Ready for Turkey Day!!!

I love this picture of my kids just having fun and being care-free. I hope they can look back on this picture one day and remember how simple life was as a child.

I have my menu ready, my ingredients all sitting on the table, and my kids ready to cook, now I just need Thanksgiving to get here! Well actually, I am thinking about doing the cooking today. I figure I don't have anyone to cook for or to be ready at a certain time, so why not? Then I can just sit and relax all day tomorrow. Something I don't get to do hardly ever anymore!

I don't have much to say on here today, but just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. I went to the Library yesterday and got three books to read this weekend. I am hoping to get to read a little bit, can you tell? I love to read and I don't think I have got to do much of it at all since I started back to work. I miss it and can't wait to dive into a book. I didn't get anything special to read, just a romance novel this time. Good old Danielle Steel. Don't judge me please!

I hope everyone is as ready for the Holiday's as I am! Tomorrow evening the kids and I are going to put up a tree. I just can't imagine this house going without one during Christmas. It looks like my neighbor is going to take care of Samson while we are gone, so he will be staying here and I want him to have a pretty tree to look at while we are gone. Ok, again, don't judge me. Yes, I love my dog! The kids are excited about putting up the tree. I am not going to go all out and decorate the whole inside or outside this year. It will be very simple. Just the garland from the ledge upstairs and the tree. I have already bought FOUR new Christmas CD's. I know, I am pathetic and yes, we have already been listening to them. I can't help it, I just love Christmas. I can't wait for Santa to visit here this year while we are gone.The kids are going to be so surprised to see all the presents under the tree when we get back.

Yesterday Tyler said that one of his friends in school told him Santa isn't real. He then asked me if he was. Now, I don't like lying to my children and I am doing the same thing with Tyler and Jaelyn that I did with Chelsea. I ask them "what do you think, do YOU think he is real?" and Tyler said yes, so I said then he must be real. I let my children believe until they are ready to NOT believe any longer. Why take that away from them? I feel kids grow up way to fast these days as it is, why not give them a little longer to believe in something so magical. My kids love tracking Santa on the computer every year on Christmas Eve, Even Chelsea watches and smiles as we look to see where Santa has delivered his presents to. It has been a tradition of ours for years now. I can't wait to see the twinkle in Jaelyn's eyes this year as she looks to see where Santa is heading. She is a little older this year and it is so much fun to hear her talk about Santa and how she can't wait for him to come.
I hope everyone enjoys their long weekend, those that get one. I hope I get some relaxing in mine and you take the time to relax too. I am pretty much done with my Christmas shopping, so I will not be doing any shopping this weekend. I am too old for that chaos and can't handle it anymore. I would rather shop online...lol.

Have a Happy TURKEY DAY!

How many times can you wash your hands in a day?

Until they dry, crack and bleed? That is what happened to my hands this week. Monday I woke up sick, but I toughed it out. I probably washed my hands a thousand times in one day. I am trying my best to sanitize and clean everything, so I don't pass this on to the daycare kids. It only got worse from there and by Tuesday evening I was drugged up on NyQuil and in bed by 745.
It's been a rough week for me this week. I still toughed it out and worked, but barely. I probably should have closed on Wed, but I feel bad having four sets of parents trying to scramble and find alternate care. I am a person driven on guilt, shame on me. I am slowly weaning myself off of DayQuil now. I haven't taken any since Friday morning and I am feeling it. It seems worse in the morning cause it all sits at night. It is in my chest really badly and if I am not better by mid-week this week, I am making myself an appt. I have to be sure to take care of myself, so I can take care of my kids here at home. If I can't take care of them, then I don't have anybody that will, so it's vital for me to be healthy!
I am so glad it's the weekend! I am going to get the much needed rest that my body needs. The kids and I are just going to hang out here all day today and relax and recoup. Next week is a short week for me due to the Holiday's, so I am very excited about getting a FOUR day weekend. I already have our Thanksgiving planned out and can't wait until it gets here. We will be hanging out in style that day...in our PJ's! Yep, all day long! We are all going to cook our Thanksgiving dinner together and just play games or Playstation all day long. Nothing special, but lots of fun. My children getting older has always been a scary thing for me. I can't remember having any kind of life before kids. I had Chelsea when I was 18, so it's all I have ever really known in my adult life. I can say, that it's not as bad as I thought it was going to be. I LOVE my children and their ages now. We have so much fun together and enjoy each other's company. Life with a teenager isn't always easy, but she is such a great help to me and also has been a joy getting to know as a teenager. Thanksgiving day is going to be a fun day with my kids and Samson and I am going to cherish that day as much as I can. I know deep down inside that there is going to come a day when I won't always have my children here to spend the Holiday's with me and so I am going to soak up every moment I can.
Last night I finished up Steve's birthday/Christmas presents to send out in his box. I am so excited about his box and really hope that he loves his gifts. I wish he was here so I could see his face as he opens them! I have such a hard time keeping surprises to myself, so this has just been killing me! I have been doing good so far. If I keep talking though, I might end up giving up too much information!
I hope everyone has a great weekend! At some point I am going to try and clean my headlights on my van. They have become very very dingy, I think is the word. I had to change my turn signal last night because it blew again! Did I mention that I can't wait to get my NEW car when Steve gets home?? It has been EIGHT years since we have bought me a new car and I think it's time. The poor van is about to fall apart and I can't take it any longer. Although, Steve will be driving it for a little while because I am not letting daycare kids in my brand new car! No way! My own kids will be lucky to get in it! Just kidding.
Have a great weekend and I will hopefully post a little more healthier next week!

The best day ever... almost

Do you ever wake up in the morning and just think to yourself how blessed you are? Sunday morning I woke up and looked over in my bed and saw a sweet, precious little four year old staring back at me. I looked at the end of my bed and saw a gorgeous, yellow lab wagging his tail waiting for me to get out of bed and feed him. I just smiled. I closed my eyes and said a little prayer of thanks. I had this overwhelming feeling of being the most blessed person in the world. I have three great kids, the best dog in the world, and the most caring husband ever. Although my husband is half a world away, I felt like the luckiest woman in the world to be the one he chose to marry. After almost ten years of marriage, I still feel like I don't deserve this man God gave me. I woke up just so grateful and full of thanks on Sunday morning.

Sunday was the best day ever. It would have been the most "perfect" day had my husband been by my side. We woke up and headed to the Church Sunday morning to practice for our Christmas musical once again. The kids are working so hard and I can't wait to see the final product this year. It's always so good. After church we went to go eat lunch together as a family. It was just me and the kids for once, and it felt great. We chose to eat at In and Out Burger for lunch because we were in a hurry to see our "surprise." The kids had no idea we were going to The Nut Tree. They have only been once and loved every minute of it, of course Jaelyn was too little to enjoy to many of the rides. Well this time she was able to ride EVERYTHING, including the roller coaster! She loved it! We rode the thing four times. I think we would have rode it more, but we had to head back to the Church for our small group. We rode the train twice, the merry go round three times, and the spinny thingy once. Mommy could only handle the spinning thing once.

So here are lots of pictures for you to enjoy. Sorry you know me, I love to post pictures. I hope you enjoy this day through my pictures as much as I did. Try to take time this week and reflect on how blessed we all are.....

This is my favorite picture. I just wish Chelsea was in it.

My three little blessings.

This look says it all.....she did have fun though.

She enjoyed each and every ride.

This is another of my favorites. Who knows what Jaelyn is doing and Chelsea is behind the camera.

Heading out to Church

I love this picture of Chelsea

Jaelyn loves to get her picture taken.

Being silly at the Nut Tree

She takes after her daddy

and so does this one.....

Are we leaving yet for Church?

Do you really have to take my pictture again?

The leader of the pack..

I love this girl more than anything in the world. She is so full of personality, as all of my children are. I wouldn't trade these moments with them for anything in the world.

You Better Watch Out...

You better not cry, you better not pout, I am telling you why....SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN!
Yes folks, I am talking Christmas! It's everywhere you look, it's all over tv commercials (which I can't stand) and it's all over the stores. I can't believe how quickly Christmas is sneaking up on me. I am usually a last minute shopper, but have been working hard this year to stay ahead of the game. I have done a good job of it too. Today I went out and bought one of Steve's Christmas presents. We usually don't buy for each other and mainly focus on the kids each year, but this year is special. We are not going to be having Christmas together on Christmas Day. If you know me at all I am horrible at keeping secrets, so it is killing me not to tell Steve!

I am also gearing up for our trip home to Ohio. Here in Northern California, our winters are very mild. We don't see snow, but we usually see plenty of rain. It isn't NEAR as cold as it is in Ohio, so needless to say....we don't dress for winters like they do back home. I have been getting warmer clothes for both me and the kids. We are taking a military flight home, so I am not sure where we will land. We could land in New Jersey and have to walk in the snow some. I am really nervous about this trip alone with the kids cause it's not so easy. I won't have tickets with a set date, set destination, or set time. I literally fly by the seat of my pants. When we land we don't have any method of transportation to get to Ohio, so I will be renting a car and driving in snow. I haven't drove in snow in over 5years at least, so I am pretty nervous about it. I think I have discussed this before about my trip to Ohio, but this is my blog and I can talk about things as many times as I want...lol. That's how nervous I am about this whole trip. If it was just me I wouldn't worry too much, but I will be dragging three kids around with me too in the freezing cold.
Today I checked out a kennel to put Samson in while we are away. It's just too difficult during the Holiday's to find anyone willing to stay here with him. I am so upset about putting him in a kennel, but I really don't have any other option. This is another added expense that we have for our "FREE"trip home. Many people think that it's just so easy for to come home cause we can fly for free. Not really the case at all. We have to rent cars, pay someone to watch our dog or kennel him, pay for gas for the car rentals, etc, etc. It really does add up and fast, especially around the Holiday's.
So I am done venting for now. Like I said, I have been torn about being happy about the Holiday's. It just isn't the same without my husband here. This trip would be 100% easier with him by my side, but most things usually are with him.
My weekend is going great. The kids and I are going to the Nut Tree tomorrow to enjoy some rides and spend some quality time together. I feel as though we don't get that very often with me working now. I am ready to enjoy a great day at Church and then some time with my kiddos. I hope you all are able to do the same...

Watching the game...

Go Browns!!!!

Everyone knows that I LOVE Thursday's and today is NO exception at all. Today was a gorgeous day here in Northern California. We had bright sunshine and a cool breeze. I loved it. This morning I decided to take the kids to McDonald's play land to enjoy some time out of the house. Ms. Brandy gets a little claustrophobic by the end of the week, so off we went.

Then after the kids left, I ran upstairs to throw on my husband's Brady Quinn jersey and my husband's sweat pants. I use to be able to wear them (they were a little baggy before), but now I have to roll them alot just to keep them on my hips. I didn't care though. I was so excited for Brady to be playing tonight. I am sitting here watching the game now and relaxing for the first time this week. I am enjoying knowing that I am watching the same exact thing as my husband too. Yes, he is watching the game right now too. It kind of makes me feel close to him, even if it is something silly as watching the game.

Here are a few pictures of me in the baggy jersey and shirt. I think I will have to get my own, so I don't look like I am wearing a dress. I must say though, I am really comfortable.

Hope you all are enjoying your Thursday evening as much as I am.....

I got MAIL and a BUNCH of pictures...

These pictures are all out of order, but you should be use to it by now. I am just not a blogger expert....sorry

Here is a picture of me working with the preschoolers at Church, practicing for our Christmas musical. This year we are a part of the BIG Children's Church musical. Now, don't go thinking that I can carry a note or anything, I am just trying to get them to make some kind of noise!
This is a picture from Saturday. Man did it pour down rain and I loved every minute of it. Too bad I can't clear my calendar to sit long enough by the front window to enjoy it this day.

My children did though. Tyler loves to make beds on the floor and he always uses ALL of my cushions from my couches. It drives me insane, but they have fun.

This picture is from Friday at our Harvest Festival at Church. The pictures are taken by Chelsea cause I was busy running around like a mad woman to make sure everything went according to schedule. It was a great time and I am glad there is a whole year until the next one!

Here is my sweet girl Tessie. This is one of the twins, Jaelyn's best friends. They all three had a great time Friday night together. I think between the three of them they ate a dozen cupcakes at the Cupcake walk.

Here is a picture of the twins' dad. Don't let the hair fool ya.

My little Tinkerbell! She was dressed all day in her costume and by the time we got to the Harvest festival the shoes were off and her little crown she had too.

Tess again. She was SUPER GIRL. The cutest little Super Girl I ever did see.

Little Ms. Hannah. I think she was a snow princess, but I could be wrong. I didn't get the official name of her costume that night. She made the perfect Snow princess ever.

A picture of some of the early bird kids. Notice my crazy son. He totally got into part. I am telling you these kids had such a great time. They went home with sooo much candy. I actually had to hide it in my car and plan on throwing it away soon.

Here are a few pictures taken around the house last week. Jaelyn loves to pose for pictures.

Here is Jaelyn building a tall tower during daycare.

Jaelyn at her friend's bowling party a few weeks ago. She loves to bowl and is actually pretty good at it too.

A big "cheese."

Three best friends! They love being together. *I wrote this the other day*

Yesterday was a great day around here. Yes I know it was Monday, but it was chilly, rainy, and just a perfect day with the kids. It got even better when I opened my front door and there sat a BOX! I don't get boxes too often, so I was wondering what it could be. As I opened it, I realized it was from my Aunt Linda in Ohio! I was so excited to tear into it and find a new FUZZY, SOFT, pink robe! It was the perfect day to receive such a fabulous gift! I was so excited for the kids to leave, so I could put my sweats on and cuddle up in my soft fuzzy robe and that's just what I did too! It poured down rain here last night and was pretty cold out. I just sat by my front window watching and listening to the rain tap the window. It was wonderful. You know what would have made it more perfect? My husband by my side! Until he gets home though, Samson is filling in for him and he doesn't mind a bit.

So I started this post yesterday and am just now able to finish it. Life is busy for me. I have moments where I am lucky to grab a bite to eat, or lucky to sit down AT ALL during the whole day, but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world right now. I am so blessed to be able to stay at home with my children and watch them grow each moment. I know one day I will look back and miss them so terribly and I don't want to have any regrets. "I" want to be the one to raise my children. "I" want to be the one they run to when they are hurt, or sad, or have a broken heart (Chelsea is a teenager now). I want that to be me, always. I love my children so much that sometimes I can't imagine my house without any of them. I don't want them to grow up and move out and have an adult life. Steve on the other hand is ready to celebrate when it's that time. Not me!

My heart has been torn about the Holiday season approaching. I want it here and I want it here fast, so my husband can hurry up and come home afterwards. I just don't want to think about the Holiday's without him here though. I haven't had to spend a Christmas without my husband in a LONG time...since I was pregnant with Tyler, he is now 7 in case you didn't know that. I am also sad that I am going home for Christmas (let me finish) and I probably won't decorate my house for it since we won't be here. It just doesn't make any sense to do it and then not be here to enjoy it. Oh well, I guess there could be worse things in life right? Like I said, I have been torn about Christmas for a while now, but I will make it through. I feel worse for the kids more than anything, not to have their daddy here on Christmas day. The good thing is that we plan on having a Christmas AFTER Christmas. Since Steve will be home a few weeks after Christmas,I am holding out the kids' presents until daddy comes home. Steve has a few presents waiting here for him too, so it will be a GREAT day when he gets home because we will have Steve back AND get to open more presents.

I better get going. I need to go and jump on the treadmill and clean up my house from the day. I can't get over how quickly this week is going. There just aren't enough hours in they day sometimes.