Project Life

I'm debating.....

I really want to order this Project Life kit from Amazon. 

It is the full kit from Becky Higgins.  Meant to store ALL of my 365 days pictures from this year (should I actually finish it this year).  

 

At the same time I really want to do something unique for all of the pictures.  Something that showcases them my own way.  Aughhh I'm torn.  This would be such an easy way to put everything in, especially with all of the journaling cards.  

 

What to do, what to do.  I know I have plenty of time to decide...really till the end of the year, but I'm a little concerned if I don't get started now how long this thing is going to take me to put together at the very end.  Hmmmmm.

max and ruby

I would love to tell you how much I love my Ipad, however, I rarely get to use it.

texting while walking

Troy caught this on the news last night so I just had to search online and share it.  You have a serious texting problem if this happens to you. 

I think the voices you hear are the security team making fun of her (and now they might get sued).  Oh and Pedro is apparently the housekeeping person that you see cleaning.

Here is what the woman thinks of this whole situation.

http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2011/01/21/woman-falls-fountain-texting/

no words necessary

house plans

We've been working a lot on house plans lately and used the fresh fallen snow to map out our new addition on the house.

The outside lines where the arrows are pointing are where the addition will set.  The inside lines are all of the sizes that we originally tried, but decided it was just way to small.  So we added a little bit more and were happy with outcome.  

At least the snow is good for one thing!

polish

Do you ever get those Christmas gifts that you just hate? 

Most of the time it is a really loud, annoying toy that your kid gets.  Well this one isn't loud, but it is a bit annoying.

Let me just clarify here for a minute.  

Number one this polish came in a "Hello Kitty" kit from TJ Maxx, that I must admit I even looked at getting Khloe, but thought wisely for a minute and decided against it.  The reason I decided against it was because I wondered how long it had been sitting on the shelf.  Well let me tell you.....it's been awhile.  A long long long while.  How do I know this?  Because this polish is like rubber cement.  Thick, stringy, gooey, and messy.

Number two, we let "J" babysit, and well, if you read through my last post you remember reading that my girl is a little sneaky and she is able to sway "J" into letting do mostly whatever she wants.  

So my girl comes into the kitchen and says "Mommy, can I polish my fingernails?"  I explain to her that I would be happy to polish her fingernails....with some of my good polish. "No I want my Hello Kitty polish and I want to polish my fingernails," she says.  "Ok," I say.  "We can use your awful horrible Hello Kitty polish, but I'm doing the painting."  Her reply to me....."But "J" lets me polish my fingernails by myself and she's the best."  AUGHHHHHH there it is again.  I can't take it anymore.  So what do I do.  

Never to be outdone.

"J" the sitter

This is one of our favorite babysitters.

We'll call her "J" just to protect her privacy a bit (and hopefully retain her as our sitter), otherwise I'm sure her phone would be ringing off the hook with job offers.

"J" has been with us since almost the very beginning.  I believe Khloe was about 5 months old when she started sitting for us.  We couldn't have asked for a better sitter...most of the time.  I think there might have been one time that she was late.  I think she overslept.  By the time she got to our house, I gave her the furrowed brow and really let her have it and then she was never late again.  I think I scared her a bit.  

Then there was recently when my daughter told me that "J" taught her to point with her middle finger.  Hmmmm  I'm still not sure Khloe was lying about that?!?!

So "J" babysat for us after school and during the summers.  Then she passed us off to one of her friends because I suppose she found something better to do with her time.  That hurt a little bit and I cried a little bit.

In the three years that we have had Khloe we have only gotten a sitter at night 3 times.  It has always been "J."  The first time she was 6 months old and we went out for our anniversary.  Well tried to.  We went to leave and decided the house was getting really warm.  Our air conditioner broke.  So we stayed home for a bit and tried to fix it and by the time we left for our dinner and movie we were a sweaty mess and running late. 

Date number two was New Years Eve this year.  We were both sicker than dogs and had no business leaving the house, but some friends had invited us over and we thought maybe in our case a bit a laughter really was the best medicine.  It was....until about 10:00...then we came home and crashed.

Date number three was a week later.  "J" couldn't believe we were calling her again.  I think her response was something like "Whoa gettin a little crazy aren't we?  Two dates within a week?"  Which I have to admit was a little crazy for us.  So we left to go see the movie "Unstoppable."  Not before my daughter told us she couldn't wait for us to leave.  We returned home 10 minutes later because the theater was dark.  Do you see a pattern happening here?  This is why we never go out.  Well luckily my husband has a good head on his shoulders and instead of pouting like me, he got on the phone and called the theater to find out that someone had just shown up and all of the workers "forgot" to come in.  How does that happen?  Anyways so we left and headed back to the theater.

So my little three year old has got a pretty smart head on her shoulders.  She likes to play people a bit.  "J" is easily played.  She lets the little peanut sometimes get away with some things that she shouldn't.  So all we hear around our house now is "Well "J" lets me do it."  We have been trying and trying to break this habit, but when we try and tell her that "J" isn't always right she says, "Well "J" lets me do it, and she is the best."  Really?  I leave you with her for a couple of hours 2 nights this year and she is the best?  How quickly my child turns on me.

Ok so maybe "J" isn't all bad.  The other day Khloe is sitting at the table and does some weird things with her hands and says to me "That is how you say "milk" in sign language."  WHAT?!?!  Then she says ""J" taught me sign language."  I didn't tell her I thought she was just making up for teaching her to point with her middle finger.

P.S. I didn't really furrow my brow and let her have it when she overslept and I don't think she is very scared of me


P.S.S.  I think she ditched us because she went to college and we loved her friend that she passed us off to, as well as "J's" sister who occasionally babysits for us.  Sadly, not one of them decided to drop out of college to be our full time babysitter.


P.S.S.S.  I really don't think "J" would have taught Khloe to point with her middle finger.  Had to be one of those naughty kids at daycare......


P.S.S.S.S.  "J" really is one of the BEST babysitter.  She always thinks up awesome things for Khloe to do and teaches her cool things, like sign language, and has more patience then both Troy and I combined.  Khloe loves her to pieces.  Oh and she has one of the best singing voices I've ever heard.  I'll let you know when she tries out for "American Idol."

the rest of the story

This is what is looks like when Khloe is ready for bed and everyone has eaten, gone to the doctor, and been read too (for the first time).  Then all of the babies and animals (I believe the count is up to 11) must make their way to Khloe's bed for the second round of reading and to sleep with her.  It usually takes at least two trips.

And trust me, she knows if one is missing.

Don't most kids just sleep with one stuffed animal???

the wheels on the bus

This is what happens at our house on a daily basis. 

Sometimes the babies have to eat.  Sometimes they have to go to the doctor.  Today they have to sing "The Wheels on the Bus" and read "Pinkalicious."

Calgon...take me away

Does anyone else have this 100 day cold thing going on?

Unreal.....really.

I must say I have been to the doctor and gotten some pretty potent stuff for my ears and sinuses.

That was 15 days ago.

2 days ago I felt it resurfacing.  I have resorted to this.

And let me tell you, it does wonders for sinus headaches, ear aches, and also headaches from a whining child.

I only recommend two at a time......I've heard if you take more than this it can have permanent effects.  Hmmmm

searching

 

Welcome to my desk.  This was NOT staged.  This is what it looks like.  On a daily basis.  HELP.

new year....new me

This is me now.  Well, a few months ago.  I don't have the bangs anymore and my hair is a little longer, but close enough.

This is what I'm thinking I might look like by the weekend.  Ok minus the long hair, face, and body.  Just the hair color.

Just thinkin.......

Hello Kitty

Khloe had a great birthday this year.  We decided to go with a Hello Kitty theme this year.  We She decided this at the very last minute, but luckily still had time to order a cake pan.  Luckily my mom agreed to decorate the cake again this year.  She does such a great job and I'm always worried I'll screw it up.

Isn't this the most perfect Hello Kitty cake you have seen?  I would be a fool to mess with perfection like this!

Hello Kitty Band-aids were a hit!  Aren't kids funny?

The box from Khloe's new kitchen was the best gift of the night.  Everyone had tons of fun with it!

That is until her Auntie broke the box getting out!

How to decorate a cookie

This is a brief lesson on how to decorate a cookie.

First make sure you have a little helper.  This makes the process go MUCH faster.

Fill a frosting decorator.

Squeeze out some frosting

And a little more frosting

Make sure the frosting in smeared all over the table

There you have it!  Your complete guide to how to decorate a cookie!  If you are really lucky, you'll have a few turn out like this.

hello my friend....it's been awhile

The time has come to remove the dust and start to sew.

What, you ask, will be my first sewing project, in a very long time?

An Ipad sleeve of course.  

I am one of the biggest klutzes ever and my husband and I have both had visions of me dropping the Ipad in transit from home to the salon.  We see it crashing to the ground and breaking into a million pieces.  Well maybe not, because I really don't know if it would do that.  But there would be quite a few scratches on it I'm sure of, which would alter the perfect, finger printed screen.

I'm headed to do a little fabric shopping and pick out a wonderful pattern to slip over my beloved Ipad.  Then I will come home and attempt to remember how to sew.

Is it getting old yet?  All this chatter about my Christmas gift?  Sorry, I just can't get over it.  Not yet anyways.  I'm sure the amazement will wear off soon.  It's just....I never thought I would have one.  Not this soon anyways and I REALLY never thought my husband would buy me one.  Sorry Troy, but I did go without birthday and Christmas gifts for about five years.  And the year before that when I got a gift, well, lets just say it isn't something every wife would die for.  But he tried...he really did and he got a little backlash for that gift.  Which is probably why I haven't received a gift in the last five years.

So I'm sorry, but the chatter about the Ipad has to continue for just a bit longer.

At least until the sleeve is finished.

Ooh and maybe while I'm at it I should pull this back out too....

I might need it.

OWN - more Oprah anyone?

(photo courtesy of www.starpulse.com)

Anyone else addicted to the new OWN network yet?

Really, how much better can it get?  A 24 hour network of all Oprah-ish shows?

I had it on over the weekend and picked out a few of my favs.  I'm sure at some point they will all be favorites, but hey I can't watch tv 24/7 so for now a few will do.

Favorite # 1

Season 25: Oprah Behind the Scenes

This one surprised me in a good and bad sort of way.  I knew that tons and tons of work went into the behind the scenes, I knew that Oprah must have a ton of people working for her, and I figured she was somewhat of a hard a$$  because really how can you have a successful show like hers and not be.  

I, however, had no idea that her people did EVERYTHING for her.  Call me naive, but I thought hoped that she at least put something of herself into the show, but as it turns out, her team comes up with everything, including all her monologue, and presents it to her to see if she likes it.  It surprised me to see how genuinely scared, nervous, whatever you want to call it, her team was when they present to her.  I thought maybe after like, say, 15 years of working for her they could relax a little bit.  I guess not.  Hmm, changed my perspective of her a little bit.  Like in one clip where one of the producers lost her mic for 3 minutes and she looked at him with fire in those eyes of hers and said "Don't you EVER let me go 3 minutes again."  I would have ran for cover if I was that poor guy.  There probably would have been a few tears during my run too.  I guess working for her is not for the faint of heart.  Lesson learned...never apply for a job with Oprah.

Favorite #2

In the Bedroom with Dr. Laura Berman

I'm in total amazement.  I would NEVER...I repeat....NEVER go on a show like this.  I know never say never, but really I wouldn't.  I CANNOT believe that people actually go on national television and talk about their sex life.  WOW!  So I have to watch, simply because I'm in awe of people.

Favorite #3 and #4 

Ask Oprah's All Stars

Miracle Detectives

I haven't seen these shows yet, but I know they are going to fill my #3 and 4 spot, respectively.  What does that even mean when people say that...respectively?  For some reason the keys just moved and wrote that word.  Anyways back to my topic at hand. 

Ask Oprah's All Stars has to be a great show.  Although I have had my Dr Phil fill (sorry lack of a better word) for awhile now, I'm hoping I will like him when paired with the likes of Dr. Oz and Suze Orman.  Who can't use a little self-help in their lives?

I did see a little snippet of Miracle Detectives.  Did you ever see that 20/20, I believe it was, where the little boy claimed that he was a WWII fighter pilot?  He knew all these details about the war and about this one mans life that died in the war.  They believe he was reincarnated.  Wow....I remember seeing that 20/20 and going to bed with some questions in my head.  Well this whole show appears to be based on stories like this.  I CAN'T WAIT!!!  I love that kind of stuff.

I'm not really a Carson Kressly fan, so we'll have to see if I watch his show.  Same goes for Peter Walsh, not real sure on that one.  Some of those houses looked PRETTY cluttered.  I thought our duplex was bad...geez.

Anyways, we can all breathe a sigh of relief, Oprah is NOT going to be disappearing anytime soon.  As if we were worried, right?

Weight Watchers vs Livestrong

Like millions of other Americans out there, I vowed January 1st that I would take off 10 pounds this year.  Yes, I have made this resolution in the past, and failed miserably.  The difference between then and now?  I have no idea, other than I am just plain sick and tired of thinking about those looming 10 pounds every day of my life.

I have tried Weight Watchers in the past and did find it somewhat helpful, although I still felt like I could pretty much eat whatever I wanted, i.e. candy, pop.  For some reason it just didn't force me to eat healthier, which was what I was looking for.  I didn't want to just lose the weight, I truly wanted to start a healthier lifestyle.  So when the first of the year rolled around I again thought about Weight Watchers, but then started to do some searching on my Ipad.

 I knew right away when I got the Ipad that I wanted a fitness/nutrition app to try and help me with my goal.  So I did a little research and found the Livestrong Calorie Counter to be exactly what I think I need. 

I think the application was maybe $2.99.  Not much to spend if it works.  So here's the deal.  

You enter in your weight, height, etc.  You enter in how many pounds a week you want to lose.  You have a choice of 1, 1.5, or 2.  Originally I checked out the 1.5, but found it way to restricting for me to start out (especially since I haven't started exercising yet, since I have been sick).  So I settled on the 1 pound a week.  Basically what happens is it tells you how many calories a day you can have, you enter in what you eat during the week, it subtracts the calories and tells you how many you have left (kinda like the Weight Watchers point system).  It has an immense database with any kind of food you could want.

The reason I like this application better than Weight Watchers is you really see how many calories are in the food you are eating.  Stuff that I would have just eaten without giving it a second thought, until I actually saw how many calories I was eating.  I have never been a big believer in the whole "writing down what you eat," but I have to tell you, I think it really does work.  I can't believe how many calories I was eating a day prior to this.  I have a horrible sweet tooth (plus a few more) and could live on candy and pretty much was for awhile.  I'm really not joking.  For me to finish off a bag of gummy worms in a 5 minute sitting is nothing.  This makes you really look at each and every item you are eating.  With Weight Watchers I felt like I would just take the points for the gummy worms and even out with some carrots later on, I had no idea how many calories I was really eating because I was writing down points instead of calories.  On this plan nothing is free, not veggies, not fruits, nothing.  Everything I eat has calorie content and gets recorded.

So wish me luck.  Here's to a happy and healthier new year!

(sounds so corny, but hopefully it's true)

I love you to the moon and back

A few new necklace designs for a New Year!