Christmas Update and Year Wrap Up!

It’s time for another update… I know that it’s almost a new year but that’s okay b/c it does not hear yet… So it’s time for a Christmas Recap and a Year round up….

Christmas has come and gone and it was a lot of fun at the Wagner Zoo! We didn’t travel for much which was kind of nice but we were able to see the family and the girls were able to have a Christmas morning at home which was really nice. I was kind of afraid we wouldn’t have that for the girls but we did.

The girls were gifted LOTS of presents from Santa. He felt the girls were extra good this year, which is kind of strange the short time leading up to Christmas Lehna developed the WORST attitude and I kept having to threaten to call Santa, but maybe she figured that Santa had already gotten her toys ready so it didn’t matter what she did, who knows. But Maya’s large present this year was a Lovin Family doll house complete with all the rooms except the parent’s bedroom and Santa couldn’t find it ANYWHERE! So that is the only room she didn’t have. But she had a van and several other “extra” toys to play with it… And she really likes it we all were playing it and she just laughed and played it was fun. Lehna got a lot of “girly” things this year, things like make up and jewelry she really wanted that kind of stuff and that’s what she got. She seems to really enjoy girlie stuff so Santa got her a bunch of that kind of thing. She seems pretty happy with all of her gifts.

After our Christmas Morning I made breakfast and we headed down to Indiana for Dinner at Grandma’s. It was actually a pretty easy trip I wasn’t sure what traffic was going to be like and it was actually good traveling. We went down and saw the family and that was fun. We were even able to bring home the victory of Trivia Pursuit. So in your face on that! Just kidding of course. We didn’t do any family pictures though so that was kind of strange, but we did play the family gift game and Tait and I brought home so cool Purdue clothing! I was excited b/c they don’t sell anything Purdue up here and I didn’t want to order any online b/c then it was SUPER expensive to go that route. After dinner we went to Marcus and Jackie’s where the girls got to see Evan and Zachary and they treated very nice to lunch and breakfast. The girls really had a good time playing with their cousins. And I had a good time hanging out with my Brothers and sisters.

The next morning we headed to Williamsport to see Tait’s side of the family. I’m glad that they have their get together the day after b/c that makes it easier on us to be able to see everyone. So we spent some time there and after dinner we headed back to Wisconsin. The roads were CRAZY coming back right around Williamsport but as soon as we hit the interstate the roads were great. The trip back was fine.

The factory that we are working at has been laying off employees b/c the “busy” season is now over, which kind of sucks for us b/c now I am kind of over staffed. But we are trying to come up with things to keep us busy.

So now a year in review.

Well this year has come and gone so quickly. We have made some major changes and I have to say so far the changes have been good. We decided to have a fresh start and decided to move to Wisconsin to kind of start over. Tait took a job for the state of WI and after 6 months he decided it wasn’t the job for him and switched to a new job. He loves his new job and it doesn’t have commute so it’s a plus for him and our wallets. The girls and I moved up here in April and I was unemployed for a couple of months. I enjoyed being a stay at home mom but really wanted to find a job doing something so I could feel like I was contributing to our financial needs. Soon something fell into line for me and I was able to get a job a new an exciting challenge. I really enjoy what I do I like being the leader so it’s fun.

We have moved twice since moving to WI and I like our second house the best it’s smaller but it “fits” better for us the neighbor is nice and there is a park just down the street. We have new callings in our church and as or right now we are doing it, but wish we could have something else. We are also one more step closer to getting to the temple which is something we have been working as a couple for the past several months. I know that when we FINALLY get there it will be well worth all the effort.

The girls have really grown this year. Lehna still asks to go back to her “old” house in Indiana but I really don’t think she remembers a lot about it. I think when we move it makes her anxious I was moving some stuff around in there room the other day and she asked me if we were moving and after I told her no the worried looked left her face. I guess too many changes for a 4 year old is too too many. Maya still is my baby even though she is getting so big. She is going through another growth spurt so she is starting to lose her baby fat around her tummy. She still refuses to be potty trained doesn’t want anything to do with it and still takes a Pacifier but she is going to lose it next month. She can’t be three and have a pass I won’t allow it. So I think it will be harder to break for Maya than it was Lehna b/c Lehna wasn’t taking it at daycare where Maya has hers ALL THE TIME!

Lehna loves preschool she is making a lot of friends and seems to have fun going every Tuesday and Thursday she doesn’t like it when the handicapped children come in after swimming though she still gets really anxious and starts to scramble for the teacher. I guess after having ONE kid growl at her has really turned her off. She is getting so big that some times I have to remind myself she IS only four so I have to let some things go when she’s being a BRAT! But hopefully this next year will bring some more positive things and the girls will continue to be happy. I know that after getting sealed in the temple I will feel better about my relationship with Heavenly father and the relationship I have with my husband; we just have to keep everything into perspective.

So that was 2009 so let’s press on into 2010 and hope for fun things to happen!

My poor Blog :(

How I have not updated you in so long... it feels sad :( Well if it had feelings maybe it would feel sad. I am updating this like ONCE month... which from the side you can SEE that is more than SOME of my family members. I know I'm just giving you crap this update.

Well things are crazy at work right now. We are in the SWING of the 4th quarter and let me tell you it's CRAZY. Today we got the best compliment... As a company the 2nd shift start up is HORRIBLE... mainly b/c of the supervisors... but let's put the blame on the right place right... it's surely the staffing companies right? You know we don't have this issue on 1st or 3rd but OBVIOUSLY it's the staffing companies... so they asked the staffign companies to help with "start up" Well it's annoying and kind of a pain the the butt but we have been complying with the supervisors and managers request to have us out on the floor placing... So we have been. TODAY we had the Director of Production tell us that we had by far the BEST staffing company for start up prospective and he really appericates all of our hard work getting our associates to the right areas and helping getting the start up going easier... He said that he is trying to get the other staffing company up to meet our performance how about THAT! YEAH POINT ONE FOR THE GOOD GUYS! I'm very excited about this... I told my staff that I'm going to frame the email and we can read it everything we get yelled at for things we can't control... so YEAH! So that is good can't wait to tell the VP tomorrow! Of course we have to remember this tomorrow when we are getting out butts handed to us b/c of our attendance... LOL dumb snow!

So here's what is happening around here... work and work and work some more but after and before we have been BUSY around here aside from work. Tait and I joined the Rex plex it's a HUGE fitness center/ activity center. They have a kick butt swiming pool complete with water slide and lazy river... AND ICE SKATING... how about that! And it saves us money for Lehna's preschool it was a crime NOT to join. We have tried the pool twice and we are planning on going ice skating VERY soon. See Tait and I have a bet... we have a competition rather going, on who can lose the most weight, who ever wins gets to pick the place where we go on our second honeymoon... so the gym will help us accomplish this well that is the plan anyways... I want to get another 30 lbs off, I'm so excited that I have that part off but I still have so much more to loose it's INSANE! But it has to come off... has to has to has too... I want to look AWSOME in a bathing suit... well... at least passable... LOL I want to go somewhere hot and warm for our second honeymoon like Cancun or Cozemell or something cool like that..,. Tait says he hasn't decided where he wants to go... but I don't want to take a chance... LOL so I have to WIN!

The girls are doing so well. WE have so far missed the flu season, I think it's b/c Lehna only goes to preschool 1/2 days on Tuesday and Thursday so there isn't any time to get anything... but let's hope we miss the whole thing... THAT would be great.

Maya is hilarious I have to tell you. She is so busy and can play so well by herself. She also is a CHATTER box she will start talking to you about crazy things over and over and look and you and go "right mommy" and I just go "hum yep" and she'll go "see mommy says yes" too funny. She has also learned a few bad words too... (God Dang it) is a familar phrase and (Oh shoot) are also two of her favorite phrases I swear she picks it up from Seasme Street... dang big bird... okay so that may not be true... LOL

Lehna tells EVERYTHING she knows to every body the lady next door she knows everything about everybody and she's a little pushy well Lehna was telling her all about Helen and her knee surgery and how we moved from Indiana, I mean the kid didn't shut up about all the things she was telling about... so keep that in mind if you ahve a secret don't TELL HER!

Funny story about Maya... Yesterday we had the plumber come over b/c we had a leak by the furnace... Maya grabbed onto the Plumbers leg and told him that she was Maya and it was her birthday and wanted to know if he wanted to come and have cup cakes... LOL the plumber just kind of laughed and talked back to her. Helen said she kept trying to get her upstairs and out of the basement. Helen said at one point the guy asked if there was a small pail he could use to catch the water and Helen gave him something and he said he thought he had something in his truck... and he went out and go it... then Maya asked Helen for the same bowl that Helen had just suggested to him and Maya then took it to the guy and goes "here you go" LOL the guy laughed and goes "thank you" LOL my kids... LOL crazy.

Well we are NOT finished christmas shopping... we started yesterday but we are probably going to do a lot this weekend. We got a few of the "major" things on line this year... that was a good way to do it... we just have to finish Lehna she is kind of hard this year... but I think it's b/c I haven't really looked for her yet. Maya is done and she was EASY this year... I need to find christmas tree ornaments but I'm sure by now all the good ones are gone... so we'll see what I find this weekend. I wish there was an actual "mall" around here... we have an outlet but you have to wonder outside and it's just not the same thing... so it should be interesting to get everything done... they have a matel store... we are going to check it out on Saturday... I'm not sure what to expect but I'm sure I'll be able to finish Lehna up. I still also have Tait to buy for and he is of course super hard to by for. He needed a pair of tennis shoes so yesterday I got him a pair then he came home with a pair of freakign shoes... LOL oh well so now he has two pairs.

Well that is the exciting times of us... pretty gripping isn't it? Oh well that's life sometimes... you know life is going well for us right now. I give credit to Heavenly Father (not to be too churchy) but seriously it has really changed some thoughts and feelings recently and I'm really grateful for it. It's making life easier to bear.

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

New Do

Here is my new Do... I'm a Red Head now... why not is what I say...

News and Information

Well as I was sitting at my computer with the girls we had two flocks of geese fly over us. And after Lehna let go of my arm I was able to point to them and say “they are geese flying south for the winter.” And then a brief lesson about why they do this… not long to be followed but a section of the same geese flying back over us in the wrong direction. So we watched and laughed and I have fully accepted that fall is HERE. I like Fall I like the in-between seasons, fall and spring are my favorite holidays I love the changing of the seasons and this is just one of those times that I enjoy. Around here it’s about 10 degrees colder then what I’m used to so as the kids across the street are decked in only sweat shirts I have my kiddos bundled up in heavy coats and gloves. I’m sure this time next year we will be ol’ pros and this kind of weather will just brush off of us. I’m kind of excited about winter in Wisconsin believe it or not, I like snow and I love wearing layers so a perfect combination. They were talking about snow flurries this weekend so that should be fun. 1st snow in October yeah!

Work has been kind of slow believe it or not. We had two weeks in September that I thought I was going to lose it but it has been much better since then. The girls have really taken to spending more time with Tait, and honestly it has been nice b/c when I come home they aren’t like swarming bumble bees. I think that I have my crew trained now to where I feel really good about leaving them alone. I still feel like I should be around but I am starting to leave earlier now and working more of a 42 hour week instead of a 55 hour week so that’s progress. We are supposed to get busy again in a couple of weeks so I’m just kind of enjoying the “down” and then hopefully we’ll be ready for the up again. I HOPE.
I have made some changes to myself. I decided to continue to eat smarter and since I spend most of my time at work my snacking has been greatly reduced to nothing and I have actually lost more weight. I’m at my smallest point so that’s a positive. I still have about 60 lbs before I hit my target but that’s better than 85 so I’m happy with that. I just can’t’ mess it up when the freaking holidays come around. I have also gone with a brand new hair style. I have always wanted to die my hair and I did. I picked a red copper and it really looks nice on my, I have a short angle do that takes no work in the morning and it looks super cute.
A couple of changes around here. Our house that we have been living at has sold. So in a couple of weeks we will be moving. The idea of moving doesn’t really appeal at ALL to me I might add but we have a house and we will be moving in two weekends and I’m getting excited about having a house that WON’T have showings. It’s a smaller house we have really been blessed to live in this house but at the same time I know that it’s a blessing to the home owners to see it being sold. We found a house in Kenosha and will be moving there. I’m kind of excited about moving to Kenosha actually b/c in Kenosha they have PreK so Lehna will be able to go to school. We have her enrolled in preschool right now but I really enjoy the fact that soon I won’t have to pay a weekly charge for Preschool instead it will be free YEAH! The school she’ll be attending is right down the street so I’m even more excited about that.
Some more exciting news is Tait and I am working towards our endowments so our family can be sealed for all eternity. It has been something that I have always wanted for my family and with this year being such a horrible challenge I have really seen what amazing strengths I see in my marriage and family and I know that we are am making the right choice for our family. I don’t have a date yet but one will soon follow.
So with that, that’s what is happening in our life right now. Trying to get ready for the big move, Christmas is right around the corner, and enjoying me. Who could ask for anything more

Another Week Under the Bridge

Well Just sitting a work watching the clock slowly tick away to 5 p.m. I was nice to my employees today I let them leave early and I stuck around to hand out the remaining checks... such an exciting life I lead. I told my employees to enjoy it now b/c in a couple of weeks... we all will be working LONG LONG hours... (sigh)

Work has started to feel like it's getting back under control of course this is just the honeymoon period and it's going to pick up with such speed it's not even going to be funny. I'm really enjoying my new position when I have a chance to actaully sit for 5 minutes. It's really been fun hiring people and getting them in the positions that I need them to be so I can Manager better.

Life outside of work it going okay. Lehna and Maya have really enjoyed spending time with Helen during the day. I don't know how much Helen enjoys it but hopefully it's something she IS enjoying.

I feel like there are times tha tI don't even see the kids or Tait or anyone. Even just logging onto facebook is crazy. So I went a bought a few games for my Iphone so I could at least "look" like I'm working when actaully I'm playing scrable... LOL I love technology. (well most of the time)

This weekend we of course have big plans. I have a feeling it's going to be a weekend I wish we would have just sat around... but who has time right? We are going to go down to Purdue to watch the football game. We are bringing the kidd0s and we got ourselves a hotel with an indoor pool and we are going to go to the game, and swim... then come back on Sunday morning. I am sure traffic will be horrible around Chicago and I hope that the girls are in "okay" moods for the game but we are going to be getting them up early early Saturday morning to head down... so it's anyones guess how the day will turn out.

Then on Sunday we are driving home and then just relaxing... we aren't going to do anythign fancy or exciting just relaxing. I can't wait. Is that sad? I just want a weekend where I don't have to think about work and just lay around and do nothing... it's sad... I feel so slouthish. But I know the storm IS coming at work and I'm trying to get as much time and relaxing that I can so come November when I'm ready to scream b/c people at work are misbehaving that I can just say "only one more month" that is why I need to relax this weekend... to stock up.

I wish that I had more exciting things to say besides work stuff... but that's all that's happening right now... It's seriously work work and more work... fun time fun times.

Enjoy the your weekend!

Pulse Check... Okay good.

Well another month has gone by and I have totally disapeared from the Internet world... some may say what happened... well I can give you a four letter word for my explaintion as to why and it is W O R K. Yep that's right it's work... I have been working like a slave driver at work getting my staff at the factory up and good and also getting our new hires for the factory all on the same page. I have been doing 10-12 hour days for the last 9 weeks... last week was my first real 8-5 kind of week and let me tell you I'm exhausted. I have been totally ignoring my children and bouncing around at work like a crazy person... it's been horrible... but like I mentioned before things are getting easier. But this is only short term let me tell you in the next couple of weeks we will be up to 3 shifts and probably going 24-7 at the factory... so longer days are coming (sigh) yeah! I know that since we have a process for all of our staff and for the associates it has been so much easier... so this is life right now... work... work and more work.

Last month we had a visit from Jackie and Marcus with their two kiddos. We actaully met them up in Hartford to visit mom and Terry and we brought our kiddos and went to this cool wildlife tour. It was awsome fun for the kids. We rode in a huge golf cart and got to see deer and buffalo up close and personal. I think the girls had a great time. It was to cold for swimming but they did fly kites and that was fun to watch from the porch.

Tait had a birthday and we didn't do anything too exciting. I made him his favorite meal and had chinese and we had jello cake... this was my first attempt at it and it was good well Tait really enjoyed it.

We haven't gone anywhere really with the kids I mean the last two weekends I had to do some audits on our files at work so I was working... so no time to do even that.

We did have a HUGE garage sale in our housing division and we got Lehna and Maya a battery operated Jeep she LOVES it... Lehna that is... Maya is totally content jsut riding along... we know it won't last long with her just "riding" but Lehna has asked allllll summer for one and the neighbor had one for 50 bucks so we couldn't pass the price... and we figured that in winter she wouldn't be able to ride it for winter time... so we went for it. It's really been a good "be good toy" or you we'll take it away as well. So it's been kind of busy but that's what' s going on... I hope that this weekend I have stuff to update...

Weekend fun

Okay so keeping up with this blog is really become a low priority for me, but another day another update... so enjoy.

So I wanted to update two weeks worth of information. We had such a great weekend a couple of weekends ago I didn't want it to get brushed aside... so let's start there.

Two weekends ago we were back in Indiana for the Brooks Family Reunion. It is always fun to go to this reunion they are always trying new things out and this time. They decided to have the a campout, me not being a huge camper was a little leery but I thought the girls would have a great time so I was willing to try it out. So we headed down for the weekend back to Indiana. We got rained out during the pool party. It is a super nice pool but had to get out a couple of times b/c of lighting but we stayed 'safely' under our metal umbrellas and tents trying to stay as dry as possible during the small passing lighting storm. After the storm passed the weather cleared and it was really nice. Maya was HILARIOUS in the pool. She was in her life jacket and a round doughnut and just laid back and relaxed. It was the craziest thing I ever saw. She didn't really want to "swim" just float... and she did. Lehna got REALLY brave and wanted her to float around in her life jacket and paddle around. This was much better then last year b/c last year she was totally afraid of the water.

After a couple of hours of swimming and eating we left to go to the campout and set up. The campout area was really big. There was HUGE pond that had fish in it and there were camp sites already set up by other family members that slept there the night before. So we set up our tent, it was quite a fast thing to put up, with assistance of course. Then we took the kids down to the lake so they could 'fish' and I use this term very loosely b/c first of all we didn't want to bait and hook their poles b/c we figured if we did that they would then have weapons... and boy am I glad there weren't hooks. So the girls just put their poles in the water and fished. Below are some of the pictures which was really fun.

When it started getting dark it was time to start the fire works. Tait's cousins truly out did themselves. There were sooooo many fireworks it was totally foggy with smoke after they were done. The show was amazing it was better then most city park fireworks. So that was really fun to watch. After the fire works little Maya was sooooo very tired. She went down in an instead when we laid down. Lehna kept repeating out loud that this was her favorite weekend ever. Which I thought was really fun. I know she had a good time. We slept pretty good. I woke up at 3 just b/c I was awake and moved Maya back away from the wet wall and when it was time to wake up to play in the golf scramble the girls were still fast asleep.

Tait and I went and played in a family golf scramble. It was awesome b/c our team won so that made it really fun. I hit some REALLY bad shots but then I hit some good shots too so it was fun. After we got done with the golf scramble we went back to the camp ground and picked up our area then headed off to the Kennedy Family reunion. This was a little smaller but it was fun too. We didn't stay too long b/c I was ready to get back on the road and back home.

So it was a lot of fun just hanging out with family and seeing everyone. Anytime there is food involved and family around I know I will have a good time. So the pictures say it all the girls really had a great time and so did I.

Lehna Posting with her Fishing pole
I haven't caught anything yet mom!
Big Smiles from Maya
I just love this picture of her.
Is this how you do it mom?
Deklyn giving her shot at fishing
Landyn gave a try too.
I'm busy Mom!

Big Smiles for Everyone!

Long time and no blog what's the world to do

So it’s almost been a month since my last update and you’d think with all that time we have been busy…. And that’s true we have been very busy. So that’s why there has been no time to blog… sorry.

So what’s going on what’s going on. Well we recently took a trip to Indianapolis for a short stay for Tait’s Aunt and Uncle they had a 50 year anniversary party. So we took the girls on Saturday and got a hotel room with a pool so they could come back and swim and enjoy themselves. The party was nice it was just a simple get together and then we went back to there house, family included of course, and had a food there. It was really good. The girls really enjoyed swimming and we had a good time just being around family.

Then we stayed home for the Fourth of July. It was a very simple weekend, but we have major moving coming up so we wanted to enjoy the quietness of this weekend. We cooked out on the grill got some fireworks and got ready for the show. We all had a four day weekend so that made it nice. The fireworks were horrible unfortunately. We got them at Wal-mart and they were all freaking smoke fireworks there wasn’t a fountain in the bunch, nor was there sparklers but I had bought some of them separately so at least we had some sort of “fire” for our fireworks. The girls I don’t think really cared Lehna kept saying how stinky the fireworks were but you know it was okay.

We even managed to play some golf. I shot a 107, not too bad for the first round of the year. Tait shot one over so he settled with a 73. We are getting geared up for the next couple of weekends.

So this weekend we are heading back to Indiana to Williamsport, for the much anticipated Golfing and Campout. I’m really looking forward to the campout and the golfing to be honest with you. We purchased a tent this past weekend so we are set for the night. We just need to get hotdogs and pop and we’ll be all set. I think this weekend will be a ton of fun. At least I hope it will be a ton of fun that is the idea anyway. The girls seem really excited to go so we are going to take off on Friday and go from there. There is also two family reunions going on at the same time. The campout/golf outing is part of the Brooks reunion (Helen’s side) then the Kennedy Reunion (Tim’s side) is the following day. I think both will be a ton of fun and anytime I can get together with family I’m a happy girl, you know. So it will be a lot of fun getting together and having a good time.

Then we will come back next weekend and rest again. Then we are going back down to Indiana the last full weekend in July for the FOP golf tournament, which that should be a TON of fun. I love that golf tournament, we play in it yearly and it’s just a ton of fun. So we are going back down for that. Then the last weekend in July, 1st weekend in August Marcus and Jackie are coming up to go to the airshow and we are going to have them one night then we are going to go up with them to visit mom for the weekend. So we are going to be go go go for the next couple of weeks but it will be SOOOOO much fun!!!

It’s crazy times at work right now, we are trying to get things set up with our office. I have all of my staff hired and I’m working on getting everything organized as far as permits and such. We will start everyone on Monday. So I’m excited about that, and I hope by then we can set up shop actually IN the office but due to permits and that kind of thing we are having problems getting everything set up and organized in time. It’s crazy how quickly this has come together, but I will be really excited once everyone is set up and ready to go. I just came back yesterday from flying to Lousiville for computer training on both Kronos and also our Humans system, so I think that it will be pretty quick once we get the system learned and set up. I have a feeling it’s going to be kind of muddy until we get familiar with the system. But luckily everyone seems to be happy about the change of vendor so this is a good thing.

So that’s where we are. The girls are loving the daycare arrangements we have right now. Helen is watching the girls on a daily basis. We are going to look for someone to watch them maybe 1-2 days a week just to give Helen a break when I’m up and going to 40 hours per week b/c I know that there will be tiems where Helen will want to have that break.

So that’s life in the fast lane right now. We are just grudging through all of this one day at a time.

The winds have changed

Okay this will be short b/c I have stuff to do… but today is my B day… I’m officially the same age as Grandma Sullivan! I think I’ll be like her and keep this age my new AGE. Yeah! So crazy news…

I was offered a job from another staffing company… and it’s a bigger position and I accepted it. I had been in dealings with the company I worked with in Lafayette but the salary they were offering was really horrible and honestly I didn’t think I could afford to live on it… so this position kind of hit all of a sudden (even though it’s been in the making for several months) so I accepted and STARTED on Wednesday. This is my second day and I’m making my way through it. I’m a little overwhelmed to say the least… but we have a plan and I’m working through it… I hope that once I get my internal staff is hired I’ll feel MUCH MUCH MUCH better then how I feel right now… b/c right now I have a LOT resting on my shoulders and I’m ready to share the responsibility with others.

Soooooo I’m back at work Helen has agreed to watch the girls during the day so that has been wonderful I really appreciate it! I think it will be good for them and hopefully in Fall I’ll get Lehna set up for preschool and I’ll take and drop off… or try at least…

My big birthday plans… I don’t think I have any… isn’t that sad  I was able to get a very awesome massage and my favorite author has a new book out so I got that from the kiddos and Tait. Tait talked about going out to dinner and I don’t know if that is happening or not… it’s hard to say…

The massage will be fab to use in the next couple of weeks before we get CRAZY at work. It sounds like between September and January I’m going to be SWAMPED… it will be awesome bonus time… but… scary… we’ll see what happens…

But that is what’s happening now… crazy times lie ahead… so hold onto your butts everyone b/c it’s going to be crazy!

The winds have changed

Okay this will be short b/c I have stuff to do… but today is my B day… I’m officially the same age as Grandma Sullivan! I think I’ll be like her and keep this age my new AGE. Yeah! So crazy news…

I was offered a job from another staffing company… and it’s a bigger position and I accepted it. I had been in dealings with the company I worked with in Lafayette but the salary they were offering was really horrible and honestly I didn’t think I could afford to live on it… so this position kind of hit all of a sudden (even though it’s been in the making for several months) so I accepted and STARTED on Wednesday. This is my second day and I’m making my way through it. I’m a little overwhelmed to say the least… but we have a plan and I’m working through it… I hope that once I get my internal staff is hired I’ll feel MUCH MUCH MUCH better then how I feel right now… b/c right now I have a LOT resting on my shoulders and I’m ready to share the responsibility with others.

Soooooo I’m back at work Helen has agreed to watch the girls during the day so that has been wonderful I really appreciate it! I think it will be good for them and hopefully in Fall I’ll get Lehna set up for preschool and I’ll take and drop off… or try at least…

My big birthday plans… I don’t think I have any… isn’t that sad  I was able to get a very awesome massage and my favorite author has a new book out so I got that from the kiddos and Tait. Tait talked about going out to dinner and I don’t know if that is happening or not… it’s hard to say…

The massage will be fab to use in the next couple of weeks before we get CRAZY at work. It sounds like between September and January I’m going to be SWAMPED… it will be awesome bonus time… but… scary… we’ll see what happens…

But that is what’s happening now… crazy times lie ahead… so hold onto your butts everyone b/c it’s going to be crazy!

Update in Mid-June

Isn't that crazy that it's mid June already! Mercy this year is flying by it's totally crazy. Well we had a pretty busy weekend so I wanted to blog about it.

We had guests! Marcus and Jackie came up to get the Dryer that we aren't using right now and there's was lost in the flood. That's the reason they came up but I cooked up a storm and invited Terry and Mom down for some much needed grandparent - grand kiddo time. I think that they really enjoyed seeing the kids.

I made a ham. It was pretty tasty I have to say myself there is just a little bit b/c we have been eating on it all weekend. And then the standard Mac N Cheese and Potato bake it was very tasty. I spend a lot of the morning in the kitchen on Saturday b/c I was asked to make 4 dozen cookies for Sunday so I had to whip those out on Saturday morning then make more for everyone to enjoy. So it was a good time.

Jackie took the her kiddos to the same place I got the girls' pictures taken and she got some REALLY cute shots of the kids. I saw them posted on Facebook this morning they aren't up on her blog yet... but I'm sure they will come.

It was nice having everyone over for lunch. M & J just came for the day and Mom and Terry went home after lunch but it was a lot of fun. So thanks for coming over! I hope you had a good time. I tired my best to convince them to spend the night... but they didn't :( But they are coming up the end of August so they will spend the night then... and I know the girls will LOVE spending time with them again.

On Sunday after church we had promised the girls we would take them to the beach if they were good at church and Lehna just about lost her beach trip but she put her good Lehna on and was MUCH better. So we headed to the beach. It was soooooo much fun. We brought a bunch of sand toys and buckets and stuff like that and I played in the sand I had a GREAT time... LOL Lehna and Tait pretty much stayed in the water, and Maya went back in forth between us it was fun. By the time we left Maya & Lehna were SOAKING wet and sandy from HEAD TO TOE... it was horrible... since Tait and I failed to bring... oh Towels OR another change of clothes... so we had water in water bottles and we rinsed them off and stripped Maya down to a new diaper and Lehna down to Tait's tee shirt and panties and headed home. I think next time I'll put the kids in the BATHING suits and bring towels (more water) and another change of clothes... b/c that was quite the adventure... once we got home it was straight into the shower... and they were COVERED in sand... it was a good time though at least I think they had a good time. They have already asked to go back and as long as the weather stays nice we will go again and again.

I love the temps in Wisconsin it is seriously 70 degrees it's WONDERFUL you know too cold to swim but warm enough to just enjoy the sun... it's fabulous... Indiana has been in the mid 80s so I'm glad that I'm not having to endure that... LOL f

I have been making lots of friends here and I'm really loving that. I was invited to chocolate party... that was fun... and I'm making lots of friends so I'm so excited about that. Oh and another cool thing is our house goes on the market THIS week! so hopefully it will be bought and that will be ONE less monkey on our back... I hope... we have been praying so hopefully it will all work out.

Okay that's all I got... I don't think we have many plans for this weekend... just enjoying the kiddos, feeding the missionaries, and relaxing... I love that.

Pictures of Girls

So last week when Tanna and her children here she took them to get there picture taken so I thought it would be nice to get the girls taken since it's been awhile... so I went and bought them simlair outfits at Marshalls and scheduled their appointments. Here are the pictures from it... they turned out really cute so that was good.

They smiled pretty well and I was pleased with the way they turned out. I'm posting them here and on facebook so enjoy. There is more on Facebook... just so you know... It's easier to format them on facebook then blogger...


Lehna


Maya

Maya & Lehna


Big Smile from Maya

Lehna in the big white chair

So You are like totally spoiled this week... two posts and pictures in ONE WEEK... sometimes I just amaze myself... LOL

A quick Pause Check and I can tell you I AM ALIVE.

I know I know I have been seriously lacking in attention to my blog. I think the major reason for this is… well laziness and secondly… hum… laziness. I know I know you can only do laziness for so long… and today I have decided to kick my lazy butt into shape.

I am still holding steady at my weight loss which is incredibly disappointing… that means that I will hit my year mark in two months and my total loss is only 35 lbs.… which is good but seriously I was hoping it would be closer to 70 lbs.… I think the little 3-month “break” this year didn’t help my cause. But I am back on the train. Tait and I have been walking every morning for an hour and when I get up I usually go down and do palates or ii fit for a little bit. But still the plateau is still there. I think my diet needs some work again. B/c that has been kind of bad… so that’s where it’s all coming from… (sigh) oh well at least I didn’t gain all the weight back… that’s something… right? I know I know I’m searching for victories.

So some news… News News News who’s got the news… oh okay. I did accept a job it doesn’t start until July so I’m enjoying my last month with the kiddos. Helen has agreed to watch the girls for the first 3 months and then after that they will go to daycare. I told Lehna when we moved that she wouldn’t have to go to school until I got a job then once I told her I got a job she has a look of HORROR on her face and asks very shyly “does that mean I have to go back to school?” and I told her that she doesn’t have to go for 3 months… I told her not until Turkey day… so she was happy about that. And I think it will be good for her… to get back into school and whatever daycare we sign her up in will hopefully have preschool to get her ready for kindergarten… it’s so sad to think that our kiddos are almost school age. It seems like they were babies just months ago…

We have settled into our homestead for now. We have been doing so much with our kiddos it’s really been a ton of fun. It’s amazing how much more there is to do here and how much we have been getting around. We have gone to visit Mom and Terry twice so far and we are planning a BIG trip with everyone at the end of the July which I CAN’T wait for it will be SOOOOO much fun.

We had some guests over last week. Tanna and her children, plus Camryan came for a 4-day visit. Tanna just had a baby two weeks ago and wanted to come up to visit us. She had a little BOY by the way. I was on pins and needles to find out what she was going to have… but a little boy. His name is Courtlen Brooks he’s a cutie pie and is really super long. But just a really sweet baby, he’s not too demanding so far anyways. The girls LOVED having everyone here and it was nice having the house busy.

News on church front I don’t remember if I blogged about this yet or not… but Tait and I were called as scout leaders in the cub scouts… we are called “den leaders” technically but it’s an interesting calling to say the least. At least both Tait and I get to work together and plan and get to interact with the kiddos… it’s crazy for me b/c I’m used to girls so having the boys is really different. They are a handful to say the least very active… we have the 8 & 9 year old group and I have to say that there is a MAJOR difference in behavior and ability between 8 & 9 that I have noticed so far it’s truly amazing… who would have thought a year would be so different… so we are doing our cub scout thing.

So we are pasted the settling in stage and now getting into our weekly routines. I really have enjoyed staying home with the girls. The job search has been going and I think I’ll like the position that I have accepted it’s a company I worked in in Lafayette so at least I know what the company does. So who knows we’ll give it a whirl and see what happens.

Well that’s life right now… we do something fun every weekend…? This past weekend we went to see up in the Movie Theater it was an incredibly SWEET movie… not what I expected but sweet. I cried… LOL I know silly but I did. The girls enjoyed the movie too… Maya fell asleep halfway through… but Lehna enjoyed it. Then we went to Chuckie Cheese Lehna didn’t mind going b/c the Mouse went away and she convince herself that the mouse was “trapped” and couldn’t get her… I tired to explain to her that the “mouse” she was seeing was just the electronic moving mouse but she didn’t understand and she relaxed after she thought he was trapped so I didn’t push the envelope any b/c I didn’t want to have to sit and have her cry the entire time.

But anyways that’s life right now… I totally wish I could get pictures off my camera b/c it would be a lot more enjoyable… but oh well…

Greetings from Wisconsin

Well it's time for another update. We are offically here in Wisconsin. I have to say a big THANK YOU to all the family members and church members that helped us move out then in our new house. We totally appericated it! We moved out of the house in 1 1/2 hours so YEAH then unloading only took about the same as well. It was really cool. The new house has stairs so the novelty to the girls was REALLY REALLY annoying but it everyday they go up and down them less and less so that is good.

We couldn't get like 8 things in the truck and van so we are going back this weekend to clean and load the items that were left in the van. It is crazy how much we need to do in the old house to make it ready for 'showing' but we are going to get it done and make it look beautiful... LOL well... we'll see.

The move was pretty fast we are still unpacking but things are going well so far. It's kind of strange living in the same house with Tait. The girls are starting to get a routine down. We still don't have cable and we won't get it until Friday so we have watched a TON of DVDs and such and unpacking. I am ready to get some kind of routine down with them. I really want to do some "school" time with them... just so I feel like they are getting something other than just TV. The girls seem to be adjusting well. The weather has been sooooo crappy here. It's like what it was in Indiana like 2 months ago... so we are like 2 months behind. Someone in the grocery store yesterday was saying that they never have a spring it goes straight to Freezing cold to 90 degrees. So that was exciting news. I can always dress the girls warmer but the problem is the rain is CONSTANT so hopefully it will dry up here in the next couple of days and we'll be able to play outside.

We took the girls twice to the indoors Burger Kind play place so they could release some of their energy. We did take them last night to the lake to "feed the gulls" but there were nooooooo birds... I guess they figured it was too cold. We let the girls play on the stuff there for awhile.

So I'm just enjoying my time with the girls right now. But we'll see what happens over the next couple of weeks. Keep your fingers crossed.

Midweek Update!

Okay we are midway people… here we go… its ALLL DOWNHILL NOW BABY! Okay so maybe that’s over the top… but I feel in my heart soooo excited and nervous and anxious and worried, and happy and ALLLLLL of these emotions are ALLLL jumbled together it’s seriously the CRAZIEST feeling in the world! So where are we…?

I’m 99.9% packed… how cool is that? And I have to say thank GOOOOOOODNESS for church members b/c honestly I couldn’t have gotten it all done w/out their help. The YW came over last and really helped get all the “odds and Ins” done which was nice. So I’m done… (Sigh)

I am going to pack the rest of the dishes we used for the past week tonight and I will clean out the freg (since we are taking that with us) I really can’t wait it’s going to be such a relief to be around family and to have a new house and it will be really wonderful. We had a change of plans and we are going to be meeting Tim and Helen on Friday in Merryville so that they can take Lehna and Maya and the seats to our Van and I’ll pick up Tait and bring him back home on Friday evening. I’m glad that we are doing it this way b/c that will make it WAY easier to get packed on Saturday without having to worry about Lehna and Maya getting stepped on, and I think it would be less anxiety for them not to watch the entire contents of our house being packed into a semi truck (well moving truck).

I am still worried about not having a job I am trying to “let it go” but mercy it’s hard. I want to “give the problem” to Heavenly Father but man I’m SUCH a control freak that its TOTALLY hard and the news in the world about how horrible the job market is and etc it’s reallllly worrying… So hopefully it will all work itself out. One thing on the job market is I had a county in WI contact me and invited me actually to a test for a job for the county…so that’s something. We’ll see what happens with that. I mean I think that this is how it’s “supposed” to be for awhile… maybe HF thinks I need a break… I just don’t want to end up in the poor house b/c of my “vacation” but… again… it’s time to “let it go” Just breathe.

So we have packed everything all the girls’ toys are packed and etc… and last night right around bedtime Lehna goes ‘where are my pretty shoes’ and I go “Lehna we packed them up already” and she goes “Already Geeze” LOL I told her that we would unpacked them in a couple of days… she looked around and goes “mommy you packed all of our toys” and I go “Lehna look in you bed you have a baby there to play with” and she goes “oh yeah I forgot about her” LOL I just left ONE baby out… that will probably bite me in the butt… but I’m hoping that by the time the day ends that I will spend the evening with the girls outside and they will not have to worry about the fact that all the toys are packed up… at least I hope!

I will get the bathroom packed tonight. I just need to pack shampoo and odds and ends… but then I’m DONE DONE DONE… Can’t wait! Tait talked to the Priesthood President yesterday and they are going to have some members up in WI to help us unload so that will be nice too… hopefully we can get all the little stuff unpacked then the guys can help us get the bigger stuff placed in the house…

I packed my office today. It’s really sad. I really love my job here so I will really be sad to see myself leave and not return, but it’s time to move onto bigger and better things. I hope anyways! It’s true what they say about always thinking the grass is always greener… and I have ALWAYS been that kind of person when it comes to my job… always searching for something else… I just have felt at home at Express for so long that it will feel like I’m leaving my home  how sad is that?

So onto my new adventure, it’s just an exciting time for me right now. This move is going to really improve so many things that it’s really such a good thing. I love new challenges and I do enjoy change every once and awhile. We will all go through a period of adjustment… I know that the girls will be so much happier with their parents living TOGETHER rather then apart… so bring it on. I’m ready.

Weekend Round Up and Weekly Plan! (Look out she’s got a plan)

So this weekend we really did quite a bit round the ol’ homestead and out of the house as well. Tait and I were having a disagreement about what to do this weekend b/c there were some events that both Tait and I wanted to attend and we both had a lot of work to do around the house with us leaving this weekend and all. Soooo I tried something new that someone very wise suggested that I try to see if Tait and my communication could improve. So I tried out her suggestion and there was peace and harmony. So thank you for the advice because it seemed to work. So far at least.

So this weekend I had three main tasks that I wanted completed. The garage needed to be sorted and organized, our closets needed to be packed away also all the pictures in our room and front room needed taken down, and the third thing is the swing set needed taken apart. So I told Tait that if we could get two of the tasks completed on Saturday we could save the third task to Sunday. So on Saturday morning our children woke us up VERY early and we were out working on the house before 7 am. We finished the garage in about 2 hours. We have more stuff to go to the curb still but we had so MUCH the first round that we have to notify the trash people first so they will take all of the trash for next week. But what we took was literally GONE in like an hour after we put it out there… it was the CRAZIEST thing I have ever seen. Then we went into the house and finished packing our closets. We decided to wait until Sunday to take down the swing set. So by 10:30 we were pretty much done with the two tasks. So we went ahead and went to the two events that we both wanted to attend.

The first event was Tait wanted to go to the Purdue Spring game. Which is literally a game in which Purdue plays itself, it is kind of boring to watch to be honest with you b/c most of the players you never see during the regular season (it’s kind of like preseason football) So Tait packed us a picnic lunch and we took the girls to the game. They quarters were seriously 27 minutes long but the clock was continuous so that made it better but still it was LONG. So after about half time the girls were all over the steps and benches we decided to go to the Spring Bug Bowl at Purdue. Lehna kept talking about riding the train b/c as we were coming up upon Purdue we saw the Boilermaker Special and she of course wanted to ride the train. So we told her that we would try to get there to ride the train. Well we walked back to the car and then started walking towards the Bug Bowl when we realized that it was already 2:30 and the next event started at 3 so there was not going to be a way to get all the way to the bug bowl and really have any time to spend there. So we headed back to the car. Lehna was VERY disappointed but we told her we were going to go see Nana and Papa and she said “okay” and we headed back to the car.

The second event was a birthday celebration (of sorts) For Max, our nephew. It is a Chinese tradition in which after the 100th day of birth you celebrate with family and friends. It is a cool tradition. It was really fun to see all the family. Max is soooo adorable. And he was soooooo good I only heard him whine once when he was getting his diaper changed. It was so funny to watch Maya with all the babies. Sarah and Adam had invited a bunch of their friends and a lot of them have children about the age of Evan and Maya was in BABY CITY! This for her is RIGHT up her alley. She would squat next to them and go “Hi baby” and then sit next to them and try to engage them ANYWAY she could. Lehna was VERY shy and didn’t go very far. Lehna doesn’t like dogs and they have a husky that Lehna was VERY leery about and all the new faces she wasn’t at all interested in straying too far. They had a TON of food. Sarah is Chinese and her food is always so very good. Her mom made Sushi and I had real sushi, no like Kroger sushi. It was good. I don’t think I would like a sushi bar/restaurant. Tait LOVED it he kept trying to urge me to eat more. And it was good but one was enough. So it was a fun event.

After that we went and grabbed some ice cream we promised Lehna if she was good we would take her to ice cream and surprisingly enough Maya DIDN’T get it all over the front of her. I guess it pays to sit at the table in the Ice Cream parlor… b/c she was very clean. I had even gotten her vanilla just in case she did get it all over the front of her (I can’t get chocolate out of clothes I totally suck at it) So I didn’t want to ruin her cute pink shirt.

On Sunday we had our last time at the Crawfordsville Ward. It was very sad. I love my ward and my calling actually so it was really sad to sit with the girls one last time. But something good did come out of it. I talked to a couple of the ladies from Church and they volunteered to come and help me pack this week. So I’m VERY grateful for their help. The Young Women are coming on Wednesday night to help me finish pack the odds and ins. Tonight I’m going to get all of the items I’m going to need for the next couple of days out and put aside so I can literally tell the girls that they can pack EVERYTHING that they see. They said afterwards they would even start to clean. So that’s awesome.

Last night the Jensen family came over for the Family Home Evening to help us pack. Also Jessica came over too, it was so great. We got SOOOO much done there would have been NO way I would have gotten it done by myself. So it was wonderful how they helped me out.

I have my kitchen all done except for under the sink, and a few dishes that we are actively using. I have the girls’ room completely done except for the girls hanging cloths and the clothes in their dresser. The front room is expected for the toys in the corner and then there are just odd things that need put in a box. I’m pretty excited that so much of it was done last night.

So tonight I’ll get the rest of the clothes and stuff out for the rest of the week and then on Wednesday it should be done. The playroom is totally packed with boxes as is the garage. I hope we get it all in the truck that will be the next step. We have a people coming from Church and then my family members coming to help us so hopefully loading won’t be too bad. I just hope it all fits! But if push comes to shove then I will be able to come back for boxes over the next couple of weekends… So hopefully we won’t have to do that… I hope!

News on the job front! Well I got a call from one of the staffing companies I have been talking to and we set up a Face to Face meeting for the first week of May. He is located in Kentucky and they are going to be opening an office for a company in Pleasant Prairie (which is where I will live) an on site company. I have been kind of in the loop with this company since like January and he gave me a time line of start date which would be like June… so we’ll see what happens… keep your fingers crossed for me. I have been praying and I hope it continues to be positive vibes… please please… I hope…

I talked to the Racine office… and it doesn’t sound like that is going to go anywhere… so maybe I’m supposed to be for this new company. We’ll see. I hope!

So that’s all I got… pretty exciting times right now. I’m so excited about moving. I can’t wait… Can’t wait! The girls are starting to get anxious too… Lehna keeps asking me every night if we are going to move into our new house tomorrow so I know they are excited. I just can’t wait to get there and all is together again. It was defiantly something that I needed for myself but I’m done… I’m ready to be together again.

So to a new adventure…

Update

Well another day another million boxes down and still a million more to pack. I know I know I exaggerate. Last night Lehna BEGGED me to play with her. And I felt really bad so after about 7:30 I stopped for the night gave them baths and we sat on the couch and played for about 45 minutes. It was a nice evening. I don’t know how much I’m going to get done tonight. But I will work on what I can. I think I’m going to need more boxes. It’s crazy how FAST the freaking fill up.

I still have a number of things to pack so we’ll see what I can get accomplished… One positive thing… We are getting rid of the FUTON! Yeah! I’m so very excited. I HATE that futon… HATE IT HATE IT HATE IT! So I will be glad when it’s gone.

I can’t believe that it’s Thursday… where has the week gone? I hope that things get accomplished this weekend. I hope hope hope. I have been trying to stay positive. Which I am such a negative person, it’s really hard. I get to meet with Marge tonight. I’m really looking forward to it.

Lehna and Maya have been really good this week at daycare. They like to start behavior charts and then after three days they stop doing it. So yesterday I came in and Lehna had 3 stars next to her name and Maya had 3 stars too and I asked them what it was for and Lehna goes “It’s b/c I was really good today” So I was like okay. So that meant that they got to be the teacher’s helper or something… I don’t know. But just last week they had behavior sticks… so I don’t know what happened to them. It’s like they just create these random ideas and then they don’t follow through with them. It’s very strange. I have been keeping up with the treasure box Lehna is VERY consistent about asking when she gets to pick out of the box.

Maya slept the ENTIRE night last night… she woke up at 2 am and whined for like one second and went right back to sleep… she woke up at 4:30 (right before my alarm went off) and I brought her in the bedroom then I hit the snooze like 5 times. I enjoy sleeping. I love my snooze button. It was nice.

I gave Maya a breathing treatment last night b/c everyday when I pick her up from daycare they have been saying how horrible Maya has been coughing and how sick she is… but she isn’t running a fever… So I’m like Okay. So I gave her that treatment hoping that it would help her. She coughed MAYBE three times last night. So that’s a good thing. But the breathing treatment “should” make her cough more b/c it’s supposed to break up her chest nastiness so she can cough it out. So I don’t know maybe she just needs more treatments. She was so good I was able to put the mask around her head and she sat through it. No problems at all. Of course it helped that I put on Max and Ruby… seriously an Atomic Bomb could go off and Maya wouldn’t notice if Max and Ruby was one. She LOVES that show. And I have to admit it is a cute show. I feel bad for the little orphan bunnies and Ruby is quite a bossy bunny but it’s a cute show.

Yesterday in the car we were driving home and Lehna wanted to switch to Kipper the Dog which I like him too, but he makes me tired, and I was telling Lehna that he makes me sleepy. So last night Kipper was on and Lehna was already in the bed and she goes “look Mommy Kippers on now you’ll fall asleep” I was like yep. LOL I think it’s the British accents… it’s b/c I fell asleep for MANY years to the sound of Keeping Up Appearances, Are you being Served?, the Victor of Dibley, and Fawlty Towers… that every time I hear British accents it seriously puts me to sleep.

Well some crazy stuff happened to Tanna yesterday. Tanna is due like literally in 2-3 weeks. Well She went to the doctor yesterday and the doctor had a hard time finding the heart beat and so they hooked her up to a machine and shortly after the doctor came in and said that they needed to get her into ultrasound… he said that “you’re 36 weeks so we may just deliver this baby today” So they put her in the ultrasound and the baby was fine reading in the normal range. They think it was the baby’s position. Well Tanna doesn’t know what she’s having. And I asked if she found out and she goes “no I don’t want to know” LOL and I was like but you didn’t ask being so CLOSE! And she goes “no I want to be surprised" I don’t know about you but it’s KILLING me not knowing… LOL She already has the baby’s name picked out and it’s literally going to be the same name just spelled different… so she doesn’t care… I KNOW that I wouldn’t be able to do it… you know? And she has both a boy and a girl so she has both sets of clothing so whatever she has she’s covered… but I wouldn’t be able to stand it…

Okay that’s all the mindless nonsense I have…

Packing... Packing... Packing

Well Day one of packing. And it is over. Only one more Monday left and we will be loading the truck. YEAH! Well last night I got some stuff done, I wish I could have gotten more done but the girls were so wild that they weren’t going to go to sleep.

Things that I got accomplished.

I packed All of Lehna’s clothes that didn’t fit so all of the 4 & 5 that were in the toy room, her closet, and closet. I packed all of the 3’s that are soon to be moved to Maya’s closet (once we move). I packed the entire toy closet which there is only three things left in the closet but I needed a bigger box and I forgot box tape when I went to the store yesterday so I couldn’t make any bigger boxes… I was able to get all the things hanging in the toy room so pictures, the curtains, and wall items packed. I also got all the pictures down from the hallway and packed and most of the pictures out of my room and kitchen. And I got all the remaining toys and books packed away.

I still have a ton left to pack. It’s amazing just how much that is left to do… it’s kind of depressing to be honest with you.

So tonight my game plan. Go through Maya’s clothes and pack away all of her things that don’t fit anymore, the bathroom, and lien closet, and finish with all the pictures on the wall.

My house is a complete disaster. I didn’t put anything away from our trip so I have like bags and stuff of things that need to be put away from the trip. Lehna and Maya were awesome enough to go through them and remove all items from the bag and put them on the floor so that was great. So now instead of the stuff being in bags piled the stuff is just all over the floor. I have an entire sink full of dishes my kitchen counters are piled… Too many things to do and not enough hours in the day to get it done.

Last night at about 8:30 I put the girls to bed and they were PINKING off the walls. Maya was shaking her crib so badly that I thought that someone was knocking on the front door. Lehna came out of her room every 5 minutes to tell me something unimportant about Maya. Usually “Maya won’t go to sleep and she’s keeping me awake” I told them that if they don’t go to bed that tomorrow they are going to really be tired when I wake them up. Of course you know telling this kind of logic to a 2 & 4 year old really doesn’t make any sense… but you know saying “go to bed” 50 million times wasn’t working either. So I worked for another hour and then I decided that if I don’t go to sleep that they will NEVER go to sleep. So I went to sleep.

This morning the girls were horrible, just like expected. It’s like they were missing 2 hours of sleep or something. So it was nice actually being able to pick our clothes for Lehna without having to push and move the clothes out of the way (her closet was full of clothes that didn’t fit her) So after I got them dressed and they were SLEEPY I told them to get their coats it was seriously like watching two zombies walking through the house saying “coats, coats” They are so tortured. I only had two break downs this morning one from each of them. I told them the more fits they through the earlier their bed time will be at one point I told Lehna that she is going to have to be in bed even before she gets out of the car tonight. So then she stopped. One day at a time and one task at a time. I will make it and if we are lucky the kids may make it too! So as rough as the morning was I have a feeling I’m going to have a HORRIBLE report this afternoon… which I told them when I dropped them off they are tired and cranky… so maybe that will help… I doubt it but MAYBE!

I’m sending an SOS to all of those in my area by the way. We are packing up the house to load the truck on April 25th. We really need some help loading so if there is anyone around that would like to help us… we would really appreciate it. And you only have to help Load just think of it that way… So please let me know if you can help me.

Okay well that’s all that’s going one… I love boxes… I love packing… I love it love it love it.

Happy Easter!

Well this weekend was a lot of fun. Since the girls’ daycare was closed on Friday due to Good Friday we headed up to WI on Thursday night to spend some time with the Grandparents. We got there about 7 ish on Thursday and spend the night with Tait’s parents. Lehna had been sick during the day she was running a fever during the day and so I figured it was a UTI b/c she had been acting like that that was the problem. Well I called our Pediatrician on the way up to WI and she said that she should come into her office on Friday, but since we were leaving the state I told her that that wouldn’t be possible. So she suggested that we take her some where on Friday to get checked out. So Friday morning I called the Children’s Hospital (in which Tait works for) and asked them for a list of pediatricians and told them our predicament… so they set us up with a Pediatrician so we went meet with a new patrician. I really liked the doctor he really seemed to know what he was doing. He did three different tests on her to see what the issue was. The problem was that Lehna shouldn’t have had a fever with a UTI so he was concerned that if she still was running a fever that it was actually something much more serious. So he gave us a general antibiotic and told us that he was going to run some “cultures” on her urine and see what happens, and if they came back with something than they would have to see her right away on Monday and possibly put her on IV medication. He said to all the on call doctor on Sunday to see what the test results were. So all weekend we kind of watched her fever. By Saturday it had broke and she was totally acting herself but Friday she was definitely feeling pretty horrible. So at least we now have a doctor in Wisconsin for the girls. So this is good thing.

On Friday we headed up to Hartford to spend the remaining weekend with Mom and Terry. The girls had SUCH a good time. My mom had some cool activities for them that they REALLY enjoyed. They painted pictures of Eggs and decorated their pictures. They had TWO separate Easter egg hunts. They dipped eggs for coloring and decorated them with stickers, played with bubbles and play dough, and went to the park twice. It was a busy weekend for them, but they enjoyed every minute of it. (That goes for both Mom and Terry too!)

The city of Hartford has an annual Easter egg hunt and since it was literally right across the field from their house we went to that egg hunt. It was more of an adult hunt instead of a kid hunt. The parents were picking up their kids and literally running from egg to egg… it was insane… Maya got about 10 eggs so she didn’t do too badly. Lehna I think got around 10 as well.

Later we had another egg hunt in Mom and Terry’s back yard. That was a lot more fun I think. Lehna and Maya were really funny looking for Eggs. They had a good time. When we colored eggs later on that day Lehna kept asking if we were going to hide them for the Easter Bunny to eat. She got the two concepts confused.

It was a fun time. Tait and I went on a date on Saturday evening. We headed to the Mineshaft to play the arcade games and we had some dessert. It was a nice little date nothing too exciting but it was fun. I played “Big Mother Trucker” and let me tell you I was quite Talented at it… I was a big Indian named Iron Claw (or something like that) but that was only b/c I picked the wrong truck. I kicked Tait A$$ in basketball. I beat him by 15 points! He said it was b/c he only had 2 balls and I had 4 but I think he just doesn’t like to own up to my awesome skills. He did however kick my butt in the Air Gun Propeller Game you basically just shot this plastic balls through these holes where they have spinning propellers spinning around them… it was pretty challenging. I totally sucked at it. I think I got maybe 3 points.

After we played some games we went down and had some pretty fabulous dessert. I had this strawberry/orange cheese cake and Tait has some pretty fabulous chocolate ice cream, brownie dessert thing. We of course shared but it was just a nice relaxing date. We were only out for like 2 hours by the time we came home the girls were fast asleep. Mom said that it took them no more then 15 minutes before they conked out. They were tired busy busy day.

I got home last night and looked around and decided that I am going to pack a room/closet a night It’s going to be challenging b/c I’m usually pretty beat after spending all day at work then playing with the kiddos but I figure if I can do one room/closet a day… then by the time April 25th comes around I SHOULD be ready to go. I hope. I want to call the Young Women and see if they want to come and do a service project at my house… have them pack… LOL But I don’t want to do that.

Well I stepped on the scale and much to my disgust I have gained some of my lost weight back. I was pretty bummed this morning. I attribute it to the fact that I’m NOT exercising nor am I watching what I eat… so I’m think THAT’S where the weight is coming from. So I told myself when I’m finally in WI it’s on man. I have worked so hard and in the past couple of weeks I have really let it all go to the way side and it’s kind of depressing. So that’s my game plan… So you hear that body you have two more weeks of this nonsense and that’s it! It’s over! You may ask why I’m waiting for two weeks, but I figured that in the next couple of weeks I’m going to be pretty busy packing that I won’t have time to really focus on my weight loss goals again. I’m trying to keep realistic; of course this doesn’t give me the freedom to eat like a huge piggo either.

So that’s where I stand, pretty exciting stuff. I am starting to get really anxious about not having a job line up. I have to tell you. I have been looking everyday and have been applying to pretty much everything and anything that I possibly qualify for. I think once that gets settled THAT would help tremendously. I know we will have daycare taken care of but Helen is planning on spending several weeks with Tanna once she has her baby so it’s kind of hard to really “plan” anything. I need to find daycare for the girls but I need to see if I’m going to be employed first and see when Tanna has her baby. It’s all very up in the air. It’s pretty hard to plan your life when everything is so up in the air I have to tell you.

So hopefully the world will start to come into line and everything will start showing some options in the next two weeks! I hope!

Weekend

Happy Spring Everyone! Can’t you tell its spring I mean the blistering cold the snow falling from the sky? I just love the spring time it just makes me so happy! Well maybe if I lived some where there was a spring then I would enjoy it more. We are seriously going to go straight from winter to summer… I hate that. That usually means that the summer will drag on. (Sigh) This will be good if we get season passes to GREAT AMERICA! I mean we will live 20 miles away from the place!!! LOL We’ll see what happens though.

Well this weekend it was very spring like on Saturday day it was beautiful outside so much that I got sunburned! Darn pasty white skin! We took the girls for an Easter Egg Hunt in Darlington at the park. It was really nice. The girls I think had a good time… we were there for literally 20 minutes! LOL The started each “age group” off at the same time so we couldn’t watch the girls together but it was fun to have them do it. Maya got to have “help” so Tait held her hand as she grabbed candy and put it in the bag… it was literally just candy thrown all over the ground and some eggs scattered all over the ground. For Lehna the parents couldn’t “help” so I stood along the sidelines trying to encourage Lehna to go out and get the candy. She didn’t want me to leave her side but I kept telling her that she has to go out by herself b/c I wasn’t allowed… so finally she went out there to get one piece and promptly brought it back to me… then I told her to go get another piece… then ran back to me… she did this a couple of times until she finally just stayed out there to pick up candy. Of course by then a lot of it was gone… she probably got like maybe 15 pieces total which is fine by me that’s the last thing I wanted was her hopped up on sugar… Maya however was the queen of candy. Tait said that they dropped like a big handful of suckers in a big pile and she stood there picking all of them up. Which out of all the candy out there she really enjoys suckers.

After we took the girls to the “hunt” we went to Wal-Mart to select birthday gifts from some birthday money that they got late. Well Lehna selected a bathroom set for her Barbie a little strange and I tried to get her to select something else but she totally wanted it. Nothing like a toilet for Barbie to use… Well Maya with Tait’s help picked out to “phones” which are really walkie-talkies and she seemed to like those… she didn’t quite understand to push the button to talk but she liked being able to here mom and dad talk to her through the phone.

On Sunday we didn’t really do anything we had general conference so we didn’t have church. We taped both sessions on Sunday we didn’t watch them but I will this week once the girlies go to bed. I enjoy watching them later so I can fast forward through the songs… you know… 

We did grill out on Sunday and that was WONDERFUL. I enjoyed that very much. We had steaks and baked potatoes. It was fabulous.

Tait and I got to have a date on Saturday night. We went bowling and my first game I actually broke 100 so I was excited about that the second game I didn’t break 100 I got up to like 92 so I was close… BUT didn’t break… oh well. We talked about going to a movie but seriously there was nothing out that even looked sort of good you know? So after that we went to BW3’s and that was a ton of fun. We sat at this table that had this game thing on the table and we played that. It cost money which sucked but they all of these trivia games and stuff like that Tait and I played as a team and just had a nice time.

I got the laundry done in record time this weekend. I started working on it through out the week and man let me tell you I even had time to do the extra things like the bathroom rugs… now usually when I do this Lehna inadvertently pees on them (on accident of course) so hopefully that won’t happen.

I’m getting really excited about moving to Wisconsin. I need boxes pretty badly. I am trying to talk Tait into just buying them b/c I need to start packing!!! So we’ll see what happens… If anyone has any boxes please please please let me know.

I don’t know what date we are going to move… to be honest with you we talked about both April 24th and then also May 2nd. Personally I would like to Move April 25th b/c then I will have the entire next week to clean the place up… we have a person interested in renting the place and I would like to rip up the carpet and paint… I mean even if we don’t rent I still am looking into someone buying our house and seriously those two things have to be done… so we’ll see what happens… keep your fingers crossed for me I hope it all works out. But any help to load would be much appreciated.

Okay that’s all I got for now. Here’s hoping for a good week!

Two Birthdays, a Trip to Wisconsin, and a ton of sleepless nights.

Well It has been so busy around here I have been neglecting my blog something awful. So I will update probably just once this week. So this weekend we headed up to Wisconsin. We were able to bring Helen back to her apartment b/c she is returning from her knee surgery. She is doing better, she still walks slowly but better I don’t think she gives herself enough credit. I mean two knee cap replacements and she’s up and walking around with out a walker… I think that is pretty amazing in less then 2 months. I mean wow! So we brought her up with us on Friday when we went up. We made pretty good time, I was totally worried about hitting traffic in Chicago since we left so late but we were stalled on 65 b/c it went down to one lane right before the Merriville exit (it looks like they are getting ready to do some major changes on the road so they are building up the median to move the traffic over). So it took us about 11 minutes to go 2 miles so that sucked. But once we were through it, it was smooth sailing until about 30 miles from Kenosha were we hit another “patch” it didn’t last very long but it was a pretty easy trip. The girls were good I rented Lady and the Tramp and Ratatitue for them to watch. They LOVED Lady and the Tramp or as Lehna refers to is as ‘the dog movie’ but the other… didn’t have any interest in they kept requesting the other movie. Just goes to show you the girls love their classic Disney.

So we got there and decided to crash there for the night b/c the next day we were going to head up to Hartford for the girls’ birthday and to hit a job fair. So I went to the job fair and well it was only for case management positions so I do have “some” experience doing that, it’s older experience, but some anyways and basically I was told that I have the wrong degree. So she introduced me to an HR recruiter for the company and I was telling her about my HR recruiting experience and then she cut me off and goes “we don’t have any open positions at this time” and I said well I have other skills, it kind of felt like the entire WIND was SUCKED out of my sail it was a very odd feeling. So I thanked them for meeting with me and moved on. So it wasn’t a total waste of time b/c I was able to meet with someone from HR and I got her “personal” email so I got a contact out of it… I don’t think it will go anywhere but who knows.

So when we got to Hartford we pretty much didn’t do much on Saturday. We had the girls open their birthday gifts and we sang and ate birthday cake which was fun for them. Maya got two new babies and Lehna got make up, a baby, and a game (I think that’s it). So they were pretty happy. They played with them pretty much all day. They started to get a little cabin fever but overall were good for most of the day.

On Sunday we went out for lunch at a place called “The Mineshaft” which is right there in Hartford it was a nice little pub restaurant and the girls ate and then upstairs they have this HUGE arcade area, very similar to Chuck E Cheese but NO mouse! So that was fun for the girls. Lehna kept going back over to the “rollercoaster ride” and we took Maya to this game in which you have to throw these balls into these big holes they seemed to really enjoy themselves. Tait wasn’t to go back there without kids. LOL so we’ll see.

The on Sunday afternoon we loaded the van and went back to Kenosha so we could have another birthday celebration with Helen and Tim. Maya got a new tricycle and Lehna got a baby Cinderella so again they were happy. We went to see the house we are looking at renting and it was really nice. So we are supposed to hear back this week as to if we can rent the house the guy was supposedly checking with his broker and he was waiting to hear if they got any offers on the walk through last week. So it was pretty exciting. I hope we find out soon b/c if not then we need to find another place to live. Tait is looking at another house today so we’ll see what happens. I keep trying to tell Tait that if we don’t end up getting this house then we should rent a CHEAP little 1 bedroom apartment with a month to month lease and look for something else… so we’ll see what happens.

On the Job front this week I got some good news from both companies actually. The one company in which I have never worked with before they just sent off the staffing agreement and are now OFFICIALLY waiting for the move in date… which means the date for me to start… YEAH! The second company the was VERY impressed with my testing scores and said that the put in a bid for an Onsite company in Kenosha and if they get that company they are going to put me in that company for a staffing supervisor for that specific company but if they don’t get that bid then they are going to assign me to a temporary assignment that will start on April 27th until they can pull me into their office. So either way it looks like I’ll have a job. Fingers Crossed Still of course.

So my last day at my current company is going to be April 24th. I was planning on moving/packing the week of April 27th just taking my time and packing and moving things through out the week and etc but it looks like with the “temporary” job starts on the 27th that may not be a possibility. So if we get the house on April 15th we will take loads up for the next couple of weekends then on May 2nd we will rent an uhal and move everything up there in a big push… I really want time to move b/c I want to be able to work on the house after it’s empty. I have a couple of ideas on what we are going to do about the house. So I need TIME to work on them. I don’t want to tell the temporary job that I can’t work that week (good lord can’t turn down work in this economy) but I am hoping that one of the other jobs comes in. So I’m still in limbo for the most part… but improving. Again nothing solid yet… but it’s in the works. If anyone knows where I can get boxes please let me know… I still have the contents of the items we are still USING in the house that need to be boxed.

It’s hard to believe the girls are now 2 & 4 I’m glad that Lehna is FINALLY out of the horrible stage I hear that age 4 is wonderful… but I’m just entering the horrible stage with Maya… LOL I hope that Maya isn’t as bad but who knows. She is more patient child. Lehna definitely enjoys her birthday now which is kind of fun. She likes it so much she didn’t want Maya to have her birthday she told me that Maya doesn’t deserve a birthday and so she was going to take her’s. I hate it when people try to take my Birthday away.

So my sleeping has really been sad this week. I have been falling asleep but staying asleep has really been a challenge. I know that I’m just stressed right now and it’s just affecting me but you’d think that I would at LEAST be able to sleep… yeah not so true. I have been having dreams about old ghosts and that type of thing… it truly sucks. So I figure if I keep this up then I will finally sleep through the night b/c I’m just sooooo exhausted. So let’s all hope that happens soon. I have to hit the coffee every morning just to make it through the first half of the day.

So that’s life right now… I’m just tired.

Two Birthdays, a Trip to Wisconsin, and a ton of sleepless nights.

Well It has been so busy around here I have been neglecting my blog something awful. So I will update probably just once this week. So this weekend we headed up to Wisconsin. We were able to bring Helen back to her apartment b/c she is returning from her knee surgery. She is doing better, she still walks slowly but better I don’t think she gives herself enough credit. I mean two knee cap replacements and she’s up and walking around with out a walker… I think that is pretty amazing in less then 2 months. I mean wow! So we brought her up with us on Friday when we went up. We made pretty good time, I was totally worried about hitting traffic in Chicago since we left so late but we were stalled on 65 b/c it went down to one lane right before the Merriville exit (it looks like they are getting ready to do some major changes on the road so they are building up the median to move the traffic over). So it took us about 11 minutes to go 2 miles so that sucked. But once we were through it, it was smooth sailing until about 30 miles from Kenosha were we hit another “patch” it didn’t last very long but it was a pretty easy trip. The girls were good I rented Lady and the Tramp and Ratatitue for them to watch. They LOVED Lady and the Tramp or as Lehna refers to is as ‘the dog movie’ but the other… didn’t have any interest in they kept requesting the other movie. Just goes to show you the girls love their classic Disney.

So we got there and decided to crash there for the night b/c the next day we were going to head up to Hartford for the girls’ birthday and to hit a job fair. So I went to the job fair and well it was only for case management positions so I do have “some” experience doing that, it’s older experience, but some anyways and basically I was told that I have the wrong degree. So she introduced me to an HR recruiter for the company and I was telling her about my HR recruiting experience and then she cut me off and goes “we don’t have any open positions at this time” and I said well I have other skills, it kind of felt like the entire WIND was SUCKED out of my sail it was a very odd feeling. So I thanked them for meeting with me and moved on. So it wasn’t a total waste of time b/c I was able to meet with someone from HR and I got her “personal” email so I got a contact out of it… I don’t think it will go anywhere but who knows.

So when we got to Hartford we pretty much didn’t do much on Saturday. We had the girls open their birthday gifts and we sang and ate birthday cake which was fun for them. Maya got two new babies and Lehna got make up, a baby, and a game (I think that’s it). So they were pretty happy. They played with them pretty much all day. They started to get a little cabin fever but overall were good for most of the day.

On Sunday we went out for lunch at a place called “The Mineshaft” which is right there in Hartford it was a nice little pub restaurant and the girls ate and then upstairs they have this HUGE arcade area, very similar to Chuck E Cheese but NO mouse! So that was fun for the girls. Lehna kept going back over to the “rollercoaster ride” and we took Maya to this game in which you have to throw these balls into these big holes they seemed to really enjoy themselves. Tait wasn’t to go back there without kids. LOL so we’ll see.

The on Sunday afternoon we loaded the van and went back to Kenosha so we could have another birthday celebration with Helen and Tim. Maya got a new tricycle and Lehna got a baby Cinderella so again they were happy. We went to see the house we are looking at renting and it was really nice. So we are supposed to hear back this week as to if we can rent the house the guy was supposedly checking with his broker and he was waiting to hear if they got any offers on the walk through last week. So it was pretty exciting. I hope we find out soon b/c if not then we need to find another place to live. Tait is looking at another house today so we’ll see what happens. I keep trying to tell Tait that if we don’t end up getting this house then we should rent a CHEAP little 1 bedroom apartment with a month to month lease and look for something else… so we’ll see what happens.

On the Job front this week I got some good news from both companies actually. The one company in which I have never worked with before they just sent off the staffing agreement and are now OFFICIALLY waiting for the move in date… which means the date for me to start… YEAH! The second company the was VERY impressed with my testing scores and said that the put in a bid for an Onsite company in Kenosha and if they get that company they are going to put me in that company for a staffing supervisor for that specific company but if they don’t get that bid then they are going to assign me to a temporary assignment that will start on April 27th until they can pull me into their office. So either way it looks like I’ll have a job. Fingers Crossed Still of course.

So my last day at my current company is going to be April 24th. I was planning on moving/packing the week of April 27th just taking my time and packing and moving things through out the week and etc but it looks like with the “temporary” job starts on the 27th that may not be a possibility. So if we get the house on April 15th we will take loads up for the next couple of weekends then on May 2nd we will rent an uhal and move everything up there in a big push… I really want time to move b/c I want to be able to work on the house after it’s empty. I have a couple of ideas on what we are going to do about the house. So I need TIME to work on them. I don’t want to tell the temporary job that I can’t work that week (good lord can’t turn down work in this economy) but I am hoping that one of the other jobs comes in. So I’m still in limbo for the most part… but improving. Again nothing solid yet… but it’s in the works. If anyone knows where I can get boxes please let me know… I still have the contents of the items we are still USING in the house that need to be boxed.

It’s hard to believe the girls are now 2 & 4 I’m glad that Lehna is FINALLY out of the horrible stage I hear that age 4 is wonderful… but I’m just entering the horrible stage with Maya… LOL I hope that Maya isn’t as bad but who knows. She is more patient child. Lehna definitely enjoys her birthday now which is kind of fun. She likes it so much she didn’t want Maya to have her birthday she told me that Maya doesn’t deserve a birthday and so she was going to take her’s. I hate it when people try to take my Birthday away.

So my sleeping has really been sad this week. I have been falling asleep but staying asleep has really been a challenge. I know that I’m just stressed right now and it’s just affecting me but you’d think that I would at LEAST be able to sleep… yeah not so true. I have been having dreams about old ghosts and that type of thing… it truly sucks. So I figure if I keep this up then I will finally sleep through the night b/c I’m just sooooo exhausted. So let’s all hope that happens soon. I have to hit the coffee every morning just to make it through the first half of the day.

So that’s life right now… I’m just tired.