5/8/12

Today was a looooooooong day. I'm not sure why, it just felt like time was moving so slow. It was the day that would not end, that's for sure!

I talked to the girls' school today about the summer schedule, and to ask if I'd be able to adjust the girls' schedule a few of the weeks so they wouldn't miss out on some of the bigger "field trips". They were more than happy to accommodate us, which made me so happy. I swear, every day I'm happier and happier we chose to go with them. I just love it there so much - there is no doubt in my mind that we made the right decision.

After work, I did my last task from the weekend - dishes. LOTS of dishes. Christian and the girls came home and he started up dinner while I finished. Then, Olivia and I made some cookies to sent to school for Teacher's Appreciation week. She is SOOOOO excited to bring her teacher her present, it's mega cute.

I was given some slightly unsettling news tonight. When my mother in law stopped watching the girls all week, she said she was going to look for a second job. At that time, it was supposed to be another part time, evening kind of job in addition to the bakery on the weekends. Well, I found out that today she had an interview, for a full time, Monday-Friday job. I was really upset at first (well, I'm still pretty upset), but there's not much we can do about it, so I had to shift into "figure it out" mode pretty quickly. We're going to have to come up with quite a lot of money to send the girls to KinderCare full time. Not looking forward to that stress, but I actually would love to have them there full time. I know they would LOVE to go there every day, and I would keep my schedule the same, which would give me every other Friday all to myself - which sounds AMAZING!

So, tomorrow, my mind will be racing all day long, trying to figure out what to do when all of this comes to fruition. Back to the budget, bills and money headache!

Today's Photo a Day in May is, Scents You Adore. These are definitely my favorite scents...Lilacs in the spring, fresh cut grass, Victoria's Secret Heavenly perfume an a nice clean baby. YUM

5/7/12

Monday. Gross. I did leave work early though, so that made it better.

After a long, slow day at work - I was off to pick up where I left off yesterday. I did our weekly grocery/"stuff" shopping, and shopping for the shower this weekend. Picked up some prizes for the games and a few other things I needed. Then, it was hope quick to get everything put away, and get my workout in. Meanwhile, I finished the last couple loads of laundry. Next up, dinner and our usual evening playtime with the girls.

Finally, time for baths and bed. Just a standard kind of Monday.

Today's Photo a Day in May is, Someone That Inspires You. For me, it's my girls. They inspire me to want to be a better person, the best mom and provider that I can be. They keep me motivated in all aspects of my life...make me work hard to help provide for them, make me stick to my girls so I can set a good example for them, make me work on my patience, my ability to forgive, my desire to show affection an express my love. They truly are my inspiration, for pretty much everything.

5/6/12

Well, Amelia did AMAZING last night! She did fall out of bed once, but she's a pretty wild sleeper, so it may take some time to adjust. We'll probably see how it goes before investing in a bed rail. Never needed one with Olivia, so hopefully we won't have to resort to that.

My day of not really doing anything yesterday came back to bite me in the butt today. I had mounds of laundry to do, a sink full of dishes to wash, LOTS of picking up to do, our weekly shopping trip to get done, and a ton of shopping to do for my BFF's bridal shower next weekend. To top it off, Olivia was up a few times last night complaining that her ear hurt, so a trip to urgent care had to be squeezed in.

So, first up...breakfast. Then, cleaning. I worked on laundry all day long, cleaned the kitchen and the entry way, and all of the general picking up around the house. Got the girls' clothes together for the week, and actually put away clothes as I folded them for a change. I went through the ads and my coupons and made my shopping list. Then, urgent care was finally open, so Olivia and I were off. Apparently everybody in Apple Valley urgently needed care, because the wait was an hour. Olivia entertained herself with the fish and some books - THANK GOD she deals with those situations so well. Finally, we were into see the doctor. Sure enough, no questions, another ear infection. UGH, poor thing - cursed with my crappy ears. She had a few ear infections her first year, but hadn't had one since until a few weeks ago. Now here she is again. The clinic pharmacy was closed, so after the appointment, we were off to pick up her prescription.

I do have to share...my first really embarrassing "I can't believe my kid just said that" moment. The urgent care doctor was a bigger guy. My father in law is a bigger guys as well, so I didn't really think the girls thought much about it. Well, as the doctor walked out of the room to get our appointment recap sheet, Olivia looks at me and says "mommy, he's a big man". AHHHH, my heart sank. I just prayed he couldn't understand what she said and tried to change the subject. He came back in and said "Yeah, I've always been a big guy" and tried to laugh it off. I felt so terrible. As we left, I stopped her in the hallway, knelt down and explained that we never say things like that. That you can really hurt somebody's feelings when you say things like that. Hopefully it sinks in...

Also, while we were waiting for her appointment, my from work, Kelly, texted me and asked if we would like to join her at Pump it Up tonight - she had some passes that were expiring soon. Even though I had a TON of stuff to do yet, I couldn't pass up the fun opportunity - so, shopping and the rest of the cleaning/laundry would just have to wait!

After we picked up her medicine, we grabbed some lunch, ate and she went down for a short nap before our playdate. Amelia woke up from her nap a short time later, and before I knew it, it was time to get Olivia up and head out. She was pretty exhausted still, and her ear was obviously bothering her, but she enjoyed it for a while. We ended up leaving before jump time ended because she just wanted to relax. So, homebound we were. We ate a late dinner, and she was off to bed. Bringing another (fairly) great weekend to an end!

Today's Photo a Day in May is - "You" - meaning, ME! This is me, and of course, the most important pieces of me. I see so much of myself in each of my girls, it's truly an amazing feeling.

I also got this cute picture during today's rainstorm.

5/5/12

Today was a great Saturday. The girls were up bright and early (OK, so that's not so great). After a little time to wake up, we were off for breakfast at Perkins. Delicious, and some good quality time together.

Shortly after we got home, Christian's dad stopped over to help him work on the basement a little. They got the wall mount for the TV hung up..so, so as soon as we get a new stand for the cable box, DVD player, etc, he can drill the holes and get the TV hung. Until then - the basement is yet again a disaster! I can't wait to get done and get everything in order.

Finally, it was time for lunch and naps. We had a big storm roll through around lunchtime, and it lasted a few hours. Of course, our Satellite went out, just in time for some R&R. So, it was a perfect excuse for a little afternoon movie date. We watched Rise of the Planet of the Apes. It was actually a really good movie - didn't really know what to expect.

After naps, we had some dinner and hung out for bit. This weekends task - converting Amelia's crib into a toddler bed. Yes, just writing that makes me cry a little bit. My baby - where is my baby?!? She's been getting her legs caught in the crib a lot lately, and she just doesn't seem happy in it. She definitely covets Olivia's bed..she does great on the cot at School, and sleeps on a mattress on the floor at my in-laws, so we felt like it was the perfect time to make the switch. So, off went the railing - and she was SO excited about it. Let's see how it goes.

Christian went out for the night...a little Cinco de Mayo celebrating/watching the big Boxing match. So, I was left to see how the new bedtime ritual would go. I was surpassed by how well it went. After I tucked her in, she did get out of bed a couple times and wander around the room. But, she never tried to open the door or come out, and she eventually hopped right back into bed, covered up, and passed right out! I was so proud of her, my big girl! Now, we just have to survive the night :)

Today's Photo a Day in May is, Birds! We have these two ducks that come back every year, and hang out around our yard. It's so cool. Today, they were being chased by a huge, cross crow. Jerk.

Of course, had to add in some pics of Amelia's new sleeping quarters...

5/4/12

Here we are, another amazing Friday! Friday's home with my girls are always the best. Today, they were definitely quite a handful, but it was still a great day.

First up, my weekly weigh in. Today I was down another 1.4 pounds, for a total of 21.6. YAY!!! Love seeing that number go down, down, down!!

After breakfast and a little play time, we packed up and headed down to the part for a couple hours. The girls had so much fun. There were a couple of other kids there, and the girls had a blast playing with them. It was such a beautiful day, great day to spend at the park. I even got a little sunburned! LOL

After lots of play time, I took the two dirty, exhausted monsters home for a quick lunch, and a LONG nap. Christian arrived home shortly after nap time ended, and picked up some Thai food for dinner on his way. YUM YUM YUM.

We spent the evening playing and hanging out around the house. The usual. Christian was pretty tired, and passed out soon after the girls went to bed. I caught up on some shows, but wasn't far behind them. Good day!

Today's Photo a Day in May is - Fun! Of course, a day at the park, playing with my girls - what else could be more fun?!?

Also, a funny little picture from this evening. Of course, everything one kid does, the other needs to do too. So, when one gets to "fly", the other wants to as well...this is how we work around it :)

5/3/12

Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy. It's Thursday, but it's my Friday, so YES, I'm very happy about that.

Today was our bi-weekly Biggest Loser weight in at work. I was down another 2 pounds! YAY, feels good to be down :) Work was much busier today than it has been. I plowed through a bunch of stuff though. The last day of the week is always a little busier because I try to tie up all of my "let's just set that aside" work before the weekend.

The girls bugged Christian into going over to his mom's house tonight, so they had dinner and hung out there, while I relaxed, caught up on some TV and enjoyed some peace and quiet. YAY

They got home REALLY late, and REALLY dirty - so they took a quick bath and went straight to bed. Fingers crossed the late night will equal sleeping in. One can wish, right?

Today's "Photo A Day in May" is "Something You Wore Today"...

5/2/12

Well, as my story goes lately, today was a pretty low key day. Work was quiet. I got my workout in. We ate some dinner, baths and bed. Nothing out of the ordinary.

I feel like I definitely have a handle on my diet now. I'm doing great with my veggies and fruits, don't really have to think too much about what I'm eating. Making better choices and it's coming more naturally to me with every day. It feels good to just feel healthier. I get my workout in every day at work - I don't think I've missed a day since I started back in January, unless I'm not at work of course. My workouts - some days are tougher than others. Some days I'm just exhausted and my body needs a break. Some days I just use the "but I have so many other things to get done" excuse - so I'm still working on that. I'll get there though! I have about 2 weeks of my current program left, then I'll be moving on the the Jillian Michaels, 30 Day Shred video. I'm excited for the change. It's shorter than most of my current workouts, and it will be nice to do something new.

Today's "Photo A Day in May" is Skyline. Here is the view around the corner form my cubicle...

5/1/12

Seriously, can you believe that it's May already?!? I cannot, even for one second. It seems completely crazy to me. This year is nearly half over already! Wow.

Today was a pretty quiet day. Work, home, workout, dinner, baths, bed. That's about it.

Today I received the girls' summer schedule at school. Each of them has a special summer fee because they bring in a bunch of "field trips", and have a special activity they do every day of the summer. They even have a couple of parent days where we can come in and participate in what they are doing, which I cannot wait for! I'm so excited for them, they're going to have so much fun! Of course, there are a few things on Mondays and Fridays that I really want them to be there for. I talked to the Director and he said they'll definitely be flexible with us, and we can adjust there days to accommodate some of those day they would miss. I'm SO happy they are so flexible and understanding. We definitely made the right choice! So, I'll be going over the schedule this weekend, and figuring out which weeks we need to adjust.

The last few months, I've been seeing people doing to a "picture of the day" thing, but I always see too late. Well, I actually go May's list on time, so that's what I'll be doing this month. Today's "Photo A Day in May" was - PEACE. Here is my ideas of peace:

4/30/12

Well, this Monday ended up being better than most. Work was pretty busy. I've been staying pretty on top of my work lately, which is a nice stress reliever, but still just busy enough. Christian met with his supervisor today to go over his new job details. He will NOT be salaried (THANK GOD), will be getting a slight raise (not enough, in my opinion) and is officially out of the union (YAY, because his union was craptastic). He is supposed to work 8:00-4:30. He usually goes in around 7:00, and it sounds like he'll be working until at least 5:00, possibly 5:30 from now on. One of the main reasons I was not into the idea of him being salaried - they already know he's going to be working 1-2 hours of overtime a day, why in world should be agree to be salaried?! Other than that, he's pretty much already been doing the work he's being promoted too, so he's pretty comfortable with the switch. He'll just be doing more "office" type work, and spending less time in the factory.

I left work a little early to run back to T-Mobile and make my new phone purchase. I had it narrowed down to a couple, and the guy at the store was super helpful. I ended up getting a great phone, with some pretty kickass rebates, and adding the data plan to our package isn't going to be as much of an increase as I thought! So, yay for that :) Of corse,  I spent a good deal of the evening bonding with my new little right hand man. I already LOVE finally having a smartphone.

Since I was doing that, Christian took his time getting home from his moms. I was just finishing up my workout when they got home. It was already pretty late, so we just heated up some random leftovers for dinner when I finished, and it was right to baths, and into bed. Another day down!

Here is a new typical view I have when working out...Amelia likes to be involved - but she's more of an observer.

4/29/12

Another Sunday. Another weekend comes to an end. Boo.

Today was another pretty relaxing day. The girls were at each other's throats this morning. Fighting over everything - just clearly needing a break from each other. So, after breakfast and a few duels, we finally showered, dressed, and went about our days. Olivia and I were off to Target to do our weekly shopping. She now insists on going with me, and it's kind of our special time together, so I look forward to it. She loves going to Target, and it's nice to separate the girls for a while. Target on sample day makes it even better because that keeps Olivia distracted. While we did that, Christian and Amelia were of to Menards to  pick up some some fertilizer and a few yard supplies.

We met up at home just in time for lunch, and naps. Apparently it wasn't enough time apart, because the girls were right back to their antics as soon as they were back together. Nap time couldn't have come soon enough!

Once they were finally down to sleep, Christian and I ate lunch and relaxed for a bit. I finally made my way downstairs to get my workout in, while he ran to his parents house for a visit and to grab his air compressor. The girls were up and at it by the time he got home. We had a big taco feast for dinner, hung out for a bath and before we knew it, it was time for baths and bed. Hard to believe the weekend is over again. NEVER, EVER, EVER long enough!

Here's a pic of our morning...