Happy New Year!

Our Christmas was wonderful. I was my usual shopping crazed self. My Christmas shopping was basically done in November, but by the middle of December presents were wrapped and hidden. Like every year, I began to wonder if I had enough. I started shopping again and the kids ended up very spoiled. To be honest, I don’t feel guilty. I am not much of a toy shopper throughout the year. Clothes are my ultimate temptation, so that is what I focus on during the year and should feel guilty about. I figure that Christmas is the time that the kids need to win the shopping battle. Santa was definitely too nice.



Christmas didn’t end up being the relaxing day that I had predicted. Due to invites that were extended on Christmas Eve, our plans changed. In the morning, we went to a fun brunch with some of our best friends. They not only fed us, but entertained us with a puppet show. That evening, we had Christmas dinner with some new friends that have 4 young daughters. We all enjoyed socializing.

Now, New Years Eve is tomorrow and we have party plans with some of my old high school friends and their kids. Another year has flown by and like everyone else I can’t help but reflect on 2008. It brought a few big changes like buying a new place and a vehicle. I also started working from home, which lead me to put Lexi into a mother’s day out program and hire a cleaning service to come every other week. We also went to the Grand Canyon for my family reunion and I got to reconnect with some of my cousins that were practically like sisters to me when growing up. Other things happened, but none come to mind right now.

2009 is quickly approaching and I can’t help feeling insanely nervous about what it might bring. I am mainly anxious that my workload is going to explode for the next few months. The last few months it has been slow, but I have still been getting paid. I have a feeling that I am going to be suffering for that soon. I wonder if I can keep up with all that is probably headed my way. People’s jobs are depending on my ability to secure projects for the company. I am not the kind of person that allows myself to fail no matter how much I have taken on. I hope I don’t go insane trying to keep everything in my life balanced. In fact, thinking about it makes me feel exhausted. Somehow, I’ll get through. I will just be keeping my fingers crossed that some huge projects will come through quickly and I’ll be off the hook.

I hope 2009 treats everyone in blogland fantastically! We could all use a good year, right?

Merry Christmas!

We're planning on spending a quiet Christmas at home. I'm hoping for something rather mellow, but enjoyable. Besides our own little Christmas, I have several friends that will be in town this week. It will be fun to see them again. One thing is for sure, the weather here is going to be crazy. Yesterday, the highs were in the 30s. On Christmas, they're predicting 75 degrees and rainy. I guess that is typical here though.

I hope all of you have a wonderful Christmas!

Christmas Guilty Pleasure

For Thanksgiving, my freshman year of college, I took a road trip with a new friend. We went to San Diego to spend it with her family. On the drive, she popped in an old cassette of Wham! In one of the songs, and deep voice came on and said, "Touch This." We laughed until we cried and kept rewinding it. I can't even tell you what song it was. Of course, I've never heard that version on the radio, but since then all Wham and George Michael songs take me back to that trip. She is still one of my best friends, but we don't live close so these little flash backs are extra special.

As many of you know, I am quite a festive person. I like cheesy Christmas music. Combine that with a Wham song & you have a winner. Unfortunately, I've only heard their Christmas song twice this year and once was in Target (so that doesn't count). ...I googled it & found the video on YouTube. I'll make you all suffer with my guilty pleasure.

New Outlook

Yesterday, I was forced to give up my dying little Saturn sedan. We have been together for eleven years. I had it paid off even before I met Steve. I can certainly say that we had a long relationship with very few issues. On Monday, it just started shutting off while I was driving. I coasted to the side & started it right back up, but I had a feeling this was an indication of much bigger problems. We took it to the shop that night and were told that the cost to repair it was going to be over $1,000, which is more than the little car is worth. We decided that it was time to shop for a Saturn Outlook, something we were planning to do this coming summer. Don’t worry about my poor little car; I sold it to the mechanic who was very excited because his family only has one car. It makes me feel better knowing that it is going to a good home.

We went to two Saturn dealerships yesterday and found exactly what we were looking for at the second one, well minus a dvd player. They are going to put one in for us though. Since I plan to keep this vehicle FOREVER too, it feels like I am starting a new phase of life. I am excited that we have a vehicle that we actually fit comfortably in, and that it will be more difficult for the kids to fight because they can’t reach each other, and that we can actually go on a driving vacation if we want to. Today, I am in love.

Next month, when I have to make the first payment after seven and a half years of not having one, I’m sure I’ll cry.

Wii Giveaway

I am putting a link to a WiiFit Giveaway, because I know lots of people would like one and mainly because I like Crazy Bloggin Canuk. Click on the link and leave a comment, so you'll be in the drawing.

Christmas Disco Fam

I saw this and thought it was absolutely hilarious! All of you can click on the link and turn your families into disco dancing elfs:

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Not a Hot Chocolate Freak this Year

Anyone who has been reading my blog for a while knows that I think the best thing about cooler/cold weather is drinking hot chocolate. I usually look for any dip in the temperature as an excuse. When I lived in Miami, the dip didn't have to be much for me to decide I needed a cup.

I can't explain it, but right around Thanksgiving time this year, my taste buds changed. Lots of things that I normally crave or enjoy don't appeal to me as much. One of those things is hot chocolate. Who would have guessed? Instead, I prefer hot peppermint tea (herbal). The funny thing about this particular drink is that my Grandmother used to make it for us using fresh peppermint from her garden. She would heat it up and then add a little sugar and milk. I bought tea packets from the store, but I have to add a little sugar and milk like she used to. I made a cup this morning and remembered that today is her birthday. I'll drink it in her honor.

**By the way, googling taste bud change isn't a good idea. You'll think that:
a) I am getting old (ok, so I am)
b) I have cancer
I am thinking that it isn't exactly a taste bud change, but a craving/in the mood kind of change. It might be hormonal since I am working on weaning Jordan. It could also be that I ate horribly over the Thanksgiving weekend and now my body is trying to recover.

He Surprisingly Changed His Mind

About three weeks ago, my husband was reading a book to Lexi and announced that he was thinking it would be nice to have another baby. I was absolutely stunned to hear those words come out of his mouth, because he has always been set on two. In fact, the entire time I was pregnant with Jordan, he made sure to tell everyone that he was done and that he wanted a vasectomy. So…his little announcement wasn’t taken too seriously. I figured that the next time both kids are screaming, he would change his mind. My response to him was that if we are going to have another one, we’d better not wait long because I am not getting any younger.

The entire time I was pregnant this last time, I knew that I did NOT want to be pregnant again. I even fantasized about mailing my maternity clothes to my sister-in-law. As soon as Jordan was born, I wanted another one though. This last year, I have been mostly on the fence. I’d say I have been in the 50 – 75% range of wanting another baby. Until Steve’s announcement, I would have said that he was mostly against it. To my surprise, he now has decided that he really wants us to have another one. He is even telling other people (family and friends).

For now, I’ve decided that I will not be ready to even think about “trying” until after my birthday, which is in January. At that time, I will be 36 years old and it might not be easy or happen quickly. We’ll see. In the spirit of thinking of a third, I decided to google the idea this morning. I found this amusing site: http://www.havingthreekids.com. It made me laugh.

Birthday Boy/Party Pooper

Today, my little baby boy turns one. I really can't believe it. We had a party for him last night and the picture pretty much sums up how it went. Everyone had a great time, except for him. He has TWO teeth coming in. When the party started, he decided that he needed to cling to me. He wasn't too happy when anyone gave him attention. He'd turn the other way and fuss a little. About an hour into the party, he fell asleep. I took him to bed and let him sleep for a half an hour while the adults socialized and the kids played. I woke him up to open presents and eat cake. Of course, he wasn't exactly enthusiastic for either. As the last few guests were heading out, he choked on a piece of apple. I rushed him to the sink and he puked. Sounds like a fun party, right? Despite how it sounds, the rest of us had a great time.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Here is a picture of my little turkeys:


I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving! We're looking forward to seeing my work-aholic husband. :)

Random Points

I'm keeping it simple this week:

1. Don’t call anyone in the Houston area when you are excited about low gas prices like Steve’s friends and dad often do. Ours are usually lower - $1.77 today.

2. This week, I was responsible for a playgroup. A chic that I never liked in high school was in town and brought her 4 year old to it. Even though I realize that we clashed for silly teenager reasons, I still don’t want to like her. Her daughter is adorable though. I had to laugh because within seconds of meeting her, her daughter was hugging and climbing on me like she was my own. The other funny thing was that her son was wearing the exact same shirt as mine. hmm...what does that mean?

3. As Thanksgiving approaches, I have been thinking a lot about the last time I saw my dad (exactly 3 years ago). I have also been remembering several of the odd happenings that occurred around that time, especially one particularly bizarre thing. My dad was diagnosed with brain cancer right before we found out that I was pregnant. When we picked Lexi’s name, Alexis, it had been several months since I had e-mailed him. Right about the time he died, I noticed that my dad’s e-mail was lexis@....com. Fate? A pit in my stomach formed.

4. I am working on Jordan’s first birthday party. The idea of a kid themed party doesn’t appeal to me right now, so we’re going with a Christmas party. It is going to be on the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Lots of food trays and friends sound like the perfect celebration for a one year old. Next year, we’ll do the kid themed thing. Don’t worry; there will still be plenty of kids and fun.

5. My car (Saturn Sedan) has officially made it to the eleven year mark. Why would anyone keep a car that long? It still works great. Plus, I paid it off eight years ago and now I can’t wrap my head around the idea of car payments. The car is showing its age (cosmetically speaking) and is way too small so one of these days, I’ll have to bite the bullet and give it up.

6. This year, we have been invited to have Thanksgiving with one of my best friend’s (from high school) family – as in with his parents. His wife quickly invited us once she heard we’d be in town. She was a little too excited about the idea. I immediately got the feeling that we were going to be a buffer. His prodigal sister and her new husband will be in town. I am sure we will have a great time though.

I guess that is enough randomness for today.

Lexi on the Election

This morning, I told Lexi that we are going to be getting a new President of the United States. She just looked at me. Then, I asked her if she wants to know his name.

She asked, "Is it Santa Clause?"

I had to smile as I thought about that idea.

Give Me Something to Believe In

As everyone knows, today is the BIG day to vote. It is down to the wire and we'll be hearing the results not too long from now. For many, it is quite exciting. Mainly, we will not have so many ad campaigns.

Because today is the last day, I am amazed that there are still people who are undecided. I believe that there have been plenty of speeches, news articles, commercials, jokes, campaign calls, and propaganda out there to make an informed decision. I can understand that people are not exactly overly thrilled with either candidate, but nobody is amazing enough to win over everyone. Picking a candidate shouldn’t be about gender, race, good looks, or who would throw the best dinner parties. Although, I would imagine that getting an invite to the white house would be thrilling no matter who was hosting it. Plus, I am sure the white house staff happens to be amazing at organizing events.

Today, voting should be about selecting a candidate based on their stance on issues like the war, gay marriage/rights, abortion, the economy (if anyone has the answer), taxes, wealth distribution, social security, diplomacy, education, etc. etc. etc. Voters should decide what is important and choose the candidate that is more in line with their viewpoints or desired way of life.

For those who have their hearts set on one candidate, we should all remember that the President is somewhat of a figurehead. The position has far less power than we often imagine. In the end, the President/Vice President team that is elected will make mistakes and will do things that make us all complain for at least the next 4 years. Unfortunately for them, being elected means they will face extreme criticism from all sides no matter how hard they work. Vote and then feel a little sorry for whoever wins.

Halloween Costumes

We had a great Halloween and came home with WAY TOO MUCH CANDY. Here are some of the photos:

Princess Lexi & Frog Prince Jordan


Gathering Candy


Full Costume


Another Photo of Jordan

Flashback Friday

This morning, I thought it would be fun to do a flashback Friday and post a Halloween picture of me when I was a kid. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any. This the only picture I found. It was 11 years ago and I was living in Houston for a few months:

Happy Halloween

For the past month, I have had very little work. Since I get paid whether I work or not, being slow is how I like it. Unfortunately, it seems like it is time to make up for that wonderful break. Work always tries to interrupt life when there are lots of interesting activities going on. Everyone knows I love the Fall and celebrating holidays. Too bad, I have to scramble to cram all the fun in. For now, I'll just post a couple of pictures and call it good:

Pumpkin Festival


Jacket Weather

Pumpkin Carving

Cute Kids vs Cute Mom

It is amazing how little extra time it takes to make kids look especially cute. For a girl, a regular routine includes bathing, dressing, combing their hair, and pulling it back with a hair band or clip so that it doesn’t hang in their face. Making sure they look especially cute only involves putting cute clothes on them and adding a matching bow to their hair, which takes about additional 3 seconds. For a boy, all that needs to be done to be extra cute is putting cute clothes on them. No additional work is involved.

For me, a regular routine involves taking a shower, getting dressed, applying a little make-up, and throwing my hair up in a clip. If I have somewhere special to go or want to look better for some reason, that involves showering earlier so my hair will dry a bit more before styling it, which takes half an hour for this humid climate. I also have to try on several outfits to find one that is the most flattering for my less than perfect body. All in all, I probably need an extra HOUR to get ready.

By now, you have probably realized that my kids always looked put together and me – not so much. I am not trying to say that I am a slob or anything, just that the extra effort (full make-up and salon styled hair) isn’t part of my daily routine. I have met quite a few stay-at-home moms around here that don’t have my philosophy though. They obviously make the effort to look their absolute best every day (with too much make-up for my taste).

I wouldn’t be mentioning this on my blog, except that their kids look like little ragamuffins. Why would anyone buy expensive designer clothes for themselves and Kmart special for their kids? I always thought a family should be on the same or similar budget. It isn’t about spending money though; it is about picking out cute clothes. Why would a mom have perfectly styled hair when the kids look like they rolled out of bed? I should note that I am talking about kids under the age of 3.

Maybe it is just me. I put in enough effort to look presentable and take a few additional seconds to make sure my kids look cute. It is just so easy.

Harebrain Halloween Idea

People who know me personally are well aware that I am always coming up with harebrain ideas. It runs in my family. Most of them are grand schemes that will change our lives forever like a big move to Timbuktu. We only act on about 10% and people still think we are insane.

Some of my ideas are still insane, but are on a rather small scale so it isn’t that big of deal. I had one last month that has been continuing to nag at me. I guess it all started when we lived on South Beach during one of my Ebay addiction phases. I thought it would be fun to make custom outfits for girls and sell them despite the fact that I didn’t have a sewing machine and can’t sew. Did you catch that? I said CAN’T SEW, but it didn’t stop me from buying a machine for a good deal. I played with it a few times, but that is as far as it ever went.

Last month, I started thinking it would be fun to dress my kids up in Renaissance costumes for Halloween so that they could wear them again to the Tex Ren Fest. A normal person would have started shopping around both online and in stores for their costumes, right? Not me! I headed right for the fabric store. All the way there, I told myself that I was just going to look because it would be silly to pick up a pattern and fabric when clearly I CAN’T SEW.

Unfortunately, while looking through the pattern books I found something I liked for Lexi that looked fairly easy (as in no buttons or zippers). Then, I began to tell myself that I could start the process and if I got stuck I would simply mail it to my mom & beg her to bail me out even though she works and is very busy. That is where I let myself get sucked in…remember that I am blonde.

There was one thing that I didn’t count on…my mom going to Canada for a few weeks with her husband to babysit his grandkids. I realized that I was stuck doing my own harebrain idea. During my teen years, she tried to teach me to sew. I wasn’t fond of it and asked a million questions so she would get frustrated and finish the projects for me. I just hoped some of it had rubbed off & I could pull up those files in my mind from 20 years ago.

It didn’t take me long to lay out the pattern and cut it out. I also quickly sewed the main seams. Then, I put it away for little while because I knew the next part would be a bit more difficult. Since Halloween is approaching and I am a stickler for deadlines, I pulled it out on Friday and almost finished it. The only thing left is the hem, which I know will turn out awful. I just keep telling myself that the costumes in the store are not exactly well made either. Here is the picture of the pattern so you know what it should look like (little girl in red):


Here is Lexi trying it on over her other clothes when I pinned it up to hem it:

Seven Year Itch

Seven years ago today, I met Steve. I can't say that it has all been easy. In fact, the first half of this summer was particularly rough. I spent a lot of time thinking about kicking him to the curb and of course he just adored my absolute perfectness. What's not to love, right?

A few years ago, I read an article about a study on couple's arguing. The main point of it was that people who have been married for 50 years still argue about the same things they did when they were newlyweds. Basically, you can yell at him for 50 years about leaving his socks all over the house and it will do NO GOOD. Overall, I find that kind of depressing. All those years of arguing and nothing ever comes of it. I think the seven year itch is just about getting a bit tired of the same old arguments. I also know that you can let yourself get worked up over things or just mellow out and let things go. Give them a few months and problems always seem less dramatic.

The point is that it has been seven years of mostly good and that is what counts. Since he is great at helping me around the house, I will continue to pick up socks and simply smile about it because I love him for now.

**For the record, I am way too laid back to worry about his socks. In fact, I have only jokingly mentioned it to him once.

Great FALL

I am finally starting to enjoy my favorite time of year, Fall. Unlike places up north, I don’t get to gaze upon the colorful leaves or even think about wearing sweaters and jackets. However, the temperatures are starting to cool off enough that we no longer need to hide from the scorching HEAT (now the highs are only in the high 80s). This is the time of year when Houstonians start to live again. We can hang festive Fall décor in our yards and houses. Plus, there are lots of festivals (pumpkin festivals and the Texas Ren Fest), county fairs, fund raising events, and activities that don’t require bathing suits. I am also looking forward to my favorite holidays, Halloween and Thanksgiving. Not, that we have anything planned, but I can’t help getting excited every year, especially this year since I am NOT pregnant. I just get to drag my husband and kids around to a million activities and get them pumped up about the upcoming fun.

Single Women vs Single Men

Last week, I saw a quick clip on the Today Show about being Single. They talked to 2 women, one in her 40s and one in her 50s. Neither of them were against marriage, but had never found “the ONE.” They both seemed fairly good looking, personable, and had interesting lives. The point of the segment was how tough people are on women who remain single for one reason or another. The topic got my blood boiling when they mentioned rude things that people say or assume about them like that there may be something wrong with her or that she is too picky.

I was 30 when I got married, which is 5 years older than the national average and 8 years older than the Mormon average. I also have friends that got married in their 30s or haven’t been married yet. Plus, I have friends that have been divorced. One thing I have noticed is that there are a LOT of great women out there, but there are not a lot of great men. Don’t get me wrong, I love guys. They make wonderful friends (often better than women) and I am only attracted to guys, but they are putzes. I think lots of my female friends settled, not necessarily for a BAD guy but just not as great as they are. I also think lots of my guy friends got REALLY LUCKY. I can only think of a few cases of people I know where the girl married up.

It must be true. Why do you think there is so much talk about women having to whip a guy into shape? Or train him? Or change him? Guys really are loveable, but being with them is a lot of work. You have to find one that ignites enough romantic sparks to make the tough job worth it. Sounds like I am talking about a dog, right? (training, lots of work, loveable) Well, men are often called dogs.

For the most part, I think women who want to get married, but are still single just haven’t found one that is worth all the work. The relationship has to be special or the whole thing will just crash and burn. Single women really are just avoiding the whole headache of settling for the WRONG guy. I don’t think that means they are too picky. It just means they are avoiding a whole difficult phase that would probably end up in divorce. I say we quit picking on single women & start picking on single men who don't have their act together... Or we can learn to be happy with the many different ways people choose to live.

I HEART Mark Zuckerberg

Can I mention (just one more time) that I LOVE Facebook? I was able to catch up with another dear friend that I haven't seen in 17 years! She is even coming to town at Christmas & we might be able to meet up. I am so excited...I could just FREAK out! I guess this is the month when I declare my undieing love for someone I consider a KID - Mark Zuckerberg. He was born 11 years after me, but I am that thrilled about Facebook. **Yes, I completely realize how much of a dork this makes me.**

Family Photos

What could be easier than posting a few photos we had taken about 3 weeks ago? Nothing...so here they are. Yes, I am feeling lazy. Lazy enough that I haven't even mailed any to my family yet.

My Football Fans

We went to a football party on Friday to watch Texas A&M against the University of Miami. Since Steve doesn't have many Canes fans here, I thought it would be nice for the kids to go in support of his team. Should I mention that I hope our kids go to Texas A&M?

Social Networking

A few years ago I had a conversation with a friend about blogs, MySpace, and Facebook. I had a blog and she had joined MySpace. She told me that blogs seemed like too much effort. She also mentioned that very few people our age were on MySpace. After that, I have never really thought about social networking sites again. Since there was nobody for us to network with, what was the point?

That changed about 2 months ago when a friend of a friend sent me an invitation to join Facebook. I was quite surprised that she had my e-mail address, so I joined mainly to be nice. Oh yeah, I was also a little curious. I was immediately surprised by how many of the people I knew that had accounts. I had no idea what the next few months had in store for me.

As I have mentioned here before, I have moved A LOT in my life. I have made and lost touch with so many friends that I can’t even begin to count (or come up with names for the searches). I have really enjoyed finding and being found by friends. I have been able to reconnect with friends I had while living in Qatar 11-12 years ago. Just this week, two friends from different high schools and different states found me. I haven’t talked to either of them in over 17 years. I feel like I am just seeing the tip of the iceberg here and I am a bit sad that I didn’t know this before.

I am guessing that everyone who is into blogging and is reading this is thinking - duh! Over ten years ago, I was very frustrated that so many of my friends hadn’t jumped on the e-mail bandwagon. Now, I am very late in joining this movement.

A few friends have told me that they are afraid of losing their privacy. For that, I must say that you pick and choose your “friends.” I currently have two requests from people I don’t know and who will not be gaining access into my profile. On top of that, like a blog, you are responsible for the content in your own profile. Don’t share anything that you feel iffy about (perhaps your home address). I honestly feel like I put more of my personality and opinions into this blog.

If more people my age (mid-thirties) and older would just admit that it was great, then the rest of us would have joined sooner. Here I am admitting, actually declaring that I am on Facebook and there are LOTS of people (who are much older than high school or college kids) to network and reconnect with. To be honest, the older you are the more friends that you have and want to keep in touch with. It should be more for us (the over 30 crowd).

Not Normal Yet

Even though we are/were lucky, things are still crazy out where we live.

Two days ago, the grocery store shelves were empty, but people were lined up to buy anything they could. Last week, I didn't buy any perishable items. We went to the store on Monday figuring that most people would be buying ice and canned foods. We made the loop along the sides of the store and found that the refrigerated sections were 95% empty. I forgot that stores here don't have a back-up generator. They probably had to throw everything out. The only items on the shelves were from local companies like Blue Bell Ice Cream (my favorite). I went again yesterday because Jordan loves Yobaby yogurt and we are out. I'd say the shelves are back to 50%, but still mostly stocked with local Texas products (no Yobaby).

The gas stations have long lines, but nothing compared to other parts of Houston. We hear that most places have 4 - 5 hour waits. I haven't needed gas, but I've seen the lines and they don't go on for miles. I would say there are about 8 cars for each pump. I think people from other places are coming here.

Schools even in our area are closed the whole week, which means that kids in Lexi's class will be doing the whole first week crying again next week. Fortunately, Lexi was fine and will probably be looking forward to playing with the kids again.

Some neighborhoods around us still don't have power. People are buying ice and going out to eat a lot. We only know one couple that is still in the dark, but I'm assuming that they are staying with their daughter who has power.

Steve had to report back to work on Monday. His office didn't have electricity so everyone sat outside for about 5 hours just chatting. Suddenly, the big bosses thought it would be a good idea for them to head to Galveston to help with clean-up. Once they discussed it, plans changed. While that is a nice idea, it would have been better if they started that morning. By the time everyone would get down there, they would have to turn around because of the curfew. Steve's normal projects are in the Medical Center, which is still not letting most of the employees back to work. He was asked to take over a store renovation project for another guy who needs to focus on his house.

With all these upside down things going on, there is one good thing - the weather is GREAT! After a whole summer of 95+ temperatures & humidity, we're so happy that the high yesterday was only 79 with low humidity. It almost felt chilly. It is slowly going to increase, but will still only be in the mid 80s this weekend. I hope they are able to restore power to most people before it gets HOT again.

Still Laughing

Since all of our local channels are stuck on the aftermath of IKE, we've been missing out on normal things. I don't watch much television. I usually catch about 30 minutes of the Today Show, but even that isn't on. When the tv is on my husband watches ESPN or Lexi watches a kid show. Fortunately, I was lucky enough to hear about the Saturday Night Live Clip & had to search for it on google. This made me laugh, so I'm posting it:



I think that most people will find it funny, no matter which way they plan to vote. This is my big political contribution this year. Humor is the spice of life!

Lucky Ones

I just wanted to do a quick post to let everyone know we are doing very well. Our neighborhood was extremely lucky and only suffered minor damage (our property had NONE). We only lost power for about 15 hours. A friend who lives a couple of subdivisions away invited us over when they heard we were without a/c. They didn't lose power, so we were spoiled. We actually had a nice time there. Lexi loved it, because they have twins her age.

Some of my friends & their parents who live just a few miles northeast of us were not as lucky, but still did well. The older neighborhoods in Katy lost big trees, fences and a few shingles from their roofs. We spent yesterday helping. Steve helped the most of course. Lexi picked up a few leaves. I did only minor things because there wasn't any place for me to put Jordan down.

For us, besides the power (which isn't an issue now), phone service hasn't been very good. Calls only go through about 50% of the time. We're supposed to stick to text messaging when we can, but they have been taking over 2 hours to go through. If you have friends and family in the Houston area that you can't reach, don't jump to the worst conclusion. For now, we'll all be praying for them.

I'll post more later.

Hunkering Down

The theme for this hurricane is "hunkering down." That is what they are preaching on television anyway. In Miami, that is what everyone does normally. I guess here the tough Texans need to hear it repeatedly.

Tonight, I'll be sleeping in Jordan's room. I hope I get some sleep. I am only doing it because of a story I heard a few years ago. My cousin & her husband woke up after a night with a hurricane to find that a tree had crashed through the wall of their nursery and was sitting only inches away from their baby's crib. They actually slept through that! I am a very light sleeper, so I can't even imagine how it could happen. The story still bugs me though, so I'll sleep in Jordan's room, which is right next to Lexi's. Trying to sleep in high alert mode is always a treat.

We only have a few more hours before the eye makes its way onto land. Out where we live, it hasn't been bad YET. I haven't noticed any rain and the winds only started picking up around 4pm. Now (9:30 pm), they are really whipping.

The good news for us is that the eye looks like it will fly by to the east of us. Actually since the eye is 60 miles in diameter, I should say that the middle of the eye will be east of us. The eye wall might catch us (oh fun!). Back to the good news, we are NOT on the dirty side of the storm. Most of the spin-off tornados will hit the east side of Houston. I feel sorry for them, but glad they will not be attacking us.

The bad news for us is that they expect over 5 million people to be without power. This may be my last post for a while. More than internet, I'm going to miss A/C and all the wonderful comfortableness that goes with it. Second on the list will be cooked food. We do have a propane grill for some things. Hopefully, our suffering either doesn't take place or doesn't last too long.

Bye for now. I'll catch you all when I can. Thanks for the words of encouragement!

Ike Comes Closer

Still keeping an eye on the storm...YIKES! By the way, I don't think anyone here has hurricane shutters. In fact, I don't see many people preparing yet. Maybe today? They are talking about the storm, but acting like life goes on as planned. I guess I am used to Miami where everyone knows they will be bunkering down for a few days maybe more. We'll all be learning the hard way, especially if it hits as a Cat 4 like they were talking about last night.

In the Cone

This is the time of year when Southerners suddenly become a lot more interested in the Weather Channel and sites like weather.com. This past week, we've been tuning in a bit more often. See the little red star in the cone of Hurricane Ike? That is where we live.

Before living in Florida, I would have never guessed that I would actually turn to the Weather Channel and watch for extended periods of time. That just seemed boring. I am guessing that if I hadn't lived there I would still not be able to have it on for more than a few minutes.

Should I even admit that when I lived in Miami I actually wished for hurricanes and tropical storms to come near? I guess since I wrote about it on my blog back then, it isn't a secret. I didn't want them to damage any homes or hurt anyone. I mainly wanted the county to be scared enough to shut down. That was my only chance for a day off of work due to weather. Some of those days turned out to be quite pleasant.

Now that we are living in Houston, have kids, own a place (that I still need to get home owner's insurane for the interior on), and don't have hurricane shutters; I have can't see any personal benefit of hurricanes. Oh yeah, did I forget to mention that I am working at home? That means that as long we have power & internet, I must work. I am definitely NOT going to wish for the power to go out. The temperatures are still reaching the mid 90s here. We would melt!

I know I have a laid back attitude about the storms, which isn't a good thing. In my defense though, it is a good balance to my husband. The worst hurricane I have been through was Katrina & Rita (in Miami where they hit as a Cat 1). My husband was living in South Florida when Andrew hit (Cat 5). He helped with the clean-up and re-building. Because of that, these storms seem to cause a bit of fear for him. He wants to go out and buy a generator, plywood or shutters, and all of that. I just make sure we have gas, water, and food.

...So, it looks like over the next few days we will be tuning into the weather channel. I just hope we don't make the national news because of the damage it causes. Oh & Jim, you seem nice, but feel free to stay away.

Who’s Your Daddy?

For some strange reason (most likely to get a little bit of a rise out of her parents), Lexi enjoys pointing at random men and asking, “Is that my dad?” She does it whether Steve is with us or not and in a perfectly serious mode. Of course, I prefer that she asks when he is with us. It can be quite embarrassing at times.

Like...when Lexi, Jordan, and I were at the Galleria mall having lunch. She pointed right at our waiter, who was Mexican (no signs of blonde genes), as he approached our table and blurted out, “Is that my dad.” Of course, I kindly reminded her that her dad was in a work meeting. I had to make sure that the waiter heard my response.

Lexi even does it to Steve. Yesterday, we were sitting on the steps at the water park when a family walked by. She pointed at the dad and asked Steve, “Is that my dad?”

He looked at me and just said, “I hope not!”

Then, I just had to say, “I am sure that guy wasn’t in Miami at the time.”

I must admit that it is kind of funny, even though strangers may feel sorry for the poor girl who must have a tramp for a mom.

Men & Their Garages

Why do men love the garage? To me, it is a place to park your car, store your tools, and dump junk in. It certainly isn’t a place that I would want to spend much time in. Steve, for some reason, enjoys organizing and reorganizing ours. He even takes everything out and sweeps or uses the wet/dry vac. A couple of weeks ago, he came home with cabinets for the garage. I can understand why he wanted them mainly because they were for free from work. The strange part is that he seemed so excited to have an excuse to reorganize. This makes no sense to me. There are a million tasks inside the house where the cool a/c is blowing, but he prefers the garage.

Lately, I have discovered that it is a normal male trait. My dad was a computer/book nerd, so this love of the garage isn’t something I am used to. A few weeks ago, I was at a party with a bunch of old friends from high school. One of our other friends (still a bachelor) put his house up for sale and the guys were talking about it. Basically, they said that they couldn’t believe he would sale his house because he has the most amazing garage and that he had dumped $8 grand into it. The house is great for many reasons, but for them to single out the garage made me laugh. He doesn't live near us, so I have only seen pictures in this link (Grand Garage). My impression of the garage was that it really clean and organized. However, a four car garage on a single story house seems a little silly to me, especially for a guy who lives there by himself.

I guess I have always assumed that the kind of guy that would LOVE a garage is one that is a mechanic or at least a recreational mechanic. I picture this kind of guy with a classic car that is being restored or has been restored. One of the guys even mentioned that he would like to spend a lot more time in his garage, but there are too many boxes he needs to clear out. I should probably mention that I wasn’t adding to the conversation or asking questions. They were all just going on & on about their love of garages. Steve fits right in with my old friends.

Maybe I am the strange one, but I just don’t see what could be so interesting about a plain old HOT garage. It makes me wonder if they want to use it for a refuge. It would make sense if they were trying to get out of the house away from their wives, but I don’t think that is the case. When the kids are sleeping, Steve often asks me to come out there and chat with him while he is working. One of the other guys is out there on Saturdays when his wife is running their smoothie shop, so I know he isn’t avoiding her. There is also the bachelor guy who doesn’t have anyone to hide from.

Does anyone know the answer? If not, I guess I’ll just have to assume it is some manly or primal type of activity.

Lucky Number Seven

Lucky for me, Del of My Relish Blog kindly decided to give me an “I LOVE THIS BLOG” award. I was very surprised & flattered, especially since she has such an interesting blog herself. For the past few days, I have been trying to come up with a mental list while I have been working on a huge project for work. My mind flips back and forth between the blog list and all the work things I need to do. You can easily guess which one I’d rather work on.

Unfortunately, it was not easy only picking seven. I had to leave out several of my favorites. I did follow the rules though. So, here it goes in alphabetical order:

Aerin’s Cranberry Blog
Aerin is always thought provoking, witty, and somehow manages working full time, taking care of her twins and dealing with her crazy large family.

Amyeliz
Amy simply cracks me up with her adventures in Miami, Utah, New York and other places.

Crazy Blogging Canuk
Amber is a talented writer who can make hiking, traveling, and the everyday adventures of a mom quite hilarious.

Death Chic
Stephanie is one of those people who just aren’t easy to sum up. She has so many diverse interests and talents including mortuary school, photography, running, and many other things.

Diva Tee’s Thoughts
The Diva is a working single chic with lots of fascinating experiences, people in her life, and thoughts.

The Princess and Johnsy
The Princess has two adorable daughters that I absolutely love and I know quite a few of the family members that she mentions from time to time. I’ve been able to meet up with her in person a few times. Did I mention that she is my husband’s cousin? I'm sure I would love reading her blog even if we weren't related.

Reformatting My Brain
RFM is a mom with two cute boys who runs a daycare out of her home, works part time, and still finds time to post.

There you have it ~ seven GREAT blogs.

The rules of the award are:

1. The winner can put the logo on his/her blog.
2. Link the person you received your award from.
3. Nominate 7 other blogs.
4. Put links of those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs of the people you’ve nominated

My Kind of Art

Several times over the last few years, my mom has asked me what kind of art I like. She likes to go to art festivals and figured that she could pick something up for me. The problem is I don't particularly care for any type of style. Something just has to hit me. I don't have a lot of art because things just don't tend to stand out enough for me to want them on my walls. I do have a few photos of breath taking scenes though. Considering I was a geography major, I guess that makes sense. I also have lots of photos of my kids.

I think my mom might have given up on buying art for me this year. She just decided to draw some pictures for me. Guess what...she hit the nail on the head.




Now, I just have to nag my husband to hang them. I'd do it myself, but the carpenter in him is just TOO PICKY about using the right screws & leveling it off with a laser pointer, etc.

Creating Goddesses

When I moved here a year ago, I got to see one of my friends from high school that I hadn’t seen in a long time. I was blown away at by her physique. She always had a nice body, but now EVERY muscle has distinct definition. She told me that she had hurt her knee and started physical therapy. Once it was over, she joined a gym and loves working out. She went on to tell me all about her gym and how much she enjoys it. She also mentioned that it costs about $100 a month.

I didn’t think too much about it at the time, but since then I have met several women (all moms) with the same type of AMAZING body (think Demi Moore in Charlie’s Angels – minus the boob job). All of them have praised the same wonderful gym that they can't stop raving about.

This last year, we have been involved in a play group that is filled with moms that have great bodies. In their case, it is a combination of having great genes and being exercise fanatics. Some of them are marathon runners and others just love spinning or yoga. It is no stretch to say that I have the WORST body there and I am just a normal/average sized person. I have found out that they all go to the same gym, but a different one than the goddesses. These women have the kind of bodies that I dream of having. It takes hard work, but seems obtainable. They look FABULOUS, but nothing compared to the goddesses.

With all of these amazing looking chics around me, I decided to start going to my gym. Jordan is old enough to go to the nursery now, so I figured it was time. It is a national gym that everyone has heard of. The closest one to me is brand new and very nice. While I enjoy it, I can’t help but notice that the people around me are an even slice of the population. It is nice to be surrounded by all different fitness levels, but I have to wonder what is going on at the other gyms.

I am tempted to get a tour of the gym where the goddesses work out to see if they do DNA screens before allowing someone to be a member, hypnotize people into becoming exercise freaks, have magic potions or all of the above. There just has to be something strange going on. Goddesses are not normal. …or could it be that anyone willing to pay $100 a month is bound to spend several hours a day there?

Nothing to Say

Every once in a while, I come to a point where I am tired of my blog. I don't have anything interesting to say (ok, so that hasn't stopped me before). TOO MUCH WORK and entertaining kids keeps me busy. I guess mainly I should admit that this week I am distracted by the newest book in the Twilight Series "Breaking Dawn." I have admitted on this blog that I am not an avid reader. I just don't make time for it. However, I started reading the first Twilight book soon after Jordan was born & certainly had to read the other two. Now, the newest one came out & is over 700 pages. It is sucking up (**it is a vampire book) all the extra energy & seconds of down time I once had. It will soon be over though and then life & blogging will resume.

Birthday Boy

Steve turns 41 today. He is actually taking one step over the hill (hahaha). We had a small party for him on Saturday with a few friends and their kids. Actually, I think there were just as many kids as adults. That really livens up a party.

The fact that it is his birthday today also means that we've been living in Texas exactly a year. We pulled in on his birthday last year. He can't believe it, but for me it feels so normal. I think it is because I was familiar with everything here. For me, it just seems like we've been here longer.

To celebrate these two things, I'll be making Steve's favorite thing for dinner - lasagna. I'll probably even run out to Ooh, La, La, Dessert Boutique and buy cheesecake (his other favorite).

Back But Missing It

Our trip to the Grand Canyon started off rocky. Thank you Southwest Airlines for your rigid on time flights. Literally slamming the door in our faces after you asked us to go to the desk and get a tag for the stroller was a bit dramatic. Putting us on the next flight that had a 2 hour layover in Phoenix just made the vacation start off on the wrong foot. Because of the delay, the kids and I weren't able to ride to the Grand Canyon in my mom & step-dad's RV. We had to squish into the Jeep Liberty we rented for the 5 hour trek. It wasn't pleasant, but we made it and things got better immediately. Oh, except for the fact that Jordan was a bit fussier than usual & refused to eat. I noticed that he cut his first tooth. Who does that on the first day of vacation? That led to less sleep than normal.

My husband & FIL (yes he came to my family reunion) decided that everyone should make the effort to go to the Grand Canyon because there is no other place on Earth quite like it. They were blown away. While I always enjoy going there, I loved seeing cousins, second cousins, aunts, uncles, etc. that I hadn't seen in over a decade. I was really happy to see my favorite cousin, who even lived with me a while at BYU. We had some great times there, but I haven't seen her since I left. I wish we could have spent more time together, but kids and campsites that are not next to each other made it a bit difficult. Lexi and Jordan also got to mingle with my nieces and nephews, which is always a treat. We hadn't seen them for a year and a half. My brother has a new one that is only 2 days older than Jordan.

I had been warned that camping with kids is not something anyone should try. I can't complain though, which probably is because of the RV parked right next to our tent. My mom brought all the food and supplies. Steve helped cook over the campfire. It was a little cold at night (55 degrees). During the day, it got up to 85, which is quite cool for us. Evenings were spent with everyone around our campsite eating, talking, and my brother & step-dad playing instruments and singing.

Our last day at the Grand Canyon was quieter than the others. All of the extended family members were gone. My mom, step-dad, sister, brothers, brother's family, and my little family were the only ones left. It rained (drizzled) so we sat under the RV's awning and talked. It was a nice ending to the reunion.

Then, we headed for Vegas. This time, the kids & I got to ride in the RV through Zion’s National Park. We stopped for pictures, but Lexi was asleep so only Jordan got to be in a few. We grabbed lunch in St George and then met up with Steve in our hotel in Vegas. A four star hotel (Planet Hollywood) looks much better after spending time in a tent. We had a great time wandering around and talking to Steve's Aunt & Uncle who met up with us there. They got to see Jordan for the first time.

Now, we are back. I hate coming home from vacations. Why can't the fun continue? Ok, I know money plays a big part. Unfortunately, I am home and facing entirely too much work.

Negative Gadget Karma

When my husband and I were newly engaged, he decided to take my little boom box outside so he could listen to music while doing yard work. Three days later, I was out in the yard and noticed that it was still sitting out there. It had been rained on and no longer worked. I was a bit shocked because I had it for 12 years and the thing was practically an antique. In fact, it was given to me for Christmas in 1990 and had a CD player before that was common. When you have something for that long, it becomes part of your life. It had travelled across the US several times with my crazy moves and even to the Middle East. I didn’t know it at the time, but I think that was my first sign that my husband had negative gadget karma.

Over the years, I can’t even count how many cell phones and digital cameras have been destroyed or lost in his care. In fact, after a few cameras, I realized that he needed his own cheap one. I bought a nicer one for me and he is not allowed to use mine. Even this past year, he has gone through 2 work phones and managed to run over his company issued lap top.

Why am I sharing this??? Because I hope it isn’t rubbing off…

This week, I have been dealing with a loss. My beautiful lovely life supporting cell phone has been blitzed. It happened when Jordan spit up on my pants right as I was about to go in and do a load of laundry. I noticed that my pants fit the color scheme of that load, so I took them off and threw them in. I think it was twenty minutes later when I realized that my phone was probably still in the pocket. Peeking inside the washer didn’t work. I even pulled the pants out, but the pocket was empty by then. It wasn’t until I was transferring the load to the dryer that I found my sad little red phone.

My husband and I are cell phone people. Throughout our relationship, we haven’t had a home phone or when we did it has been ignored completely. I just can't live without a cell phone, so I rushed right out to get a new one. I went to the closest Verizon store and was told that I didn’t have insurance on my phone, but my husband does. At the time, that decision made sense. The cheapest phone I could buy there was $350 since we had a year left on our contract. He told me about another store that sells refurbished ones and that I might be able to get my same phone for less than $100. I packed the kids back in the car and rushed over there. When I got there, I was told that they were not the store that sold refurbished phones. There was another one. The kids were put back in the car and taken to the third store, which smelled like smoke and had a strange cashier. He pulled out several very cheap looking crappy phones, so I left. He followed me out to the parking lot offering me “great deals.” I told him I had to think about it because those phones were not what I wanted.

My heart was broken. The most tragic part is that I had lots of phone numbers in there that I don’t have anywhere else - silly me. I had even read Reformatting’s Cell Phone Story and decided to save all my numbers, but I hadn’t got around to it yet. The good news is that I ordered a cool LITTLE phone off of Verizon’s website. It even has an MP3 player and was about $150. Unfortunately, I don’t know if I’ll get all those numbers back or how long it will take to get most of them.

One thing I have learned is that negative gadget karma is a horrible thing to live with. I HOPE it hasn’t rubbed off on me. It is hard enough dealing with this kind of thing once in a great while. I also have insurance on my new phone and plan to put all the numbers I get into Outlook.

A Little Late Night Fun on the 4th

For the 4th, we headed down to our local outdoor shopping area for live music and fireworks. I am a bit of a stickler for bedtime, but not when it comes to holidays and family gatherings. We didn't get home until 10pm. Bad mother you say??? Whatever...that was the best night of sleep I've had in a year. Jordan actually slept from midnight to 8am! I think we might go partying every night.

Happy 4th!

Getting Old

After that last post, this one will seem odd... but am I the only one who gets grossed out by teenage public displays of affection (pda)? When we go to the pools on the weekend, I see teenage couples holding hands, hugging, and gazing into each others' eyes like they are trying to be madly in love. It makes me want to puke. I would rather see a toddler not make it to the potty & have an accident in the pool. That is not nearly as gross.

You Were Wrong Mom

When I was about 14, I had a “boyfriend” - as in a classmate asked me to “go steady” with him. My family was living smack in the middle of Utah at the time, which means we were surrounded by a 99% Mormon population. Something you may not know about Mormons is that in general they are not allowed to date until they are 16 years old. We attended a middle school where dances consisted of the boys trying to act cool against one wall and the girls giggling against the other wall. There was not exactly a lot of interaction. Our “relationship” consisted of talking on the phone in the evenings and being too embarrassed around each other to say more than “Hi” at school. We didn't even get close to holding hands. By the way, his best friend had a similar relationship with my best friend.

A real breakthrough came right before his 14th birthday. We had probably been “together” for a month or less. He wanted my best friend and his to go with us to see a movie in the little local theater, where everyone in town went. His mom was even going to go and sit behind us. My best friend’s mom said she could go if I could (probably because she knew that my parents were utlra religious). My mom said, “No, that it was a date.” I couldn’t believe it, especially with his mom going! I reasoned, begged, pleaded and did just about everything to convince my mom to let me go. A word of advice...never go up against a red headed Irish mom, it is just a waste of time and energy. She had heard some statistic that girls have s*e*x exactly two years after their first date. She was not going to budge. As you can guess, nobody got to go. Probably a week or two later, we broke up for whatever childish reason. We were still friends though, which is basically what we were when we were “going together.”

Recently, through the power of internet networking, we found each other and have chatted a little. It turns out that he is gay, which incidentally makes me like him more (as a person of course). I can only imagine how difficult it was growing up in the middle of Utah. He is not living there anymore. He has even travelled a lot and lives an interesting life. Now, I really wish we would have been better friends. I called my mom up to let her know that in the end I was right. She didn’t have to worry about anything happening between us. Of course, she is a much more laid back person twenty + years later. She just laughed. She also denies knowing that his mom was going to go. I am sure I stressed that point in my pleading. I called one of my brothers who was about 7 at the time just to make sure & he remembered that detail.

Moral of the story - Sometimes the teenager is right….but don’t quote me on that in about 12 years, when I am battling my kids.

Flashlight Queen

Remember when I revealed that I somehow have a 100 or so flashlights? No? - I just buy too many because you can never have enough. My husband has been teasing me about it for years.

Last night, we had a crazy hail & lightning storm and the power cut off for 6 hours. Even though everything isn’t put away from our move, I easily found 2 flashlights. Now, I suspect my hubby will not be so eager to tease me, about that anyway.

Now that I brought up teasing, one of my friends mentioned that her husband teases her horribly. She seemed slightly bothered by it. It isn't a big deal to me, but I grew up in a family of teasers. I told her that I just tell my husband that “It is a GOOD THING THAT I AM PERFECT.” Works every time!

Single Moms

The last few weeks my husband has been working A LOT. He is overseeing 12 projects. 11 of them are going on in the day and 1 is happening at night. Theoretically, he should not be able to leave work at all because he is supposed to be there when things are happening. The other 2 guys that do the same thing he is doing have 3 - 5 projects. He doesn’t have the workaholic personality, but he is good at what he does and he gets excited about the idea of new projects, so he is given too many.

Because my husband is gone all the time and the fact that Sunday is Father's Day have me thinking about single moms. Lately, I have been feeling like one (who has a boyfriend that she sees once in a while). I guess I can't say that I feel exactly like one because most single moms don't get to stay home or work part-time from home. I am lucky about that, but I also don't get ANY breaks - well except when they nap. Fortunately, they both go down from about 1:30pm to 4:30pm. That is my only me time, which I have to use to get work done. Did I mention that working from home is tougher than dropping the kids off at daycare & going to work? It is when I have a tough deadline.

Rambling, rambling, rambling...where was I going with this? Oh yeah, single moms should be able to get gifts and celebrate Father's Day as well as mother's day. It is hard work. By the way, that is my excuse for my latest little on-line shopping sprees. I just want to make sure I get myself the perfect gifts the kids needed stuff too. Don't worry, I did find something for my hubby. I guess I'll give it to him next time I bump into him. :)

Beating the Heat/Old Navy Ad

Just Add More

I had a follow up doctor appointment for the kidney stones yesterday. I wasn't surprised to find out that mine are solely caused by the fact that I do not drink enough liquids. However, I was surprised when he told me that I also need to be drinking a LOT of lemonade. Apparently, the citrus is good for the kind of stones (calcium) I had. Good thing I like lemonade and it is also nice for the horrible heat wave we are experiencing in Texas. Sadly, I was hoping the remedy would be lots of ice cream.

I also took Jordan to the doctor today. He is 6 months old now (sniff, sniff). He is 28.25" long (93rd percentile) and 15 lbs & 13 oz (30th percentile). Yep - very tall & very skinny. When I mentioned that he still isn't sleeping through the night despite the fact that I am feeding him breakfast & dinner, she told me that he needs more food. She wants me to start feeding him lunch & yogurt for snacks. On top of that, I guess I am supposed to continue breastfeeding.

For the past few weeks, I have been thinking about my dad's eating habits and skinniness. He used to eat 4 - 5 heaping plates of food for each meal and his ribs were all very visible. I wondered if this trait had been passed down to Jordan....this one trait that I wish I had gotten. How could this be inside me & not be something I possess? I also thought about how expensive our food bill is going to be in the future. I guess this is part of having a boy in our family. My husband, father-in-law, and brother are also known for being big eaters (nothing like my dad though). People are always commenting about how much they can put away. Jordan was bound to join the club.

One thing is for sure, I am going to be making lots of trips to the grocery store for lemonade & baby food.

Dog Days of Summer

I have been looking forward to this summer for the last 6 months. I was excited about taking Lexi and our friends to the various pools (beach club & waterpark) in our community. Now that the heat & humidity has hit,....I think I've changed my mind. We may have to live at the pool. I guess I am looking forward to my family reunion in the Grand Canyon in July. Perhaps, I'll consider that cool.

Flamingly Liberal

Since moving back to Texas, I have realized that my moderate/little to the left views are extremely liberal here. I guess it should not come as too much of a surprise seeing that it is a predominately Republican state that is strongly proud of being in the Bible belt. One of my friends told me that our voting district is considered the most conservative in the US. I don’t think that is necessarily a bad thing; I have just always felt that I am more on the liberal side.

Those who know me would definitely say that I am a laid back person. I am opinionated, but I have an open mind. While I feel a little out of place at times, I recognize that it is a wonderful location to raise kids. I went to high school here and I can tell you that I never experienced peer pressure. We had a big group of guys and girls. We were too busy playing volleyball, watching movies, joking around, and doing a million more things. This is a place where lots of kids are involved in Bible study and various church activities.

We live in a safe place and I am comfortable raising kids here. I hope that my kids continue to be surrounded by great influences, but manage to pick up a little of my open mindedness. Mainly, I would like them to be generally caring people and be able to listen and figure out their beliefs for themselves (after they move out of our house of course - until then they are MINE). :)

Five Years

Our anniversary is on Saturday, but we are celebrating this evening because a friend offered to watch the kids while we grab a quick bite to eat. We haven't been out in a long time, so this is exciting for us. We are going to try out a little Italian place, which will not be quite a cozy as our first date in Coconut Grove. Things have changed quite a bit since then.

It has been five crazy years that included having 2 kids, moving 5 times including the big one from FL to TX, buying and selling a house, buying another house, losing my father to brain cancer and his mother to lung cancer, as well as all the regular marriage stuff. Talk about tough times! Ok, so overall it has been a fun ride.

I don't really have the time or energy for a tribute post, but we also don't have time to celebrate the 5th one right either. I guess we'll save up the thrill for the 10th one.

Mother's Day

This Mother's Day I am celebrating the fact that I get to be a mother to these two characters.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to you all, for those of you have mothers & for those of you who are mothers.

Thoughts of Another

This weekend, Steve admitted that he works late sometimes because he finds life with kids can be stressful. He loves it, but it can be overwhelming for him. I just stayed quiet and listened mainly because I have no response. Should I point out that I deal with most of it? No, it doesn't change his feelings. Besides, we have very different views when it comes to family and kids.

The entire time I was pregnant with Lexi, it was easy to think I could do it again. I have always wanted at least three kids. My thoughts were not so pleasant when I was pregnant with Jordan. In fact, I spent the whole pregnancy thinking I NEVER wanted to do this again. However, shortly after he was born, I really wanted another one. He has been such a wonderful baby, except for the frantic hunger pains at night.

Steve, on the other hand, feels differently. He was very happy to have one and was pleased to have another one, but for him three is too many. Throughout the last year, he half joked about getting a vasectomy. Actually, I am sure he was seriously considering it, but I asked him not to. I told him that I haven’t made my mind up about a third, but I wanted to leave the option open. In reality, I wasn’t too worried considering the fact that he never finds time to go to the doctor for even normal things.

I guess it shouldn’t be surprising that we have such different opinions of kids when you look at our families. I am the oldest of five and he is the youngest of two. I have twelve first cousins on my dad’s side and ten on my mom’s. Steve has three on his dad’s side and none on his mom’s. Holiday gatherings with my family are full of noise and millions of things going on at the same time. With his immediate family, we mostly sat around talking or all did a relatively quiet activity (before the kids came).

For me, kids are everything. The joy of nurturing and watching a person grow is one of the best things in life. I realize that I am lucky to have two kids, but three would be better. It is not only for me, but for them. We will not always be around for them, but they will have each other. The more siblings they have the more support they can give each other. I know that the idea of large families is engrained in Mormons and it is something that I have a hard time giving up on. Of course, I don't want a whole bus load of kids, but three seems reasonable.

We have seven months before we would even start trying for a third, so why am I thinking about it now? Mainly - because we're packing and moving so it would be a great time to unload maternity clothes and baby stuff. Partly - because my sister-in-law is pregnant and could use the stuff. Partly - because I’m not young so a quick decision would be best. In reality, I am not ready to let go of the idea of three kids yet so the stuff goes with us.