Movies with the fam.....never again!

Well at least not for a very long time. A few months back when they were hyping up the movie and selling the first 2 Toy Story's, I got the package deal (with stellar coupons) and inside were coupons for free tickets. With movie tickets costing the amount that they do now, that made my day. We planned on taking the kids once it came out. 2 child tickets shouldn't be so bad right?

Wrong, we had to pay for my 1 year old. $6 freaking dollars. But let's not get carried away. You can't put a price on quality family time, right? We missed the early movie (4:35) so we ended up with the 7:40 showing (sleepy time for little people) and still ended up in the front. I got popcorn and a large drink and we settled in for an enjoyable time. First gripe, there should not be 20 min of previews in the beginning of a child's movie. Under the age of 5, they don't understand or care. They just want to see the movie already. Plus, that's 20 min of 30 min of time my 1 year old had in her to sit, eat popcorn and pretend that she would stay that way the whole movie.

Finally, it starts. All is well, I'm proud that my kids are almost quietly stuffing their faces and paying some attention to the screen. Soon the popcorn and juice gets old for the diva and she starts to move around a little too much for the chair which she is already in danger of falling through, LOL. Nothing is appeasing her.....I can't let her get loud......she doesn't want popcorn....think mommy think, what do we do? Right, pass her down to daddy. She waddles down a chair and sits for all of 5 minutes before she starts whining. Aw shucks, the back up pacifier is not in the bag, I think I saw it on the couch earlier today. Dang it, plan C, candy. Not the best choice but I know it'll keep her quiet. Now big brother has decided that all the popcorn is finished and he needs to go throw the bucket and napkins away. Um no dude, we just put it on the floor until the movie is over. "But I just want to get up for a minute," oh my, what have we gotten ourselves into. Candy for big brother too. Whew, this buys us about 10-15 min before diva loses her first piece and mommy must indulge some more. But now she wants to walk and eat......is the movie over already? She's sticking her head in between the seats talking to people and totally not concerned about the screen.

So for the last 45 min, it was just a toss up between sitting, walking, talking, minimal whining (thankfully) and the movie finally ended. Whew! I think it was good. I do remember seeing some parts. Definitely getting it when it comes out on dvd and definitely leaving the visits out to the movie theater with the whole family for a few years down the line. Maybe preteen years, LOL.

The toothbrushes are downstairs

Yep, they are. In the guest bathroom of all places. And now that you're wondering what I'm talking about....I'll indulge. So I had this slight problem. We spend most of our time as a family downstairs. The kids do everything down here except sleep and take a bath. Most of the time, they even get dressed downstairs both in the morning and evening. So when it was time to brush teeth, the toothbrushes were upstairs. Instead of them brushing twice a day, it was usually just once. Not good at all if you're trying to instill good dental practices. They had no problem brushing when it was time, but mom was just lazy. *shame*

I follow several mom blogs and one that I read recently was talking about how hard it was for her to keep up with laundry because she hated the task of folding her 5 boys clothes and them putting them away....upstairs. She and her husband decided that since the laundry room was connected to their closet and it was a huge closet, they would move their kids dressers downstairs into the closet and hang up their clothes there. Therefore making the whole process easy and never having to worry about piles of clothes waiting for attention because they could be put up as soon as they were cleaned. That got me to thinking about teeth brushing. What if I moved the toothbrushes downstairs????? Hmmm....yep. I decided to try it and it's working. Yay! Good clean teeth at least twice a day. Of course since they are in the guest bathroom I have to be ready in case we have some drop ins but that's no prob. Grab and throw in our bathroom and we're good to go.

In other news, it's a 4 day wknd. Woohoo! I love these. 4 days of no work. So far, not sure what we're going to do for the 4th of July but I'm pretty sure we'll grill before the weekend is out. The weather has been nice here for the past few days since we've had some light showers so it makes being outside actually bearable. I'm hoping we can chill with some friends and neighbors but we'll have to see.

Another great weekend over!

Well, it's Sunday night and time to go to bed. Unfortunately, I'm not looking forward to Monday but I am looking forward to Thursday because that starts our 4 day weekend for the 4th! Woohoo. Then just two more weeks and the ceremony will be over and my plate will be clear from this craziness!

I did get alot done this weekend which was the goal. My last two Friday's I had been coming home for lunch with this unknown energy source and making waves in cleaning up the house. It just doesn't get done during the week. But this past Friday, I laid on the couch for over an hour with the intentions of getting some rest and them jumping up. Yeah.....that so didn't happen. And once I actually got up, I lingered on the computer for over an hour as if I didn't have a job to get back to. I got hubs to help which was a whole other story for another day and all of the bathroooms got cleaned, the floors swept and mopped, and a bunch of other stuff that was just behind. Now if I would just stop ignoring the overflowing pile of laundry in our room. Maybe this weekend....who knows?

However, baby #3 is doing well! For the time being, I'm calling him he! We officially find out on the 16th of July. Another reason to miss Germany, no ultrasounds. I went for my monthly checkup this week and I won't say it was a waste of time...but it was. The midwife felt my uterus and that was all. I could've done that at the house. And I don't go back for another 6 weeks. I get a more cozy feeling with my midwife that I'm paying but maybe that's how it goes. I really am spoiled from the other two so I know the ropes but I still felt that my doctor actually gave me a good 20 to 30 min of patient time every time I went in. In the end though, I feel good, I know little man's good 'cause he's moving around and letting me know so all is well!

On that note, I'm off to do some reading and maybe some sleep. Hubs is playing the tv and talking loud. I gotta teach these guys how to whisper, LOL!

On being a mom...

"Oh that God would give every mother a vision of the glory and splendor of the work that is given to her when a babe is placed in her bosom to be nursed and trained! Could she have but one glimpse in to the future of that life as it reaches on into eternity; could she look into its soul to see its possibilities; could she be made to understand her own personal responsibility for the training of this child, for the development of its life, and for its destiny,--she would see that in all God's world there is no other work so noble and so worthy of her best powers, and she would commit to no others hands the sacred and holy trust given to her." — J.R. Miller

All baby talk!

Well it's been over a month since I last blogged. Where does the time go?

But let's talk baby. So I'm approximately 12 or 13 weeks now. Depends on what online calendar you look at, lol. First trimester done, check. First appointment done, still pending. I'm spoiled. I admit it. In Germany, as soon as you learned you were pregnant and the stick turned pink, at 5 or 6 weeks you were in for your first appointment. It seems they do things a little different here in the states. And really different here in El Paso.

I went in about a month ago to set up my first appointment where I learned that I would first have to go through an orientation and then they would book me. *sigh* This is so not my first child so please tell me why I have to sit through a 2 hour event where you talk to me about everything baby. How about if I have questions, I'll ask you. Well the day has finally come, my orientation is tomorrow. I'm thinking since it's Friday then my appt SHOULD be sometime next week, I'm not holding my breath.

Otherwise, I'm feeling healthy. Of course the exhaustion is unbelievable at times. I really don't remember being this tired the first two times around but then again, I wasn't chasing two kids around either. There are some nights when I climb into bed and before hubs can even say good night, I'm out. Done until the alarm sounds again.

For the first time in life ever, I got a migraine this week. I wouldn't wish that on anyone. Not having had one before, especially while pregnant, I was a bit scared at first and thought that maybe my blood pressure needed to be checked but I talked with my midwife and she walked me through it. I ended up popping the maximum dose of Extra Strength Tylenol and drinking as much caffeine as I could manage. Large double shots of espressos and a very large Mountain Dew. No wonder I wasn't able to sleep Tuesday night. Tuesday I could hardly move, Wednesday I was on the road to recovery. Today, I'm good. Still hurts when I cough and for some reason, I'm having to do alot of that but otherwise, I'm good. Thank the Lord! I'm hoping to never have to experience that again.

And speaking of midwives, I now have one on hire. This will be the first pregnancy I'm having to pay for out of pocket ($2400) but its worth the cost for me. I've not been too happy with the care I've received with the hospital here yet. I'm not going to completely make up my mind to write them off until after the orientation and first appt. Give me a couple of weeks for that update.

But overall, all is well in the world of baby! Stay tuned for more.

Accomplished

Well today was a good day! After the week I had, I needed a day like today to bring me back to the world. In fact, I didn't realize how out of it I was until today when I woke up not tired and out of my fog. However, it was a shocker that my house was in shambles. I guess I did notice it during the week but I really did not feel well all this week and daily my only thought was make it until you can lay down and go to sleep.

I was up early and did grocery shopping at 7. It is an Army pay day weekend so I had to get in early otherwise, it would've been a jungle in there. Got back around 830 and the family was still in bed. WHAT?! But they soon got up and while I unpacked groceries, I fed the kids whatever was near. It is so good to have food back in the house. We were really, really low on supplies. I'm surprised we made it this week, lol! The refrigerator was in bad shape so I cleaned it out all the while making space for the new stuff. I cut up all the fruit and got it ready for the week. Something I never do on the first day! I'm so proud of myself. Got the kitchen back in order and life was feeling better already.

Didn't finish until around 11 which was much later than I wanted to leave the house but I had to go and get my eyebrows threaded and needed to run to Target to get some things on sale before it ended today. I took the kids! 8-O Is that a good surprised face? It really wasn't horrible but it was first nap time for baby girl so she was a bit irritable. Bug was just bored so he just asked alot of questions and wanted to eat all of the snacks I brought along. And I had to wait 30 min to get through the line at the mall to get my eyes done. I so wanted to leave but my brows were out of control and I didn't know when was the next time I would be able to come through. Though I love the mall, I only go about once a month and that's pushing it. But we made it and back to the car with only a slight meltdown. One errand down, one to go.

Baby girl fell asleep on the way to Target, ugh. I wanted to drop her home but I knew that it would be nonsense to go all the way there and then come back out here. So we pushed through. I had my list made out and got in and out in 30 min. Victory! She lost it on the way home but that was okay, I had gotten everything we needed for the next two weeks.

Got home, put her immediately in the bed, downloaded the newly purchased items and put them up. Then proceeded to get ready for GNO (girls night out). Showered and took a very short nap which was inundated with thoughts of sex so I guess I need some, lol. Dressed and out we went. I have to say, I was very snazzy. Visited a new restaurant called Crave, definitely a date night joint! It was delish. I can't wait to eat the leftovers. Now it's time to say goodbye...I probably won't remember my head hitting the pillow but it was definitely a good day!

Time flies!

Wow, I can't believe it's been 2 weeks since I've posted. What have I been doing? LOL, alot can be said for that. Well for one, I now know why I was so tired when I wrote that last post. The day after, I found out I am PREGNANT! Yes, having another baby. One year after my 2nd one.

We were shocked! I mean really shocked. With the previous two, we were planning. I was temping, counting days to ovulation, looking at cervical mucous, etc. The whole kit and kaboodle. When I tested before, I knew the stick would turn pink just based on what my body had been telling me. This time around, I wasn't even paying attention to my body. We weren't trying. I wasn't on any BC but we were using condoms. I knew that the week after my cycle, we were good. Usually about half way through the 2nd week we would wrap things up until the next week after. It had been working for a year now so I don't know what happened. Maybe hubs had some super sperm that stayed alive for a few days or I ovulated early. Whatever, it was not what we were planning.

We're happy now, we just weren't prepared. I'm turning 3o this July and I was so excited about being able to have a big shindig and wear a fabulous dress or outfit and just have a whole weekend to celebrate the beginning of my next decade! NOPE, not gonna happen now. I mean I'm happy about it but I'm also kinda bummed. We were really going to start trying this winter only because that's what we've always done. I'm used to having spring/summer babies. I'm still bugging that I'm going to have some winter kids. And yes, I did pluralize kids because I was praying that my husband would change his mind about us having more kids (he said we were done with two) and I also was asking for 2 more (boy & girl) so I could have 2 of each. So since I was surprised about this pregnancy and his mind was changed for him, I shan't be surprised about twins! *We'll see*

Anyhoo, the story goes I was playing last Wednesday morning with the guys in our weekly football game. Not doing too bad but not at all thrilled about being out there. During the game, I'm noticing that I have a little heartburn/indigestion going on so I'm thinking of what could have caused this. I didn't have anything spicy the night before or eat too late so what could be causing this. Then I thought, shoot, that's the first symptom I had with the other two. Panic now begins to set in. I cannot be pregnant, can I? I'm counting back and then realize that my period should've been here 2 weeks ago. I'm not regular but it shouldn't have taken this long to come. I have been extremely tired and out of sorts but I was just thinking that I needed a break. I remembered that I had a dollar store test in the cabinet and decide to just test to east my mind because I just know that my period should be here at any time.

I get home and go straight to take a shower. Well run the water so I can open the box without questions from hubs just in case he's listening, lol. I sit down, breathe deep and pee. Before I can even finish peeing and put the test down to simmer, the line is PINK! You've got to be kidding me. I'm breathing fast, I'm sweating and it's not even hot, I'm shaking. What in the world is hubs going to say? I quickly jump in the shower to give myself some time to think. How did this happen? What day did I calculate wrong? Are we ready for another one? I'll definitely have to quit my job now. Are we going to stay in El Paso? 20 questions are running through my head. After about 15 min of thinking, I decide to finally wash and get out. No use in running, it's gotta be tackled.

I get dressed and then walk out. Everyone is up and eating and I pass hubs the test. I have my hand closed and he gives me the fist bump. I say nope, open up. He questions it, lol, as if he's never seen one before. I reassure him, it's as real as they come! He flounders on the floor for a minute and then for the next 45 min we try to grasp the big picture. I'm not even thinking about work. Needless to say, we are in a fog all day!

So a week later, it has all sunk in. I'm feeling great! No issues. A little nausea if I'm not eating on time and I lose consciousness every night when my head hits the pillow. We've told our families and I guess the 3rd pregnancy is just not as exciting, lol. I mean they were happy but there were not a lot of questions this time around. We will have to purchase a vehicle. The 4runner will not hold 3 car seats across. I'm almost tempted to give up the mini-van fight but hubs is against it and I'll take a Tahoe (if we can get it for a good price!). Don't know where that cash will come from but we don't want to incur a car note because we haven't had one in almost 2 years. You can get used to that freedom really quickly. All in all, I'm about to be the mother of a small tribe, lol. I've always wanted to be a wife and mom but I really have to let go of my day job. I cannot do all of these jobs well and at 100% because it's just too much to ask of one person. My desire is to stay at home at least until the kids all get into school. I still want to finish my Master's before my 7 year time limit is up. Choices, choices, choices...more to come.

Wonder Woman!

Well today has been one of my Wonder Woman days! These are days when out of nowhere, I get an extra boost of energy and I just start doing mass amount of chores or jobs around the house that have been on the back burner usually too long!

Last night I was so exhausted that I fell asleep without even knowing it. I don't even remember hubs coming to bed or turning out the lights or anything. That's exhaustion right there! When the alarm went off this morning, I didn't hop out of bed but I didn't linger too long. Decent start to the day. I quickly dressed and then got the bright idea that baby girl's new clothes should be washed. We bought alot of clothes so that job by itself took 10 min to take off all the tags and hangars and put everything in the wash.

Left the house and raced to formation. Got there on time with a minute to spare (whew) and decided that I would run the long route. Doh! LOL, I don't know where I got the motivation to that but I did and to get outside the routine, I did it backwards. Good for scenery, bad for not being sure of the route backwards. On the last half mile stretch, I passed the street I was supposed to turn on and ended up adding another quarter mile. Needless to say, I was very tired by the time I got to the truck. My goal was to be out of there by 720 but it ended up being about 10 min later. Great workout though!

Got back home and didn't even pass the laundry room before two loads of clothes were folded, one load in the dryer and another one in the wash. Put most of that laundry up, helped the kids get dressed, took a shower and got dressed, grabbed a quick breakfast and headed out the door, a little late, but at least it was still 9 something, lol!

Sat for 2 hours at work hardly thinking about work. That should not be so. I have a few things to do but motivation is seriously lacking lately.

Back home for lunch and I wash and fold two more loads of clothes. Sorted 4 other loads that will be done between today and tomorrow. I made yeast rolls for dinner, just need to pop them in the oven. And I prepped 2/3 of dinner and set the timer for the potatoes to start cooking and hopefully be halfway done before I make it home.

Tasks for tonight: finish washing and putting up the kids clothes, make sure all of my clothes are put up and away, sort the boxes for Goodwill and put them in the truck, package items for mail, and try to make it into bed no later than 1030.

Ready...break!

4 day weekend

The Army so didn't give us a 4 day weekend this month! I was so bummed when I found that out this week at work. I was looking forward to it and thought for sure it would be during the time when the school kids had their Spring Break. Nope, spring break came and went and there was no extra days this month. Ugh! Don't they know that I get my life together on 4 days. That's when I do the deep house cleaning. Get my menu, grocery list, and shopping done. That's when I relax and put my feet up for just a split second to get my second wind for the rest of the month. *sigh*

I'm pushing forward nonetheless. We're halfway done. March is almost over!

Baby girl turns #1 on Tuesday. CANNOT believe it has been a whole year. Wow! Where did the time go?

I'm off, much to do before it's time to close my eyes!

Procrastination

Well though my title says procrastination, I really didn't procrastinate to wash clothes tonight. It's going on 2130 but I'm in the middle of trying to get 3 loads washed and dried before I hit the sack. We ran out of detergent a few days ago and I didn't have the chance to get over to Sam's to get a resupply before this afternoon. I hate when the kids start the week with nothing clean to wear so I'm at least getting their things washed and ready. I won't be able to put them up tonight 'cause they're sleep already but they'll be folded and ready to go in drawers and closets tomorrow. Maybe I'll get a chance to put them up during lunch...

This was a fun weekend though. Short but fun. Yesterday was long and busy. It started out completely perfect when my kids did not wake me up but let me sleep in until a whopping 0900. I was flabbergasted. I mean, I haven't slept in that late since....I seriously can't remember. In fact, I woke up at 7 and looked up at the clock and though to myself, Bug will be up and calling in just a few. I'll just lay here until he does. Next thing you know, it's 8 something. I keep laying there 'cause I'm surprised and tired all at the same time. I actually got up and went to check on them to see if they were okay. They must have both gotten the same word from the Lord because they were up but just chilling in their rooms. WOW! Needless to say, they made mommy very happy and started off my day well. We had a wonderful breakfast of daddy's pancakes and then went outside in the very warm weather we're starting to experience here in El Paso. There was a garden show at noon so we walked down the street to be a part of the community. Came back home, nap time (woohoo). I jetted over to Target to pick up a few items and then back home to get ready for a birthday party.

Now about this party, it was at Chuck E. Cheese. Yay! NOT! Bug had been wanting to go to Chuck E. Cheese for weeks now. He saw the commercial on tv (dang, regular Nick and it's commercials) and asked to go every time we passed by it on the way home from church. Of course I was thinking he probably wouldn't like it just 'cause it's loud and noisy and those puppets freak out the bravest of kids. However, since he was invited to the party, we'd go and support and see just how well he would do. HE LOVED IT! Ohmygoodness, you talking about sensory overload. First of all, it was crowded as all get out. I know they were probably over the fire code with how many people were crammed in that building. The music was loud. The lights were flashing, it was just too much. He wanted to try and do everything. Baby girl quickly accessed that it was mayhem and foolishness and let us know the whole time, she was ready to go but I wanted him to get his full. So we rode, banged, flipped, rolled, slid and every other game they had to offer until we were out of tokens and us parents were out of energy. We have declared that we will never go again. I know we can't say never but you better believe, it will be a VERY LONG time before we grace Chuck's door again. And may I add, the prices are outrageous!

Sunday started off a little crazy just because time changes do that to you! Especially springing forward. I got us up and out on time but when we got back, it was a quick sandwich and slumber for everyone. That was one good nap! Bug and I jetted over to Sam's to pick up necessities and then over to the PX. All of a sudden this weekend hubs decides that all of his shoes are too small and that he can only wear his Timbs. Um, not gonna happen. The Timbs are cute but it's getting really hot around here and Timbs aren't really made for running and jumping which he will be doing alot of since they go outside daily now. So picked up a couple of pairs for him and baby girl. Now I just have to find a nice pair of sandals, probably the Stride Rite's and we'll be good at least until fall.

Well, it's officially 10 and the 2nd load is drying. Should be almost done and the 3rd and last can go in. I'm thinking that I might not be able to see that one all the way through. I'll have to catch it on the flip side 'cause I need to go and fold these two loads and two other loads from 2 weeks ago. Yeah, we won't talk about that. Until later, ciao!

Fear and doubt

Those two words are almost tangible. I just started out on a new business adventure. I'm selling Mary Kay cosmetics. I've been using them off and on for about 10 years. I've only been using them off and on because I'm really cheap. That's another blog for another day. But looking at a list of comparison of products of MK to other brands, MK runs on the cheaper side. Go figure! Should've done my homework a long time ago.

Back to the topic at hand, I've been wanting to get outside of my box (the Army) now for years. I need something different. I need the job where I'm able to work from home and still do the wife and mommy thing without worry about long hours and deployments to foreign countries. I want to be able to bring in some income but my main concern is being able to take care of my family. Currently working on my master's but for any of you that have done that, not so easy with a full time job, a home to take care of, church activities and whatever life gives you at the moment. I definitely want to quit something before taking more classes and motherhood is out of the question so it would have to be my job.

Sooo....at the urging of a friend I made recently, I started looking into MK. Women love to look good. If our hair is done and we have our face on point, we can be down in the dumps on the inside but feel like a million bucks on the outside which usually raises our spirits. As a counselor, my goal in life is continually helping others find the positive in any situation and always striving to look and feel their best. MK fits right in there. I think.

I've never been able to sell water on a hot day so seeing myself as a sales person of anything has always been something I couldn't picutre. My take on life is, if I offer you something and you want it, you'll take it. If you don't, you won't. Why should I try to convince or persuade you of it? Not that I've never persuaded someone to do something I wanted them to do, I'm just not good at it. I'm not pushy, not aggressive. Very chilled and laid back. I like to make friends, not enemies. This is where the fear and doubt come in. Will I be able to really sell this product? I mean, it is something I like and enjoy and it does do what it claims to do but will I be able to make it do what it do?

Questions, questions, questions. If anything, this whole situation is making me look outside my very safe and secure box. I'm giving it a full year. I've ordered my first supply of inventory and it'll be here sometime next week. I've gotten my marching orders about how to recruit my first few customers and I'm on my way. My goals and aspirations are not clear cut yet. I'm not looking to be driving a Pink Cadillac next year but right now, I just want to make it through my first couple of parties. I do want to learn about business and with future endeavors for us to start our own school, I'm hpoing that'll give me some insight about what we need to put in place to be in the right place when it's time. We'll just have to see.

Great weekend!

This was a great weekend! I mean Friday was a long day but I got alot of stuff done. A very boring class, 4 stores for shopping, a little bit of work(LOL), some cleaning and straightening up. By the time I got into bed, my head hit the pillow and it was lights out.

But Saturday was totally cool! Matt had a soccer game. I can only shake my head at that. 3 & 4 year olds playing soccer, or occasionally kicking the ball as they do, is hilarious. Their attention spans are the size of gnats. They kick the ball, it goes away, someone moves in front and they quickly forget what they were doing. I mean we had kids in the net, rolling around in the grass, running back and forth to the bench. We have 6 games left and I'm really ready for it to be over already. I'll think twice about volunteering again to coach.

I had to leave the game right after half time because I was hosting a Pampered Chef party. I love the stuff! I love cooking and cool gadgets for the kitchen just makes cooking easier and more enjoyable. I invited around 20 or so people and 13 ended up coming. I was so surprised and thrilled! Met some pretty cool ladies and hopefully I'm building my friends list in the ELP area! I still haven't found my contacts for babysitting. I have some events coming up at the end of the month so I need to work on those ASAP. I don't want to miss out 'cause I have no one to watch the kids but of course you want someone reliable and not crazy.

I was so inspired by the cooking show though that I came up with a quick and easy dinner for the fam, grilled chicken panini sandwiches (which we had again for dinner today) and then I ended up making cinnamon rolls. Never done any baking of this type before where I had to actually deal with yeast and punching dough but I had all the ingredients on hand plus my new handy, dandy KitchenAid mixer so I had no more excuses. They were a success! Hubs is a Cinnabon fanatic and he said they were actually on point enough where he wouldn't have to go and get his fill so often. I took that as a great complement and know that I can only go up from here, woohoo. My next feat, bread. I just ordered a loaf pan so as soon as it gets here, I'll whip up a loaf and we'll how it goes down. How cool would it be if I started making our bread? Ha!

Church was awesome today! A very good Word. If you're having trouble seeing through your situation and not able to envision the end, stop looking laterally and start looking from God's point (place) of view! He sees from above and is continually moving things around for our good. We just have to make it to the "The End." Everything comes to an end at some point, it's just pressing through to that point. Wow!

Ugh, in the middle of this post we hear baby girl yell out for help. She had thrown up everything it looks like she ate today. Poor thing! I hate when my babies are sick. She woke up fine this morning but after church when we got home, she started acting clingy and real finicky. I thought she was just in one of her moods but she actually wasn't feeling well. We've been talking about taking down the pack n play which has been in our room acting as a temporary clothes hanger for the past 2 months, tonight it will be her bed. She's not running a fever but has thrown up again so I'm keeping a towel underneath her and have some backup pajamas just in case. I'll call it in the morning. Hopefully it's a 24 hour thing and is quickly fading but I will shun work if need be.

And this ends my weekend. I seriously need one more day. I was so busy that I didn't have time to really rest. It was a good busy but at the same time, I am so not ready to go back to work in the morning. I am really looking forward to the day where I can work from home and not have to wake up before the crack dawn if it's not my choice. I know my future holds incredible opportunities and that God has great things in store for us but sometimes the waiting is hard. I want it all right now! Courtesy of the microwave generation I've grown up in. I'm excited though and just hopefully working on what I need to be doing in order to be where I need to be to get what I need to get when I need to get it. I like that sentence. It's now 10 min to 11 and baby girl has thrown up another 2 times so I'm off to try and get some rest. We'll see how it goes!

Thankful Thursday!

This morning, I actually loved my job and was proud to be in the Army! Now I have to admit, I don't have many of these days. I'm not really the patriotic type and on any given day, the Army is just a job that pays my bills. But this morning, it was a bit more.

What made it all different? We went running. Ha! I know you're saying that don't you guys go running everyday? Yeah, we do. Now I don't run everyday 'cause my bones are not the way they used to be and running everyday would be very detrimental to my health but at least 2 or 3 times a week is a necessity to make sure that I'm staying fit, trim, and ready for the PT test.

Now back to this run...it was in honor of the Buffalo Soldiers for Black History month. Short, jaunt down the road, around the Buffalo Soldier memorial and back again. Maybe 3 miles...I know it wasn't longer than that. But the whole post was involved. Every Soldier was required to be here at this run to participate. I'm talking about 5,000 Soldiers easy. It may have been closer to 7,500, it was a whole lot of us. All of us in were in the same uniform (shorts and jacket) all experiencing the cold together, lol. Every unit had their colors out in front and some even had their mascots. There were even a few loved ones along for the run! True esprit de corps!

The cannons started us off and since there were so many of us it took almost 10 min before my unit even started moving from our spot. Of course with any unit run and with this many people you sprint to catch up and then quickly come to a halt as you run up on the people in front of you. There were several times that the guy in front of me was about to be crushed, lol. Seeing all the units running by and hearing the all the cadence being called was inspiring. Everyone was in their best form, from the 2 star down to the lowest private, we were all out there being all that we could be. Rather by choice or not, you could not be out there and not feel that you weren't part of something bigger. That your comrade running next to you would help you at all costs. The Sergeants were all the way live, yelling at those falling out and pushing us all to greatness! Just what NCO's do best!

All in all, I kept up. That was one thing that I was worried about. I've never been a great runner. In 10 years, I can count on 1 hand the number of unit runs I've been able to run and keep up with the whole group. This time around I was surrounded by the guys and I felt I had to prove that I could do it. I mean you can't have the captain running and fall out, not motivating to the kids at all. So the sprint and slow down affect really helped me up. It gave me a chance to jog in place and catch my breath for the next length. Then one of the females fell out and after they yelled her back into the group (literally), I felt like I should push it out to motivate her to keep up and not fall any further behind. It worked and next thing you know, we were at the end and were walking to cool down. Woohoo!

Since I'm on the end of my Army career, I'm looking for these moments to remember because this will always be a part of me! I know I'll miss days like this but at the same time, I think the trade off will give me much more fulfillment in the long run.

I'm behind...

First, I need to make up my mind about my font and it's size. I just perused through the archives and saw that I have like 4 different things going on. I think I'll try Georgia in normal. We'll see!

In other news, it's been 2 weeks since I've blogged. Gotta do better. Things are to be different in 2010! But life has been great since then. Work hasn't picked up much which is kind of sad but I'm hoping in the next month I should be doing more. I want to learn the job and hopefully be able to get my office in order so that things are running smoothly before July when we set up.

It's the last week in February and I've only had to make 2 other very small trips to the store in my quest to shop only once a month. Great for the wallet but I'm having to make a trip tomorrow. Gotta get some essentials, milk, eggs, cheese, etc. But we are doing so much better. We've also only eaten out 3 times I think. It's taken lots of discipline to stick with the menu and not cave in to eating out. And there was one day that I think we just ended up eating PB&J. Bug's favorite much to his dad's dismay, lol. I haven't tallied up my total yet but I'm praying it's still under $400.

In other news, me and the kids are going to a playdate tomorrow! I am so excited! Why you may ask? It's giving me a chance to make some mommy friends and a way to make connections to find out about stuff in the El Paso community. I need a baby sitter, a maid, a fun place to carry the kids, the best shopping stores and I can find out all of this from my new mommy friends. I'm still the shy in the box type of girl and making friends is hard for me. Most people say that they don't believe that about me but I am really working on getting outside of my comfort limits and talking to people. Once I know you, I'm good but actually saying hello is the hardest part for me. I guess the first solution is admitting the problem.

And the last thought for today...I'm having a Pampered Chef party next week. Woohoo, another way to make friends and meet my neighbors! Well I haven't actually sent out invites yet but I'm hoping to work up the nerve to get out and actually invite them. All in hope of learning to make myself the consummate entrepreneur when I start selling Mary Kay. Yep, cosmetics. Not my life long goal but I like makeup and looking good especially since I wear a very masculine uniform 5 days a week. I know other women like the same thing and MK products are really good. A part of my life goal is to help others around me to feel their best about themselves and whatever situation they find themselves in life. Promoting MK will help me, help them, help everybody!

That's all folks!

Thankful Thursdays!

Well I'm starting a new part to my blog called Thankful Thursdays. Since I have so much to be thankful for, this will give me a way to let the world know. As if they really care! Ha!

Today I'm thankful for what happened yesterday. It was hubs birthday and I was sitting in the office trying to think of what I should wear for dinner that evening. I had just bought some new slacks from my favorite clothier (New York & Company) and I was thinking that some slacks, a sweater blouse and flats would do the trick to look nice in a very short amount of time right after work.

So I thought to myself, which color should I wear? Brown or blue. Then I thought to myself, where are my brown slacks. I know I brought them in the house after exchanging them at another store for my size and I placed them on the floor by the counter inside a box. The recycling box. That I threw into the recycling bin on Monday. Nahhhh, my pants can't be in there. Right?

For lunch, I rush home only to realize that I have to bake DH's cake NOW because if not, it won't happen today and that would be totally sad not to have your cake on your day. I quickly pull all the ingredients together, mix it up and pop that sucker in the oven. Place 30 min on the timer and start looking around for my pants that should be still in the bag. They are not to be found. Oh no! That means I threw them out with the recycling.

I make a split second decision and decide to haul over to the recycling center praying that they haven't done a pick up. I've got to get over there and back for this cake is done. Those pants were BOGO but they were dag on $44. I do not have the money yet to be throwing $40 dollar pants away. I speed off (@ 35 mph and in the rain that's been coming down all night/day) and get there in record time. When I dropped off the stuff Monday, I drove to the back and put my stuff in the bins furthest away. Thank the Lord for that decision. The bin was still pretty empty and I spotted some of the boxes I had thrown away right off. I wasn't sure if I should hop over inside but then decided against that and just leaned way over. I've never been dumpster diving but wasn't totally against the idea since seeing a segment on 20/20 a couple years back (more on that in another post). I still didn't want anyone to see me though. So sifting through the stuff, I spot a few familiar bags, use another small box to help me move some other stuff around and there at the bottom of the bin is my bag. Woohoo! I literally had to wedge my body through this 12" slit in the front of the bin and my legs were in the air but I grabbed it. Thank the Lord for long arms! Yes, yes, yes.

I looked inside and the pants were perfectly dry and okay with the receipt still on top. I got inside the truck and yelled "Thank you JESUS!" Woah, that was too close. Now back to the house. But wait, I need a new gray cap for morning physical training so I stop to buy one right quick. I get back home with 3 min on the timer to spare! Lord, you are just too good!

Food for thought

So this past weekend was the culmination (big word huh!) of our first monthly eating plan. I had to come up with this plan because we were quickly falling into the rut of not planning out our meals and struggling daily to come up with something to eat. And then we did figure out what we wanted, half the time we didn't have all the ingredients. We were making trips to the store every other day which you know gets expensive. You go in for 2 items and come out with 12 which was quickly adding up and we were spending absurd amounts of money just on food. Not to mention we were going out at least twice a week.

Intervention had to happen quickly. I came up with a plan and it involved making a menu for the month. Well really 21 days or 3 weeks worth with the option to eat out at least twice a week. I had to put that in there because working full time and then coming home to cook and entertain a family is tiring. There are some days when I can't muster the energy to cook a whole meal. It doesn't help that I have spoiled my family rotten so I can't just throw something together from a box or package. We eat mostly everything cooked from scratch. Now I can do this in 30 min with a plan and recipe but I have to have a PLAN.

The plan went well. I usually would take out what meat we were going to have early that morning to thaw. I would come home during lunch to prep if needed. Hubs helped out a couple of times and then there were those days worked in where if I knew I just didn't have it in me, we could order out or pick something up. Too easy!

The actual hard part, planning and shopping. It takes being very meticulous because you have to make sure you have every ingredient on hand and then since I'm being a more frugal shopper these days, I had to look and search for coupons, then compare stores and their sales to make sure I was getting the best deal. My goal: to keep the food budget under $400 for the month. Not an easy task but very doable when I know of ladies online that feed their families of 5 and 6 or more with $40 dollars a week and they are not eating rice and beans daily. I don't have that kind of time to plan that in depth but one day, I would like to try that out just to see if I could do it.

Overall, the plan was a success! Hubs got more meat and seafood because he claimed all we ate was chicken. Which was true but it didn't bother me, lol. We tried out a few new recipes which we really liked and they are now constants in our rotation, and I only ended up having to go to the store twice for a few things that I didn't originally get but I stayed on course and only got what we really needed.

Gripes and Complaints

So as a forewarning, this post is all one big complaint. I try to keep my gripes and complaints down, at least out loud, because in the big scheme of things, I really have too much to be thankful for to complain. However, there are times when I just have to unload, to get it off my chest so that I can move on.

Here goes....we start Monday, Wednesday, Friday staff PT next week. Doesn't seem like a big deal does it? No not really. As it relates to working out, I'm not against it. I get up every morning to work out anyway so it won't be a big change in that aspect. Working out keeps me healthy, able to fit into my clothes and gives me energy to run around with the kids.

The part I'm hating about it is that the place where we'll have to meet is about 20 min away from the house. That's with no traffic. So instead of me rolling out of bed every morning around 6 something, I'll have to be up no later than 0545 now and rolling out of the garage no later than 0600, really before that so I won't have to speed. Ugh, I am so not a morning person! We'll probably run around until 730ish and then I'll be back home around 8.

This seriously cuts into my morning alone time. My time to think, breathe, read, and pray to set myself up for a successful day! The kids are usually up by 8. I'll roll in, have to take a shower, try to fix and eat a healthy breakfast and be ready to leave the house by 0845 to be at work on time. Agggghhhhhh! It'll be rush, rush, rush. There'll be no time for breakfast with the kids. Or a chance to help get them ready for the day. It'll be in and out which I hate. I already hate that I have to leave them everyday and enjoyed seeing them in the morning if even for a short time.

This isn't the first time I've had to work out at work. It's just been a few years and so I had gotten used to my own routine. Back right after I had Bug, I used to have to be at the gym around 7 and by the time I worked out, it was shower at the gym and walk across the street to the office where I ate my breakfast. I would miss hubs and baby every morning. EVERY DAY, I would go to the daycare to see Bug for lunch to get my kid fix and eat lunch back in my office.

There is no getting up earlier because doing that would seriously cut into my sleep. I'm already getting in the bed by 10 but that hardly leaves me time to chill, decompress, and spend some time with hubs before my eyes want to close. Let's not even talk about trying to clean something. I was seriously considering getting someone to clean for us but now I'm definitely leaning that way. I'll have to really look into it this weekend. Hubs won't like it but I can't do it all. I'm seriously working full time and coming home to cook dinner at least 5 nights a week, giving baths and then trying to do whatever else needs to be done. Superwoman is on her way to being burnt out quickly!

Okay, enough complaining. Got it out and now to find a way to deal with it. I'll let you know how it goes.

I'm turning 30!

Yep, this year on my birthday I will be the Big 3-0!

Hooray for me! Why the excitement you may ask? Well, in my own little world, 30 feels like I've finally arrived to adulthood. Depending on who you ask, many may say I've already arrived. But the first part of my 20's were so riddled with craziness and the stupid choices of a young person that I feel like this decade of me turning 30 is like a new slate.

Now my 20's weren't all bad. I graduated from college, got married to the love of my life, moved about 8 times (internationally and cross country), had 2 kids (NATURALLY!) and a plethora of other things. We have a house full of furniture, two vehicles, and have paid enough bills for a lifetime. But I made such rookie mistakes early on. Mistakes that could've been avoided and some that I'm still dealing with the consequences. Of course many of them could've been avoided had I listened to the advice of others around me but you know you can't tell grown people anything!

At 30 though, I know myself pretty well. I'm confident in who I am and what I was placed here on earth to do. I don't know everything and as the mother of two young children, I'm learning daily what it takes to be a good parent. However these days, I'm answering more questions than I'm asking. I really feel that I'm making moves for a successful future.

Now, to decide what to do for the big day? I'm away from my friends which is such a bummer. We're all turning 30 this year and so far, I've missed 2 big parties because I'm not around. I'm wondering if hubs will do anything? He is not the romantic type, nor the planner type. I threw him a surprise 30th but I kinda don't want put all my wishes in a basket hoping that he'll do the same only to be disappointed. I'll guess we'll have to see...

A day on, not a day off!

Well as most of the world knows...today was the MLK holiday. Growing up in Atlanta, the home of Dr. King, we were forever inundated with the call to serve others on this day. Hence the quote, "A day on, not a day off." However, being here in El Paso, I don't know if anyone celebrated the day really. This a huge Hispanic community so I'm thinking (my own opinion) that they are really not concerned about MLK since he was fighting for the injustice against black people.

Anyway, I digress. My day off was pretty good. It was one of those days where I didn't even change out of my pajamas. I don't get those too often but when I do, I take full advantage. Now of course, I had a long list of things in my head that needed to get done. Though we got a 4 day wknd, Friday was spent shopping for house wares and putting them together. Saturday was the post office for over an hour, new member's class and then Cattleman's Restaurant. Sunday, church of course and then fellowship with the Saints. So that left Monday for to get the house ready for the week.

Laundry needed to be put up, boxes to be mailed, more boxes emptied and thrown away, kitchen organized and clean, bathrooms cleaned, etc. My lovely husband, God bless him, decided to wash clothes a couple of weeks ago. 6 or 7 loads he did but he failed to get them from the laundry room to their destination. Love that he tried to help, hate that it didn't go all the way through. I usually wash only on the wknd and only that what I know I can put up. Or if I do have to wash during the week, I try to keep it to 1 load because I don't want things to pile up like they were. But I got the clothes all washed and put up, a couple of boxes cleaned out and thrown away and the kitchen looking decent. I also got boxes that were supposed to go out for Christmas off. Sad, I know. I have really got to work on this procrastination thing. The bathrooms will have to wait. They aren't filthy but from experience, I know they can get their quick. I will overcome. In the meantime, I'm looking for a part-time maid.

It's 2200

Which might not mean alot to some folk but right now, it's my new bedtime. I have got to get more disciplined about getting as close to 8 hours a night as possible. I'm a much better wife, mom and all around person when I'm not tired and exhausted. Everything still doesn't get done but I do get alot more done compared to if I've only gotten 6 hours or lesso. And with me going to work everyday, it's essential to my well being and brain power.

Life at the new job is going well. Can't really say how good because everything and everyone is so new but we'll see as time goes on and the closer we get to June when we're supposed to stand up the new brigade. Seems like a lofty call to me but it could work. I've seen miracles done before.

Not much to write but I'm determined more than ever to be a better blogger. Until next time...

She slept....

IN HER OWN BED!!! All night long last night. To say that I'm ecstatic is an understatement. I don't know why I was so ready for her to sleep through the night. I was so spoiled with M. He slept through the night early on and never really had lots of nights where he woke up so I was expecting that this time around. When it didn't happen, I quickly got used to it but it still sucked.

At 9 months though, I really needed her to work with me and she was not trying to hear it. Having to start work again this week, I had to put my foot down and put the plan into effect. Of course since we're all connected in this present world these days I put it out there on FB to see what other mom's had to say. Half said suck it up, she'll wean herself and it'll be over soon. The other half said put her out and let her work it out herself. Well, since the new house is two levels and her bedroom is upstairs, I kept her in the pack-n-play with us in the room but cut off the middle of the night milk supply. She...was...not....happy. The first two nights were rough. She fought and cried and threw the bottle of water every time we tried to give it to her. She only went to sleep once she got too tired to fight. The 3rd night was better, she woke up but didn't fight as long. 4th and 5th night, she woke up and we gave her the choice of water or the pacifier, she went with the latter.

Yesterday, hubs put her in her crib for nap time. It worked well for her so I said let's try it during the night. Went threw the usual night routine and laid her down with some milk. She whined a bit but I popped the paci in, laid her down, covered her up and threw the duces. She went on to sleep. Around midnight, her usual time to wake up, I went upstairs, gave her the paci again and she was out. We didn't hear from her until it was time to wake up. Yay!

Such a milestone. My baby is moving into toddler status. *sigh* This makes me happy and sad all at the same time. Happy 'cause my kids are moving towards independence but sad 'cause my baby is almost not a baby anymore. This could mean that I'm getting those feelings of having another one but at the same time, I don't think I'm ready yet. I still need a little time to get my body back and remember I'm a woman and not a mommy all the time. But then again, I'm turning 30 this year so I'm not getting any younger. Oh well, the joys of motherhood!

In-processing

So this week is in-processing week. All week I show up at too early o'clock, stand in a group, and get direction about what agency we have to check in to or what lecture I have to hear about something to do with the Army and El Paso. Grant it, they really do the whole process for the lower grade Soldiers but us seniors get caught up in the process. The whole thing could really be taken care of in 2 days but instead it's drawn out. Not to complain too much, it gives me time to kind of ease back into the working mom mode. I tell you, 30 days had me spoiled. The kids and I had a good routine going and now we're really tweaking it. Of course daddy is at home so they are with one parent but I wish that parent was me. What does this year have in store for me?

I did get a chance to go by my new BDE on yesterday and whew, I have my work cut out for me. It's a brand spanking new unit. So new that they have nothing in place. No SOPs, no equipment, barely any Soldiers, etc. We're working from the ground up. It's good in some ways that everything we come up with will be doctrine for our unit and every BN will be on the same page. That way when they get ready to go downrange (notice I said they) that we'll be all together which should help cohesion. But that will probably add up to some very long days over the next few months trying to make the pieces of the puzzle and putting them together. Especially when the big boss gets on ground some time in the early summer.

And on the home front, my new dryer came in on Saturday. Yay! It works wonderfully. The old dryer did work but I didn't know it didn't work that well. It did dry but it just took forever. I just thought that's how it was supposed to be. The new joint came about 1400 on Saturday and I started washing about 1700. By 21, I had 4 loads completely washed and dried. I was stunned! Everything was clean and static free and almost folded. Now let's not get carried away, lol.

It's a new year, 2010!

I seriously cannot believe it is 2010! I mean, 2009 literally flew by. It was a great year and there were times of course it dragged by but looking back, 365 days flew off the calendar like Lil Wayne making it rain at the club, LOL. Don't ask me where that analogy came from.

It was my first full year in two years being home with my family for all holidays.
I had a baby girl, naturally, at home! I'm still amazed at that.
We moved internationally from Germany to South Carolina and then less than 6 months later, moved to El Paso, Texas.
I changed jobs (in the Army) and successfully passed the next level of Army training.
We took a financial peace class and paid off most of our debts. With only one person bringing in income.
And that's only a little bit of what transpired for the Jones' family in 2009.

It has truly been a blessed year! Of course there were times when we didn't know whether we were going or coming or if we should go left or right but through it all, God was faithful and brought us out victorious! I know He has so much in store for us and I'm excited to see what 2010 has to bring. This is only the beginning!