Food.....a weakness!!!

Okay... food weaknesses...I have BUNCHES, too many!!!  Here is a random list:


1.  Haagen Dazs Dark Chocolate Ice Cream bars...again...why?  Why do I put them in the cart?  I could skip that aisle and be okay, but if they are in my house, I will eat them!  The good part about these is that each box only comes with 3 (yes, they are expensive..but soooo worth it), so they only last the first 3 days they are in my house.

2. Reeses' Chocolate/Peanut Butter eggs, trees, hearts....whatever the seasonal pattern is at the time.  They used to only make them in eggs and I would get them at Easter when I was little...but now, you can get them for just about any holiday...which makes me happy...but if I would just skip the holiday aisle...I would be okay!

3. Chocolate milk...oh my gosh!  I could drink it all the time!  Again, don't buy it!

4. Cheddar Jalapeno Cheetos....seriously, why do I still buy them.  I am going to eat the whole bag!  Why do I do this to myself?  I mean I love eating them, but I am fine when I don't.

5. Noodles...I love Italian food, anything with marinara, or a cheesy sauce with noodles.  I could eat the whole meal!

The other night I made the girls Hamburger Helper...I actually hoped they would not finish their meal so I could have a few bites!  UGH!!!!

I am hungry now and really want to heat up some new noodle thing I found today...but since I just had a bunch of Cheddar Jalapeno Cheetos, I will try to say no...in fact, instead of making noodles, I could just eat a Reeses' PB/Chocolate egg......Hmmmm....choices, choices!

Maybe I just shouldn't go to the store!  :)

Impulsive.....or psycho??????

Sometimes I am not sure why I do the things that I do.  I mean, normally when I do things I have thought about them.  For example, when we buy a new vehicle, it is usually something we have talked about for a while, but when we go and look, the looking part goes fast.

My mom...well, she is a list maker.....everything can go onto a list.  I use lists when I am desperate.  I am a talker.  When I want something, I have to talk myself into it, or tell other people about it so they can talk me into it.  That talking thing is what has helped me purchase; shoes, jeans, vehicles, etc.

Then there is that talking part....sometimes that may be excessive, or impulsive.  For example, last night I read a blog of someone I have never met.  She had an e-mail address for you to be able to write to her (I will say she works in the news business) for some reason I wrote to her on her work e-mail.  Now, I did this at 11:00 last night, while my husband was out of town for work.  Why?  Why did I e-mail her?  What was I thinking, I mean I just poured it all out to her.  OMG!!!!  I never made a list of the pros/cons of writing to her.  I never talked to anyone else before I did it.  OMG!!!!  I am officially a psycho blog stalker!!!

Don't worry...in my e-mail to her I did tell her to feel free to delete my e-mail (yes, I put that at the beginning of my e-mail).  UGH!!!!  I also did receive an out of office reply from her....so now I can just patiently wait until she gets back to work, to find out she thinks I am a psycho blog stalker!  Wonder if that will get me a restraining order....hmmm.....

Mark is sooooooo proud!  :)

Not ready yet!!!!

It was the 1st real day of Spring Break for me today and I decided to be productive.  Not quite as productive as I had wanted because the Terminix man who was supposed to come between 10-12 called at 11:45 and asked to come between 1 and 3.  But, that was fine!  :)  We played outside tons today....pretty much all day!  It was FABULOUS!  I hope all week is just as fantastic!

This afternoon I had Allie try on some shirts that I thought could be too small for her, not only were some too small...but some Allie told me we needed to get rid of because "she wasn't a baby anymore."  What?!?!  Dora, Winnie the Pooh....too babyish??  I told her they were fine, and Autumn agreed with Allie.

Now, I know my girls are growing up, but did they have to be so harsh about it?  Today, both girls were able to keep up on a 2 mile bike ride, they helped make their sandwiches for lunch, and fed Princess Scooby Doo...all things I am soooooo excited that they can do, but I still want them to be my babies.....I'm not ready for them to completely grow up yet.  :(

Yea!!! Warm Weather!!! Yea!!!

I love warm weather!!!  It is here and should be here for at least a week!!  This makes me soooo excited because Spring Break is this next week.   I love getting to spend time outside (without a giant jacket, scarves, and gloves).  Soccer is starting and I love getting to sit out and watch the girls play soccer while Mark coaches them.  I love the fact Mark is their coach.  I know it takes a lot of patience, but he is GREAT at it!

Warm weather also brings grilling!  I love brats, hot dogs, and hamburgers on the grill!  I love sitting outside while Mark is grilling!  Today, after school I just sat out on the back deck for an hour and it made me sooooo happy!

Life has been crazy lately and I was so glad to get to have some time outside in this awesome weather!!!

We took the girls to Wye Mountain this past weekend...it was AWESOME!!  We got some pictures that make me very happy!

Enjoy the weather!!!  I know I will!!!  :)

What makes you feel better????

It's not a surprise to many that I have been having a tough couple of weeks.  Very emotionally draining...but nothing compared to what so many people have gone through/are going through.  One of the things I have been noticing lately is what has helped me through these times.....the things that make me feel better.  I've compiled a list of things that have helped...

1. My family.  They are the best!  I've gotten awesome hugs, compliments, and love from them.

2. Cheddar Jalapeno Cheetos.....I LOVE them!!!!

3. Exercise...it has been a NECESSITY (because of the stress and the Cheetos)!!!

4. Facebook, E-mails, texts, and kind words....it is the most awesome thing to receive a random wall posts, inboxes, and e-mail from someone letting you know they are thinking/praying for you. I've  truly appreciated texts and the people who have encouraged me and listened to me.

5. Mark...yes, he counts in family...but gosh he is just awesome (he even ran me a bubble bath the other night and put the girls in bed...he is AWESOME).

6. Music....I love music!  There isn't one song in particular, but gosh music is Great!  (I remember this one time in college when Mark had upset me and I played/sang Chicago's "Hard Habit to Break" over and over and over----Mark will appreciate me sharing that one)  :)

Everyone has their own things that gets them through crazy times....I'm just glad I don't have to go through things alone!  Thank you to all of you!!!   :)

Short and Sweet....

Ever have days when you just aren't yourself?  Ever had weeks like that?  Well, this was my week.  I've mentioned before I have had a lot going on....I think it finally got the better of me.  I hate admitting that.  I hate admitting that I can't just do it all!!  But, I am!  I can't do it all and that is okay.  (I will need reminding of that again I am sure.)

Last week was a long week, very emotionally draining!  This week will be very busy as well, but that is okay!  This weekend was a nice weekend!  I should say GREAT weekend, but I was too tired for it to be that!  I loved being with my girls and Mark.  We spent a lot of time outside, despite the fact is was cooler than I like.

I think my saving grace was the nap I took today!  I think it was about an hour long and it was needed.  I woke up and felt more like me.  I smiled and it wasn't forced, I was okay with exercising, it wasn't because I had to...though I did not jump for joy over going for a run!

I am lucky that on days, or weeks like I had, my family still loves me.

God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did, this sinful world
as it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right
if I surrender to His Will;
That I may be reasonably happy in this life
and supremely happy with Him
Forever in the next.
Amen.

--Reinhold Niebuhr

In loving memory of

Parenting....it is more than a job...

I adore my girls and being a mom is my FAVORITE job!  I just love the fact they love me so much.  As I was laying with Allie tonight...she told me I smelled good.  Autumn tells me how pretty I am when I wear just about anything....I just love it!!

Sometimes parenting is hard.  Punishing my girls is always harder on me than on them.  I know they don't like going without TV or a snack.  However, it is my job to raise my children to have respect and act right. It is my job to listen to my girls, help them make decisions, and sometimes let them know that they can't do something that they want.

I know I am a dorky mom....I can't wait for Parent-Teacher conferences, I want to attend EVERYTHING and ANYTHING they have.  I want to be a part of their lives...as much as I can.  I know in a few years, they aren't going to tell me I smell good or look pretty....they will probably tell me..don't wear that Mom or gosh you embarrass me!!!!  I just hope that I don't change my outlook.

As a teacher I get to see a variety of parents, some who still love parent-teacher conferences and some who would rather be anywhere than at their kids school.  It makes me wonder where that changes???

As a teacher a few tips I would suggest to parents....

1.  Listen to your kids

2. Recognize not all of your kids are the same....one child may get better grades and one may be a better
    athlete

3. Make your kids your 1st priority (they grow up really fast)

4. Be there for them as much as you can....attend conferences, go to ball games and performances, just be there for your kids.  They notice, even if they don't say thank you.

5. Be the parent.....remember sometimes you won't be their best friend....sometimes they will be mad at you and may say things they regret....but, you are the parent and they need you to fulfill your job!

              I adore my girls and hope they continue to adore me for a long time!  :)

March Madness!!!!

Mark and I have set some new goals for March.  We are calling it "March Madness."  We actually got this term from our fitness instructor at our gym....she did something similar with us last year.

I have several goals for March.  Some of them I like...others I am trying to like.

1.  Eat more fruit.  I like fruit, but it isn't something I have on a daily basis.  Right now I have bananas and pineapples in my house.  I like them both, I just have to remember to eat them.

2. Drink more water.  I love Coke....but I need to drink more water.

3. Exercise.....this includes keeping up with my Couch 2 5K program and running 3 times a week.  I also plan to go to the gym at LEAST 3 times a week, doing ab work daily, working on holding a plank for a minute daily, and doing at least 10 push ups each day.

4.  The TOUGHEST one for me, trying not to eat anything after 8:30 at night.  Now, one of the things that makes this so hard is there are 3 nights a week I am not home until 8:00 or later.  I still want to eat dinner, but various things keep me out later.  So, I will try really hard to make this one work!

The weather is nicer so it makes it easier to want to be outside.

I know swimsuit season is coming and I want to live a healthy life and teach my girls about being healthy.  So, I will try very hard for 31 days in March to live through this madness!  :)