T Minus 2 and Counting

Well, I'm counting down (have been for quite some time)! We leave Friday morning for the Outerbanks. I am so excited!! I am about 85% packed. I still have to make that dreaded trip to Wal-Mart to get all of the last minute stuff and a few groceries that we'll take with us. I have two major lists going on. Which is totally ironic because I am not a list maker, at all!! I usually make one to go to the grocery store, but half the time walk out the door without it. I just know what we need and get it. But, there's so much stuff I have to pack for four people staying away for 8 days! I am so ready for a vacation! I am glad to just get a way and relax! I can't wait to see the boys reactions to everything. It's a little bitter sweet for me..."B" will be starting preschool in the fall so I want to make every moment count this summer. I know it's only for 3 hours two days a week, but it also means we're starting a new chapter. He's growing up and before I know it, he'll be starting kindergarten. His vocabulary has enhanced and I just stop and look at him because we're carrying on full conversations. It's so funny to hear the stuff that comes out of his mouth. Anyway, I'm off to wash the dye out of my hair and then I can cross that off my list!

Time Flies

Holy Cow! I can not believe I haven't posted since last Saturday!! I honestly thought it was like Monday or Tuesday when I blogged last. Alisha from Stinkerpot Scraps emailed me to see if I was alright because I haven't blogged. This week has flown by!! I have been busy every night this week! Not sure doing what other than playing outside until dark. By the time I get all the toys from outside picked up, the kids inside, baths given, and putting them to bed, it's 10:30 and I have to check on my "farm". Then before I know it, "M's" home and we chat a while and then go to bed. I get up and do it all over again. "M" and I went on a longer ride this week. I am so hooked to riding!! I LOVE it!! (this was only my second time on a bike, ever!) We went on about a 2 1/2 hour ride. Surprisingly enough, my butt wasn't numb and I could have went on for a few more hours. I took the boys to the park the other day and met several of our friends there. It was a blast but so freakin' hot! I'm also starting to put things together for the beach. We leave next Friday morning for the Outerbanks. I am so excited! We weren't able to go last year so I'm very excited to see the kids reactions. "B" hasn't been since he was 18 months maybe and "C" has never been. Both totally love the water and all "B' talks about is playing in the sand and building the biggest sand castles ever! Well, that's about all that's going on here...I hope you guys have a safe and happy Memorial Day weekend!

Oh yeah, speaking of Memorial Day...I have to tell you this story real quick. Run for the Wall went through on Thursday. (incase you don't know what that is, it's a group of bikers, some, maybe most are war veterans, that start out in California and ride to the Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C. to remember those who have fallen for our country) The group always spends a night here (not my house haha) and then proceeds to their next stop. I wanted to take the boys to watch so I had one of "M's" co-workers call me to let me know when they were close to leaving. I was told at 8:30am that they were heading out in a couple hours (2 mind you!) About a half an hour later I'm just stepping out of the shower when I get the call that they are leaving, right now! I throw on some clothes and grab the boys and out the door we go. (i'm about 5 min from the interstate entrance) As I'm getting out of the car, I notice that I have no shoes on!! I'm like great, but I'm already here and I'm going on to watch. I get the boys (who are also shoeless) and we go to the sidewalk to watch. Thank goodness the only other person within a close distance was someone that I knew. I'm standing there with wet hair, no shoes, a shoeless kid on my hip, and another barefoot child standing in front of me. (I want absolutely no WV jokes left as a comment LOL - it's people like me who usually end up on tv giving us our bad wrap LOL) But, I was there for the right reasons and introducing a part of history to my kids. There were probably about 300 Veterans who were riding. Everyone was waving and beeping their horns. Most had small American flags mounted to their bikes and it was truly a sight to see. (which you won't get to from me, because I had no camera) The boys totally loved it even though neither really got what it was all about. So, to all of you who may be a Veteran, lost one, or know one, we THANK YOU!!

**This Memorial Day is my first without my grandfather who passed away in August, '08. He was a WWII Veteran. I wish that he was here to have seen the Ride with my boys. We Love You and Miss You...R.I.P. Paw-Paw. I can't wait until I see you again!!**

And the winner is....

Danny. I finally watched the season finale of Hell's Kitchen. I have to admit that I originally wanted Danny to win but after seeing the team he picked, I like Paula's better, minus Lacy. I can't even imagine trying to cook under all of that pressure. I get so wrapped up in these shows lol. I hated Danny's dining room...nothing matched and it was a mix of decor. Paula definitely had the better one! I think I'm all caught up the finales for now. I have to add that I am so glad Coach got the boot off of Survivor Thursday evening. I think that's the next big show that has to come to an end. Also, I finally saw when Gene Simmon's Family Jewels comes back on for another season. It will start up Sunday, June 7th at 9pm. I love this show!! I'm coming to realize that I have several that I love!! Oh yeah, I caught another run of The Biggest Loser finale and was able to see Kristin. I think she looks so good but I don't care for the platinum blonde hair that she went with. I'm off to bed now...well, I have to check on my farm (FarmTown) real quick and then I'm headed there. I have to get my rest...we're goin' Harley ridin' tomorrow....love it!! Goodnight!

So....

So....

what did you guys think of the season finale of Grey's?? (For those of you who missed it, I included a video clip from it...I have watched it about 10 times already!) I can't believe it! I had heard that Izzy was leaving the show, but during the last 20 minutes, I actually thought they had changed their minds and she was staying! I was so excited...and then she died. I also thought the guy that was hit by the bus at the end was trying to spell out that the girl pushed him and had tried killing him. Boy was I wrong!! I had no idea that was George, nor was I expecting that to be him. I just figured he enlisted and wasn't coming back. I did get a little confused at the end though when Izzy was all dressed up in the elevator and there was the guy in the uniform. I'm assuming that was George in his army uniform...but were they seeing each other after they had died?? Wasn't sure about all of that. Anyways, all I know is I can't wait to see the first episode of the next season! Is Lexie and Dr. McSteamy (Sloan) going to break up or move in together?? I can't stand it...I have to know what will happen!!

By the way, Hell's Kitchen Finale is on Reality TV tomorrow (Saturday) at 9pm. So I will get to see if Paula or Danny wins...please, please don't tell me if you already know!!

Catching Up

Wow, have I been busy this week! We are flipping a house and for the last 3 days we've been up there working and when I get home, I'm still all about getting my walk in. I'm walking 2-3 miles a day and I am down 16lbs....yeah!! "B's" finally over the pink eye and thank goodness "C" never caught it, or the rest of us for that matter! I watched the last hour of The Biggest Loser finale and was so disappointed that Helen won. I so did not like her! I was rooting for Kristen until she got voted off and I missed seeing what she looked like. (I hope to catch it on Reality TV in the next few nights) I was actually hoping Mike would pull through, just because Tara had won most of the challenges and never fell below the yellow line. That kid really worked hard and I'm hoping will continue to do so and keep the weight off. (Isn't it funny how wrapped up we get in these shows lol) Since I've missed posting the last few days, I'm skipping the recipe and Would You Wednesday until next week. I promise I'll do better! I'm coming up on my 100th post. Not sure yet what I'm gonna do about that, maybe a giveaway or something. I'm trying to get things cleaned up around here and I'm slowly starting to dig out all of the summer and beach stuff. Oh yeah, before I forget to tell ya, I finally took a ride on our new Harley! I'm totally hooked and absolutely love it! I can't wait for it to finally stop raining so we can get back out. Well, I'm finished for now so I can go walk. I'm starting earlier tonight so I can get everything done and the kids in bed before Survivor and the Season Finale of Grey's Anatomy starts. I am very excited to see how they end the season!! I'm going to miss the season finale of Hell's Kitchen, but I will make that up on Reality TV tomorrow or the next day. I'm pulling for Danny, but please don't comment and tell me who wins. I know this post is all over the place but that's how I roll. I told ya I've been a busy girl this week! I almost forgot (again)...I've been given another award. BrnEyedGal from Brown Eyed Gal A Little of This...A Lot of That awarded me with the One Lovely Blog Award. So a big Thank you to her!! Head on over to check out her blog and tell her I sent ya!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!

Happy Mother's Day to all of you! I hope you have a great day and enjoy it to the fullest with your family! Here's to you...

Before I was a Mom, I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby. I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous. I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom, I had never been puked on. Pooped on. Chewed on. Peed on. I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts. I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom, I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests. Or give shots. I never looked into teary eyes and cried. I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin. I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom, I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put her down. I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt. I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much. I never knew that I could love someone so much. I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom, I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body. I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby. I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child. I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom, I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay. I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache, the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom. I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much, before I was a Mom .

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!

Pink Eye

Yep, that's the latest thing going on in our house. I stopped at Kroger's Thursday evening to pick a few groceries. They have a car attached to some of the buggies for the kids to ride in. I absolutely hate these things because I know they are never cleaned. Against my better judgement, I let "B" ride in it. I can usually come up with an excuse for him not to get in it, but this time there were like 4 of these waiting as soon as we walked in the door. As soon as we got back to the car, I gave him a squirt of hand sanitizer, like I always do whenever we leave a public place. Well, yesterday morning his bottom eyelid starting turning red and becoming swollen. I thought he bumped it somewhere because it just came up all at once. By mid afternoon, his eye ball was bloodshot and his top eyelid was starting to swell as well. I was trying to hold him off until this morning in case it was allergies. At around 5:30 yesterday evening, he was really starting to rub it and telling me it was itching and hurting. So I ran him to Urgent Care and sure enough, he has pink eye. This is our first case ever of it and I'm sure it won't be the last. The doc gave us antibiotic eye drops and told us we were good to go after 24 hours. So in the meantime, I am having to try and keep him from touching "C" and wipe everything off constantly so none of the rest of us get it. I am praying no one else gets that, especially with tomorrow being Mother's Day!

I've Been Tagged....

I have now been tagged twice so I figure that I better get on it before I get it again...Both tags were similar so I combined them so I had to only do it once. Candice from A Day in the Life of a Mom with Spirited Children tagged me on Tuesday and Shelley from I'm Still Standing

got me today.

Okay so here are the rules of this whole blogger tag game...

1) Mention the person who tagged you and be sure to link to them (see above)

2) Post your list of 8's

3) Tag 8 bloggers and don't forget to tell them!

8 of My Favorite Foods

1. Grilled Chicken

2. Pizza

3. Cheeseburger

4. Steak - medium well

5. Mexican

6. Seafood

7. Strawberries

8. Vanilla soft serve ice cream

8 Things I'm Looking Forward To

1. Going to the beach (in 3 weeks)

2. Losing Weight and keeping it off!

3. Summertime with my boys

4. "B" starting preschool in the fall

5. Going to walk 3 miles as soon as I'm done with this

6. Going to Heaven and seeing my grandpa again!!

7. Growing old with "M"

8. Watching my kids grow up

8 Things I Did Yesterday

1. Took both boys to Kindermusik

2. Bought mother's day presents

3. Washed clothes

4. Ran the vaccum

5. Paid Bills - yuck!

6. Picked up "M's" uniform from the cleaners

7. Picked up Rx's from pharmacy

8. Watched Cougar

8 Things I Want to do Before I Die

1. Go to Italy

2. Sky Dive

3. Go to the Kentucky Derby

4. Get my Nursing Degree

5. Become Financially Stable

6. Take my kids to Disney World

7. Visit every state in the US

8. See my kids have grandkids

8 Shows I Watch

1. Grey's Anatomy

2. Private Practice

3. Biggest Loser

4. Survivor

5. Wife Swap

6. SuperNanny

7. Lie to Me

8. Jon & Kate Plus 8/Little People Big World - same night so I added them both lol

8 Ways in Which I Kill Time

1. Run the vaccum

2. Play FarmTown on Facebook

3. Facebook

4. Check E-mail

5. Blog

6. Fold Laundry

7. Play outside

8. Cook/Bake

8 Lucky Girls Getting Tagged!!!!

1. Alisha from Late Night Rantings of a Toddler Mom

2. Mandy from Mommy Cracked

3. Sarah from Mom Tips and Notes from the ZooKeeper

4. Alicia from Heaven Bound

5. Stephanie from A Pocket Full of Buttons

6. BrnEyedGal from Brown Eyed Gal

7. Moe from Momma Moe's Blog

and last but not least...

8. Jo from Under the Influence

Would you rather...

be impervious to the red-eye phenomenon in photographs?
or
have expert precision when straw-puncturing Capri Sun pouches?

Girls Night Out...

...FINALLY!!! I have never been so excited to leave my kids and enjoy a few hours to myself than I am today. I have cleaned up more messes and broke up more fights in the last two hours than I have ever. I keep forgetting to check to see if it's a full moon. My kids are nuts today and I'm almost there. I think the only thing saving me, is knowing they're getting dropped off at maw-maw's in about an hour. While I'm out kicking back at one of the local Japanese restaurants with some girl friends, "M" will be making a commercial. It's almost prom time so one of the area high schools is setting up a "mock" car accident. Health Net will be there taking off as if they were airlifting an accident victim out, as well as the fire dept and some ambulances. It's all to aid against drunk driving. (M is a cop for those of you who don't know) So we have a pretty interesting evening ahead of us. Tomorrow we have a funeral to attend. A retired law officer passed away so we'll be going to that.

I know I forgot to post a recipe yesterday, like I said I was going to come back to do, but just didn't get back to it. So I'm skipping it this week. I was tagged today, so when I get back this evening, I plan on posting that. I'm off to get ready for dinner...if my kids don't destroy the house first!

Farm Town

Sorry I have been neglecting my blogging duties, but I feel that I have a very good excuse. I'm not sure if any of you have played Farm Town on Facebook...but I am totally hooked to this game. I can literally click on my farm for a second and the next thing I know, it's an hour later! I get so wrapped up in it. I'm addicted to harvesting AND I can do it and make money! What more can I ask for. I have only owned a farm for 3 days and I already have a small house, a few animals, fencing, trees, and lots of crops! I worked at someone else's farm last night that took me over 30 min to get everything (I had already been on for an hour). My eyes were killing me by the time I was done so I finally had to turn it off! For those of you on facebook, you have to check this out!!

Well, I have to go now so I can get "C" changed because he just stood here and pooped. I have laundry yelling my name and breakfast dishes that need cleaned up. I'll be back later with Monday's recipe.

PS - I am down 12lbs!! We leave in a few weeks for the beach so I'm very excited about reaching my pre-beach goal (which was 20lbs).