Hello New Year!

We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! We enjoyed a great week together relaxing and visiting with family. The kids, as usual, made out very well this Christmas and have been enjoying their new Wii complements of Pa-Pa! Other "hits" for the girls were clothes and girlie stuff. Ryan loves his new ball pit, Go Bucks recliner, and baseball stuff. Bill and I didn't really exchange much - just some fun stocking stuffers and then got each other new furniture for the office and $ towards a new computer.
Amist all the craziness of the season, we were reminded once again of the true meaning of the Season - we arrived at my moms for Christmas and were suprised with our favorite gift! BABY ALEXIS was able to come home for Christmas late Christmas Eve. She is holding her own. She will be going to Cleveland Clinic early January and they are hopeful that all necessary treatment can be done outpatient. What an unbelieveable answer to prayer. She still has a long road ahead of her but we KNOW that God is GOOD - all the time!
We now look forward to the new year and anticipate a great year. I (Amy) am looking for a part-time evening/weekend position to start slowly transitioning to working a traditional job again. My hope is to be in a counseling firm when Ryan starts Pre-K in 3 years. We are praying that the perfect job presents itself to give me more diversity on my resume!
Bill has been insanely busy at work but in this economy it is a BLESSING, not a curse! We are grateful for the Christian based company for which he works and are praying that God will continue to pour out his blessings on it!
Our kids are busy, busy, busy with school and such. We pray that this next year we will be able to get some quality time away with them away from the stresses of schedules, work, and school. We trust God to continue to bless them with health and happiness!
May God pour out His richest blessings on all of our family and friends as well. Happy New Year!

2008 Merry Meads Christmas QUIZ

Merry Christmas!
Typically we send out a lengthy Christmas letter each year but this year, we decided to take advantage of technology and post on our family Blog. So instead of a blah, blah letter that could potentially bore you to tears, here is a quick peek at 2008 with the Mead's in the form of a QUIZ! And if you score an 'A' you get a set of Ginsu Knives! (Not really - just making sure you are paying attention!)

Q - What grades are the kids in?
A - Katie is in 6th, Karissa is in 2nd, and Ryan is at "mommy-school". Katie and Karissa attend
Liberty Benton (Go Eagles!).

Q - What is Ryan's favorite sport?
A - Hard to tell - he's excelled at everything athletic so far! (We aren't sure who he inherited the
athlete gene from - it's a mystery to us!)

Q - Where did the Mead's vacation this year?
A - Orlando, Florida! And we had a BLAST!

Q - What were our favorite summer camping trips?
A - Our family reunions, of course, in Pennsylvania and Ohio!

Q - What are mom and dad up to?
A - Bill is entering his 2nd year at K&W and counts it a blessing to be able to work with so many
exceptional people! Amy is still doing a private preschool and runs around shuttling the kids to
and from activities. She's still plugging away at her Masters in Counseling as well.

Q - What new sports were added to the family itinerary this year?
A - Jump Rope Team - Katie made her school squad and Basketball - Karissa starts in January!

Q - What do the Mead's like to do in their spare time?
A - Ryan is obsessed with shooting hoops with daddy and enjoys playing with cousin Grant and his
best friend, Reagan. Karissa likes to ride her bike, scooter, roller blades (you get the picture)
all over the neighborhood. Katie has the busiest social life and is usually with a friend or 2.
Amy likes to scrapbook and Bill enjoys taking rides on his (finally!) fixed up "vintage"
motorcycle!

Q - What have we learned this year?
A - God's timing is PERFECT, even when we can't see it and life is going to fast to not slow down
and cherish every moment!

Q - What is our Christmas prayer for you this year?
A - May you have LOVE - to share with those you love; JOY - no matter what your situation;
and PEACE - that passes all understanding!

Love, Joy, and Peace for 2009,
The Mead's
Bill, Amy, Katie, Karissa, Ryan, and Casper the dog

P.S. CHECK BACK ON OUR BLOG THROUGHOUT THE YEAR! WE UPDATE OFTEN AND TRY TO POST PHOTOS DURING THE YEAR! MAKE OUR BLOG ONE OF OUR FAVORITES AND STOP BY TO SAY HI EVERY NOW AND THEN!

I (Amy) am once again directing the kids Christmas musical at church. Katie is in it - she has a speaking part and 2 solos and Karissa is saying a Bible verse and has a trio she is singing in. I can't tell you what a relief it is to me that all 3 of my kids can sing. I don't know what I would do with a tone-deaf kid! So rehearsals have been going pretty well but now it's crunch time! I always get really nervous about this time. We only have 3 rehearsals left and a ton of kids informed me on Sunday that they would not be there on Saturday. AHHHH! We have about 45 kids in it this year which is a good number. It will go well, I'm sure. I just always panic about it not being "perfect" - but when you're working with kids I don't think that is really 100% possible! I'll post pictures of the girls after the performance on the 14th!

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree.....

I LOVE Christmas. It's just all the prep work that I'm not all that crazy about! It takes me a week, on and off again, to get the house done. Every year I swear that I'm going to put it all up earlier so I can enjoy it longer, but then we get to the end of the 1st week in December and it's still not all done. Admitedly, I do have issues with procrastinating and taking on too much alone but......it does eventually get done.
Which leads me to my story from last night. I went outside to hang garland on our front porch rail. I started that project and then got sidetracked (hmmm, wonder where my kids get thier ADHD from??) by the giant bulbs that haven't gotten hung on the porch for the last 2 seasons. So I drug out the ladder, hammer, nails....and hauled myself up to hang them. Bill had told me he would do it but he's been working til LATE recently so I just couldn't wait. I hung the first few and stepped back to admire the beauty - it looked great. I then pulled the ladder over to hang the next set and ...... WHACK ......the hammer which I had laid on the top of the ladder, and forgotten about, landed right on my head. After the initial feeling of dizzyness wore off, I checked myself for blood dripping off my head. There was none. So I spent the next minute or 2 telling myself how stupid I am. I am such a clutz! No harm done except for 2 HUGE goose-eggs on my head and a bit of a headache last night.
I told Bill last night that I was going to climb out on the roof tonight to hang the rest of the icicle lights since he's been getting home so late. He forbid me! He was cracking up and said the last thing we need is a clutz up on the rooftop! Not funny.....

My Baby Niece

My sister Cheries baby, Alexis Mae was born with a heart defect that was not caught until she was 19 days old. Now after undergoing a tricky open heart surgery she has developed seizures and has not been able to wean off the vent yet. It has been a gruling week for everyone. Thank God for some friends - mostly neighbors - who have helped out with the twins, meals, etc. It's at times like this that you really do discover who your true friends are.....people who do nice things for no glory for themselves. We've had e-mails from all over the world of people who are praying for her. Keep praying as she fights so hard and pray for Jon and Cherie as they are exhausted.

Our house is 7 years old and we need a new roof already. We lost some small sections off the back this past weekend with the monsoon winds so we had my uncle come take a look. Our warranty is void because they were not installed correctly (thanks to the builders for that one!) and the vents in our roof are not even vented - they are for looks only. Dag-on-it! So now, we have to replace it ourselves. Not enough damage from the storm to be able to claim it but a deffective roof that needs to be replaced or we risk it getting damaged more or worse yet, not have it pass inspection should be ever go to sell - not like that is even a remote option in the economy in our area at this point......Bless my uncle though - he is slow with construction right now and is willing to pretty much eat at the labor expense and do it at a huge savings. When he's busy he has a full crew so he can't cut much. This will hurt the budget for a while but what can you do? Winter is coming and the winters here are NASTY - it isn't going to heal itself!

My itinerary for this week is nothing but non-stop running! I'm working every day this week and probably won't get an afternoon off. Hollys little guy is sick and she is my sub so I can get away 1-2 afternoons a week but that probably won't happen this week. Monday is Sylvan with Karissa, Tuesday is piano for both the girls followed by jump-rope team at school (who knew ...... it's a school sport!), Wednesday is Sylvan for Karissa and French Club for Katie followed by a mad dash to church for me to do worship team and lead choir practice this week, Thursday is clarinet for Katie and gymnastics for Karissa, and Friday we have a birthday party to go to. Saturday......I have not a clue but most likely, sitting down will not be on the schedule. Oh, and how could I forget.....I also have a masters class on Thursday...which I am very far behind in .......gee, I wonder why!
I asked my parents this weekend if the running ever gets better.....when the kids get older. Dad just shook his head and laughed.....not really the response I was hoping for.

I'm not big into politics but this year has me fired up! I watched both parties VP/P speeches and I gotta' tell you I am so excited to see Palin on the ticket with McCain. Not because she is a woman (that's a great side-perk) but because she shares my values, morals, and I really think she is what this country needs more of. More common sense legislature, more "normal" people in Washington instead of some out-of-touch bureaucrat. I feel that her not being in Washington circles is actually a good thing.....she hasn't been calloused by it.....and she isn't afraid of it either! I just love the fact that all the feminists suddenly have a problem with a working mom.......hypocrites!
McCain gave a great speech as well and I was moved by it last night. He spoke from his heart and the candidate that I wasn't excited about "having" to vote for (because I hold to those conservative values) won me over BIG TIME! Being "ballsy" enough to slam down on your own party for corruption and loss of trust by the American people.....wow! That spoke volumes and I was impressed and now can't wait to see what his detailed plan is for the next 4 years.
And, by the way, I just love those demonstrators who tired so hard to get the focus off and I thought McCains response to it was brilliant! "The American people are getting sick and tired of us yelling at each other, OK?"!!!! Too bad the Freedom Of Speech didn't include a clause that doesn't allow for being an idiot about expressing those thoughts!....that kind of protest accomplishes nothing but creating chaos and more division......it's useless and ridiculous. Instead of waving your sign and running down the aisle screaming obscenities, how about DOING something about it........send care packages to the troops, organize a petition, get a bill before Congress, provide for a debate between the parties.......something!
I love his maverick side and that he isn't afraid of stepping on toes. When I watched Obama, although it was technically one of the best speeches I've heard, I just didn't believe him and the fact that he is the "golden child" of the liberal media just really boils my blood.
Yep, I'm voting for the experienced war veteran and the pro-life, common-sense, PTA mom!

When my kids get tired, they all react so differently. Katie gets downright mean and will turn on you at the drop of a hat. Kissa gets really emotional and melts down at the slightest thing. Ryan gets clingy and won't let you put him down. Makes for lots of fun when all 3 are tired at once, let me tell you!
This past weekend I wanted to do absolutely NOTHING! But my hubby had other plans and we were running almost every minute. I ended up feeling like we didn't have a holiday and I'm more tired today than I was at the end of last week. Needless to say, we had quite the scene at the Mead home this morning with trying to get 3 kids up and going - 2 out the door for school after a week out for the fair - and myself geared up for work........uuuhhhh.
All 3 went to bed tonight without any fight at all.......I guess that's the silver lining.......if you run them to the point of absolute exhaustion, they just pass out on you!

As The Family Turns.....

I feel like I'm in a soap opera sometimes. Today I denied Karissa going to the fair with her friend. She has had 3 slumber parties in a row since school is out for the fair (yep, we do that here!) and she was starting to shut down from being so tired. She freaked out and told me that she hates me and she hates her life. I told her to go to her room and hate me there. Needless to say she is now grounded for.......until I feel like ungrounding her. Between her over-age temper tantrums and Katies hormones wacking out every now and then, I honestly wonder if I am going to survive with my sanity intact until they are in college. I love them to death but sometimes it is so much DRAMA! I saw a piece of flair on Facebook the other day that pretty much sums it up.........I love it when people ignore me and roll their eyes at me.......so I became a mother!

Peterson Family Reunion

We joined about 50 relatives - some from as far away as Nevada - for a weekend reunion in Pennsylvania. We went to a beautiful area called Cooks Forest in the mountains and had a GREAT time! We went horseback riding, water sliding, and ate some great food! It was so wonderful to see everyone again!

Mead Family Campout

We had a fun family campout in Wappakonetta, OH this summer! The kids LOVE having a few days to hang out with their cousins. We went paddle-boating, had fun fishing (my nephew Robert got a big one!), and did LOTS of swimming - we're not sure who had more fun in the pool.....the kids or the dads! We played a marathon game of Apples To Apples....I'm not sure who won but it was fun and left us wondering a bit about our fellow family members.....some warped minds are out there, that's for sure! LOL! :)

A BLUR

So this past week was an absolute blur! I had COTL (Children Of The Light) training camp all week until late each night. COTL is a local ministry of Youth For Christ and is a music group for about 25 teens. They do their own live music and drama as well and are quite good. I am the vocal coach and I look forward to it every year. I do a vocal technique class on Monday to kick off the week and then go in every day to help with solo auditions, performance "tweeking", and however else I can help musically. The kids this year are a neat group and I had a lot of fun working with them - a lot of talent in there! The Fri PM concert went really well with no train wrecks musically so that is considered a success for sure! :)

How do I have a pre-teen already??

Time honestly does go faster the older you are. I can't believe that I am officially the parent of a pre-teen girl! Teenie-Bopper, Tween, ....whatever you call it, the hormones are raging in full-swing and I am quickly loosing my status as a "cool" mom. I am seeing a lot more rolled eyes and hearing a ton more talking back and attitude in general.....groan! I am sooo not ready for this.
Katies big birthday bash was last night. I let her invite 15 friends thinking that 1/2 would come. Apparently she is quite the socialite and we had 14 here last night and 12 spent the night. 12 tween girls, a lot of sugar, and .....well, you get the picture. At 2:30 I made them start taking it down a notch and they finally went out around 3:00. So today I feel quite old. I had to take a nap this morning. Katie had a blast and kept telling us it was the "best party ever".
Maybe, just maybe, I regained some of my "cool" mom status....at least until tomorrow!

Our Pool Adventures

So we got the kids a pool last summer. One of the easy-set -up ones. Paid $200 bucks for it and justified it by thinking that we would get more than one year out of it......didn't happen! We got it out (finally) the other night. I spent about 2 hours scrubbing it out by hand with bleach......my OCD kicks in with the thought of germs. About 10:00 PM we inflated the top and started filling it with water. I went out at midnight to turn off the water and it was flat and the water was running all over the ground. That should make for a nice water bill!
The kids love the pool and we haven't been able to get to the Bluffton pool much this year so we decided to go ahead and get them another one. School is just 4 weeks away but they are getting to the "climbing the walls" phase of the summer. The novelty of nothing to do is wearing thin and I typically break up a minimum of 50 fights a day.
We set it up last night without any issue but I found a hole in it this morning and now the pump is freaking out.....grrrrr! At least it was 1/2-off since it's the "end" of the season.

Top 10 reasons I love my hubby

#10 - He thinks I look fine without my makeup
#9 - He still knows how to CRACK ME UP after 14 years together
#8 - He is the best father to my children that I could ever imagine
#7 - He helps with the laundry
#6 - He helps with the dishes
#5 - He let me get a dog that he personally hates....and tolerates him pretty well
#4 - He never gives me grief about going shopping
#3 - He never complains about my cooking shortfalls
#2 - He has supported me through every "venture" I have taken
#1 - After 14 years of marriage, he still makes me blush!
We went to a wedding this weekend and that always brings out my mushy side. He is such a great man in so many ways and I am lucky to have him!

Family Vacation

We had a GREAT time in Florida and our pictures prove it! We got to spend lots of time with family relaxing by the pool and visiting Universal Studios. We got a week pass and it was great to be able to come and go as we wanted. We went early AM and then left in the afternoon when the crowds and temp started heating up. We went with my parents as well as Cherie and Jon and their twin girls - Elizabeth and Aleah.

God TOTALLY has a sense of humor!

So my sister Cherie was done having kids. She had twins with the help of in-virto and was told (by 4 specialists) she could never, ever have them on her own. So they were done.....or so they thought! Her twins are 7 months old and she is almost 5 months pregnant with a third (and she says final) baby. It's a girl and we are so excited for them! Just when we think we have it all figured out, God says - Check this out, I'm still in control and I can still make the doctors drop their jaws! 3 babies in 13 months.....WOW. I'll start praying for their sanity now!

Misery over...for now

So he finally cut his teeth. He woke up this morning jumping and laughing in his bed so I knew we were off to a good start. He's back to normal with 4 new pearly whites popped through. So cute. We should be done for now...until he cuts his 2-year molars. Gee, I can't wait....

Miserable.....

The last 2 days have been just miserable.....Ryan is cutting his 4 "eye - teeth" all at once and he is a wreck. Poor thing. He didn't cut his first tooth until he was 11 months and I think it's worse the older they get. He is completely out of sorts and my happy little guy has been replaced by a leg-clinging, screaming, tantrum-throwing, demon of sorts. I simply cannot put him down. When I do, he goes into hysterics and I have to hold him again to calm him. The bright side is that I've discovered how to make PB&J, type on the computer, load and unload the dishwasher and a myriad of other things with one hand while holding a 25-pound toddler. I am praying.....honestly PRAYING.....that he cuts these 4 teeth tonight so we don't have another unbearable day tomorrow.

Joys of camping

Waking up and praying that the sunshine won't wake up the kids for just 5 more minutes!

Playing fetch with the puppy (I never have time at home) and getting in my exercise when he bolts for it!

Making friends with the people around us and then calling security on them when they've had a few too many. Call me a kill-joy but I get UP IN ARMS when people start cussing around my kids!

Taking naps with Ryan because he's too little to fall asleep on his own in a new environment, right?

Sitting by the campfire and hoping that no one will get West Nile Virus from the trillions of mosquitos!

Playing Mexican Train with the girls and LOVING it when they win "for real"!

We had a great trip - just too short. Bummer is that it cost us over $200 in gas towing the camper so we have to cut way back on our summer adventures. I guess we'll start taking "staycations" as people are now calling them......dagone gas prices!!!!!

Just one of those weekends.

I should have known it was going to be a crazy weekend.....Friday evening started out with a bang! We met Bill across town at IHOP (yeah, we live life on the edge, don't we? LOL!) and did some shopping at Lowes, which incidentaly has become one of my favorite places to shop. We got home and chatted with our neighbors for a while and then got a call from another neighbor asking if we could hear the Tornado siren. We couldn't and after looking at the LB High School which is literally a block away we could see the beginnings of a funnel cloud. It was reaching toward the ground and was spinning a bunch of dirt with it. It freaked me out like I've never been before. We threw the kids and the dog down in the basement (not literally, of course) and tried to button down the hatches so to speak. The funnel skipped our neighborhood and touched down from the airport about a mile from us. YIKES!!!! We do NOT need another insurance claim. The flood was a $50,000 loss in August.....I can only imagine what another big claim would do to our premium! All we lost were some shingles and had a lot of debris blown into our yard but nothing major. We're off to a great start this season - 4 Tornados in a month and the season goes til September......fun.

Back to reality

Vacation was GREAT! We had a blast and I'm already planning the next one for next year. We went with my sister Cherie, Jon, their babies, and my parents. At first we weren't 100% sure it was such a good idea to be in such close quarters with everyone.....but it was perfect. The condo was plenty big and we were right on the golf course which gave the kids plenty of room to run. Having the other couples there to take turns with the kids was splendid! We actually got a date night out and went to see Blue Man Group which was FANTASTIC!
Now were home and it's back to life as usual....grrrrr. At least school ends this week so I don't have to fight with the girls to get out of bed for the next 8 weeks!
I'll post some picts of our vacation as soon as I figure out where my camera is.....I still haven't unpacked completely!

I NEED a Vacation!

I need a vacation soooo bad! We're outta here on Saturday for 10 days in Florida and I feel like a little kid - I am so excited. This will be our first bigger vacation in a few years. We bought a pop-up camper 10 years ago and then upgraded 2 years ago to a 27-foot camper. It's beautiful and all.....I have a sink, stove, great bathroom, a place to plug in my curling iron.....what more can a girl ask for? Oh yea.......a RELAXING vacation! Camping is NOT a break for me. I still have to cook, clean, pack and unpack a mini-house, plan for a week for food, not to mention the fact that the kids get disgusting playing in all the filth! We go to great places and do have fun together but it's just really not all that relaxing for me. Bill gets to unwind with the kids but....I put on a happy face and enjoy it as much as I can but I LIVE for these types of vacations.......5-star resort, tons of pools, eating out for every meal, naps, oooooooooo I can't wait!

My Hubby Rocks!

I had a wonderful Mother's Day today - probably one of the best I've had in the past 10 years. It was more of a Mother's Weekend and it was just what I needed. On Saturday, Bill had me come downstairs under the guise of not being able to find juice for Ryan and suprised me with a beautiful jewelry armoire. It is the one I had been looking at for quite a while and had been dropping some hints. After 14 years of marriage - he's finally pretty good a figuring me out! At any rate - it was exactly what I wanted and it's perfect. Saturday afternoon I went to a tea at a British Tea Room in Grand Rapids with my sisters and my mom and it was relaxing and cozy. Bill met me there with the kids and we went to see his mom. In the past we've tried to cram seeing everyone into one day and this year we broke it up. It made me feel like the day was more about me since I am the one that is a current hands-on mom.......in several other years I've felt like it was more about his mom than me. This year he got it right! :)
Today we went to church and then went to my moms for lunch. I literally did not lift a finger! He made a great lunch with the guys, cleaned up, watched the kids, changed Rys diapers,....everything! I felt like a spoiled brat and I loved every minute of it. We came home and he told me to do whatever I wanted. So I took a NAP - what a treat! This evening life returned to normal and I had to start prepping for tomorrow and a return to reality..........bleh.

PATHETIC!

I am the worst gardener ever......I don't even think I should say gardener. I have no clue what I'm doing when it comes to plants. I can distinguish a weed from a flower so all is not lost but overall, I am pathetic. It is an annual tradition for me to kill at least a 1/2-dozen plants. This year, it's our pretty, flowering shrubs (or at least they were) in front of the house. I apparently trimmed them back this fall and now they are 3/4ths dead and look atrocious. At least the landscape company likes me - they are probably anticipating my phone call. I have dozens of books on gardening and still have no clue. Maybe it's like being able to roll your tongue or not.....some people are born with it and some people try and fail over and over again.

I Love A Bargain

Tracy called Holly today about some great deals at Elder-Beerman. As fate would have it, the clothes were in my girls sizes and were marked down extremely low. For me, finding a good deal is like hunting deer is for men - it's my "sport" of choice! So, I told Tracy to be my "personal shopper" and stock up. She called me a few hours later and said she had gotten me $1,100.00 worth of clothes......I braced for the total and about fell over when she said it came to $80something......You have GOT to be freakin' kidding me! That so ROCKS! Man......do I need a life or what?!?!

Time flies.....

Time flies when you're having fun, right? Well, I'm not having all that much fun but time is just zippin' by. I've been trying to get some work done on my Masters Class but am already behind and it's only the 3rd week.......geez!!!! Karissa has come home with gobbs of homework every night this week (aparently she is finding better things to do at school than her work, hence she "gets" to bring it home to finish) so I've been spending time with her instead of working on my class. I am beginning to feel comfortable with the fact that I seem to perform well under pressure in cramming it all in during the last week.....so why fight it? I'll get done, I'm just not sure how well.

Thank God for nice weather!

The kids have been outside non-stop now that nice weather has finally arrived. Tonight they came in and asked if they could play in the sprinkler. That may be pushing it a bit but it is beautiful outside! Karissa is such a tom-boy and she now has discovered worms - much to the disgust of Katie. She "collects" them and puts them in weird jars, brings them into the house, and then cries when they die.....it's a vicious cycle. Katie is still in that in-between stage where she still swings, plays in the sand-box, etc., but as soon as a friend comes over she is suddenly too cool for that! Ryan just loves anything dirty which drives daddy nuts. He loves the sand and pours it on his head and in his shoes. I pick my battles.....at least they clean up easily enough with soap and water. It's just coaxing them inside for the bath that's the tricky part.

"No, No, No!"...with a finger shake!

Ryan told me "No!" for the first time today. Enter Rogaine for me as I will now be pulling out my hair! He was throwing things and I told him "No". He looked right at me and said crystal clear, "No, No, No!" and shook his little finger at me. I cracked up....
I know that is the WRONG response but he was so adorable and even used the right inflection. When I started laughing, he laughed too and said it over and over and over.....Oh No! I've created my own monster and he's a foot and 1/2 high...
He put himself on time out today too. He kept crawling on top of the table while my Preschoolers were trying to eat their snack. After the 3rd time of hauling him down I faced him and said, with the firmest voice I could muster, "You need to listen or I am going to put you on time out". He turned around, sat on the time out chair and smiled the cutest smile......GREAT!!! I can tell right away that time out is going to be REALLLLY effective for him as a discipline method.
Terrible 2's are apparently on their way.....groan.

I am officially an ADDICT!

Hello, my name is Amy and I am a purse addict. The truth is hard to admit!!! OH! MY! GOSH! I have such an addiction and didn't realize how bad it was until this weekend......my friend had a purse party - Coach, Dooney & Burke, Chanel, Dolche and Gabana....etc. I set money aside for quite a while because I knew I wanted to get one. As I have no self control, I walked out with 3. And Holly didn't do her job of reigning me in....she went hog-wild too! We are NOT a good combination shopping! :) I have a serious issue. I have purchased almost 9 purses in the past year and they are all designer .... some real, some knock-off. But, how many purses does one really need?????? Bill's a good sport about it and just shakes his head.....one good thing about having access to my own "crazy" money! It was good fun and I walked out asking my friend when she was going to have another so I can stash more money to "invest"! LOL

A Blur.....

This week has been a blur. Where did it go? Is it really Saturday already?...... I need a vacation from all my running. Bill took Katie and Ryan to a fundraiser this afternoon and I'm taking Karissa to a birthday party, then taking myself purse shopping (one of my addictions), then taking my sister out for dinner for her birthday, then falling into bed exhausted. Then we start all over again tomorrow with church and such. By the way, Sunday is NOT a day of rest in my opinion and we desperately need to fix that! I really need to clone myself....

Spring!

I love Spring.....probably one of my favorite seasons. I like Winter because of Christmas and the Holidays but I HATE cold and snow. Why do I live in Ohio, again? This winter lasted forever. A lot of cold, wind, and snow. I was so glad to have warmer weather - it got up to 60 on Saturday. Baby Ryan got a nasty sunburn but it has now faded to just pink cheeks which is adorable! We couldn't get the kids to come inside and even Ryan threw a fit when we made them venture indoors for meals....it's a nice problem.
It's just teasing us, though.....it's supposed to snow on Saturday. I call it the S-Word - I despise it so much. It's time to move on to warm temps permanently now.
We implemented a new chore system for the girls. We felt it was time to do away with the "free ride" at home and are giving them simple chores to do to help around the house. At first, they felt very persecuted and whined and complained. But once they saw they can earn some fun things - nothing expensive but fun! - they came around. We'll see how it works. So far, nothing has worked very well. Maybe we'll have a breakthrough - I like to think positively!

Today Rocks

It's 5:00 and I have had one of the most relaxing days I've had in a while! Granted, I haven't accomplished anything on my "To Do" list but I have certainly enjoyed my day! Ryan slept in and didn't wake me up until 8 and then he and I played for 45 minutes until the rest of the fam joined us. The girls started begging for cinnamon rolls, so I whipped up a batch.....don't be too impressed - they're from a tube! I worked on laundry, cleaned a few rooms, and got my hair cut at the salon. When I got home, some of our neighbors came over to chat. Our neighborhood is one that looks desolate during the winter but once nice weather shows up.....everyone is out and very friendly. The guys shot hoops for a while and we gals "shared information". (I would never call it gossiping!) The girls started begging for ice cream so we loaded everyone up (including some of their friends) and went to Jolly Dipper. By the time we were done, Ryan was covered in ice cream and I didn't think ahead to take wipes. Oh well, it'll clean. Now the baby is sleeping, Kissa is playing outside with her little buddy, and Katie is watching Hannah Montana....a nice day all around. And can I just say that 60 degrees ROCKS!

How Can Something So Cute Be So Gross....?

Casper came to us by my choice, not Bills. He was so cute and adorable - all white and fluffy - I just had to take him home. I bought him for Karissa's birthday but I completely admit that he was really for me - it was just a guise to get him. I always wanted a cute little Bichon Friese lap dog. Bill likes big dogs and doesn't think Casper qualifies as a member of the species. I love the little guy - he is so good with all the kids and he has a special "gift" that allows children who are scared of animals to relax and enjoy him. He is a great pet......with one DISGUSTING exception. He eats his own crap....that's right - his own CRAP!!! Not just every now and then, not just once a day....it is his staple diet. His breath is atrocious and let's just say that he is a "messy eater" - just use your imagination.....The worst is when he eats it and then comes inside and throws it up.....lovely. He did it again this afternoon. It's typically at that time that Bill will "gently" remind me that he didn't want a dog in the first place. I honestly dry-heave and can barely stand it! It does have it's positives, I suppose - we never have to clean the yard and his food bill is quite low......eeeewwwww!
Bill calls him a "dumb little poop-eater" which is an accurate term, I guess. He is so cute but sometimes I could just........never mind, I don't want any calls from PETA!

Hate is a strong word....

I HATE laundry. I could do 20 loads a day and still be behind. Maybe it reproduces in the laundry room..... My girls are famous for putting clean, folded laundry into their dirty laundry so they don't have to put it away. That about drives me over the edge of sanity every time! I took last weekend"off" to work on the taxes so none of it got finished and I have yet to catch up this week!
I'm enjoying a few hours of a break - Bill took the girls to gymnastics tonight for me! I am sooo glad tomorrow is Friday. I live for my weekends!

I should be doing something else but.....

I totally should be working on my Masters Class right now but my brain is fried and I wouldn't be able to pay attention anyway......blogging doesn't take as much brain power and it's a good excuse to avoid the work! (At least I can be honest with myself about the real reason I'm on!)
I feel like a bad mom. Poor Katie hurt her knee LAST WEEK. I thought she was faking...you know how kids can be! I kept putting her off but noticed yesterday that she really was hobbling along. I took her in today to "call her bluff" thinking that she would back down and not want to go. She has a major injury to her knee caused by gymnastics and she is out of the season for up to 6 months. There is no treatment except rest and avoid making it worse. She is really wanting to continue. I'll take her tomorrow and talk to the coach. I'm hoping she can just focus on bars for now- She absolutely loves it and started crying when the Dr said she would be out the rest of the year......I do feel pathetic that I didn't take her sooner. She can be a bit of a drama queen with injuries.....still, I feel bad!
My sister Holly picked up my kids picts at the store today.....they are beautiful! I was so happy with how they turned out that I WAY overspent my budget. Let's just say that if you spend enough you get the disks and rights "free" - I got 2 disks......yikes! I'm such a sucker for picts - they'll never look exactly like that again, they are so cute, ...... any excuse will do! I'll post them soon - my D-drive is being ridiculous today.
Still don't know how my kids turned out so stinkin' cute. I kiss Ryan so much that I swear he's starting to run from me when he sees me coming. I could literally suck his face right off....not literally, of course :) ! I have to pin Kissa down to kiss her - she's too busy running around. Katie is too cool for kisses now and I have to sneak them in on her. And Bill is petrified of my getting pregnant again so enough said.......that leaves poor Ryan to take them all! He's still too little to have an opinion about mommy loving on him too much. Is that possible - to love them too much? Not in my mind....they grow up too fast.

I'm entering the world of blogging!

This is my first attempt at blogging and it looks like fun! I've been inspired by several friends on Facebook.com who have blog sites. It's a great way to catch up. I'm sure my blog won't hold anything super interesting....just my life as I am living it - which can be quite interesting depending on the day.
I got off work at 5:30 tonight and then had my adorable niece, Brittany over for dinner. She's a "starving" college student at UF and always welcomes a home-cooked meal! After getting the kids into bed, doing dishes, laundry, cleaning the house for work tomorrow....I'm beat! Tomorrow I have a welcomed afternoon off - which isn't a free pass - I have to take Katie to the doctor for her knee that she hurt in gym, get groceries, go to the library, and drop off some books to Karissas school! All must be accomplished between 1 and 4.....uhhhh. I'm tired already.