My Random Life

Three Little Pigs

2010-02-07T04:11:00.000-08:00

Aspen is definitely doing better today :) We were able to leave for Chicago right after breakfast this morning. She is pretty disappointed about her "little chef" party though. I guess she was under the impression that she would be able to have it once she was feeling better. I HATE it when my little ones are disappointed :(Our first stop upon arrival was Shedd Aquarium. They changed the dolphin show a bit and none of us really cared for it...the old one was way better me thinks. The visit was good, but we pretty much went to kill time before the play we were going to see. I got us tickets to "The Three Little Pigs" at Emerald City Theatre. Thought maybe we could start a new tradition together...seeing plays. Mayyyybe, Aspen can really get "into it" and it can lead us to NYC for broadway hits when she gets older. I dunno, would just like to make a good sturdy "foundation" for future interaction.
The play was cute, VERY low scale, but cute. Thankfully, it was fast paced so it was able to hold Aspen's attention the entire time. What four year old doesn't love hearing, "Little pig, little pig...LET ME IN?" She enjoyed getting all their autographs afterwards as well.From there, we grabbed lunch at CPK (one of MY favorites), hit up the Hello Kitty store, and the Lego Store. Aspen still doesn't have much of an appetite, but she is in GREAT spirits. In fact, she has so much energy that we took her to the pool this evening. I made my big "sacrifice" this evening as well. I REALLY wanted watch New Moon, but there was no talking her out of The Princess and the Frog.

I'm really glad I decided to bring Grandma along with us. It's like a flashback for me...I have some pretty vivid memories of spending time with my grandma and Aunt Darlene. I remember feeling so "special"...it means so much to give Aspen the same memories. I admit that I don't always like "sharing" my daughter...especially during moments like these. I want her FULL attention. BUT, it's about Aspen...and she LOVES her great-grandma so much...probably her second favorite woman in the world. I remember loving my grandma that much...

A Very "UN"birthday

2010-02-06T20:07:00.000-08:00

Leave it to Aspen to get sick on her birthday. Well, her birthday is not actually until Monday, but she was celebrating it with her friends today. And I thought being sick on Christmas was bad (Nicholas was sick on Christmas day two years in a row).
Thankfully, the first part of the day WAS a success. She had a little party at Sugar and Spice with a couple of her best girlfriends: Caitlin, Avalin, and Holland. They were so cute all dolled up. The four of them were all smiles. She appeared fine the whole time. However, I should have known something was up when she did NOT want to eat her cupcake :).

~Aspen~

~Avalin~

~Holland~

~Caitlin~

I think she considers Caitlin her BEST friend. She talks about her the most.

They made their own lotions.

We had some time to kill before her next party so I decided to run a quick errand. She started complaining that her belly really hurt. I can tell when it’s “real” because she gets all whiney and flushed…and she was experiencing both…IN the car. We were very close to Center Ice so I pulled in and we ran inside to the bathroom. She did NOT puke and even said she was feeling better. She REALLY wanted to go to her other party. I grabbed a beer bucket just in case.

She appeared fine until we pulled into the parking lot of Little Chefs. Right then it hit her and she puked all over herself and the back seat :(. I felt so bad for her AND all of her friends. The party was starting in ten minutes…everyone was either there or in route already. Most of the parents were so thoughtful and understanding. They even said I could just clean her up and still celebrate…I think everyone felt bad for her. However, she was such a mess and stunk so bad AND already fast asleep. So, I gathered up all her presents and brought her home.

I guess that party just wasn’t meant to be. I planned it last minute anyways, out of pure guilt that the boys were not going to get to celebrate Aspen’s birthday with her…they were so disappointed when I told them she was only having a “girl” party. My grandma, Aspen, and I were supposed to leave for Chicago this evening to celebrate Aspen’s special day at American Girl Doll. Guess that will have to wait until tomorrow…if she is feeling better.

She seems to be doing better after the little nap in the car and a nice warm bath. She even opened her presents. She still does not want to eat anything though…that is always a bad sign :(. I guess it kind of worked out that we stayed home this evening. Marc ended up being on a very long AND important business call. I am sure it helped that I was able to deal with the boys for him. I was also able get all her thank you cards all filled out. Keeping our fingers crossed that she makes it through the night and we can head out first thing in the morning. Nicholas was so sweet and patient with her today :) He even read her birthday cards to her.

Adios Scale

2010-02-04T16:06:00.000-08:00

So, as of tomorrow we will be lizard free. Scale is going to have a new home with a friend of a friend.
I had a “sit down” with Blake on Monday evening and he actually agreed with me that, at seven years old, he is just not responsible enough to have his “own” pet. I think he’s honestly just tired of me nagging at him EVERY DAY to change the water and take care of “his” pet.

But, that’s the deal WE made. He swore that he would do ALL of the work and I swore that I wouldn’t do ANY. I explained to him last year that I did NOT want any more responsibility than I already have…that has not changed.

So, Blake has agreed to give Scale a new home and probably a better life. He hasn’t even been hanging out with him much ever since we got Jasmine. I don’t really know if he learned a valuable lesson from all this though…he’s already asking me when he can try again. Now he wants a snake lol. Hmmm, thirteen sounds like a good number ;)~.

Where the Heart Is?

2010-02-01T11:00:00.001-08:00

They say home is where the heart is, but although my heart is in Michigan, Las Vegas will ALWAYS be home ;). Sometimes I REALLY wish I lived closer to my family. I hate missing out on all of the family gatherings.
Well, I guess with life size photos we are kind of there :)

I CAN'T think of another family that is as "open" as we are...or has as much fun together as we do ;)

These are from Marc's 30th birthday party - Sept. 2007. I'm STILL impressed with what an amazing job I did. Kind of makes up for the fact that I was COMPLETELY trashed and in the tub puking by midnight...ohhhh good times ;)~

These are from our 5 year anniversary cruise Oct. 2008. I REALLY miss my friends too :(. I have really tried to find some good ones in Michigan (I've succeeded somewhat), but I just can't seem to form the same relationships that I have here. I dunno, I think people from home are more open...

We were able to have great visits with everyone :). We ended up staying with Shanna and Brian and enjoyed being lazy with them for most of the weekend. We had lunch and played mini golf with Grandpa and Linell. Shanna, Brian, Marc, and I went out to dinner with Hazel and Jessica to celebrate her 30th birthday. We got to visit with Uncle Eddie and Aunt Jen over at Grandma’s last night (she made my favorite roast beef dinner :). Grandpa and Linell spoiled the kids with Kisses AND books ;)

Grandma Owen and Aspen at Stingray City - Oct. 2008We met my mom’s new girlfriend. She’s a few years younger than me (that’s weird), but she seems nice…quiet though :). We took them to the Excalibur Show. Although my mom seems to be the happiest she has been in a long time, I am very worried about her. We dropped the kids off to her the night we went out for Jessica’s birthday and I got so upset that I cried. Her current lifestyle reminds me of how things were when I was growing up…I hate seeing her back track :(. I have NEVER “NOT” wanted to leave my kids at her house. I hope Jessica (her girlfriend) puts her foot down and makes my mom get her shit together. It’s pointless for me to tell her, she never listens to me…

Flying with three is cake now…how could I have even considered starting over ;). The kids have the routine down. It was a little rough getting them to stay up for the red eye last night though (because of the three-hour time difference). I think they were eager to crash on the plane, which they did instantly. That’s the easy part, it’s getting home at 8AM and making them go back to sleep for a few hours. But, they always do for me :). I set the alarm at 11 and got the boys up and off to school after lunch.

I think I have decided that I just LOVE chaos. A nice, smooth path just does NOT do it for me… I dunno, that’s just me analyzing myself. I just seem to get bored too easily when things are easy and comfortable. When “I” get bored, problems arise. It’s not really the “chaos” that is important, I think it’s the surviving it that gives me the thrill. Maybe that is why I LOVE to travel so much…it helps me escape the ordinary.

This picture was taken on Marc and I's 5 year reunion cruise...it's a mix of his family and mine. They all mesh well together ;).

Mr. Speedy

2010-01-28T11:58:00.000-08:00

What a long and busy day. We are sitting on a plane heading to Las Vegas right now. I am very excited to go “home” :). We haven’t been back since November 2008. Last year was just such a busy travel year for us and honestly, I just didn’t make it a priority. It’s not that I don’t miss my family or anything, but there are just so many places I would rather go then there. It’s just different now that we don’t have a house out there. Everyone still works, and it’s hard squeezing everyone into three days.

BUT, being with Shanna on my birthday made me realize that I need to make it a priority…if anything, for my kids. My family is so amazing (mom’s side at least) that I just HAVE to make my kids have more involvement with them. My grandpa and Linell are so good with them, and honestly, he is really the only “grandpa” they have. Yes, Marc’s dad is only an hour away, but my grandpa genuinely LOVES spending time with my kids and I just love that MORE THAN ANYTHING.

So, we attended the boys school conferences this morning. They are both doing awesome. They are both about a year ahead in reading levels. Thank goodness for great teachers, because it sure has nothing to do with me. Well, I AM pretty book smart ;).

I am so proud of Blake…his teacher said he has really stepped it up. She has even nicknamed him Mr. Speedy. For those of you that don’t know him very well, Blake can be VERY lackadaisical. If it is something he DOESN’T care to do, it can take a very long time to get done. It drove his teacher nuts last year too. But, Mrs. C says that he is probably just a “slow processor” and that it may always be that way. She is very patient with him :). I like my theory more…he simply has a bad case of “I don’t give a shit attitude.”

She also described him as a loner…that made me sad :(. She said that he would rather watch than participate during free time and at recess. I was that way as a kid and it SUCKED…I would LOVE my kids to NOT be like that. What’s weird is he DOES have lots of friends (whereas I did NOT in elementary school). BUT, he does NOT seem to mind it. His teacher said she would not describe him as insecure or anything (I most definitely WAS). I hope that doesn’t change for him. He is the shortest boy in his class (some of the boys are a whole head taller than him) and sometimes I worry about that. In fact, only one girl is shorter than he is. Lucky for him, he is also the cutest boy in his class ;). I must admit, when I see the other second grade boys hug their moms after school it makes me happy that he IS still little…they look so BIG. I’m NOT ready for that yet.

Peditini

2010-01-27T22:57:00.000-08:00

I really miss my Mer Mer :(. I feel like we NEVER get to see each other anymore. It’s not just that we don’t “make” the time, but I feel like our paths have really drifted apart. It’s so different as compared to last year…when we were practically in sync. We would even end up behind each other when we were driving to drop off or pick up the kids from school…it was weird. That doesn’t happen anymore :(. The “newness” is gone and I don’t think either of us have the energy to put forth the effort. Why can’t things just stay easy and “UN”comfortable? I took her out for a peditini (a pedicure and a martini) this morning to celebrate her birthday. We were both drunk by noon lol. It was so nice catching up and “bitching” together. I am sure we gave the girls servicing us an ear full lol (we happened to BOTH be pissed at our husbands today). Bitching over the same old shit of course, guys are idiots…

I struck out again last night :(. I wonder if that is one of the things that keep me going?...having absolutely NO control, yet wanting it more than anything (I think ;). I HATE being rejected!!! I fear the day when all “hope” is lost…

So, as much as I loved the little buzz I had earlier, I feel so tired now. Ugh…I just want to sleep the day away, BUT pick up is in about an hour. Guess I better start slamming down the coffee.
I LOVE this picture. It was taken in March 2009 at the kids' school auction. I think there was a time that she made me more happy than ANYONE...well, any other adult at least ;)~

Little Black Sheep

2010-01-25T10:54:00.000-08:00

I’ve been hanging out with Nicholas all day today. He woke up with pink eye this morning. I HATE that crap. It is so contagious and I am a total germ freak. I am on the poor kid to wash his hands constantly :(.

He has had a rough couple of days. He woke up at 4 AM Saturday morning puking in MY bed :( The kids all sleep with me while Marc is in California and he didn’t get home until that morning. Ugh, I hate puke in my bed…there is so much bedding that it is a pain in the ass to wash it all. It’s much easier when the boys do it in their own bed lol. So, I had to throw him in the shower (when he was done) and wake the other kids up so I could move us all upstairs.

Once I “know” they are sick, it’s not so bad. I am pretty good about having a bowl on hand and I usually sleep with whomever is sick so I can be sure that they make it into the bowl. Nicholas and Aspen can be quite annoying though…they hate puking so they constantly try to push the bowl away (thinking that it will keep them from puking) and end up getting it on the couch or bed. That REALLY pisses me off and I lose my patience rather quickly.

Nicholas is my little black sheep. He is the ONLY kid I know that DOESN'T want mommy when he is sick :(. While he was puking in the bathroom later that day I tried to rub his back and comfort him (they always cry when they puke) and he got really pissed at me and yelled at me to stop touching him :(. He never really has been affectionate. He even had colic as a baby and I remember it driving me nuts that I COULDN’T comfort him :(. He’s just not a very “needy” individual, which I actually REALLY appreciate (with three kids it’s nice to have some slack), BUT I feel I take advantage of his easiness sometimes and don’t spend enough time with HIM. The other two are sooo demanding AND exhausting…

He doesn’t seem to be affected by it though...he IS a VERY happy AND content little boy :). I am just kind of hard on myself. I just know, as a mom, that I need to step it up a little with him. I don’t want him to ever think that I love the other two more. Especially, when actually he holds a little bit different place in my heart :)

My Little Men

2010-01-22T23:15:00.000-08:00

Marc has been in California all week (which is probably part of the reason for my enhanced contentment ;). It’s not that I don’t miss him, but I think I am much better with the kids when I HAVE to do it by myself. It’s like I step up my game or something. I dunno, I am just WAY more patient when he is NOT here… There is just something about them up MY ass NONSTOP while he can sit there and do WHATEVER he wants to do (in peace) that drives me freaking nuts. They will walk right past him to find me to tattle on each other…I HATE tattling. But all that doesn’t bug me as much when I am by myself because I know they have no one else to go to. AND, I have to admit, Marc has gotten much better about not hibernating downstairs doing his “own” thing. Whenever he is in California, I have to fend for myself on date night. This evening I decided to have a date with my little men. I took them tubing over at Timber Ridge after school. It was so fun. They really are the cutest little boys. It’s always nice to spend time with them without Aspen. It only makes me realize that I need to do it more often though…AND take it a step further and make “one on one” time for each of them. While I had the boys, Jaimee took Aspen to a princess party at the boys school. Leave it to me to be the only mom that didn’t send their little girl in their favorite princess outfit :(. However, I DID have her all decked out in Matilda Jane…AND I can be almost certain that she was still the cutest little girl there. I CAN’T look at her without thinking about how beautiful and perfect she is.

After the boys and I were finished, I dropped them off at home with Jaimee and Aspen. Although I had an amazing time with them, being a single mom all week had taken its toll on me and I needed a little break. I just ended up going to visit with Shannon while she bartended. I always feel weird sitting at the bar by myself…like some local loser.

LOVIN LIFE

2010-01-20T20:14:00.000-08:00

I am in a such a state of contentment right now…I LOVE IT!!!

I LOVE training at SWAT and I am totally “into” the gym right now. I can’t believe I waited this long to make the switch and start going there. I have even gone to one of the body pump classes…on a SUNDAY. Yeah, I am pumped :)

The new year has been blessing me with new friendships. I have been seeing a lot more of Carrie and Rachel. It is kind of weird that we spend more time together now that our kids go to different schools. That seems to be how things work though…once you don’t have the advantage of seeing someone every day, it seems easier to “make” time for them. Well, whatever the reason, I am really enjoying their company. Our “girls night out” together are nice and simple yet refreshing AND fun :).

I have also been seeing more of my old trainer Lesa. There is just something about that girl…we just click. It’s really weird how we are NOT very close at all BUT we have this really special bond. Our paths AND our choices are so much the same…it’s CRAZY. I really hope we can make more time for each other though…

I think I am so happy right now because all the puzzles are fitting together so nicely. I’m NOT in school, I’m content at home (I have girls night out to thank for that), AND there is NO drama in my life right now. I better enjoy it while it lasts…

Driving Miss Crazy

2010-01-09T18:19:00.001-08:00

Today was a wonderful winter day :) The kids and I went golf cart tubing at Shawn and Crystal's. I should have known better than to hop on a tube while she was behind the wheel. It only took her one trip down the road to whip me off into a snow bank. I think it took EVERY ounce of bladder control to NOT piss my pants…I was laughing so hard. I think she scared my boys a little bit too (tears were shed at least once)…with her it’s “petal to the metal”…no matter how slick the roads are.

BUT, we all made it home in one piece…that’s all that really matters. Shawn was much better behind the wheel. Thankfully, he took over when it was the girls turn ;). Marc didn’t go because he has a really bad sore throat :( Although I really enjoyed the snow today, I don’t think I will EVER get used to these Michigan winters. I HATE being freezing.

Aspen and Avalin LOVE having playdates together :)

The Two B's

2010-01-08T09:22:00.000-08:00

Sooo, most of you don’t know that I have been wanting another baby for over a year now. And well, you wouldn’t know this because of how private I am about most things. I’m not one of those people that just announces my wants to the world or puts my feelings out on the table. In fact, I didn’t even tell Marc until last May. I mean, he “knew”, but I never seriously approached him about it. He obviously said no, because we all know how easily babies come to us ;).

I also haven’t told many people because I don’t like to listen to their opinions about how I should just be happy with what I have and how I “don’t really” want another baby. What do they know? How does someone else tell another person whether they want a bigger family or not? It’s mostly people that are done having kids themselves that tell me I should be done too. They love to remind me that I am just starting to gain my freedom, “why would I want to start over again?” Honestly, I KNOW it is hard work BUT I also think it is the biggest reward that life has to offer. What’s one year and nine months of your entire life anyways???

I think having Aspen in preschool is taking a toll on me. She is going to be in “real” school before I know it. Then what??? I am scared that I am going to feel so lost :( I have spent 8 years dedicating myself to them pretty much around the clock. They gain more independent by the day and I feel less and less “needed”. Sure, the first six months are probably going to be divine…just to BREATHE and have freedom for most of the day. BUT, I’d gladly trade that in to do it over…freedom is overrated.

BUT…I am NOT going to get my way. He is just NOT giving in to me. Which is for the best, I guess. I’d rather him be honest now than miserable later. He just knows himself too well and DOESN’T want to have to give any more of himself. He also says that he just doesn’t think he can deal with me doing homework with one more child hah. He doesn’t want to be 50 and still raising kids either. Dads are just weird lol. I think part of it for me is just the planning part. None of ours were planned and I would just like to know what it is like to “want” something like that. I guess now I do lol…

Sooo, since I am not going to get that “B”, I am ready to start looking into my other “B” options. I have wanted implants for a long time as well. The only thing stopping me is the thought of getting them done AND getting pregnant...that WOULD be my luck. I think the only thing worse than what I have now is saggy “bags” ;). I have been waiting for Marc to get fixed first, but it looks like I am going to just have to take my chances…he has had FOUR years after all. Besides, this is the closure I NEED. Once I decide to get them done, there is NO going back. “I” will have put the “baby years” behind me.

So, I told a friend a few nights ago that I was starting to look into it. She happened to be going to one of her check-ups last night and was able to get me in for a consultation after her. The weather was NOT on our side last night. We had to drive through a blizzard to get to the Detroit area (I’m sure NOT getting them done in Kalamazoo) and we ended up being three hours late. Luckily, the doctor was nice enough see us “after” hours.

The appointment was NOT what I expected :(. Although he was really nice, I felt like he just was NOT listening to me. I told him that I did NOT want to be huge and he had to have started me out with Double D’s. I kept asking for smaller and smaller but EVERYTHING felt ridiculous. I became COMPLETELY overwhelmed and just picked a number. It was nice having a friend there but I realized I really need Marc to be there with me. Not because I want to make “him” happy, but because he knows me more than anyone and knows what will make “me” happy.
I don’t understand why the doctor couldn’t just give me what “I” wanted. I asked several times if we could start out from the smallest size that would “work” and move up. I guess I’m just not his usual clientele. I think he may have been a little rushed as well.

Well I know I am NOT going with that guy so I guess my research remains a work in progress ;).

Going...Going...Going

2010-01-04T19:24:00.000-08:00

I HATE coming home from vacation :(((. Between breaking the kids back into the school routine, unpacking, and uploading pictures I feel like I have been going NON-stop since we’ve been back. I am so ready to take off again. At least I took the semester off :)

I have also started cleaning the boys’ room today…well going through it is more like it. I swear…they have more shit than anyone. I always like to go through all their stuff after Christmas so I can make room for the new. I HAVE to do it while they are at school because they FREAK out if I get rid of ANYTHING…hmm, I wonder where they get that from :)

I watched Step Brothers with the kids yesterday and actually LOVED it. I vowed I would hate it because I am NOT a Will Ferrell fan, BUT my kids LOVE him. I think he acts the same in EVERY movie…DUMB…and he tries too hard. BUT, I have to admit, that movie was pretty funny. The dad was awesome and I loved John C. Reilly’s character. There are other movies that I have started liking because of the kids (that I couldn’t stand before)…like Little Nicky and Blades of Glory. There is just something about listening to their belly laughs and watching it through their eyes :). They also love repeating some of the scenes, such as “You love acting…I love pissing.” To hear Aspen say that is funny.

The boys shared another “rare” sweet moment this evening. They are each supposed to read for 15 minutes a night. Nicholas is a pretty good reader, but still has trouble with some of the bigger words. Blake was helping him out last night and it was so cute. He wasn’t being a total jerk to him about it like usual…he was genuinely helping him. It made my heart smile. I think it made them BOTH feel good too.

I start working out at SWAT tomorrow. I am a little nervous…I HATE being on my best behavior. But I have really come to loath my training at West Hills and I figure I should REALLY stop paying those bastards when I can train for WAY less at SWAT. Marc has owned that place for a year and a half and I have yet to make the switch. Damn, I AM stubborn ;). I am actually excited to train for three hours a week versus 30 minutes AND looking forward to having a girl trainer again. I just feel like I am going to have to walk in there EVERY time WITH a smile AND be friendly. I feel like as the boss’s wife, they will just be waiting to find a reason to talk shit about me. Ugh…this is going to be work…I am NOT known as being Mrs. Personality…when I don't want to be at least ;).

I love these pics of Nicholas as I. They were taken two years ago on a preschool field trip.

~2010~

2010-01-01T16:24:00.001-08:00

I just can’t get over that it is the year 2010…it is really creeping me out. It’s not the “new year” that’s bothering me, it’s the whole “decade” thing. They kept referring to the start of a new decade on TV last night and it really got my mind going…so much so that I had a hard time putting it to rest while I lay in bed. I couldn’t get the last night of 1999 out of my head.

I remember it like it was yesterday. Everyone had their Y2K fears about the world ending…BIG, bad, scary things were supposed to take place on the Las Vegas strip. What else do twenty years olds do BUT go there ;). It was Jessica, her boyfriend (I think), my boyfriend at the time, and some of his friends. It was so crowded, and now that I look back I realize how stupid it was to go there.

But anyways, that’s not the point. What I remember most was being young and clueless. I had so many dreams and aspirations. I had NO idea that that I would be pregnant in a year and a half (by a guy different than my current boyfriend no less), dropped out of college, AND living clear across the country in good old Michigan…the list could go on and on. And that’s just a small part of this past decade…like year one of ten.

When I think about everything else I did during the last ten years I can’t help but sit back in aww. What’s left…I mean, what the hell am I going to do during the NEXT ten? I feel like I have already done everything there is to do…that’s important anyway. It’s obviously pointless to think about, because everything will end up NOT going according as planned.

I can only hope that in ten years I can look back again with no regrets as I did last night. I will have a 13, 16, and 17 year old so I will probably have lost all my sanity by then ;) I can only hope that I have a POSITIVE and close relationship with ALL of them. I am sure I will be even sadder than I was last night because by then they will all be big :(. I wish they didn’t have to grow so fast :((((. If only moments like last night could last forever…

A Kid At Heart

2009-12-31T20:25:00.000-08:00

What a perfect ending to a wonderful vacation. Nicholas confirmed it for me when he said, “Today was our best day here at Atlantis.” We started the day the way we probably should have done all along...on the beach.

After we lounged around a little bit and had breakfast the kids and I put our suits on and headed to the beach. The ocean is basically right out our back door. Our room is on the first floor and it is at the end of the tower so all we have to do is walk off our patio, through some grass, and we are on the beach.
I LOVE the bonding and interaction between the kids when we vacation together :)

I might have had more fun in the ocean today than the kids…I know I was in it the longest. The kids were in it quite a bit too but they took a break to play in the sand while I continued to take advantage of the waves. Aspen only lasted through half of our adventure…she started to complain that she was cold and wanted a shower (it was cloudy AND rainy). Once Marc took her in, the boys and I resumed our fun. I felt more like a kid out there with them then a mom. We had such a blast together. We probably would have stayed out there all day (especially when the sky turned blue) but our bellies were rumbling. I made everyone eat a light lunch because we were going out to dinner. Tonight was the ONLY night I was able to make reservations some where. They said that Predator Lagoon would have a special menu this evening for New Years Eve. It ended up being NOTHING worth getting excited about. We were all so disappointed :(.

We should have left right when they sat us. I made a reservation for five and they sat us at a table for four (with no room for a fifth chair). I tried to start with a pina colada but the server informed us that there were no alcoholic beverages...no menus either. We ended up being served an assortment of Bahamian food, family style. It was awful, not because of what it was, but because of how long it had probably been sitting under the heat lamp. OK, I lied...I didn't care for the weird sausage, conch, or what they were trying to pass as rice. Aspen even complained to the server that she wanted steak...she didn't eat any of it :(. The rest of us at least found one thing we liked and tried to fill up on that. It was during dessert (if you call a basket of dry cookies dessert) that I noticed the couple next to us had a glass of wine and some sort of mixed drink...WTF. I was furious!

It gets even better. They brought us the bill, well part of it. It was over $50. When we asked our server what is was for, she said it was for the six beverages we ordered. It was EIGHT dollars a coke! Aspen had spilled hers and they actually charged us for a new one. And this wasn't bottled or canned pop either...it was fountain. We asked about the dinner and they said it would just show up on our hotel statement. I informed the hostest that we better not be charged for Aspen because: 1. She didn't eat anything. 2. She didn't even have her own seat.

I was already furious when we left...I had been looking forward to this dinner since we arrived. I thought it would be fun for the kids to enjoy a "fancy" night to celebrate New Years. Listening to Marc rage about the price (for what it was), the service, and the food the whole walk back REALLY got my blood boiling. It was ending our trip on a horrible note and he was swearing that we would NEVER come back.

After we got back to the room I decided to go back to the front desk and speak with a manager. I NEVER complain, but I had to get this off my chest. I told her I was sorry, but I didn't want to pay $200 for quite possibly the shittiest dinner I've ever had. I informed her that there were no signs around displaying the price and nothing that says drinks aren't included...let alone $8 each. The price wasn't really the point...we had a $250 dinner earlier this week and there was no complaining from either Marc or myself, it was now they tried to scam us for nothing. She told me that she couldn't do anything about it at the time because the restaurant was still too busy to take her call. She said she would call me back in a couple of hours after it slowed down. I told her that I would be waiting for her call and if I didn't hear from her by eleven I was gonna make my way back down there. I really hope it gets taken care of...I would love to come back here when Aspen is a little older so we can enjoy ALL that Atlantis has to offer.

No big plans for tonight. I don't like to get rid of the kids on New Years Eve...we've only done it once. I feel bad for dropping them off at a kids club until after midnight. One day soon they will probably tell me that is what they want to do. Better enjoy them while they "want" to be with us all the time :). We got some tootie patootie to drink while we watch the fireworks tonight. I hope they can make it (Aspen and Nicholas already look tired and we have a few hours to go). I'm sure Blake will make it...he NEVER gets tired :).

Of course he lasted until midnight...that's cake for Blake ;)~

Happy New Year Blake!!!

Atlantis

2009-12-30T06:38:00.001-08:00

Sunny…Windy…Chilly…Crowded…Expensive…Fun.

If I had to explain our experience here at Atlantis in five words, those would be it. After experiencing not so perfect weather during my birthday here in the Bahamas and the current weather I am officially banning the Bahamas from my future November thru January itineraries. It’s nothing compared to Michigan but it is deceivingly unpleasant and disappointing. The skies are sunny but the wind is fierce. When the clouds come through it is quite cool.

That hasn’t stopped us from experiencing the wonderful water attractions though…which brings me to crowded and fun. We had a heck of a time finding a couple of lounge chairs on Monday by the kids play area. After the kids played there for awhile we made our way to the lazy river. It is by far the BEST lazy river I have ever been in. It is about a mile long journey full of tidal waves, rapids, caves, and slides. The boys stayed with Aspen and I during our first time around. During the second, I allowed them to split off and go to the Power Tower (Aspen isn’t tall enough). I regretted my decision the instant they were out of my sight. I explained a few rules before we departed:

1. Stay together

2. Get out when they saw Dad.

When Aspen and I got to Marc I tried to stay calm when I didn’t see the boys. I set Aspen down by Marc and paced the river while many different scenarios went through my head…Did they stick together, did they go around for a third time, did they get out at a different spot…were they scared…were they lost??? I was about to go into full panic mode after fifteen minutes with no sight of them and then I saw them…a sigh of relief doesn’t even come close to explaining how I felt. Seeing the huge smiles on their faces and hearing how AWESOME it was made all the anxiety disappear instantly. They seemed so impressed with themselves for their big boy accomplishments. I guess after our experience at Beaches two years ago I wasn’t expecting the resort to be so happening. We were at Beaches during this same week and it never felt overwhelmingly crowded. It is very obvious that this place is 100% booked. I tried to make some restaurant reservations on Monday morning and every non-buffet, non-café, non-bar is booked for the entire week…WTF. Thank goodness we are staying at The Reef…our room has a full kitchen. Unfortunately, the store was already closed when we arrived on Sunday and it was closed on Monday due to a British public holiday. We ventured over to the store last night though and we should be all set. We spent $112 (which could easily be spent on one meal here) on groceries. Food here is quite expensive…a gallon of milk is $8 (not organic either).

I think I will be cooking the rest of our dinners. I am very over $10 chicken fingers and $12 burgers. I had planned on us eating breakfast and lunch in the room every day and then having a nice dinner each night. We did get lucky on Monday evening. The front desk girl basically begged for a restaurant (off of the property) to give us a table. The food was great and we over looked the water but I don’t think it was worth the $250 it cost. I made home-made macaroni and cheese last night. It felt so nice just to stay in the comfort of our room after an exhausting day. We spent some time at the water and then we walked all over the resort sight-seeing. The resort truly is AMAZING.

It is 11AM right now and the kids have been up for a few hours already. They are still extremely content sitting on the couch playing their games and watching cartoons. I have to admit…I could probably take some lessons from them on learning how to just sit and relax. They are not the type to bug me from the moment they wake about when we’re going here or there…what we’re going to do next. It’s actually me that always wants to get out and DO something. I’m starting to wonder if it’s the great adventures that we embark on or if it’s just the family time and togetherness they enjoy on these vacations.

Goodbye Snow...

2009-12-27T04:21:00.001-08:00

Actually, there were times during our travels today that I would have GLADLY welcomed the snow. What a traveling nightmare. Hmmmm….where do I begin?

Well I guess it really all started on Christmas Eve. I got a message (from a computer) on Thursday letting me know our flights on the 27th had been cancelled and if I had any questions to call. Well hell yeah I had questions! I called the airline and got it all worked out…we were going to depart a few hours later BUT they bumped us up to first class. I could live with that ;). But the big question for me was WHY didn’t they just do that automatically? Why didn’t they just put us on the next flight without making me stay on hold for ten minutes filled with anxiety while they worked it all out?

Soooo…a blizzard decides to visit Michigan last night (when our travels began). Our flight was supposed to leave at 6:30 AM so I booked a room by the airport so we wouldn’t have to start our day at 3AM. We decided to just stick with the plan even though our flight was moved to 8:30. It’s a good thing too…the roads were pretty bad last night; I can only imagine what they were like this morning.

I NEVER (well hardly ever) watch the news (it’s just too depressing) so I felt dumb for not knowing about the recent terrorist incident when my girlfriend informed me AS we made our way to Detroit. Great…now security is going to be even MORE of a bother. The inconvenience tried to begin right when we checked in; the lady informed me that the airlines wanted their guests to arrive 3 to 3 ½ hours before their departures….ummm NO. I wasn’t going to even arrive TWO hours early. I HATE sitting at the airport waiting…waiting…waiting, ESPECIALLY with kids.

I must say, I was very happy with my decision. Checking in was smooth sailing. We arrived at the airport a little before 7 and we were at the gate by 7:15 :). I felt even better about my decision when they announced that our flight was delayed 30 minutes. However, I did make a very BAD decision; I chose NOT to feed the kids breakfast there and wait until our layover in Charlotte. I had good reasoning at the time…the boys ate a bowl of dry cereal on the way from the hotel to the airport and Aspen…well Aspen DOESN’T EAT PERIOD. Why buy her McDonald's when she is just going to take one bite…I DID get her some chocolate milk though ;).

By the time we arrived in Charlotte we were ALL starving. We didn’t arrive until noon AND we missed our connecting flight. Our plane in Detroit experienced some technical issues after it was de-iced. We didn’t end up taking off until 10:30 :(. From then on it was rush, rush, rush. The airline wouldn’t inform ANYONE of their next departures. They only told us ALL to see an attendant once we arrived in Charlotte. Getting off of that plane was fun…everyone wanted to race to the podium.

Once we got to the attendant, she informed us that we had to go “outside” the terminal to the main ticketing area…sigh. Once we got there, NOBODY wanted to work…they just wanted to continue chatting with each other. Someone finally helped us and then appeared bothered and questioned WHY we came all the way to the main ticketing area when we had already been reassigned to the 1:15 flight…I wanted to SCREAM. U.S. Airways has officially taken the title away from NWA for being the WORST airline (in my opinion). We got our new tickets and made our way through security AGAIN. Luckily, the process was still going smoothly.

We no longer had the comfort of first class and by the looks of things we were lucky to even get on that flight. The standby list was ridiculous. Our seats were all over the place too. Marc was put in first class. Blake, Nicholas, and I were in row 6, and Aspen was in row 8. The attendant had some guy in row 8 switch with me so I could be with Aspen. Then Marc switched with him so he could be with the boys. But our bellies were full (with Pizza Hut) and we were finally on our way so all was well. Thank goodness my kids are used to traveling…they were AMAZING. I think their behavior was better than my own ;).

Everything went smoothly after that. Thankfully, our luggage made the trip with us. The guy helping us with our bags slipped us through security so we didn’t have to wait in the long lines. Marc treated us to a Hummer limo ride. The kids thought it was so cool…they were a little confused about the famous aspect though. Nicholas thought it was the driver that was famous…Marc had to explain to him that we were famous today because we were the passengers ;). The kids ooooed and ahhhed once they saw Atlantis in the distance. When we checked in we were upgraded from the one bedroom suite to the deluxe one bedroom ;). So here we are…all cozy and content in our beautiful room at the amazing Atlantis Resort. We didn’t do much once we arrived. We walked around the property a bit and got some food and ice cream. I think my favorite part might be the marina. Some of those yachts are amazing. I also LOVE the atmosphere of the Cove. The boys are pretty impressed with all the “fanciness” as well. I know how lucky I am to be able to enjoy these amazing experiences with my beautiful family.

Merry Christmas

2009-12-25T16:40:00.000-08:00

I LOVE the magic of Christmas morning. I feel such happiness making my children's dreams come true. For me, it all begins with those pitter patters downs the stairs. I can actually hear the excitement in their footsteps. Then I get to hear the squeals and, “Mom, he came…he came.” Then come the “hurry ups” and “come ons” while they try to patiently wait for me to brush my teeth and wash my face. That’s the rule though…they MUST wait for Marc and I before they can run out and get started. After all, I don’t want to miss a thing ;). Stockings first…they are always eager to see what kind of hidden goodies were left behind. It’s mostly candy and they LOVE that they get to dig right in. We don’t worry much about breakfast on Christmas morning. I usually just bake a can of cinnamon rolls and they aren’t that much better than candy if you think about it.

I really feel like “Santa” did well this year. None of them really got any odds or ends. We kept the gifts to a minimum BUT, the gifts they got were AWESOME. The boys got something they didn’t even ask for which made it extra special…iTouches. I have to give Marc the credit because it was his idea. I think they are really going to be good for the boys. I like how they can purchase games, movies, and music for just a couple bucks. We do this thing where they get a dollar for every 100% they get on a test, whether it be in spelling, math, social studies, or whatever. You can’t get much for a dollar these days so they just tuck them away in their piggy banks and save. They don’t really get to feel the gratification for “earning” something. But now they can spend it right away if they want. Just hand their money to their dad (the banker) and buy an app or two. They also don’t have to worry if they don’t like the game because it came at only a small price when compared to a $30 DS game that they saved for, only to find out it stinks. The boys also got what they “wished” for. Nicholas wanted some remote control spy gear. He says that now he can spy on us and know what’s going on when he’s in trouble upstairs. Blake wanted a microscope. That boy LOVES science. Aspen got her Molly doll, of course ;). She has been looking forward to her since June. I think I was more excited about that gift than any other this year. I couldn’t wait to see her light up. She got lots of Molly accessories as well, including: a bed, dresser, and LOTS of clothes.I got Marc a few new suits per his request and the each of the kids picked out a dress shirt to go with them. I can’t wait to see how he looks in them. Marc got me a new jacket, the new Super Mario game, and a wine refrigerator. Blake also colored a beautiful picture at school for us and wrapped it all by himself. Jaimee, our sitter, had the kids make us adorable ornaments too. Even Jasmine and Oreo got presents this year. I think we ALL made out quite well this year :). The only thing that could make Christmas more enjoyable would be if we were able to stay home for the day. Even though the morning flows a lot smoother now that we do “Christmas” the night before…I still hate dragging the kids away from all their gifts early in the afternoon. That’s just one of the many reasons why divorces suck…you have to spread yourself out over all the holidays. Christmas happens to be the only one that Marc’s dad gets so we can’t really back out. I just wish it could be a little later…getting to Jackson by 2 is a bit much I think.

Twas the Night Before Christmas...

2009-12-24T23:33:00.000-08:00

And Heather was stirring ALL through the house :)
Christmas Eve is a VERY busy day for me. It's my night of the year to cook a big family dinner. We pretty much celebrate Christmas this evening too. It just got to be to much to open presents with everyone on Christmas morning and then rush out of the house to make it to Jackson by early afternoon. So, a few years ago I started the tradition of opening all our gifts the night before and only opening from Santa on Christmas morning. Well, Marc and I kinda exchange in the morning as well.

I always cook a yummy prime rib and turkey breast for my grandma, Rick, Becky, Amber, and Garnett. I am starting to wonder if the day of cooking is worth all the chaos and effort though. I feel like I am in the kitchen for hours only to sit down to enjoy it for thirty minutes. Hmmm...maybe I should think about take out next year...AND disposable silverware ;).

I always enjoy the gift exchange though. I was really excited to watch my grandma open hers this year...we got her family a Wii. I got a few sets of PINK lounge wear...I LOVE all of it, and some spa goodies. The kids made out well, of course. I may actually be looking forward to the days when the boys don't believe in Santa anymore. I am ready to take credit for all the "cool" stuff. Compared to the jolly guy, Marc and I are lame gift givers ;). They always get a pair of jammies from us to wear the night before Christmas...those was their "Day 7" gifts.

Festival of Trees

2009-12-23T06:54:00.000-08:00

I am so pround to say that we have tried so many new things this Christmas :) Last night, we traveled over to Frederik Meijer Gardens in Grand Rapids. They have their Christmas and Holiday Traditions Around the World exhibition displayed for the season. All the trees and decorations were beautiful. We all had fun picking out our favorites. I was, however, a bit disappointed that the sleigh rides were already sold out.

They had a craft room set up downstairs for the kids. They got to make scrolls and flower vase pictures. Marc is much more artistic than I am and seems to enjoy doing those kind of activities with the kids. We finished off the evening with dinner at the Melting Pot across the street.

New Traditions

2009-12-22T18:48:00.000-08:00

I decided to steal an awesome idea from one of my girlfriends this year. A few months ago I was at Tara's house and I was looking through one of her photo books. It displayed their "seven" days of Christmas. Holland got to open one gift every day for a week and then got her big present on Christmas day. I knew instantly that something like that would be perfect for our family too.

You have to understand that being a girl that came from pretty much nothing (as a young child anyways) I can't help but want to give my babes EVERYTHING. I want EVERY Christmas to be the BEST Christmas. I WAS very fortunate to have wonderful grandparents, aunts, and uncles that would take me out and spoil me every now and then. My kids don't get those special outings from our family members. Half of their family is across the country. I don't mind taking on the role of spoiling my kids though, and because no one else does I rarely feel guilty ;).

Sooo, as you can imagine, Christmas and Birthdays are a pretty big deal around here. I can't help but buy, buy, buy. That brings me to the "days of Christmas" idea. Instead of my kids getting tons of that "little crap" (that I can't help from buying) all at once, I figured they could open up a little something everyday and get real enjoyment from it rather than being overwhelmed by getting so much at once.

DAY 1 - Snuggies and Pillows

I knew that the kids wanted snuggies (Blake is an infomercial freak) but their squeals of excitement took me by surprise. I didn't know they were THAT excited about them. Nicholas was SO excited that he got completely naked and all snuggled into a cozy spot on the couch within a few minutes after opening.

Day 2 - I did not get pictures of the kids opening their gifts because they were with Nana De when they got them.

Day 3 - Castles and Games

I knew the kids would be bummed for having to stay with a sitter right when they got back home from Nana's so I thought it would be a good time to give them something I knew would keep them occupied AND happy while Marc and I were gone :). Day 4 - PixOs and Princesses

Aspen LOVES Disney Princess dolls. These ones are nice because they are rather cheap and small enough for her to tote everywhere. They keep her busy for hours. The boys LOVE to be creative and our sitter is GREAT at doing fun little creative projects with them. I don't mind the PixOs but I was pretty disappointed in the paperooni thing...DON'T waste your money.

Day 5 - Candy, Cars, & Hamsters

I thought it would be cute to get Aspen a car for Nicholas's new car toy, but she wasn't feeling it. I guess I'll be sticking to princesses from now on :) The color changing car toys ended up being more mess than fun. ZuZu pets seem to be the thing this year. I happened to stroll across one at Toys R Us and knew it would be right up Blake's alley...well, not so much :(. It's not that he didn't like it but rather it's not as cool as it appears on TV. Candy Land was the big hit today.Day 6 - Games and Jewels

I have this perfect picture in my head of our family all sitting around by the fireplace playing board games. I know those days aren't too far off so now is the perfect time to start stocking up :) Aspen is the girliest girl I know. Being the jewelery queen that she is, Marc and I thought it would be cute to get her a personalized jewelry box from Things Remembered. Marc wrote a special message for her and had it engraved on the front. It sings "My Girl" when you open it. Aspen is so lucky to have such a wonderful Daddy :).

Bar Dancing

2009-12-21T18:14:00.001-08:00

Last night was Marc's company party and I am sure it will be a night left to remember due to yours truly. Everyone has a limit, and I reached mine rather quickly last night...oops. I'll just get right to the good stuff. The party was at Center Ice and it had everyone from S2 Arena, SWAT, Center Ice, and his Kalamazoo based office present. I ended up getting into it with a young "girl"...not of drinking age anyways. In my defense, she needed a wake up call and put in her place...there's no one more perfect to handle that job then moi ;).The night started out great. Marc and I mingled a bit before we settled into a high top with another couple. Marc got up for some reason and this girl came over to take his spot so she could talk to the girl I was sitting with. Now, I didn't have a problem with her taking his spot OR the flirtatious look/giggle she gave him, BUT the way she looked at ME was uncalled for and she's lucky I gave her a free pass "that" time. I don't know how else to describe "the look" except that it was definitely a challenge. She wanted me to know that she "meant" to disrespect me.

I tried to let her NOT get the best of me and even went to the bathroom a few minutes later. Our mutual friend came in a bit after me and honestly I was already over it. She even apologized for the girl and gave me the whole, "She's just young" speech. Honestly, that's not a good enough excuse for me AND if that's the case, there is NO time for a lesson in "adulthood" like the present.

All was well UNTIL we crossed paths again. She and her girlfriend wanted a picture with Marc...which was fine. I didn't even mind the flirtations BUT she gave me the stink eye again...WTF. I had to settle it then and there. I tried to keep my composure and just tell her I thought she was VERY disrespectful, but her denial sent me over the edge. I was effin pissed and my words got ugly pretty fast. Do I regret confronting her...NO!!! Do I regret allowing all the garbage to flow freely from my mouth...YES!!! However, she probably won't fuck with me again ;). I have too much respect for myself to just allow some "girl" to treat me like that at a public event and just sweep it under the rug. I'm sure Marc wishes I wasn't so confrontational.

The remainder of the evening was pretty uneventful BUT fun. Marc coaxed me into getting up on the bar and dancing with some other girls. Thankfully, I didn't fall off. I DID end up drinking too much and eating too little. I was puking outside by the end of the night :(. It wasn't too bad though...it wasn't one of those heaving...never going to be able to drink patron again evenings. However, I think wine will be my drink of choice for a little while ;).

Actually, we were both pretty lit last night according to his picture :)

Christmas Craziness

2009-12-19T21:11:00.000-08:00

The past few days have been insanely busy. Thankfully, everything "Christmas" is pretty much done :). Mike and Trish were my little helpers today. They came over this afternoon and helped me wrap ALL the presents for our adopted families. It went sooo much faster. It even inspired Marc to come upstairs and lend a hand as well. When we got back from lunch Marc and I just lounged around for a while and watched a movie. The kids are at Nana De's until tomorrow :). We are heading back out to do the LAST of our shopping later this evening. Then I will be DONE.

Let's go back a little...the boys had their Christmas concert on Thursday night. The school ALWAYS does a wonderful job. I think the parents with younger children appreciate it the most because they have the little ones do the cutest things. They had Nicholas dress up as St. Nick last year...it was priceless :).

Blake being goofy with his classmates :)

Friday - Kalamazoo Country Day always takes the kids ice skating on the last day of school before winter break. Our family has never gone because I felt Blake was too young in Kindergarten and the event was cancelled last year due to a snow day. But everything went as planned this year. However, I think it was one of the few moments that the kids really would have preferred to have their daddy there instead of me. Let's face it...I'm no ice princess AND he's a hockey player ;). I tried to take Aspen out but it just ended in tears. I think she was better off when I wasn't holding her hand ha ha. BUT, the kids all appeared to have fun and I really enjoyed watching my boys interact with their classmates.

Nicholas forgot his gloves so he borrowed mine...lucky for his hands he didn't care they were purple :)

Holiday Letter 2009

2009-12-17T10:10:00.000-08:00

I can’t believe it’s that time of year again. It feels like I just wrote one of these yesterday and I don’t even think I wrote one last year. 2009 has been a busy and well traveled year for us. We seem to always be on the go…I have yet to figure out whether that is a good or bad thing ;).

As far as travels go…I have dragged our family all over it seems. We started out 2009 at an amazing villa in Mexico. I took both the boys up north in February…they can both ski now. I don’t remember doing anything in March, I am sure we ventured somewhere…Chicago is always easy :). We went to Florida in April and did the Disney thing...Aspen adores all the princesses. May is always busy…house boating in KY AND Memorial weekend traditions must be kept. We took the RV to Wisconsin Dells in June. Some of our family from Vegas came for a visit in July and we ventured over to the windy city.

We always end the summer with our BIG RV trip in August. This year we made our way to Niagara Falls. We were gone for over two weeks. We have had some of the most amazing family trips together RVing…it’s an experience like none other. We slow down a bit in September and October with the start of a new school year. But we always go on one last camping trip in September. October is probably the only month that I really like to stay put. It is by far my FAVORITE month in Michigan. All the leaves are changing and the air feels so crisp and clean. I still keep us busy on the weekends visiting all the apple orchards and pumpkin patches. We also traveled up to Traverse City this past October to enjoy some Halloween fun at Great Wolf Lodge.

November was our next busiest travel month after August. We spent the week of Thanksgiving in a cabin up in the Smokey Mountains. We decided to be adventurous this time and travel by car. It was a ten hour road trip and the kids were fantastic. Don’t get me wrong, they WERE ready to get out of the car the last hour going both directions ;). We cheated a little too…we stopped over night both ways. Marc and I also went to the Bahamas for my birthday. We head back there with the kids on Dec. 27th to experience Atlantis.

Marc (32) has had an exciting year. Everything is looking on the up and up. His fitness center has made a HUGE turn around (he just took it over last summer) annd the sports bar and Ice arena are “getting there” as he would say. His game, Heroes of Newerth (HON), is off to an amazing start and it’s still just in the closed beta stage. He has gone through some amazing personal growth the past few months as well. He continues to grow as an amazing person and fill those around him with inspiration.
Heather (30) turned the big 30 this year. That was an adventure in itself. Marc took me and two other couples to Sandals to celebrate. It was probably one of the best vacation experiences of my life. I had such a great time with our company…everything was PERFECT. Being with family and friends from Las Vegas DID make me a little homesick though…sometimes I wish Vegas wasn’t Vegas.

I would like to think that I am continuing to grow as a mother. I really tried to put a lot on my plate this year and create a nice balance between motherhood and school. I really wanted to graduate next summer BUT that will NOT be happening. I have decided to take next semester off and try to relax a little. I just really want to focus on being a good AND happy mom.

Blake (7) is a handful these days. When do those “tween” years start anyway? He is at that stage where he thinks he knows everything already AND probably hates me most days. He IS doing great at school though. He appears to really LOVE second grade…he always looks happy at school. He is already learning things that I have to honestly admit that I don’t know myself (he recently learned all the ear and eye parts) and he can write in cursive. His favorite pastime is playing video games…he is basically a mini Marc in EVERY way.

Nicholas (6) always has a smile on his face…well even HE has his moments. He continues to be my “easy” one. I get so many compliments on his sweet disposition at school…he is always lending a hand. He is becoming such a great little reader too. He LOVES to practice spelling new words. Actually, he is always eager to learn. But Nicholas is also my little homebody…he doesn’t always enjoy “my” adventurous spirit. Sometimes the poor boy just wants to be home ;).

Aspen (3) started preschool this year. She had a really rough start but you would NEVER know it by the way she acts now. Even her teachers are amazed at how much she has blossomed during the past few months. Aspen definitely keeps me on my toes. I never know what the day is going to bring, rays of beautiful sunshine or the thunderstorm of ALL thunderstorms. Just last Tuesday I had to drag her out of Kohls kicking and screaming. On Friday, however, she was a dream at the mall (and we were in one store for over an hour).

I almost forgot to mention our new additions. Blake got a Chinese Water Dragon for his birthday. His name is Scale, although we don’t really know whether he is a male or female. We also adopted a new kitty this fall. Her name is Jasmine. She gets plenty of attention from the family…the kids ADORE her. We brought her home to fill the loss in our hearts that we had from losing Biggles. When we got back from our big RV trip he wasn’t home to great us. We still don’t know what happened to him. Both he and Oreo are ten years old. Oreo is still around and just starting to accept Jazz as part of the family. I’m sorry I can’t seem to keep these letters short, they may even be getting longer each year ;). I started a blog this summer. It always has our latest adventure and LOTS of pictures of the kids. Unfortunately, I am really behind on it right now. I probably have at least 20 drafts waiting to be posted. After the holidays I should be able to put more time and effort into it. I hope you had a fantastic year and this finds your family doing well. Merry Christmas!!!

Done till May

2009-12-16T19:39:00.000-08:00

I have already accomplished so much this week and it’s only Wednesday :). I took my Human Sexuality final exam last night and finished great…A+ of course. I REALLY enjoyed that class. I “almost” wish there was a part two…I think there is still so much to be learned. My practicum also finished up over the weekend. It was interesting as well but VERY time consuming…it will NOT be missed. I have decided to take next semester off for some “me” time. The thought of graduating at 30 has become more overwhelming than exciting. I just don’t want to start my 30’s stressing out...getting old is enough to deal with for now. I want to look back and remember 30 as being a carefree and happy time.

I finished up all my Christmas shopping for the family today. That’s very unusual for me…I am normally one of those last minute shoppers. I can’t wait for the kids to wake up Christmas morning. I LOVE Christmas!!! However, I won’t be a stranger to the stores just yet. We always adopt a couple families each year and buy for them. Each class at the boys’ school also adopts a family from Family Services and we contribute a lot to those as well. I am more than half way done with that though too. Shopping for families in need has become one of my favorite ways to celebrate the season. It feels so good to give those less fortunate a Christmas to remember. I have committed myself, per usual, to a task that seemed like a good idea at the time but is now turning into quite the chore. I decided to do a little Christmas craft with the kids. We are making Snowman soup for their classes. Each of them was over it after about five…that leaves me with about 35 to finish up by myself :(. I also decided to write a letter to slip in with our Christmas cards. The letter itself was rather easy to write, but I didn’t think of all the extra folding it would incur. Oh well, I think I keep myself busy with such mundane tasks because I must subconsciously know I revel in the rewards of accomplishment.

However, my little tasks will have to wait until morning. I will have to remind myself about that light at the end of the tunnel (accomplishment) when my alarm goes off at 5 AM tomorrow (about five hours from now) so I can finish stamping snowmen and snowflakes. Although I LOVE the feeling of finishing something that I started…I love girl time and good wine even more :). I snuck out this evening to meet up with some girlfriends for dinner at Chinn Chinn. I asked our server for the sweetest white wine they had and I was given the most delicious nectar to ever grace my lips. It is said that Mountain Dew is the nectar of the Gods and I am positive that Moscati is the nectar of a Goddess.

Bimbos and Lights

2009-12-13T05:18:00.001-08:00

It has only been winter here in Michigan for a few weeks and I’m already getting restless. That’s NOT good considering I have about four months of this crap ahead of me. On a positive note, it’s getting my wheels turning with ideas of fun new things to do as a family. I figured since the Santa/Melting Pot adventure was so successful I might as well keep the activities flowing.

In the eight years I have lived in Kalamazoo I had yet to make it to our beautifully decorated park downtown. I pretty much forget about it every year until that really busy week of the holidays and I am never near organized enough to be able to make it work during that time. It always just gets the “Well maybe next year.” Not this year though…we WERE going and I WAS prepared…well almost ;).

I came up with just the right tactic to get Marc down there too…Bimbos ;). Bimbos just might be his FAVORITE pizza joint. I kind of threw the park idea at him right as we were leaving. I gathered the kids hats and mittens and off we went. I guess everyone had the same idea as me because the downtown area was packed. We had to park in the Food Dance parking lot and make a run for it to Bimbos. We have never had to park that far before. It seemed Bimbos was the place to be, it was packed.

Thankfully, we were able to get a good spot near the park afterwards. It was beautiful AND freezing. I thought I was prepared but I should have taken the kids’ snow pants as well. It didn’t take long for them to be over the lights and frolicking in the snow. Snowball fights weren’t too far behind. They were all soaked within 30 minutes. Oh, and I brought cloth mittens…one of the dumber things I’ve done.

Aspen's shoes were NOT meant for snow...her tootsies were freezing :(

I HATE to be cold, but the atmosphere conquered all the bitterness. The whole park was filled with childhood laughter and holiday melodies. A church was passing out free hot chocolate...it was HOT and yummy. Smiles were everywhere. Marc wasn’t prepared for the cold so we weren’t able to stay as long as the kids would have liked :(. I told them we would ALL come prepared next time…snow pants and all :).

Let It Snow

2009-12-10T13:28:00.000-08:00

I REALLY hate for my children to be disappointed...especially by me. I usually try to keep things/ideas/play dates/etc. from them until the last minute just so that I can prevent that. I also selfishly do it so I don't have to be asked EVERY day for a week, "How many more days?" or "Are we going today?"...yeah, I'm NOT the most patient individual and being a mom doesn't make it ANY easier for me.

So, yesterday morning when I told the boys that we were going to go see Santa after school and have dinner at the Melting Pot in Grand Rapids, it was pretty much a done deal. Not even a blizzard (which I had NO idea was coming) was going to keep us in ;). The snow started to fall pretty heavy early that afternoon and I knew Marc was NOT going to be happy that I wasn't cancelling, but I also knew he wouldn't be surprised ;). I even got to hear a good rant from him once we started our adventure, "This is just so dumb", "I can't believe we are driving in this crap", "Look at all these other morons on the road", "You can tell you're from Vegas...no sane person would embark on this for Santa"... I will admit it, the roads WERE pretty bad...I was sliding a bit on the way to pick up the kids at 3PM. Thankfully, the snow let up quite a bit once we got about 15 miles outside of Kalamazoo...whew, that could have been a very long drive ;).

Even though there wasn't nearly as much snow in Grand Rapids as there was in Kalamazoo, the mall was still dead. The kids didn't even have to wait to see Santa. I think the boys are pretty much over it. They still believe, but they don't really want to sit on the old man's lap for a little chit chat. Aspen is still not a big fan...I think she is just scared to death of the guy. She was all excited until she saw him...when it was her turn her cheeks got all flushed. We did get her to sit on his lap this year at least...she is determined to get that Molly doll.

"Take the darn pic already, Mom"

She wants off his lap...NOW!

What a cute little elf ;)

Marc wasn't exactly thrilled about the Melting Pot either. We had gone in Vegas once and he hated how long of a process it was AND the food didn't agree with him at all, but I just had this crazy idea that our kids would LOVE it...I was RIGHT :). Blake loved it so much he declared it as his new favorite restaurant. What did surprise me was how well they behaved during the whole thing. Even our waiter complimented us at the end, "You know, usually this isn't the best restaurant for kids because of the process, but you're kids were amazing...it was a real joy serving your family." I heart those moments :)

The drive home wasn't too bad until we got to the Plainwell area. Marc was in a much better mood this time. He even gave me kudos for a GREAT family outing and told me he really enjoyed it...even dinner :) When we pulled up to our drive way our house was glistening in the snow...it was beautiful.

I had a feeling we would be having a snow day today...YAY!!! One thing that does suck about being able to leave the boys snow stuff at school is I don't always have it on hand when I want it. Since we were stuck inside we decided to make snow day cookies...YUM. The boys really wanted to make this "snowball cookie" recipe they saw in the Great Wolf Lodge brochure. If it's at GWL it has to be good right...NOT. They were ok, but I will definitely veto against them next year :)

My Amazing Man

2009-12-06T19:49:00.000-08:00

I have always admired my husband...pretty much from the first time he ever spoke to me. He was unlike any other boy/man I had ever met before...he had me at hello and he knew/knows it ;). Honestly, I HATE his confidence when it comes to me...I don't handle NOT being in control very well.

And any control "I" may have had went completely out the window last night. He had his "formal" company dinner and he was at the top of his game. He gave a speech unlike any I had ever heard before. He usually doesn't even speak at all but he couldn't shut himself up last night...he was on fire. And it wasn't boring either...I could have listened to him ALL night. The audience didn't seem bored either...we were all captivated in his moment. He was full of passion and excitement.

He has been so happy and full of life lately. He had already decided to make a change in the way he presents himself at the workplace before we left for Tennessee. He ended up reading this book while we were at the cabin titled E-Myth. That really got his mind going and he has been a "new" man ever since. I don't think it's really the book that brought all this change about it but rather it unlocked something in his mind that just got those neurons all fired up and sparking again.

I imagine he is in a similar state he was in when he gained success the first time. I met Marc right after things got really BIG for him so I didn't get to see any of the excitement during that process. I have always wished I could have met him a little earlier so I could experience that with him...I am sure it ranks up there as being one of the greatest moments of his life. However, with that success came hard work and stress and I am learning that is NOT too fun to be around ;). I am crossing my fingers that HoN brings him the happiness and success he has been searching for during the last five years.

He has changed a lot at home too ever since my "Roller coaster" post. I really feel like I have a partner at home and our whole family seems much happier. I am so proud of him and grateful that I can call him my own. Seriously, sometimes I just look at him and wonder how he picked me (2,000 miles away)??? To have him love me is probably one of the greatest compliments I will ever receive. He is such an AMAZING man.

Girl Traditions

2009-12-05T16:01:00.000-08:00

Crystal whisked me away to Chicago with a few of her girlfriends (acquaintances really) for a late birthday present last year. We ended up ditching the other girls and had a really good time. This year the two of us went solo and it was even better.

It wasn't supposed to be another birthday celebration for me but being the giving girl that Crystal is, it turned out that way. She surprised me with a blissful spa day...mani, pedi, AND massage. It was a wonderful surprise and I enjoyed every minute of the bonding time. However, it didn't leave much room for shopping. We had to race to American Girl Doll. The girls at the salon told us it would be closing in an hour so I was a little stressed. I HAD to shop there...that was the main reason of the trip for me (girl time was a bonus). After getting a little lost we hopped in a taxi and got there in enough time for me to get some heavy "Molly" shopping done :).

On the walk back to our hotel we gave in to my shoe temptation...I bought three pairs of heels. One pair is very loud and I can't wait to break them in...they are very sparkly. The other two are very classy and remind me of dirty dancing shoes. I was able to talk Crystal into a pair of heels with "color". She only wears the normal black and browns. She opted for red and they are HOT. Surprisingly, I don't even have a pair of red yet. I feel a future purchase coming soon ;).

I could just do what normal girls do and share shoes with my girlfriends...umm NO. I am a freak about sharing my clothes AND my shoes. Some shoes are okay to do that with but NOT heels. Just because you're an 8 doesn't mean our feet are going to fit the shoe the same. I had a pair of cute heels ruined (well ruined for me) after I let a girlfriend borrow them. They just kinda stretched to her feet and weren't snug on me anymore. Same holds true for shirts. I have had to many shirts stretched out because the girl that wore it was a little more busty then me.

Anyway, back to Chicago :). We pretty much closed down the shoe store. By the time we walked back to the room and got ready all the "real" restaurants were closed too. I was pretty bummed I didn't get my CPK fix :(. We settled for bar food (our only choice really) that was in walking distance. We ended up meeting a cool cat at the bar (so he seemed) and had a really good time. One of the highlights at "that" location was the ugly sweater party that was going on. I don't get embarrassed by my friends often but Crystal succeeded...she can just be so blunt.

There was this guy there in this awful sweater and when he came up to the bar to order a drink she commented on it and told him, "Sorry, I didn't get the "ugly sweater memo". I was completely embarrassed. Thankfully, he just played along with her. After he left the bartender confirmed that there actually was an ugly sweater party going on. Honestly, I never knew such a thing really existed. Some of the other guys came up after that and I felt a little better about giving them a hard time once I knew it was intentional. However, I still wasn't too comfortable making fun of a stranger to his face.

The bar was cool and all but it didn't have any dancing space. The cool cat that we met at the bar asked if he could accompany us to our next destination. He hadn't flirted with us at all so we thought it wouldn't be a problem...we had just been talking sports and stuff with him. He took us to this martini bar that had a line of people out the door waiting to get it. I literally almost fell on my ass on some slick ice when I got out of the taxi, BUT I didn't ;)...I sure am graceful in heels lol. Having him with us was a disadvantage because they were not letting any guys in. I wasn't feeling mean enough to ditch him.

We ended up meeting a small group of girls in line. They were in Chicago for a Weight Watchers conference or something so Crystal immediately hit it off with them. We decided to give up on the "cool" bar and piled into a taxi...I'm surprised the driver let all seven of us in. We ended up finding a fun bar with good music and a dance floor. I could tell Crystal was feeling the alcohol so I decided to let up. After all, that's the rule...girls watch out for each other ;). There always has to be at least ONE who has her wits about her ;).

Unfortunately I DON'T dance sober so I quickly became a bystander. People watching at a bar doesn't get boring ;). I had to throw the dukes up every once in a while when I thought a guy was getting too far in Crystal's space. Our "cool cat" started to become "uncool" as I sobered up. He just started coming on to me out of no where...ugh the awkwardness had begun. When I couldn't take anymore and felt like he just WASN'T getting it I told Crystal to come to the bathroom. We decided to pretend she was sick and had to go...NOW.

We called it a night and headed back to the room. I wish that loser hadn't gotten under my skin. I probably had another hour of fun in me. I just don't get guys sometimes. I told him I was married with three kids. Is the challenge that enticing??? I just want to be blunt and say, "Look, do you really think I am going to throw my whole life away for YOU???"

Crystal didn't feel so hot when I woke her up this morning. We had to get moving early so I could be back by noon because Marc had a meeting. She didn't get sick but she sure could have used some extra sleep. I think the fun and quality of friendship we shared during our 24 hours together really brought us closer. I already can't wait for part three :). I'm really looking forward to the days when we can run off with our girls together...there is so much fun to be had.

Tuff Love

2009-12-03T19:42:00.000-08:00

I have to admit, I am probably the WORST at enforcing strict punishments with the kids. I always think the “threat” will scare them off but of course it never does…they know me too well by now. However, Blake changed all of that last night...it was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done :(.

Blake just has this thing with Nicholas…the movie the Good Son comes to mind. Although it breaks my heart, I find myself wondering often if he really just doesn’t like his brother. He is so cruel to him and it LITERALLY breaks my heart. Don’t get me wrong, Nicholas HAS his moments, but overall he is a genuinely sweet little boy. Blake has his sweet moments too, just NOT with his brother. People ask me all the time if it is a competitive thing…it’s not. I wish it were, I could at least understand and chalk it up as being everyday sibling rivlery. Nicholas is the least competitive boy I know.

So back to what this entry is really about. Blake really crossed the line last night. He does this thing where he uses Jasmine’s claws as HIS weapon. Marc and I have asked him to stop and warned him several times NOT to do that. Well last night he literally used the cat’s claws to tear Nicholas’s face apart. There were scratches all over his face and way too close to his eye (right across the lid) for comfort. One might think that Nicholas must have done something really mean to deserve such a punishment, but Blake does this shit to him over the smallest things, like accidentally changing the channel on the TV or something…the boy is nuts.

There is one exception to Blake’s attitude towards his brother. The boys still share a queen size bed and it is at night that Blake does a 180. He wants to be as close as possible to Nicholas (which Nicholas HATES…he’s just NOT the snuggling type). Besides, Blake only does it for selfish reasons…he’s scared to death of the dark. But being the sweetheart that he is, Nicholas allows Blake to nuzzle up and feel protected ;).

Well last night I was NOT going to allow Nicholas to be Blake’s knight and shining armor. Blake was sent up to bed right after it happened (around 7) and informed that he would be sleeping upstairs alone. I hated seeing Blake scared to death and begging not to sleep alone, but it was a punishment that I felt I had to stand by. It was the only thing that I felt would ensure that he NEVER used the claws again. I wanted him to think of being in that bed all alone EVERYTIME he even thought of picking Jazz up and using her to hurt Nicholas. Thankfully, Marc was there to help me stand my ground…I so badly wanted to give in. Even Nicholas said that it was okay, he’d go to bed upstairs with Blake. NO!!!...Why does he have to be so easy :(.

Blake eventually passed out. I had warned him that if he came down in the middle of the night he would be up there for two more nights by himself. I guess he took me seriously this time because he stayed up their all night. I have to admit that I am VERY anxious to go wake him up this morning. I can’t wait to wake him up and tell him I LOVE him and give him a BIG hug. I NEVER want my kids to think that I don’t love them OR that I love one of them more than the other. Although it hurt like hell, I KNOW I did the right thing.

Blake's PERFECT Pick

2009-12-01T13:04:00.001-08:00

You would think after a lonnng road trip I would be ready to just settle in at home once we arrived...you should know better ;)~. One of our traditions is decorating the tree on the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Bobby had put the tree up for us while we were in Tennessee so it was sitting their just waiting to be decorated when we got home SUNDAY around 3PM.

However, our poor tree just wasn't going to make it through another season :( Let me just say for the record that I do NOT like artificial trees...so I really wasn't that disappointed. But, in all honesty, I tried to make the tree work. The branches just wouldn't cooperate...they were so droopy. After messing with the branches for 15 minutes (and being attacked by Jasmine the entire time...she thought the tree was her empire and did everything in her power to protect it from me) I gave up on making the tree "look" good. I decided to move on to the lights only to find that half of them were out. I had NO idea where to start...the tree had come with the lights already entwined on the branches. I gave up...

We probably had that tree for five Christmas's or so. It couldn't have decided to give up on us at a more perfect time. Although I don't care for artificial trees it just seemed more suitable with young kids around. We had a real tree during Blake's first Christmas and trying to keep him from picking up the pine needles and eating them was a real pain in the butt. But now, with no more babies at home, we don't have to worry about a few pine needles laying around.

So, here is where my restless personality comes in...I was still determined to decorate our tree on SUNDAY. That meant going out to a tree farm THAT day. Marc wanted no part of it...he thought I was crazy. We had barely gotten home from a ten hour drive and I was rushing out the door (I thought the farm closed at 5) to hunt for a tree...in the rain. The kids were excited though...I think that is what kicked my determination into overdrive.

I have never been to a place where you can cut down your own tree so I had no idea of the process. I didn't realize that you actually had to cut down your own (I figured one of the workers helped you if you needed it). Even I have a limit as to how far I will go...paying a $5 deposit for a saw, driving out to the field with three kids, and attempting to saw down a tree by myself was mine. Luckily they had some pre-cut trees out front and inside the barn.

Then the hunt began...how could I have forgotten how picky Blake is? I gave him a description of the type of tree we needed...it could be tall BUT not too fat. Nothing we picked was good enough...then he spotted the perfect tree. It was more then I wanted to spend so I tried and tried to lure him to other (cheaper) trees. But he wasn't having it...I wonder where he gets his determination from ;). He was right though...it WAS the perfect tree. It was really tall (about 11 feet) and not to wide at the bottom.

The people that worked out there were so nice...they made sure the kids had a great experience. They let the kids knock the tree over...TiMbEr, and help carry it out. They gave the kids popcorn to snack on while they watched the tree get wrapped up and tied onto the car. I will definitely go back there next year :).

Marc was still being a bah humbug when we got home. He said he was not bringing a wet tree into the house (I never really thought about that minor detail during our adventure) and it would have to set in the garage overnight to dry out. Had I of thought of that, I probably wouldn't have raced out of the house :(...oh well, the four of us enjoyed it :).

Monday, our plans are foiled AGAIN :(. I always have Marc help me with the lights so we had to wait for him to get home from work until we could start decorating. It was then that we realized that we didn't have enough lights...we are not used to such a massive tree. Six boxes only lit half of it. Marc made a quick run to Target for us but it was still too late by the time he got back to finish the job. It was time for bedtime routines.

Tuesday, Marc had hockey tonight but he was kind enough to put the rest of the lights on before he left. The kids and I finished the job. Our artificial tree only required a step-up ladder to reach the high places but this one required a real one. In fact, the tree is so tall we were able to put the star on from the top of the balcony area. Of course, the kids couldn't wait their turn to go up the ladder...literally, I think the bickering began the moment I said yes. There is no better way to break in a tree then to have a ladder fall into it...leave it to Nicholas ;). Luckily, he wasn't on the ladder and the tree didn't crash over...that could have been a disaster.

I seem to forget each year what a pain in the butt decorating the house for Christmas truly is. I am half way done and I honestly don't even want to finish but I figure it would be dumb not finish what I started. It's just so much work (that apparently I don't realize until I get started). Maybe now that I have it in writing I will remember...although it sure looks festive and pretty ;).

On The Road Again

2009-11-28T12:15:00.000-08:00

We sure had a good ole time in Tennessee. After being up here for a week and hearing all that twang, I can’t help but mock it when I get the chance. We started our drive home four hours ago and we have 400 miles left…ugh. We are going to stop at 300 for the night though. I hope there is a pool where we stop so the kids can get rid of some energy. Although I have been sitting on my ass this whole time, I don’t feel like entertaining tonight.

Our week in paradise went by way to fast. I really enjoyed all the quality family time. Our cabin didn’t have internet so the boys got LOTS of daddy time. Between Marc, Ryan, and my mom I don’t feel like I got to spend very much time with them. I know I will get to make up for it in the Bahamas after Christmas. They only get to spend a few short weeks with my mom each year…I might as well let her enjoy them. On the other hand, I can’t wait to have next semester off…I plan on trying to be very stress free in the afternoons and just enjoying my precious boys.We spent the day up in Gatlinburg yesterday…it is such a quaint little town. I picked up a couple of souvenirs for some peeps and I can’t wait to distribute them. I could have gone nuts on Trish while I was there ;). Marc and I took the kids through the Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum. I think the boys are the perfect age for it but Aspen enjoyed it too. Their favorite part appeared to be an ongoing video of people doing weird things like swallowing light bulbs and putting nails in their nose…I sure hope none of them try it at home.

A different kind of family portrait.
Marc, Grandma, and the boys took off after that. I stayed with Mom and Ryan…we had to stay back for a couple hours to wait for the boys airbrush shirts to be finished. We decided that the best way to kill time would be to drink at a bar…I remembered I had a $50 gift card in my purse…bonding at Fridays over sangria and beer it was. I am actually really glad I got to spend that “quality” time with them. I don’t get to see either of them very much in a situation where I get to be me, Heather, and not Mommy.

Speaking of Mom, my relationship with my mom just gets weirder and weirder. When I say that, I mean with each passing year she seems to be less and less of a mom. Is that the norm? Is it just that way because I’m a mom myself? Is it because she is newly single and aspiring to be part of this “in” crowd? Is it because she has surrounded herself with new friends whom I’ve never met AND whom are younger than me??? I DO love her and honestly that is all I know as a daughter. I DO try to be a totally different mom myself though…I NEVER want my kids to think they aren’t the most important things in my life. And my kids adore her…that is what matters to me the most. I just wish my mom would focus on what’s “really” important in life. 2 ½ hours later – make that 200 miles. I am pissy and ready to get out of this darn car. Sometimes Marc just pushes the limit. He focuses too much on “destination” and not “availability”. For example, earlier in the drive he decided, “I’m going to stop in Lexington for dinner”...BUT we also agreed that Pizza Hut sounded FANTASTIC. Well, we passed at least two (probably within 30 miles) before Lexington BUT they weren’t IN "Lexington" so we didn’t stop :(. Once we got to Lexington there were no signs showing a Pizza Hut was near. We settled for Applebee’s and I did a really great job not being pissy or stating my irritation...“You know, sometimes when you see what you want it makes more since just to STOP”.

But now I am experiencing those feelings of irritation again. I just want to STOP. He called Marriott to see where the nearest one was but it wasn’t the right “destination”. It put us at mile mark 277 NOT 270. Really??? So now I don’t know where we’re heading OR how long we will be heading there. All I know is that by the time we actually stop a pool and in room movie won’t really matter because the pool will probably be closed and we’ll all just go to bed.

Sold Out in Tennessee

2009-11-26T19:26:00.000-08:00

Even though I am not the biggest fan of the whole Thanksgiving Feast it sure does taste good on Thanksgiving. It could be the fact that I always skip lunch on this holiday therefore I am starving at 4PM and could probably gobble anything. But I DO love the sweet potatoes. If I had more family around I would probably make the big dinner more often…I LOVE the hot turkey sandwiches you get from the leftovers.

Grandma did a GREAT job this year too…even the white meat was super moist. We keep it pretty simple up in the cabin, meaning I have to do without a few of my favorites…sweet potato casserole and cranberry cream gelatin. Poor Grandma was pooped after all the cooking though…she ended up resting in her room for the rest of the day :(.

Here’s a pathetic story. Marc and I ran down to the store to grab some wine/champagne for me to drink. Pigeon Forge is a dry county but they sell beer so we figured they would also have wine. After looking down a couple of aisles Marc asked a clerk if they sold wine. She said, “No, and it wouldn’t matter anyways because NO alcohol of any kind is sold on Thanksgiving.” Where the hell are we??? What really has me confused is the fact that there are a few wineries on the main road…what do they sell exactly?

We were able to get in a few games of dominos while the pumpkin pie was baking. After dessert we left the cabin to go watch A Christmas Carol. After embarking on an adventure just to find the theatre, we were told EVERYTHING was sold out for the rest of the evening. We’re not in Vegas anymore are we ;). The kids were a little disappointed but their frowns quickly turned upside down once Marc pulled into Magic Quest.

The layout of the facility was awesome. They had the best mirror maze and indoor golf course I have even been too. I went into the maze by myself with the kids. As usual, I let the boys lead the way. They usually do pretty good but after we circled the same area more than five times I started to get a little anxious. We finally heard some other voices and were able to lead ourselves into another part of the maze…it had three different parts.

The indoor golf course was very small (space wise) but they utilized the space very well. The pirate decor was great. I think the course would go GREAT with Pirates Island. The Magic Quest area was cool too (much better layout than Great Wolf Lodge) but I don’t really enjoy the whole quest experience. Marc’s “control freak” comes out and he is always in such a hurry that it seems more like a chore than a “fun” search. My mom and I ended up just going up to things with Aspen and working on her quests, that was fun.

We had a FANTASTIC experience at Dollywood yesterday. The park does an amazing job with the Christmas decorations. LED lights are EVERYWHERE...it’s beautiful. My 68 year old grandma amazed us once again my going on the roller coasters with us ;). The boys went on their first “real” roller coaster that loops and twists…they thought it was AWESOME. Aspen was so patient while all the “big kids” went on the big rides but she was sadly disappointed that she had to miss out on some of them :(. Marc raced back to the kiddie rides with her at 8:30 so she could go on a few more before it closed at 9…he adores our little princess.

Waiting in line to ride their first "real" big roller coaster.

Thank goodness they kept the cotton candy down during the loopy loops.

Grandma was looking forward to this ride ALL day :)

Silver Bells

2009-11-24T23:45:00.000-08:00

It’s hard not to get into the Christmas spirit while we’re here. I have never seen a town decorated so beautifully for Christmas. Lights are EVERYWHERE…they even do a twelve days of Christmas display along the road. I would love to come up here during warmer weather but I think I would setting myself up for disappointment…there’s just no way the town can out do itself.

We have pretty much done the same itinerary we had two years ago. We went to the Dixie Stampede Monday night. It is a really great show but we kind of went this time just for Aspen. I knew she would really appreciate the horses, snow, and a chance to see Santa. The boys enjoyed it too. We will definitely try something new next time though.

We did our scenic drive through the Smokey Mountains yesterday. We stopped along the way for a quick picnic. Grandma and I agreed that sandwiches taste sooo much better in an environment like that…the kids even eat better too. After our picnic we continued on to our destination…The Polar Express. The kids enjoyed a game of hide and seekGetting there was only half the fun though. Marc was having one of his episodes along the way. I heard a lot of, “What is this...Where the hell are we?” I have to admit that the towns we went through were the worst I have ever seen (even compared to those I have seen outside the USA). Everything was deserted and run down BUT people lived there. Cars were even buried along the side of the river. Marc wanted to turn around and told me, “If the train place looks like this, we ARE turning around.” I just laughed…mostly at all the crazy adventures I drag him on. At least he comes out of his shell and embarks on them with us :). We shared so many giggles on this trip :)
Thankfully, Bryson City WAS a real place. The train was actually really comfortable and Marc was able to relax once we were on board. The Polar Express was a really cute experience. However, once again, I get the mother of the year award…I think my kids were amongst the very FEW that did NOT have their pajamas on. Aspen and Nicholas asked me why all the kids were in their pajamas…I lied and said I didn’t know. I asked Nicholas if he wanted his and he replied, “NO WAY…that’s silly”…my Nicholas NEVER lets me down :).
The kids enjoyed their hot cocoa....
And chocolate treats :)
The workers on the train were FANTASTIC. Not only did they have smiles on their faces during the entire trip BUT they also seemed genuine. The train took us up to the North Pole and the kids got to see Santa’s House…Frosty’s too. Santa hopped on the train and came back to town with us. He gave all the kids their very own silver bells…Blake loved that, he’s my little collector. I love seeing the magic of Christmas in all their eyes.

Look who we picked up at the North Pole...Kids waved good-bye to Santa as he got back on to his sleigh.

We sang Christmas carols on the way back to the station.

We were all starving when we got back to the cabin after 8. Grandma had us covered though…she had put spaghetti in the crock pot before we left. We just had to wait for the noodles. It was AMAZING…I ate too much though. I can’t seem to stay up late out here…I am pooped by 11. I have to overcome it…getting a game of Dominos in is a must.

Pepperoni Bandit (11/23)

2009-11-24T10:55:00.000-08:00

Well I thought we were embarking on an adventure but my mom, grandma, and Ryan definitely out did us. They should have arrived on Saturday evening but they didn’t get here until Sunday around 4PM. Ryan ended up having a mild seizure during their flight out on Saturday so the plane had an emergency landing in Indianapolis. He was rushed to the hospital. Thankfully, he’s fine and they let him out late that evening and they were able to catch a 7AM flight.

But that was only half of their adventure. Mom misunderstood my directions and they ended up driving all over the whole state…everywhere BUT here that is. They should have arrived around noon. My mom called around 1 and told us that they were right around the corner. Marc left to go meet them down the mountain. Needless to say…I received a few texts during his 45 minute wait. I finally just told him to come back up and I would meet them when they were actually AT the store. We were all getting antsy waiting for their arrival…I can only imagine what went on in that car. I know Marc and I would have been at each other’s throats.

They finally made it and all was well. After they settled in for a little bit we headed out to Wonder Works. Marc, the kids, and I HAD to get out for a bit. Wonder Works is a cute little place with lots of hands on exhibits…the kids really enjoy it. I have to say, Pigeon Forge is great and all…there is TONS to do, but it is definitely NOT a cheap vacations. EVERYTHING costs money here. Wonder Works cost $150 for all 8 of us (and Aspen was free). The kids are having a great time with Uncle Ryan :)
Aspen ended up having an episode in the gift shop as we were leaving. They had one of those candy store displays (where you self-dispense candy in a bag) and Aspen asked if she could have something. Marc told her no…well she helped herself to a gummy dinosaur anyways. Marc told her she was naughty and that the cops were coming to get her. OMG did she have a breakdown…it was so dramatic you couldn’t help but laugh AND feel sorry for her. I told her that we were just kidding but that didn’t seem to help. I even asked her if it was the most delicious gummy she has ever had but she didn’t respond.

The meltdown carried over to Tony Roma’s. She wasn’t throwing a fit or anything…she was just still VERY upset. I think she was mostly embarrassed. I tried to redirect her and find out what she wanted for dinner. She picked pizza. When I told her that they only had cheese she had another meltdown… “Awwww NO pepperoni?” Her heart was broken. Luckily the episode didn’t last much longer. She settled for mac n cheese and dinner ended up being very pleasant.

Mikey Moment

2009-11-20T19:57:00.001-08:00

When you have two control freaks in the car together, like Marc and myself, it’s only a matter of time before the battles begin. I have to admit, Marc is “usually” right most of the time BUT that only makes the glory of me being right “sometimes” that much sweeter :). Actually, I think everyone feels that way when they believe they have the upper hand in knowledge against the “mighty one” ;).

One of my favorite moments with Mike and Trish involves that very situation. I think they were hanging out at our house for one of our game nights or something. Anyways, Marc and Mike started debating about who had the correct answer. Marc gets really passionate and fiery during a debate…being wrong does NOT suit him very well. But Mike wouldn’t back down either (sometimes it’s just easier to concede and move on to ensure a pleasant evening). In fact, Mike’s words were something like, “I don’t care that you are getting all pissed Marc, I am not giving in just because you “think” you’re right.” It was one of those tingly Mufasa moments.

I found myself in a similar situation in the car this evening. You find yourself talking about nothing after you have been driving for 300 miles. Marc was just trying to make conversation (in the form of a debate) by telling me, “By the way…that werewolf guy is like 23, married, and has a kid.” He was referring to Jacob, whom I had told Marc was definitely attractive but I didn’t really have a thing for him because he is really young. I happen to KNOW that his name is Taylor, he’s not married, and he is not a parent. I confirmed my facts by telling him, “In fact, he is dating Taylor Swift right now…the Morning Mash Up talks about it all the time.” Of course he got all fiery and responded, “They’re wrong…just like they said Robert Pattinson is the sexiest man alive, when in fact People Magazine chose Johnny Depp.”

Sigh…then it has to get all serious….I KNEW I was right this time and I wasn’t going to back down. Luckily, it ended before hostility took over. I mentioned that we were having a Mikey moment and laughed. Then I teased him about how pissy he gets when someone argues with him. I think he conceded (without actually conceding) because he let the topic go. I am anxious to get on the Internet though…I can’t wait to prove that I was right “this” time ;).

Well we are half way through our road trip to the Smokey Mountains. We are spending a week in a cabin up there with my mom, my grandma, and Ryan for Thanksgiving. We spent Thanksgiving there two years ago and it was awesome. We flew last time though. We decided that the kids are old enough for a “real” adventure…road trip. It has been smooth sailing so far with only a few rough spots of traffic. The kids have been AWESOME…although they have been sleeping the last two hours.

We stopped at a hotel for the evening and will drive another five hours to our destination tomorrow. I could have driven a little longer tonight (I had a 30 minute cat nap) but being the control freak that Marc is…that was NOT going to happen. He would rather force himself to stay awake longer and be uncomfortable then hand the wheel over to me. I don’t blame him though…I AM a typical Vegas driver ;).

Goodbyes SUCK

2009-11-20T03:13:00.001-08:00

So, you know how I was ready to send Otis out the door a few weeks ago...well I didn't. I didn't really mean for him to stay...it just kind of happened. I called the lady that next morning and she didn't call me back until five days later, probably intentionally. During those five days no "new" accidents occurred so I didn't bother taking him back.

However, I found myself cleaning up shit AGAIN last night :(. I would have stalked the lady if she didn't call me back IMMEDIATELY (which she did). She said I could bring him by the store today. I should have made Marc do it because it was a REALLY hard thing to do :(.

The decision to even do it was hard. I don't think Otis intentionally poops outside of the litter box. It's not like he is searching for a spot to mark his territory. I think he has some sort of intestinal issues and can't hold it or something...he just explodes. However, I can't risk him having an explosion in my closet or on the carpet. He also has terrible...UNBEARABLE gas (it's not the food either, he's been on three different kinds that I know of).

I had to be the one to take him back though...Marc didn't want to. I don't think he would have gone through with it even if he had agreed with me. The car ride alone sucked...hell, putting him in the carrier sucked. I felt so guilty taking him away from Jasmine. It didn't get any easier once I pulled into the parking lot.

I wanted to take him out and hold him one last time...TERRIBLE idea. I could feel the tension in his body when he saw the cages...he knew. I couldn't hold back my tears any longer. I did talk to the lady about my assumptions. She said she would get some blood work done to see if maybe he needs to be on a medication or something. I would be willing to take him back if that is the case. I had to get rid of him today though. We are leaving for Tennessee tomorrow and he and Jazz were supposed to get declawed while we were gone. I don't want to do that to him if we aren't going to keep him.

Poor Jazz, she's a totally different kitty without her buddy. However, she is already up to her old tricks. The kids already have new battle wounds. I have to admit...I did miss her while Otis was here. They were such good pals that she didn't really interact with us anymore. It's nice to have her back.

Homesick with a Birthday Hat

2009-11-15T19:01:00.001-08:00

The only downfall of this whole trip is how homesick it has made me. I have had such a GREAT time with Shanna and Jessica. Shanna and I are so similar…it makes me sad knowing how much closer we could be if we lived closer. She is the closest thing to a sister that I’ve got and I wish so much that the kids could experience their Aunt and Uncle more…I know they’re GREAT ones. She is my “Raising Helen”. If only Vegas wasn’t VEGAS…I’d demand to be back home in a heartbeat. Friday night was supposed to be low key, but it ended up being very entertaining. Dinner was fantastic and it included more gifts, cake, and candles. I may not have blown 30 candles out at once, but I have blown out enough candles at various times this past week that I am sure the total is close to 30. Shanna and Brian got me a very cute “birthday cake” martini glass. She wrapped a birthday crown around it…which she INSISTED that I wear. I would regret giving in to her later ;). That damn crown drew WAY to much attention. We decided to watch the Junkaroo Band and a Reggae band perform. I was pulled up to the stage area three times because of that darn thing…I could have killer her ;). I had to shake some cow bells, lead the conga line, AND dance in front of the whole audience. Thank goodness for champagne…I was actually a pretty good spirit about the whole thing (even though I could see Marc laughing at me from the audience). We finally got our beach day yesterday. Sandals has a private island that you can take a ferry to. We didn’t get to spend much time on it because we rushed back to the resort for some snorkel time. Unfortunately it was cancelled due to the weather. Although it was very sunny out, the wind hadn't really let down...I guess the water was too choppy. We found a spot on the beach and listened to music and waves for most of the day. Shanna and I had our noses stuck in our books and she was still reading when I left. I probably could have stayed right there with her until sunset...it was so relaxing. The massage was wonderful too though...I had a much easier time relaxing. After our massages, Marc and I went to a nice candlelit dinner on the pier. The food AND the service were both great. It was nice spending our last night together alone and reminiscing about what a wonderful time this trip has been. I enjoyed his company more than ever during this trip. Right now I feel like the luckiest girl in the world to have such an amazing AND FUN husband.

He was even more of a partier than I was last night. After our lovely romantic dinner we met up with our crew at the pub and enjoyed a looooong night of fun. I kept my drinking to a minimum so I got to see more of the drunk side of my aunt than usual (she did NOT keep her drinking to a minimum AND I am usually right along with her so my perception isn't all too keen ;). We attempted to play ping pong and snooker...I think that's the name. We ended the night with tape and wieners...the best way to end a night of partying is with a nice foot long...hot dog that is :)Needless to say, we did not see anyone before we left this morning...I wouldn't want to be them flying today :(. On the plane and missing them all so much already. Marc and Shanna are always a hoot to watch...they interact so playfully and well together. However, one of my favorite moments on this trip was when I saw Jess sitting on Marc's lap last night. It made my night seeing him interact with her like he does with my other close girlfriends. She is one of my favorite girls in the world I would love the two of them to have a comfortable relationship. This has been one of the greatest vacations EVER. It's funny how things work out sometimes...Shanna and Brian didn't even decide to join us until September. Once I saw them I KNEW it should have been them coming all along...NEVER again will I make that mistake. It was the six of us TOGETHER that MADE this trip. I want to thank ALL of you for making every day a special one and memories that will last a lifetime. I LOVE my thirties...so far ;)~.

Island Dance Fever

2009-11-13T14:14:00.000-08:00

We are here in the Bahamas and it is AWESOME. Shanna, Brian, Jessica, and Hazel met us down here (a birthday treat to myself as Marc likes to say :) Our group is PERFECT…wishing the weather would follow suit. I can’t complain too much though…if we were going to get a shitty day, today is the perfect day for it. A totally lazy day was needed after the craziness of last night (good crazy for once :).

Shanna and Brian
Hazel and Jessica

Let’s start with Wednesday. It was mostly a day of traveling. We left the house early in the morning and didn’t get to Sandals until after 3PM. We were given a quick tour of the resort before we had to be at our spa appointments at 4. I actually didn’t really enjoy my massage. I think I was still feeling a little guilty about leaving the kids AND I was way too excited to see my guests.

I don’t think we actually met up with them until after 7. We had a 30 minute wait for dinner so we mingled in the piano bar for a while. Dinner was not exactly good, the food was okay but the service SUCKS here. I think 4 out of 5 staff are UNpleasant (they act completely annoyed when you ask for ANYTHING). I got wonderful gifts though. Shanna and Brian got me a beautiful dainty watch…I can’t wait to wear it out. I love my Rolexes and all, but they aren’t exactly small and dainty. They just don’t fit when I want a sweet yet classy look. Jessica NEVER lets me down. I was excited the instant I saw the little blue box…TIFFANY’S! She and Hazel got me a diamond pendant that matches the earrings Marc got me when we were first dating. It will be nice to have her close to my heart all the time :).

After dinner, candles, and cake we took over the hot tub. It seemed like we owned the place. We had the whole pool area to ourselves. Marc and I were pooped so we didn’t stay out very late. I knew that I needed to get lots of rest (and make Marc get lots too) if I was going to pull off my plans for Thursday evening. I also had to be up for a pedicure appointment at 10.

We all missed breakfast Thursday morning. It’s one thing to have breakfast for lunch and another to have lunch for breakfast…blah...AND it sucked. Thank gawd they have a pizzeria here as back up (it’s actually really good). Free alcohol doesn’t hurt either. We all started early with pina coladas, rum punches, and redbull with vodkas. I didn’t think I would ever see the day that Marc would have a redbull and vodka so close to noon (where is my husband). I have to admit, he has done so well at doing “nothing” on this trip. He does NOT do that very well. I know sitting by the pool doing nothing for a few hours was very hard for him (the redbull helped ;). I made it up to him by playing tennis for a few hours. I didn’t exactly play well (I was kind of drunk already) but at least I played :).

The group met up for drinks at the resort pub around 6. We
were enjoying ourselves so much that we probably could have stayed there all night had our tummies not started roaring at us that they were starving. Besides, we looked way too chic…the club was calling our name. We piled in a cab and headed for Atlantis. OMG…was it beautiful. It reminded me a lot of home, Vegas, actually. We are taking the kids back there for Christmas break and I am so excited to experience it with them.

We ate at the Bahamian Club for dinner. Brian will forever be known as the $20 shrimp guy. He ordered surf and turf for $20 more instead of just steak. It came with only ONE shrimp…it was hilarious. We all begged for a bite wondering what such an expensive shrimp tasted like, but none of us really had the heart to take a piece.

I think we went to the club somewhere between 10 and 11. Marc was anything BUT excited. I think I had to drag him along…he was probably hoping the entire time that I would be too pooped and decide to just head back to Sandals…NO WAY. It didn’t take long for him to lighten up though. It was kind of dead when we got there…but that’s okay, it gave us the room to act like we owned the bar ;). It was time for shEEEots!!! Six Patrone shots never looked so beautiful. Marc took his like a champ. Poor Haze…I didn’t know that it would really make him puke. What a guy though…he took it with the rest of us like a man, then headed straight to the bathroom.

After a couple shEEEots our group hit the dance floor. There’s no workout like that of dancing your ass off in high heels. I think it was the first time Marc and I had ever been to a real dance club together. I know I was determined to get myself drunk enough so I could let loose with him and I succeeded. Once I got him out there it was actually hard to get him off ;). The same was true with the shEEEots…he was reluctant to take the first one but then he was helping everyone out the rest of the night. If I ordered a round for us girls he would drink half of the shots. This will probably sound weird, but not only do I love the way Marc is with me when he’s drunk…I LOVE how he acts with my friends too. He gets so flirty and fun.
You will be able to see from the pictures that we were the life of the club. I wish we could have gotten a good group picture. I think we all looked great. I had a little mishap with my dress when we arrived. Somehow I managed to poke my high heel through my dress when I got out of the taxi…that is quite an accomplishment when you take into account how short the dress is. So, as I started out saying, the weather is pretty shitty today. It’s definitely not a beach day. Marc and I just lounged around the room all morning. We played tennis with Shanna and Brian for a couple of hours this afternoon…they held their own very well. They took us all the way to a tie break. After they left Marc and I played together. I probably played the best tennis I have ever played during that last half hour. I was hitting the ball so well that I didn’t want to quit, but I wanted to give myself enough time to get ready for dinner…hibatchi tonight :)

Goodbye Twenties

2009-11-10T19:50:00.001-08:00

You would think that I'd be ecstatic about heading to Nassau tomorrow, however, I am ANYTHING but :(. There are probably a number of reasons.

One...I get terrible flight anxiety when I fly without the kids and it has already started. All I can think about is my plane crashing and never seeing my beautiful babies again...AND that's just the beginning. Then I start thinking about what their life would be like without their mom and dad...how it would affect them. It just gets really depressing from there and I have a hard time snapping out of it until the plane lands.

Two...After having that wonderful party over the weekend I feel like my birthday has already passed. I have celebrated with most of my friends AND the kids...I'm just kind of over it :(. That reminds me...I think I forgot to mention what Marc and the kids got me...a week on the Disney Cruise. We will be going around this time next year. I AM SO excited about that. Aspen is going to LOVE it. We took the boys once before we got pregnant with Aspen and I still think it was our best family trip before we became a family of five. Well the RV trip to Mount Rushmore was pretty awesome too.

Three...Although I had a wonderful birthday celebration I know I am still only 29 ;). Birthday parties are great when you are NOT getting older ha ha. Reality comes with tomorrows celebration.

I just need to keep reminding myself of a few things while this violin music is playing in my head. One, the flight anxiety will go away the minute the plane lands. Two, I haven't seen my aunt or girlfriend in a year and I KNOW how fun they are. Three, who wouldn't love a week long birthday celebration? I need to start being positive right NOW. I need to start thinking, "What a WONDERFUL start to my 30's!"

Farewell Fun

2009-11-08T18:13:00.000-08:00

I had an INCREDIBLE birthday celebration. I don’t think it’s possible that I could have had a better time. The whole night was PERFECT. I owe many thanks to Marc and Meredith. The two of them work so well together ;). Let me just say how GREAT it feels that my husband and best friend get along so well. However, I AM looking forward to taking back my rightful place at West Hills ;).
Hmmm…where do I start? Marc got a couple rooms at the Radisson. Everyone met up around 6 o’clock. The attendance was perfect: Casey/Emily, Mike/Trish, Angie/Scott, Meredith/Jay, Susanna and Shannon. I was totally impressed with Marc…he contacted “my” friends all on his own. I must say…we are one “classy” bunch. There was only one champagne glass in the room (for the birthday girl of course). Everyone else had to make do with glasses and coffee mugs. The BEST substitute was Scott’s measuring cup.After a LOT of toasting in the room, we went to dinner at Webster’s at 7:30. It was possibly the looongest dinner I have ever had. We were there until 11PM. BUT, the food was great and my company was fantastic. Meredith got me a beautiful chocolate birthday cake…it was yummy too. I really enjoyed sitting next to Susanna. We hardly see each other anymore (I think that was the second time in 2009). Thanks for coming out WITH a smile Miss Suzy…oh, and for NOT playing the tired card. I KNOW you are ALWAYS tired and probably sleep the most out of all of us ;).

Next was Shakespeare’s. I figured it would be the most entertaining for all my guests. With shuffleboard, pool, and darts you can’t go wrong. Of course I sucked at everything. Marc and Mike spanked me at shuffleboard and Mer kicked my ass at darts. I didn’t care though…my competitive spirit was not present…I was too drunk ;). Crystal and Shawn decided to grace us with their presence at Shakespeare’s. LOL, just kidding…Shawn had a tournament that day and failed to tell Crystal about my party…ooops. Crystal did not bring her free spirit with her and I wouldn’t be able to hold my agitation of another long face on a good friend for much longer.

I think almost everyone came back to the room with us. I only remember Shannon, Scott, and Angie departing from the group. Let’s get the Dirty Thirties started ha ha. OMG did I have A LOT of fun in the room. Meredith, Emily, and I decided to soak our tootsies in the Jacuzzi tub. We were able to talk Jay into giving us a little dance. He was AWESOME…he was such a free spirit about it and the girls had so much fun laughing together. That moment will forever be priceless. Emily had jeans on so it didn’t take long for the dirtiness to begin. She was uncomfortable with her jeans rolled up but didn’t want to be the “new” girl in her panties. Meredith and I made her feel right at home by taking our dresses off. What’s the difference between a bathing suit and bra/panties anyways? Well….besides the fact that mine were shear. I have got to start making better panty choices for 30th birthday parties. I had black shear ones at Marc’s 30th and flesh colored ones at mine. Knowing myself, I will probably have on NO panties at Crystal’s 30th in a few years.

Rather than going into detail about the rest of the night I am going to call it quits. The night was PERFECT and the memories shall be kept for all of those that were a part of it. Thank you so much for sticking around Mike, Trish, and Susanna…I can’t tell you how impressed I am that you guys partied until 5AM with us. Mike and Trish, you are truly the greatest…you may not participate in my “free-spirit behavior” but you NEVER make me feel awkward about it. I am ALWAYS comfortable around you…can’t wait for Boston next year. Casey, you make every party a GREAT party. Emily ROCKS too…in fact, I like her so much I might pick “her” if you don’t do your best to keep her ;)

Crystal, thank you so much for pulling the stick out of your ass and allowing yourself to have a good time. I have to give you props…that could have turned really ugly. BUT, you swallowed and took it like it was no biggy. Can you teach Marc to do that? But really, the fun that we had the rest of the night was worth it. Not seeing YOU smile on my birthday was NOT acceptable ;). I wanted that Tiggity Tooley time ;). Thanks for all the birthday “bags” tiggity…those are always precious ;)~.

Meredith, I think I need a whole blog to thank you for all the wonderful things you do. You have helped Marc give me two amazing birthday’s back to back. You are the greatest friend I have ever had. I know I have lots of friends and I think of them all differently and hold a different place in my heart for all of them…but you are my EVERYTHING. You will always be my mafia queen and now I can be your selfish bitch ;). I LOVE you…let’s grow old together baby.
Marc doesn’t read my blog (I don’t think he realizes how witty I can be) so there is no need to send him a special thank you note. BUT, I will say that I had an AMAZING night with my husband. I love it when he lets loose and has a good time. I may not get the “fun” part of him all the time, but when I do it is so addicting…I want more.

Shitty BUT Great

2009-11-06T19:16:00.001-08:00

Nicholas ended up staying home from school again today. His fever just won’t break. It can be difficult when you have a child that HAS to stay home, yet appears fine. Unfortunately it was not another day of resting on the couch…I had too much to do today. I ended up dragging Nicholas and Aspen to the hair salon...getting my hair done before my birthday trip was a MUST. Nicholas decided to make me pay for my selfishness.

In less than two hours time both kids contaminated Tara’s salon with the majority of human bodily fluids. Nicholas picked his nose which caused it to bleed…BAD. That kid gets the worst bloody noses, I swear. Anyway, he didn’t tell me. Instead he attempted to take care of it himself. With no success, he finally came out of the bathroom so I could see blood gushing out of his hand. That was nothing compared to the mess in the bathroom. The sink, fixtures, trashcan, doorknob (pretty much EVERYTHING) was tainted with blood. BUT…he DIDN’T get any on the carpet…I have trained him well ;)

It wasn’t long after that Aspen decided to join in the fun. Nicholas might have even still had tissue wadded up in his nose. They were playing and Aspen ran away from him into the bathroom (I don’t think Nicholas knew she actually had to go). Instead of leaving her alone, he followed her and tried to open the door. She was on the other side trying to hold the door closed. She popped her head out and told me she pooped her pants…ugh. She NEVER poops her pants (unless she’s with Meredith lol…when she’s with her she is just too content). Although it wasn’t much…it was enough. I sat her on the toilet so she could go pee (she managed not to piss her pants) and finish what she started. She started to pee and it sprayed out of the toilet onto the floor :( It was the worst hair appointment of my life.

However, if that is what I had to go through to ensure a picture perfect evening…it was worth the cleanup. We tried out the new hibachi place by Target. The service wasn’t that great, but the food was good. The kids were on their BEST behavior. I haven’t enjoyed Aspen’s company like that at a restaurant in a loooooong time. She was so courteous and entertaining. It’s amazing how much prettier she is when she is friendly.

After dinner we walked over to Target so the boys could spend their allowance. Why is it that when you say they CAN’T have something they want EVERYTHING, but when you say they CAN pick something out they CAN’T decide??? Nicholas is actually easy…I think he just picks the first thing he comes across that looks fun. Blake, on the other hand, takes forever. He stresses over the decision. He finally decided on Sorry Sliders and Nicholas got a light bright.

Sweet Aroma

2009-11-05T20:35:00.000-08:00

What's the perfect night cap to a fabulous evening???...walking into your house and smelling the sweet aroma of cat shit/piss...what a horrible ending. Otis has officially out stayed his welcome. I don't think I have ever smelt something so horrid. Apparently, he decided to spray piss and shit all over a shelf in Marc's closet. I will be calling the pet resource we got him from tomorrow to have him taken back.

I just DON'T do shit...if I did, we would have gotten a dog. I'm not looking forward to Jasmine returning to her full of piss and vinegar personality (all my scratches have healed up since she gained a friend to beat up on) but I'll just have to deal with it. At least she can use the damn litter box. Hopefully Oreo will get the stick out of his ass and accept her sooner than later.

Today was a great day, although it didn't go as planned. Nicholas woke up with a fever and sore throat so I kept him home for the day. Aspen wasn't exactly happy to have to go to school while Nicholas got to stay home...but she didn't put up too much of a fuss. Here's something that makes absolutely no sense. I haven't been able to get Aspen to school on time in weeks (always 5-10 minutes late) but today I got her there a few minutes early. How did I manage to do that when I had two kids instead of one?

I actually really enjoyed the short time I got to spend alone with Nicholas. We watched Freddy together...we both agreed that the other two couldn't handle it. He was such a sweetie. I made him some soup after we returned from picking up Aspen and I fed it to him on the couch. When he was done he said to me, "I love you mommy, your the best." It made me feel so warm and fuzzy inside. Nicholas isn't exactly the affectionate type but I could tell he wanted to be close to me.

I don't know who was more disappointed about having to cancel my lunch date with Meredith...Aspen or me. I felt like all my plans for the day got put on hold. I just stayed home all day and cared for Nicholas until I had to go to class. I even ended up taking a 20 minute cat nap. It felt so good that I decided that I am just going to sleep the first year that Aspen goes to school all day...I will have 9 years of sleep deprivation to catch up on by that time.

Thankfully, Nicholas improved throughout the day. I get so scared at the first sign of fever with this swine flu bug going around. Aspen and Blake have also had a fever once during the last 10 days. All have only lasted about half a day. But every time I have mentally prepared myself, "This could get real ugly."

Besides the cat shit...my evening was very pleasent. A couple of girls and I closed down Fandango's. I really enjoy their company. It's so nice when you meet people that you just click with...it makes the friendship so easy. I never thought a majority of my friends would be people I met through my children. Just one of the many joys they have brought into my life.

Motivation

2009-11-04T07:52:00.000-08:00

I can NOT believe I am going to be 30 in one week...ugh. I don't know why but it's just recently starting to bug me. In fact, the idea of turning 30 didn't even bother me a bit until November rolled around. I guess it's easy not to worry about 3o when you're not ;).

I don't think it's entering my thirties that is really bothering me...it's leaving my twenties. My entire life was given to me in my twenties...a lovely home, amazing friends, a wonderful husband, and three beautiful children. I feel like there is nothing else to look forward to...nothing new anyway :(. I must look at the positive side though. My late twenties have been FANTASTIC! Maybe it just keeps getting better?. I better just enjoy being a mom in my thirties...it is quite possible that I could become a grandma in my forties ha ha.

Ugh...now I am back to wallowing about the upcoming 30. Maybe some motivation will come with that number. I have become very disappointed with my work-out ethic. I have just gotten so lazy when it comes to the gym. I am also starting to feel like I am only going so that I can remain slim...not to get the toned body that I WANT. In fact, I don't feel that I have accomplished much at the gym in the two years I have been working out. Where are those abs that I so desire? Sigh...obviously I don't desire them enough because I sure as hell don't work hard towards them. Maybe I just need a change. I am going to switch to SWAT in January and see if I can find some motivation there.

I took my third test at school last night. I missed one and I was PISSED (that's an understatement). My expectations for perfection are INSANE. I think there were four questions that I wasn't 100% sure about last night. I ended up getting three of the four right, I got a 97.5% instead of the possible 90%, BUT I was effing pissed for missing ONE. Then I had to have one of those talks with myself...calm down Heather, you are NOT trying to get into medical school anymore...you still probably have the highest grade in the class. The silliest part is that I already have over 100% in the class. Ugh...my poor kids. Luckily, they have their Dad...he is much more easy going when it comes to that stuff.

BJ or Otis?

2009-11-01T04:16:00.000-08:00

Today was beautiful...why couldn't we have had this weather yesterday? When I woke up to a shining sun I knew that we had better take advantage of it. The kids and I had so much fun outside and jackets were NOT even needed. I think I got my fall leaf fix...we mainly played in the leaves. The kids love to jump in piles of leaves, however, I do most of the raking. I am glad to put the rake away until next season after today ;)

Would have loved to have had this sunny weather yesterday for Halloween...oh well, it's not a bad way to start out November :)

He'll be picking me up before I know it :(

Onto the more important stuff. Aspen and I were in Petsmart getting Scale some food last Wednesday. Aspen always loves to look at the kitties and Wednesday was no exception. She screamed at me to come to the kitties while I was waiting for help. She carried on so badly I had to walk over to see what the problem was. That's when I saw him....BIGGLES, only half the size.

His name is Otis and he is almost identical to Biggles. He is three months old. I think the only difference is his size and he has a big white patch of fur in the middle of his back. I knew what Aspen was feeling because I felt the same...we had to have him. Unfortunately, we had to leave rather quickly so I could pick up the boys.

I brought Marc in with me on Thursday to check him out. He was also amazed at how much Otis looked like Biggles. We were ready to adopt him, however, the adoption people had already left for the day. I had to leave Otis once again :( When I made contact with the necessary people they told me the easiest thing to do was to come back during adoption hours on Saturday.

We picked him up right after breakfast yesterday. He is such a lover :). He settled right in when we brought him home. Jasmine took right to him as well. They started playing within ten minutes. I think she is very happy to have a playmate...Oreo still hasn't taken to her. In fact, I think he is REALLY pissed at me now. Not only is his brother gone but now he's out numbered as well. I hope he doesn't run away next.

We can't decide on whether to keep his name Otis or change it to BJ for Biggles Jr. BJ seems so fitting...their personalities are extremely similar. BJ/Otis isn't quite the lover that Biggles was though...maybe that will change with time. I miss Biggles' hugs more than anything :(. This cat also has the worst gas EVER...it actually makes you kinda want to vomit. He's lucky he is so cute...

Halloween

2009-10-31T10:55:00.001-07:00

What a great weekend we have had so far. We took the kids to their Halloween carnival at school last night. That is always a fun event. Although I thought I was being smart by cooking us all dinner before we left we ended up splurging and picking up Little Caesars on the way home. We all snuggled in the movie room and watched Sleepy Hollow. I LOVE that my kids LOVE scary movies...it makes movie nights with them so much fun.

We had the usual great time at Tara's this evening. This was the third year in a row we spent Halloween with the DeVries family. They are some of the nicest people I have ever met. We didn't spend very much time trick or treating though...it was freeeezing. Even the kids were tired of being in the cold after a couple of blocks. They still made out pretty well though. I am very surprised that Blake never complained about a belly ache...I think he ate well over half his candy.

Aspen and Holland have always started digging in while they're trick or treating ;)

We are usually the last family to leave Tara's house but I think this year we may have been the first. Marc just wasn't feeling very well and we all just kind of wanted to have a repeat of last night. No pizza though... just candy ;). We stopped at Target on the way home to pick up Iron Man. The kids got a kick out of wearing their costumes in the store.

All in all we had a GREAT Halloween. However, I absolutely hate that I have to bundle them up almost every Halloween. It doesn't make for very good costume pictures. Hmmm...maybe we'll pay a visit t0 good ole Florida next year and see what trick or treating is like in Aunt Becky's neighborhood ;). Oh well...they got lots of use out of their costumes this year and I got LOTS of pictures :)

Doctor De

2009-10-26T02:43:00.001-07:00

I reached my goal last night…I think I drank a bottle of champagne all by myself. Thankfully I ate before we came home so I don’t feel too shabby. It was a GREAT time, that’s for sure. I think anytime with Meredith is a good time ;).

Why is it when you go out and have tons of fun the next day just draaaags? It doesn’t help that I have a sick kiddo today. Blake woke up with a fever this morning. He was supposed to play in his first tennis tournament today but I had to cancel…boo :(. I’m starting to feel like Dr. De over here. The sickness just won’t end. Thankfully, Blake’s fever was gone by late this afternoon. I think I can put the fear of him having H1N1 behind me, I assume he would have gotten worse as the day went on rather than better.

Scale has had a miraculous recovery too. I thought for sure he was a goner. Even after he finished his meds he still wasn’t looking so hot. But then one day, he was just better. No more force feeding…he’s full of life and eager to eat :). I have to give Marc all the credit (even though he rarely actually fed him or administered the medicine) because if it weren’t for him taking him back to the vet I don’t think Scale would be around today.

Once I saw that Blake was doing better I brought in their pumpkins to carve. I always forget what a chore it actually is…and I have to do THREE. None of my kids like sticking their hands into the goo and digging out the seeds. After three, my arms were tired and I felt like one big pumpkin mess. Jazz was intrigued though, she kept trying to eat the seeds.

And that doesn’t even include the actual carving. They always want these “fancy” pumpkins where I have to trace a pattern and then carve out the pieces ever so carefully. I let the boys help me a little bit with theirs. It’s a catch 22 though…if I don’t let them help enough they are disappointed BUT if I let them help with the difficult parts and they mess up they are completely devastated and there is no turning back :(. Blake did surprisingly well…I think he’ll be ready carve his by himself next year.

With today being so busy, it wasn’t surprising that Marc and I forgot it was our anniversary…oops. Six years!!! I just happened to see the date on my computer later this evening. I don’t get too wrapped up in that type of stuff…I’m not really an anniversary type of girl. I was even relieved that Marc forgot too…I hate it when he gets me a card and I forget. I just feel that our birthdays (September and November) and Christmas are stressful enough. I also think that we spend enough good quality time together that we don’t have to celebrate a “certain” date. BUT…he BETTER make my birthday special…I AM a birthday type of girl ;).

Cat-Dog

2009-10-24T06:16:00.001-07:00

Jazz has quite the personality…she is literally full of it. I have never been around such a feisty little kitty…at least I don’t recall Oreo being so crazy ;) The best comparison I can make for her is a dog. She does that thing that dogs do, where they sit still with their paws spread out, their heads down low, and their butts high in the air…then goes racing around the house only to come back to the same position and start over. I have also seen her chase her own tail a few times.
She probably wouldn’t be so crazy if Oreo would give her the time of day. There was one moment where he started to warm up to her but she attacked him (in a playful way) and he has been an asshole to her ever since. The kids and I enjoy her playful spirit though. I love playing with her upstairs in Aspen’s room…she goes nuts in Aspen’s playhouse. I play peek-a-boo with her through the windows…I have to be fast though, when she gets me it hurts. She also plays chase with Aspen. If Aspen is on her toy box, she’ll leave her alone…but if Aspen gets down, Jasmine will chase her…it’s hilarious.

Jazz isn’t much of a lover though. She goes nonstop until she finally passes out. In fact, we still have to lock her up at night because she will attack your face just for breathing. But once she is exhausted she just plops in her little bed. You can do whatever to her and she doesn’t budge.

Marc and I got the pleasure of meeting Casey’s new girlfriend last night. We both adore her…she’s perfect for him (we hope anyways ;). We had dinner with them at Zazios along with Mike and Trish. After dinner, the six of us walked over to Monaco Bay and went through the haunted house attraction on the second floor. I thought they did a really good job with all the decorating but I didn’t get that scared. Going with Casey was a blast…he was an ass to some of the workers (just laughing at them and trying to scare “them”) and it was hilarious.

Marc, Mike, Trish, and I attempted to go to the Forest Haunt on KL but it closed at 10PM. I decided to just call it a night. I know tonight is going to be a late one…we are going to a birthday party at Meredith and Jay’s. I plan on getting nice and intoxicated ;).

P is for Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-22T03:01:00.001-07:00

We are having such a beautiful fall…I hope the weather holds out for another “warm” Halloween. We took the kids up to Gene’s Pumpkin Patch after school today. The kids have such a great time picking out their perfect pumpkins. Decision making is another example of how different my boys are. Nicholas usually picks the first one he sees and Blake could possibly spend an entire hour, if not more, looking for that “perfect” pumpkin. Everyone finally found theirs and we were on our way.

Blake has found the perfect one :)

The kids wanted mini pumpkins too. Aspen was determined to pick hers up...she had no luck, but it was fun watching her try

Aspen and Nicholas were very interested in the bugs on the pumpkins. Nicholas can be soooo patient with his little sister.

Blake was a fine subject for me today...he actually wanted his picture taken.
I was also able to get the kids back out to Gull Meadow Farms this week. With weather like this, why not? Besides, Blake really wanted to go apple picking again so we could makes his first grade teacher’s (Mrs. Lycon) apple pie. I burned the first batch…that’s two pans down :(. I haven’t had much luck with sugar this year…I’ve burned sugared carrots AND apples. Trying to get the black tar off of the pans is a real joy let me tell you. Nicholas looked high and low for the perfect apples.During my second attempt at the apples, I stayed in the kitchen and kept my eye on them. Blake’s mini pies were delicious. All of my kids LOVE being in the kitchen…maybe a little too much. Sometimes it’s overwhelming trying to make them all fell equal AND happy while also trying to follow a recipe. As much as it is good quality time I also have to embrace lots of, “They poured more than me…I didn’t get to do that…why do I have to go last?”

Trick or FEET

2009-10-18T19:11:00.001-07:00

We just got back from a WONDERFUL weekend at Great Wolf Lodge. Tara and her family came up with us…it was probably one of the best visits I have had with another family. Aspen and Holland adore each other and even the boys played really well with her…the four of them just got along so well. I think Aspen also adopted Brixton…she wanted to hold and feed him at every opportunity. I think that it helps that Marc and Tim seem to be a lot alike. It always helps when everyone from both families enjoys the company of the other.

Funny thing though, we spent very little time at the water park…BUT there was never a dull moment, we just spent time doing other things. We took the kids into the craft shop to color their own trick or treating bags. They were not cute so our kids ended up painting magnets and coloring a shirt with Marc. We probably spent a good two hours or so in there doing crafts. After that the kids got to wear their Halloween costumes and go trick or treating in the halls. The trick or treating part was actually kinda lame but the kids enjoyed it…GWL DID do a great job decorating for Halloween.

Aspen LOVED the glue.

Aspen got her first pedicure during our visit. She took Holland to Scoops for her birthday (Holland’s birthday is during the week of Thanksgiving and we are never home during that week to celebrate with her). The girls were so cute and had such a great time. I’d have to say what I enjoyed most about those two girls playing together was how “individual” they remained. They didn’t copy each other at all. They each picked what THEY wanted and never settled for what the other one picked. Tara and Holland surprised Aspen with a little bag of goodies that she was very thankful for. In it was a toe ring among other cute things and she was so excited to, "have one like me now." They looked adorable in the "sundae" chair.

Aspen's pretty toes.

Aspen picked EVERYTHING chocolate.
We have very few friends where our whole family meshes together so nicely. Being around Tara and her family was really easy for our family and I hope they felt the same way. I look forward to doing many more things with them…after all GREAT friends equal GREAT company.

Roller Coaster

2009-10-16T04:16:00.001-07:00

I have been up since 3 AM (it's now 7AM) pondering life. Anyone who's married knows that it's not necessary to visit Cedar Point for the thrill ride of your life. The Millennium Force has NOTHING on the roller coaster of love.

I am writing this blog because Marc and I are obviously in one of our "low peaks" of marriage. He said (yes, I woke him up at 5AM to "talk") that there should be a class offered in high school about parenting. A class to prepare you. I honestly think the parenting part is easy. It just kind of comes naturally. I think a class needs to be offered, better yet...REQUIRED, that prepares everyone for marriage.

I, personally, have never spent restless nights pondering about my children (I am sure those days are sure to come when they enter their teenage years). On the other hand, I have spent MANY of nights (we've been together for almost nine years...sheesh) questioning my relationship. Pros and cons...needs and desires...likes and dislikes...happy/unhappy...the list could go on and on.

No, there needs to be something required for people to watch or listen to before they say "I DO". I'm not saying that I regret my decision by any means, BUT I sure would have liked to have been prepared for how selfless one must be in order to have a successful marriage. I mean, I am a VERY selfish individual. Being a good mom comes naturally to me, but being a "good" wife...now that takes effort. You can't just decide you don't want to be a mom anymore, walk away, and start over with new kids. BUT, too easily can you just decide you don't want to be married anymore, meet someone new, and start all over.

What people don't stop to think about is that EVERY relationship has its battles. The positives you experience in your current relationship may not be present in your next relationship. Are you willing to lose the things that DO make you happy??? I'm NOT.

Lost in the Snow

2009-10-14T17:59:00.001-07:00

What a day…it was definitely one of those days that I had to remind myself that tomorrow is a new day. I still haven’t adjusted OR accepted the fact that attitudes can change at the flip of a switch with a family of five. I seriously NEVER know what to expect. The day ended on a good note though…sometimes that is all that really matters.

Let’s start with Aspen…oh my. I don’t know what happened exactly but she took a turn for the worst this afternoon. Ugh…to keep myself from going crazy (and in order to keep my hands to myself) I decided to put her in the car an hour early to pick up the boys. My hopes were that she would just exhaust herself and fall asleep on the drive. Thankfully she did…she was asleep by the time I reached I-94.

Although I was a little bored as I sat in the parking lot for 45 minute, I literally welcomed the peace and quiet. Unfortunately it gave me even more time to think about first grade. I am all emotional about Nicholas for some reason. I LOVE his teacher and everything, but first grade for him appears to definitely be different then first grade was for Blake. Blake’s first grade teacher left the school and Nicholas’s Kindergarten teacher took her place. It’s not one “big” thing that is bothering me, but just these little things. As some of you already know…I DON’T DO change very well.

Naturally, his teacher is going to have some adjusting to do of her own. She is used to a kindergarten curriculum and her largest class size was fourteen students. Now she has twenty students. One of my biggest concerns is the fact that Blake had two full-time teachers in his room last year with nineteen students. Nicholas has only one with twenty :(. There is another “helper” there during some parts of the day, but that only makes me feel like the school throws who ever has time in their day in there. I know I am basically whining, but I just want to feel like Nicholas is getting the same opportunities and education that Blake got in first grade. Oh well, we have conferences tomorrow so I will be able to voice my concerns.

I was not very eager to wake Aspen up once school was dismissed. Usually I would have left her in the car while I went in to get the boys, but I had promised the boys this morning that I would take them to the book fair after school. Thankfully, Aspen was in much better spirits when I carried her in and she saw all the books…it could have been a disaster. It’s such a pleasure watching them “shop” and try to narrow their decisions…they each got to pick two.

My favorite part of the book fair is the ride home. I LOVE hearing my boys read aloud to each other in the back. I was thrown back a bit though when Nicholas informed me that Blake was crying (of course I thought the worst…Nicholas had probably punched his brother or something). Apparently, Blake was very upset after he read the back of one of the books he chose. It was a book about a kitten that gets Lost in the Snow. The paragraph phrased something about the kitten being cold and lost…will she be able to find a home. It just tore my little boy up inside…he was so worried about that little kitten. Like his mommy, he is VERY compassionate about animals…maybe there is still yet to be a vet in the family :).

We got to top our evening off with a visit from Shannon and her boys. We don’t get together nearly enough. It’s a shame because the boys get along so well together. Nicholas and Landon are like two peas in a pod. After she left we had a stress free evening. The boys do not have school tomorrow or Friday so I got to skip the stress of the bedtime routine…that is my LEAST favorite part of EVERY school night.

Zoo Boo

2009-10-11T20:21:00.001-07:00

I was so happy to see the kids today. I felt so refreshed after the nice quiet weekend. I wish I had gotten more accomplished, but oh well...those weekends are hard to come by.

We met up with Garnett at the Binderpark Zoo. Blake really wanted to do the Zoo Boo this year. Unfortunately, I think it get lamer each year and possibly more expensive. The fact that adults have to pay full price is really dumb. I would rather NOT have my own trick or treat bag. Marc and Garnett made use of theirs though ;).

The kids enjoyed it though. One of the reasons we went was so the kids could wear their costumes today. However, it was so nippy out I didn't bother changing them. Jackets were required (by me), therefore their costumes would have been covered anyways. I think I am gonna try to skip out on the Zoo Boo next year.

I think Marc enjoyed the treat walk as much as the kids ;)

We all enjoyed a ride on the Zoo Express.

Blake told us jokes along the way.

Blake and Aspen enjoyed a "spooky" story.

They ALL still like the carosel.

Definitally, Maybe

2009-10-10T09:51:00.001-07:00

I don't get to enjoy our home without the kids often enough so this weekend has been a real treat. Garnett wanted the kids for the weekend so we dropped them off last night. Usually, when we have a weekend "off" we throw some adult gathering or hit the town. But this weekend has been so peaceful...we haven't done diddly. We just enjoyed each others company.

When we got home Friday night we just snuggled in bed and watched Definitely, Maybe. What a cute movie. We had been trying to watch that movie for a couple of months now. However, I am sad to say that I did NOT get caught up on The Hills. Every time I sat down to watch it Marc would come upstairs and want to do something.

We got out a little bit today. We decided to spontaneously go see a matinee. It's those little things that you realize you miss sometimes. Just doing whatever YOU want WHENEVER. When you're a parent you almost become selfless. I LOVE being a mommy and all, but I think I need to take more time to enjoy the simplicity of things when I do get that time to myself.

Marc wanted to see Zombieland but I told him I had no interest and to just see it with the boys. We ended up seeing District 9. I liked the movie but I also felt disturbed during it. The human race can be so cruel and self centered. I'd hate to see what we do to each other if the world does ever come to an end. Hopefully, it will be fast and painless versus a fight for survival.

What to do on a Saturday night with no plans??? Spend money of course :) We decided to go to the mall at 8PM and get Marc some new work clothes. He has been dressing more professional lately...trying to fit the part of business man and all :) We ate dinner at the chophouse after. We had such a great experience last week that we craved for more. Unfortunately, everything was horrible...the service and the food (well the appetizers anyways, the main course was great). Oh well, I can't chop it up to being all bad...we ran into Rachel there and it was nice to officially meet her husband.

When I Get Bigger

2009-10-08T05:22:00.000-07:00

This morning while I was getting Aspen ready for school I couldn't help but notice the little girl that she's becoming. I told her, "Aspen, I don't want you to grow up...please don't get bigger." Her reply was, "But Mom, I have too...BUT when I get bigger, I will still be your baby." How do I argue with that?

She has really blossomed over the past month. She has done a complete 180 with school. She never cries when I drop her off anymore. She even tells me she is ready to go in the morning before we are actually ready, "Can I go to school now Mommy?" I was a little worried that I would have to start all over with her after the field trip and applesauce day.

I had such a great time joining her class and making applesauce. It was actually my first time. It never worked out that I could join the boys during their applesauce day. But I knew if I didn't show up for Aspen's, she would freak. I explain to her every morning that I can NOT stay because Nature's Way is for little kids only...moms CAN'T stay. If other mommies stayed for the day and I didn't then I feared all her trust in me would be gone.

I don't think the teachers realized I had never joined though. They must have considered me an alumni because they had enough faith in me to have me in charge of making the applesauce. Luckily it came out fine :) It was really nice getting to know Aspen's first classmates...possibly future friends.It was so nice seeing her smiling and enjoying school. The last time I saw her during circle time she was bawling and begging me to stay.

Gull Meadow Farms

2009-10-05T20:23:00.001-07:00

Today was such a beautiful fall day that we HAD to take advantage of it. After I picked the boys up from school we drove out to Gull Meadows. I LOVE cider and donuts...they were all out of cider though :( Oh well...I made up for it by having an extra donut.

Carter joined us...she also has two boys (both in the boys' classes) and one girl (a year older than Aspen). The kids all had a blast together. I love watching how my boys interact with kids that I don't really know versus how they act when they are just hanging with me. All I can say is...having four boys would be CRAZY. We went apple picking first...probably a bad idea. They had A LOT of energy and the poor apples got most of it. I swear, apples were everywhere. After a staff came and yelled at them they settled down...a little.

It's amazing how much they love to eat apples they pick themselves.

It's hard to eat an apple with no front teeth ;)

I was much calmer when we were back in pumpkin lane (I HATE it when my kids misbehave in public). After the Magnell's left, the kids and I decided to conquer the corn maze. The boys did such a great job...they pretty much lead the entire way. I loved hearing their "turn right mom, now left, right again." My boys are little people now :( The highlight of our adventure for me was when all the kids wanted a picture with me. I was taking so many pictures of just them when Nicholas decided, "Hey Mom, we need to take a picture of YOU." That melted my heart. It took lots of tries for each of them to take a good picture...bodies and heads were missing in most of them.

My FAVOITE picture of the day...I don't have nearly enough of these.

Jasmine

2009-10-04T19:54:00.000-07:00

I had two requirements for the new addition to our family. First, the kitten had to be a male. Second, I wanted it to have long hair. As you can see from the name and the picture…I got NEITHER.

I do NOT like female cats…they are too bitchy and finicky. In my experience, males are just friendlier. Our last female, Chloe, got choosy about the litter box. She was fine sharing with Oreo, but she wouldn’t use the litter box anymore once we moved in with Biggles. We tried to give her a “private” litter box, but we couldn’t keep the boys out. She lives with my mom now and is very happy being the only cat at her house.

The reasoning for the long fur??? I dunno, I just think long haired cats are cuter ;) Short haired cats just have this homely look to them. Also, when cats are adults, you can see their saggy bellies easier if they have short hair. It just looks like additional fluff if they are fluffy ;) LMAO…boy, I’m not picky or anything…watch out future in-laws.

In all honestly though, I LOVE Jasmine. She has melted my heart. We picked her out at the shelter on Wednesday after school but we couldn’t bring her home until Thursday. She was definitely NOT my first choice (non-furry female) BUT it was Marc’s choice to make. I preferred this really cute black and white fluff ball (which also happened to be female…I swear, there were NO male kittens) but Marc was quick to disagree, “We are NOT getting another Oreo."

She is REALLY frisky :)

Out of the ten kittens that we saw, Jasmine needed a home the most. She was the only kitten NOT in the nursery and I think she was the smallest one (she is only 1.1 pounds). They must have had her separated so she wouldn’t get the other kittens sick. She had the worst case of conjunctivitis. Her eyes are still pretty much swollen shut, but they ARE getting better. I was so upset when I saw that she was worse when she came home on Thursday. Why didn’t they start her on antibiotics already??? She could hardly even breathe because she was so congested. We took her to the vet on Friday and even he said it was one of the worst upper respiratory infections he has seen. Her breathing has gotten much clearer…she can even meow now.

Aspen came up with the name Jasmine (my name suggestions were vetoed as well). I don’t know where she picked it up from…she LOVES princesses, but hasn’t even seen Aladdin. I preferred a name that resembled fall (especially because her coat resembles the fall leaves)…Autumn, Apple, Ginger, the list could go on and on. Hell, I would have settled for Ariel…at least she had red hair. The name is wearing on me though and we have all agreed to call her Jazz for short.

This kids ADORE her...she is always in one of their arms.

We had another GREAT weekend with the Hedeman’s…we got to enjoy their company on Friday AND Sunday. Marc and I ended up having a wonderful date night Friday for not having any plans. Usually, we do whatever I want to do, but I just didn’t feel like planning anything this week. We ended up making a late run to Best Buy and having a fantastic last minute dinner at the Chop House. After dinner, we stopped by Center Ice so Marc could check on some things. I had a nice stiff drink and got to drunk dialing ;) Meredith was on the same path so we decided that I might as well talk Marc into bringing me over. We ended up having so much fun with Meredith, Jay, Jen, and Ryan.

On Saturday, Marc let the kids invite a couple of friends to test out Pirates Island, the new water park that SWAT will be managing. The kids appeared to have a great time. Blake also got to have some friends over throughout the day (Eloise and Jaxson). It was a hoot taking five kids around…what a litter. After everyone went home, the kids and I just enjoyed a nice relaxing evening snuggling on the couch.

Meredith cooked dinner for us on Sunday as a birthday gift to Marc. He LOVES her corned beef so she offered to cook him reubens per his request three times. They were so yummy. We spent most of the afternoon over there. Marc, Mer, and Henry got into a little tennis debate...that was awkward BUT entertaining. We all went for a nature walk so they could cool off. I LOVE fall days like this. The air feels so brisk and fresh BUT the sun is out...soon it will be gone for months. Aspen usually gets a makeover at the Hedeman's...compliments of Eloise.

The GOLDEN Lizard

2009-09-29T02:48:00.000-07:00

I had it in my head that we would be getting a new kitten yesterday. The kids and I actually wanted to get one for Marc on his birthday Saturday, but the shelter was closed. We figured it's time, Biggles isn't coming home :( We checked out a few other places (Petsmart and Uptown Pets) but no luck. Anyways, we did NOT get a kitten yesterday...Marc had other intentions.

I don't think I have mentioned that Scale (our Chinese water dragon) has been sick for like six weeks. It started out with an eye infection. I took him to the vet before our RV trip and got some meds for him. They didn't seem to help though. I don't think he has eaten in like a month. He is so lethargic, but won't croak. I had given up...I was NOT going to take him back to the vet for another $150 visit. Besides, where am I gonna find the time?

I'm actually quite proud of Marc. He took the initiative to call around until he found the vet I took Scale to last time. He made an appointment for him and took him in. The kids and I met up with him at the veterinary hospital after I picked up the boys. I guess Scale almost died when the vet poked him to administer some fluids :( Amazingly, he had lost hardly any weight though. Sooo...after that $200 visit, we drove to Petsmart and got Scale an entire new husbandry. That was another $300 or so. We needed a glass cage because his screen cage is just not holding the humidity he needs.

I think this lizard has cost us over $1000 so far. If he makes it through all his treatments he shall be otherwise knows as The Golden Lizard. Only time will tell...we have to give him lots of meds, vitamins, and force feed him for the next week.

Victorious Procrastination

2009-09-27T19:26:00.001-07:00

Some people think I am nuts (some get frustrated...Marc ;) by my procrastination technique in regards to school, but I just can’t help it. The rewards (A’s) are so reinforcing. Yup, I got a 98% on my first exam. I only missed one. The silly thing is that I felt 100% about 36 of the questions and was a little iffy about 4 of them. So as I walked out of the class, I knew that I at least got a 90%...so shouldn't I have been ecstatic about only missing one??? Nope, not me…I was pissed I didn’t get 40/40. Sigh, I REALLY need to get out of my med school mentality.

So…I think I am finally getting into the groove of things, schedule wise. This week was a breeze, even though Marc was gone and I had a test to prepare for. I think I really needed the single mom time in order to push myself into gear. I just have to realize that I can NOT rely on him and this semester is going to be rough…it’s just a couple of months…WE can do this ;) I don’t know why I put so much on my plate, but I just can’t seem to help it. I feel like the energizer bunny…I just keep going…going…going.

Maybe I shouldn't have taken a class AND a practicum. I LOVE my class though. It’s Human Sexuality and we all know that anything that has to do with SEX is right up my alley ;) I haven’t actually “enjoyed” attending class in a long time. Here is a look at my weekly chaos. It may be nothing compared to some, but for some reason I was having a hard time settling in :(

Mondays – Wake the boys up for school at 6:45. Get them ready and to school by 8. Work out and get ready for the day at the gym. Meet with client from 10-11. Pick up boys and take them to lunch at 11:20. Get them back to school in time to meet Jaimee (our sitter) at Bronson by 12:30 for Aspen’s swim lesson. Feed Aspen and go grocery shopping for the week. I have just enough time to drop the groceries off at home before I have to head back out the door at 2:45 to pick up the boys. From 4 to 7, I have to make dinner, try to spend some quality time with the boys, and do their homework with them. At 7 I try to start the bedtime routine: bath, teeth, stories (it NEVER goes as smoothly as it may sound) and have them in bed at 9PM. By then I am pooped and the TV entertains Aspen instead of mommy reading her a bedtime story :(…I need to do better with that. Sigh, there I go putting more pressure on myself.

Tuesdays – Wake the boys AND Marc up at 6:45. Marc helps me out by taking the boys to breakfast and school on Tuesday mornings. After I get them out the door I get ready before waking Aspen up at 8. I have to have her ready and to school by 9. Tennis from 9:30-10:30. I usually squeeze in a quick cup of coffee before I pick her back up at 11:30. Aspen and I just kind of enjoy the afternoon together doing whatever. Jaimee comes over to watch Aspen at 3PM so I can take off and get some studying in before my 5–6:15 class. Come home and start cooking a simple dinner. Jaimee usually returns with the kids by 7:15. They have quite a busy evening too…Meredith picks up the boys from school for me and drops them off at tennis. Jaimee picks them up at 5:15 and takes all the kids to gymnastics. After we eat dinner, we pretty much go straight into the bedtime routine.

Wednesdays – The mornings start out pretty much the same as Mondays. After I observe a client from 10-11, I have to go to WMU for an hour to do my weekly office work…aka bitch work for my practicum. I get home around 12:45 to feed and hang out with Aspen before we do a repeat of Monday afternoon/evenings. The boys homework for the week must be completed by this evening because it is due on Thursday mornings.

Thursdays are kind of similar to Tuesdays…Marc takes the boys after I get them ready so I can move on to getting Aspen ready. However, starting next Thursday, my afternoons will be a little more chaotic. I will be dropping Aspen off to my grandma at 2:45. It is my day to carpool, so I pick up the boys, Henry, and Eloise. I will have just enough time to drop them off at West Hills for tennis and get to another client for an observation at 4PM. After that, I have class from 5-6:15. Marc has all the kids picked up and dinner usually started by the time I get home at 6:30 (well that’s the plan anyways...I feel like I have only picked food up on my way home thus far).

Fridays – I take the boys to school and head to the gym (I can’t believe I am working out five mornings a week…well maybe only once so far, I’ve skipped a few already…BUT, that’s the plan ;) I have a weekly meeting on campus from 9:30-11:30. After I get out, I have to run to the office and grab Aspen from Marc. We hang out together until it's time to pick up the boys. Jaimee is supposed to come at 4:30 so I can observe a client from 5-6, but the graduate therapist/client haven't gotten it worked yet so I haven't had to do it thus far. Date night starts at 6...YAY!!! I will also start having to visit a client on Sunday evenings for an hour :(

WOW, this is a long blog thus far...what's next? I have some GREAT news, Aspen is doing better with school. She didn't cry on Tuesday (she was still upset when I put her in the car, but no tears dropped down). Thursday didn't really count because she had a field trip and I got to stay with her. She just needs to bond with one of her teachers and she'll be fine. There was a time that she would cry when I would leave her with Jaimee too, but now she is always like YAY....Jaimee ;) Next Tuesday shouldn't be bad either. It's applesauce day so I plan on staying to help out. I hope these two mommy days don't cause her to regress.

Wheee!!!

This is my FAVORITE pic of these girls.

She found her perfect pumpkin.

Last, but not least, Marc's birthday was yesterday. He and I celebrated on Friday night together. I didn't plan anything this year because we both felt we just needed some alone time together. We had a WONDERFUL evening. We played tennis for a bit, went to dinner, then enjoyed a soak at Oasis. It might have been my first soak minus the poke haha. LMAO...my grandma calls it the soak-n-poke ;) But we really just enjoyed each others company and conversed through the entire session...ooops. There was a light drizzle outside too...it made for the perfect setting.

Last night the kids and I took Marc to dinner at Hana East. Larry and Carrie came along with their daughter. Our company was FANTASTIC, but our dinner was HORRIBLE. I think it was the worst food I have ever had there. The guy was new and just simply sucked. You would think that they would test him out first...be sure he really knows how to cook table side. He didn't provide any entertainment either...no volcano :( Hmmm...why am I complaining, aren't girls supposed to be satisfied with cake for dinner ;)

Candy Trail

2009-09-21T18:38:00.001-07:00

Every fall, we take one last trip in the RV. This is the third year we have gone during a "Halloween" weekend. The kids love breaking out there costumes early and trick-or-treating in September. We went to Holly, MI (near Detroit) the first few times but when we found out that the campground was no longer a jellystone we decided to go to the Yogi Bear Resort in Fremont, IN this year.

We LOVE that campground BUT the trick-or-treating SUCKED. We went during the "parade" weekend. It was just a mess. They have everyone that is handing out candy make a big circle in the athletic field and all the children walk around in the big circle. It was DUMB...the kids even hated it. In Holly it's normal, all the kids walk around to each campsite just as they would in their neighborhood. Most of the sites are usually decorated really well because they hold a decorating contest during that time. You "feel" like it's Halloween in September :) In all fairness to the Fremont park, I guess they only do the parade once out of their three Halloween weekends. I will just have to be sure NOT to book our trip for that weekend next fall.

I guess she should have been Cinderella ;)

We had beautiful weather. It was so nice that they still had the pool open. The kids quickly learned that just because it is sunny out doesn't mean it necessarily warm ;) They had a blast playing water wars though. It's amazing how long it takes to fill 20 water balloons but how quickly they're gone. The days of tying them by myself should be over soon, hopefully.

All in all it was a great family trip. We all got to enjoy one last weeny roast and s'mores...I need s'more season to be over ;)...although cider and donuts aren't much better. We had one little mishap though. Poor Nicholas, he left a candy trail and lost all his candy on the way back to the RV. How did he not realize he was carrying his bag upside down??? He didn't even notice until we were near the RV (the athletic field was a great distance away) By then, it was too late. Marc went back a little bit but was able to find only a few pieces here and there. Nicholas was so upset...devastated might be a better description.

The kids LOVE doing crafts.

After we got home, Marc packed his bags and headed up north to go fishing with his Pah for the week. So it will be me by myself this week :( The worst part is that I have a test Thursday evening with no time to study...I foresee LOTS of 4AM mornings for me this week so I can get all the reading done. Crystal is going to help me out and pick up Aspen from school on Thursday so I can cram it all in (that's really what I would probably do anyways).

The kids and I got off to a great start though :) After Marc left I packed up their bikes (and Blake's scooter). It was a perfect day for an afternoon at the Celery Flats. The kids love riding and frog hunting there, and we made the best of it. I think we were there for three hours. We decided to cross the street and tackle a different trail. It took us to the Portage Library, the kids thought it was so cool riding there bikes somewhere. We took a reading break (well not really a "break", we were there for an hour until the library announced it was closing).

It was such a treat for me to watch them enjoy our adventure. I wish I would have brought my bike. Marc and I used to, but it was too much work to ride so slow and hop on and off to help the kids up the strong inclines. But today, they all did such a great job. Blake is even getting really good on his scooter. I told him that I think his balance is finally there and that he should be able to ride a bike now. His reply was, "Mom, you know, some people are just not bike people...I'm a scooter person." I guess that's that, until next year ;)

Yin and Yang

2009-09-17T02:44:00.001-07:00

I thought that once school started my boys would be more civilized to each other. They are like Yin and Yang, I swear. They literally kick each other's asses already...I don't even want to imagine what it is going to be like during the teenage years. They sometimes start within minutes of getting in the car after school.

Yesterday, the beatings began in our house before we even left for school (that means they were at each other's throats by 7AM). I ended it by giving them a good whoopin, that usually only makes them join forces and hate ME instead...I just can't win.

The actual fighting isn't what drives me crazy the most, it's what they fight about. Yesterdays ordeal began because Blake simply asked Nicholas to chew with his mouth closed. Of course, Nicholas chose to ignore Blake's request. I don't remember who turned it into a physical brawl, but one nudged the other one's head (causing it to almost hit the table) and it was complete chaos after that (arm twisting, hitting, and face clawing). Oh, I forgot to mention that all of this happened within the two minutes that I had walked five steps away to move clothes from the washer to the drier.

At this point, you may be thinking that my kids are violent and nuts. The truth is, they don't act like this to anyone else but each other. There are times that I even want them to kick butt, but they just walk away (I am referring to some incidents that have occurred where other kids have hit mine and I tell their parents, who in turn, do nothing..."Little Johnny would never do that". That really pisses me off. If another kid is picking on one of mine, they don't even defend each other. I try to tell them if a bigger kid is bullying Aspen and the parents aren't doing anything about it to take care of it. One may not agree with my perception of what should happen,but no need to worry, my kids just take it anyway or ask to leave. They obviously did NOT get my confrontational personality ;)

I just wish my boys would get along. After I had Blake and got pregnant again, all I wanted was another baby boy so Blake could have a life long best friend. At this point, I can't even say that they are "friendly" to each other. Oy vey, once they are interested in girls life is going to get so much more complicated.

The Zipper

2009-09-13T20:42:00.001-07:00

I had two favorite rides at the fair as a teen...the flying swings and the Zipper. I used to go to the Jaycee State Fair with my childhood best friend, Anne, every year. Our parents would drop us off and we would spend the whole evening enjoying the rides together...we thought we were little thugs though, it's quite comical actually.

We would always get in trouble on the swings (I don't think they would have been as much fun had we obeyed the rules). We would get each other swaying and spinning by kicking the back of each other's seats. Those were the good ole days, back when I enjoyed the rides MORE than the food. In fact, I don't think I had ever really eaten fair food until I started dating Marc. I know that I had never even heard of an elephant ear before him. Now, I have a hard time staying away from everything...fiske fries, lemonade, corn dogs, pizza, and occasionally, the sausage sub.

But the Zipper, that was by far my favorite of the two. I thought I was gonna die every time I got on that thing. I was also always in fear of getting puked on by another patron. Luckily, that never happened.

Today, at the Allegan County Fair, I got to relive those childhood memories with Nicholas...he was brave enough to accompany me on the ride. He actually asked ME if he could ride it. I was totally stoked that he met the height requirements. Blake had no desire, which was probably a good thing...I don't think he would have handled it well.

Poor Nicholas, he was scared to death. I have to admit that I was a very bad mommy...I laughed so hard at his fear that I actually pissed my pants (damn weak mommy bladder). He held on to me for dear life and begged me not to let him go. Poor thing, he had slid under the bar a little and was wedged in, but I think it made him feel more secure. The funniest part for me was that he had just commented about some of the people screaming on other rides we had gone on, "Why do they scream Mom...isn't that dumb?" However, he squealed like a little girl on the Zipper...it was freaking hilarious. I have never heard vocalizations like that come from him before.

I was ready to go after that. Thankfully, it was the last ride we planned to do anyway. I needed to get home and change my pants...how embarrassing. I need to start dressing smarter at the fairs. I wore white capris to the Jackson County Fair in August...can you say idiot. Those are pretty much toast. I haven't bleached them yet though, so there is still hope. Today I wore khaki shorts...those don't hide a wet spot very well :(

Running Off Steam

2009-09-12T13:36:00.001-07:00

Although our first week of fall was a little rocky with the start of school and all, our weekend has been FANTASTIC thus far. Our sitter requested the night off last night so we didn't have our usual " date night", BUT we might have had more fun as a family then we would have on our own.

We spent the evening with the Hedeman's. Meredith made us an amazing steam pot dinner (I swear, she is one of the BEST cooks I know). It consisted of corn, potatoes, crab legs, mussels, and sausage. I think the adults devoured almost a whole pot all on our own. We ate so much, it's almost gross, but it was SO good ;) I brought over a peach pie...I LOVE pie, especially peach.

The beautiful thing is how well our kids play together. It allows the adults to socialize as well, without feeling guilty. At one point all of us were in the family room sitting around the fire. It was so enjoyable to just sit around with a glass of wine and share the moment with our children...they are becoming so mature (at times ;).

When the alarm clock buzzed early this morning, I was not very happy with myself for volunteering to participate in the Grape Lake 5K in Paw Paw. I was up and out of the house before dawn :( My mood shifted when I arrived at Crystal's and realized that Marc had left the peach pie in the back seat. I knew it was meant to be, there is no better way to start the day then with a huge piece of pie for breakfast...well sex might be a little better (at least your burning calories instead of consuming them ;)

If there were any regrets left after the pie, they were all gone once we arrived at our destination. Once I saw the little girl I was there to support, everything else seemed unimportant. I actually ended up having a GREAT time. Even though we walked at a very slow pace so that we could stay with Crystal's mom, I loved the feeling of accomplishment I felt at the end. I could see myself actually running some time and maybe attempting a 1/2 marathon with Crystal.

It's So HARD to Say Goodbye

2009-09-10T16:53:00.000-07:00

Just as I thought, today was absolutely heart wrenching. Aspen did NOT want me to leave her at school today :( I didn't want to leave her either...it took lots of will power to do so. Circle time had started and she just wouldn't settle down. I finally asked one of the teachers what I should do and they said I just kind of have to tell her bye and walk away. I did it, but not without shedding tears of my own. In fact, when I walked out the door I was a total mess. Thankfully, Crystal was waiting outside and gave me a big hug...I think that just made me cry harder ;)

I wanted so badly to turn around, kiss away her tears, and bring her home. BUT, I knew if I did, I would never get her to go back. She would continue to break down in order to escape the situation. This isn't the first time I have gone through this...Blake was the same way. He might have been a little worse. I remember very vividly him begging me not to leave him. He even cried out, "But I LOVE you mommy." If I made him stay then I just HAD to do the same with her.

As I drove away I just couldn't pull myself together. I drove to the gym in hopes that a good work out would ease my heartache. Marc was there playing tennis as well, and I needed a good reassuring hug. I interrupted his lesson and broke down for the final time. Working out after DID help. By the time I finished I only had an hour left before I could pick her up.

The huge smile and big squeeze she gave me when we were reunited might have been worth the emotional mess I went through that morning. I don't think she has ever been so happy to see me. Her teachers said that once they went through the daily schedule with her she was fine. They told her that I would be there to pick her up after their nature walk. The only downfall to that was she asked them if it was time to go on their walk after every activity ;) Hopefully that will be our hardest day. Marc has already offered to take her for me next Tuesday so I don't have to go through it again.

My heart was broken again this evening. Blake broke down while I was tucking him into bed and told me he didn't have friends to play with at recess anymore. KCDS is so small, there is only one second grade class and it only has fifteen students. The bigger problem is that three of his friends that he played with during recess last year are attending different schools this year. There is only one kid left from their "clan" and I guess he plays soccer now.

I asked him why he didn't just play soccer with them and he told me he isn't good at it (poor guy is the smallest boy in his class and inherited my sloooow moving skills). Next, I asked him about some of the other boys and he proceeded to tell me that they were annoying...all the "cool" boys play soccer.

Nicholas was my last resort, "Why don't you play with Nicholas?" He quickly answered, "NO, he plays with girls...they play ponies and puppies!" Nicholas quickly interrupts that they play other stuff too, like house (you have to understand that out of ten students in his class last year, Nicholas was one of only two boys...he is very used to playing with girls ;) I asked Blake why he doesn't just pretend to be the dad or something. His response melted my heart, "I am not a very good pretender Mom."

I didn't know what else to say or do. I did ask Nicholas if he would take some time at the beginning of recess tomorrow to play something with Blake. I told Blake that he could take his soccer ball to school and kick it back and forth with Nicholas. Being the sweetheart that he is, Nicholas replied, "Sure Mom." I also explained to Blake that his current school is very small and if he wanted he could attend a different school next year that is much bigger, therefore a lot more kids to interact with. I just hope that he and Aspen settle into the big changes soon...I hate seeing them unhappy.

Back to School

2009-09-08T19:52:00.000-07:00

I don’t think I was mentally prepared for such a busy day. When I got home I was pissy AND pooped. But now that all the kids are in bed I am totally wired…old habits die hard I guess. Tuesdays are going to be the worst for our household, but hopefully we can get in the swing of things by next week. I am going to lighten the load a bit too…if I don’t, Tuesdays will end up being TOO much.

I started my day at 5:30 this morning (I think the earliest I woke all summer was 7, and that was like twice). I was able to get a quick shower and finish up some last minute details for school. Blake came down at 6:30 and I started getting all of them ready. Getting Aspen up at 6:45 was a REAL treat (I don’t think she is a morning person). I think she had three meltdowns in the 25 minutes she was up before we left. I finally gave up getting her ready and decided to do it in the school parking lot.

Marc joined us at Mickey D’s for a yummy back to school breakfast treat, cinnamon melts. Both boys were surprisingly excited to go back to school. They won’t be singing the same tune in a couple weeks ;) Nicholas should have a GREAT year in first grade. His Kindergarten teacher moved up so he gets her again…we LOVE her. This will be the third year in a row one of my boys are with her…I couldn’t be happier. I am always more anxious for Blake. I never know what to expect each year. But he was excited and the second grade room is so inviting.

After we got the boys settled, Aspen and I ran to the recycling center to drop off a huge load of crap. It is really close to the school and I think I only made it over to that area once this summer. She was in much better spirits when we reached Nature’s Way. Getting her ready in the parking lot was a breeze. Marc met us in the parking lot so he could walk down with her on her FIRST day of school. She looked so cute with her Tinkerbell backpack.

She was surprisingly calm when I left…I was expecting another melt down. Avalin started with her today so I think that may have helped. I think picking her up was even cuter though. The smile on her face when she saw me standing outside was priceless. She told me she had a great day but that she cried cause she missed me (melt my heart). Her teachers informed me that she DID cry a couple times throughout the morning. Aspen said that she wants me to come with her next time…that means leaving her Thursday is going to be heart wrenching for both of us :(

There she goes...I can't believe she is already at Nature's Way. It seems like just yesterday when I had her while Blake was attending his first year. Where does the time go?

Marc does a good job attending all their big moments :)

All smiles on her first day :)

I hope these girls have loads of fun together this year.

Goodbye Summer...Hello Fall

2009-09-07T09:51:00.000-07:00

I think our Labor Day was just as wonderful as our Independence Day. I could really get used to these laid back and simply enjoyable holidays. We gave Summer one last ha rah and enjoyed beautiful weather outside. I was going in the pool today no matter what...you never know what the weather will be like next weekend (Michigan likes to keep you guessing).

The kids and I had some friends over and everyone just really enjoyed every ones company. Crystal and I have been spending more time together lately...our schedules are finally meshing. Watching our girls together is priceless. Their friendship makes me think of my childhood friend, Anne. They start pre-school together and they are so excited (they got an early start today and played school together upstairs ;) They are BOTH very dominating (they're not like their mothers or anything :) so it will be interesting to watch them grow up together. By the looks of things I think Aspen will back down first...Avalin may have a little too much of her mom in her ;)

I also got to see a couple of girls I don't get to see nearly enough. Both of them have kids that went to pre-school with Blake. I really need to put more effort into getting to know some of Nicholas's classmates. I have to admit that Blake gets to see his friends more because I enjoy their moms so much. I do like one of the moms from his Kindergarten class a lot, but her daughter switched schools this year. But I think we enjoy each others company enough that I will be seeing more of them :)

Aspen has gotten so brave in the water. She jumps off the bridge now and today she conquered the slide. Figures that she would start enjoying it on quite possibly our last pool day. Summers just won't be the same from here on out...I'm gonna actually be able to just enjoy the sun pretty much...no more babies :( However, I do look forward to all the fun we can share as a family now...I don't have to sit out from all the fun with a little one anymore.

I forgot to write about Marc's little work party on Saturday. There were supposed to be a ton of people, but only about fifty showed (there may have been more at some point, but that is what it felt like). We had SO much food left over. I felt kinda bad for Shawn putting the whole thing together and having such a bad turn out. Oh well, Crystal was here and we had a GREAT time together. She brought their golf cart over (pinkie is still recuperating) and we had a wild time racing...of course the girls ruled and kicked some serious butt (who cares if we had the advantage of knowing the property like the back of our hands ;)

Biggles...Where Are Thou???

2009-09-06T19:58:00.000-07:00

Our poor kitty is missing :( We have not seen Mr. Bigglesworth since we got back from our trip on Tuesday. We always board the cats if we are going to be gone for more than five days (they get a little "pissy"). We had them brought home on Monday, we always have them come home a day early to get settled in before our return. I didn't worry when I didn't see him at first, but once he wasn't waiting on the back porch when we got up Wednesday, worry began to set in. He is ALWAYS waiting to come inside in the morning.

Poor Oreo is just a mess as well. Our boys have lived together for almost nine years. He is practically sleeping ON my head every night. I tried to put fliers in mailboxes yesterday, but got a courtesy call from the mailman. He took out all my fliers and told me how it's illegal to do that, told me how I am supposed to pay 42 cents per flier. I think what pissed me off the most about it was that I put invitations in our neighborhood mailboxes for five years in a row regarding our 4th of July parties and NEVER received a complaint.

I went back out and taped the fliers on the newspaper boxes. One lady was outside and told me how her neighbor was missing two cats. She also said that people have seen a fox in the area. Then I got a phone call from another lady that her cat is missing too. She said the same thing, she looks for her every morning :( With Biggles being the fourth cat to have gone missing in a few weeks time I have very little hope now. The thought of a fox getting him and carrying him away by the scruff just breaks my heart.

Some could argue that I should have never let him out since he had no front claws. But really, what are the chances? Even now, we really don't know what happened for sure. And our boys have been going outside on this property for seven years. Even now, we still allow Oreo to go outside...but we do our best to be sure he comes in each evening. The boys LOVE going outside and often wait by the door to run out. Oreo usually just plops to the ground and rolls around. It makes him so happy that I would never take that away from him...I just hope each time I open that door that it is NOT the last time I see him.

It really hit home the other day when Marc was watching the kids for me. Aspen fell asleep in her little house upstairs. This is the second time she has just gone upstairs and taken a nap all on her own while Marc is watching her (he says he is really good at ignoring)...she had NEVER done that for me. When I got home and went upstairs to check on her it just wasn't the same. The first time Biggles was crashed right next to her, but this time she was all alone :( She has cried a few times, wanting her Biggles back.

Although I lose faith daily, I still go to bed each evening hoping tomorrow will be the day he is looking at me through the kitchen window waiting to come inside. Biggles is a rare find and he is going to be VERY hard to replace. I guess he will never be "replaced", but if we get a new kitty it will have big paws to live up too ;) He had been around for ten years...what a good ten years it was. Our cats don't even seem that old to me. They are still full of life. I can't believe I have had Oreo since I turned 20...it seems like it was just yesterday. He was the cutest kitten EVER ;)

Niagara Falls

2009-08-29T20:41:00.001-07:00

Saturday-
We arrived at our last destination yesterday, Niagara Falls. After we got all settled in I decided to surrender to the shopping itch I had. I didn’t do too badly though, I mostly just finished shopping for the boys school clothes. I did splurge and get myself one pair of shoes…I couldn’t help it, I LOVE shoes. They are snazzy green heels…I can’t wait to have an excuse to wear them. Aspen has adopted my shoe obsession as well…I think we got her four pairs last night. AND she appears to have inherited my neglect for fashion...I put a pair of UGGS on her and she said, “Ewww, I don’t want these, they’re ugly.”

We did the tourist thing today, on the American side. What do you do a lot at Niagara Falls???...RUN. Sometimes the mist alone from the falls can drench you. I have to admit that Marc and I were impressed by the raging waters. We were kind of worried that it would not meet our expectations (we were really disappointed by Old Faithful). I also heard that the American side wasn’t as good as the Canadian side, but we thought the American side was great. Maybe they mean the actual town (it is kind of a dump).

We didn’t do much today. We viewed the falls from all possible angles. A trolley service is available but Marc thought the family could tough it out…we did, but we were exhausted. We ate at the Top of the Falls Restaurant for lunch…would NOT recommend it. It was overly priced and our experience was horrible. They sat us by the bee catchers and our table for five ended up being a table of fifteen. Bees swarmed all around us and all over our food. They never even offered us to move inside (in fact, they told us they couldn’t because no tables were available). What if my kids were allergic??? The supervisor didn’t even give us a discount. They only told the waitress to offer us a free dessert. I picked gelato and when she brought it she informed that they don’t have to go silverware??? If I haven’t painted a clear enough picture for you this was the end of our meal...the kids playing down in the grass while Marc and I paced the balcony dodging bees and eating our food. The bees got so bad that the staff was even upset they had to clean it up. Oh and I almost forgot what made the pacing begin…I went to take a bite of the kids chicken fingers and when it was almost to my mouth I felt the furry buzz…ugh.

The only attraction we did today was Cave of the Winds. I WOULD recommend that. It was awesome being so close to that powerful water. At one point you could even go under part of the waterfall…the boys loved that. Nicholas wasn’t too happy about being soaked afterwards though. Aspen loved feeling the raging waters on her feet. We tried to take a family picture but couldn’t even get her to look up…she was too intrigued with her wet shoes.

They were SOAKED!!!

Sunday-
So I booked our plane tickets for my birthday trip last night. I was actually sad when I pressed the purchase button. Am I really going to be able to bare being away from my babies for FIVE days???...HELL YES!!! After today (well the past two weeks) I am ready to take off tomorrow. Although I will miss them a ton, it will be a much needed break. Aspen is driving me bonkers. She is so naughty. She literally tries and LOVES to drive me crazy…and it’s working. I didn’t think I was ready for her to go to school but watch out Nature’s Way…here she comes haha. She’s not really a bad girl but she knows what buttons to press, that’s for sure. I knew having a mini me would be hell.

Besides her behavior today, we had an amazing day. Well I guess you could say evening…we didn’t even leave the campground until 4PM. We ventured over to the Canadian side and now I see why they say it’s better. It is much nicer. The view of the falls is beautiful and everything is so clean. It has all of the tourism stuff too (like shops, activities, and restaurants).
It was another walking adventure...who needs people movers when you’re a DeForest (I DO). And it looks like we’ll be walking over the bridge tomorrow instead of driving…ugh. The kids have been so wonderful though (don’t get me wrong, there have been lots of “Are we there yet”). And it’s been COLD. I hope we get to return home to some warm weather. It’s so odd how we usually experience such drastic weather change on our RV adventures. It was so hot in Lancaster and now we are complaining that we’re cold.

We did a couple attractions today. After a long scenic walk we took a break and hopped on the Maid of the Mist boat ride. I was expecting to get soaked but it really wasn’t that bad. We got wetter yesterday just looking at the falls…I still think that is the most fun we have had here so far, running from the mist. But if you’re going to come all the way here, you kind of HAVE to go on the boat ride…it’s the main attraction.

After that we did Niagara’s Fury, the 4D experience. The kids enjoyed that the most. It starts out with a cartoon story about the creation of Niagara and then you go in a simulator. That is really the only way I know how to describe it, I have never been on anything like it before. You basically “experience” the Creation of the Falls. From there we took a “Journey Behind the Falls”. It was very similar to Cave of the Winds, but not as good. If you were going to skip out on an attraction, that would be the one. But maybe we would have enjoyed it a little more if we weren’t so hungry.
Our timing for starting the day ended up being perfect. We sat down to dinner just in time for the illumination of the falls. Our table was at a window overlooking the beautiful setting. It was the best view I have ever had during dinner. The lights changed color about every ten minutes and the kids got a thrill out of guessing which color would be next and deciding on their favorites. Blake loved eating at a “fancy” restaurant. In fact, he had picked it out for us from a coupon book. Our food was fantastic. I think that was the experience we were hoping for at the Top of the Falls Restaurant…if you want a “nice” dining experience, go to Elements at Table Rock.
Monday
Today was kind of a wash. We drove back over the bridge and just spent the day doing mostly kid stuff. We finished up our sight seeing with the White Water Walk. Thankfully, we DID take a bus...it would have been a very long walk. I am torn whether to recommend this or not. It WAS awesome...the water moves so fast it's scary. It is listed as a class 6 rapids. BUT...was it worth the bus ride or the money??? We honestly could have probably done without today all together. One day on each side was fine for us. However, we still enjoyed everything we did today as a "bonus".

The kids loved contributing to the "gum" wall on White Water Walk.

We ALL had a great time with the fun house mirrors.

Aspen took a ride in Cinderella's carriage at the arcade.

The boys opted for guns and zombies.

The "moon" wheel...Aspen mooned us out of no where while at the top.

I wonder how many people work while on a skywheel...probably just Marc ;)

Our trip couldn't end without a round of dino-golf.

Watkins Glen

2009-08-27T07:26:00.000-07:00

Let’s camp!!! That’s pretty much what we’ve done the three nights we have been here. It has been so nice to just settle down and enjoy the campground after our busy days in Lancaster. Our first day (the drive up) was lonnng. It was only supposed to be a five hour trip but the navigation had us go a longer way that stumbled upon some bad traffic. It ended up taking us six and a half hours. It didn’t help that we got a late start (didn’t leave until 2PM) because I thought it would be a good idea to go back to that maze before we left. I wanted to tire the kids out a bit hoping they would nap a little on the way…it worked for the boys but Aspen’s eyes never got heavy (she did fall asleep on the way to dinner, stayed asleep while the rest of us ate, and slept the whole ride home). But we didn’t even get to Outback until 9:40PM (they closed at 10…boy were they happy to see us…haha actually, they were really nice) so no wonder she was pooped. She did perk up when we got back to the RV though…in fact, they were all hyper and ready to stay up all night.

Oh…back to the maze. It was a lot of fun, BUT I will stick to taking the kids through corn mazes myself. Marc is too claustrophobic and controlling. I usually just let the kids be in charge and follow them. Yes, sometimes it is scary AND I regret the decision, BUT we always make it out just fine. Marc feels the need to get out…NOW (he even cheated a little and talked to the workers about shorter paths out). But the kids still had a good time and I finally got to try a whoopie pie…YUM.

We couldn't leave without visiting the chicks again:)

Yesterday, we didn’t leave the campground at all…well that’s not true. I messed up our meat for hamburgers (it filled up with water when I was thawing it out) so we had to run to Pizza Hut for dinner. From there we went to Wal-Mart to get some groceries and got lost in window shopping. Marc got carried away and spoiled the kids. Aspen got the bike of “my” dreams. It’s a Barbie bike and it has cupcakes all over it…oh and it’s nothing but PINK. She is so excited to have a bike like her girlfriend Caitlin. She even named the Barbie that bikes with her Caitlin. The boys got a powered razor to share. It is pretty much just Nicholas’s though…Blake tried it once, wasn’t successful, and vowed to never get on it again. Nicholas sure is enjoying it though. He’s even been sharing it with the neighboring camp girls…the girls always flock to him.

Other than that, we were here at the campground all day. It was a perfect day for it too…it drizzled for most of the day. They have a really nice playground here and the kids met some friends while I was doing laundry. The other mom, Samantha, had two boys of her own and really took a liking to Aspen. Our playground party was abruptly ended when Aspen fell and busted her lip pretty bad.

You can get a good look at her fat lip in this picture.

We all met up again at the jumping pillow. What’s more fun than a jumping pillow???...a wet jumping pillow. The boys were already having a blast but it was nothing compared to the fun they had once the rain came. It made the pillow so slippery…they were running and sliding all over the place. They were so wet and dirty but the happiness on their faces was priceless. Samantha and I agreed that the pool was the best place to get them cleaned up (neither of us wanted our filthy boys in our RVs). Our boys played so well together we had a hard time pulling them apart.
I don't know which was more fun for them, the jumping pillow or trying to clean up afterwards.
Our night ended with a movie in the woods. We watched Monster House. I love the set up they have here. It reminds me a lot of the little area Nature’s Way has in the woods for story time. Blake and his friend exchanged email addresses afterwards and decided to be pen pals. It’s so cute watching them create their own friendships (without the help of mom).

Today we ventured out to the Watkins Glen State Park today and walked the Gorge Trail. It was a 2 ½ mile long hike with 19 different waterfalls. It was beautiful. The kids did great, but we did cheat and take a shuttle back down. We had a nice picnic lunch afterwards and the kids enjoyed the playground. Why is it that when they find something to completely occupy themselves I bring nothing to occupy myself? It was too cold for me so I sat in the car most of the time. The park has its own pool also.

That reminds me, Aspen has refused to wear floaties since our stay in Mill Run. She is soo brave…too brave. She is really close to swimming…she can stay afloat, but that is pretty much it. She doesn’t use her arms; therefore she doesn’t really move anywhere. But she is still so excited that she’s “doing it”.

Although I am really looking forward to Niagara Falls, I really don’t want to leave this campground. I wish we were staying at least one more night…everything has been so laid back and peaceful here. There are a couple things I would still like to do here. There is a little hiking trail here in the park with a trout creek that I would have loved to have taken Blake to but I haven’t been able to pull the other two away from their friends at the pirate ship playground. I am sure that Niagara is going to be just as busy as Lancaster…go, go, go.

Lancaster, PA

2009-08-21T20:41:00.000-07:00

We are in Amish Country and it is beautiful. It is one of our main camping destinations this trip. We will be here for five nights. The Yogi campground is great (thankfully it was an easy back in) with some different things for the kids to do. There is a jumping pillow, pedal carts track, and a water park fort. My only gripe thus far is the laundry facility. The campground is full and there are only two washers. It’s a long walk (when you have a basket and soap) and I have made it twice only to find the washers in use as well as baskets everywhere waiting to get in.

Friday –
Today has been a GREAT day. Even the big thunderstorm that rolled through didn’t dampen our spirits. We were able to get ready and out of the RV by 11AM (that is a major accomplishment for us ;). Our first stop was Cherry-Crest Adventure Farm. It was like Gull Meadows Farms, only HUGE. It had a petting farm with a chick hatchery (the kids loved holding baby chicks), fossil digging, mining, play areas, hay mazes, and a huge maze…the a-MAZE-ing maze. We also got to make delicious homemade butter…yum. We were just finishing up all the fun activities when the storm made its way in. We hopped off the slide chutes and ran for shelter, barely making it before the downpour. There is just something I LOVE about running in the rain with the kids. We hadn’t eaten yet and it seemed like the perfect time since we were going to be stuck at the sheltered picnic tables for a while. Marc was our hero and ran through the rain to the café. We hoped it would just blow through like typical Michigan thunderstorms, but they told us that the farm was closing (three hours early). We were all bummed that we didn’t get to go through the big maze, but they said we could come back a different day.

Feeding the goats.

Aspen LOVED mining for gems with her daddy.

Blake taking on the challenge.
Nicholas loved the tunnels.

We made it just in time.

The chicks were soo cute.

It had cooled off so much that it was perfect weather for an open car train ride on the Strasburg Railroad. The boys were a little bored but Aspen really enjoyed standing up at the window and looking out. I liked feeling the cool breeze while staring out at the beautiful country side. Marc spoiled the kids afterwards at the toy store. The boys got awesome dragons and Aspen got a Calico Critters set. They played with their new stuff for most of the evening when we got back. The nice thing about long adventurous days like these is it usually keeps all of us happy. The kids are too busy to fight and yell with each other…a bonus for me. I hope the rain isn’t too bad tomorrow…it’s supposed to rain pretty much the whole time we are here. I think it has something to do with Hurricane Bill…I wonder how our next stop, New York, is going to be?
Saturday-
I don’t think I have mentioned that I LOVE thunderstorms in the RV. You can practically feel them ;) We did discover a few leaks last night though. Luckily two were in the shower and one was near the sink where a cup could easily catch the water. It’s kinda sad knowing this is our last big trip in this baby. This is our fifth summer with her and we plan on upgrading next year.

Today was our “Amish” day…we learned all about the Amish lifestyle. We got a later start than yesterday, not leaving the RV until 12:30. Our first stop was The Amish Farm and House. I wouldn’t really recommend it. It felt like a tourist trap. It had lots of features, but most of them were dumpy. The house tour was indeed informative, but not very authentic. Everything looked so “new” (it was supposed to be from 1805). I did get my first Amish quilt…damn are they expensive (and I got a cheap one). The name of it is Field of Dreams and the center has a girl in a green dress. It made me think of Aspen.
The kids loved playing "school" with Daddy in the Amish School House.

Our next stop was the Julius Sturgis Pretzel Bakery. I didn’t realize that the bakery didn’t really function anymore (they get all their pretzels from a family factory). But the kids still enjoyed learning about the start of pretzels and they got to roll and twist one.

We saved the best for last…Abe’s Buggy Rides. We went on a 4.5 mile authentic Amish buggy ride through beautiful Amish countryside. We were our “drivers” last ride for the day and got a special treat (thanks to my big mouth). We stopped at an Amish house and looked at some crafts in their basement. It was after dinner time and the family was just getting ready to have homemade ice cream. When the father came out to check on it I jokingly told him we were just in time. He told me, “You sure are” and went in and got all of us a dish. I was completely embarrassed, but he assured me that I had no reason and even offered seconds…what a genuinely nice man. Our driver was great too. We had so many questions for him and he never made us feel like his beliefs were any better than ours. His best words were, “We’re just people like you, only we live a simpler lifestyle.”

They all got to take turns "driving" the buggy.You can’t finish an Amish day without a smorgasbord dinner. We went to the Good n Plenty Restaurant for traditional Amish food, family style. I LOVE Amish food: fried chicken, butter noodles, mashed potatoes…but mostly the fried chicken. It was really hard for me not to have seconds, but I was glad I didn’t. I had a little room for dessert still and the apple pie was so yummy.

Sunday-
Today was kind of a wash. I spent the morning cleaning up the RV like a good little housewife ;). We didn’t get out until almost 2PM. I wanted to try Five Guys Famous Burgers and Fries for lunch. Marc said it was supposed to be like Inn N Out. Nope, not at all and it was $28 for the five of us to eat fast food. It wasn’t bad, but it just wasn’t great. I would rather just go to Mickey D’s.

I wonder if we are the only family that decides to go to an amusement park at 3PM. We went to Dutch Wonderland. The positive side was that the boys could ride EVEVYTHING and Aspen could ride all but four. The negative side was that it was really no different than the Jackson County Fair (the fair might be better ;). It was also overpriced at $30 per person. But the kids DID have a good time which is all that really matters.

Aspen’s favorite part was probably the gift shop afterwards. I thought I loved to buy Aspen princess stuff, but Marc might be worse. He spoiled her with a beautiful princess gown AND slippers. She wanted to go into the bathroom and put it on right away. It is so sweet to watch her eyes light up at the thought of becoming a princess. I can already picture the many Sunday mornings that she will refuse to wear anything but that dress into LaRues.Monday-
Today was out last day in Lancaster and we made the best of it. We headed to Hershey, PA to visit Chocolate World. You can’t take a tour at the actual factory anymore…that was a little disappointing. Instead you go on a Disney like ride that simulates the chocolate factory. The kids thought it was great and it was really cute.We took the scenic trolley tour of Hershey. It took us by the real factory, Milton’s home, the home he was born in, and some of the schools he built. Hershey really was an amazing man, so kind and generous. I honestly found myself comparing him to Marc when Hershey’s life story was being told. I hope Marc is eventually rewarded for not giving up…I know he cares more about success than anything.

The kids also loved the Really Big 3D Show. The seats moved, water sprayed, and bubbles fell from the sky. The Chocolate Tasting Adventure was great too. We were taught how to “taste” chocolate by trying numerous samples. I don’t know if Aspen and Nicholas got the hang of it…every time I looked over they were chewing. The kids became factory workers and joined the Hershey Kiss factory line. They packaged up and sent off some kisses.

I have to say that I wasn’t disappointed in anything we did today. We didn’t go to Hershey Park because I felt that the kids would appreciate Chocolate World more at their ages. I think I made the right decision, they said everything we did was AWESOME. Hershey Park is similar to Cedar Point and I figured we should wait until we could all enjoy it.

The visit was almost perfect…until the end. I wanted some postcards and a shot glass. When Marc went up to the register I noticed that the boys kept walking. Aspen was right by me looking at some stuff. Every time we had been in the gift shops we had to pull her away from the stuff, so I knew she would be right there while I ran to call after the boys…I didn’t have to go far at all so she never really lost sight of me. Well actually, she did, because when I turned back around she was gone. I wasn’t frantic at first…I figured she just went around the display, but when I couldn’t find her in the entire section…panic set in. I told a girl that was shelving that I lost Aspen…ugh, and then I had to tell Marc. How could she have disappeared so fast??? Did someone snatch her??? Man, I was freaking out. Marc and I split up with the boys…round and round I went searching for my baby. Then a security guard came up to me and asked if I was missing two children…two???...I followed him to find Aspen and Nicholas. I guess Nicholas decided to leave Marc and go searching on his own, I was so happy to see that he found her that I couldn’t even be upset that he was missing for a minute as well…he was our Hero. Those five to ten minutes felt like an eternity. Blake was very happy to see his little sister and showed it by giving her a big squeeze.

We got back to the camp ground in time for the kids to play on the playground. A movie was playing at the outdoor theatre so we watched Underdog under the stars. Marc had the fire ready when we returned so we could roast hotdogs and marshmallows. I love sitting around the fire with my family (and I was actually being a pissy bitch haha…what can I say, a special visitor is in town). It just amazes me that I created these little beings.