I'M LETTING THIS CAT OUT OF THE BAG....

I wanted to wait until tomorrow....however, you are all too funny bugging me about my SURPRISE!!!!!

HERE it is!!! (Click on "here", for those of you who don't know)


I have been fortunate enough to be a stay at home mom for the past 4 years and while I really enjoy doing it...I needed something to get me out of the house!! (And also some adult interaction!!!) I decided to do this for fun and I am really excited about it!!

Let me know what you like and what you don't like. Or what I could bring in that you have been looking for!! I wanted to keep the prices low....nothing over $40 and MOST of them are $30.

Enjoy!

Conflict

Naturally I LOVE looking at engagement rings. Mostly because I can't wait for the day B puts one on my finger. However, we are having a bit of a conflict. He HATES, no DESPISES the wedding rings (yes, plural) I have picked out. I have narrowed it down to 4 rings that I absolutely love. But, he hates the style that I chose. Do you think it is important that he likes the ring? I have tried looking at other rings but I have already fallen in love with these other rings so nothing else catches my eye. He thinks it is important because he "has to look at it for the rest of his life". Or should I even be choosing rings myself? Should he just pick it out himself?!?! What if I don't like the one he picks out? So, I have a poll going (over there to the right) to see what you guys think...or leave me a comment!

Muchas gracias.

Disclaimer: My "exciting" news has nothing to do with getting married, getting engaged, tying the knot or anything like that. JUST so we're clear! :)

Crafty and a P.S.

This is what I have been up to:

Bathroom

Balls in Kam's room (Yes, I just realized they need a little attention in the fluffing area)

Magnet board in Kam's room

Ryder's bedroom door

Kam's bedroom door

P.S. I have some EXCITING news that I can't wait to tell everyone. however, I am making you wait until next week..... I'm soooooooo excited!!!!

cuddle bug

ry loves to cuddle and is such a sweet boy. he always tells me how "beautiful" and "gorgeous" i am and i get lots of "i love you"'s. last night we were snuggling in my bed and he said "i love you". i said "i love you" back. "how long have you loved me?" he asked. "Since you were in my tummy", i replied. then he said "i guess i love you more because i have loved you ever since you were in grandma's tummy".

he is so sweet. i love him.

i heart her

kam getting ready for her preschool valentine's party! We spiced it up a little and put a heart in her hair. it didn't turn out exactly how it was suppose to....but close (and cute)!!





it will be perfected by saturday! :)

Fashion Statement......

I let Kam out of the house like this yesterday:

That's ok. Right?

Just like her dad....

So, Brandon has a road bike and loves it (sometimes too much) and usually rides outside. However, since it has been too cold and snowy to ride outside they either take their road bikes to the tri gym or to one of his friend's house. They put their bikes on "trainers" which allow them to ride inside. They are hooked up to the tv so you can race the other bikers, see your progress, etc. etc. etc. EVERY time B leaves to go ride his bike Kam freaks out because she wants to go with him. Oh yeah, and she is in LOVE with one of his biker friends and always tells him that she loves him and wants to marry him! :) For the last couple of months EVERY day she packs a ziplock full of "bike food" (cereal, nuts, granola bars) so that when B takes her on a bike ride she is ready!!!! Well, B bought his own trainer to keep at home and Kam was in heaven because now she can ride with dad! We put her training wheels on books so the back tire would spin and she was in HEAVEN riding with dad!!! She rode with him twice this weekend!



Don't you love her outfit? She dresses her self A LOT (which drives me nuts) and she is wearing her "biking shirt, biking pants, and biking shoes".....awesome!

Dear Blog....

Sorry for negelecting you. I will start posting more frequently....starting Monday!

The joys of having a first grader....

I love, love, love that Ryder is in first grade. I love that he can write and most of all love that he is reading. He sometimes leaves me love letters and he wrote this one at school for Brandon and I:

Translation:
Dear Mom & Dad,
I love you so much. I love you to the moon and back. I love my mom.
Love, Ryder

Brandon felt bad I got more attention in the letter than he did. Oh well.

Then sometimes I get this letters like this to put me in my place:


Translation:
Mom,
I love you so much. But, be a little nice please.
Love, Ryder

Talking smack......

Ryder just recently started talking back to me......WHY?!?!?!?!??!

For example, when he is crying or whining (this kid is SENSITIVE....and I mean SENSITIVE) and I tell him to "stop acting like your two" he will say, in his best whiny voice "stop acting like your MEAN".

Or like yesterday when I said "maybe later today we can get the Easy Bake Oven out and bake some treats" and he said (with attitude) "yeah right. you say that all the time and we've never baked anything." Oh right.

I can't think of anymore right now...but when I do...I'll let you know. (I'm tired, it's early and I didn't sleep worth a crap last night.)

And WHY, WHY I ask does he insist this song goes like this:

Jack & Jane sitting in a tree (however he is always using different names)
K-I-S-S-I-N-G
First comes love
Then comes marriage
Then comes baby in a baby carriage

THAT'S NOT ALL, THAT'S NOT ALL, I SEE BABY DRINKING ALCOHOL!!

And where he got the last line to the song, beats the hell out of me....he said that's how they all sing it at school. Hmmmmm............

P.S. Kam also talks a lot of smack. However, she BARELY shuts up long enough to breathe. Therefore, I usually block out most of what she is saying.....

Walking with Dinosaurs

As most of you know, Ryder LOVES dinosaurs and has ever since he was itty bitty. He has never grown out of his love for dinosaurs! I have never met a kid that knows more about dinosaurs. When we were in Disney World, we went to Dino Land and Ryder knew more about dinosaurs than the people that worked there. It was hilarious to watch him outsmart the people that worked there! With that said, I took him to Walking with Dinosaurs tonight. It was a surprise so I didn't tell him until we got there. He was so excited when he found out what we were doing he literally jumped on and almost knocked me over...then he kind of humped my leg like a dog. The show was great and Ry LOVED it. The pictures that I took of the show were really dark and blurry, but I got some of this cute little guy:


Another thing Ry has done since he was little is he squeezes his face when he gets excited. (Doc says nothing is wrong with him....but when he first started doing it, I seriously thought something wasn't right.) However, now he proves to be entertainment to everyone around when he gets excited. My sister wanted to go to Walking with Dinosaurs with us just so she could see Ry "squeeze his face off". And guess what...he did squeeze it. Not as much as I thought he would, but this one is for you Christy:



Meanwhile, daddy took Kam to McDonalds to eat and play. Truth be told, I think the makeup Kam put on herself and Brandon this afternoon was still on when they went to dinner. Kam was complete with eyeliner all over her eyes, eye shadow on her cheeks and lipgloss that pretty much extended from the bottom of her nose to her chin!!! Oh...and daddy got the sparkly
pink lipgloss....and didn't look half bad in it! :)

DELICIOUS!!

So, I had some kalamata olives in my pantry (don't know why I bought them) but I decided that I needed to find a recipe to use them in. Google came up with this little diddy and they were delish....

FETA CHEESE TURKEY BURGERS (4 servings)

• 1 pound ground turkey (I use the 99% lean turkey...the other turkey just isn't as good)
  
• 1 cup crumbled feta cheese (I bought the basil & tomato feta)
  
• 1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted and sliced (These are easy to find...I think I bought these at Macey's)
  
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• ground black pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the grill for medium high heat. (I wasn't going outside in the cold...so I did these on my stove)
2. In a large bowl, combine turkey, feta cheese, olives, oregano, and pepper. Mix together, and form into patties.
3. Lightly oil the grate. Place patties on the grill. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes, turning halfway through.

Recipe says to either put them on a whole wheat bun OR stuff them inside a pita.

I chose the whole wheat bun with a little mayo, torn romaine lettuce, sliced onion & avocados and I was in HEAVEN!!!

SPORTSMAN'S WAREHOUSE

I have a gift certificate to Sportsman's Warehouse for $50...$50.91 to be EXACT. Only problem is...we have had it for a while and haven't used it and probably won't. So, I am wondering if anyone is interested in buying it....let me know if you are! :)

HOW EMBARASSING.....

is it that I JUST took my Christmas down today. I have been so busy I just haven't had the time to do it. Ok...I'm lying. I DID try to take it down right after Christmas and Kambree FREAKED out. She loves the tree and all the decorations, so she talked me out of taking it down. Then today as I was taking it down I asked her if it made her sad and she said:

"No, I'm glad your putting it away!"

She cared 3 weeks ago.

WHAT THE HELL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THIS:


is what my 3 year old is capable of doing in LESS than an hour. And guess what? As soon as we pick it up....it looks like THAT in no time at all....AGAIN.

P.S. Zoom in people. You will see:
1) Her train set that you trip over walking into her room.
2) All her drawers open & MOSTLY emptied onto the floor.
3) An empty measuring cup on her nightstand. The contents (peanuts) on the floor next to her nightstand.
4) On her nightstand is also a granola bar box emptied and filled with cheetos, 2 slices of bread (1 of which is the heel) & peanuts. She told us it's her "lunch box" and that she would need it for her bike ride. WHAT BIKE RIDE?!?!?!?!? It's freezing outside....no one is riding their bike!
5) A & D ointment....ALL over her sheets.
6) The mess is spilling out into the hallway. And the closet which you can't see...is even worse.

And, then her little friend came over and let's just say the above picture looks SPOTLESS compared to what it looked like when she left!