Happiness is

Your sweet baby sleeping on your tummy smiling in her sleep.

My mom and sister are moving into their rental house tomorrow. Yay!! This means Gabriella's room is no longer occupied. Her bed is made up in her new bedding. There really isn't any reason why she shouldn't be trying out her new bed. Yet here she is, using my tummy as a pillow while I'm in an uncomfortable positioned leaning against the headboard. The other two didn't start sleeping in their rooms until closer to 2 and she is my baby and therefore I'm not going to rush it.



We seem to be making a little progress with Piper and her #2 training. Today was a total bust, but the previous days have been better.

Allisyn was being a big helper today and went and picked up Gabbie's room by herself without being asked and she told me, "It was a lot of work mom, but I used perseverance to get it done." It wasn't that much, but I loved the way she is using her vocabulary!

I'm hoping to order the little girls' Christmas presents this week and after that, I will only have to start gathering pictures for Great Grandparent's calendars and figure out what to get my dad. We aren't going overboard on Christmas this year. It's the first year in 6 years I won't be pregnant or be celebrating a 1st Christmas. I'm pretty excited about the holidays this year! Michael's work schedule sucks hard, but we will make it work for the best.

Well I should get to sleep so I'm not dragging for church in the morning. Hopefully everyone is feeling well enough to go, Poor Gabbie's tummy has been kind of questionable today.


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Hello

Every time I go to open my iPod I open up Blogger. I know right away I do it and usually close out before it even loads. Today I decided to let it load and give a few updates.

Alli lost her first tooth two days ago at school. She absolutely loves school and is devastated to have to stay home today because she is sick. She is such a great big sister and is growing up way too fast.

Piper had her teeth fixed, same thing Alli had done only it was 2 teeth instead of four. I think they genetically have bad teeth because we were very cautious and even if we had to sit on her (not with all our weight!) we would get those teeth brushed. After a seemingly rough transition to her new speech therapy she seems to be improving again! I think moving her to MDO at our church with her friends is helping too. If we can just get her to start doing her dirty business in the toilet instead of her pull-ups we will be happy. No amount of bribery or punishment has worked so far. I'm open to ideas if anyone has any.

Gabbie is growing up WAY to fast! I know, I know, they all do. She is walking and running everywhere. She hasn't started saying much yet. She is so loving and is a master manipulator. Everyone tells us it's because she is the baby. She really knows how to work her big sister. Allisyn tries to tell us "just give her what she wants." All the time. Piper isn't so easy to work over.

School is going well for me. I am going to have another small load hour-wise next semester. I don't consider Statistics 2 a small load, especially considering I took Stats I over 7 years ago. I'm not going to be able to start my Forensics classes until next fall due to scheduling, but we knew when I got started, I would be taking it slow.

Michael is still working nights and being the awesome husband and father that he is. We are truly blessed to have him in our lives.

My mom and sister have found a house (FINALLY) to rent here in Edmond. They will be moving up next weekend. We are so excited! With mom not occupying Gabbie's bed, we will start transitioning her to her bed. I'm excited for that!

Other random tidbits, we had to return our boxer to the rescue because she wouldn't get along with our lab. We miss her. We are going to try another boxer because they are great dogs and really good with kids.

I really miss my big brother. I am so thankful he is in Kuwait instead of Afghanistan like he was supposed to originally. I'm excited he gets to go Hawaii on leave, but I'm jealous we won't get to see him.

Well, that is an update.

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A long overdo update

Wow! It's been a while since I've been here. I'll try to keep the update short, but I know a few people really like to know what we have been up to.

Allisyn turned 5! For her birthday she and I took a trip to Dallas and stayed overnight. We went to the American Girl Store and she picked her first American Girl doll. She has started kindergarten and is going all day. We love her teacher and she enjoys riding the bus home. Even after getting put on the wrong bus, she still wants to ride. She has a few friends in her class and is making more each day.

Piper turned 3! She and Gabbie both celebrated their birthdays while we were on vacation to South Padre. On our way down, we stopped at the American Girl store again. This time so Alli could spend a gift card from Uncle Dustin and the little girls could get their bitty babies. Piper graduated out of Sooner Start and is transitioning into the Edmond School system for her speech therapy. During her evaluations to transition over we heard mAy times that she is really smart, and her testing shows she it at or above the curve on everything except for expressive speech. Hopefully we will continue on with her therapy soon. We are still working on her potty training. She had the number one down, always has issues with number 2, and is regressing a little with number one. Hopefully we will get that straightened out soon.

Gabriella turned 1! Our sweet baby is growing up. She still isn't walking, though she could if she would quit over thinking it. She takes 2-4 steps here and there and then realizes what she is doing. She has 3 teeth and is working on more. She and Piper will be starting MDO at our church next month. I think Gabbie is going to greatly benefit from it. We know Piper loves it. She is such a joy. She has Alli's flair for drama and some of Piper's ability to be a "mess!"

We just got the big girls bunk beds. So far is has improved sleeping habits. Piper is the one who needed improvement. She still tries to come to our bed every now and then, but not as much.

My mom has fount a job here in the city! She and my sister are looking for a place to rent and they will be moving here. Right now, mom is staying with us during the week.

We really enjoyed our first family vacation to the beach. We can't wait to do it again. It was really nice not having anything we had to do, or anywhere we had to be.

I started back to school. I'm only taking 6 hours this semester to help ease back into it. My first week in and I love it!

Michael and I celebrated our 7th anniversary! I'm so thankful God blessed me with him as my husband. He does so much for our family, and does it without complaint. We are definitely blessed to have him in our lives.

I'll try to post pictures soon.

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Thirty and a day!

So yesterday was my 30th birthday and it was pretty wonderful. I got to sleep in, had birthday cake for breakfast, got 3 singing cards! When a Man Loves a Woman from Michael, Somewhere Over the Rainbow from Alli, and You'll Be In My Heart from Piper and Gabbie. They were strategically placed throughout the day! My gift was a beautiful charm picture frame holder that was engraved.

We went to Friday's for lunch, mainly because we knew we had a decent shot of the girls eating. It was nice.

Our day then had a sour ending with an uber cranky Gabbie, and Piper pooping in my floor which caused us to miss church. Then Michael had to go back to work after having a week and a half off.

The very end had a sweet surprise as my friend Jen had her sweet baby Cole on my birthday! Ha! It was actually a huge blessing for them as his daddy has to go out town for a week and they were worried he might decide to come when his daddy was gone.

Well my little miss cranky pants is demanding all my attention. Must go try to appease her. I'm so glad she got a slot into Sonshine school in the fall. She'll be in the smaller class, but she needs to learn to be happy away from momma!









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Tomorrow I turn 30

And I embrace it! I am in such a happy place with my family. God has blessed me beyond measure. Tomorrow, I am going to try my hardest to forget about the hurts of those close to me and totally enjoy my family and my blessings.

To celebrate turning 30, I chopped off and donated my hair. I got about 8 inches which they won't use, but they will sell to help with costs. I love it!



Before




After

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In a funk

I don't know what it is, but I am a funk where I'm a cranky cow.

Our foster kittens have gone rogue and are finding there own places to go potty despite us changing out their litter boxes several times a day. To make things even better, they aren't doing surgeries next week so they won't be leaving as soon as we hoped. We are taking a break after they leave. W

Our new fur baby is sick and we are trying to figure out what to do. We spent $85 on her today and there are more tests they want to do. We are waiting to get some info from the rescue group before we decide what to do.

I'm beginning to think we shouldn't have any more fur babies. :-(

Piper is still being a challenge with her pooping. The other night she was actually smearing it on the furniture upstairs. Thankfully that has been the only time.

I think Miss Gabbie is working on teeth because she has been uncharacteristically clingy and whiny. She has mastered stairs. Which mainly means I can't let her play with the girls in their room unless I'm in there because she climbs up their steps to their bed and attempts to get on the bed.

On a bright note, tonight is Michael's last of 3 nights. He is taking off 4 for vacation. Unfortunately our budget isn't allowing much, but maybe we can get some stuff done around here. Not really holding my breath, but I can hope right?





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Some random updates

What has been going on? Lots.

Gabbie has mastered crawling totally and is now on to cruising and standing on her own for a few seconds at a time. I'm sure I'm going to have another early walker. She might take her time, but I would be surprised.

Piper is slowly improving with her speech therapy. We are getting things in place to transition her into the school systems program soon after she turns 3. We still have a long way to go, but we are excited at her progress.

Allisyn is continuing to be our source of dramatic excitement. She shoved a couple of beads that were linked together up her nose. After 2 1/2 hours of us trying to flush it out and get it with tweezers, Michael ended up taking her to the ER. He said they had to hold her down because she was kicking and screaming. I pray she learned her lesson. She kept saying she was mad at her hand for sticking it up her nose.

On more glorious note, we nominated Alli for a local radio station's kid of the week thing they do, and she won! We got to go to Gatti Town for dinner and games. We like going, so getting to go for free was awesome.

This weekend we went back to my hometown to help celebrate my cousin's transition from Alaska to Hawaii. It was a good time. While we were there the weather turned bad and there were some tornados on the opposite side of the lake that my family lives on. It also hit bad in Joplin, Missouri. My aunt used to work in Joplin so all night we were getting updates on how her friends had lost everything, but all were safe. So many were not though. Makes you hug your family close and thank the Lord for the many blessings we have.

We have also added a new member to our forever home. We adopted a boxer from a local boxer rescue. Her name is Sammie and she is absolutely wonderful. We took her with us this weekend and she did very well. She is great with the girls and the cats. She is more aware of herself than our lab is so we don't have the accidental knocking over or stepping on.

So far the two big dogs haven't made real nice but we are working on it. It's funny because the little rat (dog) doesn't like it when Sammie does what she does with Forrest. Taste of her own medicine.

I miss my big brother. I had to do the closing on his house for him because I'm his limited power of attorney. It was a bit of a mess trying to get the right stuff to the right people and taking the girls up to Stillwater to get it done. I'm so glad I could help him out, but he might owe me a new pair of shoes or something. It's going to be a long year while he's gone.

Oh and in 2 weeks and 2 days, I will be 30!! I'm not upset about it in the slightest. I embrace it. I'm in a wonderful place in life and I am super blessed. I say bring it!!




Gabbie and Jacob


Gabbie and Sammie


KISS FM's Gatti Town Kid of the Week!


First watermelon of the summer!

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Some random updates

Our momma kitty and her babies went back up to the adoption center last Thursday. We miss them.

We have two owner surrender daschaunds that we are fostering until Midnight Woofness. They are mainly house trained and don't like the hang out outside for very long. They will make some good pets. They don't freak Gabbie out like the puppies did.

I have somehow managed to get my neck out of whack and it's affecting my entire right arm. We are hoping it's just some muscles pushing on my brachial plexus and nothing more serious. Having your fingers go numb when your holding your phone or knitting is really weird. Thankfully it's my right side, even though I'm right-handed because I carry Muss G on my left side.

Alli cut her hair last night. Thankfully, she has a lot and she didn't cut it too short and cut an under layer. I don't think I'm going to make her get it cut...this time.


Piper is still being uber difficult in taking her pooping business to the potty. With her, I'm pretty sure it's a control thing. I've taken away no less than 8 of her favorite toys away. She gets time outs, privileges taken away, even swats. Nothing is encouraging her to change her ways. Not even cleaning up her own mess or having to go back to a pull-up or diaper.

Gabbie has fully mastered crawling and gets where ever she wants to with a purpose. We've had to put the baby gates back on the stairs. She keeps trying to pull up to stuff, which with her inherited lack of coordination and hardwood floors translated into her needing a helmet. Or a bubble.

This Friday marks the beginning of our birthday run. Michael turns 33. On June 8, I turn 30. I'm not bothered by it in the least. I'm in such a wonderful place right now, I embrace it. Beside 30 is the new
20 right? July 2, Alli will be 5 (crazy huh?), Aug 7 Piper will be 3, and one day later Gabbie will be 1.

We need to start planning the girls big birthday bash. We've decided we are going to do one big party when they are younger. Makes it easier on us and our friends who have kids who are friends with more than one of the girls.

My big brother is in Mississippi getting ready to head over to Afghanistan. I miss him a lot. So do the girls. He's my hero, serving God as chaplain while serving our country. I'm very proud of him.

We got the girls spring pictures made! For those who aren't friends with me on FB, I'll post some soon when I'm on the laptop. There were no tears or tantrums! The pictures came out well too!! It was a victory!

Gabriella has a cold and has been napping in my lap for a while. Which means I haven't gotten hardly anything done that I've needed to do, and I'm not bothered by it at all. It gave me time to blog and stay up on the addiction of social media. Off to check out FB!



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We might be a little nuts.

So as you know if you read the blog, we are a foster home for the OK Humane Society. Our current full-time fosters are a momma kitty and her 3 babies. They are sweet little bundles of energy.

This weekend are providing some relief fostering for some little puppies. They are sweet, but they have quickly reminded me why we chose cats and kittens right now! Yep, we might be a little nuts.

So at the moment

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Life is good

Do you ever have those moments where you look around you and your breath is taken away as you realize just how blessed you are?

I had one the other day. We were just sitting around. Michael was playing that stupid Mario brother's game that he is obsessed with right now, Alli was waiting to be able to open a box or something on the game. Piper was tackling Michael from behind and Gabbie was sitting in the floor playing and laughing at her daddy and sisters.

All of a sudden, I got that knot in my throat that threatened to overflow the tears. I'm so blessed.

I have an amazing husband who works really hard to give us so much. He puts up with crazy whims and my annoying quirks. He loves our girls and would do anything for us.

Our girls are all happy and healthy. They are all so loving and they absolutely adore each other. They make our life complete.

There are so many times my life could have taken a different turn, but God guided me in another direction. I don't thank Him enough. I don't share of his amazing love enough. Often times I take what I have for granted.

I am truly blessed and truly am thankful.











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Making Time for Me

I'm horrible at it. If I start trying to do something for me (30 Day Shred for example) and Gabbie gets upset about me not being with her, I stop and appease her. If I'm trying to blow out or straighten or curl my hair and the girls (usually Gabbie) need or want something, I give up and throw it up in a messy ponytail. I know it's my fault, I spoil her. I did the same thing with the other two. The difference then was Michael was home more consistently with the other two.

I know I need to take time for me. I know I'm worth it and I know it benefits everyone, so why do I have a hard time doing it? Ok, really I probably know why but I'm not going there today. On a level that isn't going to require copious amounts of therapy, why can I not let my children fuss it out for even a short period of time?

I'm not sure there is a good answer, I'm not even sure I have that big of a problem with it most days, but sometimes I just want to get something done for me without having to do it with one hand! I know it will be all too soon that Gabbie will be off with the big girls and won't be needing momma as much, so for now, I'll keep doing what we are doing and hoping to get some time for me squeezed in here and there.

Yes, I'm aware this is totally disorganized and rambley but that's the way my mind has been working lately.

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I filed my FAFSA

For financial aid. It actually was a pretty painless process. They have it set up where you can link to the IRS and it fills most of the info out for you. Now I have to actually apply and enroll and see if we can make it work. I also have to decide what I want to be when I grow up.

Gabbie still has a really harsh cough that has kept us home a lot. I know the big girls are more than ready for school to start back. I'm ready for Michael to be off so he can share the task of constantly packing around a clingy baby. Today was a little easier. She is getting so big and has such a sweet personality. She loves her big sisters. She really enjoys food too. Much more than the other two did. She will throw nice fit to get a bite of something.

Piper is living up to being my mess. I sent her to her room for time out and she ended up falling asleep. I just pray she stays asleep. Her speech therapy is going well. She is slowly becoming more clear. We still have a lot of work to do, but we are making a good start.

Alli is getting to be such a big girl. She loves to help out with chores and cleaning. She's great with her little sisters...most of the time.

I'm having a real hard time keeping up with my 30 Day Shred. Saturdays and Sundays are hard because Michael has to be at work at 7 instead of 8. I'm sure once Gabbie is over this stuff I'll be able to do it without Michael having to keep her out of the room....I hope.

My big brother is gone until the end of the month doing training before they go for their training for Afghanistan. We miss him.

Michael has been applying for part time jobs (ok maybe 1) to pick up a few shifts to help with our debt snowball. The good thing is if it doesn't work,
he can quit. I think he will really enjoy doing some retail pharmacy again.

Well, that's the update for now. Hope all is well with all those in Blogland.

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We have survived...

another week of Michael working! It hasn't been too bad this week. No one was sick! Gabbie is really congested and has a harsh cough that is making her a little out of sorts and has given both of us some rough sleep the past 2 nights, but praise the Lord, there has been no fevers. She and I stayed home from church this evening. Right now she is taking advantage of the quiet and having momma all to herself and is napping in my lap. I love it!!

My neck was bothering me a little last week. I had slept on it wrong and my mobility was low. I went to the chiropractor. The curve in my spine is not so much a curve. The x-rays showed I was leaning towards compressed discs. So now I will be making regular visits to get realigned and to get my curve back.

We have really enjoyed having my brother stay with us before he leaves for his training and the to his tour in Afghanistan. Bless his heart, he sees much more nakedness than he wished to see at times. Our girls aren't the most modest of children outside the home, inside the home....all bets are off. A few weeks ago, Piper got in trouble at least 4 times for raising up her dress at church. Same night I told Alli to pull down her shorts (Michael let her wear the shorts to church, not momma) and I almost died when she literally pulled them down. All the way down. I was mortified. Thankfully, I only think one other little girl noticed.

Alli is still doing dance and loving it. Soccer has started back up and she is on her friend Tulle's team. There are actually 4 girls on their team this season! Alli won't be the only one!! There is also another Alli/ie/y who share's our Alli's birthday.

Piper is doing great with her speech therapy. Her therapist is amazed about her attention span. She is definitely not behind in anything other than speech.

Gabbie went to Bible class for the first time on Sunday. She did not have a good time. :-( She had a blow out and by the time I got down there they already had her in a sleeper. She hates sleepers.

Sunday was one of those days where I wonder why I even attempt all 3 girls at church by myself. We survived though.

Now I'm going to take advantage of the quiet myself and do some reading!! Here are a few pictures...

Any wonder why my spine is messed up?


Our last set of foster kittens. The black and gray one have for sure found their forever homes!



Our newest set of fosters. Momma Jenny, Jolee (white), Josie (stripes), Joseph (black and white). They are itty bitty and the momma is a good momma!


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Life is good

Tonight Michael starts another week of nights. We had a really nice week. Gabbie is doing much better. She still has some coughing, but it's getting better.

Sunday we had a day of moments. You know the kind. The ones where you pray that other people don't notice when your child raises her dress up and flashes her panties 5 times in Bible hour. Or the when your other child interprets you telling to pulling her shorts down (her daddy let her where the shorts to church) as actually pulling them all the way down. I almost died right there in the back of the Bible hour room. Thankfully I don't think anyone saw that one.

I got Piper into Sonshine School! It is the MDO program at our church. I think being around her friends from church a little more will help with her speech. Gabbie is on the waiting list. I'm ok with that. I'm not quite ready for her to grow up yet.

FPU is going well. We are trying to stay focused and get "gazelle intense."

We've been enjoying the nice weather! Gabbie loves the outside just like her sisters. She loves swinging! It's cute. Allisyn absolutely loves pushing her! She is a great big sister and a huge helper.

Soccer season started. We had practice last night and the first game is on Saturday.

Praying for a calm week. Hope all is well with all you out in blog land!


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Still Here

I keep wanting to blog. Really I do, but then I think about and I wonder if anyone really wants to hear about the things I am going to blog about and guess what. I don't care anymore. I'm gonna blog about them.

Things like--I love my pediatrician because she totally did not skip a beat when I showed picutres of Piper's poop on my iPhone. The poor kid has some serious poop issues.

Things like Allisyn getting mad and telling me she didn't want me to be her mom. Yet her not liking the idea of my trying to help her find another one.

THere are a lot of random things I think about blogging about. I'm going to start sharing them. I think they might provide some humor for my readers.

Some not so funny--poor Gabbie is getting over RSV. That stuff sucks. It drains the life out the little babies. Of course it happened on Michael's week on, so it was a rough week. Tonight is his first night off and she is feeling much better! We are gettting smiles and giggles. Like every week he is off, Piper is trying to push the buttons and change up the routine. He is trying to let her. I'm trying to put my foot down. There are tears and gnashing of teeth from the 2-year-old, and possibly the dad.

We are still fostering with the OK Humane. Yes, I know we are crazy. Theses four kittens are driving me bonkers. Especially with the crawling under the girls' bed to drop stinky piles. I have found I can crawl under the bed without hurting myself. Not sure if that's really a good think or not.

FPU and the budget are going well. It's a good feeling to know you aren't stretched as much as you thought you were!

That's a short update. I promise there will be more, more often.

The one where I come back and admit I overreacted...

So a valuable lesson was learned today. When you have homework, you should do it and not wait until right before your class to turn it in! When I told Michael the number I came up with, he gave a look that seemed to imply that I might be under the influence of something and told me I was wrong. I, of course, immediately got defensive, because, hello, I am never wrong. (Ha! I really really hate being wrong!) I immediately started spouting out numbers to him and he is doing the math in his head. When I started running out of numbers to throw out I had that sinking feeling....I might actually be wrong. In this case, I was glad to be wrong. Well I still hate that I was wrong, but the end result of me being wrong was good.

I had over calculated our total debt amount by over 45k. I don't know how. I've been trying to figure it out all evening. It doesn't really matter though, God is good and I  have a sense of peace around me in that aspect. We also sat down and put the numbers into our detailed budget. Again, it turned out to be not nearly as bad as we (well I, since he hasn't really been putting much of anything into for a while) anticipated. We still have a long road ahead of us when it comes to paying things off, but we are not going to survive on beans and rice!

I still am a little resentful about being talked into looking at and then falling for the Escalade, but we are only 2.3% above the range that Dave recommends for transportation. Since we are 1% under his minimum range for housing, I'm going to let it go and enjoy the spaciousness that we have with the Escalade. We still have some room to cut back on things if I get the fire inside me to do it and work on our snowball. Right now we are still plugging to finishing up our emergency fund. Craigslist isn't really helping me out much other than saying good-bye to my massage table. (If anyone is in the market for an armoire, a PS2 with Rock Band {complete with 2 guitars}, or a video camera that would be great for a young aspiring film maker, let me know. I'll make you a deal.)

Another thing we did today, because we have been really really bad about slipping with our giving was put it on AUTO withdraw! Now, we have no excuses. God comes first as it should be I know, I know! We should have been doing this all along, but we are now. I feel much better about things all over.

Thank you to those who shared encouragement and prayers. Next time I get into crazy panic mode will someone smack me and tell me to think it all the way through and put it down on paper? Please! Now I'm off to start reading Dave's book "Total Money Makeover."

Oh and on another bright note, Piper is in big girl panties full time! Even at night! We know there will be a few accidents here and there, but we are in it all the way!!

The one where I want to beat the snot out of something

Ok, maybe not snot because I don't think anything non-living has snot. It has been one ridiculously long week. Financial Peace is taking a lot out of me this time around. Why? Because we are stupid when it comes to money. Tonight was week 3. Those of you have gone through FPU, know what I'm talking about. Week 3. Where you have to turn in the little slip of paper that says how much debt you have not counting your mortgage. I kind of forgot about it so I did it real quick at the beginning of class. I seriously about had a panic attack. How did we get here!?! One thing for sure is the stupid Escalade. From now on, I don't care what my husband says he can deal with my narrow mind. I have enough crazy whims on my own without him adding more.I'm NOT saying it is his fault. I'm not. I'm saying it is my fault for giving in and then agreeing that we could get one.

So I figured out our insane total and tried really hard to hold back the tears that were threatening to overflow. Texted Michael and freaked out on him a little. I didn't tell him the number because I didn't want him to have think about it at work. This week has been pretty busy for him with a lot of kids with flu in the PICU. (Mini detour on thought. I'm usually anti-flu shot because I'm one who gets sick after getting one, Six years of getting one with the military and getting sick each time. I told him if he wanted the girls to get one, then I'd not say anything. He said with so many people having reactions to the shot this year and so many getting sick after getting the shot, he wasn't sure if they should or not. My off topic point: If you think your kids might have the flu, err on the side of caution and have them tested. There are some wicked strains going around.)

So my homework this week...to do all the budget sheets. The ones that say where every penny goes. I'm sure there will be tears and gnashing of teeth, but it will get done and it will be for the better. Right? Say yes. PLEASE!

Sooo with all the FPU wake-ups, Piper's fevers that like to come up when Michael is at work, her still waiting to be assigned a case manage with Sooner Start and her pooping in the floor during potty training (TWICE IN ONE NIGHT), and with Gabbie going through a phase (I hope) of needing mommy to hold her ALL the time, and Allisyn being full of sass and not in a good way, I have a lot of frustration and stress built up. That's just the stuff going on in my house. My desktop has also come up with some sort of crazy virus or something. It was the focus of my anger earlier, but I did not act out on it.

So there you go, another long and and rambling, possibly even incoherent blog post from me. At 20 till 11 at night.

We made it!

We made it through another week of Michael working! Yay!

The foster puppy has someone who is interested in seeing her tomorrow! Fingers crossed she gets her forever home. It is bad enough when I have to clean up after the little rat dog, adding a puppy is a bit much.

We are going to try to foster kittens. They can be completely confined in a crate, in a bathroom and be well taken care of. Less, all up in your routine and stealing your socks. Oh, wait, that's my big dog who has started doing that. Any article of clothing, he feels he must pack it around.

We are still waiting to hear back from Sooner Start. I am pretty sure they will be getting a call tomorrow. Our evaluation was before Christmas.

This is an interesting post for any of those who might have kids experiencing growing pains. We are going through this with Alli right now. At least my year of massage school comes to some good now. http://ow.ly/3Cw9b


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One more night...

Tonight is Michael's last night of his week! Yay!! It has been a long week. Friday was Bunco and it ran late which I came home to a Piper who was
running off borrowed steam. She was running a fever and cancelled our plans to go to Tulsa
for a shower for a friend. Gabbie was also a little out of sorts for being up so late. It took them both a while to wind down to go to sleep. It took me even longer. Then I woke up to poor Gabbie coughing so hard, she spit up...in my hair. It was a first, and it was gross. I couldn't get back to sleep
after that so I started cleaning. At 5 am.

Having foster puppies leaves a lot of extra cleaning.

I dropped them off at the adoption center. Thought drop-offs started at 730...not on the weekends. I stayed out until they opened up at 9, dropped them off, got home let Michael go to bed. Did more cleaning.

After Michael woke up, went and helped my mom and sister pack up and move my sister out of her apartment. Thankfully my brother was available to help out because I didn't bring any tools. He came through! It was pretty impressive that she got all packed up and totally moved out in one day. We had some shoe shenanigans to top it off! In between loads from the apartment to my garage,
I picked up Aurora, who did not find her forever home like Ariel did.

My mom and sister stayed the night. My brother hung out and we watched the first 5 episodes of She-ra. It was good memory making evening. Sleep was again minimal and Piper was a crab apple due to not feeling well, causing us to miss church.

Monday I was just off-kilter, but we did make it to Monday For The Master and I went through the first lesson of FPU. This morning I was out of it, but I got the girls to school, the puppy dropped off, and had a nice lunch with some wonderful friends. Michael got up early so I could take a nap. He's awesome like that. So now, I'm blogging when I should be sleeping.




Uncle Dustin reading a story to Alli.

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Made It More "Me"

Oh my! I'm blogging again AND I'm actually at the computer! Since Gabbie and Piper (break in typing to go get Gabbie) have been really easy going and not so needy this morning, I've had the chance to work on the blog! Allisyn....well let just say we have had an emotional 4-year-old morning. Even with her emotional meltdowns, she is old enough to let her deal with it on her own. It tends to make her mad when I don't sit around and baby her silly tantrums and meltdowns, but she eventually gets over it.

Anyway, I had time at the computer and I updated my layout. Opinions?

So I think I mentioned starting Weight Watchers again. I'm on day 4. Thankfully, I get extra points for breastfeeding. Most days, I need them! One thing I wish they did differently, is to use your activity points before your extra points. I know in the grand scheme of things it doesn't matter, but in my head, it would make me feel better.

The rearranging of things for better organization is going really well. I've got almost everything moved around like I want it. I just have to move the girls computer desk and computers over from the playroom to my office. Now don't go thinking my girls are super duper spoiled (they are just super spoiled) the computers are hand-me-downs from my aunt and they are only used for learning games. I'm setting up the office/craft room as a "learning center." That way when I'm up here on the computer or at the sewing machine they can be doing workbooks and computer games and arts and crafts. Another goal of mine is to cut back on the TV. It's been off more than it has been on today and I like it!

Another goal of mine this year is to work on giving back more. So, I'm volunteering with OK Humane Society. One of the ways we (my family gets to help even if they [Michael] are less than thrilled) are volunteering, is by fostering. Right now we have 2 very rambunctious terrier mix puppies. I'm thinking that we may end up just fostering kitties. Puppies are very "up in your routine" and kitties can be more confined. You also don't have to watch out for puddles and piles. :-( On the flip side, my floor is getting steamed a on a much, much, more frequently.

So here is a picture of our first foster puppies, "Ariel' and "Aurora." No, we did not get to name these, they came to us already named!

New Year New...

Me? I doubt it. I'm not one for making resolutions because I don't tend to keep to them very well. I am starting Weight Watchers again, but I just wanted to wait until after the holidays. I didn't even start until yesterday because there was a pint of Haagen Dasz in the freezer that needed to be taken care of.

I do have a few goals I'm going to strive for and I would appreciate gentle reminders (or an occasional smack upside the head if you feel it's really called for) to keep focused.

First, I'm going to work on being content with what we have. God truly has blessed us with so much, and I need to get out of the "I want" phase so much. I'm not saying there aren't still things that I wouldn't like to have, but I'm not going to obsess about getting them.

The main reason for my first goal, is that I feel I'm not being thankful enough for everything God has given us I'm going to really be more grateful for my blessings.

The second reason also leads to my second goal. Get back on track financially. I'm going to go through FPU again. I need a refresher. These are the things I will need gentle nudges, (or blatant call-outs). If you hear me talking, see me tweeting, or posting about wanting something ridiculous, let me know.*

My third goal is to try to keep things a little more functional. I won't get into everything I've done or plan to do right now. I'll just mention that I figured out the name of my blog from my recent goal!!


*Disclaimer: I'm working it into out budget to get a few electronic things throughout the year, laptop (both of ours are ancient and fried) iPad, (to be used as my laptop) and possibly a NOOK. I'm going to try to sell some stuff to help. (Know anyone who wants/needs a massage table?)


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone