Christmas at our house... part 2

tickle, tickle, giggle, giggle!!

It's a girl!

oh my word.

Christmas at our house...

Amanda totally wigged when she opened a present from her Uncle E and family.
I don't think anyone could have hoped for a better reaction! Thanks so much!

Samantha spent a lot of time being affectionate and cute as always!

We like to mix our superhero characters around here.

Oh no... Hayden has his own set of tools! Watch out!

Wishing you...

and yours a very Merry Christmas!

'Tis the Season

I could eat 'em

We recently attended the holiday concert at Amanda's school and let me tell you, it was quite a production. Those kids and that music teacher got themselves some talent. It was beautiful, fun and entertaining.



Earlier while we were waiting for the show to start I took a few shot of the little ones.









And then after the show I took this one of Amanda.



I could just eat them all. If it wasn't illegal and gross and totally wrong and all...

Florida

Florida has totally wimpified me. I have tons to do, but

"it's too cold outside! wahhh!!".

What's wrong with me. I used to shovel snow off the walkway out my front door, scrape ice off my windshield and throw caution to the wind driving 10 miles an hour through snow and ice.

It may have something to do with having to drag little ones along who suddenly have to go potty once the seat belt is on. Just a couple days ago it took us an hour to get out the door with enough warm clothes on everyone. And then I opened the van door, threw the kids in and shut the door quick so they wouldn't be cold. I tried to buckle Sammie in to her carseat with her huge bubble coat on...ummm no.  Took off the coat, buckled her in and then Hayden spilled his water bottle all over his car seat and pants (the only warm ones that fit him... nice!)

Unpack the kids.
Redress Hayden as best I can without making him look like a dork.

and back out to the van.

Where were we going anyway?

Check it out!

amy gove photography 

is back in business!

amygovephotography.blogspot.com

Couldn't leave out Amanda...

Click here click here click here

Introducing: Mr. Nedyah and Ms. Ymmas

Having fun at the expense of my children. Too bad I didn't have more/better makeup for a proper execution... but they are funny enough on their own! lol!

This is my honey.

though you wouldn't know I had one by reading my blog.
bad wife? ehhh... maybe.
but this guy doesn't like to have his picture taken.
he's not the only one.

fyi: i didn't take this picture. a photographer hired by my hubby's work did.

i suppose now would be a good time to blab about how awesome he is.
how much he likes to fix stuff himself.
how cute he is when he is asleep.
how shmart he is.
how he is always willing to help another out.
how much he loves his kids.
how much he loves me... umm wait.
not so sure about that...
4 day business trip to our motherland
and NO BERGER COOKIES FOR HIS HONEY????
hmmmfffpph.
:/

Today I am...

1. Letting my two youngest play in the backyard alone and get as dirty as they like.
2. Watching the Sunday Session of General Conference.
3. Going to find a bug guy to take care the little pests that have taken up residency in our home.
4. Work on Halloween Carnival posters.
5. Start picking pictures for Hayden's 4th Birthday video.
6. Wait patiently for a couple of packages to arrive, though they aren't expected until at least tomorrow.
7. Try to sneak in a nap sometime.
8. Totally freak my kids out by kissing each of them at least 30 times today.
9. Fold laundry (yawn.)
10. Clean whatever room I happen to be in at 11am.

Happy Birthday Sammie-Sue!

I can't tell you how much I love having our "Sammie-Sue" in our family. She truly was a surprise baby and I think it's fair to say that she's everyone's favorite in our little family. Her sweet little voice, the way she smiles, says she is sorry, hugs, kisses... ohh, I could go on and on and on... She totally melts us.

We kept it low key but dragged it out over 2 days. We did Bruster's again, with 2 little friends from church and then headed over to the splash pad at a nearby park.

Can I tell you that as much as I love Samantha I absolutely hate lovebugs. Cute name, yeah, yeah, yeah... worlds most annoying "harmless" bug.

seriously. they were EVERYWHERE!

So of course I took a ton of pictures of her birthday weekend.
Take a deep breath... here they come. :)
(just my favorites, of course)

someone tell this girl to stop growing!

Hope they stay friends forever

First Day of School

4th Grade

Uniforms

Running to the bus stop and waiting.

The uh-oh moment

So later on that afternoon, after naps and some Disney movie time
I went to give Hayden a hug and heard a little jingle.

Hmmm... what could that be?

I don't have any change that he could have found... hmm...

So I ask him, "Hey Hayden, what's that you got in your pocket?"

Then this look, this unmistakable look of guilt washed over his face
and I knew.

I reached into his pocket and found 6 shiny
WASHERS.

Yup.

Guess who was going BACK to Home Depot with his momma.

When we got there, I discretely asked to talk to
the largest most intimidating employee in their store.

They gave me the largest teddy bear of a man, lol.
But he did what I was hoping for and I think Hayden got it.

Hayden handed him the washers and told him that he took them.
The man said, "ohhh. that's not good. You won't do that again will you?"
Hayden said no and that he was sorry.
Then in his quietest voice with his big brown saucer eyes he said,
"Will you porgit (forgive) me?"
(or was it forget me... hmm, good question)

Hayden is NOT a shy boy. But he was timid and shy
and well, I think the word is contrite?

Anywho...

teaching moments in public places - gotta love 'em.

Watch out world. Here comes a rant!

Yesterday was one of those days where I said to myself, "Why. why.why. WHY???"

Every time I come home from grocery shopping with more than 1 kid in tow I vow to NEVER do it again. I say that I will shop at midnight at Walmart if I have to. And then, just a week or two later I find myself saying the exact same thing... in another parking lot... 'cause I'm pretty sure the employees at the last grocery store I went to are still talking about that time the crazy lady with three unruly children came in and (fill in the blank).

Yesterday was totally my fault. I should have gotten an earlier start and broke a big rule by taking them all there when they were hungry. Who knew picking up milk, bread, peanut butter and jam after 11:30am could cause so much drama?

But that's not all. You see, before I even got to the grocery store I had to make a 'quick stop' at Home Depot to pick up one thing. It should have taken a total of 5 minutes. But then my ATM card had expired so I had to call in my new card to have it activated ---right there at the register--with a touch screen phone--while holding Samantha--and yelling to Hayden to stop running in and out of the EXIT to Home Depot. And then as he's making another run for it I see out of the corner of my eye some crazy loon who is backing her car up into the loading lane and inches from the front door...

DEEP BREATHES....

There is more, much more. But I will save it for another post.

Sweet Sammie-Sue

A while back we entered Samantha into a photo contest with Bruster's Ice Cream via Facebook. She was a 2nd prize winner which means her momma got herself a Flip Video camera! Waaaahooo! We're taking lots of video with this sweet camera!

This is the first video we took with it.

Gotta love her!

I've decided...

if we ever move back to Arizona I'm getting one of these installed in our backyard. Absolutely mandatory. Except if the kiddo's are all grown up and too cool for it. But I don't think you can ever be too cool for *anything* in the Phoenix, Arizona area.

But don't worry or get all excited either. We're not moving any time soon. Pretty sure our house is now worth less than half what we owe on it. We're not going ANYWHERE.

It's been forever...

since I've posted anything.
I've got a bucket load of excuses and an equally-sized bucket load of stuff to share, report on, etc. Unfortunately I don't have a bucket load of time so
watch out.
I'm pretty much gonna barf it all out on you now.

Stuff that has happened:

Hayden took Baby Samantha into his closet
and chopped off her beautiful curly mullet,
as well as a chunk o' sweet blondeness off the top of her head.
I totally cried my eyes out.
And then in a split second, tossed Hayden into a chair
and buzzed his head in retaliation.
Cause that's how I spell fair.
_______________

We had family in town for a week
and Samantha's cousin Jonathan started calling Samantha
Sammie - Sue
Now Samantha calls herself Sammie-Sue all the time.
She says, "I'm Sammie-Sue!" in the sweetest little voice
you could ever imagine. It makes me smile.
_______________

Amanda has been practicing piano on and off
but now seems to be making some real progress.
She's tried to quit all together 2 times now,
but I hope her teacher and I can keep encouraging her
enough to keep on working on it. I think she
has a wonderful talent for music.
_______________

Hayden was invited by our next door neighbor to go
see the play, Little Red Riding Hood and had
a wonderful time. His favorite character was of course
The Wolf.

That's all for now!

Totally abandoned the blog

Blame it on my smartphone. I've totally neglected blogging... and I'm still sort of weirded out by the whole Moscow City blogstalker that keeps looking at the SAME pages on my blog over and over again ALL the time. Who are you, I say?

and the winner is...

Wait. Let me preface this by saying this was the least expensive of all the items listed in this post from earlier this month. I can totally rock the deal-getting when it comes to phones, cars, and other extremely overpriced items.

So without further adieu... may I present to you the lovely
DROID ERIS

yes. i love it. and so does Amanda.

My little heroes!

Introducing:

Super POWER diaper babe!


Super SPIDER MAN!

and
Laser Eyes FIRE Girl!

Birthday Presents

So my dear hubby was out of town on business for my birthday...boo-hoo. And I had to work the night shift on my birthday, which also coincidentally was First Friday*, so I had to be the latest I have EVER been to Girls Night... boo-double-hoo. But I totally scored tons of chocolate treats, some NOT-99 cent-SUAVE shampoo AND a Scentsy plug-in for my bathroom. Yeah baby! Plus one friend gifted me 'bout 2 hours of housecleaning/gab time. SCORE!

But don't tell my hubby that my birthday didn't stink 'cause he still thinks he owes me the one thing I have been coveting for nearly a year.

Behold,
The Droid
stop laughing... some girls want diamonds and dinners and mani-pedis...
I luv technology.

But alas my hubby's computer's motherboard had a hot flash and though I'd never call my husband a momma's boy, his motherboard is likely to come before my
EVERYTHING I COULD EVER WANT IN MY HAND AT THE SAME TIME**.

But then as I write, the A/C has been running pretty much non-stop.
I see rolls of insulation for the attic in my future.
It just makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside!
(errr... cold and fuzzy, maybe?)

anywho, I'm not really a betting woman but maybe my readers are:

So tell me, which do YOU think will come first?

1. DROID for me, me, me!
2. NEW COMPUTER for the hubby.
3. INSULATION for the attic

BONUS: any of the above plus the replacement camera lens
that has been on the "whenever we have extra cash" list for over a year now.


*on the first friday of every month me and my girlfriends get together at someone's house to eat ridiculous amounts of chocolate and other treats and talk till the cow's come home.

** obviously there are some exceptions. :)

Officially Old

Today I turned 36. I am now officially old. On most surveys and medical forms, etc. I will now have to check the next age group box... you know, the one that goes right on up to retirement age. Nothin' says your old like getting that thick letter from the AARP in the mail. I've been told I should be expecting that pretty soon. I'll contain my excitement.

MIA

We've all been a bit overworked and under the weather lately. I started a part-time job 5 nights a week and promptly got a sinus and ear infection. Samantha and Hayden both got nasty colds and Samantha trumped us all with asthma-like symptoms that has her on breathing treatments 3 times a day (yay!... NOT!).

Fortunately, we all seem to be working our way towards good health, slowly but surely.

In other news, last night was quite possibly the longest thunder and lightning storm I have ever experienced here in Florida. It was AMAZING. Like, wake up on the ceiling every 45 minutes AMAZING.

Also, considering taking my blog il-privato. Let me know via email if you want to be added to "the list". Thanks for understanding. It's not set in stone or anything yet - just want to feel free to share more without broadcasting to all the creeptastics out there, you know?

I wanna know...

What is your favorite craft blog?

You know, the one you absolutely could not go without reading
at least once a week?

Post it in my comments.
Go ahead, my blog doesn't bite.
You can even do some blatant advertising of your own craft blog,
I'm cool with that.

The chicken came first

Today Hayden called the kitchen what it is:
The kitchen.
Pronounced b.e.a.u.t.i.f.u.l.l.y.

That place where we cook
and Hayden drives matchbox cars
and steals treats out of the pantry
used to be emphatically called
the "CHICKEN".

it was annoying and cute at the same time.

I'm gonna miss it, I'm sure.

Samantha's so glad when daddy comes home!

wait for it,
wait for it...

You'd think that he was gone
for days,
even weeks,
but no.
Michael just got home from work
and Samantha is totally ecstatic.
When the garage door opens,
we can all hear it and everyone knows
that it's DA-DEEEEE!!!
She's totally a daddy's girl.

This is such a fun age!
She's sweet, a little naughty,
knows how to say she is sorry
in the most adorable-melt-my-heart way,
and boy is she ticklish!

sigh... one day, she'll be a teenager.

ugh.

lots of pictures to post BUT...

blogger is having issues uploading pictures... boooo.
I'll try again tomorrow!

:)

and the winner is...

Thanks everyone who entered my little apron giveaway!
The giveaway officially ended at 12 noon today and I'm excited to announce that

selected lucky #7.... SARA LYN to be the winner of a super cute Apron from CSN stores!

I'll be emailing ya
but in the meantime, I'll be jumping up and down
being super happy for you!!!

Congratulations Sara Lyn!

Job Interview

So I have a job interview tomorrow and could use some tips.
For one thing, I've always been a little perplexed about
business casual...
and watching The Office totally doesn't help clarify that for me!

I'm also sort of afraid of either talking too much or stuttering,
oh my gosh - STUTTERING!
I totally forgot that I do that in interviews!
Ughhhh! I haven't interviewed for a job in f.o.r.e.v.e.r.

Any tips?

BTW - tomorrow is also the last day to sign up for my giveaway.
So get on over there and check it out!

My very first giveaway!!!

I don't know about you, but the thought of dragging my kids around a bazillion stores to find that perfect gift for my nephew or looking at toddler beds with my daughter would be right up there with getting a root canal... with a baby in your lap (don't ask!). I LOVE online shopping - and I love that CSN stores have it all!

CSN Stores is an online retailer of home and office goods. They're based in Boston and have been growing since 2002. There are 200+ CSN sites in categories including Baby & Kids, Home Décor, and Outdoor Living. They've got everything from toddler beds to lamps to accent furniture available here, at reasonable prices, and all in one very searchable place.

I am happy to be hosting a giveaway sponsored by CSN Stores.

The lucky winner of this giveaway can choose one of these
Sha-weet Aprons!
(choose adult or child size)




or one of these adorable aprons for kids!
(available in duck, mushroom, fried egg or cheese)


*if an item is out of stock or has had a big price change when this giveaway ends
it will no longer be a choice.
I will work out these details if necessary with the winner and CSN.

So Here's How to Enter to Win -
1st Mandatory Entry - Go here and have a look around. Then come back here and leave me a comment about what other cool stuff you found!

Additional Entries - Do any of the following and then leave me a comment telling me what you did. Each comment is worth one entry so make sure and leave a separate comment for each one you do. Also make sure that I have a valid email address so I can contact you if you win! (if you email isn't in your profile, leave it in each comment!)
- Follow my blog (click the google follower button)
- Post about this giveaway on your blog and link back to this post
- Become a fan of CSN Stores on facebook.

Giveaway ends Wednesday, March 24th at Noon EST. All entries submitted after the closing time are void and will be deleted. This contest is open to residents of the U.S. and Canada. The winner will be selected with a random number generator and then announced on my blog and contacted via email. The winner will then have 48 hours to respond before a new winner is selected.

Disclosure and Legal Stuff: Opinions expressed in this post are strictly my own. I receive no monetary compensation for this post. If for some reason you didn't receive your winnings or if loss or damage has occurred to yourself or your property from participating in the giveaways, I cannot be held responsible.

BTW----giveaway!!!

I'll be doing my very first ever super cool giveaway soon!

I know you are all shrieking with excitement!

because a cyst in the brain isn't exciting enough...

now Samantha has RSV/bronchitis.

But you wouldn't know it now that she's had two back-to-back albuterol (breathing) treatments and a dose of steroids. She is way too happy and hungry to be sick.

Guess it's my turn to hunker down and get cabin fever with a kid --- you know, now that it's ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL outside.

sigh...

at least I can leave the windows open all day! :)

I have a headache...

in case you were wondering..

click here

The cable guy vs. The doctor

The cable guy wins... last time we had a problem with our cable box he was sitting out in his van 5 minutes before 9... he was scheduled to be here between 9 and 12. He waited there until it was exactly 9am. No joke. He was in my house a total of 15 minutes and in that time diagnosed the problem, removed the box, replaced it and set it up, and then verified that I was happy with the results (which I was). Then he asked if there were any other issues with the service... anything at all... 'cause he wanted to leave my house with a customer that was 100% satisfied. WOW. Not your stereotypical cable guy.

It's been 6 days since Michael had his MRI and nada, nothin', sorry we haven't received the report yet... grrrr! - People are eating weird foods, gaining ridiculous amounts of weight, NOT SLEEPING WELL and cleaning corners of the house that haven't been touched since we moved in. And I'm back to my old Farmville addiction too. Seriously, it's that bad.

answers, we want answers... so we'll know how much money we need to raise at the charity carwash to pay the hospital bill. Only my AZ buddies will get this ;)

today is the day...

that we will find out if it's a tumor or a failing gland in my honey bunches brain.

"Today" - We've got anywhere between 1 minute and maybe 10 hours till we find out.

The cable guy gave us a smaller window of time for when he would show up. sheesh.

I'm going with the school of thought that if it was something big, or urgent, or just plain bad, they would have called us sooner. For now, I'm gonna go with what a friend suggested it might be...
"an air bubble in his head that he just needs to fart out".

on an entirely more serious note...

on this dreary rainy day, spattered with joyous laughter from the kiddos
while they run through the dozen or so leaks from the playroom roof,
it is heavy on my mind, the looming news
that all is not well with my honey bunches of oats.
today, two possibilities.
tomorrow, an MRI.

right now, many silent prayers.



... and chocolate. lots of chocolate. 'cause in my experience, it cures everything.

tonight at the dinner table...

an intense conversation about Spiderman and Superman and Batman.

and then out of nowhere in the middle of singing the Spiderman song,

Hayden says, "mommy, mommy, wait...stop singing! I gotta tell you some-ting!"

"Spiderman doesn't got any boobies!"

me: "No?"

"Nope - he don't got none... and Superman? No boobies!
and Batman? Batman has boobies! {intense head bobbing}

me: really? Batman has boobies?

"No. Batman no have boobies... I just kiddin'."


I love this kid.

imagine my great joy...

when my daughter brought one of these home today.

{the hills are alive with the sound of screeeeeeching!}

oh motherhood.

All about Amanda.

I have to say, pictures of Amanda are few and far between lately. The girl has quite a social calendar, what with church activities, fake dates with her bff M. and lets not forget all the time she spends at school.



We hardly ever see her and when we do, she's doing homework or reading or playing some elaborate pretend-play with her dolls. She also enjoys playing teacher to Hayden and Samantha. She even gives them homework assignments.


She loves her brother and sister. There are times when they really annoy her and she just need to get away from them, but 2 minutes later she comes back and is hugging them and telling them that she loves them.

{i love this picture of my girls!}

Lately she has been preparing for the FCAT's (don't get me started...) or shall I say, stressing out about the test that could make her repeat 3rd grade if she doesn't pass. She has had some anxiety attacks and a trip to the doctor to try and work stuff out. This is a tough age and I know I am making tons of mistakes. sigh...

All about Hayden.

though I am certain this will totally upstage my
recent post about Samantha, the show must go on:

my sweet little Hayden...

my sweet little, mischievous, Hayden ...



a face to be feared...


"I'm a PRINCESS mommy!"
ummm... yeah. and now mommy is going to post it on her blog
and ruin any chance you might have for a political career
...
or girlfriend.


sumo wrestler wanna be?
perhaps a diaper thong?

{I saved the best for the tail-end of my post...ba hahaha!}