The Wonderful World of Wessel

Circa 1978 and other ramblings

2012-01-20T15:09:00.000-05:00

I love having a daughter. It’s the best. Especially when she gets the toys out my sister and grew up with. This Barbie house was second-hand when my sister and I got it in 1986 (date on bottom is 1978! Before I was born!). Addison is more than happy to have the “mansion” in her basement now. We also have Barbies from the very early 80’s and a sweet Jem and the Holograms doll.

Oh and don’t forget Danny from New Kids on the Block!

So besides playing Barbies, we’ve been trying to get a plan together for what we want to do to our house. Everytime I think about it, it gives me anxiety. I am the type of person that wants to do it all NOW. It is obviously not going to work like that. It really started when I found this sweet deal on the Benjamin Moore website, for a FREE Gallon of their Advance paint, which is an oil-based paint that cleans up like a latex and it is low-VOC. It is specifically made for cabinets and trim. I registered for the coupon (this was on January 4th) and when it was sent to me the same day, it had an expiration date of 12/31/11 on it. I was so mad! I emailed the Benjamin Moore customer service department and kindly asked them to extend the offer to me since it was still on their website. A couple days later I received and email back that indicated I could purchase a gallon (which is $49 a gallon) and they would refund my purchase!! The closet retailer who carries this type of paint happened to be in Centerville. I went up there on Monday (MLK Day) and purchased the paint along with a quart of another amazing paint for our master bath vanity and some other furniture. When I went to print the coupon to email back to Benjamin Moore along with my paint receipt, the coupon would not print (assuming because it was expired). So now I’m waiting again for a response as to whether or not they will still refund my purchase. Keep your fingers crossed.

I bought “Simply White” for the cabinets and trim and “Black Bean Soup” for the furniture/vanity. When I told hubby about the paint, he didn’t think it was a good idea to do the kitchen cabinets at this time since we wanted to also do granite counters, sink and backsplash. I am instead going to work on the moulding/casing around the windows and doors with the white paint. One thing is leading to another, again, giving me an anxiety attack. Our baseboards are in really bad shape, so instead of painting them, we plan to replace them. This gives Jack a chance to buy 2 new nail guns, so I think he is happy. But then baseboards make me think about flooring (since we need that too).

So the room I plan to focus on next is the dining room. I found some really inexpensive curtain panels at Marshall’s the other day that I couldn’t resist. I initially wanted to make them, but I needed at least 12 yards of material, which was probably going to be a minimum of $120 in fabric alone. In the Marshall's clearance section I found 2 packages (2 panels per package) that were $10 each for a whopping total of $20. They were too short though, so I went to work on lengthening them. I already had the material that just so happened to match my color scheme and then I bought 5 yards of brown ribbon.

I didn't have a zoom lens on my camera so I couldn't get the whole window, but you'll get the idea.

Too short:

Just right:

I plan to do the walls in Revere Pewter (Olympic One paint color matched to this Benjamin Moore color), paint the existing trim-windows, chair rail and baseboard since they are newer and in good shape. The dark paint I bought will be for the buffet, table and chairs.

2011 in Review

2012-01-02T18:32:00.002-05:00

Since I feel like blogging is the best way to document our family memories, I better get back on the bandwagon. I just feel like I don't have any time! The new year is giving me a fresh start, but I also feel like I need to review 2011, so here goes....

January 2011
-We celebrated the new year in Michigan with Jack's family
-Sister turned 29
-Started the photography class at Live Oaks
-Grand Rapids, MI trip for Jack's cousin-Rob's-retirement from the Army

Me, Tara, Deanna, and Rob

At the Retirement dinner

February 2011
-Quiet month
-Continued photography class

March 2011
-Dad and Uncle Steve's birthdays
-During Jack's spring break he constructed a gorgeous pergola and paver patio at the Parker Road house

In progress

Finished pack porch/patio

April 2011
-Finally decided we really wanted to move, started looking for houses and getting ours ready to sell
-Grandma Jackie took Aunt Amy and I to San Francisco. It was an amazing trip

Us by the Golden Gate Bridge before a tour of Napa and Sonoma Wineries

Postcard Row with the city in the distance

May 2011
-Traveled to Michigan to visit with Jack's cousin Jeremy
-After finding out that it wasn't smart to sell the Parker Road house, we decided to lease it. We put an ad on Craig's List and had about 7 families interested in it over 2 days. We showed it to 5 great families, but decided to rent it to a couple from the Hamilton area. We couldn't be happier.
-Looked at only 2 houses and decided on a foreclosure in Miami Township with a Loveland address (Milford Schools).

Before we bought

After we bought and painted the front door, etc.

June 2011
-Continued to get the Parker Road house ready to rent and pack to move. We closed on June 24th and finished moving by the 30th since the renters moved in July 1.
-Celebrated Addison's 4th birthday on June 5th at the pool. She got a new bike!

Addy and her BFF Kylee

July 2011
-Spent a week in Caseville, MI with Jack's side of the family. It was a bittersweet trip since it was the last time we'd see Jeremy.

-Jack traveled to Michigan again mid-July to celebrate his cousin Jeremy's life. He passed after a three-year battle with occular melanoma.
-Jack started football camp

August 2011
-Jack finishes his Masters in Educational Leadership from Wright State University! What an accomplishment!
-Back to school for Jack
-Addy loves her new house and neighborhood.
-Bought a hot tub from a friend and built a deck for it.
-Jack and I celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary with a night at Montgomery Inn and champagne. It was wonderful!
-Continued to make small outdoor improvements to the new house house including 4 yards of mulch and a lot of weeding/clearing out.
-Celebrated Aunt Amy's 30th Birthday and Grandma Jackie's 60th Birthday with a surprise party at our house

September 2011
-Addy started gymnastics and ballet at Dance, Etc.

this was taken with my phone, but you get the idea

-Football season is in full swing; Jack is gone a lot.

October 2011
-Got together with friends a bunch of weekends
-Took my friend's daughters' senior pictures. They turned out great!
-Went to the Zoo's Hallzooween festival
-Visted Shaw Farms to get pumpkins

-Had my wisdom teeth taken out
-Celebrated Halloween as a cat

Not her whole outfit, but you get the idea

November 2011
-Had gum surgery...horrible!!!
-Decided to look into back surgery again. Had several MRIs and X-Rays
-Celebrated Jack's 33nd birthday
-Flew to Columbia, MD (Baltimore) to visit Uncle Steve for Thanksgiving with Jack's family

at Steve's apartment with his roommates

December 2011
-Went to the Zoo's Festival of Lights. This pic was taken from Jack's phone, so it is not the best, but we were having a good time on the train

-Celebrated my 32nd birthday on the 8th
-Went to 2 Christmas parties
-Hosted my neighborhood's ladies night Christmas party on the 7th
-Underwent an AxiaLIF Spinal Fusion on December 16th. My L5 and S1 Vertebrae were fused together with bone from my hip. 2 screws were installed to help with stability. The screws alone cost $120,000 so I was very nervous about the insurance process, etc. I had planned to be off work for 4 weeks (scheduled to go back on January 17), but will probably go back January 10th, part time for a week. I am doing so much better. I am very surprised at how quickly I am healing. I am happy it doesn't hurt to cough or sneeze and I can get out of bed in the morning without screaming. I am hoping to finally be able to run again and lift weights.
-Celebrated New Year's Eve with Jack's family and our friends Rob and Audrey and their adorable boys.

That is the year in a nutshell....major highlights. We really enjoyed watching Addison grow over the past year. It is amazing how smart she is. She has learned to write all of her letters and numbers and is starting to learn sight words. She knows all of the continents and the oceans. She is starting to learn the bones of the body and sings a new song everyday. She loves to help with any chore, including loading the dishwasher, laundry and vacuuming. She loves her pets and playing with Barbies, dolls and her "office". I am looking forward to teaching her how to sew during the next year.

I hope that 2012 is a healthy year for all of us and the rest of our family and friends. I am looking forward to making more improvements in the house, including the 2 bathrooms upstairs and the kitchen. Jack of course wants to build a shed and fence. Addison only has 6 months of preschool left until she is off for the summer with Jack and starts Kindergarten in August. Time goes by too fast.

Happy 2012!!

Fast Foward 8 months

2011-11-13T10:42:00.000-05:00

So I haven't posted for 8 whole months! Holy moly! We have been BUSY!

In a nutshell, we have been wanting to move into a better school district before Addison goes to kindergarten (which will be in the fall of 2012). Jack has been wanting to get into rental/property management for as long as I can remember and we were about to get the chance to do both. We decided to rent our house in Goshen and buy one in Miami Township/Milford/Loveland. Around Memorial Day weekend in May, we put our ranch in Goshen on Craig's List and got an overwhelming response from renters. We showed it to 5 families/couples and ended up going with a wonderful couple from the Hamilton/Oxford area who were downsizing. They are awesome!!!! And I truely mean that. They invited us over about a month ago to show off what they had done and we were blown away. She mulched the entire yard (which would be about 5 yards of mulch, edged all the beds/weeded, planted 3 trees, cleaned the grout that I didn't get around to cleaning before we moved and switched out the vanity light in Jack's old bathroom. Oh, and put in a new front door!! We pray that they stay for a long time. We think they will considering the money they have put into the house.

The new house is located behind Eastgate Lanes in what is technically Loveland, but we are in the Milford School District. We looked at what seemed like a million houses online, but only actually toured 2 houses. This was a VERY stressful process considering Jack liked one and I like the other. We ended up with the house that I liked because we were in a bidding war with other buyers on the other house. We are happy with the one we chose though. This one is in a great, mature neighborhood and we have wonderful neighbors. We would have liked to have more than a 2 car garage, but we are trying to make do. We had a much garage square footage as we did in the inside of our old house, so you can imagine how much stuff was in our garages. We have plans for a shed and fence, but those will probably wait until the spring. The new house does have a 925 square foot basement, so we are really utilizing that space. Half of it is finished and half is storage and will soon be my hobby room. The finished part is more entertainment/play room.

So anyway, here are the pictures and the upgrades that we have done so far:

Front Porch

Front Door (painted, new hardware and wreath)

Fireplace after painting

Fireplace - Before

Jack cut this tree down right after we moved in - looks MUCH better!

Below is the 1/2 bath/power room right off of the kitchen. It is VERY small, so the pictures were hard to take. We changed out everything, including new light switches and a GFCI outlet (even got electrocuted since I forgot to turn the breaker off to the GFCI box, duh), took out the 1987 towel bar and toilet paper holder, paint, light, re purposed mirror, granite vanity top with under mount sink, faucet and I painted the vanity.

So next on the list is Addison's bathroom upstairs. We got a second piece of granite for her vanity top in a light gray. I plan to do new ceramic tile in her bathroom and it also needs new trim (actually the whole house does). She really wants her room painted, so we'll work on that this winter along with her bathroom. The new house has 4 bedrooms, so one is a guest room and the other one is housing our desk and double vanity that will eventually go in the master bath. We got a great deal on Craig's List we couldn't pass up, but we are not ready to tackle the master bath just yet. We have to change the plumbing from single to double and take out the flooring. We have always wanted to do the radiant heat flooring and then ceramic tile will go over it. It is a larger room-maybe 10 x 10. I will also paint that vanity, but haven't decided on a dark or light finish.

The kitchen is also on the list, but that will be a huge undertaking. We have an appointment on Wednesday for a cabinet refacing estimate. I am not sure if I am ready to paint all of the cabinets. I know I want to do white with dark hardware. We have black appliances only because the stove was brand new when we moved in and didn't want to have to buy a new one. I ordered a new over the range microwave the other day because Jack found out the current one was make in 1990! I doesn't work very well!! We will also do granite and a glass backsplash.

We have a load-bearing wall between the living room and family room that we are also removing in the near future. We've gotten some estimates, but Jack will probably do it himself. There is a large amount of HVAC vents in the wall, so that is what is stopping us from knocking it down today.

I could go on and on with the list, but I'll save that for another day. We are having a great time with the new house though!

Last week of photo class

2011-03-15T12:57:00.002-04:00

So happy it is almost spring! I finished my photography class I was taking at Great Oaks. I made great friends and look forward to taking photo II with them in the summer or next spring! No more winter weather for taking pictures! haha! Last week's assignment was landscapes and night photography. Both are tough, especially with water and wind! When we went downtown (Newport on the Levy) it was freezing cold and windy so I'm not 100% happy with my photos, but I plan to go to Mt. Adams when the weather gets warmer and do some night shots because they were a lot of fun.

Here are a couple (the sunrise was one of my landscape shots. I think it was the only sunny day in the whole week!):

Roebling Bridge

I took a couple on the railroad in Loveland too. I wish this one wasn't blurry. I was playing with the shutter speed and wasn't prepared, but I still like it.

Then last weekend I did my final project, which was 5 prints framed. I used these three and then a variety of ones I've already taken (and posted on here).

Here is Addison's Best Friend, Kylee

The only guy in the class started a Facebook page for the other 10 or 12 of us in the class, which was really cool. We plan to get together soon and go out and take pictures together or go to the camera swap the last weekend in March. I bought another lens towards the end of the class-a Tamron 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 and it is wonderful! I'm excited to use it in California in less than 4 weeks now!!

Portraits Week 4

2011-03-01T19:02:00.000-05:00

Here are a couple of portraits I turned in for week 4 of my photo class. Next week's assignment is night shots and landscapes. Tomorrow night Grandpa Jim is coming over to watch Addison while Jack and I go to dinner and hit up Mt. Adams, Sawyer Point and Newport for some night shots of Cincinnati before the rain comes. I saw 10 deer this morning on my way to work, so I'm hoping they will be in the same spot tomorrow. My new 18-270 mm lens will be perfect to get close ups of the deer and still keep my distance!

Can it please be spring?

2011-02-15T20:26:00.000-05:00

Addison on her swingset on Sunday when it was 55 degrees!

1960's

2011-02-09T20:35:00.001-05:00

Zippy Angel and Addison Jane

Where did January go?

2011-02-06T22:02:00.002-05:00

So one of my resolutions was to do a blog post at least once a week. Well that has obviously not happened! BUT, I am having the best time in my photography class!!!! My assignment this past week was to take pictures of the alphabet. I made my blog header from some of the letters I shot. None of them could be cropped or photoshopped for the class, but I did photoshop these letters to sepia, but did not crop them.

Here are two pics I took this week (that is my mom with Addy).

Happy 2011!

2011-01-09T10:26:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year! Because I am such a slacker when it comes to blogging, I thought I'd give the 2010 year in review!

January 2010
-Quiet, snowy month
-Sister Angie turned 28 years old

February 2010

-We got 14 inches of snow on Valentine's Day

-After all of the snow we bought a Yamaha Grizzly four wheeler with plow (a little late because it never snowed again that season!)

-At the end of February we had Angie's wedding shower and I was almost not able to attend because I had the worst stomach flu I've ever had

March 2010

-We work all month on getting ready for Angie and Tony's wedding that was in April

-Addison's new favorite thing to do is ride the four wheeler with daddy

-We had Angie's bachelorette party. Tony locks Angie's keys in her trunk while golfing (right before we were to leave for the party). This was the first time...

-Pa'Paw Rick turns 60 years old this month!!

-Uncle Steve's also celebrated his birthday this month!

April 2010

-Angie and Tony's wedding was on April 9, 2010. Poor Addison was very sick and unable to be the flower girl. Making her try gave her wedding phobia

-Spring has finally arrived and everything is in full bloom

-Colored Easter eggs and celebrated Easter

-I went back to the back doctor to have another MRI done because of the pain and they suggested surgery...again.

-Grandpa Jim's birthday is this month

-I re-did my master bath with new paint, light fixture, and vanity with faucet

-Addison gets her Barbie Jeep early (was going to be a birthday present)

May 2010

-Jack's cousin Katie married Mike this month! Addison's wedding phobia was in full force and she didn't end up being the flower girl

-Jack gets excited for the school year to end

June 2010

-Sweet Addison turns 3 on June 5th!! She has two birthday parties

-Jack starts his masters classes at Wright State

-The pool opens!

-Angie and Tony remodel their kitchen

-I interview for a position at work I've wanted for a long time

July 2010

-We spend the Fourth of July in Michigan (our annual summer trip). Addison loves playing with cousin Grace.

-I find out that I got the job as a Contract Manager!!

-We pick fresh blueberries at Rouster's almost every weekend we are home

-We go to the Deremiah Reunion at The Pointe golf resort in Indiana in mid-July

-We go to St. Louis, sans Addison, to cousin Leslie's wedding. Remember, Addison hates weddings!

-Jack and I get iphones!!! Best purchase ever!

-We take a deep breath at the end of July and thank that the traveling is over!

August 2010

-Jack starts football practice. This year he is coaching 7th and 8th grade instead of varsity
-Jack's school starts...

-We go to the pool a lot before it closes! Addison FINALLY starts wearing her puddle jumper and discovered she could swim "by herself" with it.

-Aunt Amy's birthday is this month

September 2010

-We go to varsity football games on Friday nights, Addison loves them!

-I get a second perm and it is wild!

-Pa'Maw's celebrates her 60th birthday!!!!!!

-Grandma Jackie also celebrates her birthday!

October 2010

-We adopt the move lovable black cat that Addison names Katy. She begins as an outdoor cat and eventually makes her way inside.

-Addison and I go to the Disney Princess on Ice show at US Bank Arena. We can't wait to go back!!

-Addison begins to love to pick out her own clothes. She can also spell her name

-For Halloween Addison is a horse. We trick or treated in Centerville and Milford...too much candy!

November 2010

-I was bad and didn't take any pictures

-Jack celebrated his 32nd birthday

-We celebrate Thanksgiving in Centerville

-We go to Katie and Mike's in Columbus for the Ohio State/ Michigan game after Thanksgiving

-We buy a used commercial Precor Elliptical trainer. I don't know why we didn't buy one sooner

December 2010

-Addison's teachers tell us that she is the best writer and colorer (I know that is not a word) in the class. She can write all of her letters and color in the lines

-She is obsessed with arts and crafts, especially stickers

-We do a couple of Christmas crafts

-I celebrate my (gasp) 31st birthday

-Jack has two snow days in early December. I don't remember it snowing like that in December in a long time!

-We go to church on Christmas Eve and Addison asks when Jesus was coming out (to talk to the congregation)

-We celebrate Christmas Eve with the Wessels, Christmas Day with my family and the day after with Jack's Aunt Susie

Addison and Aunt Amy

Christmas Morning and Addy's Wedding Barbie

-We spend the New Year's holiday in Michigan, which was a super fun trip!

**These pictures are not in order because I HATE BLOGGER. I can't get them to move around. I have two resolutions this year. 1) Take the SLR Camera class at Great Oaks in the spring and 2) find a new blog platform!!

New Year's Eve at Rick and Tara's

At mom and dad's

At the Deremiah Christmas Exchange

My cousins, Emily and Stephanie with Addison

Christmas morning with her new ipod touch

Christmas morning playing Legos with Daddy

At mom and dad's

Christmas Eve

My cousin Rachel with Addison

Christmas morning

In Michigan doing arts and crafts

New Year's Eve

Christmas Eve

Our Christmas Tree

2010 was a wonderful year and we're looking forward to another 12 months of family fun!!

Bear with me...

2010-11-12T21:21:00.000-05:00

....while I work my magic on making this blog read-able. I love the new blog template site I found since I do not have time to learn the intricacies of Photoshop and make my own. I am just waaaay to tired to finish it tonight!!

Good night!

Brrrrr!

2010-11-07T08:34:00.001-05:00

Before we get into winter, I thought I should post some pictures of what we’ve been doing the past couple weeks.

At the beginning of October I took Addison to see the Disney Princesses on Ice. We had wonderful seats and I think I was more excited than she was to go. Halfway through the production she wanted to go home. I am glad I got her to stay because the whole second half was Cinderella! I am hoping the tour stops again in Cincinnati next year!

The following weekend we went to HallZOOween at the Cincinnati Zoo. It sure was a zoo that day! WAY too many people to enjoy it and even take pictures. Angie, Tony and Mom went with us all and they ended up riding the train since we had 4 ride passes. They waited at least an hour to even board the 5 minute train ride! I did take a couple of pictures in the children’s zoo since it wasn’t as busy as some of the other exhibits.

Then of course, this most recent weekend was Halloween. Addison decided to be a horse this year and it was the perfect costume because the weather was cold! Aunt Julie had us all over on Saturday night for a chili dinner, bonfire and trick or treat in her neighborhood. That night we stayed at mom and dad’s.

Angie and Mom

Last Sunday night we went to dinner at the Wessel’s and did another round of trick or treat in their neighborhood. WAY too much candy. I don’t know why I even thought that was a good idea! I am mad that I didn’t take advantage of the gorgeous weather we had this fall to take autumn pictures. My ONLY resolution for 2011 is to take the 2 SLR classes to learn how to use my camera. As much as I want a new lens, I thought I should at least know how to use the one that came with it, haha.

After trick or treat last night when I was putting Addison to bed asked if Santa was coming the next day. She’s so excited about Christmas this year! I told her we had to celebrate Thanksgiving first so we’ve been doing turkey crafts to prepare! I love how she is so much like me—she loves crafts and organizing things. She’s been getting into my scrapbooking stickers lately. At this point, I can’t see myself getting back into scrapbooking unless it is digital. I need an extra 400 sq ft of house space just to get everything out to scrapbook, haha.

Work is going very well. I am really enjoying my new job and staying super busy. Election Daywas Tuesday so our Commissioners are changing (only one) and I'm a little nervous about change because I believe the new commissioner's goal is to give raises to county employees which would only happen by laying people off. I am more than happy to go without a raise (going on the third year) and keep people's jobs. Good news is that the Children's Services levy passed!

Bad news...Jack's cousin Jeremy's (In Michigan) cancer came back. He will be 36 on December 8th (we share a birthday!) He initially had Ocular Melanoma (eye cancer) and had a tumor removed from his eye a little more than a year ago. This week we found that the cancer metastasized to his liver and now it is considered stage IV metastatic melanoma of the liver, which is a very dangerous and (currently) an incurable disease. Jeremy and his girlfriend are due to have their first baby in March so everyone needs to pray that Jeremy's baby is able to meet his incredible father. His doctor is at the University of Michigan and Jeremy is hoping he's able to participate in a clinical trial because there is not current treatment for the type and progression of the type of cancer he has. We hare looking forward to spending time with our Michigan family the week after Christmas. So keep Jeremy and his family in your prayers because they need a miracle.

2010-09-23T11:27:00.000-04:00

I honestly don’t know how people write blog posts everyday. I just told Jack the other day that I just needed 2 more hours a day and I’d be happy!! Not that I’m not happy, but it would just be really nice!

Fall is always the busiest time of year for us with school starting and football season. This year Jack is coaching 7th and 8th grade football at the middle school. Varsity was too political for him last year. Plus, he’s not gone until 1 am on Friday nights and most of Saturday for films. His games are on Wednesday nights and he’s home by 9. Of course he has practice all of the other days of the week. We’ve been going to the Varsity games on Friday nights and Addison really seems to enjoy those; especially since we bring a blanket and sit right past the end zone with Jack’s other teacher buddies and their wives and kids. Here she is at last week’s game:

I have really busy at my work as well. I got a promotion in July and started my new position on August 2. I am a Contract Manager, who is responsible for managing our agency contracts with various vendors and other agencies. 75% of the contracts I’m responsible for are Children’s Services-related, meaning we place foster children and children who have been removed from their homes in residential treatment facilities (bad kids) and agency foster homes (Child Focus, etc.) The other contracts are ones with other County departments (Prosecutor, Juvenile Court, Common Pleas, etc.) and service providers such as Xerox. I work with another girl and we have about a total of 85 contracts. We trade off presenting contracts to the Board of County Commissioners on Wednesdays at 1 pm. If you are local and want to see me on TV, I’m on the government public access channel 15 (Digital cable) or channel 8 (regular cable). The times vary, so you’d have to check out this site for the schedule: http://www.clermontcountyohio.gov/program_schedule.pdf

I’m still doing our payroll (for 215 employees), so needless to say, I’m REALLY busy, which is great, because time flies! A promotion and raise are pretty much unheard of right now in this economy and working in county government. I feel very blessed that I was given this opportunity!!
As for Addison….she FINALLY started wearing her “Puddle Jumper” in August, only for the pool to close 4 short weeks later. She had some aversion to the devise even though every single kid under 4 wore one at the pool. She absolutely loves it because she can swim anywhere now! Here she is wearing it:I have a picture I'll post later...

She started actual pre-school at Batavia Heights in early September. It’s amazing how much she’s learned there in the 3 years she’s been going. She knows her ABC’s and can count to 20. She can almost write her name but can definitely trace her name like a pro. She asks very intellectual questions as well as funny ones; like today’s was why do crows like to eat the raccoons on the side of the road for dinner? I died laughing! She honestly wanted to know! Because her preschool is a Christian-based facility they have a portion of everyday where they do bible study. They have always prayed before they ate lunch so we’ve been doing that at home for a while now. This is the prayer she never forgets to say at dinner:

God is great, God is good

And we thank Him for our food

By his hand shall we be fed

Give us Lord our daily bread.

She’s looking forward to the upcoming holiday season. She has decided to be a horse for Halloween and we found an adorable costume at Kidz Again in Centerville. I just need some brown leggings and boots. Mom recently bought her pink cowgirl boots from Target, which are adorable so maybe she’ll wear those.

After the Bath

On Daddy's motorcycle

I recently reconnected with a friend I worked at TriHealth with. We actually shared an office when I got my first “real” job out of college as the Health Promotion Manager. Her name is Traci (House) Dickey. I was so sad that we lost touch because we had so much in common. She found me on Facebook. I knew she got married the same year Jack and I did. Well turns out that she has a little girl (Sadie) who is Addison’s age! She’s only a month younger. She also has a son (Cameron) who is 18 months old. They live in Miami Trails and have invited us over this Friday for dinner. We’re so excited to have the girls meet and reconnect. Her husband golfs so hopefully Jack will have a new golf partner since his friends around here never want to go. If Jack could golf every day he would….

Lastly, a stray kitty showed up on the last Saturday evening in August. I went to close Jack’s garage door and there she stood. Normally I would shoo cats away (since it seems like Clermont County’s cat population is like a million), but this one seemed really nice and came right up to Addison and I. I was hesitant to let Addison touch her so we finally took her to the vet last Saturday. Addison named her Katy Kitty. She is healthy and about 8 months old. She is getting spayed next Monday. She likes to stay in the garage during the day and night and when we are home she sometimes hangs out inside with us. I just really don’t need anymore animal hair then we already have with Zippy. First day she came in I had just put up Halloween decorations and since she knows she’s a Halloween cat, she jumped right up next to this pumpkin. How hilarious is this picture?

Since I have not posted anything since the beginning on July, I wanted to mention 2 other fun mini vacations we took in July. The middle of July we had a Deremiah family reunion at Eagle Pointe resort in Bloomington, IN. It is a golf resort, so Jack and Tony were in heaven. It was the 3rd or 4th time we had been there with my dad’s side of the family. Fun times.

The end of July Jack and I (along with Angie, Tony, mom, dad, Julie, Scott, Jack and Cameron) went to St. Louis for my cousin, Leslie’s, wedding. Since it was going to be an eventful and exhausting weekend, Addison went to Lake Erie with Grandma and Grandpa. We toured the Anheiser-Busch brewery and the famous Arch. The wedding was in a park at the Piper Palm House. It was a little warm on the hottest day in July (over 100 degrees), but it was really fun!! In August we went to Brookville Lake for a Palmer family reunion (mom's side). Here is a picture of Addison and Jack canoeing in their small pond at their lake house.

Other than that, we've just been having a bunch of fun. These pictures are from my phone so they may not be the best quality, but we are having a good time with our new iphones!! I took this picture of my new

perm and used the free Photoshop app to "sketch" it.

We are working this weekend to finally finish the master bath. I sold the oak vanity on Craig's List in less than 24 hours and bought a new dark/espresso wood with granite top. I ordered an oil-rubbed bronze faucet and should get that by tomorrow. I'll post pics when it is done.

Fun on the 4th!

2010-07-08T10:18:00.001-04:00

We had a wonderful time in Michigan over the 4th of July holiday. Since this has been our third trip to Michigan over the 4th of July holiday, we’re going to make it our annual trip. The weather was absolutely perfect, as well as the company and food! It should take about 5 ½ hours to drive to Port Huron/Marysville, but we ALWAYS run into traffic or construction so it took us almost 7 hours this time. We did have to drop Zippy off at mom and dad’s and only stopped for bathroom breaks twice. We hit Detroit at rush hour on Friday before a holiday-HORR-I-BLE!! Of course Addison had to potty as we sat in traffic so we got off at the next exit and went into the nastiest, dirtiest, unisex restroom in Detroit, of all places. I won’t go into anymore details. Let’s just say we’ll NEVER do that again! Once we got there, Addison swam and played with Jack’s cousin’s kids-RJ and Grace. She just adores them!! Grace is 5 and RJ is 10. Mary made a great (and healthy) dinner for everyone and then we took advantage of their hot tub that overlooks the St. Clair River. It is gorgeous at night!

These pictures of Addison, RJ, Steve and Grace were all taken by either Addison, Grace, or uncle Steve. Aren’t they pretty good??

Saturday was a relaxing day-Amy and I laid out near the dock while Addison played with Grace then after lunch we went to cousin Jeremy’s house to swim and grill out.

Sunday was the 4th, so we went to a friend of the family’s house for a party after hanging out at Rick and Tara’s in the morning so that Addison could play with Grace.

The Berger’s also live on the water, but they have a small beach and a great dock with 2 slides. I am going to have to get my mother in law’s camera because she has more pictures than I do of that party. This is Addison going down the slide!!

The food all weekend was great, especially since Tara is also vegetarian. Got some great recipes and already made my own balsamic vinaigrette dressing, which is wonderful!! Tara’s friend, Amber Berger, is also vegetarian and she made a bunch of the food at the Berger’s party.

Monday we made the trip home. Amy caught a ride home with us, which was nice because Addison had company in the back seat. I’m sure Amy enjoyed watching Arthur DVD’s with her for 5 hours!

We’ll be home for one weekend and then we’ll be going to the Deremiah reunion at The Pointe, south of Bloomington, IN. Jack and Tony are excited to golf and we’re excited to hang out at the pool!! The weekend after that is Leslie’s wedding in St. Louis. Addison is going back to Michigan with Jackie for the power boat races that weekend, so it will be Jack and I, Tony, Angie, mom, dad, and then the Langer family. We’re excited to do the Anheiser/Busch beer tour and go up in the arch.

Side point: on the way to MI we were listening to 700WLW and they were discussing the 40 best burgers in Cincinnati. The #1 burger is from a place in Mason called The Wildflower Café. It is a family-owned business who buy ALL local, in-season, organic food. Their beef is from grass-fed cattle and their chicken is free range. We’re so excited to try it out (obviously I won’t try the burger, but Jack can!!) Check out their website: www.wildflowercafeandcoffeehouse.com

Bathroom Mood Board

2010-06-13T09:33:00.000-04:00

I have been having fun creating mood boards in Elements. Here is my plan for Jack's bathroom. I am having trouble finding "saveable" paint chips because most paint websites use Flash (light gray will be the wall color). I'm ripping out the trim and putting in thick white trim and a white 6 panel door. I still can't believe how cheap the builder was (and who still uses GOLD hardware??)

She's THREE!!

2010-06-07T19:38:00.002-04:00

Happy Birthday Addison!

She's growing up too fast!! This is her helping me make her (second) cake. First cake was a flop...it was supposed to be a Barbie cake (where the cake is Barbie's skirt). I tried to take a short cut and use a Pyrex bowl to bake it in instead of buying the $20 kit at Hobby Lobby. The cake I ended up with was wonderful though and home made!!

Friday I took off work to go to the zoo, but plans changed for the better and I took her to the swim club we belong to. It was a gorgeous, cloudless day, 89 degrees. Here she is on the slide...

Friday Jack was in Kettering helping Angie and Tony build their fence, so Addison and I went up there in the evening for dinner with them and mom and dad. Jack came down with the flu that I had the previous Wednesday and he was in bed (and bathroom) ALL day with a fever. I had the Wessel's over for dinner. I made chicken kebabs with peppers, onions, zucchini, and tomatoes; mac and cheese (Addy and Steve's request), broccoli salad, etc.

Besides the zoo membership, Jackie and Jim bought her the Zuko popsicle maker from Williams Sonoma that I've been wanting since Christmas. It was sold out all over Ohio at Christmas time. It is SOOOOOO cool. It freezes popscicles in 7 minutes. We tested it out on Sunday morning with a strawberry kiwi Danimal smoothie.

Jackie also whipped up 2 adorable outfits--the one she is wearing and then a white dress with ladybugs on it. I am saving it for a birthday party in the future.

Sunday Jack was feeling better (it was a 24 hr flu) so we went back up to Centerville for Addy's birthday pool party at Aunt Julie's house. She got WAY too many gifts!! All she really wanted was a model car that was yellow like her Pawpaw's. Mom got her a tiny one and she thought it was the best ever! She did like Aunt Angie and Uncle Tony's Dora guitar too!

And she was the only one who swam since it was only about 70-75 degrees and windy!! New suit thanks to Aunt Julie!

And then we had ELE cake!! ELE cake was who made Angie's wedding cake and this is the third cake we've gotten from there since her wedding in April.

Absolutely best weekend ever!! Addison is such a little princess and a mini-me. Before Jackie and Jim came over and brought her birthday outfit, she was dressed like me. She even wanted to take a picture of me with my old Nikon point and shoot...this is what she got....pretty good, huh??

I was finishing the relish tray with my apron :) She was laughing so hard

Mike and Katie's Wedding

2010-05-27T12:30:00.000-04:00

Mike and Katie's wedding was on May 15th and I'm just now getting around to uploading my pictures!!!

Hubby Jack and I (thank goodness he doesn't read my blog because he would have a cow if he saw this picture of him. He must have had a couple of drinks before this picture because he NEVER shows his teeth in pictures!)

Amy, Katie, and I

Me acting crazy with my mother in law behind meJack, me, and SteveKatie and SteveMegan, me, AmyThe Siebenthaler siblings: Robert, Katie, DannyAmy, Katie, me, Megan

I think between Megan's husband Jeremy and I, we took 120 pictures on my camera! This was the wedding that Addison was supposed to be the flower girl in and had a melt down when she was getting her dress on. She ended up staying with Angie and Pa'Ma that evening. We had a wonderful "date night" at the wedding and reception.

Ohioans for Humane Farms

2010-05-26T10:58:00.000-04:00

Last night my brother in law, Steve, and I went down to Xaiver University to meet the President/CEO of the Humane Society of the United States, Wayne Pacelle. They are trying to gather 600,000 signatures in order to have their issue on the November ballot. The issue is for the prevention of cruelty to animals and factory/industrial farming practices in Ohio. Currently, Ohio has no standards or rules for how farm animals are raised and processed. If you'd like to see it for yourself, watch this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIjanhKqVC4
My only disclaimer for this video is it is VERY VERY SAD and Gruesome.

If the issue passes in November, Ohio will require that all factory/industrial farms follow a new set of rules including:
-no crates for veal calves (if they are crated they have to be able to turn around and lay down without touching the sides)
-no cages for the 27 million laying hens in Ohio (currently chickens are allowed 67 square inches of space which is less than the size of a regular size piece of paper 8x11.5).
-no crates for breeding pigs
-not allowing "downer" cows (sick, unable to stand or walk) to be processed for human consumption

At the meet and greet last night, there was a panel of 4 family farmers (3 from Northern Ohio and 1 from Nebraska) who talked about the way they raise their animals and how they are supporting this issue. They were all very inspiring! If you'd like more information about the issue, visit http://www.ohiohumane.com/

I have always been passionate about animals as well as my health (my degree is in health!)
but not until recently have I started learning more about the food my family and I eat. I started last summer by reading "Skinny Bitch" (I know, the title is a really poor choice!) and most recently have read "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan then watched Food, Inc. (watered down version of the YouTube video). I have also just finished "Eating Animals" by Jonathan Safran Foer.

I have found some great family run farms in Cincinnati and am excited to start buying from them. I have bought organic eggs since 2006 from my friend Karen at work who has laying hens as well as hogs. Personally, I need to get past the organic label because I want to know exactly where my food is coming from. Whole Foods of course sells organic meat, but it could come from California! Turner Farm in Indian Hill raises chickens and hogs and Grassland Graze in West Chester raises grass-fed cattle. Both sell from their farms and farmer's markets in the Cincinnati area. However, I am not eating meat but plan to purchase for my family since Jack is a meat and potatoes type of guy.

Last weekend Jack and Addison planted tomatoes, cucumbers, banana peppers, and cantaloupe. My windowsill herbs are starting to grow too! Can't wait to make salsa with my cilantro. That is my favorite herb. Jack's teacher friend has recently built a greenhouse in his backyard (kit from Harbor Freight), so Jack wants to do something like that next year. We're looking forward to visiting their house this summer to see it!

As for something more positive, Addison will be 3 years old in a matter of days! The past 3 years have been a wonderful roller coaster ride!! I can honestly say she is a mini-me. Last weekend Aunt Julie permed my hair so of course she wanted her hair like that. Pa'ma had to go out and buy sponge rollers for her! Hopefully she'll let me put them in tonight.

This is a picture from mom's phone (that is why it is so blurry) after she bought them on Monday while babysitting. Doesn't she look happy? HAH!

The pool opens this Saturday, so we're obviously looking forward to that! Julie's Memorial Day pool party is on Monday and then next Saturday is Addy's birthday! Friday I am off and going to the zoo with my neighbor Jen and her boys (hopefully). Grandma Jackie bought Addison a zoo membership for her birthday. Other than that, we're just looking forward to the summer and our 3 mini trips we are taking in July (Michigan, Eagle Point Resort in Bloomington, and then St. Louis).

Another Whirlwind Wedding Weekend!

2010-05-13T10:06:00.000-04:00

We're gearing up for another whirlwind wedding weekend! This time it is for Jack's cousin Katie and her prince charming, Mike. Addison is the flower girl so we're praying she will walk down the aisle and have her picture taken. We're looking forward to introducing her to the little boys who are the ring bearers because they are 3 and 4 years old and she'll hit it off with them. The wedding is in Dayton again (Holy Angels), so we'll be staying at my parent's house.

Last weekend I had a wonderful Mother's Day! Jack took Addison and I, as well as his mom and Steve to First Watch, my all-time favorite breakfast place. The moms even got a box of Russel Stover chocolates!! We went to Centerville later that morning to spend time with my mom and for Jack to work on some trees for my dad and their neighbors. It was very relaxing since Addison took a nice nap and the sun was finally out. We went to my aunt's later to celebrate her birthday, which was on the 10th, and had a cookout. Addy got to sleep over at her Pa'Ma's house that night. Jackie gave me an herb kit with Cilantro, Parsley, Chives, and Oregano. Addy and I planted them on Tuesday and she has been watering them everyday. Mom gave me a flat of red begonias that I have yet to plant since it has rained every day since Sunday! Julie and my mom gave me a really cool soft cooler on wheels for the pool. It is teal with brown polka dots-adorable!! Can't wait to load it with healthy stuff for the pool! Speaking of healthy food, I recently read the book The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michale Pollan. Very good book about the industrial food industry. If you need some motivation to eat healthy, read it! My brother in law is a vegetarian and suggested I read the book Eating Animals by Jonathan Foer. I have requested it from the library and am excited to start reading it!!

Tuesday I took Addy to the allergist for a new patient visit. Grandma Jackie met us there since she goes to the same doctor. Addison was very unhappy knowing she was going to the doctor, but once she played with Grandma's iphone for awhile, she was happy (go figure!). Dr. Ann was very nice and Addison seemed to really like her. We have to go back next Tuesday for the actual allergy testing, but she did confirm she has eczema and gave us some samples of prescription cream. Not really looking forward to having her pricked and prodded, but it must be done so she can get some relief from itchy eyes!!

I can't believe Addison will be 3 years old in 3 short weeks. The last three years have just been the best! Although recently she has not been sleeping and whining is her favorite thing to do. Addison has turned out to be a little lady, very much like her mom with a type A personality. She enjoys helping me cook and clean as well as shop (loves to try on clothes in Target's dressing room) and pick out her own clothes. She says things that sometimes blow us away (like where did she hear that phrase from?). She a mere 27 pounds and I actually had to dig out all of the summer clothes I put away last year thinking she'd be too big for them! They are 18 month shorts and capris!! Shirts she wears either 24 months, 2T or 3T for the length. She's still in a size 6 shoe but the new ones I'm buying are size 7 so she'll grow into them. For the wedding this weekend, I took the hem out of the dress she wore for her first birthday party so she could wear it for the reception. It's one Jackie smocked and just adorable!

Jack is getting antsy for school to get out. He is going to start working on his Master's with an online program from Wright State. Of course we have the pool membership (thanks to my wonderful in-laws) and the new zoo membership (thanks Jackie). The day before Addy's birthday, Friday June 4th, I took the day off and am going to take Addy to the zoo with the neighbors to celebrate her birthday. Her actual party will be on Sunday at Aunt Julie's house-pool party. We have a super busy summer with a third wedding in St. Louis on July 24th then we're also making our annual trip to Michigan during the July 4th holiday and taking a short weekend trip to Eagle Pointe in Bloomington, IN for a Deremiah family reunion on July 16-18. Before we know it, football season will be starting again and Jack will be no where in sight!! This year he's coaching 8th grade instead of varsity, which is wonderful because he will not be gone on Friday nights or all day Saturday in the fall. 8th grade games are on Thursday evenings so I'll be able to take Addison to the middle school to watch them. We can actually have normal Friday nights this fall! But first, let's enjoy summer!!! Bring it on!!

Re-Do and lots of other pictures

2010-05-03T13:10:00.000-04:00

I have been wanting to paint my bathroom forever so what a better time to paint then when it is raining outside? Last weekend it rained the entire weekend, so I got started on Friday evening. Addison helped me take everything out of the bathroom and we taped together. She is the biggest helper!! I can see that she has my Type-A personality because it the tape wasn't on quite right, she'd rip it off and start over.
Saturday actually started off to be a nice day and we went to the grocery together. While Addison was napping (a whopping 3 hours!) I painted. I think after a week I'm getting used to the bold gold color I used. I was so tired of boring "Wheat Bread." Jack came in and freaked out when he saw the color. Hey-it's my bathroom, I can paint it whatever I want! I told him to give me a chance to get everything back in and then he could give me his opinion. The only thing he did help me with was the trim since we ripped that out too. Addison stayed the night at Grandma Jackie's house since Grandma has been out of town so much and has missed her. Uncle Steve was home too, so that just made it even better for her.

Saturday evening Jack and I went to Home Depot (for the 4th time since the day before), rented "The Blind Side" and got Chipotle. We enjoyed the evening in, out of the rain watching a movie together. It was a great movie, by the way!! Sunday morning we worked on the trim, which was a learning curve. At least we started in the master bath, so hopefully Jack's bathroom will be much easier. I also put in a new light fixture and when we took the old one off, we realized that our lazy builder did not install a electrical light box behind the wall. I swear he cut corners anywhere he could. So back to HD we went...twice...for 2 light boxes because we broke the first one. That afternoon I was able to get everything back in place, so this is the before and after...

And yes it is small, but it's awfully quick to clean! LOL! I still have plans to paint the oak cabinet a darker color and get a new faucet.

I have been trying to find Addison a new four wheeler since Jack accidently backed over her old one. She has been talking about it everyday and telling me that she needs new tires for it to fix herself. Quite funny. Problem is, it is pretty much toast. I decided this time to get something bigger so that it was go over the gravel in the driveway. The little four wheeler was only had a 6 volt battery so I started looking for a Power Wheels 12 V Barbie Jeep. New they are $250 and I knew I wasn't going to spend that, so I finally found one in Waynesville!! I went to get it Thursday night after I dropped Addison off at my mom's and it wouldn't fit in my car! I don't know what I was thinking! I drive a Jetta!! So I went back on Friday on my way to pick up Addison. She is obsessed with it! Too bad it rained all weekend and she could only ride it on Friday night.

Saturday was Katie and Mike's couple's shower and the rain stopped long enough to have the outdoor barbeque/party. It was a ton of fun and Addison had a great time!

Addison and I made Peanut Butter Cup cookies for the party and they were a hit! She unwrapped all of the mini reece cups for the cookies and ate some along the way.

These miscellaneous pictures are just to get me caught back up to the present date. I have taken so many pictures, but haven't been able to get on to post. I am now bringing my laptop to work and since we have WI-FI, I can blog on my lunch hour!!

This is Addison's best friend, Carson, who lives next door. They LOVE to ride on our four wheeler

This is at Easter-Addison's eggs she colored and then Easter morning

A a picnic outside...

We unfortunately have a lot of dead trees in our yard due to the ash borer beatle, so Jack's been busy cutting down the trees before they fall on our house. This one is the latest.

This is Addison playing in the rain, just yesterday. I love this picture!

The next couple of weeks are packed. This weekend is obviously Mother's Day so we'll be in Centerville celebrating with mom and it's also Aunt Julie's birthday on Monday. Next weekend is Katie and Mike's wedding in Dayton and Addison is the flower girl. Hopefully she will be well and all will go as planned. We are all looking forward to the pool opening on Memorial Day weekend too!

Wedding Weekend

2010-04-13T15:00:00.002-04:00

It all came and went way too fast and I'm sure everyone would agree. Angie and Tony got married over the past weekend and it was seriously the BEST wedding ever!!!!!! I wish I would have been closer so that I could have been more involved with everything. She did a lot during the week since she works most weekends. Of course the Thursday night before everything, Addison got sick (more on that later).

The weather was absolutely gorgeous-65 and sunny with no clouds in sight. Friday evening Jack and I went up to Fairborn to the rehearsal and then dinner. Addison was not able to go since she had strep throat and a fever. She stayed with Grandma and Grandpa. It was also Grandpa's birthday, so they were able to celebrate that. Our dinner was a Marion's Pizza, which was the best idea for a rehearsal dinner. It was nice and relaxed and what is better than pizza and beer? It was awesome! It was fun meeting more of Tony's family too.

I prayed all night that Addison would get better, but she was still sick. I ended up going back up to Centerville by myself in the morning after stopping by to see Addison at her grandma's house. She just still was not herself. I also dropped off Zippy to Kennel Resorts, AKA, the dog hotel. Met everyone at Miya's Hair Salon for Mimosas, Muffins, and Fruit and of course our hairstyling. Julie did a wonderful job with everyone's hair and I think mine could have lasted another 24 hours with all of the hairspray!! I think this picture is from my phone, so it's not the best and we don't have make up on....scary! LOL!!

Angie, Aunt Julie, Mom, and Robin (Angie's friend/bridesmaid)

Mom and I (again...no makeup and before our hair was done, lol)

After our hair was done, I went back to mom and dad's so that I could eat lunch and wait for Addison and Jack. They came up about 12:30 and then we all met at the church about 1:30. Addison was feeling slightly better (probably because she had a dose of medicine). She stayed with Jack while the girls all got ready. She did put her gorgeous dress on, but said it was uncomfortable. I unfortunately don't have any pictures of the actual wedding yet because I didn't have my camera since we had a photographer. He took over 1000 pictures over the entire day. We're hoping to have the pictures uploaded sometime today or tomorrow.

There were 3 wrecks on nearby highways right before the ceremony so most people were late and Rev. Ruth actually delayed the ceremony by about 10 min. It was a gorgeous ceremony and Tony cried when Angie walked down the aisle. Short and sweet and they wrote their own vows. Addison was not able to walk down the aisle because her fever came back, but Jack held her and walked with Cameron who had the rings. It was so adorable because Jack threw the rose petals on the floor and everyone laughed. I'm hoping Brian (photograher) got that.

Reception was at Holiday Inn by Wright State. It was honestly the best place I have ever been for a reception. It was even better than mine at Montgomery Inn. The food was wonderful and Last Call (band) played and there was an open bar with top shelf stuff!!! I also liked that they didn't have a head table, but rather a round one so that everyone could talk and it was more intimate. After dinner I showed the picture DVD that I made. Here is the link on my Facebook if you'd like to watch it:

Here is what the ballroom looked like before everyone got there (these were taken by Holiday Inn):

Elle cake--best cake I've EVER had. There was strawberry and then white cake with raspberry filling

Addison did make it to the reception, but left before dinner with Grandma, Grandpa and Steve. She went back to Cincinnati with them for the night. We danced til 11 pm and then a lot of people stayed at the hotel. Mainly out of town family, but Jack and I stayed, mom and dad, Julie and her boys, Sara Thornton and her BF, and of course Angie and Tony.

Tony's brother, Eric, worked with Uncle Scott and David and Adam (other groomsmen) to prank Angie and Tony's room. Somehow the front desk gave Eric a key to their room and they hid 4 or 5 old cell phones with alarms set for every hour-under the bed, in the trashcan, bathroom, vent, etc. Then they had a 6 am wake up call and their bedside alarm clock was set for 5 am. Then they saran wrapped the toilet and put KY on handles (phone, door, etc.). Needless to say they were very angry (and I swear I had NOTHING to do with it, thankfully) but now they are laughing about it and will talk about it for years to come. Only bad thing is for Scott and Eric. They don't read this blog, but I can only imagine what they are in for.

Sunday morning we met for breakfast at the hotel's restaurant and saw our out of town guests. It was a wonderful time and it was so great to see everyone during such a happy time!! Angie and Tony are now in Gaitlinburg enjoying the sunshine and their new life together!!! They are watching Addison on Friday so they'll be here on Thursday night. I have a yummy dinner planned to continue their celebration.

I ended up staying home with Addison today because she still has a fever. Yesterday when my mom was babysitting, it was 101.8. This morning it was 99.8 plus she has a rash all over her body. Took her back to the doctor and she said it sort of looked like scarlet fever, but she wanted to send her for blood work in case it was mono or epstein barr (the virus that causes mono). She's been really tired and since the fever is not going away, they wanted to cover all of their bases. We went down to Children's on 5 Mile and that was interesting. First time we'd ever been there. At least it was quick, but she cried bloody murder when the drew the blood, of course. Then we went to Sonic (my new fave fast food place). She loves their fruit slushies but I know she is really sick because she made me drink it. Very unlike her!! The new Dora movie came out today on DVD so we made a stop at Redbox and picked that up. We're watching it right now waiting for the doctor to call me with the results of the blood work. I will most likely be home with her tomorrow just to make sure she is getting better.

That's about it...I'll post pics once Brian uploads his professional ones for us!! Can't wait!

Also-if you know how to do spell check on these new post formats in Blogger, please let me know. Thanks!

Hair Cut plus other Miscellaneous

2010-03-03T12:24:00.000-05:00

After another bought of the stomach flu, I have recovered again!! I was so afraid that I wouldn't be able to make Angie's wedding shower, but glad I did!! It was held on Sunday at the clubhouse of the apartment complex in which she lives. It was so nice! My mom and aunt did a wonderful job. I was unfortunately not able to make the cupcakes so we settled for Sam's cake. My dad has bunches of pics, so once I get those from him I will post. Addison had a great time with Angie's friend's little girl Chloe. Sunday evening Addison stayed up in Centerville so that she could get her hair cut on Monday. There's something about a haircut that she just doesn't like!! This pictures was taken with my aunt's phone, so it's not the best, but I think it is adorable...

Over the weekend Jack finally found a four wheeler to (hopefully) complete his toy collection. I really tried convincing him to sell the motorcycle for the four wheeler, but he wouldn't have any of that! This four wheeler though, will really come in handy with the plow for snow and gravel. If we get snow again like we did this year, we're prepared!! It is a 2005 Yamaha Grizzly 660...

Once I get Addison a helmet and some gear she can take a ride down the driveway or in the yard this summer. I think she'll like it since she likes the lawn mower.

Here's a couple of other pictures of her that I had on my phone that are hilarious. This one was taken by my mom when she was babysitting one day. Look at how well she applies her lipstick! She definitely didn't get that trait from me!

This is right after Valentine's Day when we built the Home Depot wagon for her dolls

Let's see what else...The wedding is now less than 6 weeks away and we are so excited! I did get a new dress since the first was too small but then it ended up being too big. We are all excited for spring. It looks like it may be close to 50 for the weekend! YAY!! Can't wait to get out there and plant flowers and vegetables this year!

Just Like Her Mom

2010-02-22T13:02:00.000-05:00

I'd have to say that Addison is more like me than she is her daddy. Just look at how nicey she arranged all of my shoes, after trying them all on! She looks exhausted in this picture because she is--it's about bedtime. She likes everything in order and clean. She also asked me the other day when she could do her own laundry. I said, not soon enough.

Here she is in my UGGS

We had a really fun weekend which was too short, as always. Saturday Addison and I went to Centerville so that I could get my hair colored and then we met Angie, Pama, and Julie at Panera for lunch. It was a bunch of fun!! We unfortunately couldn't stay to shop for wedding stuff with them because she needed a nap. Once we got home and had a nap (in the car) we went to the library. Later that night, Uncle Steve came over and we played Mario Kart online with cousins. My thumbs are bleeding because of it!!

Sunday I had a very productive day. I went to the gym and did an entire hour on the elipical, which I don't know how I did that because Friday's boot camp class really wore me out. We stopped by the Wessel's to get Addy's blankies (gotta have those) and then took her home to nap. While she was napping I make her a new valance to match her pink and brown bedspread. She told me she didn't like the curtains I had up there anyway (which was really funny). So when she woke up, she was excited to see the new ones. I forgot to take a picture of them, but I will. Pama came down later to baby sit after she make flowers all day with Angie and Tony for the wedding (it was just a practice session).

We are all looking forward to next weekend for Angie's bridal shower, which is on Sunday. I believe we are all going up to Centerville and spend the whole weekend up there so we can get things organized. I am making the cupcakes (Paula Deen's strawberry cake, which is amazing) and the punch. I can't believe the wedding is in 7 short weeks!!! I can hear the gym calling my name. I have my workouts planned out, so I'm hoping it doesn't snow anymore to ruin my plans!!

Lots and Lots of Snow

2010-02-18T20:46:00.000-05:00

It hasn't snowed this much since 1914!! Jack already has had 7 snow days which means they have to go 2 extra days in May but we're due to get another storm Sunday into Monday. Thank goodness we have a big 4 x 4 truck and it gets me to work. Addison has been staying home on snow days with Daddy and having a lot of fun (although she doesn't look to happy in this picture, haha).

Zippy had her cherry eye surgery on Tuesday and she also had her teeth cleaned and one was extracted because it was broken and it had an infection under it (which caused her mouth to smell really really horrible). She's been in great spirits and you'd never know she had surgery! She is not liking the snow because it is over her back. Jack shoveled a track in the backyard for her but she wants to run along the fence line so bad!!

Yeah, that says 13" and it was still coming down

And then this is a just a random picture...

All or Nothing

2010-01-28T12:55:00.013-05:00

So I'm an all or nothing type of person. This is probably the reason I haven't been blogging. I sure as heck could carve out 10 or 15 minutes a day!! I am just such a type-A person and want to put pictures in, etc. etc. I did finally get Photoshop Elements for Christmas from my dear dad and have been playing with it a little bit. Most of my time has been spent (other than playing with Addison) helping my sister with her wedding plans. I almost have the shower invites done. They are super cute.

Had a good Christmas and New Year's with family--Traveled to Michigan AND Indianapolis for family Christmas'. AND got Addison potty trained!

I keep thinking I need to start writing stuff down Addison says or does either in a journal or this blog because it is just hilarious. Today she woke up and told me her baby was sleeping in her belly. Then she went on to say that Grandma Jackie works with babies (which is true). She will make a good mom-she lines all of her babies up (like 14 or 15 of them) and "teaches" them school. She also lines up her shoes, lol! Do you think she takes after me at all?

On Wednesdays at her daycare/preschool she attends does bible study since it is a Christian daycare. She has been talking a lot about Jesus and his mom, Mary. She also says our dinner prayer--"ABC and 123, Thank you God for feeding me." It is so adorable. This Sunday we are going to St. Louis Parish in Owensville to attend mass and attend their school's open house. We're hoping to send Addison there for K-8...not sure where she'll go after that, but I have some time to plan!

Addison also knows what day of the week it is and who is picking her up at school. On Tuesday and Thursday daddy picks her up and she loves that. She also gets to go to Grandma and Grandpa's on Thursday night and that's another thing she reminded us this morning.

I better stop before I make this post way longer than I had planned (all or nothing)

Jan 2010

I got a new cast iron sink and this is our old one. Dec. 2009

December 2009

December 2009 in Michigan

November 2009

Halloween pics, etc.

2009-11-11T06:51:00.004-05:00

I hate blogger and this is why: maybe it is my new computer, but I can't move the pictures around like I used to be able to do! UGH! The first picture is from the other night and the second picture is Halloween-out of order.

This year Addison went as Cinderella. Grandma Jackie made her gorgeous dress and it was being taken in at the last minute! She will be able to wear it again next year.

Today is Veteran's Day and poor Jack has to work like usual. Next year I think he should take a personal day! I already went to the gym and Addison and I have plans for a little bit of Christmas shopping and then to the grocery. Angie and Tony are coming tomorrow night and then stay to babysit on Friday, so we are excited about that! I am making Angie's favorite cabbage roll casserole with mashed potatoes. It is so yummy!

Oh and by the way, I still hate blogger because it only allows me to upload one picture at a time. I would have put more on here, but it takes so damn long.

Some pictures...

2009-11-09T12:57:00.004-05:00

Here are some pictures from our trip to Shaw Farms for Brady Campbell's first birthday.

This one's for Audrey

2009-11-03T21:06:00.003-05:00

Since I recently got a new laptop I have no more good excuses not to blog. I do not have to spend hours in the den at night twiddling my thumbs while pages and pictures load on my ancient desktop computer (it made it 6 1/2 years!) I am a tad bit upset though...I was so excited to load Photoshop Elements on the laptop, but since the laptop has Windows 7.0 it is not compatible! UGH! So dad, I guess that's what you'll be getting me for Christmas, lol! The newest version of Elements!

I can't believe it is November already. 2009 has gone by so fast! Addison is becoming a "mini-me" and she is also at the stage that I couldn't wait for--the "why" stage. Anything you say to her is followed by "why" x 7. It is absolutely hilarious. Seems like she's learning a lot by asking so many whys. I have been trying to take some pictures...I slacked a little during the summer. I am excited to take a class on how to use my camera in the spring with two girls I work with! I am including some recent pics...from Pattison Park in Owensville and Trick or Treat (Cinderella!)

Jack is FINALLY done with the football season, thank goodness! Addison is now a daddy's girl and was very upset on Friday nights when daddy didn't come home. I endured 8 weeks (1 week I went to my parent's and 1 week she went to the Wessel's) of 3-hour tantrums, crying so hard she was gagging and throwing up. Not fun. Most people look forward to Friday...I dreaded it for 10 weeks. Last Friday was the last game, so I am actually looking forward to this Friday and the weekend. I have been super busy at work, so it will be nice to spend a Friday night at home with family.

We are all really looking forward to the holiday season. I'm going to get all of my Thanksgiving decorations out this weekend. Addison really enjoyed the Halloween decorations and pumpkin carving. She cried when we threw away the shriveled up carved pumpkin tonight. :(

Well...when I went to download the pictures, after 15 minutes of waiting I got an Internet Explorer error message and nothing downloaded! I need Elements to make the picture files smaller. I use Picasa right now and if anyone reading this knows how to make the files smaller with this software, please let me know! For now, there will be no pictures...I'll work on it tomorrow night.

Where did I go??

2009-07-27T11:17:00.005-04:00

Life-that's where I went. Life is busy! Especially during the summer. We have been so busy having fun I haven't gotten around to posting any pictures or blogging! I have posted pictures on Facebook, which is tons easier than blogger.

So let's see...Jackie finally did have baby Alexis on Tuesday June 16th. She's already over a month old and just adorable!! Here she is... (I took this picture on 8/3/09, so she's about 7 weeks here...)

Amy came home from Korea in June so we were very happy to have her back after a long year away! Steve is still overseas, but will be back within the next couple of weeks.

At then end of June we took a vacation up north, hoping to go boating and jet skiing on Lake Erie. Weather did not cooperate and it was freezing cold--jeans and sweatshirt weather! Addison did have a great time at the Wessel's cottage in Marblehead.

On July 3rd, we drove from Marblehead to Marysville, MI to spend time with Jack's side of the family. The weather was absolutely gorgeous on the Fourth of July, so we spent the day on his cousin Rick and Tara's boat with their kids. I was a little weary of how Addison would do on the boat, but she loved it, especially since Grace and RJ were there to play with.

On June 26th, my friend Tina who was pregnant with twins went into labor at 26 weeks and stayed at University Hospital. Jackie D. and I went down to see her on Thursday July 16th and took her and her husband Brian dinner. We got to hear the babies heartbeats. Little did we know the next morning Tina would actually have the babies! Everyone is doing fine-She had Jack and Maggie on the 17th. This is her blog: http://adventuresofmightymouse.blogspot.com.

This past weekend was a busy one as well. Saturday was nasty and rainy so I helped my mom clean out her "den" (which consisted of a storage unit full of crafting supplies, avon, and, well...lots and lots of other stuff). We wanted to have a nursery/kids room for Addison and my sister's kids when she has some. We ended up throwing away at least 7 bags of trash and probably 7 more went to Good Will. There is still one more cabinet that we will work on in the near future and move it to the garage. Addison was staying in their guest room, but it was cramped, so now when we all stay in Centerville we will have our own rooms! I am so happy it is finally cleaned out and so proud of my mom for giving so much up. It was so fun to look at old pictures and stuff from growing up. We found coupons from the early 90's and books Angie and I wrote in elementary school. I unfortunately did not take a before picture, but let me just say you could not see the carpet. The 20 year old carpet actually looks new because no one walked on it!!

Sunday was gorgeous and we finally got up to Katie and Mike's house in Columbus for a little party for Amy. It was great to see everyone and Katie and Mike asked Addison to be their flower girl in their wedding next May! They made cupcakes for her--so adorable!

Other than that, I've been slaving away at work trying to keep my job. Yeah, that sounds kinda bad but if anyone works in the public sector in Ohio, you know what crazy budget issues we are having. The Ohio budget is $3.2 billion in the hole. The Gov. is allowing slot machines at race tracks to help boost revenue while cutting state agency funding. Human services was hit the hardest. We are awaiting news about how many hours we will be furloughed this year (July-July). It will most likely be 80 hrs total of unpaid leave (not all at once). I'm actually looking forward to it because I don't have much vacation saved up due to maternity leave and back surgery. I'll get to be off at Christmas, etc.

Jack and I are coming up on our 5th wedding anniversary. Since he is coaching high school football this year we can't go out of town around August 14th. Instead, we are going back to Michigan this Friday-Sunday, sans Addison. She is going to Mom's!! We are very excited!! We will of course go to Montgomery Inn on the actual day, but we're just looking to get away for a couple of days.

As for Addison...potty training is going ok. Some days are better than others. She talks and talks and talks and doesn't stop. We love it! She can finally tell us what she wants and how she is feeling. It is so funny to hear her say "I am excited" when we are driving to Centerville or saying "I want to go to Pa'ma's house" all of the time. Now that she's in her toddler bed she can get out. In the morning she knocks on her door to come out. Kinda funny, but not really when it is 6 am. A friend at work gave me a bike kid trailer. We've had a lot of fun with that at Miami Meadows. We also take a lot of walks over at the park and visit the ducks and the playground. Favorite food is ice cream. I give her vegetables every single night for dinner and she refuses to eat them. I thought she was close to eating asparagus last week but then ended up giving it to Zippy. Darn!

Summer has gone by way too fast and I can't believe this Saturday will be August. Jack starts football practice full time on August 3rd, so he won't be around too much until November. I can't wait to take Addison to one of his games!

Ok so this post probably took me at least 2 hours and it is really not worth it. Please get a facebook account if you read my blog so you can see pictures!!! I could be doing so many other important things like playing with my child instead of putting pictures on here! LOL!

Uncle Steve

2009-06-16T21:15:00.003-04:00

Addison's Uncle Steve (my brother in law) is traveling in Tajikistan (studying Persian, etc). He has a really cool blog to check out: Click here

Other random things...my friend Jackie is STILL in labor and it is 9:15 at night. She was induced this morning at 5 am....Can't wait for an update and to see a picture of baby Alexis-hurry up!

Addison weighed only 24.4 lbs and was 33" tall at her 24 month check up. Some of her clothes are still 18 months and even a couple 12 months! Crazy! The phase she's in now is opening and closing every single door she sees. At first it was funny, now it is just annoying because she'll slam the door and try to shut you in the room. I have gotten my fingers smushed. She also talks a mile a minute and sings songs. She knows how to count to 10 and almost the whole alphabet. Potty training is going much better. We use stickers on the back of the bathroom door on a poster and she loves it. Getting rid of the paci is going well too. She only takes it when she is sleeping and she keeps it in her bed.

Looking forward to the weekend already...it is hopefully going to be nice so that we can take Addy to the pool. Baby Cohen's first birthday party is Saturday evening so that will be fun as well. Then Sunday is Father's Day. Not sure what is going on--probably Centerville.

Two Years Old!! Happy Birthday!

2009-06-05T21:16:00.005-04:00

Addison is two years old today! I honestly can't believe two years have flown by this quickly. We have had a busy and wonderful past two weeks (and two years). I was off work last Friday and today, which was great! Addison and I were together last Friday in Centerville (getting hair done and swimming). Yesterday was Jack's last day of school-YAY!

The last two years have kinda been a blur. Addison has begun the terrible twos, sometimes crying from the second I pick her up at daycare at 4 to her bedtime at 7:30. It is all worth it in the end though. The good days are wonderful with her singing to and from school and talking a mile a minute when we get home. She's up to 5-word sentences. Favorite is "What's that?" or "I want to..." She knows exactly what she likes and doesn't like and is slowly potty training. Some days are great and others she is very stubborn. She has her 24 month check up on Tuesday morning, so I'll report her stats in another post.

As for favorites: noodles, noodles, and more noodles. I think she is taking after her uncle Steve. Speaking of uncle Steve, whenever you try and tickle or poke her (or try and do something she doesn't want you to do) says "Buzz Off"...Steve taught her that...the good side-she asks for salad when she comes home from school (with cucumbers and tomatoes!)

Other favorites include her dog Zippy. Every single morning she asks where Zippy is (usually she is not far behind) and when she goes to sleep Zippy has to be in the room right next to Addison's bed. The best is her wanting to "drive"....she LOVES to sit in the front seat of my car and Jack's truck and pretend she is driving. She'll sit in there for 20 minutes if we let her. Ice cream with sprinkles. That is what I bribe her with to get her to take a bath (major dislike). She refuses to sit down in the bathtub. Not sure why...

Also LOVES to wash her hands. It is actually a little on the OCD side. The second those fingers get a spec of anything on them she's running to the closest sink to wash them 10 times. And the list goes on (more in the baby book!)

So about today....I got up early and hit the gym at 5 am, went to Walmart to get the last odds and ends and was home by 7:30 to get Addison and Jack ready for the zoo! I know for sure Addison did not know it was her birthday. She thought it was pretty cool there was a Disney Princess balloon on her highchair though! I think she got up too early because by 9 am she was asleep in the car on the way to the zoo. We got downtown (Clifton area) around 9:30 or so and it was the absolute PERFECT day--75 degrees and no clouds in the sky. The zoo was not busy-at some of the exhibits we were the only stroller. Addison was not as excited as we thought she would have been. I think she was a little overwhelmed. We stayed about 2 hours and it was nap time. She fell asleep right when we got back in the car and Jack and I drove by UC and my old house on Wheeler St. Oh old times! The college traffic was nuts and we sat in it forever. UC is still in session, so I think that was the reason.

After a 3 hour nap, Addison and I iced cupcakes to go along with the traditional angel food cake and fluffy white icing (tinted pink). Jim and Steve, Jackie and Mike, Jen, Chad, Carson, and Cohen all came over for a little party. Jack and I got her a mini four wheeler. We both agreed that next year we'll definitely have to move up to a gas-powered one. A 6v battery doesn't go very fast! She loved it though! She had a great time with everyone and got some really cool gifts--thanks guys!! Not to mention a fun time playing with Carson and Cohen.

Bedtime was too late, so cross your fingers she sleeps past 7! Tomorrow we'll go to the pool in the morning like we have been doing. Jack's golfing in the afternoon and I'll probably take Addison back to the pool after her nap. Sunday we're having a slightly bigger birthday party at Aunt Julie's pool with everyone from Centerville. Should be a great time!

Here are some pictures of today at the zoo and this evening....

Actually here is a link to my Picasa page because I have just about had it with Blogger and how long it takes to upload pictures. I seriously could spend like 5 hours on here and put 20 pictures up. Plus, my desktop computer SUCKS!! Christmas could not come any quicker-lol!

Addison's Second Birthday Weekend

Happy Memorial Day!

2009-05-25T12:18:00.005-04:00

Memorial Day is a great day to thank Jack for protecting our country, along with everyone else in the military. Here is a picture of Jack from 2004, while in Iraq

We have had a very busy month-betcha wondered where I was!! Addison is at the stage where Daddy is non-existent and only wants Mommy. Someone told me yesterday it does go away....when?!

After our little trip to Nashville, IN at the beginning of May, we visited Pa'ma and Pawpaw's house in Centerville a couple of times. Here is a hilarious picture of Addison with Sammy, Zippy, Lucky, and Gracie. She knows all of them by name too--so cute.

Zippy Angel always has a good time up in Centerville too--here she is hunting for something.

I forgot to add in my last post that Jack bought a truck at the end of April. Finally! Here is a picture of it (Toyota Tundra 4 x 4). Now all we need are the four wheelers-ha!

Jack has also been really busy cutting down trees. He bought an expensive Stihl chainsaw in December and it broke at least 4 times and he kept taking it back to the dealer to have it serviced. Finally he did a Better Business Bureau claim with "Dr. Mills" and got all of his money back, thank goodness. Last weekend he got a Husqvarna chain saw that seems to be even better than the Stihl. Here he is testing it out. Oh and notice how great the fence cut out looks--kidding...

We are also new members at the Miami Hills Swim and Tennis Club in Milford. Last Tuesday they had a new member social where we got to meet new people and pick up some paperwork. Saturday we went and swam on their opening day. The baby pool was freezing, but the huge regular pool was heated. I think Addison had a good time. These pictures are from yesterday (Sunday). Oh and it is funny that she is wearing last year's suit that is size 12-18 months.

After we got home last night, Addison didn't feel good and now has had a fever of 101 since last night. That is probably why she is not smiling in any of the above pictures...

Other than all that, its been pretty quiet around here. We are looking forward to summer break-Jack's last day of school is June 4th. Addison will go to daycare on Wednesdays and Thursdays to stay on top of things and keep somewhat of a regular schedule. On those days, Jack is taking classes towards Master's hours. I'm also putting him to work on our side driveway. Addison will be 2 on June 5th!

23 months old and other random things

2009-05-05T22:01:00.006-04:00

I can't believe Addison was 23 months yesterday! In one short month we'll be celebrating 2 years! It feels like we just celebrated one year!! Here she is Tuesday before we left for "school"...

This past weekend we made a quick trip to Nashville Indiana. Addison and I went with mom and dad and met Angie, Tony, Aunt Julie and Uncle Scott, Jack, Cameron, Aunt Holly and Uncle Craig, and Alan and Carrie and Leslie and David. We stayed at a really cool place called Hidden Valley Inn. Addison did not have a nap on Saturday so that was pretty interesting. While we were away Zippy Angel ran away and some lady called me on my cell phone. Of course I couldn't get a hold of Jack (who did not go to Indy because he stayed home to watch her). She is home now. Right as well pulled into the village, they were having a parade. Addison was able to see horses and other animals which was great. The rest of the day we went to all of the little shops and antique places. Sunday we went to Brown County State Park and took a picture of everyone. Once I get that picture emailed to me I will post it.

Here are some pictures from last weekend...

Dad (we were taking a picture of each other, haha!) Mom and Addison Tony, Addison, Julie, and Cameron (Dad in back)
The infamous "Bronckin' Bull"--Jack used to be the "bull" when Jack and Cameron were little. Their birthdays are coming up and they will be 15 and 14, respectively. They had fun playing with Addison. This is Cameron in the picture, broken arm and all!

Lots has happened in the past three weeks--here is a short summary--

Jackie D had a really fun shower--here's some pics from that--

Jackie's niece, Madeline, is adorable!! She shares a birthday with Addison, so she'll be one year old on June 5th this year.

We took the front off of Addison's crib to convert into a little toddler bed. She absolutely loves it!

Last week I painted the living room (over the blue faux finish) a neutral color (Behr Wheat Bread). We also rearranged the furniture and it looks great. Jack and I hung the curtains back up last night and I'm working on the pictures, etc. I can't figure out where I want to hang the pictures and it is really irritating the OCD side of me!

Looking forward to the weekend--it is supposed to be nice. Mike's birthday was on Monday, so we're planning on having them over for a cookout along with Tina and Brian (who found out their twins are a girl AND a boy!) Lots to celebrate!!

Time is flying

2009-04-20T20:46:00.003-04:00

It is really the truth when people say time flies when you're having fun. Well, we've been having fun, despite the crappy weather. I don't know how it can go from 70 degrees and sunny to below 50 and stormy. After 29 years of this weather you'd think I would stop complaining. Oh well, looks like it will be another beautiful weekend, so I'm really not complaining.

Last Friday and Saturday were beautiful. Jen had a garage sale and I joined in and made a whopping...are you ready.....$5!! Yes, that says $5. I even heard this weekend was Milford's city-wide garage sale. I didn't think we had that many people, but Jen did alright. Addison did not want to take a nap and the multiple times I tried to lay her down she screamed and screamed. One time I put her down and closed the door, she climbed out of her crib, fell on the floor and then was banging on the door. I was praying that day would not come this soon. She did ok Saturday night, but Sunday morning we went to Wal-Mart and bought a bed rail (along with a toddler bed after fighting with Jack in the baby department). That is why I shop alone--I can get what I want!! Jack was adamant that the bed rail was "crap" and he couldn't believe why they were even sold. He insisted on this little wooden toddler bed she'd outgrown in a year. Her expensive crib turns into a toddler bed!! So anyway, we bought both. She has been so excited with the new bed arrangement. She can get in and out now by herself (although she has been doing very well...crossing my fingers). The next step will be turning the crib into a full size bed. I have not yet taken a picture, but it is hilarious to see her in there reading her books. Oh-- and I returned the toddler bed today-LOL!

I also worked on a little surprise for Jackie D on Sunday. I'd post a picture of it on here, but then it wouldn't be a surprise since she will read this before Saturday (the day of her baby shower). I also found out the Behr paint is on sale (50% off!!!). I'm glad I didn't break down and buy the paint two weeks ago when I had planned to. We always do things for a reason, right?? I'm going to finally paint over the blue family room! Yah!! Not sure what color, but I'm picking that out tonight. I'm not sure if I am going to ask Jack yet....It is better if I just do it and then he'll see the finished product and just have to like it.

I'm also working on trying to make my blogger pictures smaller...here is my test. These two uploaded a lot quicker...I just hope when I publish this they still look ok. THANKS ANDREA!!!! These are pictures Jack took last Wednesday when he was home with Addison. Aren't they funny? (The one of the standing squirrel is blurry because it was taken through the screen but I had to post it because I think it is so funny!)

Happy Easter, belated

2009-04-13T19:40:00.006-04:00

It has been a busy two weeks, like usual. Two weekends ago I took Addison to the county Easter Egg hunt at Sycamore Park in Batavia. Jackie D went with us as well as our neighbors. Way too many people to be fun though....Addison really didn't know what was going on and she only got 3 eggs. Carson did a little better.

Jack also finished Addison's swingset, but of course I don't have a whole picture of it...duh! Here are Addison and I in the fort part. As I have said before, she doesn't like to look at the camera....

Saturday we went to the neighbors to hunt eggs with Carson. Jen did a great job stuffing and hiding the eggs. Carson and Addison had a great time!!

This is Addison on Easter Sunday. Jack told her the Easter bunny came and she got so excited, she bolted from the bathroom to the living room without letting me put clothes on her!!

I bid on the purple Crocs she has on from eBay. She immediately put them on. She also got some books, flash cards, chalk, and then some odds and ends. I think she was really excited.

Addison also loves chapstick and was digging through my bag and found some tinted Burt's Bees...isn't she adorable??

Yesterday afternoon mom came down with loads of Easter stuff, too much really! The Wessel's also came over for dinner. We have also been having a great time with the new bird feeder from Pam'ma. We have been seeing a lot of gold finches-males and females. I hope to get to the library sometime this week to get a bird book. We took the screen out of the window so that I could take some pictures.....

And until Blogger can get their act together, I am only going to post pictures once in awhile--it seriously takes like 45 minutes to post 10 pictures. I don't think it is my computer or internet connection because I have used other computers and they are ALL slow!

Busy as Bees

2009-04-01T20:03:00.004-04:00

We have been so busy lately! Addison doesn't stop running until she's in bed and boy does that wear us out!! I'm not complaining by any means, because that means she is an active and healthy kid! Jack has been busy building her swingset, which is almost done. It looks to be nice on Saturday, but then there is a chance of snow on Tuesday. What gives??

I have been busy sewing some stuff for Jackie. Last Sunday she came over and we covered the cushion that goes on her rocker in baby Alexis' room. We said bad words and sweat a lot, but here is the final product. It turned out great! Look at those beautiful buttons Jackie covered by hand!!

Here is the valance and curtains I made too. I told her I was going to keep the brown curtains for my living room because they turned out so great. All I have left is the bedskirt and a little surprise or two for her. Oh, and that is one of her adorable dogs, Sadie.

Addison and I went to the park on Monday afternoon. I walked around the trail first and then she played on the playground. These pictures kinda look like the ones from a couple weeks ago, but they aren't.

Saturday I'm taking Addison to Sycamore Park for the Batavia Easter Egg Hunt. According to the paper they hide several thousand candy/prize filled eggs for the kids to hunt for. Should be a good time, as the Easter bunny will also be there!

Weekend Recap

2009-03-22T19:21:00.004-04:00

What a fun weekend! My dad's birthday is today so we went to Centerville on Saturday night for ribs. Before that party, we went to Toys R Us and Pamaw bought Addison a swing set for her birthday (early of course). We had to special order it, so it should be in by next weekend. Jack is really excited to put it together. While we were there, I also got the Little Tikes picnic table I've been eyeing for Addison. It was actually cheaper than both Meijer and Walmart, which was surprising.

Today I worked on Jackie D.'s curtains for baby Alexis. I got the valance done and it was so hard to put on the window hardware because I made the rod pocket almost too small! After lots of sweating and bad words, we got it up! After I finish the curtains, we'll take pictures and post.

Here are a few randoms from last weekend and this weekend....

Painting outside

Dad's Birthday Trifle

Playing guitar with Papaw

New Sunglasses at her new picnic table

Helping mom clean

I love spring!

2009-03-19T12:33:00.003-04:00

I love now that the sun stays out so much longer and we can play and play outside after dinner!! The weather this week was quite warm--in the high 60's to mid 70's. Today though, after the rain we had is about 55. I'm not complaining though--it is bright and sunny and just perfect! I'm on my lunchbreak right now outside and my laptop is connected to some wi-fi signal in our building (its not illegal, don't worry!)

Addison loves to be outside. When I pick her up from daycare she's been asking me if she can eat dinner outside. It is so adorable. We have a flimsy kid table and 2 chairs, but they always fall over. I'm looking for the Little Tikes picnic table with umbrella on Craig's List, but it must be a hot commodity, because I'm not the only one searching for something that no one is selling. It's under 50 bucks new, so I think I'll make a trip to Meijer in the near future and get it for her Easter gift. She'll just love it! While I was on Craig's List I also found the Step 2 slide that goes with Addison's swimming pool for only $20. I'm going to pick that up over the weekend too.

The other exciting thing is that she's eating vegetables! I hope I didn't jinx myself by writing that, but she likes cucumbers and tomatoes this week. I had a big salad last night and she ate all of them and asked for more!! Yay!!

This weekend is my dad's 59th birthday (sorry, dad-had to write it!!) so we'll be going to Centerville for his bday dinner on Saturday. I'm going to make my famous strawberry trifle, a request from dad. It is so yummy!! I have never been able to find the recipe on the Internet, so I feel like it is something I created myself! LOL!

My friend at work, Aimee, went to Coupon Bootcamp in Wilmington last weekend and was nice enough to share all the secrets she got. Here is what she got....
(I will Post later...)
Great information!!! I bought a picture album that holds 200 4 x 6 picture from Dollar General for $6 to store my coupons in. Aimee has hers in a binder with baseball card holders, but a lot of my coupons were bigger than baseball cards and I didn't want them folded, so I opted for the larger storage area. I can easily see all of the coupons and the dates since they are not folded. I also found out from her that Meijer price matches (everything, including groceries), so my new plan is to take all of the ads (Kroger, CVS, Walgreens, Walmart) there with me so I can get the cheapest of everything. On top of that, they do double coupons. Gotta love that!!! It makes going to the grocery so much more fun! I'm actually going tonight, so I'm going to work on my list for the last couple minutes of my break. TTYL

I'm a genius

2009-03-13T20:38:00.005-04:00

I don't know why it took me so long to realize I could google how to hem jeans (www.daciaray.com/?p=38). That is a really good blog too, so I added it to my list. As I said, I can easily hem anything else, as long as I cuff them and whip stitch the back. It never looks like the original hem though! Alas! I only took me 30 minutes to hem two pair of jeans and you can't really tell they are hemmed unless you know I did or you really look closely. I "practiced" on a pair of old jeans to wear with my running shoes or ballet flats. They looked so good, I went ahead and did my new Gap jeans. I kept those slightly long to wear with heels. I will no longer pass up a pair of jeans up now if they are too long (and they are usually too long)!! Yah!!

Deals!!

2009-03-13T11:35:00.002-04:00

I'm kind of liking this recession with all of the great deals on clothing!! I found a coupon on another blog site for 30% off Gap and Old Navy (3/12-15). www.gapgiveandget.com/np/tfa.html. Then I found out that Old Navy was having a big sale on pants yesterday ($29.50 marked down to $19, plus 30% off--$13.30!). Jack always seems to need pants, so I went last night when Jack took Addison to his parent's house. I also have been toting around a Gap gift card, so I knew this would be a great time to use it. I went all the way down to Rookwood in Hyde Park, but it was worth the drive since Kenwood Mall is all under construction and the traffic is a mess. I found a pair of "Limited Edition" Gap jeans that were originally $69.50 marked to $31.99 and then I had 30% off. They came out to be $23 and some change and the gift card was for $25 so I made out!! Of course they are too long because Gap must think that everyone is model tall. I am good at hemming pants, however I have never done jeans. I found a tutorial website about how to utilize the original hem in jeans (since you can never get it to look the same if you cut it off). I plan on hemming them later today.

After Gap, I went to Old Navy and found a pair of khakis for me and Jack, jeans for Jack and 2 pair of capri's for Addison (they were only $2.80 each)!! I may go back tomorrow when I'm shopping with Jackie D. to look for more spring stuff for Addison. Last night after I got home I put black out material at Addison's windows. Since the time change, she goes to bed when its still light out! Of course when I was at JoAnn Fabrics, I estimated the length of the window and they are about 3" too short. It is ok though, they still work out well. I hung them behind the turquoise curtain that is up there (on a separate rod).

So Jackie D and I are going shopping tomorrow for her baby's room. Hopefully we'll find some cute material for curtains and a crib skirt!! I'm excited to make something for Alexis. My craft room is coming along too--I have my sewing machine set up permanently in there and the dresser drawers are organized in to different crafts (sewing, scrapbooking/stamping, photography, etc). After I get the bed out of there, I'll do a futon and maybe a treadmill. I am enjoying the gym though--I went to weight class this morning AND the grocery all before 7:30 am!! I had a third doctor's appointment at 9 am for my mole. He went in again and cut out a huge football shape to send out again. Hopefully the cells are normal and nothing else needs to be done. There are 7 stitches that will be removed on 3/27. I'll take a picture once it heals a little more. I guess that is what I get for years and years of tanning and not wearing sunscreen.

I know I'm rambling...Addison's potty training is going well. She goes in the morning and at night. I'm going to have daycare start really working next week with her. I bought pull ups too and I plan to work hard this weekend. Other than that, I'm just glad it's Friday!!

Still testing...

2009-03-12T21:51:00.002-04:00

So I'm still trying to get these pictures bigger but not blurry...anyone got any ideas? I'm sure my dad does! Help!

Test #2

2009-03-11T21:02:00.005-04:00

I'm still working on these dang pictures...time for bed. Since I'm trying (yes, that says trying) to use Photoshop Elements now for editing, you are able to click on the pictures and they are enlarged and much clearer. I think blogger is cheap and sometimes the picture resolution is not good even though the pictures are high quality with lots of pixels. Hang in there, I will get this right one of these days when I have hours and hours of free time to play on here. I don't think that will ever be possible. These are Addison's new Crocs, by the way, aren't they darling??

Test

2009-03-11T20:45:00.006-04:00

So I have changed my blog to try and make my pictures bigger...this is a very long process. I have googled a million websites on changing the HTML on the picture part, by my HTML never looks like what is on the other website! UGH! Hey, at least I was able to widen the template. Go me! LOL!

More randomness

2009-03-09T20:39:00.009-04:00

We had a wonderful WARM weekend. After reading Audrey's blog, it wasn't as warm as 80, but it was awesome around here! Saturday Addison and I went up to Centerville to have my haircut and highlighted and she played with Pa'ma and Papaw while I was away. We also got to see Angie and Tony. Jack was able to get out on his bike for really the first time since he's had it. He got it at the end of the season last year, after he sold the Suzuki, so he had a great time. I'm excited for bike night to start back up at Quaker Steak and Lube because that is a ton of fun!

Sunday Addison and I went shopping for spring shoes and ended up with the most adorable pair of light pink Crocs. She loves them and doesn't want to take them off. Before we left the house when we were getting shoes on, she insisted on wearing her black patent leather shoes with her jeans and t-shirt. She just looked darling.

Sunday mom and dad came down--mom to babysit and dad delivered my sewing table for my new craft room (which is coming a long, slowly but surely). I have been purging and organizing for about a week now. I moved stuff around in the guest bedroom and once the bed is transferred to Addison's room, it will be even better!! Now my sewing machine is in plain view, which means I'm going to have to get to work.

I took Addison to the park today after I got home from work while Jack went to the dentist. Last year she could have cared less about the park, but she threw a tantrum when after and hour I told her we had to go. These are some darling pictures I took...

Jack got home and I went to the gym--to a weight class I go to on Monday nights. Now I'm working on trying to learn Adobe Photoshop Elements. It is almost exactly like the regular photoshop and that is practically impossible to learn without a class. I gave up and will visit the library tomorrow for a book!!

This weekend I also reconnected with an old BFF from middle school, yes middle school on Facebook. I think that was about 16 years ago. Now that I type that, I can not believe it has been that long!! Cara Castagna (now Schneiderman). I'm hoping that she finishes her blog and shares it with me soon!!! Cara if you are reading this--get to work!! Next time I'm in Centerville I will dig through my old pictures and scan one of us in here!!

Anyway, have a good week everyone (all those millions who read my blog, haha!) Oh, and Amy, I am currently listening to your brothers argue politics in the living room. This has been going on for the past 2 1/2 hours...its getting old...LOL!!!

21 Months

2009-03-05T20:02:00.003-05:00

I can't believe I just typed that...21 months....time sure has flown by with Addison. Today is Addison's 21 month birthday. She has been up to so much and I had every intention of doing a monthly recap for her, but it's never to late to get started again!!

Stats: 24 lbs, ~33" tall, 16 teeth (last 4 molars are due to come in around 24 months), hair long enough to put in ponytails

Clothing: Mainly wears 18 month tops and bottoms, some 12 month bottoms (if they are long enough). We've had to start buying regular shirts and not onesies since we're potty training.

Favorites Foods: #1 Raisins #2 Hummus #3 Pretzels and then of course juice, milk, ice cream, noodles (and spaghetti), meatloaf, fish sticks, ketchup, any kind of berry, bananas, yogurt, cereal (Kix) and milk. Those are the top foods. She used to LOVE vegetables, but has seemed to not like them anymore. She did eat carrots last Sunday and one green been the other night. I guess she's on the right track!

Words: She will repeat anything you ask her to. Favorites are Zippy, Daddy, Mommy, "Honey, Honey" (for Mama Mia), eat, I could list way more here, but really she talks a lot.

Activities: Anything art-related (coloring, play-doh), playing babies, reading, watching Mama Mia, cleaning (she definitely gets that from me!)

Average Day: Wakes up between 6:45 and 7:15 (sometimes later on the weekend), Daddy takes to daycare Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, mommy picks up at 4 pm, come home and eat a snack, dinner at 5:30, bath at 6:45 or 7, bedtime 7:30-7:45 pm. Mondays mom watches her and Friday Grandma Jackie watches her. Thursday nights she sleeps over at the Wessel's house and I get all of my laundry and cleaning done.

I'm sure I have forgotten something...

Here is a picture from last weekend when we went to Cazadores with 8 of our friends. This is Carson, our next door neighbor's little boy.

One more day until I get my haircut! I sure wish it was Friday. Jack is off tomorrow just to have the day off. He was originally going to take the on-road test for his motorcycle license, but could not get in until next Wednesday. Tomorrow will probably be a good day to take the bike out though! I feel better about it this year because we have good insurance, life insurance and a new full-face helmet!!

Random

2009-03-04T21:14:00.002-05:00

We are so excited it's finally beginning to get warm in Cincinnati!! The weatherman says it will be above 60 the next 6 days. We can at least cross our fingers!! It's been so miserably cold around here even 50 degrees is fine!! Last weekend we went up to mom and dad's and painted their half bath. It is a really pretty sage green color. It was contractor white, so any color would have made a big difference!!! They also got a new light fixture, knobs, and hinges (all in brushed nickel).

We are also still potty training. Some days are better than others. It is a huge struggle at night when it is bathtime. The last three baths have been complete messes--screaming, kicking, yelling (on Addison's part). I actually had to get in the tub tonight to hold her down to at least wash her sticky hair. She was screaming pee-pee the whole time. She enjoys sitting on the potty and she'd probably sit there for an hour if I let her. I think she forgets why she is sitting there sometimes. Anyway, here she is reading a book.

This is her baby that laughs--she is laughing at her.

I have been busy trying to organize our receipts and warranties for the multitude of "stuff" we have accumulated over the years. I have 6 binders with a plastic sleeve for each item. The binders are separated by: Appliances, Small Household Electrics, Addison's stuff, Power Tools, Electronics, Miscellaneous and other Receipts. Here are some of the binders....

Now hopefully it will be easy to find the warranty or receipt for an item if it needs to be returned or repaired!!

I'm also working on trying to organize our spare bedroom. I am very eager to get Addison out of her crib so that she can have the double bed in the guest room. I want to make it my craft room--actually keep my sewing machine out!! I plan to put a futon in there as well.

This Saturday I'm finally getting my hair cut. I think it's been 8 weeks! I don't know how I'm going to get through the next 2 days, this week is dragging!

Addison Pottied!!

2009-02-27T15:45:00.002-05:00

I always knew it would be a big day when Addison used her potty chair!! When we took her to the doctor on President's Day for her ear, he said that she probably wouldn't be ready until she was 2 1/2 years old. We already had the potty (from Christmas) and we were not pushing her, but she would see us use the bathroom and she always wanted to sit on hers too. Well finally last night, when we were getting her bath ready, she peed! The potty chair sings a song when she goes, so she got really excited and clapped her hands. If that wasn't enough, my M-in-L called me just now to say she poo-pooed in it today! Thank goodness they made a trip to Target this morning for the same princess potty we have at home. I honestly was going to wait until she was 2 (June 5), but I'll take now because I hate diapers!

Yah Addison!!

Almost Friday!

2009-02-26T13:45:00.002-05:00

I guess you can tell I like the weekend! I am just excited for it to get warm and that is not going to happen this weekend for sure. I can't understand why it is 60 degrees today but will be in the 30s come Saturday! Not fair! I know Addison is getting tired of playing in the house. Hopefully Jack will get outside soon and start building her a swingset. He's so good with that type of stuff.

If anyone has ever seen the humongous mole on my back-it is gone now. I always called it my beauty mark and never had any intention of having it removed until someone at work had a very similar one removed because it was cancerous. In early January I had a small portion of it taken out and biopsied. It came back fine. I went back to the doctor to have the rest removed and didn't even think twice about the rest coming back abnormal. Well that is what happened. The removal was Friday and the doctor called me Tuesday. I actually had to go back to see him on Tuesday because the area was infected. I will not go into details, but it was just plain gross. I am now on antibiotics for that (while I was at Kroger getting the prescription I stumbled on my favorite self-tanner on the sale rack--for only $2.29! It was like it was meant to be!!). The "hole" is the size of a dime. On March 13th I am going back again to have more layers of skin removed (deeper and wider-quarter size). Because of the area being so large, instead of a round scar, it will be a 2 inch straight scar--they even have to use stitches. I'm just glad I finally went. Pray that the abnormal cells are not malignant. Needless to say, I will not go tanning or "lay out" like I used to and wear lots of sunscreen!

Other random things that happened this week:
- I watched Mama Mia 20 more times. Both Jack and I know all the words to every scene (so does Addison!)
- My dad finally got rid of his Crown Victoria and bought a 2009 Honda Accord! Yah!
- It was 60 degrees for 2 days! Yah!
- Lent began on Wednesday. I gave up sweets (candy, cookies, cake, ice cream). I wrote this in here only because now other people know and I have to stick with it. Heck, if God gave his only Son, I sure can give up sweets for 40 days! Ha! At least it ends on Easter and I will have my fill of Peeps, jelly beans, and coconut chocolate eggs!

It's Tuesday!

2009-02-24T11:40:00.002-05:00

No, I'm really not excited it's Tuesday, I just couldn't come up with a title! haha! We have not been very busy since my last post, so I held off posting. This past weekend we had to take my car down to Lexington to have the timing belt replaced. I have a very special car-VW Jetta TDI. If you don't know what that is, it is a turbo diesel. I also get close to 40 mpg! Anyway, we didn't trust the dealership to change the timing belt because they were not well versed in diesel engines. The closest certified VW diesel mechanic was in Lexington and he was wonderful! He has 4 TDI's himself and he works out of his home garage. He saved us $800 too! Jack and I were able to make a day trip out of it. Addison stayed with the Wessel's for the day. After dropping the car off, the mechanic let us take his Passat out and about. I won't go into gory details about what the car looked like (because if you know me, I could easily do that), but let me just say it was dirty. And not just a little dirty. He is also a smoker, so it smelled real nice...Anyway, I didn't complain too much because this way we didn't have to drive two cars.

We decided to take a tour of the Wild Turkey Bourbon distillery in the area. Kentucky has 7 bourbon distilleries near Lexington. No samples, but it was really fun. On the way home, we stopped in Newport at The Party Source and bought little sample bottles of 4 different bourbons from the local distilleries.

Sunday my mom came down early so that we could try out St. Mark's church. It was a wonderful service and I think I finally found a church home. It was almost identical to the one I grew up in and its like 3 miles from my house!! I hope to take Addison in the next couple of weeks.

Tag

2009-02-18T13:12:00.002-05:00

I saw this on someone's blog and thought it was really cool! Have fun with it on your own blog if you'd like!!

I am: at work
I want: be at home with my family
I have: an amazing life
I dislike: icy conditions outside and being cold in general
I miss: friends from high school and college I have lost touch with
I fear: death
I feel: energetic
I hear: music from my little boom box
I crave: hot tamales
I usually: wake up really early
I search: for online deals and coupons
I wonder: what my life will be like in 10 years
I regret: not finishing interior design school
I love: Addison and Jack (and lots of family)
I care: so much about my family
I always: clean
I worry: about everything under the sun
I remember: G.G. and Doggone's house
I believe: in God
I sing: Mama Mia songs currently
I don't always: follow directions
I argue: when I know I'm really really right
I write: my blog (not often enough)
I win: I never win anything
I lose: lots of bets with Jack
I wish: I could work part time
I listen: to Addison sing Honey, Honey
I don't understand: when people are mean to others and have to out-do each other
I can usually be found: cleaning something
I forget: lots of things now since I have a baby
I am happy: when I get home
I tag: whoever wants in on this!!

Happy Valentine's Day, a day late!

2009-02-15T19:53:00.004-05:00

We had a really fun Valentine's Day weekend! Addison had a party at daycare on Thursday and got all dolled up for the occasion. We made heart shaped spritz cookies the night before to take to school. Here is a darling picture of her and the yummy cookies.

Friday I ran a bake sale at work. Our agency made almost $400!! My coworkers like sweets!! Friday night our Jackie and Mike came over for Larosas and I made cookies again (for that night and Saturday night). Angie and Tony came down on Saturday around noon so that Angie and I could go dress shopping. While we were gone, Tony and Jack installed a new "pantry" for me out of my old hall closet that was too small to hold coats and a big fat waste of space. I get so excited each time I look in it now!! I have lots more space to buy in bulk and start saving money. Speaking of saving money, I have become a little obsessed with coupons lately. A girl's husband I work with works for the Enquirer and she bring in gobs of coupons that don't get sent out in the Sunday papers. I turned an old recipe box into my coupon holder and it has 30 dividers for just about everything under the sun. I have been reading the online circulars for Kroger/Meijer/Walmart and noticed just this week that Meijer did double coupons. I already knew Kroger did, but their prices are just outrageous to begin with. WalMart is ok, but they don't double coupons and the service is horrible. I couldn't imagine Meijer's service being any better (and it wasn't), but I did save a whole lot more there today.

So back to the shopping...I took her to Bridal Designs in Montgomery and Angie found a gorgeous strapless there. The place was really weird though because they wouldn't let her try it on without an "appointment". We were the ONLY ones there!! She does plan to go back and try it on. It will be nice when my mom is able to go with us next time. After that we went to David's Bridal in Kenwood and had really good luck. We found the bridesmaid dresses and I only had to try on one! It is actually a two piece. Black tea length skirt part and a white strapless top with a black satin sash/tie/ribbon thingy. I made this dress combo on their website, but it wouldn't let me chose a white top...

Angie found a gorgeous dress as well (can't explain it though since it will be a surprise)!! After that, I took her to Archiver's in Mason, which is the most amazing scrapbook store around. She is making her own invitations so we went to look at paper and embellishments. We were in there forever because they just had too much!

On the way home, we picked up a big salad and breadsticks from Olive Garden to go along with my Chicken Parmesan that was at home in the crock pot. We had a really yummy dinner and were absolutely exhausted from shopping.

And the weekend keeps going because we are off work tomorrow for President's Day! Yah!! We don't have any big plans, probably just playing with Addison!!

Blog Slacker!

2009-02-09T06:48:00.002-05:00

Please don't be mad, I have been really slacking on my blog! My intention was to post at least twice a week. Reading all those other blogs of moms with kids can do it! Of course most of them stay at home, but I'm superwoman, so I can too! I have a new blog friend too! Well, actually I know her in real life too. Tina is having TWINS in September so I'm excited to follow her blog and her adventure of pregnancy.

Last Tuesday we got another HUGE round of snow--about 8 or 9 inches! The drive home from work was a mirror image of the horrible ice storm in December-at least this time I didn't slide off of the road. On Jack's way home he told me to stop at UDF to get snacks since I would be in the car for a long time with Addison. Not really sure why he didn't just pick her up--I'm still wondering. Men. Anyway, I only bought a Gatorade and a little thing of cheez its. I think I was in denial of the approaching snow. Anyway, I left work at 3:20 and didn't get home until 5:50. I will post some pictures later (I don't have them with me right now). Jack had a snow day on Wednesday and Addison stayed with him. Wednesday when I was going to work I got stuck at the end of our driveway. Jack and our neighbor Chad had to dig me out and push me out on to the street. When Chad left for work a little bit later, he wasn't so lucky. He gunned it so that he wouldn't get stuck and ended up in the ditch on the other side of the street. Jack has a winch (attached to the telephone pole) and got him out, thank goodness. We are currently looking for a four wheel drive...either a truck or SUV as a third vehicle. We can not live where we live and not have something four wheel drive. Of course we need to buy another ATV with a snow plow for our 100 yard gravel driveway too...

Friday Jack was in Columbus for a football coach's conference. He saw Jim Tressel (ick) and missed Rich Rodriguez. Addison and I hung out on Friday night together, which was really fun. Saturday we went up to Centerville to get our bangs cut and also go dress shopping with Aunt Angie. The dress shop we went to though was not open. We ended up a Hobby Lobby. This coming up Saturday she is planning on coming down and going to Bridal and Formal in Reading.

Saturday evening we finally went to O'Charley's. My friend Jackie and I have been craving O'Charley's for a quite awhile. We think it's the rolls! Their friends Brian and Tina (blog Tina) also came, which was really fun because she said she was pregnant with twins! We are excited to all get together again.

Sunday I went to IKEA (sorry Jackie I didn't call you-I went right when they opened and went to the grocery right after). I really love that place-especially when you go when there isn't really anyone there. I got there at 10 when they opened. I was looking for a lamp for Addison's room and found a really cool floor lamp with a reading lamp attached too for $8.99! The damn light bulbs were more than that! Go figure! I also bought a couple more things. Of course when I got home Jack wanted me to immediately take them back. He's just like his dad! He would also kill me for saying that, but he doesn't read my blog, so I can! haha! When my mom came down, we took another trip out to IKEA (with Addison-BAD IDEA). Rule one of going to IKEA is DO NOT TAKE CHILDREN WITH YOU!!!!! She refused to sit in the cart and carried around my hand sanitizer as it spilled all over the floor. It was packed and I was so afraid she was going to run off. She tried to climb on all of the displays and screamed on the way out because she didn't want to leave. I didn't find what I was looking for, but my mom did find some cute lamps for her bedroom.

Another reason I have been slacking at this blog is because I'm somewhat addicted to Facebook. I used to really hate it, but it's growing on me. I have found some friends who I had lost touch with (high school/college) and it's so much fun to hear what they have been up to.

Today is Monday and I'm so excited about Jon and Kate!

Please Melt! Now!

2009-02-01T12:04:00.005-05:00

I'm so sick of snow and I'm sure I'm not the only one in the midwest! Today we are having a big "warm up" and its a whopping 40 degrees. I guess that is better than Friday night's windchill of something below zero. I shouldn't be complaining because the sun is out and it is really beautiful outside.

Addison has been having a lot of fun lately. Wednesday afternoon we took her out in our makeshift sled...

As you can see, she absolutely LOVES it!...only kidding. I think we were outside for a total of 8 minutes!

She would rather be inside ordering me to cook her noodles and give her cookies (fig newtons) and nuts. Weird combination, I know, but those seem to be her favorites. Today she cried over and over for conversation hearts. After those are gone I'm swearing off buying any sweets. It seems like she knows where I hide them!

Here she is today coloring. It's one of her favorite things to do. After I finish this post and while she's still asleep (thank you Lord), I am going to paint the purple chair in these pictures. It was my sister and I's growing up (and maybe even older than that). I'm painting it brown and going to do pink flowers and write her name on the backrest.

Day Two

2009-01-28T13:19:00.006-05:00

I have to say I'm so blessed to work for county government! My boss called me today at 6:30 a.m. to say that all offices were closed. That was after I left Zippy outside in the freezing rain at 6 and decided I would try to go in later. We have had a great day so far...Jack is eagerly waiting for the power to go out so he can test out his new generator. I keep having flashbacks to the ice storm of February 2007 when I was pregnant. I remember having a makeshift bed in front of the fireplace with both Wyatt and Zippy (and Jack) curled up together trying to stay warm. I don't ever recall my work being closed, however I could not shower so I didn't go in. At least that will never happen again, thanks to the generator that will power the whole house.

I have been having fun taking pictures though. I really want to get out into the woods and find a bird in a tree or something cool, but its just too dangerous now that the heavy snow is weighing down the icy trees. In 2007, a young girl was killed while she was walking her dog after the ice storm. Anyway, here is Addison yesterday. Grandpa and Uncle Steve came over to shovel/plow our driveway and Addison wanted to go outside so badly. It took me at least 10 minutes to get her ready. After her first step into the snow, she turned right around. Her snow boots do not fit, that is why she has her rain boots on!

This picture was early this morning, maybe 7 am, when it was still freezing rain...

This is about 7:30 am, when it got colder and everything iced up...

THEN, about 8 or 8:30, we had a blizzard that lasted until about 11:00 am.

During the blizzard, Addison and I made Valentine's sugar cookies. She didn't seem as interested as usual, she would rather push a chair to the sink and "wash dishes." She's usually soaked after she's done, but it is so cute.

Here are the cookies we made...

We've also been playing a lot of LEGOS. Uncle Steve brought over a huge stash of Jack's old ones from their basement. We went to Home Depot yesterday and bought an organizer for them. Jack and I stayed up late and sorted by color. I know, we are boring! I did build an airplane though! Addison picked out all of the little people and loves to play with them.

Yah! Taxes Are DONE!

2009-01-27T11:00:00.001-05:00

I love and hate tax time. Love it because we sometimes get money back (especially now with Addison) and hate it because it takes time to do it right. Thanks to the FREE Turbo Tax this year and Ohio's FREE I-File and School District online things-it was all done for FREE in about an hour and a half (Addison is still sleeping) and we are gettin' money back! YIPPIE! Oh, but half goes to car insurance. Darn.

Snowed In!

2009-01-27T09:33:00.005-05:00

Jack was doing a snow dance yesterday for no school and it sure worked! I woke up extra early today so I could leave the house by 6 to get to work "on time". I didn't drive one mile before I turned around and went back home. I decided to just try when it was light outside. I talked to a couple of people at work who called me wimpy, but they were not the ones on the side of the road for 4 hours with a toddler during the last ice storm. I left anyway, heeding Jack's advice to stay home. I went a little more than a mile this time, but noticed that one of the roads near home was backed up because cars could not get up the hill. I turned around in someone's driveway and got stuck. I spun my tires for 15 minutes before calling Jack. Of course no one driving by stopped to ask if I needed any help. Go figure-we live in Cincinnati. Finally, after turning my wheel back and forth (I guess to clear snow away from the tires) I was able to back up and drove back home. The weather man is calling for ice around 2, and that freaks me out more than anything, so I'm glad I'm home now. Here are some pictures of the snow and Addison coloring in her PJ's.

I don't think I ever posted a picture of our wood stove in the garage that heats our house, so here it is. Jack's been very busy chopping and splitting wood.

Also, never posted my new license plates I got for my birthday...how cute!!Addison is napping now since she woke up at 6 am, so hopefully later we can go play in the snow and get some cute pictures!

Not exactly the way to lose weight

2009-01-26T07:36:00.002-05:00

So I guess there was a GI bug going around....and I caught it! Thursday I went to the GI doctor for something totally unrelated and he prescribed me a medication for IBS called Amitiza. Thursday evening with dinner, I took my first dose. Right away I felt really nauseous so I got online to read about the side effects and reviewers comments...Nausea, stomach cramping, vomiting, muscle aches, flu-like symptoms, chills, and hives. Well, I HAD THEM ALL and they lasted for THREE days!! I would not wish this upon my worst enemy!! I'm not sure if it was the medication or the flu. I haven't taken another dose and I don't plan to. I'm calling the GI doctor today to see if was the medicine. I don't ever remember having stomach issues like this that lasted so long in all my life!! I still feel sick and am eating a piece of toast right now.

Addison is also sick, but thank goodness not with a stomach bug--with respiratory stuff....again. I plan on taking her to the doctor at 4 today. At lunch I have to run to Wal-Mart to stock up on stuff before the white death hits us tonight and tomorrow. Oh how I miss 4 wheel drive.

Valentine Spirit

2009-01-21T20:13:00.003-05:00

I am finally getting into the Valentine spirit! I went to the Joann Fabric superstore about 3 weeks ago when I was up in Centerville and never got around to completing my project. Addison went to be super early tonight (6:30!) so I had plenty of time to work on my wreath. I used to make these all the time (before kids!), but unfortunately think they got lost in the move 3 years ago. I'm getting back on the bandwagon though with decorating for holidays. I will never forget growing up, my mom would decorate for every holiday--I mean-go all out! My goal is to start shopping after the holiday is over to catch some good deals like 70 and 80% off at Kohls and Hobby Lobby. JoAnn Fabrics in Eastgate and Loveland are going out of business so Mason can build a superstore. Not a problem with me! I love the superstore in Centerville!

Anyway, here is my wreath...
It is made with 2 different fabrics-a light and dark (about a yard each-I bought extra to make Zippy a bandanna). You'll also need sharp pinking shears, a 16" Styrofoam wreath, and a small/skinny Phillips head screwdriver. I cut 2 1/2 by 2 1/2 inch squares (eyeballed) and jabbed into the Styrofoam. 90% of the fabric squares are wrong side into the foam.

I made it in under and hour and now its hanging on the front door. I also bought window clings, however they don't really stay up with an almost 20 month old (gasp!)

Today I was thinking about how much my life has changed since June 5, 2007. I has obviously changed for the better because of Addison but I do miss a lot of the things I used to do and "who" I was. There is not a week that goes by that I don't think about the time I "dropped out of" interior design school when it took me well over a year to be accepted. UC's DAAP (Design, Art, Architecture, and Planning) school is renowned for their program. I got in and QUIT! I can not dwell on the past, so I might as well move forward, but I always think, "what if". LOL-I would not be working for the welfare department! But again, in this economy who's doing interior design and architecture? I'm blessed to have a job! I want my creative side to show again and be able to share that with Addison. Both of my parents were quite crafty. That's not even the right word. They/are artists! My dad did amazing watercolors from his beautiful photography, oil painted, was a wood worker, yada yada. My mom did tole painting, sewed, and did various other crafts. I did learn how to cross stitch at a really young age--I should pick that up again! I got into scrapbooking for a couple of years but that I so time consuming (more than any other craft I have done) and its expensive! I would like to try digital scrapbooking or having a coffee table book printed with my photography in it. Oh and I can't forget about Angie. She has an associates in graphic design. Her work is just as beautiful. Runs in the family-I just feel like I'm a little behind and need to get back on the crafty bandwagon. That brings me to wish for a bigger house with a craft room-somewhere I can keep my sewing machine out 24/7 and use it whenever I want! I would have to say I have good time management, but time is very limited when you work outside of the home full time and have a family. I just wish I had more time with Addison to do stuff with her like I was fortunate to experience when I was growing up. She is just growing up too fast! She's got a small dictionary up in her little head. Scary to hear what comes out of her mouth these days! LOL! Well, to bed I go (yes it is before 9!)...gotta make time to work out at 5 am, ya know?? There's time for everything!!

Found it!!!

2009-01-21T12:11:00.002-05:00

After looking for over a month for a specific book, I finally found it! Not where I had hoped to find it (in mom's basement), but on ebay. This timeless treasure was read over and over when Angie and I were little and we will never forget it! My dad even got in on the search, buying a "knock-off" (sorry, dad) of the book. Not to keep you in suspense, the book is called "A Story A Day" by Kathryn Jackson, illustrated by Richard Scarry. Who doesn't love Richard Scarry books?? There are 365 stories for each day of the year and the illustrations are beautiful. It's exactly how I remember-big blue, hardcover book with a bear reading on the cover. I am bidding on a copy from 1998 (it is out of print and it was last printed in '98) on ebay for $4. Hope I win!!

A Day for the History Books

2009-01-21T08:57:00.006-05:00

I should have posted yesterday-the day of the inauguration of the first black president (actually I don't view him as black-I would call him more of a mutt). My office organized a viewing of the inauguration in our conference room during lunch, but I chose not to attend, as I knew I would see it over and over again on the news. I was not wrong!! Later in the evening I went to the gym and watched it again on cardio theatre. I still don't know what to think of our new President, as I did not vote for him. I do, however, like Michelle Obama. Her platform is military families. I also think she is beautiful and really represents the American woman. She is a wonderful mother and her children are grounded. As we were watching the news coverage last night I was getting Addison to say Obama-It was so cute!!

I'm still dreaming of warm weather--this winter has been so cold and dreary. It hasn't really snowed at all-just had that big ice storm before Christmas. I guess our big snow came last March, so we still may be in for something big. Jack has been cutting firewood like a fool. Every chance he gets he is outside with his axe. If only I could afford to buy him a log splitter! The only bad thing is that he thinks we are going to run out of seasoned firewood by the middle or end of February. At least next year we will have an abundance of wood for the stove!

I found the website for Bounce U in Centerville. The only open "bounces" they have for preschool age children is Tue/Thur/Fri from 9:30-11:30 am. I am taking off next Friday since grandma Jackie will be teaching at OSU so I'm hoping to take Addison to bounce then. This Saturday aunt Angie is having a bowling party (with bumpers!) for her birthday. I hate bowling, probably because I'm bad at it and it hurts my back, so I will be a spectator.

Cincinnati Museum Center

2009-01-20T08:58:00.006-05:00

Long weekends are so much fun!! Yesterday we took Addison to the Children's Museum at Union Terminal. We were only there for an hour before she started walking sideways and rubbing her eyes. There were thousands of kids and strollers-I will not go back on a holiday or weekend ever again! It was hard for her to play at some of the stops because there were too many kids. It was a fun experience though, since we had never been there before. I am a bad mom though, forgot my camera....trying to get a 19 month old ready in freezing weather is hard, let alone trying to remember everything. I at least remembered food, paci, and blanket and those are the most important! I did take this picture with my camera phone, but the quality is horrible. Here is is playing with Dupo Legos. I didn't get too many smiles because she was in shock with all the things to play with.

This Friday is Aunt Angie's birthday (27!!). We were planning on going to the Boonshoft Museum in Dayton, but I think I will wait when I'm off one day during the week so its not so busy. I'm looking at going to this place in Centerville called Bounce U. It was shown on an episode of Jon and Kate and it looks so cool! It is a place where they have tons of blow up climbers and slides. I'm not sure if Addison is too little though.

Stayin' Warm

2009-01-17T07:51:00.003-05:00

It's starting to feel like a heat wave at a whopping 10 degrees right now. Yesterday it got down to minus 6, but the windchill was even worse than that!! The sun was out yesterday and it looks like it will be again today after looking at the beautiful sunrise--

Our wood stove could hardly keep up with the cold weather last night. I finally broke down though and bought a down comforter for our king size bed. I had one for the queen, but never bought one when we upgraded. I did get lucky though because I had a 30% off coupon at Kohls, and they were 50% off to begin with. Now I just need to find a cover for it. It made such a difference last night though--I didn't have to wear socks!!

My four day diet is over. I lost 4 pounds exactly and 1 inch from my waist. I would probably have to account it to eating lower calories than normal-not what I actually ate. I did drink 4 gallons of Sassy water, which was really yummy and I think that decreased bloat. Addison made adorable Valentine cookies at grandma's yesterday so I had my fair share of those yesterday! I also had a management retreat at East Fork State Park for work yesterday. It was so nice to be away from work. We even got out really early!!

We are looking forward to the long weekend, having Monday off!! All my "chores" are done (besides going to the grocery), so I plan on playing with Addison all weekend!! This morning I'm planning on making banana bread with her.

Dreaming of 80 degrees

2009-01-14T14:45:00.003-05:00

Today it is in the teens, but feels even colder than that with the wind chill of something below zero. I changed my desktop picture on my computer to something warmer and I thought I'd share some "warm" pictures with you...

Seagrove Beach, Florida (June 2008)

Aunt Julie's Pool (Summer 2008)

Oh how I miss the warm weather!!!

1200 calories don't go far

2009-01-12T19:29:00.004-05:00

Day one is almost over and I'm obviously feeling the effects of 1200 calories. I'm exhausted!!! Tomorrow I plan to add more protein into the day, paying careful attention to sodium content. Tonight we had meatloaf for dinner with lean ground sirloin, roasted red potatoes and french style green beans. Addison also had applesauce. Tonight marks the first time in a long time (at least at our house) that she has eaten her vegetables--ALL OF THEM. I changed it up a little bit and bought french style instead of regular cut beans and seasoned them with Italian seasoning, spray butter, salt, and pepper. She even wanted MO. She also ate an entire piece of meatloaf and a bunch of potatoes. I could not believe my eyes watching her stuff it all in. An hour after dinner she ate 3 fig newtons. After begging for more of those, we had to tell her there were not any left. I know I now need to get creative with vegetables! Tomorrow night we are having almond chicken and brown rice with yellow squash-we'll see how she likes that!

It is only 7:30 and I'm about to fall asleep. I just wanted to get on and post these adorable pictures from playing tonight. She was playing cabbage patches (Mindy and Hannah) and also with a wind up chick.

And who has a dog that can curl her tongue? Zippy Angel can (and the more I look at it, it's a little disturbing)...

I do not think I can stay up until 9 to watch Jon and Kate, although I will try really hard since there are only 2 episodes left in the season. Then they move to their million dollar home (stalker me googled a picture of it!), thanks to TLC. I go back and forth with this family...I hate them and love them at the same time. It's really crazy to read some of the Gosselin hater blogs out there. I think people are just jealous, but then again, I don't think I would expose my children to the media like they have just to make money. But then again, I like their show and watching how they live their lives with 8 kids!!

I was tagged to post a picture on my blog from Andrea...WELL, I could have lied and make up something, but I honestly went to my fourth picture folder to the fourth picture and I WAS IN LABOR....could not post that on here. LOL!!!

Day One

2009-01-12T06:45:00.003-05:00

I said I was going to do the Flat Belly Diet after I got the book, so today is day one. The good thing is the "induction" part is only 4 days long and who can't buckle down and follow a plan for 4 days?? There are no weekends involved or special occasions so I think I'm good! Yesterday I went to Kroger (I usually go to WalMart) and spent way more than I usually do. Partly because Kroger is overpriced but I also bought healthy stuff. You really pay to eat healthy! WalMart seems a little behind the times in the fresh produce/meat selection. I have been spoiled with the Boar's Head deli meat at the new Kroger and their large produce section. Anyway, it will be worth it in the end.

Yesterday I made "Sassy Water," which is a flavored water for the "diet." It consists of 64 oz of water with lemon, cucumber, mint, and grated ginger root. I have never bought ginger root and I found that at Kroger (WalMart did not even sell it). The Starbucks at Kroger had their Christmas items half off, so I had to buy this adorable sparkly mug for my water.

The water sat overnight and it is so good! The first four days of this diet are supposed to be anti-bloat. If there is anyone out there not bloated, email me and let me know your secret!! Thursday it is supposed to be really really cold (like single digits) and I need to wear my UGGS. The only problem is I can't fit into the jeans that I wear them with (skinny ankle). Hopefully by Thursday or Friday they will fit!! Last night we had Gramma's pizza, beer, and ice cream so I'm sure that did not help, but marked the end of bad eating habits!! The good thing is that Addison doesn't like pizza. Who doesn't like pizza??

I think this diet is doable for me because it doesn't cut out carbs, which both Adkins and South Beach do. South Beach is ok, but I could never get through the first 2 weeks of that induction diet. So I will keep everyone posted on this new diet! I would have worked out this morning, however I am still very sore from painting all weekend. I feel muscles I didn't know I had!

Addison loves her new room. She still gets a little confused when she goes to her room, but if we say "new" room, she runs right to it. I'm looking forward to a long weekend coming up where I don't have to do anything like paint and it's only Monday! If it is not snowing, etc we will plan on taking Addison somewhere like the museum center or the aquarium. How fun!

Au Revior Pepto Bismol!

2009-01-10T20:03:00.008-05:00

It's finally done! I can't remember working so hard on something in a long time! Yesterday I raced home from work and got started on getting the furniture out of the den and taping off the trim. Jack came home and took apart the desk and moved the heavy stuff. Around 6:30 we went to see Addison at Jack's parent's house until she went to bed. After making a quick stop at the Depot (Yes, I forgot to buy a paintbrush...) The paint that I got is a Disney paint from Home Depot called Princess Tiara. It looks white on the walls, but if you put it up to something white, it does look very very light pink. We just had to get away from Pepto pink! I painted until 11 pm. I did get Addison's new room completely finished though! I even had time to watch Private Practice on the DVR, which was so so so sad! As I type this I can hardly move. I don't know how many times I went up and down on the chair. It was like doing a million squats.

This morning I woke up early to start again. We had to take apart Addison's crib and dresser to fit through the door and into the other room and that was very time consuming. It also took a little bit of time for me to put everything back and organize it the way it was.

So here are the pics--The den BEFORE (white contractor paint)

And Addison's new room AFTER...

After her new room was to my liking, I got to work on covering the pepto pink. I used KILZ primer with interior paint in the color Mountain Canyon. It was supposed to be a guaranteed one coat coverage. Not so and I will be calling tomorrow for my money back. I used two coats to cover the pink. I'm very happy with it now, I just have to hang pictures (which I'm doing a Marine Corps thing because Jack has so many awards and pictures) and hang the curtains back up.

Here is the pink room BEFORE

And the new office/guest room AFTER...

I don't remember if I blogged about cleaning the garage, but I did and here are the before and afters of it...It's actually even better now!

BEFORE

AFTER

And I can't forget to post an adorable picture of Addison from today. She is actually saying Cheese! in the picture!!

Is it the weekend yet?

2009-01-09T13:05:00.003-05:00

Friday at 4:00 can not come any faster! I am getting started on the painting as soon as I get home today and can not wait! We were planning for next weekend, but Grandma is able to keep Addison this weekend, so it works out better anyone because I'm the type of person that once I get an idea in my head, I have to carry it out as soon as possible. Last night after Addison went to grandma's, I started clearing out the old den to get ready for cleaning and tape. We have a lot of junk! It was all hidden in the closet! I also switched closets and got a huge bag of stuff to take into work. We have a "free garage sale" table in the bathroom. I have actually found cool things on it!! Pretty cleaver-huh? Addison is going to stay over at grandma's again tonight because we are supposed to get freezing ran and sleet tonight and tomorrow morning and I wouldn't dare drive in that!

Another thing I'm excited about is The Flat Belly Diet! I know, I don't need to lose weight, but I sure could eat healthier! I am at the library right now because my book finally came in-I have been on the waiting list. I always said before I had kids that I would never buy "kid food." Well, that backfired! Last week we had fish sticks. I would have never dreamed of buying fish sticks in the past! Jack and I both agreed that there was more breading than fish itself. So, now on I will buy plain fish and jazz it up with spices, etc. Also no more frozen fries--never ever bought those in the past either! I can easily cut up potatoes and bake them. There are some great recipes in the book, so I'm planning my grocery list around them. Gosh, forgot I have to squeeze grocery shopping and laundry into this horribly busy weekend. There's never enough time.

I will be glad once the rooms are painted and Addison is in her new quiet room. I know she will sleep so much better and since the room is set up a little different than the other, there is more room to put stuff. Can't wait to post pictures of the finished products! Wish me luck I can move furniture (actually Jack will bc of my back) prep and paint two rooms and then put everything back together by Saturday night. Did I hear you say I'm crazy? Well maybe, but have you ever seen me when I'm on a roll and can't wait to finish something to sit back and look at the finished product? Plus, with me painting and organizing the rooms it is one closer step to selling our house in hopefully 16 months (that is when our stupid ARM is up and we will need to refi anyway). What a better time to move to something larger? With a basement. And a pool. And a laundry room. And a master bath. And well, you get the idea.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-06T09:35:00.005-05:00

I know it is not January 1, but close enough!! We had a very nice New Year's Eve-Addison went to bed about 7:30 and Jack and I watched a movie. We were in bed before midnight, but did wake up because everyone on our street was putting off fireworks. On New Year's Day we went to Aunt JuJu's for our traditional dinner of pork and sauerkraut along with spaghetti bake. It was so yummy! I was lucky enough to be off work on Friday and got a lot of housework done.

Saturday I went back to Centerville to have my hair cut-it's short!! I will try to have Jack take some pictures in the next couple of days to post. We also went to our neighbor's house on Saturday evening so that Addison could play with Carson. He got a John Deer tractor for Christmas so they played on that and danced. Both of them cried when we had to leave.

Addison was 19 months old yesterday!! Now she's even closer to 2 years old. I can't believe I just typed that. Time flies by so quickly. She repeats EVERYTHING anyone says. She likes to do dishes and vacuum. Boy, they sure learn by example!!

I'm probably going to jinx myself with my long resolution list. I forgot to add that I'm not going to associate myself with people who are fake and surround my family with people who are genuine and honestly care about friendship. It is more than important to me to put Addison first and a lot of people without children do not understand that (JackieD understands though)! I want 2009 to be the year of family, friendship, and fun! Fun meaning I'm finally going to get out and do stuff like the zoo, museum, camping, Lake Erie, boating/jet skiing, gardening, and maybe taking Zippy Angel to learn some agility tricks. I would love her to learn how to do flips and jumps like the dogs on TV! Hehe!

Jack and I are also working on our home this year. Before Addison is 5 (which is only in 3 years!) we need to move to a different school district, so we are going to start doing some upgrades. Eventhough we bought our house new, the builder used all contractor grade stuff and it sucks! We have started with buying matching furniture for the living room (our bedroom is next). We have NEVER had any furniture that has matched, let alone really had anything new (it was all hand me downs). We are also switching Addison's room with the den so that it is quieter in her room. I found the most amazing color of paint for her room at Home Depot this week on their $5 "OOPS" rack! I now I have to find a neutral color to cover the pepto pink in her current room, which will be the new guest room. Jack is building a headboard for the bed and I'm thinking about sewing some new curtains...

We are hoping to paint/move rooms next weekend, which is the long Martin Luther King holiday. We have to take apart the desk and Addion's crib, which will be a pain, but worth it in the end. I love to paint! I will take before and afters. Jack's bathroom is next...I also cleaned "my" garage last weekend ("my" garage is the one attached to the house, "Jack's" garage is the detached one he built). I took a before pic, but haven't totally finished, so when I do, I will take an "after" and post it.

Let's see, what else? I'm back to work and love the routine. I got a new police scanner in my office and it is hilarious to listen to the dispatch. People call the police for the stupidest stuff! Yesterday someone poured water on another person's Playstation so they called the police and had them dispatched!!

Sorry no pictures today...maybe later tonight.

Happy New Year's Eve

2008-12-31T06:38:00.005-05:00

Times sure have changed--I guess when you are 29 and 30 with an 18 month old, no one wants to hang out with you on New Year's Eve! Just kidding--we were invited to Katie's in Columbus but decided it would be too hard with Addison. Hope you guys all have fun up there!! Addison is sick again, came home from daycare yesterday with a 100 degree fever. She also has a horrible cough. Last night I remembered the vick's vapor rub trick and slathered it on her feet and put thick socks on. I think she might have coughed once. It really works!! Jack is with her today so hopefully she feels better for him.

I unfortunately had to work this week, but only until 3:00 today. Monday I decided to go back to the weight lifting class I had been doing the year prior to surgery. It's amazing how much muscle you lose in such a short time (maybe 3 months). My back felt fine--I was only using 5 pound weights and I abstained from the jumping jacks and moves like that. I could hardly walk for a day after that because I was so sore, but it is a good feeling. I'm going back on Friday morning.

Working out makes me think of New Year's Resolutions, although I'm not putting "working out" on my list because that is a given and everyone should do that anyway. I love making lists, I guess that's the organizer in me. So I guess that brings me to my list of goals for 2009. I'll first start of with a quote I found in a motivational quote book I got for Christmas.

"Always be a first rate version of yourself, instead of a second rate version of somebody else"

-Judy Garland

That is the preface of 2009--being an original person. I'm tired of imitations and people trying to "out do" each other with what they have, etc. I can not say I was never that person because everyone wants stuff they can't have/can't afford!! With the economy the way it is, I'm happy both Jack and I have good jobs and Addison is at a wonderful daycare part time. So here's my list:

1. Learn how to knit

2. Quit drinking pop (that does not include Red Bull or Monster!). And as I sit here writing this, I'm drinking my last Coke Zero

3. Be a better listener. If only Jack read my blog--he would say this should be at the top because he says I'm a horrible listener. And I am--I only hear maybe half of what he says!

4. Learn how to really use my camera. I'm lucky enough to have an awesome camera, I should really learn how to use the "artistic" side of it!

5. Find a Lutheran church similar to the one I grew up in. I tried Catholic, and it's just not the same!! I would like to baptize Addison.

6. Spend more quality time with Addison and take her to fun places on days off and weekends (Cinti Museum Center, Zoo, Aquarium, etc)

7. Budget to drop my hours from 40 to 35 at work (I'd work 7-2 M-F or 6:30-1:30). The timeframe for that is May 1.

8. And with less hours, I can cook dinner every night (healthy)

9. Find a "style" that works for me-hair and clothes. I feel I'm mismatched! I need a personal shopper! LOL! A lot of my clothes are from years ago (college) and I need something new for 2009--and not an imitation of somebody else!

So there are my 9 goals for 2009. I guess I should print that and put it in a visible place!

We will be spending time as a family tonight, I'm so excited! Hope I can stay up until midnight! We wish everyone happiness and health in 2009!!

Whew! Glad that's over!

2008-12-28T20:15:00.008-05:00

I can't believe I haven't posted anything in almost a week! Sorry! I'm so happy Christmas is over and this week we'll get through New Year's and everything will be back to "normal," whatever normal is. I said I would post my Lego carwash/Shell station and hospital I built last weekend, so here they are....

Christmas sure was a whirlwind of activity. It all started with my nice drive home from work on Tuesday. I was off work on Wednesday, so I was excited to get home and start cleaning and getting ready for Christmas Eve. I ran to Walmart on my lunch hour that day to get last minute things. I picked up Addison at daycare at 4pm, and right before I left work my friend said her husband called and told her the roads were solid ice. I quickly left, and he wasn't kidding. It was kinda ok getting Addison, but after that it was all downhill from there, no pun intended! The road I normally take to get home was closed-car in ditch and a tow truck was pulling it out. I turned around and got on SR 32 East towards the mall and I was going to go 275 instead of the hilly backroads I usually take. I sat on 32 for an hour (4:15-5:15). I'm so glad I went to the store at lunch because I had juice, cheese, and crackers in the car. We had that for dinner. Finally realizing 32 was closed, I decided to take the first exit and try yet another way home. Well, that was not a good idea. The exit was downhill and curved to the right, so my car slid sideways off the side of the exit into the grass. By this time (5:45) Addison was screaming for her paci and I couldn't find it. I called my boss to get someone's phone number that lived nearby because I was just going to drive to his house. I ended up being stuck off of the exit until 7:15 pm. Addison did fall asleep at 6, which was good (and I did have a flashlight and found her paci). A salt truck finally came down the exit about 6:45, but he was coming too fast and did a 180 and came down backwards and almost hit me. It took about 30 min for the ice to melt so that I could try and get back on the road. During this time, Jack's dear friend Mike, was on his way to get Addison and I. Anyway, I was finally able to drive down the exit and get back on 32. 32 and 275 were ok. I got off at the Milford exit about 7:30 and it was at a standstill. I took a backroad to SR 131 and that was also at a standstill. I decided I had to stay there since it was the only way home. During all of this my cell phone died. I'm probably the only person that doesn't own a car charger! I also didn't have my winter coat on and was in high heels! I am in the process of making an emergency car kit! Deerfield Road was the worst-almost as bad as the exit ramp. There were cars scattered in ditches all the way home--more SUVs and trucks than cars actually. I seriously drove 5 mph on Deerfield. I saw ambulances and firetrucks with these really cool spinning chains on their tires for traction. I need some of those! I finally pulled in my garage at 8:45, which is 4 hours and 45 minutes after I left work!! Of course Addison woke up right when we pulled in and was up for hours after that....

Christmas Eve was fun--the Wessel's came over and I made lasagna. Addison and I attempted to make a Paula Dean peppermint cake, but it was a flop and ended up in the trash. I'm sure I did something wrong. Addison got so many fun things including a vintage Radio Flyer fire truck, see below...

On Christmas Day we woke up and drove to Centerville for a brunch at my parent's house. My sister and Tony along with the Langers were all there. Addison again got more gifts than she knew what to do with!

After Addison's nap, we drove up to north Dayton to the Siebenthaler's for another round of gifts and dinner. Jackie had her mother's diamond rings made into necklaces for all the girls, including Addison. They are the most gorgeous necklaces and some of the diamonds are from the 1800s. What a special gift! I don't have pictures from that evening because I left my camera at my parent's house.

Friday morning we left for French Lick. Angie and Tony met us at our house and we all drove together. We stopped by cousin Kirstie's house to see her girls before we went to the hotel. Here are some fun pictures of that afternoon...(the first one is Addison in some of her new clothes before we left).

Friday night Jack, Tony, and Angie went back to the casino to lose money. I was so exhausted from the previous 2 days and the drive I stayed back and went to sleep with Addison at 7:30! The next day aunt Bobbie had a Christmas party at her house with all of the Deremiah's. Didn't really take a lot of pictures there except for my cousin Chad's cute little boy-Henry.

We got home about 7 on Saturday night and went straight to bed. Today Addison played catch up and took at 3 1/2 hour nap! My aunt Julie (aka JuJu) watched Zippy Angel for us while we went to Indiana and Addison and I picked her up tonight. Addison is staying the night at Pa'ma and Papaw's house tonight. She has a full day planned tomorrow! Back to work for me tomorrow--I enjoy routine!

Gingerbread House

2008-12-22T06:50:00.005-05:00

As I said in a previous post, Christmas always sneaks up on me!! Of course I had to work today and am freaking out about preparing for Christmas Eve dinner, cleaning the house, packing for French Lick, and still gift shopping. And did I already say I HATE shopping. Well, I like shopping for house stuff, but not clothes or gifts!! Anyway, I would have loved to do so much more for this year's Christmas. We never go to the Festival of Lights at the zoo--everytime we had planned to go it was either snowing, raining, or 5 degrees. And as I type this post, my weather bug on my computer is flashing 5 degrees. And that is not the windchill of something below zero. It was bitter cold this morning. Thank goodness Addison didn't have to go to daycare, although she does have her 18 month check up this morning that Jack will take her too. Back to Christmas-I didn't bake cookies or decorate like I wanted to. But I guess that comes with working full time and having a very energetic 18 month old. Yesterday I picked Jack up at Mike's house after he was helping him work on his truck and we went and bought two gift cards for family. The traffic was just horrible (we had to go to Loveland and Fields Ertel). I'm just glad Jack was with me because he could drop me off and I ran in and got the goods. It worked out well. And then I have today's and tomorrow's lunch hour to also do last minute shopping.

This weekend was really fun. Saturday afternoon I got my old Legos out for Addison. I know they are kinda small, but she knew exactly what to do with them. We built the car wash/Shell station and a couple of cars. I have pictures I will post later....

Sunday we built the hospital. I'm missing some pieces, but you'll get the idea. I couldn't build the ambulance because it was also missing too many pieces. I'm going to try and get some odds and ends pieces from craigslist or ebay. I remember what a fun hobby building legos is--and probably the reason why I began college as interior design/architecture student. And please don't ask why I didn't get my degree in that...I made some really bad decisions during my college years....

Addison went to the Wessel's on Saturday night to sleep over. Jack and I went on a date to Los Cabos for dinner. We had never been there before and really liked it. After that, we went to the Batavia HS basketball game. Jack's teacher friend is the assistant coach. His wife also went and took their two kids. They have a little girl Addison's age. I can't believe how late their kids stayed up! Addison was asleep before the game even started. While Addison was over at the Wessel's she built a gingerbread house.

How cute!! I have two nativities that Addison loves. She feeds the animals and carries baby Jesus around. I wrapped her gifts yesterday and put them under the tree...she tried to open them. They are wrapped in Pooh paper so of course she loved them! Well, I better get off to work....Jack is on Christmas break. Next year I plan to take these two weeks off to spend with Addison and Jack, as well as Spring Break. Maybe we can go somewhere warm!