Chicago

I know that Aiva & Ana's birthday's are comng up but there's an event that I'm really looking forward to. Nate's and my 10th wedding anniversary! For the occasion we are heading to Chicago. Neither of us have been there so I thought it would be fun to do something different and special. We have so many things planned that I can hardly wait for November to get here. We're getting there by way of bus. We're taking the Mega Bus there and back home to help save on costs. The "bus" must be the main theme in this trip because we're touring the city on the Chicago Trolley which I'm so excited about. It has 13 or 14 stops and you can jump off and jump back on. It's the best way to see the town. The only thing that would make it better were if it were in the spring or summer. I'm hoping it won't be too cold while we're there. Either way we're going to have a blast! We're planning on going to Navy Pier, the Magnificent Mile, Millennium Park and of course we have to catch a Chicago Bulls game. That's the part that Nate is most excited about! It will be a short trip but it's gonna be packed with so much fun stuff. Can't wait!

Lifeway

One of my favorite places is Lifeway. I can literally spend a whole day there. I've been waiting this whole week to go there without kids and today was the day. I love looking at the books, number one, and then I like to venture over to the paintings. I am so amazed at some of those paintings and wish I had the money to buy one of them! While I was there I kept coming back to the books, and then going to the CD's...back to the books and then back to the CD's. I seriously couldn't make a decision and therefore, wasn't going to get anything. I'm not one who splurges on myself so whatever I get it HAS to be good. I couldn't decide! Then I had that little voice in my head saying, "Do you really need that?". Get out of my head and let me enjoy this one little gift to myself! I love to read but I also haven't gotten a CD for about a year so that's what I settled on. I'm trying to save all my good reads for when I get a Kindle, hopefully for Christmas. Why pay out big bucks for a book when I can get it for so much cheaper with a Kindle. This is all going on IF I get the Kindle! So, again, I got a CD. I choose Heather Payne's new CD "Sweet Exchange". She used to sing with Point of Grace and she was one of my favs...plus we share the Payne name! It's all hymns, which I love so hopefully it's a good pick! On that note (no pun intended...i like doing those, don't I!), I'm going to take a listen. Good day!

Teeth

I'm just going to put it out there and like it or not, it's my opinion. I'm not a big fan of teeth. It probably started at the ripe ole' age of 7. I got braces put on my teeth at 7 and off when I was 14. It wasn't that my teeth were all that bad but it was because I had my braces done at OSU. With it being a teaching hospital they thought it necessary to teach on me a little too much! Because I was poked and prodded on I now hate to visit the dentist. My teeth seem to be fine but I do have "issues' from time to time. Nothing major just minor issues. This time it seems to be something I just can't run from. I need to get a root canal. I've tried to give it time in hopes that it will just go away but I'm at the point now to where I feel like Tom Hanks in the movie Castaway and I'm ready to knock this baby out with an ice skate. I've bit the bullet (no pun intended although I'm ready to bite on anything to take the pain away) and made the appointment for Friday. Unfortunately it's Monday and Friday can't come soon enough. Until then, does anyone have some vicodin or Tylenol 3 I can have? Kidding...only kidding. I will get by with my heating pad and 800mg of Ibuprofen. If you see me on the hunt for an ice skate you'll know why :)

MPM

Monday - Roasted Chicken w/ mashed potatoes, corm
Tuesday - Mac n Cheese Casserole
Wednesday - Baked potatoes with broccoli & cheese
Thursday - Italian chicken with rice & salad
Friday - Pizza Night

TGIT

Thank God It's Thursday! One more day til the weekend! Our Saturday services start here at the church this Saturday so we're so excited about all the festivities. It should be a great weekend. We won't know how to act on Sunday though :) This week has been great although busy. We better get use to it though because next week kicks off cheerleading for Aiva. She then starts Art which she's so excited about. This fall is gong to be a little crazy but we'll manage. We have been keeping up with cooking at home in the crock pot so that's been going well. Nate had things all ready by the time I got home last night. Love him! As soon as I walked in I got a chance to visit with the girls and then we dug in to dinner. That's something I can get used to. He does have an ulterior motive though. He's been working at his grandpa's lake for the past several months and between him and a few other guys they're really whipping it into shape. I'm so proud that he is doing something that he really enjoys! He tries to get over there for an hour or two while Ana is in school and then goes over after I get home. For now it works and he enjoys it so I keep my mouth closed although I miss him being home. The weather will turn soon and before we know it we'll be getting cabin fever.

We've been working on the girls birthdays and we have things narrowed down :) We're going to Chuck E Cheese for Ana's birthday and then on Saturday after Aiva's cheerleading, we're heading to Cocoa Key Water park for the day of fun and then we're spending the night and playing again the next day at the water park. This little excursion is for both kids and costs a pretty penny but they will have fun and so will we. The girls are so excited and are counting down the days til their birthday! I still have a few more things to get Ana but otherwise I'm good to go...looking forward to a little break!

200

YEAH! I've finally hit my 200th post! I've been waiting for this day since...actually I haven't but thought that it was pretty cool that I've blogged 200 times! That's dedication...I like to think so anyway! Thanks to all my faithful readers...you three out there :)

I said that in my last post that I had to put down some of the girls quotes so here it is.

Ana - "Mom, did Jesus die for ALL of our sins?". "Yes, baby..he did", I replied. After a few seconds she replied with, "That's gotta hurt!". Hopefully that's not a sign of things to come!

Aiva has been trying to teach Ana every little thing she can and one day it was shapes and sign language. Ana didn't want to have any part of it. Ana replied with, "Aunt Danelle said that I don't need to know that to be a butt doctor!". Aiva wouldn't back down and proceeded with sign language. "Ana, this is an A...say A." Ana said, "Aiva, I told you that Aunt Danelle told me that I don't need to know that to be a butt doctor! Just stop it OK!"

Ana - "Mommy, are you better yet? I sure miss you!"

Aiva - "I know what my Life Verse is, Mom! On the first day, God made light!" I wonder if this is the reason that she gets up at 6AM every day!

Aiva - "I don't have time for homework...my social calendar is too full!" Not sure where she got this??!!

Aiva - "Mom, I need to where my slip-on shoes...I don't have time for shoe laces!"

MPM

So I totally missed all of last week so you'll have to forgive me as I gradually catch up. I had a wedding at the church last week that I had to tend to so my world was a little crazy. For this the menu looks a little something like this:

Monday - Chicken & Noodles
Tuesday - Hot Dogs & Fries (We have a huge pack in the fridge that I need to get rid of :) )
Wednesday - Beef Broccoli
Thursday - Grilled Cheese
Friday - Pizza Night
Saturday - Game Day :)
Sunday - Subs

Stay tuned for some pretty funny quotes from the kids. There's been so many that I've been trying to store them in my brain. I'm afraid it can't hold much more so I've got to get them down!

Me

What is in bold is what all I've done in my lifetime...how about you?
1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band (orchestra)
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept in an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitchhiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse (solar)
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chicken pox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a lawsuit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

Kool-Aid

We all love some good Kool-Aid in our family but what I don't love is when the Kool-Aid ends up on our carpet. Doesn't happen very often but when it does it's usually lemonade...thanks God! This week Nate made cherry...I know you know where this is going. For some strange reason, he gave the girls Kool-Aid to take to bed. Don't ask...I made that mistake the next morning. Getting back though, when I woke up there was a huge...I'm talking HUGE red spot beside Aiva's bed. I went to google, my favorite trusted search engine, to find out how to get it out and here's what I found...

Take a bowl of warm water and put 3 drops of dish soap in it...swirl it to get it somewhat soapy. Take an old shirt...this is what will take the color out of the carpet so make sure this is a shirt you probably won't wear again...and get it wet (warm or cold). Get your iron and start getting it hot. Once the iron is hot, pour the water from the bowl on the spot but don't

pour all of if..just enough to get it wet. Next, put the wet shirt over the spot and start ironing it like you would a shirt. Back and forth, like normal. Once the carpet is dry, pour more water, lay shirt, iron.

Nate was the one who did it and he said it took about an hour to get all of the color up but it all came out. I would rather spend an hour ironing the red out of a carpet than to have a red or white spot on the carpet. So, if you have Kool-aid on your carpet, now you know how to get it up! Hope it helps!

Gray

I'm seriously getting tired of these little gray hairs that I've been finding. What the heck...I'm only 32...almost 33. Isn't this supposed to happen when I'm in my 40's? Now I'm really starting to feel old! I called in a panic the other day to my mom asking her if I should color my hair. She's been doing it for years so I thought she would be a pro. It took her some time but she finally settled me down and shook me back into reality. So as something fun to take my mind off the thought or turning gray I made a picture of myself with gray hair. Here it is...kinda funny I think!So you beloved readers, do you have any gray hair stories or can you empathize with me?

MOPS

Tonight was the first night of MOPS at our church for the year. It was a great night :) Last year I wasn't able to make it as much just because it was such a busy time but this year I'm going to make more of a priority to be there. I think I need to for my sanity. Between work, getting the house together, homework, etc I need to take some time out for me. Even though it's right after work it's still nice to have time with other moms who know what you're going through! Here's to a good year and a good group! Yeah!

I am so excited for this week to be over. I've been feeling pretty awful and my voice doesn't last for long so working has been a little bit of a challenge. I manage but I sure am tired at the end of the day. Looking forward to the weekend. It can't be much better :) Big game and my brother in laws are coming in town! We don't get to see Matt & Steve very much so we're looking to seeing the twins. Here's to a great weekend!

Preschool

Yesterday was the first day of preschool for Ana. She LOVED it. She went last year but this is 3 days a week and she felt like she was big stuff. This year she got to carry a backpack and had to get supplies like big sister Aiva. Unfortunately I was home sick yesterday but it was good timing as I got to see her off for her first day. If I weren't feeling so bad I would have gone with them but instead stayed back and heard the news once Nate got back home. After he came home it felt odd having both kids in school. I guess that's what it feels like to have a quiet house. Last time it was quiet was back in January when both girls stayed at my parents house for our birthdays. She ended up loving it and was zonked once she got home. I let her sleep about an hour before it was time for dinner. Today she did the same thing. She normally takes an afternoon nap but not anymore!

Aiva's been doing great with school. She's really trying to get an "orange" for the day to mean that she did AWESOME but she continues to get green meaning that she's just plain GOOD. I told her that we need to bake the teacher some cookies or brownies to get some "brownie points" (no pun intended) to get her an orange! She always wants to dress up for school which makes walking to school somewhat of a challenge. I had to go out to get different shoes and socks so her feet won't hurt on the way there and throughout the day. I think the highlight today was her buying her lunch and trading her breadstick for salad with one of her friends. At least she's making wise eating choices! She only gets to buy one time a week so this is really fun for her.

Today was my first day back to school after the long weekend. It was rough trying to get caught back up but I'll be back at it again tomorrow. I'm starting to feel better so that's good! Little Ana kept asking me if I were feeling better. I think she half cared and half really wanted to do something fun this weekend. She was a trooper while I was sick in bed...both girls were.

We've been starting to think about birthdays in October. It will be here before you know it. Not sure of all the details but Aiva is getting her ears pierced at some point. Nate's not to keen on the idea but it will grow on him. Once he sees how cute she looks he'll be OK. I can't wait! I know we're doing an iCarly cake and a Dora cake but that's all we've talked about. It's hard not to do it up big but we have to keep it small since Nate and I are going to Chicago in November. Can't wait...that's a whole different post! More tomorrow :)

Holiday?

This is certainly not the holiday weekend that I had in mind. John Chilcote was right when he just commented on my Facebook that I need a redo. Unfortunately I don't think I'm going to get one. Bummer...I've had my fair share of Hannah Montana, iCarley and any other show on Nick. Every time I get a burst of energy I try to clean but it only lasts about 10 minutes and then I'm down for 2-3 hours. Wanted to get Menu Plan Monday done so I can mark that off the list. Ana is starting school tomorrow so that's one more thing to add to the to-do list. Getting back to the MPM, here's what we have for this week. Since I didn't get to finish last week's meals, we're starting this week with them.

Monday - Italian Chicken

Tuesday - Spaghetti

Wednesday - Pancakes

Thursday - Grilled Cheese and homemade chicken noodle soup.

Friday - Pizza Night

I'm feeling the need to lay down again so I'm signing off. Have a great rest of the holiday weekend.

Buckeyes

We're very excited that it's football season and that we can watch all the Buckeye games! Here are our little buckeyes :)


Here's Aiva...



And here is Anastasia...
Today was a rough day. No matter what I did it backfired. I should have gave up when I got home but I didn't. Nate thought someone stole his phone and wallet today so after a trip home during lunch I found it in his shorts in our bedroom. Thankfully it wasn't stolen but it was pretty intense for an hour or so.

When I got home I wanted to get Aiva some no show socks but I waited after a short nap and that was hte wrong thing to do. The girls were antsy at the store, my nerves were shot, and I was ready to loose it. It's at those times that we run into people and they see the true you. Yes, it happened to me. A friend from MOPS was shopping (Shout out to you Suzy :) ) and the girls were driving me crazy and were fighting like cats and dogs. I just wanted out. I politely said hi, finished shopping, paid and got the heck out of there with Ana screaming for a "chilly" (which is an icee). If I weren't so mad I would have laughed at her comment. No laugh came out...I just wanted to get home pronto. I got dinner quick and now the girls are making up cheers about OSU. Again, if it weren't an hour past their bed time and if my nerves weren't fried I would get pictures. This is one mom who is being real...I am so ready for their bed time and for FRIDAY! TIME FOR BED!

Whoa!

Well we recovered from "moving" last night. It went fairly well I might add. It only took us 5 hours...the girls were great and we're just happy that it's over! Aiva had a great day. I guess the crew was on their way home and back at the school, someone pulled the fire alarm. According to the "crossing guard" this is the second time it's happened. Nothing like getting the fire drills over and done with at the beginning of school!

Dinner was good. Since we had McD's last night with moving, we had the steak tonight. Spaghetti tomorrow.

Funny things from the girls:

Ana - "When I get old I'm gonna be a butt doctor like Aunt Danelle and I'm gonna check Aiva's butt!" Aiva's response, "NEVER!"

Aiva - "Ana it's not called 'branch' it's called 'ranch'. Like Long Branch without the B."

Tonight we're heading to do some shoe shopping for Aiva - I'm prepared for drama from Ana. I can't get for one without getting for the other!