How Quickly Things Can Change

Yesterday was windy. I heard someone say "It's so windy that if you don't like the weather, stick around and it will change in a few minutes!" This was true for most of the morning. It would be cloudy and drizzling one minute and then a few minutes later, the sun would appear (for the firs time in days!) and it would just be a breezy day. Later in the afternoon, that wind blew in some bitter cold temperatures. It was the kind of wind that would cut right through you.
Things with the house are ever changing as well. Yesterday, I was really on cloud 9 with the prospects of getting into the house so soon. Then I got a message from our builder. The painter feels that he needs to push our completion date back a bit. All in all, this means the final cleaning will not be until the beginning of CHRISTMAS week. I'm not losing all hope. They are still planning on getting the basement complete for carpet and that still means that once carpet is in, I WILL BE MOVING THINGS IN. I know that me and my mom can clean better than anyone we'd hire so we will just do it and get the basement settled. I am going to work my tail off to be sleeping in the new house on December 24!
Finally, I need to gush about my husband a little. He has already worked his tail off in this building process. Did you know that wiring a house is a really big job? I didn't have a clue what we were signing up for. Brandon has really amazed me with his abilities and it has all worked out. The final electrical inspection is today so say a little prayer that all goes well! I am very proud of Brandon.

A Little Update

The paci thing is going. I have cut the paci off twice now and Mason still wants it. What a weird kid! We will keep at it. I am holding out hope that he will get sick of it and give it up on his own. It seems more humane than snatching it away since he is so attached.
The house is coming right along. Paint continues this week. Plumbing is pretty much finished. Cabinets are complete. The stone around the fireplace is done. Brandon is working on completing the electric today and the electrical inspection is scheduled for tomorrow.
What's coming up:
Blinds will be installed tomorrow. The tile guy will also be back tomorrow to finish and be done by Saturday.
Monday, someone will come in and clean and scrape the floors for carpet to go down.
Trim guys will be back and be completely finished by Wednesday or Thursday of next week.
Tuesday, carpet will begin. Final plumbing inspection will also be Tuesday.
Wednesday, closets will begin and probably be finished.
The final cleaning will be scheduled for the 18th or 19th and then we can MOVE.
I am having a hard time getting my head around the move. I'd like to pack everything up and have it ready to go, but our living quarters are pretty tight and I don't think we could deal with boxes sitting everywhere. I am taking off next Thursday and Friday, then I am off don't have to be back to school until January 4, 2010! I want to get a jump on things since the kids will be out of school after next Friday. I figure I can move everything in the kitchen even before the final cleaning since it won't be in the way. Mom is going to take off and help me (She's the BEST!) So hopefully we will be able to wake up on Christmas Morning in our new house! One of my priorities is to get the tree up ASAP in the new house. I put a little table top tree in the kids' room and let them decorate it.
I can't believe we are actually so close!

My Sweet Mason

Mason is one funny kid. At just two years old, he really cracks me up. He has a terrific sense of humor that I have a feeling will blossom with age. He says things on a daily basis that really crack us up. He is all boy too. He has started having anatomy discussions with Ellie in the tub. I can honestly say, HE is the first to notice any differences in their "anatomy". I expected Ellie to ask questions but she has never brought it up. Leave it to a boy!
Mason is friendly. When we are out, he will pretty much always talk to people who say hello to him. And he is so fearless. When we are out, he will wander off with no concern for where we are. He loves to be outside and I am starting to notice that the only place he is truly able to entertain himself is when he is outside. He can always find a pile of dirt to climb or rocks to collect and put in a bucket. He is really a carefree guy. He is BUSY, but things don't get him very upset very often. Not much bothers Mason.
Mason's only real vice is his paci. He LOVES that thing. A few months ago, we decided we had to decrease his use of the paci so we put it away except for bedtime. It went pretty well. He sometimes finds a paci under his bed and he will come into the kitchen with it in his mouth and a big grin. {see above re: his sense of humor}. I will snatch it out of his mouth and tease him and say "We DO NOT have pacis unless we are sleeping! Let's put that thing away!" Most of the time, he laughs with me and we put it away. But sometimes it doesn't go so well.
On Thanksgiving Day, Mason was T I R E D. He had a MAJOR meltdown over wanting his paci. We decided it was time for the paci to go away for good after that fit. I really haven't been sure how to get rid of it. With Ellie, I just took it away cold turkey and she honestly NEVER cried at all. She asked for it at school when she saw other kids with it, but other than that, she was fine. I guess I have had a sense that Mason is a bit more infatuated with his paci than Ellie was. So hte problem has been: HOW to get rid of it. Nana, who I sometimes think should replace "Nanny Jo" as Super Nanny, had the idea to get rid of all the pacis but one. You see, we had been putting no less than 4 pacis in Mason's bed at night so that if he woke up he didn't have to look far to find one. So, we took Nana's advice on that. The other day, I gathered them all up but one and told him that Callie {the dog most likely to do something so mischevious} took all of his pacis and now we only have one. He really didn't care as long as there was still one. {Ellie however had lots of questions about HOW ON EARTH Callie got in the house and was able to get Mason's pacis??? I had to come clean with Ellie on our plan. Yes, seriously. I have included my 4 year old on my plan to fool my 2 year old out of his paci. I told her it's best for Mason!}
Today, PHASE 2 of the plan went into place: cut the end off the paci. While the kids were eating lunch, I snipped the end off of the one and only paci. When it was nap time, I handed him the damaged crack, I mean Paci. He put it in and took it right out. He looked at it and I said "Awe, it's broken." But I let him keep it. He messed with it, played with it, tried turning it upside down, but in the end he decided a snipped paci was better than no paci so he kept it for naptime.
My plan is to keep snipping it until he can't hold onto it anymore in his mouth and HOPEFULLY, he will give it up. Is this a copout??? Is lying to your 2 year old ok if it's for his own good? I like to think so! Wish us luck. Everything I have googled says this will work like a charm. But my kids are often sooo outside the "norm". Oh well, I hardly ever see college kids with pacis!

Happy Holidays!

***Pardon this post as it may seem a tad scroogy but I have to get some things out and, well, this IS my blog***

The Holidays have arrived. I love this time of year. WHO could not like this time of year? {Don't answer, Brandon} Good food, time with family, gifts, the JOY in children's eyes as you talk about what Christmas really is all about {and Santa}, crowds, cranky kids who stay up too late, squabbles over what kind of dressing or potatoes will be served and trying to figure out how we will be in 4 places at once. WHAT'S NOT TO LOVE???

My issue of late is decorating TOO EARLY. It seems like the lights go up a little earlier every year. For the love of Pete let Thanksgiving be about turkeys. And what about poor Halloween??? I hear "Oh I love my Christmas decorations and I hate only having them out for a few weeks." Seriously??? Ellie is majorly confused. She is sure "Christmas" is going to be any day now and that Easter should last for weeks on end. When I was growing up, there were people who put up their tree the day after Thanksgiving and they seemed over zealous to me. {Does that statement make me sound like I am 80?} But I have talked to people who decorated their house last week!

And then there is my sweet family. ALL the kids are here for Thanksgiving. We all try to alternate years with the in-laws and being home. Biz and I decided it's more fun if we coordinate years so we've worked it out to be on the same "schedule". My mom has traditionally viewed Thanksgiving as a day to provide everyone in the family at least one favorite on the table at dinner. {I actually think I recall a year that Biz had Chef Boyardee Roller Coasters} Of course we have our Pemberton traditional foods and now we have added some Fields and Dreadin traditions to the mix. We may need a few extra tables for all of the food!

I really do love the holidays. I try try try to keep my head straight and remember that it will all happen again next year so if this year isn't perfect, we can have a do-over in 2010. I have a feeling this year will be WONDERFUL, but far from the norm. I'm not even sure that we'll be able to manage a tree with all we are going to have going on. I had an idea today to do a planted live tree, keep it outside and then plant it!

Today is my last day of work for until December 7. WOOT! I am going to start packing non-essentials and moving whatever I can move. My goal for tomorrow is to pack up and move my sewing stuff. I'd also like to knock out as much Christmas shopping as possible. For the first time, Ellie has a definite list that has not changed so she should be easy. Mason is still a little tough to buy for because he isn't interested in anything for more than five minutes. But we will figure it all out.

The hardwood is finished. Brandon has been doing some work on the electric, but we have decided that it is best for us to hire someone to do the remainder so that person will be in tomorrow to finish all of the electric. CABINETS were installed last week. And OH are they beautiful! The cabinet guy will still have to come back in a week or so to finish hanging the kitchen cabinets and some other minor final details. The only major issue at this point is paint which has had some issues and is going to take some major fixing. Other than that, I *think* we are to the point of finalizing minor things. OH and plumbing. I am still holding out hope for mid-December but we shall see! I added some pics of the cabinets to the ALBUM.

The Reason for the Season

Ellie and I went to the mall today. Every now and then I take her to lunch with me as a special treat. Ellie has not been to the mall very much. We do not go to the mall very much. But I needed to get her some new jeans so off we went.
A visit to the mall is sometimes a system overload for Ellie since it's so rare. She saw a lot. With Christmas coming, everything is decorated and twinkly. We went to return some shoes and then to Old Navy to get Ellie some jeans. Ellie stayed with me, held my hand, never wandered, never got distracted... until we passed a furniture store window.
She ran over to the window and said "Look at this!" At first I thought she was going to show me a couch or chair we needed because we have been furniture shopping lately. But what had caught Ellie's eye was not Santa or reindeer or even a nice leather club chair and ottoman. No, what caught Ellie's eye was an almost life size {to her anyway} Nativity Scene. I actually almost started crying in the middle of the mall!



She was enamoured. She crouched down and was just entranced. She checked out every single figure so carefully. Then she asked to go inside.

She said a few words to Mary. I'm not sure what she said because she was whispering.


And then she started climbing over all the figures and I had to tell her to be careful. She insisted that she needed to see Jesus. And really how do you refuse a child a visit with Jesus???



As we walked away, Ellie let me know that Jesus could not be dead because when you die you have to lay on the ground with your eyes closed and your tongue hanging out. {too much exposure to dead deer???} So I had to explain that Jesus didn't die as a baby, but when he was an adult. This prompted: "Why did Jesus die?" I answered, "Um, so that you and I could live." But really that seems to fall short as an explanation to a four year old. I think I may need to get our minister, Adam, on speed dial!

Hissy Fits

Tuesday started out rough. Ellie is going through some tough times. It is so hard to be four years old. And I do say that in all seriousness. She is no longer a baby. She is so smart, yet her emotions aren’t quite up to par. Sometimes, I fear that she has a harder time because everyone expects a lot from her because she can spell and write the names of every person who is important to her, including all the kids in her class, she is starting to read, she is starting to do some simple math and on and on. So as adults, we expect her to act on this same level, but learning how to deal with emotions is SO. MUCH. HARDER. {I suspect this is something Ellie’s Daddy went through as well.} And I am going to be totally honest and say I probably didn’t. Not that I am not a smart cookie, but Ellie is just exceptional, even if she is my kid. In addition she is exceptionally dramatic.

So back to our morning…she was in Mason’s bed with him when I got finished getting ready. The first thing out of her mouth was “I want to go to Nana’s.” {I deal with this sentiment a lot and honestly, I’d have preferred to go to Nana’s that day too!} I responded “OH! We should call Nana and plan a visit for this weekend!” Certainly, this was not what Ellie wanted to hear. “NO! I want to go NOW! I don’t want to go to school!” I’ve reached a point lately that I just have to nip this stuff in hopes it will not get really going so I walked over and reached for Ellie. I put my arms around her and told her that this needed to stop right now or I would leave her in the bed {she doesn’t know she can get out on her own! She’s just not dare devilish enough to try!} She continued her fit so I got Mason out and turned to walk our of their room, closing the curtain {yeah there is no door on their room} behind me. She finally composed herself enough to get out of the bed but then it turned into wanting a waffle with syrup before we left. We didn’t have time for a waffle with syrup and she was going to eat at school just like she always does. {with a “snack breakfast” in the car} Things were pretty rough until we got in the car. She didn’t want to get dressed, didn’t want to put her shoes on, didn’t want to get her hair fixed, the shoes I picked just “really bother” her and on and on. Mornings like this have become the norm and to tell you the truth, I don’t know what to do. I try patience, I try yelling, I try time out, I try talking softly and hugging…nothing works. We’ve tried earlier bed, picking out clothes the night before, and detailing our expectations the night before. But 3 out of 5 days, our mornings suck. We leave the house frazzled, in tears {yes even me}, and I find myself telling her that this isn’t how our mornings should be.

On the way to school Tuesday, after such a horrible morning, I actually, spontaneously felt so grateful. I was thinking about the house. Then Ellie and Mason started singing along to the DVD and I just thought “This is so precious.” No matter how horrible the fits are, Brandon and I are so blessed/ privileged/ lucky? I am not even sure the word. Blessed seems overused. And it seems like more than just luck. Even on bad days, my life is way better than my little girl dreams.
Tuesday night, we tried a new plan. We talked in GREAT detail about our schedule for the next day. We picked an outfit and agreed on shoes {I actually had to promise to shop for shoes because she claims her Keds aren’t comfy???} and then we prayed. We prayed for a better morning, for Ellie to make good choices and for Mama to have patience so that no one cried or yelled. We actually ended up saying two prayers because I prayed first and then she said it was her turn and I should repeat after her: “God is great. Let us thank him for our food. And our bed. A MEN.” God heard our prayers. The last two mornings have been great.

***
The house is coming. A week or so ago, our builder said “We are looking real good to be finished the first week of December.” This week he threw a hissy fit and said we’d be pushing it to be in by Christmas if we don’t get going on the floors. Basically the progress of the house is in a bi-polar state.

Top Five

Monday night I when I came in the house, there was a weird smell. Some might call it an aroma. The fact that I couldn't place it tells how little "partying" I do in this stage of my life. It was wine. It seems that as Brandon closed the freezer after putting the bag of fish sticks away {always healthy dinner for our kids}, the wine rack somehow came off the top of the refrigerator and hit the counter, exploding in the process. This was the LAST of 8 bottles of wine that Brandon and I brought home from our trip to Rome in 2002. WHY we had saved this one I have no idea but it really pisses me off!
The kids and I arrived after much of the mess had been cleaned up, but that isn't saying much. When it was all said and done, Brandon said he'd been cleaning for like 2 1/1 hours. Over ONE bottled of wine. That exploded. Into a gazillion pieces.
In trying to be the ever "half glass full" {no pun intended} girl that I am, I have a top ten five list. Top Five Good Things About Wine Exploding in My Kitchen:
5. The sink and countertop were long over due for a cleaning
4. I semi mopped and swept the kitchen
3. The kids were parked in front of the tv for a little dinner picnic because the kitchen was off limits. They have never eaten so well.
2. Somehow, wine dripped UNDER the sink??? So that area got cleaned out and straightened as well.
1. I learned a valuable lesson: DO NOT save the awesome bottle of wine that you bought in Rome in 2002 lest it explodes when it falls from it's perch and you never get to enjoy it.

Things have settled down for us. We are planning/ hoping/ PRAYING that the house will be finished some time around Thanksgiving/ the first week of December. I will be off work starting the Tuesday before Thanksgiving through the first week of December so hopefully it will all work out. The major things still to be done are: hardwood and carpet, painting, upstairs mantle and stone around the fireplace, sinks, faucets, lighting and cabinetry. {Ok, that's a long list!} At this point, we are really dealing with small details. There is still a lot of work to be done so hopefully everyone will stay on schedule! I talked with the painter this morning and he thinks he will be finished by the end of next week. Hardwood is scheduled to start next week and I am still hemming and hawing over a decision on carpet but I will hopefully have that settled by tomorrow.
One minor point of interest: Brandon and the trim carpenter went to get the piece of wood for our mantle at the Mennonite saw mill. Cool huh? We wanted a rough cut piece of wood for the mantle and they had it. I'm excited about that!

Happy Halloween!

Dorothy and Superman

Mason hasn't been too sure about his cape, but he agreed to wear it for pictures. Ellie has no clue who Dorothy is but the fact that she wears Ruby Slippers was enough to convince her that this was the costume for her. Of course Nana came through with all the costume making and getting together. The dress Ellie has on is one mom made for me when I was about 5. Mom made Mason's shirt and cape and thankfully we didn't put much money into it!
We are going to spend the night in Gallatin tomorrow night. My kids have never been trick or treating anywhere besides my Nan's and all my aunts and uncles. I figure we'll hit about three houses and then they can pass out candy too all the other kiddos!

It's Over!

I survived. Monday and Tuesday I left the house before the sun came up and Biz brought the kids to school for me. Yesterday things got back to normal and they came with me. Ellie and I had some pretty meaningful conversations on the way to school yesterday.
Conversation 1:

Me: Ellie, do you see that house? They started building it AFTER we did and now those people already live in it.
Ellie: Really? That was fast!
Me: I know. What’s wrong with this picture?
Ellie: What picture?
Me: The picture of them living in their house before us when they started building their house after we started. Think about it in your head.
Ellie: OH! Good question! Another good question is: Why do the Duggars have so many kids? And they are ALL J!
Me: Hey I could live with them because I am a J.
Ellie: Me too!
Me: Ok, but we’d have to call you Jellie.
Ellie: Ok, I think I will just live with you.

Converstation 2:
{She told me something about Bob going on a day trip to Africa.}
Ellie: Who can I be married to when I get big???
Me: Well, maybe you can marry one of your friends.
Ellie: How about I be married to Daddy?
Me: Well, you can’t do that and he’s already married to me {for now}.
Ellie: Ok, well then I will just live with you forever.
Me: Ok I think that sounds great. But if you do get married you would marry someone your own age. Your friends will get big too and you will marry one of them.
Ellie: Ok but I will still live with you.
Me: That sounds great. You and your husband and kids can live in the basement.
Ellie: Where will we sleep? Ok, my husband can sleep with me {GASP!} and the baby can sleep in a crib.
Me: How many kids will you have?
Ellie: One. Well, you have two so I will have two.
Me: Not 18?
Ellie: No! Only 2.

I am thrilled that she is so conscious of her carbon footprint that she doesn’t want to overpopulate the Earth. I am also really happy she and her family will be living with me.
Mason had a great birthday. All of his grandparents came and he was showered with gifts. I joked that I was going to put it all away and put it under the tree from “Santa”. Last night, he went into his room right before bedtime {Somehow it seems that my kids always play like angels when they know bedtime is nearing. It’s as if they just know if they are quiet, we might just forget they are there and forget to put them to bed…} I sent Ellie in to check on him because he was just too quiet. When she walked in I heard him say “GO way!” She came back to report that he was playing with his train and motorcycle and he told her to go away. Howyalooya! Maybe the 2 Year old Mason will learn to play alone for 5 minutes!
Sunday we had a great time with the Jordan crew at Bizfest 2009. All of mom's family came out to Trammel for an afternoon of cornhole, a chili cook-off and we celebrated the October birthdays. Jake came up with the theme for the year: "Chili in the pot and a bun in the oven" Humor runs in the family.

Headed for Breakdown

Sometimes I get so caught up in my day to day stress that I forget how lucky I am. I am stressed to the max this week in preparation for our federal review at work. Mason's birthday is coming up on Friday and I feel like I haven't planned a thing. I have people coming at me from 90 different directions asking what I want for the house and with things that need to be done at work. And life goes on...there is still laundry to be done and kids to be fed.
The kids are finally well. Mason ended up with a really bad case of pneumonia last week after the flu. Thankfully I had the intuition to take him back to the doctor last Monday so we spent the entire day in the doctor's office and at the hospital getting a chest xray to confirm a very "dense pneumonia in both lungs". Poor guy had to have an antibiotic shot and another round of oral antibiotics as well as more breathing treatments at home. Thank goodness for Brandon, Nana and Poppop who stayed home with him all week last week. He is all better this week and glad to be back at school!

My nervous breakdown is still slated for late this week or early next week but I am sure it won't last long. A few days of rocking back and forth in a corner and I should be good to go!

In all of this, I was reminded this morning when I uploaded some house pics: I AM SO BLESSED! It's so easy to lose sight of that when things get crazy. I look at those house pictures and I can't believe it's really mine. I added some pics to the album:
HOUSE

It's a Praty!

Several years ago we had a little Jordan Vacation to the lake. Sometime during that week, my dear, sweet, hilarious cousin Shelby {who was 8 at the time and is 22 now...I think} made a banner. The banner read "It's a Praty!" That has kind of become our family motto. And if you know the Jordans, it fits.
Welcome to my pity praty. I actually think I should just change the friggin blog name! I feel like all I ever blog about is the horrible circumstances of my life. Before I go on, I do realize I am BLESSED and people have it so much worse than me. But the way you feel about your own circumstances is relative, right? Some people might say I don't know stress. Perhaps. But this seems stressful to me.
Anyway...Mason has the flu. He was going downhill all weekend and by Sunday night/ Monday morning I knew we were headed to the dr. They confirmed flu so it's been a pretty crazy week trying to juggle work responsibilities and two kids. Brandon left Monday at 7 am and won't be back until this evening. I have had a lot going on at work because we are preparing for a federal review the last week of October {happens every three years and all of our funding depends on it. Big DILL.} Ellie woke up this morning with sniffles and a cough. {I was actually just SURE she had a mild case of the flu two weeks ago!} Thank the good Lord for my parents.
Mason seems to be improving and I am just hoping Ellie will be ok. And really not {only} because I don't know who will take care of her next week, but because I just hate having sick kids. They are so pitiful!
Have I mentioned that I have a nervous breakdown scheduled for sometime before November 1? Seriously people. Sick babies, ENORMOUS pressure at work, 90 calls/ decisions a day about the house {not to mention that after a couple of good weeks of progress they didn't hit a lick at a stick this week!}...November 1 cannot come soon enough.

Meet Buck

Brandon hunts. It's caused minor issues, but in all honestly, I have never had a major problem with his hunting. Being a wise old married woman, I realize that it is really important for spouses to have hobbies other than one another.
I've taken on his hobby with some personal interest. I certainly understand the sport more than I did before I met Brandon. And I like venison {even though I originally just tried it to impress Brando} Brandon is a very ethical hunter and he likes the sport of it. He primarily bow hunts. Actually in the nearly 9 years I have known him, I think he's only taken a gun hunting twice. I've felt the defeat he feels each time he goes out and comes home without having gotten a deer, specifically a buck. Since we bought this farm four years ago, Brandon has cultivated the deer population. He has created "food plots" and tried very hard to manage the land so that it is a desirable habitat for deer. He has several "game cameras" set up around the property so that he knows what kind of deer are out there. Over the last two years, he has been getting pictures of several very nice bucks. Until this year, he has not considered them "shooters" because he tries to be very selective and only kill large bucks. He has wanted to let these deer grow, mature and mate.
So he decided this was their year and he's been ready for one of them since bow season opened a few weeks ago. But every time he has gone out to hunt, if he has seen them, they have been just out of range. Until tonight!
I'm so proud of him! Ellie was THRILLED. Tim's nephew Luke who is almost three is here visiting from Alabama with Meme and Jack so Luke was really excited to see the deer as well. When Brandon rode up on the four wheeler with the deer on the back, Ellie said "Look at that thing Luke! We're gonna eat him up!" Awe she makes her Daddy proud. And her Nana cringe! LOL!

The Week In Review

1. My house may actually be finished before Mason leaves fro college. This week has been a BIG week. The walls have been primed, trim work has started, we {finally} finalized our flooring choices, all the concrete work is complete as of today. We did stamped concrete on the front walk and then I added a small concrete patio in the back that is also stamped. I really like the look of it. After much deliberation, I settled on colors for the paint. I didn't want to get too mish moshy but I didn't want to be extremely plain either. I am happy with the way everything has turned out. {and actually right now, we only have tinted primer on the walls!} The only person who is somewhat disappointed in the paint is Ellie. We {I} picked a color for her room called Ballerina. Ellie has ALWAYS said she wanted a pink room so I obliged her with the palest pink I could find that the lady at the paint store assured me would not be Pepto pink. But with only the primer on the walls, Ellie insists it is NOT Ballerina. I've promised it will get "pinker".

2. I had to explain the Blood Mobile on the way to school today. Ellie saw it in traffic next to us and asked if it was a school bus. No of course didn't satisfy her so I found myself trying to explain to a 4 year old why anyone would want to get a needle stuck into their arm and give their blood away. After my explanation I asked if it made sense and she said it did. Then she added "That's not for kids." We agreed that donating blood was only for adults. I am fairly sure the Red Cross agrees with us as well. KUDOS to all those who give blood. {Like my Uncle Ted who at one time was the biggest giver in Warren County!} It is a wonderful thing. But I just can't bring myself to do it. And what an odd conversation to have with my daughter!

3. Mason finally has some long pants! My poor child. I'm not sure where my brain has been but the weather in Ken Tuck turned out pretty chilly this week and Mason has worn shorts with a long sleeve shirt for the past two days! {not to mention that my almost 2 year old has worn size 9 MONTHS shorts all summer} I got out all his jeans and long pants from the spring only to find that while they still fit great in the waist, they were capri length! I finally made it to the store today and bought a few pairs of jeans that hopefully will fit in both the waist and length. I fear he will be just like his Daddy {and me believe it or not} and be three times as long as he is wide. Tomorrow will be a trip to Target to get some new PJs since the ones I put on Ellie tonight are about 4 inches too short as well. Kids grow too fast!

4. Mason's teachers tell me that they are AMAZED at this language and how well he talks. GUSH! He has started singing in the car and it just cracks me up. A week or so ago, Ellie requested her favorite "Loves Looking Good on You" by Lady Antebellum. So we cranked it up and I had BOTH of them singing as loud as they could in the backseat. It cracked me up and made me a little misty all at the same time. It gave me just a glimpse of them growing up and neither of them being a baby anymore.

5. Thank goodness I will soon have another baby to cuddle so it won't be such a hard hit that Mason is getting to be such a big boy. It looks like the due date is around April 20! Can you believe it?





6. I am going to be an aunt!!!! Biz is pregnant!!! Every time I think about it I just get so. freaking. excited! Oh wait...you didn't think #5 was about me, did you????

Loose at All Ends

Yesterday morning I got a call at 7 am from the vet's office. They had found my debit card. The one I lost in June. The one I had just written off as completely in the land of lost things because I really had zero clue where it might be. I had called the vet when I realized it was lost, but they said they didn't have it. It surprised me. I had every excuse to lose the thing there since I had two kids and three dogs and was trying to get meds and pay for the dogs and it was pretty chaotic. Turns out, there was a tiny slit in their countertop in which the card fell. Another customer also lost her card in the slit but she actually watched it fall so when they took the counter apart Monday night, they found my long since cancelled card.
Sometimes I feel like my life is just a shambles and I am loose at all ends. Like if my head wasn't screwed on....ok you know the rest. I was off yesterday and had some appointments in Nashville. I stopped at a gas station on my way home to get gas. Evidently when I slipped my card into my pocket, I dropped it. Right as we were going to bed last night, I noticed we had a message. It was the bank. The lady who found my card called the bank and told them she was taking it inside the gas station to the manager. {BLESS THAT WOMAN!} Brandon was just beyond thrilled because he evidently doesn't make mistakes {If you know this is not true, please email me and I will do a post specifically about all Brandon's mistakes!}
I decided that I really would not have a good day without my card being in my possession so the kids and I hit the road to Franklin this morning before coming to school. I found the manager and explained what had happened. He couldn't find my card. It wasn't in the place where they keep the cards that get turned in. {Because this is evidently a chronic problem!} So I gave him my number and he promised to call me when he got in touch with the night manager. I hit I-65 to BG and {of course!} 15 minutes into the 20 minute drive, the guy calls and says he found it. With all that confusion, I was not chancing him not being there this afternoon so I went BACK to the station and got the card. {he actually didn't even ID me which was somewhat troubling} SO after 1 1/2 hours in the car, I have my card in my possession. PTL! {Praise the Lord}
***
I had a doctor's appointment in Nashville yesterday so I made it a twofer and went to look at flooring. I am so overwhelmed with flooring choices! Carpet it easy so we were able to select that. Hardwood= not so easy. We want handscraped/ distressed floors. And I think we want solid wood. But Lord have mercy there are so many to chose from! I need some help. I am in panic mode about this. As in I think about it every waking minute and I may not sleep until it is settled.
We need to take some pics. The drywall should be complete this week and painting will start next week. WOOT!
***
Some other exciting news is that I tested a design for a girl who sells appliqué designs this week. When someone creates a new design, it has to be tested to be sure it stitches out correctly. I tested a really cute little ghost. I am hoping it will become a new gig. The website is Embroidery Boutique. I buy 90% of my designs from her because her stuff is so cute and simple. As the house completion nears, I am trying to think about getting back into more sewing. I love it so much but our house has just not been conducive to dragging out all my sewing stuff. In the new house, I will have my own space that I can organize and be able to get more done. Not having to use the entire kitchen and our bedroom to sew will be awesome!

AFRICA

Here is a link to some of Brandon's Africa pictures. I am hoping to get a few framed. I'm having a hard time deciding on my favorites so post comments on your favorites to help me narrow it down!

Africa Pics

What About Bob?

My sister had an imaginary friend when she was little. {I hope she doesn't mind my sharing. It's not a national secret} Her name was Carol. I remember setting a place at the dinner table for Carol. And I remember the morning we were at Seagrove Beach and we all got up and Biz announced that Carol was gone. GONE? "She just got on her tricycle and rode to California!" I still remember the way she said it. It reminds me of another cute little girl I know with an imaginary friend.
Have you heard about Bob? Bob is Ellie's imaginary...um...friend? Spouse? I'm not sure how to classify him. Bob showed up when Ellie was about two years old. He is her "baby's daddy" in her words. And she means this literally. When she was two, she didn't have "husband" in her vocabulary so she called him by what he literally was to her. Although it still baffles me that she has an imaginary husband. It makes her sound kind of fast, but I assure you she is NOT.
Bob is an excellent dad. He OFTEN has the baby. Like way more than most men I know. He takes the baby to school. He fixes dinner for her and gets up at night with her. Bob is a great eater. He loves vegetables. Bob isn't troublesome at all. We've never set a place for him at the table or had to be careful not to sit on him or anything like that. The only time I thought things might be taking a turn for the worse was the day Ellie came into the bathroom while I was showering and said "Mama? Can Bob take a shower?" I just said "He'll have to wait until I am finished." That was fine with Bob and that was all I heard about it.
Then there was the time that Brandon told Ellie they could go see Bob's house in a passing conversation one evening. We got ready to sit down to dinner and Ellie had a COMPLETE AND TOTAL breakdown because she wanted to go see Bob's yellow house and I am not sure Brandon had even realized he told her they could do that. Brandon being Daddy of the Year said "Ok, come on. You show me where it is." They drove the country version of a block (about 3 miles in a circle) and came on home. Ellie pointed out a house that was "Bob's". Then when Ellie came in our house she said "Mama, Bob doesn't really have a house. I just wanted to go for a ride."
I hear about Bob every day. On the way to school or home from school, Ellie always has some Bob story to tell me. She is exclusive about who she talks to about Bob: Brandon, Nana, Biz and I are in the "Bob Club".
Biz and Nana have become concerned. Biz went so far as to tell Ellie that Bob wasn't real. {Yes, the girl who had her own imaginary friend!} Ellie said "Mama? Do you know what Biz said about Bob?" "What Ellie?" "Biz said Bob isn't real and he is." Hmmm....this is a Mama test...So we talked some about Bob and his realness vs. his imaginary-ness. We agreed that he was real to Ellie but in reality {as in to everyone else}, he was just pretend. Sometimes I actually get a bit alarmed. So almost weekly we go over it again. "Ellie, is Bob real?" She always confirms that he is just pretend.
I know one day Bob will fade away or abruptly leave {like Carol}. Honestly, I think that will be one. sad. day. because it will mean Ellie is too old for things like imaginary friends. So for now, I will listen carefully to all the stories about Bob and his mom and his chicken farm and how well he takes care of the baby. I actually wish I could record every conversation!
Finally, to reassure Nana and Biz even further, I found this article {click on the word article, Nana}that I found on another blog I read. An imaginary friend is a sign of a healthy imagination!

Lions and Tigers...or Cheetahs...

The week has not gone nearly as bad as I was afraid it would. I adore my kids. But two {almost} straight weeks of being a single mom seemed pretty daunting. Last week was a bit hairy as no one slept and Mason got sick. This week has been pretty smooth sailing. Everyone is in a good mood and has slept every night. {KNOCK on wood!}Ellie has asked a few times a day "What time is it where Daddy is? What is he doing?" And Mason went to the globe the other night and pointed to Australia and said "Dis whe we live." then pointed to Europe and said "Dis whe Daddy is." Ok, not quite sweetie but at least you are listening when I give the geography lessons!
Brandon called yesterday. He's having a good time and the things he is seeing sound amazing. I am glad I will be able to re-live it with him through pictures. Yesterday, he drove through a Rhinoceros breeding facility that had rhinos, lions and cheetahs. It was feeding time so he got to see them feed half a HORSE to the lions! And he said he was very close. Actually when he first started talking about it I thought "Why is that any better than the zoo?" Then he told me the horse part! PE.TA would have a fit, huh?
I am still working on my frugality. I told ya'll I have found a ton of great blogs. Before I get to that, do you use google reader? YOU SHOULD! You can enter the web addresses of blogs or frequently updated websites that you follow and google reader brings them all together in one place where you can read them and have the option of clicking a link to the page. I love it!
So back to the blogs I have been frequenting. Here are a few:
My Frugal Adventures
Krazy Coupon Lady
Stretching a Buck
The New Frugal Mom

This week I will tell you about my first adventure in the great deals that can be found at Walgreens. Here is some information that is pretty useful: Walgreens Basics I haven't figured it all out and I kind of messed up today by not presenting my coupons in exactly the right order, but I still got great deals. Here's what I got:
4 boxes of general mills cereal
2 bags of Chex Mix
1 big Glade soy candle
1 Aquafresh ISO Active
TOTAL: $7.34!!!!
{I wish I had a camera to take a pic of all I bought because I think it's always more impressive to see it all laid out, but Brandon took the camera so just draw yourself a picture!}
I had coupons and I also earned some register rewards and used those. I still have $11 left to use! I should add that I also bought some medication stuff (Zyrtec and Motrin) I am not counting this as out of pocket expenses because I paid with my flexible spending account, BUT I earned $10 register rewards with that too! Read these websites! There is some great info and it really doesn't take much time to save a lot!

I'm A Frugal Wannabe

Here's a little secret: My greatest desire is to be a SAHM (stay at home mom). There are so many reason I think this would be a good thing. Ok, sure, you are thinking "Who wouldn't want to quit their job and stay home?" (and if you are thinking that, you also have no clue what life is like at home all day with a four year old and almost two year old!) I have had the great pleasure of having a really wonderful job AND being able to bring my kids with me to my job every day. I can simply walk down the hall and check on them. And on slow days, I may even spend a little time hanging out with them in their classroom. It's been a comfort to leave them in the caring hands of people who I know and trust. It's also been wonderful to be able to see them throughout the day. I have truly had the best of both worlds. But I have great aspirations!
When I was growing up, my mom would ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up and I would ALWAYS reply "A Wife and a Mama." This was not just my reply when I was little. This was my reply when I was in high school and even college! My mom would tell me that having a family was a dream. She would say that being a Mama would be life but I needed to think about a career. And this one time, I have to say my mom was wrong. See, my mom stayed home with us. She did not go to college and she wanted to be sure that Biz and I did "more" with our lives. I understand where she was coming from. I certainly don't regret my education or my career to this point, but I see great value in my "job" being my family.
My life right now is hectic. I work full time. I have a "career" and I do love my job and the work I do for children and families, but I feel like I am often giving too much of myself to other people's children and families and leaving very little of myself for my own family. Brandon travels often. {Denmark two weeks ago, Mexico this week, South Africa next week and Chile in about three weeks.} He is typically gone 2-3 weeks a month. I have two small kids. I go back and forth between thinking I am lame and pitiful that I can't get it together and deal and thinking I have it HARD. I guess I am really somewhere in the middle. I know people have it much worse, but my life is no piece of cake.
I am {mostly} past the days of calling in reinforcements every time Brandon is out of town. I have mastered the art of getting something {fairly} nutritious on the table, feeding two kids, bathing two kids AND assisting them both in getting out of the tub and in their jammies. {This is actually more complicated than it sounds!} They can now help with feeding three dogs and two cats and I am kinda over wondering if all 22 cows are still in the fence. My days go something like this: Rise at 5:30, get myself ready and pray both kids stay asleep until I am done {if they don't, my getting ready routine is constantly interrupted with "Can you fix my waffle? can you get me some milk? will you turn the tv on? Mason is hitting me. And that often causes us to be late.}, get both kids up and dressed and pray that Ellie won't throw a fit about not eating breakfast at home {they feed them at school}. Get them in the car by 7:15, make the 30-45 minute drive to work. Work a pretty stressful job at which I have a lot of responsbility. Leave work at 4:30 {if all is going well} and make the same drive home with two hungry, thirsty and tired kids. Try to get something together for dinner. Feed the "livestock". Feed the children. Bathe the children. Entertain the children. Get the children to bed. Clean the house and kitchen and get myself to bed {hopefully before 11, but often not until much later}. Somehow, Brandon being out of town always seems to make said children have sleep issues so I can always count on someone waking in the night. {at least they usually take turns} And right now we are doing all of this in a one bathroom, one closet, 800 sq foot house. Good times.
I make good money and we are so blessed with all we have, but I want MORE. I want to cook good dinners for my picky kids so they will learn to like more things. I want to have a cleaner, neater more organized home. I want to be able to fit more quality time in with my kids and spend less time saying "honey I don't have time for that, I have to get this laundry done". And I want to spend FAR less time saying "Come on! We are LATE!" I want to be home when Ellie gets off the bus next year and I want to be able to volunteer at her school. I want to be able to take some stress off Brandon by being able to do more yard work and have his clothes clean and folded and put away when he is packing for a trip instead of living out of laundry baskets or or {gasp} out of the dryer!
Brandon is skeptical. He absolutely agrees on all points that me staying home would be a great thing for our family. But I am a spender. And Brandon is the family financial advisor. I've told him all my great plans to save money, menu plan, coupon clip, sew to make extra money, and shop consignment sales for the kids. But the proof is in the pudding, right? So I am going frugal.
I'm starting with groceries. {meaning food, toiletries, and cleaning supplies} I am clipping coupons, printing coupons, using electronic coupons and shopping sales. I have found TONS of great blogs that actually make it pretty simple to save by telling you where the best sales are and what coupons to use. I am doing my best to stay out of the major department store that starts with a wal and ends in a mart. There are many reasons for this, but I find that I spend so much more when I see a bin of water bottles for $1. {who could pass that up, really?} When I go to a simple grocery store, I don't even think about perusing the kids clothing section or running by the shoe department. I think this one step alone will be helpful in savings.
I have more steps I want to take like meal planning and frugal Christmas and Birthdays. I also want to start sewing again and I would really love to grow that business. It may take a while, but I am really serious about this. I'm going to start trying to share all the great deals I find here. This week I spent $80 at Kroger and saved $70! That's pretty amazing to me! At this point, I have no set time of when I would like to finalize this plan, but I really am committed to this! So here's to frugality!
***
I started typing this post yesterday. Mid-post, I saved it and went to talk to a teacher in the gym while Mason's class was in there. I walked in to find Mason sitting on a tricycle and thought he was just sitting there...until he took off PEDALING. KNIFE IN MY HEART! I had no idea he could pedal a bike!!! And he can pedal backwards and forwards. And I missed it.
Last night, Mason woke up at 12 am throwing up. Brandon is out of town. So at 12 am, I had to strip Mason, strip his bed, start a load of laundry in the wash and clean up the rest of the mess. All the while, Mason SCA REEMED. Poor baby has never had a stomach bug before. At two am when he threw up for the third time, I broke down in silent tears. So today I am using my last sick day until November. This sucks! The good news is Mason is tired, but hasn't had any more "episodes" since about 3 am. I'm exhausted> Biz took Ellie to school so here's hoping she doesn't come down with it agian (she was sick last Friday!)
Anyway...ya'll have a good holiday weekend!

Slowly But Surely...

For anyone wondering, we made it home safe and sound. The kids were happy to see us, but I think I was happier to see them. We are back into the swing of work and school. I still feel like I am about 7 hours ahead and I'd love to be close to bedtime now. I have a really busy week at work because all of our new kiddos start this coming Monday.
We have made some house progress! The roughed in electrical inspection was yesterday and we PASSED. Insulation and dry wall should begin within the week. Slowly but surely, we ARE progressing. No idea yet when we might be able to move in. Here are some of the latest pics:





The exterior is pretty much finished except for the screens on the screened porch. It's been a long process, but when I drive into our driveway in the evenings, I am just overcome with how blessed we are to have such a beautiful home. If we never get walls, it'll be a nice place to camp! Hopefully, I'll have time to blog more later but I wanted to let everyone know we are doing well!

Travel Nightmare

So here are some things I have learned about Copenhagen:

1.Copenhageners like to bike. Everywhere. There are tons and tons of bikes. Everyone rides bikes: young people, old people, women, men, pregnant women, women in skirts, men in suits and on and on. You see rows and rows of bikes parked on the streets. The city is nicely arranged and has wonderful bikes paths. The women ride bikes in skirts and dresses. They have the cutest little baskets on the front of their bikes. They also have little rickshaw type things to put on the front of a bike to let children ride in. It {almost} makes me want to rent a bike and travel around town! My dad would be in heaven!
2.Copenhageners like to bundle and they evidently have cooler body temperatures that Brandon and I. It is so HOT everywhere! No place is air conditioned, including our hotel room. Now, there IS a supposed AC unit in here, but not matter how low we turn it, it does not cool down. Anyone who knows us knows that we pretty much keep our house frigid, especially at night. We are dying. The weather outside has been tolerable. Today I was out for a while and wore short sleeves and jeans. I wished I'd worn capris.
What I mean about "bundling" is that the folks here wear a lot of layers. It is probably upper 70's here today and lots of people have on jackets. ALL women wear scarves wrapped around their necks. And everyone has their babies bundled up so much I figure those poor babes are sweating! They will have a baby in a swaeter and hat with blankets piled around. And I am not talking newborns. I am talking nine month olds. In this weather, my kids would have on shorts!
3. Everyone has CUTE baby carriages. Like so cute I almost want to have another one just to get a cute carrige like that. {Ok, they are not that cute!} A lot of people have prams. They're really modern prams and if the baby is sitting, they can sit up and ride around and they have a little harness on. Other people just have Euro-chic baby strollers but they are still so cute! And of course they hang receiving blankets or cloth diapers over them so that a lot of times the baby is comepletely closed into the carriage. And bundled up I am sure!
4. Copenhagen does not strike me as particularly clean. It's no dirtier than any other city I've been to. And it's much more clean than NYC or Rome. But it doesn't knock my socks off with cleanliness. I talked to several people who had been to Denmark before and they said "Oh you'll love Denmark. It's so clean." Hmmm. Maybe if I got out of Copenhagen it would look like an Irish Springs commercial.
5. And finally the number one {or number five} thing I have learned about Copenhagen is that my stupid bank, Integra, cannot "communicate" with Denmark. Yes, after 9 international calls to our bank and Master.card, the final answer was that they cannot communicate with Denmark. Brandon said "the whole f*&%ing country???" OMW what a nightmare. We have not been able to get any cash from ATMs and when I have tried to use my card in a few places, if they did not have the capability to do credit rather than debit, the transaction was declined. Brandon travels internationally A LOT. {In the next few weeks alone he has 4 international trips.} He has never ever had trouble using our debit/ charge card ANYWHERE. I had zero trouble in Ireland and Rome. And suddenly, Integra Bank has something against business with Denmark? One lady's suggestion was "Well, maybe you could borrow some money from a friend." Let's just say it's a good thing there are a few thousand miles between that lady and Brandon. FINALLY today after visiting THREE banks here in Copenhagen, I was directed to the main branch of the biggest bank in the country and they were able to withdraw cash for me. HOWYA LOOYA!
There are a lot of other things I've learned. The Danish are pretty laid back. Copenhagen seems pretty safe. And that is a good thing because we haven't seen any police. At all. And no one we are with has seen any either. And the food here isn't all that great.
Brandon is done with the conference today so I have been working on a plan for our sightseeing tomorrow and Friday. I did a LOT of walking today because the main branch of the bank that I had to go to was pretty far from our hotel. But it did take me to a new part of town so that was fun. There will be lots of pics when I get home and can upload them!

Greetings from Denmark

We made it to Denmark. I've felt very disconnected the last few days. It's amazing how dependant we become on technology. Ok, maybe not you, but me! My cell phone wasn't working {got that resolved yesterday} and this is the first time I've been on the computer. I take for granted how easy it is to stay connected with cell phones, email, Facebook, and text messaging. But Brandon left his computer with me today while he went off to the conference so I am back in business!
Our trip has been fun so far. The flight was good and we lucked out by having an empty seat between us {the plane was a two three two seat configuration}. We had plenty of room to stretch out. I started feeling puny Friday. I willed myself to feel better and told myself it was allergies. By Friday afternoon, I decided to check just to be sure...I had major white patches on my throat. It was 5pm! I called Biz and my mom and they suggested I go to the Quick Care Clinic so off Ellie and I went. I got an antibiotic and I am feeling some better, but still not 100%. {BOO!}
The people watching on an international trip makes for never ending entertainment. On the flight, there was a large number of seniors who were headed over here to go on a Scandanavian Cruise. Most of them wore their nicest clothes for the NINE HOUR flight. I am talking older men in sport coats and TIES and women in panty hose. The couple in front of us wore SARS masks nearly the entire flight. Then there was our flight mate that Brandon and I still cannot get over: I saw this guy in the Atlanta airport bar. He looked homeless. Dirty clothes, dirty hands, unkempt hair, long icky beard. I noticed him sitting in the bar drinking a beer. I wondered how I homeless man got into the airport. We boarded our flight and everyone was pretty much settled and there was one last passenger to board. He needed help finding his seat. It was the homeless guy! And he sat across the aisle from Brandon. He drank a lot more beer and wore women's reading glasses. We never did figure out where he was going!
When we arrived Sunday, we got out a little and walked around, ate lunch and came back for a nice nap. In the evening, we went to the ICo.MST welcome reception. Last night, there was a get together at the Town Hall. Very pretty old building and it was evidently a really big thing that the group was granted permission to hold an event there. I spent some of the day yesterday walking around. Brandon and I will do the sight-seeing things together when he has some time off on Thursday and Friday.
I forgot my camera cord so I can't upload pics. But I will put some up of the kids that were taken a few weeks ago. I've been checking in with the kids every day. They are having a ball and don't have much time to talk to their Mama. I miss them terribly but I am doing my best to have fun!

I'm going to Denmark!

I think I kind of have writer's block! I can't think of anything witty to write about so for what? The third week this is just the facts.
The biggest thing that is going on with us is ELECTRIC. Brandon finally finished everything that he can for now. We made the decision to hire someone to complete it. He will be coming in on Thursday to finalize everything so that insulation and drywall can begin. BUT...we will be out of the country next week so we are delayed yet another week. In the big scheme, what's one more week? Right? The new timeline is: finish electric this week, we will be gone, schedule inspector for Tuesday August 25 and hopefully the insulation can start the following day. Doing the electric ourselves and having to depend on family to help has been a night.mare. Nuff said!
***
Brandon and I leave this coming Saturday for Denmark. I am very excited. We have not been away as a couple in many years. I think it will be wonderful to just be "us" for a few days. And I have heard great things about Denmark {except for the fact that they are socialist??? but I guess that's not really any different than the direction America is taking, right?}. Then there is this ting of anxiety over leaving my babies!!! I spend so. much. time. with those kids! I am going to miss them like crazy. I have been trying to prepare Ellie. We got the globe out yesterday and looked at Kentucky, then at Gallatin and how close that is, then at Indiana and how close that is. Then we looked at Florida and talked about how long it takes to get there. THEN I showed her Denmark and how far it is and I told her how I will fly on a plane all the way over there and then next week I will get on another plane and fly back to MY BABIES! Her response was to dance around the living room and sing ♫♫"I get to live at Na na's. I get to live at Na na's."♫♫ Obviously she is very broke up about us being gone. Last week, I told her I would miss her so much and she looked at me and said "Well, you can always call me!" Again, real broke up. I am so so so glad that my kids know they can love and depend on other people besides Brandon and I. It is very comforting to know that, though they will miss me, I doubt there will be many times they will be completely sick over missing me.
I decided to get web capabilities on my BB again so if you are my FB friend, look for updates about the trip. And maybe even a text or two! Things have come such a long way even in the three years we traveled to Ireland when I was completely without a cell or the ability to text because my phone at the time did not have the capability. Yeah for technology!
I am really trying to psych myself up and not make this be like the first {and only} time I went to summer camp. I got so homesick! I sent my grandmother a letter than caused a call to my mom from Nan asking if I was being mistreated! Then I left camp early. I regret having so much worry and stress over that fun summer experience. {OK, I am not sure I could have ever made myself like the fact that they made us clean the bathrooms ourselves!} I know the kids will be having a ball. I know Nana will get help from Biz if she needs it and I need to experience all that Denmark has to offer without worry! Prayers are welcome!
***
Colby is doing so much better! He may get to go home this weekend. His mom Amy sent an email saying how much she has appreciated all the well wishes and prayers. He is a fighter and so is his Mama! Keep the prayers coming but know that they ARE working. He has been in the hospital for three weeks and there have been some very grim days but things are finally looking up.
***
We had the kids pictures taken last week. A longtime friend of the Pem.bertons, Gab.rielle, took the pics. I am so excited about the pictures! We had them done outdoors and they all turned out so well. I am hoping that we can schedule another time this fall to have family pics taken and include Biz and Tim and my parents. I hope to get the cd of the pics this week so look for those to be posted. I got a great deal and I get the cd and then I can just get the pictures printed myself. I love that. And I need Biz to get her own camera so she can do this! She absolutely has the talent, she just needs the right equipment!

That's all for now! OH! One more thing: They did the columns and shutters this week and my new house is beautiful if I do say so! I am so excited. I will try to post a pic tomorrow!

A New Day

I {often} wish I were a little less roller-coaster-ish. My personality is such that my life really goes in cycles. Ups and dowsn. I have times when I feel like things are crumbling around me. In those times, I feel like every morning is a rush and I forget things. We eat grilled cheese every night for dinner because I just can't seem to put anything else together. At work, I feel like I am just never productive. And on and on.... Then I kind of hit bottom. I just decide I AM getting it together. I clean everything. I organize. I PLAN. Life starts to be a little less hectic, a little more organized and just a smidge easier. And I am kind of getting back to that this week.
Saturday, the kids went to my parents. That is probably the biggest help in my getting my crap together. I feel like I cannot accomplish anything when they are home. The second I get really involved in a project {think cleaning the bathroom, unloading the dishwasher, doing a load of whites...not big stuff}, someone is screaming my name: "Mason hit me". "I want to help!" "HOLD ME!!!" So I either get distracted and never complete a task OR I just never start one because I just can't handle anything more than entertaining the kids and playing referee. PLEASE someone tell me I am not a slug and there are other moms out there feeling this way! Ok, so back to getting it together...Saturday night I cleaned the bathroom, swept the kitchen, straightened the house, did laundry. Sunday I cleaned out my truck. {I am ASHAMED at condition of my truck. Horrible.} Whenever I start to get things back in reign, I feel like it's really a fresh start!
Getting out the door this morning was easy peasy. No whining, no forgetting, and no fits. We got into our clean truck and made our merry way to school. I even feel like I have been more productive at work today! Soooo here's hoping I can keep this going for a while! How DOES it all fall apart? I am not sure. Perhaps I should try to be a little more cognizant of the fall apart and try to recognize the signs. Maybe I can stop the fall in its tracks! Ya'll let me know when you see it coming, ok?
***
The house report is that it is moving at a SNAIL'S PACE. Whew! This do-it-yourself electric thing is A. LOT. We do continue to make progress. They are still working on the siding, HVAC is finally complete {for now}, and we have made a lot of progress with electric...but there is still a long way to go. Brandon worked ALL DAY Saturday and Sunday. We had a lot of help. Tim and some neighbors helped Saturday. Then Sunday Tim came back for more and we also had my dad and Brandon's step-dad. The idea for this weekend had been to get it DONE, however that plan didn't quite pan out. We're not completely sure the direction things are taking at this point but we have some plans in the works. Most important is that the electric gets completed so that drywall can start.
I found some BEAUTIFUL flooring. I have decided on a wide {5 inch or so} handscraped hardwood floor. We are going to get a pre-finished, engineered floor because all of my research is saying that it will have the best finish and wear well with little feet {and little toys}.
***
Brandon is traveling a lot over the next few weeks. Out of the country for 5-6 weeks straight? I think that's what he told me. Good times. One of those weeks, I will be with him, but still.
We are leaving for Copenhagen, DK August 15. I am excited. I have tried to find some "things to see and do" but there doesn't seem to be anything extremely remarkable. It will be a nice relaxing vacation. The kids will be with mom and dad with Biz and Tim as backup. Biz asked if she could just have the kids to "practice" on. Hmmm...how much could she mess them up in eight days??? I had thought we'd be in the house by now {HA HA HA HA!} and mom could stay there and have the option of bringing the kids to school to give herself a break. It's not that I worry at all about her abilities, just her sanity. BUT, Nana is WAY more capable than I am. {Seriously. She comes to my house for one afternoon, has both kids and can get more accomplished than I can in an entire weekend.} I know everyone will be fine.

A Little Bit of Everything

SO what do ya'll want to hear about? I'm not really feeling bloggy. I guess the fact that I am writing this at all means I am feeling somewhat bloggy. But I feel like I should have some big, introspective, amazingly insightful post and I am not feeling it. So this will be one of those "Just the Facts" kind of blogs.
***
House progress continues. My dad {graciously} came once again this weekend all day Saturday and most of the day Sunday to serve as electrician's assistant. Yesterday, Tim joined in the fun too and they made a lot of progress. John and Brandon's mom are coming on Saturday to finalize the electric {for now} so that drywall can begin. YAHOO!
We also talked with a friend about doing our hardwood. We are going to work out a trade {super awesome} for Brandon's old truck. The only thing is our friend's opinion on what kind of flooring we should get. I have had my heart set on wide {at least 6 inch} hand scraped floors. I had assumed I would just get pre-finished. Our friend says he would not go wider than 3 1/4, he would get red oak???, and he would do them unfinished and get them finished. Hmmm..things to ponder. ***If any of you readers are experts on hardwood or have any knowledge or OPINION on hardwood, PLEASE share it with me. I am perplexed. {I already have Nana's opinion} Brandon says we'll get what we want. And our friend says he will lay whatever we want, that is just his opinion.
We ran out of materials for the siding. Siding Guy says the materials are expected in this afternoon so they should be out to finish up this week.
***
We had a good weekend. Saturday as I said, Brandon worked and I had the kids. Pretty standard. My mom came to help Biz ready her house for a church get together we had Saturday night. I must add that I LOVE Biz's place. I am AMAZED at what they have done with a space that was just one enormous room this time last year. {she should send me pics so I can post them!} They have both done an outstanding job with their remodel. I really admire their vision and ability to see it through. I often feel that I have neither the vision NOR the ability to see it through! {ok, I might have the vision, but I always feel like mine is much more plain and boring.}
Saturday evening we had another "Backyard Barbecue" with four other families from church. This is the third time we have all gotten together and we had so much fun. The idea is something that the church started. An opportunity was presented to sign up to be assigned a group. We were put into groups of five or so families and the requirement was to get together once during the months of May, June and July at different people's houses for a meal. It has been wonderful! Going into it, I did not know any of the other couples {except Biz and Tim!}. We all get along great. Our kids play together and we just socialize and EAT! We had a great meal and just a really great time. Brandon has come along {kicking and screaming} and I actually think he doesn't hate it, which is a great thing. Saturday night, we all agreed we'd like to keep it going! So I guess now it is becoming a supper club. And I am really excited because now I can hopefully host in November! We can have chili and hang out on the deck! AND, August 8, all of the Backyard Barbecue groups are coming together to host an ice cream social at church and YOU are invited! Saturday August 8, 6:00 pm at Broadway UMC, Greenwood Campus. Hamburgers, hot dogs and ICE CREAM! Ya'll come!

You're Gonna Miss This!

I never ask "What else?" Never. Because I might find out and I don't want to know what else! This week has been one of THOSE weeks.
Mason woke up Sunday with a nose that was running like a faucet. Brandon left Monday morning and will be home TONIGHT. {That's 4 evenings alone if you are counting} Biz and Tim were at the beach until last night. I was completely alone with Biz's 2 sick cats, a sick dog {Jack}, and two sick kids. Not to mention that I was responsible for keeping all of those animals and humans alive AND tending Biz's flowers and garden. Oh. My. Word!
Mason didn't sleep at all Sunday night. Brandon left at early-thirty and I overslept. So I am rushing around and run into the bathroom to dry my hair, turn on the hairdryer and NADA. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?
Mason's runny nose started to get worse and by the time we were headed home from school on Monday he was running fever. My wonderful Mama had already planned to come and help me with the evening routine that now not only consists of dinner and baths but also gardens, dog and cat care. I called the doctor's office on the way home and got an appointment for Mason for Tuesday. I also remembered that I had an after work commitment {for work}. Mom decided the best plan was for her to keep Mason home Tuesday and I would meet her at the doctor.
Ellie and I went on to school and then I met mom and Mason at the doctor. What I thought was just a summer cold turned out to be "allergic bronchitis". The doctor added that it's not pneumonia. YET. He is on 4 different medications and thankfully already seems to be improving. I kept him home on Wednesday. Fatal error.
Lordy! I often wish to be a stay home mom. I dream about what our days would be like. I imagine caught up laundry, yummy dinners, fun projects, and a generally happy household. And then we stay home and I realize I am mental! Yesterday was a rainy day so the kids were in our 300 square foot house all day {it's actually more like 800 sq. feet, but it is closing in on me!} I tried to encourage play and give them ideas of things to do, we got out play doh, we read, we played, we cooked but by 4:00pm when Ellie was asking if she and Mason could have dinner {our of boredom???} I knew we were all just going batty. We survived.
And I really hesitate to post this bit about staying home being hard lest Brandon remind me of it if the chance ever actually came up for me to stay home. I mean I COULD make it work. Especially if we were not living on top of one another. This too shall pass. Right? I will look back on this in a few months and laugh. RIGHT???
Mason's sleep issues make pretty much every other issue we deal with that much worse. It's HARD to function when you have been up for an hour and a half in the night trying to get someone back to sleep. We tried to let him cry the other night and he ended up throwing up. I can't handle that and I would certainly much rather rock for hours than have my baby throwing up because he is so upset. I try to put it into perspective. Ellie sleeps great and there was a time I was sure we were ruining her and she'd never learn to sleep on her own and she was spoiled and all that because of all her night waking. I was talking to Brandon's dad about it and he said this is payback for Brandon. {I'm sure my parents would say the same thing!} He told me he and Brandon's mom used to have to DRIVE AROUND IN THE CAR to get Brandon to sleep. {I found this particularly humorous since my dear husband is the one who gets particularly enraged over the night waking. I mean it is no picnic for me, but Brandon's patience runs super thin.} As Kenny and I know, Brandon did grow out of having to be driven around to sleep so it's pretty likely Mason will not require rocking to get back to sleep when he is 15. But I bet when he is 15, I will miss these days like crazy!
There's a song by Trace Adkins called "You're Gonna Miss This". It talks about different stages of life and how we all kind of wish them away and rush through them. The chorus says:
You're gonna miss this.
You're gonna want this back.
You're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast.
These are some good times,
So take a good look around.
You may not know it know,
But you're gonna miss this...

Ellie calls it the "You and Me Song". So true. It's me and Ellie..and Mason...and Brandon...and Mama...and Biz...and Dad...and my life. I need to take a deep breath and soak it up because it goes by too fast!

The Weekend

It was another fun-filled weekend here at Happy Acres {that is NOT really the name of our farm!} Saturday, my Pop came to lend a hand in the electrical process. He and Brandon worked all day and got quite a bit accomplished. The "plan" for now is that John {Brandon's step-dad} will come back in two weeks to get things finalized so that drywall can get started. We also talked to a friend and neighbor of ours who lays hardwood floors and he says he can do ours. {WOOT!} So things continue to move along.
Ellie asked to go home with Nana and Poppop and since the answer is {almost} never "no", she did. After church, Mason and I went to Gallatin to hang out for the day. Ellie had a grand time and Mason got some Nana and Poppop time as well.
Mason is NOT feeling well. He woke up with a runny nose, not sleeping and has just been a crab. No fever so I am hoping it's teeth? Let's hope.
One final thing: Our nephew, Colby, is sick and in the hospital. Colby has SMA and got pneumonia this week. He is an amazing kid and he will turn 7 years old on Wednesday. Say a prayer for Colby! Also pray for his {very worn out} mom, Amy and our Grandma Linda.

HOPE

***UPDATE***
I was overwhelmed with response from people who wanted to help this family. I am happy to say that I have enough money to pay the bill and I am on my way to the electric company right now. I also got some personal hygiene items donated and some money for gas. I talked with the mom and she is really overwhelmed with gratitude towards the kindness of strangers. If you ever doubt, there are still people with good hearts who are willing to give some HOPE to others.
***

Ok, so I never ever talk about my job. Many of you may have zero clue what I do. Here it is: I am a glorified social worker. I have a LOT of jobs/ tasks/ responsibilities, but the bottom line is that I am here to help families. I work at the Head Start Pro.gram at Wes.tern Ken.tucky Univer.sity.
As a program, we are lucky to have very few families to come to us in true crisis. Even luckier that the families that do come to us in crisis are usually not in a cycle of crisis. We have a lot of student's children who attend here so most of the time, they have it very together. I see a lot and I often feel like I have become somewhat calused to situations. I have worked here for 8 years, but I have been in social work for 10 years. I have seen a lot of "cycles" where people are down on their luck, get help, make bad decisions again and get into a mess again. It's very disheartening. But when I am faced with a situation that is different than the norm, I am heartbroken when I cannot help.
This week I have been faced with a situation that is not the "norm". A parent came to me in need of help with her electric bill. Can you imagine being a parent to a pre-schooler, a full-time student AND working a full time {shift work} job? I mean when I think about that I realize I don't know stress! You amy be asking WHY? are they in such a situation. I know this family and I know they are good planners. But they live tight. And both mom and dad's hours were cut at work. I was not able to find much help with the electric bill. I got a call this morning that their car ran out of gas {now they can't get to work} and they need some essential living items {TOILET PAPER!}
So here is my call for help! I would not do this for just any family. But I feel like they are about to get into a vicious cycle {no gas to get to work, no paycheck, when/if they do get paid, it is going to be so hard to catch up!} If you want to help, you can paypal me money for them at jennfields75@gmail.com. Only do it if you really really want to. And please don't quit reading because I am asking for this! I have just worked on this all week and come up short and I finally figured I have a pretty good forum here so why not try! Any time I can give someone who is so downhearted and feels so lost a little hope, I feel really privileged to be able to do it. If I can give these folks a little hope to keep on trudging and get their degrees, it is the least I can do!

The Gator

I almost forgot to post pics of Ellie and her Brithday present! She got a little battery operated John Deere Gator to ride around the yard. She loves it. But in true Ellie style, I think she is hoping Mason learns to drive soon so he can be in charge. Ellie is my cautious child. {NOT to be mistaken with submissive or a doormat or any of that. She can and does hold her own} Ellie needs a lot of prep for new situations. She does not just jump right in to anything. {I am sure Nana would say she knows someone else that fits that description!}
When Ellie first saw the Gator, she just walked around it and looked at it. We told her to get on and she just sat there. The first ride was jumpy because she stopped every 5 seconds when it started going a little too fast for her. Tuesday night she rode it again and she obliged Mason's request: "I drive Ehdee?" SHE got in the passenger seat and told him she would push the "gas" pedal and she let him have the wheel. {I had to run along side to keep them from running into trees!} Mason had no clue what he was doing and Ellie just sat back and pushed the pedal and paid no attention to where they were going! She is liking it more each day and she was so comfortable with it by the end of the evening Tuesday that she asked to put it in 2nd gear to go FAST!


Here are a couple more house pictures that Brandon took last night. They came out better than mine.

The House

We are making progress. For the MAJOR lack of progress last month, we are making a lot of progress this month. The last six weeks or so have seemed so slow because the only things going on were plumbing and electric and HVAC. Bo Ring. I like progress I can SEE. They started the siding yesterday. I have to say that Brandon and I really struggled with the decision of which siding to go with. As per usual, what we wanted was much more expensive. We finally reasoned that we would drive up to this house for the rest of our lives and we didn't want to always say "We wish we had just gone with the Pol.ar Wall." I really wanted the look of Har.dy Board siding which is a new-ish material that is fiber cem.ent siding. It has the look of real wood and is low (ish) maintenance. {It does have to be painted initially AND then again in 20 or so years.} Then you have vinyl that you put up and it's DONE. So we wanted vinyl with the look of Har.dy board. We decided on Po.lar Wall P.lus siding which is a foam backed siding that is available in "designer colors" and come in a 5 inch wide board. We went with russett and I LURVE IT! With the money I saved on my bedspread, it will be no issue, right? ☺

Hello Good Buy!

I've had a pretty good idea of what kind of decor I want for the new house. One thing I have been set on is the decor for my {and Brandon's} room: a black and white bedspread with Tiffany Blue walls. I have searched high and low for a black and white bedspread. I've found black and cream or black and grey or brown and white. I've found some black and white that I really didn't like. But I finally came across a black and white comforter set at Walm.art dot com. It was $65 for the comforter and two shams which I thought was actually a pretty good deal so I ordered it. They called me Saturday to tell me that it HAD come in but there was an issue. An associate made a mistake and accidentally returned the charge to my card, BUT they did still have the comforter and would keep it until I could come and get it. I would just have to pay for it again. OK. It was a small hassle but oh well.
So I went yesterday to pick it up. Sure enough they have the comforter with a big not that says it is for me but they would have to override the price at the register and charge me $65. The register in the Site to Store department was down so I was going to have to take it up front to a register. I asked the lady if I was going to have any trouble and she assured me I would not. So I asked her what it would normally ring up as so she got a scanner thingy to check. And she burst into laughter. Hmm...How much is it supposed to be? She is still laughing and says "YEAH! They'd have to override that!" HOW MUCH LADY???? She finally tells me. Are you sitting down? SEVEN DOLLARS! That's right folks. $7.00. Siete dólares! Evidently it had been something they carried in store but it had gone on clearance. I guess they were trying to get rid of the remaining inventory online but the store still had the clearance price? I don't know and I really don't care!
So I yell say "Well, I'm not paying $65 for it!" Thankfully she was in agreement and said to just let them ring it up and it would ring up at $7. Oh my word! I was so nervous that when I got up there to pay they were going to say "NOPE LADY WE ARE ONTO YOU! You are paying $65!" But they did not! So I got the comforter of my dreams for SEVEN BUCKS! I NEVER get deals like that!

It's even reversible!

Happy Birthday Ellie!

This was taken last fall, but it is just so ELLIE

Party pics. My camera was really not fast enough for all the action.






It is so incredible to think back four years. I told Ellie last night the story of that same evening four years ago: Biz had come over to help me hang a few pictures in Ellie's room {and had expressed her disapproval of Ellie's name. It didn't "flow" HA! I will never let her live that down}. I had picked up a pizza on the way home. It was a normal evening. It started to get a little stormy {just like last night!} and Brandon and I were headed to bed. I went in and washed my face and came out to tell him I thought my water had broken. His response was {an unethusiactic} "Are you serious?" You see {and I spared Ellie this part}, we had both slept TERRIBLY the night before. For the first and only time in our married life, we both tossed and turned so much that Brandon had actually retreated to the couch! We were SO. TIRED. and so ready to hit the sack. Here we'd been waiting 9 long months for this baby and when she was finally ready to get here, we were really ready to just go to bed and wait one more day! But that was not how things played out. We headed to the hospital and arrived by about 10:30. Twelve short hours later, we were holding a precious baby girl named Ellie Jordan Fields.
How different things are today! How she has blessed my life! I can't even put into words the joy Ellie brings to my life. She is funny, smart, sensitive, and fiesty. I get sad to think that she is getting older and may not always want me to rock her {every single night!}, but Nana is right when she says that each passing day brings new reasons to enjoy being a Mama. I miss Ellie as a baby, but I would not trade her as a FOUR YEAR OLD for any amount of money. And I am sure I will feel that way when she is 10, 15, 20 and 60! Just last night, she made me laugh so hard I almost fell on the floor:
Ellie wanted a {homemade} blueberry muffin. I told her she needed to finish her dinner, but I fixed the muffin and set it beside her plate. {Proof I'd let her have it!} Mason said he wanted to get down and asked for something in the living room. Ellie said "YEAH. Go in the living room and get it for him. You can go on in there NOW. I'll be fine!" I said "WHY? Are you going to eat that muffin when I leave the room???" She busted out laughing because that was EXACTLY her plan. I guess she didn't think I was smart enough to figure that one out!
***
We had a wonderful birthday party at Imag.ination Sta.tion. It turned out that FIVE children were on vacation so there were only a few kids, but we partied anyway. Tonight Ellie has requested: Shells and cheese, deer meat and fried okra. She has a couple more gifts to open {from us and from Biz and Tim}. I am excited about what she is getting from us. Here's a hint:

***
We had a nice weekend. All of Brandon's parents came down the for the party. His dad and Linda were able to make a weekend of it so we got to spend lots of time with them which was nice. I think if Mason spent much more time with Grandma Linda, she'd have a very hard time getting rid of him. He wanted to be with her all. the. time! Brandon's mom and John came out for a little while after the party and checked out the progress on the house. John was helpful with some issues he saw with the house that we were able to address with our contractor this morning. It seems when you say "structural issues" to a contractor, they come right out the next morning!
***
There is a trailer of siding sitting at the house that was delivered some time yesterday. Word is they will start with siding tomorrow. The basement ceiling has been finalized and they should be getting that done this week so {hopefully} drywall can start as soon as the electrician {BRANDON} finishes with the electric. Our contractor did say to me Friday "Just don't be mad at me when it is not finished on time." OH LORDIE! Somebody hold me!