Stay At Home Improvement (SAHI)

has it really been 2 years?!

2011-02-25T10:32:00.000-08:00

ok, so I may have dropped the blogging ball. shocking. not really. Actually, it was only by accident that I even opened up my blogger account the other day (was trying to find a recipe and hit the wrong link). So, while Im here, I thought Id jot down an update on my weight loss journey.

I am doing AWESOME!!! I couldnt be happier with myself. Its taken longer then it should, but whatever, life happens. Between the kids, the house, work (Ive been working as Realtor for a property management company for the last year), the husband, and everything else, well, thats alot of life to get in the way. Im currently rocking out Chalean Extreme (terrible name - awesome program). Im weighing in at 121lbs! only 6 away from my ultimate scale goal of 115! my size 4's are getting big!! oh and dont even get me started on my arms...i have actual definition!!! me!! Definition!! who wouldve thought?!

Kitchen Makeover on a Real Budget!

2009-06-29T06:35:00.001-07:00

As most of you know, our house has definitely been a "God Thing" (as my hubby likes to call it). Long story short, I actually found this house when I came to talk to the owner of it about listing it with me. I can remember the first day I saw it - just driving into the neighborhood I was thinking "oh I want to live someplace like this - this would be an ideal place to raise the girls". Though I also knew that I was going in to put the house on the market at 50k over our price range. So I knew I was just dreaming as we would never have been able to afford anything here. Well, long story short, I never listed the house because after a few minutes of talking with the owner and touring the property I made mention about how much I loved it and how my husband and I were currently looking for a home ourselves as our current home had just gone under contract. She told me to make her an offer. So I did and then told her that we could probably sell the house for entirely more then that. So I left and was scheduled to go back over a few days later to get some papers signed. That evening she called and said that she would take my offer. I was floored! I had just told her that I could sell the house for almost 50k more then what I told her I could afford, but to her it was worth not having to deal with people coming in and out for showings, open houses, all the Realtor fees that go with it. So technically, we bought the house before The Hubby had even seen it - i just asked him to trust me on it, and he did. I love that man.

The house was in need of some dire updating - its a colonial built in 1979 and nothing had been done to it since. So its been a labor of love - what we in the real estate industry like to call "sweat equity". We have big plans for the place, but we're doing to simple things first and taking it one room at a time.

This is the kitchen the way it was when we first saw it - junk included. It was dark, dirty, outdated, and had way too much brass then any one room should - then any house should for that matter.

So as you can see it was pretty bad. Our ultimate plan is to knock out the wall where the sink is that separates the kitchen from the dining room and make it one large eat in kitchen. But until we have 20k for that, we did the next best thing – we just made what we had look as nice as possible.

We refinished the cabinets, painted the walls, put in new butcher block countertops, new sink & faucet, as well as new blinds, shelves, appliances, kitchen table & chairs, and knick knacks (I’m actually not a big fan of knick knacks but The Hubby is, so we have some).

The finished product

Not too shabby eh? New flooring for the entire house is on the list, but so is landscaping for the backyard for our upcoming swing set from Make-A-Wish, new deck stairs, new sliding glass door, finished basement, new central a'/c unit, furnace…etc you get the idea. It works for now and we’re not only happy with the outcome but proud of it.

The majority of this kitchen has been brought to you by Ikea. :)

Onward with Irelyn

2009-06-11T06:26:00.001-07:00

If you would, go to http://www.slideshare.net/everno/onward-with-irelyn click on Onward with Irelyn and then click where it says vote beneath her slide show. If she wins this contest she will receive 5000$ towards making our backyard handicap accessible!

Onward with Irelyn

View more OpenOffice presentations from everno.

Oh the things I do for my babies

2009-05-21T22:15:00.001-07:00

My 5 year old…

Novaleas bday has come and gone – almost. We head up north to my parents place for a bday/memorial day picnic/bonfire this weekend. After Saturday, then her celebrating will officially come to an end…and then we move on to the Hubby’s…and then just 2 weeks later the baby will be turning 1… ACK!

Novi had a great time on her actual bday and at her party then just a couple of days later. Nothing too elaborate – just friends, food, and a lot of ice cream sundaes. Her take-in birthday treats for preschool turned out okay – not near as nice as what I would’ve liked, but the chocolate I was using on my flowers decided to revolt and absolutely refused to stick properly to the cake balls (get your mind out of the gutter). The darn things took forever to do, so by the time I was done it was after midnight (much like it is right now), I was tired, cranky, and not caring all that much if a bunch of 4 & 5 year olds thought the flowers weren’t properly adorned in pink & purple chocolate. What can I say, a perfectionist I most certainly am not. Despite it all, Novalea said they were a hit, so I actually doubt very much that her peers even took the time to look at what they were scarfing down, let alone admire its creativity and the painstaking hours that went into them.

Behold the fruits of my labor…

Like I said, the bloody chocolate refused to adhere properly – but you get the general idea of it attempting to be flowers in a flower pot. Everything being edible with the exception of the actual pot and the flowers “stem”.

Maybe one day Ill get real crazy and attempt to work with fondant.

Birthday Baking

2009-05-14T07:25:00.001-07:00

I cant believe that my baby girl – my first baby girl – is going to be 5 tomorrow! How on earth did that happen??? Gone is the 5lb baby we brought home from the hospital and in her place is a now 40lb little girl who is ready to take on the world…well at least school. She is so excited to start kindergarten in August and just as equally psyched to ride the bus. The bus is something Im not too thrilled about – the idea of my innocent little girl on a big bad school bus just doesnt sit too well. The Hubby thinks Im over reacting – he also doesnt quite seem to understand why I get so emotional when we do or talk about anything realted to her going to school. Its a big step for a mom when her first born heads off to full day kindergarten!

The girls and I are spending today getting her birthday snack made so she can take them in to her preschool class tomorrow. We are going to be attempting the Pioneer woman’s flower pot dessert (substituting ice cream for pudding) and instead of a fake flower we will be using Bakerellas flower cake pops. For her actual bday party on Sunday she is requesting an angel cake – not an angel food cake, but rather a cake that looks like an angel…not quite sure how Im going to pull that off yet. Sundays party is going to be an ice cream sundae party. Oh we’re not done. Then, the following weekend, we are heading up north to my parents place to have a Bday/Memorial Day BBQ. No clue what I’m making for that.

We dont just do birth DAYS, but rather birth WEEKS.

This was last years cake – I am no Martha Stewart, but it didn’t fall apart and it made my then 4 year old birthday girl very happy.

2009-05-12T14:05:00.001-07:00

I have some pictures that Ive been meaning to post but just havent got around to…Im gettting around to it now. Odds are if youve been by our lilbambino website you have already seen them, but it wont hurt you to see them twice.

My 29th Birthday with my sister and my girls.

Easter Morning

Mothers Day

a pound at a time

2009-05-07T10:32:00.001-07:00

Im updating with my progress in hopes that it helps to keep me accountable. Im down 4lbs and have been doing very well with my eating and have been faithful in my workouts. Yay me!

Its Bikini Time!

2009-04-23T06:17:00.000-07:00

AS IF!!

So this summer will not be bikini time, but I am determined that by next summer I will be able to wear a 2 piece bathing suit once again. I turn 29 on saturday...gulp...and I vow that I will be in the best shape of my life when I say goodbye to my 20's and grudgingly embrace my 30's.

I still have 10lbs of pregnancy weight left to lose - yes I know that shes 10 months old now. 9 months on 9 months off apparently doesnt apply to me this time around. ugh. In addition to that 10lbs I have another 10lbs that I would like to be rid of - in the name of being able to look at the scale and see the number I fantasize about - 115. The last time I was 115lbs I was 17.

Having made myself lose the weight the first two pregnancies brought on, I am aware of what I need to do to accomplish my goals, and I also know that the number on the scale is in fact just a number on a scale and that I need to judge my loss and victories by inches lost, the size I wear, and how I feel about myself - naked.

Im using the Body For Life eating plan,Power 90X for weight training, and P90X & Turbo Jam for my cardio. The goal is 6 days a week of working out, rotating between weights and cardio. Im on day 4 and the goal is 90 days. When I look at it like that its a bit daunting, but one day at a time is a bit less intimidating.

So my stats: current weight: 135
height: 5ft
current size: 8 (some 6's depending on brand)

Goal: weight: 125
ultimate weight goal: 115
height: 5'7" would be nice...
size: 4

LET THE GAMES BEGIN!

We Finally Have an Answer to That Age Old Question!

2009-02-08T17:04:00.001-08:00

I got this from a friend & found it very amusing. Thought I would share.

SNOW DAY!!

2009-01-29T07:01:00.001-08:00

Well the unthinkable happened – it actually snowed. Ok, so technically we have gotten snow already this winter, but yesterday was the first time that we had enough to actually shovel (I say “we” but I really meant my hubby). Unfortunately the snow was very quickly coated with a few layers of freezing rain, thus making its playability a bit limited. The girls gave it a whirl anyhow – they last about 15 minutes outside before they were ready to come back in. Hard, crunchy, slippery snow just isn’t a 3 & 4 year olds forte. Perhaps the next snow will be a bit more child friendly.

The girls along with their friend took time to pose before heading out

Clearing the Air…

2009-01-21T13:54:00.001-08:00

There seems to be some confusion regarding a few statements about myself on this blog. Allow me to bring clarity to those subjects.

Trophy Wife - commonly used to describe any wife who is considered a status symbol. Typically a tall, thin, blonde woman with large breasts, tiny waist, a powerful husband, and a BMW, who spends her days throwing parties and looking good on her husbands arm. Also commonly referred to as "Arm Candy"

- you be the judge: do you really think that that’s how I view myself? -

How To Be A Stay At Home While Also Working as a Realtor: not an easy task in the least, but believe it or not it is true. I spend my days getting the kids fed, clothed, and either off to school or taking all of us to playgroups. There is also the unavoidable trip to the store with all 3 kids in tow at some point (or 2) during the week. Then of course theres coloring to be done and dress up to be played, as well as a house to clean, clothes and diapers to wash, while maintaining some sort of order amongst the troops. Throw into the mix that the baby is still nursing and there’s Irelyns physical therapy session to be had each week as well as constant doctor appointments - nothing more fun then heading in for an appt with 3 kids all by yourself. So that in a nut shell covers the SAHM aspect of my job title.

In order to get the title "Realtor" in the mix I have to also take the leads that get called into me during the day from my office, make the needed phone calls, set up appointments, show houses, create and presents CMA's, host open houses, all this done with the ultimate goal of ending up at a settlement table representing either a buyer or a seller. I do all of this around my schedule with my children. All aspects of my career in which I need to leave the house are done when my husband is home with the kids - so either in the evenings or on the weekends.

My primary responsibilities are taking care of our children and our home, and then comes real estate.

According to Wikipedia:

The terms stay-at-home mom/stay-at-home dad are used, particularly if the person views his or her central role as caring for children

Merry Christmas: Bah Humbug. take your pick.

2009-01-02T08:39:00.001-08:00

Christmas and New Years have now come and gone - another holiday season survived! And now a few pictures…

The girls with their daddy on Christmas Eve getting ready to head to church

A few solo shots of the girls…

Irelyn was not having a good Christmas Eve – she wanted to wear Novalea’s dress and not her own adorable Christmas outfit. A huge tantrum occurred spanding about an hour and a half.

After church we went back home and opened our traditional Christmas Eve present – new jammies!

Then it was off to bed for the girls (with a few threats that if they didnt go to sleep then Santa wasnt going to come ) and Eric and I stayed up wrapping presents.

In the morning the girls were forced to wait to come downstairs – it was almost more then they could bare…

Finally they were given the “go-ahead” and the girls were in their glory – all except for Avaleen that is…she slept through all of the present opening! I have a feeling that next year she may feel a bit differently.

After the gifts were open and breakfast was consumed it was off to Grammy and Grandpa’s for more of the same thing. We spent the night then at my parents house and the next afternoon drove to Nana & Pop-pop’s for even more Christmas cheer.

We spent the night and then the Hubby’s parents threw Irelyn a small surprise belated birthday party – she loved it! Finally then, at about 6pm we make the trek back to our own home. When we arrived the girls were thrilled to rediscover all of the gifts they had opened on Christmas morning.

All in all a wonderful Christmas – next year however, there will be far less travelling. We have decided that if our families want to see us, they can come to us. Hauling around 3 small children and a van full of gifts for 3 days while driving 2 hours every day just doesn’t put the Christmas Spirit into us like you may imagine it would.

bring on Santa!

2008-12-24T11:20:00.001-08:00

Its Christmas Eve! The shopping is done, the baking completed, now all that remains is the wrapping. We are ahead of schedule as far as my family goes. My Hubby did have to make a run out this morning to get wrapping paper and the needed ingredients for our traditional monkey bread breakfast tomorrow morning, so now we are set. Bring on Santa!! A highlight in our house right now is that tonight for our church’s Christmas Eve service the girls get to wear their new Christmas outfits – anything involving pretty dresses, tights, fancy shoes, and velvet gets a 5 star rating from them. In addition to dressing up for Christmas Eve service, and monkey bread on Christmas morning, another tradition we have is that tonight, after church the girls will get to open one present – that present will contain their new Christmas PJ’s. Then of course we have to make sure to leave cookies and milk out for Santa and carrots for his reindeer.

I think that that about covers traditions for us. Oh, btw, my holiday baking consisted of sticky buns made from scratch. They didn’t turn out half bad – I still need to work the recipe a bit more before I can call them awesome, but they were in fact edible.

If Santa plays his cards right maybe he’ll find one of these waiting for him instead of just cookies.

Happy 3rd Birthday Irelyn!

2008-12-22T13:15:00.001-08:00

Today my Little China Doll turns 3! At 1:29pm Irelyn came into this world as a tiny beautiful little girl. She weighed in at a whopping 6lbs 9oz (and while that is tiny she was bigger then what her big sister was) and was blessed with a head of very dark hair. She was also unfortunately born with many fracture – 13 to be exact. And of those 13, 0 were detected while we were still in the hospital.

It wasn’t until she was 5 weeks old, while I was nursing her, that somehow her arm broke (the humerus). I knew right away something had happened as I heard a popping noise followed then by her screaming. I called my hubby into the room and frantically told him what had happened, so we unswaddled her and looked her over trying to figure out what had happened. During all of this I had called my mom and was on the phone with her telling her what happened and how I thin she broke something. At this point I noticed that her left arm wasn’t moving, so I told my mom that I think its her arm that's broken, to which my mom replied “baby's cant break bones Devon.” oh to know then what we know now.

Anyways, she then told me to put my finger in her hand to check her grip reflex and it was then when she didn't close her hand around mine that I knew something very serious had happened. We called her pediatrician and told them what happened and that we were taking her to the ER of our local hospital. Upon arrival at the ER we were given the third degree by the nurses – as was to be expected, after all how often does a 5 week old sustain such a serious injury without there being some form of abuse involved (hence the reason we called our pediatrician prior to going to the ER – we were anticipating there being some type of confrontation).

The whole ordeal was a complete nightmare – everything from listening to her tiny screams as she was x-rayed to having the on-call ER doctor give us his diagnosis of Osteogenesis Imperfecta. It was at that time that I myself was also told that I have OI. OI is typically a genetic disease wherein the body does not make enough collagen and as a result one of the primary affects of this is that the bones in the body become extremely thin and brittle, thus fracturing very easily. This explained alot for my own physical ailments as well as my physical feature, including one of the primary “tell-tale signs” of OI – blue sclera (the white part of the eye – in OI patients the white is in fact blue).

After the initial diagnosis we made a trip to a geneticist at Hershey Medical Center where the diagnosis was confirmed with an insanely expensive blood test ($4000), and then a full body x-ray was done where the initial 13 fractures were identified – 2 of which happened while I was still pregnant with her!

Irelyn’s first year of life was a blur of doctors, specialists, hospitalizations, treatments, fractures, fears, and faith. The next year of life consisted of a bit of the same with many more fractures having occurred. I am praying that this third year will give her and us the peace we’ve all been seeking. No fractures this year – that is our prayer. 30 is more then enough for any person, let alone a 3 year old to ever have to endure.

Aside from all of that, today is my little girls birthday. Happy Birthday Irelyn!

Holy Birthday Present Batman!

2008-12-15T19:45:00.001-08:00

My daughter Irelyn has Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI) - a fact that I have mentioned and will continue mentioning numerous times throughout this blog, as it is such a huge part of our every day lives. She has had a very difficult 3 years of life, but despite it all she is a happy, loving, hyper little girl. Her 3rd birthday is next week (22nd) and today she got what I believe to be the most incredible gift ever - today we were told that Irelyn is going to be receiving a wish from The Make A Wish Foundation! A woman from our church nominated Irelyn and then we were contacted by the foundation. They asked us a bunch of questions and then contacted Irelyn's OI specialist, Dr. Shapiro from KKI, and he provided all of her medical facts that would determine if she was eligible or not, and that was that!

We will be getting a letter which will explain all of the in's and out's of it, but the basics of it is that Irelyn will get to make a wish - be it a trip to Disney World or chance to run free in FAO Schwartz or (what I personally would love her to have) an OI friendly backyard complete with a swingset she can enjoy for years. Whatever it is, I want it to be her choice - what she wants. I'll keep ya updated as this all progresses!

The Passing of a Legend...of Unholy Terror!!

2008-12-06T18:47:00.001-08:00

A moment of silence if you will…

I received a phone call from my dad 2 days ago informing me that a member of our family had died. Those kind of phone calls are never pleasant except perhaps in this case. Before you think me completely insensitive, allow me to explain. Sylvester had been a member of the family for the last 4 years. My youngest brother Sean brought him home one day – why, no one knows, but none the less, he showed up with him and so he stayed. At first everyone thought it was kind of cool having Sylvester around. I was a bit shocked when my mom called to tell me of the new addition to their household, but knowing my parents inability to turn any breathing thing away, and my brothers odd sense of humor, it made sense that Sylvester would find a home there. So there he stayed, and there he took over.

Tyrant is hardly the word to describe him…perhaps malicious, menacing, man eating terror is a bit closer, but even then…bottom line is, is that only my brothers liked Sylvester and my parents put up with him for the same reason they put up with my brothers – no one else will. ha-ha! *kidding boys* So anyways, after countless trips to my parents house of the years, and listening to my girls scream in panic as we approached the house and then the inevitable mad dash to the front door before we were detected by Sylvester, I can hardly say that I'm going to miss him. When I told the girls that he had died they actually erupted in cheers! Followed then by a long drawn out “ewwwwwwww” after they asked how he died.

You see, Sylvester was given to roam free on my parents land – approx 5 acres or so in the middle of nowhere – and the other night some stray dogs wondered into the yard and…well, basically, Sylvester became a late night snack. Now, after myself having been victim to multiple attacks by Sylvester, and having had to beat him off with a long stick that was kept near my parents front door (so as to be able to exit the house in some manner of safety) many many times, I cant help but feel slightly sorry for him. I mean, I never would've wished him devoured by some random k9 – run over with my van, bashed in the head with “the stick”, or stoned to death, yes, but not eaten.

So it is with that, on that only note of remorse for his tragic passing that I do indeed feel the need to post about him. If I had a glass Id raise it….why don't I have any wine in the house? Where was I…oh yes, To Sylvester. May he be able to use the peace that he took from me and my family, and may he be greeted into the pearly shack by the females he never knew here on earth (I always contributed his cruelty to a combination of loneliness and blue balls). To Sylvester. Here Here

My brother TJ with the dearly departed.

Victoria Secret May Have Won This Round…

2008-11-30T17:56:00.001-08:00

Friends of mine gave me a gift card to Victoria Secrets while I was pregnant with daughter #3. What a wonderful treat – the Lord knows I didn’t need anymore baby blankets or newborn sleepers. I’m really not a VS girl as I just cant see spending 10$ on a pair of underwear when I can buy a pack of 5 for 7$ at Target. I do admit to owning one VS bra – a demi – which was extremely comfortable and actually did its job very well, but buying a 50$ bra is a luxury I cant afford. Ummmmm, where was I going with this?

Ah yes, so the Hubby and I were feeling rather daring and decided to take the girls to the mall – taking a stroller, a 2 year old with a walker, and a 4 year old who has to stop and look at every store we pass, on a Sunday afternoon, during the holiday season, is no easy feat. We decided to let the girls have a ride on the little merry-go-round that’s in the middle of the mall in the name of a moments sanity and to provide a decoy – while they were riding I slipped off to VS to spend my gift card.

First of all, what is it with the employee dress code at VS? Why must they dress in all black when the rest of the store is pink and gold? Anyhow, so I carefully approached one of the sales girls on the floor and asked her where their nursing bras were. Now, I knew that VS didn’t carry nursing bras, however a friend of mine told me that they just started selling them on their website, so my thought was that they may have them in the store. Of course though, that makes too much sense. Why would a store who specializes in underwear and bras carry a bra that is made specifically for what the female breast is intended for?!?! Man that just ticks me off!! YOURE A BRA STORE!! SELL NURSING BRAS!!! ARGH!!

The sales girl was very nice about it though and even admitted that she thought it was absurd that they didn’t have any. Before I could ask her my next question she was taken from me by a 19 year old looking male in search of a garter belt for his girlfriend… Trust me my friend, your girlfriend does not want a garter belt for Christmas just because you think it would look cute on her. They are horribly uncomfortable and lets face it, they don’t stay on very long. So why spend 45$ on something that going to remain under her skirt until the “moment strikes” and then its just going to be in crumpled mess on the floor – that is if you know how to get it off.

Let me sum the rest of this 15 minute excursion of mine up. I then spent 10 minutes patiently waiting for someone to help me but no one did. I wanted a pair of Spanx – I figured that if I couldn’t buy anything to hold the girls up then I would get something to hold my stomach in. But alas, I left the store empty handed. Now I have to go back just so I can get the darn Spanx and its very likely that I’m going to have to go with all 3 children in tow with no husband around to help.

Turkey day

2008-11-28T16:52:00.001-08:00

Well, we survived another Thanksgiving at my in-laws. Not that there’s any particular reason why we wouldn’t, but anytime you pile 3 small children, a nursing mom, a husband with a head cold, suitcases, jumperoos, wheelchairs, and a kitchen table (don’t ask), into an Uplander and head out on what should be a 2 hour drive but always ends up being much longer (in this case a bit over 3 hours), not only is it inevitable that you get one crazy run-on sentence but also a lot of stress.

Throw into the mix the fact that I managed to pack for everyone in my family and not forget anything, but when it came to packing for myself, I walked out the door without a shirt to wear for turkey day. So, after we got the older two down for bed the Hubby and I ran to Old Navy so I could grab something. I hate shopping in general, I especially hate shopping when I’m still holding onto 15lbs of pregnancy weight, and Old Navy is no place for 5 foot tall, size D wearing, mommy belly sufferer. After 20 minutes in the store and getting fully depressed we left empty handed and headed to Wal-mart. I was able to get something there – nothing great, but it kept me from sitting at Thanksgiving dinner in my bra.

When we got back to my in-laws, the baby was awake and stayed that way for hours – and also made sure to wake up MULTIPLE times throughout the night. The Hubby managed to sleep through it.

The morning brought on its own tragedy as my 2 year old somehow tripped while in the kitchen and hurt her “boo-boo leg”. This is the leg that has sustained 7 fractures and a rodding surgery in the last year. She hurt it severely enough where she wasnt able to walk or stand on it at all and screamed in pain when we tried to put her pants on her. We decided to hold off on a trip to the ER until we were back home – taking an OI child to unfamiliar hospital is not the best idea.Praise God that by midmorning today she was able to walk again with her walker! Its still very tender for her but she is mobile, so we’ll just have to take extra precautions and keep an eye on it.

All in all though, it was a good time spent with family. Now we just have to get through Christmas which will be at my parents house and we’ll be good for another year.

Eeewww…

2008-11-25T13:27:00.001-08:00

The baby has been battling a cold for the last week or so and last night was the worst night yet. She did not sleep at all and rather then just being awake she was awake and screaming. Throw in the fact that my Hubby left for work at 6am, didn’t get home until after 9pm, then came home with a migraine and went to straight to bed. I’m not quite sure I could’ve been any more stressed out then what I was at 2:30am when I finally couldn’t take anymore and woke him up and asked for his help. It then turned into a really long night for both of us.

This afternoon my friend Kelli came over to deliver unto me a Silly Goose baby carrier – YAY!! I am very pro baby wearing, for no other reason then I simply do not have enough hands sometimes to take care of everybody at once. After she left, I strapped the baby in and was anticipating an evening of rather smooth sailing.

(my 4 year old took the picture)

Mere moments after this picture was shot, the baby turned her head directly into my chest and vomited. No really. sigh. So, no carrier for us until I get it washed.

Its now about 4:30pm and I’m exhausted. I have another night of no husband – he’s a teacher and this week is parent teacher conferences. So I’m tired, I’m rather cranky, the baby is ill, and my other two girls are currently in last years Christmas dresses complete with all the trimmings - they are running around the house yelling “I’m Barbie Christmas Story!!” (don’t ask me – I have no clue what they’re talking about).

Is it bedtime yet?

2008-11-21T18:05:00.000-08:00

So, I love to read. I do. I'm a bookworm from way back, but have just not had the time to really do it these last few years. Yes, I said years. In September while the hubby and I were at Sam's Club with the girls (free samples, carts big enough to put all 3 kids in, and a place where mommy and daddy can actually shop - everyone wins), I came upon the book aisle. Hubby decided it would be a good idea for me to pick up a book while we were there - seriously, he insisted that I do so. I grabbed the first one with a decent looking cover. The name of that book? Twilight. Ok, so unless you've been living under a rock, chances are you have at least heard of the Twilight Series if not read them. I am actually still recovering from the shock of quickly I devoured all 4 books - all 4 done in 2 weeks. I'm not normally one for the young adult genre, but there was just something about these books that hooked me in and held me captive. Today marked opening day for the movie, and when I last checked, it was already up to 7 million dollars. Not bad for a rather low budget teenage vampire love story. I haven't seen it yet, but i do plan on it. I know it wont compare to the book - a movie never does - but curiosity has gotten the best of me and I must know how Hollywood's characters compare to the ones that i have created from imagination and written word.

Shall We Dine?

2008-11-21T17:23:00.001-08:00

In addition to birthing children, trying to keep up in the real estate game, and seeing to it that everyone in my care is clean, fed, and clothed, I have also been taking on my house. My lovely late 70's colonial with its 4 bedrooms (all with vintage shag carpet in select colors), 2.5 baths (pictures of the psychedelic yellow wallpaper to come), and more brass lighting fixtures then any one home should have. During my most recent pregnancy I took on the house like a woman on the edge of reason - painting anything I could get my hands on, buying furniture, and throw pillows, hanging pictures, and cleaning as I went (gotta love the nesting phase of pregnancy)...but then I gave birth and along with my very large and round stomach I also lost that insatiable desire to improve upon my home - to say the very least of finishing projects I had already started. sigh...this brings me to today and my accomplishment. My dining room.

This particular room was started when I was about 6 months pregnant. The first step was getting rid of the old brass chandelier and replacing it with a new one (Sam's club for a whopping 35$).

The room didn't get touched again until I was 38 weeks pregnant when in a desperate moment I tore down all the hideous plaid country-like wallpaper - along with some of the drywall paper too. oops.

Exactly 1 week later I went into labor and baby girl #3 came into this world
Here she is then...awwwwww...

Ok, so back on track with the room...When the baby was about 5 weeks old I then took care of the drywall tears by coating it with Zinz primer and then adding joint compound. Once the compound is on, you simply let it dry and then sand it down - this can be rather messy so a mask and an open window is a good idea. You also want to hang blankets or plastic drop cloths on the doorways so as to prevent the dust from laying over your entire home opposed to just one room.

Then the room stayed like this for awhile. A REALLY REALLY long while. About 2 months after I primed it. I decided that enough was enough, and started to paint. The paint I had purchased from Sears at the same time I bought my primer and compound - so I had had it for awhile. Truth be told, it took me about a week to simply tape off the room , but then once that lovely blue painters tape was everywhere, I got started. It took me a whole month to finish the painting, and then just today I finished up the trim, rehung the curtain, and vacuumed. (a project can only be full completed when the room is clean - at least clean long enough to take a picture of). So, I started when I was 38 weeks pregnant and my baby is now almost 5 months old. You do the math. And no, the room is not a large one.

The completed project...

I'm not in love with the place mats but they were only 1$ a piece at The Christmas Tree Shoppe so they'll do for now, and the plant is there only because I have no other place to put it for the time being.

Who cares. The point is the room is done!

2008-11-18T07:16:00.000-08:00

After months upon agonizing months of being forced to remain on her bottom due to broken tibias, a femur, and a major rodding surgery, my little girl has started walking!! She is so stinkin' proud of herself - as she should be.

KIDS EAT FREE!

2008-11-16T16:29:00.000-08:00

Restaurants where Kids Eat Free!

MondayMargaritas - kids eat free all day
Hangtown Grill - kids eat free all day
Gattiland - moms eat free
TGI Friday ' s - kids eat free and get free animal balloons
Texadelphia South - kids eat free
Zuzu - kids free after 6:00 p.m.
La Salsa - kids eat free after 4:00 p.m.
Double Daves Pizza - kids under 5 eat free
Serranos - kids eat free
Joes Crab Shack - Kids meal $0.99 up to two meals per paying adult

Tuesday
Spaghetti Warehouse - kids eat free at night
Fazoli ' s - kids eat for $0.99 from 5:00 - 8:00 p.m.
Kerbey Lane - kids eat free all day
Denny ' s - kids eat free from 4:00 - 10:00 p.m.
Chick-fil-A - kids eat free after 5:00 p.m.
Bennigan ' s - kids eat free after 5:00 p.m.
Zuzu - kids eat free after 6:00 p.m.
La Salsa - kids eat free after 4:00 pm
McAllisters - kids eat free
Double Daves Pizza - kids under 5 eat free
Central Market - N. Lamar kids eat free
Joes Crab Shack - $0.99 kids meals up to two per paying adult

Wednesday
Luby ' s - kids eat free after 4:30 p.m.
EZ ' s - kids eat free all day
Moe ' s Southwest Grill - kids eat free after 5:00 p.m.
Central Market - kids eat free after 5:00 p.m.
Zen - kids eat free after 5:00 p.m.
La Salsa - kids eat free
Double Daves Pizza - kids under 5 eat free
Joes Crab Shack - $0.99 kids meals up to two per paying adult

Thursday
La Salsa - kids eat free
Double Daves Pizza- kids under 5 eat
Joe ' s Crab Shack - $0.99 kids meals to two per paying adult

Saturday
Luby ' s - kids eat free all day
Texas Land & Cattle - kids eat free from 11:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
SundaySouper Salad - kids aged 3-5 eat for $0.50; kids aged 6-12 eat for $0.99Zen - kids eat free all day
Texadelphia - kids eat free at certain locations

All Week
Cici ' s Pizza - kids under 3 eat free
Fresh Choice - kids aged 2 and under eat free; kids aged 3-5 eat for $.99; kids aged 6-8 eat for $2.99
Denny ' s - kids eat free on their birthday
Pizza Hut ' s lunch buffet - kids eat free
Lonestar Steakhouse -- 2 kids eat free with each adult entree on

Tuesday's
Chick-fil-A -- Usually offers a family night where you buy one combo and receive a free child's meal (on Tuesdays)
Golden Corral -- on Tuesday nights kids eat free.
Roadhouse Grill -- kids eat free on Tues nights

Applebee’s -- All day on Monday -- get one free kids meal with the purchase of one adult entree. Additional kids eat for only $1.00! Kids also get a free sundae upon request only.

Backyard Burgers -- Monday -- Buy one adult combo meal and get a kids meal free for kids 12 and under from 4 p.m. to close.

Zaxby's -- Monday -- 3pm - 10pm Kids 10 and under - Kids menu items available for $.99 - Includes a drink (Up to 3 children per adult meal purchase).

Im a work in progress

2008-11-16T13:04:00.000-08:00

ok, so its been almost a year since I lasted posted...oops. It hasnt been for lack of wanting to write, but rather lack of time and sanity. In the last year I became pregnant and had a baby (our third girl) in June, continued to attempt to balance my career as a Realtor as well as that of being a SAHM, settled into our new house (an ongoing event), and unfortunately, spent more time in the hospital with my 2 y/o daughter then any parent should ever have to. Irelyn sustained 12 new fractures this year alone along with a recent rodding surgery of her right tibia and femur, which in turn cuased some intestinal problems which had us at GI pediatric doctor at Hershey Medical Center. Overwhelmed hardly describes how I have felt these last months. Everything has been revolving around hospitals, breast feeding, preschool, and trying desperately to keep up with work. It is my work that has had to take a back seat - a fact that I absolutely hate. I so much want to feel like something more then a "mom" and my job allows me to do that, but when I cant put the time and energy into it that I need to, then I end up feeling like a mom and a failure. A bit harsh I know, but I tend to be rather hard on myself - Im a work in progress. Im learning to be patient with me.

2008-11-10T13:39:00.001-08:00

im gearing up to make a come back....just need a bit more time...

Tuesday

2008-01-29T05:12:00.000-08:00

Why do mornings come so early? Why was i woken from a rather deep sleep by the shrill playful screams of my 3 and 2 year old? It wouldnt be quite so bad if it wasn't for the fact that I didnt fall asleep til 2am....i had a sore throat, which caused me to need to drink alot, which in turn caused me to pee every 15 mins throughout the night. That and the fact that my husband fell asleep downstairs - when hes in bed with me i sometimes think how nice it would be to have the bed all to myself, but then when he's not there i cant sleep. Odd how that works is it not?

Tuesdays To Do List: Paint the playroom
Pay my realtor dues *sob*
Pay the caterer who did my sisters shower *sob again*
Be broke again until the tax return shows up
Fill out a New Listing folder for the clients I just picked up
Drive to Northeastern to have my new clietns sign al paperwork
Make a few work related phone calls
LAUNDRY!!!

So Im tired, Im busy, Im broke, and already the children are boinging off of the walls *note to self - do not mix fruit loops and cinnamon & sugar toast for breakfast*

bridal showers, painting, and dresses, oh my!

2008-01-20T13:12:00.000-08:00

My little sister Alison is getting married on Feb 2ND. I am the matron of honor. I never realized how much work goes along with such a title! I never had a "real wedding" with bridesmaids, cakes, the dress...etc (long story), and all of my friends are either still single, or were already married when we became friends so my wedding experience is limited. I do know though that I am suppose to throw the bride a bridal party, and that I am doing - this Saturday. Initially I suggested having it here at my house, then my sister presented me her bridal party invitee list....35 people! My house isn't small, but its definitely not capable of handling that many women. So then I had hoped that we would be able to have it at the local swing dance club where both my sister and her fiance are active members/dance instructors/board members, but that fell through. My backup plan was then to have it at my church in their reception hall, and i was given the green light with that, but i would've had to do it much later in the day then when both my sister and I had wanted to do so, and I would've had to come up with center pieces for the tables and all that jazz - ugh. So, we are having it here. The good news though is that out of 35 people invited, only 10 replied that they are coming, 11 said they couldn't make it, and the others have yet to RSVP - even though their cut off time was last Monday. So i am planning on 15 people. In order to spare myself the hassle of preparing food I have hired a dear friend of ours to cater the event, so that takes alot of stress off. What doesn't help though is the fact that we have only lived in this house for a month, we are still not completely unpacked, we are still working on making the house "ours".

Well, I now have 6 days to make the house presentable to people i do not know. Lovely. Today I painted our family room - a lovely shade of blue which at the present moment i really like (dh helped me out by reaching the top of the wall - im short). I also bought new curtains for our sliding glass door in the room, and would love it if i was able to run out and buy wainscoting and put it up beneath the chair rail by Saturday, but I'm not going to hold my breath. :-) I also need to find a few pieces to put on the mantel and at least one picture which ties in my blue, burgundy, and whites. Down the road i will be adding new flooring, and a new coffee table & end tables - but not before Saturday.

Tomorrow I will be attacking the girls playroom, which is actually the first room in the house you see upon entering (the room would typically be a more formal living room). I will be painting that room Orange - jovial orange to be exact. We also made a trip to Ikea on Friday, and got new curtains for in that room as well as some new storage containers for the girls toys (and we got the girls a new bookcase and new curtains for their bedroom - i love the way that room is coming together!). Based upon how tomorrow goes, Eric and I are talking about trying to get the dinning room done before Saturday as well. That will require stripping the wallpaper and painting that room - purple. I forget the exact name of the purples, but it will be a lighter purple with a slight grey undertone on the top half, and then below the chair rail will be a a purple just 2 shades darker. We also bought a new chandelier for the dinning room and installed that - its amazing what the right lighting will do to a room! I will post pictures of everything once it is finished.

So anyways, those are my tentative plans for this week. The nice thing is that Eric will be home tomorrow due to it being Martin Luther King day, so I should be able to get alot done. regardless of what I do accomplish, the bridal shower will be nice and the food will be fantastic and make up for what i dont get to do. :-) My next big concern will then focus to the fact that I do NOT fit into my dress for the wedding! We ordered it prior to me finding out I was pregnant, and then when we attempted to change the order the dress place wouldnt allow it unless I bought a new dress altogether, and at 150$ a dress I wasnt about to do that. So the dress came in 2 weeks ago - about 6 inches to small around my growing belly. I made the 2 hour trip north to Bloomsburg with my girls to see if the dress shop could alter it - they said its going to be close. lovely. I get to drive back up on Friday to try it on and see what the deal is. Im praying that its wearable!

Well thats enough of all of that for now.

Family Room Inspiration

2008-01-11T13:10:00.001-08:00

This weekend I am really hoping to get our family room painted....or at least I will purchase the paint - we'll see where my energy level is at. :-) My inspiration is the picture above. We have an extremely large merlot colored sectional sofa which i feel hinders me alot in my color choices. At our old house the living room was a rather limey type of green with some smokey undertones. I dont want to do the red and green color scheme again, so im branching out and will be trying the blue. we'll see what happens.

A battle against sleep

2008-01-11T08:51:00.000-08:00

Today is one of the rare days with the girls and I are staying home all day long. Normally i try to be out and about as much as possible - be it a trip to the mall or the store or just every day errands - it helps to wear them out a bit, which is always nice when it comes to nap time. But speaking of nap time....ugh....what used to be a very simple, very peaceful event has turned into a nightmare that lasts from 1:30 (nap time) to bed time! Neither one of the girls wants to take a nap anymore, but they both need it. Irelyn is the instigator - ever since we put her into a "big girl bed" she refuses to stay put in the darn thing! It takes me about an hour and a half to get her to finally fall asleep - she will climb out of bed at least 50 times before finally getting the hint that I mean business. Despite the fact that shes been lectured, spanked on the bottom, put on time out and threatened with violence. :-) Yesterday, Novalea fell asleep after about 45 minutes, and miss Irelyn managed to completely avoid her nap altogether. I need nap time to happen - not only does eliminate me from having to deal with overly tired and cranky toddlers, but being the pregnant high strung momma that I am now, I myself also need a nap!! Bedtime is the same thing - only the roles are reversed and it is Novalea who is the leader then. She HATES going to bed. I hate battling this every single day, twice a day. Any ideas?

organization please

2008-01-07T19:24:00.000-08:00

With the start of the new year comes resolutions - at least for most people. I myself have never been much of a resolution type person. At least not at the start of the new year...if anything I think the time to start a resolution is on your birthday. Anyways, it matters not, what does matter though is that everywhere I go people are talking about getting organized - almost rubbing it in that they are getting organized and I, am not. Well, okay, so theyre not actually rubbing it in but im overly sensitive on this subject since being organized is something that I am so not at the moment. Im getting there though. Ive written out my business plan for work for the year. This week will consist on getting the girls room completely unpacked, their clothes sorted and put away, and the clothes that no longer fit will be boxed up. I have to start making my menu for dinner and lunch for the week so there is NO excuse to eat out. Eric and I are going to sit down and open up a mint.com account as well as an ING account - time to get the budget in order....our new mortgage payment is coming and its a bit intimidating having to pay 300$ more a month then what we were on the last mortgage. So every little bit we can save will be worth it.

All of that on top of the fact that there is still stuff to unpack, i havent paintes a single wall in a house where EVERY wall needs to be painted, I need curtains - but cant get those til i pick a color pallet. We've made some minor improvements - over the holidays we picked out and installed new lighting in the foyer and in the kitchen, so thats a step in the right direction. Its very frustrating to have so much you have to do, so much you want to do, and neither the time or the energy to do it. This is where the organization would come in handy.

What I have been up to

2007-12-27T18:50:00.001-08:00

Okay, so its been a few months since Ive posted here. So much has happened since I had my first pangs of inspiration to start this blog. My daughter Irelyn broke her right tibia, healed, then fractured her C2 vertebrae which called for a helicopter ride to Johns Hopkins pedi trauma unit (she thankfully is okay - no paralyzation of any kind), then just a week or so after we were home from that ordeal, she re fractured her right tibia. So the months of September and October were pretty much spent in the hospital and ER's.

Then there was the ordeal of selling our house. argh!! Long story short - the people who put the offer in that we accepted, turned out to be complete jerks and put us through hell. What made the whole thing even more dramatic is that i was acting as their realtor as well as ours. We were suppose to have closed on Oct 31st...the settlement got pushed back 4 times because the mortgage brokerage they opted to go with (though i specifically told them not to use a brokerage) had no idea what they were doing, and just screwed everything up. We had to postpone our move multiple times which meant calling the moving company last minute to reschedule 4 times - they just loved that. Then there was the adjusting of our utilities multiple times...the day before we actually did end up moving out, we came home that night to discover that the gas company had turned the gas off a day earlier then scheduled - so we had no heat in our house til about 1am....no heat, in December, in Pennsylvania. It was as if everything that could possibly go wrong with every aspect of the transaction did. We did finally close though - on December 7th we became the new owners of a 4bed 2.5 bth 2100+sq ft colonial, in a beautiful neighborhood, on a quiet street, with a large fenced yard for the girls.

We got such a deal on this house that everything we went through in order to get it was worth it. The new place needs to be updated. It was built in 1979 and pretty much everything is original. Our downstairs bath has lovely yellow psychedelic wallpaper with matching yellow sink and yellow laminate flooring. the flooring that runs from the entry way into the kitchen is a faux brick linoleum - classy. The kitchen consists of dark brown 70's cabinets, yellow laminate counter top and back splash, with large gold hardware, and original 1979 appliances - complete with dark brown hanging lanterns as lighting. We have so far purchased new stainless steel appliances, thus replacing the loud white refrigerator, disgusting, broken range that was literally hardwired into the house - had to have an electrician come out so that we could get that taken care of - a new dishwasher, and microwave/hood which we still have to install because we are going to have to cut into the above cabinets in order to get it to fit. Lets hear it though for stainless steel! minus the fingerprints, its great.

Basically it all breaks down to, this house is in need of a complete cosmetic redo. I cant wait to really get started. The biggest obstacle right now though is that I am completely out of energy to do anything...even finishing unpacking. the reason? I am 13 weeks pregnant with baby #3. Yep. preggers. No idea how it happened...well, maybe i know how, but im still in shock. so this makes us 0 and 3 as far as planning a pregnancy goes. :-) Baby #3 is due July 4th, and this will be our last child. Novalea will only be 4 when this new baby is born, Irelyn will be 2.5. *gulp* The nice thing though is that once I my nesting instincts kick in I will get so much done around here! During my last pregnancy I was able to refinish my kitchen cabinets, install new back splash, paint my living room, bedroom, bathroom, and guest room, and completely switch two rooms around.

And on that note, the girls are out of bed and standing on the top of the stairs crying because they do not want to go to sleep...

the first post is the deepest

2007-09-09T15:26:00.000-07:00

Well, maybe not the deepest, but perhaps the most intimidating. In a time where blogs seem to have run amuck, where you can read tips, opinions, and views from everyone from CEO's to teachers to the crazy old lady that lives down the street, I cant help but wonder, "How do i compete?" I actually wonder this with most things i do. The current leader of the pack in regards to this though deals with my new journey into the real estate business. "How do i compete?" I havent quite figured it out. The odds are against me...I cant work a FT schedule due to my kids, Im only 4 weeks into this so there is SO much i do not know, and Im not from this area, which means my connections are much more minnimal then what those of most people would be. Such is life I suppose. I want this. I need this. This is mine. Bottom line.

Enough of such chatter. So my goal, my theme, my purpose if you will of this blog is to educate. I am in no way a walking bounty of knowledge in all aspects and degrees of life, but I do however have a good deal of formidable know how on hands on projects - and i work on a budget! A real budget - meaning, Very Little to NO money. Eric (the hubby) and I joke and say that I spend as much time in Home Depot as the average woman spends in the mall. Im an HGTV (and foodnetwork) junkie. We just recently upgraded our cable package and we now get DIY as well, but I have yet to really get into that - in time. Please dont think that this is going to be a blog all about grouting and choosing cabinet hardware, because its not. I have a life outside of my hobby. Im a wife, a mother to two little girls - Novalea is 3 and Irelyn will be 2 in December. Irelyn and I both have a rare bone disease called Osteogenesis Imperfecta (aka: OI aka: Brittle Bone Disease), so dealing with that is a part of everyday life (Irelyn is more severe then I am in regards to OI, but on the grand scale she is only at a moderate level). In addition to wifery, motherhood, and diseases, I am also a part time DJ and as I mentioned earlier, I am also a new Realtor. A bit of a full plate, but I like it that way. And on that note my first blogger post comes to an end. The oven has just started going off, which means my Monkey Bread is done!

MONKEY BREAD RECIPE

3 packages of buttermilk biscuit tubes
1 cup sugar (divided)
2 teaspoons cinnamon1 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar

Take 3 packages of buttermilk biscuit tubes (10 per roll) and cut each roll into 4 pieces.
Drop roll pieces into 1 cup sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon.
Drop sugar-coated pieces into a well buttered Bundt pan (don't squish roll pieces when placing them in the Bundt pan).
Put 1/2 cup of the left-over sugar/cinnamon mix and 1/2 cup packed brown sugar and 1 cup of butter (2 sticks) into a small saucepan.
Bring this mixture just to a boil; remove from heat immediately. Carefully drizzle over the roll pieces.

Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes.
Cool slightly in an upright position, then tip pan over onto a plate to remove monkey pull-apart bread.