Playing Catch Up Again

Okay, so I know I am becoming a terrible blogger - sorry Brian! Things have been crazy around our house and I am finding that I am barely keeping up with normal household duties and there is little to none extra time for blogging and even keeping up on other blogs.

So, we have definitely entered this new phase of life with a bang. I'm working 20 hours a week right now, and to all of my friends with kids who work 40 hours a week outside the home - my hat is off to you - I don't know how you do it. I will say this though - I love my job! And, yes, I even love my boss! It has been a ton of fun being able to finally get some things done around the office that need to be done but that I've never had time to make happen. I'm also doing some work for my boss' son, just some organizational stuff that can be done at work, but that I am getting paid extra for, so that is nice too! The other plus - the kids are absolutely loving their babysitter! They can't wait for her to get here and when she leaves they want to know when she is coming back! Thanks Sarah!

Baseball season has ended for Tyler, but is still going for Kayla. She has three regular games left and then the tournament. Last Tuesday night, we stomped the undefeated team and it was awesome! The girls played great, and we have really seen Kayla's game improve this season!

I filled my last Graceful Designs order yesterday. It was a bittersweet moment to pack Gertrude up and give her back to Holly for the last time. I have loved doing the embroidery thing, but I also know that for my sanity, it is the right thing to do to be getting out of it.

I have tons of pictures to post and will hopefully get to it soon! Hope everyone has a great week!

The Good and the Bad

Yesterday afternoon my door bell rings and it is my UPS man. I couldn't remember ordering anything, so I grab the envelope and look at the return address. It was from the publishing company that I sent my children's book to several weeks ago. I had received an email the beginning of the week from them letting me know that they would be reviewing my book this week. The letter was dated the 13th(my birthday, woohoo) and they had overnighted this package to me. I opened it up to find a letter telling me that they want to publish my book along with a contract for me to sign laying out all of the fine details. Yea, I called my mom and was bawling on the phone as I read the letter to her where they told me that I was among the 4% of the thousands of people who send manuscripts to them that actually get chosen. The book is about a dog named Mustard, whom my mother created years ago. We actually had a dog named Mustard when I was a kid and my mother has told stories about him for years. My kids actually call Grammy just to hear a "Mustard Story". So, you can imagine both of our excitement at this opportunity. Well, to make a long story short, this company is a company that aids you in self-publishing your book. I was a little scared to get to excited about the whole thing and it turns out I was right. They are a publishing company and they do actually publish some books, but apparently there is some question as to the legitimacy of the company. The short version is that I won't be signing their contract. Yea, pretty sad, right? I was totally disappointed, but have chosen to look at this as a compliment. If it really stunk, they probably wouldn't have bothered to even send me the letter and the contract in the first place, right?

On another note, today is my little guys last day of Pre-K. Good grief, I really hope that I do NOT embarass myself by crying all over the place when I drop him off. He had his graduation program on Wednesday and it was so sweet! Pictures coming soon, I hope!

Wednesday was my birthday and it was the best day! Craig had taken me out last weekend for a birthday shopping date! Most of ya'll know that I have a serious jewelry habit and I had outgrown my jewelry box. He bought me one of the floor kind - it is awesome! Kayla inherited my old one and it looks like she is going to be as bad as I am when it comes to jewelry! I had several friends who took me to lunch and bought me gifts, gifts from other friends and family, and tons of facebook birthday wishes. I'm ruined for years to come now - I was incredibly spoiled all day!

Yesterday was a complete blur. Tyler had a friend over to play and she was here all day and they had a blast! They got along so well and played so good together, and I got tons done. I did a bunch of embroidery and then finally got that put up, cleaned my house, did all the laundry, ironed all the laundry that needed to be ironed, cooked dinner, made it to the ball field... It was an extremely productive day! I'm hoping for the same today. I'm off to work in a little while, have to pay bills, run errands, get groceries - does it ever end? These days I feel like I pass myself on the road! Only a few more weeks of baseball left and then hopefully we will slow down some. Craig and I are off on another date night tonight - this seldom happens that we go back to back weekends like this, but my boss gave us tickets to the sunset canal cruise so we are headed out for that. Fred will be playing the sax and I can make small talk with my co-worker and my boss and their families. You know how I love small talk right? Oh, well, it will be fun, especially if it does not rain! Have a good weekend everyone!

Here Comes the Bride...

...and it is Kimberly Shipp! WhoooHooo! Kimberly and Brandon came over Sunday night and asked my children to be in their wedding. Kimberly has babysat my kids since the beginning I think. She is the ultra-cool babysitter who lets her charges paint her face up like a clown! My children were absolutely thrilled to be asked and are so excited. Kayla would like to have her dress "pop" and she thinks Ms. Kimberly's dress "pops", and she is already talking about having her hair done and getting her nails and makeup done. Huh? I'm not sure if she realizes that it is KIMBERLY who is getting married. Tyler decided he wants to skip being the ring bearer and just be the one marrying Kimberly. It should be a fun time! Thanks Kimberly and Brandon! We love you guys!

Where'd They Go?

I have no idea what happened to my videos of the kids choir performance - they were supposed to be on the previous post, BUT, they are not there! Let's try this again, shall we?

Kind of Behind...

Okay, so I'm a little behind, but better late than never right? So I present to you... drumroll, please... Easter pics, kids choir videos and pics, baseball pics from Tyler's first game. Pictures of Kayla's games will come after I take them tonight! I have pictures of practice, but none of any games yet!

Share My Horror

Okay, so I don't like animals - this is no surprise. Last night we went to Tyler's game and had to move away from the bleachers down into the grass to be able to see. I plopped myself down and looked up and thought "why here? why did I pick right here to sit?". Craig asked me why I didn't just get up and move and I don't know why I didn't except that I had no chair and I was already down on the ground, plus I was totin' a cooler, snacks, my purse, and a bottle of water. I was sitting right behind the ugliest animal I have ever seen. The bad thing? The owner treated him like he was a little baby - ya'll, he had his own stinkin' water bottle. Seriously? If you look close at the picture you will see the drool hanging down his face. Disgusting. He came up to Kayla and she reached out to pet him and came back with a soaked arm. I told her she was going to have to go home and bathe in Clorox. Ugh, it gives me the creeps. So, now for your viewing pleasure, I present you with my views from the ball field last night...




Just for the record, I did take pictures of my child playing ball too, and I will post those soon, along with Easter pictures - yea, I'm a little late.

Rain, Rain, Please Don't Go Away

We have already had two ball games rained out this week. And, while I love watching the kids play and, while I also know that it is not going to be fun making these up - it has been such a blessing to have the last two nights at home! Monday I went and got my nails done so I guess I wasn't technically home, but I needed that time out. The weekend was crazy busy - I won't even go into it because it makes me tired just thinking about it! I will tell you that I did the Walk for Life on Saturday morning. The turn out was slightly disappointing, but there was such a sweet spirit in our midst at the Riverwalk. You could feel God's presence there as a couple of groups sang - it was awesome! The rest of the weekend, however, was a complete and total blur! I was bordering on the edge of a serious overload meltdown when I left to get my nails done on Monday so it was nice to have some quiet time!

Yesterday I took a wild hair (no pun intended) and went and had all of my hair cut off and what is left I had highlighted. I haven't decided if I like it all that much yet, but it will eventually grow back, or I will grow used to it - one or the other! Last night I got Gertrude back - yea! For those of you who don't already know, this is my last month with Graceful Designs. I have loved it and have had so much fun and will miss it tremendously. However, with the extra hours I'm working at the office and the even more hours I will be putting in when fall rolls around, I just can't do it - there is not enough hours in the day. Holly's going to keep it rolling though so call her! But, for the month of May I get to embroider until my heart's content! After welcoming Gert back, the whole family chipped in to help clean the house. I hate asking for help with house work, but with all that has been going on, the house ain't gettin' clean. That adds ten times more stress to me knowing that my house is dirty! Yuck! My husband and kids are the bomb! I woke up today feeling much more ahead of the game than I have been feeling. I'm ready for summer, ready for a break!

Don't Do As I Do, Do As I Say

Does anyone think that is a good form of parenting. I used to kind of have that attitude - I am boss, hear me roar. Okay, I still have some of that attitude - sad, yes, but honest!

So, let me tell ya'll something that my daughter said to me this morning. First of all, let me preface this by saying that growing up "suck" was a bad word. As in, "man this really sucks". Well, my parents know that I am a rebel and I say it now because I am the boss, hear me roar! :) Since I am dieting I have been making jello, the fat free, sugar free kind, because it basically is flavored water with almost no calories and it makes me feel like I have had something sweet! So, this morning Kayla was putting her lunch in her lunch box and I told her to get a lid for her jello. She said, "Mom, can a put a little dallop of whipped cream on it?". I said, "No, baby, daddy took the last of the whipped cream on his jell-o today." To which she replies, "Man, that sucks".

Now I know why my mama didn't want me saying it!

And while I'm on funny things my kids have said this week, let me tell you what Tyler said the other night coming home from a softball game. We drove by one of those churches with the cemetary on the grounds of the church. Personally, that kind of creeps me out, but, hey, to each their own. Anyway, we drove by it, and Tyler says, "Hey Mom, look there's a rock garden". Hahaha!