Life on the Hilltop

(S)Miles

2012-01-27T08:27:00.003-05:00

it might be gas, or he might just be happy.

2012-01-27T08:27:00.000-05:00

i can see!

2012-01-25T07:37:00.002-05:00

Thank you Bruce's Wiring. we can eat dinner in our dining area again. for 3 weeks since ken took down the ceiling fan to see why the light would not stop flickering and turning off randomly we have been eating dinner in the living room. while its sometimes fun to eat in the living room, we were all ready to eat at the table again.

Bruce came and rewired our dining area and 3 way switch to the kitchen, now we can see our food...and we dont have to worry about the wiring setting our kitchen on fire.

a birth story, abridged

2012-01-23T06:52:00.004-05:00

i can now see my feet but cant get to these raggely half painted toenails due to the un expected c-section incision.

i had been feeling like a fairly worthless lump, tired and sitting on the couch surfing the net for the good portion of a week, pretty much only leaving the house to pick up Dominic from school. telling my un born child to come on already by trying to will him out of my womb.

my MIL called from Indy to see how i was doing and told me she would come visit me the next day and we could go out to eat and do a little light shopping ( Madison indiana has no serious shopping).

saturday afternoon we all headed out to Bob Evans, a favorite of the ritchie family, theres pancakes and bacon there. lots of bacon.

and i started feeling a little contracting. just a little, so i figured no problem we could go shopping, after all i had been having false labor for a week.

we shopped for maybe 20-30 minutes before i decided that it was a little different than what i had been feeling. this was the real deal.

so thats sauturday afternoon at 4:30.

around 7:30 we decided that it would be a good idea to go ahead and go to the hospital, where i was met in ther ER reception area by a young lady from our church family who is an ER nurse, they sent me upstairs to labor and delivery and got me set up with my wonderful nurse Jennifer.

at this point i figured, hmm, 7:30 now, if Dominics birth was any indication of how this is going to go i should be out of here and sleeping soundly by no later than 1 am.

let me just say that Dominics birth was NO indication of how this was going to go.

by 1 am i had made it to 7 cm. and stayed for the next 19 hours at 7 cm. now, i already had my epidural so pain was not really a problem (excellent anesthesiologist at Kings Daughters Hospital, just for the record) but i was getting tired, and i was quite sick to my stomach (yay for vomit bags). so long story shorter, although neither me or Baby miles was under any distress the Dr finally convinced me that the best way to get this baby out was going to be a c-section, i didnt want a c-section, but i really didnt want to labor for 24 more hours ...and then have to get a c-section anyway.

so after 28 hours of labor i was tired, i just wanted sleep, they fixed me up for surgery while i was mostly half asleep, delivered Miles while i was pretty much asleep. i opened my eyes when they said "look , Monica, its your baby boy" and held him up for me to see...then i went back to sleep, i figured Ken could take it from there.

wanna see?

2012-01-16T22:15:00.001-05:00

our new addition has arrived!!!!! go here to meet Miles Thomas

if i ruled the world...

2012-01-11T09:52:00.002-05:00

there would be free overnight shipping from Target.com and Amazon.
because i want my stuff...right now...but i dont want to pay extra.

do you know that you cant buy cereal or toilet paper from target online?
why? thats what i want to know, i want cereal shipped directly to me...overnight, free shipping.

i went on a mini spree at Target.com yesterday, i ordered my Moby, some burts bees diaper cream, it is quite expensive (8.50 a tube!!) but it WORKS, very well, some diapers and an extra part for my pump.
yay, for gift cards.

i almost bought baby some shoes and some books as well, but time had gotten away from me while i was looking at cereal and toilet paper and i had to cut my shopping spree short and go get Dominic from school.

i also noticed when i logged in to Target.com baby registry that it shows 12 days until my actual due date! so close, yet so far away. lets all hope for this week ok? friday would be perfect for us.

whats up?

2012-01-07T19:40:00.002-05:00

hey, whats goin on?

not a lot actually. i do a load of dishes, then sit down and watch and episode of Friday Night Lights. i do a load of laundry, then sit down and check my facebook and Baby Center group.
i run to walmart for a quick something then come home, sit down and have a snack.i vacuum, then sit down and read for an hour or so.
im sure youre starting to see the pattern.

the babys room is done, everything is all neat and folded and put away. i have everything i need for the little guy.
the only thing i have been debating is whether or not to get a Moby Wrap. im accepting opinions and reviews regarding the Moby.

35 weeks

2011-12-27T09:06:00.002-05:00

Ken reminded me yesterday that if we were going to take any pictures, we better so it soon, especially since the eratic painful contractions have started to show up .

im down to 3 shirts and 3 pants of my own that fit, the rest of the time i wear Kens clothes.

are we ready? ready as we will ever be, i would say.

the best way to spread Christmas cheer....

2011-12-23T20:28:00.001-05:00

because we all need to be reminded sometimes...

im in for it

2011-12-07T19:09:00.002-05:00

if this boy is a rowdy outside the womb as he is inside...im in for trouble.

i imagine this little guy as my maniac child, the one that you say "if i had this one first i may not have had another child"

all the scenarios that were just wacky enough to be funny with Dominic (ie: the dirt eating, the getting ahold of daddys deodorant, the Mudcat pottery clay experience) will be magnified to epic proportions which will leave me staring at the mayhem in disbelief.

he kicks, he punches, he elbows, he turns and tumbles...non stop, i can tell when he is asleep because he is still.

there will be no swaddling this boy, sleep sacks all the way with this one. Dominic loved to be swaddled, he also loved to pee on me, im sure am looking forward to a repeat of that.

SAHM

2011-12-04T14:53:00.003-05:00

2 more weeks.....
and i will be officially classified as stay at home mom.
this prospect is exciting and scary at the same time. at this point in my baby baking experience working is starting to get difficult. it doesnt take much to tire me out, the nausea is back accompanied by terrible acid reflux, even eating is a chore sometimes so for the last month of my pregnancy i will rest a little more' i wont exhaust myself trying to take care of my family, myself and work.
when Dominic's Christmas break starts, my days as SAHM start.
this is just a bit scary in the financial department. i work 24 hours per week, which doesnt make a super fat check but when you cut that out of the already tight monthly budget is a little nerve wracking.
we are counting on God's provision and blessing combined with wise spending and strict budgeting to make this work. i dont really like the strict budgeting part, but the alternative is to spend my money on child care and formula (i know they say working moms can nurse but i just dont see how that can possibly work) not to mention someone else getting to spend every day with my little baby while i work.
in addition to taking care of my family full time,i am looking forward to seeing what ministry opportunities God has for me since my schedule is, for the most part, completely open.

so...tired...

2011-11-16T18:49:00.002-05:00

spent...wee hours...of morning...shopping ...on Etsy.

i have a love hate relationship with my body pillow, while its totally necessary to support my belly and keep my knees aligned, it takes up as much room as another person in the bed, the full size bed. doesnt leave much room for rolling over, and last night, i just could not get comfortable. so i got up. and shopped.

add this to a trip to the pediatrician that took, i kid you not, 3 1/2 hours from the time i left work to when i returned. 2 3/4 of that were AT the dr office. we had to stop at Wendys after that. i needed fries.

now, at 6:54, im so tired that im glad that a certain careless someone forgot to turn off the electric blanket, because as soon as Rocket Boy is in bed...so am I.

i will use it as my theme song

2011-11-09T18:20:00.002-05:00

picture Mama...

ok, now think of the Mamas Family theme song...

ok, now...think of the way Mama walks.

thats what i feel like when i get up from a sitting position and start walking with my stiff hips and sore lower back.

just call me Mama.

dont tell!

2011-11-08T07:41:00.002-05:00

Shhhh!

dont tell the people at my local small book store that i just ordered books from Amazon.

The A word is a dirty word inside their building.

but how can i beat a hard cover kids book for 10 bucks?

not even Scholastic offers that!

my neice is Stella, is getting Stella Luna for her birthday :)

and my dear dear friend Marci who is laid up after back surgery is getting a surprise as well :)

bump that.

2011-11-04T18:19:00.000-04:00

28 weeks.

it wasnt this big yesterday.

happy halloween

2011-11-01T12:47:00.002-04:00

i had a lot of friends ask me if i made Dominic's costume. not this year friends, i picked up this fun outfit at a garage sale for 2 bucks last summer. i did add the white mask, for a little bit of a classic feel, but Dominic only wore it for the pictures, i dont think he could see very well with it on.

new book giveaway

2011-10-21T07:34:00.002-04:00

i didnt win the first one :( but i get another chance!!

pop on over to Mabel's House for your chance to win!

its been two weeks...

2011-10-19T17:05:00.004-04:00

well, what can i say life is going by at a pretty good clip and documenting it seems to have really fallen by the way side.

the most recent happening, Dominic getting to spend a week with Baka and Grandpa B in Iowa!

Mom posts pictures on FB every day of the fun things theyre doing.

baking cookies... YUM
assembling Lego starcruiser while eating what appears to be pineapple, a hot dog and a mini muffin...ok, not a flavor combination i would choose.

meanwhile back here at the ranch we thought we would have time to get some things done, but so far we havent.

Monday, i was having contractions all afternoon and was told to drink LOTS of water and rest for the evening, that took care of the problem, i also took extra magnesium, that helped.

Tuesday, visitation for a good friend, Greg Humphrey, who had passed away on saturday, he has 2 daughters ages 19 and 15 and will be so greatly missed by so many people. after that you just want to veg out on some action hero movies.

Wednesday, EXHAUSTED!!! missed out on 2.5 hours of sleep between 2:30 and 5 this morning...why? i have to go to the bathroom, then i am hungry, then i have heartburn, then Ken is snoring. of course today was the funeral, it was NASTY out drizzly, cold and grey, that makes me even more tired.

so thats been my week in a nut shell.

2011-10-07T10:21:00.002-04:00

Ken and i got all dressed up and attended the Choices For Women fundraising banquet last night.

Dominic got to spend the evening with Rachel, which is always a treat for him because Rachel pretty much lets him do whatever he wants.

The director of Choices for Women here in the madison area shared stories of helping women, young and old choose life but also told us that 13 women in the last 3 years have been led to accept Christ as well.

we got to see friends from Hanover United Methodist Church there as well as, friends from , First Baptist, Good Samaritain, Rykers Ridge Baptist, Cornerstone baptist, Christian Academy of Madison, EO Muncie Elementary, the OB/GYN office, it was so wonderful to see so many from all over the county with hearts to help expectant mothers in crisis situations.

HER BOOK!!

2011-09-30T07:46:00.004-04:00

i have been reading Mabels House for 3 years, its a clever, honest, and pretty blog that i look forward to opening each day.

and now the woman behind the wit has published her first book. and she told me that if i post it on my blog (for my 4 readers to see) she will give ME a copy, ok...thats not EXACTLY what she said, she said i could win a copy.

i read the excerpt and it looks like exactly what i expect from Liz. so take a read.

***

Once one has breathed in the deep pungent aroma of sewage, you never again forget the nose-hair singeing, eye clawing, throat gagging experience. It comes over you slowly. You begin to feel like a character in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest as your muscles involuntarily jerk and you run screaming and blowing raspberries. Anything to get away from the mind-numbing stench.

But let me explain.

It was 6:30 a.m. I was standing in my retro pink tiled bathroom trying to open my bleary eyes and ready myself for work. As I stood there, peering into the mirror and wondering what demented nighttime fairy had planted four new wrinkles on my face, I paused and sniffed.

“Matt… what’s that smell?”

Matt staggered from the bedroom in his underwear, eyes half shut. “I don’t smell anything.”

I pointed my nose into the air like a hunting dog. “Seriously? You can’t smell that? Did you go to the bathroom in here earlier? I told you to use the room spray when you do things like that.”

Matt puffed out his bare chest and gathered his pride as best a man can with sleep in his eyes and a small hole in the side of his underwear. “I just woke up!”

I frowned, catching a glimpse of my makeup-less hot-rollers-in-hair state and tried not to think about the fact that I looked fifty instead of twenty-nine. “Well, help me figure this out. Because something smells ripe.”

We sniffed the sink drain and ruled it out as a suspect.

“Is it coming from the toilet?” Matt asked, examining it from top to bottom.

“No, that’s not it,” I snapped. I’m not known for my milk of human kindness in a disaster. Don’t get me wrong. I’m a survivor. I plan on eating my radish like Scarlet and clawing my way out of the nuclear dust while dragging my loved ones with me. But I won’t be doing it with positive phrases and a smile.

“Hon, I just don’t know. We’ll call a plumber after work, maybe it’s coming from under the house.” Matt staggered a little, trying to get past me and out of our tiny bathroom.

“Well, that’s just great,” I moved aside and pulled the shower curtain back so I could perch on the side of the tub and give Matt room to move out the door.

That’s when the full brunt of nastiness filled the air around us, a swirling mix of excrement and acrid stench that would have brought the sewer dwelling Ninja Turtles to their knees. Where the normally slightly-clean-with-a-hint-of-soap-scum bottom of the tub should have been, there sloshed gallons and gallons of brown sewage.

I clutched the front of my sweatshirt and held my breath. Matt began to dry heave.

“Get out and shut the door!” I screamed as we bumbled into the hallway.

“I’ll deal with this,” Matt grabbed my shoulders, trying to talk and hold his breath at the same time.

I could feel my eyes glaze over, the horrors of typhoid and hepatitis in our bathtub filling my mind. But more importantly, I could envision our evaporated savings account. In my mind’s eye I could see the long, gray hallway at the bank. A worker shrouded in a black suit pulled a set of keys from his pocket and unlatched a small locker labeled “Owen Bank Account.” Inside were two small stacks of quarters and a few crumpled dollar bills. It was bleak, not only because the banker with an unimaginative wardrobe gazed at me with an expression that could only be interpreted as “You’re a Big Fat Loser,” but also there was a very definite possibility we wouldn’t be able to pay for a plumber.

I wasn’t necessarily a spend thrift. In fact, I was downright frugal when it came to decorating with thrift store furniture and rewired vintage lamps. But the fact was, we were poor. We were starting out at starter jobs with starter salaries. We were starter adults with a starter bank account.

“Okay,” I nodded numbly, thankful that Matt was taking the lead on such a disastrous biohazard. “But make sure the plumber is super cheap. We don’t have much money!”

I left for work like a wino stumbling through a fog, not really remembering my commute, not really doing any work as I sipped my coffee and stared blankly at the computer screen. A disaster of such gargantuan proportions had previously been unthinkable in my life, and now I found myself attempting to push the image of a vast sea of bathtub poop from my mind. But I was sure of one thing: Anne Shirley never had to get ready for work while breathing raw sewage.

a fun but tiring weekend

2011-09-27T12:39:00.003-04:00

friday night dominic and i found ourselves unexpectedly on a scavenger hunt around the downtown. they gave us this excellent map and we set out to find. we found that the prize at each location was a different colored piece of sidewalk chalk and sometimes (like Cocoa safari) a sweet treat :)

when we were done we were directed to the madison courier parking lot which had been emptied of cars, and there used the chalk we had collected.

saturday we met up with Tricia and Megan for some fun shopping and strolling of the Chatauqua art festival.
"if he were about 20 years older, i would have a crush on him" -Megan Lee Welch

he did look very hipster in his straight leg jeans and Vans on saturday.

and Megan with her giant bag of kettle corn.

i have 5 minutes!

2011-09-19T13:50:00.003-04:00

and i feel like i really do need to make a post

what i ate today so far: bowl of honey nut cheerios, grapes, a pear, 2 handfuls of almonds, a pay day bar, half of a Mos Southwest Grill burrito, 2 twinkies, 3 ice cubes.

what im wearing: black stretchy pants; boot cut, a greysort of v neck rouched tee shirt, dark blue hoodie, nike running shoes.

whats on the agenda: work, call mom and thank her for the box of goodies (baby clothes, and a new scarf for me) maybe visit with Lori and Kate later, pick up D from school, heat up leftover pasta and call it dinner.

what i wish were on the agenda: a trip to either, Ohio, Iowa or Kentucky.

annnndddd....TIME

pumpkin cappuccino, 20 weeks

2011-09-08T19:34:00.003-04:00

just thought i would share these with you. :)

his name...? right now we just call him Pumpkin Cappuccino

kid food

2011-09-05T08:49:00.003-04:00

friday i invited my dear friend, kim, over for lunch, she works right up the street from my house so it works out well, we get to have lunch together and its really inexpensive.

really, really inexpensive in this case. i realized when i went to prepare lunch that all i had was kid food. so kid food is what we ate. these ARE my special grown up style pb and j's though.

9 grain bread, crunchy peanut butter and raspberry jam. the rest was pretty much the same as the stuff i pack in D's lunch box.

the rest of these pics are from last week, when i beat Dominic at cootie 2 out of three games.

but he doesnt look like he minded. :)

whats so great?

2011-09-01T08:49:00.002-04:00

i love my pinterest. i visit pinterest at least twice a day to see what my friends are pinning and to see all the other cool ideas and tutorials.

fact: pinterest will make you hungry. people pin delicious looking pastries and little sandwich rolls stuffed with goat cheese and proscuitto, they pin the perfect margarita, they pin southern peach tea.

they also pin things that are spin-offs of red velvet cake.red velvet cookies, red velvet brownies, red velvet cake pops, um...ok? so whats the big deal about red velvet? its really, in my opinion the LEAST of all cakes, seriously, the taste is ok, the texture IS good i must admit but the crumbs that inevitably fall off...they stain. personally im just as happy with a great white cake, im even happier with a lemon or carrot cake and oh yeah...dark chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting....actually anything with cream cheese frosting.

so what is so great about red velvet cake? do people love it because they think they should? is it because a long long time ago someone told them that red velvet cake is the classiest kind of cake? or do some people just really really love red velvet cake?

whats your favorite kind of cake?

my mind has a playlist of its own

2011-08-30T12:43:00.002-04:00

a strange phenomenon has taken over up here in my head today. i know its not strange to some of you nor is it odd or unusual for my husband but its quite out of the ordinary for me.

it seems random words and phrases are triggering songs which will then stay in my head until something else triggers a new song.

the word "sometimes" triggered "tainted love"

the word "take" triggered lou reed's "walk on the wild side"

the phrase "the hardest part" triggered tom petty's "The Waiting (is the hardest part)"

and numerous others which i have no idea what word i heard to get them in my head

they include "cuts like a knife"," cover of the rolling stone", "i'll fly away", and "stray cats strut"

then theres my post title...which i have only myself to blame for, an obscure song called "my mind's got a mind of its own" it is performed by jimmie dale gilmore who plays the character of Smokey in The Big Lebowski. (random trivia, right there)

im wondering what songs the rest of my day will unearth form the depths of my brain.

stop following me, Space Bags Correspondent!

2011-08-29T19:53:00.004-04:00

i received this comment on my blog today, at first i thought, hmm, thats interesting, then i thought "wait, how do they know about my blog? how do they know what i said about space bags"

is there someone who's job it is to search the web for anything that anyone has said about Space Bags?

they also commented on the story Tricia left in the comments section so heres Tricia's story, and then the nice comment i received from the Space Bags correspondent

Tricia said...

Spacebags. I bought some about 7 years ago at Costco and spent a day spacebagging everything. I put my bagged comforter behind my bed and all was well until about a month later when in the middle of the night my space bag came alive with the air slowly leaking out causing a creepy noise, joined by the other creepy noise of plastic crinkling. TOTALLY FREAKED ME OUT!

correspondent said...

Thanks for mentioning Space Bag in your blog post about tidying up the kid's room. We're happy to help contain the extra blankets and clothing, saving you space for the things you need within easy reach. Just wanted to let you know that Space Bag has an online community called Space Savers where we have tons of tips for saving space and organizing around the house. Feel free to visit www.SpaceSaversCommunity.com to view our ideas.

Also, we want to let you and Tricia know that Space Bag recently made product improvements, including a new double zipper and patented one-way valve to help the bags keep their vacuum-seal. Space Bag also has a one year warranty against manufacturer defects. If you'd like to get in touch with someone at Space Bag about these improvements and guarantee, just use the "contact us" form on the Space Savers community.

Best wishes,
Space Savers correspondent

so what im wondering is how can i make this work for me, ok, yay Space Bags (seriously) but im talking about the Sonic peach teas that i also mentioned in the last post, where's the Sonic correspondent? and dont you think that at least one peach tea per week on the house (at least until my baby is born) would be suitable compensation for someone who sings the praises of Sonic's happy hour on a very regular basis via blog and Facebook?

space bags, chicken and the necessity of peach tea

2011-08-26T07:59:00.003-04:00

i cant get enough Sonic unsweetened peach tea, i crave it all the time, but i hate paying full price for anything so i get extra happy when its happy hour, dominic loves it too. school lets out at 2:10 so i dont have time to exclude him from my Sonic fix, not that i would want to, his small drink ends up costing me a whole 50 cents.

this week is "clean up the baby's room" week yesterday i tackled the closet, which was packed to the gills with...stuff, just stuff, i found a ton of stuff that could go to goodwill, stuff to pitch, stuff to find a better home for and comforters, 3 really big fluffy cozy comforters. enter the space bags, these 3 comforters, non space bagged, took up the equal space of at least 2 plastic totes, and they never stayed stacked or folded properly, they were basically crammed in the closet waiting for winter so they could serve their purpose. i packed them in space bags, now theyre a nice tight bundle that i can fit nicely under my bed, yay for space bags.

all this space bagging made me extra hungry, i had seen on Pinterest, a recipe for crispy baked chicken tenders....mmmmmm. so to the delight of my carnivorous family it was baked chicken tenders for dinner. they were one of the easiest recipes ever.

drag the chicken through some flour, dredge it in egg and roll it in the crumbs of Club Crackers put it on a well sprayed baking pan, cook at 425 for 15 minutes, flip it, cook it for another 15 minutes. easy, delicious, and not too bad for you.

more support

2011-08-22T17:06:00.003-04:00

in the past support was never an issue when i bought shoes. i dont run. i wear flip flops and cute flats and these were the most athletic shoes i owned.

my beloved comfortable Vans which i want to add that i paid a whopping 25 bucks for.

those days are over, kids. last week i could barely stand a day of standing up and walking all day long in my non supportive shoes. my hip hurt, and i had pain in my last 3 toes. ow.

i knew i wasnt going to make it another 4+ months until my due date if i didnt find some comfortable shoes.

the problem? my arch its weird, the arch of shoes never is in the right spot, and a strange spot on my heel that if pressed causes my second to the last toe on my left foot to go numb. this is why i have been in flat shoes for the last 9 years.

fortunately for me, i found that this shoe, is comfortable and fits me well, it has good room in the toe and doesnt crowd my toes together, but is snug at the heel so it doesnt slip off, doesnt hit my arch funny and doesnt press my weird heel spot.

i only tried on EVERY pair of womens running shoes at Penneys. but it was totally worth it.

top ten worst girls names

2011-08-19T09:28:00.004-04:00

i promised you all my compiled top ten worst girls names and i will oblige by giving it to you, with a bonus "exotic dancer names " section

but first a tidbit of exciting news that many of you already know. we are having a boy. more rockets, more robots, more swords and nerf guns and bows and arrows.

so i am greatly outnumbered, my dear quick witted brother in law dubbed my home the testerocean, even the cat is a boy.

but ok. on with the top 10

# 10 Argyle- this is not a name, its a pattern

#9 Fructose-if its in the ingredients list of a fruit roll up, then its probably not a good idea to name your kid that.

#8 Chicadee- epic fail, if you want to honor your bird watching roots Robin is a suitable chioce

#7 Bano- because youre one tilde away from being the bathroom

#6 Cinderella- Just...dont

#5 Dashiki- wow, what can i say, maybe her brother can be named Pancho

#4 Frigg- a name that is an alternative to an expletive is never a good idea.

#3 Hollah- uncalled for

#2 Hella- "have you seen the Jones' new baby?" " oh yeah, shes Hella cute"

#1 Mitten- unless youre the King of Pop cold weather outer wear is a no-no for naming baby.

and now for the bonus "exotic dancer" section

Desire

Diamond

Ecstacy

Essence

Elvira

Fifi

Honey

Honor

Jinger

Musique

Mystique

Disclaimer: this list is for entertainment purposes only. my opinion barely matters to my friends, it shouldnt matter at all to you, especially if you had your heart set on naming your next child Mitten.

first day of school

2011-08-13T15:53:00.002-04:00

Dominic started first grade at a new school this year, he was very excited about it after touring the school back in june.

he found out that there was a big library and a really cool play ground.

so with lunch box in hand and Phineas and Ferb backpack packed to the gills with new school supplies. he was off to his first day.

this week also started the cleaning out of the guest/junk room. we hope to be able to fing out the baby's gender on thursday and we would like to pick out paint colors asap, while the weather is nice so we can open the windows and air out the paint fumes.
while cleaning out the room we found something that Uncle Sean forgot, his cap, Dominic is taking care of making sure it gets worn.

top ten worst boy names

2011-08-11T09:00:00.003-04:00

in looking for a suitable names for baby R i have been perusing a name book, just for funzies.

i have compiled a list of the worst boy names ever, these are all in the book, i didnt make any of these up, seriously. some are old german names which have taken on new meaning, some are made up (by apparently ignorant americans) some are just things that make ya go... hmmm?

#10 Brockly- yes, you heard me correctly, broccoli, but spelled differently, i also found Kale and Lemon, but they didnt make the official list.

#9 Whip- maybe if youre an indiana jones fan

#8 Curb

#7 Yank- yes i suppose if youre a yankees fan, or if youre really proud of your northern heritage. i think of the term to "yank somebodys chain" as in to fool them.

#6 Zero- make the kid feel loved and wanted with a name like this.

#5 Frick- if youre not a Scrubs fan this may not seem too bad, if you are then, frick on a stick is a phrase youre familiar with.

#4 Gunyan- this just made me laugh, it rhymes with Funyan, or onion, its not a good baby name.

#3 Ich- just Ick

#2 Hooker- -no

#1 Faddy- Really? is this even an option, seriously, i know, i call my cat Fatty, but he is a CAT.

stay tuned for my list of names to call your daughter if your aspirations for her include exotic dancer.

the scary bridge

2011-08-09T12:49:00.002-04:00

some people think this bridge is really scary, i admit, it can be a little unnerving when oncoming traffic threatens to not stay in their lane.

this must have been an interesting sight for oncoming traffic (im glad i was behind it)

a tractor with a huge mowing attatchment hanging off of one side crossing the Madison Milton Bridge. see how the truck is hugging the edge.... yeah. a little bit scary. at least as scary as the lady in the Chevy Malibu who was taking pictures while driving across the bridge.

these guys...

2011-08-05T12:31:00.001-04:00

im not sure what spurred the silliness of this moment (probably nothing in particular)

but i found it quite funny.

testosterone overload

2011-08-02T21:52:00.002-04:00

weapons, wrestling, light sabre fighting...etc.

all the boys had fun.

2011-07-29T19:37:00.002-04:00

im so excited to pick up my camera this week!! i havent done much shooting this year but family visits make me want to go for it again!!!

you know theres some to come, but in the mean time, heres one from yesterday

cant hardly wait!

2011-07-28T10:38:00.003-04:00

my family will be visiting from texas next week!! Dad, Katie Sean and Connor will be here on saturday!!!

Dominic had just one question, "why cant Opa (my dad) bring Jackson (my nephew)?"

me: because he lives in california with his mom and dad

Dominic: well, they they can go get him before they come here.

nevermind the addition of 3 or 4 days one way to the trip

also a topic of conversation has been the absence of peanut butter for the week, Sean is severly allergic so PB and J are banned, dominic is not amused .

well, im off to clean my guest room and vacum the cat hair off the furniture, fun day ahead.

everyone has been asking...

2011-07-25T12:44:00.002-04:00

how are you feeling.

i usually say "pretty good, sometimes a bit nauseaus"

what i dont say is "for some reason the grocery shopping makes me heave" i dont know why it is, but when i come home from wal mart im beat down to the ground tired and running for the toilet.

poor dominic...he always looks scared. he comes to the bathroom door and asks "are you ok mommy"

also, i dont complain to them (but i will tell you) that getting dressed is harder than ever, my pants dont fit, the next size up pants slide down in back, giving me a saggy butt, none of my skirts fit, my snug tee shirts look ridiculous right now and none of my shorts fit properly either.

i have 2 dersses that are good, theyre my best friends right now.

aside from that things are going well, we took dominic to the dr with us last week and we all got to hear the baby's heart beat. he is super excited about being a big brother.

we are hoping for the gender reveal august 18. keep your fingers crossed that the baby's legs are un crossed :)

Clark

2011-07-19T21:33:00.003-04:00

look what we found in the park, in the dark.

we will take him home.

we will call him clark.

he will stay at our house.

he will grow and grow.

will our mother like this?

we dont know.

~~~ Dr. Seuss

we found this little guy taking shelter from the storm on our front porch. he was a wonderful model and let me snap a good many pictures before he hopped off behind the chairs in a "youve had your fun, now leave me alone" fashion.

the fair

2011-07-11T18:49:00.002-04:00

it was a hot day to hit the fair...but we went anyway.

mom and i took a twirl in the Tilt a Whirl

Ken and D opted for the Scrambler instead.

the state winner Big Pig from last year was there, imagine the pig, Uncle from Charlottes Web, it was like that it weighed 1285 pounds.

also a calf had been born a few hours before our arrival. D liked seeing the baby calf learn to walk and nurse but wondered why the mom knocked the baby down and wouldnt stand still so the baby could eat, i told him cows werent all that smart, i dont know if thats true or not, but they dont seem too bright to me.

2011-07-02T12:42:00.002-04:00

Dominic felt that greeting the runners of the Firecracker 5K as Obi Wan Kenobi would be the most effective way to encourage them along.

he got alot of comments.

one guy did a great Yoda impersonation for him.

one guy gave him the vulcan sign for "live long and prosper".

if your eyes are on me, youre lookin at country

2011-06-29T18:25:00.004-04:00

ya dont see no city when ya look at me

cause country's all i am

i love running bare footed through the ol' corn fields

and i love that country ham. -Loretta Lynn

ok! i confess!!!!

2011-06-28T13:18:00.002-04:00

i know i should get a napkin...but i use my pants anyway.

i sometimes tell my friends that after work i am going to go home and clean/do laundry/put away laundry, all the while knowing that theres a popsicles chance in Tucson that im actually going to do it.

i get irritated when people start their FB status with the word "so". if im in an unusually bad mood i will protest it by not reading their status.

i wont wear new clothes until they have been washed. what if some manufacturing chemical causes me to get a rash? i also dont like buying something that has obviously been tried on by someone else.

i only eat ice pops made with real fruit juice. once i tasted a freezie pop that was chemicaly tasting and it totally spoiled it for me.

(also i just re-read the last sentence and had to correct the word ice pops from ice poops)

the weekend

2011-06-27T18:10:00.003-04:00

Friday Fourth Friday Shop and Hop, although there was no hop, the trolley driver must have had something come up, so there were no trolley rides.

D managed to get 2 free baloons from river valley financial bank.

later in our walk, when his feet were tired i told him i would only give a piggy back ride to one balloon.
he set the red one free and waved it off.

Saturday:

our trip to Danville, KY to visit Tricia who was visiting Gram (her mom). dominic and i got to meet more of Tricias family, her brother Ken and nephew Gavin.
dominic takes fire safety very seriously, at leats as seriously as Fire Marshall Ken Pflug, whose hat he is wearing.
in this shot, the bell set him running.

we were TIRED by sunday and spent the day recouperating from our day trip.

our big news!

2011-06-23T20:23:00.002-04:00

since some of you are FB friends you may already know:

we have had 2 appointments so far and since i have had past problems the doctor has done ultrasounds both times. the head is on the left, the butt is on the right, its like its laying on its back.

He/she was kicking the little foot stub (right top little bump) while the doctor was doing the ultrasound we saw and heard the hear beating very well, the doctor is well pleased but still wants to see me back in 2 weeks, just to be sure he/she is still growing well. i dont mind it means i get another picture of my little pumpkin seed.

dress code

2011-06-16T13:44:00.001-04:00

last week while talking to super teen babysitter she mentioned the new dress code for her high school.

apparently things had gotten WAY out of hand clothes wise and the administrators had BIG decicions to make regarding the way that the students and teachers were dressed.

super teen babysitter dresses modestly for a young lady her age (17)

wearing mostly tee shirts, athletic pants , jeans and hoodies. she spoke of how even she was sometimes shocked by what her class mates wore to school. skirts that could barely be classified as a butt cover much less a skirt, plunging tops that reveal not only clevage but actual breasts. camis (in my opinion a cami is underwear) with flimsy straps, pajama shorts, shorty shorts that show cheek, etc, you get the picture.

for the guys there were the quitessential muscle tee held together with only an inch or so of fabric at the bottom showing pretty much the whole chest and arm pit... hair and all. ewww

baggy shorts barely clinging to the guy's back side also made a daily appearance. as did ripped torn pants that showed too much skin.

this year the party is supposedly over.

the new dress code states

*no damaged clothing, no rips, no tears, no cuts, no "distressing"

*no skirts or shorts above the knee.

this should be interesting, i see outraged moms who cant find suitable shorts and skirts for their formerly leg baring daughters. but...i say shorts are unnecessary as the school has air conditioning and all of MY skirts hit my knee and are cute.

* no shoulder showing. guys or girls, no tanks, no muscle shirts and NO camis as shirts.

*no cleavage, at all, none, heres where the camis come into play.

*no open toed sandals.

*no pajamas.

if this is, in fact, enforced i applaud the South Western Jefferson County Schools. it should not have had to get as bad as it got for someone to say "Hmm, lets do something about this problem of our young ladies looking like street walkers".

Modesty should be taught from a young age and while not all of the girls like this dress code, they all need this as a first step toward learning to respect themselves.

i got shoes

2011-06-04T19:02:00.002-04:00

just when i needed them... sandals on sale at our teeny tiny local Penney's. they are very comfortable, they dont rub my feet the wrong way and theyre pretty.

last weekend there was a car show, we strolled looking at all the pretty cars...and this...the one Dominic liked. he is showing you his muscles.

we had a fun but busy weekend last weekend, this weekend hasnt been as busy, we have been spending time sitting around at home watching movies because its 95 degrees outside. who wants to go out when its that hot? not me.

something un expected

2011-05-29T14:56:00.002-04:00

since mostly only my friends and family read this blog, and you all know that things just arent quite what some would consider "normal" at the Ritchie house, im going to tell you about my strange new discovery.

but first how it happened

i expect a friend over for lunch on friday, i made chicken salad sandwiches, a cheese and cracker tray and put out some lemon chalet girl scout cookies. it was all very fancy .

but my friend couldnt make it, at the last minute, so D and i sat down to my fancy lunch, had lemonade and sandwiches and cheese and crackers, the cheeses were cheddar and havarti (which i love). D declared he didnt like the havarti because it sounded too much like farty (classy, i know)

so i put a half plate of havarti uncovered in the fridge for ken when he got home.

he didnt see the cheese tray at all, it got pushed to the back, i found it this morning, still uncovered.

this is where it gets good, im not one to waste cheese so although it was dry like cheese jerky, i thought , Meh, what the heck and took a bite...YUM. yes, dried cheese jerky, the havarti was good because it didnt get oily like the cheddar did.

i think it may have now eaten cheese in its every form, and i like it, alot.

i found it!

2011-05-28T13:08:00.003-04:00

i found a great book shelf for a great price. while out looking for garage sales we drove by a house that had 3 book shelves sitting out on their driveway, 2 were tall and looked like pre-fab pressed wood, but this guy, made of real wood, had a 15 dollar price tag on him. before i had fully taken in the greatness of the find, i told Ken "i'd give them 10 for it" just then someone came out of the house, it was Mr. Hodges, someone we knew from around town. Ken offered him 10, he checked with his brother in law who's shelf it was and the brother in law said he would take 10, he told us that it had been in his room when he was a little boy.

so we now have a solution to our busting book shelf problem. it needs to be cleaned up a little and maybe a coat of stain or paint.
also, my fabric for my kitchen curtains came today.

im not buying it

2011-05-26T11:44:00.001-04:00

i found this doodle on my grocery list

im not sure if its a siamese cat, or a chiuhaua. whatever it is...im not buying it.

ya wanna know?

2011-05-24T12:50:00.002-04:00

I dont really LIKE raw spinach, i eat it...with alot of dressing and other stuff because i know its super healthy, but it leaves a weird frictiony feeling on my teeth.

i drink seltzer to cut down my sugar intake. once i opened a bottle, cautiously, but not cautiously enough, it sprayed me in the face like a cartoon seltzer bottle. i seriously about fell over laughing at the whole incident.

yesterday while doing a little un productive worrying, i thought, what i need is a professional worrier, i tell my worrier whats worrying me, and they sit and worry and stress eat and wring their hands and go prematurely grey while i go about my day, mind at ease.

of course i wouldnt wish my worry on any person, but it would be just as productive, right?

i know, give your worry to God you say, but sometimes i like to keep that worry, i know you do too.

used books and 3 links to bands

2011-05-22T18:58:00.002-04:00

this weekend was the friends of the library book sale, one of my favorite events of the season, i got a couple of good titles...i didnt make it there until sunday...the pickens were starting to get slim, Dominic got more than i did.

we also enjoyed the folk festival , they had this awesome fish tank, showing common fish of the ohio river valley we spent quite a while there IDing some of the fish.

the music was so good, i especially liked The Wiyos, Hogeye Navvy, and The Tillers.

the estate sale

2011-05-15T08:15:00.004-04:00

i always feel a little bad getting excited about estate sales. after all, it does mean that someone lost their family member.at this particular sale, i faound LOTS of awesome stuff , including this mirror, it came with a matching shelf, im seeing it painted black, i considered selling it on my etsy shop but i really like it...and i really dont want to ship a mirror, but i would sell the shelf.
one of the best odds and ends pieces i found were these great old kitchen shears, i considered keeping them but decided to share the wealth and sell them.

at this sale i also found something i have wanted for years, those wonderful vintage 1950s, super sturdy, woven wood hampers with solid wood hinged lids, there were 2...in great condition, they need paint, but wow, im keeping those.

the ladies running the sale were relieved to sell the mirror and hampers and one of them said she was glad they were going to a good home, she had been afraid that nobody would buy them, and Goodwill apparently wasnt an option for these particular pieces of their loved one's estate.

annnnd, GO

2011-05-09T13:06:00.003-04:00

so, so , so much going on in the next couple of weeks! there WILL be pictures, i know, you have all been so patient with me while i was in my bloggers funk (actually, it was a general life funk, and im so glad its over!)

saturday... we are going to spring clean at Kent Baptist, inside and out so get out your silver/brass polish and lets polish those crosses and communion cups.

sunday...hmm except church gathering...nothing that i can think of

Monday...Cubs vs Reds at cincinatti!! yay!! i cant wait, i dont think Cow will be coming this time, Cow has been relegated to use only when The Boy needs his tears wiped off. now its all about Beaver, so maybe Beaver will get his chance to go to the game.

next thur...spring concert

Friday KINDERGARTEN GRADUATION!!!!! can you believe it?! i can im not the kind of mom (yet) who says has it been 5 years already? i say..we worked hard and played hard to get him where he is in life right now, and its so much fun AND so much work.

then all weekend....THE FOLK FESTIVAL! i seriously ...cant wait! and there are so mant friends and family members and faux family members that i so wish could come and enjoy this with me its going to be so much fun.

so....there will be pictures, hold me to it! really, i need to get back to entertaining you all....um...i mean journaling my life, yep, thats why i do it, certainly not to entertain you ok, maybe a little for entertainment.

-i want summer!!!

2011-05-07T18:30:00.003-04:00

these pictures from the past are posted as a ruse to get you to agree with me....this spring has been a huge letdown!

and on top of that...i have my yearly case of laryngitis.

so when you read this using my voice...hear my pathetic whisper.

mmmmm.cant wait until things start growing...any seed that has been planted thus far is officially drowned from the weeks and weeks of rain.
ooooohhhh, shorts and flip flops, when will the day come? currently i am wearing shoes, and my feet are still cold, we havent even ditched the electric blanket for the season.
and dining alfresco....theres not much to add here, i think you get my point

im just hoping for a really GREAT summer, like the one 2 years ago...that was nice, all 80's all the time......excuse me while i escape into my daydream.

my mothers day post

2011-05-05T09:30:00.002-04:00

because i dont know if i will blog again before sunday....

sean, katie, dominic, me, lindsay and david

happy mothers day mom, and mom and momma, and Laura .

i picked this picture from my scores of photos because it has all 4 of us watson kids. plus Sean.

my dad took this picture on the weekend of Katie and Seans wedding, i think it was shortly before they left for their honeymoon.

it makes me chuckle whenever i see it because Katies eyes are closed, dominic is close to crying, lindsay looks in a hurry to get the picture over with and david looks bored with the whole situation. i do wonder what sean is thinking and i of course never mind having my picture taken. i credit that to you mom, after all, it was you wasnt it who started snapping a camera in mt face the day i was born? and never let up either. :)

nerd alert

2011-04-29T19:44:00.002-04:00

after a not so great visit to the wal mart optical ( the dr is great for adults, kids, not so much) we took Dominic to Dr Lisle who did his initial vision screening at school. Dr Lisle determined that Ds eye muscles were weak and working extra hard to focus at a distance which translates to uber hard work focusing close up.

he says theres a good chance that we can strengthen those muscles because he is still so young. Dominic goes back in a month to see if theres even a slight improvement, then back in 6 months to hopefully change the prescription.

in the last week

2011-04-27T12:30:00.002-04:00

we have:

had multiple storm systems move through

had dominics first trip to the optometrist

worn shorts

had lunch with faraway friends

had dinner with faraway family

worn coats

had dominic second trip to a different optometrist

taken in a flooded out friend

voted multiple times for Broad Street Brewing Company (have you voted? do you want to?)

picked out dominics glasses

played 2 games of scrabble

fallen off the healthy eating wagon

gotten back on the wagon however briefly

made a trip to cocoa safari

gone to an egg hunt

annnnnddd

had our first Easter as the new pastoral family at Kent Baptist Church, Kent, IN

wowie...Ken gave me a hard time last night for not posting for a week

i guess i had ALOT to blog about but was so busy that i just didnt do it.

so what do you want to hear about first?!

how about a short one?

our friends Lori and Paul live right by the river, on the KY side. absolutely perfect in the summer, nice breeze, comfortable back deck where you can watch the river. not so perfect in the rain drenched spring that we are having this year.

last friday i helped Lori take everything off the walls and shelving units so that they could pull the mobile home to higher ground. theirs was the last one scheduled to be moved, it finally got moved on sunday, the road was half closed by that time....they made it out to buy groceries and bring their daughter over here to spend the week (theres a school trip this week that she did not want to miss). Lori and Paul went back to move the deck furniture, move the dog pen and tie down the steps and deck (just in case). by 2 hours later the road was flooded over... only a monster truck is getting through that. so they are on a staycation on their own swampy island with 3 other families...thank goodness they went to the grocery store.

they expect the water to recede off the road on sunday.

meanwhile, we have had the privledge of keeping their 13 year old daughter :) she is one of my favorites. and she loves to play scrabble.

ten things i love

2011-04-20T19:16:00.002-04:00

i got tagged! i havent been tagged in FOREVER! so, holly here they are

1. dog wood blossoms

2. cheese (a..duh)

3. my porch

4. Yuengling

5. up cycling

6. the end of the evening when me, my kindle and my hottie (cloth bag filled with rice and microwaved) snuggle in on the corner of the couch

7. the ocean

8. getting revelation

9. coffee

10. vintage

and i love my blog friends! oops, thats 11.

pass the chocolate!

2011-04-14T13:17:00.003-04:00

2 weeks ago, i noticed my pants getting a little snug in the belly, i attributed it to minor medical situation and a few stressful issues i was dealing with, it will go away i figured.

then i cut back on coffee...big time, down to one cup a day and no cokes for caffeine boost. my blood pressure was a little elevated when i want to the DR last month...stress, yes, but i figured the major amounts of caffeine i was consuming wasnt helping. apparently that coffee was keeping my digestion going at a good speed.

last week, i had one pair of jeans that fit, and one that i was wearing using the old pregnancy trick of fastening your pants with a ponytailer. um, wow, i cant believe i just told you that, it WAS quite embarrassing when someone told me my zipper was down.

Ken said "just go get some new pants"

no, no i wont go buy new pants. instead i found a book at the library, a new arrival, the belly fat cure. i decided to read it through see what Jorge Cruise had to say. its pretty simple you try to eat no sugars (youre allowed 15 grams a day) and you eat 6 servings of healthy carbs per day (whole grains and such) it allows everything else (not to excess mind you). the book is SUPER easy to use and has great sections about how to exchange the stuff youre eating now to a healthier alternative..like switch flour tortillas for corn tortillas (corn tortilla with melted cheese and a hard boiled egg is a great breakfast!)

the most difficult thing about it is staying away from sweet drinks (soda, juice, sweet tea) and not eating chocolate (thankfully i found a yummy sugar free peppermint patty at CoCoa Safari)

it seems to work pretty well! im not like...WOW, i just dropped 2 dress sizes in a week!! but i am impressed with how easy it is to stick with. im also glad that my pants fit again.

people pleaser

2011-04-11T17:52:00.002-04:00

Galatians 1:10

Do you think that i am trying to make people accept me? No, God is the one i am trying to please. Am i trying to please people? If i still wanted to please people then i would not be a servant if Christ

i dont like to admit it, but I am a person who wants to please people, i feel the unrest if i think someone is mad at me or if i think they disagree with me, or if i think i offended them somehow.

i remind myself that they choose to be offended or that not everyone can agree with me all the time and that some people ( gasp) may not even LIKE me (i know, who would NOT like me).

as the school year draws to a close we have had numerous people ask us if Dominic will be going to the Christian Academy next year. the answer is no next year he will start first grade in public school. the next question is usually, is it because of the cost?

No its not because of the cost, its because as Christians we are called to a mission of going, and making disciples, and showing the love of Christ to people who are not believers.

its really difficult to live that mission when everyone you hang with is either already a believer or claims to be.

the asker today was someone i respect immensely and of course, someone i did not want to displease. i found this conversation really uncomfortable as she listened to my reasons of wanting dominic to realize that not everyone is like us, of wanting him to be able to have to opportunity to be a good example to others, of wanting him to be able to relate to all different kinds of kids, and to be there to show the love of Christ, she had that look on her face that i immediately read as disapproval (although i may be wrong, she may have been thinking and listening really closely). that made me nervous, it almost made me second guess my reasons.

then i realized that Ken and i have talked this over thoroughly, we feel like this is the best decision. and no matter how much i respect someone, i cant change my mind to please them, im not accountable to them. im accountable only to God.

another shirt makeover

2011-04-07T11:26:00.004-04:00

im on a roll!! i have had this shirt for a few months now. i have never worn it. why?

see, its a bit wide at the bottom. this was a problem. i bought it at my favorite store ever. Ann Taylor? NO, silly, i cant afford to shop there!! Good Will.

i LOVE Ann Taylor, the fabrics are so nice and soft, the colors are always the best of the season (in my small town opinion) and i comb our local good will for someone elses Ann Taylor cast offs. so im sure Ann would have a bone to pick with me, since she isnt seeing any of the profits from my love affair with her designs. and i am proud to say that my closet full of Ann Taylor clothes has cost me less than 100 bucks in the last year. yay for frugality.
so heres what i did to correct the problem with this beautiful top.

what do ya think?

SUPER easy, the most difficult part was winding the bobbin with the elastic thread, it kept getting away from me.

you have to hand wind the elastic thread so its wound fairly tightly, so that when you stitch with it, it springs back and creates the gathers.

i started stitching around the bottom and just kept sitiching following the last row as a guide, around, and around and around, without stopping, its one continuous line of stitches. how much easier could that have been
ta-da!!

what will she make over next?

sweater make over

2011-03-31T12:46:00.002-04:00

i came by this cute sweater for free at a church clothing exchange, i loved the color and the cute sleeves, but just wasnt too sure about the turtle neck

when i tried it on later i realized the turtle neck HAD to go, this sweater had too much going on with the turtle neck, puffed sleeves and ribbing on the lower half. i set about researching on the internet the best way to remove a turtle neck without too much damage. it seems the best way is to clip a little hole near the seam and separate the two layers of turtle neck, then carefully snip them away without damaging the finished edge between the layers, i can do that!!
i also saw that one lady had used the turtleneck to make a rosette. i can do that too!
ta da! the sweater, which is currently in the wash because i put it on on sunday morning, and then proceeded to spit toothpaste on myself, charming, i know.

but it does look super cute on, and Ken didnt even recognize it as the same sweater.

a post for the grandparents

2011-03-16T09:38:00.003-04:00

the family arrived last friday night and we have had plenty of opportunities for photos this week, most of our fun was had on sunday, which is when we made cookies and played in the dirt.

we didnt set up the christmas tree, but we did make christmas cookies and both of the boys really enjoyed that. especially the eating part.

Dominic and Connor found a couple of little garden shovels and decided to excavate a swimming pool for fireflies. it may be a while until the fireflies can use it though, its a little too chilly right now for swimming.

here comes...

2011-03-12T15:19:00.002-05:00

i have been hanging out with these guys for the last couple of days.

be back on tuesday.

gas strike? really?

2011-03-10T08:41:00.002-05:00

i have been seeing on face book all these posts for gas strike days. this really, really irritates me. this action makes no sense. its not like the oil companies are scared of one day with low gas sales, they know that the people who didnt fill up today are going to have to fill up tomorrow which will probably result in a nice big sales day. its just idiotic, i dont use that word alot, i dont say it because i dont want my son to say it but the idea of sticking it to the oil company by going one day without buying their product is just that, idiotic.

who thought of this? and how did they get so many people on their band wagon?

do you want to make a real difference on gas strike day?

go to your nearest gas station and hang out for a minute or two. someone who really cant afford the gas they need is going to drive up. take your cash or debit card and pay for their gas.

you cant stick it to the oil company but you can make someones day and show them love Jesus style.

are they going to think youre crazy? yeah, probably.

people thought Jesus was crazy.

are they going to refuse. probably not.

absolutely, i do.

2011-03-02T12:35:00.003-05:00

is the answer when im asked....

would you like fresh grated parmesan on that?

care for a refill on that coffee?

do you have a CVS card?

would you like your reciept?

you have a library fine of a dollar twenty five, do you want to pay it now?

wanna go to lunch?

wanna get a pizza?

do you want to watch Psych?

care to join me in a game of uno?

the #1 question with the answer "absolutely, i do"

do you think a heating blanket is the best gift you have ever gotten? ABSOLUTELY, I DO.

2011-02-28T18:35:00.002-05:00

well, saturday did not turn out to be as carefree as i had hoped. in the no house work statement i forgot...i havent cleaned the bathroom in weeks.

and RRRRIIIINNNGGGGG "hello?"

house guests to spend the weekend next week!!! yay!

so suddenly my main objective is to NOT completely gross them out with my crusty bath tub and faucet covered in way ward toothpaste splatters.

i honed my tetris skilz by figuring out where i can cram my sewing desk so that the pack and play will fit...mission accomplished!

next was a plan for all our meals for the weekend, nothing fancy but ya know, you want to know what youre feeding people.

and finally a trip to the meat market for some local beef and pork chops for my man to throw on the grill.

so it was a busy saturday but a good saturday, next week and the week after will be better (guests 2 weeks in a row!!!)

i cant wait to see my favorite girls this week and my favorite boys next weekend!

er, what are we going to today, brain?

2011-02-26T08:35:00.002-05:00

wow! a day OFF, the whole family, we havent committed to anything today.

no work, no extended family plans, no house work that has to be done!

there are 2 things that are stopping my mind from running wild on possibilities.

Money- we are trying to pay off one of our bills and can spare no extra funds.

Weather-we really cant plan anything outside because its rainy and 33 degrees.

so what shall we do?

what i need

2011-02-24T18:10:00.004-05:00

i got a brilliant idea today of making a shelf in our dining area dedicated to our board games, right now they are high up on a shelf in the laundry room and not accessable to the shorter members of our family.

so i went about trying to clear the books off of one shelfs of our book cases. it did not go well.

i determined that an additional book shelf is necessary. now to find an affordable one, thts not junky or cheap looking.

this is my dream bookcase

i would LOVE one of these, or two or three, or just a whole wall, no make that room full.

did you hear that? its me swooning.

hurray for 5$ foot longs!

2011-02-23T18:38:00.002-05:00

thats pretty much it. just hurray for 5$ foot longs.

since no body is feeling 100% around here, cooking and cleaning are NOT top priority.

upon arriving home from work, i walked into the kitchen, the messy, messy kitchen, and i used up all my extra energy washing dishes.

so hurray for 5$ foot longs at subway. and it was free cookie day too, but you only get one, so i got the one i wanted, raspberry cheesecake cookie, and kept it a secret for when everyone else goes to bed.

AGAIN!!?? (downer post)

2011-02-22T13:09:00.004-05:00

yep, im sick...AGAIN!

on a normal year i get sick enough to take to my bed once, one time.

three times! so far. i am not amused.

headache and nausea are not cool.

neither are body aches and runny nose.

i have gotten smart and experienced enough about to learn how to breathe through nausea and take an excedrin (yay, for caffeine dependency) instead of tylenol.

lets hope this is the last time.
and no, i did not get a flu shot.

but i do get to sit on the couch and watch Community, if you havent seen it, netflix it, its strangely funny and just all around odd but hilarious,so much so, that, it might only last 2 seasons. because thats what happens to show that i love. its a curse

except Psych, also hilarious, that one repelled the curse of the show that i love. you can get that one on netflix too.

2011-02-21T12:24:00.002-05:00

my dear husband called me out on not posting for 3 days.

i have been busy, well not super busy, but not near a computer.

we took D up to Indy to visit grandma and grandpa and shopped a little at circle center mall while we were there.

i wanted to maybe get a new accessory or dress. i didnt find anything.

maybe its the small town life that i live, all laid back and quiet and what not...but i have to say that mall was LOUD! and stinky.

between different loud club music in every store we went into and the terribly strong perfume and body product smell that was everywhere, it was hard to shop!

so we went and got coffee and a bagel.

sunday of course i had to go get the boy from grandma and grandpas, we had lunch with them at panera, have you tried their mac and cheese at panera? to die for. it is the best i have ever had, EVER.

so that was my weekend. in a nut shell.

so whats yours?

2011-02-18T08:29:00.002-05:00

There is no absurdity so palpable but that it may be firmly planted in the human head if you only begin to inculcate it before the age of five, by constantly repeating it with an air of great solemnity. -Arthur Schopenhauer

this quote was posted on someones facebook status.

i found it interesting, imagining all the different concepts that form in a child's head in those early years. all kinds of notions that serve them well later,that they later find to be false, or that prove to be their ruin.

i also did a little research on Schopenhauer, and began to wonder... who would listen to that guy, he was MESSED up.

this is getting sad

2011-02-16T19:05:00.002-05:00

my daily posts have become so boring that im sure almost nobody except my closet friends and my most far away family members are even reading them anymore.

seriously, i went to the BMV today.

why does the BMV smell like smoke and why is it full of people in lounge pants? dont non- smokers who wear actual pants go there too?

i was there for work.

errands are my bag, baby.

i love running work errands. i love getting to go to staples and buy paper, i love going to the bank, the post office, the accountant.

somebody has to do it...it might as well be the someone who will probably stop for a latte while theyre out.

(no subject)

2011-02-15T19:00:00.002-05:00

the treats were a huge hit. especially with one little girl in particular, she came up to me 2 or 3 times to thank me and tell me how much she liked them (sweet kid)

i...uh...vacuumed the living room....and...hmmm...lets see oh, ! did dishes! yay me!

yeah, its pretty boring around here.

i made a homemede pizza tonight.

the pre packaged crust from Ruler Foods...eh, i've had better. dominic mixed up the sauce for me but when it came to putting oil on his hands to ball up the dough, he was outtie. i did that.

it was a turkey sausage pizza. and i had no mozzerella cheese (i know, how, you ask does THAT happen!?) so i used shredded sharp cheddar (a little sparingly) it was YUM!

so EXCITING up in here! (not)

any way. on to a super spectular night of snuggling up and reading...ooooohhhhh.

spring is on its way, that usually leads to more picturey posts, i bet you cant wait.

class party treats

2011-02-13T15:30:00.004-05:00

Dominic's class is having a valentines day party tomorrow, the treats we decided to take are and adaptation of the ones we made for christmas the year before last year.

a jumbo marshmallow stabbed through with a pretzel stick and dipped in melted toll house morsels.

oh, and sprinkled with pink and red sprinkles. that was D's job.

these four are ours, the ones that wouldnt fit in the plastic pan.

after the bag of marshmallows was gone there was still chocolate left, already melted so chocolate covered pretzels sounded like a brilliant way to avoid wasting the chocolate.

these were a huge hit with the family at christmas so im sure they will be just as big of a hit with the 5-6 year old crowd.

more of nothing

2011-02-11T18:52:00.002-05:00

heres some stuff from today

*cleaned my tub and shower, nearly died from the bad fumes

*drank coffee (its a given)

*fully realized just HOW stupid Inspector Gadget is, that guy is a Dum-Dum.

*heard "backwater" by the Meat Puppets on my Izzy Stradlin and the JuJu Hounds station on Pandora, its been a while but i at least still remembered the words to the chorus.

*cooked a frozen lasagna and garlic bread and had it declared by D "the best food ever" doesnt say much for my real cooking, does it?

* had lunch with my sweetheart.

*found some fruit snacks at Aldi that do not contain HFCS (yay)

*made and posted some cute pot holders on my etsy shop.

*looked for some school pants for D, he is down to 2 pairs that fit and one that is too big on the waist. apparently 6 slim is not an "in demand" size .

*discovered that my legs REALLY need to see sun (or sunless tanner).

so thats the exciting day i had here on the hilltop, totally random?

yes, please.

Garth, that was a haiku.

2011-02-10T10:06:00.002-05:00

my breakfast is this

cheese, chicken salad sandwich

healthy with coffee

yep, when i could think of nothing to blog, you get a haiku about breakfast. sometimes i pass time by thinking of haikus about different things while im waiting, or while im driving, or while im working. i learned about haikus in second grade social studies: the Japan unit.

we did an around the world event, where we moved from classroom to classroom, with the other 2 second grade classes, one was Japan and one was Norway (fittingly taught by Mrs. Knutsvig, no joke) i dont remember what the others were, could be because there was no food involved. in Japan we tried seaweed and in Norway, rice pudding.

now you all know something that i dont think ANYONE knew about me. Haiku composing is really fun, you should try it.

i stink

2011-02-07T17:07:00.002-05:00

i really stink at blogging every day thing, dont i?

why?

why, you ask? mostly time, that and content, i dont have much for content right now, its pretty boring around here. unless you want to hear a story about a little boy who loves The Incredibles so much that he has decided to turn our family into super heros, and he expects us all to wear our underwear on the outside.

in addition he was very disappointed to find out from a local police officer that rocket boosters are not street legal.

uh, sorry

2011-02-03T13:11:00.003-05:00

i forgot to blog 2 days in a row!

in my defense, the plague has taken over at our house and im the last one standing..

WooHoo, go, ME!!!

yeah, i know, my times coming right? i sure hope not.

anyway, i added a couple of SUPER cute things to my Etsy shop, i would keep them for myself but at my house, between my son and my cat, they would not stay pretty for long, and since theyre of the handmade variety, i got to name them! fun.

so go on over, and check out the Holly pillow (hi holly, bonus points if you can tell me why i named it after you) and the My Elle barettes.

monday=funday

2011-01-31T18:00:00.003-05:00

the excitement today was Dominic getting sent home from school with 102 fever!

he says he feels fine just tired and says his legs hurt.

also fun, tonight and tomorrow it is predicted that we will get an inch of ice. im thinking i should have bought that coffee press i saw last week at the coffee shop so when our power goes out im not left with no coffee (hello Circle K).

2011-01-30T07:54:00.003-05:00

not too much going on yesterday at our house, we stopped down at All Ways Pottery to pick up our pieces, Dominic made this coffee mug for me, the other 2 sides have a picture on them as well, one has a cross, one has a picture of Yoda (?).

the afternoon was spent relaxing at home, i reading on my new Kindle (yay) and eating my chocolate covered caramels with sea salt (we stopped at Cocoa Safari while we were downtown) Ken watching The Karate Kid and nerf fighting with D.

today holds all the excitement i could ever hope for...a birthday party at the bowling alley, and lots of praying that dominic does not pick up the strep that had 8 of his classmates out of school last week.

i considered taking him to the movies instead of allowing him to go to the party....but i worry that not many will be able to come and the birthday boy will be disappointed. we will not however be eating birthday cake.

stepping up to the challenge?

2011-01-29T08:05:00.003-05:00

3 of my favorite blogs to read belong to Tricia and her daughters Jessica and Megan.

Tricia and Jessica have been posting everyday for the last month (i think its suppose to be for the year)

i started reading Tricias blog shortly after i started blogging she is funny, optimistic and crafty, not to mention loves fashion and coffee.

we hit it off in blogland fairly quickly and i learned that her MIL lives right across the river from me in carrollton KY!

i immediately (hopefully not creepy weirdo-y) invited her over the next time she was in town.

when she did visit her MIL we got together for coffee and shopping, the main hurdle in hanging with Tricia is you have to be chemical free-FREE..which doesnt sound too hard until you start freeing yourself from scented body wash, scented lotion, hair sprays, cosmetics, deodorant, even laundry soap and fabric softener so i had alot to learn about chemical sensitivities on that first meeting. over the last 2 years seeing Tricia when she visited and also meeting Megan and Jessica when i went to visit her last year for a real vacation, all 4 of us agree that its like we are all related and im the cousin that they rarely see but love and think about often, and they are my cousins that live in florida and extend an open invitation to me.

any way, i aspire to blog every day this month, just like them.

im over it.

2011-01-21T14:25:00.002-05:00

is it really that bad?

i dont know but what i do know is im seeing and hearing alot of complaining.

i see alot to FB statuses that lament the despair of having to deal with snow.

how would we be able to relate to the line "Sin had left a crimson stain, he washed me white as snow" if we NEVER saw snow that blanketed everything in sight?

im hearing alot of complaints about the kids having to be in school until june? is this even worth your breath? really?

so they will go to school until june, its not going to hurt them.

complaints of school basketball games cancelled, complaints of messy roads, of home bound children driving you crazy, of snow getting tracked in....the list goes on

first i do want to admit that i have been guilty of a complaint or two in my day, then i want to say

im so thankful that my house is warm and dry, im so thankful that my tires are not bald, that my healthy intellegent son is bugging me to play with him, that i get to spend an extra 2 days of my time on the earth hanging out with this kid. im super thankful for Netflix instant viewing option.

its nothing to get your knickers in a twist over, my friends.

just stop complaining and enjoy these days for what they are.

smarty pants?

2011-01-19T13:33:00.002-05:00

sometimes i wonder...am i a smarty pants? am i a know it all?

it seems like i just cant help offering solutions, if you have a problem, then i want a solution, especially if its something similar to an experience i have had.

in the past week i have offered solutions, mostly kid related to a handful of friends who seem to be seeking a tap in the direction of a solution.

i have advised on food specifically healthy food.

i have advised on sick babies.

i have advised on school related issues (im still learning here, folks)

i have advised on difficult relatives.

some of my suggestions seem to be taken well, others seem to be rejected before they are out of my mouth.

my question...how do i decide whether the person wants my opinion, or just wants to vent.

i want to help when i can, but i dont want pepole to avoid me because im a miss know it all smarty pants.

2011-01-17T13:13:00.002-05:00

yesterday we visited First Baptist Church downtown and found it to be promising, the teaching was solid bible teaching, the kind that has you flipping all over the new testament.

the people (the ones we didnt know) welcomed us, but not in a weird accosting you with too much enthusiasm kind of way. Dominic liked kids church ( ken and i already knew the teacher) and as luck would have it, we got invited to the adult sunday school class' pot luck lunch where we were able to talk to the interum pastor and his wife, both of whom have a background in urban and innercity ministry.

also we later learned that Dominic felt lead to give his heart to Jesus.

ken asked him if he did that in Kids Church, dominic told him "no, it was while you and mommy were eating chicken with our new church family"

all in all it was a good experience and we will definitely be visiting again next week.

is back :)

2011-01-13T12:08:00.002-05:00

had a couple of semi dark days there...whew.

im so glad for friendly encouragement.

Ken and i discussed which direction we need to be headed in and the pros and cons of a) continuing to go to Sojourn in Louisville for a few weeks or b) visiting some local churches so we can start connecting to some people in our area who are living on mission.

we decided that although Sojuorn is a comfortable place for us, and we know what to expect ,thats where our dear friends the kelleys and their grown kids go, and it would be a great place to rest for a while we would accomplish nothing by continuing to attend every week.

Sojuorn will be a place where we can go if we are in between visiting local churches, but not where we go regularly.

so the goal is to find a local church where the teaching is solid, the leadership is biblical and the people are serving...tall order, i know.

but now i feel better.

i feel like i should

2011-01-11T13:18:00.002-05:00

i feel like i should blog today, why? because its been a week since i blogged and im not really doing much today.

has my blog run its course?

in the last 6 monts or so i just am not into it.

i no longer think "ooh, im going to blog this!!"

i just slap something down when i feel like i should.

but there are things happening.

after 2 years of pouring our life, energy and finances into our mission of taking the love of Christ downtown to the walnut street neighborhood by planting a church and serving the poor and broken we disbanded. it became apparent that we were spinning our wheels fruitlessly in the attempt to plant a church. we are now looking for an existing church with a heart to reach the lost that we can become a part of. we have been enjoying attending Sojourn in Louisville, but we need somewhere in town, where we can invite people without expecting them to make an hour drive to get there.

so this is a strange time here on the hilltop, we dont even know what a normal week is suppose to look like at this point.

ginger lemonade

2011-01-02T17:31:00.002-05:00

Dominic was sick this week so i went to walmart and bought all the things you buy when someone is sick ...excpept ginger ale.

the kid hates soda, he says its too spicy.

so instead i bough a box of english breakfast tea, a lemon and a ginger root.

a relatively small ginger root.

but it doesnt take much ginger root to make an acceptable ginger tea, so now i have a chunk of ginger root.

this being the very first time i have ever worked with a real ginger root, i decided to start experimenting.

i consulted google.

then mixed up a batch of minced ginger, the juice of one lemon and a big squirt of honey in my empty *tear* kombucha bottle.

let it sit overnight in the fridge then mixed it wit as much seltzer water as the bottle would hold, about 14 oz.

i strained this through a coffee filter and chilled it.

the results...YUM.

nice weather and a tale of a melted sleeping bag

2010-12-31T10:11:00.004-05:00

the weather is gorgeous, it is currently 54 degrees in southern indiana...on december 31.

i love it!!

it means i could hang out a comforter that i had to wash (sick kid).
i do not like putting comforters in the dryer, call me crazy but i worry that they will catch on fire.

when i was 10 me and my brother each got a red sleeping bag for christmas. they were the first sleeping bags we ever got, mine was tan on the inside, David's was yellow.
we slept on the floor in our new sleeping bags for a week.
until.......
new years eve, my moms and dads went out and david and i stayed home with my aunt pat. david got sick and the sleeping bag suffered the consequences.

into the washer and onward to the dryer the sleeping bag went. everything from here on is fuzzy but the end result is that the sleeping bag had a hole melted in it and no longer zipped up, it stayed that way for years,used as a blanket under the bed spread, im sure my mom has gotten rid of it by now.

i always think of the sleeping bag when i put a bulky comforter in the dryer. and i never leave the house while its in the dryer.

notebook sleeve

2010-12-30T15:47:00.003-05:00

yesterday when i got home from work rachel (super babysitter) and D were sitting on the couch, eyes glued to rachels Acer Notebook. when she started packing up her stuff, i asked her "dont you have a sleeve for that?"

she didnt. i grabbed my yardstick, took some measurements and filed the numbers away in my brain for later use. last night while drifting off to sleep, i was already assembling the notebook sleeve in my head.

i had an old nap mat from pre school just waiting to be repurposed into something useful.

it became the foam padding i needed for the sleeve. it took me about 2 hours give or take to finish this project.

and needless to say, i am very happy with the results.

stuff you may not know about me

2010-12-23T13:02:00.002-05:00

i love mary jane style shoes

i sometimes wipe my hands on my pants instead of getting a napkin

i hate the texture of wet peanut butter left on the knife and soaking in the sink.

the only clothes i fold before putting away are my work tees and jeans, everything else i just cram in my drawers.

our pet spikey

2010-12-20T20:07:00.002-05:00

friday night D and i were in the kitchen when i spied something moving near his foot, i pointed this out and D immediately jumped on to the nearest chair.

it didnt look like the spiders i had seen around the house, so i grabbed a jar, trapped the spider under it and carefully slid a piece of paper under the jar.

when i had him trapped securely in the jar D came over to look "aww, hes cute" says the boy.

i asked what his name was and he was dubbed Spikey.

we kept spikey in the jar saturday, and fed him a few ants that i found on sunday, gave him a few drops of water but by this afternoon Spikey didnt seem too happy.

we relaesed Spike in the bushes outside the house. he ran away immediately, i hope he stays warm because now its snowing.

nasty weather

2010-12-12T07:36:00.002-05:00

well, it looks like im staying at moms for another day.

i got woke up at 6 to the sound of 40-50 mph gusts whipping around the corner of the house. i got out of bed and wandered down the hall where my dad was looking out the front door, my brother and niece were asleep on the couch. i looked out the big window in front and watched the wind blowing the powdery snow up into snow swirls and into drifts, across the road in front of the house. looking down the street the road looked like a sheet of ice.

i told my dad i thought i was going to have to wait until its light out to make a decision about when to go.

my dad's job as a service tech requires him to drive all over this side of the state. he told me even he hated driving in this kind of weather and thought it was too dangerous for me to drive. he also added that all the nasty weather was headed the same way i was.

so i guess we are staying for another day.

my mom is thrilled.

top ten of the day

2010-12-10T22:18:00.002-05:00

10- sleeping until 8:30
9- finding out what a Squinkie is
8- getting a new pair of PJs for christmas
7- family photos taken at a studio
6- barnes and noble with Dominic and Stella
5- watching my brother use his infinite talent punching 2 punch balloons at once
4- cheese
3- teaching kindergarten AND first grade lessons
2- biscuits and gravy
1- happy kids

more adventures in teaching

2010-12-09T14:36:00.002-05:00

todays "break-out lesson" (yep, thats my new name for distractions) consisted of my mom bringing an un labeled can into the dining room where we were working on our math lesson and shaking it, then announcing that she had no idea what was in it, but that it had cost only a quarter (a story backed up by the big orange 25 cent sticker on the top). she proposed that we try to guess what was in it and then whatever was in it, use it to make supper.

she was convinced before she even brought it in that it was some kind of cream soup. i shot that theory down pretty quickly by the slosh that it made when i shook it vigorously. dominic took it and shook it, turned it even sniffed it. then i decided we needed something to compare it to, so we dug through my moms cupboards shaking cans and comparing sizes of cans.

we determined by the sound (and the code TOMSC) that it must be tomato soup. then mom said "i dont really want tomato soup for dinner" and put it back in the cupboard.

my week of teaching

2010-12-08T11:52:00.002-05:00

this week while we are at Mom's dominic is missing a week of school. his teacher sent home a packet of work and little notes to show what we should do on each day. and school goes off track fairly easily when im leading lessons.

Day1:monday, there wasnt that much to do, a little bit of hand writing, a page of numbers and...oooohhhh, learning about peru, thats the day that we decided that we didnt know much about peru and ended up shopping at worlds window and drinking lattes (now thats a social studies lesson i can get on board with)

Day2: tuesday, there was quite a bit more to do, 2 handwriting pages, front and back. a math paper front and back, 3 pages of reading and more peru.
also many interruptions while he watched my mom taking food out of the freezer, re arranging the buffet and the like. we did todays lesson in our PJs and did our reading work with D on my lap. we worked reall hard on good formation of the lowercase f in cursive.

Day3: wednesday, should have been the quickest and easiest day, 1 handwriting, 1number paper, and a maze about peru. it took way too long, an hour, why you ask? because we started a conversation about George Washington Carver, what he discovered, where he was educated and his personal religious beliefs.
i now have him on a search of the house to find things that start with the letters P-e-r-and u. in addition to this learning time, we spent time balancing a pencil on our upper lip, trying to balance a pencil on one finger and discussing what the meaning was of the name Edward (?).

so you see, its really easy to get off track.

toy crazy (or how i felt convicted while writing my latest blog post)

2010-12-07T10:23:00.004-05:00

my son is toy crazy. i understand this is a common problem at this time of year, but we really have never dealt with toy crazy to this extent. he wants everything!

in madison, indiana we have all of about 5 places to buy toys. the biggest and most visited being walmart, of course. the madison courier does not include ads from places we dont have locally, it consists of a CVS ad, a walgreens ad, and a penneys ad. we get a walmart ad in the mail once a week and since we dont have cable,, theres not much of an opportunity to have the young mind filled with the knowledge of everything there is to want.

we arrived at my moms, in waterloo, iowa on friday afternoon. by friday night Dominic was already asking for pillow pets that he saw on the cartoon network. he has been asking for one for a while but its easy to say no and change the subject when the kid isnt reminded about it every 20 minutes.
over the course of the weekend we got loads of ads in the paper, including the toys r us big book and the target toy book.
i never realized that theres so much rubbish out there for toys. there are so many huge items that look awesome on christmas morning but where on earth are you going to store it when the awesomeness has worn off and that wrapping paper tube has come back as your kid's prized possession?
i also have come to understand (but not embrace, mind you) how it is that adults can go so overboard on christmas. little eyes light up at the thought of millenium falcon lego sets (that never get assembled properly), a ride on plush dinosaur that really lumbers and roars (and runs out of battery power, thus no lumbering or roaring) or a full service mini hair and nail salon for toddlers (total cost after all accessories are bought, 130 dollars). we imagine our kid's face when they see this amazing toy and at the moment of purchase we deem it "all worth it". now you might disagree and it may be all worth it to you, but what i really strive for is something he will love, something he would notice if i sneaked it off to goodwill while he is at school.
i do admit that the pouty face when i say "no" "youre not getting that" is a little sad, who wants to disappoint a kid at christmas but fortunately for me my budget is tight enough to not fall for the theatrics.
the other thing that has been getting to me about toy craziness is that it would consume my son's thoughts if it were allowed to. i have to make a point at these teachable moments to bring up the fact that God gives us everything we need and ALOT of what we want. im also seeing how easy it is for the media to show us what we should have our focus on, and lets face it, it is in no way shape or form pleasing to God.

link up!

2010-12-06T14:59:00.005-05:00

want to see what im up to?

check it out!! i updated Dominics blog , its just easier to send you there, so i dont have to retype everything.