2013 - Week 8

Already 8 weeks into a new year! Pretty crazy! This week WELCOMED a 3-day work week for me, and a full weekend of fun.

Monday I was off for Presidents Day. AWESOME! Christian had to work, my mom kept Olivia overnight last night, and Amelia was off to my in-laws house (per usual), so I had the house all to myself for the morning. Instead of working on my mile-long to-do list, I spent the morning lounging, catching up on some shows and relaxing. Olivia got home around lunchtime. I let her skip her nap today, so she watched a few videos while I got my workout in, showered and got ready. Then, we were off to do some grocery shopping. Once I got everything put away, we picked up Amelia, and made our way to Applebee's to meet Christian and our friends, Nate and Gini, for dinner and some catch-up time. We hadn't seen them in FOREVER, so it was great to spend some time with them. We finally made our way home, sent the girls to bed and relaxed for a bit.

My shopping buddy!

Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday were pretty standard days. Work, exercise, dinner, baths, playtime. All of the usual. Olivia has been a bit trying lately. Just overly aggressive, not listening well, whining A LOT. I know it's all pretty standard preschooler stuff, but everything is just over the top. It all came full circle on Thursday. Thursday marked 1 year since the girls started at KinderCare (seriously, the best decision we've ever made!), and, it also marked the first negative report we've ever received (other than Amelia and her partner in crime getting into it). Of course, it was Olivia. I guess he was just completely out of sorts all day - pushing, pulling and hitting the other kids, running around, she kept taking her shoes off and chewing on the laces, she wasn't listening and was just not herself, at all. We had a LOOOOONG conversation about it when we got home. I explained how disappointed I was in her, and she enjoyed a nice long timeout. She had no reason or explanation for her actions - it just doesn't make sense. My best guess, is that 1) I don't think she's been taking a nap, and while many 4-year olds no longer need them - she does, and 2) I think she's getting incredibly bored with the preschool atmosphere. She is definitely ready for Pre-K, and needs the challenge. I did chat with the assistant director a little bit, and she said they are hoping to move her up in the next month. So, HOPEFULLY it happens, and hopefully it helps.

 Olivia helping Daddy cook dinner!

 My new workout crew!

A rare moment of sitting together and bonding!

On Tuesday I did get some fairly good news. As most people know, I work for the state. We've been working outside of a Contract since July 2011 (it's negotiated every 2 years). On Tuesday, the Governor finally signed off on our Contract, which includes a 2% pay raise. Great news, and I'm excited for the backpay that will come with it. But, it's pretty crappy that after years of no raises (just like a majority of the country) they finally pass it, and it's going to end up getting taxed to h-e-double-hockey-sticks. THEN, our Contract is up again this coming July, and I'm sure they either won't pass a contract in time, or put us back on no raises. So, even though our "leaders" look like the good guys, it really ends up working in their favor in the end - and since everybody hates state workers as it is, makes us look even worse, because lord knows, we don't deserve a raise in anybody's eyes. It's a no-win situation. BUT, I'm definitely not focusing on the bad - anything extra, at any time, is so appreciated.

Friday was my day off, and it started with another great weigh-in. I lost 1.6lbs this week, for a total loss of 33.6lbs to date. I was hoping for another good number, but I wasn't feeling super confident. It felt GREAT to see that number! A new round of snow storms rolled into the area overnight, so we woke up to a fresh, mega-coating of snow. It continued to snow throughout the day - but the majority came overnight. The girls played for a bit while I did the usual checkbooks, bill paying, fun stuff. We had some breakfast, got dressed and bundled up, and headed out to play in the snow for a while. We found a park down the road with a small hill, so we played, and took the sled down the hill a few times. The girls LOVED it, and it was some pretty great exercise running around in all that snow! Who says you can't go to the park in the winter?!? And, bonus, the girls had some lunch when we got home, and passed out for some SUPER long naps! AWESOME. I got some very exciting R&R. Christian stopped home from work to shovel and plow the driveway, shower, and was off to his "holiday dinner" for work (yes, at the end of February)...which, is employee only. Lame. So, it was just me and the girls for the night. We had dinner, played some games and had a pretty low-key night. Pretty good start to the weekend.

Saturday started off typical...breakfast, sweeping, dishes. Fun stuff! Olivia and I were off to her swim class. She's getting better, and more brave every week. It's fun to watch her develop week to week. After class, we had some lunch and the girls went down for their naps. I got my workout in, got ready and we were on our way to my Grandpa's house for his birthday. The girls had so much fun playing with all of the other little kids and it was great to catch up with our family. We were all pretty exhausted when we got home...the girls went to bed, Christian and I watched a little TV and passed out.

Amelia, [literally] digging into he cake and ice cream. YUM!

We started Sunday off at the bowling alley with Olivia's BFF and her family.  It was so fun to get out and do something we haven't done for a while and hang out with friends. The girls were all SO excited to see each other, it was so cute. We bowled a game, played in the arcade for a while and made our way home. The girls took their naps while I worked out and we rested for a while. We spent the night playing around the house, doing laundry and doing some cleaning up. What a fun day!

2013 - Week 7

Well, we're off on another week. This week marks the Day o' Love. OooLaLa!

Monday started off pretty standard...except my mother in law came to our house to watch the girls so I wouldn't have to take them out in the snow. So, that saved me a little time. Even with the new coating of snow, traffic actually wasn't as horrible as I was expecting, which was quite refreshing! The girls had just woken up from their naps when I arrived home, so we started dinner, watched some shows and hung out for a bit. After dinner it was the usual play, relax, bedtime. I got my workout in and called it a day.

Tuesday started off SUPER exciting! Our Wisconsin Dells 2013 trip is officially booked! We're meeting our friends from Indiana there again and we're staying in a big suite together at the beginning of April. We had such an amazing time last year. I'm so excited to go again, and to see our friends. The rest of the day was pretty low key. Today was my "break day" from my workout, so I was able to have a pretty relaxing night - much needed!

You never get too old to play in a box!

Wednesday ended up being much more chaotic than anticipated.The morning started off fine. Both of the girls have been pretty good about dressing themselves lately. Olivia has obviously been able to for a while, but we just always did it for them. Lately though, I lay their clothes out, and they've been changing themselves. Seriously, it's AMAZING! It saves me so much rushing around in the morning...they get dressed while I'm finishing getting ready and packing my food for work...by the time I'm ready, they're dressed and I just have to do their hair and get them out the door. FANTASTIC! Work went fine...then, they chaos hit. When I got to school to pick the girls up, Olivia's teacher asked me if I'd like a class list for Valentines. Ummm...that's TOMORROW!!!!! I assumed they didn't exchange cards since I hadn't heard anything, or received a class list. Jokes on me I guess! So, we rushed home, I quick made dinner and got that going, then ran out the door as soon as Christian got home. Stopped at Walmart...NO cards left. Seriously. Ran to Target and I was able to get some Hello Kitty cards for the girls, and Spiderman cards for the boys. Rushed home, ate MY dinner quick, wrote out cards (which, of course, included inserting little tiny note pads into each one), taped some candy to the outside and packed them up. By the time I finished that, and washed the dishes/cleaned the kitchen up, it was bedtime for the girls. Then, still not done, down to the basement I went to workout. FINALLY, at 9:15, I was able to sit down. I watched a show and passed out. Never enough hours in the day, that's for sure! But, we're done and ready for Valentine's Day!

Thursday was all about the love! Christian got the day off to an AMAZING start. He had a bouquet of mini-roses waiting for me on the counter, along with a card. In the card was a picture of my salon (which, I haven't been to in 2.5 years)...turns out, he got a hold of my stylist and made me a hair appointment for this Saturday. I can't believe it - I was so shocked! This is by far the most thoughtful thing he's ever done for me...I am over the moon with my groom right now! The work day went quickly - we got another round of snow overnight, so the drive and the parking lot were crappy. But, we celebrated the February birthdays in my office today, so we had some cake! YUM (even though my piece was as small as humanly possible). I left work a tad early to pick up some steaks to grill tonight and a small case of beer for Christian (his romantic gift from me, LOL), get my workout in and pack the girls' gifts up. I picked them up from school with all of their goodies from their classmates. They each had a photo Valentines gift for me too - super cute!   The girls opened their gifts as soon a we got home, we baked some cupcakes, played for a while and they ate dinner. Christian grilled our steaks as soon as he got home, we ate and we all hung out for a while. Such a busy day, but a great one!

Friday FINALLY marked the end of the week. The week was pretty busy, but, for some reason, it just seemed to draaaag on. Today started with my weekly weigh in, and I was FINALLY down. I lost 1.8lbs this week, back to a total of 32lbs lost. Hopefully I can keep this momentum up! Olivia was still napping when I got to my mom's house to pick the girls up, so she and I chatted and played with Amelia until she woke up. Christian picked up some Thai food for dinner on his way home - YUM! Once the girls were in bed, we cuddled up for a movie night (what's new?!?). Tonight was "Ted" and "Pitch Perfect" - both very good...lots of laughs tonight! Nothing like a relaxing movie night to end a long week.

Somebody got into a ring pop! There's no hiding that...

Saturday was a pretty exciting day. It started off pretty normal. I did some of my usual cleaning...dishes, sweeping and picking up. We ate some breakfast, and Olivia and I were off to her swim class. It crazy how much better she gets from week to week. She's getting better at going under water, and really learning how to user her arms and legs. She seems to really love it too, so it's a pretty big success so far. After class, we ate some lunch, I showered and got ready for the day, and the girls went down for their naps. Then, I was off for my big salon appointment!! It's been WAY too long, and Irma is always pretty excited to see me because I usually have something drastic in mind. This time was no different...my plan was to chop all of my hair and donate it (again), and add some color to it. And, that's exactly what I did! I kept my natural color, and just added in some red and light highlights. Everything turned out great, and she threw in a free hand wax-dip, which I've never done, and was super cool. My appointment was later in the day, so it was really just me and her in the salon...peaceful music, quiet atmosphere - SO RELAXING. Exactly what I needed. And, I love the way my hair turned out, so it was a perfect way to spend the afternoon. We had some dinner when I got home, and Christian was off to hang out with a friend from work for a bit, while I caught up on some shows. More relaxing - no complaints here!

Sunday was another pretty exciting day...haircut day for the girls! Olivia has been begging me for months to cut her hair - especially after her friend Annabelle cut hers. I've been putting it off - she has such long, beautiful hair. But, we finally decided to give in, and go for it. Heck, it's just hair - it grows back, and it's fun to try new things! And, now that I've cut my hair, I would never hear the end of it if we didn't let her. So, after some breakfast and starting laundry, we were off to Kids Hair. Both of the girls got their hair cut - they both did great, and they LOVE their new 'do's. Olivia played with her hair ALL DAY, she couldn't get enough of it. Amelia's hair lays pretty great, so we got her some bangs. They're shorter than I would like, but I'll probably let them grow out a bit, and attempt to trim them myself when they get too long. But, they both look super cute. FUN! After out appointment, the girls took their naps. Christian and I were both pretty exhausted, so we took some cat naps ourselves. We were off to my mom's for dinner and chatting when the girls got up, and Olivia actually stayed there to spend the night. Amelia's terrible two's were in full force tonight, but she finally calmed down a bit when we got home. THANK GOD, because she was really grading on my last nerve. She is most definitely our wild child - I sometimes think she was meant to be a boy! LOL. It was finally time for bed, and we were all beyond exhausted. I'm off of work tomorrow for Presidents Day, and it will be a welcomed day off, that's for sure!

So, that ends another week. Lots of LOVE, and some new, fresh looks for the Duran girls. AWESOME!