Honesty Award

I want to thank FireFly Shop for giving me this awesome award! I think it is so cool!

Here are the rules that you agree to when you accept this award:

“When you receive the prize, you must write a post showing it, together with the name of who has given it to you, and link them back. Choose a minimum of 7 blogs that you find brilliant in their content or design. Show their names and links and leave them a comment informing that they were prized with ‘Honest Weblog’. List if you can and/or dare at least ten honest things about yourself. Then, pass it on!”

So my honest ten things are:

1. I am a disorganized person.
2. I have the WORST memory ever! Even my son has realized this lately! He tells me "You'll forget!"
3. If I don't drink enough coffee through out the day, I get a headache.
   
4. I LOVE Dr. Phil. I may have a secret crush on him. I know, strange.
   
5. My 13 year old drives me insane. For some reason I have less patience with her than the other kids, but I don't love her any less. We just butt heads a lot.
   
6. I LOVE staying at home with my kids. I used to work, but feel I was meant to be a Stay at Home Mom. I think God every day I am able to.
   
7. I DO NOT want to have anymore kids. I have not one urge to have another.
   
8. I love cooking and trying new recipes.
   
9. I am super excited to leave for Florida Sunday with only 2 kids. It is so stressful trying to entertain 4 kids at my in laws.
   
10. I wished I lived in a warmer climate. Although I love being near my family, I think I would be ok if I moved somewhere warmer, like South Carolina.
    

Now to pick my seven blogs, and pass this Honest Award to them:

1. Live Well, Laugh Often

2. Not your Typical Mommy

3. Laughter by the Lakeside

4. Welcome to Our World

5. Life with Boys

6. Life is Not Final

7. The Life and Times of Tanya Rocks

I am headed to Florida!

WAHOO! I am leaving Sunday morning.

Poor Tommy's asthma is kicking in again. He has been coughing for days. Coughed all night last night. I mentioned to Chris that I should take him to his parents place (they have a 2nd home there) for a while to give his little lungs a rest. He said "OK!" I was shocked!

Just Katie, Tommy and I are leaving Sun-Fri. Chris will stay here with the big girls. They actually didn't care we were going.

We will be 40 minutes from Orlando. Tommy wants to go to his favorite place in the world...Sea World. I think that will be the only place we will go in Orlando. I want to just sit by the pool and head to the beach.

Hopefully the weather will do him good. Last year it did!

100th Post!!!!

Wow, my 100th post! Come celebrate with me! In honor if it, I am having family over and serving a huge turkey dinner. Well, ok, it is really Thanksgiving dinner, but I will call it my celebration!

I saw someone write down what they have learned about blogging in their 100th post, so I am going to do the same!

1. 3 Column blogs are easier to organize.

2. Check out Secret's in the Sauce and become part of the blog group. You "meet" many Bloggers. You Blogging life will never be the same!

3. Share funny stories.

4. People like pictures. I am a picture whore......It is my favorite way to share.

5. Comment on other blogs. It gets people motivate to keep going.

6. If you like Blogs, keep them as favorites. If you don't, you may forget them!

7. Don't use your blog to be mean or say hurtful things about others. You never know who is reading! **Although I love razzing on Ms. Nancy, I am thinking she knows nothing about me or my blog**

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving. Eat and enjoy your day with family!

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

I never thought I would see gas under $2.00!!!

More of Tommy

I am just in love with his new glasses. He was getting school pictures taken so I snapped these before hand.



Him and his BFF, Aidan

Christmas anyone?

I am getting in the holiday spirit. The past few years, for some reason, I haven't felt "into it". Maybe because all the kids are older now and can enjoy it?

It is just after 9:00 am and I have already been in the attic to bring my decorations down.

I am hosting Thanksgiving dinner, so I want to have my village up. But I am debating......do I put more decorations up? Will I get sick of seeing them up after a few weeks if I do? What should I do?

My Little Stud with His Glasses!

Here is my sweet boy with his new glasses. I think he looks adorable.

When we went a got them tonight he looked in the mirror and said "Man, I look good!" I love the confidence!

Let's hope this is the end of his headaches!

Girls Night Out.......well, early night out!

Isn't is amazing how a girls night out changes when you are in your 30's and have kids? I went out with a few friends. We met at 5:30 and I was home by 9:00! The kicker........9:00 was actually late! I am usually in my jammies getting ready for bed!

When I was in my 20's I would go out and not come home until late. Even if I had to go to work the next morning. I mean, I sat at a desk, if I was tired and had a hangover it was ok.

Not anymore! If I have to wake up at 6:00 to 4 kids, I do not want to be tired or hungover!

Me and a few friends went for dinner and martini's at our favorite local place.

Here we are toasting the night!


The sisters decided to start a photo shoot using the table center piece!

While in the middle of snapping pictures, a woman (who was obviously thought we were crazy!) came over and asked if we wanted her to take a group shot. It turns out she is someone I knew from the gym, 11 years ago!

And yes....one to many Martini's later, I think we should call it a night!

Snazzy Blog Award!

Another fellow Blogger, Suz, gave me this award. I feel very honored! **Thanks! I love reading your blog!**
Here is the write up with it:
"This blog invests and believes the PROXIMITY - nearness in space, time and relationships! These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers! Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award."

Isn't that awesome? I am supposed to pass this on to some Snazzy blogs I love and spread some Bloggy Lovin!

I bestow this award to: (drum roll please!)

Life and Times of TanyaRocks
London's Calling
Life Is Not Final
Keeper of the Cheerios
Life as a Mom at 21
Blah, Blah, Blog

Please go over and show these ladies some Bloggy Lovin!

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

Tommy wrote this on the door this morning. It is his name, then he was sounding out "Written by" which he wrote as "RANBI" hahaha!

Twilight Trap

Has anyone else fallen into the Twilight trap too? I started reading it because I kept seeing all this talk about it. I LOVE them! I am just about finished with book #4. **shhh...no one give the ending away**

I did not realize they were written for teenagers. I was reading the back of book #1 when it said something like "TEEN PEOPLE VOTES IT BEST BOOK!" umm....Teen People said that?
Then my 15 year old said "Mom, you are reading Twilight?" with a puzzled look on her face. I am happy that I am not alone and there are others out there like me. I am SUPER excited for the movie to come out this week! **Anyone want to come see it with me?**

Anyways, they are the best. And if you are addicted like me go hit Sunshine and Lemonade blog for the ULTIMATE Twilight giveaway. Chocolate, magazine, calendar and more! I am hoping I am on a winning streak and she will pick my name!

The result....glasses!

We just got back from the Ophthalmologist. Tommy will need to wear glasses all the time. He has 20/50 vision, lazy eye (in both eyes) and Astigmatism. He is also color blind! This is a far cry from what the Optometrists said last year.

I am hoping this will cure the headaches he is getting. It is such a sigh of relief that it is glasses and not something more serious.

Thank you for all your kind words everyone! I can't wait to see his little face in them.

Tommy's Headaches

I am not sure if I have mentioned it here before, but Tommy has been to doctors and had tests to see what is causing his headaches. 5 year olds shouldn't be getting headaches. One of them (the scariest) happened when we went on a date together. You can read it here. That was the one that made up snap our eyes open.

Since then, he has had an MRI. Thankfully it came back clear. Little by little we are trying to figure out why he is getting them now.

He has asthma and since he is sick all winter long, they have put him on Flovent. Which is a maintenance inhaler everyday. He has not had one headache since being on it. Hmmmmm......

Today we are getting his eyes looked at. He has complained about his eyes. He flunked the eye exam last year. We went to an Optometrist who said he may need glasses before he hits Kindergarten. 2 weeks ago, Tommy said to me "Mom, I think I need to see the DR again. Sometimes I can't see good and my eyes feel funny." So today we are going to see a Pediatric Ophthalmologist. I had no idea there were 2 different kinds of eye Dr's. The Ophthalmologist has a medical degree, a Optometrist doesn't. **that is your lesson for the day!**

We will see what today brings. If it is glasses he needs and that is the cause, I will be so happy. It is so frustrating to see your child go through all this and not have the answer.

LOOK WHAT I WON!

I am so super excited! I won this awesome dress from All Things Ribbon. Isn't it so pretty? Check her site out. She has such gorgeous stuff for little girls!
She was doing a giveaway at the best blog central site Secret is in the Sauce SITS is the best place where Bloggers come together. Go see for yourself!

Rock Star!

Tommy is my new Rock Star.




And because he is so famous, *tee hee* Katie needs to disguise herself from all the Paparazzi!
He LOVES the new song from Pink. I think it is so funny listening him trying to keep up with the song.

We are ditching the idea!

No more potty training here. She just isn't ready. It isn't worth her being scared. She is only 2 1/2. She won't got to Kindergarten diapers. (Hopefully!) So we will try again after the holiday.

I also am keeping her with a sippy cup. Tommy is done, he is old enough. But Katie just isn't ready. All I did was clean up spills. ALL THE TIME. Once in a while she would do good. I am giving her a "Big Girl" cup at dinner and work slowly to the full thing.

I am about to give up.........

She does NOT like to use the potty. I don't know what to do. Maybe she isn't fully ready? My others were so easy, but I knew they were ready.

She now says "scared" whenever we talk about it. Yes, before it was "ROAR" she now learned the word "scared" to talk about the potty.

She does not care if she pees herself. She will wear undies at home, but could care less if she has an accident.

She doesn't care if she gets M&M's anymore.

She is 2 1/2, it isn't like she is 4 and needs to be trained.

I need some sort of support group.

NO MORE SIPPIES!

Seeing we are potty training, I thought I would torture myself even more and get rid of sippy cups. Tommy uses a straw cup and Katie a sippy.

I hate them

I hate cleaning them

I hate finding them in places they shouldn't be (especially a few days later with milk in them!)

So from now on NO MORE SIPPIES!

I Love Mondays!

Yup, you heard me! I love Mondays! I get my life back.

Big kids are off to school at 7am.

Tommy has school in the afternoon.

Husband left for work at 7:00.

I can sit and read my emails, blogs and news without feeling guilty.

Ahhh..............

GGRRRRR..............

She just wanted the stinken doll. She has peed 2 times in her pants since then. **ripping hair out**

Oh No She Didn't!

All weekend we struggled getting Katie "go" on the potty. No luck.

This afternoon I told her she could get a new baby if she peed on the potty. She was excited. When she napped I went to Target and picked one up. She was awake when I got home. I excitedly showed her the baby.

Right away she said "Go potty!"

I say "OK, but you have to let your pee out on the potty to get the baby" I am thinking the baby will be sitting on the counter torturing her for days!

What does she do? She sits on it and PEES! she immediately says "NEW BABY!"

So CONGRATULATIONS to my last born. It was bittersweet.

DAY 2

Day 2 of potty training.

Chris let me sleep in this morning. I gave him instructions that when Kate woke up he was to immediately take off her diaper and put her on the potty. She will pee within 10 minutes of being up. Apparently he tried and she screamed. He said it wasn't worth the battle at 6:00 AM. So I got up at 8:00 (Yes, I slept until then! Awesome!) to her in a "Soggy Doggy" diaper. She was totally fine when I asked her to take it off.

Yesterday she sat, and sat, and sat some more. Not doing anything on the potty. But, she did sit. I know it was all for that 1 M&M she gets.


We even tried the buddy system!

She even took her animals to sit on it. Then asked for an M&M for them. I quickly caught on to this game. She realized if she gave them one, she could eat it.


I am not stepping up my "A" game. I am headed out to Target to buy a prize to use if she goes.
I will let her see it, feel, touch it......she will not get it unless she pees! Torture Tactics? Probably.....maybe it will work!

It Is Going.....Sorta

She has yet to "use" the potty. But she is sitting on it without being scared. That is a huge step forward.

M&M's are a big helper. She gets one (I know, it isn't much!) every time she sits on it.
She will sit on it every time we ask her to. Which is about every 15-30 minutes. But it is so she can have an M&M.

Isn't she cute as ever? Baby is trying out the potty! She even got an M&M!


Stay Tuned!

And So It Begins!

OPERATION POTTY TRAINING is in full swing. She was not a happy camper when I took off her diaper and had her put underwear on this morning.

Here she is crying "DIAPER" trying to get one. What you don't see is the puddle that formed under her feet while crying.

Operation Potty Training!

We are kicking it up into high gear this weekend. You think after 3 kids, #4 would be a breeze.

It is not.

I am afraid.

I hate potty training.

Chris and I have decided we are doing it "for real" this weekend. Katie tells us every time she needs to be changed. Hmmmm...I think that is a sure sign.

She just will NOT go near her potty, she says "ROAR" which means she is scared. She even picked it out!

Well no more Mrs. Nice Guy! It is all or nothing this weekend! Please pray for us! =)

Wordless Wednesday- Semi

My children hiding from Ms. Nancy. We saw her at the mall again. This time she added a splash of color to her skirt.

3 Republicans + 1 Democrat = TROUBLE!

I have a very close circle of girlfriends. All our husbands are friends, a few grew up together. This is how we have come together and became SUPER friends for many years.

We had a Mom's Night out Saturday. Margaret (in good fun) was trying to tell us her little Obama speech and like to say how Palin is the devil in disguise. So we decided to have fun with her.

Last night, on the eve of the Election, we went and "McCain'd" her car. **tee hee hee**
We taped pictures on her windows and also wrote, with window marker, things like "Palin is my BFF" & "I love John"

The start of the mission. We taped them to us so we could get in and out of there.



MISSION COMPLETE!


She was such a good sport. She emailed us already today. Thank goodness her husband is a cop in our town. He knew we were doing it!

Hey guys-

Vandals trashed my car last night. I have reported the crime to police but so far they don't have any leads. Tell everyone you know in *** to be careful and watch out for suspicious activity.

Check out the damage.

Isn't she so lucky to have friends like us?

Happy Anniversary!

Today is my 4th wedding anniversary! I joke to Chris that is took him 7 years and 1 child to marry me.

We married at the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas. I have always wanted to go there and the girls were excited to go somewhere that Mary Kate and Ashley made a movie! Here they are, as they put it, sitting in the exact same spot the Olsen Twins were! They were SUPER excited!

When we arrived we went to our room. I looked out the window and all I saw was a brick wall and the hotel employees going in and out a side door. I was crushed. It was not what I had envisioned. I went to the front desk bawling my eyes out. It also helped that I was so tired from flying with the kids, taking 2 different flights and we had to left Boston early that morning.
After trying to plead with them to change my room, while sobbing telling them I was getting married on their property in 2 days, they agreed and moved us to the classier part of the hotel! You know the infamous arches of the hotel that you see in the advertisements? Yup, that is where they put us! This was the view from our balcony! It was breathtaking.
We got married a few days later. It was a small gathering. Just us, the kids and some family. The girls were 9 and 11, Tommy was 1. My parents, Chris's parents, my sister Tracey and his parents good friends came.

Here I am just about ready to head down! Budweiser and all!
Walking down the "Isle"



Exchanging of the rings

A special part of the ceremony was when we gave each girl a necklace. I really wanted them to feel like they were special and that not only was Chris making a commitment to me, but to them also. They were both VERY surprised. Sam started crying the second she realized what was going on.
Chris, being their new Step Dad, made the presentation. He told them how much he loved them and me. How he was excited to officially become part of us. Then he put the necklace on each girl. That man won over my heart once again after that. It was beautiful.


Our happy family!
This is everyone at the wedding.

I love my husband more and more each day. I can't wait to spend many more years to come!

Since I Got a Great Compliment.......

Since telling Chris I was a "Rockin Hot Chick," Tommy and I went to the bookstore and into Starbucks. He was treated to a chocolate cupcake!

See, it pays to compliment Momma, even if you are only 5!

The Ultimate Compliment!

My 5 year old son just told his Daddy that "Mom is a Rockin Hot Chick!"

It doesn't get any better than that!

Halloweenie (as Tommy calls it!)

We had a great time Trick Or Treating. We go every year with our friends. This year we hit our neighborhood.

Daddy packed a bag full of beers and loaded the wagon up!

There are no pictures of the big kids. Sam had a football game to cheer at and Casey wouldn't be caught dead with us.


Katie was trying, as always, to copy her brother.


Katie and her buddy, Julia.

Tommy and his BFF, Aidan.



Lauren got tired.........I have no idea where Julia is, who should be riding in the stroller!

Ash made the crayon costumes. They came out great. She made Jason wear it. He was such a good sport (with the promise he was "getting some" later)

Before you ask, yes, he wore it all through the neighborhood!