Flowers........

We are sooooo HAPPY that Steve is finally home! That was a great surprise. The kids were thrilled to wake him up and get him out of bed at 7:00 after he got home at 2:30 a.m. AHhhhhhhh..... Back to reality my Love.

After work today I had a chance to go to the Oakland County Farmer's Market. I bought 5 flats of flowers and some herbs. I can't wait to get planting. I brought everything into the garage since there is a frost advisory tonight. Can you believe it? 80 degrees yesterday and a frost advisory tonight! UGH! I will try to plant my flowers and my pots this weekend. I will probably make another stop for fill-in flowers and some tomato plants. How fun.

I also called the plumber today. He is coming sometime tomorrow. I can't wait. I think we may finally have a non-leaking shower, a toilet that fills, and a non-dripping laundry faucet. I'll let you know how it goes. Hopefully the plumber has a lot of endurance. Have a good night.

Being a Single Mom...........

So Steve has been in Phoenix, AZ since Friday and I have been keeping busy with the kids. It has been go go go..... non-stop, trying to tire them out. Unfortunately, I think the only tired one is ME. I'm so happy Steve will be home in the morning! We have spent the afternoons with friends, hanging out with Aunts and Uncles and Grammie and Grampie. I've worked, we've been to the grocery store, Target, and found Arts and Craft projects at Michaels. We've been to the park 3 times, to the zoo with Cameron and Aunt Mo, and played in the front yard while I did some yard work. I've given showers and baths and bedtime stories. WHEW!! I can hardly wait to get back to the work week.

Here are a few photos:

Hope everyone had a relaxing and productive weekend. The weather was absolutely FANTASTIC. I think spring has finally arrived! Hope everyone has a great and short work week!

Blackmail Material

Sooooooo...... Can you find anything wrong with this picture?

I know..... Nicholas doesn't see anything wrong with it either. When I told him we couldn't go to the library dressed like that he replied. "Why? I can't where my slippers outside?"

"No Nicholas we don't where slippers outside." (Not to mention a purple dress, even though he was attempting to be a swimming mermaid. Amanda didn't even put him up to this because she was at school!)

This is going to be great blackmail material one day. You also have gotta love the upside down sunglasses. He is PRICELESS. Eventually, we did make it to the library. We only took the essentials: sunglasses, Webkinzs, blanket, and Barbie computer. C'est la drole vie!

Finished........

This is crazy! I have been up since 5:15 a.m. It is 11:03 and I just finished my contest entry. Yeah ME! I'm so glad it is done for my .001 chance. Anyway..... I like the final projects. On another note, I'm bummed the Pistons are going to lose game 1.



Here are the pictures I promised: We all got haircuts.... What do you think?

Finally, I'm totally impressed, Mr. Nicholas can now do 100 piece puzzles. Wow! I made him show the box because it says ages 5+. I'm such a proud Mom!

Good Night! I'm outta here!

A Whirlwind Weekend

Happy Monday! What a whirlwind weekend. It has been crazy starting on Friday afternoon when Mohamed collapsed and was taken by ambulance to the hospital. Luckily, he is going to be okay. I hope he recovers quickly and they find out exactly what happened. He is young and healthy and you don't expect these things to happen. All our prayers have been with him.

On a lighter note, here are some of the happenings from our house..... Saturday Steve and I worked. Mom cut Nicholas and Amanda's hair. Then I took the kids to the salon so I could get a haircut. They were pretty good and they were rewarded with chocolate sundaes after a trip to Target. We got home, unloaded the car,and then we were off to celebrate my nephew's First Communion. It was a lot of fun! I have pictures to post, but I haven't downloaded them onto my computer yet.

Sunday, was more of the same. I grocery shopped, did laundry, shopped for a birthday present, and ran errands. Steve worked in the afternoon, I took the kids to a birthday party at 4:30 and Amanda had a tennis lesson at 7:00 p.m. She played with our friend Robert and I told Nicholas he could play too. I knew he would only cooperate for 5 minutes. WELL...... I was wrong. Nicholas hit tennis balls with Amanda for about 45 minutes. It was sooooo cute, I wish I had my camera. It was his first lesson and he actually made contact with the ball and got it over the net. Amanda impressed Robert too. She has not had a lesson with him in awhile. She has been playing a group on Wed. after school. She did great and was really moving her feet. She was a little disappointed that she had to share the hour with Nic, but she had fun. It was close to 8:30 when we got home. We got the kids showered and in bed and I collapsed at 9:30. I don't even feel rested today. I am prolonging doing chores and that is why I'm blogging at 12:45 in the afternoon.

Finally, I have been working on a contest entry for a scrapbooking magazine. I have made 20 layouts, 2 altered projects, and written part of a magazine article. It has to be in the mail by Wed. I don't know if I will finish it. The chances of winning are soooooooo slim, when I did the math there is a less than 1% chance of winning. Anyway........ it has been fun and a little stressful now that it is down to the wire. Unfortunately, I didn't get any work done last night. I'm sure I'll be up late finishing things tonight. Anyway I can't post any layouts on-line or in my blog until the winners are chosen. I'll post my layouts later.

Well, I'm off to do letters and workbook pages with Nicholas. Hope everyone had a good Monday!

Surprise.......

SURPRISE!! What do you think? I finally figured it out.

Back to normal, an umbrella, and the stinky lawn

Well, I think we have finally dried out. The kitchen is back to normal, I turned off the fans, and Steve put the lights back together. I guess the lesson to be learned is......... turn the water off, keep the water off, and don't turn it on without an O-Ring in place. That is a lesson no one will forget. (I hate learning things the hard way!)

Is anybody else getting tired of this rain? Speaking of rain............ I wish I would have brought my camera to the bus stop this morning. Amanda LOVES her umbrella. She has finally learned how to open it and close it. She is so proud and always asks to bring it when there is any sign of rain. Her umbrella is very cute. Here are some photos from when she was younger. The thing looks like a butterfly with wings and antenae. I know....so cute.

Well....she was so excited this morning. She got out of the car and stepped into the rain showing off her umbrella proudly to all of her friends. Within 30 seconds, she had herself and 3 other little girls under the umbrella. Their heads were enclosed by the butterfly dome and their backpacks and everything else was getting soaked in the rain. It was so funny. I can't believe I didn't have my camera. It was such a cute little umbrella huddle. (I guess you had to be there.)

Finally, I think I may have found some affordable furniture for my family room. I like this media center in the Crate and Barrel catalogue. It is cheaper than the Ethan Allen furniture and I really like it. I was very excited............except........... The tree guy came today to take a look at my front lawn. It is going to cost $650 dollars to fix the tree, dig up the roots, add topsoil, and seed the lawn. What a bummer! I think it might be another 6 months until we get the furniture. That was half of my furniture budget. ARG! It is always something......... Right DAD! Have a good night all!

Mother's Day Disaster

I have got to get to bed and watch "Dancing with the Stars", so... this is going to be short. Mother's day was great. I think the brunch went well. Here are a few photos:

Don't you like Mom's hair? I think it always looks nice, but I like the longer look. Very Hip Mom!

Once, everyone left it was about 2:30. Steve was very motivated to get some projects done around the house. My Dad had instructed him on how to try and fix the shower and the running toilet. I really wanted to relax. It had been such a busy weekend I didn't want to have any part in the projects! Well, Steve was upstairs and I was on my computer when............... Uh OH!

I know..... I couldn't bear to look either. Yikes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I here a dripping noise, and then a gushing noise and then I'm screaming...... STOP, TURN IT OFF! AHHHHHHH....

Yep, water was gushing out of my kitchen ceiling. I had water flowing out of my track lighting. It was a mess and it was everywhere. Steve shut off the water, I cleaned up, and he went to Mom and Dad's to get fans to dry out the kitchen. What a disaster on Mother's day afternoon........... just what I (we) wanted to do. Here is a photo I took when Steve left. This is the aftermath. You can't appreciate the mess or wetness from this photo. UGH! Anyway, I was so exhausted that night I fell asleep at 9:18 p.m.

Today, has been much calmer. I think the kitchen is drying out. Anyway, I'm off.............

Surviving a Busy Week....

Soooo... I'm happy to report I am surviving this busy week. Book Club went really well on Thursday. It was a crazy day because I worked, hurried and cleaned up, made desserts, hosted 8 girls for book club, and I was so energized afterwards I couldn't sleep so I watched "Lost". Let's just say I was soooo tired on Friday I fell asleep on the couch trying to read books to the kids. I woke up to Steve and kids laughing at me because my mouth was wide open and I'm sure I looked like Dad H. in the photo I posted earlier.

I think everyone enjoyed the book. We picked the next 2 for June and July. "The Last Lecture," and some book by Emily Giffin that comes out this week. I'm excited to read them, if I can stay awake at night.

I have a few pictures to share. The first is what Nicholas chose to wear last Sunday afternoon. He came down in his Halloween costume (18-24 months). He is still cute in it at 3 years old.

This next photo rivals cousin Cameron with his sugar addiction. Nicholas has an ice cream cone in one hand and a lollipop in the other. Isn't it a wonderful thing when the most difficult decision during your day will be Reese's peanut butter ice cream or an orange Tootsie pop or what the heck, I think I'll have both when Mom is not looking!

Finally, I got this shot of Amanda goofing off. I love that happy face. Unfortunately the photo is a little blurry. I will have to try and sharpen the image in photoshop.

Well, I'm off to bed. I did most of the prep for brunch tomorrow, but I will be busy in the morning. Happy Mother's Day to all you Moms! I'll try to post tomorrow.

A Mundane Monday

It has been a Mundane Monday. I didn't work today and we took Steve's car in to be fixed. I vacuumed, cleaned bathrooms, and did some laundry. BORING..... Oh yeah, did I mention I had 4 kids over to play after school. That was a total of 6 kids while I cooked dinner. I was starting to feel like Kaye at her house with a couple of friends over.

Speaking of Kaye.... We had a fun visit with Bob, Kaye, and the kids yesterday. We picked up Tug and had a pizza picnic. It was relaxing yet full of energy and fun. Thanks for a great night guys! Remember, June-Sibling-Sunday at our house............ (I hope:)

Not much else to report. I'm looking forward to my first book club meeting this Thursday, Josh and Claire's shower on Sat., and a possible Mother's Day Brunch on Sun. hosted by me. I guess I have a busy week ahead of me, especially since I have a full schedule at work tomorrow. Lots of fun stuff to look forward too. Have a good night!

p.s. Why can't I ever spell tomorrow right? Every time I spell check, I misspell that word. I really think it could use an extra M. What do you think Bradley?

Vacation Photos......

Before I tackle a trip to Bed, Bath, Beyond, Bob and Kaye's house, Firestone, Home Depot, and cleaning up the backyard, I thought I would post. (This is otherwise known as procrastination!) Well...... here are some of the vacation details I promised.

Here we are enjoying a pre-flight dinner at Max and Erma's at the airport. Amanda is sooooo excited to get to Florida. The kids can't wait to swim. Little do they realize we won't get to the house until 11:30 p.m.

First thing after breakfast the kid's were ready to hit the pool. Here are some shots.

Here are a few shots just hanging out with Aunt Michele, Grammy, and Nicholas cheating at Memory.

(Shhhhh....... no one tell Amanda. She doesn't want you to know that she fell in the pool with all her clothes on. It is our little secret. It was hard to get a pictures of her in her soaking wet clothes.)

Here are a few more photos from the beach and having fun on the giant water slide with Aunt Michele.

See ya! I'm off to do chores.

I'm back and unpacked...............

So we are back, unpacked, and right on track............. not really. When I was coming back from gymnastics this morning, Steve called to say his car would not start. Great! I knew that car was having trouble before we left for Florida. I even suggested that we drop it at the dealer last Thursday before heading to the airport, then they could look at it while we were out of town. Soooooooooooo, when Steve called with the news, I was NOT HAPPY. Anyway....... after a trip to the auto supply store for jumper cables and several calls to Justin, we got the car running. Steve also got an apt. for Monday to take the car in.


All of this led me to grocery shopping and errand running with the kids this afternoon. Amanda was okay and Nicholas was a little nightmarish at times. During our outing I thought it would be interesting to actually note all the things they wanted at the store, (remember all requests are begun with, "Mom, can we please get ________, I love_____, please, please."). Here is a small sampling of the list: gum, plastic fish that squirt water, juice, CARS fruit snacks, Doritos, disposable razors (they were pink and had a daisy on the package), candy, hula hoop, littlest Pet Shop game, pudding, crayons, ice cream dishes, spoons, etc. I told them if I bought everything they wanted I wouldn't have any money left. We wouldn't be able to pay for our house. Amanda asks, "Then where would we live?" "EXACTLY!"


Tomorrow, I will blog about the trip and show some pictures. Today, I want to share a funny Nicholas comment. On the airplane home we did not get to sit together as a family. I sat with Nic and Steve was with Amanda. As we were descending, Nicholas started to complain, "Something is wrong with my voice! HELLO, HELLO, HELLO!" He was nearly shouting, "HELLO, HELLO, HELLO. I started laughing. "Nicholas are your ears bothering you.?" Every time I asked him, he would respond, "HELLO, HELLO, HELLO." Why he chose to shout hello, I don't know. I thought it was cute that he was having a voice problem and not an ear problem :) When we had landed, I asked him once again, "How are your ears?" "Much gooder!"



Before, I leave you tonight, I have a few things to show you.............


My brand new purse!! I saw this at the mall before I left for Florida. It was $218.00. I was contemplating buying it! At the outlet mall in St. Augustine there was a Coach store. It was on sale and 50% off so the grand total of my new purse was $68 after tax. WooHee!

I thought my cousin Janina would appreciate this photo. It is a self-portrait of Amanda. It is for her upcoming birthday party she is planning (Feb. 20, 2009). The girls are going to play pin the nose on Amanda. It was her idea and I think it is darn cute! For some more cool portraits, check out Janina's blog at
http://artislifej.blogspot.com/




For those of you that read Janina's blog. She likes snooping in refrigerators. Can you find anything interesting in mine?

Finally, PURE and COMPLETE EXHAUSTION due to GRANDCHILDREN OVERLOAD! Too funny Dad! Have a good night! See ya!