A day in the life...

The best friend claims I'm a good story teller. It probably has more to do with my dramatic nature than my writing abilities. Here's a story I thought I would share that is funny ONLY looking back because at the time...I was NOT laughing!

A couple of days ago, I had some work done on my big toe. It is now bandaged, throbbing and hard to walk on it. I have been forced to roll up my pants on the left side so the pants do not rub the toe. Put this all together and you can image me, one pant leg rolled up, with a big white banadaged toe. Got that image? Pretty right?

My 2 year old is an escape artist. He climbed out of his crib at an early age. He escaped playpens. And now, that he has figured out how to unlock doors, he escapes the house. Oh what fun!

Ok, so you have the image of me, representing the 90s version of LL COOL J with my pants roled up and an injured toe producing a minor limp. I am in the kitchen doing the dishes and I hear the lock click. Usually, I can catch him before he darts out the door...but not today. Today, my limp forces me to slow down and I barely catch him fleeting down the stairs to freedom. And this time, he had helped, the dog.

I run outside, and these two little creatures, one weighing 5 pounds, the other maybe 25, are running around like lightning...they are darting between my legs, running behind bushes, evading me at all costs to remain free birds. The 2 year old is running like he's hyped up on 100 pounds of chocolate, laughing hysterically...at me I think. I think I heard "NanaNana BooBoo" a few times. And the little shitzu puppy all of a sudden turned into underdog, able to leap tall buildings in one bounce.

I finally catch the 2 year old. I place him on my hip and he yells "NOOOOO!" like I'm taking him inside and he will never see the light of day again. But then his attitude quickly changed when he noticed that his sidekick was still free. He still had hope. He begins yelling "Run puppy" and laughing. At me, again!

Our outside dog, a loyal 8 year old weirmeraner, has pity on me and helps me wrangle the little tiny puppy. He blocks him in the corner of the flower bed and I finally grab him only to realize that since it rained last night and his legs are about 3 inches long, his entire underside is drenched and now, so am I.

So me (a soaked, tired, pained, LL Cool J impersonator), the 2 year old who quite enjoyed his brief escape to freedom and underdog have now all been cleaned, reprimanded & sent to our respective areas. Shew, what a day!

Oh, and did I forget to mention this all happened before lunch?? :)

As I get older...

As I get older, I've found that the people I hold dear in my life get closer to my heart and some people that I once thought were important fade away in the background.

As I get older, I have realized that time is precious and I don't want to waste a minute of it.

As I get older, I appreciate my parents & all they did for me growing up.

As I get older, the news actually matters to me.

As I get older, my bedtime comes earlier.

As I get older, my shorts get longer.

As I get older, my sons hold my heart a little bit tighter.

As I get older, friendships are more dear to me.

As I get older, I forget why I walked into a room & have to retrace my steps.

As I get older, my "rise & shine" gets earlier.

As I get older, my purpose becomes more clear.

And the older I get, the more I realize that life is all about how you react to it and what you do with what is placed before you. But more than anything, as I get older, I realize that sometimes, it really bites to get older. :)

7 Things

A fellow blogger/friend, Jessica Tucker "awarded" me the honor of posting 7 things about about myself. So here goes:

1. I love anything crafty...painting, drawing, using my Cricut. I've painted murals on walls, pictures for myself, family and friends. I've made cards, gifts. The only crafty thing I'm not good at but would like to be is sewing. Me & the sewing machine do not get along...but I will keep trying.

2. I love to cook. I try to cook something new each week and usually find recipes on AllRecipe.com or in one of the MANY cookbooks I own.

3. I love to dance...any chance I can. Whether it be in the shower, with the boys to the "hot dog dance" or just dancing in my seat when I'm driving. If I hear music, I dance. (Btw, there will be no pictures of this! ) ;)

4. My newest passion is photography. I got a D3000 for Christmas and have played with it a little bit but I can't wait to get out this spring and look through the lens.

5. I love to be outside...hiking, swimming, landscaping, playing with my boys, anything that will land me outside.

6. I am OCD, bad. My blinds have to be a certain height, I can't go to bed if the house isn't picked up, I straighten rugs, I compulsively wipe counters. And I've passed it down to my oldest. The other day he yelled from his room "Caleb is playing with all my toys and messing up my room!!" That was kind of a wake up call for me so I've tried over the last week to chill out and just let them play. Life is too short to worry about making a mess. :)

7. I play the piano, took lessons for 8 years actually. I love to play every chance I get. Feeling the keys, making music. But with 2 little ones, its hard to find the time but I'm working on making the time.

There ya go! Now I tag:

Emily C http://emily0305.blogspot.com/

Nisha K http://brooksmommy.blogspot.com/

My Boys

Thursday was a bittersweet day for me as a mother. Preschool registration! Really? My sweet little 3 year old, who is curled up beside me sucking his thumb, is going to school? His face was priceless. He was beyond excited when the day arrived to sign him up and a little disappointed when I explained that he wouldn't be staying at the little table with the little chairs but that we were just signing up and he would be back in a few months. Now he tells everyone who asks "I'm not going to school yet...I just signed up." I think he's still convincing himself. :)

And this Wednesday, he is turning 4 years old and getting taller by the day. His 4T pants are quickly becoming high-waters and 4/6 from the "big boy" section no longer swallow him whole. I love that he's growing and he's healthy but man, when other mom's tell you that times flies, they aren't kidding!! Time literally flies and I feel like I've blinked.

And then there was the little one. I am exhausted just thinking about typing up all the things he has gotten into, just today. He literally has me running after him, saying no, stop that, don't do that, put that down, 24/7. Ok, I'm exaggerating, because he does sleep so it's more like 14/7. :) But when I'm not chasing him or telling him to not drop the puppy on his head, that boy makes me smile! His laugh is infectious. His smile is contagious. He just has a way about him that can light up a room, that turns heads, that puts an instant smile on your face which makes discipline hard at times. How do you scold someone who is reaching for you, puckering up and saying "sowwy mommy?" He has me wrapped around his little chubby finger and he knows. :)

And speaking of puppies, the oldest got an early birthday present. Meet Murphy, our 8 week old Shih-Tzu puppy. Isn't he adorable?! He's done really well so far and the boys love him. We are working on potty training this week and teaching the little one not to pick him up by his HEAD! :)

Things You Might Not Know About Me

I started this particular blog and it soon became a rambling mess. Here's the condensed version.

Things you might now know about me...and yes, I know I'm odd and probably a little OCD. :)

1. At supper, I drink my Dr. Pepper or Tea out of a wine glass. Makes me feel fancy! :P
2. I can NOT sleep with socks on, even in the dead of winter.
3. I'm not a huge chocolate fan (which I think makes me lose several "female" points) unless peanut butter is attached (i.e. Reese's PB Cups)
4. Pet Peeves: people who don't reply to calls/texts/emails, LAZINESS, rude public employees (if you hate your job THAT much, quit!)
5. I love any movie/book about vampires or witches. (Nothing to do with religion, I just love the topic & find it interesting and entertaining).
6. I don't like my blinds raised all the way to the top of the window...they have to be raised half way, completely level in the middle.
7. I have such a tender heart that the littlest things make me cry which is why shows like Extreme Home MakeOver are banned from my house...I literally go into a sobbing fit. It's ridiculous! :)
8. I can't sleept without a fan, preferably blowing in my face.
9. Since May 2010, I've lost 16 pounds. (Slow & steady wins the race, right??)
10. I LOVE snack food (chips, cookies, little debbies, etc) and that's why I do NOT buy any of that stuff. I will literally eat an entire bag/pkg at a time.
11. One of my favorite drinks is a glass of half 7-UP/Sprite and half Welch's Grape Juice. Try it!

Just a few little silly things about me. What about you? Pet Peeves? Weird things you can't live without?

Valentine's Bunco Cards

I play Bunco with a great group of girls the first Friday night of every month. We have such a great time & it's just a chance for all of us to get away from our jobs, our families, our kids, our husbands, our "lives" and just chill out with the girls. We laugh, we roll some dice & best of all, we eat!! :)

For February, I decided to spice things up a bit and make our bunco score sheets a little more festive. Check them out! :)

I just used the rounded edge square on the George Cricut Catridge, size 5 I think. Then I glued the score sheet in the center and glued a button on the top to finish it off. I started to tie tulle through a few of them but it was going to get in the way of keeping score so I left that off of the rest of them.

Happy Birthday to my hubby!

February 2 was the hubby's birthday. One of the kiddos was sick so I couldn't get out and buy real flowers like I had intended. So I MADE him a bouquet of flowers instead. I used the George Cricut cartridge flowers, sizes 2 and 2 1/2 in a blue print and then shadowed those sizes with a basic color. Then I glued various colored buttons in the center. I then glued the flowers onto wooden sticks, in varying lengths. Turned out pretty cute if I do say so myself. :)

I also used one of the flowers to make him a card. He loved it!!! :)