{ Happy Homemaker Monday - 12/23/2024 }
1 day ago
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Tackle It Tuesday
I'm starting small here. My silverware drawer was a nightmare - there was so much stuff under the tray that it was hard to close the drawer. I would just move things around, so the tray would settle down into the junk. It was embarrassing. I decided I'd start there today!
Before:
After:
Nice, eh? Head over to 5 Minutes for Mom and check other tackling projects!
Dude, where's my car?!?
I've been asking that question for almost 2 weeks now. You might want to grab a cup of coffee and relax for a bit - this one might take a while.
We are required, by contract, to buy a new vehicle every 4 years (my husband is in the company car program - he works for GM). We did what they call a "Drive and Buy". We order the car we want and it becomes my husband's company car for 3 months. During this time, we put as many miles on the car as we can - this will help lower the price of the car when it's our time to "buy" it. Then, we turn it back in to vehicle operations at GM, the dealership we choose to "buy" the car from comes to pick it up, then they call us to seal the deal. Get that?
Some not very nice person put a very deep scratch in the passenger side door of "the car" the day before my husband turned it in. We find out that the scratch must be fixed before I'm able to get the car, so the dealership has to fix it (not with my money, fortunately!).
Here's what I was told:
July 17th or 18th - I will get the car.
Nope, that won't happen - need to fix the scratch. It might take up to a week, but we're hoping it won't take that long.
July 24th will be THE LATEST you'll get your car. That day comes and goes - no car.
Then, we hear that the car will be done late Friday and at the latest, Monday (yesterday). My husband had to call the dealership 4 TIMES to talk to the salesperson. Needless to say, I still don't have my car. We got and are still getting the runaround from the salesperson AND the GM of the dealership.
I JUST WANT MY CAR!!!!!!!!!!! Fortunately, I still have my beloved mini-van that we had detailed a month ago - I'm scared to drive it because I don't want to mess it up. I'm tired of putting gas in it every few days - I don't want to fill it up and then turn it back into the dealership with a full tank of gas. But, I HATE putting gas in it every 2 or 3 days.
I JUST WANT MY CAR!!!!!!!!!
We are required, by contract, to buy a new vehicle every 4 years (my husband is in the company car program - he works for GM). We did what they call a "Drive and Buy". We order the car we want and it becomes my husband's company car for 3 months. During this time, we put as many miles on the car as we can - this will help lower the price of the car when it's our time to "buy" it. Then, we turn it back in to vehicle operations at GM, the dealership we choose to "buy" the car from comes to pick it up, then they call us to seal the deal. Get that?
Some not very nice person put a very deep scratch in the passenger side door of "the car" the day before my husband turned it in. We find out that the scratch must be fixed before I'm able to get the car, so the dealership has to fix it (not with my money, fortunately!).
Here's what I was told:
July 17th or 18th - I will get the car.
Nope, that won't happen - need to fix the scratch. It might take up to a week, but we're hoping it won't take that long.
July 24th will be THE LATEST you'll get your car. That day comes and goes - no car.
Then, we hear that the car will be done late Friday and at the latest, Monday (yesterday). My husband had to call the dealership 4 TIMES to talk to the salesperson. Needless to say, I still don't have my car. We got and are still getting the runaround from the salesperson AND the GM of the dealership.
I JUST WANT MY CAR!!!!!!!!!!! Fortunately, I still have my beloved mini-van that we had detailed a month ago - I'm scared to drive it because I don't want to mess it up. I'm tired of putting gas in it every few days - I don't want to fill it up and then turn it back into the dealership with a full tank of gas. But, I HATE putting gas in it every 2 or 3 days.
I JUST WANT MY CAR!!!!!!!!!
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Happy Sunday peeps :)
A little birdy told me that the Cricut cartridges at Michael's are on sale for $40.00 today - I. AM. THERE.
If you don't know what a Cricut is, go here. It's my new, favorite scrapbooking toy :)
I need to do a devotional or 7 today - feeling a bit disgruntled with my church and need to reconnect to the word. I also need to tackle the mountain of laundry and bags of stuff from Trader Joe's sitting on my kitchen floor.
I'm off - have a groovy day :)
If you don't know what a Cricut is, go here. It's my new, favorite scrapbooking toy :)
I need to do a devotional or 7 today - feeling a bit disgruntled with my church and need to reconnect to the word. I also need to tackle the mountain of laundry and bags of stuff from Trader Joe's sitting on my kitchen floor.
I'm off - have a groovy day :)
Great giveaway!
Stacey, over at All Because Two People Fell In Love is having an awesome giveaway for moms! It's the Ultimate Family Organizer and I would LOVE to have it. Go check it out!
Friday, July 25, 2008
I failed.
Yes, I cheated. I'll admit it. I am H*U*N*G*R*Y.
I just don't know about this diet. I struggled badly when I did it the first time. The first 2 weeks were pure hell. But, I made it.
This time, it's been MUCH harder. The upside to this diet is that there is nothing processed - everything is fresh and I LOVE that. The downside is that I spend a lot of time in the kitchen prepping, chopping, and cooking all of that fresh stuff. The big boys are fine with it, but the little one....not so much. He's not a big fan of anything that doesn't include my arms. That makes prepping and chopping VERY difficult. The other day, I was able to make veggie chili and quiche while Henry was sleeping - it took 3 HOURS. Ask any mom with 3 little boys - heck, ask any mom of small children and I bet she'll tell you that 3 hours in the kitchen at one time is too much. I had to prep, chop and cook for 3 meals and 2 snacks EVERY DAY. By yesterday, I'd had enough of the prepping and chopping and I just didn't eat. Yesterday, before my husband got home from work, I'd eaten ONE stalk of celery with a few small bites of Laughing Cow Garlic and Herb cheese. I had a cup of coffee and about 10 oz. of flavored water. I'm sick of eggs and turkey bacon....sick, sick, SICK.
So, we went to Romano's Macaroni Grille last night. I was at the point where, if I had to eat another salad, I might curl up into the fetal position and cry. The waiter placed a plate of bread with olive oil dipping seasoning in front of us and I could immediately feel my mouth quiver. I looked at my husband, who had already ripped the bread in half and started inhaling it and said, "I have self control". That self control lasted about 5 minutes. I ate the bread and it was so good. There were 2 loaves on the plate and they were gone quickly, but it wasn't all eaten by me. He brought out more. I ate more. It felt good.
I ordered whole wheat penne with meat sauce and a side caesar salad with low fat dressing. Might that meal cancel out the insane amount of calories/carbs of the bread? Unlikely, I suppose. The waitress brought out the massive bowl of pasta and it was scrumptious. I only ate half. I was proud of myself. I didn't touch Will's fries or Jake's pizza. But, I did eat dessert. Ugh. They have something called Lemon Passion. OH! MY! GRACIOUS! I almost cried while I ate it - it was divine. B ate a bit of it, but I did eat most of it.
I weighed myself this morning - I'm down another pound - 5 lbs. down to date.
I'm modifying our diet - the SBD is out the window.
B and I are off to a Tigers game tonight - IF I drink a beer, it will be a light one. A far as eating is concerned, I'm pleading the fifth. What on earth could be healthy at a ball park? I'll look for something, but I'll admit, I won't be looking THAT hard.
I just don't know about this diet. I struggled badly when I did it the first time. The first 2 weeks were pure hell. But, I made it.
This time, it's been MUCH harder. The upside to this diet is that there is nothing processed - everything is fresh and I LOVE that. The downside is that I spend a lot of time in the kitchen prepping, chopping, and cooking all of that fresh stuff. The big boys are fine with it, but the little one....not so much. He's not a big fan of anything that doesn't include my arms. That makes prepping and chopping VERY difficult. The other day, I was able to make veggie chili and quiche while Henry was sleeping - it took 3 HOURS. Ask any mom with 3 little boys - heck, ask any mom of small children and I bet she'll tell you that 3 hours in the kitchen at one time is too much. I had to prep, chop and cook for 3 meals and 2 snacks EVERY DAY. By yesterday, I'd had enough of the prepping and chopping and I just didn't eat. Yesterday, before my husband got home from work, I'd eaten ONE stalk of celery with a few small bites of Laughing Cow Garlic and Herb cheese. I had a cup of coffee and about 10 oz. of flavored water. I'm sick of eggs and turkey bacon....sick, sick, SICK.
So, we went to Romano's Macaroni Grille last night. I was at the point where, if I had to eat another salad, I might curl up into the fetal position and cry. The waiter placed a plate of bread with olive oil dipping seasoning in front of us and I could immediately feel my mouth quiver. I looked at my husband, who had already ripped the bread in half and started inhaling it and said, "I have self control". That self control lasted about 5 minutes. I ate the bread and it was so good. There were 2 loaves on the plate and they were gone quickly, but it wasn't all eaten by me. He brought out more. I ate more. It felt good.
I ordered whole wheat penne with meat sauce and a side caesar salad with low fat dressing. Might that meal cancel out the insane amount of calories/carbs of the bread? Unlikely, I suppose. The waitress brought out the massive bowl of pasta and it was scrumptious. I only ate half. I was proud of myself. I didn't touch Will's fries or Jake's pizza. But, I did eat dessert. Ugh. They have something called Lemon Passion. OH! MY! GRACIOUS! I almost cried while I ate it - it was divine. B ate a bit of it, but I did eat most of it.
I weighed myself this morning - I'm down another pound - 5 lbs. down to date.
I'm modifying our diet - the SBD is out the window.
B and I are off to a Tigers game tonight - IF I drink a beer, it will be a light one. A far as eating is concerned, I'm pleading the fifth. What on earth could be healthy at a ball park? I'll look for something, but I'll admit, I won't be looking THAT hard.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Live from.....
my new laptop! I lurve this thing. It's SO much faster than my old one AND it has all its keys...lol Jake pulled 3 keys off my old one and it was really hard to use the letters N, G and O. I'll be off to bed in a few minutes, but wanted to test it out and play for a few minutes.
Today is the start of week #2 of the SBD. I'll admit it - I'm struggling. This no carb bit is HARD. I long for some crackers, or some bread sticks or pasta or something. I'm down 4 1/2 lbs. now, so I won't cheat - I refuse. The boys and I were with friends today and all the kids were eating junk while playing outside - Doritos, Combos, Reese's Peanut Butter cups, Pop-Tarts and while the smell of EVERYTHING was very enticing, I kept my paws off. I sat with my Diet Coke and watched them eat every last crumb. One more week....one more week....I add some good carbs back in my diet in one week.
The removal of my internal girly parts is scheduled and I'm VERY excited about that! I've been struggling with very painful periods and related issues since the age of 12 - I've had enough. I'm done having children and will need this surgery eventually anyway, so I should just have it done now and relieve myself of the pain and issues that get worse after every baby for me. I do believe I might start a little countdown ticker. My dear husband will be working from home for the 2 weeks that I need to sit on my butt after the surgery. Maybe I'll learn to knit or something to pass the time....
The schmoog has decided that sleeping through the night is highly overrated and I'll admit that I'm struggling with this, too. The boy teased me for 2 months - 2 months of beautiful sleep. Now, we're back to sleeping like a newborn - ICK! Me no like sleep deprivation. I'd probably give birth to 20 children if I had a guarantee that they'd sleep through the night from day 1 on. I can handle the temper tantrums, exploding diapers, etc. etc. I.just.can't.handle.no.sleep. I really, really like to sleep.
And on that note, I'm going to do just that before little bit wakes up!
Today is the start of week #2 of the SBD. I'll admit it - I'm struggling. This no carb bit is HARD. I long for some crackers, or some bread sticks or pasta or something. I'm down 4 1/2 lbs. now, so I won't cheat - I refuse. The boys and I were with friends today and all the kids were eating junk while playing outside - Doritos, Combos, Reese's Peanut Butter cups, Pop-Tarts and while the smell of EVERYTHING was very enticing, I kept my paws off. I sat with my Diet Coke and watched them eat every last crumb. One more week....one more week....I add some good carbs back in my diet in one week.
The removal of my internal girly parts is scheduled and I'm VERY excited about that! I've been struggling with very painful periods and related issues since the age of 12 - I've had enough. I'm done having children and will need this surgery eventually anyway, so I should just have it done now and relieve myself of the pain and issues that get worse after every baby for me. I do believe I might start a little countdown ticker. My dear husband will be working from home for the 2 weeks that I need to sit on my butt after the surgery. Maybe I'll learn to knit or something to pass the time....
The schmoog has decided that sleeping through the night is highly overrated and I'll admit that I'm struggling with this, too. The boy teased me for 2 months - 2 months of beautiful sleep. Now, we're back to sleeping like a newborn - ICK! Me no like sleep deprivation. I'd probably give birth to 20 children if I had a guarantee that they'd sleep through the night from day 1 on. I can handle the temper tantrums, exploding diapers, etc. etc. I.just.can't.handle.no.sleep. I really, really like to sleep.
And on that note, I'm going to do just that before little bit wakes up!
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Puttin' it out for the world to see.
There you have it. Today, I started the South Beach Diet Supercharged. My husband has also started it, but he probably won't be hardcore about it like I am. I'm still 2 1/2 lbs. under where I started when I got pregnant with Henry, so I'm happy about that, but I'm NOT happy with how I feel. I just don't feel good about myself and I cringe when I see pictures. I don't like what I see, I want to be a good influence on my children and I want to feel good. I'm at 179.5 lbs.
I've had numerous temptations today and I didn't fail and let myself down. A friend and I took our kids to McDonald's to play today - I ate 2 hamburger patties with NOTHING on them and had a diet coke. I didn't touch a french fry or chicken nugget, even though they were in my face the entire time. They smelled OH! SO! GOOD!, but I looked the other way and sucked down my diet coke...lol
So, I'm hoping those of you that read my blog will help me stay on the straight and narrow - you see where I am and what I'm working toward. We have a wedding to go to in Cape Cod on August 22nd - I want to look FANTASTIC and feel that way, too!
Sunday, July 13, 2008
I love lazy Sundays!
I'm sitting here, watching the Tigers game on TV and holding the sweet schmoog on my shoulder. He's trying to devour his hands and drool is dripping all over me. My loving husband and 2 big boys are off to Kroger and Subway. I've been cleaning and prepping the yummy fruits and veggies we got yesterday at a local fresh market. The big boys and the hubs are going for a bike ride after lunch. I'm going to do some laundry and scrapbook after schmoog goes down for a nap.
I LOVE Lazy Sundays. I hope you all are enjoying your Sundays, too.
I LOVE Lazy Sundays. I hope you all are enjoying your Sundays, too.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Tired
that is me. it's been a long week.
We're going to the Farmer's Market in the morning - I can't wait. I need some fresh veggies and fruit in this house.
Now, I'm off to stare at the back of my eyelids - goodnight ;)
We're going to the Farmer's Market in the morning - I can't wait. I need some fresh veggies and fruit in this house.
Now, I'm off to stare at the back of my eyelids - goodnight ;)
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
A different kind of adoration
I was 28 years old when our first child was born - felt like I was ready, but scared out of my mind. The first year and a half was a blur because of severe sleep deprivation and a boy who fought and hated sleep like it was the worst thing ever. I loved him (and still do!) dearly - he was such a happy baby. He smiled early and often and loved life. When he was 9 months old, I got pregnant again.
I was 29 years when our second child was born - now, I was scared of having 2 under 2. I had no idea how I was going to handle the sleep deprivation of having 2 small children. Fortunately, Jake was a relatively good sleeper and Will started sleeping through the night when Jake was a month old. Jake turned into an UBER cranky baby at 6 months, but grew out of it quickly. Life started to get "easy" when he was 6 months old and we went about life happily. The pureness of Jake's heart has come out so much in the last 2 years - he is the SWEETEST child on the planet
Our third child was born 2 months before I turned 34 years old. He was the best surprise I could have ever asked for - I was happy with 2 children, but lucky for me, God thought 3 was the perfect number for us. He's now 3 months old and the feelings I have when I look at this child often overwhelm me. Don't get me wrong, I adore my first 2 with every ounce of my being, but there's something different with Henry. I think it's because I'm a more experienced mom, I've had a few years between 2 and 3 and I'm not scared anymore - I don't know. But, I'm so enamoured by this boy - I have the hardest time putting him down and I smell his hair so much, I'm surprised I haven't rubbed it off. I'm constantly touching his feet and just staring at him. He's brought SO MUCH joy to my life. He's been, by far, my most difficult child - he's VERY particular about what he likes and what he doesn't. BUT, he's my best sleeper - the boy is just like his mama - he and I both LOVE to sleep.
My 2 big ones just came upstairs to ask how many hours until we leave to go to the library and seeing their excitement makes my heart sing. I sit here staring at the video monitor, watching my sweet schmoog take a morning siesta and I thank God that he sent Henry to US! I'm blessed to their mama, so very blessed.
It's only 9:49 a.m.
and everyone has been fed! Yay me :)
The biggest boys are in the basement watching Curious George for the 50th time in 2 days and my schmoog is sitting in front of me in his exersaucer, so I'm enjoying my coffee with Chocolate Raspberry creamer today (SO, SO good!) and trying to plan our day.
We're heading to the library this afternoon for a kid's program about bugs - ICK! I'll be hangin' in the back of the room while the kids soak up every ounce of boyness out of this program. Most bugs don't bother me, but if there are any kind of spiders involved, forget it. Spiders make my skin crawl in the worst way and will give me the heebee jeebees for the rest of the day. The big boys are VERY much looking forward to this program. We also need to check out some books for the summer reading program. We're doing this program with some friends and the boys haven't seen their friends in 2 weeks - they've been going through withdrawals. I'm pretty excited to see my friend, too!
The schmoog needs to take a nap and I need to get dressed, do something with this mop on top of my head and put some make up on. Between now and when we leave, I need to do a load of laundry or 10. I also need to move some cookbooks around AND assemble the highchair - that will probably be a Tackle It Tuesday!
I shall post those results when I'm done.
I hope everyone has a great day!
The biggest boys are in the basement watching Curious George for the 50th time in 2 days and my schmoog is sitting in front of me in his exersaucer, so I'm enjoying my coffee with Chocolate Raspberry creamer today (SO, SO good!) and trying to plan our day.
We're heading to the library this afternoon for a kid's program about bugs - ICK! I'll be hangin' in the back of the room while the kids soak up every ounce of boyness out of this program. Most bugs don't bother me, but if there are any kind of spiders involved, forget it. Spiders make my skin crawl in the worst way and will give me the heebee jeebees for the rest of the day. The big boys are VERY much looking forward to this program. We also need to check out some books for the summer reading program. We're doing this program with some friends and the boys haven't seen their friends in 2 weeks - they've been going through withdrawals. I'm pretty excited to see my friend, too!
The schmoog needs to take a nap and I need to get dressed, do something with this mop on top of my head and put some make up on. Between now and when we leave, I need to do a load of laundry or 10. I also need to move some cookbooks around AND assemble the highchair - that will probably be a Tackle It Tuesday!
I shall post those results when I'm done.
I hope everyone has a great day!
Monday, July 7, 2008
Things are back to normal (relatively speaking...lol) this week, so back comes to menu!
Monday:
grilled salmon, pasta salad and steamed broccoli
Tuesday:
stuffed shells with sauteed zucchini
Wednesday:
grilled chicken salad with breadsticks
Thursday:
french toast with sausage
Friday:
tacos and corncake
Saturday:
hamburgers and hot dogs, baked beans and sliced cucumbers
Sunday:
spaghetti and salad
Friday, July 4, 2008
Oh, oh, oh I got tagged!
How fun - my first meme :) Jodi tagged me!
The rules.
1. Link your tagger and list the rules on the blog.
2. Share 7 facts about your kiddos on your blog…random, weird, funny…whatever you want!
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post
4. Don’t forget to let the tagged people know!
All about my kids!
Will :o)
1. He's a southpaw and can throw a baseball like nobody's business.
2. He LOVES, LOVES, LOVES to be outside.
Jake :o)
3. He's a BIG TIME mama's boy <3
4. He has the sweetest heart of any child I've ever met.
Henry :o)
5. He was the perfect surprise!
6. He has the sweetest smile :)
7. He only sleeps well in his crib.
Tagged - you're it!
1. Jen
2. Heather
3. Sandra
4. Mrs. Hub
5. Steph
My biggest boy is screaming his head off right now - only choosing 5 today - gotta run!
The rules.
1. Link your tagger and list the rules on the blog.
2. Share 7 facts about your kiddos on your blog…random, weird, funny…whatever you want!
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post
4. Don’t forget to let the tagged people know!
All about my kids!
Will :o)
1. He's a southpaw and can throw a baseball like nobody's business.
2. He LOVES, LOVES, LOVES to be outside.
Jake :o)
3. He's a BIG TIME mama's boy <3
4. He has the sweetest heart of any child I've ever met.
Henry :o)
5. He was the perfect surprise!
6. He has the sweetest smile :)
7. He only sleeps well in his crib.
Tagged - you're it!
1. Jen
2. Heather
3. Sandra
4. Mrs. Hub
5. Steph
My biggest boy is screaming his head off right now - only choosing 5 today - gotta run!
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Remember those funky purple highlights?
You can't see them :(
I had my spa afternoon yesterday and it was HEAVENLY! I got 4 1/2 hours all to myself (almost 1 of that was spent wandering around Michael's!).
I got a GREAT haircut, but my hair is SO dark (thanks to my Italian/Native American heritage) that the purple highlights are super hard to see. You practically have to be crawling around in my hair to see them - good luck with that...lol
So, I'll try something else next time. I very much enjoyed my time alone, but missed my babies terribly and was happy to be home. My biggest boy had his first sleepover at a friend's house last night and it was a smashing success. I kept the phone beside the bed just in case ;) He's still there now and it's 12:30 in the afternoon! Jake has been enjoying the one on one time and I'm sure will greet his brother with mixed feelings....he'll be happy to have a playmate, but miss his one on one time.
We're off to get Jake's haircut in a few and hopefully pick Will up along the way - I miss him terribly. All of this will happen after the repairman leaves - we're having leaking water issues in the basement and having to sink crazy amounts of money into this house is making my stomach turn a bit.
I had my spa afternoon yesterday and it was HEAVENLY! I got 4 1/2 hours all to myself (almost 1 of that was spent wandering around Michael's!).
I got a GREAT haircut, but my hair is SO dark (thanks to my Italian/Native American heritage) that the purple highlights are super hard to see. You practically have to be crawling around in my hair to see them - good luck with that...lol
So, I'll try something else next time. I very much enjoyed my time alone, but missed my babies terribly and was happy to be home. My biggest boy had his first sleepover at a friend's house last night and it was a smashing success. I kept the phone beside the bed just in case ;) He's still there now and it's 12:30 in the afternoon! Jake has been enjoying the one on one time and I'm sure will greet his brother with mixed feelings....he'll be happy to have a playmate, but miss his one on one time.
We're off to get Jake's haircut in a few and hopefully pick Will up along the way - I miss him terribly. All of this will happen after the repairman leaves - we're having leaking water issues in the basement and having to sink crazy amounts of money into this house is making my stomach turn a bit.
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