Wordless Wednesday

You Say It's Your Birthday

It's my birthday too--yeah

They say it's your birthday

We're gonna have a good time

I'm glad it's your birthday

Happy birthday to you.

Hope I got that song stuck in some people's heads! I was tempted to type the "nuh nuh nuh's" in between each line, but thought that might be over-kill :)

Well, happy birthday to me!
Today, I celebrate turning the ripe old age of 28!
WOOT WOOT!

How am I going to celebrate??? Well, by going to the Apple & Pork Festival like I do every single year. Even though I went yesterday morning, I still want to go today. And last weekend, Jarrett took me to do some damage at the Endless Shrimp Event at Red Lobster. I would say we got our money's worth. And of course, I will be spending time with my 2 favorite girls on the planet.

1 month from today...

my baby becomes a 2 year old. I can hardly believe it!

And let's just say, Rachel is ahead of the curve & starting the terrible terrific twos early. My little miss independent is going to be a tough egg to crack!

Thought I would let you all know, just in case you are keeping track. We certainly are!

Being Creepy Pays Off

Ok, so I have read enough "home decor/thrifty decor" blogs over the past few weeks that my head is spinning with ideas. I. LOVE. THEM. No joke, these blogs are, in my opinion, the best things in the world.

Now, if you ask my husband, he would definitely tell you they are bad influences on me. I get too many ideas, and then want to change every single aspect of our home. Well, that is basically what he would say except I cleaned it up a bit because he is a truck-driver & he has a way with words. HA! He gets a very cute "concerned" look when he sees me with measuring tapes, hammers, & what-not. I love it! Keeping him in suspense & wondering what exactly I am up to is also one of the best things in the world!

And I apologize that I cannot remember exactly which blogs I copied some of my ideas from. I would like to give credit/props to the folks whose ideas I have stolen borrowed. But frankly what I did was (and this will make me sound like a completely creepy internet stalker), once I found a decor blog I liked I went back through the archives & looked at almost each & every post. I know, I have A LOT of free-time somedays. But I looked at sooooo many blogs I honestly don't remember who I got the ideas from.

I am working on several different projects at the present time, but here are a couple of completed ones. I saw a pumpkin topiary sort of similar to this one I made. I thought, "wow what a novel idea" & it looked so easy! And it was easy! I bought the fake pumpkins at Michael's in New Jersey when we were there. They were on sale of 50% off so I got them for $3 a piece. I had the pot on hand, because I lack a green thumb & my plant died. I also dismantled a wreath I had, so that is where I got the pipberries & other little things.

First, I cut off the stems from 2 of the pumpkins. And I super-glued them stacked up like that.

Then, I took my dismantled wreat parts & just stuck them in where it looked good. (Jarrett was in charge of making sure it looked good!)

All in all, I think she turned out quite nice. She is proudly displayed on my mantle because Rachel keeps trying to un super-glue the pumpkins.

Completed project #2 I came up with all on my own. I got this old milk can from my grandma. She was in rough shape (the can not my grandma - felt the need to clarify that). I didn't take a true "before" picture because I forgot to. But here is one of Rachel playing outside with the can in the background. VERY VERY VERY RUSTY & DUSTY! I had to put on a mask while I was cleaning it up.

The clean up & sanding was the hardest part. Then I just gave it a couple of coats of black spray-paint. I usually buy the cheapest stuff they have, you know the $.99 stuff at Wal-Mart. But Jarrett picked it up for me. He got the Krylon black spray-paint for me & I will never buy the cheapo stuff again. My finger didn't get a horrific cramp in it because the sprayer is that much nicer. Then I just made a stencil on the computer & printed it out. It took all of 5 minutes to do that. And I just love it!

So, there you have it. Being creepy really did pay off for me. I have several more ideas & projects in the works. And of course, I will give you all the pleasure of seeing the completed ones!

Simon Better Get Ready...

...because Rachel will be on that stage in 15 years! That is if American Idol is still around in 2024.

This little "diva" in training has seen one too many music videos/music competitions. She has the mic movement & head swaying all down-pat at the ripe old age of 22 months! Here she is last night demonstrating her new-found talent & love of singing. (sorry for the poor video lighting, my house is like a cave)

Lucky Blessed Girls

When I was younger, my Mom always said how lucky my sister & I were. This usually took place in the midst of a fight, disagreement, punching match, what-have-you. She said we were lucky, because we each had something she never had and that is a sister.

I used to think she said this to make us stop fighting, arguing, punching, etc...To try to make us "like" each other. To a 13 year old & a 15 year old girl with pretty sassy attitudes, we would roll our eyes & just shrug it off.

What does she know anyway? She doesn't have a sister.

She never had someone sneaking into their room & borrowing their clothes without asking. She never had a sister just 2 years older than her who would intentionally not include her in what they were doing, just because she wanted some time to spend with her real friends. She never had a sister who would tease her. She never had a sister who would drive her to school in the freezing cold temperatures, and never turn on the heat & take pleasure in the fact that she was sitting there shivering. She never had a sister who she would argue with & come to blows with on a daily basis, exchanging punches like boys at the dinner table.

But then, after we were each out of the house, we "liked" each other much more. And it was like a light bulb came on in my head *DING*

She never had a sister who would do all of those things, and still be her best friend for life. She never had a sister who she could borrow clothes from with or without asking. She never had a sister who would include her & take her along to some events (even though I am sure it was no fun to drag your bratty little sister along to things where your actual friends were). She never had a sister who would drive her to school instead of making her ride the stinky old bus. She never had a sister who would ask her to be the maid of honor in her wedding. She never had a sister who would laugh, joke, & talk with her all the time. She never had a sister who she could ask all kinds of pregnancy/childbirth questions to & not worry about her sister being offended or laughing at them.

It took me a few years to figure it out, but at least I eventually did. Sisters are very special. Olivia & Rachel are so incredibly blessed, and they don't even realize it yet. I am sure they will have their own squabbles & rough patches. And I would be lying if I didn't admit, I am a little scared of what lies ahead in the teen years in the Totten household. Especially if these 2 girls are anything like their mother. Just a little bit on the sassy side, I was. But eventually, just like me, I am sure they will come around to see the light. Sisters are lucky blessed. They have a ready-made best friend!

New Jersey Vacation

We got back to the great state of Illinois on Tuesday afternoon. Two long days in the car on the trip to New Jersey & two long days in the car on the way back home. And we survived!

Both girls did amazingly well on the way there. Olivia was so excited to get to Grammie's house & see her cousins. Rachel, having never been there before, was understandably timid. But it helped a great deal that Jarrett's parents were there too. So Rachel was pretty excited to see her Bopchi & Tata. Honestly, I think she was confused & thought Jarrett's parents had actually moved there.

It was so wonderful to see everyone. Rachel warmed up to everyone within hours it seemed. It was great to see Jarrett's grandmother June with the girls. My children are so incredibly blessed to have great-grandparents that are a part of their lives. That is something that I never had. But my grandparents are so very important to me. And I am so very thankful that they are able to be with the girls as often as they are. Since June is in New Jersey, she doesn't get to see them very often at all. It was only her third time seeing Miss Rachel. I am so glad we went. Olivia loved seeing her cousin Brooke. They had so much fun together, you would never know they have only seen each other maybe 4 times total. They are best friends!

4 generations photo - Olivia, Jarrett, Albert, Rachel, & June

We went for Katie & Rich's wedding. Unfortunately, the weather was not so great. It rained all day Friday & Saturday (the day of the wedding). The reception was outside at the farm under a huge white tent. Constant rain all day Friday & Saturday + a tent on slanted ground = a muddy ground. But it was beautiful anyway. The girls had so much fun dancing all night.

Sunday & Monday were both gorgeous days. It was sunny & bright in the 80's. It was so nice, the girls got to enjoy the in ground pool. We had a picnic dinner Sunday evening. And the girls got to play outside all day.

The car-ride home didn't go as smoothly as the way there. Olivia gets carsick & she didn't enjoy the mountains of Pennsylvania one little bit. The poor dear! And Rachel decided about 4 hours into the trip home that she was done being in her carseat. But we made it home in one piece, and that is what counts.

I thouroughly enjoyed all of the quality family time we had. It isn't very often that we are together all four of us Tottens for five entire days straight. I feel refreshed & ready to face our regular day-to-day lives again. And I declare myself officially funk-free! WOOHOO!

Olivia went back to school yesterday, with very few complaints in the morning. Jarrett is still off work, so he stayed home with Rachel yesterday. I went back to work yesterday. And today we are officially back in our normal routine!

Wordless Wednesday

We Made It!!!

Man is my rear sore! Whew, 5 hours yesterday evening. 9 hours today. That is a whole lot of sitting in a car. And we safely arrived in New Jersey. The girls did amazingly well. Rachel especially, I am not going to lie I was a little bit concerned about how she would do. She has a tendency to make things very interesting in our lives. That is all part of her onery little charm. Olivia did really well too. She has always been a very easy traveller. This is her 4th trip to New Jersey, the 2nd of this year. So she is pretty well versed in the length of the trip.

Now to get to that delicious, mouth-watering, greasy Frank's Pizza. Come on now, I am not counting Chub Club points tonight!

New Jersey Here We Come

Today we are heading to New Jersey.

820 miles - so roughly 13 1/2 hours in the car, with a 5 year old & an almost 2 year old. What was I thinking??? Just kidding! Sometimes, you gotta do what you gotta do.

Thank goodness for portable DVD players, little toy laptops, & Leapsters. Those are going to be life savers. I can't help but wonder where all of those things were when I was growing up & taking vacations driving places with my family. I am sure Jarrett would agree.

We will drive about half today & half tomorrow. That means we get to stay in a hotel. Olivia is so excited about that. She is even more excited to get to see her Grammie & cousin Brooke. Everyone there will be excited to finally see Little Miss Rachel in person. Jarrett is excited to get to see all of his family. And to check on the crop he planted when he was back in New Jersey earlier this year.

Me, heck, I am just excited to get away from it all for a few days. You know, pretend like my washing machine STILL isn't out of commission. Or that I don't have a stack of bills to pay. Or that I won't be able to take anymore time off of work until after the 1st of the year. Just forget about all of the funk-inducing things. And to eat some Frank's Pizza!!! Oh my mouth is watering just thinking about it. And maybe shop a little. No sales tax in New Jersey...may get some Christmas shopping done.

Oops...I forgot

This conversation took place the second I walked through the door last night. I hadn't even put my purse down.

Olivia: Mama, you forgot my dime for milk today at lunch.

Me: Sorry babe, I did forget your quarter for milk today.

Olivia: dime, quarter, whatever there was no changes in my lunch bag.

Me: I am sorry, I just forgot. Did the school let you have a milk anyway.

Olivia: Well, yea. They didn't want me to be thirsty all day long.

Me: That's good. I will remember for tomorrow.

Olivia: Good, they said to tell you to send 2 dimes.

I ♥ Weekends - especially long weekends!

Hope everyone had as much fun over the long holiday weekend as I did. Amazingly, I didn't do a whole heck of a lot. And even better, I didn't spend one red cent!

Fun Frugal Living at it's best!

Of course, Grandma & Grandpa don't charge us to hang out at their house. My friend Haley certainly didn't charge a cover to get into her "Girls Night In" at her house. My Dad footed the bill when we went out to lunch on Sunday. And I didn't even leave the house all day on Monday.

That was my kind of weekend! (And I am not referring to how it was free, but the fact that it was free was just the icing on the cake.) Here is the blow-by-blow of the weekend.

Friday night was the football game & Olivia's debut as a M-Squad dancer. She loved it...although she was a little hard to convince to leave my Grandma & Grandpa's. Begrudginly, she came with us. And I think if you ask her now she is quite proud of her little performance. She was so stinkin' cute out there with her little pink t-shirt. Busting out the choreographed routine & shaking her little booty like a pro! It really was the cutest little dance. Here are a couple of pictures. We were a ways away from her since they had them smack dab in the middle of the football field. But I kept my eye on her the entire routine,she is in the 2nd row. All of the girls did so well.

Saturday during the day, the girls & I headed off to my Grandma & Grandpa's for some good ol' fashioned family fun. Olivia ran around & played with all of her little cousins. I let her play in the rain, I know shame on me. She had a great time. Rachel was my lil' buddy all day. She didn't want to be too far from me for the first couple of hours. So, she was my team mate in the friendly croquet match. Let me tell ya, it must have looked like something out of a Stooges cartoon. Rachel picked my ball up, I said "Oh no, you need to put that down" and she did right that very second & it bounced off the top of my foot. At least she listened to me & everyone got a good chuckle. Jar wasn't there to see it though, he was at the Farm Equipment Auction selling his older combine & disc. Raked in a whopping $1050 total. Let the good times roll!

Saturday night was "Girls Night In" at my BFF Haley's. Soooo much fun!!! Definitely something we need to make a regular occurence. We decided against going out to a restaruant because, well, quite frankly, we are a rowdy & loud bunch. And I think if we sat in a restarant from 6:00 - 11:30 we would get kicked out anyway. So a potluck it was. Then we sat out on her front porch reminiscing & laughing - alot of laughing. I got to say my good-byes to my BFF Lindsay as she flew back home to Texas Monday :( Very sad to see her go, but she assures us this will become an annual trip home.

Sunday, we had lunch with my Mom's side of the family at the restaraunt at Weldon Springs. It was delicious! I wanted to order the horseshoe soooooo bad I could taste it. (Alas, I had a good weigh-in for the Chub Club the day before so why risk it. No need to funk-ify myself again at my own fault.) Then we let the kiddos run a muck at The Springs. Olivia loves going & playing in the water whenever we are there. But this was Rachel's first experience. So, I let her ruin her perfectly good new new to her outfit by sitting, rolling all around in the big rust stain. Oh, and I also let her chew on a stick, because she is almost 2 & that is what she wanted to do.

And Monday was GLORIOUS!!! I DID ABSOLUTELY NOTHING ALL DAY!!! Well, I did load & run the dishwasher. But other than that, nothin - nada - zilch. I held down the recliner. I watched A LOT of TV. The wonderful people at TBS stole my heart with the line up of shows!

The Wedding Singer

followed by Mean Girls

followed by a marathon of The Office

Week 2 & Rachel

Olivia's 2nd week of Kindergarten is complete! And she still loves it. I am so happy for her. And our morning routine is still going great. And we have not tempted fate by having her do hot lunch again. I don't think we will do that again for a while. She is a happy camper with her bologna sandwich, granola bar, and sour cream & onion pringles. Now, if I can make a mental note to always remember to put her milk money in her lunch bag - then we will be in business. I remember, but it's not until we are out the door waiting for the bus.

Olivia is still a little tight lipped about the goings on at school. I do know PE is still her favorite. And she likes to eat lunch sitting across from her cousin Nathan. I didn't share this little nugget of a Nathan-ism last week. But since my sister always shares a nice Nathan quote in each post, I will tell you all about it now. The day Olivia claimed she shared lunch with Nathan last week, Nathan told her "tomorrow I will get my Mom to send 2 quarters so I can buy a chocolate milk for both of us." Isn't that boy sweet & funny.

Olivia also has been looking just so darn cute these days. Every morning I do her hair & she looks adorable. Just so grown up...and I think she may be catching the eyes of some boys in school already. Lord help me! I remarked on how cute she looked Monday when I picked her up from Day Care. She told me that her little girl friend Skye liked her hair clip. And that Blaise said her hair was just so smooth & pretty. Olivia seemed pretty proud that Blaise liked her hair & she got all red in the face. But so far no boyfriend...I jokingly ask her.

She doesn't talk much about her school activies or what she is learning. She talks more about her friends & lunch. Which I am sure she gets from me. Such a social little girl! And tonight Olivia is performing at the high school football game. It's the Mini M-Squad. Last night was practice & she learned the dance routine. But she didn't show me any of the moves. So I am sure tonight will be interesting. I hear there were 212 little girls there. YOWZA!!! I am sure the bleachers will be packed tonight!

Now that the Olivia update is done, onto my lovely second born girl!

Rachel is still her onery little self. She has adjusted well to Day Care & seems to enjoy it. No more tears...so Mama is a happy camper too. Jarrett was off work the majority of this week so she got to spend some extra time with him & maintain her status as "Pal".

I know we all have heard it, "every child is different". Well, I think I got polar opposites in my 2 little girls. Even though they look alike, they do not act alike. I repeat, they do not act alike. I am going to just come right out & say it: OLIVIA SPOILED US! She was SOOOOO EASY from birth until 3 or 4. We didn't see any defiance or attitude really from her until Rachel was on the scene. And I anticipated that. A new baby & she doesn't have 100% of the attention that she used to get. So on & so forth.

Rachel has been a trying child from the day she was born. She doesn't sleep all night like Olivia did. She doesn't eat like Olivia did. She is completely different. I didn't expect Rachel to be a carbon copy of Olivia in every single way. But I did expect them to have similar characteristics & behaviors. Rachel, how do I say this, marches to the beat of her own drum. She does things on her own schedule. Take crawling for instance, this child never crawled an inch. She scooted, if you don't remember look HERE.

The dreaded time of the day is bedtime. Rachel is as stubborn as the day is long. She didn't want to sleep in her crib anymore. So about 2 months ago, I converted it to a toddler bed. That worked for all of 3 nights. She detests her bed. She likes to sleep being held, STILL! I know, bad habit to start - yada yada yada. But come on now, this Mama has got to sleep too. If holding her is the only way that is possible then so be it. That lasted for a month.

Now, she likes to sleep in our room. We took the mattress off of her unused bed & put it on our floor. This is where she sleeps. Or shall I say, this is where she starts out. Usually about 2 or 3 hours in she wakes up SCREAMING!!! And then gets put in bed with us. After about 3 or 4 little feet to the ribs or a toddler head-butt, I move to the bed on the floor - LOVELY! Nothing like having to sleep on your own bedroom floor to make a great night of rest.

Any suggestions or ideas that may work for me to get this girl to sleep in her bed in her room where she belongs? You know, suggestions other than hog-tying her...that is Jar's suggestion that I constantly shoot down.

And I wonder why I am always tired & want to take a nap right this very moment.

Good-Bye Funk

Just as soon as I announced my funk, it's gone! Maybe I should have started griping on here as soon as I started this blog...

Anywho, back to the funk that is no more.

I decided, I need a change of scenery...not a permanent change, maybe just a long weekend of change. I just need to get out of my normal routine for a while. Actually go somewhere instead of home to work, work to home, home to wal-mart, so on & so forth.

As luck may have it, Jarrett's cousin is getting married on September 12th in New Jersey. We were not going to go, there are several reasons: 1) Jarrett & I couldn't miss (who really misses it) be absent from work, 2) I didn't want Olivia to be out of school this early in the school year, 3) money money money.

But, thanks to my funk...I made the executive decision to say "what the hey, let's just go & do what we want". I know, sometimes I am crazy like that. HAHA! And believe me, I am a little stressed about it. Normally I need at least a months notice before we go anywhere. I have to make 50 some odd lists & get everything in order. So, this is very spur of the moment for me, even though it is a full week away.

I am super stoked that we are going to be East bound & down, loaded up & trucking. (Come on, I had to make a Jerry Reed reference. I told you that was my favorite movie HERE.)

Now if you will excuse me, I need to go throw some groceries down my neck & settle in for the evening.

The Facts of Life

I am in a funk of sorts.
And I loathe that I am continually reminded, in one way shape or form, that being an adult has ups & downs. Generally speaking, I am a happy person. I have a husband, whom I love. I have 2 beautiful little girls, whom I love more than life itself. But some days, I think this whole adult responsibilities thing sucks hard core. And, if I am being completely honest with myself, I have a tendency to have a "Glass Half Empty" mentality.

So, today I feel like complaining...alot. And that is exactly what I am going to do here. So, that is my disclaimer...read on if you want to.

There are several things I want to do, but I can't. There are things that I should do, but I don't. There is not enough time in the day to do all of the things I should be doing. There are projects I want to complete, but I don't have the time or money.

On such lovely days as this, I want to be home with my 2 gorgeous girls. But now my Olivia is in school so I don't feel as guilty for working. Still, my little miss Rachel is shuffled off somewhere every day. Maybe in 4 years I will have no residual working Mommy guilt.

My washing machine crapped out 2 weeks ago. Therefore, today I am wearing my last clean pair of socks. Not good times...

I feel like I am coming down with a cold (thank you 40 degree mornings at the end of August). I didn't sleep worth a crap last night.

I joined Weight Watchers to lose weight, obviously. I lost big the 1st week 3.6 - I'm thinking WOOHOO!!! I lost a little the 2nd week .8 - still a minus so we are good. I lost big again the 3rd week 3.4 - quite a happy camper. And then this past weekend I gained 1 pound. I HATE that there is a little plus sign in my Chub Club Book --- HATE IT! But, what it comes down to is that I cheated the diet. I ate whatever the heck I wanted all week & then I paid for it. I only have myself to blame for that one, but it still stings! And I am not very happy...

There is a warning light on my car about my tire pressure. For the past 3 weeks I have had to put air in one of my tires at least twice a week. I am no automotive genious, but I know that I need new tires. And that really irritates me because it is not coming at a very good time.

Now that I have all of my crabbiness out of my system (for the time being), lets focus on the positive. Keep my eye on the prize, so to say.

I HAVE SO MUCH TO BE THANKFUL FOR!!!

But sometimes, I take it for granted. Well, lets be honest, I am sure lots of people take it for granted. (That is supposed to lessen my guilt, but it doesn't really.)

Since I listed the things that are really ticking me off this week...I will list the things that made me happy this week too (materialistic things towards the end so I don't come off shallow! HAHA!)

Jarrett & I got all dressed up, we went to my 10 year high school reunion!

I got to see my best friend Lindsay at the reunion, I hadn't seen her in years! Here are my BFFs Lindsay & Haley!

I took this picture with Jarrett! It made me smile, well obviously, didn't it make you smile too?! He is such a goofy, loving guy.

This little girl is talking more & more. She said "night night", "diaper", "bottle", "sister", and "crazy" the other night. And she helped me make cookies Monday night.

This big girl is going to be performing at the half time show of the High School football game in the mini-m squad. She still loves school too!

And this one was too cute not to share. She's a goofball!

And on the list of random things that made me smile...

- Jarrett recorded America's Best Dance Crew for me even though he dislikes the show with a passion.

- I got to go shopping at the mall with Olivia alone on Saturday, it was fun to have some one-on-one time with her.

- I finished Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows. And can safely say I am offically a Harry Potter nerd because I loved the entire series!


And there we have it...you take the good you take the bad, you take them both & there you have...the facts of life! Not always fun, but always worth it.