Off the deep end.....................

So...... I really have gone off the deep end. That is putting it mildly....... And I know what you are thinking...........and you are wrong. It is not the kids this time, it is me. The kids have been pretty amazing since Steve has been gone. Nicholas is still giving me a run for my money, but my saving grace is Amanda. She has been great! The weekend was full of activity. We hung out at Mom and Dads, visited with Brad and Justin, went to the park twice, to the pool, played tennis, went shopping, reorganized Amanda's room........AND did I mention I decided to paint my family room.

I know, I know........... I'm asking myself the same question now. Sat night at about 8 I prepped the room. I was up til 12 a.m. Sun night I painted at about 7-8 to 12 a.m. I forgot that there is not a lot of light after 9. Today I had to touch up everything I missed due to lack of light. I finished the baseboards this afternoon, and finally peeled back the tape. Unfortunately, the tape stuck where it wasn't suppose to and leaked where it wasn't suppose to and that means more touch-ups. ARG....... I'm taking a break. I WILL NOT paint tonight. I'm going to bed and will deal with it tomorrow.

On a positive note, #1 Steve is home tomorrow. YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!! #2 I found some AWESOME drapes on clearance at the Great Indoors. They were originally $60 and I got them for $11.95. Needless to say I bought the last 3 packages. They are silk and lined. WOW!! #3 Book club is tomorrow night so I get to hang out with friends. #4 I am scrapbooking this weekend with Mo. I can't wait. #5 here is the ultimate list for happiness and productivity http://zenhabits.net/2007/05/handbook-for-life-52-tips-for-happiness-and-productivity/

Have a good night. I am going to bed as soon as I get this paint off my fingernails :)

Crazy as Usual...........

I have been away for a few days since it has been crazy as usual. I will make a longer post sometime tomorrow. Steve has been working long hours and leaves to go out of town Friday morning. I will be on single mom duty for awhile :(

Days 1,2,and 3 are usually not too bad, but by days 4-5 I'm starting to feel cranky. I have to keep reminding myself of the new entertainment center we purchased to help ease my pain. I picked up part of it yesterday and that evening Bradley helped finish up the wiring issues. It looks great. (Brad ROCKS! What a great brother. He has spent a lot of time helping me out. Thanks Bradley!)I'll try to post pictures soon. The bookcases are in transit and will hopefully make an appearance next week.

This week the kids have been very busy with camps and tennis. Nicholas had been a HANDFUL and that is putting it nicely. I'll have some down time tomorrow. I don't work and there are no places we have to be, no camp, no tennis, and no kids center. I'm hoping to get some organizing done and spend most of the day doing fun stuff with the kids. Maybe that is all Nicholas needs, some quality attention from Mom.

Finally, just wanted to say I finished my book club book, "The Last Lecture." I really enjoyed it. I really like Randy's outlook (the author) on life experiences. One of my favorite points concerned brick walls. He says they are there for a reason in our lives. They let us prove how badly we want something. They separate us from all the others who can't figure out a way to overcome them. I have just started watching the lecture on U-Tube. I recommend the book. It is a fast read. If you want to check out the lecture here is the link http://download.srv.cs.cmu.edu/~pausch/

The lecture is 75 minutes long and it follows a lot of the book. Now I just started "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen. I tried to read it before, but never finished it. Everyone seems to like it. I'll let you know.

Well, this short post has turned out considerably longer than I thought. I'm off to spend some time with Steve before he leaves. I'm outta here!

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to all you Dad's out there. I have to say my kids got blessed with a truly amazing Dad. Steve is always happy to play a game (tag, hide-n-seek, spider's and flies), read bedtime stories, hit a few tennis balls, lose at Old Maid and Uno, have a sing-a-long, or chill on the couch to relax and watch Hannah Montana or Backyardigans. That is a pretty remarkable feat because he works so hard and is on his feet lots of hours most days. I think he is a great role model for our kids. He is loving, patient, selfless, and energetic (bordering on hyper). What more could you ask for in a Dad or a husband. We love you honey!







Oh yeah..... One more bit of exciting news before I go to bed. We bought a new media console today. After brunch at Brad and Laura's (which was FANTASTIC I might add) we decided to take a trip to the mall. I really liked this piece at Pottery Barn, and after a little bit of persuasion Steve caved. It was only after the purchase that he reminded me he was leaving town next weekend. He wants me to remember this purchase when I'm pulling out my hair demanding for him to get home. So I'm thinking I just accepted a bribe and I'm loving it. Here is the piece if you want to check it out. http://www.potterybarn.com/products/p5702/index.cfm?pkey=cfurabssys

Also, I forgot to mention the golf outing after brunch and the mall. Amanda drew Steve a Father's Day gift certificate for one round of glow-in-the-dark golf. She wanted to play golf on Father's Day so that is what we did. (Steve got in free as a matter of fact.) We had fun and I'll try to post pictures tomorrow. The day ended with Steve watching golf and cutting the lawn, me doing laundry and yard work, and the kids collecting rolie polie bugs with the neighbor. GROSS! All in all, what a fun day for everyone!

Our Toothless Wonder..........

Guess what happened!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



How do you like our toothless wonder? She was so excited when her tooth fell out this morning. She was smiling and couldn't wait for the tooth fairy. Now that it is minutes before bed she is having second thoughts. She doesn't want to give up her tooth. She made me take a picture of it so we would remember what it looked like. She doesn't know if she will leave it under her pillow. (Remember the post about Amanda and her collections, she does NOT like to part with her stuff.) I wonder if the tooth fairy will visit tonight.


On another note, we spent most of the afternoon at the pool. Amanda really is a fish. Nicholas is also learning to swim. He is trying to do everything he sees Amanda doing. Here are some action shots.....




Finally, I am thoroughly disgusted with being a home owner. Sometimes it seems as if nothing can go smoothly. Now that I finally have all the plumbing issues in the house fixed, the garage door breaks. I was just about to jump in the shower when I decided to water my flowers. When I opened the garage it made the most awful screeching noise. When I stopped it, it was already to late. The door track was bent, the garage door was crooked, and the cable broke. Now I can't shut the garage. ARG............... Steve took a look at it, I called Dad, and the consensus is that we need to call a repair man. I can't wait to see how much this will cost? Little brother Justin, do you really want to buy a house????? I know this problem is not that important. It is only a thing and nothing truly serious, but gosh DARN IT anyway.


Well I'm off to relax and let the garage door go. See ya.


P.S. Amanda just told me I should take a picture of the tooth fairy if I see her tonight.

Voila!

It always feels good to accomplish something! Take a look below. What started out as this.....

Yes that is me using an allen wrench. I easily put together my patio chairs. It took 2 1/2 hours with plenty of interruptions to put together 6 chairs. I think I did an AWESOME job.

I only had to call Brad 3 times. (Well one of the times was to tell him WOOHOO I finally got it!) Does anyone know what the heck you do with this? (See above photo.) Janina, Mo, Aunt Annette?????? It is a nut wrench and I now know how to use it. I told Brad it was a bottle opener thingee with holes in each end. Don't you think that was an accurate description? The table will have to wait until tomorrow with a little help from Steve. I promised I would take the kids to the pool since we didn't do much playing today. Have a good night. What has everyone else accomplished lately?

BIG News......

Soooooo.... We have some BIG news. Yes, Amanda finally has a loose tooth. This is her happy grin today. We discovered the tooth yesterday, and she has been busy wiggling it and gingerly eating so as not to swallow it. Talk about excitement! I don't know if you remember my previous post about the tooth fairy, but she is hoping for a thousand dollars. Good Luck my Girl, continue to dream BIG!

The second big piece of news, Amanda is officially a first grader. Here is a picture from the last day of school with her teacher Mrs. Culley. They had a little party and I got to see all the things she had worked on throughout the year. Wow did the year fly by!

The third piece of news, my shower is officially fixed. After more leaking I finally called the plumber back and he replaced some expensive valves. I'm hoping tomorrow morning I will find the shower completely dry with no water leaking into the shower or my kitchen. Hooray!

As for the weekend here is a quick synopsis: work, chores, swimming, bowling, going out with friends, discovering Nicholas had turned off my answering machine (UGH found 16 messages on my voice mail), bought a new patio set, visited Mom, Dad, Mo, Justin, and Camo, practiced singing to Camo for his birthday, finished a book (the photograph- not recommending it), started a book (the last lecture- and loving it), fell into bed exhausted as USUAL!

Finally, here is a fun picture of Nicholas with Popsicle on his nose. Too funny.

Well, it's nearly 8:00 and I'm off to get the kids ready for bed. I'm thinking I might tackle assembling the new patio furniture tonight. I'll let you know how it goes.

Have a good night!

Out of the abyss.............

So let me catch my breath and make my way out of the abyss............... There have been no posts for June since I have been feeling like this. (Such a glamorous shot I might add.)

The end of the school year is upon us, the wrapping up of tennis and gymnastics, and the crunch to find a summer sitter have all been on my agenda.


Tomorrow, Nicholas and I will attend Amanda's party for the last day of Kindergarten. How fast the year flew. I can't believe she will be a first grader and off to school everyday! I remember her first day............ and Nicholas does too.

A few highlights from the last week: First, the plumber arrived. My toilet is fixed, the shower is semi-fixed, and I may have a new problem with the laundry room. I have to call the plumber again. At least we can use our bathroom, so that is very exciting in the middle of the night.

Second, I may have the sitter problem solved. I am meeting a new girl this weekend who was recommended by my client. I'm hoping she can help us some days and on the others I plan to send the kids to camp. When I was at Franklin last week the lady in membership asked if I was considering summer camps for the kids. They run 9-4. Wow! This would be great. It solves most of my problems except early mornings. I think Steve and I will be able to work it out. I think the kids will go twice a week. Amanda will go to tennis camp and Nicholas to a 3-5 y.o. camp that plays, paints,swims etc.


Third, I have been doing too much around the house. I've planted like crazy. My flowers look great and my body has been beat up. The work stinks but the payoff is beautiful. I'm also waiting for the tree guys to come and remove a tree in the front yard and to have my lawn re-seeded. What joy! I'll be happy when it is done and my lawn looks good again. I though you might like to see my knees after some serious house cleaning. I was worried that I would have to go to work like this. I was happy that the redness had dissipated the next day. Crazy, I know.




Finally, the kids are emotionally up and down (along with their Mom). They are hysterical, irrational, driving me crazy, and full of love all within a 24 hour period. Steve has been crazy-busy at work with the kick off of his summer camps, so the kids and I have had a lot of time together. Probably too much time........

















So..... for the most part that is what is happening around here. Nothing exciting, just feeling swamped with everyday life! Hope things slow down and we all get to enjoy summer.