Wordless Wednesday – When I grow up I want to be just like Mommy

(she wanted to wear my glasses….)

(and just cause I like it)

Help!

So it is that time of year again…I am taking pictures over the next couple of weeks for Christmas and family who received pictures last year. The plan is to make a book like I did last year and let them choose again only this year there will be all kinds of smiles to choose from as well as a few others! (For my mom: yes their outfits match, yes I asked for it that way and yes I realize that when I was younger I SWORE I would never do that to my kids….) For everyone who wants to know their outfits are made by Rare Editions and were not easy to find, but thankfully my mother-in-law was on board with helping me do just that so we were able to have them for pictures AND Thanksgiving! So Help round one (and thanks in advance):

Tell me which of the following pictures are your favorites (I have mine but I am not telling!):

Little Princess:

 

Little Man:

Together:

 

Surviving the Wait – On Multiple Moments at 9 EST

Are you adopting? Want to adopt one day? Been through an adoption and survived that crazy wait — you know the one from the start of the adoption to the moment that adoption is final in your mind and the child is in your arms (even if a court has not said so yet). Well then join me Monday October 26th to talk about that wait — I want to hear from people in all stages of the wait and from those who have been there done that!

I know you are out there — I went through that wait with so many of you and am still suffering through the wait with others! SO please come, you don’t have to get on camera, I will do all the talking and/or reading (I read some of the things going on in the chat room). Come and be a lurker and don’t log in (it is ok I promise!) to learn tips or find out what got me through!

So if I have convinced you to come and try it out — to watch at least! Come here at 9 p.m. EST Monday October 26, 2009 and then click on this button:

You will then see my absolutely beautiful face (hehe) and get to listen to me and anyone else who is on webcam! Please come and support me!

How Do You Pink – Week 3

For this month I have teamed up with that amazing group of women I talk to most of the day everyday to join in a Breast Cancer Awareness month campaign. Each day one of us writes a “How do you PINK?” post. You can find our schedule below. You can help by stopping by everyone’s blog and joining on our MckLinky with your “How do you PINK?” post.

Mondays: Momma’Tudes
Tuesdays: Jen Hinton.com
Wednesdays: Scraps of My Geek Life
Thursdays: Faith, Hope, and Love
Fridays: Cheryl Budge.com & Childhood Clothing
Saturdays: Bantering Blonde
Sundays: A Busy Mommy

So this week I am writing about a very special woman, Ann L., my best friend from college’s mom and I have a picture or two of Ann but I cannot find them and this was before digital so they are actual pictures.

When I was in college I had joined a sorority and during my sophomore year rush I met the most amazing freshman ever! She became the little sis of another friend of mine and somehow it took a little under a year for the two of us to become the best of friends. I went to college in this tiny little town and Sarah’s parents lived in the closest big town, only 15 minutes away! By junior year I was going to Sarah’s parent’s house almost every Sunday for dinner — I had become so much a member of the family that I had my own things I had to do to get the dinners ready! I really felt like a member of her family even going as far as meeting her brother and sister’s dates!

When I graduated from college, I had spent my last semester of college studying in Washington DC and so I had no where to stay for senior week until Sarah’s family offered to let me stay there. I did but during that stay there was a tornado sighting near the town they lived in and so Sarah, her parents and I headed to the basement where her mom kept everyone calm and called to check on her siblings at work. Ann was amazing and so much fun to hang out with!

Sarah graduated the next year from college and took a job that required her to live further from home, by the time she took a job that left her in one place she had settled in Ohio. I believe it was around that time that her mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. I cried with Sarah and tried to visit with Ann as much as possible. Ann had her good days and her bad but it really seemed as if she was winning the battle, matter of fact I am pretty sure they said she was in remission at least once. Then there was the news that the cancer had spread to her bones but they assured her family that it could be controlled.

Ann still did so many things, she lived her life. Then one day Sarah called and things were going down hill. She was taking family medical leave from work and going home to help care for her mom. Less than a week later we were all surrounding her family – and by all I mean everyone who knew Sarah and her family – Ann had touched everyone in such great ways and sometimes it was just how she raised her children. One month after her mom’s passing, Sarah’s sister got married without her mom but Ann had helped plan the wedding until the day she passed. On October 10th, 2009 Sarah got married without her mom as well…this weekend we will travel to Ohio for Sarah’s wedding reception (she had a destination wedding) where I am sure I too will miss Ann again.

Ann would tell you to get checked she always did and to always do your self exams and fight to the end. But the advice Ann would give to any of you is live your life everyday don’t let anything get you back, you never know when it may be your last day.So today I wear pink for Ann and my Aunt and my Grandma and all of those who had to suffer from this terrible disease.

Tomorrow’s How do you PINK? posts will be at two blogs Cheryl Budge.com& Childhood Clothing.

Click here to enter your link and view the entire list of entered links…

Want to be a part of this Blog Hop? Click here to see instructions and get the code…

Wordless Wednesday – The Golfer and I

(Ok so I am LATE but better late than never!)

Little Man….maybe the next Tiger Woods:

And I think Little Princess’ shirt says it all, especially lately:

Just in case you cannot read it:

Her favorite place to play (yes she is under the car/train/craft table):

And the best $7 I ever spent (she loves this toy in so many ways – to carry around the animals in the case, to play with them on the mat, to pretend play with the animals, etc…)

And finally….I thought she was too young to be this into American Girl — seriously this is her favorite “book” right now….it is torn though because she and her brother battle over it:

Teaching the Twins to Fight

Yeah there is a title I never thought I would write. I always thought it would be “How do I get them to STOP fighting” but they don’t fight. Really the title should be “Teaching Little Man to Stand Up for Himself.” Apparently Little Princess has taken to the name and believes that every toy in the house is HERS and hers alone even though 90% of the toys she could care less about unless her brother has them and then watch out she wants THAT item immediately.

Since they came home over a year ago we watched them steal toys from each other and I decided early on that if no one was crying then I was not going to get involved, it needed to be between the two of them. This worked very well until recently, when Little Man decided that he didn’t want to take the item back he just wanted he wanted to throw HUGE fits until I, me, his mom and not him takes the item back and then and only then is he happy again. What?

So the first time, I went to take said item back from the Princess and my first thought was “wow this child has some grip, no wonder he wants me to get it back.” When I loosened the item from her grip and gave it back to her now happy brother, I now had a not so happy Princess on my hands. It was then I realized it was a lose-lose situation unless I taught them how to deal with this on their own – or better said fight over the item.

While that was my first thought it was not the first thing I tried, I tried taking the toy away and putting it in toy jail. The first toy in toy jail was not lonely for long less than one minute before I was adding another toy and then another and then another. Have you seen the sheer number of toys (and books) in this house, this could last DAYS and there is no room in our house big enough to call toy jail for every toy in the house. That idea was shot and I could not keep taking toys away, no one would eat, sleep or be able to go to the bathroom (because I would lock myself in there to get away from the twins and the toys).

I decided why not…they have to fight someday right? Someone has to teach them, right? Why not be able to teach them how to fight nicely (they are 2 don’t burst my bubble yet please)? And I did it, the next time the cycle started I took Little Man’s hand and showed him how to take the toy back nicely. And it worked – about 50% of the time, the other 50% he comes to me crying and pointing (remember he has about 3 words and none of them work in this situation). And the good mother that I am, I roll my eyes and tell him to go get it back from his sister, which NEVER works by the way. So I go over, pry the toy out of his sister’s hand (remember the grip), and back to toy jail the toy goes. And TWO massive fits happen and I am back to square one….

So really I am ready to hear “MINE” squared….it is coming right? Or should I just tell their grandparents we need a boxing ring for Christmas?

Why I Love My Husband

So I said I needed more laughter – well this weekend my husband provided it! Before I tell this story I love my husband, I love that he does all of the grocery shopping, I love that he likes to watch the budget and I love that he is a numbers guy!

Friday he said he would get the groceries if I made the list! So I did and he did…he went to Sam’s for a few items so that he could get a deal! And he came home with this:

He saw this and thought wow this would really help my wonderful wife who makes a loaf or two of bread a week in her bread maker. And it was cheaper than 10 lbs of bread flour at the store so he thought he hit the jackpot. This is what I saw:

25 pounds…25 pounds really??? DO you know how long it will take me to use 25 lbs of bread flour, I do. It will take me at least 6 months…

So I did this:

10 cups of flour per bag, 7 bags….

Now who wants a loaf of bread? I have 25 lbs of bread flour to use (Oh yeah and he says to me I was going to buy you 50 lbs of popcorn kernels – I like it plain with no butter or anything so we pop it ourselves – I just started laughing again when he said but I thought better of it!)