Diaries of a Sleepless NC Mom

Trip to GA

2009-05-21T06:02:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I took a special trip all by myself to GA to visit with my best friend that I haven't seen in 6 years and to meet her children. I was a little nervous flying alone for the first time in 14 years. Once I saw how easy it was in Raleigh's airport it made me feel better. The flight there was a little bumpy and I felt every turn and movement, Which scarred the life out of me. The landing was bumpy but I survived. I thought piece of cake till I got into Atlanta, GA airport. Then I started to panic. It was so large and there was a subway to ride. I was so confused and lost. I had no idea that you were supposed to ride the train to baggage claim area. After about 20 mins and talking to Teresa I finally got on the train and figured I would figure it out as I went. Finally I got to where I should be and ended up walking right past Angela and her kids. We finally got my luggage and off to her house we went.

It was a great visit. We mostly hung out since it rained and stormed the entire weekend. But that fine with me. I was just so happy to be there. The kids were great and funny. Poor Angela had to work 3rd shift Sat. night so while she was taking a nap and then off to work , the kids and I cleaned the apartment. Her kids are such great helpers. I could not get them to stop cleaning. Finally at 1130pm I had to make them stop and rest before bed. Boy did they sleep good. I had to wake them at 930am to get ready to go back to the airport. I had a great flight home even though it was raining. The landing was so much smother, even in the rain. I was so excited. I even got to eat a bag of Middlesworth BBQ chips. They are a favorite in Pa. I haven't had them in over 2 years. Boy were they good.

I was excited to see my family but I wish I had more time with Angela and her kids. Next it is to get her and the kids to come here to visit and meet my family.

Mother's Day

2009-05-21T05:46:00.001-07:00

Yes I know I am a little behind posting this but better than never. I hope you all had a great Mother's day and indulged yourselves. We went to the NC Zoo in Asheboro, NC. It was a great day. At first I was a little worried cause it was very cloud covered and chilly out. The girls and I were in shorts and tank tops. Once we got there and started out trek around the zoo it warmed up and the sun came out. We actually got to see a few things we missed last year when we went there for father's day. It was also a great work out. I thought that the girls would love to walk most of the time but we took the umbrella strollers in case they got tired. The decided to ride most of the time. We got some great photos, so here they are.

Look My babies are hatching!

Teagen's First Hair Cut

2009-05-20T07:49:00.000-07:00

On Thursday May 14 I decided to finally give Payten a hair cut. I was gonna wait and take Teagen this week to the salon to get hers done for the first time but she refused and wanted mommy to give her a haircut. So I did. I was so nervous at first. But with her hair being so thin and all the same length ( unlike her sisters) it was pretty easy.

Of course like any 3 year old she didn't want to keep her head straight or still. But we finally got it done. I am so disappointed though. I was hoping that she would keep her curls but most of them are gone. It looks like she is gonna have straight hair like her sister. So here are some pics for you to enjoy.

Isn't she just so precious!!

2009-05-10T05:57:00.000-07:00

I want to wish all mother's and mom's to be a very
HAPPY MOTHER"S DAY!
take this day and relax, spend time with family and treat yourself. Indulge yourself because you are worth it.

Rainy Days

2009-05-07T05:58:00.001-07:00

This week has been a rain filled week. It has rained for 3 days on and off. We have had numerous tornado watches and some even touched down. I just do not like rainy days. I can handle evening rain but during the day is the worse. No walks or playing outside, dark and dreary, tired all day and then you just do not feel like doing anything. There's not a whole lot for me to do inside. The house is clean, laundry done and everything is picked up.
I am just plain BORED. I know how can can a person be bored when she is taking care of a 14 month old and a 3 yr old. It is possible. They are doing pretty good playing by themselves and do not really need me to occupy them much. Maybe after school is out I will take them to Burger King to play indoors. We did that the other day and the kids had so much fun. It also gave me an hour of relaxing and talking with my mom. I kind of wished they had Wifi though.
I am excited about this weekend. We are going to go to the NC Zoo on Mother's Day. We went there for Father's day last year but it was hot and the animals were being lazy so we are hoping that this time it will be cooler and the animals will be more active. It will be a fun filled day.

Pray Request

2009-05-05T13:59:00.000-07:00

My cousin and his wife are pregnant with their 4th and last child. The already have 3 girls and this one is finally a boy. We just found out that the child has tested positive for Spina Bifida. According to the tests so far they say it looks like he has the worst kind. So we are asking for all the prayer we can get that GOD creates a miracle for this child and the family that he will be born healthy and strong. He is due in Sept. Thanks in advance for all the prayers.

I am back

2009-05-05T13:49:00.000-07:00

Sorry to all my readers for taking a break. I was just in the " I don't want to be bothered with anything" mood for the last few months. I really hope to get back in the swing of things again.
I am loving the Spring time. Flowers are blooming, sun is nice and warm, playing outside more and we even went swimming last week. I am so looking forward to school being out and being able to lay around the pool. The girls have been somewhat bored with playing outside lately since their friends that lived next door moved away. They only have each other to play with for now. I am going to join a moms group here in our town to meet new people and for the girls to meet new friends. I have been putting off joining this group but I figured I need to do this more now for the girls.
I am so excited.. This month is going to be a fun and busy month. On Sunday, Mother's Day, we are heading to the NC Zoo. On Friday the 15th I am flying to GA to visit with my best friend that I haven't seen in 6 yrs. Then we are going to PA for Memorial day weekend. Then on the 31st I have a Mary Kay facial class. In between Scott has softball games Tues and Fri. It will be a nice change having lots of things to do. So I hope you all are doing great and I look forward to getting back into the swing of sharing on here again.

Chili's

2009-03-07T09:13:00.000-08:00

My hubby and I went out to dinner last night to Chili's. I had received free Guiltless meal coupons from Bzzagent. So we decided to take advantage of my mom being here to watch the girls. We both got the asada steak with steamed broccoli with cheese and slices carrots. We decided to get a side to share of Texas cheese fries and both got an alcoholic drink.
Our meal was delivered to our table by the manager before our side and he was not happy about that. But it didn't bother us. So we ended up only paying for our drinks. $12.00. You can't beat that.
As for our dinners we were very surprised. I thought that with it being fewer calories that it would not taste as good. But it was excellent. Even the broccoli was nice and tender and tasted great without butter. I usually have to have butter on it but this time I did not. I can't wait to go back again and try more of those meals. Here is a list of all the guiltless meals.
Guiltless honey-mustard glazed salmon, guiltless grilled salmon, guiltless buffalo or grilled chicken sandwich, guiltless cedar plank tilapia , guiltless carne asada steak, guiltless chicken platter or guiltless black bean burger.
I would definitely recommend you trying one of these meals next time you eat at Chili's. Next I am going to try one of the chicken sandwiches.

NC Museum of Natural Science

2009-03-07T09:00:00.001-08:00

Yesterday was the first time we went to the museum of natural science. I was really impressed. The girls had so much fun. I was shocked at how much there was to see and that it was free. 4 floors of so much to see and learn about. I would definitely suggest it to everyone.
We were originally supposed to go to jumpin beans that is below Raleigh but we kind of got lost following the GPS and decided that by the time we got there the girls would not have much time so we went to the museum instead. I am glad we did. Not only did we save al ot of money but it was well worth the trip. I guess that is really were God wanted us to go.
The Butterfly room was really neat. We got to see a real sloth, even though he was resting on a ledge. I was surprised with all the real fish, snakes, frogs and even ants. We will definitely go back again.

House

2009-02-20T08:22:00.000-08:00

We started looking into buying land and then putting a modular on it. We found lots of land but not what we wanted or needed. We decided to go ahead and get a realtor and also look at houses. You never know what you are going to find. We found land finally that we love but it needs to be excavated, leveled, well and sewer put on it. SO of course then that puts us over in cost of what we want to spend. So we decided to go look at this house that our realtor found.
First of all it does not have a garage( my husband demands we have to have one) But it is in a great neighborhood that most houses sell for close if not over$200,000. This house was listed for $177,000. But the deal went through and now it is in short sale, which is right before foreclose. So he is desperate to sell and dropped the price to $139,000. We went to look at it. It is perfect. I fell in love with it. It is 3 stories, 4 bedroom, fenced in back yard, huge closets, huge bedrooms well all rooms are huge. It is only 16 yrs old. It has between 1/3 and 2/3 acres. Closer to 1/2 acre. The paint is even decent so we wouldn't have to repaint to much. It was so perfect and almost exactly want we want, less the garage. But there is room to build one.
At first Scott was a little against it cause of the garage not being there but then in about an hour later he completely changed. He wants it as bad as I do. We figured that the mortgage is only about $150. more than our rent. But of course this is definitely not the time to buy for us. We decided that things are too insecure right now. We don't fear him losing his job but it is not strong. He has to take a week off unpaid at the end of March and that is going to hurt. It just gets pretty depressing when you finally decide you are ready to buy a house and then the economy goes down the drain. It was a hard decision to make. I left it with the lord whether to buy a house or land and figured he would show us the right way. Well now I feel he has dropped this house in our laps. I don't want to be stupid and buy and then end up going into foreclose ourselves but then I kind of wonder if this is God saying " trust in me and I will take care of you".It is so confusing. I guess we will just have to continue to pray and see where the lord takes us.

Random Things

2009-02-16T09:37:00.000-08:00

Sorry I have not been blogging lately. I really need to get into the gest of things again. Holidays are always busy and things get on hold. There has just been so much going on. The girls are not sleeping through the night again so For 4 days straight I think I got about 6 hours sleep. When one would sleep the other would not and for a few days neither of them were. The one night we literally got not one hour of full sleep. It is ridiculous cause they are 4 1/2 and 3. So it has been difficult to even get through the day, even adding 11 month old to the day, and sometimes till 830 at night.
We are looking for land to put a house on or a house for sale which has not been easy. It seems like when we find land and we think it is going to work we find out more things we need to add that puts up the cost. It is getting very frustrating and overwhelming for me. Sometimes I just wish for once something would just fall into our laps. We have had to work hard for everything we have and own. And nothing comes easy. I know we just have to trust in the lord to provide for us and let him have control. I have basically given it to the lord but sometimes it still gets hard.
Now to add on top of things we have to put about $2,500.00 into my husbands Tahoe. It is 12 yrs old and it is starting to act like it. He needs new tires, new air conditioning unit and now he has a coolant leak. It just seems to never end. I would love to put the house hunting on hold and just get these things fixed but he doesn't want to do that. Sometimes I wonder if we are financially able to buy a house right now. He had to take a 10% pay cut and no pay raise this year. Which we are glad he has a job. I do not want to be strapped financially but on the other hand I am so tired of living in an apartment and not being able to do things to it. They put such cheap carpet in here so everything stains it or leaves spots that you have to scrub to get out.
I guess I am just frustrated with everything. I would love to be able to just have the money to not feel strapped and be able to fix these things when they come up and to be out of debt. I have to vent sometimes like everyone else. So just keep us in your prayers that we get lead in the right direction and everything works like God wants it to.
I hope you all had a great Valentines Day. We just chilled at home and then relaxed after the kiddos went to bed with a glass of wine watching TV, that was until both kids woke up and refused to go back to bed for about an hour. After that I gave up on a relaxing romantic evening and went to bed. I am hoping the month of March will be much easier on us.
I am so excited that my parents are coming down for a visit and then my mommy is staying with us for a week( that is if I decide to let her go back home. LOL)
Have a great week everyone!

Collier SEO

2009-02-09T08:29:00.000-08:00

Dr. Collier is a Lap-Band surgical specialist. Lap Band is a weight loss surgery program as the alternative to more invasive procedures such as Gastric Bypass Surgery. Dr. Collier has a 31 year level of surgical experience. Also he has a highly-praised aftercare team approach for after the surgery.

Patients receive personal attention in every office visit both before and after surgery. In office sessions with his licensed registered dietitian to provide nutritional counseling and guidance. Physchological guidance and behavioral modifications in both monthly support group meeting and individual meetings. Exercise programs and physical therapy services are also provided. So call today and register for a free seminar 281-367-band. Free seminars on Feb. 17 & 28 th.

So visit Dr. Colliers site today.

This is a sponsered post.

Snow !

2009-01-20T13:35:00.000-08:00

Well we got snow. It was not supposed to end till 6 tonight but it is now 4:30 and it has not snowed in awhile so I think it is done. We got 3 inches. They say that this is the most snow they have had in this area in 4 years, since 2005. The girls were so excited and bugged me all day to go and play in it. Well I finally took them out after nap and they had a blast but cold fast since we had in improvise on the clothing for the weather. Luckily we all had pants that were like wind breaker material. So I got lots of pics and I am going to share. So enjoy!

This one was this morning after it was snowing for about 2 hours!

This is the landscape in front of our place after it finaished snowing!

This is Payten in the snow!

Teagen in the snow!

Snow Angel

Another Snow Angel!

Snow!

2009-01-19T06:44:00.000-08:00

We are all so excited. We just saw on the weather that we are expecting anywhere from 2-6 inches of snow tonight into tomorrow. I know most people are not wanting this but we do. I miss the snow so much . Poor little Teagen doesn't even remember what it is like to play in it. Payten got so excited when I told her that she ran up to me and gave me a hug and said thank you. I had to laugh. I told her not to thank me but thank GOD cause he is the one who is in charge. So she looked up to the ceiling and said thank you. So cute. I will keep you all updated on how much we get tomorrow. I am praying for the 6 inches and some more.

Teagen's Birthday Party

2009-01-17T16:34:00.000-08:00

Today we celebrated Teagen's birthday at Chuck E. Cheese. We had a total of 16 people. Boy was that place crowded. We would have loved to turn around and go back out. We had to wait to find enough tables for all of us and then it was still crowded. I have never seen so many people in that place at one time.

We had a great time. Teagen received lots of nice gifts including a Scooby Doo discovery box set for early skill building, a princess cash register, 2 pair of shoes, rain boots, princess dress and a bath tub paint and crayon set.

She decided that she wanted a Mickey Mouse birthday instead of Dora. Shocked me! So instead of buying a cake we decided to make it and Scott decorated it himself. He did an awesome job. He is so talented. So here are the pics.. Thanks everyone for sharing in this special day with us.

I'm back

2009-01-13T18:36:00.000-08:00

Well sorry it has been so long. It has been a very busy month. I hope you have all had a great holiday. Ours was very nice. We spent Christmas day here at our house then the 26th we headed up to Pa. We were there till Jan.2. It was nice being with our family for a week.
Now that things are finally getting back to normal it is nice. Teagen is fully potty trained. Payten seems to doing better in school with doing as the teacher asks. I am still babysitting. Her mom decided to go back to College so on the nights that she has school and dad works nights I have her till 9 pm. She is getting so much more mobile and into everything like a normal 10 month old. Tonight she decided that she was going to try to go upstairs after Teagen. I let her get a few steps up before I grabed her. Boy did I forget about all this fun stuff with babies.
We are now looking for land to put a house on. We picked out our Mod(house) but now we have to find land. It should be interesting. My brother, his girlfriend and her son are coming down for a visit. We are all so excited. They will be celebrating Teagen's 3rd birthday with us on Sunday. It is so hard to believe that she is going to be 3 already. Time flies TOO fast.
We are planning on getting pregnant with our 3rd in Aug or Sept. Sometimes we wonder if we really want to start over again but I know in my heart that I want to and if we don't I'll regret it the rest of my life.
So now that I wrote a book for the first time back. How was your holiday's? Anything funny or interesting happen to you and your family?

Finally

2008-12-16T20:11:00.000-08:00

Well we have been trying forever to get our youngest, who will be 3 next month, to potty train. I finally gave up. I was getting so frustrated with her only wanting to go when she wanted to go. So I backed off. Well yesterday she decided that she wanted to wear big girl underwear. She had about 4 accidents but that was okay at least she was trying. Today she went all day with NO accidents. She was even just going to the potty on her own or telling me. We are so proud of her. We are going to have to take her to Chuck E Cheese after Christmas since we told her if she was out of diapers before Christmas we would take her. Also she wants to give Santa her diapers in exchange for toys. How funny is that!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

2008-11-26T09:15:00.000-08:00

We wanted to wish your families a safe and happy Thanksgiving. Eat lots of turkey and stuffing. Make sure to save room for pie. We are in PA having our thanksgiving with our family. We have lots to be thankful for this year. Remember to give thanks and remember those who are not as lucky as we are or as blessed.
Also be safe if you are going out shopping on Black Friday. Have fun and get lots of great deals.

Black Friday Mary Kay Sale

2008-11-26T09:10:00.000-08:00

On Black Friday I am having a sale on my Mary kay website. Here is how it is going to work.

6am-9am 30% off purchase
9am-12pm 20% off purchase
12pm-10pm 10% off purchase

There are lots of items for gift giving. Remember there is no shipping costs for you. I'll pay all shipping. Pass this along to all your friends and family.

Yay.... almost ready

2008-11-20T19:26:00.000-08:00

Well tomorrow afternoon we leave for our week vacation up North. We are almost packed and ready to go. We have not been home since May so that is also the last time we got to see most of our family and friends. I am so excited cause on Sat night we are going out with our friends to celebrate my 30th Birthday. I am also excited to be 30. I know I am weird. But most of my friends are over 30 and so now I will fit in even more. I was told that now I am now going to be a person people will come to for advice. Well people already do. I didn't know that age had anything to do with that.
It has been a very busy day so now I am taking a small break and relaxing. Why does it always have to be stressful and hectic when you are getting ready to leave for vacation? Well I guess it is time to get back to finish packing.

Best Deal Ever!!

2008-11-16T16:28:00.000-08:00

I am so excited. We went shopping for gifts at J.C. Pennys tonight since I had a coupon. Scott needed a new pair of shoes and I saw some cute flip flops for Payten for next summer. Well we ended up buying shoes for a total of 6 people. Scott, Payten, myself and our 2 God children and their sister. If we bought everything at full cost it would have been $280.00. We bought 8 pairs total. So after the coupon and the sales they were already having we got all 8 pairs for $80.25. I couldn't believe my eyes when I came home and totalled it all up. I don't think I have ever saved this much on anything.

Black Friday

2008-11-12T07:46:00.000-08:00

Last year my girlfriend E told me about this black Friday site. They actually list a lot of stores and their black Friday ads. You can even order from the Internet on this day instead of fighting the people and still get the sales. They just started to place some stores ads on here over the weekend. So go check it out. Make sure you book mark it so you can keep going back to get more stores ads.

Takes after mommy

2008-11-12T07:41:00.000-08:00

The other day meme called and wanted to talk to the girls. They now actually talk on the phone to their grandparents. For the longest time we could not even get them to listen to the person on the other end let alone talk to them. So now P loves to talk on the phone when she wants to. Teagen likes to talk but not as much or as long as sissy. So I just had to take pics of P on the phone. She was using hand jesters like her daddy.

Scrapbooking

2008-11-07T21:00:00.000-08:00

About 6 years ago I bought a creative memories starter kit. I thought I would get into scrapbooking. Well I kept accumulating papers, stickers, ect. for the last 6 years but never really did anything with it. So back in July I started going to a scrapbooking get together at our church. My hubby finally talked me into starting our wedding album. So I am happy to say I finished it tonight.
We get together once a month for about 5 hours. Of course something has happened the last 2 months and I could not make it. So I was determined to stay for the whole 6 hours tonight and get as much done as possible. So after a few hours I was finished. I almost made it the 6 hours. Now I have to do the reception of our wedding and I can move onto the girl's albums. That I am not looking forward to starting since I obviously never started them. So I am feeling very proud of myself.

Operator Tactical Pants

2008-11-06T18:40:00.000-08:00

Here is a new pants store for all of you who are in law enforcement or the military. Operator tactical has tons of pants to check out. They have tactical pants, 5.11 tactical pants, operator tactical pants, black hawk tactical pants and 24/7 tactical pants.
They have over 20 years experience in law enforcement & the military. Operator tactical pants know how to make pants. Their tactical pants have 10 pockets, fade resistant material, cargo pockets with organization system (can't beat that), double knee fabric, lower leg pockets, built in blousing string and more. Right now they are having a sale on their tactical pants. So head on over to their web site and check them out. Other brands sell similar pants but at a much higher price. You will not beat their prices so hurry they are going fast.

This is a sponsored post.

Mommy/Daughter night out

2008-11-06T18:21:00.000-08:00

Tuesday night P & I decided to have some time alone. She has been very jealous of sissy since she started school. So we went to the grocery store and got a few things, then to Starbucks to get my free voters coffee, Krispy Kreme to get my free voters donut and then we hit the Mini- Put. It is a place with games and miniature golf. We spent about 45 mins playing games and then headed back home. She was so excited to go. I really miss spending quality time with her.
Daddy asked her a few days before if she wanted to go out with mommy and she said that she just wanted to stay home and paint all the pics in her coloring book. I knew if we would have stayed home T would have gone crazy not being able to be with me also. Of course T was not happy about not being able to go with us but her and daddy watched Elmo and read some books. So I decided that P & I are going to have one night a week of quality time and then one night a week I'll spend quality time here at the house with T.
Kids grow up too fast to let other things take our time away from them. Spend as much time with your kids as you can. I would rather have more work to do during the day then miss spending time with my girls.

Voting

2008-11-05T06:30:00.000-08:00

Well yesterday was the first time I had ever voted. I have been registered to vote for years but I have never followed the campains and Just never had the wanting to vote. It was nothing like I thought it would be. I know up in Pa they had the machines and computers to use. Here all I had to do was fill out a paper ballot. It kind of took the excitement out of it for me. I was so looking forward to seeing how to use one of the old pull down machines or the new computers. It took me all of 15 mins to vote.
There was no line to wait in and lots of place to either sit or stand in a partition. So then last night I took my sticker and went and got my free starbucks coffee and free krispy creme donut. I think that was really cool of them to do those free things for voters. It's about time someone rewards us for doing a great thing with something free.

Zenni Optical

2008-11-05T05:42:00.000-08:00

eyeglasses

Do you need eye glasses but do not want to spend a fortune on stylish ones? Well I have the place for you to visit that have great stylish glasses for a great price. Zennioptical eyeglasses is the website you have to visit. They have hundreds of frames for a fraction of the cost of a normal vision center. They also have a great shipping cost of $4.95 per order. It is a set shipping cost so no matter how many pairs of glasses you order the shipping is the same.

They also carry the transitional lens from indoors to outdoors. They have lenses with single vision lens, sun sensor (potochromic) lens, tinted sunglasses lens, bifocal lens and progressive lens. Their lens also include Anti Scratch coating -Free ,UV protection- Free, Lens Edge polishing and Beveling- Free. You can't beat that deal. Here is a site you can go to to read a funny story .
The reason they can offer such great prices is that they sell directly to you with no middle man and there is practically no advertising budget.
We all no the times are tough for a lot of us right now and so we put things off for as long as we can. Well now you don't have too with these great reasonable prices. Your vision is priceless so don't keep putting off new eye wear.

This is a payperpost.

2008-11-04T10:33:00.000-08:00

VOTE!!

Besides getting a free cup of Starbucks coffee, and a free krispy kreme donut just for voting, you can also get a Mary Kay benefit!! After you've voted, visit my Mary Kay website, and receive 50% off any one item!! Just mention that you want your "voter" discount! Offer expires November 4th at 10 PM EST and is valid for US residents only.

New Style

2008-11-02T18:37:00.000-08:00

Ok well I am going to be 30 in 19 days so I figured hey why not a new style for a new decade. So I finally got the chance to go and do just that. Before I went my hair was well about 2 inches below the middle of my back. Yep that long. And well you 'll see how long or should I say short it is now. I love it. I haven't had my hair this short in 9 yrs, On our honeymoon to be exact. When we got married my hair was down to my waist and then a week later in Daytona Beach, FL. I decided to chop it up past my shoulders. So this is not something new for me to do. I think I want to get more layers added though. So let me know what you think. Next I will be coloring it so give me your opinion on what color to go with. Now nothing to dramatic, I will be 30 after all.

Winner of give-away

2008-11-01T18:02:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to let everyone know that Semtaylor has won the surprise Mary Kay gift. Thanks for all who responded. If anyone is interested in ordering any Mary Kay let me know. I was really hoping to have over 300 comments but that didn't happen this time. Hopefully next time it will. Thanks again

Great give-away

2008-10-28T18:51:00.000-07:00

I just found this great give-away on the bloggy give-aways. It is a Chicco Trevy twin stroller. Yes a stroller. It is so cool. You have to go over to the site and check it out and register to win it. Just click on the picture on top and it will take you right to the blog.

NC State Fair

2008-10-27T14:56:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we took the kids to the state fair in Raleigh. It was a beautiful day, perfect for walking the fair grounds. We had a great time. The girls rode ponys. Played a game and rode a circus train. We ate deep fried oreos, they were so good. We also had fries and popcorn. We did alot of walking and looking at the livestock. I have plenty of pictures to share. We have a neighbor who is a state highway patrolman who was working at the fair so Teagen got her picture taken with him. Hope you enjoy the pictures.

Bloggy Carnival Give-aways

2008-10-27T14:18:00.000-07:00

Yes today is the first day of the carnival. I am going to be giving away a surprise gift of Mary Kay skin care. I am not telling what the items are going to be. All you have to do is leave me a comment and I will use random.org to chose a winner. The carnival ends at midnight on Friday October 31st.
If I have more than 300 people comment then I will add another surprise gift to give away to a 2nd winner.
Only US residents please.

Outreach Program

2008-10-25T09:49:00.000-07:00

Today we had a bunch of different outreach programs going in in our area that our church did. I was involved in doing facials and pedicures for mothers who were running away or had no place to live. It really felt great to be apart of making them feel good and look good. We had 10 ladies show up. We had a really great time and the ladies really appreciated it so much. It was amazing who they looked and then how they changed in just a little bit of time of doing their make-up.
While we were in one room doing the make overs we had about 6 kids how signed up and were in another room learning about Noah's Ark and doing art projects. It is amazing how God changes our lives and pulls at us to be part of these special events.
Scott was signed up to rake leaves for the elderly but it was raining today so they had to reschedule for the 8th of November. So he got to stay home and spend the morning with the girls.
GOD IS GREAT!!!

What a number

2008-10-23T20:46:00.000-07:00

About 4 days ago Payten fell on the side walk and scraped her arm. Since I had it bandaged for 2 days Scott didn't see it. So I took the bandage off and Payten ran to show it to daddy. When he saw it he said to her" I guess you did do a number on your arm" and her response was"daddy, its a boo boo not a number". It was so funny and cute the way she was so serious. It is amazing what kids pick up on and respond to.

Real Mothers

2008-10-21T17:08:00.000-07:00

Real Mothers do not eat quiche;
They do not have time to make it.

Real Mothers know that their kitchen utensils are
Probably in the sandbox.

Real Mothers often have sticky floors, filthy oven;
and happy kids.

Real Mothers know that dried play dough does not
Come out of shag carpets.

Real Mothers do not want to know what the vacuum
Just sucked up.

Real Mothers sometimes ask 'Why me?' and get
Their answer when a little voice says, 'Because I love you best.'

Real Mothers know that a child's growth is not
Measured by height or years or grade...

It is marked by the progression of Mama to Mom to Mother.

The Images of Mother:

4 YEARS OF AGE - My Mama can do anything!

8 YEARS OF AGE - My Mom knows a lot! A whole lot!

12 YEARS OF AGE - My Mother doesn't really know quite everything.

14 YEARS OF AGE - Naturally, Mother doesn't know
that, either.

16 YEARS OF AGE - Mother? She has no clue!

18 YEARS OF AGE - That old woman? She's way out of date!

25 YEARS OF AGE - Well, she might know a little bit about it.

35 YEARS OF AGE - Before we decide, let's get Mom's opinion.

45 YEARS OF AGE - Wonder what Mom would have thought about it?

65 YEARS OF AGE - Wish I could talk it over with Mom.

The beauty of a mother is not in the clothes she wears,
The figure that she carries,
Or the way she combs her hair.
The beauty of a mother must be seen from in her eyes,
Because that is the doorway to her heart,
The place where love resides.
The beauty of a mother is not in a facial mole,
But true beauty is reflected in her soul.
It is the caring that she lovingly gives,
The passion that she shows,
And the beauty of a mother
With passing years only grows!

Bloggy Carnival

2008-10-20T18:40:00.000-07:00

Yes it that time again for Bloggy Giveaways. The giveaways start next Monday the 27th -31th. I am excited since I missed that last one. Last time(about 6 months ago) there were over 1,000 blogs giving away free gifts. Yes free gifts. Make sure you come back to my blog next monday to see what I am giving away.

Fall

2008-10-20T18:18:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that it is fall already. It has been getting into the 30's here at night and in the 60 or 70's during the day. It feels good, in the afternoon after it warms up, to have some warm but not hot weather. It was hard to believe how it went form hot to cold here without it being gradual. It was almost like being back in PA. The leaves are starting to change. I am actually excited to see the colors.
We were supposed to go to the state fair in Raleigh last Saturday but it was so cold and rainy here that we were afraid the weather would not be much different there so we decided to wait till next Saturday. This fair is so big. We were there last year for about 8-9 hours and still did not see everthing. It was amazing. Nothing like the state fair up in Pa.
So what is the fall weather like in your area? Are the leaves changing yet? I would love to know.

Sleep

2008-10-19T19:59:00.000-07:00

Am I ever going to get a normal sleep routine again. My oldest woke me at 230am and then my youngest came over. So I ended up sleeping on the floor. My youngest had me up till 4 and then I couldn't sleep because of being on the floor. I think I got maybe 3 hours of sleep. This is taking such a toll on me. They had on the radio the other day that if you miss even one hour of sleep one night by the end of the week you feel like you have lost a whole nights sleep. I am praying that I will soon be able to get some sleep. My children are 2 1/2 and 4. They should not be going through this anymore. I am about to stay in a hotel for one weekend just so I can get some much needed sleep.

Great Weekend!

2008-10-12T17:37:00.000-07:00

We had such a great and relaxing weekend. Friday night the girls slept all night and so we got some much needed rest. I was so rested that I did a lot of cleaning and laundry throughout the day and didn't need a nap to recharge. Then at 4:45 we dropped our children off at our friends house and we went out for a daddy & mommy only dinner. We had a nice time. We then put the kids to bed and then we sat down to watch a movie. We actually watched 2 movies this past week. I have no idea how we managed to squeeze them in.
Saturday night Payten woke up around 1 and then slept till 9 this morning. We had another fully rested night. When we woke up Scott wasn't feeling so well so he slept a little better while I took the girls down for breakfast. After a while he came down and then we took the girls to a trail for them to ride bikes and then we took a picnic and ate by the river. After that we let the girls play in the park for a little and then came home for a nap. We all took a nap and then grilled out for supper. I finished the laundry and then all 4 of played hiding go seek.
It is so funny. Payten can not keep quiet and hidden. Teagen did so good keeping quiet & in her place. We had a great time. It has been a long time since we had nothing to do but play games. I wish every weekend was like this one. I hope everyone else had a great weekend!
Next weekend is the NC state Fair in Raleigh. Payten has been bugging to go there for about 10 months now. So it will be another fun weekend!

Halloween

2008-10-10T14:45:00.000-07:00

I thought with Halloween coming up I would do some research on the orgins of it.

The Origin of Halloween: From Pagan to ChristianOther historians trace the origin of Halloween back to the ancient and enduring Christian tradition of celebrating the lives of Christian martyrs on the anniversaries of their deaths. When Pope Boniface IV reconsecrated the Pantheon in Rome on May 13, 609 AD, renaming it the “Church of St. Mary and the Martyrs,” he established that anniversary as a day of celebratory remembrance for all of the Church’s martyrs. Pope Gregory III later changed the date of remembrance to November 1 when he dedicated a chapel in St. Peter’s Basilica to “all saints.” November 1 became All Saints Day, otherwise known as All Hallow’s Day. The night before became All Hallow’s Eve (“Halloween” being a colloquial contraction of that phrase). While Halloween began as a localized celebration, Pope Gregory IV extended its observance to all of Christendom in the 9th Century AD. As Christianity spread throughout the world, pagan holidays were either Christianized or forgotten. Samhain was absorbed into Halloween. Costumes and gifts and bobbing for apples were preserved, incorporated into the new holiday. They remain a celebrated part of Halloween to this day, many centuries later.

I have known for a while now that it was a christian hoilday. It is a real shame at what people turned it into. I know some feel that it should not be recongized and so they do not. I have neighbors who do not allow their children to participate in it. I feel that it is what you make of it. My children love to get dressed up and go trick or treating. We will raise them to know the true meaning of Halloween. Even some years my hubby and I get dressed up with the girls.
What are your feelings on this holiday?

Sleep

2008-10-07T13:01:00.000-07:00

I can't believe but the last 2 nights I have actually gotten a full nights sleep. I am probably going to jinx myself by writing this but it is exciting for me. For the first time in 2 years Payten has slept all night for 2 nights in a row.
It is amazing the change in her behavior and listening since getting 2 nights of full sleep. Pray that this continues. It would sure be nice to have her sleeping again through the night before we have another baby( not for at least another year).
My body is so not used to getting this much sleep so I have been exhausted all morning. But then I have more energy in the afternoon. Well pray that this sleeping continues and my body gets used to the new schedule.

Payten

2008-10-03T13:41:00.000-07:00

I am so excited. Payten received student of the week today. She got her picture on the wall, a special sticker and a special gift. She chose a jewelry set that has a bracelet, necklace and earrings that blink. She is so excited. When I was opening her jewelry she sat there bouncing up and down saying " open it fast, yeah you're opening it for me". She was so cute. We are so proud of her and how well she is doing.

P's Birthday Party!

2008-09-28T17:12:00.000-07:00

I know I am a little late posting this but better late than never. We had P's bday party at Chuck E. Cheese. She only had 4 friends there but it was a blast. She actually got up and stood by Chuck E Cheese while he did the bday dance. We got her a barbie ballerina cake. She got a lot of cool gifts.

We got her a princess bike that she has been asking for for a year now. She does really great riding it and she looks so cute with her helmet on. She also got a barbie and horse that actually neighs when you make it jump, Barbie's sister, jeans, and a barbie twin puppy set and more.

Hair Cut!

2008-09-28T16:56:00.000-07:00

Well P is now 4 yrs old and I just took her on Thursday for her first hair cut!! She was so excited to go. Me I was sad to take her. I just couldn't believe I was getting her hair cut but it was over due. I only got about 2 inches taken off, just to make it look healthier. She did so great. She sat so still and just looked around. You could tell she was nervous. She actually told a month ago that she wanted mommy to cut her hair. I just could not get myself to do her first one but now I will continue to do it. While we were watching her get her hair cut Teagen says that she wanted to get her hair cut too, I am not ready for her yet. So here are some pics of her big day!

New Adventure

2008-09-12T13:14:00.000-07:00

Well I have ventured on an adventure. I now am a small business owner. I have started my own Mary Kay Business. I was a little nervous at first, especially for my debut, but I am starting to fell more confident with myself and making it work. It took a lot of convincing for my hubby to agree to let me give it a try. So far so good. I have made my goal for this week in order to get free items for my kit. I am very proud of myself. I really could not have done it though with out my friend Christy who signed me up. She has been great helping me with my debut and also doing a make over here at my house.
I am very shy and do not like asking people to buy things from me but I will get stronger at it. I already have a party set up for next month. So if anyone is in the area and would like to have a makeover party or needs anything don't hesitate to contact me. Also if anyone is interested in learning about becoming a consultant themselves let me know.
I was very shocked about the company. They really are for the women. The opportunities that they offer are amazing. The best thing is that I can work as much or as little as I want. They encourage family first, work last. It gives me a way of meeting new people and making new friends. I am loving it.

First day of School!

2008-08-27T19:07:00.000-07:00

Well today my little girl went to school for the first time. When we got there she headed right in and went to play. I had to call her over to tell daddy , me and sissy bye. We talked with the teacher for a few minutes and then left. I was fine till we left then I got all teary eyed.I can'tbelieve she is in school. It seems like yesterday when Scott said a comment about her starting school and I replied" we have a long time for that yet". Boy was I wrong. Teagen was pretty bored and lost without her sissy here and wanted her to come home and not stay at school. We got along fine all day. I keep her busy and her mind off it. When 20 came along I had put all 3 little ones in the car to get Payten. Yes I took one to school and now have 3. I have another baby in the afternoons for a few hours. Well when I got to school Scott called to tell me that we were about to get some severe storms and were under a tornado warning and that one had already touched down to a town close by. So suggested I go in to get Payten and not wait for her to be brought out. Luckily I did cause the teachers were not allowed to let any child be dismissed unless the parent came in to pick them up, due to the tornado's. So I had to get out my double stroller and take 3 children inside.

I get in there and Payten continues to play and never acknowledges me there. It took me about 10 mins to get her out the door. Sh loved her first day and wants to go back tomorrow. She was a ittle upset about not getting to pick a prize out of the treasure chest but I explained that it started tomorrow. She looked so cute and grown up in her uniform. I am so proud of her.

Weekend Trip

2008-08-19T03:59:00.003-07:00

This past weekend we went to Charlotte to visit Scott's dad and step mom. After we arrived Friday afternoon we ate lunch then Scott and his dad headed for the golf course. I of course napped with the girls. It was a nice drive down but I slept most of the way.

On Sat. Scott & I went to Carowinds Amusement park while the grandparents took the girls to a zoo. We all had a blast. The park was packed and we were only able to ride 6 rides, 4 of them roller coasters. We had actually waited in line for one roller coaster for 2 1/2 hours. I have never stood in line that long before. At least we had a few young kids in line that made in amusing.

The girls had a blast at the zoo. It was one that you drove through half and then walked the rest plus it had a petting area. Grandparents got a lot of great pics. Teagen had one of the animals suck on her finger. That freaked her out. They had all kinds of animals sticking their heads in the car to eat the food they had. I have always wanted to go to a drive through zoo. Maybe some day we will take the girls back there so I can enjoy it also.

On Sunday we went to church and then out to lunch at a 50's style restaurant then headed home. On the way home we stopped to pick up Jazzmin ( our pug) at our friends house whom have just moved away. The have a nice little apartment till they buy a house. We had dinner with them and they gave Payten her birthday gifts while we were there.

It was a great trip. We had lots of fun but way too short like always.

This one is for you Uncle Tim- we know how you like camels!

Meet the Teacher Nite

2008-08-19T03:59:00.002-07:00

Well last night was meet the teacher at Payten's new school. She will actually have a teacher and a teacher's aid. They were both very nice and seemed to love children. I liked how they had the classroom set up and all the activities they had for the kids to do. Payten pretty much kept to herself ( which is normal for her to do when around new children). After we grilled the teacher we were getting ready to leave and Payten said "no, school day isn't over yet." She liked there very much. I am anxious to see how she does.
It is going to be very quiet and lonely around her while she is at school 5 days a week and 6 hours a day. Yes that long for Pre-K. Scott is not too happy about that but you need to start somewhere. And if it doesn't work out I can pull her and wait till next year for Kindergarten. So cross your fingers and pray that it all works out.

Friends

2008-08-19T03:59:00.001-07:00

On Sunday morning we helped our good friends move. They moved about 2 hours west of us. Her husband moved there 5-6 months ago for his new job and she stayed in their house with their 2 kids while they sold their house. It was hard for them being apart. We are really glad their family is living together again. Boy are we going to miss them. We met them when we first moved down here and they have been great friends. Last Friday we had supper at our house for their going away. It was hard seeing them move. Shelly was part of our GNO( girl's night out) and it is not going to be the same without her. We are going to miss you Shelly. We are going to miss all of you!

Coons

2008-08-19T03:59:00.000-07:00

Scott was talking with his mom on the phone the other night. They live in Ohio. Well a few months ago she decided to start feeding some strays that came around. I guess it started out as one and now there is 2 sometimes 3. Well while she was on the phone with Scott she looks outsides and what does she see? A raccoon eating the cat food. So she goes out with a broom and shoos it away. A few minutes later it comes back with friends.

They are coming here next weekend for a week and are not sure about leaving cat food out for the cats because of the coons. He told her while he was on the phone to call animal control to come and get them but she didn't. Not sure why. Its amazing what kind of animals you get around your house.

Pre-K

2008-08-17T14:10:00.002-07:00

Well in 1 week our little girl starts pre-k. I can't believe it is that time already. It's hard to believe she is almost 4 yrs old. Her birthday is 4 days after she starts school. Her pre-k program is actually through the schools here so we had to sign her up and she had to get tested for it. They told us right from the beginning what school she would be going to. Of course we went out and did school clothes shopping. We got most of it done a few weeks ago. And then last week they sent us a letter informing us that she will need uniforms. Can you believe that! They have known for months that she was going to that school and now they inform us of the uniforms. All the stores here sell the uniforms but they are not cheap. I did get a few things at consignment stores and thrift stores but I still have more to buy. I don't mind her wearing a uniform but they could have told us months ago. I still have not heard of what she will need, Supplies ect.. Or when her meet the teacher night is. They will also probably wait till the last minute. Of course we have yet to drive to the school to know where it is. I was told it is in the not too great area. But that it had a great program. I am excited but I know the day I drop her off it will be a water fall coming off my face. So cross you fingeres for us that she likes it and meets some great friends.

Sorry

2008-08-17T14:10:00.001-07:00

First I have to say sorry to all my readers for not writing in almost a month, wow I can't believe its been that long. It has been a very busy summer. Between trips, family visiting, and just doing all those summer things, it has flown by.

My mom and dad came down for a visit the last week of July and my mom decided to stay with us for a few weeks. We had a blast. With me babysitting during the day it was hard to do too many things but we did have fun. We took her to the OBX for the day last Sat. It was a perfect day. Of course she had to take the girls to Chuck E. Cheese to play and eat pizza. I am not sure who enjoys it more, her or the girls. The one thing I regret is not getting that many pics of her and the girls. I wanted so badly to get a pic of my parents with the girls but I forgot. Yesterday we took her to Washington where my dad met us and picked her up. It was hard saying bye and it has been lonely not having her here. The girls woke up this morning and came downstairs looking for Grammy. I wanted to cry.

She was such a great help while she was here. She did dishes, laundry and cleaning. Took care of the kids so I could get some much needed sleep. We didn't get to do everything I was hoping to do but there is always next time.

Thank you so much mom for everything you did. We all miss you already. We Love you!

Thank you dad for finally getting down here to visit and for meeting us to pick up mom. We really had a great visit with you and hope you will come down again. We love you too.

Camping Trip

2008-07-29T19:49:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we went to Cape Hatteras and camped in a cabin at a KOA. The cabin was a little small but it worked. It only has a double bed, bunk bed, and a small table connected to the wall. The weather was beautiful and hot. They had so much to do there. We got there Friday nite and just took a walk and settled in before bed. After the girls fell asleep we went out and sat outside on the porch swing.

Saturday Teagen had me up at 5am and then everyone else got up at 6 so after breakfast we headed for the beach at about 8. We stayed till 1. There were these 2 kids beside us who had these little nets. When the waves would come in they would just blindly scoop in the water adn they would catch little fish. That kept Payten happy and content while Teagen was in my lap taking a nap. Boy was that hot for me. After we went and ate lunch we headed for the 2 pools they had with slides. I couldn't believe both girls went down the slide into daddy's arms. We spent about 2 hours at the pool and the girls had had enough. They had a huge bounce pillow built into the ground and a water balloon sling fight set. We had fun doing those things before supper. OH and we took a train ride. Payten went around 2 times. We decided to eat supper right there at the poolside cafe. While we were waiting on our food to come out Payten fell asleep in the chair. She slep from 730 till 6 the next morning. Again after the girls were sleeping we went out and played Yatzee and Skip-O at the picnic table.

Sunday we headed for home. But on the way we stopped at the NC Aquarium. It was small but nice. Just big enough for the girls to enjoy it but not get too tired of walking. We were home at 530. It was nice being home early. Usually whenever we go somewhere we don't get home till late and then the girls have a hard time settling down for bed.

It was a great weekend trip. I think I am liking weekend trips better than week long ones.

Here are a few pics we took...

Amazed!

2008-07-19T13:34:00.001-07:00

Tonight my hubby was reading our youngest a bed time story( which was actually a counting book). Well I hear him in her room saying" very good" to her. I was not sure but figured she was repeating him( since she never does that for us). Well he comes over into P's bedroom and tells me how for every time he counted the animals at each number she would always say the next one at the end. For example, he was counting 4 dogs so when he got to the number 4 she would say 5. Well so I told her hey hunny lets count with mommy. SO I start off at 1 and she went on from there all the way to 10 by herself. I was ecstatic. I couldn't believe my ears. She has never once counted for us.
I know a lot of people are thinking wow by2 1/2 my child could do that and more. Well with P it was like that. By the time she hit that age she was counting to 15 knew her colors and shapes. But with Teagen she acts like she just doesn't care to learn but we work with her anyways. It just shocks me everytime the girls prove to us that they actually do listen and learn form all of us.

Turning 4 !

2008-07-19T13:34:00.000-07:00

Payten turns 4 in 6 weeks. I asked her where she wanted to have her party and the first place she said was "Teresa's house". See how much she loves you ,Teresa! So I said "well we can't go there it is too far away". So then she said "the pool". My response was " don't you want to have it somewhere different and special ?" She finally decided on Chuck E. Cheese. So I just got done making reservations to have it on August 30. She is going to be so happy and excited. Well so is Mommy and Daddy cause we only have to make the cake. That alone should be interesting cause we are going to make her the 3-d castle. I am glad Scott is very talented so he should be able to do most of the work.
I showed her the castle cake kit that we are going to buy and she was ecstatic. She didn't want to wait till mommy got a coupon she wanted to buy it right then and there. I can't believe they charge $22.00 for the kit. So I will keep everyone updated after the party and will make sure to take pics of the cake after we get it done.

Dentist

2008-07-15T04:38:00.003-07:00

Today was Payten's first visit to the Dentist. I could not believe how well she did. I was shocked how she opened her mouth and let them clean her teeth. Usually she gives people a hard time when they ask her to open wide. We had a great visit. They said her teeth are very healthy and she is doing a great job brushing them. The only problem the dentist foresaw was that she has an over bite so she will probably need braces at the age of 11 or 12. Of course they said the same about me when I was younger and by the time I hit 13 my over bite was gone and my teeth went straight. So we are counting our stars that this happens with her also.

4Th of July

2008-07-15T04:38:00.002-07:00

I know I am a little late blogging about the 4th. We decided to go down to Myrtle Beach for the weekend. Our friend got us a great deal on 2 nights for $100.00. You can't beat that for a holiday weekend. Or any weekend actually. So we got there and they told me there was still due $130.00. The hundred was pre paid at the time of booking. I was not Happy about this. So I called our friend and he said he would contact the lady he knew there and get it taken care of . Unfortunately she is avoiding his calls. Still you really an not complain for $230. when it should have been almost $400.

So we got there on Friday afternoon. We were very pleased with our room. A queen bed( oh what heavenly rest, our bed at home is a double) and a double bed( girls shared) also a full size kitchen. It was not Ocean Front but Ocean View.

On Friday nite we went to BareFoot Landing. They were having Fireworks there that night. We ate at this awesome wing place called Wild Wing Cafe. I never had such great wings. They were the best. So now we have a favorite place to eat when we go there. The Fireworks were great and the girls really enjoyed them. We really were hoping to watch them from on the beach but we would not have been able to see them from there. Here is a picture of the girls in their 4th of July outfits. Teagen had a pair of 4th of July flip flops but she did not like how they felt so she would not wear them.

Sat night we decided to go and walk down to the strip were a lot of the shops were. It was very busy but fun to see all the people and different vehicles driving by. We went into a few shops and then headed back to the hotel for bed.

We had a great and relaxing vacation. It was just what we all needed. What did you do for the 4th weekend?

Funny!

2008-07-15T04:38:00.001-07:00

Our dog is so picky. Her dog bowl broke about a month ago and so we had to buy her a new one. She refused to eat out of it and so we had to hand feed her for a while. Well lately she has been refusing to eat out of it again. So last nite I was up stairs and when I came down Scott was sitting with the dog beside her bowl. He started to laugh. I asked what was up and he told me how since the dog refused to eat he tried something new. He got down and tried to coax her into eating when that didn't work he put his head into the bowl and acted as if he was eating her food. When he stopped she pout her head slowly into the bowl and started to eat. I wish I had been down stairs with a camera. What a pic that would have been.

I'm Back!

2008-07-15T04:38:00.000-07:00

Oh my, I didn't realize it has been almost a month since I last blogged. We have been so busy and there is so much to write about. I guess I will start with Father's Day. We went to the Asheboro Zoo, it was about 2 hours form our house. We had a great time. Unfortunately we got there late so we had to haul our butts around to see everything. But boy was that a work out. It was not like every other zoo I had been in. The land was not flat or slightly hilly but in a mountain where you were literally climbing the mountain in some areas. My legs were so sore for about a week and I had shin splints. The girls had a blast. They talked about the animals for weeks and bugged to go back. I would love to go back in the fall after it cools a little so the animals will be more energetic. Here are a few pics...

P & T in a Polar Bear cave!

Daddy, P & T in a birds nest on the carousel

Also in the month of June we had Scott's work picnic where we won a $50.00 gift card for the outback steakhouse. Can't wait to use that. We were going to use it that nite but we were so full from all the food at the picnic we went to Chili's instead and had appetizers, while our good friend Shelly watched the girls for us.

Also our best friends from PA came down on the 27th and stayed till July 3. It was a great week. We had so much fun and the kids were so happy to see each other. We did plenty of swimming, shopping and just hanging out. We drove over to the Outer Banks and went to Nags Head Beach for the day. I am so glad it was a great day. We were a little worried about the smoke from the Forrest fire that is burning not far from there. We ended that trip by shopping at the outlets.

On July 7th I start to babysit a 3 1/2 month old. I have been trying to find a babysitting job for a while now. God decided it was time for me to have this job. IT was supposed to be for 2 weeks. After the first day her mom called and asked if I would mind doing it permanently. She is such a good baby and the girls just love to help me take care of her. It is nice having a extra income while being able to stay home with my girls.

On July 25 we leave to go camping at a KOA in Cape Hatteras. We are so looking forward to it.

New Carpet, AGAIN!!

2008-06-22T12:35:00.000-07:00

Last August we had to get new carpet installed in our apartment due to a strong cat urine smell. We know it was not made by our cat and it came out after our carpet got wet by a leak in the chimney. So instead of just replaceing the carpet in the one small area they replaced the whole downstairs.
Well this afternoon after church I went in to sit on the couch and relax for a few minutes while Scott ate lunch( then I was supposed to cut his hair) and I noticed tha tthe carpet was soaked. I first thought the girls spilled something or someone had a accident there. I smelled it and it smelled musty. I then mentioned it to Scott and he said that Payten told him yesterday that sissy spilled her juice. SO he cleaned it but it should not be soaked. We then started to investigate. We found the carpet completely soaked from behind it by the wall out about 2-3 feet. So we called the maintenance man and he didn't answer his phone so we investigated further. We found that there was no water under the fridge but there was some along the wall under the oven.
So I saw that the maintenance man was home so I walked down and he was home so I filled him in. He then came up and we found that the line to the ice machine had a leak. It must have been leaking for a while. I did notice a week or 2 ago that the ice machine was not working as it used to. I mentioned it to Scott and we both just blew it off. So now they have to come in here tomorrow and replace the entire carpet in the living room. So of course some of our plans for this afternoon got cancelled.
Hopefully I will get back into a routine and blog more often. I want to share with all of you our Father's Day.

Forrest Fire

2008-06-13T13:14:00.000-07:00

As many of you have already heard, just East of Rocky Mount around the Pocosin Lakes there is a Forrest fire that started probably about a week ago after lightening struck ground. They are still fighting it. Well for the last few days the wind changed directions to the west and is pushing the smoke our way. Yesterday my hubby called and told me that I probably wouldn't want to take the kids out due to the smoke and smell. At his work, about 7 miles South of our house, the building was filled with the smoke. But here at our house you couldn't even smell it. SO our friends came over and we had a pool party.
Then this morning they were to come over again at 10. I took my dog out to go potty at 9 and the air was filled with smoke. You would have thought that the fire was closer than a few hundred miles. So we had to cancel our pool get together and meet at McDonald's instead. The kids always love playing there. They say that tonight should be the last for now that the smoke will be blowing our way. I sure hope so.

Eating

2008-06-05T17:14:00.002-07:00

Well we finally found a trick to getting our youngest to eat most of the times. Tonight we were eating ravioli's and T was doing pretty good eating in the beginning and then about half way done she stopped eating. So mommy and daddy took turns putting a ravioli on her fork and telling her not to eat it cause it was ours to eat and then she would eat it. Sissy started to get jealous and stopped eating so we had to start doing that with her. They both ate all of their food and made us very happy.

Weekend

2008-06-05T17:14:00.001-07:00

Hope you all had a great weekend! Ours started out great. ON Sat. morning we went to the pool till 1 then had nap time. We were all exhausted from swimming that we all took a nap. After nap we had a friends day at church which included hot dogs, snow cones & Starbucks coffee. The had a jumpy for the kids and played volleyball and basketball for the adults. Afterwards the had their sat night service "unfiltered". It was a great service and we met a new couple. The kids had fun and loved the snow cones.
Sunday at 11 we went to Chuck E Cheese for lunch. We ate pizza and then played games. Payten wanted to play basketball so daddy put her up on the machine and was holding onto her so she could shot hoops. Well Teagen saw her and had to do it also. Since there was a ball in the holding area of the game I lifted her up and let her stand on the machine also so she could throw that one ball. Well she ended up falling , even though mommy was holding her and hit her mouth and nose. We rushed her out to the ER since she had lots of blood coming out her nose and mouth and they were pretty swollen. Thank God there was no real damage done to her teeth. They said there might be a small fracture to her nose. They didn't want to run a a-scan cause the found that people who have them done are at a 2% chance of having cancer.( Yeah that's nice to know) So today we had to have our first visit to the dentist. The took an x-ray and found no damage done under the gums. Her one tooth does look darker than the others so he said to keep an eye on it . It might turn black and fall out. Thank God they are baby teeth. We go back next Monday for a follow up to check on the teeth. So later Sunday evening we had a picnic with our friends and their life group from church. We were not going to take Teagen but she was doing better and we figured we would just keep a very close eye on her and not let her play too rough. We had a great time and met lots of new people.
I hope all of you had a much better weekend. It has been in the 100's for the last 2 days and hopefully tomorrow should be the last day in the 100's then back to the 90's. I can't believe it is so hot so soon. Hopefully not a look into what the summer is going to be like.
Have a great week!

Hot

2008-06-05T17:14:00.000-07:00

It has been so hot here. Today it was 99 degrees and humid. We spent all morning in the pool then went back after supper. We plan on going back tomorrow morning with our friends. It is nice that is so warm cause now the pool water is warm also. At 6:10 pm I looked at the thermometer and it said 97. Right now it is still warm out but not so humid. They say it is supposed to continue to be 99 till Sunday and then Monday down to " a cool" 92. I hope that this is not a look into what the summer is going to be like. Hope it warms up in PA for all of you so you can finally enjoy the pools. Well I guess I gotta go and help put the little ones to bed. Have a great weekend everyone!

Love

2008-05-29T14:00:00.001-07:00

Tonight when my hubby was putting our oldest(31/2 yr old) to bed he said to her " can you give me a hug" and her response was " YOU give ME a hug". He told me wow my 3 yr old woke me up.
Sometimes we as parents want our children to show us that they love us, we don't really realize that our children need us to show them our love at all times. We shouldn't expect them to show us love. I know there are times when I start to feel bad cause my kids aren't giving me hugs and kisses more often than I want. But I need to remember that I know that my kids love me but they need me to show them my unconditional love all the time. We do cherish those times when our children come up to us and give us an extra big hug and kiss out of the blue and say " I love you".

Braswell Library- Summer Reading Party

2008-05-29T14:00:00.000-07:00

Join Us for the
SUMMER READING KICK-OFF PARTY
Wednesday, June 11th, from 10 AM - 2 PM!
Braswell Library, Rocky Mount , NC

THE SIGN-UP FOR SUMMER READING BEGINS WEDNESDAY, JUNE 11th! Come to the Youth Services Department'sSUMMER READING KICK-OFF PARTYand register for"CATCH THE READING BUG" The 2008 Summer Reading Program The Summer Reading Kick-Off Party will be held from 10am-2pm on Wednesday, June 11th on the back lawn and pavilion area of the library. All ages welcome! Come see Rocky the Reading Rabbit, Ronald McDonald, Muddy the Mudcat, the Chick-Fil-A Cow, Gardner's Barbecue, Sparky the Firedog, McGruff the Crime dog, Sensory Safari Mobile Exhibit, a stilt walker, a magician, and Bubbles the Clown. Enjoy snacks, games, prizes, and lots more ! SUMMER READING PROGRAM PARTICIPATION CATEGORIESREAD-TO-ME GROUP: This group has parents, caregivers or older siblings read to them - children choose a prize book after they have had thirty(30) books read to them

ELEMENTARY READER GROUP: These children read on their own - when they have read fifteen (15) books they may choose a prize bookYOUNG ADULT GROUP: YA's read either young adult level books or adult books - when they have read ten(10) books they may choose a prize book
For more information, contact the
Youth Services Department at 252-442-1951

LA Police Gear

2008-05-28T07:44:00.000-07:00

There is a website for all your police gear. This website offers a variety of items to purchase including flashlights, under armour, Gulco holsters, footwear & boots, Tactical accessories and Blackhawk products group.
tactical belt go here and check it out.
Right now if you purchase 2 5.11 tactical clothing items you receive FREE SHIPPING, FREE HAT, AND FREE RETURN SHIPPING. Also if you purchase $125.00 of 5.11 items you receive a FREE TRAVEL MUG.

This is a payperpost.

Memorial Day!!

2008-05-26T18:52:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone had a great and fun filled Memorial Day weekend. We had a great weekend. Scott's dad and Karen came to spend the weekend with us. On Saturday it was raining in the morning so we had to redo our plans, so in the afternoon the men went and played golf while us women took a nap and prepared for an afternoon cookout. I also babysat our good friends 3 kids while they went out to celebrate their 9 yrs of marriage. Congratulations Elizabeth and John!

We went to the pool swam and grilled then had a picnic right there.

On Sunday we went to church came back to our house ate lunch and then we took Scott's dad and Karen to City Lake Park to walk and feed the ducks. It was so cute since a lot of the ducks and geese had their babies with them. The parents left to head home from their and we came back home for nap time. After that we chilled and then took the kids to Sonics to play. We then headed to Harris Teeter to get our 5 for $5 Capri drinks.

Monday we had a blast at the pool with our 2 set of friends and their families. The men grilled bbq chicken and us women layed out and watched the kids swim. We had a great lunch, bbq chicken, mac salad, bacon ranch potatoes, chips and of course desert, a flag cake, rice crispy treats and Yogurt pie. It was delicious!! After we all got in the pool and layed out. You could not ask for a better day to spend with great friends!! We love you guys!

Storm

2008-05-21T13:46:00.001-07:00

We had a nice big ole storm here yesterday. I have been in many thunderstorms but this was completely different. We knew it was coming by the black skys but we were not ready for the sky to open up and just dump rain and hail on us. We had hail the size of quarters and under. It was hitting the windows so hard my girls were crying and I was even shook up. It looked like we had about an inch of snow on the ground at the end of it. Then the thunder and lightning was horrible. I seeriously was ready for a Tornado. Thank God that didn't happen. Well I got a few pics to share.

Sleep without children!

2008-05-21T13:46:00.000-07:00

I do not understand our children. First we went through them not sleeping and waking all night long crying, we got that taken care of. Then it was them coming over and crawling in our double bed with us. I went for about 2 weeks either sleeping in their bedrooms or on the floor in our room with them, plus I was lucky to get about 4 hours of sleep each night. After 2 weeks they finally got on a schedule and stayed in their beds all night. Now we are back to them crawling in bed with us. My hubby is cranky cause he is not getting enough sleep and is so tired. I get cranky because I get less sleep and then have to deal with cranky kids all day cause they are not getting enough sleep. I know I am going to have to go for another 2 weeks with back pain and no sleep to get them back in their beds. Anyone have any other ideas?

Wedding

2008-05-13T20:13:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we went home to PA for a wedding. My cousin got married and Payten and I were in it. It was a beautiful wedding. We all had a great time. At the rehearsal Payten refused to go down the aisle without holding my hand. I expected her to be that way cause of her being so shy. So after the rehearsal we went to the fire hall and decorated and had pizza. It was fun. So then the next day I went and got my hair done up at 9 and dropped P off at my cousins to do her hair. My hair was absolutely pathetic. I went back to pick up P and had my cousin fix my hair. P's hair was beautiful. After on our way to go back to my mom's to put on make-up before heading to the church to get dressed I told P that if she did a good job and walked down the aisle ahead of me and dropped the rose pedals that we would take her to the store and get her a new barbie. Of course then she says" and some candy" so I of course agreed. I know some of you are like oh my she bribed her child. But I wanted this wedding to go like my cousin wished. She has been wanting to get married and start a family for so long and so she deserved it. Anyways it worked. She walked down throwing flower pedals and didn't look once to see if I was behind her. Then when she got up in front of the pastor she turned the basket upside down and hit the bottom to get the rest of the pedals out. Boy was that a laugh. So the wedding went great and so did the pics.

The reception was a blast. They had cold meat sandwiches, chicken wings, mac salad, shrimp salad, veggie trays, baked beans and pistachio salad. It was a pretty good meal even if different than a normal Northern reception. We danced all night and of course drank. We had to be cleaned up and out by 9pm. So we took the girls back to my mom's house and got them ready for bed and then we headed out to a bar to meet up with the bride and groom and few others from the wedding. It was a fun and relaxing night.

The trip up and back from PA went good but rainy. We headed up on Thursday and came home Monday night. It was a great visit but definitely too short. I was glad to see some relatives from NY that I haven't seen in ages and got to see my cousins new baby who is only a month old. So here are a few pics from the wedding.

YMCA

2008-04-29T09:47:00.001-07:00

Last week my girlfriend E told me about our YMCA having a Spring Carnival for 3-5 yr olds. So I thought that it would be a fun few hours for P and her friend H. So I dropped them off at 10 and had a few hours for just Teagen & I. I had got some cleaning done. What good use of a few hours, cleaning! The girls had a great time. When I picked them up they had a bunch of things to bring home...a colored hat, snack bag, balloon people, balloon, and they planted a flower. They are having another one next month so we are looking forward to going again.

Pre-K

2008-04-29T09:47:00.000-07:00

Well I finally got the call this morning, Payten has been accepted into the Pre-K class this fall. Scott and I have decided on doing the 3 day instead of the 5 day. We are not quite sure she is ready for a full 5 day all day class. I am excited that she will be going. I hope this will help her shyness a great deal. SH e never wants to talk to anyone she hasn't been around for a long time.

Also a update on her appointments. Today was the last appt with the phyciatrist. She suggest on her taking a all natural sleep pill- Melatonin. We are going to give it a try for a few days and see how it helps her with her sleeping. I feel alot better with her taking something all natural than the other meds. At least also with this med it dissolves in her drink and has no taste, so no more forcing her to take a liquid med that tastes nasty even with the flavoring in it. So wish us luck and keep her in your prayers.

Skin MD Natural

2008-04-22T11:43:00.001-07:00

I got a sample of this new lotion called skin MD in the mail. I tried it and was impressed. I think the other lotion Gloves in a bottle works much better. So here is a little info on Skin MD. This lotion is a shielding lotion. It binds to the skin so that the environment is not allowed to penetrate the skin. It forms a shield against products that harm the skin such as, cleansers, acids and everyday solvents that we come in contact with. Skin MD contains natural ingredients such as Aloe Vera, Arnica Montana, Chamomile, and Vitamin E.
This lotion is used by many different doctors and encouraged by many dermatologist to treat dry skin, eczema and many other skin problems due to drying or sensitive skin. So go to their web site, learn more and give it a try.

Weekend Trip

2008-04-15T19:01:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we went into Charlotte to see Scott's dad and step mom. It had been 2 1/2 years since we were to their house last. Payten was only 11 months and I was pregnant with Teagen. Too long of a time in between visiting at their house. Well so we got there Friday night and left on Sunday night.

On Sat. we pretty much just lounged around all day till about 330 then we left to catch the new train uptown for supper. The girls have never been on a real train and so it was a great surprise to them. They were so thrilled when they saw the train. Of course they both had to sit by a window. It was a nice ride through town. We went to a burger joint for supper, where the girls sat by a huge window and watched the trains go by while they ate. That was enough to keep them occupied while they ate. After we caught the train back to the station to pick up the van to head home. Poor Teagen was so upset that we had to get off the train that I had to carry her kicking and screaming off and too the van. I felt so bad and everyone thought it was so sweet. A little embarrassing when you get off with a screaming child in front of a police officer, who just stood there watching.Well she finally calmed down when we got back to the van.

This is the train

Here the girls are with their Pap in the train ready for the ride.

Girls and their Mommy waiting for the train to arrive to go back home.

Sunday we went to church and then back to the house for lunch. After us ladies left the kids with the men and we went shopping for about an hour. We left them at about 5 to come back to our house. It was a great visit and a nice little get away.

Attitude

2008-04-09T06:17:00.000-07:00

Attitude

There once was a woman who woke up one morning, looked in the mirror, and noticed she had only three hairs on her head.Well," she said, "I think I'll braid my hair today?" So she did and she hada wonderful day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and saw that she had only two hairs on her head. "H-M-M," she said, "I think I 'll part my hair down the middle today?" So she did and she had a grand day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that she had only one hair on her head. "Well," she said, "today I'm going to wear my hair in a pony tail." So she did and she had a fun, fun day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that there wasn't a single hair on her head. "YEA!" she exclaimed, "I don't have to fix my hair today!"

Attitude is everything. Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.Live simply, Love generously,Care deeply,Speak kindly.......Leave the rest to God

Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass...It's about learning to dance in the rain.

Night Out

2008-04-03T12:40:00.003-07:00

Friday night our church was having a "Parents Night Out". You could drop your kids off from 6-10pm and the cost for 2 children was$15.00. Of course we had to take advantage. So our neighbors and us dropped our kids off at 7pm and then we headed out for supper. We all decided to go to Chili's. The were so busy of course with it being a Friday night. So it took us 2 hours at dinner. Then we thought we would head over to this place called "Putt Putt" it was an indoor mini golf and games. Well we sent the guys in to check it out cause from looking in it looked like a big game room for kids and we were not all that impressed. So they came back out and my hubby asks" Do you think the outdoor mini golf is open yet?" I wasn't exactly sure but it has been pretty nice out so we drove over and sure enough they were open. Well the guys immediately spot the batting cages. SO we ended up watching them for about 10 mins and then we headed over to the golf. We were at the 10th hole when I checked my phone( again for about the 100th time) and saw that it was 9:40. SO of course we had to pick up the kids at 10. So we flew throughout the rest of the 8 holes. Then the neighbor guy heads to the batting cages. He just had to see how fast the balls went in the 65 MPH cage. So we get to the kids with 3 mins to spare. There sure were alot of kids left. Well the kids had a great time and so did we. They are planning another one for the first Friday in May. So we have to gather all our Friends this time and have another blast.

So Proud

2008-04-03T12:40:00.002-07:00

I am so proud of my Payten right now. She came to me and said she had to go potty. We are trying to get her to go on her own. So I told her to go and get on the potty. After about 2 mins she start to whine a little so I went in cause I figured she was done. Well when I walked in she spread her legs for me to see in the potty. There was poop in it. She told me she had to go and went on her own and pooped. She has never done that. Usually we have to force her on the potty after we find a little in her pants and then she screams and cry till she goes. I am so happy. I hope this is a breaking point for her. I am so glad having H here during the day is encouraging her to do things like a big girl.

Hair cut

2008-04-03T12:40:00.001-07:00

Well for about 5 days hubby was begging me to cut his hair and every night something came up, so I was unable to do it. Finally Sunday night I was able to cut it. I was tired and not in the mood to be cutting hair but I did it anyways. Well I cut it alittle shorter cause of it getting warmer out and he said to. Well when he went to look at it he was not happy. You see he has a really bad cowlick in the back of his head , right in the middle. So if his hair is too short it sticks up. Well when you cut everything else short you can't leave just that section long. SO When I cut it short it stuck up all over. He said to me " I am tired of looking like a 2yr old " So I said go sit back down I am buzzing it. He just looked at me. Well the way I look at it, IF you don't want to pay and get it done the Be happy with the way I cut it. Something is always wrong with it or he is trying to explain to me how to cut it.( I have been doing this for him now for over 6 years) So he sat down and I buzzed all of it and gave him really short bangs to match it. He was shocked. He said" I look just like my dad" which was true. His dad has a similar hair cut. He told some of the guys he works with that he lost a bet. hahaha. I guess he better not complain too much again.

CONGRATULATIONS!!

2008-03-28T20:05:00.003-07:00

I want to say congrats to my cousins Tony and Kristina up in PA with the birth of their 2nd son Antonio. He was born this morning. He was 21 1/2 inches long and weighed 9 lbs and 4 oz. I bet Kristina was glad they decided to do a C-section. She was schedule for one on April 2nd but I guess the little guy didn't want to wait that long. Hope you guys are ready for the sleepless nights once again! I bet Nikko is going to love him to death. Congratulations you guys!

Free Stuff

2008-03-28T20:05:00.002-07:00

I keep wanting to blog about this other blog that I visit almost daily. She lists where you can go everyday to sign up to receive free items and coupons. Just click here Frugalfinds to go to her blog and check things out. It sure is addicting but lots of fun. I always get at least 2-3 free items in my mail box each week. It is like getting presents and wandering what you are going to get this week. So head over there and check her site out.

Spring or Summer?

2008-03-28T20:05:00.000-07:00

I am trying to guess if we are going to have Spring or go right into Summer. It was 86 degrees today. It was so nice but HOT. It was warming up slowly all week starting with the mid 70s. It is now 11:05pm and 79 degrees in my dining room. I am so hot I am about to step outside to try and cool off. I do have to say it will be nice to see a low electric bill this month since we have not been running our heat and have been hanging out our clothes. I only wish the pool had water in it right now.
Babysitting is going great. H spends most of her time here even when her parents are home. I thought she would get enough of us being here all day. Payten loves to play with her, especially outside. The 3 girls sure keep me busy. That's why I have not been very good at keeping up my blogging. ( Sorry mom)
Today we went to the hot tub with my friend E and her son. The girls loved it. Poor Z didn't want to get in cause it was too hot for him. He wanted to get into the pool but no water in it yet. After we ate lunch and had a nap. Tonight we went with the family that I babysit for to Sonics for supper and the kids played. When we got there Scott says"look who else is here", It was E and her family. The kids all played together and had a great time. Eventually we all got started into a volleyball game. Unfortunately we did not get to enjoy ourselves for long since Teagen had to be held and Payten was flipping out over the bugs. She got bit last summer by fire ants and had over 50 bites on her feet and ankles, now she is scarred to death of all bugs. I feel so bad for her. I tried to explain that the bugs that were out tonight were not going to hurt her but I just could not beat the fear out. Hopefully she will out grow it or it is going to be a long summer spent mostly indoors. So we brought the girls home and put them to bed. And now Scott is watching a scary movie with J( our new neighbor) in the living room. Since I hate scary movies I am in a different room on the puter. Trying to catch up on alot of things I have missed this week. Well hopefully everyone out there has a great weekend!

Easter

2008-03-25T10:24:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone had a great Easter! Even though our plans got cancelled the night before we were to leave for Charlotte, the weekend turned out great. The girls were upset for a little bit about not going to see Pap & Nanna but then they were OK. We spent Friday evening with our new neighbors. The men hit it off great( which was a relief to us women). We sat up till 2:30am playing Texas Hold'em. First time I ever played and I did pretty good, if I don't say so myself. Saturday morning we took the kids to an Easter egg hunt at a local park. It was free and included free carousal, train and lady bug rides and the even had a tent set up for the kids to make their own hats. By the time we got to that tent they were all out. The kids had a blast. The most important thing to them that day was riding the train. We then cooked out with the neighbors and played outside. Sunday morning we went to church and had Dinner with the neighbors at 6 and then headed back to church for their " Night at the Museum" Living History play. Boy was that ever good. We headed home and went to bed. The girls also of course got their Easter baskets. They were all about the candy and books. Who cares about clothes, right? So here are also some pics of the weekend!

This is of the girls after we got home from church.

Well hope everyone has a great week!

Babysitting

2008-03-18T18:41:00.000-07:00

I started babysitting our new neighbors little girl. She is 2 months older than Payten. She is so sweet. Like all 3 yr olds she loves to tease all of us. She is so polite and always does as I ask her to do. The girls are loving having someone over at the house everyday to play with.
Today I took them to McDonald's to play along with our friends and their kids. I had 3 people ask me if Payten and her were twins. I never really took notice how much the 2 girls look alike. The are not even relatives. One gentleman was completely amazed at how much they look alike and are not even related.
The last 2 days I have had to drag all the girls with me to doctor appts for Payten. The girls were so bored but listened very well to me. So we are all excited to be able to stay at home and play for the rest of the week. Tomorrow it is supposed to be close to 77 degrees out so I am hoping to play outside most of the morning.
I am so glad to finally be doing what I have been wanting to do for a very long time. I am able to watch kids in my home, teach them and give them a home daycare with attention that they need. Also I get to earn my own income to help out with expenses, now I feel like I am contributing to the income. Soon I will be able to be able to go shopping with out feeling guilty.

Local Mortgage Loans & Rates in Your State

2008-03-16T14:46:00.001-07:00

Mortgage refinancing and second mortgages have become popular as the market tightens and interest rates become volatile. PersonalHomeLoanMortgages.com provides consumers with a comprehensive directory of mortgage lenders and real estate professional throughout the country along with expert advice and up-to-date industry news. Here is a site where you can find out all about the Mortgage loans and rates in your area.
After you put in the web page click the back slash and type in your state. click here to go to their main web site
“Mortgage Refinance Rates”
And for those of you who live in North Carolina just click here to go to that site.
homeloanmortgages.com/northcarolina

This is a sponsored payperpost

Back Home!

2008-03-16T14:46:00.000-07:00

Well we got home last night at 12:30 am. It was a long trip back.It started raining in the beginning of Virginia and didn't stop the whole way home. We were exhausted when we got home.
We had a great week in PA. We got to see a lot of people. The girls had a blast with the family. On Sunday we went to our best friends girls b-day party then back to my parents for supper with the whole family. The rest of the week was spending time with my parents and other family and friends. The time went by too fast. I thought I was going to be prepared for the cold but I was still in shock. Going from 70 degree weather to 40's. It was windy also so that made it worse. Friday it was pretty nice out so when we went to my friends house and played outside for a few hours.
When I came home my hubby had the house all cleaned and the laundry all done. He even had a bouquet of flowers and a new book. He is so sweet and such a great husband. He gets extra points for all he has done.
Now on Friday we leave for Charlotte for Easter with the in laws. So I hope you all have a great week.

What a day!

2008-03-12T19:56:00.000-07:00

Ohhhh today was a doozie. We got up at 830 and started to get around to go with my BF to the mall. It took me forever to get the girls to cooperate and get dressed. Then all they wanted to do was play. My oldest informed me before we left the house that she did not want to go shopping. I should have seen it all coming from there. They gave me a rough day. Between screaming, crying, not listening, and picking on each other, I can not take much more. I really feel for single mother's. Even though they usually work and are not with their children 24/7, I now know what it is like not having a partner right there helping you. I am here with my family but I am the one caring for the kids and in charge most of the time. I decided that tomorrow I am taking a few hours to myself and going to walmart to pick up a few things and to drop off a baby gift to my cousin. I can not take another 2 days without some timeout for myself.
I can not believe tomorrow is Thursday. It's hard to believe in 2 days we'll be headin for home. Then it will be another 2 months before I am home again. It is way too long in between but what can you do. I thought I could try and talk my mom into coming in April and spending a week with us but they just moved her dad into their home and so she is taking care of him and possible moving her mother here also in the next week or so. She is one amazing busy women. Well I gotta get to bed. It was a long, busy, stressful day. Good night everyone.

Here in PA

2008-03-09T13:46:00.000-07:00

Well I finally arrived at my parents house at 11 pm. We met friends of ours in Virgina at the Potomac Mill Mall. Boy was that a huge mall and outlets. They had some awesome sales going on. We went to The Children's Place outlet, I got 6 shirts and a pair of fleece pants for $14.oo. They had all of their winter clothes for 3.99and under. I almost couldn't stop shopping.
While we were shopping our oldest started to look and act like she was not feeling so good. She refused to eat and went to sleep on Mommies lap instead. When she woke I realized she was running a fever. Of course she is on of those who refused to take meds so you have to fight with them to take it. Well we couldn't exactly fight with her in the middle of the mall so we waited till we got to the car. I felt so bad for her. The poor girl was so sick. When we finally left the mall and headed for PA she slept almost for 3 hours. Which is not like her to do in the car anymore. We'll by the time we got to the end of our trip she was feeling alittle better. Thank God she is feeling much better today.
I on the other hand should of know better to come here in March. Boy is it cold here and windy. It is only in the 30's with 40 mph winds. I miss my 70 degree weather. Today we went to a birhtday party and in a little bit our family is coming over for supper and to visit with us. I am right now trying to get our littlest one to nap but not going so great. Shehad a 20 min nap on the way here from the party. Well I will keep everyone updated on our trip. I really have no set plans, just to visit, relax and help my mom reorganize her office. Have a great week.

Our trip

2008-03-07T06:03:00.001-08:00

Well we leave tomorrow for PA. It is just me and the girls. Poor daddy has to stay home and work. WE will be gone for a week. We are all excited to be going home. We don't have too many plans, just to visit and enjoy ourselves. Scott is going to drive us half way and our best friends are going to pick us up and take us the rest of the way. We are meeting at Potomac Mills mall in Virgina. We will do some shopping and have lunch with Scott before we head to PA. Payten has been bugging all week to " go now" to Grammy's house and to see all her friends. It seems like it took forever for this week to come. I haven't seen my family since Christmas so i am very excited. I will be sure to blog while I am in PA. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Payten's appointments

2008-03-07T06:03:00.000-08:00

Well I have not been very good at keeping everyone updated on here. It has been a busy week with 3 doctor appointments and getting ready for our week stay up in PA with our family. So let me update you on Payten and her appointments.
On Monday she had her Dial 3 testing for Pe-K. OF course she refused to talk to the lady giving the test, so she was unable to completely test her on what she knows. That can be good, since they take the kids first with the lowest scores and her score was only 5%. We know she knows alot more than that. So in 3 weeks we will find out if she gets accepted. Then on Monday she also had her appointment with a physciatrist. She played while I did all the talking. The lady was very nice and I really liked her. She thinks Payten is having night terrors more than anything so she prescribed a med for her to take before bed to help keep the night terrors away. It has been fun trying to get her to take the meds but it does seem to help her sleep all night. She tries this for a month then we go back. Next on Tuesday we had the appointment with the ear, nose, throat doct. he was confused at why they sent her to him since her sleep apnea numbers were very low. So he found nothing wrong with her tonsils so he does not want to remove them. Thank God! But I am glade we went there since he did discover that her r-r numbers on her cardio form the sleep study was too far apart for her age. So on the 18th it is off to a pediatric cardiologists. They just called this morning and I have to take her on the 17th for an EKG. What fun!
I feel so bad for her to have to go through all this at such an early age. But if there is something wrong I would rather find out now and get it fixed. She is doing fine with all these appointments and tests. I think she likes it since she gets spoiled by all the docs. Well that is the latest update on her.

Sleeping update

2008-03-01T18:52:00.000-08:00

Well the girls are still in their own rooms. We decided 2 weeks ago not to turn on their night lights to see how they would do. The first week it was rough on them and they didn't like not having the lights on. Now they are fine with it and even complain that we leave the hall light on till they go to sleep. They have been taking turns getting up every night. It's like they don't want me to get used to sleeping all night again. On Wednesday night they both slept all night till 6:15 am then crawled in bed with me till 8. The Thursday it was Teagen's turn to get up. Only one time, thank God, for bout 10 mins. I got her a drink and then put her right back in her bed then I crawled in mine. Then no one got up till 7:20. Last night I don't know what happened. We woke up at 8 with both girls in bed with us. Neither of us remember them coming over.
It's funny how my body was so used to only getting so much sleep and now that I am getting more sleep I wake up still very tired. My body is not liking going through this change constantly. But I am hoping that this continues and eventually get back to sleeping all night.

Marriage

2008-02-27T12:50:00.001-08:00

Wednesday night my hubby and I went to a connection class at church. It was on marriage. This was the first class we ever went to. The girls went into their own classes while we were in ours. It was very interesting. The had a couple talk about their marriage of 31 years then they showed a video on a person doing a marriage seminar at another church. It was very interesting. Boy did the video have everyone laughing throughout it. He talked about how in your marriage God comes first, then each other, then children, and then family. That is when I realized where my mistake is. I am always putting our children before my spouse. I know in a lot of instances I have to but not all the time. So that is something I need to work on. Also I have to realize that during the day when hubby is working the kids get my attention all day so then when hubby gets home from work I need to give him a lot of attention also. I always told hubby that I felt he should put the kids before me but he doesn't always. It gave us a lot of insight on our marriage, even though we have been married for almost 9 years. It never hurts to get others advice or see their ways.
You never realize before marriage how much work you really need to put into marriage to make it work. I would have never thought of it when I was single. I always thought hey you fall in love, get married and live happily ever after and everything always fell into place. I know my parents tried to drill it into me about how hard you have to work at marriage to make it work most of the time. But as an 18 yr old, I knew it all or most of it. I am so glad my parents raised me the way they did. They taught me to never give up and work at things till they are right. Also to fight for what you believe in. I know that without their constant love and showing me the right directions in life I would never be where I am today. Thank you Dad and Mom. I love you!
So if you are having a rough time in your marriage DON"T GIVE UP. Keep working at it. Look to God and family for support. It will all work out in the end. And if it comes down to it then see a counselor. You are not a failer if you go in that direction, whether you are man or woman. You are not weak either if that is the help you need to help make it work and get over the bad bumps in the road. When you get married you go from 2 to 1. Even though you are still individuals. As God says , do not let man separate that as I have joined together as one.

Pre-K

2008-02-27T12:50:00.000-08:00

I went to our MOPS group yesterday and we had a guest speaker. She is coordinator for PAT- Parents as Teachers. This is a program supported by the Schools here and NC smart start. She gave us so much information it was overwhelming. I was actually very excited to learn about these programs they offer. And they are all FREE. They have these playgroups where you drop your child off for an hour or two( can't remember how long exactly) and all they ask is that the parent stay and play one day a month. This is a learning play group for all ages 2-5 years old. i believe for Teagen's age it will only be 1 day a week and Payten would be 3 days a week.
Also for 4 year old they have a Pre-K that is offered at different locations, most in a school. That is for 6 1/2 hours a day. you have to fill out an application. Which I have almost finished. Its scary thinking that in a year and a half Payten starts School. I feel she will be ready to start when she is 5 but in NC you don't have to start your child till they are 7. I really love the idea of Payten being able to go to pre-k for free. Most pre-k here are only a few days a week for 3 hours and cost like $125 or more a month.
So now we have to return the application and then Payten will be tested and then we will see if she gets accepted or not. If not then I will enroll her in the playgroup. Cross your fingers that she gets in. I would like for her to have this opportunity. She just thrives on learning. Also to better prepare her for kindergarten.

Paintball

2008-02-26T10:39:00.000-08:00

Here is an awesome site that you can order all your paintball items. The store is called Ultimate Paintball. They sell Small Parts, Dye, Empire & Draxxus paintball gear. Also they have many different paintball packages, upgrades for Tippmann, Ion, Spyder & Proto Rail. You can also find to buy- masks, hoppers, barrels, air systems, harnesses, tactical vests, playing apparel, tubes, gun cases, sights, paintballs, cleaners & oils. Their best selling guns are Tippmann A-5, Tippmann 98 custom, Small Parts Ion, and Spyder Pilot ACS. spyder vs3
The great thing is that any order over $99 they will ship UPS for free in the US. So if you love to paintball and either need the equipment or even need to upgrade go visit their site for all your paintball needs.
I have never played paintball but my brother and all his friends did and they loved to play. I wish I had the opportunity to play cause it truly seems like fun. Here is their website so you can go and get what you need.
paintball

This sponsored by payperpost.

Fun & Learning

2008-02-20T06:35:00.006-08:00

Here is something that my brother and I used to do all the time when we were kids. It is called the rubber egg. Here is what you'll need....
Eggs
viniger
glass

Fill the glass half way with viniger. Now place the egg in it. Just a plain egg. Wait for 10 days and when you take the egg out of the viniger the egg with be rubber. This is completely true. My brother and I would try everything to break the rubber eggs and could never accomplish that. you can throw them and drop them and they will survive it. It was always cool watching them transform into rubber. Give a try and then leave me a comment on how well it worked and what you thought of it.

Payten's Sleep study

2008-02-20T06:35:00.005-08:00

Yes I finally got the results, after I called the doctors office. They actually did not have th results so they had to call the specialist and have them faxed over to them. Well it is not what I wanted to hear. She has a mild sleep apnea. That is when their breathing is interrupted while they are sleeping. It can be caused by a few different things. Our next step is to take her to see a ear,throat,nose specialist. Hopefully it will end up being her tonsals or adnoids being in larged. They can be fixed with surgery. I will definitely keep you all updated. I hope they figure something out soon. I don't know how much longer mommy and daddy can keep on getting a few hours of sleep a night. I know I am going to head up to bed very shortly. I had a hard time staying awake all day. Hope everyone has a great weekend.

As for all you people in PA, play alot in the snow for me. I am missing it. Hoping there will be some when I go home in 2 weeks with the girls.

Trip to BAM!

2008-02-20T06:35:00.004-08:00

Today we went with E and her boys to Books A Million. I never knew it till she told me but they have an area in the kids section with a Thomas the train track, you know the really big one always set up in Toys R Us, with chairs, coffee tables and of course books all around you. i was going to take the girls to McDonalds to play but when E told me about this I thought better yet. My girls just love to sit and have books read to them.
So we get there and P goes straight for the train set and T straight for the Sesame street stuffed toys. I went and got a Mocha and a book to read while they played. Of course as soon as I sit down both girls are bring books over to me to read to them. We had a great time. I think I must of read about 10 books to them and only part of my book. Which was on parenting. I thought I could get some ideas about them staying in bed all nite. No luck.
After we got done reading we looked around a bit then headed out to go to The Children's Place. I had gotten 2 coupons in the mail for 15% off so I was ready to go shopping. I found jeans with sparkles on them for each girl at $7.99 each and then socks for $.99. I got 2 pair of jeans and 2 pair of socks for $16.30. Boy was I excited. Now on my receipt I can fill out a survey and go back and get 30% off my next purchase. I think I will wait a little bit till they put more items on sale. How I love sales.
After we went ot the food court and got pizza for lunch. Pizza was 1.85 per slice and these where the biggest slices of pizza I have ever gotten from anywhere. One slice could have fed both girls and myself. So it was a very relaxing morning.

Payperpost!

2008-02-20T06:35:00.003-08:00

Today I am going to tell you a little about PPP (payperpost). I found out about this from a girlfriend of mine, who is also a blogger. What it is is a site where you go and pick categories of things you know about and love. Then you can pick opportunities to blog about certain things. Also you get paid to do this.
For the past 3 years I have been wanting to find a way to make money online while I stay at home with my children. I want to feel like I am contributing to our income. I viewed different ways to work on the internet but most of it was either time consuming or confusing. PPP is so easy that I can find time everyday to post and also spend quality time with my children while contributing to our income.
Also I love the fact that I get to blog about the things I know and love and discover new and exciting things. I am also helping people spread the word about their items and get paid doing it. I plan on saving my money from this to help pay for vacations, birthday parties, hoilday gifts and maybe a few things for myself and hubby that we would normally not buy.

If you are interested in signing up to get paid to post then go to the payperpost button on the right side of my page and it will take you to their site. You get paid $20 for your first post and I get $15 after your first post is excepted. Why not join, you have nothing to lose and it is free.
drive traffic