I Hate Titles!

I do...coming up with a title is worse than writing the blog! I looked at the date I last blogged and could not believe how long since it has been since I wrote anything. Goodness knows I could use some writing therapy! Maybe this will make my eye stop twitching...ha! No really, my left eye has been twitching for about 2 weeks. I actually googled it and causes can be tiredness or stress. So either way I lose! The change in my work schedule means I am always tired, and just the thought of the impending move makes me want to reach for a little brown bag to breathe in.

Yes, since my last blog, we put our house up for sale..sold it in 4 days...then found an AH-MAZING house for ourselves. Seriously...Charles and I had decided if we did not get this house, we would probably move into an apartment and consider buying a lot and building. But that was not to be! This one is so perfect for us. Strange thing is, the only reason we even looked at it was just to kill time while someone else looked at our house. I had seen the pics on the internet, but wasn't really "wowed" by them. When we walked thru it though, Charles and I both had "that feeling"...you know...it had the "it" factor. We couldn't put our finger on it...we just knew this was "our" house. It's kind of like when you know you have met "the one"...the one you are meant to spend the rest of your life with. It's beautiful...and will take many many years to decorate the way we want. That's okay tho...we have the time..I just don't have the patience (or the $$..ha!!) It's only a couple of minutes (literally) from where we are now, so the move should be easy. I just dread the packing...and the unpacking. I was hoping to be able to slip into some sort of coma for a few days and wake up and it all be done...yeah...right......where is that little brown bag again?

So that's what's going on for us. The kids are sooooo excited! The boys are looking forward to having their own room...I'm looking forward to the big kitchen and reclaiming an actual master bath...and the closet space! Charles is pumped about having a 3rd car garage...and we are all looking forward to the new friends to be made! I hear the cove is full of kiddos, so lots of playmates for everyone!

Oh~and let's not forget the most important event coming up.....the LAST DAY OF SCHOOL! Seriously, I don't know who is looking forward to it more, me or the boys! No schedules, no tests, no forms to fill out, no lunches to make, no backpacks, no uniforms....aaah! I've been looking forward to this since spring break....2 months of bliss (well -- for the most part -- until the fighting begins! :-)

Frazzled!

Ha! Yeah -- that pretty much describes my life on an erveryday basis, but you know, I am pretty used to it by now. I was just looking at my blog and realized here it is, almost the middle of April, and I have not blogged even once this month. Goodness knows, I should have...that would relieve plenty of stress! Let me just throw out a few things to catch up on the last few weeks...



- Josh has started baseball. He loves it, and appears to be pretty good at it! He has practice on Mondays and then Charles has to get him to karate. Makes for a stressful afternoon for Charles..poor guy! Add to that the Mondays when I am working, and then it s even more stressful for him. :-( Sometimes I think there are more disadvantages than advantages to my schedule, but what do you do? At least I have a job...



- Allergies....'nuf said! I need to invest in an antihistamine company!



- Because of said allergies, Sarah has been BACK to the dr. for her recurrent croup -- got a cxr (which was normal) - and still tends to "bark" periodically. I am taking it upon myself to diagnose her croup due to allergies. She's okay though -- I am blessed to have healthy kids! I'm not going to stress over some sniffs and drips!



- We had a visitor at our house a couple of weeks ago....a little bird got in thru the back door going into the garage! Fortunately, Josh was not home at the time or we would have had to do CPR on him...he would have totally freaked! My poor mom was trying to heard the girls out so she could take them to her house to meet an inspector. Thank goodness she managed to get him out with no incident (like pooping!)



- Same day -- while the girls were at my mom's -- Ava somehow figured out how to call 911. At least they called back before they sent the calvary out to her house!



- Finally, we now have a "For Sale" sign in our yard! I'm still in shock! It would be great if it sold quickly. People think we are crazy for selling our house. Umm, have you counted how many people actually live there? We do like our house -- it isn't personal -- we just need more room! The boys are busting out of their room, and quite frankly - they each need their own. They are the epitome of "The Odd Couple", and have now reached the age where I think they would like each other more if they each had their own space. On the other hand, I plan on keeping the girls together as long as they want to share a room. They love to giggle and play, and when it comes to sleeping, they sleep like puppies -- all over each other! I NEED a master bath -- a retreat -- a room for me where I can lock the door! Yes - I admit I am being selfish, but I don't think that is much to ask. Six people require S-P-A-C-E ! Oh well - time will tell! I'm so very proud of my husband for working so hard to get the house ready!

I guess hat sums it up -- for now! Stayed tuned for more excitement! :-)

What Was I Just Thinking About?

I am getting so old....or my kids have sucked every functioning brain cell out of my head! I had a great topic to blog about and for the life of me I have forgotten what it was! Whatever it was had pushed its way all the way past the other potential blog topics into the number 1 spot...and now I can't even remember what it was! AAAAAGGHHH! That is so frustrating....I've tried to re-trace my thoughts but that hasn't helped either. I'm telling you -- it's those lovely children of mine! Let's see....I do remember reading an awesome blog on marriage by "MckMama" (see the blog list on the right!).....it was so amazing I was just going to post the link and let you read it yourself...then I am sure one of my kids did something to deserve an entry. I'm just a total blank!

Well, I guess if I'm here, I might as well blog about something. It's going to be stream of randomness, so just bear with me! Let's see.....we have "sort of" started potty training with Ava. She is just not getting it. I need to have everyone else move out of the house for a couple of days so it can just be me and her, but that isn't going to happen. My work schedule is so crazy that I don't have enough days off in a row where we can just stay home and focus on this (and my job? -- that deserves another post -- but can't do it here -- those thoughts are best kept to myself, so just pray that an amazing miracle happens to rectify that situation!) Like Sarah, it will "click" for her eventually....and I cannot wait! Then we will be diaper-free! Woohoo! Yea for small victories! (Small victories that add up to big $$$!)

Hmmm....what else is going on...there is always something! Life is just it's normal crazy self at our house...karate....baseball...we go in different directions most days - and the girls have not even started any extra sports or activities yet!

I STILL can't think of what it was I wanted to blog about...maybe about my dislike for change...how frustrating life can be sometimes...how much I love my kiddos and how fast they are growing up...I don't know. If it comes back to me, I'll let you know! Enjoy this beautiful Saturday!

Over Already?

Man -- spring break came and went faster than I could blink! Where did the time go? it ws sooo nice to not have to make lunches or worry about homework or backpacks...summer just can't come fast enough! We did plenty of stuff...but not like REALLY fun stuff. The two days the weather was nice, I had to work..but the kiddos played outside, so they were still happy. We had dentist appointments (still no cavities..woohoo!), ate at Perkins TWICE (the boys could eat there every meal I think!), and they had play practice every night from 6-9. Tonight (Tuesday), is their first night at home in I don't know how long...they just don't know what to do! They were bummed after Sunday's performance because they won't see their new friends on a regular basis. :-( That's okay...we got phone numbers, so we can keep in touch! At Sunday's performance, they presented Josh with what you see here....

Josh was the "Featured Artist" for "Dear Edwina"...meaning his artwork was used for all posters, tickets, flyers, etc. Leanne (the president of New Day Theatre), had a flyer and ticket framed and had all the cast sign...isn't it precious? They had such a good time...and most importantly, made some new friends along the way. Josh is really excited because this summer they are doing two sessions of "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" workshops. He just looooves that series! The movie can't come out fast enough!

So -- that was our week in a nutshell...hope you guys have/had a great spring break!

My Josh

So -- this is my Josh. Hard to believe he is 8 1/2 now. Seems like only yesterday he looked like this.....

I don't know about you, but I see a whole lot of Ava in that picture! He was 4..playing soccer for the first time. Everyone else would be running down the field after the ball, and he was in his own little world...just jogging behind...waving as he went by! He really is so cute - even if he is mine!

Sometimes I think Josh gets the short end of the stick...he isn't the oldest....isn't the youngest...isn't the first girl...you get the idea. He's a special little guy. (I forgot - he isn't so little anymore!) Of course, all my kids are - but each in their own way. Josh loves video games...and candy...and video games...and candy...and video games...and candy. Well, he does like other stuff too - like reading, playing baseball and basketball (a newfound interest), drawing cartoons, watching movies, and aggravating his siblings. He makes me laugh, and on occasion, he makes me want to pull my hair out. He is a blue belt in karate. His drawing won as the poster for the play he and Zachary are going to be in in a couple of weeks. (The play is "Dear Edwina" at Harrell Theatre March 12-15....shameless plug!) He is a scatterbrain (how many times has he lost his wallet?) He can go to sleep at night with the blanket and sheet covering him, and by the next morning the sheet is shoved all the way down to the foot of the bed and he is wrapped up in the comforter like a sausage. He loves jokes, has an INTENSE fear of storms (no exaggerating there!), and an equally intense imagination. He has a fierce temper, and an amazing ability to feel deeply. He has a sensitive little spirit that makes him cry if you look at him wrong. He most definitely wears his heart on his sleeve. His glass is always half-full. We learned quickly that grounding him or taking things away from him does not work as an effective form of punishment because he would just say, "Oh well, that's okay. I'll just (insert new interest of choice here) instead." He is such a joy to hang out with one-on-one.....not that that happens very much, but I treasure it when it does. I sure do love him...he's my favorite Josh!

Get Out Your Hard Hats!

Yeah - just a quick blurb to let you know I have been playing around with the layout and background of my blog and after over a YEAR I have FINALLY figured out what I have been doing wrong. It was simply a matter of changing my original template. I know that info just made your day, but in the meantime I want to apololgize to my friend Jen because we now have the same background, but I promise to change mine ASAP. I was doodling around with this at work, then got busy, and now it is time to go home -- which takes priority over blog changes. I'm excited about what I can now do...woo hoo! This site is now under construction! :-)

New Stuff

I can't believe I have gone this long without posting. I just don't know where the time goes! Everyone is doing great -- the boys are worn out between karate, play practice, and - oh yeah - school! Josh is having video game withdrawls. Their schedule is wearing us out too...I think I will be glad when this play is over. They are having lots of fun and are enjoying making new friends, but I think they will be glad for a break! The girls are their normal silly selves. They have started this new thing at home where they play "grocery store". Sarah is in the kitchen and Ava comes through with their little grocery cart and Sarah says, "Well hello! Come on in! How are you today?" They are so funny...so dramatic...I am in trouble when the teenage years hit! (How many times have I said that??)

So what did you do for Valentine's Day? Yeah - I know - it has been almost a week, so you might have already forgotten! Personally, I had a great one. Charles and I had a late dinner Friday night at Houston's. Saturday we slept in since the kiddos were gone (that was SOOOOO NIIIIICE!! Seriously! If you are able to sleep past 7:00 on Saturday mornings, consider yourself very fortunate!!), took the boys to play practice, ate lunch at El Porton (what??? 2 meals just the 2 of us? how did THAT happen?), ran errands, picked up all of said children and then headed to our friend's house for a fondu dinner. That was wonderful! She had a chocolate fountain for dessert and Josh discovered carrots weren't so bad when covered in chocolate. I think I will take his word on that one. On Sunday, the kiddos and hubby gave me a wonderful present - 2 heart charms for the Chamilia bracelet they bought me for Christmas. Now I have 3!

We went to church Sunday morning and Pastor spoke about marriage (duh!), but he did bring up one point that I thought was very interesting - and very true. Courtship. He said less marriages would end up in court if there was more courtship in marriage. He said we should have at least 2 ideas of ways we can "court" our spouse over the next 40 days. That is a very good point - especially for those marriages like ours that get so caught up in the logistics of just getting thru the day that you forget to take time to show your spouse why you treasure him/her. Women love the "little things" and the guys like to know they are thought of too (but are less likely to admit it!) There is a marriage blog I follow (you can find it to the left on my side bar), and she also has had some very good points to make (to the wives) about respecting your husband - and lots of other good nuggets! I'm not going to go into it here, but I encourage you to check it out. I've been "gently reminded" of some things that I have forgotten in regards to my relationship with my husband. Yes, our lives are crazy (have I said that already?) After all, we have been married for 13+ years you know! Romance/courtship is so easy when you are dating. That is all you think about, "What can I do to show him how much I love him? To let him know how important he is to me? That I think about him constantly?" Remember those days? You get married, have kids, and then the best you can do is make sure the cap is on the toothpaste. Sometimes I need to just take a step back and look at things (him) from a fresh perspective. I have ordered a book (and for the life of me I can't remember the name...so I will have to get back to you on that!) at the suggestion of my friend Jen's blog, which I am anxious to start reading. It is about nurturing your husband. I will have to keep you updated as to how it goes. It might take me while to get thru it, but I am going to do it!

Anyway -- that is all that is happening in these parts! I am so ready for spring and warm (even hot!) weather, swimming pools, flip flops, capris, t-shirts and shorts (from a laundry perspective!), long days, riding in the car with the windows down, and lots and lots of sunshine. Please feel free to remind me of this in August when it is 150 degress outside and we are sweating in the shower. For now however, I do believe I am starting to see a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. Yesterday's 60 degree weather was enough to give me a taste!! C'mon spring!