Friday, January 30, 2009

I feel better~

yes... I feel better now about being a working woman/mom. I loved staying at home partly because, well I just feel like that is what I should do and I love being with my son full time.... But I also LOVED watching the news and all of the informational talk shows.. yes I was addicted to the Today Show, Ellen, Oprah and Dr. Phil.. I also felt like even with the internet access I was taught so many different things just by viewing TV during the day.

Now.. all the sudden my world at work has been opened and I feel a little less depressed that Im missing out. For I have found Twitter! And also Facebook, which is kinda like a bunch of my girlfriends gathered around the table for a chat and some coffee. Its amazing! And Im so thankful. I think Id still love to be a SAHM, but for now.. I feel better being where I am.

Next step.. look busy so as not to get into dutch with the boss.... Have a great weekend ya'll! ;o)

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

oh my goodeness!~

I cant believe its been 5 days since I last posted. What is wrong with me? Im not THAT busy! Well, I was over the weekend.. but that is gone.. ugh. Whats up world?
Today its icing out.. we got about 2 inches of snow last night and they say more on the way. I like it.. but then again I dont have to get out in it. It does kind of bum me out that since I live so close to work they expect me to be there.. I want a snow day darnit!
Anyway, just an update.. Im still here.. and off to read how ya'lls weekends went. :)

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Laughter, its the best!~

So... who loves to laugh???.... If you arent easily grossed out, dont mind some filthy language or sexual content... These are my all time favorite comedies. It doesnt matter where Im at or what Im doing, if one of these movies comes on.. Im going to watch it. And I cant stop! And the thing is... I watch them over and over and over again. They say that laughter is the best medicine. YES... its sooo true!

So for the weekend-please.. put the kiddies to bed.. rent one of these movies and laugh your butt off. Im telling ya.. if you have a sense of humor, perhaps a sick sense of humor even.. watch one or heck all of them! I can say safely that each of these movies have made me laugh til I thought I was going to pee my pants. So, if you've seen them or are going to.. be sure to comment back and let me know what you thought/think.

ps: Other movie favs to come in the future. :)

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

My 2008 Moments-Part 2~

oookkkk... here we go. But before I get started I thought of two things that I forgot to mention. 1} A very nice fella and co-worker-Lt. Rich McKee was victim to a murder/suicide in the month of January. His wife killed him then committed suicide. This dude meant a lot to me and so many others.. He was an awesome officer to work with. He will be sadly missed for sure.

Also, in April 2008 we experienced our first ever earthquake! YES, an earthquake!!!! It happened on April 18th. Really early in the morning. I remember feeling the house shake like a big wind burst.. I sit up in bed and then it started shaking the whole house-including bed... this time Todd felt it.. we both jumped up and ran to the living room.. We looked at each other.. I thought for sure it was a tornado.. we then ran to see if Hunter was ok-he was still asleep. Todd went outside and searched around and nothing. Sure enough.. the Earthquake had hit 128 miles from St.Louis in the center or near center of Illinois. It rated a 5.4 in magnitude.... and Wow, what a feeling! haha

In August I discovered some very, very cool blogs and links. Creative Scrappers was one and List of the Day the other. I visit these sites.. or try to everyday. With CS, Ive met some really cool ladies that I am happy to call friends and have done more scrapping than ever thought possible with their fabulous sketch challenges. I also became obsessed a bit about celebrity gossip and found Evil Beet to be a good source to go to to get my daily fix. August 2008 also was the month for my Moms 60th and my Dads 70th birthdays. I got news from them both that they had bought homes in Arizona. Now, my parents are divorced and my Mom is remarried.. so you can imagine the anxious feeling I got when they each told me the news and I asked.. ummmm where in AZ? hahaa Well come to find out Dad got a home in El Mirage and Mom in Mesa.. so they are a good hour away from one another, but what news huh? Later this month I also got the news from my Mom that their goal within the next two years would be to move to Arizona permanently. At first it didnt really seem that big of a deal... then a couple days later it hit me that my Mom would no longer be as accessible as she used to be... and what if something happened to her or worse. I have learned to let that go and be happy for her. I hope now that one of these days I can actually go there and visit. haha I ended August 08' with my 100th blog post here.. woot woot!!!

September was totally awesome! First we went back home {Central Missouri} over Labor Day weekend. The weather was beautiful and we sat on Dads front porch in the breeze for a couple days and just laid back and visited. We went to the Mokane fair.. and had some mutton and watched the parade. Hunter and I both cried hard when we had to leave. We love the country and didnt want to come home!!! I won the 1-hour contest put on by Kristine over at CS in September too. I was voted winner by all the participants in the 1-hour contest and it was such an honor to win. The layout rocked and I was so happy to just be able to make it. hehee. September also brought the Thunderbirds to town. We live very close to Scott Air Force Base.. so close that we can sit in the yard and watch the show without having to go on base. So it was pretty cool to watch the jets zippin' overhead for the Air Show. This year Hunter did better, no crying-although he did hold his hands over his ears a few times. hehe This month both Hunter and I battled sickness... Lorday were we sick. The stuff just wouldnt go away. With a couple of rounds of antibiotics we were back to our old selves though. OH.. and how could I forget.. my niece Aimee joined the Army this month. Gah.. so proud of this chick!

October.. ahhhh my favorite month of the year. This month.. no exceptions! What a fun month! We started off the month getting new linoleum in our kitchen. Todd and my BIL Jim put it in on a Saturday. Its made such a difference in the house. Its so homey looking and since we've also gotten a new dining room table/chairs. I love how cozy it feels and looks. October, if you didnt know, is also my turn for a BIRTHDAY.. woot woot! haha. I turned 41. and what did I go and do?... got me a dog. Was I insane or what? I think old-timers took over.. hahaha. But I got my lil girl Ruby {named for ruby slippers}.. she is a Cairn Terrier {like Toto from Wizard of Oz} and she is a gem. Still not potty-trained but doing better. She sure loves me and Hunter loves her to bits. So I guess she is a keeper! ;) Todd had his usual deer camp adventure. I felt so bad for him as he only got one deer {altho it was a good one}.. it rained his entire vacation. Hopefully, next year will be kinder. October brought me a wonderful surprise from my brother Neal... he and his wife called up and asked if they could come up and babysit Hunter for a night and theyd take us to dinner and then theyd take Hunter while Todd and I went to the movie. We did and had a great time. Todd and I saw the movie Fireproof. and although I dont think it made the impact that it did on my brother... it was a great movie... and I definitely recommend any couple to watch it. Wow, the more I type the more I think of things that happened in October! hahaa... I also made a trip back home this month to see Justice play his final soccer game and watch him as he played to try to win the Championship... they didnt win, but he came in 2nd and was very proud. That day... I got to meet my one and only, brand new baby nephew JR. He was absolutely adorable. I got to spend a lot of quality time with my brother Daniel and his family and the new baby before going out to Dads house.. where Preston was now residing {while Dad is in AZ}.. it was nice to see him and visit with him on an adult level.
..... Finally the very last day of October.. my favorite holiday*... Halloween. Todd finally gave in and let me host our very first Halloween party. It was quite a success.. I hope that this can be a tradition. We had soo much fun.. proved every time I look at the wounds Todd got from the tricycle race wreck. hahaaa

November seemed like a blur. Man did it ever go fast!... I dont remember much except that we went back home for Thanksgiving and Hunter was sooo darn sick. He looked like a lil skeleton. He is just now gaining his muscle back. We actually were all sick with some kind of rotten stomach flu. And unfortunately gave it to almost everyone we came into contact with. Luckily as much loving as I did on Daniels new son, JR.. he didnt get it.. Thank you Lord! We also had Christmas with my Dad since he was leaving the next day to go to AZ for the winter. That was nice and special. It felt like some of the times I had with my Grandparents on Christmas past. It also hit me that my Dad is getting older and wont be around forever and that we needed to get some personal things straight. Thankfully he agreed and we got some things situated in that respect. While back home for Thanksgiving I got to have lunch with my old friend Rhonda. She and I actually became friends BEFORE kindergarten via our Moms who hung out together. It was wonderful to see her even though it was only a lunch date. We exchanged scrapbook goodies and had many laughs. It was one of my favorite days of the month. :)

December... Holy Cats!!!! Another blur. Do you know that I still have ONE Christmas gift that I have not gotten and mailed out? Is that crazy or what!!!!??? I feel bad, but at the same time, I figure hey, a gift is good anytime right? Even if its late? I hope? haha. Im sure this gal will understand and if she doesnt well... she can bite me... ooo see Im tough... well not really cuz I feel horrible.. I mean heck January is almost over, I havent sent the gift and Im just now finishing my 2008 year in review. I need a life huh people ;). Anyway... December was a nice month, we made yet another trip back home- THANK YOU FOR GAS PRICES GOING DOWN below $2.oo per gallon! hahaa. We went back to attend my brother Neals graduation from Columbia College.. I was SO proud. Its hard to have a family of 7 {yes, he is married, has 4 daughters and a grand-daughter} at home, works full time and is in the Army Reserves. Im so proud of my brother for so many reasons ... this just brought it all home to me. After the graduation we went back to his house for a lil celebration lunch and I got to visit with Aimee, my niece who was home after her basic training for the Army. It was good to hear how strong she is feeling. I think this is a really good thing for her and again.. I hate saying it so much.. well not really-but you understand. Im sooo freakin' proud. While in Missouri we had Christmas with Preston as he chose not to come here for Christmas. He did very well in making it a very happy occasion and made me a very happy Momma!
December ended on a good note with everyone being healthy, happy and safe. We had a wonderfully relaxed Christmas with the boys and family.. and ended the year with friends.

We are lucky, loved... and so blessed. I couldnt be happier in my life and I am finally aware of just how content I am... and it feels good! Real Good...!!!

Thank you for being here, reading and sharing my moments.. it means a lot!!!

Monday, January 19, 2009

Saturday, January 17, 2009

Ok, I cannot figure out how I happened upon this neat lil blog.. but I thought Id share with you all... please check it out and hey.. enter the contest.. it wouldnt hurt! Good Luck!!! ps: I left my 2008 Part 2 at work, so Im still behind in getting that posted but I promisssssssse it is coming very, very soon!! Maybe next time I'll have scrappy stuff to share as well! {Wow, I know} ;)

Friday, January 16, 2009
Walgreens $25 Gift Card Giveaway

It's time for me to give something to you since take time out of your busy lives to visit STL Mommy.

Since it went so well last month I have decided to offer the same gift to another lucky STL Mommy Reader. I promise I will get more creative next time!

The giveaway is a $25 Walgreens Gift Card.

It's the least I can do to Thank You!

Want to Win? Here's How:

*Leave a comment telling me your favorite store!
*You can gain a second entry by Subscribing to STL Mommy.
*You can gain a third entry by adding my button to your Blog or Myspace account or by adding me on Facebook or Twitter. It does count if you have already done any of these!
*You can gain a fourth by posting this giveaway on your Blog, Myspace, Twitter, or Facebook account. Please leave me the link.
*You can gain a fifth entry by e-mailing this giveaway to 5 friends!

The giveaway will end January 21st, at 5pm.
I will pick the winner through random generator.
Make sure you leave a way
for me to contact you.

Please check out my other giveaways!

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

My 12 of 12~

12 of 12 was created by Susan and is basically this: on the 12th of each month, take bunches of pictures of every day life, anything and everything, interesting or not, simply to document the day. Then, pick your favorite 12 and ideally, scrapbook them or post them on your blog. When you look back later, it's fun to see these little glimpses of what life was like on the 12th of each month.
My friend Amie has done this for a while and I decided to share with my friends and get on the ball and do it myself...

This is my 12 of 12 for the month of January 2009....

Hunter said lots of prayers with his Momma.. I love how he always starts "Dear God, thank you for all of my toys and games.. then he'll peek at me and start again with the thank yous... so sweet! I pray for sanity, strength and that all my boys will remain safe, happy and healthy!

I dont know what the sudden interest in sharks has come from, but every we have been having to read this shark book to Hunter at least twice per night. hehee

I thought short hair would be less work... uhhh wrong!!!! hahahaa. I use all these products, the dryer andddd the flat iron every morning.. the good thing is it does take less time. ;)

Lunch these days ... we are trying this year to not eat out for lunch but one day per week.. so my typical lunch is this.. I love the spice in the noodles and avocados.. well if I have salad, I like a lil chopped up in there with it.

January is 2 of the boys birthdays... Justice on the 19th, and Hunter on the 20th. They are both gamers and we thought one of these video rockers would be a great gift... so on the search for the best priced one.

A highlight of my month... My brother Neal staying with us for a week while he takes classes at the AF Base next door. Its been real nice chatting with him about the old times and seeing him interact with Hunter!

January brings PAIN... major knee pain because of the cold weather. I take 3 of these lil pills a night before bed just to get a minor bit of relief so that I can sleep. Oh man the cold sucks when you have arthritis!!!

We've been working really hard with Hunter and following his chore chart. If he does all of his chores and gets good marks for 2 weeks in a row, he gets a treat such as a movie date. He is doing GREAT and I think we will either be seeing Hotel for Dogs or Paul Blart Mall Cop.

If you have boys you can relate. This month we fixed the boys up a room together and our friend Matt gave us a gun rack for the boys to hang their toy guns. There is another in their room too.. it holds both guns and bows... ahh the life with boys.

Well.. my never ending battle with laundry is finally over... I caught up!!! Woot Woot!

Self portrait.. the dreaded for REAL... Hunter took this pic after being up and working for about 16 hours. I was tired but happy... notice the nails? Im missing 3 hahaaa.. I need a manicure badly! ;)

This is Hunter teaching Mommy how to disarm a bomb while playing SoCom on the PS2... I have soooo much to learn! hahaha

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

They like me.. They really like me...~

I was picked by my good friend Angie to receive the Kreativ Blogger Award. Im really flattered that she picked me and proud to display this award! Woot Woot!
In return for her kindness, I must follow these 5 rules....

"Pay It Forward"
1. The winner may put the logo on their blog.
2. Put a link to the person who sent you the award.
3. Nominate 5 blogs.
4. Provide links to their blogs.

5. Leave a message for your nominees.


Im like Angie.. I have a hard time choosing. I read soooo many blogs and love them all so much. I dont know what I ever did before blogging hehee. Anywho... here are my 5 picks.

Linda~ http://lindashouseofchaos.blogspot.com/
Linda and I have gotten to know each other this past year through blogging and I enjoy reading about her 2 young and cute boys and she always has a great recipe to share or tip for everyday living! Please dont hesitate to check Miss Linda out!

Amie~ http://www.amiedanny.blogspot.com/
OMYGOSH, if you havent read Amies blog.. you are definitely missing out. She provides me almost daily with a dose of "keepin' it real" humor!

Jenn~ http://scrappinforlife.blogspot.com/
I am new to Jenns blog, but love interacting with Jenn and reading about her boys and looking at her beautiful scrapped creations!

Cat~ http://catshootspeople.blogspot.com/
This is my friend Cats photography blog, she actually has several blogs-each you should check out, but I chose this one because I think all of us that are scrappers have to give props to the photographers! Cat is a brilliant and creative photographer and I think you'll enjoy looking at her work.

Brooke~ http://www.babykerbs.blogspot.com/
Ive known Brooke for years "online" and I was soooooo happy when she announced that she was pregnant! Even more excited when I found out it was to be a baby boy! hehee Anyway.. this is her pregnancy experience shared with us via blog. Thank you Miss Brooke!

Like I said.. this was tough.. there are sooo many blogs that Id love to give awards to, but hey they only let me pick 5. ;) So there it is. Thank you once again Angie.. You really rock!

Friday, January 09, 2009

Help!~

Im up to my eyeballs in LAUNDRY!!! ... not kidding. I will take a pic and post later to this post. OMGOSH.. who would have thought it. With this room change and the work going into it.. I just dont have time hardly.. and work has even been fairly busy.. whats up with that?....

I tell you.. I think every stitch of our clothes can be found on our couch.. wheres the couch you are going to say when you see the pic. Soooo, this has got me behind on posting my continuation of the year 2008. UGH.. I dont think I'll even be able to until Sunday... ? Maybe Monday.. and I know I promised a week. I feel so bad.

But hey, if you come over and help with the laundry I coul
d type it up sooner.. heheehee ;)
Have a great weekend!!!!

Sunday, January 04, 2009

On Hold~

I know you are just standing by with baited breath waiting for My 2008 Moments Part 2... hahahaa-well, arent ya? ...I know, I know... I wish I had time to do it, but knowing I have 2 hours of writing ahead of me I havent been able to have that much un-interrupted time this week/weekend. We are busily taking down Christmas decos and brainstorming this major room turn-around in our home! .... Soooo I have to put it on hold for now. I am sure I will get to it this week though so never fear!

In the meantime.. I leave you with a news flash of sorts..... I added a new link blinkie over to the left for Scrap The Boys.. please go there, please try out their challenges and share with me your creations. Im so tickled that they restarted this blog! So if you are just needing some boy inspiration or a good challenge, check it out! ;)

Thursday, January 01, 2009

My 2008 Moments-Part 1~

Hello friends.. This morning I was looking back at my blog for 2008 and realized.. you know.. I had a pretty darn good year! Ive been blessed with family and many good friends both in real life and online. Have a look back at my life in 2008.. lots of great things happened.... and really only two bad things happened.. but happened for reasons that relieved the senses of pain and suffering... so I guess all in all.. not too bad. Im truly blessed and happy! Thank the Good Lord above!

~2008~
January and the big hair cut!!! .... I needed a change.. boy did I ... so my sister-in-law Melly went with me to do one of the most traumatic changes for this 40 year old body. hehe.. she sat there patiently with me for about 5 hours watching me fret, tear up and fight the hairdresser.. by the time we were done 12 inches of hair was gone and I had a new color! Later this year I went shorter and blonder and by winter was short and back to the dark auburn! Next up were 2 of my beautiful boys birthdays.. Justice turning 8 and Hunter turning 3 within a day of each other.. They were spoiled with new bikes that looked like motocross bikes. We also had a party for them at Chucky Cheese where Aunt Melly and Uncle Jim and Aj came and helped us have a good time eating pizza and playing all kinds of games!

Not a lot happened in February except the old rash I had from about 5 years ago re-appeared on my leg again... Ive battled all year with it and saw 3 Dermatologists for it and STILL dont have an answer for what it is. Ive gained about 20 pounds this year with all the oral steroids Ive had to take just to keep from going insane. Im going to make an appointment in 2009 to see an Allergist... wish me luck!

March brought the highlight of parades in my opinion.. Ever since I moved to St.Louis Ive wanted to go to the St.Pattys Day Parade and even though by the end of it I was ready to punch some drunk college chicks I had and the family had had a GREAT day!!! I cant wait to go again this year!

April brought my lowest lows and highest highs all together in one emotionally charged month.. probably one of my hardest as well. I started out having some really bad female issues and decided to finally to get appointments made to get things taken care of. My first issue was to have a uterine biopsy and man was that the MOST painful thing Ive had done in like FOREVER! Ugh.. it was *supposedly* a simple procedure but let me just say.. OUCH! ... I was still trying to recover from it and a horrible haircut and color when my girls.. haha yes my wonderful Minnesota girls came down for CKC in St.Louis!!! Becky, Cat and Sunshine came down for a 3 day visit and scrappy goodness visit. We did so many things and had soooo much fun! It was my first time meeting Cat and Sunshine and I must say.. I felt a kinship to them and was fortunate to meet and spend time with these really fun and great friends! Again, I cant wait til CKC this year.. I think Becky is planning on coming back... not sure about anyone else.. but they know the doors here are ALWAYS open! Come on down! hehee.
In the saddest news... shortly after the girls left to go back home... I got the news that my Grandma Durham was sick and in the hospital. She died soon after and I dont know what happened to me. I did not shed one tear at her funeral. I sat in the front row with my Mom and her brother/sister and not one thing moved me emotionally. I dont know if I was just in shock still or what. Of course at home and during the course of the weeks and months following I still have burst of tears for her. Even tonight writing this I remember my Grandma and miss her so much.. She spoiled me, took care of me and taught me so much. She sent me to college and supported all of my decisions even though some werent the right ones. She is sadly missed, but I am truly happy that she is in heaven now and not suffering anymore.... April also brought my son to his last teen year.. he turned 19.. OMG.. how is it that I have a 19 year old son? What the heck? hahaa. He has really became a good man. Im so proud of him and blessed that he is such a good egg! At the end of April Todd took off and went back home to a camp out excursion with my brother... he took along Hunter and Justice. They had a great time and so did I {finally some me time hehee}Hunter learned to fish for the very first time. April also took my SIL Natasha away to LA.. yup sunny Cali! She left and hasnt looked back apparently-we havent heard a peep out of her... crazy chick! Soooo needless to say... April was a very busy month for all of us!

May brought us to a highlight in Prestons life.. He graduated from Highschool. He was so handsome! And we were all so very proud of him once again. The graduation was longggg and at the end ol' Momma here teared up as they played video of the graduates including photos of them growing up.. Preston had chosen some great ones and boy did that bring back some memories!

June... whoa.. can we say HOT! ... first off.. I had my "Her Option" procedure. Again, a painful experience but what was needed to help make my female life a little better. I had my uterus frozen. Can you believe I had an actual moment of sadness knowing that this was the final end to my child bearing days?.. Thats exactly what emotions will do to ya huh? hahaa. While trying to recover from that procedure and failing miserable ... LOL, we managed to get tickets and go to an afternoon Cardinals game. I was freaking miserable.. the guys.. not so much.. well I take that back.. Hunter was quite miserable, but it was his first MLB game and happy all the same. June was also the month that housed another famously stupid stunt on my part.... me thinking I was super woman! I tried to work my full time job, work a part time job at Archivers andddd take care of my home and family. I was still having issues with my female junk and it just wasnt a smart idea. I wanted to feel important, useful and young again. I ended up not continuing the 2nd job.. sad because the perks were AWESOME.. but for my sanity and health... I had to quit. Im only one woman right? hehee. Anyway, I was happy to see June go away for sure!

Ok... so wow.. who knew I only have typed out the first six months and between all the other stuff going on.. It only took me about 2 hours. hahaa. I have to end for today and will do the last part of 2008 tomorrow!
Thank you for reminiscing with me and sharing my life and my moments through this here blog... ;o)

ps: I didnt add photos to this post because let me just say, being a scrapper we take LOTS.. and if you want you can see them if you look back through my blog.. hehee