My Kids & I

First Term Almost Done

2010-09-23T14:26:00.000-05:00

My first "term" at Kaplan is almost over. My last day of this term is October 5. My next "term" starts October 13. This term started out as a bit of a challenge, but it got better. When it started, the kids hadn't started back to school yet, so I had 3 weeks of trying to take care of them while attending my online seminars, studying, and doing my work. I was able to get through it by doing school work before they woke up, and then again after they went to bed. Once they started back to school, it was much easier since I then had the 2 hours every day that B is at school to do. I have also had the trouble of knowing at times when to just walk away from school work at times. But I have learned that I can not spend all of my free of the kids time studying, I also need some of that as "me" time. With only a little over a week to go of this term, I am still keeping my "A" average in both classes.

One of my final projects is to interview an attorney, then write up a summary on that interview along with my thoughts on it, etc. I had one attorney agree weeks ago to the interview. But after he agreed, I never could get through to him to set up an appointment to do the interview. So I had to call around to several other attorney offices to find one that would agree. Out of the 20 or so that I called and/or left messages for, only 1 called me back. Now I need to actually write up the summary.

Like I said before, my next "term" starts October 13. My next two classes will be College Composition I and Introduction to Legal Technology. I am so not looking forward to the Comp class considering I hate to write essays. The Legal Tech class may be okay though.

Kids' School & Mine

2010-09-10T22:25:00.000-05:00

All 3 kids are in school now. R is now in the 4th grade. School is school to him. He doesn't want to go, but he knows he has to. C is in Kindergarten. She doesn't want to wake up in the mornings, and throws a fit every single morning about not wanting to go. The only thing she says she likes about school is her cousin, J, is in her class. B is in Early Childhood. He doesn't want to go in the mornings either, but once his ride gets here he is ready to go. And comes home everyday saying he had fun. So far all 3 kids are doing good in school.

I have just a few weeks left in this term for my classes. I survived midterm week with a B on both my midterms. Even with the B on my midterms, I am still carrying an A average in both classes. Of course, that is always subject to change in the next few weeks with finals, but all I can do is my best.

Week 2

2010-08-13T22:36:00.000-05:00

I survived another week of my online classes towards my degree. One of my assignments for week 2 was a 500 word paper. Not a long one, but I still stressed over it just the same. That's just the way I am. When I got my grade back on it, my jaw dropped. Out of a possible 75 points, I got 75 points! I had gotten a 100% on my paper, I couldn't believe it. I ended week 2 carrying an A average in both my classes. I know that can always change though, and all I can do is my best when it comes to my assigments. I like the look of my A's though, so I will do my best to try to keep my grades that way! Of course, it doesn't hurt that these are also introductory courses. I know the further I get into my program, the harder the classes will be. But I am up for that challenge!

The kids start school next week. R & C start Tuesday...R in 4th grade and C in Kindergarten. B starts Wednesday in Pre-K. I can't believe my baby is starting school already! B will only be in school for 2 hours and 15 minutes a day, but I am looking forward to that time alone so I can use it for my own studying

Week 1 of Classes

2010-08-03T00:20:00.000-05:00

As I mentioned in my last post, I decided to go back to school. My first round of classes started the 28th and will last for 10 weeks. I will then have 8 days off before my next round of classes starts.

This "term" I am taking Eight Effective Skills of the Legal Studies Student and The Paralegal Professional. So far I like both classes. They are taking some getting used to though. The online classroom is so different from a traditional classroom, just as one would expect them to be. Even if I was taking traditional classes though, it would still take some getting used to considering the only time I have been in a classroom in the last 12 years is for parent/teacher conferences for my children.

The first week of class hasn't offically ended yet, but I have gotten all of my assignments finished. This first week saw the first essay of this back to school experience. I was stressing over the essay big time. The essay was only 300-400 words, which is really short. And the topic was my ideal career. Should have been easy, right. But I stressed over it so bad. I don't have a lot of confidence in my writing skills. I think they suck big time. But with the help of a friend physically asking me questions to get me brainstorming, I was able to write the essay. Even though I thought it sucked majorly, I submitted it to my instructor. My instructor apparently didn't think it was as horrible as I thought it was because out of 85 possible points, I got 73 (no, that is not percentage, that is points)! Like I said, I think my essay skills suck horribly, so I was thrilled with that grade.

Since I am done with the assignments for the first week, I have reviewed the material again, and have now started some of the reading assignments for the second week for both courses.

Back To School

2010-07-21T02:33:00.000-05:00

R & C are ready to go back to school, and B is ready to start school. In fact, C was upset the other night because school won't start right now. All 3 of them will have to wait though, since they don't go back until August 17. R will be going into 4th grade, C into full day Kindergarten, and B into Pre-K for a whole 2 hours and 15 minutes a day.

I, on the other hand, am a different story. I have been talking for a few years about going back to school, but I have finally buckled down and took that plunge. My classes start in 7 days! I will be going for my Associates in Paralegal Studies (but do plan on getting a bachelors sometime after that), through Kaplan University. I will be taking 2 classes online every 10 weeks, with 8 days off in between.

I know it will be a challenge, but I am up for it. I plan on doing my work and studying while B is in school for his 2 hours and 15 minutes a day, then do some more after all 3 kids are in bed for the night. And since the kids are now spending weekends with their dad, that gives me all weekend to myself to study. So I should be able to get in quite a bit of study time...at least once the kids start school next month. Until they go back to school the plan is to get up a little earlier in the mornings to get some studying done before they wake up, then do some after they go to bed, and on weekends. Since C & B love to sleep in, it should be no problem having some study time in the mornings.

So I will be blogging about the joys, challanges, etc that come from being a F/T mom and student

Pearl Paradise Giveaway & Review

2010-07-19T22:49:00.000-05:00

You've heard it said that diamonds are a girl's best friend. But not this girl. This girl loves pearls. I think perals are a classic peice of jewelry that never go out of style. I also love how they go great for casual wear or dressy. And a girl can never have too many pearls. That is why I am trying to win some.

You can enter to win too! Just head on over to Two Classy Chics to read their great review on a company called Pearl Paradise and learn how you too can enter the giveaway!

Bath & Body Review + Giveaway

2010-07-12T20:19:00.000-05:00

Do you love bath & body products? What about products that help make your home smell great? Now you have a chance to win a $25 gift certificate to order your choice of bath, body, or home fragrance items!

Two Classy Chics have written a product review on some of our bath products. They are also hosting a giveaway, sponsored by me, on their site. You can read the product review and enter the giveaway at http://twoclassychics.blogspot.com/2010/07/review-and-giveaway-crystals-comforts.html Several ways to earn entries! You can even earn daily entries!

This giveaway ends July 24 at midnight EST time.

To learn more about the great bath & body products, visit my other blog

Getting To Know Family

2010-06-30T13:17:00.000-05:00

I am sad to say that up until recently, my children didn't know their cousins. Which is a shame considering that the town we live in is right next to the town they live in. It was just that my sister and I live seperate lives, and we don't even see each other that often.

But my kids are now getting to know their cousins. With summer vacation going on, my nephews were getting bored at home. So I have went and picked them up a few times so far. They come out here and go swimming with my kids, and they all jump on the trampoline together. On Monday, they all even went blackberry picking together in the back field.

I am so glad that the kids are getting a chance to get to know each other. And I am glad they are getting along together. It is so nice to see them all doing something together.

Changes

2010-06-29T00:26:00.000-05:00

Sometimes life likes to throw things your way and they are hard to deal with. I had something thrown at me me earlier in the month that has changed my life in a big way. I don't really want to talk about it right now, because I am still not exactly sure what I am going to do. But things are a little difficult in my life right now. My children are having a hard time with things that are going on and happening. They think the things that are happening are their fault. I keep explaining to them that they had nothing to do with any of it, that none of it is their fault, that they have done nothing wrong. The kids are also acting up during this time. I am trying to be patient with them. I know they are just kids and don't really understand what all is going on. And being kids, the way they handle some hard situations is to act out. It does get annoying, but they are doing okay

WTH

2010-06-03T15:52:00.000-05:00

R is 10 now. He spends every Saturday with the Young Marines. Some of these days are long (8 hours), some are shorter (2 to 4 hrs). It just depends on what they are doing. A couple weeks ago, the Young Marines did a campout from Friday night til Sunday morning. There are always adults present at the Young Marine things, whether they are Young Marine staff or parent volunteers. The kids aren't left unsupervised at all.

Other than the Young Marine activities, R is home most of the time. He is either with me, my husband, or one of my parents. Last night he did spend the night with a friend, then called today to ask if he could spend the night again. The friend's mother told me it was okay with her, so I said it was okay with me. I have met this friend's parents (both mother & father). I know where they live, I know where they work. My family knows this family...heck, our families have known each other for YEARS! So it's not like I'm leaving my child for a couple days with people I don't know.

But I had someone tell me today I am a bad parent for sending R "away" all of the time! That I should be with him ALL of the time. That I apparently don't want to spend any time with him. WTH! He goes somewhere without me once, maybe twice, a week! And he is 10 years old for crying out loud. He needs some independence. He needs to go out and do things without me, with kids his age. And it's not like I am dropping him off somewhere alone, like the mall or park or whatever. When he is at the Young Marines (an organization designed for kids to keep them off the streets and off drugs), there are adults present. He is at a friend's house right now, with adults present. He doesn't want, or need, me up his butt 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. He can't learn to be independent if he doesn't get some independence. And I spend plenty of time with him the other 5-6 days a week that he is home...we go fishing together, play games together, play in the pool together, read together, etc.

So if I am a bad parent because I let my son go somewhere without me once or twice a week, then I proudly wear that title.

Not Too Young

2010-05-10T03:04:00.000-05:00

When my son or I tell anyone he is now in the Young Marines, I always get, "Isn't he too young for that?" The answer is no. The Young Marines is for children ages 8 - 18. I have also gotten, "Why are you trying to turn him into a soldier so young?" The Young Marine program doesn't try to turn children into soldiers. One thing the Young Marines DO do is promote physical and mental developments of it's members, along with morals and a drug-free lifestyle. They also teach the ideals of honesty, fairness, courage, respect, loyalty, love of God, and fidelity to our country. And let's face it, kids now days need this because too many parents out there aren't teaching these things. The Young Marines also try to get the kids interested in and have a respect for their own academic achievement, along with the history and traditions of the U.S.A. They learn teamwork and leadersip. They learn about community service, and see how good it feels to do things for others.

So why wouldn't I get my child involved in something like this. Yes, I can teach and do all this stuff with him at home, but he is getting older. He wants to go out and do things with kids around his own age without his mom (thought that wouldn't come around to at least the teenage years, lol).

As a side note, R DOES want to be in the military when he grows up. It has nothing to do with the Young Marines. It is something he decided when he was 4 years old, and he hasn't changed his mind since. He has a love for this country, and yes, I do encourage it. And yes, I am proud that he wants to join the military when he is old enough, and will be even prouder when he does.

Going Shopping

2010-04-28T09:04:00.000-05:00

I have my list all ready, and later today I will be going to buy foods from my okay to eat list for the "Blood Type Diet." I will start this diet tomorrow. I won't be cutting all my avoid foods out all at once, but will instead start to slowly eliminate them.

Blood Type Diet

2010-04-26T23:57:00.000-05:00

I have been reading "Eat Right 4 Your Type" by Peter J. D'Adamo. It is basically a diet with a list of foods that are right and wrong for your blood type. It is more of a diet to optimize your health, but weight loss is one of the affects of it. Since I have been eating not so healthy lately, and have packed on some weight, I am going to give them Blood Type Diet a try.

I know this will be hard for me. On the list of things to avoid for my blood type are red meats, pork, and most dairy (I can still eat poultry though). Since these are some of my favorite things, I know this will be hard. But if it helps with my health, then it will be worth it. Even if I don't lose any weight, eating better will still be beneficial to my health. Since I am going to have to give up some of the things I love to eat, I am going to start this in baby-steps. Since I already have poultry once or twice a week, I am going to start cutting red meat/pork out once a week until it is completely out. I am also going to start to phase dairy out (and slowly go from regular milk to soy milk). I will try to keep an update on my progress and how I am feeling as I start this process

My Oldest

2010-04-21T00:53:00.000-05:00

In one week from Saturday, my baby boy (who isn't really a baby anymore) will be graduating from Recruit Training for the Young Marines. I am so proud of him for doing this. After the first day he told me, "You would have thought they would have went easy on us since it was the first day." Even after saying that, he said he was ready for the next weekend to come to go back. And every Saturday he has woke me up at the crack of dawn telling me to get up so we won't be late, lol. I can't wait to see him in his camoflauge uniform for the first time.

To learn more about the Young Marines and see if it is something your child might like to be involved in, you can go to http://www.youngmarines.com/.

Birds

2010-04-19T00:24:00.003-05:00

Last Tuesday, my male Parakeet, Forrest, died. C cried all day long about him passing away. She had never paid a bit of attention to either Forrest or Skye (the female), so I have no idea why it hit her so hard. Of course the next day she was all over me, telling me I had to go get another bird that looked just like Forrest so we could name him Forrest the Second.

So just forward to Friday. Skye was a little lonely, so I did go buy her a new friend to keep her company. I got a male that is blue and almost looks like her. B is the only one of the kids that knew I was getting it, and that's only because he went with me while the other two were at school. Neither C nor R noticed the new bird in the cage at all. R did finally noticed, but only after my dad walked in the door and went over to say hi to Skye and says "Good, you got her a new friend so she won't be lonely." Then R jumps up and runs over there. C never noticed on her own. Finally at bedtime I told her to go look in the bird cage. She was excited for all of 5 minutes, then got mad because I didn't get a green bird. Anyway, the new bird's name is Cobalt.

Young Marines

2010-04-07T12:16:00.002-05:00

Ray had been wanting to join the Young Marines, so I finally got him signed up. He started is recruit training for it this past Saturday, and will have his graduation from recruit training on May 1. When I picked up him, he told me, "They could have went easy on us since it was our first day." I told him that once he goes back next Saturday, he will see that they probably did go easy on him, lol. And even though he thinks they were hard on him and the other new recruits, he is ready to go back. He is looking forward to what the Young Marines have to offer, and all the cool things he is going to get to learn and do (like the camp outs and rappelling down things).

He does have to know the Young Marine Creed by Saturday, so we have been going over it several times a day. I'm afraid he won't have it memorized though. It takes a while for him to memorize things like that...just like his daddy. But all I can do is my best to help him remember it

Spring Break - Day 2

2010-03-30T22:50:00.001-05:00

Nothing got broken today, thankfully. I took the kids fishing for a few minutes today. Brian got bored after about 5 minutes though.

Spring Break - Day 1

2010-03-29T22:55:00.003-05:00

Today was the first day of Spring Break for my kids. It started with Brian rubbing sunscreen all over the kitchen floor and some pictures. Then either Ray or Chey decided casting Brian's fishing pole in the house was a good idea...I know it wasn't Brian since he doesn't know how to cast yet. He has a Spongebob fishing pole that has one of those things that tie on the end to give it some weight to help learn casting. So one of them casted the thing and got Plankton stuck in a plant hanging from the ceiling. Then instead of coming to get me, they just pulled on it to get him unstuck. They got him unstuck alright...along with half of the plant! Of course, Ray said it was Chey, and Chey said it was Ray. The both got a talking to since the plant was right in front of the window!

Who knows what the rest of the week will hold. But I am sure by the time school starts back, I will be ready for a padded room. And even saying that, I wouldn't trade my kids for anything in the world.

Too Many Books

2010-03-16T12:18:00.004-05:00

I like to cook, and I love to try out new recipes. I mostly look for new recipes online, print it off, then put it in a binder I have for recipes. I personally don't have many cookbooks. The ones I have, the recipes I like from them are copied for my binder. The cookbook is then put away or given away.

But I was cleaning the bookshelves of a relative recently. There were something like 100 cookbooks on one of them! There were fat ones and skinny ones. Big ones and little ones. Ones bought at stores and ones made for fundraisers (schools, churches, etc). There were ones dedicated to main dishes, side dishes, desserts, etc. Just about any kind of cookbook you can imagine was there. But how many cookbooks does a person really need? How many cookbooks does a person that does not even cook need?! What about if that person only cooks rarely and then from a box?

Seriously people, a person does not need that many cookbooks. If you have a ton of cookbooks that never get opened at all, then those cookbooks are doing NOTHING for you except creating clutter!

Same with any kind of books. If you have books that you have read, that you have no intention of ever reading again, why let them cause clutter. Pass them onto someone else to read by giving them to a friend, the library, the hospital, nursing homes (yes, the elderly do still like to read). I love books and yes I have a lot (plus I go to the library about once a week). But the books that are mine, once I read them leave the house. I take mine to my sister, who passes them on when she is done with them.

I wish....

2010-03-11T22:53:00.002-06:00

I wish that the sick germs would just once pass by the kids and myself! Some stomach bug has hit the house. First it got C, and I was hoping no one else would get it. No such luck. R, B, and I all got it.

Now that the weather is getting nicer, and we can get more fresh air, hopefully we all won't catch as many germs

New Jammies

2010-03-10T00:30:00.002-06:00

A few weeks ago I entered at giveaway over at Sugar Pop Ribbons Reviews & Giveaways. The contest was for a pair of pajamas from New Jammies. I was notified on March 1 that I was the winner! The jammies I got were very cute, with little geckos on them. And I received them very quickly. I was not able to respond to my winner notification the day I got it, but the next day (March 2). Then I received my prize on the 5th! Not only very cute jammies for my youngest son, but very quick shipping...definate A+!

Head on over to Sugar Pop Ribbons Reviews & Giveaways to check out all the great reviews and giveaways currently going on!

Turning 4!

2010-03-08T23:02:00.003-06:00

My baby is turning 4 tomorrow! It doesn't seem like he should be 4 already! We celebrated his birthday this past Saturday, and he loved everything he got. He had asked for a combine cake. So I did my best to make the cake look like a field, with a John Deere combine and tractor on it. It wasn't great, but B LOVED it. The tractor and combine on the cake were actually presents from Pawpaw. Although he liked all his presents, Pawpaw is the only one that got kisses. One of the things that I got him was a shirt with a 4-wheeler on it. But he will tell you Pawpaw got it for him. Pawpaw gets credit for everything, lol.

I guess I need to stop calling him my baby now. He gets mad at me when I do, and tells me, "I not a baby, I a big boy."

Meatloaf

2010-03-05T12:51:00.000-06:00

After work today, my dad told me a lady at work had brought meatloaf into work today to share with everyone. Being the nice man he is, he told the lady it was really good, but said in reality it was horrible. So I decided to share my meatloaf recipe. I usually have to double this recipe and there is never any left over. Even the kids gobble this up.

1 lb ground beef
1 (14 oz) jar pizza sauce
1 box cornbread Stove Top Stuffing mix
1 egg, beaten

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Mix together the ground beef, stuffing mix, egg, and 3/4 of the pizza sauce. Shape and put into loaf pan. Spread remaining pizza sauce on the top. Bake for 45 - 50 minutes.

If you want, you can add optional things like chopped onion, chopped peppers, grated carrots, etc.

So Sweet

2010-03-03T22:57:00.003-06:00

The other night, I was looking through some old pictures when I came across this one. I just love this picture...back before Ray and Chey were fighting all of the time. This was taken at the end of March of 2007, so Chey was 2-1/2 years old and Ray was almost 7. It was only 3 short years ago, but it seems like longer.

4 Years Ago

2010-02-23T10:40:00.002-06:00

On this day for years ago, I was 5 weeks away from my due date with my 3rd child, Brian. While it should have been a joyous time, I was miserable! I had been on partial bed-rest for almost a month. The baby had already dropped into position, so it was very uncomfortable to even stand. I was still suffering from horrible morning sickness...okay, all day sickness where I could hardly keep anything down. And I was taking care of an almost 6 year old (Ray) and an almost 17 month old (Cheyenne) at the time.

As I said, I was miserable. The only good parts of my whole pregnancy with Brian that I can remember is my ultrasounds and getting to hear his heartbeats at my doctor's appointments. But if I had to go back and go through that horrible pregnancy again, even knowing that it was going to be horrible, I would do it all over again. Because just 2 weeks later, my baby boy came into this world. And now he is getting ready to turn 4! He is growing up so fast. And even though there are times he makes me want to pull my hair out, I wouldn't change a thing.

Stupid Adults & Rude Children

2010-02-17T20:59:00.000-06:00

As I mentioned in my previous post, Ray was diagnosed with strep throat on Sunday night. We were supposed to have company (a friend and her kids) on Monday morning. I let her know that Ray had strep throat since most parents would not bring their children (aged 9, 7, and 4 months) around a sick child. Not only did she still come over, the original time she was supposed to come was 10 am and didn't come until 1 pm (um, things to do here).

While here, her 9 year old tried to tell me Brian wasn't allowed in Ray's room, that my dog was too big to me inside, that Brian wasn't allowed to be near the baby, that Brian was annoying, that Ray needed to be allowed to play outside since he was feeling better, etc. When Brian decided to play on the computer, the 7 year old ran and jumped into the computer chair trying to keep Brian from playing.

The whole time the mother just sat there, not saying a word to her kids. I said stuff of course, and so did my mother. I would never let me kids get by with talking to an adult the way this 9 year old was talking to me, or let my kids act this way. Not only would I correct them, they would be disciplined

Not a Good Winter

2010-02-17T14:45:00.002-06:00

This winter has just been the pits. It all started 2 days before Christmas. That is when Chey started to run a fever, and was vomiting. Her fever finally broke Christmas Eve night. Only for me to wake up Christmas morning feeling like I had been run over by a truck and having to blow my nose every 2 minutes. The afternoon brought Brian vomiting. Thankfully, Ray got by without any of it.

Chey and Brian got better, but I didn't. The month of Jan brought Pneumonia for me. Then a couple weeks ago Chey was diagnosed with Pneumonia. Then this past Saturday night, Ray started to complain that his throat hurt. Sunday he was running a fever that didn't want to go down too much, didn't want to eat because his throat hurt him too much, and he started vomiting. Since it was a Sunday on a holiday weekend, I took him to the ER. The poor boy has strep throat. Monday night Chey started running a fever again, but thankfully it was gone by morning and didn't come back.

And for me, it has just been one cold after another this winter. We have never been sick this much before. I wish I knew why this winter is different.

Shoe Shopping

2010-02-09T12:40:00.000-06:00

On Saturday, I had to take the kids shoe shopping. R goes through shoes like water. If he doesn't grow out of them, he wears them out. He had boots, but was in need of some tennis shoes. Since K wasn't home this weekend, I was going to have to take all the kids. Since it is always so much fun (insert sarcasim here) taking all 3 kids to the store, my dad offered to go with to help. Not only do they want to fight in the truck all the way to the store, they can't get along in the store, forget their manner, ask for everything they see (like most kids do), try to go off on their own, etc.

On the way home, my dad told me he sees why I am always so stressed out when I get home from taking all 3 kids some place together.

Feeling Better

2010-02-07T00:29:00.002-06:00

C was sick most of last week, along with the end of the week before. The poor girl had pneumonia. She was running a fever for 4 days from it. I felt so bad for her while she was down and out since I just got over the same thing a couple weeks ago. I know how crappy it made me feel, so I can only imagine how crappy it made a normally energetic 5 year old feel. Thankfully she is better now. She went back to school on Thursday. Although she hated to take her antibiotics, she will admit they made her feel better.

I Don't Want to Go to School

2010-01-28T00:02:00.000-06:00

C is only 5. She is in Pre-K (her b-day falls after the cut-off date for starting K this school year). Up until Christmas break, she LOVED school. A lot of mornings she would wake me up. The mornings I had to wake her up, she jumped out of bed. Every minute was, "Is it time to leave yet?" After school was always, "But I wanted to stay at school longer." And she hated weekends or any other day there was no school. She would even complain she didn't get homework like R did. When she did start getting "homework", she was always so excited, telling everyone, "I was so good at school today my teacher gave me homework."

But apparently that all changed during Christmas break. Since starting back at the beginning of the month, every school day starts the same..."I don't want to go to school today, I want to stay home." This is every single day from the time she wakes up until she gets to school! She's even told me, "If you were a good mommy, you would let me stay home." So apparently I am a bad mommy because I make her go to school, lol.

My Unlikely Duo

2010-01-25T12:09:00.001-06:00

I have been meaning to get this pictures up for a while now, and just never got around to it. These are two of our dogs. Actually, these are MY dogs (the other 4 dogs in the house belong to other household members). This is Blanca and Cleo (short for Cleopatra). I call them my unlikely duo. They do everything together. And I do mean everything...eat, sleep, play. What makes them so cute together is their size difference.

This one is from September, but Cleo (the little one) hasn't grown much. Even though you can only see Blanca's head in this, you can still see the size difference between the two. But they are the best of friends.

Here's Cleo (on the right) stretched out next to Blanca. Here you can see the size difference. And they don't do anything apart. Cleo think Blanca is her mother (even though her real doggy mommy also lives in the house). These two seriously do not do anything without the other along.

B & His Lead Poisoning PART 3

2010-01-25T00:08:00.000-06:00

Anyone that follows me on twitter saw a few days ago how I was ranting about the lead coordinator of this county. Thankfully, I have calmed down some since then.

This lady finally called me back the morning of the 21st, after I had left I don't know how many messages for her since October! Whatever happened to people returning calls in a timely manner? Anyway, she was claiming the only results she had were from the last county we lived in. That she didn't have any results from getting B tested in this county. Whatever. The hospital lab has it in their records that they were all faxed to her. Heck they had even faxed December's results to her AGAIN the day before she called me, yet she claimed she didn't have those either. I told her exactly what his levels were (and called the hospital to have them faxed to her yet again).

During the call, she also informed me I needed to make an appointment for the guy from the Lead Abatement Program to come back out to retest the house, and that I needed to take B back in now for another lead level check. I told her that unlike her, I kept up with what I was supposed to do, and that the house had already been retested. I also told her it was not time for B to get another level check seeing that he is supposed to get it checked at this point every 8 weeks and not every 4 weeks, and it had only been 4 weeks since his last check.

She calls me back about half an hour later to tell me, "His levels were what you said they were. The guy retested the house, just like you said he did, on the date you said he did. And you were right, he is supposed to get checked every 8 weeks just like you said." I felt so much like being childish and telling her, "I told you so." But some of the things I did tell her not appropriate to post here. This is one of my children we are talking about here. I don't know what kinds of other parents she deals with, but I for one keep up with any medical tests and/or care my children need...especially something as serious as lead poisoning!

5 in 1 Tasty Baker

2010-01-24T20:03:00.000-06:00

The 5 in 1 Tasty Baker is a unique all-in-one table top appliance that will bake muffins, bread, cake, pancakes/waffles in the one compact unit! It even has different molds to do different shapes...perfect for when cooking for the kids. To get your chance to win one for yourself, head over to http://www.trying2staycalm.com/2010/01/5-in-1-tasty-baker-review-and-giveaway.html

Kids' Clothing Sizes

2010-01-22T00:59:00.000-06:00

I don't know about anyone else, but I think clothing for kids should also come in half sizes. My kids don't really have anything that fits them just because all 3 seem to be stuck in between sizes. A size 8 is too small for R, but size 10 is too big on him. B is too big to wear 3T, but 4T's are too big on him. With C, 5's are too small, but 6's are too big.

And the length of things. Just as adults can be classified as petite, regular, and tall, kids can too. With R I need tall, and with the other two I need petities.

Maybe I just need to finally break down and learn to use this sewing machine sitting in the next room . That way I can make their clothes myself to fit.

B & His Lead Poisoning PART 2

2010-01-21T22:00:00.001-06:00

Before I pick up where I left off in my last post, I just want to mention that when B gets his lead testing done, the hospital lab is required to send the results to the county lead coordinator. It is then the lead coordinator's responsibility to get the results to me in a timely manner. I am also just going to write about the last 3 times B has had his lead levels checked.

I took B in August to have his blood drawn for his lead level check. I waited for the results to come to me in the mail. Finally I called the lead coordinator. She claims the lab never sent her the results. So I call the lab. They have it in their computer that they DID fax her the results already, but they fax them to her again while I am on the phone with them (the lab). This was morning time. I get a call from the lead coordinator the next afternoon. She didn't even tell me the levels (which I knew from calling the lab), she just told me, "B's lead levels are high, and he has lead poisoning." Yeah, lady, I think we've already been through this...I ALREADY KNOW THAT! She still never told me his levels, and never sent me a copy of the report she got (like she is supposed to do).

He was due for another lead check in October. Again, after I took him in, I waited for her to give me the results. Again, I didn't get anything. I tried calling her, leaving messages on her voicemail. Never got a call back from her. I call the hospital lab again to get the results (it is really against their policy to give out results over the phone, but they are great and give them to me anyway). They have it in their computer that they have faxed the results to her not once, but TWICE. And they fax them to her a 3rd time.

By the time December rolled around, and it was time for yet another lead check for B, I STILL had not heard a word from the lead coordinator on his results from October! She is the one that is supposed to get the results to me. That is supposed to be her responsibility and hers alone. B went the Monday before Christmas to get his lead check. I had the results just before the New Year because I again called the lab and they gave me the results.

It is now almost the end of January. It has been over a month since B's last lead check. If I hadn't called the hospital lab, I still would not have the results of that lead check! I still haven't heard a word from the lead coordinator. When I called the lab last month, they again had it in their computer they had faxed the results to her. Wednesday (Jan. 20) afternoon, I decided to try to call her. Of course she was out of the office. So I asked to speak to her supervisor. I let her supervisor know that since moving to this county, I have had to call every single time to get his results because she isn't giving them to me. I let the supervisor know that I have left several messages for the lead coordinator, and have not gotten a call back since September!

B & His Lead Poisoning PART 1

2010-01-21T00:56:00.000-06:00

I started out making this one post, but it started to turn into a book. Therefore I am breaking it into different posts.
My youngest son, B, who is 3, was diagnosed with lead poisoning last year. The normal levels in children should be less than 10, and at the time, his levels were 27! We had someone come out and test the home we were living in at the time to discover the source. It was the mini blinds the landlords had in there when we moved in. Out of the 12 sets of mini blinds in the house, only 1 did not test high for lead! We got those taken out, and his levels started dropping slowly.

Every time B had to get a blood draw to test his levels, his results were sent to the "lead coordinator" in the county and it was her job to send the results to me. This lady was great about getting the results to me. As soon as she got them, she would call me to let me know. She would then send a copy of the results to me, and let me know if he needed to be retested. It was her responsibility to get the results to me, and she made sure she did it.

A few months later, we moved to another county. I called the lead coordinator in this county, just to make sure the case had been transferred over here. To start with, I called her office about twice a week for almost 3 weeks. Each time she was either not in the office, or was on the phone so I was given her voicemail. I never got a call back from her. So finally one day while out and about, I popped into her office. I finally got to talk to her. I tell her my son has lead poisoning, that we had just moved from another county, and I just wanted to make sure that his case had been transferred to this county. She looked up his case to make sure she had it. Then she told me, "Your son has lead poisoning." Um, yeah, didn't I just say he had lead poisoning!

My next post will go into detail of my dealings with this woman since then. Or should I say lack of dealings.

Tart Warmer/BreakAway Tart Package Giveaway

2010-01-19T00:33:00.000-06:00

I want to scent my home by thinking safety and functional in a Country Style. Prim n Purdy is giving away the Country Copper Punched Stars Tart Warmer and BreakAway Tart package. If you're a Prim n Purdy Fan, and you would like a chance to scent your home by thinking safety and functional in a Country Style, you won't want to miss this giveaway! Stop by before 11:59pm CT on Friday, January 22nd and enter to win!

To enter, visit http://www.primnpurdyblog.com/2010/01/time-for-giveaway.html

Brain Block

2010-01-17T12:31:00.000-06:00

Need ideas on what kinds of things you , as a reader, would like to see on my other blog, Treat Yourself. So leave me a comment on either this blog, or on that one and let me know what kinds of things you would like to see on there.

Whatever

2010-01-16T00:56:00.000-06:00

If your job is to sit in front of a computer all day long, typing words in, then I do NOT want to hear, "When I had pneumonia, I went to work every day so you CAN get more done around the house." Um, yeah, cause we all know that sitting in front of a computer all day is the same as cooking 3 meals a day for the kids, taking care of 3 kids, washing dishes, doing laundry, running errands (with kids in tow), cleaning up after the kids etc.

Yes, I do have pneumonia, but I am still taking care of my kids, cooking them meals, making sure they are clean with clean clothes, cleaning up after them. So what if the clean clothes aren't making it out of the laundry baskets at this specific time. The clothes are clean and folded! So what if I am sweeping the floors every 2-3 days instead of every day, at least there is no garbage or toys piled all over them. And I don't think it's hurting anything that my floors have only been mopped once in the last week and a half. I just don't have the energy to mop them right now.

I am doing what needs to be done. I am making sure the kids are bathed. That the kids have clean clothes to wear, and good meals to eat. The dishwasher gets ran every single day. Garbage gets thrown away, and every single day the garbage is taken out of the house. Toys are put up at night when it's bedtime for the kids. Sure, there are things that need to be done, but wiping the fridge out (at least there aren't any science experiments growing in there), and dusting each room in the house from top to bottom can wait until I feel better.

My Little B

2010-01-14T15:12:00.000-06:00

My little B can be such a sweetheart at times. I have been sick since Christmas Day. I just couldn't seem to shake what I thought was just a cold. After running a fever for 4 days in a row, I decided this past Monday I needed to go to the doctor. B had to go with me since I had no one to watch him. The whole time at the doctor's office, B was patting me, telling me, "It okay, Mommy, the doctor make you better." Well, the doctor did help to make me feel better, giving me prescriptions for my pneumonia. It was so sweet of B to help "comfort" me during the doctor's visit though.

Then yesterday B was running around in circles, and gave me a game, telling me to push the "banana" buttons (the yellow ones). He said it would turn him off. So I pushed them. He told me I did a good job turning him off and also told me, "You so brave, Mommy."

This kid just cracks me up

Sample "Hogs"

2010-01-07T16:09:00.000-06:00

A sample of a product is just that...a sample. The reason for a sample is for you to try the product to see if you like it or don't like it. That way you can see if you like it before you make a commitment to purchasing a fill size of the product.  Samples are provided as a courtesy.

I am an independent representative for a couple great companies (which you can read about here).  I do pass out samples for customers to try before they buy.  I had a lady recently ask for some samples of mineral makeup, and she let me know what types of colors she liked. I picked around 4 samples to give to her. A few days later, she said how much she loved one of the colors, and wanted 4-5 more samples of just that color. Um, no.

I did my part. The lady asked me for samples, I gave them to her along with information on how to order. Since she liked the product and the color, it is now up to her to order the product if she wants more. The samples I give out, I do have to pay for. If I passed out 4-5 samples of one color to one person, I would have to do it for everyone. That would be money out of my pocket.

I don't mind giving samples to try a certain color, product, or scent. But if you like the product, color, or scent, then that is up to you to order it. It is not up to me to provide you with unlimited samples. Would you ask for unlimited samples from drug-store makeup companies, Bath & Body Works, etc. No, you would not. So don't try to get unlimited samples from Direct Sales representatives.

Win a MP3 Player

2010-01-04T22:23:00.000-06:00

ThriftyGrl has a new site – you’ll wanna check it out! It looks great!

While there, enter to win a MP3 Player! Contest ends 1/6. http://tinyurl.com/y9gr3ke

Coral Digital Studio 2010 Giveaway

2010-01-04T21:18:00.000-06:00

What's That Buzz is having a great giveaway for Coral Digital Studio 2010.

Included in Corel Digital Studio 2010:

1. Corel PaintShop Photo Express 2010 for your Photo editing and photo projects

2. Corel VideoStudio Express 2010 for Video editing and movie making

3. Corel WinDVD 2010 with Superior DVD playback

4. Corel DVD Factory 2010 for DVD burning and converting

This Holiday Season...

2009-12-27T22:51:00.000-06:00

...has sucked big time.  It started Tuesday night with C getting sick. She was better by Christmas Eve, thankfully. Christmas morning found me sick, and by afternoon B wasn't feeling too good. B and I are still sick.

Of course, even though I was sick, I was still expected to cook Christmas dinner. Had two people that were supposed to come over for that dinner. One decided to come around 5 hours early, the other around 4 hours early.  And neither one of them wanted to help out in the kitchen, nor help with any of the clean up. Okay, yes, they were guests. But as a guest, you do not show up that early to a dinner you have been invited to unless you are going to help do something! And if you are 4-5 hours early, and you see the hostess is not only sick, but taking care of a sick child, then offer to do something!

R & C both said it was their best Christmas ever, so they at least enjoyed it. B enjoyed all his gifts after he took a nap.  If you ask R & C what their fave gift was, they will both say, "My DS." B's fave gift seems to be his tools

Me, Venting

2009-12-22T15:54:00.000-06:00

Some people seem to think that just because I don't have a "job," that I sit at home on my butt all day long, therefore making me free to help with out with whatever, whenever. Sorry, not the way it works.

While I may not have a 9 to 5 type job, I DO have a job. My job is one of the most important in the world, IMO. It is called being a parent! My kids don't get themselves up and ready for school in the mornings on their own. My kids don't drive themselves to school or home from school, nor do they drive themselves to doctor appointments and such. The house doesn't clean itself, and the groceries don't magically appear in my kitchen.

Just because I don't work outside of my home, doesn't mean I am free to help you out at the drop of a dime. I do make plans, I do things outside of my home. I will NOT drop everything to help you out, unless it is an emergency! No, I will NOT pick my child up late/early from school when you need a ride to work just so you get there on time. You want a ride from me, YOU will either get there early or late. If your work is approx. 26 miles away from my child's schoo, use a brain...there is no way I can have you there on time and still pick up my child on time 15 minutes later! NO, I will not miss my child's class party that I committed to a couple weeks ago just because you decide to call me the night before wanting my help at the same time as the party.

Christmas Memories

2009-12-15T00:15:00.000-06:00

Last year, DH lost his job not too long before Christmas time, so money was really tight. The kids weren't going to get much for Christmas, but I was determined that it was still going to be a great Christmas for them. One thing I always have in the house is ingredients for baking. So I set everything out, then the kids and I got to work. We made several different kinds of homemade cookies, homemade caramels, homemade hard candy, homemade truffles, etc. We even got my youngest involoved, and he was 2.5 at the time. We spent the whole week before Christmas baking. Sure, it made a mess, but we had some great fun. And what was even better was seeing the joy on the kids faces when they would pass out their goodies to other family members while telling them about making them. And you know what? Here we are a year later, and my kids don't remember a single gift they did get for Christmas last year. But they sure remember making all those goodies.

So this Christmas, make some memories with your kids. Get in the kitchen and bake some cookies together. Or do holiday crafts, go caroling, or whatever. It doesn't matter what you do, as long as you do it together. You can even invite other family members over to join in on the fun (we had my brother come help last year).

Pet Peeves About Pet Owners

2009-11-13T01:12:00.002-06:00

Those who know me, know that I am a huge dog lover. Even if you don't know me, I'm sure you can figure that fact out about me seeing that I have 6 dogs. I didn't mean to start out with 6 dogs. It started with one, then another, then another. Then a stray came along and we couldn't find her owners. Then another stray, and again, couldn't find her owners. Then another that I got on purpose. Owning any kind of pet can be great for you and the pet. But you must use common sense when owning a pet. Lately I have seen more and more pet owners not using any common sense at all. So here is just a short list of some of my pet peeves on pet owners.

If you aren't going to be in it for the long haul, don't get a pet! It's that simple. If you do get a pet and decide it's not for you, find another home for it. Your local vet may even be able to help you do that. Whatever you do, don't just drive out into the country and dump the poor thing (I'm pretty sure this is how I ended up with my 2 strays, along with some cats that I have found homes for)!
NEVER, NEVER, NEVER pick a dog, cat, whatever up by their collar, then try to laugh it off, saying, "That's how it's mom picks it up." NO! A mother dog/cat/whatever does NOT pick a baby up by the collar! It picks the baby up by the scruff of the neck, which is a hell of a lot different. Picking the baby up by the neck doesn't put pressure on the front of the baby's throat, choking them. Picking them up by the collar and carrying them around is animal cruelty!
If you get mice coming into your home trying to find warmth from the cold nights, DO NOT PUT OUT MOUSE POISON! Even if you put it in a place your pet can not reach, the mice move around after they eat the poison. If you pet finds the mouse after it dies, it will want to investigate it, maybe even eat it. If you do have mice, there are several different options out there other than poison. Use some common sense. If you wouldn't put it around your children, then don't put it around your pets.
If you are not a pet person, then don't get a pet. Not even if your young children beg and beg you for one. Nine times out of ten, YOU will be the one that ends up taking care of that animal, not the kids. Same goes for it you like one kind of pet, but not another. DO NOT get the type of pet you don't like. For example, my kids keep asking for a cat. I am not a cat person. I think they are cute and all, but I really don't like them. Therefore, I will not get a cat. If you aren't a dog person, then don't get a dog.
Baby puppies/kittens/etc chew! Don't be surprised by this fact. They chew because they are teething (just alike a human baby does). They chew because it's their way of playing. They chew because it's their way of investigating objects. If you don't want them chewing on your things, then invest in a few chew toys for them (you can get some from the dollar store even ).

Sick again

2009-10-28T00:22:00.003-05:00

It seems like for the past couple of months, once I get over having one cold, I get another one. I am so tired of going through a box of tissue just about every day. I've been drinking plenty of liquids (cold and hot), using my Neti-Pot, and increasing my Vitamin C intake. I hate taking medications though. What do you do to help when you've got a cold? Leave me a comment and let me know.

Report Card

2009-10-23T22:02:00.001-05:00

R got his first report card for the year today. He got 2 A's, 3 B's, and a D. The D was in Spelling, but we are working on that more, and using games to help him learn them. So hopefully that D will be brought up before the next report card.

Another "Boo-boo"

2009-10-20T22:10:00.002-05:00

B sure keeps me on my toes...the poor boy. Just as a quick history lesson:

At a year and a half old, on a Christmas Eve, B busted his head open on the dining room table. Spent forever in the ER on that one
At 2 years old, he was jumping on the bed, fell off, and had a heck of a black eye from it. Didn't phase him one bit though, he went right back to jumping on the bed 2 seconds later.
The dog bite (which can I wrote about here and put pics up here) happened when he was 3. Also was the incident a couple weeks ago where he kept hitting his eye on everything at the family reunion, which I wrote about here.

So that brings me to now. The other day he was in his room watching TV, when he started crying. Hubby went to his room to see what was wrong, and came carrying him down. B was bleeding from his chin. I got the bleeding to stop right away. And once I got him cleaned up, it was just a little worse than a scratch. I asked him what happened. He told me, "I was jumping on my bed and fell." Just a couple hours later, I caught him jumping on the bed again!

So I have come to the conclusion that the only way I can keep him from getting hurt is to wrap him in bubble wrap, lol

I've been bad

2009-10-12T22:36:00.001-05:00

I admit it, I've been horrible at actually working on my blog. I've wanted to. I really have. It's just that I don't think anything in my life is interesting enough to share. Now that I've said that, here's what's been going on here.

C turned 5 a few weeks ago. Although she thinks she is older. Her b-day was after the cut-off to start Kindergarten this year though, so she is in an all-day Pre-K. She LOVES it. She is doing good in school, loves doing her homework (yes, homework in Pre-K!), and loves all of her new friends. The only things she hates is the fact that there is no school on the weekends, and that she has to wake up early. She never has been an early bird.

R just got his first progress report for the year. He's getting 1 A, 3 B's (one of which the teacher said if it was the actual report card, she would have put an A), a C, and a D+ (which the teacher and I are going to work with him on bringing up). I will have to do a whole other post on what getting him to do his homework is like :x.

B is used to having C home all day long, so he isn't liking when she is at school all day. A week ago, at a family reunion, he was playing on a merry-go-round. He decided to let go while it was moving, and hit his eye on one of the metal bars. Then he decided to start pushing a solid wooden swing. It swung back and hit him right in the same eye. Poor little man. He had a little bit of a black eye for a few days, but it really wasn't all that bad.

Been MIA

2009-08-05T22:19:00.003-05:00

Yes, I know I have been a bad blogger lately. I have a really good reason, really I do! You see, we got a pool, and have been spending a lot of time in it. The kids are learning how to swim. Below is a picture I took of R and C in the pool last month (I need to get some updated pics on the computer).

The kids just love the pool. B was a little scared of it at first, but now it is hard to get him out of it.

Loving Mother? I think NOT

2009-07-14T23:07:00.002-05:00

Here's a story for you. A girl (even though age wise she is an adult, I can't bring myself to call her a woman) has a child, and takes him cross country with no money to her name. She is then on way back across country, driving while she is tired (again, NO money either) when she flips car with her child in it. She is also pregnant with a second child. She is then on her way home on a bus when she meets a man.

Fast forward about 6 months, give or take. Girl leaves oldest child with father and takes new baby to another state to marry guy she met on the bus few months before (because he lives is other state)! Doesn't tell anyone she is doing it, just up a hops on a plane one day. Comes back like a week after she claims she will be back. She still living where she was, new husband still living in another state.

Then fast forward about a month from that. New husband supposedly gets new job on other side of country. Girl decides to take new baby and go with him. One problem with this...she leaves oldest child behind!

No, this is NOT a made up story. It IS a true story, and I'm sorry to say that I know this girl (even though I have NOTHING to do with her at all considering she basically told my husband that our children and myself are NOT his family).

As a mother of 3 children myself, I have to ask, WHAT KIND OF MOTHER LEAVES HER CHILD BEHIND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I would never leave my children behind for any reason! Especially not for a man!

Too Young

2009-06-20T00:24:00.002-05:00

There is a little boy at church that is about a year or so older than C, and he has a crush on her. C doesn't like this very much though. She says the boy isn't allowed to like her and that he isn't going to be her boyfriend, lol. She had 3 reasons:

He's just a kid
He's not big enough to take her on a date
He has to be as tall as Pawpaw to be her boyfriend

So there ya have it. My 4 year old will not have a kid for a boyfriend. He has to be an adult that can take her on dates. Guess she's stuck with Pawpaw and their "dates" every Wednesday to Dairy Queen for a while.

My Vents For the Day

2009-06-19T23:47:00.004-05:00

Vent #1
If you ask me to babysit your kids and say you will drop them off at a certain time, let me know if you end up not needing me to watch them. I do have a life. I don't just sit on my butt at home all day long, and I do have things that I need to do and places I need to go. I am willing to watch your kids, but if you don't need me then I do have better things to do than to make sure I am at home when you are supposed to be here.

Vent # 2
If you are an adult, then you should not need to call me to tell me that you need to go to the doctor like I'm the one that needs to call to make an appointment for you. I call to make appointments for my kids because they aren't old enough. And I'm not going to hold your hand while you make that call to make the appointment. Nor am I going to drag all 3 kids along to hold your hand at that doctor appointment. If I can give birth ALONE, then you can tell the doctor alone that you are sick. I not only make my doctor appointments myself, I go to them by myself because I am an adult, and that is what adults do.

Vent #3
If you are well enough to drive all over town, then drive an additional 20 minutes from town to get to my house, then you are well enough to drive your own butt back into town. If you car broke down at my house that's one thing, but just not wanting to drive is not worth me corralling all 3 kids into my truck, then listening to them fight all the way into town and all the way back home.

Vent #4
If you don't have kids, and have never raised them, then do NOT tell me what I should and shouldn't be doing to raise MY kids. Raising kids and just being around kids are two totally different things. You may say now things like, "When I have kids..." but I can guarantee that you will change your tune once you have kids. I too used to be one of those that said, "When I have kids..." And especially don't tell me how to take care of my kids when you can't even take care of yourself!

Baby Birds

2009-06-18T00:20:00.002-05:00

I discovered we have two bird families living on our front porch. On the right side, there is a nest in a planter with some newly hatched baby birds in it. I have no clue what kind though. On the left side there is another nest, inside another planter, with a baby bird in it that is so ugly it's cute, lol. The thing looks out and stares at me every time I'm on the porch now. I'm trying to get some pictures of them all, but at the same time trying not to get too close to get the pics.

21 lbs

2009-06-13T01:00:00.004-05:00

My dad so nicely pointed out about a week ago that I am getting fat! I was nice and didn't point out that he is fat also...nope, not me, I would never do that (giving my innocent look here). So I finally decided to weight myself a few nights ago. It had been about 6 months or so since the last time I weighed myself, and my pants were starting to get a little snug back then. So I looked down at the numbers a realized that in the last 6 months I have GAINED 21 lbs!!!

What happened to the days of me being able to eat whatever I want, whenever I want!!!??? I want those days back. I love food way too much! I used to LOVE being able to eat anything and everything and never gain an ounce. The only other time I have weighed this much was at the end of my pregnancy with R! I never even got close to this much when I was pregnant with C & B.

So I guess I have to make some changes in the way I eat. I need to loose those 21 lbs and get back to where I was. I'm not really sure if I want to follow a diet though. I think I will just start with cutting back on how much I eat, cutting out almost all of my treats (like to maybe a couple times a week instead of 3 or 4 every day), and trying to drink mostly water.

Of course, I'm not changing a thing until Sunday. You see, there is a family reunion Saturday. And where there is a reunion, there is always food!

Wonderful Friday...NOT

2009-06-05T18:28:00.002-05:00

My day started at 8 am, which was nice. But as soon as I woke up, R started talking. At the moment is it 6:55 pm, and he hasn't shut up yet! He has stopped talking for the time being, but the talking has been replaced by noise making. I don't know if he is just trying to drive me nuts, or if he is going to the world record of not shutting up.

While we were all outside playing today, B grabbed ahold of a hanging plant holder and pulled it down. The plant pot in it of course fell down, and konked C on the head. B thought this was the funniest thing. C, on the other hand, insisted that we get rid of B by sending him to jail. She said after we got rid of him, we could go get her a baby sister instead.

So now B is dancing around the house, using a tennis racket as a guitar, singing at the top of his lungs. I am ready for bed!!!

If I Were A Pizza

2009-06-02T18:02:00.003-05:00

So I was going across all the various papers R brought home from cleaning out his locker and desk at school. One paper is made to look like a slice of pizza, and had written on there "If I were a piece of pizza..." So here is how R's paper reads:

"If I were a piece of pizza...I would be a poisonous pizza so people would not eat me If people eat me they are going to die."

Only a child of mine would write something like that.

Nothing Exciting

2009-06-01T00:32:00.002-05:00

Nothing too exciting happened over the weekend. The kids did some fishing, and R helped Pawpaw and me do some mowing. R & C got to go to the park with my cousin Saturday, and he took them out for ice cream afterwards.

Anyway, I finally got more pictures of B's "boo-boos" on the computer. These are from 2 days after he got the stitches out. I still need to take pictures of how it looks now, but it is looking good. As you can see from these pictures, even 2 days after the stitches were taken out, it looked better than the day they were taken out. They only things I have been doing with his wounds is cleaning them with plain ole soap and water, then gently rubbing in a little pure aloe (not that stuff you get at the drugstore) and Vitamin E.

His head

His face just 2 days after the stitches were taken out.

And check out my other blog, Crystal's 3 C's, and see the newest baby blanket I have finished for a friend.

Kids in the Kitchen

2009-05-31T01:03:00.004-05:00

Since I don't really have anything "cute" to write about tonight, I thought I would talk about kids in the kitchen. My kids seem to like to help out in the kitchen. Some good reasons for letting your kids help you out in the kitchen are:

They get a sense of accomplishment
Learning to cook is a very valuable skill...after all, everyone needs to eat
Picky eaters (like my 9 year old) are more likely to eat something they help make

There is usually always something you can find for your kid(s) to help out with, no matter what their age is.

My 3 year old helps out with mixing things. He also helps pour things in after they are measured out.

My 4 year old also helps mix things. She also helps measure things out, which is a good head start in math. She also does thing like putting the toast in the toaster or the microwave.

Along with mixing, my 9 year old helps out with cutting things that can be cut with a butter knife. He is also just starting to be allowed to help stir things that are on the stove.

All 3 kids help out with washing fruits/vegetables, along with putting butter/jelly/peanut butter on bread/toast. When we make homemade pizza, all 3 kids LOVE to help put the pizzas together.

Yes, having the kids help out in the kitchen does get messy. But it is a good bonding experience, a good learning experience, and can be just plain fun. So try letting your kid(s) help out in the kitchen. You don't have to do it every day, but try it once a week, or a couple times a month. The meal/snack may only last a few minutes, but the memories you make will last a lifetime______________________________________________________________

And for today's Tip of the Day:

Have a stain in your sink, tub, counter, etc? Instead of grabbing the harsh scouring cleaner or bleach, grab your box of baking soda instead! Baking soda scours just like Comet (etc), but isn't as harsh, and leaves no chemical residue behind. For really stubborn stains, spritz some plain vinegar on top of the baking soda and let sit for a couple minutes

Too Cute

2009-05-30T00:20:00.003-05:00

I was sitting in the yard this evening, watching B go around and around the circular drive in his Power Wheel Jeep. That's when he saw Pawpaw heading back to the shop to get out the tractor to mow. That boy was almost to the shop before I even got 1/4 of the way, lol. Then he stopped his Jeep right outside the big door and sat there waiting. As soon as the door had raised about halfway up, he floored his Jeep right into the shop and yelled, "Hi Pawpaw!"

Then after bedtime, R kept getting out of bed. The last time I told him he was in trouble if he got out of bed again. His reply was, "But what if there's a snake up here in the room?" Gotta love what kids come up with.

C, on the other hand, decided to try a different kind of "pajamas" for bed tonight. She had to go to bed wearing a purple princess dress, a tiara with purple stones, and white high heels.

I have no clue how I would stay entertained if it wasn't for my children

Just Great

2009-05-28T23:44:00.002-05:00

My place got broken into. They took my computer monitor and my flat screen TV (that I just got in Feb). They even took the remote and user manual (which was on top the entertainment center) for the TV. But they did leave my surround sound, DVD player, and computer. They also didn't touch the 2 older TV's (then again, who would take a big box TV when they can take a flat screen), or the older computer.

Recipes

2009-05-28T12:33:00.001-05:00

I have a couple new recipes up over on Crystal's 3 C's.

Tip of the Day #1

2009-05-28T01:56:00.005-05:00

Since I don't really have much to blog about, I thought I would give some tips every now and then. So here is today's tip:

If you send your 4 year old to the Wednesday evening church service with her Pawpaw, then there is a good chance that 4 year old will talk said Pawpaw into taking her on a "date" to Dairy Queen. The results could be them coming home with ice cream for you!

So far my results with using this tip has gotten me a Mocha Moolatte last week and a hot fudge sundae this week!

Stitches are out

2009-05-25T22:10:00.003-05:00

B got his stitches out on Friday morning. Everything looked worse after he got his stitches out than it did with the stitches in, and that's counting the same day he got the stitches! Here are a couple pictures of what he looked like on Friday, after the stitches came out.

Here is his head. It actually looks worse in the picture here than it did in person, but it still looked bad in person.

And here is his face. It just looks worse than it did with the stitches. Those are steri-strips on his face for those wondering. And for some reason the doc put Betadine on OVER the steri-strips.

B is doing good though. I have a couple pictures that I took yesterday of his face and head that look so much better than he did on Friday. I just need to get those pictures onto the computer. I have been just washing the area with soap and water, and putting PURE aloe (none of that wanna be aloe that you get at Walmart or Walgreens) on his wounds, and they are doing great.

Hope you all had a great Memorial Day. We did here. We went to my grandpa's grave. We also had people over for a cookout, and spent a nice day outside.

R spent a lot of time over the weekend out at the pond with his Pawpaw. Last night Pawpaw stayed up until midnight cutting up fish. And tonight he was cutting up fish until 10 pm.

C did a little fishing over the weekend also. She only caught 3 or 4 fish though. But she claims the ones she caught were about 2 foot long, lol.

Minus 1 Stitch

2009-05-21T22:21:00.003-05:00

B is minus one stitch now. He scratched off a small part of his scab, and pulled a stitch out. It looks good though...as good as it can considering it's a dog bite. His doctor's appointment to get the stitches all out is at 9:15 tomorrow morning! I am ready for the stitches to come out so I can stop worrying about him pulling them out. Of course I will still have to worry about him picking at the scabs until they heal. Then again, a mother never stops worrying about her children. I will try to get some pictures up tomorrow night of the wounds after the stitches are out.

The other dogs have been great with B since he got bit. One usually tries to stay away from the kids unless they are eating, and in that case she sits and begs for their food. But she has been going up to B all week and kissing on him. She normally doesn't kiss on anyone. Another has been going in his room all week at bedtime and checking his room out, then laying outside his bedroom door. The other 3 kiss on him and cuddle up to him. B is showing no fear of them, thankfully.

R got a 100 on his spelling test today! He tries to act like it isn't a big deal when he does that, but I always make it a point to tell him how proud I am of him and hang them on the fridge. I think it kind of embarasses him, lol.

C has been having fun telling everyone she runs across all about how B got his boo-boos. Everyone she has seen at the store for the past week, she tells them hi, her name, B's name, how old both of them are, and then tells them, "Tank bit my baby brother, that's why he has stitches."

It's A Cheeseburger

2009-05-21T01:08:00.003-05:00

This evening, I found a turtle under my truck. I brought the little bugger in to show B since he had never seen one in person before. Mr. Turtle was even poking his head out for us and everything. So I show B, and ask him if he knew what he was. He replied, "It's a cheeseburger!" I had to explain to him that it was a turtle, just like Franklin (a show on Noggin for those of you without kids).

C wanted a Reese cup yesterday, so she told me she needed to borrow my driver's license to drive down to the gas station to get one. Yeah, because I'm going to just hand my license and truck keys over to my 4 year old. She wasn't happy when I would just hand everything over and let her go. She still hasn't figured out that she isn't tall enough to see over the steering wheel, let alone reach the pedals.

B had to go for another blood draw for them to check his lead levels today. Poor baby. I was very proud of him though. There was a 5 year old little girl that went ahead of him and was getting the finger prick lead test and she was screaming so loud the whole time she was back there and then still crying for a good 5 minutes after she came out. B cried for less than a minute. Of course, I guess if you just had stitches put in your face and head less than a week ago, a little poke in the arm is nothing even at the ripe old age of 3.

Speaking of B's stitches, he is getting them out on Friday morning. He hasn't pulled any out so far, although he did scratch off a small part of scab in between a couple stitches.

Happy Birthday, R!

2009-05-18T07:39:00.002-05:00

My oldest baby is 9 today! Time just flew by. It seems like he should still be a baby, not half grown.

Today

2009-05-17T21:42:00.002-05:00

B just had to spend most of the day with Pawpaw today. First he kept saying he wanted to ride on the tractor, and Pawpaw needed to mow anyway, so B got his ride. The tractor ride put him to sleep, lol. He woke up grumpy as can be though. A little bit later he saw Pawpaw leave on the 4-wheeler and threw a fit. I ended up having to hunt Pawpaw down and take B to him. He wore Pawpaw out today, lol

B is still doing okay as far as his stitches, and has been taking his meds like a big boy.

R was a holy terror today. He kept picking on C. He was not listening at all.

R & C were fighting over the computer today, so now both are off the computer for now.

C got in trouble today for peeing in her pants. Her excuse was she was too busy giving her Barbie a bath to use the potty! She was giving the Barbie a bath in the bathroom sink! She was only 2 steps away from the potty! She wasn't very happy with having to clean the mess up herself, but maybe now she will learn.

Tank

2009-05-16T23:33:00.002-05:00

This is Tank, the one that attacked B.

B update & some pics

2009-05-16T22:47:00.005-05:00

B has been doing fine. He had fun playing outside, and watching Pawpaw change oil in the car. He didn't put up too much of a fight when it came time to take his meds, he is usually a fighter when it comes to taking meds. He has been doing pretty good about not trying to mess with the stitches on his face, and hasn't tried to touch the ones on his head at all. When he goes to touch his stitches, he stops as soon as I tell him not to, and then goes a couple hours with leaving them alone before he starts trying to touch them again.

A couple people have been talking about how bad his scar is going to be on his face. My thoughts on him scarring is that I don't care if he has a big scar or a little scar. I'm just glad that he is okay. I know it could have been worse, and I am thankful that it wasn't worse (this was bad enough). The most important thing is that he is okay.

Here are some pictures of all of his "boo-boos." Some were taken at the hospital right after they got the stitches in (with my cell), and some were taken at home right after we got home. WARNING!!!!!!!!!!!!!! DO NOT look at these pictures if you can't deal with the sight of blood.

This is the least of B's injuries. He has some scraps and a bruise on his back

Here are the stitches in his head. I can't get a very good picture of them because of his hair. But there are 9 stitches in there (well, the doctor said 9, but I when I counted today, I counted 10).

Here is the side of his face. There are 8 stitches there.

This was at the hospital, with my cell. My poor baby

This one was at the hospital also, after the stitches.

My Poor B

2009-05-16T01:34:00.003-05:00

B and I were outside today. I was sitting on the porch and he was playing in the yard. One of the dogs decided to just run up and bite B. He got him good and ripped him. B has a big gash across his face and big tear on his head. He also had little places near his ear and on his nose. He ended up with 8 stitches on his face and 9 on his head, and the little places were glued. He also has some scratches on his face and back.

Poor little guy was loaded up with Tylenol with Codeine and an antibiotic at the hospital, and also send home with prescriptions for both.

I couldn't help but laugh while he was getting all stitched up. He was, of course, crying and couldn't move and kept asking me to help him up. I was rubbing one of his cheeks and talking to him to let him know I wasn't leaving him. What made me laugh was when he started telling me, "I want an ice cream cone," and "I want a popscicle." The poor little man is laying there getting his head and face stitched up and telling me that he wants ice cream and popscicles. On the the nice nurses gave him a popcicle onces they were all done with his stitches. And we stopped on the way home to get him an ice cream cone. He even fell asleep for a little but while the doctor was stitching him up.

B is doing okay now. He took a nap after we got home from the ER. He ate his dinner and even played outside for a little bit. The other dogs all loved up on him, and he seemed to like that. When we went out to play after he ate dinner, he only wanted me to hold him. He didn't want put down at all until I showed him that the dog that bit him wasn't here anymore and reassured him that dog would not come back here. He is enjoying all the extra lovings that he is getting from me and the rest of the family, and from the other dogs.

As for the dog that bit him, he is being put down! Tank, what we called him, was picked up by animal control while we were still at the ER. There was a Deputy at the ER getting ready to leave when we got there, and when he heard dog bite, he called in animal control. I was glad to not have to worry about dealing with that once I got home with B.

Sick Day

2009-05-14T22:19:00.002-05:00

So R woke up around 2 am and told me he puked on his bed and in the floor. I got him laid down on the couch with a bucket, then went to clean it up and found out he got the wall too. Lovely...NOT! So I kept him home from school. After all, I don't want him to pass his sickness germs onto the other kids. He was feeling better by noon!

Usually when he is too sick to go to school, I just have to tell the school "He's sick" when I call in. Not today. I told them he was sick, so they say, "Well, we have to ask a few questions then because of the swine flu." They asked a couple things. I told them, "He's puking and has no other symptoms." They asked if he had a fever. I told them, "No, he is just puking with NO other symptoms." Duh, how many times do I have to say that.

And now I am wondering why I provide beds for my children. It seems they would rather sleep on the hard floor. Yeah, cause you know a hardwood floor is more comfy than a nice comfy bed. You don't think so? Me neither. Even the dogs don't think so. But the dogs don't mind because it gives them more room on the kids' beds to stretch out if the kids decide to sleep on the floor, lol .

Other Blog

2009-05-13T21:59:00.003-05:00

BTW, for anyone interested, I have some pictures up on my other blog, Crystal's 3 C's. A few of one crochet project I have done in the past (going to put more up soon). And some of a few cakes I have made, that aren't very good, but I did them myself.

B was still running a fever today, but seems to be doing better now. He actually took a nap on his own today!

R threw a fit from the time he got home from school until bedtime tonight.

C decided to go to church with Pawpaw tonight. She kept saying she was going on a "date" with Pawpaw. I told her that Pawpaw was only going to church and no where else, so she told me, "I'll just talk to him about that!" Apparently, she did talk to him about that because he called not too long after church to ask if I wanted anything from Dairy Queen, lol. My little girl has her Pawpaw wrapped around her little finger, and she knows it!

It's A Shame

2009-05-13T21:43:00.002-05:00

I have some family members that I don't really know. I know who they are, and recognize them if I run into them, but they have no idea who I am, and it's sad really. I live near many of my family members. All within a mile and a half area are me with my kids and hubby, my parents, my brother, an uncle (dad's brother), 2 cousins, and an aunt (dad's sister). Another uncle (dad's brother0 has like a weekend place in the same area. Not that much farther away, I have another uncle (dad's brother), aunt, and 2 cousins, these family members that I don't really know. The last time I really saw them was at my grandfather's funeral in October 1997.

Then a couple weeks ago, I ran into one of these cousins at Walmart. He was the cashier checking me out. I knew as soon as I saw him who he was. I just stood there while he was rining up all my things, and then while I was paying I asked, "You don't know who I am, do you?" He just kind of gave me that "Should I" look. So I told him, "I'm your cousin." He still just kind of looked at me, so I told him, "I'm your Uncle (my dad's name) daughter." His reply was, "Oh, I'm sorry, there are just so many of us (family last name) cousin's running around." The truth is, there really aren't that many of us in this area. Counting myself, there are 8 of my grandmother's grandkids in this area.

Not even a week later, I was back at Walmart, and again went through this cousin's line. Again, he didn't know who I was. It's really sad when you don't even know who your own family is. What happened to the days when a person knew their extended family? I have other family members that I don't see to all that often, or even talk to on a regular basis, but if we run into each other, we know who the other is. And in the area where I live, I believe that it is more than important for a person to know who they are related to. I am related in one way or another to just about half the small town I live in. So of course I want to know who I am related to, and I want my children to know. I don't want my kids to grow up and get married, then discover they have married a cousin of some sort!

B & C

2009-05-12T23:21:00.002-05:00

B was so cute today. He kept singing, "You Are My Sunshine." Or at least trying to. It was more like, "You sunshine, sunshine, happy, skies gray." But it was still cute just the same. But I knew something was up when he told me about 45 minutes before bedtime that he wanted to go to bed. He seemed to be doing okay though. He had a cough, but no fever or anything. Then about an hour and a half later he started calling for me and ASKING for medicine. He HATES medicine. Poor baby was running a fever and coughing. Getting him take anything other than his vitamins is usually a pain in the butt. Not tonight though. Tonight he grabbed the little medicine cup as soon as I got it measured out and downed it. Then he went back to bed.

C told me tonight that if I didn't waste money on stupid things then I would have money to buy her everything she wants. I asked her what stupid things I waste money on. Her reply was, "Groceries." So in case none of you knew, going to the grocery store once a week and buying food to eat is now a waste of money. And if we all just quit buying food then we would have enough money to buy our 4 year olds everything they want. You know, because every 4 year old just needs a Touch-n-Brush, or Smooth Away, or whatever else they see on commercials.

OUCH

2009-05-11T21:57:00.002-05:00

I was mowing again today with the push mower. I finally get done and about an hour later I am working on dinner. I looked down and noticed I had a blister from mowing! And of course, since I saw it, now it hurts. I'm sure I'll live.

B is the only one of the kids that hasn't given me a hard time about going to bed tonight. R and C keep trying to get out of bed, saying they have to use the bathroom....yep, gotta use the bathroom every 5 minutes.

Mother's Day

2009-05-10T21:18:00.002-05:00

The kids were so proud to give me the things they got for my for Mother's Day today (or rather what Mawmaw got for them to give to me, lol). All 3 kids gave me a card. R gave me a pair of sandals (which I did have to take make to exchange for the right size, but shhh, don't tell him that since I told him they fit perfect). C gave me a shirt, and B gave me a pair of shorts.

My dad made burgers and hot dogs on the grill, and the kids played outside almost all day. It was a pretty good day.

Fun Filled Day

2009-05-09T23:44:00.002-05:00

The kids had a fun filled day today. We started out by going to a children's festival that was held in town. The kids got to ride horses, pet goats, a sheep, a pig, and a rabbit, got to see Sponge bob, Patrick, Elmo, and Shrek. They also go to play in bounce houses. B LOVED it that the Lion's Club had a train there and he got to ride it.

After that we came home for a little bit that ran down the road to a church that was having a block party. There the kids got to play in yet another bounce house. They got to eat hot dogs, chips, popcorn. They got to play games to win candy. C did the cake walk a few times and won 2 cupcakes, then gave one to her little brother (who she claims she hates, but her actions tell otherwise). R did throw a fit that he didn't get a cupcake, but was reminded that he could have had a chance to win one had he did the cake walk that he refused to do.

After getting home, Pawpaw was going to get the tractor out to mow. Being that he is a HUGE Pawpaw's boy, B grabbed his jacket to go out with him. He wouldn't let me help him put it on though, he made Pawpaw put it on him. Not too much longer, Pawpaw comes carrying him into the house. Tired little man fell asleep riding on the tractor with Pawpaw, lol.

Being that we were going to be in the sun all day, I did remember to put sunscreen on the kids. However, I neglected to put any on myself, and K didn't put any on either. So I got a bit of a burn on my face. K got burned on his face, neck and head (since he shaved his hair off).

Other Blogs

2009-05-06T14:06:00.004-05:00

BTW, I wanted to let others know that I have a couple other blogs.

Crystal's 3 C's is about some things I like to do....cakes, crochet, and cooking. I will be posting pictures of cakes and crocheted things I make, along with some of my favorite recipes.

Just Mineral Makeup is all about Affordable Mineral Makeup™. It gives info on the company, the products and any sales/specials going on.

So make sure to check out my other blogs.

Mommy, I love you

2009-05-06T14:03:00.002-05:00

I just love when out of no where one of the kids comes up and says, "Mommy, I love you," and is telling me just to tell me instead of telling because they want something.

Today we were on our back back home from a trip into town, and B was quiet the whole way. Just as we were turning onto our road, he goes, "Mommy, I love you." Then didn't say another word

Pretty Milk

2009-05-04T21:35:00.002-05:00

At the store last night, C informed me she wanted "Pretty Milk." I thought I misheard her, so I asked what she said, and she repeated, "I want pretty milk." I asked what pretty milk was, and she pointed and told me it was the pink milk. So, folks, pink milk is NOT strawberry milk, it is called Pretty Milk. And according to C, if you mix some Nesquick into the Pretty Milk, it tastes just like chocolate strawberries.

Gotta love kids!

Mowing

2009-05-04T20:55:00.002-05:00

For some reason, K couldn't mow the yard before leaving for the week. So I get to do the job now. What sucks though is that my dad's trailer is loaded down with things, so I can't borrow his riding mower cause I can't get it over there. So I get to mow my whole yard with a push mower!!! I didn't even get a quarter of the yard done today but I am sooooooo sore from what I did get done! Have to do more tomorrow.

C was so cute while I was mowing though. First she had to tell me how to start the mower (and she was right). Then when my brother showed up with his mower too, C said, "Now we have 2 mowers mommy and I can help you." I am sure she would push around the mower if I let her too.

C spent this evening helping Pawpaw put plant food on the some new trees he planted around the pond. B was walking with them and slipped into the pond! It freaked Pawpaw out, but he said Brian just stood up and walked out of the pond and refused to come in until his Pawpaw did.

Carnival

2009-05-03T21:26:00.003-05:00

K & I took the kids to the carnival yesterday. The kids had a blast, and didn't want to leave.

C didn't want us to take her though. She only wanted Pawpaw (my dad) to take her, so he said he would meet us there. C told me as soon as her Pawpaw got there, I could leave, lol. She was happy that she got to ride the ferris wheel with Pawpaw, and that he threw some darts to win her a stuffed animal. She also beat me in the water gun thing, so won her own prize.

R threw a fit when it was time to leave. I told him we were out of tickets for the rides and out of money for the games. He kept telling me that I could just go to the ATM. Then he did his best to try to tear up all the prizes that he won. You would think it would be one of the younger ones acting up as bad as he was.

B loved going on the little rides that he could go on. He did the pick the duck game and got a big blow up baseball bat. He also did this fishing thing where he had to catch a toy shark on his pole. He won a horn doing that...fun ride home with that thing, lol.

Today we finally got the basketball goal put up, so K and I spent some time playing basketball with R. Then B wanted to play too, so K was holding him up so he could throw the ball.

K has to get back on the road in the morning, so it will be just me with the kids until he comes home again.

A Whiney Day

2009-05-01T18:37:00.000-05:00

C has been whiney since the minute she woke up this morning. I tried to get her to take a nap, thinking maybe she didn't have enough sleep, but she wouldn't go to sleep.

R has been throwing a fit about EVERYTHING since he got home from school. First it was because I didn't have a pen in my purse, then it was because we are out of yogurt, then because of what I cooked for dinner (lasgana), etc. He has spent so much time in his room because I don't want to hear it.

B has only thrown a fit today when one of the other kids has taken something away from him.

K is home for the weekend. He is driving me crazy also!

Shaven eyebrows

2009-04-30T20:37:00.000-05:00

So B, the youngest, decided he wanted he wanted to be like Pawpaw the other day. He was supposed to be brushing his teeth, but got into the shaving cream instead. He put it all over his face, then he shaved off half of one eyebrow and half of the other eye brow. Little booger head.

Introduction

2009-04-30T14:43:00.000-05:00

I'm a wife and mother. I have been married to Keith for 9-1/2 years now. We have 3 children.

R is going to be 9 in May. He loves anything that has to do with the Army and plans to join when he is 18. His favorite color is camouflage. He is just finishing up the 2nd grade. He likes to help out in the kitchen and is learning to cook.

C is 4-1/2. She is somewhat girly-girl and somewhat tom-boy. She loves to ride tractors and 4-wheelers. She also loves to fish, and is the only one of my children that will actually touch the worms and try to bait her own hook. She also lives shoes and to put makeup on. She is just now getting to where she likes to help mommy in the kitchen.

B just turned 3. He loves trains, tractors, trucks, cars, and 4-wheelers. He is learning more and more every day.

Keith is a truck driver, who just recently went from being local to being back over the road.

Along with staying home to take care of the children, I am also an independent representative for Affordable Mineral Makeup™. I love the makeup from this company, and I love the company. If you would like to know more about Affordable Mineral Makeup™ then you can click on the name in this post, or read about it on my other blog, http://crystalneedy.blogspot.com.

Along with the kids and the husband, I also have 6 dogs. Two of the dogs are Bichons, one a Chow, one a White Shepherd, one a Chihuahua/terrier mix, and one a lab/chow mix