Mocha Joe & Catching Up

Mocha passed yesterday and we all took it pretty hard. She brought so much joy into the house for being so small. She was a member of our family for three years and we will miss her so much.

Audrey donated her hair to Locks of Love again a whole foot. She has short hair now and it suits her so well. It is a very nice change. When she first got it cut we were all in shock but now it just seems so natural.

We are working on this years Christmas card in our spare time (that is a laugh) this years card is a real labor of love considering we don't have any spare time. I am working 40+ hours and that is before 3:30 so I can be home for the girls. I am worn out. Wes is not having to work as much over time because of my job so we have been getting to spend more time with him and that is very nice.

Audrey's first Violin Concert is next week and we are all very excited. She has really taken to the instrument and it is really nice seeing her take interest in something other than books. Hannah's Christmas Concert is in two weeks and this will be Hannah's first. Her old school's did not think it was PR to have one, rubbish if you ask me. We love seeing them so excited.

Audrey and Hannah are doing amazing in school and I could not be more happy with the education they are receiving. They are blooming and it is a beautiful thing to see.

Thanksgiving was lonely, I will not lie. It is getting really hard always being alone for the holidays but I really am trying to keep a happy attitude. The food was excellent and it was really relaxing. Wes was awesome he washed the dishes as I cooked and cleaned up everything afterward...that is defiantly something to be Thankful for. We went and saw a Disney's Christmas Carol. Wes enjoyed it but us 3 girls thought it was way too scary and way to serious.

I LOVED New Moon!!! I LOVE Edward!! I thought they did a really good job.

I have had to cut some things out of my life in order for me not to crazy, unfortunately blogging has been one of those things.

Hello Again

I am so sorry that everyone has had to get on my back for a post. I have been beyond busy. This summer has been CRAZY. I have not had anytime for myself, let alone put it down on paper. We moved into a new house, I started a new job, Grandma came for a visit and Danielle was here for a month and a half. Throw in 2 birthdays, a Wedding Anniversary and a Partridge in a pear tree and you can see why I have not blogged.

I really like working at Welch Allyn, it is really weird to work there. I work upstairs with all the stuffy suits and Wes works downstairs with all the relaxed and fun people. I am learning a ton and I am very, very busy, 3 days a week I type 8hrs straight taking transcription. Another reason why I really have had no desire to blog, I am sick of typing, my fingers scream NO at me every time I go near a keyboard. On the 4th day I work on spreadsheets, file and get to mail things around the world for the Customer Service Department…that is exciting. I don’t work Fridays. I also fill in for the receptionist when needed. There are over 2000 names in the Welch Allyn directory and it is all computerized. That was oodles of fun to learn. I changed my hours so that I am home 10 minutes before the girls get off the bus. Wes is coming to work to have lunch with me, that 30 minutes is are quality time together, that is what happens when you work two different shifts. We still get our Friday date, yay!!! I am exhausted but like where I am and what I am doing, this has been a good change. I also like that I am contributing monetarily to my shopping habit.

The girls love their new schools and we are BEYOND happy with the schools. So far they are everything I could ask for in an education and that is saying a lot. Audrey was fitted for her violin and she is in the books and bagels club before school. Her teacher also is the sign language teacher so she is learning sign every day also. Hannah has a teacher that is going to teach her, I know what a novel idea. Hannah is happy to go to school again and that makes me so happy and has renewed my hope. Here is to a great school year. It holds a lot of promise.

Wes and I celebrated are 9th Wedding Anniversary on the 9th day of the 9 month of the year 2009. That was really cool. The years just seem to be flying by. He bought me the most beautiful pair of black pumps and chocolate. What more could I ask for in a man? He bought me shoes and chocolate…perfection. I got him a new pocket knife and a sketch book, he thought that was perfect too.

I LOVE OUR HOUSE!!!!! I will post pics I promise. I just have to buy a new camera, or I need to figure out how to get pics off the phone. We are saving up for a dishwasher and garbage disposal and a few other things that will make life much easier. Everyone must come visit because you will never want to leave, I just don’t know how Wes and I found such a little piece of heaven not to mention the food I will cook for you all. It will be yummy:)

Danielle left yesterday and I felt very depressed, chocolate did not make me feel any better. I wish that she would come back.

I will attempt to blog once every couple of weeks and maybe I will get bit by the blogging bug again.

P.S. – Mocha is still alive and kicking.

Here's What Has Been Going On In The Jordan Household...

School ends next week on the 25th we all can’t wait. The girls are soooo ready for it to be done and they have worked so hard this year that I just want to keep them home for the next week.

Audrey was on the front cover of the Marcellus New's paper dressed as a duck from her school play, this was very exciting.

Wes’s schedule changed at work so he gets to come home an hour earlier this is a great big smiley face:)

Next Friday is the last day we will be babysitting the boy next door and I am so thankful this is coming to an end. We have been doing it for a year and the girls need their summer to themselves, I probably sound horrid but all good things must come to an end. Wes and I have also decided that I am going to stop cleaning houses and find a part time job working in the Skaneateles Village at one of the shops for the summer…I am burnt out cleaning up after rich people and ready to move on to the next chapter of my professional life. I am hoping to work for the school district when the new school year starts. The district office is right (I mean right) across the street from our house.

Danielle is coming for a visit at the end of July till September and we are very excited to have her. Grandma is coming August 12th till the 25th and the girls are counting down the days and so am I.

I weigh 104lbs!!! This is monumental I have been able to gain 12 pounds this last year. It is a struggle to keep it on (I lost 2 lbs on vacation) … I have to eat constantly but am very proud of myself. I am hoping to gain 6 more.

Other than packing and doing routine Mommy stuff that is all for now.

Skaneateles Here We Come

We are moving on July 11th to our new house and it not a duplex!!! Yay!!! This is the third duplex we lived in a row and I am so ready for my OWN single family house.

We are moving to a village called Skaneateles (skinny-at-less) right on the Skaneateles Lake, the house is about 5 blocks away. Wes’s work is only a 3.5 minute drive. Audrey’s school is right around the corner to the left (grades 3-5) and Hannah’s school is a few blocks away around the corner to the right (grades K-2). I am VERY HAPPY Audrey is not going into middle school next year, that would have happened if we had chosen to stay in Marcellus. 4th grade is too young for middle school.

The house is a Victorian Colonial built in 1894 and has been completely refurbished except for the kitchen but we will tackle that problem later. It reminds me of a house that Anne of Green Gables would have lived in and I fell in love with it instantly. It is a smaller house, living room, dining room, 3 bedrooms 2 full bath (washer and dryer in the downstairs bath, which I love). It has a great big backyard with extensive flower gardens (lets pray I get hit with lightening and all of a sudden my black thumb turns to green) and a large front porch that wraps around the front of the house. Porch Swing here I come!!! We are in a great neighborhood… so no more band sessions at 11:00 at night, no more pitbulls and partying teenagers and inconsiderate neighbors. I can’t wait till the 11th.

The house does have some downfalls, the kitchen is really small and I only have one counter. It is the only room in the house not to have had a major renovation so it still has the orginal one-basin kitchen sink with a place for your dish rack but no counters. There are no counters around the fridge or the stove (the stove is electric, that will be remedied … I need the flame). There is no light switch and it has the old paneling for the ceiling and I am not going to even talk about the tile on the floor. The kitchen has white and red wallpaper …horrible. Wes and I found a beautiful Tuscan wallpaper with grapes and I am going to make it look like an old world Italian Mamas kitchen. The rest of the house makes up for the kitchen though: there is the most beautiful Victorian wall paper in all the rooms, real hardwood floors, the bathroom downstairs has a vaulted ceiling and the bathroom upstairs has the original claw bathtub … so classic. It has a spiral staircase and windows abound, all the light in the house is amazing. There is a stain glass window in the front foyer of the house and it makes me smile just thinking about it.

I am going to have a lot of fun making this house our home.

Holy Cow

Audrey went on a field trip a couple of weeks ago to a local "working" farm. I thought that this was going to be a good experience for her. She has not been exposed to the "country" side of life, it's no secret we are "city" gals.

Audrey comes home from school and tells me that she witnessed the birth of a calf and that it was stillborn. I asked her to repeat herself because I thought I had misheard and she said that she had seen the birth of a stillborn calf and that it was really sad and gross. She then went on to explain that the Farmer told them the calf suffocated and had the cord wrapped around its neck. Some children started to cry and others thought it was cool. Audrey told me that it made her really sad and hurt her heart.

Has everyone lost their frakken minds, not to mention their good judgment? I did not give permission for my daughter to witness a birth and if I had I would of thought the minute the farmers knew the calf was having problems they would have taken the children out of the barn. Well, I had a COW and it was not pretty.
Audrey is not a sheltered child as many of you know, but it is Wes' and my responsibility to introduce certain situation to her...there is not this big rush to let her know everything about everything at the tender age of 8...Call me Crazy. This like me saying, "well we live in the city so lets go down to the local gang and watch them blow someone away because that is normal for this area" (I am not exaggerating either...West Valley anyone?)

True to form Wes and I went and saw the Principle the next day and let him know how disappointed and unhappy this "High Maintance Mother" was. We called into question the judgment of the Teachers and Workers. He told me that it is a "working" farm and is suggested by that title...well excuse my naivety. I have written a letter to the farm expressing my outrage and just because it is a "working" farm does not mean that everything has to be shown...why don't you just take the kids down to see the cows get slaughtered and dressed if that is your attitude.

A Mother's Love

This week Audrey has had her school play “Nuts!!” As you all know Audrey was Mrs. Duck. Wes and I were able to go and see her last night. I was so proud of her and thought she did such a good job that I was crying. I was overwhelmed with love for my little girl who just a few years ago depended so highly on me and now she was able to remember lines, sing, dance and speak so that the whole audience could hear her. I think it was ironic that Mother’s Day was on Sunday because the girls were thinking about how special I was to them and wanted to celebrate me but in all honestly I think Mother’s Day really is about know how blessed and special I am to have been given two such perfect little girls and never to take them for granted. My love for them grows each day and I am awed at how much they are changing and growing.

P.S. Wes made me Waffles - That is HUGE and they were delicious!!!

Imagine All The Pictures

Imagine all the pictures, well that is what you are going to have to do. My memory card reader is on the friz and I can't find the cord for the camera to plug it into the computer. I have a ton of pics, so I better get cracking on getting it fixed.

Dear Tooth Fairy...

Sensitive Tooth Fairy information!!!

Last Thursday Hannah came to me and asked if we could write a letter to the Tooth Fairy asking her when she was going to lose a tooth. Hannah is 6.5 yrs old and the only person in her classs not to have lost any teeth. She has been really disappointed that her name is not on the tooth chart at school yet.

Hannah and I sat down and wrote the following letter -

"Dear Tooth Fairy,

When am I going to start losing teeth?

_________________________
Please put date on the line.

Love,

Hannah Jordan"

Hannah put the letter under her pillow and was really excited. I waited for Wes to get home from work and told him the situation and that Hannah had a letter under her pillow waiting for Fairy writing. What were we to do?!! We finally came to the conclusion that we were not going to do anything and tell Hannah that only teeth can bring the Tooth Fairy to a child's pillow, because teeth are magic. The following morning Hannah was disappointed but took the answer we gave her and told us that we were right.

Hannah had NO loose teeth. The following Saturday Hannah came to me and said that she had a loose tooth. I felt so bad for her because she wanted it sooooo bad, I leaned down but actually started wiggling her bottom left tooth in the front. I was very happy. Hannah then told me that the Tooth Fairy must have come when she put the letter under her pillow and sprinkled Fairy Magic on her and that is how she got her loose tooth. Hey, works for me!!! The next day (Sunday) Wes pulled her first tooth and I have never seen such a happy little girl. You would have thought she had won the lottery. It made us so happy to see her so excited.
She did tell me though that having a baby can't hurt as bad as losing a tooth. I just smiled at her, you got to love the innocent:p
The best part about this whole story is that Hannah (and Audrey because she was there) will be able to take that feeling of Magic through her life and even when she finds out the truth she will always have a small piece of her that says that there really is magic and dreams do come true even if it is only losing a tooth to get your name on a chart at school.

p.s. The Tooth Fairy brough Hannah $2.00 a doller for losing her tooth and another dollar for having to wait for so long.

Audrey's play is...NUTS

Anyone who has followed my blog knows that for some reason this year the theme has been Nuts. Nuts in the gerbil food, being able to eat certain nuts and then trying to cheat death by eating the deadly ones, being married to a nut, the list goes on and on. Well there must be something in the cosmos because Audrey's play this year is called you guessed it "NUTS". It has all kinds of different types of Nuts that the children get to dress up as and squirrels (well that makes sense, every play needs squirrels) and forest animals singing about Nuts. Audrey found out that she is going to be Mrs. Duck married to Big Rooster and mother to Chicken Little who sees...what else, Nuts falling from the sky. I am thnkful that she was not cast as the Peanut, I would not be able to go around her for the next month and a half...lol:) Audrey is excited and nothing brings me more joy then listening to 4 songs all about nuts and animals who love them over and over again.

Keytastrophe

Last Firday the girls and I went and did the routine grocery shopping and dinner out. It was a very peaceful day, that is when I should have known that things were just too good to be true. The girls and I came out of the grocery store around 8:30 and I started searching for my keys, and sure enough I found them in the ignition locked in the car. I guess I should be happy that its been over a year since my last keytastrophe. Last month I had left my keys in the ignition and was lucky that Wes was with me and he gave me the "look" and I gave him a cute smile. He's right though I have a key issue...for some reason I lose them in the house and unfortunately several times I have locked them in the car. I am overly compulsive about everything else so you would think I would be able to overcome this problem.
I went into the grocery store and asked if they had security that could help get into the car, they did not. You can only imagine how much I was dreading having to call Wes at work and tell him that the girls, groceries and myself were hanging out in the dark cold parking lot and the keys were in the nice warm car. Lucky for me I came up with a brilliant idea, I called Audrey's friends father and he came to our rescue. He was able to get into the car and I took my grumpy girls home to bed...You think this story ends don't you...oh no, we haven't gotten to the good part. I got the girls to bed and wanted to make myself feel better so I grabbed a CHOCOLATE EGG that our friends had brought over. I thought it was MINT but in reality it was HAZELNUT. I bit off the tip of the egg and had it in my mouth, I had not even swallowed and my body started heaving and my lungs started to swell shut. I spit the deadly chocolate out and then I started getting hives in my throat, mouth, lips and face. So I ran for the emergency bottle of Benedryl and drank more than prescribed and shot myself with my Epi Pen. Lets all be thankful that I did not swallow and lets be even more thankful it was not a peanut. I was able to start to breathe again and I could feel my lungs returning to their normal size. Lesson learned...if I am going to comfort myself with a foreign piece of chocolate make sure I have my food taster taste it first and see what happens to him...(Love you Rabbit)

Mommy Saved Me From A Great Big Spider!!

Mommy saved me from a GREAT BIG SPIDER and I didn't even know it....

We were getting ready to leave the house to go grocery shopping. This means hats mittens etc...

Audrey needed her glasses cleaned so I walked a few feet over to the entertainment center to the tissues, when I turned back around Hannah had her white winter hat on and a GREAT BIG SPIDER (about the size of a quarter) was on the side of her hat!!!! It looked like it was getting ready to climb down her face. I consciously did not make a noise because I did not want to traumatize her for life. I moved insanely fast ... took the Kleenex slapped the spider off her hat and then rapidly and repeatedly stomped on it with my shoe as hard a s I possibly could. I just kept silent but what I really wanted to do was start screaming -

"You had a huge spider on your head and it was getting ready to crawl down your face and everyone should be completely freaked out right now!!" "Die, Spider Die!!!"

Both the girls had a startled expression on their faces like I had finally cracked. It was not until I lifted up my foot that they saw a large glob of spider underneath it. They started to understand and then Hannah started to comprehend where the spider had been. I told her in the most soothing voice I could muster ... that Mommy protected her and that it was no big deal and to finish getting ready to go. We have not talked about it again.

I guess there is a silver lining Spring is actually on its way.

Update

The weather is beautiful and the snow is gone. I am so happy. Even though we are going to go through another cold snap I am happy that the sun is shining.

I thought it was about time that I updated my blog. I guess I will start with Valentines. Wes and I went out to a nice little Mexican restaurant. It is really hard to find good Mexican food around here, but this one meets my high standards. We went and saw Taken afterwards with Liam Neason. Great movie!!! It was so refreshing to pay a ton of money at the theater and actually feel like we got our monies worth.

We took the girls to Rochester over President’s Day weekend and went to the Science Center and Imax. We saw a Dinosaur movie…it was ok. The movie suggested that Dinosaurs are now birds. I don’t know if I would pay that much money to go do it again. I love taking the girls to do new things and get them to explore and find out about new things. We have been watching The Muppet Show with the girls. I LOVE that show, I really wish that they would bring back The Muppet Show for primetime now. It would be so refreshing to have such a great family show on TV. Not to mention that great pool of celebrities they would be able to take advantage of. I mean who would not want to do a skit with Kermit!!
We saw the movie Australia, great movie. Transporter 3 is really good too. We took the girls to Race to Witch Mountain, it was ok I would wait for DVD for that one. I have been watching Veronica Mars…Cris you need to get them on Netflix for you to watch when Chad is not home. Great show!!! So impressed and it is good.

Audrey had her State Reading and Math Tests and I am glad that they are done. I personally think they are a waste of time. They could have been doing so much more in class. Audrey scored 100% on the Reading Pre-Tests and 96% on the Math Pre-tests. We will not have her scores back from the actual tests until next year. Audrey is doing really well in school. Audrey is now working on the school play and doing reading projects. She is also writing a report on the Chinese Silk Road. Did you know that a woman discovered how to make silk? Cool huh!!

Hannah is finally starting to blossom academically, not to mention she has grown 2 inches this year. Wes and I have taken over her education at home. We have been so disappointed with how this year of Pre-first has turned out. We made a mistake by not putting her into first grade. We should have gone with our first decision. Hannah is not happy at school and her teacher has not done anything that we were promised. Hannah has been having school with me for two hours after she gets home. She is now reading fluently, writing and counting up to 100 and we have been working on her printing. We are so disappointed in her schooling (not in her) but at least we have the means and the time to give Hannah what she needs so she can be successful. Wes is going to be giving her class an Art lesson on Thursday. Hannah is very excited.

Wes got an EXCELLENT review at work for the year!!! I am so proud of him. I am still cleaning houses and watching the kid next door but I am thinking that in the next few months that is going to be changing. I am so ready for something new.

We bought some new furniture for the house a new coffee table and a couple of end tables. I am happy with how the living room is shaping up. We finally bought the girls a new dresser (and matching bookcase). They put their NEW Disney Princess TV on it (that is a whole other blog). Yay!!! Not to mention now we don’t have to put their clothes in plastic bins or hang everything up.

For those of you who do not know my Mom was in a car accident a few weeks ago and it has been really hard not being in Salt Lake to take care of her. I hate being so far away…especially when someone you love has been hurt and needs you. I am looking forward to seeing her in Texas at the end of next month.

That is all for now. I am really going to try to get back into my groove of blogging.

Q&A With My Girls

My sis-in-laws did this Q&A with my nieces and nephews on Facebook. I thought it was so cute that I did it also. I posted these answers on Facebook, but thought those of you who do not have Facebook would like to see them too:)

A Interview with Audrey
1. What is something that mom always says to you?
Behave

2. What makes mom happy?
When I help my sister.

3. What makes mom sad?
When she is sick.

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
She tickles me.

5. What was your mom like as a child?
Hardworking.

6. How old is your mom?
33 (but I am really 32)

7. How tall is your mom?
5'5

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
Cook.

9. What does your mom do when you are not around?
Talk about parent stuff on the phone.

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
Chef on Food Network.

11. What is your mom really good at?
Cooking

12. What is your mom not very good at?
Sewing.

13. What does your mom do for a job?
She cleans houses.

14. What is your mom's favorite food?
Salmon.

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
She is very, very kind and sweet!!:)

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
Wilma Flinstone.

17. What do you and your mom do together?
We practice cooking.

18. How are you and your mom the same?
We both have the same skin and wear glasses.

19. How are you and your mom different?
I am younger.

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
She is kind to me.

21. What does your mom like most about your dad?
He is funny.

22. What is your mom's favorite place to go?
Disney World.

23. What is a place your Mommy doesn’t like to go?
Going to see stupid movies.

24. What is Mommy’s favorite store?
Williams and Sonoma

25. What do you love most about Mommy?
She is beautiful and she cooks good.


A Interview with Hannah
1. What is something that mom always says to you?
I love You!!

2. What makes mom happy?
When I read.

3. What makes mom sad?
When I do something wrong.

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
She she tells silly stories, when she squeaks and sings.

5. What was your mom like as a child?
Like a Strawberry Shortcake Toy...hopefully I smelled like one too:)

6. How old is your mom?
I don't know.

7. How tall is your mom?
29 finger steps. (She counted me with her fingers.

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
Cook.

9. What does your mom do when you are not around?
Goes shopping.

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
Because you cook really good.

11. What is your mom really good at?
Taking care of me.

12. What is your mom not very good at?
Sewing.

13. What does your mom do for a job?
She washes houses.

14. What is your mom's favorite food?
Pizza with Mushrooms.

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
She can drive a car:p

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
Eeyore (but happier).

17. What do you and your mom do together?
We read.

18. How are you and your mom the same?
We are both girls...that is mostly the only thing.

19. How are you and your mom different?
Lots and lots of things.

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
Because she is my Mom.

21. What does your mom like most about your dad?
When she is sick he takes care of her.

22. What is your mom's favorite place to go?
Movie Theater. (I would perfer the Movie Theater at Disney World).

23. What is a place your Mommy doesn’t like to go?
Seabreeze.

24. What is Mommy’s favorite store?
Williams and Sonoma and Wegmans

25. What do you love most about Mommy?
She is a beautiful lady.

The Ringlet Incident of 2005

It has been a while since I have bloged...I have not really been in the mood. We have all been sick and dirty white snow outside has been less than inspiring. Here are a few blogs that have been sitting around just waiting to be posted.

The other night I was washing Hannah's hair and I found a great big glob of hair sutck together by some unnatural substance. There wasn't a chance of getting the hair back to normal so I called Wes and he brought me the dreaded scissors and I cut the glob out of her hair. We were lucky that you can not even tell that she had impromptu hair surgery.

This seems to be a routine with Hannah, every few years she has to have some chunk of her hair cut off but thankfully she has stopped doing it herself. In 2005 when we were living in Airdrie, Alberta, Canada, I was at work and got a phone call from Wes telling me that she had cut off her most precious ringlet that hung perfectly in front of her face (Shirley Temple would have been jeleous). I was devastated. In 2007 when we had moved to New York, I took Audrey to get her bangs cut and Hannah must have felt left out because that night I found blond hair stuffed under the entertainment center. The crazy thing is that she did such a good job cutting her bangs you could not even tell.

Creme Puffs and the Flu

(I wrote this blog the week of my birthday...so just pretend it wasn't a few weeks ago)

I turned 32 this week. 31 seemed to go by very fast. Wes and I decided that we would celebrate the weekend before my birthday (thank goodness we did). We wnt to Rochester (45 minutes away) to a swanky mall. I got to go shopping for my own birthday gifts...love this!!!! Wes got me a pair of Jeans, Audrey got me my favorite Godiva Chocolates and Hannah bought me a beautiful Chinese tea set (50% off, which made it even more fabulous). We then went to dinner at Biaggis, an Italian restaurant. I was pleased with the food. We have had a really hard time finding good places to eat in Syracuse, it seems Rochester has them all. I had a wonderful birthday dinner with my family, they were so sweet and generous!!! On Sunday I made an assortment of Creme Puffs instead of a cake (I make cakes for everyone else, I wanted something different) and Lemon Riccota Cookies. A few friends came over and we stuffed ourselves with the yummy puffs, cookies and long stem strawberries. It was fun having everyone over...it was very low key and relaxed.

Wednesday night around 11:00 (an hour before my b-day) I started to feel quite sick. By the time I went to bed I was running a fever and so began my "Birthday Flu"!!! Wes stayed home from work and took care of me and the girls and I laid on the couch in a cold sweat moaning and groaning and wishing the day would just end. January 30th came and the flu was gone. I am thankful it only lasted 24hrs.

Thank you to everyone for the well wishes and gifts (you know how I love gifts) ... that is what makes my birthday so special: having family and friends as special as all of you!!! (That could be a Hallmark card) (Yes I know I am a dork).

The Rocky Economy

( Warning I'm about to rant and rave so read at own risk)

Wes and I have been together now for 10 yrs and it has only been the last couple of years that we have been financially comfortable, and I mean comfortable like I can buy the roast at the super market and not have to worry about using gas money. I can even occasionally buy a movie and not feel guilty.

I am getting really sick and tired about hearing how bad the economy is right now, like this is something new. Hello, there has been a majority of us who have had to scrimp and save just to make ends meet...we have already been living paycheck to paycheck. What really set me off is Hannah brought home a Parents & Child Magazine from school the other day and there is an article called "A Silver Lining - Our rocky economy offers timely opportunities for family bonding, life lessons, and yes, fun."
Such as; renting DVD's, going to the library or park or playing games at home. The article suggested that your child will become acclimated to these mundane activities and might actually start having fun. What the? I am sure there was a time when you gave your kid a stick, a rock, and a can and said knock yourself out. I mean, what have families been doing for together-time that I am not aware of...I am sorry they can't jet off to the Caribbean for the weekend. I have been hearing everywhere that families now have the opportunity to spend quality time together because they are broke.

Call me naive but why aren't families doing thse things no matter what economy we live in? I think there is a much bigger problem than just how much money they have in their wallets.

I am VERY thankful that Wes has a job that we do not have to worry about him losing and I am happy that we are moving up the financial ladder but I would like to think that no matter how much money we have we will always make time for our family and spend time together.

I have so much more to say on this topic but I am going to finish this rant for now.

Can Your Phone Make Pancakes?

Wes and I have been giving money away to AT&T, so we decided to switch to Verizon. Pretty much everyone we know has Verizon. I wan planning on getting a standard phone but I fell in love with the EnV2, a flip phone with it's own keyboard. Wes is a real sweetheart because he was generous enough to let me spend much more than we were planning on something that he would rather go the way of the dinosaurs and phone booths would become all the rage again.

Let me tell you this phone can do it all. I can get online, it's an Ipod, camera, video recorder, and I am sure I could program it to make pancakes!!! Not to mention it is very pretty.

A New Year Update

We had a pretty low key New year's. Friends came over and we played games and ate food. 2008 went out and 2009 came in and life went on as usual.

We were able to go up to Wes's brother's to see our new baby niece Amelia. She is a gem and just beautiful. I was so happy to be able to hold her and get to visit with her, she was only 15 days old.

Wes with his B-day baby:)

Audrey had her New York State Language Arts Test this week and we will not get the results until she is in 4th grade, but Audrey was excited and happy to take them. I am sure she did a brillant job.

We have been watching Smallville. We flew through season 6 and we are now working on season 7. Love that show!!! We rented the Dutchess ... people put the movie back and and walk away slowly. It put the D in Depressing. I felt like I needed an anti-depressant after watching it. American Idol has started, Yay!!! I can not wait for LOST next week!! I love the new show True Beauty on ABC after the Bachelor. It is great and in a lot of ways redeems the bad rap reality shows have gotten for being so shallow and fake.

Nothing much else going on here in our neck of the woods other than snow and more snow and FREEZING cold temps:P

Here's One For Ripley's Believe It Or Not ...

A couple of days before New Year's I was in the kitchen doing the dishes and I looked down and saw a piece of paper on the floor ... no big deal right? I walked over, picked it up and it was the warrenty for our IPOD that we had bought 3 yrs ago in Canada and was going to expire in 2009. I had searched EVERYWHERE for this warranty (the IPOD is broken) and then out of the blue it just showed up on my kitchen floor. That is what I call good customer service ... when the warranty tracks you down.