

to look this good. Ha ha! But really, I've been thinking lately about how much work it takes to be a woman! It all started when I got out of the shower this afternoon and noticed that my great tan I've been sporting all summer has already almost completely faded away! Wasn't it just last week that I was laying out in the pool in 100+ degree weather? I know I don't tan easily or hold a tan, but for goodness sakes! I've already been on the phone today calling around trying to find a tanning salon in our dinky little town. But, in addition to tanning I also exercise regularly, color/highlight my hair, pluck my eyebrows, shave my legs, put on make-up, fix my hair, paint my nails.....etc. etc. etc. just to look decent! That's just not fair. All Matt has to do to look his best is take a shower, shave and get dressed. Once a month or so, he gets a haircut but that's about it. Men have it way too easy. I mean, if you took both of us (him and me) and put us side by side "au natural" I'd be no match for him. I have to do all that work just to look as good as he does naturally. I wonder how good men would look if they did as much work as we do? ha ha...can you just imagine a man standing in front of the mirror for an hour getting "ready"?
Anyway, I guess I don't HAVE to do all that stuff. I could just get fat and white and hairy and gross myself and everyone else out. ha ha...uh...no thanks. Anyway, I sure hope men appreciate all the work we go through to make them notice us! (although I think half of it is to impress other women too---not in a sexual way...but in a "classy" way). Okay, well, I think I am babbling now. Sorry but I have to sit at my desk for like half an hour every night while Brooklyn falls asleep, so this is what you get. I haven't heard her for a few minutes so maybe she's asleep now. I'm going to bed too! Goodnight!

An up-to-the-minute report...

Hi Ya'll! It's been a few days since I've posted and really nothing interesting has been going on. On Wednesday, my super-sweet neice and her hubby came and visited us and we all went out to eat at Cheddar's. (boy, I love that resturant!) Thursday we rented 'Take The Lead' with Antonio Bandares. It wasn't my "favorite movie ever" but it was really good. Friday, Brooklyn spent the night with my parents so Matt and me and Grant went to Wal-Mart for our weekly "big" shopping trip. It was 10 pm before we got home and it was very obvious Grant was up waayyyy past his bedtime. (what a little toot he was in the store!) Saturday, my grandma and I got our hair done and then we all (her, me and my mom) had lunch at Chick-fil-a and then did a little shopping. I got some good deals at Pottery Barn and found lots of things I would love to have for our upstairs play room. Sunday, today, we went to church and then spent most of the day outside cleaning up our yard for the little get-together we are having tomorrow for some of our friends. It will be fun. We haven't really had much company since we moved into this house, for some reason, so I am really looking forward to it. Right now though, it's 10 pm and time for me to get off this computer and into bed. Hope you are all having a great long weekend!

What a nut! Grant loves dressing up in his sissy's high-heels and sunglasses.