10/7/11 - Surprise Family Fun Night

Today was a pretty great day. I mean, it is Friday, so just has a great sound to it automatically. However, it should be my Friday off, but since my mom was out of town at a conference last week, we switched. It felt very strange to be at work on Pay [Bills] Day. One of my coworkers planned an impromptu lunch outing for the office. It was nice to get away from the desk for a while.

After work, the girls and I got ready because we decided to make a last minute trip out to the Mall of America aquarium tonight. They had half price tickets tonight, and half of each ticket sale was going to the Children's Hospital. Half price, great cause, a must. So, as soon as Christian got home, we were off for some family fun.

The girls had a blast checking out all of the fish again. It's nice, at this age, they don't really remember anything. So, even though we were just there a couple months ago, it was like their first time all over again. So cute. Plus, Amelia is so much more active and interested now...she was very into it.

We grabbed some dinner, and were on our way home, for bed. The girls went down, I caught up on some DVR goodness, and Christian passed out on the couch. Just another Friday night :)

Here are some pictures from the aquarium. I'm still totally in love with the jelly fish.

10/6/11 - Another Day...

Today was a pretty low key day. Everything was kind of annoying me all day though (I know, not TOO hard to do, but, still). I swear, I got behind every horrible driver on the road this morning. At work, my list of annoyances only grew. Some, trivial, some, really tip me over the edge some days.

- People who go in the stall right next to me in the bathroom, when they are ALL open;

- The ongoing debate about the Vikings stadium...all the dumb people who keep saying "they don't win, they don't deserve a stadium". OK dummy, that's great, except that the stadium is not about the team, it's about the state.

- People who call me when I e-mail them. I HATE that. If I wanted to talk to you, I would have called you. That is why I e-mailed you.

- Our checkbooks...as I attempted to balance our budget today.

- The current "ban on gay marriage" debate going on in our state right now. It disgusts me. Bottom line, if you don't agree with same sex marriage, don't marry somebody of the same sex. Outside of that, WHY do you care who somebody else marries? It does not affect you, it has nothing to do with you, so mind your own business. Period.

I posted this list on facebook, and some of my friends added to it (which, I quite enjoyed). Many of them, I could have easily added to my initial list. It was quite entertaining actually.

The work day actually flew by. Like usual, the big plus to being so swamped. I had plans, again, to take advantage of our amazing stretch of weather and take the girls to the park. Unfortunately, again, Olivia had a hard time going down for her nap today. So, she was still asleep when Christian arrived to pick them up. So, no park, again. But, I did get a chance to really clean up the house, do the dishes and finish putting up the Halloween decorations. YAY! Now we just need to finish the outdoor lights and we'll be good. Our first time decorating the house for Halloween. It isn't much, but it's fun.

We spent the night just hanging out, like usual. The girls have continued to get along great, and it feels AMAZING. THIS is what I imagined having two kids so close together. THIS, is perfection!

The only picture I took today was of the trees outside of our house. The leaves will soon be gone as we are supposed to have a crazy windy weekend, so I had to snap this one. Gonna miss these fall colors!

10/5/11 - Where Has My Luck Gone...

Just another typical day for our household. Work was crazy, busy, stressful...still not catching up. Christian continues to work and hour or two of overtime most days. The girls are getting along, for the most part. The animals are a nuisance. Same old, same old.

I'm getting a little frustrated with our lacking ability to sell the USA Baby Gift Card. Amelia has to get out of the infant carrier, like, NOW, so until we come into some money, we're going to have to move the car seat from Christian's truck into my car, and I'm going to have to start driving them everywhere...again. It's so inconvenient. With the stuff we've sold on Craigslist lately, we should have enough for one. But, that doesn't really cut it. I've had two offers on the gift card...it's a $300 card, and so far I've been offered $150 and $200. We just couldn't accept it. I know that I won it, and anything we sell it for is profit, but I can't just hand somebody $100 or $15o. I can't. Especially when we need the money. So, I guess we'll continue to wait....wait....wait.

That was really about it for today. I really wanted to go to the park with the girls after work, but Olivia fought her nap today, and was still sleeping when Christian picked them up. So, it was too late by the time they got home. So, we just ate, played for a bit, did a little Halloween decorating, then were off to bed. Yup, story of our life :)

I did play a little Play-Doh with the girls tonight. They thought it was pretty cool. Olivia was very into the numbers, she was having a blast...

10/4/11 - Appreciation...

Today started off on a pretty great note for me. I've been working on a pretty big, stressful Contract for months now. I finally executed it today, and the project manager surprised me with some flowers. That NEVER happens. It felt amazing to be appreciated. We're usually just getting yelled at and pretty much spend our days trying to get people to realize that we can't just snap our fingers and execute their Contracts. It's amazing what a little bouquet of wild flowers can do for your morale!

The work day was much more bearable after that. Before I knew it, it was quitting time. I did some cleaning up and enjoyed some alone time before the rest of the house got home. I sure love my alone time after work. It's such a nice way to wind down from the day.

We spent the night pretty much like any other night. Family fun around the house. These are the days of our lives...

Here is a crappy cell phone picture of my flowers. Love them!

10/3/11 - More Time Off...

Well, today was a half day for me. Christian's mom had an appointment this afternoon. The appointment wasn't far from my work, so his parents dropped the girls off to me at work. I just LOVE showing off my girls at work. Everybody loves seeing them, and they always entertain. I remember my mom bringing me into work randomly every once in a while, and I just loved it. I felt so special, so important. I like to think they feel the same way. Full circle indeed.

They girls started getting tired, so we were on our way home. It took a while to get them down for a nap, but they finally went down and I had a little alone time. A nice Monday treat. I ordered a winter hat for each girl a couple weeks ago on Etsy, and they came today. They are So, So, SO cute! I just love them. I couldn't get a decent picture of Olivia in hers (it's a bear), but I got a pretty cute one of Amelia (a monkey). The monkey one is seriously to die for. I LOVE it! It makes me giggle.

Once Christian got home, we just ate some dinner, danced, did a little cleaning up and hung out. A wonderful start to the week!

Here is Amelia in her hat, seriously, LOVE it!

10/2/11 - This Is The Life...

O.M.G. I do not know what in the world was wrong with that toddler of mine, but we did not get any sleep last night. She was up many, MANY times. Usually waking up the baby too, of course. It was a rough night, that's for sure. She wouldn't eat dinner last night, and finally got hungry closer to bed time, so I'm guessing we just fed her too late. I don't know, but I sure do hope it was a freak occurrence. I think I paid my dues in sleepless nights for a while!

Christian and I spent the morning doing chores around the house. He and Olivia cleaned up the garage and spent some time outside, I spent the day doing more laundry, putting clothes away, washing dishes and hanging out with Amelia. Christian and Olivia were eventually off to his parents house...more work on the snow blower and dinner...and I dropped Amelia off there once she woke up from her nap so that I could do our "weekly" shopping (and I use the term weekly very loosely nowadays). Thankfully Cub was having some pretty good meat deals this week. I actually used coupons...again. Can you believe it?!? I will never be an extreme couponer, I'm sure, but at least I'm making an effort!

By the time I put the groceries away and did a little more cleaning up around the house, the rest of the family was home. We have the dog a bath, hung out for a bit and then, bed time! Back to reality, and back to work tomorrow. "Unfortunately", Christian's mom has an appointment tomorrow afternoon, so I "have" to leave work early. I'm sure after 2 days off, things are going to be beyond crazy...

Here are some pics of puppy's bath time. Olivia was very into it!

10/1/11 - Bliss

Well, it's October! And, that my friends, is very unbelievable!

Today was a slightly more hectic day. Christian was off to help my mom move today, so it was just the girls and I..again. It was a pretty typical day for us. I did a few loads of laundry throughout the day, we hung out, watched some movies, ate some food. The girls were having a BLAST together today, and it just warmed my heart (and made life MUCH better for all involved). I gave them a bath and dressed them, and even managed to take a shower myself! SUCCESS! I did also notice that Amelia has a new tooth. She's been in a pretty good mood for teething my little drama queen must be developing a tougher skin!

Once the girls went down for their nap, I finished getting ready, and was out the door as soon as Christian arrived home. I was off to meet my BFF to look at bridesmaid dresses again. We had a lot more success this time, narrowing it down to 4 options. I never expect this to be so hard...I think I just hit the luck jackpot with my own wedding when it came to attire.

After spending a couple hours with her and her mom and sister (much fun and laughs, as always), I was back home to hang out with my little family for the night again. Christian and I actually managed to stay awake for a while tonight, and spend some time together, which was a nice change of pace. Another great day behind us, yes!

Here are a couple pictures of my babies, spending some quality time together today :)

9/30/11 - Thoughts...

Today was a pretty low key Friday at home. Olivia woke up VERY early this morning. So, she and I hung out in my bed, watching some cartoons and cuddling, while Amelia slept in. We gals hung out through the morning..making a mess, eating some snacks, playing with every toy in the house. The usual. It was finally time for naps, and they couldn't have come sooner. I was pretty tired after our early wake up call.

During nap time, I spent some quality time with the DVR, and, unfortunately, with my thoughts. I'm getting a little overwhelmed at our money situation again. I know we shouldn't complain, we are more fortunate than many, MANY people. I truly understand that. But all I want is to drag ourselves out of the debt we're in so badly. I just think of everything we need....the dog and the cats need to get to the vet, we need car seats for Amelia, winter gear for both girls, and warm clothes for Olivia, I'm going to have to buy a bridesmaid dress, flower girl dress and throw a bachelorette party for my best friend, both vehicles need oil changes and a cleaning. How we're going to afford that when our line of credit is maxed out, our credit card is so charged up that we can barely make the minimum payment and we literally live pay check to pay check. Ugh, SO FRUSTRATING.

Then, the jealous side of me comes out. When people around us get new, fun things, when people can live on one income. I think of the decisions we've made in the past, that have gotten us to where we are now, and I just hang my head in shame.

When I'm left alone with my thoughts long enough, it all starts to catch up to me. I know that we're going to be fine in the end. I know that we'll just keep cutting, and cutting for as long as it takes, and eventually our savings will not only exist, but go up and up. That someday just can't come soon enough though! Every time we get paid, I sit there, starring at our budget for what seems like hours figuring out what I need to move and shift to pay the bills and expenses that check. I've just had enough of the budget stress!

Eventually, the girls were up, and I was thoroughly distracted. Not to mention, reminded of the more important things in life! Christian arrived home, we ate some dinner and just spent the evening hanging out together. We were both pretty exhausted, and off to bed soon after the girls went down. Another fun filled day for the Durans!

Olivia is very into forts now...

9/29/11 - Day in the High Life

Today was such a great day!!!

Christian dropped the girls off this morning, so I spent a little time curled up in bed, bonding with the DVR. Then, it was time to get ready for my big day!

First up, I met my sister, Angela, for breakfast. Her treat for my winning the tickets to today's event. We ate a yummy breakfast at a new spot, and had plenty of time to catch up and chat, which was really nice. Incredibly rare, and nice.

Next up, we were off to the radio station for the event. There were two stations being represented, and we were the first to show up for KDWB. So, we were in the front of the line, on the first elevator up to the room, giving us FRONT ROW seats! Unbelievable. Andy Grammer performed first, and he was so great. He sang 3 songs, and they did a little interview between each song. He was so personable, funny and VERY handsome...it was a great view, for sure. We all had to leave the room so that Colbie Caillat could do sound check and set up. Then, we were back in. She sang 4 songs and answered a few questions as well. She was much more reserved, but gorgeous in person, and I think she sounded even better than she normally does...live, acoustic definitely does her justice. Needless to say, it was an amazing experience. Much better than I even expected!

After the show, I was able to get a couple hours home, by myself, to rest up for a while. We had a pretty fun, family night tonight. Laughing, playing, goofing around. Another perfect night in our house, that's or sure!

Here are a few pics from the show today. SO COOL!

9/28/11 - Friday Came REALLY Early

Yup, today is my Friday...work wise anyway. I have the Colbie Caillait performance tomorrow afternoon, so I just took the whole day off. And, my mom is out of town, so we swapped flex days at work so I can be home with the girls on Friday. So, YAHOO, 4 day weekend coming up!

Today was a much better day at work. Things were pretty quiet, so I got a lot of stuff done, which felt really good. I had my annual performance review (a few months late, thanks to the shutdown this summer). It went well, pretty much the same as every year. Although, I did move up to "exceptional" in a couple fields this year. I must be "growing up" because she says I deal with our customers much more "professionally" now, and am able to hide my frustrations with people well. She is always impressed with my exceptional organizational skills, and my big plus is my ability to handle a large work load with ease. If only she could hear my swearing and outbursts throughout the day! Ha.

I also received my 10 year gift today. They give you a catalogue on your "milestone" anniversaries, and I picked a weather radio this year. We've never had one, and say all the time that we need one. We have satellite, so if there is bad weather going on, we lose signal, and have no idea what's going on. So, I'm pretty excited to have that now.

I also had a wonderful lunch date with a great friend. My friend, Melissa, used to work with me, and luckily we kept in touch after she moved on. We meet up for lunch every so often, which is always a blast. We have so much in common, it's great getting together and catching up on life. She wasn't able to make it to Amelia's birthday party this summer, so she had a little gift for me to bring her (which, by the way, she LOVES).

The afternoon at work flew by, and I was on my way home, ready for a wonderful weekend! I started some laundry, cleaned up the kitchen, and we ate some random leftovers when the rest of the family arrived home. Just a nice, relaxing Wednesday night.

On my way home, I drive around the neighborhood and took a few pictures of the changing colors. Things are looking SO beautiful around the city right now. LOVE those changing fall colors!